Encompassing Women: Book Four of the Encompassing Series

by Richard Lord

  “Get in, you don’t need a suit. You know the plan.” Destiny says to her mother just wanting this to be over.

  Joy clicks and then clicks back. “Okay, I’m ready.”

  The girls note that she has put on jeans instead of her skirt and think to each other, “Not a bad plan.”

  A moment later they see a volcano erupt on the horizon.

  Destiny jumps out of the hatch as soon as they arrive. Joy laughs at her daughter after following her. Harmony is third, but she stands at the hatch opening while the wormlike creatures move out to their new home.

  Joy looks at Destiny. “I think she’s talking to them, but I don’t hear anything.”

  “Yeah, Mom, meet crazy Harmony.” Destiny snorts but continues to watch.

  Illumna thinks to her sister, “You do realize what she is doing, right?”

  “Yes, Illumna. That’s why I agreed to do that. I may not be making history, but I am creating a planetary system that will exist for us long after these things are no longer.”

  Illumna hears the pride in Joy’s voice. She thinks to her sister, “I’m pretty proud of her too. So is Destiny. That’s why she stays around. She just won’t admit to it. She’s very much your daughter.”

  “And what does that mean, sis?” Joy laughs back at her.

  Destiny jumps into the hatch. “Let’s go. We all need to shower and we need to clean Illumna.”

  Illumna thinks to Joy, “She really does hear everything. I wonder how much she actually heard from Harmony when Harmony was trying to block her.”

  Joy thinks back to Illumna, “Probably all of it, but she grew up that way so she ignores a lot.”

  Illumna considers that.

  A moment later they are all back at Joy’s place and Destiny runs out of the hatch towards the shower. Harmony rushes to the hose. Joy turns to Illumna. As she hears her ask, “How far can she hear?”

  Joy considers the question and responds, “Which one, Harmony or Destiny? I don’t know with either of them. Harmony seems to be able to hear worlds away.”

  CHAPTER 14

  “I knew Joy was right about her father, he would rise again. I knew how complicated thins were about to become when he died. I worked very hard to make sure everything went as planned.” – from the Book of Tomorrow

  “So how is he?” Sara asked

  “He’s fine. I’m sorry he didn’t come by to see you.” Christina looked at the ground trying to find more words.

  “You didn’t stop him. I knew he wouldn’t come see me.” Sara walked towards the kitchen.

  “What is he getting himself into that you are worried about?” Christina starts to panic now that she wasn’t in the heat of the moment with him.

  Sara turns to her mother. There is a guy he fought once. He described it to me. Joy told me about him.” Sara stops herself.

  “Who’s Joy?” Christina asks and then realizes this is another thing she doesn’t want to know.

  “He might die forever this time, Mom.” Sara puts down the carton of milk she is holding and kneels to the floor as she begins to cry. She looks up at her mother. “I have to go now. I’ll be back soon. Don’t tell me I was here. That’s important.”

  Christina isn’t too confused by the concept, but she is concerned for her daughter’s heart and for the life of the man she loves. She reaches towards Sara. “Please, don’t go yet.”

  “Mom, I remember this day. In a few minutes, I’ll be close enough to know I am here. I can’t know.” Sara tries to explain but she knows her mother doesn’t want details.

  Christina kneels nest to her and holds her chin up as she wipes the tears off of her daughter’s face. “He’ll be fine. He always is.”

  Sara looks into her mother’s face. She notices she is glowing and yet worried now. She regrets trying to get her to stop Adam. She kisses her mother’s hand and then says, “Mom, I have to go. Destiny is calling.” Tomorrow looks up and sees herself standing in the doorway.

  “It’s alright. I figured it out a long time ago. You’re Tomorrow.” Sara said to her. Then she looked at Christina and said, “Hi, Mom. How was your date with your husband?”

  “How would you know that?” Christina asks.

  “Ask Tomorrow. She is both my past and my future. As Dad says, the greatest minds cannot fully comprehend the nature of the universe because we study it from within the model.” Sara looks at herself. Then she looks back at her mother. “I suspect now that we know each other that knowing begins what Tomorrow becomes.”

  CHAPTER 15

  “What he said to me was brilliant. I know he had waited his entire life to tell me. What happened next was horrid, but I know he was finally at peace.” – from the Book of Illumna

  Destiny walked back outside and notices that Harmony was still working hard to clean out the hatch and rubbing the mess out gently. She knew that Illumna couldn’t feel the gesture, but could hear the thoughts behind it. It occurred to her that Illumna had lost her brother on the day she met him. She walked over and grabbed Harmony’s hand. “I’ll finish. Go get your shower. I think my mom is using up the hot water pretty quickly.”

  Harmony stepped out of the hatch and put a hand on Illumna. She quietly turned and headed to the house.

  Destiny picked up the sponge and went to work. “I’m sorry, Illumna.”

  “I know. I’m okay. He thought out everything to me before he perished. I am sorry for Harmony. She didn’t just lose someone she was fixated on since she was young, she also lost a child.” Illumna thinks to Destiny.

  Destiny pauses, takes a deep breath and goes back to cleaning Illumna. “Is our family damned?”

  Illumna immediately answers, “No, the opposite. We’ve been blessed. With that blessing comes hardships others would not be able to carry if they did not have our blessing. Do you understand?”

  “Yeah, sounds good. What other inspirational speeches have you got?” Destiny begins scrubbing harder.

  “Destiny, you’re the one who knows how it all turns out. That is another thing Harmony was right about. You already know. So you tell me. Are we damned?” Illumna knew Destiny well enough to know she wouldn’t answer, but she was hoping for a hint.

  “I don’t know what you are talking about. The now is what I consider now. I’m not that little girl anymore.” She picks up the hose and rinses out the hatch.

  “No Destiny, you are not young anymore, but you know what you knew then. You don’t have to tell me, but I know that you know. Harmony knows. Amelia knew. Even your mother and grandmother know. My father probably knows, but he doesn’t want to consider anything as fixed. He thinks he can do that.”

  “I knew your father well. He’s unique. He’s not someone to go lightly on anything except for my mother.” Destiny thinks without filter.

  “He loved her a lot. He loved my mother tow. I think sometimes he felt more torn between them than they were with each other.” Illumna comments while thinking back and remembering Solstice.

  “You miss her a lot don’t you?” Destiny comments.

  “Of course. I think about her every day. She was my closest sister. We understood each other. That’s rare among sisters.” Illumna’s mind begins to fade as she feels a deep pain, regardless of not actually possessing a heart.

  “And your mother? Technically she’s your sister too.” Destiny makes the point but she wants to hear the answer to the question.

  “I love my mother, Destiny. It’s not the same thing.” Illumna then thinks to her, “Go check on Harmony.”

  Destiny replies, “Why, I’m sure if she’s done her shower, she’s talking to my mom right now.”

  Illumna catches the comment and the relevance to what Joy said and thinks to her, “What makes you so sure of that?”

  “Oh come on, Illumna. You already know I can hear them. Their sitting down with tea right now. They left some in the teapot for when I come back in and they are discussing you and I.” Destiny shuts the hose off. “And as for you wondering how far
I can hear, I don’t know. I do know that Harmony doesn’t hear the same way. That’s why she can hear other worlds. She’s different. And no she can’t hear me and you right now and neither can my mother. Although I wouldn’t be surprised if my mother was behind a tree right now. She’s been to a lot of times.”

  “Destiny, your mother said you hear all of her thoughts, so you would know if she was behind a tree right now. Is she?” Illumna asks the question wondering what things Destiny paid attention to and what she ignored.

  “No, not now. She’s considering it, but she has stopped her adventures in time for the most part.” Destiny climbs into the hatch and into the piloting seat. “Tell me about Phillip.”

  “He was young. We had a plan, which apparently we acted on, so technically, I’m dead.” Illumna responds.

  “My grandmother was a big fan of his, according to my mother. She calls him the martyr.” Destiny reaches at the controls in front of her knowing they are useless because Illumna controls herself. “Was he scared?”

  “I wouldn’t know, Destiny. I wasn’t there. I broke off as another me before that. I don’t have any memory of that, just what you all tell me or think about it.” Illumna sounded short, even if it was just a mental communication.

  “How do you know he didn’t want to bail out, but you kept it going anyway?” Destiny pries at Illumna.

  “Because at that time I didn’t have full control of all of this. He had to have piloted me. That’s why we planned it together.” Illumna knows exactly where Destiny is going and she feels herself getting angry. Then she reconsiders that thought.

  “So? You controlled what? Could he have bailed out with you being able to control, let’s say 10% of you?” Destiny continues to push.

  Illumna feels anger. She sees the true direction that Destiny is going. “I have no idea. Go back and ask him at the last second, Destiny!”

  Destiny rises from the seat and hops out of the hatch. “I love you, Illumna, but think about where all of Harmony’s plans are taking us. Not one place we have been to, besides here, has been safe. I’m not even sure here is safe. I think she believes in what she is doing and so do you. I also think she’s insane, but you are logical.”

  She hears her mother think, “Just come in now, Destiny and drink some tea with us.”

  Illumna hears it too and in her own way, she laughs. “Your mom is more than I suspected. She was my friend when I was young. But I guess you already know that.”

  “My mother is the daughter of Tomorrow. I’m not surprised by anything she does.” Destiny turns and heads towards the house.

  Illumna thinks to her, “And you are the daughter of Joy.”

  Destiny stops immediately, slowly turns to look at Illumna’s form and states, “You’re the daughter of a madman and you follow an insane woman around the universe.”

  “Perhaps, but you are his granddaughter and you follow her too. You fell in love with her mother, the student of your grandmother. You stay because you know something and you feel it’s right that you do.” Illumna points out the facts.

  “My mother still fights to protect the cities. She keeps the tradition of my grandmother and my grandfather. I fight to protect something else, but it is the way of our family. You know this Illumna. I couldn’t walk away from this. It’s in our blood. The crazy urge to sacrifice a normal life to do these stupid things. But for what?”

  “To do what we feel we should do. We all hope the next generation has it easier because of the sacrifices we make.” Illumna considers her words may not be the best way to express what she wants to, but she knows Destiny can hear her thoughts.

  “To what end? Every generation in this family is the same thing! It’s all a rerun of the previous generation! Harmony’s next generation was killed!” Destiny goes to her knees as she begins to cry.

  “We have been blessed to see more and do more than most people can imagine.” Illumna thinks to her.

  “Not Michael. He got to get crushed by some freak creation that was actually created by someone in our bloodline!” Destiny realizes she has yelled that out-loud at the top of her lungs. She looks behind her but she can hear Harmony’s mind and knows she didn’t audibly hear. Lowering her voice she says to Illumna with tears falling like rain, “That’s our family!” Then she buries her face in her hands and sobs for a while Illumna remains quiet.

  After some time Illumna comes to a conclusion. “Go, Destiny. Be with Renfield for a while. He is my father and your grandfather. He can help you understand. Plus, Joy said you were worried he was getting himself into something he can’t get himself out of. Why don’t you help him?”

  “That when, that place?” Destiny looks up at the sky and wipes her face and then she shakes her head at Illumna. “No. Not then, not there. Plus, my grandmother is already there.”

  Illumna is shocked at the response. “Why would my mother go there if it’s as scary as it sounds in your mind?”

  Destiny sighs, “What part of inseparable do you not get about those two?”

  CHAPTER 16

  “I was happy to be back by his side, but I was not happy that he was going to get us both killed.” – from the Book of Tomorrow

  “So I met myself. That was interesting.” Tomorrow said while watching what she could see through the trees.

  Renfield turns to her while laying prone looking through the trees in a different direction. “Yeah, how did that go? Your thoughts are definitely different.”

  “The other me updated me on our lives together. One thing I will say is, you’re not boring.” Then she smacks Adam hard in the back of the head.

  “Ow! What was that for?” Renfield turns and looks at Sara, but she is already back to concentrating on looking through the trees from her direction. He notices her behind and grins.

  “That’s for taking my mother on a date.” Tomorrow reaches back and smack shim in the head again.

  “Wait a minute. That’s not fair. She was my wife. If this goes bad I wanted to see her one last time.” Renfield responds. “Plus, you should stay still. By the way what was the second slap for?”

  “For not coming to see me so I could talk you out of this. My mother told me she asked you to.” Tomorrow sees something.

  “Look we both love your mother. In different ways, but we both care about her. I wasn’t going to change my mind and she had faith you would figure out a way to stop me if you didn’t believe in me. So my guess is she knew you would believe in me.” Renfield feels her thought about the movement but he keeps his eye on the other direction, in case of a flank. He is aware whatever she sees can’t be close enough to be a problem because her heartrate is still steady.

  “Adam.” She says quietly.

  “Yes? Why are we talking out loud right now anyway?” Renfield responds.

  “I want to tell you I love you with my voice.” Tomorrow says back. “Plus, I know every time I speak you looks back and see my butt.”

  “Tomorrow, I love you too, but we have bigger fish to fry and your butt is a distraction, dear.” Renfield knows she is looking at him so he turns to grin to her.

  Then he hears her heartbeat rise. He clicks at the same time she does. “There’s a lot more of them than we thought.” Adam begins counting and noting positions and movements.

  “What did you do to piss these people off?” Tomorrow thinks back to him, but she already knows. She waits for him to click first. As she hears him choose his target she clicks under her own and takes out his legs in an instant, then clicks to the next target. The two of them move quickly to subdue the incursion into their spot, but they know they will have to leave it once they are done. A sword comes down at Tomorrow and she clicks behind the man wielding it, grabs it and clicks in front of him and with all of her might she bashes the shield in her hand.

  “That’s the one you’re going to let go?” Adam thinks to her.

  “Yeah, but not yet.” As the man is running away, she clicks in front of him and trips him. She uses his own
sword to impale his leg to the ground.

  “Creative, dear. And rather surgical, you missed all of the main arteries.” Adam clicks again coming up behind the biggest fighter. “Boo.” As the man turns Adam clicks behind him again, “Boo.” The man turns again and smiles as he sees assistance coming up behind Renfield. Adam clicks again, behind the man swinging the sword at his head and the man whom meant to assist slices deep into the largest fighter. Then Renfield steps forward and snaps his neck while he is in shock over killing his own friend. He clicks again and Tomorrow is there.

  She grabs him by the head and kisses him as she thinks to him, “I think that’s all of them, how about some me time?”

  Renfield laughs at his wife and responds, “As long as you don’t smack me in the head, but not here. There will be more.”

  Tomorrow looks around and says, “I think we made our point.”

  “You always do, Tomorrow. Where to?” Adam asks.

  Tomorrow smacks him in the chest. “I don’t know anything about this place.”

  “Hey, I said no more smacking me! I don’t know much about this place either. Why, does that matter?” Adam grins down at her.

  “You said I couldn’t smack you in the head. So are you driving or am I?” Tomorrow smiles and kisses him.

  Renfield grabs her arm as it reaches up to touch his face and they are in their spot by the river. He immediately puts his foot behind her ankle and pushes her over. She doesn’t let go of him and as they land he kisses his beloved.

  Tomorrows lips become instantly wet as she salivates over the passion of her husband. Then she asks, “So did you give up on your quest?” As soon as she asks she knows the answer, but waits for him to say it.

  “Nope, I’m taking a break for time with you. I know how to get back there now.” Adam lunges himself into her again.

  Tomorrow pulls his hand away and looks into his eyes. “Why are you so determined to face that man?”