It had been many years. Many long years, the only sound being the soft blue hum of machinery in the back of a long-forgotten storage room. The silence hung as thick as the dust, both centuries old.

Suddenly the dull hum became a high-pitched keen. A growl built slowly in the inner workings of the machine, as if a moment it had been waiting for was about to come. There was a quiet click, the creak of rusted metal, and the soft hiss of air escaping from a pressurized lock. A young woman snapped awake, her bright green eyes flicking open.
It had been a very long time.





The good thing about a cryo freeze was that you didn't age while you were out, but that was about as far as the benefits went. The young woman sat huddled in front of a junky kerosene heater, wearing several layers of clothing and blankets. The central heating units wouldn't respond; the ducts were eaten through by rust anyway, so even if they still worked, they wouldn't be very efficient. Still, anything would have been better than emergency antiques.

The other supplies weren't in great shape, either. The water rations had been unusable, and the food designed to last no more than three days. The idea of foraging wasn't very appealing, but food was a necessity.
Drawing the blankets closer, she blew out the heater and sighed into the sudden darkness. She was painfully hungry, but it'd have to wait for morning.





It took her a long time to wake up in the morning. The windows were too dirty to let any light in. She glanced at the watch she'd found. It, too, was an ancient relic, compared to her old chronometer the cryo freezer'd destroyed. She regretted not having enough foresight to store it somewhere. Besides, hers had been accurate to a nanosecond. There was no telling how correct the time this watch gave was. It was probably centuries old, and centuries off. At least she'd warmed up during her sleep. Throwing off a few of the blankets, she examined her surroundings a little closer. She pushed herself to her feet and walked around.

Everything still looked familiar. The small bottles on the wall, different medicines, all different colors. The larger boxes, holding bandages, splints, plasters. Even the pictures were the way they had been the day she locked herself into the cryo freezer. There was Cameron, and Erin, and Mama... and herself. She turned the frame over and looked at the handwriting. Mama had always had pretty handwriting... "To Jill, from Mama and the Girls. Good luck." She turned the frame back to the picture side and blew the dust away, looking at it closer. There she was, in faded color, but her hair still stood out. Her bright red hair, and the same green eyes as Jill. Jill bit her lip in a futile attempt to hold back the inevitable tears. "Oh, Mama... I wish you were here now."