The lights flickered and lightened the room, banishing the shadows that hid the corners of the room. The sudden light jerked Linda from her sleep. She blinked, remembering where she was. The room. And next to her, still there, was the strange cube. Linda could not understand it. It was simple enough, just a plain metal cube with each side about as long as her pointer finger, and of course the strange words, but yet it confused her greatly. There was a certain... Feeling, she got holding it.

A feeling... That had to be it.

Wait... Linda thought. It's not just a strange feeling, it's...

Linda couldn't believe it. The cube was vibrating ever so faintly. But what caused it? She put it on the ground, but it stood still. She held it next to her eyes, but heard nothing. Where was the movement coming from?

Linda put down the cube, and felt the ground. Still a faint vibration. Was it coming from the whole room? Was the cube some sort of wireless extension to the room?

No... Linda thought. I think... She felt her other hand just to be sure. Yep, her other hand was also vibrating.

It wasn't the room. It was... Her. Slowly, Linda's hand crept to her chest and to her neck, where the skin was moving quickly, but ever so faintly. Linda's hand crept up beneath her long hair, her fingers getting tangled. She wiggled them through the tangles and felt behind her ear, her hand now hidden behind the black curtain.

The vibration was stronger here. She continued looking, but then felt something there, something that shouldn't be there. Picking up the cube, Linda squinted to see her reflection. The surface was smooth and polished, reflecting her ear. She brushed aside her hair and kept it over her shoulder, staring at where normally an earring would be. Linda didn't have her ears pierced, but that made this all the stranger. A small round device, about the size of a small freckle, was attached to the lobe of her ear. Linda wondered how she didn't notice earlier, with her hair up in a ponytail, but reasoned that herself and Sam were to shocked to notice it. It also helped that the device was the same color as her ear.

Sam... Linda looked at Sam, who was asleep. She had curled up on the 'bed', and was breathing slowly and evenly. Linda quietly tiptoed to the water bucket, careful not to let her echos wake Sam up.

_____________

Meanwhile...

___

Alexa stood, watching the screen. Test #1: Determination. Status: Passed. The woman recited in her mind, writing on her board.

Test #2: Teamwork. Status: Passed.

Test #3: Observation. Status: Passed.

Test #4: Survival. Status:

Alexa paused, pencil hovering over the blank space. she didn't want to, but this was an essential part of the test.

In progress. She wrote with a small, barely audible, sigh.

"Liz?" She asked, turning around. Another woman was there, dressed in a long beige dress with a pink belt.

"Alexa? Is there a problem?" Liz asked, putting her book down. Her eyebrows knitted in concern.

"Is it Sam?"

"No, no. It's Linda. Sam's the one I want to test."

"Right. Oh, you want me to..."

Alexa nodded. Eyes darting wildly, as if looking for an excuse to not do the task at hand, Liz stood up and slowly crossed to the control panel.

"You are aware of the risks of this test, right?" She warned Alexa. Alexa nodded, with only the slightest bit of regret behind her eyes. Liz reached for the panel and pressed a button labeled '4'. A small light flickered on in response.

"Alright, Alexa. It's all set."

Alexa sighed, returning her gaze to the screen, where she watched Linda examine her ear in the water.

Her daughter. She was doing this for her daughter, Alexa reminded herself.

She had faith. She always had faith. And that would become important, because now...

Now was Test #4.

____________

Back in the room...

_____

Linda had just been looking at herself, when the device blinked faintly. Linda frowned, confused. What was going on? She had a hard time think about it. Everything... Everything was spinning. She felt like she was on fire. Before passing out, she stumbled to the makeshift bed and woke up Sam.

"Sam." She made out, the colors around her blurring.

"Sam, it... It's on your ear."

Linda passed out. Sam was now up, looking at Linda with wide eyes. Carefully, her hand went on Linda's forehead, then abruptly drew back. Sam dragged Linda onto the bed, but then took of the sweater and began scooping up water to keep the dirt wet and cool. Then, Sam used the metal to tear a peice of clothing from her sweater and soaked it, draping it across Linda's forehead. She was sick, dreadfully sick. But what had she said before passing out? Something about... An ear?

Sam reached up to her ear.

And that's when she discovered the device. At first she panicked. What was it? What did it do? But the purpose seemed to hit her in the face.

Passing out. The sickness. The lack of food and dirt on their teeth and clothes. The device somehow linked to... To their brains? But how was that even possible?

Then again... Sam thought, How is anything her possible? How is the bread and water possible? How is the fresh air in her possible?

Nothing was for certain. but this... It was up to Sam, she knew, to make sure Linda was well.

There were many things to get done and find out, but first off...

Linda's survival. That was top priority.