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Here you'll find
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Mount Robillard
24. A Plan"Ahem."Vanya managed to turn his head enough to look at the door without removing his tongue from Corinn's mouth, and frowned at Lancer. The younger man shrugged, grinning sheepishly. "Now that I have your attention," he continued, "just came to tell you that you're wanted in the common room. Although I can see that you're being very much wanted here as well." Corinn reluctantly extracted his big hand from Vanya's trousers which were, as usual, so tight that Lancer wondered how the hell he had managed to get it inside them without causing his partner's precious assets irrevocable damage. Vanya repaid the favor by pulling the hem of Corinn's tank top down, hiding that the impressively muscular midriff once more from plain view, and nodded in satisfaction. "Oh well," he sighed philosophically, "maybe we really had better stop groping each other outside our own room if we don't want to be disturbed." "I rather think you enjoy making a show of it," Lancer muttered as he walked back towards the common room, the two big boys in tow. "I heard that!" Corinn protested loudly. "You were meant to," Lancer retorted and swiftly escaped a hand that was about to pinch his bottom. "And I honestly believe that you need more to do. As it is, you've got far too much time to go about making a show of it in every possible place!" "Somebody sounds envious," Vanya observed with a wink to Corinn. "Hasn't somebody gotten any today?" "Well I certainly have..." Lancer began, then faltered and blushed brightly as the two waggled their eyebrows at him. "Oh for heaven's sake! Is it really impossible to talk to you for one full minute without talking about sex?" "Yes, but then, nobody hardly ever tries!" Vanya slapped him companionably on the shoulder. "I wonder why?" "Yeah, I'd really like to know that too!" Lancer tried to look insulted, with poor results. "Could it be something about the two of you?" "Or maybe there's something wrong with the air," Corinn said cryptically. "I mean, strange things began happening already well before Vanya decided to grace the place with his presence." They had reached their destination, and at Corinn's last words Vanya stopped to strike a pose at the door. "Enter Mr. Blowjobman!" he announced proudly. Everybody turned to look and more than one person struggled to hide a grin. "Who was it that wanted me here?" "Right over here," Osip answered from a round table in the corner. "And what might my Commanders desire?" Vanya bowed with a flourish and strutted over. Osip raised an eyebrow at him. "Your professional services, what else? Sit down, man." Vanya slipped around a chair and leaned his elbows on the table, pulled Corinn closer and leveled a questioning glance at the three men across the table. Arria looked like a mischievous elf, sitting wedged between the two brothers Dahomey who not only looked remarkably similar but had also, accidentally or not, adopted nearly identical postures, arms crossed on their broad chests and head slightly tilted. "OK, what's up, Commanders?" Vanya's usual joking leer gave way to an expectant lopsided smile and his eyes took on an altogether chilling glint. Arria watched the transformation in fascination, as always marveling at the man's ability to switch from diamond-hard dedication to outrageous buffoonery and back again at the drop of a hat. "This." Arria spread on the table a thin film that showed a patchwork of narrow lines printed in many different colors. "You know that we've been toying with a certain plan for quite some time now. And we know you've been a little frustrated at the apparent lack of any progress. But there have been reasons " "There always are, good reasons." Vanya nodded to them. "I know that. That's why somebody else is always the commander, not a hothead like me." "I think that you're far from a hothead," Osip remarked. "But anyway. As Arria said, there have been reasons why we've stalled, the lack of information being a major obstacle." "And now?" Corinn prompted, studying the graph in front of them with suddenly almost greedy eyes. Arria nodded. "Now we've got a jackpot. This here is the layout of the Plains Base." "Is this accurate?" Vanya's attention was already concentrated on the map, his shoulders hunched as he looked at it more closely. "Rather good," Arria confirmed. "Our intelligence has just provided this, and we wanted to take a look at it with Orwel and you." "I'm honored, Commanders." This time Vanya's face and voice were absolutely serious. The lack of playfulness was almost shocking as he looked at them under his nearly white brows. "To be included at this stage already. I really am honored." "We need your insight," Osip said, equally serious. "We're not even trying to pretend that we'd know enough of this kind of operations to make any real plans. Hell, we probably don't even have one per cent of the people needed for it!" "Don't be too hasty, Commander!" Vanya grinned. "In many cases, the fewer people, the better. Let's take a look at this before making any far-fetched predictions, shall we?" Orwel eyed him dubiously, but even he had to admit that Vanya's questions were shrewd, his comments blood-curdlingly cunning. He himself did his best to identify accurately the various buildings indicated in the layout, to dig deep into his memory and dredge out every single detail he could remember even the ones that had seemed totally irrelevant just a moment ago. And the amount of information they managed to put together began to reach staggering proportions, he realized after an intense-looking Corinn had fetched everybody a second round of coffee. The evening wore on, Arria took notes, Vanya squinted at the layout with the eyes of someone who already sees the real thing emerging from some scant lines on a film. Osip was arguing about distances with Scott (at which point had he joined the group?), and only Fonzo's arm around Shaun's waist prevented the flustered-looking boy from falling spread-eagle on the table from his perch on the back of a couch. Orwel looked around and fought the urge to pinch himself. Here he was, sitting comfortably with a group of rebels, in all seriousness planning an attack to the Plains Base, Jainah. An experimental base with a considerable number of specialized S-clones to pilot a fleet of the Union's powerful, modern fighters. To this place they were going to attack with a force that included less than a hundred planes no two of them quite similar in make, condition, firepower, or speed and only a handful of ground troops? And yet his brother had the guts to claim that they were neither crazy nor suicidal. Orwel shook his head. The craziest thing of all was, he decided, that in a way he agreed with Osip. Of course it was pure madness, but he could also understand the rebels' impatience, their desire to stop waiting and do something. Even if they were going to go down in a blaze, at least they'd leave their mark. In fact he felt the same slow-burning rage in himself. It had been simmering for a long time already. And maybe, just maybe a glorious end was not all they could hope to achieve. Vanya's confidence was contagious. "This is the shortest route," he said, index finger tapping on a side gate on the layout. "And 'cause the Captain here says the main gate is the most heavily guarded, that's where we need to create a good and proper distraction." "Such as...?" Arria was leaning his chin on a palm, coffee mug in the other hand, blond hair nearly as wildly spiked as Vanya's. Vanya flashed him a devilish grin. "A big bang, Commander. We'll need to rig the front gate with enough explosives to make some serious havoc, and time the bombs so that the one that opens the side gate and a couple of other places, not to make things too obvious are triggered by the initial blast." "Right." Osip nodded. "And all the while me and the flyboys are doing our damnedest to distract them from the air." "That sounds good!" Vanya chuckled. "But the real problem is then, what do we do once we're inside." "What we'd really have to do is to, first of all, stop the AD and prevent any planes from getting up," Orwel intervened. "Otherwise it'll be just one big death trap for our pilots." Osip flashed him a bright smile and Orwel noticed with a start what he'd said. Our pilots. The rebels. Oh yeah. Suppose that's it, then, he thought dourly. After all, am I not going to go against the Union? So I might quit lying to myself and admit it: I'm one of them now. "Yeah," Vanya nodded. "And that's really the crux of it all. How the hell do we do that?" "On the ground the S-clones are no fighters," Arria mused. Orwel's fuming glance jolted him enough to make him continue quickly: "So if they're kept out of their planes, they really shouldn't cause too much trouble." "Yes, but how to do that?" Fonzo's low voice said from behind them. Osip turned to look at him and Shaun and smiled. "It's next to impossible to keep these kids away from their planes, and if they're given the command to fly, I can't see what could prevent them." "We don't even have any bombers, and the aircraft hangars are too big to blast away in a flash," Vanya mused, then looked in alarm at Osip who grabbed his chest with both hands and began to make gagging sounds. "My heart! Ohh... my pilot's heart is breaking to hear such talk!" he gasped, and Arria patted him on the back. "Relax, lover. I won't let them do anything of the sort," he said sympathetically and received a look that probably was meant to be watery-wobbly but didn't succeed too well. Shaun giggled behind him. "But really, now we're faced with a problem." Orwel's gaze bored through the map and his brows drew together. "It's not enough to get in, and we all know that." "I think," Osip said slowly and straightened himself after the impromptu drama session, "that at this point we need to decide one thing. What's our goal?" A complete hush fell over the table. Everyone looked straight ahead or peered warily around, not really meeting each others' eyes. Orwel raised his face and realized suddenly, with a start, that they were far from alone. A veritable crowd had gravitated around the table and was now hovering behind their chairs and small sofas in silence, faces unusually serious, an ominous flame in their eyes. "It's too damn dangerous to even try if we're not going to gain something big enough by it," Arria said quietly. "This is an all or nothing mission," Vanya agreed huskily. "Nothin' less than everything will be enough." "I second that," Osip nodded. "So, I repeat: what is our goal?" For a moment the silence was complete and then it was broken by Scott's dark, determined voice: "Take over the Plains Base." Orwel let out a breath he hadn't known he was holding, and turned to look at Scott. Everyone else did the same. The clone's regular face was calm, almost serene. He nearly smiled. "There it is then, friends." Arria stood up and glanced around. "Primary mission objective: take over the Plains Base. Failing that, secondary objective: destroy it." Orwel shook his head in disbelief as the people surrounding them flashed grins, shook hands, slapped each other's backs. Osip gave him a sideways glance. "What?" "I can't believe you people," Orwel sighed. "Least of all I can believe myself... that I'm actually going to go along with this craziness." "Correction, brother dear, this is not craziness any more. From now on we call it a plan." Osip grinned. "Let's take another look at the layout, shall we?" A few more rounds of coffee later the crowd of onlookers had thinned considerably, as people had reluctantly tucked themselves to bed in anticipation of the next day's work shifts. About half a dozen heads were still nearly pressed together above the layout drawing, and a few people were stubbornly hanging on the backs of chairs, trying to see at least something of the plans. Vanya stretched his muscular arms above his head, Arria rubbed eyes that felt like someone had really poured some sand into them, Orwel grimaced as he took a mouthful of coffee that hadn't been hot for a long time any more. "So, if Corinn's the driver, he's got to stick close to the vehicle to make sure nothing happens to it," Osip repeated. "And that leaves you pretty short of people to work with, right?" "Right," Vanya admitted grudgingly. "But with all respect, we're not nearly as short of them as you think, Commander." "Care to elaborate?" "Well, I'll of course be going there to set up the explosives," Vanya lifted up one finger. "But I really just need one guy to watch my back while I'm working. No army there. So if I get to take my pick, I know already who it's gonna be. I'll take Lancer." "What?!" Lancer, who'd been leaning on Scott's well-shaped back, nearly lost his footing and grabbed a supporting hold of a chair. He stared open-mouthed into Vanya's ice-blue eyes. "You aren't serious?" "Sure I am." Vanya nodded vigorously. "Let's hear your reasons, Vanya," Osip said with interest. "Why not, say, Orwel? Because he's definitely one of the people to infiltrate the base." "Too big," Vanya said, grinned at the dumbfounded expressions. "Me and Captain together, we just might be too big a thing to pass for a kangaroo in the perimeter alarms." The men around the table looked at each other and a flash of understanding lit in their eyes. Only some thirty years before, someone had had the bright idea to import kangaroos to Jainah and see if they'd find the conditions acceptable, in the hopes of finding another sustainable way to produce proteins for the planet's inhabitants. Five years and a few runaway kangaroos later the experiment had been officially declared a success, as the animals seemed to really thrive in their new environment. Ten years and a population explosion of kangaroos later it'd been unanimously agreed that the idea might not have been that brilliant idea after all. However, by now a sort of truce had been settled: nobody tried to eradicate the animals totally from the plains, since they clearly favored that area and didn't even try to spread to the more forested areas, and they were tolerated as long as they didn't do too much damage. As Orwel had informed the others, kangaroos were rife around the Plains Base, and the perimeter alarms had been carefully adjusted not to be triggered by their presence close to the fences. They didn't do any harm anyway grazing there, and after an attempt to increase the sensors' sensitivity the base had been driven crazy by constant false alarms. Nobody fancied rushing over and over again to check a madly alerting section of the fence, only to be greeted by a mildly annoyed looking kangaroo that would've much preferred being left to munch that succulent grass in peace, thank you very much. "You're right," Corinn grinned to his partner. "You gonna put Lancer in your pouch or what?" "No way," Vanya raised his hands. "I don't want to get in the bad books of a certain pilot here... But yeah, he'd be my number one choice for a partner for this part of the mission. He's small, quick thinker, swift on his feet, and he's a super shot. Plus, he's got experience with the clones." "Excellent reasons," Arria nodded. "I for one have no objections. So, Lancer it will be that is, of course, if you're willing to do it?" He turned to look at Lancer who stood stock still. His head was reeling. Me? But I'm not a soldier... He met the expectant, calm eyes of the Commanders, of Vanya, Orwel, and took a deep breath. "Of course I'll do it, if everybody agrees I'm good enough for the job." "I think you'd be ideal for this," Osip said slowly. "I know you've got no military training except what you've got here, but " "Neither have I, Commander," Corinn interjected. "But I think I've picked up a thing or two while staying here, and I'm willing to give this mission everything I've got." Lancer swallowed thickly and felt Scott's arm snake around his waist. He turned his head to look into Scott's blue eyes. They were shining with pride. "So are we all," he said softly. Arria looked at him for a while without a word, then nodded and leaned once more to look at the map. "That is settled then," he said and yawned. "And now I really think we ought to be heading to bed, all of us. We're too tired to think straight, and quite frankly I doubt that there'll be any brilliant ideas coming up any more. So, how about calling it a day?" The others grudgingly agreed, and Osip began to fold the layout away. Orwel remained sitting on the sofa, forehead creased. "What's wrong?" Osip asked. "Too late now to go tucking your kids to bed, daddy, they've been asleep for hours already." "No, no," Orwel waved his hand and sighed. "There's just this one question that's bugging me, and that's what we need to figure out before we can even seriously dream of going forward with this." "I think I know," Vanya said. "Getting in is not the hard part, but what we do then." "Precisely," Orwel said. "It's very clear and obvious that we need to take over the base, but how the hell do we do that? We'd need ground troops, and plenty, to do that. A few people won't be able to reach all strategic places quickly enough, and I'm worried about a carnage in the air." "If we could only figure out a way to get the clones under control," Lancer said with a huge yawn and stretched his arms up so that his jacket hitched up, revealing a pale flat stomach. Orwel's eyes snapped wide open and he whirled around to gape at Lancer. "Clones. Clones! I'm an idiot not to think of this earlier, but you said it. Of course!" "But it's a no can do situation," Fonzo objected, and Orwel waved his arms impatiently around. "No, no, no. I have it now. Listen who is it that basically runs the place? Who takes care of everything? Who caters, repairs, services, makes things tick? Who is the key to everything, and I mean everything that happens there? Come on, people!" The others stared at Orwel as if he'd gone completely overboard, and he snorted. "The M-clones. They ought to be our primary concern here." "The M-clones? But..." Osip began, only to be interrupted by an enthusiastic Orwel who looked like he would burst at the seams any moment. "Yes, the MC's! Never mind the SC's, they're lethal once in the air but what happens if the MC's do not get their planes ready?" "Nothing," said Scott who looked both intrigued and dubious. As if he couldn't really even imagine such a mutiny. Orwel nodded emphatically. "Exactly. If the MC's don't provide the planes, the SC's are harmless. And if the MC's could be persuaded to work for us, or at least not work for the Union, we'd have the base on our palm." "Is that then a can-do situation?" Osip was not nearly convinced, but Arria stepped between the two brothers. "Hey all right, I admit that I was wrong. One more brilliant idea did in fact come up after I said none would. But quite frankly, even if you still feel energetic enough to go on with this, I want to crash. Now. Within the next few minutes. And I want my lover with me. Understood?" "Brother, higher powers have made their decision," Osip said with a smile. Orwel's objections were drowned by a jaw-cracking yawn. "The voice of reason has indeed spoken," he chuckled reluctantly. "All right... good night everybody." "Looks like the meeting's over, gorgeous," Vanya said with a wink and he, too, stood up from the table. Corinn grinned to him and ran a hand down his chest. "At long last, hunk," he said. "Now, where were we before somebody interrupted us?" "At least get into your room before going on," Lancer groaned. "Give us a break!" "Oh, but in this line of work you've got to take your chances whenever possible," Vanya protested. His tone was light but something in it made Lancer shudder slightly, and Scott pulled him closer. "Besides, Lancer, you will not be here to watch them," he said. "I will give you something else to think about." Lancer turned to Scott with a slight gasp and surprised him thoroughly by kissing him passionately. Corinn looked at them and swallowed, then followed Vanya who nudged his arm and stepped silently through the door.
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