Dümped

Sandra swayed as the last jump settled in her bones. Her stomach churned. Before she could stop herself, she lurched forward and vomited—right onto Marylou.

Marylou, the telekinetic girl Sandra had been traveling with, barely reacted. She wiped off her shirt with a resigned sigh.

Sandra winced. "Sorry."

Marylou shrugged. "You get used to it."

As Sandra steadied herself, Marylou muttered, "We need to find the SVI system. It has to be fixed."

Sandra frowned. "Why do you care so much? Hardly anyone gives a damn about Stock Value Index anymore."

"My clan cares. If I could just go up one point, everything would change."

Sandra studied her. "Explain it to me."

Marylou hesitated, then sighed. "I'm from a clan called Amazon. The leaders call themselves the Powerpuff Girls." She rolled her eyes. "The clan is divided into social ranks based on SVI scores. Anyone 30 and below is 'Damp.' 31 to 50 are 'Average.' 51 to 70 are 'Prime.' And 71 to 100 are 'Royal.'"

Sandra frowned. "But the system is down. How are people still tracking scores?"

"I don't know. Somehow, they just… see it. Maybe it's old data stuck in their heads. But without the system, scores don't change. I'll be 'Average' forever. I can't live like that."

Her voice cracked. Sandra saw the desperation in her eyes.

Marylou wiped at her face and swallowed hard. "Most of the 'Damp' have already… given up. If they're gone, that means the next lowest class becomes the new bottom. That'll be us. I can't let that happen."

Sandra exhaled. "Then take me to your camp."

Marylou hesitated. "We should find the system first."

Sandra crossed her arms. "Your camp first. Then we figure out the rest."

Marylou clenched her jaw, then nodded. "Fine. But if we find the system along the way, we fix it."

Sandra wasn't sure what fixing it would mean—but something told her she needed to see this clan for herself first.

When they reached the camp, Marylou led Sandra to a girl with sharp eyes and an unreadable expression.

"This is April," Marylou said.

Sandra looked her over, then blurted, "I want to join your clan."

April studied her for a long moment. Then, without much interest, she said, "We'll think about it." She turned and walked past them.

Sandra leaned toward Marylou. "What's her power?"

Marylou whispered back, "No one knows."

Later that night, the camp gathered around a roaring bonfire. Unlike the rigid, cold North Pole settlement, the Amazonians lived in the overgrown ruins of a five-star hotel. The Fall had shattered the building, and nature had reclaimed it, vines and trees winding through what had once been luxury suites. The basement remained intact, serving as storage for food and shelter for the Royals.

Three girls sat in lifeguard chairs above the fire, literally looking down on the rest of the clan.

April stood and spoke. "Tonight, we welcome Sandra. Age: 27. Score: 51. She wants to join the Amazon."

The girl sitting in the middle turned her head slightly.

"What abilities do you have?" one of the others asked.

April glanced toward the middle girl. "May, what do you think?"

Sandra immediately recognized the one in charge. She looked at their SVI scores.

April: 74.

May: 90.

June: 81.

Sandra raised an eyebrow. "They can't really be called April, May, and June," she muttered under her breath.

June turned suddenly, her eyes unfocused like she was staring into some abyss.

Sandra felt a prickle of unease. She'd meant to say that to herself.

She shoved the thought aside. If she wanted to dismantle their power structure, she'd need to learn their abilities first.

"Sandra. Sandra."

She blinked.

They'd been calling her name. She'd gotten lost in her thoughts.

"So?" April prompted.

Sandra hesitated.

May smirked. "Menopause hitting early?"

The crowd erupted into laughter.

Sandra straightened her shoulders, keeping her expression neutral.

May leaned forward. "One more time. What ability do you possess?"

Sandra met her gaze. "No powers," she said. "Just hard work."

A few snickers rippled through the crowd.

Sandra ignored them. She wasn't here to impress them. She was here to break them.

May leaned forward, her voice sharp. "Since you have no ability and a score of 51, you'll be Average."

Sandra frowned. "I thought 51 was Prime?"

May's eyes narrowed. "Are you questioning my authority? You're powerless. Even with a 51, you're Average."

Sandra swallowed her retort. Instead, she studied April, remembering the way she had looked at her earlier—like she had seen something.

An idea sparked in Sandra's mind. April is the one who can see people's scores.

Her stomach tightened. What if she has a Moderna? Or something worse?

She forced herself to take a slow breath. "Calm down," she muttered.

First, confirm her power.

The next day, Sandra put her plan into action. Using Moderna, she lowered May's score by one. If April really could see scores, she would notice—and tell May. That would confirm everything.

She waited.

One day passed. Nothing.

Two days. Still nothing.

Sandra was considering another plan when May called a meeting.

She stood in front of the bonfire, her voice cutting through the murmurs of the gathered clan.

"Effective immediately, I have asked April and June to step down as co-leaders. From now on, they will serve as advisors."

A ripple of shock spread through the crowd.

Sandra stiffened. That wasn't supposed to happen.

"I guess that's the end of the social system," she muttered.

Just in time to jinx it.

May's voice rang out. "Starting tomorrow, we'll be implementing a new grading system."

Sandra's stomach dropped.

This could be even worse.