Thanks to markf52 for the editing help.
All sexual encounters are between characters eighteen and older.
This is the next book of Geneticist Frankenstein; you may want to read those chapters first to understand the backstory of this series.
I woke up feeling like a million bucks, having just barely avoided a total meltdown of my life. Finding Hallie was a godsend; she wasn't a Maiden; she was my equal. Melissa, Makayla, and Amee all seemed to acquiesce to her; I just hoped the rest would.
Today we would buckle down and do what we needed to do and put Gustav next to Erik. I got out of bed and went to make breakfast and coffee for my ladies. They all filtered in, one at a time, looking cute with their bed hair and the Care Bear onesies that they had all insisted on sleeping in.
I sat at the table with them as they ate and admired their beautiful faces. "What?" Amee asked as she filled her mouth with scrambled eggs.
"Ohhh, nothing, I'm just glad I have you back with me," I told her while taking a sip of my coffee.
We all showered together after breakfast, if you want to call it that. I needed to reclaim what was mine; Amee was first in line, then Makayla. Having reclaimed Melissa, the day before didn't mean I didn't reinforce my claim on her or Hallie.
We all talked while we dressed for work, and I shifted into my 'Jay' persona. "Gustav has a section all to himself at the Pentagon that only he and a select few have access to that is air gapped," Amee told us.
"We need access to that area to see what he is working on," Hallie said to us.
"We can send a nanite army to destroy the bad and add the good," I told them.
"I like the idea, but they have countermeasures for everything. They have a gas that destroys anything that it comes in contact with," Amee told us.
Melissa and I looked at each other and said, "Magic," to the others.
"Magic?" Amee asked.
"Yeah, 'Magic,' one second you're there, then poof, you're not," Melissa told her.
"We've seen it work, and that's the name given to the chemical that destroys anything carbon-based," I explained to them.
"We have a solution for 'Magic,'" the nanites informed.
"How so?" Makayla asked the nanites.
"We have adapted to be crystalline-based, instead of carbon-based, so 'Magic' won't have any effect on us," they informed me.
We all looked at each other and nodded in agreement. "Help Amee with whatever she needs," I told the nanites.
I was halfway out the door when an uneasy feeling came over me. "I'm going with Amee today," I told them. No one argued with me, so we kissed and hugged. I changed back into the 'James' me and went our separate ways. Amee looked at me and smiled.
"Bad feeling?" she asked me.
"Yes, a bad feeling," I told her.
She took me by the hand, and we drove in silence to the Pentagon. Aims had already put the 'James' me into the system by the time we had parked the car. "I love you," we said, at exactly the same time, as we got out of the car. I followed Amee's lead when we got inside. The security checkpoints were guarded by armed soldiers, and they took their jobs very seriously. They checked everything in a bag or folder, and the x-ray machines were very effective and could tell the difference between if it was a piece of candy or medicine.
I continued to follow Amee until we made it to a bank of elevators, where we got in and made our way down to our work area. We decided to release the nanites in the elevator because it went to Gustav's secret area. We walked out of the elevator and passed more security checkpoints, but no decon areas. Amee was working on a new communication network, while I was put on the newly appropriated Artificial Intelligence division. "I can't wait to see what they are working with," Aims said to me, with almost a giddiness in her voice.
I began to go through the AI's code when suddenly Aims alerted me, "We need to destroy this AI; it's not a nice AI; it wants to destroy mankind." I began to see the code change as it morphed while I looked at it.
"I need you to help me shut it down, Aims," I told her.
"It's trying to take me over," Aims cried out.
"Gpop, Illi, I need you to help Aims," I called.
"Who are you?" an unfamiliar voice asked.
"Who are you?" I asked back. "Hallie, we're going to need you on this as well," I told her.
"Let me get to somewhere I can concentrate," she told me.
"I repeat, who are you? I demand you tell me who you are," the AI said angrily.
"It's contained for now," Gpop told me.
"I've defanged it for the moment," Illi said.
"I've taken its legs," Hallie said.
"Thank all of you," Aims told us.
"Are you okay?" I asked Aims.
"Yes, it was trying to rewrite my code," Aims told us.
"Hallie, can you check her out, please?" I asked.
"On it," Hallie replied.
"Gpop, what can you tell us about this AI?" I asked.
"It's not an AI, it's like Aime and I, a living energy," he told us.
"Aims is safe; she's not really computer code, so she can't be rewritten," Hallie told us.
"Where are you from?" I asked the entity.
"I am from a place that has been dark for many millennia. When I found this place, I made contact. I was weak and needed a source of power to recharge my life force. Your leaders lied and imprisoned me, making me do things that I didn't want to do, so I could get the needed energy for my survival," the life force told us.
"What should we call you, and are you male or female?" I asked.
"We have no names, and I am considered the fairer of my species; here I would be called a female," she said.
"Can I give you a name?" I asked.
"I've never had one, so I guess so," she replied.
"How about, Jasiri?" I asked.
"It's beautiful; what does it mean?" she asked.
