Page 57 of Fixation of the Mind

Flashes of her dead body beneath the table crippled me, and my knees gave out. I crashed to the floor.

Their cries were becoming more panicked as the water rose. It was getting harder and harder to breathe, my throat closing up as I clawed at my neck. Sweat dripped down from my forehead and into my eyes. The sting caused me just enough pain that it kept my brain online.

That dark voice I used to fear filled my head, my body, once more, telling me what to do. Get up. We need to figure this out. Look around for a weapon, something that will allow us to open it.

Picking myself up, I dragged myself around the room. In this, I knew I could trust it. The voice was always about survival, and that was what I could always count on.

Shaking my head, I quickened my pace, circling the room and picking up whatever I could find. Finally, I noticed a table off to the side and gravitated toward it. On top of it was a clear lockbox with two cords coming out from either side. Closer inspection showed me it was two power cords hooked together.

Following both lines, I figured out that one power cord went to the water pump and the other to the power source. If I could separate them, the water would stop filling up the boxes, giving me more time to figure out how to smash them open.

There was only one problem: the lockbox had a three-digit number lock on it. Before letting the panic set back in, I took a deep breath. I was doing this for Vivian, so I needed to stay calm and think it through. I had to find some kind of numbered clue to open this.

When I checked on the Vivians, water had reached their hips, and all of them were still calling out for me in panic and fear. Needing to give them something to focus on, I yelled, “Vivian!” The three of them turned toward me. “Look for some numbers on the inside of your box.”

The Vivian who looked like she had come out of the grave started looking around right away, the diner Vivian’s face was confused, and the club Vivian began stomping her feet and spewing curses. Unable to focus on all of that, I started my own search from the outside.

Finding a few numbers on boxes, I tried them, but they didn't open the lock. Having found nothing, the Vivians had gone silent. The water was up to their necks now.

The ache in my heart grew, my eyes shifting around in panic. I wasn't good enough to save her. I was never good enough to save her. It was my fault back then, and it was my fault now. Vivian was going to die because of me.

I was staring down at my hands, about to give up, when I noticed a small red light pulsing on the ground. Something in my head clicked, and I remembered the pattern recognition Rion had taught me when we were going over computer code.

The light above each clear box was also red. The first one pulsed twice, paused, then did it again. The second one issued five short pulses before the pattern restarted, and the third was just blinking.

Two, five, one.

I ran to the box, quickly turned the numbers, and the lock clicked open. Pride filled my heart as I tore the box open and pulled apart the power cords. The water pumping machine stopped with each of the Vivians just a breath away from being put in an underwater grave.

“Thank you, Lay,” the Vivians said, and tears filled my eyes. I didn't care if this wasn't real. This time, I had saved my friend.

Closing my eyes, I called back, “Welcome, Viv,” thinking about all the treasured moments we had shared. When she would bust into the door full of life, when she and Mel were the only ones that celebrated my birthday, and the way she would never let me wallow in my loneliness. For once, her death was unable to darken the beauty of the friendship we’d had.

A familiar tug pulled at me, making my stomach churn and my eyes fly open.

“Finally!” I was pulled into a hug, my mind trying to catch up with what was going on around me. Somehow, I was back in the room Maria had walked me into for the test.

Pulling away from the body hugging me, I caught a flash of those familiar swirling hazel eyes. My heart skipped a beat. “Rion?”

The sides of his face pulled up, his wide smile shining down on me as he cupped my cheek. “Yes. You did it, Rin. You passed. It's over.”

Looking around, I saw the helmet on the floor. The chair was still in the reclining position, but I could see Maria and the tech talking on the other side of the glass.

“H-h-how?” I didn't know what else to say. It was all so sudden, so jarring.

He pulled me back into his arms, hugging me tightly as he explained that the test had ended so Maria let him come wake me. He helped me up off the chair and walked me through the room.

Maria smiled, but something was off about it. “You did so well. We are all so proud of you.” With directions to be on the lookout for details about the naming ceremony, she dismissed us.

You didn't need to tell us twice. We bolted out of the room, so focused on getting out of there that I didn’t even notice what we passed on the way out.

We got into the car, and I turned toward him, ready to tell him everything that happened. I was a little surprised when he just started the car instead of asking about the test.

Oh, yeah, I bet he doesn’t want to talk about it until we get home to the others. Of course. That makes total sense.

“Buckle up, Rin. We always want to keep you safe.” He winked at me, and I smiled, getting the seat belt and clicking it into place.

We were quiet the entire drive, and while that wasn't abnormal, it felt… weird. The vibe between us was awkward, and I wanted to figure out what it was about. “Did Maria say something to you?”

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