Field Investigations

Chapter 1: A Letter

My bicycle creaked to a stop as I turned into the school parking lot. I was the only one there, which surprised me. The letter made it sound like there'd be many others coming as well.

I'd gotten the letter a few weeks ago, a large white envelope addressed to "Ms. Isabel Vega". I was so used to going by Isa, not Isabel, that it took me a second to realize the letter was for me. I read the return address on the envelope. It was from my school, Washington High. The only things my school ever mails are report cards, and those are never addressed to students. What could this be?

I opened the envelope to find a printed letter.

Come to room 222 at 3:00 P.M. on Saturday. It read. You, along with thirty other students, have been selected to participate in a special assessment. If you choose not to attend that's perfectly fine, but remember that this assessment counts for 60% of your final grades in all classes. We look forward to seeing you there.

The note seemed strange to me, so I emailed the principal a few days ago and asked if the school sent these notes out or if this was just a scam. This morning, though, she still hadn't responded, so I decided I'd go. I couldn't risk the failing grade if the note really was legitimate, and it's not like I had any other plans for today anyway, so that's how I ended up there in the parking lot, biking to school on a Saturday afternoon.

The emptiness of the lot felt unnatural. My hands were shaking as I clicked the bike lock closed. It felt like a ghost town, once full of activity, now full of cobwebs. I took a deep breath, twisting my hair around my finger.

"Come on, Isa," I said to myself as I walked up to the doors. "Why are you so nervous? The school's not abandoned. It's just a Saturday. Two days from now, this place will be the opposite of quiet."

The door creaked open. It's funny how it never seemed to creak on the thousands of days I've walked through it with the hundreds of other students. Oh, door, how could you betray me when I needed you most?

I let the door slam closed behind me, turned left, and headed down the hall. Room 222, the letter had said. That was where I had my science class, on the second floor above the cafeteria. I always felt bad for my science teacher because he got the worst classroom in the building. No one can focus on chemistry with the thousands of snippets of conversation drifting up from from the lunch room below.

I turned into another hallway and walked up to the main staircase. "Go, Woodchucks!" read the floor-to-ceiling poster on the stairwell wall. I laughed, which made me feel a little less jumpy.

The stairs shook under my footsteps as I walked up. I turned out into the hallway, looking through the windows into the classrooms I passed as I went. As I passed each room, the motion sensors turned on the lights as if by magic. The chairs were all stacked upside down on the desks which sparkled in the fluorescent light like they had just been cleaned. The floor also seemed to have been freshly mopped. My shoes squeaked as they dragged off the linoleum tiles and I could see my reflection in the light film of moisture on the ground.

I passed room 291. I was getting close. The room numbers were arbitrary at my school, so you couldn't rely on them to tell you which way to go. In my two years at Washington High, though, I'd definitely learned my way around. I knew that room 222 would only be a few doors down.

Sure enough, about twenty steps later, there I was. Room 222. The sign on the door was engraved with the name of my science teacher, Joseph Martin.

Was there really going to be a test here? The lights were off and there was nobody in sight. I tried to turn the doorknob, but it wouldn't move, so I walked over to look through the window when my phone buzzed in my pocket. I took it out to see an email from the principal. No, it read, we did not send those letters. Do not go into the school today. We will investigate the origin of the letter you received.

Well, that would have been nice to know earlier. I turned to leave when suddenly, I felt someone - or something - seize my shoulders.

My heart stopped for a second. I turned my head slowly to see a masked figure behind me. I kept expecting the figure to do something, to acknowledge my presence, but nothing happened.

"H-hello?" I asked when I recovered from the shock. It was a question, not a statement.

"Hello, Isabel Vega," His voice was somewhere between human and robotic, like Mr. Spock from Star Trek. I waited for him to say more, but he didn't.

"What - what's going on? Why am I here? How do you know -"

The masked guy finished my sentence. "Your name? I know everything. As you can see," he attempted a casual laugh, failing miserably. "I even knew how you'd finish that sentence. Now, as for your second question, I suppose you could say this is a test of sorts. And for your other question, you're having a conversation with the most powerful being on the planet." He seemed proud of that title.

"The most powerful being -"

"On the planet, yes." He interjected.

I laughed. "Alright, so you're telling me the most powerful being on the-"

"Wait - let me guess where you're going with that. Sorry if I seem overly excited. I don't get to converse with humans that often. Or with anyone, really, for that matter. Anyway, tell me if I'm right. Being that I know everything, you were wondering why I couldn't give you a more satisfactory answer to your question." I waited for him to continue. He was silent for over a minute before I realized he was done talking.

"And..." I prompted.

"And?" He responded.

"Well, aren't you going to tell me?" I asked.

"I'm sorry. I can't disclose that information. Is there anything else I could help you with?"

"Sure, 'most powerful being'. Why the hell am I here?" I was getting annoyed.

"I'm sorry. I can't disclose that information," He said again. I must have looked upset because he continued. "However, there is someone who can. She will be arriving shortly."

"Who is it? How short-"

"Oh, perfect timing. She just arrived." I looked around confused. I didn't see anyone. And then.. was my head a little heavier than usual?

Where am I? I wondered. Was I... was I in the school? How did I get here? Who am I? My name... My name is...

My vision clouded over as the world faded to black.