Sector 6 - Willamond
Vivian Drowel
Vivian set the digital book down on the copilot’s chair when the comm rang through. Her feet were propped up on the terminal of her little ship, and she was beginning to feel sleepy.
She hated to read, and she had a special hatred for nonfiction books about how to raise children. She’d read dozens of them in these last two years, and all of the advice was starting to blend together.
But she was determined to absorb as much of it as she could. Everything she’d learned about children from the Ministry was wrong, she knew, which meant she had to be prepared for anything that happened with Traq until he was an adult.
Worse, she also had to worry about how to handle things that would never be in these silly books. He was different than normal children, and even different from the ones who were discovered and brought into the Ordo Mens Rea. She would need to be prepared for anything and everything that happened with him.
She realized, however, that she hadn’t actually retained the last several pages of this most recent book. It was boring and dry, talking about the stages a child would go through before becoming an adult.
Maybe a break was a good thing.
With a yawn, she clicked the button to accept the call. Argus Wade’s face appeared on screen. He was back at the Ministry, she knew, covering for her and dealing with his own problems.
He looked haggard, older than the last time she’d spoken with him. They rarely communicated anymore for fear of being overheard by the Ministry. Things would go very badly for Wade if they found out that he was helping her hide Traq from them.
“Wade?”
“Hi, Viv,” Argus Wade said.
“You look like hell.”
“Thanks,” he said, rubbing his face with his hands. “I haven’t really slept in the last few weeks. I keep expecting them to break down my door. Drag me away to a white room with ice picks.”
“You have a vivid imagination,” Vivian said.
“Not so vivid,” Wade replied. Vivian could see from the expression on his face that something terrible had happened. “Denigen’s Fist is on its way to the Core.”
Vivian sat up, her feet landing on the floor with a thud. Suddenly she was wide awake.
“Abigail?”
Wade nodded. “I don’t know what the Minister is planning…or if he’s planning anything at all. But I can’t think straight right now.”
“It’s been two years,” Vivian said. “If the Minister was going to do something about this, he would have already.”
“I think he knows.”
“I doubt it. He isn’t a patient man.”
Argus didn’t seem convinced, but he didn’t disagree. “In any case, this is the first time Denigen’s Fist has been back to Sector One. If the Minister has something planned, it’s going to happen soon.”
“You think he is going to…?”
She didn’t finish the thought, but the unspoken sentiment hung in the air between them. Wade sighed.
“Officially, she was never enrolled in the Ordo Mens Rea, so as far as the books and records are concerned, she’s just an ordinary girl serving as the Ministerial Envoy aboard a Capital Class Ship…which is strange enough on its own, considering her age, but nothing anyone could do anything about.”
“So they don’t know?”
“No, not officially. Unofficially, though, I’m fairly certain the Minister knows everything. He just has no evidence to act upon.”
“But, she’s his Envoy. He doesn’t have any direct control over her while she is on Denigen’s Fist.”
“No, he technically can’t do anything while she’s on that ship, at least not without creating a scandal and admitting that she was appointed behind his back and without his consent. It would make him look bad. Publicly, his hands are tied.”
“So you’re safe?”
“Not exactly. He can’t publicly do anything, but I’m certain he has something planned in retribution. He isn’t going to forget, and he certainly won’t forgive.”
“He doesn’t always do things publicly,” Vivian added. “And he’s got the full power of the Ministry behind him.”
Argus held up his hands. “That’s why I can’t sleep.”
“You did what you thought was necessary,” Vivian said. “To protect your child.”
“Did I?” Wade said, shaking his head. “Do you really think this was the best thing for Abigail? After Daer…”
His voice trailed off. Vivian knew what he was talking about because the events of Daer had become living legend everywhere throughout the galaxy. Overnight, it seemed that everyone knew the name of Captain Kristi Grove and her execution of two-thousand criminals.
Doubtless, that was why she had done it. She wanted to make a name for herself and build up a reputation. That mission was accomplished.
Rumors also spoke about the Envoy who sanctioned the killings on behalf of the Ministry. A mere child, but bloodthirsty and terrible. No one would dare speak negatively of her in public, but she knew their sentiments. Many viewed Abigail as a return to darker times hundreds of years ago when the Ministry had free rein to kill as it saw fit.
“You couldn’t have known,” Vivian said. “No one could have anticipated what Captain Grove had planned.”
“She’s turning my daughter into a puppet. And there’s nothing I can do about it. She used me, Vivian.”
“But the alternative was far worse,” Vivian said. “The Minister might know what you did, but he can’t prove it without compromising himself as well. Captain Grove might be using Abigail for some personal crusade, but it’s better than Abigail being killed...or worse.”
“I know,” Wade said, “it’s just that…”
Vivian nodded and didn’t press the issue. She decided to change the subject. “What about Traq? Does the Minister know of him as well?”
“He doesn’t. Of that I’m completely certain. It seems he forgot about you in the preceding years. He’s probably been spending so much time trying to find new ways to punish me.”
“I suppose there are more pressing issues than a rogue member of the Ordo Mens Rea. At least I haven’t raised an army against the Republic.”
Wade nodded. “Darius is growing in power. He has fifteen loyal planets in his Union now.”
“All in Sector Four?”
“A few are actually in Sector Three. People are either completely loyal to Darius or terrified of him. He murdered Captain Queston.”
“Murdered? Why?”
“Does Darius need a reason? He hijacked Queston’s fleet and killed thousands of the crew. The First Citizen is starting to take him seriously, but it gets worse.”
“What do you mean?”
“People are starting to ask questions about his time in the Ministry before he started the Union. People want to know what his past is, and they want to know about the Ordo Mens Rea.”
Vivian was silent for a long moment, thinking over the ramifications of that. The Ordo Mens Rea was one of the best-kept secrets in the entire galaxy, and people had died for simply speaking too loudly about it.
But, if lay people knew Darius was a member of it before leaving and wanted to know more, it could unravel the entire sadistic network the Ministry had built. The Minister would kill every single member, including the children, to keep it from turning into a scandal.
“What’s going to happen?” Vivian asked.
“I don’t know. The Minister is paranoid. Not a single child from the recent batch of recruits was accepted into the Order,” he said.
Vivian felt her stomach clench.
“None?”
“There were twenty-seven with the genetic marker who showed up. The youngest was three years old. Now there are twenty-seven more Keepers.”
“He can’t just do that,” Vivian protested. “That’s…”
“Insane?”
“I was going to say genocidal.”
“He can do it, and he is,” Wade replied with a sigh. “Twenty more members of the Order just fled last week to join Darius. The Minister is using that as his justification for his heavy-handed actions. It’s creating a bad cycle. More leave because he cracks down, so he cracks down harder. It’s bad, Vivian.”
She nodded. She’d known things could turn ugly after Darius left—very few people in the Ordo Mens Rea felt any real loyalty to the Ministry—but she didn’t think it would get so bad this quickly.
“So what do we do?”
“We keep our heads down. The Union can’t challenge the Aristocracy, and from all reports, Darius is running out of support and funds. The First Citizen has sent his best Shields to assassinate Darius. One of them will catch up with him eventually. He’ll die in a gutter, forgotten and alone, and people will forget about the Union. Then things will return to normal.”
Vivian wasn’t sure she believed him. The Aristocracy was old. Stale. A lot of people weren’t content with the way things were being managed, and the cancers of their society ran deep. Trying to purge them might end up doing more harm than good.
And, if normal people found out the full extent of what the Ordo Mens Rea was…if they knew what dark and twisted truths the Ministry was withholding from them…
“Speaking of things that aren’t normal,” Wade said, “where is Traq?”
“Outside,” Vivian said. She leaned forward in her chair, pushing her hair back from her face. “You know, I’m really starting to get the hang of this parenting thing, Wade.”
“Oh yeah?”
“Yeah. I’ve read a dozen books so far on how to raise Traq properly. They all have different theories, but it boils down to basically the same idea: preparing him to survive in the world once he leaves the nest, so to speak.”
“Uh huh,” Wade said. “That’s really all there is to it.”
“So it’s really just training, like the training we went through at the Ministry and then what I experienced to become a Shield. If I can pass along my knowledge to him, then he’s going to be fine.”
“Well, not exactly like we went through, right?” Wade asked with a shrug. “I mean, he isn’t even seven years old yet. He doesn’t need to go through anything like that.”
Vivian nodded. “Yeah, so I modified things to be more at his level. I told him if he gets too cold, he can just knock on the door, and I’ll let him back in.”
Wade blinked.
“You what?”
“Well, I figured with his age, it wouldn’t be the best idea to stay out overnight too often—”
“What planet are you on?”
“Willamond,” Vivian replied. “It was the only one I could find in Sector Six currently experiencing an ice age.”
Wade cleared his throat. “Vivian…”
“Don’t worry, he has plenty of supplies and I helped him build a shelter. He’s totally safe. Mostly. This will be his fourth night out there. And it’s only two degrees below zero at the coldest temperatures.”
Wade looked like he was about to object and then just shook his head. “He’s only a child.”
“I know. I was surprised how resourceful he can be too!”
“I meant…”
“I know what you meant. But the world is hard, Wade. Better for him that it’s hard now than later. You said to teach him what I know. I know how to survive.”
Wade held up his hands. “Okay, Vivian. Just call me if you need anything.
“I will,” Vivian said. Then she added, “And, Wade, stop worrying about what Givon and the Ministry might do. Abigail will be just fine.”
2
After two more days out in the cold, Vivian decided Traq had finally had enough.
To be honest, she didn’t much like the planet. Willamond was frigid and barren and completely devoid of more than bacterial life. It had been terraformed hundreds of years ago, but during the process, something had gone wrong and the planet had entered an ice age.
They abandoned it, waiting out the frigid temperatures before returning to build settlements. It looked like it was going to be a long and slow process, though, so they would have a long wait.
Traq was starting to impress her with just how tough he was. She’d expected him to come knocking on the ship’s door to get warm sometime during the first few nights out there, but he never did. She went to check on him frequently and make sure he was doing all right, but she never actually had to intervene.
His Uncle Jack, it turned out, was the one who was struggling.
“Do you think he’s all right?”
“He’s fine,” Vivian said.
Jack was Traq’s uncle, a pilot and soldier for the Republic who was helping her take care of Traq out here in Sector Six. He knew the region and had grown up on Geid, which made him an excellent guide in traveling around the Sector.
But not a great companion.
“I mean, he’s been out there all night and you didn’t go check on him yet this morning. Do you think I should check on him?”
“He’s fine,” Vivian said. “We’re tracking his vitals. He’s still wearing the suit.”
“Maybe there was a malfunction and they aren’t tracking right.”
“There wasn’t a malfunction. Traq is fine, just a little cold.”
“And lonely.”
“Probably.”
“I still don’t understand why I can’t stay out there with him.”
“Because he’s your nephew. If you go out there with him, then you’ll be taking care of him rather than him taking care of himself.”
“True, but he’s just a kid. He’s only seven.”
“I know.”
“He shouldn’t be learning how to survive on his own on an icy planet. He should be learning math and how to have fun and be a kid.”
“He is going to get a full education, not merely preparatory curriculum. I’m going to prepare him so he’s ready to face the world because there are going to be a lot of people who want to find him and use him for their own purposes.”
“Why?” Jack asked. “What’s so special about him?”
Vivian fell silent and then shook her head. “It’s not important right now. Suffice it to say he’s different.”
“What do you mean by different? What aren’t you and Wade telling me?”
Vivian didn’t answer. “Do you want to go bring Traq in? We’re done with Willamond.”
“You mean no more snow training?”
“No. He’s finished here.”
“Then where to next?”
“Eldun.”
“What? Eldun is in the middle of a civil war.”
“Exactly. He needs to learn about death and battle.”
“He’s seven.”
“You keep saying that. He might be young, but he’s also impressionable. Every book I’ve read says these years are very important for children to learn the most valuable lessons of their lives.”
“Still…a war-torn planet? Is that really where you think we should go?”
Vivian hesitated. “Not you,” she said. “Me and Traq. You’ll be staying on Jaril until we get done.”
“What? Why?”
“I need him to understand there is no safety net and he has to be able to take care of himself, and I can’t do that if he thinks his uncle will always be here to rescue him. We’re only going to be on Eldun for a week, do some hiking and sightseeing of the devastation, and then we’ll come pick you up.”
Jack frowned at her, but he didn’t respond. The conditions around him traveling with her and Traq was that he had to follow her commands; this was one he definitely didn’t like.
Vivian could fly the ship without him well enough to get by, so he couldn’t push the issue too hard without her simply dismissing him.
But Vivian needed a chance to interact with Traq alone. She’d already mapped out their hiking course on Eldun to make sure they stayed safe. She would dock the ship in the city of Delphi and then take him on a hike to visit the broken cities left in the wake of warfare.
War was still raging on the planet, but thousands of kilometers away from Delphi, so she didn’t expect there to be any actual risk. Right now, Delphi was at peace with its neighbors and rebuilding. That didn’t mean it would be completely safe, but she was confident she could protect him during their short venture.
She knew Jack wouldn’t like her plan either way, but she didn’t plan on giving him any options.
“Only a week?”
“One week of hiking,” Vivian agreed. “Just to show him what war looks like so he understands how terrible it is.”
“And then you’ll come pick me up?”
“Yes. Then we will find somewhere relaxing to hole up for a few years and further his education in mathematics and science. No more dangerous adventures for a long while.”
Jack thought about it for a long moment and then nodded. “Okay. If you think this is for the best, then I’m not going to argue.”
“I do.”
“Then I guess I’d better go gather up Traq.”
Jack stood up from his seat in the cockpit and headed farther into the ship, heading for the loading ramp. Vivian watched him go and then leaned back in her chair. Part of her wanted to release the uncle from her services, but she didn’t really think she should.
She knew why Argus had sent Jack with her: Argus didn’t think she would be capable of raising Traq alone or that maybe she would abandon him along the way. He wasn’t Traq’s safety net; he was hers. But, it had been two years since she took over caring for Traq, and despite a few misgivings, she’d grown quite attached to him.
Now, Jack was just a burden, and a worrisome one at that. He was always challenging her and second-guessing her. She needed to take that next step in Traq’s training and really start pushing him, and that meant separating him from his uncle.
A debate for another day, she decided. She would see how things went on Eldun before deciding if she was ready to send Jack back to Argus and take care of Traq alone.
3
Jack returned a few minutes later with Traq in tow. Traq’s cheeks were bright red from the cold and he looked exhausted, but he seemed otherwise all right. He was bundled up in about six layers of brown clothing and looked like a little wooden barrel walking through the ship.
“How do you feel?” Vivian asked.
“Fine,” he said. “A little bored.”
“Bored is good,” Vivian said. “It teaches you how to think and use your imagination.”
Traq nodded, but he didn’t seem to know quite what he was talking about.
“Am I going back out?” he asked, only the slightest bit of trepidation in his voice.
“No,” she said. “We’re done here and we’re going to be leaving in a short while. This time, we’re going somewhere warm to stay for a week.”
“Okay.”
“Do you want to go get warmed up?” she asked.
He nodded. “Yes, and I’m kind of hungry.”
“All right,” she said, glancing back at Jack. “Do you want to get him something to eat? I’ll prep for takeoff and we can be out of here in about an hour.”
“Sure,” he said.
He gently took Traq by the shoulder and led him out of the cockpit.
Vivian watched them go and then turned back to the controls. It would only take them a couple of days to drop Jack off and then make it to Eldun.
There was a city outside of Delphi that had been bombed and evacuated in the last few years, and there was no greater way to show the treachery of war than with a city built for millions that was completely destroyed and empty.
To be honest, she was kind of looking forward to it.
