Prism Book 1 (Complete)

Chapter Ten: The Final Test

It's not long until I realize that Jesse meant for his proposition to be a two way street. Not only did he want me to ignore him, but he was ignoring me as well. The next day, if he ever catches me looking at him, he looks away with no noticeable expression. It's so easy for him. For me, though, it's torture. No matter whether it's a friend or an enemy, if someone tells you that they want nothing to do with you, something inside of you breaks.

The next two weeks present new trends and a new normalcy. Crystal, Chelsea, Gladden and I eat together every day. Next to us on one side-- Kal, AJ, Will, and Jesse. The other side--Sophie, Amar, Jenny, and Lacie. Audra and Josh usually stay together, much to AJ's dismay. During training exercises, that's who we are with. During testing, that's who we sit by, with little variation.

The biggest difference of all came in the area of our physical training. We're often running, jumping, and climbing over obstacles. My muscles are always sore when I wake up.

During lectures, we learn about Seltsam foliage, insects, and wildlife we need to avoid. Additionally, we study the ones that could save our lives. We also have learned significantly more about Idex Predators, the creatures who are holding the prisms hostage.

Five years ago, Rasen discovered that the Idex stay on one side of the city without exception. He concluded that what keeps them away is a certain blue flower that they are deathly allergic to, called Blue Narcissus. The guns the prisms will be given are essentially tranquilizer guns, but instead of sedating the Idexes, they will be killed due to their allergy. The hypodermic needles in the gun are filled with Blue Narcissus petals in liquid form. All we have to worry about is our aim.

Who knew flowers could be so powerful?

We are given laser guns to practice shooting moving targets. For me, it's strange to hold even a fake gun. Could I actually be shooting this dangerous creature in my near future?

Director Callahan and Rej put us in dark rooms with glowing, moving Idex targets. I can usually hit them about 60% of the time. The best shooters are Jesse, Gladden, and Lacie, who almost never miss. The good thing about these bullets are, they don't have to be lodged in the heart or head of the Idex. The bullet just has to touch them to be lethal.

One day after running a mile, Audra wearily waves me over to her. We are in a huge, cold gym on the same floor as the parking garage. Different areas of SIA open up to us as needed, and I found out quickly that we were not shown every room in the building that day on the surveillance floor. Exhausted, I walk over to her, noticing she is holding two water bottles in her hand.

"Iris," she breathes hard, "I can't remember which one is yours." She gestures to the bottles.

"Just pick one," I tell her, breathing hard.

"I didn't know if it was safe to switch drinks," she says, still looking between them.

"Why wouldn't it be?"

"I don't know. Kal said that it's special water that helps us to get into shape faster based on our weight and height."

I laugh, but it's cut off by a much needed inhale of air. "Audra, this is Kal we are talking about," I remind her. "He has a theory about everything."

"I don't know," she went on, "I've never been able to run that far in one sitting."

I pause, contemplating her words. "It doesn't matter." I take one of the bottles and drink it as I walk away. Could that be true? Is our water made up of some concoction from the laboratory, so that we are in better shape in time for Seltsam?

Callahan often holds lectures on our abilities. She reminds us of Building 421, where we saw buildings do the impossible. "Just like you saw the manipulated world, act as if you live in a manipulated world. You will only know the confines and extent of your abilities if you test them."