The Klinik Chapter One

The Klinik Chapter OneChapter 1.Rachel Darian tapped upon the highly polished walnut surface of a long dining table with fretful nervous energy. Along with all the other students gathered in a loose knot around her they waited anxiously upon the imminent arrival of Frau Doktor Ilse Webber, in company with Steve Dunmore?s hastily obtained replacement.?What happens to us if the new boy doesn?t get up to speed by the end of the week Rachel?? An obviously nervous Ari Sonderberg wondered.The clipped aristocratic sang froid that normally accompanied her spoken word was evidently missing. ?Well, according to the ?Frau Doktor? if ?Group 01/22? continuity cannot be maintained to progress our Training Schedule Modules, on time, we?ll all be taking a very late Christmas break. ..Course cancelled. No diploma, no cigar, no job, ..see you same time next year!?A squally flurry of powdered snow rippled across the length of triple insulated laminate glass separating Rachel Darian and her erstwhile student colleagues from the intense black chill of an Alpine winter night outside.The big Norwegian?s shoulders slumped upon hearing her grim assessment of the situation.Rachel looked again to the rest of them. ? However,.. She continued ..I for One am not going to let that little scenario ever come to pass, ?and I know that I can speak for both myself and Celine when I say that no matter what it takes, .. whatever further sacrifices both of us might have to make, this new boy Arran, is not going to hold us up. ?.Not now that we?ve worked this hard for the last few weeks to get as far as we have.?Only her best friend Celine of the small group of students gathered round her appeared in the least enthused by the defiant rhetoric.-----------------------------------------------------------------Far below the anxiously waiting student body of ?The Klinik?, a dim glow of light emerged from a cable car gondola as it breached the last stand of tall snow capped pines on its way upward; creaking toward its final destination perched atop the sheer granite crags of ?Tor Adlerstein?. Arran?s tired young face appeared ghostlike at the frost etched glass of the gondola window, peering first into the blackness below him and then up, toward the spill of warm yellow light emanating from an enormously long panoramic window lighting up the southern flank of a massive, steeply pitched concrete blockhouse of a building improbably wedged in against the towering slabs of snow flecked granite.---------------------------------------------------------------------Frau Dr. Ilse Webber Stood in a darkened concrete recess alone, sheltering from the intense cold, silently and patiently watching the cable drums haul in a thick steel hawser meter by creaking meter. Even luxuriously wrapped against the biting cold of an Alpine winter evening as she was, a tremulous shiver of cold disturbed her usually serenely still and watchful features. Her eyes, cobalt blue and clear never flickered, but beneath her cheeks now flushed pink with that icy chill her glamorously glossy and usually impassive lips trembled for just an instant.Hold your nerve. Everything will be as it was. Stick to the plan.Her gloved fingers pushed back the few strands of white gold hair not already tucked beneath a fine silver fox fur hat as the gondola drew level with the landing stage. It halted abruptly with a final echoing clang. She stepped forward, forcing a thin lipped smile to crease those glossy red lips in readiness to greet her newest recruit.?Welcome to the Klinik Mr. Ashe, my name is Frau Dr. Ilse Webber I am the facility Director ..it?s good to finally meet you at last. If you follow me, we will meet the other students right away. Please leave your bags here... One of my staff will take them to your accommodations presently.?The warm air exhaled with her softly spoken accented words hung as brittle steam in the frigid atmosphere. She was the living embodiment of his most cherished fantasy female personae made flesh.?Thank you,.. I?m pleased to finally be here,.. to meet you at last.? Her eyes glittered momentarily with suppressed amusement. She?d seen the reflexive reaction in his face, his eyes. His instant physical attraction to her even in the pale uncertain light of the moon, briefly luminous between scudding silver cloud, was obvious. This was a good omen.This visceral attraction would make it that much easier for her to manipulate him should it become necessary at a later date.After the initial shock of her startling beauty Arran made a conscious effort to try and not stare wide eyed, slacked jawed and drooling with a****l desire as he imagined he must have done only moments before. He mumbled a greeting and took the black gloved hand she proffered sheepishly. He?d had a sudden but fleeting feeling of panic form a knot in the pit of his stomach. He imagined his thoughts completely visible to the beautiful doctors piercing cobalt blue eyes, racing cartoon like, upward to form a brief bubble above his head before disappearing into the icy blackness of the night.They passed in tandem along a cavernous concrete walkway in silence apart from the staccato tip-tap-tip of the ?Frau Doktors? heels and eventually into the relief of a blankly modern, but thankfully, snugly warm elevator.Arran was fascinated by the icy hauteur of the woman, his only previous experience of the frau doktor was on a very poor and badly echoing telephone line confirming his admission into the program. It was that instant visceral lightning bolt of attraction that had prompted his initial feeling of panic and explained his virtual tongue tied idiocy up to this point. Hers was the sort of icy beauty favoured by his personal hero, film director Alfred Hitchcock, she was much like the stunningly beautiful but cold Tippi Hedren in Birds, or his long time crush, the icily gorgeous Grace Kelly as she?d appeared in the classic Rear Window.He guessed her age to be around Twenty-Five or so, she was a good couple of inches short of his height even in those briskly clicking patent heels. Her figure was disguised by the muffling thickness of an expensive looking fur coat, its collar pulled high and tight, leaving only her sheaf of white gold hair, pearl earrings and neat stocking clad ankles to hint at the figure in between.Arran Ashe concluded she was totally, gorgeously, perfect.The brushed steel elevator door slid open with quiet Teutonic efficiency.?This way Mr.Ashe.?Chloe Renis stepped forward to greet the boss and the newest student as they stepped out of the elevator together. The Direktors PA greeted them both deferentially, she stood ready to take Ilse Webber?s shrugged off coat and hat. Small, elegantly chic with a bob of blackly shimmering hair, slim to the point of delicacy in a fitted midnight blue suit. Immaculate and efficient as only a certain type of well-bred and well-educated female French beaurocrat could be. ?Thank you Chloe, is everybody in the dining room as requested???Yes Madame Direktor. All present.?Arran Ashe made a mental note as his internal ?lust meter? cranked itself up a notch.They strode purposefully, along a glass roofed central corridor lined with plantings and the other object d?art of corporate décor, intersected at various points by institutional looking swipe card security doors. On either side of the walkway, blank faced entrances with similar card swipes announced the various functions of each room in typically anodyne and charm less corporate style. ?Rm 1/022. Role Play Prep.?The trio descended a short flight of steps at the far end of the walkway, and once there, pushed through an incongruous baronial style stone archway guarded by massively heavy wooden doors complete with iron studwork and a huge ringed knocker sporting its very own leering brass gargoyle.The ?Frau Doktors? heels clicked loudly across a stone flagged floor toward a small group of young men and women who fell silent from their animated whispering when they became aware of the frau doctors presence amongst them.Chloe stood at his side, and for a second all that could now be heard was the fizz and crackle of a roaring log fire in its medieval stone hearth. ?Ladies and Gentlemen, ?..If I could have your attention for a moment. .. Thank you. ..I?d like you all to meet your new colleague Mr. Arran Ashe.? Chloe?s guiding hand pushed ever so gently into the small of his back.?Go on Mr. Ashe. ..they won?t bite I promise.?---------------------------------------------------One by one they had introduced themselves to him. Celine Devereaux was first amongst them with her friend Rachel Darian. Both were yet again, (almost unbelievably, almost incredibly) stunning to his eye but in the most deliciously contrasting ways his imagination could have possibly conjured. Rachel. Tall, with a long mane of corn blonde hair and icy blue eyes to match her cool aristocratic hauteur. Celine. Petite, almost waiflike, with a short mop of silken coal black hair above a pair of intense emerald green eyes that sparkled with mischievous humour. Rachel held a light tan; Celine?s skin was pale alabaster. Rachel?s generously proportioned busom revealed its softly rounded shape from beneath an institutional looking white cotton robe bearing an embroidered corporate logo, whereas Celine?s matching uniform revealed a much smaller, tip tilted swell.Both were of similar age to him, as was the remainder of the group, except perhaps for the last in line to be introduced, Gabrielle Visconti. She seemed a little younger, perhaps only nineteen or twenty years of age, compared to his Twenty-Four. Gabrielle was another alluring sight, a dark eyed Italian, with a long mane of rich nut-brown hair, full breasted and voluptuous, with the precocious pouting sexuality of a young Bridget Bardot.Sandwiched in between these three beauties came an equally pretty vision who was introduced as Mallory James, a strikingly lovely ?Southern Belle? from Georgia, Blonde haired, blue eyed, long legged and charming.His fellow male students were Ari Sonderberg, a warmly welcoming slab of typically Nordic athleticism, and finally a darkly handsome Italian by the name of Salvatore Cuomo.He knew he wasn?t a bad looking guy, but this was weird beyond belief, ?Stepford Wives? weird. Everybody, but everybody was so ridiculously good looking, including the staff. What really was this place about, and almost as important, why on earth did they choose him to be one of them? -------------------------------------------------------Dr. Ilse Webber guided Arran to his place at a great polished oval dining table resplendent with ornate silver centrepiece, fresh flowers, gleaming crystal glasses and immaculately laid out Georgian silver cutlery.She spoke softly but quickly perhaps sensing his slight unease, pouring wine for them both as the meal was served by Gabrielle and Ari. ?Sci-Tech Corp provide lavishly for us in comparison to other R