Enmeshment

Chapter 14 - The Second Stage

Another day just passed. After our morning routine, Four told us that we were going to have our very first stage two of training. We all sat one by one waiting for our turn to be called. Uriah was sitting across Tris with Marlene and another Dauntless-born initiate that I didn't know her name. Jen tried to avoid eye contact with Uriah while he seemed ok with it. I felt kind of bad for Jen. Four told us before disappearing behind a closed door that the Dauntless-born initiates and the transfers were separated during stage one, but we would be training together from now on.

"So," said the girl with a shaved head who scuffing the floor with her shoe. "Which one of you is ranked first, huh?" her question met with silence at first.

Peter cleared his throat. "Me," he said. "Bet I could take you."

The girl turned the ring in her eyebrows with her fingertips, "I'm second, but I bet any of us could take you, transfer." I could see Tris was almost laughed. I tried my best to hold it too, it felt pretty good when finally someone confronted Peter and made him not feeling cocky like he always did.

"I wouldn't be so sure about that if I were you," said Peter, his eyes were glittering. "Who's first?"

"Uriah!" the girl glanced at him. "And I am sure you know how many years we've spent preparing for this?" she raised her eyebrows made me feel like she tried to intimidate the transfers. Before Peter could reply her, Four opened the door and called the girl, "Lynn!" She got up and walked down the hallway.

"So you're first," said Will to Uriah.

Uriah shrugged. "Yeah... And?"

"And you don't think it's a little unfair that you've spent your entire life getting ready for this, and we are expected to learn it all in a few weeks?" said Will, his eyes narrowing.

"Not really. Stage one was about skill, sure, but no one can prepare for stage two," he added. "At least, so I'm told."

We were sitting in silent and nobody responded to what Uriah said. I didn't know many minutes already left. "How long she's been there?" I asked Tris.

"About twenty minutes. I count each minute on my watch," she answered.

The funny feeling grew inside my stomach, then the door opened again, and Four called another name, "Peter." We were just waiting for about eight minutes until Peter came out looking a bit pale. Next, Four called Molly and she was in the room as long as Lynn. Molly came out from the room, she was trembling and two guys were helping her to walk out. Three other members who have done before Molly also came out shaking to death.

"What have they done to them inside?" Whispered Christina.

"Tris!" Four called and Tris went inside the room.

"Is it going to be that bad?" Asked Christina but I didn't reply.

Surprisingly five minutes later Tris went out from the room. She was so fast compared to others initiate whom already done it and she didn't look afraid like the others.

"Roxy!" Four pointed at me and I headed to the room. He closed the door. "Take a seat. I'll inject you with a serum that stimulates the part of your brain that processes fear. It induces a hallucination and then transmitter in the serum allows me to see the images in your mind."

"It'll show up on the screen?"

"Yes."

"That's pretty magnificent!"

"Lay back," instructed Four and then he injected the serum onto my neck. "Now you're gonna be facing your worst fears. Most people have ten to fifteen really bad ones. You have to calm yourself. Slow your heart rate and your breathing, and deal with what's in front of you," he explained before I closed my eyes.