CHAPTER FOUR

Elena watched the other children, the human children, play at their games. Once she was like them, skipping and playing — that is, until her true species found her.

Her father was a Dominant and her mother, a Sapien. It had been, what was termed, a brief encounter, and her mother had no idea that that moment of passion had produced a little daughter. She was her mother's little miracle, the child she thought she would never have. The child she never deserved.

Elena's mother was a prostitute, ridden with syphilis, gonorrhea, and AIDS, it was only because of the father being a Homo Dominant, that Elena came into the world. The woman varied between taking care of her baby and doing tricks and it was only by the will of God that Elena survived.

The Dominant Counsel had recruited her father for the Seduction program and he had no idea of the woman's profession. She lied and said she was engaged. She was young at the time, sixteen and had been in the trade since she was twelve. She looked to be in her twenties. Anyway, he had no time to ask. The job was to get a Homo Sapien female pregnant, let her husband or fiancé range the infant. At eight years old, the child would know its true nature, and seek out its own.

It wasn't a conscious intention, more like knowing that one didn't belong. Elena had felt it, complaining to her mother, and when out in the street, acting more mature, being stronger than the other kids, seeing the neighborhood through a reddish glow, and hearing things from a distance as though she was up close.

The Dominants had found her, and using their highly sophisticated portable equipment, found her mother, and then united the girl with her father. Oh the mother made a show of emotion, of how she loved her daughter, and cared for her, and fed her. Oh what lies! The neighbors hold how they had to feed little Elena, the old woman who lived at the apartment next door told how she gave Elena some cookies, a glass of milk, etc.

But the social worker said that the girl belonged with her mother and not with a father who just showed up. The night of her sixth birthday, someone sneaked into the mother's apartment, and broke her neck. Elena went with her father, and became Elena La Guardia, the name her father took from the human he killed.

"Elena, Elena, there's some new kids!" This was from Barry who had a crush on her, although he did not approach her intellectual level.

"Not interested," she said, although the boy getting out of the car made her heart beat. He was so handsome, with his brown hair and blue eyes. The girl following him was also a looker, her hair long and wavy and with a touch of red. And they were of her kind.

Elena licked her lips. Already at eight, she was mature enough for mating, but her father had not made any arrangements, at least to her. All she knew was that the family decided to whom she was to be united.

And then she saw him. Richard the great grandson of the Executioner and the human Major. This meant importance!

"Do you have your admission forms?" asked the Major.

"Yes," said the girl. Both boys nodded.

Elena followed. She watched the older Sapien talk to the secretary, and then an older woman take the three to their respective classes. "We don't usually like twins together in the same classroom;" she said, "but this is not a large school. Do you have your test results from the last school?"

"Yes, "said the girl, "will I be in the same room as Richard?"

"We don't have homerooms as such," said the older woman, "but we move from subject room to subject room. It'll just take five minutes." She saw Elena. "You wait here and conduct them to the next class."

Five minutes later, the secretary gave the signal and Elena took them to their class. "Your records came through. You will be entering Mr. Warren's class first. He's the musical instruction teacher. Right now they're studying the effects of fauna and flora on the tools used for musical expression. Mr. Warren?"

"Come in." He was a pleasant looking man, but he was not Kevin.

They sat in the only empty seats and looked in their desks. It contained a book about Classical Music, a book of note staff paper, plus a catalogue containing various instruments along with their prices and the school discount.

"You don't suppose we have to know this stuff?" asked John with disdain. Homo Dominants didn't have the emotions of Sapiens. True they danced, but they preferred not to sing.

The teacher tapped his ruler. "All right class, if any of you are unable to afford an instrument the school will pay for it. We have several clarinets, trumpets, trombones, and violins on hand. For those who wish to sing and dance, please come up and sign your name."

About five or six boys and girls arose. They were all Sapiens.

"Now for the rest of you, as you can see, there are several instruments you might be unfamiliar with. In this class, we learn about the history of music, also how to construct the instruments, as well as the main European composers such as Bach, Beethoven, and the American composers such as Rogers and Hammerstein. Any questions?"

"Yes," said Elena, "I'm not musical. What purpose is this?"

"To learn how each culture valued a certain type of music and not others. We will start first with the ancient Egyptians. Those of you who chose an Egyptian harp, will learn how to construct it using the ancient tools. Those of you who chose the pipes, will do likewise. The acting class will be doing a scene in which Rameses the Second is being entertained. You will all learn how they played that type of music, the instrument will guide you."

For some reason, the Dominant children felt that the teacher would not approve of drums Besides their ancestors did not come from areas where drums were common in ancient times. John chose a guitar. Mary castanets, and Elena decided on Flamenco Dancing.

Richard chose a horn. It was the instrument of his ancestors, the Visigoths who invaded Spain in the fifth Century. He would have to find the appropriate material, and bone up on the culture of his forefathers. He wished that his ancestors had been ancient Romans or the original Iberians. There was lot of material on them, but when the Allies decided on the Hercules Project, they first went into isolated villages and areas first where the population hadn't changed for hundreds or a thousand years. It was his bad luck, or rather his great great grandfather's bad luck to come from a nation that had lasted only a few hundred years.

"I'm glad you are willing to try, Miss La Guardia," said the teacher. "You realize you will have to construct your own costumes. Parents and relatives are allowed to help, of course. The magazine showing where you can get authentic material is on the third shelf."

The class was after all interesting. In that, Sapiens valued music meant that they, being Dominants, could understand them. And already the Homo Dominant culture was developing a love of music, albeit of a different vein. Theirs was in a minor key, ranging from slow to fast while the Sapiens were mainly major keys.

Their dances were also different, the round dances, the square dances, the walzes, the two together were unknown. No, the Dominants danced with weapons in their hands, the axe, the knife the rifle, the Aka 747, the garrote, the rope, and if one didn't watch one's feet, one lost them. It was the dance of the victors while the instrument players used the guitars, horns, and a combination piano organ with four sets of keys one on top of the other and operated by a small chip hidden inside in lieu of the electric chord or batteries...

Of course there were the wedding dance for honoring the couple and celebration dances done for honoring new adult Dominants. The weapon dance was done to honor the new ones, the little ones born and acknowledged by the Counsel, but the wedding and celebrations were different. It was for the females, those getting united or joined, and those whose sons and daughters were now officially adult Dominants. These dances were mainly taken from the countries their ancestors came, but always they played that minor tone, that tone that spelled of struggles of their species and the hoped for destruction of their enemies.

But such were only performed in those gatherings where only Dominants were present.

They left the class and started towards their next, Calculus. It was then that Mary put her hands to her mouth. She recognized the handsome man in the auburn hair chatting with a young female teacher, a blonde with the classic looks of Sweden.

"What is it, Mary?" asked John.

"It's Kevin!" .