The Desert Wolf, Chapter 7

												----------The Desert Wolf----------

															Chapter 7
											  But My Rifle's Geist Will Never Hurt Me
March 27, 2013
FOB Old Glory
Ninewah Province, Iraq

	Thoughts and images played out over and over again in Jason's head as he lay in the hospital bed in his room at the FOB. The ambush, weeks of torture, and escape from the hell hole that was the terrorist's hideout up in the mountains. But within all the dark memories shown a ray of light. That light was Ashah, the Polish AKM geist that was captor turned savior. He smiled slightly at the thought of the 5'8" girl who had once threatened to cut his throat. So much curiosity about her, so many questions he still had to ask her. As he looked from the dull off white walls to the tile ceiling and back down to the ugly faux marble flooring he let his mind wander as he thought back to when they had been waiting to be picked up by the helo.

	"So what are we going to do about me once your friends get here?" Ashah asked as she gestured to herself. They hadn't addressed the elephant in the room. Honestly, Jason hadn't thought of a solution to keeping Ashah safe once they got back to the FOB. He thoughts were made cloudy by the stinging and ache from his injuries. His back and thigh pulsed with a dull burning ache.

	"Hmm...oh yeah. I hadn't really thought of anything to be honest." Jason looked over at the geist as they walked slowly through the desert. The soft, fine sad kicked up little puffs of dust as they trudged onward. They had put their backs the the mountains and walked in the hopes of putting distance between them and the hajis holed up there. Due to all the recent insurgent activity, the helo had refused to set down so close to the Sinjar mountains and had agreed to meet two miles out from Jason and Ashah's current position.

	Neither one spoke for a time as they trudged toward the rendezvous point for their ride back to safety. Ashah noticed that he was moving slower and limping slightly with his left leg. Sweat beaded up on his forehead and ran down in drops across his face. They had been walking for a couple hours as fast as they could to put distance between them and Taliban hiding in the nearby mountain range. Being concerned she spoke up.

	"Are you alright Jason? You do not look well, maybe we should stop for a moment."  Jason began to protest, but faltered when he saw that Ashah was visibly worried. They finally stopped to rest and catch their breath.

	"I didn't know you cared so much Ashah, how sweet!" Jason spake teasingly. He sat down and let himself go limp, plopping down on the sandy earth. In hind sight laying out in the open was a terrible idea. But if they were going to get shot then it would have happened already. Ashah's ears stood straight up and her tail seemed to poof up a bit at Jason's remark.

	"I-I just don't want all my effort and risk of getting you out of there to be for naught." She sat down with her back towards Jason, crossing her legs and swinging her tail around to rest on her lap with a faint humph. "You Americans are so...annoying! Jason looked over at his black clad geist companion and a smile crept across his face. From captor to savior, what an odd twist of fate he thought to himself.

	"I'm only teasing Ashah, don't take it so seriously," Jason raised his hands in a gesture of truce. A brief moment of silence passed, the only sound was the wind rustling across the barren land. Ashah turned her head back to look at him with a slight frown and look of unbelief. "If you promise to let it go, I'll scratch behind your ears for you!" Jason said with a rolling laugh. He hadn't planned on cracking himself up on his own joke.

	"Oh that is it!" Ashah howled with annoyance. She twisted around and pounced on Jason pinning him to the ground. Straddling his waist she gripped his tattered tan t-shirt and hoisted him up to look him in the eyes. "Anything else smart you would like to say?" Ashah's tail swished quickly from side to side indicating her anger. Jason stared into the deep blue pools of Ashah's eyes for what seem like a lifetime.

	"You've got beautiful eyes y'know?" Jason blurted out without realizing it. Ashah froze in place as her face heated up. Even with her light tan skin it was obvious to Jason she was blushing. She let go of his shirt and stood up dusting the sand and dirt off her black robes turning her back to him once again.

	"If you've got energy to run your mouth with pointless banter, you can keep walking." With that she crossed her arms over her ample chest and stared at the moon, the faintest of grins appearing on her face. Jason began to ease himself back down on the ground when the handheld radio crackled to life. No rest for the weary Jason thought to himself.

	"Helo One to Private Winters, we are eta three mikes out from rendezvous point. Hope to see you there. How copy? Over." Jason looked over to Ashah with a tired smile as he clicked the button to respond.

	"Private Winters here. Good copy Helo One, see you soon," Jason replied. Jason groaned as he righted himself and stood. He and Ashah began to walk again to the agreed upon coordinates over the hard dry earth. Unbeknownst to Jason, Ashah was thinking about what he had said about her eyes.

	She just had standard iron sights, she never thought that they were anything to admire. But Jason had seemed to like them for some reason. She had never been complimented in her life before, but now she had been told something she considered ordinary was beautiful. The thought made her feel warm and she subconsciously began to wag her wolf tail slowly. Jason saw this and let out a quiet chuckle causing her to turn and see his eyes glued on her butt.

	"What is so amusing?" Ashah asked slightly embarrassed at Jason's deliberate stare at her back side. "Stop looking at my rear end, my eyes are right here." She emphasized this by pointing to her luminous blue irises.

	"I know, but you can't blame me for enjoying the view anyway right?" Jason responded, lightly teasing the AKM. As he had hoped she got shy and broke eye contact, looking away and up towards the pale waning moon floating above them in the clear night sky. She was cute when she got flustered.

	"Yes I can you pervert. We barely know one another, you shouldn't be looking at me that way." In truth she didn't mind his attention that much, but she didn't know how to respond to it. Existing for decades with nothing but the scorn of other humans she knew did nothing to help her deal with the feelings Jason gave her. "Focus on where we are going, if we stumble into another Taliban camp I'm not rescuing you again."

	"You wouldn't let me get captured again would you?" Jason replied with a half grin. "We'd hold our position and make a valiant last stand, right?" Jason looked over at Ashah to gauge her response.

	"And how do you plan to do that? You wasted the only magazine I had when you sprayed the mountain side during the escape," Ashah spat as she scrunched up her face. "I didn't think to get more mags for myself since you had that M4 you Americans love so much."

	"Well...true. I did expend the whole mag," Jason acknowledged with a shrug. "But it was effective though!"

	"You didn't even hit anyone! How do you call that effective?" Ashah asked in annoyance.

	"I only planned to spray their positions and keep their heads down while we ran for our lives. And I say it worked out pretty well, don't you?" Jason reached over and placed his hand on top of Ashah's head and rubbed her hair lightly in a placating gesture. She pushed his hand off her head and looked over to him, his white teeth and blue eyes seeming so sincere and care free at the moment.

	"Don't pet me like I'm some household dog!" She barked at him. "I don't appreciate it."

	"Sorry, didn't mean to upset." Jason let his arm fall to his side as they marched onward. After a long moment of awkward quiet, Jason broke the silence again. "About earlier, when we get back to the FOB I mean..." Jason started as he let go of her hand and started to walk alongside his companion.

	"Yes, what is it?" prompted Ashah when he went quiet.

	"Well, when we get to the base, I'll get stuck in the hospital for awhile to recover. I don't know for how long. And that's if they don't deem my injuries severe enough to be shipped out of country. And you," he continued look over at the Polish assault rifle, "will probably be taken and locked in the armory on base with the other rifles. Ashah's eyes widened at that bit of news and it didn't go unnoticed by Jason. He quickly resumed his explanation to ease her apparent worries.

	"But it won't be bad I promise. You'll be safe there, and when I get out of the hospital I'll think of a way to get you out as often as I can." Jason looked out of the corner of his eye to see Ashah staring straight ahead.

	She had spent years locked away in a crate separated from her sisters, or any other geist for that matter. The only communication she had with the outside world was bits and pieces of overheard conversation between the locals.

	"Jason, I don't think I can handle being locked away again," Ashah replied as wrapped her arms around her midriff. It pushed her ample chest together and Jason couldn't help but sneak a quick glance before trying to reassure her.

	"It won't be like when you were in that wooden crate. And we have a range at the base too, plus we have tons of 7.62x39 from captured ammo stockpiles. Maybe we can go shooting together after I heal up," Jason offered in the hopes of getting her to agree. "That's important for geists right? Though you still haven't really told me why."

	Ashah peered over at Jason with a hint of shyness. It was very important to her kind but for reasons that couldn't be explained quickly. Just as she was about to respond, the thump of propellers could be heard in the distance and they both looked up toward the sky.
There in the inky black of the sky was their ride, silhouetted against the stars and the pale moon. Ashah took a step backward, fear building in her voice.

	"Jason...I don't know if I can. I don't want to be put into storage again." Ashah's voice quivered as she looked to Jason.

	"Ashah, you have my word I won't let anything bad happen to you. I owe you everything and I can't let you go without paying that back." He took her by the shoulders and gave her a firm but gentle squeeze. "Everything will be fine, but right now I need you to trust me alright? Change back into your rifle form. It'll be hard to explain a gun spirit dressed in haji attire to my superiors."

	With his words taken to heart she nodded and morphed back to a rifle in the blink of an eye. The UH-60 Blackhawk flew low and passed over the pair as Jason waved his hands to signal them, not having any strobes or flares at his disposal. The helo circled back around and set down roughly. Jason bent over to avoid the whirling blades and hobbled over to the helicopter while shielding his eyes from the dust and sand it was kicking up. The bird touched down just long enough for the crew to pull him aboard before climbing again into the cool night air. One of the crew reached for the AK he had with him, but Jason pulled back and held Ashah close to him as he climbed aboard the aircraft.

	"Sorry man, this got me out of that hell hole. Not ready to let it go yet, nothing personal," Jason said dryly as he let Ashah hang across his shoulders from her makeshift shemagh sling. The crewman just shrugged and turned to give the pilot the green light to lift off and head back to base. Jason buckled himself in and leaned his head back against the cool metal as he finally let rest take him while holding Ashah close to his chest.

	The rest of the trip back to FOB Old Glory went on in silence save for the whooping of the rotors over head. When they touched down at the helipad, a medical crew rushed to the side of the helo and pulled Jason out onto a stretcher. They began to cut away at his shirt and pants to assess the extent of his injuries. One of the personnel present lifted Ashah off Jason while he was preoccupied with the people sticking needles and tubes in him.

	He bolted up on the stretcher reaching for Ashah screaming curses at the man who looked on with a bit of shock and pity. Jason strained against the medical staff trying to push him back down onto the stretcher. One of them yelled at another to inject him with anesthesia.

	"Everything will be okay, I promise! Everything is going to be fine!" Jason yelled to Ashah as he struggled with his fellow soldiers. To everyone else there, it looked like he was talking to the man holding the AK thought they couldn't figure out why. Maybe they were close friends? Jason didn't care how the others looked at him, he was worried about Ashah and only her. She was probably scared and he was helpless to comfort her right now. He felt a small stinging sensation in his left arm, and a moment later the world was spinning round and going dark.

	"Yes Private, everything will be fine, you're safe now. Just lay back and rest," a voice said as Jason drifted off to sleep.

	Jason had been wheeled into the hospital on base and had his injuries treated, the most severe being the gash on his leg from the grenade fragment. A few perplexed looks came from the surgery team as they saw the wound was stitched up already; rather well too. They removed the old stitches and sewed the wound back up with fresh thread after cleaning and sterilizing the wound. Stitching up his back took longer and they then wrapped his torso in clean medicated bandages to help prevent infection and to help with the few fractured ribs they found during an x-ray of his body.  After that ordeal, Jason was moved into a room of the hospital near the back of the building. When he came to from the anesthesia wearing off he promptly asked the nurse checking his i.v. when he could be released from care and get back on duty.

	"You just worry about healing up private, you need to let that leg heal. You're lucky to be alive." With that she walked out of the room and left Jason by himself with only the EKG machine and the i.v. running to his arm for company. The room didn't even have a radio or t.v. he noted. He picked at the itchy bandages on his torso while flexing his left leg to help ease some of the stiffness out of it. Thankfully they had given him a pair of loose fitting cotton trousers and a shirt that tied in the back instead of the stereotypical gown. There was a window on the right side of the room, but it had thick ply wall against it to help stop any incoming frag from enemy mortars or grenades.

	No entertainment, not even a magazine in the room and no one to talk to would make for a long night. The only sounds were the voices and shuffling of feet outside his room of the other patients and medical staff at work. With a constant worry for Ashah's well being on his mind Jason couldn't worry about anything else. Sleep wouldn't come to him so he resigned himself to thinking of questions to ask her when they were reunited. This went on for an hour or so as he paused here and there to scratch at his stitches or rub his hand over the weeks old beard forming. Running his hand through his dark blonde hair he noted he need a shave and a haircut once he got out of his little hospital internment. He just hoped Ashah was keeping a low profile over at the other side of the base. Dimming the overhead light from the remote near his bed Jason rolled over onto his right side to relieve the pressure from his back and thigh and tried to get some much needed sleep.

	Across the base at the armory, the soldier who had taken Ashah from Jason pulled up in a humvee, headlights splashing on the walls of the armory. The sand and gravel crunched under the tires as the big gas guzzler came to a stop. The rumbling engine sputtered and the headlights died as the ignition was turned off and the Sergeant climbed out of the cab with Ashah in tow in her AKM form.

	He strolled over the the double doors of the armory building, a large, uninteresting looking rectangle positioned near the south east corner of the base. Pushing open the heavy double door the man was greeted with the sight of racks of rifles against the walls of the armory. The scent of burnt gunpowder, cleaning solvent, oil, and grease permeated the air and filled the man's nose with it's aroma. On a couple of desks were M4A1 rifles disassembled for repair; several small springs and plungers lay with trigger pins and punches on the desk along with gas tubes and stripped bolt carrier groups. Walking over to one of the desks where the armorer on duty was tinkering the man cleared his throat to get his attention. The armorer looked up from the desk, grease smeared on his pale white face and oil staining his shirt, at the person walking his way then stood up and saluted as he noticed the triple chevron insignia on the Sergeant's uniform.
"Hello sergeant, what can I do for you tonight sir?" the armorer asked looking at the AK he held in his hand. The man returned the corporal's salute before answering.

	"Just need you to log this weapon and lock it up. The private we just flew back had it with him when we took him off the chopper... seemed rather attached to it," the sergeant finished as he laid the AK on the desk next to the young corporal's M4A1 for him to examine. And with that business finished he saluted the sergeant who again returned the gesture before leaving and closing the door to the armory behind him. But not before telling the corporal to clean himself up. Looking himself over, he did admit that he had a lot of grease and oil from maintenance on his ACUs, with a smudge or two of powder residue on his face and hands.

	Wiping his hands on his multicam pants, the armorer picked Ashah up and began looking her over. He gave a big smile as he noticed her circle eleven markings and serial number, KA11275, on her front trunnion then moving to the right side to see the C and P markings on her receiver for full and semi auto. They had a couple of AK's in the armory taken from the field, but not one that was Polish. And other than a few nicks in the furniture or small superficial scratches in her finish she was in great shape.

	"How neat, never saw a rifle made by the Poles over here in the sandbox. Let's see how the internals looks on this thing." The armorer pressed the paddle in front of the trigger guard and rocked the steel ribbed magazine out then flicked the selector down to P before racking the black painted metal charging handle on her bolt carrier with a satisfying cha-chack to make sure the rifle was clear. Then he tried to remove the dust cover to peer inside. But as he depressed the button on the back of the recoil spring, Ashah appeared in geist form atop of the desk.

	He stared at the jihadi-esque rifle with eyes as wide as dinner plates. Black robes and a head wrap and a look that could kill, the poor corporal was so scared he was at a loss for words. Ashah returned his stare with a look of rage and contempt. It would be a cold day in hell before she would let this weak looking young man look at her in such an indecent manner.

	The corporal opened his mouth to speak but Ashah cut him off, literally, as she drew her bayonet and flicked it across his face slicing a bit above his cheek bone. It was superficial really; she only did it to get his full attention. She spoke to him quietly but quickly, her Polish-Arabic accent flowing strongly with her speech.

	"You listen to me carefully. No one is going to 'have a look at my internals', understand me?" The corporal just nodded his head, glancing quickly over at his rifle. "Now here is what is going to happen, you-" Ashah began but was cut off by the feeling of a muzzle being pressed to her head.

	"Easy there haji bitch, don't go doing something stupid and make me dome you," Ashah looked over her shoulder and saw a white female in her early twenties. She was dressed in multicam pants and combat shirt with the sleeves rolled up to her elbow. Her light brown hair was shorter than Ashah's, due to her 14.5 inch barrel length and had it pulled back into a small pony tail. Her face was adorned with a light dusting of freckles which went well with her green eyes. She had red tinted Oakleys shielding her eyes thanks to the Aimpoint PRO mounted to her picatinny rail. She was slim, a tad shorter, and slightly more curvy than Ashah, but she looked strong despite it.

	Ashah stood up slowly on the desk keeping her bayonet in her right hand as she shot daggers at the American M4A1 rifle. She wouldn't be able to take her down without letting the armorer escape, and she couldn't very well turn back to him and ignore the geist pointing a loaded gun at her. What was her plan of attack? She was not about to get stuck in a crate again and she definitely wasn't about to let herself be stripped down in front of all these other rifles like some sleazy tramp. She racked her brain in search of a solution. But as if on cue the young man spoke up trying to defuse the situation.

	"Emily, ease up. We don't want to go popping rounds off in here. How would I explain it to the brass? It's ok, lower your weapon," ordered the young man. "It's kinda my fault anyway, I didn't know she was a geist."

	The American rifle geist flicked her eyes between Ashah and the corporal before lowering the gun and letting it hang suspended from it's tan Magpul sling. Ashah responded in kind by putting her bayonet in it's sheath hung on her red and white checkered shemagh belt.
"Rick you big perv, why didn't you ask me about her before you just went about practically raping her? I could sense she had a geist," the M4A1 retorted. Rick just shrugged and stammered out a meek response.

	"I...just didn't think about it. We don't get many AKs this way and never a Polish one," Rick responded desperately trying to defend his innocence. "I was just curious is all. And if you knew, you should have said something!"

	"Whatever...are you okay, do you want a band-aid for the cut hon?" Emily asked as she switched from furious soldier to concerned care taker and walked around the desk to get a better look at the trivial scratch. Rick smiled at the rifle as she cradled his face and looked him over with concern. Ashah just stood there dumbfounded. After retrieving some antibiotic and a band-aid from the first aid kit on the wall by the weapons racks and applying them to Rick's face, the American geist turned back to Ashah with a frown and a questioning attitude.

	"So what's your story haji, come here to kill us in our sleep or what?" Emily asked bluntly. When Ashah just gave her a cold stare, Rick intervened again to ease the tension in the room.

	"Emi, don't be so harsh on her. She's probably scared shitless right now," Rick offered as he placed his hand on the rifle's shoulder.

	"Remember when we got that Lee Enfield in earlier this year? She was so scared being on an American base after being used by the hajis she had a negligent discharge. Nearly shot my foot off, heh..."

	"Yeah fair enough hon," she relented. "Lets start with who you are, and go from there alright?" Emily replied back to Ashah.
For a moment, Ashah hesitated on telling them anything. There was another geist, so it wasn't like this American was out of the loop on that issue. But if she mentioned Jason and how he came to be captured by her, it may cause them to not trust her even though she had saved him later on. And she needed their help if she was to avoid being destroyed or locked up in storage until she turned to a pile of rust from neglect. After a long pause and looks of expectancy from the American soldier and geist she decided she had little choice and hoped they were trustworthy.

	"I am called Ashah, I was made in 1973 in Poland by the FB Radom weapons plant, serial number KA11275." Ashah spake with a bit of reluctance. The two gave the other a look of confusion before Rick spoke up about what was on both their minds.

	"You have a name?" he asked, straight to the point.

	"Yes, I have a name, why is that hard to believe? She has one," Ashah quipped pointing to the M4A1 geist.

	"Yeah, but that's because I gave it to her when she showed me she was a geist." Rick scratched the back of his head and ran his hand over his buzzed short red hair. "I've only met two other captured rifles that had geists in them, and neither of them had names. Just kept saying their serial number was all they had. The Taliban and Al-Qaeda don't name geists. They think they are an affront to their religion. But I'm guessing you know that already."

	"The one I came here with, Jason Winters, he gave me my name." answered Ashah matter-of-factly. At the mention of his name she tensed up a little. She found herself worried about his condition. The wound to his thigh didn't seem life threatening, and she had sewed it up herself but she needed to know he was alright.

	"I want to make sure he's alright. He was wounded during an ambush and was treated poorly while in captivity." Ashah began to move to the door leading out of the armory but was cut off by Emily and Rick.

	"Whoa there," Rick started, "You can't just waltz out of here and stroll down to the infirmary."

	"Yeah," affirmed Emily, placing her hands on her hips. "Not only would you get spotted right away, looking like the enemy and all, but you're a geist. Very few people know about us around this base and we don't want you to go blowing our secret."

	"There are more of us here, at the base?" Ashah inquired, looking behind her at the racks of M4s and M16s locked up in their cabinets. Flicking her eyes over to the disassembled rifles lying on the tables she blushed and returned her attention to the pair in front of her. They exchanged glances with one another before answering.

	"There are a few more geists here in the armory other than Emily and more throughout the base," Rick explained. "If you want to meet them, I can introduce you. It's probably been a while since you talked with one of your own." Rick had hoped that the offer would take her mind off trying to leave but it had no such luck.

	"Maybe later, right now I want to check on Jason. Now get out of my way!" Ashah responded as she tried to push past the couple. But they blocked the doors with their bodies and pleaded with her to stay. The last thing they needed was a lock down because some Taliban was wandering around the base.

	"Wait! Just wait a second, please," Emily urged. She thought for a moment then snapped her fingers as she formulated an idea. "If you insist on going despite us asking you no to what with the risk of blowing our cover and all, then why don't you let Rick or I go with you? We know how to get there so you won't be wandering all over the base looking for your boyfriend."

	"He is not my man!" Ashah retorted with a huff, her tail poofing up in anger. "I know it's just at the other end of the base, I can find it on my own. Besides, I was the one who freed Jason from the cell in the mountains, I can sneak past the guards here too."

	"It's better if Emily goes with you...Ashah. Two people walking around at this hour in plain view won't look out of the norm like a lone black clad figure slinking around the base." Rick scratched his cheek below where he was cut. "Speaking of black, we need to figure out something about your clothes, and your...ears and tail. That's a first." Ashah tapped her foot with impatience as she bored holes through the two Americans with her stare.

	"Fine! Fine then, I relent. Let's just figure out something about a disguise and get going." Ashah rolled her eyes in defeat as she thought of a way to hide her looks.

	"Seem awful eager to go see a guy you just met," teased Emily. "You sure you two aren't a couple hmm?" Ashah just ignored her jests and turned her head to hide her reddening complexion. "Anyway, about a disguise. You can wear one of his spare uniforms; he keeps a clean set in his duffel bag to swap out if anyone important shows up at the base. They'll be a little big on you, but that will help to hide your tail. Just tuck it in one of the pant legs." While Emily explained her idea Rick retrieved the garments from his bag and brought them over to Ashah, including a cap for her ears.

	"Here you go, just return them once you get back," Rick requested as he handed over the uniform. The multicam pants and combat shirt looked so odd and constricting to Ashah who had been used to her loose flowing robes for years now. "I'll step out and take a smoke break while you change."

	As Rick exited the armory and stood outside to light up a cigarette, Ashah began to disrobe. The soft black cloth flowed down her curvy breasts and over her pert rump like water. Giving a quick glance at her, Emily couldn't help but have some slight chest envy. Her longer quadrail hand guard made for bigger breasts than Ashah's palm swell hand guard did, but they seemed more well rounded and shapely than hers. Then she turned her attention to the swirling tattoos. They originated from her left ankle going up her outer thigh and  twisting around he stomach to her back before flowing down her left shoulder up her neck to her face, stopping just above her right eye.

	"I'm surprised you have tattoos considering the haji's frown on that sort of thing." Emily adjusted her weight to her other foot as she watched Ashah get dressed. "Was it your idea?"

	"No, it wasn't," Ashah replied with a tone signaling the subject was not one she wished to discuss.

	With the pants pulled on and her tail uncomfortably tucked away to conceal it she adorned the shirt and cap, flattening her ears down to make it fit and tucking her hair up underneath it. Slipping on the boots supplied to her and stuffing the black clothes in one of the desks the pair of geists were nearly ready. Emily the produced and small makeup kit from one of the armory desks and presented it to Ashah with a smile.

	"Can't have you walking around base with those tats showing. Talk about a dead give away!" Ashah just looked at the makeup in Emily's outstretched hands with apprehension and confusion.

	"I don't know what to do with that," Ashah said bluntly. She reached down and tugged on the pant leg of the ACU britches, her tail being awkwardly stowed away.

	"Right...guess I should have known that." Emily placed the kit down on the table next to her and pulled out a soft pad and a tan colored based. Dabbing the pad in the mix, she brought it up to Ashah's face and began to wipe it along her skin to cover up the black colored tattoos. "Just hold still for a minute and we'll get these covered up so so you can go have your date with lover boy."

	"He's not...never mind just finish what you are doing so we can leave." Ashah crossed her arms over her chest as she waited for Emily to apply the final bit of base.

	"There, all done. Wasn't so bad was it?" The M4A1 packed up the kit and stored it back in the desk and joined the Polish AKM as she walked out of the armory. "Just keep the collar up to help hide your neck," advised Emily. A quick bye from Emily to a worried Rick and they were off to the infirmary. They walked for a moment in silence as they made a bee line toward their destination. Then Emily piped back up to Ashah's dismay, talking in a low voice as they passed other soldiers on duty.

	"Don't take it personally by the way, the teasing about you and this Jason character." Emily looked at Ashah out of the corner of her eye. "You just seem rather close for someone who just met him," Emily said with a chuckle.

	"I didn't just recently meet him," Ashah responded coolly with no hint of annoyance in her voice, "I've known him for almost three weeks now."

	"Ah I see, he captured you from a weapons cache and took you with him when he was captured right?" Emily questioned Ashah.

	"No, I was with the group of Islamic State fighters that ambushed him and his unit when he was injured." Ashah replied to Emily's reply with a matter of fact tone that sent a shiver down her spine. "I was the one who captured him." And with that they walked the rest of the distance in silence. Ashah pondered briefly if she should have said that without explanation, but she just wanted the chatty American rifle to stop talking and it had worked.

	Rounding a corner Emily grabbed Ashah's arm and spoke in a low voice to avoid being overheard. "One last thing haji, when we get there let me do the talking. Your mix of accents is strange and no one else here on the base sounds like that. Got it?" Ashah shook her head in the affirmative and they proceeded on.

	They arrived at the infirmary building and walked through the entrance over to the receptionist desk. The receptionist, a stern looking older man with a skin close buzz cut and weathered skin looked up at the odd pair before him. With a raised eyebrow he gruffly questioned the two girls.

	"Can I help you two?" he asked with a labored effort as if it took all of his energy to do so. Emily raised her hand in salute to the higher ranking specialist, then elbowed Ashah when she noticed her fail to do the same. Ashah awkwardly raised her left hand in a half hearted salute, much to Emily's disappointment. If they got made because she saluted with the wrong hand she would personally throttle Ashah herself.

	"We wanted to know if we could visit a friend of ours for a brief moment sir," Emily responded.

	"It's late and the guy is probably asleep right now. Come back in the morning," replied the man as he took a swig from his coffee mug.

	"Well, you see sir, he was just brought in on a chopper and we heard he was in bad shape," Emily said as worried as she could sound. "We just want to make sure he's stable. We'll be quick about it sir." Emily smiled at the man behind the desk as she breathed deep and arched her back to make her well shaped breasts more pronounced. The older man simply rolled his eyes.

	"Who is it you wanted to see?" the specialist inquired.

	"Private Winters sir, First name Jason."

	The man clicked and typed away at the terminal in front of him for a couple moments. Ashah looked around the building out of curiosity. To her right stood a group of soldiers talking quietly to themselves. One noticed Ashah looking and gave her a wink, blowing her a kiss in the process. She ignored the gestures and turned back to the man behind the desk.

	"Here he is, room 204." The man pushed himself back from the computer and picked his mug back up. "Down the hall, take a right and it's near the end."

	"Thank you so much sir!" Emily thanked the man with a salute and a flirty wink before grabbing Ashah by the elbow and pulling her along down the hallway.

	"Lucky bastard..." the receptionist huffed, taking another swig of his coffee.

	In front of the door of Jason's room Ashah paused for a moment thinking about what to say to him. She felt like simply asking if he was okay and leaving would seem unempathetic. Noticing her hesitation, Emily spoke up to reassure her.

	"Just say what's on your mind and make sure he's alright. No need to over think it." Ashah looked over at the shorter M4A1 and nodded her approval then entered the room, closing the door behind her lightly with a faint click.

	Jason was lying in the dark on his side with his back toward the door. The darkened lights, dim electronic glow of the heart monitor and the slow steady beep and hum of the i.v. gave the room an odd sense of calm. The AKM noticed him twitching and jerking slightly in his sleep and crept over to his bedside. Through the lace up back of the shirt she spotted the bandages wrapped around his torso. He would carry around the scars of her choices for his lifetime she thought to herself. She moved around to be in front of him, noticing his irritated looking expression of his faced. No doubt from his fitful sleep.

	"Jason, are you alright?" Ashah reached over slowly and brushed his face lightly with her soft fingertips. Jason inhaled sharply as he was startled out of his light sleep. Rolling over and sitting up, Jason rubs the drowsiness out of his eyes weakly as he tries to focus on the shape in front of him in the dim room.

	"Ashah? Ashah is that you?!" Jason asked excitedly, fumbling for the remote to brighten the lights in the room slightly. "What are you doing here? How did you get past everyone? ...Are you wearing ACUs? And is that make-up?"

	Ashah grinned at his barrage of questions, even being beaten, starved and running for his life couldn't quell his curiosity. Jason moved over to one side of the bed to allow her to sit down. She sat with her left side towards him resting her left thigh on the edge of the bed; her right leg remaining straight due to her tail being hidden in the pant leg.

	"I came to see how you were doing after the wheeled you away on the stretcher." Taking note of his stitches and bandages she reassured herself he was in good care. "I see that they have patched you up well. That is good. As to these clothes and the paint on my face, a geist and her shooter helped me to get here." Ashah explained the details of her first encounter with the M4A1 geist and Rick the armorer and how they had aided her.

	"Wow..." was all Jason could say.

	"So anyway," Ashah continued, "you will be out of here soon then?"

	"Yeah doc says I'll be fine once my leg heals. Then I'll be back to business as usual!" Jason explained as he rubbed his left thigh. He knew Ashah was worried and tried to put on an air of confidence to ease her troubled mind.

	"You were having a nightmare earlier, before I woke you, weren't you?" Ashah asked, seeing through his guise. Jason faltered at the question and peered down at the floor for a while before answering.

	"Yeah...I see all the guys from my patrol, and the POW from the camp. What happened to them. Every time I close my eyes..." Tears blurred his vision and rolled down his face as Jason continued to talk about his guilt. "I couldn't do anything to help them. I feel worthless." Ashah searched for the right words to say.

	"In war...there are always casualties and that will remain true for all time. You shouldn't blame yourself for their deaths. They were soldiers, they knew the risk. They are at rest now." She hoped that what she had said would ease his burden.

	"Thanks Ash." Jason reached over and took her hand in his, giving it a gentle squeeze. Ashah blushed lightly and looked at Jason with a shy smile.

	"You should try to get more sleep Jason, I'll leave you alone to rest." Ashah got up to leave but Jason held fast to her hand. She looked back at him questioningly.

	"Would you stay with me Ashah, just until I fall back asleep?" Jason returned her look with one of slight fear and sadness. She couldn't refuse him.

	"Of course, if it will help you sleep."

	Jason smiled a tired grin and eased down onto his back. She kicked off her boots and paused for a moment. She eased the back of her pants down slightly to let her tail swing freely, freeing it from it's uncomfortable position, and climbed into the small hospital bed with him, lying on her left side leaning his body. She rested her head on his chest and the multicam cap fell off letting her wolf ears out in plain sight, and Jason smiled at how cute they made her look.

	He slowly brought his arm around her shoulders and resting his hand on her side. She rested her arm on his stomach and felt it rise and fall with each breath. His rhythmic breathing and the warmth of his body coaxed her into a peace she had never felt before in all her years on this earth. She swung her tail around and laid it across Jason's waist, it's length and fluffiness returning his warmth.

	"Goodnight Jason, sleep well." Ashah spake softly. After a few moments of no reply, she tilted her head back to see Jason had already fallen asleep exhaustion, and finally a small sliver of peace, giving him rest. A movement at the door to the room brought her attention to Emily peeking through.

	"Hey are you almost done with...oh my..." Emily started as she saw Ashah curled up next to Jason in bed. To her embarrassment Ashah had been caught red handed. Even after denying that nothing was going on between her and Jason she had been seen with him in bed. Ashah moved painstakingly slow off the bed to avoid waking Jason again.

	Pulling the sheet over him to keep him warm, she pulled her hat and boots back on, tucking her tail back down into the pant leg of the multicam ACUs before walking through the door with Emily. Giving the sleeping form one last look, she eased the door closed and began her walk back to the armory with Emily. If she was honest with herself she would have liked for the sleeping session to last a bit longer and again she was mixed with emotions she had no idea how to comprehend.

	Could she be feeling...love for Jason. Was it possible for a human to love a rifle? Even if she was a waffengeist she was still a rifle too. Her train of thought was broken by Emily making a jab at Ashah at her expense.

	"So, not your man huh? That's total bull! It's clear you love him." Emily blurted out with a crap eating smirk a mile wide. "And he cares about you too ya know? Even if he doesn't say it."

	"Do you think he does care for me?" Ashah asked timidly. It took Emily by surprise to see the fierce, almost violent geist she had the first encounter with turn so meek and shy.

	"He wouldn't have cuddled up so close and lovey dovey with you if he didn't." Emily looked over to Ashah to see her face turn bright red. "Oh you are the cutest!"

	Instead of retorting with a smart remark, Ashah thought about what the American rifle had said. Did Jason really love her? What was she supposed to do with that? She had no idea how to respond to love. It was something alien to her. She had never experienced it before. But, if there was a chance that he did, she would do her best to reciprocate the affection. She let herself smile and for the first time in many, many years she was...happy. The only sound between the two was the crunch of sand and gravel beneath their boots as they weaved through buildings and parked humvees as they made their way back to the armory.

	"You should do that more ya know? Smile I mean." Emily explained. "You look a lot better when you do. And I'm sure your lover boy back there likes it too."

	"I will try." Ashah had decided that from now on, it was her mission in life to be the best rifle she could be for Jason. Maybe she could repent for what he had gone through this way as well. They walked the rest of the way in silence. It was quieter out now than when they had left to go see Jason. Just a few stragglers walked drowsily towards the barracks to turn in for the night.

	"We should turn in too, I'm pretty tired myself," Emily stated as she yawned and and rubbed her eyes.

	"Yes I think some sleep would be good also," agreed Ashah with a nod.

	"Yeah, you wanna be bright eyed," Emily stifled a laugh, " and bushy tailed for your man tomorrow!" She finished with a burst of laughter drawing the looks of a few passers by. Ashah grumbled to herself about American hussy rifles.

	They arrived back at the armory and pushed through the double doors to see a nervous Rick tinkering with an M16A4 rifle. He had just finished replacing a broken extractor claw and gotten the bolt carrier group back together when the pair of geists walked through the doors. Upon noticing them returning from their late night venture he tossed the bolt carrier group down on the table and stood, walking briskly over to the two girls.

	"Thank God! I thought you two had gotten snatched up by the brass. What took you so long?" Rick questioned the pair as he wrapped Emily up in a loving embrace. Emily rested her hands on his chest and leaned her head into his shoulder.

	"Sorry sweetie, miss vicious here was busy getting cozy with her lover in the hospital room and lost track of time. Ashah blushed again at the mention of her display of affection with Jason and turned her back to the couple. Rick couldn't believe the fierce AKM could have a sweet side.

	"Well...there's all kinds in the world I guess. But anyway it's getting late and we need to turn in for the night. I'm bushed." Rick released Emily and moved back to the broken down M16 on the table, reassembling it and putting back in the metal rack  before closing the metal screen doors and locking them with his key.

	He and Emily then looked at Ashah with an expression that said 'What are you waiting for?' She knew what was going to come next. Being locked up in storage again. even if it was only for the night she still was reluctant. But the doors on the racks were metal screen so she could still see out of them. That gave her some comfort.

	"I'll let you out tomorrow morning first thing, I promise. Maybe we can let you talk to some of the other geists too if they feel like it." assured Rick.

	"Why does she not have to be locked up at night?" Ashah questioned him, pointing to Emily.

	"She's my issued rifle. We keep them with us at all times on base," Rick answered flatly. "You'll be safe here, I'll be back first thing in the morning."

	"Al-alright then." Ashah moved over to a table and in the blink of an eye she was back to her rifle form, the multicam ACUs falling to the floor. Rick picked up the Polish AKM, her wood furniture back in place despite her not putting her black robes back on and gently placed her in the rack next to the other AKs and closed the doors locking them tight. Rick and Emily wished her and the rest of the geists goodnight before flicking off the lights and closing the doors to the armory. The jingle of keys and the click of the doors lock signaled to Ashah the pair had left. She was tense at first, but slowly she let herself wind down and ease into a light sleep. Her last thoughts of the night were the feeling of warmth from Jason and his slow, peaceful breathing.