Chapter 4

"Next on the agenda," Elizabeth said, "are babies. Gail, I would like you to take the lead in this. I think we should talk about timing of births before we start assigning slots in the rotation."

Gail said, "I have been thinking about this. You may know that the Queen invited me to 'mother' the Princess - sorry, Ma'am - and to take care of the children. On one hand, we have the AI and I don't think keeping house will be strenuous. We could all get pregnant as quickly as possible, and we would have babies in batches. Elizabeth, you are the only woman here who is not already a mother. Being pregnant is very uncomfortable and burdensome - or at least it was on Earth. AI, does the Confederacy have any magic tricks that alleviate the discomfort?"

"No," the AI responded, "not unless the pregnancy causes severe distress."

"I happen to know, AI, that hormonal changes during pregnancy cause severe swings in mood and in sexual appetite. Will those hormonal changes, or those consequences, be moderated?"

"No," said the AI, "not unless the problem becomes severe. The hormonal changes are important to the pregnancy, and are not altered without great need."

"Then having us all in the same phase of pregnancy," Gail said, "would leave us all susceptible to the same problems at the same time. Elizabeth, the ninth month of pregnancy lasts for an entire season, it seems. That is the longest month you will ever endure."

Jenny said, "Another problem with having batches of babies is that no one of them will be special. Being one of five or six babies competing for attention doesn't seem right to me." There were murmurs of agreement.

"Then the answer appears to be a rotation," said Tracy. Much time was devoted to what the group felt was the optimal interval. The women became deeply involved as their maternal instincts came to the fore. Elizabeth let it be known that she wanted to be in the rotation, but she wanted to be last in line. It was also decided that Amy, and those following her, would wait at least until they were 15 before childbearing began. The availability of body enhancement was deemed insufficient argument to begin earlier. Another year of mental maturity was important.

Finally, they decided to space the pregnancies every two months, with three months rest between delivery and the next conception. It seemed time to assign slots in the rotation. Gail turned to Elizabeth. "Please, Elizabeth, please let us defer this part, if only for a day or two. I will be obedient. I will mate with John and conceive a child. I'm sure each one of us feels the same. But I for one awoke this very morning next to my husband. I made breakfast for my children. I am proud and happy to be here, but I need just a bit of time to grieve, too."

The subject of such animated discussion by the women was entirely outside the realm of John's experience. He sat on a love seat next to Mandy. She had brought his arm around her shoulder. His other arm was on the armrest. While he listened to the women talking about pregnancy, his brain was focused on all of the women before him. His gaze moved from woman to woman. He thoroughly enjoyed every detail of each one, the curve of a breast here, an especially long nipple there, a shoulder, the colour of a bush ... All this daydreaming had the expected effect on his cock. Unable to touch it, unable to will it into submission, unable to tuck it between his legs, he sat in embarrassment and fascination, watching his cock bob in time with his increasing heartbeat. Lubrication oozed out the tip and slowly flowed down the shaft.

Heather, sitting directly across from John, noticed his distress. She watched his eyes until they met her own. She gave him a coy grin and winked at him. Slowly, her hand caressed her tummy. As he watched, her hand slowly moved up, and her fingers traced the crease between her chest and the bottom of her breast. John squeezed his eyes closed in distress. Heather's fingers moved up her breast, then around and around her nipple in a narrowing spiral. When she reached the now-erect nipple, she squeezed it between her thumb and forefinger, pulling it away from her body. John was obviously in agony. Heather was having a ball. John's eyes travelled down Heather's body and he realised that she was stroking her bald pussy. He could see the glistening lubrication she had already produced. She spread apart her knees as far as she could without attracting attention. John thought he would die.