Chapter 6: New Reality

“Okay, listen up,” the man from the dome had followed them down. Calix looked around, but the area basically resembled a larger version of his high school cafeteria – except there didn’t appear to be any serving lines and the ceiling for the area was about a hundred kilometers too high.

The cafeteria walls were about two and a half meters high and were done in a strange gray which made his eyes hurt. He tried to figure out what it was about the color that bothered him but looking at it too long seemed to start a migraine.

Each of the walls had square cubbies in them which were lit from the inside. There were also tables, chairs and benches – done in white, thankfully – of various sizes fashioned in neat, orderly rows. They appeared to be made of plastic except there was no give to them and they had a matte finish. Sophia and the rest of the women had appropriated one of the larger tables and were seating themselves, so Calix followed them.

Calix was still chewing on a conversation he’d had up in the domed room with a walking wall of muscle who turned out to be a Marine Sergeant. The man had approached him and tried to convince him to switch over to the Marines.

The hulking Marine had said he’d be wasting his potential in the Navy. His expertise would be put to better use fighting the dickheads on the ground. Calix hadn’t known what to think but then he really hadn’t had a chance to think. Octavia had stormed up to the Marine and read him the riot act about trying to poach Naval recruits.

The Sergeant had backed away after a bit – Octavia might be less than 173 centimeters, but she could still be pretty intimidating – leaving Calix to ponder whether the Navy might truly be a mistake.

“Don’t even think about it,” Octavia had stated, her eyes narrowed as she looked at Calix carefully. “They’ve already got plans for you – and it doesn’t include becoming some Marine grunt.”

Calix had tried to find out what she meant, but Octavia had hurried away. Still, it had him thinking.

“My name is Lieutenant Dworkin, and as the viewing room we just came from can attest, you are not in Kansas anymore. I’m told this group came from the general vicinity of Detroit, Michigan, so I’m fairly sure you recognize the reference, ancient as it is.”

“For those of you with a CAP score of 6.5 or above, welcome to the Confederacy,” the man continued. From his black fatigues – and the fact he wasn’t a 6’8” slab of muscle – Calix could tell the man was Navy. “Much of what I’m about to say, you’ve probably already heard before – but I’m going to say it anyway, just to be sure.”

“The people around you,” Dworkin continued, “the people you brought with you, are your property. As much your property as the clothes you wear. I don’t care what they were before – your wife, your mother-in-law – hell, your mother – I don’t care what they were down on Earth before you joined the Confederacy. All of that ended when you left the planet. As of now, they are property. Your property. You are responsible for them and all they do. If they fart in a place where it isn’t allowed, you are the one who will be reprimanded. I assume you will reprimand them in kind. They have no rights under Confederate law, so you can discard them just like you would an old pair of sneakers. We’d rather you didn’t because they might be useful to someone else – one person’s trash is another person’s treasure and all that – but they are your property to do with as you wish.”

“However, as property they belong to the Citizen to whom they are registered,” Dworkin spoke carefully, looking around the room. “They are NOT there for just anyone to use. That’s stealing and we take a pretty dim view of stealing another Citizen’s property. If you wish to use another Citizen’s concubine, ask. If they say ‘no’, then the answer is ‘no’. It’s no different than if you asked your neighbor to borrow their lawnmower and they refused.”

Dworkin paused a moment to let his words sink in before continuing. “You will notice the concubines are all naked. This is a gentle method we use to reinforce their status. Once you get to your apartment, you are free to dress your concubines however you see fit, though we do recommend, at least for a few weeks, you keep them naked or in the revealing shifts we provide you. As such, while you are on Artemis, we require you and all of your concubines to spend at least one meal each and every day in this hall or one of the other cafeterias around the base – and the concubines MUST be naked during this meal. This is for your benefit as much as theirs. It helps to cement the understanding in their minds that the rights they might have previously enjoyed are no longer applicable.”

“For all of you, Artemis is merely a temporary waypoint,” Dworkin said loudly. “It is not your final destination. The Aurora-class vessel Chiang is expected late tomorrow morning and the Lucky Break in a few days. We are working out the scheduling for all of you. You are to check with the AI’s tomorrow morning for your ship assignments.”

“As such, the rules we have on Artemis will not be the ones you follow on whatever ship or colony you end up with,” Dworkin intoned, looking carefully around the room. “They may be stricter, or they may be looser, but those about your property – your concubines - remain. The ship and colony AIs will keep you informed of local customs.”

“You won’t have to worry about your ship assignment,” Octavia whispered to Calix. “Your transport will be here in about six to eight weeks, I think. Maybe a week or so later. I’m not completely certain.”

“My transport?” Calix whispered back.

“The ship taking you out,” Octavia shushed him. “Now shhh. I’ll explain later.”

“It is going to take about four to six weeks for you to reach your colony,” Dworkin was saying loudly. “You’ll be using this time to get some training on the Confederacy, Confederacy technology, and so on. Use the time you have – both here and on your colony transport – to acclimate yourselves. It won’t be all work, however. You’ll also be required to impregnate at least half of your concubines before you reach your destination colony. Make no mistake, the reason you have the slaves is to procreate. If we are to survive, the human race must engage in a massive population explosion. We are 9 billion, give or take. Much has been made that this is a huge population for any one planet to support – and they’re right. You have all experienced some problems of overpopulation in the droughts and famines and homelessness. However, we’re not talking about one planet anymore. We’re talking over 30 with more being founded every day.”

Dworkin looked over the six new recruits, pausing to give his next words special emphasis. “The Sa’arm are coming. It’s only a matter of time. The Earth is not safe. There is a better than even chance the Earth will fall. Think about it for a moment.”

He paused again, glancing at each of the recruits. “The Earth – our home – will likely fall to the Sa’arm. We’re doing all we can to fight them by taking the fight to them. Right now, there are hundreds of thousands or maybe millions or maybe even hundreds of millions of us out there, out in the stars, fighting for the very survival of our species. It is not enough. We need to spread ourselves among the stars – we need to grab a foothold in space and hang on tight because those fucking dickheads are coming. And we’re going to meet them – we ARE meeting them. We’re going to look them dead in their cold fucking eyes and spit. And if they take the Earth, it’ll be a short-lived victory. Because we’re coming. The humans are coming. And we’re going to drive those fucking bastards back to whatever dark level of hell that spawned them.”

Dworkin looked away for a moment, seeming to gather himself. “I apologize. I take this personally. I listen to the fear and hatred being spouted by those so-called ‘Earth First’ idiots and it gets to me – because they have no fucking clue what they’re talking about.

“Yeah, we’re leaving the Earth. We’re heading to the stars. We’re not taking it lightly, however. We’re doing it to try to make sure there is some kind of Earth for us to save. So, yeah, I take this shit personally.” Then, he looked back at the recruits with a cold fury in his eyes. “We all should, because it just doesn’t get more personal than this. The dickheads want to exterminate us – to eat us. They consider us food – perhaps even delicacies, if they identify such a thing.” He looked away. “That isn’t part of the speech, however.”

“Maybe it should be,” Calix said quietly, more to himself than anyone else. The Lieutenant was riveting. He had a powerful speaking voice and a cadence that had Calix ready to rush out an airlock and take on the whole army of the Sa’arm himself.

“Confederacy medical science is a miracle,” Dworkin said, gathering himself again. “I’m sure you’ve all heard we can modify or enhance anyone, and I’m here to tell you it is one hundred percent true. If you’re not happy with the appearance of your concubine, we have the ability to change them into anything you’d like. Fancy a clone of Desiree –that super-model with the big tits from those thong panty adverts? We can accommodate you. Want your guy to look like Buck Nelson, the actor from the ‘Just Another Death’ series of movies – that’ll be no problem. Anything you want enhanced, changed or reformed – even if it’s just shaving a decade or two off you or your slave’s apparent age – we can do it. Speak to the AI after the briefing and it’ll schedule you and your property for enhancement in our med tubes in the next few days. For those of you who’ll be moving to the Chiang tomorrow, the ship has identical med-tubes and will handle the modifications for you.”

“Before we start enhancements however, we have a few things to get out of the way,” Dworkin continued. “First, we need to gather any dependents you or your concubines are taking with you. Second, we need to assess your medical status and that of your property and dependents. We need to make sure you’re healthy and deal with any medical issues you or they might have. Right now, I need for you to make a list of the dependents you need to gather from Earth. You will go down to pick up any of your dependents and you will accompany your slave to pick up any of their dependents. We used to send the concubine and a Marine down without their sponsor but we found introducing the master or mistress of the house during extraction helps to bond them to you. Once we’ve acquired all of the dependents, we’ll send you to your temporary accommodations and then start sending you to medical for your initial evaluations and treatment.”

“Now, a Marine will be coming around to give you a pad similar to this,” Dworkin continued, waving a small tablet in the air. “Until you get your implants, these will be your only means of communicating with the AIs. The AIs will direct you to your temporary housing and can answer any questions you have after the briefing.”

Dworkin waited a moment while a large Marine handed out pads. Octavia just waved him off when he approached Calix. “You’ve already got an implant,” she explained. “You don’t need the pad.”

“So, I can just talk to the AI already?” Calix asked. Of course, he’d been talking to Hermes for a long time – but he thought they’d implanted a communications device in his enhanced suit. He wasn’t sure he liked the fact they’d already given him an implant – then realized it had already probably saved his life once or twice and shrugged.

“Yes,” a male voice seemed to whisper in his ear.

“Whoa!” Calix exclaimed, startled. It was one thing to know about the implant and quite another to actually use it. The voice didn’t sound any different than any of the times he’d listened through his mask – or believed he’d listened through his mask – but it was different to realize the voice was in his head versus being picked up from his ears.

“There is no need to speak out loud,” the AI said calmly. “The implant is very good at picking up sub-vocalizations. It will take some time, but you will acquire the skill soon enough.”

“Sub-vocalizations?” Calix whispered.

“Yes,” the AI responded. Octavia was just chuckling merrily. “It is somewhat less than a whisper, though if you feel more comfortable whispering for now, it is acceptable. When you pick up the habit you will find you are able to communicate with me or any other AI without any external sound whatsoever.”

Calix looked over at Octavia. “So, I could have been asking him questions all this time?”

“Yeah,” Octavia grinned. “But what fun would that be? Besides, smart boy like yourself, I thought you’d have figured it out by now.”

Calix spent a moment considering that. He felt – different. Changed, though not necessarily in a good way.

He frowned as he sorted out his feelings. He felt overwhelmed. Maybe even out of control. This whole thing had become a gigantic leap of faith – and he didn’t have all that much faith left to spare. He’d felt in control until he stepped on the pad – but then, materializing here, it was as if a switch had turned off within him. He’d immediately, almost magically, become completely reactive, taking almost no action on his own. Maybe it was relief after the previous few weeks of agonizing if he should join the Confederacy – if he should even come here. Maybe it was relief because the decision was now irrevocable. Whatever the reason, he needed to stop. He needed to take more control.

He just didn’t know how.

Frustrated, Calix just rolled his eyes and sighed. “So, where am I headed? I mean, what colony am I headed to? What ship am I taking?”

There was a slight pause before the AI answered. “You will be boarding a new class of ship – the ‘Star Class’ – one of two newly commissioned vessels, actually, which are headed for the Bugs-at system where you will be part of a research and development team on planet Fudd. Fudd is an ice world with extremely cold temperatures, and will also be a forward staging area and a shipyard. It is also expected to provide defense for the nearby Bugs colony.”

Calix considered the information carefully. If he’d had his druthers, he’d rather have had a colony with a more moderate temperature. He fondly remembered his time in Texas where snow and ice were novelties. Unlike the Detroit area where they measured snow in feet instead of inches.

It wasn’t up to him, however, so he’d make do with what was given him. He liked the thought of research and development, though. He just kind of wished he could do both – R&D and military. He loved working in his lab – but he also liked the physical demands of weightlifting and Parkour. He’d find a way to keep the physical part of himself.

Octavia hip checked him. “Don’t get too caught up in the colony, for now. You’ll be heading to the Naval Academy for four weeks first.”

“Naval Academy?”

“Yes, Naval Academy,” Octavia whispered. “You’re an officer in the Navy, you need to train at the Naval Academy. Now shhh!”

“Okay, now that you have your pads, I’m going to call your names in alphabetical order so we can get started gathering any dependents you might have,” Dworkin called while Calix was listening to the AI “Alice Renee Beckman.”

“Sir?” Alice called carefully, obviously having not paid any attention.

“Do you have any dependents to gather from Earth,” Dworkin sighed, speaking in a put-upon voice. Sometimes, the man wondered why he even bothered. It would be better to put off all of the instructions for a day or two to let the new recruits adjust to their changed reality. It might even be better for the concubines as well. It might give them more time to adjust. Unfortunately, it wasn’t his call – and the AI would subtly reinforce his message over the next few days anyway.

“Oh,” Alice replied sheepishly. “No, sir. No dependents.”

Dworkin just nodded and stared off into space for a moment. “Anne Marie Burbonnet.”

“Yes, sir,” the woman Calix had nicknamed ‘Mouse’ – though ‘Rat’ might be far more appropriate – called immediately. It was obvious she had been paying at least passing attention. “Three more dependents from my second concubine, Janice May Simmons.”

“Right,” Dworkin responded, staring off into space for a moment. Calix wasn’t certain but he thought he saw the lieutenant’s Adam’s apple bob. “Bring Janice Burbonnet forward. We’re gathering location data for her two daughters and one son now. The AI may need assistance in locating them. Please follow Private Euphan to the teleport pads. Leslie Burbonnet can wait here for you.”

Dworkin waited a few moments for Anne and Janice to walk off with the Private before turning back to the group. “Karen DeMille?”

“Yeah?” Karen called, a little out of breath. Calix looked and found her pants around her knees and a young girl of perhaps his own age with her face buried in Karen’s crotch. The girl had short, brown hair that was simply bouncing as she moved her head so Calix could only imagine what she was doing. A boy somewhat younger than Calix was kneeling next to her, rubbing Karen’s tits and Karen had her hand in the boy’s crotch. Though Calix couldn’t see exactly what she was doing to him, the jerking motion of her arm was pretty self-evident.

“Do you have any dependents to gather from Earth?” Dworkin asked dryly, rolling his eyes.

“Oh,” Karen gasped. “Sorry ... uh ... no. No dependents.”

Dworkin shook his head and seemed to stare off in the distance for a second. “Calix Flynn Gebel.”

“Yes, sir,” Calix called sharply. He glanced around at his concubines – he still hated the word but knew he was going to have to get used to it – with a small smile, willing them to be calm. “I have four dependents to retrieve from three different concubines.”

Dworkin nodded. “Noted.” He seemed to listen for a moment. “Bring Heather Gebel, Alicia Gebel, and Brianna Gebel forward. You’ll be accompanying them one at a time to pick up their children.”

“Uh,” Calix stuttered, glancing over at Brianna. “Well, two of them are sisters to one of my concubines.”

“Sisters?” Dworkin repeated, frowning. “That’s fairly unusual. Where’re their parents?”

“They were taken in a different extraction a few years ago, sir,” Calix responded. “Brianna – er, my concubine – has been looking after them for the past few years.”

Dworkin listened again and then nodded. “Just to confirm - they’re both under 14?”

Calix glanced over at Brianna, but he already knew the answer. Brianna nodded solemnly anyway. “Yes, sir. Both are under 14.”

Dworkin nodded again and then shrugged. “What of the others?”

“Alicia Renee has a daughter to collect,” Calix called, avoiding saying Alicia’s last name. He hadn’t missed that the lieutenant had changed the concubines’ last names. He expected pointing it out wouldn’t sit well with Alicia – but then nothing ever did, really. “Heather Lillian has a son.”

Dworkin nodded yet again. “Okay, bring them forward and figure out which dependents to collect first.”

Calix elected to get Amelia first in a vain attempt to distract Alicia. His cousin’s widow hadn’t done more than gripe occasionally since the pick-up, but the dark looks she was giving everyone didn’t bode well for the future. Calix could only hope getting Amelia to her mother would head off most of the trouble. He wasn’t betting on it, however. Alicia didn’t really do ‘placate’.

Still, someone had to go first. He might as well get the troublemaker over with.

Calix put his hand on Alicia’s shoulder to direct her to the teleport pad, but Alicia yanked her shoulder away, almost falling. Her nine-month pregnant stomach played hell with her sense of balance. “Don’t fucking touch me, asshole,” she hissed.

He drew a deep breath through gritted teeth. His jaw tightened as he looked angrily at the furious scowl on Alicia’s face. He blew the breath out feeling a deep-seated need to slap the stupid girl, something he’d never even come close to doing before. His right hand actually rose before he could harness his anger. Rather than bring it down against Alicia’s face like he wanted, he swallowed his anger and let the left hand join his right in supplication. There would be a time for Alicia’s ‘come to Jesus’ moment but now wasn’t it.

The smirk on Alicia’s face only made the bile rise in Calix’s throat. This was not going to go on much longer. Now was not the time – but the time was coming soon. Her mouth was writing checks her butt just couldn’t afford.