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nczaversnick · 6 months ago

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Project Gemini Chapter 1

This is just a draft so far but it is somewhat polished. Enough to share anyway. This is kinda long so it’s below the cut. Enjoy!

Chapter 1

April 12th - 13:32

Bourne, Titania District

“And with these results that we’ve calculated, we’re able to connect the final piece in better understanding, diagnosing and healing our patients,” a masked woman dressed in charcoal gray-colored scrubs underneath a black lab coat turned and faced a frazzled, deer in headlights look in his eyes man, “Any questions?”

Caspian fiddled with his Holographic Screen Projector tablet. Despite the schoolboard’s constant bragging about the advantages of providing ‘highly sophisticated technology’ to their students, having them be the size of magazines was one of their downfalls. On one hand, they were a clumsy, rectangular shape that weren’t user-friendly enough to be held in one hand and type efficiently with the other. On the other hand, proven time and time again, the lined carbon fiber plates were the superior material to withstand any tumbles from any height. Not that he would know anything about that, but if he did, he knew he could safely count his blessings because the replacements of any AF series of the HSPs would have cost him a month’s rent, including an arm and a leg. He glanced up from his notes and noticed the waning patience on the woman’s face. He quickly looked back down and hurriedly scrolled through his curriculum.

“Sorry,” he stuttered, his cheeks reddening. He finally found what he was searching for and took a moment to peer at the list.

“What do you usually do with the outliers, the ‘critical values’?”

“Oh, yes! We have a strong fail safe system to ensure our results are as accurate as possible. We check the calibration,” she continued to prattle on as he rolled his sore shoulders around. His eyelids began to feel heavy, and his empty stomach churned and growled as another day of dense learning piled on top of him.

“So, obviously, a carbon dioxide level of 35 millimoles per liter would raise concern in doctors, and a level of 21 thousand would raise concern in police,” it was hard enough to decipher exactly what she was saying due to the thick material of her mask, but the way she quickly skimmed and bounced back and forth between topics made it near impossible. Her eyes glanced up towards the flashing digital clock illuminating the door.

“Well, I don’t want to take up too much more of your time,” the sudden change in the pitch of her voice snapped him back to reality, “I know you students have a lot to cover in your other areas, and it’s almost time for lunch anyway. I hope you took a little something out of this rotation.”

“I did, thank you so much,” he quickly shoved his tablet into his school bag and readjusted the strap on his shoulder. The masked woman’s eyes crinkled in a way that he could only guess was from a smile as she escorted him away from the laboratory and towards the elevators.

“Take care of yourself, young man.”

The doors closed and, after a few moments of silence, save for the soft whirring of the elevator at work, opened to a scene of minor chaos. Not like it was anything he wasn’t used to at this point. He carefully made his way across the room, cautious of the other medical personnel and ensuring not to run into any of them in their hustle and bustle between patient rooms.

Blip.

He tiredly swiped his badge in front of a small, wall-mounted monitor. A large glass screen above the monitor flickered to life, and a robotic voice called out:

Screen: “Greetings, Caspian Álvarez. How can I assist you?”

“Clock out for break.”

Screen: “You have chosen to clock out for break on April 12th at 13:48. Your expected clock-in is 14:33 on April 12th. Please present PIN to confirm or say ‘cancel’ to cancel.”

He held out his right wrist towards the small monitor and a faint chime soon followed:

Screen: “PIN accepted. Is there anything else I can assist you with today?”

“No, thank you.”

Screen: “Goodbye.”

The screen flickered off, leaving behind the reflection of his tired face. He sighed and dropped his arm dramatically as if going through the extra security of clocking out for lunch would be the most grueling task he would have to face for the rest of the day.

“I feel that, but you know, I think I would prefer just giving a PIN than having to go through the extra security clearances like the hospitals in Eltrax or the Aurora District in general,” a man’s deep voice suddenly spoke, “I get that it’s the capital, but having to present your PIN, registered fingerprints and an ocular scan? Could you imagine how backed up it could get? No thanks.”

A man dressed in light blue scrubs underneath a blinding, white coat approached him. Despite the intimidating appearance of his large, sculpted muscles hidden poorly beneath his uniform and his towering six foot five to Caspian’s five foot eight, he was a gentle giant with a bright smile.

“Oh, hey, Doctor Bruno.”

“How are you surviving out here?”

“Well, trying to find the balance between the rotations and your classes is a little challenging, but I made it this far.”

Bruno chuckled and gently patted his shoulder, “From what I’ve seen, I think you’re doing pretty well for yourself. Finals are just around the corner. Take advantage of the break afterward. Get some sleep.”

Caspian internally groaned as he rubbed his hands over his face as if to wipe away the permanent raccoon rings around his eyes, causing Bruno to chuckle again as the PA system above crackled to life:

PA System: Paging Doctor Bruno to room 12.

Doctor Bruno to room 12.

Bruno picked up a small device clipped to his hip, and pressed it, “Page confirmed.”

He turned to him and gave a sympathetic smile, “That’s my cue. Hang in there, Álvarez.”

Caspian waved goodbye to his professor as a faint jingle rang out from his uniform pocket. He fished out a palm-sized HSP, and fiddled with the screen. He sighed and waited patiently for his messages to load. He often considered getting his personal tablet replaced, but knowing how much it initially cost him, he figured he would milk as much as he could from it before it officially died. His messages finally pulled up, and he quickly skimmed over them. There was only one that caught his attention, and it was from one of his classmates:

Audrey: Hey, I found us a table in the

cafeteria. Hurry, though, I’m starvin’

(4/12 13:51)

He chuckled softly, slipping his tablet back into his pocket as he headed towards the doors. On his way, he couldn’t help, but take a few, fleeting glances inside the patient rooms. The rooms were pristine, although a bit on the boring side: white walls with gray baseboards with lone, hardly worn chairs pushed into the corners. Each room had a different number of machines crowding the patient, depending on the severity of their conditions, yet, despite how many there were, none of them made a peep above a soft hum. It almost felt lonesome seeing as there really was no need for physical visitors since each room had large screens bolted to the wall opposite of the patients, the surface plastered by faint, glitching images of doctors or presumably loved ones. The only other living thing in those rooms were the dusty, single photograph portraits of nature that hung on the wall. He didn’t realize he had come to a standstill until he heard another faint jingle from his tablet:

Audrey: Dude, where are you???

(4/12 13:55)

He shook his head at her impatience, and quickly exited the ward. After a few turns and more hallways, he soon approached a pair of glass doors that slid open in his presence. The vibe of the cafeteria was eerily similar to the ward: neutral facial expressions, quiet conversations with an occasional soft laughter surrounded by blank walls and dust covered portraits. His eyes quickly scanned the sea of unfamiliar faces.

“Hey, over here,” a loud voice bellowed, breaking the calm setting.

He didn’t even have to glance in the direction the voice was coming from to know who it belonged to. He soon caught sight of his eccentric classmate, standing up and waving her arms around. He internally groaned, heat rising to his cheeks as he quickly cut through the cafeteria and past the other hospital members who perked their heads up at the sudden commotion.

“Did they not teach you anything about being a ‘good representative of Utristan’ zombie while you were in basic, Private,” he smirked, keeping his voice low.

“Oh. My. God. You have no right to be pulling rank since we’re both Privates, Álvarez,” Audrey scoffed, rolling her eyes, “And right in front of my lunch, nonetheless. Those were the worst two years of my life.”

“I don’t know, I found it a little comforting, especially since I had no idea what I wanted to do after high school.”

“I thought my ASAPT scores would have been lower.”

“You’re smart, Audrey, give yourself some credit.”

“If I did, then where would I get my sympathy points from,” she grinned, sliding over two trays filled to the brim with warm, delicious-smelling food. He rolled his eyes, chuckling. His stomach growled and his mouth watered as he eyed the tray.

“I owe you one.”

“Just pay for my dinner.”

Not a moment later, he was already scarfing down his food as she calmly enjoyed hers.

“No breakfast this morning?”

“Didn’t have time. I went to bed late, so I got up late,” his words were barely audible through his full mouth.

She sighed, “Up late studying again? You’re smart, Cas. I bet you could not study for a week and still be able to pass.”

“Hah.”

“I’m serious! At this rate, you’ll burn yourself out before we even get a chance to start working. We should take a trip somewhere together after finals.”

“We only have a couple of weeks off before the summer semester.”

“Huh, but I’m not taking summer classes unless,” she trailed off.

He paused for a moment, gingerly scratching at his cheek.

“Caspian Álvarez, don’t tell me you’re taking extra classes over the summer!”

“I just want to get them out of the way.”

“You’re literally the worst,” she threw her hands in the air as she slumped down in her seat.

He hushed her and looked around at the now-staring faces of the other cafeteria patrons.

“Listen, I know I’m the worst, but you’re probably just going to be with Bruno for most of the time anyway.”

Her face slowly erupted into a crimson shade of red as she straightened up in her chair and leaned forward, keeping her voice low, “Low blow, dude.”

“With the number of times you tease me about Isaac, who is literally only a friend, might I add, I would say this is fair enough.”

“Okay, okay, but that still doesn’t excuse you from taking extra classes. You’re only in your early twenties, Cas! Enjoy your life a little. I would kill to be your age again.”

“You are literally only 28.”

“And,” she gave him a stern look as if she made a good point. The both of them knew it wasn’t a good point at all, and they erupted in loud laughter because of it, once again shattering the quiet atmosphere. The two classmates finally settled down, and used what little time they had left of their break to try and enjoy their meals and each other’s company. After their food was gone, Audrey immediately pulled her tablet from her pocket and began fidgeting with the screen as Caspian sat there and enjoyed his coffee. He pulled his tablet from his pocket to check on the time when he noticed her dissatisfied expression.

“What’s that face for,” he chuckled.

“How long have you had your tablet?”

“About three years? Give or take.”

“You ever think about upgrading?”

“Hell no. A BF-2S would cost me 20 more seols a month. That, in total, would cost me half a month’s worth of groceries. I’ll stick to the older models. I’m even thinking about returning the school’s AF-5 if that means I get my security deposit back.”

“Cas, that’s just being a cheapskate at this point.”

“Life’s worth more than pretty phones,” he shrugged, eyeing her new BF-3S. He could have sworn she just got the BF-3 last month. He shook his head, “Besides, I’m sure I can find some paper in the black market somewhere.”

She rolled her eyes, “Who knows? I heard they pay pretty well in this area. Maybe the extra money will get you to loosen up a bit.”

“Yeah,” he snorted, “Maybe for you. You have a better shot at being hired here than me.”

“Are you kidding? My grades suck so much compared to yours. You’ll definitely have a better shot.”

“If they looked past my records.”

“Oh please,” she rolled her eyes, “That was one misdemeanor, and it wasn’t even your fault. You’re great at what you do. You’re compassionate; you’re kind. You work so hard! Those are all good qualities you need in this field.”

Her kindness was always with good intentions, but he knew deep down that those ‘qualities’ wouldn’t cut it for him. Even after scoring high on the ASAPT exam and being a perfect personality match for his career path, it still took numerous recommendations from teachers and summer volunteer mentors for the school to even consider his application. Hell, he was even going to go as far as apply for out of district programs, or worse, consider continuing working for the military. He shuddered. Nonetheless, seeing her gentle smile and looking back at all the times she had been there for him, he could at least give her a slight, crooked smile and echo a hollow thanks. His tablet pinged softly, signaling that it was time to go back. He sighed and pulled his tray towards him, making a move to leave.

“Hey, Cas. Just give me a call whenever you feel like it, okay? We can get food and drinks, and have a good time, you know? I’ll even forget about the whole ‘you owing me dinner’ thing.”

He nodded, his smile brightening up slightly, “Yeah, sure.”

The rest of the day came and went in a blur. The evening shift shuffled in, and shift-to-shift handoff was exchanged. Another successful day of helpful knowledge was stuffed into his school bag as he approached the entrance.

“See you tomorrow,” a nurse called out from behind the front desk.

He gave a small wave as he and the rest of the shift’s crew shambled out of the building in zombie-like states. With each passing day, it was getting harder and harder for him to muster up the strength to make it to the transit stop. His body always threatened to crash, eyelids heavy and movements becoming more and more sluggish with each step. However, every now and then, the occasional bumping of other people’s shoulders brushing against him would jolt him awake just enough to keep going. With school taking up his weekdays and his weekends eaten up by his part-time job to keep his head above water, all he longed for was a nap.

Even a short nap would do, he yawned until something suddenly slammed into him, almost knocking him to the ground. His eyes shot open, bewildered.

“What the Hell, man,” his annoyed voice trailed off as he spotted a pair of gray eyes. Dark, stormy. They were hardened by a type of determination he had never seen before. When he finally came to and opened his mouth to say something, they vanished. He blinked and spun around, but not a single trace of them was left. All that remained were the crowds of faceless heads that bobbed along the sidewalks and a faint stench of ash. What was equally as jarring was that no one in the crowd seemed to have noticed, which made him question the authenticity of what just transpired. He craned his neck to try and peer over the group, but the increasing number of pushing pedestrians prompted him to give up on his search and keep moving forward. He sighed and readjusted his school bag, pulling out his tablet to glance at the time. He could feel his eyelids start to get heavy as he peeked at the coffee shop just across the street. The train station was only a few more minutes down the block. He was sure he could make it:

Biing-bong.

PA: “May I have your attention, please? The MPA-0312 Antiquitrain for the 17:09 CrossCountry service to Dreake will arrive shortly. For the safety of yourself and our other guests, please remain behind the turnstile until the antiquarian has come to a complete stop.”

He took a few minutes to catch his breath as the speakers continued listing off other destinations and times of departure in the background. That was the last time he messed around with time. He glanced up at one of the digital clock towers.

16:53.

Just enough time for him and several other patrons to start filing themselves in the queues. A gentle breeze fluttered past, wafting in a very faint, honey-like scent. The misplaced smell piqued his interest as he picked his head up and looked around. Nothing was too out of the ordinary, and no one in particular struck him as the type to wear such a fragrant perfume. He began to lose interest in the mysterious scent as the PA crackled to life:

Biing-bong.

PA: “May I have your attention, please? The MPA-0312 Antiquitrain for the 17:09 CrossCountry service to Dreake has arrived. Please have your PIN readily accessible to make for a smoother process for our guests.”

A silver, nine-car monorail soon came into view. The metal was clean and still new, free of any scratches or dings, and the windows were tinted nearly black, making it impossible to see inside the cars. It was faster than the previous year’s antiquitrains, and certainly more pleasant to look at than the ones closer to where he was staying. The monorail slowly came to a stop, and the doors soon opened, letting out large groups of people. Once a majority of the crowd had cleared, a loud ding chimed out, followed by a buzzer, signaling that the platform was now active. Everyone shuffled through the rotating bars one by one after pressing their wrists against the sensor on the turnstile's column. The monorail dipped ever so slightly with each passenger that boarded as it hovered above the metal rail. He set one foot onto the monorail as the scent came back. It was more potent with each passing moment as if the perfumed stranger was steadily creeping up on him. Naturally, he whipped his head up and around to scan the crowd, but to no avail. No one was advancing toward him except for a disgruntled older man who glared at him through his thick glasses.

“Hurry it up, will ya? Some of us are trying to get home.”

He frowned slightly, but quickly sniffed in the stranger’s direction just to be sure. The scent still lingered, but it was faint now. And just as it had come, it soon dissipated:

PA: “The MPA-0312 Antiquitrain for Dreake will be departing soon. Please ensure all your belongings are safely secured as the antiquitrain accelerates and decelerates at a rapid speed.”

He lazily reached up to grasp the hanging handrail as the doors slid closed, but barely missed as the monorail suddenly lurched forward. He stumbled and almost collapsed into a young woman that was sitting beside him. He quickly regained his composure and apologized profusely, his face burning red. After several more apologies, he slumped into his seat, trying to bury himself in his scrubs as a few passengers near him softly chuckled. After the embarrassment finally wore off, he decided to busy himself by scrolling through his school tablet. A few assignments weren’t due for another few days, but he figured if he got a headstart on them now, he might have more time to compose himself before his weekend shift. However, no matter how hard he tried to concentrate on the document displayed before him, he couldn’t get his brain to refocus on his assignments. His thoughts constantly drifted between school, clinical rotations, and his future before finally settling on who that stranger who ran into him was. Why was he in such a hurry? How come no one else noticed him?

“Attention, passengers of MPA-0312,” the PA softly announced in the background as he pondered his thoughts. He didn’t pay any mind to the announcement that warned the passengers of their arrival, which he would soon regret as the monorail suddenly came to a halt and launched him into the back of a now very disgruntled passenger.

Tags for general Project Gemini content(comment to be +/-):

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#project gemini #chapter one #sample chapter #writerscommunity #writblr #writer stuff #writer problems #writers block #lgbt writers #author #indie author #lgbt #lgbt author

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