The Academy

by Vincent Trigili

  Once we were seated and had regained our breath, I said, “Why do I get the feeling that was not exactly a route we were allowed to take?”

  “Oh, probably because of all the men with guns yelling at us to stop,” she said.

  Before I could reply to that we were in jump space. The rest of the trip was a similar whirlwind, but I was fairly sure that was the only time we had broken any rules. When we had finally reached the Aleeryon terminal we had some time to wait for our bags, and I said to her, “Patty, you do realize you broke a lot of rules to get us here? Would you care to explain to me how that fits in with being a wizard and trying always to do the right thing?”

  She looked at the floor and slumped her shoulders. “I had no choice. I had to get here, and there was no other way. You see, my mother is very sick, and she may not live long enough for me to get a chance to see her again.”

  “Patty, I am retired military. I could have requested a ride on one of the patrols that go through here,” I said.

  She looked up in astonishment and said, “I didn’t know that.”

  Then a voice boomed from behind us: “That is because you did not ask.”

  I turned and looked to see Master Gafar standing there. I should not have been surprised to see him; after all, he had probed Patty’s mind at the ceremony. My career in the school was now likely to be over because I had not stopped and asked a few simple questions before following her.

  “Master Gafar!” said Patty in surprise. Then a look of understanding came over her face. “I guess this is what you were talking about during the presentation when you warned me that the end does not justify the means?”

  “That is correct, Patty. I saw your plans and chose to wait and see if you would rethink them and turn to others for help. But as usual, you assumed that you had to take control and run solo. That is a very bad trait for a wizard,” he replied.

  “I’m sorry, Master Gafar. I just couldn’t see any other way,” she replied.

  “That is why you should have asked. Had you informed any of your teachers of the problem, we could have arranged something for you,” said Master Gafar.

  I just sat in silence. I knew I was in the wrong, and I had no defense. I should have asked more questions, or at least refused to go along with the plan once I knew what was happening.

  “Fortunately for you, Patty, I am a telepath and I know your motives were pure. You just need to learn a lesson about depending on your teammates. However, I am aware of your mother’s health and the very real time limit there, so I will not delay your trip home any longer. I expect you back at the Academy by 1600 on the twenty-third. James, you are right; you should have been more discerning about Patty’s plan, and I expect you to make sure she does not slip up again while she is under your care. If she does, you will have to answer for it.” And with that he left.

  “I’m so sorry, James,” she said.

  “That’s okay, Patty, but before we leave this terminal we need to review your plan for getting home so that we can revise any illegal movements,” I said.

  She gasped, “But, James, Master Gafar has told us to return one day earlier than planned, and there are no shuttles out on that day!”

  Chapter Ten

  Elsewhere, deep in an unknown forest six magi gathered around a large sphere of pure tanzanite. The sphere was mounted on a large pedestal that looked as if it had been there for a thousand years. Surrounding the sphere were seven lampstands made of iron, each with a blue flame on the top despite the fact that there were no candles.

  The six magi watched the sphere intently while chanting and weaving. They moved in some kind of synchronized dance, slowly moving around the sphere. Inside the sphere a scene was being played out which the magi were watching intently.

  Eventually their dance came to a halt but they continued to watch the sphere as if it were of unsurpassed importance.

  Each of them held in his hand a staff apparently made of pure bone. At the top of each was a solid, black ball crackling with energy. Occasionally the energy would arc back to the magus holding the staff in the manner of a lightning bolt, but none of them seemed to notice.

  “Another class graduates, and another round of wizards is created,” said one.

  “Their numbers are very slowly growing. Eventually they will have large enough forces to challenge us,” said another.

  “True, but time is still on our side,” replied another magus.

  “Yes, we must build our own factory like this school to create our own forces,” said another.

  “In good time,” said a magus with a skull for a face.

  Silence fell over the group for a while as they continued to watch. There was a sense of subdued excitement about them as they watched events play out in the sphere.

  Then the skull-faced one raised his staff and began to chant. Around him darkness swirled as if it were alive; it grew and spread until it encircled the entire area. He pointed at the sphere with his staff and called out a command. Suddenly all the darkness that had been swirling about rushed into the sphere and vanished inside.

  “However, it is time for us to start planting our seeds,” said the skull-faced magus.

  “True, but where?” said another.

  “Alpha Academy,” said the skull-faced magus.

  “That is a risky move,” said the first magus.

  “They will never suspect it,” responded one of the other magi.

  “Still, it would be best to put several seeds into that ground, just in case,” said the first magus.

  “Yes; yes, it would,” said the skull-faced magus as he raised his staff and began again to chant. Soon the others joined in, and again darkness swirled around, but this time parts of it kept breaking off and pelting the sphere until it was all gone.

  “A new era is on the horizon, and we will be the masters of it,” said the skull-faced magus.

  Chapter Eleven

  I was beginning to understand Master Gafar’s plan. He was forcing her to rely on me to get back in time, and to ensure I did not agree to another unreliable plan he made certain I knew that my future was at risk also. “Patty, where is the nearest communication terminal? I need to make a call.”

  “Over there,” she said. “Are you going to call the Academy and ask for an extension?”

  I smiled and did not answer; instead I dialed the number of an old friend of mine who I knew patrolled this sector. “Hey, Robert, we need to get together sometime soon, but I need a favor.”

  “Sure; what’s up?” asked Robert.

  “I am on Aleeryon right now, and my schedule has changed so I will not be able to catch my scheduled flight back to Alpha Academy at the end of the trip,” I said.

  “What are you doing on Aleeryon?” he asked, and then he saw Patty and with a big smile continued, “Well done, James! Okay, when do you need to be back?”

  I thought of correcting what he was obviously thinking about Patty and me, but decided against it. “We need to be back by 1600 on the twenty-third. Obviously sooner would be acceptable, but we would prefer it to be as late as possible.”

  “Hmm, I can get you there around midday on the twenty-third, but it will have to be a touch-and-go,” he responded.

  “That will work. Where and when will you need to pick us up?” I asked.

  “Meet me at the navy terminal at 1300 on the twenty-third. Oh, and it would be best if you ship your bags ahead, as I will be full of cargo,” was his response.

  “Thank you, Robert,” I said, and ended the call. When I turned to Patty I saw that her face was almost as red as her hair. “What is the matter?” I asked, knowing full well what was embarrassing her.

  “James!” was all she managed to reply.

  Next I called the navy base and arranged for a guest pass to be sent to Patty’s house for her. Then we went to check on our bags, but when we arrived at the baggage claim area there was still no sign of them. I went over to one of the de
sks and asked about our luggage.

  “I’m sorry, sir,” the attendant replied, “but it appears that all bags coming out of that sector were delayed due to a security breach at one of the travel hubs. I suspect you will not see them until tomorrow at the earliest.”

  “Can you have them sent to my home when they arrive, then?” asked Patty.

  “Yes, ma’am. I just need to get some information from you,” replied the attendant.

  Once that was all handled and we started to walk away I said, “I hope you realize that everyone who had plans to travel through that sector today will be delayed because of us.”

  “Yes, James, I know that already. My brother will be waiting for us out front. Oh, I guess I’d better tell you the rest of the story now,” she said.

  “Patty, why do I feel I am about to head into more trouble?” I asked.

  “Well, you see, my mom is afraid that I will never marry, and so I kind of told her I have been dating someone at the school for a while. And - well, my family might just assume that you are that man,” said Patty.

  Suddenly that comment about her parents wanting to meet me started to make sense. “Just how long ago did you tell them all this?”

  “Kind of the first week we met,” she said reluctantly.

  “So, let me get this straight: your family thinks that we have been dating for a decade, and now you are taking me home to meet them?” I asked.

  “Yeah, I guess so,” she said.

  “Patty, you do realize that they will be expecting me to propose to you on this trip, don’t you?”

  She gasped, “Oh, I didn’t think about that!”

  “You do not seem to have done a lot of thinking about this trip,” I said.

  “James, just because you’re right doesn’t mean you have to be mean,” she said. “It’s just that I never really expected it to go this far. I mean, most people fail the course or split up over the years so I thought it was safe to pick you.”

  “So you are telling me you thought I was a failure at first?” I asked.

  “Oh, James, I was just playing the odds. Besides, you were a naval man, and that made you impressive to them,” she said.

  “Patty, the first thing we need to do when we get there is go out to dinner so you can brief me on what we have been doing for the last ten years, because I think I really missed something along the way,” I said. I was starting to feel that there was more to her story than she was saying, and I certainly needed time to hear the rest of it.

  “Out to dinner?” she asked. “You’ve never asked me out to dinner before.”

  “Think of it as a surprise ten-year anniversary present,” I said.

  Chapter Twelve

  When we reached the exit to the terminal we were greeted by a very large man who looked like he ate rocks for breakfast.

  “James, this is my older brother Bill,” said Patty.

  “Hi, James. I’ve heard a lot about you,” he said as he grasped my arm in the traditional warrior’s shake.

  “Then you have me at a great disadvantage, and I look forward to getting to know you better,” I replied.

  “Normally I’d offer to help you with your bags, but judging by your empty hands I’d say that they were delayed again,” he remarked.

  “Yes; we’ve arranged to have them sent to us tomorrow,” I said.

  With that we climbed into his shuttle. It was a small craft, well-suited to flying around town but not much else. Out of habit from my years in the Navy I took the co-pilot’s seat next to him. I watched him take off and start flying. He was very skilled at the controls; the ship was almost an extension of his body. “Bill, if you do not mind me asking, when did you leave the Navy?”

  “What makes you think I was ever in the Navy?” he asked.

  “No civilian flies like that,” I said.

  He grinned. “Guilty as charged. I served as a fighter pilot on the Crusader and eventually came home.”

  “The Crusader was destroyed in the battle for Terrathan XV,” I said.

  “Yes, it was. I was reassigned to the Phantom after that battle,” he said.

  I realized what he was up to; he was checking to see if I was really a navy man, so I played along. “As I recall, the Phantom was decommissioned years ago and her fleet was split between the fifth and sixth districts for local forces, nowhere near here.”

  “True. When that happened, I came here to serve as defense for the local navy,” he replied.

  I wondered if I had passed the test. “Are you still on active duty then?”

  “Yes, but I took a leave of absence to take care of Mom,” he said.

  “Bill, Patty has been reluctant to talk about your mother’s condition; can you tell me a little about it?” I asked.

  “Well, we don’t talk much about it to people outside our family,” he said.

  That was an odd answer, but I needed to know what I was getting into so I decided to play the navy card. “Bill, I am family. I was at tactical on the bridge of the Dragon Claw during the battle for Terrathan XV.”

  It was at times like this that I wished I carried a camera. The look on his face was one of complete shock. “You are THAT James?” he asked.

  “At the time I was Cadet James, but when I retired I was Lieutenant Commander James, First Class,” I replied. Then I realized where the recognition came from. “Oh. Yes, I am the one who took control of the Crusader in the final battle of The Great War.”

  “Okay, why do I feel like the outsider here? What are you talking about?” asked Patty.

  “The Crusader was the smallest of the three command ships in that fight, and the enemy focused its attack on her because of it. At one point an enemy group rammed her, completely destroying the bridge of the vessel. I took control of her remotely from my station back on the Dragon Claw and tried to rescue her, but I failed,” I said sadly.

  “No, you didn’t fail, James: you saved my life. You see, when you took over and ordered everyone to abandon ship, I was in the hangar refueling. Because of your call, I cut short my refueling and launched. I had barely cleared the bay before she started to explode. Had I not gotten your call, I would have been back in the bay still refueling,” said Bill.

  I did not know what to say to that. I had been totally unprepared to meet anyone from that ship now or ever again.

  “Wow, James! Why don’t you ever tell me these war stories?” asked Patty.

  I turned and looked right at her and said, “Patty, every night when I lie down to sleep I can still hear the screams of all the men trapped on that ship that I failed to save. Do you really think I want to relive that during the day?”

  Patty started to say something, but Bill cut her off and said, “No, James, you didn’t fail. You gave some the chance to escape and allowed others already doomed to death to fight a little longer, and in their dying gasp strike one last blow for the Empire.”

  “How did he do that?” asked Patty.

  “I knew she was doomed, so I flew her into the heart of the enemy forces and engaged every gun she had left. Once she was completely surrounded by the enemy, I sent the ‘self-destruct’ command. When she blew up, she destroyed everything in her general area,” I said. “I have lived with that choice for over three decades now, and I have always wondered if I could have done it differently and somehow saved her.”

  “James, you need to accept that you did your best and because of it many people just like me are alive today that would have died with that ship. We still fight on. Indeed, I can think of no better end for the Crusader than charging the worst enemy we have ever fought, all guns blazing,” said Bill.

  Chapter Thirteen

  We rode in silence for a while, then Bill said, “James, when you see our mother you may be shocked because she looks extremely ill, but try to keep a positive face and attitude around her. She really needs it.”

  “Bill, what do the doctors say?” I asked, hoping that I had broken
some ground with our previous discussion. I was in desperate need of information if I was going to play my part.

  “They don’t know. No treatment has worked yet, and they can’t even put a name to it. She’s just aging rapidly, and her vital systems are starting to fail one by one,” he said. “They have tried transplants and the like, but those barely seem even to slow things down. The doctors have never seen anything like it.” He went on to describe a long series of tests, medications and procedures they had tried. The doctors were baffled and had essentially sent her home to die in peace.

  That sounded all too familiar and not at all good. “Bill, can I use your comm to place a call back to the Academy?”

  “Yes, but it’s a low-power transmitter. It will take several days to get a message there,” was his reply.

  “That’s okay; I plan to patch the call through your local navy base.” I activated the comm and said, “This is Lieutenant Commander James on a civilian transmitter requesting emergency message routing to Alpha Academy. Can you patch me through on the delta channel?”

  “Yes, sir; but you are broadcasting on an open channel, so anyone in your local area can intercept transmission,” came the reply.

  “That is a risk I will have to take,” I said. There was a brief delay as they routed the message into jump space. Since communications were sent as massless energy there was no limit to the distance they could be sent, making interstellar communications fairly simple. The problem was that it took a large amount of power to do this, so usually a message was just relayed via ships that were already traveling along the route the message needed to take. The navy was usually the only one in a given area that had transmitters of high enough power to send messages directly.

  One of the professors answered the call, and I asked for Student Rannor. When he came on and greeted me I wasted no time. “Rannor, listen. I am on an open channel so I must be brief and somewhat cryptic. Patty’s mom is sick, dying, and it sounds just like what you told me of our mutual friend’s father’s illness. Can you come out here and take a look?”