DEATH

Tempéra bangs with all his strength on the metallic door, screaming in rage. Athena, who is standing behind him, watches him with an impassive face.

"Quarantine hasn't been lifted Professor Akheeli," she says calmly motionless.

"Athena," Tempéra begins irritably, turning back to the hologram. "They're all dead," he says, moving towards her slowly. "What do you want? My daughter and I, staying confined here until the end of time, is this what you want?!" He shouts, punching the air with his fist.

"Although you have no symptoms, you're also carrying the virus. You'll infect everyone else. You know I'm right Professor Akheeli," she replies softly as if to calm the man who is looking at her in tears.

Awakened by her father screaming, Gaëlle is lying on a mattress on the ground. She sits up on one elbow to watch the scene as if she was watching a cartoon on her tablet. She squints and rubs her eyes. The days have passed quickly since she has started feeling ill. Her vision remains blurry, but she can see now. She no longer feels pain in her stomach either. Extreme fatigue is the only ailment that disturbs those endless days in the laboratory. Her tongue feels as heavy as the sorrow in her heart. She thinks she can talk, but she doesn't want to; she doesn't fancy talking to adults around her anymore. They are always too busy to listen to her anyway.

Of course, Tempéra knows Athena is right, but they don't have to keep him and Gaëlle quarantined among a dozen corpses. He also knows that reason knows how to maintain human dignity even in the worst circumstances. He has learnt through years of research that true reason is never singular or cruel, only the man who doesn't know how to use it due to lack of time, money, values ​​or all three at the same time. Tempéra turns again to face the metallic door; unbreakable, immense, impassable.

Tempéra is sleeping on the mattress next to Gaëlle. He is moving his arms violently in the air as if chasing flies in his dream.

"Professor Akheeli," a female voice keeps calling out.

Tempéra recognises the voice. He keeps turning around, looking for his client, Mrs. Karim. He is surprised to be reassured when he finally sees the silhouette of the woman dressed in a brightly coloured sari. She smiles gently, looking at him silently for awhile. Then, suddenly, her gaze darkened to stare at him with a stern look without compassion, like his mother's look when he hadn't behaved well.

"What are you going to cling to when you've lost everything? Nothingness is much vaster than we think." The quiet voice of Mrs. Karim questions him while her lips still remain closed. Her motionless silhouette slowly fades away into the darkness.

Tempéra is snapped out of his nightmare by a small metallic rustle like the one the lab door normally makes when it opens. He props himself up on his elbow, rubbing his eyes with one hand before opening them wide. The lab door is open. He jumps off the mattress with a beating heart, a broad childish smile on his face. He squats down to take Gaëlle in his arms; the little girl is still asleep. He is about to get up when he hears footsteps in the corridor, heading towards the laboratory.

He immediately freezes, staring at the open door for a moment before looking frantically around him for a sharp object; any object as long as it can hurt human flesh. He gently puts Gaëlle back down on the mattress then he rushes to the counter to grab one of the utensils.

"Professor Akheeli," Karl calls out as he walks through the door with a worried, sweaty face.

Tempéra giggles in relief, putting the utensil down before walking towards Karl. Then, he remembers. He immediately takes a step back.

"You have to leave the Assembly, they're after you. My cousin and his wife were spies," Karl begins without moving. "They're the ones who disabled all the doors, lifts and automatic weapons. An Elder was able to call a rescue helicopter; you have to go now if you want to escape," he adds, turning towards the door.

Tempéra takes Gaëlle again in his arms before following Karl, the young man's words still spinning in his head like a melody. "You have to go now if you want to escape." Does he want to escape? To go where? In another Assembly of Almighty in another state in another country? If nothingness is much vaster than we think, maybe this is where it would be better for him to go? Despite all his questions, Tempéra says nothing and simply follows. As usual, he has no time to stop, question, or even decide to act with reason.