Chris drew in a long breath as he studied the wall before him, and tried to quell the trembling in his knees. The sound of the other candidates training echoed from all around him, but where he stood, Chris was alone. The stone tower in the center of the field stretched some forty feet above him, its surface smooth but for a series of climbing holds leading to the top.
"What are you waiting for?" The doctor assigned to Chris interrupted his thoughts. "Get on with it. Climb."
Swallowing, Chris flicked the man a glance. The collar seemed to tighten around his throat as he glimpsed the watch on his captors wrist, and shuddering Chris returned his gaze to the wall. There was little Chris had encountered in his short life that scared him, little except the unique terror that gripped him at the thought of falling from such a height.
The wall had no ropes or harness, just the ugly grey holds jutting from the smooth stone. One mistake, and he would tumble back to the hard ground. If he was lucky, the fall might only wind him, but from the full forty feet…
He shuddered again as the trembling spread to his whole body. It wasn't even the thought of injury that had him frozen – he'd been hurt countless times sparring at his Taekwondo Dojang – it was the thought of those few moments falling, of tumbling through the air, helpless to save himself.
"Chris!" He swung around as a voice shouted from the across the field. Sam had stopped in the middle of the running track and stood watching him. Their eyes met, and Chris saw the urgency there as he called again. "Climb!"
Before Chris could reply, Sam set off once more, leaving him alone with the doctor and the tower.
Except Chris no longer felt quite so alone. Another glance around the field, and he saw Ashley give a little wave, even caught what might have been the slightest of nods from Liz. He swallowed, their encouragement swelling in his chest. For a second, the terror seemed to recede, and he stepped up to the wall and took a firm grip of the first hold.
Hand over hand, Chris hauled himself up as the doctor watched on from below. The first ten feet were relatively easy, but as he went higher, Chris's terror came creeping back. Nearing halfway, he made the mistake of glancing down. Twenty feet of open air opened up beneath him, and he gripped his holds tighter, pulling himself tight against the wall.
He stayed frozen there for a long while, eyes squeezed shut, listening to the sounds of movement coming from around the field. He imagined Sam and Ashley and Liz watching him, heard their silent encouragement, but so far off the ground, the thought no longer held the same power. With each passing moment his terror grew, fed by the gulf beneath him, his imagination already playing out the fall that would see him tumble helplessly to the earth.
"Are you done, candidate?" the doctor called from below.
Candidate.
The word rung in Chris's mind, reminding him of what these people thought of him. He and the other prisoners were just numbers to these doctors, failed examples of humanity that served no purpose but to die in whatever horrible experiments they had in mind. Anger flared in Chris's chest, burning at the terror, and gritting his teeth, Chris started upwards once more.
Towards the top, the handholds became smaller and more sparse, forcing Chris to study his path carefully. His arms were burning from the exertion, but his rage gave him strength, and he continued up, clinging to the tiny holds like his life depended on it.
By the last ten feet, the holds were barely large enough for two fingers to hold. His whole body trembling and his breath coming in raged gasps, Chris forced himself onwards. He refused to look down, knowing it would only serve to feed the terror still nibbling at his insides, though eventually would need to if he was to climb back down.
Straining his leg to reach a better foothold, a sudden cramp tore through his calf. Crying out, Chris almost lost his holds from the shock of the pain. His leg spasmed and he stretched it out, struggling to keep his grip with just three points of contact for support. Slowly the pain dwindled, and taking a breath, Chris found a new foothold and continued.
When he finally reached the top, Chris experienced a moment of panic as his hand reached up and found only empty air. It took him several seconds of fumbling blinding around above his head before he caught the lip of the wall. A wave of relief swept over him, and using both hands, he pulled himself up and levered himself onto the top of the tower.
His heart pounding in his ears, Chris sucked in a breath and looked around. The tower rose above the walls of the facility, and from his vantage point he could see beyond the training field to the lands beyond their prison.
A heavy fog had swept in with the afternoon, obscuring much of his view, but Chris could still see enough to feel the harsh fingers of despair clawing at his throat. Above the white clinging to the barren earth, towering mountains rose around the facility, their jagged peaks capped with snow.
Wherever they had been brought, it was a long way from civilization. Even if they managed to escape their prison, where would they go? In such a remote landscape, it would not take long for the elements to claim them. Even if they somehow survived the cold, they would soon starve in the barren land.
"Excellent work," the doctor's voice carried up to Chris, slicing through his despair.
He felt a strong urge to hurl himself from the tower and crash down on the man. From the such a height, the impact would probably kill them both. It might have been worth it, but just the thought had Chris gripping the stone beneath him tighter.
"Down you come then," his overseer continued, returning his attention to the e-tablet the doctors seemed to carry everywhere with them.
Chris swallowed. The way down was going to be even worse. He would have to be continuously looking down in search of the next hold. There would be no ignoring the open air beneath him. Feeling the fear returning, he looked around the field. The eyes of his friends were turned in his direction, and he recalled Ashley's words from back in their cell.
We are in this together now. We're family, you and I. All of us.
Nodding to each of them, Chris tightened his grip on the wall and levered himself over the edge. The climb down seemed to take an age, and even in last ten feet Chris dared not release the wall for fear of his body crumpling on impact with the ground.
When he finally stepped down onto the field, his legs were shaking so badly they almost gave way beneath him. He stumbled a step before recovering, then straightened and faced the doctor.
"So, doc, what's next?"