When I woke up, my hands were tied up, something was covering my mouth, and I was in unfamiliar surroundings. My clothes were drenched in sweat and there was the faint scent of fish. “Where am I?,” was the first thought that popped in my head. The walls around me were plain and boring, and I was enveloped in silence. You may be thinking of how I got in this mess. It all began two days ago, when I arrived at this wretched place.

The year 2150. What makes it so special you may ask. It’s the year when the world began to quite literally fall apart. Many changes took place, such as global warming, World War III, the extinction of various species, improvements with AI, and the cure for cancer. Although many aspects of society have changed, some things just stay the same. The desire for power was something that has been a trend throughout history. As people began to gain popularity, greed followed. Nate Hitler, Melody Swift, and John Gates were the three main people who formed the government-like organization: The United Lands of Earth. The ego clashes of these three people led the world to be split into three, and the concept of countries ceased to exist. Nate Hitler was ruler of the sea, Melody Swift was the ruler of the skies, and John Gates was ruler of space. Newly innovative technologies enabled people to adapt to various environments and settle virtually anywhere except for the destroyed land. As you can see the world became a puzzle that increased its number of pieces exponentially. You may be wondering where I fit into this complicated picture. I was a representative of the Environmental Health Promoter (EHP). 

The EHP has the goal of making the land on Earth rehabitable for both wildlife and humans. Throughout my childhood, I was always fascinated by nature and its mysteries. Hence, I decided to pursue a career relating to protecting the environment. EHP gained popularity around 2136, as it began its research and experiments to bring back extinct species. It also began many projects that attempted to replicate the same conditions that Earth was formed from, in order to undo the damage. When I graduated from college in 2148, my dream job was being a lab researcher for the EHP. The day that I got my acceptance hologram, I was overjoyed! It was a very prestigious program that was extremely difficult to get accepted into. Little did I know that there was more than what meets the eye about EHP.

Fast forward to two years after I was accepted into EHP, I am now a senior lab researcher. As a lab researcher I work with a team of scientists to find ways to solve tasks that are assigned to me. My past projects were related to regenerating severely destroyed land and finding ways to reboot the populations of severely endangered species. I take pride in my work as it is something that I am very passionate about. My major achievement was creating the metal heat synthesizer, which connects a device on earth to an implant located in the Earth’s core in order to increase its temperature. This would heat the mantle, which would replicate the process of land formation billions of years ago. After WWIII, many thought that all hope was lost and that we would never be able to live on Earth like we used to. However, due to my invention, we are able to slowly but surely regenerate deformed and damaged land on Earth. As news of this invention spread, I began to gain popularity. I was featured in the holo spheres in the territories of all three leaders. Eventually, word spread to the three leaders themselves. They had heard about my groundbreaking invention and wanted to talk to me about it. I was naive, so I didn’t think too much about their request and accepted. I was to take an AirTram to the headquarters of The United Lands of Earth on April 6th. Upon hearing this news, EHP approached me with a proposition the following day.

April 7th. Nothing was particularly special about that day. If anything, my day was going worse than it usually does. For starters, I was late for work, spilt coffee all over myself, and I got yelled at by my boss. My mood was definitely far from pleased. I had just headed over to the lab area when I heard my name called by the speaker. This caught me off guard. Why would the hot-headed executives want to talk to an ordinary worker like me? Surely I hadn’t done anything wrong….right? Right as I exited the lab, two giant security guards forcefully pushed me towards the top floor, where the big shots were located. 

When I entered the room, I was greeted by a frail old man who was supposedly the CEO of EHP. Upon first glance, you could tell that this was someone extremely influential and important in society, as the room contained expensive decor, ancient artifacts, and gave off an extravagant vibe. He greeted me with a quick nod and gestured for me to take a seat in front of him. As I was taking in my surroundings, he asked me 

“Do you know why you are here Miss Lynne?”

“Umm… because of my metal heat synthesizer?”,  I answered.

“Well, aren't you a smart one? I’ll get straight to the point. We want you to act as a spy for EHP during your time at The United Lands of Earth,” said the CEO.

“Well I’m flattered, but I wouldn’t want to mess anything up. I think I will kindly decline, have a nice day!”, I said as I quickly made my way to the door. 

The man stopped me and said, “Forgive me, I don’t believe I introduced myself. My name is Jack Limes. Name your price.”

“I..I’m sorry. What do you mean?”, I asked. 

“If you become a spy for us, I will give you anything that you desire. So, name your price,” said the CEO.

“I’m sorry, but I really do not wish to get involved in affairs above me. Nice to meet you, but I need to continue with my work,” I said.

As I exited the room, the CEO said, “Well, do carry on. I suppose that work is rather important. Keep an eye out, because I will get in touch with you momentarily.”

After that encounter, I continued on with my work as I had. I didn’t think much about my encounter with the CEO, thinking that he would just leave me alone. Boy was I wrong. Around a week after my meeting with the CEO, I had the feeling that I was being watched. It often felt like someone was right behind my shoulder. Whenever I would turn around to check my doubts, the coast would be clear. This continued on for two weeks, until one day, I came face to face with the person who was following me. 

I was about to enter my house when suddenly, I inhaled something and felt dizzy. Before I knew it, I fell unconscious. When I woke up, I came face to face with the CEO. He said, 

“We meet once again. Are you awake yet?”

“Wait where am I?” I asked.

“Oh that doesn’t matter. So have you thought about what I proposed?” asked the CEO.

“My answer still remains the same, I do not wish to be involved in these matters sir,” I answered.

“Well, I was hoping that things would not get to this point, however, desperate times take desperate measures,” said the CEO. 

All of a sudden, the lights turned on and…and…. wait I can’t remember. I guess the people who trapped me in this place also did something to me, because I seem to have a few memory lapses. What I do remember is that the CEO blackmailed me into becoming a spy by threatening my family. After reluctantly agreeing to be a spy, I found out that I was a part of something bigger: Project Luna. Project Luna was a mission to overthrow the three leaders of The United Lands of Earth and enable people to return to living on the land of the Earth, as our ancestors did. Time flies and two months ago, it was finally time for me to visit the headquarters of The United Lands of Earth. As a part of our agreement, I was to bring two executives who were undercover as guards. Their names were Dante and Callum. 

My first impression of the headquarters was that it resembled an ancient pyramid. The three lands ruled by the leaders were represented by emblems that could be seen throughout the decor in the building. However, something just wasn’t quite right. Though the building was supposed to represent an era of peace, the eerie glow of the building combined with utter silence gave off an unsettling vibe. My “guards,” seemed to feel the same way as they acted more cautious and were more attentive to details. The invitation I had received months ago stated that we were to meet with the leaders in person, but they were nowhere to be seen. After endlessly walking around the building, we were about to give up and leave the building when we realized that we were lost. We walked towards the nearest exit, but it only led us in circles. We had walked into a trap. 

Just as we began to accept our predicament, we could hear voices giggling and cackling from somewhere above. Those three people were Nate Hitler, Melody Swift, and John Gates. As someone who was quick to get to the point, John Gates began to explain how they had baited me into coming in hopes of withholding information regarding my metal heat synthesizer in order to maintain their role as powers of the world. Upon hearing about my innovation, they seeked to either destroy the technology or capture me so that they could contain the threat (me) before it got too out of control. Feeling defeated, I rolled myself into a ball and just sat in the corner. As soon as the voices disappeared, the floor beneath us suddenly opened up and separated the three of us. The last thing I remember was falling through a tunnel of darkness. After that, I woke up and tried to recount what had happened following my capture. 

Since I could smell the faint scent of fish, I concluded that I was in the territory of Nate Hitler. I started looking for ways to get out of here. I noticed that there was an air vent right above me. Maybe there was hope after all. But first…Yawn…it couldn’t hurt to take a nap… right?

I woke up to the smell of bacon, waffles, and sweet maple syrup.
“Sarah, wake up! If you don’t get a move on right now you will be late to your presentation,” said Mom. 

“Coming mom! By the way, what is today’s date?” I asked. 

My mom answered “May 6th, 2024, why do you ask?”

“Oh no reason. I just had a weird dream last night, so I was just making sure that I’m awake,” I answered.

“Oh okay. That would explain the weird noises I heard coming from your room late at night. I think you were watching a movie in order to gain inspiration for your presentation,” said mom.

“Wait, I remember that now. I probably just had a nightmare because of the movie. Well, I should probably get ready!” I said.

I walked back to my room and began getting ready for the day when I noticed a note sitting on my desk. The note was written in unfamiliar handwriting and gave me ominous vibes. The note read as follows…

Dear Miss Lynne, 

I hope you are well. I do hope you remember your adventures while at The United Lands of Earth. Anyways, I will return for you and you will help us develop new innovations and go back to being a spy for us. Look forward to seeing you soon!

Yours Truly, 

Jack Limes.

(P.S: In case you were wondering, I was able to contact you through new dream travel technology. I will answer your questions when we next meet. Toodaloo!!)

My mind was in spirals. Just what had I gotten myself into?