Quin Academy

2. The Challenge

        Room 593, on the left, barcode, keycard, door, bed. Hunter sat on his bed leaving his backpack on the floor haphazardly. Quin didn’t tolerate uncleanliness, but since there was no one in the room at the moment, Hunter didn’t bother with it. He lay down and rubbed his face, trying to wake up more. It wasn't late at night, but the day had been long, and he was worn out. Strength class had been harder today than it had been before, and all his muscles were tight and sore.

        Hunter glanced over at his desk, which sat beside two others that were identical. Each desk had a nameplate on the upper right hand corner. Hunter, Brian, and Henry. He thought about the two boys and what they were like.

        When he had first come here; it was only just recently, but they had both been friendly enough. Hunter wasn't sure whether that was because they’re friendly, or because they were told to be extra nice to him. Most regulars despised him and the other seven because they were different, and treated differently.

        Brian seemed like a jokester, but he was well put together. He always dressed nicely, even though we don’t have much diversity in the clothes were given. Sometimes there's a sale where the students could buy little things, or pieces of clothing. But nothing was ever too unique. The shirts all had collars, and were always a neutral color such as brown, grey, tan, and so on. The pants and shorts were a nice material, and they were always either tan or black.

        Henry was obviously from another place, because his accent was so different. But he was definitely a regular. Henry was top of his class or at least in the top five all the time. He studied hard, and was always doing things the right way. He was nice enough, but he tended to avoid Hunter.

        Both of the boys hadn't arrived in the dorm yet, but that's because they spent most of their leisure time with friends, and doing activities. Hunter would have about an hour to himself every day, which was nice, but it got boring and lonely.

        Of course he could always go and spend his time playing sport, or being with his friends, but that never happened. He had a goal, and he wasn’t going to stop until he met that goal. He was gonna beat the Challenge. And that’s why he spent most of his time excelling in class, and studying.

        The Challenge was the one thing everyone at Quin had in common. Five sections in the Challenge. Each five things were what the students learned in class. General Knowledge, Strength, Technology, Skills, and Soul. Hunter laughed at the word soul. These people wouldn't know what a true soul was even if it burst out of their chests.

        Soul was the only reason nobody had ever passed all five sections in the Challenge. A long time ago people say there was a regular that made it through the whole thing. But when he passed the last section, he killed himself. Nobody knew the reason for this, but they all say that the Challenge made him crazy, and that's why he ended his own life.

        This whole thing was held in The Pit. And The Pit was in the center of the school. It didn't have an official name, but that's what everyone called it. It was like a dome inside of the school. Once you went in, nobody would see you until you came out the other side. There was a monitor that would track your progress, but it didn't give anyone details as to what was happening in there.

        If you didn’t complete a section than you were terminated. What a lovely word for the school to use don't you think? It just makes everything sound so impersonal, as if they were sending a student to their death.

        Hunter had completely dedicate himself to passing the Challenge. H would study, and memorize everything there was to know about General Knowledge. That included Maths, Science, English, and Morals.

        He would spend an hour training for Strength in the gym. He was well built, but didn’t have huge muscles like some of the other guys that he trained around. He ran, lifted weights, and practiced his fighting. But most of all he loved swimming. He was the best swimmer in the school of 750, and everyone knew it.

        For Technology he had on of the other seven tutor him for that. Hunter was rubbish with anything technology related, but Silver knew everything about it. After training at the gym, Hunter would walk to the cafe where he would be meet Silver in a study room. She would help him put together gadgets, and learn about mechanics of a device.

        Sliver was Hunters closest friend, and he was her best friend. Her name came from her hair. She had perfect, long, silver hair that matched her grey eyes. She looked cold and stern, but that was just her outward appearance. Inside, she was a kind loving woman.

        Skills was something that Hunter wasn't good or bad at. It includes art, cooking, and music. There are a few other small things, but Skills was the easiest class out of all. Everyone passed it, and if you had difficulties, it would most likely be in art because not everyone had much creativity.

        And the last thing was Soul. Nobody really knew much about this, even the seven transfers.  The class was basically doing whatever you wanted to do. There wasn't a teacher who gave lessons, just supervisors, and there weren't any rules in that class besides the obvious basic ones.

        Hunter spent that time figuring out what a soul was, and trying to find the one that resided inside of himself. He wasn't sure if he already had one, or if you had to gain it. But he would spend his time finding it.