Chapter VII

“This has been nice,” Gwen said as they lay comfortably wrapped around one another half dozing in the warm, early evening air.  Summer meant a late sunset so they still had several hours before Geoff’s service.  Lacey had come out briefly after Aphrodite had vanished to let Randi know her preparations were complete.  Otherwise they had been left totally alone.

Randi tightened her hold, simply glad to have Gwen in her arms again.  She couldn’t believe she had let this slip from her grasp for any length of time and it made her cherish the preciousness of it now.  Without thought, Gwen let her hand track upwards from Randi’s torso to gently trace the planes and hollows of her face.  Randi smiled at the renewed intimacy the sensation caused to course through her.  “Yeah,” she agreed softly.  “It really has.  I could do this with you for the rest of our days together and never grow tired of it; never wish for another thing from life.”  Gwen shifted, sitting up enough to lean on one elbow and look down into Randi’s face.  Randi cracked one blue eye open just a slit to return Gwen’s gaze.  “What?”

“You’re serious, aren’t you?  You’d give everything up again....”

Randi nodded.  “It’s not worth the cost for me to remain a Sabre.  As much a part of me as it is, it’s not nearly as much a part of me as you are.  I can live without the excitement of being a Sabre as long as I have the peace of being with you.”

Gwen cupped Randi’s face and spent a long moment just staring into her eyes.  Then she leaned down and captured Randi’s lips in a long, passionate kiss.  It went on until their hands started to wander and air ran out.  Then Gwen simply transferred her attention to Randi’s jaw line, nibbling up to her ear.  Randi tilted her head, making sure Gwen had plenty of room to work with and felt the bard smile with her movement.  “I love you, Randi.”

“And I love you, Gwen... so much.”  She slapped the ground.  “I can’t believe I nearly lost this.  I can’t believe I nearly let you get away from me.”

Gwen returned her hands to Randi’s face, turning it gently and stroking Randi’s cheeks with her thumbs.  “Randi?  Look at me.”  It took a moment, but finally Randi blinked her eyes open and Gwen’s heart wrenched at the profound sadness she saw there.  “Don’t.  Don’t even think about going there.”

“But....”

“Do you really think I was going to let you go... especially when we have fought so hard to be together??  Randi, I stayed away because you needed me to, but I was never far away.  And I always, always kept an eye on you as much as I could.” Gwen smiled wryly.  “Poor Reed... I think I must have driven her half insane.  We owe them a lot for sticking with us through all of this, you know.”

“I know.  I’m planning to give them all some time off now before we have to start the last of our work here.  We’ll need their help then.”  Gwen couldn’t stop the grin at Randi’s use of plural pronouns where the two of them were concerned.  That as much as anything else marked a fundamental change in Randi’s attitude.  Before it had always been singular... a solo responsibility. 

“We are, huh?”

“Yeah,” not picking up Gwen’s excitement immediately.  “We’ve got a lot of work to finish in as short a time as we can manage.  I wanna go home.”  Gwen dropped her head onto Randi’s chest and hugged her hard.  Startled, Randi returned the embrace instinctively and kissed the top of the blonde head.  After a few minutes of silence, Gwen relaxed her hold just slightly and she fell into a half-doze to the rhythmic beat of Randi’s heartbeat beneath her ear.  “Gwen?”

“Sleepin’” she mumbled, then frowned when Randi chuckled soundlessly.  She swatted futilely at the moving surface she was resting on.  “Be still, Mattress... sleepin’ here.”  Randi’s chuckle became an outright laugh and Gwen couldn’t stop the gasp that the sound caused any more than she could stop the tears from springing to her eyes or the smile from spreading across her lips.  “I love that sound.”

Randi smiled.  “It feels good to be able to do that again.”  She squeezed Gwen’s body gently, reveling in the sensations that caused to ripple through her.  “Gwen?”

“Hmm?”

“Did you really?  Did you really keep an eye on me?”

“Yep.  I sure did.”

Randi blew out a breath.  “I’m glad.  Even though I didn’t know it then, it’s nice to know you were looking out for me in spite of everything.  I felt....”

“What, love?” 

“I... not abandoned, exactly – especially since I sent you away – but I was so lonely.  Even once you were here again I was so alone.”

“Why didn’t you tell me you were struggling so hard, Sweetheart?  You know I would have done anything I could have to help you.”

“I know.”  Randi shrugged.  “I’m not sure really.  I don’t know if it had something to do with whatever it was I was fighting or it was just warrior pride or.... I dunno.  It was... I’m not sure how to describe it.  It felt like... if I told you, I failed.  I couldn’t protect you if you knew.  It’s...  I dunno,” she said again.  “It doesn’t make much sense if I think about it now, especially trying to explain it.  But it was so clear to me then.  I need you to understand that, Gwen.  I didn’t do anything maliciously.”

“Oh, I know that, Randi.  I’d have kicked your ass pronto if I’d thought otherwise.” A beat.  “I did wonder if you still loved me a time or two, but....”

“I never stopped loving you, Sweetheart.  You have to believe that.”

Gwen patted the chest underneath her ear, feeling the rapid beating slow perceptibly with just her tactile reassurance.  “I know, Love.  Aphrodite had to remind me once or twice, but in my heart and in my soul, I knew.”

It hurt knowing Gwen has suffered a loss of faith in her... in them... even briefly, but Randi really couldn’t blame Gwen either – not with what they had been through.  It wasn’t like she had been able to explain things to Gwen... especially her own crisis of faith.  It only served to strengthen her resolve to get them out of the circle.  They deserved whatever peace they could find.

“I’m sorry,” Gwen whispered, bringing Randi’s attention back to the present.  “It hurt me so much to think that even though I knew better.”

“S’all right, Love.  It’s past and we have the rest of our lives to look forward to here.  And that’s just the beginning for us.”  She stuck her hand in her pocket and pulled out the circlet she’d hadn’t let out of her reach since Gwen had closed her hand around it.  “I think you might want this back,” holding up the Soulmate’s ring.

Gwen accepted it with tears in her eyes and met Randi equally wet ones.  “It hurt a lot to take that off.  Never again, love.”  Their lips met for an eternity to seal the promise.

“Never again,” Randi swore.

Gwen didn’t answer verbally, but she tightened her hold on Randi.  For a long while, they watched the effects of the breeze as it danced across the grasses and flowers and trees.  It was a lovely symphony... soothing and relaxing and it caused them both to fall back into a somnolent state.  It was comfortable in the way so many things hadn’t been in a long time.

Eventually Randi stretched a little beneath Gwen’s body and patted her gently on the back. “Gwen, Sweetheart?  C’mon.  Nice as this has been, we need to get back to the palace and prepare for Geoff’s service.”  She waited, then smiled when Gwen clenched her fists and mewed before she stretched and blinked her eyes open.  Gwen tilted her head up to meet Randi’s amused blue eyes gazing back at her affectionately.  “Hey, Beautiful.  We need to get up and head back.”  Gwen stretched again and nodded but settled right back down on Randi’s chest, drawing a smile from the warrior.  She let them remain that way for a few more minutes, then slowly edged into a sitting position, bringing Gwen up with her.  Gwen tilted her head back enough to look at Randi, a distinct frown on her face.

“I was comfortable where I was, you know,” she complained, but there was a definite twinkle in the back of her green eyes.

“I know,” Randi agreed.  “So was I.  But I’ve got to get into that uniform to pay my final respects to your father and it takes me a few minutes to get into it.  Besides, I have a surprise for you.”

“You do?  What kind of a surprise?”

“A nice surprise, but we have to get up and go back to the palace first.”

“All right,” Gwen grumbled, “but this better be good.”

Randi chuckled and shook her head, standing and bringing Gwen up with her.  Then they gathered up the blanket and the remains of their picnic supplies and headed back through the gardens.  The air was sweet, the heat of the day having pulled the fragrance from the flowers and left it hanging heavily in the garden itself.  Even the light breeze didn’t disperse it too much, although....  Gwen took a deep breath, tasting a particular sweetness on the back of her tongue with the inhalation.  She turned to Randi with a tiny, incredulous smile.

“Honeysuckle?”

“Um hmm.  They thought I was nuts when I told them I wanted hedges of the stuff.  But I glared at them and they planted it anyway.”  Randi shrugged sheepishly when Gwen laughed at her admission.  “I needed it here... as a sort of promise.  It reminded me of you.”

“You know... even though we’re not going to stay here very long, I’m glad you took the time and effort to do this.  This is actually my favorite part of the whole palace.”

“Mine too,” Randi said, maneuvering them back towards the kitchen.  “I was out here a lot while you were gone.  Made me think of better times.”

Gwen didn’t have a response to that so she merely gripped Randi’s hand more firmly before they crossed the threshold into the palace and then to the kitchen.  There was no one there, which was a little surprising given the time of day, but Randi could see both Ella’s and Rosie’s handiwork left behind.  She made a mental note to thank them later, then put the basket and blanket back where Rosie had taken them from while Gwen grabbed up the few dirty dishes and washed them.  Within a few minutes they were done and headed down the long, twisting corridor to their suite.

The guards snapped to attention at their approach and Randi stopped before entering the room.  “Report,” she commanded quietly. 

“Empress,” the senior non-com said, bowing his head slightly in respect.  “It’s been quiet.  The workmen left about twenty minutes ago and word is that everyone has returned to their rooms to prepare for the service.  We did get a report of some unrest in the rehabilitation compound, but Tiny went over to check things out and we haven’t heard anything since.”

A frown crossed Randi’s features.  “Has he reported back in?”

The guard nodded.  “Yes ma’am.  He is in his quarters.  Shall I summon him?”

Randi nodded.  “Please.  Have him report to me immediately.”

“Aye, sir,” popping off a salute and receiving a snappy one in return.  He reached for his comm unit even as Randi opened the door and guided Gwen inside until she stopped completely just passed the threshold.  Randi had to ease her forward a couple steps just so she could close the door behind them.  Then she leaned down to catch the stunned look on Gwen’s face.

“You like?”

Gwen nodded mutely while her eyes continued to roam around the brand new room.  Everything had been changed or replaced, except the tile floor.  There was new paint on the walls, new curtains at the windows, new rugs on the floor and new furniture throughout.  And it was all similar to what they had in their home - no more of the garish, vulgar pretentiousness that had been the décor.  Gwen turned to regard Randi with astonishment.

“How...?  Why...?”

A knock on the door saved her from having to answer immediately.  “I’ll answer, I promise; just let me speak to Tiny real quick first, all right?”

Gwen nodded, dropping Randi’s hand to wander around the room, amazed at the changes.  Randi watched her a minute before she turned back to the door and bade the guard to open it.

“Ma’am?  Tiny is here to see you.”

Randi nodded.  “Please come in, Tiny.”  The chief was dressed casually and Randi could tell he’d dressed rather quickly probably right out of the shower.  She motioned him to a chair and took one herself.  “I’m sorry, Tiny.  If I had known you were in the shower, I would have asked them to wait until you were done.  It wasn’t that critical.”

Tiny smiled.  “Well, I was just stepping out when the message came.  It’s why you got bare feet and a tropical print shirt, sir.  It was the first thing I grabbed; though if Reed sees me wandering around in public with this thing on, she’s liable to burn it and kick my ass. “

“She hates it huh?”

“With a passion,” Tiny replied solemnly and cleared his throat.  “Is there something you needed from me, Empress?”

Randi shuddered, but before she could speak a light touch on her shoulder made her look up into compassionate green eyes.  Without ever breaking contact with Randi, Gwen responded softly.  “Tiny, I know it’s probably against every rule, regulation and protocol the Sabres have, but do you think when it’s just us together - not in public - maybe we could be Randi and Gwen to you?  We’re not going to have these titles for very long, ya know.”

Tiny smiled, and though they couldn’t see it they could hear it in his voice.  “As my queen commands, so shall it be.”

They turned to him simultaneously, then they each popped him on the leg.  “Smartass,” they mumbled together.  Tiny burst into delighted laughter.

“God, I have missed you two.  Now,” becoming more serious.  “Was there something you needed, my friend, or did you just want to see what kind of outlandish civilian clothes I have?”

“Actually I was wondering what you got called over to the rebel compound for.  The guards said there was some sort of unrest?”

Tiny relaxed and gave them a reassuring smile.  “Nothing bad, I promise.  Apparently Gwen has made such a dramatic impact on the folks in rehab over there that when they found out her father had passed away, they asked for permission to attend the service for him this evening.”

Gwen gasped and Randi covered her hand in support.  “What did you tell them?”

“I explained the venue; told them about the limited space, but I also told them they would be welcome until space ran out, BUT if there was any trouble they would be made to leave.  We will have a large enough military presence there that we will be able to handle any outbreaks of trouble.  I have already handed out instructions to that effect.”

“Are you expecting trouble then?” Gwen asked.  “Tiny, I don’t want Daddy’s service disrupted.  I can’t do that to my mother.”

“No, Gwen... I’m not.  But we believe in being safe instead of sorry.  They were very courteous and understanding about the whole thing.  They just want to show their support.  I suggested they have a candlelight vigil they could all attend after the service was over.  I thought Gwen might possibly stop by for it,” turning his attention to Randi.

Randi nodded.  “I think we could both stop by for something like that,” turning her head to Gwen.  “If you want to, I mean.”

“I’d like that.”

Tiny nodded and rose from his place.  “All right.  I’ll make sure to tell the folks over there.  But now I’ve gotta go get dressed before Reed sees me in this shirt.  I’d hate to lose it.  I got it on my very first shore leave, too many years ago to count now.”  He scooted out the door before either of them could comment.

Gwen held out a hand that Randi accepted with alacrity, pulling a startled Gwen into her lap.  Gwen giggled and wrapped her arms around Randi’s neck, giving and receiving a long hug.  “Well, this certainly wasn’t what I was intending when I offered you my hand... not that I’m complaining,” she added when Randi’s eyebrow arched into her hairline.

“So what do you think of your new boudoir, my queen?”

Gwen swatted at Randi, then tucked her head under Randi’s chin.  “I love it,” she said.  “You knew I would.  I figured out the how... that was Jake, wasn’t it?”  Randi nodded, her eyes twinkling.  “But Honey... why?  I mean....” motioning around her.

“Because you hated it, and honestly so did I once I saw it through your eyes.  Yuri did what I asked him to.  It presented a front I wanted people to see... opulence and power.  But it’s not what we’re about.”  She shrugged.  “Since we do need to stay here a little while longer, I figure we may as well be comfortable in surroundings that don’t make us want to scream for mercy.”

Gwen chuckled.  “Yeah, that about sums up the way I felt in here before.  I wanted to take my staff and start hitting things.  It wasn’t pretty.”

Randi smiled and kissed the top of her head, then they gently stood from the chair.  “C’mon, Love.  Let’s get dressed.”

For Gwen it was a lot like déjà vu.  She dressed slowly in the same black suit she had worn to Randi’s memorial service fifteen months previously.  Only this time Randi was getting dressed beside her and it wasn’t pouring rain outside.

It didn’t take Gwen long.  She twisted up her hair and applied minimal make-up before adding earrings, then she slipped into her suit.  Then she sat down on the bed to watch Randi transform into the Empress and Sabre Commandant.

Every movement was precise and not a motion was wasted.  The hair went into a braid with a wry smile as Randi remembered Geoff’s reaction to her leaving it down for Gwen.  Then came the T-shirt and the trousers, then Randi sat down and pulled on the boots, standing again to stomp them into place.  The sound made Gwen smile sadly.  It reminded her of the first time she’d heard it - on the night that Randi had kissed her for the first time when Randi had disappeared from her life for fifteen months.

Randi gazed at the tunic for a long time.  It held a lot of memories – a lifetime of them.  She didn’t even realize Gwen had moved until she felt a hand on her shoulder.  She met Gwen’s eyes and held them even when Gwen slipped the jacket from her hands.  Gwen held it opened and waited patiently for Randi to extend her arms.  Randi stood silent and still for a long moment, the implications weighing heavily on her shoulders.  Gwen folded the tunic over one arm and gently rubbed Randi’s back until she felt Randi relax into her touch.  “C’mon, Sweetheart,” opening the jacket again.  “Daddy was always proud when you were a Sabre; he said it was a kinship he was thrilled the two of you shared.”

Randi didn’t answer, but she extended her arms and took the tunic, shrugging it into place.  Then she reached for the buttons, only to have her hands slapped away by Gwen who had circled around in front of her.  She looked down with a raised eyebrow though she couldn’t hide the twinkle in her eyes.

“My privilege,” Gwen assured Randi and Randi let her arms fall back to her sides.  Gwen buttoned the jacket to Randi’s neck, then Randi did the clasp that kept the neck closed.  She slid her sais into her boots and looked at Gwen before picking up the sabre.  She offered it to Gwen who gladly accepted it reverently and wrapped her arms around Randi’s slim waist to fasten it on her uniform.  Then Gwen stood back to appreciate the picture Randi presented, seeing the presence Randi wore like a cloak.  Randi flushed under Gwen’s regard and Gwen blushed in return.  Clearing her throat, Randi broke the tableau and snatched up her gloves, pulling them on then picking up her cover and tucking it under one arm. Then she offered her arm to Gwen who glanced down at her bare feet. 

“One sec,” she said before Randi pulled her to a halt.  Gwen tilted her head in question.  “Randi?”    Randi strode into the closet and picked up Gwen’s shoes, then knelt at Gwen’s feet.  Gwen balanced her hands on Randi’s shoulders as Randi slid the shoes onto her feet then stood.  “I feel a little like Cinderella,” Gwen said softly.

Randi gave her a crooked smile.  “Does that make me Prince Charming?” extending her arm to Gwen again.  Gwen tucked her hand into the crook of Randi’s elbow and smiled up at her as they made their way out the door, picking up an honor guard on their way to Jill’s room.

“I hope not,” Gwen said seriously.  “I married the most beautiful, charming woman in the world, and she’s the Empress.  It’d be a real let down to find out she’d transformed into a male prince.”

Randi blinked, caught completely off-guard by Gwen’s pronouncement though part of her was rather tickled by it.  In light of the circumstances though, and in an effort to maintain a solemn air, she merely nodded gravely, then leaned over to whisper in Gwen’s ear.  “I’m fairly certain it would be something of a shock to me as well.”  She kissed her cheek and straightened to knock on Jill’s door.

There was no immediate response so she knocked again even as Gwen called out, “Mama?  Can we come in?”  Randi jiggled the door and found it unlocked, so she opened it slowly and stuck her in head around the door, not surprised to feel Gwen’s head rub against her arm.  They looked around, but didn’t see Jill so Randi motioned to the guard to stay put and she and Gwen entered the room.  It was empty.  Gwen and Randi exchanged glances.  “Why did she go ahead without us?”

Randi shrugged at Gwen’s question though she had a fairly good idea.  “I dunno, but nothing we can do about it now.  C’mon.  It’s time to honor your father’s sacrifice and send him on his way.”  One of the guards closed the door silently as they couple made their way slowly down the hallway towards the garden door.  Gwen turned to Randi, a frown furrowing her brow.  Randi cocked an eyebrow at her.  “What’s wrong, Love?”

There was a long pause and they crossed the threshold into the garden before Gwen spoke.  “Well, I was just thinking... why are we doing this?  You know and I know that Daddy’s spirit is already in the afterlife; Aphrodite told us so.   So why are we going to all the trouble to send him on his way?  He’s already there.”

Randi smiled, glad the guard was discrete and far enough away not to overhear their conversation.  “Sweetheart, you know why.  This isn’t for Geoff.  It’s for us - a chance to say goodbye; a chance to celebrate his life and our part in it.”  Randi frowned.  “You already know all this, Gwen.  Where’s this coming from?”

“I dunno.  I just feel out of sorts... like something’s not right.”

Randi pulled them to a sudden halt and the guard reacted instantly, forming a perimeter around them.  “About Geoff’s death?  Gwen, that’s only natural, especially given the circumstances surrounding it.”

“I dunno,” Gwen said again.  “I’m probably just being silly.”

“Nope, you’re never silly.  You’re my queen, remember.”

Gwen snorted and leaned into Randi’s body, relishing the embrace that swaddled her whole being.  “I’m going to remind you of that some day,” she said with a smile.  “Now let’s go.  I want to talk to my mother... see how she is doing and why she left without us.  I thought we were supposed to walk in as a family.”

“I think she went ahead because of our status, Love.  It’s the only reason I can think of for her going off alone without us since she is supposed to be the one who arrives last.”

“Our sta... bu... wh...  Who’s idea was that?!?”

Randi held up her hands.  “Not mine!  It was probably Jill’s, but Honey, remember that she’s having a rough time right now.  If she says she did it out of some twisted idea of respect, just let it go, all right?  We can make sure she understands the truth about things later.”

“I just wanted to be there for her,” Gwen whispered.  “I know what she is going through.”

Randi wrapped her hands around Gwen’s body and cradled her gently.  “Then you know that sometimes you just do what you have to do to get through the day.  Despite her happiness for us, and I really do think she is happy for us, Jill is having to cope with the knowledge that not only was Geoff willing to die for us... he did die for us.  On some level – deep down – she resents him and she resents us.  She’s likely to push us away, just like you did.”

Gwen nodded, recalling all too clearly how she’d felt when Randi had died.  “I know.”

“Well, we can only take things one step at a time,” Randi said, releasing Gwen from their hug and taking her hand.  “For now,” she continued, moving them again towards where everyone else was already gathered. “The sun is just touching the horizon.  It’s time.”

There was a path cleared for them and everyone present except Jill, stood as they approached.  Gwen gripped Randi’s hand tighter as she realized what was going on, but together they made their way to the front.  When they reached the coffin, Randi stood back a step and allowed Gwen a minute alone with her father.  Gwen placed her hands on it and leaned down to whisper briefly, then brushed her lips over the top.  Then she leaned back into Randi’s body absorbing her strength for a long moment before reaching for Randi’s hand once more.

Randi took Gwen over to Jill and seated them next to one another.  Then Randi knelt down in front of Jill in spite of the spotless white trousers she wore.  She didn’t say a word but took one of Jill’s hands in both of her larger ones.  Jill took her free hand and cupped Randi’s cheek in an oddly comforting manner, lifting her chin enough that Jill could look into the blue eyes nearly hidden by the cover Randi had donned when she and Gwen stepped outdoors.  Then she nodded and directed Randi to the podium with a glance.  Randi rose and took her place on the elevated platform and gestured for everyone to take their seats.  Then she cleared her throat and began speaking quietly.

“My friends, we are gathered here this evening to pay tribute to a man was known and loved by many as is testified to by the presence of so many gathered here.  I was lucky.  Not only did I count Geoffrey Goldman as a fine man and a good friend, but I also had the great fortune to call him family. And Geoff died as he lived – a warrior and a hero to those who knew him best and he died protecting those closest to his heart.”  Her words made many wonder as only those who had been in the room knew the true circumstances surrounding Geoff’s death, but most assumed that she was making a metaphorical reference to his career as much as anything specific.  Randi drew a deep breath.  “So we have gathered to celebrate his life and send him into the next life with our good memories and Godspeed.”  Then she stepped back from the podium to allow those who wanted to share their memories of Geoff the opportunity to do so.  She took her place at the coffin’s head, standing at attention as speaker after speaker rose to pay tribute to their fallen friend and colleague.  Jill listened in amazement as many friends she knew and so many more she didn’t told of how Geoff had touched their lives in one way or another.

The sun had long since set and twilight was but a memory when Gwen rose to tell her story, sharing bits of her memories of Geoff as a loving father.  When she was done, Randi returned to the podium and without a warm-up began to sing the song of the People meant to guide his spirit to the next plane.  Those who knew the melody joined her and those who didn’t kept time with their feet and hands.  And the bearers took their positions and committed the casket to the fires while the honor guard saluted.

When the polymer box was fully engulfed in flames, Randi took Gwen’s hand in hers and together they walked over to where Jill still sat, eyes glued to the blaze that surrounded Geoff’s remains.  For a long moment they thought she was going to ignore them.  Finally she met their eyes, tears in her own. Randi extended her hand and Jill took it with a watery smile.  Then they headed out of the garden, leading the rest back towards the palace and the planned wake.  They stood with Jill at the door of the ballroom, greeting old and new friends as they arrived.  When the deluge became a trickle, Randi turned to Gwen with a raised eyebrow and she answered with a nod of her head.  Then Gwen turned to Jill.  “Mama?”

Jill met her eyes with a sad smile.  “This is amazing, Baby Girl.  I think your daddy would have been proud to see all the people that came to pay their respects... especially on such short notice.”

Gwen returned the smile with one of her own.  “I know he would have. Mama, Randi and I have to leave for a few minutes, but we’ll be back.  Sky and Rosie said they would stay with you until we do because we don’t want you to be alone here.  Please, Mama.  It would make us both feel better to know Sky and Rosie were keeping you company until we returned.”

Jill looked into Gwen’s eyes and then Randi’s and nodded her head.  “If it will make you feel better,” she agreed softly.  “Can you give me some time after this is over?  I’d like to talk to both of you.”

“Absolutely.”

“Of course.”

The answers came simultaneously and brought a real smile to Jill’s face.  “All right, then.  You two go take care of whatever business you have.  We’ll be here when you get done and then we’ll go talk.”

Gwen leaned down and kissed one cheek and Randi the other.  Then with a discrete nod, Sky and Rosie made their way over to stand with Jill and Randi and Gwen left for the rehabilitation compound, accompanied by a small circle of Sabre guards.  Tommy and Ella stood with Tiny and Reed and watched them leave together without drawing undue attention to themselves though Tiny noted most of the eyes in the room followed them naturally.  It was just the way of things with them.

“Wish I could be there to see this,” Tiny commented wistfully, but he and Randi had agreed it was important for him to stay with Jill.

Tommy smiled.  “You will.  I reconfigured the security monitors.  It is all being recorded.”

Tiny smiled and the four of them circled the room to talk to Jill.  Tiny figured she might like to know what was going on.  He figured she would appreciate the gesture on several levels but was also confident Gwen would play down her part if they had even bothered to share their reason for leaving.  And he had promised Geoff to look out for all his girls.  This would be a good place to start.


Chapter VIII

"I was surprised to see so many uniforms," Gwen commented as they crossed the grounds towards the rehabilitation compound.  "I mean... I know Daddy was always a part of the military, being a weapons master and all, but it never really occurred to me how much a part of the military he really was.  Seeing all those folks in uniform really brought it home for me.  It reminded me a lot of your memorial service.  I had never seen so many uniforms in one place before then even when I was telling stories to the people who were serving."  Gwen shook her head to clear her thoughts.  "It just seems... I dunno – it's a little peculiar for me."  Randi smiled but said nothing, choosing instead to wrap an arm around Gwen's shoulders to guide their steps together.  It was late and it was dark, but Tiny had assured her the rebels were waiting so they had decided to honor their request.  "You know something else?" Gwen asked softly though she was content that their guards were more intent on their surroundings than they were in listening to whatever conversation the Empress and Queen were sharing.  If there was one rule Sabres understood very well, it was that of discretion.

"I have tried not to know too much, Love.  Every time I think I know something it just gets me into trouble. However, that notwithstanding," feeling Gwen's silent laughter along her length where they were touching.  "You apparently know something you want to share.  Please... share."

"You're too much sometimes, you know that?"

"That I do most assuredly know, my bard, but I’m almost sure that’s not what you were gonna say a minute ago."

"You're right... it's not.   What I was going to say was it's a little odd to be surrounded by people like this.  Always before it's been just us.  You've been able to handle whatever came at us – no question and no hesitation.  What changed?"

Randi sighed.  "I became the Empress, and that entails certain protocols... including an honor guard."

"Does it bother you?"

Randi shrugged and nodded hesitantly.  "Some," she said honestly.  "In some ways, it feels like my skills are being questioned; like I can’t be a warrior anymore.  I think it’s one reason I keep pushing so hard to maintain my level of proficiency.  Well, that and I couldn’t stand coming home to an empty bed.”  A beat and Gwen stayed silent though Randi could hear the unasked question pulsing between them.  “Then I couldn’t bear the thought of sharing a bed with you and having you turn away from me anyway.  It was better not to even have that be a possibility.”

Regardless of their escort, Gwen pulled them to a halt.  Immediately the honor guard spread out even further and turned their backs, keeping their eyes on the area around them.  Gwen took Randi’s hands in hers and waited for the blue eyes to meet hers.  “Randi, I can’t say that it would have been easy.  I was so angry at you for pushing me away... for treating me like I was a responsibility instead of your partner....”

“Are you still?” Randi cut in.  “Angry, I mean.”

Gwen shook her head.  “No.  It still hurts me to think what happened between us; it will for a long time, I imagine.  But I understand now and that understanding made the anger sort of disappear; it even made the pain our fighting caused lessen because of the real reason behind it.  But I have to tell you - in hindsight of course - I think no matter how angry we were, our hearts and our bodies would never have accepted it.”

Randi’s brows creased and Gwen reached up with one hand to smooth out the furrows her frown caused.  “Are you saying...?”

“I’m saying that I reached for you every night you weren’t there – here, in the village... it didn’t matter.  Despite everything – despite the hurt and anger and aggravation and any other number of not so nice emotions, I still wanted you beside me especially when I closed my eyes to try and sleep.  I wanted to be in your arms every night.”  She chuckled and Randi raised an eyebrow in question.  Gwen smirked.  “Look at how our bodies reacted to one another - not just in the dreamscape, but the minute they were put into the same space in this plane.”

“Yeah, that was kinda nice.”

This time Gwen laughed out loud and she wrapped herself around Randi, soaking in the pure joy the embrace created.  They resumed walking towards the compound and their guard reformed around them instantly.  “You’re a master of understatement, did you know that?”

Now Randi laughed.  “Yeah, I’ve heard that a time or two before.”  She paused and Gwen looked up at her expectantly.  “It was fantastic; it always is.”

“Ooo... you sweet talker, you.”

Gwen didn’t see the reaction, but Randi felt the smiles ripple around the small group of guards.  Discretion was their watchword, but sometimes a Sabre just couldn’t help hearing things.  They just knew how and when to keep their eyes and mouths shut.

They reached the compound and realized that every single member of the former rebellion must have been waiting for their arrival.  The courtyard was packed with bodies, each holding a lit candle.  When their entrance was noticed, a small pathway was created that allowed them passage to the center where the rebels had hastily erected a small platform.  Heads nodded in obeisance as they passed through since kneeling in such close quarters with lit candles was not prudent.

A lone woman waited for them there and they mounted the steps to join her while the guard spread out around the stage.  The Sabres were more than a little nervous about the situation, truth be told, but Randi knew there was a matter of trust that needed to be established.  And though it took things to an extreme level, she believed in the goodwill Gwen had wrought here with these people.  When they reached the center of the platform, the woman knelt.  Randi released Gwen’s hand and took the woman’s, urging her gently to stand.  Then Randi turned to face the crowd.  “Thank you all for coming here to show your support in our time of mourning the loss of Gwen’s father.  We appreciate the acknowledgement of my position as Empress and Gwen’s as Queen.  But please, no kneeling, bowing or scraping.  A simple nod of the head will suffice.”

The woman nodded.  “Thank you, Empress.  We weren’t sure of the protocol and decided to err on the side of caution.”

Randi smiled and extended her hand.  “Been there, done that more than once in my life.  And you are...?”

The woman accepted Randi’s hand and returned the smile.  “My name is Billie.  And I was um... selected to greet you both and offer you our sincerest condolences.”  She turned to Gwen.  “We were very sorry to hear about your father, my queen.  He must have been a good man.”

“Thank you, Billie.”  She looked out over the gathered congregation all around them, the lights from the candles lighting the entire courtyard.  “Thank all of you.  You didn’t even know my father, and yet....” raising her arm and waving towards them when words failed her.

“Yes, but we know you, my queen.  And that’s enough for us.”

Randi stood silent, having moved to stand behind Gwen in her customary position of support.  Gwen leaned back into the firm body, absorbing the love and encouragement she could feel flowing from the woman behind her.  “Thank you.  I don’t....”

Billie smiled sadly.  “You don’t have to.  We have... we’d like to offer up a song for the safe passage of his soul.”  Gwen nodded.  “It’s not really traditional anymore, but it was the one song we all knew and could agree on.”  Bobbie turned and focused on a mixed group of people standing to just one side of the stage.

The pipes began playing a hymn that had been old when it was written, and slowly a chorus of voices swelled to echo throughout the courtyard.  Gwen felt the rumble, but it was Randi’s voice she heard joining those of those who had once been enemies as they sang Geoff’s soul to its final rest.  That was the sound that brought tears to her eyes.  When the song was finished, Gwen wiped her eyes and faced the crowd once more.  She didn’t speak, but they cheered anyway.  Gwen waved her appreciation and then Randi escorted her down the stairs.  The crowd parted and took up the hymn once more as they made their way out of the courtyard and back to the palace.

They were silent in their passage, only the quiet whisper of cloth to betray their path.  When they reached the palace entrance, Randi pulled them to a stop.  “Are you all right?  Do you feel up to going back into the wake?”

“I feel... drained, but we need to go back in.  We pretty much promised my mother we’d be back in and it’s not fair to leave her in there to cope alone.”

“She’s not alone, Gwen, but you’re right.  Family is important, and we’re her family now.  I just don’t want to put you at risk.  You’ve been through so much lately.”

“We’ve been through so much lately, Love.  I’m just tired.”

“All right, Sweetheart.  I can certainly understand that sentiment.  Let’s go circulate at this thing for a few minutes, then we’ll get your mother alone and see what she needs from us.  Then I’m going to tuck you into bed for some much needed rest.”

“I thought we had a date planned for tonight.”

Randi smiled at Gwen and wrapped an arm around her shoulders as they moved towards the ballroom.  The team scattered, spreading out more now that they were back inside the palace.  “We did,” she confirmed, “and any other time I would take advantage of the opportunity to be intimate with you... especially with how long it’s been since we’ve been together in this plane and what we’ve been through to get here.  Please trust it’s not a lack of desire on my part, but my love for you that’s speaking.  You’re exhausted, and honestly... so am I.  I think we’d both be better off waiting until tomorrow.”

“Will you be there to hold me?”

“All night long, Little One.  For the rest of our lives.”

Gwen squeezed Randi with the arm she had wrapped around her waist and felt the kiss Randi brushed across the top of her head.  “That will be enough for a start.  Let’s get this done because you’re right – I am exhausted, and we’ve still got things to do here before we can go home to stay.”  The doors opened for them as if by magic and they reentered the ballroom with as little fanfare as they could manage.

Jill was easy to spot.  She was actually holding court of sorts, sharing tales and reminiscences of Geoff with a number of the folks who were in the room.  For the most part, all eyes and ears were on her, and Randi and Gwen were able to sneak over to the buffet table practically unnoticed.  It was nice to be observers for a change, instead of the focus of attention.  Randi and Gwen walked the length of the tables, picking up bits at random.  Then they moved over to the dais to watch the rest of the activity while still out of the way of the action.  Jill was smiling though it was a sad expression that didn’t quite reach her eyes.  Still it was apparent to the two watchers that she was enjoying the opportunity to tell stories about her husband, but also to hear tales from others who had known him – friends both old and new.

As the hour of midnight approached, Tiny began circulating the room, encouraging people to take their leave.  Nothing pressing, but most had been waiting for his cue and with relief made their way towards Jill to offer final condolences and wish her good night.  Finally the only people left in the room were those that had been directly involved in the spirit walk and Tommy and Ella.  Lacey, Sky and Rosie were the first to bid her goodnight from their little group, followed immediately by Tommy and Ella since Ella and Rosie had plans to restructure the kitchen.  Their day would start early; they figured they would let Randi in on their plans once they had the details worked out between them.  One less thing she needed to concern herself with but would appreciate being taken care of.

Tiny and Reed wished Jill a good evening, then they approached Randi and Gwen who were just leaving the dais area they were seated on.  Tiny bowed his head and Reed mimicked his action until they both felt Randi’s hand land heavily on their shoulders.  “All right, you two... cut it out.”

“As you say, Empress... my queen.”

Randi’s eyes narrowed.  “Ya know, Tiny... I know where you live.”  Gwen bit her lip to keep from laughing out loud.  Tiny and Reed didn’t show her restraint and chuckled, guffawing when Randi squeezed their shoulders and snorted herself.  “I don’t know why I put up with you two.”

“Because you luuuuuuuuuuv us,” Tiny drawled.

“Uh huh,” Randi agreed in a slow, skeptical tone.  “I love you so much I’m sending you away.  I want you out of my hair and on vacation starting tomorrow.  I want you to take a week or two off and go... I dunno.  Go do something that makes you both happy.  Go home and check on the dogs; take a trip somewhere you’ve never been together; see a play; visit a holodeck.  I don’t care.  Just go do something for the two of you... something wild and crazy and completely outrageous.”

“Really?  You’re serious?”

“Yep.  It’s not much, but....  Without the two of you we never would have defeated Ares.  Gwen and I wouldn’t be together anymore,” the last said in a whisper.  “You deserve a lot more, my friends, but a couple weeks is the best I can do for now.  Thank you both.”

Tiny reacted instinctively and gathered Randi in what should have been a crushing hug.  Instead, Randi returned the favor and Tiny heard his spine realign itself in her grip.  He moaned aloud and Randi chuckled in response.  “How do you do that?  Even the Sabre doctors can’t put me back in place like that.”

Randi shrugged.  “I have many skills,” she deadpanned.

Tiny shook his head disgustedly.  “I shoulda seen that one coming.” 

The three women laughed at his apparent repugnance at having given Randi an opening like that.  Jill came up behind Randi and Gwen, putting her arms around their shoulders and poking her head between them.  “So, is this a private party or can anyone join in?”  Tiny opened his arms and Jill walked into his embrace.  They stood locked together in a hug for a long moment before he released her and she turned to Reed.  They hugged for another long moment before Jill pulled back and took their hands in hers.  “Thank you, both.  You have been such good friends.  I want you to promise to keep in touch.”  Jill couldn’t see the furrow that her words etched into Gwen’s and Randi’s foreheads, but Tiny and Reed could.  So they nodded and bid the rest goodnight, leaving Randi, Gwen and Jill alone in the ballroom aside from the honor guard stationed periodically throughout.  As soon as they moved to leave, the guard formed up around them and escorted them through the hallways to Jill’s room.

“It’s late,” Gwen commented softly as they stopped in front of her door.  “Would you like to wait until tomorrow to talk?  You look tired.”

Jill shook her head and opened the door, ushering them into her room with a wave of her hand.  “No,” she said as she closed the door behind them.  “I’m going home in the morning so I’d like to talk to you both tonight.”

“Mama?”

Jill motioned them to sit, taking a chair for herself and leaning her head against the back.  She closed her eyes in exhaustion and Randi got up to get her some water while Gwen knelt beside the chair and took Jill’s hand in her warmer one.  Randi touched Jill’s shoulder, having removed her gloves with a sense of relief.  It took a moment, but finally Jill blinked her eyes open and offered Randi a small smile as she accepted the glass.  “Thank you, Randi.  Have I mentioned how dashing you look in uniform?  You and Gwen make such a lovely couple anytime, but when you do the formal thing together you’re simply stunning.”

Randi couldn’t stop the blush that crawled up her face, but she smiled lightly.  “I think you just like the uniform... all the colorful ribbons and sparkly bits.”

Jill chuckled.  “Well, I will admit to having a thing for a man in uniform, but the two of you are something else altogether.  Why do you think Sal is always pestering me to get you into the studio for a new round of pictures?  You’re just two incredibly beautiful women who compliment one another totally.  And when you go formal....”  Jill left the thought hanging, content with the astonishment on the face of both her daughters.

<Ahem>  “Well,” Randi said after clearing her throat.  “What can we do for you, Jill?  I’m pretty sure you didn’t bring us in here just to embarrass us – at least not completely.”  She moved an ottoman around to the side of the chair where Gwen was kneeling and seated both of them on it.  Randi wrapped an arm around Gwen’s waist even as Gwen reached for Jill’s hands again.  Jill just looked at them for a long moment before meeting Randi’s eyes directly.

“First, is there a reason you don’t call me Mom anymore, Randi?  I know we’ve had some ups and downs, but I thought.... If I’ve done something....”  She stopped speaking when Randi held up an unsteady hand.

“It’s not you, Ji... mom.  I just didn’t think you’d want to hear that from me after everything.”

Jill captured the shaking hand in one of her own, unconsciously completing a circle between them.  “I need to hear it now more than ever.  I’ve already lost part of my family this week.  Please don’t ask me to give up any more.”

Randi nodded and squeezed her hand, but she didn’t say anything.  Gwen leaned into her and nuzzled her neck before depositing a kiss in her wake.  Then she turned her attention back to her mother.  “Are you sure you need to go home in the morning, Mama?  I mean you just got here a couple days ago.  We haven’t had much of a chance to visit together.”

Jill looked down at their conjoined hands and sighed deeply before looking up again to meet their gazes.  “I’m sure, Baby Girl.  Despite the fact that your daddy and I talked about this possibility, I still need a little time alone to process the fact that it is my reality.  You can understand that.”

“All too well,” Gwen agreed.  “I just... I can’t help but be concerned about you being alone; about how you feel about us now.  I know what you’re going through, Mama.  I know about being angry and hurt and resentful.  I don’t want you to resent us... or Daddy.”

Jill shook her head.  “I don’t, Gwen... honestly.  Geoff and I really did talk all this out before we came here and certainly before we offered to help Sky during the spirit walk.  We knew the dangers.”  Jill drew a deep breath and paused, formulating her thoughts.  “Your father would never have quit... never have given up on his own.  But he was miserable, Gwen, and in an enormous amount of constant pain.  He was even before he went to help rescue you from Ben; that merely sped up the degeneration.  It would have come to that eventually.”

Randi and Gwen sat quietly, wanting to let Jill finish and fairly confident she wasn’t done.  They were right.  “Randi?  Could you activate the holochip please?” gesturing to the small piece of plastic resting on the table in front of her.  Randi leaned forward and activated the chip and leaned back as it flickered to life.  All three women held their breath as Geoff appeared in front of them.  He wore his Sabre uniform, sitting proudly in his hover chair.  He looked down at his hands and frowned, then made a decision.  He cleared his throat and looked back at the vid cam.

“All right... business first, I guess.  “I, Geoffrey Goldman, being of mostly sound mind and fairly decrepit body, do hereby declare this to be my last will and testament.”  He stopped and flopped back in his chair and propped his head on his fist.

“Hmph,” he snorted.  “That has got to be about the lamest....  All right, let me try this again.  Computer, I’d like to begin recording again,” not realizing he had never stopped recording.  He sat up straight and folded his hands, smiling into the camera this time.

“Hello, my beautiful girls.  If you’re watching this, then I obviously I am no longer alive and cannot relay these words and thoughts to you in person.  However, there is something I want you to understand right off the bat.  If I have been very lucky in regards to my death, I got to go out as a warrior.  And with any luck at all, I did so protecting those I care about the most.”

Randi paused the recording and turned her attention to Jill.  “He knew something,” she stated flatly.  Jill nodded.

“He thought he did,” she replied simply.  Randi let it rest for the moment, hoping the holo would give her the answers she needed.  She signaled the chip to proceed and Geoff’s hologram came to life before them once more.

“I want you to know that no matter what... everything has been my choice.  And despite the pain and the consequences, it has been worth it.  It has all been worth it.  Jill understands and on some level, she even agrees with me.  Don’t regret my actions or dishonor my choices.  Make the most of the opportunity you’ve been given.  Randi, I’m trusting you with one of the two most precious things my life.  Gwen is now in your care and keeping, Marine.  Don’t misplace my trust.  She needs you, Randi, as much as you need her.  So take care of yourself as well as her.  You need one another.  I also need to ask a favor of you, from one Sabre to another.  Jill is strong woman, but she needs someone to be there for her; to kinda keep an eye on her.  I know you’d look after her as a daughter, but I am asking you to accept the responsibility as a Sabre.”

This time Jill leaned forward and paused the hologram, then turned to Randi.  “What does that mean exactly?  I understand the part about keeping an eye on me; that....”  She paused to clear her throat and her voice wavered when she spoke again.  “That was always something of a running joke between us.  But why ask for your word as a Sabre?  I don’t get that at all.”

Randi covered the hand that Gwen still held and looked Jill in the eye.  “Family is an obligation... something you have to do.  Taking responsibility as a Sabre means there is a willingness or a desire to take care of you – to look after you better than family.”

Jill looked into Randi’s eyes and saw the truth there.  She covered Randi’s hand for just a moment, then restarted the chip.  “Thank you,” she whispered as Geoff started speaking once more.

“Gwen, my precious child – I don’t know if I have ever shared with you just how proud I am of the woman you have become.  You’re amazing, and I’m glad to have known you and had some small part in guiding you to becoming the person you are.  I realize I can’t take much credit and neither can your mother; so much of what you have become is simply the culmination of all that you are.  I do know I couldn’t have chosen a better mate for you if I had designed Randi myself.  Take care of one another and love each other long and well.  What you share together is precious and rare and meant to be protected and preserved.  Don’t let anyone or anything take it away from you.”  He closed his eyes and drew in a deep breath.  Then he released it slowly and opened his eyes again as he resumed speaking.

“Now I will share a little secret with you.  I have had the same dream for several nights running; hence the reason for my recoding this will, such as it is.  In these dreams, I am able to walk again without pain or impediment.  I was young and strong... a Sabre once more.  I was fighting an unknown enemy... always unknown, always just beyond my reach.  The fighting was always a little different, but the enemy was the same evil darkness.  The ending was always the same too.  Always it would end with me covering a comrade whose face I couldn’t see – whose presence I wasn’t aware of until then.  I think this is someone’s way - whether it be a god or my own subconscious desire or what - but I think this is someone’s way of showing me what is coming; what I need to do to protect my family.  I want you both to know I do this willingly and with both eyes open to the possible consequences.”

He paused and it was apparent to the watchers that he was debating his next words, and when they came only Jill showed a distinct lack of surprise.  “To be very honest, girls, I am looking forward to death in a very basic way.  I’m tired... tired of hurting like I do.  I know it’s not going to get better despite my best efforts.  I can feel it getting worse even when I seem to be making progress.  Everyday it gets a little bit harder, a little bit worse.  And even though I will cherish every moment I am given, I’m looking forward to not hurting anymore.  So please don’t mourn for me, girls.  I’m not in pain anymore, and I’m in a much better place.  Besides,” he added with a wicked grin and a twinkle in his eye.  “I’m looking forward to finding Bobby and Renee Valiant and swapping stories with them.  I have a feeling there is all kinds of mischief to be learned about.”  He chuckled and Randi covered her eyes and groaned.

“I am so doomed.”  Her martyred tone added just the levity they needed, and the three of them exchanged glances and burst into laughter.

Geoff had continued speaking, and they had to stop the chip and run the hologram again.  “The bulk of my estate, such as it is, of course goes to me beloved wife, Jill.  We have shared everything together, so most of it already belongs to her anyway.  However, I have a small collection of hardbound, printed books that I collected that I want you to take, Gwen.  It will be something you can give to your child one day,” his blush matching hers.  “Your mama knows where they are.  Randi, I do have a few odds and ends in both workshops; things that don’t belong to the military but that you might find... um, interesting.  You’ll know what they are when you see them.  They’re yours – enjoy them.”

He paused and they watched in silence as his brow furrowed in thought.  “You know,” he said looking back towards the vid cam and staring directly at them again.  “I never thought about how to end this ridiculous thing.”  He scratched his chin.  “Be good to one another and love one another long and well.  And remember that I’ll be watching over you all.  I love you.”  He sat still for another moment before his image faded from their sight.

The three of them sat for another moment before Randi leaned back and the spell was broken.  Jill drew a deep breath.  “Well, do you understand now?  More than anything Geoff wanted you both to understand what he did and why he did it.  He wanted to assure you that it was his choice; it was our choice.  And it was worth it.”

“Do you really believe that, Mama?”

“I really do, Baby Girl.  As much as he loved me and lived for my sake, I knew your daddy was in excruciating pain – towards the end especially.  I would never, ever hold him to life knowing he was so miserable.  I miss him... I will always miss him because he was the best part of me for such a long time.  But I will join him again – maybe sooner, maybe later – but until then I will live without his physical presence, knowing that he is still with me here,” she added, covering her heart.  “And knowing that his sacrifice made a difference.”

Randi stood then, content in the knowledge that Geoff and Jill had indeed talked this through thoroughly and Jill understood as much as one human being could understand the thoughts and motives of another.  And that she was comfortable with the knowledge she held.  Randi extended her hand down to Gwen and waited for her to accept it.  Then she tugged Gwen to her feet and together they turned to Jill.  “How long would you like, Jill... Mom?”  At her questioning look, Randi continued.  “How long would you like to grieve in peace before....”

“Oh!  A month perhaps?  I just need to adjust to being alone.  It’s been a very long time since I was.”

“Can we call you?  You know... just to check on you?  I’m going to worry a lot otherwise,” Gwen commented softly.

Jill smiled sadly.  “How about if I call you?” she compromised.  “Once a week, maybe on Sunday evenings?”

Gwen nodded.  “That would work.”  She took her mother in an embrace and hugged her tightly.  “Thank you, Mama.”

“You’re welcome, Baby Girl.  I’ve been where you are.  Oh, by the way,” changing the subject before Gwen could feel guilty.  “I know you only loaned him to us to help with Geoff’s therapy,” motioning to the nearly grown puppy now lounging comfortably across the foot of the bed.  Only his ears gave any indication that he was alert.  “Would you like to take him with you?”

The question itself was casual, but Randi could see the importance of her answer in Jill’s eyes.  Almost without consideration, she shook her head.  “No.  He’s yours now.  I think he’ll be a good friend.”

Jill couldn’t stop the tears from coming to her eyes, though she didn’t let them fall down her cheeks.  “Thank you, Randi.  He already has been.  He’s a wonderful confidant.  And he seems to approve of you again; I haven’t noticed him growling at you lately.”

“I have a theory about that.”

Randi’s eyebrow crawled up her forehead as she realized Gwen had spoken the words with her.  Randi grinned at her and Jill smiled in response to their unexpected playfulness.  “Do you now?”  Gwen nodded.  “Well, what is your theory?  You share yours; I’ll share mine.”

“I think he knows that you’re you again.”

Randi blinked and nodded.  “Yeah, that pretty much sums up my thought.”

“Well, while the two of you are summing and thinking, I think I need to get some rest before the night becomes morning.  And I think you need to do the same.  I won’t leave without saying goodbye.  Besides,” she smiled gently.  “Rumor has it that Ella and Rosie have taken over the kitchen and are going to teach the military types here how to really cook.  I’m not about to miss that.”

Randi chuckled.  “Yeah, I only thought I was in charge here.  Apparently whoever rules in the kitchen really rules the world.  I’m just glad they get along so well.  It could get ugly in there otherwise.”

That visual made Jill laugh.  “Oh, no kidding.  That’s actually a scary thought.”  She took the hand that Randi offered and stood, then accepted and returned their hugs fervently.  Then she accompanied them to the door.

“Goodnight, my children.  Sleep well and in peace.”  Jill brushed a kiss across each of their cheeks and gently pushed them out the door, closing it quietly behind them.  They looked at the closed door a moment longer before exchanging glances and making their way down the corridors back to their suite.  It had been a long day and they wanted nothing more than to end it safely together in one another’s arms.


Chapter IX

It was the soft touch of Gwen tracing her features once again that brought Randi back from her dreams with a smile on her face.  Blinking, she realized it was still dark out and a glance at the clock showed they had only been asleep a little more than three hours.  She frowned and clasped Gwen’s hand in hers.

“Gwen?  Sweetheart, is something wrong?” Randi croaked out drowsily.  “Why aren’t you sleeping?”  And why am I?  When did you start watching over me like this?

Gwen lifted their linked hands to her lips and kissed each knuckle before tucking Randi’s hand into the hand she hadn’t been tracing with and resumed the light touch across Randi’s face.  “Nothing’s wrong, Love.  I missed this with you and I just decided to indulge myself for a little while.  I’m sorry I woke you up though.  That wasn’t my intention.”

Randi smiled lazily and raised their hands to her lips, repeating Gwen’s earlier actions.  “I’m not.  I’ve missed this with you too.  It has always been something very precious to me.”  She closed her eyes again and Gwen resumed her gentle tracing, smiling when Randi hummed in contentment.

For a little while, Gwen was satisfied with running her fingertips over Randi’s face and down her neck.  Gradually, however, she let her touch wander down the torso beneath her, circling firm breasts and tracing well-defined abs before tickling Randi’s navel.  She smiled when the muscles jerked in reaction, then laughed out loud when blue eyes opened and glared at her.  Her laughter stopped rather abruptly when the glare became a smoky glance filled with fiery intent. 

“No more teasing,” Randi growled, rolling them over until she was covering Gwen’s body, gentle touches denying the gruffness of her voice or the surprise of her actions.  “I want more than our dreams, Love.  I want reality... here and now.”

For answer, Gwen reached up and threaded her hands into Randi’s hair, pulling her full weight down onto Gwen’s body and their lips into the lightest contact.  It was all the encouragement Randi needed.

Randi let her fingertips trail the length of Gwen’s body, reacquainting herself with the smooth skin and familiar contours that she had only been allowed to touch in her dreams for what seemed like forever.  She was slow and deliberate, holding Gwen’s eyes while tracing across Gwen’s shoulders and down her arms before shifting over to her hips and up her torso.  Randi smiled when Gwen’s breathing hitched and sped up as she reached the soft fullness of Gwen’s breasts.  “I love the way you respond to my voice,” Randi whispered in Gwen’s ear, watching the goosebumps follow in the wake of her words.  Her fingers circled nipples begging for attention, then she cupped Gwen’s breasts in her hands.  “The way you respond to my mouth,” suckling gently and briefly at each breast before kissing a path down the centerline of Gwen’s body, then moving back to capture Gwen’s lips until Gwen was forced to pull away for lack of air.  Randi’s hands stayed in constant motion and Gwen’s back arched when her interest focused on Gwen’s breasts once more.  “The way you respond to my touch,” letting her hands glide along Gwen’s body from shoulders to knees until Gwen was writhing beneath her attentions.  Then there were no more words; only the sounds of the love they shared between them.  It was well past dawn when the awakened the second time that morning.

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

It was the smell of fresh cinnamon rolls wafting through the air that brought Randi and Gwen to full wakefulness, exchanging chagrined looks when they realized how late it was and how much teasing they were in for.  Then the expression changed to a knowing smile and they let their lips meet for a good morning kiss.  “We’re never gonna hear the end of this, you know... especially if Jill delayed her trip home to say goodbye.”

Gwen stretched against Randi, rubbing their bodies together sensuously.  “Can I be honest here and admit I really don’t care?  Besides, we all worked too damn hard for us to be together again; do you really think anyone is gonna give us a lot of grief about wanting to spend time alone together?”

Randi smirked.  “Probably not, especially if they know what’s good for them.”  She assumed a snooty air and continued.  “I am the Empress, you know.  I could just banish them all to Mars.”

Gwen’s shudder was genuine and she shook her head adamantly.  “No, please.  These people are our friends and I’d like to see them remain that way.”

Randi’s expression turned to one of concern.  “Speaking from personal experience?”  Gwen nodded but didn’t elaborate.  “Will you share it with me some day?”  The blonde head nodded hesitantly and Randi cradled Gwen tenderly in protective arms.  “Whenever you’re ready, Love,” hoping it would be soon.  “C’mon.  In the meantime, we should probably take a shower and get to the kitchen before all the cinnamon rolls are gone.”

Gwen’s stomach chose that moment to protest the very idea of going hungry when there were cinnamon rolls to be had.  She tilted her head up at Randi plaintively.  “Are you sure about that shower?  My stomach is asking for immediate action.”

Randi made a huge show of sniffing the air between them, then did the same to Gwen’s body, causing her to twitch in laughter at the teasing, ticklish touches Randi’s effort caused to skitter up her sides.  Finally Randi pulled away slightly with a rakish grin.  “Well, if you don’t mind going out there smelling of sex and sweat, I’m game.  I didn’t know if you wanted to flaunt the fact.”

Gwen blushed adorably from head to foot as Randi had known she would, but she kept her teasing to a wicked twinkle in her very blue eyes.  Still Gwen saw it and color suffused her skin once more.  “Hmm, well... when you put it that way....  You wanna join me?”

“Thought you’d never ask.”  They slipped from the bed and walked into the bathroom together, holding hands like the newlyweds they still were.

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

Lorac bowed her head in acknowledgment when they crossed the threshold into the kitchen and Rosie motioned them over to the buffet where a few cinnamon rolls sat plated in solitary splendor.  Sky poured them each a cup of coffee and offered them a smile, but didn’t comment on the lateness of the hour.  Jill rose from the table where she had been in conversation with Reed and Tiny and took first Gwen then Randi in her arms for a hug.

“I wondered if I was going to get to say goodbye before I left,” chuckling when twin blushes flushed the faces of the two women facing her.  Everyone else might leave it alone, but nothing was sacred to a mother it seemed.  Jill hugged them again.  “I would have waited; it is so good to see... to know....”

“Mush, mush, mush,” Tiny cut in.  “You’re giving me a sugar overload.”

His words cut the awkwardness in the room and laughter followed his pronouncement.  Randi stepped up and smacked the back of his head lightly.  “I know where you live, Buddy!  Besides, aren’t you supposed to be on vacation somewhere already?  What are you doing hanging around here?”

“Like I was going to miss fresh cinnamon rolls or pass up the opportunity to rag on you a little bit,” Tiny snorted.  “Being Empress made you daft?”

Randi raised an eyebrow.  “You’re feeling feisty today.”

Tiny laughed aloud in pure joy.  “I feel good.  No... actually I feel great!  I feel like a burden finally has been lifted, and it feels wonderful.”

Randi clapped him on the shoulder and squeezed.  “I know,” she agreed.  “It really does.  Now, go on and get outta here.  I’m hoping for a quiet week while you’re gone.”

“Does that mean I can borrow the holochip?”

“Sure... which one do you want?”

“Um....”

Randi chuckled.  “Nevermind.  I wouldn’t subject Reed to extremes with you.  C’mon, I think I have what you’re looking for in the office.”  She turned to Gwen and Jill.  “Don’t go anywhere.  I’ll be right back.”

Gwen nodded and brought the remaining cinnamon rolls to the table before sitting down across from Reed.  “So are you excited?”

Reed nodded and conversation at the table turned to their upcoming time away.  And for the first time, Gwen realized that everyone was leaving and by that evening, she and Randi would be alone together for the first time in months.  She couldn’t stop the thrill that ran through her.  In all honesty, she couldn’t wait.

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

“Are you excited?” Tiny asked Randi as they entered the office.  Yuri just nodded at their waves and turned back to his work.  Tiny closed the door while Randi crossed to her desk, her handprint allowing her access and unlocking the safe built into it.

“About what?  You’re the one going on vacation.”

“Yeah, but by this afternoon, we’re gonna all be out of your hair for a while.  Except for the standard honor guard, you and Gwen will be all alone in this big house.  And don’t think I don’t know how far away that honor guard will be banished while I’m gone either,” smiling wickedly.

Randi snorted.  “Be thankful I won’t be making them leave the grounds completely,” giving him a look.  “In some ways it’s a little insulting that you think I need them.”

“They’re not for you actually,” Tiny stated emphatically, causing Randi to raise an eyebrow in his direction.  He shrugged.  “They’re there for my peace of mind.  I know you could handle yourself, but if something was to happen - and it could however unlikely - I would be the one that would have to face Gwen.  And on the flip side to that,” before she could interrupt him, “if something was to happen to Gwen that could have been prevented by a little vigilance on my part,” he cleared his throat.  “I gotta be honest, Randi... I don’t think either of us could live with it.”  She held his eyes unblinking for a long moment acknowledging the truth.  Then she turned her attention back to the chips in the safe.   “Besides,” he added, shrugging again.  “I haven’t done anything but make up a schedule.”

“Come again?  I’m not sure I understand what you’re saying.”

“There is no honor guard unit, Randi.  Everyone who serves does so on their off time as a volunteer.”

Randi jerked her head up so quickly Tiny heard the vertebra in her neck snap back into alignment with the motion.  He winced reflexively.  Randi didn’t say anything, but proffered her hand to him.  Tiny extended his and she placed the holochip in his palm.  “Go on, Tiny.  You and Reed deserve some time together.  That chip has all the old happy place haunts I could find in the archive.  You can alter each place to be as full or as empty as you want, but I wouldn’t make it empty.  It’s a little spooky.”

She was serious as she said it, but Tiny saw the twinkle in her eye and returned her look with a grin.  “Spooky, huh?  I’ll keep that in mind.  Thanks, Boss Lady.  We’ll see you in a week or so.”  Tiny waited for Randi to come around to the front side of the desk then took her in his arms for a bonecrushing hug.  “Ya’ll try to behave while we’re gone, all right?  I mean I don’t wanna have to come back early to....”  A glare cut him off and he chuckled nervously, backing away from her slowly.  He glanced towards the door quickly, trying not to lose Randi in his peripheral vision.  “Heh, heh.  Time to go!”  And he dashed out the door squealing.  Randi’s laughter followed him down the hall.

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

“Are you sure you need to be leaving so soon, Lorac?  You only just arrived, and we haven’t exchanged much more than a hello.”  Despite her eagerness to be alone with Randi, she knew she had a responsibility to these women beyond any friendship they shared.

The regent nodded.  “Yes, my queen.  We only came to pay our respects to your father.  There are still so many things we need to do to make the mountain into a home and the tribes into a single Nation again.  We wouldn’t have come now if....”

Gwen clasped Lorac’s arm.  “I’m glad you did,” then looked around at the others.  “All of you.  I’ve already spoken to Randi.  As soon as we can get things settled here, we’ll be out to visit.  I’m anxious for the Nation to know her.”

“She is already a legend among our people, Gwen,” Lorac addressed her informally and tilted her head in confusion.

Gwen gave her a gentle smile.  “I know.  I want you to know the woman that she really is.”

Understanding dawned and Lorac returned the smile and nodded.  “We would like that very much.  In the meantime however, it is time for us to leave.  We will look forward to seeing you again soon.”

With a salute the Amazon contingent boarded their shuttle and was soon on their way back to the Nation.  Jill came up to stand beside Gwen as they watched the shuttle disappear into the horizon.  “An Amazon queen, hmm?  Things really have come full circle.”

Gwen was silent for a long moment.  “In some ways.”  She turned to Jill.  “I’m going to miss you, Mom.”

Jill smiled and wrapped an arm around Gwen’s waist.  “I will miss you too, Daughter... both of you.  But it’s good to know you will have one another.  And I’ll be calling you soon, I promise.  I just need a little time to process.”

Gwen nodded, unwilling to let her mind wander into painful memories.  Then Jill’s unexpected laughter pulled her attention in a completely new direction.  Gwen hadn’t laughed when Randi died.  She turned her head in the direction Jill was looking with her hand shading her eyes and broke into laughter as well.  When they had gone to retrieve Jill’s luggage, Carbon had jumped on Randi.  Not maliciously, but with a distinct desire to play; with Geoff dead, he hadn’t had much fun or exercise for a few days and he remembered her scent as that of a playmate.  He had pounced and joyously licked her face, and with a sheepish look and a shrug Randi and Carbon had run out the door and into the garden.  Now they returned to the landing area, the dog’s tongue lolling out one side if his mouth and Randi looking a little worse for wear.  There was a dirt smudge across one cheek and what looked like a rip in her shirt.  Gwen cocked an eyebrow in her direction.

“Who won?”  About that time the dog dropped down at Jill’s feet and closed his eyes.  Randi sauntered up to wrap Gwen in a sweaty embrace.  “Ew... Honey, I love you, but you need a bath.”

Randi leered in her direction.  “That is not what you said this morning.”

Gwen flushed ten shades of red and slapped at Randi’s arms.  “RANDI!!”

Jill laughed.  “That would be my cue, I think.”  She opened her arms and Randi released Gwen so mother and daughter could hug goodbye.  Gwen brushed a kiss across Jill’s cheek as she pulled back.

“Please let us know you got in safely.”

Jill nodded.  “I will.”  Then she turned and opened her arms to Randi who looked down at her dirty, sweat-covered self.  Jill waved her forward.  “Randi, dirt hasn’t killed me yet.  I don’t think it’s going to happen today.”

Randi smirked and shook her head.  Then she gently cradled Jill for a long moment before stepping back and picking up Jill’s bags, ignoring her exasperated sigh.  She remained stoic even when Jill rolled her eyes and Gwen muffled a chuckle, waiting patiently for Jill to lead the way to her shuttle.  Carbon actually snorted in disgust at the lot of them and flopped on the floor of the vehicle as soon as he made his way inside.  Randi settled Jill’s bags and then she and Gwen stepped back to allow the door to close.  Their last glimpse of her had her blowing a kiss to them and then she was gone.

They watched the shuttle out of sight arms curled around one another possessively, dirt and sweat forgotten.  Then they turned towards the palace to make the short walk back.  “So, are we all alone yet?” Randi asked.  “Aside from the military and the rebels, of course,” said with the slightest hint of a smile and a hint of melancholy in her voice.  Gwen shook her head, knowing Randi already knew the truth.

“Noooooo,” drawing the word out.  “You know Tommy wouldn’t leave without saying goodbye.  But Sky and Rosie left about the same time that Tiny and Reed did.  Rosie was muttering something about having troops to train and I think Sky was just looking for a bit of peace.”  She cut her eyes in Randi’s direction.  “What did you do to Tiny anyway?  He couldn’t seem to stop chuckling and Reed was smirking when they literally snuck out of here.”

“I glared at him.  He was being a wiseass.”

Gwen rolled her eyes.  “Oh, there’s a big surprise.”

“It wasn’t my fault.”

“Uh huh.”

“What??  It wasn’t.”

“I know, Honey,” Gwen said straight-faced with a teasing hint in her voice.  “It never is.  C’mon.  Let’s get you cleaned up and go find Tommy and Ella,” as they reached their room.

“Gweeeeeeeennnnn!!!”  Tommy heard Randi’s whine in his room and he and Ella exchanged glances before they started laughing.

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

Randi actually had a couple scrapes along her ribs where Carbon’s nails had ripped through her shirt.  But they didn’t hurt much and after Gwen kissed them, they didn’t hurt at all.  They were good; they didn’t dawdle knowing Tommy and Ella were waiting for them.

“Ya know,” Randi said, pulling a fresh shirt over her head.  “I wish we could go home with them.”

Gwen shrugged nonchalantly though she couldn’t hide the momentary sparkle that flashed in her green eyes.  “Why can’t we?  Why can’t you be Empress there?”

“I wouldn’t be,” Randi answered honestly.  “When we go home, we are going home to live as Randi and Gwen - not as Empress and Queen or anything else.  I have no self delusions in that regard; I don’t want that in our home.”

Gwen came up behind her and kissed Randi’s back before resting her head between strong shoulder blades.  “I don’t want that either, Love.  But at least we’ll have this place to ourselves for a little while.  Despite everything we have to do, I am looking forward to some time alone with you, Randi.”

Randi grinned.  “Me too,” she replied simply.

They found the Steele family in the kitchen, not that it was a great surprise.  Randall squealed when he saw them walk in and ran straight for Randi.  She scooped him up off the floor and blew raspberries on his belly before lowering him down so he could wrap his body around hers in a hug.  Randall squeezed with all his might and gave Randi a sloppy kiss; then he reached out with one hand towards Gwen.  She grabbed his hand and tickled his palm, grinning when he squealed.  He leaned over and planted a sloppy kiss on Gwen’s nose.  The trio turned towards Randall’s parents who were enjoying the interaction with fond smiles. 

Randall tugged on Randi’s hair.  “Go,” he commanded imperiously, pointing towards his mother.  She arched an eyebrow towards him.

“Excuse me?”

“Pwease, Wuv?  Go Mama.”

“How do you resist that much cuteness?” Tommy asked.

Randi walked to Ella and placed Randall in her arms.  “Apparently I can’t,” she said sardonically.  Then she crossed to the refrigerator and grabbed a couple bottles of water.  She looked a question at Tommy and Ella, but both shook their heads.

“Maybe you shouldn’t,” Tommy said into the sudden silence as Randall’s attention was suddenly absorbed by a picture book Ella put in front of him.

Randi seated Gwen, then pulled out a chair for herself and dropping into it.  “Huh?  Maybe I shouldn’t what?”

“Maybe you shouldn’t try to resist all that cuteness.”

Randi gave him a frown of complete confusion.  “Tommy, evidence to the contrary, it is too early and I am running on too little sleep for you to be talking in riddles.  I didn’t resist Randall’s cuteness.  I brought him to Ella just like he asked.”

He shook his head.  “No.  Maybe you two should have one of your own.  Someone else whose cuteness you couldn’t resist.”

“NO.”  This from Randi, her tone firm and implacable.

“But....”  Ella put her hand over Tommy’s and shook her head.  “But....” he tried again.

“No, Tommy,” Gwen said kindly.  She bit her lip as she considered her words.  She and Randi didn’t plan to make a general announcement about their decision to leave the circle... at least not this close to the spirit walk that had assured their place in the cycle.  “We are too much of a target in this lifetime.  Ares has made it very personal this time; he wouldn’t hesitate to use our child against us.”  She paused, then continued.  “We already worry about the people who are closest to us; we couldn’t bring a child into the world knowing....”

Tommy slid his hand out from under Ella’s and covered Gwen’s hand.  “I’m sorry, Gwen.  I didn’t think about it like that.  I didn’t mean to bring up an unpleasant subject.  I just... watching you tell stories to the kids, seeing you both with Randall....”

“Tommy, it’s okay.  It’s something we’ve already discussed; we have peace about it.”

Tommy gazed into Gwen’s eyes, then turned his focus to Randi.  This close he could see the truth and realized they really had no desire to have a child together.  He felt a bit of sadness about it; he had secretly hoped they would give Randall a playmate.  He thought they would make extraordinary parents.  A memory tickled the back of his mind, but it was nothing but a shadow.  Shrugging, he let it go and nodded at them both.  “All right,” he nodded.  “Now that I have managed to butt in yet again,” he started, clearing his throat.  Randi laughed.

“Tommy, that has been one of the few constants in my life.  I would miss it if you didn’t butt in regularly though we should really work on your timing,” watching his face turn six shades of red.

He scrubbed his face.  “I hate you,” he muttered, causing another round of laughter.  “Anyway,” glaring in Randi’s direction, which was mostly pointless since she returned glare for glare.  He gave up and turned his attention solely to Gwen; that got him a snicker from Randi and Randi a slap on the leg from Gwen.  “When things settle down for you here but before you come home, can we do a children’s storytelling session here?”

“Absolutely.  I think the kids here would love to be part of something like that.”

“Good.  When you’re ready, let me know and we’ll get a crew up here.  I’ll work on what details I can from Midas.  Do you have an idea on when...?” looking back at Randi.

She shook her head.  “Nothing definite yet.  At least a few weeks.  We have a lot of things to put into place before we can leave here, and Gwen wants to visit the Amazons before when settle at home for good. But I’m gonna push things as fast as I can.”

He looked at her, seeing a lot in her eyes he had never expected to see there.  Despite the walls she still had in place, she was more open to him than she had ever been.  He couldn’t stop the reaction that widened his eyes, but he didn’t say a word about it.  Instead he turned back to Ella.  “Whaddya think, Babe?  Time to head home?”

“Yes.”  She looked towards Randi.  “Rosie and I are gonna give your cooks a crash course in good cooking.  No wonder you’ve been so unhappy if that’s what you’ve been stuck eating for the last little while.  We’ll do what we can in the next week or so to make sure your meals are edible.”

“Well, it’s not like Gwen and I can’t fend for ourselves.”

“I’m looking forward to it actually,” Gwen said with a smile.

“So am I,” Randi added softly with an eyebrow wiggle.

Tommy groaned.  “That is definitely our cue to leave.  The mush levels are rising to unbearable proportions in here.”

“I know where you live, Buddy,” Randi growled.

Tommy laughed.  “That’s okay; I know where you live too.”

Randi growled again and threw in a glare for good measure, lunging across the table just as he jumped out of her reach.  Randall yelled in excitement, “Go, Pa!!!”

Tommy ran and Randi gave chase.  Gwen, Ella and Randall simply sat back and enjoyed the entertainment, cheering and clapping until Randi and Tommy collapsed back into their chairs.  “More, Pa!  Go!!” Randall screamed.  Ella shook her head in exasperation, chuckling as she rose and took two bottles of water from the fridge and placed them in front of Tommy and Randi.  Tommy was red-faced and winded and sucked half the bottle down before thanking Ella.  Randi sipped hers and wound an arm around Gwen’s shoulders.

“You’re such a brat.”

“Yeah, but I’m your brat.”  Tommy just dropped his head on the table and groaned.

It didn’t take them long to get things squared away; Ella showed Gwen the few treats she’d put together for them, receiving a hug for her efforts.  “Some of these are new recipes so you’ll have to let me know what you think.”

“I always do.”

Ella grinned.  “I know.  You’re probably the most honest critic I’ve got.”  She looked down at her hands.  “I’ve really missed having ya’ll home.  I’ll be glad when you come home to stay.”

“Me too,” Gwen agreed fervently just as Tommy and Randall came out of the bathroom.  He immediately ran over to Randi who picked him up and swung him up high before wrapping him in a hug.  “I’m big boy, Wuv!”

“You sure are, Love Muffin.  You’re growing up too fast,” she added sadly.  “I’m missing so much.”

“Good,” Tommy replied emphatically as he came up beside her just in time to hear her last whispered words.  “Maybe that kind of motivation will bring you home faster.”

“I’m doing the best I can, Tommy,” she growled, carefully expunging her language for Randall’s sake.  Tommy didn’t miss the true anger and upset so clear in her eyes, but before he could apologize, Gwen was beside Randi, gently rubbing her back and glaring at Tommy.  He ignored the burning green eyes and pulled Randi into a grudging hug that Randall was quick to protest.  Tommy shifted, but didn’t release the hug.

“I’m sorry, Randi.  We just miss you and want you to come home.  That’s all.”

She nodded but didn’t answer.  Instead Gwen spoke for both of them.  “We’re trying, Tommy.  Please don’t make it harder for us.”

“You’re right.  I’m sorry.”

“PA!”

“Can anyone get in on this hug?” Ella said in an effort to cut the tension she could still feel.  Gwen and Tommy opened their arms and Ella stepped in, making it a true family embrace.  The anxiety level dropped and after a moment, they all stepped back a pace.  “We miss you guys and will be glad to see you come home.  But for now, ya’ll stay safe and keep in touch, all right?”

Randi nodded to Ella’s words.  “Thanks... both of you.  I know it comes from love and caring.”

“And I know better than to push,” Tommy admitted sheepishly.  “Now, c’mon.  We’ve got a shuttle to catch.  And ya’ll have some couple time to catch up on.”  He picked up their bags and motioned them towards the door.  “I am so, SO happy things worked out for the two of you despite everything else.  Gwen, if you ever need to talk... I still remember what it felt like to lose my mother.”

“Thanks, Tommy.  Just remember that the vid phone works both ways.  We expect to hear from ya’ll regularly as well.  And just as soon as we can, we will come home to stay.  I promise.”

Tommy put the bags in the shuttle, then turned and brushed a kiss across Gwen’s cheek, then Randi’s.  He took a loudly protesting Randall out of her arms and climbed aboard the shuttle to strap him in.  They exchanged a last hug with Ella, then stepped away once more to allow the door to close.  They watched the shuttle out of sight before Gwen turned to Randi with a wicked smile.

“We have the house to ourselves except for the guards.”

“Actually we have the inside of the house to ourselves.  The guards have agreed to keep their patrols and posts outside until Tiny and Reed return.  So when we’re not working, we can just be us.”

“Oooh... well, in that case, can I interest you in some decadent Gwen and Randi time?”

“What’d you have in mind?”

“I feel daring.  How about a little skinny dipping now and a little fondue later?”

For answer, Randi turned them back towards the palace, casually tugging her shirt from shorts.  Gwen smiled and did the same to her own.  The guards saw them coming, and decided it was safer to back their outdoor zone up about a dozen feet even though they were not yet aware of Randi and Gwen’s specific plans.  Anything that could be construed as an invasion of privacy now wasn’t worth Randi’s ire later.  When they heard the splash of pool water and the squealing laughter that followed, the guard moved back another five feet.  Better safe than sorry.


Chapter X

“I’m gonna have to kill her, ya know.  I can’t believe she put that in the holodeck program.”

Tiny scratched the back of his head, unwilling to meet Reed’s eyes.  He couldn’t blame her for being furious; the man had been a total jackass.  But he couldn’t let Reed blame Randi for something that wasn’t her fault.  “She didn’t.”

Reed’s head snapped around hard and fast.  Her eyes glowed silver and she glared at Tiny.  “Are you telling me you did this?  You programmed that asshole??”

“Well, sorta, but not exactly.  I just left the parameters broad and random.  I’ll be more specific next time.”

It was kind of funny in retrospect, but it had been frustrating while it had been happening.  They had been in one of the theme park places Randi had meticulously researched for the holo-program she had put together for her relaxation, utilizing it for their vacation.  Tiny had taken Randi at her word, and asked the computer to put people into the simulation with them.  He just hadn’t been specific enough in his request.

They had strolled through a half empty park, enjoying the ambiance and the different attractions that were available in the venue they had chosen.  Then they had run into the most obnoxious man either of them had ever encountered... and as Sabres - that was saying a lot.

In preparing for this outing, Tiny had skimmed through Randi’s research so he and Reed could dress appropriately to blend in.  One of the things he found popular was something called pin collecting, and it was here he made his second critical error.  He hadn’t realized how zealous some people were about such a hobby or what lengths they would go to to obtain a rare pin they desired.  He and Reed had been waiting patiently in line when Reed noticed the man behind her staring.  Then he proceeded to beg, plead, cajole, badger and finally threaten her for the pin he wanted.  It was close; she wanted to go Sabre on his ass so badly, but before Reed or Tiny could respond one of the workers calmly stepped into the line and removed the man.  The rest of the day had gone much more smoothly.

“Next time I’ll be more careful,” Tiny said again, looking properly contrite.

Reed snorted.  “Next time, I’ll do the programming.”

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

It was quiet in the capital city cottage - more so than Jill had expected it to be, especially since it wasn’t home.  Geoff had never been an overly loud person, but the house without him echoed the silence.  She walked through each room slowly, realizing there was very little in this place she would have to pack.  The Sabres had provided the furnishings, for the most part, and they would also be responsible for cleaning out the workshop she’d had built.  Only the few personal items Gwen had brought down for their comfort would need to go back north with her and those only took a very brief time to pack.   Then she re-boarded the waiting transport and sped off towards home.

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

Randi rubbed her eyes.  Their day spent in the sun had been a wonderful reprieve, but it had worn her out and she was making up the time now.  She was making progress on her work, but it wasn’t doing a thing for her eyes.  Gwen came up behind her glasses perched on her nose.  She put her hands on Randi’s shoulders and leaned forward until their faces were almost even.

“How’s it going?”

Randi scrubbed her hands over her face.  “Not bad.  It would probably be going better if my eyes didn’t burn so bad.”  She turned to look at Gwen and met her gaze at very close range.  Randi grinned; she really did like the look of Gwen in glasses.  They just seemed to fit her somehow... especially when she was in bard mode as she was now.

They had decided to postpone fondue and try to salvage a little of the workday.  It had been pleasant, working together but separately in the same room.  Gwen was actually pleased with her progress; everything she and Randi had been through seemed to have spurred her muse in the ass and she had been writing steadily since they’d come indoors.  But after the third time she’d watched Randi rub her eyes, Gwen had put her journal away and come to stand behind her.

“Maybe you need glasses... or corrective surgery.”

Randi reacted so swiftly Gwen was cradled in her lap before she realized she’d moved.  “No,” she said succinctly, easing the glasses from Gwen’s face and planting a fingertip on her nose.  “I need to stay out of the sun for hours on end; and I need to stop trying to focus on everything but how cute and sexy you look in glasses.”

Gwen’s nose crinkled adorably when she smiled.  “You think I look sexy in glasses?”

“In glasses, in jeans, in silk, in nothing at all... I have yet to find anything you’re not sexy in.”

“I think you are sexiest when you smile,” Gwen said, tracing the full lips that creased at her touch.  She let her fingers wander across the planed cheekbones and over the arched eyebrows.  “Especially when it twinkles out of the depths of your eyes.”

Randi couldn’t stop the faint blush or the light twinkle that sparkled when she smiled.  She cleared her throat.  “If I didn’t know any better, my queen,” her fingers tickling a path up Gwen’s ribs, “I’d have to say it seems like you are trying to distract the Empress from her official duties.”

Gwen grinned.  “Depends... is it working?”

“I shouldn’t let it, but ya know, fondue sounds really good right now.”

“Yeah, it does,” Gwen agreed.  “Besides, the work will be here tomorrow.  Maybe I can help.  I’ll bet together we can figure something out.”

“The sooner, the better I’m thinking.  I’m ready for the smell of sea air and the sound of waves and the view from our living room windows.”

Gwen smiled wistfully.  “That sounds wonderful.  There is still so much I want to do in this lifetime, especially since it’s our last.  But for now,” she said with her own twinkle, “how about some fondue?  I’m starving.”  Randi would have answered, but a rumble from both their bellies spoke louder than any comment she could make.  Gwen chuckled and sat up in her lap, then stood and held out her hand.    “C’mon.  It’s all ready except for the heating part.  The rest of the day is ours, Love.”

Gwen started the pot heating while Randi brought the raw food to the small table, thankful she’d had Yuri include a tiny kitchenette in their suite.  Then they sat down next to one another and waited for the oil to get hot.  “Ya know, I knew how precious each day we had together was.  I really did even before we were an us.  It was sort of hard not to; even without knowing our actual history as soulmates, my life as a Sabre made me very conscious of how fragile life is... especially after....”  Gwen nodded when Randi stopped speaking and covered Randi’s hand, stroking her knuckles with a thumb.  She didn’t speak; she couldn’t.  The thought of Randi’s death still brought a lump to her throat but thankfully she didn’t tear up this time.  “But it’s like I have a heightened awareness about it now.  It’s not like it is at the forefront of every moment, but the feeling is always there at the back of my mind.” 

“Maybe it’s reminding you this is our final trip through the circle and that makes every minute more precious.”

Randi looked down at the heating oil before she looked up to meet Gwen’s eyes.  “Does that bother you, Gwen?  This being our last trip through they karmic cycle, I mean.  That’s twice you’ve mentioned it in the last few minutes.”

“No,” Gwen agreed without hesitation.  “I just... I think it’s affecting the way we’re thinking... reacting... to things now.  It puts everything in a different perspective and it makes us more aware of life going on around us.”  She paused, then tilted her head, nose crinkled in an adorable smile.  “To be completely honest, I’m looking forward to an eternity of peace with you.  I think we’ve earned it.”  Another beat.  “I just don’t want to miss anything while were here either.”

Randi smiled and speared a stuffed mushroom, dipping it and dropping it into the now hot oil.  “Then we’ll have to make sure we do everything we possibly can.”

Gwen chuckled evilly and rubbed her hands together.  “I see some holodeck time in our future.  I still have to experience all those initials, you know,” reminding Randi of the extreme sports chip she had introduced Gwen to several months prior.  Randi grinned.

“Whenever you’re ready, Sweetheart.  And if you get bored in the holosuite, we can always do some traveling as well.”  She waggled her eyebrows.

“Anywhere, Sweetheart – as long as I’m with you.”

Randi caught her breath and glowered.  “That’s not fair.”

Green eyes widened and Gwen gave Randi an anxious look. “What’s not fair?” glancing around to find what was amiss.

“You can’t make statements like that when I’m not in a position to respond,” motioning to the table and hot oil between them then jumping when Gwen’s foot rubbed up her bare calf.  Randi glowered when she discovered pure mischief lurking in Gwen’s sultry expression.  “I’m gonna get you for that.”

“Promise?”

Randi smiled indulgently, loving the playfulness.  She took Gwen’s hand in hers and rubbed her thumb over smooth knuckles.  “Guaranteed, Little One.”  Gwen covered the hand holding hers and they waited in peaceful silence for their food to cook.

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

“Did you join the pool?” Ella asked as Tommy opened the door for her when they got home.  Randall spotted Ditto and they rolled together on the floor in playful abandonment.  The look Tommy wore was supposed to be one of beguiling innocence, but a cocked eyebrow from Ella made him grin sheepishly and Tommy nodded in obvious guilt.  “How much and when?

“Twenty and sixteen days.”

Ella laughed.  “Twenty and three weeks.  I figure they will probably spend a week with the Amazons.  Otherwise, I would have gone with two weeks.”

Now Tommy laughed, a sound so surprising Randall and Ditto stopped playing and looked at him before Randall squealed and joined in.  Ditto made her contribution with a loud series of barks.  Ella just covered her eyes and shook her head.  After a few moments, Tommy’s laughter wound down to chuckles and he looked at Ella just shaking his own head.  “Ya know it’s really not funny that we’re betting on how long it takes them to give it all up and come home.”

“No, but it is really funny that no one is giving them more than a month – even if you give them time to go to the Amazons like I did.”

Tommy smiled.  “I’ll just be glad to have them home.  I’m looking forward to a little normality.”

Ignoring the obvious smartass remark she could make, Ella smiled and took Tommy’s hand, tugging him to the glass doors that looked out over the water.  “I think they are too,” she finally said.  “And God knows they deserve it.”

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

Gwen lifted her head and peered into the darkness, trying to figure out what had brought her out of a deep sleep.  Then Randi shifted and Gwen knew what had awakened her.  She frowned, wondering why she had awakened instead of joining Randi in the dreamscape.  Then Gwen put her hands on either side of Randi’s face and started kissing her lightly over every bit of skin she could reach.  She felt Randi struggling and then Randi called out in her sleep.

“No... NO!”  A pause and a deep breath.  “Gwen, NO!!”  Randi sat up so quickly Gwen nearly bit her lip trying to get her head out of the way, but she managed to maintain her hold on Randi’s face.  So when Randi’s eyes popped open, her first sight was Gwen.  Randi clutched at Gwen’s arms, holding them tightly while catching her breath and letting her eyes roam Gwen’s body to assure herself that everything was all right.  Gwen gently stroked Randi’s face, brushing her hair back from her eyes and combing through it in a relaxing motion.  Randi’s breathing gradually slowed and she closed her eyes and swallowed hard.  She released on of Gwen’s arms and moved a shaking hand up to Gwen’s face, tracing her features with a trembling touch.  “You all right, Love?” letting her fingers linger on full lips as they creased into a tender smile.  Gwen captured her hand.

“Isn’t that supposed to be my line?  You scared me.  Everything okay?”

Randi swallowed and nodded.  “It was... strange.”

Gwen waited but when Randi didn’t continue speaking, she shifted them until Randi’s head was cradled against her chest.  Gwen didn’t say anything, but was content to hold her and felt the strong body gradually relax against her.  Only when Randi was completely limp against her did Gwen whisper into Randi’s ear.  “You want to talk about it, Love?”

Randi sighed.  She had spent the minutes relaxing going over in her mind the residual odd images and feelings left from her dreams.  Gwen kept up a soothing touch on Randi’s back and arm and waited.  Randi nuzzled into her neck and took a deep breath.  “It was strange,” she repeated again.  “Like memories... but not.  This hasn’t happened; I’m sure of it.”

“What, Sweetheart?  What did you dream?”

“You... and the Amazons... and fighting.  Someone challenged you and you accepted the challenge, I think.  But it was... wrong somehow.  Something was off.”  Her brow scrunched up thoughtfully.

Gwen leaned her cheek on Randi’s head.  “Off how?”

“I dunno.”  She thought a moment.  “Maybe because I wasn’t in the picture?  I’d just like to know where the dream came from... and why.  It was just... too real – like it was actually happening.  Only I had no control of what was going on around me at all.  It’s kinda hard to explain.  It’s mostly just feelings... images.”

“Do you think you can sleep now, Sweetie?” brushing a kiss over the top of dark hair.

“Can we stay like this?” content to remain in Gwen’s arms indefinitely.

“If we shift to a more prone position, absolutely.  I’m going to wake up with an awful crick in the neck otherwise,” Gwen admitted with a small chuckle.  Randi tilted her head back slightly to see the awkward position Gwen was sitting in and realized she wasn’t kidding.  She’d probably end up with a crick in her entire spine.  Randi nodded and pulled away just enough for Gwen to shimmy into a laying position before reclaiming her spot in Gwen’s arms.  She closed her eyes in contentment and her lips creased into a smile.  Gwen hugged her more firmly and whispered into her hair.  “What are you smiling about?”

“The sound of the beat of your heart... it’s like music to me.  I can feel it in my body.  It’s amazing.”  The soundless chuckles earned Gwen a poke in the ribs and a raised head complete with glare from Randi.  The poke made her jump and the glare made her laugh out loud.  “Hmph!” Randi pouted, but she didn’t relinquish her place and in fact snuggled that much closer to Gwen.  Gwen stroked her hands through Randi’s hair and felt Randi relax into her.  She turned her lips to Randi’s ear and whispered.

“I know – why do you think it’s my favorite place in the whole world?”

Randi didn’t answer; she just hugged Gwen tighter and soon the only noise in the room was the solitary sound of their breathing.

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

“Aphrodite?”

The goddess looked up from the screen she had been intently studying and removed her glasses.  Though she knew it completely changed her look and added a dimension of seriousness to her character, the fact was she actually needed them more than she was willing to admit.  She rubbed her eyes and smiled warmly at her visitor.

“Morph, Dude!!  Long time, no see, Babe.  Whassup?”

Morpheus blinked.  He only very rarely ventured out of his domain and he tended to forget about the peculiar quirks of each member of his family in the interim.  Coming face to face with them again was always disconcerting at first.  Then he smiled at her welcome and took her outstretched hands in his, squeezing them in greeting before releasing them. 

“Hello, Aphrodite.”  His expression became serious.  “Do you have a moment?  I think we might have a problem.”

Dite rubbed her forehead with one hand and let the other wrap around his arm.  “C’mon, Morph.  That so sounds like I’m gonna need a drink.”  She poured two glasses of nectar and motioned to a chair.  “Have seat and tell me what’s up.”

“Someone is interfering in Miranda Valiant’s dreamscape.”

Aphrodite gulped her nectar and got up to refill her glass, bringing the carafe back to sit on the table between them.  “Of course.”  She ran her hand through her curly hair.  “Is it Ares?”

“I think so; I’m still doing some checking, but everything points to him.”

Dite and Morpheus exchanged a long gaze before she spoke.  “He’s totally over the edge with her, isn’t he?  He has lost every last bit of his mind.”

Morpheus nodded.  “I’m afraid so.”  He sighed and swallowed half his nectar before he spoke again.  “I’ll erect barriers to keep him out from now on, but I thought you’d like to be aware.  Perhaps you can warn Randi.”

“Oh you bet your sweet ass I will.  Though she’s so majorly pissed with him right now, this may – well, I’m radically glad I’m not gonna be in his shoes when she gets him.”

“You really think she will?  He is a god after all.”

“It won’t matter.  She’s gonna come collecting and he’s gonna have to pay up.”

“She has a plan?”

“She has a plan.”

“Good,” Morpheus said, finishing his nectar and standing.  “He’s gone too far this time.”  He leaned over and brushed a kiss across her cheek, blushing when she returned the affection.  Then he strode out the door and headed back to his own realm.

Aphrodite waited til he was gone, then she screamed, stomped her feet and banged her fists on the table.  After her brief tantrum, she dropped her head on her arms and closed her eyes.  And then there were those days when being a goddess just sucked.  Athena and Artemis came running at the first sound of screaming.   A light touch on her shoulder caused Dite to jump and she glared at Athena before grinning sheepishly.  “Sorry,” she mumbled.

“We heard you scream, Dite.  Are you all right?  Is something wrong?” Artemis asked, looking around for anything amiss.

“I’m cool, Babe, but something is so....  Ares is a... he’s... ARGH!!!!” she screamed again.  “If Randi doesn’t totally whip his ass, I just might have to.”

Artemis and Athena exchanged startled glances, then turned back to Aphrodite with extreme concern.  “Would you like to start at the beginning, Dite, or would you like us to start guessing?” Athena asked.  She motioned to the half empty carafe of nectar on the table.  “Is it that bad?”

“Pull up a glass, then you can tell me.”

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

Randi lay quietly wrapped in Gwen’s arms, gently running her touch from breast to knee.  She had no desire to bring Gwen out of her peaceful sleep state just yet so she kept her contact light and soothing.  But Randi needed the connection so she allowed herself the comfort being in Gwen’s arms stroking her flesh brought her.  She thought about the odd dream she’d had the night before.  It bothered in a number of ways.  The reality of something she knew was only a dream was disturbing.  It made Randi wonder if it was a premonition or....  It was the ‘or’ that bothered her the most because in all likelihood that meant Ares was making another effort against her again and this time he was using the Amazons to do it.  The question was could she do anything to stop him before Ares destroyed the Amazon Nation.

“What are you thinking about so hard, Love?” Gwen’s sleepy voice burred its way through Randi’s hearing.  She felt the subtle rumble and it made her smile despite her misgivings about everything else.  Randi had never felt as secure in their love as she did at this moment and realized that the feeling was growing stronger with the passage of time.  A hand riffling through her hair brought her back to the present and she shifted just enough to look into green eyes filled with so much love it made her heart ache to see it reflected back at her.  Randi pressed a kiss between the breasts she had been pillowed on.  Then she shifted to capture those lips that were smiling at her just the least little bit and that went on until Gwen wrapped her arms fully around Randi’s body and pulled her down to Gwen’s.

“Good morning,” Randi said softly.  Gwen grinned fully.

“Yes, it certainly is.  Now what were you thinking about so hard?”

Randi grinned rakishly.  “What makes you think I was thinking hard?  I’m in bed with my beautiful, sexy, naked wife and lover.  I’m not sure I see where thinking would be required.”  Gwen gripped her face and gazed seriously into blue eyes.  Randi sighed and dropped her eyes momentarily before moving her eyes back up to meet Gwen’s.  “I was thinking about my dream.”

Gwen nodded; she’d suspected as much. Truth be told, it had been occupying her thoughts as well.  “And did you come to any conclusions?”

Randi slid to one side of Gwen’s body, allowing her leg to keep Gwen pinned in place and resuming her light stroking touch along Gwen’s torso.  She smiled as she watched goosebumps follow in the wake of her fingertips, but her eyes were serious when they met Gwen’s.  “Not really.  I still don’t know if it’s a dream or a premonition or just a piece of undercooked chicken from last night. I think you should contact the Amazons... ensure we do not need to be there immediately.  If we don’t, I’ll push through today’s agenda and try to finish up the plans for the new schedule of service we want to implement so we can go out there tomorrow.  If we do need to go today, well, we’ll go and play the rest by ear.”

Gwen smoothed the worry lines that creased Randi’s forehead.  “You’re really worried about this, aren’t you?”

Randi nodded.  “I think it’s Ares. I think he’s gonna use the Amazons against me if he can.”

Now it was Gwen’s turn to frown.  “Why?  Why the Amazons?  They are protected by Artemis.”

“No,” Randi shook her head.  “Artemis is their patron, but the goddesses do not protect – at least not like that.  Besides, that would just be added incentive as far as Ares is concerned at this point.  The fact is, with the dissimilation of the rebellion factions, the Amazons are about the only separate warrior society left for Ares to stir to war.”

“But, Randi... the Amazons have been at peace for as long as the world has been.  They were signers of the treaty; they have been players in keeping the peace.  Not like the Sabres, of course, but they have served in the military, participated in....”  Gwen glared when Randi’s fingers covered her mouth.

“Sweetheart, I know all that.  But the fact remains that – one... the Amazons are a naturally warrior society and the only one that exercises those skills outside the regular military; two... Artemis is their patron and they have sects devoted to Aphrodite and Athena as well; three... you are their queen.  He has lost every other way with me; he has nothing to lose by destroying them trying to ensure his success against me.”

“He has lost his mind!”

Randi nodded seriously.  “I really believe he has.  He honestly never expected me to reject him so completely.  I think it pushed him over the edge.”

“Why?  Randi, since our first trip through the karmic circle together - no matter the lifetime, no matter the circumstances - you have never been his.  Why would he think it would be different this time, especially since we were already together and the relationship consummated??  You came back from the dead for me in this lifetime before we admitted our love to one another!!!”

“Yes, but he cheated; he stacked the cards completely against me to guarantee his victory.”

Gwen snorted.  “Asshole,” she muttered under her breath, then blushed slightly at Randi’s silent chuckle and shrugged.  “Well, he is.  So what went wrong if everything was in his favor?”

Randi smirked, the sexy kind that gave Gwen tingles up and down her spine.  “You did.”

Blonde brows flew up into Gwen’s hairline so fast Randi waited for them to fly right off.  “I did?!?  What do you mean, I did???”

Randi leaned down and kissed Gwen with fiery passion, possessing her in a way no one else could.  “Before the love; before the sex; before the vows we made to one another there was always you – in my heart; in my soul; in my mind.  He could never, ever defeat that.  And he could never understand that... never grasp that there was nothing he could offer me that could measure up to what we had together even when we were just friends.”

“And before we met?”  They didn’t talk about this much and Gwen wasn’t going to let the opportunity pass them by.  She knew there had been other lovers in Randi’s life before she had entered it; she suspected Tiny was one of them and Poppy was another though she had never asked.  In some ways, she was glad Randi had not been completely alone during the years she had been an active duty Sabre.  On the other hand, she didn’t have green eyes for no reason, and jealousy was an ugly emotion – not only to experience but to be caught having.

“Before we met?” Randi frowned.  “Before we met, I wasn’t vulnerable.”

Green eyes widened with hurt.  “Are you saying I made you vulnerable??  I made it possible for Ares to lay claim to you??”  Gwen would have pulled away had it not been for the leg holding her in place and the arm that tightened significantly around her waist.

“Shh... just listen, Love,” before Gwen could protest.  “Yes, you made me vulnerable because you made me feel; and it was so... wonderful.  Ares couldn’t tap into my passion because it wasn’t there.  I had a few lovers before you came into my life,” acknowledging Gwen’s unspoken question.  “But they were friends... people I trusted enough to find release with.  My heart was not involved; my soul certainly wasn’t.  It wasn’t until I met you that I started to feel.”  A beat.  “I wouldn’t trade that vulnerability for anything, Love.  It made me feel.  And that made us invincible.”

That got Randi the grin she had been searching for.  “Really?” Gwen asked shyly.

“Oh yeah,” Randi guaranteed.  “Now c’mon,” she added, rolling away from Gwen and off the bed.  “The sooner we get started, the sooner we can be done.”  She extended a hand that Gwen took with alacrity, sliding from the bed and tugging them both towards the bathroom.

“I’m looking forward to that.”

Randi chuckled.  “I’m looking forward to kicking Ares’ ass.  The look on his face will be satisfying.”

Gwen laughed.  “Your boot print permanently embedded will be even better.”

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

Ares remained blissfully unaware of their plans; he was too busy celebrating his latest conquest to be monitoring their activity at the moment.  And with any luck, not only would Randi be his very shortly, but he would also spawn an army of immortal warriors created in his image.  He looked down at the woman who shared his bed and laughed, the evil sound echoing throughout the mountain complex the Amazon Nation now called home. 


Chapter XI

“Aphrodite?” Artemis said as she rushed into the room where Aphrodite sat behind her desk working.  Dite pulled the glasses off her face and pinched the bridge of her nose before looking at Artemis with tired eyes.  She motioned to a chair and folded her hands on the desk in a listening pose.

“What’s wrong, Arty, and how can I help?”

Artemis spared a brief moment to be thankful for Dite’s perceptiveness.  This was going to be awkward enough without getting into the squicky details.  “It’s Ares.  He’s completely over the edge.  You said Randi was ready and capable of taking him down?”  She waited for Aphrodite to nod.  “I think she needs to do so now.”

“But....”

“No, Dite – listen.  Ares is manipulating the Amazons; I think he plans to use them to create a race of warriors in Randi’s image.”

Aphrodite’s eye opened wide and she just look at Artemis for a long moment.  “You mean he’s... ew – grody to the max, Babe.  I so did not need that visual this morning.”

“Yeah?  Well, imagine how I felt when I figured it out.”

“Wait,” combing her fingers through her disheveled curls.  “Can we start this gnarly conversation over? ‘Cause I am getting a major headache from this.  Whaddya mean – when you figured it out?”

“Can we get Athena in on this?  I would prefer not to have to say it twice.  I think she’s....”

“ATHENA!!!!”

Artemis chuckled wryly at Dite’s bellow.  “Of course, that works too.”  Athena popped her head around the corner almost instantly.

“Gods, Dite!  You scared a year’s worth of eternity out of me!  What is so important??”

“Come in and siddown.  We gotta talk.”  Athena looked from Dite to Artemis and back again and sighed.  Without a word she popped in a bottle of wine and three glasses, then fell into a chair and waited for someone to give her the bad news.

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

“Randi?”

Randi looked up when Gwen’s head came around the door to her office.  She turned away from her computer screen and spun her chair around to face Gwen.  She was gratified when Gwen came around the desk and sat down in her lap.  “So... what’d you find out?” smoothing out the frown lines that were crinkling Gwen’s forehead.  The expression made her guts churn just a little.

“I’m not sure.  It was very strange.”

Now a frown crossed Randi’s features.  “How so?  Did you speak to Lorac?”

Gwen nodded slowly.  “Yes, but she was... I dunno – off.  Almost like a pod person or something.”  She blew out a frustrated breath.  “She didn’t act like there was a problem; she was even enthusiastic about our coming out there soon.  Said they were planning a surprise fit for a queen.  It was just weird, but I can’t put my finger on what’s wrong.”

“Do you think it is critical?  Do we need to go out there today?”

Gwen bit her lip pensively and considered the questions seriously.  “No.  I think we need to take care of the rest of the world first.  We’re too close to a resolution and if we truly want to go home and have peace, we need to finish.  But I wouldn’t object to stepping things up and getting out there sooner than we had originally planned either.”

“All right,” Randi said in agreement.  “I think I have a rudimentary workable plan.  We just need to get the details settled and put into place.  You wanna take a look?  With a little luck we’ll have this ready to implement by the time Tiny and Reed get back next week.”

Gwen shifted in Randi’s lap to take a look at the desk screen.  Randi angled the desk a little more to accommodate Gwen’s added height, then sat back and let Gwen read in peace.  Her hands delicately stroked the body within her reach that coincidentally contained a majority of Gwen’s erogenous zones.  Randi wasn’t even conscious of her actions until Gwen grasped her hands lightly and turned pleading eyes to meet Randi’s.

“Whoops!  Sorry,” Randi said sheepishly.

Gwen smiled and stole a quick kiss.  “I wouldn’t mind except it’s very distracting.  You make it very difficult to concentrate.”

Randi stood, lifting Gwen to her feet at the same time.  “Tell ya what... I’ll go find some of the guys who are around and go do some sparring.  Then you can read in peace; don’t look at me like that.  If I stay, I’m just gonna keep distracting you and we both know it’s the truth.”

Gwen smiled sheepishly and nodded.  “Yeah, but it doesn’t mean I won’t miss you while you’re gone.”

Randi’s turned to steal a kiss, only hers was by no means quick.  “I love you,” she finally said when they separated on an uneven breath.  “I’ll be back to pick you up for lunch.  Then we can start working on the details.”

Gwen nodded.  “Be careful, Empress.  Don’t beat up on the troops too much, all right?  I have plans for you tonight and they don’t involve you being black and blue or too tired and sore to move properly.”  Randi arched an eyebrow, but her eyes twinkled mischievously.  Then she jumped unexpectedly when Gwen smacked her firmly on the butt.  “Go on and get out of here, Love.  I know you want to go play with the boys and I’ll get done faster if you do.  Just don’t run them too ragged.”

“No promises,” Randi quipped and with another swift kiss, she was out the door and Gwen sat down at the desk to continue her reading.  She liked what she had been able to take in so far; the idea certainly had merit and she could easily see it working for everyone if they could just work out a way to implement it properly.  She started making notes as ideas occurred to her and soon Gwen was completely immersed in her work.

Meanwhile Randi had no lack of volunteers once word got around of her presence in the rec room.  No one could resist the challenge, especially once Randi made it clear she was taking all comers.  Soon the room was filled with the sounds of hand-to-hand combat and the thud of bodies as they hit the mats one by one.

It was the growling of her stomach that pulled Gwen’s attention off the computer screen and focused it on the clock.  Her eyebrows shot into her hairline.  Surely Randi wasn’t still sparring; it had been hours.  Gwen rolled her eyes, knowing the truth.  She locked the computer and lowered the desk back down to a flat position.  Then she got up and strode out of the room, intent on finding her wayward soulmate.  But first she had to make a stop by their suite.

Sabres were scattered across the room in various states of disrepair discussing form and technique as Randi sparred with yet another of their number.   But when Gwen opened the door and crossed the room towards Randi, silence followed in her wake.  A number of Sabres grinned.  They had heard from their Amazon mates about Gwen’s prowess with the staff, and several of them had seen the bard in action here in the compound.  At the very least, it would be entertaining.  The Sabre facing off against Randi was distracted by the silence and hesitated, giving Randi the chance to drop him to the mat.  Then she looked up and understood the reason for the quiet that now draped the room and gave Gwen a chagrined smile.  Randi had been having such a good time sparring she hadn’t realized how late it had gotten.

“Oh shit!” she muttered but not low enough not to be heard by the troops, causing a ripple of grins to race around the room.  “Guess playtime is over, boys and girls.  I promised to take Gwen to lunch so if you’ll excuse us....”

“Not so fast there, Stud.  Get your staff.”

“Gwen?”

“C’mon, Empress.  You made me wait for lunch; I think you owe me a round of sparring.”

Randi cocked an eyebrow and her blue eyes twinkled in pure fun.  “Oh you do, huh?  You think I owe you?”  She held out a hand and momentarily her staff was placed in it.  Gwen nodded and backed up a pace, trying to clear space for their match.  “Then by all means, my queen,” twirling her staff into a ready position and giving Gwen an evil smile, “let’s spar.”

The sound of wood clashing solidly together was loud and echoed in the otherwise silent room.  The Sabres watched in awe as the staves met and separated in motions so smooth and rhythmic they could almost be classified as a dance.  Gwen and Randi smiled ferally at one another.  Though they were both quite serious about their skills, this was something they took great joy in sharing with one another and both of them had missed this time together.  The hits increased in speed until they were merely a blur; the Sabres just blinked at the furious action they were privileged to witness.

For long moments the battle went back and forth between them, neither woman gaining or losing ground to the other.  Finally, as if someone gave an invisible signal, they wound up with a flourish, staves crossed inched from their faces.  Their breathing was increased but not harsh and for a few stunned seconds, it was the only sound in the room.  Then the Sabres started to cheer.  When Randi leaned forward and captured Gwen’s lips, they whooped.  Gwen blushed.  Randi just grinned like a Cheshire cat.

“Right, then...” Randi said as the sound died down.  “Now if you’ll excuse us....”  A chuckle went around the room and they made a path so Randi and Gwen could leave the rec room together.  A trail of Sabres followed them out, then went their own ways to get back to their duty stations.

“Did you have fun?” Gwen asked as they made their way to their rooms.  Gwen wanted to put her staff away and Randi was dying for a quick shower.  Gwen squealed, closed her eyes and held on tightly when without warning Randi picked her up and spun them both around in a circle.  When they stopped spinning, Gwen opened her eyes and stared down into sparkling, bright blue orbs.  She couldn’t help the smile that crossed her lips or crinkled her nose.

“I had a blast!!  I’ve missed that... especially with you.  How ‘bout you... did you have fun?”

Gwen squeezed her arms tightly around Randi’s neck and licked the drop of sweat that was dangling on the tip of Randi’s nose before depositing a kiss in its place.  “I,” she said, resting her forehead on Randi’s and forcing their eyes to cross.  “I had a wonderful time today, and I think I may have figured out some of the kinks in the plan.”

“Oh?” Randi said as she pulled back enough to actually see Gwen’s face.  She was suddenly serious and very interested in the conversation.  “Do tell.”

“Uh uh... not until we get something to eat.  Otherwise I will starve to death before I get food.”

“That bad?”

“No, but it’s going to take more than two minutes to explain, and I’m hungry.  C’mon, Love.  Put me down so we can get done and get back to work.”  Randi squinted at Gwen, then turned and resumed her stroll to their quarters.  Gwen instinctively held on tighter.  She drew a deep breath to protest, but a single, pleading glance in her direction made Gwen simply tuck her head into Randi neck for the remainder of the short trip to their room.  Randi smiled and pressed a kiss to Gwen’s head.

A short time later, they were once more clean, fed and back in Randi’s office.  This time they were sitting side by side at the desk as Randi read through the proposal with Gwen’s comments and modifications.  They were good and Randi turned and smiled at Gwen who slipped her glasses off her face and refocused her eyes on Randi’s.  “What?” self-consciously setting her glasses on the closest flat surface.

“These are good ideas, Gwen.  I think they’ll streamline things for everyone... especially me.  Now I just need to write a program to make it all work together.  Making the mix random is good and I think three to six month tours per station are a great idea.  It won’t get everyone exposure to everyone and everything, but it should be enough that people start recognizing similarities.”

“Are you going to extend service times?  Go to five years instead of two?”

“Yeah, I think we need to.  Maybe eventually mankind will be smart enough to survive without a military, but for now I think it’s still necessary.  I’ll make sure there are back-ups and fail-safes in place, but the fact is mankind is either gonna have to grow up and be responsible for each other and this planet, or they are going to end up destroying everything.”

“Does it bother you, Love... walking away, I mean?  We’ve been doing this for a long time, Randi – lifetimes.  And it took us a few tries to get it right.  Can we just walk away without regrets?”  She paused and took a deep breath.  “I know I keep asking; I just want you to be sure that giving up the chance to rule the world isn’t something you’ll be sorry for later.”

Randi took Gwen’s hand.  “No, Sweetheart; it really doesn’t bother me.  I’ve thought about this a lot.”  She blew out a deep breath and looked down at their clasped hands.  “We’ve done all we can do, Gwen.  We’ve arrived at a crux in human history – a pivotal point where the choices made will affect the way humanity will live... or die... together.  We’ve given them every opportunity to choose wisely.”  Now she looked back up and met Gwen’s eyes.  “But unless we want this responsibility for eternity, we have to let mankind make the choice and live with the consequences.  It should be easier for humanity once Ares is out of the way even if we have been his main focus for a while.  And speaking very selfishly – I’m tired.  I don’t wanna do this anymore.  I think we’ve earned our rest.”  She smiled.  “Besides, I have all I want in the palm of my hand,” lifting their joined hands to her lips and kissing them.

Gwen couldn’t stop the blush, but she returned the kiss with a possessive squeeze of the fingers entangled with hers.  “I just don’t want you to regret....”

“No regrets, Gwen – not about this anyway... especially if we can make this work like I think we can.  Let me get started on the program; the sooner I get it done the sooner we can get a team together to work the bugs out while we go visit the Amazons.”

Gwen nodded.  “I’ve got some writing to do.”

“You wanna work in here with me?”

A brilliant smile was her answer.  “Let me go get my journal.”

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

“Are they coming?”

“Not yet.  I told her we were planning a surprise for her, but I indicated it wasn’t ready yet so there wasn’t a need for them to rush out here yet.”

“Good, that will give me a chance to try to make a few more immortal Amazon babies.”

Lorac smiled slyly.  “Well, I know of a few Amazons that are hoping the first try doesn’t take.  They’d like another go with the god of war.”

Ares smirked.  “Only a few?”

“Yeah – not all of us are into men, but not all of us are strictly into women either.”  She frowned.  “Of course, I haven’t heard anyone complaining.”  That struck her as very strange; there were a number of Amazons who had no desire to be with a man and yet they had been as anxious as the rest to sleep with Ares.  Then there were those that didn’t want children, and yet they too had been eager for Ares to give them a child.  Something was wrong with this picture; then Ares trailed a hand up the inside of her thigh and the thoughts went to the wayside.

“What about you, Lorac?”

“As many times as you want, Ares,” then her mind was lost in the passion and bloodlust she felt coursing through her veins.  Nothing else mattered besides the touch of his hands and lips on her body.  Ares smiled cruelly.  The domination he felt over these women was almost enough to make him forget his need to own Miranda Valiant... almost.

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

Rosie had gone home, glad for the chance to check on her barbeque stand and found that her daughter was very happy running the small roadside restaurant.  It was a little surprising; Rosie had never expected her to be so enthusiastic about it, but she was glad to see it.  It meant she could take a little time off.  After everything that had happened recently, Rosie felt the need for a bit of a break to rejuvenate body and spirit.  The last few weeks had been completely draining – to the point that even her daughter mentioned it and shooed her out of the kitchen.  Rosie had laughed and went into the private area of the restaurant, glad beyond words for a child like she had and a chance to rest.

She woke up with a bit of a start; her dreams had been... disturbing... and Rosie looked around trying to orient herself.  Something had woken her up, but what?  There was no one in the room with her and the rest of the house sounded just as quiet.  She closed her eyes and searched her feelings, not able to find the cause for her sudden waking, only knowing that something was off.  The question was – what?  And how did it affect her?

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

“Oh my GOD!  Who in the hell came up with that harebrained idea?” Tiny asked as he collapsed on the ground at the bottom of the hill after he literally fell out of the plastic bubble.  “Damn, I think I’m gonna puke.”

Reed snickered though truthfully she wasn’t feeling much better.  “You’re the one that wanted to try zorbing, Honey.”

“Never again,” Tiny mumbled as he focused on breathing to keep the contents of his stomach where they belonged.  “I hope they found an appropriate death for whoever decided that was a good idea.  I can’t believe Randi put something that sickening on a holochip that is supposed to be for fun.”

“I dunno, Baby – remember those... what were those things we rode?  The roller coasters?  Some of those were more than a little disorienting.”

He cracked an eye open to look at her.  “You think this is a plot by Randi to get us for something?”

Reed chuckled gingerly, not wanting to disturb her equilibrium too much.  “No.  I think she just has a twisted idea of what fun is.  I think we need to research everything else on that chip though.  I don’t think either one of us can handle anymore surprises like that one.”

“I think we need to give the holodeck a rest and take a time out in the real world.”  Tiny waited for a response from Reed, and when he didn’t get one he turned his head slowly to face her.  Her eyes were closed and her breathing slow and deep and he realized she was meditating.  She reached for his hand almost unconsciously and he extended his own without thought.  They lay there in silence for a few minutes and Tiny felt his stomach settle.  Without warning, Reed clenched his hand almost painfully and he wondered what had caused that reaction.  He rolled over carefully, unwilling to risk upsetting his stomach again.  “Reed?  Honey, you all right?”

It took a few more minutes of deep breathing before Reed answered and then it was so soft Tiny had to strain to hear it.  “I dunno – I feel a little off kilter.”

“From the zorbing or...?”  Tiny zoomed in on the problem immediately; Reed would have already mentioned if her imbalance was related to their holodeck activities.  He suspected this feeling was from something else entirely.

“I don’t think so.  It was a weird ripple.”  She shrugged.  “It’s getting better.”

“Is it Randi and Gwen?  Do we need to cut our vacation short?”

“I don’t know; I don’t think so,” she said again with only the slightest hesitation.  “Besides, you know and I know Randi will kick both our asses if we go back early for no explainable reason.  Maybe we should call them later though – check in.”

“Sweetheart, neither Randi nor Gwen would ever discount your feelings.  You know that.  They better than anyone else on Earth understand and respect your feelings... well, except maybe me,” he added with a crooked smile.  She returned the look gratefully.  “I think we should head back for the capital,” he continued, sitting up slowly.  “We could always tell them we need a break from our vacation; personally I think it’s killing me.”

Reed chuckled again and eased up into a sitting position.  “Me too,” she agreed.  “And after today, I think I have the bruises to prove it.  C’mon,” she said, standing up and offering him a hand.  Tiny took it and kissed it, then pushed himself upright.

“Computer, holodeck off,” feeling better with the disappearance of the zorbing ball.  “C’mon, Honey.  Let’s go and see what kind of trouble we can find.  Knowing Randi and Gwen, it shouldn’t be hard and it should be interesting.”

Reed smirked and followed Tiny out of the holosuite.  “It always is.”

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

Jill walked around the house slowly.  She had expected to feel lonely and bereft here, but instead she felt Geoff’s presence like a tangible thing – a warm blanket that wrapped her in his love.  It made her smile.  There were so many memories here... so many pieces of their lives together were contained in the walls of this home.  A knock on the door interrupted her musing and Carbon barked; Jill frowned.  She wasn’t expecting anyone and she had thought to have a bit of time to adjust to being alone here before friends and neighbors came to call.

When she got to the door, she leaned her forehead on it and took a deep breath, hushing the barking dog with a motion.  Then she opened the door to the young Sabre who had made regular visits to Geoff’s workshop, especially as Geoff’s health had deteriorated and they had spent more and more time in the capital city.  “Hello, Matt.”

“Hello, Mrs. Goldman.  I apologize for my poor timing, but we need to sweep Geoff’s workshop as soon as possible and I wanted to make arrangements that would suit you best.”

Jill was a little put off, but she nodded.  The sooner he was done, the sooner she would be left in peace.  And he was a polite young man; she didn’t blame him for wanting to do his duty as quickly as he could manage.

“What would be best for you, Matt?”

“No ma’am,” he replied quietly.  “I meant what I said.  Geoff was an extraordinary man and a good friend.  I volunteered for the assignment because I am the most qualified and could do it without infringing on your privacy too much.  I didn’t realize I was going to be sent here so quickly.”

“It’s all right, Matt.  Come in, please.”

He shook his head.  “No, thank you, ma’am.  If you could just tell me when the best time was for you, and if you would prefer for me to take care of things alone or if you want a full team in here.”  He paused at the confusion in her eyes.  “If I bring in a full team, there will be about a half dozen of us and it will take less than a day... probably two to three hours at the most.  If I do it alone, it will take me at least two or three days.”

Jill thought about it a moment.  “I think I’d rather you do it by yourself, Matt.  Geoff was proprietary about his work and you were the one he chose to share that with.  I respect that; you understand his work and know the value of what he was doing.  You still have the code to the workshop, yes?” Matt nodded.  “All right.  You can get started whenever you want to in the morning.  I’d appreciate it if you let me know when you are done.”

“Yes ma’am.  Again I’m sorry to have had to bother you about this....”

Jill held up a hand.  “It’s all right, Matt.  I may not get all the ins and outs of the Sabres, but I have learned enough to know there is a reason for their expediency.  You do what you need to do, Matt.”

“Thank you, Mrs. Goldman.  Goodnight.”

“Goodnight,” she replied, closing the door behind him.  Then she looked around the house and she and Carbon headed for the study where their pictures and holo-memories were waiting for her to go through them.  It was going to be a good night for remembering.

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

Randi stretched and grimaced as the bones in her spine realigned themselves in a cacophony of popping sounds.  It made Gwen look up from her journal with concern.  “You all right there, Baby?  That sounded ugly.”

Randi shifted her shoulders to loosen them a little more and smiled in Gwen’s direction.  “Yeah... just a little sore from sitting in the same position without moving for so long.  I know better; I just got caught up in what I was doing.”  She stood up slowly and crossed to the small sofa set against the nearest wall, climbing over the back and sliding in behind Gwen until she was wrapped around her bard.  Randi was gratified when Gwen closed the journal and set it aside, then leaned back into her body with a sigh of relief.  “How’s the writing coming?”

Gwen angled her head and brushed a kiss on Randi’s jaw line.  “Well enough.  I’m writing down what I remember from our time in the dreamscape together – from our spirit walk.”

Randi’s eyes widened though she knew Gwen couldn’t see the reaction.  “Wow!  That’s um... that’s some pretty intense stuff.”

Gwen nodded.  “Pretty personal too.  But since I’m the only one who will see it....  And I don’t want to forget.”

“You think you would... forget, I mean?”

“Not the big stuff, no, but I wanted to get the details down while they were still fresh.  I want to remember how things felt and smiled and sounded; the look in your eyes when you saw your reflection in my mirror.  Seeing you as both warrior and woman and our reunion of both body and soul.  I don’t want to forget any of it – even the parts that hurt.”

Randi held on a little tighter and smiled when Gwen tangled their fingers together.  “I’m glad you’re writing it down, Love.  Even if it’s just for us, I’m glad we’ll have it to remember.”  They sat in silence for a little while before Randi spoke again.  “You know, when we get back from the Amazons and before we go home we need to go back to the village and talk to Sky.”

“Okay... why?”

“So they can make us part of the tribe – if you want to, of course.  They did invite us and we finished our spirit walk....”

“... even if it wasn’t exactly the way that Sky expected it to be,” Gwen said with a chuckle.

Randi echoed the sentiment silently though Gwen felt the vibrations against her back.  “Yeah, I’m sure we’ll hear about our unorthodox method for taking a spirit walk for some time to come.  But we still need to decide what, if anything, we want to share about that because you know eventually someone is gonna ask.” 

Gwen sighed.  “Personally, I don’t see the need to share any of the details with anyone.  It is very intense and very personal, and I would like to keep it that way.  Am I being selfish?”

“Nope, not as far as I’m concerned.  I feel the same way.  There really isn’t a reason for anyone to know the details of what we went through together.  They know we survived; that will have to be sufficient.  The rest is for us alone.”

Another short silence that Gwen broke.  “So how’s your work coming?”

Randi nodded.  “Pretty good.  I’m satisfied we’re on the right track.”

“How do you think people are going to react?”

Randi shrugged.  “I dunno; right now I just wanna make it work.  We can worry about the reactions when they happen.  But we’re not gonna stay here.  I’m not gonna be Empress forever.”

“I’m glad,” Gwen said simply.  “I like having Randi all to myself.”  She leaned back as Randi bent down and their lips met for a timeless moment before separating.  “C’mon,” Gwen said as she pulled back slightly.  “We’ve been at this for a while.  Let’s take a break and go get something to eat.”

“That sounds like a good idea.  Steak and eggs?”

“Yeah... then maybe we could take a little trip in the holodeck?”

“Sure; where ya wanna go?” pushing Gwen off the couch and standing up behind her.

“I dunno.  Let’s go see what we have to choose from; I know there are still a lot of things on those chips we haven’t tried yet.”

“All right... anything but zorbing.  Just reading about that makes me sick.”

“That bad?” as they made their way out of the office and to the kitchen.

“Yeah... that bad.  I’d rather shoot myself.”

Gwen’s eyes widened.  “Oooookay – note to self... no zorbing.”  Then they walked into the kitchen and they started preparing their dinner.


Chapter XII

“Tiny?  What are you doing back here already?  Couldn’t stay away?” Yuri joked as Tiny and Reed waited for him to open the gate.  All codes had to be verified from inside before activation was allowed.  Tiny just shook his head when he realized that Yuri was on duty that evening.  It was just the way his karma had gone since he’d started this vacation.

“Vacation was killing me, Yuri.  You gonna open the gate and let us in?”

“Yes, come on up.  I’m in the office.”

“Where are Randi and Gwen?”

“The Empress and the queen have retired to their quarters for the evening.”

Tiny laughed.  “Randi hears you referring to her like that she may just unretire to kick your ass, ya know.”

Yuri giggled.  “It would be worth it.”

Tiny scowled.  “Why?  Is something wrong?  We’ve only been gone for three days.”

“Oh no!  She and Gwen sparred together today - after the Empress took on better than half the unit in hand to hand combat.  It was something of a spectacle all the way around.  The queen is quite impressive; can hold her own with the Empress with a staff.”

“I missed this?!?  Tell me someone got vid of this.”

“Yeah,” Reed chimed in.  “I wanna see this.”

Yuri chuckled again.  “Well, come on up.  I’ll have it waiting for you by the time you get in here.”

Reed and Tiny turned to look at one another when Yuri disappeared from the screen.  “I can’t believe we missed that,” Tiny said with a whine in his voice.         “I can’t believe they did something like that while we were gone!!  We shoulda been here for that!”  Reed couldn’t help it; she laughed.  Tiny glared at her, then gave her a sheepish grin.  “All right, all right,” he conceded as he brought their transport to a halt.  “I know I’m being ridiculous.  It just woulda been nice to have been here and experienced it after all the bad we’ve seen them suffer through.”

“Don’t worry, Honey.  I imagine if you ask nicely, Randi will be happy to kick your ass sparring.  And if you ask really nice, she might let Gwen do it too.”

Outraged brown eyes met amused gray.  “You’re yanking my chain,” he growled.

“Yep, I sure am,” Reed agreed with a giggle.  “It’s so much fun and you make it so easy.”  They grabbed their bags from the small trunk and headed inside.  “Are we gonna go say hello before we turn in tonight or do you just want to wait until tomorrow?”

“I think we’ll wait unless Yuri has already let them know we’re back.  If they have um... retired for the evening, I’m not sure I wanna interrupt.  You know as well as I do the multitude of possibilities those words cover.”

“Very true,” Reed agreed.  “I’m so glad their shielding is in place.  Life is much more pleasant for me.”

Tiny wrapped an arm around Reed’s shoulders and kissed her temple.  “Me too.  I hated watching you in such misery.  It’s nice to be able to be friends with them and to be able to enjoy it.  C’mon,” pushing the door to the office open and lifting a hand to Yuri in greeting.  “Let’s go see what all the buzz is about with them sparring.  I have a feeling this will be a lot of fun.”

“Oh it was,” Yuri agreed, “and if we’re really lucky, they’ll do it again.”  He extended a hand to each of them and then frowned.  “Wow, your vacation really did beat you up, didn’t it?” examining the odd bruises that covered each of them.  “You want to share?”

“Let’s see the vid feed first, then we’ll tell you about the holodeck vacation from hell that nearly killed us.”  Yuri’s eyebrows almost popped off his forehead and then he motioned them to a chair.  Given their battered appearance, he couldn’t wait to hear the details.

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

“That was... incredible,” Gwen said as she slipped the helmet off her head.  “I never thought I could fly like a bird.  Being connected to you while I was doing it was a great bonus.”

Randi dropped her helmet, and loosened the straps that held them together.  She was a little surprised when Gwen immediately stepped away from her.  Randi shimmied out of the straps and buckles only to find Gwen suddenly wrapped around her like an octopus.  “Well, hello there,” Randi said with a rakish grin, tightening her hold and feel Gwen’s spine pop back into place.  “Fancy meeting you here.”

“Ugh,” Gwen groaned and let her head flop forward into Randi shoulder.  “God, that feels good.  HEY!” she squealed and straightened.  “Whaddya do that for?” glaring at Randi who smirked, then snared her lips in a long, passionate kiss.  Randi caressed the spot on Gwen’s ass she had just pinched and felt Gwen melt into her touch and embrace.  “Hmm... what was I saying?”

Randi grinned.  “You were saying we needed to get out of here and go to bed.”

Gwen giggled.  “Did I say that?  I don’t remember saying that.”

“Computer... door,” Randi called out as she carried Gwen out of the holosuite and back into their rooms.  “Do you really want to argue about it?” kissing the full lips on a level with her own again.

“What I want to do,” Gwen growled when they separated for air, “is to tie you up and have my way with you for the rest of the night.”

Randi’s eyes widened and she swallowed hard at the pure desire in Gwen’s voice and the lust that burned hotly in her green eyes.  “All right,” she agreed numbly, then found herself drowning in new sensations when Gwen began to make good on her desires.  They never even heard the comm unit buzz for their attention, and Yuri wasn’t about to find out why.  He knew they were alone together and that was reason enough to let them be.

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

“Are you okay, sweetheart?” Gwen asked, gently stroking all the bare skin she could reach on Randi’s body.  “I wasn’t too rough?”

Randi stretched slowly, making sure she rubbed up against Gwen before she turned them and spooned up behind her.  “I am wonderful, thank you.  And you were incredible.”

“You’re sure?”  Randi felt the heat of Gwen’s blush and eased up on her elbow enough to look down into Gwen’s face.  She ran the backs of her fingers along Gwen’s cheek until those green eyes turned in her direction.  Then Randi smiled as Gwen captured her hand.

“I’m sure,” she answered seriously.  “I trust you, Gwen... completely.  And to know that you share your trust with me – to feel comfortable enough to take charge and express your needs and desires....  I never thought I’d feel like this; never thought I’d be so willing to surrender.”

Gwen didn’t answer verbally.  Instead she pulled the hand she held to her lips and kissed it, then placed their joined hands between her breasts with a smile.  Randi brushed her lips over Gwen’s cheeks and pulled the smaller body into her own more firmly.  Then both closed their eyes and settled into a blissful sleep.

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

The dream returned with a vengeance and Randi was sitting up breathing hard before Gwen even blinked her eyes opened.  But she held on to Randi tightly even in her sleep and slowly Randi’s heartbeat slowed as she felt the surety of Gwen’s love surrounding her.  When she caught her breath, she looked down into sleepy green eyes filled with concern.  She cupped the blonde head and kissed the top of it.  Gwen tightened her hold.  “You all right, Love?”

Randi nodded.  “Yeah... just that dream again.  I think... I dunno - it’s never been the gods’ style to hide behind dreams where I’m concerned, but it’s almost like they are trying to send me a message.”

“Unless it’s not them.”

“What?”

“Well,” Gwen said, blinking the sleep out of her eyes.  “What if it isn’t the goddesses?  You know and I know that if they had something to say, they’d do so face to face at this point.”  Randi slowly nodded her agreement.  “So what if it is someone else trying to get your attention?  Or what if it is accidental?”

“Accidental how?” Randi asked with a frown.  Gwen bit her lip, not wanting to put her thoughts into words just yet.  “You think it’s Ares?  He’s up to something that is giving me these weird dreams?”

“I think it’s possible.”

“But why give me dreams?  Why give me any warning as to what he’s doing?’

“I doubt he’s doing it on purpose.”  Gwen sighed.  “I do think we need to go to the Amazons today.  Whatever is causing this they are obviously involved.  We’re not going to make any more progress here if we’re sitting here trying to figure out what’s happening there.”

“What about your surprise?”

Gwen’s answer was interrupted by a shower of sparkles and rose petals as three goddesses coalesced into solid form around them.  Randi frowned and pulled the sheets up to cover her and Gwen’s nakedness.  Then she noticed the seriousness of the goddesses’ expressions and pulled the covers up over their heads as they fell back into the mattress.

“We need to talk,” Aphrodite said in all seriousness.  Randi and Gwen groaned, knowing they weren’t going to want to hear what was coming.

“Can ya’ll give us a few minutes to get a shower and get some clothes on?”

Athena was herding them out of the bedroom before Aphrodite could formulate a response.  Gwen chuckled soundlessly and Randi waited until she heard the door snick closed, then threw the covers off of them and rolled off the bed.

“C’mon, love.  I have a feeling it’s fixing to be a long, LONG day.”

Breakfast was on the table when Randi and Gwen stepped into the main room.  They exchanged glances and took their seats, not surprised when the three goddesses took seats beside them.  Randi looked at each of them and picked up her fork, digging into the food they had provided.

“All right,” she said once she had swallowed.  “Spill it.” 

Now that the time had come, the goddesses looked at one another, each hoping the other would speak up first.  Randi glowered and growled.   Gwen laid a calming hand on the tense forearm and pinned them with a stare. 

“Let me tell you what we have figured out and then you can fill in the blanks, all right?”  The three nodded simultaneously and Gwen took a swallow of juice before she spoke again.  “Ares is making what is probably at this point a last ditch effort at reclaiming lost glory or some such similar bullshit, thinking he will be able to persuade, cajole or otherwise bribe Randi into joining him in his quest for world domination.  And in some twisted sense of warped justice, he is somehow planning to use the Amazon Nation to do carry out his plan.  Are we close?”

They nodded, relieved Randi and Gwen had already figure out the crux of the problem even if they didn’t have all the disgusting details yet.  Artemis closed her eyes and licked her lips nervously before opening them and beginning to speak.  “Ares has given the Amazons the serum he gave to you, Randi, only he was more successful with them than he was with you.  He has turned them into his warriors.”  She clenched her hands together tightly and covered her lips, frowning intensely.  Athena, knowing how hard this was for Artemis particularly, picked up the thread.

“It gets worse of course.  Not only has he managed to secure the loyalty of the Amazon Nation by the use of drugs, Ares is also intent on creating a race of immortal warriors in his own image.  And he is using the women of the Nation to do it... willingly, I might add, because of the drugs.”

“Are you telling me Ares is impregnating the Amazon Nation??”

“He is trying to.  Fortunately he doesn’t seem to know and they either don’t remember or don’t really want him to know despite everything that they cannot get pregnant on a whim like that anymore.” 

Randi nodded.  When laws had been put into place limiting children to one per family unit, scientists had worked night and day to insure a way to stop the cycles of female ovulation and male sperm production, and they were wildly successful to the point it had been almost impossible to reverse at first.  Mankind had nearly succeeded in becoming extinct.  Eventually though, they worked all the kinks out and it became easier to restart the reproductive process of those who wanted to have children.  In the case of the Amazons however, things were a little different.  Many, though not all, of the women of the Nation were not inclined to seek a male partner for mating or reproductive purposes.  Instead the decision was made to give that jurisdiction to Artemis.  That way she could bless a union and ensure that mothers were given strong, healthy daughters to guarantee the continuance of the Nation.  What Ares didn’t know, and what no one had shared with him was the fact that because of that decision by the Amazon Council many years before and the rituals they had performed, only Artemis could unlock the womb to allow the one who had been chosen to bear the child to receive the gift of life and blessing from the child’s other mother... or in some cases, the child’s father.

“So you can even block...?”

“Yes.  Usually when a couple decides to have a child together, they come to the temple to seek my blessing.  In the course of the ritual ceremony, I open the womb and they make love in the hopes of creating a child.  It doesn’t always work the first time, and sometimes they forget that the ritual has to be observed each and every time they want to try for a child.”

“Sounds like an awful lot of work and effort for a child – especially when the science is in place to allow two women or two men to create a child between them without such a struggle.”

“Yes, I know, and it is, but when the covenant was made between me and the Nation, it was the best of all possible options.  Now it may be the only thing keeping Ares from impregnating my warriors and creating an immortal race of his own.”

“How did you discover it... about Ares, I mean?”

“We set up a system to notify me when a couple was preparing to have a child, and it was also programmed to alert me if they had tried and failed and were copulating again.  Sometimes in the midst of lovemaking a partner would remember and call out for a blessing.  It helped if I was prepared for that eventuality as it happened more often than not.  So when I started getting hits on the board from absolutely everyone, including those who had adamantly insisted they had no interest in childbirth or anything that went along with pregnancy, I was immediately alarmed and rightly so.  I went searching for answers, and they led me here.”

“And what is it you would like for us to do?” Randi asked, pushing her empty plate back and taking a large sip of coffee.

“We’d like you to force Ares’ hand, once and for all,” Athena answered firmly.  “Dite told us you have a plan to defeat him.”

“We do,” Randi affirmed.  “But there are a couple things we’ll need to make this work.”

“Anything we can do, Warrior Babe.  I think we are all ready for a radical break from all his crap.  He has gone way off the deep end this time.  He wasn’t this bad when you went through the karmic cycle the first time; I totally think each subsequent lifetime has pushed him just a little closer to the edge until he finally fell over into madness.”

Athena nodded.  “I’m inclined to agree.  I’ve never seen him so obsessed with you... with owning your soul, and that is saying so much all things considered.  He’s always been quite – passionate – where you are concerned.”

“Randi, what are your conditions?  What do you need from us?”

“I need for the gods to be willing to strip Ares of his powers and immortality when I challenge him and to stand behind his punishment when I defeat him.”

“And you’re sure you’ll be able to... defeat Ares, I mean?” Athena asked.  “Even without his powers, Ares will still have the knowledge and strength of his godhood behind him.  He knows your weaknesses and he will try to take advantage of that.”

Randi smiled, a feral expression that didn’t actually reach her eyes.  “I’m counting on it.”

Aphrodite nodded.  “There are a radical number of gods from around the globe that are totally in your corner already.”  She snickered.  “Some of them would absolutely surprise you given the gnarly history your soul has with most of the gods throughout your lifetimes.”  Then she sobered.  “Ares has finally crossed a line none of us are willing to accept.  This could have totally destroyed... everything.”

“All right, but I want to be sure.  We’re not gonna get a second chance at this.  I won’t need one as long as the gods can agree to stand together on this.”

“Gwen,” Artemis cut in abruptly.  “Did you study all the historical texts Lenore gave you?”

“Yes,” Gwen answered with a nod and a frown.  “I’m pretty sure I did.”

“Did you read one on shamanism and what later became known as Wiccans within the Nation?”

The nod was emphatic this time.  “Yes, I remember that one clearly because we spent more than one night discussing it... fascinating stuff.  That is where the priestesses come from, isn’t it?”

“Yes; I would like you to talk to Rosie before you go.  I think there are things from that sect of the Nation that you especially, Gwen, will be able to use.”

“No moon howling, right?” Gwen asked skeptically.  “I read about that in the archives, you know.”

Artemis couldn’t stop the chuckle that bubbled up at Gwen’s obvious scorn.  “Um,” she said, clearing her throat and straightening her expression.  “No... no moon howling.  But there are some things you can do that will help the Amazons accept the antidote they will need to free them from Ares’ influence.  And there should be a way to mask your approach from a god.”

“All right.  I’ll call her before we leave.”

“Yeah... I’ve got to get in touch with Tiny and bring him up to speed on things.  I hate to drag him off vacation, but....  What??” she asked when Dite started shaking her head.

“They’re so not on vacation anymore, Babe.  They came back here to chill last night... something about zorbing?” watching Randi’s face take on a distinct tinge of green.  “Yeah, that was about the way Tiny looked when he started telling that other gnarly dude about the wicked bruises he had.”

“I wonder why Yuri didn’t let me know.” 

Dite cleared her throat and had the grace to blush.  “He tried; you were, um... tied up at the time.”

Randi and Gwen exchanged knowing glances.  Sheer determination kept the blush from suffusing Randi’s face, but Gwen wasn’t quick enough to get hers completely under control and Randi smiled at the delicate color that spread over Gwen’s neck and face.  Personally she thought it look quite charming on Gwen, but she didn’t mention it.  She had no desire to further embarrass Gwen than she already was by drawing attention to it.  Instead she turned her focus to Dite.

“So what will ya’ll be doing in the meantime?”

“Whatever we can, which unfortunately isn’t very much,” Athena replied.  “We will have the antidote ready for you to give them and we will be lining up the gods who will stand behind you when you challenge him.  Do you know when that might be, by the way?”

Randi shook her head.  “Sooner rather than later I expect.  I’ll set something up with Tiny that will allow a worldwide broadcast from the Amazon Nation.  If I were to guess though, I’d say within the next seventy-two hours, depending on the situation we find at the mountain.”

“All right,” Athena nodded.  “We’ll get things taken care of on our end.  I know Zeus will strip Ares’ powers without hesitation when Ares agrees to your challenge; he has more to lose than the rest of us do.”  At their questioning looks, Athena sighed and continued.  “If Ares had been able to gain control of the world, the rest of us would have faded greatly, but we would not have died.  We would just sort of... be.  But Zeus – he would have died.  Ares would have destroyed him to ensure he and not Zeus remained the reigning king of the gods.”

“Wow.”

“Yeah,” Dite chimed in.  “That about covered it for us too.  So we’ll get jamming and you babes let us know what’s shaking as soon as you’re set.  We’ll be keeping an eye and ear out for your signal.  Toodles.”  The three shimmered out before Randi or Gwen could answer.  The two of them blinked at one another for a moment before moving towards the kitchenette.

“I’m gonna go call Rosie.”

“Right,” Randi nodded.  “I’ll be with Tiny if you wanna come join us when you get done.”

“All right.  I’ll be right behind you; hopefully this won’t take very long.”

Randi grinned.  “Talking to Rosie or visiting the Amazons?”

Gwen returned the smile wryly.  “Both, honestly.  Don’t get me wrong.  I enjoy talking to Rosie, but I hate to interrupt her vacation.  God knows she and Reed definitely earned some time away from us.”

“And the Amazons?”

Gwen blew out a breath.  “I don’t like it, but it has to be done.  Randi, they’re good people and I hate that Ares is using them for his own purposes.”  She was glaring.  “They deserve better and so do we.”

“They’ll get it, Sweetheart, and so will we.  We have way too many things left to enjoy together in this lifetime to let anyone or anything ruin it.  Now c’mon.  The sooner we get started....”

“... the sooner we get started.” 

Randi’s brow wrinkled in a frown.  “I thought it was supposed to be finished.”

“For everyone else in the world maybe,” Gwen replied impishly.  “For us, the sooner we get started on the work, the sooner we’ll get started on the living.”

“Good point,” Randi agreed with a quick peck on Gwen’s lips.  “So let’s go... hustle!”  Gwen popped Randi on the ass then scampered back to the bedroom laughing. Randi let her go and shook her head.  “Paybacks, Gwen... there are always paybacks.”

Gwen stuck her head out the door.  “I know.  I’m counting on it.”

Randi left and headed to her office, knowing when a strategic retreat was in order.  There would be plenty of time for teasing later.  First she needed to talk to Tiny.  There were things that needed to be taken care of while they were gone.

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

“So why didn’t you use the regen unit, Tiny?” Lacey asked as she looked him over carefully.  “It wouldn’t have taken but a few minutes to fix these bruises.”

Reed chuckled while Tiny put his shirt back on. “We wanted Randi to see we really were getting beaten up on vacation first.  That way she knows we weren’t making up a reason to come back.  Why are you still here anyway?  Weren’t you supposed to get some vacation time as well?”

Before Lacey could respond to Reed’s question, a knock sounded on the door and Tiny crossed the room to find Randi leaning against the doorjamb.  An eyebrow arched gracefully when she took in his battered appearance.  “Is this the reason you came back early?” motioning to his bruised body.

Tiny smiled wryly and motioned her in.  “Pretty much.  Vacation was killing us; Sabre duty was easier on my body that some of those <ahem> fun things you had on that chip.”

Randi scratched the side of her face and gave him a sheepish look.  “Yeah, I probably should have told you to research some of it before you tried it.  Even I don’t do zorbing.”

Tiny glared.  “Uh huh. Now you tell me,” punching her shoulder, then shaking out his hand.  “Damn, Randi... what the hell have you been doing lately.  That hurt!”  He dropped into a chair.

She smirked at him.  “You try keeping up with Gwen.”

“Yeah, don’t think that isn’t the very first thing we heard about when we got back last night.  I can’t believe I missed that!”

“He’s been moaning about it all morning,” Reed chimed in, rolling her eyes and shaking her head.  Randi snorted and took the arm of the couch as her perch. 

“Don’t worry, Tiny.  I imagine it’ll happen on a regular basis from now on.  Being Empress means everyone wants to spar with me... especially the queen.”

“Nah... she was sparring with you long before you were the Empress.  Your being Empress just means the rest of us get a chance to watch you spar with someone who might actually be able to kick your butt.  At the very least, she holds her own.  God, that was incredible!”

This time Randi laughed.  She wasn’t about to share with him how incredible.  Instead she said, “Yeah, she has a natural flair for it.  She always has.  She was my very best student.”

“Was?”

“She’s my equal, Tiny.  With the staff, she can hold her own against me or anyone else.”

“Even Ares’ warriors?” this from Lacey.

“Especially Ares’ warriors,” Randi corrected.  “The motivation is different, and she has something they cannot defeat now.  How goes the research?”

“We’re done; it hasn’t been tested in battle yet, but we think we have developed a serum that will protect a person against vulnerability to Ares’ loyalty drug.  We cultivated it from the antidote and have tested it every other way we know how.”

“When does widespread manufacturing begin and how long before it will be ready for distribution?  And do we know how long it takes to become effective and how long it lasts?”

“As soon as you give the order; twenty-four hours after that; that we’re not sure of, but our best reasonable guess is within four hours.  It’s made to speed through the bloodstream; and that is entirely unknown to us though preliminary reports have put it as permanent.”

“Really?  That is exceptional.  Excellent work, my friend.”

“Thank you, Empre... Randi,” Lacey corrected herself seeing the glowering look she was getting.  “My team has been working on this round the clock since we started looking for an antidote for you.  We figure it’s only a matter of time until Ares tried to use it on a more widespread scale once he realizes you’re completely beyond his reach.  The only question is why he hasn’t before.”

“Well, I can’t answer your question yet – BUT... he has tried to introduce this on a more widespread scale.”  Randi blew out a breath and the rest assumed listening positions, understanding this was a mission brief.  “Gwen and I are heading out shortly to the Amazon Nation.  We suspected and the goddesses have confirmed, that Ares has moved in and is currently controlling the population with some sort of drug.  We are assuming at this point it is the same loyalty drug he has been using on warriors for a while.  We don’t know how far gone they are at this point; I know it was a much subtler, more gradual process for me than it appears to be for them.”

“How serious is it?”

“Serious.  Though we haven’t seen symptoms like mine, they have allowed Ares to become a part of the tribe.  He’s trying to create a race of immortal warriors in his own image by impregnating as many Amazons as he can.  Fortunately he seems to be unaware of the safeguards that were put in place for population control, and as of yet no one has seen fit to enlighten him.  The consensus however, is that he has slipped over the edge into madness.”

“Randi, you and Gwen can’t go out there alone.  Amazon Nation or not - world domination not withstanding - the fact is Ares is fascinated with you.  You’re the one he wants.  You can’t just waltz in there and give that to him.”

“Tiny, I’m the one thing he can’t have.  What Gwen and I have between us assures us of that.  He couldn’t have me before; he certainly can’t have me now.  Besides, I’ll be taking a team to sit in reserve and wait for my orders once we have a better grasp on the situation.  But....” hesitating, knowing he wasn’t going to like what was coming.  “I need you to stay here.”

“WHAT???” jumping up from his seat.  “You can’t be SERIOUS!!!  Why the HELL would you leave me out of something this important, Randi??  Haven’t I earned the right to be at your side??”  The explosion was hot and fast and Randi let it run until it burned out.  Reed and Lacey remained silent, knowing this was between Randi and Tiny and hoping it could be resolved quickly.  He fell back into his chair with a conspicuous lack of grace.

Randi looked him squarely in the eyes, willing him to see the honest sincerity in hers.  “Tiny, other than Gwen, there is no one – NO ONE, not even Tommy – who I trust to watch my back like I trust you.  But I have to have Gwen with me on this and I need someone I trust with my life to assume the responsibilities I’m leaving here.  Tiny, given what it has cost to get us to this point, I can’t chance leaving to take care of Ares if you’re not here taking care of the rest of the world.”

He glared at her for a long moment, then sighed.  “You don’t fight fair,” he grumbled.

“No,” Randi admitted.  “But I do fight with honor and I fight to win.  I wouldn’t ask if it wasn’t important, Tiny.”

Tiny sighed again.  “I know.  And it bites – I just want you to know that.  Only for you,” he added.

“I know, my friend, and I appreciate it more that you can know.  Trust me, Tiny.  I understand your frustration better than anyone else in the world.  But on the plus side, we have managed to get the framework for the new government figured out.  Even most of the details have been taken care of; it’s pretty much a matter of putting the programs into place.  Let me tap the members of the Sabre team so they can start their mission prep, then I’ll show you what we’ve gotten done and what’s left to do.  With a little luck, we’ll all be able to go home.  I want to live like a normal person for a change.”

Tiny snorted and stood, unable to resist the perfect set-up and wanting a quick getaway.  “Don’t you need to be a normal person first?” he joked, snatching the door open.... only to run right into Gwen’s raised fist poised to knock.  He fell back flat on his ass.  When he looked up Randi stood over him, hands on hips and a sardonic expression on her face, complete with raised eyebrow.  He cut his eyes over at Gwen whose posture mirrored Randi’s except her expression was questioning.  Tiny covered his face.  “Someone shoot me now please.”  This got laughter from all quarters and a hand up from Randi.

“You’ll get yours,” she promised with a purr.

“Yeah,” he snarked, “but at least I’ll still be normal.”

Now all four women howled - even Gwen who had missed the beginning of the exchange.  “Never in a million years, Baby,” Reed assured him.  “Never in a million years.”  His pout only made things worse.


Chapter XIII

“This is incredible, Randi.  You’ve managed to pull all the ideas together and make it work.”

“In theory, anyway,” she replied dryly to Tiny’s enthusiasm.  “We haven’t tried to put it into practice yet.”

“Yes, but I think people will work to make it work... especially now that there’s a better perception of what peace really requires.  Learning about one another can... working together with those that you think are different from you... can only help foster understanding, right?”

“I hope so, Tiny.  I just want peace.”

“Well, the immunizations should help that.”  A beat.  “Randi?” Tiny queried, still focused on the plans in front of him.  “Why now? I mean,” going on quickly at the look of confusion on her face.  “Ares developed this serum a long time ago to ensure the loyalty of the warriors who swore an oath to him.  Why did Ares finally decide to go looking for warriors now?  And why go to the Amazons?  He knows they’re protected by Artemis.  Why didn’t he take advantage of any of the rebel forces before they were defeated?”

Gwen cleared her throat softly, drawing their attention to her.  She removed her glasses, chewing absently on the earpiece for a moment before speaking.  “I think I might know; I’ve been doing some research on that since we learned about the Amazons and I talked to Rosie this morning.”

“You mean there’s a reason besides Ares has finally lost his mind?” Randi asked sardonically.

“I’m not so sure he has,” Gwen replied seriously.  The certainty on her face made Randi move from where she stood behind Tiny at her desk to sit on the arm of the couch where Gwen had ensconced herself with her journal and small computer.  Tiny remained still and silent.

“What makes you say that, Love?  Even the goddesses think he’s nuts.”

Gwen nodded.  “Yes, but what if that’s what he wants everyone to believe?  Give me a minute; I want you to think about this,” she added, running her hands through her hair and closing her eyes.  Randi slid down off the arm to sit beside Gwen, scooting her over by wiggling her hips until Gwen sighed in exasperation and shifted over.  “Comfortable?” she asked with more than a hint of sarcasm.

“Yep,” Randi confirmed with a cheeky grin, putting her head in Gwen’s lap and flinging her long legs over the end of the couch. “Continue, please.”

Gwen gave Randi another look before closing her eyes again and letting her fingers idly riffle through the soft, dark hair spread over her lap.  Then she took a deep breath and started to speak in a low voice.  “The story goes that when Ares first lost your soul to me... when we chose each other over redemption and you laid down your sword... he decided to ensure the loyalties of those warriors who had dedicated their lives to him and those he had made his Chosen.  His priests worked for years – lifetimes, even – searching for the perfect formula because even though he found one to bind his warriors, your soul still eluded him.  And you were the prize he wanted.”  She glanced at Randi, then resumed her tale when she she recognized understanding in her expression.

“Through every lifetime we passed through, he tested and tried to capture your soul... make it his for the claiming.  Sometimes he missed us completely and those were lifetimes we had a measure of peace.  The times he separated us by torture and death were painful, but we never lost our claim on one another.  And he had no chance to assert his right to your soul.  It was already mine.  But this lifetime - I think he recognized your vulnerability this lifetime and took advantage of it.  Ares kept me from acknowledging my feelings for you and you died without admitting your love for me.  We hadn’t claimed one another and he had the perfect chance to finally make you his.”

“But none of this explains....”

“Shh,” Gwen reprimanded Randi, covering her lips with her fingertips.  Randi kissed them, twitching her lips a little to tickle.  Gwen chuckled soundlessly and pinched Randi’s lips lightly.  Tiny watched, fascinated.  They seemed to have forgotten he was in the room.  “I’m getting there.

Unfortunately for Ares, Aphrodite had been watching us very closely – waiting... hoping that we would figure things out for ourselves before it was too late.  When she saw you say goodbye, she realized you knew the truth of your heart and that’s the reason she caught your soul at the last possible second.  I think she knew the consequences of leaving you vulnerable then; I think she knew how devastating it would be – not just for us, but for everyone.  That’s why we got our second chance.  The trouble was Ares had seen his opportunity and decided to take it.  I think he knew he would never get a better chance so he had Ben come after me when our love was still new and uncertain; before everything was publicly acknowledged between us.  I don’t think he knew what we had shared privately; I think Dite kept as much from him as she could and in all fairness he was so busy stirring up the different rebel factions keeping them busy and always on the verge of war that he missed things.  However, when he took my memories and made us just friends again, Ares preyed upon every one of your secret fears.  Ares had finally perfected the serum... or so he thought... and he had Ben implant it.  Except Ben’s delivery method was less than direct and it allowed your body to resist it almost from the beginning – but Ares didn’t know that.  He had created the poison to be very slow moving.  He wanted the transformation to happen so gradually no one would notice until it was too late.”

Gwen opened her eyes to meet the blue ones she knew were gazing at her in such devotion.  “It might have worked,” she continued in a whisper, “except we had exchanged private promises long before spoke them aloud in front of anyone else.  We had already cemented our commitment to one another.  As it was, you were struggling with the heightened lust for blood and fighting Ares’ serum had produced in your system.”

Randi’s eyes dropped, effectively closing her glance from Gwen’s until Gwen tapped her chin.  “Sweetheart, I know you have a... if not love then a distinct joy in fighting.  You’re a warrior, Love.  You always have been and you’ve always enjoyed a good fight.  I don’t think less of you for it.  It’s what makes you the one I love... in every lifetime.”

She held those deep blue pools for another long moment before she was satisfied Randi believed her words.  The kiss on her fingers made her clear her throat prior to speaking again.  “Um... there were enough ‘dark episodes’ – things you had no conscious recollection of - to convince Ares he was on the right track... that you would soon be his for the claiming.  I believe this success is what convinced him not to try that stuff on the rebel forces... one of them, anyway.”

“I’m not sure I follow your thinking, Gwen,” Tiny spoke for the first time in her narrative.  She started just slightly; she had literally forgotten her audience in focusing on telling her story to Randi.  Gwen blinked and turned her gaze to Tiny.

“Well, to begin with, the rebels have always been fighters... not soldiers and certainly not warriors.  Their sole purpose was to allow him to stir things up so he could watch true warriors – the Black Sabres and especially Randi – to fight and kill and destroy.  When Randi... died,” she said with a shuddering breath, the memory still painful even now.  Gwen glanced down when Randi’s long fingers clasped her and just held them.  She took another breath and turned back to Tiny though she refused to release the hold she had on Randi’s hand.  “When Randi died,” she said again with almost no hesitation, “Ares was devastated; his obsession with her soul has been complete for centuries and he figured he had lost his opportunity to claim her in this lifetime.  Remember that for the year she was gone, everything in the rebellion seemed in disarray.  There was no leadership to speak of, including direction from Ares.  Only when Randi came back to life did he take notice of the rebellion, but only as a means to an end.  He knew if he could get Randi under his control, she would make warriors of the rebels and the Sabres would be as likely to follow her as not given what she had already done for mankind.  And they would all accept the serum and swear loyalty to him with no real effort on his part.  All he had to do was let her lead the Sabres and defeat the rebels and then together Ares and Randi would create a real army of warriors and rule the world.  But first there was the little problem of me that needed to be disposed of.  Randi could never bring herself to do me any physical harm, and she was still fighting with herself over being a warrior with this enhanced love of fighting and killing.  So she sent me away to where I would be safe from her.  All it accomplished was to make us both miserable, but Ares saw it as proof of his success.  With me gone, even though I wasn’t dead like he would certainly have preferred, he would be able to move in and finally claim that which he thought was his – Randi’s soul.  Imagine his surprise when she told him no.”

“I don’t need to imagine,” Tiny responded quietly.  “I saw it happen.  He was furious.”

“Exactly – he was furious.  Not distraught or out of his mind or lost and confused.  He was furious... angry beyond belief.  And he saw this as my fault – for coming between him and his prize once again.  Never mind that Randi’s soul had rejected him on her own all those millennia ago.  No, this was my fault.  And what better way to seek revenge on me than to enslave the people who for no other reason than heritage and ancient tradition had made me their queen?  I think, however, this is where he screwed up, and if I’m right in my thinking, his mistake will work in our favor.”

Randi butted Gwen gently in the belly with her head.  “Tell me what you’re thinking.”

“You already have a good idea, don’t you?”

“Uh huh... but I wanna see if we are thinking alike.”

“Will one or the other of you mind sharing this thinking aloud so that those of us who are not in the loop yet can catch up, please?” Tiny said with severe exasperation. 

Randi and Gwen exchanged glances; then Randi nodded her head slightly and Gwen resumed speaking.  “The serum that Ares had developed for his warriors was supposed to be administered after the swearing of allegiance to him.  The Amazons, if I understood correctly, did not swear this oath; they were in fact given the potion to secure their loyalty.”  She felt Randi nod her agreement against her stomach and caught the contented smile on her face when she looked down.

“And this is significant?”

“I think so, Tiny.  It means we can administer the antidote without permission.”

“Why didn’t we do that for Randi?”

“Hers was different.  Her change was so slow and so insidious, that sort of shock to her system would have killed her.  The Amazons literally changed overnight.  Besides being done against their wishes and desires, it hasn’t really had a chance to take root yet.  That’s why we need to get out there immediately.  We want to keep it from doing so.”

“Ah... no wonder you picked an all female team,” he muttered.  “No reason to give them any more reason to fight.”

“Yeah,” Randi agreed, sitting up and swinging her legs over the edge of the couch.  “I think our going in there will precipitate enough excuse for that.”  Gwen’s brows furrowed and Randi reached out a casual hand to smooth them away.  “It’s the nature of the beast, Love.  They’re warriors; they’re gonna be spoiling for a fight.”

“I don’t like it.”

“I wouldn’t expect you to.  Doesn’t change anything though.  But who knows... maybe we’ll get lucky.”

Gwen snorted.  “And maybe those pigs will really start flying, but I’m not going to hold my breath.”

Randi chuckled silently and turned back to Tiny.  “Do you have enough to get started?”

He nodded.  “I’ll be plenty busy while you’re gone.  Doc Litzer is gonna set up the immunizations for everyone in the compound; then we’ll start on the rest of the military and move on to the civilian population.  As for the rest, I’ll start putting things in place.  It should be ready for implementation by the time you get back from the Amazons.”

“You think you’ll be done that quickly?”

“No,” Tiny replied honestly.  “I think you will be there that long.”

“I will call for reinforcements before that much times passes.  But I don’t think it will.  Even while they were infected with the serum, I wouldn’t have to fight all of them – only a few.  Once the strongest warriors and Ares were defeated, the rest would fall in line.  But once the antidote is administered, I should only need to defeat Ares and the few who will hold a grudge for what happened to them and want to take a shot at me for it.”

“Why would you assume that?”

“Which part?”

“Any of it; seems to me you’re making a lot of assumptions.”

Randi frowned.  “Not really.  A lot of it is based on experience and the rest on the knowledge human nature.  You know this stuff, Tiny; we do it all the time as Sabres.  What’s wrong with you that you’ve got doubts about it all of a sudden?”

Finally Tiny smiled.  “Just checking, Randi.  You’ve been a little of out it lately, ya know; I wanted to be sure you had that core of confidence still before you go out there without me to watch your back.”

Don’t worry, Tiny,” Gwen said in a soft voice.  “I’ve got her back this time, and I won’t let you down.”

“I know you won’t Gwen; I saw that sparring workout ya’ll had yesterday.  I wouldn’t go up against you with a staff.”

“Really?” she asked shyly with a blush.

“And get my ass kicked twice??  Um... yeah – really.  You’re the best I’ve seen, bar none.”  He smiled when her eyes widened and cut in Randi’s direction.  “Yeah, even her.  In a staff battle, I’d bet on you.  You’ve got an advantage.  You learned from the best and then got better.  You’re built for it, and you seem to have a knack for it.”

“Thanks, Tiny,” she muttered, scratching the back of her neck with a bit of embarrassment.  It really wasn’t something she or Randi talked about much.  They just enjoyed it as a chance to share another aspect of their lives together.  She smiled when Randi wrapped her arms around her middle and moved her hands to cover them.

“He’s right, ya know,” Randi whispered in Gwen’s ear.  “You really are the best.  I’m glad you’ll be watching my back out there.”

“I’m glad you’ll be watching mine.”

Tiny cleared his throat self-consciously, trying to remind them he was in the room.  Randi looked at his embarrassed expression and laughed aloud; Gwen chuckled a little more quietly.  Tiny shrugged sheepishly then grinned.  “All right, you two.  Get outta here and go meet the rest of the team so I can get some real work done.” 

“We’ll be in touch, Tiny,” Randi said as she and Gwen moved towards the door.  “This isn’t a black op.  So you’ll be in the loop.”

“Thanks, Boss.  I appreciate it.  Is Reed taking care of your ride out?”

“Yep.  She’s flying Gwen and me in.  Shibata is flying the second shuttle with the team.  I wasn’t sure about having Reed fly us all things considered, but she insisted. Said she had come this far, she wanted to see things through to the end.”

Tiny nodded as though he had expected as much, which of course he had.  “All right with you if I check them out... maybe stoke them up a little bit?”

Randi grinned.  She would have been disappointed if he hadn’t made the offer and told him as much.  “The team should be done getting their immunizations.  Come join us for lunch and the mission brief when you’re done with your check.  We’re gonna pull out of here right after that.”  Then she and Gwen were out the door and headed back to their quarters to prepare.

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

“Matt?  This is Tiny.  Look. I’m sorry to bother you since I know you didn’t get settled til early this morning, but I’m a little short for time at the moment.  How was Mrs. Goldman?”

“She seemed all right, Chief.  We didn’t interact much, but when we did she was peaceful... quiet.”

Tiny nodded at the screen.  He could see the exhaustion in Matt’s eyes and pushed forward to the reason he had called.  “Good.  Now, did you clean out the workshop?  Did you find the stuff Geoff told me about – the new weapons and protection devices?”

“Yes, Chief.  But they’re all prototypes. There’s only one of everything he was working on and some of them aren’t complete.”

Tiny sighed.  He had expected the answer but hoped for better.  “All right... meet me at the landing area in ten minutes.  We need to prep the Sabre shuttle with as many tactical advantages as we can give her... just in case.”

“And the Empress’s?”

“No.  She is going in as a ruler and an invited guest of the queen.  Anything on that shuttle will be by her doing, although I am going to make some strong recommendations.  None of the new stuff though.  Since they will be flying in to the mountain, I don’t wanna give the Amazons any kind of an excuse for a fight.  And obvious weaponry like that would be so easy for them to pick on.”

“Gotcha, Chief.  Let me throw on some clothes and grab the stuff and I’ll meet you there.”  Then they broke the connection and Tiny snatched up his pack.  He had work to do and not much time to do it in.

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

“Hi, Mama.  How are you?”

“I’m a little tired, Baby Girl.  How are you?” Jill asked.  In truth Jill could easily see that despite the lingering sadness Gwen felt over the loss of her father, she was whole again.  And that gave Gwen a measure of peace that brought comfort to Jill’s heart.  Gwen kept the smile off her face, but she couldn’t hide the contentment in her eyes.

“We’re good, Mama, but we have to go to the Amazon Nation for a few days.  I wanted to let you know in case you tried calling here while we were gone.”

Jill’s brows furrowed.  “Problems?”

“Yeah,” she said honestly.  “It’s time to take care of Ares once and for all.”

Jill bit her tongue.  She’d known it was coming, but she hadn’t expected it to be so soon.  Instead she nodded affirmatively.  “All right.  You two take care of yourselves.  Don’t let anything happen to one another.  I want to visit with you both when you get back.”

Gwen nodded.  “Love you, Mama.”

“Love you too, Gwen.  Pass the same on to Randi.”

“I will.  See you in a few days,” cutting the connection.

Jill looked down at Carbon once the screen went dark.  “Well, Boy... guess we’re on our own for a few more days.  What say we go shopping?”  Carbon tilted his head, tongue lolling comically in question before he answered her with a sharp bark of approval.  He led the way to the door and waited for Jill to gather her things, then together they headed out into the warm summer day.

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

Packing hadn’t been the chore either of them had expected.  The most exciting part had been when each of them had pulled out their respective ceremonial leathers and exchanged wordless glances, then broken into gales of laughter at the similar expressions they wore.  Otherwise it had been a quick process.  Randi’s dress uniform was always ready and Gwen had a number of formals to choose from.  By mutual consent, though, they left those.  This trip wasn’t about formal occasions or celebrating; this trip was about wrapping up the last of their loose ends.  When they were finished, they hefted their bags and made their way to the kitchen to meet the rest of the team.  Halfway there, the scent wafting from that direction caught their attention and they knew that Rosie had arrived.  Randi looked at Gwen.

“Did you know she was coming back?”

“She didn’t say, but I’m not surprised.  I think the only reason she left was because everyone expected her to.  She probably feels like Tiny and Reed and Lacey do.  This is something they started that they want to see through to the end.”

“We’re gonna have to think of something really nice to do for everyone when the dust finally settles.”

Gwen smiled.  “We will... even if it is just to give them a break from us,” pushing the door to the kitchen open and laughing when they were greeted as though they were attending a hen party with a group of girlfriends and not headed out to confront the god of war.

Lunch was a rowdy, boisterous affair; all the women chose for this particular mission were well acquainted and teased one another mercilessly like the friends they were.  Outwardly they were confident in themselves and in Randi, and it showed in their comfort level now.  When Tiny came in, he was greeted with enthusiasm, and Gwen took the opportunity to corner Rosie.

“That was great, Rosie.  But you didn’t need to come back to cook for us, you know.  You were supposed to take a break... go home... I dunno, relax, maybe?”

Rosie chuckled and took Gwen’s plate from her hands, trading her for a huge slice of chocolate cake.  Gwen’s eyes grew wide and round and she couldn’t stop the smile that crossed her face.  “Well, seeing that look would have been worth the trip back,” Rosie teased.  “But the truth was I only went home to check on my place and see how my daughter was getting along.  I had no intention of staying there... not until this business is finished.  Besides, I felt the ripple; I was on my way back anyway.”

“Ripple?”

“It’s kind of hard to explain; let’s just say I knew something was wrong somewhere.  It was very odd because I have never really felt anything like that before.  Maybe it comes from all the bonding and linking we’ve had between us recently – I don’t know.  But I did know I needed to be here so here I am.  I hope Randi will let me travel out there with you.”

“Hey, how come she rates chocolate cake?” Randi asked.  “You’d think being Empress would get me a few perks like this!” with a mock glare and hands on her hips.  Gwen smacked her in the belly and tried to move around her.

“Knock it off, Drama Queen!  We’ve got work to do... ACK!”  The last a squeal added when Randi relieved her of her piece of cake.  The commotion caught everyone’s attention and they laughed when Gwen started chasing Randi around the table; then Randi stopped running and held the cake above her head so Gwen couldn’t reach.  “I’m gonna have to hurt you, you know,” wrapping herself around Randi’s body and proceeding to try to climb up her body to reach her cake.  But the rest felt their hidden tensions melt and relax.  Tiny, knowing what Randi was doing, just smiled and enjoyed the rare glimpse into their private lives.  Meanwhile Gwen had managed to scale up Randi’s body far enough that she was forced to sit down in self-preservation.  Once Gwen had reclaimed her cake, Randi patted her side and Gwen stood up long enough for Randi to rise before resuming her seat.  Then Randi cleared her throat to speak and the atmosphere in the room settled down into something serious and subdued.

“All right, ladies.  Let’s settle down and get to work.  I’m ready to take my bride and go home.  Tiny?”

“Matt brought the things he found in Geoff’s workshop and we added them to the second shuttle’s gear pack.  Unfortunately most of them are prototypes – single use items.  However, there are a number of new little gadgets for ya’ll to use if you need them.  I’ve downloaded the specs into your personal units; you’ll find most of them are self-explanatory.”

“We are hoping not to need most of the gear.  You will be posing as my honor guard.  The plan is for this group to help dispense the antidote to the Amazons and to be available to keep the peace if it comes to that, but I’m hoping it doesn’t.  I’m hoping that it will be an in and out mission; that between the antidote and Ares’ defeat, we’ll be able to walk in, take care of business and leave.  If not....”

“If not,” Brenda cut in, “we’ll take care of business just like we always have.”

Randi nodded.  “Make sure you take care of distributing the antidote first.  Then anything that happens after that will be legitimate.”

“You expect there to be trouble?” from Jess.

Randi grinned wryly.  “Let’s just say I know better than to not expect trouble especially where the Amazons are concerned.  And unless Ares’ little potion makes it possible for them to forget everything that has happened to them under the influence of that drug, they are going to be furious and looking for someone to blame.  I’ll be the natural target for that rage.”

“Or I will,” Gwen broke in quietly.  “I am their queen, Randi.”

“Sweetheart, they challenge you, they challenge me.”

“You think I can’t handle any challenge they offer me, Randi?  You said I was the best,” Gwen’s hurt was clear, but her eyes were steady and unflinching on Randi’s.  The rest of the room remained silent watching the tableau play out in front of them.

“It’s a fight to the death, Love,” came Randi’s soft rejoinder.  “If it was simply a fight, Gwen, I’d let you handle it in a heartbeat.  But I would never, ever expect you to fight – not to the death; I wouldn’t want you to.”  She swallowed hard.  “I couldn’t stand to watch.”  They were so focused on one another neither of them noticed when the room cleared.

“You don’t think I’d lose, do you?”

“No, I don’t, and that would change something fundamental about the person you are.”  She paused and Gwen waited, feeling Randi had more she wanted to say.  “Do you remember how you felt when I died?  How your soul was so empty your muse deserted you?”

Gwen swallowed and nodded.  “Yes,” she whispered.

“Killing - taking another person’s life - even in combat... even if they deserve to die for whatever heinous crime they have committed – it kills something inside of you.  And nothing – no amount of confession or contrition or retribution or redemption – nothing can change that.  That part of your soul is gone forever.  I can’t watch you lose that, Gwen... not when there is something I can do to prevent it.  I’ve done it before, Love.  It’s not going to take anything else away from me.”

Gwen smiled sadly and cupped Randi’s cheek with her hand.  “That’s not true, Randi, and we both know it.  I know how every death affects you; I’ve seen it.  But I would never ask you watch that happen to me; somehow, I think that would be worse than letting you fight for me.  And as hard as it is for me to do that, I couldn’t bear to watch your soul die like that.  Because it would, wouldn’t it?”

“Yeah.  You couldn’t watch when I was dispensing justice to the rebels, and seeing what that did to you nearly killed me.  I....”

“Shh,” Gwen finally said, covering Randi’s lips with her fingertips and feeling them tremble beneath her touch.  “I understand, Love.  If a challenge like that comes you will champion in my stead.”

“Thank you, Gwen.”

Gwen removed her fingers and replaced them with her lips for a timeless moment.  “It is my right and my privilege to take care of you, Randi, even when that care is sometimes beyond my scope.  Now c’mon, Empress.  We’ve got Amazon business to take care of and a god of war to dispense justice to.”

“Then can we go home?”

“Then we can go home.”

For the first time, Randi looked up and noticed they were alone.  “Hey, where did everybody go?”

Gwen chuckled.  “I think we chased them off with the mush factor.”

Now Randi chuckled.  “Too bad we don’t have time to take advantage of it.  Of course you know we’re gonna be in for some serious teasing.”

“Who in their right mind would tease the Empress of the World and her Queen Consort?”

“Sweetheart, no Sabre has ever, EVER claimed to be in their right mind.  We’re just lucky most of them will be on that second shuttle.”

“I don’t suppose they will forget.”

“Not even if they were infected with Ares’ serum.”

Gwen blushed but gave her an impish grin.  “Well, maybe we’ll just have to give them something else to talk about,” she said, slipping out of Randi’s arms and picking up her bag as she headed out the door.  Randi froze, looking gobsmacked by the ideas Gwen’s words put into her mind for a moment before she shook her head to clear it, snatched up her own bag and followed Gwen out the door.

“Hey... wait for me!  What did you mean by that??  GWEN!!!!!” lengthening her stride to catch up.  It was obviously going to be quite an interesting experience having Gwen as part of her Sabre life.  Randi couldn’t stop the grin that formed when she dropped an arm around Gwen’s shoulders and felt the reciprocal warmth around her waist.  Time to go to work.

Part 3