Everything is a test.
Chapter Eighteen: The Vantos
Thrawn closed his eyes and allowed the cold water from the showerhead to warm himself. It felt like home. He swirled liquid soap under his arms, the suds enlaced his fingers in white and invoked vivid images in his mind's eye.
He saw a red dwarf star, faint and everlasting. Orbiting it was a single planet. A white jewel. His Csilla, with its steaming furnaces which warmed towering caves with heat directly from the planet's mantle. He saw stone walls that glittered with minerals and Chiss technology, and Chiss faces amongst it all.
What he wouldn't give to be under there—what he wouldn't do to protect it all.
"Hurry up."
The order cut through pleasant memories. Thrawn's hand paused on his abdomen and his eyes darted to the side to regard Orbar's impatient figure. "Eager for victory?" he asked while rinsing soap from his armpit.
Orbar wore a scowl to match the arms held taught at his sides. He jerked his head down to ask, "What was that?"
Thrawn reached forward and turned his water off, then plucked his small white towel from a hook before draping it around his neck. Orbar rewarded his silence by turning and making his way out to the line. Thrawn watched his progress through hooded eyes while working his swim cap over his wet hair.
The pool room was hot and cloyingly humid, but he didn't mind. He liked the scent of the water's cleaning chemicals. What he could do without, however, was the roar of the crowd. He retreated into his mind and drowned out the sound as they made their way to the section reserved for them, the competitors.
On each row of benches, placed evenly apart, sat little holobits with their names floating in glowing green letters. He passed Turuy's name in the fourth row and followed Orbar up to the stairs behind the line of triads who had not yet found their seats.
Thrawn saw his name glowing in the eighth row, with Orbar between him and Vanto. When they sat, Orbar bunched his towel into a ball and placed it between himself and Thrawn while keeping his gaze fixed firmly ahead.
Around him, cadets searched high and low for their families and well-wishers within the crowd. Cadet Vanto was one of them, though he had confessed that none of his family would be able to make the journey to the Core to support him. Thrawn turned and scanned the crowd between ads that glowed from holobits embedded in the railings.
"My parents are here," Vanto said in astonishment.
"So they came," Thrawn said.
"Yeah, it looks like," he replied, lifting one of his hands to wave, before snapping back around, both torso and face stained red, and a small smile twitching on his lips.
"I am eager to meet them," Thrawn said as his lips also twitched into a smile.
"I'll introduce you, but..." Vanto fell silent and he tugged on the edge of his swim cap. "Well, I'll introduce you."
There was no need to question Vanto's uncertainties about the matter; Thrawn had experience with humans from the far outskirts. He knew some of their tales and superstitions.
His gaze made its way back towards the pool and he spotted Turuy, her body half-turned in her seat with her gaze pinned on Orbar, who looked determinedly ahead to ignore her futile attempts to communicate with him.
She must have felt Thrawn's eyes on her. Her head snapped his way, eyes narrowing in accusation?
He ran his thumb over the stitching of the Academy's emblem on his jammer shorts but held her gaze. It wasn't until the music faded out and the announcers began to speak that Turuy turned back around, freeing him of her continued scrutiny. He allowed his lips the freedom to quirk up at both sides. Commandant Deenlark made lofty introductions and Major Garber made his expectations clear, then the first divers stepped up and got ready.
A sharp PEEP signaled the divers to be ready, and a second PEEP sent them into the water. First-round revealed no threat, with the best time clocking in at thirty-eight minutes and eight seconds. The scoreboard lit up with the names of the upcoming competitors and their lanes. Dibbs, Muanung and Turuy were to race in lane six.
"A stiff line-up," Orbar muttered, shifting in his seat. "Hatseen, Lebsius and Baseline. Let's see how you do now."
Peep! The divers readied themselves.
Peep! The divers propelled themselves off their starting positions and into the water.
Muanung had surfaced first at an impressive thirteen minutes and thirty-nine seconds. She placed all fifteen of her medallions in her lane's counter, pulled herself out of the water in one fluid movement, and her teammate Dibbs dove in. Dibbs's freestyle was more than satisfactory. She moved her bulk quite well through the water.
Next in was Hatseen. He was long-limbed and held a height advantage over Dibbs, and though he lacked her muscular definition, he cut through the water expertly and was able to close the distance between them for the final stretch.
Dibbs must have held back, knowing she had a head start. She used that surplus of energy and was the first at the wall.
Turuy was in the moment Dibbs's hand slapped the board. She launched herself through the water. Her form perfect.
Thrawn spared a glance over at Orbar, who reached up to rake his fingers over his shoulder. His nails left angry red lines against his dark brown skin, before cooling to reveal pale white scratches. Scratch marks appeared white like that against Thrawn's skin as well.
When he returned to watching the race, Baseline had taken the lead.
'Have you more to show, Turuy?' he wondered.
She had. They were neck-and-neck now, both appearing to be swimming at their fastest. Then Baseline fell behind. The distance between Baseline and Turuy grew farther and farther before Lighton and Lebsius closed in on him. The lanes were full, and all appeared to be digging deep for the butterfly stroke. But Turuy left them all behind.
The cadets in the crowd were up in their seats, egging them on, screaming her name.
Turuy slapped the board, her body arced out of the water as she took in a final breath. She had done it. Her team led the board at twenty-seven minutes and forty-three seconds, and they held their spot until the final round.
Thrawn was relatively confident she would take the win, though he was not one to underestimate the power of a spurned lover. He considered Orbar's muscular back as they made their way down the stairs to the pool.
From what he had gathered from their shared classes, Orbar was not an utter fool. Turuy was visibly upset, and he was ignoring her. It was safe to conclude that the tension between them had everything to do with their comrades' supposed disappearance. Had she confessed her part willingly? Would Orbar punish her further by helping him and Vanto take the win? Or had they come to an agreement, despite her betrayal?
So many questions. He would soon get the answers.
They gathered around the starter block of lane four while Orbar suited up in his rebreather harness and took his position. PEEP! He stooped low. PEEP! He rolled into the water.
Thrawn was able to follow his progress through the pool. He stopped in the middle, turned himself upright so he could watch five other divers rush past him on their way to the bottom-most cave. Cave BX-379, a dark hole in the pool floor, riddled with sharp and jagged obstacle walls.
Pedra had told him and Vanto that only four divers should descend into it at once. Any more and it increased their chances of entangling their equipment with the obstacles thus slowing down everyone in the process. Thrawn suspected Orbar knew this, as he followed the other divers to the cave at a leisurely pace.
Orbar could fix the race how he pleased—Thrawn had gotten what he wanted. His gaze found Turuy up in the stands.
When Orbar surfaced, it was to the sound of jeers and boos. Thrawn scanned the crowd and saw it was coming from the other cadets. Vanto stood dry on the starter block, his eyes fixed on the water, his torso, neck, and ears blazing red.
The scoreboard lit up with the final score.
1 Dibbs Muanung Turuy 27:43
2 Baseline Hatseen Tagge 27:52
3 Barrgs Maverly Pedra 33:02
And down at the very bottom, in 96th place, was: Thrawn Orbar Vanto.
Commandant Deenlark stopped in front of their lane. His spotless white trainers stood in the pool of water that dripped from Orbar and his gear. "How very like you," he began in a low timbre, "to ruin the day for everyone else."
Orbar's head tilted to the side so that his ear threatened to touch his shoulder. "What do you mean, Sir?"
Deenlark's nose wrinkled ever so slightly. "Yes, it's always confusion with you. Find your seats. Your families will be free to join you after the medal ceremony." He finished and nodded Thrawn's way as he passed. "Lieutenant."
The cadets sat in their seats and discussed the race in loud conversations that mingled with the cacophony of the crowd, while preparations were underway on the deck.
"Orbar, why did you dive when you're a much better swimmer?" Cadet Kravus asked.
"I wanted to," he replied.
"Your team would have won had you not," Pedra said. "Are you that much of a bigot that you would sabotage yourself?" she rolled her eyes and looked directly at Thrawn with a look to say, you and I understand, right?
Thrawn blinked at her.
"Think what you want," Orbar said with a shrug. "Truth is, we'll never know."
Before the matter could be discussed any further, Commandant Deenlark took his place by the podium, and the three teams who placed were called for.
Turuy pulsated with colour as she stepped up on the podium with her team, more vibrant of a red than the others. Thrawn frowned. The win meant more for her?
They all bent at the waist, one by one so that Deenlark could slip their medals over their heads to rest against their necks.
He wondered at that—her pride in these circumstances. In a competition between athletes, no cheater could win—unless she was only after the credits, and not the glory. What was Turuy's financial situation? A majority of the students at the Royal Imperial Academy were of wealth and privilege, but Vanto did say some students earned their seats through academic or physical prowess. Was she one of these chosen few?
…
After showering and dressing, the Cadets migrated to the parade grounds to find their families and enjoy refreshments.
"Look, here come my parents," Vanto said. His parents were short of stature and dressed more formal than the others. 'They aim to fit in,' Thrawn thought, watching them cross the field. They were tentative in their steps, their strides halting so that they could regroup and offer encouragement into each other's ear.
"Mom! Dad!" Vanto exclaimed once they came within earshot. "You made it."
They remained several steps away. The woman— Mrs. Vanto—played with a ring on her finger.
"We managed to find the time and wanted it to be a surprise," Mr. Vanto answered.
"Such a shame to not see you swim after coming all this way," his mother added.
"I was surprised you didn't dive. Your teammate… he wasn't very good, was he?"
Mr. and Mrs. Vanto's body language revealed how aware they were of Thrawn's proximity. How anxious they were by it. They kept their arms folded tightly and kept their glances fleeting—he even detected the first traces of sweat on Mr. Vanto's upper lip.
Vanto remedied the situation. "This is Thrawn. Lieutenant Thrawn. My teammate."
"Yeah, and he—" Mrs. Vanto broke off, her eyes widening, as if not believing what it was they saw. "You're a Chiss, like Eli said?"
"I am," Thrawn confirmed with a grave nod of the head. "It is a pleasure to meet you."
"We've heard some things about… your kind—your people—the Chiss," Mr. Vanto took off his cap and clenched it in two tight fists.
It was hard to discern whose face was reddest at the moment. Cadet Vanto, his mother, or his father.
"Flatteries," Thrawn said, feeling a genuine smile moving his cheek. "The stories we choose to tell reveal not only the characters of the plot, but the character of the storytellers as well. Your son proves himself to be rational."
"Ice demons!" Mr. Vanto blurted out suddenly.
"No," Thrawn began patiently, over the sound of Cadet Vanto's groan. "We are not spirits of ice possessing the bodies of humans." He had smirked to himself when Vanto had told him this myth one night."I promise you," he added reassuringly.
Mr. Vanto exhaled with relief.
Thrawn closed his eyes and sniffed softly through his nostrils, bowing his head slightly in Mr. Vanto's direction.
"Is this your little team, Spenc?" A new voice came from behind them. Thrawn turned to see a woman standing close to Orbar. They shared similar features. His sister perhaps? She grinned at him.
"You knew that already," Orbar began in a bored tone. "Let's go, I'd like to speak with the Tagges."
"Oh, but you must introduce me first."
"No."
"You'll have to excuse my little brother," she began. "He doesn't understand. The tensions between humans and aliens is but a small detail in an intricate plot to keep the poor and ignorant from sniffing at our fortunes." She held out a small hand to Thrawn. "I'm Kyria," she drawled, her grin shrinking to a pout.
"Disinformation, to divide and conquer," Thrawn said, taking it and kissing it.
She withdrew and tapped her nose. "Thrawn and Eli Vanto, is that right?"
"It is." Thrawn confirmed. "And you are Orbar's—" he paused consideringly, "Sister?"
"Yes." She turned to the Vantos, her pout curling up at the side in such a perfect replica of Orbar's own sneer that Thrawn wondered if it was hereditary. "You're from Wild Space, then?" she added.
Vanto nodded stiffly.
"I hear it's cold there."
"Where?" he asked frowning.
"Everywhere. Who cares? It's Wild Space." Kyria wrapped an arm around Orbar's shoulder and began pulling him away. "Come, let's go congratulate Rosita on her win." He protested as she took him away.
"Where will you go once you've graduated, Lieutenant Thrawn?" Mrs. Vanto stopped playing with her ring and though she spoke to him, her attention was firmly on the Orbars' retreating backs.
"Wherever the Empire needs me to go."
"That could be anywhere," she replied. "It's a good thing you have a position waiting for you near home, Eli. We'll be glad to have you back in our sector. Or close to it, at the very least."
"After a few years posted as a supply technician, why, I reckon you'll turn our company right around. Will you become a supply technician as well, Thrawn?"
"Lieutenant Thrawn." Mrs. Vanto corrected her husband with a tentative smile.
'Progress,' he began to think.
"Yes, yes." Mr. Vanto waved a hand, his eyes meeting Thrawn's for the first time. "You know, no one back home's going to believe that I met a real live Chiss. Can I… I mean, would you pose for a picture with Eli?"
'Is slow.' His thoughts concluded.