Chapter 5: The Briefing

At first, we did not encounter any others walking to the briefing, but once we neared the center of the ring there was a steady trickle of people heading to the center. Bryn was still struggling with the strut, so I moved her between Jade and me as we strode down the corridor. The gasps and groans of the men who saw us were followed by a few whistles that followed us as we walked. We even had one young man rush up and request directions to my pod for after the briefing.

We arrived at the main briefing room to find a series of bench tables much like one would find at a picnic. I pointed to one that was currently unoccupied and whispered to Bryn. “Claim one side of that table. Jade and I will go get you some food. I’m thinking you want something decadent and scandalous. Say chicken cordon bleu and a chocolate mousse?”

Bryn giggled. “I’ve never had that, but it sounds good. Include a salad and some juice. I need the energy after all the exercise earlier.”

Jade and I giggled as Bryn walked over to the table. She struggled some on her heels, but arrived safely so we turned towards the bank of replicators.

“What are you getting?” Jade asked me as we walked up.

I giggled. “Oh, I’m going to be bad. Beef Wellington with a side of mashed potatoes and a large slice of chocolate cheesecake.”

Jade giggled. “You got lots of exercise yourself.” We had reached the replicators and Jade turned to the panel. “Large grilled hamburger with chili fries and a soda.”

I mock gasped. “A heathen, chili with her fries.”

Jade giggled as the panel opened and revealed three trays. My friend immediately grabbed one that contained a hamburger and a still steaming pile of chili covered fries. The other two were the chicken for Bryn and a still steaming Beef Wellington. I found myself glaring at the ceiling cursing the AI for listening in before reaching to get the trays. As I did a young man that we had passed in the halls walked up behind Jade and I.

“Why did your mistress have you wear a uniform while she’s dressed as a schoolgirl?” he said snottily.

I turned around, and found myself looking down upon a boy of maybe fifteen wearing one of the ship’s uniforms. I just shrugged as I balanced the trays in my hands. “She’s my concubine. I just felt like treating her. She’s not exactly used to strutting in heels yet,” I said matter of factly.

Jade giggled. “Let’s leave him off the invite list for our first party,” she said with a wink. She waved me to go ahead and we strutted over to the table where Bryn was sitting, wolf whistles following us across the briefing room.

Our giggles continued as we sat down. I slid in next to Bryn who had a hand over her mouth. At first, I was puzzled, but then I could see she was trying to hold in her own giggles. “I’ve been listening to the men in the tables around here. Their cries of despair are funny.”

Jade sniffed. “Men always look for the little virgin girls and forget that a real woman is what they really want.”

Bryn’s eyes widened and she leaned forward so she could stare at my old friend and concubine. Jade was studiously examining one of her fingernails so I decided to save my Icelandic friend. “She’s just pretending to be all superior,” I whispered. “But it’s nice to see that we can still turn a few heads. It’s been a while since I got to get out and really strut.”

Bryn looked around. “Do you really like the wolf whistles and stares? It seems a bit creepy.”

Jade shrugged. “Since the dawn of time men have wanted to be with women. You can allow yourself to be afraid of the attentions of men, or you can accept it and play upon it. Savannah and I were strippers by choice.”

Bryn shifted slightly and looked at me. “She tells the truth. I might have lied to my parents about going to California to look for work as an actress, but I don’t lie to myself. I knew I’d be working in a strip club once I left my hometown. So, the whistles don’t bother me too much. I take them as a tribute to my beauty.”

“Could do without the stares that have too much anger mixed in with the lust,” Jade muttered signaling an end to the conversation.

At that point I decided it was time to start eating. Jade and Bryn joined in and for a few moments the only sound in the room was that of knives and forks hitting plates. I was concentrating on the food when a young male voice spoke up. “Mind if I sit here with my entourage?”

I looked up to see a blond-haired man of about sixteen years dressed in a business suit. He had unbuttoned the top of his white-shirt and his tie was mostly loosened, but otherwise he had the look of a budding tycoon. Behind him I could see several women, but I decided to look him in the eye rather than gaze on his concubines.

“There is plenty of space, and I don’t mind. Just please treat your concubines with some respect,” I said.

The man blushed. “I haven’t even given mine a full test drive yet,” he whispered as he sat directly across from me. “Once he was sitting down, he turned to the women who were waiting for him. “Stace, how about you take the twins and get meals for all of us. I’m feeling like a nice country fried steak. Lise, could you tell Stace what you’d like.”

There was a pause and then a woman with a strong southern accent spoke. “Well, I know it’s properly time to be eating dinner, but I’m in the mood for a blueberry waffle with a side of bacon.”

The man laughed lightly as he sat down. “You always did love your breakfast’s mum.”

“Mum?” Jade asked looking up as a stately woman of perhaps twenty-seven years slipped in to sit next to the boy. She was naked. Her full breasts had a bit of sag, and her otherwise auburn hair had a few white streaks.

The woman noticed my gaze and smiled. “No, I’m not his mother. Yes, that is really white you see in my hair. For some reason women in my family have their hair turn white when they are in their late twenties and it was starting for me.”

The boy blushed. “I’m sorry Lise. I’m just used to calling you that. You always were more of a mum, than that bitch ever was.”

It was my turn to blush slightly. “How about we introduce ourselves. I’m Tanya Walker, if you read some of the men’s magazines you might know me as Tanya Dragovic. My concubines here are Jade and Bryn.”

The woman looked at me. “Jade and Bryn? Such short names.”

Jade giggled. “Savannah is having a bit of fun. My real name is Mi Sun Lindel, or Mary Lindel, which is what my mother called me after we came to the US. Jade was my professional name.”

Bryn raised her head slightly. She blushed. “My name is Bryndis Kaligsdottir. It seems that my mistress prefers to call me Bryn. To be honest, I like it.”

The boy looked a bit surprised. “No man?”

I shrugged. “After two years with the waste of space that is my ex-husband, I didn’t feel the need for a husband. It’s not too hard to find a willing cock when I feel the urge.”

Bryn blushed and giggled. “Like earlier.”

I gave Bryn a squeeze and then looked at the man who looked confused for a moment until his concubine poked him and whispered in his ear. Then he blushed. “Damn, I haven’t been out from under my father for more than five hours and I forget my manners. I’m Carlton Pembroke Thurston de Havilland the Third.”

“The what!” Jade said before covering her mouth with her hands and blushing. At the same time, I could see Lise covering her own mouth to hide a case of the giggles.

The man sighed. “I know. My father kept trying to tell me that it was a name of great significance and importance. Personally, I think he subjected me to it because he had it and hated it himself. He always told everyone to call him Bud. The bastard was a big player in Chicago politics though. He was some kind of union boss.”

I nodded. “My unlamented ex thought himself a big man because he worked for a hedge trading fund that made millions. At least it did before the Average Joe’s special. After that investing didn’t go as well.”

The boy shrugged. “I don’t know about that. Oh, but you probably want to know my concubines. This here is Lise. She’s my stepmother and a good friend. The three you haven’t met are Stace. Well let me give her formal name, Estacia Linnet de Havilland. And the twins are her best friends Faith and Hope Goldman.”

“You all had sadistic parents. Well perhaps except for Lise,” I said.

The woman giggled. “No, I had my own nightmare name, but Carl is being a gentleman and refraining from telling anyone. I’ll have to reward him for that.” She purred in her soft southern accent.

Just then Carl’s other concubines arrived bearing trays. Like Lise they were naked. All three had the bodies of young women who had only just reached adulthood. I raised my eyebrow when the girl with sandy blond hair snuggled in close to him. The twins gave each other a quick glance before sliding in next to their friend.

It was one of the twins who looked up. I could see the puzzled expression on her face and then she spoke. “Wait. I’m puzzled. I see a few concubines in shifts, but why are the two women next to you wearing those outfits. They can’t be schoolgirls?”

Bryn blushed, but Jade only leaned back and pushed her chest out, pulling the white blouse tight against her breasts. “On really? I’ll be anything my mistress wants me to be.”

Bryn started giggling. Everyone turned to look at her. She kept giggling for a moment and then quieted with a small ‘eep’ of surprise. Suddenly she was looking at the table and I noticed a tear glistening in the corner of her eyes. “I’m sorry,” she whispered.

“What’s wrong?” I asked putting an arm around my concubine. “You seemed very happy for a moment there.”

Bryn sighed. “It’s just when Jade said she’d be anything you wanted her to be I pictured her face on a man’s body. I’m sorry. I guess you’ll be getting rid of me.”

I wrapped my arms around Bryn. “For that?” I said. “Never. Bryn, trust me, I’m never letting you go.”

I glanced over at Carl who had started to eat. He looked over as I held Bryn. “Problems?” he asked.

I continued rubbing Bryn’s back. Jade sensed the situation and quickly moved around us to add her own hug from behind. As she did, I turned my body so that Bryn’s head was lying on my shoulder. “I wouldn’t call it a problem,” I replied. “Bryn is just a bit timid and worried about her future. Eventually I’ll convince her that I’ll keep her forever.”

Stace responded. “Don’t you have to?”

I was about to answer then a booming male voice cut through the susurrus of voices and conversation in the room. “Quiet everyone! I’ll try to make this quick so you can finish your meals and then you can return to your pods to enjoy your last day before training starts.”

There was a faint moan of protest, but everyone began setting down their utensils and turning to the small stage and podium in the back of the room. I could see a distinguished man who appeared to be about forty thanks to streaks of gray in his hair. He looked out over the assembled people for several moments before nodding.

“Thank you,” he said once the last conversation stopped. “The Princess Victoria is one of the Kilo class ships and that means I have to brief one thousand people. It goes much smoother when everyone is willing to cooperate. And before someone starts counting, no, not all one thousand are in this room.”

He looked over the assembled people. Several times his look seemed to linger in an area or on a person, but he said nothing until his gaze had drifted over the whole room. “I see I should start with the rules on and for concubines first.”

“Concubines,” the man boomed out. “I’m going to say this for the first and only time for each of you. Do not continue to think you have any legal protection or rights beyond what your sponsor gives you. You have given that up by agreeing to become a concubine. As you might have heard, your sponsor basically owns you now. If they want you to always be naked, you’ll be naked. If they tell you to crawl back to their pod like a dog after this briefing then I hope you have strong knees because I’ll be telling them to clean up your mess if you get blood on my decks.”

I could see a few concubines start to squirm where they sat. One or two seemed to be muttering to themselves, but they stopped quickly when the man continued without pausing. “I’m sure you have heard that sponsors can kill you and no one will say a thing. To a point that is true. However, rather than having me explain all that, it turns out we have one of the Confederacy’s Internal Affairs investigators riding to Borneo with us and I asked that he give the rest of the talk on rules.”

The man stepped away from the podium and another man stepped up. He looked to be about thirty and had an efficient if somewhat laidback aura around him. As he did two women joined him. The first looked about twenty and was dressed in denim shorts that looked almost painted on and a black bikini bra top. The other was currently wearing a shift, but appeared to have no cosmetic work. She was about eighteen but still had vestiges of baby fat on her acne covered cheeks. The fact that she was visibly pregnant only added to the mystery, but she seemed almost happy to be standing there.

I wanted to glance away and look around, but out of the corner of my eye I saw Jade taking in the crowd so I concentrated on the man as he began to speak. “Thank you. My name is Commander Norman Nelson. As Lieutenant Bradshaw has said, I am an officer in the Internal Affairs division for the Confederacy. Hopefully you’ll never encounter me when I’m working on an investigation as Internal Affairs gets brought in when command or the AI units have reason to suspect that there is a danger to the Confederacy as a whole due to the action of some citizens. My appearance is not guaranteed to be career ending, but I can promise that more than a few who have committed crimes I have investigated were very unhappy to see where their careers were headed once I was done.”

“However, I’m not here right now for that. I offered to help by explaining to all the new citizens heading to Borneo and Kelor the rules regarding concubines. There are not many, but they are important.”

“First, as the Lieutenant indicated concubines are considered property. Many of you have already discovered that the AI will only respond to concubines if the citizen they belong to previously instructed it to do so and I should mention that if you told your pod AI to work with your concubines, it will, but it does not pass that instruction on to other units. And some AI units won’t obey a concubine under any circumstances.”

“That brings up part two. Since concubines are considered property, the citizen they belong to owns their actions. If your concubine attacks anyone, you will be the one held and charged, even if the concubine is recycled for their actions, you can and will be held accountable.”

“Now, part three and this hopefully won’t affect most of you. Once again, concubines are property, which means that for you randy men out there, you don’t just grab a random concubine and throw her to the floor. If she isn’t yours, you do need permission from her owner.”

Some man in the crowd shouted out. “You can’t rape a concubine! How would it be rape?”

The commander smiled grimly. “You damage someone else’s property and commit an act of theft by taking what is not yours, even if you return it later and I can assure you that Admiral Himmel and General Montgomery in Borneo Command will happily have you scrubbing ship decks with a toothbrush for six months if you are stupid enough to forget that.”

There were more murmurs of discontent from some of the crowd. I snorted to hide a giggle. Carlton looked at me. “What?”

I whispered over to him. “Because of the law regarding concubines being property a rape charge doesn’t work so they are calling it vandalism and theft. It makes sense, in a macabre way.”

Lise giggled. “To think that I could be vandalized. But if Carl here wants to do it, I’ll willingly submit to the torture.”

I heard Stace whisper, “Me first mum,” as the young woman wearing shorts stepped forward and stood next to Norman. He whispered something to her and she only smiled and shook her head. She waited a moment for the murmurs to die down. It took a moment, but once everyone noticed her standing there they quieted quickly.

Once all was silent she smiled. “I asked Normie to say a bit more, but he wanted it said from a concubine’s viewpoint. And before someone shouts out the obvious question, I’ve been Norman’s concubine since he and I were picked up only a month after the Average Joe’s special and I have two children waiting for me with my sister concubines back on Borneo.”

I heard Lise gasp. “She’s had two kids? With that body? There isn’t a single stretch mark or blemish.”

The woman turned slowly almost posing for the crowd. Once she was facing the microphone again, she spoke. “Yes, this is what the Confed medical technology can do. Sponsors you can remake concubines to look however you want. Including turning your concubines into hunchbacked midgets if your tastes are that twisted. However, while no concubine can refuse, I do know that there have been cases of concubines becoming catatonic after physical changes they could not cope with mentally. So for all of the concubines on this ship, I’m asking, please do take our feelings into consideration.”

“Now,” she continued. “I didn’t hear any shouts about my outfit, which is what I expected. What’s a concubine doing wearing something other than a shift was what I expected someone to shout. The truth is that while the AI recommends shifts, there is no requirement that they be the only clothing. You can dress your concubines as nurses, debutantes or even hookers if you want. After all, your concubine belongs to you. And I know that many concubines will find ways to thank you for any kindness you show.”

The concubine stepped back. I could see Commander Nelson say something to the other girl, but she waved her hands in front of her body and shrugging he stepped back up to the podium. “Well, while Sarah is an outgoing concubine it seems my other companion is not feeling quite as brave. There is one other part for sponsors and concubines. On their birthday, any concubine can request a retest. If they obtain a qualifying score they can if they choose become a citizen immediately. Now should that happen and you lose a concubine because they improved their score, you may choose to visit any Civil Service concubine barracks and select a replacement. And I can assure you that Borneo does have a supply of spare concubines available. They are also available for brief interludes as long as they do not leave the Civil Service compound.”

His face took on a grim visage. “Now, that’s the basics. As you can tell, you have a lot of power over your own concubines, including life and death, as Confederation law does not really classify concubines as sentient beings. However, I can assure you that evidence that you are torturing your concubines is one of the quickest paths to career death in the Borneo district. The Civil Service Officer for the district you will be stationed in is Tribune Walesca. On many occasions he has made his feelings clear about the treatment of concubines and Borneo Command backs him up. Do not disappoint them on this.”

With hat the man stepped away from the podium. As he did the concubine, he named Sarah, ran up and jumped on his back, throwing her arms around his neck. He caught her legs as they came forward and quickly walked forward, drawing a gasp from everyone watching. His other concubine followed meekly. I figured they would walk out, but instead Sarah whispered something and with a smile he strolled over to the table where Carl and I sat. There was some empty space beyond me and he quietly sat down. Sarah clambered around him and was soon sitting on his lap and kissing him. The other merely knelt on the floor although he patted the bench next to him.