Operation Honey Trap vs The Emperor of the Apocalypse

At first light the commander woke the men, and they set off at a gallop.

Lili was placed on a horse with Cormac, while her horse was given to Han. Cormac rode in the middle of the guards in case the girls tried to ambush them.

When they hadn't been riding for long, Lili threw off Cormac's long shirt.

It fluttered backwards, hitting Wolf in the face.

"What the…" Wolf exclaimed.

"That's my shirt Wolf. Hang onto it for me," called Cormac. "Why did you do that, little lady?"

"I'm sick of wearing that baggy sack. I'm not Little Orphan Annie you know."

"Who?"

"Don't worry about it. I just don't want to wear your big shapeless shirt. It gets in my way."

"We'll find you something more suitable when we get there."

"Why is this not suitable?" she indicated her training outfit. "The Emperor thought this was suitable. And where are we going?"

"It's too revealing to wear around a group of men who haven't been castrated. You'll find out where we're going when we get there."

"You make out like you're a bunch of babies with no self-control, instead of grown men."

"That's not far off."

"Hmmph," she huffed in annoyance.

After about an hour of riding, they arrived in a town called Creswick, where the commander lead them to the old post office building. It was solid red brick, two stories, with very few entry points on the ground floor, and a handful of small arched windows on the first floor.

Lili immediately saw why the commander had selected it, and she paled as she thought about Delphi leading the girls to attack this fortress. She must try and get free herself before anyone else was abducted by these thugs whilst trying to rescue her, she thought with determination, her mind ticking over.

The men scouted the building and arrayed themselves and their weapons according to the commander's plan, which they certainly weren't sharing with her.

Lili was lead up to a small upstairs office with a single narrow arched window facing the side road.

She walked over to the window to peer out.

"Miss Bai," said the commander firmly, "stay away from the window please".

"Cormac. You have first shift watching her. Don't make a fuss when you have to hand her over. Keep her away from the window and keep it shut, and it's a two-guard escort when she needs to go to the bathroom."

Cormac scowled.

"And no monkey business, Private Day," he reminded him.

It was still early in the morning.

Lili slid down to the floor, deep in thought as she ran through different scenarios in her head, finally arriving at what she thought was the best plan with the highest chance of success. She nodded her head slightly to herself, as she made her decision.

Cormac watched her with an intense fascination. Everything about her interested him.

"What are you thinking about my love?"

"Nothing important baby," she said sweetly. "I'm just a bit bored, that's all. What will we do in this room all day? I'm not even allowed to look out the window," she pouted sadly.

"I'll escort you for some little look-see's, don't worry," he smiled at her dotingly.

"Really? Thank you, baby. That will help keep me sane."

She settled back, leaning against the wall, looking over at him. Her grey-green eyes caught the morning light, her perfect skin was luminous, and her long thick hair had settled around her like a cloud. She tilted her head and smiled her best 'I'm naughty but nice,' smile at him

"Jesus you're beautiful woman," he growled. "I'm not sure I'll be able to hold off doing anything all day here in this room alone with you."

"I'm sure we'll figure out a way to do at least something baby," she purred.

He scooted over and sat hard up next to her, their legs touching. He stroked her cheek gently.

"How many children do you want Lili?" he asked affectionately.

She jumped in fright. That was not what she was expecting him to say.

"Umm."

She had actually never contemplated this question. She grew up expecting to join the harem and bear a child for the Emperor. One boy was the best outcome. It brought you some security without the political overhead that came with more than one child.

"T... two?" she looked at him uncertainly, checking if it was the right answer.

"Is that all," he smiled, and she relaxed. "I want at least four. Two girls and two boys. A large family is much more fun."

She thought back to growing up in the palace with the seven other Guerilla Girls, and she had to agree.

"Okay, four then, I agree," she said.

He took her hand. "What will we call them?"

Okay, now this was getting plain weird. She met this man yesterday for crying out loud! Still, she could play happy families with him if that's what he wanted.

"Delphi and Feifei."

"Do we have to name them after the other girls?"

"What girls' names do you like then?"

"Lili junior."

She pealed with laughter.

"You promised to take me for a look-see," she reminded him after as much family planning as she could stomach.

"Come on then," he solicitously reached out his hand and raised her to her feet.

He held her hand as he led her to the window. She scanned the surrounds, picking out two spots where she thought the girls might conceal themselves, which could be seen from the upstairs windows but not from the ground floor. She looked out for a bit longer, memorising the landscape, then she turned to him and gave him a light peck on the cheek.

"Thank you, baby, I feel better being able to see the outside world. Can we open the window for some fresh air?"

"No, you heard the commander, that's a hard and fast rule little lady," he touched her lightly on the end of the nose.

She slid back down to sit on the floor and continue their game of happy families.

She waited for another hour and then asked Cormac for another look out the window. When they stood in front of it, she pressed her hands to his chest and felt-up his firm pectoral muscles.

"I've been dying to do that all day," she giggled. "You're too delicious."