The Twelfth Keeper

by Belle Malory

  They were the soldiers stationed in ports along the perimeter of the solar system. Kennedy had heard of the branch before, but now their purpose took on a whole new meaning.

  “We would spot them and counter an attack weeks before they could get here. And,” Colton added, popping another Nite Brite into his mouth, “we have the infamous keepers.” He grinned, his cheeks rounded with candy. “We don’t know if the Sae-yers will ever strike again. They’re unpredictable, and we have little to no information. Cue Lexie’s wrath.”

  Kennedy looked around the room, feeling sick to her stomach. She shouldn’t be here. These people needed every bit of help they could get to keep Earth safe. They needed real keepers.

  Humor them, Matilda told her.

  Kennedy wondered how long it would take, how much time would be wasted before they got around to looking for the true twelfth.

  Her eyes wandered over Phoenix’s back in the front row. He was slouched, head resting in one hand. Everyone else quietly chatted while his nose was stuck in a book. Kennedy strained to see the title, Star Atlas.

  Phoenix looked up and turned around. She didn’t bother looking away. After stopping her in the middle of the hallway, and putting her completely outside of her comfort zone, she figured she had every right to stare. Let him catch her, for all she cared.

  Her cavalier attitude cracked, however, when his dark eyes landed on her. They looked her up and down, before settling back on her face. The muscles in his jaw tightened, and he glared at her, sending her a message.

  Back off.

  That look chilled the blood beneath her skin, freezing her into place. Thankfully, Davaris asked him a question, distracting him. Phoenix looked away.

  Kennedy relaxed. And then a wave of anger flooded over her.

  This stupid, pointless crush was so over. She couldn’t comprehend why she’d developed it in the first place. He never spoke to her, never made her feel comfortable.

  And what’s more, he was a stranger to her. For all she knew, he could be a blithering idiot underneath his hardened, sexy façade. Honestly, the obsession was beyond her. And she was so done with it.

  And for two whole minutes, Kennedy was resolute.

  Davaris must have said something funny, something really funny, because Phoenix was laughing. It took her breath away. She had imagined, but it didn’t come close to the real thing.

  His smile cut deep dimples into the sides of his cheeks, and showed off a set of straight, white teeth. His eyes brightened into shining onyx gems. They were almost warm. Almost unrecognizable.

  Kennedy melted. Right there in her seat.

  A moment passed, and then she sighed, deflated. It hurt worse, knowing Phoenix had the ability to be warm, knowing she would probably never see that smile directed at her.

  Twenty-Six

  Kennedy spent the rest of the day learning her schedule and figuring out how she would spend her time. After Mason’s class came two more, and then lunch in Level 3’s cafeteria. Kennedy ate alone. She thought about sitting next to Colton or Alanna, since they were the only people she came close to making friends with, but they were both seated at the same table as Fang, and well, she wasn’t going anywhere near that girl. Ever.

  After lunch came Elemental Training. One on one time, as they liked to call it. Kennedy had her own private training area that came with a built-in pool. This one wasn’t like her apartment’s; it was much smaller, just a circle the size of a hot tub, and maybe five feet deep.

  So of course, she sat and did nothing the entire time. Not for lack of trying on her trainer’s part though.

  After Elemental Training came a combat class, tailored to each keeper’s skill level. Since hers was pretty much zilch, they started her off with beginner karate. She despised every block of wood chopping moment of it.

  Karate was for little boys who wanted to break things. When she suggested something useful, like Yoga, they laughed at her. She wasn’t kidding.

  By the time she made it back to her apartment that night, she was mentally and physically exhausted. Matilda had gone to the trouble of preparing dinner. It was super sweet; the robot had looked up Southern American recipes, trying to make her feel more at home. And then she shook her head. She just called a robot sweet. Regardless, Kennedy couldn’t bring herself to look at the food. “Press the button,” was all she said, before falling into bed.

  She didn’t bother removing her uniform, and Matilda didn’t need to press the button. A few moments later, she was out.

  ~ ~

  The next few days passed by similarly to her first. Amazingly, Kennedy began finishing her daily runs. But still, she always finished last, and almost always showed up late to class. Everyday her muscles ached. The training never got any easier, only more intense. More drills, more reps, and more stretches were waiting to be done. On the bright side, it was only the first week, and according to the weight monitor on her brace, she was down three pounds.

  Lunch was the same, too. Everyone still alienated her.

  So on Friday, it surprised Kennedy when Lexie unexpectedly joined her. She was doodling in her notebook and didn’t notice the second keeper had scooted into the seat beside her.

  “Interesting piece you got there.”

  Kennedy looked up from her sketch, startled by Lexie’s presence.

  “It is okay if I sit here, right?”

  “Of course,” Kennedy said, a little too quickly. “I mean, it would be nice to have the company.”

  “In my case it’s nice to have new company, know what I mean?”

  She sure did.

  Lexie set a colorful assortment of carrots and celery on the tabletop next to a sandwich stuffed with alfalfa sprouts and what looked like tofu. “So what were you drawing?”

  Kennedy glanced back at her half-hearted sketch. It was of the crumbling building from her dream. Really, she’d only been drawing as a way to zone out before going back to training. The setting of her bizarre dream just ended up on the paper.

  “Oh, nothing. Just a place I dreamt about.”

  Lexie’s bright orange fingernails wrapped around her bottle of juice, twisting it open. “Strange,” she said, taking a swig. “Looks like the Rec Center.”

  Kennedy stilled. “The Rec Center? Where’s that?”

  “Level 5. I think.”

  Then it couldn’t be the place in her dream. The building cracked and fell down around her, which wouldn’t be possible without gravity. Then again, it only began to collapse the more she became aware. Maybe awareness of the dream itself triggered its downfall.

  Closing her notebook, Kennedy decided to forget about it. Decoding dreams was an impossible task anyway. More than likely, it didn’t mean anything. Nobody’s dreams were normal, after all.

  “So how was your first week as a keeper?” Lexie asked curiously. “As exciting as you imagined?”

  Kennedy all but snorted. “I wasn’t excited at all.” She spoke without thinking, like an idiot. “I didn’t mean—”

  Lexie covered her chuckle with her hand, trying to chew her food. “Quite all right.” She swallowed. “At least you’re honest. I can appreciate that.”

  “Seems you’re not the only one with the foot-in-mouth problem.”

  Lexie’s green eyes lit up. “That’s right. I almost forgot. So now I can speak freely about the elements, huh?”

  “Yes.” But please don’t.

  “So you were unenthused before you came,” Lexie said, opening a packet of ranch dressing. “But now that you’re here? You don’t feel any differently?” Her voice sounded hopeful. Too hopeful.

  Kennedy didn’t want to tell her the truth, but she didn’t want to lie either. Not that she could, anyway. Praising life on Level 3 would sound completely ridiculous coming from her. “It’s too early to tell, but I’ll keep you posted.”

  Lexie wasn’t accepting that for an answer. “Come on, tell me the truth. I remember when I first came here. Bloody hell, I missed my family so much. I c
alled them almost everyday in tears.” She crunched into a ranch-dipped carrot stick with the side of her mouth.

  “What do you mean you called them everyday?” Kennedy squeezed her water bottle tighter. “Dr. Sigly told me we’re only allowed eighteen telephone minutes a month.”

  “What are you talking about?” Lexie’s raised a high brow, as if that were the most ridiculous thing she’d ever heard. “There’s no time limit.”

  The plastic bottle crackled beneath Kennedy’s fingers.

  The doctor lied.

  But…why?

  She scrambled to connect the dots, trying to figure out how lying about the telephone would benefit Dr. Sigly. Nothing she could come up with made any sense.

  “Hey are you okay?” Lexie asked. “You look like you want to punch someone in the face.”

  Kennedy let out a low laugh. “An appealing idea.”

  “Ask Professor Mason to let you use the phone. You shouldn’t have any problems. He’s a decent bloke.”

  That was rich, coming from the book-rattling seeker of classroom justice. “Hmm…I wouldn’t have thought you’d say that.”

  “Oh, because of our disagreements?” Lexie waved that aside.

  The battle of will she witnessed hardly constituted a mere disagreement, but whatever.

  “For the most part, I like Professor Mason,” Lexie explained. “Certain issues cause us to butt heads, namely military strategy, but apart from all that, he’s the good sort. Truly cares about his work too, which I admire.”

  “Yeah, I guess he does seem decent.” After all, she did try to dislike him, but couldn’t manage it. “Then again, I never thought Dr. Sigly would lie to me.”

  “You have to watch out for yourself.” Lexie patted Kennedy’s arm. “You’ll figure out who to watch out for once you learn the ropes.”

  “Hope so,” she said. “I didn’t realize people around here were so…”

  “Grimy? Two-faced? Insidious?”

  Kennedy grinned. “I was going to say untrustworthy.”

  “Well,” Lexie said. “You’d think since we’re supposed to be a unit, we’d share an open connection, right? Don’t get me wrong, some of us do. Some of us are on the same page, and then some of us just…” She shrugged, looking for the right words. “Some of us have too much baggage, I guess.”

  Kennedy found her eyes roaming the cafeteria, wondering which keepers Lexie placed into each group.

  Lexie noticed the direction of her gaze. “So you want details, huh?” Her lips curled into a smile. “I can give you details. See Platinum-Blonde Barbie, sitting by herself in the corner over there?”

  Kennedy nodded. Dominika Orlov, the seventh keeper. Lexie twirled a finger beside her head and mouthed psycho.

  Interesting. Kennedy darted a glance towards the Russian girl again, thinking she looked pretty normal.

  “I don’t know what happened before she came here,” Lexie said. “But that girl has some serious issues.”

  “What about him?” Kennedy nodded towards Phoenix’s table, unable to resist asking. “Number nine.” For some reason, she couldn’t bring herself to say his name aloud.

  “Oh, Nix?” Lexie tilted her head at Kennedy, her expression marked with a knowing look.

  Kennedy casually sipped from her water, then took a long moment to inspect her nails.

  Lexie’s lips spread into a sly grin. “Guess you’d have to be half-dead not to notice him.”

  “I was only wondering what his element is.” All this karate and working out left her nails chipped and beaten down. Something had to be done.

  “Fire,” Lexie answered. “The thing about Phoenix is he’s very meticulous in everything he does.” She pursed her lips, thinking. “Being a keeper and protecting Earth is like his calling. And he takes it pretty seriously.”

  From what she’d seen and heard, it seemed like Phoenix was meant to be a keeper. In fact, he epitomized the word completely. “What about Fang?” Kennedy asked. “Why is she so pissed off all the time?”

  Lexie snorted. “Well for one, she’s an Aries.” She held out her hands dramatically, as if her astrological sign alone said enough. “Two, she’s from China. Most of her people are dead.”

  Kennedy winced. “Point taken.”

  “And third, Fang has no living relatives. She’s been in training since she was a toddler, not exactly a fun-filled childhood, plus the entire world expects her to be their hero. As much as I can’t stand the bitch, it’s hard to blame her for being the way she is.”

  Hearing it that way made Kennedy feel a twinge of pity. The first keeper hadn’t led an easy life. Still didn’t mean she liked Fang any better, but she was a little easier to understand.

  They talked about each of the keepers until it was time to go back. Kennedy wished lunch didn’t have to end. Next up for the day was Elemental Training, and she wasn’t looking forward to putting her “stubborn” hat on and being uncooperative for the next hour and a half.

  On the other hand, Lexie was beaming. “This is my favorite part of the day.” She wiped her mouth with a napkin and crumpled it up. “Feeling the dirt on my hands, soaking into my pores. It’s like, what I live for.”

  It was almost scary the way Lexie loved it, how her whole face lit up at the thought of manipulating earth. For someone who was born to do this, it must be a thrilling thing, creating what others perceive as miracles on a daily basis, and having that much power all within the depths of her mind.

  Thrilling, but still weird.

  ~ ~

  Her trainer’s name was Yuri. He was middle-aged, portly, with a thick, black beard covering half his face, and deep-set brown eyes. English wasn’t his first language, and which was probably a good thing, since he sounded like he was cursing Kennedy out half the time. The other half he spent browbeating her to death.

  They chose Yuri because he had coached the last four Olympic gold medalist swimmers. However she still didn’t think it was a good enough reason to assign him as her Elemental Trainer. There wasn’t exactly a booming number of qualified people for the job, but seriously? A swimming coach?

  She shook her head, wondering who made that idiotic decision. If they weren’t going to take this thing seriously, than neither was she.

  “Ken-dy,” Yuri said, mispronouncing her name even though she had corrected him at least a dozen times. “You must enter pool. Water must sink in pores, so you know it.” He held out one arm, touching his other hand to it like she wasn’t comprehending anything he was saying.

  Kennedy stared at him, unblinking. “I know it well enough, thanks.”

  He grumbled and sighed, rubbing his temples. She felt bad; she truly did. The man was only trying to do his job, and she wouldn’t give him an inch to work with. She just…couldn’t. The pool, and the water, it was too much.

  Yuri pressed a slip of paper in her hands. “For you,” he said.

  “What’s this?”

  G. Vickard, Room 405 was scrawled across it.

  “If you no get in pool, you must visit General Vickard today. He requests your presence.”

  Yuri guided her out the door into one of the main halls.

  “Wait, why? What is this about?”

  Yuri didn’t answer. He merely pointed down the hall. “That way,” he said. “Go. Now.”

  He closed the door, leaving her standing there alone in the empty hallway. With every slow step leading her to Room 405, she wondered why General Vickard had summoned her.

  She hesitated for a moment outside the door, trying to picture the general, and determine whether or not he was the type to go easy on her. She took a deep breath, and ordered her feet to move. Better just get this over with, or else she’d be standing there all day.

  After signing in at the secretary’s desk, she was led through two more doors, and then into an office.

  General Vickard swiveled around in his chair. “Ah, Miss Mitchell. Please take a seat.”

  Kennedy sat on the opposite side of the wide, m
etal desk. In a way, the office reminded her of Dr. Sigly’s: undecorated, extremely clean, and sterile. There was one framed photograph sitting on the desk. A family photo, with the general’s wife and Deacon. All of their smiles looked a little too happy, their polished hair and clothes a little too perfect.

  General Vickard sniffed, ruffling his thick mustache, and opened a cabinet drawer. He pulled out a file and set it on his empty desk.

  Traces of Deacon were in the general’s face and demeanor. Subtle, but there, in the straight slope of his nose and the shape of his eyes. They both looked like politicians. Elegant, but nothing very noteworthy, nothing that stood out.

  “Kennedy Mitchell.” The general pronounced every syllable of her name clearly. “Good, strong name. I like it.”

  And there was Deacon’s charisma. He favored his father in more than one way.

  “Thank you, sir.”

  “Life as you know it has changed drastically over the last few days.”

  There seemed to be a question in there somewhere. “Yes, it has.”

  He leaned back in his seat as he studied her. “How has your training been going? Have you been adequately accommodated?”

  Kennedy seriously doubted he gave two craps about any of that. Unless, of course, he planned on sending her into battle any time soon, and if that was the case, he really ought to rethink his strategy. “Yeah, everything is fine.”

  “What about Elemental Training? How has that been going?”

  Kennedy pursed her lips, holding her breath. Didn’t seem like they’d get on her case this soon about the pool, but then again, they spent a lot of money and time finding her. She was their investment, and they clearly wanted to capitalize. She should’ve known they wouldn’t hesitate on even the smallest of things.

  She briefly considered telling the general her skillset was better put to use at more feminine activities—fashion, painting, yoga—but he would think she was being a smartass.