Chapter 48

Third Mission, inbound in star system RKO-289 aboard the FUP Deep Space Exploration vessel Glenndeavor, 2401 CE

“And that—” said Juliet from the shuttle’s command pilot seat in front of us, a proud smile easily heard in sound of her voice, “—is it for now.”

I could only see the back and crown of her helmet, the shoulders of her matte-black vest, and her right arm. She turned to her right and reached over with her hand to remove her MC ID on its lanyard from one of the two card readers located on the raised control console. All the screens, indicators, and switches in front, above, and on both sides of the pilots’ couches were dark again. Where I expected to see out of the massively thick windows in front of the station, I saw what must be collision panels over the plexplas.

“The Royal Yacht’s recognition scheme, ID string, and our primary, secondary, tertiary, and emergency communications bands and encryption information should already be in Arrbra’s personal email folder,” said my blonde wife and our shuttle pilot as she lowered the left arm rest then reached up with her right hand for the overhead grab bar.

She pulled her torso and hips up from the seat, and putting her left hand down on the edge of the couch, she slightly rolled to her left as she got out of the deep command position. Slightly bent at her waist, she stepped toward us from the pilot’s position. Once her helmet was clear of all the panels, she stood up, looking me in the eyes.

“Jameson,” she asked, “you’re certain the embedded information will just show up in Arrbra’s Incoming folder and won’t be traceable—you’re ahh, what did you call it? Your geeked-up utility can actually do that?”

“A-firmative,” I told her. “Not that we needed to do that, I just feel safer using my hack method with everything that’s happened.”

Anika was on my left, Melvina and then Bea were standing on my right. There were two different mission control stations along each of the two slightly arched outer bulkheads. The Flight Deck hatch was behind us and opened on the Passenger Deck.

“I’m a truth-told ubergeek and a shit-hot code monkey,” I said, “if I do say so myself. It’s what I’ve done for a long time, Mindy. But that is one utility I’ll never submit to ExServ for consideration. I don’t want to end up in some deeply buried, black-ops lab on an out-of-the-way asteroid for the rest of my life ... and working for free.”

Looking around at my companions, I saw the slightly skeptical looks I was getting from Juliet and Melvina. Bea’s brown eyes were filling with mirth and Anika just watched us.

“Of course,” I said, turning my head forward and gazing back into Juliet’s green eyes under her Kilo helmet, “you realize you can never tell anyone outside this compartment about my toy—because if you do, you will have to kill them.”

“What?“ my first wife asked, her eyes starting to go wide as she searched my eyes for just a moment to see if I really was giving her the truth-told facts or just making a joke. Then I saw her relax.

“Yes, kill them; it is the Third Law of Geek Wisdom,” I informed her, managing to keep a bland expression on my face. “If a geek ever intentionally or accidentally reveals any secret of economic value created by his or her own devising, then the person learning the secret must die—preferably by bombarding them with little known facts about some specialized scientific subject until the person is bored to death.”

I heard Bea snort followed by Melvina shifting her boots on the deck beside me.

“However,” I spoke up, “making them brain dead will work too. Unless three out of five geeks would consider that person was already brain dead and, therefore; among the ranks of the living dead and doomed to forever walk through their meager lives in darkness and ruled by superstition.”

“But you just told me,” Juliet giggled, “about your utility. And you’re not going to hurt me—you love me, and I love you, Jameson. But that boredom angle—” And my first wife actually raise her right hand, palm to the deck and thumb out, before she started lifting her thumb up and down while moving her Kilo-covered head from side to side with a cute grimace on her features framed by her helmet.

“And you better not be saying I’m brain dead, Mister,” she told me, a small twinkle of fire starting to rise inside her green eyes as she dropped her hand. “You better not be if you ever hope to have sex in our marriage again.”

“No, I’m not saying you’re brain dead, first love of my life,” I told her, enjoying our mutual teasing. “You have an IQ over one-thirty-two, below that quotient and Geek Wisdom would name you as one of the living dead. We geeks still haven’t figured out how popular culture still gets the cause of the whole zombie thing wrong, movie after movie after movie. Besides, you’re covered by the First Law of Geek Wisdom anyway.”

“Oh, gowno,” said Juliet with a sigh and a fake frown. “Alright, what is the First Law of Geek Wisdom, Jaym?”

“I thought you’d never ask,” I told her with a grin. “The First Law is this: if a geek shall ever have sex with another willing person; then that lucky geek, if not terrified by the person’s demeanor afterward, shall become the devoted thrall to the person and pray every single day for more willing sex—while knowing there is a ninety-three percent chance it will never happen again. Well, without large amounts of credits changing hands.”

“Okay, if these laws are written down somewhere,” Bea asked from the other side of Melvina, and I could hear the mirthful challenge evident in her voice, “then what’s, you know, the Second Law of Geek Wisdom hummm? Can you tell me that, MM?”

“That’s easy,” I announced. “Let each geek in his or her heart always remember the Second Law. Never make direct eye contact with any member of the living dead, lest that person think you are challenging them. All geeks will suffer at the hands of the living dead for any perceived challenge, implied or expressed, in at least one of the following ways, but not limited to the itemized punishments listed.

“And,” I added in a hushed voice, “there is a warning at the top of the list stating that sometimes a geek will suffer one or more of the punishments from members of the living dead just for their sport.”

You’re starting to lose them, my paranoid ass-wipe warned me as he looked around at the women.

“The suffering can take many forms,” I told them with a sigh, realizing I was venting something from my childhood. “I won’t bore you with the entire list, because there is that other topic for this evening we all are thankfully anticipating—isn’t that correct, Mel?” I knew that my women would perk up thinking about what Melvina had agreed to share with us once we returned to our quarters.

Our new name-friend didn’t answer, but she started blushing under her Kilo.

“But the punishments include,” I told the four women, wanting to draw out addressing the next part of the evening for as long as possible, “being harangued by one or more of the living dead with vile language to the point of intimidation, getting a knuckle rub on the scalp while restrained in a head lock ... or getting wedgies. The list goes all the way up to an inverted toilet dunking, confiscation of pocket money, getting slapped, or in extreme situations, even receiving a beating.”

“And these are being reasons,” Anika asked from my left, “why you as young boy are learning method of vigorous refusal of intended harm from such lobuz ... from bullies?”

My data visor deployed and my translation hack appeared in the center panel telling me what I’d heard was Polish for bullies.

“That and running as fast as I could,” I told my Polka Fireball as I blinked on an icon and retracted my electric eyes. “And to be really mean, I sometimes offered to help them with their homework.”

“What’s up, buttercup—” Bea asked me, nodding her Kilo-covered head at my helmet, “—incoming message ... or what?”

“It was nothing important,” I replied.

“Have you finally finished, my husband?” Juliet asked, giving me a grin. When I nodded, she stepped to my right and stopped in front of Melvina Bimini. She reached up and carefully took Mel’s Kilo off of her head, handing the helmet to me and I took hold of it in my right hand, bringing the Kilo down to my side. Then my sexy blonde wife took off her own helmet, shaking out her hair before giving her Kilo to Bea on Mel’s right. “It is time to get to that topic that everyone’s been anticipating.”

Juliet raised her hands, placing her right hand along the redhead’s left cheek and her left hand on the other side of our neighbor’s head. My first wife tilted Mel’s head away from me as she leaned forward while tilting her own head toward me.

Ever so softly, their eyes closed and their lips met.

“Ooooo ... yeah... “ Beatrice whispered from the other side of the two women as the chaste kiss continued while the blush appearing on Melvina’s skin under Juliet’s fingers intensified.

“I am thinking, my naughty husband—” Anika said in a soft voice as she entwined the fingers of her right hand with the fingers of my left hand and then took a step closer to me as we both turned to view the erotic display. It became apparent by Mindy’s and Mel’s small lip and mouth movements that tongues were starting to explore.

“—all will be much more comfortable retiring to our suite ... There also is chilling previously opened bottle of champagne,” my Polka Fireball almost mumbled as she, like Bea and I, was mesmerized by what we were seeing. “What is about to happen should be treated with upmost respect ... toasts are in order ... and JJ awaits ... perhaps meeting his new friend later ... yes?”

Juliet removed her teasing tongue from the deeply breathing Melvina and, breaking the hot kiss, brought her head back and looked over at Nika and me. Our beautiful blonde wife was still holding Mel’s head at a slight tilt while the redhead’s eyes remained closed and the nostrils of her prominent nose flexed with her breathing.

“I am thinking JJ will stay in his box, alone, this evening,” our first wife said, focusing her sparkling eyes on our younger wife. “Perhaps you and Bea will have to be content with servicing our naughty husband in C-Oh-Oh-One while Melvina discovers she’s made the correct decision to join us by spending the evening with me in C-Oh-Oh-Three. I’m the one who thought to cover her body with my own and keep her from harm after all.

“We will not rush the issue, Nika,” Juliet said. “This will not be a repeat of the first night the three of us had sex together. Understood?”

“A-firmative,” Anika said softly, and I could hear the contrition in her voice as she gripped my fingers tighter. “Please be forgiving my exuberance, my loving wife. You are, again, being wise in ways of our household ... I will be obeying ... as you command.”

“Then,” Juliet said, Melvina’s tilted head still held in my first wife’s hands, Mel’s eyes closed as Mindy looked first a Bea on her left, and then back at Anika on her right, “it is time for the three of you to go up to bed. We’ll be along shortly.”

Juliet tilted her head and resumed kissing G4 Melvina Bimini. Our redheaded neighbor brought her arms up and, putting them around Juliet’s shoulders, she let out a low moan, pressing her body against the chest of my first wife’s ballistic and beam vest.

The bunk in C001 was the scene of a three-way sexual free-for-all. I think Beatrice got the best of it, because she kept being distracted by the sounds coming from the pass-through out of C003. Anika was surprisingly almost gentle, but still determined and demanding to get the most pleasure in giving and taking.

After the two wild women I had my arms around settled down to sleep, and hearing no more moans or begging coming from the next compartment, I completely relaxed. I reached out and connect with Juliet. My first wife was content and feeling protective of Melvina, who she held in her arms. Mindy was just slipping into sleep.

I was able to connect with Mel to a deeper extent than I had before. Her spark was brighter and I could feel her peacefulness. The last thing I remember was feeling Mel was profoundly asleep, snuggled against my first wife.

I awoke to the sound of whispers and the soft padding of feet on carpet. Once I got out of the bunk, all of us in C001 were up and starting our day. Naked stretches and then forms were followed by the three of us getting into the expanded shower stall. I’ll never absentmindedly wash in a shower of water again, I told myself as Bea scrubbed my back under the pounding spray.

“How’s everyone this fine morning?” I heard Melvina Bimini’s happy-sounding voice ask as the plex panel to my right opened. “I’m looking forward to this. I’ve never showered with anyone before in such a confined—well, actually, comfortable-looking space—and ... touching each other.”

“I call dibs on washing her front!” Bea called out and turned away from my back.

I moved toward the opposite wall from the shower heads and watched the wet and dripping Green Thumb Princess greet our wonderfully naked name-friend with a hug. Mel had her hair up with one of Anika’s smaller, gold towels wrapped around her head like a turban.

Bea continued holding Melvina while looking into her eyes, their naked tits mashed together, and then Beatrice gave Mel a kiss on the cheek. With a happy giggle, the honey-blonde turned around to sweep Mel’s shoulders and back under the hot water, then continuing the spin, she brought our pink-skinned friend back out of the cascade. Bea stopped them in the same position as they started and I couldn’t miss the circular, purple hickey over Mel’s left collarbone next to her neck.

The plex door to the C003 portion of our expanded head facilities opened again and my beautiful, positively glowing, first wife smiled in at us.

“Make room you guys,” she said putting her hand on Mel’s wet butt and guiding her and Bea back toward the spraying shower heads. “We need to hurry up. We got up later than usual.”

“I am not able to be imagining,” Anika said as she ducked her head into the water to clean the suds off her face, “why this is, Mindy. It was my morning for scheduled personal attentions from my naughty husband. However he slept in—separate bunk put aside for special time with our naughty husband being occupied as well. Huh!”

It was a quick shower considering that at one point each of us held Melvina Godwyn Bimini in our arms and gave her little welcoming kisses.

Anika and Beatrice had had their way with me so completely the night before; I didn’t even get an erection as I held Melvina’s slippery, wet body against me. Bea was the first to notice and she made a point to point out the fact. She told Vina she was going to have to try harder to get me harder the next time we were all together and in our all-together.

Slapping me on my ass, Bea opened the plex door to the C001 side of the joined facilities and stepped out as she reached for a towel.

“I need to get dry and go home,” Melvina chuckled. “I don’t want to be late for duty today.”

“I doubt you’re ever late for duty,” Juliet said wrapping her arms around our naked, wet neighbor from behind as I shut off the water and the overhead fans sucked the moisture out of the stall to be reclaimed.

“There is always a first time for everything,” Mel laughed and wiggled her fine butt back against Juliet’s thighs and groin.

My, my, my... said my paranoid ass-wipe as he shook his head down in my lizard brain, how that girl has changed. Where’s the actress gone, what happened to our spoiled, entitled debutante?

After Mel slipped into her duty blues without putting on her bra or panties, she gave each of us another hug before she went next door. With our new name-friend gone, we all hurried to get dressed for our day. Beatrice got into her fresh bra, panties, and tee-shirt and pulled on her duty blues just as fast as I knew she could get them off. Then our voluptuous sweetheart sat down at the desk comp with her socks and boots. Before putting them on, she powered up the comp, got online, and read out the day’s Morning Orders and Announcements as the rest of us dressed at a slower pace.

Bea told us the XO announced that the Ship-wide search of compartments for contraband was almost complete. However, she added, there would be search crews going back and using the new SOP utilizing POCs in compartments that were previously searched before that SOP was developed. Bea said the XO wanted to thank the entire crew and the Ship’s Marine security detachment for all their efforts in making the Glenndeavor safe from internal attack while locating, identifying, and impounding the contraband the Brotherhood had managed to place around the Ship.

Safe from internal attacks, my paranoid ass-wipe spoke up from my lizard brain, I do hope that is a guarantee.

Then Beatrice started laughing as she sat back and pulled on her right sock, saying she was assigned to a search group being supervised by a G5 named Sitwell. Our Green Thumb Princess finished putting on her other sock and secured her boots on her feet before standing back up.

Anika finished getting ready for duty by putting on her Kilo and powering it up. In less than 30 seconds she told us she was also assigned to the same group guarding and giving direction to searchers.

As I watched Juliet sit down at the desk comp, I already knew that Juliet was scheduled to fly a shuttle for the first part of her duty shift. Checking her MOA, my first wife found out she’d spend the rest of her duty watch attending another Away Team meeting from 0445 to 0800.

I asked G3 Henderson if she would contact MoveCon and tell them we were going to be leaving our quarters in the next 10 minutes and heading to the Enlisted Mess. With all the rest of my gear in place, I put on my Kilo before I turned and put my helmet-covered head into my small arms locker as if I was looking for something. Feeling I was safe, I whispered hunchback aviation, powering up my Kilo system. I took the strap holding my Betzoule shotgun off its hook inside the locker and checked to make sure the chamber was empty. I stepped back, closing my locker.

After I deployed my data visor, I used two blinks of my left eye so I could check the MOA on the center panel of my electric eyes. I found out that I was in charge of supervising another group of crew in searching compartments with G3 Henderson and G2 Blaugelt-Sitwell as my other two team leaders. We were to collect our searchers in the Enlisted Mess after we had our breakfast.

“Do we all have our rolls of stickers?” I asked as I patted the cargo pockets on my thighs to check for mine, and got nods from Anika and Bea.

“I have to say,” Juliet spoke up from under her helmet, “there are times I’m glad I’ve got more exciting things to do than you three. I haven’t been excited by stickers since I was four, so no matter how many rolls of stickers you’ve got, it won’t come close to the fun I’m going to have out in the Big Black piloting an SSC-Twelve while retrieving and bringing in cargo pods.”

“Is sounding as we all are having inventory duties of one type or the next,” said Anika with a disgusted shake of her Kilo-covered head. “Are we to become no better than merchants counting their wares as if they are coins of gold?”

“I don’t know about all that,” Beatrice told us with a big grin forming on her cute face framed by her helmet, “but how ‘bout we go next door and wait with Vina until MoveCon gets off their asses and they send us our itinerary. How does that sound?”

It sounded good, and as we left C003 I saw Mel’s pink bra and panties were still on the carpet between the bunk and the right bulkhead.

All four women huddled up the moment we entered Melvina Bimini’s quarters. The layout of the compartment was exactly like C001. As the girls whispered among themselves near the footlocker against the end of the bunk, I looked around.

Only the middle shelf against the front bulkhead held anything. I saw a medium-sized, emergency-yellow tote containing an Emergency Decompression and Evacuation suit at the end of the shelf next to the hatchway threshold. There was what looked like a personal hygiene kit in the middle of the shelf along with a folded, crew issued towel. Next to that was what looked like a good-sized overnight case, it was against the bulkhead at the other end of the shelf. I saw nothing else in the neat compartment to make me think someone lived here.

Giggles and then laughter came from the group of Kilo-helmeted women and I realized I was making a point of not overhearing what they were talking about.

“Wait a minute,” Bea spoke up and I saw her visor deploy over her eyes, “I got an incoming.”

I know none of us were surprised when MoveCon replied to Bea’s text message clearing us to head to the Enlisted Mess without having to escort anyone but Melvina. There was a palpable feeling of excitement around us as we headed out of her quarters, turning to our right and made our way to the cargo lift around the corner. Anika was taking us to breakfast by the most direct route.

When I connected with Juliet, then Anika, followed by Beatrice, and finally Melvina as we moved along in file formation, I didn’t detect any anxiety, anticipation, or dread in any of them as we approached the next closed hatchway as I had before. With a smile on my face below my deployed electric eyes as I broke my connection with Mel, I heard my stomach growl with hunger.

After being scanned outside the Mess and then again as soon as we entered, we went through the serving line and then found different tables before we settled down to eat.

Anika, Beatrice, and I stood at the aft bulkhead of the Enlisted Mess and gathered up the first twelve crew members who approached us. I’m sure our red SPI brassards helped draw their attention to us, as well as the fact we were all armored up and had shotguns. As a crew person walked up and asked if we were there to form a search team, Anika or Bea would take a picture of each person’s nametag with their POC. The search-team software developed by some enterprising code monkey would add that person’s name to our database and forward the information on to search control—wherever that was located.

As I used my Heavy on the three nametags, my inner geek lamented the downfall of such a powerful piece of black-ops technology. My Heavy now only served the role of a hi-def camera and my basic communications device—which was somewhat supplanted by the comm gear in my Kilo system since I’d piggy-backed my Heavy into that system and from there into my RTC and ear-bud. I could have been carrying around a regular crew issued POC on my belt for all the good I was getting from the incredible features offered by the spook gollygear Lieutenant Shellbee had entrusted to me.

I wondered how Ashley was doing—what she was doing. I missed her and realized that none of my household had taken the initiative to contact her, or Kiarianne Krychenkov, to schedule an off duty get-together. That would have to change later today, I thought as I registered the twelfth crew member, a young man, the last person on my section of the team.

Behind him I saw Juliet walking toward me, her data visor deployed and her mouth and full lips set. As the last crew member turned to talk to another member of our team, I caught a glimpse of the side of his face. My inner geek thought we’d seen him before. My PAW laughed and told us we probably seen a good half of the people eating before on this Mission or the one before, they just didn’t really register.

“MoveCon has just informed me,” my first wife told me with a grin now showing under her data visor as she stepped into my personal space in front of me, “that I am to find and attach myself to one G5 Sitwell located presently in the Enlisted Mess. According to their all-knowing scheduling, he and his team will drop me off at Ship’s Shuttle Bay One on their way to search compartments in that area—imagine that.”

“You must realize, G4 Mindenhall-Sitwell—” I told her as my efficient G3 Henderson marshaled our crew slowly by the two SPI agents who scanned everyone entering or leaving the Enlisted Mess as our team moved out of the hatch. “—that accommodation in whatever TD that takes us to our destinations will be tight. I am sorry to inform you that you might have to sit on my lap. I, of course, will experience no sexual component to your seating arrangements—unless you find the need to rearrange yourself from time to time. The common term is, I believe, wiggling your well-toned, heart-shaped butt.”

“As if,” Juliet replied as we joined the end of the line to be scanned. “Besides, all the gear you’re wearing and my vest really won’t allow any cozy contact—Mister Sitwell. I’ll have you know sir; my husband is a very possessive man. He will certainly defend my honor if anything untoward happens to come up, I assure you.”

As it was, Juliet was down on her knee-pads to my right as we both hunkered against the front wall of the forward-right armored cubbyhole of the TD3. There was one other person behind us sharing the space. Both Juliet and I had our electric eyes deployed, and at one point I heard Juliet talking in a low voice.

As I watched my tactical display with one eye and the passageway ahead of us with the other, I wondered if the amazing bucket seats would start reappearing in the TDs as soon as the last compartment was searched using the new SOP.

Then my paranoid ass-wipe wondered where the missing seats were stored—probably somewhere in the Barracks Block. He suggested I might ask my loving Juliet if she would be kind enough to give Ariel Jerusalem a call. Mindy could ask Ariel if, during the next days before the search was completed, if she might be able to successfully scrounge one of the mythical butt holders since so many of the seats were presently removed from the TD fleet. With everything else that was going on, my PAW doubted the desirable bucket seats were under guard.

Besides, my PAW told me, if her attempt goes south, you can don that fancy ring and claim she was acting under the direction of the Duke of the Outer Places, or Realms, or whatever your uppity title will be once your grow a pair and put on the ring. Heck, it was a wedding present after all.

Our TD emerged from the cargo lift and turned left on Seven Deck as we headed toward the bow of the Glenndeavor and Ship’s Shuttle Bay 1. I got an incoming message from Bea, sitting somewhere behind me, with the list of compartments to be searched. Noting the addresses, I pulled up a schematic of the Ship and saw we’d be searching along a passageway on the starboard side of SSB-1.

In fact, the second location on our search list appeared to be the big, shuttle drive-system storage compartment I’d seen from across the maintenance yard yesterday. However, the address of the hatchway we were to use made me think we’d be entering the bay from the starboard corridor and not from inside the Shuttle Bay itself. I nodded my head; entering by the back door, so to speak, should cut down on the number of visitor’s passes one of the guards would have to find for each of my team if we came into the bay at one of the guarded hatchways.

As Juliet bumped against me with her left hip and shoulder, I looked over the schematic projected inside my visor and I was sure that once my crew disembarked the TD that Juliet would remain aboard. The main entrance to SSB-1 was at the far end of the corridor we were assigned to search.

I figured we were one of the crews going back through compartments that had been searched before and previous to the new POC SOP. By having crews going back over the earlier compartments using the new procedure; Merch was going to have an up-to-date database of the supplies on the Glenndeavor. But I doubted the exact numbers would be correct. In the past, when my teams encountered a pallet containing boxes, cases, or drums, they’d typically only passed their POCs over the barcode of one of the items in the lot.

Juliet bumped up against my side again while the TD ran straight ahead. I decided I needed to pay attention to my wife. Smiling below my electric eyes as I turned at the waist to look at her, I asked where she was planning on entering SSB-1. I found out I was correct; she would use the main entrance and report to flight control where she’d join the rest of the flight crew before going out to their shuttle. I told Juliet where we were searching and suggest that I again meet her as she departed her shuttle at the end of her flight. My team was scheduled to return to the Enlisted Mess between 0400 and 0415. I’d bring her along with us on the TD ride back for lunch.

Juliet liked the idea and actually held my tactical-glove-covered hand the rest of the trip.

I thought that Juliet looked a little forlorn under her data visor as the TD3 pulled away from me and my search crew. Behind me, G2 Blaugelt-Sitwell and G3 Henderson ushered our crew into the opened hatchway of our first compartment. It was located directly across from the smaller hatchway bearing the second address on our search list—the big supply bay that held items to repair shuttle drives. Because we had the lock codes for both compartments, I got the idea that not only wouldn’t we meet a guard, but there wouldn’t be any Supply Joes hanging around keeping a close watch on the inventory either.