The Testing (The Testing 1)

Anger flashes across Will’s face, but his voice is calm when he says, “One team is already gone, but the other two haven’t reached their skimmers yet. How fast do you think they’d get to the end of this challenge if they had to walk?”

Damone’s mouth spreads into an unpleasant smile. “Maybe you’re smarter than I gave you credit for. We can start with that one.”

“No.”

All eyes swing to me. Will’s eyes, which normally sparkle with charm, are now filled with calculation.

“No. We don’t need to sabotage other teams to succeed.”

Will frowns. “But if it helps us win—”

“Anyone who has to cheat to win doesn’t deserve to be here. And they don’t belong on my team either. There’s one team ahead of us. I’d rather spend our time catching them than screwing with teams that are already behind. If you don’t agree, you can stay here and do whatever the hell you want.” With that, I climb into our skimmer.

Out of the corner of my eye, I can see my teammates looking at me with varying degrees of concern or disbelief. Enzo takes a step toward the skimmer but Damone yells for him to stop. That I’m bluffing and won’t leave them behind. He might be right, since leaving my team here on their own will only encourage them to steal a skimmer that belongs to one of the other teams. I just have to hope my threat to leave them behind will make them abandon their thoughts of sabotage.

Ignoring the argument taking place outside, I survey the controls. The skimmer is much like the one my father uses in Five Lakes—old, with frayed seats and barely enough room in the cabin to squeeze in four people. I slide behind the controls and hit the Start button. It takes two tries before the engine catches hold. When it does, I pull the hover switch and feel the skimmer vibrate as it lifts off the ground. It isn’t until I pilot the vehicle forward that my teammates race over.

“Wait.” Will is the first to reach the skimmer.

I stop the skimmer, pilot it back to the ground, and open the door to let my teammates inside. Will laughs as he climbs into the seat next to me. “You know how to make a point. We’ll do it your way and win without interfering with the other teams, all right? That will make it all the more fun to celebrate when we mop the floor with them. Now, the real question is whether you know how to pilot this thing well enough to race the other team to the next location.”

While I think I’m capable of piloting the skimmer, I’m glad when Will asks if he can switch positions with me and takes the controls, since I’ve only driven one a handful of times.

“See? I knew you wouldn’t be able to control this thing,” Damone says, sliding into the back seat. “Will and Enzo should have listened to me. Instead, they give in to a girl who doesn’t understand what it takes to win and overreacts to an idea that’s different than her own. When this is over, I’ll have to talk to my father about the lower admittance standards allowed for colony students.”

Will’s hands tighten on the steering wheel, but he says nothing to defend or condemn my actions. Enzo too keeps silent as Will pulls the lever and makes the skimmer hover off the ground. While I don’t believe I was wrong to insist we succeed on our own merits, I can’t help wondering if those in charge will judge me as Damone does: weak, histrionic, and unable to lead.

Damone watches me with a smirk. He is enjoying the doubt he planted in my mind and the minds of my teammates. Determined to prove his words incorrect, I swallow my concern and discuss the location of our next task.

The instruction sheet from the upper years says site number two involves aircraft. The clue says the vehicles that soared in the sky are armed. The old United States had several military forces that helped defend the country—land, sea, and air. While I have never heard of the air force base Enzo and Damone instruct Will to pilot toward, I have no doubt the destination is the right one.

“How far do we have to go to get there?” Will asks as the skimmer lurches forward.

“I’m not sure exactly where we are now, but the base is located outside the southeast border of Tosu City,” Enzo says.

“I can tell you where we are.” I dig through my bag, pull out the Transit Communicator, and flip the switch. I read off our current coordinates. According to Enzo and Damone, we are just past the boundary of Tosu City on the northeast side. After some discussion, I plug in our best guess for the coordinates of the base. The readout claims the airfield is eleven miles away. Our skimmer is slow but as long as it doesn’t break down and we don’t get lost, we should make it there in less than an hour.

Hands tight on the control, Will offers none of his unusual banter as he concentrates on steering the skimmer east.

“Which way?” Will asks when we reach a wide road. We can either follow the road we are currently traveling, which angles to the southwest, or go down the hill to a smaller road that heads southeast. To the southwest, I see grass, shriveled trees, and grayish soil. An area yet to be revitalized. To the southeast are the outlines of buildings and healthier plant life.

According to the readout of the Transit Communicator, the southeast path is the shortest route, but it might not be the smartest, since it appears to go directly through the city. Navigating the skimmer through streets filled with people and other modes of transportation could take more time than traveling around the outskirts.

“What do you think, Will?” I ask.

“Why are you asking him?” Damone crosses his arms across his chest. “Are you scared to make the decision yourself?”

“Will is the one piloting this thing,” I say. “He should get the final say in the direction we take.”

Damone looks like he wants to debate the issue, but Will cuts him off. “The controls aren’t responsive. We can go faster if I’m not worried about crashing into buildings when I have to turn.”

“Okay,” I say before Damone can object. “Let’s go.”

Using the Transit Communicator as a guide, Will steers the skimmer to the southwest. Through the window across from me, I see a river that runs parallel to the road. The water has a green tint but otherwise runs clear. To the left of us, far in the distance, I can see the revitalized center of the city. Closer to the road, perhaps a half mile away, are collapsed buildings. Broken walls. Empty city streets. I scan the horizon for signs of people but find none.

“Do people live out here?” I ask. I am surprised to see an area so close to the city uninhabited after a hundred years of revitalization. In Five Lakes, my father’s team is constantly working to push the boundaries of our revitalized community. With so many people living in Tosu City, I’m surprised they haven’t worked harder to repair the land and spread out.

“Not many,” Enzo says. “Most of the farms and skimmer factories are located to the north, so the Commonwealth encourages those wanting to leave the city to go in that direction. No one wants to move into unrevitalized areas alone. My parents talked about it once, but there are too many dangers outside the current boundaries of the city. It’s safer to stay where we are.”