CHAPTER 67: A Date in the Rift
Adam could feel the happiness coming from the connection he had with Brittney. He couldn’t help but smile at the affection. Such a simple thing like walking through the base while holding her hand was bringing her more joy than his old apathy could have imagined, and now he could feel the instant affects of that using his connections.
Brittney used to dress in frumpy clothes and earth tones. It’s not that they were ugly, they just made her look more like a librarian than highlighting her cuteness. She had a small height and build, the smallest of their group, but after a lifetime as Brandon’s protector, she had carried herself large. She didn’t hold back with her words and was willing to get in everyone’s face. Before the [System], Adam had thought of her as combative, but now he thought of her as spunky.
Recently she switched to wearing clothes than looked a lot cuter on her, clearly the influence of Andrea and Alissa. Right now she had a pink miniskirt with black leggings, colorful shoes, and a t-shirt with some kitschy cartoon character. Her hair was also shorter and had a lot more wave to it than before.
Adam wanted to put in some effort for her so he wore an untucked button down and loose jeans, though since he wanted to get some exercise in the Adventurer Guild training area he had made sure to wear a tank top and gym shorts underneath.
“How is your family doing with all this?” asked Adam as they walked out of the building and meandered along the roads. Jordan had created them to guide the vehicle to the various warehouses and building. He gave her hand an affectionate little squeeze and felt her happiness increase even more through the connection.
“They’re moving into the condo on your parent’s floor today. Mr. Rhodes suggested to my dad that they bring my brothers home from college, at least until we know what will happen, so the two should be around here somewhere. They’re helping move the basics from our house sometime, then will probably go cause trouble at the Adventurer Guild.”
“Maybe I’ll meet them when I go there. I had some training I wanted to try out with a new power.”
Brittney perked up when she heard Adam talk about a new power. Of everyone in their group, even Brandon, Brittney was by far the biggest nerd. It turned out that she loved RPGs and even the math involved. She was who everyone in their group went to for discussions about stats and possible ways to get better classes. Adam hadn’t spoken to her about them directly, but he had listened in to conversations, which ended with her overly enthusiastic about them.
“What’s the new power? Can you phase through walls or summon the dead?”
“Eww, no. Why would I want to summon the dead. Sounds gross. As for walls, I can already punch my way through most.”
“True,” she giggled. “I can punch through Earth walls too. So much fun.”
Adam stopped walking and gave her a flat look. “What walls have you punched through?”
She has the decency to look embarrassed. “Oh, um, I might have punch in a wall to the girl’s locker room at the high school to maybe dump some mud in Vicky’s locker. She’s always had it coming.”
“And no one figured out it was you?”
“They definitely did,” she laughed. “But what are they going to do to one of The General’s Wives? Everyone knows the cops and now the army work for you.”
Adam sighed, then resumed walking.
“With. They work with me.”
Brittney giggled again. “Sure they do.”
“Anyway, make sure you and the other girls don’t take too much advantage of this. Your actions reflect our group’s credibility.”
“Don’t worry,” she said with a sigh. “We haven’t done much else. Lucas actually gave us a lecture. Lucas of all people. He’s most concerned about Tom. No one can figure out if Tom thinks this is all a joke building to a punchline, or if he has the most fanatical hard-on for you. Either way he's the strictest among us. Everything he says and does has to make you look better.”
“That’s fine then. I’ll talk to Tom later. Anyway, do you get along with your brothers? You haven’t mentioned them much.”
“They like to rough house and wrestle. I don’t personally mind them, they just come across as dumb boys. Still waiting for them to mature.”
“Well, if they give you trouble just let me know.”
Brittney started cackling, her grin turning wicked. “Oh, they tried something yesterday when I saw them. They won’t be challenging me again for a long while.”
Adam could only hope that it hadn’t required a healer.
They continued their stroll until they came upon the men loading crates into a warehouse. The men working there instantly recognized Adam. They tried giving him a salute and greetings, though the affect was ruined by no one using the same salute. Definitely not military men. Adam decided to help them with the crates, turning his power as low as possible with his new skill so it wasn’t easy. He didn’t want to hurt their opinion of him though, so he kept his strength high enough to not struggle. Their jaws dropped when the smaller Brittney followed him into the warehouse with a crate on each shoulder, each almost as large as she was.
Several more warehouses were being filled, and they helped with each one they came to. Adam made sure to thank and praise every group, a little surprised at the smiles and confidence that caused in men much older than him.
At the cooking and canning lines, the grannies were happy to tease Brittney about them being so close, while also providing them with a nice snack. Brittney’s face sometimes got red at their language, but she never talked back to them or felt the need to defend herself.
Adam’s trip to the playground found a surprising number of kids there, with quite a range of ages. A few adults were watching them, making sure everything was safe. Two even had a rift display in front of them and were moving it around so that they could check on all the kids without getting in their way.
He was even more surprised that several kids knew who he was. They played Invaders and Heroes as Adam chased them around, invading their forts while they fought him off. He ended up spending an entire hour playing on the tree forts and slides. Jordan did a great job with the kids’ area.
When Brittney and Adam continued their walk, they headed towards the newly build army barracks. There were a lot more soldiers and staff moving around than he expected. Almost all were still level 0, with only a few people that he recognized.
As they got close, a few of the soldiers stepped forward menacingly, holding assault rifles across their chest. Adam eyed them but waited.
“This area is restricted to civilians. Take your girlfriend and shove off,” the soldier said, not even trying to be polite.
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Adam looked him up and down slowly. Then looked to the other two that had approached.
The voice inside Adam’s soul did not respond well to this lack of respect. Conquer! If Adam had thought, or been his usual personality, he would have just allowed it to go by. He didn’t care that much about the army using this space, but the memories of the classes would not let this slide.
Unbidden the heat spread throughout him. The river flowed. Brittney felt Adam’s muscles tense as he stood up straighter and his presence seemed to swell. The soldiers got scared looks on their faces and reached for the safeties of their weapons.
“You guys really don’t know who this is?” giggled Brittney as, instead of trying to calm Adam, she put on a wicked smile. Her voice startled the soldiers. More were watching from a bit further away and even they looked nervous and were fingering their weapons. “Guess you’ll learn.”
Adam made to step forward when another voice called out.
“Back to your posts! He’s a VIP and allowed here…and pretty much anywhere he damn well pleases,” one of the army medics who had been on the raid with Adam said, the last bit much quieter. He was rushing out of a nearby building with Colonel Davian and Elouise Gervin.
“Adam!” The Colonel said quickly. “I didn’t expect you here.” Then he spoke to all the soldiers. “Everyone, this is Adam, The General. He controls this dimensional base and has been very generous with us. Treat him with the respect of a high rank officer.”
“Yes, sir,” the nearby soldiers said, still rattled from Adam’s aura.
“Um, Adam, can you please calm down?” asked the Colonel quietly. Adam turned his eyes on him and Davian flinched. Elouise had backed away while scrunching her nose, trying her best not to look intimidated.
“Adam, sweetie, it’s ok now,” Brittney said while patting his arm. Adam looked down at her with his intense eyes. There was no flinching from her, instead she gave him a bright smile. The connection told him just how much she loved it when he threw his power around.
Adam let out a steam filled breath and then smiled. The heat was released, and he went back to holding Brittney’s hand. A noticeable sigh came from Davian and Elouise.
“I see what you mean,” Elouise whispered to Davian. “I like him better irreverent too.”
“I was just looking through all the changes to the Rift and couldn’t help but notice more soldiers. Can you give me an update?” asked Adam.
“Of course,” answered Davian with relief. “General Gervin has done as much as he could. He has found ways to route soldiers, supplies, and support personnel to here for the next few days. Since we’re only two days away from the invasions, according to the [System], I’ll be able to take control of them if communication lines go down as you’ve suggested.”
“What about their families?” Adam asked, surprising Elouise. “We don’t want families split up in these circumstances.”
“General Gervin selected men without attachments to avoid that. The soldiers I brought with me, those that have seen the enemies, already have their families arriving. Mr. Lane build an apartment building just for them. The men will stay in the barracks when on duty, but their families will be nearby.
“The support personnel are very enthusiastic to work with Mr. Lane, although he is having trouble sharing control. He keeps claiming he doesn’t want his city building altered. The logistics officers are working with your mother, Detective Baker, and the mayor’s office to set up distribution and defensive points around the city.”
Adam nodded along with all of that. “How many have come in?”
“We are expecting to have a bit less than 2,000 soldiers and 50 support staff.”
“And my warnings for Gervin to pass along?”
Davian looked down. His expression seemed to be a mix of embarrassment and anger.
“It was as you said. No one is taking it seriously. Not the other ranking officers, nor our overseas allies. Everyone is putting up normal defenses for the deadline instead of giving more credibility to the information you shared. There is also a lot of…coveting…over this base. Several agencies, including the FBI and Homeland Security, are sending people to look this place over. They say that is a requirement to take your intel seriously.”
Adam just laughed sarcastically. “They don’t believe our info but they want our base, which we must be lying about. Funny. I wasn’t expecting much besides that. You make it sound like they would be doing us a favor to believe our info.”
“Technically it is on US soil so they do have a right to seize and search it,” said the Colonel hesitantly. Then he quickly averted eye contact when Adam’s eyes met his own.
“They can file a lawsuit however they want,” Adam said dismissively. The implication was obvious. There was no time. “How’s training going?”
“We’ve separated the military from the civilians and are hitting different areas to level from the wildlife. A few that you raided with are leading units, while the rest are trying to learn techniques from Lilliard and adjust to their increased levels. Your assessment was correct. They are having trouble adjust to their new strength. I’m not sure how you and your people do it.”
“We leveled in smaller amounts, while those feral behemoths really jumped everyone at once,” Adam admitted. Then he turned to the medic that was standing behind the Colonel. “Is anyone having emotional difficulties that was on the raid? I might be able to help with that if needed.”
“Thanks, General,” the medic said hesitantly. “I think we should be fine. An army psychiatrist has come in and we're finding that the increased strength and levels give an odd sense of confidence that helps smooth out possible mental and emotional issues.”
“And who might this young woman be?” asked Elouise, indicating Brittney.
“Brittney Hutchins, ma’am,” said Brittney proudly. “I’m one of The General’s Wives.”
“Oh my. So that’s real? He really has more than one wife? I’m Elouise Gervin, by the way. General Gervin’s only wife.”
“Well, we’re not married. Just dating. It was kind of a joke name that Tom made up in an interview. Convenient though when guys think to talk back to me.”
Elouise laughed at that last bit. “I imagine that is convenient. This is the first time I got a glimpse of Adam’s ferocity, and I can say I fear for whomever starts trouble with him. Though being the wife of a powerful man can be challenging on its own. How do you girls plan to manage your competing emotions and desire for his time?”
Brittney smiled and looked at up Adam. “Oh, we have a special bond with Adam. We can feel his affection with us even when we aren’t around. Andrea says it’s more important that we girls get along than we worry about being with Adam. We need to support each other as well as him.”
“Quite the mature outlook. I know I wouldn’t have been able to manage it.”
“I think it’s different now that we have the [System]. The old rules will change with power, magic, and governmental breakdown,” suggested Brittney.
“Well, that is true. Something to think about. Would you mind if I visit with you girls some time?” Elouise asked.
“Sure. We’d love to hear your perspective, as the wife of a different general,” Brittney laughed, though Adam caught a flash of an almost frown on Elouise’s face.
With so many people coming into the Rift, Adam knew that friction would be increased. He just needed to make sure everything held together until the invasion. They might question it, but deep inside Adam knew…everything would change.