Book 2: Chapter 36 - There Are No Child Soldiers in Prism City

Our students are happy, and our students are healthy.

I understand that the circumstances of their education are unpalatable.
The concept of a draft is far from pleasant.
Especially when enlistees are so… inexperienced.

These are ugly, desperate times. 
Times which force us, all of us, to make ugly, desperate decisions.

Which is why I work so hard to keep my student’s lives as normal as possible.

I know what the laws say.

I know that, from your satellite cities where all you get is stories and rumors,
Chromatic Academy might sound like a prison.

It is not.

My students are safe. They are fulfilled. 
And they are free.

I make certain of it.

This is why there has never been a single AWOL student as long as I’ve been headmaster.
My students don't run. They don't leave. And we do nothing to stop them from trying.
Does that sound like a prison to you?
—Abel Bouvier, Public Statement

“Where did you even get these?” Kiera asked, looking down at the potions Violet was presenting to her. “These must have cost a fortune. There is a reason they are letting my dad work here, despite the clear conflict of interest. This shit… this stuff isn’t cheap.”

Violet’s fireteam sat in a circle as they waited for the operation to start. They were in a large staging room at one of the city gates. A foot exit used exclusively for lancers. The entire class was checking their gear one last time before their first trip out of the city. They’d been ordered to hurry up and wait, so to speak, and Violet was taking the opportunity to distribute her privately acquired potions to her team. Violet shrugged in response to the fox’s concerns. “I’m an Asher, remember? Plus, I’m hot. People just give me things,” she answered.

“Things like a bruised ribcage, you mean?” Kiera deadpanned. “You must have gotten these from your family, because I know being hot only gets you expensive shi—crap in movies. Trust me, I’ve tried being hot for years.”

“Me, too,” Guy agreed. “Kiera’s right. All anyone ever gives me for it is their unbridled lust and overflowing adoration, and also a lot of free things.”

“Name one free thing anyone has given you for your looks,” Aubrey challenged. 

“Kassie and Ajia gave me their numbers,” Guy answered smugly. “And you gave me free satisfaction by only denying the second half.”

“Ugh, don’t be gross, Guy,” Kiera snapped. The irritation in her eyes was obviously more jealousy than disgust, but Violet simply filed that away for later. Teen drama could be fun and all, but it was all a bit beneath her. She held life and death in her hands. It was funny watching her friend panic over dating prospects. It was a useless worry. At least, until she could use it for something interesting. “The point is, you shouldn’t have gone out of your way. They hurt you last time, and I’m sure it wasn’t pleasant this time.”

“It’s fine, really. I already earned their respect or whatever. They just give me an allowance for doing some basic work for them. Think of it as a part-time job I got through nepotism!” Violet cheerfully answered.

“From the guy who beat the shit out of you in exchange for a favor,” Kiera replied.

“I don’t like it, either,” Aubrey complained. “If they hit you once, they’ll hit you again.”

“Exactly,” Violet said. “And Samuel Mulberry hit once. I don’t intend to let him hit again. Is it the safest way to protect my fireteam? Maybe not. But it’s safer than trusting the potions that were issued to us. He probably didn’t do anything to them, of course. It would be stupid to mess with the entire class’s potions. He’d be caught pretty quick. But you never know with abusers. It’s worth being careful.”

“I don’t want to be careful for my sake only to get you hurt, though,” Kiera insisted.

“Well, I appreciate that, but we have these now, so let’s use them,” Violet dismissed.

“What about the other teams?” Guy asked. “I love being safe and all, but maybe we don’t just say ‘fuck those guys’ and move on with our day?”

“I warned the other team leads already, and they let me take a look at their potions just in case. But Mr. Clay cleared them, so they are going to trust them. I didn’t have enough potions for everybody. But all the team leaders know now. So hopefully they’ll keep them as a last resort. That’s the best I can do,” Violet replied. 

“Oh. I was hoping you’d send me to warn Kassie,” Guy admitted. He didn’t seem to catch the way Kiera’s ears flattened against her head. Or at least, he didn’t comment on it. Of course, Kiera hadn’t commented on the way Guy’s hands were shaking as the trip into the mist approached, so it was perhaps a fair trade. Although it was subtle. Violet hadn’t noticed the same trait on the train, if it had been present. She saw it now, but there were a couple of differences this time. Kiera had told her how afraid Guy was under all of his bravado and jokes, which may have tipped Violet off. She also had a much higher perception attribute now. She took a mental note of all of this.

“You’ll get over it, sport. Besides, as we’ve discussed before, our fireteams are assaulting a nest with a queen together. So we’ll be seeing plenty of Kassie. Although, I don’t recommend flustering her. She’s the highest category and degree between all eight of us. We’ll probably want her focused,” Violet said.

“A queen?” Aubrey interjected. “Are you fucking kidding me? The first time we go into the mist, and they want us to assault a goddamn queen? Are they insane?”

“Oh, good, we’re fucked again,” Guy agreed.

“It’s not so bad as all that,” Violet replied. “Honestly, we’ve all been through worse. And we’ll get a detailed debrief on the full assignment from Mr. Clay before we leave. He just told the team leaders first. But all the nests around Prism are monitored. Most of them lack queens, and Mr. Clay knows which ones have them and how dangerous they are. More specifically, when they are active. If it attacks us, Mr. Clay will kill it. We are going to a red nest at degree ten, which is higher than some of us, of course. But Kassie’s team are all orange, and they’ll be taking point. That’s why we were paired with them. We only have to clear a couple of rooms, then it’ll be the next group’s turn. It’ll be easy, safe, and practical experience. That’s all,” Violet assured. She locked her eyes onto Guy the entire time, paying attention to the subtle signs of fear he was exhibiting. And he did seem to calm down as she spoke.

“No offense to Kassie, but she doesn’t exactly come off as a particularly violent person. I’m glad to have an orange of her degree, yeah. But she seems more like a medic than a fighter, doesn’t she?” Kiera asked. 

Violet shrugged. “I suppose we’ll find out. But I vote we trust her. We have potions we know are safe, and a team that outclasses the nest with us. And Mr. Clay could flatten the entire nest with a sneeze if things get out of hand. And you know what? If anything goes wrong, I will die before I let anything happen to any of you. I swear. I will keep all of you safe, no matter what,” she promised.

The team was silent for a moment. If anyone else had said that, they might not have taken it seriously. But after everything this group had been through? They believed her. She could tell. It wasn’t an empty promise, and she’d proved that. The reality of that left the scene a bit awkward for a few moments, but Guy eventually broke the silence.

“So, Ajia is on Kassie’s team, too, right?” he asked.

“Oh, Guy. You know I love you. But you are also the actual worst,” Kiera groaned.

“Love you, too, buddy,” Guy agreed cheerfully. 

Violet smirked internally. Kiera needed to be careful about casual confessions like that. Someday, Guy was going to notice the double meanings.

“Oh,” Aubrey said, surprise and even a little embarrassment in her voice. All eyes turned toward her as she looked through her rucksack. She held the necklace and the note Violet had planted for her. As Violet saw them in the banshee's hands, she suddenly looked away. She'd seen the shock and gratitude on Aubrey‘s face, and that was enough.

It had been a simple note. 

Trust yourself, Aubrey. Like I trust you. You're amazing, and we’re going to be relying on you.

Nothing more than that. But Violet thought the words might hit home for the other girl. Aubrey was so afraid of messing up again. Ever since Stephanie's death, the other girl had been terrified of hurting someone else. Going into the mist again was no doubt increasing her anxiety at the very least. A small expression of trust might’ve felt like a massive kindness. 

The necklace had been a last-minute decision. A gold “quarter rest” symbol in musical notation. The message behind this choice was intentionally unclear. That had been a bit of a gamble, but Violet could tell there had been no offense. It was being accepted as a simple act of appreciation, exactly as she'd hoped. It would be the first of a series of small kindnesses she'd do for Aubrey. A week or two of that, and the shouting match after Kiera's arrest would be entirely forgotten. Violet was always amazed at that. It took so little effort, and had such a profound effect. Like emotional white-out for her worst slip-ups.

“Hiya, Team Violet!” Kassie greeted, pulling Violet from her thoughts. The entire group shifted focus again, allowing Aubrey to stuff the gift back in her bag. Kassie’s entire fireteam was approaching, apparently happy with their final gear check. It was conveniently timed, since Aubrey would have wanted to talk about the gift otherwise. The gesture would be more effective if Aubrey had to sit with it for a while, and if Violet never actually acknowledged it herself. She’d been about to change the subject, but Kassie’s arrival was a better distraction. 

“Team Kassie!” Violet greeted with a wide grin. “We were just talking about you! Guy here is particularly interested in your protection. He’s a bit of a gentle soul.”

“Hey!” Guy complained. “I am a rugged, manly, and hugely gentle soul, thank you very much!”

“Well, I’m more than happy to provide that protection!” Kassie promised as she walked. She reached Violet’s team and dropped her heavy bag on the ground. She winked at Guy as she took her seat next to Violet. “Especially for Guy, of course.”

“At your level, you really should be taking care of everyone, Kass. I’ll give Guy the special attention he needs,” Ajia cut in, sitting down next to Aubrey. The shapeshifter caught a glimpse of the note before Aubrey could put it away, then winked at Violet. The reaper wondered if Aubrey’s roommate was actually invested in the unlikely pairing. Violet had assumed Ajia just enjoyed teasing Aubrey, but the wink had only been visible to her. If there were some deeper investment, it would only lead to disappointment, of course. But it was, as ever, something to remember. 

Kiera crossed her arms in frustration, but didn’t say anything. This was also noteworthy, if only because it revealed a little more information about the fox’s disposition. Kiera didn’t love when other people flirted with her crush, but she didn’t express any kind of anger, either. She didn’t seem to hold animosity for her competition so much as irritation with herself. Violet didn’t quite understand that, but it was interesting in any case. But the boiling drama could only interest her for so long. At the end of the day, these people could screw each other in whatever configurations and combinations they wanted, just so long as they didn’t get in Violet’s way. As Zach and Dustin caught up and found their own places in the circle, Violet decided to change the subject.

“Hormones and drooling Tanks aside, have you seen Mr. Clay around? Honestly, waiting to enter the mist makes me more anxious than actually exploring it, if that makes sense.”

“Drooling what?” Guy asked. 

“Don’t—” Kiera tried to warn, but Zach took the bait before she could communicate the malicious intent behind Guy’s question.

“She said Tanks,” Zach answered helpfully, fully oblivious to the insidious danger inherent in the response.

“Oh,” Guy replied, shifting his focus to Violet. “You’re welcome, Vi.”

The group was silent for a moment. Kiera put her palm to her face, and even the usually inexpressive Dustin seemed to grimace.

“Yeah, okay,” Kassie replied. “Ajia, you can totally take care of this one for me. I’m good, I think.”

“I’m sorry,” Zach murmured. “I should have known better than to answer that.”

“Hubris was your fatal flaw,” Ajia lamented, rubbing Zach’s back with one hand.

There was another moment of quiet, then Kassie coughed. “Anyway, Mr. Clay was fighting with Mr. Bouvier about something. I couldn’t hear what, but it was, like, even more heated than usual. Probably this, uh… field trip has him especially irritable. You know how seriously grumpy Mr. Clay gets when we show up to regular class. He’s probably losing it over an actual trip to a nest.”

“What’s the deal with that, anyway?” Aubrey asked. “The dude is constantly telling us not to show up. He taunts us with the idea of leaving school and picking something safe, but that’s stupid as shit. He knows we don’t have a choice about being here, right? We’ll go to jail for desertion if we listen to him. Even those of us who volunteered to be here. It’s pretty fucked up to constantly remind us he thinks we’ll die if we stay when it’s not even our decision. Right?” 

“I mean, some of us probably should be in jail,” Zach whispered, shooting a glance at Kiera. 

Violet’s eyes descended on Zach like acid rain the moment he spoke. “Hey, how about you watch your fucking mouth?” she asked with a too-sweet smile. Zach jolted at the sudden hostility, swallowing hard as he met Violet’s gaze. It was clear that the violence of her eyes and words didn’t align with the sugar of her voice. That seemed only to make him more nervous.

“Oh. Shit, you haven’t noticed yet, have you? I guess you guys, like, just got here. So that makes sense,” Kassie said loudly. The druid hurried to refocus the conversation, shooting an apologetic glance at Violet. The message was clear. She’d talk to Zach, and Violet should comfort Kiera. But not right now.

“Notice what?” Guy asked, eager to aid Kassie in her attempts to refocus the conversation.

“Well, I mean. We’re, like, totally child soldiers, right? It’s crazy how they try to make us feel like that’s not true. They make school feel like the movies. They even gave us school uniforms, which weren’t all that common in the old-world United States. They let us have free time and explore Prism. They put a lot of work into reinforcing this illusion that we are just kids at school. For us and for the optics. But we are basically just child soldiers, you know?” Kassie explained.

“Yeah, no shit,” Aubrey said. “That's why it pisses me off when he does that.”

“Right. But that’s the thing. Isn’t it weird that it works?” Kassie pushed. “Like, they can give us a school cafeteria and dorms, and little sailor uniforms with cute knee-high socks and pretty ribbons for our hair. They can let us go to karaoke and give us access to the archives for our favorite curated movies and books. But isn’t it super fucking weird that all of us just play along and act like we are just school children?”

The group was silent for a moment, and Violet’s face turned to stone. “Actually, how often do people desert?” the reaper asked.

Kassie snapped her fingers and pointed at Violet excitedly. “That’s the question, isn’t it? ‘Cause even a pretty and comfortable school for child soldiers would have people running sometimes, right? But it doesn’t. No one ever leaves. They don’t even try! We have no high gate around the school. No guards, or fences, or chips in our necks that track our movements. They let us all come and go as we please, so long as we go to class. Hell, even when Guy missed a class, they didn’t go looking for him! They just knew he hadn’t run. They know we won’t try it. And like, we know, too!” she said.

“What the fuck?” Kiera said. “That doesn’t make any sense at all. No one ever thinks about running? Like… ever? Is there someone watching us all the time with a talent or something?”

“Not watching us, no. At least, I don’t think so,” Kassie answered. “Nope. Because we are talking about this, right now. And even so, I haven’t considered leaving once. I’m still not considering it. And I bet none of you are, either. Even as we wait to explore the mist and fight monsters that want to kill and eat us. We are teenagers checking out gear before going to fight the creatures of our nightmares later, and none of us are even considering leaving? Or am I wrong?”

The group was silent again as they considered that. And Violet realized it was true. She’d never once considered leaving Chromatic Academy. Even after Bouvier started blackmailing her, and after Cyan learned what she was. Except… that wasn’t entirely true. There had been one time. When she thought she’d been caught. She’d considered fleeing the police. But that was it. The rest of the time? The option hadn’t even occurred to her academically.

“So, what, Mr. Clay is trying to remind us it’s possible? Why?” Violet asked.

“Because he hates this academy,” Dustin answered, speaking for the first time. “He hates it here, and he works as a teacher only to save as many of us as he can. Children, I mean.”

“That’s what he’s always arguing with Bouvier about,” Kassie agreed. “I’m not sure exactly how it works, but the headmaster has to be using some kind of talent to keep us here. That’s my theory, anyway. The point is, those two are like, basically always fighting about one thing or another.”

Violet was furious, and she was having trouble keeping it off her face. First, Zach had mouthed off about Kiera, then Kassie had casually revealed something worse. Bouvier had been fucking with Violet’s mind, and she hadn’t even noticed. She wanted to kill him more than ever, learning this. He couldn’t take that from her, apparently. She wanted his blood, and no talent would keep her from it.

“Welp,” Guy replied. “This is a terrifying conversation. Thank God we all already took a piss, am I right? This would be a super awkward time to ask to be excused.” 

Everyone looked at him. Violet’s team was still processing the revelation, and Kassie’s had obviously discussed it before. But the information left both groups’ heads as they examined the ridiculous tank. He had his legs crossed and was rocking slightly.

“You kind of look like you haven’t yet, actually,” Kiera said.

“Sure haven’t,” Guy confirmed. “Can I be excused?”