Cured (6 page)

“Hi Regina.” I attempted to smile in return.
She walked towards me and took my hand

“Now you realise that it is necessary for
Primes to undergo a series of initiation tests to establish your
rank on Olympia and find you a fitting career?” Regina asked.

I gulped. Of course I had known that.
Everyone knew about the initiation tasks. But I also knew that
there was no way I would get through them. They were specifically
designed to be accomplishable only by the superhuman. I didn’t even
have a chance.

I nodded,
trying to keep my cool, “Yep, can’t wait.” I gulped.

She then beckoned for me to follow her,
before gliding away, heading back through the hidden door. 
I
followed her, and tried to match her walk, perfecting my Prime
strides, and feeling like a complete moron.

Chapter
10



My mouth
fell open in amazement. I had expected another grand marble room,
but what stood before me was the longest hallway I had ever seen.
The entire hall was littered with countless doors and made
completely of glass, allowing one to see into every room. Regina
hurried me along, pulling me to the first door. Before we entered I
could see a table filled with people. She swung the glass open and
led me inside. We had clearly entered a conference room. There was
a large oval shaped metal table in the centre surrounded by
matching chairs that were filled by the other new Primes. Felix,
who sat at the head of the table, let out a visible sigh of relief
as I entered the room. I grinned at him, even though my entire body
was shaking with fear. He winked back at me before patting an empty
seat next to him. I looked at Regina for approval and she nodded. I
tried to walk in a composed manner as a Prime would do, but when I
sat down I reached out and gave Felix’s hand a light squeeze under
the table. He turned to me and smiled, but I saw fear in his eyes,
which confirmed my fears. He didn’t have any master plan to get us
through these tests.

Regina cleared her throat, and I turned to
her, my nausea returning and my head feeling light.

“Hello, Newbies,” she cooed in a sickeningly
high-pitched voice, “So you are our new generation of Primes. Or
rather, you will be, once you complete your Prime initiation
trials. So have a look around this table, because it is more than
likely you’ll be spending your life with these people atop
Olympia!”

I looked around the table; there were only
seven of us. Opposite me was a brunette girl with a pretty face and
porcelain skin. Her hair was dead straight and glossy. I wondered
how she kept it that way whilst living in Norm conditions. She wore
a white button up shirt that was only slightly grubby, and a black
pencil skirt, which was impressively crease-free but a little too
big for her. She must have come from an academic Field; she was too
clean to be an Artistic or Labourer. Her hands were folded in front
of her and she was very composed, her eyes bright and her cheeks
rosy.

Next to her was a dark-haired boy with an
angular face. He wore a self-satisfied smirk and a leather jacket
that was torn all over. He was drumming his fingers on the table in
an irritating way, and kept flexing his neck causing it to crack
loudly. Under the jacket I could tell that his arms were bulging
with muscle, and his shoulders were broad. He looked like a
Labourer.

Beside him was a tiny, young looking girl.
She had white hair with a lilac streak at the front. Her featured
were pointed and her arms were crossed over her chest, but I could
see that her grey smock was dotted with colourful stains. Paint.
She was from the Artistic Field.

“So,” asked a deep voice belonging to the boy
sitting next to me, “When do we start our trials?”

I turned to see who had spoken and my heart
jumped a little in my chest. His dark brown hair was naturally
ruffled and his eyes were a deep brown. He wore a plain white
t-shirt and dark jeans, with a delicate silver chain around his
neck. He looked so different, all grown up and up close, but it was
undoubtedly him.

“THEO?” I all but yelled in his face. My mind
reeled. My best childhood friend was sitting right next to me. Theo
was a Prime! I clapped my hand over my mouth to keep from squealing
in delight. I had to keep up my Prime pretense, and Primes rarely
lost their cool.

Theo looked at me and cocked his head to the
side, giving me a confused and almost irritated look, “Avery Rose,”
he nodded in cold acknowledgement, before turning back to face
Regina.

I blushed scarlet and bowed my head, hurt by
my friend’s lack of greeting. The girl sitting next to him let out
a delighted laugh at the awkward interaction, before flipping her
golden ringlets and proceeding to examine her fingernails. She was
dressed in a red flippy dress that only had one tear across the
shoulder, and she wore a matching lipstick. Definitely from an
academic Field of some sort. I shot her a dirty look but she didn’t
notice, apparently too engrossed in her cuticles.

Regina answered Theo’s question, “First you
must be trained. Trust me, you would not want to attempt these
challenges with no knowledge of the dangers you will be facing.”
She smirked condescendingly and tapped the WallScreen to turn it
on. I clenched my fists involuntarily. If she smirked one more time
I was going to slap that stupid smile right off her perfectly made
up face.

Chapter 11

“Hello, Regina Quaint.” The Screen greeted
her. “And hello, Newbies. Good luck for your initiation tests.”

“Initiation introduction,” Regina said to the
Wall and the Screen flicked to a scrolling text.

“Welcome Newbies,” the Screen read. “As you
know, each of you is one of a select few who react abnormally to
The Cure. This probably means that prior to your Curing, your mind
was very equally balanced. The Cure could therefore not find one
particular section of the brain more developed than the others to
emphasize. When this occurs, the result is that the Cure is
distributed evenly to all aspects of the body and mind, and the
chemical effects are heightened. This means that Primes are able to
complete both physical and mental tasks beyond what any human being
could ever accomplish.”

The screen paused and the Newbies sat back in
their chairs, allowing the realization to set in. They were Primes.
They were superiors. Everyone except Felix and me. We shared a
nervous glance.

“Initiation process,” Regina instructed the
Screen.

The Wall spoke again, “As you already know,
Newbies are to participate in a set of initiation trials which will
determine your placement on Olympia. What you may not know,
however, is that in the past there have been humans who evaded the
Cure. These humans somehow managed to avoid swallowing the pill,
and then simulated the actions and behaviours of Primes so as to be
permitted to live the luxurious lifestyle awarded to Prime
community. Each and every one of these imposters has been
discovered sooner or later, as they drop their cover-act or are
unable to complete the tasks that new Primes are required to carry
out to determine their place on Olympia.”

Felix and I met each other’s gaze again.

“To catch these criminals before they are
introduced to the Prime lifestyle, each Newbie is required to
undergo an initiation process. We have developed a series of
challenges designed to test Newbies, both physically and mentally,
to ensure their Prime status.

“As well as eliminating imposters, the trials
will determine which position each of you is designated upon
Olympia. The Newbie with the top trial score is awarded first
choice of residence and career on the mountain. The second top
trial scorer gets second choice, and so forth,” the Screen paused,
waiting for instruction.

“Initiation history.” Said Regina.

The Screen piped up again, “Our modern
society is largely based on that of Ancient Greece. The peace and
prosperity evident in the Greek Empire is something to be admired
and hopefully mirrored in today’s world.

“In ancient Greece, there was believed to be
a multitude of Gods. In mythology, when these Gods produced
offspring with humans, the result was demi-gods. These individuals
possessed some godly powers, but were only half divine. As far as
scientists today can tell, it seems that Primes are very similar to
demi-gods by way of super-human qualities. “Hercules is a very
famous demi-god who was forced to utilize every ounce of
super-being within himself to complete a series of labours. You
have all studied Greek history in class and probably already have a
sound knowledge of what these tasks were.

“The Twelve Labours of Hercules were designed
to push the physical, mental and emotional boundaries of the
demi-god. These tasks have been replicated in the current day in
the forms of tests by which we assess new Primes. The tests are
never the same as previous years, but are always based on each of
the dozen tasks that Hercules was required to complete.”

The Screen stopped speaking. I winced as I
felt a hard blow to my shin under the table. I looked up and Felix
caught my eye, before pressing a discrete finger to his lips in a
hushing motion. I realized I had been breathing heavily in panic,
and moved my hand to cover my mouth and muffle my anxious
gasps.

“So, young Primes,” Regina was grinning
manically, “I would be lying if I was to say that these tests are
easy. They’re not. They are designed to push Newbies to their
physical, mental and emotional limits. But they are very possible.
Those who complete the tests with the most outstanding results will
be rewarded for their efforts accordingly, and once you graduate
initiation, you may all look forward to life on Olympia amongst the
other Primes.

“This year we have been blessed with seven
Newbies!” she clapped her hands, “The average Curing ceremony
produces between two and three. This means that there will be more
competition during the tasks. You will be fighting for your
futures.” Everyone at the table began to slide glances at each
other, sizing up the competition. I remained still, my eyes trained
to the table, my hands dripping with sweat.

“
Your trial
training will start tomorrow, my dears, so for the rest of the day
you will be treated to rest and luxury.” She gave one more overly
enthusiastic grin before twirling around and sauntering out of the
room, shouting over her shoulder, “Toodaloo Newbies!”



When the door
closed behind Regina there was an awkward silence. Everyone sat,
not knowing where to go or what to do. Then, one by one, the new
Primes sat straight and lifted their noses into the air, slow
smiles spreading across their faces. Felix and I turned to each
other with quizzical expressions, wondering what the Newbies were
doing. Felix shrugged and imitated the actions of the real Newbies.
I stifled a laugh as he lifted his nose in to the air and sniffed,
trying to copy the Primes, but looking like he had gone insane. I
looked around just as the door to the conference room door opened
again, and a train of young children entered the room, laden with
huge silver dishes. Finally, the smell hit me. It was divine. No
wonder the Primes had reacted in such an odd way with their
heightened senses, especially the ones who had never had the luxury
of cooked food.

In the Fields, they were used to swallowing
their daily nutrition in one pill. Each family had a WallScreen in
their cramped apartment. And each day, the Screen produced a bunch
of pills, one for each family member, which contained a set amount
of calories, vitamins and nutrients. This way Norms did not have to
waste time and labour hours by stopping for food breaks. On Olympia
however, we ordered fully prepared meals from our WallScreens, or
had Labour Norms cook for us. Eating was a luxury that only Primes
could afford.

The train of children split off, so that each
Newbie had a child waiting on them. The children placed a small
bowl of red liquid in front of each place setting and laid out
cutlery in the correct manner. The new Primes looked uncomfortable,
their eyes shifting around uneasily. It took me a while to realize
that they did not know any table etiquette. I picked up my spoon
and plunged it into the soup. The new Primes quickly followed suit.
As I ladled the warm liquid into my mouth, I was overwhelmed by
sensation. This was even better than food on Olympia. The thick
tomato soup was decadent and rich in flavour. I devoured it in
seconds, suddenly realizing how hungry I was after such a stressful
morning. The children returned, filling glass goblets with a golden
stream of bubbles, which turned out to be NectarAle. I decided not
to drink the alcohol, since I was sure I would need a clear mind to
keep up my Prime facade.

Next, the children heaved numerous silver
platters onto the centre of the table and removed their lids. The
new Primes started to drool as huge piles of fried chicken, lamb
chops, Kobe beef, and salmon slabs were revealed. In between meat
plates were dishes of multi-coloured salads and vegetables that I
had never laid eyes upon before. The Primes eyed up the food
hungrily but looked to me again for advice on protocol. A pretty
blonde girl of no more than six years old passed me a set of
serving tools and then dropped into a curtsy. I thanked the young
girl and she blushed beet red before scurrying out of the room.

I served huge mounds of food onto my plate,
selecting a large portion of every dish before handing the servers
over to Felix. Even though Felix and I were accustomed to real
food, we ate as hungrily and excitedly as the new Primes. After
polishing off my entire plate I sunk back into my chair, rubbing my
stomach uncomfortably. The new Primes looked at me with puzzled
expressions. I stared back at the tiny white-haired girl, wondering
how she managed to put away a meal twice the size of my own, yet
she looked barely satisfied. Felix kicked me under the table again
and I frowned at him. I was going to have a bruise if he kept the
kicking up. He glanced from my empty plate, to the other diners and
then back to me, giving me a pointed look.