Blood of My Death

Blood of My Death: The Ancient Earthscrapper - Chapter Eight

Memory Series Sequence 351001002451983...

Memory Series Sequence Sub-002-0909 - Evasion doctrine is active.

"Welcome to Resident One! Currently, you are on floor one hundred and fifty. Your quarters are on this floor. You can find your rooms by following the green line. Exit the elevator immediately!" the hologram said.

The silhouette of the hologram is more tangible than any I'd seen before. There is no actual definition, but it was more like a shadow than a person and was whitish. Kristonia pushed several buttons, but nothing happened. The floor panel had no numbers. Hoping something would happen, she kept pressing all the controls she could find. Again, nothing but silence. Dr. Iris was the first to exit the elevator, followed by Dr. Warren and me. Kristonia came out last with a visibly concerned expression on her face. As soon as she did, the doors slid shut.

We followed the green line on the white wall with no other choice. It led us down several hallways until we arrived at our destination—the only visible door on this floor. Dr. Iris opened the door, and we entered the room. The area turned out to be a living room with six doors, two on each wall. On the far wall was a library room, and the adjacent room was a storage room. Dr. Diane Iris and Dr. Rachel Warren's names appeared on the doors to the left of the entrance. The right side of the room had two doors with Kristen Howel and Kristonia Howel on them.

It was a plain-looking room with two plain-looking couches, a flat-screen holo-TV mounted on the back wall between the two doors, and two coffee tables arranged symmetrically. Dr. Warren showed me my room, and it turned out to have sparse furnishing. A hospital bed, two nightstands with lamps, and a flat-screen holo-TV mounted on the wall. All the walls were barren, and there was no bathroom or phone. There wasn't even a picture frame on the wall that you would expect a hospital room to have. Suddenly, a ringing sound arose from the living room, and we returned to investigate.

A holographic image of Dr. Ashland materializes in the middle of the living room. He waits until all four of us are in the living room before taking a seat on one of the two sofas. We watch him straighten his tie before bringing his attention back to us. The man looks at us one by one several moments before looking at me directly. Finally, he nods as if I am supposed to understand the meaning of his gesture.

"Good, I see you have made it to your rooms. Next, we'll discuss the rules governing the trials. The first rule is the most essential. Failure to follow these rules will result in... Failure. Rule One, there will be no personal information to be shared amongst yourselves. Rule Two, both Doctors will accompany you everywhere and vice versa. Rule Three, you may use only one bathroom located five floors down. Rule Number Four, we will only allow you to use the cafeteria on the first floor. I have restricted you from all other areas, and you must not violate these rules. Finally, you can only access the tenth floor, where Dr. Iris and Dr. Warren will conduct research in the evenings," Dr. Ashland explained.

He took a moment to pause. His eyes carefully studied us, as I was confused at what his words signified.

"We'll watch you twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week. Dr. Warren and Dr. Iris will conduct tests on you and Kristonia every morning until further notice. You may make one phone call every night from 8:00 pm - 10:00 pm. There is no time limit except you must call within that time frame," Dr. Ashland added.

The tall Doctor stands, fixing his jacket and tie. He nods and turns to walk away but stops. He looks over his shoulders at me.

"And Miss Kristen Howel, please follow protocol. I intend to try something different this time around. I would greatly appreciate your cooperation. And Zero Zero One, do make an effort to control yourself. I have made such unique preparations for the four of you," Dr. Ashland said as his holographic image vanished into thin air.