Advance (Animus Book 4)

by Joshua Anderle

  “Another round, Commander?” he asked his patron. Sasha nodded and slid his glass over. Julio filled it with the commander’s preferred lager, Peacemaker Amber. “It’s nice to catch up now and again. Kaiden barely writes or calls. I saw him a few times during the break, though.”

  “That was actually one of the things I wanted to discuss,” Sasha explained. “He parlayed some of his early free time and left town. The statement on his form said it was personal, but I was told by one of my comrades that he was scheduled on a job.”

  “Kaiden’s done gigs from time to time for extra credits and even worked as my doorman for a couple weeks.” He passed the commander his drink. “It’s kind of full circle in a way, don’t you think?”

  Sasha nodded and enjoyed a small sip of the lager before he set it back down. “The thing is, he hasn’t returned. His classes started today, and he was supposed to return yesterday.”

  Julio cocked an eyebrow. “That’s odd. Kaiden’s a little lackadaisical, but he’s not usually one to skip out on commitments. You’d think a gig like that wouldn’t take him long.”

  “So you know about it, then?”

  Julio gave him a look of ire. “You don’t gotta do the coy interrogation thing with me, Commander. It wasn’t some under the table thing.” Julio leaned against the bar. “It’s not side-gig or anything, but I am still set up as a gig agent. I get the occasional job request from time to time and deal them out to those I think would fit. It was a retrieval mission in the Amazon on a chain team. It didn’t look like much and might have threatened a youngblood or runner, but it seemed like something Kaiden could do even without having gone to Nexus for a year and change.”

  “You seem to have a rather high opinion of him despite not knowing him very long,” Sasha commented and sipped his drink.

  “I could say the same. I may not see him much, but the fight on the day you took him in still sticks out. Plus, he had to deal with the occasional idiot who got too hotheaded or drunk for their own good while he worked with me along with a few successful missions he applied for and accomplished himself. I could tell he was looking for something a little bigger.”

  “Did he tell you why he’s doing these gigs?”

  Julio leaned back with a hand under his chin. “I don’t think he ever said. I would assume spending money. He might want to hit things on occasion—you know, real things.”

  “The whole point of the Animus is to create experiences that the mind and body cannot differentiate from reality. If it is not enough for some of our students, perhaps I should take it up with the designer.”

  “I may have never used one myself, but you still know you’re going in, right?” the bartender questioned. “For a guy like that, it’s a feeling, right? No matter how much it ‘feels like’ the real thing, that edge is missing. You spent fifteen years in the military. Tell me you didn’t feel that way during the real action.”

  “I was too preoccupied with my duties to take the time to consider such philosophy,” Sasha retorted.

  Julio smiled and snickered and a device in his ear began to glow. “Hold up a second,” he asked and pressed the button to receive the call. “Hello? Well, speak of the devil—how are you, Kaiden?” Julio’s smile widened, and he winked at the commander and leaned one hand on the bar. “You sound a little hoarse. Did you spend a night celebrating too hard?”

  His smile faded and his lips pursed. He breathed sharp breaths through his nose. “Oh, Kaiden, man…I’m sorry.” He nodded and was silent for another minute. “I see, that’s…I can’t believe it. I promise I would have never…I feel terrible. What? If I see… He’s here, actually. You’ll do it in person? I’ll pass it along then. Get better, man. You’ve got a bottle or two waiting the next time you drop by. I’ll be sure to screen the gigs more before…I guess you’re right. I still feel like it’s my fault, though. Okay, no, no, I get it. Thanks for letting me know. Get well, man.” Julio clicked the button again and ended the call.

  “That was Kaiden. You won’t believe—”

  “I heard,” Sasha stated and pointed to the device around his head.

  “Gin Sonny? He ran into a rev on his first out-of-state mission? And he almost died.” Julio placed one hand on the bar and ran the other through his hair. “What are the chances?”

  Sasha looked at the last of his lager and his fingers tapped the bar. “Almost too much.”

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  As the hyperloop emerged from the water, the glass was greeted by more water as rain poured down from above. Kaiden leaned against the window and let the coolness calm him as he folded his arms across his chest, careful not to press too hard. The staff at the fixer station explained that they didn’t have the tech to properly repair the wound and adapt the skin. The area was scarred and fragile but as he was in Los Angeles, there were plenty of options for further recovery.

  He skipped out. The scar would remain. It was his reminder, now.

  The pain wasn’t as intense as it had been, and his body had recovered rather quickly thanks to the ultra-grade rejuv, but he still felt a dull throb now and then. He did wonder if he should have had it looked at by another surgeon but decided he would have Dr. Soni take a look if anything flared up again. He would visit her anyway to see if that blue stuff was back in stock.

  The hyperloop finally arrived at the station. Kaiden grabbed his case and prepared to disembark and look for a driver to take him to the Academy entrance. Instead, when he stepped into the line to leave and looked out the window, he saw Commander Sasha and Professor Laurie, both dressed in long black jackets. Sasha wore a white shirt and black slacks while Laurie had chosen a black silk shirt and slacks. They stood in the middle of the station and stared directly at him through the windows of the train.

  He wondered if he should take in the sights of the next town.

  Kaiden sighed, exited, and approached the men. Sasha remained his typical stoic self, his eyes hidden behind his oculars, but Laurie unnerved him. He had grown accustomed to the professor’s jubilant demeanor and eccentric persona, but the look on his face was now as calm as Sasha’s, although more dour and almost deadpan. A little paranoia surfaced, and he wondered if these were actually Doppel bots or something in disguise.

  “Hey, Chief. Scan them and make sure they are real,” he whispered.

  “You got stabbed in the chest, Kaiden, not the head,” he replied.

  “Does Laurie look off to you?”

  “Well, his prize science fair project almost died. I guess he’s a little peeved.”

  He slid a hand into his jacket pocket and pulled out a card. “I have a note.” He offered it weakly and hoped it would suffice.

  Laurie approached first. Kaiden hadn’t noticed before, but the man was rather tall—almost the same height as he was, which meant probably six feet three inches, and some change. He studied Kaiden silently for a moment. The ace wondered if he was angry and felt a slight chill. Was he angry enough to take Chief and his EI device away?

  To his astonishment, Laurie hugged him and pulled him close. “It’s good to see you standing, Kaiden,” he said and released him almost as quickly as he had grabbed him, although a hand lingered on his shoulder. “You gave us quite a fright.”

  “Well, uh, Halloween is coming up and everything.” He tried to jest but earned an annoyed look from the professor. “Sorry. I didn’t think it would go down like that. I also didn’t think you would bother or know that I left at all.”

  “A rather foolish assumption,” Sasha said as he joined them. “Laurie gives you your autonomy, but if he has to, he can find your device, just as he can every student and faculty member of the Academy. And target acquisition was a specialty of mine.”

  “You should share more stories,” Kaiden said in an effort to add a little humor to the situation. They didn’t bite.

  “Would you like a ride, Kaiden?” Sasha asked. He felt unnerved because it seemed like an uncomfortable ride. They obviously weren’t there to be chauf
feurs.

  “It’s all right. I can find a driver. I’m sure you guys have to—”

  “Let’s go to the car, Kaiden.” Laurie walked away with Kaiden’s case in his hand.

  “Hey that’s my—” Sasha stopped him, made a beckoning motion with his hand, and followed the professor. Kaiden sighed. Hopefully, this would be a quick drive.

  God, it was agony. The ace shifted in the back seat of the car. Sasha and Laurie sat in front and faced away, even though it wasn’t necessary as the front window was closed and the car was on autoride. The drive from the station to the academy usually only took around thirty-five minutes, but time had either slowed to a crawl or they decided to take the scenic route and said nothing the entire time. Was he in trouble? Granted, he hadn’t read the agreement thoroughly when he’d joined the Academy, but if there was something against taking gigs, he was sure Chief would have said something. Speaking of Chief, he was oddly silent. He actually wished his EI would yammer on as usual and break the tension, but either he decided to keep to himself, or Laurie had remotely cut off his audio and visuals.

  It wasn’t like he’d expected it to go down like it had, and he wasn’t exactly looking for sympathy when he got back. He simply wanted to play it off, and while he was sure they and his friends would have questions, he had prepared excuses for them. All he wanted was for things to go back to normal so he could find his feet again.

  “How’s the wound, Kaiden?” Sasha asked. The ace ran a hand unconsciously over his chest.

  “It’s…all right, I guess. I plan to have Dr. Soni look it over if it hurts too much or interferes with Animus training.”

  “A possibility,” Laurie concurred. “Considering the circumstances and the purpose of the training, real-world injuries transfer over when you sync to the Animus.”

  “You’ve taken on another scar, I noticed,” Sasha pointed out and gestured at his eye in the rearview mirror. “Is that some sort of macabre collection?”

  “Tattoos are expensive,” he responded to brush it off as he trailed a finger on the scar along his eye. “I guess these are too in their own way.”

  Silence fell again, but Kaiden didn’t want it to drag on. “Am I in trouble or something?”

  “There’s no reason why that I can think of,” Sasha said. “I was able to get your files from the fixer station, so you are clear on your missed days, but you’ll probably have some work to make up.”

  “How did you manage that?”

  “As a student at our Academy, we retain a certain guardianship over you. It took very little time for Councilor Mya to find the files and transfer them to me. She wishes you well and hopes you’ll stop by soon.”

  Kaiden shifted in his chair again. “You haven’t said it out loud, but you know what went down, right?”

  “I got the details from Mr. Alverez,” Sasha confirmed. “I am amazed you survived a run-in with someone on the Revenant List. It must have been terrifying.”

  “It wasn’t something I was prepared for. The mutants are still kind of a new thing, but I’ve dealt with them. Even assassin’s and hitmen and guys like that, but he was…something different.”

  “Try not to make it a habit if you would.” Laurie turned his chair and smiled at him. “These luscious locks of mine are rather expensive to maintain. I wouldn’t want to ruin them with grays.”

  Kaiden blinked in surprise before he nodded and responded with a small grin of his own.

  Laurie leaned forward. “I know you will probably want to rest when we return but stop by as soon as possible. I need to scan Chief for any potential viruses and his records of the incident.”

  “What for?” the ace asked. “This wasn’t academy business or anything.”

  “True, but Gin is wanted galaxy-wide. Even our alien allies all have reasons to pursue him. We don’t have a lot of records on him, so this is the first time in a while that we’ve been able to get more than blurred pictures or snippets of video of him,” Sasha explained as he turned to look at Kaiden.

  “My guess is that he has some sort of interference device or uploads a virus to remove all but his choice traces of footage,” Laurie suggested.

  “It’s a game to him,” Sasha concurred.

  “That seems like his thing—he’s kind of a technophile.” Kaiden shrugged. “At least, that’s the image I got, plus what Magellan said.”

  “Magellan?” Laurie asked. “Which Magellan?”

  The ace looked up with a slightly amused smile. “What circles do you move in that you have a group of Magellans to confuse?” He chuckled “A bounty hunter, Magellan Desperaux.”

  As he leaned back Laurie’s gaze darted to Sasha, but he didn’t return the look. A ringing sounded from the front of the car and the front screen opened to show the car driving up to the entrance of the academy. Sasha smiled. “It appears we’re back.”

  Laurie left the two after they arrived. He returned to his office after he wished Kaiden well and reminded him to visit after he had recuperated. Sasha escorted the ace across the school grounds. It was still raining, and the plaza was eerily deserted save for a few students under arches or who ran across the grounds to reach a building.

  Laurie had given Kaiden his umbrella and told him to return it to him when he came by. Both he and Sasha walked through the plaza. “You don’t have to walk me to the dorms,” he said. “It was nice enough that you drove me here.”

  “I have to go this way anyway. I’ll see a staff member after this,” the commander explained. “I can understand that you want some alone time, but I doubt you’ll get that.”

  “Why would you say—”

  “Hey, Kaiden!” someone shouted. He turned as Flynn, Amber, Marlo, Genos, Chiyo, Jaxon, Luke, and Silas ran from behind a building.

  “Good Lord, are they a hive-mind?” he mumbled and waved.

  “Where you been, mate?” Flynn asked. He and Amber were under an umbrella as was Chiyo. The others simply wore rain jackets with the exception of Jaxon and Genos, whose skin, Kaiden noted, had never looked as shiny as it did in the rain.

  “I went out for a bit and went on a little bender,” he said, which was technically true.

  Sasha shook his head. “Adva Jericho went on a personal mission during his free time, during which he was attacked and nearly killed by the serial killer Gin Sonny.”

  Gasps and shocked stares issued from the group as well as Kaiden, although he looked at Sasha.

  Dick! He clenched his teeth in frustration. “Why?” he groaned.

  “You have a few lessons to make up,” Sasha stated and turned away from him. “And as an ace, you should learn not to hide too many things from your comrades.”

  Kaiden sighed in annoyance. He’d known he wouldn’t get off easy.

  “I will depart now, Kaiden,” the commander announced. “I’m sure your friends can escort you the rest of the way as you catch up.”

  The group was silent as he walked away and entered the main building. The ace looked at the expectant faces of his friends and twirled the umbrella for a moment, unable to hold their gazes. “I would have told y’all eventually.”

  “You almost died?” Flynn asked. “What happened?”

  He filled them in quickly, although he left certain parts out at his discretion. They listened quietly and occasionally, their eyes widened, or a horrified look would cross their faces when he talked about certain fights and when he had confronted Gin. He finished with when he was stabbed and then woke up at the fixer station.

  “Man…I mean… That’s horrible,” Marlo stammered.

  “Before anyone asks, I didn’t keep it a secret for any reason. I honestly didn’t think it mattered,” Kaiden added. “The gigs I’ve done up to this point weren’t anything special, especially considering what we’ve gone through in the Animus. This should have been a cakewalk, all things considered. Shit happens, I guess.”

  “That is rotten luck,” Flynn huffed. “I know that sounds like I’m making light of it, but I’m not.
I wanna say something like you should have taken me with you, but I can’t think that I would have been much help there.”

  “Honestly, it was probably better that none of you were there,” he admitted and earned different reactions from the group. Some were confused and others worried or angry. He held up a hand. “I’m not saying I think you can’t handle yourselves. But I almost died, and three others did die. If that had happened to any of you…I can’t say I’ve been trained to have to deliver news like that yet.”

  “Yeah, I follow.” Silas nodded and looked away for a moment. “I’ve trained since I was a kid, in prep academies and skirmishes and all that. Hearing about this, though, would it be ironic or corny to say it feels like what we’re doing… It feels more real?”

  “Probably both, but appropriate,” Kaiden admitted.

  “Friend Kaiden, might I see your wound?” Genos asked. Jaxon glared him, and he realized that what he’d asked might have been too forward.

  “Yeah, that’s fine, Genos.” Kaiden lifted his shirt to reveal the scar. It ran vertically over his sternum and was about three and a half inches in length, and the rain falling onto it made it look darker.

  “Damn,” Luke muttered.

  “That’s so precise,” Amber whispered almost inaudibly. “Surgical.”

  “I want to have your mom take a look,” Kaiden said as he lowered his shirt. “But later. Right now, I wanna rest a while.”

  “Oh, right.” Flynn nodded and backed away. “Sure, mate.”

  “I’ll let the others know,” Jaxon said. “For now, you should get some rest and know that you’re safe here.”

  “Thanks.” Kaiden walked through the group and toward the soldier’s dorms. As he drew nearer to the building, he heard the splash and tap of water behind him. He turned as Chiyo ran up to him.

  “Hey, Chiyo.” She stopped and simply looked at him. Her eyes…he had to admit to himself he had trouble reading her even under normal circumstances, but she seemed despondent. “What’s up?” Her silence continued and Kaiden leaned back, a little uncomfortable. “I get that it’s probably shocking and everything, but I’m all right. I’m sure that I’ll be back to normal in a few days.”