Selective Service, Volume II

Trotting along in the depths of the subterranean base, Vise couldn’t make it more than a few paces before being stopped and chatted up by the innumerable Aco-Lights. Despite Swift’s protest, she couldn’t help but pop in from time to time - that and seeing her coltfriend in his uniform was a relatively rare treat. She looked over her shoulder and waved, bidding farewell to a nameless goon who’d asked her if she needed directions, and continued on her merry way.

All in all, things couldn’t have been better for her. Swift was just as big and lovable as ever, Torque’s mood had improved dramatically since he’d started seeing Měi, and she couldn’t have been happier with the way things had been going for her - yeah, having a superhero for a brother and a villain as a lover could make things complicated at times, having to constantly remind herself that she couldn’t let certain details slip in conversations, but that was a small price to pay for joy she felt each and every day. Rounding a corner and peeking back, catching the Aco-Light eyeing her rear, she giggled and ran into something big, warm, and surprisingly soft.

She recoiled on instinct and immediately went still. Looming over her had to be the biggest griffon she’d ever laid eyes upon. So large as to even give Swift a run for his money, the mountainous cat-bird turned to face her and glowered. She wasn’t sure what was more surprising, the creature’s size or the fact that the behemoth was most assuredly a she.

“S…sorry about that,” she stammered, flustered from having nearly planted her face in the griffon’s backside.

Looking her over, the she-beast gave a small, disgruntled snort. “As if I don’t have enough problems to deal with, now I’ve got minions who can’t even look where they’re going…”

Vise nearly wrinkled her nose at the rude comment, but she managed to smile and extend a foreleg. “It’s just easy to get distracted around here. I’m Vise.”

“Grell,” the griffon responded, almost reluctantly shaking the proffered hoof.

“I feel like I’ve heard that name before,” Vise thought aloud. “Are you new?”

As she waited for a reply, her eyes drifted over the giantess. With jet-black plumage, eyes like rubies, a crimson tuft of hair on her chest, azure fur on her face and tip of her tail, and a mop of cerulean and white feathers atop her head, Grell was striking - well, apart from her sheer enormity. The griffon was adorned in an unfamiliar uniform, wholly different to her own, which is a part of why she’d asked her question.

“I was about to ask you the same thing,” Grell countered, releasing the pony’s leg. “Name and rank, Aco-Light?”

Starting, Vise straightened up and gave a salute. “Vise Grip, class B engineer, ma’am.”

Grell’s expression softened slightly, though she appeared largely unmoved. “Good mare. No, I’m not new, but I could forgive you for thinking I was.”

“Same - well, no, kind of,” she laughed. “I’m part time.”

“Part time?” Grell parroted, glowering. “I swear, this place has gone to pot since I left…”

Batting a hoof, she chuckled. “Come on, it’s not that bad. Swi - er - Blister runs a pretty tight ship.”

“Not tight enough,” Grell grumbled, squinting down at her. “And how do you know Blister?”

Vise rubbed the back of her neck, looked away, and bit back a giggle. “I guess you could say he hired me,” she responded, quoting the air with her wingtips. “I’m guessing you know him?”

Keeping her eyes on her, Grell took a small step forward. “What’s it matter to you?”

“Just making conversation,” Vise laughed. “I haven’t spoken with Burner much, but Blister’s a good stallion.”

“They both are, but I ~ what am I doing?” Grell groused, shaking her head. “Get back to work, watch where you’re going, and mind your own beeswax ~ got it?”

Snapping a second salute, Vise swung her eyes forward. “Yes ma’am!”

Without saying another word, Grell plodded off and left her to her lonesome. Though she was a bit shaken by the brief encounter, her curiosity was well and thoroughly piqued. Who was this Grell? How did she know Swift and Burner? What did she mean when she’d mentioned having left? Ignoring her instincts and best judgment, she threw up a hoof.

“Ma’am?” she called, hoping she wasn’t about to make a mistake.

Grell slowed but kept along her way. “What is it, engineer?”

“I - um - didn’t catch your rank,” she shouted.

“I’m an Ig-Nite, first class, and - Oh for buck’s sake!” Grell bellowed, turning and looking down a corridor. “If you three don’t clean this up right bucking now, I’m going to have you scrubbing toilets with a toothbrush - specifically your toothbrush for the rest of the week!”

Vise watched in awe while the griffon flew into a rage. Swift wasn’t one to shy away from using his imposing size to its fullest effect, intimidating his underlings when necessary, but Grell was another matter entirely. The beaked berserker barked orders and stomped her clawed feet - heck, she even went so far as to grab and throw a trash can at the poor souls that had evoked her ire!

She ultimately reined herself in and scampered away, realizing she was probably already on thin ice and that Grell clearly had her claws full. It would only be a matter of time until Swift found out she was paying the base another unannounced visit, and she was not about to get herself in trouble before that happened - that being said, she was definitely going to ask him about Grell. Rolling the griffon’s name around in her mind, knowing full well that she’d heard it somewhere, she made her way toward the bowels of the compound and what she felt sure were machines that needed tending to…