Stasis (temporary title, feedback appreciated)
Jan 3, 2013 16:46:23 GMT -8
Post by Penny Royals on Jan 3, 2013 16:46:23 GMT -8
“Wake up.”
The voice rang out like a bell. It was loud, commanding, a change from the soft grindings of machines and pencils on paper. It cut through the chambers, through the gel, through the wires, and into their heads.
Some didn’t wake up. They hadn’t, for years, and those ones never again would. Their vital signs, as they were displayed on the master monitor before the man, had gone flat. Their bodies would be disposed of after autopsies in the labs.
But not all was lost. For at these words, six bodies were roused from their sleep- two boys, four girls, each from different times, each completely different people in a completely different world than they’d remember. There was Arnold Frank, from 1999; James Horn, from 2012; Mona Randall, from 1948; Susan Young, from 1965; Tabby Barnes, from 1977; and finally, Emily Winchester, from 2002.
It was Emily who was particularly strange waking up. At the sounds pulsating through the head band into her ears, her eyes shot open. She inhaled the fixed oxygen deeply, startled by this whole thing. The doors to the pods were being opened, slowly rotating outwards so that the goo they’d all been swimming in for the past several hundred years could seep out onto the floor. From the ceiling of the pods, water rained down on them, cold and harsh, driving the remains of the gel out of their hair and the creases of their bodies.
Scientists surrounded them, coming over to their pods and slowly taking off their wires, their headbands, holding them up so that they wouldn’t fall over. Emily was slowly working on getting her land legs back when two hands reached out to her, belonging to a man in a suit. A bit startled, she ran her gaze from the cuffs of his jacket to his face. He seemed nice enough, giving her a kindly smile. She took his hands tightly, and stepped out of her home.
The shock of the wet ground hit her fast, and she almost fell over. He kept her hands as a blanket was pushed over her shoulders, and her hands instinctively went to cover herself up with it. She was surprised that she stood on her own now, as he went to the next pod, repeating this with all six.
Standing next to her almost immediately was a small girl, with big round eyes and curly red hair. She couldn’t be much older than seven. Emily looked to her, and, shivering, said no words, but moved closer to her. The little girl looked up at Emily, and smiled.
“Hi!” She exclaimed, and then seemed surprised at her own voice. Doubtlessly she hadn’t heard it, or any other, in years. “My name is Susan Young. What’s yours?”
For a few moments, Emily did nothing but stare, wondering in her own mind what she was thinking, before finally replying to Susan. “Emily Winchester,” She managed to croak out, giving a small cough. Susan nodded, and looked to the right expectantly at the man helping other kids out of their pods. The next to come was a boy of, Emily guessed, normal height, with a shock of brown hair and quick dark eyes.
“Arnold.” He said, mostly to Susan, who was staring up at him a bit engrossed, as he heard their names. “Arnold Young. Uh… where is this place?”
“No idea.” This voice wasn’t Emily’s, though she had began to mouth the same thing. The voice belonged to another girl, stout and dark skinned, with crazy black curls. Arnold turned around, lifting his eyebrows as he sleepily looked her over. “Mona Randall. A better question would be what year it is…”
The next girl to come was taller than Emily, and relatively well-proportioned, if a bit husky. She walked blindly, until someone laid a pair of glasses over her nose, and she straightened out.
“Tabby…” She murmured, a hand going up to rub her spiky brown hair, “Barnes. Tabby Barnes.”
“Nice to meet you.” Emily finally got out, giving her an unsure smile.
The sixth and final person to leave was monstrously tall, taller than both Arnold and Tabby, with gently wavy blonde hair and blue eyes.
“I’m James Horn,” he told them when they asked. His voice was small and timid, and he walked to them awkwardly, moving the towel immediately to his midsection.
The group of six stood together for some time, squeezing together for warmth in the cold room, their eyes on the monitors, the scientists, the machines, the drains- basically whatever took their fancy. The scientists, on the other hand, went about their business as usual. The man in the blue suit stood out even among the teenagers, causing a general discomfort among the workers, who’d freeze, just for a second, as he passed by them. Finally, the man stood in front of the big monitor.
“I’m sure you kids must be terrible confused by all this,” he apologized. His voice was relatively quiet, but confident nonetheless. “Being woken up at such a strange time. You probably have many questions. To knock a few off really quick- the year is two thousand four hundred forty five. That’s about… four hundred and thirty years since the last of you were brought in for incubation. As for who I am, you may call me Mr. Yard, and I own this laboratory. This is Korku, Mareritt, Panhi. That is to say, we’re in the city of Kirku, the district (or state) for Mareritt, in the country of Panhi.”
“What kind of a name on God’s green Earth are those?” Mona asked, her arms crossed under the towel, “And why do you talk so odd?”
The man in the suit looked rather offended at that.
“When the city councils and other governing bodies chose their names after The Disaster,” he said, “They were comprised of people from many different backgrounds. This particular area just happened to have leaders from countries such as Turkey, Norway, and South India. This place was originally one of the more damaged, ravaged by beasts and war, but still habitable. The leaders drew straws for names, and here we are today!” He was obviously avoiding the other question.
“So what you mean to say,” Tabby ventured, “Is that we aren’t in America anymore.”
“Oh, good heavens, no! Why, in truth, that name hasn’t been used in… three hundred years? Maybe four.”
“Did the Russians win?” Susan asked forlornly. Much of the group gave a half-hearted chuckle.
“There’s a lot you all have to catch up on. Shall I show you around?”
“I just have one question.” This was from Arnold. “If there was some big disaster, why weren’t we woken up? Why just now?”
The man gave a small nod, and as he began to speak, he nervously gestured with his hands. “You see, that’s not our faults at all- the previous scientists, from the beginning little years of the experiment in the nineteen forties, had the whole experiment set up so that you would wake up five hundred years after the experiment began!”
“But WHY?” Arnold looked a bit exasperated.
“The notes we still have mentioned that that was the perfect amount of time for us to get the bugs worked out of the whole system and for us to monitor the aging process- as well as giving them a legacy this far into the future. And we’re lucky you six have survived! Now we can know exactly how the world was before The Disaster occurred, at least insofar as you all can remember.”
“And if we can’t explain everything you want us to?” James cautioned, his brow knitted.
“You will.” Mr. Yard gave him a dark glance, before brightening back up again. “Now come on. There is so much to show you all!”
And so the group went after Mr. Yard. Emily glanced behind the group, and stopped in the doorway. She’d looked back to the pods- and now saw them filled up once more with the fluid, the bodies floating motionless as the light shone down on them.
“Emily!” Susan called, running back and grabbing her hand, not looking into the room. “Come on! Mr. Yard wants to get us dressed before we go to see the city!”
Emily stole one final glimpse at the pods and scientists as she was pulled away.
The door slammed shut.
\\~~((**End of Chapter One/Prologue**))~~//
The voice rang out like a bell. It was loud, commanding, a change from the soft grindings of machines and pencils on paper. It cut through the chambers, through the gel, through the wires, and into their heads.
Some didn’t wake up. They hadn’t, for years, and those ones never again would. Their vital signs, as they were displayed on the master monitor before the man, had gone flat. Their bodies would be disposed of after autopsies in the labs.
But not all was lost. For at these words, six bodies were roused from their sleep- two boys, four girls, each from different times, each completely different people in a completely different world than they’d remember. There was Arnold Frank, from 1999; James Horn, from 2012; Mona Randall, from 1948; Susan Young, from 1965; Tabby Barnes, from 1977; and finally, Emily Winchester, from 2002.
It was Emily who was particularly strange waking up. At the sounds pulsating through the head band into her ears, her eyes shot open. She inhaled the fixed oxygen deeply, startled by this whole thing. The doors to the pods were being opened, slowly rotating outwards so that the goo they’d all been swimming in for the past several hundred years could seep out onto the floor. From the ceiling of the pods, water rained down on them, cold and harsh, driving the remains of the gel out of their hair and the creases of their bodies.
Scientists surrounded them, coming over to their pods and slowly taking off their wires, their headbands, holding them up so that they wouldn’t fall over. Emily was slowly working on getting her land legs back when two hands reached out to her, belonging to a man in a suit. A bit startled, she ran her gaze from the cuffs of his jacket to his face. He seemed nice enough, giving her a kindly smile. She took his hands tightly, and stepped out of her home.
The shock of the wet ground hit her fast, and she almost fell over. He kept her hands as a blanket was pushed over her shoulders, and her hands instinctively went to cover herself up with it. She was surprised that she stood on her own now, as he went to the next pod, repeating this with all six.
Standing next to her almost immediately was a small girl, with big round eyes and curly red hair. She couldn’t be much older than seven. Emily looked to her, and, shivering, said no words, but moved closer to her. The little girl looked up at Emily, and smiled.
“Hi!” She exclaimed, and then seemed surprised at her own voice. Doubtlessly she hadn’t heard it, or any other, in years. “My name is Susan Young. What’s yours?”
For a few moments, Emily did nothing but stare, wondering in her own mind what she was thinking, before finally replying to Susan. “Emily Winchester,” She managed to croak out, giving a small cough. Susan nodded, and looked to the right expectantly at the man helping other kids out of their pods. The next to come was a boy of, Emily guessed, normal height, with a shock of brown hair and quick dark eyes.
“Arnold.” He said, mostly to Susan, who was staring up at him a bit engrossed, as he heard their names. “Arnold Young. Uh… where is this place?”
“No idea.” This voice wasn’t Emily’s, though she had began to mouth the same thing. The voice belonged to another girl, stout and dark skinned, with crazy black curls. Arnold turned around, lifting his eyebrows as he sleepily looked her over. “Mona Randall. A better question would be what year it is…”
The next girl to come was taller than Emily, and relatively well-proportioned, if a bit husky. She walked blindly, until someone laid a pair of glasses over her nose, and she straightened out.
“Tabby…” She murmured, a hand going up to rub her spiky brown hair, “Barnes. Tabby Barnes.”
“Nice to meet you.” Emily finally got out, giving her an unsure smile.
The sixth and final person to leave was monstrously tall, taller than both Arnold and Tabby, with gently wavy blonde hair and blue eyes.
“I’m James Horn,” he told them when they asked. His voice was small and timid, and he walked to them awkwardly, moving the towel immediately to his midsection.
The group of six stood together for some time, squeezing together for warmth in the cold room, their eyes on the monitors, the scientists, the machines, the drains- basically whatever took their fancy. The scientists, on the other hand, went about their business as usual. The man in the blue suit stood out even among the teenagers, causing a general discomfort among the workers, who’d freeze, just for a second, as he passed by them. Finally, the man stood in front of the big monitor.
“I’m sure you kids must be terrible confused by all this,” he apologized. His voice was relatively quiet, but confident nonetheless. “Being woken up at such a strange time. You probably have many questions. To knock a few off really quick- the year is two thousand four hundred forty five. That’s about… four hundred and thirty years since the last of you were brought in for incubation. As for who I am, you may call me Mr. Yard, and I own this laboratory. This is Korku, Mareritt, Panhi. That is to say, we’re in the city of Kirku, the district (or state) for Mareritt, in the country of Panhi.”
“What kind of a name on God’s green Earth are those?” Mona asked, her arms crossed under the towel, “And why do you talk so odd?”
The man in the suit looked rather offended at that.
“When the city councils and other governing bodies chose their names after The Disaster,” he said, “They were comprised of people from many different backgrounds. This particular area just happened to have leaders from countries such as Turkey, Norway, and South India. This place was originally one of the more damaged, ravaged by beasts and war, but still habitable. The leaders drew straws for names, and here we are today!” He was obviously avoiding the other question.
“So what you mean to say,” Tabby ventured, “Is that we aren’t in America anymore.”
“Oh, good heavens, no! Why, in truth, that name hasn’t been used in… three hundred years? Maybe four.”
“Did the Russians win?” Susan asked forlornly. Much of the group gave a half-hearted chuckle.
“There’s a lot you all have to catch up on. Shall I show you around?”
“I just have one question.” This was from Arnold. “If there was some big disaster, why weren’t we woken up? Why just now?”
The man gave a small nod, and as he began to speak, he nervously gestured with his hands. “You see, that’s not our faults at all- the previous scientists, from the beginning little years of the experiment in the nineteen forties, had the whole experiment set up so that you would wake up five hundred years after the experiment began!”
“But WHY?” Arnold looked a bit exasperated.
“The notes we still have mentioned that that was the perfect amount of time for us to get the bugs worked out of the whole system and for us to monitor the aging process- as well as giving them a legacy this far into the future. And we’re lucky you six have survived! Now we can know exactly how the world was before The Disaster occurred, at least insofar as you all can remember.”
“And if we can’t explain everything you want us to?” James cautioned, his brow knitted.
“You will.” Mr. Yard gave him a dark glance, before brightening back up again. “Now come on. There is so much to show you all!”
And so the group went after Mr. Yard. Emily glanced behind the group, and stopped in the doorway. She’d looked back to the pods- and now saw them filled up once more with the fluid, the bodies floating motionless as the light shone down on them.
“Emily!” Susan called, running back and grabbing her hand, not looking into the room. “Come on! Mr. Yard wants to get us dressed before we go to see the city!”
Emily stole one final glimpse at the pods and scientists as she was pulled away.
The door slammed shut.
\\~~((**End of Chapter One/Prologue**))~~//
