Wren stared at her master waiting for him to advise her. “Little one, it is obvious that this situation has escalated more. The grief and now rage that you feel needs to fuel your fighting ability. This week we will concentrate on you learning this.”

Wren bowed to her master, “I will do all I can to learn, master.”

“No, my little Wren, you will learn or you will die. It is as simple as that, with you entering the fifth level, things are about to change.” Flugret said.

Wren’s eyes were wide a moment then she nodded her head. It was as it always was, the techniques they used were highly guarded.

“Now then, before your energy drops too low, you need to rest. I can see that you have finally discovered how to limit the energy. Now, you need to learn how to release what you can when you need it.” Flugret said.

Wren hadn’t noticed that they had been slowly walking toward her new quarters. “Master what of,” Wren started.

Flugret pushed Wren in her room, “rest little one, we’ll talk later.”

Wren could only stare then nodded as the door slid closed. Lying on the bed Wren didn’t think she was that tired as her eyes closed in no time.

Flugret walked a ways down the hall, stopping before a blank wall, he then concentrated, a doorway opening.

“So, she has achieved the edge of the fifth. No Human, no other race other than our own, has ever done this. If she goes further, you must make sure that her motives are clear. We cannot have another like ten centuries ago.” An older voice spoke from the dark.

“That incident nearly destroyed the planet, even afterward, it took a hundred years for the order to recover. If she is the first of another race to go beyond flesh, we must make sure.” Another ancient sounding voice said.

“I will do all I can to ensure this,” Flugret said. A moment later, his corporeal form shimmered then he converted to energy. The energy of Flugret floated forward ’til it entered another large room, this one with a energy shield around it. The room was filled with a huge energy ball that Flugret moved to, then merged with.

Wren awoke with a start, not really sure where she was. She knew she had returned to Ceti-5 though this, ah ok, this was her new room. Sitting up she immediately went into meditation.

A few minutes later the com. in the room started to chime. With a sigh Wren got up moving to answer. The moment she saw her mother’s face she growled.

“I just got your message, are you sure it was him?” Her mother said.

Wren clicked a few switches, “Trigon transmit all that was recorded yesterday.”

“Yesterday? Don’t tell me you actually got that ancient piece of crap to work? You know of course you have to bring it to me.” Empress Esmeralda said expecting her daughter to immediately obey. She then shook her head she knew the girl would never listen never would, at least not to her. “So how long and far?”

“I was a day past the galactic empire boundary. Took almost two and half hours to return. Bring it to you? No, I don’t think so mother. No-one, especially you mother, thought I would succeed so you know what? The best I got for you? Is f off!”

“That’s no way to talk to the Galactic Empress,” Empress, Esmeralda said.

“I will ’til such time as you act like you are. Not a renegade running from the last three races.” Wren spit.

Empress Esmeralda gasp when she heard what Wren had said. “You know I could recall you this instant.”

Wren almost sneered at her mother, “you keep on thinking that mother. My A.I. has my brain cells, therefore it has just as much distrust of you as I do. My ship has at least eight i.d. entries. Unless I am here, you’re not getting in. The drive is encoded, without Trigon it won’t work. Lastly the punishment for breaching my security, can be more than severe.”

There are always ways around.” Esmeralda started.

“There may be, though everything is tied together, I am the only one with access. Try to gain access it all goes away.” Wren hissed.

Esmeralda was about to say more when she saw the look of pure death and hatred on Wren’s face. “Don’t push it mother, believe me I am more than ready for anything you try.”

“Wren!” Esmeralda cried. “Why in the hell are you making this so hard? I know that you want the empire to,” Esmeralda said.

“The Empire!?” Wren spit out, I care nothing for the Empire. I only care to make the bastards pay that destroyed our home. A duty I am more than happy to execute.” Wren said her voice dripping with venom. “Had it not been for father I would have already destroyed the fourth race by now. if I find that there are any others that were associated with these six murdering races? I will end them also.” Wren hissed the bar she had a hold of easily crushed.

Esmeralda shook a moment then tightened her resolve. “Why do you hate me so Wren? What have I done to incur you absolute wrath?”

“You are trying to have me give me control of my body to a pompous prick. As long as I breathe, I will never surrender it to any controlling male! I would rather die, plus now I am the most dangerous human alive. If I am made to have to take an ass like that, know that he will be long dead before he can ever lay an digit on me. ” Wren said letting her anger out.

This declaration, had Esmeralda cringing if she indeed killed any and all her grooms, there would be war. At the moment that was something that the Galactic Empire could afford. The fact that three of the races that had destroyed the earth were gone, helped much of the galaxy to fear the Empire.

“The second thing MOTHER!” Wren said sarcastically, “Is you try to end my training. Know that this is NEVER going to happen. I am almost to the fifth level, if I achieve it I will be the first human in history.”

My god Esmeralda thought, if she is that high, I will never get her to listen to me. Only duty to her father is keeping her here now.

“The third thing mother, is you let father go without any back-up. You LET him go!” Wren was now shouting.

“I didn’t let him go, he was the emperor, I didn’t have half the power he did. There was no way,” Esmeralda started.

“Can it mother, you’re a woman I know you have ways to make him stay. I have seen you beguile him ’til he gave up on what he was trying to do. Then you had him declared dead, I know he’s still alive. I had a tracker placed in him because I was so worried. The tracker is still active if he was dead then it wouldn’t operate any more. You just wanted the power for your own, when I find father that will change very quick.” Wren accused then slammed her hand on the switch cutting the connection.

Master Flugret’s mouth was hanging open, if all this was true then the sect would have to reassess their place. If it were true, Flugret had seen a few things in Wren’s files that more than alluded to much of what Wren had said.

As disturbing as all of this was, his first duty was to Wren. She was on the threshold of the conversion, the only problem the master saw was her mind might not allow her.

Walking in Flugret saw Wren turn, extreme rage flashing across her features. Taking a step Wren advanced on Flugret, vanishing. They were both moving faster and faster, Flugret nodded when he felt her cross into the fifth level. Then to his astonishment she started to climb higher. Even as he watched Wren’s body started to shimmer as it tried to convert to energy.

Flugret called to the others as Wren’s moves were almost uncontrollable. He noticed that her temperature was rising as was her energy was. It was going to take all of the masters to put her back, if she was to survive.

Wren was doing all she could to calm, unfortunately her mother always enflamed her rage. It was then that he noticed more than Master Flugret in the room with her.

It was also about that time that, she noticed that her body temperature was starting to climb. “Master,” Wren cried out, “I don’t understand what is happening to me.”

“Ah little one,” Flugret responded. “You are at a dangerous time. You have passed into the fifth level; your body is attempting to change though your strength of will is stopping this. We masters have never seen this and are at loss how to save you. You must find it within yourself a place to put your rage ’til you can rid yourself of it.”

Wren could only look at the room full of Masters as if they were crazy. “Find a place? Whatever are you talking about?” Wren asked.

“It is much like you did when you turned most of the energy consumption of your body off. It goes along those same lines.” Flugret said. “Be not afraid, we are all here to help you bring yourself back. Now then, like you did with the energy, turn off parts of the rage.”

Wren shrugged as she started to concentrate. At first, she could only see the blinding red rage that was inside her. Then she began to slowly close of the worst areas of red rage.

“It appears to be working, astounding, never have we seen a solo-solid manage this feat. Masters, do you think that she is the one prophesied? For as very long time we have been awaiting the sign. Is it truly possible that she has appeared?” Another Masters voice came from the mass of energy.

Flugret looked closer at Wren, trying to see past the exterior. “She is an astounding student. She progressed far faster than any other I have ever seen. I would say without further inspection that she is the one.” Flugret said a small smile on his face.

Wren, the entire time, had tried to listen to what the masters were saying, though she was concentrating very hard. She had more than half the red rage gone, though her body temperature was still dangerously high.

“You’re doing very well little Wren; you have lowered much of the anger. You are further from death, though not out of danger yet.” Wren heard Flugret’s voice, though for some reason it seemed to be coming from inside her head.

“I am trying master; it is taxing even with the amount of energy usuage I have reduced. Master? Have I done something wrong? With all the masters here am I to be punished?”

A much older sounding master appeared before Wren, one she’d never met before. “No dear Wren, if anything you have shown the sect the direction we may now go. Try to reduce your energy more i think you will find it helps more.”

Wren, tried to nod though, found the action far too hard as her head seemed to weigh, far more than she could move.

While reaching in, she again started to reduce her energy usage like before. Even this somewhat easy thing was very taxing to her.

Were they talking about her? She wasn’t sure it was becoming more and more difficult to keep her eyes open. Wren knew that her master would never lead her wrong, with the last of her energy Wren pushed with everything she had. Finally, she felt the last of the rage fade. She also felt her body start to cool though she felt hot still inside.

It was several hours later that Wren opened her eyes What the hell? She had thought that she was dying, how in the hell had she gotten to her bed. The last she remembered, well she thought she remembered. She came here, called her mother, got pissed as hell.

Shit! Wren thought she’d told her mother about her suspicions about her mother also betraying the empire. Damn it! Her mother would have every bounty hunter in the galaxy, plus a few outside of it after her now.

She had to get back to where her traitor brother was. A smile came to Wren’s lips, that is if her mother had any credits after this. As far as Wren knew, she was the only one actively gathering credits for the empire. That stopped today.

“Bring up all accounts for the empire. I want all access codes to all accounts changed. Make sure all my personal accounts are also changed. Let mother do anything without all the empire’s credits.” Wren said with a satisfied smirk.

“I am sorry to report that I was only able to change seventy five percent. The rest you had access to were for you to deposit only. I am afraid that I cannot gain access to them at all now.”

Wren nodded her head; she had figured that her mother had changed a few of the codes of the bigger accounts. “So, no way, even with the codes I gave you still can’t get into them?”

“I, I apologize Master Wren. I have not completely integrated all the files that you added. I will finish with the rest then see what I can do.” Trigon said then went quiet.

While she had been talking to Trigon, she had tried to rise. She quickly found that it was a mistake, at least trying to get to her feet quickly. Here she thought that the rest would have helped, again her mistake.

Again, she tried to rack her brains, why was she so weak? She briefly remembered her and Master Flugret going at it, though for the life of her it seemed they had moved very fast. In fact, it was far faster than she ever remember moving. Then there was the fact that she remembering a lot of heat, was that her? Had she been sick?

With a shake of her head, she sat to meditate. A few minutes later there was a chime at her door. A chime? This was after all their sect, why would they ask permission to enter.

A look at the door had her slowly shaking her head. “Uh, enter?” Wren said tentatively.

The door slid open to reveal an ever-smiling Master Flugret. Behind him an even older male followed close.

“Ah little one, it is good to see you are awake.” Flugret started then held up a hand. “I realize you have many questions; they will be answered in due time. I know you are having a difficult time remembering much when you arrived. Yes, in a way you might say you were sick, though not cured, you are much better.”

“Not cured?” A startled Wren said, “Master? Am I going to die?”

Only for a moment, a look of concern flashed across Flugret’s features, then just as fast it was gone.

“I am here to train you with the help of the first Master. This training we hope, will eliminate any chance of that happening.” Flugret said.

The older male beside Flugret stepped forward. “Wren,” the older male said, “you do realize what happened don’t you?” Wren could only shake her head no. This made the older male smile, “you are a very good student you claim not to know even when you do. Always trying to learn, commendable.”

“Then what I suspected actually happened, I broke into the realm of the fifth level.” Wren said more as a statement than a question.

“Very good you are as I expected you to be. T am sure that you realize that we need to work on your anger. In particular your rage, though it makes you many times more powerful, it also weakens your life force.” The first master said.

Wren’s eyes went large, “no wonder I am so weak. I was using my life force; it is a small wonder that I am alive still.”

Wren didn’t notice both the Master’s eyes go wide then they were nodding their agreement. “Your energy will recover though we also wish to teach you how to accelerate this.” The first Master said.

Wren was deep in thought, then she turned to nod to both the males there. “I believe that would be a good idea. Getting as close to death as I was, is not something I wish to experience again.”

For the next hour they worked on Wren’s breathing and energy limiting skills. The first Master was leaving when several alarms went off.

“Warning, Warning, detection of a small fleet of armed ships is approaching the outer limits of the senary defense perimeter. quinary and quaternary have been activated. Tertiary and secondary perimeter defense sections are on standby.” Came a mono toned computer voice.

“Perhaps I should go?” Wren asked both Masters.

The first Master and Flugret shook their heads, “In several hundred years of history, our perimeter has never been breached. Besides,” Flugret said with a smile as he turned to leave, “we have a few surprises they know nothing of. You have to complete this training in order to survive.”

The door slid close as Wren stared at it wide eyed. I have to do this or die, she thought. Ok no real pressure there, nope none at all.

The first Master and Flugret were walking away stopping before an apparent solid wall. A moment later a door appeared both males converting to energy, then drifting into the room. Inside a great ball of energy pulsed then the two separate energy balls joined the great ball.

That was exhausting, at least ’til I was in her presence. The thoughts of the first Master said. I have not been able to maintain a solid form for that long, in quite some time. At least not without almost total exhaustion. My clan mates, it is my opinion that she is the one spoke of so long ago.

For the next week Wren trained, mostly breathing and energy control. She did them so often during that time it became second nature to her.

At the edge of the Ceti-5 defense perimeter the small fleet was still holding. The defense grid of ceti-5 was something of legend. It was said that the last time they had been attacked, a large fleet was destroyed. It was said that they had multi-layers of defense.

Onboard the command ship Esmeralda was pacing, what in the world were they waiting for. They had some of the smartest techs in the galaxy working for them. A smirk came to her lips her husband might no have been the best, at a lot of things, he was a brilliant planner.

She had, had techs going through all the comps. discovering all the nasty programs that her husband had installed. It was a wonder even with the limited access he had left her, that she could get anything done. The bastard had been very untrusting, then again after what she had planned to do to him, disappearing, had saved her time.

The fact that his daughter was as much a rebel as she was a thief, was the only thing that was delaying her plans. True the little bitch had served her purpose collecting all the credits she had. Though as she found out, the little bitch had locked her and the techs out of seventy-five percent of it.

A sigh escaped her lips, if the little piece of garbage had gotten much more then she would have trouble. Then what was left of the empire, might also suffer. How in the hell had Thomas missed with as huge and powerful a ship as he had. Then there were reports that the planet that was helping Thomas had lost all but five ships. Plus, their three state of the art ship yards had been blown to hell.

Esmeralda’s eyes narrowed, had she and Thomas really have underestimated Wren and her tech? We’ll see she thought. She’d already advised every bounty hunter in and outside the system, ten billion credit reward had awakened many. A smile lit up Esmeralda’s face, she might outrun me and my troops, let her outrun those scum.

With a slap she opened the comm. “What the hell is taking so long? Surly you can find a way through?” Came Esmeralda’s raised voice.

“We are still working on it, appears as if they have more than four or five layers of protection. Each layer is twice the strength of the one before it. Within each layer is a myriad of weapons that change with each layer. So far, we are seeing phase cannons, rail guns, high intensity lasers, some type of energy torpedo, disintegration and disruptor weapons.” The voice said.

Esmeraldas raised in shock and here she thought the old stories she heard were just that stories. “Keep at it, all systems have their weaknesses. I am sure that after several hundred years as I heard that the system has been operating there are holes. Esmeralda shook her head they had to get rid of Wren before any plans could continue.

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