Cytronica

Three

Zack walked through the corridor, his heavy backpack weighing him down. He weaved between the other seniors, all of them loud and eager to head home for the weekend. He felt the same way, but also knew he wouldn't be free. Not just yet.

Spending his afternoons in Cytro wasn't something he despised, unlike Hunter. In fact, he adored the realm. It was almost incomprehensible to think that a company had designed a virtual world with such intricate detail. Every bot was programmed to perform a certain task, and even the most minute daily routine added to the realism of Cytro. To the naked eye, the realm appeared to be, in almost every possible way, real. The most notable exception being that the bots were restricted in their ways.

And of course that this private version of Cytro was reserved for only the students of the academy.

Zack was ecstatic when he found out he was selected as one of five seniors to volunteer for the school and monitor the realm. It would make a great addition to his list of credentials when it came to applying for work at Cytronica Industries.

No doubt though, Hunter made a good point yesterday afternoon, he thought. Their realm was no longer fun, and he could entirely understand why.

He arrived at the end of the corridor and saw his four colleagues standing outside the principal's office. They were hardly what he'd call friends, but he enjoyed spending time with them, not really having many companions at the school.

"Well, at least if we do get expelled it'll get me out of my admin duties," Hunter joked.

"Will you please stop saying that?" Priya demanded. "No one's getting expelled."

"I hope not," Diego said, an edge of fear in his voice.

Jiaying smirked. "Chill, dude."

"Hey," Zack said. The others didn't even notice his arrival.

"Oh, good, we're all here," Hunter said. It wasn't clear if he was being serious or sarcastic. "Let's get this over with." He pounded his fist against the door.

"You can knock quietly, you know," Priya groaned.

A voice from inside called out to them. "Come—" Hunter ripped the door open before Principal Ramirez could even finish. "... In," he sighed.

"What's up?" Hunter greeted in the most informal of manners. "You wanted to see us?"

Mr Miller was already inside. He rose from the chair and stood on the other side of the desk, beside the head of the academy.

"Yes," Mr Ramirez acknowledged. "Please, sit. All of you."

The students reluctantly filed in and sat at one of the five vacant chairs. Zack closed the door behind him.

"Are we getting expelled?" Hunter asked suddenly, a smug look on his face.

"What? No. Not at all. Why would you think that?" Mr Ramirez exchanged an annoyed glance with Mr Miller. "First of all, I wanted to start by thanking you for all of your help so far with your work. The school appreciates it. How are you all finding it?"

The five students turned and looked at one another, all waiting for someone to speak first.

"It's alright," Diego remarked.

"Just alright?" the grey-haired Miller asked.

"Yep," Priya said on his behalf. "Just alright. To be honest, there's not really much for us to do in there." Jiaying murmured in agreement.

The principal nodded. "I figured as much. That's why we brought you in today. We wanted to have a discussion about Cytro's users."

He looked into the eyes of each of the five students and studied their faces. Diego sat up straight, attentive. Hunter was slouched in his chair.