Quaranteam - Au

Quaranteam: Alternating Uncertainties

Chapter 12

Aussie Soldier; New Bonds and Rising Tides

This chapter took some time. Sorry about that. As you may know, life kinda got in the way. But we're good now, and hopefully I'll get back on track. Thanks as always to the other QT spinoff writers for their support and help in getting everything cleaned up. If you're not already, check out their work.

-SR

Dramatis Personae

-House Marshall-

Tiberius Marshall - 35, Lt. Colonel Australian Army SASR. Black Hair, Grey Eyes. Big teddy bear.

Charlotte Valiant - 35, Captain Australian Army SASR, Red hair, long hair, service submissive.

Leticia Valiant - 35, Captain Australian Army SASR, Red hair, shoulder length hair, tomboy.

Talia Becker - 27, Major Israeli Defence Force, Black hair, long hair, braided, wilful, but devoted.

Alice Rai - 31, Doctor of Medicine, Black hair, blue eyes, partial Indian descent, complete submissive.

Elizabeth Connors - 21, younger sister of Jaxson Connors. University Student -- Finance

Béatrice Martin -- 32, French DGSE. Tech expert and hobby tinker. Blonde, Blue eyes.

Grace Lawry -- 33, Captain, USAF. Tiberius' old friend. Formerly partnered with Benjamin Morgan and the person who involved Ty in the Quaranteam Project.

Juno Claudius -- 37, Lawyer friend of Tiberius and the Evans'. Has two children with Tiberius; Bellona(Bella) and Mars.

Zoe Evans -- 19, daughter of Tiberius' good friends Toby and Matilda Evans and Tiberius' 'niece'. University Student. Not yet bonded, but definitely part of the family.

Addison Taylor -39, Captain, RAN. Auburn Hair, Blue eyes. Ty's latest partner and liaison with the Navy. Sensible woman who really wants a child before it's too late.

Kang Mi-Rae -- 29, Korean actress. Black Hair with blue highlights, brown eyes. Popular actress.

-Other-

Damian Marshall - 30, Captain Australian Army SASR. Smaller version of Tiberius. Currently in France. 1 Partner.

William 'Bill' Anderson -- Colonel. Somewhat stiff, but very capable officer. 2 Partners.

Jonathan Hoffmann - Lt. General. Friend of Tiberius' and the twins' grandfather. Current highest-ranking member of the AUS military. 1 Partner.

Narmada Rai -- Alice's grandmother. Doctor of Medicine, helping Ty coordinate the medical workers around Victoria. Ty has set her up with Jonathan Hoffmann.

Barry 'Baz' Davis -- Brigadier. Good friend of Tiberius. In charge of personnel at Victoria Barracks. 3 Partners.

Jaxson Connors - Major, currently under arrest for abuse of authority and attempted murder. Was working with a Sheik to develop the Assassin Variant of DuoHalo.

Nikoletta Bianci -- 35, Ty's friend and the woman managing the Vineyards belonging to the Marshall family.

Catalina Cabrera -- 34, Nikoletta's partner. Spanish, with a temper to match.

--

Marshall Household, Melbourne Southeastern Suburbs, Victoria, Australia - November 7, 2020 - 12:40 PM AEDT

--

There was a mighty slurping as those at the table tucked into the vividly red bowls of noodle soup, followed by a unanimous sound of appreciation.

"Holy shit, that's delicious! Got a hell of a kick, but it's damn good." Ty sucked in a breath as he spoke, smiling up at the woman standing beside him. Ty's Korean partner, Kang Mi-Rae, had shown up the evening before, sporting a number of suitcases and a handful of shopping bags. She had insisted that she be allowed to cook lunch the next day, a sort of greeting, she had said, and so here they sat. "What did you say this was called, Miss Kang?"

The Asian beauty gave the big soldier a soft smile in return. Standing tall among her people at 5'7", her long, slender legs gave way to beautifully flared hips and a tiny waist. Her torso was clearly toned and her upper B-cup breasts looked larger than one would expect on her otherwise petite frame. She had long silky black hair highlighted with streaks of blue framing either side of her unblemished oval face. The woman obviously revelled in his praise as there was a clear note of pleasure in her voice and Ty could see the sparkle in her light brown eyes as she spoke. "I am glad you like it. This is called

jjamppong

; a very classic soup noodle dish from my homeland."

Her English, though still accented, was incredibly good, and to the family's surprise, Mi-Rae revealed that she had actually studied right there in Melbourne, getting a degree in public relations in preparation for her eventual retirement from the entertainment industry. It had also been a fallback measure in case she needed to shift away from acting early, and she had offered to put it to use now, with Tiberius needing to make several speeches in the near future. "Also, please feel free to just call me Mi-Rae, Marshall-nim. I know my culture places immense importance on the showing of respect, but you are older than me and so do not need to address me formally. Not to mention that we are now arranged to be married. Please be at ease with me."

Ty nodded, then frowned for an instant. "I hope you don't feel pressured by that, Mi-Rae. The marriage part, I mean. If it's what you decide you want, that's perfectly fine, but don't feel obligated. Also, it's Tiberius, or Ty. You can cut out the honorific stuff. I'm perfectly happy with informal language."

She shook her head, bringing the tray she had been holding up to cover the bottom half of her face. Ty couldn't help but admire her willowy arms and delicate-looking hands as they gripped the tray, before his attention snapped back to her face as she began to speak. "I do not see it as an obligation. Not entirely, anyway. I am happy to get married as it is something I have desired. I admit that I didn't quite picture

you

as the groom, as I always thought my partner would be a man from a Korean family, but when Hoffmann-ajusshi gave my

appa

-" she lowered her gaze and blushed at the verbal slip. "Excuse me, when he gave my

father

your profile and suggested an arranged marriage and a partnership through the serum, I figured I could give it a look. When I did, I was immediately struck by the thought that you would be a very suitable husband for me, so I accepted. This arrangement is an honour for me."

Ty felt his eyebrows raise and a twinge of annoyance at Uncle Jon for his meddling, but he couldn't deny that Kang Mi-Rae was gorgeous. She

seemed

meek and polite, but he had to remind himself that she was an actress, and until he knew for certain how she was without her 'public' face on, her actions would need to be scrutinised carefully. He already had seen through her current act, after all.

He sighed, knowing that he would end up being very unfair to her if he didn't address this. "Miss Kang; Mi-Rae. I would like for you to do something for me. It's quite important. Can I ask it of you?"

She looked quizzical but nodded from behind the tray. "Unless you ask me to do something outrageous, I will try."

Taking a deep breath, he considered how best to word what he was about to say. He didn't want to accuse her of anything, but it needed to be in the open. "What I want is for you to be your true self when you're with us. In public might be one thing; I get that you have a reputation to maintain, but I'd like to know the true nature of the woman in front of me. I don't need platitudes and flattery, and I have no intention of starting a relationship with someone constantly wearing a mask. I want to know the person behind the mask. So, can you promise to put aside the actress, Kang Mi-Rae and show me, show

us,

the

real

you?"

The woman in question froze, her beautiful almond eyes going wide. Her hands lowered, revealing the bottom half of her face, which was now sporting a wry smile. She straightened up, cocking her hip slightly as she rested the tray against it. Her mannerisms had shifted completely, from submissive wife to confident lady, and Ty found his smile matching hers. "I didn't imagine it would be so obvious." Even her accent had shifted, becoming

unmistakably

Australian with only a modest hint of her native Korean. "I'm sorry for the deception."

Ty just chuckled. "It's fine. But you laid it on a bit thick, I reckon." He gestured towards Liz, who was wearing a stunned expression. "The one who's having trouble picking her jaw up off the table, Liz, showed me a few episodes of one of your shows. Your mannerisms just now were a perfect copy of your character in that, so it was pretty clear that you were acting." Ty's laughter grew as Mi-Rae's expression grew dumbfounded. "So yeah, just be you. Marriage or whatnot is something we can discuss down the road, once you have a better idea of what you want." He paused, giving her a sideways look. "Your accent is spot-on, by the way."

She allowed the astonishment to fall off her face and let out a very girlish titter. "I actually spend a

lot

of time here in Australia when I'm not filming. Mostly here in Melbourne, but my family has a place in Cairns, too. I picked up the accent, though I can switch between when needed. Most of my fanbase doesn't know that, though. They just think I lock myself away in my house or something."

Giving her a deft nod, he replied. "Then we'll keep it that way. We'll have a one-on-one convo later, but just relax and get to know everyone for now."

Liz, having finally recovered from her own surprise, nodded enthusiastically. "I've always wanted to get to know someone in the industry. I mean, I don't plan on badgering you about it, but anything you're happy to tell me would be fascinating. I've enjoyed a lot of the shows you're in too."

Lettie nodded at the young woman and turned a bright smile on their new family member. "Not gonna lie, that drama Liz recommended had me hooked." Still looking at Mi-Rae, she made a gesture that Ty didn't understand; probably something from the show she was talking about. "Whispers in the rain. That supernatural drama. It was

very

good and your performance in particular was

phenomenal

."

This time, Mi-Rae looked genuinely flustered. "I read the original work for that before they came to me with the offer to play the lead. I couldn't jump at it fast enough. The cast and crew were all

wonderful

to work with, barring one exception." She shivered at the mention and continued. "My co-star was an absolute creep."

Lettie frowned. "How bad was it?"

"He stalked me for months after. Made propositions to me directly and tried to get my father to agree to an arranged marriage. And when he didn't, he threatened a smear campaign against my father. My agency had to threaten his with lawsuits to make him stop." Her voice was filled with anger as she spat out the words. "It was just lucky that we had video of him actively being a sleaze to threaten them with or they'd have brushed it off."

"Do you know what's happened to him since Duo?"

"Not really. I was told that he was isolating, but I don't know any more than that. Frankly I don't care."

Lettie gave the rest of the table a look, and all of the other women nodded at her. Fixing her gaze on Tiberius, she spoke. "We need to follow up on that, big guy. If he's still around and still looking for her, he could be a problem. Maybe not a

threat

, but a problem. And if Mi-Rae here is seen on TV, it

will

become an issue."

Ty sighed. "You mean a

political

issue. I hear you, love. I'll put in a word with Uncle Jon. Get him to refer me to some polly for advice on how to deal with that." He froze, thinking it over. "On second thought, maybe not Uncle Jon. Let's ask Baz or someone else instead. I don't think we need that old bugger to decide I need an in-house politician too."

Talia, who had remained silent until now, simply eating and listening, burst into laughter. "Oh, so he

can

learn! General Hoffmann would do that without a doubt, dear, and in this case, I do think it would not be a bad idea, but we, that is your partners, would like to have a say in the next person to join our family." Her tone had become almost sickly sweet, and Ty couldn't help but feel a shiver running down his spine as her eyes narrowed. "I rather think that will be a state of affairs that is to continue from this point forward, alright?"

Ty would have nodded, but he couldn't help himself. "With any luck, there won't

be

any more going forwards."

Lettie sighed. "You know that won't be the case, big guy. Just suck it up and get on with it. I mean, what do

you

have to complain about? You're gonna get all the sex you can possibly handle. We're the ones that will be handling logistics and scheduling."

"Love, that doesn't exactly make me feel better about it. But I've said that plenty already and it's done nothing for me, so fine. I'll live with it, whatever

it

may turn out to be." Ty let out a heavy sigh, meeting Lettie's gaze. "Just...try and keep it reasonable, ok? I'm only one man. There's only so much of me to go around."

--

Marshall Household, Melbourne Southeastern Suburbs, Victoria, Australia - November 7, 2020 - 1:30 PM AEDT

--

"So, tell me a little more about yourself, if you don't mind. And feel free to ask any questions you may have as well." Ty poured them both a cup of tea from the service as he spoke. They sat in the lounge now, while the others cleaned up. Ty had been moving to help, but when Liz pushed the two of them out of the kitchen they had just laughed and obeyed. Ty was planning on making pizzas for dinner anyway, so it would be fine if he slacked off on cleaning up now.

She accepted the proffered cup with a grateful smile and leaned back. "Honestly, I don't know what to say. From my profile, you'll know that I'm 29, I've never been married, and no long-term boyfriends. A lot of that is because of my career, and a lot because I was pretty specific in what I wanted in a partner."

"And I assume I don't really mesh with what you had in mind." His expression was wry.

Mi-Rae's expression went from grateful to embarrassed. "Not exactly, but then, I was originally looking for someone using Korean standards of beauty." She made an ambivalent gesture. "You would have a hard time pulling off the slender, boyish look."

Ty barked out a laugh but nodded. "I haven't looked 'boyish' in a couple of decades, and I've

never

looked slender. Which is why I wasn't going to push you to bond. If there's someone else on your list of matches that has caught your eye, don't be afraid to say so."

At this, she shook her head, transfixing his eyes with hers. "I admit that I haven't really dated much, but I definitely was not lying earlier when I said you would be a very suitable husband for me. There was quite the instant attraction, from my end, at least." She gave Ty a coy look and he smiled. It was something to be proud of, he decided, that an actress found him attractive enough to not consider the permanence of the situation a problem.

Shaking his head, Ty continued. "Well, the attraction is certainly mutual, and your list of qualifications is also a definite plus. Once you've settled in, I might have to put you to work immediately helping me out with some speechwriting. Naturally, I won't ask you to write the whole thing, but I definitely will need tips on how to word things."

She nodded at him, her eyes sparkling. "You seem quite eloquent already, so I think you'll be just fine, though I'll be happy to assist in any way I'm able. How long until you make your speech?"

"I'm a soldier. I'm good at giving orders, but these are only normal people I'll be talking to." Ty sighed heavily. "They're not always the best at

taking

orders and a lot of them, us Aussies especially, like thwarting authority, just because they can. I need to say things in such a way that they don't take it as me ordering them around, but still with enough authority that they don't just ignore it as government wish-wash. As for how long? Originally it was the 10th, but at Grace's request I've pushed it out to the 15th for the first speech, and then the 21st for the big one."

She looked thoughtful, mumbling to herself in what Ty assumed was Korean. "Ok. That should be plenty of time. We can work out the majority of your first speech in the next few days and start on the second after that. Then we can fine-tune the first on the two days before it, and do the same for the second, maybe giving it an extra day if it's the more important one." She looked up at Ty and there was a question in her eyes. "You're being awfully trusting of someone you've just met. Are you sure that's ok?"

The look Ty gave her was almost aggressively neutral. "Once you're bonded, you're either completely with us, or we find out we can't trust you and do something about it. I would rather it not come to that."

Mi-Rae flinched at the utter lack of inflection in his voice but steeled herself. "Well, it won't come to that. I was raised under the belief that one never betrays family. And as long as you don't object to

me

, I would like to join your family, with all that entails."

The neutral expression gave way to a gentle smile, and Ty raised his teacup. "Consider yourself welcome then, Mi-Rae. Just one more thing, if you don't mind?"

"What?"

"Well...can you call your parents for me? I think this is the part where I greet them."

--

Marshall Household, Melbourne Southeastern Suburbs, Victoria, Australia - November 7, 2020 - 3:26 PM AEDT

--

Sitting at his desk, Ty simply observed as Lottie and Mi-Rae chatted. While they were all decent judges of character, Lottie had a way of just disarming the person she was talking to and getting them to show her their true selves. And for Ty, there was a simplicity to just being an observer. Mannerisms he wouldn't have the leeway to notice or analyse; verbal tics that were more apparent when you weren't focused on the conversation itself. Kang Mi-Rae was clearly more relaxed now, her smile seemingly genuine rather than the conflicted expressions she had been wearing before.

Ty could freely admit that he'd been very wary of Mi-Rae when she'd appeared the previous night. Not necessarily distrustful, but wary of this new person in the same way he'd been initially wary of Liz, although for different reasons. With Liz, her age and the fact that she was the sister of Jaxson Connors had demanded his caution and it had been fairly straightforward to dispel those cautions, given the utter lack of even a cordial relationship between the two. But with Mi-Rae, he had little to go on beside his instincts. He knew nothing of her background or her connections. Her motives were unknown. Her feelings...well, her conviction aside, they remained to be seen.

He was only half watching the two now as Addison stepped into the office and came to stand beside him.

Meeting her gaze, he was greeted by a grim expression. "What's on your mind, Addie?"

"My friend Danica sent me some news out of Port Moresby just a few minutes ago. This is some pretty fucking scary shit, Ty...massive casualty reports, along with info that there are sick women and children fleeing from high-risk areas on boats." Her eyes met Ty's, and he could see the fear in them. "We've actually had reports of fleets of ships fleeing towards Cape York and Cairns. Rumours of more boats coming from Indonesia as well, but we don't have enough ships in the area to check that out. The navy's got assets near Cairns, but nowhere near enough ships to set up a blockade, or even to divert them to somewhere we could contain them. Ty, some of those boats are going to get through. If we don't do something, we could have another superspreader event on our hands."