Blood Lily Company - Afghanistan, year 1

XXXVI

His first idea was to measure and improve JD and Yaka's ability to communicate. He gave JD three names: Quenotte, Tito and mine. Quenotte was to show Yaka a Company badge, Tito his blood type tag and I, an arrowhead. Yaka was then to pass the image on to JD.

JD, unable to figure out how to talk inside the dog's head, if you get my meaning, took a while to figure out what Kris wanted. Then he had the idea to think about Quenotte very hard, not looking at him, just in his head. Yaka turned to the redhead, then to JD. She understood who he was talking about but not what he wanted.
- Wait, JD, I have an idea, we're going to ask Poll to come help you.
- I think he's on Ocelot patrol, Kris. I'm checking with Phone, I said and called the Ops room.

And, indeed, he was on patrol.
- I'll manage, Kris, I have an idea.

All the while, Yaka was paying close attention. JD took her head in his hands and concentrated again. The dog barked, escaped her handler and came to stand in front of Quenotte, who immediately obeyed the instruction. She came back to put her paws on JD's legs and he laughed incredulously.
- It worked! Ain't you a clever one! Yes, you are!

She squirmed with pleasure and licked his face.

The experience, repeated with Tito and then me, was more than conclusive. Later, JD would test with Alpha, but the male would prove significantly less receptive. He understood vocal orders, but never would mental orders. In any case, not from JD. And none of us had the patience nor the time to train the wolfdog for anything other than what he already knew and was pretty good at, which was to guard the base and kill a human discreetly. That's why it was Yaka on patrol, and not Alpha.

Then Kris went to his other idea and freaked us out, that asshole. He told Baby Jane to get into shooting position. For her, that means lying on her belly with her MKSR.

Then he went to stand in front of a target, legs a little apart. Via the throat mic, he asked:
- Do you see the bull's-eye here, Baby Jane?
- No.

He turned around, twisted the wire to lower the target, and asked the same question again.
- Yeah, right under your balls! she said with a laugh.
- Then aim well, my dear.
- Are you serious?! she was completely dumbfounded.
- Very. Fire.
- What... Fuck, Kris, you're crazy!

We were wondering if we should intervene. Because now it was getting weird. I looked at the Viking, but he was focused on Alyss and hadn't really been paying attention, even though, like all of us, he could hear everything.

What I learned later was that Phone, worried about the turn of events, had warned Lin who had also equipped herself and was listening to everything. And, just like us, she didn't know if she should step in or if Erk would. Normally, our conversations are only listened to while we are on patrol. But here, I must admit that the subject deserved attention.
- Baby Jane, I trust you. I know you won't hit me.
- But...
- Fire.

He was super calm, arms crossed, well balanced on both legs. She obeyed. Because he trusted her. And because Erk was close by.

The shot was fired, Kris didn't budge. Still, he ran his hand over his pants, between his legs, before bringing the piece of cardboard to Baby Jane, hidden behind his back. He had a gigantic shit-eating grin on his face.

Baby Jane had been so tense just before she fired that she rested her brow on the gun, washed out. He walked over to her, put his hand on her shoulder and said:
- You truly are the queen of all snipers!

He showed her the target: bull's-eye. And his pants were intact.
- What was this exercise for, other than making me lose five years of my life?
- Wait, it's not over yet, and he headed back to the targets.