Chapter 5 is next. I think that chapters 4-8 would be called "rising action". I realized I certainly am not half way done yet and I've already finished the 9th cpapter. Okay, maybe 2/3 of the way done. Again, less Trek and more weird. The major rewrite that will make it more appropriate is coming. Feedback to make that version even better would be awesome. FWIW there is a duel involving a phaser in chapter 6.
CHAPTER 5 - Into the Mists
Acasja stood in front of her dormitory, looking across campus under the light of the morning sun. Her sleep had been restless but not without benefit. "Now that I've won that strange duel," she said to herself, "perhaps Commander Simon will leave that girl alone." She started across the field to her first class. She passed through the crowd of students almost without noticing them; the events of the previous evening still preoccupied her.
"Acasja! Good Morning!" a couple of her classmates greeted her. "Hello," she said briskly and walked on. Behind her, the comment "Is it me or is she not her usual self?" barely registered.
Acasja took her seat and faced forward. Same old morning, she thought, same old classroom, but after yesterday it's all changed. Suddenly she sat erect. The girl, Angela Otori, was in the room also and was speaking to one of her classmates. While all Fourth Class Midshipmen took the same core classes, Angela had not been in Acasja's class. Acasja's eyes followed her as she took a seat near the back of the room and bent over her class work. It was as if nothing had happened yesterday. "And so class," the professor began, and Acasja reluctantly faced forward.
Between classes she needed a break to try and clear her mind. Was it all a dream? she asked herself. At that moment, Wanda chose to ambush her and leaped upon Acasja's back, knocking her forward so that she had to struggle to maintain her balance. "Wanda," she said through gritted teeth, "you're as heavy as a sack of old monkeys today."
"Acasja?" Wanda replied, angrily. "Acasja!" her voice was quivering.
"What, did Commander Simon do something else to you?"
"No. I don't care about that. Who needs him when I have you?"
"Oh, okay," Acasja replied dumbly, not following the conversation at all.
"It's not okay. We're classmates and we were roommates and all, but starting tonight you'll be in Cochrane Hall." She released Acasja and stood beside her.
"A room change? Cochrane Hall? I thought that was overflow housing and hadn't been used in ten years. Is anyone else moving there?" Wanda shook her head negatively. "Shall we stop by and take a look at it?"
Wanda shook her head even more emphatically. "I hear that it's full of mice and weasels and ghosts. Plus all the rooms are singles. No thanks! I can't stand the thought of you being there with spider webs, cockroaches, and doodlebugs." Acasja wasn't exactly sure what weasels and doodlebugs were but apparently they were some kind of vermin.
She went to Cochrane hall alone. She wondered if it was somehow related to yesterday. The entrance was as gloomy as she imagined. She grasped the right doorknob and twisted. The door creaked open as she pushed it inward.
The interior of Cochrane Hall was grand and decayed. A chandelier, dripping cobwebs was the centerpiece of a large foyer. Two wooden staircases lined the walls, leading up toward the first story. The main floor extended both left and right at the foot of each staircase. She looked up to see a single room centered between the two staircases. She was certain the first story extended to the sides as well; but that single room caught her attention and she turned to the right and began to climb the stairs. She put her hand on the banister to help maintain her balance but withdrew it quickly. The handrail was covered with dust over sticky resin. "Sheesh!" she said aloud, her voice carrying in the large empty hall. Shaking her head, she thought, this is going to be a pain for me to clean up if I have to do it alone.
She got to the landing and noted the hall did continue, and that stairs on both sides lead on up to the second story. Her name was written on a metal plate beside the door. It must be even more disgusting in there, she thought and reached for the knob. Fine, dammit! I'll just clean a decade's worth of dirt. It turned with a smooth click and she pushed the door open.
She dropped her duffel with a loud thunk and stood dumbfounded in the doorway. The room was huge and it was pristine. A mirror shone to her right and to her left was a portrait of Zefram Cochrane. A reading table and high-backed luxurious chair were right in front of her. A bouquet of roses sat on the coffee table. The afternoon sun gleamed through perfectly clear windows. "Thank god! It's clean inside."
Angela Otori zoomed by her, still in uniform save she was barefoot. The girl had a wad of cloth in her hands and was pushing it along the floor. "I'm sorry Lady Acasja, but I'm not quite finished with the housekeeping."
Acasja watched for a moment as the girl continued to dry the floor. At last her voice came back to her. "W-why are you doing that? This is my..."
"Oh!" the girl said, stopping and standing up. "I must have forgotten." She went to the writing desk and opened a drawer to take out a marker. Holding it in her left hand she walked out the door and Acasja followed her in confusion. Below Acasja's name on the brass plate, she wrote her own name.
"By the laws of the Academy Seal, I'm your roommate as of today. After all, I am the consort of the victor. So I belong to you, as does the sword Infinite of course. You were given the right to do whatever you want with me. I am here to serve you."
"Consort as in spouse or as in companion?" Acasja asked, feeling trapped and helpless. "Are you all nuts?"
Angela didn't answer her, but said "The housekeeping's done now. Tea is ready, and what else can I do?"
"Is this a joke?"
"Ah, you must be tired. I'll get you ready for bed." The girl came over and lifted her shirt over stunned Acasja's head.
Acasja pulled herself way. "Wait a second! These laws you're talking about. Does this mean you stayed with Commander Simon in his quarters too?"
"It's my duty. I must become engaged to whoever is the victor in the duel."
"Engaged! To be married? Are you saying you belong in that way to whoever wins that strange duel? Wait, don't answer that. How can you be okay with that anyway, being treated like an object?"
"The laws of the Starship Seal are absolute," Angela answered and lowered her head so that Acasja could not see her eyes. "Does it bother you to have us with you?" she continued quietly.
She looks so sad. "I wouldn't say that," Acasja said and the girl moved to the kitchenette where a pitcher and three teacups were placed. "Us?" she repeated and blushed at her own state of partial undress. "You mean there's someone else here?"
"Yes."
"Where? Who?" Acasja looked around wildly and then noticed the far teacup move by itself. Wanda's voice, 'ghosts,' echoed in her mind. "No way!" She lifted the cup and a small pair of clawed hands slipped from it and a creature fell onto the pillowed seat of the far chair.
"What is that? A monkey?" Acasja wasn't sure, but that was the closest she could come to it. The creature was no longer than Acasja's arm and covered with dark fur, save two large white puffballs of ears. It had a humanlike face and a long gray tail.
"It's Geoffrey, my friend, and he's a cotton-eared marmoset." The creature all but growled at Acasja. "Geoffrey, this is my friend. Say hello."
"You have a pet?" Acasja was certain pets weren't allowed.
"A friend." Angela corrected her.
"I see," Acasja agreed, and nodded kindly at the creature. She picked up a cake and offered it to the marmoset. "My name is Tilfe Acasja. Will you be my friend too?" The marmoset took the cake and quickly ate it then thumped its chest. Acasja reached out her hands to it. It grabbed them and squeezed gently then released her.
"How nice, Geoffrey likes you, Lady Acasja." Angela said and clapped her hands. She took a seat and the marmoset hopped down from its perch and ran over to her. It climbed up the chair legs and onto her lap.
Acasja also sat down and faced the two of them across the table. "May I ask you something, Angela? What's so special about this ring? It opened, or seemed to open, that gate in the forest. Commander Simon had one too and I think the Captain did as well."
"It shows you're qualified to participate in the duels. All of the brigade officers have one. One after the other they'll challenge you and, as the current victor, it's your duty to accept."
"More crazy duels?" Acasja stood up rapidly and the chair behind her tipped over. The pleasant mood of a minute before was gone and her voice rose in anger. "Was it these officers that made up these stupid rules? What kind of place is Starfleet Academy? Well, I make up my own rules and that floating castle and that sword trick was a bunch of hooey. Believe me. I'll find out what is really going on."
"Please don't!" Angela begged her. "Lady Acasja, you don't know what they're capable of."
"Not yet," Acasja agreed, "but I'm going to find out. Besides, it's cruel to make you live like this." She turned toward the front of the suite and strode toward the door.
"Lady Acasja!" Angela called worriedly after her. Acasja stormed out of the room and slammed the door. Seconds later, she stormed back in, swiped her uniform blouse and jammed it back over her shoulders, and stormed out a second time.
First, I'll go back to that field where we dueled, then I'll find the Captain and... Acasja stopped short in her internal rant. Cochrane hall was near the rose garden and Midshipmen Captain Applebaum stood just within the entrance to the garden, his back to Acasja. Fine, I'll ask him directly. "Targeting new objective!" She marched toward him as he stepped through the gate into the garden.
The sign, OFFICERS ONLY, gave her pause, but only for a moment, and she forced her way into the garden after him. Always ahead of her, he entered one of the hothouses. She raced to catch up with him. "Hey Cap!" she called out defiantly, "I know you're in here! I'm Acasja Tilfe and I want to talk to you!"
There was no answer and she walked down the central path among exotic roses from throughout the Federation. "I said hey!" she called again. "Where?" Then she stopped and gasped. It was him! The Captain, her first love, was here. His back was to her and he was looking out through a closed door.
Her Captain! She wanted desperately to see his face. Acasja raced down the path and toward the door. At the corner where the main path intersected another, a voice sounded in her ear. "You called?"
She turned in surprised. "Captain Applebaum? Can you tell me who that man is by the door?"
He grabbed her by the arm and pulled her into an embrace. Acasja was totally unprepared for it and the next thing she knew his lips had covered hers. Whether her heart beat many times or not at all, she couldn't have said. It felt like forever before her body responded to her frantic mental commands. One arm was pinned by his, but her other was free. She reached out blindly to pull a rose from a bush and brought it up with a heavy smack across his face. He jerked away in response to the pain.
"Playboy!" she gasped. "They said you would make a pass at anyone!" She pivoted on the arm that was still linked to the captain. "He's gone!"
"No one but officers in the academy can come here," he said and released her. "We're alone. Oh, those thorns." He wiped a hand along the bloody scratch.
Acasja snorted and tossed her hair and took two brisk steps before he brought her to a halt by saying "Wasn't there something you wanted to ask me? About the starship seals we both wear on our ring fingers, for example?"
She turned and glared at him. He held up his left hand. "Yes, I have one as well. It's the mark of one who can join in the game."
"Game?" she echoed dumbly.
"The duels in the woods," he said slowly, patiently.
"You give away a girl as a trophy in these duels," she said, “and you call it a game? Who started this awful game? You?"
"Of course it wasn't me. These duels were decreed by Last Judgment."
"Last Judgment? What kind of name is that?"
He didn't answer. "A letter marked with the academy seal comes on days apparently chosen at random by Last Judgment. If we do what the letter says, the gates will open for the ring."
"Well, I've gotten letters," she admitted, "but they never spoke of a duel."
"Well, that's how the rest of us meet."
"But why duel?" she asked in frustration. "Why this game?"
He wiped at his cheek again. "That's the only way to win. To possess the sword Infinite the consort carries."
"What's so great about having Angela and her monkey?"
"The sword Infinite." he said, not looking at her but gazing upward as if he were seeing something she didn't. "It chooses its own master. Not to say that it has power, but that it grants power to the one who has it.
"To the valiant one who continues to win and to be engaged to the consort, the sword grants infinite power. Win enough and you can reach that castle in the sky." He wasn't paying attention to her at all by this point. He was focused on his own words and was speaking rapidly, harshly. "There every desire is granted, even if you want to change the universe. That is the power Almighty."
"But why? I can't even imagine what that means."
He turned to her again. His smile was predatory. "Surely you must have glimpsed it at least once, the power Almighty, that one time."
Acasja thought back to the duel when the sword had seemed to float into her hand and what had happened after. She couldn't help but blush remembering the sensation. "It, it was amazing to be sure but still I..."
He cut her off casually. "I was surprised, to put it mildly, when you drew forth the power of the sword. I was even more surprized that you weren't an officer." He walked slowly toward her, past her. "Where could such an ability be sleeping within you?" His questioning made her blush even more. "Where is it hiding?" She felt his breath on the back of her neck and his hand moved her hair. "I'd still like to find out."
Her face continued to burn, but anger replaced the strange emotion that had caused it before. She slapped him again with the rose. "If you ever touch me again, you will regret it!" She threw it at him, turned and walked, as fast as she could without appearing to be running away, to the door.
"You know this weekend, is the spring formal..." he said. She felt compelled to stop and turn back again, wondering what he was saying. "If you want to know about Last Judgment, come." He held her flower in one hand and inhaled the aroma. "I'll wait for you."
"You think I would go to a dance?" That was the final straw. This time she didn't turn back and slammed the door. She wiped at her mouth in sudden disgust. In all the insanity, she chose to focus on the thing that was least outlandish. What a little... He doesn't love me or care about me, and he kissed me. My first kiss with a guy to someone like him. Ick. She wiped at her mouth again. What a blunder.
"Angela, but why?" At the sound of someone else talking nearby Acasja looked up. Angela Otori, with the marmoset on her shoulder, was talking to Commander Simon. Those two again? she wondered.
"I'm sorry Kevin," Angela said, not looking up at him, "but I'm consort of Lady Acasja now."
"You're saying our engagement wasn't real?"
"No, Kevin, but it's over. I'm engaged to Lady Acasja now."
Acasja was surprised to see tears in his eyes. He seemed to really have feelings for Angela. "Shame on you!" he said and swatted her head.
It was time to intervene. "No, shame on you commander." Acasja forced herself between the other two and pushed him away from Angela.
Acasja had thought the incident with Captain Applebaum had turned her away from this game forever. The horrible reality of what she had just seen made her realize she could never back out. "Midshipman Otori is only following the rules of the academy seal that you officers made. Now, if you really are worthy of the rank of commander, accept your own defeat and stop harassing her. Or else challenge me fair and square. You know I'll take you on."
He stared at her for a moment, stammered, and fled. She could see that the tears in his eyes were genuine and that made it even worse. "I can see he really cares for you Angela."
Angela was staring after the commander; her own expression was of rage. "Lady Acasja, you said you didn't want to take part in this anymore."
"I still don't Angela. But things change. I don't believe I can avoid them either. Somehow, all of a sudden, I'm trapped in the middle of it all. For now, I know only one thing. I won't run away, not until the day I understand all of this.
"Tell me Angela, why did you become the consort in all of this?"
The girl put her hand to her chin and looked thoughtful. "I don't know. I've always been the consort."
"Don't you wonder why, though?"
"I guess I've never thought about it, but I don't mind being the consort."
In all the surrealness that surrounded her, that one sentence was the most surreal. Acasja couldn't help herself and she laughed. "You're so weird, Angela... but I don't mind. Just don't call me 'Lady' Acasja anymore, and stop saying we're engaged."
"But I am engaged to you, Lady Acasja."
"Oh no. Why me?" Laughing, arm in arm, they returned to Cochrane Hall.
Topic: Calyx: A serial novel of the Federation (Read 36761 times)