Echoes of Harmony

The walk through the station, with one robot in front of Skylar and one behind, was quiet and mostly uneventful. Once they were out of the hospital section, there was no one else except for more robotic soldiers. These walked back and forth in some places and stood motionless in others. The monochromatic walls with little in the way of decoration provided little stimulation to keep him interested.

Besides the fact he could look out the occasional window at the large, scattered fleet, it was not much different than sitting in the hospital bed. He particularly admired the space superiority fighters as they soared between ships. Despite having no idea what the future here would hold, he still wanted the chance to explore the stars. Maybe this is my chance. The thought brought him a form of solace. A sharp jab from one of the robots whenever he stopped, however, made it not worth the effort of getting a better look.

It wasn’t until the three had been walking for fifteen minutes, making so many turns Skylar lost track of where they were, that he heard something new: what sounded like hundreds of footsteps slowly growing louder. They reached the next intersection and stopped. Coming from their left was a large crowd made entirely of what looked like children and teenagers. It was a mixture of boys and girls, all wearing the same dark gray jumpsuit he was given. The youngest was a couple years younger than himself and the oldest a few older. At the front and spaced periodically down the sides were the same robotic soldiers that escorted Skylar.

They talked among themselves, some of them scared and some attempting to reassure others. A few sobs and cries for parents rang out. None of the robotic soldiers seemed to make any indication they heard the pleas. As they walked past, Skylar received an occasional confused look, though none stopped. With each passing person, he searched the faces, hoping against hope he would recognize any of them. Some of them looked like he may have known them, but only in passing. There was no sign of Rachel or Luca or Caster.

When the end of the crowd neared, one of the robots roughly prodded him in the back. He staggered forward and whirled around to look at the soldier.

“Proceed with the congregation,” its said, its synthesized voice cutting through the din of the crowd. It held its assault rifle at waist level, the barrel pointing at him.

With a gulp, Skylar turned back around and fell into step with the rest of the children a few rows in front of the back. He took a look around him, his eyes scanning the faces of the others for any sign of familiarity. Some looked like he may have seen them a few times at Silver Ridge, but none stuck out to him. None were Luca or Caster or Rachel.

They continued on for what felt like an eternity but in reality, according to his CAM at least, was no more than ten minutes. Finally, they crossed a threshold in a dark chamber. The soldiers split off to either side, forming a line to steer the children forward.

When they entered, bright lights filled the room, removing every shadow. It was about a hundred meters to a side with a group of four large metal pillars forming a smaller square about fifty meters long. Around the outside of the room hung dozens of Hyperion flags. At the far end sat a raised platform. A gravlift on either side led to the top where a podium overlooked the crowd. Engraved in the front of the platform was the symbol of Hyperia, its characteristic Y.

Standing behind the podium was General Augusta Zorn. He wore formal robes of black with red trim flowing down to his ankles. His hands clasped the sides of the podium, his fingers gently drumming against the metal. Flanking him were two of the robotic soldiers as well as two human ones, each wielding an assault rifle.

“Line up into ten rows,” Zorn said, his voice amplified through speakers around the room.

Confusion immediately spread throughout the assembled crowd as they worked on carrying out the command. Skylar was pushed and jostled by the others as he glared at the general. Their eyes met. Zorn issued an unspoken challenge, and Skylar remembered the last conversation they had. He had Skylar’s parents. If he didn’t obey, he could hurt them.

Skylar staggered as he moved to find a position in the haphazard lines. After being shoved several times, he ended up near the back, with just two rows behind him. Zorn glowered at them, his eyes scanning the misshapen lines. Then, he walked to the side of the platform, allowing the lift to take him down. With carefully measured steps, he paced at the front of the formation. His gaze lingered on many of the younger children, who cowered at the look.

“Well, at the very least, you can follow orders.” He stopped near the center of the crowd, clasping his hands behind his back. His eyes landed once more on Skylar for a second that felt like an eternity. “For those who don’t know, I am General Augusta Zorn of the Hyperion Empire. You are all here at this space station, which we call Vertyn, to become the first of what we hope will be many cadets in a new training program.

“Upon successful graduation from the program, you will fully join the ranks of the Hyperion military, enjoying all the benefits which that entails. Failure, and you will be… disposed of. You will fight who and where we tell you without a second thought. Insubordination and dereliction of duty will be dealt with severely. There are no second chances.”

A chill ran down Skylar’s spine as the general’s eyes once more lingered on his. Skylar swore the man smirked as he said the words. He felt a nearly irresistible anger surging through him at the repeated jabs. His hands balled into fists, and he lifted a foot to step forward when a soft hand gripped his wrist. He turned his head to find a girl he didn’t recognize standing there. She gave him an almost imperceptible shake of her head before releasing him. Skylar unclenched his fists with some effort and quickly returned his attention to the front of the room.

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“Honor. Bravery. Loyalty. Supremacy. These are the tenets that have served as a guide for the Hyperion Empire ever since the failure of the Praesidium Union. They will be drilled into you until you embody them.

“Something important for all of you to remember: None of you are special.” Zorn’s eyes once more landed on Skylar, and he swore the man sneered at him. “You have no particular skills, no talent, no brains. That will change by the time you are deemed fit to leave this training facility. Once that time comes, you will be elite soldiers trained to defeat our enemies with surgical precision.

“If you have any questions, you will deposit them into the designated boxes in your dormitories. For now, a soldier will bring you to the first lesson. Dismissed.”

“What if we don’t want to serve in an army?” a voice called out to Skylar’s right as Zorn began to walk away. It cracked slightly, making it sound more comedic than the speaker intended. All heads turned to face the boy. He took a deep breath at the sudden attention and continued, “Why should we listen to you when you brought us here against our wills? My dad told me how many people you killed when you took control. How do we know you’re not going to do the same to us?”

“Anthony Tyn,” he said. Skylar recognized the last name of Stariek’s Fleet Marshal at once. He was the younger brother of Jordan. Zorn slowly moved towards the boy, the lines of children parting like the sea to avoid being trample. He stopped once he was directly in front of him. “Your father told me you can be rather strong willed at times, much more so than your brother. Don’t worry. We’ll fix that soon enough.”

Zorn snapped his fingers. One of the robotic soldiers moved to either side of Anthony. They each reached out and gripped his upper arms, lifting him slightly off the ground. A whimper came from his throat as he closed his eyes and took quick, quavering breaths.

“I’m not scared of you,” he whispered. “You or your robot thugs.”

“Of course, you’re not.” Zorn put his face inches away from Anthony’s. The teenager’s legs moved in the air as if to step backwards. Instead, he remained exactly where he was. “I’d expect nothing less from the son of a military leader such as your father. Take him to the education chamber. Let’s make him an example for others.”

The robotic soldiers walked off, dragging Anthony with them. He kicked and screamed, trying to wrench his way out of their grasp. No matter what he did, he couldn’t escape. Their hold was steadfast. Slowly, they faded from view. Zorn looked around at the staring children, his gaze boring into them.

“Did I not say you’re dismissed? Unless you want to end up like him, get out.”

Zorn turned on his heel, passing back between the rows of children. One unfortunate boy did not get out of the way in time, and a stiff shove from the general knocked him to the ground. After just a few more moments, he disappeared through a door at the far side of the room.

Skylar felt a tap on his shoulder and turned to find the same girl from before looking at him.

“You almost made a big mistake,” she whispered as the other kids started heading for the door.

She was about the same height as him with olive skin and hazel eyes. Freckles dotted her cheeks. Her slightly curly brown hair stopped just below her shoulders. A small mole sat on the right side of her nose, which flared slightly as she held in a laugh.

But what caught Skylar’s attention the most was that she was smiling. She was kidnapped, forced to serve in an army against her will. Yet she was smiling.

“He took my parents,” Skylar said. He shook his head to clear it and cast a final look in Zorn’s direction, watching as the man disappeared through a doorway. “Whatever happened to me would have been worth it.”

The girl’s smile disappeared for only a moment as she stuck her bottom lip out in thought. Then it returned, somehow brighter than before.

“I’m sorry to hear about your parents. I know how it feels. Or, at least, something like it. My brother was killed when the Hyperions came to Stariek. He was outside the Hallow Building protesting. I miss him.”

Though she still smiled, a tear came to her eye. Skylar’s mind went blank as he tried to think of what to say in response. His mouth opened and closed several times, like a stuck automatic door, before she stuck out her hand.

“My name is Lina Guezal. What’s yours?”

“Skylar Reid.” He hesitantly shook her hand. When he looked at her face, he noticed her jaw hanging loosely as she stared at him. Her eyes were as wide as dinner plates. “What?”

“Reid? Like the provost? Are you his son?”

Skylar’s face heated. Normally, it wouldn’t be a problem that someone recognized him or the connection. After all, pretty much everyone at school knew it. It came to be something he had grown accustomed to. But something about her question made him suddenly self-conscious about the fact.

“Yeah, but I don’t think the Hyperions care about who my father is.” He felt a tinge of worry settle in his stomach as he lied. When he looked around, most of the other children and teenagers had filtered out of the room, leaving a pair of robotic soldiers standing staring at the pair of the them and the few remaining stragglers. “What do you think they’re going to have us do?”

“No idea.” She shrugged, still staring him in the eye. He shifted uncomfortably under the gaze, trying to look anywhere but at her. “You know, you have some beautiful eyes.”

Skylar opened his mouth to speak when a metallic hand roughly shoved him sideways. He looked up in time to see the same happen to Lina, whose smile faltered slightly. Two of the robotic soldiers stared down at them, their red eyes piercing into them.

“Proceed with the rest of your cohort,” the robot on the right said. “Failure to obey orders will be met with severe punishment.”

Skylar glared at the robot. It stared impassively back, waiting for him to act. Finally, he sighed and started following after the rest of the children.

“Hey, wait up!” Lina said, falling into step beside him. She kept her eyes locked on him to the point he wished she would look anywhere else.

“Why are you staring at me like that?” he asked as they entered the hallways.

“Well, we’re best friends now.” Her voice held a matter-of-fact tone, daring him to object. “So, I have to memorize your face.”

“Memorize my face?”

“To make sure I don’t forget you, you know? Don’t want to accidentally not recognize my best friend after all.”

Skylar didn’t know what she was talking about. Part of him questioned whether this was some elaborate ruse. He shook his head, smiling slightly despite himself at the absurdity. Just the thought of having a best friend reminded him about Rach and the fact he had no idea where she was. He knew she was still out there somewhere. Somehow, he would find his way to her. He had to.

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