Chapter 6:

Journey

The Fight for Humanity


The already dim interior of the Cube grew even dimmer as all non-essential lighting was powered down. Food stalls were closed, the cooling system was shut down. Slowly but surely, life inside the Cube was grinding to a halt.

I sat at a dining table in the food court alongside Amber and Jet. The plate of cold, undercooked food before me looked anything but appetizing. At this point, even cooking for flavor was out of the question. Cooking just enough to kill the bacteria was all we could afford. It was only a matter of time before the Cube would completely cease to function.

Jet stared blankly at his food. Even Jet, son of Flint, the current leader of our Cube, couldn’t swing higher class meals. “I have bad news for you two.” His voice was quiet, as though he didn’t want anyone to overhear him.

“What’s up?” Amber asked between her bites of food. She was the only one still wolfing down her meal as though it were a fine feast.

“As you can tell, our situation is pretty dire,” Jet continued. “We haven’t resupplied in a long time, for a lot of reasons. Between the ambush on the abandoned Cube and the Dwellers re-emerging, it’s only getting more difficult for our Scavengers.”

He didn’t need to tell us twice. While Amber and I only joined the Scavenger unit recently, after graduating from school, the job had become drastically more difficult in just the few months we were there.

Amber put her fork and knife down. “We do what we can to try and help. Just because the going gets tough doesn’t mean we’ll give up. Humanity is relying on us.”

She always maintained a positive attitude. I don’t know how. Maybe because she hadn’t lost anyone to this world yet. Both her parents were still alive. I was still alive. Her family hadn’t been taken away from her, like mine was.

“I’ve always admired your conviction, Amber,” Jet said with a smile. “It’s one of the things I’ve always liked about you.”

“You’re not flirting with her, are you?” I interjected. It was a rare moment for me to make a joke, so rare that it almost felt unnatural. Even still, there was a bit of truth behind my words.

“As happy as I am to see you make a joke, Ray, I’m afraid now isn’t the time for jokes.” While Jet was a serious guy when he needed to be, it was out of character for him to completely avoid some back and forth banter. After all, he was often the one poking fun at me. His serious demeanor meant he had something truly important to share.

“I wanted to give you two a heads up before the official announcement is made,” he continued. “Since you two are my friends, I wanted to deliver the news to you myself.”

“Just spit it out already,” I retorted. I had thin patience for the anticipation he was seemingly trying to build, dragging out this announcement.

He lowered his gaze, avoiding eye contact with both me and Amber. “The Cube will be docking by the end of the day.”

My fork slipped from my fingertips and clattered against the metal table. We were going to dock?

“We can’t do that!” I started to raise my voice. “Is there no other way to reroute power within the Cube?”

Jet silently shook his head. My question was pointless. Clearly, leadership and the Cube engineers would have thought of all alternatives.

“We’re really going to dock?” I was in shock. Docking the Cube was the genuine last resort, and effectively a death sentence. The Cube was designed to roam the surface of the Earth to avoid mutant attacks. A stationary Cube was vulnerable to mutant attacks and takeover, a fact we were emphatically reminded of while scavenging the abandoned Cube. There was no sugar coating it. If we were docked for long, we would die.

“I talked with my father, and he told me our plan. Four squads from the Scavenger unit, yours included, will be deployed on a two week long mission to search for supplies and Dilithium. We have four emergency camp sets on board, and each squad will use one. You’re going to receive the official briefing soon, and head out for deployment tonight.

Jet just dropped a total bombshell on us. Amber and I exchanged glances, unsure how to process the information we just received. A two week Scavenger mission. That would certainly take its toll, but it was necessary for our survival, for humanity.

“I hate to drop this on you and run,” Jet continued. “But my father needs my help. There’s been a lot of inner turmoil around here lately. There are different factions forming when it comes to the future of the Cube. I can’t go into details now, but people have different perspectives on how things should be run around here.”

Jet’s eyes went to the floor. He seemed dismayed and worn down. His father was working him to the bone to prepare him for leadership.

“We totally get it, Jet, don’t worry!” Amber tried her best to cheer him up. “You’re doing an amazing job, don’t forget that! We’re all thankful.”

“Thanks, Amber. I’m going to miss you two for the next two weeks. We’ll have to catch up again as soon as you get back. I know you’ll do everything you can to help the Cube.”

Jet got up from the table and waved goodbye. Amber and I remained, finishing our meals in silence. We had two weeks to save humanity? I never asked to be a hero.


The Dweller hadn’t moved a muscle by the time I returned to my room. She sat in the exact same spot, her arms still tied to the leg of my dresser. There were no signs she tried to break free at all. Perhaps she accepted her fate by this point.

“So what are ya gonna do with me anyway.” Her tone was sharp.

The truth was, I didn’t have a good answer for her. “I don’t know.”

I made the grand announcement that I would bring about the end of the Dwellers, and that she would help me. How I was going to make that happen, I wasn’t quite sure yet.

In my mind, there were only a few options. Letting her go free was clearly out of the question. All that was left was to keep her captive, or kill her. The potential value she could bring to the table ruled out killing her as well. If she were to lead us to a Dweller settlement, in order to spare her own life, we could launch a surprise attack. She appeared strong willed, but with her life genuinely on the line, I’m sure she would cave. Most living things do. Self preservation is an incredible thing.

Her stomach let out an audible growl. “I’m hungry.”

I had her holed up in my room for over 24 hours now. I hadn’t given her a single drop of water or piece of food. It was quite amazing she was still so animated, especially while being restrained.

I pulled a leftover bread roll out of my jacket pocket. It was part of our daily rations. The taste was subpar at best, so I had no desire to eat it myself. I tossed the roll to her feet. “Go crazy.”

With her arms still tied back, she grabbed the roll between her feet. Her dexterity and flexibility were on display as she brought the roll to her mouth using her feet. Color me impressed.

“You eat like a filthy pig. Show some class, if you know what that is.”

She scarfed down the roll in a matter of seconds. “I wouldn’t have to eat with my feet if you untied my hands. Idiot.”

Dealing with this brat was a complete pain. Maybe it wasn’t worth keeping her alive after all.

“So Ray,” she said with her mouth full of bread. “You don’t wanna ask my name?”

I rolled my eyes. “Why would I care what your real name is?” I pulled a file of paperwork out of my dresser. I placed it at her feet. “I went through a lot of trouble to get this paperwork filed quickly. As far as I’m concerned, you are now Pyrite. If you flip through those pages you’ll get information on your backstory and what you do in the Cube. Memorize it, got it?”

She quickly glanced through the papers. “And what’s all this for?”

“I’m not an idiot, I know I can’t keep you captive in my room forever.”

“Oh you’re not an idiot? Crazy,” she sneered.

“Shut the hell up would you? If I can’t keep you locked up here, you need a new identity, one that will let you blend in with the population. Don’t think you’re off free, though. I will always be watching you.

“Pyrite is a stupid name. Is that even a name at all?”

“Yes Pyrite is a real name and no it’s not stupid. Stop complaining. I don’t know where you get off throwing a fit as my captive.”

“Name’s Dawn. Call me that, don’t call me Pyrite.”

“I didn’t ask and I don’t care. In public, you will be known as Pyrite, got it?”

Dawn, this rebellious teenage Dweller, finally stopped putting up a fight. She sat in silence as I explained the upcoming deployment for Squad Delta, and how she would be joining us. Honestly, it was a shortsighted plan that I had only just come up with, but I struggled to think of any alternatives. If I left her in my room on this mission, she would die of thirst or starvation. If I let her roam the Cube freely while I was gone, who knew what sorts of damage she could cause. Without killing her, this was the only solution I could see.


“If you cause any trouble, I will personally make sure the short remainder of your life is as painful as possible.” I pressed the knife Dawn first brought onboard the Cube into her back. It was my last warning to her. I was taking a massive risk, one that put not only myself in jeopardy, but every last person on the Cube.

I opened the door to my room and led Dawn out. In my right hand, I carried forged paperwork marked with an official government seal. This Dweller, who had no right to live amongst us, the saviors of humanity, was now registered as a citizen of the Cube. Pyrite, a special graduate of the Scavenger training program, authorized to join Squad Delta following our grave loss during the abandoned Cube expedition. The backstory we crafted had too many holes to count, but so long as we had signed, official paperwork, we could only be questioned so much.

There was no feasible solution to my unique predicament. I couldn’t kill Dawn, even if I wanted to. Strategically, she was too valuable of an asset. Of course, I couldn’t tell anyone else, not even Jet or Amber, that I was harboring a captive Dweller. When it came to Dwellers, there was only one policy. Kill first, ask questions later. Just because I let her live didn’t mean anyone in a position of authority would extend her the same grace.

Unable to kill her, and unable to reveal her true nature, there was only one option left. And now that I had built a brand new identity for her, she could accompany Squad Delta on our extended journey to the surface.

I entered the locker room alongside Dawn. There were only a few recognizable faces among a sea of newcomers. With a third of our squad perishing in the last 3 months, we were due for some new recruits. Perhaps sneaking Dawn in would be easier than I thought.

“Hey Ray!” Amber greeted me with her usual pep and cheer. “And hey… sorry, what’s your name?”

Amber looked at Dawn quizzically. This was Dawn’s first test, would she play the part?

“Hi, I’m Pyrite, it’s nice to meet you.” She extended her hand to Amber. Without hesitation, Amber reached out to shake it.

“Pyrite! What an interesting name! I’m Amber, welcome to Squad Delta!”

“I think you should be a bit more focused, Amber. This is an important mission we’ve been assigned.”

She flashed me a disappointed look. “You’re never any fun, Ray. We have a lot of new recruits today. The least we can do is loosen up the atmosphere here for them.”

For some of the other new recruits, sure. For Dawn, I wished Amber wouldn’t waste her breath. This was a Dweller, not your friend.

A couple of new recruits approached Dawn and began to converse with her. By this point I was at my own locker, changing into my hazard suit. I had no idea what they were talking about, but Dawn appeared to manage well enough. Most of the conversation likely surrounded how Dawn made it into the Scavenger unit without being spotted in any training class.

“You keep looking at Pyrite,” Amber remarked, nudging me with her elbow. “Are you interested?”

I scoffed at the jab. “As if. Disgusting.”

“Geez, Ray, lighten up a little. That’s super rude.”

Clearly Dawn was better at playing a part than I was. I was comfortable around Amber, and I let my true feelings slip. As much as it pained me, I had to treat Dawn as I would any other citizen.

“Sorry, I didn’t mean that.”


For the rest of the time, I readied myself in silence. Dawn seemed to be fitting in well enough. Amber didn't know the truth about her, but I was happy to have someone I could trust watching over her. If Dawn were to act out of the ordinary, there was no doubt Amber would tell me. 

The bay door opened, exposing us to the harsh, outside world. 

"Alright everyone," Garnet said emphatically. "It's time to save humanity." 

Once again, as we always had, our descent to the surface began. Only this time, the stakes were so much higher.