THE VROL TRILOGY (59 page)

As he watched Draagh show Krynos his new
bubble-head invention, which caused the latter to nearly snort mead
out of his nose, and he saw Liliana start to nod off after having
had such a long and adventurous day, he knew he was among friends -
and although he had to work very hard, it would all turn out for
the best.

Then he thought about Max. He looked at
Jennie and could see sadness deep in her pretty eyes. Even though
the two were raised apart, he had always felt a connection to her -
it was a blood thing - and he was determined to help her get her
husband back. After all, they needed to fight the Vrol within just
over four years.

"Luigi, my friend, I believe it is time for
us all to retire so that we may start fresh tomorrow. What say you,
good man?"

Draagh indeed was correct, as Jennie looked
tired and Liliana was passed out on her lap. Even Krynos yawned
noisily, having been up for a number of hours.

"Yes, that sounds about right, Draagh. I
guess I should hit the rack. Where is my cot? I assume I am to bunk
with the new recruits, correct?"

Krynos suddenly woke up out of his
semi-sleeping stupor and burst out in laughter, actually causing
Bagatelle a bit of alarm, instantly creating visions of a dungeon
racing through his mind.

"My friend, you shall do no such thing! We
have already prepared quarters for you on the officer level."

Jennie looked at him and grinned, "Yeah G,
you get my old room. Max and I have a bigger one down the hall and
Lili has her own room next to mine, but since Max has been gone she
usually sleeps… with… me."

He could tell she was going to cry - he could
feel it. But even more, he could smell it. He almost tasted it in
the air. He had something important to do for his little sister,
and no matter what happened he was going to succeed. He was
determined to train, learn and be the best he could be - for Jennie
and his niece - and for Draagh, who despite his odd habits was an
amazing being he would like to get to know much better.

"Ok, sounds great. Well, I'm ready to hit the
rack. I have a feeling tomorrow is going to be a busy day."

Krynos bid them all goodnight, and left the
hall as they prepared to go to their rooms. Jennie went to pick
Liliana up, but her brother stopped her.

"Here, Jennie. Let me. It's not often a guy
gets to see his sister and new niece, and then travel through time
and space in one day."

Jennie gave him a weak smile and let him pick
up her little girl, with all of them following Draagh upstairs.

Once they got up to their floor and he had
gently set Liliana into Jennie's massive bed, Bagatelle bid them
good night, went to his own room and closed his door. Admiring the
accommodations that were provided for him, he looked at himself in
the mirror.

He was 45 years old, but he had been taxed so
much during his life he looked more like 55. He figured that was
why Jennie initially thought he was her father when he went to
reveal their relationship. The years of command had been hard on
him, and it showed, but he wasn't going to let that stop him. He
would succeed and achieve - it was his nature, just as it was
Jennie's.

Damn,
he
thought,
how is this body going to keep up
with the kids? I have a feeling this is going to hurt.

Climbing into bed he looked out his window -
there was no moon in the sky as it was halfway through its cycle,
therefore only showing its sliver of a face during the daylight
hours. In two weeks he would change, as Draagh had earlier told
him, so he made a goal of mastering all of his skills in that
period of time - no matter how much it beat up his aging body.

Luigi Bagatelle, former human, closed his
eyes and instantly fell asleep.

Bagatelle woke up in the morning after a
restful night's sleep. He yawned and stretched a bit, then sat up
in his bed, recalling the previous day's activities. He had no idea
what the day held in store for him, but he was ready to take it
on.

Climbing out of bed he noticed something
unusual - he felt lighter, but he brushed it off as being on a
planet with less gravity than his homeworld of Azul. While it was
true that there was a difference in gravity, it wasn't substantial
enough to make that much of a difference. Liliana had acclimated to
Azul instantly upon arrival, and he had really not noticed any
difference when he got to Old-Earth of the future the night
before.

He walked over to the washbasin, going to wet
his face but instead looked in the mirror. He could have sworn that
he looked more slender, but gave it no further notice until he got
up close and looked at his face - the hard lines and wrinkles
around his eyes seemed to have smoothed out, and there was
substantially less gray hair on his head and in his beard.

Hmmm, maybe it's the food and the fresh air.
This is just what I need.

He finished dressing in some rough-threaded
clothing that was provided for him and walked out into the corridor
to see if anyone was awake, finding little Liliana standing out in
front of his door, wearing a big smile.

"¡
Tio
! ¡
Buenos
días
! ¿
Tenés
hambre
?"

Thoroughly appreciating that his niece was
greeting him, and asking if he was hungry, in his native tongue, he
responded with simple, plainspoken Castilian that she readily
understood. His niece then took him by the hand and led him down to
the mess hall where they would meet up with everyone for
breakfast.

After descending down numerous stone
stairways the two arrived at the mess, seeing that Draagh and
Jennie were already eating.

"Luigi, my friend!" exclaimed the old mage
from across the room, waving the newly-minted lycan over to their
table.

"Morning Draagh, Jennie," he said, nodding to
both. "My little escort here made sure I didn't get lost, and she
understands quite a bit of our tongue also."

Jennie smiled and looked at her precious
little girl. Liliana was smart as a whip, but also had a tendency
to blow things up when not properly supervised. Jennie took great
comfort in the fact that even Krynos told her the smart and
mischievous usually ended up being the best leaders.

"Morning, G. Did you sleep well? You look
really… hey, you look really good!"

She then stopped herself, not wanting him to
believe that she had thought he had looked anything otherwise, but
he put up his hand to stop her further.

"I woke up this morning feeling really
refreshed. I don't know, maybe it's the air here."

Draagh smiled and put down his cup of coffee,
and looking at Bagatelle directly said, "Luigi, your training shall
take a different route than that of Jennie - I feel it is necessary
for you to learn some things about this world - and yourself,
before you get out into battle training."

Bagatelle didn't know how to take Draagh's
comments. He wanted to get out and start training hard, to prove
himself. He went to respond to Draagh but was again stopped by the
old mage.

"Please, trust me. Trust is very important.
You shall see and understand quite soon."

Jennie looked at her brother with an
expression that basically said,
listen to
him - he knows what he's talking about.

With that, Bagatelle nodded and dug into the
plate that was set before him, having built up an appetite during
the course of the conversation.

Once they had finished their morning meal
Jennie bid them goodbye, taking Liliana to her classes and then
going on to work with her Special Forces. Bagatelle followed his
new mentor down a number of corridors, arriving at the same place
where Max and Jennie had learned so much just under a year
before.

"Luigi," started the old mage, "although you
have no innate magical abilities I feel it is necessary for you to
learn and understand the nature of what we call magic - the energy
that flows in every living thing in this world. I only do so as you
are a sophisticated and educated man, and that it will hopefully
help you to understand the changes you are experiencing - changes
to your body that happen as we speak. Are you fine with this, my
boy?"

Bagatelle nodded, and although completely
willing to go along with what his wise tutor was going to do, he
had a question.

"Draagh, I may need to ask for clarifications
during our sessions. Are you fine with this?"

"Why yes, of course! Ask as many as you like…
as long as you do not interrupt me in the process."

Bagatelle got a slightly confused look, but
relaxed when Draagh cracked a small grin.

"Ok, well, I woke up this morning and my skin
feels smoother. It also appears that my gray hair disappeared a
bit. Is this normal?"

"Nothing normal about it, my dear boy. No, no
- you are not a normal," responded Draagh, causing Bagatelle to
grow a look of alarm.

"I'm… not normal? Is something wrong?"

"Oh no, no… you are not
a
normal. I am so sorry. I should
have been more specific. You see, nearly the entire world is
populated by what we call
normals
- humans that have no innate skills or extra abilities on a
genetic level. You are not
a
normal
, as you are
a
lycan
."

Bagatelle nodded; quite relieved that he was
not abnormal, as he had believed his teacher had said just a moment
before.

"So, Luigi - as I had briefly told you some
months back when we first met, in the proper world you will
experience enhanced abilities. I am sure you already noticed your
sense of smell and hearing."

Bagatelle nodded his head in agreement. He
nearly immediately started experiencing enhanced senses upon
arrival the day prior, and remembered what he had been told while
sitting by a campfire on the banks of the Urubamba River in Peru of
2818.

"Now what is happening to you is caused by a
number of factors. You have enhanced lycan genes. The lycan virus
in your system works in conjunction with those genes, and the
energy particles I spoke of work to enhance your muscles, nasal
passages, vision and other senses. These particles also work to
constantly heal and reinvigorate your body, making you near
immortal. While you will naturally age, you shall do so quite
slowly. Krynos is over 1,000 years old and still has many millennia
before he starts feeling an aching in his bones, if he ever does at
all."

Bagatelle raised his hand slightly as a sign
to tell Draagh he wanted to say something.

"So, what you are telling me is that if I
stay in a world where I have lycan abilities I will live for a very
long time?"

"Precisely, my son. In fact, as you are
extremely young in lycan years and not nearly close to your prime
you will experience an immediate rejuvenation effect - your body
has already started a process of turning back the clock, which I am
sure that you do not mind."

Draagh wiggled his eyebrows in a suggestive
fashion, desiring a positive reaction from the former rear admiral,
but instead was greeted with rapt attention and no comment.

"Very well. Over the next few days I believe
you will find that you look younger, will have reduced body fat and
will also experience your enhanced abilities on a more intimate
level. That being said, I wish for you to see a magic particle, as
I call it. Max and Jennie have an entirely different name for it,
as I imagine you shall also."

Draagh waved his hand out and created a
three-dimensional holographic display, showing what appeared to be
a spherically-shaped object, with numerous appendages ending in
knives and serrated claws, and also with what appeared to be
sensors for optical, auditory and other readouts. It basically
resembled a rolling ball of destruction - rotating death. Bagatelle
stared at the object with great interest, being a military man and
quite accustomed to instruments of war. Then, as he had done with
Max and Jennie, Draagh caused the hologram to zoom out, causing the
single ball to be joined by another, and then another, until
Bagatelle saw a minor-mage manipulating a beautiful magenta-colored
ribbon of energy around a chair.

The minor-mage then performed a verbal cantus
and destroyed the chair without any further effort.

Bagatelle watched with his mouth slightly
agape, coming to grips with the power of magic. It was technology.
It was simply called magic by people who did not understand
science.

"Nanotechnology. That is what I see, but on a
massive scale. You say that these so-called particles exist in
everything, everywhere?"

"Yes, my son - even on your world, although
they operate on a frequency that makes them inactive and
inaccessible to you. That was of our doing, I might say. In any
case, you are here and they work for you now. I might also add that
your description was exactly the same as Max's when he saw this
very demonstration."

"Well, Max does have a PhD… he's a smart
kid."

"Max is smarter than you would ever imagine,
my friend. Smarter than you would ever, ever imagine."

The two started going over some manuscripts
that basically gave Bagatelle an overview of how enhanced worlds
functioned, and once Draagh was satisfied that the man was up to
speed they moved on to lycan abilities and forms - specifically the
day form, the battle form and the death form, also known as phase
1, phase 2 and phase 3 respectively.

Once Draagh had finished with his explanation
it was quite apparent that Bagatelle was not looking forward to
changing on the full moon, but in his mind had determined that he
would work hard to gain sapience while in phase 3. Very few lycans
ever accomplished this, but the ones who did were mentally very
strong, and Bagatelle considered himself a powerhouse of mental
discipline.