It was a hot, humid day on December 5th, 2041 and rain started to sprinkle off the trees as Simon Wood made his way home from work. He passed the Diseased and made his way back to his unit. As he walked past the Curatorium, he bowed down in front of the huge white dome-shaped building and recited the chant “It is nothing but a great honor to be a part of the Cure.”
The few survivors were supposed to believe that finding the Cure was their meaning for life, but Simon had dreams of a past where he lived in a society free from the virus. The virus was a pandemic that wiped out nearly the entire human population. The total population remaining was about 1,000 people, and their lives were controlled by the virus. Those with the disease, who lived in isolation, were considered outcasts in society and treated harshly.
Epidemics such as AIDS or Ebola had devastated populations in the past, but this Red virus was the mother of all pandemics. Some of its symptoms were that once the virus entered the body it killed and exploded all the cells which led to heavy internal and external bleeding.  The victim bled profusely, damaging every organ in the body and wrecking the entire immune system.
As Simon approached his cubicle, he looked up and saw a small black speck above his pristine white door. Simon looked closer to investigate, and then the warning bells chimed. The bells sounded when it was time to go to bed, time to wake up, time to take a lunch break, time to depart from work and when it was the Summoning.
Everyone gathered in front of the Curatorium for the Summoning, everyone except the Diseased. Simon joined the crowd for the Summoning, which occurred once daily during lunch break. A loud booming voice erupted from the podium up in front of the entryway to the Curatorium. Two screens were on both sides of the podium, magnifying a hologram of a small man with dark hair and dark features.
“Welcome all,” the hologram figure shouted. Loud screams of joy were heard from the crowds and the Guards began circulating to keep the peace. It was almost time for the Choosing, a daily ceremony where one survivor is “honored” with being chosen to move into the Curatorium to work with scientists to find a cure. The Curer said a few more words and then the hologram moved across the stage towards the Screen. People didn’t need to be in person to communicate anymore, they could virtually interact through holographic images.
A brief minute passed by before the Curer pressed the black button and a swirl of images circulated. Then, a three-dimensional image emerged from the screen. It looked so real but was a hologram of a man “John Benedict,” who was Summoned to be part of the Cure. Sounds of disappointment were heard from those who weren’t chosen.
Simon remained quiet because on the inside he was relieved. Everyone is supposed to dream of being Summoned because it is a great honor; however, Simon feels differently and keeps it to himself.  He believes that the government may use great extremes to try to find the cure, such as torturing its citizens who are chosen. Simon’s brother was selected at the Choosing a few months ago, however he never returned to society.
The people are supposed to believe that those Chosen will spend the rest of their lives working on a cure, but Simon pictures them working day and night in harsh conditions to try to fix the Red virus. The Summoning is over and Simon returned to work. The usual bells rang and Simon went back to his cubicle after work. He ate some NutriBread and drank VitaJuice, two food items that supply the recommended daily nutritional values in just a few bites. The Curer only allowed certain food products to be sold and citizens were forced to eat healthy meals in an effort to prevent the virus.
The Curer’s hologram appeared again behind the podium, with two screens on each side of him.
“Welcome back all. I spoke with the Scientists today and I realized what a grave condition our society is in. The Red virus is still out there, and it’s getting worse every day, however our workers have never been this close to a cure! The Scientists are so close, but in order to move things along we are going to need absolute devotion from all of you. We need more people to help be a part of the Cure, and we need to work towards a harmonious world without the Virus,” the Curer shouted.
People started to cheer and profess their desire to be a part of the Cure. They repeated the chant “It is nothing but a great honor to be a part of the Cure.” Then, the Curer pressed the button on the screen and when the images were done swirling, a hologram of a middle aged man with light blonde hair steps out. It is an exact replica of Simon. It took a few seconds for it to sink in, but Simon realized he was chosen. Simon found a strange urge to get away, and started to move backwards. Guards jumped off the stage towards him and Simon found himself dodging people as he sprinted away from the town center. As he ran through the forest he tripped and fell, and when he went to get up, a hand grabbed his ankle and he fell down again.
“Where do you think you are going?” one of the Guards asked him. As Simon struggled to get up, ten more Guards came out of nowhere in the dark woods. Simon was surrounded on all sides, and thought about escaping but knew it was hopeless.
“What do you want from me?” he yelled to the Guards, his voice quivering with fear. They looked at each other in silence, and then one Guard gave a nod and they all circled in closer pulling silver gadgets out of their pockets.
Four days later Simon awoke trapped in a small cell. He looked around and was surrounded by a bunch of empty cells. “Where am I, and why am I here?” he thought to himself. He felt disoriented and confused, and banged on the bars of the cell. A guard came running in, and approached him.
“It is time for Treatment and Testing,” he said to Simon. The guard opened the door and lead him down the long hallway. Simon glanced down to see that he is wearing a white hazmat suits, similar to the ones he sees patients wearing when he passes by the Diseased. There were glass windows in front of each room and as Simon tried to peer inside, the Guard pulled him along.
When they passed the second to last room, Simon looked through the glass and saw a young woman in a white suit similar to his, standing with wires attached all over her body. Appalled and confused by the image, Simon began to speed up to the Guard. At the last room, the Guard came to a complete stop and opened the door. Inside there were two metal chairs and three other guards. Simon stepped inside and a Guard stepped out and grabbed his arm tightly. Simon let out a whimpering noise and retreated towards the door.
The Guard kept a firm grip on his arm and brought Simon over to one of the metal chairs. He forcefully pushed Simon into the chair and the other Guard shut the light off. Simon nervously sat in the metal chair in total darkness. It was silent, and all of a sudden Simon felt a slight jolt of electricity go up his spine. He closed his eyes, and suddenly his whole body felt as if it was on fire. He shook uncontrollably in the chair and felt an enormous amount of pain. Simon released a strangled cry as he saw sporadic flashes of light and fell to the ground. He was lying down when the lights flickered back on, and he saw wires connected from the chair and a remote in the Guard’s hand. The Guards then opened the door and Simon reluctantly followed them back towards his cell. He entered his cell and lied down on the concrete floor, trying to get as comfortable as he could after what he had just endured. As he drifted to sleep, he saw a small black speck up on the ceiling similar to the one on his front door. Intrigued by the sighting, he snapped out of his sleepiness and realized that the black mark wasn’t a speck of dirt but a small camera lens. He jumped backward in shock and thought back to the similar item on his front door. Could it be possible that he was being watched? Simon shuddered at the thought of constantly being spied on by the government. Was this how I got here?” he wondered to himself?
Simon was tortured day after day for weeks after he was Summoned. He saw the young woman in the cell across from him never return, and every day someone didn’t come back. He was lucky to be alive, but he knew his time would come soon. He developed a friendship with the boy in the cell next to him, however they could only converse in secret. Simon asked him what went on inside the place, and the boy explained his theory that it was a prison to torture any citizens that the Curer thought knew the truth about the corrupt government. Simon realized he was brought there because of what the Curer’s camera sensors saw back at his cubicle. Simon had gathered photos and magazines articles about his brother to try to prove his existence. Proving the Curer wrong was considered a threat to the civilization and could be a possible detection of the having Virus. One day as they walked to their daily Treatment and Testing, a loud commotion was made as one of the prisoners started screaming and crying. The Guards swarmed towards her, and Simon took this distraction to tell the boy about his recent discovery.
“They’re watching us in the cell. They’ve implanted cameras there and I think they watched us back at home. That’s why we’re here,” Simon said to the boy.
“They heard me say that I hate the Curer,” the boy admitted. “That’s why I’m here. They overheard me say it in my sleep. They make it seem like such an honor to be chosen, but in reality it is the opposite.”
“It seems that they’re afraid of us.  They want to limit our knowledge by bringing us here and treating us like the Diseased. They know we have thoughts, dreams, and memories. They put us inside this place to destroy us and eliminate anyone who stands in the way of their power,” Simon confided in his new friend. Simon thought things over and came to the miserable realization that things were never going to get better, and he created a plan to take down the Curer and possibly get out. In the dead of night, Simon slipped out of the cell and quietly tiptoed down the hallway as he searched for the Curer. As he walked down the long corridor, he heard a high voice say, “Where are you going?” Terrified, Simon looked around in confusion and realized that the voice was coming from his friend.
“I’m going to end this tyranny once and for all. I’m going to save you and myself and together we can defeat the Curer,” Simon whispered with conviction. The boy left his cell and began to walk alongside Simon. As they approached the private quarters heavily locked and protected, a voice came out of the darkness.
“Going somewhere, Simon?” a Guard asked. Simon looked next to him and noticed that his friend had a smile on his face.
“What’s going on here?” Simon asked. The young boy walked over and stood next to the Guards.
“Good work, John.” They said with admiration to the young boy Simon befriended.
“John Benedict Arno was a cooperative and loyal patient and suspected there was something wrong with you. He turned you in before you did any damage to yourself or others. We kept close watch with our microchips and confirmed his accusations. Do you have any last words for yourself?” the Guards asked Simon. The look of betrayal on Simon’s face was like no other, and as he opened his mouth to pledge his allegiance to the Curer a sharp metal spear pierced through his back and sent waves of pain through his entire body. Simon began shaking and as he turned to face the direction the spear came from, he saw the infamous Curer, in the flesh, standing there with a smirk. Simon slowly collapsed  on to the ground.