"I guess you're all ready." Someone spoke up, followed by an outburst of what sounded like a chuckle and a cough.
... ...
Red sat up and stretched his neck. "You were all so noisy I couldn't get a single shut-eye... well, I'm feeling better now so it's water under the bridge."
"Red, you're awake!" Curl almost jumped in excitement, once again enduring the urge to hug Red.
"That was faster than expected. I'm guessing you don't need a run-down on what happened, right?" Blond smirked, assisting Red so he could comfortably sit down.
"Yup, I heard it, clear as crystal. I was beginning to feel like a confessional so I decided to take part in the conversation." Red chuckled forgetting that his rib injuries weren't completely healed yet. A split second later, he was wincing in pain.
"Don't push yourself, Red." Freckles continued. "Well, at least your fever's gone down a little bit. Congrats, you're past your critical condition so expect a steady recuperation."
"Thanks, Freckles... thanks, everyone." Red slightly bowed his head in gratitude. "Thanks for keeping me alive."
Red's eyes scanned the items beside him. "Mmm... I guess almost everything's here. You haven't revealed the rest but this should be fine for now. When the time comes, however, I want you to tell everyone about it."
"What do you mean? These aren't all of them?" Scar wanted to make sure.
"Who said there's only one object from your hidden pocket? The possibility that there might be more than one is highly likely, right?" Blond replied, glancing sideways towards Red and receiving a nod from him in return.
"Still, I commend all of you for trusting each other, although some are just partially doing so... but! That's the least of our concern." Red emphasized, his eyes narrowing into slits. "In two to three days, we're getting out of here."
"WHAT?!"
"THAT FAST?!" Curl exclaimed in disbelief. "Why didn't you tell us earli... "
"Let him finish. He knows more than we do." Blond interjected, cutting Curl off.
The rest of them nodded in approval, motioning for Red to continue.
"It's not exactly a plan of escape... but two to three days from now, well, I don't know the exact date since I just vaguely heard about it... the annual corporation-wide humanoid testing will occur and everyone will be participating in it."
"I don't know the details but one of the purposes for this large-scale testing is getting rid of old employees to open up space for the new batches. As far as I know, it'll be a test of survival. That's why we have to improve our stamina."
"In three days? But that won't get us anywhere. We'd need at least a month to improve our stamina." Freckles continued.
"I just need all of you to be mentally ready, and physically prepare yourself for the meantime. Just take it slowly. We'll probably get some training before the testing happens... just wait until then and I'll tell you more details about what the event is all about." Red continued.
"Why not tell us now, Red?" Curl's lips tightened. "Or should we call you... Veerius Genesys."
"I prefer Red more than that name... for some reason, it just gives me an intense headache every time I hear about it," Red responded, clenching his teeth to ease the sudden headache he got after hearing the name again. "Just remember what I tell you. That's all you need to know for now."
With nods of agreement, the meeting was adjourned.
"Red... " Blond turned around, smiling.
"Yeah?"
"Whatever your decisions are, I completely trust you."
"I wonder about that... " Red couldn't help but ask himself as he lay down on his bed.
The lightbulbs in the lodging room flickered, making Red blink his eyes after staring at it for too long. He was about to tell them everything when he noticed something on the corners of his eyes. In that split second, he hastily decided not to tell them everything.
After all, there were five boxes stacked on the far end of the room. Red perfectly knew that those boxes were daily rations, and when he was awake, there were only two of them.
So I've been asleep for three days, huh. Why did they hide that from me? Red glanced around the room, landing on every bunk bed and noticing that all of them were already dozing off. He yawned. They must've had a good reason to hide that from me...
Or... were they testing my capabilities?
"Forget it."
Red decided not to fret about it. He knew that his speedy recovery is of utmost importance.
... ....
Wee~woo... wee~woo...
The next day was no different from their first day. As usual, the steady clank of metals and pristine white walls greeted them. It had only been a few days but Red and the others were already getting tired of the dull colors that surrounded them.
Well, there was one difference.
This time, Jarxen wasn't wearing a hazmat, he was wearing a military uniform.
"Don't tell us... are you into cosplay, Jarxen?" Blond retorted as he kept his laughter from leaking out of his mouth.
"SHUT UP, SOLDIER!" Jarxen bellowed, standing shoulder-width apart to further act his part out. "From now on, you'll be having a different test... and it won't be humanoids!"
"He's really getting into it," Red mumbled to himself as he got out of his bed. His ribs and arms were almost completely healed by now. For some unknown reason, Red healed way faster than they had expected.
"Freckles, are you sure Red should be getting up by now?" Blond worriedly asked.
"He's a cockroach alright." Freckles giggled. "I'm just relieved you're already feeling better. Blond, can you get him out of his bandage later?"
"SOLDIERS!!! LINE UP!" Jarxen interrupted their early morning conversation. "I want a straight line parallel to my stance."
The group submitted to Jarxen's request without saying another word. Although bothered by Jarxen's words a moment ago about not testing any humanoids, they trust Jarxen would explain everything to them.
"Ehrmm!!!" Jarxen cleared his throat. "There will be a special Nexus Corporation event, and it will be played across the whole continent and everyone's participation is a must!"
"And today, Head Cipher finally decided on a mock battle between the blocks. I presume you won't disappoint me?"
"What's the event abo..."
"THAT"S A YES, SIR FOR YOU, SOLDIER!" Jarxen roared.
"He's really getting into it." Red repeated to himself.
"YES, SIR~!" All of them shouted in unison.
Jarxen about-faced and headed outside the lodging room. The group quickly followed.
To their surprise, Jarxen opened the entrance to the Block. "Follow me." He ordered, stepping outside.
A feeling of nostalgia swept over Red and the others as they reminisced the first time they regained consciousness. It's only been five days but for them, it felt like an eternity. The immaculate white walls and blinding light bulbs by the ceilings were like something straight from their dreams. "It's been a long time, huh." Red sarcastically muttered as they walked on the white-tiled hallways. They were individually greeted by the guards with a nod.
The Dome presented an unusually different vibe when Jarxen and his workers arrived. Red and the others looked around as indistinctive chatters drowned the robotic announcements circulating the Dome. There was a diversity of workers and block owners grouped together at the center.
"I hate it when the Dome gets this noisy." Jarxen rested his hand on his head as he sighed. Even though a big fan of screaming, Jarxen particularly hated too much noise when it comes to 'places'. It might be shocking to hear that most of the employees in the corporation were especially silent. That's why the cafeteria remained a peaceful haven for all employees. It would be an understatement to say that almost all of the employees' personalities were counterparts of Jarxen's, but they just didn't voice it out too much.
In short, what made the Dome a cacophony of noise were the workers that recently got acquainted with each other. Most of them were talking so casually despite the upcoming conflicts that were sure to occur in the mock battle.
Red was astonished to see that most of the workers were middle-aged people. Since there were only teens around Red, he assumed that such was the case in the other blocks. That assumption was also solidified by the fact that the recent block they met was filled with teenagers (although Knuckle didn't look that young for a teenager)
"Red!" Someone called out.
It was Blond, talking to a familiar teenager. "He wanted to talk to you."
Red approached him with a genuine smile on his face. He remembered who the boy was. "How could I miss that buzz cut hairstyle of his?" Red thought, shaking his hand.
"This is Short. We met him a few days before. Remember the game of Russian Roulette and the double-testing?" Blond said. Red perfectly recalled everything about it without him mentioning it. "Anyways, he wanted to talk to you."