Noah
The staircase quickly led the trio to a room with several shards of glass of different sizes and shapes scattered across the wooden floor. A long table held books so old they would fall apart at the slightest touch. The windowless wooden walls made it clear that whoever owned this place clearly did not like light. Luckly, Elliot had charged his phone and was leading the way using its flashlight.
The chairs, tables, and even the countertops seemed to be made of living, unknown plants. Just as alien as the one in the bizarre basement.
"So, where do you think we are?"
Cass was the first to have the courage to ask the question everyone wanted answered, but no one could.
"Somewhere remote on Earth? Maybe an unexplored forest in South America? Or even a protected environmental reserve"
Elliot looked at Noah with pity, as if his theories were about to be vaporized.
"No offense guys, but do you really think millions of people showing up in a random place on earth would go unnoticed by the world government? No, if that happened, the NWO would've already done something"
Elliot paused, staring at his two friends with a deadly expression.
"We're not on Earth. Not anywhere humanity knows. Well, maybe Saturn… but what I mean is, this is a new and different world"
"Well, at least we didn't have to pay for the trip"
Noah dropped to his knees, not because of Cassius joke, but because it had finally sunk in.
"D-don't you get it? We're infinitely far from home, with no chance of returning, in a possibly dangerous place… how can you stay so calm?!"
Elliot shrugged, and Cass place a hand on Noah's shoulder.
"We all already expected something like this could happen, man we had a whole week to come to terms with the possibility. Look on the bright side, we didn't die from the whispers, that was a possibility too"
Even understanding Cass's words and remembering the time he had to think about it when the voices had first started whispering in his mind, Noah was still stunned.
'I'll… never be able to go back home, or watch my favorite channel on CineSee, or fall in love… so why? Why would God let this happen to me?'
Grabbing his book, Noah began searching for a page that might comfort him in this situation. He didn't find one, partly because he was too nervous, but mostly because it was too dark to read anything.
'I am such an idiot'
Cursing under his breath, he caught up with his friends. Soon the three were in a hallway. Roots moved as the light reached them, which Noah found strange.
A worrying sound came from the room the group was heading toward. It wasn't the hiss of a snake or the squeak of a rat, it was much worse.
Footsteps.
They sounded human, like shoes tapping against wood. Noah was very good at identifying human footsteps, something he had practiced while sneaking around his parents at night (Which he definitely didn't do often).
Cass, who was between Elliot and Noah, whispered to them.
"There's something wrong guys. I hear footsteps in that direction, but I don't see any light over there"
Elliot put his to Cass's mouth and quietly handed something to Noah.
It was his pocketknife. Noah instantly understood the implications. Among the three, he was the most agile. Cassius and Elliot were thin with only a bit of muscle, while Noah was more built, not a bodybuilder, but strong enough to run faster, fight, and of course, take down any threats.
With trembling legs, the tall boy moved to stand beside Elliot. The two friends locked eyes. In a quick silent exchange, both agreed Noah would go first. Each second felt like an eternity.
The footsteps of the unknown being soon stopped. Noah was reaching the door to the next room. Elliot was right behind him, lighting the way while hiding behind his friend.
"Careful Noah. Whatever that thing is, it's somewhere in this room".
Elliot whisper only made Noah more nervous, and his hands were sweating so much he almost dropped the knife.
The footsteps returned. Something was approaching.
Gathering what little courage he had, Noah moved toward the sound, not caring about the noise he made.
A horrid creature was waiting for him. It had a human torso, but that's where the resemblance ended. Its clothes were so tattered it was impossible to tell what they had been. It had no face, just a red flower where one should be, with petals that looked like teeth. Its green skin was full of wounds that oozed yellow liquid.
The flower wasn't red, it was soaked in blood.
Completely terrified, Noah froze and couldn't react, until the creature sneezed out a disgusting yellowish cloud. Only then did Noah realize.
It wasn't a monster. It was his old friend.
The boy smiled, it had been years since he last saw him, or it was days?
"Noah, what happened?"
Elliot and Cassius cautiously approached until they saw the tall boy and his friend.
"Who's that?"
Elliot asked, pointing to the person beside Noah.
"You don't remember? I've been with you guys since the beginning"
Elliot frowned while Cassius seemed to be trying to remember.
"He's right, the four of us were at Elliot's apartment when we started hearing the whispers"
Elliot grimaced at Cass's comment.
"Weird… I'm trying to remember, I think my memory's messed up"
"We even studied together"
His friends attempts to jog Elliot's memory weren't in vain. After a few minutes he finally seemed to remember something.
"Oh, right… how could I forget? Anyway, we need to get ready for the fight, wait, what were we doing before?"
The friend smiled, as if he had waited his whole life for that question.
"Isn't it obvious? We were looking for a way out of here"
NOW (New World Order)