"What's your day look like, dear?" Ezra swiped away the news feed, sipped some coffee, and regarded his wife. She wore a neat, crisp uniform, her hair was back in a perfect bun, and her face was clean and bright. She looked every bit the station's inspector general. Ezra certainly wouldn't want to get on the wrong side of the law at Tigov 19.
"An unscheduled docking is underway. The Errand into the Wilderness is connecting to slip seven. One of those ships from the Fourth Wave zealots." Tabitha's smile stretched a bit thin. There were so many angles to consider with the new arrival. "They say they're low on fuel and are willing to purchase more from the station."
"But?" Ezra arched his eyebrows.
"But a Fourth Wave ship wouldn't have stellarcoin. They abhor the Outer Republic. Nor would they barter parts of their ship. Their colony missions are sacred to the religion." She poured herself some coffee and sipped. She winced at the taste. It would do better with some milk and sugar. But shortages would keep their coffee bitter for a while.
"But that's not all that concerns you." Ezra could see the vertical groove form on his wife's forehead. After so many years, he could read her like a book.
"It takes only a little nudge to send our station off kilter. We're running on a thin wire. And the Hendersons are aboard that ship. That news has already created a bit of a frenzy. People are lining up at slip seven to meet them and get an autograph." Tabitha frowned. "And then our resident Sagittarius Mormons will want to proselytize to the Fourth Wave crew. And probably vice versa. It's going to be a mess."
"And knowing you, you're already coming up with solutions." Ezra stood and stretched. It was just about time he started the work day. Those mining drones weren't going to pilot themselves.
"Well, I'll keep the crew of the Errand confined to their ship while they're here. But I can't limit people from visiting the ship without an order for quarantine. And I don't have one of those." She gulped the rest of her coffee and kissed her husband on the cheek. "I'll go take a look around the ship today. Maybe I'll turn something up. I have a strange feeling about the Errand."
"Well, if something's amiss, I'm sure you'll sniff it out." Ezra put down his mug and gave Tabitha a deep kiss. When they broke the kiss, they were both breathless. "I love the way you look in your inspector's uniform."
"I know." Tabitha laughed. "I'll see you tonight. Good luck at the mines."
"Good luck with the ship." They made their way to the front door, gave each other one last hug, and then trotted off on their separate ways.
~~
"I want to use the holopark while that ship is here, James." Gail regarded her young husband carefully. She knew bartering with the Fourth Wave zealots might complicate their mission to convert the crew.
"I don't know, dear. We should show them the center of it all, first. Once they see the truth behind Sagittarius A and the new apostles, then we can trade." James sat quietly in their small apartment, his hands clasped on their table. "Is it the northern lights?"
"I know we're never going to Earth. And who knows when the next holopark will dock here." Her eyes went wide and she steepled her fingers in a plaintive gesture. "Please allow this, James. If they fail to convert, they may not allow me to visit later. This might be my only chance to see the aurora borealis."
Silence filled the apartment. James stared at his wife. "I know how important this is to you, but I cannot allow it. Our mission for God comes first. You understand."
"Yes, of course. Thank you for listening to my foolish request, dear." Gail pretended to put the idea out of her head, and went about making breakfast, humming to herself. But she would not let her dream go that easily.
~~
"So, to sum up. You had a malfunction in cryo, waking a small crew long before you arrived at your new colony. You then happened to encounter and rescue the Hendersons. And Dr. Cole was subsequently responsible for your course change. Do I have that right, Mrs. Winthrop?" Tabitha eyed the blonde matriarch. It was odd that a Fourth Wave woman would be in charge. From everything she had read, she would have thought she'd be speaking to this woman's husband.
"That is correct." Mary smiled sweetly at the inspector. She rubbed her belly bump, where she carried the second of Jacob's children. Sally, their first child, was in the nursery, hidden away from the inspector's prying eyes. Keeping Sally company was at least one mother and Jacob's other daughters. During their long approach to Tigov 19, all of Jacob's wives but the Hendersons had born him daughters. "May I offer you some milk? We have refined our replication, enhancing it to Earthly perfection. It's delicious and will make you feel sublime."
"No, thank you." Tabitha longed to taste the milk. But she wanted to focus on her work. Maybe she would try some later. The station's synthesizer problems would make the Errand's milk quite valuable. She wondered if the ship could replicate sugar. "I appreciate the offer." Tabitha's smile was thin. "And where is Dr. Cole?"
"She's in the brig, of course." Mary's face fell, like this was a difficult subject.
"May I take her into custody? She should stand trial for what she did." Tabitha wasn't sure what was wrong with this ship. Not yet. Her instincts picked up something, but everything seemed above board so far. Whatever it was, she would get to the bottom of it.
"We will hold onto the good doctor and see that she sees His justice. Since the incident happened here, and affects our colony mission, it only makes sense." Mary shrugged ever so slightly. "Surely you understand our position, Mrs. Kensington."
"Please call me Inspector Kensington, or Inspector General. And yes, I understand." Tabitha's eyes became thin lines.
"My apologies, Inspector General." Mary smiled sweetly. "Now, if you'd like a tour, I can take you around the ship. I heard that you do not have a holopark on the station. Would you like to see ours? We can go anywhere in the galaxy."
"I will give it a safety inspection, as I'm sure Tigov citizens will be interested in bartering for time in the holopark." Tabitha pursed her lips together. "But I do not think I shall go travelling through time and space."
"Of course. Although, I'm afraid, we're all traveling through time and space whether we want to or not." Mary gave her a knowing look. "Let me lead the way."
~~
"Hello, Inspector General." Maureen put her arm around Judy as they stopped to greet Tabitha in the hall. They both filled out their uniforms with enormous bellies. Maureen could see the inspector's wide eyes keep falling to Maureen's stomach. "Did you get a peek at the holopark yet?"
"Um... yes... I just inspected it. Everything looks shipshape." Tabitha thought her brain might explode. She had no idea that both Maureen and Judy were pregnant. And near full term it looked, too. "I must say, it is an honor to meet you, Mrs. Henderson. And Mrs...." Tabitha looked at the ring on Judy's finger. "Forgive me, I did not know you had married."
"My last name is still Henderson." Judy smiled. She said no more about her nuptials.
"Oh... okay." Tabitha looked back and forth between the rings on the Hendersons' fingers. She then looked at Mary's hand. "You all have identical rings."
"Oh, yes. There was an incident that required us to melt the rings to create a special alloy. These are our replacements." Mary's smile was as bright and sunny as always. "We can tell you that story another time." She held out a hand, ushering her guest past the Henderson women. "Would you like to inspect our replicator next?"
"Yes, okay." Tabitha said her goodbyes to Maureen and Judy. Another oddity caught her eye as she did. Maureen was wearing a metal cross around her neck that was very similar to the one worn by Mary. Anyone who knew the Hendersons knew that Maureen was not a religious woman. The inspector kept this observation to herself. Everyone she encountered were all smiles, but Tabitha's strange feeling about the ship grew. She wondered if maybe she should find a pretext to order the quarantine of the Errand. But the backlash against such a move on the station would be fierce. Everything had to be balanced carefully.
The rest of the inspection went rather quietly. Tabitha met Mary's daughter and daughter-in-law. Both of them, like Mary, were just starting to show their pregnancies. She did not meet any men. Tabitha arranged with Mary to visit the brig the next day so that she could interview Dr. Cole. When she exited the ship, her portmaster was waiting for her.
"Well, what's the word? Can people board the Errand?" The portmaster looked beyond eager. He was likely going to be charging illegal small fees for boarding priority.
"The Errand has passed inspection and is ready to be boarded." Tabitha swiped her badge over slip seven's reader. "They ask that guests check in with their computer in the airlock, and stay within the visitation areas. They are accepting barter for holopark time and meals."
The portmaster rubbed his hands with glee. "Yes, Inspector Kensington. I'll patch in with the computer and work out a boarding protocol." He reached for his terminal.
"No, the computer and the crew are not allowed off the ship." Tabitha shook her head. "You'll have to board to work out the logistics. They're expecting you."
"Affirmative." The portmaster walked toward the airlock with a jaunty step.
Tabitha strolled back to her office, shaking her head and thinking things through.
~~
The mess hall aboard the Errand was a lively place. A dozen people had paid 10 stellarcoin credits each to have their fill from the replicator. They were served by Pricilla, Humility, and Heather.
Gail and James were there, along with two others from the Sagittarius Mormon church. They slipped in comments to the servers here and there about finding true salvation. But the Errand crew hadn't yet seemed receptive. This was to be expected. They would keep trying.
Also enjoying the delicious milk and food was a party of eight rowdy men. They enjoyed seeing new women whenever a ship docked. And single as they were, they showered compliments on their servers, undaunted by the rings each woman wore. They focused their adoration particularly on Heather. There were few women with dark skin at Tigov 19. The men declared their love for the "exotic beauty."
"Now, boys. You must behave." Heather smiled good-naturedly at the men. "I am spoken for."
"Where is your husband? My heart refuses to let me believe until I see him in the flesh." One of the men, Riles, had fallen for her particularly hard.
"He is nearby." Heather glanced at Jacob across the room. Her husband sat with Inspector Kensington, Dr. Cole's husband, his mother, and Maureen. She could see him watching her with a sour expression. Heather wished he'd lighten up. It was just some harmless fun. She brushed a hand away from her hip. "I will have the Hendersons' robot escort you off the ship if you can't behave. Hands to yourselves." But she was still smiling.
Jacob wasn't listening to the conversation about Dr. Cole. He was too busy watching the lecherous men of Tigov 19 try to seduce his wives. He was also not enjoying the Mormons' pathetic attempts to convert his wives from the next table over. These were things Jacob had not anticipated when he had steered the ship toward the station.
"I find it odd that you are accepting credits. I thought the Fourth Wave avoided stellarcoin wherever possible," Tabitha said to Mary, ignoring the gaiety at the other end of the mess hall. "I thought you would only accept barter."
Maureen, seeing the deep frown on Mary's face, cut in. "The Fourth Wave is a derogatory term, Inspector General. We would prefer the Ardent Congregational Establishment."
"My apologies." Tabitha saw an opening to pursue a new line of questioning. "You said 'we,' Mrs. Henderson. Are you a member of the church?"
"I have experienced the rapture. My horizons are open." Maureen nodded and fondled the cross around her neck.
"I have not heard conversion described that way before." She eyed Mary's son sitting at the table with them. He seemed wholly engrossed in whatever was happening on the other side of the room. He looked... possessive. How odd. Tabitha turned and looked at the women serving the raucous tables. "Who are those crew members over there?"
"That is my daughter, daughter-in-law, and Mrs. Heather Eweje." Mary's smile was tiring.
"I see." Tabitha looked at the absorbed youth again. He certainly looked angry. She supposed one didn't have to have a romantic interest in a person to worry over others hitting on them. Maybe he was looking after his sister.
"I have been very patient." Marsden Cole had an angry glare in his eyes. Just like Jacob. "I would like to see my wife."
"Yes, of course." Tabitha took one last gulp from her glass and rose. That milk was delicious, and made her feel all warm and fuzzy. Odd how missing something like milk could make it taste so much better than she remembered. Or maybe this was better. Maybe milk on Earth had that effect. "Lead the way, Mrs. Winthrop."
~~
"I will talk to you soon, honey." Dr. Cole trembled as she said goodbye to Marsden. How could she lie to him after all she'd been through to reunite with him? But as he professed his love to her, she thought about all the ways she had misled him. They were talking in the brig through an artificial window which blocked his view of her body. That was important, because she was very pregnant. The only reasons she was in the brig at all was to blame her for the course change and to conceal her impending maternity. She removed Jacob's ring for the talk. She failed to mention any of the dangers the Errand posed to Marsden and Tigov 19. Although, she had told her bygone husband not to barter. Which, she hoped, would keep him away from the milk.
Marsden blew a kiss at the barrier. She did the same back to him. Jacob caught her eye and nodded approvingly. Dr. Cole smiled at that. At least she hadn't failed Jacob. She would wait in the brig until it was safe to leave. Then she would slip back into Jacob's bed.
The party filed out of the brig. Maureen led the way, followed by the inspector general, Marsden, Jacob, and finally Mary. The matriarch gave Dr. Cole a satisfied nod on her way out.
~~
When Jacob had safely seen the inspector general off the ship, he hurried back to the mess hall. The men were still there. They were still hitting on his wives, especially Heather. This was not tolerable. He lurked in the corridor outside. "Errand?"
"Yes, Messiah Jacob?" The computer's feminine voice was modulated to soothe Jacob's tension.
"Call some attendants down to serve the mess hall. It was a mistake to have my wives do it." Jacob paced back and forth.
"You mother thought that it would be wise to limit contact with the men on our crew," Errand said. "The women can better resist outside influences. Also, their presence provides a needed distraction to the outsiders."
"Darn it." Jacob tried to even out his breathing. "Okay, I'll leave Pricilla and Lil to handle the outsiders." He stormed into the mess and headed straight for Heather.
"Oh, hello, Jacob." Heather finished filling a man's glass of milk from a pitcher and stared at her messiah and husband. "Did you need something?"
"Yes." Jacob took the pitcher from her and set it on the table. His cheeks were tinged red with anger. His cock wiggled and writhed, ready to reclaim his wife. He wondered if anyone could see through his father's baggy uniform. "I need you to come with me."
"I was just helping these gentlemen..." Heather had never seen Jacob look so fierce. Was this on her account? Was he jealous? She was suddenly quite wet. She loved that she had gotten him riled up. And he seemed such a force in his fit of rage.
"Calm down, little man. We paid good credits for a nice meal, with pleasant... views," Riles said. All the other men laughed. The Mormons looked over at them, embarrassed for everyone.
"You can keep your filthy credits, heathen." Jacob took hold of Heather's hand. He squeezed it firmly.
"What did you call me?" Riles stood up. He was quite a bit taller than Jacob and outweighed him by plenty.
"Excuse me, good sir." Gail wasn't about to let these bucks fight. A good Mormon sows peace in the world. Quickly, she left her seat and slid in between the staring men. "Have you heard the good word? The apostles have received a message on a plasma disk from the dark matter at Sagittarius A. It is God speaking to us from Heaven. We have located the very nexus of existence." She stood on her toes and straightened her prim dress.
While no one bought Gail's pitch, she did defuse the situation.
"Only thing nuttier than a Fourth Wave is a Mormon, I reckon." Riles looked around for approval. His comrades laughed.
"Only thing more shameless than a heathen is a Mormon," Jacob said. Everyone in the room, but the Mormons, burst into great guffaws. His antagonist, Riles, sat down, laughing. And then the Mormon woman who had put herself between them sat down. "We'll be going now." Jacob's eyes sought to make contact with every other pair of eyes in the room. "I leave you my sister and sister-in-law to keep the milk flowing. Good afternoon, everyone." Jacob pulled Heather out of the mess.
Riles watched him go, shaking his head. He hadn't the foggiest what that teenage zealot was doing, behaving like he owned the place.
Gail also watched Jacob go. If she was going to make a deal to see the northern lights, perhaps that young man was her ticket. He seemed like he could get things done. Even if he had hurt her feelings.
~~
"What's gotten into you, Jacob?" Heather stumbled as he pulled her along the corridor.
"You're my wife. Mine." Jacob pulled her into their laundry room.
"Yes, I am... oohhhhhhhh." She squealed as he held her butt and squeezed. There was no greater aphrodisiac than his desire for her. Well, maybe that wasn't true. There was his cum, and the holy things it did to her mind. "Maybe you should... put another baby inside me... so that I might be... reminded." She held the back of his head as he bit her breasts through her uniform. His bite was not enough to hurt, but enough to show he meant business. They pressed up against a table.
"Yes... another baby." Jacob's cock felt like it would burst right through his baggy uniform. He quickly undressed and Heather did the same. "I will mark you... as mine."
"Yes... yes... mark me," Heather whispered. She was nearly delirious with pride and anticipation. "Mark me as your... First Chosen." She turned around for him and let him seize her hips. His cock wormed into her vagina. "Oh... gosh... you've got me... you've got me." She pushed back at him as they fell into a rhythm.
"Mine... you're mine." Jacob was fairly sure she was already pregnant again, but he played along with the idea. It was a compelling way to claim her as his wife.
"Eeeeeeiiiiiiiiii." Heather's body shook. Her pleasure was already spiking. How incredible that when she had gone into cryo, she had thought she knew what sex was. What God was. What marriage was. And on all accounts, she had known nothing. The curtains had been pulled back on the Errand, and now she could see His vision directly. How silly of the Mormons to seek some attenuated communication from a supermassive black hole, when all they had to do was accept Jacob as their savior. But they didn't know. They didn't know he was God's vehicle. "Right... there... oooohhhhhhhhh." Another climax hit her.
~~
"Oh, I found you." Gail was quite thrilled when she saw the young man ahead with the dark-skinned woman. The woman seemed to be zipping up her uniform as they walked down the corridor toward Gail. That was odd. "Your ship's computer said you were this way."
"Um... I'm not sure why Errand would let you wander the ship. Visitors are supposed to..." Jacob eyed the pretty woman with raven hair. He recognized the woman who had stopped his fight in the mess hall. "I'm not going to become a Sagittarius Mormon."
"My name is Gail. I'm not on a mission right now," Gail said quickly. "I want to see the northern lights in your holopark, but my husband doesn't approve. I don't have much to barter with, but you seemed like you might be in charge, so..." Gail steepled her fingers in a plea for his generosity. The dark-skinned woman leaned toward the young man and whispered in his ear. He nodded and smiled.
"I am Jacob Winthrop. You were right to seek me out. I will help you." Jacob nodded to Heather and she walked off.
Gail was so thrilled that she didn't notice when Jacob patted the other woman's butt. The woman smiled at Gail as she passed and then disappeared down the corridor. "What will you accept in payment? We spent most of our coin on the milk and vitals in your mess."
"I'll make it a gift since you helped with that man in the mess. The holopark is this way." Jacob guided her back the way she had come. "So, your husband doesn't know you are here?"
"He's still trying to spread the word in the mess hall with two of our church members. I excused myself, saying I felt unwell. I went looking for you, and then your helpful computer steered me in the right direction." Gail couldn't wipe the smile off her face. Ever since drinking the Errand's milk, she'd felt warm and fuzzy. And now that she was going to see the lights, she felt positively giddy. Alcohol had never touched her lips, but the feeling she had seemed to correlate with descriptions she'd heard of being drunk. A sudden panic seized her. "Don't tell anyone about this, please!"
"It'll be our secret." Jacob led her up some stairs. "You enjoyed the milk?"
"Oh, yes, very much. It has been so long since I've had milk. I forgot what it tasted like." Or how it made her feel, for that matter. Or maybe the milk on this ship was special. As she buzzed along next to this young man, everything around her seemed special. Even the boring metal walls.
"Here we are." Jacob reached for a panel next to a door. "Why don't you describe where you'd like to go?"
Gail described how she'd always imagined it. A rustic cabin in the snow, nestled in a valley under jagged mountains. A back deck with a roaring outdoor fireplace. She wished her husband had not forbidden this, because it was such a romantic setting. She had always wanted to share this moment with him. The computer confirmed her instructions and the doors opened. She followed Jacob into a charming, warm cabin and out onto the chilly back deck. She stopped breathing when she beheld the majestic lights moving over the mountains. It was perfect.
After they had stood by the fire regarding the sky for a while, Jacob spoke. "What do you think of your gift?"
"It's priceless." Gail sighed and glanced at Jacob. "How old are you, young man?"
"Nineteen."
"And you're from Earth?" She watched his face lit by the greenish lights as he nodded. "Did you ever see the lights when you were there?" She saw him shake his head and then she looked back at the sky. "What a pity."
"I must ask you for a favor." Jacob's cock pushed at his uniform. He looked down. The Mormon woman would have seen it for sure if she wasn't so distracted.
"Anything, young Jacob." She suddenly wondered that a teenager would command such authority on the ship. The Fourth Wave was an odd religion. Maybe that was it.
"I have a condition that needs a woman's touch."
"Oh, is it sartorial advice you need?" She kept her eyes fixed to the sky, hugging herself against the chill that encroached from beyond the fire's sphere of warmth. A deep pleasure spread through her. A joy she had rarely known. Strangely, it seemed to concentrate in her tummy and vagina. She had planned to have James there with her. Maybe that was why she felt so funny down there.
"Not exactly." He unzipped his uniform. The remains of his time with Heather was still on his dick, but he didn't care. He wasn't worried at all about how this would go. A short time back, he would have been nervous to talk to a pretty woman. But he was the messiah now and had learned the confidence of the position. That, and this young wife had imbibed his mother's milk. She would not refuse him.
Gail heard the zipper and turned her head. Her eyes went wide and the blood drained from her face when she saw what he was doing. "What in the heck is that?" It was hard to see in the dim, dancing light of the fire. But he was naked, and his penis moved like it had a life of its own. Her heart thudded in her chest, but otherwise she felt surprisingly calm. She meant to take a step back out into the cold, but instead she moved closer to him.
"This is my condition." Jacob thrust his hips forward, so the massive cock looked even bigger. "I hate to ask this favor, but I need some relief. It's painful and none of the crew can help me."
"Oh, my." Gail put her hand to her mouth, the aurora borealis forgotten for the moment. "You poor thing. You want me to...?" There was no way she would ever touch another man's thing, even as a charity to one so hideously deformed.
"Yes, I want you to. But only as a favor." Jacob cajoled the woman for a while. At first, she resolutely said she couldn't help him. Then she wavered. Finally, she lowered herself to her knees.
It was unclear to Gail why she changed her mind about touching it. The young man was so convincing, and the buzzing in her brain wouldn't allow her to think straight. The massive penis pulsed and undulated in her hands as she pumped it. "You were so kind to me, Jacob. I suppose this is the least I can do." She pumped him for five minutes and was surprised when he hadn't yet met his completion. At ten minutes, she was astounded by his staying power. Her husband had never lasted so long. Nor had James ever grunted the way the young man was doing now. The green lights reflected off Jacob's skin, making her task seem all the more surreal. She had to remind herself that she was actually working to relieve a near stranger under the northern lights out on the deck of her perfect cabin. The day had certainly taken a remarkable turn.
"That's... ugh... good... keep... doing that." Jacob finally moved close to orgasm when she pumped him with her left hand and rubbed her right hand around the head. Her fingers spread his precum and tugged wonderfully at his foreskin.
"I'm getting tired. Are you almost there?" She looked up into his face. She could see the rapture there. She really was helping this poor man.
"Aaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhh." A roar was Jacob's only answer.
Gail fell back on her butt on the cold deck, she was so startled by the ferocity of his cry. Her surprise was compounded when he erupted. Not the small, little shots she'd come to expect from James. The sperm flowed out of Jacob like a fuel hose, covering the front of her dress. It seemed like his climax lasted forever. But eventually, he was done. "Oh... my."
"Here... let me... help you up." Jacob's nerves still sang as he offered her a hand. When she was standing, he deftly scooped some cum from her dress onto his fingers and slipped it into her mouth. Gail went rigid and fell. He caught her so she wouldn't hurt herself and gently laid the convulsing woman on the cold deck. She made sweet, idiotic sounds. He waited by the fire for her orgasm to subside.
Gail had no idea that such pleasure existed. She floated though starry nebulae of ecstasy, but eventually returned to herself. When she opened her eyes, the northern lights filled the sky above her. "What... was... that?"
"You just had your first real orgasm." Jacob smiled down at her. He offered his hand again. "Let's get you changed. We can't have you returning to your husband a mess."
"Thank you... yes." Gail took his hand and stood on wobbly legs. How strange everything was. In what felt like a dream, she followed Jacob out of the cabin and back to the Errand. He quickly pulled her to a laundry facility, where she removed her dress. Clad in her underwear, she made sure to keep her back to him. She pulled on one of the Errand's uniforms and smoothed it over her body. It fit well, but she didn't know what she would tell her husband about wearing such strange clothes.
"I'll launder your dress and return it to you the next time we see each other." Jacob cocked his head at her, trying to judge her state of mind. Her pupils were dilated, and she seemed a bit distant. "You will come back to the Errand, won't you? I'll let you use the holopark again."
"Oh... um... we'll see." Gail gave him a nervous smile. "I'll make my own way back to the mess hall." She did not want to be seen with him by anyone from her church. She didn't want anyone getting the wrong idea. Or the right idea, actually. "Thank you for your generosity. And I hope I helped with your condition." Before he had a chance to say goodbye, she raced out into the corridor. She was lost for a little while, but then the ship's computer helped guide her back to her husband.