Leo did not have much time to reflect on what Alex had told him. The ship had collided with an unknown mass and ricocheted violently backwards. Both Alex and Leo lost their footing and slid along the floor. After two consecutive thuds they came to a bruising stop against the nearest wall and looked at each other.
"What was that?" Leo uttered getting up.
"We might've hit an asteroid or something."
"Do you think everyone else would expect this?"
Leo did not reply. There was a small cabinet next to the door with emergency supplies. With hesitation, Leo tore the door open and retrieved two small orange bags, handing one to Alex.
"Protective masks and suits..." he murmured. "Most interesting. Perhaps we have traveled into space." Then, looking up at Alex, he answered her question. "The passengers would definitely expect this. Not as strong though. You take this." He pointed at the orange pack. "In fact, take a few more...just in case. They're practically weightless. Easy to carry around. And I better send a message to the Establishment's Council and make sure everyone's okay."
Alex studied the orange bag Leo had given her and took out two more. She doubted Leo genuinely cared for the passengers. Not that he was necessarily incapable of such emotion. Yet, for the Establishment losing a ship that was never intended to leave the vicinity of its home planet was unthinkable. Alex still was not sure of Leo's position within the Establishment, but seeing how quickly he resorted to consulting the members of the Council indicated that he had to be close to those who were higher up in the "food chain." She would first consult her counselor, or his superior at worst, before attempting to contact "the source."
Alex was amused by the incident for the moment. She imagined what sort of spin Leo would put on it. After all, he was one of the organizers of the event, and who knows, he could be responsible for the blunder.
Blunder? Alex wondered. She had her doubts: things like this didn't just happen. But then who would be so bold as to hijack a decommissioned ship full of people and bring it out to this peculiar part of the Universe? Surely this was not a novel way of getting rid of unwanted individuals? It seemed too costly and cumbersome.
Or was it?
Alex considered this for a moment. Something had begun to stir in her heart-something sinister and unexpected, a premonition of more to come. It'd been a long time since her intuition flickered like this, and it worried her, especially given the circumstances. But she'd never managed to gain control over her feelings; all she could do was to wait for whatever it was to come to pass.
As she began walking back to her apartment, Alex thought of what was going to happen to the ship. The Third Bermuda Triangle was not your average sight seeing spot. Akin to its Earthly twin, it was known for its audacity to make objects disappear without a trace. Personally, Alex had faced danger before and seemed to have a knack for crafting an escape that got her out alive, but she could not say the same for any of the remaining passengers who were stuck in this predicament with her.
When Alex returned to her cabin, her family had congregated in the front room for lunch. Her mother jumped up from her chair.
"Alex, are you okay?"
"Of course I'm okay. Why shouldn't I be?"
"But the impact! It was terrifying! And for the Establishment not to warn us! I'm extremely upset!"
Alex looked at Sue curiously: her foster mother had finally woken up from her zombie-like state. About time, Alex mused.
"I'm fine, I promise," she said. "And I'm sure everyone else's fine too."
"Still, this is so perplexing... What's that?" Sue pointed to the three orange packs Alex was holding.
Perplexing? More like dastardly.
Alex looked at Sue again. A child-like insecurity had filled her eyes. Sue may have been jerked emotionally by the hit, but she still remained fairly helpless. Her foster mother was looking for a shoulder to cry on instead of managing the next stage of this shocking event.
Empathetically, Alex looked at her new family; they all displayed various degrees of insecurity, and even Roni, who was usually the most upbeat, was biting his nails. Should she tell them the truth? No. No need to wake a sleeping dragon... yet. They wouldn't believe her anyway.
Tightly folding the orange bags and stuffing them into the pockets of her trousers, Alex gave a sigh. "Nothing," she said.
Like programmed automatons, Roni, Rick and Becky got up from the table. They all had decided they had things to do. Both Sue and Ross quickly followed suit leaving Chris and Alex behind.
Alex sauntered towards one of the windows. The ring of the Third Bermuda Triangle came into view.
"Look," she said, nudging Chris on the shoulder. "What do you make of this?
"Wow!" he said, turning around. "It's awesome. Whatever it is."
"It's probably another simulation," said Alex, offering Chris an explanation he would buy. "This is what the end of the world looks like."
Alex chuckled under her breath, studying Chris' face. How long would it take him to realize the truth? If ever...
There was a support rail next to the window. Alex leaned her body on it and pressed her face against the glass. Outside, space looked strange. It moved in and out of focus in a weird fashion as if Alex was looking at it under a lens of a telescope while the lens was being adjusted; as if it was stretched and compressed at the same time under some strange force like the surface of a soap bubble.
She stepped back from the window, her spirits deflated. "We're closer to the Triangle than I'd anticipated," she murmured, "so close that we might as well be in it. Nobody outside the Triangle's impact zone would be able to receive our signals. To the outside world, we've vanished."
"What are you murmuring about?" Chris had woken from his daze. "What was that about a zone and signals?"
One of his elbows was red and he rubbed it slightly. Alex came closer, ignoring his question. "Is this from the impact? Does it hurt?"
"Yes, a bit, but not really," Chris smiled. "It was actually cool to experience such a megaton collision! In all my life I don't remember any simulation being so realistic. They did not even warn Mom and Dad about it. And they usually do."
"They?"
"The officials from the Establishment."
"Maybe they didn't want you to know," Alex suggested.
"You really mean to say..." Chris did not finish his sentence. "Never mind."
Alex touched his wound. It did not look as if Chris had been badly hurt.