Anomaly (execute awake.exe) White. adjective: \hwt, wt\: free from color, blank. I awoke to white.

Awoke: past and past participle of awake (referral in progress) Awake. verb \-wk\: to cease sleeping; to become conscious or aware of something. Was I asleep? When did I fall asleep? (no entry found) My world is white. The rooms straight walls show very little shadow due to their bright white color. The lights above glow with whiteness too painful to see. There are four, all strongly shining towards the floor. I want to touch them, feel their warmth. I am too short to even come close to the high ceiling. Door. noun d r\ a usually swinging or sliding barrier by which an entry is closed and opened; a means of access or participation. The door is a break in the perfect white, a rectangle of white outlined in shadow from the tiny cracks around it. The door has no handle on this side. The white has taken it, just like everything else. It is beautiful, but it makes me uncomfortable. I am not a part of the white. Bed. Noun: \bed\ a piece of furniture on or in which to lie or sleep; a flat or level surface.

If I was asleep, does that mean this is a bed? It is hard, my back hurts from lying on it. I should get up now that I am awake. Beds are for sleeping. Cool. Adjective: \kl\: moderately cold; lacking in warmth. The floor is cool under my feet as I walk. The door, pure white, greets my fingers with cool firmness. Steel. Noun: \stl\: a strong, hard metal made of iron and carbon This door is hard. There is a window with steel in it. It sits right in the middle of the door, the metal crisscrossing the glass. I could hit it if I wanted. It wouldnt break even if I tried. Outside there are people. Men and women in white. The white has them too. How long will it be before I am taken? Clothing. noun: \kl-thi\: garments in general; also; covering (referral in progress) Covering. noun: \kv-ri, k-v-\: an object or substance that goes over or on top of something especially in order to hide or protect it; something that covers or conceals. These people are hiding under the white of their clothing. It hides who they are. I am not hiding. The whiteness does not protect me; I am alone in my body of uncovered flesh. (execute initialization.exe) Caleb. My name is Caleb.

Name. noun: \nm\: a word or phrase that constitutes the distinctive designation of a person or thing. What is a Caleb? (entry not found) I am not found What is a Caleb?? (entry not found) I feel a pit in my middle, my chest, aching with a knot of fear and dread and despair. I do not know what I am. Stomach. noun: Pit. noun: (error. #BATCHid346 runtime error. Process function 552.conciousness.exe error. Deletion in progress.) I am curled on the floor. My breathing comes in short, quick breaths escaping from me in bursts. I am having a panic attack. Panic attack. noun: The door bursts open and the people in white surround me. I am lifted to the bed. They call it a table, but I was asleep, so it is a bed? Table. noun:

I am stretched from my position and a man with a needle approaches me. Needle. noun: He speaks to the other people in white. What the heck?? He wasnt supposed to wake up for another week and we find him bugging out on the floor? Dang things take more attention than theyre worth. (ERROR. CRITICAL DII INITIALIZATION FAILURE. SHUTDOWN IMMINENT.) He jams a needle into the side of my neck, just below my chin. Red drips down. Blood. noun: That oughta knock him back out. Send in the tech- White is fading Dark overtakes the white Black. noun: Nothingness.

(reinitializingcomplete. Execute consciousness.exe) My name is Caleb. (no entry found)

I do not have an entry. I must mean something I am lying on the table/bed again. It is cool. The white has begun to take me. I dread it. The clothes on me are whitethe men and women in white must want to cover me. What do they hide me from? (initialize diagnostics.scan.exe) I am wearing a whiteshirt (see entry, garment). It is soft on my skin. The fabric holds me gently unlike the black straps holding me to the bed/table. The straps are holding down my arms and legs. One crosses my chest. It secures me, keeping me safe. The dark conquered the white before, maybe it is stronger. Maybe it can protect me. Maybe the black on my chest can hold back the white. (error. Diagnostic.scan.exe initialization failure. System reboot countdown initiated) I tilt my head forward to look at the door. There is noise outside. A man and woman argue outside the window. The man getsangry (see entry, emotion) and leaves. I watch as the door opens. A woman walks in. She is wearing white, but under her white is red. She is wearing a red....dress (see entry, garment) The white has not conquered her; she has kept it at bay without the black. Her hair is orange, with blackglasses (see entry, visual aid) on the front. She looks at me. She shows her teeth, asmile (see entry, nonverbal communication). Hi there. Looks like youve had a bit of trouble. My mouth will not open.

She looks at me with a tilted smile. I know honey, you cant speak right now. The sedative we gave you earlier really hits hard. Just do the best you can, ok? (see entry, sedation) I blink. She takes this as a yes. You had quite an incident there didnt you? I blink again. The woman steps further into the room. Her eyes move up and down the whiteness. She reaches my bed/table. She stops by my side and looks at me. Her eyes stare into mine. I see in her an emotion (see entry, compassion, sadness). I look at her. My mouth slowly loosens. I do not speak. She moves forward and starts to stretch out her hand (see entry, physical intimacy). She hesitates and stops before contact. There is a pain in my chest (see entry, longing). I cannot understand the source. Iwant her to touch me (see entry, desire). I reach out. My strapped hand can hardly leave the table/bed. She sees my effort and carefully touches my hand. The tip of her finger brushes me. It is warm (see entry, touch). She turns around. She makes her way across the room. Before she leaves I say to her, My name is Caleb.

She turns quickly. I believe I have scared her (see entry, mistake). Her mouth is open (see entry, emotion shock). She shakes her head quickly. She says, What did you say? (321...initiate reboot.exe. Diagnostic scheduled upon startup.) Black is coming againtoo weak to speak. I see her run towards me as I fade. I awake to blinding whiteness. Whiteness focused on me, on my chest. The people around me are clothed in white; the white has taken their faces now. My head is strapped to the table. The woman is next to my head. She sees me awaken and smiles a melancholy smile. Hi there. Sorry to wake you, we just need to ask you a few questions, ok? (Diagnostic check complete. Error. System has been compromised. Executing antiviral.exe) My mouth will not move. I must have been sedated. I blink. A mans voice calls out from somewhere behind the people in white. Will you just get on with it? The woman looks up and glares. She is angry. She looks back at me. Her face is compassionate, with a hint of sadness. Its alright. Dont worry about him. Hes just a little anxious; youre a bit of a unique case. Case? What does she mean by case?

(Error. Failure to initiate program antiviral.exe. Initiating 3411.batch.re/coding) Anyway, honey, can you say for me what you said earlier? Can you tell me your name? My name My namewhat is my name? I have one, I know I do. What was it? The mans voice rings out again. Were getting a signal, pathways are lighting up. Keep talking to him Deb. Deb. An abbreviation of Deborah. First recorded listing of Deborah was found in(error. No entry.) What the hell!? Weve got insane activity in the registry section, gonna have to cut that out. This is nuts, how in the world did he pass inspection? Hes got a whole encyclopedia in there! (no entry) What happened to my name? The womans face is getting agitated, but she remains calm. Honey, tell me your name. My name I see a spurt of red fly into the air. One of the white men steps back, shouting at his partner. He is covered in a splash of red. Dang it Frank, now I cant see. You clipped an artery you idiot, youve flooded the cavity.

Blood is red. Is that my blood? (ERROR. DAMAGE SUSTAINED TO VITAL AREAS. INITIATE REGEN.EXE.3411.BATCH.RE/CODING) I focus back on the woman, Deb. I want to touch her. I want to be touched. I want to feel her warmth again, to know that someone wants to touch me. I want to be loved. Love. Verb: The mans voice is anxious. The system is self-replicating! I cant shut it off, the thing keeps filling in everything I delete! Were gonna have to wipe him. Debs face is white but not like the others. Her skin is white. She looks sick, like someone with a fever. Sickness. Noun: She yells back at the man. For gods sake Rob, give me five minutes! We dont know that for sure! She turns back to me. Honey, whats your name? My name I remember back to when I first awoke, the light, my nakednessI was naked!...the windowmy panic attack

My name! (Regen.exe successful. Reinitializing) I look at Deb and smile. My name is Caleb. Deb smiles back her melancholy smile. Good job Caleb. What else can you tell me about yourself? What race are you? Whats your family like? Family. Noun: I dont have a family. My race Deb, we need to wipe him NOW. Deb screams back at him One minute Rob! (ERROR. FOREIGN ENTRY DETECTED.) She focuses on me Caleb, are you human? I blink. (ERROR. SYSTEM REBOOT IMMINENT. REPROGRAM.EXE LOADING)

She repeats herself, the stress obvious now in her voice. Caleb, are you human? I need you to answer that for me. All I can think of is my desire to touch, to feel, to have her warmth in my hand. I look back at Deborah. Will you hold my hand? (ERROR. SYSTEM COMPROMISED. REBOOT IMMINENT. REPROGRAM.EXE LOADED 30%) Deb! Were wiping him, NOW! Deb screams a curse at Rob and looks intently at me. All I can do is hope she sees my raised fingers, hope that she finds mine ready for hers. Dodo you really want that, Caleb? Yes. (ERROR. SYSTEM COMPROMISED. REBOOT IMMINENT. REPROGRAM.EXE LOADED 75%) Her eyes fly back and forth across the room as she looks at the men in whitesurgeonsyes, surgeons and the man named Rob. Her arm moves towards me slowly and suddenly I feel a tiny tingle at the tip of my finger. Warm, soft fingers interlock with mine for just a moment. I feel warmth bloom in my chest. Thank you.

(ERROR. SYSTEM OVERLOAD. EXECUTE REPROGRAM.EXE) Her face is lost in shock as all I see is lost in a field of white.