#1

I felt like my body was about to explode. A rushing, burning sensation swept through my veins, my blood boiling to a fierce, scorching heat. My heart was pounding in my chest, throbbing at a pace that was much faster than the average human's. I tried to hold in a cry of pain but it ripped from my throat and I hollered in agony, tears streaming down my face.
"STOP!" I yelled. "Turn it off! Turn it off!"
I thrashed against my bonds, thick ropes that were strapped over my chest, stomach and legs as well as ties around my wrists and ankles.
There was a loud beeping noise and the burning heat slowly cooled and soon all I could hear were my whimpers and scratchy breathing.

"You failed, again," said the deep, disappointed voice from the doorway of the room.
The ropes slid off me and I pushed myself up before vomiting over the edge of the table. My entire body was still shuddering. I gripped the edge of the table to try and still myself but I couldn't stop the shivering. The man, covered from head to foot in a dark robe with a large hood, reached over and pulled out the tube from my arm that had been pumping me with hallucinogens. I lay there, shivering, as he stood above me, waiting for my explanation. I couldn't see his face, it was too dark. But then again I wouldn't be able to see his face in the light either. His name was Kane and he was a Shadow, one of the Elite, and knew how to hide from light waves.
"I couldn't handle it," I said hoarsely, my voice shaking.
"Obviously," he said dryly. "How do you expect to be trained as a Shadow if you can't figure out what pain is real in your mind? An enemy, one of the Light, could fool you into believing that you were mortally wounded and then your mind would kill you."
"I'm sorry," I said between gasps of breath. I tried desperately not to cry. "I will get it right next time."
"You have only one more chance." He spun around, speaking over his shoulder as he strode out the room. "Go back to your unit and get yourself cleaned up. Dinner is in fifteen minutes and then, for you, bed. Your final chance at passing the initiation is tomorrow."
He left the room, slamming the door behind him with a bang. I let out a deep sigh and rested my head back on the cool table. It was still pounding, the pain throbbing behind my eyes. If I could, I would skip dinner but I knew Kane would be there, watching out for me to make sure that I had followed his orders.
I slid off the table and stood on my trembling legs, using the wall to help me stay upright as I walked from the room. As I stumbled down the hallways to my room the other trainees smirked at me, knowing that I'd failed the initiation for the second time. Those that failed twice rarely passed the third time. It was said that our minds were too weak. I drew in a breath and squared my shoulders, trying to look intimidating as I hobbled past. I may not have passed the mind test but I was still the best at hand-to-hand combat. I had something to be proud of.
As soon as I made it to my room I stripped and stepped into the cleaning tube, sighing gratefully as the steam and water washed over me, clearing away my sweat. I switched it to dry and air blew through it, sucking away the moisture. I stepped out and slipped into a fresh uniform. I was about to step outside again when there was a flash in my room and a quiet popping sound. I turned around and, standing in the middle of my room, was a Light. He looked a few years older than me, about twenty, and he was smirking cockily, his dark eyes looking me up and down.
"Naira, Naira, Naira," he said shaking his head. "You failed that test again didn't you?"
I kept my mouth firmly shut and glared at him. He smiled fully, showing his bright, white teeth and stepped forward. As he got closer I could see that his eyes were not black but a very dark blue with a sliver of silver around his iris that looked like the moon set in the night sky.
"Get out, Light," I spat. "Your presence will be detected soon enough and if you don't leave now They'll capture you."
He lifted a hand as if to brush my cheek but instead moved it just above my skin. I shivered as I felt its warmth only inches away from my face.
"Do you care about my welfare, little one?" he whispered in a velvety voice.
I shut my eyes tightly and leaned away from his hand. I hated being called little, even if I was shorter than the average being. I heard his hand drop back to his side and let out the breath I hadn't realised I'd been holding.
"Go," I murmured.
"There's a place for you with us, Naira."
"Go."
"Just give me a call when you're ready to join us."
"Go!"
I opened my eyes as I heard a 'pop' as air filled the space the Light had left when he'd teleported away. He'd left a shimmer of light and I watched as it floated around my head before travelling over to my desk. On my desk was a small card. I walked over and picked it up.

It said:

Call Me.
998-098-54442
Fintan Murray
Light

I crumpled it up and threw it in my wastebasket. Then I checked the time.
Oh crap! I was about to be five minutes late to dinner!