Chapter 11

3 Section 44 -- Ken Davidson gets his family

"Dad," whined Leah, "I said I would help you find two concubines. You're looking more and more hunky to me. I love you, Dad, but I really don't want to sleep with you. I don't think it would be fair to Mom and I don't want to regret it for the rest of my life. I have never been so horny in my life, Dad. I can hardly keep my fingers out of my crotch. My body isn't going to let me wait much longer. Can we get you settled pretty soon, please? Please?"

Ken was embarrassed. "You're right, Sweetie. I appreciate you trying so hard to help me. I know it's a burden to you. You're still welcome to go off on your own right now. If I'm such a hunk, I'll probably find my new family pretty soon."

"Nope," she grinned, "I told you I'd help, and that's what I'm going to do."

"I'm sorry it turned out to be a waste of time with Lily."

"I was afraid she was too dumb for you. You had to try. Her kids were fun. At least you got a nice ride. Or did you? I hope I didn't let my imagination run wild for nothing."

"Oh she was energetic enough," smirked Ken, "and she seemed to enjoy herself. I wanted to make it work, but I just couldn't bear the thought of having dinner with her and listening to her mindless drivel for years."

"I don't blame you a bit. Let's put that episode behind us," she said with conviction, "and get you situated once and for all."

"What do you say we split up?" asked Ken. "One of us can go to the pool and the other can go to the playground."

"I think that idea is a winner," she beamed. "Can I go to the pool area?"

"Sure thing. AI, Leah can communicate with me through you, is that right?"

"Affirmative," responded the AI. "Reports can be transmitted, but not in your own voices."

Ruth Stankov -- now Ruth McNeil -- kept one eye on her Belle and Melody in the pool while she helped Valerie watch Alex and Emily in the wading pool. The little ones kept to the edge of the wading pool and didn't need much intervention. The bigger girls played in the big pool with two girls and a boy, all about six-year-old Melody's age. Nine-year-old Belle didn't seem to mind.

One girl and boy were under the watchful eye of their mother. The other girl's mother had to divide her attention between her daughter in the pool and her two-year-old son in the wading pool.

It didn't take long for Ruth to introduce herself to Lana Haskins, she with the child in each of the two pools. Soon, they invited Connie Lopez to join them, and the three congregated around Valerie at the edge of the wading pool. Ruth and Connie focused their attention on the big pool, freeing Lana and Valerie to devote their attention to the wading pool.

The women took note that Lana and Connie wore green collars while Ruth and Valerie wore red collars. Ruth and Valerie happily admitted that they were sisters as of the day before. "What's with you two attractive women?" asked Ruth. "How is it you're still green?"

"I spent the day yesterday sitting in the common areas," said Lana. "The kids were bored and that was no fun for any of us. I couldn't give my undivided attention to the sponsors who were shopping. I think I would have been able to focus on Mister Right, but I didn't see him all day. I couldn't bear the thought of another day like that. The kids needed to burn off some energy."

Connie's story was very much the same. "I felt like meat," she complained. "I felt worse than meat. I felt like the cheapest kind of puta. I've never been to a whorehouse, but that was what I thought of: the men moving through the room, deciding which whore they wanted."

The women continued on that line, commiserating. Both Ruth and Valerie shared their good fortune in being selected into such a good family. Ruth waxed eloquent on the 'male reproductive enhancements' that so improved her husband's performance. Lana and Connie admitted that a roll in the sack was much to be desired. They really wanted a sponsor who would treat them well. They also really wanted to get their children settled as soon as possible.

"Children need stability, need daily routine," observed Ruth. The others murmured agreement.

"May I join you?" asked a green-collared woman about Valerie's age. When they agreed, she seated herself. "I'm Leah Davidson. I overheard what you were talking about. I'm helping my dad find two concubines with children."

Leah proceeded to tell her story, how she had come with her sponsor dad and concubine mom, how her mom had bailed, how she herself could not stay with her dad, how she had promised to help her dad. The explanation and questions took some time. Leah laid it on thick about what a great guy her dad was, how he had let her mom go without a fight, and on and on.

Connie and Lana had both arrived poolside at about the same time by sheer chance. Now they looked at each other, suddenly having to consider whether the other could become her sister. "I don't know about you, Lana," said Connie, "but if Leah's dad is half what she says he is, I want to get to know him."

"Our kids seem to get along famously," observed Lana with a new perspective of her own. "That's April in the pool. She's five. Jake here in the wading pool is two."

"My Manny is six and Tia is four," answered Connie.

Leah squealed her delight when she realized that Connie and Lana were in the process of throwing their lots together. "Can I invite my dad to come join us?" Both Lana and Connie shyly agreed. Leah proceeded to send an invitation through the AI, who responded that Ken would join them very shortly.

"What about yourself, Leah?" asked Ruth. "Have you found yourself a sponsor that you've strung along until you fixed up your dad?"

"No," Leah blushed, "I haven't made any progress for myself. I've been dedicated to filling my dad's needs."

Valerie and Ruth shared a knowing look. Turning to Leah, Ruth said, "Then I have a proposition for you." Valerie started laughing. "What?" asked Ruth.

"I'll bet Leah hasn't been propositioned before," she laughed. The other women joined her, although their laughter was more subdued.

"Anyway," smiled Ruth, "before I was so rudely interrupted, I wanted to tell you what a wonderful family Valerie and I are in. Patrick and Nicole McNeil are both sponsors. Valerie's mother -- can I say your ex-mother? -- my Marc and young Amanda McNeil are our family so far. Amanda's brother, Ryan, is also a sponsor. He has his wife Jennifer and today they selected Katie to fill out their family. Amanda's not that young -- she's twenty. She needs a friend about her age, because Valerie here is such a stick-in-the-mud." That brought chuckles.

"I think what Ruth's trying to say is that you could do far worse than to join our family. Are you hot to put yourself in the meat market, or will you let me call Patrick here so we can introduce you?"

Leah looked as surprised as she felt. "I know Amanda from school. I talked to her yesterday. She invited me to join her family but I was still focused on getting my dad squared away. I hadn't begun to think of myself yet. No, I really don't relish the idea of letting myself become a slab of meat. So, yeah, please do invite Patrick to join us, if he will."

And, of course, Lana and Connie got on swimmingly with Ken. Patrick brought Amanda with him and she and Leah hit it off immediately. After Leah's tearful farewell to her dad, Patrick shook his hand and promised they would cherish Leah as her parents had.

3 Section 45 -- Godwin: big boy bed time

As they headed for the upper level, Martin Godwin said, "Jack, I'd like you to refer to me as their dad, and I'll refer to you as their dad. Let's see if we can get them all spun out and then we'll get them squared away with their new family."

They found the boys in the playroom, racing holographic cars around a virtual track. "Your dad thinks it's time for you to go to bed," said Martin.

"My dad? Where is my dad?" asked Daniel. Martin pointed to Jack.

"Logan," smiled Jack, "your dad thinks you ought to be in bed, too."

"My dad's not here," said Logan.

"Yes he is," said Jack.

"Where?" Jack pointed to Martin.

"That's not right," whined Daniel.

Martin sat down on the floor. Jack followed suit. "Daniel," said Martin, "your FATHER is in our family. Logan, your FATHER is not. But make no mistake: I am your dad. Jack here is your dad. Rob is your dad[0]. Same with you, Logan. You have three dads.

"Daniel, Allison is your real mom. Logan, Sarah is your real mom. You have seven other moms now. Logan, Allison is your mom now. Your grandma? She's your mom now. You have eight moms now. Daniel, Sarah is your mom now. Daniel, those two young ladies who were your sisters? They're your moms now. That woman who's going to have a baby? That's Laura. She's your mom now, both of you."

"You two guys?" added Jack. "You two are real brothers now. Daniel, Lilly and Morgan are your sisters now. Nathan is your brother now. Logan, your cousins Nathan and Morgan are now your brother and sister. Laura's unborn child is your brother."

"If one mom is tough on you," said Martin, "then how will it be with eight moms?"

"That's where having lots of dads comes in handy," said Jack. "Your dad won't let your moms be mean to you."

"Well, not too mean, anyway," chuckled Martin. "Pretty soon, you're going to have so many sisters and brothers, you'll have trouble remembering all of their names. All of your moms are going to make babies. They're making babies two at a time -- all of them. We're counting on you two to be the big brothers for all the other kids. Your dad and I are going to make sure that being the big brothers isn't too hard for you."

"What if all your moms want kisses?" asked Jack. "You'll need a lot of dads to protect you."

"Dads like hugs, but not kisses," said Martin. "I think we'll let you think about your new good luck for a while before we can hope for hugs. We're already a big family, and we're going to get a whole lot bigger. There'll be plenty of love for all of us."

"So," said Jack, "about that going to bed thing? Who needs pajamas?"

"I do," both boys said in unison.

"Good. The pajamas will be here in a moment. Have you guys chosen your bedroom yet? Do you want separate bedrooms, or do you want to sleep in the same room?"

Logan turned to Daniel. "Can we sleep in the same room? I don't want to sleep alone yet." Daniel nodded agreement.

"I'll bet," said Martin, "that if we went into the bathroom, we'd find tooth brushes for both of you and tooth paste, too. Whaddya think?" The boys reluctantly nodded. "AI, will you ask Sarah whether Logan needs a bath tonight?"

After a moment, the AI said, "Sarah doesn't have strong feelings about it."

"Okay," said Martin, "then tell her that the two boys and the two dads are going to have a shower before brushing teeth and going to bed. Please have the pajamas brought to the bathroom."

"The rest of the family has returned. Beth says it would be good if you and Jack would remain up here while they have a meeting."

"I think that's fine," answered Martin. "Is she sure Jack shouldn't be at the meeting?"

There was a brief pause. "Jack should remain with you," the AI said.

3 Section 46 -- Third day extractions: Melbourne, Sydney, 2 Indian

The buildings in Sydney and Melbourne were emptied at three o'clock in the afternoon rather than mid-morning, as had been done on the two previous days. The extractions were otherwise the same. No interdiction fields were used. All comers were accepted. There were few stung and few injuries. Each of the building extractions was completed in less than twenty minutes.

It was something of a problem that the extractions occurred very early in the morning on the clocks in Copernicus Station. The extractees and their dependents were in for a day or so of distress for their internal clocks. Provision was made for naptime in order to alleviate the distress.

The dependent pickups were conducted mainly during the period from ten o'clock through midnight, local time. The dependent extractees had the same problem with their internal clocks, having been extracted in the middle of the night only to arrive on the moon in the middle of the day.

To achieve their daily quota of eighty thousand extractees, the marines sandwiched office building extractions in two Indian cities between the Sydney/Melbourne office and dependent extractions. The marines by now were accustomed to controlled chaos. They managed building extractions in two different regions of the world, followed by the related dependent extractions in those same two areas, without any significant problems.

This time on Copernicus Station, the people from back-to-back office building extractions were followed by the people from back-to-back dependent extractions. The massive flow of humanity was smoothly handled. Except that allowances had to be made for the time zone disruptions, the two groups began the same program as those who had arrived in the previous days. Now there were about two hundred thousand souls who would be transferred to the cube transport Valhalla, with only about fifty thousand more required.

The first and second day extractees were making excellent progress in establishing family groups. As family groups were formed, the new families were transferred to neighborhoods segregated by military service. Unattached concubines were relocated to smaller and smaller areas, sorted by their general individual situations: couples in one area, mothers with small children in another, multiple related adult females in yet another area, and so on. Sponsors with unfilled concubine allocations were transferred into areas that suited the sponsor's needs.

Repeat, repeat, repeat.

3 Section 47 -- Diane & Co home again; meeting

Not long after the two Godwin dads went up to put the boys to bed, four young people danced their way through the front door, singing and laughing.

"Mom!" shrieked two sets of sisters as they raced to greet the returning family members. Laura remained seated but was smiling as she watched. Diane, Beth, Allison and Rob stood and let themselves be inspected. They were all talking at once, laughing, pointing and having fun.

"Okay," said Beth, "now let's get serious for a bit. Sarah and Sandy, I'm afraid your mother was left sitting in her living room on Earth. I'm younger than you are. I can't be your mom anymore. You're my sisters, just as Diane is my sister. I've heard some people say 'sister concubine' but the word 'concubine' doesn't add anything. Diane is my sister. Allison is my sister. Rob is my brother. You're my sisters. Your children are our children. Grandma is gone."

Turning to the twins, she said, "Soon enough, you'll have most of the privileges and responsibilities of adults. You'd better get used to calling Allison and Rob by their given names. It's going to be bad enough when a child says 'mom?' and eight heads turn."

"Beth and I have two separate bets on," smiled Diane. "Two bets for each pair of you. One bet is which of you says 'mom' the most. The other bet is who says 'mom' last." Everyone laughed.

The AI interrupted. "Martin asks whether Logan should be bathed before bed?"

"Tell Martin that I don't have strong feelings one way or the other about a bath," Sarah said.

"AI," said Beth, "would you ask Martin to please remain on the upper level while we have a talk with each other?"

After a brief time, the AI answered, "Martin agrees to remain on the upper level. He asks whether Jack should join you or remain with him?"

"Ask him to keep Jack with him," said Beth.

"Martin reports that two dads and two boys are going to bathe before the boys brush their teeth and go to bed." said the AI. "The requested pajamas are in the replicator." Emma dashed off to deliver them.

Allison encouraged everyone to sit down on the sofas. Sarah and Sandy made to sit beside Laura, but stopped short. "Can we sit by you?" asked Sandy. Laura nodded. After they were seated, Sandy asked, "You want us close, or not?"

Laura considered for a moment. "Close, please. Thank you for asking."

In response to the quizzical expressions on the faces of Beth, Diane and Allison, Sarah said, "We learned that Laura's husband was not a very nice man. Martin wants to use Laura as an ... what's that word?"

"Exemplar," chimed the twins.

"Oh, yeah. Martin wants to use Laura as an exemplar of how our family treats pregnant women. Laura won't be treated special because of Laura, but because she is the first of us to be pregnant. Laura's man didn't ask for sex, he took it. You know yourselves that sex when you're pregnant is often repellant. You know you sometimes needed to be cuddled and sometimes couldn't stand to be touched.

"So ... the rule is, no sex with Laura unless she asks. No touching Laura unless she asks. You can hold open your arms in invitation, but that's all. Laura can kiss you as passionately as she wants, can put your hand or your mouth to her breast, completely confident that it will not escalate to sex unless she says so. And I mean words. Laura can climb into bed with you to cuddle or to sleep, and not have to worry about sex. Laura can play with your crotch but Laura's is off limits unless she says so. Laura can have all the sex she wants, but when she wants, with whom she wants and the way she wants.

"The same rule will apply to any of us who is pregnant. Does that sound fair and workable to you?"

There was silence for a time while the thought was processed. "I have never been pregnant," said Diane, "but that sounds a bit like when I was in Bitch Mode. I can't really imagine sex being repellant. You mothers need to decide. It sounds okay to me."

"How will we know when this rule applies to any of you?" asked Rob.

"We'll have to make allowances for some members of our family," answered Beth. "The twins and Diane haven't been through it and won't recognize the signals. The men probably couldn't take a hint for love nor money. We'll know when to invoke the rule. One day she'll say, 'I'm not a new mother anymore' and that's when the rule stops. Okay?"

The twins were sitting on the sofa, listening, while their fingers were in each other's pussy, as though that were the most ordinary thing in the world.

"The thirteen-year-old exemption has not yet been granted," intoned the AI. All eyes turned toward the twins, who yanked their hands back into their own laps.

"Nice segue, girls," chuckled Sandy.

"Sorry, ladies," said Rob. "What's a segue?"

"It is a smooth transition from one subject to another," said Laura.

"Back to the point," said Sarah. "While you were gone, we had 'show and tell' with body parts. Sandy got fucked until she fainted. We learned about, and saw, the twins squirting. Jack came all over his own chest. The twins liked that but their squirting put Jack to shame.