Page 12 of Vapor (BSC #32)

“It’s not like it got me anything but exhausted, hallucinating and malnourished. I’m not a ranger but understand at Officer rank what that job entails right down to ordering the arrest of compromised men.” Sixty-two days of hell.

He nods. “Officer Judge Advocate General, reserve you in school one year you enlist.” I’m not surprised he knows my record.

“That’s how you got colonel?” Jones asks.

I smile at him. “I finished school early and started college but couldn’t enlist. I turned 18 and took reserve until I finished the year. When I enlisted, I was already Officer tracked and pre law got me higher on the Flep list so I was one that got school paid for.”

He shakes his head. “You went to boot camp?”

I nod. “Summer break. Colonel is 4 years with Air Force if you do all the TIG boards. I took everything while in law school so it was six years but collected all my schedule would allow. It worked to get me the higher rank faster but I swear they were trying to kill me with the Ranger assessment. They said I would breeze through it. If it weren’t for my mom, I would never have done it.

I got deployed to CENTCOM when she got the remission news.

She never told me the cancer was back. She was on cruises, went to an air balloon festival and even came to Jordan, it was a great time but I would have taken leave for her.

” I breathe. “The point was that I shot for the higher rank to pay for her treatments. After, it was to pay for her to have the best life.” I smile. “She was happy. My aunt said I did it.”

“You good Brother, son to mom. You aunt here?”

I smile seeing the chopper holograms show. “She moved to Champion.”

He nods. “Good. I build she want to be close to you.” He takes a step closer to Jones and asks about the chopper view.

“Drones. They’re set on the outside of the choppers.

They orbit the choppers in constant motion for the whole mission.

We can show from inside but this shows the rescue.

The small chopper is pure firepower. Blackhawk is the Chinooks security.

They’re tactical heavy too but their purpose is keeping the work horse safe. ”

“Badass three. The Chinook, Blackhawk and bubble chopper. Same purpose too.” Tats’ voice still has amazement in it.

Vapor takes a clipboard from a tech and hands it to me. “The rescue objectives I’m leaving for. Sarah is a navigator and will take you to a room with the profiles, counter surveillance and rescue contract. I should have asked, are you okay moving?” She points to Sarah walking back in.

I smile. “I should be asking you that but I’m good. No one ever asked you either.”

She laughs. “Nope and I have no idea why I like that. I have a message in chat about the houses being done. I’ll send that on to Moss and Sarah so they can keep everyone updated.

The teams will like a house they can relax in.

The small campers they have now are nice and do the job but a real house will show the Badass acceptance is permanent. ”

“You went from when did we decide to, you’re accepting in one sentence. Now your teams will have permanent housing. Does anything throw you?” I ask but she snorts and waves a hand like I’m kidding. I wasn’t kidding. She’s either crazy or processes information and outcomes very quickly.

I follow a laughing navigator to the glass wall. “She loves any challenge and the adrenaline of working against a clock.”

Or that. I notice the door handle that appears to be floating on a glass wall I didn’t know had a door. “Sounds like you know her well.”

“The original classified team. We’re all here and picked up other branch members from our missions. We’re going to need them. Chief Jones is holding job intel until she gets back.”

I nod, surprised she said so much. “They just took the Badass Club and help. It will help.”

The navigator is shocked then a huge grin shows. “I was voting for it. We had one that wants member background with the kid rescues and all.”

“Alder wanted background for SOAR members. Badass has a thing with protecting kids. The women that show for the kid care jobs here are rescues themselves. Cort shut down trafficking here in the west. The women have been on the ABSZ. The ones coming here are ready for more than bakery work, Aylen Knight said.”

Her face jumps right into awe. “The Advocacy Club,” she whispers like it’s a secret.

“Yeah, she has therapists coming for the kids. She’s a reader and knew you’d need that. Aylen helps with everything and she’s a healer too but I don’t understand it.”

Her head is moving from side to side slowly. “I just gave that information to our engineer. He seemed impressed with bikers opening an Advocacy Club.”

I nod and point. “The surveillance and counter surveillance?”

She remembers the job and moves quickly to a keyboard.

Vapor is going out but I don’t know when.

She needs advice on what to stay away from.

Most people don’t think of things like airspace but some countries will just as soon shoot you down than warn you.

Private contractors hold no weight unless they’re working for the country.

American can be seen as friend or foe depending on what a million military members, politicians, businesses or civilians claiming rights the country doesn’t offer, do on any given day that might piss off the guy watching a camera.

I sit and get to reading objective.

~*~*~

SOAR Rising

Vapor

The non answer to Badass may have gotten me more than I ever thought I’d be able to do as a MERC.

Nash told me Cort will give me everything because he pushed for the Club in a Club and Falcon reamed him out for it.

Everyone is on him for not waiting for an answer and just steam rolling us into the Club.

I didn’t say, but we were headed that way anyway and we weren’t ordered to do it.

Nash’s smile told me he knows. I got a lesson in the jet, then the crazy I keep hearing of Badass just left it for me, saying my prints are already in it.

I’m flying a brand-new jet to the carrier the FBI has moving from Italy toward Greece in the Mediterranean Sea.

If I scripted my life, it would not be this good.

“Pres, I sent the link for the report. Libya is the last place you should be but the one that needs more military forces showing.”

Julius has me turning. “You’re calling me Pres now?” I’ve signed nothing. I do have a multimillion-dollar jet sitting outside my hangar so maybe I owe the crazy Badass nuts.

“You’re my new President. The Soar Club plan was decided and you helped do it.”

I breathe deep. Someone said no to the title. I try it. “My Officers don’t call me Pres. Commander on Ops, Vapor the rest of the time. That’s not a suggestion. I don’t do suggestions.”

He smiles like a crazy Badass nut. “Roger Boss is the Badass answer to everyone that says that. Good luck with it, Boss. So, Libya is under the travel ban, as in don’t go there.

The reason is the number one rating for sex and labor trafficking, exploiting migrants, refugees and asylum seekers.

You could have picked an easier country rated higher than ten just to get to dangerous and red.

Because of the high risk, you have an extra pilot and engineer coming with you.

Alder wants to ride in the jet and the pilot is flying the plane over with the team. ”

That stops my feet from moving. “Alder, the little guy with a brain bigger than my mom’s?”

He laughs at me. It wouldn’t be so bad but the bastard tips forward holding his middle like his stomach is doing somersaults over the question.

I walk toward the better crazy Badass has shown me admiring the jet as he acts a fool.

The dipshit catches up. “Sorry, Boss. I don’t know your mom. Alder is President of the Alpha-Bits and one of Cort’s seconds. He’s been on Ops and ranks on the leaderboard. He’s a ninja level or master in martial arts.”

I stop short and look at the man spouting new crazy. I just forwarded the personnel file to Moss to get Julius up on the roster as colonel. We don’t need crazy colonels. “He’s been on Ops and is a ninja?” It comes out monotone.

“He didn’t use ninja on ops but he shot a cyborg in Gosau, I think. No, it may have been…”

“Stop. The boy shot a cyborg?”

He nods. “Yeah, they were in a CIA shell or collecting paperwork or sold Alpha-Bits. The A’s are all in their twenties. I think Akai is closer to thirty.”

What? “The albino’s whose names start with A are in their twenties? The Anton boy is in his twenties?” The brand-new jet was easier to take.

The look that gets is caustic. “You know, the one thing I admire above all else in Badass is that the Officers in BSC are known for the honor they live by. I’m a JAG, integrity, to me, is wrapped in honor and respect.

That’s for me, for you and for every person in our country.

I will not jeopardize my standing as a JAG Officer, a BSC Badass member or a SOAR officer by lying to my new President.

BSC Badass Officers get that easily, as if it’s in their blood.

Maybe it’s the readers keeping them honest but it’s there and I love that it is.

Yes, the As are the biggest group that made it.

They were grown in experiments of ten and there are multiple alphabets but only nine A’s and, yes, they are the oldest. The next highest number groups are five and there are three groups of five.

Alder is the only number seven alive. He’s mid or late twenties by now but I will not ask. ”

My jaw clenches. I am the dipshit here and acceptance of that sucks.

“I do not have all that information but have picked up some from Aaron. I didn’t ask because it was classified when we heard it on a Scepter mission.

I was told, have read and even witnessed the Badass penchant for honor and was out of line.

Being distracted by all the new and itching to fly the brand-new Badass jet is not an excuse but a heads-up to my lack of focus when shiny and new tease me. ”

He smiles like I hoped he would. “You’re so full of shit but the Badass is in there and you threw it out showing that honor and respect.

Alder worked with Mucimi and another Prince to get Lockheed building that new jet.

You can ask him about it on the way to the ship.

I noted the airspace you need to stay far away from and put contacts for the region in case of emergency.

We have military from the UK that are on a joint base who have offered a hand if you need it.

The commander is new to Badass and hopes you’ll call. ”

I smile at that. “I’d be in need of artillery, or a rescue.”

He nods. “I’m aware, but felt you needed the option in the event that Libya is one big kill zone you’re flying into.”

Being the commander of this new club, I roll my hand showing the patience of a ten-year-old. “Does Alder have flight gear?”

He nods. “He’s a pilot and they built a chopper he flies from Club to Club around Phoenix. He doesn’t fly it more than a hundred or so miles and has to stay low because of the wind in the high desert.”

I shake my head. “He does everything.”

“If you need a fix for something, ask him on the trip. He’s a doctor, architect, lawyer for everything by now, surgeon, scientist, knows water, solar, all kinds of energy and DNA something.

He doesn’t understand social… no, it’s sociology.

They lived in the lab and didn’t interact with each other so he has trouble with social situations that he hasn’t studied to learn appropriate reactions. ”

I don’t know if I should cry for what they went through or be relieved I might know something the boy doesn’t.

He’s not even a boy. I shake my head and focus.

“He has flight gear, he’s a ninja and can shoot, so he doesn’t need Security.

” I really don’t want someone chattering the entire way.

Alder seems more like me than Sarah with her excited chatter over a word or phrase that sparks her mood or causes it.

I turn for the new jet.

“Wait. The Alpha-Bits always have Security. If he’s not with you, he’ll have a Protector with him. It would be planned. It’s just the way it is. You’ll have Security too, it may be on your crew or Badass sent, but you don’t go anywhere alone.”

What the hell? “When did that get decided?”

“When you took the Club. All Presidents are covered.”

Shit. “I did read that. I’m just a commander.”

He laughs at me and turns around walking away. “Keep saying that, Boss. The delivery needs work because even you don’t believe it. Safe trip. I’ll be in Ops. Chat me questions.”

The bastard.