He took out his passport and boarding pass. “I guess this is it,” he said.
His uncle Anden walked him to the gate. Neither of them spoke. Anden was the one member of the family with whom Niko could always be comfortably silent. Often throughout his childhood, when his mother had been struggling through her long recovery from brain injury, Niko and his siblings had been cared for by their aunts and uncles. Anden was Niko’s favorite relative. Uncle Anden would let him read for hours, take him to the park to feed the ducks, or rent movies they would watch together. He asked only a few questions and listened to the answers without lecturing. Unlike other adults, he didn’t ferry Niko around on a schedule, or begin conversations with, “When you grow up and get your jade . . .” No one else in the clan was like Uncle Anden, so he didn’t expect anyone else to be like him.
As they embraced at the gate, Anden said, “Promise me you’ll be careful. You’re not leaving Kekon as a student, the way I did. You’ll be wearing jade into dangerous situations, far from home.”
The look of worry on Anden’s face made Niko feel more guilty than any amount of shouting or blistering disapproval from his parents. “I promise, Uncle,” Niko said. “Thanks for letting me stay at your place. I hope it wasn’t too much trouble for you and Jirhuya.”
“Of course it wasn’t,” Anden said, but he was looking around, scanning the passing travelers hopefully. He rubbed his bare wrist, as if wishing for his jade and sense of Perception. Niko knew that Anden had gone to the house and argued with the Pillar. Anden hadn’t said anything about it, but Ru had. Ru had come over to the apartment and said a lot of things last night, spilling his feelings out like marbles as he begged Niko to change his mind.
“But why, Niko? Why would you throw away your position like that?” Ru had been distraught with bewilderment. “I know the pressure must be a lot to handle right now, but everyone in the clan is rooting for you to become Pillar.” As usual, his brother exaggerated, certain that what was indisputable to him must be the truth.
Niko had turned away from the pleading expression. “I’ve never been in charge of my own life, Ru. Da tells you to study what you want in college, to become whatever you want to be. He’s never once said that to me. What makes anyone think I even want to be Pillar?”
Ru grabbed him by the shoulders, turning him back around. When stirred by strong belief, he was easily the more righteously angry one. “If I hadn’t been born a stone-eye, I’d do my best to become the Pillar, no matter how hard it was or even if I thought I might like to do something else.” His eyes bored insistently into Niko’s. “Think of the difference you could make, of all the good you could do for so many people. The clan affects the lives of millions. It needs a Pillar who’s strong and smart. How can you just . . . run away from that kind of responsibility?”
Niko stepped back, pulling roughly out of his brother’s grasp. “I’m not running away.”
“Then come back home with me right now,” Ru exclaimed. “We’ll talk to Da together. I’ll back you up. So will Jaya, and you know how good she is at getting her way. We’ll convince Da to let you go to college part-time while you work toward becoming a Fist. Like what Ayt Ato was doing—if he can do it, you definitely can, you’re a lot smarter. You just need a change, and then you’ll feel better about everything, I know it. We can go to Jan Royal together, like we planned.”
When Niko gazed at him, unmoved, Ru went from cajoling to accusing. “How could you not even tell me what you were thinking? What happened to brothers sticking together?”
Niko shook his head sadly. “We’re not kids anymore, Ru.”
The disappointment and naked hurt that had swept over his brother’s face had curdled Niko with shame, but he wouldn’t let it show. Ru was the only one who could’ve changed his mind, who could’ve broken his resolve. So he’d had to harden his heart.
Niko picked up his suitcase. He hadn’t packed much. Where he was going, he didn’t expect he’d have much room for personal belongings anyway. Two weeks of orientation at GSI headquarters in a town called Fort Jonsrock in northeastern Espenia would be followed by three months at one of the company’s training compounds. After that, he would be on a two-year work contract and could be sent anywhere in the world.
Anden stopped his fruitless glancing around and turned back to Niko with apology in his eyes. “I tried, Niko.” His shoulders sagged under the weight of resignation. “I—”