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1
ISABELLA
Be invisible. That is the rule that has been ingrained in me from the day I opened my eyes. It is the code by which I have lived my entire life, and the reason why I’m still alive. Now, abiding by it is more important than ever, because the very people who taught me that vital rule are out for blood. Specifically, mine.
“Listen up!”
I shift my gaze to the instructor, Ms. Saber, by the door. She is dark-haired and looks to be in her thirties, but her gray eyes are sharp enough to slice through steel. This is the first time our class has met her since we started at Blackwater University a few weeks ago, but everyone already seems terrified of her.
Since I was raised in a literal cult led by a dictatorial man who expects complete obedience, I’m not particularly intimidated by her. Rather the opposite. I quite like her, because she has a no-nonsense attitude and bold confidence but without being cruel. And that is a good combination.
“You’re about to be tested on your ability to remain calm while your instincts are screaming at you to panic,” Saber continues. Twisting slightly, she raps her knuckles on the metal door behind her. “After you go through this door, line up along the edge.”
Nervous tension ripples through the group. Not all first-years are present for this class. This morning, we were split into several groups so that there are only about fifteen people in each group. Based on that, I’m assuming that whatever we’re about to do is going to take place in a rather limited space.
“The edge of what?” a guy to my left asks hesitantly.
I glance towards him.
Gods above, he looks so young. They all look so young. Most of them are probably twenty, since they enrolled at Blackwater right after high school. I’m only two years older than them, but because of everything I’ve done, I feel like I’ve been an adult since I was five.
“You’ll see when you get there.” Ms. Saber grabs the handle and shoves the door open. “Get to it.”
The smell of chlorine wafts through the door.
Staying in the back half of the group, I follow the others across the threshold and into the room beyond. It’s a large space, shaped like a rectangle. And just like the smell indicated, in the center of it is a pool.
While carefully moving towards the long side where the others are lining up, I study the water as well as our surroundings. Metal bleachers run along one side of the room, but they’re deserted. In fact, the whole room is. The surface of the water is smooth as a mirror. Not one ripple disturbs it.
I flick my gaze around it again, trying to figure out what it is that they are about to do to us in order to induce panic.
The metal door bangs shut behind Saber as she enters the room as well. Everyone else has lined up along the edge of the pool. Since we didn’t know that we would be getting into a pool, everyone is dressed in normal clothes. A few people glance down at their garments, as if they’re worried that those will become too heavy when wet. I’m wearing a pair of jeans and a tight-fitting black t-shirt, and I’ve survived swimming in far worse attire, so I know that I’ll be fine.
“Your mission is simple,” Saber announces as she strides over to a panel by the wall. “Find your way out of the pool.”
Several of my classmates furrow their brows in confusion while others quickly check to see where the pool ladders are located. I don’t, because I already checked that the moment I walked inside. And the answer is that there are none. But the water level is only about a foot or so below the edge of the pool, so it will be easy to climb out of it anyway.
“When I say jump, you will all jump into the pool at the same time,” Saber declares. “Anyone who does not jump will be immediately expelled.”
That raises a few eyebrows, but before anyone can comment or ask questions, Ms. Saber barks the order.
“Jump!”
We do.
The mirror smooth surface shatters as all fifteen of us jump into the pool at the same time. Water splashes around us, and then the world is drowned out. Through the thick muffling effect from the water, I can hear the people around me moving, but I don’t open my eyes.
I’m just about to start swimming back to the surface when another sound cuts through the water.
Metallic whirring.
I snap my eyes open in time to see a sheet of metal shoot out from the wall behind us and quickly move towards the other side of the pool. It’s low enough to run through the water, so it’s blocking our way to the surface.
If I wasn’t busy holding my breath, I would’ve snorted. Sothatis how they were planning to create panic.
And based on the reactions of the people closest to me, it’s working. Their movements are jerky as they flail their limbs to get to the metal sheet. Dull clanging sounds echo through the water as several of them bang their fists against the metal. I shake my head.
Since I know that our instructors aren’t actually trying to kill us, not actively anyway, I’m confident that there is a logical way to get out. After all, that was what she said the test was all about. Staying calm and thinking clearly while our animalistic survival instincts are screaming at us that we are going to die.
