The Pyramid Chronicles: Fortuna Guard (#2) [MOVING JUNE 30]

Chapter Nine: Falling in Line

"Unfortunately, yes," he replied. "My team at the main lab is working on making more, but even with the help from the Delta Labs files and SCI's notes, synthesis is difficult."

Now was a good time to ask. And Willow couldn't let the Director think she was hesitant to bring it up. Keeping her tone casual, she asked, "Am I going to get to see your real lab?"

"If I decide to put you on a project based there." The Director lifted his chin. "But designing these new soldiers here is a priority, especially now that we have altered working against us."

"Makes sense," Willow folded her arms and leaned forward to inspect the soldier's visor. "Are there two Scorpion buildings then? This one, and the lab?"

A knock at the door stopped the Director from responding. He and Willow both looked toward the door as it swung open. Ash hovered in the doorway.

"Claudia wants to speak to you," Ash told the Director.

The Director sighed. "Did she say what about?"

"No. Why would she?" Ash sounded even more annoyed than usual. Willow lifted an eyebrow.

"All right." The Director gestured toward the soldier as he spoke to Willow. "Take this to the training room and have the altered take a crack at it, then. Write up a report for me when you're done."

"You don't want me to integrate the A.I. first?" Willow asked.

"Not yet. I just want an idea of how resilient the armor is." The Director strolled to the door, hands moving into the pockets of his lab coat. "I assume you're headed back to the training room, Ash?"

Ash nodded.

"Good. Then you can help." The Director passed Ash, stepped into the hall, and headed off to find Claudia.

Once he was gone, Willow grabbed her tablet with one hand and reached for the soldier with the other.

Ash stepped into the room and walked toward the soldier. "I've got it."

"If you insist." Willow had more stuff to carry, anyway. While Ash picked up the soldier, she grabbed a tripod, a camera, and her laptop.

They left the lab together and walked toward the training room. Ash made frequent adjustments to his grip on the soldier. A completed version might have been too heavy for him to carry alone, but without the circuitry and wires needed for A.I. integration, the armor shell seemed manageable for a short distance.

"Have you ever been to Scorpion's lab?" Willow asked.

Ash frowned. "I—a few times. But not to the current location."

"Current location?"

"They've had to move a few times," Ash explained. "Last time I was there, we had to evacuate because—" He froze.

Willow realized he was staring at an empty spot in the middle of the hallway. "Ash? Hello?" If she had a free hand, she would have waved it in front of his face.

Ash shook his head. "Never mind."

Well, he wasn't easy to talk to, was he? Then again, neither was Willow. Until she wanted information.

Another minute of walking brought them around a corner to the hall with the training room. Willow threw frequent glances at Ash as they approached the doors. Maybe it was her imagination—she didn't interact with the other altered much—but Ash seemed a little off.

They entered the training room. Ash set the soldier on the ground with a loud thud, instantly drawing the attention of everyone in the room. Various fights came to a halt, fires flickered out, and every set of eyes moved to Willow.

"We have a new soldier prototype to test," Willow announced as she set down her tripod. "This armor should resist every altered ability, but we need to be sure."

Wren released Seth—who she'd had in a headlock—and took a step forward. "You want us to try destroying that thing?" she asked with a grin.

"Yes. But we're going to go one at a time." Willow started setting up the camera. "Can we start with a pyro?"

As Willow and the Director had expected, the blast of fire from an altered didn't have any effect on the alterium armor.

After the first attempt, Willow had the rest of the kids line up and throw their attacks at the soldier, one at a time. Ash was the second altered to try. He summoned a wave of water from a puddle in the corner of the room and pulled it over the soldier. The air within an inch of the armor stayed dry, even as water rushed past.

While other altered took their turns, Willow stood next to the wall with her arms folded. She occasionally checked the camera to make sure it was still recording. Checked her phone. Eyed the newer faces in the line, the newest recruits to Scorpion.

Not only did Ash seem off, but a lot of the new recruits looked a little dazed. Were they just tired? Still adjusting to life at Scorpion?

Seth made it to the front of the line and furrowed his brow. His apparent attempt to lift the soldier into the air ferrokinetically failed. After a few seconds of nothing, Wren shoved him out of the way and took a step forward. Electricity jumped from her hands. The lightning danced in the air around the soldier but couldn't make it to the armor's surface.

Wren was...a lot. But she might be worth talking to.

As the altered dispersed and returned whatever training they'd been doing before Willow's arrival, Willow crossed the room and waved a hand to catch Wren's attention.

"I have a quick question," Willow told her.

Wren folded her arms. There was a wariness to the motion that seemed out of character, but she quickly covered it up with a snarky grin. "Yeah?"

Willow lowered her voice. "Do the new recruits seem out of it to you?" she asked. "If something's wrong, it could jeopardize missions."

"Oh, yeah, new recruits are usually like that." Wren shrugged. "They do fine in fights, though. And after a few weeks they start acting like normal, so, I don't know. Maybe they're just getting used to being somewhere new?"

Yeah, that didn't sound right, but it was a passable enough explanation for someone who clearly didn't care.

Willow returned to the edge of the room to gather up her equipment. Wren might not have cared, but Willow had a burning curiosity. How was Claudia keeping the new recruits in line?

Considering how long Claudia and the Director had been running this child army, Willow had a feeling they'd come up with a way to deal with kids who might not want to get involved. Or kids who changed their mind about sticking around.

The question was how.