“What is it?” Charlene received a phone call from the other scientists who were sent to investigate the crash site of a meteorite.
“Please, you have to see this. The things in the core of the meteorite is something we have never seen. There are also things related to the transcendent so we let the Transcendent Army have it. But the other things, it is probably some kind of advanced technology that we have never seen.” Through the phone, someone said.
Charlene had known about this from the day before and even knew what those things were. Tatsumi also called her for this moment and told her about the important thing stored in the core of the meteorite.
“Alright. I will go there!” Charlene agreed to the invitation since she had nothing much planned for her schedule. She was wrapping up things on her side when the telephone rang.
“I need to prepare some things. Please let me go to the crash site!” Charlene said to Annie before she requested her leave.
It was easily agreed since she was actually an important person as well as a Second Class citizen of the Hinon Federation.
-
Charlene arrived at the crash site which was filled with barriers and encampments from the Hinon Federation and the other powers of the continent. She arrived using what her peers called a helicopter that used a rotor wing to fly through several other territories.
She quickly went to the temporary laboratory and saw several scientists who were handling something carefully, even using gloves to grab the thing in their hands.
“Where is the thing?” Charlene asked the attendant.
“Over there. But so far, it doesn’t react to any standard thing we have done.” The attendant said.
Charlene nodded in understanding. She then went closer to the first thing that interested her. Although the journey only took five hours, she wanted to go into action immediately.
The first thing she saw was actually a bracelet thing, no, it should resemble a wristwatch. It had a rectangular form and had a good surface texture, smooth and even. Although there was some light being produced from what Charlene perceived to be a panel just like computer screen but she could not understand any of the things it could do.
All she knew was that this was actually a device of some sort.
“Is this thing actually responding to the touch?” Charlene then let out a question that she had thought after seeing the display panel of the wristwatch.
“Oh, I mean the display panel, not the whole thing.” Charlene quickly corrected herself before any misunderstanding occurred.
“How do you know that?” One scientist who was taking care of the item was surprised to hear that. Even though there was no official report about it, Charlene knew about it just after seeing it. That made her truly great in the mind aspect.
“Well, since this looks like the miniature of some device but there should be a purpose in making the big rectangle and the display screen. It is also for our wrist to wear so I think that this should be usable by our finger. That is how I think things related to the object. I once envisioned things like this but to think that it can truly be realized means that this is possible with technology.” Charlene sighed before explaining her thoughts.
“That’s amazing! You have such a vision for our future, which means that you are likely to create it even without this thing.” The scientist said while flattering Charlene.
Then the scientist let Charlene do things to the wristwatch. Charlene did not know what kind of language the device had or its function but she tried to use her finger to move things or select some of the things on display.
She tapped the screen and it brought her to a new display which she did not fully understand. Then she also saw a small arrow sign at the upper left corner of the screen and tried pressing it. It returned her to the previous display before she tapped the ‘icon’.
‘Oh, so that arrow is to return or to exit whatever the icon is doing.’ Charlene gained a preliminary understanding of how to handle the wristwatch thing.
She spent some time figuring out the capabilities of the device while also learning what kind of language the device was using in order to understand it better. The scientist who was tasked to preserve the device was nervous, afraid that one wrong step and the device would just be destroyed.
“This thing should also have a lifespan. I assume that there is some sort of battery in it. Please make a distinction when you try to reverse engineer it.” Charlene returned it to the scientist since she knew at least the function of the device.
It was actually a device for monitoring something or at least informing the user about something. That was what she could catch through use.
“Thank god that it didn’t break or get destroyed. Please don’t do things that make others worry, Miss Charlene.” The scientist protested weakly but was glad that he could still take care of the strange things from the core of the meteorite.
“Thank you for letting me do things with it.” Charlene said truthfully before she continued, “Let’s see the others.”
-
For a moment, Charlene was dealing with foreign objects that clearly signaled that it was a technology not from human civilization. It also confirmed that there were more advanced civilizations other than those they had encountered.
Until the Transcendent Army also asked for aid.
“How can I help you?” Charlene stepped forward and asked the moment she arrived at the other side of the crash site.
On this side, there were clearly items that radiated the aura of transcendent energy. The transcendents were careful in handling them.
Charlene was confused as to why they asked for aid even though they were the experts in the transcendent-related matter.
“There is a scientist who claimed that one of the items is actually for the power of the mind. That part is actually quite obscure even for us. We hope for a more concrete result so please appraise it.” The transcendent clearly knew that Charlene was someone the Hinon Federation valued so he asked for a more detailed explanation for the item in question.
“First, let me see what kind of item that is.” Charlene replied and the transcendent then escorted her to the location where the item was stored.
There was a bald scientist who was analyzing the item using a custom-made tool as well as trying to touch the item.
The item was actually a black sphere that reflected light. Charlene thanked the transcendent before she went to the scientist in question.
‘From what I can perceive, there is nothing noteworthy of the item. But why do I feel like something around the sphere is warped?’ Charlene thought and decided to ask the person who might know more about the item.
“Excuse me, what is this item exactly?” Charlene asked politely.
The bald scientist turned his head and Charlene could see the excited gleam in his eyes as well as the excited expression on his face.
“This is actually related to the mind aspect of the creature. You can feel the warped sensation around the sphere and my mind became slightly clearer when I touched the sphere. Do you want to try touching it?” he said.
Charlene had nothing to fear that the scientist was fine all the time he handled the sphere so she might as well find out what effect the sphere had on her.
She then extended her arm and touched the sphere with the tip of her finger. Suddenly, what Charlene saw changed from an isolated room where the sphere was stored to the large black space where she could only see something shiny in the distance.
She felt strange that this was the result since the scientist did not even mention this.
‘Could it be that this is the real effect of the sphere?’ Charlene thought and realized that her thought echoed through the space.
Then she walked to the light source in the distance. The more she approached the light source, the more she could see the form behind the flashy light.
There was something like a small palace with chains wrapped around it, as if it locked the palace and when she approached some more, she could see that the gate of the palace was slightly open, letting her feel her mind refreshed and clear.
‘If what the scientist said is true, then this might be some sort of mindscape, where the power of the mind reigns supreme. But whose mindscape is this?’ Charlene thought before she walked closer to the palace gate.
The gate was actually created from gold ornamented with jewels. It was slightly open and let out some sort of mist. That mist was what caused Charlene to feel refreshed and clear.
She then tried to push the gate that was intertwined with the chains that locked it. She felt that the door was so heavy but she persisted.
‘This is the mindscape. So if I can make my mind firm and strong, it should translate to my current power. Do it!’
Charlene steeled herself and pushed the gate. A small creak could be heard and Charlene felt that her consciousness expanded with that.
‘What is this!? The moment I widened the opened gate, my consciousness suddenly also widened proportionately. I think…I know whose mindscape this belongs to!’
Charlene then determined to open more of the gap in the gate. The chains around it became the biggest obstacle to her action but she did not falter. She knew that her mind’s power had increased and managed to make the gate open more widely.
‘As expected, this is my own mindscape! The more I open the gate that is chained and locked, the more mind power I have!’
When Charlene pushed the gate once more, she then felt so heavy that she almost passed out. No matter her mind power or determination, she could not further the opening.
She only managed to open as far as twenty percent of the whole gate.
‘This is as far as I can go.’ Charlene realized the issue and did not force the matter.
‘But how can I leave this place?’ Charlene was confused since she knew that entering this place required the black sphere but she did not know how to get out.
She decided to close her perception, her eyes and her senses. For a few second, nothing happened. But as time passed, the scenery changed and Charlene could see herself still in the last position she remembered.
Still in the posture of touching the black sphere, Charlene opened her eyes wide. She could perceive the great power coming from the black sphere. It was a different power than transcendent energy, this was the power of someone’s mind.
“What’s wrong?” the bald scientist asked with concern. He could see that Charlene’s expression changed from confusion, determination and resignation before she opened her eyes once again.
“I think, I just entered my own mindscape!” Charlene said truthfully. Since the scientist was researching something related to the mind, he might know a bit or two about it.
“That’s amazing! Even I cannot enter it but you can. Looks like it was thanks to the black sphere here!” the scientist said with elated expression. Then he picked up a notebook and scribbled what Charlene had said.
“Can you tell me your name?” Charlene was curious about this mind power so she decided to ask the name of the one who researched it.
“My name? Sure, It’s Charles Xavier. I am currently researching the mind’s power and its effect on the transcendent. Please, tell me more about your experience in your mindscape.” He said while still holding the notebook and the pen.
“I am Charlene. Nice to know you.” Charlene decided to tell him her name for respect.
“Oh? You are beautiful. To think that someone like you is actually the great mind that invented many things. I am flattered.” Charles Xavier replied with a hint of praise.
“That is necessary. That’s all.”
Then Charlene told him about the palace wrapped in chains as well as the palace gate that was slightly opened, how she tried to pry open the gate but only as far as twenty percent, since her mind power was insufficient.
Charles Xavier wrote all of them in detail; his expression became excited the more he heard.
“What you have seen is actually what I described as the Nine-Psyche Locks. You encountered the first of them and also the easiest one to open.” Charles Xavier explained while also verified what Charlene had experienced.
“Nine Psyche-Locks? You mean the mind version of the Eight Inner Hidden Gates?” Charlene asked for clarity. Naturally, she knew many things that the transcendent scientists were researching.
“Yes. This one affects the mind power or should I say, the consciousness of one’s self.” He said while nodding his head and glanced at the black sphere with a manic gleam.
“Haven’t you already experienced this already? Why react to me when you don’t?” Charlene asked this because the black sphere only reacted to her more actively than Charles Xavier.
“Perhaps there are certain conditions for the black sphere to activate its mind power. Looks like I am not quite the right person, but you are!” he said while pointing at the black sphere that returned to normal.
“If it can only be activated by me, then the black sphere is basically useless to others. That’s not good.” Charlene knew that the power of the mind was critical for everyone. If the black sphere could only react to her, then the black sphere’s value would not be high.
“Perhaps the condition for the activation is a certain threshold in mind power.” Charles Xavier offered one solution.
“Maybe.” Charlene did not deny it since it could be true. But she did not expect to have strong mind power despite not being even a transcendent.
Then Charlene put her opinion on the matter, to see whether it was useful or not. Charles Xavier only scribbled in his notebook and focused on that.
“Thank you for putting your perspective on the power of the mind.” Charles Xavier said while closing his notebook.
“That is for the advancement of the transcendent-related things. If it can help you, then I believe that can also help the other transcendents.” Charlene added.
She felt that she was no expert in the transcendent-related thing but she tried hard to help. She knew her sensation so she could describe to people what she had experienced.
“Please visit when you have time!” Charles Xavier waved his hand at the departing Charlene. Charlene nodded her head at him before leaving the room and returning to the outside.
“This is going to change the world for sure.” Charlene said after noticing that she could detect other people at a radius of five meters. She had realized that her mental power was directly translated to herself and the effect was that she could become more conscious of others.
‘If I can develop more of this mind power, what can I do?’ Charlene thought about the possibilities of this power. The detection was accurate since she could detect the presence of Charles Xavier in the room behind her.
Charlene then went to the one with technological items. She did not know much about the transcendent-related things and she also was not a transcendent so she could not have much say in it.
So far, twelve items belonged to the technological wonder. The wristwatch was one of the easier ones to decipher but the others it was actually a dream come true.
“We have successfully activated it!” one scientist exclaimed. Charlene could even hear the sound from far away. Usually, she could not hear properly at this distance but now she could.
She went in the direction of the voice and found that they had managed to make what Charlene called a hoverboard float slightly from the ground.
Then one scientist hopped onto the hoverboard and stabilized himself above it. Then he moved forward and backward slowly.
‘Yeah, that definitely fits the new technology that we have never seen.’ Charlene saw what was happening and knew that all these discoveries would change the world. Adding her own mind power, it was the surest way to change the current climate of the space race.
‘Or even if there is still the space race, there would be another kind of race.’ Charlene added in her mind. She saw the person on the hoverboard zigzagging through the temporary space for item containment.
She also had a purpose of coming there. The place was crowded with people and she wanted to try something else using her mind power.
She closed her eyes, focusing on her mental sensation that she could barely catch. Then she swept her senses to create something of a probing mental sensation. She could perceive the trunk of a giant tree in the distance, the small rodents that moved at the outer perimeter as well as the presence of the people around her.
‘What…to eat?’
Charlene then perceived something strange. There was a voice of someone but she did not see anyone speaking like that.
‘No, it is not them speaking. If I interpret this correctly, are the things I hear actually what the person is thinking?’ Charlene thought as she kept her eyes closed and focused on hearing what the other people were thinking.
‘The…is great…further!’ Charlene thought she knew that this thought belonged to the scientist who was using the hoverboard.
Charlene was surprised that she could intentionally hear someone’s surface thought if she focused. She had to reassess the power of the mind. Add to her theory about Nafs and consciousness and she understood that this power would affect so many things.
‘Perhaps, should I tell Tatsumi about this? I bet that he will be delighted to hear that.’