Chapter 3: Emerius
Charon practically cried when he finally found his room.
After the rude man had shoved him out and given him the holo-pad, he fiddled with it until it projected a very simple line of text.
"Room Number: 1,439"
That was it. No map, no directions, not even a vague identifier.
Charon had to spend over an hour searching the monotone black hallways of bland steel, trying desperately to find the room. His lucky break finally came when he bumped into another robed man, who quickly pointed him down a different hallway and sped off.
The strangest part of the interaction was what the man yelled over his shoulder as he fled.
"Don’t ask again, gutter rat."
Nevertheless, Charon was appreciative of his help, especially when it led him to a door with a red light hanging over it. The number 1,439 was etched just to the side.
Unsure what to do, he awkwardly extended the holo-pad. With a loud chime, the light above the door flipped green, and it slid open with a quiet hiss.
The sound was like music to his ears, relieving just a modicum of the tension that had been building in his shoulders. His entire body ached, and phantom pains occasionally sprang up in the areas he had been wounded the day prior.
Stepping inside, Charon immediately noticed how large the room was. It was square, with three adjoining doors set into the far wall. A full kitchen, dining room, living room, and gym were all present, each one taking up a corner.
Ignoring everything except the plush couch, he walked inside and let himself fall onto the cushion.