Mated to the Beast of the Wasteland novel Chapter 5

Chapter 5 Some Big Shot?

“I’m really lucky to have met you, Freya,” Gillian said, genuinely touched by the unexpected kindness.
Freya smiled warmly. “Alright now, sweetie, no need to look like you’re about to cry,” she said, giving Gillian’s shoulder a gentle pat.
Gillian flinched a little at her touch. Her shoulder, nearly crushed by that Grayson family beast, was still tender. She thought cutting off his d*ck was more than fair.
Freya’s smile vanished as her eyes caught the vivid bruises on Gillian’s neck.
“That j*rk!” she swore, her voice sharp with anger. “How could he be so rough with you? Doesn’t he know how to be gentle with his own mate?”
Realizing Freya had misunderstood, Gillian quickly clarified, her voice soft, “This was from the Grayson family beast choking me. It has nothing to do with him.”
“Oh,” Freya said. She finally got it. That explains why she’s so desperate to join the legion.
She looked at Gillian with renewed sympathy. Gillian was so young, yet she’d dared to take her grandmother and flee to Wasteland City. Most females wouldn’t even bond with a 9th Legion soldier, much less follow one.
That Grayson b*stard really backed her into a corner.
“I don’t know about others,” Freya said, her tone firming with conviction, “but you’ll fit right in at Wasteland City. The Graysons can’t reach you there. You and Mabel should get some rest. It’ll be rough for a few days. I’ll come get you once we arrive.”
Gillian nodded gratefully. She understood what Freya meant. Clerics were valued everywhere, not just in Wasteland City.
Unlike males, who could naturally shift, females couldn’t. Their primal core awakened psychic power instead. A rare few gained special abilities like purification. Some females never awakened any power at all.
In my past life, my primal core was destroyed. That was why I was so helpless. This time, I won’t be a lamb waiting for slaughter.
Freya was willing to help her; after all, Gillian was worth helping.
After Freya left, Gillian led Mabel back to their seats.
The military shuttle was much larger than civilian sightseeing ones. Once they’d eaten, Gillian took Mabel to the shuttle’s central hub.
The beastman at the reception desk was very polite when he learned she was a dependent.
“I was told by Captain Reed that dependents can get replacement wrist terminals here,” Gillian began. “Both my grandmother’s and mine are broken. Could we get two?”
Her voice was soft and gentle. It was a natural side effect of her purification training.
The beastman immediately lit up. She was so pleasant. He hadn’t seen such a pretty female in forever.
Which lucky b*stard ended up with her?!
“According to regulations, you can only get one,” he explained. “But you can use your mate’s military points to purchase a second one.”
That seemed reasonable to Gillian. As Merrick’s mate, using his points was her right. No problem there.
“Then please issue me one. My mate’s name is Merrick Cole.”
“Of course, one moment please.”
The beastman input the name and found Merrick’s status was encrypted. He couldn’t see anything besides his name.
But with his clearance level, his mate was eligible for an S-class wrist terminal! A rank like that in the 9th Legion meant at least a colonel! There were nearly thirty colonels in the 9th Legion.
Is there one named Merrick? I don’t recall. Could he be a new transfer?
He double-checked. The mate listed for Merrick was indeed the female before him.
“Please wait a moment. Your wrist terminal is being retrieved.”
Gillian clearly noticed his attitude grow more respectful.
Is Merrick’s rank actually pretty high?
The beastman operated a console. The surface rose and presented two female wrist terminals.
Both were simple in design, made of a dark gold material. The S-class one had subtle griffin patterns etched into it, but otherwise they looked similar.
The beastman pointed to the extra one. “Due to your mate’s rank, you qualify for a complimentary A-class wrist terminal as well.”
Gillian asked, “No points needed?”
“None.”
Gillian thought Merrick was pretty mysterious. After all, if he weren’t special, he couldn’t have fathered Elias and Asher.
Gillian said, “Thank you. May I ask, can a military wrist terminal create a false identity and block tracking?”
“Ms. Sterling, such illegal activities are naturally not permitted,” the soldier said. He then produced a small chip and inserted it into the storage core of the A-class wrist terminal.
“Your S-class wrist terminal is already state-of-the-art. This little thing is a gift for your grandmother. I hope she enjoys it.”
So, with the chip, it’s legal? Impressive. Gillian was doubtful but willing to try.
She put the wrist terminal on Mabel. When she turned it on, Mabel was delighted to find a sub-account under her original one.
The chip provided a brand new, blank StarNet identity. Mabel promptly deleted her old account. Now they didn’t have to worry about being tracked.
When Gillian logged into her own new wrist terminal, she found the interface completely different from her old civilian one.
It had access to many encrypted StarNet channels. She tested it for a while and took a deep breath.
You can’t buy a terminal this good with money. I need time to figure it all out.
Gillian had a lot to do. Thankfully, she could apply for dependent housing in Wasteland City in advance through the terminal.
She didn’t transfer the coins back from the joint sub-account. It wasn’t out of generosity—the transfer fees would have hurt.
She did, however, save the naked photo back onto her new device.
Merrick seemed really busy. It had been two hours since she sent the message, and he hadn’t responded.
That was normal. They’d just met. Thinking back to the chaotic state they were in, Gillian’s face heated up.
The soldiers of the 9th Legion are strong in bed too.
*****
Merrick was on his private shuttle, already back in Wasteland City. A small-scale taint outbreak required him to lead a team deep into the source zone.
He had disabled all unimportant functions on his wrist terminal. Only the legion’s encrypted StarNet channel remained active.
He had no idea that the female he’d bonded with in Goldspine City was now following close behind him to Wasteland City.
*****
After familiarizing herself with the new wrist terminal, Gillian applied for two small sleep pods on the shuttle in Merrick’s name. She settled in with Mabel.
Her S-class wrist terminal even had a 35-cubic-foot storage space made by high-level clerics. It could hold all the clothes she and Mabel had brought.
Is the beastman I bonded with some big shot in the 9th Legion?
She’d lived a long time but never heard of a wrist terminal with storage space.
She recalled the graduation ceremony. The beastmen from the 9th Legion who attended were all over forty, sitting there with stern, intimidating expressions. No one dared to enlist.
The one I bonded with is quite young, in his early twenties. He has a great waist and a handsome face.
Ugh. Quit dwelling on it.