Back in South Korea, I was lazing on my couch when Katarina walked out wearing nothing but a red lace thing and walked over to the fridge to grab a beer bottle. She casually flicked the top and downed the whole thing in one go before burping.
"Oh… soju-huh? Good shit." I sighed as this was the norm these days.
She and Loba, a dark-skinned stunning woman who was the feared Iron-jacket had not left their bed in days.
Unlike Katarina, Loba was very quiet and reserved. She also took calling me 'Master' seriously and was happy she was reunited with Katarina.
In all honesty, Katarina scares me. She's way too… manly?
No, she's just intense. Unlike her photos of her scarred and burned self, this Katarina was brlight back wothout a single blemish.
A true beauty with the heart of a conquered.
Her and Yui had started off on the rough side since the two had clashed back in their respective eras.
Yui lost due to the disparity of her going against an army.
In all seriousness, Katarina was by far the most dangerous 'unit' I had gotten my hands on… not physically that is.
I fear she'll break me in half with those massive hips of I get really entangled with her.
Why were the women of the 1st generation so tall… and curvy?
At any rate, Katarina walked over and sat down next to me while I was doing my usual research on potential 'units' in the future from other countries.
"You're still peeling at the dead, Master?" She said that last bit was almost effortless. I could sense the resignation that she was now 'mine' in a way.
"… weird way of putting it but yeah." I said and didn't glance at her jiggling breasts as thsoe things were massive.
"Well, good luck with that. Let me know when I can blow shit up." She then left and I glanced over to see her swaying hips and perfect body.
Damn… I looked back and clicked to a new page where I was reading about a mysterious awakener from the 2nd generation who had been making Hela domes for about a year before a sir pelt vanishing and then alter being comforted to have died by their government.
"A spy, huh?" Her name was Ashley Wright. She was most famous in the early 90's. "'Her rise to stardom happened with the iconic 'bridge-incident'. Where another awakener with the ability to manipulate metal held the commuters on the bridge of San Francisco, hostage'."
It said that Ashley was 19 years old then and had saved those people by using her power to essentially duplicate herself into clones and then overpowered the rouge ability user as well as saved the people on the bridge.
This incident sparked the US government's intrest and its intelligence agencies recruited Ashley.
Ashley would appear in some high profile cases across the country and her death in 2007 was reported that she had been stabbed in the back by a monster.
"Obviously, she was stabbed by a human." I scoffed but found her body was laid to rest in her hometown in San Francisco.
A spy. An intelligence agent with the means to delicate herself and be at many places at once.
Taking out my smaprthone, I then called Yeon.
"Hey, I want to head to San Francisco." Yeon on the other side sighed.
"Very well, Master. I'll arrange a flight soon." She said and I smiled.
"Thank you for helping me, Yeon." I said and the line was silent but I could sense her emotions and she was happy.
~
As we landed, I let Yeon drive as it was just us. We passed by several houses and rode uphill before we then turned down a winding road and arrived near a memorial park.
We roamed around during the day and found Ashley Wright's grave stone.
"Strange." I said.
"What's wrong?" Yeon asked and I sighed before turning to leave.
"There's no body down there." I said and Yeon looked at the gravestone before we then went back to the airport.
On our way, I immediately got an alert on my system.
Someone was following us.
"Huh… Yeon." I said and then asked her. "Turn right here."
Yeon didn't question it and did as I asked. I then took her arm and we teleported across the building where we parked the car.
"What's-" I stoped Yeon from speaking and used the [Camouflage] skill as we were hidden.
Soon, someone slender and wearing a black coat rounded the corner and came closer to the empty car.
"Hey." Yeon appeared and grabbed the stranger by the neck. "Why are you following us?"
The stranger's hat and glasses fell off and revealed a mature woman who resembled Ashley Wright.
"Ashley." I called Yeon back and the woman stopped, coughing as she rubbed her neck. "Apologies for the rough introduction. We didn't know you were still alive."
"… why are you looking into me?" Ashley asked and I told her the truth.
"We thought you were dead. But since you aren't. We have no business with you." I then raised my hand about to use [Mind-Wipe] when she spoke.
"W-Wait… I-… Ashley is dead." She said and I was confused. "I'm just a clone. One of the few she left behind before she-…"
"Was killed by someone human?" I finsihed and the clone looked at me intently. "A woman of Ashley's caliber being killed off by a monster? That's just bad writing."
"… I didn't believe it either. When the 'main' died, her clones remained. We age. We die. But our leader is gone. And we have been drifting ever since. None of us wanted revenge… we knew it was impossible… but maybe… you can help."
"… depends." I said and then asked seriously. "You have Ashley's body?"
I asked and she struggled to say but then nodded.
"Okay." I sighed. "I can bring your 'main' back. But understand that she will join my side. She won't have any trouble recovering her memories. She'll also be able to grow stronger than before. But she will be 'mine' in layman's terms. If that's okay with you clones, then take me to her."
The clone looked and then went silent before tearing up.
"I can… the others won't believe me. But I… I want to believe. So please, bring back 'Mother'." The clone said and I felt kind of bad for her.
"You won't regret it." I said and soon she got in the car as we drove to Silicon Valley and arrived at a seemingly normal suburban house.
"This way." We walked around the side and reached a back-door where the clone took out a key and unlocked the lock on the door.
We went toward the backyard and then walked further until we reached a single unmarked gravestone.
"Master?" Yeon asked and I smiled.
"She's here." I said and walked closer before kneeling down and placed my right hand onto the soil. "Arise."
The flame phased through he ground and soon grabbed Ashley's remains.
In the next moment, the clone knelt to the ground crying in sheer joy as Ashley's body and appernace took shape.
After she was brought back-
"Master." Her voice was cold and devoid of humanity.
"Hold on a moment." I then raised my left hand and placed it onto her eyes.
I then used the [Resurrection] ability and brought her back to life.
"Ugh… M-Master?" She spoke as I lowered my hand and she looked at me and Yeon. And then at her aged clone who ran forward and hugged her. "Ash?"
"Y-You… it's really you!! Our connection! It's back!" I then realized that once I had the original Ashley in my control, all her clones also appeared on my map.
Most were green dots. Some were all yellow dots. And a few were red dots. Showing they are hostile that Ashley has returned.
"It seems your clones aren't happy you're back." Ashley then looked at me ans then looked like she remembered.
"Kara… my clone had betrayed me." Ashley said and Ash, her clone before her gasped.
"What?" Ashley then recounted how she was surprised by suddenly being stabbed in the back after being called by Kara. "Why would she-"
"The government brainwashed her. I felt it… she had been suffering when she betrayed me. I didn't know it then but when it happened, her emotions vamsibed and she stabbed me. She had to have been brainwashed."
I looked to the red dots and found the one named [Kara].
She was currently working undercover in Brazil as a warlord.
The moment Ashley returned, her demeanor changed and she began to burn her identity before booking a flight to the US.
Several of the red dots were doing the same.
"It seems someone is still controlling them. They are all on their way here." I revealed while pretending to hood my head and eyes shut. "They'll be here within the wnxt 24 hours."
I tried to track down the one controlling them and found the place where one was sitting before a dresser.
Behind her was a Caucasian man with a goatee. I read his status.
[Oliver Stone]. His ability, [Brainwash].
"Found him… Oliver Stone?" I said and Ashley gasped.
"No!" She got worked up. "I killed him! I-… ugh."
Her memories began to clear as the [Brainwash] was also used on her yet, now that she was free, she remembered.
"He used me as a double-agent." Ashley said and Ash cursed the guy.
"Yeon… call Katarina." I said and she looked at me like I just told her to drop a nuke on an ant. "He's in Africa. His compound has many skilled mercenaries and awakeners. We need to bring in our best."
"… I hope you know what you are doing, Master." I did. That kind of power was just cheating. Plus… if he had gotten to me before I got many skills to root t myself and my mind, I would have been toast. "Ashley, want to go raid that bastards home?"
She stood upright and looked at me with a burning desire for revenge.
"Yes, Master." She stood upright and soluted like a soldier.
With that, I smirked.
____