"Okay everyone, listen up." Sergeant Budzinski's voice echoed in the large room as he stepped off of the transporter pad. "I need all of the sponsors to collect their concubine's ID cards, make a list of dependents under fourteen that are to be picked up, and detail everyone's medical needs."

Private Williams approached Budzinski juggling an armful of the ship's PDA units. "If each of you sponsors will use one of these handheld pads then processing the lists will be easier and faster. There's a scanner along the side that can read CAP cards and most standard government issued ID cards as well."

"Are there any smokers in the crowd?" When no one identified himself, Budzinski remarked, "None, that's weird," then raising his voice again, asked, "Is anyone on heart medication or other prescription drugs?"

Marvin reluctantly raised his hand, "I'm taking some medication, but I don't think it's anything critical." He blushed a bit as he handed a bottle of male enhancement pills to Budzinski who was puzzled by the drug's name.

The AI spoke through Budzinski's implant telling him what the pills were for moment's after he read the name out loud. Budzinski chuckled and handed the bottle back to Marvin. "You're right; you'll probably want to trash these. The med lab's nanobots can do a much better job of enhancement than anything you can get Earth-side. Does anyone else have anything interesting to share?" Budzinski was chuckling and shaking his head.

Williams was fielding questions about the PDA functionality. Everyone appeared to be busy collecting the requested information.

Cpl. Miller took advantage of the lull in Budzinski's interaction with the crowd to bring an interesting readout to his attention. "Hey, Sergeant, check this out." She said as she recalled a tactical screen on her display. "Just before we dusted off my scanner registered a couple of CAP cards that entered the parking lot. There was an 8.0 female and an 8.7 male. I've got the names and profiles right here." Miller touched a couple of buttons to split the screen and show him the data on both individuals at the same time.

"Janet Olson and Jacob Caulfield, they've got to be the 'Janet and Jake' that Lt. Clark spoke of during the pickup. You're with me, Miller." Budzinski walked over to Clark.

"Excuse me, sir." Budzinski addressed Clark. "Would you know why these individuals arrived outside as we were packing up to dust?" Budzinski pointed to Miller's combat PDA display.

Clark was puzzled, "Dust?"

"Uh, in the old days when you were ready to abandon a position you'd call in slicks, unarmed transport helicopters, and dive for the doors through the cloud of dust they kicked up because they never touched the ground. They just flew low and slow until loaded and then bugged out."

"Helicopters, right," Clark wasn't sure he'd been enlightened, but addressed Budzinski's question. "My first guess would be that they were there to insure that no one fucked with Misty Nokamura, the young lady I asked you to take care of. She's a real hot babe and was ready to ship out with me, but I vetoed my dick and declined her offer mostly because of Janet. That crazy Amazon dyke would have removed my ass."

"You'd have been safely under the protection of the Confederacy. She couldn't have done anything to you," Budzinski commented confidently.

Clark laughed before advising Budzinski, "The smart money doesn't put limitations on what that pair can and cannot accomplish." Clark expanded the advice. "Three months ago Jake was a wimpy geek. I'm sure my kid sister could've bested him in a slugging match. But I've seen the scrawny little bastard in action and would NOT want to be the focus of his anger even with my fifty-pound weight advantage. He's sneaky and doesn't fight fair," Clark was frowning as he recalled Jake smashing his laptop into the head of the guy who'd just stabbed Ralph.

He continued his narrative, "I've fearlessly charged many a line of 250-pound football players who were intent on removing limbs from my body, but Janet scares me. God help the fool at Starbucks that even thought about molesting Misty. Janet would have ripped their heads off bare handed, and Jake would have shit down their necks. Some guy stabbed a friend of theirs in the Starbucks parking lot about a month ago. I barely managed to stop them before they beat the guy to death."

"Who's this Misty to them?" Budzinski asked.

"Friend, lover, confidant," Clark answered. "She's Janet's lover and a member of the librarian's crew which is Jake's only connection with either of them. Trust me, that bunch has more clout than you can imagine." Clark added. "Lesa Crews, the librarian, had Jake out of jail in time for breakfast the next morning."

"Budzinski," bellowed a man from the open hatch.

"Sir," Budzinski saluted the approaching figure.

"One simple pickup! Want to tell me why it took over an hour to pick up four little geeks?" Captain McGregor bellowed in Budzinski's face.

"No excuse, sir." Budzinski responded.

"That would be my fault, sir." Clark waded in and saluted.

"Who the fuck're you?" McGregor barked at Clark; then turned to Budzinski, "Who the fuck's this?"

Clark responded, "Acting Second Lieutenant Marvin Clark, sir. I wasn't expected and took up a bit of the extraction team's time dealing with my personal issues."

"Personal issues?" Capt. McGregor checked his watch, "The two of you, my office, thirty-minutes," he barked; then he returned their salutes and withdrew.

"Wow," Clark commented, "Sorry to have caused you so much trouble. What can I do to make it right?"

"It wasn't your fault that I was distracted, Lieutenant," Budzinski sighed, "I'm a combat Marine, not a damned babysitter. My job is to seize and occupy real estate; not coddle civilians! I hate pickup duty!" Budzinski replied. "I've never seen Lt. McGregor blow a gasket like that. This is bigger than you realize. Something surprised him, and he doesn't like surprises. Let's get your concubines setup for in-briefing. We have an ass chewing to attend."

Clark was puzzled, "He was wearing captain's silver bars, why did you call him lieutenant?"

After a deep breath and a long sigh, Budzinski explained. "I don't know how it started, but aboard ship the officers with naval duty use naval rank designations." Budzinski shook his head. He clearly didn't approve of this confusion. "You'd be known as Ensign Clark while aboard if you had duties associated with any of the ship's systems."

Budzinski turned his attention to his PDA and accessed the data being entered by the five sponsors. "Okay, this is good. No medical emergencies, so, we'll schedule everyone for a routine examination between briefings this afternoon. Next on the agenda are dependent pickups. � Jesus, Lieutenant. You've got ten kids in four locations! Dr. Brown has four concubines and only four kids to retrieve. Why do you continue to surprise me?"

"The day's not over, yet, Sergeant." Clark replied, chuckling under his breath. "The day's not over."

Budzinski looked around and bellowed, "Brown, put a muzzle on those two!" The young stuff Brown had collected were chattering like magpies. "Williams, Miller, rear guard; be alert for stragglers and strays. Will the five sponsors kindly put leashes on your charges and follow me to the briefing pod."

Clark gathered Julie Ann and Rebecca in his left and right arms respectively and set them in motion behind Budzinski with a pat on their butts.

It took fifteen minutes to get everyone settled into the various briefing rooms. Rebecca kept trying to get Marvin's attention, but there was too much going on. All she managed to tell him was, "We need to talk about Lesa Crews as soon as we can." Marvin just nodded and gave her a puzzled expression.

Budzinski checked his watch. "Lieutenant, we have just enough time to get from here to Lt. McGregor's office. I'll brief you on the way. Miller, you're in charge. Williams, you're personally responsible for Clark's two concubines."

Smiling, Clark kissed Rebecca and Julie Ann, "I may be late for lunch, loves; so, start without me." He then ran to catch up with Budzinski.

"Sir, you may be the ranking individual, but this detail is my command." Budzinski stated.

"Loud and clear, sergeant, loud and clear. I'm just a bystander and will stay out of your way." Clark's response told him that he understood the protocol to be followed. Only the person in command of a detail saluted or interacted with superiors. Everyone else kept digging holes, raking leaves, laying mines, or whatever, and they kept their mouths shut.

McGregor's clerk cleared them into the landing coordinator's office exactly thirty minutes after McGregor had told them to show up. Budzinski followed Clark through the hatch into the office. Clark stepped aside and stopped a pace behind Budzinski who saluted and announced, "Lt. Clark and Sgt. Budzinski report as ordered, sir." McGregor glanced at Clark before returning Budzinski's salute. The significance of Budzinski being the only one to speak was clearly not lost on McGregor.

"At ease, men," McGregor said evenly. "Step out of the shadow, Clark. I believe you're the key player in this debrief." McGregor waved a hand at Budzinski. "Budzinski here let his guard slip and put several of the sponsors in his care at risk. He and I will talk about that later. I wanted Sgt. Budzinski here to assist in discovering what you and your associates are planning, Lt. Clark."

McGregor looked up at Budzinski, "The one truly inspired thing you did today, Sergeant, was putting a tracer on Miss Nokamura." Clark remained stationary, only his eyes flicked toward Budzinski. McGregor was watching him for a reaction.

"She was whisked away from the extraction site by Janet Olson, Ralph Peterman and Jacob Caulfield, and taken to a conference room in the main library at Georgia Tech where they were joined by Susan Delaney, Lesa Crews, Toby O'Malley, and Gloria Sanchez. Numerous phone calls originated from that location after a concise briefing by Ms. Nokamura that lasted less than two minutes. The meeting was adjourned and the participants scattered less than ten minutes from when they entered the room. It was a very impressive performance for civilians, very impressive indeed."

"You have excellent control of yourself, Lt. Clark, more than I would expect from simple ROTC training. Notice the small smile of satisfaction, Sergeant. He has a right to be proud of his associates. They had to have planned for this contingency. I'll bet Clark can detail chapter and verse about who was contacted from that room, and where they can be expected to converge in what, another two or three hours? Observe and learn, Sergeant. Lt. Clark, the floor is yours."

"There was no subversion or disrespect intended by any of us, sir." Clark explained. "I couldn't be sure Ms. Nokamura would be able to contact anyone in time to put things together. If things progress as planned, you can expect a small group to assemble at the main pavilion of Crestlawn Cemetery at four o'clock this afternoon. I expect most if not all of my dependent children to be there with their biological fathers. They will also try to locate Professor Avalareddy's wife and bring her along with my prospective concubines Sasha Morgan and Millie Anderson. I don't expect Jacob Caulfield, Janet Olson, or Toby O'Malley to be present. They'll probably enlist the help of some of my football teammates to ensure that all remains quiet."

"Gift wrapped with a blue ribbon, Sergeant." McGregor stated. "One small addition, Alicia Morgan's four children and her soon to be ex will also attend. And Rebecca Lawrence is a widow. I don't think we can expect her dead husband to show up. And why should we not expect Ms. Olson, Mr. Caulfield, and Mr. O'Malley?" Clearly he knew the answer to this question.

"They're not ready to emigrate, sir." Clark responded. "My extraction is a fluke, and I'm not a key player in Lesa's plan. They, on the other hand, are pivotal."

"Yes, I shudder to think what that may be. The lowest CAP score of the three is Ms. Olson's eight point oh is it not?" McGregor remarked. "Care to tell me what grand scheme they have in mind?"

Clark shrugged, "Actually, there are many of us with lower scores who participate in one capacity or another. It started when one of the librarians, Lesa Crews, invited my Literature study group to her house. She was looking for a sponsor willing to take her and her kids to a colony world. It's not an uncommon practice these days."

"Somehow it grew from trying to get lucky enough to be with your sponsor when a random pickup happens, to organizing a community of sponsors with something special to offer." Clark paused to gather his thoughts. "Lesa has convinced Congressman Worley to host an event in July. In attendance will be Ms. Olson, Mr. Caulfield, Mr. O'Malley, Admiral Benjamin Grayson, and key members of his physics department at MIT. These people are not botanists with a CAP below eight. If you want a brain trust of top minds in armament development, you won't want to miss this party. It will be THE event of the season. If Lesa gets the mix right, and I have full confidence in her ability, you should come prepared to accommodate at least 200 emigrants. Most of them will expect to be kept together. All they'll need from the Confederacy is transportation to a safe colony with enough space for them to work and some specialized support equipment to begin turning out weapons the likes of which even science fiction writers have not dreamt."

"Holy shit," Budzinski breathed reverently.

"Holy shit, indeed, Sergeant," McGregor agreed. "And what is your part in all of this?"

"None, other than an expectation of using some of the weapons they develop." Clark answered. "My role in Lesa's plan is nothing more than that of a supporting gopher. I was very serious when I told Cpl. Miller that my immediate goal is to be a platoon leader. Sitting in a lab dreaming up cool shit is not my idea of fun."

"Sergeant, how many gophers do we have with a CAP greater than seven?" McGregor asked.

"I dare say none, sir." Budzinski replied.

"I want Lt. Clark's training accelerated, see to it Sergeant. Dismissed." Budzinski saluted; then turned with Clark and both left the small office.

Budzinski scowled, "Christ, lieutenant, he's pissed about the fast one you pulled with that chick Misty. Let's see if we can't complete your in-processing and medical scan before 1600 hours."

Clark froze in his tracks. "Holy shit, I just realized that I'm going to have four demanding women in my quarters tonight. How soon can I get that enhancement package?"

Budzinski started laughing, "You had everything worked out except for the little detail that can get yourself fucked to death, didn't you, sir?"

When they arrived at the briefing room, Cpl Miller approached with a grim expression. "Sergeant, the younger children on our list have been checked out of school and daycare by their fathers. We're trying to intercept them."

"It's okay, Miller, Lt. Clark here has it under control. We need to arrange a dependent pickup in the Crestlawn Cemetery at 1600 hours. Everyone should be waiting with bags packed." Budzinski smiled as he added, "Anything else on your mind?"

After a quick lunch, Clark was directed to a small alcove adjacent to the main briefing room were he was given the standard lecture for sponsors. It included his privileges and responsibilities for the concubines and minors in his household.

Rebecca finally managed to corner Marvin when they were between scheduled activities. Foremost in his mind was the realization that he had not yet sampled any of Rebecca's carnal offerings. He pulled her in for a lingering kiss and thorough tactile examination of her posterior.

She was genuinely reluctant to interrupt his line of thought, but. "Listen, I truly hate to distract you from what you're doing to my nervous system, but we need to talk about Lesa. She's more than she appears to be."

Puzzled by the choice of words, "What do you mean 'more'? She's smart, good-looking, well organized, and very well connected. Plus, she throws one hell of a party."

Rebecca smiled, "I doubt you know just how well she can party. She's everything you say plus passionate, reliable, and totally ruthless with anything in her way."

"Just how well do you know her?" Marvin was intrigued by the changes in Rebecca's facial expression from one of fond memories to one of loathing as she spoke about Lesa.

Looking him in the eyes to get his reaction, Rebecca told him, "Well enough to swap husbands with her from time-to-time." Marvin's eyes popped and jaw dropped, but Rebecca continued, "Lesa and I met at Vassar when I was a freshman and she was a junior. A mutual friend introduced us to 'The Three Musketeers of MIT' during a spring break at Daytona. There were six of us: Charles Lawrence, Randy Philips, Franklin Crews, Karen Wallace, Lesa Gotti, and me. We became almost inseparable after graduation."

Marvin remained frozen in stunned silence as Rebecca continued. "Jeff, Randy, and Frank formed a partnership, and with a few backers they had a promising future in offshore mining. The three of them died when the ship they hired sank. Lesa became a daemon-woman when we found out that the ship's inspection records had been falsified. She went after everyone involved with a vengeance. She used investigators, lawyers, and hired muscle; pretty much in that order. While I can't prove it, I'm convinced that she or her father ordered the deaths of those responsible, including at least one who was killed in his prison cell."

Marvin shook his head in an attempt to sort out his confusion. "That's not exactly the way I heard the story. How could she have gotten to someone in prison? Do you really think she's capable of having people killed in a way that appears like suicide or an auto accident?"

Rebecca nodded, "Oh yeah! I'm not sure why she refrained from killing them herself. Perhaps because the police were hounding her for the brutality her 'investigators' employed while questioning some of those peripherally involved. Out-of-town talent was used for the rough stuff and nothing ever came back strong enough to stick to her."

"Karen and I got scared and didn't want our kids near such an angry and vindictive woman. The two of us moved our kids out of the building where we had condos on the same floor as Lesa's condo. I haven't had contact with Lesa for three years, up until she called about a month ago. I don't know why she wanted to mend fences with Karen and me after years of silence. I seriously doubt she's feeling guilty about anything, though. The cold person who emerged in the aftermath of our husbands' deaths could never be capable of remorse or guilt."

Marvin was again stunned speechless. He just gathered the naked woman in his arms and held her. Thoughts of sex had been banished from his confused brain. "People can change," he told her, "I changed when some friends woke me up, and I stopped drinking."

Pvt. Williams approached and cleared his throat. "Excuse me, sir. Sgt. Budzinski asked that I escort you to the dependent pickup. If you'll get Ms. Swanson we need to proceed to the transporter pod."

Budzinski was taking no chances. He wasn't sure he could trust this librarian and a bunch of football players to keep things under control. She had chosen a wide-open space that should have a minimum of traffic for the pickup point, but they could still be ambushed. He had his entire platoon transport to the Confederacy Liaison office and approach the cemetery disguised as a funeral procession, complete with police escort.

The escort was real, and the motorcycle cops broke off and left the area as the line of cars entered the main gate of the cemetery. Nothing appeared suspicious until the procession broke into three groups. Only the hearse continued to the pavilion and the lone figure of Sgt. Budzinski emerged from the passenger door. The two squads deployed with auxiliary transporter pads east and west of the pavilion giving them two avenues of retreat if the wheels suddenly fell off. Budzinski pulled a third transporter from the back of the hearse and watched as all of the vehicles exited the grounds.

At four o'clock a lone vehicle entered the gate and pulled off of the lane near the pavilion. A lone figure in a dark suit stepped from the vehicle and approached Budzinski. The AI alerted Budzinski that the individual had about a kilo of hard steel in his left armpit. Ralph approached the towering figure and held out his own CAP card as he asked, "May I see some identification, please?" Budzinski verified that the individual standing before him was Ralph Peterman before handing over his military ID for Ralph's inspection.

"I apologize for the cloak-and-dagger routine," Ralph expressed sincerely. "I have a small scar on my ribcage that says not everyone is happy about the Confederacy's Earth emigration policies. I was attacked in the parking lot of the very Starbucks that you visited this morning."

Budzinski nodded; then pointed at the small bulge in Ralph's jacket. "Do you really think that would have gotten you out of here had I not been who you expected?"

Ralph shook his head, "I really don't even know how to use it. Lesa gave me a quick just-in-case lesson, but I'm depending on her and her friend to keep me safe. She told me to get low to the ground and dive into that open grave if violence ensued." Ralph pointed to a fresh pile of dirt near the pavilion. "I'm to just keep my head down and trust her friend Barrett, whoever the hell he is, to be my guardian angel from afar. Please excuse me while I give her a shout."

Under Budzinski's watchful eyes Ralph pulled a cell phone from his pocket and hit the speed dial button. "Hey Lesa, meet Sgt. Raymond Budzinski. Sergeant, she would like for you to wave if you know everyone in the two groups milling around the grounds."

Budzinski scowled at Ralph, but raised his left arm for a moment. He was annoyed that the drone flying overhead hadn't spotted a sniper in the vicinity. The AI would automatically drop the interdiction field around them as soon as anything went wrong, but he knew it'd be too late for at least one member of the platoon. Damn these people.

Ralph put the phone back into his pocket. "Thanks Raymond, we'll be joined shortly by the people you came for. An armed escort'll accompany them. My friend down at the gate will alert us if there're any party crashers. Please ask your people to not overreact."

Misty stepped out of the shadows and returned Ralph's wave. It was clear that Budzinski did NOT like this. He didn't like this at all, but keyed his implant to brief Corporals Miller and Carson. The shit just kept getting deeper.

Several cars parked across the road from the cemetery began making their way up the hill. Misty checked the occupants of the vehicles as they entered the gate and got into the last one for the ride up to the pavilion.

Misty stepped out and gave Ralph the high sign. Ralph turned to Budzinski, "Everyone's here." Budzinski nodded and triggered the interdiction field.

"Send them down," Budzinski barked.

Ralph and Misty disappeared into Ralph's sedan.

Four goons in dark suits and sunglasses escorted Samuel Swanson and Horace Morgan toward the pavilion. The four were too old to be college football players and looked as though they could snack on an entire team, offense and defense, without strain. Swanson was strolling casually, but Morgan's escorts had a firm grip on each of his arms.

More car doors opened and fourteen running and laughing yard apes soon filled the pavilion area. All this random activity had Budzinski on edge. He felt better with the field in place and called in his two rifle squads. Any threats now would be from the ring of cars at his position. Budzinski was not going caught off guard twice in one day and detailed Carson to deploy his squad to watch every adult inside the perimeter. He told Miller to watch the kids and concubines and not allow them to wander off.

Clark was the first to step out of the transporter stream and was almost bowled over by Sasha and Millie as they ran to hug him. Dr. Brown and Alicia followed Julie Ann and Rebecca. Three clusters formed as the children claimed their mothers. A very disoriented Professor Avalareddy stepped out ahead of Pvt. Williams. The transporter was shut down shortly after Williams cleared the field.

Meghrani called out to Naveen and he ran to meet her. Both cried as they embraced.

A blonde in her mid-twenties followed two teenagers who approached Budzinski cautiously. Rebecca stepped away from Marvin and her three daughters and confronted the trio. "What are you doing here, Jason?"

Jason stopped in front of Rebecca and gave her a hug, "Hi Mom, nice outfit. Is it new?" Fifteen-year-old Jason Lawrence stepped back to take in Rebecca's shift in mock admiration.

She drew back her fist, but smiled as she said, "Don't get fresh with your mother, young man!"

Jason smiled back and began his explanation, "I hope you don't mind that I crashed your little party. When Aunt Lesa's friend Jake called and asked me to meet him in the parking lot with the girls I tried to call you. All I got was your voicemail. It didn't take me long to figure out that you had been selected during the Confederacy Pickup that occurred at Starbucks this morning. I don't know how Jake knew you had been picked up, but I blackmailed him into bringing my friends and me along."

Budzinski and Clark had wandered within earshot.

The dark Italian beauty next to Jason cleared her throat. Jason interrupted his tale, "Where are my manners! Mom, this is my girlfriend Angela Scarnatti, and I believe you know my English teacher Miss Donna Smith. I've agreed to sponsor them as my concubines. Ladies, this is my mother Rebecca and you must be her sponsor, Marvin Clark." Marvin returned the young man's handshake and was almost as confused as Sgt. Budzinski.

Budzinski glared at Clark, "Care to explain this little shocker, Lieutenant?"

Clark shrugged his shoulders, "I've got nothing, Sergeant. I'm still stuck at the part where he outflanked Jake." He turned to question Rebecca, but she was staring down the willowy blonde behind her son.

Donna held up her hands defensively, "I haven't touched him, honest!"

"I really hate pickup duty!" Budzinski shouted at the sky and then turned to Jason. "May I see everyone's CAP ID, please?"

Budzinski dropped his reader on Jason Lawrence's card first. "Well, you're a bit young to be a Space Marine and have no outstanding traits in these sub-scores, and a 6.9 overall is not going to qualify you for special treatment. What do you expect us to do with you?"

Jason had assumed that anyone with a CAP over 6.5 would be happily welcomed and was not prepared for rejection. "Well, I didn't think I'd just lay around and make babies. I've been trying to talk Mom into sending me to a military academy, is something like that available at a colony? I've done some machine shop work with my Dad and uncles, and Aunt Lesa says I'm a pretty good gunsmith."

Budzinski responded as though this last bit explained all, "Ah, you're related to this librarian, Lesa Crews?"

"Not really," Rebecca responded for Jason. "We pretty much cohabitated with the Crews and the Philips when Randy, Franklin, and Jeff were alive. It was easier for everybody if they told friends and neighbors that we were aunts and uncles."

Budzinski took a few moments to commune with the AI. "Okay, here's the deal. We don't have a pod available on this pickup to accommodate you as in independent sponsor, but if Clark here will take you in as a dependent that has reached his majority we can accommodate the three of you to the colony on Kentat and sort you out from there. Ladies, any hold you think you might have on this young man ends here. Even in Clark's household Jason will literally have the power of life and death over you."

Budzinski looked at Clark who was in turn looking at a pale Rebecca. Clark finally spoke, "This is becoming one of the more interesting days of my life. What are my responsibilities and liabilities with this arrangement, Sergeant?"

Budzinski nodded toward the milling kids, "Pretty much the same as with minor children and whatever agreement you reach regarding each other's concubines."

Marvin laughed and Rebecca almost fainted under his dancing gaze. It would seem that his threat about an Oedipus scenario could become reality! Marvin asked Jason, "Are these two good enough to hold your interest? They're not dead lays, are they?"

Jason looked a little embarrassed, "I don't know. I've never had sex with anyone."

Budzinski figured he said that because his mother was standing right there. "I'll tell you like I tell everyone; you should take them both for a test drive to see if they're any good before accepting them as concubines."

Jason looked at the two females, "I wouldn't know if they're good, bad or average. Perhaps you should test drive them for me?"

Both Donna and Angela's faces blanched pale when they looked at the huge man in the Marine uniform. Budzinski scratched his chin, "I really need to stay alert, how about you, Lieutenant?"

Clark was smiling at the discomfort showing in Donna and Angela's faces, "Nah, I don't want to spoil them for Jason." Somehow he knew Jason was teasing the two females.

Budzinski took Clark, Jason Lawrence and Avalareddy with the five prospective concubines aside to do his standard spiel about last chance decisions and non-returnable travel. Donna Smith was more shaken by the speech than any of the others, but all five accepted servitude to their sponsors.

Julie Ann and Samuel had a cordial parting. When Horace Morgan vacillated between begging and threatening Alicia his escort returned him to one of the sedans and appeared to give him a choice between the trunk and back seat of the car. He meekly sat down in the back.

Cpl. Miller verified that the fourteen children were all under fourteen-years-old and in the legal custody of the three women in concubine shifts. With official acceptance of the menagerie by Clark and Brown he ordered Williams to activate the transporter and begin sending everyone up to the Asimov.

Two more dark suits emerged from the ring of cars and stood next to the open trunk of the vehicle they exited. The two pair of escorts did the same as the trunks of their vehicles popped open. These six men were the only people visible when Budzinski stepped onto the transporter pad and disappeared.

"Fuck!" Budzinski was clearly agitated when he emerged from the transporter aboard the Asimov.

Miller giggled, "Is that an order, sergeant?"

Budzinski gave her an eat-dirt-and-die look, "I hate pickup duty! We could have lost our whole fucking platoon if shit went south. Who the fuck were those guys, and were the hell did they come from? I can't believe I let them inside our perimeter! Fuck!"

Carson queried, "You mean those short fat guys and their antiques. We had them three-two-one with full body armor, stingers, and a couple of M61's."

"They weren't that fat," Budzinski snapped. "They were wearing bulky antique body armor. The stingers couldn't have punched through their Kevlar. Those guys were pro's and would have targeted the M61's first. And that elusive bitch; this wasn't her first rodeo either." Neither of the squad leaders had ever seen Budzinski vent like this. "The pickup was in progress before the drone finally spotted her by triangulating on her cell phone. She was in a thermal tent deep inside a building two blocks to the southeast with a Barrett sniper rifle. That's serious fucking hardware. You can buy a very nice car for what that piece cost, without a damned scope. What's a fucking librarian doing with that kind of equipment, and where did she learn how to use it?"

Miller stepped in, "You really think they could have hurt us?"

Budzinski nodded, "We wouldn't have lasted six seconds against the firepower in those trunks in the hands of professionals, and those silent monoliths were pro's."

Shaking off some of his anger, Budzinski barked, "Come on, we got more fucking civilians to deal with. Let's get this gaggle to the briefing pod. Miller, Williams, pass your combat issue to Carson. Carson, take both squads to the armory and turn in our equipment; then get the platoon ready for an ugly debrief."

Nodding to Miller and Williams, Budzinski cautioned, "You two take drag again. Dazed women are bad enough, but rug-rats are like herding cats. Let's keep them together as best we can. Move out!"

Marvin was chuckling openly as he pointed out the hatch to Sasha and Millie.

Budzinski groused when he caught up to the chuckling Clark, "Shut the fuck up, sir." The comment only motivated Clark to laugh harder.

The passage was a cacophony of sound as fourteen kids started asking questions all at the same time. Budzinski scowled as he took the lead and set a pace that was difficult for the younger ones to keep up with. Clark, Brown, Miller and Williams each had at least one straggler in their arms when they ducked through the hatch into the briefing pod.

When Budzinski got to the question about prescription medication, Sasha raised her hand, "My prescription for birth control pills needs to be renewed." The comment got the predictable number of snickers from the assembled crowd. Budzinski just let his head and shoulders droop.

Budzinski finally began shaking his head, "Not as interesting as Mr. Clark's revelation this morning, but � I doubt you'll need those ever again." Looking at the overhead he mumbled, "Why me? What did I do to deserve this? I really, really hate pickup duty!"

Angela, Donna, Sasha, Millie and Meghrani were left to catch up on the concubine briefings and Jason started learning about what it really means to be a sponsor. Budzinski again left Miller in charge and accompanied Clark most of the way to Clark's pod.

"Why didn't you mention that your librarian friend was a trained sniper and in tight with merc's, Lieutenant?"

"I had no idea," Clark responded. "I'd heard that she told some of the guys that she was a pretty good shot, but it never occurred to me to ask her about it. I don't remember any mention of mercenaries. Why? Is it important?"

Budzinski shrugged his shoulders, "Maybe not. Get your brood settled in. The galley opens for chow at 1900 hours. The PDA can give you turn-by-turn directions to the mess hall using the in-ship navigation menu. I don't recommend the replicator in your quarters for such a big crowd on the first night, sir."

Inside his crowded quarters, Marvin asked Julie Ann, "Would you help Sandra, Alice and Shelly get familiar with your offspring while I get familiar with their mother?"

Julie Ann blushed and nodded as Marvin and Rebecca retreated to the master bedroom.

Rebecca was walking ahead of Marvin when she pulled her shift over her head. Marvin stopped to admire her toned buttocks and thighs. He gave a soft whistle and asked, "What's your policy regarding anal sex?"

Rebecca smiled over her left shoulder, leaned forward just a bit, and shifted her weight from one leg to the other causing some really nice hip action. "I prefer a little warming up and some lube." She reached back and rubbed her left buttocks sensuously with her left hand, "Do you really like my flabby ass?"

Marvin knew she was fishing for a compliment because there was nothing flabby about her ass. He stepped close enough to swat her right cheek. "Ooh, are you going to warm me up with a spanking?"

She put her left shin on the bed and kept her spine and right leg straight as she stretched her torso across the bed. This stance exposed her crotch from the thick brown bush on her belly, across the bare pudenda to the brown pucker between the flexed globes of her butt. Rebecca was still smiling over her shoulder. "I could lay across your lap, but that might limit your options." Her giggling put her breasts into motion making them a serious distraction from his visual exploration of her nether region.

Marvin began ripping his clothes off. Rebecca rolled onto her back with her arms stretched over her head and both heels on the edge of the bed next to her hips. This spread her breasts on her ribcage without a significant reduction in their apparent size. Not even the ship's artificial gravity could flatten the large quantity of tit-flesh amassed on her chest.

Rebecca may have been playing the roll of seductress, but the sexual tension she generated was manifest on her own body by crinkled nipples and swollen labia. Her puffy brown areola capped each jiggling breast. Each one was a little hemispherical mound that was itself capped by a long, cylindrical nipple. The dew-covered inner labia resembled a relaxed upside-down 'V' that guarded her clitoris at the top, but totally exposed the vaginal entrance below.

Marvin placed his hands on the mattress next to her breasts. His rampant prick was like a bird dog on point; it needed no guidance to find her moist opening. He had intended to make an oral examination of her charms, but their combined urgency was too much to resist. He plunged into her and almost buried his entire shaft with his first thrust. She pulled his chest down to hers and sought his lips as their pelvises merged with one another.

The roller coaster ride lasted almost fifteen minutes. Marvin lay on her heaving chest totally wasted. When Rebecca's breathing slowed enough for her to speak she playfully asked, "Shall I ready my ass for you now?"

Marvin didn't have enough left for his dick to even twitch at the mental image her remark invoked. He playfully bit her neck before whispering, "Maybe next time," into her ear. He was considering a nap. It had been a long day, but he knew Julie Ann would need their help getting ten hungry kids to diner. "We should shower and get ready for diner," he suggested reluctantly.

Rebecca nodded agreement and the two stepped into the small chamber and explored the mysteries of Darjee plumbing. They emerged from the bedchamber thirty minutes later clean but not fully refreshed.

Before pulling her shift back over her head, Rebecca asked, "You're not really going to loan me to Jason in exchange for one of his concubines, are you?"

Marvin just smiled thinking it best to keep her guessing and worrying.

There was a knock on the door as preparations for the outing were completed. Pvt. Williams delivered Sasha and Millie to their new home and reminded Clark that the galley was open. He also advised him that Mr. Lawrence had already gone to chow with his two concubines.

Clark allowed Williams to lead the way, but took the PDA along to be sure he could get back to his quarters without assistance. He doubted there would be another day this interesting for a very long time.