The Experiment

Welcome to the Skeld

Groaning softly Sykkuno rolls over in his cot, his eyes fluttering open to look at the plain curtain before him. Realization flickering across his tired brown eyes the young messy haired man sits up and looks around. He was laying on a plain white bed, dressed in a simple hospital gown, surrounded by a curtain on rings. Unsure of how he got in this situation Sykunno stands and walks across the cold tiled floor to pull the curtain back. 

"H-Hello?" Timid as always he steps out into the room, the walls lined with nine identically curtained beds. 

After checking each of the rooms to find them empty Sykkuno, still in his gown, makes his way to the door where a table holds ten identical boxes. Making his way past all of the boxes the young man finds one after the other empty before finding one with his full name on it. Reaching in the messy haired boy pulls out a lime green jumpsuit with the number 04 printed in a plain black font on the front.

"At least it's clothing." He steps back into one of the curtained rooms to change before making his way out of the medbay and into the hallway.

As he walks down the long metal corridor deja vu swirls in the back of his mind. 'why does this look so familiar?' Chewing on his lip Sykkuno is lost in his thoughts as he runs right into something. The something grunts and stumbles back. 

"Ah-I-I'm so sorry, I wasn't looking where I was going." Frightened brown eyes look up into tired grey ones, the mass of curly black hair almost masking the other's eyes completely. 

"N-no it's fine." Something about that deep voice felt so familiar to him, but what was it? "Wait, Sykkuno?" 

"Ye-yeah I- wait Corpse?! Oh Jesus I thought you sounded familiar!" A sense of calm washed over him in the strange place. "Do you know where we are?" His eyes wander over the taller deep voiced man, he was dressed in a similar black jumpsuit #07, a black mask stretched across his face. 'So this is what Corpse looks like.'

"No, no one seems to. I woke up in medbay and found this suit in a box with my name on it." Reaching up with his black nailed hands he pulls at the stiff fabric of the suit, his intense gaze looking over the smaller male.

"No one? Wait are there others here?" The hopefulness in his kind eyes made a small smile slip across Corpse's face. Nodding the taller man turns and with Sykkuno in tow made his way back the way he had come. 

After a few yards of walking in silence voices begin drifting down the hall from a large set of double doors. Walking into the cafeteria Sykkuno is shocked to find that not only was Corpse with him but most of his friends were here also. Finding a seat next to the red clad Rae the timid boy finds himself in a whirlwind of confusion and questions. As the others discuss where they think they could be Sykkuno finds himself lost in thought. 'So Rae, Felix, Jack, Charlie, Toast, Poki, Dave, Jaiden, Corpse and I are all here, but none of us know how we got here or where here even is.' 

"Wait, wait, what is the last thing everyone remembers?" Charlie's voice cuts through his thoughts pulling him back to the conversation at hand. 

"I remember signing out of discord last night and going to bed." Toast says in a very monotone voice many of the American based streamers reciting similarly. 

"I was working and went to run some errands before lunch but I don't really remember what happened." Jack states a look of concern on his face. 

"Dave and I were in a discord call and I remember hearing something in my apartment so I hopped off to go check but after that I have no clue." Jaiden twirls a strand of hair between her fingers nervously. 

"C-corpse and I were going to play Minecraft for a stream last night but I don't remember ever hopping on." Sykkuno looks over to his friend for some kind of confirmation. 

"Oh, that's because you weren't on. I tried to message you on discord but you didn't respond so I figured you had fallen asleep so I signed out and that's all I can remember." Corpse's deep gray eyes were focused on his hands clenched on the table, lost in thought. 

-DING- A loud sharp sound fills the cafeteria followed by the sound of an intercom crackling before a very full voice comes over the loud speaker. 

"Welcome all, it is good to see that you are all awake and moving about. The ten of you should be very familiar with not only each other but your surroundings. For those that haven't figured out where you are just yet, welcome to your new home for the foreseeable future, your very own version of the Skeld. At the front of the room you will find iPads, they will tell you your tasks each day." Confused looks fill the room as a tray pops out of the wall. "As an extra incentive to encourage you to do your tasks, if the tasks are not completed then your stay here will be cut tragically short. Get some rest and enjoy your stay." The intercom cuts off leaving more questions than answers. 

Overwhelmed by the sudden situation and noise Sykkuno stands from the table and walks quietly over to the tray and grabs the stack of iPads carrying them to the table. Grabbing his own he turns and walks slowly out of the cafeteria following a little green blip on the map before him. The map looked so similar to the one from the game they had all played so often, the only difference being a stairwell that he was sure wasn't in the game. Letting the curiosity get the better of him he makes his way to the far side of the ship and begins descending the stairs. The small hallway before him had ten identical metal doors each marked with a number. 'I wonder if that is why we have numbers on our suits.' Walking over to the door with a large 04 painted on it Sykkuno slides the door open to find a small bed room set up for him. A simple twin sized bed sits neatly made against the back wall, a metal chair sits under a large shelf ran the length of the room seeming to function as a table ontop of which sat a little plastic card. Upon closer inspection he found that the card contained all of his personal information including his blood type and a picture Sykkuno was very sure he had never taken. Against the other wall was a smaller set of sliding doors and upon closer inspection Sykkuno found that it seemed to be a closet holding 10 other jumpsuits and a couple more casual outfits as well as socks and boxers. Closing the closet doors and pocketing the card he decides to make his way back to the cafeteria and get the group.