RITZA ACADEMY
LIEGEDEN, EMPORIA
FEDERATED SUNS
5 APRIL 3150
Jasper ran the entire five kilometers behind Elias and Delany, even though he was a faster runner. If Elias had to run an extra kilometer, so would he. It was the only thing he could think of as an apology.
Delany took off at the end of the second kilometer. “Sorry. I’ve got to get ready for tonight.” She averaged four-minute klicks on a bad day and ran eight kilometers every morning. For her, Elias’s pace had been a jog.
Jasper wished he was as fast as Delany. She ran like a gazelle with great ground-eating sprints. He had no doubt she was going to push herself and lap them at least once. Probably twice. Just to grind it in their faces.
Elias glanced over his shoulder. “Go on. I can do this.”
“I know. I’m going to do it with you.”
“Asshole.”
Jasper sped up until he ran right behind the larger teen. “I know. I’m sorry. I should’ve backed your play.”
“Yeah. Should’ve.” Elias’s words came out in pants as he sped up to get away.
The two of them ran like that until the end. They both made it, squeaking in under the wire with twenty-three seconds remaining.
After Elias caught his breath, he walked off without a word. Jasper let him go. They didn’t have to run an extra kilometer, and that was enough for now. Maybe tomorrow Elias would be willing to listen to why Jasper had attempted the maneuver that had cost them the win.
In truth, Elias shouldn’t have made the opening move. He should’ve waited for Jasper to move or issue a command. Maybe by tomorrow, he’d realize that too. The hours of tedium had gotten to them both. Simulator missions used to be so much more fun before they became “realistic.” You’d strap in. The fight would start within minutes and would be done just as quick.
This new stuff, to show the cadets that hours of hyperawareness could wear on you, sucked. Then again, if this was what being a MechWarrior actually meant, maybe the desk jockey idea wasn’t so bad.
He wrinkled his nose at the thought. Now you’re just being petulant. The mental voice was that of his sister. Nadine was older by ten months and had practically raised him until they got to Emporia. “I know,” he muttered. “I’ll do better next time.”
All thoughts of the disastrous mission disappeared when he entered the gym. It was like a cyclone had hit it. Word had gotten around that Jasper was on punishment duty and no one did even their normal half-assed attempt at cleaning up. There were tumble pads strewn about under the ropes, balls—basketballs, weighted balls, soccer balls, and dodge balls—in every part of the gym and someone had helpfully knocked over two piles of drill cones. Even the chalk powder had been left out.
Jasper rubbed his face and sighed. This was going to take forever. There was nothing to do but get to work.
An hour later, Jasper was sweaty, crabby, and almost done. He threw the last of the errant balls into the equipment cage and kicked the door shut. It rebounded against the doorjamb and swung open. He kicked it again. Again it rebounded. Clenching his fists, he stalked to the door and closed it with a deliberate click. This time, the door stayed shut.
“I thought you might beat up on the thing even more. Guess you can learn. Even from inanimate objects.”
He didn’t turn to see who spoke. He knew Nadine’s voice. Instead, he ignored her and hauled the last of the mats toward the closet.
“I’d offer to help, but I’d get all mussed. Besides, I heard you earned this.”
Glancing at her, he saw she wore her dress uniform. The navy blue fabric looked good against her lean form. She wore her long red hair in braids above her collar. “No gown?”
“Wore it to the last one of these. People notice.”
“You should get another one.” He threw a mat into the closet.
“Nah. Not really my thing. Plus, I’ve got better stuff to spend my allowance on.”
As the two of them lapsed into silence, he knew she referred to growing and maintaining a spy network made up of workers within many of the noble houses. He teased her about this from time to time, but he understood why she did it. Information was survival; it was a hard-earned lesson from their conquered home planet of Hoff.
Jasper grabbed another mat and tossed it into the closet. He steadied it, then tossed another one on top. As he picked up the next mat, he said, “I didn’t earn this, you know.”
“No?”
“No.”
“So you didn’t abandon your lance to go running off like a hero?”
He threw the mat into the closet harder than he intended. It rebounded against the wall and slid off the pile. Sulking, he picked it up and placed it properly. “No. I didn’t. We’d learned about a new move in class. It sandwiches the end ’Mech of an invading force and….” He shrugged.
Nadine headed to the bleachers and sat. “The Earl maneuver. I’ve heard of it. A bit simple, but can be effective. What went wrong?”
Jasper scowled and hefted the last of the mats into the closet. “I basically got myself sandwiched. It should’ve worked.”
She tilted her head.
“We don’t have full lances. We only have six simulators. Three-on-three instead of four-on-four like it’s supposed to be. It won’t work without a fourth ’Mech to back up the play.”
“Right. So that’s why Ethan is crowing all over the academy about your dumbass move and falling into his trap.”
He rolled his eyes and closed the closet. Looking around the empty gym, he saw it could use a sweep. He debated skipping that step, then glanced at his sister, saw her shake her head, and sighed. She was right. Dame Emma would know, and then there’d be hell to pay. One go-over with the push broom wouldn’t kill him. He grabbed the broom and started shoving dust and dirt to one side of the gym. “What are you doing here anyway?”
“I’ve got a favor to ask. Also, I brought your dress uniform for tonight.”
Relief flooded him. He wouldn’t have to trudge back to his dorm to get changed with everyone laughing at him. A mortifying thought jumped into his head, but he waited until he was back in not-shouting range to ask. “All of it? Including my…my…”
“Yes. Your underwear, too.” She rolled her eyes. “But don’t blame me if the socks don’t match. Your roommate wouldn’t let me into your dresser drawers. He’s the one who put your skivvies in the bottom of the bag.”
Good man, Noah, Jasper thought. Relief still warred with concern. “What about this favor?”
Nadine was quiet longer than he expected. She was always up to something. She was the smartest person he knew, and it wasn’t just because she was his sister. That meant this was really big or really stupid.
“Well?”
“There’s something going on in New Exeter, and it’s got a lot of the houses up in arms, but no one seems to know why. They’re keeping it hush-hush. Not the normal royal posturing. I need you to watch and listen tonight. Pay attention to what they say and don’t say.”
He gave her a slow smile. “You mean listen to a bunch of adults yammer on? Just like we do every single time we have a ‘family’ dinner? How’s that any different than normal?”
She scoffed. “No. Not like that. Watch for them to put their heads together, to make sure no one else is listening. Then you eavesdrop.”
“Is this coming from your little spy ring in the city?” He hurried his broom to avoid her half-hearted swipe. Bribing servants for information and buying shortwave radio equipment to communicate with them—that’s what Nadine spent her allowance on. The hobby was as amusing as it was annoying, but she did seem to know just about everything going on that would affect the academy. “What do they know?”
“A lot more than you think.” She stood. “And if you don’t want to find out how quickly I can get information to and from people, you’ll help me.”
“Or what?”
Nadine tilted her head. “Baroness Charlotte Estbury will be there, and I’ve heard she’s looking to make alliances with House Vogel. I bet she corners you and asks your thoughts on her Sponsored. If you don’t want a little birdie or three whispering in her ear that you have a crush on, oh, I don’t know…Mia…you’ll help me.”
He shrugged. “Mia’s cool and all, but I don’t like her like that.”
Nadine smiled wide. “Doesn’t matter. All it takes is the right person to whisper it to her, and she’ll be all over you.”
Jasper grimaced. His sister was right. The baroness was always trying to play matchmaker. “Fine. I’ll do it. But it’s not like you actually know who I like.”
“Don’t make it a challenge.” Her small smile begged him to do just that.
“Right. So, listen to the adults about what they don’t want us to know. Anything specific? I mean, I can watch for them being weird, but…” He shrugged.
“I think it has something to do with commerce. They’ve been talking a lot about JumpShips and DropShips.”
“At least that’s something I know about.”
She glanced at the large clock. “You’ve got about ten minutes to get ready.”
“Crap! Why didn’t you tell me?”
“Just did.”
Jasper ran the push broom up and down the rest of the gym, then shoved the debris into a single large pile next to the trashcans. He didn’t know where the dustpan was, and he’d accept punishment if Dame Emma got mad. Overall, the gym was pretty clean, and the night crew would finish the rest.
He grabbed the garment bag from the doorknob as he headed into the locker room. He had just enough time to get ready.
Seven minutes later, he was in uniform. The undershirt was too tight, but the socks were both black and matched. He wouldn’t be dinged on that. He’d put his dress jacket on after they got there. While there wouldn’t be an inspection, he—and all of the other cadets there, Sponsored or not—would be in a spotlight. “Family” dinners were like that.
As he toweled off his hair and realized he had no comb or brush, he shouted, “How are we getting there anyway?”
Nadine popped her head around the door. “What was that?”
“Hey! This is the guys’ locker room.”
She looked unimpressed. “And? It’s not like I haven’t seen anything you have before. Besides, it’s just you, and I’m not going to shout. What did you yell at me?”
He ran his fingers through his mop of wet, red hair. There was no hope for it. “How are we getting there?” The Vogels’ country estate was on the outskirts of the capital city. It was a good ninety-minute drive on the best of days.
“Now you wonder that.”
“You’re always the one with the plan.”
“That should change. You need to start pulling your weight around here.”
Despite her teasing tone, that hurt. Jasper frowned at his reflection. His face flushed with embarrassment.
Their eyes met in the mirror as she came forward.
Nadine looked away first. She dug into one of her pockets and came up with a small comb. “Here.” It was an apology for her harsh words.
He took it without comment and combed his hair into some semblance of order.
“As for how we’re getting there, I’m taking Lyric as my plus-one.”
“She’s Sponsored by Vogel, too.”
“And?”
Jasper’s eyes widened. He opened and closed his mouth. Then he shrugged at himself in the mirror. “Keeping it in the family.”
“It’s my sign that I don’t want to be fixed up with anyone.”
“It’s a red flag. When you bring a plus-one to a ‘family’ dinner, that means you’re serious.” He paused. “You’re not serious with her, are you?”
Nadine smiled, shrugged, and looked away.
“You are…?” Jasper grinned. “Wow. My never-gonna-catch-me sis has been caught.”
“We’re just dating, thankyouverymuch.”
“Oh…oh, hell. That means the Death Pixie is driving.”
Nadine took her comb back. “I’m going to tell her you said that.”
“Please don’t.” Jasper could already feel the bruises. Lyric Hayton, sponsored by House Vogel, was a five-foot-tall whirling death machine. She looked like someone’s pampered pet, but was one of the Ritza Academy’s best infantry cadets. Stronger than she appeared, she was an expert at hand-to-hand and leveraging an opponent’s weight against them. More than one much taller and heavier classmate had fallen victim to her unassuming stature. Now she taught some of the self-defense classes, and reveled in teaching people that skill and precise strikes made up for lack of height.
“C’mon then. We don’t want to keep her waiting.”
Jasper followed his sister. Tonight was definitely going to be worse than normal.