Log 2: The Girl Below Chicago

A ginger haired girl, dressed in a hospital gown, sat against the back wall of the small room she called home. She hated it there. The dim light, lack of proper bedding, and chilled air made it difficult to sleep. All she had to keep warm was a thin sheet that barely covered her body. If she lay flat, the light would become irritating, if she lay on one side for too long the limbs would begin to ache. She rarely got much sleep. Then again, it could have been worse. She had activities. From puzzles, to writing there was more to do than simple sleeping, though it all required her tablet.

She crawled over to the wall and scanned her hand. An empty shelf slid out.

"Oh, right, I left it outside..." the girl muttered.

It happened occasionally, she would be playing when those people in the white coats arrived and she'd take the tablet to the examination. Sometimes, after the examinations and tests were complete, she'd forget to take her tablet back with her. It seemed that time moved slower without her entertainment, once she had realized she forgot her tablet at least. Hopefully the men in the black suits would be coming by soon. She could ask them to get her tablet. Plus, she had finished her food at lunch and supper's alarm had buzzed hours ago.

The girl gasped from realization. "The supply crates. They're squares, I can play with them."

She walked to the opposite wall and scanned her eye. The wall panel slid to the side and a drawer was pushed out. She transferred the crates to the floor one at a time. Sitting, staring at them, she racked her brain in hopes of coming up with something to do with them.

"I could stack them on top of each other," she said. "Or I could... throw them at the walls... or on the ground... or hit one with the other..."

Her hopes fell. Half of her ideas would get her in trouble with the people who visited. Getting punished wouldn't be fun. It never was. She sighed and began stacking the boxes. She put one on top, moved it to the ground and put the other on top. Riveting; not. It was mildly entertaining for a few seconds, but she was bored again.

She lied down, splayed her arms and legs, and stared at the ceiling. Her stomach grumbled.

"I want the black suits to come by soon," she whined. "I'm hungry."

The girl was pretty sure that that night was a visiting night, but without her tablet she couldn't be certain. If it was the case, the voice would announce it soon. The girl closed her eyes. She'd try to get some rest until then.

"Food Handler Ludwig Stal and Avery Jackson have entered the facility," a robotic voice said.

The girl shot up, her hands flew into the air.

"Food time!" she cheered.

The girl situated the boxes at the base of the door. She began hyping herself up, getting ready to make her request. She wobbled back and forth on the heels of her feet, muttering different ways she could ask.

"Can you please get me my tablet? Er … maybe, would you be able to get me my tablet? I left it in the lab by accident. No... I need something better," the girl paused and thought. "I forgot my tablet in the examination room, could you bring it to me? That sounds good." She smiled.

The door slid open.

"Blue-eyes set the crates out for us," Ludwig said with a somewhat annoyed tone. "How nice of her."

"Shut your trap," Avery ordered. "Give me your preservation crate."

Ludwig grimaced, handed off his box and picked up the used ones.

The girl clenched her fists and gritted her teeth.

"Um, Mr. Jackson, sir," her voice cracked. "C—can y—you, er, um, uh..."

Avery bent down, looking the girl in the eyes. "What is it?" he asked sternly.

She looked to the ground. "I—I forgot my tablet last examination. C—could you g—get it fo—for me?"

"Look your elders in the eyes when you speak." Mr. Stal demanded.

Avery walked out of the room. "Give her a break, Ludwig."

"Why shou—?"

"Where'd you leave it?" Avery interrupted.

"Avery!" Ludwig shouted. "Do not cut me off like that."

"What you were saying wasn't important."

"And how do you know that?"

"Because she needs to keep her brain occupied. The chief would be pissed if he knew she was just laying around."

Ludwig's bad mood was visibly increasing.

The girl stepped forward. "I left it on Table 3."

Avery surveyed the room. He quickly spotted the tablet and brought it over.

"Look me in the eyes," Avery ordered.

Nervously, the girl looked up. "Yessir..."

Avery's eyes were narrowed. He was frowning. The girl glanced to the side, then quickly regained eye contact again.

"Saturn," Avery began. "You can't keep forgetting your tablet. You do it a lot more than you think, trust me."

"Oh..."

"What the hell are you doing?" Ludwig asked.

Avery ignored the question. "I'll only do this for you three more times. Understand?"

"Mm-hmm," Saturn nodded. She didn't like it, but she believed him.

"We have some other stuff to take care, so you try and get some sleep, alright?" Mr. Jackson patted her head.

Avery exited her room and closed the door. Saturn walked over to the back wall and scanned her hand. The wall slid back slightly. She opened her tablet and set it into the depression. After a second or so, a holographic keyboard formed in front of her hands and the tablet's notes software opened to a new page.

12th of July, 2136

Mr. Jackson and Mr. Stal brought more food today.

I forgot my tablet last examination so I was bored for a while, but Mr. Jackson was nice enough to get it for me. He said he would only bring it back three more times... I need to get better at remembering it.

I'm hungry. I should ...

"Ludwig Stal and Avery Jackson have exited the laboratory," the robotic voice announced.

Saturn jumped. Once her heart had stop pounding, she continued writing.

... eat.

The announcer surprised me again.

I want to see Mama...

I'm done. I'm going to eat now and do a puzzle or something.

Sincerely, Saturn.

She popped her tablet out of the depression and deactivated the setup. Saturn walked to one of the food boxes and scanned her thumb. Carrots, some rice, a little bit of meat, some cheese, and some juice. Everything other than the juice was normal. Special treatment maybe?

Saturn scanned her hand on the back wall, just right of where she scanned for the writer's setup. A panel in the wall slid open and a tray popped out. She put small servings of each food type into the tray's slots, resting the juice box on the floor. After she ate, she tucked the supply crates away in their drawer, put the tray back for washing, poked a hole in the juice with the straw and grabbed her tablet.

She quietly hummed while sipping the juice and browsing puzzles. After a few minutes, she selected a puzzle that depicted two kittens playing in a field of flowers. It was one of her favorites.

"Click, clack, click, clack, click," Saturn murmured.

Each time a puzzle piece was placed a low bing would sound. Whenever a puzzle was completed a short song would play. The Professor called it 'Dancing With the Willows'.

The Professor had tried to explain how the song was made and what the notes were, but Saturn didn't understand a word of it.

"Maybe I can learn it someday." she mumbled.

The robotic voice spoke in the same moment that the girl was about to complete the puzzle. "Food Handler Ludwig Stal and Avery Jackson have entered the facility."

Saturn was confused. Why had Mr. Stal and Mr. Jackson come back?

"Did they forget something?" Saturn asked.

The girl grew nervous. Such an event had never occurred before. She wasn't sure whether to be scared or happy. Holding her tablet to her chest, she flattened herself against the back wall.

Saturn watched with bated breath. The door buzzed and slid open. A young man, cloaking his face with a hoodie, mask, and glasses, stood just outside the door. In that moment, Saturn knew she should have been afraid. And yet she was not.

“Who are you?”