by Paris Singer
Without warning a loud, confident voice came from the center of the room.
“Ms. Photuris, is the academy safe?”
On the screen were the two of the three councilmen I’d met in the city. The older one seemed to be missing.
Yes, everyone here is well, councilman. How goes the situation?
“We are happy to hear it,” said Valeta.
“The threat has been successfully dealt with,” said Fhior. “We sustained substantial losses surrounding the coast of Gullea; alas, councilman Rhyfel was killed while in Ora city. Certain areas here—the towns of Damnson, Kela and Frelig to name a few were destroyed, but were able to fight off some of…”
Frelig. That had been the town Alana had taken me to when we first landed on Simia. Morigala… Tanhers. I hoped against hope they’d somehow escaped. Maybe in Tanhers’ cargo ship…
“Our best strategists are hard at work, formulating plans of attack to defeat the Morex once and for all. Simia is once again safe. Defense forces are on constant alert, should they make another attempt. As such, you may resume classes as normal, Ms. Photuris.”
Thank you, councilmen.
With that, the screen turned off, and white overhead lights came on. After a brief speech by the principal, with some stifled complaints and grumblings, everyone headed to the elevators, and back up to the atrium. Most students waited for their parents who picked them up and gave them emotional hugs and embraces before taking them home. A few students who boarded at the academy remained and went upstairs to their quarters.
I stood there for a while, contemplating all that had happened. A sense of uselessness and frustration washed over me. I’d seen the destruction first hand, and couldn’t do a thing about it. Not a thing. The spirits I’d met within the ruins had shown me images. Had it been a message? If it had, what was I supposed to do with it? Now that the ruins were gone, I’d never find out. I knew shouting from the top of my lungs would be pointless.
I realized then that, if I was going to do something about the Morex, I needed to work with the Council. Giving them some strategies might help bring the Morex down. I’d speak with Alana—she’d be able to address the Council. She’d get me out of that stupid place. I rushed to my quarters.
“Al, how can I use this codex thing to contact Alana?”
“Good evening, Seven. Who is Alana?”
“Never mind. How can I contact the Council headquarters?”
“Simply go to the directory section of the codex, and say, ‘Council headquarters’.”
I did as he told me and turned on the blue screen. The color of the codex changed to green, and a voice said, “You have reached the Council building. How may I help you?”
“Um, I’d like to speak with Alana, please.”
“I’m sorry, sir, I do not understand your request. Which department would you like to be connected to?”
I had no idea what to say.
“Um, I’m looking for my friend Alana. We came to speak with the Council some days ago, and—”
“I’ll put you through to Council inquiries, sir. Please hold.”
“Oh, um. Okay.”
“Council inquiries. How may I help you?”
“Oh, hello. Um, I’d like to speak with Alana. I came with her to—”
“There is no one working here with that name, sir. What is your inquiry regarding?”
“Well, we both came to speak with the Council, and—”
“Do you have any queries regarding state officials, form completions, visiting times, or fine payments, sir?”
“No, but—”
“Have a nice day:”
“No, hang—” The screen turned from green to blue again as the call was ended.
I tried a few more times, but didn’t get much further. I let out a shout of frustration and had the urge to tear my hair out.
“Is there a problem, Seven? May I help you?”
“Why is everything so useless here? I just want to speak with Alana.”
“Government employees are not going to divulge any information about their staff, Seven. Likely for security reasons.”
I shouted again and sat on the side of the bed.
If I can’t contact her, she could definitely contact me, I thought. Why hasn’t she done it? Alana knows exactly where I am. Doesn’t she care? Not even a call to see how I’m doing. Nothing. Out of sight, out of mind, I guess. Well, fine—whatever. I bet she feels all good about herself. She can feel like a hero by ‘rescuing’ me from the only place I could call home, getting my brother killed, to dump me in this hole. I bet she’s living it up right now somewhere, boasting about what a good thing she once did. I wish I’d never met her. I wish she’d minded her own business and left me alone. I hate her. I hate her guts. I laid on the bed and thought about the life and friends I’d once had until I fell asleep.
CHAPTER TWENTY THREE
“Time to wake, Seven.”
“Seven, it is time to wake.”
“Seven—”
“Yes. Fine.”
“If you do not get up, you will be late for your first class, which is against directive—”
“I don’t care about your stupid directives—I want to sleep.”
“A violation remains in your life record, Seven, which would prevent obtaining future—”
“Argh.” I snapped up on the edge of the bed. “There, I’m up—you happy now?”
“Automated Life Management Assistants do not have feelings, Seven, and cannot, therefore, be happy.”
“Please. Please stop talking. I’m up, okay? What’s my first class?”
“Your first class is Astrophysics, Seven, located on the eighth floor dome of the second tower. Your teacher is Mrs. Lucerna.”
“Fine. Give me the tracker thing, Al.”
“Right away, Seven, however, I am instructed to inform you that you have a new unread message.”
“A message? Who from?”
“The sender has been erased from my data banks, Seven.”
“Show me.”
Al opened the message on the codex screen, and I read:
For the attention of [Mr.] Seven;
It is with compliments we, the National Bank of Simia, have debited your account with three hundred thousand Creds.
Please press your thumb on the square below to accept.
I did as instructed. Who’s behind this? I asked myself. Then I remembered the Council had told me that they had arranged everything. Did they mean financially as well?
Thank you. Welcome to NBS, [Mr.] Seven.
“You must now go to class, Seven.”
“Hm.” It was weird. Normally I would have been ecstatic if anyone had given me that much money, but all I felt was flat. I could not find it within myself to acknowledge or care about it.
“Please stand still while I attach the codex, Seven.” I walked out of the room as soon as the device was around my forehead. I followed the tracker into the elevator which took me down to the atrium. I took the other elevator up to the Astrophysics class. The entire room was a dome though wasn’t as big as the one used for Physical Development class. Light from the suns shone from above, down onto the circle of students and the teacher, who were in the center. They all levitated in place, as if they stood on an invisible floor. I wasn’t sure whether they were all wearing anti-gravity devices, which would mean that I would fall after walking in, or whether the dome itself was built with anti-gravity. I hesitated. My reputation wasn’t great already, so I didn’t want to give them more ammunition.
“Come in, come in,” called the teacher, waving me in. Mrs. Lucerna, sat cross-legged on a circular, yellow cushion. Her entire body, which was Simian-shaped, seemed to be made of dark matter, stars and galaxies, as if she were part of the universe itself. Her only visible traits were the granny glasses she wore on her face, a white bob wig on her head, a pink cardigan, long green velvet skirt and brown leather shoes on the rest of her body.
“Don’t seem
so frightened, dear, it’s perfectly safe—you shan’t fall.”
The other students giggled. I stepped forward, into the class. My feet met resistance, like there was a floor underfoot, but there was no sound as I made my way to the group.
“Welcome, welcome. My name is Mrs. Lucerna. I am your Astrophysics teacher. And who might you be?”
“I’m Seven.”
“Ah, what a wonderful name. Seven is the lowest natural number that cannot be represented as the sum of the squares of three integers, did you know?” The teacher rose into the air and levitated above and around me with a gleeful tone in her voice. “Seven is the only number ‘D’ for which the equation 2n−D=x2 has more than two solutions for ‘n’ and ‘x’ natural. Seven is the first integer reciprocal with infinitely repeating sexagesimal representation. Messier seven is an open cluster of stars in the constellation of Scorpius. Oh, I could go on and on,” she giggled, drifting back to the group. “Let us begin the class, everyone.”
Mrs. Lucerna clicked her fingers. In a split second, the universe contained inside her burst out in a wave that filled the entire dome, making it seem as if we had been transported beyond Simia, into the cosmos itself.
“We find ourselves within the Triangulum galaxy, everyone.” The teacher was now almost invisible, with only the yellow cushion and her items of clothing, glasses and wig as indicators of where she was. “Seven, as our newest addition, can you tell me the rate of star formation here?”
Triangulum galaxy, I should know this. My mind was blank. “Um.”
“Come on, Seven, I’m sure you can tell us.”
I’ve studied this. The Triangulum galaxy, the Triangulum galaxy. It wasn’t a hard question. Why can’t I remember? Could all the recent events have taken a toll on me? I was unable to think or focus. I could feel everyone’s eyes on me again. Beads of sweat dotted my forehead as I sensed Mrs. Lucerna’s expectation of my answer.
“Well, Seven?”
I had to say something—anything. “Um, 0.74?” The sound of giggling again.
“Oh, Seven,” said the teacher with a sigh. “I guess we will not be friends after all. How can someone with a name like yours be so utterly stupid?”
I blinked my eyes in disbelief of what she’d said, questioning whether she really had.
“Tell me, does your baffling stupidity cause you to fall down a lot? I am astounded that you even manage to remember your name, of which you are not worthy.”
“Hang on,” I said, still trying to figure out what exactly was happening. “I just made a mistake. That doesn’t give you the right to—”
“Who do you think you’re talking to?” shouted Mrs. Lucerna, approaching me at speed.
Something inside me snapped. My lips seemed to move on their own, and as if someone else were speaking, I heard myself say, “Obviously someone who’s so far up their own backside they don’t know that their gross wig looks like it’s made from the hair of a musgo’s butt, and their clothes like the collective puke of everyone in this room.” I knew I was in trouble.
The teacher stopped for a moment. I couldn’t tell if she was looking at me. Then she bellowed, “Get out. I never want to see you again, you impudent little mite. To the principal’s office—now.”
I marched out of the dome as the universe vanished in a flash, revealing the elevator. I was glad to be out of there. Good riddance. “Ms. Photuris,” I said, and the tracker showed the path to the principal’s office. I’d tell her exactly what the teacher had said. Who did she think she was anyway?
I reached the first floor and walked to the end of the long corridor. The white door had a neon blue sign on it that read, ‘Principal’s Office’. I was about to knock on it when it slid open with a ‘swoosh’.
Come in, Seven.
CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR
I stepped inside. The room was dimly lit with a yellow glow emanating from hexagonal shapes that ran the length of the high ceiling. In the middle of the room was a tall, dark tower with a staircase that wound around it to the top.
I have been waiting for you. Please make your way up.
As I approached it, the structure didn’t quite look smooth like metal, but bumpy with a reflective sheen to it. It was cold to the touch. I walked up the winding staircase to the circular top. Stacks upon stacks of books surrounded a rectangular desk which seemed made from the tower itself. Ms. Photuris sat on a chair with a high crystalline back that glowed yellow-orange. She was writing something into a large tome. Without looking up, she signaled to the small chair opposite her.
Sit.
I sat and looked up at her in silence while she continued to write for a while.
Mrs. Lucerna tells me you were rude to her, Seven. Would you care to explain?
“She was rude to me. She said I was utterly stupid.”
Ms. Photuris looked up and gazed at me with her oval black eyes. I see. Mrs. Lucerna is known for her occasional outbursts, Seven. While I understand that you were not aware of this, and are therefore excused from any ramifications, the case remains that your behavior was less than exemplary for what I am told is a model student.
Normally, being told I wasn’t in trouble for having spoken like I had to Mrs. Lucerna would have caused me massive relief but, somehow, despite Ms. Photuris’ calming glow, I was still angry. Ever since arriving to Laurea academy everyone had treated like a parasite, and now I was being told that if a teacher felt like insulting me, that I should deal with it. I was sick of being treated like I was nothing.
“So she just gets away with it? Just like that?”
Ms. Photuris gazed at me for a moment. I understand your frustrations, Seven. It can be daunting to adapt to new situations. The world can seem cold and hard. In time, we learn to survive, and we become much stronger for it. As for Mrs. Lucerna, do ignore her as best you can; she is not a fight worth fighting.
Without realizing it, all my anger was gone, and I felt as calm as if I didn’t have a care in the world. I was sure it was Ms. Photuris’ influence but, in that moment, I didn’t care.
If you ever want to talk, my door is always open, Seven. Do, however, endeavor to stay out of trouble.
Without saying a word, I stood up, waved goodbye as if in a trance, and left her office. By the time I’d walked down to the atrium, the warm feeling of calm dissipated, and I was left standing in front of the elevator that would take me back to the Astrophysics class. As surprisingly well as the conversation with Ms. Photuris had gone, I wasn’t ready to stomach seeing Mrs. Lucerna again, so I found out where my next class was, and made my way there instead.
***
The rest of the day went as well as I could have hoped. I collapsed on my bed and gazed at the ceiling. The light of the setting suns shone through the circular window, painting the walls orange and gold, then pink and blue as it faded into the horizon, until finally I lay in the dark. I was tired but couldn’t sleep, my mind adrift in thought. I quickly sat up in bed. Sally. I remembered I told him I’d meet him upstairs in the Dome.
“Al, what time is it?”
“It is fourteen minutes to midnight, Seven. You should consider going to sleep. A full night’s rest is optimal for—”
“Yeah, yeah. Listen, I’m going out for a walk.”
“Students are prohibited from exiting their quarters at night, Seven. It is against directive—”
“But I can’t sleep. I have too much energy. The only way I’m going to fall asleep is by walking it off. You want me to have an optimal rest, don’t you, Al?”
“It is my duty to ensure so, Seven, but—”
“And if I can’t rest, I’ll be tired tomorrow, and you will have failed in your duty. Is that what you want, Al?”
“No, Seven, that would be against—”
“So, I’m going for a walk. I’m doing it for you, Al. I wouldn’t want you to fail as a life management assistant and look bad in front of your assistant friends.”
“Automated Life Management Assistants do not
have fr—”
“So, it’s settled. I won’t be long, Al. Watch the fort for me.”
“I must strongly advise against—”
“See ya later, Al,” I said, walking out the room.
***
I took the elevator up to the Dome and stepped inside. Glittering stars and distant nebulae filled the sprawling night sky. Ships streaked across like shooting stars into and out of the atmosphere. The Dome was dark and quiet.
“Sally,” I whispered. “Hey, Sally. Are you here?”
“Hey, kid.” From the other side a silhouette stepped out from behind a tree. I walked toward it. “Well, I’m here. What did you want to talk about?”
“That depends on you,” he replied, leaning against the tree. Behind him, the lights from the city glimmered with every color. There seemed to be as many as there were stars above.
“I’ve had a really long day, Sally. Tell me what you want.”
“Yeah, I heard about what happened with Mrs. Lucerna. Comparing her clothes with puke was awesome,” he chuckled.
“Word spreads fast around here, doesn’t it?”
“Very little I don’t know about, kid. Listen, don’t take that old bag seriously. Her cousin is in the Council, so she thinks she is, too, and can talk to anyone any way she wants—especially if they don’t get her questions right. Photuris allows it ‘cos no one takes her seriously, and she probably doesn’t want the hassle of the old coot crying to her cousin. Ignore her. Now, to the matter at hand. You said that you liked Sphere—that you’ve played it. Was that true? Or were you just trying to sound cool?”
“Of course it’s true. Where I’m from it’s not banned, unlike this stupid place.”
“Okay. If it really is true, you won’t mind answering some questions about it, huh?”
“Wait—you asked me to meet you up here, all mysteriously, just so you could ask me some questions? You could have just done that the other day.”
