by Dylan Steel
Before she had time to theorize what it might be, the door to the bathroom swung open. Four other girls’ voices quickly filled the room. Sage hurriedly shoved the disc back into her pocket, and as she did so, her eyes fell on the paper again. There was writing on it. Instructions. She scanned it twice and read it slowly a third time to make sure she understood. Then she dropped it into the toilet, flushing away the evidence.
Despite the adrenaline pumping through her veins, she made her way to the sink as nonchalantly as she could, flashing a small, cursory smile at the older girls who had joined her. Walking with as much patience as she could muster, she strode out the door and down the hall, chatter fading as the door swung closed behind her. She breathed a sigh of relief and shoved her fists into her pockets, relishing the reassuring feel of the cool metal against her knuckles. Her heart thumped forcefully in her chest.
She had a new mission.
6. THE CABINET
It felt like she’d been walking forever. By the time Ms. Ashton announced that they’d arrived, Sage’s legs had gone numb.
She finally peeled her eyes off the pavement in front of her, taking in the sight before her.
The building they had stopped in front of was massive. It towered over her small frame, engulfing her in its shadow. Scrawled above the main entrance were familiar words written in a bright gold script. The Cabinet of the People. She shuddered. Memories of the first time she’d seen this building flooded to the surface.
As they passed through the courtyard, she took in her surroundings. Carefully curated greenery lined their path, breaking off into scattered sections of intricate floral arrangements. Had the bushes and vines been much taller, they might have passed for some sort of maze.
Her eyes flitted over a fountain. The water bubbled almost weakly out of the top of its utilitarian design, but even that seemed almost too lively for this place. It was centered in front of the building. They had to walk around it to reach the entrance.
Years ago, her first impression of the building had been that it was beautiful. While that was still true, it now seemed colder, much more distant. A chill swept through her as their instructor led them under the awning.
She stepped into the entryway with her classmates and couldn’t suppress a gasp. The lobby was almost certainly at least four stories high, and the vast vertical space was matched in the length and width of the room. It seemed excessive. Other than the black marble floor, the room was entirely, blindingly white.
Whitewashed busts with gold detailing were scattered in an orderly fashion at the sides of the room, mounted on short, decorative columns. Sage squinted at them. After recognizing the Original Five in what was probably a place of honor, she guessed the rest of the busts were images of the Quorum of Five members.
“Keep up, children,” Ms. Ashton snapped at her charges as her heels clicked forward. “Don’t gawk. It’s impolite.”
At first, Sage hadn’t noticed the large desk at the back of the room or the women standing behind it. But that was where Ms. Ashton was leading them.
“Brisia.” Ms. Ashton addressed one of the women behind the desk in her typical clinical manner. “The Institution’s students from the Travaes Interest Society are here for their tour.”
The woman nodded curtly, her straight red hair shifting forward at the edge of her chin. “Of course,” she said, giving a quick tug to the bottom of her stiff jacket as she stepped out from behind the desk. “Right this way.”
Ms. Ashton glanced back over her students and frowned. “Remember to stay in your pairs. Come along now.” She motioned for them to follow and turned back around, clacking after their guide.
Before Sage realized what was happening, Darren reached out and grabbed her hand.
She jerked away as if she’d just been electrocuted.
“We’re supposed to stick together. Remember?” He said quietly as he offered his hand again, a look of feigned innocence and hurt mingled together on his face.
“Right,” she snorted under her breath, eyeing his hand suspiciously. “But that does not require us touching at all.”
“Actually, it does,” he said, clenching his jaw. His hand shot out again unexpectedly, closing firmly around Sage’s. “You clearly haven’t heard about Ms. Ashton’s intolerance for disorder. I’m not about to get in trouble for losing track of you. And with your reputation, I’m not taking any chances.”
Sage’s jaw dropped.
“I don’t… have… a rep—utation.”
She tried to wrest her hand free but to no avail. Darren was older and much stronger than she was. Her heart sank as she realized he was standing on the same side as the metal disc that she was secretly carrying in her pocket. He was making things more complicated than they already were. He wasn’t even looking at her at the moment, but she glared at him anyway. She’d just have to hope he’d get distracted enough to loosen his grip eventually.
Her heart pounded as she tried to keep her expression neutral. Focusing on the mission proved to be a good distraction from her otherwise unsettling partner. She knew she had to switch the disc in her pocket for an identical one that they would come across during their tour, but she had no idea which room it would be in. The instructions on the paper had been sparse and had only offered a vague description.
Brisia led them out of the lobby and into a large, glass room. Sage looked around in confusion. There was only one entrance, and the room was completely empty.
Their guide stopped and placed her hand on a blank space of wall beside the open doorway. She flicked her finger up along the glass. To Sage’s surprise, a clear crystal sheet dropped down from the ceiling, closing them in the room. A moment later, she felt her stomach plummet to her feet as she watched the ground outside the room disappear.
She tightened her grip on Darren’s hand slightly, stomach woozy from the sudden upward surge. Grinding her teeth, she looked up to see a slight grin playing at the corners of his mouth. Fortunately, he was keeping his eyes straight forward and wasn’t looking at her, or she might have had the desire to practice some of the latest Bokja moves she’d learned—if she could keep her breakfast down.
They passed by the levels in a blur, only coming to a stop when Brisia placed her hand on the glass again and swiped her fingers to the side. She faced the students.
“We’ll start our tour at the top,” she announced robotically. “Please hold your questions until we return to the Transfer on each floor.” She and Ms. Ashton clacked out of the room without bothering to make sure that all the students followed.
The Transfer. So that was what this glass room was called. Sage was glad the Institution didn’t have one of these. It made her woozy.
Darren’s hold on her tightened as he pulled her from the Transfer into the hallway. She grimaced. Her hand was cramping.
“This is arguably the most important room in the building.” Brisia swept her hand in front of a room at the end of the hall. Like the Transfer, the walls of this room were made entirely of glass.
“This is where the Quorum of Five meet to discuss important legislature. The glass symbolizes the transparency of our legal system and the invaluable, ever-present role every citizen of Eprah must play in order to maintain our laws,” she said dryly. “And since they’re not meeting at the moment, we have the privilege of looking into the room.”
“Looking in? Are we not going in?”
The voice came from beside Sage. She looked up at Darren in surprise. He’d said he didn’t want to get in trouble, but his question had sounded almost resentful. And that was precisely the type of attitude that would get a student in trouble.
“Please hold all questions until we return to the Transfer.” Brisia looked at him icily before continuing. “Of course, when they are in meetings, the glass is turned opaque. Our leaders deserve their privacy, after all. And that,” she said, narrowing her eyes at Darren, “is why it is a privilege to be able to see inside this great room right now. Because our leaders
are not forced by crisis to be meeting at the moment.”
“That is a great fortune indeed,” Ms. Ashton agreed. “Last year, due to the disappearances, the Quorum was meeting during our visit, and we weren’t even permitted on this floor.”
Some transparency, Sage thought.
“Yes, I recall.” Brisia nodded. She turned her attention to the remaining doors along the hallway. “These offices are filled with support staff and advisers during those meetings. When the Quorum of Five is not meeting, these rooms remain empty. Let’s take a quick peek, shall we?”
Their guide led them through one room after another. Despite having hallway access, each room was connected to the ones beside it. They traipsed through dull offices and board rooms and even a room that looked like it was used as a kitchen.
When they made their way back to the Transfer, Sage cringed in anticipation of Brisia’s reaction at Darren reiterating his earlier question. But to her surprise, he remained silent.
Another girl from their group piped up. “Where is everyone?”
“It’s a day off for low-level workers.” Brisia looked at the girl blankly, as if she’d just been asked the dumbest question in the history of Eprah. Her boredom was obvious, practically dripping off her as she swept her hand in a quick pattern across the wall. The large glass room shifted downward.
“Thanks,” Sage whispered as they started to move.
“For what?” Darren raised an eyebrow.
“For not asking your question again and making them mad.”
“Oh.” He shrugged. “She wouldn’t have answered it anyways.”
He was right of course. She’d seen Brisia bristle when he asked his question the first time. They both fell silent, waiting for the Transfer to stop at the next level. His grip on her hand hadn’t loosened yet.
She tried to focus on the tour, but pent-up energy coursed through her. Without any idea how close the other disc was or how she was going to free herself from Darren’s hold, she was completely on edge.
This floor was boring. The hallways were nothing more than labyrinths encasing doorways to one office after another. Several of the rooms had multiple work stations, but none of them had anything Sage cared to see.
“Any questions?” Brisia didn’t even pause for a reply before stepping back into the Transfer. Sage couldn’t help but wonder if their guide’s efficiency was because even she knew how incredibly dull that level had been.
She braced herself for the unpleasant downward lurch of the Transfer. It was becoming more tolerable, but she still wished they could take the stairs instead. If there were stairs.
As soon as they stepped out of the glass room and onto the newest tour level, Sage’s stomach tumbled in anticipation. Several of the doors lining this hallway had a symbol she recognized. It indicated that they were tech hubs. She was supposed to swap the disc out in a tech hub.
Instinctively, she tried to stretch her fingers and reach into her pocket, but Darren’s hand clamped down harder. She stifled a yelp and then shot a glare at him. She hadn’t even meant to try to wriggle free that time. He had a lot of nerve.
Now she had another problem: his grip was tighter than ever, and this was most likely the floor where she’d need to make the exchange. She had to figure out a way to get free, but she would probably only get one shot, so she’d need to make it a good one.
It didn’t take long for their tour to enter one of the tech hubs. In fact, it was only the third room they visited. Sage’s eyes shot around the room wildly as she looked for the disc. She still couldn’t be sure this was even the right room.
Then she saw it.
Along the edge of the room, perched atop an important-looking table, was a small, clear cube. And inside that cube was a small silver disc.
Her heart pounded in her ears. She had to get to that cube, and she had to do it without Darren’s interference. But Brisia was already ushering them back into the hallway. There was no more time to waste thinking up a plan.
Once more, Sage tried squirming free of his vice grip.
He looked down at her and furrowed his brows. “I’m not letting go,” he whispered.
A look of desperation crossed her face. “Please,” she whispered back. “It hurts.”
Darren appeared conflicted, but her plea was cut short.
“No talking!” Brisia sounded even more unhappy than Ms. Ashton looked at the interruption.
An idea suddenly formed in Sage’s mind. But she’d have to act fast for it to work. If it worked at all.
7. DETOUR
“I have to go to the bathroom!” Sage blurted out unceremoniously.
Both adults looked thoroughly annoyed at her outburst.
“You’ll have to hold it, dear,” Ms. Ashton said, her voice thick with a syrupy sweetness.
Sage’s heart dropped. She crossed her legs and bounced up and down slightly, tugging against Darren’s hand. “No. I-I can’t!” She mustered up the most authentic look of desperation she could manage. “Is there a bathroom nearby?”
“Eprah’s name, child. Do not make a mess in this hub. They don’t pay me enough for that.” Brisia didn’t bother hiding her irritation. “Just down that hall and to the left. A few doors down. Can’t miss it.” She pointed.
Darren’s hand dropped from hers as soon as she’d been granted permission. Sage nodded and started moving down the hall rapidly, grinning inwardly.
“Meet us back at the Transfer!” she called after her.
Sage nodded again as she broke out in a staggering run of well-feigned desperation. She could hear Brisia grumbling about her to Ms. Ashton as they continued down the hall.
As soon as she turned out of sight of the others, she stopped, pressing herself to the wall. She strained her ears listening. Once she was sure the group had moved on to another area and that she wouldn’t be spotted, she hurried back in the direction she’d come from.
To her relief, the door to the tech hub wasn’t locked. She hadn’t had time to consider what she might do if it was.
Racing inside, she skidded to a stop in front of the cube. It wasn’t immediately obvious how to open it. She frowned and picked it up, fiddling with it until one side popped open.
Tipping the cube over, she caught the new disc and shoved it in her pocket. Then she grabbed the disc she’d been carrying in her pocket the whole time and placed it carefully in the center of the cube. She set the cube back on the table exactly where it had been a moment earlier and refastened the side of it in place. Her hands were shaking.
Now what?
She decided to go wait in the bathroom for a bit before meeting up with her classmates. After all, if Brisia or Ms. Ashton spotted her coming toward the Transfer, it needed to look like she was coming from the direction of the bathroom and not a tech hub.
Opening the door, she pressed her ear to the crack and listened carefully for signs of the tour. Her blood was pumping rapidly, and there was a faint ringing in her ears. She opened her mouth wide in an effort to clear the noise. Convinced she was alone, she stepped into the hallway. She fingered the indiscernible outline of the disc in her pocket, making sure it was still secure.
Sage turned and closed the door quietly, then backed up and sprinted away. She was nearly there, but her adrenaline hadn’t stopped rushing through her veins. The edges of her vision had faded. She was trying to focus on putting one foot in front of the other until she could make it to the bathroom and breathe a little easier. She was almost there.
When she reached the end of the hall, she rounded the corner and smacked into something—hard. It felt as if she’d run straight into a wall.
“Ugh.” A low grunt came from the body she’d just collided with.
Sage’s eyes traced upward, widening in shock. Kai was staring back at her. Though he quickly flattened his expression into a neutral one, she couldn’t help but notice his initial surprise at seeing her. She stuffed down her surprise quickly too and scowled at him.
“Sa
ge?”
“Walk much, Kai?” Her heart hammed violently in her chest. She had to hope her bluster would deflect any questions he might have.
He ignored her insult and instead narrowed his eyes. “What are you doing here?”
“Don’t see how that’s any of your business.”
Kai’s eyebrow lifted. She’d overstepped with her bluff. His hand landed firmly on her shoulder. Her knees buckled.
“This place is far more my business than yours,” he growled. “Why are you here?”
She tried to shake off his grip, but he wouldn’t budge. Great. She’d traded Darren for Kai.
“I’m here with the Travaes Interest Society. For a tour.” She fought back the voices in her head screaming for her to run and instead heaved a loud sigh. “And I got lost on my way to the bathroom.” She swallowed, hoping he would believe her.
His grip relaxed slightly as he cocked his head, studying her face. Her heart was racing. He’d called her out for lying before. She could only hope she’d gotten better at it over the past few years and that he wouldn’t notice this time.
“Well, if you’re lost,” he said, steering her back toward the bathroom, “then you obviously need a guide.”
“Sure. Thanks,” she muttered. Gritting her teeth, she urged her weak legs to walk forward, forcing one foot in front of the other. It was more difficult than it should have been with his hand still resting heavily on her shoulder.
“I’ll wait outside for you. Wouldn’t want you to get lost again trying to find your group.”
Sage’s eyes darted down the hallway. The Transfer was in sight.
“That’s ok,” she said. “I don’t want to waste any more of your time. I’m supposed to meet them just over there.” She jerked her head toward the glass room.
Kai didn’t bother to follow her nod with his gaze. “It’s no bother,” he said coolly. “It seems you’re having trouble, and it’s my civic duty to help an underage citizen. I’ll wait here,” he said again, firmly.