Project Alpha

Chapter 14

My head jolted up, and I looked into June's piercing blue eyes as my eyebrows knitted together.

"What? No, of course not."

"Please don't take offence to the question, it's simply a moral dilemma to gauge your belief system." June smiled, showing a row of tiny white teeth, like a string of pearls.

"Okay," I worked to smooth my expression, not wanting to offend her.

"Moving on now, would you ever steal if a friend asked you to?"

"No." The answer was simple enough; I'd never stolen anything in my life.

"Would you steal if it meant you'd save the life of someone you love?" June tilted her head expectantly.

I sat back in my chair and gnawed at my lip. "I mean ... if someone I loved would die otherwise ..."

"So you're saying you would steal?" Her fingers rapped lightly against the table-top.

I sighed. "In that case I would steal, but not because I wanted to do it."

"Okay, that answer will do." June tapped her stylus against the tablet a few times and I rubbed my palms together as I waited for her to stop.

"Now, I'll describe a scenario and I'd like you to share which action you'd be most likely to take given the choices at hand." June paused for a second to swipe at her tablet, like she was carefully following a script.

"Imagine you have arrived in a hospital waiting room. Around you, there are four individuals needing assistance. The first is a nurse who suddenly drops her case files all over the floor; the second is a gentleman wearing a cast who slips and falls on the freshly mopped floor; the third is a crying child; the fourth is an elderly woman walking very slowly with a cane as she tries to find a seat. Who do you help first?"

Hm. I rolled the options around in my brain. The nurse can pick up her own files. The gentleman with the cast would probably have a hard time getting off the floor on his own. The child needs help, but leaving them to cry for another minute likely won't change their scenario. And the elderly woman doesn't seem in distress.

"I'd help the man in the cast first."

June tilted her head again, peering at me from across the table. "And why did you choose him?"

"Because his situation seems most urgent.
The nurse is capable of cleaning up her own mess and she's likely too distracted to notice him. The child would take a few minutes to soothe, but the man needs immediate help. And the elderly woman is moving slow but she isn't in distress."

"Mm-hm." June's  response was non-committal.

Should I have picked someone else? Whatever, June. I was getting tired of her questions already.

"The final question has multiple parts. Please answer yes or no based on how the statements relate to you." Tablet and stylus at the ready, June cleared her throat.

"Do you love your parents?"

What kind of question is that? "Of course," I blurted.

"Yes or no, please."

"Yes." Pressing my lips together, I let air slowly escape through my nostrils to avoid a full-on sigh.

"Do you enjoy new experiences?"

"Yes."

"Do you look forward to your Mendel experience?"

I blinked. "Yes."

"Will you support your friends in their Mendel experience, even when you don't understand the methods used to help fulfill their destiny?"

What does that even mean? "Yes."

"Will you trust your mentors during your own PACK training, even when you don't understand their methods to help fulfill your destiny?"

Are we almost done? "Yes."

Adding a few last taps to her tablet, June looked up, beaming. "Well done!" Pushing her chair away from the table she stood, spry on her feet, and pointed to the kiosk. The student who had been standing there must have moved inside the Great Hall.

"Come on over and I'll activate the monitor. Good for you; you're almost finished!"

Sneaking a nonchalant look across the corridor, I spied Gracie still answering questions from a June of her own. I hoped we'd finish up soon; I couldn't wait to trade notes with her.

"Well? Are you coming?"

Nodding quickly, I followed June's fuzzy white halo as she stepped up to the kiosk, pulled a small key from her pocket, and used it to turn on the monitor.

***
Marin's having an eventful introduction to Meta, and the day hasn't officially started yet, huh? How would you feel if you were in her shoes? Would love to hear your thoughts and please remember to vote!