The Darcy Project

“It’s good to see you’re still well, Darcy,” Dr. Corey said, patting my shoulder as we headed towards my room. Once again I’d had to be tested on my fitness and endurance. I’d been in the exercise room for them past three hours, riding bikes, running on treadmills, lifting weights. I’d been fine the entire time, barely breaking a sweat.

“Thank you,” I said and we turned into the lab. We strode past the lab tables that supported a large amount of assorted vials and beakers, each containing brightly colored liquid chemicals. Dr. Corey stopped at my door and I continued, opening it. He glanced at his watch.

“It’s nine thirty, so why don’t you shower and get some sleep? We’ll be running more tests on you tomorrow.”

“Sounds good. See you in the morning.”
He smiled and I entered the room completely, shutting the door softly. I quickly entered the adjacent bathroom, stripping and taking a refreshing shower. I would shower again in the morning to wash my hair, which meant there was no need for me to linger. I got out, dried my hair as best I could and braided it off my face.

It was a little strange climbing back into my bed in the lab. But I quickly adjusted, glad it had only been a week since I’d slept in it, and not a whole month or something of that nature. Almost immediately I was asleep, submerged in a peaceful blackness.

My eyes snapped open and I was dragged into consciousness abruptly. The room was still dark, the small, clouded glass window above me shedding a small amount of moonlight across the room. I frowned, surprised to have woken up in the middle of the night. I checked the plain, black, digital close beside my bed, the green glowing numbers reading, “3:47am”.

I closed my eyes, expecting to fall asleep in seconds. But I didn’t. No, I merely laid there, my eyes shut, the wheels of my mind turning at an irritating rate. I’d never experienced this. Never had a night where I could sleep.

I sat up, looking around the room. My eyes landed on the door, unexplained curiosity bubbling inside of me. I’d never really been given a tour of the whole entire building. Just the lab, the exercise room, some testing centers, the dining hall and my room.

Almost without thinking, I swung my legs off the side of the bed, hurrying over to the door. To my delight, it was unlocked. Quietly, I opened it, shutting it gently behind me. There were a few, pale lights glowing from the bottom of cupboards, but it was clear the lab was unused.

The team must go home during the night, there was no way they stayed here every day.
They had families and lives away from The Darcy Project. I tiptoed to the exit of the lab, pleased that that door was also unlocked. The hall was empty, the only lights were where two halls intersected.

I checked the first couple of rooms I found, but each were empty. A few minutes past, and I could feel myself growing tired again. Just as I was about to turn and go back to bed, I came to a hall that ended with a door labeled, Darcy. The plaque that held my name was gold and written in a professional font.

I cocked my head to the side, stepping closer. What could the harm be in checking? Hesitantly, I wrapped my fingers around the gold door knob, twisting it. Once again, unlocked. There couldn’t be any harm in entering rooms that weren’t blocked off.

The room was dark, like every other, although with my perfect vision, I could see better than most people, even in poor lighting. Against the wall to my left were three, large, white tubes, big taller than me and a little wider.

I walked further into the room, so I was in front of the first tube. It’s door was clear and glass. I stepped closer, squinting, attempting to see into the dusty glass, curious as to what could be inside. I placed my hand on it, wiping off a later of the dust.

instantly my eyes registered what was inside the tube, and I gasped, stumbling back. It was a face! I’d seen a face. I bumped into a metal tray table and it clattered loudly against the ground. I inhaled rapidly, holding my hand to my chest as if my heart might jump out my sternum.

I could still make out the face, just barely. After another moment of recovery I approached the tube, wiping away more dust. The girl beyond the glass was unmoving, her eyes closed, her face lacking any sign of light. I looked around, hoping for a light switch. To the left of this tube were two switches and I leaned over, flicking up the first.

The inside of each tube lit up and I stepped back, shocked again. Neither tube had as thick a later of dust as the first, and it was significantly easier to identify the contents. Two more girls, almost identical to the first stood within the white caskets, their eyes also closed. What was even more shocking than their similarities to each other, were their similarities to me. It was like staring into a mirror.

These were the Darcy’s that had come before me, the imperfect ones. I felt my stomach tighten a little, which I couldn’t quite understand. There was no need to be upset by seeing them. They were alright, nothing was hurting them.

I shook my head, clearing my mind of any troubled thoughts. But something new occurred to me. There were only three tubes. I was the fifth Darcy, I was certain of it. So where was the fourth? A frown formed on my face and I bit my lip, examining each girl more carefully, as if their composed faces held answers.

I heard something stir beyond the door, and my eyes flashed to the turned over table on the floor. In the closest I’d ever been to a panic, I bent down, putting the table upright again and switched off the tubes lights, hurrying out of the room. A flash lights glow came from a hall that intersected with the one I stood in and my brow furrowed as I thought of my best cause of action.

I was foolish to think the facility wouldn’t have security. They wouldn’t honestly leave me completely alone in a large, expensive building. I sighed, briskly walking towards the door to the lab. I passed the hall where the flash light still shone, but I wasn’t stopped.

No one bothered me as I reentered the lab, got into my room and slugged back in bed.
Although I was considerably more tired than I had been when I’d woken about half an hour ago, I was now slightly tormented. Why were there only three?

It didn’t make any sense. There was no explanation that my mind could formulate. I was the fifth. Which meant there were four before me. That was how math and logic worked. So why wasn’t the fourth Darcy with the rest?

For the first, I couldn’t find an answer to a question.