Quaranteam Ruins United Ch 08

Quaranteam: Ruins United

by Cy Borisson

Chapter 8

Ruins United

is a part of the

Quaranteam

universe created by

CorruptingPower

, written with his expressed permission. If you have not read the original or spinoffs by

BreakTheBar, AgathonWrites, BronanTheLibrarian, OtterlyMindblowing, SilverRyden, RonanJWilkerson, BirchesLoveBooks, The_Licentious_Laureate

,

DisquietCertitude, Percheron

,

Reader737b

,

Ranthoron

and

EldritchMuppet,

I would highly recommend you do that, not just to better understand the developments but also because those are really good and lots of fun.

I also want to express my gratitude to the QT writing group and especially

The_Licentious_Laureate

and

Alsith

for their immeasurable help with proofreading and editing.

xoxo,

Cy~

============

Dec 7th, 2020.

06:04am

Sleep is for the tired.

He couldn't. Carefully removing Rina's possessive grip on his torso, which made her sigh, roll over, and clutch onto Tash's curves, he slid out of the bed without disturbing Lara, then took another glance at his women. A beautiful mess of naked bodies, barely covered by sheets. Sensual, serene... fragile.

Remember why you are here. What you are to them.

He left the bedroom with a pair of training pants in his hand, silently closing the door behind him, put the pants on in the dark hallway and, after a short trip to the bathroom, pushed the door to his improvised gym open.

It was still dark outside - the yellow light of street lamps reflected from the ceiling was the only illumination. He turned the window handle upwards, making the frame tilt back and letting the cold December air in, returned to the mat in the center of the room, turned to face the window, and then closed his eyes. Cold air crept across the floor, but he didn't feel it. He took several deep breaths exhaling slowly through his mouth, gradually becoming fully aware of his entire body, dropping into the

mushin

state on the seventh.

Begin.

His body moved on its own, performing a complicated kata the motions of which were known only to him - a series of short fast punches, followed by low kicks, which flowed into evasions meaning to break the line of attack, immediately followed by a series of long punches, punctuated by a vicious elbow strike in the end.

Rinse, repeat. He increased the speed and range of motion with each iteration, moving silently and performing the strikes with surgical precision, sweat evaporating from his heated naked torso in tiny wisps of mist in the cold room. The last set didn't look anything like training - he was delivering deadly blows to multiple invisible opponents while not letting them land a single one on him. He stopped, chest heaving, sweat rolling down his back, feeling more than seeing the first scattered rays of sunlight on his body.

...Impres

sive," he heard and turned to the door, opening his eyes. Rina, dressed in just a pair of panties and completely unbothered by the cold, was leaning on the door frame.

"I hope you don't mind me watching you, it's... kinda hot," she smiled. "What's this fighting style called?"

"Unboxing," he stepped closed, wrapped his arms around her waist, and pulled her in for a kiss. "What got you up so early?"

"We got a long day ahead of us," yawning Tash responded, appearing in the door even less dressed, followed by equally dressed Lara.

"Wait... you tagging along?"

"You didn't expect me to sit here alone all day, did you?" The redhead turned to the tiny hacker. "Come on,

kis

, let's see if that shower can fit both of us..."

"Don't frown," Rina softly kissed his cheek.

"I'm not."

"What's this then?" She smoothed the crease between his eyebrows with her thumb. "Don't get me wrong, it's sexy when you're all severe like that, just... not at home."

-//-

"What are you looking for?" Rina stopped his rummaging around the wardrobe in the bedroom.

"My pants," he replied, resurfacing from the wardrobe. "We haven't done laundry but I'm pretty sure I had another pair just like that..."

"Oh no, you're not wearing that anymore." She shook her finger, heading to the pile of their purchases, brought by a deliveryman a day before.

"Why? I like those pants..."

"How about you finally start dressing for the job you have?" Tash joined Rina, walking into the bedroom. "This entire hobo gopnik style doesn't suit a man of your status."

Both hands loaded with boxes and paper bags, he was gently pushed out of the bedroom.

"You can use your study to dress, take your time. We're going to take ours."

"How are you sure this all will fit?" He asked, confused.

Rina and Tash exchanged glances.

"Men," they said in unison, and Lara joined their laughter.

"And what's wrong with my style," he mumbled, laying everything down on the couch in his study.

The first package he unwrapped contained the pants. Designed to look like typical black suit pants at first glance, they had insets of stretchy material on the knees and around the groin area - he could do splits in those without any discomfort while keeping the pants intact.

They also won't restrict the range of motion in a fight.

Next - a black sporty long-sleeve t-shirt that hugged his torso like a second skin and an equally black thin turtleneck sweater. Unrolling the neck part all the way up, he saw it was a mask covering his face up to his eyes.

Neat.

Out of the big gray box with the ECCO label came a pair of tall black laced boots. He spent several minutes relacing them from the usual factory laces-out to his preferred laces-in, put the boots on, stood up, and hummed in surprise - the fit was perfect.

Now, what's this?

He tore the last package open.

A... coat?

Long black cashmere coat with dark red lining, tight around the waist, which probably made him look taller and... He stepped into the entryway, flicked the lights on, and looked at his reflection in the full-length mirror.

Yeah, meaner.

He grabbed his mask from the shelf and put it on over the sweater mask part, completely hiding the remnants of the bruise on his jaw. The black and red lines of the sneering demon joined the ensemble of his attire perfectly. He turned in front of the mirror, swinging his coat.

The only thing that is missing here is a...

The bedroom door swung open, and

his women

stepped through. Barely formal dresses, hugging every detail of their bodies, stockings, heels, coats - everything was black. To anyone else, they might've looked intimidating, but his heart skipped a beat, then nearly doubled the effort. Looking them over, he raised an eyebrow.

"How come I'm the only one wearing red?"

"We

are

wearing red," Tash smirked, putting her mask on.

"Your job is to find it," Rina whispered into his ear seductively, placing a pair of thin black tactical gloves with reinforced knuckles into his hands.

"One last detail," Lara said, squeezing past the other women to hand him a phone in a shatterproof case.

He automatically tapped his usual PIN to unlock it, only then realizing that the phone he was holding was new. He looked at Lara questioningly.

"I set everything up exactly as it was," she explained. "It's Pixel 5, slightly smaller than your XL, but that's the only difference."

"You know all my passwords?"

"Fox, chicken coop," she shrugged.

"I trust you."

"Enough to do this?"

She reached into her bag, pulled out a hairbrush and combed his mess of a haircut into a slick backward sweep. He looked into the mirror again.

"I never wore it like that."

"Show off that tall forehead."

Lara stood on her tiptoes to softly kiss his cheek.

He slowly turned, looking each of his women in the eye.

"Thank you. For everything."

"Enough with the sappy part," Rina huffed in exasperation and pushed the door open. "Let's fucking go, samurai, we got a city to save."

-//-

Dec 7th, 2020.

09:02am

"There's a Bluetooth stereo in here, right?" Tash asked as they were nearing the City Hall.

The Escalade zoomed past the main entrance, speakers blaring

Back In Black

, making the Cossack guards at the door turn their heads. The car rolled into the underground parking and took the designated spot; Dan hopped out first, assessing the environment, noticing several new cameras as well as a Cossack patrol slowly moving through the lot. They took the stairs to the lobby, his women walking side-by-side with him, and further, to the large marble staircase to the second floor. He didn't look around but was absolutely sure they made an impression.

Make them look. Make your presence known.

Nodding to the cadets guarding the entrance to his office, he pushed both doors open. Lida looked at them over her glasses and slowly rose from her desk as they walked in.

"Can't wait for the gossip after an entrance like this," she informed them. "Ladies. What made you bring the entire... team

this

time, Dan?"

"I think she meant to say

harem

," Lara whispered.

"Marina," he gestured in Rina's direction, "Will be leading the vaccine team."

"Good, I'll arrange the paperwork," Lida said, nodding affirmatively then turned to Tash. "And you, honey?"

"Oh," the redhead tried to wave it off. "I'm just tagging along with them."

"She's being uncharacteristically modest," Dan grumbled, frowning. "She's an experienced municipal analyst."

"Two sets of paperwork then," Lida clapped her hands. "Our analytics department is currently staffed with four interns and nobody who knows what analytics means."

"I- I didn't plan on starting working again just yet..." Tash mumbled.

"Don't worry, dear, you'll like it in here," Lida waved her off.

"Best coffee for a hundred kilometers around," Dan nodded. "So, do we have it yet?"

"Should arrive around lunchtime, just as you finish your inspection of the pharma facility," Lida informed him.

The door to the Mayor's office swung open, letting out Duchess. The Mayor already wore her coat and had a folder-bag with documents in her hand.

"Oh, we've got company!" She exclaimed. "Dan? Wouldn't recognize you if it wasn't for the mask. The new style looks good on you!"

"I can't take any credit for that," he shrugged. "My women are taking care of it."

"Your...

women

? Plural?" She turned to the trio.

"Well, you already know Lara," he turned to the team. "Meet Marina, she's our vaccine expert, and Natasha, our new analytics chief."

"Nice to meet you!" The women chimed.

"The feeling is mutual," Duchess offered a polite nod. "Wait... Natasha?

That

Natasha?"

"What do you mean -

that

Natasha?" Tash frowned. "As far as I know there haven't been any

other

Natashas in his life!"

Dan hid his face in his hands.

"That means you're the reason that man refused to see me as a woman, friend-zoned me and had a hand in me meeting my future husband," Olya explained, laughing. "Nice to finally put the name to the face, and congratulations on your reunion!"

"You rejected this hot blonde?" Tash looked at him incredulously, which made the hot blonde in question snort in surprise. "Trust me, I'm flattered, but that still makes you a dumbass."

"I'll wear it like a badge of honor," he nodded solemnly to her, then turned to Duchess. "Where are we going, Olya?"

"Ursa at Severny," she informed. "You know the way?"

"Sure, let's go."

"No, I'll drive on my own. Meet you there in an hour," she moved to the door.

"With the streets empty, it's a half-hour drive," he plopped into the visitor chair and turned to Lida. "How about some of that fine coffee?"

-//-

"Ursa Labs is a veterinary pharma facility," he said, fingers tapping on the steering wheel. "Will that be a problem?"

Theirs was the only car waiting for the traffic light to turn green. Streets were empty - even by the

old times'

standards the rush hour has passed.

"What?" Rina turned to him, seemingly switching mental tracks. "No, production quality standards, equipment, protocols - everything is the same. And the end product... you wouldn't know a veterinarian medicine from a human one without a label. It's the same chemicals, just mixed in different proportions."

"Mhm," he nodded. "Penny for them?"

"Uh... what?"

"Your thoughts, love."

"Um..." Her fingers were absentmindedly playing with the strap of her handbag. "This is uncharted territory for me, Dan. I've never run a lab by myself, much less been in a decision-making position for something as big as this. And there are way too many lives at stake now..."

"So, impostor syndrome?" He accelerated, leaving the intersection. "Just remember two things. First, your vaccine graft fixed my bones, my eyes and gave me my sense of smell back. Second, nobody around here knows more about this vaccine than you do. I'd say you are the

only

qualified candidate."

"Are you sure you're not biased?" She gave him a slight smile.

"If you don't believe in yourself, believe in me, who believes in you," he quoted theatrically.

"That's... surprisingly wise and stupid at the same time," she cackled. "Something only an anime character would say."

"Doesn't make the advice any worse." He didn't even smile. "Look, I know you got it. No matter how much I love you, Rin, and want you to get back to doing the stuff you excel at, I wouldn't put you into this position if you didn't have it. I wouldn't take these kinda risks on a mission to save two million people."

She winced.

"That's the entirety of Kuban we're talking here," he briefly glanced at her. "What's left of it anyway, by my projections."

"Oh blyat..." She inhaled sharply.

"

Breathe

," he commanded, not looking at her. "Breathe in, four seconds, breathe out, four seconds. Repeat."

She complied, closing her eyes and breathing evenly. Out of the corner of his eye he saw her hands stop trembling after a minute.

"Anxiety," she simply stated, opening her eyes. "You need to dose all of us today, Dan. It's been five days, and it shows."

"That long?" He shook his head.

"Yeah, since last Wednesday. Remember the cake?"

He didn't see her face but detected a hint of a smile in her voice. Oh Gods, did he remember the cake.

"I'll see that all your needs are properly attended to today," he felt his face attempting a smile - failed. "It's a busy day though, so we might get caught in a compromising position... once or twice..."

"Oooh, sex in public," she laughed. "Never done that before!"

"There's a first time for everything," he palmed her thigh possessively.

She bit her lip, spread her knees a bit and slid lower in her seat, making her dress ride up. His fingers slid lower, caressing her closer to her quickly overheating core.

"Looks like you found it," she softly exhaled with a smile. "Two more to go."

He turned his head briefly and caught a glimpse of red fabric under his fingers. She gasped, feeling his hand squeezing her mound over the sheer lace, but before she could really enjoy the sensation, his hand was gone.

"What the fuck?" He gripped the steering wheel with both hands and dropped the speed.

Rina sat up straight, pulling her dress down, and traced the direction of his gaze. The big housing block on the left was surrounded by an improvised fence built with concrete blocks and chainlink between metal posts. An armed patrol in military uniform that was slowly moving behind the fence was now paying attention to their car. The only road leading into the array of high-story buildings was blocked by a heavily armored bus, in front of which another armed patrol was standing guard - in full army hazmat suits. Dan sped up, carrying them away.

"What was that?" Rina asked. "What is this place?"

"Zhukovka. Initially - housing for military personnel relocated from East Berlin back in the 90s. Now - their sons and daughters."

"Wow. Hereditary army service?"

"Yeah, something like that," he grunted. "Looks like they have discipline and order figured out. This place was always in the army's jurisdiction and never reported to the civil government, but having them walk around with guns like that is not okay."

They passed several fields with abandoned construction sites, a sports arena and a mall, both looking like a backdrop to 'Dawn of The Dead'. The road turned to the left. Passing by a couple of dusty warehouses Dan stopped the car in front of what looked like a chemical plant. A silhouette of a bear - the Ursa Labs logo in white and blue - greeted them from an automated metal gate. He honked.

The door to the security booth opened, letting out a short wide figure in civilian clothes. Dan had already prepared his driver's license to show to the guard, but, to his surprise, recognized the man as Bas.

"Basil!" He rolled the window down. "How are you here?"

"Major sent me to case the joint," Bas smirked and then hollered into the open door. "Open the gate, we're going in!"

The gate shuddered and squeaked, then began to slowly roll open.

"Hey, Rina!" Bas greeted Dan's partner, getting into the back seat. "Go straight, then left, my man. Stop in front of the newest-looking building."

"You're taking over security here?" Dan started down the long lane between various production facilities and warehouses.

"Yeah, and the personal security too. Rina will have her own detail."

"Oooh, I'm VIP now," she laughed.

"Did last week teach you nothing?" Dan frowned, almost growling.

"That's not a joke, and I'm disappointed that you see it that way," Bas chastised her. "There are enough bad guys out there who can try and

will try

to disrupt the vaccine production because it hurts their interests."

"Yes, you two are right, I'm sorry."

She turned to the window, observing the boring industrial landscape of concrete buildings and sparse unkempt vegetation. Dan almost physically felt her anxiety shoot up a notch.

"When do you expect trouble to start?" He asked.

"Immediately after the word gets out," Bas sighed. "And it will get out as soon as Knyazeva signs the contract with the facility, so... tomorrow? We're here, by the way."

He leaned forward, pointing at the entrance. Dan pulled into the parking lot in front of a huge metal-and-concrete cube with the bright yellow number '3' painted on the side. They stepped out of the car.

"This shoebox looks recently built," Dan said, eyeing the building.

"Shoeboxes are pragmatic, combat-wise, if you're already inside, that is. Hard to secure, easy to defend," Bas commented. "Also no century-old tunnels below, so no attack vector from there."

"You actually consider stuff like that?" Rina looked at him in bewilderment.

"It's our job," he shrugged. "And we're good at it."

"Duchess is not here yet," Dan said, looking around the nearly empty parking lot. "While we wait... Bas, what do you know about Zhukov district?"

"Erhm..." The man scratched the back of his head. "They had a minor outbreak which they, luckily, were able to contain. Now they only go outside in dire need and everybody who comes back has to sit out in quarantine for two weeks."

"How many people are still there?"

"Ten thousand, give or take, but civvies mostly. About two thousand combatants, armed, but not enough weapons for everyone, if you're worried about that."