Wasteland Survivor – Wild - ch13
#14 of Wasteland Survivor
Yeah, Fox has some good parts in this one again, don't fear, she will not be fading from this story any time soon.
As some will have noticed, this story is about Crystal, its about her growing as a person and about the people around her doing the same. I had originally planned to write the whole thing from her point of view, but then I got the crazy idea that it would be interesting to tell a story where the protaganist was the only person who you never take the point of view from.
Anyway, on with the show, oh and there shouldn't be any Australian-isms to worry about in this one, although the curious will be interested to note our army uses the M113 APCs that most of the world use as well, and when the characters talk about entering and exiting the hatches, they mean the rear hatch that folds down.
Oh, and curse the spellcheck in OOo, it is reasonably good at its job, but flagging 'nitty gritty' was pretty poor.
I clenched my fist again, thinking, going over the last few hours, well, excluding the ones I spent unconscious. Back to looking human, but I could feel it just beneath the outer layer, the thin veneer.
I had become something, something a lot different to how a sergeant is meant to be, it was full of rage, and anger, and dominance, but I had to become that, to protect Her. Thinking of Hellen I opened that fist and spread my fingers. For her I would do anything.
My attention was wandering when the hatch opened on the APC again.
"I found your things, I grabbed some dry clothes for..." Jennings cut off just as she saw me, she was staring at my hand. I looked down at it too.
Arcing between my fingers were fat blue-white sparks of electricity. I stared at them in fascination, making the sparks jump into wider and wider arcs, then I brought my other hand out and started forming it into shapes, throwing small spheres of it between my fingers, working it around my palms like glass juggling balls.
"That's beautiful." she said.
I let the power fade and took the clothing from her, I stood to remove my pants and she got a twinkle in her eye, "No, let me..." she said halting me.
-
"How are the other soldiers doing?" Crystal asked the army medic.
"Its unbelievable, the metal they were caged in was melted to slag, the men standing around them guarding them were nothing but burnt meat, but they came through without so much as a single burn. Two have regained conciousness and are being debriefed by Lieutenant Jessup." the man said, rising from checking on one of his patients.
"Where can I find them?" she queried.
"In the fourth bushmaster down." said the soldier, gesturing which direction.
"Thanks Gradey, you're doing a great job." Crys said, patting the distraught medic.
"I just, this isn't the kind of shit we're trained to deal with, first aid for bullet wounds, treating IED aftermath, but when we were trained about head wounds we were told 'don't fucking touch them if you can help it'" he had his head on my loves shoulder, dealing with his emotions. It helped that she was not in the army, there was no required way for him to act in her presence, she could play the mother figure for them.
"We contacted the camp, the doc had words with the Captain, he said based on what Captain Jennings could sense from each of them there is no permanent damage, some of them may be a bit hazy about the last few days, but that will be the worst of it." At Crystal's words, the last of the tension went out of the field medic, I heard two very relieved sobs before he drew back.
"Thanks Boss, hearing that..." He was still recovering.
I chose then to knock loudly on the side of the hatch, the occupants knew who it was of course, there's not many people who can knock on three centre-meter thick armour plating and have it ring like that. "Anyone home, its getting a little damp out here..."
"Come on in Fox." The soldier surprised me by calling, "Its about time someone found the Boss and dragged her back to her job." He added, giving Crys a wink.
Crystal mock sighed, "Oh well, you found me, no rest for the wicked I guess.", she stated theatrically. And stepped past me out the back of the rolling vehicle, grabbing my arm and hitting the door control.
"So, what do these big strong soldiers need with little me now?" She asked.
"They don't", and I grabbed her off her feet and ran to the rear APC, it was being driven by someone, but the gun system was slaved off the one of the others, we had the cargo area all to our selves.
"Oh no you don't", she said, tapping my nose with a finger, "You're all wet and I am dry!"
"I can fix that." I grinned evily at her as I placed her on the blankets I had arranged on the floor of the vehicle.
-
He ended up putting his pants on himself, after all, but I couldn't help but watch, years spent driving himself to 'be the best he could be' and driving others to the same state had left him built like you see those strippers at a girls night out, with one difference, you knew there was not just the strength and power, but the stamina and will to use it however was required.
"So, uh, Sir? How do we proceed from here? Professionally speaking that is." He asked, sounding almost worried.
"Is this a sergeant, no, THE Sergeant, asking a mere captain how he should purport himself?" I couldn't help but jab, but took the heat out of it with, "Of course, I would not deem myself worthy to offer such advice, but were I in such a situation as being in a relationship between an officer and a non-com during an active and protracted action, well, all propriety must be maintained in front of troops, but when duties are done with, well..." I finished it and winked suggestively.
At my description of how I wanted to handle this, he sighed, "Thank you Hellen, you have given me more than I had any right to expect from the rest of my life, I still can't believe you could want this old-" He started to try and list his bad points.
I interrupted by reaching around in front of him and grabbed his crotch, "Old? Old men can't fire three shot bursts, nor land all shots on target, Sergeant."
He laughed, "What did I do to deserve you?" he turned and kissed me, I tried as best I could to return the favour, but it seems having nearly half a meter of tongue, while very good for particular acts that I had shown him, was not as good for French kissing. He choked a little and started coughing.
"Damn girl, I've got to get dressed and out there to-" He started, but as the convoy picked up speed he fell backward onto me, well, he may have missed if I hadn't guided him.
It was then I noticed something, his eyes were glowing. We both looked down to where I could catch glimpses of light and saw his hands, holding onto my hips with sparks of energy arcing between his fingers and between his hands, over my skin and playing and spitting off some of my spines.
"Well, that is sure one way to get rid of unwanted body hair." I quipped, we both lost ourselves laughing, but he ended up with his shirt back on somehow, spoilsport.
"Where are we in the column?" He asked, mind back to work.
"Third, but the trucks are..." Was all I got out before he jumped out the rear hatch, "moving at full speed." I finished the warning lamely, only to notice him running past the APC through the side window.
~"Show off!"~ I sent after him.
I shook myself mentally and made the rounds of all the Lieutenants, checking in on the status and was told, 'rest, damn it, Sir!' on more than one occasion.
We proceeded toward our next destination with good speed, the rain cleared mid afternoon, so Fox called to Drathnial and they headed out to patrol.
"Well, look who is all alone up here." Crystals voice broke me from my review of our plans, plans she herself had written up.
"Ok, apparently Nicols can run faster than an APC now, but how the hell did you get here?" I burst.
She just gestured downward, pointing out the fact her modified boots were floating about two centre-meters off the deck of the APC, then did a little pirouette.
"We should be at the airport before nightfall at this pace, Fox is doing a lot of leg, well, ok Drathnial is doing a lot of wing work, and is scouting back and forth, returning to mind-talk to Nicols before heading out again." She reported.
"If they would let me do my job instead of sit back here with nothing to occupy me they wouldn't have as hard a time of it!" I said, not really putting any fire into it, but meaning it none the less.
"Oh come on, I know for a fact Fox and Drath are having a great time doing this, Nicols is relishing having something over the officers," I failed in my attempt to interrupt angrily, thinking he was levering our relationship, Crystal pushed on, "the fact he can receive from Drath that is, well, you have some time to explain a few things to me."
I was puzzled, what did she want, I voiced that thought to her.
"Well, how was it? He finally opened up to you? Hell when we found you he was practically unconscious on his feet standing there with you in his huge arms, your spines were probably starting to dig through even that were-wolf hide of his, yet he wouldn't let himself pass out till we had taken you from his arms..." She sighed. Damn, put like that our life was practically a romance novel.
"He, he is so strong, so wilful, and all he wants when we are together is to be next to me. And I want the same, when he is here, it all feels right, when he is away from me I ache to have him back here. But above all I don't want to hurt him, he seems tougher now, even in human form, but I am so... painfully..." I was almost in tears, letting out emotions I had been bottling up all day, Crystal lent me her shoulder and I was bawling.
"Well, despite the obvious pain of being too near to someone of your" And she flexed her mind-power, reminding me that that was what was keeping her from being injured by just offering me her shoulder, "capabilities, I can see he is determined to see things through." She then coughed, covering a glaring wet patch on the makeshift bed with the blanket we were sitting on. If I could be more embarrassed with the situation I would have died.
Then the last emotion finally leaked out as Crystal started giggling, and it was too infectious.
"He is damn lucky, you know." Crystal said as she drew her attention back to the comms area.
"Yeah, and so am I." feeling fully at peace for the the first time since this whole mess started. "So, how did you and Fox get together?" I asked.
Crystals face lit up, "So, someone finally worked up the nerve to ask, well, we have made a pact that the first to ask would get the truth, so if you could, call my little foxy back here so we can tell you our story."
-
"And that" I said, referring to Crystal's attempt to hurl a brick at me in her front yard, "was when she first admired my breasts!" I finsished, with a big grin.
"Holy shit, you mean, you were a guy before all this? That's..." She was suitably blown away, hell I had been for nearly a week, till the nitty gritty of keeping my girl satisfied shook me out of it.
"Go on, you know you want to ask." I stated flatly, but quirking one eyebrow.
"Ok then." She said, "Is sex better as a guy or as a girl?" silence permeated the vehicle, well, apart from the huge diesel engine.
"Well, from a strictly scientific stand point, cunnilingus is about the same for both, with the advantage as a girl that a dedicated partner will continue past your first orgasm. But as for the big deed itself, well..." I dragged it out, Crystal had a knowing grin, but Jennings was falling for it hook line and sinker, "I am a faithful partner and will never turn to anyone but my one love."
"What? Not even once? To get a " and she made a lewd gesture with her hands, "feel for it?"
I looked Crystal in the eyes, and with my heart said, "No, never."
Those times I cursed women, all untrue. If anyone claims I thought ill of them, I will deny everything.
By the way, I will keep all the tags I am using at the moment, they fit in for the majority of the story, and even if a chapter lacks what a flag stands for, other parts will have it, and I consider the work a complete unit rather than just the sum of its parts. So yes, the Bad Language and Violence (niy) will stay, even in this one.