A bright white light flickered on — so intense that my vision nearly vanished. Suddenly, a metallic hand gripped my neck from the front and slammed me straight against the truck wall, pinning me there. I wasn't alone. When I turned my eyes to the right and left, I realized there were ten others with me. It seemed they had been brought here the same way I had.
There were nine boys and one girl, all of them terrified and helpless — just like me.
Each of us was restrained tightly by men in strange, armored suits made of interlocked wires and metal. It was the first time in my life I had ever seen anything like it.
The metallic hands pressed harder against our necks. Despite the pain, none of us resisted or even tried to fight back — we were frozen in fear. Then those armored men raised their left hands, each equipped with a small black square device. They pointed them at our left eyes, and suddenly, the devices emitted a strong blue beam directly into our pupils.
The pain was unbearable — I felt as if it pierced straight into my brain. I wished for death, just to escape that agony. My body trembled helplessly, waiting for the torture to stop. I couldn't even scream; I tried, but no sound came out — only tears streamed from my eyes uncontrollably. In my head, I kept repeating weakly:
"Mom… where are you? I'm so scared."
I really was a pathetic, weak person.
After about a minute, the light faded, and a numbness began to spread through my whole body. My eyelids grew heavy, and even though I tried to resist, I couldn't — exhaustion overtook me completely.
Then, that strange human-like voice echoed again from nowhere:
"First test complete. 3... 2... 1... Shutdown."
The light went out, and darkness filled every corner of the truck. I lost consciousness without realizing it.
While unconscious, I saw a dream — a beautiful one. It felt almost real, like a vision. It couldn't have lasted more than a few seconds or minutes, but it felt like hours.
The sky was a clear blue, filled with white clouds like cotton. The air was warm and fresh, the sunlight soft and golden — and most beautiful of all, my mother was standing before me in the middle of a white field of daisies. She was wearing a soft satin dress in a cool shade of pink. Her long black hair flowed gently around her shoulders, and her deep dark eyes looked at me with such longing. It was the most beautiful sight a human could ever see.
She called to me softly, her voice full of warmth:
"Be strong. Don't let despair eat your heart. You're stronger than you think. Don't break, my dear child."
I couldn't go near her. I just stood there, watching her from afar, trying desperately to memorize every feature of her face so I would never forget. How cruel it is to be separated from one's mother — my greatest loss, the one I always wanted to find and keep beside me forever.
After she said those few words, I began to feel and hear strong breaths brushing against my face, pulling me back from my dream.
When I opened my eyes, I saw something terrifying — Dr. Takumi's face was right in front of mine, staring deeply into my eyes with a twisted smile. I swallowed hard from fear and jumped back quickly. I was lying on a bed in a room completely white from floor to ceiling.
I looked at him, confused and scared, and shouted:
"What are you doing? What do you want from me?!"
He wasn't normal. He was insane — and yet, at the same time, I could sense a terrifying intelligence, a kind of genius unlike anyone I had ever met. Though I didn't know him yet, I could feel it.
He looked at me seriously, stepped closer, and said:
"You are now in the university that accepted you. I am your supervising doctor."
I couldn't believe him. There was no way any university in the world would look like this filthy place they dragged me to.
He laughed at the look on my face and began pacing back and forth across the room. His steps had a strange rhythm, almost like he was walking to the tune of an invisible symphony. That only made me more nervous. After a few moments, he stopped and turned toward me:
"It is a university — but a different kind. A university unlike any other... just a little different."
I looked at him mockingly and said:
"Hahaha, really? A different kind of university?"
He smirked.
"You'll understand what I mean in the coming stages."
I frowned.
"Coming stages?"
"Yes. But first, I'll give you a small book. It will explain what will happen in the second stage, which begins the day after tomorrow. You'll have two days to read it."
The door opened, and a man in a gray lab coat entered. He wore a gray mask over his face and held a small black book with a leather cover and finely engraved letters.
He bowed to Dr. Takumi, placed the book on the table in the room, bowed to me, and left.
Dr. Takumi continued:
"That's the book I was talking about. I won't say much more. I'll let you get familiar with your new room — and start reading."
He left, and a guard outside locked the door behind him carefully, double-checking the electronic lock.
Yes, an electronic lock — in the year 2000. You might be surprised, but you don't know how advanced this organization really is. They've always had access to technology long before it's introduced to the public. The so-called "public" — that's what they call ordinary people — are nothing but consumers, blind followers of the higher elites who secretly control them completely.
After he left, I began inspecting the room. Everything was white — the walls, the bed, the table, the sink, even the mirror frame. The toilet was inside the same room, meaning I wouldn't be leaving this place anytime soon. This was to be my world — my cell.
I walked over to the table and picked up the book. The title was strange and filled with mystery:
"Classification of the Elite Division: The Five Types and the Comet of the Pyramid — Biological Psychology."
I sat down and started flipping through the pages. The words were written in Japanese, full of strange symbols and codes. It was clear this book wasn't meant for ordinary people — only for a specific group who could understand it.
I kept reading, trying to make sense of any part of it. Then my eyes landed on one chilling line:
"The division of the Five Factions — The Comet of the Pyramid has no replacement. Holder of the Emerald Blue Iris."
As soon as I read it, my vision blurred, and a sharp pain exploded in my head. I felt dizzy —
I clutched my head and shut my eyes tightly in agony.
I slammed the book shut and rushed toward the mirror — and what I saw froze my blood.
What was happening to me?! Why were my eyes this color? Why had my irises suddenly turned blue?
Was this because of that blue light?
Damn it… but why now? Why only now?
The headache grew stronger.
Am I a medical student… or just another experiment for some ruthless, powerful men?
Next....