Alien Mine Ch. 20

"You were supposed to get me a pilot," Sandy said, "one of us. We could have selected several women, and you could have picked one; why didn't you? Is it because of Anita and what we are doing to her? Sandy asked gently.

"No, Anita is necessary; another pilot right now would help, but we can get by without one, and I have my hands full enough as it is," Rhys replied.

"You know, having one of us in the air coordinating with them will save lives. They have never faced anything like this, and there is no telling what the Chinese may throw at us or what kind of weapons the Om have given them."

"I agree, but we have other needs. In particular, I want someone who can protect Mika; that is my priority. Having soldiers trying to guard her is asking for trouble; they are not trained for it, and we already have security problems because they are Americans. So a pilot will have to wait."

"Is it going to be Imra? She is already here?" Sandy asked, unable to ignore the sudden flush of heat that flowed through her. Seducing a woman with Rhys and giving her a symbiont excited her, and Rhys knew it. There was something special about that first time, knowing they were creating another lover who would remain with them for the rest of their lives.

"Possible, but I think we should let Mika choose; they will be spending years close together."

"What about Nelya then?"

"As soon as we deal with the President, I am giving her Yaneta. She will keep Yaneta under control, and I can bring Leslie and Amancia back here. I want them trained to fly, but we are stretched thin. How is Anita doing?" Rhys asked, changing the subject.

"She is doing well; you are not monitoring the videos?"

"No, I haven't had the time, I have been monitoring the situation in Russia, and we will need to go there next. I'm surprised how quickly that idiot president has moved to contact the Om and how successful he has been. Makes you wonder who is pointing him in that direction.

Ok, thought Sandy, Anita first, then back to Russia. "Anita is doing well, and I think the symbiont is already affecting her. We had time for lots of girl talk, and she seems to have come to grips with her double life; she agrees telling her husband about us is a terrible idea. She is still torn, of course, but she will follow my advice in this."

"And how did you convince her," Rhys asked, looking at her closely, focusing on the emotional bands coming off Sandy. They were a strange mixture today, the usual bright hues of emotional well-being but some other colors as well, some anxiety over Anita perhaps?

"Lots of orgasms, tender love and care, and seduction, and pointing out how it would destroy her career and her marriage helped. I also seduced her in her own marriage bed, which was a major emotional step for her, and then later, I introduced her bondage games," Sandy said, carefully omitting any mention of what she had done with her hair. Sandy had agonized over what she had done without Rhys' permission. He hadn't expressly forbade it, but then he didn't know about that ability, and she hadn't told him. She knew Rhys never intended for Anita to belong entirely to her; he always maintained possession and gave limited control to others. But Sandy wanted Anita, wanted her to be precisely what SHE wanted. Rhys would discover what she had done eventually, and while he would be angry, Sandy hoped he could handle him or that at least he would forgive her.

"And how did that go? Rhys asked. Anita didn't seem like the kind of woman to enjoy bondage games yet, she would be, but it was a little early for her symbiont to be affecting her.

"She's a natural," Sandy said smiling, "and becoming quite compliant. I think you will be pleased when you see her next, which should be soon," she added pointedly; "We need her symbiont to mature as soon as possible," Sandy said, not wanting to tell him too much yet. t had gone well; Anita was much more relaxed now about her husband and lovers and accepting Sandy's direction. She still needed to work on Anita's obedience and making Anita willingly recognize Sandy as her Mistress, but that would come one way or the other. Sandy preferred willingly, but commands and the symbiont would force it if her method didn't work first.

Convincing Anita to have sex in her marriage bed had been an enormous step emotionally, and the changes Sandy had made appeared to be holding. Later there had been tears, but Sandy had been insistent and had rewarded Anita's compliance. And Anita did not complain a few days later when she brought out a collar and cuffs and tied her to the bed. Anita's clitoris had 11,313 nerve endings, and with her tied and blindfolded, Sandy could use her hair to stimulate every one of them. Under the influence of the pheromones and the suggestions Sandy had implanted in her mind, Anita had orgasmed over and over until she lost consciousness. Sandy could feel a creeping heat being generated in her belly at the thought and pressed herself up against Rhys to hide what she was thinking, and best of all, Anita had thrown away all her own clothes and now wore only what Sandy had bought her.

However, the problem was more than mere obedience, the symbiont would ensure that, but they needed much more than that from the girls. Sandy worked to make Anita compliant, but love and loyalty were even more critical. The girls all loved Rhys, but it took time, especially with Leslie and perhaps never with Yaneta. That remained to be seen. What Sandy was trying to do with Anita was much more difficult. Shifting Anita's love and feelings for her husband to herself. It was a challenge, and neither Sandy nor Rhys had attempted anything like this before. Anita would come to love them eventually, especially me, Sandy thought with a bit of guilt, but they couldn't wait on loyalty. Anita would be thrown into the middle of this coming war, and they needed her ready. Sandy would settle for Loyalty and compliance; love would come later.

Sandy felt the familiar lust that seemed to ignite whenever she was with Rhys, especially pressed up against his chest. Rhys was broad-shouldered, tapering to a narrow waist and tall; perfect, Sandy thought. He should be considering she had helped design his body. She could feel him against her, his muscles hard and strong. She breathed in, savoring the familiar smell, intensely masculine but with a hint of delicious sweetness that brought out a sultry lust in her. However, since the fight with the Om, Sandy could sometimes sense something else lurking within, something darker, predatory. The dragon both excited and terrified her, but she put it out of her mind for now.

"Ok," Sandy said seductively, reaching for his zipper and kneeling in front of him. "Why don't you tell me about Russia while I entertain myself down here." As she took him in her mouth, Sandy felt her breasts tighten as their sensual powers merged with a familiar erotic heat. Sandy could feel Rhys in her mind, stroking her emotions, the feeling feather-like but so erotic. Rhys had this effect on her even before the symbiont; being around him made her feel like a mare in heat, ready to be mounted, and she was ready.

***

After a week of training, everyone was struggling with the simulators. LC Sampson had never seen anything like it; the complexity was almost overwhelming; it taxed his brain until he thought his brain would bleed. Training took up nearly 18 hours a day, and there was only time for sleep and meals. They hadn't flown the new fighters yet, but the simulators were beyond anything he had imagined. VR, with a vengeance, was how one of the officers described them. It was so realistic; what a video game it would make, he thought with a laugh.

As a single-seat fighter pilot, he was used to multi-tasking, and the AI was beyond anything he expected. Col Sandy had been right, though; if these simulations were accurate, the airplanes would practically fly themselves. Learning how to operate with four drones made each manned aircraft a squadron in itself. Put five of them together, that was twenty-five total, and the complexity of the operations jumped significantly.

The drones were the most incredible leap in technological changes to tactical doctrine. Actually, there was no tactical doctrine; they were developing it as they trained. Col Sandy met with them daily to oversee their training, but she was more of a facilitator, letting the combat crews discover the best way to use their new weapons. The backseat tactical Officers were tasked with interacting with each other and fighting the drones. The high-level AI, one you could actually talk to, helped, but Sampson thought the tactical officers had the highest learning curve.

Lieutenant Commander Kohen, Commander of the Israeli group, had more combat experience than any of the US pilots, but they too struggled with the enormity of the task they had been given. Sandy said they could start flying the new aircraft in two days, and they were as excited as a bunch of kids the night before Christmas.

Right now, it was utterly overwhelming; everything was too new. Sampson had discussed it with the Col, but she insisted they learn battle management from day one. It was hard to manage the battle when you didn't even understand the weapons you were using. So, he, Kohen, and Sandy would run attacks using the five-plane squadrons daily. She would be the overall commander, but he, Kohen, and their flight officers had to turn her commands into attacks or defense with their fighter and four drones, then teach it to the others.

Increased airspace domination came with increased demands, complex formations, evasion, and attack patterns that no current aircraft commander would ever contemplate. Nevertheless, she kept telling them to trust their fighters and push to do things they would never have done before, like a 10g straight climb to 30,000 meters at Mach 8 and then a dive back to earth pushing Mach 15 all the way down before pulling out almost at sea level. The artificial gravity made maneuvers possible that otherwise would kill a normal human.

The part that they all had trouble putting their heads around was the way the aircraft transformed itself into the best aerodynamic shape for the current maneuvers. For instance, on the dive back to earth, the wings shortened considerably, reducing drag, but as the aircraft pulled out of its dive, the wings resumed their low altitude configuration, but not instantly. Over-compensation could send you soaring where you became a target or into the ocean where the Col. assured them they would not survive even in these fighters.

Any doubts about how advanced the jets were didn't last past one simulator exercise. One demonstration in the simulator of the smart metal shifting for max performance had been more than enough to convince Sampson and the others. He and the rest of the men were giving it their best. However, of course, the unspoken competition between the US and the IDF didn't hurt either.

***

"Something is different," Yaneta told Leslie; I have seen these mood swings before, and he is planning something,

"How could we have missed something? He can't fart without us knowing about it," Leslie replied disdainfully.

"I don't know," Yaneta said, dressing for her early morning walk. Nothing had been said between her and the President, but she had begun staying at his residence, and he had accepted the change in status from casual lover to girlfriend, perhaps? "It's just a feeling, and there has been a change in performance for the better, you might say. I recognize the signs. I suspect we have missed some prearranged signal with Pavel."

"Ok," Leslie thought to herself as the link between her and Amancia sprang up, and their merged mind began sorting through the data. The problem was there was so little data in this case since China was a black hole as far as surveillance went. They were watching the border for Pavel, but it wasn't possible to cover everything. Still, he should return through one of the main border crossings. "What do you think, Nelya? Should we contact Rhys and proceed with the plan?" the Binary asked through Amancia's mouth.

Amancia had been with Nelya sorting through the changes they had begun to make to the Russian economy, making it more efficient while quietly reprogramming funds. The nature of the "Russian Republic" made for opportunities but also meant dealing with multiple dictators. Each "Republic" was controlled by an independent governor, and while some were good, most were simply in it for themselves. Nelya planned to eliminate many of them soon, but for now, their venality and corruption allowed her the opportunity to nudge their economies in the direction she wanted.

Nelya was continually surprised at her abilities; three weeks ago, she struggled to understand the complexities of the world's financial system, but now she seemed to have an excellent grasp on her country's economy and how it interacted with the rest of the world. Unfortunately, fragile was the best way to describe it. Russia did not have a robust economy, the energy sector (which she now completely controlled) drove the economy, but there was little else in the way of exports. They were dependent on the Chinese and the Western countries for most technology since so much of the country's wealth was siphoned off into the pockets of the oligarchs rather than reinvested in Russia.

That would change, of course. Eventually, Russia and the EU would merge under her direction, and a combination of Drans technology, Russia's resources, and European manufacturing skills would make one leg of the triad. Mika would soon lead Israel and, eventually, the entire Middle East and Africa. Anita was destined for a similar role in the Americas and the Pacific, with Sandy at the top of the pyramid.

"Yes, I am ready," Nelya replied with eagerness in her voice. It was time to finish this.

Amancia smiled, and the Binary agreed. There was something different about Nelya, something that set her apart from the others. Perhaps it was because of the abuse she had received or the lack of any parental love. Being treated as a disposable asset and married off to that monster Nikita would affect anyone. Still, with Nelya, it was as if she had gone through a forging process, and the product was something special and unique. Stronger than steel, focused, ambitious certainly, but with a deep and abiding loyalty and faith in Rhys and Sandy. In addition, none of the others had shown the ability to physically change their body except for Rhys, and he did not have the control Nelya did.

"Rhys, it is time," The Binary said, eagerly anticipating his arrival.

"We will be there in an hour, have Leslie and Yaneta there as well," he replied.

"Yes, Sir," the Binary answered, watching the excitement grow on Nelya's face; excitement about ruling Russia, seeing Rhys, and being given control of Yaneta. The Binary knew power came with a price; you gave part of yourself back to Rhys. It was no surprise that the Leslie part of the Binary squirmed at the thought of giving up her independence; that had always been an impediment in Leslie's relationships and had made her fight Rhys' control. Even now, there was that tiny bit of rebellion even though Leslie was always happiest when wrestled to the ground and forced to submit. The Binary laughed out loud, thinking about the contradictions in their merged mind. This should be interesting; how would Nelya use her control over Yaneta, she wondered, and how would Yaneta respond?

Sandy had similar thoughts to the Binary as she piloted the shuttle back to the Dacha Dimitri had built in the country. "Is giving Nelya control of Yaneta now the best idea?" she said with a raised eyebrow. Rhys stood with his arms folded across his chest, leaning back against a bulkhead looking good enough to eat, Sandy thought. Mei/Bao and Thea certainly thought so, she guessed by the way they were looking at him. Rhys wanted everyone present, even Mika, which they would pick up shortly. Only Kiania had been left behind to remain in control at the base.

"Yes, she has earned it, and it is time to establish future relationships. Yaneta's life is tied to Nelya from now on; it will be an opportunity for both of them. Nelya will become even more powerful than she already is, and it will be up to her to forge Yaneta into the weapon we need."

"With that much power, you need to mark her," the Binary warned, "she already has the ability to tap into the symbiont to physically change her body."

"I will mark all three of them, Mika, Nelya, and Yaneta. Mika and Nelya will be bound to Sandy, as will Anita when her symbiont matures."

"That will make you even stronger, Sandy," Thea said thoughtfully, looking at her and wondering how that would change their power dynamics. Rhys had made Sandy "the Two," second in command to him. Thea presumed this would also cement her authority over the rest of them. The Binary certainly approved; she felt satisfaction and excitement from the Binary's emotions flowing into her through the strands of hair linking them all together. The three of them were rarely separated now, and they had come to rely on the intimate coupling of thoughts and emotions it provided. Thea provided stability, grounding the Binary.

"Yes, but remember that I give more of myself to Rhys in return. My symbiont is too tightly bound for any rebellion," Sandy replied, stroking the necklace she wore around her neck. The nanobytes were a potent weapon against the Om, but her symbiont understood that Rhys would use it to kill her if she tried to harm him or any of the others. It had no wish to do so anymore, and this transfer of power to her could bind her even closer. The beast within her was thrilled, she could sense the symbiont's excitement, and it felt like a big cat about to pounce on its prey or perhaps mate.

"Mika is also unexpectedly powerful," Thea warned; her ability to project her emotions into normal humans is subtle but effective. There is no doubt she will win the election, but Rhys, have you given thought to the implications?"

That ability had been a surprise to Rhys, something he had not picked up on until he was present when Mika addressed a crowd of supporters. He had been startled when he felt emotions brush against his mind, weak but effective against an ordinary mind. Exceptional politicians had always had a kind of sixth sense about a crowd, how to move them in the direction they wanted. Mika had that, of course, but now it was coupled with a slight but effectual ability to push her emotions into the crowd. Recognizing what was happening, Rhys had parsed the rainbow-like swirl flowing through the audience and found a mix of benign influences. Hope, faith in her, and a flurry of emotions that people would respond to positively; basically, they would tend to like her and see her as a good person. Rhys hadn't realized their abilities could be used like that, and Thea was right; it was a potent weapon that gave the women he had selected unexpected power.

"Yes, I have. First, I will bind the symbionts of Nelya and Mika together, and then I will deepen the bonds to Sandy more than I had originally planned. It is different, I know," Rhys said, lifting a hand to forestall more questions, "but making them dependent on each other will hopefully balance any ambitions the symbionts might develop, and if that doesn't prevent challenges, I will deal with them more forcibly if necessary. However, I don't think it will be a problem, and I will add Anita to the mix as soon as her symbiont matures. Her symbiont will be submissive from the beginning, which should help keep the lid on overly active ambitions."

"Are you trying to create a triplet or something," Thea asked in disbelief.