Dark Earth: The Prophecy - 6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6: Homecoming

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Cristobel’s Diary January 7, 3007

Everything is different now. I’m not proud of my actions this evening. The council’s obsession with communal love has forced me to go against most of my principles. I love Julian. I know our relationship is still new, but I already love him a lot. I don’t know how I could live without him in my life. The council has forced both of us to put our own feelings aside to further their own agenda. I don’t understand how they can be so callous. Tonight, I incited an orgy. I figured that would be the best way to turn the Centropolis Protectors into a sexual commune.

After the orgy, I lured Adriana into my sleeping quarters since I’m supposed to be her secondary love interest. I feel like I’ve betrayed my own brother in the process. Meanwhile, my brother is sleeping with my boyfriend. This commune is going to drive me insane. I should only have eyes for Julian, yet taking my relationship with Adriana has made me realize I already see her as much more than a friend.

Adriana almost forgot to write her daily reports. She wanted to fall asleep in my arms instead of completing her duties. She doesn’t even feel guilty for having feelings for me. Maybe I should have learned how to control this new power before taking these steps. I wonder if how Adriana and I feel about each other is how Julian and Simon feel for one another.

I haven’t even had the chance to really be alone with Julian, and I don’t know when I will. The foursomes we had with Brian and Dennis were our first sexual experiences together. At the time, that’s exactly what I wanted. Now I feel like we cheated ourselves. We have been forced to live a life of polyamory. There’s a part of me that loves the lifestyle, but another part of me wants Julian and only Julian. I’m so confused. How do I reconcile this new sexual commune with my sense of morality? In time, I hope I can figure it out.

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Daily Report January 7, 3007 (Private)

This evening’s events have been surreal. The organization's new found ideals of communal love leave a lot to be desired. I have never claimed a life of monogamy, but I do have a sense of limitations. Before tonight, I only maintained one loving relationship with my future husband. Now, I have feelings for two men. This doesn’t make sense. Lady Valentine is responsible for this.

Cristobel informed me why Simon was sent to White Knight City. I don’t know how to feel about this. I have no room to be angry with Julian or Simon. There are two reasons. The first is that the council wants both of them to analyze the data we collected from the safe houses west of Centropolis. The other reason was for Julian to seduce my fiancé. The first is acceptable. The latter is not. There will be a conference in White Knight City tomorrow. I will not take no for an answer.

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A nightmare about the Dark Knights torturing a young woman woke me up. I could even feel her pain. It was horrible. They used Nerongian torture devices such as a wooden sticks laced with poison from a kidrioc plant. They had her tied up to a post wrapped with barbed wire as well. This dream was the first time I actually saw images of my father. His hair was black with crimson stripes. His eyes were ice blue. His skin was pasty white. Diabolico used a leather strap to beat the woman. He looked like an older version of Cristobel with red eyes and implanted horns on his forehead. Diabolico blasted the poor woman with a nightmare ball. The two watched as the poor woman suffered and died a slow, painful death.

It was only 0600 when I woke up from my dream. I was covered with sweat. I decided to take a shower. I didn’t wake Simon. I decided to let him sleep until I finished my shower. When I finished my shower, Simon was already awake. I dressed while he took a shower. I sat down at the desk to see if we had the data from the mission on the previous night. The first message was an audio message from Natalia. “Julian, your training begins at 10 hundred hours. I’m on Vampirol so I can be awake during the day, in case you’re wondering.” Nobody had mentioned Vampirol until now. Apparently, that’s what Carculius uses to stay awake.

The second message was from Adriana. “I know what you two are doing there. There’s a meeting at 14 hundred hours in the council conference room. Be there.” Five minutes later, Simon came back into the room. I told him about the message. He listened to it as well.

Simon took a deep breath and said, “I think she’s mad. She can call meetings with the council, and apparently she did.”

“Do you think she’s mad at us?”

“No, she’s probably mad at the council, especially her father.”

“I have training this morning with Natalia. I wonder if she knows about the situation.”

“Well, she will soon enough. Adriana will tell her everything. We should get some breakfast. This is going to be a long day.”

We ordered the machine to make some breakfast. We had pancakes and sausage, one of my personal favorites. After we finished, there was a knock at the door. I walked to the door and pressed the button to open it. Adriana, Natalia, Nikita, and Cristobel were standing outside the door. “Come in,” I said.

“We decided we would deliver the data personally,” Adriana announced. “I also thought we’d have a little chat. Julian, why didn’t you tell me about your directives?”

“The council didn’t want me to,” I replied. “I don’t like the situation anymore than you do.”

“So, did you succeed?” Cristobel asked.

“Shut up, Cristobel,” Simon snapped. “And for the record, yes he did.”

“Well, I figured as much. Did you enjoy yourself?” Adriana was fuming. I had never seen her so angry.

“Did you?” I returned her question. “Do you think I liked the idea that you slept with MY boyfriend, Adriana?”

“You told him to do so. I was influenced by Cristobel’s new powers. That’s something else I can thank YOU for.”

“Adriana, he’s not responsible for this. The council is.” Simon was just as angry as she was. “In case you’re wondering, he’s damn good in bed too.”

“Arguing is not going to change anything. I did what the council told me to do. You have no idea how difficult this is for me. I don’t like this.”

“Julian, are you saying you didn’t enjoy spending the night with me?” Simon frowned.

“I didn’t say that. I enjoyed it, but that doesn’t make me feel any better about the situation.” I looked towards Natalia. “Can we start our practice early?”

“No,” Adriana yelled. “We’re going to analyze the data.” I had had enough of her anger. I decided to try some subtle mind control. She froze in her position, unable to speak for a moment. Her eyes glazed over. “Is there anything I can do for you, master?”

“Yes, there is. Go tell your parents how you feel, Adriana.”

“Yes, master.” She disappeared in a haze. It wasn’t the normal lavender color either. This time the haze was black.

“You do realize she’ll be mad that you used mind control, don’t you?” Simon asked.

“I just don’t feel like dealing with her at the moment. Despite what she may think, I never wanted this whole situation. I’m sick and tired of the implications. I’ll leave the organization if I have to. Maybe I’ll follow in daddy’s footsteps after all.”

“Don’t say that,” Cristobel yelled. “You’re not like him.”

“Cristobel, if you would have used enough power, she wouldn’t be angry,” I snapped. “I’m out of here.” I teleported to the roof. I wanted some time alone. I was only alone for a few minutes, because Natalia and Nikita joined me on the roof.

“We need to analyze the data,” Natalia informed me. “The sooner you finish, the sooner we can start your practice. We’re using a virtual reality program to teach you some of the basics. Then, if you’re up for it, you can kill some EAS agents with your new katana, without powers of course.”

“All right, I’ll join you, but I’m still pissed off.”

“She shouldn’t be taking it out on you. You’re suffering just as much as she is. She is still influenced. Imagine how angry she’d be otherwise.” Nikita was right. The influence was subtle enough for her to feel angry about the situation. I don’t think she understood my position.

“What about you two? Aren’t you mad?”

“Well, I’m mad at my brother. He should know better. I’m not too happy about you ordering Cristobel to seduce Nikita though.”

“Do you think this conference will change anything?”

“Probably not, but we’re going to try,” Nikita said.

“We should go back to the suite. I’m going to try to teleport us all separately. I need to concentrate.” I closed my eyes and imagined the three of us being in the suite. Soon after, I felt weightless. When I felt a floor below my feet, I opened my eyes. I looked around me and saw Natalia and Nikita standing beside me. “It worked.”

“I don’t appreciate you using mind control on me, Julian,” Adriana said flatly. “But I guess I deserved it. After talking to my parents, I remembered why I’m really angry. They should have consulted me. They said that the commune is to continue. They still want a conference though.”

“I want to go back to Centropolis after the conference. I want to distance myself from them for a while.”

“I’ll take care of it,” Natalia said firmly. “Tempest knows not to say no to me. He once offered me a position on the council. I turned it down, but I told him that if I didn’t like a decision or I wanted something, he better not tell me ‘no.’ Now let’s analyze the data.”

We went over to the desk. Simon placed the data stick into the input device. A picture of the safe house appeared on the holographic interface. Simon pressed a button on the holographic keyboard console. “That’s interested,” he said. “They even have a high tech security system. Julian, that means we’ll need some electrical interference to take it down.”

“I can do that,” I said flatly. “Just tell me where to aim.”

“It’s not that simple. You need to create an EMP.”

“I don’t think I can do that,” I replied. “I’m not sure I’m capable of it. I don’t have powers over magnetism.”

“We have a special device. You can relay your powers through it. The device will do the rest. Once you charge the device, any one of us can fire it.” Simon was quite confident about this so I relaxed.

“Well, I’m surprised there isn’t some kind of mechanism to charge it.”

“That would be too dangerous,” Simon said. “You’ll have to be far away when we set off the charge.”

“It’s a bomb?” I asked.

“I’m afraid so. That means you’ll have to teleport to the scene after the bomb goes off.”

“That will kill any electokinetic in the vicinity too,” Natalia added. “That includes both you and Cristobel. Either one of you can charge the device, but you’ll both be killed by an EMP.”

“Well, I hope that kind of weapon isn’t very common,” Cristobel shuddered.

“They’re quite rare actually,” said Adriana. “Honey, you’re missing another option. I can easily bypass the security system by destroying it at the source. I believe Julian could as well. Any teleporter can disengage the security system directly from the source. The guards would also need to be dispatched.”

“I need a complete image of the site. Do you have some kind of graphical representation?” I asked.

“I’ll pull it up,” Simon said. The screen highlighted the site within the compound. To the right, a picture of the security control room appeared. “We’ll invade the facility within the week. I’m uploading the information about the rogues to your computer gloves right now.” I looked at my glove. The red button flashed, signaling the uploads completion. I closed my middle finger, ring finger, and pinky. I pointed my index finger and thumb like an upside down gun. An image of one of the rogues appeared just above my index finger. It was a sonic screamer named Vixen. I stroked my thumb to scroll down to the next image. This one was a pyrokinetic vampire hybrid named Firecracker. All of the rogues were women. They called themselves “The Bitch Club.” The name was quite fitting. They were some of the most notorious rogues in the city. The leader was the mind controller Carculius told me about.

“I’ll have to kill the leader, Queen Bitch,” I said. “I think Carculius warned me about her. I have to rip her heart out.”

“I’ve told you not to do that,” Adriana quipped. “There are other ways to kill hybrids, Julian. One of them is a pyrokinetic.”

“Yes, and she’s a hybrid as well. I don’t think there’s much of a choice. I can use telekinesis.”

“Very well, then,” Adriana sighed. “We have a few days to prepare. Now, I suggest you and Natalia go to the weapons room. The meeting is still at 1400. We’ll eat lunch at 1300. There’s a nice Italian restaurant in the city. I’ll take everyone there.”

Since I didn’t know exactly where the weapons room was located, Natalia used her powers to summon a portal. She had me sit down in a chair. She placed the VR helmet on my head. The program seemed to be in an extremely fast mode. My telepathic abilities allowed me to absorb the information much faster than non-telepathic evoloids. Within an hour, I was ready for my test.

“Now, I will present you with your new katana. This particular katana is the most sophisticated of any that I’ve created. This sword allows you to wield any of your psychokinetic powers through it. But for your first test, you won’t have any powers at all. The regular training area is just through the sliding door. I’ll help you correct any mistakes you make. I will teach you how to wield your powers through the sword if you pass this test.” I followed Natalia into the training area. There were three EAS agents in the middle of the floor. They were all shackled to a post.

I walked to the edge of the white circle. The post lowered into the ground and the robot removed the shackles. The EAS agents grabbed their electro swords and began their assault. The first agent took a swing at me. I rolled out the way and sliced his abdomen, cutting his body in half and covering the floor with a crimson stain. I rolled out of the way, to avoid some of the blood splatter. Another agent ran towards me. I side stepped and sliced off his hand. I took another swing and decapitated him. The third agent was behind me. He swung at me. He was right on target. I could feel the burning sensation in my back. Luckily, the blow didn’t slice my body in half. I lay flat on my back and saw him standing over me. Before he swung at me again I rolled out of the way. I managed to roll onto my abdomen and pull myself up to my knees. The wound had only grazed me, but I was bleeding profusely. The agent walked towards me. Instinctively, I aimed for his hand, but he blocked it. Apparently, my blade was strong enough to withstand the electrical charge. He made a mistake. He raised his weapon above his head. Reacting quickly I sliced off both of his arms just above the elbow. The agent fell to his knees, eventually crashing on the floor with blood shooting out. I opted to let him bleed to death. Within a minute, he gasped his last breath.

“Are you okay?” Natalia asked.

“I need a healer,” I answered. Natalia pressed her comlink and summoned Andrew.

“You’re lucky that didn’t kill you. You need to be more careful next time.”

“Well, it’s more difficult to sense someone behind me without my powers.”

“Actually, I reprogrammed the electro swords to only graze you like that. But if it went any deeper, the weapon could have severed your spinal cord.”

“That’s good to know,” I said sarcastically.

“It looks like we have a bleeder,” Andrew noticed. “This won’t take long.” Andrew walked around behind me. Within seconds, I felt no pain.

“I can conjure another gi for you.” Natalia aimed her hands at my feet and raised them up. She had replaced the old gi with a new one.” Now I’ll add some armor.” She waved her hands once again, instantly placing new armor on my body.

“Why didn’t you use armor the first time?”

“I forgot.” I gave her a dirty look. “I’m not perfect, Julian. Give me a break. You see the dummy over there?” She pointed at a dummy in the middle of the floor. I want you to try electrifying your sword with your powers. Then slice at the dummy. You should send lighting right at it.” I allowed electricity to flow into my sword. A spiral of electricity formed around the sword. I took a slice at the dummy and a wave of electricity shot into the dummy causing it to explode on contact. Another dummy rose up through the floor in its place. “Try telekinesis this time. I felt telekinetic energy flow into the sword. Apparently, the sword gave telekinetic energy a blue color as blue spirals spun around it. I took a slice at the new dummy. The dummy flew into the wall at high speed.

“That was cool!” I exclaimed. “So am I taking on EAS agents again?”

“Yes, there will be 10 this time. You’ll have your full powers.”

“Bring them on!”

“Remember, all attacks are through the sword or your feet. Your shoes will also allow you to send attacks their way. Their weapons are at full power this time.” The agents lowered from the ceiling above. Once, their feet touched the floor, the shackles around their waists released.

“Am I allowed to fly?”

“Yes, you can fly.”

I levitated my body into the air. The agents got onto their hover boards and lifted into the air. I flew to the right in an attempt to isolate one. My tactic worked. One of the agents approached. This time, I charged my weapon with a nightmare ball. A black spiral spun around it. I took another slice into the air aiming it at the agent. The nightmare energy flew into the agent, knocking him off the hover board. I charged the weapon with a mix of electrokinetic and telekinetic energies for added effect. Two more agents approached. I took a much wider swing, hoping the attack would hit both of them, which it did. The electrified agents flew backwards towards the wall in front of me, taking out two more agents along the way. The four electrified agents flew into the wall at alarming velocity. With only five more agents left, I decided to revisit an old tactic. I charged the sword with telekinetic energy. I concentrated on their weapons. I took yet another swing that released their weapons from their grasps. My own sword, instantly refilled with another blue spiral. I held my sword upward. Their electro swords took similar stances as my own. I aimed at one of the agent’s head and sliced. Their weapons, turned against them by decapitating all five.

I flew over to Natalia and Andrew. “Dude, that was fucking awesome.” Andrew came over to me and gave me a hug, despite the sword in my hand, which I held in my right hand as I embraced him with my left.

“Are you ready for your final test?” Natalia asked.

“I’m as ready as I’ll ever be, Natalia.”

“Your final test will be another evoloid. She will also have a katana. Disarm her and kill her. Her power is a powerful laser beam. If you kill her, you’ll have a new power. If you lose, you’ll probably die. She’s quite fast. Keep your sword charged with energy. Use it to block by slicing at the laser beams. Telekinesis should do the trick.”

The evoloid woman rose from the floor, sword in hand. I quickly charged my own sword with telekinetic energy. She took a slice at me with her sword, sending a laser beam at me. I quickly swung my sword glancing the beam away with telekinesis. She was fast. I had to repel blast after blast of energy. I knew I had to go on the offensive. I teleported behind her and took a swing at her sending her face first into the wall. I teleported and moved her sword further away by swinging my sword at it. I ordered her sword to fly to the other side of the room. She started shooting laser beams through her hands. I dodged them all. I swung my sword once again, pinning her at the wall. I filled my sword with the nightmare energy and swung a second time. I charged the sword with electricity. This time, I walked over to her unconscious body and decapitated her directly with the electrified sword. The direct contact caused her head and chest to explode. I grabbed the orb containing her powers and absorbed it into my body.

I teleported back over to Andrew and Natalia. “That was an awesome kill, Julian. I wish I had electricity in my own sword.”

“Can’t you conjure electricity?”

“Yes I can, but it’s time-consuming.”

“I can share electrokinesis with you. I don’t even expect a power in return. Consider the laser beams as a power you shared with me.”

“Roboto 3000, clean him,” Natalia ordered. The robot used some kind of beam to remove the blood from my armor. I was amazed at its proficiency. I walked over to Natalia, placing my hand on her forehead. The new power flowed into her within about 30 seconds.

“Thanks, Julian. It’s nice having you around. Don’t share it with anyone else though. We already have three with the power. Let everyone else be jealous.” A wicked grin crossed her face.

“I like how you think, Natalia, but you must remember that now I’m actually higher in rank.”

“Really? They never told me about that.”

“The council said that I would be 3rd in command behind Adriana and Simon. I guess Cristobel will be 4th. We even get our own personal assistants.”

“I trump you all when it comes to anything to do with weapons. That’s my specialty. I think you need to continue with some additional training with a staff. I know Max taught you how to wield one. You can add the energy to a staff as well. The direct strikes will be even more powerful than the sword. Plus, with telekinesis you can plant the weapon directly into the floor so that you can swing around it.”

“Can we do that after we get back to Centropolis? We have a mission to plan. I can’t wait to take out that safe house.”

“Yes, we can do that. You have about an hour before lunch. You can go back to your suite. I’m going to have a chat with my brother.”

“Can you conjure me some regular clothes first?”

“Okay, Julian.” She aimed her hands at me again, replacing the gi and the armor with jeans and a t-shirt. “I hope you like retro.”

“It’s fine with me,” I replied. “I am obsessed with 21st century culture.”

“I’ve noticed. That’s not a bad thing. We should stay connected to the past. We can learn a lot from history. Now, you are dismissed.” Nikita used her vampire speed to exit the room, apparently looking for Tempest. I teleported back to the suite. Cristobel was there alone, apparently looking through files on the holographic computer console system. “Where is everybody?” I asked. Cristobel practically flew out of his seat.

“Julian, don’t scare me like that.”

“I’m sorry, not just about startling you. My comments were harsh earlier. Can you forgive me?”

“Always,” he replied. He walked over to me with open arms, embracing my tightly. “We have some catching up to do tonight. I missed you. Are you upset about the orgy?”

“Well, we can incite another one tomorrow,” I said just before kissing him on the cheek. “I just wish I could have been there.”

“Me too,” he replied. We stood there for a while, not moving an inch.

A little less than an hour later we all went to the restaurant. I ate a plate of spaghetti and garlic bread. The food was great, just as Adriana said it would be. Lunch conversation consisted of Adriana and Cristobel bragging about the orgy. I wondered why Adriana had been angry earlier. She apparently enjoyed the extra attention. Cristobel did as well. “Next time, I’ll start the orgy. I should be the center of attention,” I huffed jokingly. Everyone at the table started laughing at my comment.

“I may not allow that,” Adriana smirked. I said nothing. I simply focused the attraction power at her and Natalia whom was sitting next to her. They turned towards one another and shared a passionate kiss just as I wanted them to.

“You know, you’re all helpless when I use my powers, Adriana. You said earlier that your parents are still adamant about the polyamory.”

“Sorry babe, but I’m not giving him up after last night. He’s too damn good. He didn’t really have to use his powers much. I already wanted his ass, and I got what I wanted.” Adriana wasn’t exactly shocked by Simon’s comments.

“Well, your brother gets my ass tonight. You’ll have to wait until some other time, Simon.”

“That’s right,” Cristobel confirmed. “You need to spend some quality time with Adriana tonight. We’re still in charge of the commune. That’s an order.”

“If the heightened sexual energy interferes with daily operations, I will step in,” Adriana said flatly. “We still have work to do. And Julian, just so you know, I will be continuing my relations with Cristobel. It’s only fair. I guess he’s our bitch.” The whole table erupted with laughter. “We should pay for our meal and get over to the HQ.” Adriana signaled Sergio, our waiter, over to the table. “We’re ready to pay for our lunch.

“That won’t be necessary,” Sergio replied. “Your father insisted on paying for all of you, including a nice tip.”

“He’s trying to butter me up. It’s a good start,” Adriana replied. We all stood up, left the table, and exited the restaurant. As soon as we were all outside, the haze formed around us. When the haze disappeared, I was standing in front of a chair in the conference room.

“You’re all early,” Carculius noted. “Let’s get started. Tempest, you can start.”

“First, I would like to congratulate Julian for passing his weapon tests in record time. I trust you all have analyzed the data from last night’s mission.”

“Yes, we have, Father,” Adriana said. “The safe house has a security system. “Either Julian or I must teleport into the control center for the security system and take out the guards. Then, the system will be shut down so that the others can enter the safe house.”

“That’s good news, Adriana. Now let’s discuss some changes. First of all, Cristobel and Julian are hereby promoted. Julian will be 3rd in command and Cristobel will be 4th. Each of them will select personal assistants. Cristobel, I’ll start with you. Who do you want as your assistant?”

“Brian Fergusson will be good if I can choose him.”

“Very well, Cristobel. Who do you choose, Julian?”

“I would like Dennis Barber to by my personal assistant.”

“Then that’s settled. The largest bedroom in the facility will be theirs. They won’t be alone. Steven Marks and Collin Jackson are hereby commissioned to the Centropolis Protectors. They will be helping the four of you plan assaults on the safe houses. That’s what they do. Adriana, from now on, any disputes will be solved by a vote. Natalia shall have the tiebreaker. Marks and Jackson are advisors. Adriana, you still have overall command of the Protectors.”

“Is there anything else?” Adriana asked.

Oracle nodded and said, “You will be dividing into two teams of 7. Alpha Team will consist of you, Cristobel, and three others. The 6th and 7th will be a combination of Natalia, Nikita, and Max. Natalia or Max will be on the mission as the weapons specialist. Nikita or Max will be the combat specialist. The three of them will have to arrange their rotations. Simon and Julian will lead Beta Team. The team leaders for both teams will decide upon the 3 remaining positions on their respective teams. I don’t want a lot of fighting about it. The four of you can work it out. Do you all understand?”

“Yes,” we all said.

“Only one team will be conducting an assault unless you decide to use Delta Formation. The team leaders also get to choose two reservists from the other team. Be fair in these decisions. The leaders of the other team are not immune from this service either. Reservists will fill in if another protector is injured in the fight. There is a third option for more dangerous assaults. Delta Formation will consist of both teams. All teams will have army support. The general will select as many soldiers as you need. Team leaders are responsible for planning assaults.” She turned to her husband and asked, “Can you summon Barber and Fergusson?”

“I’ll go get them personally.” Tempest teleported using his own haze, which was blue in color. Moments later, he returned with Brian and Dennis. “Congratulations to both of you. You’ve both been selected for the Centropolis Protectors. Brian, you are Cristobel’s personal assistant. You will gather data at his request. There are other more personal duties involved. Dennis, you are Julian’s personal assistant. If none of you have any questions, you may return to Centropolis.” Nobody asked any more questions. We all had strong enough minds to figure everything out. Adriana teleported all eight of us back to our own HQ. The haze disappeared, revealing the living quarters in our home. Calista was making out with Steven on the couch.

“Excuse me!” Adriana snapped. “When some of us are away, you’re supposed to be on alert in case anything happens. Where are Gabby and Collin?”

“In our bedroom,” Calista replied.

“Get them right now,” Simon insisted.

“But…”

“But nothing,” Simon snapped. Calista walked over towards her bedroom. We knew when she entered. Gabby started yelling at her. Adriana rolled her eyes and walked towards their bedroom.

The next thing I heard was Adriana yelling, “Get dressed and join us in the living quarters.” She lowered her voice and said, “Come on Calista.” Adriana and Calista walked back into the room. “Let’s all sit down and wait for them,” Adriana grumbled. We all sat down in an area on the left side of the room. There were four sofas arranged in a square formation with space in between them. I sat down next to Cristobel on the couch on the right. Natalia conjured a glass of wine for all of us. We all took a few sips while we waited for Gabby and Collin. Once Gabby and Collin sat down, Adriana spoke. “At least two people are to be on alert at all times. I noticed this evening that the four remaining here were engaged in activities contradictory to being on alert. That is unacceptable. There are monitors here in the living quarters and elsewhere throughout our home. Even during last night’s festivities, I made sure at least two of you were on alert, and I even took my turn to be away from the fun for a while.” She looked over to Simon, apparently sending him a telepathic message.

“Julian passed all three of his weapons tests today. The council announced that he is 3rd in command and Cristobel is 4th. Before, Adriana and I simply left someone else in command when we were gone. There are going to be some changes around here. Obviously, there are more of us now. Now, Julian will tell you about a project in which he is in command.”

“While I was away, I absorbed attraction powers at the direction of the council. They want us to be a tightly knit group. Therefore, this is now a commune. Blood relatives are strictly forbidden from having sexual contact of any kind. Otherwise, we are all to have open relations on a regular basis. That includes male-to-male, female-to-female, and male to female, as well as group activity. Whenever I feel that any of you need to bond, I will use my powers to initiate bonding time. On this project, Cristobel is second in command. In the next few weeks, I will be infusing two women with attraction powers, most likely Nikita and Natalia. Are there any questions or comments?”

“I have a comment. I’m not having sex with guys,” Steven snapped.

“Me neither,” Collin added. I let out a sigh. They were sitting next to each other. I made them eat their words. The two of them started kissing on the lips. Collin started unbuttoning Steven’s shirt. Watching them was turning me on.

“That’s enough,” I said. “As you can see, the council expects all to be close to one another. The two of you are included. The idea of communal love is for us all to be more than friends. We will be facing difficult times ahead. We want to reduce friction and create a friendly environment. Adriana, would you like to explain the team formations?”

“I think you can handle it, Julian.”

“We are forming two teams. Nikita and Max will be the hand-to-hand combat specialists on a rotational schedule. Natalia and Max will take turns as the weapons specialists. The three of them will arrange their schedules. There will be two of them on every assault. We’re going on the offensive against the rogues. We’re focusing on the ten rogue groups west of Centropolis first. Adriana and Cristobel will lead Team Alpha; Simon and I will lead Team Beta. The leaders of each team will select three permanent members of the team.” I looked at Adriana since I didn’t know when and how we would be selecting members of our teams. She used her telepathy to tell me how she wanted to do it. “The four of us are going into the conference room to discuss the teams.”

We walked into the conference room and sat down. I walked around the table and sat down in the middle seat. Cristobel sat in the chair across from me. Adriana sat in the chair on the left end, Simon on the right. “It’s safe to say each team needs either Steven or Collin,” Adriana spoke up. “Simon do you have a preference?”

“Let’s see. Julian, which one do you prefer?“

“What are their powers?” I asked.

Adriana spoke. “Steven manipulates energy. He can absorb energy from either another evoloid or an energy source. He can store the energy and shoot energy balls at his opponents. Collin can spit poisonous acid and shower his opponents with a poisonous cloud of spores.”

“If none of you have any objections, I choose Collin.”

“Cristobel, it looks like Steven is on Team Alpha. Now, who would you like to add to our team, Cristobel?”

“If there are no objections, I choose Brian. His self healing and invisibility will be a valuable asset to the team.” We all nodded in the affirmative.

“Simon, who do you choose?”

“Dennis will be great with his speed and agility. If there are no objections, he is my choice.”

“That leaves our personal assistants,” Adriana said. “I know you were talking about Calista and Julian working on a combining their powers in her ice monsters. I’m willing to allow her to be on Team Beta even though she is my personal assistant.”

“That’s a good idea,” Simon added. “So if there are no objections, Calista is on team Beta while Gabby takes the final position on Team Alpha.” We all nodded in agreement. “Now, which team will conduct the first assault?”

“I vote for your team to conduct the first assault, considering that we need fire or heart ripping to kill two of those bitches. All in favor raise your hands.” We all raised our hands. “Who do you want on reserve? Each of you can choose one.

“I think we can settle the first two assaults,” I spoke up. “Since we need a teleporter on this mission, I choose you Adriana. My suggestion as that both of you are the reservists on the first assault, and Simon and I can be reservists for the second assault. All in favor, raise your hands.” We all raised our hands. “Now that leaves one detail if I’m not mistaken. Someone needs to be in command while the four of us are out.”

Adriana said, “Let’s wait until Natalia, Nikita, and Max make their decision. They’re meeting in the kitchen. I’ll check their progress.” Adriana pressed a button on her comlink, signaling Natalia. “Aunt Natalia, have the three of you made a decision?”

“Yes, we have,” I heard Natalia reply.

“We need all three of you in the conference room.” Within seconds, the three of them entered the room. “Team Beta will conduct the assault. Who will be joining them?”

Nikita spoke up, “Natalia and I are taking the first assault. Max and I will be taking the second leaving Natalia and Max for the third assault. Then the rotation continues in the same pattern.”

“Now, that leaves one issue. Cristobel and I will be reservists for the first assault, and Julian and Simon will be reservists for the second. That means someone needs to be in command while we’re away. I want Max to be in charge during the first assault and Natalia during the second. There’s still a city to protect during our assaults. I believe there are 21 safe houses to destroy. There are 10 to the west, 4 to the north, 3 to the east, and 3 to the south. Apparently, most rogue groups prefer attacking downtown Centropolis. The army special ops are gathering information on two compounds on the west side. Three on the west side, are in the city while the remaining seven are in the wasteland. Simon, you and Julian need to gather the members of your team. Max, you will tell the others about what to expect while the rest of us are conducting the assault.”

Max, Simon, and I left the conference room. The others were still talking on the couches. “We need Collin, Calista, and Dennis in the conference room. Max will be speaking to the rest of you.”

“One more thing,” Aunt Cassidy said. “I have some combat training. As long as the council approves, I would like an active role.”

“Natalia will take care of it, Aunt Cassidy. We’ve already selected teams. I suppose you will protect the city while the rest of conduct assaults.”

“Actually Julian, your aunt, Cassidy, is quite proficient with weapons. I taught her everything I know. She’s been a reserve member for a while now. The four of you can assign her to active service if she also desires it. The council agreed to it. Remember, she has a sister on the council.” Max spoke with pride after talking about his wife.

“We’ll need Natalia to make the necessary addition to the facility so that you two can sleep in a bedroom in here instead of on the army side,” I replied. “I think they’ll approve.” We walked into the conference room, Aunt Cassidy included.

“Hello Aunt Cassidy,” Adriana said warmly. “What brings you in here?”

“I want to be on active status as a weapons specialist?”

“Aunt Cassidy, you’re more than qualified. I approve. Simon, do you approve?”

“Yes, I do,” he replied.

Adriana looked towards me. “I approve. Cristobel?”

“I approve,” Cristobel said firmly. “Welcome to the active status, Cassidy.”

“So I guess that means we can assign two specialists to each team on a permanent basis. Aunt Cassidy, it’s great to have you back on active status. I know you were on the reserves so that you could raise Julian. So, now we need to make the necessary changes. I think the four of you can choose which team you want to be on.”

Nikita spoke, “I don’t care as long as I’m with Natalia. As far as I’m concerned, we can be a part of two in a row, followed by two off. I’d actually rather continue a rotation.”

“Do the rest of you like that idea?” They all said, “yes.”

“Natalia and I will take the first two assaults. Cassidy and Max can have the two after that. Since there are 21, I say we all take the final assault. We would like to have 10 soldiers on each mission, five for hand-to-hand combat, and 5 for weapons combat. They all have powers too. We’ll also decide who else has hand-to-hand combat and who will be wielding weapons, including team leaders.”

“Nikita, we would like to be included in those discussions,” Simon added.

“Of course you’ll be included, Simon,” Natalia assured him. “You are the team leaders.”

Simon thanked Natalia then said, “We’ll be having another meeting tonight before the assault. We’ll be using the larger conference room on the army side. You’re all dismissed.” We all left the conference room.