The Phoenix Project: Book I: Flight

by Katherine Macdonald

  Nick is still staring at me. His gaze his intense, curious. I wonder what he thinks of my strange eyes. I wonder if he thinks I'm attractive. The signs seem to point to the affirmative. I think about asking him outright, but what good would that do?

  “You all right?” he asks. “You spaced out a bit there.”

  “Do my eyes freak you out?”

  Nick frowns, and then chuckles. “I'm sorry, I just saw you naked, and you're asking about your eyes?”

  “Yes.”

  He stops smiling. “No, I think they're interesting,” he replies. “Like the rest of you.”

  “Are... you talking about the naked thing again?”

  “No,” he says, “I'm really not.”

  There's a buzzing on his belt. An old-fashioned pager. “Ah, looks like Harris has got something for me,” he says. “I should... I should get that. Will... will you be here tomorrow?”

  “I hope so.”

  “Then... I'll see you then.”

  “If you're lucky.”

  “If I'm very lucky,” he says, halfway down the corridor. He turns around briefly to smile at me.

  I think, for once, I've actually said the right thing.

  Chapter 18

  Abi's prediction is right about the market soon returning to function, but the scars still haunt the city. I never noticed the wounds before, so used to the general state of disrepair and decay, but I see them now. They crawl out of the rubble, white as bones.

  We spend the next few days making what remains of the school safe and habitable. Harris comes out of his lab to visit the site, with plans to rebuild it. Everyone is keen for it to be done as quickly as possible. I have never seen so many people united in a single endeavour. What else have I not seen?

  Nick is busy with another project, and I don't see much of him. Mi spends every waking moment with Julia. Baz gives him time off in light of the incident. Abi is all but strapped to Harris' side. On the rare morning I find myself with nothing to do, only Ben is my companion. I decide to take him into the wilds to learn how to hunt; it is about time I taught him. He is excellent with the bow, but tracking game is another matter. We come home with a couple of plump birds though, one of which I donate straight to Phoenix. We can get by with just one.

  That night, after the carcass is picked clean, Abi makes an announcement.

  “I'm not going back to school, when it's rebuilt,” she says. “I'm going to help out at Phoenix HQ.”

  This shocks me at first, but the next feeling is one of relief. Abi has been too old for school for some time, and there's nothing the local place can teach her. Even before it went up in smoke, it was just a collection of run-down rooms where local volunteers ran a few classes every day. Most of the teachers are either very old, or very young. Kids are taught the basics: reading, writing, maths... maybe some science if they're lucky. It sounds super boring but both Abi and Ben seem to love it. I think Abi went for something to do, and because it stopped her having to think of what to do when she really was too old for classes.

  Good, steady, legal jobs are hard to come by... hence why I don't have one. Abi can do almost everything I can do. She could easily be a hunter, a thief, a fencer, a runner. But she doesn't want to be any of those things, and I don't want her to have to be. The only thing she truly loves to do is paint, but there's not much of a market for artwork in the slums.

  I thought the last thing she would want to do would be to head back to the world of technology and be the machine she was built to be. But it occurs to me, this still is a revolt against her programming. She might be using her abilities, but she's using them to help people. She's doing it because she wants to.

  I nod my head. “Sounds like a good plan, Abs. Just stay out of the field, 'kay?”

  “Yes, mum.”

  She says it sarcastically, but it warms me nonetheless. I ruffle her hair affectionately.

  ◆◆◆

  The school soon re-opens, Mi goes back to work, and Abi and I head into Phoenix HQ together. She wants to show me something she's been working on, so we head to the lab, only to find Rudy booming at Harris.

  “No, absolutely not!” he seethes.

  Harris throws up his hands. “I've run the numbers. It's our best shot.”

  “You've run the numbers using another one of them! You think that's a coincidence?”

  “I've double-checked myself–”

  “It's too risky–”

  “Not using her is far riskier–”

  It's at this point I realise they're probably talking about me and knock loudly on the glass. “Hey boys. What's up?”

  Rudy's temple swells. “Nothing.”

  “We've got an important mission for you,” Harris says instead. “Rudy isn't sure you're ready.”

  Rudy glares at him. “We'll send Scarlet,” he decides. “She's done espionage before. She's our fastest runner. If anyone can do it, she can.”

  “She was our fastest runner. Ashe is faster by far. You'll risk Scarlet's life because you're not willing to trust someone new?”

  Rudy's eyes narrow even further. “Not someone,” he says. “My decision is final. Prep Scarlet.”

  He sweeps out of the room, casting a final sour look in our direction as he goes.

  In a completely deadpan, matter-of-fact voice, Abi calls after him. “You'll regret this.”

  He does not stop.

  Harris sighs, running his head through his hands, and smashes his fists against the table. He swears loudly. “That stupid – stubborn – idiotic – jackass!”

  “He's going to get someone killed,” Abi adds.

  “I know,” Harris swings his chair around to face us. “The thing is, he wouldn't even usually think of doing something this risky. He'd listen to my numbers. But he's so determined to prove he can do this without you–”

  “What even is the mission?” I ask.

  Harris gestures to a nearby monitor and punches something into the keyboard. We all move closer. A glamorous white building springs onto the screen; a fancy hotel in Luca.

  “There's an important conference being held tomorrow night in the upper ring,” he explains. “Lots of important politicians and diplomats. The event is being broadcast live, maximum coverage. We want to sneak in, and replace the mayor's speech with footage of what the guards did to the marketplace.”

  “You... you filmed that?”

  “We've had cameras in place for months, hoping to catch something.”

  “But... but why? What good will it do, showing it to the world?”

  “Luca isn't completely full of asshats and idiots. Neither is the whole world. We want to show them the truth about what is happening on their doorstep, weaken their faith in their leaders.”

  “So... what's the plan?”

  “Get two people in under fake IDs. When the broadcast begins, one of them needs to be in the control room, switching out videos. The issue lies with timing; I can hack into the security cameras and loop the feeds for approximately five minutes. After that, they will pick up an intruder and the building will go into lock down. Abi and I have calculated all of the variables. You are the only person fast enough to get in and out within a safe window.”

  I pause for a moment to take this all in. “I see,” I say eventually.

  It's at this point that Nick arrives, a little breathless. He looks at Harris. “I've just seen Rudy,” he rushes. “Did he–”

  “Flat out refused. Said we should take Scarlet.”

  “She'll never get out in time.”

  “I told him that.”

  “So... what do we do?”

  Abi raises a hand tentatively. “I may have an idea...” she says.

  Chapter 19

  The plan relies on a lie. Namely, that everyone involved promises to do exactly what Rudy has told them to, and at the last moment... we don't do that. Harris will be technical support. Nick will be the second person going into the hotel. Scarlet still gets into the van. The only problem is the dri
ver. Pilot is currently down for this, and we all know there's no way he'd be OK with me substituting at the last minute. He has to be taken out of action. This is where Mi comes in. His job is to spike Pilot's evening drink with a powerful laxative that will put him out of action for at least twelve hours. Another driver will be assigned, hopefully one who won't question my appearance in the van.

  We spend the rest of the day preparing in secret. Scarlet has to look like she's training, so we all head to the gym and book it out. Abi and Harris set up an obstacle course designed to mimic the length between the hotel control room and the exit, complete with a computer mock-up where I practise loading up the video. Even with my speed, it's tight, especially while wearing a pair of heels that Scarlet assures me are “the least offensive in your size.” I have very little margin for error.

  “We'll be right beside you the whole time,” Harris assures me. “Communicating through these virtually invisible earpieces.”

  He hands one to me. It's a tiny, transparent little bud. I place it to my ear, and experience an unpleasant, sucking sensation. It's a bit like having a screw inserted in the side of your head.

  “You can press it on and off, but it's best to keep it on as much as possible in case we need to contact you.”

  I'm talked through the cover story, time and time again. Nick is the grandson of some rich politician. I'm his escort. I only met him that night. I'm assured that no one will be talking to me, but if anyone does, just smile and nod. They seem to think I'll struggle with this.

  “I'm a trained assassin!” I insist. “I can smile and nod while I murder you.”

  Scarlet and Nick chuckle at this, but Harris looks mildly horrified. I unscrew the earpiece and hand it back.

  Finally, eventually, the gruelling training is over, although there will be more to come tomorrow when I'm squeezed into some tight little dress and made up to look like some harlot. I can't even remember the last time I wore a dress; probably when I ran out of clean laundry and had to borrow one of Abi's.

  Nick and Scarlet start stacking away the obstacle course. Harris packs away his technical gear and wheels it back to the lab with Abi. Mi then arrives with the leaves for Pilot's tea, and Scarlet sneaks off with him to go and spike it. She seems a little bit too cheerful about the notion of drugging her friend.

  When it's just the two of us, Nick turns to me.

  “Would you like to get a drink?” he asks.

  I blink at him. “Are you flirting with me?”

  “Only if you want me to.”

  He pulls out a small crate that must have been left by the others, and gestures to a couple of bottles. It's been a long time since I've had a drink. There are only a few bars in the slums, and despite the general low quality of their clientele, it's still a luxury that most can't afford. I've occasionally been given a bottle of something as a bonus on the job. We mostly use it in cooking. I quite like the taste of wine, but due to our fast metabolisms, I'm not sure that any of us can get drunk and I've never tested our limits.

  I shrug. What harm can it do? “Sure, I'll have a drink.”

  He chucks a bottle in my direction. I catch it neatly and open it with my teeth, much to his amusement.

  “I've never had a drink with a guy before,” I tell him.

  “You've... never been for a drink before?”

  “I'm a genetically engineered superhuman who doesn't like people. You work it out.”

  “You like people.”

  “Most people are idiots.” I take a long swig. It's a bitter, lukewarm, mostly flat beer. I can't compare it to much, but I don't rate its quality.

  “Some, but not all. And you do like some of us.”

  “Some, I admit, I'm starting to warm up to.”

  Nick grins at me slyly. “Any ones in particular?”

  “Well, Scarlet's a babe, and Pilot's really not that bad when you get to know him.”

  Nick elbows me in the side. I like that, the strange easiness between us. I'm not used to feeling this way with regular folk. What it is about him that I find so comfortable?

  “You're not that bad either,” I say quietly.

  Nick drinks. “You may just be my favourite genetically engineered superhuman,” he says.

  “You need to spend more time with my family.”

  “Something tells me I'd still prefer you.”

  I try to ignore the seriousness of his compliment. “You should spend more time with Mi,” I advise. “He's much nicer.”

  “I'm not,” Nick says, stepping closer to me, “particularly interested in nice.”

  All the blood in my body suddenly rushes to my face. My heartbeat pummels in my eardrums. I should ask him what he's interested in. Or... or I should take a step back. I should make a decision, one way or another–

  Abi crashes back into the gym, and I almost drop my beer.

  “Long day tomorrow,” she says. “Should we head home?”

  Chapter 20

  We're advised to be back at base bright and early the next day, ready for departure at ten.

  “Why so early?” I ask.

  “We've got someone on the gates into Luca who'll let us through,” Nick explains, “but his shift ends at eleven.”

  “Do you bribe him?” It seems odd to me that any Lucan would just let us through.

  “No. He does it because he believes in our cause.”

  I raise a sceptical eyebrow.

  “He has family here,” is all Nick confirms. There's obviously more to the story, but perhaps it's not his to tell.

  “Do... do you have any family, still in Luca?” I ask gingerly. Life expectancy on the other side of the gate is pretty high. It seems unlikely that Nick doesn't have grandparents or aunts or uncles or something.

  “A few,” he admits. “I wouldn't call any of them allies, however.”

  Harris has to inject another ID chip into my arm, taken from a recently-deceased Lucan. He can alter the details from that in case anyone double-checks. Tonight, I am not Ashe, but Selene Bellecour, high-class escort. Lucan names are so fancy.

  I'm expecting a few more hours of going over the plan, but what happens is infinitely worse. Scarlet whisks me off to a private room and presents me with a slinky dress, make-up, and a razor. I pick up the latter tentatively.

  “What am I supposed to do with this?” I ask. “I don't have a beard.”

  “It's for legs and underarms.”

  “People shave those in Luca?”

  Scarlet sighs, as if she's as disgusted as I am. “Girls do,” she says exasperatedly. “Well, most of them use other methods of permanent hair removal, actually–”

  “What? Why?”

  “Beats me. Guess they have to invent things to worry about when they're not starving to death.”

  She hands me the razor and a bar of soap. “Are you going to need help with this?”

  I stubbornly refuse the offer and end up shredding my legs as a result. Good thing I heal quickly. I concede and allow her to smear on the make-up. It feels awful against my skin; thick and cloying. My skin tightens like I'm wearing a mask.

  She attacks my hair next, smothering it in sickly-sweet cream and pulling it back into an updo, mostly to hide the abysmal uneven mess it usually is. Then I'm presented with underwear.

  “What even is this?” I shriek, confronted with an underwired monstrosity.

  “It's a bra.”

  “I know what a bra is! This... this is some kind of archaic torture device!”

  Scarlet laughs. “Did you just use the word archaic?”

  “No,” I say quickly. “I don't use fancy words. I'm not smart. Shuddup!”

  I force myself into the twisted garments, pull on the slinky dress, and climb into the ridiculous shoes. I feel myself slipping away. It's even worse when Scarlet hands me a box of coloured contacts. I've never particularly liked my eyes, but it feels wrong hiding them, even when they would look too out of place in perfect Luca.

  Nick knocks on the door. “Va
n's ready to go. Are we done?”

  “We're good!”

  He enters the room, and stops abruptly when he sees me. “You look–”

  “If you say 'hot' I will take off one of these shoes and stab you with it.”

  “I was going to say 'uncomfortable', but duly noted.”

  He picks up a long coat and throws it at me. “Best cover up. You'll turn a few heads leaving looking like that.”

  He heads on out into the corridor. We haven't gone far before I hear someone coming down the other end. A large, heavy-footed person, carrying something... metallic?

  “Shoot,” I hiss, “Rudy's coming.”

  “What?” Scarlet looks panicked.

  Nick wrenches open a nearby door. “Quick, in here!”

  I leap into it without a second thought. Moments later Rudy's footsteps stop.

  “There you both are,” he says roughly. “The van's waiting. Are you ready to move out?”

  “Er–” Nick starts, not particularly confidently.

  “Why aren't you dressed?” he barks at Scarlet.

  She, thankfully, is quicker. “What, you think I'm going to sit in those clothes for the next eight hours? No thank you! I'll get ready at the safe house.”

  He makes a noise of protest.

  “Don't say another word. You've never put on a pair of heels in your life. You have no idea of the sacrifices I've made for this–”

  Rudy growls, cutting her off. “I hear Pilot's... out of action. Jameson has been assigned instead. He's an experienced driver. He shouldn't let you down.”

  “I'm sure he won't, Captain,” says Nick. “But we should really get going–”

  “Quite right. I'll see you to the vehicle.”

  “That's really not–”

  “Oh, but I insist.”

  Does... does he know that I'm hiding here? Is... is he suspicious that we have something planned? The hardness in his voice is as sharp as the sudden intake of Nick's breath; he does not know what to do.