Recompense (Recompense, book 1)

by Michelle Isenhoff

  SIX

  Once again, Willoughby is dressed in a dapper business suit, navy blue this time. He rises from his desk and gestures for me to sit. “Please make yourself comfortable, Jack. Captain Alston will join us momentarily.”

  I sit gingerly in a chair upholstered with crushed velvet, trying to call up my knowledge of Military hierarchy—initiate, guardsman, lieutenant, captain, major, colonel, general. Willoughby’s entire office is plush, from the thick carpeting to the heavy draperies to the rich, golden sheen of his desk. Someone has decorated it in shades of green and burgundy stolen from the forest outside his French doors. Axis headquarters sits squarely on a mountain ridge somewhere within the Appalachian range.

  “How was your trip?”

  “Brief.”

  It took only an hour for the aeropod to whisk me away from the shore to this highland hideaway. I can’t help but mark the difference from the journey that carried me from Mountain Zone to Coastal eight years ago, hours and hours riding in a truck over rough paths that could hardly be considered roads. The aeropod, its wings marked with the same globe and sword symbol that adorns the front of the Axis headquarters building, flew smoothly and silently over the vast tracts of land that now separate me from my family.

  I try not to think about the curious faces of Ollie and Tillman, of the concern in Opal’s eyes or the pure heartbreak in Hoke’s when I climbed aboard. I’m sure my face reflected his as the hatch closed and the unfamiliar vehicle bore me up and away from the only place I’ve ever labeled home.

  “Are you hungry?” Willoughby asks, calling me back to the present. “I can order you something to eat if you’d like.”

  “No, thank you.” Everything is so new, so strange, so uncertain, I’m not sure I could swallow.

  We’re saved further awkward conversation by a brisk knock and the opening of the door. A man enters and salutes Willoughby. He’s an inch or two shorter than Will and not quite as broad, but he’s solid and well-muscled. He wears his light brown hair long enough that the ends turn up in golden curls. Even if he wasn’t wearing the snug, blue-sleeved uniform, I’d know him for Military. He bears the unmistakable upright, confident manner of a Bluecoat though he can’t be many years older than myself.

  “At ease, Captain. Take a seat beside Miss Holloway.”

  The man notices me for the first time and gives me a cursory nod as he sits in the next chair and crosses an ankle over the opposite knee.

  Willoughby smiles at us both. “Let me make introductions. Jaclyn Holloway, meet Ethan Alston. Ethan, Jaclyn.”

  “Jack,” I say, holding out a hand.

  His shake is firm. Businesslike. “Pleasure.”

  “I have asked Miss Holloway to join us at Axis and she has agreed.”

  He shoots a glance at me, noting my small size. “You’re Military?”

  My cheeks turn a faint sheen of pink as I shake my head.

  “Miss Holloway has aced the written portion of her Examination and received the highest academic honors in her school. In addition, she has other skills we value.”

  I still can’t think what they would be. And I don’t like the way Captain Alston made it sound like being Military was a prerequisite for being here. I hope I don’t have to relive my humiliation every time I meet someone new.

  Captain Alston turns to Willoughby. “So what do I have to do with this?”

  Willoughby takes off his glasses and lays them on his desk. “I would like you to undertake her training.”

  The captain’s eyes whisk over me again, and I see something like obstinacy drop over his face. “Permission to speak with you in private, commander.”

  “Permission denied, captain. You are the best we have, and I’d like you to do it.”

  I see Captain Alston’s hands clench in his lap, his knuckles turning white. “What about my current assignment? I feel very strongly that it will prove more important than we realize.”

  “I’m sure Guardsman Markle can monitor it for six weeks. My mind is made up.”

  Captain Alston clears his throat, probably to give himself another moment to come to terms with this new and unwanted assignment. “Yes, sir.”

  “Very well. For starters, you may find Miss Holloway some appropriate clothing, deliver her to her dorm, and show her something of the place along the way. Training will start tomorrow. You are both dismissed.”

  One corner of Captain Alston’s lip tugs downward as we step out of Willoughby’s office and he looks me over more thoroughly. I feel like he’s gauging my quality and finding me lacking, though he’s probably only judging my clothing size. “Well, come on, then.” He sets off down the hallway at a smart clip. Only my shoes dare to break the silence as I follow meekly in his wake.

  We stop at a fair-sized storage room lined with shelves and overflowing with cleaning products, office supplies, towels, and bedding. I even see an old-fashioned coffeepot. Captain Alston snatches several pairs of pants, some shirts, and a fistful of socks, and thrusts them at me. I only have time to see that the shirts are all black with maroon sleeves before he shoves a pair of boots at me, as well. “Grab whatever else you might need from there.” He points to a shelf holding women’s undergarments. I pick out the appropriate articles, take the pillow, sheets, and blanket he’s now holding out to me, and we’re walking briskly down the corridor again.

  “There’s the mess hall,” he says, indicating a pair of doors that lead to what looks like a small cafeteria. We keep walking and he fires off the names of rooms on the fly. “Laundry.” “Surveillance.” “Offices.” “Gymnasium.” “Women’s locker room.” “Indoor firing range.” Our turns follow a simple square, but I won’t remember so many rooms tomorrow. Finally, we come to a wall and the hallway dead-ends into two right angles. “Women’s dormitories to the left. Men’s to the right. I’ll be by with your holoband as soon I get your schedule set up.”

  He leaves me there without another word, and I make my own way to the dorm. It’s easy to find. I pass a communal bathroom, then go through the next door into a large, open space that smells of talcum powder and damp cement. It contains ten bedsteads stacked two high. At the foot of each squats a pair of lockers.

  My new home.

  There’s no one else in the room, though half the beds are made up. I choose one of the empty ones and toss my pile onto it. Then I stash the clothes in my locker, leaving out one uniform to change into, and methodically make up my bed. After I finish, I am surprised by movement on a top bunk three rows down.

  A woman rolls over and smiles at me. “Hi. I didn’t mean to startle you. I just had to finish my chapter.” With her thumb and index finger, she diminishes what looks to be a page made of pure light. I’ve heard of holoscreens, but I’ve never seen one. Not in 56.

  “You like to read?” I ask.

  “It passes the time. I’m Caedmon Markle.” She hops off the top bunk. Perhaps twenty-two years old, with shoulder-length blond hair, she has the same uniform and the same confident stance as Captain Alston.

  “Jack Holloway.” I shake her hand, searching for some kind of insignia. “You’re Military?” I ask, even though it’s obvious.

  “Aren’t we all? But if you’re looking for rank, you won’t find it. I’m just a lowly guardsman with a knack for science.”

  “And you live here?”

  “Since last month. Willoughby brought me aboard. In fact, I have a meeting with him in ten minutes.”

  “What do you know of him?”

  “Willoughby?” She shrugs. “Not much. I’d never even heard of him till he showed up to recruit me. Axis is pretty hush-hush. But I learned quickly that Kace Willoughby is Axis.”

  “I’m, uh, not exactly clear on Axis, either. I’m not Military,” I finally admit.

  She gives me a quizzical half-smirk. “Then what are you doing here?”

  “I don’t have the least idea. Willoughby approached me, too, and I had family to think of.”

  “Of course.” The phrase ha
s a note of sympathy. “To give you some history, Axis was formed to answer the Provocation question. It played an instrumental role in uncovering President Dempsey’s crimes, and it’s become the major investigative bureau under Governor Macron’s administration. It is not officially associated with the Military, but it is staffed primarily with Military personnel. We handle a lot of sensitive issues the governor isn’t anxious for the public to learn about.”

  “Like what?”

  “Anything she doesn’t think they can handle. She wants to make sure we never repeat the panic of the Provocation. You’ll see. Situations pop up all the time.”

  “And Willoughby?”

  “Actually, he’s not Military anymore, either. But he helped form Axis and has sat at its head for nearly fifty years. He’s either in the governor’s pocket or very adept at staying out of it. I’m not sure which.”

  My brow wrinkles in thought. Caedmon has given me much to think about, but I have one more question. “Do you know Ethan Alston?”

  “Sure. We were in the same Initiate class, but everyone knows Ethan. He received the highest cumulative Exam score in twenty years. He can be a bit hard to take, though. Extremely ambitious. Why?”

  “Willoughby’s asked him to supervise my training.”

  “That’s news to me. He and I have been working on an electromagnetism project that I thought was top priority.” Curiosity edges her frown. I can tell she’s as baffled as I am at my purpose here. “Well, Jack, it was nice to meet you. We’ll probably be seeing more of each other.”

  She opens the door just as someone knocks. I hear a murmured greeting as she and Captain Alston pass each other. Then Caedmon shoots me one more sympathetic glance before closing the door behind her.

  Captain Alston makes for me immediately. “Your schedule,” he says, handing me a thick plastic band.

  “That was fast.”

  “You’ll find that I don’t like to waste time, Miss Holloway.”

  “Jack,” I correct him again. “What do I do with this thing?”

  He raises one eyebrow. “You’ve never used a holoband before?”

  “If I had, would I ask?”

  He snaps it around my wrist. “I received my first one when I was in fifth grade.”

  “Lucky you. In Settlement 56, rubber bands are still considered innovative.”

  He gives me a calculating glance before turning on his heel. “It’s solar powered, so you don’t need to plug it in. I’ll see you tomorrow at 4:30.”

  I don’t know what’s on the morning schedule—or how to access it, for that matter—but I’m perfectly fine with putting off our next meeting till afternoon. Caedmon was right. He is arrogant.

  I gather the clothing I left on my bed and carry the bundle with me to the showers. Each stall is a separate tubelike compartment. I choose one and push buttons until I figure out how to operate it and then luxuriate under the flow of warm water. At Opal’s, we fill an old tin washtub a few times a week, or I simply bathe in the stream. While I’ve never complained about the old way, I have to admit this would be far superior when winter ices the hand pump in the backyard.

  The water times out after five minutes and a funnel of air dries the moisture from my body. I haven’t even soaped up yet, but the cycle won’t restart. I’ll keep that in mind next time. Apparently, Captain Alston isn’t the only one at Axis who values efficiency.

  I pull on my new clothes. They’re comfortable enough—snug-fitting, with long sleeves and long pants, made of material that stretches and bends with my body. The uniform looks identical to the ones Captain Alston and Caedmon wear except for the maroon sleeves. I go back to the dorm and, not knowing what else to do with them, shove my old clothes in the bottom of my locker. When they’re stowed, I roll onto my bunk and play with my holoband, pushing buttons at random just as I did in the shower. Yellow light suddenly focuses characters onto a tablet of air. I have found the source of Caedmon’s holoscreen.

  I click through the color choices, settling on a bright blue that seems easiest to read, and my schedule appears before me. It contains only two lines. Dinner at 18:00 and lights out at 21:00. I click through to tomorrow’s and am shocked to see that every minute of my day has been claimed. The very first entry reads Run with Captain Alston. My heart sinks. He hadn’t meant 4:30 in the afternoon. I will be starting with him before the sun rises.

  I play with the holoband a little longer. I want to scroll through the list of titles available on Axis’s system but can’t seem to find the reading app. I’ll have to ask Caedmon about it. She isn’t back yet, however, and I have forty-five minutes until dinner, so I spend the remaining time wandering the few corridors and fixing the location of various rooms in my mind.

  When I do finally make it to the mess hall, I find only a few dozen people inside, but Caedmon is one of them. She’s sitting with another Bluecoat, a shapely woman in her early thirties who looks like she could have Native American ancestry. I collect my food—an unidentifiable cut of meat, bread, and a bowl of stewed vegetables—and carry my tray to join them.

  “Is this seat taken?”

  “It’s yours,” Caedmon answers. “Jack, this is Captain Harper Chase. She was my weapons instructor over at Macron. She also has experience as a combat medic. She’s just arrived today for a special assignment.”

  Captain Chase nods at me and brushes at a strand of dark hair that has escaped her chignon. Her voice is deep and throaty when she says hello.

  “I’m probably your assignment,” I guess, dropping into a seat beside Caedmon. I recognize the captain’s name from my schedule. “Do you have any idea what I’m doing here?”

  “I’ve only been told that I’m to give you the same instruction I give to my Initiate classes,” she answers.

  Me. Alone. No one else. “Why?” I ask, feeling more and more uncomfortable. “I’m not an Initiate.”

  She shrugs. “Willoughby chose you, just like he did everyone else in this facility. He’ll have his reasons.” She gathers her tray and rises. “If you ladies will excuse me, I have preparations to attend to.”

  Caedmon and I are left alone. My glance takes in the mess hall crowd, perhaps fifty people. “Is this everyone?” I ask. It hardly seems like enough people to staff the headquarters of a government agency. I notice that three-quarters of them are male. And most of them are watching Captain Chase leave the room.

  “Mostly. Axis isn’t very big, and Willoughby likes to keep a tight lid on his operation.”

  “I’ve gathered that.” I cut into my meat and shake my head. “I feel like such a fish out of water.”

  Her smile turns curious. “You’re an Outlier, aren’t you?”

  “How’d you guess?” I ask with a note of sarcasm.

  “We’re pretty easy to spot. Most everyone in Military comes from the cities.”

  “You’re not?”

  “Plains Zone. More cows than people. I was the first Initiate from Settlement 28 in six years. I hadn’t really planned on a Military career until I found out how much more they pay than the private sector. Then I trained in earnest.” She takes a bite of bread and chews it thoughtfully. “It’s different than I thought it would be.”

  “How so?”

  “I don’t know. I thought I’d be meeting a bigger cross section of society. People from all walks, you know? I mean, I knew that 28 provides few Initiates, but I thought that was unique to us. It’s not. Almost everyone you’ll meet is second-generation Military or taken from the Uppers. Middles pop up fairly regularly, but aside from a few Outliers, the Lower caste is virtually unrepresented.”

  “We all take the Exam,” I say. “Everyone gets the same chance that you and I had.”

  Caedmon cocks her head. “Have you ever been to a city?”

  “No,” I admit, “though I have lived in several settlements.”

  “It’s very different there. The bottom caste is far more prevalent.”

  I have always understood cities to be places of
opportunity. People in the settlements hope to go to the city. It’s the reason we try so hard for Military. “Everyone back home is a Lower,” I say. Except for Councilman Sweeny and his wife and perhaps a few shopkeepers. “How can anything be more prevalent than that?”

  “I mean the differences between castes is more obvious. It’s a rough life in 28. In many ways, the cows have it better than the people. We own next to nothing, but at least we can build with sod and hunt for food. It’s not like that in the city. There are fewer resources available, so they have to work at a younger age. School is a luxury they seldom have time for.”

  She takes another bite and chews slowly. “In theory, Military provides equal opportunity for Lowers to rise above their station. Practically, it’s nearly an impossibility.” She glances around to make sure no one’s listening. “And I’m not so sure that’s a wise way to leave things.”

  ***

  If I think Willoughby’s stamp of approval will give me an easy in with everyone at Axis, I am sadly mistaken. When my holoband wakes me the next morning, I roll out of bed and fumble for my clothes. I’m naturally an early riser, just not quite this early, and I’m wishing for one more hour of sleep. I pull on my shirt and pants and stumble next door to the bathroom where I brush my teeth, twist my hair into a halfhearted braid, use the facilities, and try to psych myself up. I’ve often run in the early hours with Will. By the time I meet Captain Alston, I’m feeling a little more confident.

  I’ve forgotten how intense he is. He promptly knocks me back to square zero. “So, you fancy yourself Military, Miss Holloway?” he asks as I approach. “Let’s see what you can do.” After a few brief stretches, he leads me out a back door, straight onto the mountain.

  It’s dark under the trees, the only illumination filtering down through the leaves from a slender crescent moon and the faint glow of our holobands. The air isn’t overwarm, but it hangs heavy with moisture, as thick as jam. Behind us, the sky has barely even silvered.

  Captain Alston sets off down a well-trodden trail. He does not tell me how far we are to run, and I don’t ask. I’m determined to keep up with him as far and as long as he leads. He sets a brisk pace, but no more than what I am accustomed to. My legs feel fresh, and my head has begun to clear. But after two miles, I breathing unaccountably hard.