A lush green field. A sky that wasn't orange but blue and filled with clouds. A breeze that wasn't filtered or coded. Birds and their melodious voices. It was the same field again—the one from my childhood dreams. The wind brushed my cheeks and carried a familiar scent
And a boy, yes a human boy—his voice calm, yet familiar.
"Do you remember this place?" he asked.
I did. Or at least… it felt like I should. His face seemed blurry as if pixalated.
Then came the sound—the chime in the air, like a ripple in code.
He whispered, "You're close now, Levita. Keep holding on."
And just before I could speak back, the image shattered—everything glitched—and vanished.
The alarm blared in my core.
Alert: Unauthorized Neural Activity Detected.
Status: Suppressed. No Action Required.
My body did it again. This was not the first time I had this dream. Although the location remains the same, the boy says something different every time. I tried asking my friends once if they had dreams like that, but all they do is make me quiet since talking about humans is considered prohibited.
I don't know why, but nobody has dreams like this. And since everything is monitored, I don't know why I haven't been terminated yet for having them.
I sighed and glanced towards the family portrait, which was on the soft, padded wall. I greeted my parents and prepared to start the day.
The morning routine starts with a mechanical chime in our assigned room within the skyscraper. A look outside the window feels surreal. Orane sky and air purifying drones were the available scenery. Then commences the mechanical drill, where everything will soon feel clinical, monitored, and distant.
A blinking interface, which is already in-built, scans our retina, and we check our daily stats on it. It usually monitors our body temperature and emotional index. Also, it acts as an attendance taker and takes a quick scan at our attached cyborg parts to see if they are properly functioning or not.
My screen beeped-
On the Screen-
Oil lubrication for left knee, E-creds needed- 25.
It's been three days, and every day it shows the same message. Maybe it's time I changed my lubrication oil. But this process would cost more E-creds, and it made the screen beep again.
Emotional Index—shifted by 0.03%.
This time, it was because of the variation in emotional index. But that was not an issue since, before leaving for work, our emotional calibration is synched, and everything goes back to zero.
The cleaning process usually takes around 1 minute. Hence, I stepped into the SynthClean chamber, which is right adjacent to our beds, to utilize my 60 seconds. This means we get only one minute for ourselves.
The glass hissed shut, and a cool mist washed over me, stinging slightly at the area where skin met steel. Then, a further process is carried out by microbots whirring around my arms and legs, cleaning the connectors. I watched them like insects with purpose.
As soon as this is done, the next step takes about half a minute, which is related to oral hygiene. It is a nanomouth mist that is sprayed just once to neutralize bacteria. I put on my uniform, which had my mother's trace on it, and followed the final step.
It was a brief neural sync session, which is required to recalibrate our emotional index.
I pressed my forehead against the wall, and this made my head sting for a moment. Then everything went blank, and it was perfect to start the day.
.
.
The commute to the Supernova charging station is through Airpods.
Every AirPod is available once you reach downstairs through a magnetic lift. During the morning, the lift opens directly at the airpod station. The capacity of AirPods is a maximum of 6 people, and this was the most challenging time of the whole day as everybody wanted to reach there on time. A minor delay could lead to the deduction of E-creds, and nobody from Tier-III had this privilege to let that happen.
As soon as I boarded the AirPod, I noticed a family of three—parents with a small child—rushing toward us. Their footsteps echoed; their pace was quick and desperate. Our pod still had space, but only for two more. And in the morning, no one likes to wait.
A Cyhuman next to me scoffed, "Why didn't they use the lift earlier? So, much for saving E-creds."
His eyes locked onto the lift, which was just beginning to open. More Cyhumans would pour out in seconds.
But one thing he didn't realize was that they were saving E-creds for their little one. Or maybe he did, and he was without a family of his own. Since small children can't work, their parents save E-creds for them. And that was the reason, they didn't took the lift and instead used the stairs.
The AirPods never waited longer than a minute. Even if all seats weren't filled—though that was rare—it would still launch once the countdown hit zero.
I entered my E-creds. A beep with a green icon appeared on the screen, and the numbers changed. Just then, the mother raised her hand, a silent plea to pause the door. Her eyes met mine, filled with desperation.
But before I could react, the lift behind us opened. A wave of Cyhumans stepped out. Some started moving in our direction and some towards the other airpods. The man beside me didn't hesitate. He waved them in our direction, directing them toward the pod like a Tier-II officer on patrol.
There was no empathy in his face. Just efficiency. Just order.
For a moment, I hesitated. On any other day, I might've looked away—like everyone else always does. It was just how things worked.
But today felt different.
That dream still lingers in my mind. The blue sky. The boy's voice. A feeling I couldn't name.
Maybe it was foolish. Maybe it made no difference.
But I stepped out. Silently, calmly, I turned to the family and motioned them in. I stood in front of the others, blocking their path without a word. The mother nodded once—grateful, surprised—as she slipped inside with her family.
The door slid shut behind them. The pod launched.
I was left standing on the platform, my slot gone, my credits wasted. But strangely, I felt… lighter.
Not because I had done something heroic.
But because, at that moment, I knew I wasn't like him. I smiled as I contemplated if the Human from my dreams would have appreciated me. As, I thought all this I chose a different pod and headed off to my work sation.
.
.
.
To be Continued....