Greetings readers of Lab Rats fanfiction! Daphrose here with yet another story for y'all. I am extremely, extremely excited for this. I've been talking about it for weeks, if you've been paying attention. Originally I wasn't going to post this until closer to end of this month, but earlier I found myself saying, "You've already got eight and half chapters written up. Why keep the people waiting? You're going to post it." So . . . here I am!
For the record, I began this story right after 'Armed and Dangerous' aired and am posting it after 'Spike Fright.' If it contradicts any information from the remainder of season 3 or any of season 4, I apologize. I suppose this story will become AU someday. I was trying to post it before that could happen.
This story has been rated T for dystopian societies, maniacal rulers, torture, and character death. If Hunger Games would make you squirm, don't read this story.
I've decided that I'm going to do soundtracks for this story. Basically it'll be a song(s) that I think go well with the chapter. I'll recommend that you listen to them while reading. Check my profile for links to music videos for the songs. Just so you know, some of the songs may be Christian (since that's what I usually listen to), or I may repeat songs. Or a chapter might not have a song at all. We'll have to see what happens.
Chapter one soundtrack: "Radioactive" by Imagine Dragons. Kind of an obvious one, but whatever. It works.
I'll not keep you waiting any longer. I do not own Lab Rats, just my OCs and this strange, futuristic world. This story is mine. Please do not copy it. Without further ado, I present to you all . . . We Deserve Freedom!
* * * Chapter 1: Tight Security * * *
"I pledge to use my life, my work, and my education to better our society. My life I give to The Sovereign, our glorious leader; my work I give to my people, the backbone of civilization; my education I give to myself, for without knowledge I am nothing. May The Sovereign live long and may my life please him."
I removed the two fingers that had been pressed right above my eyebrow for the salute. The other kids did the same. The voice over the speaker system leading us in the pledge had stopped. A small beeping noise sounded, signaling the end of another school day.
Kids scrambled for backpacks and rushed out the door. I carefully and leisurely slipped my Workcoms into my bag. I walked out of the classroom after waving goodbye to my teacher.
I took my time walking down the halls. Green lockers surrounded me. Several kids ranging in age from six to fifteen walked around. Posters for different school events hung on the walls. Everything was the same way it always was.
Once I was in front of my locker, I heard a few footsteps behind me. I turned and grinned. "Hey Jamie, hey Evelyn," I said as I took my final Workcoms out of my locker.
"Hi Aspen," Jamie said.
"What are your plans for tonight?" Evelyn asked. The three of us looked at each other before bursting into a fit of giggles. It was a joke between us, but an uncomfortable one for me. I always had to hide my nervousness around them.
The curfew for the city was eight o'clock sharp. Anyone caught outside after that time and until six in the morning would be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. So it was not unusual to jokingly ask, "What are you doing tonight?" knowing that no one could actually do anything. Little did Jamie and Evelyn know that I did do something.
"So," Jamie said, her brown locks bouncing up and down as she talked, "you're turning fifteen in one week."
"Um, yeah," I replied. "Why are we talking about it?"
"Because you're fifteen," Evelyn said. Her green eyes bore into me and I shuffled my feet. "That's a big age. And you still haven't told us if you're going on to high school or not."
"I-I don't think so," I replied. Keep it together, Aspen. You've been hiding this from them for years. Why do you still get so freaked out about it? It's business as usual. "My mom doesn't really want me to. And I don't think I want to anyway."
"You're one of the smartest people here," Evelyn said, "if not the smartest. You should really consider it."
"I have," I assured her. "But I think I should use my smarts for the rest of the population, too. I'll find work, I'm sure."
"I'm going to Restwater High when I turn fifteen next month," Jamie told us. "Yup, that's right, I said Restwater. I'm going to the main city."
"Dangerous," I mumbled.
"Shh," Evelyn hissed at me. I bit my lip.
"I was kinda hoping you could come with me," the brunette said.
"Yeah, well, my family's not as rich as yours," I reminded her.
"I'm going to Lake Farmer High," my other friend said. "Not as prestigious, but they have a great sports program, plus they'll give me a higher education. Don't you want one, Aspen? It seems like you would enjoy five more years of school."
"And I probably would," I said. "But I can't. We just can't afford it." I couldn't tell them the truth. Okay, in my defense, that was partially the truth. My mom did not want to spend more money on school. I certainly didn't need it. But there was a lot more to it than that.
"Well, I'll really miss you guys," Jamie said.
"Same here," Evelyn agreed.
"At least we have Tatter, right?" I said with a half-hearted smile.
"Yes, but, but . . ." Evelyn frowned a bit and looked down at the floor. We all knew what she was trying to say.
"Hey, it's not any worse than here." I looked over at one of the many, many security cameras above our heads. Just a glance, so they wouldn't become suspicious.
"I guess you're right." Evelyn gulped. "I just don't . . ." For just a second her eyes flicked over to look at the camera. "Never mind."
"Well, I'll see you guys on Monday," I said.
"Bye," my friends called simultaneously.
I left the school building and started heading down the street. A quick glance at my watch assured me that I had enough time. It was only ten minutes after five.
The walk home was the same route I had been taking for nine years. In one week I would never have to take it again. That astounded me. It would be an incredible experience not to have to go to school. Even though I was extremely intelligent, school was not a place that I enjoyed much.
My mom would sometimes tell me stories from when she was a kid. She told me how you used to bring these things called books to school. I scoffed at the idea. Who wouldn't want a Workcom? It was a miniature computer with all the information you needed at your fingertips. Now that was much better. Even if they were made by the government.
There were some things back then that seemed quite appealing, however. My mom would tell me how people went to classes based on age and something called grade, not by level of intelligence. Maybe that wasn't better; all I know is that I've been stuck with people several years older than me for a very long time.
Years ago there was elementary school, middle school, high school, and college, my mom said. Now there was pre-school for ages two to six, lower school for ages six to fifteen, and high school for ages fifteen to twenty. College was optional when my mom was a kid, so I guess high school is the equivalent of that; though you usually went to college when you were about eighteen.
My mom also told me how her every move was not captured on video and monitored by the government. Now that I would enjoy. Not having to look over your shoulder or constantly monitor what you say . . . that must have been wonderful!
Those days, however, were long gone. It all changed when The Sovereign conquered America and took his place as leader – or, at the very least, influencer – of the whole world. He was strict and oppressive, especially when it came to monitoring the activities of 'his people.'
As I looked down the street, I saw two police officers – one male, one female – walking down the road. I gulped and did everything I could to not draw attention to myself. There was another thing that had changed since my mom was a kid: she didn't have to deal with powerful, dangerous 'law enforcers' that would have you executed simply for looking them in the eye.
Finally I reached my house. I checked my watch again. It was almost five twenty-five. My mom should be home by now. Sure enough, when I opened the door I saw a woman standing in the kitchen.
"Hi mom," I said as I walked over to her.
"Hi sweetie," she said in a tired voice. She leaned over to kiss my head and her dirty blonde hair brushed my cheeks.
As she leaned back, I motioned to her head. "Are you going to . . . ?" I left my question unfinished.
"Not yet," Mom said gently. "You know not yet. Why don't you head up to your room? I'm going to take a nap."
I nodded silently and headed upstairs. I knew that Mom's job at the factory left her pretty exhausted. Plus she needed more energy for the nighttime. So she rested in the bit of time we had.
When I got to my room, I picked up a Playcom and opened up my Tatter app. Jamie was on, so I sent her a message.
Hey, how are you? What's up? – TreeGirl
My username came from the fact that my name is a kind of tree. A lot of people called me 'Tree Girl' when I was little, and the name sort of stuck.
Nothing much. I'm just doing my homework. You? – Jamister114
Same. So . . . – TreeGirl
So? – Jamister114
What do you want to talk about? – TreeGirl
Hmm . . . did you ctch the premiere of Tears and Fears last night on the ABC Family site? – Jamister114
Oh my gosh I mean 'catch,' I swear! I'm so, so sorry! – Jamister114
We both knew Jamie wasn't apologizing to me. She was apologizing to the government goons who read our messages. One little grammar mistake could get you into trouble at school for a month.
That's all right. I know what you meant. No, I didn't see it. – TreeGirl
I didn't like any 'entertainment' our society put out. It was all controlled by The Sovereign anyway. His rules, his programs, his subtle brainwashing. For the most part, I stayed away from movie theaters and the websites that aired shows and everything else.
Oh, I have to go. Mom needs my help with dinner. See you on Monday! – Jamister114
See you. – TreeGirl
I went around the home page of Tatter, seeing what was new. Mostly it was just a few notices from friends who had something they felt they needed to share with the world.
Down the side of the screen there were a few news indicators. I never clicked on those. Every time I did, I only came away from it depressed. Our world was so messed up. Besides that, the media operated under the thumb of The Sovereign. They were his pawns, and you would hardly ever find something truthful and unbiased on the news websites.
One of the news pictures caught my eye. "Robbery Thwarted by Bionic Army . . ." It trailed off in an attempt to get me curious enough to click on it. Knowing the media, it was probably some article praising The Sovereign for 'saving us' and how we should 'thank him' for 'protecting' us.
I placed the Playcom face down on my bed sheets before scowling. The computers were another way The Sovereign 'monitored' his people. Computers were able to 'read' your facial expressions and respond, and any 'dangerous' emotions were reported to the Bionic Army. Once out of view of the camera, I was free to feel as mad as I wanted.
Thank him? Right! I mentally snorted as I thought about what the article would say. Bionics belong in the hands of someone who can use them properly, for good things! The hands of someone like me. I don't use my super-intelligence to wreck havoc on society, do I? Those goons have no idea what they're doing. And that spineless leader of ours is just as bad.
Those were thoughts I would never say out loud. I could be killed for something like that. But everyone knew it was true. The Sovereign's Bionic Army was just a bunch of bullies – powerful bullies. On the surface, it looked like there was nothing we could do. But there was something we could do; something my mom did already. Something that I could be a part of very soon.
I glanced at the time displayed on the top of my Playcom. 5:46 PM, October 16, 2037.
The next couple of hours went by pretty fast. I got dinner and messaged a few more friends on Tatter. I completed my homework and submitted it, making sure to get a few of the harder questions wrong so my teachers – and more importantly, the government agents who saw my grades – wouldn't suspect anything. My enhanced intelligence had to remain a secret.
At seven forty-five – fifteen minutes before curfew for the city – my mom came into my room. Her face had changed completely and I grinned. This was the real face of my mother. The curly, chocolate-brown hair we shared was once again flowing from her head. Grey hairs touched the roots of it, but she didn't seem to care. A spark was in her brown eyes. She was ready for the night.
"It's time?" I asked excitedly.
"Of course," she said with a smile.
I only got to do this two nights out of the week: Friday and Saturday night. Even so, it was still exciting to me. It was one of the few interesting things about my life.
We headed down to the basement. My mom flipped on a switch and walked over to one of the walls. She pressed one brick, then another, and then another. A small keypad appeared. Mom typed in a long sequence of numbers – about twenty-six digits. She pressed her hand against another pad that showed up. The wall pulled away, revealing a dimly lit tunnel.
The two of us walked down the tunnel for a ways. We went down a few flights of stairs as well. Finally we came to a solid steel wall. There was another keypad nearby. Mom typed in yet another sequence of numbers. A green light flashed around us suddenly.
"Authorizing Bree Allison Davenport Summers," an electronic voice said. "Authorizing Aspen Chasity Summers."
The wall slid back. My mom grabbed my hand and we ran quickly to the other side. The metal doors slammed shut behind us right after we got through.
I couldn't help but smile as I observed the sight before me. It was an elaborate lair with several people roaming about. Large holes in the walls opened up from the hall and led to different rooms where people were training. Staircases led to a balcony up above and lower levels below us.
"Bree! Bree!" a voice called. Mom and I turned to see a brunette man about my mom's age running down the stairs. He hopped over the rail and ran up to us with a grin on his face. "Bree! Aspen! Welcome, ladies, to Defiant Base 15671."
And that was the first chapter of We Deserve Freedom! What did you think? Did you like it? A few questions:
1. Where did Aspen's middle name come from? (Kinda obvious, but still . . .)
2. Who was that man at the end? (This one might not be as obvious as you think.)
Quick note on Bree's middle name: ABC – Adam, Bree, Chase. Right? Adam's middle name is Charles. C. So I thought: 'What if they have that ABC pattern in their middle names, too?' Their initials would be: ACD, BAD, and CBD. So for Bree's middle name, I thought Allison sounded nice. Bree's middle name has never been mentioned on the show, and until it is I will call her Bree Allison Davenport in my stories. Okay? No 'But Bree's middle name is Justice!' comments, please.
So obviously there will be a lot of OCs in this story. It is the future, and I have a harder time writing adults. Aspen is my main character, and another one of my OCs will become very important later on. If that bugs you, don't read the story. If you're worried about pairings, here are the ships in this story: Leo x Janelle, Donald x Tasha, Bree x OC, and OC x OC (one OC is Aspen and the other is a boy you'll met later on). That last pairing will only be in a few chapters, and it will be very light. This is not a romance story by any means.
So anyway, how'd you like the story? Please review/follow/favorite if you did like it! I have eight and half chapters already typed up, so updates will be frequent! (By the way, for those of you who read Now More Than Ever, the next chapter will be coming out soon.) Please let me know what you thought, and I'll see you all soon! Bye!