Space Race (Space Race 1) Page 5

  I picked up another and tried to recall how old I’d been when I’d received it. Third place at a suborbital contest over Lotus Corp-owned land. The trophy was simple, with a Pod Sprinter mounted cheaply on top. I’d been devastated that I’d finished in third position, but my grandfather had held his head high. He told me what I’d done wrong and what I’d done right. The comment he’d made had stuck with me forever. He stood there, before my parents meandered over from the stands, and crouched. I was eight. The more I thought about the moment, the more vivid it became in my mind. His strong palm landed on my shoulder; he stared at me, making sure we were at eye level. That was how he operated. Even playing fields. Never made me feel as small as I was, never let me feel stupid.

  His light blue eyes almost glowed, his smile so genuine, I stopped sniffling. “Arlo, not every Race is meant to be won. Sometimes you need to learn from them instead. If you won every contest, you’d think you were invincible. Life has a habit of keeping you focused, instead of growing stagnant. The best men and women out there don’t stop learning. They understand their mistakes, improve them, and perfect their skills. Do you now realize how powerful a loss can be?”

  I never finished worse than second after that day, and not even my grandfather knew how much those losses had chafed my young ego.

  I grabbed another award. First place in the Primary Pod Under Eighteen Cup. The last time I’d raced.

  “You were so talented.” My mom surprised me, and I almost dropped the trophy.

  “It was just a sport. A game.”

  “But it was something you could do together. He loved it so much,” she told me.

  “Less than his lust for adventure.”

  She paused and smiled. “Maybe you’re right. Take a shower. I don’t want to be late for my shift.”

  A half hour later, we left. My mother assured me she was fine, and that perhaps she’d overreacted last night. She peered around nervously as she walked me to Capricious, and she tsked as it came into view. I felt her judgment at the sight of my rundown hauler, but it was mine. Sage Industries had allowed me to own it as part of our deal after my promotion, and they’d surprisingly kept their word on it as we parted ways. Most likely, someone in the chain forgot I even had the ship. That was how these large companies worked. Layers upon layers of departments, each with a simple and focused goal. It made for high profits and low communication levels.

  We hugged, and I left her there, waiting for the transport that would come and bring her to her job site for the twelve-hour shift. She chatted with some friends, and despite her ragged appearance yesterday, she seemed in better spirits.

  Capricious vibrated as she powered on, and I decided to run a thorough scan before departing. “CP, full analysis.”

  “Running analysis,” she said. I was about to change her vocal settings, when the alarm sounded.

  “Damn it.” I hit a palm against the dash console. I was failing five of the top twenty diagnostic basics. That meant I wasn’t going to SeaTech, not without fixing the issues. I knew my way around my baby, but that usually involved rerouting power by circumventing things like in-floor lighting to keep the dash at capacity. Then there was the time I’d reduced my cabin pressure by five percent to keep my makeshift repair job on the drive’s converter from blowing.

  I ran a tally of all the homemade patches I’d done over the years, and it was no wonder she was acting up. I had to see a specialist, and I groaned as I decided who might be willing to do it for the spare money left in my account.

  “Come on, girl. Get me to the Wastes,” I mumbled as I lifted her into the sky. I waited for a string of Sage transports to pass by and set off for the wild west.

  The Wastes were unsanctioned by the Board, but that didn’t stop people from operating there. It was nestled between Sage and Orion along the East Coast, and above Oasis. The entire region was located in the heart of the landmass and had been abandoned hundreds of years ago after a nuclear meltdown in the early stages of the Tech Rise.

  Since then, not even the Primary Corps had wanted anything to do with the poisoned land, but eventually, people had begun migrating to it, seeking refuge from the clutches of the Corporations, and found their own version of home among the wastelands that were once part of a state named Kansas.

  Junction was located near a big lake, and despite early reservations, the community had managed to decontaminate the region and were able to live off the land. I passed sprawling fields of corn as I headed toward the city, which appeared to have grown since I’d last seen it.

  That was a low point in my life. Desperate and hungry, I’d lived there for a year before finding employment at Oasis’ hands. I didn’t expect to be welcomed with open arms, especially since I’d left in the middle of the night without so much as a goodbye. Bello hadn’t deserved that.

  Capricious hissed from the vents above me, and the scent of a broken fuel line filled the cabin. That wasn’t promising. I held my breath as I managed to land her near the shop, and noticed how much had changed. It looked bigger, with more of the town being repaired or under construction.

  I killed the power and jogged for the exit, exhaling as my boots landed on soil. She must have spotted me coming, or more likely had heard the labored flight of my ship, because the woman walked from her shop with a confident gait, a look of disapproval mixed with a sneering grin, which made for a confusing expression.

  “Didn’t expect I’d see you again,” she said, her voice carrying a familiar southern drawl. Okay, there might have been a reason CP sounded like that. I hated to admit that I’d actually missed the woman, but there it was.

  “Wasn’t planning on coming back either. How’s it going, Bello?” I tried to sound casual and cool, but it fell flat.

  “You sure you want to do this?” she asked, stepping closer. I saw a heavy tool in her hand, and her jumpsuit was covered in oil stains.

  “Do what? I need your help, Bello. Can we go inside to talk?” I asked. She was still beautiful. After four years, she looked even better.

  “I have nothing to say to you, Hawk.” She never would call me by my given name.

  It was cloudy, but the sun had a way of sneaking past the wispy layer, finding the back of my neck. I started for her, and a beam of light landed on the ground in front of me. I followed the light up to Aster on the rooftop, pointing a Widowmaker at me. I lifted my hands, trying to keep my calm. “Guys, I just need your help with Capricious. I can pay,” I said loud enough for Bello and her sidekick to hear.

  Bello waited a moment and shoved her tool into a front pocket. The weapon’s red marker vanished from the earth, and she waved me inside. “By the Primary, I didn’t wake up today thinking Hawk would be showing his pretty face.”

  I smiled, unable to refrain. We’d had a great relationship, until we hadn’t. Then it had gone south really fast. “You surviving?” I asked.

  “So far. Don’t know if that’s enough, is it?” Bello kicked the door open with her boot and held it while I entered the shop. It was precisely as I recalled: in a state of disaster. There were hoverbikes, landracers, Pods, and other various pieces of equipment in numerous states of disrepair covering the entire place. The lights were dim, and I swore I heard a wild animal sniffing among the wreckage. I saw her ship, Velvet, parked just beyond the space, and it looked like she’d cleaned it up and made some improvements since I’d last visited.

  “Some things never change,” I whispered, surveying the mess.

  “You’re damned right. You’re selfish as ever.” Bello wiped her hands on her jumpsuit and glared at me. “If you came back to the scene of the crime, you require something you can’t find elsewhere. Which means you don’t have a job, and you’re broke.”

  “You always could read me like a book.”

  “Books have large words and complicated plots. You’re much easier to read than a book, Hawk.” She smiled now, and I finally relaxed.

  “You’re right about everything, and look, I am sorry abou
t how things ended,” I told her.

  Her hair was cut shorter than before, white-blonde, and her eyes seemed darker, but happier somehow. “You don’t have to explain yourself. It took me a while to realize why you left. You’re meant for bigger things than flying around the Wastes, Hawk.”

  “Still, I could have told you,” I said, breaking eye contact.

  I almost jumped when her hand grabbed mine. “It was easier that way. I’m just glad you waited four years to come again, because I couldn’t have—”

  “Who’s here?” a voice asked. The man walked in, his chest wider than the old iron stove Bello used to melt metal.

  “It’s Hawk,” she said, stepping back.

  “Well, I’ll be a parrot’s cousin, it is Hawk, in the living flesh.” Grid charged ahead, lifting me in the most awkward embrace of my life. He smelled like sweat and meat.

  When he set me down, I cleared my throat and noticed how he positioned himself beside Bello. “We got hitched and even sprouted a couple little potatoes.” His big fingers went into his mouth, and he whistled a high-pitched screech. “Bon, Jess, get in here!”

  A little girl with long white hair entered from the far door, holding the hand of a chubby boy.

  “You have a whole family,” I murmured. This was good, I told myself. Bello was attached, and that would make this deal a lot smoother. “Congratulations,” I said, and only a slight part of me didn’t mean it.

  “That Capricious I heard?” Grid was already walking outside as the kids arrived, and I waved at them. They hid behind their mom’s legs.

  “You can fix her up?” I asked.

  “Fine. But it might take a couple of days,” she told me.

  ____________

  Walking the Wastes was a strange occurrence. The day was hot, but lucky for me, Grid and Bello had said Capricious would be ready soon. The roads smelled peculiar, and I learned it was a chemical spray used to keep weeds from growing through the gravel. Town was only a mile from their shop, and I decided I could use a tour of the place to see how much had changed.

  When I’d last been here, many of the houses in the area had been boarded up or abandoned—built three hundred years ago, some longer. Long before the Tech Rise and subsequent nuclear disaster that had overtaken Kansas. I bet if I used my ThermaSuit’s Geiger counter, I’d still find traces of radiation in the earth, but an annual dose of rad meds kept the people healthy.

  As I went farther, I began to see people outside. A man watched over his herd of cattle, leaning against a waist-high wooden fence. He glanced at me as I strolled by and said hello.

  “Nice day for a walk,” he added, turning his attention in my direction.

  “Nice day for a lot of things,” I replied.

  “What’s a stranger like you doing in the Wastes? Come to stay?” The man was older, bald, and wearing a worn green jumpsuit. The logo of some Corporation had been torn from the chest, replaced with a patch of fabric that didn’t match his outfit.

  “Visiting with Bello and Grid down the way.” I pointed toward their place.

  “Good people, them. You with the others?”

  I tilted my head, curious at his words. “Sure am.”

  “Think they got any real shot at this?” the man asked. I still had no idea what he was referring to, but I wanted to keep him talking.

  “How could we not?”

  “For starters, how can a few hundred citizens overthrow an institution of billions?” he asked thoughtfully.

  Was he insinuating an uprising? I had to test him on it. “The revolt is coming whether you or I participate, so why not toss a few more hands on deck?”

  He nodded. “Suppose you’re right. Nice to meet you, fellow. Take care of yourself out there.”

  I kept moving, wondering if my old flame and her new husband were truly tied up in this revolt or not. I wasn’t sure if I wanted to hear the answer.

  Instead of returning to confront them about it, I continued toward town. I was sweating profusely when I spotted the storefront, covered by a shaded awning. A couple of people stood there with cold drinks, chatting pleasantly. I nodded at them and entered the place, finding an empty bar.

  A woman sat near the bartender, her back turned to me, and I took the stool beside her.

  “Hey, Aster.”

  She didn’t even look over at me. “Hawk. You’re still around? I expected you to take off in the middle of the night. At least this time, you won’t be breaking Bello’s heart.”

  I sensed something deeper in her comment but took the jab with grace. “I would have, but the ship’s not repaired.”

  I always had the feeling Aster didn’t like me much, and she was reinforcing that now. “I know you’re trying to be funny, but it’s not working.”

  “Then how about I buy you another one of those, and we start off on the right foot?”

  She turned, and I saw the scar over her left eye. It was pink and puckered, a constant reminder from a fight at Orion manufacturing plant a decade ago.

  “Fine. She still talks about you. Grid too. That man loved you like a brother.”

  “And you? What’s been keeping you occupied?”

  “Mostly working with them. Lots of new people here, especially over the last year. We have some contracts to fix up old…”

  “Ships? For who?” I glanced at the bartender, who was watching the news a good ten yards away. “Liberty?” I said it quietly, but she still shushed me.

  “What do you think about them?”

  “That they’re unstable. They don’t have a shot at making any real changes,” I said.

  “I suppose you think this Race is one hundred percent kosher too?” Aster asked.

  I shrugged. “I don’t have enough information.”

  “Spoken like a sideline superhero.”

  I didn’t know how to respond, so we sat in silence, me ordering a bottle of water for the walk home. I said farewell, but she only grunted as I left the dim bar into the bright daylight.

  ____________

  I wished I could send Bryson Kelley a message, but I had no means to contact SeaTech’s CEO. People like that were too rich, too powerful to give public access. In the old days, the world was separated into countries and governments, but now CEOs ruled the roost, and Bryson had rising stock.

  Grid and Bello teamed up on the repairs with Aster’s help, but no matter how many times I offered to assist them, they disregarded me like I was an underfoot child. Aster still didn’t want to talk to me, and I was okay with that. I was relegated to babysitter, and quickly found I knew nothing about caring for children.

  At first, they were hesitant to hang out with a stranger, but soon I couldn’t get them to leave me alone. I was used to spending my days solo on Capricious, not making small talk with a three-and-a-half-year-old. Bon was white-haired and fair-skinned, just like her mother, and I could already tell Jess was going to take after his father. He was almost two years younger than Bon, but nearly as tall.

  In my downtime, I did some reading on SeaTech, astounded with what the CEO had done. Utilizing the ocean to create a one-of-a-kind manufacturing plant underwater near Hawaii was impressive in itself, but it was the manner in which he continued to use his company resources to invest in further growth that really caught my eye.

  The records were private with each Corporation, but not once did I find mention of any partners or financing bodies. From everything I could gather, Kelley was the sole owner and operator of SeaTech, which meant he didn’t have to dole out hefty dividends at the end of each quarter.

  I assumed that was how he’d risen to eleventh overall. I suspected the man’s business would enter the Primary Corp ranks very soon, especially with what was happening to places like Oasis. Not that I was bitter or anything.

  Finally, three days later than promised, Capricious was ready, and when I had CP run a scan, she passed with flying colors.

  “That’s quite the voice you gave her,” Bello said.

  I tried to
pretend I didn’t understand what she was suggesting, but they did sound almost identical. “It’s a glitch. Haven’t been able to adjust it.”

  Bello began to play with the keypad. “Want me to tweak it?”

  “Nah, it’s fine. I’ve gotten used to it.”

  Grid and the kids were inside, and the sun had long descended across the Wastes. I’d stayed close over the course of the week, trying to remind myself I couldn’t hide here long. After my quick visit into town, I thought it was best to keep out of sight. It was only a matter of time before the Corps shut this place down. It was inevitable.

  Bello stopped at the exit and smiled. “Hawk, I’m glad you came. It was nice seeing you. Take care of yourself.”

  “What’s the damage?” I asked, ready to swipe my tab.

  “It’s on the house.”

  “No way, it was far too much—”

  “It was Grid’s idea. He likes you, Hawk.”

  “It’s Arlo,” I muttered out of instinct.

  “No, it’s not. You’ll always be Hawk to me.”

  “Whatever you’re thinking of doing with this Liberty group, I think you should reconsider.” I didn’t want anything to happen to her or her little family. Just because I wasn’t the one in her life didn’t mean I couldn’t wish her the best.

  She shifted defensively. I’d struck a nerve. “Where did you hear this?”

  “In passing. I spoke to an old farmer, and he mentioned the people you’ve been consorting with.”

  She started to walk away. “It’s none of your business, Hawk.”

  “Wait. Bello, I’m only looking out for you. These people could be dangerous.”

  She froze, turning at the exit. “You know what’s dangerous? Waiting by for the Corporations to destroy humanity. That’s what. Don’t you worry about me.”

  “You know I can’t help but do that,” I whispered.

  Her defenses dropped when I walked over. “I know. We had a good time, but we were meant for different paths. By the way, I had Aster check out your security system and add improvements.”