19
02. Four Years Later
"General Colton, your 10 am is here, sir," the announcement sounded a bit tinny on the intercom.
"Send'em in," Colton ordered. He'd been surprised when KT had requested this appointment, and that Hawk was to know nothing about it.
KT entered his office with two other young women. She and Gabrielle, whom Colton had met before, both wore dress uniforms. The third wore a flight suit and aviation glasses.
"Good morning, ladies," Colton returned their salute. "Congratulations on the new rank, Sergeant Abernathy."
"Thank you, General Colton," KT smiled slightly. "I have it on excellent authority my mother nearly had a fit when she found out. She keeps waiting for me to 'come to my senses', as she puts it, and opt out."
"I have never noticed any defects in your senses," Colton shrugged. "I have, of course, met Specialist Nova. And this is?"
"Sergeant Jessica Ziffner, sir," KT replied. "Remember that Huey at the Nationals, the year it was held at the old HQ? That was Ziff's team."
"Have a seat. Now, to what do I owe the pleasure of this visit?"
"This, General," KT slid a folder across the desk toward him as the three women took seats. "Since I can't apply for the Joe team without WWIII breaking out in my family, Gabs and I came up with what we feel is a viable option."
"OMEGA?"
"Optimal Military Emergency General Assistance," KT nodded. "Search and Rescue, sensitive retrievals, Intel, hostage situations, general support for other teams…especially those assignments that need to be kept under the radar and low key."
"That's all part of the Joe job description," Colton frowned slightly.
"Usually on a much larger scale that OMEGA will ever be large enough to deal with, General Colton. And they aren't always quiet about it, sir," Gabrielle pointed out. "Sometimes, they're…a bit more muscle than actually needed?"
"And their main job these days is dealing with Cobra," KT added.
"How the hell…" Colton almost came out of his seat.
"By getting into computers I'm not supposed to be able to, sir. If I can, so can others," Gabrielle said easily. "I've been part of a security team running hacking checks at various installations for the last three months. Every time we breech a system, it hopefully gives the real wizards time to fix problems, before they actually become problems."
"I suppose I should be glad you're the good guys," Colton grimaced.
"White hats and all, General," KT didn't quite smile.
"You start wearing white Stetson around me, and I will have the three of you in typing pools at three of the smallest, most remote postings I can find," Colton warned, only half in jest.
"No white Stetsons. Got it, sir!"
"Abernathy, you are damn lucky you're cute, your cousin adores you, and that he's my second-in-command," Colton pointed at KT. She grinned, unrepentant. "I also know you know better than to waste a superior's time. Give me time to read through this proposal. I will get back to you as soon as I can, I promise. I do admire those who can think outside the box, but work within the rules."
"Thank you, General Colton," KT saluted. "We'll be looking forward to hearing from you."
A month passed, then two, and she still didn't hear from Colton. It made her nervous to the point she half expected to develop ulcers, although the only people to pick up on that were Gabrielle and Ziff. Gabrielle pointed out at least she hadn't gotten a call or visit from Hawk, reaming her for the audacity.
It was nearly three months later when all three women were called before their current CO.
"What have you three been up to behind my back?" Major Braxton demanded, face stern.
"Sir?" KT put the entire question into one word.
"None of you submitted a request for transfer," he stated. "Yet, I have here before me orders for all three of you, transferring you to a new unit forming under the command of General Colton."
"Wouldn't that be the answer, Major Braxton?" Gabrielle asked. "If General Colton is putting together a new unit, he'd know what he was looking for by way of team members. I hear he's fairly picky about that sort of thing."
"Picky is an understatement," Braxton snorted. "And why a new team?" None of them said anything, and he sighed. "You have a week to get yourselves there. And ladies…whatever it is General Colton is tapping you out for, I know you'll do your best."
"Am I seeing things?" Wild Bill watched as the Huey Iroquois settled onto the tarmac. "That's a 50s original!"
"Sounds in excellent shape, tho'," Freestyle commented. "And whoever the pilot is, they know what they're doing."
"Dress uniform? I think those ladies might be lost," Wild Bill said as three women exited the helicopter. Two wore dress uniform, the third was in a flight jumpsuit. "Nice view…"
"Stop staring at their legs! You might have been born on the range, you weren't raised in a barn," Freestyle admonished. "What if they hear you saying something like that, and take it the wrong way?"
"I can still appreciate the view, can't I?"
"In your own head, my friend. In your own head."
"Good morning, ladies! Can we help you?" Wild Bill greeted the newcomers.
"We have orders to report to General Colton, sir…"KT began.
"Don't call him 'sir', KT. It'll go right to his head!" A man's laughing tone pulled everyone's attention to the arriving jeep, which was being driven by a tall, blue-eyes blonde. "Welcome to Joe HQ, ladies…again."
"Hiya Duke," KT flashed him a smile. "Keeping Hawk out of trouble?"
"I let Flint ride herd on him this time. They're in London, and Flint's 'society manners' are better than mine," Duke grinned. "Grab your gear, and let's go. General Colton is waiting on you, and Cover Girl will be showing you where you'll be bunking as soon as he's done."
"Good morning, ladies," Colton got to his feet as Duke led the trio into the office. Cover Girl was perched on the front corner of his desk.
"Reporting as ordered, General Colton," KT announced as all three women saluted.
"At ease," he returned the salute. "And grab some chairs."
"A question, sir?"
"Go ahead."
"If you got the okay on OMEGA, why are we here, and not Tirnagog?"
"Tir-na-whatzit?" Duke asked.
"Tirnagog is what OMEGA's founders decided to call their base of operations. A base which Sergeant Abernathy here had located, and designed, as part of their proposal," Colton told him. "You are here, because there is not yet finished, and you ladies will be getting some extra training while we have you around. There were also a few modifications made to your proposal, in order for me to get the go ahead and funding."
"I'm afraid to hear this bit," Gabrielle sighed.
"It isn't that bad. Hear me out," Colton said. "You have three members now, and you suggested four more, basically going for a squad, not a total unit. There were voices that insisted that wasn't enough. They wanted a full company…"
"But sir…" KT began.
"Some people wanted that. I managed to keep it to a squad, but you are getting three more members than you asked for," he pushed a folder across the desk at KT.
"I don't get any say?"
"Not this time," he shook his head. "Don't complain, woman. You got your team."
"But is this Air Force lieutenant going to take orders, or give them?" KT asked, looking through the folder. "She out-ranks me…"
"It is still your team, Lady Hawk," Colton assured her. "And you answer to me."
"Excuse me? Who?"
"Lady Hawk. So, I have a thing about code names," he shrugged.
"Sorta makes sense, KT. You are basically Hawk's counter-part in OMEGA, and you're both Abernathys," Ziff pointed out.
"Glad you approve….BlackBird," Colton smirked a little.
"Actually, I kinda like that," Ziff grinned.
"I don't think I want to know," Gabrielle shook her head.
"I don't think 'Wires' is all that bad," Colton told her. She closed her eyes and groaned.
"When do we get the rest of our team, General?" KT asked.
"By next Sunday, they will all be here. Your training officially starts that following Monday," he replied. "Cutting you three loose from Braxton wasn't too hard. Getting Spanner was even easier…"
"Who?"
"Your mechanic, Johanna Thierry. That is who you wanted," Colton clarified. "Getting the other three you listed was a bit more problematic. Marcom's CO tried every move he could come up with to block her reassignment."
"Marcom is that good?" Duke asked.
"Marcom is female, with an…unusual K9 partner," Colton said. "Seacrest wants to keep brow-beating her until she quits."
"I'd comment, but it's not a good idea to slag off upper ranks," Ziff said. "I hear he tried saving Borrant's bacon over what happened with Jo Thierry, too. And it wasn't even his command."
"I heard. He tried blaming the entire thing on her," Colton nodded.
"I think I'm missing something here," Duke said easily. "Who is Borrant?"
"How did you miss that one? Scarlett and Lady Jaye were ready to recruit Thierry as a Joe all on their own," Cover Girl said. "Borrant was a Warrant Officer, until six months ago. Considered himself a ladies man, and didn't like hearing 'not interested' from any female he targeted. Thierry was one of those 'not interested'. When he tried pushing the issue, she wiped half a parking lot up with his face. The entire episode was caught on security cameras. He ended up facing a court marshal on multiple charges of sexual assault, assault, blackmail, interference with due process, and conduct unbecoming an office. He's in Leavenworth."
"You three have this week to settle, and start your individual specialty training," Colton said, holding a book out to KT. "You will start with this, Lady Hawk."
"Yes sir," KT nodded curtly.
"Cover Girl, get them situated."
"It's nothing fancy, but it's comfortable enough," Cover Girl lead them to the living wing. "Each unit has a sitting room, bath, and two bedrooms. We females also have a floor common room and a small kitchen. Don't lose your keys. It's a security breach. There are copies of your itineraries on your desks."
"Any idea who our instructors are?" Gabrielle asked.
"And are they cute?" Ziff asked with a grin."
"You are so out of luck, BlackBird," Cover Girl said wryly. "Your primary is Freestyle. She was with Wild Bill when you landed."
"Aw rats!"
"She's really not usually this bad, Cover Girl. Honest," KT chuckled. "But all of us are rather fond of Eye Candy. She'll learn more from Freestyle."
"Eye Candy? That's one I don't think has ever been used in connection to the Joes," Cover Girl shook her head. "Not that there aren't some fine lookin' fellas on the team. Personally, I tend to pay more attention to what they can do, rather than what they look like."
"Eye Candy is just scenery, Cover Girl," Gabrielle told her. "Just a visual to brighten the day. We don't usually even flirt with Eye Candy; we all prefer to date real men, and that does depend on what's inside."
The next arrival was Charlene Marcom and her K9 partner, McArthur…a cocoa colored Standard Poodle with a short clip.
"We were expecting you a few hours ago," KT was in Colton's office, along with Gabrielle and Ziff, when Charley was shown in. "What happened."
"Seacrest, what else?" Charley snorted. "He doesn't like losing control. He also seems to really hate you, General Colton, and Colonel Abernathy. And heaven help the poor sod who mentions the Joe team in his hearing!"
"Because he never made the cut," Colton commented. "Seacrest has always been a chauvinistic bully. There is no place on the Joe team for bullies or chauvinists…"
"Ah General? There actually is plenty of chauvinism on the Joe team, and some bullies," KT shook her head. "Just not the same twisted versions Seacrest runs with."
"At least he left out the 'egos' trait off the list," Gabrielle pointed out lightly. "Because they seem to abound around here."
"Very funny, Wires," Colton grimaced.
"Wires?" Charley looked from Colton to Gabrielle.
"Welcome to OMEGA… Princess," KT grinned.
"Excuse you?"
"The General is…fond of code names," Ziff told her. "Get used to it. From here out, that is what we use. Most people we work with won't even know our real names. Orders and security, ya know."
"I guess I can learn to live with that."
Johanna Thierry arrived on Friday, driving an old van, and accompanied by Maria de Carlos and Kassandra Scott. Jo was the tallest member of the team, standing just shy of 6'. She wore her dark blonde hair short, and her pistol low. She was not easily impressed. Maria was a tiny bird, not even tall enough for regular enlistment. Her college grades and other abilities had tipped the scales in her favor. She never got lost. Kassandra was a raven-haired beauty with Liz Taylor eyes and a nose for finding answers.
The team medic, Amanda Duffy, arrived later that same day. Tall and blonde, she arrived in a cab, and promptly had three Joes offering to escort her to Colton's office, and carry her gear. She accepted all three offers at the same time.
The youngest member of the team arrived early on Saturday morning, hiking up to the front gate on foot, her gear in a backpack that was almost as big as she was.
"Can I help you, kid?" the MP on duty asked. "The Girl Scout camp in on the other side of town."
"I'm not a Girl Scout, mister. I'm a demolitions specialist with orders to report to General Colton or Sergeant Abernathy," Martha Benjamin stated, pulling said orders and ID from an outer pocket of the pack.
"Yeah, right. You're all of fifteen."
"Try again, dude. My ID and my orders."
"Colonel Abernathy isn't here, and General Colton doesn't have time for children and their pranks…"
"You'd better look at these papers, Decker," Marty advised, reading his nametag. "Because if I have to make a phone call, I will drop you in it by name."
"Is there a problem here?" Duke pulled the jeep to a stop. Breaker had alerted him to the woman's arrival, since he'd seen her coming up the road on the surveillance cameras.
"She claims to be a demolitions specialist, Sergeant," the MP announced. Marty handed her paperwork to Duke, deciding a sergeant was a better deal than an MP with an attitude.
"Specialist Third Class Martha Benjamin, reporting as ordered, Sergeant," Marty saluted sharply. "At least, I am trying to do so."
"She is a demolitions specialist, Becker," Duke stated, opening the folder. "I know for a fact you got word to be on the look out for the last two members of OMEGA to be arriving. Benjamin, toss your gear in the back of the jeep, and I'll take you up."
"Thank you, Sergeant," Marty swung the backpack directly into the jeep, and joined him up front, where he handed her back the paperwork. "See ya, Becker! Stop judging a book by the cover, boy-o. You can get in a lot of trouble that way!"
They were maybe thirty feet from the gate when a series of small explosions sounded out behind them.
"What the…" Duke stopped the jeep to look back.
"Children's caps, Sergeant," Marty informed him easily. "HE ticked me off."
"Not a good first impression, Benjamin," Duke frowned, putting the jeep in gear again.
"You looked at my paperwork, Sergeant. He didn't, and he should have. That's his job," she shrugged. "It is not his job to decide how old I am based on what he thinks of my looks. I hiked twenty-five miles this morning, with all my gear. Normally, I wouldn't mind, but it was kinda lonely. I'm not real forgiving at the moment, and those caps weren't about to hurt him."
"You could have called from the bus station for a lift, or hired a taxi."
"I didn't come in by bus, and I didn't see any taxis at the train station at two o'clock this morning, Sergeant. I also didn't think anyone would be too pleased at me calling at that time of morning."
"Now you know why she was tagged 'Firecracker'," Colton told Duke when Duke had given his version of the run-in at the gate. "Just don't make a habit of stunts like that, young lady."
"No sir, General," Marty promised.
"Get her out of here, Lady Hawk."
"Come on, Firecracker. Time to meet the team," KT said. "Thanks for bringing her in, Duke."
"Anytime, Lady Hawk," he assured her. "One more to go."
"Yeah, and no real idea when to expect her, either."
"This looks worse than Basic," Marty commented, looking at her itinerary. "A Ranger PT instructor, and a Marine for drill? We are so dead!"
"Speak for yourself," Jo shrugged. "I've dealt with worse."
"Worse, sure, but tougher?"
"Look at it this way: if we can handle training under a Ranger and a Marine, we can handle any assignment they hand us," Ziff pointed out.
"True, that."