The Unlocked (Charlie Hartley Series Book 1) (11 page)

Her mind screamed
Let me go!
  People with masks
came into view. They were wearing lab coats with a logo she had seen somewhere
before. When one of them came near, it confirmed her suspicion.

On the breast pocket was a logo and under it was a set of
letters she’d seen a few days ago: GEN.

Another masked person clad in white approached and was
holding a big metal syringe.  She felt something brewing inside her, like
a force building up in her center, waiting to explode. There was something
else: she was afraid. Not of the impending injection but of what was going on
inside her. When the man poised to inject her, she heard an explosion and
everything else drowned in a dizzying orange blur.

The dream ended abruptly. Panting and drenched in sweat, Charlie
slapped her forearms to check if she was still strapped to a bed. Looking
around the room, she confirmed that she was inside her dorm at ANDREI. Brianna
was staring at her from her side of the room.

“Are you alright?” Brianna asked. “I was about to wake you
up. You were struggling like someone was holding you down.”

“I-I’m fine,” Charlie said, wiping the sweat off her
forehead.

“Heard today’s your big day. May the Force be with you!”
Brianna said.

Charlie managed a small smile, recognizing the
Star Wars
reference. “Thanks.”

“The trick is not to panic,” Brianna reminded. With her
nerves all jittery, Charlie couldn’t promise to be level-headed but she was
determined to do her best. “Go and shower! The SAT starts in thirty!” Brianna
said, pointing to the clock. It was 7:30.

Darn, I’m late!
Charlie ran to the bathroom and took
a quick shower, dressed in the white overalls ANDREI issued and raced to the
training rooms. A hugely built man waited for her in front of a training room
entrance. He was wearing a plain white shirt that accentuated his muscular
torso, camouflage pants and military boots. He also wore a timer around his
neck and had a clipboard in his hands.

“A minute early,” he spoke in a low voice. “I’m Marvolo
Cray. Nice to meet you, Charlene.”

Charlie cringed upon hearing her full name. “Pleasure to
meet you, Sir.”

“How would you like to be called?”

“Charlie is fine, Sir.”

“Alright then Charlie, let’s get down to business. The first
part of the Skills Assessment Test is going to test your physical endurance.
Are you an athlete?”

Charlie remembered all the times she skipped gym class,
claiming that her dysmenorrhea was killing her, which is just a fancy word for
menstrual cramps. It always worked, which now put her at a disadvantage. She
shook her head.

“Ah, well. Let’s see how you fare then,” he said. He opened
the door and Charlie was welcomed by an elaborate labyrinth of obstacle
courses. She recognized the orange cones that spanned the entire room, which
was about the size of basketball court. There was a rappelling wall at the end,
and a zip line above. “You start running nonstop from there, climb that wall,
and zip line back. Easy peasy, right?” Charlie shook her head. “Come on, it’s
easy! Just get it done. I’ll time you. Okay? Ready?”

She wasn’t even poised to run yet!
Oh my god, oh my god,
oh my god,
Charlie thought.
Don’t I get to stretch or anything?!?

“Set…”

Charlie tried to mimic the runners at the local triathlon
she watched with her parents. She extended one of her legs, bent the other and
put both her hands on the ground.

“Go!”

Charlie ran as fast she could, dodging one or two cones
along the way. The running came easy, as she liked running in the park for
cardiovascular fitness. Climbing proved to be more difficult than she imagined.
At one point she slipped, but when she remembered why she was here, she
imagined reaching the top and meeting Jeanne there. The image of reaching
Jeanne made Charlie climb a lot faster. She hated heights and though she was
sure to be more than twenty feet above ground, she didn’t hesitate to strap on
the harness and zip right through the last part of the course.

She panted and puffed her way back to Marvolo, who stood at
the door with a wide grin on his face. He clapped his hands as she approached.

“That was fantastic!” Marvolo exclaimed. “2.41 minutes!
That’s a record-breaker!”

Charlie was shocked. She never broke any record,
athletically-wise, due to her lack of hand-eye coordination. It was Jeanne. She
helped me, Charlie wanted to say. But Marvolo probably wouldn’t understand, so
she kept it to herself. She beamed her best smile and thanked Marvolo.

“Now, let’s not get excited. We still have two more tests to
do. Follow me.” Marvolo walked past the training rooms.

“Where are we going?” Charlie asked.

“To the infirmary,” he answered.

Charlie patted her face and body. “I’m fine, Sir. No damage
acquired.”

“Oh, no, no. We’re not going there to have you checked out.
That’s the venue of your next exam.”

A confused Charlie complied, walking beside Marvolo. He
stopped before entering the infirmary. “This is where it gets tricky. This is
the mental part of the SAT where you are required to be creative. When you
enter this room, I will lock this from the outside and you have to find a way
to get out.”

Charlie’s expression must have resembled a huge question
mark that compelled Marvolo to explain further. “Do you know those escape room
games?” She’d seen one of those in amusement parks but never entered them.
“This is similar to those.”

“Oh,” she managed to say.

“This test specifically requires the use of your physical
and mental facilities without the aid of your telekinesis. The infirmary is
designed to temporarily disable your abilities. It will just make your head
ache if you try. Other students have experienced nose bleeds sometimes, so I
strongly suggest you don’t attempt. It’s futile, trust me.”

Charlie remembered what Hilary said during the tour. The
room was built with material designed to block out their powers. “What are the
mechanics, Sir?”

Marvolo looked at her seriously. “There are none. Just get
out of there alive.” He opened the door and Charlie stepped inside the dark
room. She looked back just as Marvolo closed the twin doors on her. “Good luck,
Charlie.”

As soon as the doors were shut, the room went pitch black.
She walked around slowly, feeling her way around the room. Charlie found a
candle atop something flat but had nothing to light it with. She slowly scanned
with her fingers the flat surface, figuring it was a table, then patted
something very small. It was a match stick. The walls were smooth so striking
the match against it was out. When she touched the table’s underside, it was
rough so she struck the match against. With a meager source of light, the room
came into full view.

Charlie saw numbers and letters scribbled on the wall,
written in a pattern that didn’t make sense to her. Aside from the table and
the graffiti, there was nothing in the room. A few minutes passed and she still
hadn’t figured out what the writings on the wall meant. Her thin candle wasn’t
going to stay lit for long. Charlie inspected every inch of the room. The floor
was marble, and she knocked at every square tile. 120 tiles later, she was
certain none of them held clues to unlock the door. By then her candle was only
half an inch tall and panic began to set in. She knocked on the walls but the
concrete material hurt her knuckles.

She sat in the room’s corner in defeat. For some reason, her
gaze landed in the middle of the room where she imagined a steel bed that held her
in place. Her nightmare played out right in front of her. She was struggling,
and there were people in white lab coats surrounding her like a swarm of bees.
When the man holding the syringe came close, she felt a force inside her
begging to be released. The lights around flickered and the man peeked behind
him to check on the fluctuating electricity but quickly resumed what he was
about to do. Charlie felt the syringe’s cold thin metal filled with a green
viscous liquid about to pierce her skin when the force inside her tore through
her flesh and exploded into a giant white light.

Charlie didn’t realize she was screaming at that point, and
the entire room was already flooded with light from the open door. Marvolo
rushed to her and shook her gently. “Charlie? What happened? Are you alright?”

Charlie was anchored back to reality by his voice, unable to
resist hugging Marvolo. She shook her head, not finding the will or voice to
speak. After the initial shock wore off, Charlie was able to stand up and move
to sit on the floor outside the room.

“What happened back there?” Marvolo asked her gently.

“A really bad case of cabin fever, I reckon,” Charlie joked,
but no hint of a smile appeared on her face.

“Did you hear me from outside? Was that why you opened the door?”

Marvolo looked at her, puzzled. He pointed to the double
doors lying flat on the ground. Charlie didn’t notice that she had actually
stepped on them on the way out.

“Oh my goodness, I’m so sorry! Did you have to break down
the door to get to me? Oh my goodness, oh my goodness,” Charlie shook her head,
facing down.

Now Marvolo was really baffled. “Charlie, I didn’t break
those doors...”

Charlie looked up. “Huh?”

“I didn’t break those doors,” Marvolo repeated. “You did.”

Charlie didn't know how to respond. She had no idea how she
could possibly break down those doors when she didn't consciously use her
powers. Besides, the infirmary was designed to disable her telekinesis. How is
this possible?

Marvolo wrote something on the clipboard and Charlie quickly
regretted when she peeked. At the bottom of the paper he wrote: "Unfit to
proceed."

Marvolo stood and helped Charlie to her feet. "Come on,
let's get you back to your room. You need to rest."

"May I retake the test?" Charlie asked,
disappointment radiating from her like rays of light.

"We don't hold exams twice for a student,
Charlie."

Her face darkened. "I see. Alright, Sir. Thank you for
your time and I'm deeply sorry for the inconvenience."

Charlie walked along the halls, no longer feeling the initial
enthusiasm; now only disappointment wracked her bones.
How can I even cause
so much damage in such a short period of time?
She was guilt-ridden,
thinking about her parents back home and Jeanne at the Advanced Training
Center. She wanted to think that even her sister counted on her to get this
right. As for Carl and Sarah, they sacrificed so much for Charlie in the past
years, and when it came down to it, Charlie chose ANDREI over the Hartley dream
of her studying at Harvard. Her parents were so understanding; only wanting
what their daughter wanted for herself.

It broke Charlie's heart to disappoint them. She went back
to the library to write a feature article; the overflowing emotions she had
acquired from the past week could no longer be bottled up. Charlie loved
writing and being able to freely express herself any way she wanted. Charlie
was so lost in the world of her pen and paper, she didn't realize hours had
already passed.

Finally glancing up at the clock, she realized she was going
to miss dinner if she didn’t get moving. She packed the papers she’d used and
stuffed them in her side pocket. There were no students loitering in the halls
anymore; everyone was at the cafeteria getting sustenance. When Charlie
entered, all eyes landed on her like she was a dessert waiting to be devoured.
Some students started whispering to each other and pointing at Charlie.

What on earth...?
Charlie found her table with
Hilary, who was smiling from ear to ear. "What are you so happy
about?" she asked her friend, who had put aside two meal trays of still
untouched food for each of them.

"Congratulations!!!" She screamed, reaching for
Charlie across the table. Charlie met Hilary halfway, their arms stretched out
and touching each other.

"Wait, wait. What?"

"You got the highest score in the SAT!!!"

"Whoa, calm down. You got the wrong information. I
failed the SAT. That's what I was about to tell you."

"Failed the SAT? Says who?"

"Well, I saw what Mr. Cray wrote on my evaluation
sheet. It didn't look good. I flopped."

"You didn't flop, Charlie," Hilary smiled.
"See for yourself." She pointed at the bulletin board at the entrance
of the cafeteria. Tacked with a small red pin was plain bond paper with a few
words printed on it.

American National
Development, Research and Education Institute

Skills Assessment
Test Results

Hartley, Charlene -
65.8%

Congratulations for
being the top scorer in the history of ANDREI.

From the ANDREI Staff

"How could I have done that?" Charlie asked out
loud.

She was answered by a smiling Marvolo, who had managed to
sneak beside her, "Because you've done what nobody else could, Charlie. We
tried to impede your superhuman capacities but you overcame our restrictions.
Congratulations!"

"But Mr. Cray... I didn't finish the exam. I completely
missed out on the last part," Charlie said, concerned.

"You failed one of the three parts, but you still ended
up with the highest score anyway. Some things are not meant to be measured by
standards set previously. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to figure out that
you're special, Charlie," replied Mr. Cray, who walked away with a smile
on his face after patting her shoulder.

When she turned to go back to her seat, she saw Bradley and
Madison looking at her, seething with fury so much it sent shivers down
Charlie's spine.

Breathing heavily and heart thumping loudly in her chest,
Charlie jogged around the field to clear her thoughts. Thankfully, no one else
was in the mood to be out in the sun at eleven in the morning. After the Skills
Assessment Test, the students were granted a day off, something Charlie truly
needed at this point. When the results were announced, the resentful looks grew
in numbers when her fellow freshmen trainees decided she was public enemy
number one.
Who would have thought Superhero University is like typical high
school?
Charlie grudgingly thought.

The warm sunlight warmed her face as she jogged her troubles
away, getting lost in the music playing in her ears and the momentum of her
legs. When weariness caught up with her, she sought solace at the garden and
the pond at the end of the stone path. Charlie pulled out her earphones and sat
on one of the smooth stones, relishing the cool water around it by dipping her
fingers in. She rubbed her chin with her right hand and took comfort in the
silence of the area. The scent of leaves and sound of water were relaxing her
otherwise troubled mind. Somewhere in the garden, a soothing melody from guitar
strumming lent a tranquil mood to the place. Charlie felt sincere gratitude to
the musician who shared her talent.

But her serenity was disrupted by the sound of crackling ice
beside her. Charlie nearly fell off the stone at the sight as the pond water
freezing and transforming to ice, creating a hard glassy surface. “What the--?”
she muttered.

“Well, you know the cliché - The deepest part of hell is
covered in ice,” a voice spoke to her from an elevated level. Charlie looked up
to see Otto perched on the topmost pile of stones at the far end of the
pond.  “Hey there, high scorer,” teased Otto, and Charlie mirrored the
smile on his face.

“This isn’t like a videogame, you know,” Charlie commented.

“Ah, that’s where you’re wrong!” Otto hopped off his seat
and took the one nearest to Charlie. “Teenagers with superpowers being trained
to be soldiers; it’s like SeeD from Final Fantasy 8!” Otto announced. “Okay,
maybe that was bad reference, but you get my point.”

Charlie didn’t since she wasn’t familiar with the game, but
she laughed anyway. “I should get back to my room. I smell like sweat and sun.”

Otto stood up and smirked at her. “Hey, I don’t mind a
physically active girl. I actually like that.”

Warmth spread across Charlie’s cheeks and she playfully
punched him on the shoulder. “Shut up,” she said in a playful tone.

The two entered the dormitory building where there were a
few students hanging around the common room. “By the way,” Otto said, following
her. “Bradley is holding an Initiation for the freshmen.”

Charlie sported a look of disdain for Bradley. “That’s not
good.”

Otto agreed, “No, it isn’t. But we have to do it; otherwise
he’ll make it a bigger deal than it already is.”

Charlie sighed, “Okay, what’s his idea of an Initiation,
anyway? And please don’t tell me it’s hazing.”

Otto shrugged, “No clue. But I’m pretty sure it’s not going
to be that since it would be against school policy. Bradley might play King
Kong around the school, but he isn’t immune to the rules.”

Charlie laughed at the nickname. “So, how is it going to
work? We gather around a bonfire at night and you and the rest of the seniors
will chant and dance for us?”

“Close, but no cigar.” Otto pointed out. “There will be a
bonfire, and it will be at night. But if Bradley asks me to dance, it won’t be
pretty.”

Charlie giggled, “I can imagine.” She admired how Otto made
light of nearly everything in the school. She was envious of his cheerful
disposition. Given all the stress she’d endured during her few weeks at ANDREI,
his infectious laughs and jokes were enough to make any newcomer feel better.

They reached the door to her room and Otto leaned on the
wall beside it, flashing his good-natured grin. “So, I’ll see you later?” he
asked and Charlie nodded.

“Don’t forget your tribal mask and robes, Otto,” she joked
before closing the door on him.

A dim orange glow welcomed Charlie as she made her way to
the school’s open field later than evening. Like Otto had promised, a bonfire
roared at the center of the field while a bleacher stood in front of it with
nearly all the students already celebrating amongst themselves. Charlie and
Hilary were some of the last to arrive.  They spotted Bradley sitting on
the lowest bleacher, his boisterous laugh echoing in the night. Charlie and
Hilary took a seat on the second from the top. Charlie caught Otto’s eyes. He
winked at her and gave her a thumbs up. Charlie lifted her hand, returning the
same gesture, hoping the bonfire glow camouflaged the flush on her cheeks.

“Want some?” Hilary offered. Charlie turned to see an open
bag of chips in Hilary’s hands.

“I didn’t know we’re allowed to have junk food around here,”
Charlie commented, and she happily obliged herself with a few pieces.

“Special occasions call for it,” Hilary explained. She
pointed to the lower aisle where Ted carried bags of chips and soda for
distribution. “We’re still teenagers anyway, and we need junk food once in a
while for our sanity.”

Charlie laughed, “Amen to that!”

“Hear ye, hear ye, hear ye!” Bradley announced and all the
students fell silent. “We are gathered here this evening for the first Annual
Andreian Rites of Passage, where we, the veterans of this proud school, pass
our batons to you fresh meats!” The crowd cheered and stomped their feet on the
ground, a thunderous sound. “As the founder of this event, it is my duty to
explain what rites of passage our neophytes must to undergo.”

Charlie tried to mute out Bradley’s voice, her patience
dwindling with every word he spoke. She and Hilary exchanged dreadful looks
upon the realization that Bradley’s idea of initiation was ordering the
freshmen tasks based on their abilities. As expected, they were to be for
Bradley’s own entertainment.

He first called Ilka, whose ability was flight. Bradley
sported a smug look as he announced the task for Ilka. With his inhuman
strength, Bradley threw his water bottle up in the air and ordered Ilka to
fetch it for him before he reached it himself. Ilka thought for a moment before
his feet lifted off the ground in his attempt to complete the task. On the first
try, the bottle hit the ground before Ilka could catch it. Bradley took this as
an opportunity to demean Ilka, but the younger one didn’t back down. On his
second try, he managed to catch the bottle in midair and thrust it into
Bradley’s waiting hand. Ilka stormed off the field afterwards.

The night continued with Bradley assigning stupid challenges
to each freshman. He paired Mika with Ted and challenged Mika to sneak up on
Ted and for Ted to detect Mika’s movements despite her invisibility. Ted won
the challenge. The students were flustered when Bradley tasked Cassandra to
deactivate gravity, making the students on the bleachers float.

Charlie was called in last. Upon hearing Bradley’s task for
her, she understood his motive right away.

“What?” Charlie’s brows furrowed as Bradley repeated his
challenge.

“Pick up the trash, Charlie. Is that too hard for you to
understand?”

Charlie bit the inside of her cheek, anger fueling her. With
her telekinesis, all Bradley wanted from her was to clean up water bottles and
junk food wrappers that littered the school field.  Half of the students
snickered at Charlie’s expense. Others chimed in, supporting Bradley’s
challenge and pressuring her to comply. “Come on, Charlie. We don’t have all
night!” Bradley yelled at her and Madison laughed beside him. Charlie’s eyes
fell on Otto and Hilary, who were both sympathetic but unable to speak up
against the self-proclaimed king of the school.

“Fine,” Charlie conceded. With her hands spread at her
sides, one by one, the plastic bottles and aluminum cans took off from the
ground while the students watched in awe. But Bradley’s deliberate bored
expression irked Charlie. She willed all the pieces to coalesce over their
heads, the pile growing and growing until it was the size and shape of a beach
ball. She moved the ball of garbage and dropped it directly in front of
Bradley, who looked at it with disgust.

“Hey! Did I tell you to offer me this pile of filth?!”
Bradley kicked the ball and sent it flying towards the thick foliage. “What are
you trying to prove here, huh?” He marched towards Charlie, but, much like the
scene in the cafeteria a couple of days ago, she stopped him in his tracks. She
turned on her heel and walked away from the bonfire. Charlie had bigger things
to focus on than Bradley’s games
;
one of
those was the training that came the following day.

Physical training was something Charlie never really looked
forward to, even in high school. To her, it was an opportunity for bullies to
harm the weaker ones. Besides, Charlie excelled in academics, not sports.
Running was the only physical activity she participated in.

The next day she found herself standing in line with the
other Unlocked under the blaring sun while Instructor Jason Ross paced in front
of them. Charlie felt a sting in her gut as she realized she was the oldest
amongst the new ones. "You have all passed your Stage One training. But a
sound mind isn't the only thing required to handle tough situations. You need
to have a well-trained body as well. In the next few days, I will be making
sure your bodies are in tip top shape before you even begin to train in using
your powers in combat."

First came the usual exercises: pushups, jumping jacks, and
running, the last being the only thing Charlie was adept at. Instructor Ross
acted like a drill sergeant instead of a gym teacher, which gave credibility to
his military background. By the end of day one, Charlie's muscles were so sore
that the mere task of lifting a spoon to her lips was difficult. Healthy food
intake was also part of the training, so despite her craving for the hamburger
at the cafeteria, she grudgingly settled on potatoes and carrots for dinner.
Her stomach rumbled in the night as she forced herself to sleep.

The second day, an obstacle course was laid out on the
school field for them. It was a scene Charlie only saw in movies. None of the
participants were excited. They began with the usual exercises to warm up their
bodies before being sent into the obstacle course in pairs. They were meant to
race to the finish line, but both Charlie and her contender, Patrice, struggled
to hurdle the obstacles, and neither of them cared about beating the other.

The situation intensified when the two girls reached the net
climbing. Charlie was leading, but when Patrice lost her hold and fell on the
mat, her distress caused the wind to pick up. Charlie held on for dear life as
the net swayed wildly. Some classmates tried calm Patrice and make her stop the
wind. Charlie’s hand was forced off the net and she swung with only one hand.
Patrice screamed along with the others, but Charlie did her best to ignore the
scene below. Nearly fifteen feet off the ground, Charlie didn’t want to take a
chance with the rubber mat that would only slightly cushion her fall. Charlie
swung her leg forward, pivoting her body to slam face-first against the net.
She grabbed onto it before her body could bounce off. The wind finally died
down, and Charlie triumphantly finished the obstacle course alone.

"Well done, Charlie." Instructor Ross patted her
on the back. Despite his authoritative voice and intimidating physique, Charlie
learned her Instructor wasn't like her high school gym teacher, who bullied
students into delivering his expectations.

"Tomorrow I’ll test how well you can perform during
combat. We will be using the training rooms this time, which means you can use
your powers." Instructor Ross announced to all. "I do not expect you
to win; I do not expect you to excel quickly. This is only to evaluate what you
are good at and what you need to work on. I will be testing your strength,
agility, stealth, strategy and courage. I will gauge which areas you require
more proficiency as well as determine which fighting style suits your powers
best before I can train you. I will have each of you spar with a senior student
for hands-on combat exposure.”

The students exchanged nervous looks. Charlie hoped to be
paired with Hilary, though she wasn't sure how she could spar with the girl.
"Do you have any questions?" Instructor Ross asked them, but no one
had the guts to raise any despite their uncertainty. Courage was certainly near
the top of their list to work on. "Dismissed," Instructor Ross
announced. Charlie had never been so relieved. Unfortunately, that relief was
short lived when Charlie entered the training room the next day.

Noise in the training room welcomed her. Among the fellow
trainees were a handful of senior students. Standing out amongst them was the
grinning face of Bradley. His burly physique made the newbies nervous. Charlie
walked cautiously to avoid catching his attention, but when the Instructor
ordered them to file in order, she had no choice but to line up in full few of
the seniors.

"Okay, listen up," the Instructor called out to
them. “We will be doing one-on-one combat. I figure most of you aren't quite
adept with fighting besides pulling the pigtails of little girls, so I will be
teaming you all up against one of the seniors present here." Instructor
Ross gestured to the three people behind him.

"Let me introduce our contenders," Instructor Ross
announced. The first senior was Kio, who had the power to shape shift. He was
tall and had a gentle face. Second was Vladimir, a handsome, burly fellow who
had the ability to self-regenerate. The third senior was Bradley, who had
superhuman strength.

In the first two rounds, Charlie watched from the mezzanine
while Kio and Vladimir battled with Cassandra and Garrett. "Watch closely
and learn," Instructor told the Unlocked. It wasn't as thrilling, though,
to watch the trainees who did not do much but dodge their attackers.