Note: This story was dynamically reformatted for online reading convenience. The Librarian By deGaffer Copyright (c) 2008 by deGaffer SUMMARY: A wealthy and politically connected college librarian manipulates a group of students and encourages them to put together a team that the Confederacy shouldn't ignore. UNIVERSE: The Swarm Cycle WARNING: This story contains material unsuitable for minors and narrow-minded individuals. It probably contains sex, violence, and other socially unacceptable material. You have been warned! CONTENT: no-sex ScFi This story is set in the Swarm Cycle Universe created by Thinking Horndog. Get a grip; this is fiction. Any resemblance between the content of this story or any of the characters depicted herein with real persons, places or events is totally coincidental. It started with a simple concept that should have been a short story, but it seems to have morphed into an epic saga of scheming, planning, deception, and of course, sex. I very much appreciate the patience and efforts of Mulligan. His help has made this a much better story. I claim full responsibility for all errors and omissions. Pursuant to the Berne Convention, this work is copyrighted with all rights reserved by its author unless explicitly indicated. Reproduction for profit is forbidden. Any distribution must include this note and the author's email address. CHAPTER 9: Dinner at Lesa's, Part Two Lesa arrived home well ahead of the others. She asked Sara to listen for the doorbell as she headed upstairs to change out of her business suit. In the hope that the crowd would be delayed long enough at the pizza parlor, she took a quick shower and reapplied some light makeup. She was coming down the staircase in a sleeveless white tunic top, matching drawstring pants and straw sandals when she heard the front door open. Everyone had arrived together. Susan looked around the foyer and breathed, "This place is a mansion!" "Okay, Jake, give," Toby grabbed Jake's bicep to delay him on the sidewalk. When Jake turned to face him added, "When did you start getting away with hugging cheerleaders, and how do you know the woman who lives here?" Jake shrugged his shoulders, "I spend a lot of time at the library, and she's a librarian." Jake just smiled and headed up the walk and into the house with a very puzzled Toby in his wake. "Lesa!" Jake raised his voice loud enough to carry across the foyer. When Lesa got within comfortable conversation distance Jake introduced her to his roommate. "Lesa, I hope you don't mind that I brought my roommate, Toby O'Malley? Toby, this is my good friend Lesa Crews." Lesa took his hand as she looked him over. Toby was not as tall as Jake, but weighed a good thirty pounds more, mostly in his broad shoulders and barrel chest. His rusty brown hair and swarthy complexion made him appear older than his twenty-two years. He was every bit as shy as Jake and would not maintain eye contact. The promise of intelligence in his light blue eyes had Lesa hoping she had time for another project if the current one fizzled. The small crowd filed through the house and into the kitchen. No one other than Lesa wanted to use the dining room. The breakfast nook couldn't accommodate eleven, but with some people milling around or sitting on the barstools at the kitchen counter, everyone was quite comfortable. After all, pizza is portable, casual food eaten with the fingers, right? When Janet was unable to pin Sara or Leslie into a corner, she tried cornering Jake. "So, Jake. What did you guys end up doing last night?" When his only response was to take a bite of pizza and shrug, she loudly cajoled, "Aw, come on. Somebody tell me what went on, please! I'm going crazy here!" "I guess you should have stuck around if you really wanted to know," Lesa said as she kind of strutted across the kitchen smugly to get a wine glass. The younger group was drinking soda and beer, but Lesa preferred Chianti with Italian food. Turning back after getting a glass, Lesa cocked her head, "You guys left early last night. Why was that? You and Misty were going to stop by Ralph's for something, right?" Tapping her forehead in mock concentration she caught Janet glancing around trying to check out everyone in the room at once. Smiling, Lesa said, "Oh yeah, you two were going to jump his bones. How did that work out for you?" Toby dropped his slice of pizza onto the floor. No one noticed because beer came spraying out of Susan's mouth and nose. She had just tipped the glass up and couldn't believe what this matronly librarian had just said. When her coughing subsided, everyone's attention went back to Janet. "Nice girls don't fuck and tell, right Misty?" Realizing she was hoist on her own petard, Janet pulled her top up over her face, effectively hiding it, but exposing her melons. "And just when did you start being a 'nice girl'? You hardly gave me a chance to sit on him last night." Misty complained loudly over the howling laughter in the large room. Jake added to the mirth with, "Come to think of it, has anybody seen Ralph today? Is he in the hospital, or did you guys just fuck him to death?" "He was fine when we left his place this morning." Misty replied nonchalantly and then broke out laughing as hard as everyone else. Recovering, she added, "He said he'd be in the computer lab until seven this evening. Really, he's fine, Jake." "Your turn to fess up, Jake." Janet shouted from the far side of the breakfast table, clearly recovered from her faux embarrassment. "Like you said, nice guys don't fuck and tell." Turning to Misty he said, "It's after seven now, let's call him and see if he's interested in some cold pizza and stale beer. I could use some help. There's a real testosterone deficiency in here." Turning to Franklin he added, "Right, buddy?" But Franklin was too dazed by the unprecedented level of activity in the kitchen and just kept chewing his pizza. "I don't have his number," Misty replied with wide eyes. Had she really had sex with someone without even exchanging phone numbers! "I've got it in my cell." Jake stepped into the Sunroom to make the call. "What's going on with you people? Is this house in the Twilight Zone? I don't believe the kind of things I'm hearing." Susan was being ignored until she shouted, "Hey, will someone please tell me what the Hell is going on?" loud enough to get everyone's attention. "It's all about survival, dear." Lesa spoke quietly. "The Sa'arm are expected to be here in five or six years and right now there just aren't enough guns, barriers, or soldiers to stop them. The only chance we human beings have is to not be here when they arrive." "You really believe that?" Susan asked. "Some say that the whole alien invader thing is a hoax." "I'm convinced it's real." Lesa added in her serious voice, "There are too many independent sources of information for it to be a hoax. The concept of widely disbursed colonies to minimize losses is sound, but I suspect that many of them are going to be too small to sustain our civilization as we know it." Jake eased in between Janet and Misty and said quietly, "Ralph said he'd be here in about twenty minutes." "That's why they take so many women as sex partners. We need a lot more people to be able to fight the Sa'arm off," Leslie reasoned. "Okay, but let's do the math," Janet suggested. "The kids all those baby makers produce will be no more than six years old when Earth is consumed by the advancing hoard. What can six-year-olds do against dickheads?" "I've been working on that problem for a while as kind of a background task," Jake offered. "While it's not necessary for each colony to be self-sustaining with the capability of repopulating a planet the size of Earth, we do need diverse and duplicated facilities for research, manufacturing, and education. Some of the colonies must also have the means of sustaining our culture. It'll take the resources of hundreds of planets to produce the weapons, ships and materiel needed to halt the Sa'arm advance." "It can't be just babies and bombs," Sara Johnson added, "The colonies need to have parks, playgrounds, and recreation facilities for adults with children; some kind of activities other than sex that are also a relaxing distraction. If everything after Earth's destruction is focused on the military, our humanity will be lost even if the human genetic code survives." "This shit's getting too deep and depressing," Janet supplied as she wrapped her arms around Misty and slumped down. "And, it doesn't answer the question of who Jake fucked last night." Shock rippled around the room just as the doorbell rang. Toby almost lost another slice of pizza. "Saved by the bell," Jake said as he and the resident Sara jumped off their stools to answer the door. Jake yielded door duty to the confident thirteen-year-old and turned to face the mumbling crowd. "I have a plan, well, more of a scheme actually, that could expand the possibilities just a bit," Lesa did her best to ignore Janet and pick up the more serious conversational thread without waiting for Sara to return with Ralph. But, as an afterthought she turned to face Janet and quietly said, "I did." Without waiting for Janet to respond she asked, "Does anyone what to hear about what I'm thinking?" "Wait, backup, time-out ... you fucked him?" Looking at Sara and Leslie, Janet asked, "Anyone else?" They both shook their heads. Jake and Lesa gravitated to one another and embraced. "Won't there be trouble if it gets out you have an intimate relationship with a student?" Jake asked. "It won't be the end of the world," Lesa replied. She was interrupted by a tender kiss. Jake held her close, looking into her eyes as she continued. "My job is more of a hobby than a necessity. My late husband and I made some sound investments that have me set for at least fifty years. The kids and I are protected from everything except the Sa'arm. I'm thinking about using some of that money to provide some protection from them as well. Interested?" "Interested in what?" Ralph asked with pizza in one hand and a beer in the other, but his full attention was on the embracing couple standing in the middle of the kitchen. "Group sex seems to be a recurring theme," Susan said as she raised a fresh glass of beer to greet Ralph. "There's too much crazy talk going on for me to follow even half of it." "Ooh, I like the group sex part," Ralph added as his eyes found Misty and Janet. Lesa leaned into Jake. She kissed his neck before whispering, "Seduce Leslie ... and Sara, but Leslie first. She really, really needs your approval." Leaning back she looked deeply into Jake's eyes. Jake nodded. He held eye contact with Lesa as he leaned back and shouted, "Quiet everyone! Let's listen to Lesa's idea." He slid his hands down her arms and stepped back still holding both of her hands in his. He finally broke eye contact and turned to the startled crowd as he released her fingertips. Lesa began her oratory, "There are documented cases of the Confederacy making single pickups of people other than children. They've picked up adults with specialized skills, specifically preschool and kindergarten teachers. I propose that we put together a package deal for them. Kind of an offer that they can't refuse." As Lesa began speaking, Jake stepped behind Ralph and slowly made his way around the periphery to stand behind Leslie. The adult Sara noticed the two youngsters getting fidgety and picked up one of the pizza boxes she had been guarding. Making her way around the group at the island counter, she revealed the dessert pizza to Frankie, Sammy, and Sara. She served slices to the enthusiastic smaller ones and teen-Sara helped herself to a slice. Lesa smiled as she picked up Sara's actions, but didn't let it interrupt her semi-planned presentation. "We cannot let critical research die when Earth dies. I say 'when' because its destruction is inevitable. Even if the Sa'arm don't destroy Earth six years from now, then a comet, or asteroid, or super volcano, or some other disaster will eventually destroy it. I suggest we organize the creation of a large academic oriented colony. One that is large enough to support our culture and large enough to have facilities dedicated to developing advanced weapons technology. As advanced as our Darjee allies are in travel, medicine, and creature comforts, the weapons that they have provided us to field against the Sa'arm seem to be pitifully inadequate. They may have given us the best that they have in their arsenal, but I somehow doubt that. None of Earth's nations have ever made their state-of-the-art equipment available to combatants in third-world conflicts." "My initial motivation for exploring this option was the desire to coax Jake into emigrating with my family and me instead of continuing his education at MIT. Yes, I know about the integrated proposals you and your friend, Toby here, are preparing for Dr. Grayson. As much as I'm in favor of your continued education, love, I selfishly want to keep what's left of my family together. Sara will be fourteen and on her own next fall. I'm not ready to let go of her. So, I don't want to wait until you complete graduate school. Hell, the Sa'arm could already be here before you finish!" Jake's heart was pouring out through his eyes as he tracked Lesa's movements as she strolled back and forth while she talked. He maintained a firm grip on Leslie's hand as he sat close to her. Leslie spared enough attention to squeeze back as she, too, listened to the pacing librarian. Lesa continued, "Following an epiphany this morning, I began investigating the possibility of bring the mountain, Dr. Grayson's team, to Mohamed. I believe it can be done in the timeframe we have before graduation next summer. I've already approached a family friend, Congressman Thomas Worley. He has agreed to facilitate offering Grayson a grant. If he knew my REAL agenda, I'm sure he would be less than cooperative. So, we need to be discrete." The room was silent. Lesa had everyone's rapt attention except for the youngest two, and Sara Johnson was quietly entertaining them. Toby had yet to say a word since entering the house. He was even more shocked than Susan because he thought he knew Jake. It was like everyone was talking about a Jake look-alike. Even more confusing was the attention that the Jake look-alike was getting from one of the hottest and most popular cheerleaders in the state. "I haven't yet identified the key members of Grayson's staff." Lesa maintained her momentum. "They need to be investigated along with the nature and status of their outstanding projects. Many of them are classified, I'm sure. That'll make this project more challenging, but not necessarily impossible. We need someone in their group feeding us information." "I propose that we assist Jake and Toby prepare outstanding thesis proposals. These proposals need to be something that will get Grayson's attention, something he's already interested in pursuing. If we can get him to interview them this winter, then they can start developing connections with his staff. I know, for instance, that he's been trying to develop practical fusion reactors and energy weapons for more that thirty years, and high-energy physics plays right into Jake and Toby's strengths." Lesa smiled at Jake before continuing. Hearing his name didn't keep Toby's world from continuing to spin out of control, but it did help him redouble his effort to focus. He realized he was suffering from information overload, not to mention culture shock with the news that Jake had scored. He had Jake pegged as terminally shy, the poster child of the terminally shy. He could normally multi-task with the best of the nerd pack, but everything swirling in his head was clamoring for foreground attention. He did his best to push the Jake-clone issues to a background processor, and focus on what the librarian was telling everyone. "A parallel proposal for developing passive sensors and predictive targeting systems can be used as a means to establish relationships with people in the periphery of Grayson's group. This needs to be done right away to begin infiltrating the physics department at MIT." "How are you going to get anyone to divulge inside, not to mention classified, information?" Jake asked. Lesa smiled, "The majority of our potential sources are young men between the ages of eighteen and twenty-five. Historically this demographic is highly motivated by the availability of quality pussy. I think super-slut there can get everything we need while selling the parallel project. Right, Janet?" Janet was trying to hide by guzzling beer from the mug in her hand. Susan choked on her burst of laughter when she realized no one else thought Lesa was joking, "You mean, Janet isn't just another dumb blonde?" She was clearly puzzled. Janet slammed her mug onto the table and belched loudly, sending everyone into uncontrolled laughter. "Can you believe we've fallen under the influence of such a devious and well connected woman?" Misty observed shaking her head. "Let's do it!" She shouted as she stood up and looked around. Her enthusiasm was contagious. Jake finally noticed the blank expression on Toby's face. "You alright, man?" He had to put a hand on Toby's shoulder to get his attention. "Huh, oh, ... who are you and what have you done with my roommate Jake?" Toby finally found his voice. Clearly, Toby couldn't have been more stunned if he'd been struck by a poleax. Jake laughed at Toby's remark, "You and I probably need to talk more about non-academic topics; don't you think? Listen man, you and I have never discussed our CAP test results. Lesa seems to think that your score is high enough for you to be a person of interest to the Confederacy recruitment teams. Is she right?" Toby glanced around and nodded, "You too?" Jake smiled and spoke softly, "Yeah, me too along with Marvin Clark and Janet Olson." Toby's eyes got big and he whispered back, "The jock and the ditz?" Jake nodded to Toby before turning his attention back to Lesa and asking, "I'm getting the general idea of where you're headed, babe, but what's congressman what's-his-name's involvement in all of this?" He was probably the only occupant of the room who had focused his active attention on Lesa's idea, with the possible exception of Janet. "We're going to have him create a sizable government grant for researching a weapons system that incorporates targeting and control. Just what you, Toby, and Janet are going to propose. The grant actually serves two purposes: It increases Grayson's attention on your theses, and it requires all of the players to attend a media event. You see, one of the prerequisites that Grayson's grant will stipulate is a recruiting drive in the state of Georgia by the core team of grant applicants." Lesa was clearly proud of the way she was stacking the deck. "Damn, you came up with all of this TODAY!" Janet was awed by the level of detail, "Impressive, very impressive. What's the plan for introducing me to a group of egg-headed, sexually frustrated Yankees? I'm not really going to have to fuck a bunch of them, am I?" Janet was clearly on-board, with some reservations. Jake didn't release his grip on Leslie as Lesa, Toby, Janet and he huddled to add details to the outline. Toby was clearly confused by the way Jake, Leslie and Lesa were comfortable with casual physical contact with each other, but again managed to keep those thoughts circulating in a spare background processor. In a repeat of Wednesday night, Sara Johnson took the Crews children upstairs to get them ready for bed. The Sun had gone down, but Susan, Ralph, and Misty found the light switch and stepped into the Sunroom adjoining the breakfast nook. As they stepped through the door, Susan asked, "Can one of you please tell me who all of these people really are?" By nine o'clock a plan was taking shape for investigating people at MIT, and identifying who could be recruited locally to help with the thesis proposals. Everyone agreed to get together as needed, and to return to Lesa's for an expanded Wednesday afternoon literature study session. As everyone gathered in the foyer, both Saras said goodnight from the second floor balcony. Susan and Toby climbed into Janet's Honda, and Misty rode back to campus with Ralph. Jake, Leslie and Lesa stepped back inside when the two cars disappeared at the corner. Lesa turned off the outside lights and locked the front door.