Abnormal {Book 1: Completed, Book 2: Ongoing}

Chapter 23

Lyanna's POV

Summoning all my willpower, I forced myself to clear any thoughts from my mind. 

Slowly, bit by bit, the red begins to fade from my circle.

10. 

The circle is almost half faded.

9. 8. 7...

Just a little more concentration. I just need...more time...

3.

2.

1.

I am blasted backwards by an invisible force that slams into my chest and forces me out of the circle. I watch in horror as I am trapped in an invisible bubble, with no way of escape.

The rest of the group continues to sit in silence, their heads down, with their minds clear of any thought. Each member has a pure white circle in front of them, and my red circle has disappeared entirely, as if I was never in the group in the first place.

Suddenly, there's a beep coming from directly in front of me, on the inner surface of the glass sphere I'm trapped in. There's another timer, counting down from 30 seconds. 

A new circle appears in front of me, and this time it's still fully red. I stare at it, not comprehending. Am I supposed to do this again and again until I finally get the time down to 30 seconds? What will happen if I fail again?

The timer starts without any sign or warning, and I force myself to breathe in deeply, then out. This time, I don't imagine a white wall.

I imagine a metal box, sealed on all sides with only one lock. I gather all my thoughts, memories and emotions. Then I group them together and throw them into the box, then slam the box shut, locking it.

The redness in my circle is fading fast, and I have 13 seconds left. I open an imaginary panel on the ground, and shove the box inside until it hits the bottom of the hole. Then I slide the panel back in place.

Five seconds left, and my circle is completely white, devoid of any color, not even a red tint. 

Abruptly, my sphere starts to move back to the group, and it leaves me right where I was before so that I'm once again part of the circle. The white circle also appears in front of me, aligning with the circles of the other members of the group.

I'm one of them.

"Now," says the doctor. "Think of one image that comes to your mind when thinking about the Central Government."

Having lost my concentration, my mind immediately wanders to an image of death and destruction. Of teenagers laying on the ground with their necks slit open. With people dying in the streets, hands outstretched for food or cash. Of Adrius, his body on an operation table, doctors standing over him with blades...

A painful sensation explodes in my gut, and a shriek escapes my mouth as my stomach lurches with painful contractions. I feel like retching, but I haven't eaten anything in over 12 hours. 

It must be the pill, I think. The pill must have reacted when I pictured...

"Ms. Collins!" The doctor snaps. "No distractions, please."

Biting down hard on my lower lip, I force my brain to form pictures of happy children running around in a park. Of tall and majestic buildings with people working contentedly in them. Of the President standing on a podium, hundreds of thousands of people applauding him in the stands. I picture a perfect society. An utopian world.

The contractions stop. The pain goes away. My dizziness fades. My breathing starts to even out. 

"Very good, very good," the doctor says. "You may all stand up."

Slightly bewildered, I stand up along with the others, swaying a little.

"Now I want you all to step forwards into the circle in front of you." Everyone, including me, obeys the order, and the circle becomes tighter. I can feel the cold skin of the girl next to me brushing against mine. I can feel goosebumps rise on my forearms, and the back of my neck breaks out in cold sweat. 

"For those of you who just joined," the doctor looks at me pointedly. "This is called the Daily Cleanse."

Each of the circles beep once, and a slow hum starts to come out of the ground. Slowly, bit by bit, I can feel myself getting weaker as the circle draws the energy out of me. 

My veins are turning electric blue, and I start to panic until I realize everyone is experiencing the same thing. The circle seems to be collecting my power. Surprisingly, I only feel a slight tingle, not pain.

After a few moments, the circles stop processing, and the electric blue fades. Then a bright red energy starts seeping back into my veins, so that there is a red glow underneath each of our skins. 

"The Daily Cleanse has ended. Another Doctor will come to collect you soon," our doctor says.