Chapter 2
'Where Am I?'
BEEP.
BEEP.
BEEP.
The sound was the first thing he heard.
A steady rhythm.
Cold.
Mechanical.
Alive.
His eyes remained closed.
Something was holding his arms down.
Something else was wrapped around his chest.
He tried to move.
Nothing moved.
A sharp pulse of pain travelled through his body.
His fingers twitched.
Immediately, several voices erupted around him.
"Heart rate rising."
"His neural activity is increasing."
"Get the scanner."
"Already running."
The voices were muffled, distant, almost dreamlike.
He tried to open his eyes.
Light burned through his eyelids.
Then darkness returned.
When his eyes finally opened, the ceiling above him was white.
Too white.
The kind of white that made everything else look dirty.
He blinked several times.
A transparent panel floated above him, displaying streams of numbers and incomprehensible biological readings.
For several seconds, he simply stared.
Where am I?
He tried to sit up.
A metallic restraint immediately tightened around his wrist.
Click.
He froze.
"Easy!"
Someone stepped into his field of vision.
A man in a white coat.
Or at least, he assumed it was a man.
The stranger wore an enormous pair of technological lenses over his eyes. Several small mechanical arms extended from the sides of the device, adjusting themselves as streams of data travelled across the lenses.
He looked less like a doctor and more like a scientist who had crawled out of a nightmare.
The man stared at him.
Then at the holographic display.
Then back at him.
"Remarkable."
The stranger adjusted his lenses.
"Absolutely remarkable."
Around the room, several other scientists continued working.
Machines hummed.
Lights blinked.
Mechanical arms moved over consoles.
The entire laboratory operated with strange precision, each person moving in synchronization with the others.
Like worker bees.
And somewhere in the middle of all of it—
he was the specimen.
Metal restraints held his limbs against the medical bed.
He looked down at himself.
Then at the restraints.
Then back at the ceiling.
Okay.
Definitely not home.
The lead scientist finally removed the strange device from his face and walked toward the exit.
The doors slid open without a sound.
A young woman immediately rose from a bench outside.
"Doctor?"
She wore a crimson jacket over a black shirt, with a faded pink cap pulled low over her head. Strands of red hair escaped beneath it.
She looked completely out of place in the sterile environment.
Not frightened.
Not nervous.
Just impatient.
"How is he?"
The doctor looked at her.
Then at the data panel floating beside him.
Then back at her.
"Uh…"
He cleared his throat.
"He'll be okay, Miss…"
He hesitated.
"…Should I call you Miss?"
For the briefest moment, her expression darkened.
Then she smiled.
"Just tell me how he is."
"Right."
The doctor straightened.
"As I was saying…"
He glanced at the holographic readings again.
"This is the best patient I've ever had."
She raised an eyebrow.
The doctor immediately reconsidered his wording.
"I mean—"
He coughed.
"His condition is extraordinary."
He became increasingly animated as he spoke.
"His organs are functioning perfectly. His blood chemistry is normal. Neural activity is stable. No internal bleeding. No tissue rejection. No infection."
He leaned closer to the holographic display.
"Nothing."
The woman folded her arms.
"Nothing?"
"Nothing abnormal."
He stared at the readings as if they had personally offended his understanding of science.
"That's the abnormal part."
He lowered his voice.
"No human being should be this perfect after what happened to him."
The woman said nothing.
The doctor continued.
"We've run every examination available to us. Twice."
He adjusted his glasses.
"Then I called in my colleagues."
A pause.
"Same results."
His expression became almost euphoric.
"This could go down in medical history."
The woman's smile faded slightly.
"And the injuries?"
The doctor hesitated.
"Gone."
"Completely?"
"Completely."
He looked at her carefully.
"You said you found him unconscious in the woods?"
She gave a small nod.
"Yes."
The doctor frowned.
That answer clearly bothered him.
"Interesting."
She noticed.
"Can I see him?"
The doctor blinked.
"Of course."
She smiled.
It was a simple smile.
Yet somehow, the sterile room seemed warmer.
The doctor's expression softened immediately.
"Of course. Yes. Absolutely."
He stepped aside.
"Take your time."
She walked through the doors.
Behind her, a nearby nurse watched the exchange with a deeply unimpressed expression.
The doctor didn't notice.
The door opened.
The young man turned his head.
A girl entered.
He stared.
She stopped.
Their eyes met.
For a moment neither spoke.
She looks too young to be here.
His eyes moved over her.
Maybe she's my—
He stopped himself.
No.
Nothing.
No familiarity.
No memory.
No emotional recognition.
She was a stranger.
A beautiful stranger, perhaps.
But still a stranger.
"Do you always stare at people when you meet them?"
Her voice pulled him from his thoughts.
He blinked.
"No."
A pause.
"Not usually."
She pulled a chair closer to the bed.
"But I doubt everyone wakes up strapped to a medical table after being poked with instruments they don't recognize."
He glanced down at the restraints.
"Fair point."
She studied him.
"Do you know where you are?"
"No."
"Do you know what happened to you?"
"No."
"Do you know who you are?"
He hesitated.
That question felt different.
He searched his mind.
Nothing.
Not a name.
Not a face.
Not a place.
Not even a childhood memory.
It was as if someone had opened his mind and emptied it.
"I…"
His voice weakened.
"I don't know."
She leaned forward slightly.
"Memory loss?"
"Maybe."
He stared at his hands.
"It doesn't feel like memory loss."
"What does it feel like?"
He swallowed.
"Like…"
He struggled to find the words.
"Like someone erased me."
Silence.
She studied his face carefully.
Not his words.
His expression.
His breathing.
His eyes.
Every tiny movement.
"You're either a very convincing liar…"
She leaned back.
"…or you're telling the truth."
He looked at her.
"I wouldn't play dumb if I had a reason to."
A faint smile touched her lips.
"Good."
She stood.
"For now, I'll take your word for it."
Outside the room, the doctor stepped around the corner and lowered his voice.
He held a small communication device near his mouth.
"…You're sure he isn't from one of your projects?"
A man's voice answered through the speaker.
"Projects, if you may."
The doctor frowned.
"Whatever."
"I already checked the records."
A pause.
"Every subject is accounted for."
The doctor glanced toward the room.
"Then what exactly did I find?"
The voice on the other end became quieter.
"You said the patient has a peculiar condition?"
"More than peculiar."
"How?"
The doctor looked down at the data scrolling across his device.
"He shouldn't be alive."
Silence.
Then:
"Send me everything."
Back inside the room, the young woman pulled her chair closer.
"Okay."
She crossed one leg over the other.
"Let's jog your memory."
The young man looked at her.
"Where were you last night?"
He closed his eyes.
Nothing.
He tried harder.
Still nothing.
His jaw tightened.
"Come on…"
A flash.
White light.
Pain.
A sky filled with something impossible.
Then—
Nothing.
He opened his eyes.
"It's useless."
The woman watched him carefully.
"Try again."
"I can't."
"Think."
"I am thinking."
"Harder."
He clenched his fists.
Pain suddenly stabbed through his head.
He grabbed the side of his skull.
"Ah—"
The woman immediately leaned forward.
"Hey."
He breathed heavily.
Images flickered through his mind.
Rain.
Lightning.
A rooftop.
A voice.
Something in his hands.
Then—
Nothing.
"Maybe…"
She stopped.
Her attention shifted.
For the first time since entering the room, her expression changed.
Her hand slowly moved toward her ear.
A tiny device was hidden beneath her hair.
A voice whispered through it.
"Six. That's your cue."
Her eyes sharpened.
"Get up."
The young man stared at her.
"What?"
"Now."
She stood.
"We need to leave."
"Why?"
Her eyes moved toward the door.
"They're here."
The young man looked at the door.
"What do you mean, they're—"
"Do you want to live?"
He stopped.
She stared directly into his eyes.
"Then move."
She reached the door.
Slowly.
Carefully.
She turned the handle.
A narrow gap opened.
She looked outside.
Her expression hardened.
Then she closed it.
"Window."
He stared at her.
"Window?"
"Unless you'd rather stay here."
That was enough.
He pulled the restraints free.
Apparently, nobody had expected him to wake up strong enough to break them.
He stood.
His legs nearly gave out.
She caught his arm.
"Easy."
"I've got it."
"You nearly fell."
"I said I've got it."
She gave him a look.
"Fine."
They reached the window.
She opened it.
Cold air rushed into the room.
He looked down.
The ground was several stories below.
He looked back at her.
"You've got to be kidding."
She pulled a compact device from beneath her jacket.
A grappling gun.
His eyebrows rose.
"Where did you get that?"
She ignored the question.
"Hold on."
"To what?"
She grabbed him.
"Me."
"What?"
The grappling hook fired.
THWIP!
The cable shot across the gap and locked onto the neighboring building.
She jumped.
He had no choice but to follow.
For one terrifying second, the city disappeared beneath them.
Then—
THUD.
They landed on the opposite building.
He stared at her.
She looked back.
"What?"
"You do this often?"
"No."
She started walking.
"Come on."
He followed.
They descended through a fire escape and disappeared into the narrow alleyways below.
The city looked different from the ground.
Neon advertisements reflected across wet pavement.
Hovering vehicles moved between towers.
Transparent displays floated above storefronts.
Machines walked beside humans.
Everything looked familiar.
And completely wrong.
The young man stared at the city.
"What year is it?"
She stopped.
For the first time, she looked genuinely concerned.
"You really don't remember anything, do you?"
"No."
She sighed.
"Then we're going to have a long conversation."
She looked toward the street.
"My car's nearby."
She disappeared around the corner.
A few minutes later, headlights appeared.
A sleek vehicle rolled into the alley.
The window lowered.
"Get in."
He stared at the vehicle.
Then at her.
Then at the vehicle again.
"Seriously?"
"Unless you'd prefer walking."
He got in.
The car accelerated almost immediately.
They stopped at a small roadside station outside the city.
She returned carrying several bags.
She tossed one toward him.
"Clothes."
He caught it.
"Why?"
"Because you're wearing medical clothes."
He looked down.
Fair point.
"Get dressed."
She started the car again.
Music filled the cabin.
Bright.
Upbeat.
Completely inappropriate considering the circumstances.
She casually tapped her fingers against the steering wheel.
The young man changed in the back seat.
Outside the windows, the city gradually disappeared.
Towering buildings gave way to smaller structures.
Smaller structures gave way to open land.
Neon lights became distant stars.
Eventually, even the last traces of civilization faded behind them.
He stared through the window.
Fields stretched toward the horizon.
Trees gathered in the distance.
The road continued forward into darkness.
He looked at the woman in the driver's seat.
"Where are we going?"
She didn't answer immediately.
Her eyes remained fixed on the road.
Then she smiled faintly.
"Somewhere you're less likely to get killed."
He frowned.
"That doesn't sound reassuring."
"It wasn't supposed to."
The car continued into the night.
Neither of them noticed the faint blue glow pulsing beneath his shirt.
Once.
Then again.
Like a heartbeat.