Previously on PHOENIX… Regina accepted Rosalind’s job offer at Phoenix, somewhat reluctantly, certain that her qualifications were nowhere near adequate.
Regina had decided that Phoenix was, most decidedly, not fun. Rosalind had finally left her alone for the first time that morning, and she sank into a steel chair that was most definitely for show and not comfort. Regina had visited the Phoenix headquarters before, maybe once or twice, but never for long.
This time, she couldn’t wait to leave. Slouched in her chair, she knew she was making a terrible impression. Every other person in the building was bustling from room to room or scribbling furiously on their tablets. Only Regina, with her made-up job, and the luxury to sit around.
She could see the various stares from the workers around her, wondering what she was doing here. The criticism was valid. She had no idea what she was doing, and she was on track to outrank most of them within the year. The unfairness of it occurred to her, and she wished she could explain herself, but how could she do that without seeming like an ungrateful brat?
Sorry, I don’t want to be here. I want to go sit in my room and search the security camera footage for my mom. None of those comments was acceptable, so she kept her mouth shut. Regina could not stop thinking about her mom. In all the years that she’d been looking, never once had her mom’s sensor wavered. The trackers were embedded into all Settlement children on the back of their necks. It was a super delicate procedure, done only by a calibrated machine. Removing it was purposely impossible, risking the chance of severing the spinal cord.
Regina didn’t know if her mom even had a chip behind her neck, because she didn’t know if her mom had been born in the Settlement. Her father hadn’t. He’d been just a little boy when Royce Richards founded the Settlement. On a rare day when he hadn’t been in his usual suit jacket, she’d seen the small lump on his forearm where his chip was placed. Her grandfather had one, too, and so did Rosalind—a marker of their status as founders of the city. It bothered her how little she knew about her mother, how little she knew about anything.
The forearm chip would theoretically be easy to remove. And that could be the only explanation for her mom’s disappearance from the tracking map. Even in death, the tracker would remain active, but her signal was nowhere to be found.
Regina was interrupted from her thoughts by a tall woman with very blonde hair. She already looked displeased with Regina, but was trying to hide it with a broad smile.
“Hi, Regina,” she said, extending her hand for a handshake. My name is Lina.”
Regina hoped her palms weren’t too clammy. She wiped them on the fancy red dress she’d chosen for the day, hoping to make a good impression. These were scientific people, though, and not easily swayed by a fancy dress.
“Ms. Richards wants to see you in her office now,” the woman said curtly before walking down the hallway, leaving Regina to try to catch up with her. At this point in the day, the hallway was less crowded; it was probably time for lunch.
Regina couldn’t believe the time had passed so slowly. It felt like an eternity since she’d arrived here, trailing after Rosalind, trying hard to take in all the new people around her. Rosalind had a dominating presence, consuming all the attention around her. Her workers also treated her with the utmost deference. The hallway split for her when she wanted to walk by.
The woman walked to the end of the hallway and stopped at the last door. On their way, they passed countless labs and meeting rooms. Below them, on the lower level, was the enormous construction facility that connected to an entirely different building housing the rockets themselves. The woman knocked on the door, pausing for Rosalind’s approval before opening the door.
“It was nice to meet you,” Regina said. The woman just nodded before leaving her at the door. She could feel the immediate hatred from everyone in the building. And who could blame her? She was the nepotistic niece of their demanding boss—in their place, Regina was sure she wouldn’t like herself.
Rosalind sat composed behind her desk, staring intently at the large screen in front of her. She turned it off as soon as she noticed Regina standing there.
“Come in, take a seat,” she said, gesturing to the bright red sofa in the middle of her expansive office. It was far enough from her desk to be awkward, but not too far for Regina to feel shunned.
“How was your day so far?” Rosalind asked, turning her rapt attention away from the screen to Regina. Her stare was piercing. Regina couldn’t keep eye contact, so she tried to focus on other parts of her aunt’s face, like her hair and her nose, just not her icicle blue eyes.
Regina was definitely not going to tell her that she wanted more than anything to go back home, that everyone else in Phoenix seemed to wish the same, but she didn’t. Instead, she cleared her throat and said,
“It was okay. It was so lovely to meet all these smart people.”
“Yes,” Rosalind said. “Phoenix workers are known for their intelligence. I wouldn’t have hired them if they weren’t!”
Regina wanted to point out that she was about to hire her, but she thought the better of it.
After you eat lunch, Rosalind said, “I want you to go to the weather room. They’re short a worker today, so the team could use your help.”
She said “weather room” as if Regina was acquainted with the term. She nodded, even though she was not.
“What is the weather room?”
“Sorry, dear, I’m talking like you’ve been here forever since you’re fitting right in! The team is focused on isolating the climate conditions on Juno-124 so we can accurately prepare the landing gear, as well as the supplies for arrival.”
Regina was, at least, familiar with Juno-124. She’d seen the news. Phoenix was the most famous company in the settlement, for good reason. Their mission was to continue human life on a new planet. Rosalind always liked to recall the story of Phoenix’s inception, after a team of scientists confirmed that the world outside the dome would never become fit for human conditions. Even worse, the dome, although protecting their lives now, would eventually erode. Then, they would all be dead. But before that would happen, Rosalind Richards was on a mission to save humanity.
The Phoenix missions would transport the remnants of humanity to the only known planet with the correct makeup for human life. Humanity would have a second chance there.
Although she felt far from welcome at Phoenix, Regina could not help but be in utter awe at the mission. For all that her father and grandfather were lauded for their upholding of society, Regina had always admired her aunt even more. Despite being afraid of her, Regina couldn’t deny that Rosalind had found a solution to a problem no one else could.
Regina had a feeling that Rosalind was potently aware of that fact, as well. She always seemed to hold herself in high regard. Who wouldn’t, when they had accomplished so much?
She felt embarrassed at her earlier foul mood. With the work they were doing at Phoenix, her feelings were of the least importance. After lunch, she would try to make herself useful. “What should I learn about?” Regina asked, “How can I learn what they’re doing?”
Rosalind smiled as if Regina had just complimented her highly.
“Regina, I knew it was a good idea to bring you here. I have some books I’ll send you, along with scans of some from before the Dome. The real copies are too fragile, so I keep them on display in the big meeting room.” She tapped a few things on her tablet, and Regina heard three dings, signifying the books. A knock on the door brought two dishes of lunch for them. Rosalind thanked the deliverer, who could barely meet her eyes. She set a plate down in front of Regina, taking a seat on one of the other chairs dotting her office.
Regina hadn’t known how hungry she was until she opened a plate of pita bread and chicken, with pockets of bright vegetables arranged around.
It was a new, popular food in the Settlement, made so by the many food channels. It was never something that their chef made, since her father didn’t believe in eating anything without a fork and knife. Rosalind, clearly, had no such qualms.
Rosalind turned on her computer, scrolling quickly before turning it off again.
“I’m sorry, Regina, that was not respectful of me. Today has just been so busy.” She ran her fingers through her hair, an anxious action she’d never seen her aunt do often.
“Sometimes it seems like I’d be better off doing everything myself. I’ve had someone contact me five times about a simple project! At that point, I might just fire him and do it!”
Regina didn’t know what to say, so she just nodded.
Her aunt dominated the conversation for the rest of their lunch, recounting more instances of her workers’ incompetence. She seemed to have a lot of problems with a lot of people, each one worse than the last. Regina didn’t blame her. Her position was not enviable, with so many people clamoring for her attention and her approval. She had seen how everyone bowed down towards her aunt. Although she wasn’t the one to be crunching the numbers or doing the experimenting herself, Regina had heard of her aunt’s legendary genius.
Sometimes, she wondered why it had been her father chosen to continue the Richards family legacy. She knew her aunt wondered the same thing, especially as Russell’s duties seemed to be consuming him more and more each day.
Rosalind was frightening, but seeing her here in her element made her dominating personality make sense. When Regina was the sole focus of her attention, she could share the laser focus of her gaze.
As soon as Rosalind finished her food, Regina could tell her audience was at an end. Rosalind gave her directions to the room she was to report to, and Regina tried to smother the instinctive dread that spread throughout her body.
Regina was going to find her place here at Phoenix and prove that she could have a future here. She couldn’t stay locked away in her room all her life. Now that her studies had ended, it was time for her to move on. Thoughts of her mom popped into her head again, and she told herself to be patient and wait for a response to her message.
In another life, would it have been her mom she was sitting across from now? Instead of a bottomless void, a figure without a face, would she have someone to keep her company in that big, lonely house? It unnerved Regina greatly that she could not summon an image of her mom in her head. She only appeared in Regina’s dreams, mostly in that one dream of the Winter Gala. Spinning in her green dress. Sometimes Regina tried to recount that memory in daylight, but she never could. She could remember her father, the feeling of her dress on her skin, but she couldn’t remember her mom’s face, no matter how hard she tried. Once again, she buried the thoughts of her mother away for later perusal. There was nothing for her to gain by thinking of her now, only opportunities to lose.
Regina stood in the doorway of the weather room, deciding whether to announce her arrival. Sparing her from what was surely to be the wrong decision, a tall woman with glowing skin and hair pulled back tightly from her face greeted her at the door.
“Welcome,” she said in a clipped tone. Not unfriendly, just like she had thousands of other things occupying her attention. “We’re short two. I’m glad they sent someone.”
Regina counted it a success that this woman didn’t seem to know who she was. Indifference was much preferable to the sideways glances she’d received all morning.
Another woman, shorter, joined her, holding a pile of books that reached her head.
“Mackety, I can’t leave you alone with the newbies. You never remember what to say.” She smiled at Regina, after giving her coworker a side eye. “I would shake your hand, but they’re currently full.”
“It’s ok,” Regina said. “Can I take some off your hands?”
The woman gave a sigh of relief. “Please.” Regina grabbed several off the top, placing them on the table where the woman did.
“Welcome to the Weather Room,” she said, “I’m Chrissy Holban. Dr. Holban for most, but you can call me Chrissy. And that chatterbox over there is Dr. Laura Mackety.” She leaned closer like she was telling a secret, “She’s really sweet, underneath that stone-cold exterior.”
Dr. Mackety gave a glare from her position across the room. Regina gave a half smile, trying not to get on anyone’s bad side.
“And who are you?” Dr. Holban asked.
Regina stammered, deliberating if it was weird to forgo her last name completely. But before she completely ruined her impression with Dr. Holban, she got her mouth together.
“I’m Regina,” she said. “Regina Richards.”
Dr. Holban opened and closed her mouth, at a loss for words, and though Regina was new, she could tell that was not often the case. She could see Dr. Mackety across the room, hunched over a desk, who had straightened at Regina’s introduction.
“Well, it’s very nice to meet you, Regina,” she said.
Regina smiled, exhaling a sigh of relief, when Dr. Holban’s expression didn’t morph into one of distrust. All day, introducing herself had flipped a switch. Those who were nice were suddenly judgmental, those who were distant became unnaturally friendly.
It wasn’t like Regina herself was super famous. She could go out without being recognized, on occasion. She wasn’t known for who she was, but for who she was related to. It was her father, her aunt, and her grandfather who stole the spotlight and dominated all the headlines throughout the Settlement. Her teachers had told her before that the Richards family was known throughout the Banks, too, though she didn’t know if her family was as popular as they were in the Settlement.
Maybe it was the curse of her familial situation that Regina hadn’t been able to keep any friends, but she secretly thought it was something deep and intrinsic that drove people away. She barely had acquaintances, just a group of people she stood next to at social functions. Sam didn’t really count. She didn’t really know what they were, seeing as they would confide in each other, then not speak for days.
Dr. Holban took her around the lab, introducing her to every member of the team, of whom there were too many for Regina to keep track. Each time, she would introduce her as “the new intern, Regina,” which made Regina happier than she’d been all day. By the time Regina had been introduced to every piece of equipment and every part of the lab, an assistant at the door told her it was time to leave. Somehow, Regina had survived without Dr. Holban discovering how little she actually knew about anything, but she wasn’t going to incriminate herself. She thanked her profusely, reserving a special goodbye for Dr. Mackety, who gave a curt nod in response, before the assistant escorted her to her father’s signature black car.
“Does Rosalind know I’m leaving?” she asked the man who’d taken her to the parking lot in the back. Dozens of cars were lined up, all the electric cars mandated in the Settlement, since the gasoline cars of the past would have rendered the dome inhabitable within years.
“She does, and she sends her congratulations on your first day. Unfortunately, she is in a meeting right now.”
“Well then, tell her I say thank you.” The assistant nodded, turning back towards the headquarters. Regina stared at the building, the staggering height of the construction zone, so tall it seemed to reach the top of the dome.
As she relaxed against the familiar cold leather of her father’s car, she realized she hadn’t been exposed as a complete fraud as she had feared. Maybe she had a future at Phoenix after all.
Thanks for reading! We’re approaching more of the action in the following chapters, so this is a brief respite lol! Let me know what you thought in the comments :)