"Wake up" I hear echo from behind me. My head and eyes dart around to try to find who said that in the darkness. "Wake up" I hear again, this time no echo. I feel a sharp pain in my head and jump, only to find myself sitting in my dirt coated and stained bed. "Doc needs to see you" says a guard. He is standing next to my bed. He grabs my arm and pulls me out of bed. I stare at him, somewhat dazed. "Come on lad, Doc needs to see you" he says leading me out the bunk, though I am not awake enough to comprehend what is going on. I know it is earlier than normal because everyone else in the bunk was fast asleep. Not one was awakened other than me. 

     The guard takes me to the same elevator from the other day, but he presses a different button than the previous two guards. I look at him. His uniform is the same as the others, but his face is more serious. He looks older, more angry. On his shoulder, he has a cloth that has a stripe of black and another of red. On his belt he has a pouch that has a smaller note pad than the doctor. He also carries a gun, but much smaller than the other guards have attached to his belt. On his chest on the left hand side, he has a round and shiny object attached to his uniform. I cannot make out the image on it or what it says. When the room starts moving again, I try not to fall and cling to a bar that is protruding a bit from the wall for support. The guard glances for only a second, the looks forward again, obviously not caring. He is obviously not like the kind guard form the other day. I wonder what the difference is between these tree guards that I have seen. Not only were their personalities vastly different, but also their accents.

     Once the door opens, he grabs my shoulder firmly. His glove is so cold and his hand is large. He pushes a little and starts walking. His hand still gripping my shoulder, I keep walking. I cannot imagine what is going to happen this time. Last visit to the doctor was odd as is, with the odd light and everything. Footsteps against the tiled floor in the distance, and it sounds like it is getting closer. "Guta dey, mine captain" says a voice from down the hall. I look over to see who it is, but the man holding my shoulder does not, he just keeps walking. "Vait, sir" calls the voice as the footsteps pick up speed. "Zis izt dee ant?" "Indeed" replies the guard firmly. His voice is deep and rough and rather scarey. "Doc bought him, ya?" "Again, indeed" "Scrawny little creature, he ist" says the man and he pokes my face just under my left eye. This guard wears the typical uniform and a green cloth on his shoulder. His face is narrow, and his chin has a slight crease. His hair is short and a shiny black, and his left eye has a small silver-opaque circle on his eye, covering where the pupil and circle of color that would normally be around it. "Aren't you zee scrawniest little zing? Doo going to die fast" says the green clothed guard, and the other, within a split second has him by the throat. It happened so quick, I could not believe it. "Shut your cursed mouth. You know nothing. You came from a group of over privileged vermin, and that is exactly what you are. Now make your mouth what your brain is, dead and silent. Understood?" "Y...Yes, sir" chokes out the green clothed. The one with the black and red one throws him do the ground and gets down on one knee before me, looking me in the eyes. "Kid, don't listen to that mindless trash" he says softly, looking into my eyes. "Look, try not to worry. I know the doctor personally, and he is a very good man. He saved my life when I was younger, I know he will save yours the best he can" he says, tearing up lightly. "My brother, he was entered into the games. My kid brother. He was killed in the games. He died for the amusement of that thrash that lies on the ground there" he whispers to me softly. That must be why he reacted so bad. 

     The green clothed guard coughs a little and tries to gather himself, the other guard pats my head, then collects himself as well. The black and red clothed guard only need look at him to make the green clothed one go silent from this point to when we arrive at a door. The red and blacked cloth one knocks 3 times then looks at the other guard. The guard with the green cloth gulps and refuses to make eye contact. The door then slides open to reveal a short, rather pudgy-looking man. He sports a doctors lab coat and pants and white cloves. His hear is a white-gray, his skin is pink and soft, and his eyes are a soft blue. He has grey-ish eye brows along with a mustache and beard that is trimmed so it only covers his upper lip and a little bit of his chin. "Well, who is this young lad?" says the doctor in a friendly tone, smiling at me. "Bring him in, Bruko" he says, gesturing for us to enter. I enter cautiously, then the two guards follow. "How has business been?" "Ah, could be better. Thank you for asking, Bruko. How about you?" "Hanging in there. Thank you for asking. Would not have pictured you being a buyer" "Yeah... Things are getting rough. I need the prize money. Need to find a way to provide for the family, you know? Usual business is not paying off enough, need quick creds". The dialog between the guard named Bruko and this doctor. I stand there silently. This room does not look too different than the other doctors room. It is almost entirely white. There is a small hall that looks like it leads to a shower, just like the other one,  there is also a desk and a chair next to it. Ontop of the desk, there is a notepad not unlike the other doctor, a light as well. I soon catch the glare of the guard with the green cloth. He looks beyond furious and ready to kill, and his eyes are aimed at me.

     "So, lad, do you think you are ready for this?" the doctor says, smiling at me. It is odd how friendly he is. "I think he may be shy, Marianus" says the guard with the black and red, smiling. "Poor lad. Let’s get that dirt off of you and see what we can do. Are you going to stay Bruko?" "Sorry, Marianus. I actually have to supervise a party for one of those stuck up rich brats. Her father hired me and five others to make sure the drug use does not get too out of control and no one important gets killed" "Ah, okay. Well, you know where I am. Talk to you soon" "Yeah, see you later. Oh, and tell the family I said hello" "Will do my friend, will do". With that, the guard named Bruko leaves, then the doctor turns his attention to the other guard. "Hello? I do not think I know you?" "I am Valeiss, Doctor Marianus" replies the guard. "Indeed. Well, must you stay?" "Yes, sir. Ist law zat at least a guard is present vhen any ant is anywhere other than zee mines" "Yes, I know" replies the doctor, then he looks at me. "D'you know what a shower is?" he asks, and I look at him curiously. "Metal things that stick out of the wall and spray water" he adds, then I realize what he is talking about and nod my head. "Good. Disrobe and get in there. We need to wash the dirt and bacteria off of you". I walk down the hall to the room where the metal tubes project from the walls, and the guard follows. I enter the room and disrobe, as the doctor instructed. The guard still stares at me in desgust. I do not understand his anger to me. 

     "Hurry up beast" says the guard in a repugnant voice. I set my clothes in the corner and look around at this shower, as the doctor called it, trying to figure out how to make the water come out. "Are you vis out a mind?" he says sarcastically with a snicker as he twists a metal ring that projects from the part of the wall near the door way. The second he does, freezing cold water explodes at me from the pipes above. It is nearly as cold as the hose that the guards use on us in the mines on rare occasion. I could not control the quakes of my body, my arms instinctively wrap around my torso for warmth. The sadistic guard laughed at my shakes and my body as it tried to curl up for warmth. "What are you doing?" the doctor called down the hall. "Nothing, Doctor Marianus. The creature is getting cleansed, as instructed" "We cannot have him freezing to death you idiot!" The doctor says loudly and angrily. "Calm yourself doctor" "Get your worthless carcass out of my sight and office” the doctor yelled at him, forcing him down the hall. This guard was certainly not making any allies today. The doctor returns and turns knob, making water that is shooting at me turn warmer. Not a boiling or flaming warm, but a soft, calming warmth. "Forgive me. I did not foresee someone like him being an escort" he says to me, and try to smile to show that it is okay. After all, I have been treated far worse. I am an ant, after all. We are not supposed to be treated well. "You are permitted to speak" he says to me, and my smile fades. I immediately remember that one guard that was more sadistic than most. He would ask us questions and tell us to say things, and he hit us if we spoke, and hit us if we did not. Ever since him, every ant that was beaten mercilessly by him has been silent and very hesitant to answer or speak. 

     "Okay. Let us start with names. Do you have a name?" he asks in a friendly tone, and I respond with a shake of my head. He continues "Do you know my name?" and I respond with a nod indicating that I knew it. "Oh? What is it then?" he asks teasingly. Not mean or harsh form of teasing, rather more friendly or jokingly. I find this very odd, and am still in fear of speaking and cast my gaze downward, still rubbing myself with the smooth, foam making object. "My name is Doctor Marianus Virto. You can call me Marianus if you like, or any other name you can think of". What an odd man. "I do not suppose you know the situation, do you?" he asks, and I shake my head. He pauses, then says "It can wait until you are clean. When you are done, there is a towel" he points to a white, fuzzy-looking cloth folded up neatly on the floor. "When you are done, dry off with that, wrap it around yourself, then come on out. I will just be finishing up a few details and waiting for my assistant to come up. Take your time, there really is not too much of a hurry". And with that, he walks back down the hall, out of sight.

     What is going on? Guards are not the ones in control? A doctor has the authority to send a guard away? Wow, doctors must be important. Also, this Bruko. He seems like a good person, though he seems big and scary. He is far less cruel than I anticipated. Also, that other guard. What made him so unlikable to the others? He is not the normal? All these questions fall into my mind, but without answers to carry them out. I try to comprehend all these things that are going on. Are there spirits that are making these things happen, like Crack said? Or do all these things just happen? To prevent myself from losing my mind, I set aside the object that I think is called soap, rinse the foam off myself, then go to the knob that the guard and the doctor used to control the water, trying to figure out how to turn it off. I only succeed in making the water spray out harder, and heat up, and cause a gray gas fill the hair. I begin to panic, pulling and turning and twisting the knob every way it can go, trying to figure out how to shut it off. In my panic, I fail to hear the footsteps through the sound of water shooting out and colliding with the solid floor and wall. "Need help there, lad?" asks the doctor, and I jump, scared and startled. The guard presses the knob in, turns it to the left, then pulls on it, and the water shuts off. "I assume that was what you were attempting?" he says, laughing a little. I smile shyly, my heart still pounding from the panic induced by the fear and uncertainty of this water spewing machine. The doctor bends down, picks up the white cloth and hands it to me. "Wipe the excess water off with that and come on out, okay?" he says, then heads back down the hall. I do as he says, wiping the water off of my body with the cloth, which is extremely soft and fuzzy, amazingly so. Almost soothing and comforting.

     After I dry, and finish marveling at the towel, I walk down the hall as the doctor instructed. This hall has several doors on one side, yet not on the other. Some have knobs, some do not. Same for visible locks. It is all colored different shades of white, and all looks so clean. The floor is cold against my feet, but I have most certainly endured far worse. "I said to wrap the towel around yourself, did I not?" says the doctor smiling, and I nod in response. "Do you need help doing so?" he offers, and I shake my head, then he continues "Do you know how to wrap the towel around yourself?" he asks, then I hesitate. If I answer no, will I get hit? Or, if I lie and say I know how to do it, but cannot, what will happen? He smiles, suggesting I have been frozen long enough for him to notice. "Be honest, boy" he says, and I reply with a slow shake of my head. *he takes the towel and wraps it around my waist, covering from just above my hips to just above my knees, then he tucks then corner that over laps in so that the cloth holds itself up. "Better?" he says with a smile, and then I nod yes. "Good. Now, do you know why you are here?" I shake my head. "Do you know what a gladiator is?" I shake my head no. "Would you like the whole story?" I nod yes. "Okay, but you have to talk. If you don't talk, I don't tell" he says smiling. "Yes sir" I say softly, still a bit wary. "Oh, no, you do not have to say 'sir'. I hope to be a friend to you" he says with surprising sincerity. I cannot hide a small smile. I feel as though I can trust this man. I do not know why, but he seems different, like someone I can place my trust in. He pats a white colored cross between a table and bed with his hand, and I look at im curiously, not sure what he is doing. "Take a seat and relax. I have already outlined a plan for you using the scans I got from Almory. But before we get there, I think it's story time"

     I climb up on the table-bed and sit down, still with the towel wrapped around me, and look at him. He smiles and sits back in his chair, then he pulls out his note pad. "I need a moment. My assistant is late" He says, sounding less than pleased. He fittles with the note pad for a few moments, then his gaze shifts towards me. He exhales softly then begins "I purchased you for the gladiatorial games. See, I am not in the best of positions financially, so I need quick money to keep my family alive and from becoming ants. Being a doctor is not as profitable as it once was, and there are several things out there for quick money, so I took the easiest route for someone of my profession. It is not something I am typically a part of, but in this case I had to make an exception. There is something called the gladiatorial games, which is essentially a fight to the death. Rather distasteful I think. You invest money in a gladiator or buy one, and if you win there is a prize. Typically credits, grants, and various luxuries. Since I am a doctor it costs less to buy a gladiator, and the rewards are higher. Not to mention, I design and implement my ideas myself. Though, I am not particularly in favor of ending anothers life for profit. I am sorry that I had to bring you into this. Yet, there is a bright side. If you survive far enough, you will become a citizen and no longer be an ant. So, basically, all you have to do is survive, and all I have to do is give you the tools to do so. How does that sound to you?"

     Wow. I was purchased to get killed. Well, I guess that is a bit harsh. This man wants to save his family from losing their humanity and keep them from becoming an ant. On top of that, I may not be an ant much longer. I am still trying to grasp everything when the door slides open. "Good day Doc'. Who we got here?" says an odd-sounding voice. I look over to see a person that is not yet an adult, but older than I. He has dark-blue hair that comes down to his shoulders and light brown-ish skin that looks like he was patted with dirt dust. One eye is green, and he has a silver film over the other, not unlike the guard that escorted me here. He is fairly tall and thin as well, and sports an empty-minded grin with a matching stare. Also, he wears a loose-fitting black shirt with a very detailed pattern on it and an unbuttoned white lab coat over it. On his legs, he wears skin tight, pitch black pants where one pant leg comes just over the knee, and the other comes to his ankle, and his feet are bare. "Finally. What took you so long?" "Was over with a friend" says this young man, giggling a little. "Intoxicated again?" "Nah, Doc', I was just. Yeah, I am a little bit" he says, then breaks out laughing. The older doctor sighs disappointedly, yet I get the feeling he was expecting this. "Viktor, go lay down. Do not come out until you come back down" the older doctor instructs firmly, and the younger man walks down the hall and opens one of the doors on the side, giggling and swaying back and forth the whole way, making clumsy or dizzy looking steps. "I am sorry, he has a bit of a drug problem, but I do not have the heart to remove him permanently. He is still young, and young people make mistakes. I do not want to ruin his entire future. Oh well, we do not need him yet" says the doctor, looking at me. I do not know what to stay, so I remain silent. "Would you like to see what I have in mind for you?" he asks, and I nod slowly. "If you have any suggestions, do not hesitate to say something" he says, picking up his note pad and tapping at the screen. He then points at the wall, and to my amazement, part of the wall starts moving to reveal a large black panel. Small squares of various colors start popping up on the panel, then one enlarges and an image appears on it. An image of some kind of creature. "Okay, I am going to show you a video or two first, so you can understand my inspiration for the design. Just watch the screen. This is a video of a genetically enhanced predator that we keep in the zoo" he says, then the image starts moving. "Watch. Is it not a magnificent creature? We call it a lion, though it is not the original form. Watch how it moves through the grass, one paw after another so gracefully, eyes fixated on its prey" the doctor narrates. He continues to narrate as I watch in amazement. It is still hard to realize and fully grasp that the creature is not physically there.

     The creature starts bounding swiftly after another creature. The first one, the doctor called a Lion, has short, soft tan hair covering its body, big eyes with thin pupils, and huge feet and a black nose. The doctor continues to narrate as the Lion pounces on another creature, this one bean brown with black stripes and much thinner legs and longer, narrower face and ears to match. "Let me slow this so you can really see this" He says, and the video slows. "Watch how the claws dig into the zazelle and cut it so easily and allow the Lion tug it to the ground and bite into it" He says and the image stop just as a few other Lions show up and start biting at the zazelle. "That is what I have in mind for you. I have designed some claws for you" and as the doctor says this, I get an idea. Hesitantly, I point at the screen. "Use your words. I won’t be able to understand if you don't use your words" "Hairs" "What about hairs?" and I gesture at my upper lip, and he looks at me, puzzled. "Whiskers? The long hairs?" he asks, and I nod. "Can I 'ave 'em 'oo?" "If you would like. That would require a bit of surgery though, if you do not mind that. What purpose would they serve? Do you want to be able to feel your surroundings with them or something? Or purely for fashion purposes?" I shrug my shoulders in response. I do not know how to respond. "You just want them?" he asks, smiling a little, and I nod. "Well, I will make you able to feel with them. It would require a few small injections of a chemical we use to attract nerve endings and increase sensitivity to the area. How does that sound?" I nod in response. 

     This does not seem too bad. This guy WANTS me to talk, to think, to want. I have never really had this before. With the guards, they would ask us, me questions and no matter the answer given or action instructed done, punishment follows. If you want, if you think, if you speak, if you complain. This one guy is the opposite of most of my life. Though, how long could this last? "Would you like some clothes?" he asks. I immediately remember bath time in the tunnels. The guard would yell 'bath time', and we would all gather in one area. The guard would take a hose that sprayed water out so hard it would sting and leave welts, and it would be so freezing that everyones lips and fingertips would turn a pale blue color. After our skin was blasted off, we would walk over to get clothes, shaking violently, and the guard manning the station would ask if we wanted clothes. If we said yes, we would get beaten, then given the clothes. If we said no, we would get beaten and sent to the mines dripping wet and completely bare. And just for added torture, out bodies would be completely rid of hair, with the exception of out eyebrows and the hair aloft our head. The guards made us hold still as they rubbed something on us, then they put thin cloth over the gel-like stuff they applied to us, then when they ripped the cloth off, taking the gel, and our skin, off. After this routine once month for every year of your life, you start to get used to it. 

     "What's the matter?" he asks. I shake my head to communicate that nothing is wrong. "I will get my assistant to bring you some of his clothes. I want to take you out for lunch" he says smiling. I don’t know what it is, but something about his smile is comforting. I do not reply, just incase it is a trap of some kind. He stands up, walks to the room the younger man walked in and closes the door behind him. Taking in the scenery, I cannot help but wonder what this world is like. It really is nothing like I would have imagined. So much cleaner, brighter, and bigger. Since my first journey out of the tunnels, I have met two mean guards, two nice guards, a creepy doctor, an extremely nice doctor, and someone that I have not been around long enough to form a good idea about who they are, but seems weird. This whole new world is so weird already.

     The door opens and the doctor steps out, clothes draped over his arm, and his assistant follows behind him. Though, he seems a little more together than whence I saw him last. The walk over to me, the assistant leaning a bit on the doctor. "Hello there, my friend" he says, extending his hand. I look at him curiously, trying to figure out what he wants. "Okay then, we will work on that" he says, retracting his hand. "Here" the doctor says, offering me the clothes. "They are his, but I think they will fit you well enough. He is going to be here, going over my outlines and gather materials and what not. You and I are going to be going for some food. He and I are going to be going back in the other room to discuss while you get dressed, okay?" I nod and glance at the  clothing the doctor laid out, then back at the doctor and nod to convey that I understand. They go back to the room they just came from, though this time the doctor takes his note pad with him. The door closes, and I stand up and look at the clothes. Another black shirt with amazing details, black pants that have patterns of dark red running along the legs and the back, and the pants have several sets of shiny looking chains on both sides, what looks like short pants that are blood-red and have an odd pocket over the crotch. Hesitantly, I look around, and then put them on a bit at a time. I set the cloth on the floor, then deciding which pants to put on; the black with the chains, or the red with the weird pocket. I decide to put on the ones with the chains, and they fit surprisingly well. Better than what I would have to wear digging in the tunnels. The shirt fits better too, though they are both still fairly loose. They are clean, not full of holes, and don’t feel too bad, though the chains make the pants a little heavy. 

     The door opens once again, and the doctor steps out with his assistant next to him. "Ready to go?" says the doctor with a smile as he approaches me. "Don't look too bad, kid. How the clothes fit?" asks the assistant, and I smile at him to try to convey that they fit well. He seems to figure it out and smiles as well. "Go have fun you two. I'll go meet Jachiara and see about getting everything fixed up for you by the time you both get back. How's that sound, doc'?" "Sounds like a plan. We shall return shortly. Have everything prepped by our return" "Got it. See you two whence you return. Have fun, and try not to overload the kid" laughs the assistant, and with that, the doctor exits the door that I came through with the two guards. "Follow me, and do not stray far. Understand? It is very important that you do not wander off" he says looking at me, and I respond by nodding my head. He walks through these vast halls, passing many doors, and frequently looking back to make sure I am still there, and I do not dare get far from him at all. So many turns and doors and corners. 

     Soon, we reach another moving room. He enters first, and I follow and cling to the pole that protrudes from the walls of it as it begins moving. When the door opens and the doctor exits, I follow at his heals once again. Immediately, I am blasted with an entirely different view than I have seen so far. There are crowds of people, walls that stretch high and low, openings and people everywhere. Countless people walking around, carrying bags of things, all dressed so strangely. A hand grabs my arm and tugs me through mass of people. So much noise, so many sounds and sights and smells. It is all so beyond indescribable. Innavigable masses of people flowing every which way, pushing and shoving to weasel their way through. It is an absolute mad scene.

     After a little bit of panicking, trying not to get trampled and not to get lost, being tugged along by the arm, we reach a clearing. He smiles at me. I think he notices my fear from that mass of people. Never before have I seen so many people packed together and going in so many different directions all at once. My heart is still beating hard. It looks like the doctor is talking, but I cannot hear him over the loud masses of people. He grabs my arms again, tugging me to one of the openings in the wall. They are far larger when you are closer to them, and full of people. I feel as though I may pass out. I have never been around people like this, places like this. So many people carrying different things, all looking so different. Some mover in droves, others in small groups, others seemingly alone. I look at the doctor, and he appears to be communicating with someone, so I attempt to trace his gaze. It seems to be towards a woman standing behind a table of sorts that is covered in baked goods. Without warning, the doctor begins walking towards her, tugging me along. Around us, there are people sitting at tables and eating large meals. The smells are absolutely amazing. I can feel my mouth filling with water every time I take in the scents. 

     "He seems rather bemused" The doctor calls out to her, and she smiles. Bemused? What could that mean? Is he talking about me? When we get closer, the doctor lets go of me. "Who do we have here?" the woman asks, smiling at me with a toothy grin. "This is one of the gladiators I purchased. I feel so bad about the whole thing, so, I am trying to show him a good time before he goes into coliseum" "That is nice of you, Marianus. So, is that what brings you here?" "Yes. I am trying to show him a good time, and I thaught why not start with meeting you and having a good meal" "Hah, that is so nice of you" she says, sliding her left ankle behind her right. He dress is a soft blue color, and it covers from just above her chest to just above her knees. She is a scrawny thing that looks as though you could break her in half with a poke. She is pretty though. Her hair is long and is pitch black, her eyes a brilliant blue, her nails are painted a bright blue that nearly seems to glow, and her teeth are a bright white. So white that they do not seem completely real. Her voice is soft and pleasant, yet not so soft that it is inaudible. 

     She guides me and the doctor to another moving room. I hate these so much, they make my insides feel like they are moving without me. I am getting used to it though. I am caught off guard when the other side, not the side of the moving room we entered, opens to reveal a quiet, dim-lit room full of tables. It is not unlike the other room in that there are people at tables eating and talking, though it is not like the other one in that it is a lot quieter and the people seem to be a lot more serious. As I walk through, following the doctor and this woman, I catch the gazes of several people, but the quickly seem to lose interest and return to their conversations and meals. It seems as though the mouth watering scents are even more concentrated here. The smell makes my stomach crave food and growl. "Do not worry, you will get food shortly" whispers the doctor. "Yeah, you shall be seated very soon. There is a table reserved for Marianus back here. Just up there actually" she says and points to a table near the corner of the room. We walk to it and the doctor sits on one a bench-type thing on one side of the square table, and I look at him, a little unsure. "Take a seat, it's fine" says the woman with a smile. I hesitantly slide in between the seat and table. "Be back in a little bit. Shit's not over, y'know" she says, then goes back to the moving room. This room is large and the lighting is dim. The walls are a dark read, almost bloodstained colored but more consistent. Lining the walls are tables with bench-like chairs with puffy seats that are admitedly comfortable. The lights are only where the walls touch the ceiling, and they are tiny and are held inside a clear wire. The ceiling is a dark and dull blue color. The tables look as though they are made of polished grey stone. All together, the scenery is not that bad. It is dark, yet calm and placid. A massive contradiction to that mass of people.

     "Are you okay?" the doctor asks, looking at me, and I not in response. "You have to start using your words. I know you know how to speak. Everyone was taught how to speak, even if it was just so they could understand what they are being instructed to do or yelled at for. So, speak." "I am okay, sir. Unharmed, sir." I say in the same voice I would speak to a guard in, a respectful and level manner. He laughs a little. "I am not a guardian, I am just a doctor. I want to be your friend, not your tormentor". I do not know what to say or do, so I just go silent and cast my gaze downward. "How about this. How is your life? What kinds of things have you done? Let’s start there" he asks. "I dig. I use a pic ax to move dirt" "Why?" "We are told to" "Is that the extent of your knowledge?" "We dig expansion tunnels, and 'ird classers comes in when we get deep enough" "Ah, okay. I know you do not know that much about your job, so I will try not to ask too much. Do you have a name?" "Name, sir?" "Like my name is Marianus, the guard I was speaking with was named Bruko. What is yours?" I do not really have a name. I have a number. I think that is close enough, so I show him the numbers printed on my arm. "No nickname or anything?" he asks, and I shake my head. "We will give you a name, don't you fret" he says with a smile. 

     There is a tap on my shoulder, and I look over quickly in surprise, and it is that lady again. "How are you two? Ready for some food?" "You know we are" the doctor says with a laugh. She smiles and places plastic covered sheet of paper with pictures of food on them, and odd words that I cannot read. "What'll you two have?" she asks, looking back and forth at us. "You are the guest of honor here, you can go first. What do you feel like eating?" the doctor says, and I look back curiously. "Look at the menu" Says the woman, and she points to the plastic covered paper. I look at the paper, not really sure. "How about this" The doctor says, holding out his paper "Point to the picture that looks yummy-est". I do as he says. "A slab of meat for the boy, and the usual for me" he says, then takes both of our papers and hands them to the woman, and she walks away with a smile. I have not really noticed before, but I have not really seen many, if any, women in my life. Only male ants work in the mines.

     After virtually no time at all, the woman returns with a younger woman and a young-looking man as well, the two younger people pushing carts covered in trays covered with food of all kinds, each one sizzling or smoking. I watch and wait anxiously for one of the carts to reach our table. My stomach is throwing a fit, screaming for food. Soon, the young woman pulls up next to us and sets a plate infont of me with a huge chunk of cooked, steaming meat. It smells absolutely amazing. No, not amazing. Beyond amazing. I do not see nor care what the professor gets, all my attention is on this bit of cooked meat. I do not dare start to eat, because usually if you eat before instructed, you get severely beaten, but, the beating seems almost worth it. I have never dreamed of warm food looking or smelling so good, I always thaught they were similar to the scraps, failures, and leftovers I was fed my entire life. "Eat up, boy" I hear the professor say, and I immediately pick it up with my hands. I drop it back on my plate within a second of picking it up. "Hot!" I exclaim shaking my hands to cool them off. The professor laughs a bit and offers me an odd-looking blade and stick-looking thing that has prongs on the end. "Here’s a fork and knife. Cut it up and eat it with the fork, rather than your fingers. See if that works better". I look at him and take the pronged stick and blade. "Here, let me do it for you" he says taking my plate and the stick and blade. He sticks the stick in and saws it to small cube shapes with the blade, then passes the plate back. "Use the fork to stick the steak and pick it up" he says, smiling at me. It works! It seems so simple; stick the fork, as he called it, into the meat and it sticks, I then proceed to put into my mouth and use my teeth to pull it off the fork. There are no words to describe how amazing it is! I thaught it smelled good, but that is nothing in comparison to how it tastes. In virtually no time at all, I completely scarf down every last bit of it and begin to slurp the juices from the plate. 

     Out of nowhere, a hand pats the back of my head. "Sure was hungry, wasn't he?" says the woman, sharing a laugh with the doctor. "Great first stop, huh?" the doctor says to me, and I look at him with a big grin. "Just wait till you get dessert" says, then she walks away again. "So, you enjoying yourself?" the doctor says, and I nod with a smile. I have never had that much food at one time, nor have I ever felt so full.

     The woman comes back, pushing a cart thing with three plates with shiny coverings on them and sets them on the table and removing the coverings to reveal cup-like things that are clear and full of a muddy dirt-looking substance that has a smooth and soft white looking mass ontop of it with a light and shiny red ball pressed into the top. "Hope you don't mind if I join you two" she says with a smile, and she slides in next to me and offers me a spoon. I take the spoon and look at her curiously, then shift my gaze to the doctor. He is eating the dirt with the spoon and seems to be enjoying it. "Try it, it’s good" he says, then I hesitantly press the spoon in and slide it through the layer of soft white layer and into the dirt, then pop it into my mouth. It tastes nothing like dirt! It is sweet and soft and chewy. I try the white stuff next, and it is just as sweet, yet less satisfying. "Try the cherry. It’s my favorite part" says the woman, leaning against me a little. "Cherry?" "The little red thing" The doctor answers. I dig out the small red ball and pop it into my mouth. It is juicy and sweeter than the dirt, but with an entirely different taste.

     I inhale the entire cup of dirt and white, it is so unbelievably amazing! "Our next stop is my office. This is just a brief opener. These next two weeks, I intend to get people to train you so you do not lose so easily, and also show you the best time I can. Sound good?" And I nod. I am surprised when the woman rests her arm around my shoulders. "Such a fine boy you got here, Marianus" she says, her face almost uncomfortably close to mine. "My name is Calisa, but you can call me Cali, okay cute stuff?"I feel my heart beat faster and my face getting warmer. What is she doing? What does she want?

     My attention is on her entirely, and I cannot physically bring my attention to stray from her. I am caught in her trance until I am snapped out of it by the sound of the doctor clearing his throat. Cali looks at him, then back to me. "Sorry sweety, I have to go for now. Come back any time, for anything. Got that sweety?" She says as she gets up, and she winks at me before she disappears. I have never felt this before. I feel so confused, and my stomach feels a little uneasy. "Sorry about that" says the doctor. "Wha' was she doing?" "I do not know, kid, I do not know". We both share in an unsure and awkward silence.

     After a little while, the doctor stands up and rubs his stomach. "I do not know about you, but I am full. What do you say we head back to my office for some rest and to check on my assistant?" and I nod in approval and get up as well. I have never had this much food in my stomach at one time, ever. I actually feel as though my stomach has stretched as far as it will go and I may burst if I am forced to take in any more. How do people eat like this?

     The doctor leads me back to the moving room, and as it moves, I feel my insides shift a little. Not a very comfortable feeling at all. Almost as if every organ inside me has a mind of its own. The moving room stopping has a very similar effect. I nearly fall over and my arms wrap around my stomach to prevent its contents from shifting too much. The door opens and I follow the doctor back to the entrance we came in. It seems louder than I remember, but there is just as many people searching in all directions as hectic as ever. He grabs my wrist and leads me through the masses once more, back the way we came. Back to the moving room and through the halls, back to the room. It is exactly the same as whence we left, no sign of the assistant, or anyone for that matter. "How about you go get some rest. If or when I will need you, I will come get you" Says the doctor, moving down the hall that leads to the room that sprays water, and opens one of the doors along the way. "All yours. Enjoy. Though, try not to break anything. The bed, I am sure you know how it works. Do not press any buttons on it though. Do not touch the TV unless someone is helping you with it. The lights come off if you clap your hands together or say 'lights off'. Got that?" I nod and enter the room hesitantly. It is surprisingly spacious. There is a very poofy looking bed that is in the corner against two walls, and a large screen covering the wall across from the bed. That is all there is to the room. Other than that, it is all plain white with lights overhead. "Lay down, make yourself at home" Says the doctor invitingly. I sit in the bed and immediately, my bottom sinks into the mattress. It is so soft and squishy. It almost feels as though it is absorbing me, yet, oddly, it is not a bad feeling. "I see you are already enjoying the bed" he says with a smile. "I will leave you be now. Other things to attend to and what not. If you need me, there is a red button on the side of the bed. Have fun" he says, then he leaves, closing the door.

     Maybe this is not going to be that bad. I get to sleep in a comfortable bed, eat good food, and the people seem extraordinarily nice. I lay down in the squishy bed, and it morphs to the shape of my body, which feels sort of weird, yet not in a bad way. I begin to wonder about how people are doing down in the mine without me. I cannot wait to tell them about this wonderful place. I knew there were places outside those tunnels, and so far it is amazing. I close my eyes and relax in the bed. Quickly, I slip into slumber.