The Lost Paradise

Run. Run. Run.

Ishelle POV:
Everyone starts splitting up and running off, but I just stand there, frozen in fear.

Iris comes up to me just to tell me, "They followed you, Ishelle." "They told me they wouldn't," I say seriously, but I realise how naive that was. "And you believed them?" Iris asks me and I feel very stupid at this moment as I put my head between my hands. "I'm not running," I say seriously as I stare at the chaos of the situation because everyone is rushing through the various tunnels of the cave as they leave without anything in their hands except their friends, "if they get someone then you can all go free, so go." Iris shakes his head as he starts pulling me along with him, even carrying me as he continues running further into the forest, while he drags me begrudgingly. Soon, he groans but keeps trying to go and, then collapses. I realise that he has been shot with a sleep dart as I stand there in fear.

"Hands where we can see them," a few men say seriously as I put my hands up for them to see and when they notice it is me, then they smile smugly. My tears start to fall as I look at them, "Just let them go. You only need one of us. Just take me." "You had your chance," one of the men says seriously, "if you said yes then none of this would have happened." This causes my tears to fall even faster, as I realise that if I stayed then none of these people would be in this situation right now, but I don't have a lot of time to talk when I am shoved with a couple of others into a truck until we make it to a white building with a blue rose that looks like a fortress. It reminds me of those military bases that we used to have and I realise that it is most likely one.

As soon as we enter the gated centre, there are many guards waiting for us as we exit the vehicle and stand on the ground, but there are only 20 perfect people standing there. Blue Rose walks out of the shadows, "Ishelle, would you like to enlighten everyone as to why they are here?" I look at her with confusion until I remember what those men said and the conclusion that I drew. "It's your fault," Blue Rose says seriously, "if you had just stayed, like I told you, then none of this would have happened." "You just happened to forget to tell me that if I didn't stay then this would happen?" I ask her seriously and Blue Rose smiles smugly, "You wanted this to happen." "Get them chipped and inside the facility," Blue Rose says seriously, "let's get started with changing the world."

We are all rushed into the facility and confined to one room. No one even looks at me, instead, they huddle together with their closest friends.

I am the first one called to be chipped as they call it.

"Ishelle," a lady says and everyone turns their attention to me as I walk out of the room with the guards following beside me. As I sit down on the only chair in the room, my hands are locked automatically onto the seat and I start to tense as I start to realise the gravity of the situation. Then, the lady jabs an injection into my neck causing me to gasp, involuntarily, which surprises the woman, and the chair unlocks. The guards come into the room and take me away, then shove me into a room where Blue Rose is sitting with a smile. The room is the only room that I have seen that has red carpeted walls and floors.

"You know everyone hates you," Blue Rose says happily. "What do you want?" I ask her with annoyance. "I am offering you the chance to be the one who does all the tests first," she says like it's a kindness, "if you give us the answers, we won't touch anyone else. If you don't, we force you to watch while we do it to everyone else or things could just get worse." "I can't trust you," I say seriously, "you lied the last time." "This time you can trust that I am not lying," she says sincerely, but there is still this vibe that she is being untruthful. I nod, knowing that I rather take the chance that she is lying then cause harm to all those innocent people out there, "Fine." "You will be involved in everything," she says seriously, "I will make sure of it. Understood?" I nod, begrudgingly, "Sure." "Follow me," Blue Rose says politely as she makes her way through the facility. I see cells that are filled with white tiles and walls as is the rest of the areas that include the kitchen, food area and more. As soon as we arrive at an area that has some sunshine, she turns to me, "Here are your friends." She shoves me into an outdoor area, but everyone moves away from me as I walk to a corner to sit down and feel the sun.