Glimpse of the Future

[rufusluciusivan]

Part 3

**************

It was the early morning.

The first rays of the sun were timidly showing up, announcing the dawn. However, it was still dark.

Inspector Robyn Rasmus had chosen to not take a sick leave because of her mugging. For her, it was a matter of professional conscience. Any officer of the law of her country knew being assaulted for her outfit was an eventuality… Plus, the blond inspector wanted to seize any chance to salvage her promotion. While she had been ridiculed, the investigation hadn’t been compromised. In fact, her mugging could even help her find new suspects. Robyn had been able to get a glimpse at her mugger. She could try to put a search on her.

It was a minor faux pas… Not her fault... Just plain bad luck... At least, the blond inspector kept telling herself that.

Now, Robyn was seizing the opportunity to regain control of the situation. Several clues, and intel from an informant working for the government itself, were leading her and her colleagues to believe that the kidnappers of Zoé Noyokaze were two women: Talia Agathoklès and Maribel Adrigal. Seemingly harmless traveling sales representatives. But according to what police had dug up, they were in truth mercenaries for hire and expert infiltrators. Hopefully, these women were accomplices of the one who had robbed Robyn of her clothes... She would then have the immense pleasure of getting some revenge by arresting them.

Robyn was ready. She wouldn’t be caught off guard this time.

Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.

Well, it wouldn’t happen to her. Not a chance. No sir.

She had brought with her a literal battalion of regular police officers, an entire strike team of Special Ops agents, and even a few remote-controlled flying drones.

Currently, the blond inspector was giving orders to a group of police officers. She was deploying them in the district in which the two criminals’ house was located.

Her assistant, a young inspector-in-training called Jay, finished talking in her cellphone. “Arthur’s team is in position.” she informed Robyn.

The blond inspector nodded. “Perfect. What about the drones?”

“There’s a technical problem. They’re still fixing them.” Jay answered.

Robyn grimaced. “We don’t have the time to wait for them. Tell the team to get them ready as quickly as they can. We’ll start the mission without the drones.”

“Got it!”

The blond inspector took her walkie talkie, and called the leader of the strike team.

“Meryl. We’re in position. Raid their house.”

“Roger.”

Robyn smiled smugly, and told her assistant: “I have the area completely sealed off. Let them just try and get through our blockade.”

**************

Maribel adjusted the collar of her dark blue police uniform shirt, then smoothened her matching uniform trousers. “I wonder if they’ll ever learn to prefer quality over quantity…”

Talia put on a dark blue police cap. “Probably never.”

Maribel laced her stolen black shoes. “Of course I’m not complaining. I’m simply a bit... curious. Uniform stealing has existed for decades in our country. Centuries even. And yet the law enforcement has never been able to find a way to properly counter it.”

“You can’t expect every officer to be a superwoman, even with police training.” Talia explained while adjusting her belt. “And the ones who are TRULY exceptional aren’t hired for grunt work.”

Maribel shrugged. She wasn’t the kind of person who dwelt on too long on reflection. “Oh well.” The woman then glanced inside the nearby garbage dumpster.

Two unconscious half-naked women were lying inside the dumpster. They were, of course, the true owners of Maribel’s and Talia’s police uniforms. The fist officer was clad in a peach-coloured convertible bra and white classic briefs with a black waistband strap. She was a slim brunette with a tanned skin and green eyes. Her hair were tied into a low bun. The second policewoman was wearing a black lace padded bra and black high-waist retro briefs with lacy borders. Her hair were raven black, and her eyes were dark brown. She had a light skin, and a plain short figure. Her haircut was a shoulder-long perm.

Each policewoman was gagged with her own pair of socks, which had been shoved into her mouth. A tight cloth cleave-gag was preventing her from spitting the socks. Each officer’s wrists were handcuffed behind her back (with her own handcuff), and each woman’s calves were bound with thick black tape.

Maribel closed the lid of the garbage dumpster to conceal its content.

It was time for the two mercenaries to take their leave.

Talia and Maribel exited the alleyway in which they had ambushed the two police officers. They were carrying bags in which they had put their essential belongings. Maribel had taken her videogames and consoles.

Now that the mercenaries were disguised, slipping through the blockade proved to be surprisingly easy. They simply had to pretend they had been called to watch an other part of the area. The darkness of the daybreak and their uniforms did the rest.

“Too bad we had to leave this house. We had such good memories…” Maribel commented.

“We’ll buy an other one with Aurelia’s money. I’m more concerned about the fact we had to leave without our bondage tools. We’ll have to buy some supplies.”

Maribel glanced sideways at her accomplice. “Funny you mention that…”

“I hope you’re not going to throw an other tantrum…” Talia warned her. “I already agreed to let you take your dumb videogames.”

Maribel put a picture right under her nose. “But it’s a brand new dart gun! Think of it!”

Talia moved away her accomplice’s arm. “The conversation is over, Maribel.”

“Cooooome oooooooon!!!”

**************

Robyn checked her wristwatch.

“I don’t understand… The strike team should’ve caught them by now…” she commented to herself. The blond inspector was starting to become worried. She couldn’t shake off the feeling that something was wrong...

Her walkie talkie sprung to life. “Robyn. We have a problem.” It was Meryl, the leader of the Special Ops strike team. “The house is empty. They were expecting us.”

Robyn cursed. “But how could they have escaped our blockade?!”

Suddenly, a police officer ran towards her. “Robyn! We found two policewomen stashed in a dumpster! Somebody stole their uniforms!”

It took the blond inspector several seconds to process the news. Then she facepalmed.

It was as the saying went. Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.

The two suspects had escaped her. It hadn’t even required them effort. She was humiliated.

Could this day become any worst?

**************

A small group of onlookers had started to gather near the house surrounded by police officers.

Klenia was blending in with the crowd, dressed in casual clothes. She grabbed her cellphone, and called Mikani.

“Looks like we’re too late.” she said. “They’ve already fled their house.” The busty woman glanced at the police officers gathered in the area. “Police is surrounding the building. I don’t know if we can infiltrate it.”

“Keep being on the look-out. We’ll try to find an opportunity.” Mikania answered. “I’d want to know more about the New Eye. We know their location, but we still don’t know much about their strength. Talia and Maribel maybe had documents about them.”

**************

Robyn was mortified. Her second chance had turned into a complete failure. Moreover, onlookers were gathering. The rumors of her screw-up were already starting to spread. She had to do something!

The blonde glared at the crowd. She was feeling annoyed at these people, who were obviously relishing in her humiliation. The inspector was wondering if there were journalists – the leeches as she liked to call them – among them.

Thankfully, there didn’t seem to be journalists yet. However, in the middle of the onlookers, one figure looked familiar. Robyn froze and frowned.

The blonde wasn’t an inspector for nothing. She had a good photographic memory and a keen eye for detail. She had only had one second to look at her mugger’s face, but she still had been able to memorize it.

And that woman looked like her mugger – the one who had stolen her identity and her clothes to impersonate her at the hospital. Of course, the onlooker didn’t share the same hair colour. But her facial features and her general figure were suspiciously similar-looking. Sure, she was bustier than her suspect – but it was easy to compress the breasts with a piece of cloth.

Robyn grabbed her walkie talkie and called the leader of the strike team. “Meryl. We may still have a chance to catch one suspect… Gather your team.”

The blond inspector quickly glanced at an other officer nearby.

“Are the flying drones finally ready to take off?”

“Yes.”

“Then I also want them to go after our target!”

**************

“Mikani. We may have a problem. I think the inspector recognized me. Plus, they are sending flying drones after me.”

While still talking in her cellphone, Klenia was careful to walk rapidly enough to have a chance to lose eventual pursuers, but still slowly enough to not look too suspicious.

“We can’t risk you being arrested. You better cut your losses and flee.” Aster answered.

Mikani was probably standing next to Aster, because Klenia heard the former comment: “But maybe it also gives us an opportunity…”

There was a short pause, and Aster asked: “Klenia. You think you can distract their attention?”

The busty woman smiled. “Please. I’m a former thief and a former Resistance member. Of course I can!”

She quickly entered a narrow alleyway – the best course of action to avoid the cameras of flying drones.

“I’ll give them a show to remember!”

**************

Meryl ordered the members of her strike team to gather around her.

They were all part of the Special Ops. The operatives were wearing the same gear: black combat boots, grey urban camouflage uniform pants, a belt onto which various weapons were strapped, fingerless gloves, a black bulletproof vest, a grey urban camouflage uniform shirt, and a camouflage grey protective helmet as well as a black balaclava to cover their heads and mouths. They were armed with assault rifles.

“Anita, Rose, Miranda, you search the garden and the house, in case we missed a clue. Don’t call us unless you find something important.”

“Roger.”

“The rest, with me.”

**************

Maribel’s and Talia’s house had a big garden, surrounded by a thick hedge, and with several trees and bushes. Given the two women’s real job, it was pretty clear they had chosen this house because its garden could be used as a good ambush place.

Anita, Rose, and Miranda were searching the area. The three operatives of the Special Ops were progressing carefully.

Anita had brown eyes, a light skin, and brown hair with long fringes in each sides which were pulled down in a small ponytail.

Rose had black hair, a pale white skin, and dark blue eyes. Her haircut was a bob cut.

Miranda had shoulder-long golden blond hair with fringes on each side, a tanned skin, and blue eyes.

All three women had a slim well-toned body, a consequence of their diligent physical training.

The operatives were walking in a line. Rose was in the front, Miranda was in the middle, and Anita was in the back.

The garden was silent, and looked empty, though the three women knew that appearances could be deceiving when infiltrators were involved. Because of the vegetation the area was still dark.

However, when the officers passed in front of a tree, a pair of hands suddenly grabbed Anita. One was clamped over her mouth.

“Mph?!”

Anita was pulled behind the tree, away from prying eyes.

There was a muffled yelp and a dull thud. Then the sound made by motionless heels scraping against the grass, as a limp body was dragged by the underarms.

Her two colleagues didn’t hear anything, and kept on walking.

**************

Rose and Miranda finished searching the garden area.

“Nothing.” the first one commented to herself. “This place is a waste of time...”

“Wait! Where’s Anita?” Miranda intervened, finally noticing the disappearance of their teammate.

The two Special Ops operatives paused, and looked behind them. Their colleague had indeed vanished.

Suddenly, just as they were about to call their squad leader, Miranda noticed a figure creeping behind Rose. At the same time, the black-haired officer noticed someone was doing the same thing behind her blond colleague.

“Behind you!” each woman tried to warn her partner.

An assailant clamped a hand over Miranda’s mouth and wrapped an arm around her throat before she could react. A light kick behind the blonde’s right knee unbalanced her, preventing her from breaking free. At the same time, the assailant applied a tight sleeper hold. The Special Ops gear had one weakness in close combat: It wasn’t protecting the throat. Miranda struggled, moaned, and gurgled but, unfortunately for her, she wasn’t facing a random crook. Her opponent was Aster, a former expert of infiltration and guerrilla warfare, who was used to neutralize trained armed women with her bare hands and ambush tactics – she had done it many times back when working for the Resistance. Aster was older and less strong than her opponent, but her advantageous position and the element of surprise tipped the balance in her favor. Soon, Miranda’s body went completely limp as the lack of oxygen was rendering her unconscious.

At the same time, Rose was grabbed by the shoulder. Her assailant forced her to turn, and sprayed her in the face with knock-out gas. The operative coughed. Her assailant knees her in the stomach to stagger her. Rose’s bulletproof vest absorbed the impact, but the hit still made her stumble. Before she could recover, her eyes rolled back. She fell face down and backside up on the grass, then started to snore. Shayna grabbed the woman’s ankles, and started to drag her.

**************

Aster dragged Miranda by the undershoulders between the hedge and the bushes, and laid her next to the unconscious Anita. “Told you it was a good idea to send Klenia as a watcher. When Special Ops split up, it’s usually with groups of three.” she commented, while at the same time unlacing the operative’s boots.

“And not taking Klenia along was obviously NOT your way to get back at her for teasing you during our last infiltration.” Shayna joked as she was laying the motionless Rose next to Miranda.

Mikani unstrapped Anita’s bulletproof vest. “Please stay focused.” she snapped at her. “We don’t have much time before their leader realizes they’ve been mugged and replaced. We’re already lucky they were told to not report unless they found something important.”

“Sorry.” Shayna didn’t try to argue with her friend. She knew Mikani was on edge because of Zoé’s kidnapping. The tanned-skinned blonde started to strip Rose. “Klenia’s rubbed off on me.”

“She sure did.” Mikani answered while unbuckling Anita’s belt and pulling off her trousers, revealing pure white hipsters. It wasn’t a reproach however. The short woman had spoken with a light tone of voice. It was her way to apologize for having snapped at her friend, even though Shayna had only attempted to defuse the tension.

The blonde briefly squeezed Mikani’s shoulder to show her support, then took off Rose’s boots, leaving the woman’s feet only covered by her deep purple socks.

Aster had observed their exchange, but didn’t add anything. As the oldest member of the team, and its mission control, it was her job to calm down conflicts. However, she also couldn’t smother her teammates with advice and orders permanently. Infiltrators needed leeway and flexibility. For now, her help wasn’t required. She unstrapped and removed Miranda’s helmet and balaclava, releasing her golden blond locks.

The three friends stripped the unconscious Special Ops members as fast as they could, including the tank tops they were wearing under the uniform shirt, until the women were down to their undergarments. Alongside with her deep purple socks, Rose was wearing matching purple boyshorts and a black sports bra. Miranda was clad in emerald green tanga panties, a matching green soft cup bra, and white socks with black stripes. Anita was wearing light pink socks with a pattern of grey dots and a white bralette with light pink borders alongside with her white hipsters.

Rose, Miranda, and Anita were gagged with a sponge shoved into the mouth and then several layers of thick brown tape. Aster, Shayna, and Mikani then used black cables to restrain the three unconscious women. They bound each operative’s wrists behind her back and each operative’s ankles. Then they hog-tied them, leaving the bound women lying on their stomach. The hog-ties were tight. It was nothing personal though. These women were trained members of the Special Ops. Aster, Mikani, and Shayna simply couldn’t take the risk of them freeing themselves. Rose, Anita, and Miranda were left concealed between the hedge and the bushes, lined up and lying on their stomach, with the hog-ties lifting their calves.

“I don’t like it. We’re antagonizing law enforcement too much.” Aster commented.

“Well, they started it.” Mikani answered with a harsh tone of voice. “We don’t owe them, or the government, anything. We owe something to Hieron, and they casted him off.”

The other woman shook her head. “I share your thought. But we’ll also need to avoid jail when Zoé’s rescued.”

Mikani shrugged. “Then we'll blackmail them. The government won't like it if we leak the fact they interfered in the kidnapping case to the press. One problem at a time.”

Aster, Mikani, and Shayna donned the uniforms and gears of Special Ops forces. Thanks to the helmets and balaclavas concealing their heads, they could fool the police officers in the area – if they didn’t have to talk, they may even be able to fool Anita’s, Rose’s, and Miranda’s teammates.

**************

Aster, Mikani and Shayna entered Maribel’s and Talia’s house. They were looking for the mercenaries’ secret stash. Any infiltrator worth their salt had one. They used it to conceal their gear, all their bondage tools – as well as all the illegally-gained money and all the documents they needed to plan their heists.

Aster was confident the police wouldn’t find the secret stash, at least not before her friends and she. It was an ‘infiltrator thing’. Most police officers wouldn’t know where to look. But a fellow infiltrator would.

The three friends didn’t have great hopes to find something of value for them. After all, Talia and Maribel were professional mercenaries. They had probably emptied their stash before leaving. However, since they had to flee in a hurry, they had maybe left some documents behind. It wouldn’t hurt to at least check…

There were already a few police officers searching the house. However, they were fooled by Aster’s, Mikani’s and Shayna’s disguises. The helmets and face-covering balaclavas perfectly played their part. Plus, their Special Ops gear was giving them an aura of seriousness. The other law enforcement officers were regarding Special Ops operatives as an elite corp – only the infamous (and now defunct) corp of the Special Combatants had the reputation of being better. Therefore, regular police officers rarely mingled with the Special Ops on their own volition.

Aster, Mikani, and Shayna were very satisfied by this situation. It allowed them to search the house undisturbed. As uniform stealers themselves, they had an advantage over the police officers. They knew how infiltrators reasoned.

In Talia’s bedroom, they noticed a large photo of a landscape in a frame on the wall. Large enough to hide a safe.

And indeed, there was a safe behind it. The secret stash. It wasn’t locked anymore, which confirmed the three friends’ suspicions – Talia and Maribel had fled their house in a hurry. They hadn’t even bothered to lock their safe.

As Aster and her teammates were expecting, the mercenaries had taken the cash and all their personal documents. Inside the secret stash, there were still a lot of bondage tools: ball-gags, rolls of package tape, coils of ropes, and zip-ties. There were also a few loose sheets of paper. In their hurry, Talia and Maribel probably hadn’t grabbed them.

Mikani and Aster rummaged through the discarded tools and sheets of paper while Shayna was waiting at the door and watching the corridor in case a police officer came snooping around. Thankfully, they policemen were all still searching the ground floor.

Aster grabbed one sheet that looked like a map.

“Check this out.”

It was indeed a map of a farm complex. At first glance, it didn’t look important. However, thanks to the information they had stolen in Benny’s house, Mikani and Aster knew what place it was.

It was the one used by the New Eye to hide Zoé.

“Would you look at that. Talia and Maribel were apparently planning to pay a visit to the New Eye… And thanks to this map, we can know the exact layout of the place…” Mikani commented.

Aster nodded. “We have found what we were looking for. Let’s leave before they notice we’ve mugged the real Special Ops.”

**************

The police uniforms had been useful to slip through the blockade, but now Maribel and Talia were looking for a change of clothes. Indeed, they needed more innocuous outfits. Two police officers drew a lot of attention. Plus, the mugged policewomen had probably been found by their colleagues. Talia’s and Maribel’s pursuers would know what to look for.

The two mercenaries had gone to a big gas station, one which also had a grocery store and public restrooms. A good infiltrator always knew where to look in order to find opportunities for a disguise...

Maribel and Talia were using their police uniforms to pretend they were watching the area. Nobody questioned their presence.

Time was passing. They were still looking for an occasion.

The mercenaries heard the sound of an engine. A motorbike with a side-car parked nearby.

Two motorcyclists got out. Their helmets were covering their faces, but their figures were clearly feminine.

Their face-covering helmets immediately picked Talia’s and Maribel’s interest.

The two newcomers removed their helmets.

The first motorcyclist had a light skin, blue eyes, and ashen blond hair. Her haircut was a bob cut. She was wearing a black protective biker jacket, a dull green t-shirt, brown biker trousers, black biker gloves, and thick black shoes.

The second motorcyclist had a very slim figure build and below average height. Her hair were straight black and her eyes were brown. Her hair cut was a short pixie cut with cropped spiky style bangs. There were three rings in her left ear. She was wearing a brown protective biker jacket, a blue t-shirt, black biker trousers, brown biker gloves, and thick brown shoes.

The blond motorcyclist briefly stretched her arms. “Erika, can you watch the bike? I need to go to the restroom.” she asked her black-haired friend.

“No problem.”

The blond motorcyclist went inside the women’s public restroom, while the other one stayed near her bike and stretched her legs.

Talia and Maribel exchanged a glance.

Without a word, they also entered the restroom.

The walls blocked the sounds of the brief scuffle which took place inside one stall.

**************

Erika checked her wristwatch three times. Stefanie was taking a lot of time… The woman took the motorbike’s keys with her, then entered the restrooms.

The place was empty, save for a policewoman with black curly hair, who was washing her hands. One stall was occupied. Erika could hear some faint noises from the other side.

She knocked at the door.

“Stefanie? Why are you taking so long? Having a hard time taking off your clothes?” the woman joked.

Suddenly, Erika felt someone lightly tap her shoulder, and turned. It was the chubby policewoman.

“Actually, quite the opposite.” the woman answered to Erika’s joke.

She grabbed the motorcyclist by the collar.

“Let me show you.”

**************

Erika’s undergarments were dark forest green cheeky panties and a teal blue racerback bra. Stefanie’s underwear were mango orange tanga panties and a salmon cage bra.

Stefanie was secured onto the toilet seat with tape and cables. Maribel seated the unconscious Erika onto the blonde’s lap. Both motorcyclists were bound hands and feet with cables found in the restrooms’ closet. They were gagged with several layers of tape, from a roll found in the same closet. Maribel tied a cable around both motorcyclists’ waists, to make sure Erika wouldn’t fall off the blonde’s thighs. Stefanie’s face was nested in the middle of her friend’s cleavage.

“Hopefully they’re girlfriends. If not, they’re going to feel very awkward when they wake up…” Maribel commented.

“What are you blabbering about?” her partner complained, as she finished putting on her new clothes.

“I imagine they’re a couple. Makes things more interesting for my mental image.”

Talia sighed. “Even if they are lovers, being bound and gagged on a dingy public toilet seat would be a huge turn off, don’t you think?”

Maribel didn’t answer. She was too busy peering at Erika’s backside. She appreciated what she was seeing.

“Plus, if they’re a couple in your mental image, don’t you feel like a creepy stalker staring at her butt?” Talia slyly added, as she was asjusting her stolen biker gloves.

“Goodness, you’re in such a bad mood. Why do you insist on ruining my experience?” Maribel complained. She closed the door of the stall, and added: “Is it that time of the month already?”

Talia dope-slapped her. Not hard enough to hurt, just to make a point. “I’ve been swindled by Supremacists, and police has busted my favorite hideout.” she explained. “I just hate it when I’m bested by people dumber than me…” The black-haired woman clenched her fist. “Though hopefully, I’ll get the chance to even the score…” she growled.

Maribel closed the stall’s door. The mercenaries then put on the helmets to hide their faces.

“Next stop, Aurelia.” Talia commented.

“How will we find her?”

“I bet everything she’ll be where they keep Zoé prisoner.”

“Her big farm estate? Figures.”

They exited the restrooms.

Maribel rushed to sit on the motorcycle itself, leaving the side-car to her accomplice. “I call dibs!” she exclaimed.

“Why do you want to drive?” Talia instinctively sensed a trap. “I hope it’s not to fetch your dumb dart-gun!” she added.

“DUMB?! We’re talking about a delicate piece of machinery using air pressure! Completely silent! Chrome-plated butt! Sleek modern design! Twice lighter, and with a range twice longer, than the average dart-gun! Shooting tailor-made dart-”

“Gah! Fine!” Talia interrupted the chubby woman. She sat in the side-car. “There’s no arguing with you! Just go buy your stupid dart-gun! We have the day to prepare ourselves anyway…”

Maribel raised a triumphant fist. “Yay! Shopping!” she exclaimed.

**************

Klenia was in a broody mood. She was sitting quietly in a corner of the room, sulking.

Her entire awesome chase sequence had taken place off-screen – none of her friends had been here to see her escape the drones. They had simply arrived with a van to pick her up at the end.

More importantly, during the whole chase with the police, not once had she been able to steal a disguise. She considered it a disgrace.

“They cheated!” she kept mumbling to herself. “They sent flying drones! I can’t mug someone if dang drones are breathing down my neck!”

The busty woman jealously glanced at Shayna’s stolen gear. Her blond wife was feeling half-amused, half-apologetic.

Mikani and Aster were ignoring their friend’s tantrum.

The short woman was studying the map of the farm estate they had found in Talia’s and Maribel’s house.

“Now we know where to strike… And we know the layout of the place...” she commented.

“We have the day to rest, and to plan our infiltration. We take action the next night.” Aster concluded.

[simon4242]

hmmm three special ops easily taken out bit farfetched lol nevertheless superb chapter will we get epilogue at some time for them and the bikers being found or are they too minor lol you stormzy and tireplanted are topnotch in your storytelling

[rufusluciusivan]

simon4242: To be fair, the women who defeated the special ops are former guerrilla fighters specialized in this exact type of scenario: ambushing trained armed people and neutralizing them with instant techniques. They're older, but they've never fully stopped training either. So it didn't sound farfetched in my head.

No written epilogue for the bikers, but they will be found quickly since they have been left in a public area. After waking up, it wouldn't take them long to catch someone's attention by making noise. Same with the special ops. Police was already searching the area, so it wouldn't take them long to find their colleagues. Sadly, these special ops and bikers are the textbook definition of minor one-time characters. That's a problem with long stories. I think one can't feature an epilogue at the end of each chapter - espcially if it's just to say something akin to: "They were found a few hours later." It would quickly become repetitive. In that regards, stormtrooper's shorter self-contained format has an advantage.

you stormzy and tireplanted are topnotch in your storytelling

Thank you for your kind compliment! To be honest, this is my least favorite chapter of this story - basically just a mandatory step to set up the climax. Hopefully, the next ones will be better.

[simon4242]

i understand lol

[tirepanted3]

A fairly short and straightforward chapter, albeit still entertaining. It hints at the coming clash between Aster's team and the duo of Talia and Maribel, and sets up a promising climax.

I feel sorry for Robyn and her team. They're trying to uphold the law, but they're just caught in the crossfire between two rival groups of professional uniform thieves. Not something that ends well for anyone, though at least Robyn herself avoided being mugged this time.

Any officer of the law of her country knew being assaulted for her outfit was an eventuality…

A sign of a declining society. Law officers now treat being mugged for their uniforms as an inevitability. Makes you wonder how they have any luck recruiting new officers to the force. The job must pay well, complete with uniform theft insurance.

Talia and Maribel's banter remains very entertaining. Again, we've seen this sort of USB duo before - the serious-minded infiltrator and her fun-loving partner - but it's always enjoyable. Maribel's obsession with her dart gun is quite funny (and recalls Yuki's fondness for a dart gun in prior stories).

Mikani's coldness continues to provide a nice contrast with her more skeptical teammates. And poor Klenia, missing out on the USB fun... I'm sure she'll get her chance to shine again before long.

[rufusluciusivan]

Short and straightforward indeed. As I said, this part was very functionaly - a mere mandatory step before the upcoming climax. Definitely the part I rushed the most during the writing process. I really wanted to get it out of the way.

Now, of course there were a few parts I had fun adding - one of them being the jokes which revolve around Robyn and her bad luck. What I particularly like about the joke you quoted is that it ties in with the lore - in the Federation, infiltration and uniform stealing have been widespread for centuries. So I assume people would adopt a blasé attitude at some point.

The job must pay well, complete with uniform theft insurance.

No spoiler, but in the next part there is a returning character, and we learn during her scene that the wages for private security guards are very high precisely because of the rampant problem of uniform stealing. So it's not farfetched to think it's the exact same thing with law inforcement.

Maribel (and Talia) are clearly a comedy gold mine. I really enjoy coming up with their banters.

I like to bother poor Klenia, don't I? But these jokes are too easy.

[rufusluciusivan]

Part 4

**************

In the public eye, Aurelia Erikell was the president and CEO of EarthSea Corp, an agricultural, fishing, and construction conglomerate.

Fifteen years ago, she used to be one of Roxane Barca’s junior associates – a young ambitious shareholder with big dreams. When Roxane Barca was exposed as a criminal and arrested, Aurelia managed to avoid the following crackdown on Roxane’s associates. However, at that moment, she also saw an opportunity. It took her years, but she managed to recover many of Roxane’s assets, and she used them to fund her own company.

She also took control of the various remaining groups of Supremacists, previously under Roxane’s influence. Like her predecessor, the businesswoman knew how useful ties with the underworld could be. Aurelia truly believed in her cause, but she was also a pragmatic. She had no qualms about manipulating uneducated nostalgic of the old rule for her own profit, because she would use said incomes to fund her political maneuvering.

Plus, she owned plenty of warehouses in the middle of isolated fields, places which were always handy when she needed to hide a prisoner or to get rid of a body…

Her biggest farm complex was located to the south of the capital city. It was a huge estate with hectares of fields and orchards. In the middle, there were dozens of warehouses, and an administrative building.

Zoé was held captive there.

**************

It was the middle of the night.

In spite of the late hour, there was still some activity in the farm complex’s loading area. Several vans were parked. Using huge lamps to light the area, three workers were loading burlap sacks filled with grains. This farm complex was maybe used by Aurelia as a cover for her crimes, but it was first and foremost used for her legitimate agricultural business. The domain was huge. Most employees didn’t suspect the shady things which happened behind closed doors, and it was easy to keep them in the dark.

The three farmworkers were wearing jet black denim overalls, with matching denim caps. Both garments had the white logo of Aurelia’s agricultural company. They also were clad in red-and-black plaid shirts, brown work gloves, and grey work shoes.

They were searching burlap sacks in a nearby warehouse, and loading them in their vehicles.

Once they were done with their loading, the workers each sat behind the wheel of one van.

The first worker had a light skin, black hair and brown eyes. Her haircut was a square cut. Her body was fit and curvy. The second worker had a white skin, dark blond hair, and blue eyes. Her hair were tied up into a ponytail. Her physical features were masculine-looking, with a square jaw. The third worker was a chubby brunette with a dark skin, and deep green eyes. She had a low tight bun.

The first driver turned the ignition key. The engine hummed, then suddenly coughed and went still.

The black-haired woman shouted a volley of colorful swearwords. She exited her vehicle. After letting out a few more insults, she kicked the van, hurt her foot, and screamed some more.

The blond driver of the second van exited her vehicle, and went to help. “Maybe it’s broken...”

“I checked it myself two hours ago! It can’t have broken down!” the black-haired worker exclaimed while rubbing her sore foot.

Her colleague rolled her eyes. “So what? Next you’ll tell me someone sabotaged the engine when you weren’t looking? Admit it, you just made a mistake.”

“Of course not!”

The brown-haired driver of the third van had also exited the vehicle. However, she didn’t want to be drawn into the argument. She remained next to the door, grabbed her phone, and checked her social networks. She could hear her colleagues keep arguing with each other.

A hand was clamped over her mouth. At the same time, a needle was used to sting her in the neck. It was coated with a strong sleeping drug.

“Mmmmmm…” the woman moaned faintly. Her eyes rolled back, her head lolled on the side, and she went limp. Her unconscious body was quickly dragged out of sight.

Her two colleagues were too busy with their dispute to notice anything.

A small metallic cylinder was then thrown, and rolled between them.

“What the fu-?”

The grenade released a thick white gas.

The two women coughed and gasped, then quickly fell asleep like babies. When the smoke cleared out, they were lying face down piled up on top of one another.

**************

Klenia, who had concealed herself behind one van, stepped out of the shadows.

“The sleep gas grenade worked wonders.” she commented.

The busty woman and Shayna grabbed the two unconscious farm workers under the shoulders, and dragged them inside the nearby warehouse. Here, concealed behind piles of burlap sacks, their colleague was already being stripped of her clothes by Aster and Mikani.

Klenia and Shayna laid the workers next to their colleague, and also started to strip them.

Approaching the farming complex had been easy. The place was surrounded with fields. They simply had to use the cover of the crops.

“We don’t have enough clothes for the four of us…” Klenia remarked.

“We’re short on time. You three will disguise yourselves, and I’ll stay behind to monitor you” Aster instructed them.

Mikani glanced at the brown-haired worker. “She’s closer to your size…” she objected.

Aster put a hand on the short woman’s shoulder. “Then just roll up the sleeves and tighten the belt. You need to be part of this mission more than me.”

Mikani blushed a little. “Thank you…”

They finished divesting the farmworkers of their clothes. The black-haired woman’s undergarments were navvy blue socks, a sky blue thong, and an electric triangle bra. The blonde was left clad in striped white-and-pink socks, hot pink bikini briefs, and a light pink balcony bra with a pattern of white lace butterflies. The brunette was wearing white sports socks, scarlet red tap pants with a black little ribbon, and a black moulded bra.

There were coils of rope and of string in the warehouse – way enough to restrain the three underwear-clad women’s limbs. The four infiltrators bound the wrists, the shoulders, the thighs, and the ankles. They used a roll of tape, also found in the warehouse, to gag the workers.

There were empty burlap sacks in the building. Mikani, Klenia, and Shayna grabbed three, and put one worker inside each. Then, they left the sacks in a corner of the building, out of sight.

“We’re ready to do some exploration.” Klenia concluded.

Aster nodded. “Be careful. I’ll secure an escape route.”

**************

After twenty years of work, Osana could now be considered a veteran of the security guard business. At the very least, she felt as if she was one… in the sense that, even though she was only 46 years old, she sometimes felt as tired as if she was 60. The red-haired guard had long become disillusioned with her job. She only stayed in that line of business for the money. Indeed, in her country, the wages of security guards were simply regal, if only because the job wasn’t very attractive by itself.

Osana was taller than average, and had the body of someone who took care of her health. However, it was pretty clear she was a woman in her mid-forties. There were wrinkles around her eyes, and her hips had become pudgy over time. Her hair were ginger red, but with grey locks here and there. She had orange brown eyes. Her haircut was two midback-long ponytails, tied with salmon-pink hair elastics. Her skin was light, though she didn't have freckles. Her face was somewhere between round-shaped and square-shaped.

Currently, the sentry was patrolling the area outside the main building with an other younger guard.

Osana didn’t like this assignment. The farm complex was surrounded by fields, and there were plenty of warehouses and tool sheds. Therefore, there were plenty of places a thief could use to conceal themselves… or to conceal an unlucky sentry after having robbed her of her clothes and of her dignity… Plus, the redhead suspected that something fishy was going on. The security detail consisted of numerous guards. Who hired so many people to watch a mere farm complex? Who imposed uniforms that looked like they were from a private militia?

Some sentries thought this farm complex was testing brand new species of crops, hence why they needed to fend off potential industrial spies. For her part, Osana suspected her employers were involved in illegal activities. She wasn’t naive when it came to that sort of things. She had worked for Roxane Barca and Irene Eudokia in the past after all.

However, the redhead didn’t have the motivation to try and find more about what was going on. As low-ranked cannon fodder, she knew her place. She simply had to do her job, not try to know more, and pray she wouldn’t come across a do-gooder or a rival criminal looking for a way to infiltrate the place. Then, when her employer would inevitably make a mistake and get arrested, she’d be left off the hook by the police, since she didn’t know anything about her boss’ crimes. Free to find an other job as a guard, and to repeat the cycle…

I hate my job...

Osana winced when her younger partner started to talk. The latter’s voice was filled with optimism and dynamism. The older sentry couldn’t stand such positivity.

“I’m so glad you and I share a shift, cuz’!” the young sentry said.

“Stay focused, Ilyana. We’re not forming teams for dodgeball.”

Ilyana was Osana’s cousin. The young woman was everything Osana hadn’t been for a long time: energetic and enthusiastic about her job. Ilyana was a rookie, with only a few easy shifts under her belt. She hadn’t yet been introduced to the most unpleasant parts of being a security guard...

Ilyana was in her late twenties. She shared Osana’s ginger red hair and orange brown eyes. Her round-shaped face looked softer though, and there were cute freckles on her cheeks and on her long nose. She had a fit slender body. Her haircut was a pair of waist-long twin-tails.

The young guard rolled her eyes and smiled. “You’ve always been the biggest grump of the family, Osana… I don’t know why you even made such a fuss about the downsides of being a guard. The job looks so easy. We just have to walk around, look intimidating, and not ask questions. Plus, for what we do, the wages are regal!”

“I hope you’ll never find out why they’re so high…” Osana commented.

Ilyana didn’t understand, and kept smiling.

Ignorance was bliss after all...

**************

Hidden behind a nearby tool shed, Talia and Maribel were observing the conversing red-haired women.

The two security guards were wearing uniforms which took inspiration from the ones used in the defunct ‘Eye of the Twelve’, the original Olympian Supremacist terrorist group. Apparently, the leaders of the ‘New Eye of Olympus’ lacked as much originality to find new clothes designs as they did to find new names.

The women were clad in black thick combat boots, grey camouflage pants with front pockets, and matching long-sleeved uniform shirts, as well as a sleeveless black tactical vest. They were also wearing a red beret for some reason. Talia didn’t know why the Supremacists were obsessed with berets for their guards… The women had a black utility belt wrapped around their waists, onto each there were a handgun, handcuffs, and a walkie talkie. Around the hands, they were wearing black fingerless gloves. The two sentries were carrying machine guns with a shoulder strap.

Red hair, dumb-looking twin-tails, and weird names ending with ‘-na’? They can only be from the Province of Shield. Talia thought to herself. From the western plains, more precisely. The people from the eastern mountainside usually had blond hair and less obnoxious names.

“They don’t seem very tough. A double sleeper-hold should do the trick.” Talia commented to her partner.

“But I wanted to try our new dart guns…” Maribel complained. “I bought them specifically for this mission...”

“Maribel…” Talia said with a disapproving tone of voice.

“The drug’s fast-acting!” the other woman whined.

“Goodness! There’s no arguing with you!” Talia sighed. “Fine! You can play with your new toy.”

Maribel grinned from ear to ear. “Yay!”

“I already regret my decision…” Talia commented. “Take the rookie out, I’ll deal with the older one.”

She aimed her dart gun. Her partner did the same.

**************

Right in the middle of the conversation, Ilyana suddenly hit her neck.

“What’s going on?” her cousin asked.

“Something stung me. Probably a bug.”

An alarm bell rang in Osana’s mind. However, just as she was opening her mouth to warn her cousin, she also felt something sting her in the neck too.

“It’s a dart!” she exclaimed.

Ilyana frowned. “Of course. Bugs have stingers.”

“No, not that kind of dart!” Osana retorted. At the same time, she grabbed her walkie talkie.

However, before she could press the button to activate the device, a woman assaulted her from behind. She twisted Osana’s arm behind the back to make her drop the walkie talkie. She also wrapped her other arm around the redhead’s throat to silence her.

“I’d keep silent and let the sleeping drug take effect if I was you.” the mugger warned Osana.

The redhead couldn’t answer. Her mugger’s grip was tight. She could still breath, but couldn’t talk – only let out gurgled grunts. Her cousin was also similarly assaulted by a woman.

I HATE my job… and it HATES me back!

**************

“I seem to come across smart women lately.” Talia commented to the red-haired sentry. “But everybody hates a smartass…”

Of course, the other woman could only gurgle as an answer. However, she didn’t try to struggle.

She knew she was outmatched.

“At least you’re smart enough to know when to give up.” Talia added. “Good. Keep being a good girl, and I’ll be gentle with you.”

Maribel’s young sentry wasn’t as clever. She was fruitlessly trying to free herself. Her efforts were embarrassing to watch, given how pathetic they were…

The two red-haired guards went limp almost at the same time, vanquished by the fast-acting drug.

Well, fast-acting…

“I told you the sleeper holds were a better idea.” Talia commented to her accomplice.

Maribel smiled sheepishly.

The two mercenaries dragged the motionless redheads inside the nearby shed. Then, they laid their burdens onto the floor, and closed the door. Next, they removed the uniforms of the security guards.

They started with the berets, sleeveless tactical vests, and uniform shirts. Then, they took off the combat boots, camouflage pants, and fingerless gloves.

Osana’s undergarments were a salmon pink tank top over a beige full-cup bra, matching salmon pink socks with dark red polka dots, and light purple boxer briefs with red dots and a black waistband strap. Said boxer briefs were knee-long, actually longer than some shorts, and were designed to cover a lot of skin.

“Looks like this one is a regular.” Maribel commented.

She then glanced at Ilyana, and grinned.

“That one, on the other hand… It’s clearly her first gig!”

Ilyana’s undergarments were hot pink short socks, a sexy black demi-bra with lacy red edges, and a bright scarlet red g-string. Maribel peered at the woman’s exposed buttocks. As a connoisseur, she appreciated what she was regarding as a work of art.

“Her loss.” Talia commented.

She removed her clothes, and slipped into Osana’s uniform. Maribel donned Ilyana’s outfit.

The two disguised intruders then grabbed a few coils of ropes which were inside the shed. They trussed each sentry up: binding the wrists behind the back, wrapping rope around the upper-arms below and above the breasts, and binding the calves together. Talia and Maribel shoved a sponge into each guard’s mouth. Thick black duct tape was then used to seal the two redheads’ lips. A few layers were wrapped around the lower face.

Once they were satisfied, Maribel and Talia picked up the machine guns, and left the shed. They closed the door to conceal the two mugged sentries.

**************

Osana woke up with a groan. Even though her mind was fuzzy, it didn’t take her long to understand her predicament. She was lying on the floor. Her mouth was filled with something, she could feel that a lot of her skin wasn’t covered with clothes anymore, and ropes were binding her.

Goodness… You’d think that after a while, it becomes easier... But no. In fact, each new mugging felt more annoying than the previous one. Muggings were like the worst hangovers, but she didn’t even have the solace to know she had spent a wild night beforehand.

Osana shook her head, which also allowed her to realize she wouldn’t be able to loosen her tape-gag. She wriggled her wrists and feet a little. She had been restrained by professionals. The knots were perfect – ‘scout quality’ actually. The redhead wouldn’t be able to break free by herself, or at least not without hours of struggle. This is so annoying... She could wait until an other guard (or the police) found her, but she was tired of always going through the same routine, the same questions.

However, at the same time, she was feeling lazy. She didn’t want to spend her energy trying to break free. It was pointless anyway. Even if she broke free, by the time she did, her muggers would be far away. It was best to wait for someone to find her.

Osana scanned her surroundings, and saw her cousin – all trussed up, and in her underwear.

Ilyana too had woken up. She was staring at her cousin with big wide eyes.

“Whht’s ghhng hn?!” she attempted to ask.

“Whht dh yhh thhnk?” Osana asked back.

She could almost see the wheels turn in her cousin’s brain, as the latter was slowly understanding what had happened.

Perhaps now Ilyana was going to understand why her cousin kept repeating it was important to choose non-revealing underwear when on guard duty. She’d have the time to dwell on that.

Based on her experience, Osana would say one or two hours, at least…

**************

Mikani, Klenia, and Shayna had a quick look round the farm complex area. They easily located the administrative building – the place in which Zoé was most likely held, since it was forbidden to regular employees. However, they soon realized their current clothes wouldn’t allow them to have access to the area. They needed to look like members of the security detail.

Thankfully for them, the area was heavily guarded. Grabbing a couple of security guards wasn’t going to be very difficult…

They went looking for suitable candidates.

It didn’t take them much time to find some.

Three sentries were talking in a circle next to the farming engines they were guarding.

The first woman was a beautiful and slim girl with long thick orange hair, emerald green eyes, and a white skin. She had a widow's peak. The second guard had a light-brown skin, sleek black hair in a bob that sat at her cheeks, and light honey-brown eyes. The third sentry was a tall, athletic, and slender woman with a white skin, blond hair, and bright blue eyes. Her hairstyle was a fluffy, personalized medium length bob cut.

The women were clad in black thick combat boots, grey camouflage pants with front pockets, and matching uniform shirts, black sleeveless tactical vests, as well as a red beret. (Klenia made a comment about the Supremacists’ ‘beret fetish’.) The guards had a black utility belt wrapped around their waists, onto each there were a handgun, handcuffs, and a walkie talkie. Around the hands, they were wearing black fingerless gloves. The sentries were carrying machine guns with a shoulder strap.

Currently, the three women were chatting idly with each other.

“Gawd, night shifts are so annoying…” the blonde was complaining.

The black-haired guard stopped typing on her phone. “Don’t worry. I’ve finished ordering us a pizza.”

“Alex? You sure it’s a good idea? I don’t think Aurelia would approve.” the redhead intervened.

The blonde rolled her eyes. “Who cares? She’s in her office, and she’ll probably stay here all night long.”

Alex pocketed her cellphone. “The boss is more machine than woman. I don’t understand how she can work so long without breaks.”

“Tell me about it...”

Still under the guise of a farm worker, Mikani approached the sentries.

“I’ll be taking a wild guess, and say you’re not at your post. I’d even wager you’re taking an unauthorized break.” she commented.

The security guards glanced at her clothes. Fooled by her disguise, they thought she was a low-ranked farmhand.

The blonde snarled. “Mind your own business, and get back to work! Farm girl!”

Mikani smiled. “Oh, I’m not casting stones at you. In fact, I don’t mind at all that you’re here right now.”

Simultaneously, Shayna assaulted the black-haired sentry and Klenia jumped the orange-haired guard from behind. The two lovers wrapped their arms around their victim’s throat, and used a tight sleeper-hold to knock them out.

At the same time, Mikani punched the blond sentry in the stomach. She was too short to try a sleeper-hold on that one anyway. Then, the black-haired woman dispatched the security guard with a neck-chop. With a grunt, the blonde fell onto the ground, out cold.

The black-haired and orange-haired guards gurgled, and struggled briefly. Then, the lack of oxygen made them pass out.

The three friends quickly carried the unconscious sentries behind some farm equipment, and injected each woman with a sedative drug.

Then, they stripped the three women of their uniforms.

The orange-haired sentry was wearing green panties and socks, and a matching t-shirt bra. The blonde was clad in a bright red thong, with matching socks and a matching demi-bra. The black-haired guard was wearing golden yellow boyshorts and sports socks, and a matching sports bra.

Klenia rolled her eyes, and smiled. “Are these girls supposed to be color-coded sentais?”

The three friends found coils of string inside a combine harvester. They used them to truss up the sentries. They wrapped string around each woman’s upper-arms to pin them against her sides, cross-tied each woman’s wrists behind her back, and immobilized each woman’s legs. They cut the farm workers’ plaid shirts, and used the strips to stuff-gag and cleave-gag the women.

Klenia, Mikani, and Shayna loaded the bound-and-gagged women into an empty trailer. They left them lined up, lying on the back, and concealed them under a tarpaulin.

Finally, the three friends slipped into their new disguises.

When they left, Klenia asked: “You think we can take the pizza they ordered?”

Shayna lightly punched her in the shoulder. “Focus, honey!”

Mikani didn’t react. She was too focused on her rescue mission.

**************

Becky was inspecting the piles of haystacks which were stocked inside one warehouse.

The farmhand had blond hair tied into low pigtails, green eyes, and a fair skin. Her head was diamond-shaped. She was of average size, with a pudgy waist, and thick thighs.

Becky was among the people taking care of EarthSee Corp’s cattle. She was wearing light brown thick cowgirl boots, faded blue dungarees, a red-and-brown plaid button-up shirt, a black cowgirl scarf, and a black cowgirl hat. The other workers were mocking her style, calling it tacky, but she didn’t care.

The farm worker frowned when she heard a faint noise. She quickly turned back, but saw nothing.

Strange… I could have sworn...

Something hit the back of her neck. The edge of a hand.

Becky grunted briefly. Her body went limp, and fell forward. A pile of hay softened her landing. She fell face first into it.

Aster dragged her out of sight. Once she was sure nobody could see her, she swiftly divested the farm worker of her clothes. Becky was left clad in a plaid red and black bra, striped yellow-and-red classic panties, and blue socks.

At first, Aster hadn’t planned to disguise herself. She had planned to stay in the shadows until her help was needed. However, when she had seen the lone farm worker, she had realized she couldn’t let such an opportunity go to waste.

Aster was carrying a few zip-ties, and a roll of black duct tape. She tape-gagged the farm worker by wrapping several layers around her lower face, then zip-tied her ankles and her wrists. She also took the string from a few haystacks, to secure Becky’s upper-arms. An other piece of string was used to bind the woman’s thighs.

Aster dragged the unconscious woman, and laid her between two rows of haystacks to conceal her.

She took a moment to catch her breath. She was maybe still ‘with it’, but she was still old. Then, she slipped into the dungarees, plaid shirt, and boots.

The disguised woman wrapped the scarf around her neck, adjusted her stolen cowgirl hat, and left. Aster considered the clothes a bit tacky, but the hat would be perfect to conceal her hair and face.

Now, she simply needed to have her friends’ back...

**************

Aurelia was working late in her office. Juggling between her legal activities and her illegal ones required a lot of time, but the profits were numerous enough to motivate her to make the sacrifice.

The businesswoman needed to prepare everything for her master plan. Now that Zoé was under her hands, she could finalize recover the frozen assets of the Basileus family. So much money… With it, she could revitalize the New Eye. She could even fund a new legal political party, and try to gain access to the government… She had so many grand projects!

Aurelia could also use Zoé as a rallying point for all the nostalgics of the old rule. And if the young woman proved to be disobedient, she could simply make her disappear… then pretend it was the current government, and turn her into a martyr! It was perfect.

However, right in the middle of a complex calculation of statistics, she froze.

Aurelia was having a bad feeling. She quickly checked the security reports. Admittedly, everything was quiet. She hadn’t received any report about a suspicious activity. Yet, she couldn’t shake off the impression something terrible was going to happen. It wasn’t a certitude, only a gut feeling. The businesswoman wouldn’t have gone that far if she hadn’t had some intuition. She had learned to trust her instinct.

Aurelia got up. It wouldn’t hurt to take an extra precaution...

First things first, check if Zoé is still in her room.

Aurelia exited her office room. She glanced at the guard watching the door.

“Carolyn. Come with me.”

The businesswoman decided she was going to let a guard stay with Zoé.

Of course, Carolyn was supposed to watch Aurelia’s office room. But the businesswoman didn’t have an other sentry on hand right now – most of the guards watching the outside part of the complex weren’t members of the New Eye. They weren’t privy to the secret. She’d call an other guard after dealing with Zoé…

**************

On her way, Aurelia passed near a duo of guards. However, she was in a hurry. She didn’t pay them any attention.

She probably should have…

Had she done it, she would have maybe noticed that said duo of guards were familiar-looking – a chubby woman with curly black hair and a slim one with reddish brown hair. Plus, they were clad like sentries of the farm complex’s outside.

Or she would have noticed that the two guards had hurriedly closed the door of a small cabinet when they had seen Aurelia and Carolyn.

Had she been really attentive, she would even have caught of glimpse of the content of the small cupboard: Two fully-uniformed, but also tightly ball-tied, unconscious women who were part of her security detail. Crammed inside the cabinet. Their bodies thoroughly restrained with ropes. Gagged and blindfolded with thick tape. One was a dark-skinned green-eyed brunette, the other was a white-skinned blue-eyed redhead.

However, Aurelia didn’t see any of that. She was too preoccupied with securing her precious hostage.

**************

Zoé was surprised to see Aurelia enter her bedroom in the middle of the night. A security guard was following the businesswoman.

Judging by her clothes, this female guard was part of Aurelia’s inner-circle. She was part of the people who were complicit in the businesswoman’s illegal operations. The woman was wearing black shoes, black trousers, a weapon belt with a handgun, a black security blazer over a white button-up shirt, and a black beret. (For some reasons, Supremacists had a strange fetish for soldiers wearing berets.)

“I apologize for bothering you at this late hour.” Aurelia announced. “I must take a few extra precautions tonight. I’ll ask Carolyn to stay with you. Don’t worry, she won’t bother you.”

The guard had black hair, tied into a tight low bun. There was one longer bang covering each of her cheek. Said two bangs were dyed purple. She had a white skin and dark blue eyes. Her body was slim, and of average size.

Zoé did her best to look frail and ingenuous, just like every time she had had to interact with one of her kidnappers. “O- Of course.” She also made sure to look a little worried, so that they wouldn’t think she’d be a threat.

Aurelia looked satisfied. “If you’ll excuse me, I must check a few things. Good night.”

She left and locked the room. Carolyn gave Zoé a brief nod, then sat on an armchair. Apparently, she didn’t want to make conversation.

It suited Zoé. The young woman’s mind was racing, even though she was making sure her face didn’t betray her emotions. Zoé was sure her kidnappers didn’t see her as a threat. Therefore, why would Aurelia leave a guard inside the room with her? Why would she take the extra precaution? Why indeed…?

Probably because she was worried something was wrong. She was worried something – or more precisely someone – could risk breaking Zoé out tonight, and ruining her plan.

Zoé thought for a moment. There was an alarm clock in her cell, therefore she had been able to keep track on the days. According to her calculations, enough time had passed to allow her mothers and aunts to find her. Were they in the estate? Perhaps Aurelia had noticed something unusual. Not enough to raise the alarm, but enough to take an extra precaution, the time to check. The businesswoman knew who Zoé’s mothers and aunts were, so she was most likely very careful with everything that was out of the ordinary.

However, whether her moms and aunts were here or not, it was a golden opportunity. Zoé couldn’t let this chance of escaping go to waste.

The young woman had been trained by her mothers and aunts. One glance at Carolyn allowed her to see she had a chance to defeat the guard, provided that she took her by surprise.

Zoé had already a plan.

Pretending she needed to go to the restroom, Zoé took with her one biography of Constantin Basileus. She made sure to pick the heaviest book…

Once she was inside, Zoé waited ten minutes. Then, she called for Carolyn:

“Excuse me! I need your help! The toilet appears to be clogged.”

It was an easy lie – one of the simplest tricks in the book, really. However, simple tricks were often the best ones, if you were a good enough liar. Zoé was crafty, and from the beginning she had pretended she was a weak timid ingenue. The guard didn’t even suspect she could be tricking her.

“I’m coming.” Carolyn answered.

The guard entered the room. Discreetly, Zoé moved in her back.

When the woman bent forward to check the toilets, Zoé conked her on the head with the book. The guard grunted, fell forward, and went still. She was out cold.

The next steps felt natural, even though it was the first time Zoé was stripping a woman “for real”. However, she had had enough training sessions – and she had heard enough of Klenia’s tales – to act without hesitation.

Zoé started with the bottom. She unlaced and removed the shoes, then unbuckled the weapon belt, and shimmied down the trousers. Next, she unzipped the security blazer, unbuttoned the uniform shirt which was underneath, and pulled both garments out.

She left Carolyn clad in a black tank top, white socks, white boxer briefs with black vertical stripes, and a dark grey t-shirt bra. She didn’t need those, and she was short on time.

When Carolyn started to wake up, Zoé didn’t panic. She knew her hit would only stun the guard during a brief period of time. Fortunately, Mikani and Klenia had taught her a few pressure points. Had the guard been in full possession of her abilities, Zoé would have had a hard time grabbing one. However, while the woman was groggy and on the floor, it was easy as pie.

Zoé pinched a very specific nerve. The guard had a few spasms, moaned, and lost consciousness again. This time, it would take her at least one hour to recover.

Now that she was sure the sentry wouldn’t wake up for a while, Zoé grabbed the white towels. She twisted them, and turned them into makeshift ropes.

Once again, while it was the first time she was binding a sentry “for real”, Zoé had received enough training to do it right.

She tied Carolyn’s wrists behind her back, wrapped a towel around her thighs to bind them, then immobilized her calves with a third makeshift rope. An other towel was turned into a makeshift cleave-gag, and a fifth one was used as a blindfold.

“Aurelia. Thank you for the extra towels.” Zoé joked with irony.

After a quick internal debate, she chose to drag Carolyn across the bathroom, and to stuff her into the bathtub. She closed the curtain to conceal the bound-and-gagged underwear-clad sentry.

Now that Carolyn was out of the way, Zoé didn’t waste time. She quickly took off her own clothes, then slipped into the security guard’s uniform.

And this is my first mugging for disguise... Zoé thought to herself. It’s surprisingly… mundane. Aunt Klenia made it out to be much more arousing in her tales… I guess I’m more like Mom. I don’t really care for the uniform stealing itself. It’s only a mean to an end. When she had been a young child, Zoé had one day proclaimed she’d become a uniform stealer like Mikani. However, as she was growing up, she had chosen a different career. Now that she could finally experiment the life of an infiltrator, she realized she didn’t regret at all her choice to become a social worker. Ultimately, she didn’t have an appetence for stealing other people’s clothes.

As she was buckling the weapon belt, Zoé thought to herself: If mom and the others truly are here, I’d best leave them a message...

When she found Carolyn’s cellphone, Zoé regretted having knocked her out too early. She could have forced the guard to give her the PIN code, and then could have used the phone to call her mother.

I guess no-one can do perfectly on their first try...

Zoé shrugged. What was done was done. She could maybe find an other person, and threaten her with Carolyn’s gun. In the meantime, she quickly tore down a page from one of the books, found a pen, and wrote: ‘I escaped.’ on it. She left the sheet of paper on her bed.

One of Carolyn’s keys unlocked the door.

Zoé adjusted her stolen beret to hide her hair and face, then exited the bedroom.

**************

In the police station, Robyn was working late. Even though she was tired, she had taken a night shift.

The blond inspector was trying to deal with the aftermath of her disastrous attempt to arrest Maribel and Talia. Though, to be honest, she didn’t have much hope. Five officers had been mugged during her attempt to capture the infiltrators, and all the culprits had escaped arrest. The journalists were having a field day with the story...

Robyn’s phone suddenly rang. The inspector picked it up without having great hopes.

“Inspector Robyn, yes?” she half-heartedly said.

“Hi! This is Arthur. I have good news.”

“Do tell.”

“Remember the drones you sent after the suspect during the assault earlier?”

“Yes.”

“Well, they managed to take a picture of the license plate of the van she used to escape with her accomplices.”

“So?”

“Well, I’ve asked for the footage of the traffic cameras of the area. I’ve managed to find the van’s itinerary.”

Robyn was starting to feel hopeful.

“And?”

“We’ve lost them at some point because they drove to the countryside, but I used some satellite pictures to track back their vehicle. It’s parked near the farm complex of Aurelia Erikell south to the city.”

Robyn briefly processed the news.

Aurelia Erikell… As in the CEO of EarthSee Corp, suspected of being a Supremacist… It couldn’t be a coincidence.

The women had been seen snooping around near Talia’s and Maribel’s house during the police raid. They had mugged three agents of the strike team. And their fourth accomplice was Robyn’s mugger herself.

Either the four women were accomplices of Talia and Maribel, and Aurelia’s farm complex was their fallback position.

Or they were actually Zoé’s family – former guerrilla fighters trained in infiltration. It would mean they had gone to Aurelia’s estate because they suspected the businesswoman of the kidnapping. They had perhaps found proofs in Talia’s and Maribel’s house… That would explain why they were around...

In both cases, searching Aurelia’s farm complex was worth the try.

The blonde’s interest was immediately peaked.

Was she going to be saved by good old-fashioned police work?

“Good work Arthur!”

Robyn realized she still had one chance to avoid a humiliating disaster…

“Everyone to their post! I have a lead on the Zoé Noykoaze case!” she shouted in the police station.

[simon4242]

hope u do an epilogue of the victims stashed in burlap sacks and cupboards and trailer lol

[meditions142]

Great story.

The Osana and Ilyana scene was fantastic. Love the jaded older cousin and her enthusiastic young cousin. Fun to that Maribel wants to use her dart gun rather than just attacked. Always love those double dart scenes.

We also get a great three sentry take down.

But I think Zoe's take out of Carolyn was my favorite. Love the old trick the woman to come look at toilet method. Then knock her out.

Then love that as she starts to wake up Zoe nerve pinches Carolyn. Great description "Zoé pinched a very specific nerve. The guard had a few spasms, moaned, and lost consciousness again." Poor Carolyn got knocked out twice!

[tirepanted3]

A very disguise-heavy chapter, as most infiltration segments are. If my count is correct, ten unlucky women lose their clothes in this round. Clearly we're building to the climax.

The muggings continue to be both compelling and varied in perspective and humor. While they fall into two categories here (farmhands and security guards), there's a good deal of variety from scene to scene, helped in part by the constant switching in POV between Aster's team and Talia/Maribel. Different goals, same tactics.

Poor Osana can't catch a break, and her streak at this point seems even unluckier than Ashley's. Some good humorous contrast between her as a cynical veteran and Ilyana as an optimistic rookie, who has no prior familiarity with the risks of wearing a security uniform. Maribel noting which one was a veteran vs. a beginner based on their underwear choice was a terrific detail.

Speaking of rookies, congratulations to Zoé for joining the USB ranks this chapter, and following in the footsteps of the women who raised her. There's a real feeling of USB: The Next Generation to watching her take down Carolyn. That was a memorable scene as well - the "clogged toilet" excuse is an old one, but it makes sense that Zoé would utilize a classic excuse for her first time. Perhaps she'll be more creative in the future.

I also like the throwaway scene of Talia and Maribel stuffing the two fully clothed guards in a cabinet, bound and gagged. Occasionally, some fortunate sentries are able to keep their uniforms on, even after being mugged. Lucky them!

The action is ramping up now, and I look forward to seeing where it leads. (Turn back, Robyn, before it's too late... )