Most of the remainder of the week long experiment had been devoted to a series of team building exercises. The warriors had been divided into two teams, a "red team" and a "blue team". Each team was made up of a 50:50 mix of Hound and Wolf operators. Not surprisingly, it had been an interesting experience for all concerned.
To the vast annoyance of Andy Lennox things kept occurring he had not anticipated. The Major excelled at future operations planning and truly believed he should be able to anticipate any and every occurrence. Today's last scheduled exercise had proven once again he could not.
The two senior Hounds, Lennox and his executive officer, were sitting in the command hut and CW5 "Chief" Devine, still wearing his blue team arm and leg identifying bands, was grinning like a hungry tiger.
"I wish you could have been there, boss. You would have loved it."
"All I heard was there was a brawl. Is anyone badly hurt?" the obviously concerned Hound leader queried his big X.O.
"Nah. A few broken ribs, some stitches, maybe a busted wrist. No big deal. It could have gotten one hell of a lot worse if Gelda hadn't broken it up so quick."
"How did she stop it? Lennox asked curiously. "Esther told me the whole damn bunch of you were going at each other."
Chief grinned sheepishly. "We were".
He snorted in amusement recalling the scene in the sawdust pit.
"There we were, sixteen of us going at it like the Yankees and the Red Sox's, and what does she do? Calm as an old lady selling peaches, she reaches into her daypack, pulls out two CS grenades and pulls the pins. Ten seconds later, those of us that weren't blind and puking our guts out, were running like jackrabbits. I still have cactus spines in my ass." The big man chuckled sheepishly.
His leader, picturing the scene, laughed in spite of himself. Regaining his normal professional demeanor, he addressed his main subordinate in a still worried voice. "This is still serious. We have known all along there would be friction between us. This is just what…."
He was interrupted by the huge warrant officer shaking his head silently side to side. "You got it wrong, boss. It wasn't us and the Wolves fighting. This was blues and reds."
The serious expression on the commander's face changed to one of puzzlement as the blue arm-banded man continued. "Red Hounds and Wolves, shoulder to shoulder, piled into us like we had stolen their daddy's prize hog. It all started because a blue Wolf thought a red Wolf had hit her "normal" blue teammate with a punch after the whistle. Their sniper Ashton decked their commo gal Marlene with her riot baton and it was game on."
Lennox shook his head slowly in realization and wonder. "Well, I'll be damned."
The two sat quietly as the Hound commander turned his head to stare out the window across the barren desert vista. After several minutes, Lennox spoke. "How good is Gelda?"
"Best hand-to-hand instructor I've ever seen." The big man replied without hesitation. "I've known a lot of guys that were good with their hands. Being able to teach it is something else. She's …..both." Lennox nodded gravely and eyed his partner quizzically.
"Could you take her?" The big man paused, obviously considering his response, before answering slowly. "Maybe. I've been hiding some of my moves; keeping them to myself. I bet she has, too, though. Just as likely, she'd take me. I'll tell you this. I wouldn't try it bare handed if I had another choice."
Lennox nodded in understanding. "That's about what I figured. They're good aren't they?" "Yep, they are." Chief paused and thoughtfully fingered an ugly swollen bruise on his massive forearm. "And, with the kind of logistical and technological support we could give them….." He didn't need to finish the sentence.
The three civilian agents slowly perused through the pages Jenkins had typed up. First one, then another, silently nodded in agreement. Sensing consensus, the senior agent continued. "We all agree they are a threat, then?"
Two of the agents immediately concurred. The third, Glen, the U.S. Treasury Department liaison, shook his head side to side once, then again, in disagreement. "I said they could be a threat. I also said they could be a force multiplier, an asset.
Jenkin's rebuttal was angry and immediate. "Jackson, everyone but you thinks these freaks are dangerous. You need to open your eyes." The four men erupted into a heated discussion.
The entire group were gathered in the chow hall reviewing the coming day's schedule. The last statement though clearly hit a "red button" with Tommy, by his tabs a Force Recon Marine attached to the Hounds as their medic. Pushing back his chair with a crash, he angrily reared up. "Whoa. Whoa. Yeah, I see they can run fast. I see they can spar on a mat in the gym. That don't make 'em a warrior. What I want to know is can I trust them to cover my ass. Will they get all teary-eyed and freeze up when the shit goes down? Or, worse, just leave my ass? How many of these doll soldiers have ever actually killed anyone?"
Spinning to face Gelda, Tommy continued his tirade. "Yo, kung fu queen. How many men have you ever actually killed with those hands?" Sitting quietly, Gelda stared for a long moment at the backs of her fingers. "More than I wish to remember." she evenly murmured, as she raised her obsidian eyes to meet his angry countenance.
Lennox was half out of his chair, an angry reprimand on his lips, when he felt Ana's subtle tug on his sleeve. Pausing, Lennox visually took in the mood of the room. Several older Hounds were nodding in understanding or empathy with hand to hand instructor's quiet confession. Another man was glaring at Tommy, obviously offended by his outburst. They had known there would be resistance from both teams, he thought. The major slowly settled back into his chair to allow the exchange to play out.
As the tension in the room began to abate, he became aware of movement to his left and the room suddenly went dead still as, braided platinum ponytail swaying behind her, the head Wolf Celine smoothly crossed the room to halt in front of the still erect Tommy.
Towering over him by a full three inches, she leaned her face close to his ear. In a muted tone no one else could hear, she briefly whispered something in his ear. Then she calmly strolled back to her corner, leaving behind, his hands visibly trembling and sweat beaded on his ashen face, the shaken Hound medic.
After "lights out" that night in the metal hut serving as their ad hoc barracks, Tommy's outburst was still a topic of concerned and heated debate amongst the female warriors. The medic Leah, however, had the final word. "Fuck this. He had his doubts, he had some fears. At least he had the cojones to stand up in front of a crowd of us and say it to our faces. I'd damn sure rather share a foxhole with him than one of those blue suited D. C. shits."
The four senior officers sat in a casual circle around the conference table. The only other person in the command hut was Esther, the Hound psychologist/linguist from the support detachment.
The agenda was two pronged, consisting of a candid analysis of the last two weeks and each individuals opinion on the pros and cons of future interaction. Chief, followed by Ana, then Lennox each spoke in turn. The individuals not talking sat mute, allowing each speaker to formulate and express their thoughts without interruption.
Esther served as a meeting recorder, capturing the concepts and concerns in writing. The three officer's opinions were essentially identical. Yes, there were numerous details to be ironed out. Yes, there would be political, cultural, and fiscal issues to be overcome. But, all unanimously agreed each group had tremendous assets to offer to the other and that a joint team would bring a paradigm jump in capabilities, flexibility, and lethalness.
Celine had listened to their comments, silent and intent. As Lennox finished, all eyes turned to the aloof woman who led the Wolves. Seeing them awaiting her input, she began. "In my experience with humans, trust cannot be gifted. It must be earned. Therefore, I propose a trial. From now until the Winter Solstice we blend our forces."
Turning directly to the intent commander of the men, she continued. "You will command. My team and I are completely at your disposal. We will assist in any fashion you deem appropriate. Mission approval will be totally in your hands…." She paused briefly, and then continued. "…with two caveats. One, we will not fight unilaterally. Your men must accompany us on any mission. Two, if my warriors are betrayed or ill-used, I will hold you responsible. Personally."
Andy Lennox stared aimlessly at the ceiling for a dozen seconds, and then turned to his second in command. Chief gave a single brisk nod. The lean army officer looked back at Celine, then Ana, then again to Celine. "Deal" he said, with a smile.
The atmosphere palpably relaxed as, excitedly, the group began exploring the ramifications of the new arrangement.
"Hold on everybody!" Chief's voice suddenly rose up over the other voices. "If we are gonna be a team y'all are forgetting a few things."
Ana smiled and good naturedly went for the obvious verbal bait. "O.K. Chief, tell us what we are forgetting."
"First off, we need a name." He replied, gazing at them in mock indignation.
Ana and Lennox darted baffled glances at each other. Neither had even considered a joint title.
Quite out of character, Celine immediately spoke up "I would like to propose what I hope will become a most appropriate title: Gyna Rovasti. It is ancient Welsh for "the Hunting Pack". We can shorten it to "the Rovers" for day to day use."
The other three officers exchanged "why not" glances and each nodded or voiced approval. Celine stood and raised her arm. "To the Gyna Rovasti". Grinning, the group stood and the four exchanged handshakes. "You mentioned a second thing." Lennox suddenly reminded. "Yep" Chief responded, grinning hugely. "We have to all go through Selection together!"
Forgotten by all, Esther sat in the background, palms sweating, staring fixedly at the shattered point of her pencil, which had snapped against her notepad when she heard Celine's suggested name.
