THE VROL TRILOGY

by SK Benton

  Standing up and bowing, the four then made their way out to the courtyard, it already being nighttime in Tokyo.

  "So we shall begin training on the fortnight, agreed?" asked Krynos.

  "Yes, good sir. I shall have my finest warriors selected and ready to go at the prearranged time and coordinates," said Isamu.

  "And I'll make sure we get the chef exchange rolling quickly also. I have a feeling it's going to get more interesting at home with this great food being available," stated Max, as his wife nonchalantly slid her hand down the back of his trousers with a giggle.

  Gotta remember to only eat sushi in private from now on.

  ###

  Krynos, Max and Jennie slipped directly into the main dining hall, where the lunch hour was just beginning. But much to the young couple's dismay, their daughter went bounding over to them.

  "Mami! Papi! I have such wonderful news to tell you!"

  "Young Liliana, it is so nice to see you, my dear," exclaimed Krynos, as he attempted to run interference for Max and Jennie, comically aware of their urgent need for privacy.

  "Oh hello, my king. And how was your day?" asked the bright-eyed child, being polite as ever.

  "It was magnificent. However, what interests me is your idea for the Youth Brigade coat of arms. Have you any sketches?"

  Liliana's eyes lit up and she curtseyed to the king, saying, "Oh of course! I shall fetch them right away." She then turned to leave, but quickly looked at her parents and said, "Mami, Papi, I am so sorry. May I tell you of my lessons at dinner tonight?"

  Max nodded his head clumsily as his daughter jetted off out of the room, while it looked like Jennie was going to have a meltdown in the middle of the commissary.

  As soon as Liliana was out of sight, Krynos turned to tell the Gunnarssons to leave, but there was no need - they were already gone.

  Chapter 9 - Setup

  Max and Jennie managed to avoid Liliana for the next few hours, mostly due to Clarisa's intervention. The woman had been spending as much of her free time as she could with her granddaughter, wanting to prepare the child for life in a more civilized society - if Azul military, the Rhönen Dominion, the Saxman Haidas and warriors from the Tokyo Mūnkuran succeed in defeating the approaching Vrol.

  The couple took advantage of their babysitter and enjoyed the cool breeze flowing in through the open window in their quarters, the moon hanging low in the early evening sky. As Jennie lay half across Max, she gently rubbed her cheek against his chest while she playfully walked her fingers across his well-formed stomach.

  "Mr. Mage showed me some new moves today. Where did you learn that stuff, baby?" she comically asked, not really wanting to get an answer.

  "Aw love, you know we immortals have secret informational sources. Besides, if you knew I could learn even more you'd become damned near insatiable."

  Jennie lifted her head and gave her husband a devious grin." You mean it's just gonna get better?"

  Max pulled his gorgeous dega up and kissed her, drinking in her breath, as she pressed herself up against him. "Love, this is how it happens. We both learn. Together. And I'd never have it any other way."

  "Yeah," she responded breathlessly, as she slid up on top of him, "I like it that way too. Here, I have an idea…"

  Round four. Thank god for salubots.

  ###

  "Abuelita, I do so like your ring. From where did you acquire it? Is it a family heirloom?" inquired Liliana, full-well knowing Michael had made it for the lovely dega grandmother.

  The two were seated at a small desk in the alcove in Clarisa's private quarters. The woman had been helping Liliana with some mathematics homework, even though it wasn't necessary - the child excelled in the math and sciences with little effort. Still, she liked spending as much time as possible with the young girl, except for when the child asked awkward questions.

  "Um, sweetie, I got it… from," she stammered, but was cut off by Liliana.

  "Abuelito gave it to you, did he not? I do spend time with him, Abuelita. And, by the way, I do approve and believe that you both make a lovely couple."

  Clarisa gave her adopted granddaughter an adoring gaze and took one of the girl's small hands into her own. "Lili, yes, he gave me this ring. But I honestly don't know where this is going from here. Life is an adventure. Before I came here to the Rhönen I was a senior citizen, retired, and looking forward to relaxing until I… died. But now, I've been transformed and I honestly have no idea where I am going from here."

  "Abuelita, why not just let it happen? You are so pretty. I know Abuelito is smitten with you, and I love my new family. I only wish for everyone to be happy - as happy as I am."

  The young lycan/mage looked at the much older woman from the future-past with a face of pure innocence and affection, nearly causing Clarisa to melt. What she didn't notice, however, was the near-imperceptible blue glow emanating from the girl's hands. Liliana had an agenda, and it was moving along quite well.

  After having completed all of her homework, Liliana walked to the commissary with her grandmother. It was time for the evening meal, and the growing child was hungry - plus she wanted to watch her father's parents' reactions while around each other. She had earlier invited Michael to have dinner with her, but neglected to mention she would be bringing Clarisa along. As the two entered the main dining hall they saw Michael seated at the family table, along with the rest of the usual crowd. In fact, everyone was there, with the exception of Max and Jennie, who were getting cleaned up before descending from their quarters two floors above.

  There was lively conversation between all of the diners, and Clarisa quickly noticed that Ohiro was also seated with the family, next to Janice, of course. He was a very proper soldier, but was now more at ease with everyone, not only because he was spending an ample amount of time with Janice, but also because he had assisted in the initial negotiations with the Rhönen's new allies in Tokyo.

  Liliana bounded up and gave everyone a kiss on the cheek, while her grandmother followed suit. When girl got up to Ohiro she gave him a whimsical half-smile. The lycan quartermaster looked a bit on the uncomfortable side, but after being nudged in the ribs by Janice he extended his cheek out a bit, which the child promptly gave a light peck.

  "Good evening, Clarisa. We have waited for all to arrive before requesting our food," said Gabriel, who had recently begun to look even more comfortable around humans. Jessica was seated closely by his side as she smiled and waved to the mother of the Hybrid. Pandy was seated next to her cousin and motioned for Liliana to take the empty seat by her side.

  Draagh was seated at the end of the table, recounting tales from his adventures on a world long-before extinct to Bagatelle and Alicia, the latter having been slipped over for some well-deserved relaxation with her fiancé. But sitting in the middle of the table was Michael - he was expressionless, until Clarisa entered the room. Liliana watched the two while she took a seat next to her older friend, quite pleased with the reaction she was seeing between the archangel and the lycan female.

  "Lili, tell me - how's it going with Kyle. Your lessons and all?" whispered Pandy.

  "Oh Pandy, I believe I have grown beyond him. Although he is an excellent teacher, I have no interest in any boy right now. Besides, I am much too busy assisting with the king's Youth Brigade."

  "Great! And I love your designs! Sharks and pirates! Oh, and thanks for the pirate books. I never knew what they were before."

  Liliana smiled at her friend and looked around the table, realizing (again) just how lucky she was. Just under two years before, she was an orphan with no hope for the future. But thanks to her personality and bravery she was now part of the most powerful family on the planet, and possibly in the universe.

  And she had no idea just how powerful they were.

  But before she had an opportunity to further reflect on her good fortunes, Jennie and Max sauntered in, looking completely relaxed and happy.

  "Evening all," chimed Jennie.

>   "Ah, our stragglers have finally deemed it worth their time to bless us with their presence," joked Draagh.

  "Um, those negotiations took a bit out of us, getting up so early and all," said Max, inventing a lame excuse for their absence during the entirety of the day. Realizing no one had yet eaten, he raised his hand to the hall servants, who immediately brought out plates of food for everyone on the table.

  "So now that we have an accord with Isamu I believe we have enough combined manpower to recapture Azul and reform the government," said Max, near-finished with his meal.

  "I'm personally looking forward to meeting this fellow. What a concept - lycan samurais in the 43rd century," exclaimed Bagatelle, adding a humorous tone.

  "In space!" added Jessica.

  "Lycans. In. Space. That really sounds cool," mused Jennie, as she leaned up against her husband.

  As usual, the two archangel brothers were quiet, but seemed to have fit in quite well. Both were sitting next to their apparent consorts while enjoying their meals and light conversation. However, they all knew that the most difficult part of their mission was yet to start. Identifying friends and enemies, transporting humans out of the refurbished barges - those were the easy parts. Now they were required to conquer Azul military. They had the Navy, to a certain extent. There were a few officers not willing to join, but rather wanted to remain neutral and see the outcome. Bagatelle would relieve them of duty once he had assumed control. He needed no dictatorship sympathizers, nor leadership without a backbone. The Vrol were to be Mankind's greatest test, and the admiral had no option but to win.

  "So when do we start training with everyone? We can't just assume that these groups will get along. I mean, what if the Haidas and the Samurais fight like cats in a box?" asked Jennie, bringing up a very real concern.

  "We should bring test groups to Vera, put them in rooms together, assign them tasks and see if they kill each other," said a monotone-sounding Gabriel. Jessica got an impish grin on her face, finally having come to understand Gabriel's dark, deadpan sense of humor.

  Bagatelle raised an eyebrow and nodded his head, actually agreeing with Gabriel's joking suggestion.

  "Gabriel, that's actually an excellent idea. Of course, we could never let them wantonly murder each other. We'll have complete control, but yes - I believe we should try that right away."

  "Oh man, I never really thought either. Isamu's troops probably don't speak English, German or Spanish. We'll need to give them some language lessons," added Max.

  "Definitely English. It's the standard military language on all four worlds," said Jennie.

  "Hey, just a minute! It takes months to reach fluency in a foreign language, and besides, we don't even know if the Samurai can read or write in Japanese," said Bagatelle, seeing a potential issue.

  "No, my dear Admiral," interjected Draagh, "we shall take care of that. Even Max knows how to enlighten our foreign guests with the gift of linguistics."

  "Yeah, I improved Isamu's English in seconds. I imagine the four of us can cover the entire samurai clan."

  "Max, how can you do that? I don't understand," asked the currently deposed rear admiral.

  "Honestly, it's some sort of language pack we inject into someone's head. Instant language lessons."

  "Oooh! I wanna learn Spanish so Liliana and I can tell each other things in secret!" blurted Pandy, causing Jennie to give her an odd glance, while Liliana nodded her head excitedly.

  "Actually, we should never use it on our friends, family or loved ones, young lady," stated Michael, injecting himself into the conversation. "There can be certain… side effects. It is best to study the old-fashioned way."

  "I must agree with my son, dear girl. That being said, I am sure that Liliana would be more than happy to begin your instruction in either German or Spanish," added Draagh.

  "Oh yes, Grandfather Draagh, I would be most willing to assist my friend!"

  Jennie thought for a moment, and then reminded herself that Pandy could be a fine friend and protector. The young woman had no ill intentions towards her daughter, and in a few short years they would both be adults - practically immortal adults, and when they were hundreds of years old those first few years of their friendship (and separation of age) would be but a faint memory.

  "Spanish, Pandy. I recommend that if you study with Liliana you learn Spanish. It's more useful on Azul. There are German-speaking areas, but they're mostly rural," stated the beautiful dega, who then gave Liliana a determined glare and said, "And Lili, no lisuras. Got it?"

  "What's a leesooda," asked Pandy, attempting (poorly) to mimic Jennie's pronunciation of the Castilian Spanish word for profanity.

  "Those are bad words I am not allowed to utter, Pandy," responded the young lycan while wearing a face of mischievous intent. "I shall teach you the proper way to speak the language of my parents!"

  "I can help too, girls," added Clarisa, seeing an excellent opportunity to get in the middle and make sure Liliana was not being improperly influenced by the older off-worlder.

  "Cool! Now that everyone's gonna get into languages, why don't we start moving the Haida younglings into the housing we built outside the castle?"

  Max was referring to the recently completed construction of an apartment complex in the meadow outside the castle moat. It was walled off and actually resembled a smaller castle, maintaining the same design motif as the older structures in the area. The walls were for the safety of the children. Even though they would have round-the-clock guards, there was still the chance that a child could sneak out and become an unwitting snack for the castle guardians in the moat.

  All were in agreement that it was indeed time to move the children and the elders who inhabited the castle and the courtyard into better accommodations. The battle-aged Haidas were already undergoing a strict training regimen on Vera, and accustoming themselves to the higher gravity. Vera was slightly higher than Azul, so they would fee a lift when they moved to the main planet (if they did at all). Now all Max had to do was start bringing Isamu's soldiers over.

  And hope they didn't all murder each other.

  Chapter 10 - Move It!

  Liliana sat looking out of the window of her parents' apartment in Krynos' castle. She watched as a large crowd of people carried belongings out of the castle courtyard, over the drawbridge and toward the newly constructed living quarters for the Saxman Haidas. Morning dew dotted the sill; she drew little designs in the moisture with her index finger while she looked on the throngs of people below. The child sighed lightly as she noticed a number of friends who were now going to be close, yet far, especially as they would eventually go to another world. She had enjoyed the previous few days, dashing in-between classes to see the new acquaintances she had made on her very first trip to Alaska on Old-Earth. Sadly, she never really got along well with the local lycan children. At first it was because she was a poor orphan; later because she was adopted by Max and Jennie. She never got to enjoy that middle stage - just being one of the kids. But the Haida children were different. They were a bit wilder than her local counterparts, and they didn't judge her by who she used to be, or who she currently was. They were simply her friends. She knew that one day they would move off to somewhere either in Azul system of the 29th century, or relocate in her current world, but the majority of them would be lost to her forever.

  Spying her two very best friends down below, she decided she would pop in for an unannounced visit. Her classes still didn't start for over an hour, so she had plenty of time to spend with them. Plus, she had an important question she wanted to ask.

  Liliana didn't have the four-dimensional slip abilities of her father, but she did learn to perform local (3D) slips, and had become quite proficient at them. Her great-grandfather, Draagh, had created a permanent, protective shield around her, preventing her from materializing inside a wall, or, God forbid, in the moat (even though it was likely the sharks would go to her rescue rather than eat her). Looking around to make sure her pare
nts weren't in the room, Liliana concentrated and squinted her eyes, visualizing where she wanted to go. Her budding skills put her exactly where she desired - at the entrance to the castle courtyard - where she saw her two friends carrying duffle bags.

  "Janie! Are you not excited?" she asked as her two friends gave her an astonished look. They were walking towards the drawbridge and Liliana simply appeared in front of them. They were aware she was a mage, but still hadn't become used to seeing her appear and disappear at will.

  "Hiya, Lili!" said Janie. "Yeah, I'm finally gonna sleep on a bed again. How are you doing?"

  "I must be off to classes within the hour. We are to study weapons today, which ties into our meeting tonight for the Youth Brigade. Speaking of that, have you given any consideration to my offer of joining?"

  Liliana had tried to recruit almost every Saxman child into Krynos' new youth organization, but they all knew they would be living elsewhere in the near future so they declined - everyone except for Janie and Tommy Williams, grandchildren of Jake Williams, the chief of the Saxman tribe. The Earth children from an alternate dimension were fraternal twins, and were approximately Liliana's age. They earlier said they wanted some time to think it over, and Liliana was anxious to get her two friends into her little squad of pre-pubescent lycan terror.

  "We're in. Mom and Dad said it was okay. And Grandpa actually got excited when he heard we would be hanging out with you," responded Tommy.

  "Oh, I am so happy! It shall be great fun!" squealed Liliana.