Read The Covert Academy for Free Online Page A

once they’d made their report.
    ‘I’ll tell you on the way.’
     
    Sarah led Joshua around the chaotic fruit market using back alleys. He had been surprisingly quiet so far, no doubt thinking through his questions and saving them for later.
    ‘The person I’m taking you to controls a small, exclusive organisation in the Pacific,’ she began. ‘It was formed during the war and has been dedicated to training people like me for espionage tactics.’
    ‘People like you,’ he echoed.
    Sarah came up short. ‘Yes. And you. I saw you take down a soldier and the remains you left of that other drone. To be honest, the disabled drone alone would have got me a round of drinks from our tech boys in R&D. But I left it there because I believe I’m bringing back two far more valuable assets.’
    She looked at him and he lifted his gaze too suddenly, his mind having been focussed on two other valuable “assets” below the neckline.
    He tried his best to change the subject. ‘Fine, fine, but what do you actually do?’
    Sarah shook her head and sighed. ‘Don’t tell me you haven’t heard of the Academy?’
    ‘Yes, but everyone I know thinks it’s just a myth. Some super secret cult out in the Pacific Ocean, lofty ideals of bringing down the Confederacy... the most advanced technology research imaginable, completely run by volunteers... and to top it off, brutally training toddlers from the day they can walk to become... well, ninjas!’ He gave a short chuckle. ‘What is this Feudal Japan? Ha! They should be training Samurai. No one has a shred of honour any more.’
    Sarah looked at him. ‘I hope you don’t really think that, you’ve only just met me.’
    Joshua shut up.
     
    Their walk had taken them to the edge of the lake. The crowd was particularly busy here and both Sarah and Joshua blended in in their own way. Sarah with her jumpsuit set to display a casual but earthy brown top and dark blue pants, Joshua with his filthy rags. They could have passed for any number of the indentured servants with their contract owners that walked past them. Many people had been reduced to living as a slave just to stay fed, but it was better than living out on the icy streets their whole lives. There were millions of people who had no alternative. Unless it was the Confederacy who chose to employ someone, the job market was incredibly sparse.
    A small set of drones hummed overhead, staying low to the ground as they scanned the crowd for signs of discord. Sarah saw most people flinch as they flew by or duck out of the street, but Joshua looked up at them.
    ‘I think I hate these more than the ones that were shooting at us,’ he said.
    Sarah opened her mouth to ask why, when the four drones stopped and hung in mid-air. They’d stopped their automated patrol. Sarah had never seen them do that unless they were about to attack. Joshua had seen this performance before.
    The drones just hovered there. After a tense moment, they tucked away their crowd scanners by folding the attachment inside their chassis. The front of the drones shuffled a series of panels like a jigsaw puzzle to form a flat picture frame. An image of a man appeared with light coppery hair, his pinched mouth forced into a tight condescending smile that didn’t extend to his eyes.
    Sarah took an instant dislike to him. She glanced at Joshua who had hung his head as if preparing himself for some inevitable discomfort. Before she could ask what the problem was, the man on the monitors spoke.
    ‘Hello,’ his voice boomed through the street. ‘Hello, citizens of the Confederacy. My name is Simeon Warner. I address you today as the newly appointed leader of our fine community. It is with a humble heart that I have accepted the position, and hope to continue the years of peace afforded by the hard work of the men and women of this first unified government of planet Earth. Many of you may be wondering, “Mr. Warner, how can I help the Confederacy? I’m just one