It Ends With a Beginning

by L A Warren

After a brief shuffling of bodies, Elise found herself surrounded by the three men. Carek drifted to the side to chaperone the six WOR while Elise began her explanation.

  After an hour, Lord vlor’Alturis surprised her with the first interruption. “Lord vlor’Vardhal, I see a problem.” He pointed to one of the spokes she had leading off the first node into subspace.

  The High Tender moved closer and traced the line of Lord vlor’Alturis’s finger. He rubbed his chin.

  “Yes, I see,” the High Tender murmured.

  “He’s not going to like this.” High Tender vlor’Alturis crossed his arms.

  “No, he will not.” High Tender Marcus turned to her. “S’Lissa, you asked about Binding. Why is that?”

  “I assume it's a form of linking.” She nodded to the area which had caught High Tender vlor’Alturis’s eye. “That’s the key structure to linking WOR together, or at least the keystone. I need to know how the Binding Rite might affect that piece to the linking sequence.”

  “Your thoughts?” High Tender vlor’Alturis pinched his brow. His gaze darted back and forth between the dimensional construct and Elise.

  She took in a deep drag of purple fluid and let it billow back out. “I’m not certain, but if that portion of a WOR’s mind, the subspace projection of it, is already linked, I don't believe it's possible to form another connection.”

  Both men turned to gaze darkly at each other. Their brows twitched furiously, leading her to believe they spoke on a communications channel separate from hers.

  High Tender Marcus grunted. “Well, then it’s good we brought Second Rank WOR who are bound. Answer this question first and foremost, s'Lissa. Is this clear?”

  “Yes, High Tender, but it would be better to try an initial linking circle first with the other Fifth Rank WOR. Then, I can try to pull them in.”

  “What’s a linking circle?” High Tender vlor’Alturis asked.

  “Let me show you.” Elise brought them back to the main body of the linking project.

  After another hour, she had satisfied the questions of both High Tenders.

  “This is not complete,” she added, clarifying. “I see several potential errors, and a few holes where I’m just at a loss as to what to do next, but I feel there’s a solution which will allow you to link together the abilities of individual WOR.”

  High Tender Marcus nodded. “This is far better than what we came up with. Good work, s'Lissa."

  Her heart about stopped. High Tender Marcus had never praised any of her work before. "Go ahead and keep working on this. Sometimes the best way to discover what you don’t know is to try what you do. Find where it falls apart, and patch the holes.”

  “Yes, High Tender Marcus.”

  He drifted off and spoke to Carek.

  Sometime over the past two hours, Alice and Chandra had removed their breathing tubes. Paula had too, but from the pinched corners of her eyes and her pale complexion, her terror remained. Aomi still had hers in place. She swam peacefully, taking in the purple soup with open fascination. With a shrug, Aomi pulled the tube from her mouth, hesitated for a second, and then breathed in deeply. Her body arched for a second, but then she relaxed. A large smile filled her face.

  Carek adjusted the communications channels and Elise could finally hear the other girls. She had yet to figure out how the immersion suit linking worked.

  “Hi!”

  Aomi turned and waved. “This is so cool.”

  Alice’s blue eyes burned brightly. Her gaze took in the entire linking project. “Amazing.”

  Paula looked like she was going to be sick.

  Chandra towed Paula forward. “This is where you’ve been spending all your time? I’m so jealous. This is awesome.”

  Her friends seemed much more impressed by the purple soup than Elise had been. It was awe inspiring, but Elise had been brought here and shown things her friends had not. Carek brought her first, showing her his people, and revealed their beauty and humanity through his eyes. He'd then shown the destruction wrought by the S'Lorek, an enemy which had already taken two worlds and several colony fleets. Gregor had brought her to the soup as well. His was the vision of an emperor and of his solemn oath to do whatever it took to safeguard humanity. Carek showed her the lives of individuals, whereas Gregor’s view was that of a leader set an impossible task.

  Two men. Two completely different views.

  She was here to accomplish the impossible—find a way to link the power of the WOR and turn them into a weapon strong enough to defeat the aggression of the S'Lorek.

  This was a rare outing for her friends. Perhaps their very first time free of confinement. They hadn't been allowed the luxury offered Elise, trips off the Confinement Deck, and now the Fifth Rank Deck. Nor had any of them forayed off on their own, a mini-escape like Elise. She'd escaped the Confinement Deck, although escape might be too grand of a term. Her excursions brought her to the flight deck, allowed her to make friends with some of the Vendel, and had set her head in a tailspin over what her priorities should be, and where to focus her efforts.

  To save Earth, she would have to save the Vendel. She would have to save those responsible for killing billions, and she still hadn't reconciled what that meant.

  All of her efforts, whether with the linking project or her bid for escape from the Vendel were nothing more than a race against time; a battle she was losing.

  High Tender Marcus brought the Second Rank WOR over and made introductions. He explained to the WOR what was expected, then turned over the details to Elise.

  The men hung in the background and watched as she explained. Only Carek came forward to join the group. He hovered on the opposite side of the diagrams and interjected only when they had disagreements over the set of force vectors and lines.

  Aomi traced out the lines with her fingers and hummed quietly to herself.

  Chandra shook her head and raised a hand for Elise to stop. “Start from here again.” She pointed to the first sub-space divergence. “Something’s not right.”

  Paula remained silent, but Elise watched Paula scan the diagrams. She kept coming back to the area which had caught the High Tenders' attention. Her mouth gaped, as if she saw something, but then the breathing tube fell out of her mouth. She thrashed and clutched at her throat. Her head snapped back, all her attention focused on the surface far above and the air which she didn't need.

  Carek dove through the purple soup and clamped his legs around Paula before she could bolt to the surface. She kicked and hit him, struggling to find the surface and air above. As he had done for Elise, he held Paula in an iron grip. Just before Paula seemed to pass out, she gasped and the purple liquid streamed down her throat. She gagged and coughed. A minute later, her eyes widened when she realized she was not dead.

  Elise laughed.

  Paula glared at her.

  “Sorry.”

  "You can release me." Paula pushed against Carek’s chest. “I’m okay.”

  “Are you sure?” Carek gave her a long appraising look.

  “Yes."

  “If you surface too fast, it can be dangerous.”

  “Then, thank you . . . I suppose.” She glanced down. “You can release me. I’m fine now.”

  “Everything ok?” High Tender Marcus approached as Carek disentangled himself from Paula.

  Paula bowed her head. “Yes, High Tender Marcus, I am fine.”

  “Good.” He jerked his chin toward the soup. “Now stop fooling around and get started. Your time here is limited.”

  In the next hour, they made little progress. The High Tenders escorted them back to the Fifth Deck without a word, but when they entered the Fifth Deck Lounge, High Tender Marcus pulled her to the side while her friends headed to the dining facility.

  “S’Lissa,” High Tender Marcus said.

  “Yes?”

  “You may choose to eat first or accept your Tender Training. You may prefer an empty stomach.”

  She had forgotten about Gregor's
punishment. He'd caught her speaking in a familiar manner with Carek when he'd collected her for lunch. As her stomach lurched, she accepted her fate.

  “Yes, High Tender. If it pleases you, I would choose now.”

  “Very well.” He gestured down the hall leading to her suite of rooms. “I believe the bar and shackles remain?”

  Elise cast her gaze to the floor and walked to her rooms. By the time the door swished open, she was protectively encased in darkness. Her sisters had arrived.

  Shriek was in control now.

  Whimper waited in the wings.

  Oddly, Malice crawled out to investigate.

  While the High Tender inflicted horror after horror, Elise separated her consciousness from what was happening to her body.

  The next hour passed in a blur as WOR-skill diagrams bombarded her in the dark.

  The answer was right there, waiting to be discovered. Her screams of frustration blended in nicely with Shriek’s howls.

  Elise woke the next day sore and tired, drained from another round of Tender Training. At least it had only been for an hour and only for one day.

  The High Tender had spent every last second of the Tender Training session working over her body with the braklav. Shriek howled and screamed until their throat burned. Raw and sore, the pain still lingered.

  Quite out of character, Malice sat through the entire session. She remained silent and observed while the High Tender set their skin on fire, amongst other—more horrible—things.

  Elise was just thankful she no longer had to endure those sessions.

  When it was done, Shriek crawled into the darkness and Elise returned to the light.

  Malice snickered and disappeared.

  Whimper cried.

  What she hadn't expected upon awakening was to see Gregor sitting in the corner of her room. He had pulled in a chair and sat, arms crossed, watching her sleep. What bothered her wasn't that he watched her sleep, but that she couldn't feel his presence.

  His lips crooked up into his characteristic smirk when he realized she was awake. "Good morning, opés."

  Elise smoothed down her hair and sat in bed. The shoulder of her sleeping gown slipped down her arm and she tugged it back into place. "Good morning, Gregor," she said hesitantly.

  "How do you feel?" Gregor leaned back and gazed at her expectantly.

  How the do you think I feel after a session with the High Tender?

  "Sore, but otherwise fine. Thank you for asking." She chose her words carefully and then made sure to add his given name. It was required. "Gregor."

  He gave a dismissive wave. Oh yes, he understood.

  She regarded him in silence. Her mind furiously worked to figure out what he wanted. What he was doing in her sleeping quarters, and how long had he been watching.

  Elise pushed back the covers. "Is there something you wanted, Gregor?"

  "No," he said, remaining mysterious. "High Tender Marcus notified me of the progress you made with the other WOR."

  He shifted to her bed, leaning over her to press his lips lightly against her temple. That contact awakened the bond between them.

  "Yes, Gregor."

  She placed trembling hands on his chest, hating how he drew yet repulsed her simultaneously. Desire bloomed in her mind and she fantasized about drowning under an onslaught of his kisses. Then her revulsion kicked in. Her stomach clenched and she was left lightheaded and off-balanced by the competing emotions.

  "Thank you for trusting my opinion. It meant a lot that you spoke to High Tender Marcus."

  "I didn't do it for you, opés. You and Carek . . ." He slurred the name. "The two of you have been making steady, although slow, progress. I need results, opés. Spending so much time with that man hasn't been such a good idea. You made a mistake with him."

  "I forgot myself."

  The imperial tattoo danced on his brow. The swirling lines moved under his skin with a life of their own.

  Vendel men had three names. A given name used only by a select few: their mothers, wives, and lovers. A family name used by everyone else. And a last name. She should have used Carek's last name, but had slipped and used his family name where Gregor had overheard. That mistake had been paid with the agony of Tender Training.

  "Remember who you belong to, opés."

  "Gregor, I'm sorry. I allowed myself to get too familiar with Mr. Tusel. It won't happen again."

  "No. It won't."

  Elise leaned against Gregor and closed her eyes.

  "You feel comfortable with Mr. Tusel, don't you?"

  There was no point in lying. He would drag the truth out of her one way or another. "When I'm with you, Gregor, I’m forever on edge. I never know what's coming next. Will it be a soft caress? An encouraging nod? Or something worse? I don't know if it's the stick or the carrot with you. We're constantly at odds."

  "That is your choice, Elise. How many times must I tell you that you chose your path?"

  That might be true, but the path he wanted her to choose was one of complete capitulation. She would never be able to give him that. "You know that's not true," she said.

  "And you're so certain it's not?" He spun her around, forcing her to look at him. "Fighting me and my goals will always put us at odds. You can be happy here. I wish you would embrace this new life. Work with me, instead of against me."

  "Well, that's just the thing, Gregor. You don't make that easy."

  His brows shot up and the tattoo danced.

  "Let me explain," she began. "With Mr. Tusel, I could focus on work. He left me alone to think, never demanded, never punished. I felt safe around him because I knew he would never hurt me."

  Gregor winced.

  She continued, rushing to finish what she wanted to say before he made her stop. “I let my guard down with Mr. Tusel because he reminded me of Professor McCabe. All I had to do was focus on the problem and find a solution. I didn't have to fear what would happen if I didn't. I forgot myself and I am sorry.”

  "You don’t feel safe around me, do you?" Gregor looked up and closed his eyes.

  “Never, and why should I? Look what you've done to me."

  "I only did what was necessary."

  "To you, perhaps, but to me you've been nothing but brutal. I'm tense around you. Scared about what will happen next. I'm wary of your praise, confused with how this bond between us makes me feel, and so much more. I let down my guard with Mr. Tusel because he's everything you're not. If you ask, I won't work with him anymore."

  "I wouldn't need to ask, opés. Why don't you seem to understand that?"

  "I understand it explicitly. And that's my point. You've taken my free will, and yet are surprised when I don't embrace that." She shook her head.

  "Your choices are limited, opés. As are mine. You understand what's at stake. I can't afford to have you going off doing whatever you want. I have the entirety of the human race to save."

  "You can't stop me from working with Mr. Tusel."

  "I can and I will."

  A sigh of frustration escaped her lips. “Mr. Tusel understands the linking project. Gregor, he understands it, on a level the Tenders don't grasp. Mr. Tusel challenges me, questions me, and forces me to defend my decisions. That’s stimulating and we're making progress. We're collaborating and working together. I'm not working out of fear. Please, don't take that from me.”

  “Mr. Tusel is not for you.”

  "I never said he was, and that's not what's going on at all."

  She bit her upper lip, frustrated by Gregor's jealousy. And surprised by it. Although, she shouldn't be. She belonged to him. The bond between them grew every day, and if that weren't enough, she was listed amongst his personal inventory. He owned every bit of her.

  “Gregor, if you told me to stop working with Mr. Tusel, I would have no choice but to stop. I know who owns me. But, even if you asked me not to work with him, I would still refuse. I'd refuse because it’s the wrong thing to do. You need our collaboration because it's working.
We're making progress, and you don't have time to interfere with that."

  "You feel that strongly about it?"

  "You know I'm telling the truth. My mistake was in forgetting my place. It just felt so normal. Like I said, Carek reminds me of my college professor. I welcomed the interaction, because it allowed me to escape the reality of my situation. I need that mental break to do what you need me to do. Does that make sense?”

  His lips pressed into a thin line. Silence hung between them, full of unspoken words.

  She pressed her forehead against his. “See, this is what I'm talking about. I don't know what will happen next. Will I be punished for telling the truth? Or will you reward me for my honesty? You make me crazy and that only feeds my fear."

  "You shouldn't fear me."

  "Then tell me what you want! I'll do whatever it takes to please you, but I can't read your mind."

  Tender Training was designed to instill a compulsive desire to please. She felt the stirrings in her gut, even if she had found a way to defeat Tender Training with the birth of her sisters.

  Gregor’s eyes lifted. He stared into her eyes and she dared not look away from the intensity swirling in those silvery depths. For the first time, his gaze held no cruelty. Resignation filled them instead.

  "Come, opés, I have something I wish you to see. Something I need an opinion on."

  To her surprise, he dragged her off the Fifth Deck to Command and Control. There, he guided her into a conference room full of senior bridge officers. She glanced around at the tan and gray jumpsuits and the astonishing numbers of silver stars decorating the collars of the fifteen men present. They stood when Gregor entered.

  He strode to the end of a long table and pulled out the chair. He placed Elise in the chair and the men retook their seats. Gregor stood behind her and did not introduce her to the men. Although, the emperor's WOR needed no introduction.

  "Commander Eldern, bring up those images for the Lady Malita."

  Commander Eldern tapped instructions into a recessed gel-pad in front of him. The far wall dissolved and a starfield appeared. The view zoomed and Elise recognized a Vendel Colony fleet. Twenty massive ships, arrayed in a loose formation, hung in a rich asteroid belt.