Read Radioactive for Free Online

no place in the Legion.
    Uncertainly I step out of the elevator and hear the last short snatches of a conversation.
    “You wanted it; you also take care of it.”
    Curious, I look up to see the commander who was speaking leave. Next to the elevator I see A350. Was he talking to her? Was she waiting for me? Her strange and peculiar smile is on her face.
    “Welcome to your new home.”
    I cannot help but return her smile.
    Undeterred, she continues. “I suppose this is not as new to you as it should be. You rode in the glass elevator already, right?
    I nod gently and wonder how she knows so much about my time with the outcasts.
    “Come on, I’ll show you your new room.”
    With energetic steps, she runs off, there’s nothing for me to do but follow her. “What will happen now? What are my responsibilities?”
    With raised eyebrows she turns to me. “Well,” she replies, almost amused. “First of all, you need to be introduced to the secrets of the Legion.”
    “What secrets?” I’m curious, I want to know immediately. Is she talking about the invisible wall the rebels and I saw? Will they trust me with this kind of information? Would I be able to turn the wall off if I wanted to?”
    “One thing at a time,” A350 says coolly. We stop in front of a door.
    “Try it out,” she says to me, pointing to the door sensor. I eagerly put my finger on the cool surface. A red light illuminates under my thumb. Shortly it turns green and a computer voice announces, “Access granted.”
    The door slides open. The site before me leaves me speechless. While the wall and door are made of steel, the opposite wall is made entirely of glass. I look straight into the setting sun, it seems as though the mountain is ablaze.
    I turn to look at A350. Her eyes are closed and she points her head toward the sun, as if she can feel the warming rays on her skin.
    “Were you ever outside the Legion?” I suddenly ask.
    “No,” she replies without opening her eyes. She looks totally relaxed.
    “Do you long to feel the warmth of the sun on your skin?”
    She opens her eyes. “Of course I do. But the price is too high.”
    “What price? The outcasts practically live in the sun. Do you not envy them?” I want to know what she knows. Why are we hiding in here when freedom is just a few feet away, just beyond these walls?
    “The outcasts are a failed experiment. There was an error.”
    “What kind of experiment?”
    A350 shakes her head with a hint of a frown. “We’ll talk more tomorrow.”
    To me, it feels like she’s making an excuse. Will she really tell me the truth tomorrow or will she pretend we never talked about this.
    “Shower and get dressed. I will pick you up to eat in a half hour.”
    Before I could say anything else, she leaves. Obviously the food allocation department here feeds the Legion commanders differently than in the rest of the safety zone.
    I realize how different when I enter a large conference room with A350 later. In the center is a large round table. All of the Legion commanders are gathered around it. In front of them are plates and glasses and cutlery. They will certainly not be swallowing pills. A350 sits next to me on my right and on my left is another woman from the third generation. This room, like most I have seen here, has a large glazed window with a steel wall. There is the door I walked through to enter this room, but there is another door in the back. Soon it opens. Two brown-suited women walk in and start serving the Legion commanders steaming food on silver plates. No pills or tablets can be seen.
    They place a plate in front of me. It is some kind of roast chicken with potatoes and carrots. Unlike the kind the rebels had, this food gives off no smell. With the rebels, their food would cause my mouth to water. But this food does not evoke that reaction in me.
    After the food is distributed, the two D-Class women give each of us a red liquid in our glass. They quickly leave back through the