27
The next week went by in a blur. From dawn to dusk, she and Cypher remained in Terraform Zero, working through Laprencia and what was given to them from NeoElite. They spoke of little else, only the game, only the world. It became real in her mind, like Yria had, a place that existed and would immensely further mankind. It became real because Cypher made it that way for her.
He had a knack for taking everything seriously. Even when she wanted to try out a strange challenge, like basing their colony and sharing information with the Trentians and Commander Lotrin, he stopped her. Their governments were separate, though they now worked together, and in real life, any Trentian collaboration wouldn’t be done by colonists. Not at an official, world-building level.
She didn’t like the lack of trust or cooperation, but she understood. The war hadn’t been all that long ago… Though it was before she was born, there were still people who remembered it, were devastated by it, and Cypher assured her that not enough time had passed for relations between the species to be depended upon.
Trust, after the loss of hundreds of millions of lives over a century, would take much longer to cultivate.
The goal was to have human settlers live on Laprencia.
Cypher made it clear that it would be the same for the Trentians. Hatred ran deep to their souls when it came to humankind. That, and in many places of the universe, secret wars continued. Places like Elyria, where half-breeds made up a portion of the population, were an anomaly.
And the commander in her game was different from the commander she’d encountered during the semi-finals. He no longer had knowledge of the ‘world’ outside the simulation and seemed less real. Whether it was a difference between Terraform Zero 18 and Terraform Zero 19 that was still in development, she didn’t know. But she was thankful for it.
The day of the championship came.
She gazed out over the stadium packed with fans, wringing her hands. She’d washed them several times, but they were clammy again within minutes. Vee had thought the stadium was packed before, but now—now it was endless. Every seat was filled, people hanging over every rafter. And it had grown, towering an additional four floors to accommodate the masses.
The stadium had become a partial dome, and people were everywhere.
It was frightening and exciting.
Each team who competed in the semi-finals was back, and she was sure they all had something to prove. A blast of heat licked her spine, and she saw Cypher’s reflection appear in the window behind her.
“The day’s finally here,” she said. She almost couldn’t believe it.
“It won’t be long now.”
She shook her head, meeting his in the glass. Over the last week, they’d barely spoken of anything but the game. Both avoided the inevitable that was going to happen once it was done. He hadn’t acknowledged that she loved him, and she was still okay with that during these final days.
He also hadn’t taken her to bed again, not for sex at least. He’d kiss, wash her, curl around her under the covers, but sex…there’d been none of that. And it wasn’t because he didn’t want it; she knew he did. She’d felt his heavy shaft press against her all night long.
He never went further. And when she’d tried, he’d capture her under him and suffocate her with kisses until she stopped. Deep, dark, hungering, lingering kisses that seduced her as much as they confused her, and she longed for more.
He was stealing and breaking her heart at the same time, leaving nothing but a jumbled mess of emotions she was terrified to sort through.
Everything will be over this time tomorrow…
“Cypher.” She turned to face him. “We need to talk.”
His eyes flashed, and he nodded, glancing behind him. “Yes. But first, I have a surprise.”
Her brow creased. “A what?”
He turned from her, walked to the door, and opened it. Her parents jumped and laughed excitedly, rushing into the private room.
Vee gasped as they enveloped her in their arms.
“Oh my. Look at you!” her mother cried. “So sleek and pro in that suit of yours.”
“Mom,” Vee said, still stunned.
Her mom squeezed her hard and pulled back, a grin across her face. “Look at you, Vee. You’re such a beautiful young woman.”
“Hey, let me get a hug in.” Her dad said, pulling Vee from her mom’s grip.
“Dad…” Vee mumbled as she was crushed against his chest.
