The surface trials, p.3
The Surface Trials, page 3
Plait-kid whistled softly. ‘That’s cool. Maybe you could teach us some tricks.’
As if, thought Ammy. Sure, nothing brought on a Trials elimination faster than being selfish. But help too much, and you risked being eliminated while your squadmates grabbed the knowledge you gifted them and made it through. It was a fine balance.
Urs just nodded. ‘Sure thing.’
‘Any idea which planet we’re on?’ Tayga asked.
Urs snorted. ‘Not a clue, there were probably hundreds of possible planets.’
Plait-kid corrected her immediately. ‘Only thirty-four. But that’s still too big a number to tell where we are this early.’
‘How about you – Roxan, is it?’ Tayga was definitely making the conversation run smoothly here. That would be the Strenshine advantage. The annual fees for Strenshine Junior were about ten times as much as Ammy’s parents would make in their entire lifetimes.
Plait-kid smiled, tapping his badge. ‘Roxan Straeus, but call me Rox. I was a boarder at Highport Junior. And now, of course, hoping to get into Starquest.’
Talk about stating the obvious. But Tayga smiled back like Rox had said something exceedingly funny.
‘Where do you hail from, Ammy?’ Rox asked.
Here it came, then. Ammy’s face felt hot and cold all at once. The vomit vibes were having an encore. ‘Um, yeah. Ammy Antares is my name. I didn’t go to a junior academy.’
‘Wow, so you went to a common school?’ Tayga asked. ‘Kudos to you, getting through this far! Which planet?’
Ammy braced herself. ‘Proxima Centauri.’
There was a snatch of awful silence.
‘You’re a Proxy?’ Tayga’s smile shuddered and died. ‘Are you even allowed to be here?’
Rox was suffering from a coughing fit. Urs snatched a peek at Ammy and then looked quickly away, like just seeing her could bring on a Mindbreaker attack.
‘I’m right, yeah?’ said Tayga, looking wildly from Urs to Rox and back again. ‘Proxies are confined to planet?’
Ammy lifted her chin. ‘I have approval to leave. Starquest endorsed me.’
‘Really? Um.’ Tayga’s grimace smoothed like he’d just remembered it might not look good to diss someone Starquest had bothered to endorse.
Ammy was pretty sure Tayga made it a habit to look good.
‘Well, I’m so glad you’re on our squad,’ he said, megabeam smile hollow.
Ammy felt ill.
‘I don’t think many candidates come through from Proxima?’ said Rox with the same forced-friendly voice.
Ammy shook her head. ‘Well, there’s not many of us left, of course. And because of the Control, we need to get a much higher mark to secure endorsement, so it’s more difficult to get through. I only know of a few getting into the Trials from home since the – you know – the war.’
Wow. Crickets. Or whatever the equivalent was here. Awkward.
They all jumped as spew-kid groaned and hauled himself upright, cradling his head in his hands.
Finally Tayga spoke. ‘So your domes now definitely stop the radiation from, umm …?’ He looked away, his fingers making circles beside his ears.
‘Tayga!’ hissed Rox.
‘What?’ he whispered back. ‘It’s a legit question. She could be a Mindbreaker, just waiting for the chance to fry our brains—’ He stopped, eyes flicking around like he was looking for the monitoring devices that were definitely everywhere.
Ammy bit her lip. She wished they could’ve skipped the intros.
The silence stretched again.
And was broken by the sound of a long breath in and out. Spew-kid finally looked up, shaking his head like he was clearing away the last of the nausea. ‘Honestly, people, so she comes from Proxima. All the mutant mindpowers were wiped out in the war, but their Testing is still super strict anyway.’ He scrubbed at his face. ‘She wouldn’t be here if they didn’t think she deserved to be. We need to focus on what matters … which is finding and solving the first riddle.’
His sweaty hair was stuck to his clammy face, but Ammy was a hundred per cent sure the other three looked more uncomfortable than spew-kid in that moment. She wanted to cheer. She also wanted to glance around and see if the lander was coming back to eliminate someone – make it Tayga, please – even though she knew an hour couldn’t have passed yet.
But really, the prejudice against Proxima – the inter-generational fear of the Mindbreakers and the deadly war they’d started – was so widespread the assessors were probably going to overlook it for now.
Spew-kid turned to her and smiled. His eyes had seemed grey in the lander, but out here under this amazing sky they were closer to blue. ‘I’m Deneb Algedi, by the way. I went to a standard Junior on Earth. And when I’m not travelling in a blacked-out lander, I’m usually a lot more fun.’ He looked at Urs and Tayga. ‘Thanks for helping move me over here. This sun is working wonders.’
Tayga smiled. ‘Thanks for not chucking up in the lander.’ Which maybe was meant to be a light-hearted comment, but also managed to remind everyone watching that Deneb had suffered from travel sickness. Was that intentional?
Deneb mock-shuddered. ‘I don’t want to even think about that lander.’
Urs chuckled. ‘Well, hopefully none of us have to get in another one for three days, hey?’
Tayga didn’t meet Ammy’s eyes as he said, ‘So true! Well, shall we check the backpack?’
Ammy’s heart did a little flip. This was it. The first clue must be in there.
Surely.
7
BE PREPARED FOR CANDIDATES WITH DIFFERING BACKGROUNDS AND VIEWS TO YOURS – THE WORLDS ARE WIDE AND VARIED
Almost everyone got someone on their squad they didn’t want. Of course. And this was an excellent example of exactly that. Rian knew that if you found yourself with someone wholly unlikeable or just plain dangerous on your squad, there were subtle ways to get rid of them.
But – here was the thing – if you tried too hard, the assessors would notice. And then you’d be ruled as low on empathy or poor at group work, and before you could blink there’d be a lander hovering above you calling out your name.
Rian figured an unpleasant squad member was actually a good thing. Because sometimes it upset the dynamics so much that multiple candidates were quickly eliminated.
And if that was going to happen here? He just had to make sure he wasn’t one of them.
8
TO SOLVE A CLUE, FIRST YOU MUST DISCOVER IT
The different tensions in this squad would be fascinating to watch, if Deneb was safely at home in front of his screen with a bowl of snacks. Instead, he was a part of it all. He was grateful for the Proxy – what was her name? Ammy? – because she would surely have taken a bit of the focus off his terrible inability to control his stomach coming down.
His heartbeat rose when Tayga mentioned checking the backpack. Deneb had to fight back a grin as Tayga reached for it but was defeated by Ammy casually pulling it towards herself. Her jaw was set hard again.
‘Okay,’ she said, lifting the pack up. ‘What have we here?’
Suspense was a buzz in his veins. Deneb watched as she rotated the bag to look at it. ‘I can’t see anything on the outside that could be a clue.’
‘I’ve heard they’re really subtle sometimes,’ said Urs. ‘Unlike me,’ she added with a grin.
Ammy sputtered a laugh, and Deneb let himself smile. Urs was bringing more than just her planetician background to the squad.
The backpack wasn’t large. It only had one opening, covered with a flap. Ammy’s fingers shook as she lifted it. At first it wouldn’t come away, but then something unclicked and she flipped it up. She looked at the others, eyes so dark they appeared almost black. ‘Magnetic catch. Not very secure. We’ll need to be careful with it.’
Deneb nodded. He was equally impatient and appreciative of the way she was assessing each step. Go too fast and you could miss important clues. Of course, she was here even though she was a Proxy. That meant she had to be wicked clever.
With the flap open, Ammy pulled at a bungee cord cinching the pack closed. She loosened the spring clasp holding it tight. Deneb hoped she was remembering to breathe. Was he? He could practically feel the anticipation of the rest of the squad.
Finally she reached inside.
‘A bottle,’ she said, drawing it out. Rox held out his hand and Ammy passed it to him. Clever again. To hog the contents would be seen as selfish.
‘Cup on top protecting the lid. It’s empty,’ Rox said, after unscrewing the cap.
‘Any designs you can see on the outside?’ asked Deneb.
Rox spun it and nodded. ‘Three small stickers. One with a big water creature, maybe a whale? One that says You’ve got this with a bunch of hearts. Nice. Appreciate that sentiment. And one with some sort of cat-looking animal up a mountain.’
Deneb leaned across. ‘That’s an Earth lion, I think.’
‘Aren’t you from Earth?’ asked Tayga with a look of wide-eyed innocence.
Deneb stomped on a surge of irritation. He shrugged, made himself smile. ‘No lions near where I live, and the way the mane is drawn … it could be a Luyten’s megafeline.’
Urs nodded. ‘Could be. Can’t see any meaning in any of these right now, but that’s normal. I bet there is one.’
‘They never include something without a reason, even if it’s just there to confuse,’ said Ammy.
Rox passed the bottle to Deneb. ‘I think we can expect the water here will be good to drink, and that there’ll be enough of it around so we don’t have to carry much.’
A thrill ran through Deneb’s fingers as he gripped the cool metal – an actual piece of his very own Surface Trials gear – and studied the strange stickers up close.
Tayga was leaning forward. ‘What’s next?’
Ammy reached in and pulled out a large cube, frowning. It was pearly white. Instantly recognisable.
‘A lightbox,’ said Tayga.
Ammy’s face twitched. If Deneb had to guess, he’d say she hadn’t known what it was.
‘That’s not standard issue,’ said Deneb. ‘Maybe the nights are super dark here? Or we have to go underground at some time?’
Tayga shrugged. ‘What else is in there?’
So impatient, that one.
Ammy peered inside again, and began to bring out a series of items:
Eight small packets held together with catch tape. Basic daily rations. Of course, five people for three days did not equal eight. Starquest was expecting at least a few of them to be eliminated quickly.
A standard-issue first-aid kit with NOT A GAME PIECE written on it in big letters.
A brand new slatepad. Standard issue again. Urs palmed it on, but there was nothing saved to it.
A torch, small enough to fit in a pocket. Standard.
And from the very bottom, a minuscule sewing kit. Deneb’s pulse quickened. That wasn’t usual. It only contained a single needle and one spool of dark green thread.
‘Maybe there are lots of thorny plants out here or something?’ said Urs as she studied the kit. She handed it to Tayga.
‘Yeah,’ he said. ‘I think they included something like this in maybe forty-nine? Whatever year they had lots of sharp rocks to get across, kept on tearing their uniforms.’
He passed it on to Deneb, but there was nothing else to be found by studying it. So far, no clue. Deneb told himself to stay calm. They would find it.
‘Anything else?’ Tayga practically demanded of Ammy.
Ammy’s jaw skittered. Probably playing happy candidate for the cameras. Weren’t they all? She looked upwards. If she was searching for a lander to take Tayga away, Deneb wouldn’t blame her.
But the hour wasn’t over. There would be nothing in the sky but sunshine and—
‘What the blazes is that!’ Ammy hissed.
Everyone’s eyes shot up, including Deneb’s. It was a creature of some sort. Pretty high up. Also, enormous. Like, the sort of huge a lander would be scared of. Deneb could hear the buzz of its wings. It was long and thin, striped yellow and red across its main body like it wanted to make extra sure everything everywhere knew it was bad news.
It was also delicately beautiful. His heart thumped as he tracked it until it vanished.
He looked around at the rest of the squad, spotting some wide eyes. ‘Well, that’s something we might have to deal with.’ He grinned.
‘Looked like a mega-sized Teegarden viperfly,’ said Tayga.
‘Looked like an Earth wasp, times one thousand,’ said Deneb.
‘Better not sting like either of them,’ said Urs with a snorty laugh.
‘How about we never find out?’ said Rox.
Ammy was silent, her dark eyes looking all around with something like a mash-up of awe and fear. The sparkling plants, the wind-carved rocks, the riot of colour, the megafauna. He bet there wasn’t a planet more different to radiation-blasted Proxima than this one. Her lack of diverse experience would be a weakness. Both for her, and for her squad. As long as she was in it.
‘There’s got to be something more in that backpack,’ Rox said, bringing Deneb’s attention back to the rest of the group. Rox had his hand out, like he wanted to snatch the thing from Ammy.
‘You’d hope so, hey?’ said Ammy, with a smile that had to be forced, though it didn’t look it. She was already reaching back in, the bag pulled back against her. And it looked like she’d only done it to help her search, but it also meant Rox couldn’t grab it.
Deneb suppressed a smirk. She wasn’t going down without a fight.
‘Can I have the torch back, please?’ Ammy asked.
Rox handed it over and Ammy flicked it on. She looked inside, nodded, reached a hand in again. There was the sound of fingers against fabric, then crinkling, then her hand came back out.
She grinned. ‘Bingo. Hidden pocket.’ She was holding a small sheet of permapaper, her hands shaking.
She unfolded it. Deneb leaned forward, heart racing. They would be getting at least a corner of screentime right now. All around the known universe, people were probably watching Ammy unfold this thing. The first clue.
She could definitely try to do it faster.
Ammy looked up, face alight. ‘There’s writing!’
Talk about stating the obvious. What did it say?
‘Go on!’ Tayga was pale, chewing a fingernail.
She read out loud:
‘Head to the thorn
Peek felt of the mates
Find the groane rock
Look under the gates.’
Silence. Deneb made his face stay calm while inside, panic surged.
‘That made, like, no sense at all,’ said Tayga. ‘Do they teach you how to read on Proxy?’ He smiled, like he’d made a joke.
Deneb winced, and he didn’t miss the wall that slammed down over Ammy’s face.
‘They’re riddles, Tayga, they’re not supposed to make sense,’ said Urs, her voice sharp.
Tayga shot a look upwards, as if terrified his comment would send him home. Deneb actually thought Urs should be more concerned. Making jokes about Proxies was practically a worldswide sport.
Ammy read the lines out again, her face a tight study in concentration. She frowned, and handed the clue on to Rox. Each of them read it in turn, but no one shouted out in relief or came up with an idea. When Deneb received it, he was determined to find something the others had missed. Different coloured ink. Raised lettering. Some sort of insight into the riddle. But nothing came to him.
He chewed on his lip and looked at the sun. It was surely past midday. The assessors would be looking for candidates to eliminate now. He was surprised all five of them were still here. Obviously they’d been doing something right. Or right enough, anyway.
Or maybe some squads had been doing things really wrong.
Still … they needed to solve this.
Quickly.
And if it wasn’t jumping out at them, then there was only one way forward.
9
THE FIRST CLUE
The note came back into Ammy’s hands, and she knew her shaking was obvious. She could practically feel the cameras recording, the assessors watching, everyone at home comparing Ammy’s squad to the others. How much longer would they leave all five of them here?
Rox was frowning, staring into the distance like his brain was working at double speed. Tayga was looking all around, as if searching for something thorn-like that the text could be talking about. Ammy had already done that. Four times. Urs was gazing at her boots again, her face calm as she thought. Deneb, however, was looking at Ammy.
‘Can I have the slate, please?’ he asked.
Ammy fumbled for the slatepad and handed it over.
‘Great idea,’ said Rox. ‘What’s the text again?’
Ammy handed it to Deneb, who scanned it in, the words appearing crisp in the air immediately. She tried not to stare. This was better than any slate tech she’d worked with before.
Tayga leaned forward, twirling the virtual sheet. ‘The first line, that could make sense, you know? If we find this thorn to head to?’ he said.
‘We were thinking the sewing kit might mean there were thorny plants? Maybe a huge plant with thorns?’ said Urs.
Deneb pulled up a new slatesheet to float next to the first, and popped THORN at the top, then started to write down the ideas, starting with Urs’s.
‘A sharp rock?’ he suggested.
‘Those points on that ridge?’ said Ammy.
‘Maybe if we go to the top of it, we could spot something else?’ said Tayga.
Once they’d brainstormed all they could on that, they looked at the next line. Peek felt of the mates. Ammy crinkled her nose. This one didn’t make any sense at all. The others’ faces mirrored how she was feeling.
Urs caught her eye and laughed. ‘Okay, let’s maybe skip that line for now. What about the next one?’
