The day had been truly exhausting. I collapsed onto the soft mattress, sinking into the embrace of the pillow and blanket, feeling every muscle in my body ache. I couldn’t remember the last time I was this tired. Closing my eyes, I imagined my home, where it was quiet and peaceful... until one night, I was suddenly awakened by the arrival of an unexpected guest. And then it hit me — I remembered that moment.
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"Emma, sweetheart, wake up."
Through the fog of sleep, I heard my mom's voice, gentle yet slightly anxious. I felt her soft, soothing touch as she stroked my head. When I was little, she often woke me up this way for preschool or elementary school. I lazily stretched and rubbed my eyes. It was only late spring, but the heat was unbearable. Outside, it was dark and silent.
“What time is it?” I asked, yawning.
“I think it’s almost three in the morning.”
I slowly swung my legs off the bed and sat on the edge, still trying to understand why I was being woken up.
Mom wouldn’t wake me up without a reason, flashed through my mind, and the sleepiness vanished in an instant.
“Did something happen?”
“Yes, unfortunately,” she replied with a heavy tone. “We all have to leave for a while. Your father and I will explain what we can on the way. Get dressed, grab a few things, and come downstairs. We’re already expected.”
Wait, is this some kind of joke? Am I still dreaming?
I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. It shocked me to my core. What was happening now was not normal. This should never have happened.
“Mom, w-wait. Are we leaving right now?” I asked, my voice trembling.
“Yes, right now.”
She was trying to stay calm, as parents should, so as not to scare their child, even if the whole world was falling apart. Still, I could see the fear in her eyes. Eyes are the windows to the soul. You can’t hide the truth in them; they’ll give you away. Honestly, I had never seen that look in her eyes before, and that’s when I knew this was serious.
“O-okay,” I said.
“I’m going to gather our things too. See you downstairs,” she said sadly as she left my room.
I got up from the bed, my head still heavy from being suddenly awakened in the middle of the night, and staggered to the closet to throw on the first T-shirt and shorts I could grab. Then I snatched a few more items and tossed them into my backpack. I paused for a moment, standing in the middle of the room.
What the hell happened? Why so suddenly? These questions gnawed at me.
I looked around. My eyes scanned the various objects and things scattered around the room. On the desk was a stack of textbooks and my digital notebook, where just yesterday, I had jotted down notes while studying for a school exam. Socks I was too lazy to pick up before bed lay on the floor near the bed. On one of the wall shelves stood figurines from different games and anime shows.
We're not leaving for good, right?
With heavy thoughts weighing on me, I hastily tied my hair into a bun, slung my backpack over my left shoulder, and left the room. I hurried down the stairs and found an unfamiliar middle-aged man in a black suit in our living room, talking to my father. They were sitting on the couch, speaking in low voices and sipping coffee. My dad’s expression was thoughtful and tense, while our guest seemed more relaxed and calm. When he noticed me, the stranger perked up.
“You must be Emma? I’m James Anderson, a colleague of your parents. I’m in charge of your family’s safety. Sorry to visit at such a late hour,” he said apologetically.
A security officer? Things must be really bad for us, I thought.
“Yes, time flies so fast. It feels like just yesterday you and Margaret got married, and now your daughter’s all grown up. A real beauty, just like her mother!” he continued.
“You're right. And your son’s about to finish university,” my father replied.
“Exactly,” our guest responded with a smile.
Oh, these grown-up conversations — how many kids, grandkids, and all that. It’s so awkward, especially when they talk about you like you’re some exhibit at a museum, I thought, feeling uncomfortable.
Their casual conversation was interrupted when my mom came down with a duffel bag in her hands.
“I’ve packed our things,” she said. “Emma, I see you’re ready too.”
“Excellent,” James Anderson said cheerfully as he stood up from the couch. “Let’s get going then.”
We left the house and got into a black vintage car with no license plates and tinted windows. The interior was simple, but the seats were comfortable. The dashboard looked outdated.
Is there really no AI assistant in here? Is this guy driving manually? I wondered.
Our bodyguard and driver in one person politely asked us to fasten our seatbelts, then started the engine and began to drive.
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I hope this is safe, I thought nervously. I’ve never seen a car driven manually before.
Outside, the familiar empty streets passed by. Nothing suggested that this night was any different from the countless others, yet our family was heading into the unknown.
We drove in silence for a while. I kept glancing at my parents, hoping for some explanation, but it seemed that neither of them was ready to start talking. Eventually, I couldn’t take it anymore.
“Mom... where are we going?” I asked cautiously, almost in a whisper.
It seemed my question snapped my mom out of her own deep thoughts, as her distant gaze, fixed on nothing, became a bit more focused.
“Sweetheart... we’re going to a safe place.”
That answer didn’t make me feel any calmer or clearer. If anything, the anxiety only grew.
“How far do we have to go?”
I didn’t even try to ask where exactly this safe place was, even though I desperately wanted to know its approximate location. It was obviously classified.
“The whole trip will take about eight hours,” Mr. Anderson suddenly replied.
Wait, how long?! I assumed that the secret safe place wouldn't be close, but I didn’t think that it would be so far!
“In about two and a half hours, we’ll arrive at the airfield, and then you’ll fly the rest of the way by plane,” Mr. Anderson continued. “Yes, it’s a long drive, so feel free to take a nap if you’d like,” he said, looking at me through the rearview mirror. “There are sleep masks in the door pocket if you need them.”
Thank you, but honestly, how can anyone sleep in a situation like this?!
At some point, the dark silhouettes of houses outside the window gave way to branches of trees. Small stones began to crunch under the wheels occasionally, and the car shook slightly as we drove. We had left the city and turned onto some kind of country road, continuing to move through unfamiliar terrain.
After a brief pause, I tried again to get at least a bit of information.
“Is someone hunting our family?” I asked cautiously.
It might have been foolish to ask such a direct question, but at that moment, I couldn’t think of anything better. The uncertainty was pressing down on me, filling me with a fear that, as I saw it, was worse than any bitter truth could be.
“Emma, the thing is...”
“There are things we can’t tell you due to strict confidentiality,” my father interrupted my mom before she could start explaining. “You need to understand that.”
“Henry!” she protested, annoyed. “You could’ve been a bit gentler about it!”
“I don’t see what you’re complaining about. Emma’s old enough not to need coddling.”
“You’re always like this!”
“Mom, Dad, please...” I intervened, unable to bear watching them start to argue. Fortunately, my words worked, and my parents calmed down.
“I’m sorry, sweetheart,” my mom said with regret in her voice. “The truth is, your dad and I are also on edge because of the whole situation.”
“And I don’t get why you’re all ganging up on me,” my father replied, sounding offended. “I wasn’t even finished. Yes, we can’t tell you everything, but in general terms, one of our experiments turned into a catastrophe that threatens humanity. And the primary targets will be us — the people capable of stopping it. That’s why our department’s employees and their families are being taken to a safe place, from where we’ll try to fix the situation.”
“So, there’s been an AI uprising?” I asked, puzzled. There were many movies and books on this topic, but I never expected it to actually happen in reality.
“I didn’t say that,” my father hinted heavily, essentially confirming my suspicions.
I didn’t ask anything else until we reached the airfield, just stared blankly out the window.
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When we arrived, we were met by other people in military attire, and James Anderson bid us farewell and wished us good luck.
“We’re all counting on you,” he added to my parents as he left.
“You take care too, James,” my father replied.
Mr. Anderson nodded approvingly, got into his car, and drove off in the opposite direction, disappearing into the darkness.
Our family was escorted to a small private plane, the likes of which I had never seen in person before. To be honest, I’d only flown on regular planes a couple of times in my life, so the sleek, stylish cabin with large, comfortable leather seats made quite an impression on me. There were only ten passenger seats inside, and besides us, there were two other families on board. I immediately recognized one of the men — he appeared in many of the joint photos from my parents’ research lab that they had shown me.
“Oh, the Graysons have arrived!” he said cheerfully, standing up from his seat and extending his hand to my father in greeting.
“And you’re already here. I’m glad you’re safe.”
“We got here just ten minutes ago ourselves. And is this your daughter? She’s all grown up!”
Here we go again…
As soon as the conversation shifted to me, I started tuning it out until my father addressed me:
“Emma, you can sit next to Albert, the son of my colleague and good friend.”
He pointed to an empty seat next to a black-haired boy who looked about 12 years old. It was clear he was struggling to stay awake, periodically closing his eyes and letting his head droop, only to suddenly straighten up. But as soon as I approached, he perked up slightly.
“Hi,” he said quietly, his voice shy.
“Hello,” I greeted him back as I settled into the soft chair. The incredibly comfortable seat was probably the only good thing at that moment.
Albert silently glanced at me for a couple of seconds before turning away. I figured he wasn’t particularly eager to talk to me, and I understood. After all, we weren’t going on an excursion. We had been pulled out in the middle of the night and were being taken to an unknown destination. He was probably having just as hard a time coming to terms with the whole situation as I was.
I leaned back in my chair and closed eyes, waiting for takeoff. I could hear the adults trying to talk about distant topics or just staying silent. During the quiet moments, the tension felt especially strong.
Finally, a chime sounded, and the pilot asked us over the PA system to fasten our seatbelts and prepare for takeoff. The engine roared, and the plane began to taxi toward the runway. After a brief pause, it suddenly surged forward. When we lifted off the ground, I gripped the armrests of my seat tightly. As we climbed, the plane swayed from side to side, which didn’t add to the comfort, but eventually, we leveled out, and I exhaled with relief.
Opening my eyes, I saw the frightened expression on Albert’s face as he, like me, pressed himself into his seat. It seemed that his sleepiness had been completely shaken off. He was clearly just as rattled as I was. The adults mostly appeared calm, or at least they didn’t show any signs of fear. I decided to offer Albert some support, and at the same time, reassure myself by starting a casual conversation:
“That was a bit of a rough ride, huh?”
“Yeah…” he replied shortly, then added, “This is my first time flying. I’ve never been on a plane before.”
Wow. I can imagine the first impression you must’ve gotten. I probably wouldn’t want to fly again after something like that.
“My name is Emma. Emma Grayson.”
“Albert Cresswell,” he introduced himself, seeming to compose himself a bit.
“Nice to meet you,” I said with a smile.
We chatted about various random topics and even laughed a little about not having to go to school anymore. I thought that we might get along. At least I’d have someone to talk to.