“The honor was all mine, sir,” I said. “I hope we run into each other again.”
He reached out and touched his QComm to mine. Both devices beeped.
“I added my QComm number to your contact list,” he said. “Don’t hesitate to call me if I can help you with anything.”
“I will,” I said. “Thanks.”
He turned and hurried off in another direction. Once he was out of sight, Ray and I continued walking. We passed through another set of automatic armored doors.
“How old was that kid?”
“Who, Captain Dagh?” he said. “Seventeen. But he was only fifteen when the EDA first recruited him. He’s a prodigy, though.” He stopped walking and gave me a nervous glance. “Not to imply that you weren’t—or aren’t.”
I felt like I’d just been picked last for the world’s biggest game of kickball.
“I was ranked in the top ten, too,” I said. “Why wasn’t I recruited at age fifteen?”
He frowned and gave me an incredulous look.
“Your psych profile indicated you weren’t suitable for early recruitment.”
“Why not? Why wasn’t I suitable?”
“Don’t play dumb, ‘Zack Attack,’ ” he said. “You know why.”
Before I could respond, Ray turned his back on me and continued walking.
But before he could get out of sight, I swallowed my pride and hurried after him.
Eventually, we arrived in a circular lobby containing a large bank of elevators. There were already several other “Elite Recruit Candidates” milling around, waiting for the next car to arrive. I was about to walk over and join them when Ray tapped me on the shoulder.
“This is as far as I go,” he said. Then he looked me up and down, as if he were sending me off to my first day of school. He reached for my backpack, which was now mostly empty, and I handed it to him. Then before I could protest, he slipped my father’s jacket off of me and began to fold it up.
“Hey, that’s mine!” I said, hating how much I sounded like an angry child.
“Yeah, I know,” he said. “And it’s a very cool jacket—no argument. But wearing it into this briefing won’t help you make the best first impression.”
He stuffed the jacket into my backpack and forced the zipper closed, then put the pack back on my shoulders.
“Those elevators will take you down to the briefing auditorium,” he said, pointing behind me. “Just follow those other recruit candidates.”
I glanced across the lobby, over at the recruits forming a line at the elevators. Then I turned back to face Ray. “When will I see you again?”
“I’m not sure, pal,” he said, meeting my gaze. “Things are happening very fast now. I’m departing on another shuttle in just a few minutes.”
“Why?” I asked. “Where are they sending you?”
“To help defend the Big Apple,” he said. “I’m one of the Thirty Dozen, remember?” He smiled and straightened his posture, then his lapels. “I’ve been assigned to the EDA’s First Armored Drone Battalion,” he said. “We’ll be defending the eastern seaboard. So I’ll be down here fighting them on the ground while you’re up there, fighting them in the sky.”
We stood there in silence for a moment; then Ray stuck out his hand. I hesitated for a moment, but then I shook it. In spite of everything, I still didn’t want Ray to leave. He was the only familiar face in this place. While I was fumbling for a way to say goodbye to him without expressing any hint of forgiveness, Ray surprised me by throwing his arms around me in a fierce bear hug. Then I surprised myself by hugging him back, just as tightly.
“You’ve got a gift, Zack,” he said, stepping back. “You really can make a difference in this war. Remember that, okay? No matter how frightening things get these next few hours …”
I nodded, but didn’t reply. I had absolutely no idea how to respond to that—or to anything that was happening right now. I wasn’t a soldier. I was just a kid from the suburbs who played a shitload of videogames. I wasn’t prepared to fight an interplanetary war! At the moment, I didn’t feel prepared for much of anything—not even to say goodbye to Ray.
“Okay, let’s not make a scene,” Ray said. “Take care of yourself for me, okay? And—” His voice caught. He cleared his throat and went on. “And when this is all over, let’s make a pact to meet back at Starbase Ace. We’ll order some Thai Fighter takeout and swap war stories. Deal?”
“Deal,” I said around the lump rising in my throat.
Ray saluted me, and I saluted him back, even though I felt like a kid playing soldier.
“The Force will be with you,” Ray said, giving my shoulder one last squeeze. “Always.”
That was it. He turned and walked off, disappearing back the way we came. I stood for a moment, staring after him; then I glanced back over at the bank of elevators, where my fellow “Elite Recruit Candidates” continued to form an anxious queue.