Chapter 5: Day One

     I lay awake that night, staring up at the ceiling. I thought to myself, 'Is this all real? Why did she choose me? Was it all a mistake, is this a dream?' I one that it wasn't a dream, but thinking so made me feel better. 'I'll wake up and it'll all be gone, no Angela, no government conspiracy, just a regular day of life.' I couldn't be farther from the truth. I couldn't sleep. I looked at the curtains on the bed. I wanted privacy as did Angela. The curtains were a nice golden color, with red swirls and the perfect green shade dots scattered around. I stared back up. I wondered if the other countries had the same thing going on. Maybe, they were being told that we are fine to stop investigations from the World Order (WO). I stared up for another five or so minutes before I decided to go outside and walk around. I was tired of this room, and I needed to clear my thoughts. I opened the curtains, slid out of bed, and put on my blue overcoat. I walked over to the door, but hesitated. Maybe I should just sleep, it's getting late. But I couldn't get the nagging questions out of my head. I turned the knob and exited the room. I didn't get far before I heard a voice that was unnervingly familiar.

     "Hello, Aki. I've been waiting for you." I turned around slowly and saw the Russian Boy. This time, I could tell he was about 18, he was still wearing the the clothes from when I last saw him, even the trooper hat. His eyes were the same cold blue.

     "You again! What do you want?" He looked at me colder than before.

     "Don't work with Angela, she is a danger to you, to me, and the rest of your world. If you choose to work with her, the Jrussia you know will be lost forever." This seemed strange. How does he know Angela, how does he know me?

     "What's in it for you? Are you a government agent? How do you know me? What even is your name?" He stared at me for a few seconds before he spoke.

     "Let's just say we have a lot in common." He turned around and walked over to the elevator. When he got there, he pressed for up and as the door opened, he stopped. "By the way, my name Troski." The elevator doors opened, and Troski walked in. I stared as the elevator went up. Finally, I turned around and started walking out of the hotel. When I got to the lobby, I noticed that the attendant wasn't there. Hopefully, I could sneak out. I walked out of the hotel with ease, no guards, no alarms, nothing. There was a curfew after 11:00, and it was now 12. The outside air was cool and crisp. The night sky filled with shimmering stars blazing with the force of a fiery house. I walked down the sidewalk and looked around. The houses were like tombs, surrounding me in a graveyard. No light was on. No noise was made, other than my own feet. The leaves rustled in the wind, and small animals scurried before me. The long road was cold and uninviting, but I walked along anyways. I kept walking until I got to a lake. A quiet and peaceful spot, with no other people. Closing my eyes I sat there for what felt like an eternal paradise. That paradise was shattered, when the sound of an oncoming police car screamed near me. Hiding I watched it look around before driving on. Time to return to the hotel. When I got back, I took off the overcoat and got into my bed.

     Sleep would come soon. Tonight was the first night I'd ever dreamed. Ever. I slipped into a deep sleep when the first vision hit me. I was watching a woman in a cage.

     "Don't worry, Experiment 1. Soon you will have a family again." I heard a voice say. I couldn't move as the scene changed to a dry barren wasteland. Eagles and vultures flew above. There were other birds too, strange ones that did not exist, at least not naturally. I could move this time. Walking along there was nothing but the scorched earth with the occasional patch of grass. The grass patches were not green. They were browner than dehydrated grass. I came across the skeletal remains of some animal. I looked at them before, once again, I was taken into another vision. A final vision. They room was dark. Chairs were scattered everywhere. I could move, but no one else could. I saw men in lab attire looking out a glass window recording on clipboards. I reached out and touched one of the clipboards. I took it and looked it over. They were observing a human cloning, with the intent to change the sex from male to female. I looked over into the window, but was suddenly jolted awake.

     "Aki! Wake up! We're going to China today." I was awake. Time to go find this 'Secret China'.

     "I'll meet you in the lobby, be quick!" I opened the curtains and got dressed. As I was buttoning my shirt, I looked out the window. Still the same old Jrussia. Was that dream just a dream, or did it have significance? It was my first one ever, so it must be something more. Finally, I was ready to go. As I got out the door, Angela walked up.

"Come on, we have to go now, or else we might get delayed." I checked the clocks, 7:02 AM

"It's pretty early, do you want to wait an hour?" Her face became angry.

"No! We have to go now, or else we might not get there in time! Now come on!" She stormed off to her car, and I followed. When we got outside, she pointed me over to a red corvette.

"Whoah, where did you get this? I thought they were discontinued!"

"Well, being a government agent has its perks. Come on, get in the car." She opened her door, and I opened mine. Backing out of the parking lot, our trip had begun. Our drive began in silence. Angela's hair blew in the wind as she drove. We passed by a large forest for about half an hour until we got to a large open field. The road was still paved, as we went along. Another half hour. Another half hour. Finally, we got to a new setting. This time, we were closing in on a mountainous pass.

"We'll have to go through there. It won't be easy, but we'll get through faster if we go right in the middle, so hold on." Angela said after an hour and a half of silence.

"The Sun's starting to rise. Should we go when it's lighter?"

"No, we have to go now." I was so confused by her insistence on not stopping. I know that she wants to get there soon, but it was 8:30! We should at least wait for the Sun to rise more. There wasn't much time to argue this, so I didn't reply. She started driving through the canyon. The canyon was very very long. The end could not be seen from the start. As we drove along, I noticed small rocks falling. I instantly began to worry.

"Angela, rocks are starting to fall! We have to do something!" She didn't look at me. "Angela!"

"It'll be fine." She said. We started to speed up. 60, 70, 80 MPH. I ignored the rocks now. Twenty minutes. A large rock fell down in front of us.

"Hold on!" Angela yelled, as she sped up just before the rock hit us. "There's going to be more! Tell me when you see them!" I looked up.

"There's one! Coming on the left!" She turned right. "Speed up!" "Look out on the right!" Then suddenly, "Wait, is that a person?!" She skirted. We were driving backwards!

"Where is the person?!" I look around. "Aki! Where is the person!?!"

"I-I can't see them!" Angela was very angry now. Actually, angry is an understatement. She was outraged, there closer.

"DAMN IT AKI!" She yelled. "You could have almost gotten us killed! In fact, you might have!" The rocks then stopped falling. I saw the person again. It was Troski. Angela saw him too.

"We have to go." She turned the car around, and we sped off. Troski watched us from a top the cliff.

"Do you know him, the boy Troski?" I asked.

"You might say that. I can't talk about it much, not now at least." Always with the secrecy. Well, at least I will know soon. I hope. We continued driving, once again in silence. Now nearing the exit of the canyon, Angela spoke.

"We'll have to set up camp in about three hours. We'll be entering the edge of China by then. It'll be a desert, but I'm prepared for this, so don't worry." Finally, China. We exited the canyon, at long last.