Nick James - Skyship Academy

“Pearls,” Madame responded. “Without Pearls our empire would crumble. We would be left in the dust like the Fringers. They would tear us up and burn us all, Cassius. The Skyships would lower to the ground and reclaim the country. We need Pearls.”

Cassius winced. “So what’s Fisher got to do with all that?”

“Pearls,” she repeated. “That’s all you need know.”

He looked down at the bed sheet, avoiding her fiery gaze. “How are you going to capture him, then?”

“Not me,” she paused. Her expression softened. “ You. I need you to help me with this. You’re going to make a detour after our meeting on Skyship Atlas.”

“You know where he is?”

She nodded. “I have operatives stationed all over the Skyship Community. How do you think I know he exists at all?”

“But the Hernandez Treaty-”

“Oh, Cassius. Nothing was ever gained by playing strictly by the rules. Do you think they don’t have people spying on us? They’re not that naive.” She clasped her hands, staring at the empty counter. “Jesse Fisher’s training at an academy. They use schools because they think we’re stupid enough not to check up on them. Maybe the President’s that gullible, but not me.”

“Does the President know that they’re doing this? Using schools?”

She smiled-a cold, disenchanted smile. “There’s a reason the President’s in hiding, Cassius. He’d like everybody to think we’re as unified as our moniker suggests, but things are never that simple. Remember what I talked about last night? Small, unconnected moments. Sometimes it takes a person of fierce awareness to connect the dots. The President is not that man. He’s better suited to pacifying rebellious Fringers than worrying about Skyships and Pearls.”

“Well, if this kid is so important, why are you sending me to get him?”

“I trust you, Cassius. I wouldn’t be telling you any of this if I didn’t. I cannot trust anybody else in the Unified Party. As I said before, there are… things that we don’t talk about, that I don’t talk about. Things I’ve seen, things I know. Things I must keep a secret, even from you.”

He shook his head. “About Jesse Fisher.”

She nodded, glancing in his direction. “About a lot of things.” She cleared her throat. “Besides, an adult agent would never make it inside Skyship Academy undetected. They’re having a visitation day at the end of the week and you’re going to board their ship as a prospective student. I’ve already arranged a passport for you. We’ll wire a skin graft over the identification code on your wrist. Luckily your little stunt in the dormitories seared most of the residual Surface chemicals from your skin. Their scanners shouldn’t be a problem.”

“You really think it’s safe? You think I won’t be caught?”

She shook her head. “It’s as safe as we can make it. I’ve gone to a lot of trouble these past hours, Cassius. You shouldn’t have gone to Syracuse, for your own sake.”

He opened his mouth to apologize, but realized it wouldn’t do any good. As always, he couldn’t discern what she was really feeling. Her face remained stony and impenetrable.

After an uncomfortable gap of silence, Madame broke from her trance. “As Head of Energy, I have access to whatever military force I deem necessary. If anything goes horribly wrong, you will be well-supported. But I would prefer to keep this off the radar. For now.” She sighed. “Before I go, I’ve got something to share with you. If nothing else, it should inspire you to take on this mission.” She reached below the bed to retrieve a small black cube-about half a foot wide and equally as tall. “This is from your mother.”

“But-”

“Your real mother.” She ran her fingers across the smooth, shiny exterior. “When you came to me, so did this.”

Cassius analyzed it, trying to figure out what the cube had been carved from. It looked almost like marble, though it couldn’t have weighed much judging by the ease with which Madame had hefted it. The only mark was a small keyhole at the top center. No dings or scratches, though it was obviously very old.

“What’s inside?”

“A cure, I hope. For the fire within you.” She set the cube in front of him. “Other than that, I have no idea.”

Cassius touched the side of the cube. It felt colder than the rest of the room, like touching a tombstone. He glanced up at Madame’s face. His birth mother was certainly one of the subjects they never talked about. There wasn’t much to say. Why care about a pathetic junkie? But then again, he’d never known a junkie to carry around such a strange object. His mind raced with ideas of what could be inside. Inheritance, birth certificates, photographs. The last thought made his heart skip a beat. He’d never seen a photograph of his parents.

“Where’s the key?”

Madame frowned, pointing up to the ceiling. Cassius knew exactly what that meant.

Skyship.

He nodded. “Fisher.”

“Find Jesse Fisher, and in addition to a cure, we’ll get you that key.” She stood up. “Now if there’s nothing else, I’m going to see about getting you some food. We’ll start briefing tomorrow afternoon. I’ll need you strong from the get-go. I laid an extra uniform on the chair over in the corner. I’m sure you’re eager to get out of that hospital gown.”

She grabbed the cube from his lap and took a few steps toward the door before pausing and turning around. “And Cassius, remember this is just between you and me. Please keep it that way.”

He nodded.

“Fantastic.” She exited the room without a goodbye, leaving a mountain of unanswered questions in her wake.

I swirl a spoon through a bowl of the canteen’s leftover mystery chili, mentally replaying the events of the day. A janitor mops the floor by the kitchen. It’s just me and him tonight.

I sit at a circular table in the corner of the room. The chili’s cold. It tastes even worse than it smells. I can’t say our cooks know how to do Mexican. They should stick with what they do best-opening cans and dumping them into serving bowls.

The walls around me are the same color as the seven pitiful pieces of melted cheese that congeal into a rubbery disc in the center of the bowl. I would have been better off sneaking a couple pieces of fruit down to my room and calling it a night.

“Well,” a figure enters the canteen, “I can’t wait to join this fun little pity party.”

I look up and smile, even though she’s twenty minutes late.

Avery Wicksen: fellow orphan, snoop extraordinaire, and totally unattainable eighteen-year-old post-grad.

She skips over to the corner of the room, plopping down on the seat next to me. Her straw-colored hair’s tied up away from her face. She wears a pale-blue tank top and loose-fitting jeans, and couldn’t be more beautiful if she tried. She stares down into the bowl, shaking her head. “That is a crime against nature. They should be ashamed of themselves.”

I push the bowl away. “I was wondering if you were gonna show up.”

She grins, the faint cluster of freckles on each side of her smile dancing up and down. “Ran into some trouble with Dolores. Trouble in the sense that I couldn’t escape her. I swear that woman is in love with me.”

I lean against the wall, facing her. Dolores Anderson is the fossil-old librarian that Avery works with during the day. Given her less-than-stellar training record and knack for ditching classes, the teachers stuck Avery with mass boring library work rather than graduating her to full-blown agent status. Hanging out with her is like taking a look at my own future. If only our similarities were enough to hypnotize her into falling in love with me. “You two have tea again?”