Loving someone is giving them the power to break your heart, but trusting them not to. — Julianne Moore
• 19 AUGUST 2179 · 2325 thru 08/20, 0020 •
Sam bent Xiùlán's upper body over the basin in the tiny lav that was part of every student's quarters. Using a large washcloth dampened with warm water and a jasmine scented body wash, Traynor lovingly wiped away the sweat their lovemaking had caused, starting behind her ears, then moving around her hairline down to her neck. Sam used the newly developed strength in her forearms to massage the muscles under the Chinese woman's smooth-as-silk skin as she washed, eliciting low murmurs of contented appreciation from Xiùlán.
Continuing across her upper back, Sam unhurriedly stroked the woman's shoulder blades before moving her cloth into the center of her back, marveling at the chiseled vertebra and ribs plainly outlined under her beautifully pale, olive-toned skin. "Your skin is beautiful, Luv," she commented. " … not a mark on it."
Slowly moving down, Sam rinsed her cloth, freshened it with more warm water and body wash, then washed armpits, arms and both sides of her torso. Thinking, if there's a gram of fat in this woman's body anywhere, damned if I've seen any evidence of it!, she began washing Xiùlán's tight bum, left side and right side, before reaching in between her 'cheeks' and legs. "Feet apart, Luv, so I can make a proper job of it," Traynor whispered into an ear.
"Ahhhh, Sammy," Xiùlán responded shyly. "I can reach all of that myself."
"I know you can … and that's not the point. Are you being modest now, after what we just did to each other? There's nothing between your legs any different than mine, Xiùlán. If I'm to wash you, it has to be top-to-bottom, head-to-toe, and everything in between. I want to do this, Luv, so move your feet apart. Come on …"
Xiùlán groaned in mock protest but did as she was asked. She couldn't deny that Traynor's loving attention to every centimeter of her body was enjoyable. She stiffened slightly as a cloth covered hand gently stroked her crotch several times from front to back. Sam rinsed the cloth again, applied a bit more body wash, then crouched as she washed the pair of especially well-muscled legs – thighs and calves, then ankles and feet, lifted from the floor, lower leg held between her own thighs like a farrier holding a horse's hoof.
With her feet complete, Sam couldn't resist planting a kiss on each side of Xiùlán's tightly muscled bum before standing to rinse, apply body wash and turn her lover around to face her.
Xiùlán gazed at Sam in an appraising manner. "What were the little kisses for, Sammy?"
"Do I really need to tell you? Wo ài ni, Xiùlán! I want to kiss you all over."
With her lover facing her, Sam planted a little kiss on the tip of her nose; she suddenly realized Xiùlán had a light dusting of freckles across the bridge of her nose as she lovingly washed her face. How could I have forgotten? came the thought; Sam continued along her neck under the chin, her shoulders and upper chest, breasts, midriff and front of her pelvis. Thinking, My god! What a tight belly you have, she rewashed Xiùlán's thighs at their juncture with her torso, then went over her entire body again with a different cloth, dampened with a non-scented moisturizer, in order to wipe off the remainder of the body wash; Sam then patted her skin dry with a fluffy towel. "All done, Luv. Feel better?"
"Mā de, sà mi! I could really get used to this pampering," Xiùlán grinned. "You make me feel like I'm the most important person in your life."
"You are the only person in my life!" Sam giggled. "Now, it's my turn to be pampered. Just follow my example."
Xiùlán washed Sam's body in much the same manner as Sam had washed hers, using the opportunity to visually and tactilely explore every centimeter of her medium brown skin. Traynor wasn't as 'muscled up' from her physical training as Xiùlán would have liked, but she was making good progress; there was virtually no fat under her skin—even the Venusian dimples on either side of her lower back appeared a bit more prominent than the day they'd first showered together. She was surprised to discover Sam's skin was slightly lighter in color on her ass and boobs, despite the first impression of their communal shower.
Xiùlán wasn't pleased at having to struggle with feelings of arousal that came with washing Sam's full breasts and placing her cloth covered hand in her crotch. "How do you manage to stay on track when you're doing …" Xiùlán washed Sam's boobs a second time, "these? I just want to drop everything and drag you back into bed!"
"Concentrate on cleaning my skin," she replied, "not on the objects the skin is covering." Sam drew a ragged breath through her teeth once, when the woman's hand, capable of killing with one blow, had gently washed her labia and between the cheeks of her bum. She continued through gritted teeth, "I know they're enjoyable as playthings, but that's for later. Right now, it's cleanup time. It's an opportunity for us to bond in a different way, as important as making love, maybe more so."
"Making love? Thought we were just pleasuring each other, satisfying our mutual lust."
"We were doing that as well, Luv. The two aren't mutually exclusive, you know."
Xiùlán finished washing Sam's legs and feet; being intimately familiar with her legs, she approvingly noted the musculature, particularly the quads, had grown larger and more defined since she had begun Sammy's training program.
Looking at her knees, Xiùlán discovered a number of scars on each; most looked to be faded reminders of childhood accidents … one or two had their own faint scarring denoting stitches.
Standing again, Xiùlán applied moisturizer to her lover's entire body, particularly elbows, knees and ankles, then patted the rest of her body dry. Taking Sam's face in her hands, Xiùlán kissed her softly on the mouth, then said, "Come on … we have to change the sheets and remake the bed before we crawl in.…"
• 0317 •
Samantha woke up slowly, not wanting the dream she had been experiencing to end just yet; there had been white sand, warm breezes wafting over cool ocean water to rustle the fronds of the palm trees behind her, puffy white clouds in the distance, drifting slowly in an azure sky, and no one around as far as the eye could see. She gradually realized her pillow, although warm, was rather more stiff than she was used to. Also, someone was behind her, very close.
There was soft breathing in her ear, the slow rhythm of a sleeping person's chest rising and falling against her back. Where am I … ? she thought, until memory kicked in. The evening before … Xiùlán … it was Xiùlán's nude body close behind her, 'spooning' her back, long legs tangled with her own, one arm under Sam's head in place of a pillow, the other arm draped over her side, warm muscular forearm against her stomach and chest, hand lovingly holding one of Sam's breasts, also nude, as was the rest of her body.
Sam had to pee; not wishing to wake her sleeping companion, she carefully placed her own hand over Xiùlán's and pressed it more firmly against her breast, enjoying the sensations aroused by the feel of her lover's hand on her body. She sighed as she started to pull Xiùlán's hand away so she could get out of bed; this effort was rewarded with a heavy sigh in her ear, followed by a whispered, "Máfanle, wo de ài?" [麻煩了，我的愛？– Trouble, my love?] Xiùlán turned her head slightly and softly kissed Sam's ear as she gently squeezed the breast she was holding.
"Hafta pee … be right back," Sam replied as she elbowed her way up to a semi-sitting position. Xiùlán's hand stayed on her body, trailing down from her boob along her ribs, coming to rest at the crease where her thigh met her body at the hip. "You don't make answering nature's call very easy, Ms Yuán." She looked into the deep pools of dark brown eyes, studying her through slitted lids in the dim light of the compartment … like a tiger in the shadows, waiting to pounce, she thought, before swinging her legs over and getting to her feet, smiling as she felt that loving hand slide around to her butt and down the back of her leg.
She thought, I could so get used to this! as she took the few steps to the compact toilet compartment. She inwardly cringed as the sound of her stream brought to mind a horse pissing while standing in a shallow creek.
Thinking back on the events of a few short hours ago as she wiped and stood, she flushed the toilet and washed her hands. They'd both crowded in here last night, exploring their love further as they took turns washing the sweat from each other's bodies with damp washcloths before going to bed. It had been Traynor's idea for them to sleep nude.
Opening the door, she tiptoed back to Xiùlán's bed and eased herself under the covers. Xiùlán was now lying on her other side, back towards Sam, covers pulled up over her ear, apparently sound asleep. Damn! Just like that. Reflecting on the speed with which Xiùlán had returned to her slumbers, Traynor snuggled up to her bare back and thought, She's a perfect fighter … able to go to sleep quickly, take advantage of any opportunity to rest. Reaching over Xiùlán's side, Sam snaked her arm under that of her lover's in order to place her hand on a breast. Xiùlán, stirring slightly at this intrusion, responding by placing her own hand over Traynor's and pressing it tenderly towards her chest. A whispered, "Ganjué hěn hao, sà mi. Wo ài ni." [感覺很好，薩米。我愛你。– It feels good, Sami. I love you.] was all the indication Sam needed that this beautiful woman had completely accepted her as a companion. Traynor smiled, whispered, "Wo ài ni," closed her eyes and was almost instantly asleep.
20 AUGUST 2179 · 0752
"Zaoshang hao, wo de ài," [早上好，我的愛 – Good morning, my love.] Samantha cracked open an eye to see who was whispering in Mandarin mere centimeters from her ear. She was waking up for the first time in the arms of her newfound love … the feelings of happiness and contentment, anticipation of a life together with this fascinating woman, all converged in her mind as she laid there facing her, their arms around each other and their legs relaxed and intertwined. Sam placed a kiss on each of Xiùlán's eyelids, smiling as they parted ever so slightly to reveal dark eyes, calmly regarding her in the dimness of their sleeping area.
"I have no idea what you just said," Traynor whispered in response, "but I'd love nothing more than waking up to those words in my ear every morning for the rest of my life."
A gentle kiss on Sam's cheek. "Zaoshang hao, wo de ài," came the whispered reply, "means 'Good morning, my love'." This was followed by another gentle kiss. "Xiànzài yijīng wanle. Shàngxué shíjiān, wo de ài." [現在已經晚了。上學時間，我的愛。] Another kiss, then "That means, 'It is already late. School time, my love'." She hugged Sam tightly to her, enjoying the feel of her nude body against her own; longing and arousal and need all playing out in her mind. "Last night was the best night of my life, Sammy," she said softly, before finishing in a voice tinged with shyness, "Couldn't have asked for a better birthday present. How'd you know what I needed?"
"Just a lucky guess, based on your frustration level with your last hacking attempt." Sam reached up to place her palms on Xiùlán's cheeks. "I love you, Yuán Xiùlán. I cannot imagine having any life without you being a part of it. Sounds crazy when I say it out loud, but it's the truth." Sam searched her dark brown, almost black eyes. "Xiùlán, I promise you that no matter what happens in future, wherever we go, whatever we do, no matter how many light years separate us, I will always … always … love you."
Xiùlán almost replied with a joke, but instantly changed her mind; it was obvious Sam was baring her soul just as she had bared her body. "I love you as well, Samantha Traynor. I don't think I realized until this very second how special you've become to me. I am sorry I scared you so badly on Monday … I should have used a different method." Xiùlán reached up between them, placed her fingers on her lover's cheeks and applied her lips to Sam's in a quick little kiss. "Time to get ready for classes, wo de ài … lots to do today."
Reluctantly, she untangled her legs as she playfully brought her hands down to fondle Sam's breasts. "I think I finally understand why men find boobies so fascinating, Sammy. They're nice to touch, to massage. Much more fun to play with yours than my own," she giggled.
Sam was enjoying the attention, but grabbed Xiùlán's hands and snarked, "Much more fun for you means much more horny for me, Luv! We'll be her all day if you don't stop, and damn! I can't believe I'm being the responsible party here! Go on, get up. They're all yours tonight … hell, every night, I promise."
Xiùlán forced herself to release Sam and let her get up so she could use the toilet. Xiùlán unhurriedly stretched and rose from the bed. She straightened the covers, then performed her deep breathing exercises before beginning her Tai Chi movements.
Traynor opened the door and stepped out of the bathroom to see her lover out of bed; more intriguing to Sam was the sight of a still completely nude Xiùlán going through her exercise routine, a form of Tai Chi called Neigong. Watching her cross her arms in front of herself as she brought them up and stretched towards the overhead was making Sam horny all over again. With her arms up, Sam admired the woman's chiseled abs before Xiùlán leaned forward, bending at the waist to wrap her hands around her ankles.
As she returned to an upright posture, she brought her hands up and crossed her forearms in front of her, took a deep breath and exhaled it through her mouth.
She spotted Sam and smiled. "All done in there? Must be my turn." She took two more deep breaths, exhaled each through her mouth, then walked up to Sam and wrapped her arms around her in a tight hug. "Since we are committed to each other, I will inquire about cohabitation accommodations for us … may even be able to get a larger space with a full bath. I'm going to add to your work load as well. No time this morning, but I want you to learn some form of Tai Chi. It'll be of great value to you in future."
"If you don't let me go so we can get dressed, our only future will be a one-way shuttle ride back to Earth." Sam kissed her, then smacked her butt and said, "Get going, xùnliàn zhě."
• 01 OCTOBER 2179 •
In the 42 days since Xiùlán had consummated her love for Samantha Traynor, she had finally gained enough mastery over her omnitool and knowledge of computer servers to enable her to hack into them, leave instructions or malicious code or both, access and extract sensitive information, and exit without leaving any trace of her intrusion or presence. Of all the recruits in their class, Xiùlán and Samantha were the only two people able to so completely dominate the computers and servers presented to them. Xiùlán knew Sam was the reason she herself could claim that mastery. It had taken many long evenings of instruction and coaching by Traynor for Xiùlán's efforts to finally bring her the success that came so easily to her lover's clever mind.
Unfortunately for the talented pair, their abilities had drawn some negative attention from the few people that were totally unsuccessful at electronics intrusion, namely, Joesiar and his minions, three guys—to call any of them 'men' did a disservice to the gender—whose very existence called into question the wisdom of natural selection.
Traynor, after not having seen Joesiar since the beginning of the year due to changing class requirements, was confronted by him in a passageway before her first class after lunch; she had been walking fast and not paying a lot of attention to what was in front of her until Joesiar planted himself in her path, causing her to nearly collide with him. He roughly pushed her back and said, "Hey bitch, why don't you watch where'n'ell yer goin'?"
Fortunately for Sam, she was now a lot more knowledgeable about how to defend herself physically and mentally from bullies like the pale-eyed miscreant standing in front of her. She surreptitiously engaged her omnitool's audio recorder and replied in a condescending voice, "I'm sorry. Would it have been too much trouble for you to have walked on the other side of this 6-meter wide passageway?"
"Well now, yeah, it woulda been too much trouble. Ya see, I don't think you belong here wit' decent folk," Joesiar said. "You an' dat fuckin' chink friend of yourn think you're so damned smart, acing all dem computer classes. Way I figure it, yer cheating to get dem scores. No one's dat good. Both'o'ya shoulda been booted out da nearest airlock on the way up here from Earth. Now yer breathin' air dat's rightfully mine, forcing me and my pals to breath what you exhale. I don't think dat's right, do you?"
Traynor chuckled. "You're joking, right? Joesiar, that's really funny. I could swear you said …" Traynor laughed again in spite of herself, "you 'think', not once, but twice. I find the concept of you? … thinking? … absolutely ludicrous, to say the least." She shook her head in disbelief as she chuckled again—the sound of it sending chills up Joesiar's weak spine, not that he'd admit it to anyone. "Too bad for you, Joesiar—I'm not scared of you, and I'm not going to back down …" she continued as she added a truly menacing tone to her voice, "so get your goddamned ugly face the hell out of my personal space before I remove it for you."
Joesiar's face turned beet red as he looked at the minion standing behind her and said, "Grab her, Hobie. I'm gonna teach dis bitch a lesson in manners!"
Hobie decided he would take advantage of the opportunity and grab a handful of Traynor's breasts as he started to snake his hand over her left shoulder. What happened next made Hobie wish he'd never met Joesiar or Traynor, as she swiftly bent forward at the waist while throwing her right leg backwards at the hip; this lifted Hobie off his feet as Traynor's lower leg flew up between his legs and made full contact with his nuts. As Hobie bent forward with an exclamation of surprised pain, Traynor swiftly jerked her right arm back and up into his face, breaking his nose with her elbow. He hollered something unintelligible as he grabbed his bloodied face with one hand, lost his balance and fell on his side, curled up in a ball holding his damaged gonads with his other hand. Traynor crossed her arms in front of her as she calmly returned her attention to Joesiar. Head tilted, one eyebrow raised questioningly, she asked in a voice still full of menace, "You were saying … ?"
Joesiar proved his ability to think on his feet was virtually non-existent by rushing at Samantha with both arms raised and spread wide as if to grab her. She responded by leaping straight up in the air, arms positioned straight out to either side with hands partially folded towards her wrists, forefingers and thumbs extended, lower legs drawn up underneath her body in the form of a crane taking flight.
As her hips came level with Joesiar's head, she lashed out with a brutal kick, striking him square in the chest with the sole of her right boot; the staggering impact halted his forward momentum and sent him back two steps as she touched down lightly in front of him.
Traynor's kick had been powerful enough to knock most people off their feet. Joesiar bent over for a moment, then stood back up just in time to catch Samantha's extensively practiced snapping three-punch combo full in the face. The first punch broke his nose, causing a rivulet of blood to begin trickling out of each nostril; her second punch hit him square in the mouth, resulting in more blood as his teeth cut the inside of his lips. The coup de grâce was an uppercut to his chin … this snapped his head back and dumped him on the floor as if he'd been a marionette with strings suddenly severed. Traynor brought her fists up to her chest, took a deep breath and released it, then lowered her arms to her sides.
She sent a speedy text to Xiùlán, then quickly shot several photos with her omnitool; with the audio she'd recorded during their conversation, she felt she had more than enough to get Joesiar dropped from the program, if she hadn't killed the bastard. She crouched next to his still form and used her omnitool to check his life signs – he still had a pulse, so his hard head had saved him this time. She noticed blood on her knuckles as she put in a call for medical support, closed her tool and leaned against the corridor wall to slide to a squatting position, knees at her chin. Bringing her hands up to look at her knuckles, it didn't really surprise her to see blood on the backs of both.
She grimaced as she attempted to make a fist with each hand … they were going to need some treatment. Better get an antibiotic shot as well … no telling what kind of germs were on Joesiar's face.
A crowd of recruits had already gathered when Xiùlán arrived; medics were preparing to transport Joesiar to the infirmary, along with a still bloody Hobe. "What the hell happened, Sam," Xiùlán asked in a voice full of concern. "Thought you were on your way to an omnitool weapons class."
"Joesiar thought he'd teach some bitch a lesson … you think he was referring to me?" Sam asked innocently, then added, "Pretty disrespectful for an Alliance recruit, don't you think?"
Xiùlán looked at Joesiar's bloody face as the medics finished applying medigel and hauled his still unconscious form away on a stretcher; Hobe shuffled along pitifully in their wake. "You … did that?" Xiùlán pointed after the injured pair. "You actually dropped … both of them?" Shaking her head, she grinned and said, "You are certainly not the same Samantha Traynor I crashed into last December. Wángbā dàn!" [王八蛋！– Son of a bitch!] She grabbed her friend and hugged her tight. "I am so proud to call you my xuéshēng, Sammy! Gāisi de!" Xiùlán grabbed her friend's hands, felt the blood on her knuckles and drew back, alarmed. "Sēn měi, ni de zhi guānjié! [森美，你的指關節！– Sammy, your knuckles!] We need to get those injuries treated." Before Sam could answer, Xiùlán brought out a small container of medigel from a thigh pocket and applied a bit across the knuckles of each hand. "This'll help until you see the medic," she said.
They were interrupted as their group lieutenant, Olivia McKenzie, walked past the still gathering crowd and stopped in front of Xiùlán. Sam and Xiùlán both snapped to attention and saluted. Returning the salutes, McKenzie observed, "Just what in the name of God's green Earth happened here, Serviceman Yuán? Looks like someone, …" she paused to look around her at the walls and floor, "or a couple of someones, lost a lot of blood!" Hands on hips, she glared at Xiùlán, waiting for an explanation. The surprised look on the lieutenant's face when Traynor moved past her friend to stand in front of her was priceless. Traynor activated her omnitool and started speaking as the audio recording transferred to Lieutenant McKenzie's omni and the storage cell of Sam's own personal extranet account.
"I just sent you an audio recording of our conversation from the moment I apologized to Serviceman Joesiar for nearly running into him; I am also downloading the last fifteen minutes of the security cam video showing this passageway. Seems six meters isn't enough space for him to peacefully pass by someone walking in the opposite direction, Ma'am."
Several of the young women standing behind Sam snickered at this, drawing a 'hairy eyeball' look from McKenzie. Sam noticed a number of the women gathered here had previously been targets of Joesiar's racist and misogynistic taunts as she continued, "Joesiar expressed his unhappiness that I was breathing air he felt was rightfully his; he instructed his companion standing behind me to grab me so he could, quote, 'teach dis bitch a lesson in manners', end quote. His companion, Serviceman 3rd class Hobe, attempted to grab my breasts as he reached over my shoulder; his reward was possibly ruptured testicles and a broken nose, which is the source of the blood behind me."
Applause erupted around her at this, with much hushed discussion about men and pigs being cut from the same cloth. McKenzie raised a hand for silence as she asked, "How in hell did you obtain security cam footage …" she looked at her own omnitool, "from two cameras?"
"I hacked the servers, Ma'am."
"I don't expect the security chief will be pleased about that, Serviceman Traynor!" McKenzie replied huffily. "How in hell did you manage to hack into the system so fast?"
"Security doesn't know they've been hacked," Sam replied smoothly. "Part of my skill set … part of my course work. Only way they'll learn about it is if you report me."
McKenzie sighed in exasperation, then motioned for Traynor to continue.
"Serviceman Joesiar, having seen how inept his companion was at attempting to grab me, apparently concluded he could take me on without any help. His theory was flawed." The crowd of mostly women students, having grown in number to between thirty to thirty-five, laughed at Traynor's description of Joesiar's defective reasoning.
Traynor looked around her quickly, glanced at a grinning Xiùlán, then returned her gaze to Lieutenant McKenzie, who quietly inquired, "Don't you think your reactions were a bit extreme, Serviceman? You severely injured two fellow recruits."
Traynor could not contain her amazement. "What in 'ell would you have me do, Ma'am? Let Hobe get his jollies by playing with my tits while Joesiar slapped me around, beat me senseless, hurt me, maybe rape me?"
The women standing around could be heard unhappily murmuring amongst themselves as they all looked at the lieutenant; McKenzie looked back at several of those closest to her before attempting to answer Samantha's question. "No, of course not, Traynor, it's just …"
"Just what, Ma'am? My instructor tells me I don't need to have my ass handed to me, ever." The students surrounding them murmured in agreement.
"And just so you know, Joesiar referred to my xùnliàn zhě [訓練者] – my Jing Quan Dao trainer, who just happens to be my dearest friend, as a 'chink'." Murmurs of disapproval could now be heard rippling through the students. "Joesiar picks on me … he picks on Yuán, on …" she looked about quickly and spotted the young woman she'd accompanied to the AG's office in January, "Gonzales." Heather smiled as she looked at the lieutenant. "We're all different, one way or another, Ma'am. What do we have to do to get Joesiar discharged from the Alliance? We've filed multiple complaints with the AG's office all year with no results. The sonuva drooling whore does not belong here!"
Lieutenant McKenzie didn't like the tone of the conversations she could hear going on around her. "Ladies! Don't you all have someplace you need to be?"
Turning her attention back to Sam, she said, "Serviceman Traynor! Have your hands treated in the infirmary, then get to your next class. I'll talk to you later in private. Dismissed, all of you." McKenzie stood her ground as a number of the women battered her shoulders walking by her. Sighing heavily, she looked at Xiùlán, then at Samantha, turned and headed for her office.
Samantha was absolutely livid. "Goddammit, Xiùlán. Do I haffta fuckin' kill the miserable little pig-faced bastard?"
"Don't you dare! I saw him first," she grinned. "He's all mine, míngbái wo?" Xiùlán grabbed Sam's shoulders. "I am so proud of you, Sà màn shā! We'll get him kicked out. It's past time, before we transfer out of this base. Now, let's get you to the infirmary, get your hands checked out. Then … I'm going to buy a pair of sparring gloves for you. Ni zuò dé hěn hao, sēn měi!" [你做得很好，森美 – You did very well, Sammy!]
• 1752, that afternoon •
Traynor arrived at Lieutenant Olivia McKenzie's office, waved her hand past the door lock to activate the chime and waited. The door segments unlatched and hissed apart, sliding into their bulkhead receptacles as McKenzie absent-mindedly waved for Sam to enter.
As she took the six steps necessary to reach the lieutenant's desk, she started her audio recorder, then came to attention in front of the lieutenant's desk and saluted, holding it until McKenzie glanced up from the datapad she was studying.
"Stand easy, Traynor," McKenzie said as she returned the salute. "I want to talk to you about what happened this afternoon."
"Not sure what there is to talk about, Ma'am," Traynor replied, eyes focused straight ahead. "I believe the audio and video records speak for themselves."
"Well, Joesiar and Hobe's accounts differ—they both insist you instigated the fight, and Joesiar wants to press charges against you." McKenzie leaned back in her chair and steepled her fingers in front of her mouth. "As far as Joesiar is concerned, you attacked him for no reason."
Traynor broke her gaze at the far wall to stare at McKenzie in shock and disbelief. "Even with the recorded evidence?"
"He hasn't been made aware there is recorded evidence," McKenzie replied. "You came damned close to killing him this afternoon, Traynor … thank you for not following through, by the way. As for Hobe …" the lieutenant grinned in spite of herself, " … he may very well be singing soprano for the next few weeks." McKenzie paused, studied her datapad, then continued. "I don't think I've ever seen a three-punch combo landed with such precision. And the way you kicked Joesiar when he came at you? … that move is certainly not part of the core curriculum. In fact, nothing I saw in that footage is being taught on this base, Traynor. Where in hell did you learn lethal hand-to-hand combat training."
"My personal trainer. She's been schooling me in Jing Quan Dao, or Way of the Alert Fist. She's also …"
"She, Serviceman?" McKenzie interrupted. "I wasn't aware we had female combat instructors on staff."
"She's a student as well, Ma'am … teaches me how to fight, how to defend myself against personal attack. I instruct her in all things electronic … using her omnitool for computer hacking, code breaking and the like. It's a mutually beneficial partnership."
"I see." McKenzie picked up her datapad, scrolled though the information displayed. "Ah, SC1 Xiùlán. She's your instructor?"
"Yes Ma'am, SC1 Yuán … Yuán Xiùlán," Sam responded. "Xiùlán is her given name. Family name is listed before given name in China, Ma'am."
"I think I understand how you learned to fight in such a vicious manner, Traynor. No one in this entire facility wants to be Ms Yuán's opponent. We can't even bring opponents in from other races—the asari she fought is still having trouble breathing through her nose. I have it on good authority Yuán fights on 'auto-pilot' … enters into some kind of detached state … never any wasted effort. Totally merciless."
Traynor chuckled. "Not totally, Ma'am. She's left all her opponents alive …" including me … Sam thought back to the powerful hand gripping her throat not so many weeks ago, "so far, anyway. She's an … interesting … woman." Traynor said this last in a soft, contemplative voice.
"Let's get back to the problem at hand, Traynor. You and … Yuán … have been filing complaints about Joesiar since you arrived in January. How do you think it's going to look to Alliance brass … you kicking this guy's ass now, just before your class is due to transfer to your next training venue?"
"We don't believe Joesiar should even be in the Alliance, Ma'am. If you've read the complaints we've been filing, then you are more than aware of the reasons." Traynor fixed McKenzie with a steely glare as she continued, "Joesiar needs to be discharged before we transfer. The only reason he's even in the Alliance at all is his uncle – Major General Bradley Joesiar."
McKenzie sat back in her chair, a look of surprise on her face. "How do you know about Joesiar's connection to the major general? That's not common knowledge.
"Really, Ma'am? Of all the people in this program, none are here because of how well they happen to be connected, except Joesiar and his so called friends—Hobe, Tatum and Rosemont. None of them would be able to pass the aptitude test Xiùlán or I or the rest of the women here took to gain admission … hell, I doubt the four of them working together would be able to comprehend the questions." Samantha paused to gather her thoughts. "The last three pukes are simply followers, Ma'am, misogynistic bullies. Joesiar is the real problem … he's an ill-bred, narrow-minded xenophobe. Can you imagine him working with turians … perhaps with F'lar'Jid? … she has a low enough opinion of humans anyway. Meeting Joesiar would put the icing on our cake for her."
"Okay, Traynor, you've made your point. How are we going to resolve this situation?"
"Convene a formal hearing, Ma'am. Request an adjudicator from Earth, someone unfamiliar with the situation here," Traynor responded. "By the time it can all be arranged, Joesiar's face shouldn't be so black and blue. And we cannot allow him or his friends to learn of the video and audio we have—I want that to be a 'shove it down your throat' kind of surprise for him, a 'nail in the coffin' for his enlistment in the Systems Alliance."
"Okay, Traynor. I'll start the ball rolling," McKenzie said. "Shouldn't be too difficult to prove your case. By the way, how're your hands?"
"They'll be fine, Ma'am. Xiùlán treated them for me. She'll work on them again this evening."
McKenzie looked uncomfortable as she started to ask, "Traynor, forgive me for asking … are you and …"
"Xiùlán in a relationship?" Traynor finished for her.
"Yes. You don't have to answer that, Traynor, and I don't mean to make you uncomfortable … no judgment, okay?" McKenzie explained. "I just think that, if the two of you are … well, …" McKenzie didn't her finish her thought, but Sam could guess where this was going.
"If Xiùlán and I are in a relationship, it could hurt our chances of getting Joesiar kicked out of the Alliance?"
"Something like that," McKenzie looked down at her desk, embarrassment coloring her cheeks.
"Let's just say I'm not ashamed of my life choices, Ma'am, and leave it there for now," Traynor replied with a smile. "I'll be happy to talk to you further when we're ready to ship out, okay?"
"Okay, Serviceman. I'll keep you in the loop regarding a hearing date. Dismissed."
A/N: Joesiar receives his first (very painful) lesson regarding female soldiers, Samantha Traynor in particular. He doesn't know it, but Xiùlán would probably have killed him and Hobe. Thanks for visiting!