A Fox's War

by Brandon Varnell

  “What about their defenses? A base like that must have anti-air turrets or something!”

  “I’m sure they’ll have something like that. Why do you think I decided to go alone?”

  “Dang it, Justin! You’re being reckless!”

  Justin laughed. “No more reckless than the boy who traveled across the Middle East and snuck into China to rescue his mate. Anyway, I need to get off. I don’t actually know how to pilot a helicopter, so I have to focus.”

  “Don’t hang up on me, Jus—”

  “Sorry, Kevin,” Justin said to himself as he hung up, then tossed the helmet out of the window for good measure, “but I really do need to concentrate.”

  “Damn it!” Kevin swore as static entered his ear.

  Yanking off the headset, he threw the device on the ground and hopped into the one of the helicopters their forces had arrived in.

  “Kevin-sama, what do you think you’re doing?” asked Kotohime.

  Kevin didn’t look at her as he stared at the controls. “I’m going after my friend. What’s it look like I’m doing?”

  “You do not know how to fly a helicopter,” Kotohime said placidly.

  “Yeah? Well, neither does Justin. I’m sure I’ll be fine.”

  “What you are being is reckless.”

  Kevin stopped trying to figure out what button he needed to press for the helicopter to start working to glare at Kotohime. “What do you want me to do? I can’t abandon my friend! I won’t!”

  “I never said that you should,” Kotohime said in a calm tone. “I was only suggesting that you have someone else, who has actually been trained to pilot, fly this craft.”

  “Oh.” Kevin blushed. “That’s fine, then.”

  “Ufufufu, I knew that you would understand.”

  Kevin hopped out of the pilot’s chair and allowed an actual pilot to take his place. He went to the back. Getting on, he was hardly surprised to see Lilian, Iris, and Christine also jumping on board, though he was a little surprised when Kotohime also climbed on.

  “You don’t honestly believe that I would let you all go off on your own, do you?” Kotohime asked, hiding her smiling lips behind the sleeve of her kimono.

  Kevin shook his head. “Not at all.”

  “Ufufufu, I am glad to hear that.” Kotohime turned to the pilot. “Captain, please take us up.”

  “Roger!”

  The man wearing military fatigues and a helmet pressed several buttons, which caused the rotors to start up. A loud noise filled the air as the rotors spun faster and faster, granting them lift. The man yanked on the wheel. As the helicopter lifted off the ground, Kevin turned his thoughts towards Justin.

  Hold on, you idiot. Don’t think I’m going to let you go off on your own like this.

  Kevin was right. The base did have anti-air defenses.

  Justin gritted his teeth as he struggled to maneuver the helicopter against a hailstorm of bullets and missiles. He’d already activated the chopper’s defense turrets, but against the barrage that he was facing, the meager turret was practically useless, especially when it was being operated by a crappy AI.

  A loud explosion rang in his ears and rocked the helicopter. Justin gripped the cyclic and tried to readjust his altitude, which was quickly plummeting. The ground was rising up to meet him. Missiles flew all around him and bullets peppered the hull. He winced as several pierced the steel frame, coming too close for comfort. Down below, several missile silos were opening in the ground.

  If I can just fire off one missile down a single silo…

  The poison that was being stored inside of the missile was volatile. A single spark would be enough to set off a chain reaction, causing one missile to explode, followed by all of the others. All he needed was one shot—

  Beeping rang out all around him. The helicopter shuddered as it was struck by another explosion. Fire burst from the engine and smoke poured off the propellers. This vehicle was going down, and no amount of jury rigging was going to make it remain airborne.

  Yanking on the cyclic, Justin did the only thing that he could think of: he maneuvered his helicopter so that it would fall into one of the silos. As the interior filled with smoke, and an overbearing heat caused sweat to break out on his skin, Justin sighed.

  “Looks like I won’t be getting to live a normal life, after all.”

  Oddly enough, he was okay with that. This was, after all, a choice that he had made himself.

  Kevin stared outside as the helicopter continued flying toward Justin’s helicopter. He couldn’t see it, but he knew that it was out there. Clinging to his side was Iris, who despised flying but was going with them anyway.

  “I see Justin’s helicopter!” Lilian shouted from the front. As a kitsune who was surprisingly unafraid of heights, she was acting as their eyes. “Oh, no!”

  “Oh, no? What does that mean?” Kevin asked moving to the front while Iris continued clinging to him. Christine was also up front. He had to maneuver around her to see.

  Lilian hesitated, then slowly handed him a pair of binoculars. “H-here… it’s better if you see for yourself.”

  Kevin felt something fall into the pit of his stomach as he took the binoculars and put them to his eyes. He searched the space in front of him, looking for the familiar matte black paint amidst the massive amount of explosions. He almost missed it. Had it not been for the flames pouring from it, Kevin probably would have never noticed the helicopter that was falling toward the ground.

  “No…” he whispered, his eyes widening as the helicopter disappeared into one of several giant holes, which he belatedly realized were missile silos. “NO!”

  Fire blasted out of the missile silo. What’s more, the explosion that tore through that one silo set off a chain reaction, causing the numerous missiles located underground to detonate with unrelenting force.

  As hundreds of massive explosions split the air, as fire rose into the sky and a fierce wind buffeted the chopper, forcing them to break off and turn around, Kevin’s scream was lost in the distance.

  Thirteen

  The Ending of One Story Marks the Beginning of Another

  The Arizona weather in February was mild. It wasn’t cold enough to be considered freezing, but it wasn’t hot enough to be called warm. Chilly might have been the best way to describe it. Of course, since they were still living underground, weather was something of a nonfactor.

  Kevin stood in his room with the others, helping pack away their belongings. Christine didn’t have much, just a few suitcases filled with lolita outfits and her secret stash of shojo romances, unlike Lilian and Iris, who possessed tons of items. Of the four of them, he and Lilian had the most possessions because of their anime and manga collection. It was quite large, consisting of over 700 manga volumes and 300 anime on Blu-ray and DVD.

  “I can’t believe you nerds are really going to carry that back up,” Iris teased them. “You should just sell that stuff. I’m sure you’d make some good money.”

  “Don’t even joke about that,” Lilian said seriously.

  Kevin nodded. “There’s no way we would ever sell our anime and manga collection.”

  “If you say so… weebs.”

  “That does it. I vote that we force Iris to sleep on the couch.”

  “W-wha—hey now!”

  “I agree, Beloved.”

  “Eh tu, Lily-pad?”

  As Lilian continued teasing her sister, her words causing a worried Iris to break out in a cold sweat, Kevin turned to Christine. “Do you have everything packed?”

  “Yeah.” Christine patted her two suitcases. “It’s all right here.”

  “Awesome.”

  Today they were leaving Neo Seiryuu. The underground city was never meant to be anything more than a temporary place for people displaced by the war to live. However, the war had ended several weeks ago. Although Kevin had heard that there was still fighting happening in certain states, the United States government and the yokai under Mack’s new le
adership had reached an official peace treaty several days ago.

  Kevin didn’t know what that agreement was, and he didn’t really care to know. His part in all of this had ended in Washington, DC. He was looking forward to returning to his normal high school life.

  “Hawa!” a shout came from the other side of the door.

  “M-My Lady! Please don’t run like that!” came another voice.

  The door burst open and Camellia rushed into the room, wearing a joyful smile. “Hawa! Everyone! The bus is here! Let’s—hawa!”

  “Kya!”

  Kevin, Lilian, and Iris mutely watched as Camellia tripped over her own two feet, stumbled, then landed boobs first on top of Christine. Unlike Kevin, who was quite strong, poor Christine couldn’t bear the woman’s weight. She fell to the floor and became buried beneath the voluptuous woman. The poor girl floundered underneath the woman’s massive mammaries, which had a breast circumference as wide as the yuki-onna was tall.

  Iris sent him a teasing look. “I’m surprised you’re not the one getting your face full of breasts, Stud.”

  Kevin shrugged at Iris’s words. “Maybe the author decided to change things up. You know, to keep things from becoming boring.”

  “Uhuhu, that’s a good one, Stud. We all know the author’s not that original. He steals ideas from fan fiction of all things.”

  Oi!

  “Beloved, there’s no more room in the computer case. Where should I put my tablet?” Lilian asked, holding up the device that he’d bought her for Christmas.

  “Maybe we could put it with our anime…” Kevin trailed off when he looked at the suitcase filled with anime. It was nearly overflowing. “… What about your Extra Dimensional Storage Space?”

  “It’s already full.”

  “Huh…” Kevin scratched his head. He didn’t think Extra Dimensional Storage Spaces could get full.

  “Mrrggggllleee!!!”

  “Tee-hee! That tickles!”

  “My Lady!”

  As Christine struggled to get the older woman off her, Camellia pressed the poor girl’s face further into her sweater stuffers, and Kirihime ran around them and panicked, Kevin and Lilian looked at Iris.

  “What makes you think I have any extra room in my Extra Dimensional Storage Space?” she asked.

  “Because the only thing you ever carry with you is lingerie,” Kevin said.

  “And that doesn’t take up much space,” Lilian added.

  In the face of such impeccable logic, Iris could only sigh and stick out her hand. “All right, give it here. I’ll hold onto it for you.”

  “Thanks, Iris!”

  “Yeah. Yeah. You two are just lucky I love you so much.”

  The Wacom tablet disappeared between Iris’s breasts like magic. Meanwhile, Christine had frozen Camellia solid and was laughing like a lunatic.

  “Shove your cow lumps in my face, will you? Take that, Tits McGee! Mwahahahahaha!”

  “MY LADY!”

  “You guys are taking an awfully long time to get packed,” a voice said from the doorway. “Can you people hurry it up? We’re gonna be the last to leave if you don’t.”

  “Kiara,” Kevin greeted.

  The woman in question, wearing her usual business suit, waved her only remaining arm as she stood within the doorway of their bedroom. “Yo.”

  “Ne, ne, meanie meanie, who are these people?” asked a little girl who peeked her head out from around Kiara.

  A large vein pulsed on Kiara’s forehead. “I’ve already introduced you to these people before, Sarah—and don’t call me that.”

  “If you’re here, does that mean that Kandice is also here?” asked Lilian.

  “Yep. She’s helping Kotohime pack the stuff in the living room.” Kiara hiked a thumb behind her, as if to point out where Lilian’s new friend was.

  “Beloved?” Lilian looked at him as though asking for his permission to leave.

  “Go on and greet your friend,” Kevin said with a smile. “I’ll finish packing all of our stuff.”

  Lilian beamed at him. “You’re the best.”

  Grabbing her sister and Christine by the hand, Lilian walked past Kiara and Sarah. Kevin watched them go, until they had disappeared, and then he turned back to his suitcases.

  There were seven in total. Two were for Christine, one belonged to Iris, and the rest were his and Lilian’s. He had one more suitcase out, which was currently only half full. The eighth one would be carrying his weapons and his combat suit.

  I wonder if I should just get rid of those. It’s not like I’m gonna need them anymore.

  “Ne, ne. What is this?” a girlish voice asked. Kevin nearly stumbled back when a pair of bright blue eyes appeared in front of him. The girl they belonged to, Sarah, was holding up one of his guns. “Is this the thing that goes bang bang?”

  “Yes, that’s a gun.” Kevin gently took the gun from her hand and put it back in his suitcase, which he then zipped up. “And you really shouldn’t be playing with it. Guns are dangerous.”

  Sarah puffed out her cheeks. “I know that.”

  Kevin didn’t really know what to make of this girl. Sarah Feniks was supposed to be one of the Four Saints, and he remembered meeting her once before, but she seemed so different from that time. No longer looking like an emotionless doll, she now had the personality of an inquisitive little girl.

  “All right, brat. That’s enough bothering the other brat. Why don’t you go and play with Kandice or something?” Kiara suggested.

  Sarah’s already puffed cheeks enlarged even more, reminding Kevin of air balloons. “I’m not bothering anyone, you old hag!”

  “O-old hag.” Kiara grinned. Her twitching lips and the dark shadows cast along her face gave her a haunting appearance. “Is that really something that someone who is at least over a hundred years older than me should be saying?”

  Sarah pulled down her eyelid and stuck out her tongue.

  “Oh, that does it!”

  “Eek! Get away from me!”

  “Brat, I’m gonna show you who’s boss!”

  “Not if you can’t catch me!”

  Kevin sighed as Kiara chased Sarah around his bedroom. He grabbed the luggage and moved it to the far wall, where it would hopefully be safe. Thankfully, everything was already packed, so as long as they didn’t step on his luggage, everything would be kosher.

  “Hawa, Kevin-kyun?” Camellia walked over to him.

  “Yes?”

  “Can Camellia help you pack?”

  Kevin looked at Camellia, then at the already-filled suitcases. Then he looked at Kiara, who had gripped Sarah in a fierce headlock. It looked like she wanted to give the blond girl a noogie, but she only had one arm, which she seemed to just now remember. Finally, he looked back at Camellia.

  “Everything is already packed, but you can help me carry it to the bus.”

  Camellia, who’s foxy ears had drooped down at his first comment, perked back up at his second. “Hawa! Camellia would like that very much!”

  Deciding to let Kiara and Sarah argue, Kevin grabbed several suitcases and left with Camellia and Kirihime in toe. The five-tailed mother of two was dragging one of his cases behind her. Meanwhile, her maid fretted over the woman like a mother hen.

  “My Lady, please be careful not to trip again.”

  “Hawa. Don’t worry, Kirikiri. Camellia isn’t going to—HAWA!”

  “MY LADY!”

  Kevin sighed.

  After everything was packed and loaded into Kiara’s van, the group entered the vehicle and left.

  Kevin sat in the driver’s seat while Lilian and Iris had squeezed into the front passenger seat. Christine, not wanting to be left out, sat on their laps, though it looked like she was beginning to regret that decision.

  “Would you stop stroking my thigh?!”

  “Uhuhu, I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

  “You do! You so do know what I’m talking about! Stop that!”

  “C
ould you please stop bothering Christine? She and I are trying to read this manga.”

  “Tch. I can’t believe you’re siding with her. Well, weebs have to stick together, I guess. Maybe the stud and I can have some fun.”

  “Not now,” Kevin said. “I’m driving.”

  “It’s because you’re driving that we should do this,” Iris responded with a seductive grin. “I was thinking I could give you road head.”

  “Absolutely not!” Christine shouted, her face turning a strange shade of purple.

  Holding a tablet in her hands, Lilian released an annoyed sigh. “I’d rather we not die in a car accident, so I’m gonna go with Christine on this one.”

  “Oh, poo.” Iris sighed and placed her cheek on Christine’s back. “No one wants to have any fun with me.”

  “It’s because of the kind of fun you’re always trying to have! And get your cheek off my back!” Christine shouted.

  Sitting in the back, Kotohime smiled lightly as the children bantered. Next to her, Camellia had convinced Kirihime to play what appeared to be house with plushies. Kiara sat on her other side. Kandice and Sarah sat in the back. Kandice had been offered a spot up front by Lilian, but she’d declined on account of not feeling comfortable being squished together on a single seat.

  “The kids seem to be in high spirits,” Kiara commented.

  Kotohime nodded. “That they do.”

  “How’s the kid?”

  “Are you referring to Kevin-sama?”

  “Who else would I be talking about?”

  Being one of the largest names in both the yokai and human worlds, Kiara had been busy. They all had, of course. Dealing with the aftermath of a war was never easy, but the inu had it the worst. Thanks to her background with running a business, she’d been the one who Mack had turned to when negotiating with the president of the United States. This was the first time that Kotohime had seen her in two weeks.

  “Kevin-sama is fine,” Kotohime said after a moment. “He was depressed for a time, but Lilian-sama, Iris-sama, and Christine-san have been doing a fine job of keeping him occupied.”