This work is fiction. The work has no relationship with any person existing at any time anywhere whether real or imaginary or copywritten. Everything in this work is mea culpa.
This work is the property of Kerrik Wolf (saethwyr@ (SPAM) hotmail.com). Please remove (SPAM) to contact me.
You should not read this work if you are under the age of legal consent wherever you reside. This work may or may not contain any and/or all of the following: death, dismemberment, violent acts, implied sex, explicit sex, violent sex, rape, cannibalism, blasphemy (depending on your religion), BDSM, torture, mimes, and just about anything unwholesome that you could consider.
The pokegirl universe was first documented by Metroanime and to him all of us who reside or visit there owe a debt of thanks.
Feedback is encouraged. I enjoy hearing from people. Positive feedback will be appreciated, cherished and flaunted in front of people. Negative feedback will be appreciated, cherished and listened to, that I might continue to grow. Flames will give me a good laugh. Feedback may be delivered to: saethwyr@(SPAM) hotmail.com. Please remove (SPAM) to contact me.
Chapter 2
Jamie came awake instantly when the hand touched his shoulder. A tiny light appeared and dimly illuminated Ginevra’s face. Her eyes seemed to absorb the light and glowed softly in the darkness. “What are you doing out of your pokeball?” He hadn’t even been aware she could leave her ball.
“I watch over you when you sleep. Pokeballing me will not change that. They will be waking you soon. I heard them talk. I must go.” She dissolved into a red cloud and drifted over his Tamer’s belt. The cloud poured into her pokeball and was gone.
“I think I should be touched by her attention.” Jamie hopped out of bed and grabbed his Tamer’s belt before running on silent feet to the bathroom. “I’m not sure I am, but I think I should be.”
He’d just made it back and settled on his bed when hidden speakers in the walls began pounding out reveille loudly enough to make the floor vibrate. Hines pounded down the hall outside their room, shouting. “RISE AND SHINE, INFANTS! OUT OF YOUR BEDS AND INTO THE HALL! FORM ONE LINE ON EACH SIDE OF THE HALL, GIRLS! YOU DO NOT WANT TO MAKE ME HAVE TO COME IN AFTER YOU!”
Jamie flipped on the light. “Everybody up! Trust me; we don’t want Hines in here.”
Russell made a yelping noise and jerked the sheets up over her head. “I don’t have any clothes on!”
Chambers rolled out of her bed. Her panties and t-shirt were almost the same color as Jamie’s briefs. “You don’t want to be late into the hall. Wrap your sheet around you, but get out there.”
Doyle was wearing pajamas and slipped out the door immediately. Jamie followed her out. Sudden shrieks and girls rapidly covering themselves suggested that Hines hadn’t informed them about his presence, and that the ones who’d seen him the night before hadn’t realized he was staying here and warned everyone else.
“SHUT UP! SEE THE YELLOW LINES ON THE FLOOR? PUT YOUR TOES ON THE ONE ON YOUR SIDE OF THE ROOM, GIRLS!” She glared at one hapless girl who hurried to comply. “Kennedy, get on the other side of the line and face me.” She strode briskly down the hall, using a swagger stick to prod girls into their proper places. Once at the end, she turned to face them. “Girls, you will use my rank every time you address me, is that clear?”
“YES, CORPORAL,” they replied in ragged unison.
“What? I can’t hear you?”
“YES, CORPORAL.”
The Amachoke shook her head. “I know Wolf has balls but I don’t hear any from the rest of you. SPEAK UP!”
“YES, CORPORAL!”
“That’s better.” She checked her watch. “It is now 0430. You have half an hour to do whatever you need to and get dressed. Then we’ll proceed to chow and after that we’ll issue you your uniforms and begin basic military training.” She grinned nastily. “Tomorrow, and every day after that, reveille will be at 0430 except when I decide you need to get up earlier. She glanced at Russell and the handful of other girls who were nude and wrapped in sheets, except for one bold lass who didn’t seem to care and stood proudly without a stitch on. “No skins when you sleep, girls. You don’t want to be starkers when we run you outside for an alert.” She checked her watch again. “At 0500 you will be on the line again. Anyone who is late will regret it mightily. You are dismissed. Wolf, post.”
Jamie trotted over and went to attention in front of Hines. “Yes, corporal?”
“You’ll be using the Drill Instructor’s shower and bathroom. I’ll let you in this morning and I’ll give you a key this afternoon.”
“Yes, corporal.” He paused for a heartbeat. “With all due respect, won’t that separate me from the others, corporal?”
Hines’ eyes narrowed. “I know that, Wolf, but it’s what the sergeant wants; and what he wants, he gets.”
Jamie cocked his head and then nodded. “Yes, corporal.”
“Wolf, don’t do anything to cause too much trouble. Most of these girls have never been around men for long and never like this.” She met his gaze. “There’s only one of you and I need you to be the responsible one. Fraternization during boot is forbidden, and I don’t want anyone punished because you need to be here. If you’re horny, you’ve got Ginevra, but only in the taming rooms.”
“Corporal, I understand completely, but...”
“No buts, Wolf,” she said quietly. “Just do as I say. Get dressed and don’t forget to shave.”
“Yes, corporal.” He did an about face and ran off.
***
The lieutenant looked up and down the assembled ranks with a definite lack of enthusiasm. Her uniform and appearance were perfect and her boots gleamed in the light. Behind her and wearing the same BLSF fatigues stood a Bernatit wearing a sergeant’s insignia and a Growlie who appeared to be a corporal. “I am Lieutenant Reyes and I am your company commander. You are considered the best of the Blue League and you have volunteered to become members of the prestigious Blue League Security Force.” Her gaze swept the rows of recruits. “From here, apparently the best isn’t all that good anymore. Still, you have been delivered into my hands to be made into troopers, and I will carry out my duty.”
“The BLSF is an all volunteer unit and you may, of course, resign at any point. If you feel like leaving us, I urge you to do so just as soon as possible and save my men a whole lot of wasted time as well as saving the Blue League the cost of your training. It costs the league roughly a million credits to train each of you and your pokegirls. Add in the fifty credits you’re actually worth and that comes to a fairly impressive sum.” She looked them up and down again and started to speak but stopped and shook her head. “Sergeant, they’re all yours.”
Shepherd nodded and stepped forward. “I am Sergeant Shepherd and it is my job to drag all of you, kicking and screaming, into adulthood; unless of course, you quit. I don’t want any quitters behind me, beside me, or ahead of me; so I’m going to help those of you who are still babies to give up and go home where your mommy can tuck you back into bed.”
He smiled. “It has been said, in armies of the past, that to die in the service of your country is the highest honor you can render. We in the Force want to help the other guy to get that honor, not save it for ourselves. I have fought Team Viper, the rabble that survived their destruction, pirates, pokegirl menaces, common criminals, uncommon criminals and two Widows. It is entirely possible that I will die in my service to the Blue League; but if I do, I will have paid my way well in advance of my entry into heaven. I EXPECT THE SAME FROM YOU. THE BLUE LEAGUE EXPECTS THE SAME FROM YOU.”
“Because the BLSF is small in numbers, certain accommodations have been made. Pokegirls have been given rank in the Force and you will treat them with the respect that their rank deserves. I know you’re all Tamers who’ve been seasoned under fire and I know you are used to treating pokegirls however you want. I don’t care. That behavior ends here. In the Force, a pokegirl disciplining a human is not necessarily a crime like it is in the civilian world; and if you run afoul of any of my men, we’ve got a Night Nurse who is an outstanding healer and she’ll patch you right up.” He grinned. “She may be a bit rough on you while doing it, but rest assured that hardly anyone dies by accident while in her capable hands.”
“I’d like to take a moment and introduce you to my cadre of experienced instructors. Corporal Duneen is in charge of barracks B1. His pokegirl is the Vixxen you’ve been staring at, Corporal Tombs. Corporal Smith is in charge of barracks B3 and his pokegirl is Corporal Hines, the Amachoke. She’s watching over the girls.” A brief grin appeared. “And Wolf.”
Jamie winced.
“The Espea is Corporal Meyer and she’s my pokegirl. I wouldn’t be too concerned if I were you, about her reading your minds; from the looks of you, there’s not much for her to find.” Meyer grinned.
Shepherd wasn’t done yet. “There are a hundred and twenty of you babies and each of you has at least one pokegirl. There will be no fighting amongst the recruits and no battling. If you have a beef with one of your fellows, then you will take it to your barracks commander and they will make a ruling. That decision is final. If you really want to, BLSF regs allow you, as a recruit, to come to your command sergeant, that being me, to appeal any rulings made by your barracks commander. This is a really stupid idea. However, it’s allowed. If I think it’s important, I can bump you up to the lieutenant for a review. In the fifteen years I’ve been here, that has happened twice; so you can see I do take your complaints seriously.”
Shepherd made an exaggerated show of examining the recruits. “Now, I look over your shining faces and I notice that you’ve already been issued your uniforms. I also happen to know that all of those nice, shiny new boots need broken in. We’ll take it easy on you today and only make a twenty kilometer hike. Corporals, form them up and move them out.”
***
“While some of you may disdain hand to hand combat, we in the Force have discovered a secret.” Corporal Duneen grinned at the recruits. “If you take down their Tamer, his pokegirls often become a lot less effective. Something else to note is that most pokegirls consider humans beneath their notice; often you can get close enough to kill or otherwise incapacitate their Tamer while your harem is engaging them. Therefore, you will learn how to protect yourselves. Corporal Smith, here, will be your primary instructor.”
Smith nodded. “I need a volunteer for a demonstration.” There was dead silence from the recruits. They’d already learned that volunteering didn’t get you anything good. Smith grinned. “I see wisdom growing amongst our children. Still, I need a volunteer.”
“Wolf, post.” It was Hines.
Jamie had been busy pretending to not be there. He broke parade rest and ran to the combat circle. Smith made a few passes and went into a ready position. He wasn’t bad, but Jamie noticed he was open down low. “Attack me, recruit Wolf.”
Jamie put his hands up and charged. When he was close enough, he struck out, had the attack blocked and took the hit from Smith, riding the blow to reduce the damage. He went down hard and went limp. There was a murmur from the recruits.
The sound of sudden breathing told him someone was leaning over him. “Wolf,” Shepherd muttered in a low tone, “I know you can do better than that. You get up and do better or I’ll make sure you’ll have twenty hours of extra duty and, in addition, I’ll make sure you are working for me the whole time.” Jamie hadn’t even seen the sergeant around.
Jamie rolled to his feet and trotted back into the circle. Smith grinned at him. “Come on, Wolf; I need the workout.”
Jamie lunged, deflected Smith’s knuckle strike to the side, grabbed the arm and jerked Smith off balance. He used the pull to spin and drove a back kick into Smith’s sternum, used the momentum from the kick to spin in the other direction, and hit Smith in the forehead with a palm strike as the man was curling forward from the kick. Smith flew backwards and smashed to the ground to lie motionless.
Shepherd watched Jamie with expressionless eyes as Hines rushed forward to check on her Tamer. “Wolf, four hours of extra duty. Post.”
“Yes, sergeant.” Jamie turned and ran for the duty building.
***
Doyle watched Jamie as he dropped onto his bed and hung his towel up to dry. “What was your extra duty?”
“I got to spar with Sergeant Jones.” Jones was Bernatit in the Lieutenant’s harem and, incidentally, her alpha. He stretched out his shoulder slowly. “I got healed by the Night Nurse after each round, but that was rough.”
“Did she break many bones? Yours, I mean.”
Jamie gave her a flat look. “Of course she did. It was to remind me not to be a smartass. Then she beat up Ginevra.” He chuckled. “She did get a couple of surprises from Ginevra; but, as for me, it was ‘attack me, Wolf’ and then ‘let’s see how far we can knock Wolf flying’.”
“Where did you learn to fight like that? Smith didn’t wake up until the Night Nurse showed up to treat him.”
He smiled tiredly. “My father and grandfather teach martial arts. I learned everything I could to keep my sibs from beating me to a pulp on the field. They’re all a lot stronger than I and my brother are. Pain is an excellent motivator.”
Doyle frowned. “Hold still.” She carefully spread some of Jamie’s hair and he was suddenly aware of her scent. He blinked and started to pull away. “Don’t move. The Night Nurse didn’t heal everything. You’ve still got a nasty gash.”
Jamie carefully eased away from her. “She healed everything that she thought was important.” He grabbed the Youma’s pokeball. “Do you know if all of the taming rooms are occupied?”
Doyle shrugged. “We’ve got forty recruits, all of whom have pokegirls, and six taming rooms. Probably.”
“Great.” He thought for a moment. “I’ll be back in a bit.”
“You can’t leave the barracks. The recruit guard won’t let anyone out until the corporal says so.”
Jamie ignored her and headed down the hall.
An hour later, he opened the door to the DI bathroom and peered around carefully before easing into the hall. He went around the corner and froze at the sight of Hines leaning against the wall. “Wolf, care to tell me why you’re out of your bed after lights out, and also why you were taming your pokegirl in my bathroom?”
“I wondered if you were monitoring your bathroom, corporal.”
“We monitor everything, Wolf, including your little fall. My office. Now.”
Once in her office, Hines dropped behind her desk. “Sit, Wolf.”
Jamie looked startled. “Corporal?”
“I said sit. Sit.” She eyed him as he sank gingerly into the indicated chair and sat at attention. “I had hoped you would be responsible but, instead, you’ve broken a prime rule. Taming only happens in the taming rooms.”
“Corporal, they were all full and it couldn’t wait.”
She gave him a disbelieving look. “You couldn’t wait? This had better be good.”
“I have Tamer’s disease, corporal. I’ve got some pills that keep me from producing the pheromones that can cause a taming frenzy, but I still have to have sex on a regular basis. I realized tonight that it had been a couple of days since I’d tamed Ginevra and I was getting restless. I didn’t want to attack anyone during the night and so I took steps.”
“You have Tamer’s Disease? It’s not in the record I can access. Can anyone back this up?”
“My entire family has it. My grandfather can verify it, or my mother can. Grandfather is the one who gave me the pills.”
“Is he a pokegirl researcher?”
“No, but he knows as much as any of them, corporal, except maybe Stroak.”
Hines blinked. “Stroak is dead.”
Jamie thought fast. “Yeah, that’s right, corporal. We’re pretty provincial.”
She shook her head. “You thought Stroak was still alive. That’s silly. What’s your grandfather’s com number?”
Jamie rattled off the number. Hines blinked as she scribbled it down. “That can’t be right, there are too many digits and the beginning is nonsense.”
“Corporal, that’s his number. Try it.”
“This had better work.” She punched in the number. The screen lit up as it was answered and Hines blinked at the silver haired man who looked out at her. His voice was chilly as his ears flicked with annoyance. “I don’t believe we’ve met. This number is very unlikely to be randomly dialed, so somehow you knew about it. How?”
“I am Corporal Hines and I’m calling about Jamie Wolf. He gave me this number.”
The man nodded and his demeanor changed. While not friendly, it was no longer threatening. “I am Kerrik Wolf. How may I help you, corporal?”
“Recruit Wolf has told me that you can verify some information about him that isn’t in his personnel record. I’d like you to do that, and explain why it’s not in there.”
“You’re cautious about giving me any hints, so I can’t just lie to you. I can appreciate that kind of cunning, even when it’s misplaced. Recruit Jamie Wolf has Tamer’s Disease.” He glanced to the side and nodded. “The reason it’s not in his file is because his mother convinced the Blue League to classify that information above your security level. I’ve given him some meds that will prevent him from causing a sudden orgy, but he will still need to have sex on a regular basis.”
Hines looked shocked. “He’s in a barracks full of women. I had a need to know.”
“Is he? That’s probably the best place for him. His sexual tastes don’t run to men.” He shrugged. “That’s probably why the Blue League put him there.”
“He’s here by accident because some bloody data entry Bunnygirl got his gender wrong!”
Kerrik smiled. “Really? If that is what happened, it was a very fortuitous accident.”
“He can’t go having sex with my recruits!”
“I’m afraid I don’t set Blue League policy, Corporal Hines. I just observe and laugh at it on occasion. I don’t know the whole situation and so I cannot definitively state if he was deliberately placed there or not.” Kerrik looked thoughtful. “Since you now know about his problem, it would probably be best if you passed this information up your chain of command and see what you’re told to do about it.” He frowned and looked at her with sudden curiosity. “You’re an Amachoke, right?”
“Wolf said you were as knowledgeable as any pokegirl researcher. Couldn’t you tell?”
“Me, be a pokegirl researcher? That’s absurd.” Kerrik smiled gently. “I wouldn’t join that group of overstuffed popinjays if they got down on their knees and begged me to. I’m that most hated of species in their eyes, a geneticist who is not interested in joining their club or playing by their rules.” He glanced to the side, out of the pickup’s range. “Corporal, I’ve got some work I really need to be getting to. If you need anything else, feel free to call anytime. I’m usually up. Jamie, the number is six.” With that, he cut the connection.
Hines stared at the screen for a handful of seconds. “Rude git, isn’t he? Wolf, return to your bed. You are not to speak about this to anyone except me, do you understand?”
“Yes, corporal.”
***
Corporal Terry Meyer held up an assault rifle. “This is the R-4 Multipurpose Combat Rifle. It has two systems built into it, a 4.5mm assault rifle that fires armor piercing caseless ammunition in single shot, three round bursts and fully automatic. The 4.5 is fed by a sixty round magazine. There’s also a 30mm grenade launcher that fires a variety of caseless rounds, the most common being a dual purpose high explosive armor piercing round with limited antipersonnel uses. The 30 also fires BLSF heavy elemental rounds. It’s fed from a six round magazine.” She glanced around the room. After a month of intensive training, the recruits had discovered that age old ability to be partially asleep whenever they stopped moving and she wanted to make sure that was all they were. In another month they’d learn how to be partially asleep even when marching.
“The 4.5 is specifically designed for taking down humans and weak pokegirls while the 30 is for anything other than a weak pokegirl.” The Espea’s ears flicked. “We have learned that shooting a stronger pokegirl with the 4.5 is a good way to piss her off and so we never use anything but the 30 on any pokegirl, regardless how strong we might think she is. You really can’t tell visually which pokegirls are weak and which are not, especially with Tamers teaching their harem members oddball techniques and spells.”
“We have also learned that, in certain cases, the 30 will only piss off your target because she’s even stronger than you thought and so your best bet is to engage pokegirls with your own harem. Assuming you want to live to finish your enlistment.”
“The R-4 is accurate with both weapon systems out to 300 meters and you will be learning to be accurate out that far, too. This weapon is supposed to be idiot-proof, but I’m sure someone in this class will, once again, prove that idiots have gotten better since it was designed. Hopefully, they won’t kill anyone but themselves while proving to the rest of us just how stupid they are.”
“The R-4 is extremely rugged. You can fill the barrel and the action with mud or sand and a quick rinse and dry is all you need. Modern ammunition will fire when wet or underwater; however, unlike in the vids, you will not fire this weapon with any part of it in the water unless you want it to blow up and fill your mangy carcass with shrapnel. I don’t want to watch your classmates wiping up your blood, and I’m sure they don’t want to have the extra duty just because you were that stupid.”
She looked around the room again. “Dugan, wake up! Stand up and against the wall.”
“Yes, corporal.”
“You will, by the time I am done, be able to operate, repair, sight in, and maintain the R-4. You’ll be able to field strip this weapon and put it together by feel. You will not shoot an instructor, fellow student or pokegirl. If you do, bad things will happen to you, but you won’t be here anymore, so I won’t have to pretend to care. Now, divide up into your squads and we’ll get started.”
Chambers nudged Doyle and looked over at Jamie. “So, Wolfie, as our resident expert on all things military, do you know anything about the R-4?”
“A little,” Jamie admitted. “One of my mothers is a gun nut and insisted that we all learn about all the firearms in the house.”
Doyle snickered. Her first name was Doreen and, instantly, she’d become Dee-Dee, a nickname that had followed her around her whole life. “Gun nut? Is that some new pokegirl?”
Chambers grinned. Her first name was Monica and she’d steadfastly refused to admit to a nickname. Russell, before she’d quit two weeks ago, had suggested Lumberjack for the way Chambers snored. The squad had instead decided on Cherry, for her vibrant red hair. “What kind of pokegirl is she?”
“Cherry, she’s a Mini-Top.”
Doyle looked startled. “How did you manage to live to adulthood?”
“Just lucky.” Jamie glanced around. “You do realize we’re going to have to do this class twice, right?”
Chambers frowned. “Why? Oh, right. They want us to know what to do before teaching our pokegirls. We’ll be assistant instructors.”
“Right in one, trooper.” Jamie nodded sagely. “So, unless you want your pokegirls to shoot someone by accident, perhaps you’d better pay attention. Oh, and don’t forget you’re responsible for anything your pokegirls do.”
***
“Sit, corporal.” The sergeant didn’t look up from his screen as he worked on some paperwork.
Hines settled down in the chair as she watched Shepherd carefully.
Finally, Shepherd leaned back and reached for his glass of water. “All right, Hines, what do you want?”
“Sergeant, we’ve had some boys quit and I was wondering when Wolf would be moving out of my barracks.”
Shepherd nodded and went back to his computer. “Indeed we have, corporal. How’s Wolf doing among the girls? Have you had any problems with him?”
Hines frowned. “I’ve been watching him and he’s been careful not to fraternize. Still, it’ll be a load off my mind when he’s out of my care and with the boys, where he belongs.” She rubbed her wrist. “The girls are very aware of his presence and, eventually, someone’s going to try something. It’s only a matter of time.”
“I’m sure you’ll be able to nip such things in the bud, corporal. I have confidence in your abilities. If Wolf has settled in, I’m not sure that breaking up the squad he’s part of will help them in the long run. How’s he doing as a recruit?”
“He’s one of the best I’ve got and he’s been helping some of the problem girls to improve.” Hines shook her head. “But I can’t keep him. You read my report; he’s got Tamer’s Disease.”
Shepherd leaned back and fixed her with a neutral stare. “Yes, I’ve read it and so have the lieutenant and the captain. The problem is that we only have Wolf’s statement and that of this supposed grandfather you spoke to. I tried to contact him and couldn’t, and a check shows no record of a Kerrik Wolf in the Blue League.” His brow furrowed slightly. “His records don’t show any sign of him having that particular blood curse. It’s extremely rare and his claim that his entire family has it is ludicrous. I did go back and check his blood work results from when he received his taming license and there isn’t any sign of Tamer’s Disease. He lied to you.”
Hines blinked. “What do you want me to do about it?” There was a faint stirring of anger in her voice.
“Let it slide, corporal. He probably just told you that so he could tame his pokegirl in the bathroom. Go ahead and let him do that; it won’t hurt anyone and, if you’re right about your girls getting horny for some dick, it’ll make it harder for them to get him alone in a taming room.”
Hines cracked her knuckles absently. “Very well, sergeant. I think I should punish him for lying to me.”
“Don’t sweat it, corporal. However, if he tries something like that again, shut him down firmly.”
She grinned. “Don’t worry, I will.”
Shepherd nodded. “Is there anything else?” When she shook her head, he smiled. “Then get back to your babies, corporal.”
He watched her leave and rubbed his eyes slowly before punching a number into his com.
Lieutenant Reyes was finishing up her daily paperwork when her com chimed. She activated it promptly and looked at the man in her screen. “Yes, Shepherd?”
As was customary between the two of them, he dispensed with the formalities. “Corporal Hines was just here trying to get Wolf reassigned to another barracks, sir.”
“You told her no.” It wasn’t a question.
“Yes, sir, I did. I explained to her that breaking up his squad wouldn’t be good for his mates. She knows Wolf lied to her and she’ll be waiting for a chance to pay him back for it.”
Reyes nodded. “He shouldn’t have done that, but that’s no reason to move him. Good work.”
She cut the connection and entered another code. The screen flickered and a red headed child looked out at her. The child smiled and spoke in a soft soprano. “Lieutenant Reyes, how may I help you?”
“Sergeant Summers, I need to speak to the captain.”
The Chibi Valkyrie nodded. “Just a moment, sir.”
The screen went into a hold pattern as Reyes suppressed a spurt of irritation. The Valkyrie was Captain Butler’s only pokegirl and, as far as she knew, never assumed an adult form. Still, what happened between a pokegirl and her Tamer was only between them. She glanced over as her Growlie, Corporal Sims, handed her a cup of tea. “Thanks, Meg.”
The Growlie looked vaguely disgusted. “That’s a creepy couple.”
Reyes grimaced. “Don’t go there.”
Sims nodded. “I won’t.” She settled back against the wall.
The screen cleared to show Captain Butler. “What is it, Alyssa?”
Reyes kept her face neutral at his use of her first name. A lot of senior officers treated her a lot like she was a pokegirl and she’d learned to accept it without any outward sign. “Good evening, sir. You wanted to be notified if an attempt was made to move recruit Wolf to another barracks. There was, but it came to nothing.”
Butler scowled. “Liz Hines tried for it, I presume.”
“Yes, sir; that is correct. She’s concerned for her girls.”
“She’s supposed to be, but our options are limited. Wolf stays with them.” He frowned and ran a hand through his hair. “Does the sergeant know?”
“That Wolf does have Tamer’s Disease? No, sir; your orders were quite explicit that he be kept out of the loop.”
Butler nodded. “Good. Keep it that way.”
“Sir, the recruits are my responsibility and I’m not comfortable with keeping my command sergeant in the dark about a possible problem.”
“I am the base commander and I don’t care. My orders stand. Just make sure that he gets to tame someone on a regular basis and you won’t have any problems.” He shrugged. “If you have to, since Liz is so worried about him, have her see to him personally.”
Reyes blinked in shock. “Sir, that’s highly irregular.”
“The whole situation is highly irregular, Alyssa.” Butler’s tone was dismissive. “I don’t care what you do. Make sure Wolf doesn’t blitz through the girls even if you have to let an instructor fuck him. Just remember not to do it yourself. You’re an officer and we can’t have you fraternizing with the enlisted.” His lips thinned. “I expect that this is the last I’ll hear about Wolf and your problems with him, right?”
“That is correct, sir.” Butler cut the connection immediately. “You prick.”
Sims cocked her head. “Sir, do you want me to do it?”
Reyes gave her a scathing look, which softened immediately. “No, Meg, I don’t. He’s got a pokegirl to handle his needs.” She patted her Growlie on the hand. “However, it is my ass in the sling if something goes wrong, and we both know that he’ll hang me out to dry to protect his own career.” She sighed. “We’ll just have to keep an eye on Wolf.”
Jones rumbled. “Is there anything we can do? I don’t like the idea of you being crucified for something that could have been prevented.”
Reyes’ eyes narrowed. “Yes, Tamara, there is. I want you to have a word with Hines tomorrow and let her know, off the record, that perhaps her concerns aren’t completely baseless. It’s all well and good for Captain Butler to issue orders, but we’ve got to protect our children.”
“Yes, sir. I’ll see to it first thing.”
“Remember, Tam, this has to be on the QT.”
Sergeant Jones nodded. “I’ll have Meg do it. Nobody will figure two corporals having a chat would be talking about anything important. What about Shepherd? He needs to know, too.”
Reyes nodded. “I’ll have a word with Conrad during our morning meeting. I’ll be violating orders, but I won’t leave my sergeant hanging to protect myself.”
***
Duneen grinned at him. “Wolf, the nasty, evil, bad people have taken a little girl hostage and if you don’t rescue her, they are going to do things to her that a simple wash won’t get out. You won’t let that happen, right?”
“No, corporal.” Jamie checked his R-4. Today they were playing with non-lethal rubber rounds. That meant he could shoot the bad guys and he was looking forward to that. Usually the bad guys were played by instructors. “Ginevra, point.”
“Yessir.” The Youma eyed the building that was their target. “Quiet or loud?”
“Good question. Do they know we’re coming, corporal?”
“Excellent question, Wolf. Nobody knows for sure.”
Jamie nodded. “We’ll start out quiet. In any case, we need to get the little girl out alive; quiet has a higher probability of success. Where is her picture, corporal?”
Duneen gave him an odd look. “Are you planning to kill all the other girl children you run across?”
“Is that part of the mission, corporal?”
“Don’t sass me, punk.”
Jamie didn’t point out that he was only responding to Duneen’s jibe. He couldn’t win. “No, corporal; I need to know who I’m looking for. If I come across her body, being able to identify her might be important.”
Duneen was still ticked off. “Wolf, there’s only one girl in there. Fetch, boy.”
Ginevra was as still as usual, but Jamie had the distinct impression she was considering smashing Duneen flat. “Ginevra, use quick attack to get against the building.”
The Youma’s lips twitched in a tiny smile, telling Jamie he’d been correct. “Yessir.” She zipped across the open grounds, using every tiny bit of cover until she was flat against the building. Her hands moved in a particular pattern. Jamie blinked in surprise. He hadn’t realized that Ginevra knew the Caomh Sith Guard’s hand signals.
Jamie’s twee translated for his benefit since he was too surprised to do it himself. Four adults, one child, all on the second floor in the back of the building. Join me. There was a pause. Apparently, they were expecting you to come from the rear entrance. From the look on Duneen’s face, he thought you would, too.
Jamie shook his head. How does she do that? Can she see through walls? He headed for the wall at a run.
I’m not sure, but I suspect something along those lines. Perhaps she has clairvoyance or something similar. That would explain how she knows what’s going on around her without looking.
Once flat against the wall, Jamie glanced at the door and around at the bricked up windows. “That appears to be the only way in. I’d booby-trap that, if I were the bad guy.”
Ginevra pulled him down so she could whisper into his ear. “They did. There’s a grenade attached to the door. We’ll go up.” She let him go and crouched, her muscles coiling, before springing straight up and grabbing the roof parapet. She rose up and peeked over the edge before dropping her tail and looking down at him.
Jamie slung his R-4 and carefully grabbed the back of her tail where there were no spines. He nodded once and the Youma swarmed over the parapet, pulling him along without any extra effort. An arm appeared and grabbed the collar of his body armor to drag him the rest of the way.
Wolf led her around a rumbling air conditioning unit to a hatch on the roof. “Can you open it, quietly?”
Ginevra frowned and pulled a knife from the equipment belt that was her only clothing. She tested the hinges on the hatch. “It’s locked from below, but these are sheet metal. I can cut them.” The density enhanced steel drove easily into the hinges with a low rasp as she worked. “If there’s a pokegirl down there with hearing that’s enhanced enough, she can hear this.”
“If she’s good enough to detect this over the sound of the air conditioner then she already knows we’ve been scurrying across the rooftop and it doesn’t matter. They don’t know.”
The Youma’s lips flexed in a tiny smile. “The fact that nobody is blowing holes in the roof from below suggests that you could be right.” She finished sawing through the hinges and slowly peeled the metal back. Lifting the back of the hatch, she reached in with an arm and twisted the lock violently until the hasp it rested in came apart.
She placed the lock gently on the roof and silently lifted the hatch off. “They are still in their room with the hostage.”
Jamie whispered back. “What are they doing?”
“I can’t see them yet, I can just sense their presence.”
“How?”
She shrugged. “I feed off of life energy and they are filled with it.”
“How close do you have to be to see them?”
“It depends on what the walls are made of. I’ll go first and catch you when you jump.” She dropped inside.
Once inside, Jamie gestured as he clicked off the safety on his R-4. Go first, I’ll cover. Ginevra nodded and moved silently down the hallway, turning twice until she stopped just before a door. The building had been unused for years and dust lay thickly on the floor. The Youma knelt and sketched quickly in the dust.
According to the drawing, there were two humans and two pokegirls in the room, along with the hostage. The humans were along the far wall and the two pokegirls were on opposite side. The hostage was near the humans. Ginevra tapped the pokegirl symbols and then her chest. Jamie nodded and tapped the human symbols to ensure there was no misunderstanding.
Ginevra rose and bobbed her fist three times before spinning and smashing the door from its hinges with a back kick. The door flew across the room and crushed the Growlie standing there as the Youma charged the St. Bernatit.
Ginevra and Sergeant Jones smashed through the wall as Jamie followed his pokegirl through the doorway. Lieutenant Reyes and Sergeant Shepherd whipped around and Jamie tapped two rounds into the Sergeant’s chest before Shepherd could bring his weapon to bear. Shepherd gasped and dropped his rifle as he was driven against the wall behind him.
The face of the red headed pokekit next to him gleamed in the light and her eyes seemed as big as saucers. Quickly, he shifted his aim to Reyes as the Growlie shouldered the wreckage of the door to the side. “SURRENDER OR SHE DIES!”
Lieutenant Reyes jerked her hand away from the pistol on her belt like it was on fire as there was a shriek and flames washed through the hole in the wall from the next room. “DON’T SHOOT! THE EXERCISE IS OVER!”
Ginevra smashed through edge of the hole in a spray of sheetrock to crunch into the far wall. She bounced to her feet as Jones stepped through the opening, flames still wreathing her fist from the fire punch. Dimples of blood dotted her lower chest and stomach through her body armor. “I’ll fix you, bitch,” the fire pokegirl hissed.
“JONES, NO!” The St. Bernatit ignored her Tamer and charged. The Youma blurred to the side and whipped in a circle as Jones barreled by, smashing her tail spines into the burly noncom’s back and driving her face first through the wall in front of her.
The Growlie snarled and charged Ginevra. Reyes’ eyes narrowed. “NO, MEG! STOP!”
Shepherd levered himself to his feet as Corporal Sims pulled up short. “Sir, you saw what she did to Jones.”
Reyes’ eyes flashed. “I told Tamara to stand down and she disobeyed me. Fetch her.”
“Yes, sir.”
The Growlie vaulted through the hole in the wall as Shepherd turned on Jamie. “Wolf, get out of here. You’ll get your review later.”
Jamie went to attention. “Yes sergeant. Come, Ginevra.” He trotted down the stair, past Duneen as the corporal raced past him.
Once outside, Ginevra grabbed his arm. “This way,” she said in a tight voice as she pulled him away from the camp. She was pale and for the first time he could remember, sweat gleamed on her face.
Jamie dug in his heels. “Something is wrong. We need to get you to medical.”
“No. This way.” When he continued to resist, she turned to face him. “Please.”
Jamie stopped instantly. “Lead me.”
She led them deeper into the woods and stopped in a thick grove of old growth trees. She sank to her knees, hugging herself. Her voice was high and thready with pain. “I can’t fight it much longer. I won’t be able to watch out.”
Jamie changed both of the R-4’s magazines, replacing the practice rounds with live ammo. “I’ve got it.”
Ginevra screamed suddenly as sparks of light appeared in her skin and began to spread. Suddenly, they dimmed and vanished, leaving the Youma panting. “I’m afraid,” she hissed.
He knelt and gripped one of her hands, forcing his fingers inside hers. “I am here and I’m not leaving. You will still be you when this is over. Don’t fight it.”
The Youma curled around his arm and brilliant white light erupted from her body. Jamie winced when she suddenly clenched his hand with her full strength and warmth began to trickle across his palm. Slowly, the light faded. Ginevra slowly unwound and pushed herself upright. Her skin had changed from the sandstone color to deep amber shot through with gold highlights. She had a slim figure now, with trim hips and small breasts. The spines were gone, except for those on her tail. The tail itself had changed, becoming thinner and more slender. A close cap of metallic gold curls graced her head. Only her eyes were unchanged.
Jamie helped her to her feet and her now generous lips curled into a broad smile when she realized that she was almost his height now. She stepped into his arms and nestled against his chest. Suddenly, she sniffed the air and grabbed his hand. “Daimon.” She pried his fingers open to show where her new claws had punctured his palm. She lifted it and ran her tongue over the wounds. Jamie winced and then blinked when the pain vanished as she kept lapping. Finally, she stopped and held up his hand for him to see. The wounds were gone and he now showed no sign of injury.
“Now, that’s a neat trick. I don’t think I’ve ever heard of a healing technique that worked quite like that, but I can admit that it’s effective. Fun, too.” She smiled again, this time with a tiny hint of impishness.
Her eyes narrowed when they heard the bugle in the distance announcing the start of chow. “Daimon.” She didn’t sound happy.
“Yeah, their timing is impeccable, isn’t it?” Jamie sighed. “Still, we both know they’ll come looking for me if we don’t show up, and taming isn’t a viable excuse for being away from the camp.”
She looked up at him and nodded. “Daimon.” She pushed away and closed her eyes, murmuring under her breath. A soft golden glow enveloped her; when it died, he was once more looking at a Youma. “Youma.”
Jamie stared and suddenly grinned. “Very nice and I agree completely. What has happened here is none of their business. Just don’t talk until the evolution shock has passed.” A frown appeared. “If you can’t talk, how could you cast a transformation spell?”
Ginevra shrugged and dissolved into a red cloud that disappeared into the pokeball on his belt. Jamie chuckled and broke into a run towards the second call of the bugle.
***
Shepherd glared at Duneen. “Would you care to tell me what the fuck went wrong? Wolf wasn’t supposed to make it into the building, much less shoot me and threaten the lieutenant.” He unconsciously rubbed his chest. “Nobody passes that exercise. It’s supposed to evaluate how future officers deal with failure.”
Smith tried to defuse the situation. “He went in through the roof, sergeant. The hatch was locked, but they forced it open. We never considered that. We’ll weld it shut this time and set up booby traps for it so this doesn’t happen again.”
The sergeant grimaced. “You are damned right it won’t happen again. The captain expressed his displeasure over Lola almost getting hurt to the lieutenant and she, in turn, tore me a new orifice.”
Duneen blinked. “Hurt? She’s a bloody Chibi Valkyrie. It’s not like she could really get hurt by Wolf or his freak.”
Shepherd rolled his eyes. “Captain Butler is very protective of his pokegirl and since he’s managed to avoid combat for most of his career, he doesn’t want to burden his harem with the experience either.” His voice stopped just short of outright disgust. He took a deep breath. “How’s he shaping up, otherwise?”
Duneen glanced at Smith and shrugged. “He’s a crack shot and excellent at hand to hand. I think he shows a bit too much individual initiative for my taste, but I also think he’d be perfect for the Blackguards.”
Shepherd frowned. The Blackguards were the elite of the BLSF and the best unit in the Special Operations Group or SOG. “No, he won’t be able to qualify for them. I’ve read his file and there’s no way he can make it.”
Smith’s mouth twisted. He still was upset over how Jamie had taken him down in hand to hand. “Is his mother protecting him, again?”
“No, she’s not. Wolf doesn’t have what it takes and he never will.”
“I’m glad to hear he’s not perfect,” Smith sneered.
***
Jamie was rinsing his hair when Ginevra slipped into the shower behind him. She always waited until he was nearly done before rinsing off as he insisted. “There are no cameras in here.” She smiled and glowed as she changed back to the form he’d seen in the woods today. Strong hands gripped his shoulder. “I feel different. I want things I didn’t before.”
He nodded. “That makes sense. Go with your feelings, unless they involve hurting anyone else.”
She was still for a moment before leaning forward and running her cheek along his chest. Her head cocked and she started licking drops of water from his skin. “I want to do this,” she murmured as she kept licking.
Jamie shivered as she licked one of his nipples and his groin tightened. Ginevra smiled and sucked on his nipple, pulling away with a popping sound as it slipped out. “Does that feel good?”
He twined his fingers in her short curls and pulled her head back. “Let’s find out.” Her face went slack with surprise when his lips closed over her nipple and she made a sound in the back of her throat. It started as a whimper and became a groan as he continued to suckle.
His hand slid down her body in slow circles, Jamie marveling at the softness of her new skin. She pressed her belly against his hand as he slowly stroked her thighs and stomach; circling her center carefully as he shifted his lips to her other nipple.
Her head thumped against the back of the shower and she shuddered, her hands tightening painfully on his shoulders. He winced and she released him instantly. “Sorry,” she whispered, “I think I’m stronger now.”
He pulled his lips from her breast, stretching the nipple until she gasped and grabbed the bar on the wall with one hand while the other flailed slightly, searching for something to grip. “You were stronger than me before. We’ll definitely need restraints until we know just how strong you are. Turn around.”
She twisted around; tucking her tail to the side and folding the spikes on it flat against the skin as she took the bar in both hands. Jamie slipped his arms around her and cupped her breasts as his mouth closed on the side of her neck, sucking gently. She groaned and pressed her body back against his, shifting to work his hardness between her legs and into the warm wetness that, for the first time in her life, was suddenly important.
Jamie twisted her nipples gently and bit down on her neck. He suddenly had to hold her weight as she went slack in shock when pleasure rippled through her body. Ginevra whimpered at the new sensations and pressed back against him harder, leaning forward to press her ass against his groin as she searched for him. The search was in vain, as he pulled back, teasing her with his closeness.
One hand slid down her body and between her legs, his fingers teasing her folds apart and slipping into her hot wetness, searching out her nub and stroking it lightly. The bar groaned in her hands, protesting as she moaned loudly. Her tail whipped, knocking him sideways and she froze. “Sorry,” she gasped, as his grip tightened on her body, “I can’t stand the way it feels, but don’t stop.”
Jamie chuckled and released her to press a hand into the middle of her back. She eagerly leaned forward, widening her stance and twisting her hips up to give him easier access.
She yelped when he knelt and his mouth closed over her pussy. She trembled, moaning as he lapped at her and a stringer popped in the wall as she tried to pull the bar free. Suddenly, she pressed against his mouth as she shuddered and cried out in a low voice.
Jamie rose and slid his hands over her ass, squeezing gently as he worked his jaw. She’d almost dislocated it. “Yeah, restraints are definitely in order.” He gripped her hips and slid between her legs. Ginevra hissed in pleasure as he rubbed against her pussy. She pressed back against him and whined in need.
He slowly forced himself into her and she gasped again, going rigid as she tried to process the new sensations and failed, as he buried himself inside her. He stroked slowly and another stringer popped inside the wall.
Suddenly, he thrust hard into her and she grunted as she rocked forward slightly. His body slapped against her loudly, and she moaned in time to the thrusts, her breath ragged and her eyes wild as pleasure whipsawed through her.
Slowly, she started to thrust back to meet him, their bodies slapping together wetly in the spray from the shower. Her panting became faster and faster until she screamed and went rigid again beneath him. The bar didn’t come free, but metal deformed beneath her hands as her orgasm roared through her.
Jamie didn’t let her recover; continuing his thrusts until she shivered and began meeting him once more, their tempo slowly increasing as she shuddered through one orgasm after another and Jamie felt his end coming.
His orgasm seemed to start in the balls of his feet and roared through his body, surging out from his center and into her as she went into convulsions at the feeling of his heat spilling into her.
Some time later, Jamie realized that they were crumpled in a heap on the floor of the shower as the hot water pounded on him. He slowly pulled himself to his feet, his legs shaky, and turned off the spray.
Her eyes were closed and he could actually see her chest moving as she breathed. He touched her cheek. “We need to get going.”
Ginevra smiled without opening her eyes. “I have to wait. I can’t feel my arms or legs.”
***
Corporal Tombs looked out over her audience. “Magic is something that can help to equalize the disparity between a Tamer and a pokegirl. Unless you are a very powerful and well trained mage, it will not level the playing field and I’m not here to try to make you powerful or well trained.” The Vixxen smiled grimly. “I’m here to test your magical ability and see if you can learn a couple of simple spells that will help you in the long run. If you show exceptional aptitude, you may be selected for a special school after your boot training is complete.” Her hands moved and she muttered as she created a floating ball of light. “This is a light spell and it’s very useful for many situations. It’ll stay anchored where ever you summon it. Proficient spell casters can anchor it relative to their own bodies, so that it moves with them.”
Her eyes swept the assembled recruits. “Our goal is to teach you that light spell, a spell for healing wounds and one that will allow you to know if magic is in use around you. None of them are difficult and I expect each and every one of you to master one, if not all, of them. I’ll be very disappointed if you can’t.”
Her eyes narrowed. “Magic use of some kind is a requirement for joining the Blackguards and, if any of you are inclined in that direction, I’d recommend paying close attention.”
She looked around and grinned. “I need a volunteer.”
The silence was absolute.
Corporal Tombs’ grin grew. “Hines isn’t here, but I think I’ll take a page from her book. Wolf. Post.”
Jamie bounced to his feet and ran to where the Vixxen stood. “Recruit Wolf reporting, corporal.”
“Ok, Wolf, you can shoot and fight; let’s see how you are with magic.”
He took a deep breath and spoke in a very low voice. “Corporal, I can’t do magic. Not at all, and it’s not something I’m proud of. I’ve been tested and I’ve no magical abilities.”
Her ears flicked in curiosity. “None? That’s rather unusual.”
“Corporal, my testing indicated that I was almost a magical null. I cannot do the smallest bit of magic. My twin brother is the same way.”
She nodded. “We’ll have to test you to verify the result. I’ll guide you through the process.” She met his gaze squarely. “Don’t worry, Wolf, this won’t hurt.”
Only my pride, he thought as he watched her preparing to humiliate him in front of his fellow recruits. He and Graeme were the only children without any magical talent born to his father or uncle and their sibs had been quick to exploit that weakness. Only my pride, which means that it won’t really matter at all to you.
***
Sergeant Shepherd eyed the recruits for a second. “ATTEN-HUT!” The recruits came to attention with a snap. “PARADE REST!” Ninety-six bodies shifted smoothly to parade rest. “The lieutenant has a few words for you about what is going to happen to you next.”
Lieutenant Reyes stepped forward. “The process of becoming members of the BLSF is almost complete, but before we graduate you, there is one final test you have to complete. The survival course is intended to simulate the worst possible thing that can happen to you: you’ll be alone, with limited supplies and an objective that still has to be completed within a given time span. You will take everything you’ve learned here and apply it in the field. You will be given a pack of basic supplies and you, and your pokegirl or pokegirls, will be dropped in a remote area. You will make your way back here by the most expeditious means possible to complete your mission. There are two exceptions to that, however. You may not fly back here by pokegirl.” She smiled briefly. “If you can fly under your own power, I suppose that would be acceptable; but, since none of you can fly, it doesn’t matter.
“You may not teleport back, either. We will be checking the records in your pokedexes to make sure you don’t violate these rules.” She eyed them narrowly. “If you fly or teleport back, you will be disqualified and a review board will be convened to determine if you will have to take boot camp over, or if we just don’t need your services at all. I am talking about courts martial and you had better understand that you do not want one of those on your record. Ever.
“You will be allowed to catch and tame pokegirls while you are making your way back; however you need to understand that you will be expected to bring any new pokegirls up to speed in the way things are done here in the Force. You will have six months to complete this, or she will be confiscated. That’s a standard rule by the way; and will happen no matter when you add to your harem.
“You will have thirty days to complete this exercise. Most of you won’t need the full time, but don’t put yourself in danger needlessly in order to get back early. This is not a race and you don’t get extra points for getting here before the rest of your fellow recruits.
“If you exceed the thirty day limit, we will track you down and rescue you. You will be evaluated on the situation that exists at that point. Do not make us go get you. We won’t like to do it and you won’t like it when we show up.
“You may quit this exercise at any time you feel that you cannot complete it. However, you have proven that you are not quitters and I expect that all of you will complete the exercise or die trying.
“That brings us to the fact that it is likely that one or more of you will die on this exercise. Any who do will be given full posthumous honors and inducted into the lost regiment for all time. Since you can only get there by dying, please try to avoid this particular award.”
“Your deployment will start tomorrow morning. Good luck.”
Sergeant Shepherd stepped forward. “Now, you all heard the lieutenant. Here’s the scenario in a nutshell. You and your team were on a mission to infiltrate and destroy a criminal stronghold. Unfortunately, there was a leak and your mission was compromised. You were ambushed and your transport was shot down with a complete loss of life except for yourself and your pokegirls. All of your gear was lost except for a basic survival kit. However, when you opened it up you found that someone had swiped the batteries from your radio. They probably needed them for their stereo system.” He grinned as nervous laughter swept the recruits.
“You’ll have two days food, a knife and your pokegirls. You know that here is a re-supply facility where you can get healed up and restock your equipment before you complete your mission, since we all know that will be uppermost in your mind. Most of you will have to travel at least fifty kilometers to get here and some of you will have to travel more. You’ll be dropped individually and where you get dropped will be determined by random lottery.”
He looked around grimly. “You are all blooded Tamers and so this should only be merely difficult, instead of completely impossible. You will be dropped into areas where there are feral pokegirls and no humans as far as we know. Be careful. I want to see all your eager faces back here when this is over. IF YOU GET INTO SERIOUS TROUBLE, CALL FOR HELP. I will not penalize you for that and neither will anyone else. We do not expect you to conquer the world on your own.” A tiny smile appeared. “That’s why we typically deploy in squads.”
***
Name: Wolf, Jamie Harris
Age: 17
Residence: Caomh Sith, Blue Continent
Region: Scotland
Status: Active
Rank: 15
Security Clearance: Epsilon
Licenses
Tamer Y
Master Tamer Y
Researcher N
Watcher N
Breeder N
Active Harem
Species Name
Youma Ginevra
Badges: None