Tranquility At Last.

Tranquility At Last

by: Nafeesah Rasoully 

I’ve been awake for awhile now but for some reason unknown to me, I find myself far too afraid to open my eyes. I don’t know why I am shaking in fear, curled up in a fetal position. With no sense of where I might be, all I can focus on is protecting myself. But what am I protecting myself against? 

I continued to shake in fear until I heard a cry I recognized. Before my brain could process what was happening, my body jolted up and began to follow the direction from which the cry was coming. I knew I was in shock. I knew that there were about thirty lifeless bodies scattered around me. I knew my washed away blue jeans and olive colored shirt were covered in blood. I knew what was happening but It’s like my emotions have been turned off. The confusion that clouded my mind blocked out any logical thoughts I may have. 

WIthout understanding where I was, I knew I was in a library. Passing various isles of books, I grew closer and closer to the pleading cry. 

As I reached the aisle the cry was coming from, I saw a silhouette of a lifeless body cradled in the arms of the person who had been crying.  Their face was looking down so I wasn’t able to see who it was but the feeling of familiarity was almost as sickening as the feeling of dread that danced around in the pit of my stomach. 

Every cell in my body was shouting at me to turn around and not approach them but I couldn’t understand why. It was as if my conscious mind was sheltering me from what my subconscious was already aware of. 

I reached the people and saw what looked like an older version of Aria, the girl who lived around the corner from me but we were bonded like sisters. She had the same caramel skin with thick black curls lying loosely and messy just passing her shoulders. 

My eyes roamed from her tear stained face to her hand holding the body of… 

I seemed to have let out a distraught yet quiet “No…” when my eyes wandered to his face. The girl must’ve heard me because her head snapped in my direction, letting go of Sincere’s hand. The dark brown eyes I grew up looking into now stared at me in horror and disgust but I can’t bring myself to remember why no matter how much I plead with my subconscious. 

None of this makes sense. Why- how does Sincere have multiple stab wounds penetrating through his stomach? How is the boy who was my best friend and Aria’s brother now laying limp in her arms?! Why am I covered in blood? 

I felt myself choke on a sob as I let my eyes wander the ruined library. So many bodies- all surrounded my pools of blood- all cut or stabbed.

I felt the word around me become a haze. Everything felt like it was happening in slow motion. My breathing started to increase rapidly but it felt like I was suffocating. No amount of deep breaths were loosening this tight grip clutching onto my lungs. 

I have to get out of here--

I need to find an exit- 

I saw a door and rushed to it but felt someone's eyes on me just as I was reaching the door. As I looked their way away, I saw a boy who looked no older than fifteen. Covered in blood that wasn’t his and a tear stained face. He crawled away from me in fear and quickly averted his eyes from my questioning gaze. 

I can’t- why is he looking at me like that?! I need to leave!

Just as my arms pushed through the door, what I had hoped would ease my racing mind only seemed to fuel it further. 

The town I grew up in looked completely vacant. The usual busy street filled with cars and people, now abandoned and destroyed. Papers were scattered everywhere and were being blown in the deafening silent Fall winds . What once was the town's symmetrically beautiful City Hall is now a broken down building. Rubble taking up the surrounding sidewalk. Cars were left abandoned and I don't know for how long since the windows were smashed and the doors left open were beginning  to rust. 

Oh god I hope this is nothing more than a nightmare I soon escape from. 

The sun being blocked by the thick grey clouds only seemed to piece the picture of destruction before me together. 

I felt myself collapse to my knees on the porch of the library. Staring at the town a flight of stairs under me and trying to gain control of my breathing. 

Aria?!- Why does she look older?? And Sincere- oh God Sincere is dead… I felt tears roll down my cheeks. 

Suddenly black swan male dress shoes invaded my line of vision and my crying stopped.

I lifted my head to see a tall white man wearing black trousers and a wrinkled white shirt which was tucked into his pants. Staring at me with his blue eyes that held confusion yet relief? 

I picked myself off the ground and took a step back away from him only to collide with another body.   

I quickly turned around and saw another man wearing the same attire. He looked about twenty-five with short curly brown hair, brown eyes and olive skin. 

I stepped away from the both of them as the first man I saw tried to reach for my hand. I flinched away.

“W are you okay?” He asked hesitantly with his eyes squinted in doubt. 

“I know this may have confused both minds since you are surrounded by reminders of her existence-”. The second man began speaking but stopped mid sentence once he carefully observed my reaction and it wouldn’t take a genius to guess I am terrified and confused. 

My expression must’ve not been the one he was expecting considering he clenched his jaw and looked away from me in annoyance as if this situation was inconvenient from him. But what the hell was he even expecting?!. 

“W-what are you talking about and why did you call me ‘W’?”. My voice croaked but my tone was still sharp. 

For a second an unrecognizable emotion flooded the first man's face but it was quickly replaced by anger as his posture grew stiff.  He mumbled something under his breath and ran a hand down his face. 

“Andronika?” He said my name through a clenched jaw as if he wasn’t sure if he was actually talking to me. I nodded my head skeptically. 

“How the fuck did she disconnect?!” The second man snapped, making me jump in my spot as they both turned towards each other. . 

“What are you talking about? What happened i-..” I stared at the library closing my eyes thinking of Sincere, “in there?”. This time I didn’t stutter but you could easily detect the plea for answers in my voice.  

Suddenly I felt two hands roughly grab me by my shoulders and turn me so my back was pressed against his stomach. 

“What ar-”. I started to question but refrained from doing so as the man's grip began to tighten, promising a bruise in its wake. 

The blonde pulled out a screen from his back pocket and walked closer to me while I started to squirm in fear. 

“Stop moving.” The man who was holding me in place said in a eerily calm sharp tone. 

“We need to bring her block down. Prendi il suo grafico. ‘W’ ha bisogno di riconnettersi.” The man holding me ordered as the blonde simply compiled. 

I started to move around more once I heard him speak Italian. I can’t understand any of this. 

The blonde turned the screen in my direction and I felt my body freeze. 

It looked like a chart. Progressed logged through videos. Videos of me? Strapped to a chair that looks like it belongs in a dentist office in the first four videos then standing emotionlessly in the rest. What the fuck?

My name wasn’t anywhere on here. Instead of “Andronika Collins”, the code ‘W03D12’ was typed under every video. 

My head is hurting, it won’t stop spinning. I am starting to make sense of this but I don’t want to accept it. 

These videos look like evidence of human experiments. I felt myself gulp down at the thought. 

I looked terrified in the first four. Struggling and tied up with wires and stickers all around my head, legs and arms. 

Seventh video down, I was laying in the chair willingly with no hint of fear or any emotion in that case. I looked like a corpse whose eyes were left open. 

Eighth video down it looked as though something was plugged into my neck… 

I slowly picked my arm up and felt around the back of my neck as the men watched me carefully. I felt a scar and an inserted chip just along the middle of the middle. 

I felt my blood run cold. 

I took my eyes off the screen and looked at the blonde straight in his anticipating eyes. 

“ Wh--h-why?” I asked just above a whisper, not aware of what exactly I was asking as tears started to fill my eyes once again. 

They both had the audacity to look annoyed with me, 

“What the fuck is wrong with you guys?!!” I heard myself screeching while tears spilled down my eyes as I began struggling to get out of his hold once again. 

I brought my arm forward then with full force, plunged my elbow into his abdomen. His grip loosened as he grunted in pain. 

I quickly pushed myself to get away from him as the blonde rushed out to grab me when I picked my leg up and with more force, kicked him unexpectedly between his legs. 

He fell to the ground, moaning in pain.

As I ran down the first three steps, I heard the voice of the man who was holding me, 

“I will lodge a bullet in her testa di cazzo! Terminate the original mind!” He seethed into a phone. 

I felt the tight grip on my lungs again as I pushed myself to run faster down the stairs hoping it would make any type of difference. 

He said to terminate my mind- oh god they are going to kill me. An A.I is going to take over my brain. Holy shit- holy fucking shit. I was almost at the last step, holy fucking shi-- 

Third Person Point Of View. 

Andronika reeked of worry as she pushed herself to run when suddenly she froze. 

Face drained every hint of fear and panic. 

She was staring out into oblivion for a  moment when she started to blink a few times, plastering a robot-like smile and turning around looking up at the men at the top of the stairs who started to make their way down towards her. 

“That fucking hurt.” The blonde limped towards her, pecking her lips . 

Andr- or who once was Andronika kissed him back.

“Yeah I heard from a sergeant that my host likes putting up a fight.” She said with a faint sadistic smile. 

The other man walked passed her nodding in her direction as she started to follow him,

“She isn’t your host anymore. I called to have her mind terminated so this mistake doesn’t occur again. This body officially belongs to you.”