Unfamiliarity | Wilhemina Venable

part fifteen| outpost 3

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My eyes slowly started to open, and the first thing that poured in was an aching headache. It felt like my head exploded. It took a minute for my vision to fully come back, and once it did I noticed I was surrounded by white tile, and a horrible flickering light shining down on me. The room looked like a big shower, there was even a drain in the center of it.

The more I looked around the more confused I became. There seemed to be a way in and a way out on either sides of me. I tried to stand but my limbs folded in on themselves, so escaping looked like a lost cause. I sat there shivering as it was rather cold, and I was in a short sleeve. I then realized I was wearing what looked like a potato sack; a tan colored dress that stopped just above my knees. It was ill fitting and quite itchy.

I didn't know what day it was, or what year it was, whether it was day or night. I couldn't even remember what happened before I woke up on this tile floor. My memory seemed to wiped. The last thing that came to mind was my mother cooking dinner, and my mother hasn't cooked me dinner in over 10 years.

I was able to carefully sit myself up, leaning all of my weight on my hands. I waited for what felt like hours, scared and shivering, until I heard cane taps in the distance. My heart rate sped up as the cane taps grew closer. Was someone coming to rescue me?

Two people in hazmat suits emerged from the dark hallway and I was immediately sprayed with a cloud-like gas. I jumped as the noise it let out was loud and sudden. The people in hazmat suits had stationed themselves against the walls, and once the smoke settled down, standing in the hallway I noticed a very tall woman. She was wearing a long black dress that stopped just above her ankles, a gold belt to accentuate her waist, her hair that was a slight red was in an odd looking updo, and she clenched a cane in her fist.

Her piercing brown eyes shot through me as she began to speak in a loud, authoritative voice.

"I'm Wilhemina Venable. Welcome to Outpost 3."

I fixed my posture, scared that I would be yelled at for even slouching. And an outpost? Why was I in an outpost? And how did I get here?

"Pick yourself up." she ordered, and turned around.

She started down the hallway as I scurried to my feet and walked swiftly behind her. The hazmat-suit people followed close behind me, so there was no way I could get out. For a woman with a cane she was fast. My legs were flimsy but I was able to steady myself keep up with Wilhemina.

As we made our way through what seemed to be an underground bunker, lit only by candle flames, the woman started to talk and finally explained a few things.

"You will call me Ms Venable only." she went on. "Breakfast is served at 7am sharp. Dinner is at 5pm sharp. If you are tardy, there will be punishments."

"Punishments?"

"Did I say you could talk Angelique?" she stopped in her tracks, towering over me.

I instantly felt as small as a fly while I cowardly lowered my head. How did she know my name?

"No." I muttered keeping my gaze focused on the floor.

"Look at me when i'm talking to you." she placed her finger under my chin, slightly lowering herself to my height, and forcing me to make eye contact with her. "Did I say you could talk Angelique."

She paused before saying my name in a tone that made me very uneasy.

"No Ms Venable." I gulped, counting down the seconds until I was free of her grasp.