Three seconds stretched into eternity as no one moved. The stillness broke when father poured another drink, his hands shaking, amber liquid sloshing over the rim.
"James," Mother said, voice tentative.
"Don't." He dismissed without looking up.
Uncle Michael leaned back into his chair. A smirk plastered on his face. "Ten minutes with the old man, huh~. Remember our talk before the testing, James?"
"Shut up, Michael," Father said.
"He told us that B-Grade would be sufficient. That he'd be proud regardless." Michael's voice was silk over steel. "We both know how that turned out."
"I said shut up!" Father slammed his glass onto the table, hard enough to crack it. The sound was sharp as a hairline fracture slithered through the base, and amber liquor began to seep out.
"Boys." Mother's voice cut through. "Not— in—front—of Marcus." Clear warning permeated her words.
They both looked at me. I could feel it. The same fear. Fear of mother? No— something else.
"Six minutes," Uncle David interjected, checking his watch. "Better not be late. Uncle Arthur hates-"
"I know what Grandfather hates," I snapped, surprising myself with how much venom I injected.
Uncle David raised his hands in mock surrender. "Just trying to help, Nephew," he said lightly.
Anger welled within me, bubbling up until I pushed my chair back and rose abruptly. I didn't want to deal with this, not now, not today. As I turned to leave, Father's hand shot out and grasped my wrist, halting my exit.
"Marcus." His eyes were glossy with alcohol. "Whatever he tells you... whatever he says about tomorrow..."
"What?" I snapped before he could finish.
He opened his mouth but stayed silent. His gaze turned to Mother. She shook her head in response. I felt the bubbling anger reach a tipping point; with a firm pull, Father's grip fell away.
I turned on my heel and marched out of the room.
"Four minutes~." Uncle David called after me.
The heavy glass doors slid shut behind me, cutting off the suffocating warmth of the dining room.
The garden was Grandfather's creation, brought piece by piece from Earth. Real 'Crimson Glory' roses, trees that couldn't grow in Epsilon Eridani's native soil and a small pond containing fish native to our mother world.
Grandfather stood over that pond, staring down into its shallow depths. His back to me, hands clasped behind him. The fish surfaced as I approached, hoping for food. Their mouths opened and closed as if trying to tell me something. Yet no words of wisdom came.
"Two minutes and forty-eight seconds, zero cohesion, and a ruined simulated Seraph frame."
I stopped a few paces away, crossing my arms to ward off the evening chill. "I broke the record."
"You threw a tantrum in a multi-million credit simulation because you didn't like the restrictions," Arthur corrected, his voice flat and uncompromising. He finally snapped the holo-pad shut and turned to face me. "Your uncles think you're a liability. Your father thinks you're a prodigy."
"And you?" I asked.
"I think you are a blunt instrument," Arthur replied coldly. "One that doesn't know what it's hitting."
I restrained myself from scowling at the man; if I gave any reaction, I'd be proving his words correct.
He reached into the breast pocket of his coat and pulled out a small, heavy rectangle of black metal. He held it out. "Take it," he directed.
I didn't move immediately, eyeing Grandfather, I reached out and took the pad.
I expected it to be cold, but as my fingers closed around the metal, I realised it was warm. A faint, lingering thermal charge radiated from the casing.
"Lydia's," Arthur stated, his eyes locking onto mine.
The night insects went quiet. Even the fish stopped begging. An uncomfortable silence hung in the air.
"Why are you giving this to me?" I forced out.
"Because it is a locked door, Marcus, and I do not tolerate locked doors in my house," Arthur said, taking a slow, imposing step forward. "The official histories say she died a perfect soldier. But her final transmission wasn't a tactical report. It was a string of math. Complete, erratic nonsense."
My brow furrowed at the statement. This was news to me. What does this have to do with 'perspective'? Nothing was making sense.
"I've had the best slicers in the sector try to crack that drive," Arthur continued, his voice dropping to a dangerous baseline. "The last one who tried to brute-force it had his neural-link flash-fried. They found him slumped over his rig. The encryption requires an S-Grade neural density to even initiate a handshake. I even had an S-Grade from the inner worlds hold it. Nothing."
"And you think I can open it if I get S-Grade?" I asked.
"Worth a try, it might be locked to our family's DNA." Grandfather replied.
Against my palm, the black screen flickered for a brief moment. A faint, red line of text rendering in the dark. I quickly diverted my gaze from it back up to the man standing before me, copper flooding my mouth.
"Tomorrow, the Moirai will evaluate you," Arthur commanded. "When it expands your neural pathways, you will achieve S-Grade. And when you do, you will open that drive. I want to know what she found at Proxima, and I want to know why it drove the greatest pilot in our bloodline completely mad."
He didn't wait for me to agree. He turned on his heel and walked back toward the glass doors.
"And Marcus?" Arthur paused, looking over his shoulder, his eyes utterly devoid of warmth. "Do not disappoint me tomorrow."
My eyes followed him. I could see the rest of the family watching through the glass door. As they noticed my gaze, they scrambled, pretending they weren't watching. A soft chuckle escaped my lips. Despite their flaws, they were still family...
I turned to look at the data-pad in my hands. The screen was now dark, locked and waiting. Another thing to worry about tomorrow... Great.
--
Once my ten minutes of contemplation in the garden had passed, I steeled myself and made my way back toward the house. When I entered the dining room, I found it had already been cleared — plates and glasses were gone, leaving only Uncle Michael, father, and mother at the table. Grandfather and Uncle David were notably absent.
Father looked up towards me as I entered, his eyes glassy and unfocused. His uniform jacket was unbuttoned, and his tie was loosened. He was even more drunk.
"What did he tell you?" He asked with a slur to his words.
After a moment of trying to find the right words, I replied, "Just... Stories about Aunt Lydia."
Father's gaze softened for a moment before letting out a low and guttural chuckle. "Heh, sounds like father." After a moment of relief, something switched in his gaze. "He didn't tell you about what it means to be a lower grade?"
"James—" Mother tried to warn him.
"The boy needs to know!" He stood swaying slightly. "Did he tell you what happens to D-grades, Marcus? Did he tell you about the mortality rates?"
"Father—" I'd never seen him like this before; my previous anger had morphed into anxiety.
"Seventy per cent gone in five years, Marcus. Eighty-five before the decade's out." He laughed, wet and ugly. "I have the spreadsheets memorised. Every name. Every coffin. Every soldier who ever served under me."
"All grades serve with honour..." The words tasted hollow even to me.
Uncle Michael laughed, ugly and sharp. "Honour. Yes. Very honourable."
"Enough!" Mother's voice cut through. "Marcus, go to your room. You need rest for tomorrow."
I didn't argue and quickly exited.
-
My room felt smaller than it usually did, the walls covered in old achievement certificates, holo-posters of famous mech pilots, and a photo from my prep-academies graduation. Wei, Alexi, Diana, and I were at the centre of the photo, the prep academy in the background.
Wei stood tall even then, dark hair pulled back into a perfect bun, wearing that practised smile she wore for cameras. Alexei had his arm slung around my shoulders, shorter and stockier, with that mischievous grin that meant he'd just pulled a prank. Diana at the edge, small and pale, looking slightly away from the camera like she'd rather be anywhere else. And me in the centre, trying to look confident, father's sharp features and mother's dark eyes and hair staring back.
We looked so young. We looked so... Oblivious.
Tearing my eyes from the photo, I shoved the datapad under my pillow and plucked my commlink from my bedside table, turning it on. I could still hear Father and Uncle Michael arguing downstairs; somehow, Mother's voice was the loudest.
After a brief moment, I switched my commlink to life, and several buzzes echoed throughout my room. I clicked the first notification, which took me to a group chat, and my screen lit up with a barrage of notifications.
[NEST PROTOCOLS]
Alexei_V:eyooo~ still breathing?
Marcus_T:Just finished family dinner. Still processing
Alexei_V:processing. cute word for trauma~
Alexei_V:speaking of. liberated refreshments from officer mess tonight. grade-a contraband
Wei_C:You're going to get expelled before we even start.
Alexei_V:tomorrow they sort us into corpses anyway. might as well drink like brass tonight
Diana.S:he's not wrong.
Marcus_T:Diana agreeing with Alexei. It really is the end times
Diana.S:stop. need to sync up. all of us. tonight.
Wei_C:The Nest?
Alexei_V:affirm,neg on alternatives. everywhere else has ears~
Diana.S:2200 hours. marcus can you slip the watchers?
Marcus_T:Done it before
Wei_C:My security detail changed rotation. New guy's thorough.
Alexei_V:security detail. must be nice being chen royalty
Wei_C:Shut it, Lex.
Alexei_V:make me, princess~
Diana.S:children please. wei take southeast approach. construction zone.
Alexei_V: sorry mooom~
Diana.S: ew, never say that again.
Wei_C:Since when do you know my compound layout?
Diana.S:since always. pay attention.
Marcus_T:Diana knows everyone's everything
Alexei_V:anyway. secured two bottles of the good stuff. earth vintage supposedly
Wei_C:That's worth more than my monthly allowance.
Alexei_V:YOUR monthly allowance could buy a shuttle
Marcus_T:Can we not do the class thing tonight?
Diana.S:tomorrow makes it permanent. tonight it doesn't exist.
Wei_C:Agreed.
Alexei_V:heavy words from ghost girl
Diana.S:alexei...
Alexei_V:what. its true. you lurk you observe you know things
Diana.S:and you joke because silence scares you.
Marcus_T: She's got you there bud
Alexei_V:...
Alexei_V:2200, Marcus don't be late~
Marcus_T:When have I ever been late?
Wei_C:Want the list alphabetically or chronologically?
Alexei_V:dayuum. chen strikes from orbital height
Marcus_T:I'm wounded
Wei_C:You'll live.
Diana.S:will he though. will any of us.
Alexei_V:jesus diana. save the existential crisis for after we get tested
Diana.S:just being realistic.
Wei_C:Realism is just fear wearing a lab coat.
Alexei_V:who are you and what did you do with ice princess chen
Wei_C:Maybe you don't know me as well as you think.
Marcus_T:Nobody knows anybody. Not really
Diana.S:marcus gets it.
Alexei_V:great now we're all being philosophical. is this what happens before testing. we all turn into poets?
Wei_C:You? A poet?
Alexei_V:roses are red. violets are blue. tomorrow we're sorted. and our friendship is through.
Marcus_T:Dark, Lex
Alexei_V:realistic, he means realistic
Diana.S:come ready.
Wei_C:Ready for what?
Diana.S:to say goodbye properly.
Alexei_V:we're not saying goodbye
Diana.S:no. we're saying see you later. even though we won't.
Wei_C:Diana...
Diana.S:just bring yourselves. your real selves. last chance.
Marcus_T:We're going to ace this. Stay together
Diana.S:pretty lie, marcus.
Alexei_V:let him have it. we all need our pretty lies
Wei_C:Mine is that grade won't matter.
Alexei_V:mine is that ill test b-grade minimum
Diana.S:mine is that i don't already know how this ends.
Marcus_T:You don't know. Nobody knows for sure
Diana.S:2200.
[Diana.S has gone offline]
Alexei_V:she always does that. drops wisdom then ghosts
Wei_C:It's her thing.
Marcus_T:Everyone needs a thing
Alexei_V:chens is being stupid.
Wei_C:Yours is bad jokes.
Alexei_V:theyre good jokes delivered to the wrong audience
Marcus_T:Sure, Lex.
Wei_C:2200. Don't make me wait.
Alexei_V:wouldn't dream of it princess~
Wei_C:Call me princess again and I break your nose.
Alexei_V:promises promises.
[Wei_C has gone offline]
Alexei_V:you still there marcus?
Marcus_T:Yeah
Alexei_V:you scared?
Marcus_T:Terrified
Alexei_V:good. means you're paying attention
Alexei_V:see you at the nest brother.
Marcus_T:See you soon brother
[Alexei_V has gone offline]
-