Arlene and JeffChapter 230
- 3 years ago
- 27
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As everyone walked down the hall toward the theater, Selina hung back. When Diana turned and caught her eye, Selina, with purpose, walked on past, turned the corner and went on to her suite. If I do not ask, then the answer cannot be no, she thought. Waiting four minutes by her internal clock, she walked back out of her suite, down the hall and peeked around the corner in the direction of the theater. There was no one in the hallway.
Shortly, she slowly opened the theater door the tiniest crack in order to listen. When she heard Diana talking, she eased the door open a little more until she could see through the crack.
Arlene had just set two small garbage cans down near Nat, Nicki and Whitney as they sat on the front row. Fred and his mates sat behind the girls on the second row. "Last chance, girls," the Queen said. "This is actual combat to the death with knives. It's quite ... gross. Whether you watch it or not is your decision. You've been warned."
"We were kidnapped and raped," Nat said. "Jeff rescued us. He or Captain Madison, or maybe both of them, killed Ingles. We're prepared. We've been told what happened at the base, but we want to see it ourselves."
"Okay. We'll show the knife fight first. After that, I'll leave. I don't want to see the fight outside the Retreat. I, like my husband, don't want to bring back the memories of Arlene almost dying." Diana fought the last words out past a lump in her throat as she turned her gaze on her daughter for a moment.
Still standing in front, Arlene picked up the remote and for a second, her eyes focused on the door. There was the barest moment of hesitation. Selina knew Arlene's sharp eyes had seen her. The genius held her breath, but Arlene didn't give Selina's presence away.
Kayla, having decided to come with the others after all, got up and walked over to stand beside Arlene and Diana. "Let me say something, Di, before you run the vid, please." At Diana's nod, Kayla turned to look first at Nat, Nicki and Whitney, then over at Fred and his group. "I need to tell you something about the base and the group that Jeff and I work for. Jeff gave you a general outline, but there are a couple of things I would like to add so maybe you will more fully understand what you're about to see on the screen. Nat, Nicki and Whitney, you've been to the base, but probably didn't get much of a chance to see or understand things while you were there, although you've heard us talk about some of this.
"First off, even though there are a fairly large number of scientists, technicians, and so forth at the base, they have all received the basics of combat training. Let me stress that their combat training in no way provides them with the skills to actually be on a combat team, but neither are they pushovers when it comes to a fight. Everyone, and I do mean everyone, has to qualify on the range every six months. And that doesn't mean that they just go out and fail and then are coached through the course until they manage to shoot a minimum passing grade. Everyone has to put in at least eight hours on the range every month. If you have been off-world, and get behind on your range hours, then you are required to catch up when you return. I understand there have been some pissed-off scientists who thought they were too important for the rule to apply to them. Their blocks were checked, and they were sent packing.
"The idea behind all this is that help may be days or weeks away, even after a Mayday is sent. Our scientists are working to improve the portal, and from what I hear, they are stymied – plateaued if you will – on increasing the diameter of the portal opening. Even when it is working properly, it's an energy hog, is slow to recover, and when a Mayday comes in, there may also be others who have an emergency at the same time. So the portal could be tied up, or even down for repairs when an off-world science team is attacked. There has been more than one group of aliens who has found out that even the scientists have teeth. We push the panic button, and fight, if need be.
"I finished college, was recruited by the FBI and attended their academy in Quantico. Not long after I graduated from the academy, I was given the opportunity to join an organization that is so secret few people not working there have even heard of it. I'm an anthropologist. I spent a couple of years, mostly off-world, answering to a prick who was in charge of the team, and who loved to take credit for his underlings' work. It finally came back to bite him in the butt, but that's another story.
"The fight you are about to see was sanctioned by the General in charge of the base. There aren't many fights, but the ring is used when all else fails concerning a grievance between personnel. Most fights – what few there are – are with boxing gloves, but occasionally there is a true unarmed combat match. It has been a long time since the last fight to the death match, but the rule was in effect when Buckmann challenged Jeff, and it still is. Buckmann was already sentenced to death, so his only purpose was to take his personal enemy with him. Our husband accepted the challenge to personally avenge the attack on us that Buckmann had orchestrated.
"With probably his last breath, or at least one of his last, Buckmann lunged to kill Jeff before the fight had officially begun – not that it did him any good. Our Prime killed him, anyway."
Kayla looked at Nat, Nicki and Whitney. "The three of you and I seemed to hit it off both at Ingles home and later at the base, and we formed a bond almost instantly. As you know, the General sent me to help ease your transition to your new home and family here at the Retreat, but my true mission is to be the last line of defense for our Prime." She directed her final comment to Fred and his family. "Jeff is the only one the starship will allow to command her, so the General is adamant that nothing bad will ever happen to Jeff. I'm still amazed that the General allowed the fight to occur. Maybe it was male pride on both their parts, or ego. Maybe the General knew beyond the slightest doubt what the outcome would be. Maybe our Prime couldn't be denied. I don't know. I just wanted everyone to fully understand how the fight occurred. And if you have a weak stomach, you had better keep one of those garbage cans close by."
Kayla sat, and Arlene killed the lights completely, then started the video with the sound turned up.
Selina crouched low and opened the door enough to slip through. A few seconds later, the six-year-old slid into a seat just inside the doorway, hunkering down until she could barely see over the seat in front of her.
On the giant screen in the small theater, they watched as the high-res camera panned the audience at the arena, before focusing on the ring. The audience, both on screen and those watching in the theater, became totally silent.
On screen, Major Bailey said, "This is a match to the death. Do you agree?"
"Yes!" Buckmann snapped out before Bailey even got the words fully said.
"And you, Colonel Matthews, do you agree?"
"Yes," Jeff said, his voice quiet, but firm, the PA system, nevertheless, echoing his voice throughout the auditorium as it had Buckmann's. In the theater, everyone held his or her breath.
"Very well, in keeping with tradition..."
Buckmann lunged and Jeff reacted. With the sound turned up, they could hear Buckmann's wrist shatter as Jeff blocked, and at almost the same instant there was the sickening sound as the Prime's knife hissed through Buckmann's body, severing flesh, bone and muscle. Arterial blood sprayed Major Bailey. Jeff's three youngest wives sucked in a simultaneous breath as Buckmann's body toppled backward, his severed intestines spilling their contents as blood, urine and fecal matter joined an ever-widening puddle around the once-colonel's body.
Selina leaned forward, capping her hand over her mouth. As the vid continued on the screen, the camera zoomed in until Buckmann, or what was left of him, filled the screen.
"Isn't that thing hanging out of what's left of Buckmann's pants his..."
"Yep," Arlene answered. "I think our husband shortened him up a bit."
Arlene froze the vid for all to see the gruesome sight of Buckmann split open. Selina peeked over the seat after finally conquering her stomach. Her eyes got big and she ducked her head the second time, trying to suppress a gag.
Arlene hit Play again. The edited video showed different angles, and eventually the fight in slow motion. A bit later, Diana walked by, patting Selina on the head as she passed. "If you puke on my carpet, I'll expect you to clean it up."
She knew I was here, Selina thought. When Diana left, closing the door behind her, Selina smiled, both proud that the Queen had not made her leave and pleased that she (Selina) had not sprayed the contents of her stomach onto the carpet. I certainly have a terrible taste in my mouth, she thought, swallowing. Nat, Nicki and Whitney did not vomit. Nor shall I, she vowed, swallowing again and taking a shuddering breath.
A COUPLE OF HOURS LATER
Selina, much like Jeff, could awaken whenever she wanted. Now that she had received Little One's enhancement, she needed less sleep. At home with her parents, she had taken naps after dinner in order to be able to awaken after her parents and the servants were asleep. She had surfed the net, worked with projects she knew her parents wouldn't allow, or explored her home, her dad's home office and sometimes even the surrounding area of her neighborhood. She had always loved to sneak around and listen to people, and had sometimes played tricks on the servants while they slept. Hiding a shoe well up under the bed, resetting the volume on a TV so that it came on blaring, a lot of little things that amused her and passed the time.
She had watched a couple of movies in the theater with the Matthews, but she had never explored their video collection. She, of course, wasn't interested in the family movies. She had overheard Arlene, Ann, Jennie and Melissa discussing a sex scene they had seen. Although she was almost certain the movie they discussed wasn't a true porn movie, it certainly seemed to have enough sex in it to interest the four young wives.
Selina wasn't really interested in sex – could not fully understand why anyone would be, but intellectually, she knew she would probably have a different opinion after undergoing puberty. But, she was bored and there was nothing else she wanted to do at the moment, so she turned on the lights in the theater and began to explore the Matthews video library.
Jeff and his wives had just settled in for the night. Diana was snuggled on his left shoulder with Arlene on his right. The muted sounds of surf came from hidden speakers about the room, Laura having chosen the seashore sound tonight after being reminded of the ocean from hearing about their friends' trip to Florida in the RV. Diana was worried because Jeff had seemed preoccupied. When she had asked him about it, he had just shrugged and said he was a bit uptight for some reason.
Just as they had drifted off, the phone rang with the distinctive sound of a call originating in the Retreat. Caitlin, on the outside of the big bed nearest the phone, rolled to her side and fumbled the instrument out of its charging cradle and to her ear.
"Caitlin," she mumbled.
"This is General Whitworth. I need to speak with your husband ASAP."
"Yes, Sir," Caitlin said, snapping fully awake at the General's tone.
"Jeff, it's the General," she said, sitting up and reaching the phone over to her mate. As Jeff took the phone and sat up, Caitlin brought the lights up with the remote.
"Sir?" the Prime answered.
"Colonel, when you were attacked Little One called the ship. Could she do it again?"
Jeff was fully awake now, fatigue and sleep washed away by a surge of adrenaline. "The ship made some ... enhancements to Little One. I can call the Ship through her."
"Do so, Colonel. I'm alerting your team as we speak. You need to be in Atlanta five minutes ago. I'll meet you out back. If we hurry and are lucky you may be able to keep a number of FBI agents from dying tonight. Get the ship here, Colonel."
"Yes, Sir."
Jeff made his way quickly to the side of the bed. Kayla thrashed to get her legs free of the sheet, then scrambled to the foot of the bed. "What is it?" she asked her new Husband as she stood.
Jeff tossed the phone back to Caitlin and spoke up so everyone could hear. "All I know right now is that some FBI agents are going to die unless we help them. The General is activating the team, and I'm calling the Ship."
Jeff snatched Little One's drawer open, picked her up and placed her on his shoulder. Standing still, his eyes lost focus for a moment. His mind seemed to meld with Little One's for an instant, then reached out to the Ship. They touched for a heartbeat, then his mind was back in the room. Jeff didn't notice that all his wives, in varying degrees, had seemed to feel something too. Kayla, already hurrying toward the closet, staggered. Arlene and Diana groaned and grabbed their heads; Nat, Nicki and Whitney as one, shivered and let out a sigh. They all looked at each other.
"Wow!" Arlene exclaimed.
"Jeff?" Diana said quietly, but he was already in the big walk-in closet with his thumb pressed against the safe lock where he and Kayla kept their weapons. There were Glocks hidden about the Retreat and an assortment of other weapons locked in the case in the inside range, but the enhanced and off-world weapons that he and Kayla had were locked in the gun safe in the closet.
Jeff turned to Kayla, but before he could say anything, she, with a defiant look, said, "Don't even think about it, Husband. You know what my job is. I'm going with you. Besides, if I didn't, the General would have cause to have me up on charges. You wouldn't want one of your wives to embarrass you, would you?"
"I don't know what we're going to do, but you stay behind me. You let the team do what they are trained to do. I want you alive when this is over. Understand?"
Jeff's last word was so intense that Kayla could feel it. "Yes, My Prime," she said, meekly, as they hastily put on their uniforms and armor.
As Jeff tossed Kayla's pulse rifle to her, Diana came storming into the closet, grabbed Jeff and kissed him hard on the mouth, then turned to Kayla and did the same to her. "Take care of each other," she said as she backed up to give them room, tears streaming down her face. "I don't like this. I don't like this one damn bit."
Jeff knew better than to answer. He sat in a chair and forced his feet into the camouflage mesh, then stood to pull it up his body. Kayla, already in her camouflage suit, helped him, then fastened everything together in the back. When she turned her back to him, he finished fastening hers. Their equipment only took a couple of minutes more.
This story illustrates a risk of sex under hypnosis. It could be called rape. This story builds on ‘Arlene Gets Hypnotized,’ my previous story. * * * * * I was sitting in my office at the University when Arlene walked into my open office. ‘Professor, are you busy?’ I probably was, but Arlene was a delight to look at and to have around. Especially to a 58 year old psychology professor who was pretty much reduced to dreaming about what had been and might have been. ‘Well, I was deep in...
At eight on the dot, he carried a laughing Jennie into an instantly quiet kitchen. Still in his arms, Jennie kissed him. Turning to the other wives, she gave the proclamation, "I'm full of come," then followed with, "but ... I'm broken." That started the usual scramble, but they had the pussy cream in the kitchen this time, and Jeff insisted that he carry her to the hot tub. He kissed her tenderly, then was shooed away by Diana, who kissed him and whispered. "That glow on her face...
The Retreat Arlene and Ann finally managed to get Jeff reasonably alone for a couple of minutes. After kissing him passionately, Arlene transferred Little One to the Prime’s shoulder, where she made her way under his collar to her usual resting place spread across his back. As soon as she had settled in, he told her how much he loved and missed her before giving her a brief account of the trip. Little One told him how much she missed him and shared the happenings in Germany. All of this was...
THE RETREAT: LATE THURSDAY NIGHT Arlene and Selina sat on Selina's bed, their backs propped against pillows as they played with Billy. Arlene slid her hand back and forth under the sheet as Billy pretended to stalk a terribly dangerous prey. He held his body and his head very close to the bed, occasionally lifting his head slightly to peek at his target, the tip of his tail twitching continuously. Then, he would jump as high as he could, coming down on Arlene's hand, tussling with it...
A shaking of Ann's shoulder accompanied a discordant buzz from her watch. "Plebe, you have thirty minutes to shower, dress and get to your first class. You don't have time for breakfast today, so ask the AI for a couple of energy bars." Ann, bleary-eyed, shut her alarm off and swung her legs out of her bed as the Class Lieutenant, already immaculately clad in her uniform, stepped back to give the smaller girl room to stand. "Thanks, Arlene," Ann mumbled as she came to her feet and...
The Mission Hours later, Arlene and Ann, tired, eased to the edge of a high rock bluff overlooking the massive power station in the distance. “Well, they sure don’t bother to conserve energy, at least with their lights,” Arlene sarcastically remarked as they stared at the brilliantly lit station. Worried that they might be discovered, both young women had employed their sensors over the edge to gather information before proceeding with their mission. “Just how are we supposed to get from...
The women had pushed the two kitchen tables together. Frank Wainwright stood looking at them as Jeff, Kayla, and Diana came in. "We either need to get a bigger table in here, or start eating in the dining room." "Bigger table," Jeff and Diana said at almost the same time. "The dining room is too formal," Diana continued. "We want to be a family, and with all of us for three meals a day, it's a lot easier to serve in here than taking the food into the dining room. The kitchen is...
Ship ...”We were still here all the time?” Kathy got out with amazement. “Ann told me that Ship’s training was very realistic, but this is beyond...” she finished as her voice trailed off. Bill automatically put an arm about his wife as he cast a look around the room. “Arlene and Ann had something they needed to do, but they will meet you in the lounge,” Ship told them. Bill, Kathy, Arlene Ann and the two crews that had flown the training mission with them were all sitting around a big...
During breakfast in the dining room, Diana stood and tapped a spoon on her orange juice glass. When the room quieted, "Most of you already know, but for the ones who don't, Frank, Margaret, Tina, Bill, Kathy and Jill will be back from the island this morning. Margaret called me late yesterday from their hotel suite in Los Angeles. She said they were anxious to get home and would leave really early for the last leg of their trip back. I would appreciate it if all of those of us who will be...
The Retreat ... The Sheriff and his family had left. Jeff and Joe Martin were sitting in the living room talking while the women had gone somewhere, probably to the bathroom. “So, how’s the honeymoon going?” Jeff, at a loss for a topic, asked uncomfortably, not wanting to get into the subject that he thought Arlene should take care of. “Great. I’m still amazed that she actually married me. Sir, the woman brought some polish along and polished her wedding ring – a brand-new wedding ring. I...
... Ann raised a foot from the muck to shake off something that wiggled and flopped about as it tried to use its teeth and suckers on the near-impervious suit. But the skin suit sluffed off the creature’s actions without much notice, and she stomped it into the muck. A few minutes later, they were out of the water and on a long peninsula of muddy land that extended partway through the swamp. Tired, the two stopped for a breather. Turning, Ann started to make a comment, but instead screamed...
... Ann looked at the screen in front of her. “See that?” “Yeah,” Arlene said with a sigh. “Continental shelf. Our world is going shallow. We’re almost there.” “Chances are that very shortly we’re going to be brain dead for real,” Ann quietly said as she began yet another check of their systems. A few minutes later, they came to a halt in water no more than fifty feet deep. “I don’t see any signs of our intruder on my screen. How about yours?” Ann shook her head, then realized that...
Jeff had gotten a bid from the dealer on the Internet and there wasn't a salesman involved. The sales manager handled the business. "How long to prep the black one?" The manager grinned. "After I talked with you on the phone, I went ahead and prepped it, just in case. All I have to do is gas it up and it will be ready." "Fine. Do it, and we'll get the paperwork out of the way." A little later, the paperwork was done, and Jeff swiped his debit card. The sales manager seemed to...
Diana came back with a washcloth and helped her mother put it between her legs, and also helped her get her panties and shorts back on. Susan was still mostly out of it, her motions and actions slow and somewhat uncoordinated. "You really blew her away," Diana said to her husband as she sat and pulled her mother into her arms. "She really blew me away, too," Jeff said as he touched Susan's cheek. "I was aware enough to support most of my weight on my forearms, but all I wanted to do...
In the hallway, Susan threw a load of wet towels on the cart, then a moment later came back out of the suite with the vacuum cleaner she had been using. Muttering to herself, her face red, she hung the vacuum on the side of the cart and started for the next suite. "What's wrong, Meemi?" Arlene asked as she caught up to her grandmother. "Two people. Two people in there and they used up all the towels we left for them, plus extras that they demanded last night at 9:00 o'clock, then they...
... Jeff had also heard the door close, and shoved Helen into Diana's arms, causing Diana to stagger, Laura grabbing Helen to help. He pulled his .45 from his waistband and started down the hall, but even as he did so, he saw Arlene at the intersection of the hallways and knew he was too late. Jeff figured one of the mercenaries had to be in the hallway, and was probably doing the same thing Arlene was. (Slicing the pie at the intersection.) He also knew he would never make the...
The Retreat Diana frowned prettily. “That reminds me. We need to go back to 2214 to see if Jasmine and her sister-wives have caught up with their canning yet. We should do that tomorrow.” “Yep. And they need to get back into training as soon as possible too, but we can’t leave to visit them until the Sergeant and his crew have completed their investigation.” “So, how long will that take?” “As long as it takes,” Jeff responded to her frustration. “Look, Sergeant Higgins is in charge of the...
Diana parked in front of the art supply store. Hope, sitting in the second seat with Ann, started to open her door, but Ann put out a restraining hand. "Let Security do their thing first." "Are we really in that much danger?" Diana spoke up from the driver's seat. "We didn't go into details when we told you about the attack, and no, we don't expect it to happen again, but we didn't expect that attack, either. And, yeah, it's an irritant having to have Security everywhere we go,...
When they parked in the back, the door of the Retreat opened and all Jeff's younger wives, who had stayed home, came hurrying out accompanied by Selina. As Hope and Arlene exited the SUV with the puppies snuggled under their coats, Arlene pointed to an area just past the pavement near the side of the Retreat. "Mrs. Kimbrel said we should walk them as soon as we got home," Arlene told the others as she and Hope opened their coats enough to give everyone a peek at the baby...
The Retreat ... The young wives looked at each other before Arlene turned to her husband. “As per your orders, I’m continuing to schedule crews for patrol missions. Of course...” “But that’s not where you just came from,” Jeff interrupted to say. The two young women exchanged a look. “We might as well tell him and get it over with,” Ann said. Arlene stared at her partner, then with a sigh, agreed, but as she opened her mouth, Ann began to speak. “We know that the General has made every...
Hope held one of the outfits up as she repressed a giggle. "Dogs can see color, can't they?" Arlene grabbed Spike, who had apparently figured things out and was sneaking off. "Oh, no you don't, Big Boy. You get to try on your new snowsuit." Then answering Hope's question, "They can see colors, but I've read that the colors they see probably aren't as intense to dogs as they are to humans. They have fewer cones in their eyes, and humans have several different types of cones that...
... Arlene motioned to their forward screen and the rippling, wavering, blurry image there. “I can’t see worth a shit because of the burning atmosphere, and the sensors have packed up from the heat. But I think I’ll go to full shields right about...” A geyser shot hundreds of feet into the air as the craft hit the water with a sound that could be heard many, many miles away. Even at full shields, some of the shock bled through and, had it not been for the gravity field of their seats,...
Hi, To all Iss reader this is my first story hope U all would like it a complete fiction.my self raj i live in Mumbai this story is about my aunty nandita,let me describe her she is in her 30s,lives with her husband and daughter.She is born beauty with an awesome fig of 36.28.40 ..her assets are her huge melons of 36 d and her ass that will give a hard on to any guy who looks at it So now my story starts this was like 5 years ago when I was appearing for my 12 th HSC examination at that time my...
Laura woke him the usual way, and she almost went too far. When Jeff grunted and his cock started to swell, she jerked her mouth off. It was a near thing for a few seconds. "I guess I almost went off while I was still asleep," he groaned. "Wow, I'm really horny." "Sorry, Jeff. You usually go forever. I wouldn't mess it up for Diana for the world." "It wasn't your fault," he said, finally regaining control. "It's just the stress of the day. Of course, I've had two of those damn...
In their bedroom, dressed in pajamas, the girls flopped into bed. Terry grabbed the remote and dialed the lights down, then turned to her sister. "Arlene said that we wouldn't have any more periods until Little One turns them on for us again. Boy, I can sure live with that." Alice got a look on her face and responded, "Well, as you know, I've only had one, but it sure was icky – not to say anything about worrying if I were bleeding to death. If that's what it takes to be a woman, I...
Jeff and his women had showered and were in bed only moments when Ship announced that Arlene's scout was minutes away. Since the family was still using their suite on the Ship, they were quickly dressed – well partially anyway – and waiting for Arlene as she maneuvered her scout through the outer bay door and onto the flight deck. She didn't go all the way to the scout's bay though, but stopped in front of her family. An instant after the scout came to a halt, its belly hatch opened and...
The Waterfall Campsite ... Dessie straightened up and stared at Ann. “I have eaten pheasant, fish and rabbit until they’re practically coming out my ears. I’ve had MREs while backpacking and wasn’t in love with them all that much, but I think I would love some now, no matter what the meal consists of.” “We have an assortment. I noticed a Brisket Entreé, Chicken something or other, and a Beef Stew, with whatever goes with them, and several more besides. We just grabbed some at random in...
JUST OUTSIDE A SMALL NORTHWESTERN TOWN Once again Nichols sat worrying in front of his boss' elegant desk. Rich, wealthy, words don't describe the extreme category the older man fit into. Nor can you describe how evil this man is either, Nichols thought, his face devoid of expression as he waited for Mr. Moreau to end his phone call. Nichols dreaded that. When the call ended, Moreau would ask questions that Nichols didn't have acceptable answers to. The town council members think Moreau...
Jeff, Diana, Dave and Evie sat in the living room, waiting. When the phone rang, Diana checked the caller ID and answered. "Glad you guys are back." "Diana, I..." The voice chopped off, then Carla cleared her throat and tried again. "Diana, our dreams..." Carla's voice stopped again, to be replaced by quiet sobs of joy. "I can't..." "You just did," Diana said softly. "You're on speaker, so all of us can hear you. Jeff, Dave and Evie are here with me and listening. And, you're...
...”See that tree that has the broken limb hanging down?” “Yes,” Aiko gasped out. “We’ll jog to it, then we will walk for a hundred steps.” “I don’t know...” “Yes, you do. You know you can. I’ll bet it’s even less than a hundred steps. Let’s count them,” she finished as she began counting their steps aloud while they slow-jogged. Soon Aiko added her voice. “Ninety-two. Told you it was less than a hundred. Now we’ll walk for a hundred steps, and rested or not, we will jog starting at...
The Retreat As Charlotte and Diana sat at the bar in the kitchen watching the other women, Selina stopped by. "Want to help?" the little genius asked the young woman. Worried, Charlotte answered, "Everything is happening so fast that I barely know what's going on." "Oh, you will get used to that," Selina said as she reached for Charlotte's hand. "Well, I'll be glad to help if I can." Charlotte glanced at Diana, who nodded with a smile. "No better way than to just dive...
They were high up and soon over the ocean, having left the continent behind. They passed the terminator and continued into night, still headed west, the myriad lights of the cities twinkling as the Earth seemed to slowly spin below. But before the view could become boring – if it ever could -- the horizon seemed to shift downward on the big screen as the Ship gradually pointed her nose away from the planet, the full moon drifting down toward the center of the viewscreen. There was a...
Jeff met with Kei, Edi and Alesha on the updated design that they were working on for the new ski lodge, then stopped off in the living room to watch the late news before eventually winding up in his suite. After a shower where he "played" with Jennie and Melissa, he walked into a strangely quiet bedroom. Looking around, he began to wonder. "What?" he asked, then suddenly it hit him, "Where's Ann?" Arlene caught his eye. "We've looked for her, and she's not anywhere in the Retreat....
The Castle ...”Certainly,” Arlene responded, “but please don’t either of you touch it. The AI can become quite persnickety, and he has the means to back up his displeasure.” “You have a functioning artificial intelligence?” Karl asked. “Please don’t mention it around him. I think he is trying to find a way to become a citizen,” Arlene returned with a chuckle. “Uh, I won’t,” Karl responded, not quite sure if Arlene were kidding or not. Both Karl and Fischer thanked Arlene and hurried off...
Jeff had stopped by his office to pick up a few pieces of printer paper. Alone in the living room a couple of minutes later, he wadded up a sheet of the paper into a loose ball. If I screw up with this paper ball, air resistance, if nothing else, should keep its flight slow enough to prevent me from tearing up things. With Arlene's encouragement while on the Ship's range, he had gained a small measure of expertise as he mentally moved a steel ball around and caused it to spin, but he still...
The Mission ... Both were tempted to use their suits’ drive units, but they knew that would alert the Throme if anything would. Scrambling down, they were soon in the water. A hundred meters out, they saw a glint of movement coming toward them just under the surface. “Let’s go home,” Arlene said to her partner. As soon as the hatch closed and even before they were out of the airlock, the AI had them moving away from land. “Oh, I so want to get out of this suit,” Arlene grumped a few...
The Retreat Shortly after lunch, Arlene went out to the Ship expecting to sit in one of the command couches and be swept away by the simulator to another very realistic space battle, but she froze as soon as she passed through the hatch. Jeff had called Kayla and Art to his office, intending to ask them to begin training in the Ship's simulator. Before he could begin, the AI turned the TV on to show Arlene jogging back from the Ship. The AI didn't say anything, but apparently thought...
The Retreat After breakfast, Arlene, Ann and Selina gathered enough food to last them the rest of the day. “Should this not be the correct castle and we continue the search, we will need something to drink with our lunch,” Selina said as she opened a refrigerator. “There is water available at each station on the interceptor. As for soft drinks, please bring only what you are sure you will drink. Storage space is at a premium,” Arlene told the seven-year-old. “Bathroom?” Selina asked as...
Jeff had just dialed his next door neighbor who lived a mile down the road. "Steve Sperman here." "Hi Mr. Sperman. This is Jeff. How's it going?" "Hmmm. Didn't we have a discussion about that Mr. thing?" Jeff chuckled. "Yeah, I guess we did, Steve. How's Marcie doing?" There was a hesitation. "You know, that's a funny thing, like I mentioned before. Seems like after the night we spent at your place, ol' Uncle Arthur (arthritis) suddenly got much better. Odd that both of us...
The Prison Planet Ship had received permission from her Prime to go back to Earth long enough to pick up Arlene, Ann and the other aviators, then take the Wing to orbit for its launch. The trip to Earth and back would only take a few minutes. Giving the interceptors a ride to orbit and their launch would take only a few minutes more. The interceptors normally remained in their bays on Ship’s flight deck, so she would have to go back anyway. Also, she would have to return to Earth again when...
Deep Space "Question is, are they going to notice us?" Ann asked as she watched as one of the alien vessels came from behind a large chunk of moon and headed straight for them. Ann knew she could not warp out without her drive trying to take some of the debris field with them, which would probably result in the destruction of her warp drive, and/or her ship. In addition, she strongly suspected that the aliens would pick up her inertialess drive's signature, should she use that with them...
“Despite our AIs actually doing the flying, I want every pilot to have his or her hands on the controls at all times when we do this for real, and when we practice as well. Ann and I have put together a rough outline. Everything seems to work in the simulation, but we haven’t done it for real yet. There could very well be glaring errors that only show up when actually flying the patterns. Bottom line: be careful and think about what the next step is. Does the current process make sense with...
When they left the suite a few minutes later, they saw Melissa at the far end of the hall. She seemed to do a double-take, then turned and rushed around the corner, probably heading for the kitchen. A little later, when they walked through the door, she was already setting out two more plates. Jeff pulled Ann tighter against him, and they stopped just inside the kitchen. I know Ann is blushing. Damn, I thought I was too old to blush, but my face feels like it’s on fire. Everyone was seated...
EARLIER IN THE MORNING AT QUINTON TATE'S HOME After his morning shower, Quinton, dressed in his uniform and still buckling on his gun belt, walked into the kitchen. Before he could sit down, the phone rang. "Quinton," he said, putting the instrument to his ear as he finished securing the belt with the keepers. "Well, good morning. Are you planning to go somewhere on your little impromptu vacation?" his Captain asked, cheerily – a little too cheerily. "What vacation?" Quinton joked...
"We still have a problem," Diana said. "I doubt if Billy has ever used a litter box. So how are we going to train him to use it and not pee on the carpet? Since there aren't any pet stores in Winter Park, I guess we can order a kennel on the Internet and have it overnighted, but as late as it is, it will still be day after tomorrow before it gets here..." "Yeah, we were lucky the grocery store even had litter boxes. But we're ahead of you about the kennel," Jeff said. "Arlene had an...
The Retreat ... Charlotte and Ada sat for a moment as Diana's words sank in. Both mother and daughter were clearly skeptical as they furtively glanced at the other three women. Diana let out a chuckle. "You can say it; we won't get mad." Ada hesitated. "This is no joke? You're actually telling us that Susan is your mother and Arlene is your daughter?" "Got it in one," Diana said with a grin. "But..." Ada began. Then, after studying Susan's and Arlene's faces some more, she...
Jeff sat in his usual place at the head of the table. Frank Wainwright sat to Jeff's right as the family (minus four who were eating with Margaret and Tina in their suite) ate lunch. All the Alphas ate a lot, and Jeff usually ate more than most of them, but today, he was hungrier than usual. He had gone through his first plate and was already started on his second one. "Looks like you're a bit hungry today," Frank tactfully said. "I didn't see you after breakfast. What did you do to...
Joyce, Caitlin, Jennie, Melissa and Ann came in with the latter two pushing serving carts. Soon, the table was set and food arrayed in front of Arlene, Diana, Susan and Jeff. The wives' efficiency was not lost on Susan, but she refused to acknowledge it due to her sour mood. Each time she had talked to her daughter or granddaughter on the phone lately, her suspicions that something was going on had increased. Then the introductions in the living room were almost more than she could...
Everyone except Matt and Courtney was waiting in the living room. The new SAC and his wife had borrowed an Escalade and driven down to Winter Park. "HELICOPTER APPROACHING FROM THE NORTH. SECURITY HAS CLEARED IT TO LAND ON OUR PAD." Margaret had called earlier to say that everything had gone without a hitch and they were on the way home, but Angel had been beaten and was in need of medical attention. "Let's go," Jeff said as he started out the door of the living room with Little One...
Aboard Ship, Arlene, Ann and Selina are teaching the Morales family how to field strip, clean and reassemble a pulse rifle. ...”Very good, Mr. Morales. That’s a whole lot better than I did the first time,” Arlene blatantly lied. “Okay, Jasmine, do you know what’s next?” “Well, I did until you scrambled the parts,” Jasmine said with a chuckle, “but I think it’s that thing over there — a modulator, I believe you called it.” And the process went on. The next time they field stripped the...
The Prison Planet As the group neared the second area that was obstructed by boulders, Jeff said with a sigh, “Sorry, Ladies, but I still have a headache from moving the last bunch. No way am I going to play bulldozer just now.” “It’s getting colder in here,” Tosha said as she zipped her jacket, took her gloves out of a pocket and pulled them on. “Is it just me, or is the path sloping downward more?” Kei asked as she and the others followed suit – other than Jeff, who only zipped his light...
Kayla very briefly told everyone what had happened. Just as she was finishing up, Sheriff Tate, who had been eating with the team, walked into the hallway to chat with the others. "I helped the guys move the bodies out. We found a roll of black plastic in the basement and covered the pile of them." "That piece of plastic over there on the floor," Jill said, motioning down the hallway near the theater door, "is that where one of them..." "Yeah," Kayla said. "General Whitworth has a...
With the Alphas at Security headquarters studying the pulse rifle and the women apparently all in the basement, Jeff wandered through the Retreat at a loss as to what he should be doing. Deciding he would work in his lab to pass the time, he returned to the basement. Poking his head in one of the rooms, he got a smile from Kayla who was leading an exercise class – push-ups for the moment. His position allowed him a view of erect nipples on several of his wives, and a couple of the other...
Characters that appear in this chapter. Matt – Alpha. New Denver SAC for the FBI. Courtney – Matt's wife who thinks the Matthews may be aliens. Jeff – The Prime. Diana – Jeff's wife and Clan Queen. Arlene – Queen, wife. Diana and Jeff's daughter. Helen – Genius wife and teacher. Susan – Wife and Diana's mother, who is also a Queen. Kayla – Jeff's wife who first worked for the FBI, but then went to work for the General, and now she is Jeff's last line of defense. Art – Alpha....
Arlene grabbed Jeff's hand. "Come on, Daddy. Let's go back to our suite. Mom and Selina will be back ... uh sometime." Jeff frowned as he turned back to the others, "Yeah, that's what I'm worried about – the sometime. It's not like Diana to run off like that." Laura put her arm around his waist to get him started toward their suite. "Well, you were the one who kept pushing Diana to go through the academy. I have been through only the first six months there, but all that discipline...
Bobby put her hands on her face and took a breath trying to stifle a giggle. "We're acting like whores," she said, while desperately trying not to reach for Art's cock. Sandra hissed in a breath. "Art, I don't know what's happened to us. Honest, we don't act like this. We've each had one guy — once, and that was just to get rid of our cherries. But it's like we've been given an aphrodisiac. I want you so bad that it's hard to breathe," she finished, not knowing that Art was...
The Colonel’s Office Aboard Ship ...”And Worthington. Hear this! If something happens to my wife, I’ll kill you without a second thought. Now get out of my face before I change my mind and do what I know should be done.” Without saluting, Worthington spun on his heel and stomped out. Jeff sat thinking. Should I tell his Commander why I’m sending him back? After a moment, he shrugged. On second thought, I asked for his best aviators to give them a chance in my unit. No one, other than us,...
Jeff spent the next three days ordering equipment and running errands. In addition, he also spent several hours with a small accounting firm in Boulder. He promised the accountant a sizeable bonus if he would substantially, and legally, cut down on the taxes he was going to have to pay. “Incorporate. Only eight percent of the top one thousand corporations in the US pay any taxes at all,” the accountant told him. When Jeff arrived back home, he was more confused than when he left, but the...