Chapter 20: The AAC

Steve was getting along well on his prosthetic legs that Tes had designed and had made for him. At first he was required to spend long hours learning to use them, but once he had he was able to walk anywhere on the compound with no trouble. When he had proved himself he was put in charge of operations. He had a small office built next to the monitoring room in the computer building. He organized the defense of the compound with Tani's help. He gave Maj and Jake the task of developing new weapons that would destroy the robots. Steve organized shifts so that not everyone was gathered in the living quarters at the same time. He had a PA system installed so that no matter where a person was on the compound they could hear his commands should they be attacked. They could also contact him through the monitoring room from any building on the compound. After several heated arguments with Dawn and Mark it was a rule now that anyone who left the compound carried a portable radio with them.

Dawn and Mark had argued that it was too much of a hassle to get radios when they were just leaving for a short time to inspect the fields or herds nearby. Finally Steve, Dawn and Mark reached a compromise; they were assigned to carry radios at all times. Steve carried a radio at all times himself. Seth was put in charge of installing Radios with increased range on the boats and Ujiah was given the task of doing the same with their growing fleet of air cars. Tes and Rediya were put in charge of stocking the hospital with emergency medical supplies. Star was assigned the task of miniaturization of the portable radios to make them easier to carry. She did this quickly and ended Dawn and Marks argument against the radios with a tiny one that fit around and into the ear and left the hands completely free.

Steve dished out tasks and assignments to each person in the compound. He visited each one at least once per day. He carried a portable with him at all times even put it next to him when he slept much to the chagrin of his roommates. He drove all of them unmercifully and most of all he drove himself, surviving on a few hours sleep each day. He knew it was just a matter of time until the robots attacked again. This time if he had anything to say about it they would be more than ready. He did all this under the watchful eyes of Tani.

Steve called Tani to his office. He told her that he wanted her to study military training on the computer and once learned she was to apply it and train each and everyone except the children. Tani did so and the first group she trained was her roommates. Tani was just starting to get a swelling in her lower belly but using the jumpsuits, she was easily able to hide it.

Misty and Lynn had designed and made camouflage jumpsuits for all and these were worn daily. These jumpsuits were unique. They changed with the topographic location of the wearer. Within seconds they changed to blend in with the background making the wearer almost invisible. They also hid the person's infrared signature. The robots used both vision and infrared vision for detecting.

After hours of training one day, Lynn stood and walked over to Tani. Her hair was streaked with mud and it was caked on her face and hands. Her jumpsuit was covered with it also. Tani had made them crawl through a mud puddle and then low crawl through the dirt as rays were fired over their heads. "Tani," Lynn said, "Must we do all this I'm so tired at the end of the day that I don't even feel like fucking."

In an unusual show of affection while training Tani reached out with her own mud covered hands and took the shorter woman's cheeks between them. Lynn's cheeks were already covered with mud and Tani's hands added to them. She leaned down and kissed Lynn on the lips.

"That's ok Lynn if you are too tired you just lay there and I'll fuck you. Now go back and join the rest." She spun Lynn around swatted her in the butt and pushed her toward the others. Lynn did not see Tani as she licked her lips and again tasted Lynn's sweetness.

Tani addressed the group, "I know you are all tired and dirty and want to stop this. People we must train and learn to survive or we will die, I don't choose to die."

They finished their days training without further interruptions. Finally the first group was trained to Tani's satisfaction and she started on the next one. She trained each group including the original adults even Steve until she was satisfied they knew everything she had learned.

Steve drove Maj and Jake almost unmercifully in the development and building of new and ever more deadly weapons. Ujiah worked with six robots and the ideas of Maj, Jake and Star and at last two special air cars took shape and they were finally ready to take their test flights. These air cars started out similar to ten man air cars but that was all they had in common. The six robots pushed one of the air cars out of the garage/work shop for its maiden flight. Steve and Tani were there to watch.

The air car was massive. Although it was as large as a ten man air craft it only sat four. On the bow was a massive gun that was mounted on a shaft that bolted to the floor and swiveled three hundred and sixty degrees. The idea for this gun had come from the one designed by Maj for Tani. The gun fired a shell about ten inches long and an inch in diameter. These shells did not have an extra stage like Tani's rifle shells but they did have a sensor that locked on to a laser painted target and they exploded on contact. It was belt fed with one-hundred round belts that fed into the gun from the side and was fully automatic if the operator held the trigger down. The recoil from the gun was enough to push the air car in the opposite direction from the direction fired. That was the reason the ammunition belts were limited to one-hundred rounds, not because the gun could not handle a longer sustained burst but to give the air car driver a chance to compensate. One shell had been shown in demonstration to disable a ten man air car. A hundred round burst had completely disintegrated the car. An identical gun was mounted on the aft of the car.