by TIME, S. O.
She looked around as if searching for a physical answer, and her gaze landed on a particular tablet.
“Blue. I can help you fake having a blue crystal. Meet me back here in the morning. I’ll fabricate an imitation crystal and give you a shield generating device that will mimic blue’s power. It’s not perfect, but it will get you through your first week while I come up with something better.” She sighs. “I’ll have to tell Kou about the fake. He’ll help you maintain the facade during fight practices—you’ll just have to pair up with him until I can create a more advanced device.”
“This is great! I wonder if we can still do the usual red-blue combos with the shield device. We should try some after classes!” Kou is still talking as I reminisce. His energy is infectious, and I find my smile becoming more natural even as my anxiety lingers.
Hitori’s energy remains as restless as ever, and Kou’s delight at our subterfuge only deepens her suspicious frown. Every time she gets near me, I can feel it. Never dropping her guard. Before getting into the pod she turns to me.
“So why is Dr. Kurosawa doing this, anyway? Why would she commit to such a big lie for you?”
“Uh….” I feel my throat close up. Of course, Hitori would think to question what Kou took without a second thought.
“Cuz he saved my life, duh! Chill out, Hitori,” Kou says carelessly. She narrows her eyes at me briefly as I shrug and nod. Without another word she turns and climbs inside the vehicle after Kou.
I try to disguise my sigh of relief by turning and looking up at the sky. The clouds appear as restless as Hitori, flying low in the atmosphere as if fleeing from something. The wind wafts the smell of the Kurosawa garden in our direction. The smile on Aldrea’s face fills my mind and I look down at the palm of my hand, wondering if I’ll ever be of any help. I glance back at the mansion once more before joining the other two in the vehicle.
The ride down the mountain is gentle. The hardened glass above the solar panels that make these paths remind me of the streets back on Vale.
As we enter Maluii, I lower my window to take in the smells of the city. The scent of freshly baked breads and pastries hits me instantly, followed by the sweet and spicy aroma of other foods. There are shops all around, though there are also numerous theatres and convention halls spread throughout.
Most streets and the numerous plazas of Maluii are decorated with sculptures, mosaics, or murals. Some are made of physical materials, while others are holographically displayed, allowing one to see different images from different directions. Various musicians and performers show off their skills on wide street corners, most with at least two or three audience members. Other citizens are simply walking around or taking images of the scenery.
We’re about to turn onto one of the main thoroughfares when a familiar melody falls upon my ears. A confusing rush of love and loss crashes over me, so abruptly I feel dizzy. I want to ask the other two to stop the pod, but my voice feels trapped in my throat. As I turn toward the sound, I see a young woman playing a stringed instrument beside a sweets shop. A few children sit around her as her fingers dance over the strings, each delicate note reverberating in my chest.
“Eiji? Are you okay?”
I look at Kou, snapped out of whatever reverie had seized me. The music is already fading and I hurriedly turn back, but we have moved out of sight of the musician.
“I’m fine,” I manage to say. I try to grasp whatever memory sent me those emotions, but it slips away with infuriating speed, like a dream escaping with the arrival of consciousness. “What was that woman playing? On the corner we just passed?” I ask.
Hitori gives me a strange look. “A lyrica. Haven’t you seen one before?”
I shake my head mutely.
I’ve barely recovered my composure by the time we reach a deeper section of the city. Our pod slows as we encounter a massive holographic image of Hitori’s family emblem hovering over a set of large, wrought iron gates.
“This is it. We’re here.” Kou says.
“Mirai University.”
Chapter Eleven
W e pass through the massive black gates, bringing the inside of the university into full view. The campus is large—so large that it has several diverging streets that lead to many different schools, most of which focus on different types of sciences. The buildings are all made of pale stone inlaid with elegant mosaics in the same dark red as the Matsuo family colors. The elegant archways and soaring pillars are also reminiscent of Hitori’s family home.
Large crowds of young adults gather before the entrances to the different buildings, waiting for their orientations to begin. Numerous people who notice the Kurosawa emblem on our pod stop what they’re doing to peer inside, though neither Kou nor Hitori pay them any mind. Hitori sits alone in the front of the pod, her legs crossed as she focuses on images of different three-dimensional landscapes projected onto her drawing tablet. She seems to be modeling a large house etched into a cliff with a view of a river below. Kou sits directly behind Hitori, his head tilted to the side and resting on his closed fist. With his spare hand he reaches over to Hitori’s seat and plays with the ends of her braid while his gaze remains on the clouds.
As we approach the School of Special Condenser Operations, we encounter an open plaza. It's in the center of the campus, and many of the roads meet up at the large roundabout that circles the green space. A large, glossy black wall covered in writing dominates the plaza. I peer closer and realize that the writing is names—thousands of names chiseled into the stone and lined with silver. Flowers, small holograms, and various personal items line the base of the wall.
A number of people are gathered near the memorial, either standing or kneeling before the lists of the dead.
Their energies are a flurry of sadness, reverence, and even some relief.
The building we pull up to is located behind the memorial. This is the only school that looks different from the rest. The mosaics that decorate the walls are made of all five of the condenser colors, creating geometric shapes with sharp, elegant angles. This is also the smallest school on campus—Kou told me earlier it usually has fewer than three hundred students at a time. Unlike the other buildings, there are no students outside, as we’ve all been instructed to await further instructions inside.
We disembark the pod and head toward the main door. Kou rummages through his backpack and takes our registration papers out. There’s an automated system that instructors use to verify which students belong to this program, but students still need to bring physical copies of their attendance confirmation.
“It might be easier for you if you kept your distance at first.” Kou says to me.
Hitori exhales humorously. “Got that right,” she says under her breath. Kou rolls up the documents in his hand and taps her on the head with them.
“Ow!”
“That’s not how I meant that.” He turns to me. “It’s rumored that this year there have been more students admitted to the school than ever before. Classes used to be a hundred students or less, but this year we have just over two hundred new enrollments. Chances are we’ll be swarmed by others once inside. With your condition, I don’t think all the attention will help. It’s going to be hard enough for you having that mask and those patches on your shoulders.”
I nod. “In that case I’ll wait a bit outside after you both go in.”
“Sorry,” Kou replies.
I shake my head. They go in, and the door closes behind them. Not long after that, murmuring and some running can be heard. I wait for a few minutes and then make my way through the entrance. The doors to the school are heavy and cold. They open silently to a polished entrance hall lit by a large skylight in the ceiling, three stories above. Peering through a large archway to my left I find a utilitarian cafeteria. Open doorways to the right all appear to lead into hallways with various offices. I know from chatting with Kou that all of the classrooms are on the second floor, accessible by two staircases and one elevator
in the back.
Kou and Hitori are in the center of the entrance hall with about a dozen other students surrounding them. Others gaze curiously down the hallways of offices, chat with friends, or fiddle with small, clear devices similar to what Hana gave me. A few clumps of older students are eating breakfast in the cafeteria, but they wave away any new student brave enough to approach them.
I move to sit in one of the many couches lining the walls of the entrance hall when a man in uniform approaches the guardrail of the second floor, peering down at us.
“Attention!” he shouts. His voice echoes throughout the hall, quickly silencing everyone’s chatter. All of the new students hurry toward the center of the hall where Kou and Hitori are. I follow.
“I commend you all for making it this far,” he begins. “Despite the increase in class size, obtaining admittance into this institution is not easy. I am General Bartek, and I led the first wave responders beside Commander Isao himself in the Nymian War. I will be monitoring your progress during your time in this program.” He is standing in precisely the right place for the light from the windows to hit the numerous medals on his uniform, illuminating his appearance.
“You’ve made it this far because you are the best of the best. Or so I’ve been told.” He grins. Many of the students grin as well. “It is my responsibility to refine each and every one of your skills to its maximum potential. We are the only ones with the ability to truly protect the people of Vitannia. It’s our duty as gifted condenser users to utilize our strength for the betterment of our community and to defend it at any cost.” The more this man speaks, the livelier the students’ energies become. They stand taller, eyes alight with pride as they smile with anticipation.
“Behind you are the offices of the instructors who will teach you the proper, most effective fighting strategies we’ve developed for condenser use. Before you can learn from them however, you must meet with me personally. Whoever fails my interview will be dismissed from the program and will have to try again in two years when the next class begins. The office with the condenser symbol on it is mine. Register your hologlass on the scanner near the entrance and you’ll be notified when it’s your turn.”
General Bartek walks back and vanishes. I wasn’t told anything about an interview—and based on the shaky energy in the room, neither was anyone else. Nervous smiles have replaced eager grins, and uncertain whispers rush through the crowd like a brisk winter breeze. Some students start lining up outside the general’s office, others hesitate. I look to Kou’s direction and he waves me over. With the other students distracted with the news, I make it over to Kou and Hitori without attracting too much attention.
“Aww man, we gotta interview with the General? What a pain.” Kou says. “I didn’t hear about anything like this happening last class.”
“He rehearsed those lines at home in front of the other veterans, asking if they sounded cool,” Hitori adds. “If any of these students knew that, I bet they’d be less scared.”
“And you didn’t warn me!” Kou sighs heavily. “Let’s just get this over with.”
“What’s a hologlass?” I ask.
“Are you serious?” Hitori blurts out.
Kou taps her again with the papers.
“Stop hitting me!”
Kou pulls out a glass device from his pocket. “This is a hologlass.”
It looks like the device Dr. Kurosawa gave me. I pull mine out as well.
“There you go, that’s it,” Kou says. “Don’t worry about breaking it, it’s practically indestructible.” He bends it and drops it, then picks it up and chews on it.
“Get that out of your mouth! Gross,” Hitori says, pulling on his arm.
“I was just trying to prove a point!” He shrugs. “You can even ‘attach it’ to yourself.” He takes mine and places it on my forearm. It doesn’t clamp down on my skin, but it stays in place. I try shaking my arm around and it doesn’t fall off. “We use this to communicate, access the DietrichNet, GPS, everything.”
I look through the device and try to familiarize myself with its contents as we wait in line. It doesn’t take us very long to get to the scanner. I raise my holo up to it, and the scanner blinks green, followed by a soft ding that indicates my device was accepted. The number 224 is displayed on the top left corner of my holo.
“We should probably grab some food,” Kou says after we’ve all obtained our numbers. “It’s gonna be a while.”
Despite the number of students around, the cafeteria feels too big. The colors and sense of emptiness remind me all too well of the Matsuo mansion. Even with the energies of the students flitting about, there’s a lifeless sterility permeating the walls. I try to shake off my growing uneasiness as I follow the other two to the lunch line, but I only partially succeed.
We grab our food and sit down at an empty table, but Hitori gets back up to retrieve utensils. Kou glances over at her, prompting me to look as well, and we see another student go up to her and try to talk to her. I sense nerves in his energy. She smiles at the other student and sets her utensils down while they talk. I sense a sourness in Kou’s energy at the sight.
“Are you okay?” I ask. Kou turns his attention back to me.
“I’m fine,” he says.
I’m not certain what possesses me, but I say, “If you’d like I can go over there and pretend I need to have a conversation with her over here.”
Kou laughs and says, “She’d probably try and stab you before you got close enough.” He shakes his head. “Really, it’s fine. She’s a big girl, she’s free to make her own decisions.”
“Aren’t you two together?”
“Is it that obvious?” he laughs. “That’s all the more reason.” Kou’s energy steadies. “I trust her.” His energy lightens and the sourness disappears. “I know you haven’t really gotten a chance to see her for who she really is yet, but I support her with anything. I trust her with my life.”
We turn back to Hitori. The student she talks to extends his hand and she shakes it. She picks her utensils back up and heads back to us.
“Ew, why are you smiling like that,” she directs at Kou.
“Because I have you,” he says. Hitori blushes and her energy spikes.
She sits down and begins eating, muttering under her breath. “...Dummy.”
Kou’s grin only widens.
Chapter Twelve
O ne by one, students are called into the general’s office. None of the students who have finished their interview stick around, and the hall slowly empties. I sit alone at a table with Kou and Hitori's unfinished dishes, as the two are constantly pulled away by other students.
“You making a statement?” a male student asks, joining my table with a plate of food.
“I’m sorry, what?” I ask.
He laughs good-naturedly. “That mask of yours. Is it some kind of new fashion?”
I can’t think of any words to respond. Hana was so busy setting up my condenser that we never went over my mask. I remain silent.
“Hey man, don’t sweat it,” he shrugs, “you make it work. My name is Try, by the way. But please don’t make any jokes about it, I’ve heard ‘em all.”
He extends his hand and I shake it.
“I couldn’t help but notice your patches,” he adds. “Are you a Kurosawa?”
“Kou’s my cousin,” I reply hastily.
He takes a bite from a noodle-filled sandwich and analyzes my attire.
“You know, I don’t think I’ve ever heard of Kou having any cousins,” he says around a mouthful of sandwich.
“I’m a distant relative.” My voice cracks as I speak. “Not many people know of me, with how popular Kou is and all.”
Try swallows and laughs again. He looks around and sets his sandwich down. “You know, it must be great knowing Commander Isao in person.” He leans forward onto the table and looks at me dead in the eyes.
“What have you learned from a hero of war?” he asks.
; I open my mouth to respond with the first thing that comes to mind, but his holo turns red and rings. He immediately turns his attention to it.
“Sorry, gotta go,” he says as he gets up. “It was fun meeting you, mystery mask guy. We should do this again sometime.” With that, he leaves.
I look around for Kou, unsettled by Try's questions, but a vibration on my arm brings my attention to my holo. It's glowing a faint blue and displaying a message from MCU, informing me that it is time for my interview.
My legs suddenly feel weak. Hana has helped me get this far, but if I don’t pass this interview, I may not get to attend. I make my way to the general’s office and try to steel my nerves. As I reach the office, the student who interviewed before me exits, tugging at the sleeve of his uniform and rubbing his forearm nervously. The student’s eyes stare at the ground, and he moves so quickly he nearly runs into me despite my hurried side step. Did he fail the interview? I wonder, sweat breaking out on my forehead. Before I can try to recover from this fresh fear, the office door whisks open with a quiet whir, and I’m immediately making eye contact with the general.
He takes a quick glance at me and shifts his eyes to holographic information displayed on the glass table before him. His hands are busy screwing the cap onto a small bottle, which he puts into a drawer without looking down.
“Remove the mask and take a seat,” he orders. I freeze. I’ve only just walked in, and already I’m met with an order I can’t follow. He notices that I don’t move or reply and turns his attention to me.
“I’m sorry, did I stutter?” he asks.
“...I can—”
“What?” He barks, “Speak up I can’t hear you.”
I wince. “I can’t take it off, sir.” I swallow hard. I can feel a cold sweat coming on. My mouth feels dry, as if I haven’t had water in ages. I know I shouldn’t be this afraid, but this feeling takes over and I helplessly give in to it.