Star Force: Divergent (SF74) (11 page)

“Actually I’m here to recruit a replacement for my
unit.”

“Replacement?” Veronica asked, her eyes narrowing.
“Did we lose someone?”

“No, just a reassignment. We’re adding more teams as
our numbers grow and Darren is heading up his own now. We need a replacement
for Alpha 9 and I was told to come here to find one…though now I’m wondering if
it wasn’t a setup. Has Brandon been initiated into your divergent clan?”

Veronica smiled widely. “Yep. Did him once myself. He
didn’t stick around too long, and he didn’t mention anything about other Nests
either.”

Mace signed. “Son of a bitch. He didn’t say anything
about this to us.”

“Probably knew how you’d react,” Linty said, with his
body language suggesting that he was eager to get moving again. “Are you
looking for someone in particular?”

“I was told Jyra was here…but now I have my doubts as
to whether or not Brandon was serious or just wanted me to pick up his date.”

“She’s on the halo,” Linty offered as he began walking
on to wherever he was going next.

“Thanks,” Mace said distractedly. He couldn’t believe
Brandon had gone in for this…then again maybe there was some value here he was
overlooking. In fact, he realized he was resisting the notion for a reason he
couldn’t put his finger on. After a few seconds of silence he realized Veronica
was patiently waiting on him, just staring at his face with a devious smile.

“What?”

“Just watching the walls break down.”

Mace sighed. “Brandon has been an Arc Commando longer
than I have. If he thinks there’s some value in this…I don’t know.”

“Then let me fill you in further as we head to Jyra,”
she said, grabbing him by the elbow and dragging him forward. “We’ve learned a
few tricks, and I’m not referring to anything kinky. We’re not doing this to
have some sort of orgy, that’s
civie
crap. We’re just
making use of our biological
hardward
, stripping away
all the nonsense and dealing with what’s really there. We’re warriors, not sex
toys, and we learned that if we try to be sex toys our heads fog up even more.”

“So you tried the kinky route?”

“Before I got here, but others did. It’s not something
to be afraid of, it’s just stupid. They learned from it and moved on. It seems
the fictitious stuff that people try to use to raise their libidos is what
really messes with your head. Recognizing that someone is attractive does not.
It’s the mental simulations that go nutsy. Archons rightly avoid them, but
we’ve found that if we indulge in the physical act of mating, giving our minds
actual data to process rather than fiction, it also solves the problem.”

“Eating so much candy that you make yourself sick of
it?”

“No…but you’re kind of getting the point. We have
sexuality and we have mating mode. Sexuality is just the, let’s say ‘sensor
package’ that allows us to see who’s hot and who’s not. Mating mode is when
your head does go all foggy. Your combat drive is powered down in the process,
then comes back online when you get out of mating mode. Thing is people tend to
get stuck in it, at least part way, and that is a very bad thing to have
happen. We’ve been working on being able to switch in and out of that mode very
fast and cleanly. No hybrid states. But to do that we need practice, hence the
fucking schedules.”

“And once you learn, does it stop there?”

“No. It’s still a social thing, just between Arc
Commandos, when we’re in the Nest. Call it a fun way to continually test your
mental caliber. If you can’t shake yourself out of mating mode and get your
head all messed up then you obviously don’t belong in the field and need to
train yourself back into combat fitness.”

“So you admit it’s partly for fun?”

“Why do we play video games?” she countered.

“Ok, you have a point there.”

“We’re trained to go on very long solo missions and be
comfortable with that. When we’re here we go the opposite way, just because we
can. If we can’t handle that vast duality, then again, it shows a weakness that
a person needs to work on eliminating rather than burying it away out of
sight.”

“You’re criticizing the Archons there, I assume?”

“Honestly I don’t know what they do, all I know is
what we do and this is smart. It’s unusual, deviant as you said considering
normal society, but we don’t exist in normal society anymore. We’re off the
grid for a purpose, and this serves a purpose for us. Might not work for anyone
else, but it works for us. At the end of the day you just have to try it and
risk being stupid for a little while. If that does happen you just shake it off
and move on, a few days lost to a cloudy head. Is there a risk greater than
that?”

“Theoretically no, it’s just out of habit…”

Veronica raised her eyebrows victoriously.

“…which is what we were trained to break,” Mace
finished.

“Keep thinking, don’t block anything out. If we’re all
fools then logical analysis should prove it.”

“Why are you starting to make sense?”

“Because it does make sense.”

“What else have you guys learned?”

“Beds are for sleeping, not fucking. Don’t mix the
two.”

“Really?”

Veronica nodded as they approached one of the
entrances to the halo track. “Best place is in the shower tube.”

“Standing up?”

“Or floating, your choice. But it’s important not to
linger or rest afterwards. You have to go straight into a workout to flush the
residual fog out of your head. It also trains you to switch modes quickly by
forcing the change. A bit awkward at first, because you just want to soak in
the moment, but once you make a habit of it fucking just becomes a part of your
routine that doesn’t affect anything else. And after a while walking around
nude doesn’t turn you on. Maybe it would if you’ve spent 5 years in the field
and then come back, but once you’re here for a while you adjust and it’s just
normal. Breezy, but normal.”

“And you never go topside?”

“Well…we’re not supposed to, but a few of us have gone
on a few nude ninja missions at night just to see how we function in the
forest. It’s not really fun, but it does get you used to knowing what you can
and can’t do without clothes on. I found I miss my shoes the most. But that’s
not part of our new culture here, just something a few of us tried so we could
learn from it. We did discuss the possibility of trying some similar missions
within the city and avoiding anyone seeing us, but we nixed that idea pretty
quick. We want to be able to let our hair down, metaphorically speaking, in the
Nest whenever we’re here, which we think will help us rest and recover better
from whatever crap happens to us in the field.”

“More like letting your clothes down.”

“Semantics. We’ve learned a few things already, but
we’re experimenting and picking up some more as we go, though we’ve got a good
structure in place now. Think about trying it and resist the urge to be shy. It
doesn’t befit an Arc Commando.”

Mace sighed. “I’m glad we’re not being monitored,
because I get the feeling Brandon would be loving this if he was watching.”

“He had a rough time adjusting too, if I remember
correctly.”

“And what about you?”

Veronica shrugged. “I was a
newb
and figured I’d just go along with what everyone else was doing. You’re my
peers and supposed to know what you’re doing, so I stuffed my doubts into the
back of my mind and just tried it. They said it was voluntary, but with
everyone else walking around nude I eventually shed my clothes after a few days
and went from there. I’ll admit, it is a bit of a shock at first, but now I’m
glad for the bonding it gives us.”

“How does that work guy to guy?”

“I don’t know about guy to guy, but girl to girl it’s
a camaraderie thing. We’re in the same club and not hiding anything from each
other. We talk about everything, as we’re supposed to do, and share knowledge,
but you’re right in that the physical component is missing. I feel the bond
more strongly with the guys, but that’s just biology. We’re all on the same
page, separated from the rest of society and off the grid. I don’t get a buzz
from seeing the other girls naked, but it doesn’t put me off like it did
initially, especially when you’d accidently brush up against someone in the
hallway. Now I don’t care. They’re not strangers and they’re not sex partners,
just sisters.”

“Same thing with the guys then?”

“Well…apparently it’s not as easy for them. Apparently
dicks are magnetic and repel each other,” she said with a giggle. “Completely
foreign thinking to me, but whatever. Guys do have their erogenous zone on the
outside so I guess that makes things a bit more sensitive, bumping wise, but
they say they eventually tune each other out. You’re a little uncomfortable
even having this conversation, aren’t you?”

“I’ll admit, I am a bit. And you’re right, that’s a
sign that I have a mental block that I shouldn’t have.”

“I didn’t say anything.”

“You were about to,” he said as they were standing on
the entrance to the halo track as Veronica pointed through the wall. “Jyra is
coming, if you want to catch her.”

Mace had sensed a mind moving at speed towards them,
but hadn’t known who it was. “Thanks, I will.”

“Shall I put you on my schedule?” she said with a
gleaming smile.

“I’ll get back to you,” he said, waving a friendly
goodbye as he jogged up the curved wall and onto the track, turning left and
accelerated so he could match the Arc Commando catching up to him rapidly. She
wore shorts and a jog bra, standard training gear, while Mace wore a casual
uniform with basic shoes, but he was still able to match her stride for stride.

“Hi there,” Jyra said between mild breaths.

“You’re Jyra?”

“Yep. You
new
?”

“I’m not a
newb
,” he said as
they ran in a straight line that would never bend left or right, but that ever
so gradually rose up to loop back around on their position, but to him it felt
like they were running on a never-ending road. “I’m here to find you,
actually.”

“Why me?”

“I was told to come offer you a slot on Alpha 9,
though now I’m not so sure, considering you’re responsible for this nude fest.”

Jyra laughed. “Everyone reacts that way when they
first get here. And I only started the ball rolling. Others have been adding to
it and made it what it is.”

“It sounds like a nightmare.”

“Feel free to check our training logs. You’re see
we’re not progressing more slowly because of it.”

“I also think Brandon sent me here on purpose to get
‘indoctrinated.’”

“Did he tell you beforehand?”

“No he didn’t.”

“Ha. I think he just wants you to go through the same
uncomfortable transition as he did. He put up one hell of a fight before he
realized we hadn’t gone insane.”

“I’m not there yet.”

“You will be. What’s Alpha 9, exactly?”

“Special ops field unit. We’re expanding the teams and
took one of our regulars out to start another, leaving us with the need for a
fourth.”

“And you want me?”

“I was told you were spending an inordinate amount of
time here polishing your psionics, though now I think I know the real reason.”

“That is the real reason, though ‘polish’ isn’t the
term I’d use. Now that I have them, I feel like a freaking
newb
rather than a combat vet. I want to get skilled enough that I don’t screw
something up on a mission before I go back out.”

“Well, you’ll be a
newb
on a
team of veterans, but apparently Brandon thinks you’re ready.”

“How soon do you have to be back?”

“He didn’t say, but I assumed I’d spend a couple of
days training here then take you back with me.”

“No good, you’ll need at least 3 weeks.”

“3 weeks?”

“There are seven girls here, times 3 days…”

“I never said I was buying into this.”

“I’ll just wait until you do then.”

Mace couldn’t believe her ego. “Oh really? You’re not
the only Arc Commando available.”

“No, and I really do want that slot if Brandon thinks
I’m ready. But you need to experience what we’ve got here, so for your sake I’m
going to drag my feet,” she said with an innocent smile.

Mace was silent for a moment, not sure what to say to
that and looking for something stinging in reply but nothing was coming to
mind. “Did Brandon set this up with you?”

“Nope.”

“Feels like it.”

“Don’t confuse fun with stupid. Like the sign up front
says, we’re not weak minded. And if there’s even a shred of value in this, why
should we not pursue it?”

“I’m trying really hard to find a fault in your logic
right now.”

“And?”

“Failing miserably, but it still feels…”

“Wrong?”

“Off mission. If the Archons don’t embrace their
sexuality there’s probably a good reason for it.”

“Well, they’re not telling us anything, making us
figure out things on our own, and this is what we’ve figured out. Besides, we
don’t have armies to lead and cities to build and races to annex. Our mandate
is much smaller and more focused. Maybe that has something to do with the
difference or maybe they’re just bigger
badasses
than
us. I don’t know. I just know that there is wisdom in using our sexuality
rather than shoving it in the proverbial closet and not making use of a
biological function we have. That’s as bad as having a rifle in the armory that
you’re told never to use.”

“Stop it, already,” Mace pleaded with her,
sarcastically this time. “You’re making too much sense.”

Jyra smiled, not saying anything, but threw him a ‘got
you now’ look.

“This had better not affect your combat skills,” he
cautioned. “I don’t want some lizard shooting me in the back while your head is
off in
lala
land.”