Out Of Time (Book 0): Super Unknown (5 page)

For
what seemed like the hundredth time in the last 10 minutes, Scarlett flung her
arms at the door in a desperate bid to telekinetically rip it off its hinges.

“Argh!”
she screamed.

“Scarlett,
I don’t think it’s working,” Dylan said. He put his hand on her shoulder
reassuringly.

“It
has
to,” she said. “It has to.”

Scarlett
and Dylan had been locked in a room with Neelam and Toshiko for 10 minutes now
and they had all been going out of their minds worrying about what Goulden was
doing to the children. Sasha, Andrew, Lucy and Jay were in the room next door,
while Ethan had been taken to an unknown location on his own – presumably
because Goulden was worried that he would use his bombs to break them all out
of there. Alex, meanwhile, was still in a lab somewhere being experimented on.
Whatever that meant. Dylan shuddered to think.

“Maybe
the others will find a way out and come to get us,” Neelam suggested. “Lucy’s
lightning looks pretty powerful.”

Scarlett
sat down on the floor and sighed. She banged her head backwards against the
wall, then turned to look at Dylan.

“Can’t
you have a go?”

“Me?”
Dylan had already scoured the room, but there was not a drop of water to be
seen. “There’s no liquid in here, but I’ll give it a try. Maybe I can use the vapour
from the atmosphere or something,” he said. He doubted that was possible, but
he’d try anything to please her – especially when she was so worried about her
brother, Dan. He needed to give it his best shot for Sophia’s sake too. He was
going out of his mind with worry about his little sister, so he understood why
Scarlett was so frustrated.

He
walked over to the door and placed a hand on the door knob. He willed it to
freeze, not really expecting anything to happen. Suddenly, it began to get
colder. “It’s working,” he said. Scarlett and the others sat up excitedly. Was
Dylan about to save them all? But then the icy, fragile door knob snapped off
in his hand. “Oh no,” he said glumly. “That wasn’t supposed to happen.”

Scarlett
let out another huge sigh and rocked backwards again.

“I’ll
try,” Neelam said. “There’s a guard out in that corridor somewhere, right?”

“I
think so,” Toshiko said, speaking up for the first time since they had been
thrown in the room.

“OK.”
Neelam tiptoed over to the door, then peered through a gap near the door frame.
“I think I can see him.” She closed her eyes as though she was concentrating
really hard.

“What’s
she doing?” Toshiko asked.

“Sshhh,”
Dylan said. He became worried as he heard footsteps approaching the room. Who
was coming for them now?

A
key turned in the door and it clicked open.

“Hello,”
the guard said, somewhat robotically as though he was in a trance. “I need to
release you now. Go.”

Neelam
stared at the guard intently.

“Please
take my keys,” the man said. “I am to stay in here.” He sat down on the floor.

“Quick,”
Neelam said as she grabbed the keys and dashed out of the room, quickly
followed by the others. She locked the door behind them, trapping the guard in
there.

“Did
you control his mind?” Scarlett asked.

“Yes,
thanks to you. That was a brilliant suggestion you made earlier.”

“No,
thanks to
you
. It was your skill that did it. Well done, Neelam.”

“Come
on, let’s free the others before someone comes,” Dylan said.

They
raced to the other room and let Jay, Sasha, Andrew and Lucy out, then they all ran
upstairs in search of the lab where their brothers and sisters were being held.

“Can
you sense them, Neelam?” Lucy asked.

She
shook her head. “My powers only work once I’m close to the person whose mind I
want to read.”

“I
hope we find them soon. I’m so worried about my brother.”

“It’ll
be OK,” Neelam assured her, even though she wasn’t convinced herself.

The
eight of them trekked up and down the corridors for the next 10 minutes, but it
felt like they were getting more and more lost.

“Didn’t
we come this way already?” Sasha said with a huff.

“I
don’t think so,” Neelam said.

“Quiet,”
Scarlett interrupted. “I think I heard a scream come from that direction.”

She
raced off down another corridor, leaving the others with no option but to
follow her. Suddenly, Neelam collapsed to the floor holding her head as though
she was in pain.

“Are
you OK?” Jay asked.

“The
children,” Neelam managed to say through her agony. “They’re down there on the
right and I can hear their thoughts – they’re wailing in pain.”

Dylan
helped her up. “Good work,” he said. “Come on, try to block it out and pretend
you can’t hear it, so we can go after them.”

The
pain on her face eased a little. “I’ll try my best.” She smiled thankfully.

When
they reached the room Neelam had pointed out, Scarlett stood at the door and
telekinetically flung it open. “Let’s go!” she yelled, running into the room.

“Oh
no,” Dylan muttered. “I really need to teach her about teamwork.” It was too
late now though, their cover was already blown, so he chased after her even
though he thought it was suicide to do so.

“Are
we following them?” Andrew asked.

“Nothing
better to do,” Jay mused.

He
dashed in there super quickly, while Lucy raced in throwing lightning bolts and
creating a commotion. Sasha flew into the middle of the room, reaching Dr Kitts
in a second.

“What
on earth?” he said as she picked him up and carried him through the air. “Put
me down now. I’m in the middle of an experiment.”

“We
know that,” Scarlett said. “We heard the kids screaming.”

“I
need to finish what I’m doing,” the doctor insisted. “Or it will hurt them
more. Let me go.”

Sasha
did as she was told and he fell to the floor with a thud. Scarlett used her
mind to lift a table and throw it at him, but she missed and hit Andrew
instead, knocking him over.

“Ooops,
sorry.”

“It’s
OK,” he said, picking up the table and throwing it to one side like it was a
light, little toy.

“Wowzers.”
Lucy said. “You’re pretty strong.”

“Super
strong,” Jay said.

“I
am
? I am!” Andrew looked shocked. He picked the table back up with one
hand and threw it at the doorway, blocking the way of two guards he had just
spotted trying to get in.

Scarlett
mind lifted another table and flung it on top of that one for good measure.

“Now,”
she said to Dr Kitts. “Free them.”

“I
must wait.”

“Why
were they screaming?” Scarlett asked.

“They’re
not in pain anymore…”

“He’s
lying,” Neelam said. “I can hear their thoughts. They’re in agony.”

“You
monster,” Dylan shouted. “What are you doing to them?”

“I’m
running several procedures, including electric shocks. The hope is that it will
cause a reaction and release their powers,” he explained. “It sounds cruel, but
I thought it was better than letting Goulden’s men beat them. I’m also
investigating their genes to see if they have the potential for powers in the
first place and the results are nearly ready.”

“That’s
why you won’t free them, isn’t it?” Dylan said. He pointed his finger
accusingly. “You need to complete the results. It won’t hurt them to stop this
now at all.”

The
doctor shook his head, but Scarlett wasn’t convinced. She lifted him up in the
air.

“Wake
them up and let them, go. Now!” She dropped him again to show that she meant
business.

“I
wish I’d never agreed to this,” he muttered as he trudged over to a machine a
few feet away. “I had no idea super kids could be so irritating.” He flicked a
switch. ”Done.”

“Well,
well, well, what do we have here?”

The
teenagers turned around to see Goulden clambering past the tables into the
room. Two of his men were trying their best to move the obstacles out of the
way for him, but he was obviously too impatient to wait.

“I
should have known my useless guards couldn’t hold you now you have your powers.”
He turned to Dr Kitts. “Any news?”

The
doctor shook his head. He was staring at a printout that had just come out of a
small printer attached to his machine.

“Nothing,”
he said. “The experiments and blood tests all show that these younger ones
don’t have the same genes as their powered siblings. I ran a full set of
investigations too and not one of them forced latent abilities to manifest. I’m
very certain that these children are normal, non-powered citizens.”

“That’s
a shame,” Goulden said. “Kill them.”

“No!”
Sasha yelled. She flew at Goulden, while Lucy threw lightning and Scarlett
threw pretty much everything her mind could grab hold of.

He
stepped to one side to dodge their assault, then gently brushed imaginary dust
from his suit.

“Ladies,
please, there’s no need to be so dramatic. How’s about I agree to
not
kill your little brothers and sisters and send them home to live happily ever
after…”

“If?”
Dylan said. He knew there had to be a catch.

“If
you all stop being so stubborn and agree to be my super soldiers.”

Dylan
looked at Scarlett, then around the rest of the group and back to Goulden.

“I
thought we didn’t have much choice in that matter anyway. You’ve pretty much
made it clear that we
have
to be your ‘super soldiers’ as you call it.
In fact, you’ve even changed the law to make it compulsory for us.”

“True,
true,” Goulden said. “However, it is becoming apparent to me that you lot are
very – how should I put it? Difficult.” He started to do that stalking the room
thing that gave Dylan the creeps. “I’m worried that you’re all going to rebel
against me and escape or, even worse, turn against me and I don’t want that
now, do I?”

He
stopped pacing and stared intently at the whole group one by one.

“So…
let’s do a deal. I let your siblings live and return to your parents and you
agree to stay here with me and obediently do as I say. No more little shows
like the one you just put on, no running away, just 100 per cent commitment to
serving me and your country. What do you say?”

The
room fell silent as the teenagers awkwardly looked at each other, then at the
youngsters who were strapped to beds at the other side of the room, and finally
at the floor. None of them wanted to look Goulden in the eye or give him an
answer.

“Well?”
he asked. “Mr Nicolson? You seem to be acting like the leader of this group.”

Dylan
shuffled his feet. “I don’t know,” he said. He looked over at Sophia and
thought about how much he wanted to save her from all this. “I want to say yes,
but I don’t think it’s fair for me to speak for everyone.”

“I
reluctantly agree with you,” Scarlett said. “But only because I want to save my
brother.”

She
looked around at the rest of the group.

“Me
too,” Neelam said, then Lucy, Jay, Andrew and Sasha all gave a nod. With Alex
and Ethan still out of action, that only left Toshiko to provide an answer. The
rest of the group stared at her in anticipation.

“Sign
up to working for this guy?” she said. “I’m not so sure.”

“Please?”
Sasha begged. “It’s the only way he’ll free my sister.”

Toshiko
shook her head in dismay. “Oh alright. I agree.”

“Excellent,”
Goulden said. He clapped his hands together with malevolent glee, then turned
to his men. “Take the children away.”

“I’ll
do it,” Dr Kitts said. “I need to wake them properly, then I will personally
see to it that they are returned to their families.”

The
determined look on the doctor’s face suggested that he was developing a good
deal of mistrust in Goulden, which reassured Dylan somewhat. Hopefully, it
meant that he would be good to his word about seeing all the siblings home
safely.

“Right
then,” Goulden said, turning back to the group. “On with your training. I have
uniforms for you all, which I would like you to wear from now on.”

Toshiko
and Sasha wrinkled their noses in disgust.

“Uniforms?”
Lucy said. “They’d better not be all cheap and starchy like the school ones.”

“Or
brightly coloured Lycra,” Jay quipped quietly.

“Ben!”
Goulden shouted. One of the guards dashed to his side. “Take the super soldiers
downstairs and get them kitted out, then meet me back up here within the hour.”

“Yes,
sir. What about the other two – Connor and White?”

Goulden
moved his eyes from side to side as he pondered the question.

“How
is Alex Connor, Dr Kitts?”

“I’ve
completed his investigations and he’s recovering well in a room downstairs.”

“Any
powers?”

“Not
yet.”

“Very
well. Ben, locate Connor and include him with this group. Leave White where he
is until I’ve figured out how to stop him using those bombs against me.”

“Yes
sir,” he said as he bowed sycophantically. He turned to the group and adopted a
more gruff voice. “Come with me.”

They
were all solemn as they followed Ben out of the room, through the seemingly
infinite white corridors and down the stairs to the ground floor. Three twisty
turns later, Ben came to a stop outside one room. “In here,” he said whilst
unlocking the door and flinging it open.

Dylan
walked in first, followed by Scarlett, Neelam, Jay, Lucy, Andrew, Toshiko and
Sasha.

Ben
rifled through a row of charcoal-grey uniforms that were hanging on a clothes
rail at the side of the room.

“These
are your uniforms. Grab a shirt and pair of trousers each in your size, then
put them on. You can change over there.” He pointed at some navy blue screens
that were positioned at the far end of the room. “There’s one side for the boys
and one for the girls.”

He
took a seat in the corner, then picked up a newspaper and started flicking
through it.

“These
are disgusting,” Scarlett said as she held up one of the fitted, boring shirts.
“Do we seriously have to wear these?”

“Yes,
sadly,” Lucy said. “I don’t want to risk crossing Goulden now he’s threatened
the kids. I agree though, they’re horrible.” She stared at the formal trousers,
which had a horrible crease down the front of the legs, with disdain, then
looked down at her own Levi’s and floral top sadly.

Soon,
they had all picked out their uniforms and changed into them.

“Gross,”
Sasha said as she stared at her reflection in a full-length mirror that was
propped up against the wall. The snug, fitted outfit actually flattered her
curvy figure, but it was nothing like what she would wear normally. It was far
too stuffy and dull.

Dylan
adjusted his collar as he checked out his own appearance. He was so
uncomfortable in his new attire, he felt like it was choking him and making him
itch. He just wanted to rip it off.

“Ben,”
a voice whispered loudly at the door. “Another one for you.” The other man
pushed Alex through the door.

“Alex!”
Andrew said. “You’re OK.”

The
eight teenagers walked over to greet him.

“Hi,”
he said meekly. He didn’t look too great. He had a huge bruise on his face and
his soul looked as crushed and beaten as his body must feel.

“Oh
my goodness.” Scarlett said. “You look awful. What did they do to you?”

“Well,
they started by tending to the injuries I suffered during the beating. One
broken rib, a dislocated shoulder and more bruises than I can count…”

She
winced.

“Then
they ran all kinds of experiments on me. I don’t know what they found though
and I still don’t have any powers.” He looked gutted.

Ben
coughed and looked at them sternly. “Sorry to break up your little reunion, but
I need you to get dressed, Alex. The boss wants you back up there ASAP.”

Alex
hurriedly changed, wincing from his bruises as he did so, then the nine of them
made their way upstairs, with Dylan explaining to him what had happened to the
younger children along the way.

When
the group stepped back into the large, white room, they saw that it had been
transformed. Industrial-sized bins, piles of boxes and ladders lined the room.
It looked like a dirty, old alley had been recreated on a low-budget film set.

“What
is this?” Andrew said quietly. “It’s weird.”

“Welcome
back,” Goulden called as he re-entered the room. “Do you like what I’ve done
with the place? I thought it would be a bit boring to fight in a plain, old
room, so I’ve added a few obstacles to make things interesting.”

Dylan
looked at Scarlett, who for some reason was looking very pleased with the
latest development. “What?” he whispered.

“You’ll
see.” She smiled.

Luckily,
Goulden didn’t hear them – he was far too busy posturing and getting excited
about the battle ahead.

“Ready!”
he shouted into the corridor and 15 guards marched in. Some of them had riot
shields and others had guns. “Right,” he said, spinning around with his arms
outstretched to show he was addressing the whole room. “Let’s pretend that my
guards over here are trying to capture you kids. I want you to use your powers
to do everything you can to evade them. Be experimental and try new things –
this is a platform for you to train and become truly excellent super soldiers.
Give it everything you’ve got.”

“Gladly,”
Dylan said under his breath.

“OK,
go!”

The
men instantly began to charge at the teenagers, but Scarlett blocked them all
by flinging several bins in the way with her telekinesis.

“Nice
work,” Dylan said. “Lucy, let them have it.”

The
blonde girl summoned all the energy she had and fired out lightning bolts. This
time, they were more ferocious than anything she had done before and she took
out three of the men with one blast. “Nice,” she said as she glanced at her
hands, then she let rip again with more awesome blasts.

Four
of the guards were running towards them, so Toshiko somersaulted over and
performed a perfect spinning kick that floored two of them. Meanwhile, Jay
speedily ran rings around the other two until they became so confused that they
shot at each other. They fell to the ground with a shock.

“Stun
guns,” Andrew noted. “Well, at least they’re not bullets.” Just then, one of
the guards threw a bin flying at him, but Andrew easily withstood the assault
and flung it back twice as hard.

“Impressive
stuff,” Dylan said.

“Thanks.
It’s weird, it felt like being hit just then made me even stronger.”

“Maybe
it did,” Dylan said as he ducked to dodge a ladder that was flying through the
air. “We still don’t know the full extent of our powers.”

“These
guys are tough,” Scarlett said as she ran towards them. She looked a little
short of breath. “I’ve thrown everything at them and they still come back for
more.”

“At
least you have powers,” said Alex, who was hovering near the edge of the group,
looking unsure what to do.

“Watch
out!” Scarlett yelled as a bin came soaring towards him. She didn’t even have
time to telekinetically react to help. “Alex!”

Suddenly,
he vanished, then reappeared about a metre to the left of where he had been
stood.

“Oh
my God!” Scarlett said. She looked around quickly. “Did anyone else see that?
Did Goulden spot you?”

Alex
shook his head. “What happened?”

“You
teleported. Not very far, but you did it.”

“Awesome.”

“Yeah,
well, don’t do it again.”

“Why
not?” He looked disappointed.

“Because
we don’t want Goulden to know you can do it. He might lock you up like Ethan
and his bombs. However, if we keep your power secret, you could be the key to
us getting out of here.”

“She’s
right,” Dylan said.

“Oh,
OK then.” Alex looked pleased with himself. He quite liked the idea of being
the potential saviour of the group.

Scarlett
ran back into action and started throwing all the bins, boxes and ladders she
could telekinetically grab at the guards. When that didn’t work, she grabbed
the guards and flung them hard at the wall instead. She had soon taken out six
of them, Lucy had defeated five, while Toshiko, Sasha, Jay and Andrew were battling
the final four.

Dylan
looked on and wondered how he could help, then he remembered the ice lasso
Scarlett had encouraged him to make. He quickly tried the same trick again and
captured a man chasing Jay with a frozen chain. “Yes!” he thought, before
punching the air. He swiftly trapped the final three guards the same way.

“We
win,” Sasha shouted. “Wahoo!”

Goulden
stepped forward, then walked around the scene surveying the sight of all his
men beaten and fallen. He looked equally annoyed and delighted at the same
time.

“Super
soldiers, that was absolutely fantastic. Guards, not so much. OK, that’s it for
this morning. You can all go and have some lunch – the guards will take care of
you. I have some meetings to attend to elsewhere in the building, but I will be
back to ensure your training is still going well in a couple of hours.”

“Great,”
Jay said in a hushed tone. “I can’t wait.”