Stepping into the World

Stepping out into the World

Part 1

Gerund

Despite what had taken place, the sounds of the night were dominated by insects. The tropical climate, combined with the many fires that had sprung up during the fighting, had draw thousands of chirping insects that filled the night air to the point of being suffocating. On any other night this would have unbearable to the residents of Rek, but on this night they had more pressing concerns.

The fighting was largely over and the forces of Prince Nathan Reinhart were slowly withdrawing, stunned at being so defied on a matter they deemed trivial. They always had a little fun with the ladies of the places they visited, and they never heard complaints before, had they? But this had been different from the moment that the prince had finished fucking one of the many beautiful native girls and she fled in terror, screaming for help, things then turned sour. Now the people had risen against them and one of his own knights had joined with them in the eviction from the island.

“My father gave you this fucking island, you ungrateful northern shits!’ Spit the Prince as he climbed into the boat that would take him away from the island back to his flagship.

“And we northern shits gave your father that throne you will unfortunately inherit, my dear prince,” Calmly stated Reginald Alistair, ruler of Rek.

“Talking to him will do you no good, Lord Reginald,” said the man standing beside Reginald and his wife Cynthia.

“I know Sir Archibald, but it is worth a try,” Reginald wearily replied, “I had hoped that the stories about the Prince were false, I should never have invited him here.”

“I have seen the man and that pack of wolves he runs with decimate a whole town of women and kill any one that got in their way, you are lucky that you caught him before he really got warmed up.” Sir Archibald grimly stated.

“Tell that to the three girls whose lives he and his men have ruined,” retorted Cynthia, her beautiful face covered in soot and blood from the night’s fighting.

Sir Archibald nodded in apology to the woman who he forgot was standing there. He had been impressed by her skill with the Dead Language as well as the ferocity that she had displayed that night and had no intentions of crossing her, even if he would never admit such a thing out loud.

“Forgive me Lady Cynthia, it has been a long night,” he said, ‘and I fear the times will be trying for me and mine once we get back.”

Lady Cynthia shook her head, sincerely doubting that the knight feared his prince or the father that was his king. She had met many brilliant men in her life, but with the exception of her husband Reginald, none had been as dangerously brilliant as Archibald Teres.

“I have no doubt that you will manage.” Reginald interjected, ‘but I wish we could help.”

Sir Archibald was silent for a while, as he watched the Prince and his men head back to his ship, the Red Eagle banner standing out beautifully in the moonlight.

“What will you do?” Archibald asked. “It seems like this may lead to war, or at the least a long embargo that will severely hurt your island.”

“We have plans that we have talked about since we married,” Reginald said, ‘it is time we begin to implement them.”

“We have witnessed the horrors of war and the degradations that people heap on one another and this is a prime example of such, we have decided that we will take measures that will one day lead to a world where all are treated fairly and equally.” Cynthia stated, a fierce light shining in here brilliant blue eyes.

Archibald looked at the two tall, beautiful monarchs that stood beside him. It’s a shame, he thought, there are not enough beautiful people in the world as it is. He knew that the ideals they championed had no place in the real world and would only get them killed, but there was little he could do about it. In any event, he had finally tested his strength against the best of the Reinhart’s and had come out very pleased with the results. He would continue his ascension to power. It was a shame that the Alistairs would not be around to see it.

“It is best if I leave now.” Archibald said. “I do not want the prince to have too much of a head start on me.” He gave the signal to his captain at arms and his men begin to gather and head into their own boats and leave. The Prince had almost reached his three ships which were preparing to leave and would probably have quite a lead on Archibald, with the prince having the fastest ships in the known world.

“Good bye and thank you.’ Reginald said, as he clasped hands with the knight. Cynthia gave the knight a hug, ignoring the astonished look that Archibald and his departing men gave her as she murmured her thanks as well. With that Sir Archibald made his way back to his boats and pushed out to sea. He looked back at the Lord and Lady and their people, still angry, milling about behind them. He knew he would never see them again.

Reginald and Cynthia watched until they could no longer make out Sir Archibald clearly in the boats and the Prince’s fast fleeing ships were shadows barely illuminated by the moonlight. Their subjects had reluctantly put aside their anger and were now going about the business of putting out the fires and taking care of the dead and wounded.

“He’ll be fine.’ Cynthia said. “No one in the Reinhart camp can match him.” She slipped her arm around his waist while he put his around her shoulders. They were both thinking about the many close calls that they’d had that day.

“I am not worried about Archibald.” Reginald said, and then hesitated. “Do you think that our ideas will work?”

“I know they will.” Cynthia confidently replied, “The work we do here will one day lead to a better world.”

Reginald nodded, as if that was all the proof he needed, and turned with his wife and walked back towards their people, to help them through this terrible night and into the future that they would build together, and one day share with the world.

Rek Island, 300 years later

Elinor Signet did not feel as she thought she would at this moment. She had dreamed of this ever since she’d had her first off island mission. The poverty, cruelty, and general hopelessness of the lives of the people had struck her and she had vowed to do all in her power to show the outside world a better way. She had worked from that moment on, 15 years ago, to finally get her people to turn the considerable talents of Rek to the problems facing the world. She had conducted a grassroots campaign and struck a chord with the people, who were tired of hiding and living a myth that the island had been dead for three hundred years.

As she entered into her office in Governance Hall she gave a silly jump of joy, her long blond hair flowing out behind her. She had backed her main opposition and childhood friend Simon Manning into a corner and he had finally recognized that he could not win and the prized Sentinels of Rek Island would be used to better the world, as Reginald and Cynthia had intended. Elinor plopped down into her overstuff chair behind the massive desk that dominated the center of the large office. Her secretary would be in soon and then she could begin the work that she had been destined to carry out.

A knock sounded at her door and she excitedly said come in and was surprised when Simon entered. Simon Manning was of average height with short brown hair and still looked to be in peak condition. The smile on his face was natural and he did not seem like a man who had just lost the biggest political battle in the 290 years since Rek had become a democracy.

“Congratulations Elinor,” he said. “ I know how much you have wanted to go out into the world and start helping people.”

The smile then left his face: “But I still not convinced that you know the full extent of what you are committing us to.’

He continued, now pacing her office and starting to work himself up, as Elinor knew he did when he wanted to give a long speech: “There are no quick fixes to the problems of the world and to think that the Sentinels will have any success at changing the world is ridiculous!”

She raised her hand to silence him, thinking that he would not ruin this moment for her: “I know full well the dangers that face us, the fact that this mission will continue long after I am gone, and that the Sentinels cannot do all the work. As I said before, I am prepared to deal with all the consequences that can be conceived by the enemies we will make.”

“We cannot keep living in luxury, with our society untold decades ahead of the rest of the world, while most people don’t know if they will make it through a week.”

I refuse to stand by and as you know the rest of the island agrees with me.’

She tried not to sound too smug, but Simon did not to notice this as he seemed to finally realized what was about to happen. Not wanting her friend to get too down she said: “We will remain in the shadows in this, the Sentinels will wear costumes that will hide their identities and make it harder to track them.” She let out an exasperated breath. “Reginald and Cynthia wanted us to do this, and if we don’t strike now we may never get another chance.’

Simon was about to respond to this when a knock sounded at the door and in stepped Elinor’s secretary. The man was believed to be the largest on the island, standing at nearly seven feet, but he was ghostly quiet and rarely engaged people in conversations and refused to talk about his former home, the large continent covered by jungles that few ventured to.

“Speaker Signet, I take it you won.” He said that as if it did not matter to him one way or another what had happened.

Elinor laughed. “Contain your enthusiasm, Jamuru and please summon the three Sentinels designated to be the first wave.”

Jamuru gave a small smile, nodded, and left the room. Simon had taken a seat in one of the two chairs directly in front of Elinor’s desk. “Well it’s about to start now, isn’t it?” He said, seemingly more for himself than anything.

“Yes it is.” She answered. “I hope those three are ready for what is to come.”

The Testing Ground

The Testing Ground was the most popular athletic club in all of New Rymark, the capitol of Rek. It was a meeting place for all citizens, young and old. Large fields on the property were used for all sorts of team sports and rooms inside for individual contests or sparring matches. The private rooms on the top floor were the most popular features of the club and in one of the smaller, intimate rooms there was a prime example why in progress.

The small padded room was currently occupied by three females, who had originally gathered to wrestle to take some of the tension away as they waited for the decision on whether Rek would take an active hand in the world’s affairs. The three young women had been designated the first wave by the Speaker and nervously anticipated the summons to get their assignments and begin working. At that moment though, they were enjoying themselves and not worrying about what the future would bring.

The three girls had shown up clad in skimpy robes which displayed their toned, athletic legs, and even smaller thongs that framed their tight asses. The match began with Alexis taking on Kimber. Alexis was blonde with a mass of golden curls that seemed to explode from her head. She was muscular and very tan as a result of spending most of her life on a beach. She had large, firm breasts that were as tan as the rest of her body, a full, powerful butt and thick muscled thighs. She was clad in a tiny black thong that molded itself to her pussy. Her opponent Kimber was clad in a white thong which contrasted nicely with her dark olive skin. She had her medium length dark curly hair tied in a ponytail so as not to get in her brown eyes. An inch shorter than Alexis’s 5’6, she knew that she would have to rely on quickness to even stand a chance.

Alexis had a predatory gleam in her eye and without a word sprang on her opponent. She always loved the sleek, graceful lines of Kimber’s body and her hypnotic movements made Alexis want to just pin her down and molest her in every way she could think of and this was her chance. Kimber had no chance as Alexis came in low and took her legs out from under her. The struggle that followed was intense but extremely one-sided. Finally Alexis proceeded to hold Kimber down on her back and work her way up to sitting on the squirming girl’s chest. Alexis took the moment to enjoy the feel of Kimber’s sweaty body struggling underneath her. She then continued her way up Kimber’s body until she planted her pussy directly on the face of her opponent and began humping vigorously.

Kimber was overwhelmed underneath the powerful buttocks of her blonde opponent. The lack of air combined with the smell of Alexis’s ass and sex were becoming too much for her. Just as she was about to submit Alexis was lifted off of her with a surprised yelp.

“You didn’t think we were going to fight fair did you?” Mackenzie said. Mackenzie was a slim, small breasted red head clad in a purple thong, which had wedged itself in her cunt while jumping Alexis from behind. Despite being lighter, Mackenzie rode Alexis’s back until she could apply a successful body scissors and take away Alexis’s leverage. The body scissors left Alexis face down on the mat with firm, tan ass sticking in the air.

“You alright over there?” Mackenzie asked as she gave Alexis’s ass a hard smack.

“Yeah, what do you want me to do?’ Kimber had climbed to her feet and now stood behind Alexis, admiring her squirming, gyrating ass as she attempted to regain her leverage.

“I think she’s overdressed, how about you?’ Mackenzie said as she tugged the tiny thong that Alexis wore, which caused Alexis to start bucking even more. Kimber smiled and as she moved to take the thong off, Alexis nearly got free of the body scissor that trapped her.

“Hurry!” Mackenzie yelled and Kimber quickly removed the thong, leaving Alexis completely nude. Mackenzie immediately attacked her unprotected sex with a hard slap. This drew a grunt from Alexis and caused her to stop bucking.

“Alright let’s get our friend in a more comfortable position.” Mackenzie said, motioning for Kimber to take up one of Alexis’s arms. Then the two, each holding one of Alexis’s arms, lifted the girl off the mat quickly so that she could not immediately gain her bearings.

The two then lifted the blonde up and slammed her to the mat with a loud thud. The slam drove the wind and most of the remaining fight out of Alexis and her two opponents knew it. They each took a side of the blonde, Mackenzie the right, Kimber the left, and applied a double body scissor.

Both girls pinned each of Alexis’s arms beneath their bodies and drew in close to limit her movement. The result was that Alexis was sealed in a tight embrace, her nude body at the mercy of her two opponents. Kimber begin roughly massaging Alexis’s right breast, kneading and slapping the golden brown orb, occasionally slipping the erect nipple in her mouth. Mackenzie, who was lower on Alexis’s body, was more interested in her opponent’s defenseless pussy.

Mackenzie began slowly massaging Alexis’s exposed sex, drawing moans from the trapped blonde. Kimber decided that since Mackenzie wasn’t interested that she would take the left breast too. The dual stimulation, combined with the heat of the room and the feel and closeness of her two opponent’s bodies, drove Alexis over the edge as she came in a rush all over Mackenzie’s hand.

“We win again.” Kimber stated as she began untangling herself from the sweaty, spent Alexis. But before she could get completely free, Mackenzie stopped her.

“She doesn’t get free until she cleans the mess she made on my hand off.” Mackenzie said with mock seriousness.

Alexis groaned but took the three fingers that were covered in her juices and began to lick them clean. Just as she was about finished a small blue light appeared at the door to the room.

In a mechanical voice it said: “Sentinels codenamed Charmer, Lioness, and Shade are to report to the Speaker’s office in an hour to be debriefed on their mission status.” The light then abruptly faded away.

“Well it looks like we are going to Lomar.” Alexis stated as she gathered her things. She was the most uncertain of the three because she knew how deep the evil and corruption ran on the outside world and how difficult a task fixing it was going to be.

“Don’t sound so excited, Alexis.” Mackenzie teased as the three began leaving the room. Alexis merely shook her head and left the room.

‘She’s excited but she tries to hide it because we are younger.” Kimber noted. “She can’t wait for the challenge and seeing if her abilities match up with those on the outside.”

Mackenzie looked at her friend and merely nodded. It was almost impossible to hide anything from the observant Kimber and Mackenzie always trusted her pronouncements.

“Come on you two so we’re not late!” Alexis yelled from the showers at the end of the hall. Not wanting to keep their friend waiting they hurried to the showers.

Lomar, Capitol of the Teres Empire

As Emperor Sebastian III of the Teres Empire sat in is opulent audience chamber awaiting the beginning of the second part of his day, he contemplated the odor of the city wafting into the room. Despite his repeated complaints, the mages that maintained the security of the massive Divine Gardens had not been able to completely do away with the foul odor that permeated the city of Lomar. To the Emperor, it was like the bad smells combined with the good ones to create a truly horrific smell that could drive a man mad. Trying to forget about the smell he instead concentrated on the massive audience chamber that he now sat in.

The audience chamber was at the center of Divine Gardens and was considered the room where the various architects had used the greatest of their skill. The construction of the room had taken many years, due to the fact that Sebastian’s ancestor, Archibald Teres had ignited a civil war and taken the throne from the ruling Reinharts. Archibald never had a chance to enjoy the throne or oversee the finishing of Divine Gardens, because he spent the last three months of his life hunting down the remaining Reinharts and executing them. He died of a cold while searching for the last two members of the family, a minor cousin and his daughter.

Behind the large desk that Sebastian sat was a portrait of Archibald, standing proud and regal, dressed in full armor as a knight in his day would have. The rest of the room was filled with other pictures as well, from great campaigns led by Archibald’s son, the first Sebastian. Sebastian I had spent the first 6 years of his reign consolidating and then expanding the empire. He proved to be a brilliant military commander and the only reason he quit campaigning was because the empire was poorly governed due to the unrest of the past 6 years.

When he got back he almost immediately got construction of Divine Gardens restarted. The palace took another 7 years to complete and the audience chamber had been redone 3 times before the Emperor was satisfied with it. The room was decorated with murals and paintings of all kinds of scenes, from mythology to great battles in Teres history. One of the most famous murals was of the destruction of Rek Island by its rulers in an attempt at revenge on the Reinharts. The mural depicted Reginald and Cynthia, beautiful faces contorted in madness, dealing with some smoky, sinister being, even as their home is destroyed around them.

The murals and portraits gave the illusion that the large room was full but in fact outside of the large desk behind which Sebastian set and the chairs that set across from it, there was very little in room. There was a conference table to the right of Sebastian’s desk that was used for large meetings but other than that the room was very sparse.

Sebastian’s musings were interrupted by a hard knock on the door. Sebastian sighed as he knew that his free time was up.

“Come in.” He said as the door opened and his bodyguard Quint stepped in. Quint was a short, ugly man who bore many scars from battles all over the world. He had been burned, shot, stabbed, hanged, and nearly trampled to death. Despite this he was the most agile, powerful man that the Emperor had ever seen.

“Chief Constable Shaun Gregory to see you, sire.” Quint said in his usual gruff manner.

“Send him in Quint.” Sebastian said reluctantly. He disliked the Constable for many reasons. The man was tall, handsome, and charming; all things that the Emperor was not. His confidence and presence dominated a room and it made the Emperor feel small in comparison. Combine all this with the fact that he was dedicated and good at his job and the Emperor loathed him.

“It is a pleasure to see you again, your majesty.” Gregory said as he gave a deep, perfect bow before his emperor. He then straightened into equally perfect attention.

“Yes I’m sure it is.” Sebastian said dismissively. “Please take a seat and tell us how we can be of service.” The sooner this was over the better, thought the Emperor.

“I would like to make a request that might startle you, your majesty.” Gregory said in his booming, mesmerizing voice. He drew in a deep breath and appeared nervous for the first time since the Emperor had known him.

“I come here today to tell you that we are losing the war against crime, your majesty.” The look on his face told Sebastian that he did not like the taste of that statement. “Without help, I believe that the situation will only escalate.” He paused again and looked the Emperor directly in the eye. “I would request that we be allowed to train female mages to be constables.”

Sebastian’s eyes widened and then he gave a snorting laugh. He could not believe the fool had wasted his time with this. Gregory turned red as the Emperor continued to laugh, his feelings obviously hurt.

“We are sorry, Chief Constable, but surely you know that women could never be trusted to handle such an important job.” He said. “We are disappointed that you could even consider such a thing.”

“But, your majesty, we are mages for the most part and the women mages in the city have as much command over the Dead Language as any man!” He seemed amazed that the Emperor had shot down his suggestion so quickly.

“Shaun, we will hear no more on the matter.” Sebastian said calmly, enjoying having complete control over the situation. “It is against the very laws of society to do such a thing and we will not endanger our daughters in such a crude fashion. Either become a better leader and get more out of your men or we will find someone who can. Dismissed.”

Gregory rose stiffly and offered a bow, not as crisp as the one before, and spun on his heel and left the chamber. Sebastian relaxed and let out a contented sigh, glad the meeting was over and that he managed to ruffle the Chief Constable. He already knew that the constables were unable to contain the criminal empire that ran throughout Lomar and into other cities in the Teres Empire. He was, after all, the kingpin who oversaw direction of the underworld.

His father had come up with the idea in one of his few moments of lucidity. He had believed that the best way to control the empire was not through the constables or the army, but a less visible force that would use any method necessary to get the job done. The result was that he had waged a covert war to take over the underworld and use it to maintain power. He had won the war and then taught his son how to use the underworld to run the empire. Gregory was a very able Chief Constable and did admirably well considering the odds were stacked against him, but he was no more than a public scapegoat that allowed the Emperor to do as he pleased through the criminal underworld.

Another knock at his door and Quint stuck his head in. “Her Royal Highness Princess Agnes to see you, sire.”

Sebastian audibly groaned and wished for a second that he was his brother Victor, somewhere drugged out of his mind taken advantage of some poor woman. He shook the thought and steeled himself for what would probably be a long meeting.

‘Send her in, Quint.” He said resignation heavy in his voice.

Divine Gardens, the south end

Victor Teres loved drugs, especially the ones that he created. Mixing magic and hallucinogenic chemicals as he had learned to by reading the notes from his dead mother’s lab, he had taken mental journeys that were beyond description. Today he had decided to go easy, due to the fact that he had guests, and was floating pleasantly between the past and the present.

The present involved a whore and the daughter of a prominent businessman named Moira. The whore, whose name Victor hadn’t bothered to learn, was skillfully molesting the young girl who was unable to properly defend herself. The girl was slim and petite, with golden curls that matched well with her pale skin. She looked like a doll, and Victor was very interested in playing with her.

Moira was nude and bound in a tight spread eagle that left her immobile and helpless in the face of the whore’s erotic assault. What really took the fight out of the young blonde was the high brought on by Nectar, Victor’s greatest creation. He had taken some of his mother’s best work and improved upon it tenfold, leading to a potent drug that a first time user could not hope to handle, as was the case with Moira.

As Victor sat in the chair beside his massive, four post bed, he enjoyed the sight of the skillful whore going up and down the young girl’s body. The whore was tall and dark-haired, with a full bosom and long legs. She wore heavy make-up that almost hid her advancing age, but she was more than adequate for the scene that Victor was shooting for. The whore was now sucking and biting the nipples of Moira’s small breasts, causing the helpless girl to moan in protest. The whore then slid down, gently kissing the flat belly of her captive. She was a veteran user of Nectar, and was hardly fazed by the amount in the room at the moment.

As Victor enjoyed his private sex show, he inhaled the smells of the room. The smoke of the drug mixed with the smell of sex and sweat, thrilling the prince. The drug took him back to his youth and to the woman that made him who he was today, Annabelle. Annabelle had been a serving girl in Divine Gardens, one of the many thousands the massive royal estate needed to keep functioning. Prince Victor had only shyly flirted with her, until one hot late summer day.

He’d been 16 at the time and was returning from one of his magic lessons. He was making his way back to his quarters, taking an obscure passage to his room in the center area of the palace, when he had come across Annabelle cleaning.

In two weeks the royal family was having the 18^th birthday party of Princess Agnes and the maids were out in full force everywhere. The massive palace needed an army to maintain and on special occasions the sooner preparations got started the better. So seeing a maid cleaning was not out of the ordinary, but what she was wearing was.

The pretty raven-haired maid was wearing a skimpy shift that was soaked through with sweat. The maid was only about 5’1, but had large, round breasts and full hips that froze the prince in his tracks. The transparency of the shift allowed him to see her hard, pink nipples sticking out and the darkness of her pubic hair. She mopped the floor, dancing about on tiny, pale feet with a grace that made the prince go hard in an instant. She looked up from her cleaning, steely blue eyes appraising the prince, full lips set in a disapproving pout.

“Your Royal Highness, I did not hear you, forgive me for my state of dress.” She said it like she hoped he would not.

“No, forgive me.” He said, his voice coming out in an awkward squeak. “Aren’t you afraid that someone will come along, I mean…?”

“Do mean someone come along and has the same reaction that you have?” She grinned and looked directly at the bulge in the prince’s pants, causing him to turn red and begin to stammer.

“It’s all right, but I was wondering if we could do something about it.” She propped her mop against the wall and walked up to the prince, full breasts swaying underneath the thin fabric. She took his hand and led him into one of the many unoccupied rooms along the corridor she’d been mopping. The room was fresh and clean with new sheets on the bed.

“I just changed the linens in here, so everything is nice and clean.” She said as she drew him close to her, she smelled of sweat and some fragrance he could not name. He asked her about it and she only laughed, and proceeded to undress him.

That day had been the best of his life; she had showed him things that he hadn’t even thought possible. Despite being a year younger she was a skilled lover who put to shame every woman he had been with since. Her body was not only curvaceous, but amazingly fit as well. He remembered times when he’d just lain beside her after lovemaking, feeling the muscles in her back, arms, and thighs.

Their relationship continued for 2 perfect years, but the 3^rd year of their relationship had been darkened by the madness of Empress Cassia, Victor’s mother. Annabelle supported him throughout the ordeal, as his mother threatened the very empire with her amazing magical ability. But eventually she had been defeated and executed. Thinking that the ordeal was over, he had been devastated when Annabelle had visited him a week after his mother’s execution.

“I’m leaving, Victor.’ She said, the usual playful smile gone from her beautiful face.

He had sat there stunned, and then began to laugh. “I needed a good laugh, thank you.” He said, wiping tears from his eyes.

“I’m not joking, I really am leaving.” She sat down beside him on the bed, in the same room where they had begun their relationship 3 years ago. “This past crisis really made me realize that I have things that I want to do, and even though you don’t mean it, you are holding me back.”

He had grown angry while she spoke and could not keep the hurt and the anger from bursting out. “ You fucking cunt, after all I’ve been through you are just going to leave me, I always feared that I was just some joke to you, you dumb slut, and now I know that you never cared for me, bitch!”

She bore his insults calmly and seemed unaffected by them. This only made Victor madder and he got up and began pacing around the room: “Besides, in the real world, men will eat alive a tasty piece of ass like you, and not think twice about it.” He grinned now, thinking he was hurting her. “What will you do then, when some filthy criminal is stuffing your ass, because I won’t be there to help you.”

“I can take care of myself.” Was all she said and her continued calm drove Victor over the edge and he moved to slap her. But he never closed the distance, however, as she told his body to freeze and not to finish the action. The shock was frozen on his face as he stood still as a statue, unable to move an inch.

“I learned the Dead Language from my father, who was a constable.” She said as she got up to leave. ‘I really did care about you, Victor, but I will not be your secret play toy while my own dreams go unfulfilled. Maybe we will meet again one day. Goodbye.” With that she left the room and his life, never to be seen again.

That had been 7 years ago and everyday he went over and over the conversation and ways he could have made her stay, but always his regret was washed away by his anger at her for leaving him. Soon after he had discovered his mother’s notes and began experimenting with drugs, a hobby that made the loneliness go away, for a while at least.

He finally came back to the present, and realized that something was wrong. The whore and Moira were no longer participants in his sex show, but were in fact floating above the bed, desperately clutching at their throats. Both nude women were blue in the face and Victor released them immediately, sending them crashing back onto the bed, gasping for air.

“Um… sorry.” He said, releasing his anger in a deep breath. He had ruined his little sex show, but his trip down memory lane had taken him out of the mood anyway. He got up and prepared to cloth his nude form and get these two women out of here.

As he got dressed he wished that he could find a woman that was as strong and challenging as Annabelle had been. This time, he thought, I will be in control and she won’t leave until I am done with her. Feeling the anger coming back, he shook himself and turned to gather up the women and get them out of his room.

Ground floor of Sentinel Academy, Rek Island

As Mackenzie, Alexis, and Kimber enter into Dr. Arc’s lab, they were still buzzing over the official okay of their mission. When they had received the summons to see the Speaker, they knew that things had probably gone in their favor, but to hear the Speaker make it official still filled them with excitement and anticipation. Now they headed to Dr. Arc’s lab to see the new suits they would be wearing during the mission. Dr. Arc had been working nonstop to finish the work of the late Dr. Korvor, his mentor. Korvor had worked on a new method to use magic to strengthen and improve spider silk. After more than 20 years of work he had finally come up with a formula that should produce ultra-strong silk, but he had grown sick and spent the last few years of his life living on the beach, trying to recover enough to finish his work. With the extreme level of danger the Sentinels were about to face, Dr. Arc had put all his energy into finishing Korvor’s work.

“Congratulations, ladies.” Ian said as the three filed into his cluttered lab. He was a tall handsome man with long dark grey-streaked hair that reached down to the small of his back.

‘I am pleased to announce that I have finally finished Dr. Korvor’s amazing work.’ He said with a definite hint of pride in his voice. “Tomorrow morning you will have your suits ready, all made according to the designs given to me, but now a brief demo of what the suit will look like, Kathryn!’ He said as he looked at the door to the small bathroom in his lab.

Out of the bathroom stepped a teenage girl clad in a form fitting white bodysuit that seemed to have been made on her instead of for her. Her every graceful movement was highlighted by the suit, every muscle flex magnified by the tightness of the suit. The three women were rendered speechless by the combination of the perfection of the suit and the beauty of Dr. Arc’s teenage model.

“I’m sure you all have heard of Kathryn Pennington.’ Dr. Arc said, indicating the teen model, who nodded and waved shyly to her audience. ‘Kathryn is the most advanced Sentinel we have seen since the inception of the program 280 years ago. She will probably be the first Sentinel to fly.’ He finished in a tone that said he barely believed it himself.

When Reginald and Cynthia closed the island and faked its death, they had decided that they would use magic in ways that no one had ever thought of before. One of the first projects they undertook was the linking ritual. Both Reginald and Cynthia believed that as long as women were viewed as inferior physically to men, people like Prince Nathan would attempt to prey on them. So they decided to take four elements; fire, earth, water, and wind, and link them to Rekans. The men were linked to water and wind with little or no change, but the women were another story. The women linked to earth and fire were far more powerful than original estimations had predicted. Most women could now match far larger men in strength with no strain at all. Also the women showed an extreme resistance to heat and fire, and in some cases could exercise limited control over the element. These developments set up the next phase of the Alistair’s plan, the Sentinel program.

The Sentinel program was a combination of age old magic and the then young field of science. The candidates were the absolute best and brightest from the island then later from around the world and were treated with various medicines and magic in an innovative combination. The results were strongly in favor of women, with the first male Sentinel not appearing until the fourth generation. The graduates of the program usually had at least 2 superpowers, some more.

Kathryn broke the mold completely, for the instructors were still working to identify all of her powers. And at 16, she was still growing and would not complete the program for another 2 years.

Dr. Arc finally broke the awkward moment created by his praise of Kathryn. He drew himself up and prepared to provide an explanation of the benefits of the suit.

“I will now tell you the benefits of Korvorian Silk.” He smiled as he said the name. “The suit went through a similar process that the Sentinels themselves experience, an ingenious blend of science and magic, particularly protection magic.”

He moved closer to Kathryn, whose graceful pose showed off the highlights of the suit and her athletic body. “The suit is fireproof, bulletproof, shock absorbent, and possesses mild healing properties.” Ian said, looking up at the ceiling as he tried to maintain order of all the features in his head.

“The suit will not have zippers or buttons but will be voice activated, when you step into the suit, just say “form” and the suit will do so, when you want out, just say “release”. Each suit will only answer to its owner and will recognize wounded areas and tighten or loosen accordingly.”

He seemed to have exhausted all the features that he could think of at the moment and nodded his thanks to Kathryn, who smiled and turned silently to head to the bathroom.

“Wait Kathryn, how does it feel?” Kimber called to the retreating back of the teen.

Kathryn turned and regarded Kimber, and seemed to really think over the question. “It feels like I’m naked, it takes some getting used to.” She said, and then hesitated for a second. “Congratulations and good luck on your mission.” With that she turned and left the room.

“Shy one, isn’t she?’ Mackenzie said, looking at her 2 companions. “The suits will look exactly like what we described, Doctor?”

“Yes, even though I did disagree with some of your designs I followed them exactly, as you will see tomorrow.” He looked at his watch and then looked up at the three girls. “I’m afraid our time is up and the Speaker is waiting in the Portal Room. I will see you all in the morning with your new suits, until then goodbye.” He shook hands with each woman as they filed out of the room.

The three made their way to the Portal Room, talking about the new suits and their personal designs. As they entered the Portal Room, they saw Speaker Signet and Jamuru waiting for them. The Portal room was on the other end of the hall from Dr. Arc’s lab and had the same tight, drab design. The only things in the room were chairs, five in all, a terminal that hummed and blinked, and the circular platform that was the Portal itself. It was considered standard procedure and good luck for the away team to meet in the Portal Room the day before a mission.

“Good Evening, Sentinels. I hope the demo of the new suits was to your liking?” She smiled at the nods she received. “Well just a few points before I let you go for the evening. One, all your male counterparts are in deep cover in various groups that will be key in changing the regime and culture of the Teres Empire, and will not be available to help at all instances. That does not mean you should not ask for help, just be prepared to go without. Your base is operational and will be underneath a toy shop in Midtown run by one of our mages, Harry Page. You are not to move around during the day unless in the case of emergency. We have diagramed the city and the criminal routes used by the Vulture, so I will leave the method of attack to you, once you have a feel for the city.” She took a deep breath and looked at the three women standing before her. “The mission you are about to begin is difficult beyond imagining and filled with dangers, with enemies on every side. We will mobilize the rest of the Sentinels as soon as we can, but the information and experience you gain in these first few months will be crucial. Enjoy the night and I will see you in the morning.”

The three women all hugged the Speaker, with Jamuru impassively watching the display of affection. The three women then made their way out of building, to enjoy their last night before beginning the toughest test of their lives.

End of Part 1

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