Gods Under The Dome

1.1

《Testing Day》

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When the lights dim, we are to remain calm, seated, with our eyes pressed forward and glued to the holographic screen that flickers with images of FUA past glories: the victory at D.C.; the burning of the Whitehouse; the toppling of the Washington Monument; the inauguration ball of the ten men and women of the Council; the first Culling. We are to applaud our country's success, and so we do, moderate, almost lazy claps breaking the silence and sounding off the room's barren walls.

Our teacher for today's lesson hushes us with a grunt from somewhere in the dark. We quiet, most of us going rigid as the hologram's blue tint silhouettes the stiff forms of the others. There's one of us missing in the line-up. November. She was taken last week and none of us have seen her since. Tujo says she's dead, saw Corpse Removal leave her room, but I'm not convinced. Liars were one in a dozen; it seemed wasteful to kill her just because she'd been found with a pair of tweezers.

"But that's against the rules," Rima had said. "Could have hurt herself or someone else. It's a punishable offense."

But death? That seemed a bit harsh, even in the Facility. She must have been sent to the Calming Chamber. I'm sure she'll pop up again. She's my walking mate, and making my rounds on the indoor track alone is making me feel silly, especially with the armed guards watching from their eagles' nests.

The holographic player, a small silver circle recessed into the front wall, whirs and clicks, and a new set of images is projected in front of us. This time, it's each of the Council members, all ten of them, young and cheerful on Graduation Day. They held diplomas high overhead, crowned with black caps. Matching robes draped their bodies with flowy, bell sleeves.

From right to left: Councilman Ira, Abyashi, In-Semelle, Triav, Mercado, O'Mallory, Inez, Patel, Flint, and Dove. The image changes and we see these same ten faces on Inauguration Day, standing stalwart in matching suits emblazoned with the country's crest - a fledgling dove, mid-flight, a caning rod clutched in one talon, a stone in the other.

They wave at us as the prerecorded crowd erupts into a fever pitch of applause and whoops. The din echoes throughout the room, and I feel as though I'm there, witnessing the birth of a new nation. That is to be us someday— if we don't die before we graduate.

The slide show ends and lights burst on. Mistress Ramona scurries from her corner as the darkness recedes, her scarlet dress fluttering above her ankles. It takes a few blinks for my eyes to adjust but when they do, all I can focus on is the FUA crest--the dove-- stitched over Ramona's left breast. Where it lays, it's like its nesting above her heart, as though its feathers could provide her warmth, its wings could shield her from disaster, as though its heart could flutter in tandem with her own.

I wish I had a pair of scissors to lop off the dumb bird's head. But scissors, much like tweezers, were forbidden. And if I got my hands on one? I could end up like Nove, though, honestly, would that really be all that bad?

Mistress Ramona sniffs and drags her glasses to rest higher atop the bridge of her twice-broken nose. Though I hadn't been the one to give her a face-full of fist, on some testing days, I wish I had.

"Today's test," she begins, her voice pinched, nasally and grating. I resign my head to my hand as the struggle to keep my eyes open becomes a battle I'm beginning to lose. Miss Ramona must not notice, despite her inches thick lenses, because she continues carrying on,"covers Federated United American History. Years 2037 to 2055. No exemptions." I wish we'd had another teacher today, but beggars can't be choosers. At least not until the power of the country was placed at my disposal. Mistress Ramona turns away from us and swipes a hand across empty air prompting a screen to hover before my eyes. "I've already uploaded everything. Remember—" She turns back towards us, straightening her shoulders. "You are to aim for a 96%. Anything below that is an automatic fail and you will be expelled. There are always more Liars that can be Culled. Do not disappoint your country. Praise Dove."