Five Hertz of Separation

CHAPTER TWENTY ONE

There was a loud, frantic, knocking on my door just as I was about to open my lunch beer. I limited myself to just one beer at lunch but it’s a good one. An imported Pilsner from Germany. I was down to my last case and personal supplies wouldn’t be coming in for at least two weeks. Thank God I hadn’t opened it yet. I stashed it back in the little DC electric fridge and opened my office door. It was Trooper Beech. He saluted and I returned it.

“What’s up, Beech?”

“Colonel Willis, Queen Opulessa wants to see you, Dupree and that guy White from the Consortium. Pronto.”

“Did she say why?”

“No, but she seemed kinda pissed. That ain’t good.”

“I’ll handle it, Ernie. You supposed to get the rest of them?”

“No, she sent Taylor and Pinski.”

I take my pistol belt down from a hook on the wall and strap it on, making sure that my right hand falls just above the butt of the Colt .45. I know it’s old fashioned but it was my father’s service pistol and the Winthrop Group doesn’t give a damn what I carry just as long as I hit what I aim at. And nothing else.

“Good. Return to duty, Beech.”

Another snap salute. “Yes, Sir!” Beech hurries off. A good soldier.

As I stride through the corridors towards the Queen’s chambers, a number of the passing maids give me coy smiles. Some aren’t so coy. It’s not surprising. I’m one of Alpha dogs around this place. Maybe the Alpha dog. The Queen has given me permission to try out the local babe population but it just doesn’t seem right. An oath of fidelity should mean something. It doesn’t stop the other men from playing the field and I won’t hold it against them. That’s one of the reasons we all signed up, for the full male experience, including screwing around. The Company doesn’t care, just as long as we get our jobs done and I make sure of that. At least I did until that damn rebel witch showed up.

Dupree is waiting outside the Queen’s chambers when I arrive. By the time I greet him, White’s shown up.

“Do either of you know what the hell is going on? One of your men, Willis, practically drug me here.”

“Don’t know, Don. You got any idea, First Minister?”

“Not directly, Colonel, but it is likely about the other world witch.”

“Well, let’s find out.”

I reach up, grab the heavy metal knocker mounted on the wooden door and give it a couple of big swings. The loud thuds echo through the hallways.

“Come in, gentlemen.”

The other two fall back slightly as I pull the door open.

“Best not keep the Lady waiting … gentlemen.” I walk in with the other two falling in close behind. The door closes behind us with a gentle whisper. I can see Opulessa sitting at a large wooden table with three other smaller chairs sitting around her. She’s dressed fairly simply for her, a lilac purple gown, woven silver belt around her small waist, flat soled silver slippers, several rings but no necklace. She wears a golden tiara instead of her formal crown. She gestures toward the empty chairs.

“Be seated, gentlemen.”

We all take the seat nearest us so I end up on the Queen’s right, White on her left with Dupree sitting opposite of her.

“I’ll be brief so that you all can get back to work. Why have you not captured this upstart witch known as Alexia? Such a name! Has she no shame?”

“We have no good leads, your Majesty,” I say. “All the captured men were questioned but they claimed to know nothing. I tend to believe them, in light of what we put them through.”

“I received the same responses, though some of them provided false information. I also believe them,” Dupree says.

“Her main contact with the group was Miran Pegues, who also escaped. We’re assuming they’re traveling together. If we find him, we might find her or he can tell us where she’s hiding.”

“That is all well and good, Colonel Willis but I want results, not some hopeful plan.”

“To be fair,” says White, “Colonel Willis is operating with rather old technology and he has captured several hundred rebels. That is a lot of people to thoroughly interrogate. He has very limited resources.”

“What does the leader of my government have to say?”

“We are searching, my Queen, sparing no expense. Turning over every pebble, probing every forest, overturning every village,” Dupree answers. “We have over 2,000 men in the field as we speak, with more coming every day.”

“Interesting, then how do you think she has avoided this massive manhunt.”

“It is a very large country with many places to hide.”

“But my sources say she is nearby, gentleman.”

“What sources?” I ask.

“People I know and trust. They say a mysterious woman travels from village to village, caring for the sick and performing almost miraculous cures. The recent reports are all from this area.”

“We also have heard these reports,” says Dupree. “Upon investigation, we find nothing, sometimes not even the alleged beneficiary of the cure. No one knows anything.”

“I cannot do your jobs for you, gentlemen. I expect to have this interloper prostrate before me by the end of my birthday celebrations. If that does not happen, changes will be made. Am I clear about this?”

We all acknowledge hearing her loud and clear. Then she reaches out and covers my left hand with her right hand.

“You other two are dismissed but I wish for you to stay, Colonel Willis. I need to discuss the behavior of one of your men towards one of my favorite maids.”

The other two hurry out, leaving the Queen and I alone.

“Is there a problem, my Queen?”

“Not at all, Colonel Willis. I just wanted an excuse to speak with you alone.”

“You don’t need an excuse, your Majesty. You only need ask me.”

“I know that, Colonel. The excuse was for the ears of the First Minister and Mr. White.”

“So my men treat your favorite maid well.”

“Very well indeed! She is highly satisfied! Though she wishes you would spend some time with her.”

“My Queen, I cannot. My oath to you …”

“If I were to order you?”

“I would obey, of course but I beg you not to.”

“Do not worry, Colonel. I would never do that. I find your faithfulness quaint and do not wish to spoil our relationship. Nor were those admonishments to find the witch aimed at you.”

“They should have, my Queen. We have been derelict in our duty towards you and I swear that we will …”

“Colonel, please. I understand more than you may know. If Dupree and his men can capture her, so much the better, but I doubt that he is capable of doing so. This is simply another test of her skills. I want to keep the pressure on her. Eventually, she will come to me.”

“My Lady, that allows her to pick the place and time! We do not want to give her that advantage. It could be crucial!”

“She is a mere child, Willis. Full of potential, which I will us to further my agenda. You are excused.”

I bow low. “As you wish, my Queen.”

* * * *** * * * *** * * *

It is either very late or very early when Alexia returns to my room. She looks very tired.

“Sorry about that, Miran. Now that you’ve had a little more time to think about it, what’s it gonna be? The whole truth and nothing but the truth?”

“Where were you?”

“Had to see a man about a horse.”

“I’m serious! Dierdra said that you were out playing doctor. Is that true?”

“I’m the one asking questions here, Pegues.”

“I’ll answer your questions after you answer mine. Is it true?”

“Yes, it’s true.”

“What gives you the right to go around my world and subject poor sick people to your experiments on their bodies? Do they even know who or what you are?”

“I tell ’em. I tell ’em there are no guarantees, that I’ll do the best I can.”

“What is your best? You have no skill or training to offer them.”

“As opposed to the charms and voodoo that passes for medical care in your world? I’ve saved a lot of lives, Pegues. If I was smarter or better, I could have saved more, like that boy tonight.”

“He died?”

“Yeah, he died. Leukemia. It was too advanced by the time I first saw him. He needed a bone marrow transplant. I could clean up his blood, a temporary cure, but it didn’t last long. He’d still be alive if he was over in my world but … I can only do so much!”

“Why do anything at all?”

“Because I can! Leeanna was bitten by deadly snakes and I saved her life! One man had an arm so bad he was dying of gangrene right in front of me. I fixed him right up. Some things I can cure just like snap but others … I don’t have the resources.”

“Why try at all? You’re risking everything.”

“How can I not? How can I sit by and do nothing when I’ve got the power to maybe cure someone?”

“Or kill them.”

“I’ve already killed two men, or have you forgotten? I sure as hell haven’t. Nobody else dies on my watch, not if I can help it.”

“What about the Queen? What about her guards” What about the First Minister and all his people?”

“Not if I can help it.”

“That’s impossible! You yourself paid for all those guns, which were captured by the way. What were you going to do with them?”

“They weren’t part of my plan.”

“It couldn’t be done! Revolutions are bloody things and they always will be.”

“Then the blood spilled will be a trickle instead of a flood.”

“This is madness! What do you have, a bunch of old women?”

“A bunch of witches. We can do this!”

“And then what? How do you rule?”

“I don’t rule, no one does. The people can decide their own fate. I’m not imposing anything. I’m giving people a chance to fix this world.”

“It will be a spectacular failure! People are conditioned to accept concepts like ‘democracy’ and ‘majority rule’ or ‘a Bill of Rights’ in your world but they are unknown in this world.”

“The concept of ‘freedom’ isn’t. I’ve seen a lot more of your world than you saw of mine. People need a government that cares about them.”

“We never have in the past. Why start now? It is every man for himself.”

“Yes. Man. You of all people should know the difference. You spent time as a woman. Didn’t that teach you anything?”

“Yes. If you want power to control your own fate, take it.”

“You knew that already when you crossed over to trick my brother into joining your fight. He wasn’t a fighter. Opulessa would have mopped the floor with him.”

“As she will with you.”

“We’ll see about that.”

“And who created this brilliant plan of yours, the plan to overthrow the most powerful witch in the history of our world.”

“It was a group effort.”

“We both know how successful those are.”

“Fine. It’s mostly my plan with a few tweaks by the others.”

“What qualifies you to be a tactician?”

“I have spent my life since the age of ten infiltrating and attacking large, complex systems.”

She may actually have something there. No one could possibly describe our government as lean and efficient. Some of us had argued that the best approach would be for our group to wait a little bit longer for it to collapse from its own bloated bulk and simply pick up the pieces. Alexia’s outsider’s view may give her a distinct advantage. At least in the attack phase. The ruling phase … .

“Even if you should succeed, this ‘truth and reconciliation’ idea is a farce! We are sitting on over two hundred years of suppressed rage and revenge. Once Opulessa’s control is lifted, it would take an army to keep the people in check.”

“Really? Give it a try. Tell me the truth.”

“What truth?”

“The part of this operation you didn’t want me to know. The part that makes you feel shame. Tell me and walk away.”

What is the additional harm? “As you wish. It was I who first suggested that we would be better off keeping Opulessa and getting rid of the First Minister and his people, using you as a diversion. I was also the one who reported you to the New York police department, giving them your location in that abandoned building.”

She seems impressed. “Not bad. Forcing me into a corner so that I’d willing take whatever escape route was offered. I’ll have to remember that one for future use. Anything else?”

“I sent those men to attack you in Shellcrest. It was a test to see if any magical abilities had yet manifested. They were instructed not to harm you, just …”

“Test me. I get it. Anything else?”

“No. Nothing I can think of.”

“See. That wasn’t so bad. I’d figured out or suspected most of it anyway, except for the part about the police which, frankly, I should have suspected. Too many coincidences for something not to be funny. Now, don’t you feel better?”

Surprisingly, I do but I will never tell her that. “Now it is your turn, Alexia.”

“Sorry, ‘truth and reconciliation’ is a one way street until we’re done with this. After that, I’ll tell you everything. Some of it will make you laugh.” She reaches for the door handle.

“Then tell me one thing,” I ask. She grabs the handle but stops, turning back towards me. I press on. “Why did you save me from the Queen’s men the other night?”

“Because you were my contact with Miller’s group. You knew more about me than anyone. If they didn’t have you, I was a lot safer.”

“Agreed. Was that the only reason?”

She smiles at my question. “No, not at all. It gave me a chance to rough you up a bit. A little payback.”

I remember the punch to my stomach. That was more than ‘a bit’. “I guess that I may have deserved that. Those were the only reasons?”

The smile disappears. “No. There was one more. Despite what has been said today, I believe that you are uniquely qualified to help this world evolve into a better place for future generations. You’ve seen my world with its pluses and minuses; you know the pluses and minuses of your world. Once I’ve gone back home, you’ll be the only one left who can help this world learn from our successes and mistakes. That’s important and I didn’t want to lose that. Give it some thought … Mirantha.”

* * * *** * * * *** * * *

Gamgee had returned with the cell phone earlier today and I wanted to get to work right away. I downloaded all the pictures. She managed to get a little video, which helps a lot. Johnathyn and I studied them all for at least an hour; both of us looking for any telltale details that would throw us off. Neither of us could find any imperfections. She’s had over two hundred years to get her look right. I’ve got just a few days to copy it.

After reviewing everything multiple times, I start working on the actual transformation. This can’t be half-assed. I’ve got to get it absolutely dead right. We’ll be trying to fool people who likely have her image burned into their minds. I might be able to fool a few by speaking from the shadows or behind pillars but our success depends on every one of them doing what they are told and they must not suspect a single thing is out of place.

My first attempts were a little rough. I was passable but it will take a lot more than passable to fool the men in the Palace. I started with her hair and worked my way down. Johnathyn carefully reviewed every variation. He has a good eye for details and is a stickler for accuracy. It must come from his profession. You wouldn’t think of smithing as a fine detail line of work but if you’re fixing something, it’s all got to be just right to work.

The whole process is very tiring, using a lot of energy, both magical and physical. I have to take several breaks, once for lunch, but Johnathyn won’t let me goof off for very long. He can be a little slave driver when he wants to be. Must be all that experience driving the horses.

When we’re both finally satisfied with the image, I have to start practicing her movements. She’s smaller than I am but makes grand gestures, big movements but always graceful. Plus, there are small details hidden inside the big movements. She’s an actress who’s always on stage, always on display, always conveying a message with each twist and turn. I’ve got to keep my concentration up to maintain both the image and then how to move.

It is exhausting.

We practice well into the night and finally stop simply because neither of us can go on, Johnathyn having strained with me all day, though I think I’ve finally got it nailed. I couldn’t spend all day as her but I just need about fifteen minutes of perfection, which is hard enough.

Gamgee is coming back to judge the results along with Dierdra, Bengsston, and Beckwith. Gamgee sees the Queen practically every day and the other three have met her once or twice. I find some flowing dresses, something with a little body in the skirt and Leeanna helps me put together something that looks somewhat regal. I’m not worrying about the clothes yet, that’s a whole other thing but there’s several ways we can get around that. For now, I just want something that looks right and doesn’t distract from the overall effect.

When we arrive at the barn, everyone is there, which doesn’t help my nerves. Leeanna and I step behind some bales of hay while Johnathyn sets the stage, putting out some tables and chairs plus a set of steps for me to use.

I want to review everything one last time but decide I better not. I might not get a chance to do that when we go live. After a few seconds of prep, I change my image and Leeanna helps me dress.

“Good luck,” she whispers.

“Thanks,” I respond.

When I step out from behind the bales, there is an audible gasp from the girls. I begin my routine, moving around, sitting, standing, picking things up, putting them down, up the stairs, turn and back down. I hit my marks like a champion dancer. Johnathyn stands off to the side, his broad smile encouraging me. Once I finish my routine, I ad lib a bit, doing a quick two step and turn.

Beckwith walks up to me to get a better look.

“Amazing. Absolutely amazing. You won’t fool a single person who knows the Queen.”

“What are you talking about?! That was perfect!”

“Perfectly wrong.”

Dierdra is there before I can punch Beckwith in the face. “Calm down, Alexia. I am afraid that Beckwith is correct.”

I look over at Gamgee for help but she nods her head in agreement. “You took my breath away for several moments but after the shock wore off, I knew it could not be her. I’m sorry.”

Johnathyn is upset. “I challenge any one of you to point out one single way Alexia does not look exactly like Opulessa.”

“It has nothing to do with how she looks,” says Beckwith. “It is how she feels.”

“FEELS?!” Johnathyn demands.

Dierdra tries to restore peace. “It is not your fault, Alexia. You could not know because you have never met Opulessa. She has a … presence that can be felt.”

“A presence?”

“It is hard to describe. She uses it to influence your emotions. You can feel what she feels about you.”

“Or what she wants you to think she feels about you,” says Gamgee. “She can control it. Sometimes it is there, sometimes it is not. It is not always the same intensity.”

“So where does it come from? More importantly, how do I copy it?”

I look from face to face but none of the other witches says anything.

Finally, Beckwith answers. “We don’t know.”

“How can you NOT know?”

“Because she is a Seventy Seven and we aren’t. None of us have a presence, at least not one that anyone can feel.”

“What about me? I’m a Seventy Seven. Where’s my presence? My aura?”

Dierdra steps closer to me. “You don’t have one, Alexia”

“Why the hell not?”

“Again, we are not certain. Obviously, for Opulessa, this happened many years ago, before any of us were born. We think it develops for a Seventy Seven when she becomes a woman.”

“But I am a woman. I’ve been a woman ever since I got here months ago. I couldn’t be more of a woman!”

“You are a female,” says Beckwith. “But you are not a woman. Yet.”

“What are you talking about? How can I be female and not a woman?”

Dierdra pulls me slightly aside. “Leeanna is female but not a woman. Yet.”

“Is this about age? How old do I need to be before …”

“It is not age, it is maturity and … the act.”

Maturity and the act? What are they talking about? What act? The act. I think about it for a moment or two before it hits me.

“Are you talking about losing your virginity? Sex? Because I can guarantee you that I was not a virgin when I crossed over.” Far, far from it.

“Yes, but since you came across, have you had an opportunity to do … the act?”

“No. Not exactly. Doesn’t all my past experience mean anything?”

“Apparently not.”

“Well … that’s a gyp.”

“Gyp or not, that is what we suspect.”

I look over at Johnathyn. “Let me get this straight, you’re saying that I’m not going to be able to impersonate Opulessa, which is an absolutely vital part of our plan, unless I have sex.”

“With a man,” adds Beckwith. “I have a cousin who might be willing to volunteer.”

“Drop dead, Beckwith.”

CHAPTER TWENTY TWO

We had finished questioning the captured rebels last week. It was clear that most of them knew very little about the overall plans and absolutely nothing about the rebel’s witch. The few at the top that did know something about her didn’t know much. The prize of that group would have been Miran Pegues but he’s nowhere to be found.

I’ve reviewed our procedures top to bottom but I’ll be damned if I know how she got away and took that Pegues guy with her. It’s as if she had a chopper stashed nearby and just flew off, silently. With a passenger.

Most of the rebels went to prison but a choice few of the leaders were turned over to the Queen. Several of them begged us to shoot them instead. If I were in their shoes, I might have asked for the same thing. Now the Queen has called me to meet her at the stables again. I think she does that just to see my reaction to her latest “pets”.

I’ve doubled the security on the Queen, short shifting some areas in the Palace, primarily the First Minister’s offices. He complained, naturally, but I told him to take it up with the Queen. I haven’t heard back yet on that one. Dupree can add some locals to the militia stationed outside the Palace but he’s not totally sure about their loyalties so he’s not looking to make that force too big.

Honestly, I don’t know how these people have gotten by so long, what with all the back stabbing, spying and shaky loyalties. I like having my feet on solid ground. Know who you can trust, know your job, do your job, go home. Uncertainty gnaws away at discipline.

It’s good to see that my men are on alert when I pass through each level of security around the Queen. As usual, she’s alone when in her private area of the stables. I have to steel myself before opening that last door. Locking my eyes straight ahead and ignoring all the strange grunts, groans and screams coming from the pens on either side of me, I stride directly towards the Queen as quickly as my pride will allow. Her smile when she sees me almost makes me forget where we are meeting.

Almost.

“Colonel Willis! Prompt, as usual.”

I stop and bow slightly. “It is my pleasure to serve you, my Liege.”

She is standing on a step in front of a solid board gate almost six feet high. Mercifully, I can’t see into the stall from where I’m standing but there’s no doubt something is happening inside. It sounds like there are two big animals inside, one huffing and puffing, the other moaning and lowing, kinda like a cow. I was a city kid so I don’t know much about farms and farm animals, other than I like to eat them when they’re cooked medium rare. I can hear them shuffling around and banging into the sides of the stall, sometimes pretty damn hard. The Queen doesn’t flinch, just stands there, looking in, a smile on her face, occasionally turning her head to get a better view of whatever the hell is going on.

“Have you seen my most recent acquisition?”

“No Ma’am, I haven’t.”

“Would you care to?”

“If it’s all the same to you, Ma’am, I’d prefer not to.”

Her smile is directed straight at me. “Come now, Colonel. Indulge your Queen.”

My feet move forward as if commanded to do so. As I near the gate, I can begin to see over the top. It’s a big, black bull, hunched over the back of a smaller brown and white cow. The bull is plowing the cow for all he’s worth, rolling his eyes and foaming at the mouth in between bursts of breath that spray spit across the heifer’s soft, brown fur. She really looks almost too small for this kind of assault.

The bull is pushing the heifer around pretty good. Right now, she’s pinned against the far wall, their backs and hind legs about the only thing I can see, but she’s making a lot of noise, lowing, almost moaning, with each powerful thrust. Despite the surroundings, I’m starting to get into it, jerking my hips ever so slightly in time with the bulls plunging cock. I think the Queen notices it but I don’t stop.

Yeah! Take that you sexy, little cow! Take my big, fat … suddenly, the heifer’s right front leg buckles, throwing the couple sideways up against the wall. They recover quickly and return to rutting but now I can see them from the side. The heifer turns her face towards me. Oh GOD!

“Is-is-sss that-that …” I stammer.

“Why, yes it is Colonel. I call her ‘Millie’. This is her first time with Rufus and I so wanted her to enjoy it. I’ll give her some time to get accustomed to his very frequent attentions before becoming pregnant. She needs to fill out a bit before bearing calves, don’t you think?”

“I-I-I-w-wouldn’t kn-now M-ma’am.”

“Not a farm boy? Too bad. You can learn much from a well run farm.”

I can’t tear my eyes away from the heifer … Miller’s face. Definitely human eyes, mostly human head until you get to the ears, nose and mouth. It’s like he’s wearing a half cow Halloween mask from the nose on down, but it’s sickenly real. And I was just mentally fucking that … thing seconds ago! God! If I didn’t know better, I’d say it was actually smiling, enjoying itself. How is that possible? I thought she wanted him punished.

The Queen cocks her head slightly to the side, looking at my face as I stare at what once was Patron Miller.

“You are wondering why I permit her to enjoy this, aren’t you, Colonel?”

“Yes, I am.”

“Because pleasure can be torture also. Millie remembers who she once was, the life she led, the mistakes she made that brought her here. Right at this moment, none of that matters because she is overcome by her animal urges but, as soon as Rufus is done with her, all of those thoughts will come flooding back into her mind along with the memories of what she just did. The shame of it all will be unbearable, as will the shame of the next time when she willingly submits to Rufus’ demands tomorrow. And the next day. And the next day. And so on. Pleasure is a very important tool when wielded correctly. AH! I think Rufus is almost finished. This will be fun!”

With one last, loud bellow, the bull drives forward and then stays there for several seconds, Millie’s eyes glaze over in … satisfaction? He then dismounts, pulling out his astonishingly large cock. A gush of his semen flows from Millie’s vagina. I hear an unusually loud buzzing sound and then at least a dozen enormous flies zoom past me and land on Millie’s rump, where they appear to be eating the discharged semen.

“What the hell are those things?! They’re as big as the palm of my hand. They look like … flies of some kind.”

“You are correct, Colonel. Millie had people around her all the time in her prior life so I thought it unfair to leave her alone in her new life. She has all her old friends and comrades to keep her company. They can clean up after her sessions with Rufus, eat her shit and occasionally suck her blood. Just like the old days.”

“You mean that those things were once MEN?!”

“Certainly. If you could safely catch one, I’m sure you would recognize him.”

The thought is so nauseating that I can barely keep from vomiting. Just then, one of the bugs flies slowly past my face, pausing for a second or two. She’s right, I do recognize him. It’s Bickle Rholls, a man I interrogated four times. That pushed me over the edge.

“Oh My! How unfortunate, Colonel. Luckily, Millie’s little friends will eat practically anything so they should have that cleaned up in a moment.”

That image almost causes me to puke a second time. “I’m sorry your Majesty. It must have been something I ate for breakfast. I-I have to ask. Those flies. Do they …”

“Oh yes, just like my lovely Millie. They remember all of it, including Millie’s role in their ruined lives. I expect that they bite particularly hard when they need her blood.”

“How long will they all …”

“As long as I wish, Colonel. As long as I wish. I did not call you out here simply to show off my handiwork. I wanted to speak with you where I was certain we would not be overheard … at least by creatures capable of repeating what they might hear. I noticed you have increased the security around me despite my assurances that I do not need it.”

“Yes, Ma’am, you’re correct. I can’t take any chances with your safety.”

“I must assume some guilt in creating this sense of over vigilance therefore, I will not punish you. Yet. But I will explain something that will, hopefully, solve the problem. Can you keep a secret, Colonel Willis?”

“Your secret? Without question! I would die first.”

“I do believe you would. Excellent. The reason I do not fear this young witch is that it is impossible for her to kill me just as it is likely impossible for me to kill her.”

“I don’t understand.”

“Witches as advanced as we are rarely do battle with one another. When we do, the magic moves between the two witches, with one growing stronger and the other weaker but as soon as the stronger witch attacks, the weaker one grows stronger from the magic used to attack her. There is always a balance of power. No matter how weak one of us becomes, a killing strike from the other will make her stronger.”

“Then how does one of you win?”

“It is a test of wills, one of the witches can break the will of the other, forcing the other to quit. These battles can take days, even weeks, eventually, one of them quits, surrendering. The other is the winner. I have never lost, Colonel Willis, and never will. I want this contest to occur. I need to win. She is a mere inexperienced child, there is no chance she can defeat me. All your extra security may frighten her off.”

“My Queen, are you saying you are immortal, that you cannot die?”

“That would be wonderful but it is not true. Everyone, even witches, eventually dies but the inevitable can be put off for a very long time. I can say that magic will never kill me, so this upstart witch will never kill me. She is an asset to be exploited, not a threat to be feared.”

“This balance of power you talked about. You can never get so weak that you could die?”

“No, it is not possible.”

“How about too much power? Could you explode or something?”

“What a colorful thought! No witch has ever tried to absorb all the power. It is a foolish thing to attempt. You can be certain I never will.

“Are you ordering me to drop all protection for you?”

“No, Colonel. I just want your normal level of efficient security. Extra security may scare her off but no security would create suspicions.”

“Now that I understand, my Liege, I will obey with pleasure. Is there anything else you wish me to do?”

“Not at this time. Just continue as before.”

“If I am not being impertinent, how do you kill a high level witch?”

She smiles, making me feel blessed. “That is impertinent but I will forgive your curiosity. I also will not answer that question. I may trust you a great deal, Colonel, but I do not trust anyone that much.”

* * * *** * * * *** * * *

“Somebody could have said something! Presence. What the HELL is PRESENCE?! That shit Beckwith knew and she didn’t say squat! Just sat there, let me go through the whole damn charade and then shot me down. She just loved that! She’s been giving me nothing but trouble from God Damn day ONE! Jealous Bitch!”

“Please calm down, Alexia.”

“CALM DOWN?! A major part of this plan is that I get in the Palace and disable the Winthrop guards. If I don’t do that, those poor bastards will fight to the death to protect Opulessa. To the death, Johnathyn. They’ll die. Some of our people will die. YOU could die!”

“I accepted that as a possibility a long time ago, Alexia.”

“Oh no you don’t! You don’t get to die and leave me alone to take care of Leeanna. That’s not going to happen. Just forget it right now, buster!”

“Uhhh … then I will not die.”

“You bet your sweet ass you won’t die. There’s got to be another way to take them out without hurting them.”

“Then let us think about it.”

We did. The rest of the day and far into the night. Nothing else works as well as the original plan. Not even close.

I look over at Johnathyn, sitting on a wooden box next to me in the wagon. Maybe we could save the original plan. It’s not like I hadn’t thought about it. We’ve been sleeping together in the same place for months. Ever since that night at the Miryian Waters, he’s crept into my dreams. We’ve done some pretty wild stuff in my dreams. Plus, I’ve seen how he’s looked at me sometimes. We’ve gotten really good at the ‘husband and wife’ routine. I’m almost comfortable with it. And Leeanna treats us both as her parents, even trying to play one off the other, the little schemer. I put a stop to that right quick. When you think about it, we’ve done damn near everything a married couple does except the sex.

It’s not like I’m some shy, virginal bride. Technically, yes, I’m a virgin, that’s our problem, but I’m not really a virgin. I’ve been with lots of women. Lots. I’ve had more than a few hookups in my day. Strictly recreational sex. It doesn’t have to mean anything. We just do it, get it over with, I get my “presence” and we’re back on track. No big deal.

Right? Yeah, sure, except this time, I’m the one getting fucked. I know how big he is. What’s that old saying? Oh yeah. “Close your eyes and think of England.” Do your duty. People have done worse for a good cause.

Oh God … here I go.

“Johnathyn?”

“Yes?”

“This whole thing is important. Beating Opulessa, bringing a whole new, better world for Leeanna and girls like her. It’s important, right?”

“Yes, it is.”

“A lot of people have sacrificed a lot. Dierdra, Steinvild, Emlilly, Olga, Pamela, Silva, all the girls.”

“Beckwith?”

“Yes, even Beckwith. My point is a lot of people have so much invested in this revolution. People have died to get us to this point in time. We’re almost ready to take control. There is so much at stake. It’s not asking too much for us to …”

“To what?”

“To … you know.”

“I am uncertain.”

“Geez, you’re not making this easy. What Dierdra was talking about.”

“Dierdra said many things.”

He’s gonna make me say it. “Sex, Johnathyn. Losing my virginity. Obtaining my ‘presence’. Saving the original plan.”

“If I remember the conversation correctly, it was pure speculation that having sex would be the cause for you to develop a ‘presence.’”

“Yeah, there are no guarantees but it was their best guess and they have way more experience in this area than you and I do.”

“Agreed. Do you wish for Beckwith to contact her cousin?”

“NO! Of course not!”

“I am glad to hear it. It would be a breech in security. What are you proposing?”

“I’m not proposing! Wait … oh, that’s not what you meant. No, I’m suggesting that you and I take care of the problem ourselves.”

“Would you not be better off with Beckwith’s cousin? At least he has some connection to our group instead of some total stranger.”

He’s intentionally doing this. “Listen carefully, Johnathyn. What I am suggesting is that you and I quietly slip away from the group, we have superficial sex, we return to the group, having solved my virginity problem.”

“Do you view your virginity as a ‘problem’?”

“For the moment it is, but it’s a problem with a quick solution.”

“And you are suggesting that I be that quick solution.”

“Well, when you put it that way, not exactly, but you and I together can make it happen. No big deal. A little horizontal bop and we’re done.”

“You make it sound so appealing. How could I possibly say no?”

“Johnathyn, please don’t be that way. It’s necessary for the good of the cause.”

“If it is so necessary, I’ll find Beckwith.”

“NO! I don’t want her cousin! I want …”

He leaned in closer, looming over me. “What DO you want?”

“Why are you giving me so much grief over this? It’s no big deal.”

“If it is ‘no big deal’ as you say, why have we not been having sex these past months?”

“Well … it’s obvious! There’s Leeanna. And Dierdra. And the revolution. Revolutions just don’t happen by themselves, you know. You gotta work at it. We’ve just been busy.”

“There have been many opportunities. Many opportunities. We have both turned down offers to care for Leeanna to give us time alone. You made your feelings on the subject quite clear.”

“Don’t give me that! You agreed too.”

“Out of necessity. I would not pressure you into anything.”

“Well, I’ve – I’ve changed my mind.”

“Because of the revolution? That is just another form of pressure. No thank you. Not interested.” Johnathyn spun on the box, turning his back towards me.

“Johnathyn! Please don’t make me beg!”

“You would never beg and I would never give in. They are our complimentary natures. That is why we get along so well.”

“We get along so well but you won’t do this for me, for us. For Leeanna.”

“Do not bring her into this!”

“Why not? You told me at the very start that you were doing this for her.”

“What would she think about us if she knew that we had loveless sex purely to benefit from it? What kind of moral example is that?”

“Loveless?! Are you saying that you don’t …”

“Be honest with yourself, ALEX!”

That hurt. Johnathyn calling me Alex hurt me, stunned me … then stunned me again that I was so upset and hurt in the first place. He simply called me by my real name but coming from him, it means so much more than that. I can feel tears starting to gather in my eyes. I haven’t cried in decades. I haven’t cried in this world. I didn’t cry at my mother’s and brother’s funeral. I honestly can’t remember the last time I cried. Johnathyn has turned his back to me again.

“You have no idea how hard it has been for me to see you every day, to be so close to you at night, to not be able to just reach out and touch you. I have only known you as a woman. A woman of great strength, great intelligence, great morality and, yes, great beauty. A beauty that is unsurpassed by any. I know in my head that five months ago you were a man but my heart says otherwise. What is ‘no big deal’ to you is much more than that to me. You could not possibly care for me as I do you or it would be a ‘big deal’. I do not blame you, Alexia. You were tricked into coming to my world and have stayed of your own free will to help us. You are the one who has suffered the most. I know that it is impossible for you to love a man, regardless of which world you live in. If we win, you will return to your world and we shall be parted forever. Again, I do not blame you, it is the correct thing to do, my head agrees but my heart. My heart …”

My vision grows fuzzy and unfocused due to the gathering tears. I’m not this strong, perfect icon that Johnathyn describes. I think I see his head drop down but I should be the one hanging my head. I came and stayed for vengeance. Pure and simple. Changing this world didn’t come up until way later. I’m not brave, I’m not a genius. I’ve got the survival instincts of a New York rat! I’ve been getting by on guts, bravado and luck but I’m tapped out. No more. A few tears trickle down my cheeks. I brush them away, along with the next few more tears but it’s a waste of time as they start to fall in torrents.

“Johnathyn … I’m so sorry … I can’t do this … anymore,” I gasp between sobs. “I … can’t do … this … alone. I’m sorry … about … everything … let you all … down … Sorry …”

I can’t see anything through the tears but I can feel Johnathyn wrap me in his strong arms, holding me gently against his broad chest. My arms slide up and I grab him round his thick, muscular neck, hanging on for dear life itself, still crying buckets.

“Alexia , please, you are not alone,” he whispers into my ear. “You will never be alone as long as I have breath.” He softly kisses my forehead. I don’t deserve him. He thinks I’m this great, wonderful person, but I’m not. I am a fraud.

“Johnathyn. No. I’m not what … you think. I’m a … not a … good person.”

“You are what everyman desires, Alexia.” His lips brush against my damp cheek, leaving a tingling sensation trailing behind.

I pull myself up so that I am nose to nose with him, our eyes inches apart. “You’re my strength, Johnathyn. You and Leeanna. Without the two of you, I’m … less. With you, I’m a better person than I’ve ever been before. I need you. I need and …” I stop.

I can feel his big hands slide down my back, cross at my waist, then slide apart again to cup my ass. “You need and … what?” he murmurs.

I’m no longer crying but my body’s trembling. Our mouths are so close; we’re breathing each other’s air. I inhale as he exhales. “I-I-need and … love you, Johnathyn. My Husband.”

We keep breathing in sync for several seconds, I start to get light headed. Johnathyn pulls me closer. “As I do you. Alexia … my Wife.”

Placing the palm of my right hand behind Johnathyn’s head, I pull it forward the last fractions of an inch until our lips lightly touch. It’s as if I’m experiencing kissing for the first time, completely different from my experience as a man. It’s both softer, more flexible but also more stimulating. We kiss harder, the passion building. Short, quick kisses mixed with longer, lingering kisses, tasting each other’s mouth. Johnathyn is silent, though I can hear him start to breathe harder, louder. I’m doing the same but sounds rise up from my throat, out of my control. “Mmhhmhhmm uuhmhhaaa.”

Johnathyn slips away from my lips, instantly moving slowly down my chin to my throat, kissing gently but insistently the whole way.

“Oohhmhhmmyyesss ohhhmmmyyyesssss,” I moan quietly, my fingers wrapped in his hair, pulling him tightly to the base of my neck as I lightly encourage him to move lower, to my chest … my tingling breasts. The top button of my blouse stops his progress, disappointing me, but only for a moment as he moves both hands to the task, rapidly unbuttoning the top … then second … the third … and finally the last button, exposing the chemise. He starts to dive back down to pick up where he left off but I carefully pull his head back up.

“Wait, Johnathyn.”

He looks confused. “Wait? Alexia, you have not changed your …”

I touch a finger to his lips. “Don’t worry. They’re all yours. Give me a sec to catch up.” I slide my arms from the blouse, tossing it aside. His eyes are burning a hole in the damp cloth clinging to my breasts. I give him what I hope is a sultry smile and feel myself up a bit before reaching down to grab the hem of the chemise and slowly, sensuously pulling it over my head, dropping it on the floor of our wagon.

Johnathyn smiles broadly, reaching for my exposed boobs but I stop him again. “Not yet, Tiger. Were not equal yet.” I push myself up and forward, attacking his mouth with mine. French kissing with aggressive vigor. He doesn’t react right away but joins in on the fun within a couple of seconds. As we tongue wrestle for dominance, I quickly unbutton his shirt, push it up over his shoulders and pull it down, momentarily trapping his arms down around his waist. I pull back sharply, leaving him in mid pucker, then slowly run my hands across his broad shoulders, down his bulging biceps, over his muscled chest, finally stopping at his fully erect nipples, which I gently pinch and pull.

Johnathyn inhales sharply. “Alexia,” he hoarsely gasps, “what are you doing?”

I slide back up to his mouth and sweetly kiss him while still playing with both his nipples, then I repeat what he did, kissing down the chin, down the neck to the base but I continue on to the chest and eventually to his nipples, which I suck and nip in turn until I force a groan of pleasure mixed with lust from Johnathyn.

“I have never … no one had … Leeantha never …”

“Not a good thing to talk about your first wife when having sex with the second wife, Johnathyn.”

“I apologize … oooohhh, Alexia.”

I’d gone back to working on his nipples as he was apologizing, just to show we’re cool but now it’s time to get serious. I step back while reaching down to unbutton the waist of my skirt, then hook both thumbs over the waistband and push down, wriggling my hips free of my skirt, petticoat and underwear, pushing them all the way to the floor of the wagon before stepping out of the pile of clothes. Johnathyn moves towards me.

“One last thing, Johnathyn.”

“Alexia …”

“Hold on, Tiger. If we’re doing this, It’s gonna be on a soft bed not a wooden floor. Splinters in my ass are not sexy.”

I walk over to our pile of bedding and bend over, giving Johnathyn a good view of my naked bottom while gathering several quilts. I quickly lay them out in an open area and add several pillows, finally, I slowly settle down, resting on my back with pillows behind my head and the quilts bunched around me. It’s soft and warm … and I’m hot and ready.

“Now, Johnathyn,” I purr.

He reaches for his belt. “Are you certain? Nothing else?”

I wriggle deeper into the quilts and spread my legs ever so slightly. “Not a single thing … well, just you and your big friend.” He loosens his belt and unbuttons the fly, spreading the top of his pants so that they drop freely to the ground.

He’s not wearing underwear.

It’s just as big as I remember from the Miryian Waters. Just as big and beautiful. He drops to his knees as I spread my legs wider. He runs his hands up my legs to my thighs as he walks forward on his knees, settling them around my waist. His fully engorged dick is bobbing and swaying just inches from my increasingly wet pussy. He just stays there, smiling down at me.

“What are you waiting for?” I ask.

“You had your fun. I must have mine.”

“MY fun? You didn’t enjoy that? Because I swear that I heard …”

“You did. And you will again.” He falls forward, landing on his forearms on either side of me, his head level with mine. “We will when you are ready.”

“I’m ready now.”

“Convince me.”

“What do you mean?”

“I think you’ll catch on.”

He drops his mouth down to mine and we start kissing again but he soon slips back to my neck and down to my breasts.

It was worth the wait.

“Jeez, Tiger … awww God!”

His big hands and my big boobs are a perfect match. You’d think a guy who pounds iron for a living would have a pretty heavy touch but Johnathyn is tender, gentle but playful, licking, nipping, sucking and massaging with intensity. The sensations go up my spine to my brain and down to my crotch. After a few minutes of this, I can’t imagine being more ready.

“This is fun, Johnathyn but I’m ready for the main event.”

“Not yet.”

He reaches down with his right hand and starts to feel me up, sticking his index finger into and up my pussy while diddling my clit with his other fingers. He works his finger slowly in and out, gradually getting faster and adding fingers. By the time he works up to three fingers, I’m nearly delirious. I reluctantly reach down and stop his hand with mine.

“Why are you doing this, Johnathyn?”

“I do not wish to force myself upon you. Only if you want me.”

“Do you want me to beg?”

“No, you would not if I demanded it. Though it does make a man feel desired.”

I take the hand that he had been probing my pussy with, pull it to my mouth and suck on his fingers, licking my juices off it until it is clean.

“Johnathyn, I don’t know of any other way to prove it to you. I want you to take me as a Husband takes his Wife, not because it is our duty, not because we owe anyone anything but because I love you. If you love me, take me now.”

He slides up between my spread legs, guiding his hard dick with his right hand until the mushroom shaped head is nestled in the folds of my pussy.

“Always remember this, Alexia. I do love you and take you as my Wife. For now and forever.”

He pushes forward with his hips and I feel his wonderful cock slide in and up my wet vagina … and up … and up … and up until his balls make contact. He’s all in. It didn’t hurt at all. We just fit together, like a lock and key. I reach around his back with both hands, pulling him down on top of me, mashing my breasts into his chest as I bring my head next to his.

“Now and forever,” I whisper into his ear. Then we kiss as he begins to fuck me, moving in and out, driving with his hips. I always loved it when the woman I was fucking would show she was into it, not just leaving all the work to me. I wrap my legs around Johnathyn’s, pulling in rhythm with him.

I can feel the tension building, my muscles tensing, like a big spring in me getting tighter and tighter. I’m getting close to an orgasm but I’m not there yet. If only he would …

Harder … harder … just a little … aaahhh yeah, like that … oh that’s good! Just keep … yeeaaahhh! Oh Tiger … perfect. So good, so good, so nice, sooo gooood, ggooooodd , ooohhhhh GOD!

I actually see stars. My eyes are closed but lights swirl. My arms close tightly around his chest, my nails digging into his back as my body is wracked with muscle spasms. So different. So different. So good. Ooohhh, so good.

My grip on Johnathyn weakens, slowly falling back onto the quilts. Johnathyn goes up onto his knees, moving his hands to my hips, holding me in place as he keeps pounding away. Oh yeah … oh oh oh ohh yeaahh. Just like that you fucking stud!

He suddenly stops, pulling me tight to him as he pushes as deeply as he can. Then I feel his cock start to pulse, then spray his spunk into me. So different than being a guy. So erotic, so … sexy. He grunts a couple of times, the muscles in his arms bulging, trembling slightly, then he relaxes with a loud sigh, falling towards me but catches himself with one arm, rolling toward my right side, his rigid cock still lodged deep within me.

“I could hear you!” he gasps. “In my mind, I could actually hear you.”

What is he talking about? I’m still a little dazed and goofy from the experience. “Is that the presence thing they were talking about?”

Johnathyn settles in next to me, pulling some of the quilt over both of us.

“I do not know, having never met Opulessa before. It did help me know if I was satisfying you.” I turn my head towards him. He smiles shyly and taps his forehead. “You were very loud. Up here.”

Snaking my left arm up around his neck, I draw his unresisting head down to mine and we deeply kiss.

“What do you expect, you big Rogue? You really know how to treat a woman.”

“I do not. Leeantha and I often had problems. With you telling me, it was much easier.”

“What did I say about mentioning your first Wife?”

“I’m sorry but there was no other way to bring it up.”

He shifts his hips and his softening dick finally slips out of me. “Speaking of ‘up’, I think I can do a little something …” I wiggle the index finger of my right hand. “…and we can get right back in the saddle.”

Johnathyn grabs my right hand. “No. No magic. Not between us.”

“Why not? It’s no different than Viagra. You just have to know which buttons to push.”

“No Alexia. With magic, we would never know what is real. I need to feel I am on solid ground. I know who I love and why I love her. Magic can only harm that.”

“It could be fun.”

“Perhaps, but I will always try to make it fun for both of us.”

“What about this ‘presence’ thing? Isn’t that magic?”

“I don’t know. From what Dierdra and the others said, it seems now to be a part of you after we …”

“Fucked ourselves silly?”

“Not how I would have said it but I won’t argue the point with you.”

“No, you won’t, not with that big, shit eating grin you’re wearing. Supposedly I can control it, turning it on and off. We’ll see.”

“I won’t always need your guidance. Once I know your preferences, I will be mindful.”

“Same here. Let me show you something one of my old girlfriends used to do that I really liked.”

“What was it that you said about speaking of past relationships?”

“My situation is a little unique, don’t you think?”

“Yes, but … what are you …”

I push him over onto his back and quickly straddle his waist, keeping my hands on his chest.

“Be quiet. It’s my turn. Lean up.” I grab a pillow, reach around behind his head and stuff it behind his upper back. “That’s better. Now you make sure to let me know if any of this hurts.”

“I truly doubt that you could actually harm me by … OOWWW!”

I slide down his body just far enough to trap his dick between his pelvis and mine then I slide forward, dragging the lips of my pussy the length of his still sensitive dick. She often did this right after we had a knock out session of sex. My dick would get hard in minutes.

Though I was eighteen at the time and was sporting an erection or at least semi-hard most of the time.

Gina would slowly rock back and forth, masturbating me with the folds of her pussy, gradually getting faster while I worked over her boobs with my free hands. After several cycles with my hips, I finally get the hang of it. It’s tougher than I thought but Johnathyn’s groans tell me I’m on the right track. Pretty soon, I can feel him getting harder … and bigger.

“AAAhhh, there you are, Tiger! Now we’re in for some fun.”

“What is this ‘tiger’ thing you call me? At first, I thought yooouu, ohh myyyy … were calling ‘Tyber’ but now I can hear clearly.”

I keep up the pace on his cock. “Really? Was your attention elsewhere earlier?”

“Yes, I believe so.”

“Give me your hands.”

He lifts them towards me. I take each of his in one of mine and guide them to my dangling boobs. I hadn’t realized how responsive they were. His touch stops me for a few seconds, but I’m quickly back to work. His actions on my boobs tells if he’s enjoying himself.

Pretty sure he is. I sure as hell am. Time to up the ante.

His dick is nearly back to its original length and rigidity so I pause just long enough to guide its head with my hand to the opening of my vagina and slip it inside, then slide its entire delicious length in me.

Indescribable!

Johnathyn says nothing but groans and squeezes both my boobs with his large hands, adding to my pleasurable sensations. I return to rocking back and forth but mix in some left to right, some sharp thrusts and the occasional series of bounces, his hands staying glued to my tits the entire time. I lean forward, letting my breasts swing near his face. He takes the invitation and brings first one, then the other to his mouth, sucking, licking and nipping at my bullet hard nipples as I continue to ride his cock.

Exquisite!

It’s my turn to ride him hard now, adjusting my legs so that I can rise up until his cock is just inside my pussy then I drive down, impaling myself time and again, faster and faster. He finally releases my boobs and grabs my hips, driving up as I push down.

I think the entire wagon is bouncing. I didn’t notice it the first time. My attention must have been elsewhere.

The tightening sensation from last time returns but this time I fight it, trying to hold off, make it last. I want Johnathyn to join me this time. From the sound of his breathing and the look on his face, he’s close. He’s staring up at me, teeth gritted. I look down, smile and bring my hands to my boobs, holding them tightly to my chest as I pinch the nipples. His eyes fly wide open as he shoots up into me. I let go as the first spurt of semen splashes deep inside me.

It’s better than the first time. Much better.

* * * *** * * * *** * * *

I gave myself to him. Completely, totally, without reservation.

At the Miryian Waters, we were just fooling around and I was the one in control. Ever since I came to this universe, I’ve kept everyone, including Johnathyn, at arms length. Except Leeanna.

All my life, I’ve kept people at arms length. Family, friends, girlfriends, customers. But now, with a sleeping Johnathyn laying next to me, his right arm holding me possessively against his body I can’t deny that I let him in. He took but I gave first. I couldn’t be happier.

Before, I always took. Certainly with girlfriends or casual hook-ups, I took. It was never rape or anything like that, always consensual, but I took. Even if she was on top, I took. But not this time. This time, I surrendered to him. I may have been on top sometimes but it was all about what he needed, what he wanted. Johnathyn was generous, more than generous with his attention to my desires but that was his choice, not mine. I was his to do with what he wanted. I opened up and let him past my defenses. The joy was incredible. The sex was too but it was more than simply sex. It was intimacy.

I know what the word means and I thought I had experienced it before, many times in fact, but I was wrong. So wrong.

I run my hand lightly across his slowly rising and falling chest, letting it rest over his beating heart. He fell asleep almost immediately after his last orgasm, just as I did so many times as a man but I’m too jazzed to sleep right now. Was it this way for all the women and girls I slept with? Maybe. I did get a few complaints about a lack of post sex cuddling but that’s not what I’m feeling now. I wouldn’t reject it but I don’t need it.

It’s like my senses are opened wider, more aware of what is happening around me, what people feel. Even asleep, I know Johnathyn loves me and I also know he knows that I love him. There’s a mix of emotions coming from the house. Fear, anger, jealousy, worry, contentment … I don’t know which from whom but they are there. I can feel them, like they are physical things, things to be adjusted, changed, and manipulated.

They had been wrong, at least partially. It wasn’t the sex, it was the intimacy. In my case, the sex led to intimacy, breaking down the walls I had built but there had been other times before now, with both Leeanna and Gallinda. The time I spent inside Leeanna was short but intense, very emotional. She felt me, felt my love for her, my presence. Gallinda was different. With her, it was the length of time, over 25 cycles while I kept her eyes clear. It was at a much lower intensity than it had been with Leeanna but for a much longer period of time. At the end, she knew me. In both cases, it was a form of shared intimacy. That is what a presence is, an ability to project your feelings about someone to them, to connect with them on a nonverbal level. What makes it so powerful is the possibility of controlling those feelings and thereby manipulating that person. Right now, all I can do is project but I can do that in spades.
CHAPTER TWENTY THREE

I am usually the first one up in the morning. My mother always used to wake me before dawn to start my jobs on the farm. I have not done farm work for decades but old habits die hard.

I throw some logs into the kitchen stove and fan the embers from yesterday until the wood catches fire. By the time the others stumble in, it will be hot and ready for breakfast. Originally, we all prepared our own meals but Alexia insisted we start having communal meals, claiming it would help develop something she called “team spirit”. What ever that is. She also spoke of some activity she called “football” but the rules were too complex to comprehend and the level of violence very high. Fixing meals together was infinitely preferable.

Regardless, there did seem to be an increase in the sense of cooperation and shared objectives since we first joined forces, which is no small thing. Our existence as witches has been a solitary one up until now. Certainly we all knew about other witches, some even communicated, but there was safety in solitude. Everyone has taken a large risk simply by showing up together in one place. The concentration of magic could be noticed by someone with the right heritage. Like the Queen. Add Alexia to the group and it is no small miracle that we have not been detected yet. From here on out, the risks only get larger.

Or at least it seemed that way. After last night, I just don’t know.

Alexia insists that this be done with the minimum number of people getting hurt, let alone dying. She doesn’t ignore the possibility of physical injury but she refuses to accept any option where the possibility is high. No matter how hard I and the others try to explain that people die in revolutions, she says she knows that but not this time. “Not on her watch” she repeats. Killing those two guards affected her more than any of us can appreciate. None of us have ever killed anyone either, so we are at a loss on how to approach her.

Other than Beckwith, of course. She says we should do what we want and Alexia can either join us or step aside. Bold but impractical, particularly coming from the witch who is the farthest in the group from being a “team player”.

We had the bones of a good plan that simply needed fleshing out until Alexia’s inability to mimic Opulessa thwarted it. I knew from the beginning it would be difficult but hadn’t realized how completely inadequate Alexia would be. She made as good an attempt as any of us could but facts are facts. It was like looking at a perfect statue of a person. It could fool you only for a moment or two. After that ….

What made the entire thing worse was Beckwith’s gloating. She had opposed the plan from day one. She had opposed any plan except hers, which is basically to lay waste to the Palace with all our combined powers, including killing the Queen. What happens after that is unclear in her plan but I strongly suspect that Beckwith feels that she can become the first among equals after Alexia returns home.

Alexia seemed so defeated last night. Defeated and angry. An angry Alexia is dangerous to be around. Her head tells her to not injure people but her heart holds much emotion. Sometimes the heart wins out. I can remember that enormous tree being ripped from the ground, flying directly towards me, towards all of us. It was by sheer luck that I only broke a few bones. The others saw it too. We all respect Alexia, many admire her except for Beckwith. We all, including Beckwith, fear her. At least fear what she might do if pushed too far. I would have followed her and attempted to console her last night but thought the better of it. A little time to cool off would be best for all.

I don’t know why Johnathyn takes the risk of being so near her. Well, actually I do. Most men would risk a lot to have a chance with a woman who looks like Alexia but most would also think twice if they knew that woman could decapitate them with a simple waive of her hand. Johnathyn not only knows, he saw it happen. Yet he remains near her. It is more than simple dedication to the cause. He loves her. We all can see it but Alexia doesn’t. Or she refuses to acknowledge it because she doesn’t want to deal with it. Or knows how to deal with it.

Beckwith walks into the kitchen, head high and a light step, moving with a purpose.

“Good morning, Dierdra.”

“Good morning to you, Beckwith. You’re up early.”

“We have much to do and not much time to do it. We need to start work on determining the weaknesses of the Palace defenders and the best way to force entry.”

“We could all fly over the wall. Oh, wait, you can’t do that, can you?”

“No,” she answers sullenly.

“Then I would not be so quick to throw out what we have agreed to already.”

“It is hopeless to think that this can be done bloodlessly, Denson. The original plan was hopeless, as is any plan that does not take the direct approach. We find the weakest point and attack it. Simple. Direct.”

“And wrong. Even if Alexia cannot fool the Winthrop Group’s guards, there are other options that can …” I notice a change in the feel of the room. It feels lighter, brighter, more like a spring morning. The air is fresher, the birds louder, I think I may actually smell flowers. Beckwith notices it also.

“What is this?” she asks, looking about the kitchen.

“Good morning, Ladies!” exclaims Alexia. She pauses at the doorway, smiling as broadly as I can ever remember, her face so bright it is as if she actually lights the kitchen before her. “Isn’t this just the most beautiful morning you’ve ever seen?” She glides into the room, not waiting for either of us to answer her. Three plates fly off the plate rail on the West wall, landing softly and silently on the table before us. Three apples rise up out of a bowl near the window, smoothly cross the room and split up with each one hovering over a plate for a milicycle or two before falling onto the plate in sharp slices. Alexia daintily picks up a piece from the plate nearest her and takes several nibbles. “I’m so hungry, I could eat a horse. You don’t actually eat horses, do you? Because that’s just a saying on my world, though some cultures do eat horses. Personally, I can’t see it but to each his own, right? Guess it’s kinda don’t knock it until you try it, but still, it’s a horse.”

Beckwith and I look at each other before she says anything.

“What is going on?” she demands.

“Guess,” Alexia answers, still smiling.

“Is this some kind of …” she begins.

I interrupt her. “Where is Tyber?”

“That is a very astute and pertinent question, my dear Dierdra. He is still sleeping in the wagon. I thought it best not to wake him. We didn’t get a lot of sleep last night. He earned his rest.” Alexia leaned over and nudged Beckwith with her elbow twice. “He really did earn his rest.”

“And you?” I ask, already suspecting the answer.

“Full of energy and light as a feather. I think I could fly around the world a couple of times before breakfast, if I wasn’t so darn hungry. This world could really use an all you can eat brunch. With Mimosas. There is this place, lower East side of Manhattan. We called it the ‘Hungry Heifer’, don’t remember its real name. Doesn’t matter. Tommy, Frank and I would go in on a Sunday morning after being out all night Saturday and just shut the place down. The beauty was they had to go to work bright and early Monday morning but I could crash and recover. Whatever. There was this …”

“Has she been drinking Klatch?” asks Beckwith.

“No,” I answer. “Alexia and Tyber had relations last night. This is her Presence we are feeling.”

“Damn straight!” Alexia declares. “We screwed like a couple of rabbits until Johnathyn needed a break. Honestly, I didn’t mind taking five myself, what with daylight coming and all. Though, now I’m having second thoughts about it. The break that is. Not the screwing.”

“HER Presence?” Beckwith asks, suspicion clear in her voice.

“Yeah, MY Presence. Tell Opulessa to put that in her pipe and smoke it.”

“You still won’t fool anyone. This is … completely different compared to the Queen!”

Beckwith tries to sound certain of herself but I catch the echo of doubt in her words.

“They are not that different and the differences are in our favor,” I say. “We need only fool them for a brief time. Alexia can be a more appealing Opulessa than Opulessa herself. No one will question it.”

“Why would they not? We cannot rely on this deceit to succeed. The only reasonable course is to …”

Alexia reaches out, lightly touching Beckwith on the shoulder, the feeling of the room turning slightly darker, colder, sharper.

“My dearest Beckwith. We have done what needed to be done. Johnathyn and I should probably thank you for that final push. We’re no longer arguing the point. When everyone comes in for breakfast, there’s going to be a vote. Those who support Dierdra and I will stay and we’ll take our shot our way. Those that support you and your plan can leave and take your shot if we fail. That’s the way it’s going to be. I suspect that, since your plan requires the combined power of all of us to attack Opulessa, the fact that at least Dierdra and I refuse to go that way pretty much dooms your plan, so it’ll come down to our plan or nothing. That’s your choice. You’re either in or you’re out.” I swear that the temperature in the room becomes much colder as Alexia draws Beckwith closer. “So, what’s it gonna be my dear … friend?”

* * * *** * * * *** * * *

“Nothing?! Absolutely NOTHING?!”

“Unfortunately, Mr. White, that is true but only temporary. I am certain that my men will find the witch, sooner or later.”

Be diplomatic. Always diplomatic. “First Minister. I would be the last person to question the capabilities of your security forces but someone with this woman’s abilities could be beyond the scope of their training.”

“These are the best men in my country, Mr. White. The Queen may demand that Colonel Willis and his people provide all security within the walls of the Palace but the world outside these walls is a completely different place. They have no experience in dealing with the common men of this world. They may be able to offer their advice but only my
men know how to, as you say, get the job done.”

What I would like to tell this windbag and what I will tell him are two different things. Probably why my predecessor developed ulcers. “I understand completely, First Minister. Very valid points. Colonel Willis has his hands full with Palace security, though you must admit that his specialists were very helpful in getting information from your recent group of prisoners.”

“I heard what they did. Is that the only use for … what was it called?”

“I believe you are referring to electricity. No, there are many uses for electricity but interrogation is one of the better ones. My point is that Colonel Willis has resources not available to you or your men. In addition, the witch was recruited from my world. Colonel Willis may have a better understanding of how she thinks.”

“She is working with people from my world.”

“As will Colonel Willis. A group effort that benefits us all.”

Dupree leans back in his chair, elbows on the armrests, his fingers steepled. He looks at me over the tips of those fingers.

“There are those among us who feel that we already cede too much control to your world, Mr. White, that you ignore our time honored ways and traditions, that your mere presence, let alone authority, on our world is corrupting our society in ways both large and small.”

I can hear past the words to the high pitched sound of someone sliding stone against metal, sharpening the blade of the knife so that he might cut himself a bigger slice of the pie.

“Surely you are not of that opinion, First Minister. Both you and your entire council have benefited both directly and indirectly from the Consortium’s generosity in the past. There is no reason you all won’t continue to do so for the foreseeable future. Unless there is some change in the status quo.”

“What is a ‘status quo’?”

“My apologies, First Minister. Our languages are so similar that I often forget the few differences. Status quo means the existing state of things, the current situation, the way things are right now.”

“The unrocked boat.”

“Exactly, First Minister! The unrocked boat! If the passengers rock the boat too much, it will overturn, throwing them into the water where they all drown. A very undesirable result.”

“Not all passengers may fall into the water. Some may keep hold of the boat. Some may be able to swim and not drown. Not all the passengers may die, Mr. White.”

“Quite true, First Minister, but all would be better off if they were still safe and warm in the boat.”

“It depends on where the boat is heading, Mr. White.”

“You could be right about that, First Minister. Some might be better off waiting for another boat to come by.”

“What if there is only one boat on which to buy passage?”

“There is always another boat, First Minister, for those with enough money. Even if they have to build that boat themselves.”

Dupree blanches slightly. “That – that seems like a lot of bother, Mr. White, when there is a perfectly good boat available.”

I spread my hands and smile. “My original point exactly, First Minister Dupree! The Consortium supports the status quo and catching this witch as quickly as possible helps preserve it. My employers detest surprises and wish nothing more than to return to those simple days of prior years before all this revolution nonsense reared its ugly head. Then I can count on you being receptive to Colonel Willis and his people assisting your excellent security forces in their hunt for the rogue witch?”

Dupree looks away and sighs lightly, broken but only for the moment. Eventually he’ll be back, demanding more money, more resources, more help, more of everything but not today. Today, I win. He glances back towards me.

“Certainly, Mr. White. My men will be happy to accept any useful advice Colonel Willis has to offer.”

Good enough for now, though there is one other thing.

“Happy to hear it, First Minister. We’ve made good progress today. I’m certain that you’ll get this witch problem wrapped up in no time at all. I did have one question though. Maybe it’s more of a clarification, just to make sure we’re not having one of those pesky communication problems. When you talk about your ‘men’ doing this or that in trying to locate the rogue witch, is it just ‘men’ in these groups or are women also involved in the investigations?”

“Women? In the security forces? Are you mad, White?”

“I see. So how do you investigate women’s involvement with the rebels? Undercover agents? Spies? Informants?”

“WE do not bother ourselves with the thoughts of women in this area. Revolution and revolt do not concern them. They have houses and children and husbands to care for. There is no time for frivolities. They do not have the mental capacity to even consider such things.”

Does he remember who he’s talking to? Which sex I am? Who he’s pursuing?”

“Excuse me, First Minister, the witch is a woman.”

“Yes, but she was first a man and she disappeared with another man, Miran Pegues. We assume that it is actually Pegues who is the leader here. Find Pegues, we find the witch. Pegues is a very clever fellow.”

“Do your men actually interrogate women as part of this search for Pegues?”

“No. What would women know about such things?”

The buffoon. “I wouldn’t know, First Minister. It’s not an area of expertise for me. I know that you’re a busy man so I’ll leave you to your work.” I stand and pick up my coat. “I’ll stop by Colonel Willis’s office for a quick visit before catching the stage back to our compound.”

Dupree dismisses me with a wave of his hand. “Do as you wish, Mr. White.”

I bow slightly. “Thank you First Minister. I’ll do just that.” As I leave, Dupree’s secretary, Dilgar Rachet, enters the room with a handful of papers. It only takes me a few minutes to reach Willis’s office. He’s in because I can smell the stench of one of his cigars. I rush past his aide who does nothing to stop me from entering Willis’s office.
.
“Thomas, I need to speak with you.” I push his door shut behind me, latching it. “Privately.”

He takes a final drag on the stub of a stogie clenched between his teeth, removes it from his mouth, stubbing it out in an almost full ashtray sitting on the corner of his desk.

“What about, Don?”

“I’ve convinced Dupree to use you and your people more in the search for Alex Thompson. I think you’ll want to concentrate on questioning women. That moron Dupree acts like they don’t have a conspiratorial brain cell in their heads. Both you and I know better.”

Willis opens a desk drawer, pulls out another cigar, unwraps it, bites off the end, which he spits into a trash can next to the desk with practiced expertise. After lighting it, he takes a long pull and blows the smoke towards the ceiling.

“I don’t think we need to worry about that, Don. The Queen’s got it all covered.”

“The Queen? What the hell is she doing about it?”

“I can’t say. Sorry, but you don’t have to lean on Dupree about it.”

“Look Willis, you work for me. More exactly, you work for the Winthrop Group and the Consortium has hired them for this job. I represent the Consortium; ergo you do what I tell you. You don’t have any secrets from me, at least not business related, so what the hell is going on?”

He sends another long stream of smoke floating towards the ceiling. “My job description gives me the authority to do what I feel needs to be done to accomplish the objectives. You set the objectives but I determine what my men do to get there. If that means I don’t tell you certain things, so be it. You don’t like that, take it up with corporate.”

“Tom … you haven’t been drinking the Kool Aid, have you? Gone a little native? Because, if you have, I’ll have your ass rotated out of here so fast your new dick won’t know what hit it.”

“Big talk from a pencil pusher. It’s me and my boys who keep the peace around here, peace that keeps all those EPA exempt mines running 24/7 … or should I say 20/7? Either way, I think you’re a lot more replaceable than I am.”

“Neither of us is staying here, Willis. We all go home eventually.”

“We’ll see about that. For now, all you need to know is that the Queen’s got this handled and, if we leave her alone to do it her way, you’ll soon be back making money hand over fist with nothin’ to worry about. If you want to confirm that, I’ll take you up to see her myself.”

No thank you very much. That woman gives me the willies, big time. It’s the way she looks at me, like I’m here strictly for her amusement. I know she dotes on Willis and his people, exactly why I couldn’t say. She knows we were all women back on the other side, which makes us all pretty exotic creatures on this side. Dupree still isn’t exactly comfortable dealing with me but we manage to make it work.

Most of the time.

Unfortunately, Willis has me over a bit of a barrel. There’s only two other Consortium reps on this side and they’re both at the mines. Everyone else stationed at the compound are Winthrop people, commanded by Willis. From what I can tell, they’re all very loyal to him. There’s a damn good chance that if I tried to get a message to headquarters about him, the message would never get sent. I don’t have a way to get to the communications room and send a message on my own, assuming I could figure out how to do it. I’m pretty much at his mercy until the next regular report is due, almost a week from today. That report is encrypted so it should get through without hindrance. In addition, I’d have to have a hell of a lot more than just suspicion in order to get Willis prematurely rotated home. I may not be able to tell him how to do it but I can give him a new objective.

“Your people are still going on patrol with the local security forces, is that right, Willis?”

“Yeah, what about it?”

“Then here’s a new assignment for your men. I want them to start talking with the local women.”

He gives me a leering smile. “They already do that, White. Sometimes they do a hell of a lot more than talk.”

“That’s not what I mean, Colonel. I’ve discovered that First Minister Dupree doesn’t feel the female sex is worthy of being interrogated concerning our rebel problems. He thinks they’re too simple, too stupid to be of any value. Both you and I know otherwise. I am officially directing your troops to interrogate any suspicious women they encounter while assisting the local security forces and that they are to submit written reports to me outlining the results of these interrogations. This policy begins immediately!”

Willis gives me a sloppy salute while seated in his chair. “Sure thing, Mr. White. I’ll tell them to get right on it.”

“You do that, Colonel. I’m serious about this. I suspect we have a rebellion led by a woman against a woman that you seem to have a great deal of respect for. You can’t tell me that other women can’t be involved or know something. And no matter what the Queen has told you, we both know you’re smart enough to recognize that having more good information is better than having less. Am I right about that?”

He stares at me for a few seconds, chewing on that damn cigar, then pulls it from his mouth. “Yeah, you’re right. I’ll tell my people to be on the alert.”

“Thank you, Colonel Willis. I appreciate your cooperation as do my superiors. Let’s hope this problem is resolved as quickly as possible.”

As I leave his office, I can’t shake the feeling that we are headed for some kind of catastrophic confrontation before this is done.

* * * **** * * * *** * * *

I brought everyone together for a brainstorming session. We have most everything worked out but I want it all reviewed one last time to look for kinks or problems. Beckwith has been mostly quiet the entire meeting. Usually she’s full of objections and reasons why this or that won’t work but she’s actually trying to sell everyone on a direct attack. Since the vote last morning, she’s pretty much shut up, though I can tell it’s killing her.

Good.

I start to run through my checklist.

“We’ve got the timeline worked out. Johnathyn and I go in first and take care of the Winthrop guards. We continue into the Palace and I drop in on the Queen in the courtyard. While we fight, the rest of you take care of your jobs. Dierdra coordinates and helps with the medical. Silva, Pamela and Olga are the rest of the medical. Sarah, Bellah, Correia and Leila are on the weather team. Beckwith, Britanna, Steinvild and Emlilly are security. When the fight starts, there should be plenty of magic to go around, what with two Seventy Seven witches in the house plus the twelve of you. Don’t spare any of that juice, go at it as hard as you can. I need that cold front brought down from the North and Opulessa should be hard pressed to keep the warm front in place because I plan on drawing all her attention. We don’t know all of the things that she keeps going with her magic but they should all start to fail as she concentrates more of her power on me and less on everything else. Be prepared for some surprises but do your jobs, ladies.”

All their eyes are glued to me so I continue.

“I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. I don’t want anyone to die. This is my bottom line. That means Security has a tougher job but it will make the chance of long term success better. It also means that Medical keeps any injured people alive until I can get to them. If you guys can fix them, all the better but I’ll get there as soon as I take care of the Queen. If one area is going well and you’ve got extra help, switch to what ever area needs help. That’ll be Dierdra’s call.”

She nods her head, smiling at me. I give her a thumbs up.

“Leila is in charge of Weather and Beckwith has Security but Dierdra has Medical and also overall mission control. Whatever she says goes. There won’t be a lot of time for discussion so she’s in charge. If it all goes to hell, she decides on when you pull out. If she says ‘Bug Out’, you all take to the air and get the hell out of Dodge. We’ll try to rendezvous back here but don’t take direct routes. Scout the place out before landing. The main thing is, don’t come looking for me. If this fails, take care of yourselves. Most of you have families who need you alive and free. I don’t.”

Several of the girls look over at Johnathyn but he doesn’t react. We’ve talked about this. He understands why I’m saying this and he agrees. Beckwith slowly stands up. Oh. Crap.

“It would be good if we could do something to get as many of the outside guards in one place. They would be easier to control.”

“You mean, like a diversion?”

“What ever you wish to call it.”

“That’s not a bad idea. It could draw both guards outside the Palace and people in the Palace away from the courtyard, fewer people around when Opulessa and I throw down, fewer people in the line of fire. What could we do? A fire?”

“No,” says Johnathyn, “it would take too long. You need something that declares itself immediately. An explosion.”

“Of what?” asks Dierdra.

“Gun powder?” he suggests.

“We want a diversion, not a disaster,” I say.

“Agreed,” adds Beckwith. “Also, you know that the government strictly controls the sale of gun powder. How would we get enough?”

“Perhaps you could make it?” he says.

“How would we do that?” she asks.

He wiggles his fingers. “Magic.”

“Not magic, at least not directly,” I say. “And not gun powder either.” I pat my laptop, which is on the table in front of me. “I’ve got a PDF of ‘The Anarchist Cookbook’ on here. It’s full of recipes for all kinds of explosives made from common household items … well, common from where I come from. There’s one for diesel fuel and fertilizer. A substitute for diesel fuel can be made from the barrels of tar in the barn and we can make fertilizer from horse manure. Zaphod knows we’ve got enough of that around. The yield won’t be as good but that’s okay. We’re just trying to draw attention, not blow up a building. Problem is that we’ll need several barrels of the stuff to do any good. How do we get it there?”

“By horse and wagon,” says Johnathyn.

“Wait a minute. Do you mean our wagon?”

“Yes, Alexia, our horses and wagon.”

“Johnathyn, that’s our home! We’ve lived in that wagon almost our entire lives! Yes, I know, not your entire life and not mine either but, since I became … since I got here … since we started … it’s been our home, Johnathyn.”

“I understand, Alexia, I agree but, as you have said, if we succeed, you are returning to your world and if we do not succeed, the wagon is much too slow for us to use to flee. Either way, we are done with it. Besides, if you leave, I do not believe I could ever bring myself to use it again. It would be too painful.”

He’s right, of course. Why does he have to be so logical and right? Looking over at him, I can see this whole thing is killing him, though he’s putting up a brave face. What about Leeanna? This entire thing sucks!

“Alright, fine. We’ll do it your way but we can’t get too close to the Palace wall and people will have to be moved away before the blast.

Beckwith nods her head, a tight grin below bright eyes. “It will be done.” This is more like what she’s been after from day one. Maybe I should find out what pissed her off in the first place.

CHAPTER TWENTY FOUR

The farmhouse had a good larder so we found enough materials in the house, barn or root cellar to put together five barrels of the oil/fertilizer mix. We decided to add several barrels of flour to the load at Beckwith’s suggestion. It will make the wagon fuller, appearing less suspicious, and create a kind of smoke screen after the explosion, keeping the enemy confused. It had been several hours of magic driven chemistry and I was bushed. With the wagon a loaded bomb, Johnathyn and I were going to sleep in the main room of the house, which means we were just going to sleep tonight. Probably a good thing, because we hadn’t been doing a lot of actual sleeping lately. Dierdra had taken Leeanna overnight in her room the last couple of nights to give us some privacy, though I think most everyone was well aware of exactly what we were doing.

They are witches, after all.

From the looks we got in the mornings, it had been an education for some of them. Happy to be of service. Very happy.

We moved some of the furniture around and threw the bedding on the floor in front of the hearth. The stone was still warm from the day’s fire, the remains of which were smoldering before us, embers still glowing under a light dusting of ash which shifted gently as the wind blew outside. This would have been damn romantic under other circumstances.

It wasn’t long before Johnathyn was quietly snoring, his right arm draped over my shoulder. Unfortunately, I can’t get my mind to slow down. I keep replaying our plans, looking for weaknesses, running different scenarios. After an hour, I decide to get up and take a walk, clear my head. I slide away from Johnathyn’s arm, get dressed and silently walk through the kitchen and out the back door.

The moon is full in a cloudless sky but the temp is still unseasonably warm. How much does it cost Opulessa to keep it this way for her month long birthday party? If it was me, I’d move to Florida for the month if it was heat that I wanted. There’s someone sitting on the bench by the well, smoking a long, thin pipe. It’s Beckwith. She looks up as I amble towards her, my feet swishing through the grass.

“I didn’t know you smoked. It’s not good for your health.”

“It’s my health. I’ll do as I please.”

“I’ve done a bit of smoking in my time, something a little stronger than tobacco. You got Marijuana in this word? Cannabis? Hemp?”

She takes a draw on her pipe and slowly exhales. “Don’t know”

“If you did, you’d know it. There’s probably something else like it. If there’s one thing consistent between our two worlds, it’s man’s eternal quest to get high.”

“Just men?”

“No. I was speaking philosophically. I was referring to mankind. Everybody. Both men and women.”

“Then why do you say ‘Man’-kind?”

“It’s just how we say it on my world. You got a better way?”

She takes another deliberate pull on the pipe and an equally deliberate exhale. That’s a nice tool to slow a conversation. Too bad it’ll eventually kill ya’.

“No. I do not have any better ideas.”

I start to sit down next to here but she slides as far away as she can without leaving the bench. I sit down anyway.

“You’re just a veritable fountain of conversation tonight, Beckwith. So why aren’t you sound asleep, dreaming of slaughtering the Queen’s Guard.”

“Because I was asleep, dreaming of slaughtering the Queen’s Guard.”

“I was joking.”

“I was not.”

“What is it with you? You’ve been fighting me the whole way but you don’t leave. You’d lead the others into almost suicidal attacks to take out as many of them before you get killed. What’s your problem?”

She takes another slow drag on her pipe. “With you or what you are doing?”

“Any of it. All of it. Whatever.”

“I object to an outsider coming in to ‘save’ my people from ourselves. It is none of your concern.”

“Seems to me that ‘outsiders’ have caused a lot of these problems. Why can’t I fix problems created by my people in your world?”

“Because the injuries occurred before you all arrived.”

“Then why didn’t your people take care of it already? Why didn’t you?”

“That is our shame. My shame.”

“Then now seems like a good chance to fix the problems, what with me being here and all.”

I hear her inhale on the pipe again, its small bowl glowing brightly for a milicycle or two.

“It is a good chance, the only one in my lifetime that could succeed but your presence is a daily reminder of my shame for failing to act before now. I should have done something a long time ago, success be damned.”

“That’s stupid! No one jumps into a burning fire if there’s no chance of putting it out. It’s only logical.”

“I know some of how you came to be here. You told Dierdra and she told me. Pegues tricked you into crossing over and you had a means of forcing him to return you to your world but you decided to stay. Why was that?”

“People from my world are doing terrible things here. Someone has to stop them and I can do it.”

“You lie. I know the truth. You cared not for those things. You cared that your mother and brother had been killed and the people responsible were here. That is why you stayed. That is why you came to Glory. To avenge their deaths. There was no plan, no chance of success yet you came any way.”

“Okay, you’re right. It was a straight vengeance trip but there’s a lot of other reasons now.”

“Agreed, yet you are returning to your world to finish taking vengeance when you are done, are you not?”

“Look … yeah, I am but there’s a bunch of good reasons for me to leave. I could really screw up this world if I stay.”

“Do not misunderstand me. I wish that you leave my world as soon as possible. Leave your husband and daughter and return home to kill those who killed your family. It is most admirable! You also leave behind all this power to become an ordinary person but you still seek justice for the dead. Very admirable indeed!”

I don’t know if she’s putting me on, mocking me or what. Lately, I’ve been thinking about what a crappy thing it is to leave Johnathyn and Lee after all we’ve been through, all we’ve said to one another, all I’ve promised. I’ve always tried to be upfront about it all but facts are facts. Things are different now. Way different.

“Listen Beckwith, things have changed since I got here. I didn’t plan on a lot of this happening.”

“Exactly! You had no plan but you came anyway to make certain that those who took your family from you paid for their sins! And look at where you are now! In a few hours, retribution begins!”

“I wouldn’t exactly put it that way.”

“Do you know my history?”

I really didn’t. I knew a lot more about the other girls. We talked a lot when fixing meals and cleaning up. Everybody took turns. Naturally, I got most of the questions but, eventually, everyone told their stories. Everyone except Beckwith. I did know some stuff, mostly from what Dierdra told me.

“You’re originally from some place north, right?”

She leans back and puffs several times before answering.

“Yes. North. A large village but nothing like one of the cities near here. We lived our own lives. The Queen left us mostly alone. Our region had little that she desired. We paid our taxes and her stooges left us alone for the most part.”

“I thought that Opulessa was the one who was manipulated by the men at the top.”

“Do not believe that for a moment! She may prefer to let them have their way day in and day out but she can control them when she wishes. When it suits her needs. Ten years ago, it suited her needs.”

That didn’t sound good. “What happened ten years ago?”

She tapped out her pipe, pulled a small pouch from her pocket and opened it. I could smell the raw tobacco. One of the professors I had in school smoked a pipe. He’d take it outside the building and light up, leaving a smoky haze all around him. His tobacco smelled something like that, though a bit more refined. She reloaded the bowl, rubbed her fingers together over the bowl until it lit. Puffing hard to get it going, she exhaled a long stream of smoke which wrapped around her head several times before fading away

“Ten years ago, I was married to a good man and had two daughters. Beautiful, smart girls. Kind and gentle, better than I. They took after their father in temperament. We both knew there was a risk. I am a Forty Five. We’re not permitted to have female children, all part of the Queen’s plan to keep potential rivals from being born. However, her influence is less in the Northern Provinces and we thought we were safe.” She taps the bowl of the pipe against the bench, embers briefly flashing in the night. “We were wrong.”

“Beckwith, what happened?”

“The troops came, the vaunted Queen’s Guard. It was a crackdown, a show of force and her authority over the rest of us. We had been warned and fled to the Great Woods but were tracked down. They killed my beautiful girls while I watched. I could do nothing. I was a Healer, not a fighter but it would have made no difference. My husband fought but was wounded. He lived five painful days before finally dying.” She looked over at me. “You would have likely cured him in decicycles. I buried them all together in a forest clearing and came south to avenge their deaths.”

I feel physically sick. Mom and Terry were killed but I didn’t have to watch it happen.

“That’s horrible. Horrible. I’m sorry, I – I didn’t know.”

“No one else does, not even Dierdra knows the full story. I came south to learn how to become stronger, more powerful and be closer to my prey. Every day I dedicated a portion to prepare for the opportunity to make Opulessa and her Guards pay for what they did to my family.”

“And now you’re going to make it happen. I understand …”

“NO! You do not!”

“Huuhh?”

“I have done NOTHING! Ten years and I was no closer to vengeance than I was the day I arrived! No plan, no plot, no army. Yet you, a complete outsider, arrive in this world and in a few months have raised an army of witches and persuaded them to do your bidding!”

“What can I say? I’m a people person. It doesn’t matter how it happens, what’s important is that it’s going to finally happen.”

“It will not. These men deserve to die for what they did but you forbid it! They killed your family yet you are more interested in their welfare than your own! From what little I know of your world, it is more violent than mine! I just do not understand you!”

How do I explain this? I’m not sure I understand it myself. Part of me still wants the guilty to pay with their lives but not everyone on the other side deserves to die. Some may. People who go around killing little girls in cold blood probably do.

“Do you know the names of the men who actually killed your daughters?”

“No but their faces are burned in my memory.”

“So, you would recognize them today, even after ten years?”

“There is no doubt.”

“Are they the ones you want to kill?”

“Them and all their cohorts!”

“The entire Queen’s Guard? That’s, what … a thousand, two thousand, five thousand men?”

“However many there are and Opulessa too.”

“But they may not have done anything wrong. Obviously Opulessa is a different case but ninety percent of the Guard may have done nothing but stand around, scratching their asses.”

“They are all guilty.”

“It’s been ten years, what about the men who joined after your daughters were killed? What about the men who used to be in the Guard but quit or retired? Do they all deserve to die because of the actions of a few? Are you going to track them all down, everybody who’s ever been in the Queen’s Guard? ”

“No, of course not.”

“Then you’re drawing a line somewhere. Men on one side are guilty and those on the other side are not. You better think pretty hard before you draw that line.”

“What do you care about these men? In a few hours, they will be trying to stop us from getting to Opulessa. They will be trying to kill you, to kill me. They deserve what they get!”

“Maybe. Maybe I don’t care about them. Maybe I care about you. Have you ever killed someone, Beckwith?”

“I have not but I am prepared to do so.”

“I wasn’t prepared when I did. It still haunts me. I try to think of other ways I could have handled it.”

“Have you thought of any?”

“No, not really, but that doesn’t lessen the guilt. I don’t really know you, Beckwith. I’m sorry about that. I’m also sorry about what happened to your family. It clearly sucks big time. Maybe you’re entitled to get some of your own when you find the guys who actually did it but, right now, my orders still stand. We do this with a minimum loss of life. You get a bunch of Guards shooting at you, break their hands. Bones will heal. Just don’t start killing recklessly. When this is all over, we can start looking through records, talk to people, find out the truth, separate the innocent from the guilty and I’m not talking about guilt by association. I’m talking about men who actually did something. Men that had something to do with killing my family or killing yours. When we find them, we’ll see about it then. Do you understand me?”

She takes the pipe from her lips, turns the bowl upside down and knocks the few remaining embers out onto the dirt in front of the bench. She stands, grinding them out with her right foot

“I understand, Alexia.”

I stand up too. “It’ll be daylight soon. We both need our sleep. Everybody needs to be rested and ready, on the ball and on the go. We can’t afford any slip ups, not now.”

“We all know what we are to do. If we do not win, it will all be for naught. None of us want that. This is our only chance.” She slips the pipe into her pocket. “I will not waste it.”

* * * *** * * * *** * * *

I have forgotten how to sleep.

How long has it been? At least two hundred years. I truly can’t remember the last time I closed my eyes and slept. Fully, completely, slept.

Every night, I put myself in a trance. Most of my mind relaxes but a small portion remains alert, aware of what is happening in the world around me, keeping all those spells of mine active and alive. If I should lose consciousness for even a moment, they would all end, releasing those I have enchanted from their bondage.

But that can all change. When I capture the other witch, Alexia, my power becomes so much greater that so little of my mind will need to remain awake that it will almost be the same as sleeping. And that moment is coming closer every day.

Today, when I force my way to awareness, I can feel the increase in the magic potential around me. Any time there is a large gathering of believers in one place, the magic potential increases but it is more than that today. There is a slow, steady increase, not the waves that radiate from a crowd. This is like a rising tide, slow and inexorable, a force of nature. This witch approaches.

I must be ready to greet her.

* * * *** * * * *** * * *

The others flew in pairs to spots near Glory. Dierdra gave Beckwith a ride. Johnathyn insisted on driving the wagon so I went with him. Leeanna demanded to come along. She said that she had been there for everything else so she should be there at the end.

Not a bad argument for a ten year old. Johnathyn and I said not a chance in Hell. She stays at the farmhouse with the Ahlivars, the couple who own it, until we come and get her. I think she’s mostly afraid of being left alone. I’d tell her not to worry, that it won’t happen but she’s too smart for that bullshit. In the end, we tell her that we love her more than anything else in the world and knowing that she’s safe gives us the strength to do what needs to be done so that we can all be together again. I conveniently leave out the part about me going home as soon as we’re done. She says she understands and desperately hugs us both until we have to leave. I warn Fiona Ahlivar to watch her like a hawk because she’ll find some way to come after us.

It’s a quiet ride to Glory. It’s not that far away but, when you’re riding in a wagon with explosives of uncertain stability, you feel every bump in the road. Despite that, I find myself reminiscing about all the places we’ve seen, all the people we’ve met since we began this road trip. I snuggle up against Johnathyn, snaking an arm around his waist.

“What a long, strange trip it’s been.”

“To what are you referring?”

“All the places we’ve been. New Amsterdam, Goshen, Shellcrest, Winstead, Rockland, the Miryian Waters, Hampsted, Sweetwater. All those places, all those people. The ones I cured.”

“You enjoyed that, the healing. There were times I almost had to drag you away.”

“I’d like to see you try, Tiger.”

“There, you said it again. What is this ‘Tiger’?”

I pick up his left arm and drape it around my shoulder, allowing me to snuggle closer. “A tiger is a big cat, really big, like over four hundred pounds, which is like twenty stone. The females do the hunting and child care. The males lay about, not doing much but fighting over the females and having sex.”

“Sounds like an ideal life.”

“For you maybe. Did I mention that a single male tiger can have several mates at the same time?”

“You did not. This ‘Tiger’ thing seems to be a very good idea. How does one join?”

“Funny. They’re an endangered species in my world.”

“Do the females kill the males in the night?”

“You could be on to something there. I’ll have to check on … WHOA SHIT!!”

We hit a big bump, causing the barrels to knock against each other despite the padding between them. Neither of us breathes for several milicycles, then exhale in unison.

“Whose bright idea was this?” I ask quietly.

“I believe it was yours.”

“Remind me to shut up next time.”

He pulls me closer. “I will gladly do so. As I was saying, you enjoyed the healing.”

“I did. I really did. It was doing good. Real, honest to Zaphod good. One on one, in your face good.”

“When this is all done, you could stay and continue doing good.”

“Honey. Please don’t go there. We’ve talked about this. I can’t stay. This isn’t my world. Even if I ignored what I need to do back in my world, I know way too much to stay in your world. I’m a ticking time bomb of too much information.”

“You would not need to tell what you know.”

“Johnathyn, have you EVER known me to keep my mouth shut? If I see something that pisses me off, I’m gonna do something about it. There’s a whole lot about your world that pisses me off. I know it’s not my job or even my place to fix your world because who says I won’t screw it up, but I just can’t stand around and do nothing. Trust me, you’ll all be better off when I’m gone.”

“Leeanna won’t. I won’t.”

“You don’t think I know that? It’ll kill me too! I’ll never have the kinds of relationships over there that I have here. Please believe me, if I thought I could stay and not tear your world apart, I would. Could we talk about something else … for both our sakes?”

“As you wish.”

Neither of us said anything for quite some time. We just drove on, lost in our own thoughts, gradually drawing closer to the city. We crossed into the city at a lightly used gate. There was no inspection. Both housing and population density started gradually increasing from that point. It wasn’t long before the buildings were built one right next to the other; some even shared a common wall. There were no more open areas. I actually began to feel a little claustrophobic, which is ridiculous. I’m a New Yorker for Zaphod’s sake! This wouldn’t even be a blip on a map of New York. I’ve spent too much time in the countryside. The traffic begins to build around us, a combination of other assorted wagons, carriages, single horses and people, all streaming toward the center of the city. Suddenly, the flow of traffic stops. Johnathyn hands me the reins and stands up on the bench, searching for the reason for the back up. He quickly drops back down, retaking control of our horses.

“What is it? Did you see something?” I ask.

“It’s the Guard. They’ve pulled over some of the larger wagons. They’re searching them.”

“For what?”

“How am I to know that?”

“Sorry. It’s just that we don’t need this right now.”

“Agreed. Maybe we won’t be chosen.”

“You want to bet on that?”

“No, I would not. If we are stopped, I will deal with it.”

“I can take them out, if necessary.”

“Not like the last time, I hope.”

“You don’t think I’ve learned something since then?”

“Sorry, of course you have. It is only that we will have no where to run, not with this crowd.”

“Got it. Keep moving and hope that … CRAP!”

A uniformed man on horseback signals for us to pull over behind another covered wagon like ours. Two uniformed men dart out into traffic and hold things up until we can move over to where he indicated. There are other troops swarming the wagon in front of us, pitching some items out for others to take apart. The Guard on horseback moves next to Johnathyn.

“What is your business?”

“Delivery to the Palace for the Queen’s celebration … Sir.”

“Delivery of what?”

“Supplies, Sir.”

He gave Johnathyn a suspicious look. “What kind of supplies? Never mind. Sergeant! Inspect this wagon!”

Before either of us can say anything, a Guard runs to the back of our wagon and jumps in, moving right to the barrels. Johnathyn immediately drops his arm across my hands. I don’t need my hands to get rid of this guy but the message is clear. Not yet.

He looks around one of the barrels loaded with explosives.

“HEY LIEUTENANT BIGGLES, I’VE FOUND KLATCH!”

The Guard on the horse turns towards Johnathyn. I assume he’s Biggles.

“Klatch you say. How much, Sergeant?”

“Looks like three barrels!”

He whistles. “Three barrels! That’s quite a lot. I am certain that no one will miss a barrel. Wouldn’t you agree, driver?”

Johnathyn glances over at me, shaking his head just slightly. He wants me to wait. I give him a single, short nod. It’s his … for now. He slowly stands up, giving Biggles a good look at him.

“No, Lieutenant Biggles, I do not. The Queen herself is expecting this delivery. It is a gift to her friends in the Winthrop Group. If we arrive one barrel short and she asks me what happened to that barrel, I will be forced to tell her that it was taken by Lieutenant Biggles and … what is your name, Sergeant?”

“Uuuhhh … Marley.”

“Thank you. By Lieutenant Biggles and Sergeant Marley of the Queen’s Guard. I myself would not like to appear in front of the Queen to explain why I stole a barrel of Klatch from her. Even if she is forgiving, I have heard that the men from the Winthrop Group take a dim view of such behavior. Wouldn’t you agree, Lieutenant Biggles?”

Biggles was smart enough to know he was had. If we didn’t have his name, it would have been a different story but there were too many people around. That and Johnathyn is a damn intimidating guy when he wants to be.

“Sergeant …”

“Yes, Sir.” The Guard was already vaulting out the back of the wagon. He wanted nothing to do with us, either.

Johnathyn sits back down and picks up the reins.

“Are we free to go, Lieutenant Biggles?”

“Off with you,” he growls, spinning his horse away from us. Johnathyn flicks the reins and guides us back into the flow of traffic. I wait until we are well clear of the Guards before saying anything.

“Not bad.”

“Thank you.”

“We probably shouldn’t have used old klatch barrels for our bombs.”

“I will make a note for the next time we attack the Palace.”

“Good idea.”

It took us another hour to work our way through the traffic, the back roads and alleys to finally reach the spot we had agreed on. It’s a back wall of the Palace, on the east side. The surrounding buildings are set back at least a hundred decileagues away. There’s some foot traffic but it’s far from any entrances. Everyone else was already there, waiting for us.

“You are late,” says Dierdra. “We were worried.”

“We had a little problem with the Queen’s Guards but Johnathyn took care of it.”

“Johnathyn?”

“Yeah. He was very slick. I married him for more than his good looks.”

He couldn’t help smiling when I said that. “Thank you, Alexia. Are we ready?”

I pull my cell phone from the pocket of my dress and check the clock. We’ve still got a half hour. We decided to hit at the end of the day. There is a day long ceremony scheduled for the final presentation of gifts to Opulessa by her subjects and the Patrons of the various regions. It’s also the last day of the month long celebration, so everyone should be pretty tired, not very alert, and likely either drunk or hung over. At least that’s what Beckwith’s cousin said has happened in the past. Most of the people who normally work in this part of the Palace should be attending the ceremony in the courtyard, so it’s a reasonably safe place to enter. The Queen takes frequent breaks, more towards the end of the day than the beginning and everything comes to a halt until she returns. Everyone else has to stay put. The timing could be tricky.

“Not yet but soon. Bring everyone in for a quick huddle.”

Dierdra raises her hand and waves it, beckoning for all the girls to join us. Once gathered together, I look each one in the face. Some are determined but most look afraid.

“It’s about time to go. We’ve practiced for this. Each and every one of you is a powerful witch. I can feel the magic potential in the air, so can you. You’re going to be more powerful today than you have ever been in your lives, than you’re ever going to be again. This is the peak, the top of the mountain. People will ask you about this moment for the rest of your lives … so no pressure.”

A number of the girls giggle at the lame joke.

“It’s really simple. Do what we’ve practiced, support your friends, follow Dierdra’s directions and we’ll win this thing. You’ll do something that hundreds of men have tried and failed. You’ll change your world. For the better.”

I hold my hand out towards them, palm down. They all hesitate until Dierdra puts her hand on top of mine. One by one, they all join in, Beckwith being the last. A final look around, there seems to be more confidence than there was before.

“Go team!” I shout.

We break up and slowly scatter, each woman moving towards their assigned spot. I hand the cell phone to Dierdra.

“You light the fuse on the bombs when the alarm goes off. I’ll wait a few decicycles after the explosion and then I’ll make my entrance. Get the Weather team set up and working right away, though, it may just be me but I can sorta feel a change in the air already.”

“I feel it also, Alexia.”

“Hope we’re right. Keep people away from the wagon before the explosion. Far away.”

“I know. The fewest injuries possible. If we have to hurt some of the Queen’s Guards, we will make them easy to repair.”

“Perfect.”

We stand there looking at each other for a moment or two. I have to say something.

“Dierdra … if I don’t see you again …”

“Say nothing, Alexia. We will prevail.”

“Oh yeah, sure we will … but … if we don’t, I regret nothing. I’d do it all over again. You’ve been a real rock this entire time … and my best friend.”

“Your best woman friend.”

“Okay, my best woman friend. No matter what happens, I’ll never forget that.”

“Nor will I.”

We tightly hug one another. I can feel tears in my eyes.

“Be careful out there,” I whisper.

“Take care, my Queen,” she responds.

I hang on for another couple of milicycles then we break apart. I hurry towards Johnathyn. He’s standing near the wall, a large leather bag slung over his shoulder. I rub the tears from my eyes as I approach.

“Are you well, Alexia?”

“Yeah, I’m fine. What’s in the bag?”

“My equipment.”

“What ‘equipment’? You don’t need …” He picks up his rifle, which he had hidden behind a tree. “What are you doing with that? I thought we had agreed, no killing!”

“I do not kill unless I want to. I may be able to keep someone from bothering you.”

I don’t have time to argue with him. “Fine, but keep that out of sight when I talk with the Winthrop people.” I grab his arm. “We’re just going to hop over this wall but we don’t land until we look around to make sure we’re alone.”

“I understand.”

”And no noise.”

He nods. Turning my head, I take one last look around. Have I missed something? Probably, but it’s too late now. God … don’t let any of my friends die.

CHAPTER TWENTY FIVE

No one saw us land. Gentle as a feather, silent as the grave. There’s a door just where it should be so we hurry across the open space and enter the Palace. It’s a big place. The photos from my cell phone don’t do it justice.

Still no one to be seen anywhere. We need to get some place where we can see the courtyard. I hope Gamgee’s map was accurate. Johnathyn points to a set of steps to our right.

“That way should lead us to a window in the battlement. It will be far away from the throne but we will be able to see what is happening.”

”Lead on but be quiet.”

“I am as stealthy as a mouse.”

More like a bear. A big Grizzly bear. We head up the stairs at a fast walk, skimming past closed doors and openings to other hallways, Johnathyn moving swiftly, confident of his route. Hope he’s right because we don’t have time to get lost. It takes a few decicycles but we end up in front of an open window. Peering out, I can see we are on a second floor overlooking the courtyard. At the far end there’s a stage with a raised dais, a throne in the middle. On the throne is a radiant, blonde woman wearing a brilliant white gown. Johnathyn looks out the window, his head next to mine.

“So that is the Queen,” he says. “They are right, she is very beautiful.”

I “accidentally” give him an elbow in his ribs as I step away.

*** * * * *** * * * ***

She is HERE! I can feel her! She is in the Palace, somewhere. No matter, though it has taken her long enough. I was afraid this day would never come. Looking over the hundreds of people standing below me, I can’t see anyone I do not recognize but I am certain she is present. The moment is nearly at hand. I need to prepare. I signal the Crier standing near me. He steps forward.

“ALL ATTEND!” he shouts. “THE QUEEN NOW TAKES HER LEAVE!”

I stand and gracefully descend the staircase in front of my throne then turn and do the same for the staircase behind it. It is a short walk to a large room with a settee and cold drink waiting for me, including a bottle of Scotch Whiskey, one of a dozen cases given to me by Mr. White of the Consortium. A brief respite and a libation or three and I will be ready for her.

*** * * * *** * * * ***

“Did you see what she was wearing?”

I bring the binoculars down from my eyes. They are one of the things we kept from the packs of the two Guards I killed. They are from my world. Thought they might come in handy some day. Both of us step back from the window.

“Yes, I saw, Johnathyn.”

“Can you copy it?”

“Close enough. Let’s go find a Winthrop Guard.”

I hand the binoculars back to Johnathyn and he stashes them in his bag. We need to hurry, the clock is ticking.

*** * * * *** * * * ***

No one has shown any interest in the wagon since Johnathyn parked it here. I will admit to a certain amount of nervousness sitting here on the driver’s bench with the barrels of explosive in the back. I have no idea what he and Alexia went through driving here from the farm with those things bouncing and banging around in the back. I’ve spent a lot of time in this wagon and I know what it is like on rough roads.

I have broken the tongue of the wagon, should someone in authority come buy and tell me to move it. My story will be that my son has gone to get help, so that it may be repaired well enough for us to get it to a wainwright for complete repairs. The broken tongue also allows me to quickly move the horses away from the wagon when it is time for me to light the fuse. I promised Johnathyn that the horses would be safe.

He had insisted and rightly so. They have been reliable and faithful these past few months, deserving of a fate better than death here on the street.

From my seat, I can see above the heads of the crowd and can identify where each and every member of our coven is right now, waiting for my signal to begin moving the people away from the wagon. I will not light the fuse until I am certain that all are far enough away to be safe. Beckwith has been staying close to the wagon. She now approaches again,

“How much longer?” she asks for the third time since Alexia and Johnathyn flew over the wall.

“Be patient, at least fifteen decicycles, if I read this device correctly.”

“Should we not start …”

“No, it might attract attention to us before we are ready. We best wait and follow the plan.”

“The almighty plan,” she grumbles.

“Yes. The almighty plan. Everyone knows their part and I expect each of us to do as they have been directed, including you, Beckwith.”

“You need not worry about me, I will do my part, and more.”

*** * * * *** * * * ***
We hurry along a hallway, Alexia slightly ahead of me. We must find one of the Winthrop Guards as quickly as possible. Time truly is of the essence. Alexia slows as we approach a corner. I settle against the wall next to her. She peeks around the corner, then reaches back, grabbing my arm. Pulling back and smiling, she whispers “Got one!”

I bring my rifle up, holding it against my chest. This is a crucial moment. It all depends upon Alexia, though I have great confidence in her abilities. We both step back away from the corner. She closes her eyes and slows her breathing, attempting to relax. She stands there, breathing slowly for several seconds before the change starts.

I have seen this several times before but always worry that she will be unable to return to her original shape. The glow starts around her head but soon spreads over her entire body, hiding any details of her original shape. The glowing image begins to move, taking on a new shape. Shorter, slightly wider in the waist and hips, the dress becomes more voluminous in the skirt. As the glowing begins to fade and the details return, it is no longer Alexia standing before me, it is Queen Opulessa, down to the slightest detail. I would not have thought it possible if I had not seen it with my own eyes.

“How do I look?” she asks but not in her voice.

“Perfect, as far as I can tell. Why don’t you sound as yourself?”

“Guess it comes with the package. Wish me luck.”

“What kind of luck?”

She gives me a look that, though the face is new, is very familiar.

* * * *** * * * *** * * *

Being among the newest men, I almost always get the shit duty. The Queen doesn’t often make public appearances, this past month being an exception. It’s been one event after another, giving all her subjects the chance to show their love for her. Me and the rest of the new guys are usually stuck here in the Palace instead of outside where we can see what’s going on. If you’re lucky, you get stationed near a window and you can see it all from a distance.

I wasn’t lucky today.

At least I can hear what’s happening. Sort of. Things have quieted down so she’s probably taking another break. These long days are wearing on her, we can tell. A lot of the guys think it’s all too much but she bravely pushes on. Anything for her people.

It was quiet but now I hear someone moving down the hall towards me. It stops and then I hear very quiet voices. There shouldn’t be anyone in this area. I’m just about ready to report in and start to investigate when the Queen appears right in front of me! She just turns the corner and BANG, there she is!

“My Liege! Is there something wrong?!”

“Yes, there is. I need all of your men to report to me in the Mess. Immediately. It is a matter of life and death.”

“Your Majesty, I’m not authorized to do that.”

“I am. Call your superior officer right now.”

“Yes, Ma’am, right away, Ma’am.”

I grab my radio and punch up Staff Sergeant Pinion.

“What is it, Beech?”

“Trooper Ernie Beech reporting, Sergeant Pinion.”

“I know that Beech, what’s up?”

“Sarge, I’ve got the Queen standing right in front of me. She says she needs all of us to report to the Mess pronto. It’s a matter of life or death.”

“Are you out of your fucking mind, Beech? She was just on the throne not two minutes ago!”

“Well, she’s five feet away from me right now, Sarge.”

The Queen holds out her hand, palm up.

“Give me the radio, Trooper Beech.”

She remembers my name! This is a day to tell my folks about … if I was allowed to do that. I give her the radio. She tosses her lustrous blonde hair to one side, exposing her right, shell like ear and daintily brings the radio up next to it.

“Sergeant Pinion, this is the Queen … Yes, I was on the throne but now I am here … I am a witch, after all. We can do that sort of thing … apology accepted. Now, I want every one of your men who are on duty to come directly to the Mess … yes, every one of them … yes, right now … Sergeant Pinion, am I not making myself clear? This is not a time for debate. You all have five decicycles, no excuses … then I suggest that you hurry and spread the word. You now have less than five decicycles.”

She hands me back the radio, which is alive with chatter. She holds out her hand.

“You may escort me to the Mess, Mr. Beech.”

I take her hand gently in mine and bow slightly, just like they taught us.

“It would be my pleasure, your Majesty!”

We don’t get twenty feet before running into this really big local. Really big! I drop the Queen’s hand and go for my carbine but she stops me.

“Hold up, Ernie. He is a friend.”

She called me ERNIE! Wonderful day! The Queen returns her hand to mine.

“The Mess, if you please, Ernie. We must hurry.”

“Yes, my Queen!”

I walk away as fast as I think she can. She keeps pace so I speed up a bit. I keep doing this until we are almost running but she moves with such grace and flair that you would never notice it.

We get to the Mess before everyone else but they start arriving just seconds behind us. The first ones are Sergeant Pinion and a couple of the other guys. They all see the Queen and bow.

“You weren’t shitting me, Beech! Please excuse my language, your Majesty. It’s just that you surprised us all, what with the Houdini act.”

“Success is what matters, Sergeant Pinion.”

He sucks in his gut and throws out his chest when she says his name as she directs him to go inside. The crowd swells as more guys come running in. The last to arrive are from the other end of the compound.

“Please shut the door, Ernie,” she says, each note of her voice a symphony of delight. “Is this all of you?”

Sergeant Pinion just finished a head count. “All present and accounted for, my Queen. All except Colonel Willis, of course. He was up on stage with you but you knew that.”

She smiles brightly, as if indulging a child. “Of course, Sergeant Pinion. I will speak with him later.” She turns to face the troops, all of which are staring at her, breathing hard from the exertion. “I must thank you for your prompt compliance with my request. I am so proud of you all!”

Now it’s all of us smiling, but the Queen turns somber.

“I have some bad news. The rogue witch is here in the Palace even as we speak.” Every man goes for his gun. “No! Stop!” We do as she orders. “I have a fool proof plan to stop her but she arrived sooner than I expected so there wasn’t time to explain it to all of you. All you need to know is that you are to remain in reserve. I plan to set a trap for her and when she steps into it, I will call for all of you, springing the trap! You are all my most loyal, valuable and trustworthy friends and am counting on you. Should you fail me, I fear for my life. You will not fail me, will you?”

With one voice, we declare our love for her, that we would rather die than disappoint her! She’s clearly moved by our demonstration.

“I do not deserve such guardians as yourselves! Remember, it is vital, VITAL, that you all stay in this room until I personally come for you. I will not send a representative, or a written document. You all stay in this room until I come and get you. You may hear an explosion or two … or three, but you are to ignore anyone that isn’t me. I assure you that this is all according to my great plan. Do not worry about a single thing. My only fear is that one of you might become injured and die needlessly. I could not live with myself if that should happen.”

Looking around the room, I can see that we all feel the truth in her words. She really is concerned for our safety! That such a woman as her would be not only worried about our safety but feel pain if any of us were injured. How lucky are we?

Sergeant Pinion steps forward. “I believe that I can speak for all the men when I say that there is no force on this world that will dislodge us from this room until you personally give the word. Am I right men?!”

The shouts in response are almost deafening. The Queen looks positively angelic, smiling blissfully, all of us bathed in her happiness. I actually feel high right now, high on positive vibes. She waives her hands and we all fall immediately silent.

“I must leave you now but will soon return. Do not become concerned with what you hear and see. The rogue witch may attempt to fool you in order to get you out of this room but I implore you to remain strong and steadfast. Take care. I will see you all shortly. To Victory!”

“Victory! Victory! Victory!” We all shout as the Queen leaves the room and runs down the hallway, the shouts continue until she turns a corner and disappears, some of the men keep shouting a short while longer. Eventually, we all fall silent. I walk over to Pinion.

“What do we do now, Sarge?”

“We do what the Lady said; we wait until she comes back.”

“What if the other witch tries to fool us?”

“Beech, are you saying you wouldn’t be able to recognize the real Queen?”

“NO! No! Of course not! I was just spit balling, you know, what if. So, what do we do while we wait?”

“We’re in the Mess, son. I say we eat.”

* * * *** * * * *** * * *

I am leading Alexia up the spiral stairs of the main turret of the Palace, its highest point which overlooks the courtyard. I am running hard but she is right on my heels. When we emerge into the open air at the top, we are both breathing rapidly.

“What … did you … think of … my …. performance … in the … Mess?” she gasps.

“I … almost … joined … them,” I answer between gulps of air.

She walks over to the edge and looks over the waist high stone wall that surrounds the circular tower.

“The Queen’s … back and … the ceremony has … started again.”

I join her. It is quite a drop to the courtyard below, at least ten stories.

“Are you certain you want to do this that way?”

“I want to make a big entrance. Can you think of something bigger?”

“Not at the moment. What now?”

“We wait for the explosion. Until then …” She begins to unbutton her dress. I am shocked.

“You’re not suggesting that we … are you?”

She looks at me, puzzled, then down at her hands and the eight buttons that she has already opened. She then laughs.

“No, Johnathyn, not that …” she returns to unbuttoning her dress. “… though, if we had more time, it might be a different story.”

“Then what in Zaphod’s name are you …”

She drops her dress to the stone floor and steps away, wearing a dark black garment of some kind, covering her from the neck to the ankles but as tight as her own skin. It covers but reveals everything!

“What is that?!” I demand.

“SSSHHHhhhh be quiet! They’ll hear you down there. Like it? In my world, it’s called a ‘cat suit’. Normally, it would be made out of Lycra or even leather, something really tight. We did what we could with what we had.”

“This could be even tighter? Are you without shame?”

“Pretty much. I wasn’t going to fight Opulessa in a dress so I needed something else. Leeanna and I ran through several ideas but we decided this was the best.”

“Leeanna helped you with this?”

“Sure, why do you think she’s been out of our hair the past few days? It’s a shame I couldn’t wear a pair of spike heeled thigh high boots with this outfit. It would rock! But they would suck for fighting.”

“Why would you even think about wearing such a …”

“Sexy outfit? A couple of reasons. It will move with me and not get in the way. The other is it’ll drive Opulessa crazy. She’s a two hundred thirty something year old woman who tries to look like she’s in her twenties. She spends a lot of time and energy doing so and still can’t pull it off. She’s always wearing those full, floaty dresses. She may have the face, she may have the boobs, she doesn’t have the figure any more. Clearly, I do. It’ll piss her off to no end, which helps me.”

“So you have really thought this out. I am impressed.”

“Should I keep the outfit after we’re done today?”

“Yes … because our daughter spent so much time working on it.”

“Yeah. Right.”

* * * *** * * * *** * * *

What could she possibly be waiting for? She is close, very close. I can see no guards at all, perhaps that is it. Willis has gone too far in making me appear vulnerable, she suspects a trap of some kind. If something doesn’t happen soon, she may force my hand.

* * * *** * * * *** * * *

I look at the clock on the device that Alexia gave to me. It appears that we are five decicycles from the alarm going off. We had better start moving people away from the wagon. The coven have been nervously awaiting my signal so as soon as I wave my hand above my head they are all off and about, gently suggesting, prodding or actively moving people away from the wagon. We had discussed several possible stories, a wagon full of fireworks, a rabid horse, or a contagious patient waiting for treatment. Silva had suggested a terrible smell but we were unable to produce one that all agreed would work, though we did come close. We just needed more time.

However they are doing it, our coven seems to be succeeding. There is no one within a hundred decileagues of the wagon, though there are buildings closer. I have tasked six of our group to do the best that the can to divert the blast away from them. It would have been nice to practice this before today but it would have been too dangerous.

The alarm sounds in my pocket. It is the moment of final decision. If I do not light this fuse, we could all still leave and no one would be the wiser. As I stand on the driver’s bench and look about me, doubts fill my mind. Beckwith charges towards me.

“Why do you delay? It is time! Light the fuse and let the revolution begin! The time for vengeance is now! If you can not do it, allow me the glory!”

“There is no glory in this, only necessary tragedy. I will play my part as will you. Back to your post.”

Beckwith moves away from the wagon as I duck under the cover; thrusting the embers into a bowl of extremely dry tinder soaked in Klatch. The bowl immediately burst into flame. I hold it below the length of treated rope which instantly sputters and ignites, slowly burning toward the first barrel. This we had tested. It will take nearly four decicycles to burn down to what Alexia calls the ‘detonator”. At that point, it will be too late to stop it.

Wasting no time, I throw the burning bowl out the back of the wagon, return to the front, jump down and run around to the front where the horses await. I grab the dangling reins and swiftly lead them away. They did not resist, possibly sensing the danger we all were in. Once achieving what I hope is a safe distance, I turn to watch.

What I see freezes my blood.

Beckwith is less than fifty decileages behind the wagon, one of the barrels of flour floating above her head but rising fast into the air towards the Palace, the other four barrels rapidly following the first. In short order, they were all high in the air over the east end of the Palace. Before I can call to Beckwith, the barrels burst, sending an enormous cloud of flour dust dropping over this end of the Palace but also drifting over the nearby houses and the people standing near those houses. Luckily, the people began to run away from the cloud, not knowing what it is. Beckwith is also running away. I thrust the reins into the hands of Emlilly, who is standing next to me and dash to where Beckwith has come to rest. It was now impossible to see the wagon, Palace or nearby houses due to the flour dust. I roughly grab Beckwith and spin her around to face me.

“Are you insane?! What did you do?!”

“Alexia is not the only one who knows something about explosions. Have you ever seen a dust explosion? They can be extraordinarily destructive. There was one time where …”

I did not hear the rest of Beckwith’s explanation. Our bombs exploded, consuming the cloud of flour in a whirlwind of flame.

* * * *** * * * *** * * *

Whatever it was, it was not magic. Spectacular still. I had not seen anything like it in my over two hundred years as Queen.

The sound was like thunder but as if the lightning had struck almost on top of you. Unbelievably loud, the force of the blast knocking you off your feet, the ground itself actually moving for a brief moment, but that was nothing compared to what was in the sky. An enormous ball of fire, engulfing the east end of the Palace, the fire rapidly pulling in air from all directions, sucking the bonnets and hats worn by those in the courtyard straight into the blazing maelstrom.

And then it was gone, leaving nothing but smoke, scorched skin and hair … and silence, which lasted but for a brief moment and was immediately replaced with screams and shouts as the people below me in the courtyard began to panic and run about.

A very promising start.

* * * *** * * * *** * * *

The explosion had knocked me to the ground. I quickly arose to see the entire area around us was scorched from the flash fire. All the plants and trees were blackened, their leaves and branches still smoldering. There was a large hole in the Palace wall, large enough to drive Johnathyn’s wagon through it if the wagon had not been blown to pieces and the wooden remains not laying about with smoke rising from the glowing embers. Beckwith was standing not more than twenty decileagues from me, smiling while admiring the results of her folly.

“This will bring the Guard down upon us!” she declares and then begins to laugh. There was no time for me to argue with her.

“Silva! Pamela! You both search that building!” I point to the structure nearest the Palace. There is smoke rolling out of several windows that were facing us. “Search for the injured. If you find any, bring them directly to me.”

“Where will you be?” Silva shouts over her shoulder as she and Pamela race towards the building.

“I will be in the Palace. Look towards the kitchen. Beckwith!” She turns towards me with undisguised glee on her face. “You have your wish. We will talk later about the consequences. Make certain the Queen’s Guard does not interfere with our plans. Do as Alexia ordered or not even Zaphod’s grace will save you from her wrath. Nor mine.”

I do not wait for her answer but hurry towards and through the hole in the wall, followed closely by Olga. We must establish a base of some kind where we can care for the now inevitable injured people. We had all discussed several options while planning for today but the kitchen seemed the best choice, as it was near a large door to permit deliveries, had particularly thick walls and was larger than most other single spaces.

As we turn the last soot covered corner, Olga and I enter the kitchen to find Beckwith’s cousin Gamgee waiting for us.

“What was all that fire!” she demanded. “None of you said anything about fire!”

“That was your cousin’s unplanned contribution. Speak to her about it.”

“Beckwith did that?”

“Without telling any of us about her plans.”

“The vengeful cow! I could have been killed!”

“Beckwith cares not,” I say. “There will be many who will pay the price for her recklessness before the day is over. Are you ready for us?”

“Aye. All doors but one have been locked and barred. You can begin …”

Suddenly, that one unlocked door is thrown open and several men rush in, panic in their eyes. I do not give them even a moment to catch their breaths but, with a flick of my hand, throw them back out the door, slamming it shut behind them.

That was much easier than it should have been. Olga and Gamgee are astonished at what they saw me do.

“By Jillian’s grace!” Olga swears. “Alexia was right! We can do most anything today.”

“Keep control and use your power wisely,” I warn. “The day is young and we are far from success. Beckwith has likely made a hard job more difficult.”

* * * *** * * * *** * * *

To be honest, I didn’t pay a lot of notice to the explosion. Johnathyn and I were a little busy right then, our attention on other things. Like where our hands were. And our mouths. And tongues. I did spot the unexpected glow in the sky. I break our kiss and turn my head in time to see the wall of fire dissipate. Then I hear shouts and screams coming from where I had hoped not to hear them.

“Should that have happened?” asks Johnathyn, still holding me tightly against his body, one arm across my upper back, the other hand on my tight ass.

“No, it shouldn’t have. Something went wrong.” I push away from him but keep a firm grip on his hand.

“What can we do about it?”

“Nothing. We push on.”

Both of us move to the edge of the wall and look over into the courtyard. Lots of pandemonium and no guards. At least this part is on target. Johnathyn reaches into his bag with his free hand and removes a big, curled horn.

“What’s that for?” I ask.

“To get their attention. You said you wanted a big entrance.”

“I did say that.”

I need to go but I can’t release Johnathyn’s hand. He’s not trying to let go of mine either. Finally, he deliberately brings our joined hand to his lips and gently kisses mine. Our entwined fingers slowly separate, hands dropping to our sides.

He hefts the horn, positioning it in his hands. Just before inhaling, he looks over at me.

“Please, Alexia, come home to your family.”

“Zaphod willing, I will.”

He takes a deep breath, clamps his lips on to the mouthpiece and lets loose an ear shattering blast. He takes another breath and does it again but before he finishes, I dash several steps towards the wall and launch myself into the air, falling towards the courtyard below.