𝐂𝐇𝐀𝐏𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝟎𝟎𝟏

SHE WOKE UP WITH A VOICE IN HER HEAD, SOFTLY CALLING HER NAME, though the voice had faded away already, like it had fallen away into the void and will never come back. As if the voice knew she was waking up. She barely lift her lids, a light stabbed her eyes, making them to shut before she slowly opened them again. She only met with blurred and peculiar surroundings. Utterly disoriented, unable to come to her senses, only found herself in a strangest place. Her tired eyes scanned around the room, surrounded by the walls made of bamboo, wood and logs. Daylight peered through the tiny gaps above her and through a window just near the bed with a sheet used as a curtain hanging above it.

She slowly pushed herself to sit up, pulled the blanket aside and pulled her legs over the cot until her feet were on the ground. She stood up almost cautiously, her head felt like it was floating while her body was so heavy, she sat back down on the cot until the lightheadedness stopped. She can hear people talking outside distantly, there were noises out there, the sounds of people working and shouting at each other, and distant animal noises.

The strangest and scary part was . . . she had no idea where she was and how she got here.

There was only one word that popped into her mind like it was smeared into her brain for a simple reason: GALE. Gale. At first, she didn't know what it meant or why it was the first thing that came across her mind. A snippet of memory, along with a foreign voice in her head, a boyish voice saying "Gale" over and over, within her absent of memories.

Then there was nothing else. Just the word and her sudden knowledge of everything else. Like the world, somehow she can picture snow, what it looks like, how leaves can turn from green to orange as they eventually descent during a cold season and trees regrow their leaves in warm season. She can picture any animals, knowing they're either herbivores or carnivores. She can put an image of a busy street with people on it, surrounded by skyscrapers and she can picture a green forest. She can imagine herself swimming and riding a bike. All that simple knowledge, she knew how the world works. But except for one thing, which is her past.

She couldn't remember anything like how she got here, where she was, where she was before, who she was. She can't even remember a face, she couldn't picture anyone familiar. Anyone she knew, there was no one. She was on the verge of panic as she couldn't remember where she came from, her home, her parents . . . and her name.

Gale, Gale, Gale, the word kept coming back to her no matter what. But then it hit her . . .

My name is Gale.

She couldn't understand how this was possible, the sudden knowledge of everything else, her name but except for how she got here or where she is. Perhaps she was experiencing amnesia? Maybe she had a terrible accident? Yet, no sign of any injuries on her besides the slight headache and lightheadedness.

She attempted to stand up again, met with lightness in her head to toe again, but she held herself up with one hand on the cot to get rid of the lightness. It went away slowly, she glanced around the odd-looking room, the place looked like it was hand-crafted, used only bamboos and wood, no flooring but only the ground of dirt. She didn't realize she was barefooted, though there were a pair of brown ankle boots on the ground next to the cot. Her attention was on a window, light breeze coming through it and brushing the ragged-curtain. She sat back down again to put on the boots before went over to the window. Taking a couple of steps felt like baby steps, suppose how it is when you slept too long, she had no idea how long she slept.

When she moved the curtain aside, little-by-little and she could only spot a few things; a large empty field with a wall of trees, about less than a dozen people, a small hut with smoke coming out of it's roof. She only glimpse through the window for a short moment until she heard someone coming.

She reacted by twisting around at the entrance, she didn't know what to do, she was confused and scared. Her eyes caught the sight of the tray beside the cot, a tray filled with medical tools. She quickly went for it, reached for the scalpel and rushed back to the other side of the cot as she raised the scalpel at the person coming in. She could feel blood rushing all around her body, her head lightened that she got dizzy and slightly faint.

It was a boy, brown skinned, black hair, thin, he looked to be around fourteen or fifteen, he had a bowl and a cup in his hands before he came to an abrupt halt when he saw the girl. His eyes widened in shock, "Whoa, whoa—" his hands raised at the same time, dropping the bowl of soup and cup of water to the ground. "Whoa, it's okay, it's okay"

"Who are you?!" Gale demanded, clutching the scalpel in her hand, shaking, she had the pointy end pointing toward the boy. "Where am I? What's going on?!"

"My—my name— I'm Jeff, name's Jeff" he almost stammered, it was obvious that he was about to panic as he couldn't bring himself how to explain to the new Greenie. "You're in a place called the Glade, at least its what we call it because we don't exactly know where we are really . . . and, and—"

The Glade? Gale was overwhelmed with confusion and this boy wasn't making any sense. "Wha—What? The hell is that? What do you mean you don't exactly know where we are?" she felt like she wasn't asking the right questions, "Did you do this? What did you do to me?!"

"I didn't do anything, look, look, listen, I know you're suffering from a memory loss, right? I did too, okay? We all did"

Gale said nothing briefly, her brows knitted together in perplex, "We? All of you?" So he knows that she remembers nothing, and this boy did too?

Another person came rushing in, "The hell's going on in here? I heard shouting" this person was taller, built, same skin tone as the small boy's. The tall boy halted when he saw the girl, "Hey, whoa—" his hands lifted towards her, "You might want to put that down, Greenbean, before you hurt anyone"

"Greenbean?" Gale wasn't sure why that felt like it was an insult. The tall boy stepped forward but Gale took a step back then to the side, getting closer to the window. "Hey, don't, don't come any closer, I'm warning you!" She threatened, even though she was terrified, she showed how scared she was, her arm and hand holding the scalpel shaking and she couldn't control it. No way she can fight off this bulky boy or to hurt him even if it's only a scratch.

"Okay, okay," The tall boy said almost calmly, taking a moment to find words and to explain the situation as he does to almost every Greenbean. "Now, listen . . . we know you're scared, we know you don't remember anything, you've been unconscious for almost two days. Well, you were in a coma. Like most of them, you were brought up here, we don't know why, we don't know where we came from or who put us here. I know you think we have all the answers in the world but we don't . . . They only left one thing behind, and that is our names. Do you remember yours?"

Her fear seemed to have decreased slowly, she relaxed her grip on the scalpel and the shaking also reduced a bit. She was still confused and had questions. He said they left behind their names and she remembers her name. She replayed that foreign boyish voice in her head saying her name. "Gale? . . . It's Gale . . . My name is Gale"

"All right, Gale. My name's Alby" The tall boy gestures himself, "I'm one of the few people who's in charge around here, so, if maybe you could put the scalpel down, we'll tell you everything we know so far"

Gale thought the guy was reassuring, she was still reluctant to put the scalpel down, she can only lower it down slowly. She felt a bit woozy, her tummy shrivels in hunger and her mouth was a little dry from thirst. But all that anxiety had kept her hunger at bay, keeping her appetite from craving for food "Why should I trust any of you if I don't remember?"

Alby didn't know how to respond to that question, at least for a moment. "Well, you'd never wake up and you'd be dead already?"

Gale kept her brows furrowed, she wasn't so sure at all, she was still conflicted. "I'm keeping the scalpel with me until I'm sure if I could trust any of you" she negotiated.

"And how do we know if we can trust you?" Alby asked.

Gale tilted her head, looked at the tall boy as if what he just said was stupid, she shrugged, "I assume there's more of you, more of you outside, am I right? If I harm anyone, surely, you all can take down a one-fidgeted girl, can you?"

Both Alby and Jeff exchanged glances before Jeff shrugged and Alby gave in, "All right, you can keep the scalpel for now, but the Med-jacks may want it back later"

"Med-jacks?" Gale uttered.

Alby heaved a sigh, as if almost annoyed. "We got a lot to tell you, but we're gonna get someone else to take care of you" Alby turned to Jeff then softly told him, "Go get Gwen, I think it's better that she shows her the ropes around here, go"

Jeff nodded then left while he hurried.

"While we wait, how about I ask you that if there's a possibility that you remember something before you were sent out here. So, anything? Even if it's only a snippet"

Gale finally put her hand down to her side that was holding the scalpel, her mind wandered off to find any collection of memories before all of this. It baffles her how she can know a lot but of her past, of her family and where she came from. It was somehow scary too. "No . . . no" she looked up at Alby.

"I'm not surprised, nor disappointed, happens the same as the rest of us. You're like us, we've all been there. It's strange and scary how it is possible that we know simple things, but not of where we came from or who was responsible for putting us out here. Don't worry, you'll get a hang of everything here eventually. You'll somehow get used to it"

It didn't take too long for someone else to arrive the hut, it was a girl this time, the girl was pale, her head filled with sweat as her long auburn hair tied up as a high ponytail, she looked to be around sixteen. "Oh shit, she's awake" The girl panted, her hands placed on her hips "Phew, sorry, excuse me, I'm out of shape, give me a sec to catch my breath . . . So . . . What can I do for you, Colonel?"

Alby sighed peevishly, "Well, you got a new small job for now. You show the new Greenie around until Nick comes back"

The girl groaned, "Why me? Isn't it supposedly Merlin's job, he was the Greenie before freshman here" she nodded at Gale.

"I think it's more appropriate for a girl to show the new girl around here, we don't want another girl to freak out on all of us like you did"

The girl scoffed, "But Merlin's soft as a kitten and a total gentleman, Alby," The girl remarked. There was a quick silence between the two while Gale felt somehow awkward for not saying anything and watching the two talking as if she wasn't there. The girl sighed like she gave in, "All right, when I'm finished or when Nick comes back, Merlin is taking over, so you better go and give him the heads up"

Alby gave a nod in agreement before turning to Gale. "All right, I'm leaving you to her for now, this is Gwen, and Gwen, this is Gale"

"Oh shuck, she remembers her name that quickly" Gwen widened her eyes and her tone was somewhat sarcastic. "Took me two days to remember mine"

Alby sighed peevishly, "I'll see you around, Gale—" Alby was about to turn and walk out of the hut but turned back around at Gale, "oh and— welcome to the Glade, Greenie"