“She’s…awake.”677Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ3jhMbhoTNW
The man looked up from his book. “You sense her?” he said, looking intently at Apollo across the small grey cabin. “Where is she?”
Apollo pointed towards the cabin door. “She’s… that way.”677Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡFWOKMmRSQQ
It was an odd feeling. Or maybe feeling wasn’t the right word, it was more of a knowing. A knowledge that she was in that general direction, in fact it was exactly that direction. 677Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ71dskcLnpj
“Then it’s time to leave, Apollo.” The man got up from his chair and walked towards the cabin door. “Come,” he said, gesturing for Apollo to follow. “It’s time for you to see the rest of the world.”677Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡm5TKWNXuog
***
Coming out of the grey metal walls that had been Apollo’s home for the last three weeks, was an unsettling experience. Not because it was intimidating or chaotic or even unknown. It was in fact, quite the opposite, as after about three seconds of standing in the dim grey light of the outside world Apollo once more just seemed to know. Or at least he knew about the place and its people.677Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡN22J5zeuhC
Individuals and communities, towns and cities, nations, federations he suddenly knew about them all. About people in general. How they were, what they’d done. Language, history, art, philosophy, geography, psychology, literature, music. Humanity was vast. And for some reason that he knew all this was right. In the proceeding ten seconds, after this newfound knowledge had filled his head, it dawned on Apollo that despite everything he knew, he did not know where he was.677Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡazIQiudq3Q
He looked up at the man standing by his side. He felt a bluish, purple colour. If it were a word perhaps Apollo would have said, apprehension or perhaps curiosity. Something like that.677Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUG7rchPYsy
“How do you feel?” The man asked.677Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ7Y673V2J5h
“You mean me? Me, me? Not her?” Up until now, any talk of feeling had been exclusively directed towards the unknown girl.677Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ6rbfdFiNlx
“I do.” Answered the man, a fleck of red shooting into his otherwise aquatic colouring.677Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡgx8MaKrUVF
“Where are we?” Apollo answered, or at least it was the closest answer he could give to summing up how he felt.677Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡSQI3gXc6Eg
“Oil Town”677Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡC40khqNMaC
“Oil Town?”
“Yes. The first settlement to be established after ‘The Burnout’.”677Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ2vALZEyWmX
“The Burnout? What is that? And why don’t I know about this place?”
“Because you are from before all this. You are from the point of time when humanity was at its best, the point at which we could have achieved greatness, but instead collapsed. And you are the guardian of that knowledge. Or you’re one of them at least.”677Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡXyRhcr77vw
***677Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxIyndQKK0N
“Hello! I sense someone. I know you are near to me.”677Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡguXydHxPLo
A light shined across the girl’s pale face. 677Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡMPCAFCMU5d
“Who are you?” she asked. 677Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUMWRoXmZk4
“We could ask you the same,” came a gruff voice. 677Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhOhEjW5JV8
“We are friends, that’s who we are.” came another voice, in a smoky tone that clearly disapproved of its partner’s comment.677Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡhzgTSS6HDo
The torchlight flickered for a second before cutting out altogether and plunging them all into darkness once more.677Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZ0Vf5G3TKZ
“You see. I told you those batteries we dug up a few weeks back would be useful,” came the words from the smoky voice. 677Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ9lakX4mza5
“Yeah, you’re right. All we need now is to go back up and get them out of pack in the dark.”
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