Page 73 of Light Leech

“Yeah, but I’d rather forget it.”

“I figure. Think of it like a bad fix trip. This world connects to our minds the same way as most fixes do.”

“Because you’re an expert on them now that you’ve created one?”

“I know enough to make guys like that lose it. My point is, try not to get hurt in here. I doubt you’ll be spared from all the pain if this test is as zegged up as anything in the world outside but do your best to stay smart. Remember what is on the line. Be selfish and let these people get hurt before you.”

“Well–”

A voice interrupted me. Everyone looked around for a source, though no one seemed to be able to find it. It wasn’t quite a loud announcement, rather a tame voice–the one that belonged to the being who greeted us upon entry–that we could hear despite the crowd.

“Welcome, students, to this round of the Standardized Test! In a moment, the second floor will open for you to begin the first segment. Please proceed in an orderly manner, respecting your fellow students. You have five minutes to reach the second floor. Any delays will not be tolerated and will result in immediate failure and expulsion. Please proceed as instructed, you wouldn’t want to fail on the entrance segment would you? What a shame you would be!”

A rectangular potion in the ceiling disappeared and the room became a cacophonous cluster of impatient pride as every self-proclaimed scholar shouted that they deserved to be one of the first to reach the staircase.

Fortunately for us, Ralia had aimed her rage-baiting conversations towards the staircase.

She slapped my butt, which felt like a tickling ripple in my mind, and pointed for me to follow the others sprinting up the wide white staircase.

The more people who started up the staircase, the more fell off the edges, which lacked a railing. Those who fell blurred with shaking images, just as the slapped man had, though they were quick to stand and return to the bottom of the stairs.

“Hurry the zeg up!” Ralia shouted, pulling me from my distracted pause.

I sprinted after her. With the chamber’s colossal size, the staircase was several stories high. Despite my malfunctioning mod, I was still an impressive runner, though running here was not the same. The fatigue of climbing each step was not met with the buildup of lactic acid. I felt my body slow with my mind. Rather than struggle for the next step as I reached its apex, my mind struggled to think as clearly as I had at the bottom.

We reached the top and after a brief rest, I felt clarity return.

The second level was a mirror of the previous, except for one wall being a violet veil which blurred the path beyond. Ralia and I joined the others and proceeded towards it.

The crowd pushed us forward as more people filled in the space behind us. I checked back to see them struggling forward as the crowd piled in towards the end of the stairs. Some moved to the sides while others would not budge from the top of the staircase.

“Ten seconds remaining,” the voice announced, igniting hysteria around the staircase.

I glanced towards the staircase, no longer able to see the floor in the sea of people.

“This floor has been sealed,” the voice spoke. “Two hundred and fifty of you entered the Test, one hundred and sixty one remain.”

I turned to Ralia, her smile met my trepidation. While it hadn’t surprised me that she took pleasure in the ruthless rigidity, I was surprised that so many had already failed. What would have happened if Ralia hadn’t placed us so close to the staircase? Would we be cut off until we found another assassin to utilize?”

“What do you think happened to the people who didn’t make–”

The announcer cut me off. “In a moment, this light veil will disappear, opening the first segment.”

Shouts of confusion and demands for clarity led me to conclude that even though we were outsiders, none of these competitors had the faintest idea what was happening.

“Segment one: the Race. In this segment of the Standardized Test, you will compete for intellectual endurance. The brightest minds must not only be able to keep and retrieve knowledge, they must also learn to strain their minds to great extents to obtain such knowledge. Only the first seventy-five finishers will be permitted to continue on to the second segment.”

“That few already?” someone shouted.

“I demand an explanation!” Another, her voice haughty and forced to sound so.

“Zeg, you, Lemme forward!”

Bodies pushed us to the side as the group condensed near the front.

“Zeg you, shac, I got here first!”

They continued to shout as the announcer continued. “Those who fail are not fit for Pure Knowledge. Begin.”