Encounter

by Liko

OK, first I have trouble attaching names to people; I can remember faces not names. That is why I did not give names to the main heroes. Second, this is only my third story and my second language (English that is). Please be gentle. (^_^)

Protagonists:

H2-member of an ancient nearly extinct race of dimension travelers. She had been hunted for her abilities.

The leader- mid-adolescent boy with hidden abilities.

The child- introvert precocious girl, with latent abilities.

Story so far:

H2 was nearly cough while trying to run from one world to another, she managed to escape but was nearly incoherent from mental exhaustion when she arrived.

While stumbling alone she was found by leader and his group of friends- all children of early to late teens living together.

Setting notes:

future, where the citizens do not have to work, everything is done by robots out of site. The government controls the population numbers- humans had been genetically modified so they cannot have children (but can still experience the pleasured of the flesh). New members of the society are genetically created and raised in laboratories. They are supervised until they are about 5 years old then let go to live, as they like. As a result there is no longer concept of a family. People of similar interest and age run in groups.

[The previous is not the focus, just the explanation. Frankly I would love to be able convey all this in story-write, but just lack the ability.]

“-Come,” and amidst of cries of “hurry up!” the leader dragged H2 trough the group of children. She managed to notice several new faces.

He was not lying to her; there indeed were more children around. May be it was because it was during the day and the weather was nice now.

They passed trough the stop she first appeared, but the boot was no longer deserted. Now she looked with only a passing interest at the wares presented there- she had seen too many other strange things already- and it was junk anyway.

“-Do not dawdle” called out one of the older girls a hardly hidden sneer on her face.

“She is jealous”- H2 realized. “Jealous of all the attention I am getting from their leader. Well, from what I had seen so far he is not the one to fall for anything at that level of wile. Plus I am just a passing fancy; curiosity due to my strange origin.”

“If he has one fall it is that he is too nice, so he probably did not give her strong enough refusal to her advances. Then again some people do not get anything less sidle then a direct punch in the face.” Then thinking of the organization, which was after her she darkly added, “and some not even that.” H2 mood darkened and the girl who snipped at her smiled a smile, which had noting to do with humor.

“Just leave me alone” H2 though. She was jolted back from the thoughts by a jerk of her hand.

-We are here.

The group had stopped around what appeared to be a large dark mirror imbedded in one of the street walls. She noticed that three of the boys had become the center of a semi-circle around the device. The rest give them their space. She was near the edge of the group.

Everyone was facing to ward the “mirror”.

-We are going to dive- the leader explained. –It is like dreaming, but you are in control.

-See the trio in the center?

She nodded.

-They are going to act as our anchor, directing and stabilizing our dive. If one is not careful his or her sub conscience may start taking over resulting in…

-Bad dreams- H2 could not believe it; they are going to enter a collective trance. The largest she had even been trough had had five people all elders. Now she was surrounded by more then twenty people, some of which had barely entered adolescence. H2 felt like bolting.

Noticing her discomfort, the leader quickly noted- Do not worry, June-bug, Trise-leaf and Holero are all skilled divers.

Somewhat calmed by the absence of panic in the other faces she relented. After all they apparently did this often and anyway it could not be too powerful trance if the ones leading it ware that young.

-Come now it is about to start. Gaze directly into the dive-screen.

Let your thoughts go.

She was wrong.

The trance started lightly enough, but kept going deeper and deeper and before she realized they all were in collective sub-conscience.

The three in the center indeed were better than she expected, but still not as good as her or any known survivors of her race.

She set up a false dream image for those who tried to probe her. To them she would appear as inexperienced novice, her dream without color and barely kept together. The she went exploring the other’s dreams born in their sub-consciences’. She dared not disturb the three anchors and the leader had erected a wall against unwanted intrusions without invitation.

Some of the people around her had very beautiful minds untainted by shattered innocence. One mind in particular held her- a vast field of flowers, within a hidden garden of immense beauty. The owner was young, H2 realized, one of the youngest in attendance and very close to her in the real world. The owner of the garden was also shy trying to hide her powers, even though she had vast potential- a notcofrontist. H2 played a little inserting her own changes into the garden, without revealing her presence. Making the flowers change color though the whole spectrum. She felt the owner panic at the unexpected change, nearly withdrawing from the dive, but was held back by her curiosity. H2 felt saddle feeling of appreciation spread through the garden in the form of light breeze. The two spend some time playing together, H2 showing new ways to influence the dreamscape and the owner running her own experiments in imitation.

Eventually H2 left her new friend alone and went exploring the surrounding dreamscape.

Near the group it had the image of hall with psevdo-ancient arches filled with entrances to individual dreams, but as one went further out it was formless. Apparently the divers did not expect anybody else to be able to go exploring and thus have not bothered to set an enclosing parameter. H2 wend out and created her own small realm just for the practice. Then she returned to the communal space starting to get bored. Her inattention nearly killed her as she noticed the tell-tell red line in the last moment. Someone was performing a trace on her. Whoever it was, was not very skilled the net spread out too wide, all she had to do was to go around, surround the portion of the net around this dream cut and insert her own version and the intruder will never suspect a thing.

“What are you doing?” came a sullen voice behind her. She turned around- it was one of the anchors apparently ticked off that he did not notice her manipulations earlier. Quick check confirmed that her false image had been bridged, but strangely not dispelled. She noticed that the other two anchors had started to bring the rest of the group out of the trance.

Before she could come with explanation he noticed the red snare and reached for it.

-“DON’T!” she screamed. The boy jerked his hand back, in stubborn, brainless attempt to prove her wrong reached again while saying. ”I been doing this for nearly five years, you know. This is a trace. I have seen many before.”

“You had not seen any like this.” And she mentally added to herself and I been doing this for more then seventy years.

“Oh?” and the stupid dolt tried to cut it! The strand immediately regenerated and caught the hand of its attacker. In this type of manifestation if you did not cut at the source the attacker could keep going for days before he was exhausted. H2 quickly reached and touch the red strand tracing it back to its owner, then she locked him in.

When she revered the trace she saw that the strand was not released his grip on the boy draining him of his power. Now she was sure she was dealing with low rank adept. Somebody with more skill would had noticed that he is cut out and would had released his prey knowing his high mind is vulnerable. H2 forced the strand from around the child and not trusting his composure roughly sends him back to his body. All other divers from her group had cleared out. By now the adept knew that something was wrong, but in his arrogance did not try to call for back up. Not that that would have done him any good, but at least he would had noticed that he could not. He came at her strongly, roughly, clumsily in a form of avalanche of unfocused power. She yielded and then cut him in half with a wall of focus fire, not allowing the two halves of his mind to region. His divided mind raged trying to find some way around the barrier, then started to panic as she methodically cut more and more parts of him until they all had lost their identity, then scattered them trough the dreamscape. Unless someone managed to collect enough parts of his mind before they were absorb into the ‘scape and returned to him, he would never be able to do his magic again. H2 doubted that his superiors would bother; this was the price of failure.

All in all though the experience left her exhausted. The adept was not the problem; the truly hard part was keeping any trace of her presence hidden from any possible observers.

When she come to in her own body she was breathing hard. She was surrounded by a group of concerned faces. H2 disengaged herself from the leader’s supporting hands and tried to stand up on her own. He feet wobbled. The older girl from before sneered at her again” Some people are just not meant to experience diving.” H2 could not agree more… about the other. The jealous girl’s dream had been rackety- mostly monochromatic and obsessively focused0- filled with pictured of lager then life portraits and idealized statues of the leader, plus few defaced statues of H2.

“Girl, which week is that you been diving? “ one of the young girls said with worried companionate expression” for some of us it is the third.”

[My dream ended here]

H2 started to give polite reply to this misplaced, but touchingly honest concern, then she saw the other’s eyes and recognized in their reflection the owner of the hidden garden.

“Dream sister” H2 said gently.

The young girl blushed in pretty spring rosy color, but did not look away. A silent understanding passed between them, they will talk about their resent shared experience latter. The jealous girl looked suspiciously from one to the other, she was not stupid just obsessed.

-I am OK now.

The rest of the day passed in a blur, with only an occasional good-natured tease if she can handle this or that new experience or food. “Tell us if you think it is too spicy. We do not want you to fall over. The boy whom she had saved kept his own sullen council, throwing her dark glances. About two hours after twilight people started to disengage, going away in small groups of two to four. H2 also took for her temporary shelter, when she felt that someone was shadowing her. H2 was just about ready to start running when a dark figure came from the shadows. Seeing that it was the anchor, who had seen her she started to relax. Then tensed again, he could not possibly mean to take piety revenge, could he?

H2 had no illusions about his chances-they were nonexistent, if she wanted she could kill him in a blink, but she did not wish to harm him.

He approached, and she gave way for him to pass her. He stopped in front of her.

“Please, stop”-he said. That took her by surprise.

“Stop what?” she said uncomprehending.

“Stop torturing me” the boy’s face started to loose his composure and unshed tears appeared in his eyes.

“What he means is to give him permission to dive again” came a third voice from another shadow, that of the leader. Soon he also appeared.

“Come again?”

The leader shrugged. “You saved him during diving, any anchor who saves one of the charges has the right to forbid him or her to dive for up to a month. In that time the person who gave the edict is supposed to teach the other how to dive properly. It is for safety reasons of course.”

H2 nodded. It make sense, novice entering a trance unsupervised could easily get hurt just due to his own ignorance.

“However” the leader continued. “You were not the anchor, he was.” Realization started to dawn on her. She had been focused too much on her own problems to realize June-bug’s. Her through dry she asks: ”What happens if one anchor saves another?”

“Well, the one can take the other as an apprentice. Or… forbid the other to ever dive again!” At this June-bug sniffed. ”Please, oh please diving is the meaning of my life. I will be careful from now on I promise. I would not even bug you to teach me your tricks. Please let me dive again.”

H2 give it a quick though. It would not be that dangerous if he kept his word.

“On one condition.” The boy started to look scared. “You are not to try to duplicate by tricks, unless I or somebody else teaches you how to do them properly. NO experimentation on your own! Got it?” He unhappily nodded, but quickly cleared the premises when she made a shooing gesture.

“That was impolite dismissal.” Said the remaining boy.

“He was too afraid that I would change my mind.” “May be so, but that trick that you did with the attacker. Cutting his source of power. It was truly impressive.”

She though “wait a minute June could not had noticed that he was already ensnared, ad the other two anchors were bringing everyone else out pronto. So that can only mean…”

“You are the most experienced diver!”

-Among other things, he smiled momentarily pleased partly by her surprise, but mostly by her clever deduction- she was the first one clever enough to figure it out on her own. May be too clever. His mirth froze-“But apparently not anymore. Some of the things you did today… I never seen anything like it.”

They looked into each other’s eyes trying to take mutual measure. The leader broke the silence first.

-Who are you?

-Someone who is hunted.

He nodded urging her silently to go on.

-There are people after me. People like the one today. I…I run from them in a faraway place and ended here.

You got to believe me; I had no idea that they will be here today. I never wanted to expose you guys to danger. I just though that they had lost my trail, given up.

The leader nodded again, not a trace of judgment in his face.

-I will leave. You been nice to me and I would not want to have it on my conscience if something did happen to you because of me.

She turned around and starter to leave a lump of lost in her through, dry tears in her eyes. This was the first place in many years, where she felt she belonged.

Young hand landed on her shoulder stopping her. She did not turn. The leader’s voice came behind her-“I just had to make sure that you are not the source of danger.” While she was touched by the compaction in his voice the lump in her through did not go away. H2 was all too aware about leader’s responsibility. Lost in her dark memory about the most resent companion she had lost, for there was a very small chance he was still alive she did not immediately register the meaning of his next words.

“That said it would weight on my conscience if something happen to you.” She quickly turned around and tried to see into his soul though his eyes, what she saw comforted and disturbed her at the same time. He was in love with her, the feeling has just beginning to sprout, but it was there. She also sow that he had been wiling to sacrifice his feelings if it was for the good of the group.

“Come, H2. We are much safer with you with us. We had already been in contact with you, or do you thing this ones will hesitate to explore every advantage?”

She shook her head, then tried to make him see reason by relying on logic.

“If they come after you and I am not there they will not stay. But if I am with you, there will be a prolonged fight on your hands.”

He shook his head slightly, not breaking eye contact. “If the rest are as bad as the one today, they will eventually come after us. And without you we will not stand a chance.”

“So much for logic she though.”

-But, but -she started trying to come with an argument, when his arms came around her.

H2 could not hold back any longer, she buried her face in his chest and started to cry her loneliness away. Eventually she run out of tears. The leader supported her on her way to her shelter.

“We need to talk, “ he said and she nodded, motioning him to come in.

“After you had time to recover.” To her surprise he left. Anybody else would have taken the chance to consume their alliance, for his eyes contained hidden desire.

“Well I guess there are always new things to learn.” She mumbled as she goes in.

H2 suddenly froze sensing a presence nearby. But since no assassin she met was able to project such a genuine combination of uncertainty and goodwill, she said loudly ”Yes?” A small figure quit the wall, stepping next to her to take a look outside.

“Was that the leader?” H2 recognized the child she had shared pleasant times in the dream garden in what appeared to her now weeks ago.

“Uhum”.

“Oh my. A lot of people would be very jealous of you.” Then the girl-child turned around and unconsciously started to draw lines with her right leg between them in desperate attempt to disassociate herself with the reason for her presence. The silence stretched growing heavy. H2 let the other the opportunity to gather her courage and express her feelings. The child swallowed several times and said: “I, I will be going now.” Then she turned and got ready to run away before her tears started.

Before the doe-eyed child managed to take three steps H2 caught her hand and pulled her back in her arms. “Stay.”

The child now crying softly said “But you have him; him who everybody admires, the best in everything- leadership, fighting, diving. He and you are different people, each one had their own merits.” The other relaxed, if only a little.

“Plus, once he realizes how talented you are may be he would prefer you.” H2 doubted it, but it was true that some people only entered relationships where they were in control.

“You should not tease me like that” the child protested. “You are the one who thought me a lot today.”

“I said talented, minks, not skilled. And that is true; you have a lot of potential.”

“You really think so.”

“I know so.”

Heartened by this, the other ventured:”Then would will be OK to spend the night. I would not bother you I promise.”

“You can stay, but unless you brought your own covers you will have to share mine.”

H2 could not see the child, but could feel her blush.

“I could sleep in my clothes.”

“Nonsense. You will catch a cold for sure.”

The two went into the largest of the three-room-shelter’s chambers and prepared to go to sleep. H2 noted with amusement that her bedmate did not ask for light, it seems the young one had come to this room while it was still light outside at least two hours ago.

The older one also noted that the girl changed on the other side of the room facing away from her. This provided her a good look at the other’s small but shapely butt. When the kid finally came to the bed she was wearing the cutest doe-like expression H2 had ever seen, silently imploring: ”please be gentle”.

The young girl would jump at any and all incidental contacts their bodies made under the small cover. H2 knew that she could not turn away her new sister, but has started to despair if she will get any sleep that night. The younger girl ventured: “H2, are you asleep?” “No not yet” came the reply.

“H2, I … I been hearing things. We are both girls, but you know, things can still work out. I not asking that you give up the leader, but if you want to… I like you. …and if you want me to…” the poor girl’s voice grew more and more quiet until it felt silent.

H2 replied: “I like you too, dream sister. But I do not want you to feel obligated to do this unless you really want to.”

“Oh, I want to, want to! So please!” The child probably felt obligated to show a prove of her commitment. It was not H2’s first time with another female, only the first time she went into it by her initiative. Her ancient race did not care about gender preferences, only encouraged everyone to explore their sexuality. As a result while everyone had a stronger preference towards one gender the members of her race were essentially bisexual. H2 slept predominantly with males because she wanted to continue her line.

The older girl make her partner strip fully and lay on her tummy in the opposite direction, so that the other’s legs were next to her head. The child lay shivering in anticipation letting H2 to lead. H2 reached and found her bedmate’s feet, then started to run her fingers gently and slowly up the right leg causing the recipient to giggle: ”It titles!” H2 stopped until the child had her mirth under control, then continued up the leg, until her fingers reached the buttocks where she stopped about a fingers length from the tailbone. Her index finger started to trace small circles on the soft flesh cushion, causing the owner to shiver in instinct anticipation. After about a minute of this H2’s finger traced down the inner edge of the buttock until it reached the swelling lips. The younger girl gasp in uncertainty closing her knees instinctively in confusion, her mind divided between her feelings of fear and the new electrifying experiences. Reaching a decision, she unclenched her knees an opened her legs as much as the limited space allowed. The young one was obviously trying to relax, but H2’s next brush with the other’s privates caused the child to tense up again. H2 turned more to her left side and reached with her left hand to place some of her own long hair into her mouth, then she used her left to pin both her partner’s feet to the ground. After that she used the hair in the mouth to gently brush against the immobilized soil of her partner’s feet. The logical happened, the girl so (mis)treated broke out in uncontrollable mirth. Try as she might she could not loosen the grip on her legs.

While H2 was tickling her “victim” she was also using her other hand to brush against the mount, which soon became slippery. Not long thereafter, during one of the short paused H2 give to her partner, so the other can catch her breath, the young one implored: “Please stop.

I will not move I promise. Please!” Before she answered, H2 run touched her nose to one her captive’s feet. It was no good, they had already stated to run cold, their circulation cut off. “OK.” H2 relented. “But only because you promised.” She added teasingly. She let go of the legs, but left her hand protecting her face and good think she did, for when focused her attentions on the other target slipping her finger inside, the child could not resist but move. If her left hand had not been protecting her face, her nose would probably been bleeding. H2 quickly pinned the legs again, and then used her right hand to give a moderate pinch on the base of the buttocks. “You promised, remember?” The other responded ashamed “I am sorry.”

When H2 started to rise her bed partner cried out dissolutely: “Please do not leave, I will be good. I promise!”

“I am just shifting my position” calmly responded H2 and lay down so both were facing the same direction. Then she used her own legs to pin the younger female’s in a lock just bellow the other’s knees. This time H2 used her left hand to enter between the legs of her bed partner. While she was slowly massaging the inside, her right hand snaked its way to the child’s through and squeezed it lightly saying in her ear: “You broke you promise you know. You should not be surprised that that entitles you to a punishment.”

The child responded fearfully, “What are you going to do?”

“You will see.” Then more strictly “Do not move!”

The younger female froze shivering. H2 pushed the other so she was partly on her side, then let her right arm run down the front of the other’s body, moved the child’s arms away from the child’s chest and run her nail lightly over the protruding, semi-hard nipple. She massaged it for a while until it was again hardened, then quizzed it between her thumb and index finger casing a drowned sub-vocal moan.

Next she released the nipple reached and nibbled it with her teeth. H2 could have probably bitten it of easily, heck she probably bitten off the other’s arm at the elbow, but long years of experience had though her to control herself. The kid could not resist any longer one hand going over hers between the legs trying to force H2 to move faster, the other went to the other breast and started to furiously rub it. H2 was not too surprised, but did not let the other control the flow. The girl had to learn some self-control. H2 released her hold on the legs, while at the same time each of her hands grabbed one of the other’s.

H2 then flipped the girl-child on its back and again secured her legs in a lock of her own. The child’s hand she secured above its head with H2 ‘s left hand. The whole thing took less then two seconds.

“You could not resist moving. Again!” The other could not meet her eyes, tears ready to spill out.

“Since you broke you promise twice, you have to pay the penalty.” After saying this H2 stood waiting for the expected reply. The girl did not want to do it, but since she could not move away after a while asked with forlorn expression: “What is the penalty?” “What do you think?” H2 responded wily.

The child started shivering as if she just has been thrown in ice water. “Please do not send me away. I finally found someone who likes me for who I am. Please do not send me away! I will try harder I promise.” H2 kicked herself mentally, she had done so many mistakes this day it was a miracle she was still alive and free. She had miscalculated; an experienced adult would never have missed the opening. Then again an experienced adult would never have bared her soul so easily, so unguardingly, so freely.

“No! No. That is not what I mean. “ H2 tried to calm down her partner, while still holding the other down in fear that the child will bolt.

If the girl runs H2 would not find her soon if at all, as H2 did not know the city aria nearly as well as the other did.

Apparently H2 was not getting trough, for she was misunderstood again “Please do not beat me up. I be good, please not the belt.pleescsse.” the child was obviously re-experiencing some buried childhood trauma.

H2 did the only thing she though would help- she pinned the other’s head and kissed her. Deeply. After more then a minute of that H2 sensed that the girl-child was calming down and stopped what she was doing. It took few more minutes before the other was calm enough to speak: “Why?”

“That was the punishment.” At this the child’s eyes grew large again.

H2 continued: “I am not about to force myself on unwilling partner.” She released the girl from her holds and lay next to her. “You are free to go if you want.”

The girl slowly rose, crying and started to leave the room her state if undress forgotten.”

She was so sad, H2’s next words took a moment to penetrate.

“But I want you to stay”