The Coordinate

Chapter 3: Room Designations

Lazy limbs, heavy eyes, and an even lazier body.

Sleep was almost impossible to achieve after last night. How can anyone in the plane sleep so peacefully knowing that something unknown had just glided past them?

As her consciousness was finally about to drift away, a bright, glaring light shone on her, piercing through her eyelids. She covered her face with her hands, but then the aircraft shook, making her jump from her seat.

The speaker played a melody before speaking, "Attention, Wake up. We've arrived in Washington, DC. But we're not stopping here. Get your things, force yourself awake, and group yourselves again on the waiting shed on the apron. Wait for me there."

Winter yawned and opened her eyes. Dim sunlight, just barely piercing the exhaustions shot through the windows. She turned around, finding the others walking towards the exit. Rori had just woke up too, stretching her sleek, toned arms and performing brief exercises on her seat.

Black.

Rough hands covered her eyes again.

"Jordan..." she said flatly, "I didn't get to sleep much last night."

"Well, of course you wouldn't. You kept thinking about that glowing orb last night."

"How can anyone not be? I'm sure even the novasapiens don't see that kind of thing everyday!"

"It's on our minds too, you know. Except they're more worried and focused on the capability tests than anything else right now."

"You doing fine, Winter?" Rori joined, "Oh, haven't slept much I see."

"This is so going to kill my performance for the test..."

"Well, we still have eight hours until the test begins.

Winter forced herself up, grabbing her bags on the floor and forcing herself to walk to the exit. Her limbs were like wet noodles, her fingers struggling to hold on to her bags.

Jordan swooped in and crossed his arm around hers, letting her lean as they walked, "Thanks," she breathed weakly. They walked down the platform and into the landing bay apron. Rows of other aircrafts sat on the apron, with each having their own waiting shed and pathways to the airport buildings, but they weren't here for that. They were to head to the large waiting shed on the far end of the landing bay.

"Hehe, do you want me to sweep you off your feet and carry you?" Jordan said as they walked with the group, following Mrs. Finch's protocols.

"If you really want to baby me so bad, then do it."

A grin crept on Jordan's face.

A stong force swept Winter's feet and before she fell, Winter found herself on Jordan's arms. The group stopped to look back at them.

"Hey!"

"Hah! You did tell me to do it." Jordan chuckled.

"I wasn't serious, you dumbass!"

"If you're going to challenge me like that, then damn right I'm going to do it."

Snickering and suppressed laughter spread through the group, alongside straightforward teasing and questions.

"Put me down." Winter ordered, and Jordan did so. Immediately, however, she forced her legs to jog to Rori. Jordan caught up and tried to wrap his hands around her, but the girl ducked.

"Back." said Winter, pointing at him. Jordan froze, holding his hands up. Rori snickered as Winter caught up with her.

"Still as loyal as a puppy, it looks like." Rori said.

"As annoying as one too."

"I think I remember you saying you liked that."

"I would, but I'm not in the mood right now."

Rori looked back at Jordan, and alreaady, he was surrounded by the others, talking, laughing at him, and asking him all kinds of questions. "Everyone probably would've assumed you were his girlfriend. You're not going to clear up any of their misunderstandings?"

Winter scoffed, "Like I care what anyone thinks."

Rori threw a laugh, "This is why I'm your only friend, Winter."

"Well, it's not like I need any."

"You do need friends. Even a soldier needs friends."

"Isn't that counter intuitive for when they eventually get killed?"

Rori shuddered, "It's to save you when you almost get killed, silly. Damn, what's with this cynical attitude today?"

A bus came around and stopped near them. Finch came out from it. "Are you all here?" Finch said as she performed a head count, "Good. Now, into the bus everyone. We'll be heading to Ytrial, Washington's underground city."

They all stepped into the bus orderly and waited. Winter chose a seat farthest from the window, where that hot light couldn't reach her eyes. Others looked at the windows, their eyes lit up as they filled the bus with wows and amazed gasps. They were sights not meant for her. They were just plain buildings under the light of a similarly veiled, enraged maiden. The bus stopped for a moment, and Mrs. Finch, who sat by the driver, stood up and talked with someone by the windows in nova speech.

A few moments later, Finch faced the students, "Seatbelts everyone, we're going to descend in a few seconds."

Winter quickly fastened her seatbelts and tightened her grip on her bags.

Gravity turned from their below to the front, forcing them to lean forward to the seats in front of them. The low droning sound filled the air as Winter's stomach became light. The bus descended down fast, like a rollercoaster dropping. With her heart pumping and her head nauseous, she buried her face into the seat in front of her as she held herself from hurling.

Rubber against asphalt screeched as the bus slowed down, pressing them further to the front, where the seatbelts were the only ones stopping them from launching them forward. And finally, gravity centered again.

Winter opened her eyes again, though her heart stomach was still queasy and her vision blurry. Bright light shone through the windows as the students in the bus poked their heads out of the bus. Out of curiosity, Winter stood up and looked through the front window.

Eight massive stone pillars stood erect on the corners of the city, and like every underground town, the ceiling of the cave was covered in hundreds of miles of artificial lights designed to mimic sunlight during the day, and moonlight during the night. The walls of the city was completely covered in metal, where on other underground cities, they were just mounds of unrefined stone.

A city built in an artificially created cave, that was what underground cities looked like, but this one looked like a gigantic station you'd find in sci-fi movies.

Her expectations of where the capital of talents and prodigies would look like were, suffice to say, exceeded.

"Damn..."

"Damn is right," Jordan's voice appeared. Arms suddenly wrapped his arms around his neck. "Quite different from what you'd find anywhere else."

Winter turned back, seeing him standing up from the chair behind her."It kinda scares me though. We're staying in a place like this?"

"I helped built this city, you know." Finch joined their conversation, her head poking from the front passenger seat, smiling like she was proud of something, "Talents are nested and hatched here to be spread to the world. I hope you two can exceed my expectations, especially you, Jordan."

"Yeah, yeah." He said. Jordan's arms and fingers suddenly tightened around her.

"Jordan?" Winter looked at him, worried.

"Oh... nothing. I'll tell you later." Jordan feigned a smile, though she saw past it. Jordan knew she saw past it."

Finch suddenly stood up from her seat and faced the cabin,"We're here, everyone. Ytrial City. I'm sure most of you have never been here before, so I'll break down everything for you. Ytrial City is Washington, DC's underground city, and the Earth's center of intellectual traffic, research, and government offices. Brilliant minds from all over the globe gather here to study, research, and find talents to further their businesses and goals. Think of it as this generation's Silicone Valley, where prominent figures and companies were birthed. Key figures here are people like Lotek Bubu, the novasapien who developed the cell regenerators and various medical techs, which changed how the world perceived mortal wounds. Lorian Sparrow, the human that founded Illumina Corps, creator of the warding towers that protect the surface city from the dangers of the C.I.F. exhaustions, and designed the Mimicry Cells that illuminate all underground cities. There are many others that changed the world here, and fortunately, most of them still live here."

"How about Dr. Raven?" one student asked. Everyone's eyes suddenly darted to Finch, their attentions undivided, and Jordan's own was the most intense.

"Oh no. Dr. Raven wasn't created here. In fact, he was the one that made this. This is a secret among the Council and the NWIC, but since you're all here, you're all bound to figure out sooner or later, but Dr. Raven is from our old homeworld before we evacuated. He is 39 generations old, or in human terms, one and a half millenia. He oversees this research facilities there and will take up students to his apprenticeship if he deems one fit." Finch's eyes turned to Jordan briefly before facing everyone again, "So if there's anyone that'll guarantee you a future, it's him. However, that does not mean the others won't be able to help you at all. Though your primary goal is to pass the capability tests, as members of the Collegium Initiative, you are allowed to freely roam the city to interact with others. The few weeks you will have here will be luxurious, and you will be pampered. Still, this is no vacation. It's not just your intellect and capability that will be tested here," A wicked grin crept on Raven' face. "Do you all understand?"

Winter and everyone nodded in unison.

Eventually, the bus stopped. Winter craned her head to the window and found a large, silver building with the Collegium Initative's feather logo proudly flaunting itself on the top.

"We're here, everyone." said Finch. "Stay put at the entrance. I'll head to the administration to confirm things and get the locations of your rooms

Winter stood up with Jordan and Rori as they joined the line, orderly walking to the entrance of the building. They stood there for a minute, chatting amongst themselves, exchanging dreams, plans, and things about themselves. With Jordan beside Winter, others attempted to talk to her, but she'd just end the conversation quickly and give bland, unfollowable answers.

The door of the building parted all of a sudden, and came out Mrs. Finch with coins with slings attached to it.

"Alright everyone. Pick any of these and scan it with your drive connections. It'll tell you where your rooms are, and it'll serve as your ID for when you go to your testing venues. Unpack fast. You have six more hours until the first phase of your test series begins."

They students automatically formed a line and picked up the coins from Finch's hands. Winter took one and walked to the building, but Jordan followed her without taking one.

"Why aren't you getting a coin?" Winter asked.

"Well, duh. We're sharing the room."

Gasps and 'whats' spread among their peers. Winter palmed her face, "Jordan, seriously!?"

"Yeah, that's not f*******n, is it? Mrs. Finch?"

"There's no rule stating as such, so no. I trust you two are responsible young adults, so do as you like no matter how intimate it may be...hehe," she added.

"It's nothing like that!" Winter blurted.

"Yeah, yeah. Come on. Let's get into our rooms."

"Jordan," Finch called, tossing one of the coins to him. He caught with his palm, "Like I said, it also serves as your ID. Seems like you need to learn how to listen more."

Jordan glanced at her sharply before taking Winter's hand and dragging her inside the building.

The facility was a dormitory of sort. A concierge stood by the counter in front of them, greeting them. Multiple students walked the halls, chatting and eating snacks. Some waited in line for a certain room with books on, while others asked the staff some questions.

"Well, what are you waiting for? Scan it." Jordan said.

"Oh, right." Winter flicked her wrist. A blue projection shot through her palm, coming from within her skin. She pointed it to the coin, and a holographic image of the contents encoded inside revealed itself in front of them.

Second Floor: Room 02-016.

Key Unverified. Checker: Winter E. Swan."

"Room 02-016. Come on, let's go." Jordan said.

They walked through the grand halls of the building and passed through its spacious, winding halls. Everything was metal, polished granite and limestone, or tiles in its walls, floors and ceilings. It was as if her lungs were being pulled and released with every inhale and exhale. They passed through other students, climbed up the stairs, until they found a door marked 02-016.

Winter dropped the coin into little slot, and it parted before her. She retrieved the coin once inside, and as she laid her eyes on what was supposed to be her temporary living space, her eyes widened.

"Goddamn," Jordan breathed. "We're going to sleep in a room like this?"

The bed was not just a king-sized, it was emperor-sized, with its pillows as large and fluffy as a samoyed. The interior was decorated with sleek, simple pastel wallpapers. It also had its own study desk, a mirror, and an ornate, steel closet.

"No f*****g way..." Jordan breathed, his jaws dropped just as hers did. He walked to the bathroom right across them and opened it. "No f*****g way..." he said again. "We're sleeping here?!"

"This is too much for me." Winter gulped, "I don't deserve to sleep in a place like this. It would feel like I'm tarnishing that bed."

Jordan walked to the bed and swept his hand on the blanket, "Silk comforter. Holy s**t, we're not paying for this, right? The Collegium's capability test is free for us, right?"

"Yes."

"Oh... well then..." he sunk into the bed, digging his face into the soft pillow. Winter tiptoed and dropped her bags on the floor. She sat on the bed, letting her eyes wander all over the spacious room. Hands reached for her suddenly, and she was pulled into Jordan's embrace. "You nervous?" he said softly.

"A little bit. That was your fault, you know," she replied. "0.7% doesn't exactly instill confidence..."

"Well, you can always change your career path. Your practical flight skills and calmness in dire situations were the things Mrs. Finch was most impressed about." He snickered, "It's funny actually. You're so calm when things go wrong, but when someone steals your cold drinks or takes a piece of your sweets, you throw a tantrum like an angry yakuza."

"Whatever. Anyways, get out already. I still need to prepare for the test this afternoon."

"What? I said we were sharing the room, didn't I?"

"Yes, but Mrs.Finch gave you that coin. It's best you use it."

"But you look so comfortable when you're wrapped around like this. Besides, we have six more hours. What are you gonna do, study?"

"What else? I need to pass the tests. Your first tests will start in three hours too."

"Well, I don't need to study for that. I am a genius after all." Jordan snorted,

"What you are is a self-obsessed maniac," Winter said, then pushing the man off of her bed.

Jordan sat up immediately, "Aww, here I was enjoying being so close and intimate with you."

"That's your hormones speaking. You can get out now."

"Oh? My hormones can get me to do things more than just 'talk creepy', you know." He smiled as hunger filled every corner of his eyes, but Winter knew those eyes well.

"Really now?" She sat up, pulling him to her bed and rolled, getting him under her. She laid her fingers near his hips and her other hand on his chest. Her hands slowly crept down from his chest to his lower areas, "Then you wouldn't mind if we...?"

The hunger in his eyes faded, revealing what was really within those orbs; embarrassment.

"Woah now. Okay, I'll be going." Jordan said, laughing nervously. Winter licked her upper lip, drawing her face near the man. Jordan gulped, his heartbeat quickened. "Okay, Winter. I give up. Please get off me."

Winter laughed, sneering at him as she sat up, "How come you're okay with other girls doing that but not me?"

"Who knows?" said Jordan, getting off the bed and walking to the door with his bags on his hand. "By the way, after the test, I want to explore the building. I'll be waiting in your room, okay?"

"Yeah, yeah." replied Winter, "Get out already."

Jordan smiled before leaving the room.

Winter took a deep breath and sunk into the bed again.

She flicked her right wrist. A holographic panel appeared before her, from her right palm. She swiped and scrolled, then tapped on the e-book program. The hologram morphed into a book, where words and pages were swiped instead of being turned.

She had read these volumes over and over again, but she felt like reviewing. After all, to become a spacer she needed to study a lot for the tests that are to come.