Brave New World Chapter 17: The Ark - Pt 2👽

[Some time in the Future]

"I don't know about you guys, but pretty sure having Anara now would've helped a lot." Someone in the group commented at the sight in front of them.

"Don't be scared of a few trees. If she can make it, so can we." The leader was determined.

"She did say there were man-eating trees." Another one muttered to those standing close to him.

"Well, it was her decision to run off on her own. You all had a choice to follow her to God-knows-where or follow us on the path according to the map." The leader scolded as she had heard the comment, "And if I hear her name again, I will leave you to go follow her, because clearly you don’t trust the map or my leadership."

"It’s not about you or the map. Its pretty obvious that Anara had experience of this ecosystem for two months, and we could use that. That’s it." Another one came forwards, trying to calm the leader.

#

[Present Time]

I was taken through a corridor with many doors and then we entered one of those doors. It was a bed room, medium sized, cozy, no windows but a writing desk, wardrobe, couch, and a dresser. I was placed onto the couch as Care came to my view. She had a soft smile on her face and seemed to be asking something.

"Huh?" Was all I could manage as she repeated her question and put a torch in my eyes, one-by-one.

"Sweetie, can you hear me?" She had asked. I tried to gather my wits. There were so many unanswered questions, but I had found civilization.

Once that thought come, I realized my situation as well the circumstances above. We were under the mansion. How was Caroline there? Why was she there? Who were all these people? Before I could ask anything, she asked once more,

"Ann, If you can hear me, please nod."

"Yes." Was all that I managed this time. My throat was complaining due to thirst. She nodded and went to check my main joints, "Thank God. Now tell me if it hurts anywhere, okay?"

I nodded and she gave me a good check-up.

I looked over to our surroundings where the guy who had carried me leaned into the door frame, a girl stood beside the couch as more voices were heard from the corridor.

I was given water which I gulped despite Care ushering me to go slow. I was too thirsty.

Once the water and basic check-up was done, I finally found my voice. I had so many questions but Caroline beat me to them with, 'Girl, you need a shower. I know you have a lot of questions, but answers and introductions later! After you are clean and dressed up.'

With that, I was shown the attached bathroom door and given toiletries to finally get that bath that I had been yearning for since I entered the jungle two months ago. I discarded my worn-and-torn suit and tried to remove all the dirt and sweat from my body and sanitize myself.

As I stood under the warm water, the scent of mint and creaminess of shea butter surrounding me, my head was overflowing with questions as my stomach was growling with hunger.

Care knocked on the bathroom and yelled from the other side, "New clothes on bed, the room is empty, food is warming up, take your time."

"Thankyou." I yelled back and sank into my overthinking mind again. I didn't want to be too quick to jump on conclusions but one thing was clear, I was finally going to get some answers. I dried myself and walked out. A simple pair of white cotton shirt and off-white trousers was spread on the bed with some undergarments. A pair of flip-flops neatly placed under the corner of bed. I got dressed, finally feeling clean and healthy after so long.

For the first time in my life, I had cherished the feeling of cleanliness, like never before. It took me a while to brush my nest of hairs which had turned into natural dreadlocks due to lack of proper combing for two months. But I felt so light, like the dust had weighed a ton and was now off of me.

Instead of simply walking out of the room I sat there for a few more minutes, collecting myself. Before I could walk out, Caroline knocked once with a, "Ready-or-not, here I come!" And she entered the room. I don't know what came over me but I rushed to hug her. It had been so long since I had seen a human, let alone a friendly face, and Care was like family. She had changed too, now that I noticed, she looked thinner and paler.

She had a few things in her hands and she began talking as she pushed me to sit on the couch once more, "This is an ointment for blisters and allergies. This one is for any open wounds. These few are antibiotic tablets. Take these and let me apply these under your feet and then we can go get some food for you." Before I could say anything she said, like she could mind-read me, "Introductions and answers in the kitchen."

But I was getting curious and impatient, "Care!"

She looked up while applying ointment and wrapping my feet up in silicone footwear to keep the ointment in place. The dam of questions burst,

"Where are we?"

"What is this place?"

"Why are you here?"

"Who are all these people?"

"Do you know what is up there?"

"How did you even get here?"

"Anara, dear, please take a breath. I know you are very confused but I am sure you are even more hungry. We will all explain everything as much as we know, with the group." She silenced me and finished her work on my feet.

"Can you walk?" She asked as she stood up to lead me and I nodded, because unknown to her, I had faced so much more pain that a few bandaged blisters under my feet.

Caroline had been my best friend since childhood, we went to same high school, after which she went to med school to be a nurse and I went to read literature and linguistics. Because despite us wanting to go to same university, our aims in life were different and it took us a while to accept that and learn to be happy for each other's choice of career in life. Her presence here was very comforting yet equally confusing.

We walked towards where we had come and I noticed there was an open kitchen with a pretty marble island in the center. A lot of people of a lot of ages and races stood there, some sending warm, welcoming looks at me. Others not acknowledging me at all.

I followed Caroline as she brought me to the center of group where the same girl who had given me water sat beside an empty seat, in front of which was placed a steaming plate of pasta.

I felt my mouth water and stomach eager at the thought of finally being able to eat proper food in two months. I got seated and Caroline began, "Ana, no need for decorum, we've all been where you are right now so, dig in." I nodded and without hesitation dug in. I would've died of starvation if I hadn't eaten anything one more day.

"So, we are waiting for Nora, she usually does this explaining and welcoming." Just as Caroline said that, a blonde beauty sauntered in, followed by a group of people close behind. I noticed how most people made way for her as she approached me and gave me a full head-to-toe look. If I didn't know any better I'd say she was judging me.

Once done, she took a deep breath, placed a hand on her hip and gave a billion dollar smile, "Nora Whitehall, you must be the newbie who was struggling since morning." Not knowing how to react to that I just nodded and swallowed my pasta. She didn't seemed to mind and resumed, "I'll start by telling the general beginning, common to us all. So it will be easier to connect the dots for you. We were all busy in our normal lives, when a weird cloud-thingie came out of nowhere and then the neon spotlight, we're flying up to the cloud and black out. Woke up to find ourselves in empty white rooms attached to grey rooms with food and costumes and bag-packs. Some of us took those, some didn't. You, clearly did."

My fork stopped picking up pasta from plate, Care had gone through same as me! All of the people here had been taken the same way.

Nora continued, "We are nearly a hundred now. People have been coming faster since last month. Mark was first to reach here. The impossible crossroads leading to four ecosystems with this mansion in the center."

A man in early fifties nodded fatherly. 'Must be Mark,' I thought.

"So once out of the grey supply room, we all found ourselves in different ecosystems. Xavier here, was on a tiny island in the ocean." I noticed a flirty shift in her tone as she looked at the tall, handsome man with ebony skin tone, standing behind Mark. I noticed how well-built he was and realized he was the one who had carried me inside. He gave gorgeous half-a-smile and I couldn't help but return it awkwardly.

Human contact after two months and I felt like a cave girl.

"Mark was in the desert. And I was in the glacier." I glanced at everybody around me and the question slipped helplessly from my lips,

"Why?"

"We have no idea." The girl beside me shrugged. "Which ecosystem are you from? You look different than most of us did when we came here." She asked and I believe I felt tension in the air.

I answered nonetheless, "The jungle."

If I thought they were quiet before, the hush that settled after I spoke was even silent. Everybody was looking surprised at me and some even like I had suddenly grown horns.

Caroline was first to speak, "Wait, you came from the jungle?"

I nodded and she told, "You are the first person we have to reach here from the jungle. We thought either nobody was taken there or nobody made it out."

"There were man-eating trees so, you know." I shrugged, Herbert's battered body in pieces flashed in my mind and I closed my eyes trying to shake away the image before I broke down.

The girl beside me spoke, "No wonder you look different. You don't have aftereffects of too much ocean water, or heat, or cold." Then said to no one in particular, "I'd love some jungle fresh air right now, a little Sun would be heavenly."

Nora had had enough of people interrupting her explanation, so she quickly turned the conversation around, "What Kiara means is, that we are locked in here. We can't go out the way we came into this basement of mansion and there are no other exits. Trust me, we've tried." The way she said Kiara's name, anybody could see there was bad blood there. Was it from before coming here or after, was a question I did not want to involve myself in. I tried to avoid drama as much as possible.

"So, what now?" I asked feeling confused, helpless, and vulnerable, all over again.

"Welcome to The Ark!"

**Author's note:

What do you guys think is the Ark? How many people are there? Can Anara trust them?**