Several hours later LoneWolf and Winter hear the roar of the engine from Zeke's Hover cycle and two motorcycles heading towards the shop. Zeke lands his hover cycle next to the Hummer outside as Regal and Colleen pull up on their cyclones. After the three of them secure their helmets. They walk in to the shop where they see LoneWolf and everyone else working on the remote combat units.
"So what do I get to shot at this time?" Zeke ask with that good ol' boy charm of his?
" Well how does a possible seek and destroy group sound to you?" as LoneWolf looks up from the drone he had been working on.
"Alright everyone let's head inside and take this to the meeting room. I don't want any one listening to what I am going to tell you." as Winter closes the shop doors. LoneWolf heads back towards the door that leads inside and wait for everyone else to follow suit. Regal and Colleen are the last ones threw as he shuts the door and secure it the inside so no else can surprise them just in case.
Everyone heads to the meeting room and takes their respected sits at the table. LoneWolf picks up a cigar from a box of them that is always kept in this room and turns the over head fan system on so no else has to put up with the smell or smoke from his cigar.
"Alright here's the problem. This morning about four hours ago a family from this village was gunned down by seven Skelebots. I managed to take three down and Winter finish the rest off." he pauses for second and then continues"The only survivor this morning attack is a young girl who is still asleep in the spare bedroom." LoneWolf watches the expressions on everyone's face. He knows that Regal and Colleen are very protected about kids and Dennis falls into that same category. As for Zeke and Jerodan he thinks they feel the same way.
"Well you know as well as I do that with the Coalition losing this many robots that they are going to send a team to investigate first what happen to them and second to destroy this village here with as many different races that live here. This is what I purpose me and Winter lead the Coalition forces away from this area to an area of our choosing. Once we get them there I want you Regal, Dennis and Zeke to open up with your weapons and then " looking towards Jerodan " I want you to launch the remote weapon systems. During this engagement Winter will be jamming their comm. system as well as their targeting system." looking out at everyone "we are going to need to keep them away from this village." shifting his view from everyone to Regal "can you contact your employer and find out if she can send additional forces or some vehicles to help evacuate the people from here?"
Regal looks thoughtful for second "I think she can send a transport that is capable of moving everyone from here, but their going to need support just in case the Coalition send their fighters this way."
Dennis speaks up "do you want us to take the hummer or something else?"
"I was thinking more about that fancy hover tank we were given by Castle Caoth. You still remember how to operate it don't you?"
"Oh! ya! I remember how that thing works. It has more fire power then your suit. Still what is Zeke going to use while me and Regal open up against them?"
Lonewolf looks towards Zeke "you remember that sky cycle I built for you? The quiet one?"
"Ya! I remember that thing. I almost crashed it the first time I took it up. If you hadn't been able to take control of it like you did I would had died that day."
"I want you to take it and use it. It's quiet and maneuverable."
"Sounds good to me. As long as I can stil'l shoot my new rifle at them."
Colleen looks at LoneWolf "What do you want me to do?"
LoneWolf shift his glaze to Colleen "I hadn't forgotten about you. I want you to take our hover tank and co-ordinate everyone as best as you can. With Winter jamming everyone we are going to be blinded as well. So I need you to relay everything to us. As well as helping Jerodan with the extra firepower from the tank."turning his gaze back to Regal "I'll put a call in to Skylynx and see if she can provide support for the transport."
Regal smiles "knowing that crazy mutant lynx she'll be more then happy to help out. She's crazier then Jerodan and Zeke."
"Hey! I resemble that remark!" as Jerodan gives a shitty ass grin. Looking towards Lonewolf "is the tank still loaded up with your multi-purpose warheads Wolfy?"
"Nope! I changed them out with the smaller laser guided high explosive armor piercing ones. They should be powerful enough to penetrate anything the Coalition send against us. If not you can link up here with the remote launch system and send the long range missiles here to them. They won't be excepting that."
"You finally got the system working ?" as Jerodan looks towards both Winter and LoneWolf.
"Yep! it was finished last week and tested several times. We shouldn't have a problem sending a signal from the hover tank or Winter's armor to the remote firing system here at the garage."
Zeke looks at Lone Wolf as well "did you get that special project done for me that I asked you al' about Lone Wolf?"
"Sure did Zeke. You can now hit the flea off a horse with the new targeting system made to your Juicer rifle as well you also have a choice between the specially made .50 caliber rounds or the increase laser."
"Oh! I think I'm getting a woody." as Zeke smiles. He finally gets to play with his special toy.
"I hate to put a damper on everything here, but who is going to watch the young girl you rescue?" as Colleen looks towards LoneWolf for an answer to her question.
"I was going to see if Matty could watch over her while we are out discouraging the Coalition from coming here?"
"Do mean Matty the elf lady down the street or Matty the herbalist that lives near the edge of town?" as Colleen sits there quietly.
"Matty the elf lady. I know she has a softness for kids like you and Regal do and I think this little girl would be better off with her then staying her with one of us while the rest of us are out getting raid of the Coalition." as Lone Wolf takes a drag on his cigar.
"That's true. She is a nice lady and has been a big help to almost every one in town either baby sitting for them or healing their kids. I think she would make a good step mother for her." as Colleen relaxes against her chair.
"After this meeting why don't you come with me down there and we'll see if she accepts. You can carry the girl while she is still asleep."
"Okay!" as Colleen looks towards her husband and nod in agreement to his unspoken question.
"Hey! LoneWolf" as Regal speaks up. "Me and Colleen were thinking about starting a family after this mission was over and wanted to know if you could ask the mayor of this town for the land that is just outside of town."
"No problem Regal. I'll see about getting you that land. How many acres do you want?"
"At least a thousand acres if that's possible. I want to start a horse and cattle ranch on it and maybe have a shooting range as well."
"You want to settle down blackly and give all this up?" as Zeke looks towards his sparing partner.
"Yep! me and Colleen have been thinking about starting a family of our own for awhile now. We've been adventuring and helping people out for so long that we started to think maybe having a family of our own would be nice." as Regal looks towards Zeke. Zeke's been more like a brother to him and would hate to see the poor juicer die because of the chemicals coursing threw his body. Regal knows if Zeke stops now maybe his creator can cure the damage that has been done and give him those same abilities he has already.
"Boy! you two would be the last people I would think wanted to settle down and start a family." as Zeke shakes his head.
"Well it sort of got us thinking because..." as he looks towards Colleen.
Colleen leans forward in her chair "I'm pregnant." as everyone in the room nearly falls over with that announcement.
"When did this happen?" as Winter looks towards Colleen with a motherly look on her face.
"Remember last month when Regal and I had to leave for two weeks for our physical from our creator?" as she watch as every one present nod their head. "Well at first I thought I just missed my period that month, but when she examine me she discover I was with twins. "
"Boy! doesn't that just shoot all." as Zeke turns to face Regal "dam! Big black your gene's are super strong like you. " as his good'ole boy! accent creeps threw.
"How far along are you Colleen?" as Winter looks towards her.
"My creator says I'm about two months along maybe a little more because of how she made us. Even tho she mutated us like the Coalition did their dog boys we still retain some of our original gene's and reproduction cycle as if we were still on four legs. As you know it normally takes nine weeks for a normal dog to have their children. In my case it's between six to nine months according to my creator. She said I should have a normal human pregnancy. I should be able to still fight up to my fourth month. Anything past that I would be endangering the children and myself."
Winter just smiles. "I think we can accommodate your pregnancy and make sure you don't endanger yourself or the kids." as Winter looks towards LoneWolf.
He just smiles. Colleen and Regal have been a very valuable asset to the team as well their friends. "Just let me know if you guys need anything. I'll make sure you get it. Now back to business here." as LoneWolf brings up maps of the surrounding area.
It's about two hours later when everyone leaves the meeting room. LoneWolf heads to the kitchen and grabs a beer while Winter and Colleen go and check on the little girl still asleep in the spare bedroom with Razz on the bed watching over her.
Jerodan and Regal head towards the teams hover tank parked out back as Dennis takes one of the elevators down into the underground vehicle bay to get the veritech hover tank they got from Castle Caoth..Winter starts gathering together the weapons each team member will need as well double checking the survival packs each member has as well. LoneWolf finishes his beer and goes to get the girl sleeping peacefully in the spare bedroom. He stops and looks at her. Part of him wouldn't mind being her adopted father cause him and Winter had talked about having kids of their own, but knows that this isn't the time for them to have kids. Not with the Coalition pushing to gain more space for themselves and the chao's that they are causing. LoneWolf reaches down and pets his timber wolf on the head. "She's going to be alright boy! We're taking her to a friends house." as Lonewolf walks around the bed and gently picks the sleeping girl up. Colleen comes into the bedroom as well and looks at the little girl in Lonewolf's arms. A smile appears on her face as she moves a lock of her out of the girls eyes.
"She looks so peaceful sleeping there in your arms Lonewolf."
"I know. She is going to have nightmares from those robots killing her parents and then from being nearly killed herself when she took me to them. I was lucky that Winter came along when she did."
"I wish me and Regal could take her, but Matty the elf would make a better set of parents for her right now till we get the ranch up and going."
LoneWolf turns to face Colleen "I forgot what her husband's name was and what he does."
"Hum! If I remember right he runs that trading post over on Hamster street. They started it when they first moved here. He has all sorts of Native American things and a few other races things. I asked him one time where he gets his goods and he told me he has a friend out on the west coast that brings them to him on one of those ley line boats."
LoneWolf and Colleen start heading out of the building and towards the Hummer that Dennis and Jerodan came back in. "You know I tried to get Winter to go on one of those boats and she nearly shot me for asking her. "
Colleen just laughs. "LoneWolf you have to remember she still doesn't trust magic users or people who use magic. She grew up in the Coalition and they taught her that magic was evil and that the people who weld it should be destroy. It wasn't till you rescue her from the Coalition and showed her that it wasn't true that she will even speak to a mage or a magic user. Remember when we took the job from Castle Caoth and she nearly shot Marlene Le Fay there cause she thought she was going to use magic to hurt you, but used it to heal you from those wounds you receive from that demon we stopped."
"Ya! I remember. If Regal hadn't stepped in between Winter and Marlene we would had been in deep trouble. We're lucky that Marlene's husband was an ex-coalition special forces officer and talked to Winter while his wife healed me."
Colleen gets into the hummer first as Lonewolf lays the sleeping girl in her arms. He then walks around to the driver side and gets in and starts the hummer up and heads out towards town.
[ Rifts® is a registered trademark owned by Kevin Siembieda and Palladium Books Inc.]
By Lady Lynx (ladylynx@hotmail.com).
Copyright © 2007, Lady Lynx. All rights reserved.