Free Thinkers Society

Chapter Three

     Akinari felt his muscles weaken. His legs took a while to respond to his movements. Akinari suddenly felt cold again. With great weakness, Akinari got up from the ground and managed to stand up by using the control panel as support. 

     “What just happened to me?” thought Akinari to himself. He noticed that the apparatus he was reaching for was no longer in the metal sphere, it had fallen to the ground beneath. Akinari picked it up and after a short startup, the apparatus displayed white rings of light around it. At the bottom of the apparatus a scanner started up. It scanned around itself for the nearest person and finally it took notice of Akinari. 

     The apparatus flew out of Akinari’s hands and hovered beside his left ear. The apparatus then, from the same place the scanner was located at, displayed a light screen in front of Akinari. The apparatus took a while to load but after about 30 seconds it opened a video for its carrier to see.  The video showed a white wall, after another 5 seconds some noise was heard. It was the footsteps of someone approaching. A man, dressed in a black coat, a black top hat, and a black mask went into frame. He sat down in front of whatever device was recording his message. He fixed his coat, adjusted his mask, and started speaking.

      “Whoever may be listening to this message…”, started the man, “you are now of great importance to me, to your country, and to our very way of life. I currently work for the FTS, the Free Thinkers Society. I joined them under the illusion that their intention was to better the lives of people through the advancement of science and machinery. I thought they wanted to make our country a better place to live in. I was wrong, I have recently discovered their true intentions and their plans. I intend to stop them, and to save society from them. I have created the device you have beside your ear right now, to aid you and guide you in your way. 

     The place you are in used to be an installment of the FTS, it was meant to stop intruders from entering our institution. The device you see in front of you was made to freeze any possible intruders and fix them into a state of cryostasis until a member of the FTS would find them. The cryostasis state can last some time if the intruder is not removed from it soon. 

     This installment, however, was abandoned. So I have decided to go rogue, I will take them down using their own technology. I know you must have many questions about the FTS, the device on your ear, or even me, but I need you to pay close attention. I need you to find me, I have taken shelter on a complex of abandoned apartment buildings, the address is 394-1233, Nakamuracho, Ise-shi, Mie. The address is already saved on your device so all you need to do is follow it. Please trust me when I tell you that the FTS is much more dangerous than you think, and that the fate of our country rests with you. Unfortunately, for my safety, I cannot reveal to you my name or my face, I am sure this might cause some hesitation as to whether I am to be trusted or not. I understand this completely but I beg you, we are running out of time and the FTS is not stopping.  I cannot fully explain the capabilities of the device you acquired either, but please, whoever you may be, find me.”

     Akinari was shaken. He could not believe the responsibility that had been suddenly laid upon him. Akinari fell down to the floor again, from the stress this news had caused him. He took a moment to process everything he had just heard. Akinari stood up once more, he wondered what he was going to do, if he was going to leave the device behind and head back home or try to find the man in the black outfit for more answers. Without a clear answer in his head, Akinari went back up the staircase, going through the marble, metal, stone, and wood walls. 

     He pondered on his newfound responsibility and wondered what course of action was the best one for him. Going up the staircase proved way more difficult than Akinari had initially thought it would be. His legs shook in every step, as if they had lost their strength almost entirely. Akinari strained his legs and his muscles and finally reached the end. He was still cold but his body had already regained some heat by the time he reached the top.

     When Akinari reached the cabin, he heard noise outside, noise that was not there when he went into the trapdoor. Akinari looked out the window and he saw the wall of a building, a completely new building that Akinari had never seen before. There was also sunlight outside.

     “I must have not seen that building on my way here, I probably overlooked it in the middle of the night and during that snowstorm. If there is sunlight already I must have been down there for at least 5 hours…” Akinari guessed, “But it didn’t feel like that long.” 

     Akinari also wondered about the noise he had heard outside. He got closer to the door, he noticed that the sound got louder and louder, it was the rumbling and conversation of people. “What are so many people doing in the middle of the forest during the winter?” questioned Akinari. He found the situation odd but he thought it was related to that building he had failed to notice when he came in. 

     Akinari reached the door and he noticed that he was able to open it from the inside, but instead of a simple lock, it was a very modern and intricate one. The device on his ear vibrated and emitted a short beep. The mechanisms locking the door started to move and the door was opened. As the door slowly opened Akinari felt his heart drop. 

     Looking into the outside he saw a large group of people that had gathered around, as if they had been expecting that door to open for some time. The people were dressed in strange apparel, they dressed in large robes and strange hats. Designs and clothing Akinari had never seen before. Akinari realized that there was not only a single building, but many, the forest he came into had disappeared. Akinari fell to the ground, as he lay there he realized he was not lying on the mud, or on the grass, but instead on concrete, or some version of it. 

     Akinari tried to look around, he saw stalls, stores, and shops. He realized he was in the middle of a commercial center, a marketplace of sorts. 

     Akinari wondered: “Did the cabin move? Have I been tricked by my parents for escaping? Have I gone to a different country? Where is the forest?” Akinari felt great confusion within him. He was baffled, he was perplexed, and it was too much for him to handle. After a while of laying on the ground, Akinari passed out.