There were classes for the children living underground. There was reading and science and math and such. There was also a class on fighting. A lecture on how bank accounts worked. Pauth once taught them how to make a travel burrito.

"It's not much like a typical burrito," he told them. "But it's wrapped in a tortilla, and it's easy to carry, and eat without sitting down. Good for if you're on the go."

Anvon talked to them sometimes. Lately, he'd added that something was going to change, something big. Soon.

"And I do mean soon," Anvon added. "Do you really think I'd put myself through all the pressure and responsibility I do, if it wasn't in my lifetime?"

When there weren't classes, Wren could read a book. Play a game. Watch a movie. There was an actual theater down here, where you could watch things on a big screen. She could grab a snack in the kitchen. She didn't spend much time with the other children, except Eddie. And she didn't spend much time with the adults. They scared her.

~~~

Wren tripped into Eddie's side, who stumbled sideways. Wren turned around, gripping Eddie's favorite cloak fearfully. Eddie just stared behind them with her blank expression that could be intimidating if you didn't know better. Wren knew better. Eddie was afraid too. But her fists were raised. It seemed she wasn't going down without a fight.

It had been a normal day. If anything, it had started as special, in a good way. Eddie's parents had wanted her to go outside. There was a park nearby they'd suggested. (It wasn't even really outside. There was a dome over this town. The park was simulated.) Wren had gotten to tag along.

It had started off nice. They got to see the (fake) sun. And there was more space here than the narrow halls or small rooms of home. But Eddie's parents had left them alone, and some boys across the park from them had noticed them, and started heckling. There were five of them, probably around Eddie and Wren's age. Maybe a little older mentally. At first glance, all of them but the dwarf seemed to be human. But one of them might've been a half elf, like Wren.

"Ignore them," Eddie had urged.

It didn't work. One of the boys actually dropped his pants lower, and slapped his ass. Another chucked a rock at the back of their heads. It wasn't very big, but it was time to go.

The boys followed, throwing larger things after them. Wren felt the sharp edge of an opened can hit her. That was when she stumbled.

"I'll warn you," Eddie told the jeering boys. "I'm part of the Hidden Cult."

They paused for a moment, some of them losing their amused expressions. Then one of them, probably the leader, stepped forward and smirked at them. "Yeah, right. Say you're from Preventative Measures next time." One of the other boys stuck out his tongue. "At least that would be believable."

The boy reached for Eddie. (Wren was busy practically hiding behind her.) Eddie shifted her feet into an attack stance, but Wren didn't get to see her fight. The lead boy froze up, shaking slightly on the spot like he'd just gotten a small electric shock from a doorknob. Then he aged. Wrinkles appeared on his face and hands. His teeth got slightly more yellow and his hair turned stringy and gray. His eyes dulled until they glazed over entirely. Then he fell, aged body crumpling to a fragile heap and revealing Sistout, one of the dwarfs from the cult, behind him.

"Holy shit!" one of the others exclaimed.

"Run for it!"

The other four all dashed off in different directions, as best they could on a narrow street. The dwarf grabbed one more of them, hands sinking into the back of his shirt. This time, he aged so thoroughly his body turned to dust by the time it hit the ground.

But the other three put some distance between her and them, and she didn't seem that interested in chasing them down. She turned to the two.

"Are you alright?" Her voice was gruff, and deep for a woman, but it was genuine, and Wren had never been happier to hear it.

Wren nodded, even if she was still wide eyed and hadn't let go of her raptor-like grip on Eddie's cloak.

"Fine," Eddie agreed. Though her clipped tone said she wasn't completely fine either. "Thanks."

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"Sorry about the mess." The dwarf waved a hand at the aged body still there. "I thought it best if I leave one body as an example to the others. I should get rid of it now though. Don't need to draw too much attention this close to home."

Neither of them had anything to say to that. What did you say, really?

The dwarf shifted and clicked her tongue slightly. "Anyway, what do you say I get you back home?"

~~~

"Oh you want to know about Preventative Measures?"

Wren and Eddie nodded. They'd asked about it when they got back, mildly curious about what the boy had been talking about. (And maybe wanting a distraction.)

The imp they were talking to bared his fangs a little. "Preventative Measures is the only other cult that has members across the entire galaxy. Well, except for one planet. They seem to think imps are just innately evil, and must be wiped off the face of the galaxy for the good of everyone else." The imp put his fingers on the top of his glass, spinning it around slightly. "It's to your father's point Wren. Because, funny thing, if people are going to think I'm evil no matter what, well, I might as well get power and comfort out of it."

~~~

"Yes, I know about Preventative Measures," Anvon told her, when she came and asked him about it. "It doesn't surprise me, that it exists. The galaxy is inherently cruel and selfish. Our predecessors considered calling the cult the Universal Cult in honor of that. But that, didn't come out quite right. . ." He trailed off and looked at the table. He shook his head and got back on track a moment later. "Anyone who says otherwise is cruel and selfish as well. They're just lying about it. Possibly to themselves. It's why Preventative Measures doesn't like to be called a cult. And really, that's a waste. You get far less out of your actions if you're not honest with yourself. Better to be up front about it. Like us."

~~~

"And that's enough. Pack it in for today."

Wren drew a few deep breaths and set her knives aside.

All the members of the Hidden Cult got trained to fight. Of course. If anything, Anvon wanted her to get more fighting training since he heard about what happened in the park. And for once, Wren agreed with him.

There was experimentation. Each person had to try out multiple fighting styles at least once. But since everyone had a limited time on this earth (except elves, sometimes), their fighting instructor usually had them focus on the one or two fighting methods they showed the most promise in. Before this morning that would be fist fighting and handguns for Wren, and it seemed likely to stay that way. The full human she'd been fighting was much better at the knife thing.

And, if people weren't good at much of anything, there were other options. Pauth studied magic, and Sistout fought with explosives, not that she seemed to need those.

Wren hadn't completely seen the point before. Why learn to fight with props, or your fists, when you got supernatural powers from higher beings? She understood better after the incident in the park.

As Wren left the training room, Eddie slid up beside her.

"You did well," Eddie said.

"I did not," Wren said. She smiled faintly. "But thank you."

Eddie shrugged. "Better than I did with knives."

OK, that much was true. Eddie's attempt had, admittedly, resulted in her slicing herself.

They walked and talked together a little more. They got lunch out of the kitchen, and took it to Harmoni's room to eat in private. They didn't talk much on the way, but that was fine. They both just liked the other one being there.

Harmoni wasn't there when they went to the room. No surprise there.

Wren turned off the fake window light as they entered. It was a little much. Then, they sat eating. Well, Wren was eating. Eddie pushed her food around on the plate. She glanced at the door, ear flicking. Still silent, so far as Wren could hear. There weren't many things down this hall. Not much reason to come down it.

"Hey Wren, do you, uh, do you. . .think this whole thing is. . .really necessary?"

"What?" Wren asked.

The question was too vague and weird for her to guess what Eddie was talking about.

"I mean, well, maybe necessary isn't the right word. But the cult? Do you think we should be in it? Like that's a fine thing to do?" Eddie was staring at nothing, which was probably good, because she missed Wren tense up, inhaling. "If everyone is so terrible, why does no one gain power until we start killing, specifically?"

Wren was quiet and tense for a moment longer. "I don't understand," she eventually said. "Getting powers from the higher beings isn't about doing bad things." Or, not just bad things. "Or they'd go around giving it everyone. It's about proving your loyalty. And, we won't even be here much longer. It won't matter. We'll be joining them soon, in Father's lifetime. And then we'll be away from all these other people."

He'd said so. It was the big thing coming.

Within Anvon's lifespan meant soon, especially for longer lived people like Wren and Eddie.

Maybe Wren sounded mean. She tried not to. She was just confused where this was coming from.

"I know that. I just. . ." Eddie shook her head at her plate. "Never mind."

Wren frowned. Maybe she had sounded mean. "Eddie. . ."

"It's fine," Eddie insisted. "It's fine, you're right. Let's just. . .forget it."