After the departure of Nurse Ives, Roan sat on his seat observing. There were many people like himself. Test subjects, lab rats, each trapped in their own cage. Some ate mechanically, with no life to be seen on their eyes. Others whispered in low, hushed voices careful not to draw any attention. A few glanced at him and he felt every single gaze pierce into his being like a knife.
"Attention. The cafeteria will close in 30 minutes. If you haven't eaten already please do so now." A cold, robotic voice awoke Roan from his daydreaming. His tense shoulders, dropped as if carrying the weight of the world.
Exhaling softly, Roan got up from his seat and made his way to the lunch line. His mind still processing the foreign memories slowing interconnecting to one another like a self-solving puzzle. Though it's hard to trust people, especially in an environment like this, he recalled making some friends. He couldn't remember their faces just yet though, Just voices.
On the way, he noticed a boy holding a food tray heading straight toward him. Roan stepped slightly to the side, but it wasn't enough. Their shoulders collided which resulted in the boy's food spilling on the ground and his drink falling onto his dish.
"Watch where you're going, dumbass. You bumped into me!" The boy yelled, his face twisting in anger.
Yelling, or talking too loud, was basically asking to be noticed. That could prove to be fatal, though the boy clearly didn't care.
"What, are you too scared to say something, punk?! Apologise!" The boy's eyes burnt into Roan, urging him to respond.
He met the boy's gaze and didn't speak at all. He didn't need to as often times, actions speak louder than words. His heart rate quickened, his pupils dilated. He felt his jaw clench and his hands tingling as adrenaline coursed through his body.
The boy looked around and seeing all the tension, he hesitated. With a scoff, the boy left. "Tsk… whatever. Keep your freakish stare to yourself, punk."
Roan's jaw loosened, his shaking hands quickly calming down. He adjusted his shirt which now had a stain, thanks to the conflict moments prior. Grabbing his food, unseasoned meat with plain white rice and a plastic water cup, he sat down.
"Hey." Before he could eat, a voice whispered. Turning to his right, he saw a girl. She had green eyes that were vibrant like a forest and black hair reaching down to her waist. Unlike him, she didn't appear malnourished. Her cheeks were softly rounded, and her frame carried a gentle fullness that set her apart from the lean faces around them.
"My name is Sasha, pleased to meet you. You?" Before Roan could reply, Sasha stuffed a potato in her mouth.
"Dude, you think this potato is expired? It tastes like shit." Her eyes narrowed, shooting a glare at the tray.
"Roan... My name is Roan." Roan replied, with a small grin forming on his face. He was slightly amused at her clear displeasure.
"The way you handled that was pretty badass not going to lie Roan." She was impressed. All her conflicts and arguments always escalated into verbal, or even physical fights.
"Thanks, I think he did it on purpose though..." He took his plastic utensils and cut the meat, albeit with some difficulty and spoke as he ate.
"Definitely. You're not the first he's done that too. His name is Zane and he's just a coward. Look at him sat all by himself like a loser." Roan followed her gaze and saw the boy who he bumped into on the last seat. Unsurprisingly, he wasn't eating his soggy food...
"Serves him right." Eventually, he ate his food. He nearly gagged multiple times and he agreed with Sasha, it tasted disgusting. He had no idea how meat, even if unseasoned, could taste this bad. Beggars couldn't be choosers though, he was malnourished after all.
"Attention. The cafeteria will now be closing shortly. Please make your way out." The robotic voice spoke once again. As if on queue, the cafeteria door opened, revealing Nurse Ives.
She strode towards Roan's seat with confident steps, completely ignoring Sasha.
"Cafeteria time is now over Roan, get ready and let's go. I still have more to show you." Roan hesitated but stood up nonetheless and followed Nurse Ives.
"Oh you're going now Roan? It was nice meeting you!" Roan stopped and turned, about to reciprocate the gesture when he noticed Sasha's left hand was missing 3 fingers.
'Weird, how did I not notice such an obvious detail when she was right next to me...' Seeing Roan stare at her deformed hand, Sasha tried playing cool and tucked her hair behind her ears.
Shifting his attention on more pressing matters, he noticed Nurse Ives further ahead. He picked up the pace and both ended up leaving the premises.
For the rest of the day, Roan was shown more facilities. The stress rooms, where physical and emotional limits were tested. These could be accessed anytime but would require supervision. Under the careful watch of Nurse Ives, Roan did various tests. He tested his limits by increasing gravity by two times. Sweat ran down his forehead as his knees buckled. His entire body felt as if he was under an hydraulic press but he held strong.
He increased the gravity further by another two times. His small feeling of victory got instantly incinerated as his kneecaps shattered under four times gravity. He wanted to scream and squirm but couldn't. It's as if Mt Everest was pressing against his lungs and holding his body down like shackles. Sensing danger, his Soulmark instinctively reacted. Roan felt his body mend, his kneecaps growing anew only to shatter moments later.
"Nurse Ives, requesting for a specialist on Stress Room 7-R, immediately." She said, in a sense of urgency. Nurse Ives being a regular nurse couldn't help Roan even if she wanted to. Even if she could go inside the chamber, carrying Roan on top of four times gravity would add an extra layer of difficulty, hence why she called for a Specialist.
Specialists were mid-level authoritative figures in SCD. They were Bloomers who held incredible strength and physical might. They outrank Nurses and manage any containment staff in the facility. Nurses are to strictly request assistance when it came to any and all matters regarding any test subject.
Above Specialists, were Senior Specialists and unlike the former who aren't permitted to leave SCD, Senior Specialists strictly handle any activities on the outside world.
Right after calling for assistance, Nurse Ives felt shivers across her spine, as if she was prey being hunted. She turned, only to see a shirtless man of imposing might.
Standing at 8'4"(254cm), his shoulders broad and his back thick like a turtle shell. He completely ignored the presence of Nurse Ives and stared at the struggling Roan, his eyes closed.
Much like Nurse Ives, Roan too felt the man's stare. It was far heavy than any gaze in the cafeteria for comparison. His eyes opened abruptly and his mind temporarily forgetting the pain. How could he, when adrenaline was coursing through his body like a tsunami.
He didn't know how, when, or what, but his vision quickly darkened as a humongous hand wrapped around his skull. One moment, he was staring at the absolute behemoth, then the next he was coughing for dear life at the side of Nurse Ives. By the time he caught his bearings, the man was nowhere to be seen.
"I called for a Specialist, why did a Senior show up.." Nurse Ives said, wiping the sweat forming on her forehead. She noticed how he ignored her presence and stared directly at Roan.
"Who was that Nurse Ives?" Roan's brain couldn't even register how he moved from point A to point B. The encounter was brief and it hadn't even lasted a minute, yet felt like an eternity.
"That's not important but what you did was stupid. You're lucky Senior Specialist Odin left just as quickly as he came." Her eyes flared with anger as she reprimanded Roan.
Roan was taken aback from the shift in tone as he'd never seen Nurse Ives upset. Flustered, he quickly apologised.
"I'm sorry I know that was stupid, I'm aware. However I had to see what my current limits are for me to improve. I'm sure any kid in the other stress rooms could withstand four times gravity or even higher. yet I got crushed like a bug.." Nurse Ives remembered she was talking to a 14 year old boy and shoved her anger on the back of her throat.
Nurse Ives took Roan back into his containment unit and nothing eventful happened on the way back. The Nurse wished farewell and made sure to remind Roan to rest as they had more to explore tomorrow.
A/N: This chapter is longer than usual. :)