Sintra had no idea where she was.
Her eyes hungrily devoured the medley of verdure, swallowing images containing canopies of green dotted with an assortment of sweet scented wildflowers sprouting in the underwood and extending far beyond her field of vision.
A melange of electric pinks, luminous yellows and raging oranges screamed among the viridescence of the rainforest, springing to life with vibrancy as trees as tall as skyscrapers peered down on her, their leaves cackling in the crisp wind as it carried the sound of flapping wings and animal cries off into the distance.
She could see dust particles in the narrow beams of sunlight that slipped through the trees' foliages, the mossy earth beneath her feet sinking as it glittered from the reflection of water droplets sitting daintily on its surface.
Sintra inhaled sharply as cold air gripped her by the lapels of her pantsuit and shook her violently, goosebumps rising from the depths of her skin as she finally shivered.
"Where the hell are we?" she asked, her voice cracking slightly from fear and awe.
"A rainforest?" she heard Vante say beside her as he too consumed a bountiful meal of greenery and wonder.
"How did we—" Anna started to say but a voice had begun to spoke, startling all of them.
"Welcome, geniuses to Elevate! You've been chosen to participate in our annual games of intelligence, skills and survival after demonstrating superb intellectual acuity and sense. Please grab the items of your choice that are placed to your left." instructed the automated voice of a female.
Sure enough, a table was standing to their left but only Vante and Anna had begun to approach it with hesitance to see its contents.
They were the only ones to vacate the elevator as the other 3 males had stayed behind, their fear emanating from the compartment.
"What is all this?" Vante asked aloud as Sintra finally headed over to the table, scanning the assortment of ropes, daggers, spears, water bottles and matches that sat on the table.
"Once item selection is complete, we must proceed with the instructions," the voice rang again, startling Sintra a second time.
It was impossible to pinpoint the exact location of the voice since it seemed to come from the rainforest itself.
"What the hell is this?!" One of the men from the elevator shrieked as he finally stepped outside. "How did we get here? What is happening?!"
"Average intelligence detected," the voice announced, just before an arrow shot through the man's forehead.
"Mark!" Anna screamed, her voice echoing through the rainforest as the man's body fell to the ground.
Sintra's mouth hung agape while her knees trembled, her eyes watering at the sudden death of her employee. Turning her attention towards the rainforest once more, she vigorously searched for the shooter but all she could see was frondescence.
The other two men ran from the elevator, their cries louder than the wildlife of the jungle.
"Average intelligence detected," the voice repeated and they too met the same fate, slumping against the damp earth only a few feet away from the elevator.
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Elevate | ONC 2021
Adventure🏅 ONC 2021 || Longlister 🏅 Added to Round One Ambassador's Pick List How would you react if the elevator in your workplace took you to a different world at every floor? Sintra Magnus, CEO of America's most renowned charity organization finds her...
