“I’m afraid partial payment is highly irregular, Miss… Blair. I’ll have to insist on payment for both Lucas and Tai in full if we are to accept them. As you are fully aware, we have a close relationship with Demeteria Agricorporation, perhaps you might be interested in one of their corporate sponsorships for admission next year?”

  The clerk shifted nervously in her seat as the girl opposite her regarded her calmly.

  “In exchange for their participation in our safe, experimental trials, or by agreeing to a short-term ten-year employment contract with Demeteria, perhaps we could come to an arrangement. Besides, semester has already begun—”

  Noelle Laurent stepped forwards, cutting off “Tracy Blackwoood” before the admission clerk had a chance to continue. Noelle’s long, red hair had been cropped to shoulder level and dyed black. Her emerald green eyes had also been coloured black by the lenses she was wearing.

  “Tracy. You know just as well as I do that those contracts aren’t enforceable. As for the trials?”

  Evantra watched as something in her friend’s eyes shifted. It was a minute change, but Evantra felt chills run down her spine at the frosty smile that Noelle directed to the admission clerk. Thankfully, it seemed as if the girl was none the wiser to her reaction.

  “Unless you’re willing to furnish me with a full incident report on the experimental failures and injuries sustained by your child participants, they’re off the table.” Tracy blinked up at Noelle, her face gaining a sickly pallor at the girl’s words.

  “How did you—”

  “Please. It doesn’t take a genius to figure out that miracles demand sacrifice. Might I ask… do you have any relation to Godrick Blackwood? The ingenious designer behind Demeteria’s greenhouses?”

  “Oh? You’re familiar with my grandfather’s work?”

  Tracy blinked in surprise. The clerk sported rectangular spectacles housed in a minimalistic steel frame, and black hair styled in a neat bob cut. To Evantra, she looked like an ordinary girl about her own age who had found a relaxing temp position working in the exceedingly well-furnished admissions office.

  Tracy slowly nodded her head, her apprehension melting away as Noelle clapped her hands together, beaming with blinding enthusiasm. Noelle stepped forwards, hesitating not a second before she gently drew the clerk’s hands into her own.

  “Of course! He was responsible for the brilliant application of an electrical array to generate passive fertiliser for crops, replicable at a low cost and easily scalable. I’m somewhat of a design nerd, and we’ve spent a great deal of time admiring his work, haven’t we, Evantra?”

  “A-ahem. Yes, we have. Great stuff,” Evantra hastily nodded, lips stretched into as convincing of a smile as she could manage. Which was to say, hardly convincing.

  Still, Tracy seemed to relax. Her shoulders had been tensed, preparing for Noelle’s rebuke of her rejection of Lucas and Tai’s enrolment.

  Instead, she had been met with fans.

  Tracy returned Noelle’s smile, latching onto the other girl’s enthusiasm.

  “You should see his work on some of the volatile greenhouses. They house some of the rarer plants…” Tracy leaned in conspiratorially as Noelle nodded her agreement. “Just between you and me… grandfather told me that that was where Demeteria houses their best produce. I’ve heard rumours that they keep flora from the Hanging Gardens in there too… not all of the plants from the Gardens are man-eating monstrosities.”

  “Oooh. I want to see the glowing flowers,” Lucas contributed, his adorable, large brown eyes widening in fascination as Tracy kindly enlightened them as to the makeup of the greenhouses. Tracy nodded at Lucas in enthusiasm, and Evantra watched the clerk…

  Hesitate. Her eyes softened as she drank in Lucas’ expression of genuine curiosity.

  You go, Lucas.

  Put those adorable, heart-melting eyes of yours to use.

  Tai Tran, on the other hand, looked just about ready to shoot the unfortunate clerk like she did the souls who had the misfortune of catching her on a bad day at Gale’s Gunstore.

  Evantra watched as Tracy’s lips pulled into a hard line before taking an abrupt seat behind her desk. They held their breaths in unison as they watched her fingers fly across the keypad.

  “I’ll make an exception for you. Just this once,” Tracy whispered under her breath, casting a quick glance behind them, ensuring that no one had detected the easing of her stringent standards. “The students are already a week into semester. You’ll have to ensure that both of them are adequately equipped and prepared. You will also have to transfer the outstanding fees by—”

  “Thank you, Tracy. We are huge fans of Demeteria,” Noelle added with a bright smile. Before Tracy could respond, Noelle produced a blank notepad and a pen, gently pushing them into Tracy’s hands.

  “Might I have your autograph?”

  Evantra hid a wince.

  Laying it on a bit thick there, Noelle…

  Tracy frowned, staring at the pad in confusion. Evantra simply tried to avoid poking Noelle in the side to force the girl to abort her flattery.

  “Are… you certain you aren’t after my grandfather’s?”

  “No, not at all. I have always had the greatest respect for educators. Nobly guiding the youth unto brighter pastures, one might say. You have a passion for teaching, do you not? And I am sure that you’re eager to impart the lessons that your grandfather left you,” Noelle said, beaming like the sun.

  No way is she going to buy that bullshit.

  Tracy blushed a deep crimson, taking care to deliver her very first fan signature, before gingerly handing the notepad back to Noelle.

  I stand corrected.

  The poor girl looked just about ready to faint.

  “I uh… an attendant will be with you shortly, to take you on a tour of the school grounds. Please take a seat outside at your leisure. Good day.”

  Evantra watched, stunned, as Tracy almost fell into a curtsey before catching herself, returning her attention to the records while casting furtive glances in their direction. The moment that the door to the admissions office shut, and they were granted the privacy of the empty corridor, Evantra sidled up to Noelle, her voice emerging as a barely perceptible whisper.

  “What’s with the old English, Twig.”

  Noelle stared straight ahead, keeping a keen eye out for the attendant meant to take them on a guided tour of the campus.

  “Corpo speak. Changes depending on who you’re dealing with. Blackwoods are a Demeteria connection, old money. Megacorps often get their friends and their kids into cushy positions in the businesses they fund, the Rosewood campus included. Our dear friend Tracy over there is one such nepo baby being groomed to the rank of headmaster. She probably holds just as much sway as the actual headmaster. Did you think an administrative clerk could make discretionary decisions on a whim, like admitting late enrollers without receiving full payment?”

  Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

  “You were certainly buttering her up…”

  “Doesn’t hurt to have someone like her in our corner. I’m one of many faces convincing her to make less than ideal enrolments, but I’m the very first person who’s asked her for her autograph. Mine isn’t one she’ll forget easily. Especially if we plan to obtain access to the college’s archives… you won’t believe how much it costs to access academic literature these days,” Noelle said, her eyes flashing with mischief.

  Evantra stared at Noelle Laurent as she casually flicked her hair with a look of satisfaction.

  “Not bad… not bad at all. And speaking of faces she won’t forget…”

  Noelle gave her a brisk nod.

  They had spoken about concerns around her identity prior to their arrival at Rosewood College. It was the singular school that catered to elementary and secondary education in Megabuilding A3, their new home. As one of the countless institutions sponsored by Demeteria, Rosewood College derived substantial funding from the megacorporation’s patronage.

  Evantra had been of the opinion that it was pure idiocy for Noelle to waltz into a school given her… familial connections. But according to the heir, no one knew about ‘Noelle Laurent’ save for her immediate family and a handful of trusted attendants.

  She assured Evantra that her biometrics had been wiped from Demteria’s database by someone trusted on the inside. Not only that, the family’s identities were kept a closely guarded secret. She was confident that there were plenty of Demetria execs who wouldn’t recognise her if they saw her.

  If you weren’t a corpo in the spotlight running PR for a megacorp as some did, it would be pure idiocy to broadcast your identity for all to see. High level corpos like Tracy’s grandfather were influential and powerful, but he was still a small fish compared to the founding members of a megacorporation.

  Noelle had also agreed to Evantra’s compromise of taking on a pseudonym – “Aveline Blair” just to be safe, posing as her sister.

  Just how Noelle had so thoroughly wiped her identity from Demeteria’s servers, and why she was so convinced about being able to waltz into a school funded by the megacorp, she didn’t elaborate upon.

  Evantra was drawn out of her thoughts with the arrival of the attendant.

  It was time for their tour of Rosewood College.

  ***

  “As you can see, our campus contains state of the art facilities that cater to all branches of the sciences. Physics, chemistry, and biology – the foundations. Beyond that, we offer options for specialisation, catered towards possible career opportunities in Demeteria’s continental greenhouses,” the attendant droned on, reciting a well-practised and propagandised script.

  “Gene therapists, who develop new strains of produce. Altering the genetic makeup of plants native to Earth, and beyond, to pave unexplored frontiers.”

  The attendant paused by a classroom, gesturing towards a flower blooming from a creeping mass of vines draped over red brick wall. Evantra could detect the slightest scent of roses, even if the flowers looked to be of an entirely different species. Not only that, the scent contained a perfect balance of freshness and intensity, as if curated by…

  Of course… gene therapists.

  “Botanists, who study and tend to the plants. They play the crucial role of gathering information, which will inform the decisions of gene therapists.”

  They passed by another classroom, this one filled with see-through glass tanks with flora of every nature. There were glass tanks filled with water, which sported iridescent bluebells that bloomed underwater. Even a tank with tinted glass, which seemed to house a bioluminescent sunflower barely perceptible through the shadowed glass.

  The attendant paused by yet another tank. It was a plant the size of her thumb, with three root-like appendages structured like a tripod, on which it walked. It had the slightest hints of a green sprout emerging from its base of the prehensile roots on which it walked.

  “A seedling. A harmless creature from the Hanging Gardens on its own, but one of infinite potential. The botanical equivalent of a stem cell in its adaptability. While there are heinous Veilcreatures which sow death and destruction, so are there others which make miracles possible. Seedlings are capable of evolving. Growing into entirely novel plants suitably adapted to the environment in which they’re situated.”

  “Evolution accelerated and condensed. Placing the seedlings in different environments can net entirely different plant species. While innocuous, these little things grow into the very writhing monstrosities that the hanging gardens are best known for. Demeteria’s current advances and research indicate that they are partially responsible for the diversity of plant life that come through to Earth from the mythical realm known as the Hanging Gardens.”

  Evantra sensed that the attendant had reached another key juncture in their script.

  “Demeteria’s botanists test the limits of this adaptability, and find different means of adapting their nature in service to humanity, and Demeteria Agricorporation’s grand vision.”

  “Life in desolation,” Noelle said. The attendant started in surprise, giving Noelle a warm smile as she whispered Demeteria Agricorporation’s motto.

  He continued in his speech.

  “An education at Rosewood College can open the doors to a multitude of different career paths. Provided you show consistent excellence in your studies and your applied knowledge, the executive suite awaits.”

  Walking past the various classrooms tailored towards different occupational specialties, they emerged into a large canteen area. Students from practically every cultural background could be seen hanging around in groups.

  For a lot of the families in the lower quarters… their children are their hope for a better life.

  Just a single corporate scholarship, or being placed on the highly coveted executive track would change their lives entirely.

  People from all over the world are attracted to the opportunity of Elsecaller City, and this is their big ticket in.

  Those truths were evident in the gazes that fell on her back. Turning smoothly, pretending to innocuously take in the canteen’s stalls, Evantra made out innumerable pairs of hungry eyes that were feverishly memorising Tai and Lucas’ features.

  Their peers had recognised them for what they were.

  Future competition.

  Carmen and Amy seemed to be ignorant of their reception, but Noelle seemed particularly sullen. In fact, despite the girl’s extraordinary performance at the admissions office, ever since her conversation with Tracy, she appeared noticeably subdued.

  Figures she would know how cutthroat it is.

  At the very least… she could give Tai and Lucas some tips.

  Evantra gritted her teeth.

  Enrolling Tai and Lucas into Rosewood felt like she was feeding them to a hungry pack of wolves itching to prey on them. If there was ever a time that she empathised with her parents… it was now.

  But I already know that sheltering them is not the answer. Not in a world like ours.

  Tempering and preparing them on the other hand?

  That we can do.

  The obvious alternative was for Noelle to educate Tai and Lucas. It was safe, would allow them to develop a technically excellent base which would prepare them for any number of career paths later in their life. The only problem was that technical excellence counted for shit all in the ghouldark future.

  It was who you knew that mattered.

  Rosewood College, despite being situated in a megabuilding in the outskirt city of Bastion, was where technical excellence was met with pedigree. Hungry students from desperate families willing to climb and grind, and children of upper-class corpos being groomed for executive roles upon coming of age.

  Both of the kids needed to quickly learn that the larger, corporate world was just as cutthroat as living in the slums of Wisptown. If anything, their previous home was simply more honest in its presentation. And despite the overall intention of their admission, they also needed to learn to form bonds and friendships that weren’t purely transactional with children their own age.

  Evantra heard a whisper from behind her and turned to see Tai tugging on her mother’s sleeve.

  “We’re going to the restroom, we’ll meet you at the entrance,” Amy said, giving them a brief nod before heading in the direction that the attendant pointed them towards.

  Evantra watched as Tai took in the canteen around them, her lethargic visage temporarily replaced with her curiosity. She also noticed that between Lucas and Tai, the girl was a little more aware of the other students’ attention, and little Tai was anything but afraid if her unblinking looks of defiance which she greeted the others with were anything to go by.

  They continued down the corridor, trailing the attendant. Evantra heard a gasp from behind her, as they came upon the next set of classrooms. They chanced upon what looked like older children who were sparring, exchanging blows in time with their instructor, who was calling out curt instructions.

  “For those with… a proclivity for physical prowess, be assured that Demeteria will not overlook you, or see your talents go to waste. The enforcer track can lead to an illustrious career as a Ghostslayer with the megacorporation. After all, someone must keep our dedicated scientists, researchers and botanists safe and secure the specimens needed to ensure mankind’s collective prosperity from the important work that we engage in,” the attendant concluded, with not an ounce of shame. Somewhere along the line, he had abandoned the meagre front of separating the school from the megacorporation.

  The attendant rounded on them and clasped his hands behind his back.

  “That brings us to the conclusion of the tour. You will be able to purchase school uniforms at the school’s tuck shop, situated at the entrance of the college. An educational pad will be provided to you by your respective homeroom teachers. Classes begin at—”

  “EMERGENCY.”

  “VEILSURGE DETECTED. ALL RESIDENTS PROCEED TO A SHELTER IMMEDIATELY.”

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