Telos Ch. 09

Grace tried to bring a hand to Amy's sex but the padding of the armor stopped her and Amy pinned the errant limb against the bed.

"This time you're exposed and horny. You're just begging to get fucked. I know you are. Give in." She landed a kiss on Grace's lips and slipped her tongue inside. She pulled away and held the slave head down. "Tell me that I beat you. Just this once."

"Okay."

"Say it, Grace, you know you want to." Amy felt a touch on the back of her neck. "Mi . . ." The situation turned about too quickly for her to finish the word. Grace's next kiss robbed her of breath. "Not again."

"Say it," insisted Grace. Her innocent touches filled Amy's mind with sexual fog.

There as no use in resisting. In the end she was always a slave to her body. No matter what else changed Grace could control her. "You win."

"Good girl."

And just like that they were pulled apart. Mistress tapped Amy on the head in light rebuke. "Serves you right for trying to take advantage of her like that. What if you'd gotten her in trouble?" She shook her head disapprovingly. "We have a meeting to make. Come along."

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There was no bell when the elevator reached the top floor, the doors slid smoothly open to reveal the hallway. At the far end the clean shaven man was sitting in a chair. He was as still as if he had been carved from stone. Somewhere beyond the unfurnished walls computers hummed. In the lobby down below the last business of the day had been proceeding. Even as the elevator had passed the hundred and ten stories there had been signs of life. The sounds of people.

The top floor was empty, like the white room. No color. No breeze. No heat or cold. No sound. No shadows. If the light came from anywhere it was well disguised.

Laura stepped out into the hallway.

"Welcome," said the man.

"Thank you for having me." She looked over her shoulder to where he slave cum bodyguard was still standing. "Come along, Amy."

"Yes, mistress."

There were two other seats provided. Laura took the one beside the clean shaven man. Amy chose to stand.

"I have a question," said Laura. "I'd like it answered before anything else."

"Of course."

"Am I human anymore?" She gestured to Amy and the young woman knelt down beside her. "The past few weeks people have seemed less like people. Amy is . . . I've started thinking of her like a pet or a toy." She reached into Amy's mind and tugged on a thread. "Off." Amy went limp. "Just like that. Very simple." She pulled another thread of thought and Amy opened her eyes in confusion. Laura stroked the slave girl's hair. "So?"

The man nodded. "You are as you were, merely with wider vision."

"Did I visualize my way into tearing your front door off its hinges?"

"You would not be so impressed with yourself had you broken the door with a machine. Not every tool is a tangible thing."

Laura sighed. "And you, what are you?"

"You know what I am."

"Say it."

The man blinked for what Laura realized was the first time since she had stepped out of the elevator. He turned to look directly at her. "My old name would be a lie now."

"I didn't ask for your name."

"In my time one's name was their identity, not just an arbitrary symbol."

"You do it for her, don't you? Acting human?"

"Yes."

They sat in silence until Laura couldn't take it any longer. "It must have occurred to you that perhaps after all this time you've been corrupted or driven mad, just like the blond man. The fact that you love Grace is proof of that."

"Yes."

"And?"

"Changing one's nature is a human quality. I will always be what I am. It is the order of the world that people require protection. I thought my brothers had fought and died for the right to provide that, but now we are squabbling amongst ourselves. Some of us have gone mad. I cannot say which." His head moved fractionally. "They are ready for us. Amy must remain outside."

Inside the office a nondescript man of indeterminate age was sitting at the end of a table. Behind him the sun was just beginning to set. His hair and eyes were both slate gray.

"I really have to hope," Laura said, sitting down, "that you're not our only ally in this."

"The resistance movement you uncovered showed us the value of adopting a more compartmentalized structure to our own organization. Our colleagues, former colleagues now, can learn little from any individual agent." He paused. "You are the woman?"

"Presumably." A glance to the side revealed that her companion had not taken a seat.

The gray man studied her for a moment then moved on. "It has been decided that our tactics must be adjusted to account for fighting from a position of weakness. A number of options have been weighed in making this decision."

"And?"

"There is one thing they refuse to do that you have reminded us is an option. We will use lethal force against the others."

"Absolutely not," objected the clean shaven man, without raising his voice. "I refuse to kill my brothers again."

Laura looked over at him. "If we lose they will kill Grace."

He seemed taken aback for a moment then shook his head and looked away. "I will not participate in this."

"Will you hinder us?" asked the gray man.

"No."

"Fine then," said Laura, "I have no problem with you people killing each other. No offense. What I want to know from you is, assuming we don't all die, what happens long term?"

"I'm not sure I understand the question," the gray man said in a political tone.

"We aren't going to agree on many things and I have no intention of simply letting you people do whatever you want. Make me an offer."

"But you have nothing to negotiate with." The man stood. "Once we have purged this madness from amongst our brothers," he shot a meaningful look at the clean shaven man, "we will establish a universal hierarchy to prevent conflict. Those fit to lead will do so under our guidance. We could easily place you amongst our ranks."

Laura shook her head. "I don't want to be one of you people."

"Then what do you want?"

"For you and yours to keep out of the business of my species. Since that isn't going to happen, though, I'd like to administrate. You decide how the world should be. I decide how things are run." She folded her hands. "I don't trust your restraint or your respect for humanity."

"And if we refuse?"

Laura folded her hands and rolled her head to one side. "Then I will do nothing and you will continue to fail just as you have been doing for thousands and thousands of years. Amy told me what the blond man said. He was driven insane by his inability to succeed. Nothing frightens you more than failure. Perfect clarity of purpose, telos, places an great demand on you. If you walk away from this deal it means giving up on your reason for existing and you know it."

"We could raise up another human," said the gray man.

"But you won't because you still aren't sure how well it worked out for you this time."

The two men shared a quick look across the table. "You are asking us to give up control over a project we have spent lifetimes on," said the clean shaven man, "in exchange for loftier titles."

"No, I'm going to give you the peaceful world you insist you want."

"Perhaps we do not believe you," said the gray man, "or perhaps your mind could be adjusted to be more amenable."

"Unfortunately our mutual friend here has promised to kill me if I might be subject to any alteration. He'll do the same if we're ever at cross purposes. No questions. No negotiations. If you turn me down I'll die the moment this is over." She leaned forward. "Decide if your pride matters more to you than your purpose."

All the color faded from the room as the gray man took his seat, his eyes shone blue out of the shadows. He gave a nod and the other man awkwardly released Laura. "You will have our answer by midnight."

"Good."

Amy was waiting for her outside.

Laura placed a finger on the girl's lips before she could speak and brought her up to their room.

"You know what to do," she said, pouring out a glass of wine.

"Yes, mistress."

The young woman removed her uniform at a deliberate pace. Tie and belt first. She knelt to untie her shoes. When that was done she undid the buttons of the shirt one by one and shrugged it off. The bullet resistant vest came next next, leaving her distinctly vulnerable. She peeled herself out of the jeans and shucked off her socks.

Laura watched appreciatively.

When Amy was done, wearing nothing but a black sports bra and matching panties, she stood almost at attention, looking straight ahead. "Should I . . ."

"Yes."

Amy slipped out of the last of her clothing.

"Good girl," said Laura as she ran a hand down Amy's back.

Her slave shivered a bit.

"Very good." She slid a hand from the inside of Amy's arm down to her hip just to feel the texture of her skin. A gentle hold on the back of her neck was enough to guide Amy to the couch. Laura positioned the girl so that her head was in her lap so she could touch her head with one hand and her sex with the other.

"May I ask a question, ma'am?" asked Amy. She cooed a bit at Laura's manipulations.

"Certainly." Laura played a finger along the girls ear where it had been damaged months before.

"What did you say in there?"

"Hopefully something that sounded convincing." Laura gently stroked the slave girl's hair. "Have you ever heard of the phoenix? In Medieval Europe they said it had purple plumage, the color of royalty. It's a metaphor. Kings die but kingdoms are immortal. When a king dies there is blood and fire and new king is crowned. Just like a phoenix." She pointed to a building several blocks away. "I've never been one for unsubtle metaphors but you'll like this one."

The sun slipped down below the horizon and the city went silent in expectation. The breezes paused in reverence. The night birds settled on their perches.

A gossamer strand of light descended from the sky. It flared red for a fraction of a second like a jagged hellish lightning bolt. The heart of the old world exploded from within. Concrete, steel, and glass hurtled through the air. Eager flames poured out from the wreckage into the night air then doubled back as if marshaled to the command of a singular will. The fury of the conflagration consumed the building even as it fell.

From high above the end happened in pristine silence. Laura could make out a figure in the ruins. Here and there it paused to struggle with other shadows among flames. When it was done Laura saw the figure turn as if it were looking back at her. It nodded.

Laura could feel Amy shaking on her lap. She placed a steadying hand on her slave's hip. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing."

"Tell me."

"It has to take more than that."

"There are another dozen places around the world being struck as we speak. Blood and fire. A slaughter like has never been seen since the very stars were torn from the sky and scattered across the earth like seeds." She kissed Amy on the top of her head. "The enemy is crippled."

Amy shifted her position. "But the war will keep going."

"Yes, probably for a long time."

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