the obelisk. Abruptly a pale blue light came to life above the obelisk. Abject terror filled him as the outline of teeth loomed overhead. Pale blue light seeped out from between the razor sharp teeth as the horrifying maw slowly widened.
Brent awoke with a start. Wiping at his head he found it drenched in sweat. He must have had another nightmare. He struggled to hold onto any details, but the dream was already gone. It was an endless frustration to wake up knowing he’d had another nightmare but never remembering a single detail. It had been like that for as long as he could remember. Brent grew to dislike sleep in general and slept only when his body would refuse to continue moving without rest. However, his nightmares weren’t the only gaps in Brent’s memories. Brent made a point of not lingering on it, but every now and then he found himself searching backwards only to find nothing, a great void he could not penetrate.
A light sprang to life in the cabin. Brent blinked until his eyes adjusted. It was a small oval space, large enough for him to stand, but just barely. The walls were solid black metal, no details to be found anywhere. Only the bench he sat on broke their smooth surfaces. Leaning back on the bench Brent wondered how long he had been asleep, or, for that matter, how he got into the small room. Brent remembered being at some sort of hospital, going through endless tests and exams. Maybe they drugged him, or more likely he put off sleep for too long and collapsed again. A low grinding sound interrupted Brent’s thoughts. The wall opposite Brent smoothly slid open and light poured in.
“Fall in, and present pads!” A voice shouted from beyond the light.
Exiting the room, Brent found himself in a massive space. The floor was a dull gray with an oil spill or two here and there. The walls were a gleaming white that had a polished look. Turning he found he had been in a ship of some kind; it looked like a giant olive. Brent couldn’t make out any obvious engines or propulsion system. The entire thing was just sitting in the large room with no indication of how it got there. Along the far wall several large doorways ringed the room. People were passing through them and lining up.
“Move it recruits! I ain’t got all day!” the voice shouted again.
The voice belonged to a man in military uniform with several patches. Not wanting to draw attention to himself, Brent joined the group lining up. From the look of it, most of the people in the line were about his age, maybe younger. Brent noticed a few fiddling with something in their pockets. Reaching into his own pocket, Brent found a strange piece of black paper. It was about six inches long and four inches wide. It looked about as thick as a normal piece of paper, but it seemed heavier, and Brent could barely bend it.
“What are you trying to do? Break it?” A feminine voice came from behind Brent.
Before Brent could move, he realized there was a girl reaching over his shoulder.
“Figures, you’ve not even activated it yet. What rim world did you fall off of?” The girl was waving the sheet like a fan.
“Rim world?” Brent asked, puzzled.
“Oh, never mind. Here, give me your hand.”
Grasping his hand before Brent could react, the girl pressed his thumb into the top right corner of the sheet. Instantly, the sheet illuminated, words and icons filling the screen. Snatching the sheet back, Brent started fiddling with the icons on the screen. It operated like some sort of computer, the icons linking to various menus and displays.
“You’re welcome,” the girl said sarcastically.
“Thank you very much,” Brent said, not taking his focus off the paper.
“Anytime. My name’s Hiroko. Yours?”
“Brent. Pleased to meet you.”
“If you keep playing with your pad like that people are going to stare.”
Pad. Brent knew that word. Suddenly,
Brent awoke with a start. Wiping at his head he found it drenched in sweat. He must have had another nightmare. He struggled to hold onto any details, but the dream was already gone. It was an endless frustration to wake up knowing he’d had another nightmare but never remembering a single detail. It had been like that for as long as he could remember. Brent grew to dislike sleep in general and slept only when his body would refuse to continue moving without rest. However, his nightmares weren’t the only gaps in Brent’s memories. Brent made a point of not lingering on it, but every now and then he found himself searching backwards only to find nothing, a great void he could not penetrate.
A light sprang to life in the cabin. Brent blinked until his eyes adjusted. It was a small oval space, large enough for him to stand, but just barely. The walls were solid black metal, no details to be found anywhere. Only the bench he sat on broke their smooth surfaces. Leaning back on the bench Brent wondered how long he had been asleep, or, for that matter, how he got into the small room. Brent remembered being at some sort of hospital, going through endless tests and exams. Maybe they drugged him, or more likely he put off sleep for too long and collapsed again. A low grinding sound interrupted Brent’s thoughts. The wall opposite Brent smoothly slid open and light poured in.
“Fall in, and present pads!” A voice shouted from beyond the light.
Exiting the room, Brent found himself in a massive space. The floor was a dull gray with an oil spill or two here and there. The walls were a gleaming white that had a polished look. Turning he found he had been in a ship of some kind; it looked like a giant olive. Brent couldn’t make out any obvious engines or propulsion system. The entire thing was just sitting in the large room with no indication of how it got there. Along the far wall several large doorways ringed the room. People were passing through them and lining up.
“Move it recruits! I ain’t got all day!” the voice shouted again.
The voice belonged to a man in military uniform with several patches. Not wanting to draw attention to himself, Brent joined the group lining up. From the look of it, most of the people in the line were about his age, maybe younger. Brent noticed a few fiddling with something in their pockets. Reaching into his own pocket, Brent found a strange piece of black paper. It was about six inches long and four inches wide. It looked about as thick as a normal piece of paper, but it seemed heavier, and Brent could barely bend it.
“What are you trying to do? Break it?” A feminine voice came from behind Brent.
Before Brent could move, he realized there was a girl reaching over his shoulder.
“Figures, you’ve not even activated it yet. What rim world did you fall off of?” The girl was waving the sheet like a fan.
“Rim world?” Brent asked, puzzled.
“Oh, never mind. Here, give me your hand.”
Grasping his hand before Brent could react, the girl pressed his thumb into the top right corner of the sheet. Instantly, the sheet illuminated, words and icons filling the screen. Snatching the sheet back, Brent started fiddling with the icons on the screen. It operated like some sort of computer, the icons linking to various menus and displays.
“You’re welcome,” the girl said sarcastically.
“Thank you very much,” Brent said, not taking his focus off the paper.
“Anytime. My name’s Hiroko. Yours?”
“Brent. Pleased to meet you.”
“If you keep playing with your pad like that people are going to stare.”
Pad. Brent knew that word. Suddenly,
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