Although time is a concept that can barely be tracked when imprisoned in a dark room without any windows or clocks, I was almost sure I did not get more than 3 hours of sleep. I opened my eyes; albeit it was more for the action itself as my eyes could never adjust to the suffocating darkness. My muscles were in a state of tension at all times, trying to retain as much warmth as possible. I knew that the infrequent and rationed meals combined with the cool temperature of the room were attempts to wear me down. The Alchemists knew that if I wasn't going to give in mentally, then physical weakness would make it easier to manipulate me. At this point, that is all they have tried to do. They have tried to use the Bible against me in hopes that I'd willingly accept re-education. Unfortunately for them, they greatly underestimate my will to hold on to the truth I've discovered about the corruption that dwells in the Alchemist system.
Unsurprisingly, I've spent my seemingly endless amount of free time thinking about escape. If only I were Rose and could fight my way out of this mess. She wouldn't be sitting in the dark waiting on a miracle like I am. I would never consider myself a violent person and I definitely am not some warrior goddess, but I can only hold on to my sanity for so long. The nagging voice at the back of my mind tells me that the Alchemists will not keep this brainwashing technique up for much longer. Eventually they will move on to physical torture. Obviously I don't know exactly what happens in re-education, but it seems like the next logical step. Or perhaps just execution. I am a witness to the amount of power the Alchemists hold with paperwork. They can certainly make a rogue Alchemist disappear without more than a couple documents.
It becomes glaringly apparent that I have to come up with some sort of escape plan when I detected the faint bitter taste in the first spoonful of my meal, the distinguishable taste of Diazepam. It may have been the exhaustion taking over but the idea that the Alchemists were trying to sneak a date rape drug into my food was laughable. I doubled over in a fit of giggles, making me look like a mad woman. I laughed until it dawned on me that Alchemists could only be trying to sedate me because they wanted to move me to a new location. They could be moving on to physical torture but this seemed like a passive aggressive way to do so. Wouldn't they want to scare me into submission first? Either way, this situation could be used to my advantage. I could possibly see where I'm being held and maybe even get a good enough look around the building to construct a the beginnings of an escape plan. It's better than banging on the rough walls like I've been doing since I got here. But this would only work if I'm not drugged into unconsciousness.
I sat up straight and felt around for my bowl of Roofie Soup. Lifting the smooth surface I could estimate that it still held around 2 cups of liquid. I had no idea when the Alchemists were watching me, or if there were multiple cameras in my room, but I'd have to risk getting rid of the soup if I wanted to see anything outside this cell. They'd only come for me when they'd receive my empty bowl. I relied on the fact that the Alchemists would have enough decency to not point any cameras directly at the small toilet in the corner of my cell. Or if they did, hopefully no one was actively monitoring them. I crawled along the floor while keeping the soup bowl in my left hand and emptied the contents into the toilet bowl. As I crawled back to my spot in the approximate middle of the room I found myself drained. The smallest amount of movement left me light headed and gasping for breath. Yet I still celebrated my small victory- one step closer to my escape. It brought a smile to my lips.
Now I'd have to play the part of the helplessly drugged victim. Prescribed doses of Diazepam began to work within 30 minutes, but the amount that the Alchemists had mixed in my soup was much larger than the recommended dosage. I decided that given the volume of drugs and my significantly reduced body weight, the sedative would have begun taking effect in 10 minutes after consumption. I heaved an exaggerated sigh, moving the spoon and now empty soup bowl towards the far right into the dumbwaiter where my meals came from. I leaned my back against the wall with my knees brought up to my chest for another couple minutes before lying down facing the wall. I figured a couple Alchemists would come into my room to transport me within the hour. I knew that it was crucial that I resist falling asleep, so I busied myself with slowly allowing each muscle in my body to go as limp as possible. The tension in my body would give everything away; I'd have to look like I was really drugged. I started with my feet, worked my way up to my arms, and concluded with my neck, my head lolling on the floor. I closed my eyes and allowed my mouth to open just slightly so I could take deep, even breaths.
I was only lying down for what seemed like 15 minutes when I heard a door opening; I could see light from behind my closed eyelids. I heard multiple footsteps come towards me. I was hauled up into a bed of some sort and the blankets were pulled over my naked body. I felt my bed begin to move and fought hard to keep a neutral expression on my face. All I could hear were the squeaky wheels of my bed and the buzz of what I guessed to be harsh fluorescent lights above me. I barely opened my eyes when I was hit with blinding radiance. What I had forgot to think of was how unadjusted my eyes would be to seeing light after so long in the dark room. I needed time to let my eyes get used to the bright lights but my opportunity to see where I was being held was quickly running out.
"Sloan! Wait!" a man's voice called out, as I heard quick footsteps approaching my bed, "They're telling me that it's not ready yet." The man had reached my now standing bed.
"Well she's out." A muffled woman's voice responded, "And the rest of my team are gone her old room is locked up."
I took the opportunity to open my eyes slowly. The conversation was taking place to the side where my head was not facing. At first I saw pure white, but after profusely blinking I began to see blurry shapes dancing across my vision.
"Whatever, it's fine. Just wheel her into some corner and we'll bring her in when they're ready." The man said.
"We can't just-"
"She's drugged! She's not waking up anytime soon." The man interrupted, I could hear his footsteps as he began to walk away.
I quickly shut my eyes, realizing that the woman's attention was going to be diverted back to me. The woman signed and pushed my bed back into motion. We didn't travel far before she stopped. She wheeled me towards my left, and pulled the blankets up to my neck. Her hands brushed along my jaw and I recognized the feeling of stretched latex. I kept my eyes closed until a couple minutes after her footsteps had faded. I open my eyes cautiously, to make sure there wasn't a guard watching over me. When I saw that I was alone, I let myself take in my surroundings. My bed was against the wall at the end of a long hallway, and right across from me was a fire escape door. The door had a picture of a stick-man running down a flight of stairs so that meant that I was not underground as I had originally thought, but a couple stories above ground. I was so close to escape, but I had to control myself. I knew that in my sleep deprived and malnourished condition I could never make it down stairs, let alone fight off anyone I came across before I got outside. I'd have to bide my time.
The building seemed very sterile, almost like a hospital but with less commotion. There were a couple doors lining the hallway and the opposite end of the hall split into two directions, left and right. The only thing that wasn't white was a tall vending machine a few feet away from the fire escape. I could see into the glass display and I yearned for the calorie filled snacks inside.
The sound of echoing footsteps made me shut my eyes and let my body go limp. As the footsteps reached my bed, I was moving again. I was wheeled down the stretch of hallway and towards the right. I catalogued this valuable piece of information knowing that it'd help my escape. I risked half opening my eyes to find the woman was pulling me by the foot of my bed, with the back of her head towards me. I let myself take in as many details as possible, like the turns she made, room numbers, trash cans, posters, anything that could be of any help to me. It wasn't until I heard more voices that I closed my eyes. We took one last turn before my bed stopped.
"Thank you, Cassandra." An elderly woman said, "Just in there, please."
I was wheeled into a doorway and hands lifted me out of my bed and onto the floor. I was expecting the ground to be rough and cold like my old cell, but was surprised when I was placed on a cushioned surface. Perhaps they had given me a proper bed? I heard the door close and all was silent. I kept my eyes closed for a few minutes as I tried to take in as much with my other senses. The ground was soft beneath me, the room was slightly warmer than the previous cell but still felt cool on my naked form, the room smelled of cleaning solution, and there was no evidence of light from behind my closed eyelids. I slowly opened my eyes to see a small sliver of light coming from the bottom of the closed door. Clearly the Alchemists were desperate for me to be moved if I was now being hosted in a second-class torture chamber. As I let my eyes adjust to the darkness I realized where I was. I took in the white padded floors and walls, I was in solitary confinement.