I’d done my share of sponsorships when I was a kid, and after the first experience, I’d hated being on set. “Whatever. What are we advertising?”
Bryson smiled and clapped his palms together. “SeaTech’s proprietary thermal Core protectors.”
“How exciting.”
____________
“Primary City,” Luther whispered as the SeaTech luxury transport brought us into the city limits. It was near the Aegean Sea, and everything for countless kilometers in each direction had been removed, to allow a giant border around the destination.
The entire place was protected by an invisible dome, one you needed an access code to permeate, and the robotic pilot sent the request, the screen blinking acceptance a moment later. An opening appeared, blue lines in a perfect circle granting us passage into Primary City.
“Quite the safeguard,” Jade said. “Ever had a break-in?”
Luther answered, “Couple of times, but this is some advanced stuff. The shield tech was created by Lotus, adapted by Sage, and updated by Oasis.”
“Not Luna Corp?” I asked.
“Don’t think so,” Jade replied. “At least, not that I’d seen in their tech division.”
Luther had visited more than anyone, including Bryson, who claimed to only have seen it twice since he’d taken over from his father. Holland seemed thrilled to be making this trip, but I was dreading it. With the looming date for the start of the Race, and the unknowns involving this Eclipse and the Corporation uprising, my stomach was tied in knots. I tried not to show it.
We entered, and I stared out the windows at the sprawling city below. It was small by modern standards, but grand nonetheless. The Board building was the largest. Though the structure didn’t have an official name, everyone knew of it as Headquarters, or HQ. Its silhouette reminded me of a huge mushroom, with the top wide and flat. It overlooked the other Corporations’ lesser offices. To our left was Sage Industries, a stylish spire standing half as tall as HQ. From here, we could see Luna Corp, with their moon-shaped office building, and Harding; the eighth-ranked Corp was much simpler, with a plain boxy design.
Our transport flew for HQ, and everyone’s excitement rose as we landed on a hovering platform. We were earlier than some of the teams, judging by the empty spaces, and Bryson’s face was somber as he neared the exit. “Okay, folks. Today is a monumental day for all of us. The Race begins in a week, so smile for the camera and offer short, positive comments. Let’s be gracious, and kind, and not play into whatever games may arise from the other teams.”
“You expect trash-talking?” I asked.
“You really have been out of the circuit for a long time.” Holland shifted in his seat. “Trash-talk. It’s not uncommon for some punches to be thrown before a race too.” He smiled like this was an important part of the event.
Luther stood tall. “Anyone wants to hit me, they can damned well try.”
“Don’t worry about that, team. We’re above calling people names and getting physical,” I said. “Right?”
“Sure, Cap. Let’s get this over with.” Jade brushed past me, and I saw her reach for her left ear. She was anxious to run into anyone from Luna Corp again, or maybe she was just nervous like the rest of us. I was dreading coming face to face with Varn Wallish from Sage.
We were greeted by a black-uniformed Board assistant, and she ushered us onto a temporary bridge attached to the floating platform. Soon we were entering the top floor of HQ.
“Sage Industries, the home of the Space Race contenders, and creator of the highly innovative SunScorcher. Melt ore twice as fast as the next best competitor.” The projection cast on the wall as we walked by, and I tried to ignore it, until Varn’s face appeared as a blue-tinged hologram. “SunScorcher. I know I’d use it. Link your PersaTab to learn more.” He was in his Race uniform, with the number 1 on his chest, and his right pointer finger in the air.
“What a jerk,” Luther whispered as the ad vanished.
“You don’t know the half of it.”
The entire floor smelled sweet, like flowers and honey, and everyone inside was dressed in their finest. A man near us had on a silk suit, the woman on his arm in a matching green dress, and I recognized the CEO of Lotus, Li Huang. His team stood next to him with frowns and green jumpsuits.
No one greeted Bryson Kelley, and I took that as confirmation that they didn’t feel he was worthy. Bryson accepted their silence with elegance, moving toward the space in the vast room adorned with SeaTech’s logo. We followed him, and finally, someone from the Board arrived. It was their Lead Chair, Octavia Post, the woman I’d seen announcing the Race in the first place.
“Hello, Bryson. We’re pleased to have you.” She smiled and sounded genuine, but it still left a sour taste in my throat.
“And we’re thrilled to be present for this momentous occasion. Octavia, you know my son, Holland?”
She appraised the young man. “He’s grown since I’ve seen him. You sure are a handsome one.”
Holland beamed at the praise, and she walked over to me. “Arlo Lewis, I presume?”
The fact that the Lead Chair knew who I was shocked me, but I reasoned she’d seen the teams in their entirety on digital feeds sent by each Corporation. “What a pleasure to meet you,” I told her.
“Likewise.”
Bryson introduced the last two members, and I hardly heard them as I saw the cocky gait of Varn, the Sage Industries pilot, enter the room. His eyes surveyed the premises, and when they locked on me, he actually grinned.
“Excuse me,” I said, walking away.
We headed for one another and stopped a meter apart. “Varn.”
“Hello, Huck. Oh, my mistake, Hawk.”
“It’s Arlo,” I muttered.
“Sure, whatever. I can’t believe you managed to weasel your way into a real competition like this. You realize this is important, don’t you? SeaTech. What a joke.” He wasn’t pulling any punches.
“I know. What kind of fool wants to work for the only Corp to advance through the ranks with this kind of efficiency? You should also see the Islands. It’s so destitute. Everyone living in squalor.” I slapped a palm to my forehead. “Wait, sorry, that’s Sage.”
His finger jabbed my chest. “Watch it, Hawk.”
“Or what?” I stepped closer, and Luther was there, grabbing my arm.
“What the hell, Lewis? Didn’t we just discuss this?” he whispered in my ear.
I brushed my shirt off and nodded. “See you at the Race.”
I hated that the guy could so quickly incite anger in me. I’d considered myself more even-tempered than that, but obviously, I wasn’t.
“Can’t you keep it together for an hour?” Bryson was irritated, and I couldn’t fault him.
“Sorry about that. Varn is a thorn in my side. Always has been.”
“I don’t care if he slept with your wife. We’re professionals,” Bryson said through his teeth as another group entered from the floating parking pad. I didn’t recognize them but saw the Orion logo. The constellation’s stars were pinpoints on a round patch.
“They look serious,” Jade said softly. We stood off to the side, near the SeaTech logo on the floor, and over the next twenty minutes, the rest of the teams filed in. The huge room felt compacted with each CEO and their four team members positioned in neat rows around the space.
Bryson rubbed his hands together. “This is it.”
The SeaTech CEO had been anticipating this Race for some time, and he’d orchestrated a jump into the top ten. It was inspiring, and in my opinion, that either made him a little erratic or brilliant. Only time would tell.
I peered at the CEOs around the room. Most were older than Bryson, but a couple were around my age. The Barret leader was probably thirty, with a tightly trimmed beard and long hair. The left side was shaved over his ear, and he’d pinned it back to showcase a tattoo of his company logo. The captain of his team was young, with his gaze straight ahead like he wanted to bore
a hole into the wall.
I was only thirty-four years old, but I felt old compared to most of the contestants. No wonder I didn’t know most of them from my time in the circuit. But what they had in current experience, they lacked in real-world knowledge, and I was hoping to use that to my advantage.
Octavia walked to the center of the room, four video drones following her. They circled above, and one lowered as if on cue. She spoke, smiling widely for the audience. This moment would be shown around the world, in the mines, and on any currently occupied planet. Billions of humans were watching at this second, and the thought made me start to sweat. Until now, it had been a few people hanging out in a state-of-the-art Racer, but this made it real.
“Welcome esteemed colleagues, CEOs, and Race teams. The Board is thrilled to have you in attendance. With the recent news of Temeletron dropping to the eleventh rank, and sliding out of the Primary Corporations’ favor, we welcome SeaTech. An old and successful organization, led by the equally intuitive Bryson Kelley.” She motioned toward him, and Bryson confidently stepped forward, raising a hand as the drone hovered in front of him.
“Thank you, Lead Chair. On behalf of my people, my son, and my father, who isn’t alive to see his dreams come to fruition, I graciously thank the Board for bringing us into tenth rank, thus entering us into the Race.” Bryson returned to the line beside Holland, and the camera floated away.
“It was well-deserved, CEO Kelley.” Octavia pointed to a projection a few feet ahead of her, and it began to play a video. “This is the start of the Race.”
All ten of our ships were ready and waiting. It showed the Corporation below each ship’s 3D image, and it zoomed on the farthest Racer. It was stylish, maybe half the size of our own, but I knew with their money, it would be as fast as they came. “Sage Industries, rank number one. Captain Varn Wallish!” Her voice rose, and the others in the room clapped. I declined the gesture.
Next was Luna Corp’s turn, and the ship rotated in the center of the projection. “Luna Corp, rank number two. Captain… Lina Nebu!”
We clapped, and I glanced at Jade as she applauded aggressively. Her jaw was clenched. It seemed like we each had our own baggage when it came to our previous employers. Their CEO, Erik Trevors, stared at Jade momentarily before looking away.
“Lotus, rank number three. Captain Chen Wei!” The man lifted a finger while we clapped. He had eyes of steel, and I predicted he was one to watch out for. This wasn’t hauling ores between the Belt and Mars anymore, and it wasn’t racing against skinny teens in a Pod Sprinter either. I had to be prepared.
Octavia continued down the line, and the next spacecraft was an interesting concept. It was long and lean, black in color, with the number four painted on the nose in white. “Orion, rank number four. Captain Marc Reed!”
He received slightly less applause, and I saw what was happening. Like everything within the Corporations, only the top three were really in charge, leaving the rest of them in the dust.
I cringed at the sight of Oasis’ logo: a cactus. “Oasis, rank number five. Captain Travis Brenner!”
Holland let out a whoop, and I knew this was his favorite Pod sprinter, from the events he’d shown me. His shout was loud in the quieting room.
“Espace, rank number six. Captain Clara Durand.” Octavia’s voice lowered. Gone was the excited lift at the end of the announcement, but Clara still nodded her thanks. She had a shaved head, with a tattooed symbol on the top. Her expression was fierce.
Octavia went through the next three. Barret with Captain Tom Xander. Harding and Captain Luis Cooper, followed by HyperMines, led by Captain Q. Young. The applause was almost non-existent by this point. Bryson shifted on his feet as the attention turned to our Racer.
When it zoomed on Pilgrim, I noticed the number eleven painted on her wing. I hadn’t given it a second thought before, not until I saw the others with their ranks also marking their Racers. Why had Bryson used the number eleven on it? Shouldn’t it be ten?
Octavia appeared to note this as well, and her voice caught before she returned to herself. “SeaTech, rank…number ten. Captain Arlo Lewis.”
The room remained silent. Not a single clap or cheer arose from the gathered teams.
I remained still, unbothered by the slight. Instead, I used it. Their casual disregard for SeaTech would fuel my team to victory.
“And that concludes—” Octavia fell to the floor as the entire building shook violently. Everyone began to scatter, guards placed around the room checking out the windows.
Alarms rang out loudly as a robotic voice carried through the speakers. “Head to the safehouse. HQ is under attack. I repeat, head to the safehouse.”
“How could someone attack HQ?” Bryson asked. He gripped my arm tightly, and Luther was close, standing guard over our CEO.
The floor vibrated again, and I rushed to the window where Jade was. She was as rigid as a statue, and I saw why. A dozen incoming vessels penetrated where the domed shield should have been. Fire erupted from them, sending ion blasts toward the building we were located in. I peered down, seeing the pulses dissipate on another invisible cloak around HQ. At least they’d added a second layer of protection.
The voice kept announcing the orders as everyone rushed for an elevator. Octavia’s shrill voice carried over the noise. “We go by rank! Sage and Luna first!” She entered with them, and fury rose in my chest again.
“They’re going to leave us for dead,” I whispered. An ad played on the wall, the projection flickering and cutting off.
Holland seemed to hear me, and for the first time since I’d met the guy, he looked furious. “Dad, what’s happening?”
Bryson grimaced as he replied, “Son, the revolt has begun.”
“Why are they doing it now?” Luther asked. I noticed him peering toward the Lotus crew, who were moving for the elevator next. That was his old placement, and I bet he was feeling the urge to protect the CEO standing across the room, since it had been programmed into him for the last twenty years.
“If we die, it will not be for nothing,” Bryson said.
“Die? Oh, I’m not dying,” Jade said, and she ran for the corridor we’d entered on. The floor trembled again, and I sighed as I followed her.
“You can’t go out there!” I saw another dozen incoming ships, and finally, armed drones were arriving to fend off the attack.
“What choice do we have?” she barked. “Bryson, come on. We’re leaving!”
He stared at us and shoved his son forward. “Right. We have much work to do.”
So far, none of the other teams were contemplating leaving, and were huddled against the opposite side of the room a good hundred meters away, waiting for the elevators. Let them have their safehouse. I really didn’t want to be trapped inside a cramped space with all those blowhards anyway, if they even let us in. Judging by their reaction to our names being announced, there was a slim chance of that.
The battle raged on outside as Defenders around the Corporation’s offices in the city arose to join the drone fleet. The hovering platform was fuller than when we landed, and our transport was much smaller than the other nine. We raced for it, legs pumping as fast as they could go.
Before we arrived at the entrance, one of the rebels shot at the platform. And another.
“Come on. Get in!” Bryson called as he fumbled with the door’s keypad.
The sound of powerful thrusters resonated through my ears, vibrating my entire body, and I glanced up, seeing a lowering freighter. It was dark gray, with slender ion blasters stretching from each side. Jade and Holland had already entered our transport, and I stood beside Bryson with Luther behind, as the three of us stared at the ship. It came to hover twenty meters in the distance, tilting so we could see the cockpit. The dark material vanished, becoming see-through, and I saw a face beyond.
The guns were charged, the cyclers crackling in anticipation. Blue energy coursed around the barrels, and I knew this was it.
; I met the gaze of the woman next to the ship’s pilot, and recognized the eyes. “Eclipse,” I whispered.
She nodded at us, and the ship rose into the sky, tilting quickly before flying toward the city limits. Drones chased them, and we clambered into the transport vessel as the rebels continued to fire on HQ.
The robot pilot raised the transport into the air as soon as Bryson gave him the command, and Luther occupied the gunner’s chair, ready to fight our way out. But no one attacked.
He flew upwards first, and soon we were crossing the Atlantic, leaving the disastrous ceremony in the backdrop.
Eleven
“Is there going to be a delay?” Jade asked. We’d been holed up on the big island for a week now. Flights were grounded across the entire planet, and that meant we weren’t even allowed to practice. There were rumors about vessels being shot down and destroyed for breaking the new rules, and everybody was on edge since the incident.
It was unheard of to attack Primary City. Until now, no one had dared.
“They might cancel the whole thing after that,” I suggested.
“I still don’t understand how they broke the shield,” Luther said. We sat in the room on the top story of the SeaTech head office while Luther bounced a red ball off the wall and caught it.
“It’s possible,” Jade said. “If you know what you’re doing.”
Holland had been sullen these past few days, and he had every right to be upset. “Or someone on the inside.”
“You think? I mean, if that’s the case, heads must be rolling in their security department.”
“It’s always security’s fault, isn’t it?” Luther threw the ball again and missed catching it. It rolled across the floor and hit my boots.
“Guys, we’re missing the big picture. Something significant is transpiring. Eclipse saw us. She recognized Bryson, and moved on.”
“My father isn’t with Liberty!” Holland shouted.
“I didn’t say he was, but sometimes business decisions are made because of symbiotic outcomes. This could be some quid pro quo thing,” I said.
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