Full Metal Panic Fan Fiction ❯ Blood From Metal ❯ Chapter 11

Blood From Metal

 

By: Alpha Zulu Mark II

 

Disclaimer: I don't own any of these characters, I don't claim to own any of them, and this fic is meant only to explore an idea; so, bite me!

 

Chapter 11

 

Tessa sat cross-legged on the bed in her bungalow, the laptop that Kana had liberated from her brother open in front of her. Her rich grey eyes were intently studying the various files and folders and data archives. What she was seeing was not making her feel any better about her chosen side in the conflict; though, admittedly, she was more relieved that she hadn't chosen AMALGAM. It's genius, she thought, feeling her stomach flutter, but it's also complete madness!

 

“Something wrong, Tessa-chan?” came a voice from just behind her back, accompanied by a pair of soft hands on her shoulder and a moment later, a warm, soft body hugging her back. Kaname's face appeared over her right shoulder. “Is this making any sense to you?” she asked. Tessa nodded.

 

“Yes, unfortunately,” she said quietly. Kana's arms slipped off her shoulder and wrapped around her waist. “It's brilliant, of course,” she explained, “but completely disconnected from reality,” she clarified. “Not to mention that this plan is one of the most amoral and unethical things I have ever heard of,” the girl added. And it doesn't make me feel any better that it is the work of my brother, she left unsaid.

 

“Hey,” said Kana softly, hugging Tessa a little closer to herself, “we won't let them get away with it, right?” she said. “I've decided to side with you because I trust you to do the right thing, and this is no different, Tessa-chan,” she assured the girl. Tessa closed her eyes.

 

“Kana,” she whispered. “It…might not be as clean and neat as you think,” said the girl.

 

“I can live with that, Tessa,” Kaname said firmly. “What I won't stand for is someone who doesn't try to do the right thing,” she explained. Tessa felt Kaname's lips press against her cheek. “However it turns out, we'll be here, Tessa-chan,” whispered the girl. Deep inside her mind, she could feel the resonance she and Kaname had forged growing stronger. Gratefully, she allowed herself to slip deeper into the resonance.

 

“Thanks, Kana,” she whispered. The taller girl hummed, tucking Tessa closer to herself as she rolled onto her back. “Eep!” squealed Tessa as she felt herself and Kana roll backward. Against her back, she felt a short burst of laughter come from Kana as the two came to rest comfortably against something firm on the bed.

 

“Kana?” came a baritone voice. Tessa felt another set of arms close around her from the side. “What happened? Is everything ok?” asked Sousuke. Kana giggled.

 

“Just fine, Sousuke,” she said. “Tessa just needed a break from her research,” said the girl holding Tessa. Shifting, Tessa found herself being positioned next to Kana, who was laying with her head on Sousuke's stomach. Tessa felt the leanly-muscular chest of Sousuke against her cheek and smiled happily. Kaname shared that smile with her formal rival.

 

“If that is the case, should we take a walk on the beach, or maybe swim some?” wondered Sousuke. Kana considered that.

 

“Tessa-chan burns pretty easily, Sousuke,” she said. “And like I said this morning, I have had my fill of beaches for the time being,” she added. “Let's get something to eat, then take a nap,” she suggested, holding Tessa's gaze.

 

“Sounds good to me,” said Tessa, knowing what Kana was thinking, thanks the resonance they shared. Neither woman moved with any kind of urgency, though they both eventually managed to tear themselves away from the young man and move off the bed. After a quick check of their bikinis, the two seized Sousuke between them and guided him toward the small restaurant that was attached to the resort's main lobby.

 

“Where are Mao and Yu Fan?” wondered Sousuke. It had been hours since the three of them had retreated to Tessa's bungalow to study the information on the laptop that Kaname had stolen from Tessa's brother when she was rescued from him.

 

“They came by to check on us about two hours ago,” said Kaname. Sousuke frowned.

 

“I didn't notice,” he worried. Kaname leered at him.

 

“Your attention was elsewhere at the moment,” she assured him smugly. Sousuke felt his temperature rise at her words and tone.

 

“I see,” he managed.

 

“So you did,” Tessa chimed in. Sousuke changed the topic.

 

“Was there something you wanted to eat?” he asked the two girls, who - for no reason he could grasp - giggled. Trading glances, Kaname licked her lips playfully.

 

“Well, now that you mention it,” she began archly.

 

“Kana!” hissed Tessa, her cheeks as red as cherries. “Not in public!” begged the girl. If you keep talking like that, I'm going to soak my bikini bottoms!

 

“Well, I guess we'll settle for some seafood,” pouted Kana cutely. At least for now, anyway! she thought with hentai glee. The three found a small table and were soon feeding on a variety of seafood. Fish, shrimp and crab were the core of the meal, but it was augmented by a wicked seaweed and greens salad rich with peppers and olives. Over glasses of iced juice and tea, the three slowly worked on some bread-based fruit pudding, deciding that - overall - they liked it, if not for regular consumption.

 

As the three of them lingered over final glasses of their chosen drinks, they saw Mao and Yu Fan approaching them from the entrance. Stopping by the table, the two checked in before quickly devouring a large meal themselves. Tessa filled them in on the basic timetable, and as the two ordered seconds of grilled swordfish fillets, Tessa, Kana and Sousuke moved back to the bungalow.

 

“Ugh, I am stuffed!” said Kana happily, lying back on the large bed. Sousuke recalled the girl's little speech about her regret at not being able to try so many foods she wanted to try, back when Ono-D had unwisely toyed with a mis-shipped weapons order. He had thought it was a voraciously deadly bio-weapon, but it turned out to be a bio-remedial agent that broke down synthetic fibers. He shivered as he recalled the destruction that had caused. I think it might have been better if it had been a bio-weapon, he thought. He suddenly recalled Kaname's subsequent quasi-confession in the infirmary, as well as her willingness to trust him when he told her to strip naked.

 

“Me, too!” agreed Tessa, breaking his reverie. The platinum-haired girl lay down next to Kana, her hands absently caressing her stomach. “If I ate like that all the time, I'd get really fat,” she giggled to Kaname.

 

“Yeah, I know!” agreed Kaname. “Hmm,” she hummed, tugging her beach wrap off and tossing it to the side, leaving her in the simple white bikini she had found in her vacuum-compressed pack. Reaching over to Tessa, she one-hand removed the similar wrap around Tessa's form, revealing the red bikini the girl wore. “Nap time,” said the dark-haired Whispered, shifting herself and Tessa on the bed.

 

When Sousuke didn't immediately join them, the two looked at him, pouting. “Well?” they said impatiently. Sousuke swiftly determined what it was they expected of him and joined them on the bed. Both girls smiled as he settled between them, each claiming a shoulder.

 

When Mao and Yu Fan checked in on the three an hour later, they found that all three were asleep, Sousuke holding each girl with an arm. Smiling, Mao glanced at Yu Fan, who was studying the three with detached interest. “Well?” asked Mao. Yu Fan glanced at her.

 

“We will see,” said the girl. Glancing at her watch, she changed the subject. “We should get some rest as well,” she said quietly. Mao checked her watch before nodding. When she saw that Yu Fan hadn't moved for the door, Mao glanced at the assassin girl. Yu Fan moved to the side of the bed that Kaname was on and tucked herself against Kaname with uncanny skill, not even disturbing Kana or Sousuke as she did so. After she had her arms securely wrapped around Kaname, Yu Fan quickly drifted off to sleep.

 

“Well, hell,” sighed Mao softly, moving over to the last spot open: the one next to Tessa. Had the bed in Tessa's bungalow been any smaller than the king-size it was, it wouldn't have been possible to fit all five of them on it. Nor would it have been possible if Kana and Tessa weren't all but lying on top of Sousuke. Even so, as she gingerly settled onto the bed, she saw Sousuke's eyes open. When his eyes met her eyes, she shook her head, motioning for silence before pointing to Tessa. Sousuke nodded, his eyes closing once more.

 

-

 

The moon was out, waxing thicker as the month grew, though tonight, it was still a mere sliver. Sousuke, Mao and Yu Fan were spread out in a rough protective pattern while Tessa and Kana stood in knee-deep water, waiting. Though the assault group had left nearly all their weapons when they assumed the cover of tourists, Mao, Sousuke and Yu Fan had retained their suppressed pistols and some back-up mags, as well as a few person kit items - like Mao's Kabar knife, Sousuke's assortment of small but useful items, and Yu Fan's `gift blade' from Shenhua. Right now, all three had the pistols out and ready, just in case.

 

Kaname scanned the dark water with her naked eyes, her hands holding a four-second cycle IR strobe. Every four seconds, a half-second flash of IR strobe illuminated the seemingly-empty ocean; well, if one could see into the IR spectrum, that is. With barely a hiss or ripple, a dark form raised itself from the water a few yards in front of the girls. “Captain?” whispered the man.

 

“Chief Lee,” breathed the smaller of the two women. “I need you to take this back to Commander Kalinin,” said the girl, handing him the waterproof bag. It contained the laptop, six pages of hand-written notes and directives, and a simple timetable. “Have the preparations been made?” she asked.

 

“Aye, captain,” said the man. He paused, “Captain, are you sure that…?” he began. Tessa shook her head, her bright hair shining in the ambient light.

 

“I am positive, Chief Lee,” she said firmly. “Without the right bait, this operation will fail,” she stated.

 

“But, if something goes wrong…!” protested the man.

 

“That is why we have things arranged as we do, Chief.” said Tessa.

 

“I know they are the best pilots we have, but there is no telling how many enemy units will show up; or even if they will take the bait,” he said. Tessa smiled a thin smile.

 

“AMALGAM will take the bait, Chief Lee,” she said. “They cannot afford not to,” she added grimly. “But enough about that,” she dismissed his concerns, “is the item ready?” she asked. He nodded, pulling on a cord clipped to his diving gear.

 

“It is,” he said. “Doc said to tell you that it will only work for about six hours, so only use it when things are going to happen,” he said, fishing in the bag at the other end of the line. He withdrew a small vial and handed it to her. “And then there is this,” he said, handing her an item about the size of a seat flotation device on a yacht. “Captain, it hasn't even been tested, and…”

 

“It was built to specifications?” she asked. He nodded. “Then it will work,” said the girl.

 

“But, what if it doesn't?” worried the older man.

 

“That is why the items were pre-positioned, Chief,” said Tessa. The man sighed.

 

“Aye, ma'am,” he said. Tessa smiled at him.

 

“I appreciate the concern of yourself and the crew, Chief Lee,” she said warmly. “I promise you,” said the girl, “I am not acting without thought or without weighing the consequences,” she pledged. The man saluted her.

 

“We know, Captain,” he said. “It's just…well, you know,” he hinted, not wanting to say it.

 

“She's a bit of klutz, is that it?” grinned Kaname, catching Tessa's annoyed look. “Well, don't worry - that's why I'm going to be there; to make sure that nothing happens to her,” she assured the man.

 

“I'm standing right next to you, you know?” muttered Tessa. Kaname smiled at her.

 

“And when this is done, we'll still be standing together,” Kana assured the shorter woman. Tessa checked her watch.

 

“The operation will begin in seventeen hours, Chief,” said Tessa. “Please make sure that Commander Kalinin is in position and prepared by that time,” said the girl.

 

“Aye, aye, Captain,” said the man, once more saluting her. “Good luck, and good hunting,” he added before securing his mouthpiece and disappearing back into the surf.

 

“I make my own luck,” muttered Tessa. And the hunting will be good; one way or another! she left unsaid. Turning to Kana, she caught the taller woman looking at her, a smile on her face. “What?” she asked.

 

“I was right,” said Kaname cryptically, “you are a lot prettier than Leo,” she murmured in Tessa's ear. “Moonlight suits you very well, Tessa-chan,” she added in a louder voice. Together the two walked out of the surf.

 

“Are you sure we shouldn't have just exfiltrated back to the De Danaan, Tessa?” asked Mao. “We are pretty much sitting ducks out here, you know,” she added.

 

“Decoys are - by nature - sitting ducks,” said Tessa. She hefted the bag she had been given by her operations chief. “And with this, these ducks will have more than a few surprises,” she promised the group.

 

“I would like to hear more about your plan, Captain,” said Sousuke. Tessa looked at him.

 

“You will,” she said, “but not until it has begun,” she added. “We have too many leaks to be careless about details,” she said unhappily. “For now, let's get some sleep,” she said.

 

As the group moved back down the beach toward the resort, Sousuke managed to get back near Mao and Yu Fan. “Watches like on the ship,” he murmured, “Mao, first watch, then me, then Yu Fan.”

 

“Roger,” confirmed Mao.

 

“Understood,” said Yu Fan softly. When they got back to the resort, it was past two in the morning, and Kaname and Tessa climbed into bed without any preamble, swiftly falling asleep, the two unconsciously cuddling up to each other. Yu Fan took the outside position by Kaname, and Sousuke took the side nearest Tessa. Mao situated herself next to the door, gun in hand.

 

It seemed barely an instant after he had lain down that he felt a hand on his shoulder. Twitching awake, he found it was Mao. Watch change, he recalled, easing away from Tessa, who made soft sounds of dissatisfaction at losing his warmth at her back. Standing, he stepped past Mao, who took his place against Tessa, spooning with the small girl, who accepted the substitute happily. Sousuke made his way to the edge of the door, finding a warm spot where Mao had crouched, and settled in, listening and systematically surveying the windows that lead into the bungalow.

 

His concentration on his job caused him to lose track of time, and before he knew it, Yu Fan sat up in bed, silently moved out and crossed to where he was. Seeing his look, she tapped her watch. Sousuke looked at his watch, and realized that it was time to change shifts. Standing, he started to move past Yu Fan, but the assassin touched his arm, stopping him. When he turned to look at her, she leaned in and kissed him. It was a brief, but sincere kiss. Breaking it, she signaled that she would be on watch through morning, and to catch what sleep he could.

 

Puzzled by her actions, but not alarmed, he made his way over to Kana's side of the bed and carefully slipped in, tucking his gun close to hand as he did so. When he eased up to Kana's warm body, he found that the girl had misplaced her bikini top. Hesitating only an instant, Sousuke worked his arms around Kana, gently cupping her breasts with his hands, and settled in to sleep.

 

Morning found him holding Kana, and Kana holding Tessa. The small captain was tucked tight to Kana's chest, both of Kaname's arms around the bright-haired girl's back, Tessa's face pressed against her throat. Behind Tessa, Mao was sleeping on her back, one hand on her belly, the other under Tessa's neck. Sousuke carefully managed to get his hands off Kana's breasts; he would have preferred to continue to hold her, but he felt that it was more important to relieve Yu Fan on watch.

 

As he eased off the bed, tucking the sheet in behind him to keep Kana happy and warm even as he got up, he felt a presence at his side. Turning, he found himself looking at Yu Fan. The girl nodded to him before tossing her head toward the bathroom. Sousuke nodded, and she moved into the bathroom while he checked the room. Satisfied, he stepped into the bathroom himself as Yu Fan washed her hands. “Quiet watch?” he murmured to her, lifting the seat and pulling out his dick.

 

“Yes,” said Yu Fan. “Do you want to get some breakfast for us, or should I?” she asked him. Sousuke checked his watch.

 

“We should wait a little longer,” he said quietly. “Kana isn't going to be up for another hour, and Tessa isn't likely to be hungry at least that long,” he said, finishing up. Yu Fan shrugged.

 

“Then I will get a shower,” she said, peeling off her one-piece suit and starting the shower. Sousuke stepped over to wash his hands, Yu Fan slipping behind him, her bare chest brushing against his back as she did so. He turned to look at her. There is plenty of room for her to move past without bumping into me, he thought.

 

“Something wrong?” he asked her. She shook her head.

 

“No,” she said. Even though she said that, she stopped and turned back to face him, stepping into him so her breasts touched his bare chest before leaning forward and kissing him. Sousuke's eyes widened. What is she doing? he wondered. After several heartbeats, Yu Fan broke the kiss, her tongue slipping between his lips as she did so. Turning to the shower, she stepped in and ducked under the spray. “Join me if you want,” she said before reaching for the shampoo.

 

Frowning slightly, Sousuke moved out of the bathroom, taking up position in a chair in the corner of the bedroom. Yu Fan was in the shower for about a half hour, and when she emerged, she settled next to Sousuke. Sousuke looked at her as she silently, patiently waited, watching the three in the large bed. “Yu Fan,” said Sousuke softly, “you promised to tell me what Gauron's plan was once the mission was complete, so what were your instructions?” he asked her.

 

“The mission is not yet complete,” said Yu Fan. “The captain has said more remains to be done,” she explained. Sousuke considered that. I would have to agree that I would not consider this a successful mission, seeing as Kana is still not safe, he decided.

 

“Very well,” he murmured. “What is it you plan to do?” he asked her. She didn't look at him as she answered.

 

“About what?”

 

“About Kana and Tessa; and your plans beyond destroying AMALGAM,” he said. Yu Fan brooded for a moment.

 

“I do not have plans to do anything to Chidori or the captain,” she said. “They do not pose a threat to my mission,” she said. “Beyond destroying AMALGAM, I have no plans for the future,” she added. “It is unlikely that I will survive AMALGAM,” she noted detachedly.

 

“That would be a waste,” said Sousuke, surprising himself a little. Her skills are useful, but why am I reluctant to think of her dying while fighting AMALGAM? he wondered. Yu Fan was looking at him, her face a mask.

 

“Is that how you feel?” she asked quietly. Slowly, Sousuke nodded. She turned her gaze back to the three in the bed. Mao began to stir. “Then, I will try to survive,” she said to herself. Sousuke didn't get to pursue the topic, since Mao sat up in bed, yawning as she fumbled for her smokes.

 

“Don't smoke in here, Mao,” said Sousuke quietly, handing the older woman her cigarettes and lighter. Mao frowned at him, but said nothing as she settled her bikini and moved outside the bungalow door, Sousuke seeing her light her morning smoke as the door closed.

 

“I will get some food for us,” said Yu Fan, slipping out of the room like a shadow.

 

-

 

“How about this one?” asked Yu Fan, standing with Mao on the dock at Kupang City. They had taken a ferry from Rote to the `big city' on the next island to procure a boat. The two were armed with money and their pistols. At the moment, the two were looking at a worn cabin cruiser. Mao looked it over.

 

“Pass,” she said. “The draft is a bit deep on that one,” she said. “Not to mention that the patches make me nervous,” she said dryly.

 

“Very well,” said the younger woman. “There is a fishing boat that is supposed to be available,” she said, glancing at a scrap of paper in her hand.

 

“What kind of fishing boat is it?” wondered Mao. Yu Fan shrugged.

 

“Likely old and worn out,” she replied pragmatically. Mao sighed.

 

“I know we don't need it to do much, but with Tessa and Kana at risk…” she shook her head.

 

“Agreed,” said Yu Fan. The two moved along the dock area, looking for the boat. Eventually, they found the boat, but the sight of two pump output hoses dumping water out of the engine hold scratched that choice before they even asked about the boat.

 

“This is a waste of time,” said Mao irritably.

 

“What do you propose to do, then?” asked Yu Fan passively. Mao scowled at her partner.

 

“No ideas of your own?” she asked sharply. Yu Fan glanced at her.

 

“Hijack the boat we want,” said the girl blandly. Mao blinked.

 

“I would ask if you were serious, but I already know you are,” she said.

 

“You did ask,” noted Yu Fan, causing Mao's eyes to widen. What was that?! Is she loosening up?! wondered the shocked Mao.

 

“Come on,” said Mao, turning on her heel, “let's go get a drink and re-think this approach,” she said. Docilely, Yu Fan followed the sergeant major back toward the head of the dock, then down the street to the first bar. Ducking inside, the two settled at a table, Mao waving at the waiter, who came over with a pair of beer bottles. Smiling, Mao cracked her Bintang and took a pull. Yu Fan opened her beer as well, but took only a small sip.

 

By the time that Mao chased the last drop from her bottle, Yu Fan was taking a second small sip from the beer. Silently, she pushed her bottle over to Mao, who - after a glance at the girl - took a pull from Yu Fan's bottle. “Not thirsty?” asked Mao.

 

“I will have some Coke,” said the teenager, flicking a finger at the waiter, who approached. The assassin gave him two words - `beer' while indicating beer, and `coke' while pointing to herself - and off he went. Mao grinned.

 

“Ah, isn't pop culture a grand thing?” she asked, amused. `Coke' was one of those words that were understood damn near everywhere and in pretty much any language. In short order, a fresh pair of cold bottles were in front of the two. As they drank, Mao was wrestling with her mission problem. We need a disposable boat, but it has to make it to the AO; and be safe enough to protect Kana and Tessa while transiting, she thought. Initially, she had thought to pick up a worn boat that could get them there and let it go at that, but so far, that was a problem. Ok, so let's re-think this situation, she told herself. Adapt and overcome is the Marine Corp motto, after all, she recalled sourly.

 

Her thoughts were interrupted by an interloper. “Hey, ladies,” came the friendly, ingratiating voice of a young man on the prowl. “What say you come join our table?” he suggested. Mao looked over at the owner of the voice. She found herself looking at man in his late twenties to early thirties. He was tanned, his teeth were perfect, and his watch was a Tag Heuer. Opposite the fifteen hundred dollar bauble was a gold-and-platinum herringbone bracelet. Playboy or rich boy, determined Mao.

 

“No,” said Yu Fan flatly. Mao glanced at the girl, minutely shaking her head. Not now, Yu Fan, she thought to the assassin. God, she and Sousuke are a match for social ineptitude; well, before Sousuke started living with Kana, anyway, she allowed.

 

“Don't be too hasty, Yu,” said Mao. She turned to look at the man. “Who is `our', exactly?” she asked. The man, sensing an opening, smiled at her, though he was obviously angling for Yu Fan.

 

“Why, me and my friends, of course,” he said, turning and pointing to a group of tables pushed together. Three men sat there, all generally the same as the one at their table. Mao's sharp eyes swept the group, noting lots of disposable wealth on the men.

 

“Friends?” pressed Mao. She wasn't really interested, but on general principal, she was willing to hear the delivery from a handsome man.

 

“University roommates,” said the man easily. “Harvard,” he clarified. “We just finished up our Masters in Business Admin,” bragged the man. “We're all third-generation Harvard men,” he said casually. “Well, except for me - I'm the fourth man of the family to go to Harvard,” he clarified. Mao gave a fake impressed hum.

 

“My!” she said, seeing that Yu Fan's eyes were cool and her attention on her soda. “What are you all doing down here, with all that schooling under your belt?” she wondered.

 

“Well, we finished school last month, and are taking a short break before beginning our careers with the firm,” he said casually. “We're taking in some surfing, diving and relaxation here in the south seas.”

 

“Oh? How long are you on break for?” wondered Mao, waving her bottle at the waiter, who brought her a fresh bottle.

 

“Well, we left Hawaii six weeks ago, and we're going to be flying back to the States from Australia at the end of next month,” he said. Mao did some math. That's quite a break, she thought to herself. “We heard about the diving out here from some of our friends, and decided to check it out,” he said. “Since it's hard to schedule our dives between surfing, fishing, hiking and working on our tans, we decided to rent a boat,” he said. Yu Fan's eyes met Mao's, a predatory look in them.

 

“What kind of boat?” asked the assassin, smiling at the man.

 

“It's a forty six foot sloop,” said the man. “We arranged to rent it for the duration of our trip and to have a charging station onboard so we can dive as we like. It saves a ton on hotel costs,” he said slyly. “We were all on the school yacht sailing club, so we thought it only appropriate to take on the vast ocean in a sailboat.”

 

“But for only four of you to manage such a boat, you must be good,” said Mao. Bunch of weekend sailors, she thought disdainfully. I bet they go on canned hunts, too!

 

“Well, the boat does have a lot of automation on it,” admitted the guy, “but mostly, we do it manually - like the sportsmen we are,” he smiled at the two. Yu Fan locked gazes with Mao.

 

“We'd be happy to join your table,” said the assassin smoothly, standing.

 

“But first, we're going to visit the ladies' room,” Mao cut into the conversation. Grabbing Yu Fan's hand, she tugged the smaller girl toward the ladies' room. “Be right back, boys!” she promised, winking at the man who had approached them as well as his friends. She could hear the chuckles and murmured `scores!' from behind them as the door closed.

 

Turning Yu Fan to face her, Mao got right to business. “What - exactly - are you planning, Yu Fan?” she asked, tense.

 

“I am planning on obtaining a disposable boat,” said the shorter girl, all business.

 

“I mean, about those guys,” Mao refined her question.

 

“They are no problem,” assured the girl. “And disposing of their bodies will be even less of a problem than killing them,” she noted casually.

 

“You are planning to kill them,” hissed Mao, unsurprised. Yu Fan nodded.

 

“They are irrelevant,” she said calmly.

 

“What they are, is spoiled rich brats,” Mao corrected her. “When the heirs of old money like them go missing, the parents get hot and bothered,” said the older woman. “We don't need that kind of attention,” she cautioned the younger girl.

 

“Then we will have to sleep with them,” said Yu Fan. Mao sighed.

 

“I suppose they aren't that bad, but I'm not keen on that, either,” she said reluctantly. “Besides, I know for a fact that neither Kana nor Tessa will even consider such a thing,” she pointed out.

 

“Then what do you propose?” asked Yu Fan. Mao thought for a moment.

 

“Well, there are some options between killing them and sleeping with them,” she said after a moment.

 

“Such as?” asked Yu Fan, as if the notion of anything short of killing them was incomprehensible. Mao considered the options.

 

“Ever been to Shanghai?” she asked, smiling.

 

“Several times,” said Yu Fan. “What does that have to do with our situation?” she asked. Mao groaned.

 

“You and Sousuke are too much alike sometimes,” she complained. “Listen,” she said immediately, “just follow my lead; and keep your homicidal tendencies under control!” Yu Fan shrugged.

 

“Anchor chain is cheap, Mao,” was all she said on the matter. As the two checked their outfits - which were skirts and tee shirts over their swimsuits - Mao found herself wondering just how many people Yu Fan had killed that she could be so blasé about casual butchery. Then again, she said Gauron raised her and her sister, which is slightly worse than being raised by a sociopathic mass murdering psycho, she thought to herself.

 

As she and Yu fan exited the bathroom, she schooled her face into a pleasantly interested expression. The four men had made room for the two of them, and the beer and cola had been transferred from their former table to the new table. After giving them their names - and being introduced to Reggie, Donald, Archibald and Patrick, who constituted two III's, one II, and one Junior - the two allowed themselves to be awed with the tales of their host's adventures and manliness. It was nearing the second hour when Mao brought the conversation on target.

 

“Say,” she said, draining another beer, “I hate to ask you for a favor after just meeting you,” she cooed, “But me and Yu seem to have missed the ferry back to our hotel, and I was hoping that you four could help us get back,” she said.

 

“We would be delighted, Melissa,” Patrick said. As the one to approach them, he was the primary hitter of the group, with the other three playing back-stop to his lead while angling for seconds of the set. Mao was mildly annoyed to see that Yu Fan was drawing more attention than herself, and had stepped up her act to level the field a little. I'm not `old', after all! she told herself angrily. “Which hotel are you at?” he asked. Naturally, the four men were very interested in the answer.

 

“Oh, we're all staying at a resort on Rote Island,” said Mao. The four looked at each other, smiling.

 

“We were going to sail there tomorrow,” said Patrick, “so what does it matter if we sail there this evening?” he asked philosophically.

 

“This evening, tomorrow - tomorrow, this evening; all the same to us,” agreed Reggie, the other two nodding heartily.

 

“Why, thank you!” gushed Mao, favoring Patrick with an alluring wink.

 

“Melissa,” said Archibald, “if you don't mind my asking, what did you mean by `we'?” he asked hopefully. Mao had determined early on that Patrick was the lead dick, followed by Reggie, then Donald, and lastly by Archibald in this group, so she had counted on him looking to expand the game, and had deliberately seeded the conversation.

 

“Well, we're here with two others on a `girls' retreat', as it were,” said Mao. “Terra and Kyoko are sorority sisters of ours, and after our graduation, we decided to take a break, as well,” said the older woman. “Terra's family is pretty loaded, so we managed to talk her parents into an exotic vacation,” she whispered playfully. Money calls to money, after all, she thought, and besides, Tessa isn't good at playing common girl, she plotted. Since she had developed her command presence, it was only common sense to make Tessa the head of their group.

 

“So, there are four of you in your group?” asked Archibald, barely controlling his excitement. Mao nodded.

 

“Yes!” she exclaimed. “And there are four of you, too! What a coincidence, hmm?” she husked suggestively.

 

“So, what do the other two look like?” asked Reggie. “I find it hard to believe that they could be as pretty and alluring as Yu and yourself,” he added, covering his already-wandering eye with the ease of a drunkard on a tightrope.

 

“Terra's family is European,” said Yu, easily deciphering the identities that they would be playing. “She had beautiful platinum hair that she wears to her lower back, and her skin is very fair; I wish I had her complexion and hair,” said the assassin.

 

“And what about Kyoko?” asked Donald. Yu Fan smiled.

 

“As you might guess from her name, she part Japanese,” said the assassin. “She has warm, brown eyes and black hair down to her thighs, and her figure puts me and Melissa to shame,” she said, sighing as if that were tragedy. Mao crushed the impulse to deny the claim, as well as her damn-near instinctive grimace at being ranked lower than Tessa and Kana. Beauty is in the eye of the beholder, after all, she told herself firmly. “Terra is a little shorter than me, and Kyoko a little taller,” said Yu Fan, pausing to sip her drink. The four men exchanged poorly-concealed grins and leers.

 

Boys, boys, boys, she silently sighed, hiding her malicious grin behind her beer bottle, you have no clue what you are dealing with! Yu Fan is already fitting you up for an unmarked, watery grave, Sousuke will kill any of you who so much as lays a finger on Kana or Tessa, and I am planning on stealing your boat and leaving you high and dry! For some reason, these thoughts made her smile. The four men focused on the two in front of them just as she and Yu Fan fixed their pleasant smiles in place.

 

“What say we head on over, then? I mean, if you two are done here?” suggested Patrick, standing. His friends did likewise. Yu Fan and Mao stood as well.

 

“Oh, could we?” replied Mao. Patrick dumped a handful of mixed currency on the table and the six of them made their way out to the sailboat the four had. Seeing a smaller Zodiac tied up at the dock, Mao had to hide a smile.

 

The sloop was a modern build, heavy on fiberglass and chrome, light on wood, with a Bermuda-rigged sail configuration. Plenty of mahogany and teak panels inside, but the core of the boat was fiberglass and composite. Three staterooms were setup in doubles, making it comfortable for six, though the boys were clearly planning for eight, given the look in their eyes as they raised anchor and set out toward Rote. Mao carefully noted the systems and decided that it wouldn't be a stretch for them to operate the boat.

 

During the couple of hours of sailing back to their resort, she and Yu Fan carefully controlled the advances of the men, permitting an occasional touch or `accidental' grope, but not allowing themselves to get painted into a corner. Mao was worried that if one of the men got aggressive, Yu Fan would revert to her initial plan and she would end up playing with anchor chain. So, she and Yu Fan kept themselves together and above deck, choosing to sit by the forward cabin windows as they made their way back.

 

When they reached the resort, Mao and Yu Fan told the four to find a good anchorage while they checked in on their two friends at the resort. They agreed to meet up in the lobby at dusk. Once Mao and Yu Fan had hopped out of the small Zodiac and seen Donald on his way back to the sloop, the ex-Marine and the assassin made their way to the bungalow. After calling out the password - the better to avoid being shot by Sousuke - the two entered, finding Tessa, Kana and Sousuke to sitting back-to-back-to-back on the bed. “Are we interrupting anything?” asked Mao, seeing that all three were holding hands.

 

“No, of course not,” said Kana.

 

“Why would you think you were interrupting?” wondered Tessa.

 

“Was you mission a success?” asked Sousuke.

 

“The first part of it was,” said Yu Fan.

 

“First part? What happened?” asked Tessa, frowning. Mao swiftly sketched in the events and the subsequent change in operational plan.

 

“Wow! A sailboat, huh?” said Kana. “I always wondered what a trip in one on the ocean would be like,” she said conversationally.

 

“I haven't been on a sailboat since I was four,” mused Tessa.

 

“Sailboats are not my first choice for an ocean crossing, but considering the situation, it should be acceptable,” frowned Sousuke. Mao snorted.

 

“Oh, don't all stand up and cheer at once or anything,” she said sarcastically. “It's mostly automated, so I can handle it with just a little help,” she said. “And if it gets too complicated, there is always the engine,” she noted.

 

“The De Danaan will be close by in any event,” Tessa dismissed the topic. “What about the crew?” she asked.

 

“They're a bunch of pussy hound rich playboys,” snorted Mao. “I figure that we'll meet up with them, charm them a little, get back to their boat, then deal with them,” shrugged the oldest of the group.

 

“I do not think that is a wise course of action,” disagreed Sousuke, his aura dark and violent. “They are clearly without discipline and allowing them into close proximity to Kana and Tessa is a security risk,” stated the young man. “We should dispose of them immediately,” he added blackly.

 

“I suggested that already,” nodded Yu Fan. “Mao disagreed,” she nearly complained.

 

“Sousuke,” Mao cut in sharply, “this mission has brought out a side of you I have never seen before. Have you always been this blood-thirty?” she wondered. Sousuke met her gaze.

 

“I will not allow harm to come to Kana or Tessa,” he stated coldly.

 

“But that doesn't automatically mean that you kill anyone who could be a threat to them,” argued Mao.

 

“Sousuke,” said Tessa softly, turning to look at him squarely, “I appreciate your position on this; really, I do,” she said. “I know I am not able to effective defend myself, and Kana was just kidnapped, but please, don't kill uninvolved personnel unless absolutely necessary,” she asked him. It was unnerving to Mao to see Sousuke nearly pout.

 

“Tessa-chan's right, Sousuke,” Kana offered her opinion. “I don't want to get kidnapped or attacked again, but I think we can handle four horny rich boys without having to resort to killing them,” she argued. Smiling, she squeezed his hand. “After all,” she added, “we handled all those suitors at school without bloodshed,” she reminded him. He frowned.

 

“But things have…changed since then,” he muttered to himself. Kaname's leering grin was a perfect match for Tessa's leering grin.

 

“Oh, have they ever!” purred Kana happily.

 

“But that still doesn't justify you disposing of these four unfortunate victims,” decreed Tessa, patting his arm.

 

“If that is your final decision, Captain, then I will comply,” said Sousuke unhappily.

 

“Well, now that that is settled,” said Mao, “let's get ready to meet them and get our stories and names straight,” she said. Kana and Tessa each paused long enough to kiss Sousuke before climbing off the bed and moving into the bathroom to prepare for their little ambush. As Mao was filling them in on the story she and Yu Fan had concocted, Sousuke pulled Yu Fan to side.

 

Leaning down, he whispered in her ear. “Yu, I am entrusting Kana and Tessa to your care for this operation,” he murmured, his lips brushing her ear. “Do not allow anything - including Mao's conscience - to compromise their safety,” he directed her. “Will you do this for me, Yu Fan?” he asked her. She pulled back slightly, looking into his dark eyes.

 

“Yes,” she said softly, “I will do this for you,” she said. Sousuke nodded.

 

“Thank you, Yu Fan,” he said. She leaned up, pressing her lips to his, her tongue slithering into his mouth to caress his own tongue. After ten seconds, she broke the kiss.

 

“Thank me when this mission is over,” she suggested, giving him a small smile before moving to the crowded bathroom, where the other three girls were choosing their outfits. Sousuke absently touched his lips, recalling the feeling when Yu Fan kissed him. Not as good as when I kiss Kana or Tessa, but there is something about her kiss that is…special, he thought, confused about how that could be.

 

-

 

“All secure,” said Sousuke, finishing off the last of the knots on the unconscious men. The four of them had been overwhelmed when they met the four girls, and after the first evening, the four playboys had been so lust-crazed that when Mao had invited them back to their room the next morning, rather than accepting the men's suggestion of going back to the yacht, they had eagerly agreed. With all the girls but Yu Fan sporting bikinis, Sousuke suspected that he could have been standing in plain sight and not been noticed.

 

As it was, none of the four had managed to make a sound as Sousuke, Yu Fan and Mao fell on them like tigers on sleeping lambs. Yu Fan and Sousuke had been particularly brutal, and two of the men - Patrick and Donald - would likely need medical attention before heading home to finish healing. Archibald had been fortunate that he had ended up with Mao, since all he got was a clear right uppercut to the point of the chin that cold cocked him before he even realized that something was wrong. Patrick had his hand on Kana's bikini-clad rear, and had gotten it dislocated as Sousuke wrapped him up and slammed his head into the wall twice in rapid succession.

 

Yu Fan had struck Reggie behind the ear as he rubbed Tessa's shoulder on his way to her breasts before spinning to drive her elbow deep into Donald's gut, lifting him off the floor before twisting around, using her other arm to slap him down to the floor, the man hitting the deck with a crunch that spoke of broken bones. Checking him, Mao had found that two of his ribs were snapped by the impact with the floor. Yu Fan had completely ignored Mao disapproving look.

 

“Let's get packed and transfer to the boat,” said Tessa, sighing as she surveyed the wreckage of the four men. She wasn't feeling guilty, as it was plain that the men were after sex, but the injuries that Sousuke and Yu Fan had inflicted were more than she had counted on, though certainly not serious enough to compromise the mission. Thinking back to the night before on the boat, she decided that it was for the best that Sousuke hadn't been along.

 

It took only ten minutes to pack their gear, put out the `do not disturb' sign on the door, and head down to the beach, where the small Zodiac waited. Though the boat was designed for four people, the five of them fit well enough. Once they were aboard the sloop, they tied off the small Zodiac and set about preparing to make sail. With the modern navigational gear and equipment aboard, it took them only a quarter hour to program the GPS, set the sails and make for open water. Tessa set up the small MITHRIL radio and activated it.

 

Moving back to the stern, where Mao was tending the tiller, cigarette in her mouth, Tessa sighed. “Well, it's set,” she said. Mao nodded.

 

“Others are below, picking cabins,” said the sergeant major.

 

“Oh, well, I guess I should see what they decided on,” said Tessa, moving through the hatch into the cabin. Yu Fan was sitting at the small table, waiting for Kana to decide which cabin she wanted. Kana was debating with herself which one was better: the bow cabin or one of the two stern cabins.

 

“I guess the bow cabin,” she said at last, nodding. “It should do fine,” she said, smiling. Tessa found herself being pulled forward to the bow by Kana. “Let's get the beds changed, Tessa-chan,” said the bigger girl. Yu Fan watched them pass her, then stood.

 

“I will take the right-hand cabin,” she said quietly. “I assume that one of us will be on watch at all times, correct?” she said. Sousuke nodded.

 

“We are at least two days from our destination, and none of us are overly-experienced sailors, so yes, we will be taking turns on watch, though the auto-pilot seems to do well enough,” he thought out loud. Yu Fan nodded.

 

“When you have decided the watches, let me know,” said the girl, moving toward the starboard stateroom in the stern, her small pack in hand. “I am going to change, then get some air,” she stated. Sousuke nodded.

 

“Understood,” he said. Yu Fan didn't bother to close the door to the room as she dropped her bag on the bed and began to remove her clothes. Sousuke saw her pull a pair of panties out and step into them before exiting the cabin.

 

“It is very warm and muggy,” she said, catching his look. “This is comfortable, and since I do not need to hide my scar,” she shrugged. Sousuke inclined his head, acknowledging her point.

 

“Hey, Sousuke!” came Mao's voice, “bring me drink!” she yelled from the transom. Sousuke located the small refrigerator and found an American beer in it. Taking one, he made his way up to Mao, handing her the cold can. She smiled, already stripped down to her micro-bikini. “Thanks, Sousuke,” said Mao, cracking the top and taking a pull. “Ah! Now this is the kind of work I could get to like,” she said, settling back and using a foot on the wheel to maintain their GPS-directed course.

 

“I prefer to operate from the De Danaan,” Sousuke disagreed, “although,” he added, “this does have certain attractions.”

 

“Like seeing us in bikinis?” teased Mao. Sousuke thought of Yu Fan, sitting practically naked not that far from him.

 

“Or less,” he muttered to himself. Hearing Mao snicker, he glanced at her, seeing her smiling evilly.

 

“Well!” she crowed, “Why didn't you say so sooner, Sousuke?” she asked him, flicking the clasp on her top loose and tugging the scrap of material off, arching her back as she did so. Sousuke gave her an annoyed look.

 

“What is wrong with you?” he asked her.

 

“I think a better question is `what is wrong with you, Sousuke,” came Kana's voice from just behind him. Turning, he saw her frowning at him, arms crossed over her top. Sousuke felt his heart rate kick up.

 

“Kana, this isn't what it looks like,” he began hurriedly. I hope she doesn't have her fan with her, he thought fleetingly. Getting hit by her fan hurt; never mind getting pounded by her fist.

 

“Oh?” asked the girl impassively.

 

“Mao just suddenly took her top off and…!” Sousuke tried to explain how things had ended up like they had, but stopped, realizing that he himself had no clue how it had turned out like it had. Kaname's stone face began to crack into a smile. Dropping her crossed arms, she smiled at him warmly enough to melt his bones; and make something else on him hard as diamond.

 

“You're too much fun to tease,” she giggled. “Guess this is a topless cruise?” she said invitingly. She was topless as well. Behind the taller girl, he caught sight of Tessa, who was likewise scantily clad in just her bikini bottoms, though the shier girl had her hands clasped in front of her bellybutton and was blushing. Yu Fan was just behind Tessa, unconcerned with her near-naked status.

 

Kana moved past Sousuke, pausing to kiss him as she moved to the windward bench in front of the wheel, Tessa settling beside her after a kiss for Sousuke as well. Yu Fan followed the lead of the other two before settling on the leeward bench. Mao watched her little performance, but said nothing. With no other choice, Sousuke settled next to Yu Fan on the bench.

 

As the girls chatted about inconsequential things, Sousuke considered the plan that Tessa was operating from. There were several variables that he didn't like, but since Tessa had decided on this plan, he would follow her lead; it was a sign of how much he respected her that he was willing to trust her with his life and Kana's. For her part, Kana seemed almost eager to follow Tessa's plan, even though it placed both her and the bright-haired girl in great danger.

 

Sousuke's thoughts were interrupted by the chirping of a watch. Tessa looked at her delicate watch and stood. “Five minutes,” she said to the others. Silently, Sousuke, Yu Fan and Tessa moved below, leaving Mao and Kana on the stern. Kana crossed her arms firmly over her breasts, while Mao refastened her top. Below, in the cabin, the other three sat at the table. After twenty minutes, Tessa checked a hand-written sheet of numbers, then her watch, then called out for their GPS location. When Mao yelled back, she nodded.

 

“We're clear,” she said, standing and returning to the stern deck. Kana sighed, stretching her arms over her head. Tessa settled next to her fellow Whispered, Kana's arm settling around her shoulders comfortably. “What is the estimate of transit times?” asked the Captain of her Sergeant Major.

 

“If we keep this wind,” said Mao, looking at the large GPS navigation screen and displays, “we should be at the AO in about thirty six hours, though if we have to go to motor, it could be as much as 48 hours,” she said. Tessa ran the numbers in her head.

 

“We will have to be careful about the satellite passes,” she said. “Sousuke, you and Yu Fan must not be seen by the satellites. I will be sure to be seen by the last one or two passed before we reach our AO. Melissa, I want you to avoid being seen during the last two passes,” she said. “After all, we need to look like a soft target,” she said grimly.

 

“Won't he suspect something is wrong, Captain?” asked Mao, worried about the assumptions that Tessa's plan made in regards to the actions of the enemy. She gave the older woman a reassuring smile.

 

“Even if he does,” she said, “he will convince himself that what he wants to see is what is really happening, Melissa,” assured the girl. “Besides,” she sighed, “we are not dealing with a rational person; not any more,” she murmured. Kaname hugged the small girl silently.

 

“Won't his agents be checking our comms?” asked Sousuke. Tessa nodded.

 

“Yes, Sousuke, they will be,” she said. “And that is why Commander Kalinin and one of my trusted people at Merida are giving them plenty to listen to over the `upgraded' communication systems,” she explained. “If my assessment of how the information is being leaked and by who is fairly accurate, then it will land in his `in box' in the correct sequence and timing to give him the impression that we are being sloppy and careless once again.”

 

“I still want to set watches, Captain,” insisted Sousuke. Tessa nodded.

 

“I have no objections, Sergeant,” she said. “But remember: you cannot be seen by the satellites, so check the orbit information each shift.”

 

“Roger,” said Sousuke. Tessa smiled warmly at him.

 

“Other than that, there isn't much to do for the next couple of days, so please, let's enjoy ourselves,” she urged them.

 

-

 

Sunset found Sousuke at the wheel, though it was more of a figure of speech, since the crew had figured out the auto-pilot during early afternoon. This was a good thing, since other than Mao, none of them had a lot of experience with running a sailboat. The autopilot system would keep them on course, and make minor adjustments to the booms as necessary to draw the wind. The person on watch was mostly there to do just that: watch. There was also the hydrophone over the side that was for emergency communication with the De Danaan, which was staying under them at one hundred ten meters.

 

“Hey, Sousuke,” came Tessa's voice, the small girl emerging from the hatch to the cabin area. In her hands were a sandwich and drink. “Hungry?” she asked him. He nodded, taking the food as Tessa settled next to him. As the day wore on, she had grown more comfortable with modified dress code that Yu Fan and Kana had pushed. She didn't even fidget any more. Sousuke swiftly tore into the sandwich, finding it to be a simple tuna on rye. Not that he cared; food was food, after all. As soon as he had devoured the last of the sandwich, Tessa handed him the plastic glass of water. Taking a deep swallow, he sighed, his arm slipping around her bare shoulders.

 

“Thank you, Tessa,” he said to her. She blushed.

 

“Well, Kana made the food,” she admitted.

 

“Where is Kana?” wondered Sousuke.

 

“Playing cards in the cabin with Mao and Yu Fan,” said Tessa. “I played a few hands, but I'm not a match for them,” she admitted ruefully. “I…thought I would come out here with you,” she said quietly.

 

“I enjoy your company, Tessa,” Sousuke replied honestly, taking another swig of water. Wedging the plastic up into the gap between the seat and the bulkhead, Sousuke turned a little, allowing him to draw Tessa to his chest. The girl eagerly obliged, shifting so she was lying against his chest, her cheek resting on his collarbone. Tucking her feet up, she settled in, her lithe form resting between his legs. Against her hip, she felt his dick begin to swell.

 

A soft purr came from her throat as she felt his hand caress her stomach. In response, she softly kissed his neck. Sousuke leisurely moved up to caress her bare breasts, finding the nipples already hard. A wordless whine of need came from the girl, her breathing deepening. Sousuke cupped her chin, guiding her face to his, his lips claiming her own. Tessa reacted enthusiastically to the contact, her tongue urging his to invade her mouth to play with her own oral muscle.

 

As their tongues danced, Tessa stroked a hand down his hard, lean chest, across his washboard stomach, and to his shorts. Impatiently untying the drawstring, she invaded his swim trunks, her soft, small hand finding his hard length and enclosing it as best as she could. Stroking it, she felt him tremble, his hands capturing her own soft breasts and kneading them firmly. Tessa squealed into the kiss, tingling bolts of pleasure racing around her body from her breasts and groin. Oh, I can feel how wet I am, she thought deliriously, I bet my suit is soaked!

 

When Sousuke finally released her breasts and stroked his hands down her sides to her hips, she nearly sobbed with relief. Using her other hand, she struggled to free his hard length, succeeding as he hooked his thumbs under her bottoms and pushed them off her hips. Tessa wiggled her hips, helping him remove her clothes. She realized that she wouldn't be able to get them off her if she stayed kneeling between his legs. Scrambling off the bench, she swiftly stepped out of her bottoms, leaving them crumpled on the deck at the base of the bench as she saw Sousuke move is trunks down to mid-thigh, his hard length pointing right at her.

 

How are we going to do it out here? she wondered, all too aware of the awkward positions. “C…cabin?” she panted. Not that I think I can make it that far, she thought hazily. Sousuke could faintly make out the sheen of her arousal on her thighs and carefully-tended vaginal lips. Shaking his head, he gently grabbed her wrist, turning her around so she was facing the same way that he was. Guiding her back, he pulled her onto his lap, her legs spread around his, her slippery opening settling just above his hard length. “Oh!” she breathed, seeing the possibilities.

 

Reaching back, she grabbed the chrome rail with her hands, steadying herself as Sousuke guided his tip to her soaked entrance, wiggling it slightly to both verify he had the correct angle, and to soak the tip in her juice. Sure that he was on target, he gently took her hips in hand and pulled her down, her delicate flower stretching open to allow him to enter her once more. “Ugh!” she grunted happily. It took him a few tried to fully penetrate her, since she was tight to begin with, and the position made her even tighter; not that either minded.

 

It didn't take long for the two to get into a steady rhythm, Tessa using her grip on the rail to leverage herself up and down, while Sousuke jerked his hips up to meet her as she descended, the pairing's union making wet pumping sounds as Sousuke bottomed out in Tessa's sheath. Inarticulate sounds of pleasure came from Tessa's mouth, while the occasional grunt and groan came from Sousuke's mouth as he neared release. Tessa was vaguely aware that she was drooling from her panting mouth, the drool covering her breasts as she single-mindedly pursued her building orgasm.

 

In a small part of her mind, she realized that someone was watching from the hatch. Focusing a tiny part of her mind on that fact, she managed to get her eyes to focus as well, finding Yu Fan watching the two couple impassively from the shadows of the hatch. She's…Yu Fan is watching Sousuke fuck me, she thought, her lips smiling a little at the thought. Knowing that the assassin was watching her being taken by her lover was an added thrill to the girl, and her arousal exploded, her whole body shaking like a palsy victim as she found her release in a wordless scream of pleasure.

 

Beneath her, Sousuke felt her achieve her release, and the sudden tightening of her pussy nearly finished him off. He managed two more strokes before he, too, noticed Yu Fan in the hatchway. What little control he had left snapped, and he drove as deeply into Tessa as he could, emptying his load into her deepest reaches, grunting as spurt after spurt flooded into her. On top of him, Tessa writhed as she had a second orgasm at the feeling of Sousuke cumming deep inside her.

 

Inside the cabin, Mao frowned, hearing the sounds from the stern. “What was that?” she asked Kana. Kaname shook her head, smiling a little.

 

“Nothing, Mao,” she said. Under the table, she rubbed her thighs together, trying to calm the hot itch between her legs. Thanks to the resonance she and Tessa shared, when either of them had sex, it was shared with the other with nearly the same intensity as if the other were having sex as well. Kaname knew that her bikini bottoms were wet. Oh, I want some of that! she thought, trying to maintain control of herself.

 

On the stern, Tessa's hands slipped off the rail, Sousuke barely managing to catch her before she slipped off his lap. Holding her, he leaned back, feeling his gradually softening member pulse in her slick passage. Tessa's legs were spread wantonly wide, a smug smile on her face as she caught her breath and recovered from her powerful orgasms. In the light of the stars, she glowed like a goddess, her fair, white skin glistening with a fine layer of sweat, her thighs shiny with mixed fluid. “Mm,” she hummed languidly. “I needed that, Sousuke,” she murmured, feeling his hands on her belly and chest.

 

“It was my pleasure, Tessa-chan,” he whispered into his ear, causing a tingle to shoot through her. She was all too aware of his tool still lodged in her pussy. Concentrating, she clenched her inner muscles, feeling his mostly-spent dick throb in response. Giggling softly, she twisted her head to kiss him.

 

“I'm feeling tired for some reason,” she observed as she broke the kiss several seconds later. Gingerly, she climbed off his lap, only to almost trip on thin air. Sousuke made a grab for her, but missed. As with Kana on the PT boat, another pair of arms caught her before she crashed to the deck, easily pulling her up and steadying her. Sousuke saw Yu Fan's slim form behind Tessa's form.

 

“Uh, thank you, Yu Fan,” managed Tessa.

 

“It was nothing,” said Yu Fan quietly, steadying Tessa with one hand as she gracefully bent and grabbed the small woman's discarded bottoms. Sousuke watched as she repeated her efforts with Kana, Tessa swiftly finding herself dressed and being guided to the hatch, then below. Recalling that his dick was still hanging out, Sousuke stood to put it away. As he did so, he realized that it was completely covered with his and Tessa's mixed fluids. Past experience told him that if he didn't take care of that first, he would be in for an unpleasant experience as the cum glued his dick to his shorts.

 

Guess I'll have to get a towel from below, he thought. He had taken one step toward the hatch when Yu Fan reappeared. Stepping in front of him, she glanced at his dick, still exposed. “I will help you with that,” she said quietly, firmly guiding him back to the bench. Sousuke did as she urged, sitting once more. To his surprise, Yu Fan didn't have a cloth in her hand. Instead, she sank to her knees and engulfed him in her mouth before he could even react.

 

“Ah!” he gasped. Neither Kana nor Tessa had tried giving him a blowjob, so it was new for him. Yu Fan methodically worked her way from the root of his shaft to the tip, finally releasing his semi-hard length with a soft pop. Licking her lips, she looked up at him, her hands on his thighs.

 

“Do you want me to continue?” she asked him, her eyes on his. “Or would you prefer to have me another way?” she wondered. Sousuke blinked at her.

 

“Um, I think we should hold off,” he managed. “A satellite pass is due in twenty one minutes, and shortly after that, it will be shift-change time,” he said. Yu Fan accepted this without protest.

 

“Understood,” she said, tucking his dick back into his shorts before rising to sit beside him. After a moment, Sousuke put his arm around her shoulders, the girl leaning into his side. Minutes passed before Yu Fan spoke. “When you want me, you know where to find me,” she murmured to him, her hand briefly caressing his crotch before resting on his thigh. Sousuke struggled to find an answer to that, and when he finally had one, he found that she was asleep, comfortably resting against his shoulder. He didn't notice Kana watching him from the hatchway, a thoughtful look on her face.

 

-

 

“There it is,” said Mao, looking through the binoculars. “I don't know how close we can get to it, though,” she said. “This boat draws about three meters of water, and I don't have any charts of the channels,” she said. Tessa considered that.

 

“I have a suggestion,” said Yu Fan, her voice soft. Pointing to the main mast, she held up a rope. “I can make a climbing seat with this, and Sousuke and Mao can hoist me up. We use the engine and I direct us though the channel,” she suggested.

 

“Well, I guess,” said Tessa, “but I'm the smallest and lightest, so I should go,” she amended the plan. Yu Fan shook her head.

 

“You are the bait,” she stated. “Besides, I have done this before - have you?” she wondered. Tessa shook her head. “Then it is settled,” she said, swiftly fashioning a simple rope seat. Sousuke ran the other end through a pulley, then to a hand-winch at the bow. Mao handed Yu Fan her binoculars and a knife.

 

“Just in case,” she said, moving forward to help Sousuke pull Yu Fan up the mast. When she was about two-thirds of the way up, Yu Fan called for them to stop; she had a good vantage angle from there. Studying the water, she began to plan out their course. By the time that Mao was at the wheel and had the engine cranked, she was signaling the direction and distance. Kana and Tessa were at the mid-ship rails, watching out for anything that Yu Fan might have missed, while Sousuke watched from the bow.

 

Two hours later, the sloop was anchored off the selected AO, and Tessa and Kana were making sure that they were visible to the passing satellite. Twenty minutes after the satellite cleared the area on its orbit, Tessa fired a pair of green flares, and half an hour after that, the trap was set. With nothing else to do, they hunkered down and waited.

 

Tessa had estimated that it would take between eight and sixteen hours for the enemy to appear. To that ends, she had arranged for a simple sun shade pavilion with mosquito screen walls, two lounge chairs and a cooler with food and drink in it. Kana and Tessa waited patiently for the show to begin. There wasn't anything to watch, really, since neither of them were bird-watchers, and the island was scrub, salt grass and sand. But, being girls, they whiled away the time talking to each other.

 

A few minutes short of eight hours later, a large motor yacht anchored outside the coral reef to the south. Looking at it through the binoculars, Kaname judged it to be close to ninety five meters long, with a flat chopper pad on the rear. Beside her, Tessa watched through her binoculars. “Showtime,” she breathed. Kaname looked at the late-afternoon sun.

 

“Gonna be close,” she murmured. Tessa nodded. Silently, both girls got up and swiftly took down the pavilion, sloppily rolling it into a ball as the ship off the reef prepped the helicopter on the rear deck. Tessa and Kaname watched as the helicopter rose and circled the minimal island they were on, pausing near the sloop before landing carefully on the rocks at the shoreline. It was a small chopper, a boxy-looking thing similar to what Kaname had seen around Tokyo from time to time.

 

“Eurocopter BK-117,” said Tessa softly. “Folding rotor adaptation for maritime use.”

 

“How man do you think we're going to be dealing with?” asked Kana.

 

“It typically carried between seven and ten passengers in addition to the pilot, so we could be up against as many as seven Alastor units,” she answered. Kaname nodded. “But, we will be fine,” smiled Tessa. Kaname managed a smile in return.

 

“Damn right we will,” she said confidently. The two girls were unaware that they had reached out and clasped each others hands as the chopper wound down and the door opened. Leo or Gretchen? wondered Kana to herself. First out was a pair of Alastor units. Then came another pair of Alastor units. Only then did a familiar form emerge from the chopper.

 

“Kaname,” said Leonard Testarossa, “sister,” he added, giving the shorter girl beside Kaname a superior smile.

 

“Mister Silver,” said Tessa coldly. Leonard sniffed disdainfully.

 

“Took you long enough, Tess,” he said snidely. Tessa didn't react.

 

“I have known it for more than a year,” she said disinterestedly. Leo just hummed, his attention on Kaname.

 

“I'm disappointed in you, Kaname,” he said sternly. Kaname bared her teeth.

 

“Good!” she spat.

 

“I truly admire your spirit, Kaname,” said Leonard superiorly, “but I can see that you need some discipline to temper that spirit,” he said ominously. Kaname's eyes narrowed.

 

“Yeah, I'd love to see you try that without innocent hostages to hide behind, coward,” she snarled. Leonard looked at the two. They were standing on a barren island in the middle of nowhere, with nothing around them, but they seemed unusually confident.

 

“Your ship isn't here,” he said to Tessa, “and there is no one on the sailboat, either,” he noted. “Honestly, I expected a better effort from you, Tess,” he said. Tessa smiled.

 

“It ends here, Silver,” she said calmly. Leonard smiled back.

 

“Yes,” he said, “it does.” His four Alastor units moved in. Neither girl reacted. As the units got within three meters of the girls, they slammed into a wall. Leonard frowned. Two of the units punched the wall, but were blown back by the rebounding energy. As the barrier crackled into and out of the visual spectrum, Leonard gasped. “A Lambda driver!” he hissed. Tessa nodded.

 

“Actually, this is a Type II driver,” she said. “Experimental, really,” she went on calmly. Leonard considered this development.

 

“But how long can you maintain it?” he wondered, the units spreading out and probing the perimeter of the field. “It is also small enough that I can scoop it and you up before your precious ship arrives,” he said, satisfied with his analysis of the situation.

 

“No, Leo-boy,” came Kana's voice, “you don't have the kind of time you need,” she said. Leonard flinched as he heard the report of a boxer cannon, and the helicopter exploded behind him, torn into three pieces by the favored close-range weapon of the Arbalest. Impossible! thought Leo, I ran a check for ECS cloaking, and there wasn't anything!

 

“Thanks to your experiments, I was able to devise a way to modulate the ECS mode on Dana's AS units to be invisible to your detection devices,” shared Tessa. Leonard was mumbling to himself. “Oh, and your data link to the ship is being jammed, too,” said the girl. “It is over, Silver,” she said, studying him.

 

“You underestimate me, Tess,” he yelled. Kana caught a flash from the ship, and a form ripped out from under the chopper pad, following a semi-ballistic jump toward the island.

 

“AS unit,” said Tessa, her tone alert and tense. The unit crashed down on the island. It was a midnight black Chodarl-series unit, armed with a wide-bore gun. Leonard sneered at the two.

 

“I'm offering you a final chance to join me, Kaname,” he said. “I will even allow Tess to accompany you,” he offered. “Otherwise, I will have to risk damaging you while I destroy that meddlesome fool Sagara and his toy Arbalest,” he threatened. Four rapid shots from a twenty-five millimeter cannon ripped the four Alastor units in half. Opposite the black Chodarl unit, another AS de-cloaked. Kana smiled, seeing the M9 Mark II that she knew Mao was piloting. To her side, Arbalest uncloaked as well, boxer cannon in hand.

 

“No thanks,” said Kana coldly. “I'd rather die than have to endure you again!” she yelled defiantly.

 

“Not that we will,” said Tessa. “Tell me,” said Tessa, “does Gretchen even know how to make a Lambda driver work?” she asked. Leonard frowned. Seeing this, Kana sneered at him.

 

“Did you think that we wouldn't figure out your back-up plan, Leo?” she asked. “I saw enough of her to realize that she was AS trained, but I'm betting that Sousuke's gonna tear her head off!” she added. She looked to the black AS unit. “Listen to me, Gretchen,” she yelled out, “if you surrender now, we won't have to kill you,” she said.

 

“Kill?” asked Leo, surprised. Tessa met his gaze.

 

“Kill,” she said. The black AS unit's head turned to Leo, then the machine leapt at the Arbalest.

 

However good Gretchen thought she might have been in AS combat, it was over in three seconds. Her Lambda field didn't form properly, and Sousuke did the rest with his boxer cannon and combat blade. Leonard watched, fascinated yet horrified, as his AS unit was crushed like a bug. Turning to look at the two women, he heard three swift booms from behind him. Spinning to look out at his yacht, he was just in time to see it fireball and sink in less than a minute.

 

Seething with anger, he turned to stare at Tessa and Kaname. “I surrender,” he said coldly. To his surprise, Tessa shook her head.

 

“No, brother,” she said. “You don't get to surrender,” she whispered. Closing her eyes, she turned to Kaname, who hugged her.

 

“What do you mean, I don't get to surrender?!” demanded the man. “MITHRIL doesn't allow its people to kill enemies who surrender!” he reminded the two. Neither Kana nor Tessa reacted.

 

“Mister Silver,” came a quiet voice from his left. Turning, he saw Yu Fan standing there, a curved blade in her hand.

 

“You!” he hissed, taking a step back. “Tess! You can't do this!” he screamed. Yu Fan advanced on him. “Tessa! You're my little sister! Stop her!” he yelled, retreating from the advancing girl. Kaname held Tessa closer, covering the smaller girl's ears with her arms as she felt hot tears soak her breasts. Wrapped around Kana's chest, she felt Tessa's arms begin to tremble. “Stop! No! You can…gulgh!” Leonard's voice cut off with a nasty, wet gurgle. Kaname felt a tremor run down her spine as she tried not to think about what could make that sort of sound.

 

Minutes passed. “It's over,” said Yu Fan's voice. Kaname and Tessa relaxed, letting the field dissolve around them. Picking up the small unit, Tessa and Kaname kept their backs to the spot where Leonard had died. Looking out to sea, Tessa saw the De Danaan surface, the flight deck opening as a AS carrier and a observation/passenger chopper rose from the flight deck. First, she, Kana and Yu Fan - still dripping sea water from her clean-up - boarded the transport, which moved back to the sub. Then, Sousuke and Mao locked their units into the carrier's racks, and they withdrew from the island. Once the units were recovered, the flight deck closed and the boat submerged. Two minutes later, a thermite/plasma warhead turned the island into a lagoon - as well as destroying all evidence of what had happened. When the regular patrol came by three days later, the Australian navy was puzzled to find that it was short an uninhabited island.

 

Aboard the submerged De Danaan, the crew welcomed back their Captain, Kaname, and the missing Urzu team. None of them were sure what to make of Yu Fan, but if Tessa said it was ok for her to be aboard, then so be it. Tessa changed into her uniform and went to the bridge, Kana following her. “I have the conn, Commander,” she stated firmly. Kalinin saluted her.

 

“You have the conn, Captain,” he confirmed. “Welcome home,” he added. Tessa smiled at him.

 

“It's good to be home,” she said quietly. Looking over at Kana, her smile faded. “But, we have loose ends to clean up, and a Urzu team to clear of charges,” she said firmly. “Helm, come about to three one one degrees, all ahead full, depth three hundred meters,” she said.

 

“Aye! Heading three one one, ahead full, depth three hundred meters,” recited the helmswoman.

 

“Where to, Tessa?” whispered Kaname. Tessa smiled at her.

 

“Guess,” said the girl.

 

-

 

Author's Notes:

 

One more chapter (Epilog) to go. Five points for anyone who can piece together where the ambush went down. Next time, we see what Tessa does about the situation with her Urzu team, Yu Fan talks about her last order from Gauron, and the bills come due. Be there.