by Marcus Sloss
We were in the middle of a rocky field with short shrubs and scattered bushes with plenty of room to maneuver. I nudged the cyclic for a slight left turn. In the distance, I could see a nice sections of trees that I planned to fly over, if I got the time. I gave the cyclic a full twist hard left. Woah! The interior rotated at a much slower rate than the exterior, causing immediate disorientation; it was so bad I had to close my eyes for a moment.
“Explain,” I commanded in frustration.
“You might need to turn quickly, and I can adjust for a jerking one eighty, or even a tight spin for a rotation or two. The rotational forces induced by your manual input would have knocked you unconscious, based on my understanding of your biology. In order to keep you conscious, I decoupled the interior from -”
“Got it, I spun too fast and you kept me from passing out,” I summarized, slowly opening my eyes.
“Yes, Cap.”
“Okay. We’re going sprint back and forth across this clearing. If I fail to control the rotation correctly, to a one eighty course from our previous direction, I want you to keep me with the spin so I can calibrate my manual inputs and orient myself to what is and what is not appropriate. Shut down systems and prevent further injury if I pass out, please,” I instructed the tank controller.
“Wilco.”
I smiled at the Army lingo. “I’m surprised you know ‘will comply’.”
“We are tuned into the Gnet,” Nine said. “I have studied your helicopters now and given an update to other vehicles with Human operators. We are not infinite computing machines; we only have enough storage capacity for pertinent knowledge. Given that constraint, we do the best we can.”
“Everything suddenly becomes clear. Here we go,” I said jamming the cyclic forward.
There was no speedometer to gauge my speed. I eased off on the acceleration.
I frowned. “Can you give me elevation above ground level (AGL), speed, and cardinal direction displayed in my vision without it being distracting?”
“Done,” Nine replied and the three metrics showed up as light green overlays. I could see beyond them with ease due to their opacity.
I jammed the cyclic forward with full acceleration. We crested one-hundred-twenty miles-per-hour in a heartbeat. The numbers scrolled up until we hit one-hundred-sixty-two.
“Peak velocity,” Nine intoned.
I jammed the cyclic in reverse, feeling the dampeners struggle to compensate. My seat applied a suction of some sorts to keep me from flying forward into the controls. The speed rapidly scrolled back down to zero until it went negative. A right turn was easy. My grin spread as I whipped the tank around and then kicked it back up to max speed while executing a ninety-degree turn. I attempted to turn while maintaining top speed. Though able to swing the tank around in a fairly tight circle, at speed, the best I found I could do in a turn was closer to one-hundred-fifty. I could work with that. We reached full speed again and this time, I made my turn a little less sharp. I did this a dozen times until my Gpad rang.
“Helllooo,” I said, starting to bounce the tank off the ground, using the pedals.
“You okay?” Jevon asked.
“Peachy, I am having fun. I need to shoot this thing … where do you rec—”
“We picked the old corner store for target practice.” Jevon interrupted. “It was Slister’s idea. We create some rubble, but it’s better than leaving some ruins for alien bad guys to hunker down in. I was calling about this tree purchase. Did you want to add any to Aspen?”
“Nine, take me to the corner store,” I said before diving back into the conversation with Jevon. “So, I am concerned about our lapse. How did we miss figuring out we could just buy food in bulk?”
“Don’t fret about it. Perci picked up on it earlier today. We want to grow Human food, Crixxi food, and now food for these other species’ needs. There aren’t six million fresh tomatoes, however, immediately available on the market. Can we get something suitable? Probably.” Jevon mused and I could practically hear him shrug; I knew him that well. “What do you want to do?”
“I get it, the rationale is sound for setting up our own production. If we fought the Lurrol and they held us at bay and never went home, we would have to go to a different Xgate. Or worse we might have had nothing to trade. Why risk the variables when we could produce our own,” I said, seeing a patch of bright illumination ahead. There was a swarm of activity around the corner store area.
Tanks were darting in, firing a few rounds, and ducking back out. Others were jumping skyward and firing down on the store from above. I immediately saw that there was a limit to the engagement zone, however, because none approached closer than a thousand feet. The constant blue waves of energy lapped over the rubble and I tilted my head to the side in bewilderment, noticing that the beams were not causing the kind of damage I had come to expect of the powerful tanks. From all the rounds I saw impacting the structure, you’d think there would be little left but dust and slag, and though the concrete was folding in on itself with rebar jutting out from the collapsed ruins, the destruction was minimal.
I watched a misfire wash over the shield of a TP63 on the left side of the rubble. Something wasn’t adding up. That's when I received a warning notice that my guns would be limited to a maximum ten percent power output. Damn it! A smirk spread across my face as I tried to unleash a torrent of fire at the corner of the building. There appeared to be a limiter on my rate of fire while on the range, as well. What the hell?
“This is lame,” I grumbled, “take me to the Xgate.” Jevon waited patiently for me to complete my firing run. “So, I understand that we’re still at the crawl stage. When are drills starting back up? And is there a force on force simulation mode where we can shoot each other?”
“Everly is sorting out the new Crixxi arrivals as we speak. A lot of them are getting plugged straight into combat training. Things are going to be rough and we still need to implement a sleep plan for everyone so that we are prepared for the new blue rotation. Who do you plan on making your primary field commander over Mansion’s district?”
My grumble was audible, causing Jevon to chuckle. “You promoted Bonnet to a field command in Aspen?”
“Yes, Bonnet, Ulanda, and I are your three field commanders for Aspen. Each of us will pull an eight hour shift, every day of this next season. Pretty basic setup, really. One of us is up and in command, one is down getting some sleep, and the other one is in command of the Quick Reaction Force. Chain of command goes: Commander, QRF Commander, and if necessary, whoever is in the rack will get woken up at that point to assume command of a reconstituted QRF. Ideally I was thinking of adding Torrez as a third and taking a step back as brigade commander.”
“Do it,” I ordered, “Felix can run the logistics shop. Take Torrez. His family deserves a swanky hotel room and he will make a great commander. For Mansion… I will promote Eddy, Mclain, and Slister as my rotating field commanders. I also want to employ Mitchell’s squads on reconnaissance patrols with those jetpacks. I can swap him and Mclain out, both were snipers,” I said mulling the decision over. “I am going to make Willow a company commander. Probably under Slister … yeah, she would be a good fit.”
Jevon chuckled through the radio and said, “Eventually some Crixxi will need to be promoted.”
“Let them be tank commanders, company commanders, and infantry platoon lieutenants. We can see who excels and go from there. We need to come up with a more fitting punishment for insubordination, though. Maybe a real shit detail, like baby changing duty or something. Putting Elifer on drone duty fixed her sassy attitude, right away,” I said, still knowing it was a weak punishment.
“Yeah, well different societies, right? Faeries fuck freely. Crixxi cling closely.” He laughed. “I didn’t make that one up, it's already going around. The mouse people remain an unknown; I don’t think they are used to being treated as equals.”
“Speaking of the real reason I am here. I have a final shopping tri
p to take; I am so not looking forward to a third nap.” A massive branch appeared in front of the portal I was facing. “Huh, a three-hundred-foot tall tree just appeared. Apparently, I missed a message or three,” I said, gaping at the tree. I glided the tank back to the Crixxi I’d borrowed it from. “I’m off,” I told Jevon, “Cap out. Nine eject me.”
The chair swiveled and I was shoved toward an opening door. The Crixxi didn’t say a word as we passed, not a greeting or even a grumble. He simply went to the warm seat and disappeared into the interior.
A second tree arrived outside of the portal, and two Goliaths managed to rest it across the top of AC1. I’d have to find whoever concocted that idea and give them a bonus. Then I saw Crixxi by the hundreds filing into the hangar bay. I realized I had shut off Jevon before giving him an explanation of what was going on. I rang him back only to hear his Gpad not far behind me.
“Hey Jevon, sorry, didn’t mean to cut you off,” I apologized. “Who ordered the trees stacked on top of the carrier?” I asked.
“I figured AC1 can support four of them, for now,” Jevon said, pointing to the next two going onto the other side of the aircraft. “Then it will be two goliaths per tree,” he sighed, “they will be at it for hours. I can’t believe people sell these. I guess if there was nothing to mine or loot, then a whole tree, roots included, is better than nothing.”
“It’s probably best if we stop ripping down our trees when we run out of stuff to loot,” I said with a shrug. “Actually, follow me anyway. I ditched two of my wives and the Fairy council. Need a wife?”
Jevon started to slug my arm but stopped when he saw I was in acrium armor. “Brother, you look awesome in that suit. I actually am still seeing Becca, and Sarah recently joined us. Perci noted that we had purchased more females than males.” He ran a hand over his buzzed black hair and blew out a breath, a frustrated look on his young face. “I’ll admit, I never expected to lounge in a large bed with two women. My mom wags a finger at me, but I never take the bait.” He grinned, “I like having two girls. A lot.”
I paused our walk. My eyes darted around to ensure we were not overheard. “The sex is unreal,” I said, flinging my fingers out like my mind was blown.
“Right,” he nodded, “and those Fairy girls have me licking my lips.”
“Because they look like horny eighteen-year-olds, with wings,” I said nodding my head. We were on the same page, shaking our heads in amazement about how awesome multiple babes were.
“Those mouse girls are really cute.” Jevon gave a low whistle. “And, Perci said something about maid outfits being in the works.”
I smirked, but then changed the topic. “I wonder how New York is doing; maybe the troops up there at Fort Drum are holding out. Or other posts, like Fort Knox or Fort Bragg.”
Jevon folded his arms and tucked his chin in thought.
“You’re a good man Eric, if not the best soul,” he mused. “You are certainly the right soul for right here, and for right now. I know making these decisions for all these people is hard. I would have probably have picked more warriors. You chose trees. We have no idea what will happen and whose decision will be better. But I do know there are going to be some dark times ahead and some dark places on this earth, where the little blue human stereotype is applied to us Earthlings. I don’t think it will happen only in isolated pockets, either. Can you imagine what battle hardened slave traders in Africa are doing right now? You know they are like cock roaches. That breed of Humanity never dies.”
I patted him on the back and gestured towards the Xgate, since our conversation had shifted into a favorite pastime: theory crafting, the what-ifs, and outlining infinite possibilities.
“China!” I said with the kind of exaggerated tone politicians liked to use. “They were still kicking ass last I checked. They have the gumption to get through this storm. My bet is they’ll keep losing scientists until they all die as they try to build spaceships.”
We both chuckled at the image this conjured.
“Xi Ping, I order you to build that computer.” Jevon pointed at a rock while using a horrible Chinese accent. “The poor bastard bows and approaches the rock. Three seconds later, the mother ship blasts the station. A bunch of government dickheads shrug at another dead scientist, and beckon him forward,” Jevon said, gaming out the scenario.
We shimmered through the portal and into the storage room. Crixxi by the hundreds were rushing to kiss Everly on the cheek. She leaned her cheek forward so they could kiss and run. Deeper into the storage bay I saw a freaking forest. There were birds, a group of monkeys, and a panther with … oh, six legs. Uh… sure. Why not? We had the Crixxi’s pet cats over in Aspen. I wondered how these species would adapt, and how the native species would react to them.
Perci found me before I found her. She approached with Willow, Seteria, and Nilvia in tow, but no Elithen, Longoria, or Sammie. I sent a hissed psst to Jevon real quick. “Wife?”
“Not on the spot, maybe have one work for me and see where it goes,” he whispered back without moving his lips.
“That’s fair. I bet Perci already thought of it,” I said in a low tone. I smiled, opened my arms, and raised my voice to my lovely forever girl. “Perci! You have done fabulous. Please catch us brutes up. Willow, your brooding blackness makes me cower.”
Perci flashed a smile, batted her eyelashes, and I was given a sweet kiss. Willow chuckled behind her. Perci’s gaze settled on my eyes in my armor and she locked her hazels to my browns.
“Nancy is back with Elithen, planning defensive structures. Longoria is shopping for a long list of Fairy essentials; Sammie is doing the same for the Mounamine. Tarry, our Pandarin liaison, is also getting a few basic supplies. They mainly wanted to get items to help them work.” Her dimples lit up as she smiled, “Really polite servants, I absolutely adore them!”
“I have yet to greet one. How are we doing on funds?” I asked, noticing the two former Fairy hellions acting the part of well-behaved twins behind Perci. They beamed at me.
“Nothing is being held back. We had to limit our purchase to fifty trees: ten for Aspen and forty for Mansion. The rest of our funds will go towards supplies.” She rubbed her temples. “We’ll have 3,473 Mounamine, when all is said and done. That is a lot of outfits to make.”
I grinned, “Maid outfits? Really? We are actually doing that?”
“Really,” she growled back at me, “I am doing that. Proper butler outfits for the men, busty maid outfits for the women. They arrived with nothing, of course.” Perci roll her eyes as she ran a finger over my armored abs as she talked. “We need hygiene items, food, off duty clothing, undergarments, bedding, and the list of items goes on and on. The Pandarin needs are not as bad. And don’t get me started about these two behind me,” Perci said, tossing a thumb at the busty Fairy babes in forest bikinis behind her.
Jevon folded his arms, eyeing the fine Faeries, “How did you placate them? This is the calmest I have seen them. Hmm… Interesting … There are no more complaints on the net about Faeries being shitheads, either. What gives?”
“The Faeries are eager to get to work. I did not let these two go help. They are going to assist me as administrators. Nilvia will be going to Aspen to serve as a coven matriarch at our behest, her rule will be unchallengeable, so long as we are pleased.” Perci beckoned the Fairy over. “You will be working with Jevon, here, Nilvia, to complete your building projects there,” Perci said, eyeing the smaller twin and waiting for a reaction. When there was none, she smirked, and continued. “If you give them what they want and they stop getting knocked down by their superiors for their attitudes, they actually make excellent administrators. Longoria will be joining our defense council and serving our needs, such as managing overall Fairy requirements and supplies. Seteria will become the matriarch of our Mansion coven. Seteria will be getting the bigger coven, with the most trees, for a number of reasons that you and I can talk about another time, Eric.” My eyebrows rose and Perci gave
my ass a quick squeeze. “The other Faeries,” she continued, “are being folded into each group. This way their society adapts to ours and they all learn how to either fight or work to match our needs.”
I smiled and rubbed my hands together. With a deep exhale I queried, “We are done then?”
“Not exactly, I do have an emergency fund for last minute purchases. There are some Crixxi who refuse to kiss Everly’s cheek, so they will be tossed back up for sale. It adds up. Out of the nearly four thousand Crixxi we purchased, we’re putting three hundred back up for sale. I can store any remaining neilspar here in the storage bay for next market, or right before the end of the market, we can snap up some desperation sells. We’ve got what we need for now; we should hold onto any reserve funds for the last hour or two. All the auctions are over. Anything that hasn’t sold is going up on ‘buy it now’ with drastic price cuts. Sellers unable to maintain their contracts are going to get nothing, as the buyers all head for the doors.”
“Perci, do what you think is best.” I gave my brilliant little wife a squeeze. “This shopping thing is over for me and our military units. The end of the Crixxi line is in sight. I will give everyone four hours rest, while my officers prepare for a solid eight hours of combat training,” I put my hands on my hips and looked around. My gaze shifted to Seteria. “You need to rush home and oversee construction at Mansion. Fly along.”
“Yes King Eric, excuse me Queen Perci,” Seteria said, fleeing for the gate exit. I may have watched her tight ass with its cheeky thong for a wee bit longer than was polite, long enough that Willow gave me nudge.
“That’s my cue.” Jevon sighed, “Looks like I’ll see you next in a mock battle, after we get some rest. I am showing sunrise is projected for six-fifteen. Meet you at the corner store?” Jevon asked with a raised brow. A single nod from me was enough. “Come Nalvia,”he said and turned to go.
“Nilvia, Duke Jevon, it is Nilvia with an I. May I go to Mansion first and collect my coven? We will use the underway to come to Aspen as soon as possible afterwards?”
