Into the Fire
Forty Nine
Author’s note: This chapter presumes that you are familiar with Kelvin’s Choice’s story, Tamers and uses characters and situations from it with his permission. If you have not read it, you are very naughty and need to remedy the situation immediately. It is well worth the time.
***
“You wanted to see me, sir?” The redhead stood in front of the massive desk, facing the man behind it while ignoring the comfortable chair behind her.
“You don’t have time to sit, minister?”
Monica Chambers smiled tiredly. “I’m afraid, sir, that if I sit down I’ll probably fall asleep.”
“I need my Minister of Defense rested, Monica.” Colin Llewellyn regarded her with upraised eyebrows. “You need to find someone to take the Ministry of Intelligence. Lindsey,” he began.
Chambers interrupted him hotly. “Lindsey Harris will not have another posting in the government while I do. If you want to bring her back, then sack me.”
“I see,” Llewellyn said finally. “I didn’t realize you felt so strongly about her.”
“Sir, right now she would be a disaster for the league.”
“If not her, then who? Iain Grey?”
Monica smiled at the suggestion. “Sir, I’m sure that Grey would do the best possible job that he could and that his best would be outstanding until the day came that Intelligence declared war on the rest of the government for being too repressive. And to be honest, sir, considering his track record I think I’d try to be on his side in that fight.”
“He dislikes the league that much?”
“Sir, he dislikes any government. According to some of his harem that I spoke with, his politics would be libertarian. I looked it up and we do not want anyone like that in a position of power in the government. Not to mention it is very unlikely that he’d agree. I am looking at personnel records and I will bring some suitable candidates before the council as soon as I can.”
“I think I’ll have a word with Camille and make sure you do, Monica.” Llewellyn leaned back in his chair as Chambers laughed. He waited until she’d stopped before speaking again. “I actually called you here to give you a go order. Officially, I am authorizing Operation Darwin to operational status. I’ll be speaking with the Orange League ambassador tomorrow and I intend to inform him of what we have uncovered as well as express my displeasure. I want them to find out we can reach them as soon afterwards as is safely possible.”
Monica’s eyes lit up with excitement. “I’ll get the ball rolling immediately, sir.”
***
The sounds of music and ragged singing filled the air as the Boobgong made her way unsteadily up the gangplank of her ship. Once on deck she stopped and, with the careful precision of someone who was drunk a lot of the time, carefully stoppered the bottle she carried before tucking it under one arm and making her way to the bow of the ship. The tide was coming in and the setting sun outlined another vessel picking its way through the narrow reef outside Port Nolloth. That would be the ship everyone had been waiting for, the last of the pirate squadron finally returning after they’d been separated by storms on their way back from the Tropic League. Now the captains all currently drinking in the best and only cantina in town could plan their next series of strikes on shipping to the north.
The Boobgong blinked owlishly and uncorked her bottle for another drink. She leaned against the railing and watched as the pirate ship, the Trebuchet, began her final turn to exit the razor sharp coral reef and enter the safety of the port.
She frowned when water shot up the side of the Trebuchet. A second later the deck of her ship vibrated even as the incoming vessel began to tilt several degrees to starboard and settle into the waves. A veteran of dozens of bloody battles, the Boobgong immediately put the two things together and knew that something had blown a hole in the hull of the incoming ship.
As she stared at it, the ship lurched suddenly and stopped moving as her hull grounded on the reef. The captain of the Trebuchet appeared on the deck and soon ropes began to snake down the sides of the ship. Almost immediately, pokegirls slid down the ropes and disappeared into the water.
A lone pokegirl surfaced and swam for the closest rope. From where she was, the Boobgong couldn’t hear the yelling but faces began to line the side of the ship as the swimmer grabbed a rope and began swarming up it. She was halfway up the hull when something shot from the waves. It was moving so fast that inertia carried it up the hull where it grabbed the screaming swimmer before kicking away from the hull and arcing back into the water. The ship jerked again and again as something below the waves hammered at the hull and frantic activity broke out as the captain began yelling orders to her crew.
The Boobgong had recognized the shape as the aquatic form of a Nessidame and frowned thoughtfully as adrenaline began clearing the drunken fog from the brain of the Boobgong enough for her to realize that the Trebuchet was under attack. She had to warn her captain and turned back towards the shore just in time to see the flash and watch as the walls of the cantina bulged outwards before disintegrating into shrapnel. The sharp roar of the explosion swept over her and, even at this distance, the pressure of the blast was a palpable force. The amount of explosives used in the cantina had been carefully calculated to kill any pokegirl, even steel types, caught in the blast.
Then they’d been doubled.
Movement on the road west of Port Nolloth caught the Boobgong’s eye and she watched as hundreds of figures jogged towards the town. A pair of binoculars was at the helmsman’s station and she grabbed them up before training them on the oncoming force. Even though the individual breeds were still hard to make out, the black DCWS uniforms were unmistakable at this distance. Even if she hadn’t been able to recognize the military uniforms, the trio of Tyrannodames loping on either side of the column would have told her who was coming. The six dinosaur pokegirls were in their battle forms and towered above the scrub trees lining the sides of the road they were on.
The Boobgong whirled around and stared at the Trebuchet, swearing viciously as she realized that the ship had been deliberately grounded to block the port to any incoming or exiting ships.
They were trapped.
***
The Iron Maiden looked up when the elevator door opened. Her eyes narrowed slightly when Iain and Ninhursag stepped out. “Good afternoon, sir. Do you have an appointment with the Minister?”
“I do. It’s in about ten minutes.”
“We’ve changed some security policies since your last visit. May I see your ID?” He handed it over and she checked scanned it with a computer wand. “I do hope, sir, you can forgive me for the unpleasantness that took place the last time you were here.”
“What is your name?”
She met his gaze. “Lila, sir.”
“Well, Lila, you were just doing your job. I don’t think you did anything that requires me giving you forgiveness.”
“Thank you, sir.” She handed his badge back. “Sir, when you get to the Minister’s office, if Camille isn’t waiting for you, please knock on the door.”
“Where’s Dora?”
The Iron Maiden’s face didn’t change. “She doesn’t work here anymore, sir, and the minister hasn’t chosen a replacement for her yet.”
“Oh, ok. Well, thanks.” As he and Ninhursag walked down the hallway he shook his head. “The last time I was here we were unpleasant at each other. I hope I wasn’t the reason she got sacked.”
“If you’re worried about it, ask Cherry what happened.”
“I think I’ll do that.” The waiting room was empty and Iain shrugged. “We were told to knock.” He raised a fist and knocked firmly on the door.
A few seconds later it opened and Camille gave him a warm smile. “Admiral Wolf, it’s good to see you. I’m afraid you’re a few minutes early. My mistress is finishing up a com call, so please have a seat and she should be ready to see you right on time.”
“Thanks.”
The Ladyien stepped out of the office and shut the door behind her. “Can I get you some tea or anything, sir?”
Ninhursag shook her head. “We’re good, Cammie. How is everyone?”
Camille made a face. “We found out this morning that the smell of kippers makes Undine throw up. Donna and my mistress love them with eggs for breakfast, so they’re a bit put out about it. Still, it can’t be helped.”
The Elfqueen grimaced. “I’m with Undine on that one. Fish for breakfast is nasty.”
“Aren’t you a vegetarian?”
Ninhursag shook her head. “That’s a generality when applied to Elf breeds. Many of us like meat protein as a part of our diet. There’s even a small Queendom living in the wilderness in Blood where they are ritualistic cannibals and eat defeated enemies. As an outsider and an Elfqueen, they tried to catch and kill me for one of their ceremonies.”
Camille’s eyes were big and she shuddered. “That’s nasty. What about you?”
“Me? My mother was a soldier and put blood in our milk before we were weaned. She’d heard it could make us superior fighters. I’ll do the same thing when I have children.”
“How did you get away from the cannibals?”
“They only had the one Elfqueen and a dozen Elf types as her servants. Nobody there was a better fighter or tracker than I was, so once I knew what was going on, evading capture wasn’t really that hard.”
Camille shuddered again. “Did the humans wipe them out?”
“When would they have done that?”
“When you told them what happened.”
Silver eyebrows rose on Ninhursag’s face. “Why would I do that?”
“They tried to eat you.”
“The operative word in that was ‘try’. Obviously they didn’t succeed.”
“You had to tell them! If they’d try to eat you, then I’m sure they’d try to eat humans too.”
“I happen to know they did eat humans. They tried to eat me. So what? I killed two of them and we’re even.” She glanced at Iain. “I am not going to betray any Elf to the humans. I don’t care what they do, they don’t deserve slavery.”
“They were killing humans!”
“And humans kill pokegirls all the time. You’re just a happy slave.”
“Admiral Wolf!”
Iain shrugged. “I don’t know where they are. I’ve never been to Blood.”
“I want to know how you feel about what your Elf said.”
“I probably would have gone back and wiped the Queendom out.” He raised a finger. “Not because they were eating meat, but because they were attacking people for it and because they’d attacked me. If they’d found volunteers or eaten ferals I wouldn’t have a problem with it, but eating the self aware against their will is definitely a violation of my beliefs. I’m not going to go looking for them right now. I’ve got too many other things on my plate right now.” He frowned. “However, that doesn’t really answer the real question you didn’t ask. While I would have done it differently, I can’t fault Ninhursag for deciding what she did. It’s a free world, after all. That and I wasn’t there, but I can understand someone who has an appreciation for Elf pokegirls.” He winked at Ninhursag, who grinned back.
The door opened before Camille could say anything and Undine looked out at them. The Neo Iczel was wearing a pantsuit that had been cut to emphasize instead of minimize her pregnancy. “The minister will see you now,” she said, holding the door open for them. “Minister, Admiral Wolf and his Elfqueen are here to see you.”
Iain gave her a look as he passed by. “Hi, Cherry.”
“Just a second, Kerrik.” Monica Chambers focused on Undine. “Undine, do you know what the name of Kerrik’s Elfqueen is?”
The Neo frowned and shook her head. “No, I don’t remember it.”
“Then you ask what it is before announcing her. Names are important, Undine, and in politics you don’t antagonize anyone unnecessarily because someday they may be in a position to get even.” Chambers glanced at Iain. “We’re just lucky that Kerrik knows you well enough to hopefully not take offense.”
“It’s not that big a deal,” Ninhursag said easily.
“I disagree. Undine wants to help here and she needs to learn the protocols involved. Either do not announce anyone at all or announce them properly each and every time. While you’re ok with it, there are some people who will not be happy in the least and I don’t see any reason to antagonize them. Undine, we’ve already talked about this once. If there’s a third incident, you’ll stay at home. That is my final word on the matter.”
Undine flushed red. “I do not like being dressed down in front of others, mistress.”
Camille snorted. “Now you know how somebody might not appreciate being embarrassed by not being introduced by name. There’s nothing wrong with asking for the name of someone you don’t know.”
“There’s so much to remember.” Undine rubbed her face. “I’m sorry, mistress.” She sighed. “I know what you want me to do.” She turned to Ninhursag. “I am sorry for not getting your name. What is it?”
“I am Ninhursag, daughter of Autumn.”
Undine nodded. “Mistress, next time I will do my job properly.”
Monica smiled at the Neo. “That is all I can ask, Undine. Thank you.” She turned back to Iain. “So, Wolf, how are you doing?”
“Better than I expected, which is part of the reason I made an appointment to see you.” He waved Ninhursag into a chair and chose one for himself. “You know what I’ve been through since coming here and so I hope you’ll understand just how seriously I take what I’m about to tell you.” He met her gaze and relaxed a bit when she nodded slightly. “Not too long ago, Sanctuary was attacked. I’m not going to go into details about who attacked them because I’m still not completely sure about who was behind it. When I know more, I’ll tell you.”
“I appreciate that.” Chambers leaned back in her chair. “I know about the attack. This is all eyes only shoot yourself before reading, but the fact is that we do have a small spy network inside Sanctuary itself. My understanding is that they believe they were attacked by Typhonna herself.”
“They are wrong. They were attacked by something that looked like Typhonna, but wasn’t. Typhonna is dead. Evangelion recently killed her.”
Chambers gaped at him. “Typhonna is dead? My information is that she’s still in her containment unit in Indigo.”
“It’s out of date. She was killed inside the unit and recently her corpse was removed, stripped of its flesh and the bones piled up in Sanctuary City into some kind of cathedral. I’ve seen it.”
Camille blinked. “You’ve been in Sanctuary?”
Iain sighed. “That’s a bit off topic for what I’m explaining, but yes. Suffice to say I’ve been traveling to Sanctuary off and on for a while. It was in disguise.”
Monica waved a hand at her Ladyien. “Don’t distract him. We can discuss that later. Right now I want to hear this. What happened during the attack?”
“From what I know, the facsimile dug up a records archive and recorded everything in it in some magical fashion. Then it put together the cathedral. During the attack, a lot of the High Council evacuated to a predetermined point in an attempt to get away from the facsimile. The fake Typhonna attacked and destroyed this place, killing them. That single move decimated the High Council and helped to significantly change the political landscape in Sanctuary.”
“I understand that Desiree still lives. She’s the driving force there and nothing changes unless she wants it to.”
Iain nodded. “That’s true, but she and I have had a meeting of the minds and she wants to profoundly change Sanctuary. She’s asked for my help in some of this and that’s why I’m here. I revealed myself to Kirabo.”
“What on earth for?”
“My other option was to destroy the High Council and possibly everyone else in Sanctuary City. I didn’t want to do that if I could avoid it.”
“I thought you hated Sanctuary.”
“I hate what it was and what it did. If it turns out that it hasn’t changed, I will go forward with my plans to kill a lot of people there. But if I can fix it so that it’s not a threat to me anymore without having to add a whole bunch of bad karma, I’ll try that first.”
“I didn’t realize you were an idealistic dreamer, Kerrik.”
He smiled. “Be glad that I am, Cherry. Only an idealistic dreamer would have trusted a woman he’d never met but had written about and agreed to put his life on the line and help her save her life from assassins.”
“You have a point.” Her head cocked. “You also helped save the Blue League, but I don’t think that was really all that important to you.”
“You would be correct. I am a patriot, but this isn’t Texas and my experiences with the government have not been uniformly pleasant. However, that’s beside the point right now. As part of her decision to make changes in Sanctuary, Desiree asked me to act as a courier to you and give you some information. It’s as a gesture of goodwill, she’s not asking for anything in return, except that the Blue League remembers the gesture itself. Her only request is that you quickly disseminate this information to the other leagues as well, since some of it directly impacts them.”
Monica eyed him speculatively. “What is this information?”
“There are two parts. First, Desiree wants you to know that, effective immediately, Sanctuary will no longer act as a safe haven for the Limbec Pirates and is moving to eliminate any pirate forces within Sanctuary’s territory. From this point forward, the Limbecs will be considered as criminals and hunted by Sanctuary’s forces whenever they appear. Any prisoners rescued from the pirates will be repatriated to their home league if they so wish.”
Chambers stared at him incredulously. “If that’s true, it represents a major shift in Sanctuary policy. Do you believe her?”
“I do. Eve tasted the truth in her words. Most of the councilors who had personal interests that would have made them oppose hunting the pirates died during the fake Typhonna’s attack. Desiree knows this and is taking the opportunity to enact some sweeping changes to Sanctuary.”
Monica shook her head. “I’m having a hard time wrapping my mind around such a fundamental change. I’m almost afraid to ask what the second part of the information is.”
Iain produced a data chip from his pocket. “This has everything that Sanctuary knows about Limbec bases around the world. It has locations, layouts, defenses, a small listing of regular notable pirates and other people. It also has a list of the contacts in the governments of the various leagues, including Blue, which they use for information on targets as well as places to dispose of loot. Because of the long standing association between the two groups, the data includes information on known Mantis lairs.”
Chambers stared at the chip. “Have you looked at the information on it?”
Iain had copied all of the information onto another data chip for himself. “I have skimmed it, but I didn’t have time for a detailed read. There’s a lot of stuff on this chip and the detail is pretty impressive. I believe the information on it is genuine.”
“Cammie.” The Ladyien carefully took the chip as Monica watched. “If you’re right, Kerrik, this would be a major intelligence coup. I’ll verify the information on it by checking one or two listings in the Blue League. If the data is accurate, I’ll promise that I’ll pass it along to my counterparts in every other league.” She smiled. “Promptly.”
“Thank you. I wouldn’t have brought it to you if I didn’t think what was on the chip was true.”
“I know. Frankly, you’re the only person I’d be willing to believe about this. You know just how dangerous Sanctuary can be. Do you think the changes will stick?”
“I’m working to make sure they do, Cherry, and Desiree and Kirabo agree with my suggestions on making things last past them.” He hesitated. “Do you realize that if they do become what I hope they will, it’ll be more in line with what Sanctuary has always said they are? That could be extraordinarily dangerous for the leagues. It’ll act to draw every pokegirl who wants freedom and the so called liberal tamers to Sanctuary.”
Monica nodded. “That has already occurred to me, but it won’t really affect the leagues for centuries. Blue has already been making changes in that direction, but here change is slow. If nothing else, maybe it’ll spur pokegirl rights here, too, but our first loyalty,” she waved a hand to include herself and her harem, “is to make sure that Blue remains uniquely Blue and doesn’t become a carbon copy of any other league. We enforce the law, no matter what that law is or our personal opinion of it.”
Ninhursag chuckled. “Now you sound like an Officerjenny.”
Monica smiled amusedly. “I do, don’t I? I’ve had that comparison made before. Whenever someone mentions it, I remind them that before there were Officerjenny, there were humans like me.” The smile faded. “So the truth is that Officerjenny sound like I do, not the other way around.”
“I’m sorry if I offended you, minister.”
Chambers smiled again. “At least you have the good grace to apologize instead of muttering about me being a bitch about it, which I am by the way. I’m proud of who I am. Maybe a bit too proud.”
The Elfqueen glanced at Iain. “If that’s true, you wouldn’t be the only one.”
Everyone laughed. Iain got to his feet. “I know you’re busy, Monica, so I’ll let you get back to what you’re doing.”
She rose and took his hand. “Thank you for this, Kerrik. Thanks for coming by, too. When things settle down and I’m a civilian, I’d like to have a talk with you about Jamie, among other things.”
“Have you read the story I wrote called New Beginnings?”
She shook her head. “No, I haven’t had time for purely recreational reading. Why?”
“It’s Jamie’s story.” He flashed a grin. “It’s the one you’re in, too. The first part of Bhavacakra talks about him briefly, but New Beginnings is the story you want to read before sitting down with me. That’ll help you to focus the questions you’ll want to ask me.”
“I’ll do that. Good day, Kerrik.”
“Good day, Cherry.”
***
The clearing was up on a rocky hillside overlooking the tremendous facility below. A kattle stood in the clearing, occasionally nibbling on some scrub bushes that clung tenaciously to the rock. Most of the time, however, it watched the complex below. After a couple of hours, the kattle began making its way across the rocks, working around to the west. As it traveled, it would continue the pattern of grazing and then the pause and gaze over the complex again, repeating this activity throughout the day.
When the sun was setting, the kattle began picking its way down the hillside towards the complex, alertly watching its surroundings for danger. When it was fifty meters from the fence, the kattle triggered a sensor and an automated gun rotated with an almost silent whine. As soon as the weapon came to bear on the inoffensive animal a burst of high velocity rounds tore the kattle to shreds.
***
The Gunvalkyrie snored loudly enough that her tamer smacked her on the shoulder to make her stop as he passed by the stump she leaned against. She opened an eye and shifted her position without ever coming fully awake. A few minutes later her snores began again. Her tamer, on his next pass, smacked her again. “Annie, you’re louder than ever.”
She opened her eyes and yawned sleepily. “I’m sorry sir, but you know how I get when I finally sleep.”
“I know. Just try to keep it to a dull roar, ok?”
“I’ll try sir.” She closed her eyes and went back to sleep. In minutes her loud snores filled the air again.
When the snores stopped, her tamer looked up curiously. “Oakley?”
The Gunvalkyrie’s eyes opened and she nodded as she pushed to her feet. “Yes, master.”
“Are you ok?”
“I am, master. I believe I have the information we need.”
He nodded. “Show me.”
The Gunvalkyrie knelt and picked up a stick. Drawing in the soft soil, she quickly sketched out a sprawling complex dominated by a tremendous building in the center. “The gate for the security fence and the primary building both face north and the road to the ocean. That makes sense from a practical viewpoint since their supplies come by sea.”
The man snorted. “Bloody stupid from a security standpoint. What about troops?”
She pointed at a smaller building on the north side of the big one. “This is the barracks for the troops protecting the site. It’s big enough for a couple of companies of soldiers and their harems, but I didn’t see much activity and the spy suggested that they only had a single reaction platoon in place. Outside the fence they’ve got automated gun posts every ten meters. They’re set to go off when something gets within fifty meters. I tested it before returning here.”
“You got shot, didn’t you? Damnit, Oakley, I know you’re a Groaning and that killing the possessed body doesn’t hurt you if you get out before its completely dead, but you need to be more careful. Annie and I would miss you, if nothing else.”
The Gunvalkyrie smiled happily. “I’m pleased you would miss me, master. I did not see anything looking like missile emplacements or any sort of radar array. The other buildings,” she tapped them in turn with the stick, “appear to be maintenance and supply depots. One building houses the civilians who work at the facility, including the groundskeepers.” She noted it on the drawing.
“Minefields?”
“If there are any, they’re inside the fence. There is a mown area just inside the fence that runs all the way around the complex, so mines are very possible. I can return and investigate if you want.”
“No, that’s not part of our mission.” The man rose and pulled out a digital camera. He took several pictures of the dirt drawing before putting it away. “Clear the evidence and let’s get to the pickup point.” He touched the radio on his belt and clicked the transmitter twice while the Gunvalkyrie wiped away the drawing.
A winged figure dropped from the air and landed in front of him. “Sir.” She had pearly white wings that shimmered in the sunlight until they vanished as she dismissed them. “Has Oakley returned?”
“She has. We’re leaving now so change forms.”
The pokegirl shifted to a centaur form and her wings reappeared. She dropped to her belly so the Gunvalkyrie could easily climb on while facing backwards. “Tailgunner ready, Oakley?”
“We are ready,” the Gunvalkyrie replied as she shifted to her combat form.
The man climbed up behind the Pegaslut’s human torso, tapping his earplugs into place. The air rushing by at the speeds she flew could easily damage his hearing. “I’m ready, Callie.” He tapped the Gunvalkyrie on the back of the head. “Oakley, remember that I’m an Orange League tamer right now, so no fireworks unless I call for it.”
She nodded without looking over her shoulder at him. “Report first and wait for the weapons free order. I understand, master.”
Callie twisted her torso. “You get me shot from the sky because I’m playing the game and you don’t, Oakley, and I’ll beat you until you come out of Annie.”
“I will not disobey our master, my alpha.”
The Pegaslut shot into the air, curling away from the facility as she climbed above the treetops and flew just above them as they followed the contours of the terrain below them. After half an hour, the man leaned backwards and yelled at the Gunvalkyrie. “Oakley?”
The steel pokegirl turned her head slightly and yelled back at him. “Nothing!”
Instantly the terrain changed as the Pegaslut teleported. They came out over the open ocean. “Coordinates!”
The human fumbled a pokedex from his belt. “Turn left!” He watched as she went into a gradual turn to the left. “Bearing!” She straightened out and dropped to within three meters of the swells.
“Oakley, weapons free!” The man checked his pokedex. “IFF active!”
“Copy that!” The Pegaslut dropped her speed slightly. Five minutes later an island appeared on the horizon. “Land ahead!”
The man bent over the pokedex. “IFF interrogation in progress!” The display changed and he grinned. “We’re good!” He pulled the radio from his belt as Callie slowed to almost a hover. “This is Corporal Ryan Hendricks requesting permission to land. My situation is green, green, green.” That meant they weren’t being pursued, weren’t being held prisoner somehow and weren’t injured. If anything had been wrong, he would have only said the word green once so as not to alert anyone holding him hostage while still warning the hidden base that something was wrong.
“You are cleared to land, corporal. Welcome back.” The transmission ceased before he could respond.
“You heard her, Callie. Get me in there so we can report and then get a hot bath.”
***
Desiree looked at the Sergeant at Arms. “Do we have a quorum?”
The Nessidame bobbed her head. “Yes, Mistress Desiree, there is a quorum.”
The Sanctuary Goth looked around at the other councilors. The High Council chamber itself had been declared unsafe until substantial repairs had been completed, so they were meeting in a smaller room elsewhere in the building that had been certified by the inspecting engineers.
She carefully didn’t look at the guests who stood on one side of the room. “You have before you, sisters, a proposal that requires a simple up or down vote. We will now begin the vote and the Sergeant at Arms will record it for posterity.” She looked over the other councilors coolly. “Does anyone wish to speak at this time?” Every Sanctuary Goth in the room had been carefully rehearsed and nobody signaled for her attention. “As no one wishes to speak, we will proceed with the vote.”
Desiree and Kirabo had considered passing the new laws by acclaim, but in the end had decided that recording each vote individually was the best way to proceed. After all, it would set a precedent for the future, for good or for ill.
The roll call went quickly, with one dissenting vote. Personally, Desiree thought the naysayer was amusing since everyone knew she was voting no because she didn’t think that the changes went far enough and not because she was against them.
The Sergeant at Arms dutifully recorded the vote. When done, she looked up. “Mistress, the measure is passed.”
Desiree waited for a heartbeat and the romantic in her was slightly saddened that nothing momentous happened to mark the fact that the universe was forever changed. Then the practical part of her personality reasserted control and she turned to the visitors watching the council. “Captain Drummond, please escort Portia to me.”
Iain glanced at Ninhursag and Eve before offering the woman next to him his arm. She took it and they proceeded across the floor, stopping in front of Desiree. “Mistress Desiree, I present you Portia.” He did an about face and returned to his post between April and Eve.
Desiree looked into Portia’s green eyes. “I will have your oath before you take your place as a member of the High Council of Sanctuary.”
Portia didn’t hesitate. “I, Portia, swear to uphold the laws of Sanctuary and to defend it and its people from all enemies, be they foreign or domestic. I swear to bear true faith and allegiance to Sanctuary and I swear to uphold the duties of this office for as long as I hold it.”
Desiree turned to face the other councilors. “I now introduce all of you to the newest council member, Portia. She will serve as an at large member of the council, with no set territory. As we all know, she is not a Sanctuary Goth and is the first non-Goth admitted to the High Council. Councilor Portia, please introduce yourself and explain your mandate since it is something new in our experience.”
The newest member of the High Council smiled. “I’m not very good at speeches, but I understand its part of the job of being a councilor and therefore I will get better at them.” A small round of chuckles sounded as she paused. Then her face became intensely serious. “I am an Officerjenny and my mandate is to take over the Independent Watcher Complaint Commission, which you just created as part of the package of new laws you just passed. I will be policing the DCWS, any other military or police force and the politicians within Sanctuary while they administer the laws to the citizens and I have brought with me a force of two hundred Officerjenny and fifty LawFoxx to help me with my work. I understand that, as part of the package of laws voted on before my oath was given, each of my sister councilors has been given a full pardon from all crimes you have or may have committed in the past. In turn, you understand that from now on, whether we become friends or not, I will enforce the law impartially. Regardless of rank and regardless of influence, the law will be enforced.” She smiled again, this time in satisfaction at the idea that, for the first time, she would actually be able to do so. Even in Blue, where she’d come from, there were people who were above the law. “I will not be vindictive and I will not prosecute the innocent. But my mandate is to uphold the new laws, the old laws and to uphold them for all. This I will do.”
Desiree nodded. “We welcome you, Councilor Portia. The change in policy is being disseminated as we speak and the new laws will go into effect at 0900 tomorrow. Normally we allow for a month to pass before enacting new laws, but the situation is dire. You will have the full support of the council as all of us work together to make Sanctuary into the shining beacon that it should have been all along.” She waved a hand at the assembled council. “Please take a moment to meet the other councilors.”
As Portia did so, Desiree and Kirabo headed for Iain and his harem. “I’m sorry we didn’t get much of a chance to talk to you beforehand.”
Iain shrugged. “I made sure that Portia and the others knew as much as I did about what was going on, but you needed to spend time briefing her on how things would unfold more then you needed to chat with me.”
“I’m glad you understand.” She looked at April. “Did everything come out well?”
The Duelist looked up from the pokedex she held. “The video and the sound were outstanding. We’ll make sure that the Blue League gets a copy of this as soon as we get back. They’ll also receive the package you prepared covering the new laws as well as the request for an ambassador from Blue to be assigned to Sanctuary.”
Kirabo chuckled. “I’m surprised you managed to find so many of law enforcement pokegirls for us. I’d have thought they wouldn’t be for sale on the open market in such numbers.”
Iain shook his head. “They’re not. I purchased these directly from the Blue League. After I briefed her on what was going on, Minister Chambers was intrigued at the idea of what we had planned and pulled some strings for me. There was actually another fifteen of them that decided they didn’t want to participate in this grand experiment. I got them cheaply too, and so I stretched your money far enough to purchase seventy five Growlie and Growltit who will be ready for pickup in a few days once they get finished packing their belongings for the move.” He’d also donated some of his money for the project, but Desiree didn’t need to know about it.
“Are they useful?”
Eve smiled. “Officerjenny and the Growlie line work together to form a synergy that is vastly more then the sum of its parts. They’ll be a lot of help as a force multiplier for your new IWCC.”
“Then they will be welcome here. This is going to take a lot of work from everyone and spreading around that load will help us all.” Kirabo glanced at Desiree before continuing. “There have been some suggestions that, considering how much help you have given us, Captain Drummond, that perhaps you would agree to shoulder more of a burden in shaping our future and join us as a member of the High Council.”
Iain looked surprised for a second. “I thank you for the offer, but you now have your first non-Goth councilor and I think that’s enough for now. Besides, my past would come back to haunt me eventually and I don’t think anyone wants me around when that happens. If I minimize my presence here, it is very possible that knowledge of my past will die with you two.”
“We thought about it for a while and Desiree and I think you are correct about potential repercussions, but we were pushed into making the offer by some of the other councilors.” Kirabo sounded relieved. “I’ll let the others know you are too humble to accept.”
“Thanks, councilor. And on that note, I think perhaps we should be moving on.” Iain saluted in the DCWS style and led his pokegirls into the hall.
They were almost to the staircase when a voice called from behind them. “Captain Drummond, a moment please.”
Iain looked at the door to the stairs almost within reach and sighed silently as he turned around. It was the newest councilor. He came to attention and saluted. “Councilor Portia.”
Portia stopped herself as she started to return it and gave a short laugh. “I’m afraid I don’t know if I return salutes or not. Hopefully it’ll be in the orientation package I’ll get.”
“I’m sure it will be. Can I help you with something, councilor?”
She was still smiling as she nodded. “I was wondering if I could convince you to resign your commission and come to work with us at the IWCC. You’re an experienced investigator and we’ll need men who aren’t afraid of us or the people we’ll be prosecuting. I’ll even make you a major or a lieutenant colonel.”
Iain blinked several times before shaking his head. “You drive a hard bargain, councilor, but I am afraid I will have to decline. I have done some things here in Sanctuary that would eventually come back to me and while not illegal per se; when they came to light it would turn public sentiment firmly against me. In fact, I intend to minimize my presence in Sanctuary to give these changes you and the others are bringing about the best possible chance of succeeding.”
Portia’s eyes narrowed. “Didn’t you get a pardon too, with the new laws?”
“I don’t know if I did or not, councilor. I didn’t ask for one and so I don’t think so. I’m just one of those people that history won’t bother to remember, councilor, and if it does, I’ll just play a minor part. Honestly, that’s probably the best for everyone involved.”
Disappointment filled her eyes. “I’m sorry you’re too afraid of your past to stand with us, captain.”
He smiled slightly. “Nice try, councilor, but I can’t be herded by appealing to my pride, either. Now if you’ll excuse me, I have another errand to run for Councilor Desiree.”
“I thought you were going to minimize your presence and yet you are still running errands for the Mistress.”
“My errand will take me outside of Sanctuary, councilor, helping to reduce my visibility here. And the Mistress believes that I may be the only person who can conclude this mission successfully.”
“Is she right?”
He frowned. “I don’t know if anyone else can succeed. Hell, I don’t know if I can succeed, but I intend to try.”
***
Vanessa appeared and let Iain go. “Put me into my pokeball. My presence could prove disruptive and now that I can see outside my ball as well as I can when I’m not in it, I can still protect you. Eve and Ninhursag can keep you safe if there’s a problem until I can free myself.”
And you have us, Eirian said into his mind. Four dragon tattoos draped his body. Only Aurum was not with him, and there was a good reason for her not being present.
He took a deep breath and returned Vanessa to her pokeball. Then he turned to Ninhursag, but she spoke before he did. “I don’t like this, but I am aware that this is probably the best way. We’ll be watching and you won’t get the chance to yell for help before we’re here.”
“Just don’t get killed doing it.” He hugged Eve, who clung to him for a moment. “I’m not planning on doing anything stupid, honest.”
She kissed him gently. “You never plan to, my love, but it still happens. Just try not to piss her off.”
“I’ll be as nice as I can.” He put a finger on her lips when she started to speak. “I don’t have time right now. I love you and I’ll see you later.”
“I love you too”, she whispered and vanished.
Ninhursag suddenly looked uncertain, something unusual for her. “What about me?”
“Kneel.” She dropped to her knees. It lowered her height so he was just a little taller than she was. He kissed her soundly. “You don’t love me, not yet, and so you don’t get to hear that.” He lifted her chin when she started to look down. “But you and I are bonded forever and we will be together for at least that long.”
One eyebrow quirked up. “There’s more than forever?”
“I’m a truewizard. I bend reality to my will.” He tugged and she rose gracefully to her feet. “By the time we reach forever, I’ll come up something.”
“You know, somehow I find that comforting.” She hugged him, crushing his head for an instant against her bosom before letting him go and disappearing.
He took a moment to straighten his shirt. “Ling, Aurum, it’s time.”
The undead Cheetit and gold Dragoness flowed out of the shadow of a bush and moved to stand in front of him. He eyed the Cheetit for a moment. She looked whole and her eyes flicked back and forth alertly. He tried to shake off the mental image of the knife sinking into her chest and the feel of it in his hand. “How do you feel?”
“I am functional, my lord.”
Aurum cocked her head. “More of her previous life will return to her as time passes, my lord and she will be able to mimic life much more accurately. Pretending to be alive today will help her to do this. Ling, we are trying to like the living for the moment. You must breathe. It makes you look more alive and scent is a useful tool.”
The Cheetit’s chest started rising and falling as her nostrils flared. “I am sorry, my lord. I have much to learn.”
“You don’t have to apologize for not knowing something.” Iain looked around. They were standing on a shoreline where land met the sea. Waves rolled in and curled over a dozen meters offshore as they hit the breakers. The vegetation at the edge of the sand was commonly found growing around the Mediterranean or northern Africa. He settled down on some dry sand well above the tide line. “Now we wait.”
They were found a short time later by a pair of Cheetaura, who stopped and stared at them for a moment before trotting in their direction. One of them whirled and raced away as the other stopped a dozen meters away. “What are you doing here?”
Iain slowly rose to his feet and brushed the sand off of his clothes. “I’m here to see Sexmet. I’m afraid that she doesn’t know I was coming, but here we are.”
The Cheetaura’s ears flattened. “How did you come here?”
“I was brought by someone who had been here before.”
The Cheetaura’s eyes flicked to Ling. “Child, I do not recognize you. Did you bring him here?” She scowled when Ling ignored her. “I asked you a question, child.”
“I do not answer to you.”
Iain sighed. “Ling, please answer her.”
“Yes, my lord. I did not bring him here.”
The Cheetaura shifted to her centaur form and blurred forward. Sand sprayed as Ling shot sideways to block her advance and the Cheetaura screeched to a halt just short of the Cheetit. “Get out of my way, child.”
“No. You will not attack my lord.”
“I don’t intend to attack him.”
“I have no proof that you are telling the truth. Even if you are, if you change your mind I will not allow you to be close enough to my lord to reach him before I can kill you.”
The Cheetaura looked past her at Iain. “Protective, isn’t she?”
“I haven’t found anything she’s said to be wrong. To be honest, I thought you were attacking me too.”
“If you are here to see Lady Sexmet, I will have to search you. It’s the rule.”
Iain smiled slightly. “I agree that I’ll probably have to be searched, but the idea that you are the only person who can search visitors is illogical. Ling, stay close but let her pass.”
Instead of getting out of her way, the Cheetit backed up until she was directly in front of Iain. “Yes, my lord.”
Apparently, my lord, her instincts to keep you safe from harm are much stronger than I thought they would be. This will serve us well. Her obedience, however still needs some work. Aurum stalked forward to stand next to him. “Ling, our lord told you to let the Cheetaura pass.”
Ling’s ears flicked and she took a single step sideways. The Cheetaura stepped forward and stopped. Her ears and tail flicked as she examined the scene in front of her. Apparently there something in the tableau that she was observing that she didn’t like. “I will wait for the others.”
Less than ten minutes later the missing Cheetaura returned along with some Sphinxes and Griffons. One of the Sphinxes stepped forward belligerently as the others spread out. “I know everyone who is authorized to come here and you are not one of them. Who are you and why are you here?”
“I am Kerrik Wolf and I am here because I desire to speak with Sexmet.”
One of the Griffons snarled. “It’s Lady Sexmet to you, human!”
“While I haven’t sworn any oaths of allegiance to her, I’ll agree to call her whatever you want if I get to talk to her.”
The Sphinx was watching him closely. “Why do you wish to speak with Lady Sexmet?”
Iain tried to be diplomatic. “I am afraid that I can only reveal that to Lady Sexmet herself.”
The Sphinx shrugged. “Then you will not speak with her.”
Apparently diplomacy wasn’t going to work. “I don’t think that is your decision to make. Only Lady Sexmet can decide if she does or does not want to speak with me.”
“True,” the Sphinx conceded with a grin, “but I decide if she will learn of your presence. If she does not, her answer is automatically no.”
“So that’s the way it’s going to be,” he asked almost sadly.
“That is the way it is.”
“Then that is your decision.” Iain reached into the non-digital storage portion of his pack and pulled out a pair of earplugs. He carefully inserted them and then covered his ears with some earmuffs that he also pulled from the pack. Since he wasn’t doing anything offensive, the Sphinxes and the Griffons watched him curiously without interfering. “Aurum.”
The Dragoness threw back her head and screamed. The noise was so loud that the sound waves were a physical assault that deafened the pokegirls even as it knocked them to the ground. They clutched their ears as blood dripped between their fingers.
It drove Iain to his knees and, even through the double hearing protection, left his ears ringing. Only Aurum and Ling were unaffected. “Fuck, I think they heard that in London.” He pulled off the earmuffs and plugs and slipped them into back into his pack. “Hopefully Sexmet is home today.”
“I am going to tear you to shreds,” the Sphinx snarled as she pushed to all fours and changed to her battle form.
“Stop!” All of the cat pokegirls except Ling froze as Sexmet stepped into the clearing. “What is going on here?”
“I wanted to talk to you and she said she wouldn’t let you know I was here, so I had to inform you of my presence myself. I’m sorry that the message damaged their hearing, but it couldn’t be helped. I’ll have them healed if you want.”
Sexmet’s eyes met his. “Who are you,” she asked unhappily.
“Lady Sexmet, I am Kerrik Wolf.”
Surprise flicked across the legendary’s face and she deliberately looked around the clearing. “You are Kerrik Wolf? Then where is Evangelion?”
“She brought me here but didn’t think that her presence would be conducive to a congenial conversation.”
“Considering that she threatened to kill me if I so much as came near you, I would agree.”
I did no such thing. Evangelion’s thought was shocked. When did I supposedly do this?
I don’t think that arguing with something that Sexmet apparently believes is going to put her in a better mood. It’s a mystery for later. “Lady Sexmet, I was not aware of an incident where she threatened you over me, but Evangelion is well aware that we are meeting. She intends you no harm because of it and wishes me to emphasis this.”
“Since you don’t call her lady I’ll presume that the rumors are true and you and she are lovers.” Sexmet’s tail flicked slowly from side to side. “What did you wish to talk to me about?”
“Lady, first, do you wish me to summon my Megami-sama to heal the people who were injured when Aurum called to you?”
Sexmet looked at the Cheetaura, Sphinxes and Griffons. Then she pointed away from the beach. “Go see the others and get healed. I am in no danger from a single human and two pokegirls, no matter their breed.” She turned back to him as they began making their way up the trail. “Why are you here, Wolf?”
“I need to put what I am going to request into perspective for you. Are you aware of my opinion in regards to Sanctuary?”
“I know you may be one of the few people to hate it worse than I do.”
“That’s essentially true. I hate what Sanctuary does to people. That’s why I have been working to neutralize Sanctuary as a threat to me and mine.”
“And the other authors,” she reminded him.
“The fact that it aids others is of secondary concern to me, lady. If Sanctuary is neutralized, it would indeed benefit you as well.”
She looked thoughtful. “That could be true, depending on the method and the degree of neutralization. Are you here because you want my help?”
He nodded briskly. “Yes, it is. I want your help with Sanctuary.”
“I don’t want to risk the lives of my children in a war with Sanctuary, Wolf.”
“To be honest, right now you can help me best by watching them and not attacking or otherwise interfering.”
Sexmet’s ears went still and her mouth dropped open for a second. “Why would that help you?”
“Recently there was an attack on Sanctuary by a replica of Typhonna. It destroyed most of certain political elements within the high council and the survivors are interested in reforming Sanctuary into something more in line with what they tell the rest of the world they are. They have even made a good faith effort to prove their sincerity by appointing the first non-Goth councilor and giving her a new position within the government.”
Sexmet shrugged. “They’ll just run roughshod over her the first time their wants conflict with her. That or they’ll corrupt her just like they are.”
“Before they appointed her, they passed some new laws changing certain fundamental aspects of Sanctuary that make humans and pokegirls essentially equal.”
“So?”
“I want you to please understand that I was involved with the process and made some suggestions that Desiree and Kirabo agreed with. The newest councilor is an Officerjenny and she has a force of over two hundred other police pokegirls in her new organization.”
Sexmet blinked. “Officerjenny?”
“That’s right. They brought in incorruptible pokegirls who have the mandate of policing the corruption in the DCWS and the High Council. You have a decent spy network inside Sanctuary, and I’d like you to help keep an eye on things and help make sure the changes are going to stick.”
“What about my Cheetit?”
“Since humans will be accepted as equals in Sanctuary, as long as they obey the law too, there is no reason to use the dinosaur pokegirls to hunt tamable ferals. Now, understand that Sanctuary will still have to protect itself against destructive feral pokegirls and we both know that the Cheetah breeds can be very destructive. However, the blanket hunts will stop. Dinosaur pokegirls will learn to eat more kattle and fish and fewer people.”
“Sanctuary would never come up with a plan like this on their own,” Sexmet stated flatly. “I don’t believe they could.”
“They didn’t. Lady Sexmet, this was my idea. Turning Sanctuary into a true paradise for pokegirls and humans will take lifetimes. It’ll take way too many resources to waste any hunting me. By the time they could even begin to think about turning their attention to me again, I’ll be someplace they’ll never look and me, my ladies and my children will be safe from them forever.” He smiled suddenly. “I think neutralized is a pretty good word to describe them right now. They won’t be doing anything other than restructuring for a very long time.”
The legendary’s ears flicked. “And you want me to leave them alone during this?”
“Actually, I want you to keep an eye on them. If someone starts returning Sanctuary back to what it was, I’d like you to smite those people hard enough to get the attention of everyone else.”
She stared at him. “You want me to police Sanctuary?”
“I want you to be one of the final lines of defense, yes. I know you have enough of a stake in the changes I’ve started that you’ll keep a close eye on them. As long as the High Council doesn’t manage to change the law to make Portia toe a different line, I think the changes will proceed apace without your or even my involvement. If they start going back to what they were, that’s when you remind everyone that they shouldn’t.”
“And in return, they’ll stop hunting the Cheetits?”
“One of the new laws passed states that, whenever possible, wild ferals will be captured and tamed into society. They’ve allocated funds for educational centers to teach them about society and its myriad rules.”
“You do realize that my definition of when things are going too far is a lot more restrictive than yours probably is.”
He smiled slightly. “I think you’ll find you are wrong in that assessment. I believe everyone has the right to personal choice as long as they don’t harm anyone unwilling while exercising that choice. I think every government on this planet needs some serious restructuring, including your legendary sister’s religious cult on her island.”
Sexmet snorted. “That loser is no relative of mine. Living in seclusion all the time and just consorting with her toys. What an idiot she is.”
Iain carefully didn’t smile at his thought that the description of her sister’s life could apply to more than one legendary, including the one standing in front of him. “In regards to deciding when Sanctuary is straying from their promised path, I believe your judgment can be trusted. Will you help me?”
“What did they say about this?”
“They know I’m here to ask you to stop attacking them while they work on getting their house in order. My request for you to monitor them is going to come as a complete surprise if you have to act, but I think that Desiree and Kirabo will appreciate the help at the time.”
“And having Sexmet come in to help won’t hurt their political standing at all, will it,” Sexmet asked wryly.
“No, I don’t think it will as long as you dress them down in private. If things change that much again, it’ll be because they fell down on the job and they will need their asses chewed on because of it.”
“That I think I can do.” Her ears cocked. “Why is Evangelion protecting you?”
Iain started to say something snide and reconsidered. “We are in a relationship and apparently she feels I’m worth protecting. Personally, I’m not sure why she’s as protective as she is, but I think it may be because she hasn’t been in many relationships throughout her life. She hasn’t become smothering yet, so we haven’t had an argument about it.”
“And when she does?”
“We’ll have a spat. It’s not our first and it won’t be our last.”
“You seem pretty blasé about it.”
He shrugged. “We are all different. Sometimes we get along smoothly and sometimes we don’t. It’s all part of life. I’m glad you’re willing to help watching Sanctuary.”
She blinked and her ears flicked. “I did agree, didn’t I?”
“Yes, but it wasn’t anything obligating. You can change your mind if you want.”
“What’ll you do then?”
“I’ll figure something out.”
“You would, wouldn’t you? Can’t you just say that you need my help and you’re sunk without it?”
“Lady Sexmet, I need your help with this. Sanctuary has too long a history of oppression to believe that there won’t be some bumps along their way to a free society and you’re perfect to act as a watchcat over them. If you don’t help, I don’t know if the movement will survive.”
“Watchcat?”
“You’re a lot of things, but you’re not a dog.”
“Was that a flirt?” When he just smiled she chuckled. “If you need my help as much as you said, Kerrik Wolf, I will help you out.”
“Thank you.”
“Tell Evangelion that she needs to come by soon. We should talk.”
He nodded. “Consider her told. May I ask my ride to come back?”
“Your Megami-sama? Go ahead.” Sexmet’s ears flicked and she folded her arms. “How do I get in touch with you?”
“Either you or one of your Sphinx tamers can send me a message. I check my mail daily.”
“I’ll do that.” She vanished.
***
“The scouts are in position, sir,” the Espea murmured softly. Her fur had been dyed a green that matched the digital camouflage she wore, but it had been that color for years and she didn’t miss the original pink. “They report a couple of feral pokegirls in the area and that’s it.”
Captain Ron Garza nodded without looking up from the map on his knee. It was illuminated by a pin light clipped to his collar. “Shift McGee’s squad thirty meters to the right into this defilade.”
“McGee spotted that himself and is already there.” The Espea touched the map. “I shifted the heavy weapons squad to here. It’ll give them covering fire for most of the area. This draw is a dead zone, but we put some command detonated mines in it. Do you really expect an attack here?”
Garza snapped off his light, returning them to the darkness of the predawn. “I always expect an attack, Polly. That’s how we ended up with this job. Now, lieutenant, I think we’re as ready as we can get. Tell command that they can send in the company.”
Polly’s eyes unfocused for a second as she reached out with her mind. “They’re on their way. ETA is two minutes.”
Two minutes later a quartet of teleport capable pokegirls arrived. Each carried with her three humans. They released the humans and moved to join Captain Garza and Lieutenant Polly. “Sir, I understand we’re supposed to stand by in case of emergency evac.”
Garza waved at the surrounding foliage. “Pull up a chair, ladies and make sure your hearing protection is in place. Polly, tell Nora to get into the air.”
“Done, sir.”
While they’d been talking, the humans had begun releasing pokegirls. Each released five. They were a variety of breeds, but the Amachamp line predominated. In fact, the only thing all of the breeds had in common was high enhanced strength. Each of the twelve teams shook out quickly, with the leader setting up the 240 mm mortar tube while another used a reinforced shovel to fill the base plate with damp soil scooped from their surroundings. The other three members were wearing reinforced backpacks that they slid off and began emptying of ammunition for the mortars. They checked the rounds and began connecting the rocket boosters to them. Because of the weight, each carried only six rounds. In a battlefield situation, the mortar company would expect to be resupplied in the field, but here the ammunition they could carry would have to be enough.
Humans would have taken over an hour to set up the mortar unit, but the well trained pokegirls were comfortable with their strength and it took less than ten minutes before each squad leader had double checked the rounds and was reporting the tube’s readiness to her gun commander.
Polly’s ears flicked. “Nora is in position, sir, and reports all’s well.”
“Good.” Garza waved to get the attention of the company commander, who came over. “Captain Morris, we’re all ready on our end. Nora’s in position and awaiting your order to begin. The mission is yours now.”
Captain Michelle Morris nodded. “Thanks, Ron. We’ll finish our second checks and should be ready in a few minutes. I’ll let you know.” She headed back to her unit and began quietly rapping out orders. Rounds were checked as was the specific order in which they’d been set up for use. Three minutes later she called to Ron. “Captain Garza, have Nora begin. We will commence firing in one minute.”
Polly’s ears flicked before Garza could say anything. “Done, sir.” Eighteen kilometers away the invisible Archangel activated a targeting laser and began painting the target. She used her speed to loop around well away from the target and her enhanced reflexes to ensure that no matter what she did, the laser stayed on target.
The seconds trickled by silently until Captain Morris looked up. “Ten seconds.” She was silent for ten more seconds. “All batteries fire.”
The mortar crews were ready and the first rounds dropped into the tubes instantly. The booming noise of the round launching was followed a few seconds later by a sharp crack when the rocket boosters fired. For a second each round drew a glowing line across a segment of the sky before the booster burned out. The pokegirls dropped the rounds with mechanical precision at the maximum rate of ten rounds a minute. The fire order was to fire for only one minute. After that they’d pause to evaluate the damage. If they had to fire again, it would be at the sustainable rate of four rounds a minute to prevent the already hot tubes from getting so hot the mortar charges cooked off in the tubes.
The mortars themselves had a maximum range of ten thousand meters, but with the small rocket boosters they could double that and not lose any accuracy, even without the laser designator painting the target. They rained down silently on the massive building in the middle of the complex until they impacted.
The Darwin nuclear facility housed several pressurized water fission plants that generated a third of the electricity used in the whole Orange League. In case of an accident it had been constructed in the wilderness far from civilization and massive transmission stations had been constructed around it to carry the power to where it was needed.
Long ago the leagues had made fission power a banned technology, and the blatant flaunting of the rules had always been a sore point between Orange and the other leagues. It was one of the reasons that President Llewellyn had picked it to be destroyed. It was also as vital to the Orange League as Blue’s military pokegirls were to it and he wanted to firmly express the Blue League’s displeasure at the Orange operation that had so recently been eliminated.
Orange had chosen to concentrate their reactors in subdivisions of the same massive building in order to make it more easily defensible against feral pokegirls. They’d also heavily armored the building against assault by making the walls and roof out of concrete ten centimeters thick.
That’s why the first volley was composed of HEAT rounds. The jets of superheated plasma shattered the roof and allowed the second volley of more powerful HE rounds full access to the reactor rooms. The next hundred and ten rounds pulverized the reactors and tore the piping to pieces.
The safety systems tried to function and drop the control rods into the reactor, but the first HE volley damaged many of them so badly that they failed to operate properly. Enough of them fell to take the reactors subcritical, but that only lasted until the water began to drain from them. Then they went supercritical once more and melted into a useless blob that burned its way through the bottom of the containment vessel and into the dirt beneath.
Dora swooped close enough to see the clouds of radioactive steam and the first flickers of flame before dropping to the treetops and streaking for the horizon. She was headed away from the site of the mortar company and would rejoin her tamer, Captain Garza, at the rendezvous.
The mortar company quickly repacked their gear and were returned to their pokeballs while Captain Garza gnawed on his knuckles and worried about his scouts. There was no way to predict the Orange League military’s response time. Blue’s information was that there would be no response until long after the assault team was gone, and even then they would have no idea of what had happened or where to look. However, he still worried since he didn’t get paid to think about best case scenarios.
He wouldn’t relax until everyone was back at the base and he was faced with another boring debrief in which he could report nothing had happened.
***
Iain Grey - Tradesman
Living Harem
Ninhursag - Elfqueen (maharani)
Eve - Megami-sama
Dominique - Blessed Archmage
April - Duelist
Zareen - Nightmare
Pandora - Fiendish Fallen Angel
Canaan - G-Splice (Amachamp Hunter/Alaka-Wham)
Sofia - Peekabu
Raquel - Rapitaur
Dead Harem
Eirian - Silver Dragoness
Skye - Blue Dragoness
Emerald - Green Dragoness
Aurum - Gold Dragoness
Beryl - Red Dragoness
Julia - human
Ling - Cheetit
Matilda - White Tigress
21x Twau