It was cold. The first thought I had was the chilling cold clinging to my bones—as if the possibility of warmth was impossible for me—and it would be the last. There was a hiss and a groan of metal. The hatch of what appeared to be a tank opened, allowing me to exit. The blights harmed my eyes, used to the darkness of the tank. It wasn’t until they got accustomed to the brightness that I could examine my surroundings.

  I seemed to be in a completely white room. Two pod-like machines took the majority of the space, cables and tubes coming in and out of them. The floor was soaked. A strange liquid was leaking out from one of the tubes of my pod. The entire place looked old. The ceiling was caving in, and rust was forming on the machines, indicating that they had not been properly maintained for a long time. A piece of debris damaged the tube and some cables, most likely causing my release. The tank next to mine was open, seemingly unused.

  Taking a tentative step out, careful not to slip, I made unsteady steps towards the closest wall. On it was a wide mirror. In its reflection, I could see myself. Pretty average body, maybe a bit scrawny for survival, but it would do. Halting for a moment, I tried to recall something, anything, that could help me find out where I was and why. But—nothing. No name. No memories of my past or this place. I was aware that a normal individual would reasonably worry about the prospect of not being able to recall anything, but I just—couldn’t, as if all my emotions were turned off. I decided to dismiss that and focus on not dying. Using the wall as a crutch, I exited the room. The door wide open. On the other side was a long hallway with countless doors, all of them closed with no evident way to open them. Next to each door was a plaque stating the purpose of each room. In mine, it said “Cryostasis #1”.

  The lights of the corridor were flickering on and off in a repetitive pattern. The only consistent source of brightness was the next room over—“Control #1”—, the door ajar. It was a pretty small space, less than half the previous room. Inside, there was a control panel with three office chairs, and two big black screens occupied the back wall. In front of the panel, there was a wide window where I could see the pod I came from, obviously a one-way mirror. On one of the chairs was a small notebook and a jacket. I was still pretty cold, so I put on the jacket, noticing how it was a tad bigger than me. No matter, that way it kept my legs and arms warmer. I also took the journal; something about it called to me. Half the pages were ripped out, leaving only one scribbled.

  “DON’T FORGET HER” was written haphazardly in the middle of the page, as if the writer was in a hurry, underlining the first word a couple of times to give it importance.

  For some reason, it caused a reaction in me. I couldn’t pinpoint what it was, a spark of something in the midst of the emptiness inside. As soon as it came, it left, leaving me alone in the void once again. A sound coming from the hall broke me from my trance, making me realize that I was short of breath. As before, I dismissed it, pocketing the notebook in the jacket. I didn’t bother checking the room further; whatever made that noise could be a threat and had to be dealt with.

  The hall was empty, aside from rubble that fell from the roof. Carefully, I walked down the corridor, avoiding stepping on any debris. I assumed this facility would be a laboratory, but reading the diverse plaques on the doors, it was most likely a hospital, due to the medical wards or big entrances leading to specialized units. I felt my body tense; the feeling of being watched wouldn’t leave. It came to a tipping point when I heard whispering behind me. All my internal alarms went off at the unidentified noise—but there was nothing there.

  This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

  Continuing to walk, I finally reached the end. It led to a spacious room filled with chairs and what resembled an information desk, clearly the waiting room. Behind and to the right of the desk, there were two other doors, labeled “Supplies” and “Barracks”. In front stood what must’ve been the front gate, if the exit sign at the top of it meant anything. It was an enormous metal door that required a password to open. I decided to rummage through the papers on the desk; maybe they could give me some insight into where I was.

  Before I could approach it, a rustling sound from it alerted me. Instinctually, I got into a fighting stance. I wasn’t sure how I knew what to do, I just did. Then, out of nowhere, a flash of green zipped in front of me, almost making me fall. It was a small floating being, green and translucent. It resembled a ghost, if those were even real. The little thing was staring at me, like it was waiting for something, possibly for me to talk.

  “Hello,” I greeted. My voice rough due to the misuse. “Could you provide me with some information about this place?”

  The apparent ghost didn’t respond; it only stared before its eyes brightened and zoomed around me. Despite not having a mouth, it was quite expressive.

  Accepting that I wouldn’t get an answer and that the being wasn’t a threat either, I side-stepped it and proceeded to examine the desk. If it couldn’t help me, then I shouldn’t waste my time. On the counter were a couple of documents, all of them discarded and disorganized. Due to the state of the building, I concluded that everyone had to vacate quickly and did so a long time ago. The various documents were medical forms for different patients, and a small calendar marking the year 2125, nothing that could prove useful in any way, until…

  “Zain Danwstrider, 19 M, Cryostasis #1 Indefinitely”—the rest of the page was torn.

  I had to get out.

  Why was that name familiar?

  Get out.

  Was that me?

  Get out.

  Why was I left behind?

  GET OUT.

  A sudden tearing sound could be heard from above me. I looked up, a piece of debris was falling on top of me. Without time to evade, I fell to the floor, bracing for impact, but it never came.

  When I opened my eyes again, I saw how my hands were shaking. That name produced a reaction in me, like before, but bigger. And again it left, leaving me cold and empty—I wanted to feel that again.

  I glanced up, and I saw the tiny ghost, now shaped like a translucent barrier to protect me from the debris. Then it recovered its form and flew down to my level, again staring at me, waiting.

  “Curious,” I voiced to no one in particular. This interesting being could be worthwhile after all. I stood up. Abandoning my task of searching for the password, I neared the main entrance.

  “Open the door,” I commanded. The ghost just glared at me. “Is there any chance you could open the door… please?” I tried, expecting that trying a supposedly gentler method could offer better results. It gazed at me, then crinkled its eyes, maybe in mirth, and phased through the door. After of couple of seconds, it opened, the cold air stabbing at my skin. The ghost returned, circling me a few times before settling on my shoulder.

  It was snowing outside, the storm making it impossible to see very far away. I took my first step outside, my bare feet stepping on the freezing snow. In my proximity, I could notice the structure was inside the foot of a mountain. The second I got too far from the entrance, it closed, making it look like it was never there.

  Wanting to get as far away as possible, I ventured into the storm. Surely there must’ve been some kind of settlement near the hospital, regardless of the passing of time.