Julia breathed out slowly, forcing her willpower to relax at least some of her aching muscles.
“Interesting. I’ll try to be nicer than I was with Yrenes.”
“That coward deserved it.”
The ice in Cleo’s voice surprised Julia, who spread out one hand to find and squeeze her sister’s.
“What’s important is that it’s over.”
Cleo answered the squeeze on her hand, lowering her misty eyes to then look back at Julia, choking back tears.
“Yes, it’s going to be fine. The ways of this Marcus seem different from Yrenes’.”
“I’m scared by the fact he would ask rather than order.”
Cleo wrinkled her forehead in a thoughtful expression.
“Well, it’s similar to when they put our study group to the test, asking us to express an opinion. You’re free to be judged by your choices; it’s a different kind of bond.”
“So Marcus is putting me through some kind of test?”
“So it would seem.”
Julia flexed the muscles of her legs, stretching her feet and then extending her heels, then reserving the same treatment to her shoulders before slumping back down on the pillow. She then answered with a new, strange serenity of sorts.
“Well, I guess that tomorrow I’ll find out what kind of trap Secretary Marcus has laid out for me.”
And then she abruptly gave in to sleep.
The sun glistened in innumerable shimmers on the fragments of glass trapped in the black concrete of the escalators, so much that Julia closed her eyes for a second, compressing the world in nothing more than warmth on her skin, the buzz of the escalators and the breeze in her hair.
Her climb towards Marcus’ villa was basically solitary – although occasionally she crossed some students descending the escalator. As she ascended, the horizon and the color of the city itself changed: the bright green of the aristocratic districts recalled, in tamer and more controlled hues, the emerald of the endless Forest beyond the Walls.
Below, at the lower level of the city, a group of people was talking with the garrison of the North Gate, who briefly opened the doors for the small procession. Julia shivered. Civilians only ventured out of the City, always escorted, for funerals.
Looking back up, she noticed she had almost reached her destination. The escalator ended in the last scaffolding, leading to the terrace hosting the villas of the northern side of the city. Following Marcus’ directions, Julia headed right, finding herself in front of the gate and walls of an aristocratic mansion.
The doors opened upon her arrival, proving that Marcus had already requested from the Imperial database Julia’s ID code to grant her access. A guest in Villa Marcus, she found herself following a path lined with trees, set in an unnatural silence, where the only noise was a vague and distant splashing of water and the call of the birds hidden in the foliage.
Julia considered the villa with a feeling of growing discomfort. Cleo had described similar environments, but the unusual presence of trees and animals, even if distant, contributed to increasing the hesitation in her steps. She walked as in a trance, hypnotized by the rustling of the leaves, up to the entrance of the house, a rectangular block of marble decorated with columns that reminded Julia of the architectural majesty of the Ministry of Counter-Terrorism.
A glass double door, listed in metal, silently opened at her arrival, and a voice, which Julia recognized as that of Secretary Marcus, called from the end of the corridor that lead from the entrance to a sharp turn on the left.
“Please, come in. Join me.”
Past the entrance, sun rays on the soft carpet of the corridor, the sheer luxury of the polished wooden floor, the elegance of finely rounded corners. And by far more pervasive and perturbing, the undetermined sound embracing the environment, rhythmical and yet varied.
Julia stops at the center of the corridor for a moment, looks for a source - only a glimmer in a corner of the ceiling. The sound seems to fade, then returns, insists, vanishes again in its mysterious hole.
Baffled, Julia turns the corner to meet the Secretary.
“Well met!”
A tall, smiling man, elegant in his decorated uniform. He stood up to greet her upon her arrival, extending a hand she shook with barely concealed suspicion.
“Please, have a seat.”
Julia sat down mechanically at the edge of one of the chairs opposite the Secretary’s desk. She noticed that Marcus’ gaze followed her gestures carefully, but when their eyes met, he immediately smiled at her, almost winking.
“I believe I can skip the pleasantries and proceed with my proposal.”
Julia blushed, embarrassed by his observation.
“I had no intention of being rude, I truly apologize. I don’t know the adequate protocols of behavior for this situation.”
The Secretary’s reaction surprised her once again, for Marcus was giggling heartily.
“No violation in etiquette or protocol, don’t worry.”
His tone then became serious once again, as he raised his eyes from the desk to look at Julia in eye.
“I would like you to join the Advanced Corps of the Imperial Army.”
Julia arched her eyebrows in surprise.
“Mr. Secretary, I have no military rank whatsoever…”
“No matter. I have full liberty to decide who I want to recruit for the training program.”
“… and you believe I could be a good fit for this position?”
“You wouldn’t be here otherwise. Your experience in the diplomatic field is sufficient, and I believe you have widely proved your skill in the recent battle with Province P… Champion of the Empire Mayne.”
“And my sister?”
“Level I Education Permit.”
The girl remained in silence for a few moments, counting her accelerated heartbeats, rapid thoughts fleeting like clouds in her blue gaze.
“You could order the Ministry to issue my immediate transfer. Why bother with my opinion?”
“The Army supports the Empire. The Advanced Corps supports the Army. The task is too important to use enforcement as a surrogate for motivation.”
He leaned towards her, placing his elbows on the desk and joining his fingertips.
“Perhaps a couple of considerations could help your decision.”
Julia tenses, ready for the familiar talk of very thinly veiled threats - yet Marcus’ tone is steady.
“You can remain at the Ministry, with a Supervisor you hate and who fears and hates you in return, until (casually, of course) a duel to the first blood will go too far, thus ending your career and your life. Or you can decide to come with me, and risk new dangers and prizes.”
Julia is holding her breath, exhales, forces herself into a more relaxed posture.
A piercing look from Marcus.
“What then, of my proposal?”
“I accept.”
“Good!”
The Secretary pulled out a paper from a folder resting between the documents piled high on the desk, handing over to Julia a pen so that she could sign the contract. Julia quickly read and signed, feeling for a moment as if she had just signed her own death warrant.
Marcus’ smiling voice interrupted her thoughts.
“No use in reminding you that from this moment, you are now part of the Imperial Army and subject to martial law. Questions?”
Stopping to think, she realized that the sound she had heard at the entrance had never stopped, always changing yet similar, intrusive and fascinating at the same time.
“Yes. What is this sound?”
“Excellent question.”
The Secretary appeared favorably impressed.
“It’s music. It interacts with the emotional sphere. You will study some of its applications, and we’ll talk about it more if you’re interested. By the way, just call me Marcus. I’ll be your tutor in the first phase of your training.”
“Would you mind another qu
estion… Marcus?”
“Not at all.”
“I thought that wisdom was measured by one’s control over her feelings.”
“Clearly. And yet you have to know your emotions to control them.”
The girl pondered for a moment on this answer, her frown a clear indicator of her reflection. Marcus stood up, immediately followed by Julia who understood that the Secretary was now dismissing her.
“Very well. We’re leaving in two days. I’ll formalize your new position with the Ministry of Counter-Terrorism.”
“Thank you.”
Julia’s answer slipped from her lips with an almost inappropriate speed that underlined her relief, and once again the Secretary smiled at her, this time with a strange glow in his eye – sadness? Irony perhaps?
“Don’t worry about it. You’ll have time to thank me.”
The propellers of the aerovehicle whirred with a circular and constant sound. From the window Julia watched as the landing platform and the city became smaller and smaller. She was looking for her block and the window where she imagined Cleo would be staring at the sky, as if searching for her sister, who was now flying into the pink-colored clouds of dawn.
“So you’re leaving?”
Julia nods, looking away from Cleo’s sad eyes.
“I’ll have permits to visit you, and three videophone calls before my first day off.”
The shadow of a worried smile on the younger girl’s face.
“This is what you want, right?”
“I don’t want to rot in the Ministry with Yrenes. And you deserve to carry on with your studies.”
Cleo squeezes her sister’s hand in silence.
The rhythmical cluck of the aerovehicle propeller slowed down to a stop, giving way to the low buzz of the electromagnetic engines.
“Well, we’re in for a bit of silence for a few hours, before we start landing maneuvers.”
Marcus had commented happily, adjusting on his seat and stretching his legs forward.
“Where are we going?”
Julia was watching eagerly the green stretch of the Forest, which extended as far as she could see.
The Secretary gave her an encouraging smile.
“Province R, Training Base n. 3”
And then the land ended, and the bright green of the trees became a deep blue, etched with countless dimples and facets, at times brilliant with the gold of the reflected light of the sun on the surface of the water. For a while, small green islands and archipelagos animated the blue, then white and translucent little clouds, pierced by the rays of the sun, yet still capable of casting small darker shadows on the shimmering gem of the sea.
Julia brought a hand to her chest, struck by a sudden and invasive feeling, like the inexplicable tears which suddenly filled her eyes.
“From the few holograms I had seen, I had never imagined the sea could be so beautiful.”
She spoke with a choked voice, keeping her face to the window; she didn’t want Marcus to know she was crying.
The Secretary was looking at her with half-closed eyes.
“It can be terrible, up close.”
Julia pressed her forehead to the window, staring below and quickly pulling herself together. She frowned, disquieted. The incredible view had a strange effect on her, and it also reminded her of something.
“Are you ok?”
She opened her eyes wide at the sound of Marcus’ voice, and turned around to look at him. She had found a connection in her mind, even if she didn’t know how to explain it.
“Yes. I couldn’t place my finger on it at first, but for some reason the sea makes me think of music.”
Marcus looked at her, cocking his head to one side and smiling slightly.
“Really?”
She didn’t answer, not knowing how to interpret his tone of voice. The sea stretch was ending, breaking with long waves on a shore with golden sand. The Forest started again ahead, but Julia had the impression she could see a brown scar in the thick carpet of trees.
The Secretary stretched the muscles of his legs and his arms, weaving his fingers and extending his hands in front of his chest to hyper-extend his shoulders.
“We’re almost there.”
Julia guessed the space she had seen could be the base, but the aerovehicle flew past it, keeping at distance - after a couple of minutes Julia realized the base was much bigger. Ahead of them solar panels placed on the rooftops of the buildings shone like mirrors, and high walls separated the base from the Forest, as did a ring of deforested zone beyond the doors, just like in cities.
She heard the propeller of the aerovehicle gain momentum, while the pilot deactivated the electromagnetic engine to avoid interference with the machinery of the base: the buildings were arranged to allow the landing of the aerovehicle at the center of the structure.
Marcus pointed to a flat and long building to their right.
“Those are the student dorms. You have been assigned a room, you’ll find clothes and gear. When you’re ready, we’ll take a tour of RTB3.”
She nodded, concentrated.
“And we’ll begin your training. With something light, for today.”
Still studying her new quarters, Julia tied the last strap of her rigid plastiresin glove on her left forearm, testing the mobility of her fingers with a few of movements of the hand, before stopping for a moment in front of the mirror.
The small room was minimal, but comfortable. In a small closet she had found the clothes she was now wearing, and on the wall opposite the door hung the mirror where she was now contemplating her new looks.
She was surprised by her image, dressed in the military green uniform. She had donned the trousers easily (they were loose on the legs, thick but lighter compared to ministerial synthetic fabric) along with the tight, bright green long-sleeved shirt which bore the identification badge on the right shoulder. It was harder to correctly adjust the body armor.
The bodice in dark green plastiresin was tied with groups of intersecting grapples asymmetrically located along the back and sides while on the inside other hooks, invisible from the outside, connected the bodice of the armor to the belt and the rays departing from the protective necklace to the central cuirass. Elastic straps connected the shoulders to the reinforced gloves, keeping them in place without squeezing the forearms.
Julia put to a test the elasticity of the glove, rotating her wrist, and observed her clenched fist with satisfaction, as the complex system of foils on the joints proved efficient in granting mobility.
The overall effect of the uniform was impressive, as she stared in the mirror; her face looked even younger, in contrast with her warlike attire.
Soldier Mayne stretched her shoulders and her neck, pulling her arms up, then lowering them at her side as she vaguely nodded at her reflection, with a thin smile of understanding. Her training had begun from the moment she had donned her new uniform: it was heavy.
She went out to join Marcus, who was waiting for her in the open space at the center of the base. The sun was shining in its warmest hour, and Julia was quite surprised by the number of people coming and going. In the city only students and some functionaries were not in office during day hours.
The Secretary followed her gaze.
“They’re going to lunch.”
Julia looked at him without understanding, but he turned around, heading towards a dirt path which led to the back entrance of a squat building in front of them, on the other side of the open space. Soldiers of different ranks were going in and out of the main entrance, but Marcus went straight to the back door.
Behind a window, a soldier with a bored face snapped to attention as Marcus drew near. The Secretary pulled out a document of some sort from his pocket and the two men exchanged words Julia didn’t hear, from her respectful distance - then the soldier handed Marcus a small object which looked like some kind of green sphere.
Turning towards her, Marcus
suddenly threw the object in Julia’s direction, who caught it mid-air.
“Well, well.”
The man was smiling at her increasing perplexity, but appeared satisfied with her reflexes. She opened her fingers to contemplate the object she was now holding. Its surface was smooth, light green in color, a few shades paler than the grass; however from up close she noticed its shape wasn’t a precise sphere, also because in a small dent, a brown petiole betrayed its organic nature.
Curious, Julia turned the thing in her hands.
“What is it?”
“It’s a fruit, an apple.”
Marcus had now reached her and unceremoniously sat down on a huge flat boulder coming out of the thin vegetation growing between the base buildings and the wall.
“Your classmates are eating, but you can’t join them yet because you don’t have the right physical preparation. Approaching biological nutrition is one of the first teachings we provide our military.”
“Biological nutrition?”
Julia was shocked. She sat on the boulder next to the Secretary.
“I thought it was a legacy of the past…”
Marcus shook his head, dead serious.
“Oh no. It’s important that certain categories of society, such as the military, don’t lose completely their natural inclination for a biological nutrition.”
“But why? Aren’t synthesis pills more practical?”
“You won’t find synthetic food should you lose yourself in the Forest. Our army, and even more so the Advanced Corps, have to know how to survive in any reasonable condition.”
He watched her as she stared at the apple, smiling his small sly smile.
“You’ll notice you actually develop a taste for this kind of nutrition, after a while.”
Julia stopped looking at the fruit to look at her guide, her slightly arched eyebrows revealing her thoughts.
“And where is biological food grown?”
“In the villas of the chemical aristocracy, of course. Chemical and biochemical, we could say.”
Marcus stood up, while Julia pondered on these words, and stopped her with a quick gesture of an open hand.
Julia Dream Page 3
