The Needs of the Many

by Christina McMullen

  Epilogue

  Despite the heavy, oppressive, and quite frankly foul quality of the air, it felt great to be back in New York. Ellie walked, shoulder bumping shoulder, with her fellow afternoon commuters as she ascended the stairs from the subway station and found herself again in her favorite east side neighborhood. Sure, she could have easily pulsed to her destination, alleviating the need to suffer the train, but for the foreseeable future, she was Ellie Whitmore, human of Earth. There was no sense in indulging in alien luxuries for the sake of a few moment’s comfort. Especially given what the Iriani had told her to expect.

  But for all her preparations, coming back to Earth proved to be a bigger shock than Ellie had anticipated. In just the short few months since she’d been gone, it seemed world leaders had suffered collective head trauma. The never-ending wars that plagued her remote little world saw no resolve in her absence and worse, political factions she’d believed to be dismantled prior to her birth were once again rising to power. On a smaller, local level, much of the bigotry and hatred she and her family stood against seemed to be making a terrifying resurgence.

  It was enough to make anyone turn tail and run back to the relative safety of the advanced worlds of the Ghowrn system and Ellie had to admit, it had only taken an hour of catching up on news before she needed a break. But rather than flee, the harsh reality only strengthened the notion that she was doing the right thing. Though she had to wonder exactly what the Iriani expected from her. Especially now that she was again nothing special. Still an oddity, perhaps, but without the advantages of knowledge or the threat of a powerful robot army.

  Upon arrival, Ellie was once again greeted by a luk shaped being of light, but she was given very little to go on. Her instructions were frustratingly simple: to follow her heart.

  At one time, that might have been enough. Her intentions had always been to return to Earth as soon as the Ghowrn conflict was over. In coming back, she tried her hardest to pretend that this was nothing more than her plan coming to fruition. She went first to University and registered for the next semester of classes, though she opted to skip a third attempt at Organic Chemistry. She then went back to her tiny apartment, grateful that she’d paid rent through the next year. She found the door fixed and all of her possessions almost exactly the way she left them.

  For that first day, it was easy to pretend nothing had changed. But it didn’t take long for reality to set in. In the apartment next door lived a stranger. The best friend who used to live there was now seven thousand light years away, happily engaged to an Eidyssic. Her mother and stepfather promised frequent visits, but during their last stay on Earth, had set the groundwork to retire from public life, meaning they planned to stay on Korghetia. At least they’d been up front with their intentions rather than letting Ellie discover the truth through gossip magazines. And of course, she couldn’t ignore the empty place in her heart, reminding her that Julian was still halfway across the galaxy, helping to negotiate peace.

  Back when returning was nothing more than a pipedream, doing so was never such a terrifying or lonely adventure. At least, she’d never imagined returning alone, nor did she expect to feel as she now did: like the alien she was. An outsider, despite having been born and raised here on Earth.

  Ellie shook off the creeping ache that gnawed its way into her heart as she pushed open the door to Dragulous. It wasn’t as if she’d returned to an Earth without friends, she reminded herself. In fact, she wouldn’t have been surprised to see Bethany back behind the counter one day. Between the constant barrage of texts via pulse mail and the pictures that looked suspiciously as though they were taken somewhere in Europe and not T’al Eidyn, it was clear the Earthling had no reservations about using her own newfound powers of Transcendence.

  She gave a friendly wave and smile at Zhavon, the new proprietor of the shop, who had been kind enough to allow Ellie to continue using the back exit to shortcut her way to MochaMoka. Then again, that could have been because Bethany tipped her off to how much money Ellie typically spent on vintage accessories and jeans.

  “And just what exactly is that smirk about?” Ellie asked, unable to ignore the mischievous look cast her way.

  “What smirk, your majesty?” Zhavon asked as she followed Ellie into the small back room, pushing aside a precarious tower of cardboard boxes that blocked the back door.

  “Oh for heaven’s sake,” Ellie huffed, rolling her eyes in amusement. “Bethany sending you the local gossip now?”

  The story they’d concocted was that when Bethany accompanied Ellie to the small, sovereign nation in Eastern Europe to find out more about her father, Bethany fell in love with a native and decided to stay. Really, it was as close to the truth as a cover story could get, though they had not discussed revealing Ellie’s royal status. But as Zhavon, at least, wasn’t as interested in the details as much as giving her a hard time over it, Ellie had no issue with the extra tidbit being leaked.

  “Well, go on, queenie,” Zhavon said with a saucy wink after shouldering open the rusty back door. “Your court awaits.”

  “All that better await me is a triple hazelnut mocha latte,” Ellie warned with a giggle as she jumped down into the alley. A moment later, a familiar figure standing on the loading dock in the distance provided yet another solid reminder that she was not without friends on this mission.

  “Distribution mess up another order?” Ellie asked as she hauled herself up onto the concrete platform.

  “Nah, I’m just catching up on news from Admiral Vonsse,” Vito said, stuffing his phone in his pocket with a chuckle.

  “Admiral?” Ellie asked, raising her eyebrows and unable to hide her own smirk.

  “Your mother’s doing, I hear,” Vito explained with another round of laughter. “I guess she got tired of all the modesty and decided to give my brother a non-negotiable promotion.”

  “Bet he loved that.”

  “Enough to use language I never would have guessed him capable of uttering,” Vito said as he followed Ellie into the bar. “But that could be Bethany’s influence. I’m sure you heard she’s working her way up the ranks as well.”

  “Yeah, but that’s no surprise,” Ellie said, finding an empty stool at the bar. “The promotion or that she’d be rubbing off on Vonsse. I think he’s got a wild streak he just never had the chance to explore.”

  “I don’t know. Remind me to sit here on a slow night and regale you with stories of how boring my brother was as a young ‘un,” Vito replied with a wink as he placed an expertly crafted latte in front of her.

  For the next few minutes, while Vito handled the small rush of customers, Ellie sat and silently drank her coffee, taking in the warmth and familiarity of the bar. She had to admit, despite the uncertainty and loneliness, it felt good to be back.

  “Okay, kiddo,” Vito said, as he came back over to her corner, eyes narrowed and voice low. “Level with me. You ain’t simply here because you missed my Tuesday night drink specials. Something’s going down in this neck of the woods, ain’t it?”

  “I think I should like to know that as well.”

  Ellie gasped and did a double take as the blonde who had been sitting with her back to them turned around, revealing golden eyes and a familiar smile.

  Ellie stared at Vito for a moment, and then back at Mikk. Dressed in jeans and a casual top, the Fhasmyrric princess was nearly indistinguishable from any other New Yorker who sat, mostly minding their own business.

  “I’ve appointed myself ambassador to the Oravaschaeal Cluster,” Mikk said with a wink, answering Ellie’s unspoken question. “I figured since the Merata now have representation, it was only fair to reach out and offer the same chance to the mining communities. And since I was in the neighborhood…” She trailed off with an impish wink before adding seriously, “I’m not the only one whose suspicions were raised when you were sent back here for your ‘service term’.”

  “Oh? Who else had questions?”

  “A lot of us,�
�� Mikk replied, casually lifting a large, designer purse from her lap to the bar. “And this one isn’t saying anything, but I think he knows more than he’s letting on.” She opened the bag to reveal Pouns in his smallest form, looking not unlike a very spoiled lap dog as he napped on a plush blanket.

  “He might,” Ellie said, sending Pouns a message of gratitude for his silence under the guise of a light scratch behind the ear. She looked around, noting that they hadn’t drawn any attention from the other patrons and leaned in close. “I can’t really say much, but Earth is in for turbulent times.”

  She shifted her gaze up over the bar, where the large television currently played a news show with political pundits discussing yet another controversial measure being set forth by the current administration.

  As if on cue, a voice rang out from the other side of the bar.

  “Hey, Vito, you mind turning on something less depressing?”

  “Yeah,” a second voice chimed in. “No politics in the bar. I come here to forget my troubles.”

  “You want the Knicks game?” Vito shouted back, picking up the remote control.

  “I said less depressing,” the patron shot back, causing an uproar of laughter throughout the bar, which lifted Ellie’s spirit in spite of herself.

  “I saw something the other day,” Vito said, coming back to the conversation. “One of those genius guys was saying we got maybe a hundred years before humanity is toast. Are you saying he was being optimistic?”

  “I’m not sure,” Ellie said with a shrug. “I was told I’d be needed and I know I won’t likely be here in one hundred years.”

  “Societies have to fall before they can rise from the ashes,” Mikk said, frowning at the shouting heads on the television. “Perhaps your job is to ensure those who survive have the knowledge they need to do just that.”

  “I was kind of hoping I was here to keep us going without an extinction event,” Ellie added with a grimace.

  “Well if anyone can do that, it’s you,” Mikk said with a smile as she drained her glass and signaled Vito for another. “In any event, you’ve got the backing of the Paisreatta, including and especially that of the pilot scum herself.”

  It was all Ellie could do to keep her diodes from lighting up as she smiled at Mikk. Suddenly, she didn’t feel half as lonely as she had when she walked into the bar.

  “Well, it’s about time,” Vito said, returning with Mikk’s drink and a sparkle in his eye as he glanced down at the buzzing phone he’d picked from his pocket. “The new doorman’s out back. I got a couple of orders to fill. You think you can go let him in?”

  “Sure,” Ellie said, slightly bemused as she slid off her seat, giving Mikk a look that said she’d be back.

  In the stockroom, Ellie switched on the light and pulled back the lock, wincing at the loud squeak as the door swung outward. Seeing no one, she jumped down off the loading dock and looked around, gasping as a figure stepped out from the shadows.

  “You’re far too trusting. What if I’d been an assassin?”

  Ellie couldn’t believe her ears. As he stepped fully into the light from the storeroom, she couldn’t believe her eyes either. Dressed in ripped jeans and a second hand concert t-shirt, his hair longer and shaggier that he ever would have allowed it before, Julian leaned in, catching the dazed Ellie in his arms as she flung herself forward, wrapping her arms around his neck and squeezing him tight enough to confirm she wasn’t having a hallucination.

  “What are you doing here?”

  “I heard Vito had an opening for a night time doorman and I hear he doesn’t ask a lot of questions about their former employment.”

  “Wait. Does that mean…?” Ellie looked up, a thousand questions lit up her face and she quickly pulled Julian into the building so as to not attract attention. “What about the peace mission?”

  “Negotiations are going well,” he said in a voice that was just a little too casual. “I’ll still need to go back for important development meetings, but beyond that, well… let’s just say I had a… vision.”

  “Oh?” Ellie asked, taking far too much joy in the sudden discomfort and embarrassment that lit Julian’s face with a soft glow.

  “The Iriani seem to think that my being here might be important to the success of your mission.”

  “Well, I would imagine having one’s Abstractive Root removed, manipulated into a tool of war, reconstructed and replaced, thus restoring mortality might be the kind of thing that would make even the most logical of men a wee bit more accepting of the irrational and unquantifiable,” Ellie teased with a wide smile.

  “Indeed it does,” Julian said, returning her smile. “Apparently this makes my own existence unquantifiable in equal measure, but I daresay, it makes for rather convenient interstellar travel.”

  “Wait, does this mean you’re as well a Transcendent?” Ellie asked.

  “I guess it does,” Julian replied with a shrug of embarrassment, still not completely comfortable with the concept that he, like Ellie, might be seen by some as more than human. “But that’s not what’s important here.”

  “And what is?”

  “Whether you want me to stay,” he murmured in a low, sexy tone that caused a minor earthquake in Ellie’s heart.

  “Do you even have to ask?”

  “Of course I do,” Julian replied, kissing her lightly before explaining. “My heart is yours, El’iadrylline, but it would be callous of me to assume you reciprocate my feelings. Especially now that the bond we shared is gone.”

  “Is it though?” Ellie asked, tears falling freely as she pulled him close, bombarding him with waves of emotion she had no intention of ever trying to suppress. For a long and wonderful moment they stayed that way, locked in an embrace and sharing via diodal connection all that words could not express. “I would think our hearts given freely creates a tether stronger than an abstraction taken without consent.”

  “Indeed,” Julian agreed, taking her hand in his and placing it over his heart. “But I remain yours to command. Always.”

  At that, Ellie pulled back, eyes shining as she shook her head.

  “No, Julian. Come what may, I’d rather have you at my side than a step behind.”

  A Note from the Author

  Thank you very much for sticking with me and Ellie throughout her adventure. I can only hope the journey was as rewarding to read as it was to write.

  The end of a series is always bittersweet, but this time was a little more emotional than I expected. On February 23rd we said goodbye to Luke, the 13 year old pup I’d used as the basis for the character of Pouns. We miss him, but I can take a small bit of comfort in knowing that the playful antics of this loving creature will live on with my stories.

  Once again, I must give many thanks to the keen eyes of fellow authors G. G. Atcheson, Ben Mariner, and J. Daniel Layfield, who took the time to beta read and give me critical insights which helped shape this story into what you have in your hands.

  I have to once again thank Missy Sheldrake for another stunning cover. I must admit, I didn’t make it easy when I told her that she would be drawing Julian, the character several readers have now called their book boyfriend. That’s a lot of pressure, but Missy did a fantastic job of interpreting one of my favorite scenes given what little information I could safely give her.

  As always, a huge thank you to my husband, Jason, for allowing me to indulge in my artistic fits and listening to me bemoan the ups and downs of author life, including writer’s block, plot holes, and the seemingly never-ending typos.

  And of course, as always, thank you for reading!

  For a listing of all of my books, check out (and consider following) my author page on Amazon. For information on new releases, upcoming projects, or to read my sporadic musings on life, check out my website, Vampires and Robots. For monthly free books by up and coming indie authors, consider subscribing to my newest site, Bookworms Discover. For less seriousness and more interaction, feel free to follow
me on Twitter or Facebook, where I try to be captivating and engaging, but mostly I just tell terrible jokes.