Also, I have a feeling, keen eyed readers will get the references I've made in this chapter.
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CHAPTER 39: IZANAGI’S BURDEN
Ulla sits up in her bed, she checks her watch and sees that it’s still the early hours of the morning, so early in fact that the morning birds haven’t even started singing yet and only the tip of the sun can be seeing peeking over the horizon of the ocean. Ulla, climbs out of bed and gets dressed in the outfit that she will go to war in. Ulla then individually checks on all the members of the crows; she gently opens each of their bedroom doors and makes sure that all of them are sleeping peacefully. After she hears the gentle breathing of all the crows tucked up nice and warm in their beds, she quietly goes out the front door and makes her way outside for some air.
Ulla passes several barracks, and she can’t help but take a peek inside. Inside are all the men and women under her command, all the lives she’s going to be responsible for, all the soldiers that will be following her into the muck and grime of battle, Ulla even notices that a few of the soldiers are even tucked up together in their beds, this actually makes Ulla feel sick, although the cold, lifeless and emotionless look on her face hides it well. After what happened to her old unit back in Sweden, she now hates the idea of seeing soldiers who are also couples. She has nothing against their love, she’s actually happy that they’ve found each other, what she can’t stand is the thought of having to potentially watch one of them break down in tears of despair as their loved one’s body is carted off the plane in a makeshift coffin. This is the feeling that makes Ulla feel just so damn sick.
Ulla sighs and heads outside. She makes her way down to a bed of rocks and finds a nice subtle one for her to sit down on, she then removes her boots and removes her socks, before dipping her bare feet into the calm and gentle ocean which rests around her. The lukewarm morning sea feels good against her toes as she gently teases the water with her feet. She then sits back and breathes in the sea air, she enjoys the calmness and the serenity of it all. She then calmly starts to hum to herself, her voice gently echoes throughout the morning air and the sea remains calm as if it itself is locked into the sweet melody of her gently humming. Indeed, Ulla once again looks like a siren perched on a rock, singing out into the ocean, attracting any who would fall for her gentle voice.
“Nice tune.” Ulla hears from behind her.
Ulla stops harming and slowly turns her around to see who’s interrupting her. When she turns she sees an Asian woman staring at her. This Asian woman is 28 years old, she has long black fair which has been neatly tied back in a pony tail, however she has several long strands which droop down by both sides of her face, the tips of her hair have been dyed bright red, she has brown eyes….Or “eye” as her left eye has a big dark red eyepatch over it with a white Japanese symbol painted in the middle, there’s a scar running just on top and underneath her left eye too, indicating that at some point in her life, she’s caught the wrong end of a blade and her left eye seems to have paid the price for it. She’s wearing a light blue sleeveless jacket letting her bare arms be on full display. Both of her arms are covered with rich and vibrant tattoos of various Japanese mythological beasts and goddesses, she’s wearing black leather fingerless gloves, black combat trousers which are neatly tucked into a pair of black combat boots, she has red kneepads on, again with a white Japanese symbol painted on them, she’s wearing a full equipment vest filled with ammunition, equipment, a few data pads, zip ties and even a side arm.
“Why aren’t you in your barracks trooper.” Ulla says in a cold tone, seemingly annoyed that her peace has been disturbed.
“Forgive me captain, I just can’t sleep……So you’re the siren of Heartfelt cove, eh?” The woman replies.
Ulla just gently splashes the sea water with her feet.
“Well, it’s nice to meet you, my name is Izanagi and I’m the one who provided Anna with the intel about who we will be dealing with.” The woman now known as Izanagi reveals.
“Oh, is that right.” Ulla doesn’t sound convinced.
“I’m not lying to you I swear.” Izanagi states.
“Why should I believe you.” Ulla calmly replies.
“Because you see captain……I……I’m kind of one of the Phantoms.” Izanagi swallows hard after saying that.
“What do you mean, your kind of, one of them?” Ulla doesn’t seem bothered by Izanagi’s statement.
“My……My father was a Phantom……..But my mother…….Was an infiltrator.” Izanagi gently replies.
“I bet those were fun family get togethers then eh.” Ulla replies without a single emotion on her face.
“Haha, yeah they were……”
“I wasn’t joking.” Ulla interrupts.
Izanagi just looks down at the floor then turns to walk away.
“So, what’s the deal with the Phantoms and Infiltrators anyway.” Ulla says, stopping Izanagi from leaving.
“In what way captain?” Izanagi turns
“Well, I’m slightly confused, we have infiltrators in Sweden and they are no different to the one’s here in Heartfelt, yet they are treated like a virus here, then of course we have the Phantoms who seem to be hellbent on wiping them out in some holy quest, then there’s us thrown into the middle. So I’m asking you as someone who’s just trying to make sense of the situation, if you really are born to both a Phantom father and a mother infiltrator, that means you have a clear understanding of both sides, so please…..Explain it to me.” Ulla insists.
Izanagi sits down cross legged next to Ulla.
“I was born in Hiroshima, my mother was an infiltrator working for the Yakuza, she was one of the finest infiltrators in the whole of Japan, she had stolen more uniforms that what some people have had hot meals, she really was one of the best. My father was one of the most skilled infiltrator hunters in the whole Japan too, he was a direct descendant from a group of Phantoms who assisted the Shogun of Japan during the Mongolian invasions which started at Tsushima.” Izanagi sits back and smiles, clearly proud of her heritage.
Ulla just glares out into the ocean itself.
“My mother was infiltrating an installation once when my father finally caught her, but just before they started fighting they stopped when they got a good look at each other, apparently it was love at first sight for the both of them…..Haha, my father always told me that he felt really weak and his legs turned to jelly when he saw just how beautiful my mother waa, and likewise, my mother always said of how she felt so breathless and giddy when she saw how handsome my father was…….Yeah it really was love at first sight for the two of them…….Anyway, after a while of dating in secret, the rest of the Phantoms discovered that he was in a committed relationship with an infiltrator and they gave him two options. He either kill the infiltrator and regain his honour, or be exiled and shunned from all Phantoms sectors.” Izanagi chucks a stone into the water. “My father ultimately chose my mother…..He chose the true love of his life over his own honour. Around the same time, my mother retried from infiltrator and the two settled down together in a quiet and reclusive home in Hiroshima’s countryside, which is where I was eventually born.” Izanagi continues.
“What happened after?” Ulla says, somewhat curious.
“My mother taught all the tricks of the trade and trained me in the ways of infiltrators and my father also taught me everything there was to know about the Phantoms, so it didn’t matter if I came to be an infiltrator or a Phantom, I knew how to be both. My parents now own a ramen bar together and to be honest, I don’t think they’ve ever been happier.” Izanagi finishes the tale about her past.
“So how did you end up here then?” Ulla wonders.
“Well, it turns out that being born to both sides is pretty much a curse, for you see. Every infiltrator I come across is scared of working with me because of my Phantom heritage and the Phantoms don’t want to know me, because they view my infiltrator heritage as a disease. Those bastards even had the nerve to refer to me as a………Half breed……So there, I’m pretty much shunned by both sides at this point.” Izanagi then spits into the ocean in disgust.
“Then why are you helping this Anna woman?” Ulla still wants the whole picture.
“The Phantoms have this new leader, she calls herself a Prophet or something, she’s turned the Phantoms into a shell of their former selves. The Phantoms are ruthless yes, but they had rules. The rules stated that only infiltrators will bad intentions and evil hearts must be killed, anyway infiltrator who is seen to have kindness in their soul and use their abilities for good, are given pardon and allowed to live………………But this prophet woman, just kills them all and it’s just wrong, because I’ve seen good infiltrators out there, infiltrators who just want to see peace, yet they’ve been needlessly murdered since the prophet appeared and pretty much issued a complete genocide……..She must be stopped and the Phantoms must regain their honour and go back to the ways of old when they had respect, I’m here to make sure that happens.” Izanagi has a serious look on her face.
“What happened to your eye?” Ulla suddenly blurts out without any tact. Izanagi then trubs her eye patch with her hand and a look of sorrow spreads across her face.
“I was in Prague as I was trying to protect an infiltrator, a criminal organisation was stealing funds and supplies that were meant to go to hospitals and this infiltrator was trying to help them, anyway by the time I got there this infiltrator was locked in some fight with some ruthless Phantom who went by the name of Jetset……I rushed in and tried to help her, but during the fight, Jetset managed to get the better of me and using one of her knife she managed to slash my face and slicing my left eye out in the process. I screamed in agony before Jetset then kicked me off a balcony and I landed in someone’s garden. Anyway, fighting through the pain I got back to my feet and rushed back inside, but by the time I got back up there, I was too late…….The infiltrator lay dead in the middle of the floor with her throat slit from cheek to cheek, in the distance I could see Jetset flying away victoriously……I can still see the look of hopelessness on that infiltrators face as her eyes were wide open and her blood redecorated the floor, I was in so much shock that I forgot how much pain and agony I was in at the time……..I failed her……..I wear my patch and my scar with pride, knowing that I will NEVER allow another good infiltrator to be needlessly killed.” Izanagi explains.
Ulla understands the pain Izanagi went through and she understands the drive to do what’s best in this world, but she doesn’t show it, instead she just sits there staring out at the ocean, with the same cold, emotionless and distant expression she had on her face from when she first sat down. In Ulla’s eyes the only way to prevent herself from being hurt is to distance herself from everything and everyone, but even she knew that she had a soft spot for the crows.
“So that’s my story. But I’m hearing your making great progress around here, okay fair enough the other soldiers don’t know what to make of you and a lot of them are actually scared of you, but I overheard some of the lab technicians and scientists saying of much of a great help you’ve been in providing all the necessary data for project: overturn.” This makes Ulla lift her head slightly. The only people she’s speaking to since arriving were the crows or reluctantly other soldiers, she hasn’t spoken to anyone else.
“I see and did these individuals happen to say just what this data was I was providing for them?” Ulla quizzes.
“No, but whatever you’re providing for them and their little project, it sure sounds like it’s coming along nicely.” Izanagi answers.
“So, it would seem.” Ulla looks back towards the direction of the base itself and she starts to wonder just what project overturn is and more importantly, what supposed data is she giving them.
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The sisters are now in Hong Kong are waiting outside of an orphanage, they have a rented minibus on standby.
“There were so many stewardesses on that flight, god I wish Blink decided to come with us in the end, I can already see her now, replacing one of the stewardesses, swiping her uniform, then she’s casually comes up to me mid-flight and says she has something to show me, then we both quietly sneak into one of the bathrooms and make sweet, passionate love to each other.” Libido closes her eyes and bites her bottom lip as she pictures Blink in a stewardess uniform.
“Yes, we know sis, you’ve only told us a dozen times already.” Soph says and she puts on her sunglasses.
Tina looks at Angel who staring hopefully at the front door of the orphanage.
“You okay sis?” Tina asks, placing her hand on Angel’s shoulder.
“Yeah, I’m just very anxious that’s all.” Angel replies, although she does have a smile on her face.
“Everything will be fine, you’ll see.” Tina says to reassure her sister.
A few minutes later and the door to the orphanage opens, she girls leave the building, each with their suitcases in their hands. Angel smiles with absolute delight when she notices that it is indeed Mikasa, Erika and Aika who have left the building. Angel bends down and gets ready to greet them as Mikasa and her sisters slowly make their over to them.
“Hey, you three, how are you.” Angel says as they get close.
“We’re fine. So, you actually came back for us, like you promised.” Mikasa says to the sisters standing before her.
“Of course we did, you didn’t think that we would just leave you to be separated would we? Heck no, sisters must stay together.” Angel replies with a smile.
“Thank you.” Mikasa says as both her and Aika bow to the sisters.
Just then though, Stasis feels a tug at her jean shorts, she looks down and see’s Erika pulling her doggy eyes at her, after snacks and food.
“Oh, I certainly remember you little one, here you go.” Stasis pulls out a bag of crisps and passes it to Erika, who just immediately devours the whole thing, then stares at Stasis again hoping for more.
“This kid is so awesome!” Stasis shouts as she passes Erika a chocolate bar, again which Erika quickly devours.
Come on Stasis, they need to eat healthy stuff as well you know, here you go.” Marie passes Erika a bag of sliced apples and pieces of orange.
Now in all fairness, Erika quickly devours the entire bag of fruit as well, indicating she really isn’t fussy when it comes to food.
“So, are we going home with you?” Aika asks.
“Not exactly, you see, we’re not exactly the best people to raise three children, especially with everything that happens in our lives, so we’re going to be taking you to two really, REALLY good friends of ours, and they are going to love you, shelter you, feed you and keep you safe. Trust me, they’ll never let anything bad happen to you, plus because they are friends of ours, they have said that we can come over and see you anytime we want and they said if you ever wanted to, you can always come over and see us, how does that sound?” Tina says with a very loving tone.
“Sounds great.” Mikasa replies.
“Before we go, I have these for you.” Tinker unzips her backpack and pulls out a load of documents. “These are your new passports, your new citizenships, because as of right now, your three are officially citizens of Heartfelt and here are all of your travel documents.” Tinker shows the three children their new lives.
Just then though Mikasa, Erika and Aika’s stomachs all rumble.
“You know, our flight doesn’t leave for another six hours, how about we go and find somewhere nice to eat.” Mag suggests.
“Great idea! Follow me, I’ll take the best restaurant!” Stasis shouts in response.
“Here, let me help you with your bags.” Angel says as she gently helps the Mikasa and her siblings put their bags into the car.
As they walk towards a nearby restaurant, Aika can’t help but look at BB.
“Your really tall, I bet your not that good at hide and seek.” Aika can’t help but say.
“Haha, no I’m not very good at that, but sometimes my height comes in handy, for instance, do you want to sit on my shoulders?” BB replies.
Aika looks at Mikasa and Mikasa gives her a friendly nod, it seems that when it comes to her sisters, Mikasa is a lot like Tina. BB bends down and Angel helps Aika onto her shoulders.
“Whoa! I’m as tall as Godzilla!” Aika shouts when she sees has high up, she is.
Tina notices how happy Angel is as they are walking, Tina wraps her arm around Angel’s shoulders before giving her a sisterly kiss on the side of her head. Tina knows just much this means to Angel and as long as her sisters are happy. Tina is happy.
For now, everything was going smoothly.
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Ulla had spent a big portion of the morning searching for answers, but none of the soldiers had even heard about this project overturn, even Izanagi was going by purely what she had overheard. So, Ulla waited until lunch time as she had an idea. After both her and the crows had their lunch, Ulla ordered the crows to stay in the penthouse as she was going out for a while. She followed the servants who took the empty lunch trays away, she followed them right the way until they got to a part of the installation that was even off limits to Ulla. She then noticed Izanagi praying to a makeshift Shinto shrine, Ulla was respectful and waited for Izanagi to finish her praying ritual before she sharply whistled her over.
“What are your orders captain?” Izanagi asks.
“Look I didn’t tell you before, but I don’t know anything about this project overturn and since I’m apparently apart of it, I just want to know exactly what role I’m playing, so I’m going to sneak inside and see what’s going on. I swiped this communicator as I following them, I need you stand close by and keep watch for me, let me know if anyone suspicious is coming.” Ulla hands Izanagi an earpiece before she herself place sone into her own ear.
“Yes captain, I would offer you my assistance, but seeing as how I’ve only got one eye, I doubt I could pull of any disguises or anything.” Izanagi replies.
“It’s fine, next time I’ll find you a pirate ship to infiltrate.” Ulla says in a very cold tone of voice.
“Oh ha-ha, very funny captain.” Izanagi says sarcastically.
“I wasn’t being funny.” Ulla replies in a cold tone with her forever emotionless face.
“Eeerrmmm……Fair enough.” Izanagi says as she pops her earpiece in.
Ulla sneaks inside the facility and creeps down a couple of corridors, the narrowly dives into an empty office and avoids a patrol of security guards, judging by their outfits they were most likely the personal guard that Pearce commands and are usually always hanging around Anna. Ulla goes to sneak out the office when an additional door to a laboratory opens and lone female leaves carrying a data pad with her. Ulla looks down at her outfit and scratches her chin as she ponders a thought. Ulla wonders if she can pass as a laboratory worker, plus it seems safer than sneaking around and risk getting caught.
The laboratory worker is a 33 year old white skin woman with shortish black hair and dark blue eyes. She’s wearing a type of pure white hazmat suit, which covers her entire body, including her arms and her legs, she has the hood of the hazmat suit pulled up so it covers her hair, she’s wearing a white face masks, blue goggles, white gloves and a pair of bright white laced shoes. An ID card with her picture on it was clipped to her suit and it read that her name was “Blossom”. Although with the outfit covering most of her face, it made the photo part of the ID slightly redundant.
Blossom is so busy typing away at her keep pad as she types up her notes, that she fails to see the door to an office open as she walks passed it, although as soon as she does, Ulla leaps out and grabs Blossom in a sleeper hold by wrapping one arm around her neck and wraps her other arm around her forehead. She then quickly yanks Blossom back into the office and kicks the door shut when they are inside.
“Hhhuurrkk……Gggaaahhh………Ggggaaahhhh……….Uuuunnn.” It’s a short-lived struggle for Blossom as Ulla applied her sleep hold with absolutely precision and with the just the right amount of strength for it to be it’s most effective.
Needless to say, it really doesn’t long before Blossom’s eyes go very limp and tired, she makes one final faint moaning noise, before she gently drifts off to sleep. Ulla swipes the ID card off of her and checks Blossom’s credentials. She then leaves the card on a table and pulls the hood off of Blossom’s head so her hair waves around, she then unstraps and removes the goggles, unstraps and removes the facemask too before unlaces and removes Blossom’s shoes, she then gently pulls the elastic gloves off of Blossom one finger at a time, before she finally unzips Blossom’s hazmat suit and removes it from her body.
Now that she is fully stripped, it is revealed that Blossom is wearing a dove white plunge bra with a pair of salt white French cut panties, she’s also wearing a pair of ankle white socks. Ulla breaks open a computer on one of the desks and removes all the cables and wiring that’s inside. Shen then uses the said cables and wires to swiftly tie up Blossom. Ulla ties up Blossoms ankles, wrists, arms, and legs. Ulla might not be an infiltrator, but she knows how to tie up a captive. She realizes that there isn’t anything to use as a gag, so thinking quickly, Ulla pulls the white socks off of Blossom’s feet, rolls them into a nice little ball, then shoves it straight into her mouth, she then uses the last of the cables and ties them around Blossom’s mouth to keep the socks in place and to be a makeshift gag. Finally, Ulla then drags Blossom’s body under the table where the computer once was and blokes her with an office chair, making sure that Blossom is kept out of sight. With her out of the way so to speak, Ulla then gets changed into Blossom’s uniform.
“So, this is what infiltrators do huh? Hhhmm, I wonder if they secretly suffer from identity crises, so they impersonate as many women as they can, trying to find who they are in life? Or maybe they all get some sort of sexual fulfilment out of it?” Ulla says to herself.
It’s natural for Ulla to think this, as she has had very little interactions with infiltrators, so to her, this is all still a little bit alien. With Ulla now wearing her disguise, she leaves the office and heads into the laboratory. She swipes Blossom’s ID card and gains entry, normally finding one particular in a laboratory would seem difficult, but when Ulla enters she quickly spots the this project turnover is the forefront for Anna’s operation as every computer screen and every piece of equipment is dedicated to the project itself. Ulla walks over and examines some work on some of the data pads, she then examines several things under a microscope before she sits down on one of the computers and opens up several files, she scans through them, one by one.
“Subject’s hair samples have been retrieved from the shower……..Subject’s saliva was received via the cutlery from her meals……..Subject’s skin flakes have been acquired from her bedding and pillow………Blood, is the last thing required from the subject to begin the project, please acquire ASAP.” Ulla reads some of the note worthy pieces out loud.
Ulla then examines the vials again and realizes that she’s looking at some of her own skin and saliva, she then hurries back to the computer and opens up some more files.
“Subject is extremely efficient in the field………Is a natural born leader………Has ticked all necessary additional boxes…………Subject herself is very miserable, very passive aggressive, refuses to let anyone close………Diagnosis……..Severe PTSD and potential survivor’s guilt.” Ulla reads more out loud.
But unfortunately, just as Ulla is about to learn what project turnover is, the door opens and another female lab technician enter the room.
“Oh Blossom, I didn’t realise you were still here, I thought you said you were going to lunch?” The female lab technician states, it seems that the full hazmat disguise is paying off as the female can not see Ulla’s face and work out that she’s not the real Blossom.
“No, I forgot I left my computer on, so I thought I’d come back and quickly log off.” Ulla says as she switches off the computer.
“Wow, you actually remembered this, I’m always logging your account for you, geez, why do you think I’m back here.” The female replies.
“Yep, clumsy me, just shoot me in the head and kick my lifeless body into the ocean for the barnacles, am I right.” Ulla darkly jokes.
“Whoa, geez, that’s a bit morbid isn’t it, god I was only joking Blossom, anyway, I’m going to go for lunch now as well, do you want to join me?” The woman asks.
“No thanks, I have my own waiting for me, but I’ll see you in a bit alright.” Ulla replies as she walks out the lab.
“Sure, see you in about an hour.” The female lab technician says as Ulla walks away.
As Ulla walks down the corridor, she can’t help but wonder. “What are they doing in there, why are they collecting parts of my DNA, I doubt I’ll get anymore answers for now, but I’ll figure out what their doing in there, I never agreed to them taking any part of my DNA to begin with……What are you up to Anna.” Ulla thinks to herself as she ponders her next move.
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With the time zones and everything taking effect, even though the plane has been in the air for hours now, because it’s going west, it feels a lot later than it actually is. Right now, it’s dinner time in Hong Kong, but it’s only just turned lunchtime in Heartfelt. At Heartfelt’s airport, Higgs and Gaia are patiently waiting at arrivals for Tina and her sisters to arrive with Mikasa and her siblings.
“Oh god, just think, in a few short moments, we’re going to be parents…….Are we ready for this, can we do this, are we going to screw it up?” Gaia paces back and forth worryingly.
“Honey, we’re going to be fine, we’ve got this, Tina and her sisters came to us, because they know just how much we want to actually have a real family and besides, do you think the sisters would have asked us to adopt these kids, if they thought we couldn’t handle it?” Higgs replies.
“I know, I know, it’s just, what if Mikasa, Aika or Erika don’t like us, what if we get something wrong, I just want everything to be perfect you know.” Gaia continue to pace worried out of her mind.
“Darling, it’s fine, trust me, you are going to make such a great mother you know that.” Higgs hugs and tries to comfort his wife.
“Thank you honey, I needed to hear……Although we should probably wait until their adults before we reveal to them that we’re actually androids.” Gaia makes a good point.
“Yeah, that’s going to be one hell of a bridge to cross when we get to it isn’t it.” Higgs agrees.
A short while later though, the arrival doors open and Tina and her sisters enter the airport, with Mikasa and her sisters by their sides. Tina notices them and waves them over. Gaia takes a really long and calming deep breath before she bravely walks over to meet her new daughters. Once she gets close enough she bends down so she is at their level.
“Mikasa, Aika, Erika, these are two really good friends of ours and these are the two lovely people who are going to keep you safe and provide with all those lovely things we spoke about on the plane.” Tina says introducing them to her.
“Hello.” Mikasa says whilst she holds onto Erika and Aika’s hands.
“Hi there, my name is Gaia and this is my husband Higgs and we have just heard so much about you, as soon as we heard about the horrible things you went through, we just knew that we wanted to bring into a world of love and happiness.” Gaia says with a warming, motherly smile.
“Sisters stick together, right?” Mikasa replies.
“Indeed they do, now I do just want you know that, we can never replace your parents, we don’t want to replace your parents. BUT, what we do want to do is give you a safe home filled with love and joy, give you plenty of hot to eat and a warm place to sleep at night.” Gaia says offering her hand to Mikasa.
Mikasa gently touches Gaia’s hand, and she feels just how warm and comforting Gaia’s hand is. She then turns to Tina and the other sisters.
“Thank you Tina, we will come a visit you soon.” With that Higgs collects the three girls luggage cases and shows them where he parked the car.
Gaia turns to Tina and gives her a massive cuddle.
“I can never repay what you’ve done for us. I mean, first you help my husband where she was severely wounded, then you rescue me from a military installation and now you’ve given us the family we long fully wanted. Thank you…….All of you, tank you, Higgs and I have both agreed that it doesn’t where or when, if you ever needs us for anything, you know we will help you.” Gaia says as she then starts hugging all the other sisters.
“You know we never want you to repay us, seeing you happy is the only payment we will ever need.” Tina replies to Gaia.
“Okay, but remember, if you ever need, just call us.” With that Gaia rushes over to her family and gets ready to start her new life as a mother.
Mag and Marie share a fist bump with each other whilst Tina smiles at all her sisters.
“We did it, now it’s been a long flight, how about we go home and get some sleep.” Tina says with a tired, but pleased tone in her voice.
“Sounds good to me, I’m knackered.” Soph says as she yawns.
The nine sisters then make their way home with a real sense of accomplishment in their hearts.
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Kheshig gathers a load of paperwork and sorts them into three files, she then hears a knock at her door, she checks the security camera and notices that it’s only Elisha, she hurries over and opens the door allowing her to enter.
“You wanted to see me urgently?” Elisha states.
“Yes, things have changed, it seems that the Siren and her forces might make their attack against us soon, so all units are being sent to build a series of defences to counter their assault, then once all that is complete, two strike teams are going to be despatched. One team will go where Blink is supposedly located and the second will hit where the sisters themselves supposedly live.” Kheshig gathers her work up.
“So what do we do?” Elisha asks, keen on helping.
“I’ve managed to get you assigned on the team Falcon will be leading to go after Blink, I just need to find a way to keep Tina and her sisters out of harms way.” Kheshig responds.
“If Blink is there, I’ll keep her safe.” Elisha replies with a positive and a reassuring voice.
“I know you will, and I don’t know how yet, but I’ll find away to do the same for the sisters. Speaking of which, I’ve just discovered three more infiltrators that meet the requirements of infiltrators who must be kept safe, so please, make sure nobody else discovers these.” Kheshig hands Elisha the documents she’s just finished collecting.
Elisha quickly scans through the paperwork, she quickly saw all the good work that these infiltrators were doing and she noticed of how they only wanted to see good in the world, Elisha also took notice of the infiltrators kind personalities and protection of one another, Elisha then browsed and found out that their names were “Posy”, “Amber” and “Clover”. It also seems that collectively, these three infiltrators were simply known as vigilantes. Elisha closed the files after reading through them.
“So it’s true, there really are good infiltrators out there, just like the nine sisters.” Elisha hung her head in somewhat shame.
“Yes there are and the more I’m looking into it, it seems that there are plenty of other infiltrators who we’ve needlessly targeted, those three women are getting added to the list with infiltrators we must keep safe from the rest of the Phantoms. Those three don’t live in Heartfelt, they live outside of the city, they’ll be harder to monitor, but I will make sure that the Phantoms never discover their locations.” Kheshig says as she gathers her equipment.
“Are we doing the right thing?” Elisha momentarily wonders.
“We need to restore the Phantoms integrity, I mean look at us, needlessly going to war now with innocent men and women whoa aren’t even infiltrators, we’re attacking kind hearted infiltrators like Tina and her sisters, whilst ignoring all the other infiltrators who willingly kill innocent women, just for their clothes…….It’s just not right, none of it is, and come hell or high waters, I WILL restore the Phantoms back to it’s former glory…….But first, we must keep these infiltrators out of harms way.” Kheshig and Elisha leave the room before Kheshig opens her hand and Elisha gives her back the files on the three new infiltrators they’ve discovered.
“Please protect Blink and for the love of god, if her child Shannon is there…..Nothing must happen to her, the idea of us harming a child because she’s an offspring of an infiltrator makes me absolutely sick to my stomach.” Kheshig states.
“I’ll protect both of them, I promise!” Elisha says with absolute certainty.
“I know for the fact that the strikes will take place tomorrow evening, so this gives me just over twenty fours to get things sorted and to get the sisters to safety before the strike team arrives.” Kheshig now starts to formulate some plans in her head.
“I’ll keep you updated and may the mother of understanding guide you.” Elisha offers her hand.
“And may she guide you too, good luck.” Kheshig shakes Elisha hand and they both their separate ways, knowing what they have to do.
Darkness looms and by the looks of it, virtually nobody is safe from it’s presence.
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The next morning……….
Tinker has discovered a police report over night which states that a local security guard has been found dead in an alleyway, she’s only wearing her bra and panties and it seems she was only killed for her uniform. The police have cornered off the are and an investigation has been launched, the sisters of course have a hunch as to who’s behind it, but just to be sure Tina and Marie have gone down to investigate.
Tina and Marie get down to the sight and sneak pass several police cars and taped areas, there plan was a simple one, the police officers on scene were only allowing detectives to examine the body, so the two sisters were going to get the jump of a couple of detectives and replace them, thus gaining access to the crime scene itself. As Tina and Marie get close, they find a hiding spot and wait patiently. Sure enough, a short while later an unmarked police car appears, and parks close to where the sisters are hiding. Two female detectives step out from the car itself.
The first detective is 33 years old, she had naturally tanned skinned, she has chestnut brown eyes, long cool brown hair styled in what is known as the *long layer* look, she is wearing a pair of dark brown loafers, dark brown suit trousers, a white button up suit shirt with the top button undone, a dark brown blazer, a police badge was hung round her neck and her a secondary badge clipped onto her brown leather belt read her name was “Malia”.
The second detective is 30 years old, she also has tanned skin, although it’s obvious she was using fake tan as she was clearly jealous of her partners natural tanned skin, she has sweet violet blue eyes, she had long cinnamon brown hair styled in a sleek and straight look, she is wearing a pair of black leather kitten heel shoes, black suit trousers, a dark blue suit shirt with a black blazer over the top, like her partner she also has her police badge dangling around her neck and a secondary ID badge on her black leather belt reveals her name is “Camila”.
“Another beautiful day in Heartfelt city eh.” Camila says as she stretches her arms.
“Yep, alright, can you grab the stuff the boot, I’ll go and make sure none of these idiots have hampered our crime scene.” Malia responds.
Camila goes round and opens the boot of the car and starts to fetch this like medical elastic gloves and evidence bags, but as she’s doing so, Marie lines up her shot and double clicks her pen. A dart comes flying out and pricks Camila right on her bum cheek.
“Eeeekkk!” Camila shrieks.
“Hahaha, what was that about?” Malia laughs at her partner’s girlish shriek.
“Hey, don’t laugh, something just bit me on my bum!” She shouts as she rubs her backside.
“Aaawww, what’s the matter princess, do you need me to kiss it better?” Malia says whilst giggling.
“Stop giggling you…….You…….dumb…….Penguin…….” Camila starts to talk gibberish as the sleeping serum in Marie’s dart takes effect and she suddenly falls face first hunched over in the boot of her car.
“Hey are you alright? What’s Hhhhuuuuppppmmmmmm!” Malia is suddenly grabbed from behind.
Tina clamps one hand over Malia’s mouth and with her hand, she swiftly pulls the confused detective straight over the bonnet of the car, once Tina has pulled her over, she applies a very quick nerve pinch straight to the woman’s neck. Malia’s eyes widen as she feels the nerve pinch get applied to her, she can’t help but tense up for a second as it quickly makes her body feel numb, she then goes all giddy and gently passes out fast asleep right into Tina’s arms, with Malia’s body going all relaxed and limp in the process.
Tina drags a very unconscious Malia round the back of the car where Marie is currently scooping up a drugged-up Camila.
“Nice work, can you pass me one of those extra darts you have on you please, I need to make sure this one stays asleep for a couple more hours.” Tina asks.
“No problem, here you go sis.” Marie gives Tina one of her spare darts and Tina quickly injects it into Malia’s neck.
Maria and Tian then lift the two detectives into the back of their car and hastily strip them, just in case anyone walks up and catches them in the act. Once the two detectives have been stripped, it is shown that Malia is wearing an India green balconette bra and a pair of tawny brown classic brief panties. Camila on the other hand is wearing a peach pink thong and a rose red lace bra.
Tina and Marie then decide to put the detective handcuffs to good use, both of the detectives seem to have two pair of handcuffs on them, so Tina and Marie use them by rolling both women on their fronts, then pulling their hands behind their backs before they secure one hand cuff around each wrist, then Marie lifts up both women’s legs whilst Tina uses the other part of the handcuffs around their ankles, this way it ensures that both their ankles will be suspended in the air and that their wrists would remain securely behind their backs. Tina pulls out a roll of Tinker homemade tape and quickly sticks a few layers over their mouths, she also takes the liberty in applying several strands of tapes around their legs and their upper bodies, just in case the handcuffs are flimsy and the real detectives manage to break the chains.
With them out of the way, Tina gets changed into Malia’s clothes, whilst Marie gets changed into Camila’s clothes, thankfully because both of the detective already had dark hair and tanned skin, it will be easier for Marie and Tina to get away with impersonating them. The two sisters then close the door on the bound beauties inside and make their way over to the crime scene, Tina will let someone know about the real detective in the car a bit later. Once they get down there, Marie and Tina both put on their no-nonsense detective type personas.
“I’m detective Malia and this is my partner, detective Camila, we’ve come to take a look at the body.” Tina says with absolute confidence.
“Sure, she’s all yours detectives.” A police officer on duty says.
“Before you go though, who called this in and when was the body found?” Marie says also with sheer confidence in portraying the woman she’s impersonating.
“A young couple found her, when they decided to sneak behind this alleyway for a quickie together, they called it in immediately, by the looks of it, I’d say she was dead for about an hour before she was found. According to what we have on file, her names is Oliva Fry, she’s 35 years old and she worked as a security guard for a jewellery company, a few blocks from here.” The police officer replies.
“Thanks, we’ll take it from here.” Tina replies.
Both Tina and Marie approach the body. The woman is lying dead on the floor with her eyes wide open and her tongue poking out, she has white skin, long blonde hair, light blue eyes and she’s wearing nothing more than an orange thong and a dark blue plunge bra. Marie puts on a pair of sanitisation gloves and bends down to have a look at the body. When Marie and Tina realize that nobody is looking, they drop the whole non nonsense type personas, so they can talk to each more clearly.
“Well, judging by the purple marks around her neck, I’d say she was killed by a garrotte, judging by how deep they are, my guess is this poor woman tried to fight off her attacker, but she tried to lunge forward hoping to surprise her attacker with a sudden jolt of energy, but it seems all it did was seal her fate.” Marie says to Tina as she examines Olivia’s body.
“Can you see anything else, like syringe marks or bruises or anything that could help?” Tina replies.
“No, it seems this was a straightforward ambush from behind, there’s no other markings on her, no internal damage or anything, it just seems that this woman was casually making her way to work when her attacker jumped her from behind, she clearly used a garrotte, because it’s quick and it avoids getting any blood on the uniform.” Marie deduces.
“Then there’s no doubt in my mind, this is clearly the work of Mary Clyde, it seems similar to some of the other reports Tinker managed to pull up on her computer for me back at the flat.” Tina says with an annoyed expression on her face.
“What do you want to do sis?” Marie asks.
“Let’s get back home and inform the others, there’s no point in hanging around, Mary will be long gone by now.” Tina says slowly shaking her head in annoyance.
Maire removes her sanitation gloves before she chucks them in the bin, both of the sisters then leave the crime scene, but on their way out, Tina passes an officer a set of car keys.
“Can you do me a favour in about ten minutes? We’ve just messaged our boss for some information regarding the victim, would you please check to see if we’ve had any replies, we need to go across the street to continue our investigation.” Tina asks.
“Yeah sure, no worries.” The police officer says as she takes the keys.
“Great, thanks.” Tina replies as both her and Marie walk down the road.
Tina naturally did this, so both of the real detectives would soon be found safe and sound.
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Back at the flat…….
Libido is painting her toenails, Marie and Soph are playing a cooperative video game together, BB and Mag are playing a game of chess together, Stasis is naturally enjoying a massive meat and vegetable filled baguette, whilst Tina and Angel are gathered around Tinker as she quickly types away at her keyboard.
“I’ve put together a file on what I have about Mary Clyde, by the seems of it she’s just an infiltrator who gets her kicks from pulling off thefts. We also know that she clearly has no issues with killing to get her disguises and overall, she just seems like a nasty piece of work.” Tinker explains as she types away.
“That’s not all, we will need to address the fact at some point that both Ulla and the crows are currently out of jail too.” Tina further continues.
“Ulla isn’t exactly a criminal, she’s just very lost, she’s trying to find a purpose in this world, she just doesn’t know how to handle things.” Angel calmly replies.
“I know sis, I was referring more to the fact that they got out of jail so soon because that vile human Anna, paid for their bail and conscripted Ulla into doing who knows what.” Tina carries on.
“Should we focus our attention more on Anna and Ulla for now then?” Tinker asks as she minimizes a screen on her computer.
“No, Mary is currently in play, and we haven’t seen or heard anything from Ulla since she got out. So right now, our main priority should be on stopping Mary, we can find out what Anna is planning later and we can also find out just why she wants Ulla to be a part of her scheme.” Tina decides.
“Hey, seeing as how we’re going after Mary, I was just wondering……..Do you think we could take that woman Cassie along with us?” Angel says whilst rubbing her arm.
The sisters all stop what their doing and stare at one another.
“That white mask? Why would you want to work with her?” Mag asks, somewhat surprised by Angels sudden comment.
“Mary was the one who took Cassie down that dark path she went on, but believe me, like all the other white masks, Cassie is not a bad woman, her heart is in the right place, she just got taken advantage of by Sarah, she deserves a chance to see that not all infiltrators are like Mary and that some of us actually aspire to use are talents to help people.” Angel replies.
“Even if we wanted to, we just simply don’t have the credits required to pay her bail.” Soph adds.
“No, we don’t, but I reckon we could buy her a day pass.” Tina thinks.
“I mean, I could easily hack into the system and acquire one for us, if that’s what we all want to do?” Tinker replies as she gets several hacking software’s loaded up.
“I’m not sure this is good idea.” Mag replies with slight worry in her voice.
“Please Mag, Cassie is just very confused, she was the one who set me free so I can save Stasis and help the rest of you put a stop to the white masks in the first place, I reckon that if we just show her what we’re all about, she might change the way she views us, plus she might even be able to convince the other white masks of our good intentions too as we know that a couple of the others were starting to doubt things weren’t they.” Angel pleads.
“Tina, what do you think?” Mag looks at Tina.
“Well, this could really be a great opportunity for us to prove to her that we are on the right side of things, even if they find it hard to believe. Okay here’s what we will do. We will get a day pass, but we will only get one for Cassie, I’ll be part of the team that goes to stop Mary, that way I can keep an eye on both Cassie and the rest of you, should she try anything. Not all of us will go as I reckon; she’ll get scared if all nine of us turn up.” Tina says.
“Count me in, I’m coming with you.” Angel immediately shouts out.
“Don’t worry sis, I had no intention of leaving you out of this one.” Tina says as she winks at Angel.
“Mind if I tag along?” Marie says as she saves the game both her and Soph were playing.
“Yeah sure, but is there any particular reason why?” Tina asks purely out of curiosity.
“Well, this Mary seems to enjoy hurting women doesn’t she, which means we might come across some people who could use medical attention. Plus, I heard that Cassie is a nurse, I wouldn’t mind showing her that I too only want to save lives, just like her.” Marie explains.
“Sounds good to me, okay so it’ll be just us three, the rest of you stay here.” Tina instructs.
“That’s fine by me, as my only plans for today was to sit back and enjoy this delicious baguette of mine.” Stasis says as she takes a massive bite out of her food.
Tina notices Mag’s head lower slightly. Tina smiles to herself as she recognises when Mag is worried, she walks over to Mag and taps her arms before she gingerly points towards the back room of the flat. Mag gets up and follows Tina over, once inside, Tina quietly closes the door.
“Are you okay?” Tina asks.
“Yeah, I’m fine, it’s just the idea of asking a white mask to actually work with us, it just doesn’t feel right. I mean, look at what they put us through, I’m just a little concerned that’s all.” Mag replies whilst rubbing the back of her head in nerves.
Tina just gently wraps Mag in her arms, before she gently pulls her in for a warm sisterly cuddle.
“I know your nervous about this, I’m your sisters, I can tell when something makes you uncomfortable, but I’ll be there, I’ll keep an eye on everything and if Cassie tries anything foolish and tries to hurt Marie or Angel, I’ll punch her straight in the nose.” Tina says to Mag in a calm and reassuring voice.
“Thank you, I’m just fearful for you, for all of you. You’re my sisters and I all I ever want to do is keep you all safe.” Mag says as she embraces Tina in her arms too.
Tina leans back and presses her forehead right up against Mag’s forehead, before both Mag and Tina close their eyes as they embrace each other.
“Do you want to come with us?” Tina whispers with a smile on her face.
“Do you mean it?” Mag replies as a smile goes across her face too.
“Yes I do, you know all I ever want to do is keep all of you safe too. We’re a family and we’ll always be here for each other won’t we. So yes, I mean, would you like to join us.” Tina says as she keeps Mag in her arms.
“Thank you, sister.” Mag says as now a big smile goes across her face.
“No problem, come on, let’s go and go and get ready.” Tina says as the two sisters let go of each other and leave the room.
As Mag and Tina leave the room, Tinker spins around on her chair with a big, satisfied smile on her face.
“I did it, I know exactly where Mary will strike next!” Tinker announces.
“Great work, so where will it be?” Tina replies as all the sisters come over to take a look.
Tinker spins back around to face her computer before she starts going through her findings and informing the rest of her sisters where she knows Mary will strike next……..
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At Heartfelt’s prison, Cassie is being escorted to a room in handcuffs and ankle cuffs, she isn’t a danger at all, this is purely just regulation as all inmates are treated the same, Cassie gets taken into a room where she is seated, before the security guard walks off. Cassie looks up and see’s Marie, Tina, Angel and Mag sitting across the table from her.
“Oh no, please. Please don’t hurt me!” Cassie winces in fear.
But after a moment of nothing, Cassie opens one of eyes and the only thing she sees is Angel holding out her hand to her.
“We don’t want to hurt you, actually we came here because we have something you might be interested in.” Angel says a smile and a calming tone of voice.
“You…You do?” Cassie nervously looks around.
“Cassie, we know what happened to you with Mary was appalling and we also know just how much of a traumatic event it was for you when you found out that a poor janitress was killed by Mary because she tried to call for help when she was mugged for her uniform. I know these are only words, but I assure you, if we were able to, we would go back in time and not only save you, but also save that poor woman who Mary killed.” Tina calmly adds.
“Well, eerrmm, thank you I guess, is this why you’re here though?” Cassie wonders.
“No, you see, we’ve found out where Mary Clyde is going to strike next, and we thought you might like to join us in taking her down and bringing her to justice.” Angel replies.
“But I don’t understand. Why me?” Cassie further adds.
“Because you’re a good woman with a good heart, to be honest all of you are good women with good hearts, you just wanted to see justice to those who had wronged you, but unfortunately you were given false information by a very damaged and a very sick woman. We just want a chance to show you, that yes, even though we ourselves are infiltrators, we are not bad people, we don’t allow harm to come to the women we takedown and most importantly, we want you to see that we are not your enemy.” Tina replies in still a warm and calming voice.
“Do you really know where Mary is?” Cassie asks curiously.
“Yes, there’s a charity function happening right now, it’s a charity designed to raise money for people with disabilities, now so far they’ve raised twenty thousand credits, so we believe that such a big chunk of money won’t go unnoticed by someone like Mary and she’ll be there today trying to steal it for herself……..Look, we know how you feel about us and about infiltrators as a whole, but I really do hope you accept our invitation and allow us to show you that we are not all bad and allow us to help you bring Mary down for good.” Angel states as she slides the approved day pass Tinker managed to obtain through her hacking skills earlier.
Cassie picks up the day pass and closes her eyes as she takes it all in. Multiple scenarios go through her head, she remembers of just how much Angel worried about her sisters safety, she remembers the compassion and the love Angel showed for her sisters. She remembers thinking of how her friends had gone too far with their quest, she remembers feeling confused about things, but she also remembers Mary, the one who got her to begin with, she remembers it all.
“Please……IF I say yes……No one and I do mean NO ONE must die.” Cassie says shaking her hands in fear.
“Don’t worry, no one will die, I’ll make sure of it, for you see I’m a medic and my job is to save lives, not take them, I know for a fact that you’re a nurse Cassie which means saving lives and helping people is what drives you.” Marie now states.
“You, you’re a medic?” Cassie asks gingerly.
“Indeed I am, I protect all of my sisters and I make sure that I heal anyone who needs it, plus as I’m sure you know. Even though your friend Louette got her wrist broken when she was fighting my sister, I still went out of my way and gave her the medical attention she needed to make sure that her wrist gets a full recovery and she’d be able to use it again. You, see? Even through all the things you put us through, I just couldn’t bare to see her in pain, so I still healed her wounds.” Marie speaks honestly, hoping Cassie sees what she is trying to say.
Cassie remembers seeing Louette second guessing everything, she remembered hearing Louette saying to herself of how she owes something to Soph and Marie who allowed her to keep her wrist and hand intact and they even gave her medical attention, despite everything they’d been through………Cassie certainly remembers it all, she then looks at Angel who is still smiling and still has her hand out towards Cassie…….Cassie takes a deep breath and slowly takes Angel’s hand and shakes it.
“Okay, I’ll come, just please don’t hurt anyone other than Mary.” Cassie says as she stands up.
“We will do our absolute best, you have our word.” Tina says as she calls for the guard in to give them the day pass, so Mary can come with them.
Throughout the whole time, Mag just sat and remained silent, all she wants to do is keep her family / sisters safe. Mag is just hoping that her sisters can make Cassie see that she was just being brainwashed and taken advantage of by Sarah, but she’s confident, because Mag knows, that if there’s anyone in this world who can take Cassie and potentially her friends down the right path. It was her sisters.
Still, I'll give Aimee an A for staying in-character as she's knocked out. These mimes are surreal people... 
This is something that I really wanted to show in this chapter with Mary. She's a big tough woman all the while she has a gun and jumping women from behind for their uniforms, she clearly uses tough personas to hide the fact that she's really a coward, because as vile and disgusting as she is, at the end of the day she's just a coward who panicked and ran, the first thing she realised that things weren't going her way. 
