43. Who is Next?

The tale of the great escape continued for the two. The machine continued making its way underwater, and scenes around were beautiful. The engine did struggle a bit in going forward, but the amount of oxygen as well as the fuel seemed to be full, and there seemed to be no chance of any problem there. The escape seemed to be certain at that point, and this journey was surely leading them away from the island. The pursuing machines were still left at the same spot and so the chase was cut off leaving nobody on their tail. There were more hunting machines on the prowl around the island, but there seemed to be nothing on their way. The path underwater was the safer one during those moments. Land was no longer the place for normal people, as far as they were concerned.

“I didn’t think about talking about this earlier, but this was a fine choice, I have to say” said C1RC221.

“I will keep my luck as long as it serves like this; everyone needs some luck, without which humans are nothing” said a proud V221KA.

“There are creatures around us though. I hope none of them are that harmful” wondered C1RC221.

“They are just mutated forms of sea life. We should just ignore them” remarked V221KA.

“Just like us, you say” added C1RC221.

“Not as good as we are, that is for sure” said V221KA.

“That was always the point, wasn’t it? To make us better than the rest, but not in the appropriate way”.

“Yes, but we are better in not just one thing, right?” asked V221KA.

“Being mindless is the better option when we are homeless” said C1RC221.

“We will make new home out of nowhere. It is no big deal” remarked V221KA.

“My home used to be around here only – I have some memory of it; they are buried deep under, but I can find them on another day” said C1RC221.

“That is a story of a long gone past. We have the scope to create new ones”.

“Well, it still exists, even if not in a solid form” said C1RC221.

The machine hit some of the vegetation on the way, but it kept going with not trouble. There was nothing that strong under water to stop their journey, at least until then. A lot of underwater vegetation was already destroyed by the wars. The water at that area was kind of contaminated with all those chemicals being dumped from the islands around, but still safe enough to go through in a machine. There was no comparison to the world before the big wars, as the change had occured, and it seemed to be permanent. War was more like a sporting event, and the dictators kept asking for more and more medals to assert their own supremacy. This was one Olympics that no common man was really fond of watching or being a part of, but what choice did they actually have?

The world had become smaller with the wars, and the effects of terror and mass destruction was seen everywhere. Death was only a temporary happening, and what was worse included all which was to follow later. But nobody was finished with those wars yet, for it was something that repeated itself, maybe towards eternity. There was the need for blood, and there was also the requirement for more than that – there was always going to be the struggle for more, what was rather justified in many names. It was not just about humanity, as the rest of the creatures had also changed, or rather evolved to suit the situations of war. This new world order based on war did become the beginning stage for another evolution, something that humans wouldn’t have loved to see occur.

“You have been holding on to the past for a little too long; which is why it is coming back to you – it will be of no more use to you except related to providing all the pain which you never deserved”.

“It is my past; it will only keep coming back to me at some point or the other” added C1RC221.

“What exactly is that?” asked V221KA.

“My past, and nothing else” replied C1RC221.

“That can’t be your past; I am not agreeing to that” remarked V221KA.

“What? You haven’t seen my past yet” said C1RC221.

“I am not talking about that! Look straight ahead” yelled V221KA.

“Oh! This is not going to be good!” screamed C1RC221.

The scene quickly shifted from relief to big trouble. There was a giant creature ahead, which looked like an octopus, but they were sure that it was certainly not that, with such huge size. Even so deep under water, its eyes were shining red in colour, and it kept looking straight at the metallic thing which had invaded what seemed to be its territory. Completely black in colour with its body, it had twelve arms instead of eight, and it stretched its arms towards the machine. V221KA tried to move it to one side and evade the arms, but even as they managed to go past two of them, the third arm got hold of their vehicle. It dragged the machine towards its side while the engines tried to push it away from the creature.

“We have come so far, and maybe we did get so close, but I guess this is how it ends” murmured C1RC221.

“We are certainly not done yet” yelled V221KA while trying her best to power the machine enough to move away from the arms of the creature that continued to pull it hard. The battle was on, and on one side, it was just about survival and nothing else.

To be continued…

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42. More of Hope

That was one sight which brought the positivity back to the scene. There was the machine that looked like a space ship, or rather a hybrid having the hovercraft elements too. Completely black in colour, it was part square and part spherical, and there were two seats inside it, visible through the windows which were also round. The wings of the machine extended towards both sides twisting in between. There were no levers or steering inside the machine, but there was a screen which showed nothing other than the message that said “Screen Locked”. It seemed to be the best scene that could be part of their eyes. There was something that could make a difference.

“Do you think that this thing can fly or at least run? Do you think that they kept it here because it is faulty?” asked V221KA while looking outside at the sea.

“I don’t think that we can be sure about it. There will be a lot of risk involved even if we manage to get it started. We are not trained for this” said C1RC221 as she looked around for some information about it.

“You mean to say that we can crash and just die. We can end up in the depths of the sea or burn to death on this island itself” wondered V221KA.

“Yes, it is rather an easy thing to understand, isn’t it?” asked C1RC221.

“There is still a chance that we might get off this island, and even if we crash in water, there will be safety measures in the ship”.

“Only if we can access them, right?” asked C1RC221.

“Lets go in and check then. It is pointless to waste our time doing nothing. What lies ahead of us is enormous”.

“Okay, in case there is the option for auto-pilot, something can be done”.

They got inside the machine and with a welcome sign, the screen automatically got enabled. There was the manufacturing date and name of the model displayed there on the top. It showed a map of the island with their location highlighted as a triangle in red. There were arrows towards all direction with the names of some locations unknown to them. A red button was glowing with the writing, ‘Begin here’.

“I didn’t know that this one came with an instruction manual. I wonder if they add the next steps too, unless this is full auto-pilot towards these destinations. Well, any place which is not this island should be a fine option for me” remarked C1RC221.

“Well, you really can’t avoid the positives here, can you? Haven’t we been negative for so long?” asked V221KA.

After having a quick look around, she pressed the button after touching one of the locations outside the island and the doors of the machine closed. There was the sound of the engine charging and starting to work. It felt as if it wasn’t used for a very long time. The machine started jerking and took a turn to go out into the sea. Suddenly, the alarms were triggered, and a screaming sound was heard. The machine started moving as a hovercraft over the sea, and the outposts began searching for the origin of the alarm.

“This doesn’t sound good, but at least we are out of there. Every moment there was nothing less than torture” remarked a relieved C1RC221.

“Yes, it is not done yet, but we are on our way” added V221KA.

One of the lights from an outpost caught hold of the machine in its path, and it remained on the spotlight as all lights converged on it. They could hear announcements about a lost scouting machine and missing prisoners. They pushed the button which had the picture of a video camera, and by pressing the zoom button on one of them, they could view a number of armed machines taking off from the launching pads on the sides of the outposts.

“We are about to be hunted! We are going to be brought down!” exclaimed a worried C1RC221.

“Find some of the useful buttons. We have come this far, and there has to be way out of here too. Maybe there will be some weapons in here” said V221KA.

“Didn’t you hear the announcement? This is a scouting machine. The purpose was always to seek and find, not to engage” yelled C1RC221.

“Maybe it is. But scouts also keep the basic weapons in case there is some kind of emergency. Or maybe they are announcing the same to confuse us. We have to keep looking through all the options available on the screen. Maybe it is hidden further inside so that it can’t be accessed by everyone” said V221KA.

“No, not that way, that is the wrong option. You shouldn’t do that” screamed C1RC221.

“I think I know what is to be done here. This option actually looks good” replied V221KA.

With one press of a button, the ship stopped for a second in mid-air, and dived deep into the sea. It kept going underwater, and stopped at a point from where it began to move straight forward. The purusuing machines reached the location on which the machine was last seen over water. They wandered around the place and kept sending information to the outposts which were passed on to the base.

“Well, told you so” said a proud V221KA.

“You have a fine amount of luck with you, I think” said C1RC221.

To be continued…

35. Ray of Hope

V221KA and C1RC221 held on to the pipes which were strapped to the roof and made sure that the robot and the workers didn’t notice them during its work. The robot was quite slow in working, as if the model was too old and outdated, unlike the ones they used to see in and around the prisons. The two people were checking the machines, and they seemed to be from the maintenance team of the island. They were surely quicker than the robot as they rushed through each of the machines in the room. But the robot still accelerated on occasions while keeping a look all around for anything to clean.

“We should apply for a new robot today itself. We have been working with this thing for too long. This one is lagging and also making too much of strange noises” one of the workers said.

“I can only hope that they agree to this. They usually say that maintenance and cleaning can do with the old model robots all the time because there is rarely the need, and even when there is a small need, the robots start working” said the other worker.

“This is the moment. Right now, through the door as fast as you can” said V221KA as the two jumped down and rushed through the door into the corridor while the robot slowly turned around to see nothing, and it went back to its work.

The corridor continued with rooms on both sides, and as they looked, there were machines everywhere except for one or two rooms which seemed empty. They reached a hall with a stage in the middle. A large number of chairs surrounded the stage which was decorated with flowers. There was something written on the wall in a strange language. The colours of the room kept changing between blue, red, white, green, yellow, brown, orange and purple. Video cameras and big speakers were set everywhere, but they were not connected or charged.

“Something special is going to happen here soon. Everything seems to be set and someone will be coming soon. We can’t stay here for long without risking capture again” said V221KA.

“It is going to be a very strange function, I would say, unless it has already happened. This is very unlike the total setting of the island” said C1RC221.

There were three doors in front of them with different designs, the left one coloured brown and with the sign of the trees, the middle one coloured black and with the pictures of the stars and the right one coloured red and with the images of the lion, tiger and eagle. The middle one was the largest and the left door the smallest. They took the left door which led them outside, to the foot of a mountain. They looked around to see the prison on the side, but it seemed separated from their present location by something in between.

“There seems to be more than one island. This should be the smaller one compared to the grand island with the prison, guard homes and the training facilities; the one which appears in the maps” said C1RC221.

“This should be a support island and the connection is actually made underwater through the corridors which connect the rooms. The need for some extra power and resources was always present. There could be more of such smaller islands around, but we never see them because we always follow a certain path according to the instructions” added V221KA.

“They have a lot more in store here. I wonder if their own people know this. There have been no stories about multiple islands. The absence of rumours amaze me” said C1RC221.

“They got the money and lots of resources. It is always easy for them to create an extra artificial island and expand their world. They have been stealing for a long time, and building something like this would be always easy for them. After all, they also steal the brains” added V221KA.

They walked to the end of the beach and touched the sea. It was all real and there was no forcefield there. There was no illusions there either as they could feel the sea. There were also crabs wandering around, and the sun was strong. There was no human being in sight anywhere around.

“At least we have managed to be closer to the sea here. There is not much of a security here and may be this is the perfect area to make an escape to the mainlands. We have to be careful, but also agile” said C1RC221.

“Which direction do you think we should go?” asked V221KA while looking at the sea.

“But there are no boats. The direction might not be the first thing to worry about” said C1RC221 as she looked around.

“There are none here, but we can make our own boats” said V221KA as she moved towards the trees.

“This idea is going to take a long time. We should look inside these buildings. At least one of them might have a solution, may be even an inflatable boat. After all, we are so close to the sea” said C1RC221.

“May be we should take the risk then. I can’t find anything sharp either. Lets give it a try” said said V221KA as they started walking towards the closest building on the other side of the island.

They entered the first one to see that it was empty and there were just ashes around. It seemed as if the place was the burnt ruins of what used to be home some time ago. The second building was the same in effect and it remained so as they continued looking inside thirteen buildings, and the only change came inside the fourteenth as they witnessed something other than just ashes. It was not something that could inspire them.

To be continued…

33. No Way Out

V221KA and C1RC221 finally got out of the giant bowl of water and stared at what they saw there. It was a room full of electronic devices. All of them seemed to be made of liquid metal as there seemed to be no stability in shape, and the electronic circuits were visible on the outside. A certain gas came out of the ventilation to keep it in a partially solid and somewhat liquid state. A few drops of the liquid metal fell on their skin and it burned.

“Keep a lot of distance from the machines. They might end our journey right here” said V221KA as they moved slowly staying away from the machines and the liquid metal.

The liquid particles which fell on the ground slowly created a hole on the ground, which was immediately filled again by the rest of the ground materials. It was a continuous procedure as the same process happened again and again. The ground remained the same after the process though.

They walked very close to the wall, which would be at maximum possible distance from the machines. They kept walking until they found a door, and got in through to reach another room, which had synthetic robots in human model being created. They came in different colours and the weapons were attached inside their fingers, eyes and ears.

“I think that these new models are meant to replace the guards in our prisons” said V221KA.

“Yes, this is were they can test all those new models and see if they are good enough for other normal duties” remarked C1RC221.

“So, an underground laboratory is what powers them. I have always wondered how they were able to get so much of technology on this island when they had to travel through not so friendly waters to get them here”.

“They have a lot more than we think they have. They have been doing all kinds of illegal activities sponsored by their own government”.

“This should be government sponsored terrorism. But they have labelled all of us as terrorists for no reason” said V221KA.

“It happens so, because they only care about what matters to them. The interests of the great corporations are the only things which are to be served”.

“But, they do care about their citizens, don’t they? After all, they do pay taxes, right?” V221KA wondered.

“Yes, only as long as they are rich, I guess. I met one of those girls in the other cells. She was originally imprisoned for coming up with something creative. No, this one had nothing against the government. This one was imprisoned because the idea was interesting to the giant film producing companies. They liked this idea and managed to steal it from her”.

“What? How can they do that? Don’t the citizens have right? At least when they have never come close to doing something wrong?” asked V221KA.

“Everything is owned by the huge business firms. If they want an idea, they take it. If there is some criticism, they take it down. In the name of taking control of piracy, they file notices against random people who are not related to it. Nobody will check if there is anything illegal going on. Whatever these big corporations say will be considered the truth. They will just establish that there is something illegal and make sure that the people are imprisoned. The government needs prisoners to serve as slaves and also to be used as guinea pigs”.

“So, this girl you are talking about. She was very creative?” wondered V221KA.

“Yes, she was. She used to write poems on the walls of her prison cells only to have them erased regularly by the guards. She was punished daily, but never stopped writing. She told me that the corporate evil had noticed her from a long time ago since she started blogging. She knew it from one of her friends who worked with the press, and a few of her friends who had blogs also faced the same fate”.

“So, if we get out, we will face the corporate evil. I am not sure if we are prepared for that. We haven’t seen the outside world for quite a long time”.

“Yes, and if we try to use internet to spread any idea, they will find us and imprison us again, and even if we just write something there, they might still imprison us, because they are against creatvity by common people. They hate common people even though there is the need for support from the common man. They will just file some random copyright notice and take our site down for no reason. We can’t win against them because they are rich and powerful. If we get out, we have to find an indirect way to beat them, or stay in hiding forever” said C1RC221.

“I am not planning to hide forever and I plan to get out of here right now” said V221KA.

There were two doors on the other side of the room. V221KA and C1RC221 tried to open them, but there was no good result. They kept trying again and again, but nothing happened to the door.

“This is not happening. We have to go back to where we landed” said C1RC221.

“I didn’t see another door in the previous room. Too much time there might also be dangerous. This should be the way out” said V221KA.

“May be we didn’t look well enough. We should look on the ground and some of the upper levels too. This is not opening anyway”.

Suddenly, a noise was heard from the other side of the door. Another door had opened somewhere else. Footsteps were approaching and V221KA and C1RC221 ran and hid behind a table. A red coloured light came through the door and it opened to bring two people in special suits inside. They had some strange tools in their hands and were followed by a robot which was sweeping the floor.

To be continued…

30. Free Pessimism

The sea was furious as the wind got stronger. They could see it from a distance, and wanted to get there no matter what happened after that – death by storm was better as they could die as free humans. But it was not going to happen. There was something standing between them and their freedom. It was a defensive invention of science which meant more good than bad, but not this time; not for these two. They were almost there, but still not free. Freedom seemed near impossible right now for the escaped prisoners.

“This is not good at all. The plan was actually better than this. I mean, I had big ideas to implement after we get to the boat and then while we go on and on. This was never supposed to be there. Come on, I never saw this or even read or heard about it. I should have known because I had eyes and ears everywhere” said V221KA.

“This was never supposed to end well. The happy endings are banned by these creatures in the form of humans” added C1RC221.

“Look out” murmered V221KA as she pulled C1RC221 back behind the rocks.

The group of soldiers looked around to see if anyone was around. The sensors attached to their guns searched for any movement around. They noticed the blood on the ground and spread around the area. C1RC221 and V221KA were left with nowhere to go. As they looked around the rocks, the two girls hid further deep under the rocks.

“Search through each and every corner. Things have to be perfect. These drops of blood seems to have another story to tell. Let’s take no risk here as the society outside is giving us some tough times” screamed the leader.

“There is a small passage which seems to go inside. A very small one if you ask me” C1RC221 murmered.

“Can you fit into it? Can you at least give it a try?” asked V221KA.

“I don’t know. This seems to small. I was not good at this during the training too. This was something which brought me too many lashes on the back” said C1RC221.

“Send for the drones. Also, keep the search mode at a higher level. Let the machine detect even the slighest movement. Even if it is just some grass, fire on it. We have to find the reason for this blood and report in less than three hours. Only then can we end our duty” further screamed the leader.

“You have to try. It is only a matter of time until they find us. They know that we are here and soon, they will be bringing extra help including the drones which will find us with ease if programmed with the sample of blood” said V221KA.

C1RC221 tried to get into it, and couldn’t go in at the first attempt. But with her friend’s help, she somehow managed not to get stuck at the middle forever. V221KA was thinner, and she made it through in an easier way.

“I thought you would be stuck at the hips, and they would get only a full me and half you. I say less food and more training for you” said V221KA.

“Yes, very good joke. Now, can we get moving and keep the comic side for another day?” asked C1RC221.

“Okay, just say which direction? It is just darkness all around. You hope for light in the end of the tunnel for no reason? I don’t think that this passage will allow us to get up soon enough. There is also a chance that we might get stuck here. The passage might get smaller and we will have nowhere to go. Or, the whole thing can fall on our heads”.

“Now, you are the one being pessimistic. Right now, I am having better hope. You have brought us all the way here. Now, stop talking abour chances and keep moving. We are not going back” C1RC221 urged.

“You are saying that because you are not sure if your hips can make it through that entrance again. I am not being pessimistic. It is clear from the inclination that we see above and considering how the ground seemed before we got in here. I am just going with the logic and calculations again. Still, let’s move a little bit and see how things turn out” adviced V221KA.

“Whatever! Just keep moving. Don’t waste time” said C1RC221.

They dragged themselves through the passage until they felt that there was no space to crawl any more. There was the terrible smell of waste all around, and it felt like a sewage pipe had cracked somewhere. It seemed as if they were stuck, and the darkness was full with no idea what was there in front or in the back.

“See, I told you. Can we move back all the way now?” asked V221KA.

“Wait. I think there is noise coming from under” said C1RC221.

“Hope they are not gunshots coming from the top. We need to move back, and may be sneak under the eyes of the troops if possible” said V221KA.

“Sssssshhhhhhhh…make no sound” urged C1RC221.

“Is that a machine? That voice that keeps ticking?” asked V221KA.

“Yes, it surely sounds familiar. There are pipes around and there are machines too. Something should be happening around us. We are not stuck in the middle of nowhere. There is hope. Come on, push down and dig through. Just take that stone and give it a try”.

“You are really getting optimistic, aren’t you?” asked V221KA.

“As if I have any other option right now. We need to get somewhere. I am tired, and have to make something happen before I faint” said C1RC221.

“Well, I have some of the optimism left within me. I shall work with it again” said V221KA as she started digging.

They digged and digged until the land began to tear away from underneath them. They fell down into a huge bowl of water which was so cold that they struggled to get out of it. They looked out to see another part of the chaotic island which they hadn’t seen or even imagined before.

To be continued…

28. The Dark Clouds

The dark clouds were coming together on the sky, the certainty of rain was there. The wind was getting stronger and they could feel the power of nature ready to unleash on the island which has had the history of going under the sea at times. But they were sure to be safe this time as they were the chosen ones to be transported to that heavenly body which was to decide their fate and not anything on Earth.

“Begin the count” instructed the warden.

“Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five, four, three, two, one, zero. Let the exercise begin” shouted the guard.

“Be good today. This is your last day. Don’t make any excuses or mess things up. Do your regular exercise and go back to your cells” shouted another guard.

As the tides threatened to rise higher and higher, they started running forward. The sea was just like their minds with troubles deep inside and hoping to destroy all which were the opponents. The security was a little less concerned on the day as they knew that anyone who tried to escape on that day would be a big idiot, considering the weather conditions. It was a day with almost no good way out.

“Lets slow it down a bit” whispered V221KA into the ears of C1RC221.

“Okay, but keep your eyes on the right. I shall look for anything on the left” added C1RC221.

“That guy on the right outpost is worth killing. Do you remember that guy who gave us the torture? May be we will get a chance another day” murmered V221KA.

They slowed down as the other prisoners went past them with ease and the cameras were more towards the areas which had more people concentrated around. The outposts had a small stretch without significant presence, and not wasting a second, V221KA pulled C1RC221 and went under the rusting iron railings, rolling to the area under the pavement. They were just slightly hurt as they checked for cameras around.

“It seems that we have got down at the best possible area” remarked V221KA.

“I think it is clear. Lets go” said C1RC221.

“Wait a minute” V221KA whispered as one of the security bots ran through the beach.

The security bots were the smallest among the most effective drones available to the bloc. They were quick and equipped with lethal needles which could be shot from their shoulders. They were used on the beaches because of their ability to tunnel and hide under the sand in case of emergency. But there was no history of escapes or attacks on the island and therefore they just roamed around hoping to use their old needles some day.

“Now” said both of them together as they ran to the beach after the bot was far enough.

They were running at their best possible speeds and almost reached the end of the beach which had an area which looked like a lagoon. They could see three small speed boats there with weapons, as the key to their grand escape. All of a sudden, C1RC221 who was on the front fell on the ground with hands on her nose. V221KA stopped to look for her.

“This sucks. Or may be a lot more than that” said C1RC221 while covering her nose.

“Get up, we are almost there” said V221KA.

“No, you can’t go past that” said C1RC221.

“Go past what?” she asked.

“That thing” C1RC221 said as she pointed straight ahead.

V221KA took a few steps forward to reveal the force field which was set there which prevented anybody from reaching the water. It was transparent, but as she walked near it, she could see the field becoming more and more visible with a blue shade. There seemed to be no way forward, unless may be there was something that could destroy, deactivate or override the force field systems.

“I know what you are thinking. It is made of pure energy. You can’t destroy it. As it is a permanent structure, you can’t even stop or pause it for a moment” said C1RC221.

“How can you be so sure?” V221KA asked.

“It is a deflector shield. This is not the regular force field. Otherwise it would not have harmed us, but sounded an alarm. This is a deflector meant to deflect the animals and scare them enough never to come near the barrier again. A regular force field comes with an alarm and less thickness. I have seen the models on the table of the warden” she added.

“You need access to the control system to pause or stop it, yes. But how can you be so confident that it cannot be destroyed?” V221KA asked.

“It is not made from anything of this world. So it can’t be destroyed by anything on Earth. There are many stories about the new inventions made by the bloc which spreads through the prisons” added C1RC221.

“Come on. This can’t be the end. The boats are there just somewhere within our reach. We have to think of something” said V221KA.

“What are you going to do now? Planning to throw stones at it again and again?” asked a pessimistic C1RC221.

A small team of soldiers were traveling to the spot on the deflector shield where there was some disturbance. The instruction was to check for any deviation from the usual days. A hit on the deflector shield from the inside was surely a deviation and a strange happening, especially because it happened near the beach area which was rarely visited by the members of animal kingdom.

To be continued…

27. Last Lost Days

V221KA noticed that they were given better food for breakfast too, and Laga had stuck to his word this time, and even did a better job. He usually promises something and doesn’t deliver anything close to it. So this was good, but the other side of that good thing was that they were going to Titan, and things were certainly not going to be anywhere close to good there. It was going to be bad in an unpredictable manner.

“So how will it be in Titan? Will it be any better than what we have here?” asked C1RC221 while biting the fried chicken leg.

“I think that it will be pretty awesome” said V221KA. “All of us will die” she added as she finished the whole plate of fish curry.

One of the prison guards poured more fish curry into her plate. A glass of pine-apple juice was also served. It was as if they were to be given more and more food, and best of the available stuff. After all, Laga had insisted on the same, and it didn’t matter if the prison guards had any food or not. An order was an order.

“Some of us might, but how can you say that about us all?” she asked after making sure that the guard had gone.

“There is no some of us surviving. We are all going to die, either by the atmosphere or by the guards who will accompany us. I don’t think that there will be the need for any of us after the situation is clear for the rich humans to come here and buy property and business to settle here”.

“But won’t those lands be ours according to the international law? Can’t we be settlers and the new citizens on the new moon?” C1RC221 asked.

“Don’t come up with any conclusion according to the little things that you watch on the television. Nobody is going to ask these guys about what they will do in their territory at Titan. To add to that, the laws on Earth won’t cover that if someone knows. There are separate laws written everywhere keeping the loopholes awake”.

“So you are sure that we are being lead to our deaths after being fed nicely”.

“I don’t see a reason why you should doubt that” said V221KA.

“Because we should live”?

“I can’t see from where you got that idea. We were never supposed to go on living. We were to die in war, but that didn’t happen. Now the only option is to die as the guinea pig”.

“But our lives should have a purpose, right”?

“Again thinking according those books you hid and read. No, these authors can write what they want. I don’t see how that can relate to us. They live free and enjoy life, and I don’t feel anything about what they write”.

“No, I read this book from a long time ago. Not those usual books these people read. I actually stole this book from the prison warden. Remember that day when I was punished for no reason? There was this reason. Nobody really bothered though, as it was natural to be punished for no reason”.

“Yes, you might have read that and found some philosophy, but that is of no value. That was from a different world, from long ago, and from another area”.

“But the story of humanity is the same everywhere and all the time” said C1RC221.

“Absolutely not. We are not the same as any other human. We are different; we are lesser humans when viewed from outside. From the moment we reached here, it became so. Even otherwise, there are different kinds of people separated by many things”.

“But this shouldn’t be the end. We should be given an opportunity”.

“The only chance is to try the impossible escape from here” said V221KA.

“Is it at least worth a try? You have seen more of this prison than I have. You should know”.

“Impossible means impossible, my dear. But nothing is without a chance to try. There is always scope in the impossible if we kep philosophy and emotions out of it”.

“Let’s give it a chance, then?” C1RC221 wondered.

“Yes, but before that, there is one thing that we have to make a decision on. It is related to dying here or at Titan. May be there will be an escape route there. Who can predict the future?” asked V221KA.

“So, what about during our run in the morning? We will have some time alone then. Or is there a security gap in the prison itself”?

“Not a bad idea there. I wouldn’t choose a direct escape from the underground prison. This one too is dangerous, but I have noticed a few loopholes there. But do remember that we will have to escape from an island. We might have to swim a long time even if we survive the forest and the guns”.

“Get up, lazy ones. It is the time for your training. You should be full by now” screamed the prison guard.

They were lead to the ground on that deserted island to which an underwater passage from their prison lead, and it was where their daily training was to begin. It was just usual stuff, but for C1RC221, it became new again. It was to begin with the long distance run which stretched from the ground to the fenced area in the forest. It was a possible chance for escape, and V221KA signalled her about the same. It was going to be a dangerous move between the guards with the guns and the wild animals which infested the area outside the fences. But it was still an option.

“This is the day we really become ourselves and decide if we are destined to live. This is the day we will be free” whispered C1RC221.

To be continued…

26. Speech of Death

C1RC221 and V221KA stood in the middle of the central line among fifty such lines. They were bound to each other and the end of the chains were held by guards who held automatic guns. There was special security arrangement which included an extra thousand elite guards with advanced weaponry and electric shields. The old emperor, Laga slowly moved to the podium to deliver his speech.

“I hate this cold. It is like being in a mortuary. Remember when we were trained under the ice floor?” asked C1RC221

“Still the dirty old man, isn’t he? Look at the pride on his face, like he owns everything and everyone” asked an uninterested V221KA.

“Yes, and still the bloody fox that he used to be” remarked C1RC221.

“I am waiting to see him rot in hell, and something tells me it is going to happen soon” said V221KA.

“I hope I can personally send him there. It will be awesome” said C1RC221.

“Silence, prisoners. The great emperor of the Northern Bloc and the destined ruler of all worlds known to man shall speak now. Listen and be glad about this opportunity to see him in person and hear his words” a prison guard announced.

“Greetings, my soldiers. I hope you are all doing well, and I don’t see a reason why you wouldn’t. You are my favourites. All you should be aware that we have a colony to take care of in Titan. For the same, we need volunteers to go there and make sure that the place can be used for human life. Due to the same reason, I am personally selecting nine hundred of you to go and make sure that life can exist there. The rest are rather incapable and we shall deal with them later. There is a chance that you nine hundred shall thrive, but there is more chance that you will die. Yes, most of you are going to die a painful death, but I have my hope that some you shall live by finding a way. After all, you are highly trained super soldiers”.

“No, we don’t want to leave Earth. No way” shouted a man who was instantly brought down by the guards.

“He won’t be in the list now. Think about it, my soldiers. It is near impossible to keep you here as the concentration camps are said to be already decommissioned, and finding you here will destroy my reputation. I am already considered too cruel. It is so much true, but it doesn’t do me any good when gaining allies. The only chance for me to keep my reputation is to send you to Titan where they won’t be able to find you that easily. After all, you are doing mankind and science a favour by doing the same. It is easier now, isn’t it? I am asking a few of you to die, and not to kill anyone – it is an easier job”.

“Please, can’t you just send us home then? There is no war, right?” asked a girl.

“Pleading? Seriously these people don’t understand anything even after so much of experience” murmured C1RC221.

“Send you home? You have developed some sense of humour for sure – I wonder from where you get that. There is no home other than where you are now. This is where you have been living since you had memory. The war is always on, and it is just that it is not clearly visible outside. We are always fighting for control, and another world war can always happen any time. It is in our blood and we cannot live without it. Setting you free is a big risk to me as people will know that you were my prisoners all this time and were experimented on. Free super-soldiers roaming around in the streets is not good. You don’t belong in my bloc, and when you reach your nation, they will have super-soldiers along with some news that will work against me. Am I dumb? I don’t think so. You cannot attribute that quality to me, which is why you have to be dealt with, in a way that is profitable and not affecting us in a negative manner”.

“Leave us alone; let us go; you have no right” two women and five men protested and tried to grab the weapons of the guards, but were immediately shot down.

“Such defiance doesn’t suit you, dear soldiers – especially after this many years of training. You were not trained to riot, but to obey the orders. So please try to co-operate. I have spend so much money in creating you, and won’t like to feel that I committed a mistake and wasted my cash. I have even arranged a special dinner for you in seven days, which you can consider your last supper. You will also have special food every day, and shall be given more freedom, but be careful not to misuse it. Happy last week, my dear soldiers”.

“It is the way of the world, dear” whispered V221KA.

“Meeting dispersed, prisoners” announced another prison guard.

The prisoners were lead back to their cells where the chains were removed. The casualities of the speech were soon disposed off, and Lago was quick to return to the world meet which was to discuss the new additions to the human rights which were to be implemented across the globe. He was to become the leader and in charge of the rights of human beings across the planet, especially the war prisoners. He was slowly becoming a world leader again in politics even if not in the control of territory.

To be continued…

20. Fate’s Weapons

Seventeen years after the execution of Dion and his wife, the same Southern Bloc was no longer under the control of the Northern Bloc, but the military bases of the Northerns remained in the Southern lands, and the former concentration camps were now known as bases for military training for which the Northerns paid a specific amount of money every year.

Among the military bases, there was one, which went very far down the ground like never before, with its world coiled around like a snake and would have been the biggest sky scraper if it was built straight up above the ground. In the middle of those coils, there were a group of rooms, and in this section, there were twenty five and on the left side of the section, the writings on the door read as C1RC221 and on its right, it read as V221KA.

“Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you, may God bless you” said the voice.

“Thank you my dear” said the shorter girl to the other.

“It is your eighteenth birthday dear, say something”.

“Are you sure about that? I mean, how can we be sure with our brains so much tampered with”?

“I am telling you, so believe it and say something, make a small speech”.

“I feel that these people will have something to say when they come to know that we have tampered with the camera wires and even managed to steal items from the kitchen to make a cake. Was this necessary? I couldn’t do the same for you on the day of your birthday. I feel ashamed of being not good enough”.

“No dear. It was because you got caught when you tried. This time, it was accomplished by us together. I don’t think that anybody in this prison has suffered like you did when you tried to get me that cake on that day. Such defiance was always going to get you brutally tortured. They had broadcasted that tape to silence the other prisoners, but let me tell you that it did not. They have successfully created a lot of perfect robocops without emotions, never questioning their instructions, but people like us are growing in number. Well, you earned an year of solitary abuse and humiliation just for me. Today, we will earn the same, may be for an year and a quarter, but this time together sharing the pain of each other”.

“I heard that all the concentration camps by the Northern Bloc has been decommissioned officially. May be we will survive, and you can go for that world journey which you always wanted, and I can get married to someone like that guy whose head was cut off for eternal defiance in the men’s prisons. May be we will be people, and not creatures”.

“Yes, concentration camps have been decommissioned, but we are not in one of them any more. We are in a military camp and we are soldiers. We might be walking experiments, but we are also super-soldiers on paper. I wouldn’t deny that though, from the way you almost brought that cake to me and suffered all that torture which no normal human being could have. We are stronger than these prison wardens are, but we are less in number and without weapons, even deprived of our nails and our tooth locked in this smooth covering. Meanwhile, we are highly vulnerable to these special weapons which they hold. We are to be unleashed one day, may be as part of a war or as part of a dangerous expedition to another planet or even another dimension. Until then, we will be grown to become vegetables, submissive to these people”.

A violent burst sent the door to the ground. Five wardens entered the room.

“Prepare Subject V221KA for the extended shock purgation. Put subject C1RC221 in the Ice Age Aquarium for now. Her skin can take a lot, and we shall soon decide to what is to happen to that repeat offender. Until then, a frozen brain and body shall do a lot of good to her. She is becoming my favourite. I should actually kill her, but I am forbidden from doing so. But if she gets killed during one of these torture sessions, I am pretty sure I won’t be held responsible” said the voice through the loudspeaker.

“You are spending too much time together. May be you will love to spend time together while tortured? It would be so cruel of me to separate you, because you are my favourite fake twins. You will like that, won’t you?” asked the warden with the skull mask.

“There are a few other things that we will like. This is only until we get out of here and make each of you suffer. One day, it will be you hoping that you were not born. We have better plans to torture each of you. This skull mask which you are wearing will be your face. And for these things which are your fingers, you can find another name to call them. The Northern Bloc will rot in hell, and this inferno shall be created by our kind whom you have tortured. Yes, I have more plans for you, skullface, and we are still working on it, and so I am not going to tell you more”.

“Fine, do what you want when you go out of here alive, drama queens, but for now, just suffer and learn to follow orders. Don’t part with your emotions though, as you will need it in the torture chamber”.

At the time of torture, they were not alone. Another guy was there, being stuck between two walls of spears and another girl who was stretched. Two dead guys were also there, one eaten by vultures and the other mutated beyond recognition by radiation. There was red light in the room and a fast, dreadful music was there for listening, as if it extended the torture.

To be continued…

13. Not the End

Dion and his wife were to be publicly judged and most probably executed, as they could know from their prisonmates. The concentration camps were for the lesser creatures who posed no threat to the government. It was a necessity if the Northerns were to keep their control over the Southern Bloc at least for enough time to earn money and resources for another war. A scene of public shame was to be created in order to make the king and the queen subject to humiliation in front of millions of their own citizens before their execution so that the last memory of the most powerful figures of the nation would be that of misery and complete helplessness.

It was time. Both of them were taken from their respective cells, stripped and hung from the top, stretched to the full. They were to have the signs of shame on every part of their bodies and those were to be their clothing during their public humiliation. As this was done using the latest laser technologies, they were to stay on the bodies forever, until it decomposes. It was a painful procedure, and it is that pain with which death had to be called upon.

They were then strapped to the front and the back of a car which slowly moved through the streets so that everyone could see. The bare bodies exposed to a light which burned the writings caused excruciating pain. The judgement panel was ready and the two were taken to the stage, gagged, stretched and bound to an “X” sign which stood for eX-terminate, and were turned towards the crowd for their full view. The chief judge removed his helmet, and it was the leader of the Northern Bloc, Laga.

“For the people of the Northern Bloc and the Southern Bloc, I start this totally fair and unprejudiced procedure of ultimate justice. The two people you see on the stage, wearing nothing, but the signs of deserving public shame, are those who are responsible for all the destruction and the loss of life which has happened to us. One of them is referred to as ‘the protector of the weak’ while all the time, he has protected and served nobody, but himself and his family, and now he has surrendered his people and has put them to slavery just so that his daughter would have a life of luxury. He has had his own time of luxury – see how much weight he has gained during the last few months when he sat in his office and ordered deaths. He has sold you all to us, but we will make sure that he pays for it, and you all shall get your due. On his side, she is the first lady to wear these symbols of shame, and it is a shame that all such beauty had to be torn with these letters. It is not about who she is, as her crime is the big lie that is more of a fact. Their child is not their own, and due to your new Act of Legacy, her illegitimate daughter was to inherit this man and rule you all for the next five years. She has not only cheated her husband, but also your supreme leader and the nation as a whole. She is also the reason for his misbehavior, as Lady Macbeth did for her husband, and she has to bear double the shame, but it is obvious that she cannot take it any more”.

As the whip came down on her, she hardly made a move. She was separated from the “X” sign and as she fell down, a rope was tied to her neck and she was slowly lifted as her legs searched for land to ensure her survival, which was not there. The first execution was complete. Dion couldn’t look as he was turned to the other side.

“We both know that the first thing I said is not true. But the second thing is actually truth of partial nature. The child you have is not your daughter. To be frank, your wife was never pregnant, and all the time she spent to have that child was more of the time which was needed for her to help her sister give birth to an illegitimate child. She took the baby back with her after her sister’s death and you took her as your own. How do I know all these? I know the father of the child, and I might have let that little one live a great life, but as the people are already given an impression that she is your wife’s illegitimate daughter which I can easily prove, it shall bring more dishonour to you and your family if she lives a life of shame. Your type should end there, and nobody should jump in the way of the Northern Bloc in the name of saving the innocents, protecting weaker nations, safeguarding the human rights and all the similar stuff which makes me sick. It is your time to follow your wife, but in a different way”.

There was a countdown going on. When it reached zero, Dion was without his head which had flown towards the body of his wife after a scythe had moved through his neck. There was blood all over, and there was silence among the crowd. They had removed the plackards supporting Dion, and even as they were shocked by the public humiliation and the bloody execution, they were certain that Dion had sold them to the Northern Bloc, and the defeat was more of a created result rather than fought. They wanted their revenge, and as Dion and his wife had met the end, they needed to show their anger on someone, and the only candidate for that was the illegitimate daughter of Dion’s wife who had the blood of the partner in crime, and for that they had to wait, but they were ready. Laga had his own proof which were mostly fabricated, but rooted in the truth that the child was not Dion’s, and the treaty that he had signed, which had more additions to it than he had read. The child was the new enemy of the Southern Bloc, and Laga was its new protector, who could bring in anyone as his man to rule his new territory.

To be continued…