August 24, 2013

It was more than 90 degrees Fahrenheit during one of the hottest months in Austin. Still, Hailee was adamant about attending a firearms course at the Future Security Barracks during their free Saturday afternoon.

Vince was already tired from their morning session at the Fury Gym, but Hailee was full of energy and said, “Come on, babe! Just drink a bottle or two of Ether to get you off your feet.”

Ether was the colloquial term coined by Alice referring to Future Med’s nutrition fluid after praising its magical effects in defeating the dreaded hangover.

Vince defended his corporation’s hard work and said, “Dr. Sera and her team developed Ether for Armor pilots and astronauts. I wonder how she’d feel after learning we’d been drinking it to cure hangovers and physical exhaustion.”

Hailee raised an eyebrow, forming a cynical look, and replied, “You can’t use that strategy against me. Your mom told me about her and Sera bringing a few bottles during their girls’ night outings with Heidi and Alexis.”

Vince dejectedly acquiesced and downed a bottle of Ether before picking out an appropriate outfit for a firearms course from his extensive walk-on closest.

He decided to wear one of the Future Couture sets from their active lifestyle collection and a custom pair of monolith combat boots that most Future Security operators wore in the field.

Leah decided to add a few designs from Future Security combat kits in their catalog for those interested in the neo-modern soldier aesthetic.Â

Hailee was dressed in a prototype outfit meant to be her signature outfit in the Everlife movie, which looked like a more field-practical version of Lara Croft’s adventuring attire with combat pants instead of booty shorts, but in the style of Future Couture.

She even wore a flak jacket designed to carry grenades and NATO-standard magazines and other auxiliary items found in the Everlife video game.

Vince was impressed by the aesthetically badass outfit and said, “Haiz, you’re lookin’ scary hot. I think your intimidating aura is rendering me defenseless.”

Hailee chuckled for a moment before softly whispering in his ear, “Maybe I can wear it again some of these nights.”

Aiya knocked on the door, interrupting a frisky situation in the walk-in closet, and she said, “The Flyga and your FS escorts are ready to depart for the Barracks. Do you need anything for your trip? Maybe a few bottles of Ether or snacks?”

Vince stopped groping Hailee in her combat outfit and loudly replied, “Two bottles is fine, Aiya. We’ll be out soon.”

A few minutes later, Vince and Hailee ran into a familiar Italian-American man in his mid-30s before embarking on the Flyga.

“I heard you’ll be attending a private class at the Barracks, so I decided to spend a few hours of my day off to observe a bit.” Marco amicably stated.

Hailee was gracious as ever and cheerfully replied, “We’re always happy to have you around, Marco. Maybe you can even give us a few pointers and tips.”

The three of them boarded the Flyga while the FS escort followed on their FAV-1; then Vince asked, “How’s managing the Austin Barracks been going?”

Marco engaged in some small talk with his CEO and replied, “As well as it could be. Training the newly recruited veterans to Future Security standards isn’t too difficult, but we’re close to exhausting the pool of experienced soldiers in the US. My current headache is a batch of young greenhorn recruits who decided to join us instead of enlisting in the US military. They’re practically useless and remind me of the Afghan new blood we’re instructing abroad.”

Vince valued patience and stated, “Give them a chance, Marco. Everybody has to start somewhere. Though the US military may not appreciate us taking away valuable young men that could potentially join their ranks on the frontline.”

Marco chuckled before replying, “It’s funny you mention that. General Douglas shared a bit of DOD gossip with me while they were here for the weapons demonstrations. I brought up the same issue with him after observing the young recruits training at the barracks. He told me it shouldn’t be an issue, especially now that the Pentagon is expanding policies directing their annual budget for maintaining private security contracts abroad. US soldiers on the ground can be a political mess, but civilians don’t care about private militaries as much.”

Hailee listened to their conversation and quickly realized what Marco meant and cynically said, “Hmm. So the government can claim they don’t have a military presence in a region, but they’d be replaced by operators paid with taxpayer Dollars instead.”

Marco nodded his head and replied, “Bingo! You’re quite the sharp tool in the shed, Hailee. That’s what’s going on in Iraq and Afghanistan right now. Future Tech entered the private security contracting industry at the perfect time.”

Fighting multiple wars abroad like the US military was strenuous on their armed forces and a political nightmare whenever they decided to deploy soldiers. So their growing reliance on security contractors made perfect sense considering how muddy the waters were in the military-industrial complex.

Hailee was learning how genuinely dark the world was as she spent more and more time in Austin, but she didn’t let it bring her down and instead further appreciated her boyfriend’s drive to change the world for the better and beat them at their own game.

After remembering the influence and power the Wagner Group from Russia wielded in the Middle East and Africa, Vince agreed with Marco and said, “Either way, we’ll need more men for our upcoming projects. Our new recruits need to gain experience, so consider working with the Afghan military to perform the low-risk operations before they’re ready for our more dangerous contracts in Africa and South America.”

Security services in politically unstable countries like Venezuela and Guatemala were rising as corporations devoted resources to protecting their valuable assets like oil drilling platforms from rival businesses and local warlords looking for a sweet payday.

There were so many different ways one could die in a place like Caracas, and many FS operators considered contracts there as much deadlier than securing the Afghan border.

The Flyga touched down on an AV pad within the secure inner layer of the Austin Barracks near the Future Arms offices.

It was a weekend, so most of the employees were at home and enjoying time with their families, though the barracks were a completely different story.

Vince and Hailee observed a unit of Austin police officers training their shooting and hand-to-hand combat skills with a few operators led by an FS Spectre, based on the ghostly skull patch he wore on his right shoulder.

FS Spectres were few and far between because the minimum requirement of achieving the special rank was ten years of active special forces service in any allied nation.

Even Marco, the Austin Barracks Overseer, one famous in military circles, didn’t share the privilege of wearing the patch.

Felix and Price were both considered Spectres, but the title wasn’t too important to them. However, the rank made it easier to determine which FS operators were qualified to pilot Commando and Hammer Armor.

The Austin police departments and Future Tech have had a harmonious relationship ever since the attempt on Vince’s life at his old home, so Future Security gave free weekend lessons and qualification tests for their brothers in arms.

Most police departments were understaffed and barely had a budget, so the extra training was well-appreciated.

There has been a stark decline in violent altercations between civilians and police officers in Austin over the past six months, attributed mainly to newfound confidence in their practiced skills and drilled protocols.

Marco introduced their instructor for the session, Sergeant Conrad, a typical Caucasian-American man with a tanky build in his early 50s.

“Conrad here has served as a boot camp head instructor at Fort Benning for ten years before deciding to enter the private industry,” Marco explained.

It was the first time the young CEO visited the Austin Barracks, so Conrad welcomed him and Hailee with open arms before relocating to the indoor firing range as it may have been too hot for the young couple to train outside.

Conrad explained the basics of how small arms worked using the new standard battle rifle, the FA-68.

After a few minutes of disassembling and reassembling the rifle, Marco procured two FA-68s and ear protection from the armory for Vince and Hailee.

Conrad taught them the proper posture and stance when wielding a fairly large rifle and then said, “Take a low-ready position within your firing range box. Now raise the rifle eye-level. Try to focus on your sight as you place it in front of the target before smoothly squeezing the trigger.”

Hailee was very interested in learning, so she curiously asked, “Why should we focus on the sight instead of the target?”

Conrad nodded his head in agreement and replied, “That’s a good question, young lady. We also teach point shooting, but many of the experienced veterans at Future Security, especially those snobby Navy Seals types, prefer sighted shooting as the highest shooting test scores in the US military almost always focused on their sights.”

Vince followed Conrad’s instructions, fired a gun for the first time in this new life, and hit true right in the middle of the target’s chest.

“Whoa! This thing kicks hard. Be careful, Haiz.” Vince caringly said.

Conrad loved the new FS rifle and defended it, saying, “You’re shooting a much larger 6.8mm round than your typical AR-15. The felt recoil is very tolerable compared to the military issued FN SCAR-H.”

Hailee squeezed the trigger and felt exhilaration after hearing the twang of metal hitting metal.

Marco observed the shot and said, “Hit. Right shoulder. Hailee, you’re aiming correctly, but I saw a bit of movement from your right hand as you fired. Eventually, you’ll get used to the loud crack, but be patient with your trigger hand.”

Hailee took a deep breath before taking another shot. She saw the mark on the target’s head before hearing Marco say, “Hit. Headshot. Good adjustment. Now Conrad can move on to firing drills.”

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