She sat alone on a table in the center of the building. Her foot tapped silently on the wood. The place was quiet, and the main lights had been cut off some time ago. Only glow strips now dimly illuminated her surroundings, along with orbs of light that hovered silently around the building.
Chiyo looked over a tablet filled with information on a tactical hacking application and proper procedure in the field. She wondered if she should reconsider her plan for the Academy’s Technician Class test. It seemed solid enough considering the other technicians she had observed in her dorm and the files she had cracked and gained access to.
She knew there was a rule that those files were technically not for initiates’ eyes and that breaking into said files could be punishable by expulsion, perhaps even jail time.
But she also knew that there was an unspoken rule that if you were a hacker at this academy and got caught doing something so basic, you probably shouldn’t be there to begin with. Besides, considering how almost insultingly easy it was, she wondered if it wasn’t some sort of test in the first place.
It’s fine.
But as she looked over the rosters and many of the other class’s skills and talents, she noticed most of them did have some sort of training in field support or the like, something she did not.
She wasn’t aware of the specifics of the inauguration field test. Chiyo could probably find out more by poking around further in the Academy’s data banks, but she couldn’t help but wonder if that would truly help her in this case.
Of course, it would—practically speaking, anyway—but the test was supposed to help determine the individual skill of each initiate, and how would she know where she stood if she gave herself an advantage?
Then again, going back to that unspoken rule, it seemed to be a part of some underlying test for those with her class and particular set of skills. Preparation was fundamental to the proper execution of a job, test or not, and her specialty was infiltration of networks and systems and immobilizing or corrupting them.
She was simply doing her job, what she came here to do.
It’s fine.
She placed the tablet down and interlaced her fingers, leaning her chin in them as she contemplated her next move. Her father would probably tell her that she was letting personal morals or tradition get in the way of her drive. She wasn’t raised with many rules to follow, but that was one of the few things equal to sin in the eyes of her parents.
She sighed, thinking back to the days of her childhood. All that training and study, merely to end up there. She was supposed to be an heiress or perhaps her father’s right hand. Yet all those conniving bastards who hid in his shadow had cracked the foundations of that path.
Perhaps, if it was something she truly wanted, she would have fought harder.
“Pardon me, could I request some assistance?” a muffled voice asked behind her, sounding as if it spoke through a gas mask.
She turned around, and her eyes narrowed. The being had a violet-hued skin tone and black orbs for eyes with tattoo-like markings around them.
It was dressed in a blue and black one-piece with a grey academy coat over it and an orange armband, indicating an engineer. A circular plate around its neck seemed to be filled with a liquid of some kind, a square mouthpiece uniting the sides in front of his head.
It was a Tsuna, she realized. She was somewhat familiar with them, her father’s Zaibatsu—conglomerate—having had a few dealings with their representatives and had attended conferences with them present, though she’d never come face to face with one before.
“My apologies for disturbing you, but I was looking for an index to gain more familiarity with your planet’s machinery and armaments. I cannot seem to find the librarian or any scribes.”
Chiyo turned slightly, resting an arm on the table, a small smile crossing her face. “I believe the head librarian is out for the evening. As for any scribes, it would probably be helpful to know that they haven’t been a part of our normal society for quite a few centuries.”
He looked around before directing his stare back at her. “I wondered why they were so scarce. Glad I did not spend any more than an hour looking for them here. They didn’t seem to have too many places to hide,” the alien noted as it stretched its arms downward and clasped its hands together.
“Well, I’m happy to have spared you some time.” Chiyo chuckled, placing her cheek against the palm of her hand.
“I most certainly appreciate it. My assigned name is Geno Aronnax. I am a Tsuna, here to study in the engineering field.”
“Chiyo Kana, Technician…a pleasure.” She offered a hand, which caused Geno to cock his head slightly to the side before he nodded in acknowledgment. He unclasped his hands and took Chiyo’s in both.
“I must say, it is nice when I meet friendlier humans. The more…aggressive ones have become a nuisance.” He let go of Chiyo’s hand after a speedy shake.
“Have you had a lot of trouble with others?” Chiyo asked.
“No, not trouble, merely nuisance. The time it takes me to physically beat them into unconsciousness when they accost me is time that I could better spend on research or practice.” His reply was delivered without rancor or emotion, merely a statement of fact.
Chiyo’s eyes fluttered wide for a moment before she snickered. “I see. I can appreciate someone who understands the importance of study.”
“Oh, most certainly,” Geno exclaimed, placing one hand on his chest and another pointing in the air, two fingers extended. “To gain knowledge is to gain the currency of life itself.”
Chiyo gave him a quizzical, albeit entertained, look.
“It is a rough translation of one of our…I suppose you would consider them proverbs,” he explained, lowering his hands. “Many believe them to be teachings left by ancestors long before us. We do not have complete translations, but most clans abide by individual lines of these teachings, depending upon their clan job, though all can take some guidance from each.” He now pressed both hands against his chest. “My clan, for example, have had the honor of progressing our society in the ways of machines and alchemy for a few thousand of your years. We are, admittedly, the newest of the clans to be granted this honor, but we have made great strides in our peoples’ advancement and have earned our keep.”
She leaned a bit toward him. “Did you say alchemy?”
“Yes, I—” He stopped speaking for a moment. “Oh, dear, did I use an antiqued term again?”
“Probably the translator’s fault,” Chiyo said with a wave of her free hand. “My guess is that the developers responsible for them are still working the bugs out. I would assume it would be something similar to our chemists?”
Geno moved the lower part of his coat out of the way, revealing a large compartment wrapped around his leg. He undid a latch and pulled out an EI console. “Saren, would you please look up the definition of the word—”
“No need. It was merely a curious observation. We should probably get back to the original question.”
Geno blinked, and Chiyo noticed that he had two sets of eyelids—a horizontal interior set and a vertical outer layer. He shook his head apologetically and pressed the tablet against his chest. “My apologies, was I explaining too methodically? I have been growing accustomed to human language, but the amount of words and time it takes to exchange information has been of particular difficulty.”
“Actually, the distraction has been nice, but as you said, it is time that could be spent studying, right?” Chiyo reminded him.
“Of course,” he exclaimed. Speaking through the mask made it sound like excited bubbling. He pointed two fingers in the air again and pressed the other hand tighter to his chest, but before he said anything, he looked sheepishly off to the side. “Um… Perhaps now is not the time to be quoting the teachings. Teaching myself would be wise, though.” He moved his hands behind his back, the gesture suggestive of a chastened response.
“Certainly. You said you were looking for info
rmation pertaining to Earth machinery and weapons?”
“Yes. Earth, in this case, meaning the planet, not the element.”
“I understand.” Chiyo smiled “You can find almost any information pertaining to your field at the designated station.” She pointed to a fixture in the distance. Illuminated orange rings circled around several pillars that each had dozens of ports attached to them. “They are marked in your field’s color. Simply connect your EI or a tablet to a port on the station and it will bring up a directory that will let you download notes, entries, and the like on a subject of your choosing. But make sure to delete the information after a period, or you may find yourself running low on free space after a while.”
“I see. And for more general information?” he asked.
“Second floor.” Chiyo pointed up for emphasis. “Each floor is specific. Second floor is encyclopedia, guides, and dictionaries, third is non-fiction works, and fourth is fiction. The stations are all marked and labeled with what they provide. If you have trouble, I’m sure you can simply scan the lettering with your console.”
“I am actually able to speak the English language,” Geno said pressing a webbed finger to his temple. “They actually loaded a synapse language point into us before we descended onto earth.”
“Really?” Chiyo asked, a little shocked. “With no training and gradual leveling? That seems a little dangerous.”
“We had to go through a boot camp of sorts, actually. Getting the Animus system to sync properly with our minds is a little different—and difficult—for us or any of the other non-human species. So, when we are accepted into the Academy, we have to go through a few months of preparation and take a few classes to make Earth life easier as well as set us up for the Animus training. By the end, we get one synapse point to spend in the social tree.” He moved his finger down from his temple and to the side of his right eye. “I chose reading comprehension since we have translators and the like. It seemed pointless to get an EI app for writing translation. Having to point my EI console at everything to translate it seemed silly.”
“Why not use oculars?” Chiyo asked.
Geno laughed—or gave what seemed like a laugh— as if he were saying, “Hmm.” Quickly and in a high-pitched voice, he added, “No, no, no, they don’t exactly have them in my size.” His mirth continued. “We have some prototype goggles that another clan developed. They work well enough, but a group of them have reported sickness, the equivalent of your headaches and nausea, which are quite terrible for us even when we aren’t getting used to a new atmosphere.”
Chiyo acknowledged the logic of this. “Smart decision.”
“I take pride in them, and also the safety of my eyesight,” Geno affirmed with a nod. “Thank you for your help, Chiyo. I do hope I see you again. You make the second initiate that I have had a nice experience with.”
Chiyo smiled and nodded. “I’m glad to make the list. I hope I’m in good company.”
“I do not keep a list, but yours and that man’s were both positive conversations that I enjoyed.” Geno stepped away, though he still faced her as he talked. “Although you did not use as many funny words as he did.”
“Funny words?” she asked.
“Yes, words that my translator did not understand—things like yonder and howdy, but they seem nice,” he explained, raising a hand and waving it awkwardly. “Have a good evening of study.” With that, he turned and went up the staircase.
“Yonder and howdy?” Chiyo muttered. The words originated in what was the American South…could it mean that man she met the previous night? Kaiden had a southern accent, although she doubted he was the only initiate there from the South.
Her thoughts led her back to their conversation at breakfast. He seemed a different breed from either herself or many of the other first-years she had met—or many of the people she was used to being around at home.
He was skillful enough to be there, apparently, but a bit brutish and not very forward-thinking. Yet they both now called this place home despite their different ways of obtaining membership.
Beating down thugs in a bar…she wondered who would consider that criteria for Nexus potential.
Still, he seemed at least willing to use all the amenities available to him, even willing to go through the tedium of class evaluation. He might not have known what he wanted to do, but he was certainly willing to do whatever it turned out to be. Yet she still pondered on her place here, even though she was completely aware of why and for what.
She looked down at the tablet again and read the title out loud. “The Basics of a Support Technician.” She scowled. Just looking at the title made her feel a sense of loss.
Chiyo had never been a leader, and she worked well alone, using her own skills and plans to accomplish the jobs of people with thrice her experience. More important, she had never failed. There wasn’t a system she couldn’t get into when she set her mind to it, and now she was here, looking at a different career altogether?
What would that accomplish for her?
“Kaitō.” She spoke aloud, and the image of a fox in white wire-frame appeared in the corner of her eye.
“Yes, madame?” he asked in an ethereal voice, sitting patiently on his hind legs. Chiyo brought out a console from her bookbag, turning it on with one hand as she reached behind her and detached a dongle from a device clipped to her waist.
She placed the dongle into a port on the console, and the EI disappeared from her eye and appeared on the screen. “Prepare Infiltration Suite, then when I get access to the security networks in this building, set the cameras to loop in a four-second span.”
“Understood, madame. Please be aware that you will have only six hours to do whatever task you are attempting to accomplish before the sun rises and the video looks suspect.”
“I’m well aware. It should only take me a couple hours, we’ll be fine.”
“Of course.” The fox avatar nodded. Chiyo began the process of circumventing the comparatively light security of the library’s interior security system. A glance at the operations of the library’s network defense told a different story. That one looked like it was developed by someone who cared.
She again thought back to her hypothesis that a number of these defenses were made more inviting to let those initiates like herself truly test their abilities on and off the field. Or maybe she was simply that much better than her peers.
Chiyo was happy with either.
If they wanted them to show some initiative, she would happily do so. Then, when she came out in the top tier of the Technician’s Class test, it would grant her the silence of the paranoid idiots who felt she shouldn’t be there. It would be a demonstration of her gifts and expertise, making her place among them no longer in doubt.
Then, perhaps, her own path would be that much clearer.
Chapter Fifteen
Kaiden was tossed, quite literally, through the air. After he recovered, he scrambled swiftly to his feet and took in his surroundings.
He stood in a domed building, smaller than any of the others he had been in thus far. A sharp click echoed in the space, and lights snapped on. He winced for a moment as he adjusted to the sudden brightness. Curious now, he studied the area more closely. Various training and workout equipment filled much of the space—weights, dummies, straps, presses, and weapons.
Weapons? Kaiden looked over to see a rack of what appeared to be rifles. He glanced at the giant who had dragged him there—Officer Wulfson, he recalled the clerk saying—who now fiddled with the door. Suddenly alert, he took the opportunity to dash for the guns, closing the distance quickly as Wulfson looked casually at him.
“My advice is that you shouldn’t mess with those,” he warned.
Like he was going to listen to the guy who literally dragged him here against his will.
Kaiden was only a few steps away and reached out to grab a rifle before his hand crashed into something. He felt a shock run through him and yelped as he was thr
own back to bounce off the floor mats before landing hard on the padded ground.
“Mösstock.” Wulfson sighed, walked over to Kaiden’s collapsed form, and crouched over him. “You really think I would leave guns out in the open and unprotected? I blocked them off with a repulsion barrier.” He chuckled, shaking his head slowly “You aren’t the first student to try to shoot me.”
“That’s a hell of a way to make a first introduction.” Kaiden groaned, leaning over to one side. “Also the kidnapping.”
“Pah, I call it administrative detaining. Either way, it won’t be a bother,” he scoffed. “Now, get your ass up. We got work to do.”
Kaiden sat up, resting on his elbows. “We don’t gotta do a damn thing. What I wanna know is who the hell you are.”
Wulfson stood up and rolled his shoulders. “Ask your EI. If it’s worth a damn, it’ll have my file. I have to prepare for the bout.” He turned and walked away, heading to a console at the back of the room.
“Chief, who the hell is this guy?” Kaiden asked, standing on shaking legs.
“Baio Wulfson, head of security for Nexus Academy,” Chief informed him in a hushed voice.
“Why are you whispering? Only I can hear you when you’re not in another device.” Kaiden shuffled around in his pockets for his oculars.
“I ain’t gonna take the chance that the shaved yeti can’t hear me,” Chief confessed, continuing to whisper. “Don’t know how he feels about you, but I’m pretty damn sure he doesn’t care about me.”
“Safe bet,” Kaiden acknowledged with a nod. He finally located his oculars in his jacket pocket and donned them, then looked around again. Most of the floor and walls were padded, and most of the machinery and items in the room were…rather archaic.
There didn’t seem to be too many pieces of modern tech in the place besides the console where Wulfson worked. All the weights were metal bars with circular weights of varying size and mass, and sandbags, large tires, and ropes tied to large rocks or chunks of metal made up the balance.
Animus Boxed Set 1 (Books 1-4): Initiate, Co-Op, Death Match, Advance Page 14
