The Unbroken Key

Every night at midnight, the purple clouds came out to dance with the blushing sky. Mara loved to watch them bend and blow into strange shapes, she sat on a chaise in the corner of the small unit she shared with her father. The archives didn’t usually provide a residence for families but they’d made an exception. Mara still wasn’t sure why. She played with her hair, humming quietly to herself, her legs curled gracelessly beneath her as she stared out the window when suddenly, something caught her eye. A small shape passing through the clouds, she leaned forward squinting. It almost looked like a missive. But who would be sending one at this time of night? The archives had enacted a strict curfew after numerous noise complaints. She tracked the folded piece of paper as it flew across the pink sky, directly towards the administration office. Before she could muse any further on the origin or purpose of the missive she was distracted by a noise behind her. She turned rapidly, almost falling from her chair and saw her father standing in the doorway with an amused smile.

“Mara, it’s getting late.” His greying blonde hair fell to the jawline of his weathered face, his rough hands showing more wear than the typical scholar.

“You’re home early.” Mara said defensively.

“Fair enough.” He laughed, a deep throaty sound that always filled her with comfort. Then his face became more serious. “Are you sure you need to head to the center tomorrow?”

“Dad, we’ve been over this, you know I have to go back. Akari will get lonely if I’m gone too long! And besides I have to prepare for the Assessments.”

“I know, I know.” he lamented “Though she’s probably enjoying the time alone.” His brow furrowed momentarily “Are the Assessments so soon, it’s only spring?”

She sighed. “I’m doing the early round so I have the best shot at the top placement. We’ve been over this dad.”

They had talked about it, three times to be exact but Mara knew he was just hoping she would reconsider and she braced herself for another lecture.

“I wish you’d take your time you don’t need to rush life.”

“I know, I know, but I’m not rushing it, I’m ready. Really, I am.”

Her voice faltered slightly on the last word betraying her underlying nerves. But for once her father didn’t push the issue. She wasn’t sure if it was the late hour or if he had simply given up trying to persuade her but she noticed the resignation in his eyes. It was almost as if he was relieved by her nerves, as if they meant she understood the weight of her decision. The Assessments could always be repeated and was by no means a definitive judgement on an individual’s future but it was still a pretty big deal, especially in the capital. She had her degree and a good job working in the archives but she had always wanted to go on expeditions and it was nearly impossible to get a placement without first passing the Assessments. She smiled at her father and went to her room, tomorrow would be an early start and she’d already stayed up too late.

Mara did not wake to the artificial sound of birds chirping, the warm glow of her sunlight emanating from the walls or from the morning missives whistling by her window. And when her wrist began to vibrate she tapped it with her forefinger silently begging for a few more minutes of sleep. The vibration paused then seemed to restart almost instantly. She fumbled to find her wrist again but this time to no avail. She rolled over angrily determined to manually mute the alarm starting when she saw the time on the clock. She had already hit snooze three times and was running out of time to get ready, a not unusual occurrence in her morning routine. Mara had never been much of a morning person, or a night person for that matter. Her mother often teased, much to Mara’s chagrin, that she slept so often she was basically an honorary princess like the tales from the archives.

She flew haphazardly around the room searching frantically, grabbed her bag and ran out the front door towards the train stop. She broke into a full sprint as she heard the telltale sound of humming as the train approached; it was the weekend so the next train wouldn’t be for another 20 minutes and according to her autocon it was going to start raining in 10. She leapt up the stairs to the platform, her bag bouncing rhythmically into her side with each step. Now she could see the sleek metal train approaching, the sunlight reflecting off of the deep blue metal, the humming sound increasing slightly as the electric tracks began to vibrate. She made it to one of the predesignated entrances just as the train slowed to a stop. The doors opened with a sing song ding and as she walked through the door, she felt the mark on her right wrist buzz gently as her personal id tracker registered her payment.

She sighed with resignation, somehow, she was always running late to things. When she was finally settled, she looked out over the city as it rushed past below her in a blur, not bothering to take out a book. Ired, the center capital, was about three hours by car but on the Fly Train it only took about 15 minutes, not enough time for her to truly get lost in the pages of a book. She mindlessly rubbed the mark on her right wrist with her right thumb. She had gotten the personal marker, P.T.I. or Pity at 16 as most citizens did but she still wasn’t used to the tingle she felt when the train registered her boarding and unboarding. Despite that the mark was incredibly useful, it monitored payments, travel, verified your identification and could even be set to unlock your house and car. More importantly it meant she didn’t have to carry a wallet, and it could never be stolen. She’d read stories in the archives about the pre-war technology that predated the magic. It seemed crude to her that people could steal each others devices and even identities. The magic had been upgraded, coded to each individual’s heart rate and would self-wipe if that beat was disrupted. The mark would not even access your accounts if your heart rate is too high in order to prevent coercion. This of course had its draw backs and everyone knew to avoid working out before making a withdrawal. The mark wasn’t mandatory but like a pre-war phone it was a lot harder to get by without one.

The train pulled into the station and Mara joined the line of people waiting by the doors. They were mostly students like her heading to the center for courses or placements. She exited the train, expertly maneuvering her way through the crowd of students, weekend workers, and tourists. She headed for Ired’s internal underground system and hopped on the west line that would take her to where she lived with her roommate Akari The two of them had first moved there nearly five years ago for their degrees. They had both graduated in the fall and Akari had begun working for a large mark distribution firm while Mara had started her internship at The Library and had been prepping for the Assessments. She reached the underground platform and waited behind the holographic wall that separated the platform from the tracks. A spate of suicides during the second war had led to their implementation. Once the approaching subway stopped the holographic barrier lowered allowing passengers to enter and exit the platform. As she entered the train her wrist lightly tingled again, she would not be charged as she had a student pass but the train still recorded it for census purposes. She made her way home, down the familiar cobblestone pathways toward her apartment.

“Honey, I’m home!” Mara called out, tossing her bags to the floor.

She walked through the entry way into the living room. Akari was nowhere to be seen but her fiancé Veera sat perched on the kitchen bar, engrossed in her touch pad. Intricate forest green vine markings started on her spine creeping up her neck and spreading onto the shaved half of her head. The rest of her thick dark hair fell across her face, her lips pursed in concentration. She wore a low cut deep cerulean blue blouse with high pants, their smart fabric gradually alternating colours and designs.

“Hey Mara.” Veera greeted her without looking up from her touch pad where her fingers were expertly shading in a drawing.

“Veera.” Maive nodded. “Where’s Akari?”

“Noodles” Veera responded, her focus never shifting from her drawing.

“Ah” Mara nodded in understanding. Akari always got noodles when she was stressed and while she wasn’t doing the Assessments, she did have her Professional Exam the same day.

Mara made her way to her room, pushing her bags down the hall with her foot. She might as well get some studying in. It could be a while before Akari returned and Veera didn’t appreciate distractions when she was engrossed in a project.

She began with history, easily her best subject, it helped her nerves to start with something she knew she was good at. She skimmed through her notes on the Old Era history covering the first and second world wars. Then she jumped to the modern wars, reviewing the first, a terrible plague that had resulted in some permeant mutations in the human population. She was halfway through the Final War, a technological bug that had nearly crushed civilisation before it was rebuilt with magic into the New Era, when she heard the front door open.

“Akari!” She leapt up from her bed and ran down the hallway running into her friends’ arms and spinning her around.

“Mara!” Ari hugged her back with one arm, in her other she was attempting to balance two containers of noodles.

“Captain Sakrua?” Mara asked, already knowing the answer

“Obviously!” Ari laughed. “I got some for you too babe.”

Veera glanced up from her drawing, food was one of the few things that could distract her from her art. That and Akari. Her face filled with a deep blush as they locked eyes. They had been together for three years but still stared at each other in wonder. Places were hurriedly set at the table, loose papers knocked aside as the three ladies happily ate their dinner.

“Not hungry?” Mara asked in surprise as Akari pushed the noodles around her bowl.

“This is my second serving.” Akari admitted sheepishly.

“You’re that stressed?” Mara asked.

Akari just grimaced and hurriedly slurped more noodles to avoid the question.

“What about you?” Veera asked Mara. “You have your Assessment tomorrow.”

“I know. I’m ready.” Mara said feigning a confidence she didn’t feel.

The other two girls looked at her, then each other before bursting into laughter.

“What?”

“Oh, come on, my little brother’s lies are more convincing than that and he’s five.”

Akari snorted in agreement “I hope deception isn’t one of the required skills.”

“Thanks for your support.” Mara grumbled.

“It’s okay for you to be nervous, I almost threw up during my professional exam when I found out they were making us use actual paints!” Veera said supportively.

Akari nodded in commiseration. “I’m terrified for mine, I heard a rumour their going to disable our autocon and make us use pre-era calculators.”

“Not. Helping.” Maive said through gritted teeth. She knew surprise and pre-era elements were frequently part of the assessments. She had done her research after all. Technically all aspects of the assessment were meant to remain secret but rumours always trickled down, some more believable than others. Her eyes twinkled as she thought of a way to divert the conversation.

“As long as I don’t have to capture a hog, I’m sure I’ll be fine.”

Akari and Veera blinked in surprise before falling into a fit of laughter as Mara expertly recounted the story of an intern forced to butter down a prize hog before letting it loose in the Admissions Hall.

By the time she woke the next morning Akari and Veera were gone. She found waffles and bacon on the table with a note in Akari’s handwriting “A reminder that you’ve got the upper hand on whatever comes your way. Dinner tonight at the usual, don’t be late!”

In the corner of the note there was a small drawing of a buttery hog being chased by a piece of bacon, Veera’s addition no doubt, only she could make that look beautiful. Mara smiled, and even managed a few bites of her breakfast before the nerves completely took over and she grabbed her bags heading for the Admissions Hall. For once in her life, she was determined to be early.

She entered the waiting room of the History section, observing a handful of other applicants. Some were taking the test early like her, others were re-taking after unsatisfactory grading the previous year. She could tell them apart by their expressions. The newbies looked terrified yet hopeful, those retaking were set with a grim determination. Whatever their reason, they all shared a nervous energy. All except one, a tall guy with a shock of dark messy hair, the kind that falls perfectly no matter how you style it, and an angry red scar along his collar bone. But what stood out the most was the smug, almost cocky look of confidence in his eyes, like this was beneath him, like these people were beneath him. She instantly felt a wave of distaste though she found it hard to withdraw her eyes as she walked past him. She pulled them away just as he looked up at her but not before they briefly locked eyes, just enough time for her to notice that his eyes were completely black. She supressed a shudder and took a deep breath to steady herself as she approached the check-in desk.

A tall, lanky man with dark skin and forest green hair sat behind the desk, a pair of glasses perched on his nose. She blinked in shock as she realized he wasn’t wearing smart lenses; they were just regular glass. He noticed her staring.

“I’m a fan of pre-era fashion, something so romantic about a pair of reading glasses don’t you think? They really help you get lost in a story.”

Mara nodded in understanding “It’s candle light for me.”

The man smiled “I’m Danilo Ramos, records clerk.”

“Nice to meet you, I’m Mara Allon.”

His eyes widened, “Allon, as in Ava Allon?”

She hesitated, unsure how to respond, she didn’t want her mother’s position to have any influence on her score. She wanted to do this on her own.

She was spared responding by a scuffle behind her. The smug boy from earlier was standing over a mousy looking kid who had seemingly fallen over nothing. Mara’s eyes shot up to the tall boy with suspicion and she started when she realized he was already staring at her. As soon as their eyes met he winked and mouthed You’re welcome before sauntering back to his seat. She felt her cheeks flush with anger and ran over to the mousy kid to help him up.

“It’s fine, I’m okay, always tripping over myself.” The boys said, his eyes beginning to fill with tears.

“Me too, my dad says it’s because I always have my nose in a book.” She said helping him gather his things.

“I probably read too much. I shouldn’t even bother with the test.”

“That just means you have an advantage. Knowledge is a sword-”

“-and wisdom is it’s sheath.” He said, automatically responding with the second half of the history departments motto. “Thanks.”

“Anytime.” she said and was surprised to realize she meant it. “I’m Mara”

“Kanos.” he replied, tapping his two front fingers to the center of his forehead then towards her, a history greeting, a play upon pre-era salutes.

She smiled and repeated the gesture. As she walked back to the front desk she could feel the tall boys eyes boring in to her back. Mercifully, Danilo did not repeat his query about her connection to the esteemed Ava Allon.