THE VROL TRILOGY (137 page)

"Oh, stop being a pussy, Worthington. My god,
do I have to punch you again?" yelled Jennie.

"No, ma'am. Sorry. Ok, what next?"

Draagh looked at Coby with a thoughtful gaze.
He knew the time was nearing for the first part of their battle to
begin, so Coby needed to stay activated.

"My boy, I am taking you back to Azul.
However, before I do so we shall need to supply you with a comm,
and you shall meet your commanding officer," said Draagh.

"Commanding officer? Who would that be?"

Before he could even take another breath
Luigi Bagatelle and Alicia Vasquez walked into the commissary.

"Hello again, Coby. Please meet your
commanding officer and point of contact in Azul System, Commander
Alicia Vasquez," said Bagatelle.

"Admiral, Commander. I'm… um… here to
help."

"You'll follow the commander's orders
spot-on, got it, Worthington?" demanded Jennie. She had little
patience for wishy-washy people, and Coby had a lot to prove in the
near future.

"Worthington, you are a lucky man," said
Alicia.

"How's that, Commander?"

"First off, you're lycan. Secondly, you get
to work with me."

"Ok, I'll bite. What do we do?"

"Assign me to your team in the Chairman's
office. He's gone at the moment, so if he returns you'll have a
great excuse - you needed reliable military assistance in his
absence. If he doesn't return then it's even easier for us."

"My boy, hold still," said Draagh, as he
approached Coby and placed a flat, oval broche on his lapel. Coby
flinched and squinted his eyes, expecting something painful to
transpire. He only realized the process had been completed when he
heard everyone's laughter.

"This is your comm. With this you will be
able to communicate with us… telepathically. And it is invisible to
all of your devices and sensors."

"Um, are you sure? I just saw you and
the king guy sitting in a café with Maria
López."

"I've been wearing one for weeks," said
Alicia.

"Seriously? Sounds awesome. Ok, I'll test
it."

"It shall not function until you have been
inoculated," said Draagh.

"Um, inoculated? Like, a vaccine?" asked
Coby.

"Yup, that's the deal," answered Max.

"What will that do? What's its purpose?"

"You'll retain your lycan skills on Azul, or
any other world," said Jennie.

"And more. But there is a down side," said
Bagatelle.

"What is that, sir?"

"Azul has a double full moon. Luna for a day,
and Sienna the following day. You'll need to take a trip. Make
plans to visit one of the moons. We'll make your cover story and
hide you at our base on Vera for 48 hours. Then you can go home,"
responded Bagatelle.

"But sir, what will happen if I stay on
Azul?"

'You'll murder your wife and children,
and possibly all of your neighbors," said Alicia. Make plans, and
take me with you as your
aide-de-camp
."

"Got it, Commander. I'm ready for my
inoculation."

###

Coby Worthington sat in in a luxurious,
leather Eames lounge chair in the expansive library of his palatial
estate in New Sydney. Political life had been good to him, and it
showed. But now he felt a bit guilty, sitting across from his new
commander, who was posing as his assistant, or
aide-de-camp
. He and Commander Alicia Vasquez
had just discussed the plans for their temporary absence from Azul.
Max had gone to his house with them to make sure there was no
active surveillance in the home, of which none existed. Further,
his inoculation had unleashed his lycan abilities, and while he
needed to learn to harness his new skills (which would be addressed
during his convenient two day vacation), he was able to use his new
comm, as well as the subspecies identifier lens Draagh had put on
his eyeball. To his relief, not only were his children lycan, but
his wife was as well. Subspecies tended to be drawn toward one
another, and it was still a mystery how we was able to tolerate
being in the presence of Len Johnson, a genetic vampire. Jennie
thought it was because Worthington was an untrustworthy punk, and
Max believed it to be greed. But Draagh attributed it to love -
pure love. Coby loved his family more than life itself. He simply
wanted to provide the best life possible for them.

"So, Commander, we'll say we're on a retreat
during the full moons, but will actually be on Vera Base?"

"Correct, Coby. We're on the same team. So
you can call me Alicia - but only in private. In public I'll always
refer to you as Mr. Worthington. You can call me Commander or Miss
Vasquez."

"Got it. Um, Alicia? I do have a question
regarding my new abilities."

"Sure, go ahead, Coby."

"This may sound odd, but do they make you
more… oh crap, how do I put it? I feel super, like… I want to… with
my wife, um-"

"Do newly-activated abilities make you
aroused? Yes, to the extreme. Mrs. Worthington's gonna be a happy
camper tonight," stated a smirking Alicia.

"Good, I mean, I was hoping it wasn't just me
getting all out of sorts. Well, I'm calling my wife in. She's to
know nothing until we're ready to get out of town, right? Johnson
could put her in the engram extractor at any moment, although he
has yet to do so."

"Yes, better safe than sorry. Your family
stays in the dark for the time being."

Coby nodded at Alicia as he pressed a symbol
on his tableside intra-estate communications array.

"Margaret, honey, could you come to the
library? I would like for you to meet my new assistant."

Two minutes later, Margaret Worthington
entered into the library, carrying a tray with three glasses of
extremely rare and expensive cognac. She wasn't the jealous type at
all, but she was raised in a very bacho society and wasn't
accustomed to seeing degos in her home. It wasn't that she was
racist - it was just a matter of what one was used to. However, she
would do anything for her husband, so she overlooked the fact that
there was a darker person in her library. Despite Alicia being dega
(and quite beautiful), Margaret felt completely comfortable with
the woman, although she had no idea why. Unbeknownst to her, it was
due to their shared genetic heritage.

Margaret was a mildly attractive woman,
blonde hair, blue eyes, and slightly plump. Her racial makeup was
less common (as was Coby's) for an inactive lycan, but it didn't
matter. There were even vampires of Old-Earth African descent on
Azul (though extremely rare) - race played little in the appearance
of the recessive genes. They were inactive, but many still
maintained a touch of their ancestors' characteristics.

"So, you have to leave on an inspection of
the security apparatus on the moons, sweetie? You do what you need
to. Everything will be fine here, my love. And Commander Vasquez,
thank you for your assurances that my husband will be
protected."

"You have nothing to worry about, Mrs.
Worthington. Your husband is our top priority, aside from
safeguarding Azul System," responded Alicia, who was lying while
wearing a big, pearly-white smile.

Chapter 13 - PAH Fun

At first nobody noticed any sound. It was a
rhythmic vibration - a cadence that could have been mistaken for
heavy machinery in the distance. But it grew in intensity, unlike
any such non-existent machinery.

Neko children were the first to detect the
disturbance, their hyper-tuned senses alerting them to something
approaching. Something large. Scattering, the furry little
cat-girls screeched loudly, bringing the barely apparent
disturbance to everyone else's attention.

"Oh crap, what the hell is that? I think
we're in trouble," cried Adam, ready as ever to hide, never having
been the brave sort. His fellow clan member Marko, however, was
more than willing to confront, no matter how stupidly, any
impending danger. But this time there was no need. Marko was lycan
and had a good sense of smell - a sense of smell that told him the
approaching sound was not that of danger.

"Mage - punk is a pussy. That's not trouble.
That's Max Gunnarsson!"

The two went bounding down the street,
a small group of neko children following in the wings, until they
saw a massive throng of soldiers marching in perfect rhythm,
their
friend
Max Gunnarsson
at the forefront.

"Holy crap! It's Max! Why the hell is he
coming with an army?" exclaimed Adam.

"You only find out if you ask, magic-boy.
Let's go!"

Rounding a corner, the two were mind-blown
when they saw not only Max, but Jennie and Bagatelle leading a
group of a few dozen soldiers, some dressed like Max used to, with
leather; some dressed in more modern clothing, and some others
wearing what appeared to be archaic, alien armor from a time
long-passed. All had katanas either slung over their backs or
attached to their belts, and there was a group in the center with
what appeared to be shoulder-mounted rockets. Running up to the
approaching group, Adam was the first to greet the newcomers.

"Max! You came back! Um, you're not here to
kill us, are you?"

Captain Gunnarsson nearly started laughing
out loudly as he peeled off from his troops, going over to greet
Adam and Marko, both former enemies.

"Hey guys! We came for some training against
demons, so I figured we'd rent out the hotel for a couple of days.
Is Dons around today?"

Max was looking really well to the two
Hollywood residents, but his wife was looking even better, and it
was all Marko could do to keep from staring at her. "Hey Max! Um,
yeah, he should be around. I'll shoot over and notify him of your
arrival."

Max nodded to the formerly antagonistic lycan
and gave him a toothless smile, turning back to his troops and
leading them up the wide, repaired street.

"Hey baby, that's the guy who was such a
jerk to you, isn’t it?"

"Yeah, why sweetie?"

"He's so checking me out. You should beat
him up for looking at me."

Max gave his wide a quick glance, only to see
she was snickering under her breath. During the breeding season
lycan males tended to be hyper-territorial, and Jennie was merely
reminding him of his heritage, even though it was tempered by his
more angelic half.

Dons walked out into the street just in time
to see the massive throng of lycan soldiers come to a full stop in
front of the club. All standing smartly at attention, staring
forward, Max broke formation and saluted Dons, who awkwardly
saluted back.

"Heya, mate. Can't say it isn't good 'ta see
ya, but why the show of force?"

"Hello, Dons. We're here for some training
against your local demons. I thought you might like some revenues
for renting out hotel rooms. There are rooms available, aren't
there?"

"Oh yeah. Hardly even use the place. We use
the kitchen a lot, though. Anyway, welcome and all that."

Bagatelle walked over and grabbed the
diminutive clan leader's hand, shaking it vigorously. "It is good
to see you again, Proprietor. I am hoping our unannounced arrival
has not caused any sort of inconvenience for you."

"Eh? No, mate. Teeth is teeth, ya know?
Anyway, it's been too long. Thought you all forgot about us
here."

"Dons, I apologize for the intrusion, but we
need to train for an upcoming battle and this is the only place
where we can fight against live Vrol," said Max,
uncharacteristically interrupting Bagatelle.

"Heya mate! Anything you like. Less demons is
a good thing for us all ya know?"

"
Sorry for
cutting in, Admiral, but Dons aspires to very little - less
demons/Vrol and more teeth/currency."

Bagatelle knowingly nodded to Max and turned,
and then ordered his troops to file in formation in front of the
Hotel California.

Jennie still didn't want to let go of the
fact that Marko had been a jerk to Max, so she sauntered over to
him, making sure the top buttons of her field uniform were undone.
"So, you're the lycan who fought my husband, aren’t you?" she asked
the stunned Marko, who could do nothing but stare at her
unrealistically-exposed cleavage.

"Umm, yes… erm… he was…a … great opponent…
victor… yes."

Jennie looked around and noticed that nearly
the entire village had awoken to view the friendly invaders.
Massive throngs of people gathered around the off-world troops,
staring at their alien wares and armor.

"Max told me you were a formidable opponent,"
she continued.

"Well, I was… honestly… your… oh crap!" Marko
dropped to a knee in front of the gorgeous dega. "I am nothing
compared to Max. He destroyed me. He is what I aspire to be, even
though I shall never reach his level. You are a goddess, Mrs.
Gunnarsson. Please, accept my humble services."

Marko almost started to sob, when Max shot
over, wearing an awkward look that matched Jennie's, neither
knowing what to do at the moment. Fortunately, Max was a quick
thinker.

"Marko! Stand up!"

"Sir!

"Do you know what you have, soldier?"

"No… I really do not sir."

"You have dumb-ass bravery. That is the most
valuable currency a soldier possesses."

"Huh? Max… what?"

"Take the compliment!" Max yelled.

"Yes sir!"

Then, the now-famous lycan mage gave Marko a
kind and considerate glance, while saying, "Marko… I could use
bravery such as yours. Would you like to join our fight?"

"Yes sir! It would be my honor!"

"Then you must first do one thing,
Marko!"

"And what is that, sir?"

"Never… never, ever look at my wife's breasts
again!"