Chapter 6

While I was getting undressed, she headed off to the bathroom and returned in a shapeless but thin nightie (not translucent, exactly -- except from wear -- or lingerie grade, by any means -- it was yellow cotton with a pattern of flowers or something on it). I gave her a look and she blushed and said, "You don't want to see my fat butt and saggy boobs."

In answer, I flipped the top sheet and blanket off me; I sleep raw any time I can get away with it -- and I considered this to be one of those occasions. Beth's hands flew to her cheeks and she gasped, "Oh!" -- but she didn't peel out of that thing right away. Instead, she came around to the side of the bed and turned her back to me before divesting herself and backing under the covers.

I chuckled. "I don't suppose that it has occurred to you that your fat butt and saggy boobs are what got us here..." I murmured as I stuck my cock between the cheeks of the first item and collected a generous handful of the other.

"Were they?" Beth had no problem backing up against me, I noted.

"The jury is still out, but if I were to throw a rock, I'd say they were instrumental," I murmured in her ear.

"You're a weird, weird guy," Beth husked, adding, "thank God..." She wriggled around a bit and reached between her legs and rearranged my cock so that it ran between them pressed against her nether lips.

That was fine with me; I relaxed and nuzzled her neck and played with her soft, soft titty, intending to drift off that way. Beth had other ideas, though, beginning with rocking herself along my meat -- which solidified under the attention, then got nice and wet from the lubrication along her slot. The urge to sleep slowly took a back seat to other urges -- in both of us. Next, she leaned forward while grasping my rod and reorienting it against her opening, after which she wrapped a hand around my upper thigh and pulled, urging me to bury myself in her. I held out for a moment, "Aren't you tired? I figure you're sore..."

"I want mine before I have to deal with the competition," Beth husked. "This is my honeymoon."

I pressed forward, into her steaming depths. "This isn't marriage," I reminded her.

"No, it's better!" she gasped.

We were beyond philosophy, at that point -- it was time to fuck. Very quickly it became apparent that I didn't have adequate leverage with us lying on our sides to give the energetic fuck we both wanted, so I rolled her up on her knees. Beth stuck her face in a pillow, but the damned headboard kept banging the wall. I ended up handling that by turning Beth sideways in the bed. That limited us to some squeaks, Beth going "Mmmm! Mmmm!" into the pillows, and me panting a lot. You can talk about that ass all you want, but watching those cheeks shudder under my hands while I slammed into her pussy worked for me! Once again, it was prime pussy -- difficult to describe, but Tina and Dottie were in trouble from a pleasure delivery point of view. I lasted maybe ninety seconds before Li'l Jack blew the first time -- and after a short pause to enjoy it I just resumed stroking, starting slow and building back up. Beth did NOT complain; I heard the whine and felt the clutch of her cunt I'd learned to associate with her climax at least four times before Li'l Jack hosed her a second time, four or five minutes later.

I rocked back on my heels and prepared to drag Beth around to our starting position; Beth came up on her hands to cooperate, then froze, looking in the mirror attached to her dresser. I followed her glance and discovered her mother standing in the doorway in a similar nightgown; her hand was drifting away from where the cloth was slowly unwrinkling and dropping back into place in front. Momma Hopkins pretended nothing untoward had occurred while she murmured, "I came in to ask you not to bang the headboard against the wall; your father is a deep sleeper, but there are limits..."

I turned to face her directly. "Sorry about that. I fixed it as soon as it got to be a problem."

Momma Hopkins answered Li'l Jack, not me -- she was talking to him in a manner that I'd spoken to any number of nice looking titties in my time when she replied, "That was some exhibition you two put on."

I shrugged. "The early plan was sleep, but Beth seems to feel that she should take whatever opportunities present themselves."

"Hmmmm, yes," Momma Hopkins mused. She shifted her attention to her daughter. "That wasn't your first time. How long...?"

Beth blushed nearly purple. "Last night. With Jack. I... lied. I wasn't drunk -- we were asleep, after."

Momma nodded, seemingly taking it all in stride. "I'm going to bed now," she announced, "and will try to sleep. You should, too." Her attitude said that either Papa Hopkins was going to be awakened from his sound sleep, or Momma was going to do some serious masturbation before sleep overcame her. Well, that wasn't MY problem...

Beth's work schedule made her a late sleeper, but I had things to do, so she set the alarm for six. I managed not to destroy the thing and rolled out headed for the bathroom that Beth pointed out to me before sleepily announcing, "I'll make you some coffee..." and padding off in that nightgown. I showered and thanked God that I'd had my beard's growth retarded quite a bit; I'd passed on the option to have it removed altogether as sometimes facial hair is a fashion thing with males. Climbing into my clothing from the day before wasn't the greatest thing, but I had time to pop by the hotel and swap out. As I came down the stairs, a male voice sounded in the kitchen, "You're up early..."

I peeked around the corner to see Beth turn to her father, who was seated at the table drinking coffee, "Yes, Daddy." Momma was in the background, watching the tableau -- and enjoying it, no doubt. She picked me up visually, but said nothing.

"You were quite late again," Mr. Hopkins noted. "Your mother didn't come to bed until very late. What are you up to these days?"

Beth turned pink -- but hit a brick wall, no doubt from a certain reticence over discussing her blooming sex life as well as the hypnotic blocks she had in place. After she tried a couple of times, she flicked a glance at her mother, but merely got amusement in return; Momma was unaware that she was inhibited. It was time to do something...

"Hi," I announced myself, stepping around the door. "I'm Jack."

Mr. Hopkins's glance shifted from me to Beth, who was looking relieved if apprehensive, to his wife, who wore an expression of vindictive amusement. "All right -- what's going on?"

Momma chose to reply, "Oliver, meet your son-in-law -- or as close as we're going to get, anyway."

That put all eyes back on me. "Pleased to meet you," I muttered, advancing a bit into the room, but trying not to appear too aggressive. "I didn't intend that you be surprised."

"I don't think you could have avoided it," Mr. Hopkins replied, eyeing me for a moment, then shifting his glance to his daughter. "When did this all start? And when were you going to tell someone?" Before she could stammer out an answer, he returned his attention to me, "I assume the uproar last night wasn't your first date."

Stepping carefully, I said, "It's all been rather sudden..."

"Oliver is no fool, Young Man," Momma interjected, "Show him what you showed me."

I pursed my lips, considering, and nodded. "Fine." Reaching into my wallet, I extracted my ID and presented it.

"Armed forces of..." Oliver Hopkins stopped and eyed me. "Forgive me if I'm wrong, but a CAP card qualifies you for citizenship, but doesn't make you a citizen. THIS, on the other hand..."

"You're correct," I confirmed. "I've been off-planet for a couple of years."

Oliver flicked a glance at his wife. "What's this about you being my son-in-law? Vera..."

'So THAT's her name!' I mused. "Well, as your wife indicated, that isn't accurate -- but Beth has been a concubine since sometime last night."

"Concubine..." Oliver eyed his daughter. "Usually, they don't hang around..."

"Well, this is a special case," I replied, "since it isn't an extraction. I'm here on official business..."

"Why Beth?" Oliver cut me off.

"If I had a nickel for every time someone asked me that..." I shook my head. "We clicked, okay?"

"It's pretty abrupt," Oliver noted, "but then, if it HAD been an extraction, it would have been considerably MORE abrupt, wouldn't it?" His gaze swung to his daughter. "Your friend Frieda pointed that out last night." He mused for a moment, "In fact, why are you still here? If Beth's status is what you say it is..."

I grimaced. "I'm running what my superiors would no doubt consider an unjustified security risk," I admitted, "but I thought it might be nice if Beth got a chance to say goodbye. As to her status, these contracts are verbal and recorded, but documentary evidence..."

<Can be provided,> my AI announced.

"Hang on a sec..." I addressed Oliver. 'How?' I subvocalized to the AI.

<There is a computer in a room down the hall,> the AI announced. <A quick search of Confederacy records will produce a satisfactory document.>

"You have a computer?" I asked.

"In my office," Oliver replied.

"If you'll show it to me, I think I can verify things for you."

"Indeed." Oliver got up. "Does either one of you intend to get Jack some coffee? Beth, this would seem to come under your list of duties..." He paused, eyeing her, and I knew the more publicized duties of a concubine were flickering through his brain. Beth turned away and busied herself with a cup. We waited while she got it, Oliver eyeing his daughter in mild sadness; I had a good idea why. She wasn't his little girl any more...

Beth turned back to me with a cup, ignoring her parents out of embarrassment. "Cream? Sugar?"

I smiled gently, taking it from her. "Like that." Turning to Oliver, I said, "Shall we?" He led the way; Beth followed me, and Vera followed her.

The computer was up and running; Oliver logged in and invited me to take over the keyboard. The AI provided a URL, letter by letter, and I typed it in. he computer then produced this on an electronic representation of Confederacy Consular stationery:

"Let it be known to all who view these presents that Elizabeth Grace Hopkins (there followed her birth date and CAP card serial number), hereinafter referred to in this document as concubine, is the bound concubine of LT Jack LeRoy Harper, CSN (there followed my identification data), hereinafter referred to as sponsor, effective (there followed a time stamp that converted to about a quarter to eleven p.m. the previous evening, converted to UTC) in accordance with the validated verbal contract recorded at that time. As such, the sponsor holds sole proprietary rights and responsibility over said concubine effective as of the conclusion of said contract."

There was more verbiage about the document's value in the disposition of Beth's estate and the remuneration of her creditors and such, and it was signed by some Decurion with a signature block indicating that he was the custodian of records for the Confederacy Consulate on Earth.

"Well, that's it..." I waved at the screen. "I'd never seen one before, but there it is."

"I have," Oliver muttered. "You didn't know how to get there, either, did you? You've been talking to one of those AIs..."

"Yeah." Oliver was even less stupid than his wife, I noted.

The AI agreed. "Oliver Hopkins's CAP score is six point nine. Vera Braithewaite Hopkins possesses a five point nine. Their relationship, however, is somewhat the reverse of the one their CAP scores indicate."

I chuckled. Vera was the boss -- CAP score or no CAP score. Still, if Vera could swallow her pride, I could evacuate the pair justifiably. That led to another question: "Where are Beth's sisters and brother?"

"They've all... left the nest," Oliver said quietly, flicking a glance at Beth. I got it; oldest or not, Beth's horizons had been limited in comparison to her sisters and brother.

I sipped my coffee, thinking. I'd painted myself into a corner; I was going to have to do something about Beth's family, since they knew too much. "Do you have any plans to emigrate?"

Not surprisingly, Vera answered. "No. You'll kick these Swarm things to the curb. We'll be fine."

I pursed my lips. "I agree with you -- but there is a little problem regarding the timeline," I sighed. "We're going to do it -- AFTER we've grown a lot and spread out as a race. Whether Earth will be in their hands or ours is open to question."

"Told you," Oliver grunted to his wife.

Vera's face turned red. "Ollie..."

"If I may?" I interjected. "You'll have a few early run-ins with the AIs, but if Oliver wants to delegate his domestic situation to you he can."

"What?" Vera came up short.

"I'm assuming that you object to assuming the role traditionally assigned to concubines," I amplified.

"You're damned right!" Vera flared. "I REFUSE to be treated like stupid breeding stock! Besides, Ollie is..."

"Not domestically oriented?" I offered.

Vera pursed her lips. "That's one way of putting it."

"Let's work our way back to the basics," I murmured. "Do you object to a little additional breeding?"

"I'm too old."

"You won't be."

"Right." She eyed me dispassionately.

I hadn't put my ID away. "Look at the age on that."

Vera took the card -- and her eyebrows rose dramatically. "You're thirty-six?" she erupted. Beth gasped.

"Yes," I admitted. "I hope it doesn't matter to you, because it's too damned late," I told Beth.

"No," Beth muttered, "it doesn't. Are there any MORE surprises?" She DID look mildly irritated; to her, it was another lie.

"I don't think so, but I'm not sure," I told her. "If there are, they'll be omissions that will occur just because I don't realize they're relevant."

"I'd heard about this fountain of youth thing, but, really..." Vera muttered. "Everybody gets it?"

"Everyone who needs it, I guess," I replied. "Of course, your sponsor determines where you are regressed to and what other adjustments get made."

"That again." Vera's eyes flicked to Oliver.

I turned to Oliver, "So how urgent is your need to wriggle out from under Vera's thumb?" I asked, deadpan.

"I've been comfortable there for years," Oliver replied blandly. "Work is another matter -- but I'm not interested in dictating what I'm going to have for dinner -- or even what I'm going to wear to work, for that matter."

"Which is a good thing!" Vera snorted, adding, "He can't match ANYTHING!"

"My senior concubine runs my household," I told them. "I need to focus on work. If I don't like something, I mention it and it gets adjusted -- but I don't get stupid about it."

Vera eyed Beth. "How many concubines do you have?"

"Three, counting Beth. Beth isn't senior -- but she's more gifted at nurturing children than the other two. She's going to be 'Momma' at my house." Beth absorbed this with a glazed expression. "One of the others will handle overall organization of the household, but the children will be Beth's province -- all of them. She'll be Number Two, since one of my concubines is a bit ditzy," I added.

Vera nodded. "That should work."

"I'm sure having her mother up the street would help," I murmured. "Back to breeding..."

Vera eyed Oliver. "I guess I could go around again a few times... He would get two, you know."

I cracked a smile. "Undoubtedly, you would see to it that the other concubine knew her place."

Vera pursed her lips. "You know, I sensed that you weren't twenty-something..."

"In public, you'll have to obey the rules and behave yourself," I told her, adding, "but you do that already, don't you? What goes on in your household is between you and your sponsor -- and as long as you don't exceed certain limits, it won't be an issue."

"Why are we discussing this?" Oliver asked.

Vera knew the answer. "There is going to be an extraction," she declared. "At the very least, Jack can extract us -- isn't that right, Jack?"

"That's right," I agreed. "Before I tell you more, I need to take some measures to ensure the security of the ongoing mission -- or I can just have you picked up now -- take your pick."

Oliver sucked his teeth. "How long do we have?"

"Sorry..." I shrugged.

"What kind of measures?" Vera asked.

"Hypnotic inhibitions against discussing the whole thing with anyone not in the know," I replied, "reinforced by nannites that will make life difficult for you if you attempt to reveal anything."

"You become nauseated," Beth interjected. "I did, when I was trying to come up with answers to a couple of Daddy's questions this morning."

"That's sneaky," Vera grunted.

"It's effective," I agreed.

"It's been done to Beth?" Oliver clarified.

"Yes. She got exposed to too much information last night," I replied. "It was that or transport her immediately."

Oliver eyed his daughter. "I'm fine," Beth insisted.

I stood waiting. Vera eyed Oliver, "Ollie..."

Oliver grinned evilly, licking his eyeteeth, pretending they were long fangs. After a moment, though, he sobered and stamped his foot, "There is only so much foolishness I'll put up with, Vera! Getting us both killed to salve your pride goes a bit beyond, don't you think?"

"Oh all right!" Vera clearly wasn't happy, but she bent the neck. It wouldn't be the last time, I mused, but I suspected that ultimately what Ollie wanted, Ollie got, anyway.

"Okay, to clarify things," I queried, "I'm recording a consent to be evacuated for a sponsor, and an acceptance of concubine status..."

"Yes." Oliver nodded.

"Yes, yes, all that..." Vera waved it off. It was killing her; I could tell. "The things I do for you," she accused her husband.

Oliver cocked an eyebrow. "Don't irritate me or I'll demand fellatio..."

"OLIVER!"

I HAD to laugh...

We decided that they would 'hang out' for the 'big pickup', so I went out to the rental car and got the hypnotizer out of my briefcase. Vera went first; while Oliver was being conditioned, I took it upon myself to educate my concubine's mother... "There are some cold realities here," I told her. "For one thing, your contract with Oliver isn't marriage. There is no reason why you can't consider it such -- in some ways, it is more -- but it isn't as... comfortable on your end as marriage was."

Vera sat down in a chair. Beth did, too, her attention on me. "Let's hear it," Vera sighed.

"There are some ugly tales out there -- and a lot of them are true; however, on Nuevo Angelino, which is where we're going, the mistreatment of concubines is distinctly frowned upon. That said, you don't have the rights you do here. Oliver can drop you like a hot rock at any time, or trade you to someone else -- whatever he wants. He can change his mind before he's extracted and leave you here, too. I'm betting he won't do anything like that because you give him what he wants, but if he's coming up short anywhere, you may need to re-think your position..."

"Ugh."

"That comment about demanding fellatio? At some point, you might have to take that seriously," I added, "Maybe in a very public venue. Oliver may not be interested in asserting himself over you in private -- but if he lets you ride him in public, it won't be good for his relations with others on the job, among other things. I don't know how well you control such things now, but you're going to have to be circumspect."

Vera's face was a study in horror. "He wouldn't, would he?"

"He might not, but he can. And if you refuse, you put yourself -- and him -- on shaky ground," I told her. "The overarching rules for concubines demand obedience -- period. In the event that you get out of line in public, it is his responsibility to correct you -- and if he can't, it will reflect VERY BADLY upon him." I eyed her. "You're not going to like this, but... It's kind of like him taking out his dog for a walk and it biting someone else -- or threatening to. He needs to deal with it -- and if he doesn't, and other people get into the mix, the question will be opened as to whether he should own a dog or not..."

Vera grimaced. "Ewwww! I'm a dog?" I couldn't control my face. "Out with it!" she snarled.

"A bitch, maybe..."

If Beth hadn't giggled, there would have been trouble. As it was, I got a dark brown look before Vera took the comment in the vein of its delivery. Then she smiled ruefully and nodded, "I guess I resemble that remark."

"It's worked for you up to now," I murmured, "but it is going to leave you with bad habits. Frankly, I've seen a LOT of wives get into serious trouble -- they tend not to get it. I foresee that you might have a rough time."

"Speaking of such things," Vera muttered, "Oliver doesn't have to limit himself, does he?"

I flicked a glance at Oliver, who was back from hypnosis. "No, he doesn't. In fact, since there is an imperative for him to reproduce, he'll be encouraged to add a second concubine. He doesn't have to, but, again, it will reflect -- especially if you act up and get him in trouble. If he doesn't have another woman under his thumb..."

Oliver sat there, pensive; I asked the AI and it told me that he was probably reliving the conversation to this point -- something the AI had set up as part of his conditioning. Vera sat watching her husband until he looked up, and the pair of them eyed one another, poker-faced. "I see there are some issues," he murmured.

"This can be handled gently," I pointed out, "but Vera really, REALLY has to understand her role. The normal method is kind of a shock to the system, scare everyone to death during briefings after the extraction. More often than not, someone screws up in the first twenty-four hours and the whole thing gets put down rather brutally, as an object lesson to the others -- and usually, it is an ex-wife who thinks she's STILL a wife." I eyed Vera for a moment. "I'm going to be rude here. Women who spent time during the extraction on their knees with a strange cock in their mouth or on their back with one between their legs tend to have a more basic understanding of the situation. Babying an ex-wife based upon her previous relationship tends not to help her in the long run."

Vera sighed. "Yeah, that was rude. But it DOES state the case, I guess. We're... going to need to talk."

I nodded. "While I'm being rude, I need to reiterate that Oliver can take your advice in these matters -- or leave it." I looked at my watch. "I need to leave. I will return when I can and we can discuss this further this evening. I don't know how late I will be, but I will speak to Beth when I do." I paused. "This thing is going to happen on Saturday, so you need to wrap up anything that needs doing by then -- preferably without telegraphing anything. You won't be taking anything you can't carry, and money means nothing where you're going; similarly, the Confederacy will clean up any claims on your estates after you're gone. Personal issues, you may want to look into. Where are Beth's brother and sisters?"

"Travis is extracted -- Fleet Auxiliary," Oliver replied. "Maureen is... waiting, I think; she can carry herself, with a six point six. Judith..." He shrugged. "She's married. Neither of them makes the cut-off."

I nodded. "I'm going to air this -- you can act on it or not. Traditional moral imperatives regarding incest are generally ignored. Confederacy medical technology can and will deal with any low-probability problems resulting from a first pass at inbreeding. What I'm saying is that you can choose to take Judith -- but you'll be taking her as your second, and will be expected to use her as such. Or we can see to it that she and her husband are invited to the pickup and they can take their chances. From what I've been given to understand at this point, we'll be more or less processing people like cattle, so they'll probably go -- but ANYTHING can happen in orbit, since we can't predict who will get assigned to any particular sponsor. The likely event is that they'll be split up. For a number of reasons, this whole thing is going to be a zoo -- it's very experimental."

Both their faces ran a gamut of expressions during this. "Thanks -- I think," Vera muttered.

I sighed. "It's not pretty -- real life so seldom is..." I turned to Beth. "Frieda... Bring her around. I'm making no promises. Ultimately, we can put her in with the herd, I guess, but I think you want more for her..."

"Yes," Beth nodded solemnly.

"We'll see." I gave her a kiss -- and made sure it was a good one; it had been a rough morning and would likely get worse. "I have to go."

"Goodbye..." She held onto my arm, so I gave her another kiss before breaking free.

"I need to go, too, if all is to appear normal," Oliver asserted. Closing on his concubine/wife, he hugged her and delivered a kiss. "We'll talk tonight -- a lot, I expect. Try not to dwell too much on the downside of this." He was right behind me as I hit the door; I suspect that it is a male thing to want to get the Hell away from highly emotional situations...

I had a long, ugly day coming up. First, I had to go to the hotel and change, then teleport down a larger version of the hypnotizer and install it in the gym. It would be used several times over the next few days, first on the faculty, then the students, and ultimately on everyone else, probably, just to get things under control. This was all going to be REALLY tricky... I frankly wondered why we didn't use the thing in normal pickups, but when you think about it, it isn't necessary, and would require time pickup teams usually don't have to set up. This was a unique situation, one in which we had time, but no external controls -- no interdiction field, for instance, until the last minute...

The handheld device relied upon injection to supply nannites to the subject; a little needle popped out of the thing while you were holding it and poked you in the hand; usually, the subject was already hypnotized and didn't even notice. The room-sized device projected the hypnotizing pattern in several directions at once and dispersed the supporting nannites through the air to be breathed in. One of the big things I had to do was install multiple cameras at various vantage points to allow the AI to scan everyone's faces and make sure we got everyone's attention and the hypnosis actually worked. It was a long morning...

In the afternoon, we indoctrinated the faculty, in three groups. We needed one hundred percent coverage -- and of course, we didn't get it, which meant I had to wander around all over the school chasing down holdouts who thought they were too good to attend general faculty meetings. There was a distinct correlation between said holdouts and the list of personnel in supervisory positions who weren't sponsor material, I noticed. Well, it was good practice for the students, who were going to get the same treatment Wednesday. I had to sting a couple of the worst of them; thank God they tended to be holed up in their offices where witnesses were scarce. This whole thing bothered me some; from the outside, it looked like 'Invasion of the Body Snatchers.' If we missed someone and they got that idea in their head, all Hell could break loose!

Fortunately, as more and more people came on, we had more and more resources to work with to help us deal with the recalcitrant. We found two Earth First -- well, not agents, but sympathizers, anyway -- in the English Department; the AI went to great lengths to 'neutralize' them. This was good practice, too; when Family Day rolled around, we were going to have every kind of whacko you can name and a few nobody ever thought of in the parents and families. Some of them wouldn't be going -- but they would have to be kept out of trouble. For these two, we removed all memory of what was going on and placed keywords in their subconscious that caused them to more or less zone out when they were used, allowing us to shut them down, then provide direction to others over the PA system without them noticing it.

I brought in five supporting crewmen to help; the Valhalla was crewed by Fleet Auxiliary, and they were what we would have for the pickup, although a Marine platoon was on standby. This was also an experiment; Fleet Auxiliary personnel weren't going to command the instant respect a huge, hulking Marine would -- and they would have, per crewman, more problems on their hands. My five CPOs were getting their feet wet in order to be able to direct their crews properly when E-Day rolled around.

Finally, around six-thirty, the whole faculty was in the bag, and the student body was quiet. I went to the hotel and showered and changed and packed an overnight bag, then headed for the grocery store.