Marie had undersold things. The CSAE was apparently filled with arcane and difficult questions on various areas of the law, literature, science, and math. Even adult polymaths, geniuses who studied many different subjects, struggled on the CSAE. Most young people with a public education found it impossible to clear 60%. There was a catch, however.
The test was administered by the Imperium’s Ministry of Education. They obviously knew which questions would be on this year’s addition of the CSAE in advance, and they were staffed almost exclusively by the graduates of the prep schools. These were privately owned, secondary schooling institutions populated by the Imperium’s elite. Their connections would feed them info about the test in advance, allowing the students to tailor their studying or even outright memorize the answers in advance. Lucy was going to a public school, meaning she needed to do things the old-fashioned way. Daniel looked it up and saw that an 80% would only get her into a middling tertiary school, at best. Without connections, things could be even worse. The best schools usually required a 92% or above. But his eyes really narrowed when he looked up the prices for the prep schools.
120,000 credits. One year at the average prep school would run their students around 120 grand. The more expensive schools could even reach 150 or even 180. They were staggering sums, ones he couldn’t meet even with his life savings. The only reason he could come close would be his grandfather’s gift. Daniel scrambled to look for alternatives, but even the lesser schools would cost 80K a year at least. That was manageable, but it sparked a new idea, and he looked up the tertiary schools as well. They were even worse.
Even the lesser tertiary schools geared toward preparing the Imperium’s future civil servants typically cost 100K annually. The highest rated schools could bilk their students for as much as 250 or even 300K. Loans were easy enough to get, but graduating with up to a million credits in debt would be brutal, even if these top-level grads would almost certainly get lucrative jobs. It wasn’t as though every government employee needed to go to these schools. But if you wanted to rise above a mere grunt, they were borderline mandatory. Hardgrave took a deep breath.
“It’s not my business.”
He thought to himself as he put down his Pad and rolled over:
“I barely even know them.”
That didn’t convince him for a moment, however, and all he could think of was Lucy’s moping face as she compared her scores to her mother’s. Maybe it seemed silly, but Daniel could tell that the young girl wanted to honor her mom’s memory. A memory, presumably, of hard work and service. He tossed and turned for a while, fighting for a sleep that was far out of reach. There was one thought Daniel just couldn’t get out of his mind. He wanted to help his little sister. He didn’t want her to go up to her eyeballs in debt. He wanted her to achieve her potential and have an easy life. But there was only one easy way to do that:
“Maybe Marie will figure something out. She’s Lucy’s guardian now, not me.”
With that thought, Daniel rolled over and fell into a troubled sleep.
…
4 Months Later
Daniel drove up to the concrete fa?ade of Piedmont Secondary School in the waning hours of twilight, pulling his car up to the curb and setting it to idle behind the small line of other cars. He didn’t have to wait long for Lucy to slip out of the central glass doors and walk over. Once she was inside and the door was shut, Daniel pulled away from the curb and sped off into the night. He weaved through the evening traffic with a natural grace, but his mind was occupied elsewhere. Lucy was the first to break the silence and bring him back to earth:
“How was work?”
“…It was good. Elise snuck away a little early, but the boss seemed fine with it. Said something about her having permission, which was weird. But beside that, nothing interesting. How was school?”
“It was fun. Julia kept me company during my study session. She said she was looking for a part time job, and I said my brother might be able to help. Can you?”
“Sure! I can put a good word in for her with the boss.”
The boss had given him a raise from 15 to 18 credits an hour, but she still refused to hire him a full-time assistant. Maybe the idea of a part-timer might be more appealing. Changing the subject, Lucy asked:
“You’re coming over for dinner tonight, right?”
“Yep. It’ll be fun. Since it’s the start of the weekend, maybe we can play some SoV.”
Song of Valor, aka SoV, was Danny’s favorite game. The first-person shooter had amassed intergalactic popularity, and he dominated most lobbies as one of its better players. The best part was that the Imperium didn’t consider success in the game useful in indicating success as a warrior, so he didn’t have to hold himself back for fear of being drafted. Ever the corrupting influence on his studious kid sister, he’d gotten Lucy into the game as well, and she was nearly as addicted as he was. He watched the conflict break out across her face in his rearview mirror and chuckled softly himself. Daniel knew exactly what his sister was going to say before she even said it:
“I need to study.”
“Come on, little sis! Take a break for once.”
“I have a test next Akaday.”
“A test you’ll ace anyways. Didn’t you just spend the past few hours studying? A break would do you some good.”
Daniel grinned as he saw by the change in Lucy’s expression that he’d won the argument:
“…All right!”
Stolen story; please report.
“Heck yeah! Best be ready, you little brainiac. You’re going down!”
“We’ll see about that!”
They passed the rest of the ride bickering companionably about who was going to destroy who in SoV, though they both knew Danny would win. He dropped Lucy off at the curb outside their building, then got ready for dinner. Stomachs rumbling, he and Dio climbed the staircase to the 4th floor and knocked on door 413. When it opened, however, Danny got more than he bargained for:
“Happy Birthday!”
Man and cat jumped a little in surprise at the chorus of three girls from within the apartment. Daniel was shocked to see the smiling faces of Lucy, Marie, and Elise looking back at him from inside a colorfully decorated Apartment 413. The small place had been festooned with cheerfully colored streamers and balloons, with the SmartGram projecting the words ‘Happy B Day Danny’ in rainbow-colored words from its place on the dinner table. He mutely walked in and was greeted with a tip toed kiss on the cheek from Elise and a big hug from Lucy:
“Happy 17th Birthday, Danny.”
The young man had totally forgotten it was his birthday. In fact, he’d never had a big celebration for his birth before in his life, though he knew of the custom. The old man would usually buy him a gift or a treat and that would be the end of it. He looked in question at Marie, who held a calm expression even as her eyes glittered with mirth:
“You never told us your birthday, but you’d mentioned that you were 16 and I decided to look it up.”
The stunned Danny was ushered to the table where the girls moved the hologram and laid out an epic spread of food and deserts, to the point that the entire surface was covered by the feast. The whole party ate their fill, their conversation suffused with warm laughter and merrymaking. By the time they were done, even Dio couldn’t eat another bite, the orange fuzzball electing to lie down on his side and pass out. After dinner, Marie and Elise went and did the dishes while Danny and Lucy sat on the couch and played videogames. Daniel had decided to have mercy on his little sister, so he was carrying her through the game’s ranked mode instead of dueling her in the 1v1 arena. In between matches, the SmartGram’s message system pinged, and Lucy casually brought it up on her screen. Daniel heard a slight gasp in surprise from next to him and quickly looked over:
“To: Lucille Mary Hardgrave
Subject: Civil Service Aptitude Exam Score
Lucille M. Hardgrave,
We at the Ministry of Education award you the enclosed score for your efforts on the most recent Civil Service Aptitude Exam. Civil service is one of the most important functions in the Imperium, and we are grateful for your interest in this hallowed profession. Note that you are limited in your number of attempts, so please take that into account should you consider retaking the test.
Score: 78%
Number or remaining attempts: 2
Signed,
Robert Bavarian
Minister of Education”
Daniel’s heart sank as he saw his sister’s face had morphed from glee to melancholy in the space of a heartbeat. Marie noticed the change in her young charge even from by the sink, and she appeared by the girl’s side in a flash, reading the message at lightning speed before muttering softly:
“Oh, cherir, that is a good score. You have everything to be proud of.”
Lucy was clearly trying not to cry. She looked up at Marie, eyes misty, and squeaked out:
“You’re right, Marie. You’re right. This way, you won’t have to pay as much for school.”
That last part came out in a hoarse voice and Marie gathered her up in a big hug. Daniel got off the couch to give the girls their moment, but the last thing he heard was a muffled sob and the faint words ‘wasn’t good enough’. They were a dagger to the heart and Daniel fought to maintain his own composure as he walked over to Elise, who stared at him with wide, confused eyes:
“You can go home. I’ll handle the dishes.”
Elise nodded, clearly curious but also not wanting to intrude on family business. Daniel washed the dishes mechanically as he left the girls to their moment, numbly mulling over the situation:
“She’ll be all right. Marie is right. It is a decent score. Even a bad school will get her a job.”
But she’d be wasting her potential, stuck pushing around papers in a dead-end position:
“Maybe Marie can somehow get her into a prep school.”
She didn’t have the money. She barely made enough for the two them to make ends meet. If she hadn’t figured it out by now, she wouldn’t in the near future.
“They’re nice. They really are. But you have your own life to live.”
He stewed on these thoughts for he didn’t know how long before he finally looked down and saw that all the dirty plates were gone. Daniel turned and said a few sad goodbyes to the girls before quietly leaving. There was no way he was going to sleep immediately, so he dropped Dio at home, dashed down the building stairs, and stepped out onto the streets. Hardgrave always took a walk when he was in a rut and needed to clear his head. It was a balmy summer evening, perfect for a relaxing stroll, but the nice conditions did nothing for his mood.
As he ambled down one of the main streets, something caught his eye. An old-fashioned poster, plastered on the side of a building, depicted three heroic looking soldiers standing on a rock outcrop while a large eagle soared over their heads. In big red lettering above that, it read:
“MATTERHORN ACADEMY PARTNERSHIP”
The smaller caption below spelled out the details:
“The Eagle of Matterhorn Academy and the Might of the Federation of Pioneers have come together to create an unprecedented opportunity. In an exchange for enlistment in the Federation, recruits are offered one year of schooling at Matterhorn Prep for free, as well as a discount on tuition for the Academy proper. Honorable warriors can serve their country while getting the finest education in the galaxy.
Sign up now and pursue your destiny!
DVM (Duty, Valor, Might)
Note: offer only valid for residents of Akaadia and Priority Recruits. Recruits are allowed to name a different beneficiary if they so choose.
This message was approved by the Ministries for Education and War.”
It was the smaller black lettering at the very bottom of the poster that really piqued Daniel’s attention. He could name a different beneficiary of the education if he so chose. Daniel was a resident, obviously, so he had that going for him. But to be a Priority Recruit, there needed to be something special about you. Outstanding physical strength or mental acuity, for example. Or perhaps…
He stared at the poster for a long time, the idea churning around in his mind. Daniel Sylvester Hardgrave closed his eyes, clenched his fists, and took a deep breath.
Then he made his decision.
…
Old Tom yawned a little as he punched in the keycode to open his shop. He started work with the rising sun, a habit that the military had beaten into him, though he was starting to regret it now:
“I’m gettin’ too old fer this shit.”
He thought to himself as he walked inside and took up his post at the counter. The range didn’t get many early morning customers, even on weekends, so it certainly wouldn’t hurt to open an hour later. But habit was habit, so he pulled up a book on his Pad and tried to keep his eyes open. Much to his surprise, the door swung open barely a minute later, and in walked Danny Hardgrave. Tom waved in greeting, a motion the young man casually reciprocated, but he could tell that the boy was distracted by something. Tom almost asked what it was, but he tossed the notion aside:
“Mind yer own business, Tom, mind yer own business.”
Soon, the thundering of that hand cannon roared throughout the shooting area. Even from behind the soundproof doors, Old Tom could hear the kid blasting away, and he shook his head. He’d never regretted his own service, but he refused to criticize the younger fellow. Not everyone was meant to go to war. Still, it was a shame to let that kind of talent go to waste.
An hour and a half later, he heard the shooting stop. Danny walked out of there carrying a small stack of paper targets. The boy had done a lot of shooting, which was rare for someone on his kind of budget. Tom grinned as the young fella approached him:
“A productive morning, ey Danny boy?”
To his surprise, the boy didn’t grin back. He didn’t even smile. Daniel Hardgrave just stared back at him with a grave expression on his face. The young man looked like he was about to start a war or be executed by firing squad as he held out his targets for Tom to see. Curious, the old man accepted the papers, and his eyebrows flew up into his fuzzy white hair.
Bullseyes. Each target was filled with bullseyes.
