The Portum (Undergoing Rewrite)

Part Three

It must have been hours before I woke up, my wrist and headache from where I'd hit it on the floor. Groggily I opened my eyes, I tried to raise my hand to shield my face from the bright light shining in my eyes, but my hands wouldn't move, my sense adjusted to becoming more normal.

I glanced down to my arms and saw they were held in place by steel shackles, I must be on a chair, it felt like a dentist's chair, oddly enough. I groaned as it felt like I had concussion, my head was killing me. I pulled against the shackles but all it did was hurt my wrists, I sighed and gave up trying. I lied still, as I heard footsteps approach me, I turned my head but everywhere else was dark, I couldn't see anything except for a silhouette of a figure approaching me. They stepped into the light, it was a doctor, dressed in a smart lab coat, pushing a small trolley of equipment.

I frowned, "Where am I?" I asked the doctor, but I was ignored. I grit my teeth and shouted, "Answer me! This isn't fair!" The doctor sighed in annoyance, "You're in a location I cannot disclose, to be adjusted, so those bad thoughts of yours never return." I gasped, I realised I must be in a containment centre, and this doctor was going to tamper with my brain...

I screamed as loud as I could for help, but no-one came, the doctor must have gotten tired of my screaming because he clamped a hand over my mouth and injected me with a syringe full of what must have been anaesthetic. I felt groggy and weak, as I tried to kick the doctor but my strength faded, as did my consciousness.

This time it felt like I had been unconscious for a shorter amount of time, because I could open my eyes easily, the pain in my head was still there, but I ignored it, I glanced around me, I was in that cell again, on the small cot. There was a lamp in the corner, hung on a ledge of rock protruding from the wall.

I winced and rubbed my wrists, my watch was still on there, but there was a red mark on my arm beneath where it must have shocked me, I rubbed at it, trying to make it go away.

I felt strange, it was difficult to explain, but it felt like I could see better, I wondered if the surgery would affect me, or maybe these were the side effects now. I looked at the small cell, it had a desk, chair, toilet, sink and bed. I approached the metal desk; sitting on top of it was a small mirror, like a compact. I picked it up and flicked it open, I looked the same, wait... I looked at the better zoomed in mirror, my eyes looked like they had contacts in, nothing that changed the way they looked though, and they seemed strange. I frowned, realising the contacts were moving like the iris of an eye, moving in and out, which was also similar to a camera.

I gasped, maybe they didn't steal my thoughts, and instead put camera contacts in my eyes, maybe to keep a watch on me maybe? I put the compact down and sat on the cot, I hugged my knees and rested my head on my knees, "What happened to me?" I mumbled.

Suddenly the cell door unlocked and my mother walked in, looking elegant and professional as usual, in her typical suit and red glasses. She smiled when she saw me and held out a hand, I stood up and took it, my mum hugged me and led me out, through the same way I had come through, but instead we went home. I showered and got changed, still feeling confused about why the government hadn't removed my thoughts, I knew there was still some definite side-effects if your thoughts were taken, it made you a bit distant for a bit, like you were there but you didn't feel like it. And I knew that my emotions hadn't been changed because my watch would ping up with a reminder to take some medication that had happened to my friend once, as she had often gotten into trouble.

The weekend passed, on Monday I started at the Academy; in order to be up on time, I'd set my alarm the night before, so at 5:30 my alarm started chiming, gradually getting louder until I had to wake up and groggily reach my hand out towards where my alarm clock was, but I couldn't find the off button and the chimes were getting louder, so I swept it off of the table, it landed on the ground with a thud, the clock turned off. I sighed in relief and sat up, rubbing my eyes, I blinked a few times, adjusting my eyes to the artificial sunlight streaming in through the window. I sighed and got out of bed, slipping on my slippers and walking out of my room, heading for the kitchen, the house was quiet as my mother had probably gone to work already. The lights slowly turned on to a dim brightness, as I walked past them, into the modern kitchen.

I grabbed the cereal box that was waiting on the counter, grabbed a bowl and poured the cereal in; then I grabbed a carton of milk and poured it in. Then I grabbed a spoon. Sitting down at the breakfast bar, I ate my breakfast hungrily before going to get ready for my first day of school.

Half an hour later, I was stood outside the front door, my uniform felt strange but I'd get used to it, my strawberry blonde hair wasn't tied up and it fell down to just above my elbows. I had my backpack in hand, I was ready to go but I couldn't bring myself to leave. Today was supposed to be a great day, my dad should have been there to wave me bye and wish me luck, but he wasn't here anymore. I blinked a few times, trying to get rid of those sad thoughts, "Today will be a good day..." I mumbled, trying to reassure myself.

Taking a deep breath and exhaling, I opened the door and walked out, locking the door behind me. I winced, as I felt a stab of pain in my head, I felt a little disoriented and had to lean against the doorway. Shaking my head, I tried to get rid of the pain but after a few moments it faded. I stood up, blinking a few times as I felt confused.

I took out a compact mirror and looked at my eyes, they still looked normal, despite the fact that they had contacts in them which were cameras. I knew better than to try to remove them, as they had clearly been put there for a reason. Gritting my teeth in annoyance, I knew one person who might have an idea what had happened to me and why, my mother.

I hesitated, knowing I would be in a lot of trouble for missing school, but I had to get answers. Whether my mother liked it or not.

Pivoting towards the direction of the Tunnel 1, I set off, hastily pulling out my hoodie from my backpack, that I had put in there in case I got cold, I put it on, hoping to hide my uniform and not be noticed.

I passed a few of the "Hopeless," lots of mumbles and shouts flooded my hearing, they were no longer talking to themselves but instead they were talking to me, I felt lots of eyes staring at me. I gulped and carried on walking, but a bony hand lashed out and grabbed my arm, digging their nails in. I yelped in pain and tried to pull away but the hand's grip was strong. "Let me go!" I shouted.

I knew what I was supposed to do in a situation like this, lash out, stun the person and run. But I couldn't hurt someone who most likely had no idea what they were doing, due to the madness.