I somehow made it to orientation without much hassle. About 15 kids my age were seated in fold-up chairs in an auditorium with a small stage. I scanned the crowd for anyone I recognized. But I didn’t see anyone. Claro que si. What was I expecting? I made my way to the back of the room and sat down. I noticed I wasn’t alone. To my left sat a girl who didn’t look too much older than me. She wore a blue hijab over a plain black dress. Her eyes were strikingly brown.

“Hello. I guess this is orientation. I’m Zariah. What's your name?”

Her forwardness surprised me, but then again I haven’t interacted with other people in about five anos.

“I’m Calanta. Any idea when they’re going to start?” She shakes her head.

“We’ve been waiting here for like 5 minu-”

As if on cue, the lights in the auditorium dim, and a woman steps out onto the stage. I am most shocked by the color of her hair. It is the most eye-shocking shade of rojo I’ve ever seen. She is wearing a strange outfit as well, a grey turtleneck with a short yellow skirt over fishnet stockings. To top it off is she is wearing a dark blue leather jacket and black combat boots.

“Hello, new trainees and welcome to The Facility! My name is River. No, I don’t go by Brooke, Stream, Ocean, or insert the body of water here. My talent is swimming. But this isn’t about me! This is about-”

Suddenly the redhead from before (Flannery, I think it was) bursts through the doors. She is soaking wet and out of breath.

“Uh, I got lost on the way here. Je suis désolé. Carry on.” Flannery scans the crowd and sees me. She walks over to me and sits to my right. River continues her speech.

“As I was saying, this is about you. You were all chosen to be here for a specific reason. You are special. And I know that sounds like propaganda, but it's true. You all have things called Talents. Talents are skills that you may have that have been...upgraded if you will. Like I said, mine is swimming. Talents can also be forms of magic that no one else possesses. Each Talent is unique. For example, there can only be one person who has a talent for singing. However, talents can be, and are, grouped into categories. Let's take singing for example. If someone has a talent for singing, and someone has a talent for playing piano, you two would be grouped into the category of “Music.” The category you're in is called your Category. Easy, right? I promise I’ll be done soon.

Okay, so Pods. Pods are randomly assigned groups of five where you will spend your time. You will do most of your training activities with your Pod. You will also sleep in the Dorms with them. For safety purposes, we separate dorms by gender, however, if you identify with a gender different from the room we assigned you, don’t hesitate to let us know. Also, know that our amazing Professor Malady has a talent of knowing when someone is lying, so we will know if you are trying to get into other dorms for reasons beyond identity. Trust me, we do not want to get into that situation.

Okay! So most of you have already been to your room, so you have an idea of who is in your Pod. You will find schedules on your bed when you return. They will have your first and last names on them, but if they were put on the wrong bed, just find the person who you belongs to and trade until everyone has their schedule. And that's about it for the verbal part of orientation! If you follow me I’ll lead you around the building. I can’t wait to show you the Ship!” With that, River turns on her heel and leads us out the door.