The group walked into a large space. They could see the inside of the dome as its high ceiling sloped over them, eventually ending in a small circular window that let in rays of sunshine.

Directly beneath the light was a circular pedestal, made from the same white material as the dome. Slightly raised above the gray stone floor, it was apparent something was supposed to be there.

The whole room was off putting to Icarus. It was eerily quiet and he couldn't smell a thing. No rotting rations, no dead rats, not even himself. Something was definitely wrong.

Looking down he noticed a red colored ring lining the floor. It lay dozens of feet away from the central pedestal. The orphans stood right outside it as they eyed the line suspiciously.

Thalia stepped over the barrier and signaled for her brothers and sisters to do the same.

With the whole family over the boundary, Thalia took a knee and gathered the orphans in an embrace .

"Listen well guys. What you are about to see is not for the faint of heart. Steel yourselves. All you have to do is stand here for the next couple minutes and that's it. Nothing more, nothing less."

Confused, Icarus spoke up. "What do you me-"

He was cut off by a mechanical voice that reverberated from the ceiling.

"RETRIEVING NEXT HUMAN SPORE. RIFTING WILL OCCUR IN THREE MINUTES."

As soon as the voice finished, the circular white pedestal disappeared into the floor, quickly replaced by a stone cover. Seconds later, the cover slid back out of place as the white pedestal rose once again. This time there was a person on top of it.

A woman who couldn't have been older than Thalia was seated on the pedestal. She was dressed in faded gray overalls and looked completely defeated. Her brown hair was dry and fringed while her eyes looked sunken in. A glowing red bracelet was on her wrist.

Seeing her state, Hannah ran up to the pedestal while waving her hand. "M-Miss! Miss! Are you okay?!"

She was stopped short by an invisible barrier that aligned with the rounded edge of the white pedestal.

Noticing Hannah's cries, the woman craned her neck to look at the little girl. She raised her hand and gave Hannah a small wave.

The mechanical voice chimed again.

"RIFTING IN TWO MINUTES"

Hearing those words, Thalia stepped away from the orphans and stood behind the red line on the floor. She would have told Icarus to move Hannah away from the glass but she knew it didn't matter.

Memories of her parent's final moments suddenly surfaced in Thalia's mind but she stuffed them back down almost immediately.

Hannah continued to pound on the invisible barrier but was quickly calmed down as Dane, Lucy, Kalen, and Zeke ran over to comfort the woman with her. They all placed their hands on the invisible wall and gave the woman earnest smiles.

Icarus remained in place as he watched from afar.

To everyone's surprise, the woman on the pedestal mustered the strength to crawl to the edge of the ring. Raising her hand to touch the other side of the invisible barrier, she whispered two words to the children.

"Good luck."

Immediately after, she slumped to the floor, clearly exhausted. The five orphans cried out for her but the mechanical voice boomed again.

"RIFTING IN ONE MINUTE"

The woman on the floor began to glow a faint green color. Every child but Zeke began to bang their fist on the barrier. Instead, he looked on solemnly.

With each second the woman gained radiance until she became almost too bright to look at. Her body could no longer be seen as the room became bathed in green light.

Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.

The mechanical voice spoke once again.

"RIFTING IMMINENT"

Seconds later, the light emanating from the woman was drawn back into her. In the next instant, a vertical distortion appeared in the space behind her. It looked like the air itself was becoming blurry.

As the distortion grew in size, green light flowed from the woman and into the blurry patch until... it suddenly ripped open?

Inside was a violent torrent of green and white light. The orphans looked on with horrified expression as the woman was sucked into the distortion with blinding speed. Nothing remained of her, not even a hair.

Too shocked to move, the children and Icarus stood still. They looked back at Thalia, but she shouted back to them.

"I'm sorry! It's not over yet, just stay where you are!"

One minute passed, then two, and then the light from the rift began to seep out. It flowed rapidly, condensing into a sphere as it grew in brightness.

Once the orb's radiance grew to painful levels, everyone including Thalia covered their eyes.

Because of this, no one saw the tiny silhouette that darted across the room and over the red line.

Immediately after, the orb ruptured, sending a shockwave of Sever Energy through Icarus and his siblings. As his ears were bombarded by the sound of the shockwave, he felt himself become permeated with a strange heat.

When he opened his eyes the room was undamaged. His siblings were in the same place as where he last saw them and they looked unharmed. Aside from the faint tingle he felt only moments ago, he could not feel anything different in his body.

Thalia gathered her brothers and sisters. Bending down on one knee, she addressed them.

"You guys did well. We're almost done here."

Only a few feet behind Thalia a door opened. Standing in the doorway was the same guard from before. He approached the group and stopped right in front of them.

Opening a hand, he revealed six black stone bracelets. They looked exactly the same as the one the woman from the pedestal was wearing. The only difference was that they were not glowing red.

Putting on the same uncanny smile from before, he spoke.

"The six of you will wear these bands for the next few days. If it glows blue...

Congratulations! You will have joined the ranks of the Notched! I trust that I don't need to explain what this means, even to children...

However, if the band grows red...

You will meet the same fate as the woman you saw earlier... Either way, we will come to retrieve you when your band begins to glow. Now, extend your arms"

Icarus and his siblings followed the directions, raising their arms as the guard attached the bands. His smile once again twitched when he clipped the last one onto Icarus's arm.

Finished, the smiling guard walked to leave the room, stopping right before the exit. With his back turned to the orphans, he spoke in a more serious tone.

"Thalia... This was foolish of you. There is wisdom in weakness and strength in wisdom. I hope you've made the right decision."

The man proceeded through the door. Thalia's brothers and sisters questioned her.

"Do you know that guy sis?"

Unfazed by the man's words, Thalia responded.

"Yes, someone from before your time. Now, lets head back. We don't want to be around for the other detonations."

The group of orphans exited the building, noticing that a different guard was at the desk.

As they made their way down the stone street and back towards the security checkpoint they periodically felt explosions emanating from the domed structure.

They even encountered other residents from the slums. Icarus wasn't surprised. He had a feeling the attack from earlier in the week would scare the remaining residents into taking action, no matter how drastic.

The walk back home was completely silent.