Glitch

                                    

                                          
Chapter One: Glitch 
                          
4 Years Ago 
                          
Kirsten
                          
Kirsten padded her way up the steps, dunking her toe into the water before sliding the rest of the way in. She knew that the tank was always kept a toasty 98 degrees, but she could never stop herself from checking. She leaned her head back, feeling the water pool around her neck like a thick blanket. "Okay, I need a go/no-go for stitch-neurosync..." Cameron began, checking every department. "Comms?" He asked, stopping at her. "All clear." Kirsten said, finding it crazy how normal this had become. She never thought something could feel normal to her. She closed her eyes, bracing herself for the stitch. The back of her scull tingled, followed by a faint pulling sensation. And then she was in. "What do you see, cupcake?" Cameron asked. 
"Um..." Kirsten blinked, trying to focus her eyes, but nothing happened. Everything around her was blurred, and muted. It felt like she was stuck in a fish bowl. 
"I-I don't...I can't really..." Kirsten tried  to move around the stitch, but she felt glued to the spot. The images around her started to glitch, showing random numbers, patterns, sequences and so much more that she didn't understand. Suddenly, the images around her exploded, invading every angle of her vision. And then, not even a second later, a ringing started, swallowing up everything. Kirsten tried to get her hands free to try and block out the sound, but nothing worked. And then, like a blink, it was all gone. She thought she heard someone calling her name, but she couldn't be sure. She wasn't even that sure of who she was anymore. 
                          
Cameron 
                          
"What's going on, Stretch?" Cameron said, pressing his fingers against the comm unit in his ear. Nothing but garbled noises responded to him. He watched Kirsten in the tank, worry starting to bloom. "Talk to me, Kirsten. What's happening?" Still nothing. And then, Kirsten gasped, her back arching. The heart monitor went wild, the sharp noise filling the room. "Her heart rate just spiked!" Auto shouted, as if it wasn't obvious. "Kirsten!" Cameron yelled, yanking out his earpiece and running toward the tank. Cammile cursed, running to take his abandoned post. But he could care less about the stitch. Images of what happened to Marta flashed through his brain, making his heart speed up. He reached the tank, and just as suddenly as it had started, the heart monitor's incessant screeching stopped. He reached in and shook Kirsten's shoulders, smoothing his hand across her cheek. "Kirsten?" He whispered. 
There was no response.