The morning came too quickly for Ali. He had barely slept, the weight of the night pressing on his chest, making it hard to breathe. His mind raced with questions, none of which had easy answers. The room he shared with Malick was cold and sterile, with only the faintest hint of daylight seeping through the small window above their beds. The walls were unremarkable, and the silence of the compound outside seemed to echo through the empty space.
When Ali finally forced himself to sit up, Malick was already wide awake, his smile still as bright as ever. He was sitting cross-legged on the floor, his hands folded neatly in his lap, as if he were meditating.
"Good morning, Ali!" Malick said, his voice filled with the same enthusiasm that had been there since they first left their village. "Today is going to be great. I can feel it."
Ali nodded, though his thoughts were far from what Malick seemed to be experiencing. The excitement in his friend's eyes only reminded him of the distance between them. He felt like an outsider, disconnected from Malick's blind optimism.
"What do you think today will be like?" Ali asked, his voice low, cautious.
Malick shrugged, unfazed by Ali's obvious discomfort. "I don't know, but it's the beginning. Everything we've ever wanted, it's all right here, Ali. Don't you feel it? The air is different, you know?"
Ali didn't know how to explain the tight knot in his stomach, the unease that refused to let go. His eyes moved to the door, where the faint sound of footsteps echoed in the hallway. They were coming. He knew it. Whatever was to come, today would be the day that would start to reveal the truth—or at least, a version of it.
A loud knock on the door broke his thoughts. Before either of them could move, the door creaked open, revealing Khalid standing in the doorway, his cold eyes scanning the room.
"It's time," Khalid said simply, his voice as impassive as ever. He motioned for them to follow him, his gaze lingering on Ali for a moment longer than necessary.
Malick stood up immediately, stretching his arms with a wide grin on his face. "Let's go, Ali! This is it! Today is the start of everything!"
Ali gave a tight smile, though it didn't reach his eyes. His heart was racing, but he couldn't back out now—not with Malick so certain that everything would work out. He stood slowly and followed Khalid down the hallway, his footsteps echoing through the compound like a countdown.
The compound seemed even more unnerving in the daylight, the walls stretching high above them, casting long shadows on the cracked, dusty ground. There were no people in sight, no workers, no staff—nothing. The silence was deafening, broken only by the occasional rustle of the wind. Ali couldn't shake the feeling that they were being watched, though he saw no one.
Khalid led them to a large building at the far side of the compound, its doors double-wide and imposing. He opened them with ease, and the heavy doors groaned as they swung inward. The interior was dimly lit, the walls lined with metal racks and crates. Ali's eyes darted around, but there was no sign of any workers, no indication of what this place actually did. The silence here was even more suffocating, like the air itself was holding its breath.
"Where are we?" Ali asked, his voice barely above a whisper.
"This is where it begins," Khalid replied cryptically, his expression unreadable. "Training will start today. You'll learn how to do what we need you to do."
Ali's chest tightened. Training for what? He wanted to ask, to demand an answer, but the words caught in his throat. What had they gotten themselves into?
Khalid led them into a large open room at the center of the building. There were no windows, just a few metal tables and chairs scattered around. On the far wall, there was a screen—large and flat, almost as if it were a command center of sorts. A series of chairs were arranged in front of the screen, and as Ali walked closer, he saw figures standing at the far end of the room.
There were three men, each wearing dark clothing, their faces shadowed by the low light. Ali couldn't tell much about them, but their presence was enough to make his skin crawl. They turned as Khalid entered, their expressions serious, their eyes sharp.
"This is where you will be trained," Khalid said, his voice steady as he addressed the men. "They will teach you what you need to know."
The men didn't speak, but one of them stepped forward, motioning for Ali and Malick to sit in the chairs in front of the screen. They obeyed, though Ali felt a sense of unease growing within him. This was not the bright future they had been promised. This felt wrong. And as the screen flickered to life, displaying a series of complex maps and symbols, Ali realized just how far they had fallen into a web they didn't understand.
Khalid stood off to the side, observing them silently as the men began explaining the tasks ahead. The details were hazy at first, but Ali could tell that it had to do with... logistics, maybe? Some sort of business, but it didn't feel like anything he had ever known. There was talk of connections, of moving things, people, goods—but none of it was clear. The words were empty to Ali, each phrase feeling more foreign than the last.
Malick, however, seemed fascinated. He leaned forward in his chair, hanging onto every word. His eyes shone with excitement, with a kind of hunger that Ali couldn't understand. Why was he so eager to learn this? Why was he so blind to the danger?
Ali glanced at the men again, his stomach turning. There was something in their eyes—a coldness that sent a chill crawling down his spine. They weren't like Khalid. These men were not kind. They were calculating, ruthless. Ali knew, deep down, that something was off, but the fear of what might happen if they refused to comply kept him rooted to his seat.
Time seemed to stretch in that room, the hours slipping by as the men continued to explain the tasks. The more Ali learned, the more he realized that the paradise they had been promised was a lie. There was no better life here. Only a darker, more dangerous world—a world that would swallow them whole if they weren't careful.
When the session finally ended, Ali felt drained. His body was tense, his mind reeling from the confusion and fear that had begun to build within him. As they were led out of the room and back into the compound, Ali couldn't shake the feeling that they were trapped. There was no way out. No escape.
But Malick... Malick was different. He was still smiling, his face alight with something that Ali couldn't quite grasp. He was ready. He was already falling into this world, embracing it fully. But Ali? Ali wasn't so sure anymore. The price for paradise was higher than he could ever have imagined.