August 15th, 2030, 7:28 am

Half of the seats in the lecture hall are empty, but Hal insists that I sit with him anyway. Trust me, I'm not complaining, it's just that we have all this space and he wants me to stick by him and his friend Mai. He says that many of the kids in his ranking group can't be trusted as far as cooperation goes. He doesn't want me to caught up in all that mess.

Unlike all the other times I was in class with the other group, Hal and Mai took me to sit in the front row. Before we took our seats, I asked him if he was serious about sitting ahead of the rest.

He grinned briefly. "There aren't many times when I'm not serious."

So we sat only a few yards from where the instructor lectured the class. As of now, the listening ordeal isn't as bad as it was the past few days. Even though his mouth piece is choppy, sitting so close means that we can all hear him perfectly. I'm not so sure that the kids behind us even know if class has started.

Today, we are learning about the Imperial Guard's Creed of Honor. I don't know anything about it, which is a refreshing change from the other classes. At least now I'll actually be taught something new. When I learn something I've never heard of before, I'm in the zone. I think with that and the fact that I'm around motivated people, things may start looking up again.

"The Imperial Guard Creed of Honor was originally written by Caspar Heddinger in 1834, only seven years after our General Thomas Beauregard was born. Heddinger was a guard himself, serving in the South War. As a way to determine who was friendly or an enemy, he devised a short saying that would need to be recited to be an ally. After the North War ended under Beauregard, the saying was revised to show one's loyalty to the Imperial Guard. The original version was five lines long, and the current version of the Creed is twenty-seven lines long. It's quite a difference in length."

Yawn. I don't want a history lesson, dude. If all I need to know is what the Creed says for my tests, then I couldn't give a shit less about Heddinger and the South War. I just remembered how boring these classes were, no matter what group I'm in.

A sheet of paper slides in front of the three of us. The instructor continues, "Being passed out now is the Creed of Honor itself. Have every person in your group read it aloud first, then give yourselves time to practice. In order to be in the immediate duty group, it is vital that you learn this like the back of your hand."

Before I can begin to reach for the paper, Hal snatches it for himself and scans it. "Twenty-seven lines? Looks like a lot more than that." He clears his throat and grips the sheet away from his face. He faces Mai and I.

"I am an Imperial Guard. I have been blessed at birth with a purpose, to serve my Empire and her people. My life belongs to the Emperor. His word is that of an Almighty power, one that I cannot defy for as long as I live. My body comes before his, and if I perish before he, then I succeeded. May any foreign horror that plagues Oltima, be neutralized from this world at my hand. The citizens of the Empire are his people, and thus must be protected all the same. They forward society, and I must watch over them, with this God-given ability, which I have inherited from heroes before me. I must continue their legacy with all I have. If I fail in my quest, may my life be cut short, for I have not succeeded in his name. I am strong, stronger than any evil power I encounter, because I am an Imperial Guard. Hail the cosmic servants of Beauregard, hail the Emperor and his kin, and hail Oltima." Hal inhales once the Empire's name rolls off his tongue.

Man, the Creed of Honor sure is long. I don't want to learn all that. I'd rather have to memorize the original one by Heddinger and go through all the boring history lessons. Hal lost me after the first two or three lines. So much for starting anew.

Hal hands the paper to Mai and shakes his head. "I remember my parents always reciting that to me when I was younger. They've been out of the Imperial Guard for fifteen years now so I bet they've forgotten it by now."

Mai's eyes dance around at the words. "My dad said he still kind of remembers it. I know the end, that's it. Hail the cosmic servants of Beauregard, hail the Emperor and his kin, and hail Oltima." She grins, then begins. "I am an Imperial Guard."

I think it's safe to assume to nearly everyone here has had a parent in the Imperial Guard at some point. Hal said his both his parents were here, and now Mai mentions that her dad was in it, too. That makes three of us. I don't remember my dad reciting the Creed of Honor growing up. Maybe it's because he wasn't around long.

Wait a minute.

Dad rises from my bedside, his fingers massaging his chin. "Now, what was the rest of it? I remember the end, but I'm drawing a blank here."

I groan, throwing my bed sheets away from my body. My feet hit the rug next to my nightstand. "I must continue their leggy sea with all I have."

He turns to me. "Leggy sea? Slater, I have never heard of a leggy sea!" In a swift motion, my legs are swept out from under me and I find myself over his shoulder. We're both laughing out loud, though his are in response to mine.

Mai's recital of the Creed butts into my thoughts for a moment. "They forward society, and I must watch over them, with this God-given ability, which I have inherited from heroes before me."

"Hail the cosmic servants of Beauregard, hail the Emperor and his kin, and hail Oltima." Dad finishes the Creed in a triumphant breath. "Thank God you're here to help me, Slater. I don't know if I would've been able to say all that without you." He places me on the floor gently.

I run to my bed and hop to my feet. My eyes are just about level with his. "I know the Creed of Honor better than you, Dad!" I jump up and down, listening to the springs brace each fall.

"Come on, sit still. I don't want to have to buy you a new bed again because you can't stop jumping on it. You know your mother hates having to hear you bounce around like this." Before he can add onto that, from mid-air, I fall onto my bed, making the loudest pressing noise possible. Dad sighs, pulling the sheets over me as I curl up.

I grasp one of my pillows against my chest. "What's wrong, Dad?"

His smile appears. A rare sight. "Oh, nothing. I'm just going away for a while and I won't be seeing you. I'll be home in a week or so."

I sleeve my body under the covers a little more. "Oh."

"It's okay, Slater. It's just a little trip for work. I'll be back, trust me." His hand lowers to my forehead, brushing away some of my hair. He plants a kiss right above my eyebrows. "Promise me you'll take care of your mom, okay?"

"I will."

"'Atta boy." He lingers over to my bedroom door and puts his fingers on the light switch. "Love you, bud. See you soon."

"Love you, Dad." I roll onto my side as my lamp dies into darkness. Dad closes the door behind him.

And I never saw him again.

"Slater, are you okay?" Mai nudges my hand with the corner of the tip of the paper. "You can read now if you want."

I find myself staring at the floor right in front of my desk. I don't remember a whole lot about my dad or have explicit flashbacks like that, ever. I hardly even know who he really was. I know how he was with me, but was he kind to others? Did he respect my mom? What kind of sense of humor did he have? How much did he love Mom and I?

I blink a few times and glance down at the paper in my vicinity. "Yeah, I'll take it, thanks." I stretch out my fingers to reach it, but Hal's friend whiffs it away.

"You were talking to yourself just now. You seemed distant," she explains. "Are you feeling okay?

I lean back in my chair, locking my fingers behind my head. Hal and Mai watch me shake my head and shut my eyes slowly. When I open them again, the two have their backs against the desk, facing me. I guess I have to say something.

I can feel the cool air cling to the sweat in my armpits as my face flushes. "My dad was in the Imperial Guard. When I was younger, he and I would always say the Creed right before I went to bed. But he's gone now. He's been missing since I was seven. He went on an Imperial Guard mission and never came back."

Hal and Mai exchange a brief glance. Mai, on my right, curls some strands of her black hair behind her ear with her eyes aimed at the floor. Hal's jaw tenses and he seizes the sheet of paper with the Creed of Honor on it.

"I'm sorry to hear that, Slater," he finally says. "So, I guess you do know some of it, then."

"Bits and pieces. Can I look at it?"

He twists his wrist and delivers it to me, moving forward. "Sure. You can read it aloud if you want."

Twenty-seven lines. That's all there is to it. Twenty-seven lines are too many. Or is it short? I don't know how I can memorize all this when I have a tumor that forces me to reminisce about Dad every time I hear "I am an Imperial Guard."

My fingers curl together along the side of the paper. The folds burn into the palm of my hand as I continue to read the page. The black printer ink glues to my brain and for once, I can say that words hurt. The vessels in my wrist dilate to visibility as I don't move my gaze from the Creed.

"So much about the Emperor. What has he done? He doesn't deserve praise for anything." Dad growls. "Why is he even included in the Creed?"

"I don't get it," I edge out. Mai and Hal turn their heads to me. "What's so great about the Emperor? Why-"

Hal throws his hand over my mouth. "Slater, you can't say that out loud," he hushes. "The Emperor is the General's boss, and by that, he's our boss, too."

"He can't hear me, Hal." My voice bounces back against my lips from the palm of his hand.

"It doesn't matter. There are people around here who practically worship him and those who couldn't give a shit. And you don't know who is who. There are also people who are snitches and would tell someone. Another reason why not everyone can be trusted."

He removes his hand from my mouth, and I glare at him. "But why do people worship him? I can understand why someone would pray to Beauregard because he basically saved the world. Oltima would still be at war with Sever if it wasn't for him. But the Emperor? All he does is sit in his house and-"

"Slater, shush! We're being serious. Some people are crazy about him." Mai observes the lecture hall around me. "I know it doesn't make much sense, but Hal isn't wrong. You don't know who loves him around here. The Emperor holds the highest power in Oltima and could do anything to you if you talk shit about him."

Is it fear? Whoever wrote the second Creed must've been pressured to include the Emperor in it or else it was his life. Maybe things were different back then. The Imperial Guard had to have been under strict rule of the royal family. Is there a reason why he was, and still is regarded so highly?

Questioning your life to this point must be a side-effect of the Imperial Guard. How long have citizens blindly followed the word of the Empire and never even wondered what they were doing? What kind of freedom is allowed around here if your life is threatened if you say something about who leads your people? Not being able to openly express your opinion is no way to live.

But I guess I've got a lot of learning to do.