A nonconformist girl living in an underground bunker.

Another tense movement of your hands, gripping the mop…

Scraps of fabric, food scraps, and something that looks like rat droppings lie scattered across the floor…

Damn… this stuff really reeks…

You sweep the last pile of trash into a bag.

Feeling the fatigue in your muscles, you let out an irritated sigh and glance toward the far wall, where a small video camera - tracking your every move - gleams with a tiny red indicator light.

"Enough! I’m done with this crap!" - you say, annoyed, tossing the mop down by the door before walking out of the room.

Ahem… this storage room, packed with old junk and filth, had been the site of hours of grueling, unpleasant labor for you…

In the long corridor, a small robot (about a meter tall and moving on miniature treads) approaches you.

It scans your face, its manipulator "arms" clicking, and says in a monotonous, mechanical voice: "Jessica Becker… Your assignment has been completed with a grade of 'D' according to the unified system for evaluating individual contributions to the well-being of the Community… Please consult your Mentor to receive a new assignment…"

You glare at the robot, then your gaze shifts to a pane of glass set into the wall, catching your own reflection.

"Shut up, you stupid piece of junk… Instead of useless chatter and spying, why don’t you... fucking pile of scrap metal... You could help me clean up all this shit!" - you grumble angrily, brushing past the robot.

"Bzzz... Jessica Becker… Your assignment was issued as a result of a disciplinary measure… Please consult your mentor regarding…" - the robot drones on in a monotonous voice.

Stifling the urge to kick the cylindrical chassis of this "useless assistant", you simply walk on down the corridor.

The few people passing by are hurrying about their business, paying you almost no attention.

Although you dislike formalities, you are required to greet each person according to their status.

As a member of the Community with the lowest rank ("sister-novice") you may offer a standard greeting only to those of equal standing.

Meanwhile, you must greet any "sister-seeker" with a respectful bow…

And should you encounter an "awakened sister," you are obligated to bow twice.

"At least the chances of running into a 'sister-matriarch' in the corridor are slim… They live on the lowest level of the bunker and rarely leave it..." - you think to yourself.

That makes perfect sense, really - it would be quite inconvenient to have to drop to your knees to greet someone…

And so, you continue along the long corridor…

It seems you really will have to speak with your mentor now.

Sister Anna Alvarado…

Also known as "Annoying A" - she always demands the level of effort required for the highest possible grade.

Like every sister who serves as a "mentor", she holds the rank of "awakened sister".

Before long, you enter a spacious testing hall.

Fortunately, the only others present are sister-novices in their final year of training.

They are all 19 years old (just like you)…

A dozen young women are sitting at their desks, listening to Mentor Alvarado, who notices you immediately and gestures toward an empty desk.

You take your seat…

The mentor continues her address to the audience of novice sisters: "Soon, each of you will undergo the Final Testing! Depending on the outcome, you will either attain the rank of 'Sister-Seeker' or be condemned to remain, for the rest of your life, at the same low level of reality-comprehension where you currently reside… I strongly urge each of you to show diligence, to study your notes from previous lectures thoroughly, and to prepare for this test with the utmost seriousness! You must strive to make your mothers - and our entire Great Community of the Blessed Sisterhood - proud of you! And now, I shall conduct a preliminary quiz on the material we have covered… So, who shall we start with? Ahem… Sister Valerie… Tell me, which scientist discovered the chemical element radium?"

"Marie Curie!" - came the answer.

"Correct… Sister Lucia, tell me - whose scientific work played a key role in deciphering the structure of DNA?" - the mentor asks

"Rosalind Franklin…" - came the reply.

"Good… That is correct… And now… Sister Jessica - tell me, who… invented the cure for cancer?" - the mentor asks.

Your mentor’s stern gaze locks onto yours.

"I… I don’t remember…" - you reply, lowering your eyes, feeling a mix of shame and irritation.

"Ahem… I am not surprised… Diligence has never been one of your traits, Jessica… It is shameful that you don’t know this… Can anyone else provide the correct answer?" - Alvarado says.

Of course, that insufferable know-it-all and sycophant, Isabella, raises her hand.

Glancing at you with a fleeting look of contempt, she answers: "The absolutely effective cure for cancer was invented by Hillary Clinton - three decades before the Nuclear Armageddon! Alas, at present it is considered lost, due to the consequences..."

"Enough, Sister Isabella... The answer is correct... Now, let us briefly recap the conclusions from the material we have studied over the past year..." - sister-mentor says.

Mentor Alvarado paces slowly in front of a wall-mounted board, covered in illegible chalk scribbles.

She then approaches a small projector sitting on a table in the corner of the room and switches it on.

"Pay close attention, everyone!" - she commands.

The aging, somewhat glitchy video projector displays images on the opposite wall - glimpses of a life that existed in the distant, ancient past...