by Lisa Kime
Ruck Nor 3
THE COTHAP CAVES
BY
LISA KIME
Copyright 2015 LisaKime
Published by
Clover Digital Media
Cover by
Clover Digital Media
License Notes
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3
I was shown into what had become my room. It was off white in colour; with a bed, desk and chair. The room had no windows or any other doors indicating other rooms. Folded neatly on my bed were three clean uniforms. These were student uniforms I was told; I changed and dressed in one. I touched the hand shape marker on the wall and an opening for my wardrobe appeared where I put my other uniforms and the old clothes that Belle had given me; it closed automatically when I’d finished. The door to my room opened and Giga entered. She was holding a tablet in one hand. Her gold sparkling eyes were very hypnotic and I couldn’t help staring at her.
"I have your tablet with everything you need programmed on there for you." said Giga as she handed the tablet to me.
I took it and looked at the touch screen. It was in English and I recognised the format as something for a modern PC.
"We have adapted the operating system to something that would be more familiar to you," Giga said as she started heading out the door.
The door closed and I was left alone in my room to tinker with my tablet and start learning more about this world.
It seemed like many hours had passed. I had read the entire first day training package and my eyes were getting sore from reading so much information; my head buzzed from everything I had taken in.
The door whooshed open, it was Giga. She didn’t enter but stood in the doorway.
"It is time for dinner. We eat in the dining hall," she said.
I put my tablet down and got up from my desk. I walked over to Giga and she led me down featureless off white corridors to the dining hall; this room was totally different to the rest of the building I had seen.
The dining hall had so many colour patches painted on all walls and ceiling. Rows upon rows of tables filled the room and hundreds of people were sat there eating. Giga led me to my seat where a plate sat on the table and I did admit the food smelt great. Next to my plate was a cup of muddy green liquid. I sat down and began cutting up what I assumed was meat. It looked like chicken; I tasted a small piece, it was very full flavoured and tasted amazing. It reminded me of the food I used to have on Sundays when I visited Grandma.
I looked around at everyone sat at the table; they were female and I the only male, everyone dressed in student uniforms. I noticed they didn't make eye contact with each other, then I sensed someone standing behind me. I looked around and saw Tyte. She was looking down at me with her neutral face.
"Is your food acceptable?" asked Tyte.
I looked at my food and then back at Tyte, "Yes, it is amazing. So delicious," I replied.
"After you’re finished you are required to visit the supervisor." Tyte informed me.
I had no idea what this supervisor was actually meant to be. On Earth, a supervisor watched over a group of people. On this planet, well, who knows what it truly means. I finished my meal and found myself escorted to the supervisor's office.
The door to the office was huge; I estimated it to be the size of four standard doors and looked to be made of steel and brass with copper highlights. Tyte knocked; the knocking echoed down the long hallway. The sound slowly vanished and everything remained quiet as I waited.
I felt very nervous as I had no idea of what to expect while Tyte stood perfectly still like a statue. Suddenly; the sound of large metal locks clanked and made the sound of metal on metal. Then there came a silence for a few moments before the door began to slowly open. Standing in the opening was a tall, lanky man in a black suit. While the black suit looked similar to a suit found on Earth, there were some obvious differences. There were no buttons, zips or clasps on the front of the suit. It looked like there were no way of opening the jacket to remove it. The man looked pale which surprised me since this planet was so sunny and hot, perhaps he never ventured outside.
"I have the human male here to see the supervisor." Tyte said with her usual neutral voice.
The lanky, pale man looked me up and down and didn't look impressed before he spoke to Tyte.
"I will let the supervisor know." said the doorman; for I never once heard his name mentioned.
The door closed and the hallway became quiet again. A few minutes passed before the sound of the door being unlocked could be heard. The door opened again and the lanky man signalled us both to enter. The space we entered looked very fancy. It had lots of character when compared to everything else I had seen so far. The walls were wallpapered and the floor actually had what looked like carpet. Candles were alight in wall mounted glass lanterns. Tyte didn't pay attention to the stylings of the room.
We were lead into another room. This room had the same stylings as the previous. The lanky man stopped at the next door and turned to Tyte and myself.
"Just knock on the door and wait for the supervisor to call you in." he said.
Tyte walked up to the fancy filigree wooden door and knocked three times.
A muffled voice responded "Come in."
Tyte opened the door and I followed her into the supervisor's office; its style the same as the previous two rooms and looked like it came straight out of the late 1800's. In front of Tyte and I was a huge timber desk with a leather top. The chair at the desk was turned facing away from us. The room smelt old, like my grandfather's study.
"So you are the human male that people are saying will solve our genetic mutation issue." spoke the voice from the office chair.
I tried to peer around the chair to see if I could catch a glimpse of the person speaking to me.
"You have a name?" the voice asked.
"Yes, my name is Craig West."
The chair slowly turned to reveal a robotic being. This robot looked like an art deco style of design that was to resemble an old man.
"I see by the look on your face that you were expecting something other than a robotic lifeform." said the supervisor.
"Um, yes…..yes I was. I have seen so many varied living beings that I just assumed that you would be too." I said carefully.
"Do you truly believe that I am not a living being? My flesh is made of brass, bronze and copper. My blood is water and oil. My circuits allow me to feel pain just like any living organic individual." said the supervisor with a hint of annoyance in his digital voice.
Tyte stepped forward and spoke "The human did not mean any disrespect. On Earth, robots do not think for themselves.”
" Aaaahhhhh, Earth, the blue marble in the solar system that neighbors our own solar system. Soon to be nothing more than a blackened ball drifting in space." the supervisor said with a hint of pleasure.
I was feeling sick to my stomach after remembering what I was told by Belle about Earth. This supervisor didn't seem like a robot; he spoke to me like any living person I have ever met. The supervisor pushed his chair back and stood up. I noticed he was approximately my height; he walked over to me and looked at my face as if he was studying my expressions.
"What did you do for work on Earth?" asked the supervisor.
"I worked at the local supermarket" I replied.
The supervisor straightened himself upright before he asked "What is a...supermarket?"
"A place
that sells food, drink and other needs to live." I answered.
The supervisor walked back to his desk; he began typing on a computer. I looked at Tyte but she kept looking at him.
"That will be all. The boy can go back to his room." said the supervisor without even looking up at who he was speaking to.
Tyte led me out of the supervisor's office and we headed back to my room. On arriving, I noticed my tablet was blinking with a notification; my new lessons had arrived. I sat on my bed and started reading the textbooks. I didn't notice that Tyte was still in my room until she sat on the edge of the bed.
"The supervisor treats everyone the same; it is not because you are human." Tyte said calmly.
I looked up at Tyte; she was looking directly at me. Her silvery blue sparkling eyes seemed to put me at ease.
"Ok." I said and went back to my reading.
Tyte stood up and turned to walk towards the door. The door appeared and Tyte walked through the doorway and then it closed and vanished. I picked up my lesson tablet and tapped the screen. The library of lessons appeared and I tapped the search content button.
I opened the next lesson plan and saw it was geological studies. A variety of panoramic photos and different videos of the many land formations. After the visual presentations, a list of readings appeared; I chose the introduction and began reading. I slowly began to learn that this planet was once a lush rainforest and huge lakes. As I read more, I found that the planet suffered a massive heat shift that killed
