Sorry for the long the long wait, i wasnt allowed to use any type of technology until i got my grades up. i hope you guys didnt think i would just drop the story. i would never do that, not as long as there are people who want to read it. i love the reviews you guys posted and hope you enjoy :)
After seven hours of being stuck in the room, Raven had exhausted all her sources of entertainment available. She sighed in boredom as she face planted into the massive bed and breathed in the lightly lavender scented sheets. She had been desperate enough to even attempt to pick the lock. Of course there had been no success. Not like she had expected any, but what the hell she had given it a try.
And she still hadn't figured out what the 'door' was for, not even how to open it. For a moment, she had thought it was a laundry chute, but is too large for that.
She rolled over onto her back and crossed her arms under her head. Maybe it's a secret passage way where black clothed ninjas would come in at night to murder you.. Raven laughed and rolled her eyes at herself. Wow, nice. Such lovely thoughts.
An audible 'click' sounded at the door, almost like someone was about to enter the room. She propped herself up on her elbow and stared across the room at the door, waiting for it open. Nothing. Curiosity got the best of her and she carefully slid off the bed and tiptoed to the door. Grabbing the door handle, she barely pressed her ear to the door to see if she could hear anything. There was something, but not anything she could really make out.
She tried to turn the handle just to see if it would open. To Ravens surprise it did. Creeping open the door inch by inch, she poked her head out and looked around the hall.
There were several other girls doing the same. A few doors down to the left she saw Sarah's face peeking out and called out her name.
"Raven!" yelled Sarah back as she slammed the door wide open and ran to Raven with open arms, squealing the whole way. They embraced each other both laughing. Other girls were hugging and laughing as well throughout the hallway. For a few minutes they conversed, with each other and with other girls who they had befriended on the ship. The whole large single hallway was filled with girls laughing, talking, and having fun. Once or twice, a woman in a Facility uniform would pass through and ask if everyone was in good health or if they needed any medical assistance because of the prior events.
"What happened?" cried Sarah all of a sudden. "What were you thinking going back there!?" Sarah was beginning to get emotional now.
"I couldn't just leave and do nothing to help her!" Raven countered.
"But there were soldiers there, they would've helped her."
"But they didn't." Raven shook her head and simply dismissed everything. "Just forget everything, ok?" she held Sarah's shoulders. "You're fine, I'm fine. Everything's ok now."
Teary-eyed, Sarah nodded and they hugged each other. The moment was soon interrupted by a womans voice on what seemed to be an intercom.
"Could all female soul candidates please report to the dining hall within the hour? Thank you." after that, the voice clicked off.
"The dining hall?" wondered Raven, raising an eyebrow.
Sarah shrugged. "I dunno'." They both scanned the hallway to see if anyone knew the way. It seemed like no one did.
Suddenly the white border lights along the walls began to flash. Then they broke up into a series of dashes, turned blue and started to run along through the hall to the right. After a few minutes, some women wandered into their hallway appearing to be following the lights. "Um…" Sarah blankly pointed. "I guess follow them?"
A couple of last nervous glances at each other and the two girls began to follow the others, the dotted flashing strips of light leading their way.
"Oh" gasped Raven, running a hand through her hair as they walked. "I completely forgot about Nika! How is she, is she ok?"
"Don't worry." Sarah told her. "She's just fine. Asleep in her carrier." she assured, patting Ravens arm.
They continued walking for a few more minutes before they all came to a stop in front of two enormously large glass and stainless steel doors. Within moments a Facility worker came and opened them by sliding a small silver card into a reader off to the side of the doors.
When they opened, the women were cautious at first but took brave tentative steps into the impressive dining hall. The rest of them followed.
The dining hall was different from what they had seen of their room and the hallways. The walls were a light gray and the lights bright white. The floor was tiled with white and black splotchy patterns. What was strange about the room, however, was the large black panels lining the far three walls a couple feet from the floor. Behind thes panels were shadows that somehow seemed impossibly darker and more black than the panels themselves. Raven was distracted by them for a while before turning her attention to Sarah who was tugging on the sleeve of her pajamas.
"C'mon." she tilted her head towards the growing line of women waiting for their lunch trays. They made their way over to the line and were soon followed by the more shy and timid girls.
Standing in line, the shadows continued to attract her attention. They were moving along behind the panels back and forth, constantly shifting. As Raven glanced around the dining hall, she saw others had noticed them as well and were pointing.
After both of the girls had received their trays, they left to sit at one of the round tables in the far left corner from the entrance. Their lunch trays held the classic turkey sandwich, fruit salad, bag of potato chips, small water bottle, and an apple juice. It honestly appeared like a perfectly good and smelled delicious, but the girls were still jumpy and nervous. Not to mention anxious to hear the explanation behind this mornings events. Looking around, they found they were not the only ones experiencing this. There were others.
Sarah and Raven sat in silence. They had hardly touched anything on their trays. Sarah was leaning on the table with her arms crossed under her as she chewed on the straw from her apple juice. Ravens gaze still wandered to wandered to constantly moving shadows but mostly just observed the other women in the room. Most of them young, maybe fresh out of college. There were also older women near well into their thirties. But they all seemed to have something in common. They all appeared to be friendly, outgoing, if not a little insecure. Even so, to Raven, she felt they were all good people. They were laughing, talking having fun…just like they had been on the ship and in the hallway.
The almost pleasant moment was soon interrupted by the crackling sounds of someone tapping on a microphone. It was a woman stepping onto a small platform in the front of the room to speak. She was dressed in a white blouse tucked into a black pencil skirt with black heels and light blue rimmed glasses.
"Uh-hum" she nervously cleared her throat and a hush fell over the room. All eyes were focused on her. Tapping on the mic connected to her head piece once more, she began to speak. "Hello ladies.." she waved awkwardly to the room. "My Name is Mrs. Anne Lorren….I know you're all curious as to the events of this morning. I'm here to explain and clear up some things." she spoke softly, almost as if she were a timid speaker. "I'm sure you are well aware of what the Facility's purpose is…Well,..not everyone is for it. There are some groups of both Xenomorphs and Yaujta that disagree with our views. They believe the human race is inferior to theirs. That our genetics are weak and useless, that it will only hold them back. They are determined to stop the Facility, but don't worry," she said the last part quickly to reassure those whose faces were beginning to look concerned. "there are not many of them and they hardly ever attack the Facility. I assure you, they will never get past the Facility's guards or defenses. I promise, they are not strong enough and never will be." The way she said it, the women trusted her words and believed her.
"Another thing." she added. "We weren't exactly planning this, this early…But because of this morning, they concerned with you're well being and insisted on seeing you. So we figured…why not?" she smiled now, a genuine smile. "Ladies, today you wont get to meet your mates just yet…but you will get to see them, and they you."
Right when she finished, the black panels with a sharp and loud snap, switched to clear plexiglass. All through the room women gasped, swore, shot up from their seats, screamed, awed, and a few even fainted. Behind the glass stood large, deadly, full grown Xenomorphs. They had ceased in their nervous and anxious pacing and were now frozen in their tracks, staring at the women.