Descent

Chapter 7

"Bye! See you in three weeks!" I called. The car rolled down the circular driveway.

The first of every month was when families came to visit. They weren't allowed to come anytime else, because it interfered with our studies.

"Right. I'm Chris, and I'll be your guide. Dorms are this way," a guy said. He strode away, too fast for me to keep up. I fumbled around for my bags and tripped over air trying to catch up.

I ran into the building. The building was huge, but probably small by the standards of New York skyscrapers. Inside, there was lots of white and glass and small mirrors. There was even a huge crystal chandelier.

"C'mon, keep up!" Chris said from the elevator.

I tumbled in and dropped all my bags. My hair flopped all over my face, and I ran my fingers through it, trying to untangle the waves.

"What's with all the rush, if you don't mind me asking," I huffed at my 'guide'.

"Don't get much free time, but they gave me an extra hour to show you around. The faster we get done, the more time I have to myself," he said.

"Is running around like a caffeinated squirrel really worth an extra fifteen minutes?" I laughed, but he didn't say anything.

"This and the next one down are the girls floors. Next two down are boys. No boys on the girls floors, no girls on the boys floors. Each floor teaches three or so different grades, then there's five of just Power Related Arts, and then there's testing and the prison at the top."

"The prison?!"

"Yep. This place doubles as a prison for people who decide to use their powers to commit crimes. It has to. This is the only building in the country equipped to handle people like us. Don't worry, there's an entire floor of security separating the school from the prison. You don't even notice it," he said.

"Here's your schedule. They're being nice and letting you get settled in tonight, so you don't have to go to any classes right now. But tomorrow you better be there and you better not be late," he left before he was even finished speaking.

I looked around the room. It had a small window, white walls and gray sheets. Everything was pristine, if a bit militant. Something I couldn't quite pinpoint made it seem more like military quarters rather than a dorm room.