- Hurry up, Asmara whispered.
- It's okay, I'm here, what do I do this time, I whispered.
- That's the problem, you did absolutely nothing, it's useless, she whispered.
She had pulled me into the shadow of the crowd, just a few steps from the entrance.
- Listen to me carefully, No. 1, she whispered, Alpha 1 is not here to applaud us, that pest, you don't talk to her, you don't approach her, if you open your mouth and she finds a problem to remove, we'll replace you, and we with you
- Alpha 1?....replace me? Why?
- Use it a little, you're the boss but are you up to it?
The room suddenly went dark, a halo surrounded the stage, Alpha 1 stepped forward, a smile on his lips.
- My dear… Beginner~, she said in a clear, almost sing-song voice.
A shiver ran down my spine, reminding me of our many encounters, I had already done everything Asmara had just forbidden me and perhaps much worse than that.
- Welcome to the selection, she sang, this is the only way to get to the top but also the quickest way to bring you down.
She reached out, and as if by magic, the massive screens behind her lit up, bars of color, numbers, and words floating.
TEST LEVEL - SQUAD CHOICE
- This year the level is a little high, but that's because the candidates are too, like our two brave geniuses.
A screen moved forward and projected images of Ela and Chetan, still locked in their tube, their bodies held in the green liquid.
- Here are your new "models" of evolution, two children of the "pit" but already higher than some of us who are still here, if you do not manage to catch up with them then your fate is sealed.
A wicked smile played on his lips, and his cold eyes fell on me or rather on us, I felt my stomach knot, just for a second but that final look entered my blood.
Asmara stared at her, her fist tight, visibly not very happy to see her, I thought she would jump for joy, this is an opportunity for her to find her place again...
The screens merge into a single whole, scrolling through the tests to choose from.
TEST LEVEL
WHITE - internal simulation, risk: none. Promotion: continue training if successful.
YELLOW - peripheral patrol, risk: control. Promotion: in-depth training in a field of choice
ORANGE - sectoral descent (high pit), risk: medium, promotion: patrol with intermediaries
RED - real interception (low-pit), risk: high. Promotion: intermediate rank
BLACK - neutralize a target (forest of shadows or Transemotional under control), risk: critical or even death. Promotion: Emotional track and assignment of a TRACK.
- You choose, here, now, whispered the old man.
- Set ~, resumed alpha 1, palm raised a sign approached.
1- choice by squad, simple vote, validation by the "leader"
2- red/black failure equals immediate demotion
3- any incident endangering a pillar is equal to a sanction
4- orange success equal to one promotion point and access to higher courses
Asmara didn't take her eyes off me.
- At Omega, it's always been "black" or nothing, you're the boss, you know what to do, she whispered.
- Black?... It's certain death, I murmured, in shock.
- You sign, you shut up and you follow
- I…
- "I" what?, you're not ready, too bad, you stay back and let us do the work, don't worry you'll pretend in front of the cameras
I was completely frozen, I didn't even know how to react, pretend, are you serious?
The old man raised his cane.
- Open procedure, unit hidden, distribute voting modules, five minutes per squad.
We were given a screen miner, a pellet was floating on the screen
Omega - choice of test
Asmara almost glues her forehead to mine
- You validate and that's it, do it now