Sovereign (Sovereign Series) (7 page)

My watch shows 0750.  I won’t have time
to shower, so I get myself dressed and throw the rest of my clothes in a bag. 
Ginny knocks quietly before stepping into my room.  She puts her hands in her
pockets.  She looks at me, but not in the eye.

“Morning. 
Need help with anything?”

“Umm...no. 
I got it.”

“Okay.” 
She continues to stand there.  Then it dawns on me: I’m considered an adult as
of today.  No more Ginny.

“I’ve
got all my clothes packed.”  I regret not including her in what I’ve already
done. 

“You
didn’t hide the bras under the bed to leave them behind, eh?”

“No,
ma’am.”  I’m really going to miss her.

“Well,
I just wanted to see you off.”

“Thank
you, Ginny.  For everything.”

“Cori,
1206, you were a pain in my neck, but it’s been a pleasure to know you.”  She
almost sounds like herself again.  Caretakers stand in for mothers in Antius
because mothers become overly attached.  Caretakers are normally quite distant,
and up till now that included Ginny.  Still, I’m happy to know she feels
something--anything--for the biggest troublemaker she’s ever tended.

A
knock at the door breaks the moment, which is good because had we gone much
longer I think Ginny might’ve tried to hug me. 

Ginny
opens the door to reveal the female soldier, 587, who stands with her arms
behind her back.  Her straight, dark hair is slicked back into a long
ponytail.  I wish I had something to compare her to, but I’ve never seen
another female soldier.  Regardless, she looks like perfection to me.  And if I
saw any honor in serving a leader like Nathan, I might admire her. 

“Pledge
1206, please follow me,” she demands.

With
my bag over my shoulder, I nod my goodbye to Ginny.  She waves as I leave with
587. 

We
leave the Underage facility and trek across the property to an elevator that I
don’t yet see.  As we near, it ascends from the ground.  My escort puts her
neck by the chip reader, and when the elevator doors open, she ushers me in.  I
soak in what little daylight lingers until we’re pulled below ground.

We
stop on the second floor and go around the first corner to the cafeteria.  I
make a mental note of its location and floor.

“You
can leave your bag here.”  She points to the floor beside the door.  I do as
she says.

This
cafeteria is much nicer than the Underage one, and much bigger, too, since
military is the largest sector of our population.  Dozens of round tables with
eight or so chairs are spread around the dining hall.  The colors are warmer,
darker, cozier.  The Government division shares this space apparently, which
would explain its lavish stylings.  Even though it’s a shared space, there’s a
clear divide between them--a large walkway.  To the right of it sit the elite
members of Government.  To the left are Guard tables. 

587
leads me up the aisle and we each grab a tray.  I follow her lead and load up a
plate of food.  To my delight, there’s an array of breads to choose from, and a
few different flavors of meal slush.  I choose the one labeled “chicken” as
well as two different types of bread.  My eyes feel like they’re bulging out
and I don’t think I’ve blinked since we walked in.  Next, she grabs a metal can
and sits down at an empty table.  I do the same and wait for her to begin. 

“Cori,
right?”

“Yeah--I
mean, yes ma’am.”  I realize I have no idea what’s expected of me right now. 
Is this part of my assessment?  Is 587 a threat to me?

“You
can call me Captain when we’re on duty,” she explains.

“Oh,
I didn’t know you were an officer.”  It’s a middle rank, but impressive still.

“You
can call me Marsiana in private time.”

“Thank
you, ma’am. How much private time is there?”

“Not
much, but we’re roommates.”  She sounds somewhat displeased.  Since she’d been
the only female before I came along, she had probably grown accustomed to
rooming alone just like I had. 

With
the formalities out of the way, she holds the can in one hand and with the
other, pulls on a small tab on the top.  She forces the tab through a
perforation creating a hole.  I follow suit, though I struggle with the tab. 
Once it’s open, I see a dark syrupy liquid.  I’m not sure what it’s for until
Marsiana takes a sip and grins at me.  “Try it.”

I
take a small sip and taste a bit of sweetness.  Just enough to pique my
interest.  I take a bigger drink and my mouth is filled with sugary delight. 
It’s absolutely delicious.  I swish it around my mouth before smiling.  All
I’ve ever had to drink is water.

“What
is it?”  I’m not exactly keeping my cool on my first day of adulthood.  I’m
acting giddy and I’ve got to get it together.

“Soda.”

“It’s
amazing,” I gush.  “Where’d it come from?”

“An
old stockpile one of our convoys came across.  It’s a nice treat, but you
shouldn’t drink it often.  Bad for you.”  There’s something pleasant in her
demeanor that I greatly appreciate because I’d built this day up in my head
with so much anxiety and stress. 

Just
when I’m starting to feel better about things, Nathan strides in and nods at
Marsiana, then at me.  His face is expressionless, unreadable.  After he grabs
a tray and starts helping himself to the food, the door opens again letting in
Guard 497 from the jail, and two seventeen-year-old pledges, Billy and Sean (I
don’t know their numbers, and don’t care). 

Suffice
it to say I’ve never gotten along with either of them.  They were born only a
few days apart and from the looks of them, they probably have the same father. 
When I was twelve, they followed me into the stairwell and picked a fight.  It
wasn’t a fair fight, but before I passed out from my head striking a stair, I
learned how to break a forearm.  And the way Sean’s left arm clings a little
closer to his body than his right assures me he’ll never forget it.  When I was
released from Medical, I was incarcerated for the first time for violence. 
Neither of them was punished. 

The
boys look my way, but don’t nod or make eye contact.  They look confident,
ready.  I have no doubt Billy will thrive here, but I’ve always gotten the
sense that there was something more volatile in Sean.  Fragile, even.  I think
they can break him. 

When
Marsiana and I finish eating, we head back out to the hall where a guard
stands, holding my bag. 

“It’s
clear,” he says to Marsiana.  She nods for me to take the bag, and I do.  I’m
glad I didn’t bring my book reader.

We
take the elevator up to the first floor and walk down a long hallway.  It feels
weird being so far underground.  On the left there’s a large room with an open
door.  Peeking inside briefly, I see rows and rows of bunks with gray bedding
tucked neatly on each. 

Three
more doors on the right, and one more on the left then we stop.  The door
straight ahead is locked with a scan pad.  Marsi scans her fingerprint and her
neck chip, and the door unlocks.  While I watch her, I realize my heart rate
has increased, and I feel more alert.  Like my senses are more acute.  I didn’t
realize I’d put my fingers to my neck to feel my pulse, but Marsiana says,
“Caffeine, from the soda.” 

“Oh.” 
It feels good. 

Inside,
the room is a little bigger than the one I’d had before.  Thankfully there are
two bunks.  No bed-sharing for soldiers.  And our room has a closet, and our
very own bathroom, shower and all.  Maybe getting through my pledge training
won’t be so bad after all
.  Just bide your time
. 

“We’ll
report topside in twenty minutes.  Would you like a hot shower?”

“We
have hot water?”  I drag my bag into the restroom with me and don’t bother
closing the door--I’m not used to privacy anyway.  I get my shirt halfway off
and realize I have no idea how to work this shower.  Marsi peeks in and rattles
off a few instructions.  I strip down and step into the steaming hot water and
a glorious, relief washes over my skin, even soothing my muscles.  It’s
magnificent and I’m enjoying it too much to be mad that they’ve been holding
out on the rest of the colony. 

Topside
at 0900, I’m standing in an open part of the lawn with six other teens, Sean
and Billy included.  We form a straight line with our hands crossed behind our
backs.  Before us, Nathan is flanked by Marsiana. 

“I
hope you had a good breakfast.  You’re going to be losing it soon,” Nathan tells
us.  What an introduction to the military.  He turns to Marsiana.  “Run them.”

“Yes,
sir.”  She’s stone-faced, all business.  I remember this counts as on-duty.

Nathan
walks off without another word and retreats to his underground kingdom.  If the
rest of the colony had any idea what was beneath their own feet...

“You
heard him, kids.  Time to run.”  Captain points toward a makeshift track along
the fence.  “Stay inside the cones.”  I wasn’t sure if Nathan was being literal
but it’s clear now that he was.  Billy takes the lead, with Sean on his heels,
and the rest of us jumble behind.  Captain points us in the right direction.  I
see the cones along the fence line.  We’re simply running the perimeter, though
I’m not sure how many times.

I
begin pacing my breaths and focusing on my steps.  I make no effort to take
first place, nor will I allow myself to be last.  That’s for the giant kid
named Twig.  Most of us are stick-thin, and he was especially lanky when he was
named.  Now, he’s a monster of a young man.  Not fat, just
huge
.

Running
outside is very different from running on the machines in the workout room, and
I count my steps wondering what the distance of one lap is.  After the first
complete lap, I estimate its distance to be roughly two and a half miles
around. 

In
the second lap I’m breathing heavily, and I’m no longer counting steps.  I soak
up what little Vitamin D might still exist in the penetrating ultraviolet light
from the sun.  My cheeks feel warm, as do my lungs, even though the air is
cool.  I’m always active, but I rarely flat-out run, as most of my workouts are
indoors. 

By
the fifth lap, the group has slowed significantly.  Sean is in the lead, but
Billy’s keeping up right behind him.  Twig is a whole lap behind us.  I
couldn’t even look at him when I passed him up. 
Poor kid. 
He’s
seventeen, but still has the baby-fat roundness in his face.  He’s always been
broad-shouldered, and big footed, but he’s only recently hit a growth spurt. 
He’s bigger than all of us, but it’s evident by his clumsiness that he’s still
not entirely in control of his newly enormous form.  I’m not sure what kind of
soldier he’ll make, and I hope, for his sake, that he gets in shape and gains
command of his body. 

Somewhere
in my sixth lap I pass Twig again and he’s no longer running, he’s barely
walking.  I meet his eyes just in time to see him begin to vomit.  I look away
quickly and suppress a gag rising up from the sight of it.  Twig doesn’t finish
another lap.

On
lap seven, we lose two more.  On the eighth, another, all of them sprawled on
the grass after losing their breakfast, just like Nathan promised. 

Sean
still holds the front, while I bring up the rear with Billy in between.  Only a
few yards separate each of us.  I still feel no need to compete.  What we’re
doing barely counts as running anymore.  My limbs are stiff and weigh a
thousand pounds each.  My feet are concrete slabs on the dirt.  When we cross
over a gravel pathway, I almost twist my ankle.  I’ve nearly starved before and
still never felt this fatigued. 

Billy
loses his balance and teeters toward the electrified fence, and I’m too tired
to laugh at his ungraceful recovery. 

Lap
nine.  My lungs are burning, my side has been stabbed with a hundred tiny
daggers that lodge into bone.  I’m panting and feel as though I’m choking on
oxygen. 

On
the tenth lap I notice Nathan has returned to the captain’s side.  I grit my
teeth at the sight of him, but I’m too exhausted to shoot him a dirty look. 
That’s a good thing, though, because I told Dylan I would play the part. 

Sweat
pours down my forehead and into my eyes, and I’m now too tired to wipe it
away.  Instead I squint through them, making sure not to fall too far behind. 
I can’t believe these boys are still going, though they’re certainly not “going
strong.” 

All
I hear are my breaths and my heartbeat.  All I see are Billy’s feet in front of
me.  I have no idea if Sean is still in front or if he passed out somewhere,
which is exactly what I’d like to do right now.  Hurl myself at the grass and
hope to God there’s still some dew on it.  But I don’t.  Instead I bite down on
the inside of my lip and focus on that pain.  Focus on my next breath, which is
so shallow
. 
I can’t breathe. 

Billy’s
feet slow ahead of me right as a whistle blows.  I look up to see Marsi holding
up her hand, signaling for us to stop.  We’ve finished our tenth lap. 
Twenty-five miles. 
I just ran twenty-five miles.  I think I’m dying.