Faitra

Upbeat electronic music leaked from the blue light up headphones the teal haired, 15 year old girl wore as she read her book. Her room was full of teal and pink shining electronics, from the mouse to the printer, gifts from her rich father. Her name was Uki Staili, daughter of one of the most successful men on earth, Ataru Staili. He had created the digital internet, Faitra, which combined the fun of games and a playable character with the usefulness of the internet, built from scratch. Physics had been redefined in the world of computers, as there was no glitch in it like a video game, avatars reacted to walls at an almost physical level, for all respects, the world was real. The whole world was captivated by this fantastic success of technology, all except for one, Uki Staili herself. Uki hardly had a father; Mr. Staili spent all his time in his world of Faitra and thought giving Uki gifts was enough, most of the time forgetting her. It was for this reason that Uki kept using the old electronics like smart phones.

Uki closed her book and slid off her bed into the slippers on the ground. She gazed out her window at the bustling city below. Afternoon sunlight lit the windows of the tall buildings reflecting in Uki’s teal eyes. But Uki was not looking at these tall buildings; it didn’t fascinate her at all. Instead, she was watching a tiny store that was barely surviving in a small alley near her building. An old woman lived there alone with nowhere to go, selling little jewelry pieces she had made out of little pieces of debris all over the city and the beach nearby. Uki helped her survive the best she could, giving her as much of her allowance as she could, for which the woman was very thankful. But Uki feared for her. She had no phone to call for help if she was in trouble, and oftentimes she was bullied for being old and not being connected to the rest of the world through Faitra. Uki hated it.

Uki walked out of her room into the large living room that was decorated with expensive furniture and Faitra art. She pushed the elevator button which opened immediately, and walked in. The way down took three minutes, but Uki hardly noticed as she kept herself absorbed in her music. When the elevator doors finally opened, she stepped out and left the lobby through the glass doors into the bright, warm sun. Uki walked over to Maiya, the old woman, and putting her headphones around her neck, greeted her.

“Good morning, Uki!” Maiya said with a big smile.

“It’s afternoon, Miss Maiya!” Uki said with a laugh.

“Ha ha, always the smart one you are. What brings you out here today?”

“The same thing that does every day! A good friend, and a completed book!”

“Well remember, there is a real world out here, besides books and me!”

“If only my father would think that way too.” She said sullenly.

Maiya sighed, looked up at the Staili building and then back at Uki, “Well, your father is… he enjoys his work.”

“And forgets his daughter. Have a good day Maiya.” Uki walked away, dropping the conversation there.

Uki walked down the street to the beach which was drowning in the sunlight. She avoided people as much as she could, using the dark alley ways to hide away. People often stared at her, and some tried to talk to her, never minding the obvious sign of the headphones that shouted ‘I don’t want to talk’; this was because she was quite famous having a famous father. Also, not many people ever had natural teal hair like she did. Uki laid down in a naturally secluded part of the beach and rested in the sun, eventually falling asleep.

Uki suddenly woke up in the dark. She felt very weird and tried to move, but found her body wouldn’t listen to her. She could hardly see anything, but could make out that she was in a small room. She started to be able to hear something, which as it grew louder, she realized was the sound of a car. As her senses all grew stronger, she knew that she was in trouble. She was in a moving van, and she was strapped to a metal table. Fear started to settle in and she began to struggle and scream. Her voice however still didn’t work, and like a terrible nightmare, Uki couldn’t make a sound. She tried to scream so hard that she passed out.

When Uki opened her eyes again, she was blinded by a bright light. As her eyes got used to the light, she saw a large room littered with hundreds of wires of all different colors plugged into all kinds of computers and electronics. They all lead to one central area, her bed. She became aware that there was another person in the room. She couldn’t see their face, but she could tell it was a man. She tried to scream at him, but still, she couldn’t speak. The man lifted his hand up and she saw that he held a remote. He pressed a button on the remote, and immediately, Uki felt a terrible shock feeling in her throat that made her gag. Her voice started working again.

“Please, why are you doing this?” She cried, tears starting to form in her eyes.

“That will all come in time.”

“It hurts!” She whimpered. She started to be able to sense the wires that were attached to her body. There were many at the back of her neck and at her temples, while some went into her hair to attach to her head. They sent tiny volts into her body, which Uki felt.

“We are not trying to harm you, and it is our hope that the pain will become unnoticeable over time. Please forgive us, but you are of vital importance to our work, the very center of it.”

“What could you possibly want me for?” She screamed.

“Uki Staili, it is your mind we need. When we are finished, we will let you go, unharmed.”

But Uki went wild and thrashed about screaming for help at the top of her lungs. The man simply pressed a button on his remote and she suddenly went limp and unconscious as all the wires shocked her.