The Shattering of Light Into Rainbows

In the authoritarian world of the silo, one must never say dangerous things out loud.Shortly after her fifteenth birthday, Mia Flynn began hearing voices. Fifteen-year-old Lily Yates began hearing and seeing fantastical things. This all occurred within the hydroponic farms. However, allowing oneself to be swept up by imagination, saying things that suggest a rebellious form of mental illness, is dangerous within the silo. Certain things must never be spoken.The Shattering of Light Into Rainbows is a short story based on the best-selling Silo Series by Hugh Howey and was written with his permission.Excerpt. The moment that Lily Yates first witnessed fantastical things:The day I first saw the light shatter, I had been picking oranges from the trees and placing them into a sack tied around my neck. I was bored and tired. The neck strap had been rubbing my skin raw. It burned every time I lifted my arm to pluck an orange from the tree.The water pipes had done their job, splashing the orange trees with hydration. Right above a spot where water had pooled into droplets, a plump caterpillar all dressed up in a green bodysuit with black and orange stripes sat nibbling on a leaf. He looked down at me lazily as though to say, What's up?I answered him. What's up is you. You're up in my tree.He replied, Yup. And I intend to stay here. Name's Bubbles. What's yours?