Rebel

Chapter Eight

"Well done," Cathleen said. "You did surprisingly good for someone with your level of... your level of confidence." It took all of my power not to snort. She was talking about my pride. "But anyway," Cathleen continued, "We have some extra time, so I think we'll do one more. Here is this." Cathleen handed me a vial containing gray liquid, "You should know the procedure by now. Your power will be teleportation. Good luck."

I popped the lid of the vial and didn't waste a second before I plugged my nose and choked down the liquid. It tasted like mud and sweat and was hard to swallow. Cathleen seemed pleased by my lack of hesitation. She smirked slightly as she pressed the button on her holograph. That was the last thing I saw before everything went dark again.

I opened my eyes. I was in a deserted street. It was mid day and the sunlight was reflecting into my eyes from a nearby window. I couldn't remember how I got here, so I decided to just walk down the street and see what I found. It's peaceful here, I thought, all deserted and quiet. Just then, a giant clock at the end of the street rang. It banged so loud that the houses shook and my teeth ground together.

Then, to my great horror, every door in the street flew open, and a giant stream of people started flooding into the street. I pressed myself against the nearest wall and watched as the street quickly filled up with chatting people.

"This is overwhelming." I muttered to myself as the crowds got closer and closer to me. Soon enough, there were so many people that they were grazing the walls. I cleared my throat at no one in particular, "Excuse me, can you not--"

Someone bumped me with their elbow and pushed me into the stream of people. I tried to run back to the wall, but there were no gaps in the crowd. I could feel my heart hammering in my ribs like a bird trying to get out of a cage. My breaths were coming in fast rasps. Don't you dare hyperventilate. I commanded myself, trying to calm my lungs despite the many bodies pushing me around.

Just then, I remembered something. I thought of a quiet field, absent any humans, and turned on the spot. There was a cracking noise and everything went black. I couldn't feel anyone pushing against me any more, and it was quiet. I opened my eyes and there I was in the field I was thinking about before. The sound of birds filled the air and I let out a breath I didn't even know I was holding.

"Well done." Cathleen's voice said, "Come back."

This time I was expecting it. I held myself straight even though I felt like I was being squished through a tube, and opened my eyes right away when I stopped. Cathleen was smirking at me, even though she tried to hide it by taking off her glasses.

"That simulation you just did is called Fear One. There are three kinds of simulations" humiliation, rage, and fear. There are also three different severities of each category. You just took the mildest version of fear. I believe that very soon, you will have them all mastered. We are out of time today, however. You may go."

I nodded and stood up. I could feel Cathleen staring at me as I made my way to the door. It was about nine o' clock, but I decided I was going to go to bed. Even though the simulation was over, the illusion of fear and humiliation still lingered.