Chapter 5

Once the five young convicts boarded the transport that would return them to the Nest, corrupt Senior Deputy Perkins climbed in and made them an offer. “You know that with your suppressors on, drugs and sex won’t give you pleasure anymore. You’ll have no sex drive, no erections or orgasms, and smoking or even eating Krok or Zeezee will only make you feel sick.

If you each entertain me once a week, I might forget to turn the suppressors back on.” He smiled conspiratorially. “Normally you don’t get them until you’re 25, but if you sign releases and let me record us fucking, I’ll even have a friend approve you getting butt buttons and gender assignments, too. I doubt you all want to stay hermaphrodites, right?”

The five looked at each other and thought silently. He asked, “Do you really want to be impotent and immune to fun? If I decide I don’t like you it might take me years to find a destination, and decades more to get you there.” He paused to let them think a while. “Would you rather do porn with me a dozen times, enjoy some sex with each other if you want, and have some fun drugs once in a while?

Or do you want to stay herms and have the love life of a rock until you reach the New Frontier in a few decades?” He looked over the group, then asked, “Rachel?”

The tall redhead nodded and said, “I guess I’ll do it. I want to be a woman. When can I get the surgery?”

“I like variety, so how about after five times? You’ll get the butt button then, too, since it’s cheaper to do both at the same time. Do you agree?”

Rachel sighed. “Okay.”

He asked, “The rest of you? Erinna? Teri? Marie? Lashawna?”

Lashawna objected, “Call me Pudgey!”

“Whatever. Let me fuck you and record it, to get what you want?”

Pudgey made a counter-offer, “I’ll do it if I can fuck you instead. Ever ridden a cock and played with a pair like these?” She lifted her shirt and bra, showing him her massive pair of caramel-colored boobs with small purple areolas and nipples. Each was a little larger than his head.

“Uh ... I ... ah...” His eyes were practically on stalks as he stared at them and agreed. “Sure!” After she covered herself and he calmed down, he asked, “You want to stay a herm, Pudgey, or...”

“Futa. I love having huge tits and a cock. The rest can go.”

Teri pleaded, “But Pudgey, we were going to have kids!”

She let out a long sigh and reluctantly said, “I promised, and I owe you, Stick. Okay. I’ll stay a herm until we have a baby.”

Perkins asked curiously, “Stick?”

Ebony-skinned Teri explained, “My nickname, long story. I want to be male again.”

Perkins asked, “And the rest of you? Do you agree?”

They nodded and mumbled, “Okay.”

Jonas Henrich, on Henrich-4

After eating two apples for breakfast, I surveyed the horrible damage wrought by the quakes. The mine entrance had collapsed, burying all but one of the minerbots. Rain had pooled there and I knew the sticky mud it made would eventually dry, requiring me to dig through something hard as limestone to get the other five out. Ordering the remaining bot to dig the others out before it dried would probably trap it in the swampy muck with the others.

Both mass drivers and the three refinerbots that hadn’t been totally destroyed would need major repairs. My medbed was wrecked beyond salvage when the house’s main roof beam and a brick wall had fallen on it. The machine shed collapsing had squashed my flyer and the transporter flat as pancakes, too. Two agbots had been on Goat Island and Pig Island looking after my livestock, so I’d have no idea about their status until I could go check them. One near the orchard had been crushed by a large pine tree, but thankfully the two in the garden still worked.

I was conflicted when I saw the two dormitories were intact. They had far, far more living space than I needed, but reminded me of the crowd of scientists and explorers who would be there in two years. I moved my mattress and my few other intact belongings to the dorm closer to the mud bog which used to be a mine.

I used the crawler’s crane to move large pieces of the repair shop’s roof and walls. I was happy to see my sat-terminal had survived and was showing new images from the satellite in orbit high above. Minutes later I was deeply saddened to notice Pig Island was missing! Apparently the powerful quakes had caused it to sink into the sea. I felt serious loss for the cute little piglets I’d put there only a few weeks before.

The worst discoveries of all were seeing my fusion mini-reactor and Ansible were down. With no Ansible, there was no way for me to let anyone know what had happened, or even send a distress signal! Without fusion power, I’d only have half a dozen solar panels for electricity. I could either keep my lovebot going and use a few small devices, or produce enough hydrogen to run a single agbot. I would either have entertainment and a companion, or food. The choice was painful but obvious. I was no farmer and starving wasn’t an option. I set up the solar panels and plugged in the hydrolyzer. Once it started to refill the hydrogen tank, I rebuilt a smaller version of the poultry barn and moved the birds out of the land crawler.

After a simple supper, I discussed the situation with DeeDee. She said, “I have nine hours of battery power left, Daddy. Since you won’t be able to recharge me, maybe you want to make love to me before I go. My programming makes me naive and innocent, so I can’t ask for anything sexual. But I’ll do whatever you ask, Daddy. I love you.”

I thought about her household task programs and wondered about times when I might need her to repair clothing or do other things I was unskilled at. “That’s sweet, Deedee, but I need to save you for more important things. I’ll see you soon.” I hugged her and pressed her power button, then sat her in a corner of my new dorm room home.

I decided I should try learning by watching the agbot and help it. Once I had a decent amount of food stockpiled, I’d try to repair the reactor and Ansible.

Stick, on Egalitaria B, remembering his past

Eating an unappetizing meal bar reminded me of how bad but precious I thought my first one was. All the way back then I was only a little boy of 6. I’d been terrified, hungry, and confused. I didn’t understand what famine, disease, or toxins were at the time. I just knew a woman in a gray uniform had picked me up and taken me from my home, leaving my dead parents in their bed.