The Awakening of Abuali

Cyberpunk Oasis Part 3

Abuali was awkwardly dressed in neon techno-hippie clothes, looking like an old Berliner in a midlife crisis. The young teenage girl joined him on the other side of the hangar, and they both looked out of the X-taped windows into the dusty desert outside.

"Man, you look slick! HAHA!" the girl teased.

"Come on, can someone please tell me where I am?" Abuali asked for the millionth time.

"Okay, okay, but first let's go see Dala, Mister in a hurry. Follow me," said the teenage girl, leading the way.

They left the hangar nursery through a small hidden side door. The rusty sound of the steel door announced the dry and arid weather outside. "Cover your face, dude!" cried the girl. A blast of sandy wind almost pushed them both over. There wasn't more than a meter of visibility, and Abuali's eyes were burning even though he covered them with both hands. The teenage girl was prepared with her green sky glasses and pulled him by the forearm. Both of them dragged their feet through the sand. Shortly after, they heard the sound of a clanking, broken roof sheet. When the sound seemed to be above them, the little girl pulled another door, exactly the same as the one they first left through. In the building, Abuali could see again. It was the same structure as before, but this one was fitted out with alleys of last-generation desks, multiple computer screens, and machine control pads. At least a hundred workers could fit here, but there was no one left. It seemed like they all left in a rush and never came back. The tables were slightly dusty, and with the weather out here, it couldn't have been more than a week since they were last here.

Abuali curiously looked around and accidentally touched an alert button on a machine control pad. The teenage girl shot at him. "Stop acting like a caveman, dude! I thought you knew about computers. You won the prize of best student back in Conakry, right?"

Short silence from Abuali...

"Correct, but how the hell do you know that? I don't even know you. I don't even know your name," replied Abuali.

"Oh, sorry, old man. I'm Akiji. I told you that before. I suppose you forgot what happened last night," said the girl.

"I fell from the wall, the cops came, and then I woke up in this wacky, sketchy hangar. That's all I recall," said Abuali, realizing that he really didn't know what happened at all.

"Okay, let me start over from the beginning. First of all, that show in the medina is a fugazi. It's fake, it's a show. Even that old lady that told you something you didn't understand was in on it too. We do this for every recruitment. It's the only way. The stupid AI cops are better than us in almost everything, but they just can't seem to pick up on obvious hints like old school cops. What we do is fake your death in public, right in front of legit cop eyes, so they close your case forever, and you can finally live free among us, the desert ghosts. We couldn't let you in on the plan before because the AI scans your last living emotions to make sure nothing fishy was happening in your brain. They can't recall vivid memories, but they can recall your feelings. You, my friend, in their eyes, were just a desperate illegal immigrant crazed by confusion who climbed a random wall, probably lost, and fell like a sad little chick that can't fly. After that, of course, the authorities take your body to the fast-track autopsy, and in less than two hours, they send you to the dump outside. Yup, the dump.

“There isn't a cemetery," asked timidly Abuali.

"They say there is, but look all around us, it's just pure sand and desert. It's so hostile out here, no one can come and check. This is when I come into play. I scavenge around the dump, or if you want, the cemetery, for fresh bodies, searching for corpses that may make it through the survival test. Yours was one of them. Actually, I have never seen someone with as much revival success rate as you. I'm not going to explain to you the whole process of revival and stuff. I hardly understand it myself, but maybe the scientist brothers that worked here could."

“Hold on, so you mean it wasn’t even sure I would survive!? And the other people in the beds next to me, what will happen..?" Akiji began before he could even finish talking.

“Where is everyone anyway? I have never seen this place so empty," Akiji asked.

In that moment, the sound of a small electric motor seemed to approach.

“DALAA!" screamed Akiji.

“Hey you, what's up kiddo?" said Dalal, doing a secret handshake with Akiji.

“Is this the new guy you were talking about?" she asked.

“Yeah, it's him. Present yourself, dude!" hitting Abuali with her elbow.

"No need," said Dala. "I already read all your file. You seem like an interesting prospect. I think you are going to do just right with us, but before, you might need some explanations and training."

“Then my work is done here. I'll see you guys in a couple of weeks. Have fun, see ya later, aligataa," said Dala.

“Take care. There is something awkward happening out there," said Dala.

"Don't worry, I'll be fine. I am always fine. You worry too much."

Akiji stormed out the rusty door, and a breeze of dry sand hit Abuali's face.

"Now you," said Dalal. "We have a lot to catch up. I work upstairs, even though my legs don't work no more. May you push me to the elevator, please?"

Surprised by her condition, Abuali respectfully did as told.

“Now tell me, what was your plan actually when you left your home…."