Chapter 27 - Episode: Morning After

Eric awoke with Belle in his arms. His eyes were still closed, and she wasn't making much noise at all. He felt her warmth, her soft skin pressed close against his rough scars and weathered body. He could smell her aroma, that distinct combination that was uniquely her. His smile was wide as he opened his eyes, and found she was looking at him as well. Her eyes were half lidded, but her smile was full and she laughed as Eric opened his eyes.

“Good morning, sleepyhead.” She said. Her tight curly hair was like a loose mane around her grinning face, and Eric chuckled. Belle scooted forward for a kiss, and Eric leaned in to to meet her half way. Their lips met again, and the memories of last night resurfaced. His whole body tingled as he curled his toes and let her break the kiss. She exhaled over him and he felt her hot breath run across his neck.  

“Good Morning to you, too.” Eric smiled and the two spent a few minutes under the sheets, enjoying the shared warmth, until Belle blanched and had to slip out to the bathroom, nature calling. Her ass bounced lovely as she hurried through the cool apartment to the bathroom.  

Eric laughed and eased himself out of bed, grabbing a towel for a shower and stretching in the dim room. They'd drawn the curtains in the main room to better watch the movie, not that they'd paid much attention to it. Eric started to pull the curtains of his own room aside, not remembering why he'd kept them closed.

For a moment, all he noticed was the morning skyline. The city looked much as it did any morning. The rooftops, covered with wind farms and solar panels, gleamed in the dawn. He let his gaze travel downward, and he saw the twisted railing of his bedroom side balcony.

The metal railing was crushed, like tinfoil, in a somewhat symmetrical pattern. Eric stepped back, steeling himself, and went into the living room to check the railing outside of that window. Just like outside his bedroom, the metal was warped.  

Twisted, as if it had been crushed by giant, powerful, claws.

Eric's eyes widened and he pulled the curtains shut as he stood in the living room. Naked, but feeling so very exposed at the moment. That thing had been watching them. He grit his teeth. Why? More to the point, it had ruined the railing. Why? He heard Belle leave the bathroom, the sound of the sink dripping following her as she padded up behind him.

“What's wrong, Eric?” She asked, coyly. He sighed. No way to hide this from her. He pulled the curtain aside so she could look over his shoulder at the damage. He heard her gasp, then felt her hands grip his arms. He stood there, a rock for her to steady herself against.

“This ends.” Eric said aloud. Whatever the Regulator's intentions or desires, it needed to be stopped before it crushed a person and not a metal railing. He felt Belle release her grip on his arms and he turns to hold her against him. He kissed her, softly, as she wrapped her arms around him. “I promise.” He swore into her ear.

Fifteen minutes later, Eric was showered, shaved, and dressed in his reserve duty uniform. He'd texted Officer Woolrick and Captain Rachel about the latest Regulator evidence and they'd both agreed that the time for waiting was over. Eric looked himself over. The devices and distinctions for a Third Degree Warrant Officer in the Technician Branch of the Army rode on his uniform collar and his shoulders. Also on his uniform was a yellow and black patch that indicated he was on a reserve status. Technically speaking, he was. Even though he had served his tour, the nature of his training and the missions he'd undertaken meant that he could get a call at any moment, and that stripe would come off.

“Days like today.” He said as he looked at himself. “The stripe feels pretty loose.” He said as he set his resolve and strode out of his apartment. Drip rode in a carrying case in his arms. He would have had her on his shoulder, but that wouldn't have been in regulations. He sighed, internally.  

Half way to the elevator, Maz stepped out her door, looking like she was going to get an early breakfast before work. She stopped in her tracks when she saw Eric, in uniform.

“Eric?” She said, and he heard the concern in her voice. “Where are you going?” He had made an impression on her, hadn't he? He smiled. 

 “Just to the local garrison, but I am technically in the reserves, and this is official so:” He gestured at the uniform, by way of an answer. She nodded, visibly relieved. “Oh, is this Drip?” She asked and leaned in to look at the blue slime. Drip moved up to the edge of her container and purred happily, as she caught Maz's scent.

Wuuurp!

“Yes, she is.” Eric nodded with a smile. “Drip, this is Maz, one of my very, very, good friends.” He said and Maz grinned at the way he said 'friends'.

Wuuuuurp... Drip bobbed her front, knowingly. Maz and Eric laughed. Some of the weight on Eric's shoulders falling off as the little slime seemed to understand.

“So,” Maz's smile diminished a little, “things have gotten serious, I take it?”

“That depends,” Eric started, dodging the question, “Was Gene streaming last night?” His question got a wide grin out of Maz.

“No, she was not,” She chuckled. “Should I be asking why?” Eric inhaled and exhaled.  

“Well, Belle and I-” Before he could get another word out, Maz's eyes went wide and she grabbed him by the shoulders.

“YES!” She cheered and pulled him into a tight hug. She laughed and spun him around. Drip wurping loudly as she went along for the ride.

“Maz?” Eric yelped as she set him down. They'd traded positions, Eric now faced his apartment, his back toward the elevators. “What the hell?”

“Oh!" She brushed her hands over his shoulders, and helped straighten out his uniform. "Lords, you don't know, Eric; but she needed a guy like you, trust me.” Maz shook her head. “Just, trust me.”

“Of course,” Eric nodded. Maz chuckled.

“Still, that doesn't seem like a bad thing,” She bounced back to the issue. “What else happened?”

“The Regulator was watching us, last night.” Eric said without preamble. “It tore up my balcony railings pretty thoroughly.” He added, as Maz's jaw slowly dropped. The hands that rested on Eric's shoulders tightened. Eric felt her weight shift, and he wasn't sure if she was steadying herself or anchoring him in place.

“What the fuck?” She responded, after a long moment of stunned silence. Eric nodded. “What, did it imprint on you because you fixed it, or something?”

“That... could be it.” Eric was surprised at her guess. She crossed her arms and looked genuinely concerned again, her previous joy buried under deep thought. “Maz?”

“I'm gonna have to bust out the old 'regulations' for my crew.” She sighed. “The company we're building for wants us to bubble up the work site and do some of the 'light work' during the night.” She explained. Eric's eyes widened.

“A Bubble isn't going to stop a rampant Regulator.” Eric stated the obvious. Maz nodded.

“Yeah, they're gonna be pissed. This isn't classified, right? I mean Belle sent out that memo, yesterday.” Eric shook his head. “Okay, good. I'll talk to my bosses.” She nodded as she vocalized her plan. “I'll make sure they know all the money they've got isn't going to get us to work, at night, with one of those freaks in the air.” She finished, solidly.  

“You're a good boss.” Eric smiled. Maz winked.

“I'm all heart.” She grinned wide, “Well, heart, muscle, and tits.” Her grin turned lewd as the hands on Eric's shoulders slid down to his ass. He laughed as she squeezed him and the two kissed briefly, but warmly. When she broke the kiss, she whispered into his ear. “Kick some ass, Eric.” She bid into his ear.  

Eric grinned and whispered back. “I aim to.” He hugged her with his free arm and she let go, but kept an arm around his waist as she walked him to the elevator. They rode it down, and Maz tried to prod him for details about his night with Belle. Eric didn't divulge any details, and by the time the elevator reached ground level, they were laughing about something one of Maz's newbies had done.

The laughter died when the doors opened and the sounds of angry, scared, voices billowed out from the lobby.

“So, what are you going to do about it?”
“Are we in any danger?”
“It's a Regulator. We're all screwed if it goes rampant.”
“Why aren't the Police doing anything?”
“The Police? How about the Military?”

The other tenants from the other floors were congregated in the lobby. Apparently, they'd gotten to organizing a mob to barrage Belle with questions, and if they didn't know about last night, they soon would.

“Everyone, please listen.” Belle's voice was calm, but carried the tone of a command. The din diminished and Eric started to walk to where Belle was standing, in front of her office. Donna was by her side, keeping an eye on the crowd. “We've contacted the Police and an Agent of City Construct Security, and discussed the danger to our home, and the neighborhood.”  

True and also factual, Eric thought as he walked around the crowd so Belle could see him. “Given the circumstances, both have advised that the fastest, and surest solution is to contact the Military Garrison stationed in the City.” Belle saw Eric and she blinked when she saw Eric in uniform. “The building's newest employee is an Army Technician on Reserve,” She turned and gestured to Eric. “Mister Wyre?” She gave him the floor, and several pairs of eyes turned his way.

“Thank you, Miss Stewart.” He said, professionally as he stepped beside her, on the opposite side as Donna. “My name is Warrant Officer Eric Wyre. I'm in the Reserves, as Miss Stewart said; I made contact with the Regulator, and I've been making sure that the authorities have been informed as soon as I have new information.” He stated, giving bare facts. “I'm about to head to a meeting at the Army Garrison with the Police Captain Rachel and Officer Woolrick.”  

As he said this, in the corner of his eye, he saw said officer's car pull up outside. “We are going to get the Army's Specialists on this, and we are going to resolve this issue.” He promised. “Until Miss Stewart says otherwise, please adhere to her advised curfew. Your safety matters to all of us, here.” He said, with more compassion than his aggressive promise.  

That satisfied the crowd enough that Eric, Belle, and Donna were able to excuse themselves and exit the building. Maz was outside, leaning against Cornelia's car and speaking with Cornelia and Captain Rachel. Maz nodded and handed Captain Rachel a card.

“This is my company's contact information, Ma'am. If you can give an official statement on this, that would keep them from trying anything.”

“Of course, Miss Bora.” Captain Rachel said with a smile on her face, her optics softly illuminated in the shade of the interior. “I'm glad to help. Hopefully, this will be resolved quickly, but it might take some time to plan out.” She explained as Eric walked up with Belle. Maz turned as she saw Rachel's gaze shift to Eric and smiled.  

“I'll let you head off,” Maz said, but not before giving Eric and Belle a strong hug, each. Eric opened the door for Belle before walking around the car to get in, himself. “Good luck!” Maz wished the group as they headed off.

For the first few minutes, nobody spoke. Then Rachel asked, “Are you alright, Miss Stewart?” She looked back over her shoulder to where Belle was sitting. Belle smiled, and shrugged.

“Well, I was hoping this morning would have had a nice home cooked breakfast and maybe 'seconds', if I got the chance.” She looked over at Eric who smiled, but the smirk diminished when he felt her hand on his thigh.

“More like 'thirds',” He corrected her, and took her hand in his to squeeze it, reassuringly. She laughed and leaned close to him, resting her head on his shoulder. Eric caught the reflection of Cornelia's eyes in the rear view mirror. Her eyebrow rose in a mirror match of Rachel's expression as she watched Eric and Belle cozy up to one another.

“Well, you look better, at least.” Cornelia said. “This morning you sounded-”

“It was a shock,” Belle said as she squeezed her hand, “It's one thing knowing Gene has a line on security for the building, it's another for one of those... things... to be watching right outside the window.” She said and Eric felt her grip tighten even more.

“We'll get it.” Eric promised. “The Army has equipment and training for this exact reason, and even if they don't have someone qualified,” He looked from Belle to Rachel. “They can authorize the Captain to suit up and deploy.”

Captain Rachel grinned wide at that suggestion. “While I'm sure the local garrison has its shit together, Mister Wyre.” She said, putting on her diplomatic face. “I wouldn't be against being prepared to provide... 'support' to whatever force is deployed against the Regulator.”

Eric smiled and for the next two hours, he and the ladies made light conversation, up until they reached the Garrison.

As they had gotten closer and closer, the businesses and buildings had grown most austere and more robust in equal measure. Many of the stores had signs in their front windows declaring their support for and by the Armed Forces. Some stores sold surplus field equipment: jackets, MREs, boots, and the sort. There were also a number of cafes, green grocers, and short stay hotels, to appeal to the soldiers stationed at the garrison.  

However everything stopped one hundred meters before the outer markers of the Garrison. The road was straight and there were no turn offs, and on either side there was a wide margin of flattened, featureless soil. This margin framed the entire Garrison, which itself was at least ten city blocks long, and half that wide. The tall walls were a fortress and Eric couldn't see any of the buildings inside. That being the point of a defensive wall, of course.  

They stopped at the beginning of a margin, where many signs in every language declared that this was an Army Garrison and that approaching could be dangerous without permission, an invitation, or clearly dire circumstances. There was also a speaker, like an old fast food drive through, and Officer Woolrick leaned out of her car to speak into it.

“Hello, the Garrison?” She said in an old time accent, that got a laugh out of Eric. “Anyone home?”

“This is the City South Army Garrison,” A man's voice, clear and alert, responded. “What is your business?” 

“This is Officer Cornelia Woolrick, 34th precinct, 8th Founding District Police Department. I'm here with Captain Rachel of the same precinct, and two witnesses to a Regulator Sighting?” She introduced herself and explained. “We should have an appointment.” 

“Confirmed, Officer Woolrick,” The voice said. “You are cleared for entry. Please advance toward the Garrison main gate. Drive safe.” The voice added and the speaker cut out. Woolrick put her foot on the pedal and the car slowly started down the straight road. Eric sat back as they drew half way to the gate, and he got a good measure of the scale.

The front gate was as wide as the road, a four lane two way, but it was almost four stories tall, half as high the wall itself.

“Wonder what they have stationed here.” He commented under his breath. Captain Rachel smiled, Drip wurped, and Belle continued to hold Eric's hand.  

The gates swung outward, and Eric counted the riflemen walking along the top of the walls. A dozen, in sight. That meant there were at least eight more in hidden positions disguised as featureless parts of the wall. Almost immediately after clearing the doors, Cornelia slowed her car to a stop, and a squad approached from both sides of the car.  

Remote devices moved under, over, and around the car, scanning it for any hidden dangers. They weren't carrying anything, Eric thought, so they should be waved right through. He thought that, but the Sergeant at the gate walked toward the driver's side of the car, holding a tablet.  
“There a problem, Sergeant?” Woolrick asked and the Sergeant chuckled.  

“There may be one,” The Sergeant had a gait set to mosey, and his accent matched. “Miss-”

“Woolrick, Officer Woolrick.” Cornelia introduced herself. The Sergeant nodded, as if to say 'sure thing'. 

“Well Officer Woolrick, you seem to be carrying a heavy piece of firepower in the trunk of your vehicle.” He said and turned the screen to show Cornelia what his squad's scanners picked up. 

“Oh, that. I have a permit.” Conelia nodded and pointed to the driver's side sun visor.

“You have a permit.” The Sergeant repeated, incredulously. Cornelia nodded again. “Let's see it.” He said. He gave the suggestion with the tone of an order. Cornelia didn't jump or hurry. She causally reached up and pulled down several laminated sheets of paper. She shuffled the first two sheets to the bottom before pulling off a third, which was bordered in yellow and black stripes. 

“Here you go.” She said and handed him the sheet. The Sergeant looked it over with his own eyes first before scanning it under the tablet's IR reader. Cornelia's smile was equal parts polite and smug. The tablet let out an audible chirp, and the Sergeant's eyes went wide.

“Fuck me.” The Sergeant swore, as he looked at Cornelia. Whatever he'd seen on the screen had changed his view on her, drastically.

“Sorry, Sergeant, that part of my dance card's full.” She caught Eric's eye in the rear view mirror and winked. “But, I do go shooting with some friends on Tuesdays, at old Salagiida's place.” Cornelia explained. The Sergeant cocked his head. “At the intersection of Guard and Charger.” She added and the Sergeant nodded, and handed her back the permit. “Bring your friends,” She offered, “We're a fun bunch.” She said and Captain Rachel laughed. 

The Sergeant gave them the all clear, and they rolled ahead toward a guest parking lot. There was a modest number of cars here, most with license plates from government departments. All of them had, at least, the driver standing by a car. Some had one or two more security persons present.

“Paranoid much?” Cornelia said after they had parked, and were walking toward the main building. “Why are they minding the cars, like this is some kind of shady neighborhood?” She subtly motioned over her shoulder with her chin. Rachel rolled her optics and Eric chuckled. “What?”

Eric nodded toward a group of enlisted, and a second lieutenant who mingled well with his grunts, eyeing up the cars with a predatory fashion. “It's something of a game, between Security Services and Armed Forces.” He nodded toward the group, and they nodded back. A few noticed his service stripes and watched him for a moment. Then they noticed Cornelia and Belle walking and followed them with their eyes.

“Nothing permanent,” Eric smiled. “It's just some 'imitation bird shit', liberally applied to the car of a visiting fancy pants.”

“Bird shit?” She looked over her shoulder at the group. Those watching Rachel go all looked away, without any subtly.  

“Mashed potato rations.” Rachel explained, as they approached the doors to the front doors.  

“Should I be worried?” Cornelia asked, as Eric shorted his pace to open the door for the ladies. “Thank you, sir.” She said with a grin. Eric nodded as she walked past him, into the building.

“Not likely,” Eric answered, and cast a look in the group's direction. The second lieutenant flashed him thumbs up and Eric nodded back. “They don't mess with Police.” He said, as Belle followed Cornelia in. Rachel following after her.

“Or OZ Vets.” Rachel added, once Eric had walked in. “They seemed very interested in that,” She tapped her ears.  

“Careful what sensitivity you set your sensors to.” Eric warned. Rachel nodded, a playful smile on her face. “Yeah, yeah. You know what you're doing.” He sighed as he the four of them walked toward the front desk, with Drip quietly taking in everything.

It only took a few minutes to get them sorted, an escort arranged, and the Duty Officer was leading them down a hall toward a meeting room. The first member of the escort opened the door. The second looked in to confirm nothing was out of the ordinary with a scanner in hand. Both stepped back once they confirmed the room was clear and 'clean'.  

“Ladies, Warrant Officer,” She addressed them and gestured at the room, “If you'd please wait here. Refreshments are available at the side table.” She offered, and all four of them thanked her as they entered. The door closed after them, and Eric gave the room a walk around.

It was your basic meeting room, like any other. The carpet was thin, and designed to be easily cleaned, or removed. The walls were a plain shade of taupe, very soothing. The refreshment spread was rather basic, nothing Eric couldn't find at a convenience store. Judging by the rate of the drip into the pot, someone had brewed the coffee only a few minutes ago.

“Coffee?” Eric asked the ladies. Rachel shook her head, but Cornelia and Belle both nodded. He poured out two cups of coffee. The group wasn't waiting long before someone knocked once on the door. None of them had taken a seat yet, and all turned to see the door open, and Eric snapped a sharp salute when he saw the man who walked in.

He stood just over two meters and filled out his uniform with trained and reinforced muscle. His bald head was scarred with pockmarks, His pale blue eyes darted from Rachel, to Cornelia, to Belle, then focused on Eric. Even his lips and cheeks had scars on them, as he smiled and returned the salute.

“At ease.” A gravelly voice completed the image Eric had of General Ivan 'Moon Man' Kurthall. “Relax, Warrant Officer, you're making me self conscious.” He chuckled. “Captain Rachel, Officer Woolrick, Miss Stewart,” He nodded to each of them. “Please, be seated.” He gestured toward the chairs around the table. These were more comfortable than they appeared, and Eric felt his body weight supported perfectly as he sat down. “Mister Wyre,” He began and looked Eric straight in the eye. “Yesterday, Captain Rachel and I had a long discussion on the situation, so I'm up to speed. However, I've been told there was an incident this morning?”

“Yes, General. Last night.” Eric said. “I discovered it this morning,” He said, and candidly explained the circumstances. Belle was quiet for his explanation and beneath the table, Eric felt her hand on his knee.

“First, it threatens this interesting little Slime,” he began, and Eric noticed how he looked at Drip, as she sat in her container on the table. “Now it seems to take issue with your relationship choices.” General Kurthall shakes his head. “You realize what this means?” He asked Eric. 

“It's imprinted on me as its 'Designated One'.” Eric nodded, and Rachel sighed. Cornelia narrows her gaze.  

“Pardon me, if it's classified,” she started, and looked between her Captain, Eric, then the General. “But what do you mean by 'Designated One'?” There was a moment of silence and both Rachel and General Kurthall looked at Eric, and he nodded.

“During the period of time when the Regulators were actually listening to human authorities, there would be one or two Technicians designated to them for regular and emergency maintenance.” Eric explained. “They were the only ones with clearance to operate on them. Once they went rogue, in the first place, the generation of machine-made Regulators would capture Technicians. Each would find and keep one as their 'Designated One'.” Eric concluded.

“It sounds like it was a lot more than just repairing them.” Belle said in a quiet voice.

“It was...” Rachel spoke up, “Part of their imbalance and dementia gave them the illusion that this relationship was automatically mutual. They believed a Technician must desire a Regulator to repair, and that rejection wasn't possible. This bled into a belief that they should be physically close as well.” Rachel continued, and Cornelia's eyes narrowed. “When the Regulators were brought back into line, this relationship goal was put on the other side of the metamorphosis line, when they were all downgraded from their 'Combat' forms.”

“So, it has a 'romantic' obsession with Eric?” She asked, no humor in his voice as she finger quoted the word romantic. Eric and Rachel both nodded. Belle narrowed her gaze, but sat back and took in the conversation.

“That's why we need to end this threat, quickly, before it metamorphose into its higher state.” The General declared as he pulls out a folded up piece of paper from his uniform pocket. “I received encoded orders from Capital Construct Control.” He stated and a chill fell over the room. “This Regulator, having shown all the signs of potential rampancy, and a disregard for the statutes governing itself, will be under strict watch. Should it present the risk of Metamorphosis and a return to its Combat State: the termination of this Regulator has been authorized.” The chill in the room was gripping as the ramifications were implied.

“So even the Regulators at Central think this one's gone too far.” Rachel sighed. “That's decided then.” She nodded. Eric did as well, and Cornelia folded her hands. “How are we going to go about this, General?” She asked. “It's going to be cocooned up by tonight, if its not already.”

“Given it's initial means of provoking a Technician response,” The General began, and nodded at Eric, “We looked at logged sensor records in your District. Looking back to before Mister Wyre repaired the Regulator, we can see peaks that lead back to a quarter undergoing reconstruction.” He said as he tapped the table, and it became a map of the City. Eric's mind spun as things added up. They clicked, just as General Kurthall zoomed in a section of the district with many yellow squares, indicating construction sites.

“Wait, Maz is working on a reconstruction zone,” Belle said and looked to Rachel, who pulled out the card Maz had given to her.

“General, do you know if this is the company involved in the reconstruction?” She handed General Kurthall the card. He read the card and nodded grimly. “Shit.” Rachel swore, along with Eric.

“May I call her?” Cornelia asked the General, holding up her phone. He held up a hand.

“I'd ask you not use your phone inside the building,” He said politely, but firmly. “I've already deployed scouting teams to each construction site. They're there partly to scan for the Regulator, but also to inform the work crews of the present danger.” Cornelia and Eric visibly relaxed, but Rachel remained tense.

“As for bringing the Regulator down,” The General looked at Eric. “For starters: Warrant Officer, on my authority as General, and Commanding Officer of this Garrison, I am temporarily calling you back into active service for the duration of this incident.” He said. “You may remove your Reserve band.” He nodded at the stripe on his arm, and Eric promptly removed it. At least it's not as hot as OZ. He thought as he held the stripe in his hand, and pocketed it. “Captain Rachel, Authorization is being processed at Central for a partial reactivation of some of your equipment. I was told that too much would require you to remove some of your more personal modifications.” He added and Rachel rolled her optics.

“I wonder who might have told you that,” She shook her head.

“Officer Woolrick, You'll be acting as Liaison for the Police to insure that we don't make too much noise with our equipment.”

“Awesome, paperwork and I get to play nanny for a bunch of Army nerds.” She looked at Eric who laughed.  

The rest of the meeting was bare bones, a tactical meeting would be held that afternoon, so Rachel and Cornelia would head to the prescient building to get Agent Tarquin and assemble an oversight team, while at the same time preparing for night time operations.

Eric had let Drip out of her container as he watched the ladies leave the base, and the little Slime was resting on his shoulder. He inhaled, and exhaled, flexed his fingers, and steadied his nerves. Tonight, or the next, would see the end of the Regulator.  

===
====
===

Special Thanks to all my readership, also Aeronator for his awesome editing work. 

Chapter 28 is already up and posted on my Patreon Page.

For the price of a cup of coffee a month, you can help support me and my writing! Joining gets you chapters TWO WEEKS ahead of HF, and some nifty options if you have a personal character you'd like to see in this universe! Take a look and see what interests you. I respond to patreon messages and comments, so if you've got questions be sure to ask, I love getting feedback!
