2.5 Extreme Luck

        The Grill on Main St doubled as an undisclosed and unofficial Administration office for the Vine Goddess organization; fabulous luncheons were part of the day's work. To the uninitiated, the Vine Goddesses appeared to be nothing more than a society of high-end gens that made the cut into the upper echelons of society, allowing them the leisure time and financial freedoms to enjoy themselves on a daily basis. They were well groomed, both wives and mistresses reserved for the more successful citizens of the empire, the gods and merchants who sought to recharge and exchange ideas during the midday hour. The truth was, incubating behind the illusions of beautiful companions, libations and lunchtime power hours was the biggest Intelligence Agency in the Atlan Empire. Once the luncheon rush was over, the Vine Goddesses gathered for tea and pink cakes to issue Conditioning Forecasts, assign duties, exchange intel and discuss their business in general.

         To the citizens of the Atlan Empire, Mel was known as both the top Stylist and the king’s main squeeze. But her real title in the Firmary was Senior Facilitator, it was her job to know who knew and who didn't know what was going on within the Vine Club. As a head stylist she was positioned to know who all the goddesses were by name, she heard all the latest gossip and passed it on to any departments as required.

         Today she had arranged a private table with Dena and Eden, two of her top Vine Goddesses, there were important Royal Scrolls to issue over pink cakes and black tea. The truth was, even the Vine Goddesses themselves knew very little of the organization they worked for. The goddesses admired Mel's position and courage, they turned to her naturally for support and regarded these meetings as favorable gestures, favors rather than business assignments.

         Nor did Mel forget it. As long as she could maintain the role with flawless performance, she had almost untethered power over the gods and goddesses in the Atlan Empire, almost equaling that of Medena and Hedena. She had worked hard to grow the Vine Club and it was about to pay off. Atalon had promised to marry her in the New Empire, he intended to make her his queen and then her powers would surpass those of his sisters, overnight. Being Atalon's main squeeze today was a meagre price to pay for the position and power she would be awarded tomorrow.

         "What are these?" Dena’s face lit up when she saw the Royal Scrolls.

         "Open and see" Mel smiled, encouraging.

         "Its a formal invitation to the Farewell Celebration party at the Villa" Eden replied as her eyes sped through the text written in the scroll.

         "The Villa?" Dena's face lit up as she beheld the beautiful handwritten form. "Are you serious? Like... We get to party at the Royal Villa?"

         "Nolan will be there" Mel added with a wink. "Consider yourselves extremely lucky, I only have twelve VIP passes to give out."

         "Atalon is calling us V.I.P’s?" Eden scoffed, slightly amused by the formality, a V.I.P. party in the Villa was just another day in the life, for her.

         "Oh my god, Thank you!" To Dena it was a big break, an opportunity to mingle with the handsome god in a private party setting, this was huge!
         "You get to choose them all?" Eden felt pangs of jealousy arouse inside. It hurt that she hadn't been considered for the job: she was after all, the top Handler in Atlan. It was the fact that they didn't ask the top Handlers to select the guests that irked her. Perhaps Mel was the top Stylist, but she was only audience to the action. It was personal favors like this that were the king's downfall, secretly she had doubts for the success of his New Empire.

         Mel smiled. "Don't worry, the invitation comes with its own special assignment. Your job is to select invites for the Farewell Celebration in the Grand Courtyard!" She then handed them both a package of invitation cards and two more, less-glamorous looking scrolls. "The selection qualifications are detailed in the scrolls."

         Dena scanned the new document with eager anticipation, knowing already, she would be good at selecting the right aribu.

         "Your selections will be graded in consideration for your future employment in the New Empire" Mel assured. "It's a chance for you to shine!"

         "Breeders?" Hopes deflated instantly as Dena scanned the fine print, shocked by the not so small detail.

         "That’s right" Mel replied. "No one gets a New Empire for free."

         "What?" Eden zoomed in on the document, worried now.

         "We all have to breed?" Dena dissected the wording, wondering if this V.I.P. status couldn't exclude her from the clause.
         "Yes" Mel confirmed it was true. "We all do, even me. But look at who you're being offered to breed with? Gods and Kings! Let's not let a little fear ruin the celebrations, we won't have to suffer like the Breeders do. We won't be classified as Breeders."

         Mel's positive attitude did little to help. Dena felt her world crashing down around her as the truth came out. A Breeder? It was a rotten trick, but Mel was right, she was lucky to be offered to the gods like this, she was lucky to have Mel's friendship, her fate could have been so much worse!

         Suddenly, a deafening thunder rumbled and shuddered through the restaurant, shaking the ground violently from the foundations below. The building walls trembled and cracked, chandeliers swung, the bottles in the wine cabinets rattled like crystal bells. The roar grew louder and louder, the building shook harder and harder, patrons screamed and scrambled beneath the tables, reminded once again of who really was in charge below the surface of the Atlan Empire.