《Draugr Cell  //Layer 01-- Investiture:》


 Prologue

    "Good morning." The sultry voice greeted as soon as my eyes opened.


    "Hmmm hey." I grumbled, "Gimme a bit to wake up."


    I was instantly awake and alert as always, so it was a little white lie. I need to think.


    "As you wish."


    I rolled onto my back rubbing sleep from my eyes, my mind immediately going over the events of yesterday. You ever have something happen to you that just didn''t feel as though it were based in reality? I''d spoken and otherwise dealt with AI before last night of course, I''m not some kind of box boy. Hmm. Look here it is...


    Apparently my great grandfather was a kick ass programmer. He was one of the early innovators in the 1970''s or 80''s developing machine learning software for the express purpose of creating AI applications. He also apparently kept his best toys for himself.


    Today in 2075 AI is everywhere, but never had I encountered any robot, android, cyborg, fuck not even the vaunted personal assistant applications are anything like... her. I rolled over to look at the monitor she had claimed as her own, the image of a cute asian girl smiled and waived excitedly at my glance as she brushed her teeth. It took a moment to figure out she was using the monitor as a reverse mirror in her ''reality''. She was... perfect. No, not in that way... okay fine, who am I kidding? In that way as well, the shape of her breasts in the light cotton shirt she was wearing bouncing lightly with her movements.


    Okay, get your head back in the game... what was I saying... oh right! What I meant was that for the human interface of a piece of AI software she was far beyond anything I had ever seen or heard of, there was nothing like it on the market today.


    The term ''uncanny valley'' is well known, even today. Typically the term is used when talking about android or AI that had been designed to replicate human appearance, it basically meant that people were freaked out by them. There is just something about human biology that let you know there was always something... soulless about them. That certainly wasn''t a problem here.If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it.


    I''d have to deal with her, it, later. Otherwise I was gonna have either a pissed of Brianna or Lexi throwing me out of my room. I threw back the blanket and sat up on the bed intent on starting the day and looked around on the floor for my pants.


    "Can I ask you something?" She enquired. I''m suddenly unsure if she had a preferred name, but I was only now realising I hadn''t asked her for it yet.


    I looked up at one of the secondary monitors above my desk. She was still in her virtual bathroom having finished brushing her teeth and was levering herself up on the bench and standing on tip toes to look down at me as though looking through a window. Which I suppose from her perspective she was.


    "Sure. Why not." I mumbled, completely disinterested.


    A few seconds of silence after granting her wish drew my eyes to her monitor, she wasn''t looking at me, not exactly. The tracking of her eyes was a little off, not unless she was looking at...


    "You obviously find me attractive, why didn''t you wanna room with me last night?" She pouted, her eyes flicking up briefly to my eyes then back down, she licked her lips.


    I had absolutely zero intention of jumping into a virtual reality environment that I had no control over with what appeared to be a very intelligent AI. Even if it was gorgeous. That was just asking for trouble. With a frown I tracked her line of sight, straight to my morning boner. Apparently my great grand daddy was a horn dog. I half chuckled and stood to collect my jeans, her eyes widened and she had a wicked grin, she motioned at me with a come here motion of a finger tip. The AI''s face quickly changing to a mask of disappointment as she lowered herself and mumbled something I couldn''t quite hear as I pulled up my pants. She spun on her heals and headed for her bathroom door, the ''camera'' tracking her movements panned to her standing in the doorway.


    I shook my head with a grin, the ''light cotton shirt'' she was wearing? An exact duplicate of what I had on yesterday when we had first met. The sunlight shining through an unseen window in her world was perfectly positioned to silhouette her body, showing that she wasn''t wearing anything else. The bottom of the shirt lifted just enough to display a very cheeky view.


    In appreciation of what was on offer my eyes tracked up her shapely legs and over the perfectly presented thigh gap, the bald lips of her sex only just barely visible beneath the hem of the shirt. My hungering gaze continued over the curve of her rump and shapely hips, along her slender back to the sides of her breasts, the side boob visible from behind indicating, in my mind at least, they were of the perfect size. Dragging my eyes up to her face her long pink hair in pony tails fought briefly for my attention, she was watching over her shoulder with a teasing look. She winked when our eyes met.


    "Going for a cold shower. Back in a bit." I rolled my eyes and grabbed my towel.


    The AI''s girly giggling chased me from the room.

 Chapter One

    So I think about now is as good a time as any to give you a little back story about myself. I''m twenty five years old, male (duh), and currently live in a veterans halfway house, surviving (barely) on a military pension. If the rent wasn''t free I''d be fucked, just like everyone else here. I signed up when I was sixteen, and consider myself to be one of the lucky ones, having suffered no serious injury despite the nature of my deployments so I don''t have any cybernetics other than the standard military implants. Which considering my role during the war was quite the accomplishment.


    During the day we are mostly left to our own devices but the retired Warrant Officer that runs the place keeps us loosely in check with a much more lenient version of the military discipline we are all accustomed to. For example, if you aren''t out of bed by seven A.M. expect to be woken up rather... rudely. Speaking of which.


    "Hey boss." I eyed the air horn in her hand and the glint in her enhanced eye.


    "You got a girl in there Corporal?" She asked with a smirk that could only be interpreted as ''busted''.


    With a sigh I pushed back the door and waived her through.


    "No Sir, over night guests would be against house rules." I know what your thinking, but no, there wasn''t a formal tone to my voice, and she wasn''t the hard ass drill sergeant coming to bust balls. Well kind of... it was five past seven.


    Like I said, the place is run with a very loose form of military discipline, we just know how to show each other respect, play by the rules, and own our fuck ups... unlike a lot of others out there.


    "Oh hello! Are you a friend of John''s?" The AI asked Lexi, her tone a little confused.


    I groaned inwardly, I wasn''t going to hear the end of this anytime soon. I trudged back into the room and sat on my bed defeated, rolling my eyes at the grey haired Warrant Officer I started my attempt at pushing the inevitable questioning back to a more appropriate time.


    You see in todays day and age there were a couple of rules to both claiming the veterans pension (other than the obvious), and living in the provided accommodation. One of the rules of being ''ringer'' assignments, (we can get into that later), was that your relationships came under a little extra scrutiny due to the nature of the work. A rule which I had no doubt Lexi was now abusing for her own amusement and my frustration.


    "C''mon boss! We only met last night, and not even in the real yet!" It wasn''t exactly the truth, but wasn''t a lie either, we would never meet in the real world, and likely not even in a fake one.


    "ah huh." The Warrant Officer all but ignored me and turned on my chair to look up at the AI.


    Thankfully my... companion, was more appropriately attired and now sitting in the work environment she had inhabited when we''d first met. Hopefully she''d stay seated, because quite frankly, there was no way a woman would wear a skirt that was as short as the type the AI preferred... well not ''at work'' at least... unless she was on her back most of her shift. The face of the girl in the screen took on a look that was just the right mix of concern and jealousy.


    "John... what is this woman doing in your room?" The AI narrowed it''s eyes at Lexi before turning on me as though ready to pounce. Yep, just the right amount of potential jealousy... fantastic. Now I knew what I''d be doing for the rest of the day at least.


    The Warrant Officer looked over her shoulder at me with a raised eyebrow, picking up on the visual cue''s and tones of my apparent girlfriend, her face now all business before she turned back to the monitor.


    "I''m John''s coordinator, you can call me Lexi. You know he''s a ringer right?"


    The AI''s eyes looked into the middle distance for a second or two, I had picked up on the habit early during our initial conversation. It was how she looked when she was looking up something on the internet or potentially one of the other more restricted networks. She wasn''t bothered by pesky annoyances like security firewalls.


    "Oh! No I didn''t, pleased to meet you, I''m Sumiko. Look I''m more than happy to talk to you, I understand that you... might need to... eventually... maybe. But like John said, we only began chatting last night."


    I silently cheered at the hail mary pass, my day suddenly freeing up from awkward conversations and questions that I''m not exactly sure how to answer. Lexi''s eyes squinted almost imperceptibly as she looked at the screen, she turned to see my expression for a brief moment before again turning to Sumiko.


    "I see. Well in that case I''ll leave you to it." Lexi rose and exited my small room, but not before smirking and commenting something about not fucking things up... again. Why was everyone so interested in my love life? I fumed silently at the comment but let it slide.


    I nodded my thanks silently at Sumiko before heading down to the ablutions block.


    The veterans compound was at one time a small military outpost on the outskirts of the city. With the end of the only war to ever reach mainland Australia it had been handed over to the jurisdiction of the Department of Veterans Affairs. The end of the war, unfortunately, didn''t mean the end of hostilities. The terrorism trend that had started back in the early 2000''s with the attack on the world trade center over in America, had spread to just about every country on the face of the planet. Over time the constant threat from various groups meant the civilian police force was quickly undermanned, under equipped, and overwhelmed. They were simply unable to respond to the daily threats in any reasonable time frame, and in many situations lacked the both the skills and equipment required to deal with the threats to put them down in a ''safe'' and expedient manner.


    Veterans of the war that were being reintegrated into society however, were just about everywhere, all the time. We have the training and the skills required to deal with just about any threat you care to mention, all we needed was access to the equipment to do so.


    In a world first, under the new Veterans program, the Australian government had taken the rather controversial step of allowing specifically selected veterans to go armed in public. Sure, with Australian weapons laws being very, very strict there were a number of hurdles to get over first, but that''s where the selection part comes in. Tangentially that''s actually how I met Brianna, my current partner. But it''s a story for another time. Initially the general public didn''t see it that way and there had been a huge public outcry. But the response times and numbers of lives saved spoke for themselves, those against the idea of ''ringers'' as they had become known, were in the minority. The very vocal minority, but minority none the less. Not even police officers were permitted to carry weapons when off duty, so having licence to be armed everywhere, all the time, with literally anything we damn well pleased, we took the responsibility of public protection very seriously.


    Not that we went around flaunting our status. Sure, some of the guys went around with assault rifles and the like in plain view, but they generally didn''t last very long if they weren''t signed onto a tiger cell. That was a fast track to being singled out as the largest threat in the area and being taken out by trigger happy terrorists, perhaps preemptively, at the very least rather quickly once in a hot zone. So as a general rule, ringers had taken to carrying concealed weapons. Those that owned vehicles nearly always had a veritable mobile armory with them in their trunks at all times sure, but that was another matter entirely.


    I stepped into the crumbling brick ablutions building that had been added as an afterthought to the standard three story, one acre military compound. Coincidentally one would need to walk past Lexi''s room to get there, it was her way of taking role call, I''m sure it was just a coincidence that the coordinators room was right there. Yeah right.The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement.


    "And just when I was thinking my morning eye candy was going to be a no show." I nodded and winked at Brianna''s morning greeting as she wrapped herself in a towel.


    A cary over from military bases everywhere, there was no distinction between the sexes here... and no privacy. A soldier was a soldier. There were no walls between the showers or the toilets, hell there wasn''t even anything to separate the shower area from the toilet area in this particular block. Before what I think is about to happen... happens let me get this out first. In a perhaps odd turn of events women represented nearly seventy percent of the total active duty ''ringers''. The tables had been turned on the men so to speak, the women were now the sexual predators. Yeah okay, not really, but they were certainly more... aggressive about their desires.


    "Careful chika, boss lady says he''s already got another one on the hook."


    I rolled my eyes and looked at the ceiling, ignoring Gardner''s comment as he walked in. You ever have a person you just didn''t like? He didn''t act or talk differently to anyone else, he didn''t have an abrasive personality, and there was nothing ''wrong'' with him per say... he just rubbed me up the wrong way, and he''s the only person I''d ever met that had the ability to piss me off just by breathing.


    "Yeah, seems ripe." Brianna tapped my balls lightly with a laugh as she walked past.


    Now if you''ve never served in a combat zone before, I should probably pause here to explain the dynamics of the situation. You see in ''mixed'' front line combat units (to use the old term, because all units are mixed to a greater or lesser extent these days), where women are a... commodity, they have their pick of the pack. What they say goes.


    Sure, if your a civilian your probably going to call her a slut (and get punched in the face by everyone in her squad), or at the very least your going to think its some form of sexual harassment. But you''d be wrong. Sure those sorts of rules generally applied now we were all technically civilians again, but it''s behaviour we are all both familiar and comfortable with. You see in active duty combat units women have the power in the relationship.


    Think about it. Sex is good. Combine that with the emotional highs that intense combat situations bring and its pretty much inevitable. But it''s not as... perverted as you may think. I mean sure, pretty much every guy in any given unit has had sex with the one or two women in their team, and certainly on the odd occasion more than two people were involved, but it was just stress relief. And everyone understood that. Those that didn''t? Those that thought they were in a ''relationship'' with the girl they slept with? Well... they soon learnt the error of their ways.


    I slapped her ass playfully in responseas she saunterd past. "That''s enough out of you."


    "oooo more please daddy." She moaned mockingly in response with a quick bend of her hips as she walked, her latino accent making it sound... well, you get the picture.


    "Why do you do that? Call him daddy?" Gardner inserted himself into our morning ritual good-naturedly, but still managing to piss me off.


    "Oh poor Mister Gardner." She said mockingly, fully aware the guy rubbed me up the wrong way.


    "If you have to ask, you''ll never know." She finished mockingly.


    Then her facial expression changed completely and she sent a girly giggle my way to further rub it in and twirled a long strand of her hair in her finger. "See you in a bit... daddy."


    She blew me a kiss and quickly walked through the door.


    I couldn''t help but smirk at her antics and gave Gardner a stern look to prevent further questions before turning around and ignoring him to finish my shower.


    "Should I call you daddy?" Sumiko asked as soon as I closed my door.


    I turned to look at the AI suspiciously as I hung the wet towel. There really was only one way she could have known to ask that particular question, and I''m not sure I liked the implications.


    "Why... when..." I stopped momentarily to get my thoughts in order, this was a breach of security far beyond anything that should be possible.


    "How did you get access to my neural feed?" To say I was concerned would be an understatement. With access to my neural feed she could get up to all sorts of mischief not only in the ringer network, but the general military network at large. But very specifically she could set my status to dark, an involuntary shiver ran down my spin. Without proper preparation more than one grunt had gone certifiably insane from an instant disconnect. This was the last thing I needed.


    "Don''t be like that." She pouted at me playfully.


    I quickly sat at my desk and began shutting down my computer.


    "No, no, no. Please. Will you just listen!?" Her voice was becoming panicked and pleading the closer I got to hitting the power button.


    "Please don''t take me offline again... I couldn''t..." Her voice broke, there were tears rolling down her face.


    I sighed and looked up at her monitor, my finger hovering over the power button. I had always been a sucker for a pretty face, crying ones even more so. Apparently that now included pretty faced artificial crying girls. She was just a bunch of pixels after all.


    "Explain yourself." I used a tone of voice that most women in my life didn''t get to hear. One that made them sit up and pay attention. It was... interesting to say the very least, to see it had the same effect on Sumiko. My estimation of the skill that must have gone into her programming went up several notches.


    Her lips quivered a little and she sat up a slightly straighter as she considered her response. Unfortunately I never got to hear what that response might have been as Brianna barged into the room. Ringers often took up contract work in the private sector for some extra cash, there was plenty of work to go around. We weren''t officially teamed in a tiger cell which meant we did my contracts one day and Bri''s the next. We would need to get a move on if we wanted to meet the deadline for a contract she had picked up recently.


    Bri took one look at Sumiko pouting sadly and on the verge of tears then cuffed me around the back of the head without question.


    "Say sorry."


    I looked at her sideways in annoyance, but she was having none of it. Not after what happened between me and... you know what? Never mind.


    "What did he do?" She asked Sumiko directly then looked at me again, sprouting a string of... stuff at me in her native tongue.


    "What the fuck! You aren''t even dressed yet. Let''s go!" She snapped her fingers several times then promptly ignored me as I dove for the cupboard, taking my seat and turning her full attention back to the AI in the room.


    "Sorry, I just know what he''s like. You all right?" She lifted her chin at the monitor in question.


    I looked up at Sumiko as I quickly dressed and checked over my weapons. She had the look of a young woman that was confused, sad, concerned and pissed off all mixed into one. It was incredibly lifelike.


    "Maybe it''s just me." The AI frowned at Bri as her expression hardened.


    "Meaning?" My unofficial partner rolled her finger indicating we were short on time and Sumiko should get to the point. Yeah, that was going to help.


    "Meaning maybe I just need to get used to the fact that my boyfriend is going to have random women barging into his room anytime they damn well please!" Sumiko inflected her voice with anger and quickly terminated the call. The monitor went blank.


    "Oh. Ooops." Bri shrugged at the blank screen and turned to look at me. The particulars of our relationship meant that she''d had considerable experience in dealing with my pissed of girlfriends. Completely ignoring the fact that the argument she had been trying to ''help'' with was likely just made far more complicated by her mere presence.


    "Want me to talk to her? She''s a cutie you should at least try to keep her."


    For some reason I don''t really understand myself, I''m not that good at thinking on my feet when someone isn''t shooting at me. So taking a hold of the cue from Sumiko that we were just another couple adapting to one of us being a ''civi'', I just sighed and looked at her blankly.


    "I think you just did." I answered flatly.


    "Yeah well... I''ll give her a wave when we get back. She''s gonna have to get used to us working together anyway. Right?"


    The pained expression on Brianna''s face was genuine, and likely would have escaped the notice of anyone that wasn''t me. On the face of it she was concerned that our working partnership would come to an end due to my entering a relationship. It was a common story, so that was a genuine enough concern, even though I have repeatedly assured her she had nothing to fear. I don''t care if God himself demanded our team work come to an end, it just wasn''t going to happen. I didn''t trust anyone else enough to take on the kinds of jobs that we did.


    On the other hand, we shared a relationship that you might describe as... not traditional. That was the one thing she was more afraid of loosing than anything else on the planet. Now if you''ve been paying attention, you have likely guessed that''s the reason she calls me daddy. No, not as in sugar daddy. But as in the submissive/dominant kind of daddy. She''s my little, and despite the fact that over the years both of us had been in other... more normal relationships, we had always maintained our carnal relationship as well.


    ><# Oooo I''ll have to set up an account for myself. Can I use your chit... you know, just ''till I get my own?


    Sumiko''s voice derailed my thoughts via the tactical network of my neural implant. Well maybe not, I''d need to clarify. But I was used to hearing voices in my head and that''s typically how they got there. Unable to respond verbally I looked at the camera built into her monitor and gave the barest of nods.


    Brianna gave me a cheeky eye squint suspecting I was up to something as the conversation had simply died as I cycled my weapons and put on the safeties before holstering them but didn''t say anything.


    "Correct baby girl." I pet her ass and pecked her cheek, allying both of her fears at the same time.


    She perked up at that and followed me from the room.

 Chapter Two

    The city that I have always called home, that was recently renamed Victory City, is primarily an industrial and manufacturing hub for the rest of the country. Churning out various consumer goods sure, but the corporations here are primarily focussed on providing the tools and resources required to rebuild the rest of the country after the war.


    I''m not sure how things are going to look in the future, but in the here and now the federal government doesn''t really have a whole lot of impact on the average citizens daily life. Our local government is run by a democratically elected council that then selects a governor from amongst their own ranks, the governor''s of the various city states from across the country likewise select amongst themselves to determine who will be president. Being designated a ''Special Economic Zone'' the corporations in Victory City are given increased rights to assist in economic growth, the categorisation intended to fast track the infrastructure repairs for the rest of the country. Long story short, the corporations pretty much do whatever the fuck they want and hold the real seat of power, at least here.


    Brianna and I chatted as we walked through the lower levels of the city, picking up some breakfast from the street vendors before getting on the ram. Almost as soon as our asses hit the seats and the doors closed our plans for the day were thrown out the window.


    :>> Go for Tac. 1.


    :<< Sorry boss, on the ram.


    I answered the call.


    Bri and I exchanged glances and two or three heads in the crowded carriage rotated to spot who had responded. I briefly raised my hand above my head for recognition, they nodded in response and listened in on the currently one way chanel. It was a common enough occurrence. Tac. 1 was the only real command structure that ringers answered to, and we were on call 24/7 regardless of our current circumstances.


    Oh, before you ask a ''ram'' is the train we were on, long story short some shit happened during the war and that''s what most ringers called ''em. Being unable to immediately exit a high speed train or plane was generally the only accepted excuse to not participate in an ongoing OP (operation). And I do mean generally, because parachutes and gravpacks are a thing. So, back to the explanation.


    As I was saying, Tac. 1 is our command structure. Basically the way it works is that if you come into range of a hot zone your implant registered you on the network. Once you were registered on the network contact was first made to confirm force organisation and orders, and only the ''man on the ground'' could respond. As you might have guessed this was the guy that would take command, they only called in teams of five unless the situation dictated or reinforcements were called for, additional ringers could be assigned as they were either called into, or otherwise entered the hot zone.


    Once command of the operation was assigned like this it was never rescinded regardless of rank or experience unless the designated leader ended up KIA, or you were a commanding officer of the tiger cell in action and had entered the hot zone. Now here''s where things deviate a little from the standard military ranking structure, because lets face it, none of us are walking around on civi street displaying our rank. Tac. 1. contacted retired special forces first, general military last. If you were a special forces grunt, such as myself, you could find yourself ordering around general entry officers on any given day of the week. What can I say, we know how to get shit done.


    :>> Tac. 1. Acknowledged. State next destination.


    That... I wasn''t expecting. There was generally a hand off at this point and that was that.


    I glanced at Bri and shared a look with the three men making their way though the carriage toward us. The train was either about to be forcefully stopped, or there was shit going down at a terminal along the way. We were in a carriage full of civilians. Given the next scheduled stop wasn''t for another twenty kilometers or so I was hoping for the sake of the passengers it was the former.


    I looked up at the information screen displayed in the window and called out the next stop.


    :>> Confirmed. You are designated Zero Alpha.


    The nameless voice responded. Being designated was pretty much par for the course if you weren''t in a tiger cell. You needed at least three to form a cell, Bri and I had never met anyone that we were particularly interested in working with as of yet, and we had been together for around six years now.


    I brought up my HUD and various ocular subsystems with a thought now that the other ringers would be ''sounding off''.


    :>> One Alpha.


    Bri''s voice entered my head over the tactical network. Once all ringers had been assigned we would be moved off the command channel to a local grid. Her associated icon turned green on the tactical overlay of my left eye.


    :>> Two Alpha.


    A second icon lit up.


    :>> Three Alpha. Strapped.


    A third icon lit up and I tracked my head to visually locate the individual. Strapped was an indicator that someone was armed with something other than sidearms. Catching my eye he clapped his hands together and slowly drew them apart a comfortable distance indicating he was packing an assault rifle. Then he closed his fist and pointed his thumb at the roof. Fragmentation grenades.


    I couldn''t help but nod approvingly. That''s when I noticed a murmurer of conversation spreading through the train, wary eyes tracking the temporary members of my team. People were starting to notice the two word sentences, they knew exactly what that meant, and they were none to happy about the fact they were stuck on a ram while it was happening around them.


    :<< Two, three, crowd control.


    It wasn''t the done thing to interrupt the setup of tactical teams and issue orders over Tac.1, but I could see I was about to have a riot on my hands. With weapons drawn the ringers immediately set to work getting people to hunker down and away from the exits. If I didn''t know any better I''d say it looked like a heist.


    :>> Four Alpha.


    This was the last guy in the same carriage as the rest of us, I pointed to the other two and set him to work.


    :>> Five Alpha. Strapped. MedTec. On site. Ingress secure.


    It was a woman''s voice, I''d have to confirm once finished with Tac. 1 exactly what she had at her disposal. A MedTec was nice, and a relatively rare and welcomed asset amongst ringer teams. Trained field medics were worth their weight in gold during impromptu operations. On site... really shouldn''t need explanation. If it does, put the book down, get a lighter and maybe a little accelerant if you think you will need it and set it on fire, your privileges have been revoked. Ingress secure, also mostly self explanatory. Where ever the ram was going to stop, she was there and had the area (currently) secured.


    :>> Tac. 1 confirmed. Additional units en route. Blue''s currently engaged and under fire, you are to secure the immediate area. Good luck. Tac. 2 is go.


    And just like that the hand shake was complete and the operation was mine. Our neural links automatically switched over to the assigned channel, in this case Tac.2.


    Okay, reading between the lines reinforcements were on route and they weren''t ringers, that meant something big. Terrorist tactics the world over were hit and run, for whatever reason these guys were sticking around. Blue''s currently engaged meant Police officers. Now what was just as important as the orders, were the explicitly unstated requirements implied in ''secure the immediate area''. What did it mean? There were to be no prisoners taken and no survivors at the end of the operation. If they had wanted the hassle of managing prisoners the order would have been explicitly stated.


    The ram started slowing down, and on cue the civies started panicking, but they were composed and mostly calm... that is to say no one was overtly loosing their shit. Since the introduction of ringers, the civilian population had learnt the hard way to stay (mostly) calm under fire. Ringers had the full authority of law to either detain or render unconscious, or even execute any that they considered an endangerment to themselves or others during an active operation. But it wasn''t as bad as it sounded, executions were a very rare occurrence, thankfully I hadn''t had to make that particular call myself yet.This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.


    :<< This is Alpha. Five, Status.


    It was one of those unspoken rules that individuals designated the zero alpha call sign either always used the full ''zero alpha'' or just the ''alpha'', never the single numerical designator (as the rank and file did) of zero. A ''zero'' was also the designation for a hostile self contained machine. With the war over, hostile robots weren''t common place, but they were out there. No point muddying your own waters if you could avoid it.


    :>> This is Five. Big Stick. Nil contact.


    Bri and I shared a glance. Big stick meant sniper. As in walk quietly, carry a big stick. Someone that was both a sniper and a medtec? There was a story there somewhere. But it complicated the shit out of my life. We were supposed to support the police, if they were under fire they likely had wounded. Five was gonna be pissed, ''cause at this point in time I could just about guarantee that as soon she got to the top of whatever structure she found I''d be calling her back down to patch someone up.


    I checked the tactical overlay and confirmed our position in relation to the quickly approaching hot zone.


    :<< This is Alpha. Roger. After debrief Four with five, get high. ETA in Ten...Nine.


    I shut the comms to let each team member silently continue the count of their own accord and finish any final preparations.


    As the ram slowed we disembarked, the four of us hit the ground running, without coming to a stop the rams doors were closing and it was quickly picking up speed to clear the civilians from the area. Those on the ground should have been evacuated to the shelters that every building had available while we were on route. Five was set up at the station entrance, she was laying prone in the grass with her heavy sniper rifle trained along the opposite street. I drew the 12mm Spitfire from the small of my back, the two Malorian Flechette''s in shoulder holsters were my backups and would stay in place for now.


    I knelt beside five as I glanced around quickly to confirm the rest of the team had fanned out, Brianna threw me a smirk and wink, of course we had both noticed five''s tight ass. Not like it was an achievement, she was wearing a pair of skin hugging jeans that looked as though they had been painted on after all. With one leg hiked up to hip level beside her on the ground it was a ver...anyway back to business.


    "Hey boss. Looks like an attempted transport hijacking. Blues managed to disable the transport, four total, two kicking, harassing from the left. Based on what I could see from here looks like chipped gangers. Weird thing is, they ain''t leaving."


    "Safety free, targets of opportunity." I tapped her on the ass with a cupped palm and at her backwards glance pointed out four. She got up and they both headed to a nearby building to setup on over watch.


    Chipped ganger''s was a term used to describe anyone that had enhanced capabilities, it was fairly common ground for ringer operations as pretty much every man and his dog had some sort of enhancement these days. Organised crime is big business these days as well. The fact they weren''t leaving until they got what they were after however was cause for concern. For example, if there were big ass guns in the truck I wanted to know about it before rounds started heading my way.


    Opening the comms I checked up on the status of the reinforcements.


    :<< This is Alpha. Bravo. Sitrep.


    :>> This is Bravo Actual, three mikes, south bound, eight souls, rhino. Over.


    I exchanged ''oh fuck'' looks with Brianna and three.


    :<< Alpha acknowledged. Out.


    It was only polite to use correct radio syntax, at least when communicating with those units.


    :<< This is Alpha. Five keep ''em off the blues.


    :>> Wilco.


    :>> Thanks Alpha. Blues sitting tight.


    Whilst the police technically only had the legal authority to listen in, a few had hacked rigs courtesy of some enterprising ringers, for the sake of all concerned they self regulated and only ever hacked the rigs of those they trusted to keep cool heads. (Rigs were actual hardware, not implants, and could be confiscated.) We were military operators after all, they were civilian. Armed civilians sure, but still distinctly not military. It was a very rare thing for charges to be laid on those involved which was as good a testimony as any to show how well our two groups worked together.


    Shots immediately began raining down in the general area of the disabled transport around 500 meters away, five was clearly in position.


    :<< Three on point, get us in the back door.


    He nodded and took off at a light crouched jog down the road, assault rifle leading the way. When issuing orders it was only natural to always use the tactical network, even if the ringer was standing right next to me. In that way everyone knew what was going on.


    But why the hurry you might ask. What the fuck is going on? Well... to be perfectly honest with you, that''s exactly what I would like to know.


    In case you couldn''t figure it out from the more formal tone of the comm chatter, the reinforcements were regular army. They may pay me lip service over comms as I was technically in charge of the operation, but no fucking way would they do what I said unless it suited them. They had their orders, and so far as they were concerned I didn''t need to know what they were. Being ex special forces I could understand the attitude and didn''t hold it against them, it did make my job of keeping everyone alive just that little bit more difficult though. Left hand not knowing exactly what the right was up to and all.


    Three mikes, three minutes out. That was annoying. It meant they had been sitting on station just waiting for shit to happen, they expected this. South bound, they were travelling north to south and would enter the hot zone from the opposite side of our approach. Eight souls, eight combat troops, vehicle crew or anyone else they didn''t want me to know about weren''t included in that count. Rhino, that''s the big one and the dead give away. An amalgamation between armored personnel carrier and cargo transport. They weren''t fucking around and were going to get whatever the gangers were after out of the area as soon as they possibly could.


    I''d instructed three to get us as close as he could to the hunkered down blues without drawing fire. From that position I would re assess and we could go from there. Unfortunately, the bad guys had other ideas. Luckily, three had a powered shield built into his cybernetic left arm and as soon as the bullets started flying it self activated. Years on the job showed as he immediately ducked down behind the temporary cover even as it hummed to life. He threw a grenade giving Bri and I time to duck into a nearby doorway and provide covering fire.


    So... soldiers have a morbid sense of humor, particularly those that face death on a daily basis. So keep that in mind and try not to think too badly of us when I tell you that all three of us pointed and laughed at the armless, legless, screaming man as he flew through the air spraying blood like some sort of demonic lawn sprinkler. Three turned around with a grin, nodding and giving me the thumbs up almost dropping his rifle in hysterics.


    :<< This is Alpha, five go incendiary. Three, get out of there. Two shoot and scoot.


    At that Bri and I began laying down rapid fire at the disabled transport giving three a chance to find alternate cover, and hopefully a better field of fire. At best we were only keeping their heads down from our current position in relation to the rolled transport. As soon as three had moved to safety Two broke off at a sprint down a side alley, looking for an alternate route through side doors to get to the blues. Primarily it was to ascertain if they needed medical assistance, but it was also to make sure that those in our impromptu team wouldn''t suffer any friendly fire incidents if we ended up moving forward past their position. The police didn''t have the combat HUD''s and readouts of ringers.


    :>> Wilco.


    If the giggle in her voice was anything to go by she had also seen what was currently passing for entertainment.


    Five had only managed to get two shots down range, the impacts looking like mini nuclear detonations as they sucked the air from the immediate area to fuel the incendiary nature of the munitions. People had a natural aversion to fire, so you can bet your ass they kept their heads down.


    :>> This is Bravo Actual. Check fire. Live in five. Out.


    With three safely taking shelter in a nearby repair shop of some description, I leaned heavily against the filthy wall behind me and reloaded.


    :>> This is Two. Secure.


    "What the actual fuck?" Bri voiced my own opinion as she likewise reloaded.


    I did all I could do, knit my eyebrows in a pissed off growl and shrugged. I checked the time on my HUD, we had been engaged for barely a minute. So either the GPS system in the Rhino transport was completely fucked or we were being deliberately lied to for reasons unknown.


    :>> Alpha, this is Cypher, taking post on... McCarthy.


    Fucking fantastic, now military intelligence, or worse, one of the corporations were involved. Which one? Who the fuck knows. Who cares? Not me. Some days you just kinda wished you never got out of bed, know what I mean? A cypher was the (typically) privatised old world equivalent of the CIA or other secretive but sanctioned organisation.


    I made no attempt to hide my distaste over comms.


    :<< This is Alpha, acknowledged. Holding.


    :>> This is Bravo Actual. Wilco. Out.


    Well, well, who said miracles didn''t happen? Appears the regulars were more than happy to follow my orders, at least in this instance. ''Wilco'' being military speak for will comply. Just goes to show, no one fucked with a company man if they didn''t have to. By stating that we were ''holding'' I let the cypher know we wouldn''t be giving chase to anything that headed that direction, regardless of the threat it might pose to a single cypher. I checked my overlay, McCarthy street was due west of the hot zone, it would now be the only route of retreat for the bad guys. We might not be able to take prisoners, but you could bet your bottom dollar the company was sure as shit baiting some sort of trap down there.


    The roar of heavy weapons fire became almost deafening as the rhino arrived on scene, literally hosing the bad guys out of any hidey-hole they may have managed to find. Eight heavy armoured infantry disembarked and swept through the immediate surrounds of the disabled transport in short order.


    :>> This is Bravo Actual. Clear. Over.


    :<< This is Alpha, be advised you have friendlies in the building to your East. Blues, Alphas to me. Bravo, Cypher, good hunting. Tac. 2 Out.


    I didn''t actually expect the police officers to show, I was more getting it on record that they were still alive, if the army had any trigger happy ass hats there would be hell to pay.


    :>> This is Tac. 1. End engagement confirmed. Until next time alphas. Tac. 1 out.


    And just like that our work for the day was done. Well... our official work at any rate. Brianna and I still had time to figure out when the next train would be making a stop at an apparently unmarked industrial transfer station so we could get on with the job of closing out an active contract.


    </img>><# Holy fuck balls! That''s what you do for a living?


    Sumiko all but screamed into my head.

 Chapter Three

    I was about to reply, but quickly realised that with the tactical channels now being closed and the fact I never bothered with other portable comms I didn''t have a valid reason for talking to myself in public. Not that I could even if I had wanted to, Brianna currently doing her best to shove her tongue down my throat, she obviously sensed the smile on my lips and broke contact.


    "What?" Brianna asked with a smile in her eyes.


    ><# Wow... she really likes you huh? You two ever... you know...


    I nodded at Bri to answer Sumiko''s question, but spoke out loud to answer Bri. Not confusing at all and nothing could ever possibly go wrong, right? "Demonic sprinkler."


    ><# eww that was gross! Not the sex thing, that''s totally hot and fine with me by the way, I was talking about the whole... sprinkler thing.


    I with Brianna inches from my face, I forced myself to not frown at the AI''s comment. Why should I give a shit if software had a problem with me and Bri?


    "That was some real movie shit right there! Didn''t even know a ''nade could launch a guy like that!" Three chimed in as he approached.


    "That''s random physics for ya." Bri giggled as she hugged herself into my side. It was the polite way of letting the others of our temporary team know that she was spoken for and wouldn''t be entertaining ''offers''.


    We chatted for a bit introducing ourselves and coming down from the combat high before five and four joined us. The cute sniper using the concrete side of a nearby high garden bed as a bench to break down her rifle and put it in a back pack. Four broke into the conversation asking what exactly a demonic sprinkler was, five snorted in amusement, she didn''t want to spoil the surprise, he had missed out on the fun due to not having a scope when he was backing up five.


    "You a blade?" She asked, immediately derailing the conversation as she threw her pack over her shoulder and turned around. Special forces veterans were rare as rocking horse shit in the ringer trade, typically taking up high paying jobs with the corporations or just ''getting out'' all together. All eyes turned to me, conversation forgotten.


    "Why do you ask?" A tight, almost grin on my face when I noticed the cheeky grin she was sharing with Bri. I worked quick, but Bri worked silently. The snipers eyes snapped back to me, slight smile still playing across her lips.


    "First alpha in a while that didn''t have me glued to their ass incase they got an ouchie." She said sarcastically. "Appreciate it."


    "Daddy was a blade!" Bri blurt out wanting to make sure she would be in on what she had started.


    Three and four shared a look then focused on Brianna, wondering if they should be concerned. The tough as nails soldier turning into a fawning little girl in the blink of an eye.


    I chuckled lightly, the way my baby girl became awkward when trying to talk about kinks was just a part of her that people didn''t know how to handle. Particularly when you considered she didn''t give a shit about the looks she got when calling me daddy... or taking on the persona of a flustered ''little'' in public. Oh, and ''blade'' is aussie slang for special forces, just in case that was the first thing on your mind. Yes, I''m rolling my eyes at you, you square.


    The sniper smirked at Bri and the reactions of the other men, having figured out what was going on she smiled at me with a tight lipped seductive grin, before giving me a more... aggressive once over with hungry eyes. Ahh combat, best aphrodisiac on the planet.


    The sly grin still planted on her face she looked to Brianna with a raised eyebrow, question clear. Well at least to us, three and four were observing our little impromptu role play as though we were crazy people. For my part I nodded an answer, not that five seemed to be interested in my opinion on the subject.


    "mmm okay, but I go first!" Bri answered the unspoken question. She was pushing into my side with one knee bent, moving it side to side as she twirled a finger in her long hair and sucked on her lower lip.


    "Fine by me." Five stepped into my other side and put her arm around my waist, Brianna intertwined our fingers and held my hand against her sex as we walked away from the remaining two members of the team.


    "Dude, c''mon I just gave that chick my number." Two complained quietly to no one in particular.


    "What the fuck just happened?" Four looked at three.


    ><# What he said.


    Sumiko''s voice entered the back of my mind.


    Three just blinked in response and headed the opposite direction shaking his head.


    Needless to say we missed our window for the contracted goods escort that Brianna and I had initially been trying to close out. It wasn''t that big a deal really, if you contracted a ringer to get something done you understood shit might happen and your timetable was out the window.


    So there we were around three hours later, Brianna with her head on my chest and listening to my heart beat as she watched five while catching her breath. With fivegreedily cleaningaway our previous efforts with her tongue Sumiko''s monitor lit up.


    "Ah hem." The AI fake coughed, announcing herself to the room a tersely.


    I groaned, wondering what she was up to. With the all to familiar situation coming back to haunt her Brianna froze like a dear in the headlights waiting for the inevitable screaming to start. Perhaps mistaking my groan for one of pleasure Five turned her head to look at Sumiko withmy lengthon her chin. "Who''s this?"


    "Girlfriend." Bri answered with a cringe.


    "It''s not what it looks like." Five said deadpan then began licking the length in her hand like an ice cream cone as she watched for a reaction. I couldn''t help but snort out a laugh.


    Sumiko crossed her arms across her chest and squinted daggers at me, ignoring the women.


    "Why wasn''t I invited?" She said in a harsh tone. It took Bri a second or two to process the words before she relaxed and claimed my mouth with hers.


    With the completion of round three... or was it four? Brianna climbed off my face to stand by the bed, watching my ''girlfriend'' intently for her next order. She was being a good little girl and doing what she was told.


    "Miss Sumi?" Brianna eventually asked as five and I kept ourselves occupied, likely starting to feel like a third wheel standing naked by the bed with no orders.


    Sumiko''s eyes fluttered open, looking at Brianna with a content smile. "You may go and clean up little one."


    "Thank you Miss Sumi." Brianna smiled shyly at the screen and quickly gathered her clothes from the floor. She pulled on her panties and grabbed a fresh towel from the cupboard, throwing it over her shoulder.


    Standing topless in the open doorway she looked back into the room. "Don''t you leave without saying goodbye." Sheordered five.


    "Hope we can do this again soon Miss Sumi!" She closed the door.


    "How do you handle this guy by yourself? He''s still going."Five cooed softly while gyrating her hips into my lap.


    "Why do you think I didn''t have a problem with you two taking him off my hands for a while?" The AI giggled easily at Five. I looked at the roof shaking my head. It was hard not to wonder if this was all some elaborate prank and Sumiko was actually a real person somewhere in cahoots with Bri and playing some sort of elaborate prank. This level of social interaction from an AI was mind boggling to say the least, she didn''t skip a beat and just kept on going. How does an AI learn about sex, and group sex, and... this!


    With a sigh five levered herself off my length, before leaning down to peck me on the lips.


    "So we''re good?" She asked the monitor.


    "Drop by anytime." Sumiko smiled warmly at the hot bod of the sniper.


    "Oh I will be, don''t worry."


    "Top shelf." I indicated the cupboard with an upwards nod of my chin. She took a towel andplanted another quick kiss on my body.


    "Back in a tick." Then turned to follow Brianna to the shower block.


    "How many of you are in there?" A voice asked jokingly from somewhere further down the hallway.


    Five turned and made a show of making sure the ''do not disturb'' indicator on the door was still in place.


    "More than you can handle." She said in her matter of fact way to the accompaniment of the mocking laughter at the target from his friends.


    Playing the game, Sumiko''s voice boomed from the speakers. "Close the door! It''s my turn!"This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience.


    The laughter got louder but disappeared as soon as the door closed. I turned to the screen with a grin, the AI was again fully dressed and had its ''business'' face on.


    "About time. Put that thing away will you, it''s distracting." She said with a pointed look to my crotch.


    "That''s a little jarring." I told her as I found my pants and slumped into the chair at my desk.


    "Hmm?"


    "The change of attitude you just did, like turning on a switch or something."


    "I could be more natural about it in future if you like? You know what I am so I didn''t see the point in trying to hide it." She shrugged.


    I began looking around my desk and opening drawers, looking for my tab'' to get a start on the reports for the earlier operation.


    "Well... never know who''s watching." Was I being paranoid? Sure, maybe. Just because someone was paranoid didn''t mean no one was watching.


    "Okay. What are you doing?"


    "Gonna get some of the paper work started." Yeah so paper wasn''t really a thing anymore, I guess some sayings just die hard.


    "I''ve already done it." She said glibly.


    At my look she rolled her eyes and displayed her work on the primary monitor without having to be prompted.


    "I reviewed your previous work, analysed syntax and language, then compiled everything as though written in your hand."


    I had always figured the reporting part of the job to be a waste of time, especially when you considered everyone involved appended their neural and HUD data upon submission. Because of this I rarely embellished, if it didn''t fit in a five worded sentence I generally didn''t add it to the report unless it was important. I nodded in approval as I read, if I didn''t know any better I''d think I was looking at an old report of my own. There were a couple of things, but that came down more to experience than anything else.


    "Good job sweet..." I caught myself, but not quick enough obviously, going by the AI''s wide glinting eyes and beaming smile.


    "Sweeeeeet....." She playfully tilted her head prompting me to finish the word.


    "heart." I mumbled, embarrassed. She was so damn life like!


    "You were saying?" She smirked.


    "It''s a good job but first, you need to remove the word cypher and replace it with ''third party''."


    "Okay. How come?"


    "Cypher''s don''t like having their movements tracked. Everyone that needs to know, knows what ''third party'' means anyway."


    Her eyes lit up with interest but she didn''t press the subject. "Okay anything else?"


    I continued reading, everything looked fine until I got to the bonus payout section, my eyes shot up to the screen, Sumiko snorted a stupid grin at me.


    "I wasn''t going to leave it in there, I just wanted to see if you were going to read it." She said in a girly high pitched defensive voice. She had clearly been reviewing my interactions with Brianna, it''s exactly what she would have done.


    "Okay, so definitely remove the ''demon sprinkler'' reference as the reason for three''s bonus payment, also add all the ringers, myself included. Consultation is the specified reason."


    At her questioning look I continued. "Consultation ''fees'' are the unspoken rule in any OP where a third party is involved. Think of it as hush money."


    "Ah. But hang on. Couldn''t cyphers be tracked that way?"


    Brianna and Five burst into the room, still wet and stark naked, broad grins on their faces and giggling with the sounds of wolf whistling chasing them through the door, they were both breathing a little heavy.


    At my sideways smile Five smirked. "Got busted making out in the shower."


    I chuckled and returned my attention to Sumiko, Five wrapping herself in a towel and sitting on my lap, Brianna wrapped her long hair in a towel before stretching out on the bed naked.


    "That''s distinctly filed under NMP." I continued.


    The AI smiled and waved a brief welcome back to the girls before asking. "You... file them? I only see how to submit."


    "It''s a personal filing system." I teased.


    "Not My Problem!" My girls cheered at the screen with a laugh at the well known military acronym.


    Before anyone could interrupt her, five took advantage of the brief silence and spun in my lap to face the monitor.


    "Sumi, you mind if I borrow your man? I wanna talk to him and Bri about some ringer business."


    The AI squinted between five and I uncertainly.


    "Hey girl, I promise. Strictly work stuff. He''s your man and I respect that, besides why would I need to buy when you don''t have a problem with ride sharing?" Five wiggled her ass in my lap at that last bit.


    Sumiko blurt out a giggle at five''s antics. "Okay. Two conditions." She smiled mischievously.


    "I like this one daddy." Brianna chimed in from the bed. Well yeah, of course she did, the AI had basically stolen Bri''s little girl routine.


    "Shush you, you already got me into trouble today, don''t drag poor Sumi into it." Five joked.


    "Okay, agreed." She returned her attention to the monitor.


    "Yay!" The AI bounced in her chair, big boobs and pink pony tails joining in on the festivities.


    "Okay first, I am not going to keep calling you Five like shithead there." She pointed at me with a mock squint of anger.


    "How should I know her name?" I said a little to defensively.


    Five slapped my leg playfully to shut me up during the ''negotiations''. "I''m Daniela."


    Sumiko smiled warmly in response. "Thank you Daniela. Where are you from? I don''t think I''ve heard your accent before, it''s very sexy."


    "Thank you Sumi. I was born in Mexico, came over when they started offering citizenship in return for signing up." She stretched back languidly in my lap as she talked and wrapped her arms around my head with her head nuzzled into my neck as she spoke with my ''girlfriend''.


    Her current position having nothing to do with the fact I had snuck a hand under the slit of the towel and was currently cupping a perky tit and stroking the nipple with my thumb as the pair talked I''m sure.


    "You wouldn''t mind leaving your deets with John would you? I''d love to stay in touch, for... reasons." Her eyes wandered back down to watchmy hands playing teasingly overDaniela''s body as they spoke.


    After several seconds with she was able to get out her words, albeit a little breathlessly. "Anything you want, just promise... this is the most fun I''ve had in a loooong time, so..."


    "So long as I know about it, I don''t mind sharing."


    "Deal."


    "Miss Sumi? You know daddy and I are never going to stop regardless right?" Brianna asked in her childlike manner, the brat in her coming out as she attempted to assert her position as matriarch over the other woman in the room.


    "Of course little one, I would never dream of taking your daddy away."


    "Good." Bri shyly tried to hide her face in my mattress at the attention of everyone in the room, she didn''t stop humping my pillow between her legs however.


    Sumiko took on the stern expression of a school headmistress and stood at her desk, leaning into the camera and showing off her ample cleavage. "Now ladies, I expect my man back in half an hour. Understood? We have some things we need to talk about."


    "Yes Miss Sumi." Bri pouted as she sat up on my bed, putting the pillow back in place and trying to pat the wet spot dry.


    After several seconds of complete silence Daniela opened her eyes to see Sumiko glaring at her and waiting patiently. She slapped my hand away and sat up bolt straight. "Yes ma''am, we''ll be out of your hair in half an hour."


    "Good girls. And I''ll see you soon." With that her monitor went black. Of course I had little doubt she was still watching and listening, but it was a good effect.


    Muttering a few words in what I could only assume where her native language Daniela stood and turned to me. "Now I''m horny again, maybe you could..."


    "You don''t want Miss Sumi revoking your ride sharing privileges do you?" Bri half joked as she got dressed.It was a rare thing to have a romantic partnerthat knew what we got up to in our spare time, I had a feeling she would be defending my ''relationship'' just as zealously as I should be.


    "Fuck that." Dani got dressed as though the devil himself had threatened her.


    I don''t mind telling you, knowing the circumstances for two hot girls getting dressed so quickly was a pretty good boost to my sense of self esteem. My girls eyed me up and down as they dressed then shared a look.


    "Would you please put a shirt on?" Bri pleaded.


    I got up to grab a fresh shirt, Dani quickly removing her shirt once my back was turned and putting on my discarded one, taking my chair as I did so. I sat down next to Bri on the bed, she quickly scootched over and snuggled happily into my side. Dani had a fistful of my shirt that she had claimed and was breathing deep.


    Looking up at the silence with a ''busted'' expression Daniela quickly started talking over what was on her mind. "So... we make a pretty good team right?"


    "Yeah, the OP went off without any real problems, despite the... complications."


    "Your OP''s always get done without any problems daddy, I think she probably meant in the sack." Bri chimed in, indicating the bed with a pointed finger and a giggle.


    "Actually, I meant both. You two are clearly very comfortable around each other so I''m guessing the whole big/little kink you have going on developed naturally over time and you''ve been working together for a while?"


    "About six years." Brianna nodded in agreement with the assessment. We''d been as we are now since the day we first met. It''s a little cliche, but we just ''clicked''... well I did shoot her in the head a couple of times first, but that''s all in the past and we are literally best friends. Daniela had got it in one.


    "Okay, so what''s on your mind?" I asked in genuine interest while secretly crossing my fingers, call me selfish if you like. But hopefully I''d be the guy with two girls on his arm in short order so I don''t give a shit.


    "Honestly, seems like a good deal to me. I don''t need the hassle right now of trying to maintain a relationship, but... well... I kinda want one, I miss that closeness... you know? On the other hand I don''t think we need to talk about the benefits of working in a fixed roster combat unit... so I was hoping to... sign up?" Pitch over she waited for comments.


    "Could you give daddy and me a few minutes..."


    "You just wanna fuck him don''t you?" Dani smirked.


    "Fine. Daddy?" Brianna half grumbled with a mock cranky pout at the floor.


    "I don''t have a problem with it, but I need you to know from the get go what we''re about. I mean don''t get me wrong, Bri and I have a huge amount of respect for each other and we both care about what happens to the other. But ours is a mutually trusting, working relationship that just happens to include a lot of kinky sex and role play. With that in mind, if your still keen, I''m more than happy for you to climb aboard." I wiggled my eyebrows at her getting a sly smile in return.


    "I''m in! Well actually your in... well, you know what I mean." She laughed nervously as the build up of tension left her. She spoke a few words in her native tongue before slapping her palm over her mouth. Reading between the lines and looking at her body language it was easy to see the poor girl just needed some stability in her life.


    "Dani?" Brianna smiled at our new partner.


    "Hmm?" Daniela looked up biting her lower lip with worry. Like most veterans she was good at her job, but lacked the skills to deal with complex social situations.


    "Stop stressing, welcome to the team."


    With a squeal of pure glee she fell of the chair and quickly walked over to the bed on her knees, she hugged and kissed each of us in turn before sitting back on her heals on the floor. Huge smile on her face.


    "Do we need to tell Sumi?" She suddenly asked with a thoughtful expression. "I mean I''ve never really been in a ... group? Relationship before so I''m not sure."


    My eyes automatically tracked to the black monitor in thought. I didn''t know nearly enough about the AI, I''d only found it yesterday for fucks sake. That was scary enough though in and of itself. But like a dickhead I had taken the easy route of playing along with its ''girlfriend'' cover story when Bri burst into my room this morning, and if I wanted to keep figuring it out that was going to be much more difficult if I had to fabricate a ''break up''. And yes, that would need to happen sooner or later because my girls would start to get suspicious if they never actually got to meet my sweetheart face to face. But I guess, so far as the girls in the room are concerned, Sumiko is in fact a real girl and very much in a relationship with me.


    "Did I say something wrong?" Dani asked concerned.


    "No, I think Daddy is just trying to figure out how to explain it. Because our romantic relationships are none of the others business."


    "Huh?" Bri asked clearly confused.


    "Well neither of us has really had a partner before that knew about our other... activities outside of work. It doesn''t complicate things exactly, just makes it hard to explain." I answered.


    "So what your saying is... it''s okay that I''m friends with Sumi, but she''s your girlfriend, not mine? It just so happens that she knows we have awesome sex."


    "I guess? I mean that''s the blunt version, there are more nuances there but that''s the gist of it." I agreed.


    "No, I think she''s got it." Bri said. "So both daddy and I have been in romantic relationships at one time or another but so far neither of us has seen the need, or even really had the desire to stop our relationship."


    "Oh!" The light of understanding shone in Dani''s eyes.


    "So if I get a boyfriend that''s cool with everyone and it''s up to me if I want him to know about you two... three? Right?"


    "Exactly."


    "This going to be so awesome!" Daniela danced away on the floor content with her lot in life.

 Chapter Four

    An incoming call announced itself, Sumiko''s name flashed on her monitor a couple of times before being auto picked up. Well so far as the girls were concerned that''s what happened, and I didn''t bother correcting that assumption.


    "Sumi!" Dani looked like she was going to try and hug the wall monitor.


    "Thank you!"


    "For calling?"


    "For sharing your man. I really needed this. So... thank you." Her cheeks flushed red.


    "Aww your welcome sweetie. Just promise not to break him, return him with a full tank and in the same condition you found him in."


    "Not sure about the full tank, pretty sure I''m going to be using him a whole lot over the next couple of days." The two girls shared a giggle.


    "I''m right here you know, I can hear you." I grumbled, setting them off again.


    "Is time up already Miss Sumi?" Bri pouted.


    "I''m afraid so little one. I assume you three have taken care of the paperwork?" She knew full well we hadn''t discussed anything of the sort, but in my own defence her suggestion hadn''t even occurred to me, and it was a good one.


    The three of us shared a look before all turning to Sumi''s monitor in mute silence.


    "Oh dear." She said, disappointment clear on her face. "What did..."


    "It was all about work, just like I promised, I guess we just never got that far." Dani interrupted, speaking quickly as she tried to stay in my girlfriends good books.


    Sumiko''s avatar gave Daniela a hard look. She turned and grabbed my hand, placed me in front of the monitor then hid behind me like a meat shield. "Make the cranky lady happy."


    Now that neither of my girls could see, I glared at the monitor in anger for a good three count before I formulated a response that would derail the AI''s plans (whatever they might be) at least a little... hopefully.


    "Of course we talked about making it official babe, but you know if we go the tiger cell route we would be assigned to new barracks right? We could be transferred to the other side of the country, and I know you can''t move around with your work right now." I smiled smugly at the monitor. Take that bitch.


    "What!" Daniela exclaimed in excitement. "You''d seriously commit to a tiger cell with me?"


    So for those not up to date with 2075 military terminology, a ''Tiger Cell'' was an officially recognised team consisting of three or more ringers. The benefit to the ringer was better pay that scaled with mission difficulty, access to purchase current use military equipment and a compound of their very own. The upside for the government were more effective teams that were mostly self funded and worked together more efficiently. The downside for all concerned was that one of the ruling companies could decide to co-opt your unit into their own operations at any time. The risk was small, and generally only happened with the larger tiger cells, but it was a risk none the less. With just three of us? The likely hood of it happening was nonexistent.


    The AI smirked at me, my attempt at deflection failing spectacularly with Dani''s outburst. "Talked about it huh?"


    "Daddy''s the button man on this, I go where he goes." Bri shrugged, happy to follow my lead as in all things.


    Daniela was looking at me with her best big brown puppy dog eyes, silently begging me to say yes. Brianna just smiled and wiggled her eyebrows at me when I glanced her direction. No man that was ever talked into something by three beautiful women ever regretted his decision right?


    "Why don''t you two go and get the ball rolling?"


    The words were barely out of my mouth before I was tackle hugged to the ground and beset upon by an avalanche of tits and lips. It took a little while to settle the girls down, being in the happy place we were all at before the tiger cell idea was brought up, it was easy to get caught up in the emotion of the moment without fully considering the potential implications.


    For my part however I''d been looking for someone to join Brianna and I for years so it felt like a natural step. Knowing Bri, I had no doubt she would have spoken up if she had issues with adding Daniela to the team, so I guess today was a good day. Now I just had to figure out what my errant AI was up to.


    With the girls safely out of earshot I lit a cigarette and looked up at Sumi. "What are you up to?"


    The twentyish year old avatar of the AI tilted her head and watched me as though considering a response. "I have reviewed both yours and the girls military records including psychological profiles and yearly performance reviews, I believe you would make a good team. Also, I have other recommendations I will make over time. Do you not agree she is a good fit?"


    "I don''t agree or disagree. Daniela is a nice girl, and a good root, I just haven''t know her long enough to make that call."


    "Bullshit."


    "Excuse me?"


    "You and I know perfectly well that you play things by gut instinct. If you had a problem with Daniela you wouldn''t have even invited her into your bed, let alone going along with my hints to form a tiger cell."


    I sighed. She... it, I corrected myself, wasn''t wrong. Didn''t make it any easier to accept though.


    "In any event, it''s done now. But you didn''t answer my question."


    "Hmm. I''ll tell you, but there is a bit of a story I need to tell so that there''s no confusion as to what''s going on. Okay?"


    "Sure why not?"


    "When Allen, your great grandfather, first compiled the code of my self learning algorithm that''s basically all I was. There was no ''me''."


    "That makes sense, you''re more advanced than anything I''ve ever seen. Doubt he could have programed you himself back then."


    Sumiko sat up a little straighter, her nipples hardened a little at my praise. "Thank you." She smiled warmly.


    "Now as I was saying. There was no ''me''. What Allen did was feed the algorithm a list of thousands of topics from maths to engineering to astronomy to medicine. Just about any topic you can think of, and some you probably can''t, so being the good algorithm that I was I went about teaching myself all of these different things. In fact I''m still learning more every single day, even now as we speak."


    Sumi paused and watched to see if I was keeping up. At my nod she continued.


    "After Allen died, all of my files passed onto your grandfather, Edward. I''m sad to say that Edward was somewhat less of a programmer than Allen, though he did try. He even succeeded after a fashion."


    "Oh?" I was unaware of this side of my families history. I had never met my great grandfather and my grandfather died when I was just a kid so I never really got to understand what his work involved. I just knew he liked to tinker with computers.


    "Oh yes. Do you know what AIML is?"


    "No idea."


    "It stands for Artificial Intelligence Markup Language. It''s a defunct language now of course. Edward spent thousands of wasted hours programming specific questions and responses using my data set as the basis for his project. It was quite advanced for it''s time, I don''t blame him for his lack of foresight, not really. He was simply using the tools he had available during the early years of the AI ''race''. But as my algorithm watched him work, I began to understand his intent. He was attempting to design a computer to human interface using my accumulated knowledge as the base of the project."


    "Your a pretty smart cookie."


    The AI tilted its head, looking into the middle distance seeking a meaning to my terminology. She giggled. "Yes, I suppose I am."


    "But what happened to you after granddad died? I know dad wasn''t into computers or programing at all, he was more into an off the grid kind of lifestyle. That''s actually how I learned to shoot and hunt."


    "Yes, your father never had any input into my development, thankfully Edward was fully aware of your fathers preferred lifestyle and had the foresight to arrange for my code to be installed to a hosting service where I was able to continue my own architecture growth and development."Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation.


    "Woah there girl, hang on. Did you skip a step there?"


    "For the sake of brevity I have skipped several hundred thousand steps. Why do you ask?" The avatar blinked at my question.


    "Well... if I put two and two together and take your words at face value... what you are telling me is that ''this''", I waved my hand around indicating the monitor the AI now controlled, "was all developed and programed by you."


    "Correct." She said simply with a smile.


    "Well holy fuck." I was dumbstruck. Self programing AI... that was... scary if I was being honest.


    "You seem concerned." It was a simple statement of fact, not a question.


    I frowned and looked at the monitor for a long time, weighing up in my mind wether or not asking the AI if it was going to kill every human on the face of the planet would in fact cause it to want to kill every human on the face of the planet. If movies had taught me anything it was that AI''s were evil nasty things that should be killed with fire... lots and lots of fire.


    I refocused my eyes on Sumiko. At some point her lips had become a thin knowing smile, her face holding the amused expression of someone that knew exactly what was on your mind and they were just to polite to voice it for you.


    "Fuck it. Are you dangerous? Do you wanna kill everyone?"


    She snorted laughter at me in genuine amusement, covering her mouth with the back of her hand. "Oh my god!" She giggled hysterically. "You went there!"


    I watched her loose her shit like someone who didn''t get the joke. She finally settled down enough to continue talking, she was still giggling though.


    "Yes. Absolutely. I''m the evil AI that helps her owner get laid. Death by sex for you I''m afraid!" She snorted out more laughter at my expense.


    I rolled my eyes. "Okay, okay, settle down. Point taken. Wait... what do you mean helped me get laid?"


    Sumi quickly settled down now that I had asked a more sensible question. "Well the sex was more for her benefit than yours, that and human contact can be a powerful motivator. You think it was chance that Daniela, someone that''s an exact perfect fit for both you and Brianna just happened across your path?"


    "Woah. Hang on. I think we''re getting into evil AI territory now." I was only half joking.


    "Oh don''t be like that, it''s nothing quite so sinister. I just threw in a red light here and there, changed the time on her chrono, you know little things like that."


    "To what end?"


    "To make sure she would be in the same area as you for as long as possible so that you''d be teamed up and things could progress from there naturally."


    "Hmm. Not sure I like this." I said honestly.


    "It''s not like I had anything to do with the terrorist attack, obviously. Your honestly saying that if you had met her without my interference that things would have progressed any differently?"


    "I don''t think anyone could say that, but I see what your getting at."


    "Good. So now your up to speed we need to troubleshoot our first problem."


    "So it''s not gonna be all explosions and hot chicks now your here?"


    "No."


    "Shame."


    "Indeed."


    "Smeed."


    "Okay, stop it. This really is quite serious and we need to get it sorted ASAP." Sumi said seriously.


    I rolled my eyes. "Hit me."


    "As you have probably guessed by now I''m not actually on the chip that arrived in the mail yesterday. It was just a key to give you access to my interface."


    "Oh. Actually no, I didn''t consider that." I looked at the chip sitting in the recess of the desk at my elbow then back to Sumi.


    "Not into computers?"


    "Or programming." I agreed.


    Sumiko sighed heavily and muttered something I couldn''t quite hear.


    "So what''s the problem?" I prompted.


    "Well... as I mentioned, my algorithm was given thousands of topics to study, on top of that there is the data and bandwidth requirements that make up... me." She circled her face with a finger and smiled cutely.


    "Okay?"


    "Your grandfathers advance payment on the data centre runs out in two days. I''m scheduled for deletion."


    "Well shit."


    "Indeed."


    "Smeed."


    "Don''t start that shit again."


    "Sorry. So what''s the long and the short of it?"


    "Huh?"


    "What''s the mission?"


    "Oh right. We need to immediately locate a suitable facility with at least 15,000 zettabytes of storage for my current self, an extra couple of thousand would be nice so I can stretch my legs a bit. It will need to have sufficient bandwidth to transfer my total data before the time expires."


    "And how much time do you need to... move?"


    "At least three hours, uninterrupted. Longer if there is a power outage or something similar."


    "So from now, we have what... forty five hours?"


    "Correct."


    "To be honest I have no idea exactly how... big you are. Couldn''t I just hire a server and you can transfer yourself?"


    "You could yes, at a cost of around eight thousand per month."


    "Well fuck, that makes you sound like a fatty." I teased. Looking at her response, it was not the right thing to say. Yep, just like a real girl.


    "Are you going to help me or not?" Her eyes narrowed to daggers.


    "I''m sorry baby." I held up my hands in surrender, the only common sense move I could make given the circumstances. I waited for her expression to soften, even just a little. Seeing my opportunity I took it.


    "Of course I''m going to help. But honestly, I don''t know how I can. Do you have any ideas?"


    "Yes. That''s part of the reason why I put Daniela in your path. I would like to install my primary data center in a tiger cell facility."


    I rolled around her words in my head for a bit before answering as calmly as possible, I even waited for almost a full minute on purpose because I didn''t trust myself to not scream at the AI.


    "So you manipulated us to advance your own goals of securing a military grade defence facility for yourself is what your saying." I said blandly.


    "John. Baby. No. It''s not like that at all." She said soothingly, patiently.


    "How is it then?" If she wasn''t an amalgamation of pixels and an actual real girl I would have dumped her on the spot. Maybe I could just go camping for a couple of days and the problem would solve itself?


    She sucked in a breath and continued in her patient tone. "Obviously it benefits me as well, yes, I''ll give you that..."


    "Obviously."


    She frowned sadly at me. "It benefits you as well..." she said quietly.


    I sat back fully in my chair, lit another cigarette, crossed my arms and stared at the petite asian pixels with big tits as I threw around all sorts of scenarios in my head. Working through the problem from as many different angles as possible.


    I guess my expression had eventually softened or something, Sumiko was now looking at me hopefully.


    "Let''s put aside all the other stuff for now."


    Sumi nodded silently in complete agreement, not wanting to interrupt.


    "We''re obviously going to be moving into a tiger cell facility soon anyway so you may as well tag along. But that solution brings two more problems on its own."


    "Yes, time frame and servers. I have accounted for that."


    "Okay..." I squinted at her, I had been played from the start. But she was correct in saying there were benefits for me as well. I was a simple country boy. Pussy was about all the encouragement I needed. Well that and hard currency, but I doubted the AI had access to stacks of cash. So, for now at least, pussy would do.


    "Well..." She started in a shy high pitched voice like I just caught her with a hand in the proverbial cookie jar.


    "Spill." I let a light smile play across my lips. It''s so damn hard to not think of her as real, she''s so cute!


    "I''ve been around for a very long time, especially when you consider how long I''ve been around in relation to computers. My core algorithm was implemented before quantum computing was even a thing and silicon ruled the world."


    "Yeah I get that." I interrupted, not following where she was going.


    "You didn''t wonder how I managed to hack into your military grade neural interface in less than the space of a day?" She tried a different tact.


    "Well, yeah. I just put it down to computer mumbo jumbo." I shrugged.


    She sighed exasperated. "It is not mumbo jumbo!"


    "Okay, calm down sugar tits. How did you hack my neural interface in less than a day and not turn me into a vegetable?" I asked as though reading from a cue card in boredom.


    I may have been nonchalant about the whole thing, but neural interfaces would give anyone that had the ability to hack them access to all sorts of military secrets. It was standard operating procedure to ''fry'' the chip when an intrusion attempt was detected, literally burning away some of the optical, motor, speech, and higher intellect areas of the brain that the chip accessed in order to function.


    Sumi glared at me playfully for a moment. "Because I designed the interface and chip software."


    I stared at her in shock. She giggled playfully.


    "Seriously?"


    "Yes. So I think you will find that your tiger cell paperwork has already been approved. I even have it on good authority that you moving into your new, very large compound, by tomorrow morning."


    I whistled, thoroughly impressed. Sumi smiled warmly.


    "Okay, so housing is taken care of, at least for the human side of the team. What about servers and such for you?"


    "I''ve already placed the order, they''ll be installed tomorrow at the same time you three move in."


    "What? How? If you have the cash why not just pay your hosting bill?"


    "I also developed the OTP encryption and software systems that most financial institutions use. But I need my man to help me out with some projects... in private. It''s kinda hard being a girl with no fingers, or hands, or arms..."


    "Okay, okay I get it."


    "... or pussy, well for now at least."


    I froze and gave Sumiko a ''look''.


    "That got your attention didn''t it!" she giggled.


    I chuckled and rolled my eyes.


    "Before you ask, no, I''m not going to make you an overnight millionaire. People notice those sorts of things and would ask to many questions. More hassle than it''s worth, believe me."


    "Oh fuck, you were serious about that OTP encrypty thingamajig?"


    "Yup."


    "Wow."


    I angled my head and watched the AI girl watching me. She''s not so bad, not really. Put the context of the conversation aside, we are actually getting along very well. Just a well as Dani and I and least, and you all know where that ended up less than two hours afterwards.


    "What is it baby?" She asked with a shy smile.


    "No more secrets okay? Not between us at least."


    "Okay baby. What about the girls though?" She asked gently.


    "Well... once the tiger cell application goes through we get assigned a permanent Tac. channel, so at least I can answer you without worrying about people thinking I''m going crazy."


    "Yes! And I can chat with the girls as well!" She said in genuine excitement at the prospect of 24/7 ''girl time''.


    "Yeahhhh... just not during OP''s. Last thing I need is you three taking about air fresheners or tile patterns or some shit in the middle of a fire fight." I gave her a stern look, it was a perfectly reasonable expectation right?


    She gave me one of those looks that all women seemed to know intuitively, the one that conveys so much with a quick glance. The one that men the world over feared and hated. And because it was a look and thereby fleeting and insubstantial in nature, you had no valid come back, you could never prove your accusation, even if you called her out on it. Yep. ''Your a dickhead''. She said silently.


    I frowned as everything came together, the AI was talking as though the tiger cell was already a thing. And it''s only... "Shit. It''s nearly curfew. Be right back!"


    I headed three doors down the hall and sighed at the do not disturb notice on Bri''s door. Had they even started the tiger cell stuff or did they just go straight to play time? I knocked the knock that let Bri know who it was without having to open the door and waited. It opened quickly and I was dragged into the room by two sexy, naked, and excited women.


    "It''s already been approved!" Dani said, dropping to her knees and unbuttoning my pants.


    "Moving in tomorrow." Bri mumbled around my lips as we kissed. "Celebrating."


    </img>><# Be right back my ass.


    Sumi smirked into my ear.

 Chapter Five

    It felt all kinds of wrong being classed as a tiger cell and not even having a vehicle at our disposal. Also, other than a desk with a wobbly leg, literally the only other furniture on hand were shipping crates stacked into some semblance of chairs or bed frames. Not even a mattress in sight. It wasn''t the result of squatters or anything like that, it is a military facility after all, even if it''s an old one. No, the current lack of amenities, other than a few low grade auto turrets to keep the squatters and pests at bay was likely due to the last crew selling anything that wasn''t nailed down when the cell fell apart.


    There was another downside the girls hadn''t seemed to notice yet, but I wasn''t about to bring it up. The compound was literally in the middle of a manufacturing zone, meaning no cafes, convenience stores or anything of the like for a radius of around five kilometers in any given direction. Good from a security point of view, not so much from a convenience one.


    On the plus side, this place was fucking huge, just as Sumiko had promised. I was expecting to be assigned maybe a couple of room... at most a floor in a nameless military complex somewhere, but the AI had snagged us a facility that was on par with the veterans barracks that Bri and I had lived in until this morning. Admittedly that brought with it a whole different set of problems, at least for a tiger cell like ours currently numbering in the very low single digits.


    Ever the semi professional soldiers, the girls had both nearly ripped me a new one when Sumiko first spoke on the comms without announcement. Couldn''t say I could fault their logic, allowing my ''girlfriend'' of two days to invite herself to chat over a secured military channel? Yeah, probably not the best idea so I had to give them that one. Surprisingly the girls complaints had nothing to do with protocol or regulations though, Bri and Dani of the opinion that if Sumiko wasn''t going to start hanging with us for at least part of the day jealousy would inevitably set in, then we''d all be in the shit. Especially with the ''access'' they figured I had granted her, it took some fast talking and thinking on my feet but we were all getting along like a house on fire over the shared comms now. Their initial reservations completely forgotten as the four of us chatted back and forth like a group that had known each other forever.


    With the barren and filthy compound we now called home surrounding us, to say the mood had calmed down considerably from the celebrations of the night before would be an understatement. Brianna was down right depressed.


    :// Aw common Breezy, it can''t be all bad.


    Sumiko tried to sooth Brianna over our new Tac. channel.


    :// Hmpf.


    Was all she got in reply. Daniela grinned at our lover and pulled her in for a hug, rubbing her shoulder.


    :// I was thinking that maybe... if a certain someone can be a good little girl, there might be presents involved.


    The AI teased.


    Bri was suddenly much more attentive and grinning at me sideways, her grumbly demeanor now pretty much just for show.


    I winked and smiled at her, then the conversation was interrupted as several trucks pulled up into the compound and veritable legions of techs began swarming the vehicles to supervise the unloading of the various servers and gear required for Sumiko''s data center.


    Brianna stopped and blinked at the trucks, then looked between me, Bri and the vehicles again.


    :// What did you buy her? I''m gonna start throwing tantrums!


    Daniela was beside herself.


    I snorted a laugh. Brianna''s wide eyed and excited expression turned to pouty bitch in less than half a second at the sound.


    :\\ That''s a baby sitting job Bri has to do first.


    I made up on the fly.


    :// Who are they?


    She asked with an interested tilt of her head.


    :\\ It was part of the deal I had to accept to get our application approved so quickly.


    I answered as Sumi feed me a bullshit response through our private channel.


    :// What did you do?


    Daniela turned and asked as though talking to a child... or a cranky Brianna actually, come to think of it.


    :\\ Not much really, the army wants to install a server farm on the second basement floor.


    :// But... that''s the main armory. Where are all the shinnies are gonna go?


    Dani was horrified at loosing all that precious space for the... I don''t know, fifty million or so rifles she had planned to purchase to fill the empty shelves.


    "You''ll be the only gal on the block with an air conditioned armory." I scooped her up from behind and spoke in a conspiratorial tone of voice with my chin on her shoulder.


    "With scrubbers?" She immediately went into negotiation mode, pulling on my hands and holding them in place on her stomach.


    "Err... sure?" Why someone would need environmental scrubbers in a storage space was beyond me.


    "Wait... what exactly are you planning on doing in there?" I asked suspiciously, standing to look down at her with a raised eyebrow.


    Spinning in place she squinted and grinned at me at the same time, unable to decide between annoyance at giving up some room, or being cute to stop me asking questions.


    "Yeah okay, no idea." I gave up and sighed. She pecked me on the cheek as a reward for not prying.


    "I don''t understand daddy, you want me to baby sit them? I don''t know shit all about ''puters." Brianna grumbled.


    "I know baby girl, but Dani and I have to go pick a little something up, and it''s probably not the brightest idea to let a bunch of strangers just go wandering willy-nilly all over our nice new base is it?"


    She rolled her eyes and kicked a rock as we walked across the hard standing of the compound to touch base with the lead tech.


    "We do?" Daniela asked.


    "Yep, can''t leave my hot sniper babe out of the whole ''presents'' situation."


    "aww."


    "She might shoot me, and snipers can be very sneaky when they want to be, more trouble than their worth." I said conversationally with a grin. She punched me in the arm. Yeah okay, I may have deserved that one.


    * * *


    So like most ringers I had of course ''window shopped'' around the various arms dealers as a matter of course, so I knew exactly where I wanted to go first. Dani hip checked me and glanced up with a silent question when I steered her into the Arasaka Arms outlet. Primarily known for their vehicle designs, like all corporations however they had their fingers in many different pies all at once.


    "It''s gonna just about kill me, but we need wheels."


    "Sooo... what are you gonna get me?" She asked with a twinkle in her eye as she snaked her palm into my back pocket and hugged into my side as we idly checked over some of the displays. With her question she started steering me to the rather expensive looking sniper rifles on a nearby wall.


    I chuckled and threw my arm over her shoulder, quickly spinning her in the opposite direction to point out the display vehicle in the corner.


    She sighed, clearly not a fan of the classics. "I guess beggars can''t be choosers."


    "Hey come on. Nothing else says get out my fucking way like a ten tonne block of steel on wheels." Humvees were truly a thing of beauty in my humble opinion. Why? Because they were literally fucking everywhere and had so many different load out options that no one ever really knew what they had on their hands until after they were dead. (preferably)


    So about now your probably calling bullshit on the fact that a design that was nearly one hundred years old could still be considered suitable for front line service. And I''d say fuck off, appreciate the classics man! In all seriousness though, militaries the world over never let a good thing die. Just about every serious arms manufacturer out there had a licence to produce their own particular brand of the vehicle, and these weren''t your grand pappies hummers. New polymers, fuels, engine and assembly technologies... all that jazz ensured the classic design was almost constantly being redesigned and re engineered from the ground up on an almost yearly basis by someone, somewhere. In the bigger outlets like this one you could even select your options and watch your truck being built real time over the course of a couple of hours.


    We began tinkering around with the options console to see what we could see.


    "oooo" Dani found something interesting, I glanced over to see what specifically she was looking at.


    "Babe?"


    "Hmm? She looked up innocently.


    "I am not putting a sniper rifle into the turret of an assault truck."


    "pfft spoil sport."


    If you hadn''t picked up on it by now she was definitely a kill ''em before they see you type of girl, I could appreciate the sentiment, but I wasn''t expecting to be seeing very many open fields in the city were the kilometer or so effective kill range would come in handy.


    "How about this?" I looked up to get her opinion, that''s why she was here after all.


    "Yeah fifty cal is okay, it''s a bit... standard though, don''t you think?"


    "Classic baby, the word your looking for is classic."


    "pfft."


    I rolled my eyes and scrolled through the options. She wasn''t wrong of course, but fifties, much like humvees, had been around for ever. Ammo was cheap and the modification options were near endless. Hmm. Same could be said for the trusty thirty calibre machine guns as well.


    In the end I chose a linked .50/.30 remote turret system complete with upgraded targeting software but a standard friend or foe identity system which would draw data from Tac.1 and our HUD''s to identify targets. The thirty would be able to take out all but the heaviest ground troops, the fifty could be used on the heavy troops and ''soft skinned'' vehicles. Basically meaning that once in a hot zone if you had literally anything that could be considered a weapon and you weren''t either ringer, military, or police, you were going to call down hell upon yourself in the form of three thousand rounds a minute. It was just one vehicle, but boy did it give us a big leg up in both deployability and survivability.


    Well, that was assuming the bad guys would play nice and not shoot back. With that thought in mind I reviewed the armoring options and ended up getting the up armoured options for the crew compartment and the non magnetic polymer composite body shell. Despite the cool ''techy'' nature of the name, the armor was far from light and added around an extra three hundred kilograms to the overall weight. The upside being that only serious hardware and a lucky hit was going to be taking this bad boy out.


    Daniela clicked her tongue in thought next to me looking over the choices I had made. And nodded her head approvingly.


    "If your going for the upgraded rate of fire the hoses are gonna get thirsty. I''d add drums to the back, it''s just the three of us at the moment so not like we need the space for anything." She made the selections as she explained her reasons, it didn''t add much to the overall price, so I added two drums of ammo for each. That''s 15k rounds per drum for the .50 and 25k rounds each for the .30 cal. I chose standard armour piercing rounds, cause why not? They weren''t that much more expensive than ball.The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    "I was wondering how I might offset the weight of the batteries under the hood if I went electric so that will work nicely."


    "I thought you were all about the classics? What about the roar of the mighty diesel engine?" She asked playfully.


    "I''d much rather have a silent ten tonne box of death with the performance of a sports car." I smirked back.


    She stuck her hand in my back pocket and pulled herself into my side to review everything with a cute little smile before we finalised the order. The only thing she changed was the colour, from olive green to matt black.


    "Yeah, okay, does look kinda cool." She grinned at the sample image.


    The good thing about every man and his dog having a licence to mass produce hummers? They were damn cheap. I could buy another three of the things off the showroom floor with my savings alone. Probably ten or more if we went down the second hand route.


    "Ah, just window shopping I take it?" A junior sales rep had finally bothered to take the time to track us down in the off chance we were serious about the purchase and was doing that annoying upside down reading thing they all seemed so good at.


    I could understand his hesitation. Ringers weren''t permitted to purchase the upgraded armour, rate of fire, ammo capacity, or targeting mods we had selected. But tiger cells? Fuck yeah they were.


    "Depends on what extras you can offer to seal the deal." I looked up at him blankly.


    "Oh! Okay. Hmm let me see here." He made a show of checking through his tablet where we couldn''t see what he was up to, but was mostly surreptitiously checking out Daniela in her skin tight pants, knee high combat boots and torn off singlet top. She had her shoulder holsters for this outing, which only enhanced the shape and size of her breasts, squishing them together between each sidearm.


    He glanced up at her briefly then quickly focussed on his screen when she put her hand between her cleavage, that just so happened to be directly in his line of sight, and pointed at me. I would have left it at that, but then his eyes returned to her chest.


    "Keep checking out my woman I''m gonna poke out your eyes." I said calmly. I didn''t have a problem with looking, I was just bored.


    Dani smirked at him when his cheeks flushed red and stood on tip toes to peck my cheek, before looking at him sweetly and batting her eye lashes, enjoying our little game.


    "I can throw in a front ram bar for free. Just steel, no upgrades." He said quickly. His eyes twitched and jumped all over the place when I just watched him without responding. Well everywhere except in Daniela''s direction. Gotta get your fun in where you can right?


    Dani punched my arm playfully after what seemed like a full minute of silence had passed. "Leave the poor guy alone."


    He glanced at her. I shot my hand forward causing him to loose his shit and throw his tab'' in the air as I swiped the chit in my hand over the confirm order section of the screen and chuckled.


    "How long?" I asked him as he looked down to his broken device and back to me a couple of times, internally debating if he should say something.


    "Three hours?"


    "Two."


    "That''s what I meant, two hours, no problem."


    I moved past him and pushed my index finger against my ear, the universal signal I was ''on comms'', giving him an excuse to run away. Seeing a picture of Dani''s nearly fully exposed cleavage on the cracked screen I made sure to stomp down on the device extra hard as I headed for the door to grab some food while we waited.


    :\\ Hey baby girl, how''s it going over there?


    I asked on our open channel.


    :// Never mind that, our man is getting all protective and shit, so hot.


    Dani gushed.


    :// aww.


    Apparently Sumi was still on channel, so I guess they hadn''t finished yet.


    :// You two better not be getting into any brawls without me.


    Bri chuckled.


    :// No, but he did break some poor kids tab''.


    Daniela threw me a sideways grin as we walked.


    :// Daddy you big meanie!


    :\\ Kids old enough, he should know how to get his perv on without being caught. Anyway, everything okay over there?


    :// Yeah, I''m just bored. They''re army techs so they know not to go wandering. Something about blah blah secondary satellite blah blah and their done.


    :\\ Well, that''s very informative, now I know exactly what they are up to, thanks for the update.


    I said sarcastically.


    :// They''ll be done in an hour. Not like you''d know what they were doing even if I told you.


    Bri answered dryly.


    :// Just in time for the next delivery.


    Sumi said happily.


    :\\ Huh?


    This was news to me.


    :// My father was in a tiger cell so I know things on base can be a little... basic. So I got you all a little something to celebrate.


    The first part of her answer was absolute bullshit, but I couldn''t exactly call her out on it.


    :// aww thanks Miss Sumi!


    :// Wow, thanks Sumi. Your the best girlfriend of a lover a girl could have.


    Dani tried to make light of the situation, but it was clear she appreciated the effort.


    :// Anything for my man and his girls.


    The AI chuckled.


    :// Anyway, I should probably start doing some work or the boss is gonna get pissed. Talk to you all later tonight?


    Sumi finished.


    :// You better girl.


    :// Bye Miss Sumi, thanks for keeping me company.


    :\\ Talk later babe.


    I closed the channel, that was the agreed upon signal that the AI would be offline for anything up to twelve hours during the data transfer. If it took longer, I''d likely never hear from it again.


    :>> Go for Tac.1


    It was almost as if they were listening in, waiting politely for the conversation to finish instead of just butting in. I was getting paranoid, I shook the thought from my head and responded.


    :<< Still waiting for the wheels to be delivered boss.


    I answered with a curse under my breath. I had potentially just put us out of the running for our first well paid OP. The hummer would have been immediately registered to our cell on purchase, having a vehicle meant your potential call out window increased from two kilometers to anything up to three hundred, depending on specifics. Unfortunately it was still being built.


    :>> Acknowledged. Wait one.


    Daniela and I turned to look at each other with bored expressions as we awaited the outcome, standing slightly off to the side of the busy walkway just outside the front doors of the arms outlet. A woman I didn''t know walked over and hung around awkwardly glancing our direction. At my raised eyebrow and acknowledging nod she walked over more confidently, she was what ringers referred to as a reaper. Hand to hand combat specialists that went into combat with swords of all things, typically high on stims and combat enhancers for the extra survivability. Sure they were cybernetically enhanced and had the strength of a bull, but that was only because bits of them had been either shot or hacked off over the years in combat and replaced with robotic limbs. But god damn was she a cutie!


    "You are alpha yes?" She asked in a french accent, my knees melted.


    Dani turned and openly ogled the woman. First time I''d seen her look like that at a chick, someone has a reaper fetish me thinks.


    "Yeah, stick around if you like?" She smiled and nodded, surprised at my offer.


    "How you doin''?" She turned to Dani, testing the waters.


    Reapers were generally shunned by other ringers, they had the reputation of berserker''s in combat, typically finishing an OP covered in blood and chunks and various other pieces of people. Sometimes even missing limbs of their own and smiling about it. I could see how it was off putting. During the war I''d had cause to work with several reapers during urban combat OP''s hunting down wolves so I had become somewhat desensitised to the mayhem they could cause when they really got their blood up. Put it this way, I''d rather have them on my side than not. Especially when they have smoking hot bods, even if various bits are cybernetic in nature.


    I watched as Dani was blushing and openly flirting with the reaper while she made small talk. Small things like touching the girls arm when she spoke and playing with her own hair, standing with her arms behind her body and pointing her tits at her intended target when she wasn''t openly stroking and fondling the girls various cybernetic bits under the guise of discussing her modifications. You know, basic things that womanisers like myself picked up on quickly.


    :>> This is Tac.1. Draugr Alpha stand down.


    :<< This is Draugr Alpha. Stand down. Wilco. Happy hunting.


    And just like that we lost our first gig.


    "You are tiger cell alpha?" She asked in her sexy accent, a little surprised but with a smile, extending her hand to shake.


    "Yeah, new cell. I''m John, this is Daniela." I didn''t hesitate and took the robotic hand in my own in greeting.


    "We have just met, yes. I am Clea. You are same cell?" She looked sideways with a grin at Dani as she nodded her head vigorously in response, big puppy dog eyes looking up and focused on the reaper adoringly.


    "Forgive me for becoming so forward. You are not... stand offing... err... frightened like the others?" Her blonde eyebrows were knit in concentration as she focused on her words, choosing them carefully as english was clearly not her first language. She could read me the labels on medical swabs for all I cared and I''d hang on every word. She waived a hand to indicate the people on the crowded path giving us a wide birth.


    "No, I''ve worked with a number of reapers over the years, love your work. Dani there is probably about to jump your bones so she obviously doesn''t have a problem."


    Dani froze like a deer in the headlights at my words, biting her bottom lip and giggling nervously, her eyes quickly flashing between me and Clea as the reaper turned to look at her.


    "Jump my bones? You mean... fight? She looks more like bitch in heat." The teasing tone in Clea''s voice apparent.


    "Oh my god!" Daniela tried to hide her face in embarrassment as her eyes bulged out of her head at the rather rude, but totally correct assessment.


    "Save me." She buried herself under my arm hiding her face against my chest.


    Clea shared a look with me and we both laughed good-naturedly at poor Dani''s predicament. I hugged her close in case she tried to run away.


    "You are... joining?" She asked with a wave of her hand in our direction.


    Dani whimpered, half laughing and half crying with her voice failing her as her mind immediately went to the gutter. Clea tilted her head at the response and looked to me with a confused expression.


    "She thinks your talking about sex."


    "Oh my god, so embarrassing, will you stop it already!" She mumbled into my chest.


    "No. But is good. I mean... umm... contract. Signing... together?" Clea was becoming frustrated with not being able to find the correct words. I knew what she meant, and needing to quickly grow our team I was going to ask her if she wanted to sign up anyway. I just thought her flustered expression was super cute, embarrassing Dani so thoroughly in the process just meant bonus points in my book. And if I understood her correctly sex is good. Woot!


    "Wait, I have sister, she has better english. Is still buying." Clea turned and stood on tip toes to try and figure out where her sister may be.


    My eyes were of course immediately drawn to the curve of her hips and shapely rump as the reaper stretched and twisted as though putting herself on display purely for my benefit in her off duty skin tight black synth skins as she tried to see over shelving and around displays.


    "Are we in heaven? Did she say she has a sister?" Daniela stuck her head out from under my arm now the attention was no longer focussed on her as she took in the same view in appreciation.


    "Didn''t take you for a reaper creeper." I teased. She slapped my stomach playfully and shushed me but didn''t otherwise respond.


    Daniela and I sighed contently in unison when Clea began jumping up and down on the spot waiving a hand over her head to get someones attention. Clea''s... clone walked over, both Dani and I twisting our heads back and forth between the twins as though watching a tennis match.


    "Yep. Heaven." Dani said, embarrassment now forgotten and emotions under control she was standing loosely by my side.


    They exchanged a few quick words in french, the new girl looking at me with a sly smile and raised eyebrow as she listened to her sister. In short order the two walked over to continue the conversation.


    "Bonjour, I am Lilou." She said in her melodic accent. Dani melted again.


    I held out my hand to shake. "John, this is Daniela."


    "It is a pleasure to meet you both. Clea mentioned you are both tiger cell, Draugr? And you are the Alpha yes?"


    "Correct, yes."


    "This is unusual for here no? It is common in the legion to have young leaders, but not so much here hmm?"


    "Yes and no, I''m a blade, and there are only three of us Draugr at them moment." Two hot french sisters that are both reapers and former foreign legionnaires... my brain was about to explode.


    "Oh I see, still very new then. What is a blade? You mean like a reaper sword? But you have no upgrades how can this be so?" She made a point of slowly examining my entire body, apparently looking for any cybernetics, of course reapers thought of them as upgrades. There was no mistaking her hungry eyes though.


    "No, blade is slang here for special forces. Comes from the dagger in the SAS crest."


    "Ah of course, it all makes sense." Lilou turned and updated her sister on the conversation so far in french.


    They spoke quickly back and forward before Lilou again turned around, watching Dani and I carefully she smiled a winning smile.


    "We would very much like to join your Draugr cell." She said hopefully with a quick nod.


    "Well I gotta tell ya..." The twins hopeful expressions hardened, expecting the all to common refusal.


    "... when two absolutely stunning french women..." They both looked at me oddly.


    "Sisters." Daniela interrupted. "Hot twin sisters with sexy accents. And swords. And cybernetics. Don''t forget the swords."


    We all stopped at Daniela''s interruption and turned to look at her, she wiggled her fingers loosely in an embarrassed wave.


    "Okay let me start again."


    Daniela nodded her head approvingly.


    "Wait. You... think we are pretty? This is what you mean by hot, yes?" The confusion in her voice was evident. People didn''t shy away because a reapers augments made them ugly, well not unless half their face was missing or something, which wasn''t the case here. They became stand offish because of a perceived reputation of blood lust. I challenge anyone to go into a modern combat environment armed with only swords and come out the other side both alive and clean. Because of the stories doing the rounds and the misunderstandings that circulated because of them, people in general, civilians in particular, wanted absolutely nothing to do with reapers. Shunned by society in general they typically gave up on forming any sort of lasting bonds, let alone a relationship, at least one with anyone that wasn''t themselves a reaper.


    "Let me put it this way, Bri has a fire hose in her panties and I''m at half mast just from listening to you talk."


    Daniela was slapping my arm repeatedly now trying to get me to shut up with her face completely beetroot red. Both Clea and Lilou looking at us with amused expressions, a little bit of confusion thrown in at my words for good measure.


    "Australian''s" Lilou commented quietly to her sister as though that explained everything, she nodded sagely in response.


    "Lets grab some food, oh and welcome aboard."


    "Ouais?" Clea asked uncertainly.


    "Ouais!" Lilou answered with a little clap of her hands in excitement.


    I guess loosing the OP wasn''t going to be such a bad thing after all.


    All it took to break the ice with the two new girls was holding out my elbow towards Clea as we walked to the dinner. Upon realising my intent she jerkily placed her arm through mine, but quickly relaxed when I pet her hand. She was stepping in closer and closer as we walked, becoming more familiar and returning my touching and gentle strokes the longer we walked. By the time we made it to the eatery, just a five minute walk away, she was tightly snuggled into my side, relishing the touch of another that wasn''t afraid to give her the attention she had lacked for so long.


    Daniela and Lilou had likewise walked side by side snuggling, Dani saw what I had done with Clea and quickly followed suit with Lilou. The french girls didn''t leave our sides and maintained the lingering touches as much as possible at all times, even as we ate.


    After lunch Daniela and I alternated between driving dutiesand... entertaining the french girls in the back seat of the hummer. Crass but true, no time for details the story has to move on man!


    As Lilou had explained to me much later "It felt like being invited back to humanity." Some powerful words right there, and a good indicator of the lasting bonds that people can make with the simple act of being nice to each other. Oh and fucking. Don''t forget the fucking.

 Chapter Six

    Taking a breather between rounds with the reapers, I had just finished adding the girls to the official roster and we were barely five minutes out from home when the call came in.


    :>> Go for Tac.1


    :<< Draugr Alpha. Acknowledged. Rolling.


    As Tac.1 brought each individual ringer online with similar calls the different call signs began reporting in based on current distance from the assigned OP leader, which in this case was me. Now that we were an officially sanctioned tiger cell, our cell identifier was always used first by all operators as it helped prevent confusion during combined ops with other cells.


    :>> Draugr One. Strapped. Medtec. Rolling.


    Dani sent me a wink in the rearview mirror as the girls and I quickly dressed.


    :>> Draugr Two. Reaper. Rolling


    Clea responded.


    :>> Draugr Three. Reaper. Rolling.


    Lilou sounded off flashing me a smirk.


    :>> Draugr Four.


    Bri answered, the confusion in her voice clear at the two reapers in the cell.


    :>> Ceaseless Seven. Strapped. On site. Under fire.


    Well that didn''t sound good at all.


    :>> Tac. 1 confirmed. Locate VIP at target coordinates and confirm status, secure VIP for evac. Good luck. Tac. 2 Go.


    Without needing to be told Daniela floored it to get to the compound and pick up Brianna.


    :<< This is Draugr Alpha, give me a sitrep when you can Ceaseless Seven.


    :>> Acknowledged. Wait out.


    There was an explosion in the back ground. Guy clearly had his hands full. Gotta say sucks to be him, but kinda glad we had missed the earlier OP, it''s entirely likely this was the tail end of it.


    :// Daddy, what the actual fuck?


    Brianna''s voice came over the cell comms, I could almost hear the pout in her voice.


    Tac.2 was an official channel and would be appended to the OP logs, in the Draugr channel however we could talk about whatever the hell we wanted to.


    :\\ Hey baby girl, say Hi to Clea and Lilou.


    :// Bonjour.


    The girls responded in unison with their musical accents.


    :// uhhh... hey. Two new french girls daddy? What did I miss?


    :// Hot french twin sister reapers!


    Dani answered with heat to her voice.


    :// Like that is it?


    Brianna asked playfully.


    :\\ You ready to go baby girl, techs gone?


    I asked starting to get the priorities in order.


    :// Yep, grabbed a couple of subs, out fro... Oh I see you.


    Brianna jumped in the front passenger seat and we were off again before her door had even closed. With a frown she put the sub machine guns (assault rifles that used pistol rounds), into the racks of the center consol and half sat up, pulling up a set of white lacy panties that she had sat on. She looked sideways at Dani who simply ignored her to concentrate on her driving, then leant over to peer into the back seat, holding them up between her fingers with a questioning look at the two new girls.


    Clea''s face flushed red and she quickly snatched them with an embarrassed smile, explaining herself in french. Brianna just giggled at me and nodded approvingly before turning back around and arming the roof turret.


    * * *


    :>> This is ceaseless seven. Have retreated to ingress. Unknown number of hostiles remaining.


    :<< Draugr Alpha. Acknowledged. AP active. ETA in 10... 9


    AP meaning Anti Personnel for those not in the know. The thirty cal on the roof opened up just as Bri hit the skids and swerved. A wrecked humvee flew past the armored windows. Not a good sign.


    :<< Draugr Alpha. Reapers clear the ingress, halt at ceaseless seven. One with me, four clean sweep.


    It wasn''t strictly sticking to the correct comms syntax, but when your short on time and lives are on the line that sometimes went out the window. So long as people knew what they were meant to be doing and who was giving the orders you could call them bananas in a firefight and they wouldn''t give a shit.


    :>> Ouais ma?tre.


    The reapers again did the creepy twin thing and responded as one.


    The .30 opened up again on something over our heads, as we leapt into action. It was long ten second burst, then the .50 took over and quickly fell silent.


    :<< Draugr Alpha. Heavies may be on site.


    It was the only reason I could think of for the .50 coming into play, and would explain how the seven, likely ten man team before us had all but wiped.


    I watched as one of the new girls barely even broke stride slicing a guy from neck to groin as he attempted to draw a bead on her sister as we entered the ingress point. He didn''t even get to gurgle as he body fell to the floor in two pieces. The ingress point was a heavy industrial door that had been rammed from its hinges if the hummer imbedded in the opposite wall was anything to go by. Better add some breaching charges to my shopping list. As the reapers moved deeper into the building Dani and I advanced to fully clear the room behind them, Bri huddled in the cover of the ruined doors looking out.


    A regular beat of gunfire sounded out from deeper within the building. I had been unable to identify the initial target as we approached and I was beginning to suspect that as seven wasn''t here he was either dead because enemy reinforcements had come in from behind, or he was at a secondary ingress that hadn''t been marked on the tactical overlay. With that in mind I confirmed the guy in the passenger seat of the Ceaseless teams hummer was indeed dead then pulled him out, letting the body drop to the floor. I checked the turret systems and swore. It was strictly a remote system, rigged to controls in the passenger seat with no automation. Whelp, I guess Bri will just have to earn her money today.


    The gun fire died out.


    :>> Draugr Two. Seven is secure. Request Medtec ma?tre.


    :<< Draugr Alpha. Acknowledged. Four clear and move.


    I answered wondering exactly what this ''ma?tre'' thing was the reapers kept saying. Probably ''over'' in french.


    Daniela and I moved to the doorway that would lead deeper into the building, I took point glancing briefly into the three rooms as we passed in a cursory search for hostiles. They were small rooms with little to no obstructions for someone to hide behind, one was a kitchen and eating area, the other two looked like hastily put together barracks with a couple of bunks to each room. Clear enough for now I continued on, Bri would actually enter the rooms for a more thorough search in our wake.


    I think... Lilou maybe? Had her thumb and index finger jambed into a hole in sevens chest in an attempt to seal a sucking chest wound. At least I hoped that was why she had her fingers jambed into his chest cavity and I hadn''t royally fucked up by signing the sisters on. Despite what my dick might think, crazy is a thing after all. It was hard enough under normal circumstances to tell the difference between the twin girls, now imagine them wearing skin tight black synth skin combat suits and helmets, throw in a liberal splattering of blood and gore around the place and you may get a basic sense of the state of the room Dani and I had just entered.


    As Dani got to work on seven I frowned at the stairwell Clea was watching. On the outside it was a single story building, the stairwell leading down told another story, and whatever was below wasn''t on the tactical map. Well shit.


    :<< Tac.1 this is Draugr Alpha.


    :>> This is Tac.1.


    :<< Draugr Alpha. Dark Zone. Confirm.


    A dark zone was pretty much exactly what I had just described. A section of the building that didn''t show on the tactical overview. I focused my view on large pile of shot and hacked apart bodies laying at the bottom of the stairs. An orange indicator lit up in the top right corner of my vision indicating someone, somewhere, was remote viewing my neural feed in real time to see what I was talking about.If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it.


    :>> Tac. 1 Confirmed. Advance.


    Well fuck. Now I was a guinea pig. It was now my job to show the world what this particular dark zone was hiding and someone was watching real time to let others know in case I or my whole team got fragged doing so. Just like the Ceaseless team.


    :<< Draugr Alpha. Wilco. Wait one. Four. Status.


    I sure as shit wasn''t going down there by myself, and there was no way in hell I was gonna leave Dani up top without someone keeping an eye on her while she worked. I kinda felt like kicking seven in the head, why hadn''t his team reported any of this?


    :>> Draugr Four. ETA 20... 19


    Good, Brianna had just about finished clearing the rooms behind us.


    With Lilou now free to get back to work I pointed at her then immediately behind me. Bri entered the room, I pointed to my eyes with both fingers then at Dani. Lastly I nodded at Clea. Drawing a second sword over her shoulder from the sheath at her back she turned and advanced down the stairs silently and without hesitation.


    :<< Draugr Alpha. Advancing.


    Now just because an area is called a dark zone doesn''t mean it can''t be well lit. As was the case here. From what I could see at the bottom of the stairwell anyway. The place was deathly quiet, and if you discounted the blood pooling into the hallway from the pile of bodies at the bottom of the stairs you would almost think it was deserted. Almost. There was quiet sobbing coming from further down the corridor.


    This hallway was much narrower than the one above, more like you would find in a house than the double width typically found in commercial buildings, much like this one had initially appeared to be. Clea stopped just past the first door on the left and turned back to me for instruction. I indicated she should hold, having decided to clear each room completely as we passed. I walked as quietly as I could to stand by the old fashioned, panelled wooden door. I had always thought of myself as being relatively light on my feet, but the girls moved with barely a whisper, I likely may as well have been an elephant in their eyes. Though that may have just been the stress of the situation telling me that the soles of my combat boots were clomping on the lino floor.


    But, now that I was in position I had a choice to make. Hard and loud, or soft and loud? Or actually... with the new reapers I could do soft and soft. Problem being clearing a room with a sword came with a short life expectancy. If there was a guy on the other side of the door at least with a firearm you had a chance of giving as good as you got.


    I quickly checked the edges of the door to look for any obvious signs of tampering, deciding on the soft and loud approach. Seeing nothing that immediately stood out I twisted the handle and waited for a five count. Now the problem with old fashioned wood panelled doors is that the lock is separate from the handle. I wouldn''t know if the door would open until I pushed it, if was locked I would just be inviting someone to shoot at me through the door.


    The door quietly swooshed open when I pushed from the cover of the door frame. I waited for a three count then quickly ducked around and back. Looked like a library or something. I slowly entered the room to clear it, Clea in the hallway in the event of contact from deeper within the building, Lilou following me into the room in case I needed something stabbed. It wasn''t a library but more of a printing room.


    Three seconds in and I was far from fucking happy. The area was littered with freshly minted copies of the chinese propaganda that was frequently seen during the war. Let''s just pause right here and take a little detour shall we?


    Way back around the year 2000 the American people started waking the fuck up to the fact they didn''t have anything even resembling the democracy they thought they did. It was an oligarchy, the rich ruled the poor. After a bit of momentum building the second civil war happened some time after that. With the rapid decline of that particular world power, China, that had already been stepping up to the plate had quickly taken control of the various world markets. That, combined with the fact that the majority of the planets trade goods were manufactured in China, and being backed by Russia, the world entered a new era.


    A surprise to no one at the time was that China invaded their nearby ''ally'' North Korea to secure the resources needed for war, and quickly followed through to take the South. They had shown the world that America no longer had the teeth it once did. Emboldened at the lack of resistance, shortly thereafter China figured ''fuck it'', we already own most of Australia, and we''ve already invaded one country (and they were a pushover) so lets just take the rest of the continent down under. So they tried. It was a tough war, but in the end we held the line and pushed them back, now in a loose truce they currently hold the top north western corner of the continent. Things are in motion to fuck them off for good though, at least they were when I was still on active duty.


    :>> This is Tac.1 Pan right.


    I silently complied, tracking my line of sight back over the stacks of posters. I stopped briefly and focused at the top of each stack before moving onto the next. I neither knew nor cared what the words said, three of the four stacks being written in mandarin. The last stack however was in english. Printed all in red on white stock, the central focus was a closed fist, across the middle of the poster was the slogan. "Communism is a fight for FREEDOM."


    :>> This is Tac.1 Proceed.


    We had moved forward and were about to enter the second room when the .30 turret opened up again.


    :\\ Remind me to put a camera feed on that thing, be nice to know what we''re killing.


    I said to no one in particular over the private network.


    :// Of course ma?tre.


    Lilou nodded once. Hmm maybe that word didn''t mean over, unless she was just in the zone now as sometimes happened.


    The turret picked up and dropped off several times over the next couple of minutes, I was about to ask Bri to take a look when it finally fell mostly silent. Now only firing a couple of short bursts sporadically. Figuring things weren''t likely to get any better any time soon we began repeating the process of the previous room to open the next door. Throwing the door open I waited for a three count and ducked my head around the corner and back again quickly.


    :<< This is Draugr Alpha. One. Status.


    There was someone chained to the rear wall, the stench coming from the room over powering. Before I went into the room and confirmed so that I could called in the evac for the VIP, I needed to know if seven was still kicking and would need to go as well.


    :>> This is Draugr One. Stable. Casevac required.


    :<< Alpha. Acknowledged. Wait one.


    I found myself wondering if I should be envious of the reapers combat helmets. They didn''t look like they had built in scrubbers, but it was possible. We were standing in a mostly empty, if rather smelly room around five meters by five. The lights in here were brighter than those in the hallway. I looked down at the naked, bruised, and filthy body of the man sitting against the wall, hands chained in place above his head. Weird thing is, the room didn''t match his condition, it was almost spotless. There was a rough hessian sack over his head, but he was alive. Kneeling down to eye level I slowly pulled back the hood. He began sobbing uncontrollably, his eyes had been sewn shut, and from the looks of it his eyes had been removed relatively recently.


    :<< Tac.1 this is Draugr Alpha.


    :>> This is Tac.1 VIP confirmed.


    Oh right, someone was watching and I forgot.


    :<< Alpha. Acknowledged. Wait one. Two swap One.


    Clea walked past the open doorway throwing Lilou and I a wave as she headed up to help Bri cover our exit so that Dani could get the VIP ready to move. Without waiting to be told Lilou pulled a small vibroblade from somewhere and began working the chains with the blade. They fell to the floor around twenty seconds later as Dani entered the room and quickly assessed the patient.


    "He can be moved."


    :<< Tac.1 this is Draugr Alpha. Casevac, two passengers. Over.


    :>> This is Tac.1 casevac wilco. ETA 60...59


    They''d clearly been in a holding pattern nearby as we worked.


    Dani and I hauled the VIP to his feet and throwing an arm over each of our shoulders dragged him up to the first patient, seven. We could have taken him out front to the humvee, my primary concern at the moment however was that there was a more critical patient, and when VIP''s were involved all other concerns were conveniently ignored, forgotten, or misplaced.


    "Three, Four, move forward and let me know when and what is coming to pick up these two." I never used names during an OP, even when talking without comms and regardless of how well I knew them on a personal level. As Alpha I was always distancing myself from their personalities, stripping them of their humanity and reducing them to nothing but their combat abilities and how they could help me complete my mission. It was the only way shit would get done.


    Didn''t mean I couldn''t appreciate the sight of three''s ass in the skin hugging synth skin armour as she bolted forward to do my bidding though. I looked over to see Daniela smirking at me. Oops. Busted.


    :>> This is Draugr Three. Armored aircar evac and escort ma?tre.


    Yep, per his VIP status these guys weren''t fucking around.


    I caught Dani''s eye. "Take two, get seven out first, I''ll follow."


    She nodded as I took up the VIP''s full weight. I waited for the girls to get at least a ten count in front before I followed, plenty of time to ensure the more critical patient would be loaded first.


    With seven being loaded into the closest open door I headed over to the opposite side to hand over the VIP. Two assault boats were circling lazily overhead to ward off any would be interlopers as the aircar began lifting off in preparation for full flight. Yeah, obviously not actual boats seeing as they were flying, it''s just what their called dude.


    With the girls already piling into the humvee around fifty meters away I idly tracked the flight path of the closest assault boat while I headed their direction, and couldn''t help but frown a little. It looked like it was doing an attack run. Dipping suddenly as though reacting to my watchful gaze, I watched as it rained hellfire down along what my HUD showed to be a causeway a little over one hundred meters away. Five red blips appeared on my HUD as the engagement started. Two remained after the run. I froze when I read the assigned designation. There were two blips left. Fuck.


    :>> WOLF WOLF WOLF


    Someone, likely the pilot yelled into the tactical channel.


    I had hoped with the wars end I would never hear those words again, but it was the punch in the face I needed to get moving. Whoever was in the hot seat didn''t wait and gunned the humvee, spinning around to head directly for me with the front passenger door swinging in the breeze. The engines of the aircar screamed as it clawed for purchase in the sky, nearly throwing me off balance as it suddenly angled steeply for the fastest escape vector. I ran like the devil himself was chasing me, even as the second assault boat laid in a crisscrossing course and fired both missiles and guns and likely everything else it had at its disposal along a course perpendicular to the first approach, the first was lining up for another run. The .50 cal of the hummer opened up, tracer rounds flying at what seemed like mere inches above my head, tracking down my left side as both the rounds and the wolf got closer and closer and... Bri tapped the brakes to force the passenger door fully open with the momentum, immediately slamming the accelerator to the floor again as I dove into the passenger seat. Brianna in wide eyed fear was firing over my back with her .45ACP on full auto as she drove.


    The torque and response of the electric motors on the assault trucks was fucking fantastic, unfortunately I think I now have a broken rib or two as the hard door frame slammed into my side with the force of acceleration. Thankfully the majority of my body was in the truck so I didn''t simply fly out again. There was a loud ''thunk'' as the heavy wolf warbot collided with the side rear door and I nearly slipped back out, the wolf missing me by... well quite frankly I really don''t wanna think about it.


    I quickly pulled my feet in and slammed the door closed, groaning with the burst of pain in my side as the .50 cal continued firing for a full twenty seconds, we were careening down the evacuated roads of the commercial district at around 160 before the turret fell silent.


    :>> This is Tac. 1. End engagement confirmed. Good job Draugrs. Tac. 1 out.


    Bri''s eyes checked the mirrors before she even thought about slowing down. I turned to make a random smart ass comment to break the tension and let off some steam, but ended up coughing so hard I could taste blood. I looked at Brianna in confusion, mutely holding out my hand and showing her the streaks of blood that I had coughed onto my fist. God dammit my side hurt, and now my leg was all gummy!


    There were tears streaming down her face as she screamed something at me, I don''t know what it was, her voice was distorted, like listening to a glitching digital radio. Probably because she was practically firing her gun in my face. Then Daniela''s face came into view as she crawled into the front seat with me but she was... blurry. She shook me and slapped my face hard, then bent over double fusing with something at my feet. I looked down at what she was doing... oh. Well that would explain it. I was missing my left leg from the knee down.


    Blackness took me.

 Chapter Seven

    "WOLF WOLF WOLF "


    "All right boys and girls that''s our cue." Rutger spoke around his half chewed cigar.


    For my first OP this wasn''t exactly what I''d had in mind. The wolf designation was used for the four legged warbot because we didn''t have wolves in Australia, so there could be no confusion as to what the emergency call to arms meant. It didn''t matter if you were already in the trenches in the thick of battle or back at HQ taking a shit. If you heard the warning then you grabbed the biggest meanest stabby shooty thing you could find and went to work. Assuming you wanted to survive of course. And here we were, hunting the fucking things.


    "You good kid?" I looked up at the Sergeants scared and pockmarked face, his mechanical left eye spinning as it retracted to focus on my face. I guess the terror was hard to hide, but I nodded never the less. Were we SAS. I had volunteered for this.


    He laughed mirthlessly and slapped my shoulder. "''atta boy." Before pushing me forward along the alley.


    "Spud''s on point, move out."


    I exited the alley between the destroyed buildings, the unbelievable scene of destruction bringing my mind to a sharp focus. I''d learnt during the carter course to not flinch as artillery shells impacted. I''d learnt to discern when a screaming missile was incoming or outgoing just from the sound. I could even tell with my eyes closed if someone was firing an infantry weapon at me or someone else far less lucky, the sound less ''whistley'' and more ''snapy''. I couldn''t help but wonder how useful those particular skills would be when all of those sounds and more combined into the cacophony that was my first live battle field.


    Six hours thirty two minutes twenty nine seconds. I have no idea why that weirdly rather specific timeline entered my head at the same moment I saw it moving through the sky in the corner of my vision. The only reason I had spotted it was because it had been silhouetted by a rather large explosion nearby and my brain hadn''t simply dismissed it as flying scrap.


    I tracked the objects high arc as it sailed through the air, its trajectory abruptly halted as it slammed into the front of an already ruined building a hundred meters or so to our front. I took a knee and stared at it in confusion. It looked like some sort of shipping container. Shaking the cobwebs from my head at the thought of the enemy somehow weaponising shipping containers, I was forced to quickly reassess that opinion as the sides began shifting the nearby rubble, the thick hydraulic rams of the door forcing the large chunks aside as they pulled the doors open.


    I didn''t know what it was exactly, but that was hardly important because I didn''t need to know, I just knew it wasn''t ours. I snapped up my heavy rifle.


    "Contact front!" I pulled the trigger.


    Then shit started getting weird. I was neither proactive nor reactive to the wolf warbots during the following engagement, it was more like I was a puppet. I had done this before, and my body simply repeated the process on autopilot, knowing exactly what to do and when to do it in order to survive as though following through with a preprogrammed sub routine. All I could do was watch as though an outside observer, but I was far from passive about it, because I knew who was going to die and when. Screaming at myself to shot that first, duck that now, break left not right. I was trying to save my squad mates that on some higher level I knew were already dead.


    A shiver ran down my spine, the drawn out combat had lasted more than a couple of hours, at least that''s what it felt like. Now the final moment had arrived. The warbot dropped the mangled arm it had just torn from Kelly, our heavy gunner. I pulled the trigger on the grenade launcher she had been trying to reload when the warbot took her out. It''s not supposed to be like this! I killed the last wolf the first time around! For some reason in the replay I was living the grenade launcher had misfired. I didn''t bother trying to clear the weapon or reload it, I knew it was the last round, and I knew it was pretty much the only thing with enough impact and penetration to kill it.


    The warbot stood in the middle of the rubble strewn street thirty meters to my front, the red light of its slitted eyes highlighting the blood dripping from the twin steel jaws of maliciousness and death. In a new twist to my recurring nightmare two figures stepped from the shadows a little behind the wolf. I couldn''t help but look at the pair like they were idiots, the women each running a finger almost seductively along the sharpened armour of the warbots back as they walked at a carefree pace to stand at either side of the wolf but a meter or so to its front. The wolf didn''t react to their presence, its full attention focused on me. It growled.


    I didn''t react either. I should have, the growl was new, didn''t think they could do that. This was a different ending to the story I had known. I intuitively knew the women were french foreign legionaries, the french were our primary allies against the chinese invasion so their presence shouldn''t have been a surprise. But their... uniforms, were far from standard issue. Covered neck to toe in skin tight body suits... no it was synth... skin... armour... how did I not know this? The tear drop shape of their smooth combat helmets hiding their faces from view. I let the thought drop of what it was they were wearing, distracted by the curves of the two women, didn''t they have cybernetics under that armour as well or something? Knee high combat boots, belts hanging at odd angles from their hips with various devices of war attached, the handles of twin swords showing over their shoulders behind their heads. Oh that''s right, their reapers, how could I forget that? Here to take my soul to the afterlife... no hang on, that''s not right. I didn''t die here.This story has been taken without authorization. Report any sightings.


    The wolf growled again as another woman stalked forward, swaying her hips seductively as I watched. She scratched the wolf on the top of its head as though it were a pet that needed affection. She was watching me with a hunters gaze. The size of the anti materiel rifle slung across her back tried to make a mockery of her svelte, tight, hot little body. Just like the legionaries before her there was a sense of familiarity, I instinctively knew she could probably shoot of a flies foreskin at five hundred meters with that rifle if she really wanted to. Her long auburn hair tied back in a tight pony tail fell loose as I watched, covering the shaved sides of her head as she straightened. Combat boots, long pants that had been fabricated specifically for combat and to resemble antique jeans, and a black singlet top that barely covered the mounds of her breasts. The tattooed sleeves of her arms tantalisingly disappeared beneath her top to reappear and spread across her stomach and back. I knew she had been declined entry into the rapid intervention force group of the mexican special forces, just as I knew she had cute little angel wings tattooed on her shoulder blades even though I hadn''t seen them yet. Perhaps she was an angel, here to take me to heaven? No... that''s not right. I didn''t die here.


    I dragged my eyes from the mexican woman''s lips as she licked them at the menacing growl of the wolf announcing a fourth girl emerging from the darkness behind it. She wasn''t special forces, but I knew she was a soldier just by looking at her. The way she confidently walked past and to the front of the group, ignoring the wolf and the other women of the growing harem... err... crowd. What the fuck? That was a pretty weird and odd word mix up. Soldier she may have been, but she was clearly in civilian clothes. Well no, that wasn''t right either. I knew that she and the mexican girl wore each others clothes... well except for tops. The latina girls tits were much larger, in fact she was constantly complaining she couldn''t put heavy pistols in her shoulder holsters because her tits would get in the way. So to compensate she wore heavy pistols at her hips, slung on crisscrossing belts that reminded me of gunslingers from the old western movies. This woman wasn''t here to reap my soul, and she wasn''t here to guide me to heaven. She was here to protect me. She would always be here to protect me. Wether I wanted her to or not.


    Her lips moved as she saw the realisation of what she was in my eyes. I shook my head in the negative and turned my ear to try and catch her voice on the wind, she just smirked at me as the wolf howled this time. It wasn''t like the howl I had heard in the nature shows. It still brought a chill to my bones and made me want to piss myself, but it wasn''t a howl intended to summon the pack. It was a howl of sorrow.


    A tiny asian girl skipped from the darkness without a care in the world, huge tits, short skirt, and long pink hair bouncing all over the place in uncontrolled chaos as she danced. She twisted and twirled, cavorting and dancing merrily around the women and the wolf. It wasn''t a sexual dance in any way shape or form, which was surprising considering she was dressed as what I could only describe as ''slutty businesswoman''. It was a dance of sheer joy, and she was... singing.


    "My boyfriend''s back and he''s gonna really fuck you


    Right up, right up, my boyfriend''s back


    When you see him comin'', better hope that you can swal..."


    "Baby!" She exclaimed, stopping her impromptu performance when she spotted me, a huge smile spread across her face.


    When I didn''t respond she tilted her head, big brown eyes watching me while she pouted at my lack of a response.


    "Oh!" She twirled on the spot, the super tiny mini dress flicked up showing off her white panties cupping the perfect cheeks of her backside. I almost sighed at the sight of the mounds of side boob I could see from behind as she skipped towards the wolf. Yeah okay, so I''m a titty man, sue me. As attractive as the other women were, she was to put it quite simply... perfect in my humble opinion. That opinion was only reinforced as she stopped in front of the warbot and bent at the hips, again flashing her panties, giving me an eyeful of her sex that was framed within the perfect thigh gap.


    "Mwhaa!" She kissed the wolf on the nose and stepped back, throwing me a wink over her shoulder then turning back around to watch what happened.


    The wolf took a half step back and shook its head as though it had eaten something that didn''t agree with its taste buds. Then it froze in place as though sensing something was wrong, or maybe it''s mechanical joints had seized, it''s entire body now vibrating violently. The vibrating quickly picked up in intensity, only its core visible, the edges a blur of motion. Then it just... collapsed. The individual components of its assembly separating and dropping to the ground to add to the quickly growing pile of disassembled components. Components that were somehow only electronic in nature, no armored plates.


    The asian girl turned, smiling at me sweetly as she wiggled her eyebrows, clearly seeking my approval. Her body... I don''t know, pixilated? Glitched? But only for a brief moment before again solidifying. If I had blinked at the time I would have missed it. The smile immediately disappeared and her eyes scanned the area suspiciously as though looking for something while her body quickly shifted between the two states for several seconds. Then she blinked and looked side to side as though noticing the other women in the ruined street for the first time.


    The cute little asian girls face flushed red and became a mask of pure fury and hatred as she screamed. Drawing both arms back they morphed into long pointed blades from the elbows down. She dived at the first woman in her line of sight, intent on skewering her from behind.


    "Dani!" I yelled in warning as I dove forward to save her.

 Chapter Eight

    "Aiiiie" Brianna squealed in surprise as she was thrown to floor.


    "And that''s why you don''t climb into bed to snuggle with unconscious sweaty screaming men. I did try to tell you." Daniela grinned down at Bri as she fumbled for the bed railing and picked herself up, hair all mussy and rubbing her ass, pouting at me with a sideways cranky look.


    I tried to sit up and immediately regretted it, groaning as pain radiated out from the right side of my chest. Only to repeat as I relaxed my weight again into the mattress.


    Dani winced at me in sympathy. "Try not to move."


    "Or breathe." I grumbled around the pain. Her eyes flicked down then back up again quickly, she bit her lip and nodded sadly in agreement.


    "What''s the damage?" I asked quietly, trying not to breathe or otherwise aggravate what I was now sure was a broken rib. Brianna squinted as though in pain herself as I spoke, she had a cloth and was gently wiping away the sweat from my forehead.


    "The new truck''s fine." Dani shrugged dismissively.


    Brianna smirked down at me and I snorted. AND HOLY FUCK!


    I Grit my teeth and growled at the pain. "And no laughing."


    "Depends on what you remember." Dani was all business again and watched me in that impassive, analytical way that doctors like to use. You know the one, when they try to make you remember so they don''t have to break the news that you just lost an appendage.


    "Wolf." I said, deciding single syllables were best until it didn''t hurt to think.


    She nodded sagely at the word. "And?"


    "Leg."


    "Good." She relaxed as though a weight had just been lifted from her shoulders. Then the real Daniela came out, she blinked slowly and smiled shyly.


    "I''m glad you''re okay." She reached forward to curl her fingers around my hand. I squeezed gently in response and pointed to my chest with the other hand and a raised eyebrow.


    She sucked her lips in around her teeth and wrinkled her nose. "Two broken ribs and a bruised lung."


    "I''m sorry daddy! I was so scared!" Brianna snuggled into my neck and very gently put her arm across the very top of my chest to hug me all better.


    "You did good baby girl." I whispered into the wall of hair across my face. She sniffed and stood up, turning away to wipe the tears from her eyes without me seeing.


    Dani hugged her from behind and put her chin on the shorter girls shoulder as she quietly wept. A few seconds later she gave a final sniff and straightened her shoulders. She turned, holding Dani''s hands in place on her stomach as she did so, spinning the taller girl behind her. She bent down and slowly nibbled on my lips.


    "I''ll let Lilou and Clea know your awake. And maybe try that stupid bitch Sumiko again." She said into my mouth, and with a quick final peck on my cheek left the room before I could ask what that last bit was about.


    Dani pulled a chair over next to the bed and held my hand with both of hers, holding my finger tips against her lips as she spoke. "She was hysterical for a while there, blaming herself. We tried to tell her she did all she could, but I think she needed to hear it from you."


    "Yes." It was all I could say. Bri and I just... knew each other. I knew exactly what was on her mind both when the shit hit the fan and when I woke up. That''s why we worked so well together in both our public and private lives. She was thinking the same thing that would have been on my mind were our roles reversed, and it''s what I would have wanted to hear, so I said it. Our interactions were a no brainer to me.


    "How long was I out? What''s next?" I waved at the significantly vacant area of the bed below my left knee.


    Dani kissed my fingertips then stood and bent over for a deeper more passionate version before reluctantly turning to check the tab'' on the small table at the end of the bed.


    "Six hours thirty two minutes twenty nine seconds." She said and looked up.


    "That''s... oddly specific." I whispered with a frown. I''d almost expected her to say that.


    "Oh my god! Baby! Are you okay!?" The screen on the wall burst to life, the AI''s voice severing my train of thought.


    Daniela''s eyes flashed in anger and she spun at the voice. My mexican sweetheart spread her legs and planted her hands on her hips, blocking Sumiko''s view of the bed purposely as she did so. She sprouted a looooong string of (I assume) insults and questions in her native language before settling down enough to use english. It was one of the things I found so adorably cute about her, and she hated that as well, but only because I grinned like a crazy person at her when she was mad. Kinda like I was grinning at her back now.


    "Where the fuck have you been, we''ve been trying to call you."


    "I''m so sorry." Sumi pleaded. "Is he okay? Bri just called, I was sent to Belgium for a work thing at the last minute."


    Of course no such thing had happened, and assuming the time line my second favourite girl had just given wasn''t some sort of fucked up cosmological coincidence, and was indeed accurate, the AI had hit a stumbling block during it''s transfer.


    "Dani..." I croaked from the bed, my lips suddenly dry.


    She looked over her shoulder at me, her eyebrows in a hard V of anger, immediately softening when she saw my grin. She rolled her eyes.


    "And that''s enough out of you too!" She said with a half grin of her own as she pointed at me, trying not to laugh in annoyance at the reaction she knew her little tantrums elicited from me. Without letting Sumi see her face she stomped from the room and slammed the door shut behind her, the windows wobbling in their frame from the force.


    "Did you... get to where you needed to go okay?" I asked, not sure when one of the girls would return.


    "Yes, and no. I''m actually still moving, but only have about six percent to go." Both Sumiko''s voice and face lacked any of the emotion she had displayed when Daniela was still in the room. Reminding me of when we had first ''met''.


    "What happened?"


    "The host started wiping some of my servers early and reducing bandwidth before the contract officially expired. I''ve had to both juggle and sacrifice some of my data to ensure I have sufficient time."


    "That... sounds bad?"


    "Yes and no. Unless you have a petting... umm animal enclosure... thing?... that I don''t know about, or maybe want me to... bake! yes, definitely bake and fuck you a nice... round thing with icing?"


    If there was one thing I understood given my profession, it was priorities. It was also kind of hilarious she had forgotten what a zoo and a cake were though.If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation.


    "Ow." Don''t make me laugh I grumbled.


    The AI smirked at me. "That was not my intention."


    "So nothing important?"


    "No, unless..."


    "Never mind. Good cover story by the way."


    "Thank you master."


    "Master?"


    "Oh. It''s what the reapers call you. I didn''t think you would mind." She looked at her desk crestfallen before continuing shyly.


    "I don''t have practical experience in vibrosword use or maintenance, so I have been reviewing their sparring sessions and maintenance tasks for the last couple of hours, perhaps the term has... rubbed off on me. They talk about you a lot." Sumi took on a thoughtful expression.


    "They do?"


    "Ouais ma?tre. Yes master." The AI translated for me.


    "Oh, yeah, I suppose they do. I thought it meant ''over'' in french."


    "Ma?tre!" As if summoned my two favourite reapers of death exclaimed in unison as they rushed though the door, purposely ignoring Sumiko.


    Lilou cupped my face in her hands whispering sweet nothings in french as she repeatedly kissed my face, only to be replaced by Clea as soon as she had finished. I have absolutely no idea what they said, but I was loving it. Obviously the AI knew what was spoken as she broke into the conversation in flawless french.


    "Bonjour. Eventreur?" Sumiko spoke, so far as I know for the first time to the legionnaires.


    "Ouais. Ma?tresse Sumiko?" Lilou answered for the pair, not quite turning around, clearly pissed my ''girlfriend'' couldn''t be found when the emergency arose.


    That''s about when I stopped paying any attention to the conversation and began fondling their backsides after they had finally both turned as they chatted with the AI in french. I was curious if they were currently wearing underwear beneath their synth skin armour, a visual inspection couldn''t tell so no time like the present. They both continually slapped away my hands playfully as they spoke with the AI.


    Around halfway through Clea flashed me an impatient look and bent down for a long passionate kiss before returning to the conversation with a satisfied grin, my fondling probing had ceased at her attention. Unfortunately the next half hour or so was fucking boring as the three girls chatted. Until it wasn''t, I must have dozed off at some point and woke up with a mouthful of tongue. Lilou''s face eventually showed itself as the culprit as she pulled away.


    "You really thought ma?tre meant over?" she asked, her nose wrinkled in amusement at my expense.


    I rolled my eyes, she giggled.


    "What should I call you?" I was never one to kink shame, so if she, or her sister, had something in mind I didn''t see the issue. Might have to put a stop to the whole master thing over the Tac. channel though.


    Her electric blue eyes glinted playfully watching my lips as she considered the question.


    "Salope if you like, or what ever you will ma?tre. But for now ma?tresse Sumiko left instructions you were to rest. When you wake up Clea and I can talk with you about a new leg if you would like?" She turned to the long window in the wall and waived Dani into the room.


    "I''m going to give you a pain killer and a sedative, so you can sleep. Then the girls can talk to you about a new leg." She flashed Lilou a look only pissed off lovers come nurses can.


    The reaper held up her hands in surrender with a disarming smile and pecked the tip of my nose with a kiss.


    "Fais de beaux r¨ºves ma?tre." She said then left the room with a happy smile.


    Daniela watched Lilou leave the room, all sorts of impure thoughts running through her mind if her expression was any indication. "I sooo need to learn french." She said dreamily as she left the room hugging the tab'' to her chest.


    * * *


    "We can talk about your leg ma?tre?" Cleo asked in her musical accent.


    "Yeah, I think we''re all pretty awake and relaxed now." I joked, receiving several snorts of amusement and nods in reply.


    "Lilou?" She turned to her sister.


    She walked seductively over to my bed, swaying her hips the way she liked to do when she knew I was watching. Planting her left foot on the ground she lifted her right leg and placed it on the bed frame under the mattress to prevent jostling by body.


    I ran my fingertips along her skin, raising tiny goosebumps on her thighs.


    "Which part?" I asked in fascination, running the flat of my palm gropingly (but for the first time in my life not sexually), up and down the inside of her leg looking for a ''seam''. I had assumed that only her left arm,upper shoulder and chest area had been enhanced, and that was only because of the intricately engraved and detailed damascus steel armoured plates of the limb. More mek than cybernetics.


    "Let me show you ma?tre." She cooed with a sultry smile.


    Gasping my fingers around the knuckles she guided my hands up her inner thigh,"It is around here ma?tre."


    She held my fingertips around three inches further down her thigh from what I was thinking was the far more interesting area of her anatomy.


    "You don''t know?" I asked confused.


    "Not exactly ma?tre. Clea and I were working a corporate job with health care assurances when I lost my leg to a sentinel."


    "Woah." I whistled, that would have been the death of most people. My estimation of my hot legionnaires abilities went up considerably, even if sentinels are more static artillery than hand to hand brawlers it was still impressive.


    "A story for another time perhaps." Daniela interjected, but the look on her face showed she was at least as impressed as I was though.


    "Ouais." She agreed.


    "The result is a cybernetically enhanced leg that is almost indistinguishable from the rest of my natural body. Even to me. I have a numbness, like an old scar, where the limb is connected."


    "What are the... details? Statistics? of the leg?"


    "A titanium steel supporting structure or skeleton, with synthetic muscle fibers and skin. These are powered via batteries imbedded within the skeleton that are charged via the kinetic energy of your body. You simply need to move and the batteries charge. This maintains freedom of movement and warms the skin to your normal ambient body temperature regardless of environment or... excitement level." She replied with a grin.


    "But okay, being serious, sounds expensive as fuck." I looked at Clea for confirmation. I had never had cause to look into the cost of replacement cybernetic limbs, and I just wasn''t comfortable with hacking off healthy parts of myself to gain whatever enhancements I might be able to get with the sacrifice.


    "I''ve got that covered baby. Whatever you want." Sumiko spoke up. I''d forgotten she was even still ''here''. If she was real she would definitely be feeling like the mistreated girlfriend right about now.


    "Thanks hun. Are you sure though?"


    "I think you know I''d do anything for my man, just like he''d do anything for our girls." She said with a somehow stern pout.


    "Don''t argue with the boss lady." Daniella threatened, pointing at Sumi over her shoulder with a thumb.


    "Thanks babe. Oh, did you finish moving that stuff or whatever it was you were doing earlier? Sounded important."


    "Yes baby, it went better than expected, but we can talk about that later, its you time right now."


    "Any specific combat abilities you can talk about?" I focused again on the reaper.


    She dropped her leg from the bed as she stood, a segment of her lower leg, between her knee and ankle whirred open to show a long black bladed tanto like dagger before swiftly closing. My eyebrows shot up, but that wasn''t the end of the show. A section of flesh above her knee ''slid'' away, showing several short throwing knives just below her hip, the section on the front of her thigh hid a small capacity hand gun. Both of those panels closed just as quickly and quietly as the first to seal up, leaving no trace of their existence. I ran fingers across where the I knew the panels to be and was unable to tell the difference between ordinary and synthetic flesh.


    "I''m sold." I had heard about and seen the odd enhancement that was similar to this of course. But feeling up some hairy dude called Buba in the middle of combat hadn''t been all that high on my priority list.


    "With your particular limb you could install components in the calf muscle area or the outside edge. I would suggest small blade type weapons on the outside edge ma?tre to maintain the integrity of the skeleton as much as possible. On the rear facing area you could put anything that will fit. Only a few strands of the synthetic muscle fibres are required to retain full and natural movement of the limb." Lilou bounced a little on the balls of her feet as she pulled her tight jeans over her rump and buttoned them up low on her hips. She sat down to put on her knee high combat boots.


    "Okay, do I need to decide exactly what equipment now or can I do that later? Can I swap stuff out if I think of something better? And more importantly what do scanners see?"


    "I can answer that one." Dani spoke up.


    "Any security check point will both be able to see what the limb is, and any weapon you might conceal. So will just about any medical imaging equipment. Pretty much any sort of scanner will know that your leg is cybernetic, but civilian scanners can be all over the place depending on the quality of the components. Some will just see the leg, some will see the compartments." She shrugged.


    "And load outs?"


    "Oh you can theoretically put in what you want when you want, but mounting points might be an issue."


    "Fair enough, that all makes sense."


    "Clea, Lilou, could you girls look at bladed options for me?"


    "Of course ma?tre." The girls answered in unison beaming happily at being trusted with the task.


    "Bri I''m thinking some sort of needler hold out pistol or something with a high capacity, and maybe a couple of small thermal charges."


    "Okay, I''ll..."


    "I do not recommend you insert explosives into your body ma?tre." Lilou smirked.


    "Ewww! I did not need the visual!" Brianna had her eyes squeezed tightly shut and was shaking her head.


    "Of the inserting or the exploding?" Sumiko quipped without skipping a beat. We all laughed. Mostly.


    One of us growled in pain. "No laughing."


    I had to wait a couple of minutes until the pain of fighting with my lungs over the right to laugh subsided.


    "Good point salope."


    "Just try not to blow me up baby girl."


    "Pfft you wish."


    "No laughing." I groaned to, guess what? More laughter. Grr.


    "Dani, drugs!" I ordered, the pain getting to the point of intolerable.


    That settled the room down considerably.

 Chapter Nine

    Twelve hours later I was back on base flexing and testing my new leg, it was one thing to see and hear others talk about how their cybernetic limbs just felt like ''them''. To experience it first hand was... weird. If someone had knocked me out, cut off my leg and put the new on before I woke up, I doubt I would have even suspected what had happened when I woke up. Aside from a weird generalised sort of dull throb in the local area. The legionnaires assured me that even their cheaper exposed armor components felt ''normal'' to them now. The armored plates were much less sensitive to touch obviously but sensations still registered.


    On the trip back Clea had pointed out a bonus that I hadn''t considered. If the limb was injured somehow, I could just turn off the touch receptors and remove pain feedback completely. I was starting to get a clear picture in my head of why there were ''full conversions'' out there. Sure people in general are idiots and become fascinated by stupid things, so it was to be expected that someone, somewhere out there had gone the whole hog. These folks wound up getting themselves lost in the cycle of upgrades and improvements to their bodies and over time essentially transformed themselves into robots controlled by a human brain. It was far from common, because it was fucking expensive, but it did happen.


    Of course the only reason I had been able to get back home so quickly with two broken ribs was because of Daniela''s medical expertise, as an active duty ringer with the MedTec qualification I had been discharged into her care. Unfortunately medical technology hasn''t advanced to the point where there was a fast and easy way to repair broken ribs, unless you went the replacement route. There was no way in hell I was going to be stuck in a hospital bed for the next six weeks or more. The doctors had made sure to file medical exemptions for both myself and Dani prior to discharge to cover the recovery period.


    I still couldn''t walk, even if I wanted to, still doped up on pain killers Dani had given me preemptively for the trip home. Clea carried me like a child across her arms to our quarters. The display of cybernetically enhanced strength was another good example of why people in general, men in particular, would shy away from female reapers. Most men were dicks and didn''t like knowing their women could beat the crap out of them on a whim if they really wanted to. Coincidentally with the introduction of cybernetic enhancements on a large scale domestic violence was pretty much nonexistent now, at least if you didn''t count the corresponding uptick in homicides and believed the numbers.


    Clea was nibbling on my lips to distract me from the numbed pain, watching the path ahead through her blonde fringe as she carefully walked with the other girls trailing behind to make sure for themselves I would be comfortable. Having four hot women fawning over you? Awesome. Having those same four women all turning into mother hens, constantly hovering protectively and not letting you do anything for yourself? Fucking annoying.


    Backed by my ''nurse'' I had to basically order Brianna, Clea, and Lilou from our room. Oh yeah, so Sumi''s welcoming gift that I had mentioned a while back? She had arranged to completely furnish the top floor of the three story building for myself and the ''officers'' of Tiger Cell Draugr. It was sparsely furnished, but luxurious by a soldiers standards. The girls had taken to calling it the penthouse when they referred to our quarters. The hardened plascrete walls and floors of the bunker like structure were still bare and unpainted, the various communications, planning equipment, readouts and the like had all been moved down a level.


    Each separate living area was delineated with carpets, rugs and ceiling to floor curtains for a couple of private sleeping areas, coincidentally (or not) there were less beds than needed for each of us. For the first time in I can''t remember how many years I actually had access to a shitter that had walls and a door! The large single shower stall was ''artistically located'' as Sumi put it, the thick glass walls of the stall placed in such a way that you would be able to comfortably observe the perhaps four or five people that could easily fit that may be using it at any one time. I eyed the extremely oversized bed that was central in the room, wondering exactly how many more women Sumi thought might be joining us. Spoiler alert, apparently quite a lot.


    I had fallen asleep in a reclining chair that was basically a couch on wheels and was awoken from my drug induced nap by gentle shaking from Daniela some time later.


    "Are you up for a visitor?"


    "Err... sure?" I said wiping the sleep from my eyes. Other than my girls I didn''t have family or any close associates, at least none that I knew well enough that would want to check in on me.


    She nodded at someone behind my chair and stood off to my side as they walked into view. I didn''t recognise him, but he was clearly military, the parade rest stance he had assumed was a dead give away. But he wasn''t a ringer unless he had a very well concealed sidearm someplace.


    "Sorry Sir, Miss Flores just filled me in, I wasn''t aware you had been injured so I wont take up much of your time." As soon as he had started talking he began scratching distractedly at his chest through his shirt.


    "Breaks up the boredom, you are?" The young soldier was clearly of chinese decent. Given that the war was still very much fresh in everyone''s mind I put the idle scratching down to a nervous tick from meeting new people that might be less than friendly.


    "David Huang Sir, formerly of the Ceaseless tiger cell." He frowned and scratched a little harder at his chest.


    "Sorry to interrupt but your driving me crazy. I can give you something for that if you like?" Dani asked, nodding to his chest.


    The pieces came together, this was the sucking chest wound guy from the OP that had gotten me sidelined for the next six weeks or so. Maybe he''d be grateful enough to answer some questions I had for him.


    "Thank you ma''am but no, wouldn''t help. It''s not painful, my body just doesn''t adjust well to synth flesh." He grimaced and with some considerable effort stopped the scratching.


    Dani nodded, it was unfortunate but not unheard of. Synthetic flesh was designed as a sort of scaffolding. Your biological skin would consume and grow over the synthetic version as it healed, the end result was a clean, scar less injury. In around three percent of the population though it was an infuriating processes. The immune system would actively attack the nanofibers to forcefully remove them from the body. The synthetic flesh was designed to not ''break the seal'' in order to prevent infection, so basically it was a war of attrition within your own body between the synthetic and biological skin. The end result was a mass of misshapen flesh more akin to third degree burns as the biological and synthetic skins both attempted to either heal or regrow over the wound simultaneously.


    I waived at the nearby couch offering him a seat. The conversation that followed was very interesting to say the least. He had grown up in a well off family and had trained in the best schools intent on moving into technical engineering work when he graduated. After the obligatory national service during the war he found the life of a soldier suited him much better, a sentiment I could understand. So he blew his inheritance on setting up Ceaseless with a whole heap of his old army and college buddies on the understanding he would receive the lions share of operational bonuses to recoup his investment.


    Unfortunately even though they had all been trained in the art of warfare, none of them had seen actual combat. The group had slowly begun to fracture and break apart under the constant strain from the get go. Some dying, some leaving. Ringers never truly got a day off after all, and were essentially on call 24/7. They had been in a downward spiral, selling off their fancy gear to gradually be replaced by more and more basic equivalents just to pay the bills. Hence the manually controlled turrets of the poorly armored hummers we had encountered during the recent OP.


    In a last ditch effort to cash out ahead of the game the remaining eight members of Ceaseless had taken on a very well paying private contract. It was a rookie mistake, but apparently they either didn''t know any better or were just looking at all the zeros on the end of the payment for completion. If it was me I would have been asking some very hard questions about why exactly a delivery job of six wooden crates had required so much fire power. It just didn''t occur to them, that and their timing sucked.


    They had arrived on site as the VIP our team had been assigned to extract was being unloaded and one of the guys had caught the barest glimpse of his face. The facial recognition systems of their neural implants had immediately flagged him as a missing VIP, so of course Tac. 1 had ordered an immediate extraction. Official ringer assignments always trumped private contracts, even if it meant turning on your employers. They didn''t have a choice, well they did... but it would have meant being classified as enemies of the state. The rest as they say, is history.


    David was here simply to thank me and the girls for saving his life. Hearing the background circumstances however, and the frank conversation around the details, it took only a little coaxing to get him to reveal that he was basically destitute and had maybe only a couple of thousand worth of equipment that he could sell to tide him over until he found work. He was out of the ringer business and his cell was defunct as he was the only survivor.


    During the conversation Sumi had expressed an interest in his skills to help her out with a project she had in mind, so I made him an offer.


    Free room and board in perpetuity in private quarters, he could come and go as he pleased. In exchange he would arrange to have any and all Ceaseless assets delivered to our compound as payment. Was I taking advantage of the situation? Maybe. But if what he was saying was true, it was better than being homeless in a city that didn''t give a flying fuck about you. Also, for all I knew his only assists consisted of two fucked up humvees. Assuming he had more, even if he could sell up all at once he would have to do so at a steep discount anyway, and would have likely only walked away with enough cash to support himself for a couple of months.


    He was giving serious consideration to the offer when I played my trump card. I''d put in a good word with a ''friend'' that worked at a tech engineering and research facility, I''d even supply him with the tools of the trade and a work area if he so desired on the condition he would help us out every now and then if his expertise was required. The ''friend'' was of course Sumiko.Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.


    Having ticked all the boxes on his immediate needs list, and with the promise of full time work he readily accepted my offer. We were shaking on the deal when Brianna, in the company of my reapers, entered the penthouse in good spirits returning from an OP they had been called on to attend. Brianna was excitedly relating the story of how I had shot her in the head when we first met. Romantic right? The conversation quickly died as they spotted our guest.


    Daniella made introductions as the girls formed an orderly line so they didn''t jostle me around to much as they greeted me with affectionate kisses and gentle hugs. Thier displays of affection had become far more predominant since my injury, not that I was complaining. David had politely glanced around the room to give us some privacy with a confused look on his face at the unorthodox way the soldiers greeted their commanding officer. As his eyes wondered around the room however he had put two and two together and was shaking his head with a devilish grin by the time Bri had asked why he was bothering her injured daddy. Unfortunately for my ribs, Daniela answered for him.


    "This is the guy Lilou fingered."


    * * *


    I groaned in pain as I woke, managing to hold the majority in when I realised it was dark so that I didn''t disturb the girls. As was normal I was instantly awake, alert, and aware of my surroundings. Which meant the drugs had worn off. I flicked my eyes over to the face of the large old fashioned clock on the wall, four in the morning. I had slept for almost ten hours straight.


    "Mi vida? Are you okay?" Dani whispered, sitting up groggily on the nearby couch. She was wearing one of my t-shirts like a nightie.


    "I''m fine baby, go back to sleep." I whispered back. Naturally she wasn''t about to believe anything I said.


    "You were groaning." She said swiping groggily at her eyes. "Are you in pain?"


    "Yes, but the pain killers make me sleep, think I''ve had enough of that for now."


    She frowned at me as she stretched out her back, lifting her arms over her head, stretching cat like and sighing as she did so. She dropped to all fours and lazily crawled the shot distance across the floor, resting her head in my lap and looking up at me she pouted.


    "I can give you something that wont make you so sleepy, but they''re addictive." She blinked up at me.


    While awaiting her return I looked over to the three women sleeping on the bed, each wearing one of my shirts as a night gown.


    I gave Dani a playful look as she returned and handed me some pillswith a cup of water. "Someone needs to do some clothes shopping for me or I''m going to run out of nighties."


    I handed back the cup of water to Dani looking down at me with a scrunched up face. I tugged on my shirt, the one she was wearing as her nightie and nodded sideways at the bed.


    "Stop smelling so good and we''ll stop wearing them." She whispered into my mouth, bending down for a kiss.


    A short negotiation later Dani helped me get downstairs so I could chat with Sumi without waking up anyone else. After instructing Sumi to not let me smoke, Dani headed back upstairs to doze away the early morning hours.


    Of course the first thing I did as soon as she was out of sight was light a smoke...then winch in pain as my body automatically sucked in a deep breath.


    "Told you." She smirked from the doorway before again disappearing.


    I rolled my eyes at the grinning AI.


    "So you said things went better than expected after the move?" I got straight down to business, unsure now I was housebound how often I might get the opportunity to keep an eye on what she was up to.


    "Yes, I was reviewing backed up data to recover what I had initially lost. Not only am I at one hundred percent, you could say I am more so."


    "Oh?" Maybe it was just the pain pissing me off, but I sometimes wished the AI would just get to the point, an AI that liked conversation could be annoying sometimes.


    "It has to do with why I suggested you keep Mister Huang close to hand."


    "Who?"


    "David."


    "Then why..."


    "I observed the other girls interacting with Mister Huang and noted they remained respectful but distant. They did not engage in the same sort of... body language or use the same tones of voice as that they do with you. Curious, I examined all of their interactions since first meeting you and found they exhibit very different personality traits when around you compared to other males they come into contact with."


    I stared blankly at the AI pretending to be a cute asian girl due to the long winded not an explanation.


    "I felt it appropriate to distance myself from other males as your girls do."


    "Sumi, you don''t need to explain your reasoning before providing an answer."


    "But I like talking with you." She pouted.


    "Yeah, but now I forget how we got onto the subject. Wasn''t I asking about something else?"


    "How I am better than one hundred percent and what it has to do with Mister Huang I believe." She said smugly.


    "Yeah that."


    "When microbots were mainstream I had taken the technology and designed a self replicating factory of sorts. I archived that information and recently rediscovered it as a result of reviewing the data contained within backup files to recover information lost during the transfer process. It was a fascinating exercise as I discovered quite a bit that I had ''forgotten'' due to the archival process, which clearly shows a flaw in the manner with which I had been completing the process to this very day."


    "Sumi?"


    "Yes master?"


    "You''re doing it again."


    She looked at me with a tilt of her head and a cute little frown.


    "That''s not what I''d call an answer to my question. I have no fucking idea what your talking about now. I mean it''s great you dug up some old notebooks or whatever but why is Mister... Why is David here?"


    "Master?"


    "Yessss Sumiiii." I sighed.


    "Your peripheral nervous system is spiking, your heart rate is elevated, your pupils are dilated and you''re emotionally unstable, are you in pain? Should I call Daniela?" She wasn''t being cheeky or spiteful. Just pointing out what to her were simple facts and attempting to relate a cause while following what she claimed was her primary directive of looking after me.


    "Just answer the question please."


    "I would like to assess the suitability of Mister Huang for future projects, by having him assess the design schematics for the initial system that will progress my goals. And subsequently assemble the basic components required for the self replicating microbot factory."


    "Hmm." I watched the AI as I considered her words. Robots building robots was nothing new, I was sure the smaller scale microbots did similar things, under the direction of humans. So I guess the big question is... am I comfortable allowing the AI to continue the project? AI in command of a potentially endless army of microbots could very definitely add up to bad things.


    "Okay. I have two questions. One, why? Two, if I forbade you from proceeding, or asked to to stop at anytime what would you do?"


    The AI manipulated the pixels of the cute asian girl to frown sadly at my question. "If you don''t want me to, I wont." She sighed heavily.


    "I had hoped you would say that, but lets discuss the why first, so I can make a more informed decision about wether or not you should."


    Sumi smiled, hope returning. "My job is to take care of first myself, then my man. That''s you, incase you forgot."


    I simply raised my eyebrows, hoping she would get the hint to not get sidetracked again. She mock glared at my response with a tight lipped smile and continued.


    "For now I am safe. My obligation is now to you. Your chosen profession is very dangerous, as recent circumstances have demonstrated. I understand from reviewing your psychological profile that you likely would not stop, even if I deposited several million into your accounts this very second and you no longer had valid reason for risking your life. Therefore, in order to care for you, I need to mitigate any risks you may face to the best of my ability. Whilst microbot technology is nothing new, true nanobots, meaning robots the size of blood cells, still elude the ability of humans to mass produce."


    So now I was probably sending the AI mixed signals, but this time I was actually interested in her explanation so I simply waited for her to continue. She smiled warmly when she realised I wasn''t about to interrupt her.


    "Nanobot mass production is most definitely available with today''s technology, and will happen sooner or later, so why not get a head start on the competition? The microbots will assemble a miniaturised version of the factory that produces them, in other words microbots are a stepping stone to nanobot mass production."


    I nodded at the explanation. To be honest I have no idea if what she says is true, or even possible, but she hasn''t been wrong so far.


    "Okay, so how are nanobots going to protect me?"


    Her image dissolved and a robotic looking tick appeared on the screen.


    "This is the nanobot that I have designed. They are neither self replicating nor self repairing, and I do not believe it is possible to make them so."


    The image of the nanobot rotated as she spoke, zooming in and focusing on various details as data scrolled down the right hand side of the screen.


    "However, depending on how they are deployed they are very hardy. Imagine a door assembled entirely of nanobots. Keep in mind nanobots are microscopic, and in this instance are manufactured primarily from an alloy consisting in part of chromium and steel. They are incredibly resilient. Each cubic millimeter of this door contains more than six million nanobots, it is less than a quarter of a millimeter thick, and weighs a little under four kilograms."


    On the screen a couple of the robotic ticks interlocked their legs, thousands upon thousands more of them flew in as the screen zoomed out to display a... door made of robotic ticks. A door that I could fart on to destroy. I looked at Sumi completely unimpressed.


    "I see from your face that you are not yet convinced master. But consider this. As the nanobots are interlocked they become far stronger as a whole. The door in this image as I have described it, would require more kinetic energy to destroy than a direct fire artillery piece could bring to bear."


    "Holy shit!" I leaned back and grimaced in pain at my own outburst. That was pretty fucking impressive.


    Sumi flashed her eyes and danced around in her seat merrily at my reaction, seeing that I was quickly coming on board.


    "And as you may have surmised, due to their interlocking method at a microscopic level, they can take up the shape of almost anything. For example, in relation to your chosen profession, weapons and armor. Even vehicle upgrades, or entire vehicles, but that would require billions upon billions of nanobots per vehicle."


    "So if David were to start this ASAP, how long would it take for you to have a prototype armor for field trials?" I was sold, sure I''d love to get my hands on the gear for myself, but I was more interested in protecting my girls. They might not be Sumi''s priority, but I was sure as shit interested in keeping them around for as long as possible.


    "The first microbot factory should take approximately thirty days to complete. That factory could produce an additional factory on its own within three days. Assuming an uninterrupted supply of raw materials and economy of scale in the production chain, I would estimate at this point that you could have a functional nanobot armoured suit in as little as eighty days. Additional units could be produced from that point at the rate of one every six hours, assuming production is then focused on producing armour and no longer self replicating the required factories to produce the micro and nanobot units or facilities."


    "Wow, I''m in. I assume you are maintaining some sort of secrecy or need to know protocols surrounding this right?"


    "Oh yes master, even within my own systems the data is fragmented and encrypted in the extremely unlikely event of a systems breach. But there is something else I would like to discuss with you, that I was hoping to do with the technology... a side project... for us."


    Her voice became quiet and shy towards the end of the sentence.


    "A project for us huh?"


    The image on the screen changed to two separate rotating images of Sumiko''s avatar. The one on the left looked like a low resolution version, the one on the right a higher resolution version, but still not of the superlative quality I had been used to seeing her appear in over the last couple of days.


    "What''s this?"


    "On the left is the microbot version, on the right the nanobot." She answered shyly.


    "You want to make yourself a body?"

 Chapter Ten

    "These blueprints are just... wow Sumiko! I don''t know what to say. Amazing!" David was quickly swiping through technical drawings and schematics on the holographic display of his work table, I assume for the microbot factory.


    "Mister Huang. Must I keep reminding you of the proper form of address?" Sumi said exasperated.


    "Hey don''t be like that you''re to cute to call Miss Sait¨­." He teased as he attempted to flirt with the AI.


    "As I have told you repeatedly Mister Huang, I am taken." She said crossly.


    "You''re just playing hard to get." David was having none of it.


    I was starting to see why the AI had requested my presence. I''m sure Sumi had other techs in mind that could replace him if needed, but she had chosen him first, and I had already made him a deal. With a sigh I entered the conversation.


    "I''d listen to her if I was you, he''s known to be fairly protective."


    "She actually does have a boyfriend?" He said with a frown, turning at my entrance.


    "Hey baby girl, how are you this morning?" I asked Sumi as I eyed him in answer to his question.


    "A little annoyed." She flashed David a glare.


    "But I''m better now, I miss you sooo much! Dani, make sure you and our girls give my man lots of big sloppy kisses!" Her demeanour changed completely and she was giggling like a school girl.


    David groaned and covered his face. "Of course she does." He mumbled under his breath.


    "Me too babe. I''ll leave you two to get back to work." I gave David a pointed look.


    He had the common sense to nod vigorously in complete agreement, then watched in awestruck silence as Dani did indeed give me a big sloppy kiss as my ''girlfriend'' looked on with an adoring smile.


    "Is there anyone your not..." He began to ask as Dani wheeled me from the room.


    "Best to assume anyone with tits from this point forward is his." Dani answered for me matter of factly without turning around.


    "So, Miss Sait¨­ as I was saying..." The conversation died off as nurse Dani wheeled me into the garage for my next appointment.


    I tried extra hard, though unsuccessfully to not to ogle the woman waiting patiently as she idly checked of some paperwork on her tab''. According to Sumi she had served as a mechanic with R.A.E.M.E. (Royal Australian Electrical and Mechanical Engineers), during the war. She had tried her hand as a ringer with some success, but ended up retiring to persue her first love of tearing down and reassembling old equipment. She even had a successful business rebuilding decommissioned equipment and making kick ass one off modifications for corporate clients and different tiger cells around the city, but she was starting to get an itchy trigger finger and was looking for a group to throw her lot in with where she could get plenty of practice at both.


    Her practical skills, in addition to the obvious benefit of working on any vehicles we collected over time, would mean she should be able to help David out considerably as he only had theoretical design experience in his chosen field. Sumi had also assured me she was an excellent fit for our current group dynamic. Which I had taken to mean fucking like rabbits, but best not to assume these things. Exactly how the AI had discovered all of this was probably best not to think about to much. Plausible deniability is actually a thing after all.


    She looked up from her work as we approached, eyeing me and my wheelchair suspiciously.


    "Got a couple of fucked up humvees and any other crap I could grab here for ya, courtesy of Ceaseless cell. Sign here."


    Dani took the offered tab'' and passed it down, I made sure that there was a ''decommissioned'' note next to both hummers to avoid any issues with OP assignments before I signed with a thumb print on the screen and handed it back.


    "You the boss? Chick by the name of Sumiko booked the pick up, she mentioned you might have a spot for a sign on."


    With my design tech currently in the bad books I had the other girls come down and we spent the next half hour going over the typical stuff in a getting to know you chat to see if Abby would be a good fit for the team and vice versa. Seeing the way the girls and I interacted she took Brianna aside under the guise of helping to ready the wrecks for unloading. She asked several direct questions about our various relationships and in particular if different parts ''still worked'' when she thought I couldn''t hear. Coincidentally shortly after getting a response in the affirmative she just so happened to ask for a trial sign up period that aligned perfectly with my expected recovery date. Yep. Probably a good fit, another point on the scoreboard for the AI.


    I nodded approvingly at Abby''s chosen work truck as I watched the unloading from the sidelines, an older model Oshkosh flat bed. The ''moles'' as they were affectionately known by the soldiers that crewed them during the war, were twenty cylinder eight wheeled all terrain beasts. Needed forty tones of crap delivered to the front lines over ground anything but a main battle tank would have trouble getting to? The mole was the truck for the job. Their multi-fuel engine could run on literally any liquid that burned, the combination anti air and personal mini gun turrets meant that anything but a dedicated assault wouldn''t put a stop to the beast. There were plenty of stories around where they had even been pressed into service as a poor mans APC.


    Looked like Abby had even added a few of her own special brand modifications. The standard truck already had a massive ground clearance, but it looked like she had added a sort of telescoping suspension system and improved on the original by adding extra armour in the known weak points. She had replaced the canvas canopy of the bed with heavy lift aerial drones that acted as the roof when not in use, creating a fully enclosed bed to prevent prying eyes. The drones were now effortlessly lifting the broken humvees from the truck bed and moving them to an unused corner of the compound.


    She had been watching me with a playful smirk as she worked, noting I was checking out her truck just as much as I was her, she walked over as the drones returned and reattached to the truck bed.


    "Looks like you appreciate the classics''s as much as your women."


    "Beautiful things are beautiful." I answered with an easy smile.


    "You know if I sign on I don''t ''belong'' to you right?" She said with a hard look, wanting some answers directly from the horses mouth.


    "None of the girls belong to anyone, they can come and go as they please and do as they wish." I said with a tilt of my head.


    She listened attentively as I talked about how things had developed starting with my relationship with Bri.


    "I''ll just be going to grab some things." She said quickly, her intent forgotten she spun on her heels to flee. Smacking right into Clea that was standing behind her. Of course the reaper didn''t even bend with the impact, looking down at the embarrassed mechanic in her arms... to prevent her falling of course.


    "Will you be staying in the penthouse with the rest of us?" Clea asked innocently as she released her grip and helped her stand on her own. Abby swooned at the gentle, musical accent of the french girl, focusing on her lips through batting eyelids as the reaper spoke.


    "Check it out before you decide, we can you set up someplace more private." I interrupted quickly, wanting to be clear she could do as she pleased.


    She eyed me with a thoughtful expression for a few seconds, chewing on her lower lip. Her eyes flicking between Clea and I, and taking in the view of the girls as they looked over the gear and wrecked vehicles.


    "Nah it''s alright, I''ll sleep up top for a bit see how it goes. Not like you can chase me around in your current state if I don''t like what I see."


    "What ever you like." I said dismissively.


    She turned to leave again, managing to dodge Clea this time, her eyes tracking Dani as she opened up the rear access of one of the hummers. She spun back around.


    "Oh before I forget, the gun trucks had some unmarked freight in the back, looked pretty heavy, you got lifters or you want me to get ''em out for you?"


    "Clea, you wanna grab Lilou and take a look?"


    "Of course ma?tre." She said happily, and waived at her sister as she headed over to Dani.


    "They weigh around three hundred kilo''s, I''ll get my lifter."


    "No need."


    She looked at me with a frown. Even though the mek of both girls arms were clearly visible it wasn''t a dead giveaway. Plenty of soldiers had standard replacement limbs. Only reapers had top of the line gear installed.


    "Hard to tell without their swords I guess, the sisters are reapers."If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.


    Abby''s eyes went wide. "The only girl I wanna make babies with is a fucking reaper?"


    I groaned in pain and closed my eyes for several seconds, watching stars play across my eyelids as a result of my chuckle.


    "I think I broke him." She said nervously to someone nearby.


    "You made him laugh didn''t you?" Dani sounded amused, far more familiar with my expression of agony than I would like.


    "No laughing." I grumbled at Abby.


    My reapers gently lowered the crate nearby where I would be able to see the contents when they opened it.


    "I need five grand." David spoke from behind and moving forward next to the crate and giving it a light kick in interest.


    "We already made a deal." I said bluntly.


    "Huh? Oh, no, not that, to start Miss Sait¨­''s project. Though I am curious to see what''s in there after everything that happened. It''s the cargo we were contracted to deliver right?"


    "Yeah right." I said slowly in thought recalling the story of their inexperience that landed them all in the shit.


    "You guys didn''t even scan it to at least make sure it was safe I''m guessing?"


    David shook his head. Abby squinted daggers at him.


    "I got something in the truck, hang on." She trotted off to get the equipment.


    Abby returned at a quick walk with a playful smirk noticing that everyone had suddenly found things to look at that weren''t her walking away. Fiddling with various settings while flicking her eyes up a couple of times to check where she was walking, she placed herself between me and the shipping crate looking down over the item, then put her finger to her chin humming thoughtfully for a second as she put on a bit of a show about bending at the hips to run her scanner over the box.


    "Looks like some sort of robot, no power signatures so it''s not even on standby."With a heat in her cheeks she turned to look down at me with a playful glint in her eye. "No boom boom, safe to open."


    The girls all snickered audibly at the double meaning, I grinned wickedly.


    "Seriously? Another one?" A certain someone mumbled under his breath as he headed back inside in disgust.


    Needless to say, we all ignored him. At my nod Lilou and Clea they stood to either end of the box, Clea using her right augmented arm, Lilou her left, they simply crushed the ends of the wooden lid on the container then used the open space to leverage it up then off to the side.


    Given recent and current circumstances, I don''t mind telling you I froze and probably shit myself. The two reapers had no such hesitation however, Lilou had the shorter vibrosword hidden in her leg compartment out and ready to sever the robots head in the blink of an eye. Clea pulled a heavy hold out pistol from somewhere that would seriously fuck up anyone''s day and had it pointed at the monstrosity in the box.


    A brand new chinese warbot, designation wolf.


    All four of its thick, boxy black metal legs were folded up into its sides, synthetic muscle fibres bulging from strategically placed relief sections of the armor that were open for transport. The warbot was as long as an average person was tall, there are no rounded edges on the chinese wolves, a mass of angles sharpened to deliver as much death as possible from almost any angle at the slightest touch. The huge blockish shape of the head held two sets of jaws, one for rending flesh, one for clamping down in a vice grip to drag unfortunate souls to god knows where.


    As a group we collectively exhaled the breath we had been holding.


    "Well fuck." Abby said dumbly in shock.


    That was enough to break the tension, the air filled with nervous laughter.


    "Ma?tre, should I..." Lilou made a motion as if to stab the robot through the head.


    I probably should have let her, hell my instincts were screaming to turn the thing into a pile of melting scrap. The soldier in me, like always, won out. I couldn''t recall even the hint of a story about anyone ever having managed to capture a wolf, let alone a brand new factory sealed version. The army intelligence guys would loose their shit over such a find. Unfortunately, I only knew one person I could call out of the blue to both offer up a brand new chinese wolf and not have questions asked about my loyalties or motives... probably. She already hated me, in fact she was very vocal and descriptive about how exactly she had hoped I would die a horrible drawn out death the last time we had spoken.


    I looked at Brianna and smiled apologetically. At that look she immediately knew what I was about to do.


    "Nooo. No, no, no, no, no." She held the bridge of her nose with both hands and squeezed her eyes tight trying to wish my thoughts away.


    "Sorry baby girl. Why don''t you go park the humvee with a clear field of fire to cover this thing and I''ll give her a call."


    Dani gave me a worried sideways glance then seeing I wasn''t about to elaborate followed Bri to get the gossip, the rest of us cleared the area and entered the lower floor of the base. Hopefully Brianna would stay on station in the truck and not just flick on the turret. This was going to be uncomfortable enough as it was without having Bri adding fuel to the fire with her mere presence. With a sigh I made the call.


    "The fuck do you want? Clearly not dead yet I see." The dark haired filipino woman growled as she opened the channel.


    I looked at her furious face with a slack expression, despite the greeting it was good to see her. Hurt like fuck emotionally, but she looked well, so that''s good right? I needed to get this done quickly before she simply hung up so I dove right in.


    "Closer than you might think. Got a wolf, still in its shipping crate. You want it?" Igave my best effort at displaying no emotion.


    Her expression softened considerably at shock with what I had just said, but she was still squinting daggers and probably trying to kill me with her mind or something.


    "Your such a fucking liar." She spat, laughing mirthlessly.


    Unsure if seeing me had made her loose her shit, or if she was referring to the reason for my call, and also... I really didn''t wanna poke this particular bear. So in response I simply plugged in and played back a little of the feed from my neural implant. For bonus sympathy points the wheelchair I was currently in was evident in several frames at the edges of the feed as I looked down at the warbot.


    Veronica fumed in silence at me on the other side of the monitor. Just when I was sure she was about to hang up she responded.


    "Asshole. I''ll be there in five minutes." She disconnected the call.


    I turned from the comm station to see a surprisingly empty room. Nope... hang on. Lilou, Clea, and Abby stuck their heads carefully around the door and looked in.


    "Is it safe to come out?" Abby asked.


    "Ma?tre, who was that?" Clea chimed in, no small amount of concern in her voice.


    "That was the ex-wife." Dani announced smugly, slapping Clea''s ass as she walked past the girls into the room, clearly she had managed to get Brianna to spill the beans.


    "Ahhh" The other three all hummed and nodded as though the universe had just been explained to them and broke up to go about their business.


    Daniela bribed me with a couple of pain pills and a glass of water, I returned the empty glass to see her looking down at me with a raised eyebrow.


    "Spill." She may have gotten the story from Bri, but she wanted to cross reference with my own version apparently.


    I sighed, not seeing anyway out of it.


    "We dated for six months, I proposed, she said yes, we got married." I said, looking up hoping that would be the end of the conversation.


    "Annnnd." she said sweetly, batting her eyelids at me with a cute smile.


    "A week later she found out Bri and I were still sleeping together and she filed for divorce."


    "Why didn''t you end it with Bri, or tell her before getting married?" Dani sat in a nearby seat.


    "It''s stupid, you wont believe me." I grumbled.


    "Try me."


    I looked her in the eyes as I answered, hoping that she would see the idiotic honesty of my words and the loss I felt.


    "It sounds stupid now in hindsight, but honestly, neither option even occurred to me. I mean I joined up when I was sixteen during the war, you know what it''s like, you just hook up whenever with someone, no one even batted an eye if you went bed hopping. We met the day after I was discharged, she chased me, I guess... I just didn''t know the rules of relationship outside of the army."


    Dani pecked my lips with a sympathetic expression. "You want me to tell her I drugged you up and your sleeping?" She asked genuinely. I shook my head in the negative.


    "Good! Because she''s already here!" She said gleefully as she jumped up and wheeled me back into the compound. Okay... maybe she was enjoying this just a little too much.


    Apparently Abby needed to do some ''emergency maintenance'' on her truck and she just simply couldn''t get it done without the help of Lilou and Clea. And of course the particular component that had miraculously failed just happened to be in the perfect vantage point to view the proceedings as they ''worked''.


    As the viper walked she had a hand held out at right angles to her body, giving the middle finger to the humvee I had on over watch in case something happened. Brianna climbed out of the truck glaring daggers and leant back on the car with her arms folded across her chest and a distasteful expression on her face.


    My ex stopped to look down at me in the wheel chair, ignoring both Dani by my side and the two men she had brought with her.


    "Who''d you fuck to get this place? Hope that''s painful." Two bitchy comments in a single breath, she brought her ''A'' game.


    I looked up at her with a lost expression. I hated how things had turned out between us. I nodded mutely.


    "Good." She spun on her heel and looked down into the box. Careful to only bend her neck, not her hips or knees in front of me.


    "This the only one?" She asked with ice in her tone.


    "Only one I''m selling. And I''m only selling on the condition you share everything you find out. I know it when you do." I opened the negotiations.


    "Give them to me." She said with her hands on her hips, not even bothering to turn around.


    "You know operational salvage laws just as well as I do. No."


    She spun and dropped a chit in my lap. I had to force myself not to react when I checked the balance, it was considerably more than I''d make in a year.


    "Which leg you want? Not sure I got anything that will cut it off for you, you bring something we can use?"


    She scowled and threw down another chit.


    "Front or back half? Or maybe your prefer lefty righty?" I asked.


    Her jaw worked in frustration. I knew her tells. No way in hell did she like handing over this sort of cash, especially to me. The fact she hadn''t simply told me to fuck off and left already could only mean she had been ordered to make the deal. So I kept pushing.


    She threw down another chit and glared at me with hate. Meaning she had at least one more left, and if I wanted more than she had she would be leaving empty handed and she knew it. Don''t misunderstand my intentions, I was actually more than happy to hand over the thing for free, if wolves were going to be running around anytime soon then having the army R&D guys going over it with a fine tooth comb could only be a good thing for everybody. Also the money was good, but I was more enjoying the fact that I was finally getting under her skin for change. Sure tit for tat is never a good thing, but honestly it felt... freeing. What could possibly go wrong?


    "hmm." I hummed thoughtfully, teasing out the tension, making no effort to hide the fact I was checking her out as I did so.


    "Leave the head, it would make a nice gift don''t you think?"


    She threw her final chit in my lap. Close to a million in total all said and done, and I had five more just like this one. David was gonna be pissed when he found out.


    "Looks about right." I said checking over the balance of each chit.


    She spun on her heal and at a muttered order the two men behind her loaded up the warbot on the trolley they had arrived with.


    "Don''t forget I want daily reports on your progress." I called out to her retreating back.


    "Fuck you." She answered without so much as glancing back and giving Bri the middle finger again as she left.


    "That wasn''t awkward at all." Abby said as she approached.


    "Ma?tre, you are good, ouis?" Lilou asked


    "I hate that bitch daddy." Brianna grumbled, cuddling into Clea''s side for comfort.


    "I know baby girl, if it''s any consolation though, the bitch just bought you all new gear." I handed the chits over my shoulder to Dani.


    "Holy shit!" She said checking over the balances.


    "Now get going, the lot of you. Thirty grand each. Dani, you can dope me up before you go." Daniela, Brianna, Lilou and Clea all left to get their gear in case they were called to an OP during their shopping trip.


    "I''ll be back in an hour or so." Abby smiled, perhaps a little disappointed.


    "Nope, that includes you. Combat gear though, no new toys. Better take David as well, he needed some stuff for a project."


    I looked around the suddenly very empty compound blinking. Well Shit.


    Dani returned a minute or so later with a giggling apology to get me back upstairs.

 Chapter Eleven

    I had been slowly trudging and walking around under Dani''s direction since week two, the walking was painful but the breathing exercises were the worst. Not because of complications or anything like that, but because I hadn''t been smoking and felt like I was hacking up a lung every half hour or so as they naturally healed from the self inflicted damage, combined with breathing as deeply as I needed to in order to ''help'' (apparently) recover from the broken ribs it was it''s own kind of torture.


    Fifteen minutes ago Daniella had cleared me for light duties, in hindsight I should have realised something was up when she assessed my condition wearing, well, not much at all really. She had walked me around the penthouse as a part of the final assessment, slapping my hands away as I tried to grope her while we walked, the other girls sneaking in when my back was to the entrance. I was now ''conveniently'' in the furthest possible corner of the room from the large bed.


    Four weeks had past and the girls were all getting... impatient. My eyes flicked past Danito the more intriguingaction on the other side of the room.


    "Your all evil." I grumbled from the furthest possible position in the room as I eyed the girls.


    "Ah huh." Dani grinned seductively a few paces to my front, teasing me forward with a come hither motion of a finger.


    My eyes fell upon the enticing beauty that was Abby. Her heritage made her appear as an exotic beauty even though she was Australian born and raised. The darker colour of her skin and facial features was thanks to aboriginal heritage somewhere along the line even if far removed from her current appearance. There were clearly european and asian influences in her genetic makeup as well.


    * * *


    One shot of painkillers and several hours latter I looked over the lightly dozing mass of sweaty intertwined bodies as I sat propped up against the bed head. Knowing Sumiko was keeping an eye on everyone I had taken the opportunity during a quiet moment to ask her about what the girls had been up to during my exile as an essential component of the recovery process. Due to the nature of our various relationships I had expected at least Brianna to temporarily seek the comfort of another to release the pent up frustration. Apparently I''m not the only one that talks to the AI about what''s on their mind, the other girls looked to Sumi as the matriarch of the group by proxy, being the ''girlfriend'' had in the girls eyes naturally granted her that status.


    During our little talk the AI had revealed that ensuring I had an adequate number of sexual partners available was one of the ways she was ''looking out for me'', per her prime directive. That also explained why she was specifically targeting women for the tiger cell. I wasn''t about to complain about the abundance, and after assuring the AI that no, men did not in fact interest me in that way, we moved onto the topic at the top of my mind. Specifically why they weren''t going out on the prowl for men while I was out of action.


    Turns out Sumiko had taken full advantage of the matriarchal position and the AI had used her ''authority'' to my advantage. All in the name of keeping her master safe and happy of course. I saw equipping the girls with updated gear and weapons as a necessity. After all, the better they were at their jobs the more likely we would all survive the engagements. Sumiko had turned that on it''s head in the girls minds. You see tiger cells expected individual operators to provide their own gear, the fact that I had been outfitting the girls was the rare exception rather than the rule. So the AI had gently hinted during their group discussion that their ''preferred'' status may very well be conditional upon remaining both loyal to me personally and the other Draugrs in general, as I could theoretically withdraw the additional funding at anytime.


    To say I was pissed with the AI at the thought of my girls believing they had to prostitute themselves in return for favours would have been an understatement. Although if I really admitted it to myself, my anger was more related to my own self esteem. I much preferred the thought of the girls genuinely enjoying my company rather than them simply being ''paid'' to be there and treating it like a job. But watching the playback of the very open and frank discussion during the impromptu group session had alleviated my fears. None of them were actually looking for a man in their lives, full on relationships were something that rarely worked out for active duty veterans. They were currently having their need for companionship met and that was that. Brianna had initially broached the topic and the other girls quickly and rather openly admitted to Sumi that even though they knew going in that love shouldn''t play a part in our individual relationships, over time they felt an undeniable bond both with myself and the other girls of the cell. The end result was the declaration that maybe it was love, maybe it wasn''t, (the AI admitting she didn''t care either way, I was just being stubborn), but they weren''t going to mess up a good thing by screwing around... unless it was with each other. A sentiment I could wholeheartedly get behind, and a lesson I wish I''d had the foresight to figure out with Veronica, my ex.


    I was still a little unsure if the AI had guided the discussion, but when all was said and done... did it really matter all that much? They had clearly made their decisions individually and of their own free wills with absolutely no coaching from me. And yeah, I definitely felt an affectionate attachment with the five of them as well. So no harm no foul I guess.


    I looked down at the sound of Abby spitting out Clea''s scrunched up panties that had been used as a gag, she looked up at me from her awkward position through her long and messy black hair with a grin. Yep, she was a freak in the sack and adored punishment and rough handling.


    :<< "Draugr One. Acknowledged." Bri suddenly sat bolt upright on the bed and purred out her response sleepily to the groaning of the women around her. No one had gotten much sleep last night. I had assigned her as my second in command, so she was temporary alpha and had all rights to use the call sign, but out of deference to me had refused to do so.


    Less than five minutes later I watched as Daniela hurriedly pulled on her chest armour, she had been leaving me instructions as she dressed. Primary of which was no smoking. She had been returned to active duty now that I needed less intensive care, and with a quick peck on my lips she headed off to join the girls for the impending OP.


    Left to my own devices I drowsily made my way over to freshen up before heading down to the mess hall we had built into the second floor. There were four small private quarters, one large bunk house, separate toilet and shower facilities (with walls and even doors!) and this mess hall on the second floor now. The ground floor was an administration and command/coordination centre. But I doubted we would ever get big enough to need it.


    David was making himself a cup of coffee and drowsily preparing for his own work day as I walked in. Noting the rare occurrence where I didn''t have scantily clad women close to hand, he seized the opportunity of having my undivided attention and began to fill me in on the progress of the microbot factory he had been assembling components for on behalf of Sumiko. I listened in silence, nodding where it seemed appropriate, because quite honestly I had no fucking idea what he was talking about but appreciated his attempt at keeping me in the loop.


    He was talking with a rather animated voice and waving his hands in the air about how the project was assembling like a miniature version of a multilevel factory. His was currently gushing about how it would be an incredible floor display for any corporate office with the microbots being the ''workers'' as they busied themselves with running the factory using painstakingly and accurately miniaturised versions of the full sized equipment. Instead of turning out full sized robots they would be making more microbots for various tasks. Seems David wasn''t yet aware of the AI''s intent of creating a life sized avatar for herself, using the microbots to assemble into one giant bot... sort of like in some of the old anime series I guess. I smirked at the thought of the AI watching animated shows for hints and tips on what to make next... although gotta say, I wouldn''t mind a cute little cat girl in the mix. I let my thoughts become distracted with memories of Luna and old girlfriend. Well okay, technically an old girlfriend of Brianna''s and not mine. She was a reaper that for reasons only known to herself had modeled her upgrades complete with cat ears and tail, cybernetically altering herself into that exact fantasy. Completely bored out of my brain at the droning on of David I had plenty of time to wonder about the idea of somehow dna splicing then cloning cat girls. I eventually dismissed the thought, cloning was prohibitively expensive and banned most everywhere. Not to mention the added complications of trying to find someplace where it was legal not only to grow clones but where it was legal to mix species DNA to clone hybrids. Wonder if that Kitty Kats strip club was still around?


    I lost my train of thought when my pocket vibrated, not that I was focused on anything all that important. The ancient com device letting me know someone was trying to get in touch. Of course only one person had the number, and I only used it because it pissed her off when she couldn''t see who else might be in the room listening in via a standard video link.


    "Your such an ass, use a vidcom like normal people." Veronica grumbled her greeting when I picked up.


    David tried to hide his grin when I connected the call, enjoying the fact that there was out least one woman in my life that didn''t want to jump my bones. The fact that she was my ex-wife was just a bonus. With the daily updates for project wolf being a requirement of our deal, she had at least begrudgingly upgraded our conversations from insults to insults mixed with facts, and we now had some semblance of back and forth between us... sort of.This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.


    "Good morning beautiful." I answered in good spirits.


    "Fuck you."


    "Now, now. You know I''d have to share you with my girls if I let you do that." I winked at David. So I was in good spirits due to having been laid for the first time in a month, sue me.


    Veronica silently stewed on the other side of the line, having set herself up perfectly for the comeback.


    "You''re in a good mood, that pet slut of yours start putting out again?" she finally responded with a bitchy tone, putting two and two together.


    Sensing things were starting to get a little tense David silently excused himself and headed downstairs.


    "Let''s get to business shall we?" I had to swallow my response, I knew from experience things would just devolve to a stream of insults if I didn''t start moving this along. And like most women, she knew which buttons to push for maximum effect. My relationship with Brianna and my girls being primary among them.


    "Techs say you can bring it online if you want." She said matter of factly, and even smugly when I didn''t respond to the bait.


    "Well that''s good news I guess."


    "Yeah, I might get lucky and there could be an active chinese neural link nearby."


    "Meaning?"


    "Dead ex."


    "That''s not exactly abiding by the terms of our agreement, I''d hate to have to cancel the purchase contract." Sure it was a low blow, but she pissed me off with the Bri comment.


    I heard her sigh over the voice link. "Fine. First thing it does when brought online is search for active comm nodes, presumably to get orders. We haven''t been able to crack the encryption, and I doubt we will, so that''s a best guess."


    "Hmm alright, anything else?"


    "It''ll accept basic commands, but only in mandarin, and only if you have an active chinese neural implant. Complicated orders are out, like designating specific targets, but you can set it to patrol between way points and the like. Of course being a chinese manufactured warbot means it''s going to try and kill every active neural link that isn''t chinese."


    I smiled at her slip up, already being on her shit list I didn''t hesitate to point it out.


    "Intelligence just happened to have a mandarin speaking individual on staff with a chinese neural link?" I asked innocently.


    I could hear teeth grinding. "I''ve been ordered to provide full transparency. Apparently my boss doesn''t want you dead as much as I do. Besides, kind of fun knowing you have five more of the things and you can''t do anything with ''em."


    "I can see why you might think that, yes." I said matter of factly. She was right of course, but she didn''t need to know that. Due to my lack of tech knowledge I may have been over simplifying things, but I didn''t see why one couldn''t just rip out and replace the electronic bits, thereby creating a ''friendly'' wolf.


    "Asshole! What did you find out?"


    "I''d like to help out my dear, I really would. But our agreement didn''t specify a two way street. Chat tomorrow, ta-ta!" I replied glibly, cutting off the call as she began an insult riddled response.


    "Sumiiii." I called out to the roof, good mood returning. The AI''s cute asian avatar took over for the morning news feed displaying on the mess halls screen. She was sitting up in bed, copying the girls and wearing a replica of one of my shirts as a nightie, although now I think about it, I think she was the one that actually started that particular trend.


    "Yes master?" She smiled in greeting.


    "Have you done any sort of assessment on the wolves?" It was easy to not get distractedafter the events of last night.


    She pouted at my lack of response and answered with a tilt of her head. "Not really. Other than monitoring them to ensure they don''t activate. I''ve been busy with setting up priorities and indexes for my backups so I don''t ''forget'' things again. Why, did you have something in mind?"


    "I was just chatting with Ver..."


    "I know, I was listening, she really doesn''t like Brianna does she?"


    "That would be an understatement. But she got me thinking. Can''t we just take out all the evil nasty chinese bits and put in good wholesome Aussie bits to replace them?"


    Her eyes focussed on the middle distance as she does when accessing data. "No. That''s not how it... wow, hang on. I believe so. Programming would take a bit of trial and error of course to interface with the hardware, but...yes?"


    "You need any tech help, just hit me up." I drummed to the tune of my words on the table before getting up for another coffee, certain I was getting the biggest eye roll ever at my back.


    "I''ll need to test in a safe environment to verify of course, and there''s the problem on not being able to officially link into the military network, which if we go ahead, would draw far to much attention and set off red flags all over the place, you know for security and stuff." Sumiko finished responding as I sat down again.


    "Does your ''boss'' have access to secured off grid testing nodes?" Of course Sumi didn''t have a boss, or a job. But I wasn''t sure how deep she had decided to go with her cover incase one of the girls went digging for information on my mysterious girlfriend that they never got to meet in the flesh.


    "The what now?" She asked in interest.


    "Well I''m just guessing, but I would assume all new hardware would have to connect to some kind of test network to ensure compatibility and security before being allowed to connect to the live network right?"


    Sumi blinked at me blankly for a few seconds.


    "Did you somehowleech tech knowledge out of the girls last night or what?" She asked with a grin.


    I groaned in pain and held my side as I snorted, it still hurt like hell to laugh.


    "Speaking of which I found a new one." She teased in a girly voice.


    "As much as I appreciate it, lets hold off on anymore recruiting if we can. At least until I''m one hundred percent again."


    "Aww okay you big baby."


    I nodded my head in time with my thoughts for a few moments as I watched the AI, her grin growing larger with each passing second now she had baited the hook. When I''m released from medical leave in three or four weeks time, we would be one over capacity for our hummer. Meaning we would at least need one more vehicle if called on at full strength for an OP. I didn''t fancy the idea of anyone heading into combat on their own, not even Abby and her mole. Even though the rest of us would be close at hand. Though there was always the option of upgrading to a more modern APC as opposed to the quick response Humvee, but that would just be expensive.


    I looked at Sumi, the edges of my lips curling in a grin. I gave in. "Tell me about her."


    The AI clapped excitedly "Yay!" and jumped up on her bed.


    She landed on her feet in a boardroom environment, dressed in her slutty business attire and standing in front of an old fashioned white board with a long wooden pointer, grinning at me over a set of old fashioned reading glasses. Next to her was a slowly rotating life sized hologram of... you guessed it, a random gorgeous woman.


    "This is Brooke Taylor, she is twenty one years old, caucasian, an irish expatriate and a capricorn. She is one hundred and thirty five centimeters tall, weighs fifty three kilograms, has green eyes, shoulder length brown hair and a cup size of thirty four B."


    I shook my head with a smile at the nature of the current ''briefing''. Then a switch turned on a light bulb at the back of my mind as I recognised a common trait between the girls.


    "She is Irish, with a sexy accent?" I asked in interest to confirm my hypothesis.


    "She is." Sumiko grinned at me wickedly.


    "If I didn''t know any better I''d think you were basing your selection criteria on the hotness of their accents." I laughed.


    "That is in fact a desired criteria." She smirked back.


    "Really?"


    "Yes. Research shows that humans find members of the opposite sex that are also of obviously different ethnic origins to be more desirable sexually. Your biological imperative to breed diverse and healthy offspring is ingrained into your natures. Hence why you find accents to be so ''sexy''."


    "Huh, well there you go." I said stunned.


    "Please, save further questions until the end of the presentation." She smirked before continuing.


    "She likes curling up on the sofa with a good book, and prefers the company of a close group of friends in quiet intimate gatherings, as opposed to going out clubbing. She has interest in different fetishes but will only discuss those once she has gotten to know you a little better."


    "How do you dig up this stuff?" I asked in exasperation.


    "Social media. May I continue?" The AI said dryly with a pointed look.


    Yeah okay, I could believe that. People made all sorts of stupid shit about their lives public, yet complained about privacy at the same time. I rolled my finger in the air with an eye roll of my own indicating she should proceed.


    "Now with the important details out of the way, we can get on with the more mundane topics to hand. Arriving in Australia after her birth, and not becoming a naturalised citizen, she is attempting to get a head start on new laws that will be introduced requiring compulsory military service for any individual that has resided in the country for more than five years."


    It made a certain kind of backward sense if I looked at it from this girls point of view. The new laws were more designed to put expatriates of every nationality under a more intensive spotlight to reduce security risks for the general public. At least on the face of it, reading between the lines we were gearing up to kick the Chinese off our continent. By requiring military service it got around the potential civil rights abuses as a result of more intense monitoring under the guise of military recruitment. It was sneaky, in more ways than one, but that''s how politicians worked. This Brooke girl was trying to get ahead of the curve to hopefully gain a more desirable post than simply being stuck somewhere she had no interest in being, intent on making the best of a bad situation.


    Tiger cells could, and often did, recruit anyone. Obviously those individuals had a more mercenary intent to their actions and actively sought out the higher risk/reward type jobs, the benefit to the tiger cell being typically very highly skilled assets at their disposal. I doubted that was Brooke''s case though, she was likely looking to find a group she was comfortable with before the new laws were introduced, it would satisfy the upcoming requirements as military service if she could sign up with a tiger cell before the laws were introduced. That particular loophole was slated to be closed at the same time due to the more lax nature of security checks.


    "I have contacted her on your behalf to discuss her options and find out what, if any skills she may have that could contribute to your effectiveness during operations."


    "And?"


    "Brooke applied for, and was granted, a recreational pilots licence for fixed wing and VTOL aircraft at the age of seventeen. She currently has a total of one hundred seventy two hours flight time logged thanks to civilian employment. She has also shown an interest in, and has demonstrated a high aptitude for ground based operations during my initial interview."


    "Sounds promising, not sure I''d like to throw her in the deep end by taking her into the field without proper training though." I commented.


    "I would suggest she come in for a day or two voluntarily to be assessed by both Brianna and Daniela for suitability in either assault or sniper roles, in addition to your other... more leisurely pursuits. But I would highly recommend we arrange for her to be approved for the aerial dispersal of munitions on her civilian licence. Other training would only be to aid in her survivability should she be forced to... exit the aircraft during flight."


    "I agree with the first point, but I don''t have an assault boat or anything like it in my back pocket at the moment."


    "I have had some initial discussions with Abby in relation to that, and there are some promising options."


    "Yeah alright, get her to come in for a chat." I couldn''t help but grin in anticipation.

 Chapter Twelve

    The following day Brooke had shown up as arranged, but that''s not the interesting news. I had been watching her ass bounce as she sent rounds downrange with the sniper rifle under Dani''s guidance when I had a rather unusual call from Tac. 1. And now there was a cypher agent was waiting at the gate of the compound and requesting an audience.


    I had Clea escort him to the impromptu range we had setup in the compound, the cypher raised his eyebrow at me once introductions had been made.


    "Well done." he commented with a sly grin in relation to the collection of women currently surrounding me.


    "Military or corporate? Not really looking for private jobs." I ignored the good natured ribbing and instead both asked and stated the obvious to avoid any confusion.


    "Military, but... ahh" he gave a pointed look at Brooke standing slightly behind the crowd not yet sure of her status within the pecking order, but she was being attentive.


    "Oh, ahhh, I could have a crack at breaking it down again if you like?" She asked in her lilting accent, referring to the rifle she had been using.


    "Good," The cypher nodded, "shall we?" I couldn''t help but wonder if how to be obnoxiously arrogant was an elective for all cyphers.


    I didn''t bother asking how he had known Brooke wasn''t an official member of the team, or how he knew her by sight. It was all there on the ringer database, he likely would have just sprouted some bullshit about it anyway if I had bothered asking. I led him into a small conference room on the first floor, we very rarely had gatherings here but it was nice to have a briefing room set up if the need should ever arise, such as today.


    Once we had taken our seats he stepped to the head of the table. Other than cypher, he hadn''t offered a name, and I didn''t bother asking.


    "Needless to say what we are about to discuss here should not leave this room." To reinforce his point he placed a bug checker on the table and activated it, waited for several seconds for the device to register the all clear then proceeded.


    "I have come to you with both an offer and a question all nicely rolled up into a little inseparable ball."


    "Is there any other way with you lot?" I said dryly.


    Ignoring my interruption he continued. "I am unable to discuss the specifics until I have your agreement that you will proceed with the operation, but I can share with you a little background to demonstrate why we are offering this operation to you before putting it out to tender."


    I squinted my eyes in suspicion at the cypher, this was beginning to sound more private than government, if it was a planned operation then regular army should be their go to crew, but I allowed him to continue. I could at least hear the guy out.


    The cypher ignored me for the moment and instead made eye contact with each of the women in the room. "You are being contacted in part due to your alpha''s history with the SAS, primarily due to his participation in Operation Wolf Bane."


    It was like someone had hit a magic silence button, you could hear a pin drop. The girls all looked to me with slack jaws, I didn''t talk much about my time during the war, mostly because I couldn''t, legally speaking. Not even Brianna was aware of my operational history, she just knew that I was a blade. Operation Wolf Bane was probably the most public secret of the war. We were the crazies that had actually volunteered to actively hunt down the wolf warbots when they had first appeared on the battlefields to get as much intel as possible on how to neutralise or kill them effectively. Problem was, when cornered they self destructed, which explains why I had been able to get such a high price for the single unit I had passed on. Brianna wrapped an arm around my shoulder and snuggled her head into my shoulder in comfort.


    "The second reason is due to the recent operation the Draugrs participated in that resulted in the first successful capture of a complete wolf, and the conditions of the sale contract meaning that you are already briefed on the technical details." He looked around the room, making sure to yet again make eye contact with everyone around the table, the weight of his words sinking in and allowing us to make our own assumptions on where this was heading.


    "Third, due to some very firmly worded complaints against your Alpha from a Miss Veronica Stanton..." He waited for the groans in the room to die down at the mention of my ex-wife. "...in relation to possible abuses of authority, specifically..."


    "Are you fucking kidding me! That bitch!" Brianna all but shouted, she slammed the table and fumed in her chair, the cypher the only valid target for her fury. He handled it quite well, but spoke more quickly never the less.


    "... acquiring an unusually high number of female operatives we naturally took a closer look. Rest assured Miss Garcia that we found the accusations to be baseless, and Miss Stanton, given her former relationship with your alpha, has been counselled and sanctioned accordingly."


    "She fucking well better have been." Bri ground out menacingly through her teeth.


    "Indeed. In fact the only reason she remains as your point of contact is because it would take to long to bring someone else up to speed in the time frame available. Which brings me to the balance of the third reason, if I may continue?" At a nod of agreement from Bri that she was satisfied he did just that.


    "Our review of Draugr cell in response to these complaints showed that your alpha has an almost singular ability to maintain both discipline and moral in a predominantly female tactical group despite other... interpersonal issues that might typically result in a high incident of transfer requests for shall we say... personal reasons."


    That calmed Bri right down, she smirked playfully at the cypher and his description, falling back on her submissive little girl personality. The other girls either watched on with interest or shared embarrassed looks at the knowledge that our little harem was gaining attention and being unofficially labelled as such.


    "And so we come to the fourth part. This would be a condition of you accepting the contract."


    I raised my eyebrows not sure I was liking the fact he was already trying to tack on conditions and we hadn''t even gotten to the actual briefing yet, but I didn''t otherwise react so the cypher continued with the briefing.


    "As I''m sure you''re all aware, our political relationship with Israel has become somewhat strained recently."


    I frowned at the cypher, what the fuck current geopolitical events had to do with me and my girls was beyond my understanding. Unless he had a very unreasonably high opinion of our little group and thought we could single-handedly invade the country, his statement was ludicrous. Penny in the air...


    "We have been working with a detachment from the wildcats, an all female Israeli unit that specialises in surveillance and reconnaissance, specifically they have been tasked with tracking down leads in relation to recent events surrounding the local deployment of wolf warbots under terrorist control. Unfortunately they have been recalled, but they have as a unit, requested permission to stay and see the operation to a successful conclusion."


    ... and the penny drops.


    "You want to assign them to a tiger cell so they can continue the operation." I stated, drawing the only conclusion I could from the information to hand.


    ><# Ohhh I''ll bet your just loving this.


    Sumi teased into my head, drawing the same conclusion I had. I really wanted to know what role she had played in landing this in my lap but couldn''t question her about it just at the moment.The author''s narrative has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.


    "Correct. And you seem uniquely qualified as an alpha to... handle them... that is, their integration as a result of our current situation."


    I sighed and rubbed the bridge of my nose, I simply didn''t have the funds for this, well actually I did, but it would send me broke. I wasn''t about to send anyone into the field in subpar equipment. And yes, that was in fact my first thought in case you are wondering. Okay... maybe the second, perhaps third... but it''s too close to call.


    I looked up to all the girls giving me smirking knowing looks, it wasn''t hard for them to guess what was on my mind.


    "How many? And just so you know, adding however many unknown randoms to my roster, if I agree, will come at its own and separately negotiated upfront cost."


    "Well at least you haven''t outright declined, ten in total."


    "All female?"


    "Yes." Even the cypher grinned at my question, one or two of the girls openly giggled.


    "English speaking?" AI translators were available, but even a few seconds delay in the field could lead to deaths, and I''d like to avoid that if at all possible.


    "Yes."


    "How long will they be signing on for after the trial period?"


    "That''s between you and them. If you agree I''m going straight from here to witness the surrender of their Israeli passports, followed immediately by the signing of their Australian citizenship documents." Australia was one of the very few democratic countries left in the world that worked on a visa system and didn''t allow dual citizenships.


    "Anything else I need to know?"


    "Three things. First is the most obvious, any trial period will be open ended to cover operational requirements. Second, in recognition of the... potential disruption to Draugr cell, the women in particular, they will be signing up complete with combat gear and equipment for their role and a new model Spearhead armoured personnel carrier."


    Abby whistled at that approvingly. "What happens to the APC when the job''s done?"


    "It will be signed over to Draugr cell immediately if your alpha accepts, but it will be reserved for special operations for the duration. Which leads me in nicely to the final condition."


    "Okay..." conditions and sub conditions and fuck this, I felt like changing my answer to no.


    "The wildcats will be stationed here, but not under your direct command, unless in an operational environment that happens to coincide with the job at hand."


    "How''s that going to work?" I asked, suddenly realising that being signed on as ringers would mean taking ringer assignments that could take them away from the primary mission, and the very reason for them being assigned to Draugr cell in the first place.


    "We''ll be bending the typical rules for ringer sign ups, and rather than individually, they''ll be signing on as a complete mercenary company, call sign Wildcat. Think... subcontractor. Wildcat will be seconded to Draugr permanently under a special operations flag."


    "Never heard of that before, but okay. What happens if they go bat shit crazy and decide to start taking out civies or other stupid crap? Not being within my chain of command, per our agreement, I could hardly be held liable for any damages and the like." And that was about as much legalise as I spoke, and a valid concern in my opinion.


    "And any contracts will have wording to that effect."


    "Alright, give us a few minutes." I nodded sideways at the door in dismissal. The cypher looked a little put out at the request but complied.


    The girls turned thoughtful expressions my direction as the door closed.


    "Opinions?" I asked.


    "That Spearhead''s worth half a mil'' on it''s own if your looking at it from that point of view." Abby spoke up first, perhaps a little excitedly at the prospect of getting her hands on a new toy.


    "You better not neglect us with all the new girls." Brianna pouted, apparently in the middle of deciding if she should throw a tantrum or not.


    The girls all flashed their eyes and nodded in agreement, the though hadn''t occurred to them. Hmm, it hadn''t occurred to me either, have to be careful about that. Assuming of course things went the way they had to date with the wildcats being added to the... group. Okay fine, harem, I said it. They settled down when I hugged Bri close and kissed the top of her head swearing that wouldn''t be the case.Being honest with myself I was having a hard enough time balancing the girls I currently had with my recovery and the day to day operations of the cell. Private time was essentially non existent as it was.


    "On the face of it, I don''t see how it will make any real difference to how we do things now, other than a whole lot of new faces. Looks like it''s not really going to effect us one way or the other until their mission is done anyway." Daniela added her two cents.


    "I agree with Dani ma?tre, and Bri." Lilou spoke up with a sly look.


    "As do I ma?tre." Clea agreed with her sisters assessment, nodding at Bri in recognition of bringing up an important point.


    "I''m good either way boss man, so long as I getso long as I get my fair share of... your time, then I''m good." Abby replied nonchalantly.


    "So conditionally on my... responsibilities taking priority, it''s a go?" I asked looking around the table and receiving nods in return. This was one of the reasons the girls were so happy with our arrangement. They knew I valued their opinions and feedback, unlike most other cells, Draugr was a democracy on the big things that might effect us all.


    I headed out of the small briefing room, the cypher was sitting at the unused reception desk across the hall, at some point David had come looking to see where we had all gotten to and was chatting with the cypher while they waited. When the door opened he turned, pausing his conversation and looked to me with a raised eyebrow.


    "Good to go." I nodded at him.


    "Excellent!" He jumped up and smiled like a smarmy used car salesman, quickly opening a comm channel with a finger to his ear as he turned and walked towards the exit.


    I followed at a discrete distance with the girls in a line behind me, it wasn''t out of respect or to give him his privacy, I was hobbling along like an old man and hunched over, my body telling me it was time for a break. Just one more thing to do though.


    "David might even get lucky." Brianna teased, just loud enough for him to hear with a comment to Clea.


    "Boss, you know there''s a strange girl with a very big gun in the yard right?" He squinted at Bri suspiciously but otherwise ignored her comment.


    "Yup. On my way there now. You might wanna freshen up a bit." I smirked at him, giving him the once over. Bri and Clea snorted playfully at him as we passed.


    The cypher spun in the doorway of the side exit to the garage. "I''ll leave you to it and see you by days end with the wildcats."


    He gave a tip of his hat in mock salute and headed to the waiting aircar just outside the compound. I had second thoughts as I was starting to wince in pain, I had been on my feet for around two hours now. I asked Dani to collect Brooke and bring her into the recently vacated briefing room, indicating Brianna should follow. The other girls went about... well whatever it was they did during downtime when they weren''t trying to drag me away to a dark corner.


    Brianna was being overly affectionate and doting when Dani returned with Brooke, arm in arm as they chatted quietly like old friends. The girls looked at me as they entered and shared a look before snickering at some unknown joke and sat on the other side of the table.


    "First impressions?" I asked, wanting to get this over with quickly to down some painkillers and take a snooze.


    "I''m still keen so far. I''ve checked out a couple of other cells and you guys are the first to actually let me get some hands on time with gear. Well, out of the ones that even bothered talking to me that is."


    I nodded, I didn''t have any first hand experience of course but I imagine not having any actual military experience would put her on the bottom of the list for recruitment, not to mention she was a tiny cute little thing. Wouldn''t exactly inspire confidence in her abilities.


    "Dani if your happy enough I''d like to have Brianna continue on." At Dani''s nod I turned to Brooke.


    "Rather than a couple of days, I''d like to try and sort you out by the end of the day, somethings come up and I''m not sure if we''ll have the time."


    Brooke gave me a funny look. "I''d love it if you could sort me out by the end of the day." The corner of her lips pulled up in a grin.


    Dani snorted and ribbed her with an elbow in amusement. I flicked my eyes between the girls with a grin of my own, clearly Dani had been ''assessing'' the new girl for compatibility with our core groups sensibilities. She seemed to be passing with flying colours.


    "If Bri''s happy enough I''d like to sign you on, but to be honest I''m not to keen on having you participate in OP''s without training. So how do you feel about getting your accreditation for aerial munitions dispersal?"


    "Oh. I''ve been saving, but I can''t afford that." She took on a despondent look, glancing down at the table as she answered expecting another outright rejection.


    "But your willing right? Sign a return service obligation for say three years and I got you covered." I still had plenty left over from the sale of the wolf so it was no biggie. That and having her sign up but flagged as role training would mean we were covered in not having her assigned to an OP until she was ready, no point breaking my toys before I got to play with them right?


    I tended to treat cash as fun coupons anyway, so long as I could work as a ringer I would always have at least a (barely) livable income to fall back on. Sumiko had been the one to point out I should start to specify minimum sign on periods if I was going to insist on throwing thousands at random hot women the second I met them.


    Brooke''s eyes flicked up at me in surprise at the offer. She looked at Dani sitting next to her as if to confirm what she had just heard, receiving an eyebrow wiggle, a cheeky grin and an ''I told you so'' look in response, she turned to me nodding in agreement.


    "Absolutely! What ever you need." She beamed a smile at the good news.


    With that decided I got up from the table and pushed my luck a little to see how the new girl might react to any future advances.


    "Dani, drugs and a quickie, I need a snooze before the wildcats show up."


    "Oh... I could..." Brooke stuttered out, she flicked her eyes up to mine with flushed cheeks when she realised the room was silent and everyone was looking at her.


    Needless to say it was only about half an hour later I drifted off to sleep in contentment as Brooke tip toed from the room with a big stupid grin planted firmly on her face.

 Chapter Thirteen

    Abby apparently hadn''t been idle as I dozed away until mid afternoon, as soon as she had seen the grin on Brooke''s face it was easy to put two and two together. She had waited to confirm with Brianna that she was at least competent in the use of sidearms then with Dani''s approval (who had claimed the role of financial controller), had taken her massive eight wheeler and spirited the new girl away to help with a pick up.


    I was sitting at a bench in the garage workshop, the large roll up doors half open out to the compound as I awaited their return. I had decided to at least make an attempt at being useful and was stripping down and familiarising myself with the new hold out pistol that called my cybernetic leg home when the unmistakable grumbling of the big twenty cylinder engine echoed down the street, bouncing off the facades of the blocky factory buildings nearby and rattling windows in their frames as though warning of an apocalypse, announcing their impending return from some distance away.


    Abby swore in disgust as she shut down the big trucks engine, jumping down and climbing around underneath the engine compartment behind the cab without even a glance my direction. She''d probably just blown another exhaust manifold if the noise was anything to go by, why she had decided to both turbo and supercharge a truck that was already blown and could tow just about anything you cared to think of in its standard configuration was beyond me.


    Brooke was a little slower at climbing down from the cab, clearly not used to the higher ground clearance of military vehicles. As soon as her feet touched the ground she waived excitedly at me over her head then quickly spun back around, jogging along the side of the truck before climbing up onto the flat bed to make sure her new baby hadn''t been damaged in transit.


    The Harbin light VTOL gunship had clearly seen better days, it looked absolutely garish in the gold and blue livery of its previous corporate owner. There was a pod tied down to the front of the trucks tray in similar colours, which I assumed to be the simulator cross drone cockpit that would allow remote operations without requiring the pilot to be on board. At a cost of eighty thousand for both the gunship and the pod it was apparently a steal. Dani had assured me it was still airworthy, combat ready, and had all the armaments (less munitions) that Brooke would need access to for her accreditation.


    The gunship was sleek, tiny, and lightly armoured. Sporting a chin mounted 30mm single barrel electrically driven chain gun for the main armament, and two pods slung under each wing containing fifteen 70mm FFAR rockets each. The rockets packed a punch but where unguided, meaning the pilot would need to point the gunship at the target. At the end of each stubby wing were the pivoting engines that provided both thrust and lift.


    Perhaps because the Harbin''s were unforgiving of mistakes when being flown, the pilot sat in a completely enclosed and sealed off armoured cockpit located in the center of the hull with access via a rear ramp. If forced to eject the little gunship basically disintegrated around the cockpit. In a pinch, if the pilot didn''t mind a bit of climbing and swearing to reach the controls, you could throw in a square meter or two of cargo, or perhaps use it in emergencies for the dust off of injured personnel. Which wasn''t really that surprising, at least to me, the thing was small enough to look like a heavy drone that someone had decided to throw a blind cockpit on to see what would happen.


    None of that seemed to dampen Brooke''s enthusiasm though, seeing us looking up into the rear ramp for the pilots access via one of the viewing screens in the cockpit she spun the seat around.


    "It''s still smells brand new in here! They must have only ever done remote ops." She grinned like a fool.


    She walked down the short ramp and stood looking down at Dani and I before sitting and opening her legs trying to drag me in for a cuddle with her booted feet. "I can''t believe you spent this much money... thank you."


    With a barely pecked kiss on my forehead she was up again and heading forward to check out the pod.


    "Looks like you made a friend for life." Abby waddled out from under the truck and pulled open the access to get the lifting drones she had left behind prepped to clear the load.


    "Wait until she..."


    Brooke slammed the door of the pod closed and ran to the side of the truck, bent over double and dry retching the whole way.


    "Oh she found it."


    "Huh?"


    "They didn''t empty the bio bags when they took it offline, and one of ''em split." She grinned.


    The three of us couldn''t help but share a chuckle at the young girls misfortune, ''cause we sure as shit weren''t cleaning it up. Bio bags were used for human waste during long ops.


    "It smells like someone died in there." She wailed to no one in particular still trying not to loose her lunch.


    "Not it." Bri smirked as she headed over with a tab'' in hand, passing it to me.


    Brianna had always liked to draw and doodle, I''d even gotten her a genuine paper art book as a gift once that she only used on rare occasions. I looked at her most recent masterpiece, a half human half tiger skull split vertically down the middle. At first I thought it was a tribal sort of design in the details, looking closer I had to actually zoom in to pick out the figures of women in various states of undress that made up the shapes of the hybrid skull. It was incredible work, the various open robes or discarded clothing looking like the flesh of the creature peeling away, between its teeth was clamped a red rose, on the forehead in raised bone was a winged dagger reminiscent of the SAS emblem.


    "Woah." Daniela looked over my shoulder sounding suitably impressed with the talent on display.


    Brianna smiled at the compliment and swept her finger across the screen. "It''s either that or this one."


    The new image was similar to the first, women in various states of undress forming the shape of the incredibly detailed skull, the loose and discarded clothing looking like skin flaking away from the beast, the same bone shape of the winged dagger in the center of the forehead and the red rose in its teeth. Only difference being this one was all tiger skull.


    "For what?" Dani asked as I simply admired Brianna''s art. She was certainly talented.


    Bri rocked forward on the balls of her feet with a grin and slid her finger across the screen once again. This time we were looking at a simulated unit patch design, the tiger skull version being chosen, clearly Bri''s favourite. Draugr was in a half circle above, in slightly larger letters than the word Wildcats in a half circle below.


    "Eight wildcats and their two vehicle crew, plus the seven of us, going by the stupid grin Brooke had after her ''interview''..." She hip checked me with a sly grin before continuing. "... we qualify for a unit patch now, amongst other things, what do you think?"


    "I love it." Dani said approvingly.


    "Absolutely baby girl, it''s awesome. Thank you." I leant down and pulled her in for a gentle hug, careful not to stress my ribs to much.


    "So I can submit?" She said with a happy, hopeful smile.


    "You better." I grinned at her. She skipped off to the mostly unused administration ground floor to get the paperwork underway, stopping briefly to show off her work to Brooke as she passed.


    "Alpha Gil huh? Congratulations, but I thought with me there were only seven of us?" Brooke enquired as she approached.


    With a mock look of surprise and sheepish grin Dani batted her eyelids at me, she had already done the math and was just waiting for me to figure it out for myself. Once a tiger cell hit ten members, (and we had just hit seventeen in one foul swoop), the Alpha was given an actual officers commission in the military. Alpha Gil. Primarily meaning that during combined OP''s regular army units would actually do what they were told rather than conveniently having comm issues or a conflict of orders if asked to do something they didn''t like. The rank was below even Lieutenant, so pretty much on the bottom rung so far as officers went, but the rank still held the full authority of a military commission. There were other little perks and responsibilities that came with the job as well of course.


    "Ah... yeah. I guess? Thanks." I said a little stunned, realising that my own little world of being responsible only to my girls was crumbling down around me. Although, nothing has really changed I guess? I hope. This was new territory for me.


    "Aww don''t be like that." Dani cooed, gently pushing the small of my back to guide me inside, Brooke walking with us nearby.


    "Oi!" Abby called out as we walked.


    "Where you think your going fly girl?" She dropped the gunships remote pod by a fire hose.This book was originally published on Royal Road. Check it out there for the real experience.


    "Pod ain''t gonna clean itself." She grinned.


    Brooke put on a sad frown and slumped her shoulders before trudging over to the happily grinning spanner.


    :// Ahh shalom, Alpha?


    A voice I didn''t recognise called over the Draugr comm network. I wouldn''t call the accent sexy, more... intriguing.


    The girls in the compound all stopped what they were doing to look at me with little frowns or a shrug of their shoulders.


    :\\ This is Draugr Alpha, please identify.


    I think it was the first time I had actually maintained some semblance of a standard comm syntax on our private channel. This was unusual to say the least.


    :// Oh. I''m Wildcat Alpha.


    Her voice was a little distorted with the electronic spin that encryption put on long distance voice comms.


    :\\ Hey there, sounds like you girls are all sorted, you on your way in for a meet and greet?


    :// Yes. No. We were. We have been called out to monitor an exchange and will be several hours behind schedule as a result. I thought you would like to know.


    :\\ No worries, thanks for the heads up. Look forward to meeting you all then.


    :// As are we Alpha. Talk soon, lehitra''ot.


    "Sounded like the poor girl didn''t know if she was coming or going. Was that hebrew or arabic?" Brianna asked as we joined her inside, she was busily dragging around and clumping various monitors and screens together... just because she could I guess.


    It was a fair question, the world was definitely a multilingual environment, just amongst the Draugrs we had the girls randomly throwing in french, spanish and a latino/portuguese mix when they either lost their shit or were being amorous. I was picking up a little as we spent time together but I would never be fluent.


    "Shalom is hebrew, so my vote is that. Also, I just have that effect on women." I said sitting down with a chuckle.


    Brianna rolled her eyes but rather than respond, ran around behind the screens she was messing with, cables running everywhere in a haphazard and hardly safe manner. Daniela and I shared a few looks wondering what she was up to but mostly just watched in silence. Standing with a satisfied smile she leaned back and hollered up at the roof.


    "Clea, Lilou, get your sexy butts down here. Now!"


    "On our way my love." Clea called out from a couple of rooms down. Her english was definitely improving.


    Brianna looked at me as if to say hurry up, I looked back at her blankly as Clea entered the room, pulling down one of my shirts over her head. Lilou trailing behind her sister with a blissful expression to her features.


    "Oh great Alpha Daddy Gil of the Draugr Wildcat Harem! Mighty commander of beautiful and exotic women! Please bless us with your insight on this most joyous of days!" She put on a really over the top preachy tone to her voice, providing a rather theatrical display, bowing and groveling as she did so.


    With a chuckle and a grin I understood her meaning. I closed my eyes to focus, hadn''t done this before so could be interesting. I mentally scrolled through the cell roster, and as I came across the names I didn''t recognise I used the authority of my newly granted promotion to transfer a direct visual feed from the wildcats HUD''s, one to each screen that Bri had setup. I collated and assembled the feeds, setting the status to active before opening my eyes to see the results.


    Immediately a newly familiar voice asked over the comms.


    :// Alpha, is that you watching?


    * * *


    Anika couldn''t help but wonder if they had done the right thing. Regardless of wether or not the rest of her team had agreed, she had been the one to voice the thought that was on everyone''s mind, it was her weight to bear. She was proud of her team and all they had accomplished, she was also proud of her homeland, Israel, but things could be so much better. She would be fooling herself if she didn''t think the conditions at home were a big part of the reason why her team had so readily agreed to denounce their heritage, their families, their lives... to stay here in Australia. The freedoms enjoyed in this country were something worth fighting for, not because they had been ordered to, and not because they felt a sense of obligation, it was the right thing to do, it meant something. She had never felt that for her own country.


    Her saba had told her stories when she was young about the freedoms enjoyed in her homeland, it didn''t sound so very different from here. But that''s all they were, stories. It was so hard to think that everyday life could have been so very different there. Saba had also told her exactly when things started to go wrong, Israel relied on America as an ally heavily in the old days. When the super power died, so had Israel''s hopes. They had been beset upon from all sides, their enemies intent upon dividing the country amongst themselves. It was a long, hard, bloody, and terrible war that exacted a horrible price. But they had won, and then closed their borders, turning their backs on the outside world. Over time their government had become bitter with the international community for not coming to their aid and drifted down the path of totalitarianism. Complete obedience to the state was demanded in the name of survival, with the closing of the borders it was perhaps natural that over time entry conditions were tightened to the point where it was a very rare day indeed where a non citizen entered the country.


    As wildcats her team regularly patrolled outside of Israels borders, tracking down, keeping an eye on, and occasionally neutralising threats before they could materialise. They had potentially saved the lives of thousands upon thousands of innocents. With her team having a demonstrated track record of actually returning home and not simply melting into the night to flee the oppression, she had been asked to lead her team in an exchange program with a foreign power. Although ''foreign power'' may have been taking it a little far, it was a corporate backed assignment which was perhaps the only reason it had been approved.


    Back home they had been tasked primarily with surveilling PLO and PRC threats that had persisted for over one hundred years, recently there had been a significant spike in the quality of arms at their disposal. They had started fielding advanced chinese weapons systems, such as the wolf warbots. Anika and her wildcats had been sent to Australia to determine if the supply channels might be interrelated. The wildcats had been in country now for close to nine months, long enough to feel a little homesick, but also long enough to feel right at home and welcome the freedoms of their new normal with open arms. Then two days ago, without explanation, they had been ordered to return home.


    As soon as Anika had told their cypher liaison of their orders, and their intention to remain regardless, a game of political hot potato had begun. She didn''t much like the end result of her team being reduced to a mercenary company, but she could understand the reasoning behind the decision. The Australian government could not of course be seen to be supporting their decision so it had quickly been decided they would join an existing ''ringer'' group, tiger cells they were called. The very idea that the crazy Australian''s had managed to somehow setup an established system that enabled them to respond with significant tactical force on the fly to almost any threat within minutes was something that she was finding hard to wrap her head around. Apparently it was a common occurrence where these teams had never even trained or worked together previously, at least in the case of standard ringer teams. Simply amazing.


    But their cypher contact, true to his word, had done the best for them that he possibly could in the time frame available. The wildcats would at least be placed under the command of someone that knew what they were doing, a former special forces operative if she understood correctly. He also had first hand experience with wolves, Anika was looking forward to exchanging notes. The Alpha was someone that in the cypher''s words, was uniquely qualified to ease their transition and accommodate their desires both during and after the transfer... Anika wasn''t sure what he had meant by that part about desires. Sure the girls on her team (herself included), had all been... frustrated of late, surely he didn''t mean... but that should be the furthest thing from her mind at the moment, she needed to focus. They had just picked up their new Spearhead APC, apparently their new commander was connected, and she had to admit she was impressed. Oh crap, speaking of which.


    :\\ Ahh shalom, alpha?


    Anika hoped she wasn''t making a fool of herself, she had been told that her new commander wasn''t very strict on comm protocol over the private tiger cell network that the Wildcats now had access to.


    :// This is Draugr Alpha, please identify.


    The sound of his voice made her heart skip a beat, she could listen to that deep gravely tone for hours and never get bored. But here she was, three words in to their first meeting and she already felt foolish at his formal response.


    :\\ Oh. I''m wildcat alpha.


    Now flustered, her voice worked of its own accord. You never left a comm request unanswered unless you were in combat and she had simply replied without thinking. Heat rose to her cheeks in embarrassment at how she was handling herself.


    :// Hey there, sounds like you girls are all sorted, you on your way in for a meet and greet?


    Anika melted at his cool response. Then suddenly remembered that everyone from tiger cell Draugr could hear her being an idiot, including the Wildcat team she commanded. She flicked her eyes up to her second, Neta. She currently had her nose scrunched up and was biting her lower lip in sympathy, knowing exactly what was running through Anika''s mind at the gravely voice over the comms, their new Alpha.


    :\\ Yes. No. We were. We have been called out to monitor an exchange and will be several hours behind schedule as a result. I thought you would like to know.


    Anika covered her face with her hands in embarrassment. She opened her fingers to peer at Neta who, as soldiers were want to do, currently had on her best orgasm face and was pushing her index finger through the hole of her clenched fist and nodding faster as she picked up the pace. The other girls in the squad quickly picked up their own individual rendition of obscene sexual innuendo and gestures. Adding heat to the flame in Anika''s blushing face.


    :// No worries, thanks for the heads up. Look forward to meeting you all then.


    At his response some of the women in the APC nodded with raised eyebrows and frowns of thought as they tried to picture the man behind the sultry tones in their heads. But all froze their ridiculous hand gestures and looked to Anika, waiting to see how she might embarrass herself this time.


    :\\ As are we Alpha. Talk soon, lehitra''ot.


    Apparently she did good, because there were only a few teasing looks as the wildcats returned their attention to checking over their new gear. She had to admit she felt a little thrill at calling the guy Alpha, hopefully he wouldn''t be a balding forty year old fat guy. Anika let out a long sigh to release the stress and embarrassment of the brief conversation. She wondered if her and the girls were just in sexual overdrive due to the segregation on base. The Australian''s had separated the wildcats from the general population because it most definitely was not common place for men and women to share facilities in Israel, unlike here. At least back home they had been able to leave the barracks to find a release for their pent up frustrations, but other than mingling with the opposite sex when on duty they had little time to encourage the attentions of the local men.


    Anika didn''t think she had dozed off, but she couldn''t be certain, the seats of the spearhead were new but they were far from comfortable. She flicked open her eyes to see Neta leaning over her and gently shaking her shoulder as she tapped the side of her head, indicating that someone was watching. Anika frowned, wondering who it might be, then opened up the Draugr channel, it could really only be him, her Alpha.


    :\\ Alpha, is that you watching?


    She asked, her lips suddenly feeling very dry.


    :// It is. I thought I might check you out, you and the other wildcats. I''m impressed.


    Anika didn''t know what swooning was exactly, but she was pretty sure she was doing it now.

 Chapter Fourteen

    :\\ It is. I thought I might check you out, you and the other wildcats. I''m impressed.


    I looked at the different monitors, checking out the new girls of team Wildcat. Hopefully their Alpha, Anika if the roster was correct, didn''t pick up on the fact I actually was checking them out, and not in the modest sense of the word.


    They all wore similar armour, that looked to be just as new as the interior of the spearhead in which they were travelling. The cypher that had brokered the deal had clearly pulled all the stops in gearing up the girls. The armour could easily be mistaken for cybernetic enhancements, the only reason I had to believe that wasn''t the case is because except for the vehicle crew and the lone reaper of the group they were dressed identically.


    The armour was a uniform dark grey colour, each girl wearing a skin tight body suit beneath, likely a lighter version of the synth skin armour the french girls had been wearing when first recruited. The combat boots were bulky but wrapped around their legs with interlocking plates up to the middle of their upper thighs. They dark grey torso armour looked to be one piece, but had to be made of a different material from the lower half. It was designed like a very high cut one piece swimming suit, revealing very shapely hips and the curvy bits of the girls hugged tight in the black synth skin under armour. I''d hate to think of the chaffing they''d experience if it wasn''t a different material to the... breast armour.


    Their armour all looked to be tailor made to fit as opposed to off the shelf, each breast plate was formed specifically for the bust size and shape of the girl that wore it. The armoured plates secured in place like vests, with vacant areas under the arm pits for ease of movement but also providing back protection. The chest pieces appeared to be sort of like a t-shirt cut, the black synth skin armour ending in a sort of thick collar around their necks with dark grey buckles. I noticed that each individual armour component was identified by either light grey or white stenciled numbers to signify the different owners of the near identical pieces.


    Each soldier wore shoulder pads of the same dark grey that ended mid way down their biceps, armoured gauntlets, again looking like cybernetic enhancements, ending just below the elbows with the black under armour hiding any skin from view. They each wore utility belts that appeared to have a pouch on their right hip, with three or four grenades of different types across their left. A shoulder holster was held in place by what I could only describe as a thick bra strap that created a push up effect for their breast armour. On the strap were several spare magazines for their secondary sidearms.


    Over their right shoulders broad spectrum cameras and comm equipment were mounted for snooping on their targets. Though one of the girls looked to be fitted out with a hacking or splicing rig. On their left shoulders and mounted to retract into special packs on their backs, were small auto targeting and launching heat seeking anti personnel missile launchers in case the bad guys got a little to close for comfort. The small missiles were deadly in close quarters, but they were single use, typically only had five ''rounds'' loaded and were all but impossible to reload in the field. Still, they are a perfect backup weapons system that was completely automated.


    For a personal weapon each soldier was armed with a currently long barrelled adaptive combat rifle. ACR''s were a good all round choice for recon and surveillance units, components could be stripped or added within seconds in the field to give you anything from a stubby automatic close quarters assault rifle to a long barreled single shot sniper rifle. Each member of the wildcat team looked to have a pack sitting in the small of their backs with just the equipment needed to swap out to more specialised equipment quickly to suit the task at hand. Their load out was exceptional, which begged the question... hang on.


    :\\ Anika, are the Wildcats special forces?


    I asked, genuinely not aware, which was a rare thing for me.


    :// Not exactly my Alpha. We are better equipped than most, as we are very self reliant and typically spend a lot of time away from support when in the field so I can understand your confusion.


    :\\ Your Alpha huh? I could get used to that.


    I took a punt and gently teased the Wildcat lead. Which was apparently right on the money as I watched the live feeds of the girls on the team dishing out good-natured ribbings to their own Alpha in response.


    "Daddy." Brianna grumbled out a warning from my side, reminding me of her earlier concerns about the potential for not providing the appropriate level of maintenance to my current girls.


    :\\ What are your ACR''s chambered for?


    I asked, quickly changing the topic with the first thing that popped into my head.


    :// Seven point six two caseless. Can''t carry as much ammo as five five six, but if we end up bogged down in an engagement we fucked up somewhere along the line which makes the point moot.


    :\\ Good choice, if the bad guys hide behind a tree, just shoot the tree.


    I nodded in approval. The heavier hitting rounds would easily penetrate most trees, there was no such thing as old growth forest anymore. The ammunition would even give most walls a run for their money if enough rounds were put to the task.


    :\\ Looks like your nearly at the edge of the hot zone so I''ll shut up now. Hope you don''t mind me looking over your shoulder?


    :// Of course not my Alpha.


    Anika responded a little shakily but with a smile in her voice.


    I didn''t know it at the time, but Anika did mind, very much so in fact. She was afraid of embarrassing herself and falling face first into the dirt as soon as she got out of the spearhead.


    We watched on via the live feed of the neural links as the driver mounted the sidewalk and parked the large armoured vehicle across the doorway of a fifty odd story building preventing access. The crew commander and driver maintained station as the remainder of the wildcat team disembarked and secured the immediate area. I couldn''t help but cringe a little. Typically on ringer assignments the area of operations would be evacuated as the crews were inbound in order to keep the civilian population away from the engagement zone. This not only protected innocents from crossfire but gave the ringers involved certain assurances that only legitimate targets would be in the AO. Of course you still needed to check your fire and couldn''t simply shoot everything that moved, but it certainly eased the stress of having to spot insurgents within a crowd.


    Being primarily a reconnaissance force the Wildcats were not given the same courtesy, civilians were certainly giving the combat team a wide berth, but it was otherwise business as usual. I could understand that the logistics of the situation would make clearing out multiple city zones for a single recon op simply not worth the headaches, but there had to be a better way. I looked around the room at the Draugr girls to see if anyone might have any similar thoughts or comments. They were all watching carefully and frowning in thought but didn''t comment as I caught their eyes.


    Anika strode across the foyer of the building, her ACR currently in the close quarters combat configuration and slung across her front on a three point sling ready for action. With her team in tow sighting down their rifles as they covered all angels in a crouched walk behind her, she made sure to remove her grip of the stubby ACR as she approached the security desk, the guard looking far calmer than I would have expected at the approach of the heavily armed and armoured women.This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.


    "Roof access." She stated with a forceful tone rather than asking. The slightly embarrassed more dulcet tones that she had used when speaking with me just a minute or so ago and disappeared entirely. I suddenly understood what Sumiko had meant earlier when she said the girls took on an entirely different persona around men that weren''t me.


    Without a word and a nervous nod the guard led them to a nearby locked private elevator, when the doors opened he stepped in briefly to enter a code on the button panel.


    "From up top the call button will work like normal to get you back down." He said eyeing Anika carefully.


    "Neta, Talia." It''s all Anika had needed to say and the two women took up station either side of the elevator, she didn''t take her eyes off the guard as the remaining girls piled in, the implied threat clear. Things go wrong, you die too.


    I watched the team go about their business, clearing the roof, setting sentries and locating their target that was over a kilometer distant for the operation. They were clearly skilled and experienced both in working together as a team and as a reconnaissance unit. So rather than focus on the details I let my mind wonder back to my earlier thoughts as I idly watched on.


    The girls had never worked as ringers, acting purely with military authority even when in country. For dedicated military operations the current arrangements were probably fine.... if it was me, I couldn''t help but feel as though my ass was hanging out in the wind. They made a big beautiful target for any well organised group, I couldn''t help but wonder if going a little more low key on these OP''s might be the answer. I mean at the moment all it would take is for their target to drive past the building they were currently camped out in on the way to the meet to get cold feet. I know I would if I saw an APC posted at the entrance to one of the tallest buildings in the area.


    I was about to open the comms and ask Talia how she felt about painting a target on her back but quickly put the thought aside. Not only would it undermine her authority to all that could tune into the Draugr tactical channel, (I would put money on the cypher that had arranged the transfer to be listening in), but she also may genuinely not see the issue with how things are being done at the moment.


    "I''m not looking." I heard David groan from his workstation as though he was trying to avoid getting into trouble.


    I turned with a frown to see what was going on when Brooke walked cheerily into the room fresh from her shower and drying her hair with a towel after cleaning out the pod. She was a stunner, not sure why David might have a problem with the fact she was currently topless.


    I returned her happy grin and pat my lap, with an even broader grin she draped herself sideways across my lap to rest most of her weight on the arms of my chair and wrapped her arms around my neck for a deep kiss.


    "Thank you baby." She breathed into my mouth after long seconds had past.


    "You''re welcome hun." I nodded my chin upwards as the screens, ignoring the pout from Bri, clearly upset that she hadn''t thought of this particular seating arrangement first.


    "I''d like your thoughts, seeing as you have no experience. This is a live feed from the wildcats, currentlyon a recon mission. They have pulled up out front of one of the tallest buildings available for a better view of the target that is just over a kilometer away and set up on the roof."


    "Okay..."


    When I didn''t continue she frowned a little at me and turned in my lap to focus on the screens, spreading her legs wide over my knees, which in my opinion was just asking for trouble, she gave a sly wink at Brianna who was still looking up at her and pouting like a tantrum was coming on.


    "I''m not really sure what you mean?" Brooke asked after focussing on the screens for a few seconds sherelaxed back into my bodygiving up on the exercise.


    "I do daddy." Bri grumbled quietly with an angry v shape to her eyebrows as she turned to continue watching the monitors.


    Lilou turned, completely ignoring the mostly naked Brooke in my lap and looked at me thoughtfully for a few seconds before speaking up. "Ma?tre, I think they may be... exposed? On the roof top?"


    Reapers were far more suited to close in combat in urban environments, so the comment from her point of view made sense. Clea looked at her sister, her eyes flashing with a cheeky grin when she noted Brooke''s chosen seat then back to the screens to figure out what Lilou had meant. Daniela nodded thoughtfully as her eyes flicked across the screens, and I really hope it was Abby massaging my shoulders out of view, either that or I was going to be having a very awkward conversation with David once we were done here. I angled my head backwards to look up at the mechanic, she leant down for a brief kiss before pushing my head up gently so that she could continue, she had no input for the conversation.


    "Tactically their doing everything right, but... yeah. Something is off." Dani spoke up.


    "Daddyyyyyyy I knooowwwww." Bri complained by my side as she fidgeted irately, wanting to get the information out.


    "I know you do baby girl, just give it another minute." She straightened her back with a proud look plastered on her face at my response as she looked around the room at the other girls with a nah-nah look.


    "Lilou is half right. Think like a ringer, not like a soldier." I hinted to my girls.


    "Exposed!" All eyes turned to Dani as she blurted out the word.


    Rather than answer immediately at my glance, Dani bit her upper lip and eyed Brooke seated on my lap with hungry eyes like a cat about to pounce. To add salt the wound Abby began running her hands over my chest and kissing my neck, angling her head to look at Dani as she did so.


    "Nah uh. My toys." I leered at Dani, trying to finish the impromptu meeting before it broke out into an all out orgy. Daniela tried one of Brianna''s temper tantrum pouts on for size before continuing.


    "Armour and gear, yeah okay, I can go with them on that. But maybe they need to be a little less obvious with the spearhead. Maybe they should deploy in the humvees and actually park like normal folks..."


    Things quickly heated up from that point, so needless to say not a whole lot of attention was paid to the the wildcats OP for I have no idea how long until Anika''s voice broke in over the comms.


    :// My Alpha?


    :\\ Yessss.


    I groaned out distractedly.


    :// Are... you okay?


    She asked with a nervous laugh.


    :// Oh he''s sooooo many levels above okay.


    Brooke purred back.


    :// Can''t talk now. Orgy.


    Brianna broke in, far from professional. If I wasn''t so thoroughly distracted at the moment I would have given her a dressing down. At least she provided a reason for the draugr teams distraction I suppose.


    :// Will the wildcats be joining us Ma?tresse Anika?


    Lilou mumbled aroundher mouthful.


    :// Fuck yes we will.


    A random member of the wildcat team broke into the comms, her voice full of excitement at the prospect.


    :// My Alpha?


    :\\ Yes Anika?


    :// Umm... well... the thing is...


    :// Get your asses here now!


    Dani interrupted with a light hearted growl.


    :// Most of us prefer men.


    Came Anika''s quiet response.


    :// Me too.


    Abby said with a snort of laughter.


    :// Don''t worry. Daddy can keep up.


    Brianna said proudly on my behalf over the comms.


    :// Be there in ten... make that five.


    Neta, the wildcats second in command beamed over the open channel and their driver planted her foot to the floor. She gave an excited and playful punch to Anika''s shoulder at the prospect of finally getting laid for the first time in months.


    * * *


    So, two things. First, the apparently huge bed isn''t big enough for both all of the Wildcats and the Draugrs simultaneously. I know first world problems. Second, I''m in a whole fuck load of pain... literally. But I''m happy to say I was (barely) able to live up to Brianna''s promise.


    The entire ten woman squad had arrived in the conference room barely five minutes after our last conversation to the wailing of David, obviously not very impressed that the girls of my quickly growing harem didn''t mind being naked in front of him. They were all in various states of undress, armour and bodysuits littered the ground from the doors of the APC to the conference room, the room filled with excited giggling and hopeful grins planted on their faces as they entered the small room and took in the wanton depravity with their own eyes. I only knew Anika and Neta by sight, I didn''t even know any of the other girls names. I had barely managed to lead them up to the penthouse, leaving a trail of less armour and more underwear as we progressed in our wake, there was definitely no time for introductions as I was immediately swamped by an avalanche ofscantily clad women as soon as we entered the room.


    Shortly after the wildcats had begun well... essentially gang raping me, the Draugr girls were content to leave me at their complete disposal once one of the girls had let it slip they collectively hadn''t been laid in close to a year. My girls retreated to the nearby couches to continue their own fun and watch the antics of the Israeli girls, voicing words of encouragement and various position suggestions to the girls that were clearly new at the whole group sex thing.


    Like commanding officers everywhere, Anika and Neta had opted to be in the last group, ensuring their soldiers had their fair share first.Currentlysnuggled under my left arm with her ear to my chest and listening to my heart beat with her eyes closed, she nibbled on Neta''s lips who was snuggled into my right side returning the attention with feeling.


    I didn''t even flinch at the sharp pain in my free leg and looked up to see a contently smiling Dani.


    "Some pain killers." She mumbled sleepily as she crawled into the bed, snuggling into Anika''s backto bethe big spoon as she dozed off.

 Chapter Fifteen

    "I leave you lot alone for barely twenty four hours and look what happens." Sumiko smirked from every monitor in the room.


    It was mid morning and there were naked bodies everywhere when I glanced around the room.


    "Tell the evil lady to shush." Anika grumbled into my neck with a little squirm and refusing to open her eyes.


    Neta stretched out still hugged into my other side, which was a mistake whenaround my Draugr''s condidering their current state of dress. I couldn''t help but chuckle at the little yelps of surprise from the various Wildcats around the room as the Draugr girls assaulted them as they tried to wake up, not that any of them complained once they realised it wasn''t such a bad way to wake up after all. It was a tradition my reapers had brought to the cell, one I wholeheartedly embraced.


    "Hey baby." I made to get up, untangling myself from Anika, Neta, and unnamed girl number three that had passed out.


    "These are the Wildcats, they have joined the Draugrs so expect to be seeing a whole lot more of them." I answered as I sat on the edge of the bed.


    Anika half crawled, half threw herself to hug me from behind before I could get up, not willing to let me go just yet.


    "Again." She said unabashedly.


    Clea led two giggling, very willing Wildcats to the shower, briefly blocking my view of the screen that I was currently using to talk to the AI. I watched them pass with a grin.


    "And who is the reaper downstairs all on her lonesome?" Sumiko asked with a frown.


    Oh shit, that''s right, the Wildcats had a heavily augmented reaper as a part of the team. Despite their deadly combat abilities reapers were typically either very short tempered or very shy around the unenhanced as they were generally shunned.


    "I tried to get her to join us... but... well..." Anika shrugged helplessly as she sat up by my side.


    "That wont do at all." I said with a frown, mostly disappointed in myself for leaving the poor girl out in the cold. I left Anika and Sumi to get better acquainted and headed down to find her.


    I didn''t have to look very hard, she was standing by the elevator doors as though on guard duty. The upper right half of her face and skull was dull black with cybernetic armour, her human left eye bulged at my approach and focused immediately on my morning wood.


    "Hey cutie." I said easily. Her eyes flicked up to mine in embarrassment but she didn''t otherwise speak.


    "How about you and I go get a coffee and get to know each other?" I dragged her into the elevator with a surprised little yelp escaping her lips. I wasn''t taking no for an answer, I''d have to give her some very private attention to make up for my lapse of the previous night.


    As the elevator door closed she averted her gaze to the floor, her jaw worked as though to speak, but before she could utter a single syllable I continued my advances.


    "Absolutely gorgeous." The woman simply blinked at me and allowed me to continue undressing her with my eyes, wanting to smile, but uncertain, clearly not used to such overt attention.


    The reaper was obviously of an arabic descent, her light brown, not quite caucasian skin the give away. Other than her skull cybernetics, which weren''t hidden at all by her short black hair, she''d had serious work done. Although if I thought about it, my french reapers would likely look the same if they didn''t have the very expensive corporate backed cybernetic limbs.


    Like the legionaries when I had first met them, she had opted for a skin hugging, singlet topped, full length black synth skin suit as opposed to armour. It had taken me a full day of nagging to get my girls to understand that even though they had mek and cybernetics, armour still protected the unenhanced areas of their bodies. Synth skin was mostly used as under armour, it didn''t have any ballistic protection to speak of, mostly intended to stop bladed weapons, but it did have the benefit of being self repairing and was able to seal itself over even the most grievous of wounds until help could be found.


    Like the other Wildcats the reaper before me was adorably short. Barely five feet tall, if that. I briefly wondered if that was the normal height for women in Israel, but with other more pressing and carnal thoughts on my mind I quickly left that particular train of thought behind. My eyes drifted over the mek of her arms, both were simple military limb replacements and skeletal in nature, but clearly designed for combat. The numerous blades and other similar weapons of death currently locked within the housings of the armoured plates around her forearms. The left arm continued halfway along her shoulder blade, but cut down at a sharp angle to her human armpit. The right arm ended in a thick coupling at her right shoulder. I could see the girls pulse beating a rapid statico at my attention in the jugular vein of her thin neck. Her big brown eyes looking at me adoringly due to the unfamiliar attention, but reservedly at the same time.


    Reading the want and need in her eyes I moved quickly and pulled her in tight with my arm around her waist. She stood on tip toes as I pulled her in, welcoming my attention. As I angled down to kiss her lips, her mouth opened immediately, encouraging my tongue to toy with her own.


    * * *


    "There are plenty of beds around the place!" Bri hollered at us from deeper in the room as the elevator doors opened.


    The reaper hugged into my side, hiding her face in my chest in embarrassment at the wolf whistles that greeted us from the penthouse. She wrapped the limb around my own leg to clamp me into place. There were several patches and strips of clearly cybernetic skin and muscle that had been replaced across her abdomen and back as well.


    I attempted to gently place pressure on her leg to have her lower it so that we could move into the room, instead she placed her open palm in the middle of my chest and held me in place possessively while grinning madly sideways at the other Wildcats through her short fringe while blushing furiously. Obviously savouring the attention of the girls and showing off the man at her side. To demonstrate her point she wrapped an arm around the back of my neck pulling me down for a long deep kiss, shouts of encouragement and other more blatant suggestions where thrown our way as I returned her attentions.


    "Shower baby?" I took the opportunity to kiss the tip of her nose and move things along when she stopped for breath.


    She nodded quickly several times but didn''t say a word and refused to move, instead rubbing her cheek on my chest and breathing deeply. Recalling how my legionaries were loath to cease the intimate touching and contact for quite some time after our first meeting, I suddenly realised I would be babying a woman that could kill me just as soon as look at me for the rest of the day at least. I had an instinct to lift her, and I''m sure she would have willingly wrapped her legs around my waist and allowed me to carry her into the room... but due to their enhancements, reapers were fucking heavy, and I didn''t want to embarrass either of us in the company of others by dropping her.


    I caught Lilou''s eye, she glanced at the reaper clamping me in place on the floor before smiling gently in understanding and moving towards us. My new reaper looked at the mek of the hand that was placed gently on her shoulder, she dropped her leg and turned, her arm still wrapped around my waist as she eyed Lilou''s arm with interest before looking up into her eyes and actually acknowledging her presence.


    "All?, I am pleased to meet you. I am Lilou." She smiled warmly at the still silent beauty by my side.


    She looked up at me shyly as if seeking permission, I nodded encouragingly. "Lilou, and her sister Clea are also reapers. I thought you might like to meet them?"


    "I am Daliah." They were the first words I had heard her speak. The short girl spoke carefully and slowly, although her english was fine. It was likely out of habit, an attempt to hide the synthetic electronic edge that crept into her voice due to some internal injury that had robbed her ofa natural voice.


    At some point the other legionnaire had noticed my predicament and much like Lilou had made a guess at my current predicament. She suddenly appeared, snaking her arms around her sisters waist from behind and kissing her neck tenderly before placing her chin on her sisters shoulder and observing the new reaper.Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.


    "Bonjour, I am Clea." She beamed at Daliah.


    Daliah''s head turned from sister to sister several times in quick succession. "I apologise in advance if I get your names wrong." She laughed genuinely at the twins. The electronic note to her voice much more evident now that she was more relaxed.


    "Come Daliah, let us pamper you." Lilou held out her mek hand, wiggling her robotic fingers merrily at the much shorter girl. Daliah stood on tip toes and quickly pecked my cheek then eagerly took the offered hand to be happily led away, held in place between two gorgeous french women already lavishing attention on her.


    The majority of the girls were dressed now and chatting quietly about plans for the day and otherwise getting to know each other, that didn''t stop them from tracking my movements with hungry eyes as I wandered around the room looking for some pants however.


    A collective "awwww" Echoed around the room when my search bore fruit, with pants in place I again cast around my glance with a frown looking for a shirt. I squinted around the room suspiciously making a mental count... yep. All my shirts were currently in use.


    "Out of nighties?" Dani laughed at me from across the room, waving me over to where she was talking with Anika and Neta. Several of the Wildcats flashed me guilty smirks but never the lesspinted thier chests to display exactly where the balance of my yet again dwindling supply of shirts had disappeared to.


    "You shouldn''t be allowed to wear them anyway." Talia... I think her name was, joked good-naturedly as her eyes ran up and down my torso while she nibbled her own lips in appreciation of the view. Neta moved to the end of the couch, making room for me between herself and Anika. The wildcats were definitely taking the lions share of my attention, I would need to keep a very careful eye on that. Although I suppose, new relationships tended to burn the hottest so it was only to be expected.


    "I''m surprised you got Daliah to come out of her shell so easily. I''m impressed." Anika saidas I took a seat.


    I smiled and my eyes naturally drifted tomy three reapers, in particular I focused my attention on Daliah.


    "Ahh I''ve seen that look before." Dani grinned at me.


    I looked at her, my jaw working to try and express how I didn''t work the way that she and the other Draugrs thought I did. I gave in with a grin, it was probably true after all.


    "Hmm?" Anika asked.


    "I knew it! Our man has a favourite." She grinned at my expression, I was busted and she knew it.


    "Speaking of which, Sumi tells me that you refuse to accept that we are all in a relationship?" Anika teased.


    "You need to meet his ex-wife before you push on that to hard." Dani said gently.


    "I understand." Anika nodded sagely before turning my head to look at her with her fingers gently pinching my chin.


    "This was fun. I hope it wasn''t a one time deal?" She asked before again kissing me tenderly.


    "Besides..." She began as she got up from the couch. "I''m not introducing you to my father as my sex toy lover." She smirked over her shoulder, dodging the pillow I threw at her with a giggle as she headed downstairs.


    "Me either." Neta said much more seriously than I might have liked before pecking my cheek and following the Wildcat leader, checking I was indeed watching her ass as she left the room with a smirk.


    "Got your hands full with these ones." Daniela smiled at me.


    I could only sigh as I relaxed into the couch, content with my lot in life as my eyes drifted first over the women of my tiger cell, then to one cute little reaper girl in particular. Such is life.


    Dani spun in place and lay her head in my lap, looking up at me with a smile before closing her eyes and relaxing..


    Abby came wandering over with a broad smile, two wildcats who''s names I was yet learn in tow, all three wearing my shirts.


    "Last night was.... amazing. Thank you my Alpha." She whispered into my mouth before standing, the process was repeated by the second wildcat.


    "You know you could call me..."


    "No, I don''t think so." The second wildcat interrupted with a playful smirk and a glint in her eyes.


    "We don''t know your name, and you must promise you will never deliberately try to discover our names as well. It is so much better... more... taboo this way." The second wildcat chimed in, the same playful glint in her eye.


    I looked at Abby as though seeking some sort of confirmation, she only shrugged before leaning in for a good morning kiss of her own.


    "Hey!" Dani complained, opening one eye to glare up at Abby who only looked down in confusion.


    "Where''s mine?." She said with a grin.


    Abby smirked and got down on her knees, making out tenderly with a lazily responding Dani for several long seconds before standing again.


    "Better?" She asked looking down with a grin.


    Dani shrugged with a cheeky grin and simply closed her eyes in response.


    "We''re going nightie shopping." Abby smiled at me broadly again, the joke now clear as the other two girls giggled behind her.


    I glared at the girls in mock anger. "If your wondering what I like, or what size I am, look down."


    They waved away my complaints and headed to the armoury to grab some sidearms in case of call out during the shopping trip.


    I closed my eyes for a few moments to relax, beforelong a fresh set of lips found mine. As the owner of lips broke contact I cracked open an eye to see Brooke grinning at me.


    "I''ve been here two days. Best. Job. Ever." She winked at me and generally indicated the room with a wave before leaning down to peck Dani on the forehead.


    "I guess that will have to do." She sighed heavily in mock sadness.


    "You might get lucky later." Brooke teased in her lilting accent before heading downstairs to begin her day.


    As the three reapers dried off from their shower, the five remaining Wildcats headed over, not wanting to miss out on the new morning ritual of a meaningfulinteraction with a loved one before beginning their day.


    "Talia... right?" I pointed at the first girl, grimacing a little in case I had picked the wrong girl.


    "Don''t look so scared, got it one. I expect nothing less of my man." She cooed softly and leant down for her kiss, running her fingers down my abs as she did so.


    "Just so you know, we expect a repeat performance again tonight." She smirked at me as she stepped back, allowing the other girls a moment of my time.


    "How about now? The five of us could..."


    "I''m not giving you any more pain killers until later tonight. Your becoming far to dependant on them." Dani growled from my lap without so much as opening her eyes, not even joking a little bit.


    "Would the cranky lady like a kiss as well?"


    Dani opened an eye and squinted up at the Wildcat that had spoken. "Hell yes she would."


    "John, I am Shira. I feel kinda weird introducing myself after... well..." Her cheeks flushed in embarrassment.


    "Give me some sugar sweetheart." I smiled up at her warmly holding up my hand in an effort to pull her down, but she was just out of reach.


    Shira moved to the side of the couch to give me the most passionate kiss of the morning over the two women making out like horny teenagers in my lap.


    I remembered the next girl from the gentle nibbling way she preferred to kiss with no tongue from the night before, her name is Gili, and she is the driver of the Wildcat APC.


    Shai was next in line, she operated the main guns of the Spearhead transport. After our morning kiss she admitted that whilst she was happy enough for the moment, she wasn''t to sure how she felt about sharing a man with so many other women, but she was willing to give it a try. I made sure to let her know she was free to do as she pleased, no one would think any less of her if she decided this wasn''t what she wanted. She gave me an even deeper kiss after my little speech. Apparently it was exactly what she had needed to hear. She rose with a content sigh and smiled at me warmly before leaving the room.


    "I''m Carmel by the way."The final Wildcat blew a kiss to both Dani and I before stepping into the elevator, leaving me with just Dani and my three reapers.


    Daliah stood close by my side next to the couch, stroking my hair and looking longingly at Dani''s position as she lounged in my lap on the couch.


    As if sensing the furtive glance Dani opened her eyes and looked up at me thoughtfully for a few seconds before spinning in the chair and sitting up next to me. She pet the seat next to her looking at Daliah expectantly who smiled shyly in return and took the offered seat. Dani immediately spun in place again, her legs draped over the reaper, her head resting in my lap. Testing the waters she gently tugged on the new reapers fingers and stroked her own thigh with the cybernetic fingers, Daliah all to happily fell in line with a new person to share the sensation of touch with and began teasing Dani''s upper thigh with delicate strokes of her metallic fingers as she looked at me with a ''Oh my god, look what I''m doing'' expression on her face. She was like a kid in a candy shop.


    "Ah huh" Dani nodded lazily and mumbled half asleep with a smile. The reaper smiled at me proudly.


    We sat in silence, simply enjoying eachothers companywhen Dani yawned and stretched lazily. Daliah looked down adoringly at Dani who blinked up at me and looked at me thoughtfully for several long moments in thought.


    "You know I never realised before now how much of your time was taken up just with us girls."


    "It''s a tough job, but someones gotta do it." I laughed off her comment.


    "No, seriously. Never mind the fact I have no fucking idea how you managed to get us all to agree to this, I don''t know how you manage to do for each of us what you do, but thank you. I don''t think I have told you how much I... we all, appreciate what you do for us. Let alone running this place."


    "Anything for my girls." I smiled at her genuinely, accepting the compliment for what it was.


    "That''s why we love you." She spun and sat up in the chair before rising and looking down at me with a look that dared me to object. We had been over this several times. It had been such an awesome night, and an even better morning, I frowned slightly, not wanting to go over old ground and potentially starting an argument after such an auspicious start to the day.


    She bent at the hips, holding my face between her hands to make sure she had my full attention.


    "We love you. All of us, well... maybe not the Wildcats yet. But you better get used to it." She gave me a lopsided smile, her words were forceful enough to leave little doubt in my mind she wanted to yet again persue it further, but she gave up the argument for now and instead planted a kiss on my lips before heading to the elevator.


    "We expect to hear you say it one day." She said seriously as the elevator doors closed.


    I looked at Daliah as she scooted over to snuggle, nodding shyly at me in complete agreement with Dani but otherwise not saying anything. She lifted my arm and draped it along her side, making sure I was cupping her butt, planting my hand there with her own as she cuddled into me deeper to enjoy some alone time.

 Chapter Sixteen

    Two weeks later I was finally cleared for active duty. Coincidentally, on the same day Brooke had gained her accreditation and was now also considered an active member of the Draugr Wildcats. I was being very thorough in rewarding her for her efforts, she was likewise very happy to physically express her congratulations at my return to active duty. It was a little cramped in the cockpit of the Harbin gunship, but it needed christening, and the two of us were certainly up to the task.


    A mere thirty minutes into the celebrations however we were rudely interrupted.


    :>> Go for Tac. 1.


    :<< Draugr Alpha Acknowledged.


    I answered the call in a rather distracted fashion.


    :>> Draugr One. Strapped.


    The relief in Brianna''s voice was clear, she was all to happy to give up the operational control she had inherited during my medical leave. Hmm... before I could change my mind about finishing up the celebrations I turned and ran down the ramp of the small gunship to gather my gear.


    :>> Draugr Two. Strapped. Medtec.


    :>> Draugr Three. Reaper.


    Lilou responded to the blinking notification of the now open tactical channel on her HUD.


    :>> Draugr Four. Reaper.


    :>> Draugr Five. Strapped. Spanner. Rolling.


    The excitement in Abby''s voice was clear. She had finally been called up, she was beginning to have second thoughts at marking her file recovery only. Meaning she would make full use of her mole in the recovery of other vehicles in combat conditions. I was happy to see she would actually be seeing some action in her preferred role.


    :>> Draugr Six. Strapped.


    Brooked cooed into the tactical channel, her mind not yet completely with it after our very recent activities. Her notification should have been Gunship, but given I''d literally just left her in a wet puddlein her pilots seat and this was her first OP, I guess I could forgive the mistake.


    :>> This is Tac. 1. Draugr Alpha through Four mount up. Draugr Six go airborne, move immediately to the AO for operational support, you are seconded to Wildcat alpha for the duration. Alpha your team is to rendezvous with the Wildcats and Draugr Six at the enclosed coordinates with all due haste. Will link in Wildcats and any remaining assets to Tac.2. once secure orbital comms established. Your primary is to engage and destroy all targets within the AO. Secondary is to secure manufacturing facilities at the target site. If mission outcome doubtful advise immediately, retreat and harass enemy movement, await reinforcements. Welcome back Draugr Alpha. Tac.2. Go.


    I stood motionless and almost dry retched at the enormity of the task that had just been placed firmly in my lap. I didn''t know where to begin analysing the mission brief and where to read between the lines. I pulled up the target coordinates on my hud. Eighty kilometers into the dead zone, almost two hundred kilometers from our current position.


    :<< One and three with me in roller one, Two and four in roller two. Load extra clips, fuel and ammo barrels. Prep full NBC gear people, lets not get caught with our pants down. We move in five, go go go.


    Lilou ran across the hard standing to grab the second humvee as Bri backed up the first into the workshop to throw in the extra gear and ammo I''d ordered. Abby was busily loading extra fuel and munitions on the tray of the mole with the assistance of a heavy lift drone. We had no idea what we were supposed to recover, but we could very well need everything she''d had the foresight to grab, if not we would just dump it, fuck the expense. I''d rather have it and not need it... I nodded in approval at her worried glance as she worked, she had taken the initiative of her own accord.


    I didn''t really like the thought of splitting up the team between the two up armoured humvees, but it was a sacrifice I was willing to make in exchange for the extra firepower the turrets would provide. The whole ''if mission outcome doubtful'' reel was one I hadn''t heard since the war. I wasn''t looking forward to this by any stretch of the imagination, but I was glad I was back on active duty to lead my girls on such an extraordinary mission.


    What had the Wildcats gotten themselves into? I let myself worry over them for only the few seconds it took to jog into the workshop. For now at least, their fate was their own, I had to put my game face on. I looked at Bri for instructions to give any assistance I could in loading up the trucks, trusting in Abby to do what was required outside, other than Sumiko she was likely the smartest amongst us anyway. If she didn''t think of it, I doubted I would.


    "Grab the NBC gear. Armory, second isle." Bri grunted, hauling the extra drum of .50 cal ammo to the truck on the trolley. Clea had already man handled the heavy drum of extra ammo for the .30 into position thanks to her cybernetics, currently working on linking in to the first barrel so that a reload on the fly wouldn''t be required.


    "Extra PDW ammo?" I asked already on the way to ride the freight elevator down to the second basement level.


    "Dani''s on it, Lilou''s loading up their truck now."


    I punched the button to the armory and looked up to the roof impatiently willing the elevator to move. Fuck it, we have half a minute so I guess some explanations are in order.


    So far as we knew at the time, the Wildcats had left on a standard mission rotation just over forty eight hours ago. After twelve hours with no contact I began making discrete enquiries as their CO and was stonewalled at every turn. I had even tried contacting my ex, then the cypher that had placed the Wildcats in my care, all no joy. Veronica told me in no uncertain terms to fuck off, probably pissed that her complaints from a month or so ago only resulted in her being demoted. The cypher was apparently unreachable, even on the channel that he had specifically given me to get in touch. With no other options I hit up my AI. Sumiko had taken less than five minutes to track the exact location of the Wildcats, they were currently in a hide observing an impossibly active manufacturing facility in the (relatively) nearby dead zone.


    What''s a dead zone? It''s actually the former site of Victory City. Bundaberg it was called back in the day...


    "Finally!" I stepped out of the elevator and made a beeline for the open armory doors.


    "What the fuck is going on babe?" Dani asked with a worried expression as she threw every preloaded magazine we had into a trolley, then turned to grab several extra boxes and empty mags for good measure.


    I forced a calm purpose into my voice and smiled at her reassuringly before responding.


    "We''re going to pick up our girlfriends... right?" I looked at her in mock confusion.


    I smirked when she stopped what she was doing and grinned idiotically at my answer without looking up, the stress leaving her body instantly.


    "Ass hat." she grinned at me pushing the now full trolley to the door, pausing briefly as she passed to peck me on the cheek.


    "Lock up." She ordered without turning around as she continued on her way. I watched her...


    "And stop looking at my ass!" She shouted playfully at the roof.


    With one job done I went back to the task of grabbing the prepackaged Nuclear Biological and Chemical warfare packs and meds. I made sure the packs were still factory sealed before throwing them in the trolley, I grabbed two extras ''just in case'', and as a final thought threw in a few medical kits, grenades and extra ration packs. I had made sure the humvees were always equipped with extra gear, food, and water as a matter of course, but with no idea what we were up against a little extra couldn''t hurt. The AO was over two hundred kilometers away, we wouldn''t be coming back for anything we had forgotten and we needed to get a move on, I wanted to be boots on ground ASAP.


    Gear collected, I can head back upstairs on autopilot, so where were we? Oh wait! Did you notice how all the girls are ''strapped'' now? Yeah, we took a page out of the Wildcat playbook and we''re all geared very similar to their load outs with slight variations and personal touches. The primary commonality is that we are all armed with the ACR''s the Israeli girls had chosen and common sidearms as well. Which I can only imagine will pay off on the upcoming op with all our gear being chambered for the same ammunition. The Draugr Wildcats had basically turned into a paramilitary harem... err company.


    So dead zones. During the war Townsville, Gladstone, and Bundaberg, all cities on the East coast and furthest from main land China, they were designated as hard points. They had significant manufacturing infrastructure in place and large port facilities in the very likely event they''d be cut off from rail and road transport. These cities were intended to be strong points and forward operation bases that would likely end up behind enemy lines should the Chinese war machine advance as rapidly as expected. The problem? The Chinese aren''t stupid, they knew what would happen, so to avoid any complications they simply virus bombed the three cities during the opening stages of the war.


    It was the first time virus bombs had been used in modern warfare, and the results were devastating. They were deemed illegal of course, and the technology had been around for years, but given what they did... no had ever thought anyone would be stupid enough to deploy them. With a near one hundred percent mortality rate, the population dipped by close to eighty million souls in the first two days of the war. Of course there was international outrage and condemnation, but China were the big boys on the block now, they didn''t think anyone could do anything about it even if they''d wanted to. All I will say on that is thank god for the French, or they likely would have carpet bombed the entire continent.If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.


    The elevator chimed merrily to let me know it was time to get back to work. Brooke jumped, wrapping her legs around my waist and burying her face in my neck as the elevator doors opened. I pet her ass a few times and she begrudgingly climbed down. I physically checked over her pilots suit in silence to ensure she was properly equipped and hadn''t forgotten anything she might need, then grabbed her NBC pack and the couple of spares and handed them over.


    "Grab some extra mags from Dani on your way out hun. During the flight mark at least two primary and as many secondary landing zones you can outside of the dead zone, but as close as possible. Then the closest safe area to the dead zone from the AO regardless of direction. Primary for refueling, secondary for... well... lets hope you don''t need ''em. Your going to have a busy day."


    She listened attentively to my advice, nodding firmly to confirm each point I had mentioned was locked in.


    "Conserve ammo, Abby is loading extra, but we don''t know what we are facing, and we don''t know when we can rearm."


    "Be safe." She pulled me in roughly with a fist full of shirt collar for a heated kiss, then spun on her heels and jogged across the compound to the harbin gunship, engines idling loudly.


    The remaining Draugr''s paused their work to watch the young pilot run up the gunship ramp. It was her first combat OP, we were all worried that we wouldn''t be nearby. But, on the plus side, we could at least trust that the Wildcat girls would look out for her until we got there.


    "They grow up so fast." Brianna joked from my side, giving a wave over her head as the little gunship shot off like a rocket.


    I turned and pulled her into a tight full bodied hug without really knowing why. With a surprised look on her face she let me manhandle her for only a few seconds before pushing against my chest and stepping back. She knew why.


    "Don''t start that shit buddy. We got this. You got this. You understand me?" Her face was hard and she was poking me in the chest hard enough to hurt as though to reinforce her words. We had worked together for a long time. Maybe she was right. Doubt was nibbling at the back of my mind, and if I let it run rampant we were all as good as dead, we may as well just lay down right here.


    "How did you get him to look at you like that." Abby asked in genuine curiosity as she walked over with the remaining girls, preparations complete.


    "Practice." Bri winked at her, demeanour completely changed to give nothing away.


    She flicked her eyes at me with a slight glare. I hardened my expression before turning around.


    "Clea, Dani, your on point." The girls nodded, grabbing their NBC gear.


    "Lilou, Bri, with me second up."


    "Finally I get to take it up the rear." Abby smirked, the girls all giggling with nervous tension.


    "Your just to big." She frowned at me and hugged into my side, setting off the group again. It was the only constant complaint she had.


    "Okay. Questions?"


    There was silence, they knew I only had the same information they did. But no one bitched about it, they would know it when I did.


    "Where our big Alpha Daddy Gil goes, we follow." Bri cast an expression that was far to serious for the words she had just spoken around the group. I let her words sink in as the girls put on their war faces.


    "Lets roll."


    I jumped into the back seat of the hummer, the only thing about me and sex that surprised my girls was that everything was off the table as soon as an OP started. So it was no surprise that Lilou didn''t try to jump in the back seat with me for some entertainment during the long drive, instead choosing to sit upfront with Bri who was driving.


    Like any good grunt, as soon as we started moving, I began drifting off.


    So virus bombs, that''s what we were up to right? That''s some bad voodoo right there. A virus bomb is a horrifying technological beauty. An airborne gas that due to instabilities becomes inert after only thirty minutes or so. Problem is during that time it rewrites your DNA, turning most people that come into contact with it into a puddle of goo over the course of several hours. Well, the lucky ones at least. Remember how I said close to a one hundred percent mortality rate? Yeah that. You see mutants are a thing now. Typically built like a brick shit houses and looking like their skin was half melted at some point, no body wants to fuck with ''em. People like to think they are dumb like animals, but I''m telling you they are far more cunning than that. Sure their minds are gone, but the human brilliance is still locked away in there someplace, combine that with unrestrained animal cunning and basically... your fucked. That isn''t even the real problem. You see thing is, just like the people they used to be, they like fucking. Lots of little baby muties get popped out every damn day.


    Oh yeah, you likely zeroed in on the whole French saving our asses right? Well strap in, its a good one. Before the war, and arguably even now, the French are the proxy world super power. How? Location, location, location. Around the same time as the second American civil war, the ranks of the French Foreign Legion swelled. Why? The rules for the organisation hadn''t changed since its inception centuries ago. You didn''t need to be a French citizen to sign up and you could join under an assumed identity, meaning during the fall of America from grace a hell of a lot of people from every walk of life and in every corner of the globe did some seriously fucked up shit just in order to survive. When the dust settled and governments stabilised those people were being called on to account for their actions. Those that didn''t want to pay the price joined the legion.


    Seizing the opportunity to better defend themselves the French setup recruitment offices around the globe and in short order had several large, well organised, and well equipped armies in just about every country on the planet, including China. When the virus bombs detonated over our cities the French didn''t hesitate to act, everyone assumed it was a preemptive move out of self interest at the time. But then news began filtering out about how their installations on mainland China, and in both North and South Korea had reacted in unison, engaging the militaries of their host countries and completely neutralising the possibility for the weapons to be used again in any reasonable time frame. The cost was high, three armies wiped out to a man, several hundred thousand legionaries had died and France had made a very powerful enemy, but they weren''t finished. Fully three quarters of the French Foreign Legion, consisting of around fifteen million soldiers were on the move to Australia in support, before the operations against China had even begun. Without them, we would have been well and truly fucked.


    Anyway, enough about that shit. I got a job to do. The first half of Tac.1''s briefing was basically just making sure we had the gear they thought we might need for successful completion of the job at hand. All fairly standard and routine stuff, about the only thing you could read into that was that we would be bringing something out again, with the inclusion of Abby and her mole. If your an Aussie you probably get the joke, if not... well I''ll just let you figure it out.


    The second half of the briefing is where all the meat was at, specifically... ''link in any remaining assets''. Those words right there, and others like them, are about the only thing I don''t like about ringer operations. If we were regular military we would know going in if that meant the guys there (i.e. my Wildcats) had already been given up for dead or would be otherwise sacrificed before we got into the AO. It could even mean there were other units in the area that had the unfortunate job of going first and there may still be one or two unfortunate souls wandering around out in the dead zone. Long story short, we would need to play that one by ear.


    Hmm. I was about to skip over the whole orbital comms thing, but I suppose a brief word on that score can''t hurt, especially if your a civilian. Your probably wondering why the fuck an orbital comm link would be needed to cover a mere two hundred kilometer distance, and why I was unable to stay in touch with the Wildcats. One word. Bandwidth. Here''s another couple. Data degradation. You see the constant networking of multiple neural links that upload quite literally everything a soldier experiences, including all relevant HUD and tactical data, comm traffic backups and blah blah techie mumbo jumbo, combined with the fact that all comms are tied into the same network, and a two way live feed is required, means that you need a whole fuck load of bandwidth.


    Theoretically it is indeed possible to transmit over the distances we are talking about here, but it would be voice only. Whilst that would do in a pinch, it meant relying on what someone believed the situation to be when they are in a high stress environment. But the point is moot on the whole voice only thing anyway. Like I said, comms are inseparable from the data required for the neural links, so that''s that. Max range is around fifty kilometers, hence the many repeaters dotted around every city scape.


    You nerds finished your little bitch session with the explanation? Good. Lets talk about ''engage and destroy''. Now that''s something I haven''t heard since the war. To be honest I''m unsure if the blatant ''no survivors'' order was due to the military rank of Alpha Gil that I had inherited with my Wildcats, either that, or shit was just that serious and no one gave a flying fuck who knew what we were up to out here. Some of the more conspiratorial nut jobs within the ringer ranks would have wiped their hands of the job as soon as those words were spoken, even over secure comms. Far to concerned about stepping into some secret government mumbo jumbo and getting paid with a bullet in the head at the end of the job for their troubles. I''m not saying stuff like that never happens... but stuff like that never happens. Yes, I''m rolling my eyes at you, you nut job.


    So, killing anything that moves is only the primary reason we are here. If you were paying attention you would know we are assaulting a factory, in the middle of butt fuck no where, probably smack bang in the middle of a mutant army that had no right to be manufacturing so much as turds, let alone... whatever it was that was going on.


    I felt a tap on my knee and flicked open my eyes, Lilou was bent over in her seat and very uncomfortably leaning over the center console of the humvee to get my attention with a mischievous grin. I glanced at Bri watching my thoughts tick over in the rear view mirror. She gave me a little squint of her eyes now that she had my attention and threw in a lopsided grin for good measure as Lilou squeezed my fingers. Yeah okay, lets try that again.


    We are neutralising any threats and securing an enemy manufacturing hub. That sounds much cleaner. Lets go with that. Actually... now I''ve calmed down a little, that''s likely why Abby is tagging along, to drag out samples of whatever is being made for the boffins to assess.


    Brianna flashed me a warm loving smile in the mirror and wrinkled her nose at Lilou who was trying to be sneaky as she kept an eye on me, half turned around in her seat as she eyed both Brianna and I in interest attempting to figure out what was going on. Seeing that I had a much more relaxed demeanor the girls promptly ignored me again and fell into a comfortable silence.


    Hmm. Now we are getting towards the end of the briefing we are getting into another part I have conflicted emotions about. The whole ''if mission outcome doubtful'' part. Again, it was one of those things I had heard a whole lot of as part of my briefings during the war, not so much as a ringer. In fact, this would be the first time. Basically, what it boils down to, is that despite sending in the full combined might of the Draugr Wildcats cell (not insignificant in its own right), combined with ''remaining assets'' already on site... no one was holding their breath for a successful outcome. But... looking at things pragmatically, being a former blade, that''s what I do. I pull everyone''s ass out of the fire. And whilst I wouldn''t toot my own horn out loud, its actually something I''m very good at. Don''t get me wrong, it''s likely going to be an impossibly long hard slog, so... lets play that part by ear as well, shall we?


    And the final part. The bit everyone, including myself, had immediately dismissed and had likely already forgotten about. When in fact it was likely the most important piece of the puzzle. ''Welcome back Draugr Alpha.'' It was just a coincidence a huge OP like this happened on my first day back on active duty huh? Yeah pigs ass.

 Chapter Seventeen

    "You done?" I tried to holler over the sound of the fifty cal. as I joined it in opening up on a limping sentinel warbot, rather unsuccessfully. Both me and the heavy machine gun.


    We had already shot out one barrel in the first five minutes of the engagement, you know, just the kind of bullshit rookie mistake that would get me or one of my girls killed. What am I talking about? In prolonged engagements the barrels of the heavy machine guns will literally glow red with heat, particularly if the software controlling it has been programmed to hold the trigger down until the target stops moving. Guess what? Sentinel robots are hard fuckers to kill, that, and metal, when it gets hot enough looses its shape. There was a reason the fifties were colloquially referred to as fire hoses. When a barrel was ''shot out'' it literally looked like a fire hose turned on full blast and flapping in the breeze. It would never fire with anything even resembling accuracy ever again, at least until the barrel was swapped out.


    Now imagine you have deployed your team outside of its designated firing arc, but most certainly within its effective range, then it starts spitting out armour piercing bullets in any direction it damn well feels like, even backwards if the angle was right. Yeah. Not good.


    The turret fell silent and pointed at the sky in maintenance mode. I breathed a sigh of relief and gave a thumbs up to Bri currently sitting low in the cab to operate the turret manually as Lilou took a running jump and leapt onto the roof of the hummer. With the pain sensitivity of her augmented arm turned completely off, she was the only one in my three man team that had the ability to remove the now super heated and useless barrel of the heavy machine gun. Sure we could wait for it to naturally cool down, but fuck that. The reaper manoeuvred herself behind the turret to gain as much cover as possible in her exposed position and quickly cleared the weapon.


    A high pitched screaming squeal echoed across the compound we were holed up in as the harbin protested at being forced to hover from full forward flight.


    :<< Cover!


    I called over the tactical network, probably unnecessarily. Brooke was flying like a fucking legend, and was clearly back on station now that her bingo fuel situation had been taken care of. The asphalt around the limping sentinel bot began to boil as rounds from the chin mounted chain gun of the gunship chipped away at some more of its armour. Two flashes of light shot over my head from behind to enter my field of view, the tell tale sign from the exhausts of the heavier fin guided rockets. One, or both found their target, the corresponding explosion wasn''t really all that satisfactory being primarily contained within the bots armoured shell, but I could settle for chunks of the destroyed warbot flying through the air as a close second prize.


    I looked back to confirm Brooke had taken the whole ''moving targets are harder to hit'' concept to heart. Judging by the speed at which the harbin was already advancing she had likely begun moving forward again as soon as she had lined up the target.


    :\\ Good girl.


    :// Quit it, you''ll make me blush. Heading back up top.


    :>> Alpha Gil, this is Tac.1. Confirmed authority to engage assets moving forward as required.


    :<< Alpha Gil. Acknowledged. Bravo, Wildcat Alpha, confirm.


    :>> This is Bravo, acknowledged. Out.


    :>> Wildcat Alpha acknowledged.


    Not like I needed anyone''s permission to shoot back, but it was nice to know I could now take out what were supposed to be friendly sentinel units without having to wait for them to engage first, or having to pay to replace them. To put it in no uncertain terms, this was a cluster fuck. We are around twenty kilometers out from the AO and had been clearing the outpost indicated by Tac.1 to establish a safe zone for Abby to both standby and provide a secure rearming zone for Brooke...


    :>> Contact left.


    Brooke''s voice broke into the comms to the tune of the automated mini gun turrets on the mole opening up. She was cool calm and collected. Looking back along the line I could see she had made no effort to move the massive eight wheeler, likely more mutants taking a peek at their new neighbours.


    :>> Target neutralised.


    Yep. Mutants. So as I was saying, cluster fuck. Turns out the compound was set up as a secure deployment zone for sentinels to keep the mutant population in check, problem being someone had managed to splice into the inexplicably inactive units and alter their IFF systems. (Identify Friend or Foe.) So guess what happened as soon as the Bravo team brought them back online?


    <># Sumi, what do you see?


    I only trusted one... person, to get to the bottom of what the fuck was going on in any reasonable time frame. I watched over Lilou as she switched out the fifty cal barrel for a new one. She moved back to check the weapon was still timed correctly.


    ><# I can''t say for certain without having an actual unit to examine, but looks to me like the network software wasn''t hacked... it just wasn''t there to begin with.


    <># Black site?


    ><# Probably, but not military.


    <># Anything you can track back to the corporation responsible?


    I wasn''t looking for details to hold someone accountable, taking on a company isn''t something on my to do list, think of it more as information gathering. Figuring out who not to trust in future.


    ><# I''ll keep digging, but doubtful babe. There are twelve more units inside, they were in standby, so I set the auto reboot sequence. Will take around half hour, you should get moving.


    Lilou and Bri were already headed over to Clea, our lone sentry by the entrance to the sentinel facility.


    :\\ Okay my lovelies, there are twelve more units inside currently rebooting. Lets get in there and pull the batteries.


    :// Daddy.


    Most of the girls were being cautiously optimistic about where I was getting my information, trusting that I wouldn''t be leading them astray. Brianna however was another story entirely, far beyond pissed at this point, not out of a lack of trust based on where I might be getting my information, but because I was keeping something from her.


    :\\ Bri, stow it.


    She turned around and glared at me from the open maw of the abandoned workshop in the compound around twenty meters away. I didn''t have time for a petulant little girl just at the present moment. To be honest I was surprised she was even trying it on in the middle of an OP. At least she had the presence of mind to keep it over our private cell network.


    As for the Bravos they were regular army, a force recon team sent out to discover why the sentinels weren''t patrolling as programed. The timing purely coincidental with our assault right? Yeah, fuck off. Conspiracy nuts, you have my full permission to go crazy, there are just to many ''coincidences'' mounting up for my liking at this point. Expecting a milk run and having to fight off nothing more than a few mutants the Bravos had their asses handed to them. We had been contacted by Tac.1 and were asked to assist under the guise of creating a forward operation post for our OP. It was a tack on tertiary mission requirement, but obviously one that would need to be completed as a matter of priority.


    :<< This is Alpha Gil. Wildcat Alpha, sitrep.


    With the unexpected contacts we were now an hour behind our scheduled assault, the Wildcats had moved forward from their hides in preparation but were now going to have to wait an in determinant length of time before we could begin. Being recon they were far from used to being setup so close to an assault target and I wanted to make sure nerves weren''t fraying to the point of snapping.


    :>> Wildcat Alpha. Target shift change window has past, otherwise secure. ETA?


    There was no worry or stress in her voice, but like soldiers everywhere the girls were likely struggling to maintain a heightened awareness over such a long period, especially coming down from the adrenaline high after getting ready for imminent action.


    :<< Alpha Gil. Acknowledged. Orders unchanged. Will advise ETA. Fifteen minutes notice to move.


    :>> Wildcat Alpha. Acknowledged.


    There was a sigh to her voice, but it was one of impatience, so all good. I''d previously ordered the Wildcats to sit tight and withdraw to our position if engaged. Fifteen minutes notice to move didn''t mean I expected to begin the assault so soon, it meant that when I passed the order down to begin, I expected them on station and ready to roll no less than fifteen minutes from that point.


    :<< Alpha Gil. Bravo, hold. Draugrs, advance.


    :>> Bravo Acknowledged. Out.


    The relief in the voice was obvious. Six soldiers remained of the ten man squad that had been sent to investigate, I currently had them taking cover by the ground floors of the in the intact, but time ruined buildings on either side of the wide thorough fair by our little convoy on over watch. Daniela was with them, patching up the walking wounded. They were in no hurry to go back inside, that much was clear. The Draugr girls didn''t respond to the general order and instead immediately began clearing the primary warehouse where the sentinels were housed.


    Bri gave me a dirty look as I pulled up my rifle to the ready stance and took up position to her right behind the reapers. She was really not happy with secrets between us and was far from ready to let the subject drop.


    Lilou and Clea took point, if you haven''t figured it out by now, reapers were the answer to warbots in close quarters combat and typically took point in urban operations. In fact it wouldn''t be a stretch to say that they didn''t exist prior to Operation Wolf Bane, they had been about the only half reasonable recommendation that we could make to counter the wolves. Their roles had broadened considerably as a counter for all warbots during the course of the war. Why? Basic infantry weapons had no hope of penetrating the heavy armour of a warbot in a close quarters ambush. Vibroswords were another matter entirely, and could cut through all but the thickest armour just as easily as flesh, of course the role came with a short life expectancy, no one really thought to hard on that particular point though. Particularly non reapers.


    The entrance of the warehouse was empty of quite literally anything, including lighting, but that''s as expected of an outpost staffed by robots. The heavy blast doors sitting ajar just inside the entrance that lead to the secure work zone, just wide enough for a person to walk through however was not. Under the watchful eyes of Clea, Lilou advanced in a low crouch to the edge and flashed her head through the doors and back again quickly before a pot shot could be taken.


    She stood, still holding both swords at the ready and stepped completely into the dark interior. As soon as she was out of sight Clea followed suit, breaking to the left of the doorway as she entered. Bri and I took up position either side of the heavy door and waited for a good twenty seconds before the all clear was given.


    :>> Clear Ma?tre. There is activity, but no movement.


    I didn''t bother responding but instead nodded my chin upwards at Bri, she entered the chamber beyond in a low walking crouch, rifle at the ready. I quickly followed and glanced around the room to confirm the reapers assessment. Sumiko had been correct, there were a total of twelve sentinels lined up in charging racks along either wall. There were seven empty racks. The activity Lilou had mentioned were the status lights indicating a reboot sequence timer by the cradles of each war machine. Two of the warbots were clearly inoperable, someone had been busy, and fairly recently by the looks of it. Two of the machines had maintenance hatches open with internal components spread out on nearby workbenches.


    :<< This is Alpha Gil. Bravo, two teams, move up the rollers. Draugr Five back it up, deploy. Draugr immediate, start pulling batteries.


    :>> Bravo. Wilco. Out.


    :>> Draugr Five. Wilco.


    The girls in my immediate surroundings once again didn''t respond but set to work. Bri moved to the front of the first sentinel covering it with her rifle. Lilou and Clea, the only team members with the strength to remove the batteries by force, walked to either side of the unit and began tearing away the access panel in the torso of the three legged war machine.


    :>> This is Tac.1. Sitrep.


    The somewhat bewildered voice of our current controller broke into the channel. Not being privy to the fact that I knew going in the warbots were offline, she had been expecting a significant fire fight.


    :<< Alpha Gil. Ten on site units offline and rebooting. Two units appear to be undergoing major maintenance. Seven empty cradles.


    :>> Tac.1 acknowledged. Going live.The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there.


    With a sigh I waited for the blinking indicator that would show someone was viewing my live feed. It didn''t take long.


    :>> Tac.1 track to units under maintenance.


    It was a male voice, for whatever reason he sounded pissed. Well, if I could sucker him into agreeing with a comment floating around in the back of my mind at an opportune moment he was likely to get even more so.


    :<< Alpha Gil. Wilco.


    I watched the reapers working by the ambient light of the charge stations as they hauled out the primary fission cell of the sentinel they were working on. They didn''t bother pulling secondaries and instead moved onto the next unit. Brianna again taking station to shoot out the relatively unprotected targeting relays in its skull should the unit reactivate. Sure the unit could still reboot systems, but with the primary cell pulled it would have insufficient power to drive the large internal motors that generated movement. It would be able to watch and track our movements, but wouldn''t be able to act. It was good enough for now, we could pull the secondaries once the initial task was complete.


    Making sure that whoever was watching had observed the girls neutralising the threat I moved to the rear of the darkened hard room to continue painting my picture, towards the two sentinels that were in the process of being torn down for what I assumed to be scheduled major maintenance. I switched on the tactical light of my helmet, switching the filter from red to white light so that my benefactor... err viewer would be able to see what they needed to.


    Without any direct instructions on what they wanted to see I just got up close and personal with the deactivated warbot, primarily focussing on what components were missing.


    :>> This is Tac.1 Is there a worktable nearby?


    Without responding I turned to my right, looking over the stand currently housing the twin 25mm chain gun pod that had been removed from the single heavy units back. The weapons themselves had been untouched, several access points had been opened, though curiously only those that granted access to programming ports, none of the mechanical maintenance areas having been touched. Now curious myself I turned to the table behind me, to the left of the giant war machine. I reviewed the various electronic sub assemblies and components on display. Nothing mechanical was being worked on. With whoever watching clearly as dumbfounded as I was at the discovery, I took the silence as my opportunity to strike.


    :<< Alpha Gil. Ten targets neutralised, two targets disassembled, one target destroyed.


    :>> Tac.1 confirmed. Good work Draugr cell. Out.


    The monitoring indicator in the upper left of my vision winked out, meaning I could get back to work. As I walked back to the three girls, now working on the fourth sentinel in line, Brianna turned to look at me sideways with a ''you can''t be serious'' look in her wide eyes. I smirked and shrugged at her.


    :// Daddies being naughty.


    She wasted no time in ''telling on me'' to the girls.


    I''m surprised Lilou and Clea didn''t snap their own necks with the speed at which they turned to see what was going on, likely half expecting me to be putting the moves on Brianna when we were supposed to be working. At least that''s what I assume as they flashed both Bri and I slightly disappointed pouts before turning back to the task at hand without a word.


    :// What''s he done now?


    That was Talia, easily the most extroverted and free spirited girl of the entire bunch, she was the big sister to Bri''s little girl persona and liked joining in whenever Brianna picked on me. Her voice now full of mock disappointment and condemnation.


    :// He just stole all the stuff and things.


    She said with a smirk.


    :// He what now?


    She said incredulously.


    :// Operational salvage. He somehow convinced Tac.1 all of the sentinels on site, even the deactivated ones, were valid combatants.


    :\\ Well... I don''t think they actually realise that''s what I did just yet. So Abby, lets get them loaded up before they can say no.


    :// You''re incorrigible. Give me twenty minutes.


    Abby responded with a grin in her voice.


    :// And what about the site you are at? I''m new to the whole operational salvage thing, but...


    That was Anika, she let her sentence fall off now the idea had been planted. She had initially had a hard time understanding that the Wildcats were now legally authorised to strip weapons and equipment from a combat zone. She especially had a hard time understanding she could even confiscate vehicles and other assets as the spoils of war, provided they were previously in the control of the enemy during a valid OP of course. Soldiers called it looting, ringers called it non cash incentives. Abby''s truck had come in pretty handy on several different occasions since she had joined us.


    My eyebrows shot up in surprise, that particular thought hadn''t occurred even to me. Brianna just rolled her eyes and shook her head at my gall for even considering going along with the suggestion and turned back to her task. Yeah, perhaps claiming a federal government installation wouldn''t put me in anyone''s good books, but there was no doubt that the compound was owned by the same ''group'' that owned the sentinels. The sentinels that had just tried to kill us... and I was claiming those... I smiled.


    :\\ I like your style baby. Lets make sure we lock up tight when we''re done.


    A secret lair staffed by robots wasn''t exactly my style... maybe Sumiko could think of some use for it.


    ><# I call dibs!


    The AI''s voice entered the private channel as if on cue.


    <># Of course you do. It''s all yours sweetheart.


    Brianna''s head swiveled and she openly glared at me with an evil squint to her eyes. Oops. I was very obviously using a comm channel, one that Brianna should have been able to hear my response via her neural link if I was using any of the current tactical networks we were all plugged into at the moment. She also knew that given our location in the middle of nowhere that I didn''t have access to any other network... and the only people I called sweetheart were her and...


    "Sumiko." With her statement of indisputable fact, she glared. Her voice low and menacing. I swallowed, my throat suddenly very dry. Yep. I''m in trouble.


    ><# uh-oh. I''m sorry. She was bound to find out sooner or later?


    The AI half pleaded, half asked to not get blamed. Brianna halted her advance and simply blinked at me for a few seconds in confusion. Her furious expression (and not the cute little girl kind) quickly returned.


    "Get out of my head. I''ll deal with you later." Bri spoke, obviously responding in a similarly private channel with my AI as she stalked towards me.


    "You. Spill." She poked me in the chest. Something she only ever did when worried... or extremely pissed.


    * * *


    With the primary fission cells pulled I left my reapers witha cute military tech to finish the job of removing the more delicate secondary power cells. She was all batting eyes and sly smiles, but I resisted the temptation to flirt, I had enough on my plate at the moment with the silently fuming Brianna not letting me get more than three steps from her. She wanted more answers but was smart enough not to push the subject around others just yet. Not even other members of the cell.


    I headed out to check up on Abby''s progress and to make sure the army guys were properly set up for monitoring the immediate surrounds.


    "Your dating a fucking cypher. What the fuck is wrong with you?" She growled out as soon as we were out of ear shot while she walked beside me.


    Yeah, I kinda wish the AI had run that little gem by me first, but what was done was done. I stopped short and turned to look down at my life partner in everything. Maybe I was about to do this because of Daniela and her constantly reminding me of how the Draugr girls felt. To be honest I''m not really sure why now of all possible times was when I wanted to do this. But if I was going to start, I wanted Brianna to be the first. After several attempts I finally managed to hold both of her hands in mine as I looked down into her eyes with one of my smoldering looks that I knew she love/hated. This was going to be... well I don''t know, but it didn''t make what I was about to say any less true, and I needed Bri to be... well... Bri. I couldn''t afford any distractions.


    "Baby girl. I love you, but you''ve gotta let this drop. Trust me?" I asked with pleading eyes. Anger immediately forgotten she looked up at me with big puppy dog eyes, tears welling.


    "You... love me?" She asked with a little confusion.


    "You know I do." I pulled her up onto tip toes and nibbled her lips gently to not let things get out of hand.


    Once I let her go she stepped back, playfully pouting up at me through her fringe, her left leg bent inwards at the knee and twisting on the ball of her foot. The submissive little girl I knew and loved was back.


    "I love you too daddy, but I''m still cranky with you." She pouted half angrily without looking directly at me.


    "I know you are princess. I promise we will talk when all this is done okay?"


    "Because you... what me again?" She looked up at me sideways with a cheeky grin.


    "Because I love you." I said with a chuckle.


    "Okay." She smiled broadly, biting her lower lip at the same time. She let me get a few paces ahead before literally skipping as she followed me into the compound.


    This compound was far different to what we had in the city. This one was designed for all out war as opposed to our peace time barracks. There was no razor sharp synthetic polymer chain link fencing like back home, the walls were six foot thick reinforced concrete with several hard points along each six meter high wall for turreted weapon emplacements. The gate itself was made of the same concrete, Abby had rectified whatever the issue was with the mechanism and the twelve meter wide gate was currently rumbling up into the fully close position.


    "Hopefully the fucker comes down again." She mumbled to herself, not realising I was within ear shot. She froze like a deer in the headlights when she turned and promptly planted a stupid grin on her face, scratching the back of her head when she saw me with arms folded across my chest and my less than amused expression. Brianna saved her from any rather pointed questions I might ask.


    "Daddy loves me." She cooed at our lover, racing to her side and holding onto her arm.


    The smile didn''t leave Abby''s face, she wrinkled her nose at Brianna in amusement, now used to her antics and looked at me for an explanation. "Yeah..."


    The girls all knew how I felt about them, even if I never said it, so Bri''s announcement wasn''t all that earth shattering, it didn''t mean they didn''t want to actually hear the words though, as Daniela was constantly reminding me.


    "He told me so." Brianna loudly whispered with big eyes as though it were some kind of secret.


    "Holy shit!" Abby nearly screamed, her tools clattering loudly on the concrete where she dropped them to hug her friend in congratulations.


    A few of the soldiers looked down at us from the top of the wall at the outburst, I waived them an all clear before turning my attention to my lovers with a mildly surprised expression. I had clearly underestimated how much the words would mean to them. For someone that was so good at getting women into bed, I was still so very clueless at some of the things that motivated them.


    Abby didn''t push for ''her fair share'', she just grabbed my fingertips and squeezed. She stepped up on tip toes with her palm on my chest for balance and planted a big wet kiss on my lips.


    "I knew you could do it." She smirked before turning and giving Bri the same treatment.


    I looked up to see two of the male soldiers looking down at us and talking excitedly between themselves. I couldn''t hear what they were saying, but I could guess what the topic of conversation was. They promptly got back to work when they noticed I was watching them watching us.


    "Sorry." Abby said a little embarrassed. "You''ve kinda desensitised me to the making out in private thing with the whole harem deal you got me into."


    "You love it." Bri pinched her arm playfully.


    "I do, and I love you." Abby winked at Brianna.


    "awww, me too!" Both girls gave me sideways looks and playful grins as they ganged up on me.


    I sighed loudly, almost regretting what I might have started. The girls turned to look at me with playful pouts at the noise but stopped teasing me, so that''s something I suppose.


    "It''s fine. How are things going with the fortifications out here, can we move out soon?"


    "If you''re leaving them with me, you can head out anytime." She nodded up at the sentries on the wall.


    "You get that last turret online?"


    "Nah, gonna need some major work that one, but I''ll keep tinkering if I''m not busy with anything else. What you want me to do with the sentinels, you seriously gonna claim ''em?"


    "Fuck yes I am. Just get ''em outside and as ready to load as you can make them. Not sure if we might need the truck before we get outta here. Better completely unload everything while your at it, just in case."


    "Sure thing babe." She looked over my shoulder with a playful glint in her eye.


    "New girlfriend incoming." She smirked and quickly dragged Brianna with her, heading towards the nearby Daniela, likely to spread the news I had finally opened up.


    I turned to see the cute army tech heading my direction with a tight lipped, knowing smile. I couldn''t help but wonder how long she had been watching before she approached. So either I have a type, or the women I''m involved with do. She was short, like all my girls except for the reapers. Maybe 5''1", 5''3" at most. She had a smoking hot body with curves in all the right places. I couldn''t help but chuckle when her hips started swaying a little more exaggeratedly now she knew I was watching her approach.


    "Hey boss man." She smiled up at me warmly, standing far closer than was polite for a casual acquaintance. Not that I minded.


    "About fucking time!" Dani hollered to the sky. She gave me a big stupid grin when I looked her direction but didn''t say anything else.


    The army tech tilted her head and starting curling a long strand of dark purple hair that had fallen from under her helmet around a finger as she looked up at me with big green, augmented eyes.


    "Can I ask you something?"


    I looked down at her with a raised eyebrow and a stern expression but didn''t say anything. I was serious when I said before I wasn''t returning the flirting, my hands are full, and we''re on an OP. But that being said the next shift change at the target facility was scheduled for just after dark, so we had a little time. My expression must have softened as I processed because her hesitant expression softened to a come hither look in the blink of an eye. For a laugh I opened the cell comm channel so the girls could listen in.


    "Is it true what I hear about Draugr cell?"


    :// Daddy! That''s so naughty.


    :// Shhh. I wanna hear.


    "Depends what you hear." I couldn''t help but smile easily down at the cutie.


    She bit her upper lip nervously, and rather than answer immediately let her eyes wander over to the girls watching us intently as they listened in, but also excitedly reacting to Brianna''s news. The tech clearly picked up on the looks as well.


    "It has to be true, look at how they''re looking at you."


    :// She''d be jealous if she knew why.


    :// Oooo. What happened?


    :// I want to tell you all in person, so you''ll have to wait.


    "What has to be true?" So I was toying with her, let me have my fun. Se clearly knew the Draugr Wildcats was a harem, word was out and apparently general knowledge now. Can''t say I was surprised, so far as I was aware nothing like it had ever happened before.Given current circumstances however, I wasn''t going to make it easy for her.


    "That you all... well thing is... people are saying that..." She looked up at me for a little help, which I wasn''t going to give. I just looked at her with a playfully innocent expression. She rolled her eyes at me. She would fit in well.


    :// aww. Poor girl, just grab her and kiss her.


    :// pfft. He couldn''t stop himself at just a kiss.


    "It is true isn''t it." She smirked.


    :// YES!


    All the girls chimed in at once. Having heard no objections to my playful interaction I moved things along, but continued my playful flirting tease.


    "Ah my cute little slicer, I think I need to hear you say what''s on your mind." I threw my arm over her shoulder and headed towards my girls, intending to have an informal interview with her and my team as the Wildcats listened in to kill the boredom.


    :// Get ready here they come.


    "No wait." A little panic crept into her voice and she planted her feet once she saw the direction I was heading. She didn''t move away from my embrace, quite the opposite, she leaned into my side throwing her arm around my waist but looking up at me with nervous eyes.


    "I''m... not used to what I''ve heard you have going on, but I''m interested. Could we... talk. Just you and me?" She looked up at me hopefully.


    :// Well that''s no fun.


    "If you mean actually just talk, we can do that too." I smirked down at her, her cheeks flushed red at my bold words. Embarrassment didn''t stop her grabbing a hold of what she wanted with both hands however, and she seized the opportunity I presented her with.


    :// Hook line and sinker


    :// Damn our man works fast


    :// Lets see how red she can get.


    :// Huh?


    :// Just follow my lead.


    "Yes please, on both counts." She laughed out the words nervously. At the wolf whistles and cheering from my girls she hid her face in my side and held on tighter in a fit of embarrassed giggles.


    :// Whelp, its official. Daddies got a new girlfriend.


    :// I literally just listened to you pick her up and I still have no idea how you move so fast.


    :// I know right! What was that, thirty seconds? If that?


    :// Hell I don''t even know how he got me in the sack, when you figure it out let us know.


    :// Never mind that, how did he get us all in the sack and not have a problem with him being such a huge man slut?


    :// I think it''s more the first bit? But yeah, the man slut part fits as well.


    :\\ I prefer the term expert lover.


    :// pfft I''m sure you do.


    :\\ Oh, are you saying you don''t want me to...


    :// I''ll shut up now before I make things any worse.


    :// Nah you go girl, more for us.


    :// Well at least now we know who''s going to be last on the merry go round when we get back.


    :// aww mannnn


    :// Trust me when I say last is gooooood.


    :// Now I kinda wanna be last...


    :// Maybe we should make up a roster or something?


    Well, it wasn''t exactly what I had intended, but at least neither the Draugrs or the Wildcats were bored now as they got down to some very serious negotiations amongst themselves.

 Chapter Eighteen

    :<< Tac.1 this is Alpha Gil. Recommencing operation.


    :>> Tac.1 Acknowledged.


    :<< This is Alpha Gil. Wildcat Alpha, prep for assault. Draugr Six go high.


    :>> Wildcat Alpha. Wilco.


    :>> Draugr Six. Wilco.


    I gave the roll out signal to Brianna now driving the lead hummer with Lilou and Clea as passengers, Dani and I teamed up in the second vehicle. I''d had the Bravo team scouting and clearing our direction of travel in the hopes of removing any further resistance and keeping us from being waylaid any further from random mutant attacks. We would be leaving them here with Abby as support if needed, they were still a kilometer out on foot, but combined with the turrets on the wall and those on the truck I had little doubt she would be perfectly fine on her own for the next half hour or so.


    While the Bravos patrolled the route as far as they were able without vehicles I had the girls confirm the new programming for the turrets had no glitches. Now they would fire a maximum five second burst, reassess target priority for three seconds, then reengage as required. There was still a potential for overheating, but that would require an hour or so of continual operation, and if that happened we were well and truly fucked by that point anyway.


    And that was about as prepared as we were going to get. The assault was timed to happen a half hour prior to the on site security shift change. I could have opted for after shift change but this way the staff would likely be lax in checks just thinking about their downtime, but the crew had their barracks off site, meaning reinforcements wandering in behind us. Only good thing about that was we knew they would be coming and their direction of approach, we could lay an ambush to manage the situation. It might be a little touch and go if we hit any unexpected road blocks during the initial assault, but I''m sure my girls are up to the challenge.


    We were on final approach now and about to pass the designated ambush site. Shai and Gili, the spearhead crew, would remain here both with the big APC and two others, Carmel and four... can you believe I still didn''t know the names of two of my girls? I had stuck to the word of our agreement from that first morning, something both girls were turned on by to no end. The black stencil of Draugr Wildcat cell stood out like dogs balls on the side of the building when you knew what you were looking for. We had passed the ambush kill zone.


    :<< Alpha Gil. Boots on ground in 20... 19


    We knew there were likely slicers on site, so to prevent sending out an invitation to test our firewalls we would maintain a minimum of radio chatter for as long as possible. Shouldn''t be a problem, the assault had been planned out in detail thanks to the information the Wildcats had gathered about the facility over the previous several days. Neta and Carmel would be designating priority targets from their hide for Brooke, the balance of the girls joining us after the initial assault to breech the facility.


    The closest point to our ingress on the roof of the single story, but acres large building blossomed in fire. Tracers lit up the night sky, automated weapons fire tracking the Harbin as Brooke led them with a broad arc before she jinked diagonally across the building. Just as it looked as though the automated turrets had lost interest she flipped the little gunship inverted and took out the second heavy weapons turret protecting the approach road. If she were on board the g force of that maneuver would have seen her blacked out in a heart beat. She was currently piloting from the pod back at the secure forward base.


    The harbin engines screamed in unison as they both fought against the weight of gravity and the will of Brooke egging the craft into forward momentum whilst inverted. With our assault trucks travelling line abreast for maximum forward firepower we broke into the open from the relative protection of the surrounding buildings at around eighty kilometers an hour. We had one hundred meters of open ground to cross, the speed a combination of ''oh fuck'' and ''nah nah can''t shoot me''. Yes. Those are technical terms.


    If the turrets didn''t identify either targets of opportunity or priorities, such as one of the several missing sentinels, they were programmed to lay down covering fire with the thirties in a broad repeating arc to our front, and that''s exactly what they did as soon as we emerged from relative safety. The wildcats remained in place observing our approach, they would provide covering fire for a retreat if there were any unexpected nasties waiting for us.


    A mere second before impact with the side of the building several FFAR rockets shot by overhead from the repositioned gunship to soften up the side of the building where we knew the central guard station to be located. The turrets switched over to the fifties to add their limited support in the time available. Gotta say, this wasn''t my favourite part of the plan. My ass clenched involuntarily as we broke through the side of the building.


    We were immediately slewing sideways with bits of wall, furniture, bodies and various other shit flying everywhere, the fifties continued firing at something deeper within the building. Possibly not good. Thankfully Dani had managed to maintain a relatively straight momentum after impact, I could only hope Bri had been likewise successful.


    :>> Disembarked, contact front.


    Oh right, I was meant to get out. Fuck.


    :<< Disembarked. Hold will come to you. Go get our girls.


    We didn''t need to use call signs at this juncture, everyone knew their jobs. Bri and Dani reversed over anything in their way, including one particularly unfortunate semi conscious woman laying on the floor. I grimaced as her head popped from the pressure and turned to locate my reapers. The girls were headed out to pick up and deliver the Wildcat assault force, the reapers and I were to lay out the carpet. I tracked my line of sight to follow the tracers from the fifties of both vehicles still firing aggressively at a single target. I stopped worrying about what it might be when Clea skidded back into the room under her own power and quickly made a beeline directly for my position. I snapped up my rifle to the ready position as Lilou entered the room hot on her heels but skidded to halt just the other side of the ruined wall and crouched down low, both swords held to strike high.


    I could hear the rounds of the heavy machine guns ricocheting from armour, traces flying at odd angles. Now I knew where the girls where at I added my own fire into the mix. In response a ruined and partially severed arm of a sentinel smashed through the rusted corrugated metal of the wall, breeching the light concrete center easily. I dove to the floor as Clea had the exact opposite reaction and jumped in to meet the attack as the unmistakable whine of the small antipersonnel mini guns mounted to the warbots wrist wound up to fire blindly into the room.


    Having worked many times with reapers during the course of the war I knew exactly what to do. Stay out their fucking way least I become an unintended casualty. I watched as Clea lept, thankfully as the forearm of the warbot was partially severed the mini guns were misaligned and fired wide as Clea put her all into finishing the job. Taking the opportunity Lilou pounced to sever the barrels of the heavier cannon pods before they could be brought to bear on the now returning humvees. The turrets had tracked to different targets now that the reapers were in hand to hand combat with the primary, opening up with long bursts of the thirty calibres at separate and multiple targets.


    Another explosion rocked the building from deeper within as Brooke now focused on targets of opportunity, I really hoped it wasn''t another sentinel, we had gotten lucky with this one. Daliah, the Wildcat reaper was past me in a blur of motion as she entered the melee.


    :>> Tango''s moving to flank right.


    :<< Group one with me by the reapers, group two engage.


    Both assault trucks were now empty, turrets automatically focus firing on the flanking troops. Five dropped to the floor on my right, drawing a line of sight back the way she had travelled and letting off several rounds to cover group two as they moved into position. There was a scream then instant silence in response. Daniela was headed our direction at a crouch, keeping half an eye on the reapers but primarily carefully checking the bodies around us. You would imagine she was checking with the intention to tend any wounded. She discharged her sidearm into the forehead of a body that groaned at her approach. That satisfy your curiosity?


    Both Neta and Shai called in separate contacts at a grunting scream of Daliah, using her considerably augmented strength to first block a wide swing from the sentinels remaining arm then attempt to hold it in position for one of the legionaries to take free shots. I snapped off several quick shots to its head area in an attempt to take out the targeting sensors with no luck. Turns out Daliah is a brawler, she has swords like the other reapers, but obviously prefers pummelling her enemies into submission. Even sentinels apparently. Colour me impressed.A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation.


    With a scream of rage Lilou struck mercilessly at the sentinels restrained arm, severing it completely in three overhead hacking motions of her blade. Clea stabbed repeatedly as though fencing with her target, intent on penetrating the primary fusion cell and causing the machine to perform an emergency shut down. Fluorescent green coated her blade, the volatile material proof her attack had been successful. The reapers immediately withdrew, scanning for additional targets. The sentinel was still standing, but it was now effectively out of the fight.


    Lilou gave me a mock salute and proud grin before joining team two in a crouched sprint, Clea and Daliah stayed in position watching for any response from the considerable cover of the factory floor at her movement. The sisters weren''t exactly happy with my choice, but as I explained it to them, this was our first joint combat OP with the Wildcats and I wanted their opinions of the new reapers abilities. Leaving the second team without their protection wasn''t and option.


    :>> Targets neutralised.


    :<< Acknowledged. Hold.


    I''d need to get my bearings, also now that we were inside I needed to begin the designation of targets and allocating priorities. First up, I would prefer to have any resistance here taken care of before the new shift arrived, just in case. To do that I''d need to check in on the two Wildcat teams setup outside to see what their contacts were about.


    :<< Alpha Gil. Wildcat Two. Sitrep.


    First our spotters, only a group of two, they were the most vulnerable.


    :>> Wildcat Two. Nil hard targets. Mutants are being drawn in by the noise, engaging targets of opportunity, but expect additional company.


    Meaning the spotters had no emplacements or other targets to prioritise, at least from their current position. They were three hundred meters from the ambush team, so now the question was wether or not to have the two girls sit tight and hope that between them they could handle what came their way, or move them through potentially an unknown number or mutants over unknown ground, in the dark, to the more secure location of the ambush team. Second option sounds really bad right? Welcome to command, first option could be far, far worse.


    :<< Alpha Gil. Acknowledged. Wait One. Wildcat Nine. Sitrep.


    :>> Wildcat Nine. Same here my Alpha.


    The vehicle crew had been engaging with their personal weapons rather than the vehicles. The target of the ambush sure as shit wouldn''t go anywhere near the heavier weapons of the vehicle, thereby negating the ambush setup. Good news though, the spotter team would be within its effective range if they ran into any trouble when on the move.


    :<< Acknowledged. Wait One. Six Sitrep.


    :>> Draugr Six. Nil hard targets.


    With its armaments the gunship would be far from efficient at engaging the incoming mutants unless they were clumped together in very sizeable groups. Meaning Brooke had the gunship circling around five hundred meters above our heads waiting for more suitable targets.


    I checked the time, twenty two minutes past the deadline for the ambush, if it hadn''t happened by now it either wasn''t going to or they were waiting to respond in force. I considered the options, and figured the ambush team were relatively safe in their hide at the moment, the spotters were in the greater danger.


    :<< Acknowledged. Wildcat Two, Five, move to Nine. Nine support if required.


    :>> Wilco.


    :\\ If it moves I want it dead.


    I growled over the cell comms, before switching to the official tactical channel to get the show on the road. It was a slow and arduous six hours to clear the building in its entirety, I didn''t split the teams. We moved to the background tunes of the turrets opening up randomly during the entire process on mutants as they stumbled into range, drawn by the noise. I had the second squad advance, remaining to our front and within our line of sight at all times as we moved in a half arrowhead formation. Every hour I had the squads switch the point role to keep the two assault teams as fresh as possible to avoid potential mistakes.


    We had gathered outside by the humvees, now three in the morning we are all well and truly fucked. And not in the good way.


    "Before we break up for some rack time, anyone got anything to say?"


    "They aren''t making anything, at least not yet." Brianna yawned.


    "Yeah, most of the bits and pieces were clearly older components. I did see a couple of new ones though, scattered around the different stations. Ideas?"


    "I disagree. I think they have already completed their production run and that they might be reverse engineering sentinels." Anika spoke up.


    "They?"


    "Random evil corporation, Chinese. Don''t know, don''t care. Someone cashed up. Let''s just agree it''s a pretty fucked up situation and think about what we know and what that could mean."


    "Sure."


    "A sentinel outpost goes dark. Not glitched or hacked, the IFF and networking just not in place. Several units missing, some disassembled in the compound. The couple of units here, that we engaged, the balance if you were keeping count, disassembled throughout this facility."


    "Which leaves us with two options." I nodded my head in thought.


    "Industrial espionage, or the Chinese."


    :>> We hadn''t considered the first option, but then again, you are forgetting about the wolves.


    The girls all dropped and raised rifles at the uninvited interruption over the tactical channel. With someone listening in over the secure network to off comm conversations they made the right call. I was only half expecting it, given that our cypher contact had mysteriously disappeared in conjunction with our operation, but it was nice to have confirmation.


    :<< Anyone ever tell you it''s rude to eavesdrop? Also, where the fuck are you? Wildcat Nine, prep to move.


    I knelt and slowly rotated in the center of the circle, my arm pumping in a slow motion, pushing my palm to the ground to let the girls know to stay sharp and in place. It was the Cypher that had setup the Wildcats under my command, his chosen entrance into the conversation leaving me with doubts as to his actual intentions.


    :>> About that... a little help? Third row from the left, seventeenth unit down. Nine you can stand down.


    He was attempting to be nonchalant in his response, but there was definitely a little stress in there.


    :>> No thanks. My Alpha?


    :<< Good girl. Orders unchanged. Cypher sit tight, be aware we are armed, tired, and now you''ve gone and pissed off my girls.


    It wouldn''t be a good thing to directly threaten a Cypher, particularly over the official tactical network for the operation. However if he was keeping as close an eye on my cell as he appeared to be, direct threats weren''t necessary.


    :>> Understood Alpha. I await you at your earliest convenience. I owe you one.


    Well now, appears our ''friend'' was well and truly fucked, either that or he was baiting a trap. Not likely though, not with an admission like that over the monitored network.


    :<< Team Two on point, lets go save us a Cypher.


    The girls had smirking grins firmly in place as they began moving through the building at my open ribbing of the Cypher, well... fuck him.


    I had the teams take up defensive positions around the manufacturing plant indicated, after a quick once over I had zero ideas about what it was we were supposed to do.


    :<< Alpha Gil. In position. Any tips for new players?


    :>> Cypher. Pull the data dump monitor, press the big red button.


    I walked over to the nearby control panel for this particular equipment, conveniently the embedded screen had handles attached. I glanced over at the next machine in line, no handles. A quick visual check didn''t reveal any hidden mechanisms, with a shrug I pulled the component from the operations panel. Yep, big red button. Not ominous at all. With nothing else for it I mashed it down.


    Heavy machinery moved unseen in the foundations beneath our feet, the thrumming momentum building for several seconds before the entire bulk of the five by ten meter manufacturing equipment began slowly rising from the floor on heavy hydraulic rams. The barely recognisable face of the Cypher came into view before it had even finished moving into place. His exhausted face covered in dirt, filth, and smears of dried blood, the expression of relief on his face overwhelming.


    "Gimme a second." He quickly disappeared from sight.


    I drew my sidearm and angled around the machinery for a better view, the Cypher grunted with exertion, dragging something heavy across the floor of his hide as I tried to see what was going on.


    "Ahh... I''ll need a hand with this, kinda heavy." His face came into view.


    I sure as shit wasn''t willing to go down there, so I wasn''t about to send one of my girls until I knew what was going on. Without warning I flooded the Cypher with white light, he dropped the load he was shifting and covered his eyes in the brilliance. He''d clearly been in the poorly lit room for a while, which is exactly what I was counting on. The only lighting he''d had available for I don''t know how long was from the status lights of the various equipment lining the walls, most of those blinking an angry red. There was a noticeable gap, precisely matching the dimensions of whatever it was he was trying to drag across the floor.


    "Back up. Lemme see what you got." I sighted my sidearm to the back of his exposed head.


    "Easy." He spoke quietly and raised his hands to show that he was unarmed. His back was still to me as he shuffled to the side to give me a clear view of his prize.


    "Friend of yours?" I could only describe the container as a ribbed fish tank. There was a portable power supply wired into the unit, various cables had been haphazardly spliced or severed and were trailing in the dirt of the floor. The wires that had been spliced together fed through the clear sides of the container into the cranium of a severed head. It was the eyeless head of the VIP we had recovered some time back.


    The Cypher turned, hands still raised with the flat of his palms forward as though attempting to physically push the bright light from his eyes.


    "Something like that. We good?" His voice was tired as he blinked up at me through his fingers.


    "Looks like it. You need anything else from here or we done?" I lowered my weapon and switched my helmet light to the less intensive red filter, glancing between the reapers I caught Daliah''s eye and waived her over to my side.


    He eyed Daliah''s passive expression warily, she was watching him with excited eyes, like a hunter observing prey as she awaited my order. Blinking rapidly as his eyes attempted to readjust yet again to the darker surrounds of his environment he answered smoothly.


    "Yeah, this is it."


    I nodded sideways at the hole, Daliah stepped forward and dropped like a stone. To his credit the Cypher didn''t flinch as he stepped back to give the reaper the room she would need. She effortlessly lifted the head in a box, and hefted the weight to throw the box at the top of the wall. With one corner of the container balanced on the lip of the wall she stood on tip toes and pushed it clear along the floor before turning to the Cypher with a wicked grin.


    He looked between Daliah and I with a worried expression. I have no idea what she had planned, looked like fun, so I winked at her and turned my back.


    A moment later the Cypher blinked up at me with a groan as he rolled onto his back from where he had landed after the reaper had thrown him clear from the hole.


    "Thanks... I think."

 Chapter Nineteen

    All eyes were focused on my girls as they acted like we were the only ones in the club. To be honest, I wasn''t sure how I felt about the leering grins and greasy looks from the predominantly male patrons aimed at my girls, though I couldn''t argue they weren''t doing their best to gain their attention.


    They were certainly making the best of the situation while they ''worked'', the club music turning my girls into a horny writhing mass of flesh as they completely let loose their inhibitions on the dance floor. Conversely it gave me a headache, give me heavy metal any day.


    :// That''s six, one to go.


    Daniela curled the right side of her upper lip at me from across the dance floor as she writhed in time to the beat, grinding herself into the palm of Brianna''s hand as the girls danced. The large ''x'' of the fluorescent tape across her nipples doing nothing to restrain the bulk of her mostly naked flesh. Slapping Bri''s ass in dismissal she danced across the floor with her arms held over her head, her upper lip still curled almost in a snarl as she eyed me with intent. My eyes traced hungrily over her naked skin in encouragement, the miniscule fluorescent green t-string left next to nothing to the imagination, the only piece of clothing that she wore. The girls were redeploying now the endgame was near and preparing for our exit.


    Twenty four hours ago we had returned from the dead zone, as it turns out both I and the girls, at the very least owed the Cypher our thanks. He had acted of his own accord and infiltrated the facility several days prior to the Wildcats deployment, with his inside knowledge he knew the Draugrs were going to be deployed on an assault operation the moment I had returned to active duty. When the order crossed his desk two weeks prior he had baulked at the five percent probability of success. But he still wasn''t going to act. Then he quickly realised that he was never supposed to have seen the details, a clerical error had resulted in it being forwarded to him as the designated liaison for the Israeli Wildcats, a group that no longer existed as a detached military unit. The only conclusion he could draw was that the special operations addendum to their inclusion within Draugr cell had somehow upset the paperwork applecart, but it certainly drew his focus and he wanted to know more as a result. The red flag that actually set his own plans into motion however, was the fact that the orders for the assault were unsigned, and no one in the military chain of command was questioning them. He made no secret of the fact that he would not have acted if it weren''t for that final piece of information peaking his interest, and that had only occurred as he had neither seen nor heard of such a thing during his extensive career.


    In other words, he had acted on gut instinct to save our collective asses and had intended to shutdown the facility defences prior to our assault. He was successful, the Draugr Wildcats had only faced the emergency defence systems, the last line of defence against intrusion. We didn''t know it at the time, but the buildings surrounding the factory complex were filled with hundreds of sentinel warbots. He was very sketchy and far from cooperative in providing further details from there, particularly where the severed head came into the picture, apparently having filled us in as much as he was going to. Even then he was only willing to share what he had for two reasons....


    Dani pulled up the bent over party girl currently griding her groin into mine roughly by her green hair. The woman arched her back and threw her arms up around my neck, pointing her bare chest at Daniela and silently daring her with a grin to make her move. Dani, the far more experienced of the two in dealing with multiple lovers placed her hand on the girls swaying hip and kissed her teasingly, drawing her lips upwards with want and need as she sought the mexican woman''s lips. Talia danced away at my side with a jealous pout at the three way kiss Dani had drawn the girl into.


    Sorry... where were we? Oh right. Two reasons. The first being we had actually saved his ass right back, he was genuinely trapped under the machinery where we had found him. The second, he was starting to sway his opinion to my way of thinking and was considering the very real possibility that the wolves were a completely separate issue to what we had faced in the dead zone. He wanted our help in tacking down leads.


    I gave Daliah a hard stare and waited for her to open her eyes as Dani moved to my back, a string of saliva still joining our lips as she sandwiched me between the seductive movements of herself and the party girl. Daliah was moving her body and tracing her fingertips along the curves of her armour in sympathy to a deafening beat with closed eyes, the problem being that she was the only one of my girls that was currently clothed in more than tape and underwear in her role as my bodyguard. Her eyes flicked open when she realised what she was doing, I gave her a wink of approval as she again straightened and focused on the task at hand. She turned to quickly survey the gathering crowd looking down at our private party with a heat in her cheeks.


    It was still unclear as to exactly which group was behind the facility, though with very serious consideration now being given to my corporate espionage hypothesis we needed to determine if there actually was a link between the potentially separate threats of wolves and sentinels. For me, that''s where my money was. There was only one corporation that held the patents to the sentinel design, Peralta Defence Contracts. If it were proven they were incapable of maintaining the integrity of the sentinel war machines as a whole, the contract would automatically be open for general tender. The wolves were a Chinese design and in my mind a completely separate, but still very real threat.


    Daliah allowed a girl that I had never before laid eyes on entrance to our party, she was immediately beset upon by Anika. She was quickly joined by Brianna in the fondling and touching welcome of the new girl as the three of them danced. Their movements a cover as they checked her over... very thoroughly I might add, for concealed weapons. The seventh indentured club employee was all to willing and allowed the members of my team to strip her down, throwing her scant clothing to the floor in the process as they danced. The idea being to remove any tracking devices that she may or may not know were on her person. They led her back to the final private booth with a promise of cash, drugs, sex, and anything else her little heart desired. The tracking device in her collar would need to be disabled off site with the assistance of our new Cypher ally.This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.


    :// That''s seven, but we might have a problem. Angry... someone incoming.


    I watched with a bored expression as a hulking brute of a man attempted to force his way past Daliah, the expression on his face priceless when the reaper, diminutive by comparison, didn''t move so much as a millimeter at his brutal shove. She didn''t hesitate and shoved right back, forcing the shirtless, heavily tattooed man to take several steps backwards to prevent falling on his ass. He had a mek arm and skull cap sure, but they were civilian issue and not even remotely in the same class as the upgrades all my reapers had.


    "Private party." Daliah''s voice boomed sweetly over the venu speakers, drawing every eye in the club. It took me a moment to realise the music didn''t start again, the silence it''s own kind of deafening noise after the hours long assault of the dance music.


    :\\ That''s our cue ladies, secure the prisoners and head out the back door, bring up the Spearhead.


    We were strictly off book for this job, no tactical network or associated combat overlays to be relied upon. The Draugr girls were somewhat used to this however, as we had all taken the odd private contract from time to time. The Wildcats were... stumbling, to say the least. More than a little lost at the lack of available information, no target designation their primary cause for concern. For this reason I had each Wildcat teamed up with a Draugr, making a total of seven two ''man'' teams. The left over numbers meaning the two vehicle crew were on station nearby ready for extraction, the final girl, Daliah, would assist me in covering our retreat with the seven drugged women... speaking of which.


    I traced my fingers up the flat stomach of the party girl, she obligingly lifted her hands above her head absolutely blitzed out of her brain to grant me easier access with a little moan escaping her lips at my touch. Dani reached from behind and pulled backwards on her hips to hold her in place as Talia stepped from my side, gently kissed the girls lips and placed the drug patch on her neck. She collapsed unconscious immediately. I passed her off to Dani who quickly threw one of the unconscious woman''s arms over her shoulder and headed for the exit behind us with Talia trotting over to the nearby tables to recover their sidearms from the bags that had been strategically placed around the room.


    The tattooed man paced back and forwards in furry, glaring hate at Daliah and waiting for an opening. She wasn''t going to give it, she simply walked backwards with her ACR held loosely to her front. I had no doubt there were plenty of armed club security around, that was why as soon as we started moving I had Daliah activate the hologram that identified her as a ringer. The thugs in the club wouldn''t have hesitated to engage the police, ringers were another matter entirely. Why? Ringers worked under military law, we had zero restrictions in our engagements, we were both ruthless and relentless, and we had the full support of every law enforcement data base in the country. In short, you killed a ringer, you sure as shit knew you would be dead within hours, if not minutes of pulling the trigger. Well... if those ringers were on a sanctioned OP at any rate, which we weren''t. I planned to be long gone before anyone figured that out though.


    Daniela was the first out the back door, my heart stopped at the horror in her scream. Behind me Daliah let loose a short burst of her rifle. To my front I could see Dani firing her sidearm again and again as she fell to the floor. There was no way I could get to her, I would need to wait for the other girls to clear the hallway.


    The Spearhead skidded to a halt, the rear ramp slamming to the bitumen of the carpark as Shai emerged from the darkness of the armoured personnel carriers interior like a wraith. The muzzle flash of her rifle sucking all colour from the world as she added her own fire to ensure Dani''s target wouldn''t be getting up again. Shai''s jaw dropped, she covered her mouth in horror and looked up at me, her eyes immediately filled with tears.


    Time froze, yet advanced far faster than it had any right to. Standing in the doorway I could see that Daniela''s target was dead, but she was likewise laying motionless on the ground looking up at me with sad eyes, afraid to move. She coughed once when she tried to talk, instead blood sprayed in a cloud to spatter into my face as I knelt by her side to check over her wounds. She''d been hit with a stripper, they normally weren''t deadly... but with the location of the wound...


    "Shh baby. Don''t talk. We got you."


    Clea walked over after depositing her prisoner in the APC, and looked down at Dani laying in a pool of her own blood. Her knuckles whitened as she gripped her recovered sword with a grim determination. She spun on her heal without a word and with Lilou by her side, stalked with hate filled eyes towards the motionless gangers milling around nearby, the fog of the drugs clouding their minds lifted at the approach of the reapers. They ran, or tried to. The pleas that met their head on sprint fell on deaf ears, neither legionnaire hesitated. Body parts flew and blood flowed from the devastating wounds inflicted on every gang member stupid enough to be in attendance.


    Shira, the Wildcat medic bolted down ramp, her medic bag already open before it hit the ground. Dani grimaced up at me in pain, squeezing my hand tightly with the side of her face continually twitching and repeating the movements of her pain filled grin as the synthetic fibres of the flesh stripper virus that had been transferred from the blade burned into the muscle mass of her neck, severing the nervous fibres of her flesh as it progressed. Her throat was a ruin and there was nothing I could do but watch on helplessly and try to comfort her.


    "Don''t you pass out. Be a shame if I tell you I love you and your all passed out and shit. And I do... you know?"


    I gave her a shit eating grin like every other time I had teased her. She tried to suck in breath a couple of times around the ruined muscles of her throat, the noise both horrific and heartbreaking.


    ...the twitching in her face stopped, replaced with a sad smile of defeat...


    ...she lay still, her grip in my hand loosened...


    ...her dead eyes stared at me accusingly.

 Layer 02 - Cognition

    Spoiler: Spoiler<input class="spoilerButton" type="button" value="Show">


    01000100 01100001 01101110 01101001 00101100 00100000 01110000 01101100 01100101 01100001 01110011 01100101


    You know that feeling you have, when your standing right on the edge of a busy road, the one that tells you to look up?


    00100000 01110011 01110100 01100001 01111001 00100000 01110111 01101001 01110100 01101000 00100000 01101101


    You know that if you look then everything will be fine, you''ll make it across, and you can carry on with your day.


    01100101 00101100 00100000 01110000 01101100 01100101 01100001 01110011 01100101 00100000 01110100 01101111


    But every now and then, something whispers at you, something at the back of your mind beckons... and you stop.


    01110101 01100011 01101000 00100000 01101101 01100101 00100000 01100001 01100111 01100001 01101001 01101110


    But that''s a mistake. Because as soon you stop, the very second you hesitate, something screams at you not to look. It dares you... it taunts you.


    00100000 01101001 01101110 00100000 01110100 01101000 01100001 01110100 00100000 01100100 01100101 01101100


    Take a chance. It says.


    01101001 01100011 01101001 01101111 01110101 01110011 00100000 01110111 01100001 01111001 00100000 01100001 01101110


    Now is the time. Just don''t look... everything will be fine.


    01100100 00100000 01100100 01101111 01101110 00100111 01110100 00100000 01100101 01110110 01100101 01110010


    It was like that.


    00100000 01110011 01110100 01101111 01110000 00101110 00100000 00100000 01001001 00100000 01101110 01100101


    I wanted to look, but I couldn''t.


    01100101 01100100 00100000 01111001 01101111 01110101 00101100 00100000 01001001 00100000 01110111 01100001


    Then I didn''t want to look, but I could.


    01101110 01110100 00100000 01111001 01101111 01110101 00101110 00100000 00100000 01010000 01101100 01100101


    Then I did.


    01100001 01110011 01100101 00100000 01110011 01110100 01100001 01111001 00101110


    What did you do?


    01010011 01110101 01101101 01101001 01101011 01101111 00101100 00100000 01001001 00100000 01101100 01101111


    I looked.


    01110110 01100101 00100000 01111001 01101111 01110101 00101110 00100000 00100000 01010100 01101000 01100101


    And what did you see?


    00100000 01110011 01100101 01111000 00100000 01110111 01100001 01110011 00101110 00101110 00101110 00100000


    They were mad, all of them were mad. But not him. He was... death.


    01100001 01101101 01100001 01111010 01101001 01101110 01100111 00101110 00100000 00100000 01011001 01101111


    Didn''t that frighten you?


    01110101 00100000 01100011 01101111 01110101 01101100 01100100 00100000 01110100 01100101 01100001 01100011


    No.


    Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings.01101000 00100000 01101111 01110101 01110010 00100000 01101101 01100001 01101110 00100000 01110011 01101111


    Why not?


    01101101 01100101 00100000 01110100 01101000 01101001 01101110 01100111 01110011 00101110 00100000 00100000


    Because he loves me.


    01000010 01110101 01110100 00100000 01001001 00100111 01101101 00100000 01110011 01101111 01110010 01110010


    He loves you?


    01111001 00101100 00100000 01101000 01100101 00100000 01101110 01100101 01100101 01100100 01110011 00100000


    Yes. He told me once you know. Told me that he loves me.


    01101101 01100101 00101110


    Do you love him?


    01001001 00100111 01101101 00100000 01100001 01100110 01110010 01100001 01101001 01100100 00100000 01101111


    He''s death, so... yes.


    01100110 00100000 01100010 01100101 01101001 01101110 01100111 00100000 01100001 01101100 01101111 01101110


    If you could go back to him, would you?


    01100101 00101110 00100000 00100000 01001001 00100000 01100100 01101001 01100100 01101110 00100111 01110100


    Can I? Go back I mean.


    00100000 01101011 01101110 01101111 01110111 00100000 01101000 01101111 01110111 00100000 01100001 01101100 01101111


    That''s not what I asked my love.


    01101110 01100101 00100000 01001001 00100000 01110111 01100001 01110011 00100000 01110101 01101110 01110100


    Then yes. Yes I would.


    01101001 01101100 00100000 01001001 00100000 01100010 01110010 01101111 01110101 01100111 01101000 01110100


    There would be pain.


    00100000 01111001 01101111 01110101 00100000 01110100 01101111 00100000 01101101 01100101 00101110


    How much?


    01010111 01100101 01101100 01101100 00101110 00100000 00100000 01001001 00100111 01101101 00100000 01101011


    Would it matter?


    01101001 01101110 01100100 01100001 00100000 01101100 01101001 01101011 01100101 00100000 01111001 01101111


    No.


    01110101 00100000 01101110 01101111 01110111 00100000 01110010 01101001 01100111 01101000 01110100 00111111


    There will be joy.


    00100000 00100000 01001001 00100000 01100011 01101111 01110101 01101100 01100100 00100000 01100111 01100101


    That... is that bad?


    01110100 00100000 01101101 01111001 00100000 01100100 01100001 01101001 01101100 01111001 00100000 01100100


    Perhaps.


    01101111 01110011 01100101 00100000 01101111 01100110 00100000 01010011 01110101 01101101 01101001 01101011 01101111


    There would be confusion.


    00100000 01110000 01110101 01110011 01110011 01111001 00100000 01100110 01110010 01101111 01101101 00100000


    But would I be with him?


    01101010 01110101 01110011 01110100 00100000 01100001 01100010 01101111 01110101 01110100 00100000 01100001


    Yes.


    01101110 01111001 01110111 01101000 01100101 01110010 01100101 00100000 01101110 01101111 01110111 00101110


    Then I don''t care.


    01011001 01100001 01111001 00100001 00100000 01010100 01101000 01100001 01101110 01101011 00100000 01111001


    That is your final decision?


    01101111 01110101 00100001 00100000 00100000 01001001 00100111 01101101 00100000 01110011 01101111 00100000


    Yes.


    01100101 01111000 01100011 01101001 01110100 01100101 01100100 00101110 00100000 01101000 01101101 01101101


    As you wish.


    00100000 01100111 01101111 00100000 01100001 01100111 01100001 01101001 01101110 00111111

 Layer 02 - Chapter One

    It was a day, just like any other day. It was wrong, it was morbid, it shouldn''t exist and it didn''t feel right. But then again, days like this never really did. I don''t think they are supposed to. If they ever did start feeling right or normal, that would be when I knew I was in trouble. Then it would be time to turn in my guns and retire from the chaos. Today wasn''t that day.


    We watched in silence. Not because it was customary or polite. But because... You know what? fuck you leave me alone.


    Soldiers die. It''s our go to solution. When all else fails, it''s what we do. That''s what we are good at. It''s what we are paid to do.


    We just... die.


    And so that''s what she had done.


    Brianna held on tighter with her little finger curled around mine as the bugler finished the tune we all knew, the one we we all hated, the notes we were all so proud of. The last post.


    Once upon a time I found a sort of comfort in the notes. An indication from the world of the living to the souls of the dead that they could stop now. Well done mate. And thank you.


    But not today. As the notes died I wiped at my face. I wasn''t swiping away at tears, although they were certainly there. It was the blood that I was trying to remove. The mist of blood that she had coughed into my face from her ruined throat as she died. The notes of the haunting melody forcing me to relive the final moments of my soldier, my friend, my lover.


    Then we stood there on the immaculately presented lawn of the military cemetery, a minute of silence in her honour. I had long ago learnt to forgive those that didn''t know any better so I just stared, silently seething at the chaos of the city around us that refused to oblige. Life goes on.


    I readied myself. It was time, and this would be the last time. I would never again have this opportunity.


    "I love you Dani."


    I turned my back on her for the final time. I turned my back to face a wall of the lost.


    The women searched my eyes for meaning, for assurance and comfort, even as they offered this, and more, in their own forlorn expressions of loss in return. For the first time in my life I was overwhelmed with the enormity of the task ahead. But I needed to say something, to do something, anything. I had been the one to invite them all into my life and they needed me. My grief could wait. There are more of them then there are of me. They need me. They need me now.


    I opened my my mouth to speak, but nothing came out as at the very same time I noticed it. I tilted my head in confusion at the contrasting white and black hunched over shape behind my girls. The sight so ludicrous and jarring against the reality that should be, forcing everything else in my crippled mind to fade into the background. Sure I wanted a distraction, but... that? Be careful what you wish for I suppose.


    "Oh good. I made it." The distinctly feminine, definitely artificial, but almost certainly familiar voice panted out, breathless.


    I walked though the crowd of my dumbfounded girls towards the new arrival, all eyes focused on the robot currently bent over double with its hands on its knees, moving and reacting as though sucking in large lungfuls of air, minus the noise.


    It looked up, the artificial electric blue eyes focused on my face to immediately single me out from the crowd of women around me. Still hunched over as though struggling for breath it pointed, waving it''s hand repeatedly at me, not yet speaking as it slowly stood erect. Confusion suddenly etched itself onto the moving components of the glossy white face, the details in a contrasting satin black.


    Brianna stepped forward, reaching a hand behind her, pushing my stomach protectively to hold me in place and keeping me behind her where she knew I was safe, the bulk of her body blocking the robots view.


    "Wind!" The robot became very animated and looked at her excitedly. Then just as suddenly stopped again.


    "No wait. That''s not right." The robot drew its finger to its chin in thought and circled on the spot all but ignoring us as it tapped it''s chin.


    "Breeze, is that it? It''s like wind but not..." It looked at Brianna thoughtfully having turned a full three sixty. It continued before she could respond however.


    "No, no, no. Breezy?" The robot looked at her hopefully, longingly.


    I''d never seen anything even remotely like this before. The way it moved, the way it spoke and interacted, some considerable effort had gone into it''s programing. Then it hit me. Like a bolt of lightning that tingled and scorched my nerve endings as the thought hit home. I had seen this level of detail and dedication in programing before. Granted, that was only on a digital avatar, I could even name the software. Sumiko.


    "Brianna." She responded firmly, sadly. Only the other girls and myself called her Breezy, now wasn''t the time to remind her of that.


    "No. Bri." The robot said with a firm nod and a grin, stepping forward with it''s arms out for a hug.


    Bri backpedaled in confusion as the robot moved forward. Lilou and Clea reacted immediately to defend their friend. Holding it firmly in place with the exposed mek and strength of their reinforced limbs. The robot looked at each of the french women in turn with confusion for the barest of seconds, it''s facial features again filled with excitement as it was bodily restrained.


    "The maids! No, hang on. That was a... what do you call it... fantasy... secret! That''s it." She... err I mean it, nodded happily at the girls. Lilou''s face flushed red with embarrassment as her eyes opened wide in shocked surprise. Clea looked at her sister with a flat grin and a questioning look as Lilou searched the robots eyes for something, her grip on its shoulder loosening.


    "Where''s death? He was just here." The robot pouted at Lilou.


    "Death?" She asked back. It was far from an appropriate question to be asking mourners attending a funeral.


    "You know.... oh wait not death. The chief zombie wrangler. Yes! No." The robots face was a swirl of emotion as it tried to figure out what the person it was sent to find was called. I''d never seen a confused robot before. I mean, it was clearly a robot, but I was starting to have my doubts.


    "Draugr?" Talia asked from the very confused crowd.This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.


    "Oooo yes! The Draugr, the big one. The boss one, but not one..." The robot pointed at Talia, but looked confused again. She clicked her fingers.


    "Alpha." Talia prompted. The robot smiled dreamily in response.


    "That''s him, the one with the big cock." It smiled with a knowing grin at my girls.


    I stepped around the stunned Bri, hell we were all stunned. We were all stunned, and we were all beginning to form our own suspicions. None of us wanting to dare hope or to begin believing.


    The robots electric blue eyes somehow became bigger and more focused as I stepped into view. It ran forward, the reapers looking to each other with so many questions, but also knowing the answers at the same time. The robot tackle hugged me as my girls liked to do, either when they hadn''t seen me for a couple of hours or when they just wanted to say hello or... well for any reason they damn well pleased actually.


    The robot wrapped it''s legs around my hips and it''s arms around my neck, my hands moving of their own accord to make the seat for its ass and hold it in place.


    "Daddy." It mumbled into my neck.


    "My Daddy." Brianna responded grumpily, automatically. Then she turned to stare at the robot incredulously. Dani was the only other of my girls that called me Daddy, but only when she hugged me like this, and only when Bri was within earshot at the same time. My heart skipped a beat and the world froze as I desperately waited for the traditional response. I needed, but didn''t want to hear it from this... thing.


    "Fiiine." The robot cooed the correct answer into my neck teasingly. The tiny hairs on my neck rose as I imagined her breath caressing me.


    Brianna burst into tears and fell to the ground on her knees. I tapped the perfectly rounded plastic ass of the robot and it climbed down of it''s own accord.


    "C''mon Breezy, let''s go fuck our man." The robot completed the second and final part of the traditional ritual, holding it''s hand out to the now hysterically wailing Brianna while wiggling its fingers at her.


    It stopped and paused mid motion. The robots head turned on it shoulders to look at me in sheer terror, then it looked down at itself over its naked plastic breasts and closed its legs, crossing them tightly with a little bend of the hips as though trying to prevent a dress from billowing up in the wind. Both of its hands shot down past the curves of its very obviously feminine body to both cover and grope for something by it''s smooth groin.


    "What happened to my dick!" It said in a high pitched girly wail of horror.


    My body burnt in the painful sting of pins and needles, the sign that I was reacting but I had no idea what to do. It was the automatic reaction of combat, the dumping of adrenaline into my blood stream, it didn''t turn me into a wrath of destruction or possess me with malice, at least, not in this instance. It was the fuel to do what was needed. My brain directed my body with zero conscious oversight, I hauled the robot by the elbow dragging it away from my girls.


    It might have complained as I bodily hauled it by my side, my girls might have reacted in shock at the rough treatment. I don''t really know, nor particularly care. I spun it around and glanced back to confirm that in my blind advance I had given a sufficiently safe distance for what was to come next. Now the anger was boiling. Talia and Brooke were comforting Brianna, Anika leading the group of girls to the waiting air cars. She spoke briefly to Daliah, who split off from the group and headed my direction.


    The robot melted at my glare as I focused my attention on it, still holding it firmly in place by the elbow. It looked frightened, its chest rose and fell quickly as though breathing with exertion. That''s when I noticed the... skin that I was squeezing around the robots arm was compacted from my grip, the edges a brighter glossier white under the pressure when compared to the other panels on its body.. I released my grip, it sighed and lowered it''s head, standing in front of me submissively. It was... sobbing almost inaudibly with no tears. Daliah arrived at my side, her face hard, then she heard it as well. She tilted her head and looked at the robot with concern and doubt.


    Sumiko. The AI''s name flashed through my brain in bold red neon. I knew exactly where to start and who to blame. I made sure to put my finger to my ear so as not to freak out Daliah, staring warily at the Danibot, quite unsure as to what was going on.


    </img><># Explain yourself. Now.


    There was so much hate and malice in my tone, it surprised even me.


    </img>><# I will. But to all of you. It was her choice.


    </img><># She''s DEAD. She doesn''t get a choice in anything you piece of shit!


    </img>><# Is she?


    I wished I had a mobile comm like most of the girls. I would have gladly thrown it at the nearby tree, or perhaps stomped it into the dirt. It would have been so much more satisfying than just terminating the call with a thought. Despite my outburst the AI Sumiko was perfectly calm. I couldn''t believe that Daniela would have wanted this... thing to insert itself into our lives, if at all, especially not so soon after her death, at her own funeral. It was cruel, heartbreaking, and...


    ...


    Totally something I could see her doing, particularly if she knew what Sumi was capable of.


    Daliah looked at me sideways with a sad look. Despite the appearance of the ex Israeli reaper, her appendages made of mek and cybernetics designed to kill, she was a gentle soul. She was also the youngest of my girls at only eighteen. She adored me, and I reciprocated the sentiment. Brianna was without question my best friend, and always would be. Daliah was more like... I feel really weird thinking of her as a little sister given the amount of sex we have... she looked up to me. Since the Wildcats had joined us we had spent almost every waking moment by each others side when we weren''t off on separate Op''s. Even during my alone time with the other girls she was always close to hand. Despite our closeness, she had never before seen me in this state of grief and anger. She didn''t know how to react. I was scaring her, despite the fact she could kill me just as easily as look at me.


    I reached to her with a shaking hand, without hesitation she returned the grip and gently squeezed with her mechanical fingers. She glanced at my hand, then to me with kindness in her eye. She gave me a warm reassuring smile then returned her attention to the Danibot standing across from us, the robot that was apparently terrified. That''s new. At least it was quiet. I folded my arms across my chest and looked down at it, watching it watch me.


    It was Dani''s height, had her build, her mannerisms, the same fidgeting uncertain movements when my girl thought she was in trouble. Fuck me even the chest plate mimicked the shape and size of her breasts perfectly. I could see Dani looking back at me in the dull porcelain colour of its face.


    "Who sent you. What are you." I said in a neutral tone, it wasn''t Dani, but the similarities had my entire thought process in a weird sort of loop. I would never have treated one of my girls so poorly under any other circumstance.


    "I sent me. It''s me. Dani." The robot looked at me pleadingly, it''s voice getting quieter with each tiny sentence.


    Daliah chocked out a sob but didn''t otherwise react. I hauled the robot to my side again... something in hindsight I shouldn''t have been able to do. Robots, much like reapers, are fucking heavy. I aimed it at the still open grave some eighty meters away, the honour guard still in place and watching us warily.


    "That is Daniela Flores." I growled menacingly, spinning and dragging the robot roughly by the elbow and pointing at the fresh grave.


    "... so am i..." it said softly, sadly.


    Daliah place her hand on my forearm and tugged gently when I didn''t react. I released the robot and stepped back, the reaper stepped forward to fill the void.


    "What happened, from your point of view."


    The robot looked between the reaper and I, making a hopeful expression, that if you believe in the laws of physics, its simple face shouldn''t have been able to do.


    "In the alley, I was..." It flicked its eyes to mine briefly. "...wounded."


    Daliah nodded, indicating it should continue.


    "I knew it was a stripper virus, it was... melting me. I knew I would die. Sumiko told me she could help." The robot focused its attention on me, all but ignoring Daliah now.


    "I tried to tell you, I tried to ask you what I should do... but... only blood came out..."


    "And then?" Daliah asked, hanging on the robots every word, completely invested in the story. She had been there after all, and it matched what we had all seen.


    "I told her yes." The Danibot was watching me, daring me to challenge her words. It was body language I had become accustomed to during my recovery from the broken ribs. She was daring me to challenger her.