Animus Complete Series Omnibus, page 291
The gang now gathered closer together as Nexus graduates approached from all sides. “S-Sorry about t-that,” Czar stammered.
“Ah, don’t worry about it.” Kaiden waved a hand. “I’m cool with it. The others might still be pissed, though.”
“Nah, only drunk.” Luke laughed and swirled a drink in a large glass. “I need a good workout to sober up.”
“You know what? Same,” Silas agreed and cracked his knuckles.
The ace ran a hand through his hair. “Well, I don’t want to feel left out now. Do you wanna help us, Caesar?” he asked with a wicked smile.
Czar had no chance to respond as Kaiden charged, followed by his friends and essentially the entire lounge. The Rain City Royalty members uttered cries of fear as the Nexus graduates continued their celebrations in their own way.
Laurie looked out of the chancellor’s office window to where the moon only now peeked out from amongst the clouds. “It’s a beautiful night.” He sighed and glanced at the table, where Sasha scrolled through messages on his tablet. Three glasses rested on the surface, one in front of each chair. “It’s a shame to be cooped up while it is so pleasant. Are you sure you don’t want to take a moment to go out and check the island?”
“I did rounds this morning,” Sasha replied and continued to scroll through his messages list. “Everything is going well and the additions to your lab might be completed a couple of weeks earlier than expected.”
The professor nodded and crossed the room slowly. At first, he intended to sit before he took a few steps around and stood behind his companion. “You’ve been hidden here ever since the room was completed. Before then, you worked constantly inside one of the temp buildings.”
“There is much to be done. With the start date pushed back for the year, we’ll have to adjust schedules and classes for the new arrivals so our entire calendar doesn’t change,” Sasha explained and glanced over his shoulder. “Besides, I told you I was able to get out earlier.”
“It’s still considered work, Sasha,” Laurie grumbled, moved to his chair, and sat. He crossed one leg over the other and leaned back. “It will probably be some time before he comes, you know.”
“I don’t want to risk missing him,” the chancellor retorted and focused on his tablet.
“You could always send a message that you are stepping out,” he told him. “But…I get it and honestly, it is kind of amusing.”
“What’s that?” the other man asked. Although he didn’t look up, he did stop reading.
“You’ve always been a good teacher and good military leader, but part of your method was not getting too close to a student or soldier,” Laurie explained quietly. “Kaiden has been a unique trial for you, hasn’t he? For once, you’ll have to let go of a protégé and have no way to know when you’ll see them again. It’s rather adorable in a way.”
Sasha lowered his tablet again and stared at him. The professor awaited his response with an amused smile, but the other man simply shrugged. “You’re right, and I wouldn’t change that.”
He raised his brow in surprise. “It’s rather direct coming from you,” he commented and his grin widened. “I like it. You should try it more often.”
Before the chancellor could respond, a knock at the door prompted them to share an expectant glance. “Already?” Laurie asked.
“I’m not expecting anyone else,” Sasha reminded him and turned to the door. “Come in.”
It slid open to reveal Kaiden, with tousled hair and a weary grin on his face. He stretched his arms as he walked to the table. “Hey, Sasha—and Laurie? Cyra said you stayed behind for personal time.”
“I had a couple of projects I wanted to wrap up for the day before I visited our chancellor.” He patted the armrest of the chair between the two faculty members. “Come on, dear Kaiden, have a seat.”
“I appreciate it.” The ace sighed as he sat. “It turned out to be more of an exciting night than I had originally thought it would be.”
“Did something happen?” Sasha asked as he retrieved a blue bottle and removed the cap.
“We ran into some old friends and things got… Well, let’s stick with exciting. I had to leave the bar in a hurry to avoid potential issues that could have stopped me from departing tomorrow.”
“Old friends? Is it anyone I would know?” the professor asked.
Kaiden shook his head while Sasha poured liquid from the bottle into the glasses on the table. “Nah, but Sasha might remember them. I was surprised to see them myself.” When the chancellor finished pouring, he screwed the cap on again. The ace peered at the glass, picked it up, and observed the clear liquid. “Vodka?” he asked. “I thought you were more into whiskey.”
“This is a particular occasion,” the chancellor said, put the bottle down, and picked his glass up. Laurie followed suit.
They toasted one another and the ace drained the glass in one swallow. His eyes widened and he almost spat it out, but not out of taste or the burn of the alcohol. His surprise was due to its familiarity. “What is this? I’ve had it before.”
“I would think Wolfson would have had you try it on at least a couple of occasions,” Sasha said and set his glass down.
“Wolfson?” Kaiden looked at his glass. “Is this Firewater?”
“It was a favorite of his.” Laurie sighed and leaned back with his glass pressed against his chest. What remained of the contents swirled around the bottom. “I always found it a little too dry, but it would have been his turn this year to choose the beverage.”
“I don’t understand.” The ace looked at the two men in turn. “What’s going on?”
“This was something of a ritual of ours,” the chancellor explained and took another sip. “Before a new year would start, the three of us would get together, go over the plans, and make preparations before the Academy opened.”
Kaiden looked at his glass. “So…am I Wolfson in this case?”
“You are, Kaiden dear boy.” The professor snorted, finished his drink, and gestured to Sasha to pass the bottle. “This will be our first year without him, something we will have to deal with from here on.”
“But given that you were his student—more than that really…” The chancellor handed Laurie the bottle before he looked at the ceiling. “I noticed a change in him when he started training you. Wolfson had grown…not dour, not content…”
“His fire was leveling out,” Laurie suggested and poured vodka into his glass until it was a little over half-full. He placed the bottle in front of Kaiden. “He would get his work done and train a while, but he was getting comfortable. And while that sounds good, it annoyed the hell out of him.”
Sasha nodded. “When he took you under his wing, that fire, as Laurie calls it, it sparked again.”
“It made him almost pleasant to be around after a couple of years,” the other man muttered and sipped his vodka.
The chancellor ran a hand through his hair and focused on Kaiden. “With him gone and you leaving, we felt that…well, this would be a proper send-off to both of you.”
The ace nodded, took the bottle, and filled his glass again. “I appreciate the sentiment, but do you really think I can live up to him?”
“Possibly.” Laurie shrugged. “It all depends if you want to do that.”
“Shouldn’t I?” he asked and handed the bottle to Sasha. “I mean, being his protégé and all?”
“I don’t think Wolfson wanted an apprentice to continue his legacy,” the chancellor stated and rested a hand on his shoulder. “He only wanted to make sure you were ready to accomplish whatever you wanted to do and be who you wanted to be.”
“He…wouldn’t be a bad man to mold yourself after,” Laurie confessed and put his glass down. He looked at the ace. “But I doubt he would want you to simply be a copycat.”
“That’s true enough.” Kaiden chuckled and nodded at Sasha when he removed his hand. “Thanks,” he said and raised a toast to them both with his glass. “Even when I’m out in the great beyond, I’ll be sure to remember this.”
Laurie ran his arm across his eyes before he straightened and stretched. “This will be your first time beyond this system. Are you ready for that? Especially for such a prolonged period.”
“Yeah, we’re heading to Abisalo first so Genos can take care of something, then we’ll meet Magellan.” He looked at Sasha. “He said he has a few missions he’s set aside to get us started.”
“Do you have a ship?” the chancellor asked.
“It would be quite a problem if I didn’t,” he responded, leaned back, and swirled his drink. “Haldt said he would get one for me but I haven’t seen it yet. He’s bringing it in the morning.”
“I should take a look at it,” Laurie offered, “to see if it needs any last-minute tinkering.”
“Genos and Chiyo will examine it as well,” he replied and took a sip. “You can go over it with them.”
The three of them chatted into the night before Kaiden finally headed out and left the island for the hotel room he shared with Chiyo. He took one last look at the Academy and realized it was probably the last time he would see it under moonlight in a long while.
“Ugh, good Lord,” Kaiden muttered and rubbed his eyes.
“Are there problems, friend Kaiden?” Genos asked. “Shouldn’t you be excited? This is the day we begin our expedition.”
“I’m not entirely sure that’s what we should call it,” Chiyo said and ran a hand over Kaiden’s back. “Was it the smartest idea to go out drinking the night before?”
“It was the last time we’d see everyone for a long time,” the ace replied and grunted with annoyance as the carrier bounced along the road to Nexus Academy. “Besides, ya’ll drank too.”
“Moderately,” she countered. “As you can see, we’re fine.”
“Yeah, yeah.” Kaiden grimaced and shielded his eyes with his arms. “I should have had Haldt meet us at the hotel.”
“Hmm, that would have been unwise,” the Tsuna noted. “Current rules for incoming vessels bar anything larger than personal transport. Having Haldt drop the ship off at the hotel would have been problematic.”
“It’s only wishful thinking, Genos.” The ace sighed and shifted in his seat. As a distraction, he took his tablet out and looked through his messages. They included well wishes from guys like Julio and the gang leaders but nothing from his friends. “Do you think they are all still asleep?”
Chiyo looked at the device and shrugged. “I did ask if you wanted to go and meet up with them.”
“They deserve their rest and we got in our goodbyes yesterday, I guess,” he said, but a part of him was a little wistful when he thought about the friends he probably wouldn’t see in person for quite some time.
“We’re almost at the gates,” Genos said, stood, and retrieved his luggage from the compartment above. “It’s time.”
“It is, isn’t it?” Kaiden chuckled and smiled as he and Chiyo stood to retrieve their gear.
“You are sure you had the time correct?” the engineer asked as the trio frowned at an empty landing pad. Waves crashed against the pier of the Academy and left a nice cool feeling. Kaiden felt his face redden and avoided looking at his friends.
“And the right destination?” Chiyo added before she withdrew her tablet from her bag and typed something.
“I can read,” Kaiden muttered before he sighed, put his luggage down, and slid his hands into his jacket. “You know, I kind of hoped our last day on-world would be a little more grand and less a comedy of errors, but some things stay the same around here, huh?”
“It would be exactly that if it wasn’t deliberate,” she responded and looked at him with a secretive smile.
“What do you mean?” he asked and she turned the tablet so he could see a message she had just sent out on the screen. Come down, he’s ready.
He raised an eyebrow at her in query. “Uh…do you wanna explain?” She pointed up in response and he looked skyward as a familiar dropship soared into view.
“Is that Haldt?” Kaiden held an arm in front of his eyes as the vessel drew closer and kicked wind up. “Is that—”
The dropship was Wolfson’s, which Haldt had used through the war, but it seemed to have been recently cleaned and upgraded. When it landed, the doors opened immediately and all his friends funneled out, together with Laurie and Sasha.
“Did you plan this?” he asked Chiyo as the newcomers looked at them from the landing pad and gestured for the three to join them.
“I wanted something a little grand too.” She smiled and took his hand. “Let’s go say goodbye one last time.”
They hurried up the stairs. Haldt was the last to exit the ship and he smiled broadly. “Hey, Kaiden. Are you surprised?”
“Definitely.” He looked at the ship. “So you weren’t getting a new ship?”
The security officer shook his head. “Nah, this beauty still has many missions to complete before it’s anywhere near retirement. I only fitted her out for prolonged travel.” He looked at the vessel and continued to smile, although his expression was a little smug.
“Are you sure?” Kaiden asked. “You’re taking his position so shouldn’t you keep it close?”
“I won’t leave campus that much for a while so it wouldn’t get any use,” Haldt explained. “Besides, he wanted you to have it.”
The ace’s eyes widened and when he looked at Sasha and Laurie, both nodded. “He didn’t leave much in the way of an official will,” the chancellor stated. “But he had a list and your name was marked next to the ship.”
“I helped with the redesigns,” Laurie said and his gaze slid over the vessel. “But Wolfson did have an eye for ships. I kept it as close to the original as I could.”
Kaiden nodded and swallowed around the tightness in his throat. “Thank you.”
“Are you sure you don’t wanna stick around a while longer, mate?” Flynn asked. “The rest of us won’t start our careers for another couple of months so we could have a little more time as a group.”
“It is tempting, man.” He sighed and looked at the gathering of friends and colleagues he had gained over the years. “But I think if I stick around any longer, I ain’t gonna want to leave. It’ll only be more of a pain to head out. Besides, I already have missions waiting.”
“Then we wish you the best,” Julius told him with a solemn expression.
“You’ll kick ass out there, buddy!” Luke hollered and shook his hand enthusiastically. The others all offered their good wishes to the trio, and Jaxon handed a box to his fellow Tsuna after a few quiet words had been exchanged. Finally, the group backed away and waved as Kaiden, Genos, and Chiyo stepped onboard. The engineer immediately moved to the pilot’s seat.
“Don’t you wanna take a look around first, Genos?” Kaiden asked.
“I don’t think the professor would appreciate me second-guessing his work,” Genos responded and placed the box on the co-pilot’s chair. “And I trust him enough to begin our flight without a look…at least until we gain some distance.”
The ace laughed as the door to the ship closed and the vessel elevated to hover before it ascended slowly. He and Chiyo looked out the window and waved before their pilot activated the thrusters and moved them into the stratosphere.
“It feels real now, huh?” he said thoughtfully and wandered into the pilot bay. Carefully, he moved the box Genos had placed in the co-pilot’s seat and sat in what was now a very familiar place.
“Indeed, I must say it is nice to be able to pilot a ship in a more casual fashion,” the engineer responded cheerfully.
Kaiden studied the simple metallic box. It was light-blue with an ornate symbol on top that looked like a replica of Abisalo. “What is this, Genos?”
“Something kin Jaxon asked me to return once we reach Abisalo.” Genos checked the monitors.
“What’s inside?” he asked and placed it to the side.
“Something of great importance,” his friend responded cryptically.
“And you’re not gonna tell me?” He tried to sound like the new leader of their little team, which he was even though it felt odd for a moment.
“That wouldn’t be much fun, would it?” Genos reasoned and darted him an amused glance. “Besides, it means you will be less likely to take us on detours if you remain curious.”
Kaiden shook his head. “You can be quite devious, you know that?”
“I do.” The Tsuna made no further comment so left no opening for him to push.
“I already have the clearance to use the warp gates, thanks to Sasha,” Chiyo told them as she slid into one of the two seats behind her friends. “They were a little wary to allow non-military and corporate ships through. I had to send them our new ship’s identification number so they could approve it for us.”
“We’re a corporation now,” the ace pointed out.
“We’re a mercenary company and only registered as such,” she countered. “Until we complete our first ranked mission, we are not officially licensed and merely labeled as one.”
He ran a hand through his hair before he rubbed it in annoyance. “Really? Shit.”
“Fortunately, I do not believe we will need to worry about that while we are on my planet,” Genos assured them and glanced at a passing ship as they finally left Earth and glided into the stars. “At least in theory.”
“Theory? Is something going on?” Kaiden asked and frowned at the numerous ships now orbiting the planet.
“It shouldn’t concern us, hopefully,” the Tsuna told him. Chiyo leaned over his shoulder to show him an image on her tablet. She pointed to the left and their pilot changed course toward a warp gate.
“So you ain’t gonna tell me what’s going down or what’s in the box?” he asked.
