Last Time:
The Genetically Engineer Humans or Genoids have been fighting hard for the equality, but they are constantly plagued by a group of abduction rings run by another Genoid named Liv Ashton. However, the older zebra wasn't without her compassion and when her favorite slave is killed in a confrontation with a customer, Liv hands a group of Genoid officers known to Genoid community as the Guardian Angels her main training facility and her own personal place of residence. Left there, are several slaves, now free from Liv's clutches. On the door: a note that revealed that Liv isn't as evil as people think she is.
Episode 5: "Thankful"
Saipia Jones and her sister Gjai worked on setting the table for that evening's Thanksgiving dinner. Saipia was out of her normal blue dye mostly because she didn't want to get any in the food. As the young wolf placed some freshly cooked sweet potatoes on the table, she watched as her sister placed name tags next to plates. The officer had had invited her coworkers and was pleased that they were all coming. She was not pleased, however with her sister's placement of her third in command, a hyena named Even "Jack" Taylor. "What the hell are you doing? Why are you putting Jack next to me?" she half spat.
"Is there a problem with that arrangement?" Gjai asked. She was a doctor, and didn't look that much like her sister. Gjai liked to keep her mane short, while Saipia's was full and clearly visible most of the time. Sai even had some long human hair that ran to the middle of her back and did well to enhance her features.
The younger white wolf sighed heavily and rubbed her brow with one hand while the other rested on her hip. Both women wore long dresses. Saipia's was a deep green dress while Gjai's was a light yellow. "I guess not. It's just that...Well, he has a thing for me and I'm really not in the mood to deal with him flirting with me while he's next to me. Mom and Dad are going to be here and you know they'd throw a fit if they even thought I was dating a hyena."
Gjai laughed. "Sounds like your more afraid of him finding out that you like him back."
The younger sister shot the doctor an nasty glare as she planted both hands on her hips. "I still don't feel like I have the time to date right now. There's still way too much to do."
"I understand completely, Sai. Why do you think I'm still very single?" the older woman said.
"Because you've always been more interested in women then men," Saipia said bluntly as she crossed her arms over her chest.
Gjai laughed harder. More at the frankness of the comment than it's factual bases. "Hey, you went out with more women in college than I ever did. I mean, at least I haven't slept with all the women on my team."
"I never slept with James. I mean I've kissed her a couple times, but that's as far as we got," Saipia defended matter-of-fact.
"Whatever. You were still much more of a lesbian slut in college than I was," Gjai retorted with a smile.
"Bisexual, thank you very much. And I have gone either way in a long time," said the police officer as she re-entered the kitchen to get some more food.
"Yeah. I think our brothers and parents are getting a lot more sexual action than we are, sis. But, that's alright. Because we probably make more than they do," Gjai replied as she swapped Jack's name tag with James's.
James Elissa Connell is Saipia's second in command and a very good friend. James, though, had a large crush on her boss despite her being semi-happily married. However, James had just gotten back from a long vacation with her husband, and while on that vacation, she realized that she still loved her husband a lot.
"Which really is too bad. I always enjoyed sex. But now, I'm just busy. And I really don't want that bastard of a hyena getting me pregnant," said Saipia.
Gjai laughed again. "Yeah. I can see that happening. But, I can also see you to becoming a serious couple."
Saipia heaved another sigh as she set a dish of green bean casserole on the table. "And believe me, I would date him in a heartbeat if we weren't so busy. I figure it's either him or run back to Erica. But she can be a little too rough sometimes."
"Yeah? I thought she had a girlfriend already?" asked Gjai.
"Does she? I don't know. It's been a while since I've..." Sai said and stopped herself. She realized she been a little distant from her friends lately. She didn't like not know what was going on in their lives. "I've been more of a boss lately than a friend. But hopefully, we can remedy that tonight."
Gjai was about to say something when the doorbell rang. Saipia went to answer it. She was greeted by their parents, Zoyah and Timothy. Timothy was a tall white wolf, while Zoyah was a black wolf. The two gave their oldest daughter a big hug, being careful not to burn her with the large crock pot of backed beans. "Hey, Mom and Dad. Glad you two could make it."
"Are you kidding? Our own daughters actually invited us to spend Thanksgiving with them. We wouldn't miss this for the world," Timothy said as he hauled the beans into the kitchen where Saipia was still setting up for dinner.
"Oh, Sai, aren't you going to get all dyed up for dinner?" asked Zoyah.
Saipia shook her head. "No. This is a more casual get together, and I really don't feel like putting my dye in."
Zoyah smiled at those words. "Well, that's good. I think you look better in white, anyway."
"Thank you, Mother. I appreciate that. Now, just make yourselves at home. I've got the turkey baking and it should be done soon," Saipia said.
"And then I will start working on the pies," Gjai added with a pleasant smile.
The two older wolves smiled at both at them. They were happy to see their daughters so busy and working together. They watched as Saipia inspected the seating arrangements at the large table, making a few adjustments as she went. "What are you doing?" Gjai asked with a smile as she entered the kitchen to get the pies ready.
"Just making sure we won't have any issues. The last thing I want on my vacation is my team bickering amongst each other," Saipia replied.
"You're really on vacation?" Gjai asked.
"Yes. It was the only way I could get Thanksgiving off," replied the youngest wolf.
The doorbell rang again and this time, Saipia went to answer it. It was her brothers, Peter and Ryan, a pair of black wolves. Ryan tended to work out more than his brother and it showed in the broadness of his shoulders. Peter was the oldest of the kids, followed by Gjai then Ryan and finally Saipia. Of them, only the girls actually had master degrees. The boys both specialized in business and were very happy running their joint business together. As expected, Ryan and Peter came empty handed. But, their sisters weren't worried. They were sure there would be plenty of food for everyone.
Peter and Ryan were followed by a jaguar by the name of Erica Martin who carried a ham roast in her arms. She was one of the the fourth highest ranking member of Saipia's team. Erica was also the youngest member of the team. But, she was also good friends with Saipia and that counted for a lot. Erica wore a pair of tight blue jeans and a deep purple shirt that hung loosely from her shoulders. She was a little surprised to see her friend and commander in a dress.
After Erica set the roast on the table, she gave her old friend a big hug. She then exchanged hugs with the rest of Saipia's family. "Figures you'd be the first of the non-family guests to arrive." Gjai said.
"Aw. I thought I was family," the tall cat said.
"Well, you have been like a sister to me. But you have to remember my mother is a very traditional wolf," replied Saipia.
"It's true. And I have done my best to raise you kids with the traditions that I grew up with. You should be proud of your heritage," Zoyah agreed.
"And we appreciate that, mother. But some of your traditions go against my beliefs and what I'm trying to accomplish. When I picked the members of my team, I made sure not to have two of the same specie working for me. I can't say that I want equality amongst the Genoids and the humans if I'm trotting around with a bunch of wolves," Saipia explained as she put Erica to work cutting up some carrots for a salad.
"Oh, I'm fine with that, dear. Just don't go marrying..." the wolf black wolf started but Saipia's sigh cut her off.
"Mother, you know how many single male wolves are out there that I would WANT to marry? Pretty damn close to zero. You're just lucky that I'm too busy with cleaning up this city to look for a husband," countered the commander.
As if on cue, the doorbell rang. When Gjai went to open it, she was actually surprised to see Jack Taylor, Saipia's third in command and the only man she could think of that she would even remotely want to start a family with and that was a very remote desire. "Evan, how are you doing?" greeted the white wolf with an emphasis on his name.
The hyena wore a pair of jeans and a white shirt covered by a red flannel shirt and a long trench coat. On his head, as always, he wore a cowboy hat, which he removed as he entered the house and took a look between the women. Timothy broke the awkward silence by greeting the hyena. "Evan, is it? Good to meet you."
"Yeah. Good to meet you, too. You must be Saipia's father. And you can call me Jack, by the way," said Jack.
"Alright. I'll be sure to keep that in mind," Timothy said.
Shortly after Jack arrived, Saipia's most trusted friend and second in command arrived alone, which was a shock to everyone there. James Elissa Connell was a female maned wolf. She was a first generation Genoid like Saipia's parents and the oldest of the Angels. She had gotten married a few months before she met Saipia, and Sai was quickly turning into the reason for the destruction of that marriage.
"James, where's Jason?" Saipia half scolded, her arms across the front of her apron covered dress.
"He's probably at home, by now. Bastard tried to fight me on coming over here. Turns out he knows how..." the older woman stopped herself before telling everyone too much.
Saipia closed her eyes and took a couple deep breathes. "Well, I don't want any scenes, Ellie. So, your husband better not barge in here and start accusing me and stuff."
James smiled at that and she took a seat. "And sorry, I don't have anything with me. I did have a awesome pot of chili all made up, but Jason threw it out the window. Which is when I stopped the car and made him walk home."
Saipia just shook her head at her friend. Everyone passed the over-forty-year-old maned wolf a frown. No one wanted her marital problems to ruin their Thanksgiving. "Well, why don't you take some of that aggression out on some potatoes and sweet potatoes."
With an acknowledging nod, James entered the kitchen while Saipia put some final touches on the table and seating arrangements. "Dinner should be ready in about an hour, so feel free to talk amongst yourselves and get to know each other," said Gjai as she exited the kitchen, as well.
The final guests to arrive were the two lowest ranking members of Saipia's team: James Jewels and her coroner Bryan Andrews. They arrived together and with a lot of encouragement from Jim. "Would you stop, pushing me around?" Bryan complained to the border collie behind him, who was quite literally pushing him through the door of Saipia's house.
"Only if you promise not to run off. I know you like to be alone on the holidays, but our lovely commander invited us to spend this holiday with her. It would be stupid and rude not to accept her invitation," Jim told the Amur leopard.
Sai smiled at the two. "Don't think that such flattery will get you anywhere, Jimmy. Jack has a better change of sleeping with me than you do."
"That better not happen," Zoyah snapped before Timothy could stop her.
"Zoy, she's nearly twenty-six years old. If she wants to date a hyena or whatever, I think it's her decision," the white male wolf said calmly.
"But it goes against tradition," Zoyah commented.
"Mother, we're walking, talking animals with hands and other more human features. Not much about us Genoids is traditional," Peter remarked.
"However, it is important to remember our heritage. From both sides of the DNA pool. We Genoids have to remember that we not only have animal DNA inside us, but human DNA, as well," Saipia added as her cellphone buzzed her.
"Good point, sis," Ryan smiled.
Saipia glanced at the screen of her phone and almost didn't answer it when she saw who was calling. "Hello, Mayor Ashley. How is your Thanksgiving going?" the wolf greeted as politely as she could, but the mention of the mayor's name made everyone in the house pause to listen. "That's good. Is there something you needed from me?" As expected, the Mayor wanted the Angels to go galivanting off on some odd ball mission. "No, Mayor, I'm not going to come in, and neither is the rest of my team. I'm on vacation, and I sent the others on a special assignment. They won't be back until tomorrow." Ashley Langly was irate at Saipia's casual refusal. "I don't care if you're the mayor of Mars, I'm not giving up my vacation for one of your stupid missions. The last one nearly got me and my team killed." When Ashley continued to demand Saipia's services, the white wolf simply hung up her phone then shut it off. She then turned to her team and said, "I don't want any of you to answer your cellphones for the remainder of today unless it's absolutely necessary. Ashley isn't going to use us as her little obedient pets, no matter what she thinks and who her friends are."
Her team all nodded their acknowledgment of the order before returning to their conversations. To Saipia's relief, there were no more interruptions until everyone was getting ready to sit down for dinner. It was then that Saipia and James both caught the sound of a window sliding open upstairs. Instantly, Sai stood to her feet and pulled a loaded pistol from underneath the table while James stayed in her seat, already knowing her assignment. "Erica, you're with me. Jimmy, Jack, why don't you go and check the outside of the house. James, Peter, Ryan, and Gjai, stay here and protect my parents," ordered the commander.
Wordlessly, everyone nodded as Erica took up the lead as she and Saipia moved towards the stairs. Erica slipped her pistol from the waistband of her jeans and eased up the stairs with it pointed towards the ground. Quietly, the two officers ascended the steps, careful not to make any noise and cautious not to alert whoever was breaking in that they had been caught.
Saipia's wolf nose quickly picked up the scent of humans in plastic and kevlar riot gear. Her ears picked up the faint creaking of floorboards as the members of the Genoid Elimination Squad did their best to keep silent. Saipia cursed to herself at the audacity of the mayor. But, she wasn't about to let anyone ruin her Thanksgiving.
Erica prepared to slip around a corner and begin the attack, but Saipia stopped her with a raising of her fist. With another motion of her hand, Erica lowered her weapon and waited for her commander's orders. Saipia could hear Jack and Jimmy moving around to the side of the house where a ladder was propped against the house. A door at the top of the stairs creaked open. As that happened Jack and Jimmy pulled the ladder away from the house, sending a couple GES members plummeting to the ground. The distraction gave Saipia the window she was looking for and, without looking, swung her pistol around the corner and took out all the enemies she could.
As soon as she had finished, Erica leveled her weapon over the wolf's shoulder as more GES members broke in the door. "Stop!" Saipia shouted. "You're trespassing on private property," demanded Saipia.
"You're Genoids. According to..." started one of the GES officers.
"According to laws recently passed in Los Angelas, Genoids have the same damn rights are humans. And I'm Commander Saipia Jones of the Hollywood Police Department and leader of the GUEST. This is my house, and you bastards are definitely not welcome in it," spat the irritated wolf as more officers came down the stairs and were met with Erica's pistol and a second pistol from Saipia.
The GES officers glanced at each other for a moment. "Boss, didn't Mayor Ashley..." an officer began.
"Mayor Ashley is just pissed because I wouldn't play her little puppet. You can go back however and tell her to kiss my blue dyed ass and if she interrupts my vacation again, she'll have me to answer to personally," Saipia said.
"You know, though, we are the Genoid Elimination Squad. So, following orders from a Genoid really isn't one of our..." the GES leader started but Saipia put a bullet in his head.
"Anyone else want to be a dumbass?" she asked as she reloaded her pistol.
"But, there are fifty of us left, and only ten of you," said another human.
Outside, Liv Ashton, owner and operator of all the Genoid Abduction Rings in the city stood in amongst a small army of Genoids. In the weeks since Halloween and when she gave the Angels her training house, she had done a lot of studying of the Angels and had developed a great respect for Saipia and her team. With a smile and a nod, her army quickly rushed in and began to either kill or kidnap the GES members.
There wasn't much that went on in Hollywood that Liv didn't know about. The melanistic zebra actually caught the GES wandering through the Genoid side of the city herself. When she learned where they were headed, she called in her army. The humans were now out numbered and the Angels had a temporary ally.
The commotion outside the house made the humans inside swallow in fear. After a couple minutes, Liv had her troops pause in their attack. "So, are you going to get the hell out of my house, or does more blood have to be shed?" Saipia asked.
After a long pause the new leader of the GES lowered his weapon in surrender and motioned for his men to leave. There was no point in fighting a loosing battle and the President would never be able to pay them enough to give their lives for some petty hatred.
When the last of the humans left, Liv walked herself up the steps. She took a look at Saipia there was no doubt that they would normally be on opposite sides. After a moment, Liv turned to her minions. "Take care of the bodies. We wouldn't want Miss Jones ruining her Thanksgiving by having to deal with the dead." As Liv gave the orders, her main slave, a shorter wolf by the name of Heather, came up the steps. "Heather, my dear, I want you to order a carpet replacement service for Commander Jones. Make sure she gets to pick out the new carpet, as well."
"Why are you doing this?" Saipia asked.
Liv smiled. "Granted, you and I would normally be fighting against each other, but we aren't so different. I think, since it's the holidays, we can put aside our differences."
Saipia heaved a relieved sigh and put away her guns, nodding to the horse as she did. Jack and Jimmy finally arrived back at the front of the house, their guns drawn. "Freeze..." started Jack.
"No. Lower your weapons and come inside. There will be no more bloodshed today," Saipia ordered.
"But, Sai, that's..." the hyena protested.
"I know full well who she is. I don't care at the moment, either. I am on vacation, and if Miss Ashton respects me as much as I think, she can stay out of trouble for a couple days. Besides, if she hadn't come along with some friends, we would probably be dead," Saipia reaffirmed.
Not wanting to get on Saipia's bad side, Jimmy and Jack put their guns away and re-entered the house. As soon as the bodies were gone, Liv and her friends left, leaving Saipia and her family and friends to their dinner. No one really talked much, and the dinner turned out to less joyous than Saipia had hoped, but it was good to see the people in her life that meant the most to her.
***
The next morning, Saipia once again dyed her white fur to it's almost normal blue color. She was very thankful and impressed at the politeness and effeciancy of the carpet replacement service Liv had arranged. She suspected the Genoids were from one of the abduction rings, but they did an excellent job and there really was no way of telling whether they were slaves or not. They arrived in a marked truck, had proper uniforms and Saipia suspected their paperwork was also probably in order, but she didn't bother to check.
Gjai and Saipia finally agreed on pattern and color for all the rooms that were getting carpet replaced, and the workers quickly got to work tearing up the old, blood stained carpet and putting the new stuff down.
The sisters were enjoying some coffee on the couch and a couple books while the workers worked when Saipia noticed that it was beginning to snow outside. "Will you look at that. The first snowfall of the season. That reminds me that I still need to do some Christmas shopping. You want to come with me?"
Gjai shrugged. "Not really, considering the only person I have left to shop for is you," said the white wolf.
"Alright. Just don't accept any offers from these workers. I know they look innocent, but if they did come from Liv's collection of slaves, then they probably shouldn't be trusted too much," Saipia replied.
"Actually, from what I hear, Liv is a pretty smart lady with several degrees. If she was going to kidnap us, she would have done it by now. She sounds like a woman of her word and she promised us new carpet and pretty much promised she would leave you alone for the holidays," Gjai countered.
Sai just laughed as she put on some boots and a coat and scarf. Grabbing her keys from a lock box, she walked out to her car and headed towards the store. As she drove the snow grew thicker and thicker. She smiled at the almost white out conditions as she remembered being a kid in California and it being sixty degrees and sunny on winter. It hadn't been that way in about ten years, though. The climates had changed drastically over the years. Although, southern California was still considered a desert, it snowed every winter, now.
This year was different for, Saipia, though. Now, as she did her shopping, she got a lot of smiles and waves from everyone around her. Even a lot of the humans gave her a friendly wave. It was something she wasn't quite use to, but she was a celebrity, now. She and her Angels had been in the limelight for a while now, and every mission brought them further and further into the minds of the populous. Nothing, however, spoke to the blue canine more than when a mother brought her children over and promptly gave the police officer a hug. "Miss Jones, I'm so sorry for my forwardness, but you have no idea the good you're doing. My sister was kidnapped by one of the abduction rings, but now she's back and she's doing so much better. Thank you so much for everything you've done," the woman told her.
Saipia had met the a lot of the abduction ring victims before, but no one who had known a victim. She wasn't prepared for the knot in her throat or the joy in her heart at the words of the strange woman. "You're welcome. We're just trying to do what's right. I mean, someone had to eventually stand up to the humans, and I am glad I decided to do it."
"Well, you just keep doing it. You're doing an excellent job," commented the woman who quickly hurried on her way, leaving Saipia to dwell on her thoughts and what had just transpired.
* * *
Saipia finished her Christmas shopping, double checking her list to make sure she had everything and headed out to her car. As she opened the trunk, Liv appeared out of the white mist to give her a hand loading the presents into her car. "Liv Ashton. To what do I owe this visit from you?" the commander asked.
"They're right, you know. What you and your Angels are doing is excellent and wonderful. I actually wish I had thought of it. Perhaps then, there wouldn't be as much crime in this city. Maybe, if things had been different, we'd be partners or something," Liv answered.
"Those are some interesting words coming from the most powerful crime lord the world has ever seen," remarked the wolf.
Liv shook her head. "I may be that, but, only because my childhood wasn't as enjoyable as yours was. I didn't have any parents to love me, nor did I have any siblings to watch out for me. Everyone I met in my life told me I was a monster or treated me like one. So, that's what I became. But, maybe, one of these Christmas, I'll hang it up and retire. Maybe for your birthday I'll let you catch me."
Saipia laughed. "Are you trying to say you regret your life of crime?"
"That, my dear is exactly what I'm saying. Would you believe I'm only in it for the sex, now? It used to be about the money. But, as it turns out, money can only buy you loneliness," Liv laughed with the younger woman. "And don't think yesterday was the only time I'll lend my services to you. In fact, you and your team have free pick of my slaves free of charge, any time you'd like. You know, not all of my Sex Shops are illegal. Most of the strip clubs and escort services in this city are mine, too."
Saipia laughed at the offer. "Thank you, Liv. I know a couple people on my team who'd be interested in that. I'm not one of them, but thanks anyway."
"Suit yourself, Saipia. But, just so you know, as far as I'm concerned, you and I are allies. In fact, I'll even help you get rid of my illegal slave rings in this city. They were getting to be too much of a liability anyway. Especially with Mayor Ashley on the payroll. She likes her Genoid slaves, but she also likes to run her mouth. And to prove to you that what I say is the truth, here's the recording of what our beloved mayor wanted me to do:" with that, Liv produced a tape recorder and began to playback a message from Mayor Ashley ordering Liv to actually kidnap Saipia and her sister.
The blue wolf smiled at the recording. "Sounds like she wants me for herself."
Liv returned the smile and stopped the recording. "You have no idea. She's been requesting you as a slave for a while. But, the more research I did on you, the more I couldn't bring myself to do it. Don't worry about Ashley, she runs her mouth so much, it won't be hard to keep her out of your fur for the most part. It'll be those Genoid Elimination Squad idiots that will be the bigger problem. My power doesn't quite reach the White House, so I have no clue what Izen is up to."
"That fat bastard wants all of us Genoids dead. But, you know, if either Ashley or Izen find out your on my side, they'll be hell to pay, and I don't think you'd survive it," Saipia replied.
"True. But, that shouldn't be a problem. As long as your closing down my abduction rings and we have an encounter every once and a while, those two shouldn't expect a thing," Liv replied as she opened Saipia's door for her. "Oh, and Saipia, for the record, if we do end up facing off in a fight to the death, you won't be the one to die. I'd end my own life before I took yours."
"Right. Alright, I should get back to the house before my sister starts to worry," Sai said and let Liv shut her door before backing out of her spot and driving away.
Liv watched as the taillights of Saipia's car disappeared into the falling snow. Heather wondered up next her mistress from somewhere in the mist. "Are you really making her your ally, Miss?"
"Yes. Our missions are the same, and it is better to be on her side than dead. I have a feeling that she will succeed in her mission and any who stand in her way will parish while those who help her along will benefit from it. After all, they are Angels, aren't they?"
Heather nodded. "And Guardian Angels at that."
Next Time:
Liv Ashton and the Angels allies? Could it really be? As the New Year approaches, a mission outside the city will strain friendships when the Saipia and Jack are stranded together in the Nevada desert, an a forbidden relationship is put under the microscope.
