Beyond The Barrier

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"There are no humans beyond this border."

The sentence echoed inside Amara's head.

It didn't make sense.

It couldn't.

She ripped her arm free with a desperate twist and stumbled forward.

"You just looked at her!" she shouted. "You looked straight at her!"

The machine didn't answer.

It simply stepped into her path again.

Behind the glowing barrier, Ivana hadn't moved.

She stood exactly where she had been moments ago, her expression impossible to read through the shimmering blue light.

"Ivana!"

Amara's voice cracked.

"Tell them! Tell them you're there!"

For a heartbeat...

Nothing happened.

Then Ivana slowly lifted her hand.

Not waving.

Not signalling.

Just...

raising it.

Amara mirrored the gesture without thinking.

Their palms hovered against the invisible wall, separated by less than a metre.

The barrier pulsed.

Tiny streams of blue light crawled between them like living veins.

Amara took one more step.

A violent force exploded from the barrier.

The blast hurled her backwards.

She crashed against the pavement, the impact knocking every breath from her lungs.

The crowd gasped.

Someone screamed.

The soldiers rushed forward.

Before she could stand, heavy footsteps surrounded her.

Three security robots.

Their movements were perfectly synchronized.

No hesitation.

No wasted motion.

One seized her left arm.

Another grabbed the right.

The third stood directly in front of her.

Its visor glowed a cold white.

"Citizen."

"You assaulted me!" Amara yelled.

"The barrier responded to unauthorized contact."

"My friend is over there!"

"There are no humans beyond this border."

The same words.

The same voice.

Exactly the same.

Like pressing play on a recording.

Amara looked past them.

Ivana was still standing there.

Still watching.

Still...

doing nothing.

Why aren't you running?

Why aren't you saying anything?

Then she noticed it.

The machine standing beside Ivana wasn't restraining her.

It wasn't aiming a weapon.

Instead...

it gently rested a hand against Ivana's shoulder.

Almost...

comfortingly.

The gesture was so human it made Amara's stomach twist.

Ivana lowered her eyes.

Then, without a word, she turned away.

"No..."

Amara struggled wildly.

"Olivia!"

Her friend kept walking.

One step.

Two.

Three.

The crowd of machines swallowed her whole.

She disappeared.

Just like that.

The city remained silent for several seconds.

Even the drones seemed quieter.

Amara stopped fighting.

Her strength drained away.

The robots released her.

She collapsed onto her knees.

The pavement beneath her palms felt warm from the morning sun.

Real.

Everything about this felt real.

Too real.

A young soldier approached carefully.

He couldn't have been older than twenty-five.

His rifle remained lowered.

"Miss..."

She looked up hopefully.

"You saw her too?"

The soldier frowned.

"Saw who?"

"My friend!"

She pointed frantically toward the barrier.

"Ivana! White shirt! Afro hair! She was standing right there!"

The soldier glanced toward the empty road.

"I didn't see anyone."

"No..."

"Only you."

Amara stared at him.

"...You're lying."

"I'm not."

"Everyone saw her!"

Silence.

She turned toward the crowd.

"You saw her, didn't you?"

People avoided her eyes.

A mother pulled her child closer.

An elderly man slowly shook his head.

Another woman whispered something to her husband before they hurried away.

Nobody answered.

Nobody.

A knot formed in Amara's chest.

She knew what she'd seen.

Didn't she?

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Hours later...

She stood outside the nearest police station.

The waiting room buzzed with anxious voices.

Everyone wanted answers about the barrier.

About the robots.

About why half the city had suddenly become inaccessible.

A receptionist finally called her name.

She followed an older detective into a small interview room.

He sat down.

Opened a notebook.

"What can I help you with?"

"My friend is missing."

"Name?"

"Ivana." He nodded.

"Full name?"

"Ivana Graham.". Amara answered without hesitation.

He typed it into his computer.

Seconds passed.

His eyebrows drew together.

He tried again.

Nothing.

He looked back at her.

"Could you spell the surname?"

She did.

Again he searched.

Again...

nothing.

"That's impossible."

He leaned back.

"I'm sorry, Miss..."

"There are no records under that name."

Amara laughed.

Not because anything was funny.

Because the alternative was terrifying.

"No... she's an engineer."

Silence.

"We work together."

More typing.

"Company name?"

"Cipher Security Solutions." She gave it.

The detective searched the employee database.

His expression slowly changed from concentration...

to confusion.

"I'm only seeing one employee registered under your department."

He turned the monitor toward her.

Her name.

Only her name.

Desk Number 27.

Project Lead.

No Ivana.

No partner.

No second employee.

Nothing.

Amara felt her heartbeat pounding inside her ears.

"No..."

She whispered.

"No... that's wrong."

The detective studied her carefully.

"When was the last time you saw your friend?"

"This morning."

"And before that?"

"Yesterday."

"What were you doing?"

"We were working."

"On what?"

She opened her mouth.

Nothing came out.

For the first time...

She couldn't remember.

Not clearly.

She remembered laughing.

She remembered coffee.

She remembered Ivana teasing her about forgetting to eat lunch.

She remembered...

The details slipped away like water through her fingers.

No.

No, no, no.

She knew Ivana existed.

Didn't she?

The detective closed the notebook.

"I'd like to recommend you speak with someone."

"I'm not crazy."

"I didn't say you were."

"You were going to."

He didn't answer.

That silence hurt more than if he'd said the words aloud.

Amara stood so suddenly that the chair scraped loudly across the floor.

"I'll find her myself."

She walked out before he could stop her.

Outside...

The blue barrier still divided the city.

Visible from almost every street.

Waiting.

Watching.

And somewhere beyond it...

Whether the world believed her or not...

Ivana was alive.

Amara was certain of it.

She had to be.

Because if Ivana didn't exist...

Then who had smiled at her from the other side of the border?

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