Axira Episode One: A Galactic Coalition Academy Series Page 8

The mindair nodded, her fingers still pressed into her brow.

  With a darting look, she tipped her head back and surveyed the bar. It was clear she was looking for Em. She started to push forward, and I was forced to walk by her side, lest I lose her in the crowd of babbling, chatting recruits.

  It didn’t take long to find Em. She was always such a statuesque figure, rising above the recruits even if someone was taller than her. It wasn’t her height – it was everything else, from the way she held herself to the look in her eye. It was clear she wasn’t some simple recruit.

  As soon as Hendra spied Em, she walked right up to her. Rather than tap her lightly on the shoulder, she reached out and clutched Em’s wrist. I’d seen my sister do the same, and I’d seen Em’s response – a quick, almost violent tug to the side to release the painful subspace wounds gouged under her skin.

  Fortunately Em didn’t yank Hendra off her feet. Em’s body did stiffen though, and I watched as her eyes slid towards Hendra, that same cold dead expression escaping over her face that I’d seen this morning in class. “What are you doing?” Em asked through gritted teeth.

  “Cadet, I am continuing what you did not allow me to finish this morning.”

  Em stiffened even more. I didn’t think it was possible – she’d already looked like a rigid poll, maybe some reinforced smart metal you use to hold up a ship, not a person.

  Em didn’t say anything. She was seconds from tugging her wrist back, I reasoned, maybe seconds from walking out. Then Hendra said something. She looked up into Em’s eyes and she asked three little words: “Who is master?”

  Em stopped. Her face froze into the coldest, hardest expression I’d seen her show.

  The room fell silent. Em’s exact expression and body language commanded attention – they practically sucked it towards her like a black hole.

  The mindair kept hold of Em’s wrist.

  “This master – he has been significant in your life. The memory of him has a great psychological hold over you. You must challenge that hold, find some way to move on. No matter your experience—”

  I reached forward and slowly pried Hendra’s grip from Em’s wrist, then I pulled her back.

  Em did not move. She didn’t even breathe. She hadn’t said a word either. Her face looked locked in the coldest emotion I’d ever witnessed.

  For a mindair, Hendra seemed clueless. She might be able to read minds, but she clearly hadn’t paused long enough to actually look at Em.

  I looked up at her, trying to make eye contact with Em as I continued to pull Hendra back.

  Em remained frozen for several more agonizing seconds, her expression still as deadly cold. Then she snapped out of it, her gaze snapping around to the silent crowd as they stared at her.

  Without a word, she walked out.

  Hendra moved to follow, but I kept hold of her. “Leave her,” I said.

  “She has a psychological wound,” Hendra protested. “She kept it blocked from me in class, but now I feel it. If she wishes to pass this test and become the best recruit she can be—"

  “Drop it,” I counseled in a hoarse breath, eyes darting up to stare at the closed door.

  “All her classmates went through the process this morning. It is transformative,” Hendra countered.

  Transformative? Perhaps for some. Dredging up the past and conquering the memory of deep-rooted fears and traumas worked for the lucky few. If your past was filled with too many monsters, the battle to conquer them would take a life, not a morning.

  “Just leave it,” I said one last time, finally dropping Hendra’s wrist.

  Slowly the crowd around us started to relax, almost immediately bursting into conversation about what had just happened.

  I tuned them out and turned to the windows, hoping to catch a glimpse of Em outside. She wasn’t there.

  I’d give her a few hours to settle down, then go find her to check on her.

  Despite the fact I had my own mission to attend to, all my time these days seemed occupied with her.

  ...

  Jason Singh

  It took me all night to find her. She was on top of her dormitory roof, sitting beyond the safety railing, her legs dangling down, her blue and black tendrils flaring behind her in the wind.

  At first, I thought she was getting ready to jump. My heart leapt into my mouth as I opened the door to see her sitting there.

  As I inched closer, bringing a hand up against the wind, I saw her expression. It was thoughtful as she stared at the city below her. If it weren’t for the wind, it would be beautiful up here. At night, the city was a cluster of gem-like light – a dazzling sea against the dark grey and black of the land and water.

  I didn’t want to surprise her, so I edged towards her carefully. Before I could even make a sound, she announced, “I know you’re there, Jason.”

  She hadn’t even looked my way.

  “Come back over the safety railing,” I said in a forced light voice. “It’s kind of windy on the edge of the roof there.”

  She didn’t say anything.

  My heart leapt back into my mouth. When I’d been looking for her, I’d toyed with the idea of asking who ‘master’ was. Maybe she needed the chance to unload. Now as I stared at her, her torso a small shadow against the bed of lights below, I realized I couldn’t dare utter that word.

  This wasn’t a trauma I could deal with. Whoever ‘master’ was, he wasn’t some petty fear to Em.

  I approached, lacing my fingers through the safety fence as I got as close as I could. I didn’t stop there, though, I started to climb the damn thing.

  She finally turned, eyeballing me as I hauled myself up the fence.

  I comforted myself with the thought that should one of us fall, the Academy’s sensors should detect the sudden acceleration of our wrist devices and beam us to safety. I ignored the fact that didn’t always work.

  There was the thinnest lip of smart concrete running around the edge of the building, just beyond the safety fence, and it was this lip that Em sat on, dangling her legs into the air as if she was casually sitting in a chair.

  I climbed down the opposite side of the fence, carefully pressing my foot into the lip of concrete as I turned and sat down.

  A few times I almost fell, but latched my hands onto the fence in time. Eventually I managed to make it to her side.

  She barely looked at me.

  I kept one hand pressed into the fence behind me, my fingers looped into the metal as I stared at her.

  Now I was here, I didn’t know what to say. I wanted to get her to come back to safety with me, but I didn’t know where to start.

  “You do not need to worry, Lieutenant Singh – I have no intention of jumping to the ground from here.”

  “Ha, you could have told me that before I climbed all the way out here,” I tried for a joke.

  What the hell was I doing? I quickly realized now as not the time to joke.

  This woman was on the edge, literally.

  Or was she?

  Her expression was calm as she assessed the city, not contorted with pain.

  “You’re a good recruit,” I suddenly supplied, “One of the best. You’ve got a great career ahead of you.”

  It’s not what I wanted to say. I wanted to point out that Hendra had been way out of line. She should never have pushed the issue. She should never have confronted Em about this ‘master’ in public.

  “I’ll be quitting the program tonight,” she said.

  “Wait, what?” What do you mean?”

  “I have realized I am not suited for Academy life.”

  “No, no you can’t quit. You’re great. Ignore what Hendra said,” I mentioned her name, swallowing as I did. Sweat laced my brow, my heart beating hard in my chest.

  I’d trained for a lot in my career, but I had no idea how to deal with this.

  “Just ... just come back onto the roof with me and we can discuss this.”

  “I have told you – I have no intent
ion of reaching the ground by jumping. That is why you Coalition races invented stairs.” She stood, swiftly.

  I baulked, reaching towards her and grabbing a hand on her leg.

  She ignored my hand, turned, and climbed up the fence. She was over it and jumping down to the other side before I had a chance to blink.

  I turned, stunned, and followed. I had to concentrate hard not to fall. I also took a lot longer than Em had to reach the safety of the roof again.

  She stood tall, staring past me at the city.

  I clamped a hand on my knee and breathed. I wasn’t out of breath – I was rattled. I’d just been on the wrong side of a safety fence.

  Soon enough I pushed myself up and considered her. My heart was calmer now we weren’t on that ledge. Calmer, but not completely calm. It still beat with an erratic thump as I considered what to do next. “You shouldn’t quit,” I managed.

  “I am not suited for the Academy,” she repeated.

  “You’re strong, fast, and smart. You’ve also clearly travelled the galaxy – you’ve got a massive head start on the rest of the recruits. If anyone is suited for the Academy, Em, it’s you.”

  She didn’t look at me.

  I was going to lose her, wasn’t I? I mean, the Academy was going to lose her. Just one look at the cold, calm determination spreading over her face told me she’d already made her mind up.

  Well, I wasn’t about to give up. I cleared my throat. “We need you,” I said bluntly, “A person with your skills could save a lot of lives.”

  Her gaze darted towards me. I hadn’t thought my chest-thumping, patriotic speech would work, but on the term ‘save lives’ she focused on me.

  “You could make a difference,” I continued. “You’ve already made a difference. Ignore ... what happened with Hendra. I’ll smooth it over with your teachers. Maybe you can get out of that class.”

  “I thought this would be easy,” she said, appearing distracted.

  “Sorry?”

  “The Academy.”

  “... It’s meant to be one of the hardest training programs in the galaxy.”

  “A Kore darma assassin is kept in total darkness for 20 years and taught to fight in the ice-cold caves of the Markan System.”

  “Okay, so it’s not the hardest training program in the galaxy – but the Academy is meant to push recruits to prepare them for the dangers of space.”

  She drew silent.

  “Why ... did you join in the first place?” I asked. If the most I could do was keep her talking, that was what I was going to do. I was no counsellor, but I had the feeling she needed company.

  She looked at me now. Her expression was unreadable. Empty. “To fix things.”

  I swallowed. “You mean to make a difference?”

  She nodded.

  “You can still do that. No one is going to want you to quit. The only person who’s going to get in the way of you making a difference is you. I told you, I can smooth everything over with Hendra. She won’t be bothering you again.”

  Was that hope flickering in Em’s gaze? It was hard to tell – she was one of the most guarded people I’d ever met.

  She wasn’t running away, though, which was a good sign.

  “I can talk to your teachers tonight, make sure you never have to go near that class or Hendra again.”

  “Lieutenant Ma’tovan will object,” she said.

  I clutched hold of her statement as proof she was considering my offer. I practically burst into a smile. “I’ll do what it takes. Plus, he’s not that scary once you get to know him.”

  She shot me a look that told me she knew I was bluffing.

  “Em, just stay,” I said, strangely emotional as the words tumbled from my mouth.

  “I do not believe the building maintenance staff would be happy with me remaining on this roof all night.”

  “I meant at the Academy,” I clarified through a short laugh.

  Had she just made a joke?

  I smiled, awkwardly, but hopefully.

  “Very well, you’ve convinced me.”

  I let out a massive breath of relief. “Wow, now, we should really get off this roof before our ears freeze and fall off.” I cupped my ears and winced.

  She looked fine. Maybe those thick tendrils of hair protected her, or maybe she was ten times tougher than I’d ever be.

  Scratch that – 100 times. She walked off the roof with her head held in the air, her statuesque form cutting a powerful shadow against the light filtering in from the door.

  Chapter 7

  Axira

  I stood before Admiral Singh, assuming the correct posture of erect professionalism.

  The Admiral sat in a large chair behind her desk, sunlight streaming in from the windows behind and lighting up the five brass stripes on her collar.

  “Hendra has been disciplined. This is her first assignment with the Academy. She clearly hasn’t learnt correct decorum yet. You will not have to complete that component of this course.”

  I blinked.

  That was it?

  Had Jason done it? Had he convinced his mother to ignore what I’d done last night?

  While I had not become violent, I’d been aware of how threatening my expression had become. When I’d stared at Hendra, I’d done so with the cold hatred of 450 years of slavery.

  I hadn’t been prepared for her to blurt his name out.

  How she’d pried it from my mind, I still didn’t know. Somehow I’d left myself unguarded. A mistake I wouldn’t make again.

  “Rest assured, Cadet, this situation has been resolved.” Admiral Singh nodded low and respectfully. “I apologize if this has interrupted your studies.”

  I kept waiting for the Admiral to say but. To tell me to report to counseling, to ask me who master was.

  “Since this incident, I am beginning to question the wisdom of using a mindair to prepare recruits for psychological attacks. Though, please understand that I believe Hendra’s heart was in the right place. Her behavior, however, was still unacceptable.”

  I frowned.

  I was still waiting for the Admiral to demand I tell her my story.

  “If you wish to see a counsellor,” the Admiral began.

  I stiffened. My body hunched, as if preparing for a subspace jump.

  And maybe I was. If the Admiral’s questions became too invasive, I could always leap right through the wall and escape.

  I didn’t have to. With a nod, the Admiral continued, “One can be arranged for you. You are under no obligation, however. As far as I and the Academy are concerned, this issue is resolved.”

  Apparently, Jason had kept his promise.

  “Lieutenant Ma’tovan,” I began.

  “Follows orders,” the Admiral cut in, “Now, Cadet, get back to classes. Your teachers are happy with your performance. I’m sure the next time I see you in my office it will be to give you a commendation. Good luck.” She turned from me and considered something on her desk.

  It was clear the conversation was now over.

  I stood there for a little too long, until the Admiral stared pointedly from me to the door.

  I snapped a salute and walked out.

  I continued walking until I reached my next class.

  At any point I could have done a subspace jump to leave the Academy and to leave this life far behind.

  Last night, after the incident, I’d convinced myself that was the right thing to do. I clearly wasn’t ready for this.

  Yet I was still here.

  I would give this place another chance – give myself another chance.

  Jason was right – if I stuck around, I could make a difference. I had 450 years to absolve.

  I could not run away now.

  ...

  Jason Singh

  I caught sight of her heading to class, and I smiled to myself. At least that was one thing I’d managed to get right. My mother had listened to me – especially when I’d stressed Em shouldn’t be forced to get counse
ling. She wasn’t the kind of person you could force to endure someone poking around her head. She’d run, for sure.

  If you wanted to make progress with her, it would have to be with baby steps.

  My mother wasn’t stupid though – Em would be watched and assessed. Any more episodes like last night, and someone would step in.

  Not of course that Em had done anything last night. It was just the look she’d shot Hendra.

  I burned to know exactly who this master character was. I didn’t want to stop there, though – I wanted to learn everything about Em. I had never encountered a more intriguing recruit.

  But I had to concentrate on my mission. With every day that passed and every day I failed to find out who the spy was amongst our ranks, the Coalition bled more secrets. And now was not a time in history where we could afford to lose intelligence. There were strange movements across the Kore border, not to mention the usual dangers posed by the Barbarians.

  I had to find the spy.

  I was walking through the corridors, about to attend to another VIP, when I came across Hendra. She was standing with her hands clasped in front of herself as she stared out of one of the massive windows that showed a 20th floor view of the city below.

  She turned as I approached, before my footfall could have roused her, and she smiled. “I felt you coming near. Such a welcome presence,” she said as she nodded her head low.

  I pretended to scratch the stubble along my jaw. It was that or admit to the fact I’d just blushed at her words. “It’s nice to see you too, Hendra,” I said. “How are you going?”

  She offered me a strained smile, which was an unusual move for someone as calm and poised as Hendra. “I’m afraid I received a reprimand today. I’ve been working for the Academy for four months now, and this is the first time something like this has happened.”

  I swallowed. Of course she had received a reprimand – I knew that already. I’d just walked into this conversation when I should have turned away and walked out.

  “You believe it was fair, don’t you?” She asked perceptively as she offered me another small smile.

  I choked, hiding it with a cough. "I ... can’t comment,” I managed.

  She blinked prettily then turned back to the view. "I was just trying to help. I sensed a heavy wall in Cadet Em’s mind, a wall so vast and large I couldn’t see through it. And yet there were cracks,” she said as she brought a finger up and traced it down in front of her, as if she were playing with a vision in her mind.