OBLIVIOUS

Chapter 16

I only knew that it was a woman because I heard her talking to someone. Her voice was loud enough to be heard just outside of the glass window though I can't hear clearly what she was talking about. Then she turned around towards the window and I automatically hid myself.

I could sense her presence even if I can't see her now. I'm pretty sure she was right there, peeking on the window as if she sensed too that someone was staring at her. Or maybe she heard the little commotion between me and the metal pests that are still swarming over and below me.

"...he already cost us a fortune and I don't want to make another one like him anymore, okay? The risk that my staff had to go through all of that had been enough for us to last a lifetime already. We even have to check them in the forest and got face to face with the animals there... Yes, that's what I'm saying!" the woman exclaimed to whoever she was talking to. She sounded frustrated already. "One of them already had the contagion. It's just a matter of time... Yes! The President might think it was a wasted investment, but we actually had learned a lot from him. Yes, Mr. Bluemy. My secretary will send the papers to you tonight... Yes. As soon as possible..."

Just based on what I heard I could already tell that the woman was talking about me and Baron. There were a lot of tidbits from that conversation that excited me I almost lost my grip on the rope. Good thing I was able to support my weight by holding on to the window railing. But then my luck just ran out because all of a sudden I was blinking profusely from the bright yellow lights that had been put on me from somewhere.

And then alarms were sounding and the loud rattling noises of steel and wheels on the ground zooming came into the scene, and just like that, I was surrounded. I was surrounded by Mediborgs, Slackers, and White Shadows. All of them are pointing weapons at me, ready to blast me into pieces.

The scene scared me a lot but also didn't because Baron and I had already talked about this. He made sure that I'll never forget the point he wanted to get across right through my brain, and it was that these enemies will do their very best not to harm me. And Baron was right about that again.

They were aiming their weapons at me but they were not moving too. They also stood there frozen, like they don't actually think that I was here, swinging on the wall, eavesdropping on one of them. Then somebody called to me. "Axis 1! Axis 1! Don't move!' It turns out it was a Mediborg, to which I already forgot how they sound like. I thought it was one of the several White Shadows that shouted at me not to move.

The window where the woman is then suddenly opened, and I saw her remove her respirator to take a good look at me. She was a middle-aged woman, with auburn hair tied in a bun. She looked aghast at me, probably more scared than surprised that someone was actually outside her window swinging from a rope. "Goodness gracious!" the woman said, clutching her chest. "You! How---"

"Come down immediately, and you won't be hurt," I heard a man said from the ground. He was probably one of the White Shadows that came here to take me back.

"Who are you?" I said to the woman, who was gaping at me. It was the only thing I can say, as the timing is not that good for a good conversation anyway.

"This is not the time to ask me silly questions," she replied and went closer to me as if she wanted to try if she can grab me into the room where she was. "How did you even managed to climb here---?"

"Where is Vista?" I asked loudly as soon as I remembered her. "Tell me where she is!"

The woman hesitated, but then answered me patiently. "I'll tell you where she is if you promise me that you'll do nothing but follow my instructions---"

"Just tell me where she is! Or I will jump here and kill myself!" I yelled, trying to blackmail her for I know that somehow I am a very valuable person to them. The way they don't want me to get hurt right now was another clear proof that we were right from the start.

"No, no," she said immediately, "you are not going to hurt yourself. You are not going to jump. Please. Listen to me. Just come here and I promise you, we will talk about everything. I will answer your questions."

I was about to agree with her, but then a loud explosion erupted right where the Slackers were positioned. Suddenly one of them was on fire, and the White Shadows yelled in shock as they try to get away from the burning robot. It was pandemonium because the other Slackers including the Mediborgs were going down to the ground for some reason. Most of them exploded with a bang and it caused havoc.

"It's him!" the woman in the window suddenly screamed below to the White Shadows running away. They heard them and stopped from moving and looked our way again. "It's him! Capture him! He'll be visible with the new Radar Scan!" The woman surprisingly has a very loud voice, making it easy for her subordinates below to do her bidding. "Don't let him get away this time!"

I instantly thought of Baron as she said that. I don't know why, but I feel like he was here somehow, although I knew that he couldn't be. The last sentence that this woman said seemed to be fit for Baron, and that was suspicious enough for me.

The woman was trying her best to shout instructions to her men below her, all the while the consecutive explosions were happening. I saw several of the Slackers tried to attack whatever it was that was attacking them but just like me, they can't see their mysterious enemy. Acknowledging that this was probably my only chance to get in the building without getting caught, I pushed the woman from where she was peering into the grounds and broke the glass by kicking it.

The woman was caught off guard so she had no time to avoid my body that swung inside the window like a pendulum. I landed on the floor together with the shattered glass and I stood up immediately and bolted for the door.

"NO! Comeback!" the woman screeched but it was too late, I was already at the door and then I was gone into the corridor.

Heart pounding and cheeks flushed from my success, I tried to camouflage and move low-key and search for Vista's room. I recalled what Baron shared with me. With how the room looked like, where it is, or what are the signs that I am already in front of her door. All of this was described by Baron before we even left the hollow tree, just to make sure that we know where to go in case something happens.

I discovered that I was on the third floor, to which was the exact floor where my room was located. Vista's room was on the first, so I needed to go down there. I just wished that there was another way of going there because I can already feel the fatigue growing in my body again. The climb to this floor from the wall outside had already drained me both physically and mentally. If there was just another way in other than where I came in, maybe then I didn't need to rest right now. If the first floors just had glass windows too and railings wide enough for a petite guy like me to fit in, I wouldn't have to do this...

I searched for a safe spot to hide, just to pause and catch my breath. There was an open room where I could see boxes inside stacked up into the ceiling and I decided that I will rest there. Meanwhile, while I tiptoed to that room, the corners of this corridor had been bombarding me with loud beeps. I knew it was because of me again, so I just snubbed it and proceeded to my destination.

The room was dark, which was good for me. I hid behind the biggest and tallest stack of boxes, that I saw were full of garments and blankets. This must have been their stockroom for linen and such, because I even saw discarded protective suits in the corner.

As soon as I rested my back against the wall I closed my eyes and think for I needed to think about this mission clearly. Now that they know I'm here, a search for me would be imminent. I would not be surprised if a party already started searching for me. This means I could no longer use the corridor as much as I can. I have to think of a way to get down to Vista's room without being seen and I have no idea what to do.

And then I heard Vista's voice again. This time she was calling Forte's name. Her voice was shaking, and then she screamed her lungs out that it made me jump. That woke my sense again even though I was still tired. Without thinking much I picked up one of the protective suits and wore it. It was big for my body, but this would do. At least with this I might get unrecognizable.

After making sure that I wore the suit properly, I went out of the linen room carefully and walked normally. I did not saw people for a couple of minutes which was making me more nervous instead of calm. They might be somewhere else or probably making a trap for me. Either way, I had no choice but to keep moving, so I moved swiftly as soon as found the stairs. Again, I did not encounter anybody, and I was getting more and more suspicious.

On the second floor landing, I was about to take another step when I felt an arm pulled me into a corner, but I couldn't see a thing. I fought it but I heard a voice in my ear. "It's me!" said Baron's voice.

My eyes widened. "Baron?" I looked around but I could not see him, but when I waved my hands in front of me I felt his broad shoulders, then his head. I got goosebumps because someone invisible is actually in front of me.

"Yes, it's me!" he replied in a hushed tone. "I came here to follow you."

"But---? How---?"

"I'll explain later," he added. "Follow me. I already overpowered someone and tied her as our hostage. Let's now go back to our headquarters."

I shook my head at what he said. "No, Baron I'm sorry but I have to check on Vista. She's here! I could hear her voice again!"

"I heard her too," he replied, which confirmed my suspicion. "But Axis, listen. I think it's a trap."

"What do you mean?"

"Vista's voice. I think it's recorded or something like that."

It chilled my bones, what Baron just stated. "Y-You mean she's not---?"

"I don't know exactly what's happening to her right now, but something is wrong with her voice we can hear everywhere. Think about it. Why can we hear her voice like she's everywhere? Why does her voice sound like it doesn't come from any particular place? It's because it doesn't come from her in the first place."

I feel so stupid. "So the White Shadows are using her voice to catch us?"

"Exactly. Ever since the first time we heard it. It's a trap they set to make us come back here. You got to them credit. Both of us wanted to save Vista the first time we heard that damn voice recording."

"No w-way..." I almost teared up from that revelation. "But if that's true, where is the real Vista? The Vista that talked to me when I was still in my room?"

Baron shook his head. He was as clueless as me. "She might be gone, Axis."

"You mean she is dead?"

"Probably, or she's with Forte already. We don't know for sure, all we know now is that the voice we've been hearing is artificial. They lured us here with it."

That was a harsh reality. To be fooled, not once, but again and again. I mean sure, we actually came back here for a different reason, but I was not going to go back to the other side of the fence without trying to find out where was Vista. Her voice made me agitated and frustrated because every time I heard it I felt guilty that I was free and she was somewhere captured and probably punished. But as it might be all imaginary now, I feel so dumb by not being able to think of the possibility that we were just being played. That we actually took the bait, especially me.

"Now, come one. We have to get out of here fast," Baron said but as soon as he said that we heard a loud bang, and then I just found myself lying on the floor.

"Capture him!" said a familiar voice.