Cured by Diana

and once you graduate
initiation, you may all look forward to life on Olympia amongst the
other Primes.
    “This year we have been blessed with seven
Newbies!” she clapped her hands, “The average Curing ceremony
produces between two and three. This means that there will be more
competition during the tasks. You will be fighting for your
futures.” Everyone at the table began to slide glances at each
other, sizing up the competition. I remained still, my eyes trained
to the table, my hands dripping with sweat.
    “ Your trial
training will start tomorrow, my dears, so for the rest of the day
you will be treated to rest and luxury.” She gave one more overly
enthusiastic grin before twirling around and sauntering out of the
room, shouting over her shoulder, “Toodaloo Newbies!”


    When the door
closed behind Regina there was an awkward silence. Everyone sat,
not knowing where to go or what to do. Then, one by one, the new
Primes sat straight and lifted their noses into the air, slow
smiles spreading across their faces. Felix and I turned to each
other with quizzical expressions, wondering what the Newbies were
doing. Felix shrugged and imitated the actions of the real Newbies.
I stifled a laugh as he lifted his nose in to the air and sniffed,
trying to copy the Primes, but looking like he had gone insane. I
looked around just as the door to the conference room door opened
again, and a train of young children entered the room, laden with
huge silver dishes. Finally, the smell hit me. It was divine. No
wonder the Primes had reacted in such an odd way with their
heightened senses, especially the ones who had never had the luxury
of cooked food.
    In the Fields, they were used to swallowing
their daily nutrition in one pill. Each family had a WallScreen in
their cramped apartment. And each day, the Screen produced a bunch
of pills, one for each family member, which contained a set amount
of calories, vitamins and nutrients. This way Norms did not have to
waste time and labour hours by stopping for food breaks. On Olympia
however, we ordered fully prepared meals from our WallScreens, or
had Labour Norms cook for us. Eating was a luxury that only Primes
could afford.
    The train of children split off, so that each
Newbie had a child waiting on them. The children placed a small
bowl of red liquid in front of each place setting and laid out
cutlery in the correct manner. The new Primes looked uncomfortable,
their eyes shifting around uneasily. It took me a while to realize
that they did not know any table etiquette. I picked up my spoon
and plunged it into the soup. The new Primes quickly followed suit.
As I ladled the warm liquid into my mouth, I was overwhelmed by
sensation. This was even better than food on Olympia. The thick
tomato soup was decadent and rich in flavour. I devoured it in
seconds, suddenly realizing how hungry I was after such a stressful
morning. The children returned, filling glass goblets with a golden
stream of bubbles, which turned out to be NectarAle. I decided not
to drink the alcohol, since I was sure I would need a clear mind to
keep up my Prime facade.
    Next, the children heaved numerous silver
platters onto the centre of the table and removed their lids. The
new Primes started to drool as huge piles of fried chicken, lamb
chops, Kobe beef, and salmon slabs were revealed. In between meat
plates were dishes of multi-coloured salads and vegetables that I
had never laid eyes upon before. The Primes eyed up the food
hungrily but looked to me again for advice on protocol. A pretty
blonde girl of no more than six years old passed me a set of
serving tools and then dropped into a curtsy. I thanked the young
girl and she blushed beet red before scurrying out of the room.
    I served huge mounds of food onto my plate,
selecting a large portion of every dish before handing the servers
over to Felix. Even though Felix and I were accustomed to real
food, we ate as hungrily and excitedly as the new Primes.