No Limits

by Jessie York

  “No,” Gordy said in lightly-accented English. “The king was just summoned to a meeting with the Amazons. Something to do with the boy you brought in, I believe.”

  Kyle’s spirits lifted. “No problem,” he said. “I’ll come back later.”

  “Hold,” Gordy said. “I was instructed by the king to tell you that you will rejoining the recruits in the morning. Your performance today was shameful. Even a Gargarean with ten months of training such as yourself should have been able to handle the boy. Perhaps being in a training class with him will give you the incentive you need to work harder.”

  Kyle hung his head. “I understand,” he said. Inside, however, his anger was raging.

  Gordy dismissed him and Kyle shuffled down the hall sullenly. As he passed an open door in the hallway he looked in and saw Paul, one of his more senior Gargarean brothers, taking some shiny silver garments out of a chest with an opened lock hanging from it. As if sensing Kyle’s presence, Paul looked around. He looked from Kyle to the garments in his hands and then back again. “Oh hell,” he said. “I knew I should have closed the door.”

  “What are you doing?” Kyle asked quizzically. “What are those things?”

  Paul sighed. “Get in here and shut the door,” he said. Kyle did as he was told. “Look,” Paul said. “Not a word about this to anyone, alright? You weren’t supposed to know about these yet. You’re going to find out about them eventually, though, so I might as well tell you now.”

  Kyle leaned back against the door and stared at Paul attentively.

  “Okay,” Paul said. “You remember what you were told about the war between the Amazons and the Gargareans thousands of years ago?”

  Kyle shrugged. “Of course,” he said. “The Amazons used to mate with the Gargareans. The male children would be given to the Gargareans and the female children were given to the Amazons. Then they went to war with each other. The Amazons won and after that they refused to mate with the Gargareans. Now they capture human males to mate with. They keep their female offspring and give their males to us.”

  “There’s a little more to it than that,” Paul said. “The offspring of a Amazon and a Gargarean is more powerful than that of a Amazon and a human. Although the Amazons didn’t want to mate with the Gargareans anymore, they recognized that there might come a time when they had to do so to produce a more superior race.”

  Kyle frowned. “Why would they need to do that?” he asked.

  “That’s another long story and I’m only telling one tonight,” Paul said. “Suffice it to say that it might happen. Now, the Amazons aren’t dumb. They realized if they wiped the old Gargarean organizational structure away, young male offspring would not be trained or controlled. The youngsters would wreak havoc on the world when they turned 18 and got their powers. They also didn’t want the Gargareans to pose a threat in another war, however. The compromise was these.” Paul held up one of the garments.

  “It sort of looks like, uh…” Kyle started to say. He trailed off.

  “Yeah, a nut cup,” Paul said. “It’s made of strands of silver, though. Do you remember what silver does to us?”

  “It takes away our powers,” Kyle said.

  “Exactly,” Paul replied. “The Amazons had these modified by the goddess Circe, however. Now they don’t take away a Gargarean’s powers. They just can’t be removed or broken. They actually mold to your body. Look, they’re holes in the bottom of the cup so urine can drain out. The ions in silver fight bacteria so the cups stay clean. You can’t even take them off to go to the bathroom.”

  “I don’t get it,” Kyle said. Then his eyes widened as realization dawned on him. “Wait, you’re saying that if a Gargarean puts that on he can’t take it off again. Like, ever?”

  “Sort of,” Paul said. “It can be removed by a Gargarean’s lieutenant with the permission of the king and the Council of Elders. In practice that never happens, though. Once the cup is on it stays on. That’s the way the old Gargareans want it. The condition posed by the Amazons was that two-thirds of the Gargareans would have to wear this. That keeps our numbers down and ensures that we don’t pose a threat to the Amazons. So, the old Gargareans feel that only the best genes should be passed along, and those belong to the victors of our various competitions. The losers are required to put these on.”

  Kyle’s eyes widened even further. “You’re saying that everyone who is not a lieutenant right now is wearing that?”

  “Yep,” Paul said. “Once you’ve been here for a year you get thrown into a competition. If you lose, you get this.” He held up one of the cups. “If you win, of course, you become a lieutenant and take control over the Gargareans you have defeated. You become their master. Once you’ve been made a lieutenant, you can never get the cup. I happened to hear, though, that you were being tossed back into the first day of training. Given that, there’s no way you’ll be ready for the competition. Which means you’ll almost certainly lose. If and when you do, you better not tell anyone I gave you a heads up about these.” Suddenly, Paul turned into a blur. He grabbed Kyle by the neck and lifted him up into the air. “Do you hear me?”

  “Yes, yes, I hear you,” Kyle said, willing himself not to fight back. The Gargareans were a militant order and attacking a senior Gargarean was a major offense.

  Paul grunted and set Kyle down. “Good,” he said. “Now get out of here.”

  Kyle rubbed his raw throat. When he looked down he noticed a silver cup that Paul had dropped by his feet while strangling him. A thought flashed through his head. Perhaps it offered a way to solve two problems at once. He stealthily snatched up the cup and walked out of the room.

  Chapter 8 – Riley

  Riley was taken by two young women to a long hallway filled with doors on either side. A strange silver bracelet was placed on her wrist by a third woman and she was pushed into one of the rooms. She heard a door lock behind her. She waited for someone to come in but nobody did. She gradually slipped into a fitful slumber.

  When she woke up the next morning there was a tray with food waiting by the door. Riley felt a chill go through her body. Someone had come in without her knowing and left the food. She wouldn’t touch it. It might be poisoned.

  About an hour later the door opened and another young women walked inside. She was very pretty. She was petite and had beautiful brown hair and eyes. Realization came crashing down on Riley. The woman was the same one who had drugged her.

  “You!” Riley cried. “What do you want with me?”

  “Shhh, relax,” the woman said. “I’m just here to start your training. I helped you, remember? I saved you from those men who were attacking you.”

  “Yeah, and then you abducted me,” Riley said.

  “I had to,” the woman replied. “More men would have come looking for you. They’re Gargareans, you know. Our sworn enemies.

  “What do you mean ‘our’?” Riley asked.

  “You and I are both Amazons,” the woman said with a smile.

  Riley looked at her blankly. “I don’t know what that means,” she said. “I was born in America.”

  The woman laughed. “An Amazon can be born anywhere,” she said. “We are descended from the god Ares and the warrior queen Otrera. We have lived for many centuries as a secret order all around the globe.”

  The woman was crazy. There was no other explanation.

  “I see the look in your eyes and no, I am not insane and I am not lying,” the woman said. “Amazonian women capture and mate with human men. We place the daughters up for adoption so that they are raised in human homes and learn firsthand how to blend in with humans. When they turn 18 these girls’ power begins to manifest itself so we bring them home to train them. Superior speed and agility. Strength. You must have felt the transition. You have those powers now.”

  Riley didn’t know what she had felt. “I have no powers,” she said stubbornly. “If I did I would have knocked down that door and escaped.”

  “You don’t have
any power while you are wearing that,” the woman said, pointing to the bracelet on Riley’s wrist. “Don’t bother trying to take it off, by the way. Only the guard can do that. Silver saps our powers. We usually wear them in these pens so that we can be on equal footing with the men we mate. It is an ancient Amazonian rule that we never use our strength to force a man to mate with us. We believe that any Amazon who does so is cursed by Ares, who disdains men and women who have to use force in such unions.”

  “This is too much,” Riley said.

  “That is why we take it slowly on the first day,” the woman said. “Think about what I have told you for the rest of the day and get yourself ready. For goodness sakes, eat your food.” She looked Riley square in the face. “My name is Aria and I have been given the responsibility to train you by the Amazonian queen Hippolyta. You are my first trainee and your performance will reflect greatly on me so you must listen to, and do, everything that I tell you.”

  “What about my brother?” Riley cried. If they thought she had some sort of special powers, they must have thought the same of him. What had they done with him? Aria did not answer the question as she left the room, however, and Riley was left alone with her thoughts. She prayed that wherever her brother was, he was alright.

  Chapter 9 – Chace

  Chace threw up. His stomach heaved as he emptied his lunch into the garbage can in the training room.

  “You’ve got to up your game, Chace,” Sam yelled. “I’m kicking your ass.”

  “I know that,” Chace said. He puked again. He was covered in bruises. Did the Gargarean think Chace was oblivious to the fact that he was getting his butt kicked? Chace had never been hit with a metal bo staff so hard in his life before. Come to think it, prior to coming to the Gargarean mansion, he had never been hit with a bo staff at all.

  Even after three weeks of combat training, Chace refused to think of himself as a Gargarean. All he could think about was escaping and freeing his sister from the Amazons. He had been told that was who had taken her. Although he was gaining more and more control over his powers, Chace had trouble believing that he wasn’t just trapped in some sort of crazy dream. He half expected Riley to shake him awake at any moment and tell him that he was late for school.

  The training itself was tortuous. New recruits were not allowed to leave the mansion. Instead, they were pushed to their physical limits in cavernous training rooms underneath the mansion. Chace was forced to run, jump, and fight until he was sick, sore, and bloody. His body mended itself with amazing rapidity, however, and he was quickly thrown back into training sessions.

  That was not to say that Chace was bad at the training. Much the opposite. The senior Gargareans marveled at his progress and told him that he was the most powerful warrior they had ever trained before. Chace was quickly moved up into more advanced training groups. Therein laid the problem. More experienced Gargareans like Sam pulverized him. The pain he had experienced with the new recruits quickly magnified.

  The only silver lining was that Kyle was moved up quickly with him. Chace could tell that Kyle hated him with a passion. Chace more than returned the sentiment. If it wasn’t for Kyle and his powers of persuasion, Chace might have still been free to find Riley. Training with Kyle gave Chace the opportunity to pummel the guy’s ass. Sure, sometimes Kyle got the better of Chace, but Chace was learning quickly and there were days when he would get to feel the pretty boy’s bones crack against Chace’s knuckles. He enjoyed that feeling.

  “Alright everyone, bring it in,” Jacob announced. At about 25 years of age or so, he was the senior Gargarean trainer present. “Tomorrow we are doing group battles,” he said. “Gargareans must often fight as a team in the real world. You need to start learning how to do so, even if you do not get along with your partner,” Jacob said. He pointedly looked at Kyle and Chace. “Here are the pairings,” he said. He started to read names. As people were paired up, Chace tried to think about who else was left. There were only about 20 Gargareans in the room. Perhaps Logan, or Hunter, or David… “Chace and Kyle,” Jacob announced with a smug look.

  Chace groaned. He looked over at his enemy. For some reason, Kyle had a pleased smile on his face.

  Once the training session was over, Kyle approached Chace.

  “What are you so happy about?” Chace asked suspiciously.

  “Look, I may not like you, but I respect your abilities,” Kyle said. “I think we’ve got a good shot tomorrow.”

  Chace looked at him skeptically. He found it hard to believe that Kyle as genuinely excited to be partnered with him.

  “Okay, you don’t believe me? Fine, I’ll prove it to you,” Kyle said. “Follow me to my room. I’ve got something that will help for tomorrow.”

  Chace didn’t want to listen to Kyle but he also didn’t want to get beat up again. Reluctantly, Chace let Kyle lead the way to his room upstairs.

  When they reached Kyle’s room, Kyle threw open a dresser and extracted some sort of silver garment.

  “What the hell is that?” Chace asked.

  Kyle rolled his eyes. “Haven’t you heard about the Amazonian’s magic girdle?” he asked. “It was given to the Amazonian queen Hippolyta by her father, Ares. This is sort of the same thing but for guys.”

  “It looks like a nut cup,” Chace said. “Is this a joke? Look man, I’m sorry for kicking you in the nuts. Well, actually, not really.”

  Kyle’s mouth tightened in frustration but a moment later he was smiling again. “Just put it on for the competition tomorrow. Worst case scenario, it keeps your little balls safe. Best case, it gives you the power to help us win.”

  “Why don’t you wear it?” Chace asked.

  “Because I sort of stole it,” Kyle said. “I was in a room with Paul when he was putting it away. If he sees me with all this extra power, he’s going to know I took it. If it’s you, however, well, your power is already growing by leaps and bounds. It will not look suspicious. Come on, please? I’d really like to win this one.”

  “I’ll think about it,” Chace said shortly, taking the silver garment from Kyle. “In the meantime, get some sleep. I don’t want to have to carry you out there tomorrow.”

  Chapter 10 – Kyle

  Kyle felt butterflies in his stomach. The day had finally arrived. If he succeeded, he would redeem himself and crush the jerk Chace just like he had promised. If he failed, well, it might very well mean his head.

  Kyle got to the training room early and waited anxiously for Chace to show up. He pretended to stretch but he was really just trying to avoid showing how terrified he was that the plan would not work.

  Finally, Chace walked into the room. Kyle fears quickly dissipated when he saw the guy. They were replaced by an intense desire for revenge. Kyle knew that Chace blamed him for the loss of Chace’s sister but what was Kyle supposed to do about that? He had been separated from a foster family of his own. It might not be the same as losing a sister but Kyle knew how loss and abandonment felt. That didn’t excuse Chace making him seem like a fool. Kyle looked Chace up and down. The boy was wearing black sweats and a tight fitting black spandex shirt. It was impossible to tell whether Chace was wearing the cup but Kyle could see the boy’s muscles rippling under the spandex. Chace looked like a girl’s dream guy with his short blond hair, startlingly blue eyes, cute face, and tall and lean frame. He had probably pleasured dozens of girls. Kyle relished the thought of telling this stud that he had effectively been neutered. Then Kyle could slowly break the kid down and bend him to Kyle’s will.

  Chace walked over to Kyle and stood by him sullenly as their Gargarean brothers filtered in.

  “Are you wearing the cup?” Kyle whispered to him.

  Chace ignored him.

  “Hey, you need to tell me,” Kyle said. “I’ve got to know if you have the extra power or not before we start fighting.”

  “You’ll just have to wait and see,” Chace said.

  Kyle bit his lip to stop from shouting at the idiot. There we
re too many people around and Jacob looked like he was about to give his instructions.

  Chace refused to give any clue as to whether he was wearing the cup as each pair went up to fight. Kyle was getting more and more anxious. Finally, Jordan announced that it was their turn.

  Kyle grabbed Chace’s arm. “Tell me now or I won’t help you out there,” he said. “If I don’t know what to expect from my partner I can’t fight properly.”

  Chace glared at him. “Yeah, I put the cup on,” he said. “It closed in tight to my skin so maybe that means it’s working. Now, do you mind if we focus on the fight?”

  A wave of excitement and relief washed over Kyle. He patted Chace on the back. “This is really going to suck for you, my friend,” he said. Then he took a step forward and looked at Jordan. “Brother,” he said in a loud voice, “I am afraid I am not eligible to compete in this competition with junior Gargareans.”

  “And why is that, brother?” Jacob asked dangerously.

  “Because I have just acquired the position of lieutenant by defeating a junior Gargarean. I claim him as my subordinate.”

  That definitely got the attention of the senior Gargareans in the room. “What are you talking about?” Jacob asked.

  Kyle pointed back at Chace. “I have defeated my brother Chace in a battle of wits,” he said. “He now wears the silver cup that I convinced him to wear. I therefore claim him as my property.”

  Kyle turned to look at Chace, who wore a troubled expression. The poor fool still hadn’t figured it out.

  “See?” Kyle said. “I told you that I would own you. Now I do.”

  Jacob stormed up to them. He looked at Chace. “Is this true?” he demanded. “Are you wearing a silver cup?”

  “Uh, yeah,” Chace admitted hesitantly. “Kyle told me to…”

  “Wait here,” Jacob said tersely. He pointed at Jacob. “You, come with me.”

  Jacob took Kyle up to the king’s office. Jacob went in to see the king while Kyle waited nervously with Gordy. Finally, the door opened up and Jacob waved for Kyle to come in.