CHAPTER 2
A Painful Goodbye
Fredrick Lester-Hauffer, Justine Basker’s much older half-brother, was both founder and chief administrator of the Academy of Superior Learning. For over sixty years he had presided over the school, which catered particularly and almost exclusively to “children of the clone persuasion,” as he liked to refer to them. Due to strict laws and astronomically high costs, cloning remained quite rare. The use of clone technology required no less than approval from the United Nations of Earth, and prohibitive royalty payments to the original were mandated. In the year 3002 EC, less than one thousandth of one percent of the population was cloned. And a good number of that group had done time behind the walls of this academy.
Elsie’s first impression of her uncle’s boarding school was better than she had anticipated. It was a large estate surrounded by an ancient tevta wall, a smooth as glass lavender substance that she vaguely remembered had been popular right before the first Vlemutz invasion almost five hundred years ago. The gate into the academy was engraved tevta depicting a herd of running horses, their manes flying in an invisible wind. What must it have been like when herds of horses had roamed free?
How had this place survived the Vlemutz attacks? In history last year, she’d learned that at least eighty percent of all the buildings in the Northern California Bay Area had been leveled by that monstrous race. It had taken hundreds of years for Earth to recover from that invasion and regain a level of sophistication.
The extensive gardens were meticulously groomed, and a combination of April sunshine and regularly scheduled nighttime rain had them bursting with new growth and vibrant with color. Fragrant flowers made the place smell pretty too. In the middle of the property, a large tevta building loomed, a simple rectangle with two identical towers, the mirror-like walls perfectly smooth, reflecting the day’s beauty and the garden’s charms. Other smaller buildings dotted the landscape, but the towers drew the eye.
In silence, the Baskers walked up a jewel-toned gravel path, Elsie and Everest exchanging nervous glances. For reassurance, Elsie kept her hand on Pooker’s silky head.
The few times Uncle Fredrick had chosen to visit them, he had shown an avid desire to, well, groom them. Specks of dust had been brushed off their shoulders; smudges had been bluntly pointed out. Last time, he’d gone so far as to request that Elsie do something with her hair before joining them for dinner. Then he had lectured them on the virtues of cleanliness and tidiness. For an hour! Living with Uncle Fredrick would be about as much fun as growing teeth replacements—over and over again.
Since this was a Wednesday during school hours, they didn’t have to deal immediately with the other students. Elsie had never met a clone before. She didn’t think Everest had either. Once, a scientist had come to their school and lectured then on the topic of yocto physics. Afterward, the hot rumor had been that he was a clone of a famous physicist from the twenty-ninth century. She had never been sure whether the story was true or not.
They reached the massive front door, another intricate example of engraved tevta and, sensing their presence and identity, the door dissolved to allow their entry. On the other side, a hologram of their uncle stood in greeting, his lips turned up slightly in a stiff smile. He had the same excessive height and hunched shoulders, the same pinched nose, sunken cheekbones and narrow, dirty brown eyes. He even managed to give off a slight but nasty odor. But the shimmery quality around his edges clued them in to him being a hologram. Plus, he looked a little handsomer than Elsie remembered her uncle being, as if he’d been enhanced, though not nearly enough.
His eyes widened when he saw the bobcat. “Welcome, please come with me to the second floor.”
Since Elsie didn’t know whether the hologram merely emulated her uncle or provided him with a steady stream of information, she suppressed the desire to grimace at Everest.
The entrance hall was spacious, with distinctive light murals on the two side walls. On the far end was an impressive staircase. The floors were tevta, too, with a thin slip-proof jellach coating. The hologram led them across the room and up the main staircase to the first landing. He escorted them down a long corridor, pointing out the staff room and library in a mini tour. When he reached Uncle Fredrick’s office, he requested admittance, then as the door rearranged its atoms for entry, he disappeared with a slight bow.
Behind the door were Uncle Fredrick and two other adults, a woman of indeterminate age with curly black hair and a rather large nose, wearing a silver pantsuit, and a young very handsome man in blue vlatex who could have been mistaken for a student. He had milk chocolate skin, high cheekbones and auburn hair. Elsie found herself staring. When he smiled at her, her cheeks got hot, which really was embarrassing. She hoped Everest hadn’t noticed. The last thing she needed was to give him something new to tease her about.
“Welcome, welcome.” Uncle Fredrick rubbed his hands together as he crossed the room. “Let me take a look at my young niece and nephew. So grown up since I last saw you.”
Elsie felt as if he studied her under a quarkscope, and it was all she could do not to stick out her tongue and cross her eyes. Instead, she sucked in her breath in defense against his strong smell and focused behind him on tevta shelves that held an extensive collection of perfectly lined-up Vlemutz invasion miniatures. No question about it, the hologram’s appearance had been zetta-enhanced. Why in the universe were they stuck with this suzo-shrimp as their guardian? Wasn’t there anybody else?
“Elsinor,” he said, waggling his finger, “posture, posture...” He leaned forward and flicked something off her shoulder.
She flasered him with her eyes, but he had already turned his attention to her brother.
“And Everest, my good man, I hear you will be an excellent addition to the Academy’s skyball team. Most impressive height.” He bobbed his head to punctuate his words.
What about her? Elsie thought. She was her brother’s equal in any sport.
Everest mumbled an indecipherable response, his expression pained.
With relief, Elsie realized that Uncle Fredrick had switched his attention over to their parents.
“Justine and George, as robust as ever, I see,” he said. “Let me assure you, Elsinor and Everest will be well taken care of while they are under my academy’s roof.”
“We do appreciate that, Fredrick.”
Elsie’s jaw dropped at her mother’s relieved and even grateful response. What was it with adults? Why didn’t her parents see what she and Everest had seen immediately? Their uncle was a freakazoid alien.
Uncle Fredrick motioned over the other two people in the room. “Justine, George, do let me introduce you to a couple of my staff members. Instructor Sura,” he pointed to the large-nosed woman, “is my right hand in charge of students and staff. The efficient day-to-day running of this academy is largely due to her competence. And this,” he gestured again, “is Instructor Gerard. He is responsible for our enrichment programs—sports, field trips, dances, theatricals. Since he’s come on board we’ve become quite well-known for such programs. The rest of the staff is with the children right now, but they come with the highest of credentials and recommendations.”
“We’re pleased to make your acquaintance,” Elsie’s father said mildly, leading them all to shake hands and exchange light pleasantries.
Once the conversation had dried up, there was an awkward pause. Then Uncle Fredrick added, “I take it your research has gone well?”
Elsie thought her parents looked a little startled. Finally, her father said, “We’re cautiously optimistic about our progress.”
“Excellent. If you need a safe haven to store your backup notes while you are gone, look no further. We have exceptional security. You could do no better.”
“We appreciate the offer,” Elsie’s mom said, “but we’ve already made arrangements.”
For some reason, her mother’s response seemed to irritate her uncle. It was odd how someone’s eyes could harden and cool. Elsie couldn’t wait to discuss his reaction later with Everest.
“I see,” Uncle Fredrick replied. “Perhaps you should tell me these arrangements, in the unlucky event that something untoward happens.”
Elsie’s hands fisted. How dare he even think such a thing, let alone say it? Why didn’t her dad get angry? She could have screamed when he just smiled and answered that safety precautions already had been taken.
Uncle Fredrick took a while to respond, and when he did, he simply said, “Excellent,” again, his thin nose pinched. He glanced down at Pooker, then back at Elsie’s mom. “And what arrangements have you made for your animal?”
Elsie clutched Pooker’s scruff and sought her mother’s eye, panic doing an odd sort of stomp in her belly. She felt rather than saw Everest draw near. Sensing her distress, Pooker gave a very low growl.
Her mother replied evenly, “We had assumed that Pooker would remain here with Elsie and Everest. She’s suited up with the latest pico-trainer, which makes her extraordinarily well-behaved.”
Their uncle shook his head emphatically, conjuring a mournful expression. “I’m sorry, that is out of the question. Pets are forbidden.”
“I’m not leaving Pooker!” Elsie shouted. She swung to her parents. “You can’t make me. If Pooker goes, I go.”
Uncle Fredrick’s tone changed immediately. “Now, now, let’s not get carried away. Elsie, do calm down. I realize you are attached, but how will it look to the other students if I let my own niece have a pet while forbidding my other boarders the same pleasure? Surely, you don’t wish me to show favoritism?”
“I’m not staying here without Pooker.” They were asking too much. First, the loss of her parents and friends, then the loss of her pet? She told her bobcat all of her deepest secrets, things she had never told another human soul, not even her twin. She swallowed back tears, determined not to cry.
Her mother sighed. “I’m sorry, Fredrick, we should have anticipated this. We’ll just have to rethink our plans, delay our assignment for a couple of days until we can find another situation that is more flexible on the issue of animals.”
“Let’s not be hasty,” Instructor Gerard inserted smoothly. “Perhaps we can contrive a suitable arrangement.”
Uncle Fredrick’s lips barely moved as he asked, “What do you have in mind, Gerard?”
“What if we include the bobcat as an enrichment program? Make it the B12 pet? We could settle it somewhere in the garden. I suspect the children would be thrilled to learn about one of our more unusual domesticated beasts.”
His gleaming smile directed full-force at Elsie made her forget to be annoyed by his use of the word “it” in reference to Pooker, as if she were an inanimate object.
Instead, she responded weakly, “Pooker sleeps with me. She always has. She’ll be miserable sleeping outside.”
“You’ll see the creature every day,” Gerard replied cajolingly.
“What do you mean by B12 pet?” Elsie asked.
The instructor looked a little taken aback, then he chuckled pleasantly. “I’m sorry; we’re so used to our terminology here at the academy, we forget when we use a word that is not widely known. Since we board children from the time they are born, we have our own way of classifying them for their learning programs. A0 through A6 include newborns through six-year-olds, B7 through B12 comprise our middle years, which consist of seven-year-olds through twelve-year-olds, and then there are the senior children, classified as C13 through C18. You and Everest will, of course, be included in our B12 program. And therefore, the bobcat will be the B12 pet.”
“Elsie,” her mom interjected, her eyes pleading, “what do you think? Could you make this compromise work? We don’t want you to be miserable.”
It was her parents’ duty to go on this assignment. She would feel horrible if she made their mission even more difficult.
“I guess so,” she agreed reluctantly.
“Excellent notion, Instructor Gerard,” Uncle Fredrick said, but something in his tone and the way his eyelids flickered made Elsie think he wasn’t actually thrilled by the suggestion.
At her side, her brother was even more quiet than usual.
Too soon, it was time for them to say goodbye to their parents. Now Elsie couldn’t stop her tears from flowing, but it didn’t seem to matter. Her mom’s eyes were all watery, and her brother cleared his throat over and over.
At least Uncle Fredrick had the sensitivity to leave them alone. He excused himself and his associates from his office, informing Elsie and Everest that he would be back for them in ten minutes.
Their mother offered them a reassuring smile. “I admit your uncle isn’t the easiest person to warm up to, but I can promise he will take good care of you while we are gone. He takes his responsibilities very seriously.”
Elsie hunched her shoulders. “I don’t want to be someone’s responsibility!”
Her mother’s hand gently trailed over her hair. “He doesn’t really know you. We haven’t stayed in touch as much as we should have over the years. I’m sure you’ll all be the best of friends by the time we return.”
“But when will that be?” Elsie cried.
Her dad laid a hand on her shoulder. “Longer than we would like,” he said cryptically. “We’ll do our best to send you periodic transmissions, but it won’t always be possible.”
Elsie stared with horror. “But if you’re sending us transmissions instead of holocomms, that means you’re not even in our galaxy.”
Their parents exchanged helpless looks. After a few seconds her mom said, “You’re a little too smart for your own good. That should work to your advantage here. You’ll be able to hold your own with the clones. Remember, they are humans too, so don’t treat them like oddities. They’ll have special skills, that’s all. You’ll need to work hard to keep up, but it’ll do you good to be challenged.”
Elsie rubbed her new and very unusual pendant, trying to find solace in its warmth. Wasn’t it enough of a challenge just to live without their parents for who knew how long?