UNTITLED PROJECT

[Cael Gladius]

PROLOGUE

The world as we know it is a lie. There are no countries, there are no wars any longer. There isn't even a fully stable government system making attempt to keep everything in place. No, they want you to believe that. They're the ones who control what you see, change your movements with but a subtle wave of their hand. Why? Because the world as you know it did exist once. There was more to this little hell-hole we call Earth in the past.

As they say though, the past is the past for a reason. It's said and done, gone forever in the blink of an eye.

How do I know this? Because I'm one of the only ones that broke free from the vile, corrupt contraption that they mockingly call society. I write this in hopes that one day others may see the light, or, if they have before finding this, will have something to guide them within their new lives. It isn't much, just ink on paper, but it is all I can find myself able to do now. My journey is over, but yours could just be beginning.

I suppose I should answer the question you probably have for me on the top of your head. "Who exactly are 'they'?" Well, to put it simply, they are the media. They are the police, the government, the entire world you know and love (or despise, but that's subject to differ between individuals). They are the few who know the truth of Earth's fate, which was met two hundred years prior to my writing this. How long ago it may have been for you, I can't possibly tell.

In, what was actually, the year 2024, our world's militaries blew one another up in a nuclear war for the ages. It is unknown to me how this came to happen or who could be held responsible, but afterwards all that remained of the world was a small part of the eastern coast of the United States. Kentucky, Virginia, West Virginia, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, part of Louissianna, and a fraction of Florida were the lucky few places to make it out of this unscathed. Yes, there were and are several small colonies of remaining humanity that dot the globe, but they did not fall under their plan. Only those who could be fooled, have the wool pulled over their eyes, were chosen by them.

Archives dating back to the 1950's were kept as a collective knowledge for their use in this scheme. They would raise generations upon generations to believe that these time periods were those they knew. The populace within their barriers would grow none the wiser that they hadn't actually been born in 1979 (or pick another year between 1950 and 2024, it really doesn't matter). To do this, however, they would need to force at least a part of the populace at a time to follow along in this mass charade. This was done easily enough, most agreeing to the terms because they wouldn't want their offspring to know the terrible truth until they were ready.

Me? I wasn't ready, according to them.

[Cael Gladius]

CHAPTER ONE

The day I was enlightened would seem like a rather normal day to you. I woke up around 8 AM, showered, got dressed, skipped breakfast, brushed my teeth, and then I was out the door. All that was on my mind as I left my apartment was what sort of boring lecture Mr. Kail was going to give in my Psychology class. I lived on the top floor of the complex, so I usually took the elevator down to catch a bus. Oddly enough, the steel doors down the hall were lined with police tape. I didn't think anything of it at the time though.

Which part of the world was I in at this time? I may as well not even tell you where I thought I was. Sure, it would help you to get a better grip on my surroundings, but you should trust me when I say that when the higher ups find out a single detail about you... Well, they don't play soft. These people will come after you, and these pages that I write my final words to society upon could have me tracked down and executed on the spot.

Anyway, I ended up taking the stairs considering the elevators were busted. The walk down wasn't anything special. I made a few short hello's to those I passed. I was the sort to keep to myself mostly, not trying too hard to bring attention to myself. The latter has remained true as a constant, just to make a note.

When I reached the bottom, the first thing I noticed was that the exit to my usual route down was also lined in that piercing yellow tape. Controlled, blocked off, most would avert their eyes in order to mind their own business. I attempted such, but it was pretty hard to not spot the blood lining the inner cabin. Also... there was a smell. I've come across that same smell many times now, but back then it would have made me vomit if I had eaten anything previous. Luckily enough I hadn't, which you already know, but the dry heaves that followed the encounter between this evil odor and my nostrils should have made me pass out.

I shook my head and continued on towards the sidewalk. Thoughts ripped at my mind, almost as if my subconscious was taunting me with images of which of the other tenants I knew had been the last in that elevator. Nightmares juggled around my brain and forced me to acknowledge that something had to have happened to kill whoever was in there. Even on the bus I couldn't shake the images of sudden panic and carnage. Being a freshman in college, I had already come to terms with the mortality of the world somewhat, but no one ever really copes with that indefinitely.

I'll stop here to ask you this:
What do you think happens when you die?
Heaven? Hell? Something less splendid and full of fantasy?
Darkness. That's what awaits us all, in my opinion.

The rest of the trip is all a blur to me. What I do remember was watching the scenery as it went by, but without focus. Shapes, colors, light, shadow, it all passed by my eyes as if I were in tears. My face dry, however, I nearly missed my stop on the route. I began to question whether any of what I'd seen had even been there to begin with as a repositioned my bag on my shoulder and stepped out onto the pavement. The sidewalk stretched out far on the school's grounds, a university best left unnamed. Others walked together, talking, laughing, having fun in some way or another. I, on the other hand, continued towards the closest building alone.

"Hey, freak!" I stopped at the voice, a shiver making its way like a snake up my spine. I wonder constantly of what my life would have been if I hadn't stopped. So much would have been different, I probably would have a family now, and eventually would have been pulled into the normalcy of lying to my offspring.

"Hey, freak, I'm talkin' to you!" The sound registered and rung within my ears before I turned to look at whoever it was making their way towards me. All I saw was blonde hair and a blur of red before I was pulled into an arm lock. "You got some nerve showin' your face 'round here after what you did to you-know-who." I winced, but then looked down. His voice was rapid, almost too fast to understand clearly. Above that, however, was the snarl of a beast ready to cut down its prey and feed upon its remains. Bobby T. was looking for blood.

I don't remember what exactly I said after this. I like to imagine it was something along the lines of, "Get off of me, you cunt," but that wouldn't have been me at the time. It was probably a meek, mousey, beta-male quiver of a response. Whatever it was caused him to shove me to the ground though.

The fight that followed was a turning point for the course of my reality. Just as I grabbed his arm to stop the meaty fist from crashing into my glasses, my hopes and dreams for the future shattered along with his carpus. Bobby fell to the ground, a yelp ringing out across campass as he clutched his broken wrist.

"Mr. [Aleister], that is quite enough!" I apologize for not revealing my true name, though the dean did shout it as she hurried over. She continued to shout my name, but it wasn't until she was nearly in my face that I realized what I was doing. My foot had planted itself firmly against the bulky alpha's face, not just once but repeatedly. When I finally came to, Bobby looked almost like a puddle beneath me. I hadn't killed him, but he may have wished I had. His tough guy facade had been bombarded until it was nothing but a bleeding, crying, drooling mess. Definitely not the outside linebacker the girls cheered for on the field.

"I'm sorry." It came from my throat almost mechanically. I had no time to respond, and tears actually managed to pass my cheek this time. Seeing death hadn't been enough to do so, but joyously beating in the face of my ex-girlfriend's friendzone buddy? It must have been too much for poor little old me.

"Don't apologize, walk!"

"But-"

"Now!"

I remember every thought that passed my mind along the way. I'll never forget the words that soared through my head as we walked together, her hand pressed firmly upon my shoulder. It was almost like there was a monster wanting to escape me, and the only thing that was stopping it? A red haired, spectacle-wearing, midget of a woman.

Step.

Wow, what a bitch.

Step.

Don't you hear them? They're cheering for me back there!

Step.

He got what he deserved.

Step.

He should have been the one on that elevator, then maybe he'd have understood.

Step.

Pain. More than pain. No, even more than that.

Step.

I should have killed him.

Step.

HE SHOULD HAVE DIED.

BANG.

The door slammed shut behind me as I sat down within the head of the school's office. Strange, though she had more than likely forced the doorhinges back with that, Ms. Velmier laughed to herself before taking her seat across from me. My mouth fell agape, but quickly re-shut itself. I bit my lip. I'd never had to be in here before for actually being in some sort of trouble, but I'd heard of her eccentricities while punishing students. I opened my mouth once more, but she held up a finger.

Why didn't I give her a false name?
Why no pseudonym to protect her identity?
Because she's one of them.
Even if Velmier's still kicking, she's been through far too many subjects to remember me.

"Mr. [Aleister], I have to say that I've seen some fights in my day, but that," She stopped and bit at the end of her pencil for a moment. Pursing her lips against the eraser of the writing utensil, I could have sworn she was attempting flirtation, but I was far off there. No, her machinations were far more sinister. Velmier removed it from her mouth and tapped the eraser upon her desk. With a shake of her head she gave a scoff.

"That showed some potential."