They aren't stars

It was a normal day, a quite ordinary one. Nothing was out of the ordinary. It was a random summer in a random year. The grass was green, and the trees were filled with leaves. There were flowers beyond flowers, and birds chirping everywhere. It was the perfect amount of silence from human behavior and the perfect amount of noise from nature. Everyone inside thought it was the perfect combination and the perfect way to spend their day.

However, on the outside, it was cold, wet, and falling apart. Nobody would ever want to live there, which is why all humans live in the Container. The Container is the inside world where nature sings and the sun is always shining. The Container looks exactly like the old Earth. Every human’s brain was wiped and cleared. No one in the Container remembers the old world. The outside world, which used to be Earth, is where the Scientists live and watch the humans. Ever since the Great Destruction a few years ago, humans have lived in the Container where the Scientists observed their every move, trying to find a way to bring back the humans. They peered through the top of the container every so often to check-in; they made the holes in the top seem like stars to the humans.

The humans in the Container were all assigned numbers, which made it easier for the Scientists to research them and observe their movements. The humans probably had names for the other humans in the Container, but the Scientists didn’t really care to know them. Their names were probably really unique and difficult to pronounce, anyway.

Every morning, the humans woke up. They brushed their teeth. They changed their clothes. They did actions that every normal human would do on the old Earth. The humans had conversations and the Scientists would observe their conversations. They took notes. It was their kind of notes, which weren’t anything like human notes. Scientists didn’t know anything about human notes, which is one of the reasons they are conducting these experiments. They needed these notes to bring back human society.

In the Container, days passed and night fell. The Scientists on the outside perceived the information. Leaves would fall and flowers would bloom. The Scientists examined. Hours passed and minutes flew by. The time wouldn’t stop. “We should go to the park or go to a restaurant. What do you think?” asked Hunter. “We should. It is such a nice day out. Let’s see what kind of food the stands at the parks have,” answered Hazel. “Oh, and maybe we could see if we can rent something like a blanket to lay on and watch the stars,” added Hunter.

Hazel and Hunter laid their blankets down on the ground, making sure there were no wrinkles on the blanket. They set down their food from the stands and laid it out like a feast. They made sure it was the perfect set-up and looked inviting. An hour later, the two finished their meal and dessert. Hazel and Hunter were twins, and they did everything together. The twins looked at each other and up at the stars and started thinking. “Look at how beautiful those stars are,” said Hazel. “I know, look at how round and real they look. They seem so open,” said Hunter. There was a moment of silence.

“...And I like how they go from dark to light and back to the dark,” added Hunter. Hazel replied, “I keep looking at them and the more I do, the more I think that those aren’t stars….”

It was silent. The world was quiet, no sound of anything anywhere. The thoughts of one individual could make the whole world go still. Unexpectedly, there was a hushed whisper from the back alleyway of the park. All it said was “I know, they aren’t.” Hazel and Hunter were both perplexed at this statement. They looked at each other and around the scene. Suddenly, a man dressed in black emerged from the same alleyway the whisper was found in. The twins gave a small scream of timidity. The man muted them and said, “What you see in the sky are not stars, moreover holes in a large container. There are Scientists that are watching our every move.” He continued to explain the entire backstory of the Container, how he accidentally destroyed the old Earth and that the Scientists really only want to learn about him. Both Hazel and Hunter felt relieved of getting their answer but were frightened at the truths of the man’s words. The man then talked about how he could take them to his secret ‘underground fortress’ where they would be safe from the Scientists. Hazel was unsure, but Hunter quickly accepted the offer. Hazel sighed as she gave in to Hunter’s wishes. The man gave a slight grin, and off they went to this ‘underground fortress.’

They walked for a while, and their legs were tired. They were walking for what seemed like days, while it was really only an hour. Eventually, they stopped in the middle of a forest. The man then said, “We’re here!”

Hazel and Hunter looked around the site and thought about how this random forest could be a secret ‘underground fortress.’ The man then started to speak random words, such as “microwave,” and “rubber duck.” Once again, the twins were really confused. Suddenly, they all fell to the ground and sank in. The man seemed casual as if he had done this many times before. Finally, after falling for a while, they made it to a dark room made of metal and other materials of that sort. The man clapped twice and the bright lights lit up. The room was pervaded with illumination. The man showed them around, but still being sure to not go into detail about every little thing.

A few hours after being in the fortress, the twins decided to take a quick nap because they were tired from a long day. When they woke up, they realized that they were strapped to chairs back-to-back. They tried shaking their hands out as any normal human would. Shaking their hands didn’t work. They started to scream for the man to come back, even though they weren’t exactly suspicious of him at that moment. The man emerged from the once illuminated room and stood there. He didn’t move, and he barely even blinked. He just existed in the room and stared at the twins as they stared back at him. The man then said in a creepy tone, “Do you know why you are here?” The twins shook their heads no. The man repeated his previous question, this time in a more demanding and deeper tone. Hazel and Hunter were still so confused.

The man then disappeared into the darkness, only for a different-looking person to come out. The twins asked, “Where did the other guy go?” That man sighed and in an annoyed tone said, “I am the other man.” He shook his head in annoyment and the room went silent for a moment. The twins were still staring at the man and as he stepped more into the light, they realized he was one of the Scientists. The lights flickered and the last image from the light was the secret Scientist’s evil grin. The room penetrated with darkness and nothing could be seen. The twins let out one final loud ear-piercing scream and that was the end of it.