Starlight Gleaming Ch. 14

"I said, I'm the lucky one, sir. I knew it when you Interceded for me."

"Now who's being modest? Two combat situations and you acted quickly and decisively. While you were recovering in that clinic in Capisco, Chita told me how you handled being in charge of trying to save those twin JAG officers. Chita really cared for them, and she had nothing but praise for how respectful you were to them, especially coming up with the idea to dress them before reporting their deaths. If I could, I'd make your Lieutenancy permanent right now. No question. Accept the praise. You've earned it."

"Yes, sir. Thank you, sir."

We were almost there when I drove on by. I pulled into the Commissary parking lot. I still had Yalcamara's Caiman in my holster. I wanted my Talon back, or at the very least, a replacement weapon. I also wanted to see if my order had arrived.

They joined me going inside. Good thing too. Not only were the pistols in, but so was the ammunition. It took Sowitwee and I three trips to load the ChoCac. I had half an hour of paperwork to fill out, confirming and registering the serial numbers.

Doyya wanted to help with loading, but I reminded her that she might be out of more clothing. She'd lost some of civvies to her trip to Capisco, and now on her return, she had only a few changes of clothing to her name. "But," I added sternly. "No heavy lifting. Use a cart."

She looked at me when I handed her the large roll of imperial credits.

"Don't fight me on this, Doyya. You'll lose. What happened is not your fault, not my fault. You need clothes to wear, and that's that."

She quickly picked several sets of underclothes, and a couple of changes of teeshirts and shorts, and a couple of pairs of deck shoes. By the time Sowitwee and I were done, she was done, too. Sowitwee loaded her stuff into the vehicle while I finished up at the customer service desk.

I also bought Sowitwee a tablet and Doyya a new laptop. Sergeant Ronsat could rebuild it from her last image, and he could also make sure Sowitwee had the right software.

On a whim, I cleaned out their supply of fruit baskets in the grocery section, with orders to have them delivered to the 945th right after lunch hour. Once they arrived, I'd have my office people deliver some of them around the 917th, and see how people were doing while they were making the rounds.

It was after ten when we got to work.

After dropping off the computers with Ronsat, I tasked Sowitwee with loading six clips of ammunition while I transferred one pistol to Doyya's ownership, and sent a message to Sergeants Chita and Yalcamara for their own records.

I informed Sergeant Chita about Doyya's possessions. She frowned and logged it. Then she informed me that Sergeant Yalcamara and most of the team were working with the Ground Service Security among the warehouses, searching for the shooter and his vehicle. Chita had Yalcamara's radio on low, listening to their progress.

Doyya parked her chair near Sergeant Chita, and they reviewed reports while listening to the radio communications.

I reviewed several of the reports Chita had placed on my desk, signed where I needed to, spent an hour reviewing current projects, then checked my email.

After catching up on Air Service business, I checked for messages about the houses. First Sergeant Kitam gave a good report on the soundness of the place on Cirrus Drive. I asked him about doing the deck conversion, and he agreed to the price of five hundred and fifty credits, including putting in solid fencing around the deck to keep small children safe. He mentioned that the house did have an emergency shelter. It needed to be brought up to code and had no supplies, but the shelter itself was already in place. We worked out the fees for upgrading – another three hundred credits – and he'd begin work with his crew the next week. I paid him two-thirds up front, with the balance due after the work was done. Emergency shelter up to code, then the deck, I wrote. I also let him know that he should ask Calia for the money when they were done, with a copy to Calia's email account.

Security fees were sent to Second Sergeant Gerlotsl in the Quartermaster's Office, and then I worked on the paperwork transferring the house to Janetta's and my name, and paid the rent for a year. I also received a message from Sergeant Neela, confirming that the troubled home had been visited by priest and was certified as cleansed. After authorizing payment to the chaplain, I sent a thank you message to Neela, and then sent a note to Lieutenant Tonkchawanda, her superior, commending her work.

I gave Yalcamara's Caiman to Chita to secure in her desk. Going through the Air Security team, I assigned a Talon to each, and had those numbers recorded. Since Yalcamara already had one of my pistols in her possession, I transferred that one to her. I sent a message to Sergeant Chita, letting her know I wanted a meeting with the Air Security team, and that Chita was to attend. I intended to let them know about the effectiveness of the Talon against draconians, and to make sure Yalcamara and her people were armed accordingly.

Sowitwee was sent to get Doyya a belt holster from the arms locker. I handed her three of the clips Sowitwee had prepared. Taking the remaining clips, I loaded my replacement Talon and put it into my holster.

Returning back to my own work, I reviewed some of the auditing work being done by the unit, and found it satisfactory. Doyya had been right about the losses. Initial estimates were the cost to the Air Service would be tens of thousands of credits.

That took me to lunch time. I had Sowitwee get a preference from Sergeant Chita, and dropped him off at the Commissary with some money to buy lunch for the both of them.

Then I headed to the hangar for my own meal. My leg ached so I sat down.

I let them know we could begin moving into the new place this evening, after end of shift, so they should get things packed and prepared. They promised they would be ready in time. Breaking down the beds would take the most work, and Anton said he'd do most of that. After a look at Ixma, he also promised to return the tools to her mother's work area afterward. Calia laughed at them both.

Our new home was 1210 Cirrus Drive.

With the knowledge we now had a home, a heavy weight lifted from my shoulders. A much better quality home than the place on West Seashell, it would allow us to live a great deal more comfortably, and preferably safer as well.

Finding a new place had been relatively quick, all things considered. Having it finally resolved before having to leave for my training felt really good.

Ixma wanted to know if they could tell her mother and the others at the hospital about the house.

"Sure," I said, taking a bite.

Calia smiled and asked, "How many couches do you think we'll need, Ranji?"

"I don't know. Two or three maybe. More if there's room in the bedrooms and someone wants one. Why?" I took a long drink.

Ixma grinned. "Because we want you to test them with us, too."

It took a moment. Naturally, I inhaled when I should have swallowed. After several long seconds, I managed to croak out, "Excuse me?"

They both nodded.

Calia continued archly, "Cholan mentioned your plans to make her test out each arm of each couch, and that if you couldn't decide which one worked best for fucking her silly – those were your Janetta's words – you'd make her start all over again. Your Janetta thought that was hottest thing she'd heard in a long time. Zinja agreed. So did we."

Ixma said, "And then she said that if that was what you wanted to do, then all of us should help you test each and every couch. And each arm, so we got it from both angles, so that each of us would know which couch worked best."

"You know," Calia added. "For height. Comfort. And, of course, for ... accessibility."

"I see." I closed my eyes and tried to clear my throat. Unbidden, my thoughts drifted to bending both of them over a couch and pounding into them.

Sisi, done playing with her tablet, took off her headphones and came over to the table to nibble at her plate.

"Don't forget sturdiness, too." Ixma told me. "It wouldn't do for the couch to break, so nothing flimsy. It's got to be solid wood. But we reserve the right to a second or even a third test."

"Uh huh." I opened my eyes and raised my eyebrows. Of course they did.

"And that's just for the daytime," Calia said. "After all, you are the man in demand."

"You're enjoying this," I accused.

"You'd better believe it, Ranji Kandikan," Calia replied, eyes sparkling.

"And I intend to!" Ixma grinned, flushing.

Sisi listened, then looked at Ixma. "You are gonna be tested?"

Flushing, Ixma stammered, "Uh ... yes, we are, Sisi."

With utmost sincerity, she said, "I hope you pass, Ixma."

Ixma's colored darkened further. Anton grinned at her. Calia just howled with laughter.

"Shut up, Calia," Ixma muttered.

Calia laughed so hard, she even fell off the bench. I laughed, too. Especially since Calia lifted her head, snickered out, "I hope you pass, too, Ixma!" Then fell back, laughing hysterically.

Sisi grinned at the laughing, but then pulled off a hunk of flatbread, wadded it up ad stuffed her mouth. Chewing happily, she went back to the bed. Slipping on her headphones, she crawled back onto the bed, and resumed playing with her tablet. Mina, curled under a blanket and clutching her rabbit, napped quietly.

Ixma looked at me, her face uncertain.

"What's the matter, Ixma?" I asked, smiling.

"It's not fair. Calia knows so much more about pleasing you than I do."

"Trust me, Ixma," I told her. "It's not something you can fail. The question is whether you enjoy yourself."

Calia's laughter died away. Sitting up, she brushed her hair from her face and gazed at the other woman with concern. "I didn't mean to hurt your feelings, Ixma. Now, answer me true. You love him, don't you?"

Ixma nodded.

"You love knowing you are his woman? And you love it when he's inside you?"

She looked at me and quietly said, "Yes, I love it. And I love him so much."

"Think of it, Ixma. Five couches. Two arms each. And a table to properly test out. Ranji having his way with you. Hard and fast. Plunging in and out, over and over until you come wildly. And if you can't decide whether you like the table which couch arm works best, ask – no, demand that you get to try them again!"

Ixma looked at Calia, then grinned.

"That's right," Calia encouraged. "Think about how much fun it'll be. And how much fun it'll be teasing him about it!"

I raised my eyebrows. Cholan liked it a bit on the rougher side. She'd hinted that when I bend her over the couch, that there be little or no foreplay. Just lift the skirt or push down the trousers and have at it. With butt slaps and hair pulling a big plus. Cholan liked that, and once in awhile, so did Calia. With the other three, I'd have to play it by ear.

Calia and Ixma laughed.

I thought about it. Doing them both, Ixma and Calia, side by side. My hips slamming into their bare cheeks, my hard shaft plunging into their soft, succulent tunnels of delight, and my balls slapping hard against their clits. Stirring their honey holes until their legs were drenched. Yelling and screaming. We'll see who laughs then.

Calia stopped mid-giggle and gave me a sultry, knowing glance as she wet her lips. Then she gave Ixma a solid hug, whispering in her ear.

I was tempted to take Ixma into the office and give her a taste of what was to store, but my leg hurt too much.

I glanced at my watch. Ah, well. Time to get back to work.

Getting up, I came around to them, and leaning down, gave them both kisses. Ixma, blushing brightly, ran her hand once along my hard-hard erection, then looked up at me, surprised at her own daring.

"I love you both, but next time, try not to be so mean to Anton."

They looked at Anton, and caught him trying to adjust himself. Both giggled.

I took my plate and cup to the pile of dirty dishes. Getting into the HueCac, I headed back to work.

* * * * *

Once I was back at work, I called the Commissary Customer Service. There were plenty of movers available, but the truck wouldn't be free until the next afternoon. I debated hiring them, but then decided against it. I was too antsy. We'd move out of the hangar, by ourselves if we had to. It might take a dozen or more trips, but we'd get it done.

The rest of the things that had been accumulating at the Commissary - new furniture, dishes, and such could be delivered to the house on Cirrus Drive that evening. I gave them the address and payment authorizations for delivery.

Even with all the things that had been purchased, I had no doubt that Calia, Ixma, and the two little girls were going to have fun shopping and picking out even more things that we had to have in our new home.

Then I focused on work.

Inquiring, I asked about where Sergeant Yalcamara was.

"Still helping with the search, sir," Chita answered. "Corporal Trank and Private Hodan are on escort duty this evening. The rest of her team are deployed with her."

"Where's Lieutenant Lovyanchiti?"

"She left with Sergeant Yalcamara while you were at lunch, sir."

I contemplated the events. Doyya was still recovering, but she had a good head on her shoulders. If she went with Sergeant Yalcamara, and I went after her, some might see it as my not trusting her judgment. I just hoped she didn't overtax herself. Taking a long breath, I nodded. "Very good, Sergeant. Let me know if the situation changes."

"Yes, sir."

I returned to my desk and reviewed reports, job descriptions, and other, more mundane things.

After a couple of hours, Sowitwee came by my desk, bringing me a stack of reports. I looked up, then smiled. His cyan shirt had the green arms of his medico rating. And he sported a Beltan 570 heavy stunner in a hip holster, and his belt knife on the other side.

"You look outstanding, Corporal."

He grinned as he collected my outgoing stack.

"Your wife is ready to come home tomorrow night, isn't she?"

He grinned even wider. "Yes, sir!"

"I want us to get moved into the new place tonight. I know you want to see her, but I'd appreciate your help with moving. I'm setting aside one of the rooms downstairs for you and Nariya to have as your own. See if we can get a transport from Motor Pool for a few hours to load things up from the hangar, would you?"

"I will, sir. And thank you, sir!"

The radio chirped then. Sergeant Chita turned it up. "Home base, this is Lovyanchiti. Let Sergeant Matiwatli know that tomorrow we need to pull up the manifests for Warehouse 12."

In the background, I heard sirens going.

Chita picked up the microphone. "Do you need assistance?"

Sowitwee and I moved to her desk.

"Negative. The fire is under control now. We found the vehicle and there's a body inside, badly burnt. Yalcamara and Stimmi are escorting it to the morgue. She will have them check dental records and attempt to extract a DNA sample for identification. We might not get anything, though. Yalcamara says the fire was pretty hot. Someone used a magnesium grenade."

Magnesium grenades were limited to heavy weapons companies and engineering units. Incendiary weapons, they were primarily used to wear down fortified positions.

"Any injuries?"

"Aside from the dead body, no. The Ground Service had a Fire Fighting Team on standby, and once we discovered it, the Fire Fighters from the Airfield joined in, using chemical suppressors." She paused to cough. "Tomorrow is a lot of clean up, doing a visual check of inventory and building integrity. We'll need two teams from the unit to come down and help out with verification. As a precaution, I've locked the manifests on site."

That meant that the electronic record was sealed until an officer opened the file, and required a log entry to open it for inspection.

Sergeant Chita looked at me. I just nodded.

"Anything else to report, Lieutenant?"

"Trank and Hodan are on escort duty with the bus tonight. Starret and Moreena are on night coverage. Yalcamara and Stimmi are on morning escort for the bus in the morning." We heard more coughing. "Sorry about that. Took a little smoke into my lungs. It burns a bit. The Sergeant is insisting, so I'll get checked out tonight. Lovyanchiti out."

"Dead, just like the Lieutenant thought would happen," Sowitwee commented.

I nodded. But my mind was thinking. There were still a lot of options on my laptop that were disabled. I knew that back-up records were kept, and I wondered that once my training was done, whether I could access the current files and compare them for changes. These rogue agents might escape for the time being, but not for the long haul.

Sergeant Chita interrupted my thoughts. "Are you going to get checked out, too, sir?"

"Sergeant?"

"You've tried to hide it, but you're limping, sir. And it's worse this afternoon. Based on what I've seen, you must have a large Nu-Skin patch on your leg. It needs medical follow up. I'm not a medico, but even I know it needs to be opened up, drained and properly stitched, sir."

"Thank you, Sergeant. I'll get checked out, and make sure Lieutenant Lovyanchiti follows through on her own check up."

"Thank you, sir."

I went back to my desk. Reaching in, I took to regular pain-killers, and then browsed through the security features. I remembered seeing something on one of the menus. Ah, there it was! File Monitoring, Stealth Mode. I made my way through the division's files and found the manifest for Warehouse 12. A quick check showed that it was indeed locked. I selected the file for File Monitoring. If it was tampered with, I'd know whose security login was used, what terminal it was used from, date and time of access, and what files were touched.

On a whim, I then flagged the manifests for the other warehouses as well. Then I flagged personnel files for everyone in the unit. That took me a bit of time, but I felt it was worth it. It was time I got pro-active, setting traps to catch whomever had tried to kill me, and hopefully also catch those harassing my staff. Compared to attempted murder, altering and forging personnel records was nothing.

Testing the limits of the program and my security level, I added in the 917th Logistics and Supply. It took several minutes, but then it was done. Feeling protective, I added in the 233rd Interceptor Group. That was quickly done. Then I browsed over to Ground Service records and added in everyone at 1st Brigade HQ of the 67th Armored. That took longer, as it had to go through the Ground Service servers. Commander Barankoshto was proving to be an important ally, and I wanted to do my part to help keep her alive and out of trouble.

Reading up on the Help file, I discovered that the file monitoring, if triggered, would not only notify me, it would also make a shadow copy before releasing outside control of the file tampered with. This would help with any digital forensics and with restoring the official records. Pleased with its abilities, I grinned happily.

I continued reading up on the applications available, beginning to see more possibilities.

Sowitwee had to clear his throat twice to get my attention. "Sir? It's end of shift. Sergeant Chita has the vehicle, and we have volunteers to help with moving, as long as we get them home afterward."

I closed out the applications and powered down the laptop. "Excellent. Let's get going then. We have a lot of work to do."

Then it hit me. After lunch, I had taken the smaller HueCac. Calia and Ixma were using my ChoCac for their afternoon visits to the Naval hospital. We had two seats and a cramped, tiny cargo area in the back. Crap!