"Today we will be showing you where you will sleep. This is where you will sleep for the remainder of your stay here. You will have one other roommate. Some of you will no longer have a roommate as time goes on. Each individual is for now randomly put into a group. Later you will be divided based on ability and other factors."
"Today you will follow each of my soldiers, based on your last names. Keep in mind male and female counterparts are separated. There will be no fraternizing, you will be banned. Take this seriously."
He paused at the podium once more.
"You will be divided into classes. There will be a more thorough explanation as time goes on. Part of your day here will be spent educating yourself, and learning hand to hand combat."
At that I could see the crowd begin to murmur. As I peered around some faces looked elated, some grimaced in horror, and some had no expression at all. When I turned back I could have sworn he had been staring at me once again, but it was too fast for me to know if I was right.
"The next few months here will be trying. It will test every single part of you, so that the best of the best will come forth. I will not lie to you about anything. Unfortunately, I have pressing matters to attend. Over the next couple of days you will learn everything you need to know. Good luck to you all."
******
It was a couple of hours later when my group was finally called. Part of the H group was with Jax. Including me and Farren. It was nice knowing that I would be with my sister for at least a little while. Still I was being nagged by the thoughts swirling in my head.
Why hadn't they told us exactly what was going on yet? Where were my parents? How exactly did we get here? Who exactly was Dominic and what the hell was going on?
It wasn't until I bumped into a girl in front of me that I realized I hadn't been paying attention. She looked at me. Her blue eyes turning ice-cold, and her blonde hair shining in the light. She sneered at me, staring into my eyes before finally continuing as the line moved. I sucked in air, I didn't know this girl but it seemed as if she already had it out for me. Farren began eyeing her, but I shook my head and she let it go.
We were lead through several corridors, though much of the ship looked the same. Finally, we were lead to our room, I was with Farren and two other girls. One I recognized was the girl from the assembly, the other a quiet Asian girl. She looked quite timid, but even I knew looks could be deceiving. I mean look at me I was the star girl.
I expected to see a room that was white-washed and bare, instead it was cozy and offered a variety of things to explore. It was about the size of a small apartment, and even had what appeared to be a mini kitchen. There were stands with what appeared to be hair tools with light emanating from them, the time was suspended in the air from a small cube. I let out a small gasp as a smile image leaped from it. What appeared to be playing was some kind of newsreel. The beds were suspended in the air with lights beneath them. Soon a small woman walked in smiling.
"Hello, I am Jadora. I'll be your section guide, in other words your supervisor of sorts when it comes to your living quarters."
She pointed behind us at four different panels on the wall. She walked up to one and it scanned her hand, opening a decent sized closet already filled with clothes.
"This is where you will put your belongings during your stay here. However for Mrs. Rue here yours has the gold panel. Our commander has informed us that this is your closet."
I placed my hand on the panel, and unlike the others, lavish and bright outfits lined the closets. All of the girls raised their brow at me, and my cheeks burned with embarrassment and confusion. She began to explain how we would use our ID badges to access different places, based on our clearance level. She explained our schedules, free time, minor expectancies, and finally walked us to the dining hall.
We all took in a breath at its beauty. It was the only thing that didn't look futuristic or modernized. Rows of gigantic banquet tables sat in the middle of the humongous hall. Intricate chairs were in every direction. Beautiful chandelier like objects hung from the vaulted ceiling.
Other people milled around, talking, laughing, and acting as if this was commonplace. Me, Farren, and the other two girls stuck together. There were giant tubes that acted like vending machines, there was an area for fresh baked goods and pleasant aromas wafted in the air. We stopped at a table, and there were some things we recognized, and others we didn't. Some of them shimmered, some appeared to move, some were colors we haven't even named yet. Some of them oozed, others looked extremely dry. I paused at what I could only describe as a stuffed cookie with a green substance oozing out of it.
A lady smiled, nodding her heard and we each took a treat. I bit into it and my eyes widened. The best way to describe it would be caramel apple pie, with a hint of pear and something else. The cookie was soft but dense and tasted like cake.
"Wow, this is so good!" Farren says.
The other two girls nod, expressions of pleasure and delight on their faces. The woman laughs, wiping her hands on her apron. She walks from behind what appears to be a mini kitchen, and then finally reaches out her hand. She smiled at me warmly her eyes sparkling. Something about her seemed familiar, but I shrugged off the feeling and smiled back warmly.
A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.
"I'm Gartha, it's nice to meet you Rue. And this is Farren, Rebekka, and Xiao," she said bowing to the Asian girl.
"Wow that was really good, what exactly is it?" I ask.
"Why it's a cookie," she says laughing.
"It's made with something we call a parigoa, I guess you could say it's something like a cross between an earth apple and pear. We use pure sugar grown on our planet, plus other ingredients. But you will learn about all of that in your agricultural studies."
We all nod, we stay to chat a bit longer and she waves us off. We see all manners of technology. Instant noodle bowls, foods and concoctions we had never seen, drinks we could have never dreamed of. Finally Jadora gathered us up to take us to thr classrooms.
We walked down a hall, each room connected, but yet it seemed the moved from place to place instantly without explanation. Instead of doors shimmering curtains were at each entrance, and again she explained the concept of clearance. We saw rooms that were filled with art that came to life, chemistry, herbal potions and medicine, and there was even a classroom with an entire garden with desks made of vines. Virtual reality headsets lay in some rooms, as she explained some of our time would be spent doing virtual exercises. Finally we got to one of the gyms.
It was organized military style, there were mud pits, sparing areas, and rooms leading off from the main area. Racks of equipment including swords, bows and arrows, mallets, and more lined the walls. Mats lined the floor, and something that looked remotely like a surfboard except black and matte was lined in racks. It looked like we were in one of the last groups of the day.
We watched as two suited figures clashed and clanged swords. My hairs stood on end electricity in the air. They moved with inhuman like speed, majestic and graceful yet deadly. I could feel the malicious intent from the other sparrer, and it was then that I felt a sense of urgency. My vision zoomed in, it was as if I could see every movement. I saw their muscles twitch, and before I knew it I had run into the middle of the fray and caught the blade with my hand.
The two sparrers removed their gear, I saw that one was Dominic and the other someone I didn't recognize. He was almost as beautiful with similar dark short hair, but there was hate in his eyes. Just as quickly as the malice was there it was replaced by shock and concern.
"Are you alright?" He says, running over.
Dominic was still for a moment, but hesitantly he graceful walked over.
"Are you hurt?" He asked, his voice cold but soft.
"What exactly were you doing?" The other guy asked.
"I'm not sure I was just watching, and then I got this strange feeling, and I just reacted," I said, nearly rambling.
They both looked at one another, a mysterious look passing between them.
"Let me see your hand."
It was then that I looked down, noticing a fresh clean cut in the middle of my palm. Only then did it begin to sting, and water began to well up at the corner of my eyes. I sucked in a breath, confused by my own actions. Blood dripped to the floor, and Farren dashed across the room roommates in tow.
"I should kick your ass right now." She said to the dark-haired stranger.
"My name is Demetrius, and I wouldn't advise such a thing."
"Why I ought to--"
"Enough. She is injured which is the most pressing matter at hand."
"Like you care. You're the one who injured me the first time." I practically hissed, my emotions running rampant.
For a moment he looked surprised, then quickly he regained his cold demeanor.
"See that she gets to the infirmary." He said pointing to each of my roommates, and he strides away sweat glistening on his chiseled back.
"Let's get you fixed up." The girl who I assumed to be Rebekka said, taking my other hand. The Asian girl nodded, eyeing Demetrius warily and skeptically. Jadora had a strange look in her eyes, but her smile genuinely. She dropped us off at the infirmary, and told us to meet her in the dining hall when we were finished to receive our schedules, gear, and to finalize the day's activities.
"You young lady I better not see anytime soon after this time." Nora scolded me, almost pouting.
"But--" she raised her brow, and I sighed as Nanobots stitched my hand together with organic silk. Or at least that is what I was told. Nora ordered me to stick around a little to see if I felt light-headed. We all sat in chairs chatting, even Xiao joined in.
"Hey thanks for coming with me. You honestly didn't have to."
"What are big sisters for."
"I needed a break anyways," Rebekka said.
Xiao just shrugged and smiled. Peering into these girls faces, I knew I could count on them. I don't know how, but I knew. They each looked fierce as they sat before me and my heart flushed with warmth for the first time since I had been away from my parents. Later Nora let me go with a look, and we used the maps to head down to the banquet hall. There it was loud, as thousands of voices mingled together but not too loud.
We spotted Jadora by the south wall and walked over.
"Good you guys are here. Here take these."
She handed us all five bodysuits, also known as our uniforms. We all got a mini bag of hygiene products, or at least it's what I assumed they were. Finally as things died down schedules were handed out. Finally I got mine, and I glanced over it.
Class 1 - Study of the ancient people
Class 2 - Space Science and Physics
Class 3 - Mechanics and Engineering
Class 4 - Art and Self-expression
Class 5 - Herbal potions and Medicine
Class 6 - Technologies
Class 7 - Combat and battle strategies
On two days out of the week however I had two additional classes one called Gifted and the other Piloting. We compared schedules and it wasn't long before I realized all of our schedules were the same. I wasn't sure if it was a coincidence, but internally I gave a sigh of relief. My heart throbbed thinking about the days in high school where a new year would begin, and I didn't know who would be there, where I would sit, or how things would go.
"We got the same schedule!" Farren said excitedly. Each class was approximately thirty mins to an hour and a half long. Some days we had only four hours of classes. Others we had around eight. Jadora explained it was to encourage independent learning. With that, she wished us well, and handed us a flyer for some kind of ceremony that would take place tomorrow.
We sat at a table enjoying dinner, laughing, and stuffing our faces with exotic foods. Soon we were heading back.
"I wonder what tomorrow would be all about?" Rebekka said, her mouth twisting into a grimace.
"Yeah me too," Xiao said.
Still surprised when she talked we all stared then we all burst out laughing. We all went to our separate showers, and I was glad to wash away the day. Although I was taking everything in stride I was still no closer to the answers that we sought than I was from the beginning.
The showers were automatic, and massaging jets shot from the wall. I rubbed in soap that smelled like honey, rose, and sweet lavender. After rinsing my hair I stepped out, dried, and put on a pair of satin pajamas. The girls were all up talking to one another, and I sat on the edge of my bed.
"We still have no idea what we are doing here, or what happened to the people we cared about. And that test...." Farren said, trailing off.
"I woke up in a room that was almost 451 degrees by the time I was out. The temperature started at 80 and worked it's way up slowly. I became dehydrated, disoriented, but eventually I found a way out. I was covered in burns, and I woke up not long before Rue."
Xiao looked on in horror and grimaced.
"I was in a room full of blades, and they kept slicing at my skin. Eventually I made it out, but the only way was to stab two sharp objects protruding through the wall through my legs and then use all of my weight to move downwards."
We all gasped.
"Let's just say we'll save my story for another time," Farren said, and I knew from the tone in her voice that she was serious.
"And of course we heard all about you star girl. Escaping a maze, blowing up buildings, saving little girls, and surviving sky caves." Xiao said.
"Was that what it was? I don't know. I just woke up in a dark place. Next thing I know I thought I was in an infirmary, but it wasn't and then that guy Dominic was there it was crazy."
We all agreed that something strange was going on, and we had slightly changed since that first day here. Climbing in bed, we all prepared ourselves for tomorrow and for what was to come. It wasn't long before I fell off to sleep, the day had been draining to say the least. With one final glimpse of the room, I descended into darkness.