Chapter 1

San Jose, CaliforniaAugust 10, 2003 The blue and white police helicopter swooped in from the north, flying at a relatively low 800 feet above ground level. It came in almost silently, without the distinctive clattering sound that was associated with rotary wing aircraft. The San Jose Police epartment!s eye in the s"y was #uite state of the art. It had no tail rotor, utili$ing instead a powerful blast of air to prevent tor#ue. %s such the only sound it produced in flight was the whine of the turbine engines and the rush of the air that "ept it aloft. It was called the stealth helicopter by cops and citi$ens ali"e. Though it really was not all that #uiet if you were standing ne&t to it, at patrol altitude people often did not reali$e that it was hovering over the top of them until they 'ust happened to loo" up. (en )ra$ier was the pilot of %ir *ne + as the stealth helicopter was "nown + on this afternoon. ,e handled the multi+million+ dollar machine with his usual precision and steadiness as he bled off speed and brought it into a tight circle around the intersection of -ovington %venue and .orth Street, the scene of a traffic collision. (en had been a San Jose Police officer for eight years and had been flying for the air detail for three although his e&perience behind the controls of helicopters went bac" considerably further. ,e had learned to fly in the army where he logged more than three thousand hours in %pache attac" helicopters, including /0 combat missions in the Persian 1ulf .ar. 2ventually however, the low pay and the inevitable future transfer to a des" 'ob had driven him from his country!s service and into the arms of -alifornia!s third largest city. 3.ell well,3 said Janet .ilmington, his observer, or left+seater as the terminology went. She was a ten year veteran of the department with all of the cynicism that wor"ing on an urban police force entitled her to. She was loo"ing down at the street

below them, surveying the scene. She didn!t seem particularly impressed by what she saw down there. 3It loo"s li"e we got a couple of our fine, upstanding citi$ens that are having problems relating to each other.3 (en spared a #uic" glance at the accident before putting his eyes bac" on the business of "eeping the helicopter in the air. *ne glance was all he needed. Two cars had collided in the middle of the intersection. Though the accident itself did not seem to be all that serious, the two occupants of the vehicles were handling the situation in a manner that was fairly typical in the crime+ ridden south San Jose ghetto. They were rolling around on the asphalt in the middle of the street trying desperately to land punches upon each other. % crowd of onloo"ers stood on the curb near them, obviously cheering them on. 3)uc"in! animals,3 (en said sourly, sha"ing his head in disgust. 3There!s no hope for humanity, you "now that4 %bsolutely no hope.3 3Shit, I!ve "nown that for years,3 Janet told him. 3It!s the first thing you learn in this 'ob.3 3%in!t that the truth,3 he mumbled, silently than"ing god for perhaps the ten thousandth time in the last three years that he had been liberated from the ran"s of uniformed patrol. ,e had 'oined the SJP to fly the helicopter, not to play encounter therapist to the deranged criminals and dirtbags that called the Silicon 5alley home. Though he still wore a uniform every day, it was now a flight 'umpsuit instead of the traditional blue suit and heavy (evlar vest. %nd though he still carried a gun it was "ept in a shoulder harness and was only there because of department regulations6 there was little chance it would ever be needed in this assignment. (en was e&actly where he wanted to be in his professional career7 a thousand feet above the slime of the streets and ma"ing si&ty thousand dollars a year for being there. 3%ir *ne,3 Janet said into her "eyed headset, her voice being transmitted to the ground units that were responding to the

disturbance. 3.e!re overhead at -ovington and .orth. The intersection is bloc"ed by a collision between an early eighties 8onte -arlo and a late seventies -adillac. There is a blac" male adult and a ,ispanic male adult on the ground ne&t to the vehicles fighting. 9o weapons visible.3 (en continued to circle the scene in a counter cloc"wise direction, allowing Janet to "eep an eye on the proceedings below. The two combatants completely ignored their presence above them and continued their scuffle. %s the events progressed Janet gave him a running commentary on the status of the fight, spea"ing li"e a politically incorrect sportscaster. 3This is one hell of a grudge match we got going here today fight fans,3 she intoned. 3This will certainly settle the issue of who ran into whom. %s you can see, both of our fighters are literally in the fuc"ing gutter. :oo" at that, ,ector manages to land a few body punches + crude but effective in the long run. ;ut these body blows seem to have enraged our friend Tyrone. % well+ placed "nee to the "idney has dislodged ,ector from his position on top of the fracas. %nd loo" at this now< Tyrone scores a shot to the face but is unable to ta"e advantage of the situation and get on top of poor ,ector, who counters with a few slaps to the side of Tyrone!s face.3 3Slaps43 (en said, sha"ing his head in moc" disgust. 3,ector, you!re a fuc"in! pussy.3 3%nd here come the referees,3 she said ne&t as two blac" and white units, their red and blue lights flashing, rolled into the scene. The two cops that manned them got out of their car and wal"ed over to the fight, batons in hand. 3I guess the fun!s over,3 (en said, chuc"ling a little. 3It would seem so,3 Janet said. 3;ut wait. ,ector is ta"ing the oppurtunity for one last furious attac" upon his opponent. Two good shots to the face. Tyrone seems to be da$ed, fol"s<3

(en spared another #uic" loo" at the scene below them. ,e saw that the two patrol officers, li"e any cops worth their salt, were not doing anything stupid li"e trying to physically separate the two men. -ops got hurt doing things li"e that. Instead they stood bac" and tried ordering them to brea" it up. .hen that didn!t wor" they too" out their pepper spray and doused both of them. That brought the fight to a #uic" end as both combatants immediately lost interest in each other and began clawing at their own eyes. In less than a minute they were both neatly handcuffed and sitting on the curb. 3%nother 'ob well done,3 Janet said as one of the cops on the ground waved up at them. She "eyed her headset once again. 3%ir *ne,3 she told the dispatcher, 3the situation is under control. Two in custody. .e!ll be clearing.3 3-opy that, %ir *ne,3 was the reply. 3I have nothing else pending for you at the moment.3 3Too cool,3 (en said, turning the helicopter to the north and putting on some speed. 3:et!s head over to ;ayview and ma"e a flyby of the residential neighborhoods. 8aybe we!ll see some na"ed women swimming in their pools.3 Janet, who was a butch lesbian and proud of it, grinned. 3I li"e the way you thin", partner,3 she told him. 3%nything to help stamp out crime in this fair city.3 3=our dedication brings tears to my eyes sometimes,3 she said, ad'usting her helmet a little on her head. They flew onward, moving at a sedate eighty nautical miles per hour. The scenery below them changed from low rent public housing pro'ects to wor"ing class neighborhoods that got steadily nicer the closer to San )rancisco ;ay they went. They could see the staple of the south bay transportation system, the freeways, stretching out beneath them li"e an intricate spider!s

web. %t this hour of the day, with the morning rush over with and the afternoon rush yet to begin, the traffic was moving along #uite nicely. (en made a chec" of his fuel gauge and #uic"ly calculated that they still had two more hours of flight time before they would need to head bac" in to top off their tan"s. 3So how!s %nnie doing43 Janet as"ed as she dialed through their fre#uency band, adding a few stations to her scanning list. 3Is she on maternity leave yet43 3Two more wee"s,3 he replied, his demeanor automatically lightening as it always did when he thought of his wife. %nnie was an elementary school teacher he had met two years before during a public relations demonstration of the helicopter. She had been there with her class of third graders and, as clich> as it sometimes seemed, it had truly been a case of love at first sight. ;efore she had climbed bac" onto the school bus that day he had tal"ed her out of her phone number. ;efore another month had gone by, they were engaged to be married. % month after that, their union became official in a small South :a"e Tahoe ceremony. They now owned a house in nearby Pleasanton and their first child was less than four wee"s from his scheduled emergence from her womb. 3The little guy!s in there "ic"ing up a storm,3 he told Janet. 3I thin" he!s gonna be a soccer player.3 3*r a dancer,3 she said teasingly. 3%s long as he!s not a dirtbag,3 (en said sincerely, 3I don!t care if he suc"s every dic" north of ;a"ersfield.3 They spent the ne&t few minutes discussing the problems of late pregnancy, both from a female and a male perspective. Janet, though a lesbian, did have some e&perience with childbirth. She had a thirteen+year+old daughter + conceived when she was nineteen and still confused about her se&uality + that lived with her and her long+time lover. 3%nnie!s probably having to pee about every two minutes or so, right43 she as"ed.

3*h, you "now it,3 he assured her. 3That!s one of the main reasons she wanted to go out on maternity leave early. She can!t ma"e it through a classroom period without having to go hit the head two or three times. %pparently leaving a roomful of eight year olds alone in a classroom is a recipe for disaster.3 3I can imagine,3 Janet said. 3,ow about you4 id the doc ma"e the playground off+limits for you yet43 39o, not officially,3 he said. 3,e tells us its safe as long as her cervi& is still closed. The problem is she 'ust doesn!t want to do it very much. She feels all bloated and sore all the time.3 ,e shoo" his head a little, "eeping an eye on a news helicopter that was hovering about a mile to the west of them. 3I really miss the second trimester of this pregnancy thing. Tal" about horny. She wanted it two, sometimes three times a day.3 3=eah, those hormones do some cra$y shit when a girl!s "noc"ed up.3 3=ou!re tellin! me,3 he said, returning his attention forward. 3,ell, I was turning it down sometimes, she wanted it that often. %ctually turning it down. 8e. -an you believe it43 3;et you wish you could have all those ones you turned down now, don!t you43 3If only life wor"ed that way,3 he agreed with a sigh. 3%men to that,3 she agreed wholeheartedly. They made a few passes over the e&clusive ;ayview area of the city, flying over houses that were valued at more than ?00 thousand dollars apiece. To their disappointment they saw no attractive women in the process of sunbathing and@or swimming in the nude. There was in fact hardly anyone outside at all. Perhaps the bree$e coming off of the bay had something to do with it.

3:et!s try the hills,3 Janet suggested. 3It!s usually a little warmer up there. They!re a little richer too. Aicher means cra$ier.3 3Sounds li"e a plan,3 he said, ban"ing to the left. 3-an you believe that they pay us to do this shit43 she as"ed him, smiling at the thought. 3%nd to thin", they say that being a cop is the most stressful 'ob on earth. o you feel stressed43 39ot since the day they gave me these wings,3 he told her, referring to the gold pin above his badge. 3 1od I hated wor"ing patrol though. I hated dealing with those scumbags day after day, listening to their petty problems, mediating their petty disputes, wal"ing into their disgusting houses. %ll I want to do is fly. If they hadn!t of finally let me into the detail when they did I might not have made it another year. I was that burned out.3 3I "now the feeling,3 she said. 3I mean, patrol was fun at first but it got old real #uic". 2specially over on the south side. Aemember the morning watch out there43 3,ow could I forget43 he replied, frowning a little at the thought. It was traditional for every roo"ie San Jose police officer to be assigned to the worst part of town on the graveyard shift. It was "ind of a trial by fire. 39othing li"e fourteen calls a shift to give you a nice big welcome to the profession. ;y the time I was done with my year in hell, I thought I!d been raped.3 3That!s the whole idea,3 she said. 3;rea"s you in. I learned a lot out there though.3 38e too,3 he said. 3The most important thing was that I didn!t want to be there. I don!t thin" those scumbags are even the same species as we are, you "now what I mean43 3I "now what you mean,3 she said. 3That!s why it!s so nice to be up here. =ou don!t have to tal" to them, see them, smell them,

do anything with them but loo" at them from afar. I!m never gonna ta"e the sergeant!s test. If they promote me, they!ll put me right bac" on the streets supervising the morning watch. )uc" that shit. I!d rather stay in this chopper until I die.3 3Bntil I die,3 (en echoed, not having the slightest in"ling how prophetic that statement was about to become. ;efore they could get to the hills of San Jose their computer terminal, which was mounted between the two seats, began to beep, indicating an incoming call. 3.hat "ind of fun and games do they got for us this time43 (en as"ed. 3% man with a gun call,3 Janet said, reading from the te&t on the screen. 3*ver in district C. /800 bloc" of ?Crd.3 39ice neighborhood,3 he commented, #uite sarcastically, as he turned the helicopter and began heading that way. The east side, which district C encompassed, was another crime+ridden ghetto full of a mi&ture of various racial groups6 good old white trash chief among them. 3I was thin"ing of moving there myself,3 she said, continuing to read the te&t. 3It says an early thirties white male was acting strangely and threatening neighbors with a hunting rifle. The neighbors seem to thin"... get this... that he!s on drugs.3 3I find that very hard to believe,3 (en said, again with heavy sarcasm. 3Should ta"e us about five.3 3Aight,3 she said, "eying her headset. 3%ir *ne responding to ?8th,3 she told the dispatcher and the ground units. 32T% five.3 3-opy, %ir *ne,3 the dispatcher returned brightly. 39eighbors report that the suspect pointed the rifle at them and then went into the bac"yard of the address, still carrying it.3

3That!s not a real neighborly thing to do,3 Janet said. 3I don!t "now,3 (en replied. 3.hen I snort a bunch of cran" and get all twea"ed out, that!s usually what I do. 8y neighbors never complain about it.3 3I guess the neighborhood ma"es all the difference,3 she answered, smiling. They passed over the downtown area, s"irting the high+rises. 9avigation from a thousand feet up, where street signs could not be read, was accomplished mostly by area familiarity. (en located a landmar" below them that he "new, from his patrol days, was on ?/nd Street. *nce this main street was identified, he began to follow it east, dropping down /00 feet in altitude and slowing his airspeed. ,e located another landmar" at ?/nd Street and /Dth %venue and then simply counted over two avenues and si& streets, pinning down the bloc" where the call was. 9ow the tric" was to locate the e&act house. 3The number they gave us is /EF/,3 Janet told him. 3The numbers increase by twos here, don!t they43 3I do believe so,3 (en agreed. 3That ma"es it the si&th house on the east side of the street,3 she concluded. 3=ep,3 (en said, nodding. ,e bled off more speed, dropped a little more in altitude, and made a #uic" pass over the location. 3Is that where the call came from or where our friend is supposed to be43 3That!s where he!s supposed to be at,3 she said, peering out her window, her eyes loo"ing the house over. It was a single story, wooden frame that had been built when the (orean .ar had been raging. She could see a small bac"yard with a dilapidated patio and a storage shed. % few motorcycle frames in the

process of being torn down sat on the patio. 3See anything43 he as"ed. 39ot a damn thing,3 she replied. 3:et!s ma"e another pass. ;ring us in from the west.3 3Aight,3 he agreed, ban"ing around in a broad circle, turning, as always, to the left. 3%ir *ne,3 Janet updated into the radio, 3we!re on scene. 9othing is visible outside the residence at this time. .e!re gonna ma"e another pass.3 3-opy that, %ir *ne,3 was the reply. (en circled around and approached from the west, allowing them a good loo" at the rear of the house. 3There!s an open window ne&t to the patio,3 Janet said, pic"ing up a pair of binoculars and putting them to her face. 3 on!t see anything in it.3 (en saw the window to which she was referring. 8oving at fifty "nots he brought them in a little closer, trying to let her see inside the house so she could update the ground units. ,e was not worried about the suspect inside of the house shooting at them. ,e figured that the gunman probably did not even "now they were there yet, that!s how #uiet the helicopter was. %nd even if he did "now they were there, they were E00 feet in the air and more than D00 yards away. It would ta"e an e&pert mar"sman indeed to hit a moving target at that range. Bnfortunately, from the air, fine details of the suspect!s house and belongings could not be seen. ,ad they been able to see the whole picture, (en might have been a little more cautious about approaching so close. Though they could see an old )ord pic"up truc" par"ed in the driveway, they could not see the 9A%

stic"ers on both windows or the gun rac" mounted in the cab. Though they could see the front door of the house and the partially opened garage door, they could not see that more than ten hunting trophies ranging from ten point buc" rac"s to an entire head of a moose were hanging inside. %nd though they could see the "itchen window was open they could not see that CC year old Samuel Aedding + who had been bingeing on methamphetamine for the past three days and was loc"ed in the grips of a drug induced psychosis + was crouched down behind the dining room table, ta"ing careful aim through a scoped .C0+ 0E rifle. Sam Aedding, despite his drug addiction, despite his current state of delusion, was an e&pert mar"sman, the e#ual, or perhaps even the better, of the SJP !s S.%T team sniper. %nd Sam had no annoying rules of engagement to hinder him. In his scope, the helicopter + which he believed belonged to a government agency that was bent upon persecuting him + was coming almost directly at him, with 'ust a hint of right to left drift. ,e tried to "eep his crosshairs centered 'ust to the right of the windshield, which would allow 'ust enough lead to compensate for the lateral motion. ,e "new he only had a few seconds to ma"e his shot before the helicopter veered away and circled bac" around. Though he was 'ittery and his nerve endings were all on edge, he felt the calm that came when ta"ing a shot overta"e him. %s his daddy had taught him years ago when he was but a lad of ten years old, he too" a deep breath and e&haled slowly. The view in his scope steadied up and the timing seemed perfect. Slowly, deliberately, without the least bit of 'er", he s#uee$ed the trigger and the powerful rifle buc"ed in his hands, e&ploding a round out of the barrel at supersonic speed. (en saw the flash from within the "itchen window and "new instantly what it meant. ,e had seen such flashes before while flying over the Ira#i desert shooting ,ellfire missiles at trac"ed vehicles and radar sites. Someone had shot at him. %nd while such ground fire was nothing more than an annoyance in a

heavily armored %pache, the 8c onnell+ ouglas civilian helicopter he was sitting in now was protected by nothing more than a thin sheet of aluminum and some plastic. Instinctively he tried to 'er" the chopper to the left. ;ut his reactions, which were human after all, were simply not fast enough to out'in" a speeding bullet. There was a slight thun" from the front of the helicopter and a portion of the instrument panel e&ploded in a spray of plastic, obliterating the engine heat indicator. %t the same time (en suddenly felt as if he had been punched in the stomach. The breath flew out of his lungs and he began to gasp, trying to refill them as adrenaline flooded his body. The master warning alarm began to blare in his headset, bespea"ing a potential mechanical calamity. 3,oly fuc"ing shit<3 Janet yelled in terror. (en!s arms and legs, still acting on instinct, continued the actions of 'in"ing the helicopter. It ban"ed severely to the left, the engine crying in protest. .hile still in the middle of the turn, and still trying to refill his lungs, he began to feel di$$y. 3.hat the fuc" happened43 Janet screamed, near panic. 3(en< -an you... oh my god<3 She got a good loo" at him. 3Jesus, (en, you!re hit< Pull us out of this turn<3 ,is mouth was dry and his heart was hammering alarmingly fast in his chest. % deep burning pain, centered on his right side, was slowly spreading throughout his torso. The feeling was leaving his hands, li"e a rat deserting a sin"ing ship. The helicopter continued to tilt, causing his harness to tighten against him. In a moment the tilt would simply be too much and they would spin out of control, crashing to the ground in a fiery e&plosion. 3(en<3 Janet screamed at him again, sha"ing him by the shoulder. 3*h my god<3

,e grappled with himself for a moment, fighting the waves of di$$iness and numbness that were sweeping over him. ,e needed to get the helicopter under control. )orcing himself, his every movement a struggle, he manipulated the collective and the tor#ue pedals, straightening out the ban" until the artificial hori$on was once more showing level. 3*h god, oh Jesus, (en,3 Janet said, partially in horror, partially in relief. 3,ow bad are you4 -an you get us down43 ,e loo"ed down at himself, afraid of what he would see. ,e "new he had been shot, but how bad was it4 .hat he saw was even worse that he had imagined. The front of his blue 'umpsuit was drenched in blood, turning the material to a damp loo"ing blac". The stain seemed to be centered 'ust below the bottom of his ribcage on the right side of his chest. ,e had seen many such gunshot wounds during his patrol days. People died from wounds li"e that all the time. %ll the fuc"ing time< 3(en<3 Janet yelled, her hand on his shoulder again, this time helping to hold him up. Tears were running down her face. 3-an you get us down on the ground4 =ou need to land this thing so we can get you some help<3 ,is breathing was becoming harder and harder to accomplish. The di$$iness continued to worsen. ,is hands struggled to "eep a grip on the controls. ,e began to suspect he was going to die. ,e felt no fear at this thought, only determination. If he was going to die, he certainly was not going to ta"e his partner with him. She did not "now how to fly the helicopter. ,e needed to get her down. 3)ind...3 he gasped, 3find me a spot to land. ,urry.3 3(en,3 she said, 3are you...3 3)ind me a spot to land<3 he yelled, using up almost all of his energy reserves.

She began to loo" around frantically, her eyes considering everything that loo"ed large enough to accommodate a helicopter. She saw the perfect location after less than a second. 3The elementary school<3 she yelled. 3It!s a #uarter mile to the east< Turn right, (en, turn right<3 3Aight,3 he breathed, forcing his limbs to go through the motions of turning. ,e saw the scenery pass before him through the windshield, spinning by in a blur of gray and brown houses and streets. Then he saw what she was tal"ing about. % collection of old school buildings and newer portable classrooms surrounded by a few acres of playgrounds and sports fields. Than"fully it was summer and school was not in session at the moment. 9othing would have made him try to land in a crowded schoolyard, not even the potential death of his partner. ;ut only a few figures could be seen lur"ing around the play e#uipment at the moment. The athletic field was completely empty. 3*"ay,3 he panted, straightening the aircraft out and heading that way. 3The school. I!ll land at the school.3 3,ang in there, (en,3 she pleaded. 3,ang in there and we!ll get you some help.3 ,e nodded, not spea"ing as he concentrated all of his energies upon landing the helicopter. ,e bled off speed and began to descend, ignoring the blaring alarm that was still emitting a shrill shrie" in his headphones. )or the first time since flight school more than twelve years before, he had to thin" about each movement, each correction of the collective and the tor#ue. 3I can do it,3 he muttered, pic"ing a spot roughly near the center of the field. 3I can do it.3 3%ir *ne,3 Janet yelled into the headset, 3we!ve ta"en fire from the suspect!s house< 8y partner is hit< .e!re trying to land in the elementary school a half mile east of the address. 1et fire and 28S out there< ,e!s hit bad<3 (en didn!t even hear the reply to Janet!s plea, so intent was he

upon getting them to the ground in one piece. ,e focused every bit of his attention on the athletic field before him, ignoring the di$$iness and nausea that was trying to overta"e him, watching as his target grew bigger in his view. 3Aead the altimeter to me,3 he panted to Janet. 3Aead it out loud.3 3*h god,3 she said helplessly before searching the panel before her and locating the cloc" dial altimeter. She began to count down for him. 3Si& hundred,3 she said. 3)ive+fifty, five hundred... you!re going down a little fast, (en<3 ,e nodded, unable to ac"nowledge her but pulling up a tad, bringing the nose up a little. Than"fully, this part of San Jose was only ten feet above sea level. This saved him the trouble of trying to remember an altimeter setting. 3)our+fifty,3 she told him, 3much better, you!re getting us there. -oming up... four hundred. 9ice and easy, there you go.3 The field continued to grow before him. ust filled the air, stirred up by the violent downdraft of the rotor, obscuring his view a little. .hen Janet called out fifty feet he pulled bac" even more, bleeding off the remaining speed. The dust cloud increased to a fury for a moment and then there was a satisfying thump from beneath them as the s"ids met mother earth. They were down. 3Than" god,3 Janet e&pelled, letting her head fall forward for a moment. 3%men,3 (en agreed, feeling a large glut of blood running from his mouth with the words. ,e sensed he didn!t have much time left. The di$$iness and the shortness of breath were worsening with each inta"e of air. %nd the pain< 1od, he had never felt pain li"e this before. It felt li"e a fire was burning in his chest. ,e had always heard that gunshot wounds were painless. .hat moron had told him that4

:etting his instincts ta"e over, he reached up and engaged the engine clutch, releasing the rotor from its power supply. The turbine engine whine increased in pitch once its load was removed from it. ,e pushed the throttle to the stop position and performed an emergency shutdown of the engine by closing the fuel supply switches. Instantly the engine wound down and died, leaving only silence in the coc"pit. %bove his head, the rotor blades continued to spin around, slowing rapidly. )or the first time he noticed the sharp odor of 'et fuel in the cabin. The bullet must have passed through him and his seat and punctured the fuel tan". So that was why the master alarm had activated. 31et out,3 he told Janet, his voice barely audible. 3This thing could start burning any second.3 She was busy unstrapping herself from her harness. She yan"ed her headset cord out of the panel and then began reaching for the release straps on his harness. 31et out,3 he repeated, trying feebly to push her hands away. 3I!m done for. Save yourself.3 3=ou!re not done for,3 she told him, grabbing his buc"les. 3%nd I!m not going to leave you in here.3 ,e stopped protesting at that point, no longer having the energy. The pain began to fade a little and he "new that he was dying. ,e "new it. It wasn!t an intellectual conclusion. ,e did not "now because he had surmised that a rifle bullet had passed through his torso and e&ited out the other side with enough force to permeate the fuel tan". ,e 'ust "new. It was an emotional feeling, a feeling of acceptance. ,e was going to die. 38y wife,3 he said, her face seeming to float before his eyes. ,e felt sorrow for her. She was going to be a widow at the age of thirty. ,is son was never going to "now his father.

3=ou!ll see her in a little bit,3 Janet said, grabbing him by the shoulders. She began to pull him towards her door. ,e did not protest. 38a"e sure they ta"e care of her,3 he pleaded with Janet as she dragged him out the left side of the helicopter. 3=ou!ll be the one to ta"e care of her,3 she told him. 3=ou!re gonna be all right, (en. =ou!re gonna be all right.3 She was lying to him. ,e could see it in her face, could feel it in the tears that dropped from her eyes onto his face. She "new as well as he did that it was over for him. 38a"e sure,3 he told her again, finding the strength to say it forcefully. 38a"e sure.3 ,is body thumped to the grassy field and she dragged him across the lawn, holding him by the armpits until she was about a hundred feet away from the lea"ing helicopter. She let go of him then, her face leaning down towards his, her tears falling faster now. ,e could hear sirens in the distance. % lot of them. 38a"e sure,3 he repeated once more. 3%nd tell her that I love her. Tell her... he paused to breathe, 3tell her that we!ll... we!ll meet again someday. Tell her that for me.3 ,er face was miserable above his, a mas" of despair, of pain. 3I will, (en,3 she promised. 3I!ll tell her that you love her, that you!ll meet her again.3 3Than" you,3 he said, feeling almost at peace as everything started to fade away. The sound of the sirens began to deepen, to become less distinct. The sound of Janet!s sobs did the same. % moment later, everything went blac".

,e had one more brief period of semi+clarity. ,e could not say later 'ust how long the period lasted, but he "new that it was not a dream, not an illusion. There was too much detail for it to be anything but the truth.

,e was in a hospital bed, in a sterile white room. ,e heard the constant beeping of an 2(1 machine from somewhere above him, the beeps very slow6 too slow. ,e let his eyes open and saw an I5 pole ne&t to him. Two plastic bags of clear fluid and one of blood were attached to it, the tubing running downward through a system of pumps and into his arm. ,e tried to reach upward and found that his wrists were tied with restraints. ,e tried to say something and reali$ed that a tube was down his throat, sna"ing into his lungs and breathing for him. ,e was on a ventilator. % machine was breathing for him. That was not generally a good sign. ,e let his eyes move to the right a bit and he saw %nnie sitting in a chair ne&t to him, her stomach bulging outward beneath a misbuttoned flannel shirt. She was crying, tears running down her pretty face. -haplain .illiams from the police department was sitting ne&t to her, holding her hand, mumbling words he could not understand to her. ,e was saying something about a liver. 3They!re loo"ing for a donor now,3 she sniffed, her words sounding li"e they were coming from the end of a tunnel. 3If they find one, they might be able...3 she couldn!t finish. The chaplain responded to her, saying something about faith in 1od. 3This is such a... such a mess,3 she sobbed. The chaplain held her for a moment, his arms around her shoulders, comforting her. %fter a moment she bro"e his embrace and her eyes turned to (en!s face. She saw that he was loo"ing at her and hope blossomed. 3(en43 she said, leaning towards him. 3%nnie,3 the chaplain said soothingly, 3I don!t thin" that he!s really awa"e. They gave him a lot of drugs and...3

3,e!s awa"e,3 she insisted, ta"ing his right hand in hers. 3I "now my husband, -haplain. ,e!s awa"e< (en, can you hear me43 ,e tried to tal" to her but couldn!t. ,e felt himself becoming agitated. 3It!s o"ay, honey,3 she soothed, more tears running down her chee"s. 3If you can hear me, 'ust s#uee$e my hand.3 ,e gripped her as hard as he could. It was feeble, but it was noticeable. 3,e s#uee$ed,3 she said, delighted. 3,e can hear me. I told you.3 ,e wanted to tal" to her, to tell her how much he loved her. ;ut he couldn!t. %ll he could do was grasp at her touch. ;ut that was enough for %nnie. 3They fi&ed all the blood vessels that were hit by the bullet,3 she told him, her free hand stro"ing his hair. 3They saved you, (en, they saved you.3 ,e gave her another s#uee$e. ,e didn!t feel very saved, but he didn!t want %nnie to "now that. She swallowed and too" a few deep breaths. 3=ou liver,3 she said. 3.ell... it was pretty damaged by the bullet.3 3%nnie,3 the chaplain interrupted. 3Perhaps this isn!t the best time to...3 3Shut up,3 she bar"ed with uncharacteristic harshness, particularly in light of who she was tal"ing to. 3,e has a right to "now.3 The chaplain shut up, his face conveying that he was somewhat ta"en abac" by her words. She turned bac" to him. 3The bullet...3 she said softly, 3well... it... they couldn!t fi& your liver.

They couldn!t fi& it.3 ,is liver. That brought a vague feeling of dread to him. % man couldn!t live without a liver, could he4 ,e wasn!t a doctor, 'ust a pilot, but he was pretty sure that somewhere in his life, someone had told him that. 3;ut they!re trying to get you a new one, (en,3 %nnie went on, the tears falling faster now. 3They!ve put you at the very top of the list for a transplant. %ll they need to do...3 she bro"e down, sobbing. 3%ll you need...3 She seemed unable to continue. The chaplain put his arm around her once again, pulling her to him, patting her shoulder, whispering soothing words in her ear. 3They!re trying, (en,3 %nnie sobbed. 3They!re trying. =ou 'ust need to hang in there for us. Just hang in there. % new liver and you!ll be good as new. 1ood as new.3 ,e felt his consciousness waning again, saw everything starting to get fu$$y. % new liver, %nnie had told him. ,e needed a new liver. ,ow long could a man live without a liver4 ,ow long4 %s he faded out, as his loving wife!s face began to grow indistinct before him, she leaned down once again, her lips "issing his chee", her breath in his ear. 3I!m not going to let you die, (en,3 she told him. 39o matter what happens, no matter what it ta"es, I!m not going to let you die.3 ,er words followed him down as the blac"ness engulfed him once more. ,is last emotion during this dar" period was a sense of sorrowful love.

,is first conscious memory was auditory in nature. Someone was calling his name. 38r. )ra$ier4 -an you hear me43 a voice said to him. 38r. )ra$ier43 ,is mind was not clear. ,e felt the way a man feels the morning after he has spent a night drin"ing heavily. ,is head ached and his thoughts were fu$$y. ,e had a vague sense that something had happened to him, but he could not remember what it was. It was something bad, something painful. ,e could sense that much. .hatever had occurred, it was something that he did not care to thin" about right now. 38r. )ra$ier43 the voice called again. 3(en4 -an you hear me4 *pen your eyes if you can hear me.3 ,e did not try to open his eyes, though he thought that he probably could if he wanted to. ,e 'ust wanted to lay here, to nurse this awful headache that was plaguing him. .hy wouldn!t the voice leave him alone4 %nd 'ust who was it anyway4 It was a female voice, he could tell that much, but it was nothing li"e %nnie!s. The tonal inflection seemed... well... it seemed "ind of rough, unrefined. It sounded li"e one of the street people that he used to deal with when he wor"ed patrol6 an uneducated, ignorant type of accent. % trashy accent, to put it mildly. That very thought brought the memory he was trying to suppress a little closer to the surface. Patrol. ,e had wor"ed patrol in San Jose. ,e was a police officer that flew helicopters for the San Jose P . %nd... well... something had happened to him, hadn!t it4 3(en43 it said again. 3%re you there4 If you can hear me, I want you to s#uee$e my hand.3 S#uee$e my hand. That phrase brought a little more bac" to him. ,adn!t %nnie said those very words to him 'ust recently4 She had< %nnie had told him to s#uee$e her hand and she had

been crying< She had been crying over him< .hy4 ,e began to struggle to remember now, trying to force the memory to surface. %nnie had been crying and telling him to s#uee$e her hand. She had been sobbing, tears running down her face because... because... 3(en43 the voice repeated, intruding upon his thoughts. 3(en4 -an you hear me4 S#uee$e my hand if you can hear me.3 ,e felt a hand touching his, a soft, feminine hand. It was s#uee$ing his palm, over and over again, gently but insistently, prompting him to s#uee$e bac". ,e did not, would not. ,e wanted to follow his train of thoughts to their conclusion. .hat had happened to him4 .hy had %nnie been crying4 .hy had she been telling him to s#uee$e her hand4 It was almost as if she thought he was... dying. That thought brought a flood of memories into his forebrain. )lying a helicopter, a mu$$leflash, a pain in his side, his partner Gwhat was her name4H pulling him free from the coc"pit. ,e had been shot< Some maniac had shot him and he had almost crashed< ;ut what had happened after that4 .hat had become of him4 %ll he could sense was the ha$y, though powerful image of his wife crying and of being unable to spea" to her. 3%nything43 another voice, this one male, though still with that trashy street accent, in#uired. 39ot yet,3 the first voice responded. 3I!m getting good alphas on the tracing. %ccording to the computer, he!s in there. ,e!s 'ust not responding yet.3 3There could be traumatic catatonia,3 the male suggested. 3%lphas don!t necessarily rule that out. =ou "now that.3 39o shit,3 she said, somewhat testily. 3%nd you "now that sometimes it ta"es a while for them to respond once we get the

alphas bac".3 There was no more conversation between them. Shortly, the woman went bac" to calling his name and telling him to s#uee$e her hand. .hat had happened after the helicopter, after the mu$$le flash4 ,e had been in the hospital of course, that much was obvious. ;ut what had happened then4 ,ad he gone to surgery4 ,e strained his brain, trying to thin", trying to remember. The vision of %nnie came to him again, the image of her crying, of her leaning over him. ,e had been unable to tal" to her for some reason, but he had been able to hear. ,e remembered her tal"ing, trying to be encouraging for him, trying not to let him "now that he was... dying. ,e had been dying< ,e had been shot through the liver by a rifle bullet and he had been dying< It came bac" to him in a flood, an unpleasant though welcome flood. *bviously he was not dead. This was not an afterlife of some sort. ,e was reasonably sure that angels did not say things li"e 3no shit3 and spea" in dirtbag accents. ,ad they found him a liver after all4 ,ad they performed a successful transplant before his body died of its own internal poisons4 *r was this 'ust another brief interlude of awareness4 3(en43 said the voice again. 3(en, can you hear me4 8r. )ra$ier4 S#uee$e my hand if you can hear me.3 ,e did not s#uee$e her hand. Instead, he opened his eyes. It was a struggle. The eyelids seemed very heavy, as if they had weights attached to them. .hen they did crea" open a little the light in the room seemed as bright as the sun. aggers of pain shot through his head and he slammed them shut once again. 3(en43 the voice said, hopeful e&citement in it now. 3-an you hear me43

,e tried again, slower this time, allowing his pupils to ad'ust gradually to the onslaught that was assaulting them. 2verything seemed fu$$y at first. ,e saw the outline of a blonde haired woman before him. She seemed to be wearing a brief gray top that e&posed her shoulders and her midriff. She was loo"ing at him intently, though her image was not yet clear enough for him to read her e&pression. 3%re you there43 she as"ed him, leaning a little closer. 3-an you say something43 ,e blin"ed a few times, trying to bring things into focus. It helped a little. ,e could see that the blonde woman was in her thirties. She was very petite, very pretty and despite the fact that she sounded and dressed li"e an ignorant ghetto dweller, she had an intelligent air about her. Standing ne&t to her was an older man of about forty or so. ,e was wearing a gray tan"+top type garment and white shorts6 as if he were planning on playing a game of handball later. ,e too seemed to e&ude a calm, thoughtful intelligence despite his accent. .hat was going on here4 .ho were these people4 They weren!t doctors were they4 octors didn!t tal" or dress li"e that. 38r. )ra$ier,3 the woman said, leaning in even closer. 3-an you tal"43 3,i,3 he croa"ed. ,is vocal chords sent a shrill message of displeasure throughout his throat at their usage. It felt li"e he had a severe case of laryngitis. 9evertheless this single, barely audible syllable had a dramatic effect on the two people standing before him. They bro"e into smiles of delight and seemed on the verge of cheers. .hat the hell4 3-an you tell me your name43 the woman as"ed him ne&t. ,is name4 ,adn!t she 'ust been calling him by his name4 .hy

was she as"ing that4 9o sooner had that thought surfaced however, then he reali$ed she was not as"ing to gain the information. She was as"ing to see if he "new what his name was. ,e swallowed a little, bracing himself for the pain before answering. 3(en,3 he croa"ed to her. 3(en... )ra... )ra$ier.3 This produced even more e&citement among his two visitors. To his astonishment, they actually high+fived each other. 3.e did it<3 the woman cried, hugging her companion. 3.e fuc"in! well did it< The motherfuc"er "nows his name<3 3)uc"in! aye<3 the male replied e&citedly. (en was starting to feel very peculiar about this whole thing. )uc"in! aye4 The motherfuc"er "nows his name4 .hat was with the profanity4 .hat was with the accents4 Just who were these people who loo"ed and acted so intelligent but tal"ed li"e third generation welfare recipients4 .ith those vaguely troubling thoughts in mind, he too" a moment to e&amine his surroundings. Just where was he anyway4 .as this the San Jose 8edical -enter4 That was probably where he would have been ta"en after the shooting. ;ut somehow that 'ust did not seem to fit with what he was seeing. It 'ust didn!t loo" li"e a hospital room. ,e was in a bed and he had a cotton sheet covering him, but that was about the only thing that seemed as it should be. ,e was flat on his bac" and loo"ing upward at the ceiling and it was li"e no ceiling that he had ever seen before, hospital or not. The material seemed to be some sort of shiny white plastic. There were no light fi&tures on the ceiling, nor were there any on the walls within his field of view. %s far as he could tell, the light was 'ust there, brightening up the room with enough illumination to ta"e photographs but coming from nowhere in particular. %nd then there was the fact that there did not seem to be a single tube or wire attached to him anywhere. ,e could hear a machine rhythmically beeping behind him, presumably with the

beating of his heart, but there were no 2(1 wires sna"ing out from beneath the sheet. 9or was there an I5 in his arm. ,e had once been in the hospital for an appendectomy and during his stay there for that relatively routine matter he had been wired up li"e a radio, with tubes sna"ing from both arms and even something shoved up his penis. So why, after having a life+ threatening wound to a vital organ, was he 'ust lying here without any of that4 %nd how were they monitoring his heartbeat if not with 2(1 pads4 ,e craned his head forward a little, loo"ing down the length of his body. The right side of his abdomen, where the bullet had entered, where they would have cut him open during surgery, was completely unmarred by a scar of any "ind. There was nothing but smooth, unlined white s"in with a few brown hairs stic"ing up. ,ow was that possible4 ,ad he really been shot4 .as that all some sort of delusion4 .as this maybe a mental hospital that he was in, and not a medical hospital4 3.hat!s your date of birth, 8r. )ra$ier43 the blonde woman as"ed him ne&t. It too" him a moment, but, by concentrating, he was able to recall the information. 3July FEth, 3 he replied. 3FIEI.3 3FIEI,3 she said, her e&pression seemingly one of awe. 3%ma$ing,3 her companion echoed. 3Just fuc"ing ama$ing.3 ,e wondered why his year of birth caused so much fascination with them. 8aybe this was a mental hospital. 8aybe he had not been able to tell them that before. .as he ma"ing progress4 3%nd what city do you live in43 she as"ed him ne&t. That one was easy. 3Pleasanton,3 he told her. 3%bout thirty miles from San Jose.3 %gain they seemed more awed by his answer than they were

pleased by it. .hat was so fascinating about Pleasanton4 It was a frea"ing suburb. 3%nd what did... uh...3 she blanched a little, and then #uic"ly corrected. 3.hat do you do for a living43 3I!m a police officer,3 he replied. 3%nd a helicopter pilot. That is, I fly for the San Jose Police epartment.3 3 o you remember what happened to you43 ,e hesitated for a moment, not because he didn!t remember but because he was afraid that what he did remember was some sort of delusion. ,ow else could the lac" of a scar and the lac" of monitoring e#uipment be e&plained4 %nd if you concluded the shooting was a delusion, what else might be part of it4 ,ad he really been a police officer, a helicopter pilot, an army pilot4 ,ad he4 *r had he simply been a plumber or a garbage collector who had had a schi$ophrenic brea"down of some sort and imagined all of that4 3 o you remember, 8r. )ra$ier43 the male as"ed him. 3I... uh... thin" I do,3 he offered. They loo"ed at him e&pectantly. 3.ell43 the woman finally prodded. 3I thin" that uh... that I was shot,3 he said softly. 3.hile I was flying over a house. The bullet came through the instrument panel and hit me.3 ,e swallowed a few times, trying to gauge their reaction. It seemed li"e they were pleased by his words. 3%t least that!s what I seem to remember.3 =es, they seemed very pleased indeed by his words, giving each other another high five and offering congratulations. ;ut what did that mean4 id that mean that he wasn!t cra$y4 id it mean that he was4 )or the first time it occurred to him that these

people might not be his friends. They might not be trying to help him. 8aybe he was part of some twisted e&periment4 .as that possible4 .hat was real and what was not4 3.here...3 he as"ed, 3where e&actly... uh... am I43 Their delight at whatever their accomplishment had been eased up a little bit at his words. % loo" passed between them, a loo" that he wasn!t really sure how to interpret. 3=ou!re in a university medical center research hospital,3 the woman finally said, seeming to pic" her words carefully. 3.e have repaired the damage done to your body by the gunshot wound you received.3 (en nodded slowly. So the shooting had apparently not been a delusion after all. This thought made him feel a little better. ;ut what about the lac" of a scar4 ,ow had they done that4 Things were still certainly far from clear. 3 id they...3 a pause to let the pain in his throat dissipate. 3 id you find me a donor43 3% donor43 she said, loo"ing confused. 3)or my liver,3 he clarified. 3It was damaged wasn!t it43 3*h,3 she said, nodding her head a little, as if something had 'ust occurred to her. 3=es, in a manner of spea"ing, we did find a donor for you. =our liver is wor"ing 'ust li"e it!s supposed to now.3 3=ep,3 the male agreed. 3It!s the shit, my man.3 The shit4 (en loo"ed at them in bewilderment, unable to sha"e the strong impression that he was tal"ing to the house"eeping staff instead of medical e&perts. 3%nd who are you43 he as"ed. 3%re you doctors43 3=es,3 the woman said. 3I!m octor 5alentine and this is octor

Jerico. .e!re neurological specialists.3 39eurological specialists43 he as"ed, confused. 3Isn!t that, you "now, the brain43 3)uc"in aye,3 Jerico agreed. 3The brain and spinal column are our thing.3 ,e ignored the un+doctor+li"e slang for the moment. 3;ut there was nothing wrong with my brain, was there43 39o,3 5alentine said. 3There wasn!t. That!s "ind of why you!re here with us today. =ou!ve been through some ran"in! shit, 8r. )ra$ier.3 3Some ran"in! shit43 he repeated. 3.hat does that mean43 3I!m sorry,3 she told him, grinning a little. 3I guess our speech probably sounds a little strange to you.3 She seemed to thin" for a moment, as if trying to translate her thought into different phrasing. %fter a moment, she did 'ust that. 3=ou!ve been through a hell of an ordeal,3 she said. 3.e were assigned to your case to "ind of... well... help you through it, to help "eep any brain damage from happening. It!s what we do.3 3I... uh... I see,3 he said, although he didn!t. 3So... so I!m going to be all right then43 3=es, 8r. )ra$ier,3 5alentine agreed, flashing him a smile. 3It seems li"e you!re going to be 'ust fine. ;ut we would li"e to give you a complete neurological e&am 'ust to ma"e sure. Physically you are doing fine, probably better than you ever have before.3 3;etter than I have before43 he as"ed, confused. 3.hat do you mean by that4 I was shot by a rifle and I 'ust had a liver transplant didn!t I4 %nd I can!t even lift my arms off the bed. I can barely move my head off the pillow.3

She loo"ed a little embarrassed. 3.ell... that is actually our doing,3 she said. 3=ou see, when we wa"e someone up after they have gone through what you have gone through, they are sometimes a little... well... 'ac"ed.3 3Jac"ed43 he as"ed, blin"ing. %gain she seemed to search her mind for a translation. 3Bh... combative, violent,3 she clarified. 3So what we have done is give you a sort of calming agent to help to "eep you from fuc"ing yourself... uh... e&cuse me... from hurting yourself.3 3=ou mean I!m drugged,3 he said, this "nowledge ma"ing him feel a little better. 3In a manner of spea"ing, yes,3 octor Jerico replied. 3.e!re going to shut it off in a moment so you can assist us in our tests. :ater, another doctor will be in to chec" your physical condition. .e have no reason to believe that that will be anything less than perfect. The repairs of your physical in'uries went very well. =our new liver is functioning beautifully and your muscles and organs received a little 'uice+up as well.3 3% 'uice+up43 3That!s correct,3 he said. 39ow, we!re going to remove the restraint field from you. %re you ready43 3.hat43 he as"ed. 3.hat do you mean, restraint field4 .hat do you mean remove4 I thought...3 3-omputer,3 5alentine said aloud, ignoring him. 3-ut the cervical bloc" on 8r. )ra$ier. (eep it on standby.3 3)uc"in! aye,3 said a pleasant sounding female voice that seemed to come from nowhere. .hat the hell4 (en had time to thin". She was tal"ing to a

computer4 % computer that was nowhere to be seen and that replied with street slang4 The suspicion that he was in a mental hospital tried to resurface. ;efore he could get any further with these thoughts however, his brain became occupied by wonderment. %ll of a sudden he could move again. It was li"e weights had been removed from his hands and legs, from his head. ,e could move< 3Jesus,3 he muttered, raising his hand from the bed. It came up easily. ,e tried his legs. They too moved easily. ,e tried sitting up in his bed, e&pecting that it would be painful. It wasn!t. In fact, he felt physically better than he had in years. 3,ow do you feel43 5alentine as"ed him, smiling a little. ,e moved his body bac" and forth a few more times, searching for twinges of pain, of soreness. There weren!t any. ,e loo"ed under the sheet, noting that he was na"ed beneath it. %gain he marveled over the complete lac" of a scar or a mar" of any "ind where he had been shot. .ith a start he reali$ed that the faint incision on his lower right side, where they had removed his appendi& so many years ago, was no longer there either. 3.hat is going on here43 he said, loo"ing at the two doctors. 3.hat "ind of hospital is this43 38r. )ra$ier,3 5alentine answered. 3I "now that things probably seem a little strange to you at this moment.3 3% little strange43 he as"ed. 39ow there!s an understatement. They seem pretty fuc"ing bi$arre to me. .here are the scars from the shooting4 .here is the scar from my appendectomy43 3They have been repaired along with the other damages to your body,3 she told him. 3=ou are now in perfect physical condition, 8r. )ra$ier.3 3,ow43 he said, almost afraid to "now the answer. 3,ow was

this done4 =ou said this is a university research hospital4 .hat university4 .here the hell am I43 3This will all be e&plained to you soon,3 Jerico told him soothingly. 3%llow me to apologi$e for the confusion you are feeling. %s you can see, our hospital is slightly more advanced than the... uh... conventional medicine that you are used to.3 39o shit,3 he said numbly, and to his surprise, his words seemed to delight the two doctors. 39ow,3 5alentine said. 3If we could perform our neurological testing now4 .e really should get this done before any further #uestions.3 (en lic"ed his lips a little. ,is mouth and throat were no longer as dry as they had been. .as that from the removal of the mysterious 3cervical bloc"3 or 'ust because he was now awa"e and using his voice. ,e did not "now. There were a lot of things he did not "now. ,e decided that he would cooperate with these two strange doctors for the moment and allow them to perform their tests. ;ut afterward he had a few #uestions to as" them. 3*"ay,3 he said. 3 o your tests.3 35ery good,3 5alentine smiled. 3-omputer,3 she said into the air, 3activate neuro screening program /?.3 3)uc"in! aye,3 replied the computer!s voice.

)or the ne&t twenty minutes he was as"ed to perform a variety of basic tas"s and answer a series of #uestions. Though he had never had a neurological e&am before, at least not that he could remember, there was really nothing e&traordinary about it. ,e raised his arms and legs, gripped a small measuring device with both hands, pushed on another one with his feet. They had him toss a rubber ball from one hand to the other. %n instrument that loo"ed li"e a flashlight but that utili$ed a red beam was

shined into each eye. % scanning device of some sort was run down the length of his body. ,e was as"ed where he had grown up, what his parents! names were, what his wife!s name was, and a hundred other things. %s he performed their tests and answered their #uestions their attention seemed to be focused not upon him, but upon the wall behind him. ,e too" a glance there once to see what they where staring at. .hat he saw was a flat television type screen about three feet s#uare. It was not mounted to the wall but rather seemed to be a physical part of the wall, with not so much as a millimeter of outward protrusion. ,is name was printed near the top of the screen along with a series of numbers, most of which he didn!t recogni$e but one of which was his date of birth. ;elow this were appro&imately ten rows of readouts that consisted of red tracings marching from left to right. 9e&t to each column was a letter that presumably identified, for those that were schooled in it, what the reading was measuring. 3,ow is that machine getting this information from me43 he as"ed, a little uneasily. 3I don!t have any wires connected.3 3It!s a wireless system,3 5alentine told him. 3It can read your brainwaves from the minute polari$ation changes that they leave in the air around you.3 3I see,3 he said slowly. 39ow, 8r. )ra$ier,3 she as"ed him ne&t. 3If you could please tell me who your high school principal was43 )inally r. 5alentine declared the e&amination at an end. She instructed the computer to send the data to her office G3fuc"in! aye,3 it confirmedH and then loo"ed at her patient. 3=ou seem to be doing very well,3 she said. 3I won!t "now for sure until I e&amine the data in detail, but it loo"s li"e you have come through this... this process without any neurological deficits at all.3

3*"ay,3 (en said carefully. 3That means I!m going to live, right43 3It would seem so,3 she told him. 3That!s good to "now,3 he said, more than a little relieved. 3It "ind of loo"ed li"e I wasn!t going to ma"e it there for a while. It!s a good thing you found that new liver for me.3 3=es,3 Jerico agreed, a strange smile upon his face. 3It!s a good thing.3 ,e hesitated for an instant, almost afraid to as" his ne&t #uestion though he couldn!t imagine why. )inally he spit it out. 38y wife,3 he as"ed. 3.hen can I see her4 She must be very worried about me.3 Their e&pressions both dar"ened at his words and another loo" passed between them. ,e felt a dagger of dread worming into his heart. .as something wrong with %nnie4 .ith the baby4 3.hat!s the matter43 he as"ed them. 3Is she o"ay4 She!s about to have a baby.3 The two doctors continued to pass loo"s bac" and forth for a moment, a non+verbal sort of argument ta"ing place. )inally 5alentine turned to him. 38r. )ra$ier,3 she said softly. 3I don!t "now how to tell you this, but... well...3 She hesitated. 3Tell me what43 he demanded. 3.hat!s happened to %nnie4 .here is she43 3This is always the hardest part,3 she sighed, mostly to herself. She turned bac" to him. 3=ou!ve been, well, "ind of in a coma for a while, 8r. )ra$ier. )or #uite a while.3 3% coma43 he said. ,ad his son already been born without him4 ,adn!t there been cases of people being in comas for years4 .as his son already in school4 .as %nnie remarried4 ,oly Jesus<

3)or how long43 he as"ed. 3Is my family all right4 ,ow long was I out43 38r. )ra$ier,3 5alentine said. 3Perhaps I should clarify things a little. It wasn!t e&actly a coma that you were in, at least not in the way that you thin" of a coma.3 38y family43 he insisted, not wanting to be side+trac"ed from the issue. 3.here are they43 5alentine loo"ed up at the ceiling for a moment. 3*h :aura,3 she moaned to herself. She loo"ed bac" at him. 3=our wife,3 she told him, 3loved you very much 8r. )ra$ier.3 The feeling of dread deepened. 3.hat do you mean loved43 he as"ed. 3.hat!s happened to her4 Is she... is she dead43 3She is dead,3 she confirmed. 3I!m very sorry. .e were hoping not to have to brea" all of this to you 'ust yet. ;ut you!ve come out of the... the process remar"ably alert.3 %nnie was dead. ,is beautiful wife, the mother of his child, was dead. ,e felt numbness at the thought, numbness that he "new would turn into overwhelming grief before long. 3,ow did she die43 he as"ed. 3.as it in childbirth4 Is my son all right43 38r. )ra$ier,3 5alentine said. 3If you!ll let me e&plain everything to you, I thin" there will be less of a shoc". =our wife did not die in childbirth. She delivered a healthy baby boy about four wee"s after you were shot. She named him after you.3 3% baby boy,3 he said wonderingly, feeling a tear on his face. 3%nd where is he now4 %re her parents ta"ing care of him4 %re mine43 3=our wife,3 she e&plained slowly, carefully, 3raised your son to adulthood.3

3%dulthood43 he as"ed, thin"ing that he must have misheard her. 3%dulthood,3 she confirmed. 3%nnie died of a disease called 2bola during an... well... lets 'ust say an epidemic that swept through your country. She was si&ty+eight years old at the time of her death.3 3Si&ty...3 he couldn!t finish. Si&ty+eight years old< %nnie had died at si&ty+eight years old4 That was thirty+eight years after he had been shot. Thirty+eight years< ,e began to sha"e his head in denial. 3That!s impossible,3 he told them. 3It!s 'ust impossible<3 3I!m sorry, 8r. )ra$ier,3 5alentine told him. 3I "now this is a ran"in! shoc" to you.3 3,ow could I have been in a coma for thirty+eight years4 That!s cra$y<3 3=ou were not e&actly in a coma, 8r. )ra$ier,3 Jerico cut in at that point. 3That was maybe a fuc"ed up choice of words. =ou were in a state of cryogenic cooling.3 ,is head was swimming as he tried to cope with all of this6 with the grief of being told that %nnie was dead, with being told that his child was an adult, and finally, that forty years had gone by since he had been shot. .as it really /0DF4 .as %nnie really dead4 3=ou would have died if not what your wife did for you,3 5alentine said, pic"ing the thread bac" up. 3=ou were legally considered dead for all intents and purposes. =our liver was destroyed and there were no donors available. % death certificate was signed and filed. =ou were given a funeral with honors by the police department you wor"ed for and your wife + %nnie + was given a very large monetary settlement for your death. ;ut you never were completely, physically dead. %nnie saw to that. She arranged for the cryogenic storage of your body

by a :os %ngeles firm that performed such services.3 3%nnie had me fro$en43 he as"ed, bewildered that his wife would do such a thing. 3%pparently,3 she e&plained, 3she was told that if only medical science was a little more advanced, they would have been able to save you. She too" that rather drastic step in the hope that one day they would be able to fi& you. %nd she was right, we were able to fi& you up eventually. It 'ust too" a little longer than she thought it would.3 3=ou see,3 Jerico said, 3the problem at the time of the shooting was your liver. That was why you... well, let!s say died for lac" of a better term. ;ut your liver wasn!t the reason why you were "ept in cryogenics for so long. ;y the middle of .orld .ar III medical science had advanced sufficiently enough so that the damage could have been repaired then. 5ital organ cloning became a widely accepted techni#ue during the war to treat gunshot wound and shrapnel victims.3 3.orld .ar III43 he as"ed, feeling overwhelmed. % world war had been fought while he had been asleep4 .hat else had happened4 3It was a pretty fuc"ed up war,3 Jerico assured him. 3;ut let!s try and stay on trac" here. 8y point was that you could easily have had your body repaired a long time ago. The problem was that there was no "nown way of retrieving someone from the cryogenic state alive. Bntil a method was found to do this successfully, you 'ust had to stay dead and in storage. To tell you the truth, medical science never really wor"ed very hard on this problem. It!s only in the last few years that our university developed a techni#ue. %nd even then most of those in storage were beyond repair. Their brains were damaged, containing no stored memories or thoughts, not even autonomic instincts. *ut of more than a hundred attempts, you are one of si& that we have managed to get bac" with those memories and brain

patterns intact. .e were able to do this because your wife made arrangements to have you fro$en before you actually succumbed to death.3 3;efore I succumbed43 3-orrect,3 5alentine said. 38ost cryogenic storages were people that had been fro$en immediately after dying. It was a legal re#uirement of the time. ;ut your wife managed to pull a few strings and let them come in while you still had brain activity. In addition, you were fro$en using an advanced techni#ue6 a techni#ue that halted all of your life systems in place without damaging the cells of your brain. =our wife then set up an indefinite trust fund to pay for your continued storage.3 She gave him a sympathetic smile. 3:i"e I said 8r. )ra$ier, she loved you very much. She didn!t want to let go of you.3 39o,3 he said, crying softly now. 3I guess she didn!t.3 3I!m sorry to have to brea" all of this to you,3 5alentine said again. 3I really am. I did not want to shoc" you in the first hour that you were awa"e.3 3So that!s why your medicine is so advanced,3 he said. 3*h, %nnie.3 ,e began to sob now, great heart+wrenching sobs of grief and loss. ,is beloved wife was dead. She had refused to let him go, had refused to let him die, and, though she had been successful, she herself was now dead. ,is two doctors sat by solemnly as he cried, 5alentine ta"ing his hand in hers comfortingly. Jerico, ama$ingly enough, began to shed a few tears himself as he watched. 38y son,3 he as"ed when he composed himself a little. 3.here is my son4 .ill I be able to see him4 oes he even "now that I!m still alive43 ,e did not need a verbal answer from them this time. Their faces told the story. 3,e!s dead too43 he as"ed, though it was not really a #uestion.

3I!m afraid so,3 5alentine told him, patting his hand a little. 3 id he die of the epidemic that "illed %nnie4 This 2bola thing43 39o,3 5alentine shoo" her head. 3(en Jr. survived the 2bola epidemic nicely. ,e died of natural causes.3 39atural causes43 he as"ed. 3.hat do you mean4 ,e shouldn!t even be forty years old yet. .hat "ind of natural causes "illed him43 3)orty years old43 Jerico as"ed. 3.hat do you mean43 3=ou said I was in cryogenic storage for thirty+eight years... well... didn!t you43 It suddenly occurred to him that they had not said that. That was 'ust how long %nnie had lived after his shooting. 3(en,3 5alentine said sympathetically, 3your son died at the age of ninety+eight of heart failure. =ou have been out of things for a lot longer than thirty+eight years. % lot longer.3 3,ow much longer43 he as"ed with dread. 3Just what year is it anyway43 3.ell,3 5alentine said, 3we don!t use the calendar that you are accustomed to. *ur years are measured from the point of our eclaration of Independence and they are somewhat longer than yours were as well. ,ere it is September DCrd, of the year /F.3 That was so strange of a date to be told that he almost allowed himself to be sidetrac"ed. Aeluctantly he stuc" to his original line of #uestioning. 3That doesn!t tell me how long I!ve been out,3 he said. 39o,3 she sighed. 3I suppose it doesn!t.3 She loo"ed upward.

3-omputer,3 she said. 3Please calculate today!s date to the standard .est,em calendar for 8r. )ra$ier.3 3)uc"in! aye,3 the computer replied. 3In the .est,em, -hristianity based system of measurement, today!s date is January F/, /FIF.3 (en was beyond stunned, he was in shoc". /FIF4 ,e had been fro$en for F88 years4 %lmost two centuries4 38y god,3 he moaned, his mind trying to digest this and not doing a very good 'ob. ,is wife was long dead, "illed more than a hundred years ago by a strange disease. ,is son, who from his perspective had been in %nnie!s stomach 'ust yesterday, was also dead after having lived ninety+eight years. It was simply too much to ta"e. ,e shoo" his head in denial. 3I!m in the mental hospital, aren!t I43 he demanded. 3I!ve gone completely cra$y and this is all some sort of delusion, right43 3I!m afraid not,3 5alentine told him. 3This is real. =ou were fro$en on %ugust FD, /00C and placed in long term storage. =ou remained in the :os %ngeles storage facility for the ne&t EC years, until arrangements were made to transfer you to a new facility in low 2arth orbit.3 3*rbit43 he as"ed. 3I was in space43 3=es,3 she confirmed. 3*nce commercial space flight became commonplace it was... uh... cheaper to transport you up to orbit and store you there. =ou see, real estate prices on the planetary surface became pretty gnarly as the population continued to grow. It eventually got to the point where rent was less in orbit. The power needs for the storage machinery was much less as well. =ou remained in a forgotten section of eparture + that!s the main .est,em orbiting city + until we arranged to have you brought to us about three of your years ago. That!s about a year and a half on our calendar.3 *nce again ignoring the reference to the other calendar, he

as"ed her, 3So it too" you three years to wa"e me up4 =ou!ve spent three years doing this43 3It too" three years before we tried it on you,3 she clarified. 3.e!ve been e&perimenting with this process for #uite some time now. :i"e I said, we!ve attempted to revive almost a hundred cryogenically fro$en people even though the ma'ority of them were beyond salvation. The actual procedure only too" si& days. .e brought you up until we got life signs on you and then we #uic"ly put you bac" into a more modern state of stasis so we could repair the physical in'uries. .e used your 9% and cloned a new liver for you and then gave you a general overhaul. *nce we got you physically fit again we then wor"ed on reviving your brain. %s you can imagine, that!s the tric"iest part. .e can clone and replace almost any vital or non+vital organ + it!s pretty routine in this day and age + but the brain is different. The brain contains your memories, your thoughts, your essence. It!s where your soul is, if you prefer that term. -loning a new brain would be futile. It would be nothing but an empty shell, without even the ability to control autonomic functions. .e had to ma"e sure that the one you had was brought bac" to operational status in wor"ing order. %nd we were very successful with you in that regard. It seems li"e you came through 'ust fine, much better than we had any right to e&pect.3 3Jesus,3 (en moaned, his arms and legs trembling as his mind tried to sort through all of this. 3This is too much. This is 'ust too fuc"ing much. I go to wor" one morning, 'ump in my helicopter and handle a few calls. The ne&t thing I "now, my wife is dead, my child is dead, and I!m two hundred fuc"ing years in the future.3 ,e clenched his hands into fists, partially to vent pressure and partially to stop the trembling. 3 o you have any idea how insane this ma"es me feel4 ,ow much grief you!ve 'ust given me43 5alentine seemed distressed by his words. 3Please understand 8r. )ra$ier + (en + that we were fulfilling the wishes of %nnie, of your wife, when we brought you bac". To her dying day it was

her obsession that some day you would live again. It was almost a sacred decree.3 3.e didn!t "now that you were going to wa"e up so alert,3 Jerico told him. 3.e really didn!t. =ou are only the si&th person that we have been able to revive with any sort of brain activity intact. The others all too" days, sometimes months to recover their basic life memories. =ou emerged with them almost completely intact from the moment of wa"ening.3 ,e shoo" his head a little. 3I feel honored,3 he told them. 3%bsolutely honored.3 .ith that he began to sob again6 great, rac"ing sobs that shoo" his chest. ,e cried for his lost wife who had loved him so much she had fro$en him in time. ,e cried for the son that he would never see. %nd he cried for the life that he had left behind forever.

,e demanded that they leave the room, that they allow him to be alone with his grief. espite all that had happened to him, all that he had to sort out in his mind, he was still enamored with the macho code of his time that demanded that he not be observed weeping. They obeyed his wishes, telling him apologetically that they would come bac" later to answer any #uestions that he might have. .ith that they wal"ed towards a door in the room and it slid silently open before them revealing a remar"ably normal loo"ing hospital hallway outside. The walls were sterile white and the floor was of industrial loo"ing beige tile. They stepped out into that hallway and the door slid bac" shut a moment later, leaving him alone. Though he suspected that they were watching him through hidden cameras of some sort, it didn!t matter. Just the mere illusion of being alone was more than enough. ,e let it out of him, crying as he never had before, the sheer power of the outpouring both surprising and frightening him. ,e was a man that + in the course of his career + had seen atrocities capable of

driving lesser men mad. 9ever had he done more than silently weep while alone. %nd only then during the worst of them. ;ut this was something new, something beyond that gentle release of stress. This was sheer agony manifesting itself. This was unfathomable loss ma"ing itself "nown. This was flirtation with catatonia. 2ventually, after what seemed forever, the sobs petered out a little, powering down to sniffles and coughs, more out of sheer e&haustion than out of any sort of lessening of the grief. 3%nnie,3 he whispered, wiping his face with the bac" of his hand. 3I "now you meant well. I "now you did it out of love, but you should have let me go. =ou should have let me go.3

octor 5alentine came bac" in about thirty minutes later, the door whis"ing open before her. She carried a plastic cup full of a clear li#uid in her hand. ,e loo"ed up at her, his face e&pressionless. 3I thought you might li"e something to drin",3 she told him, stepping to the bed and offering the cup. 3It!s soda water sweetened with sugar and lemon. I believe you used to call it ginger ale.3 3Than"s,3 he said tonelessly, ta"ing the cup from her. 3I haven!t had a drin" in almost two hundred years you "now.3 ,e brought the cup to his lips and too" an e&perimental sip. It was cold and tingled on his tongue. The taste was e&actly li"e good old -anada ry. There was a slight pain in his tonsils as it slid down his throat. 3So what happens ne&t43 he as"ed her, setting the cup down on a plastic table ne&t to the bed. 3.hat happens43 she as"ed, ta"ing a seat ne&t to him once more. 3=es,3 he said. 3%m I going to be some sort of frea" show e&hibit

or something4 *r are there going to be pay+per+view events where people get to tal" to me43 She scratched her head a little. 3Pay+per+view4 )rea" show4 I!m sorry, I!m not #uite down with your phrasing.3 ,e crac"ed a little smile, a wea" one but genuine. 3=ou don!t follow my terminology, huh43 he said, sha"ing his head. She smiled bac". 3I guess it!s probably mutual at times, huh43 she said. 3If you!re as"ing if we!re going to e&ploit you for commercial purposes however, the answer is no. *ur society is not #uite the same as what you!re probably used to. ,ere you won!t be harassed or bothered by anybody that you do not wish to tal" to. .e do have a few historians who would probably be interested in meeting you but it will be entirely up to you.3 3.here will I go from here though4 =ou probably don!t fly helicopters anymore, right43 )or some reason this was amusing to her. 39o,3 she said. 3.e don!t have much use for helicopters here.3 3So am I 'ust going to be thrown out on the street4 =ou wa"e me up, tell me everything I care about is gone, and then "ic" me out to beg for food4 Is that how it is43 She seemed shoc"ed by this suggestion. 3.e!re not barbarians, 8r. )ra$ier,3 she said sternly. 3I apologi$e for the loss of your family and friends, truly I do, but we do not throw people out on the streets here. Is that what they would have done bac" in... well bac" in your time43 ,e loo"ed at her, trying to detect signs of deceit. )or the first time he began to wonder 'ust what sort of society he had been awa"ened into. 9early two centuries had gone by. .as he smac" in the middle of an *rwellian+type of environment4 ,ad man"ind!s worst nightmares come true4 3,ad somebody from

the eighteenth century been awa"ened in my time,3 he told her, 3they would have been ruthlessly e&ploited and commerciali$ed. There would have been endless tal" shows and television programs. There would have been movies of the wee". There would have been scale model action figures and children!s cartoon shows. 2verybody would have been fighting each other to try and figure out a way to ma"e a profit from the poor slob. %nd the funniest thing is that most of the public wouldn!t have believed the story in the first place.3 3=ou lived in a world of greed and mistrust,3 she said. It was not a #uestion. 39o shit,3 he replied, ta"ing another sip of his ginger ale. 3%re you telling me things have changed43 39o,3 she said. 3Things have actually become worse in .est,em. ,uge corporations own and control everything, including the government itself. The #uest for profit is the driving force and the main focus of all aspects of life. The government is hopelessly corrupt and is on the verge of collapsing under the weight of its own greed.3 3.est,em43 he as"ed. 3I!ve heard you say that a few times. .hat e&actly is .est,em43 3The emocratic %lliance of the .estern ,emisphere,3 she clarified for him. 3It consists of, as you might have guessed, the population and landmasses of the .estern ,emisphere of the planet 2arth. It was formed during .orld .ar III as a desperate strategic alliance in order to drive the %sian Powers out of 9orth %merica. %fter the war it became an official consolidation6 a single country. The Bnited States was the head of it of course. ;elieve me, the :atin %merican nations did not benefit much from becoming a part of .est,em. ;ut they didn!t have much choice in the matter. Though they allied with the Bnited States voluntarily during the war, out of self+interest you understand, they 'oined the official merger under force of

arms.3 3I see,3 he said slowly, trying to absorb all of this. 3So .est,em consists of the western half of the planet. 9orth %merica, South %merica, right43 3-orrect,3 she confirmed. 3%lso most of the South Pacific islands, 1reenland, and a large colony on -allisto.3 3-allisto43 he said hesitantly. 3That!s a moon of Saturn, isn!t it43 3Jupiter actually,3 she corrected. 3*ur society uses the hydrogen and methane from the atmosphere of the gas giants as a conventional fuel and as a propellant for fusion spacecraft. The trade and shipment of this fuel is one of the "eystones of modern life. Surface to orbit craft, military vehicles, and interplanetary ships all rely upon it. It is to our society what oil was to your society.3 3I see,3 he said again. 3;ut what about the other half of the earth4 .ho controls that43 3That would be 2ast,em,3 she said. 3%lso formed during .orld .ar III and also for the purpose of driving out the %sian Powers. 2ast,em and .est,em were allies during the war but, 'ust li"e %merica and Aussia after .orld .ar II, they became bitter cold war enemies when it came to dividing up the spoils.3 32ast,em,3 he said, nodding. 3*f course. .hat else would you call it4 %nd 2ast,em are the good guys right43 3.rong,3 she told him. 32ast,em is 'ust as corrupt and greedy as .est,em, maybe even more so. %nd, 'ust li"e .est,em is controlled by the Bnited States, 2ast,em is controlled by the dominant powers of that part of the planet at the time.3 3Aussia43 he as"ed.

39o,3 she said. 3Aussia all but ceased to e&ist during the war. It was overrun and occupied by -hinese and Indian troops in the first two wee"s and has never been an independent nation, or even much of a political force, since. The dominant members of 2ast,em were the so+called 2uropean Bnion. 2ngland, )rance, and 1ermany were most prominent. The consolidation of %frica, 2astern 2urope, and the 8iddle 2ast was a very difficult, very bloody underta"ing. To this day they still have vicious uprisings among their people.3 (en rubbed his temples a little bit, massaging at a tension headache. 3So the 2arth,3 he as"ed, 'ust for clarity, 3is divided essentially into only two countries now, is that what you!re saying43 3That!s right,3 she told him. 32ast,em and .est,em.3 3%nd they!re both corrupt43 3They are both atrocities to man"ind,3 she told him. 3;ut you don!t thin" I!ll be e&ploited43 he as"ed sarcastically. 3%ren!t you contradicting yourself a little43 39o,3 she said. 3=ou see, our society is #uite different than that of 2ast,em or .est,em. .e have learned from the mista"es of the disastrous e&periment in capitalism your country started in the eighteenth century and inflicted upon the rest of the world. *ur society is based not on personal wealth, not on greed, but on the betterment of our species. .e worship the principals of common sense and fairness here and all of our laws, our very constitution itself, is written with them in mind.3 3Sounds li"e a few lines I!ve heard before,3 (en observed. 3The politicians in my day used to swear that they were wor"ing for us common people. They used to swear that even as they were stealing the food from our mouths and protecting the criminals that raped and murdered us.3

3I reali$e that,3 she said. 3-onsidering the climate in which you were brought up and educated in, your mistrust of my words is #uite normal and e&pected. %s time goes by however and as you spend some time in our society, I believe you will find I am being entirely truthful with you. .e are #uite proud of our laws and our constitution and we believe they should be a model for all of human"ind. *f course the leaders of .est,em and 2ast,em, who are in power because of the very greed we abolished, do not agree with us on this point.3 3%nd 'ust what society is it that I!m now a part of43 he as"ed her. 3=ou said that the earth was divided into 2ast,em and .est,em. So where are we4 id you and your ideal society guys get %ustralia or something43 She too" a few deep breaths, as if debating with herself whether or not to say something. 39o,3 she finally said, 3we didn!t get %ustralia, they!re part of 2ast,em.3 She paused for a moment. 3.e don!t have any holdings at all on the planet 2arth.3 ,e loo"ed at her, chewing his lip a little as that statement made its way through his brain and the ramifications of it became clear. 3%re you saying,3 he said at last, 3that we!re not on 2arth right now, at this moment43 39o,3 she confirmed. 3=ou are not on 2arth. =ou are in the .hiting Bniversity 8edical -enter in the city of 9ew Pittsburgh...3 %nother pause. 3*n the Planet of 8ars.3 ,e continued to loo", continued to chew. 38ars43 he said blan"ly. 3=ou mean... 8ars4 The red planet4 )ourth from the sun43 3=es,3 she said. 3.e were once a colony of .est,em but our people revolted /F years ago + about D0 years ago on your calendar + and we have been independent ever since. *f course .est,em didn!t 'ust let us go peacefully. .e were much too valuable a possession. They invaded and tried to 'ac" the planet

bac" from us.3 She gave a predatory grin. 3It too" us almost two years but we "ic"ed ass. Though their armed forces were bigger than ours, they couldn!t beat us on our home ground, especially not at the end of long supply line.3 (en sat up a little straighter and began massaging his temples again. Just when he thought he had received all of the shoc"ing information that could be thrown at him, another piece came soaring in. ,e was on 8ars< It was two hundred years in the future, his wife and family were all dead, and now he finds out that he is on a different planet. % planet that had been almost completely une&plored yesterday from his point of view. 38ars,3 he said again, as if saying it over and over would ma"e it sin" in. 3I thought there was no breathable air on 8ars. If we!re on 8ars, where is all this air coming from43 3*&ygen e&tractors,3 she said. 3There are several in every building. They pull the trace amounts of o&ygen and nitrogen out of the atmosphere and pump them inside. The buildings themselves are all airtight so they can be pressuri$ed to standard 2arth sea level pressure. 2ach building is, in effect, li"e a spaceship sitting on the planet surface, complete with blast doors on every floor in case of a lea" or a breech in the integrity of the seal. In between the buildings there is a street level which is also sealed and pressuri$ed.3 3.ow,3 he said, feeling numb, disconnected. 3=ou!re serious right4 I mean, you!re not ma"ing this up to screw with me4 I!m really on 8ars43 3=ou are really on 8ars,3 she assured him. 3%s I told you earlier, we brought you here from 2arth orbit where you were in storage. .e have another storage facility set up in Triad + that!s our orbiting space city + and we "ept you there until we were ready to try reviving you. *nce we were ready, we loaded you into a -+F/ lifter craft and brought you down to the 9ew Pittsburgh spaceport. % special delivery truc" brought you here to the hospital.3

)or the first time since being told that %nnie was dead, (en found himself becoming slightly interested in his surroundings. ,e was on 8ars< ,e was on a different planet than the one he had been born and raised upon. ,e had, through no effort of his own, become an astronaut and traveled to a distant world, something that most men in his time could only dream about. 31ravity,3 he said suddenly, as something occurred to him. 3.hy does the gravity feel the same4 Shouldn!t we be lighter here43 5alentine seemed pleased at his #uestion. 3.e should be,3 she told him, 3but you!re right, we aren!t. .e have an artificial gravity field in place that allows us to live at a standard F1, 'ust li"e on 2arth. %ll space habitats, all non+2arth settlements, and most spacecraft have this feature built into them.3 3%rtificial gravity,3 he said with reluctant wonder. 3%ma$ing.3 In his previous life Gas he was already starting to thin" of itH he had been an on again, off again science buff. It had been conventional wisdom bac" then that artificial gravity that was not related to acceleration or centrifugal force was impossible. 3It was discovered in the early /Fst century,3 5alentine e&plained, 3that human beings cannot live indefinitely in much less than F1. .e start to suffer loss of bone density and muscle mass, losses that become critical after a few years. The development of artificial gravity generators was what opened up space for mass habitation. .ithout it, we!d all still be stuc" on 2arth.3 3,ow does it wor"43 he as"ed. 3It!s pretty comple&,3 she answered apologetically. 3I!m not a physicist so I don!t have a very complete understanding of it. I "now it!s a principal of particle physics and electromagnetism. The field is powered by a series of fusion reactors and is achieved by pumping current through special conduits that are a part of every building and street in the city. This field serves to

increase the natural gravity within it to the desired level.3 3%hhh,3 (en said, offering another smile, a little stronger than the first one, 3you mean its )8.3 3)843 she as"ed. 3That!s what we used to say about our computers and our nav e#uipment and all that other electronic crap that we had in the police department. )8. It!s fuc"in! magic.3 She laughed at this and he 'oined her. )or a moment he felt the depression that was engulfing him lift a little. Just a little. 3)uc"in! magic,3 she said. 3I li"e that. .here would society be without the fuc"in! magicians that "now how to build all that )8 shit43 Suddenly something else that he had heard her mention several times became clear to him. 3The different calendar that you "eep tal"ing about,3 he said. 3It!s a calendar based on 8ars, isn!t it4 *n the revolution of 8ars around the sun instead of the 2arth43 3Aight,3 she said. 3.e used the 2arth based calendar until the revolution. The 2arthlings insisted that we stic" with their system of time "eeping even though it was very inconvenient for those of us that lived here + or so I was told anyway, I wasn!t alive then. .hen we became independent, one of the first things we did was cast that calendar aside and adopt the 8artian one as standard. 9ow our winters are always at the same time every year and our days are always the same length.3 3.hat did you do43 he as"ed. 3 id you put in more months, or more days of the wee", or what43 39either,3 she told him. 3It!s pretty simple actually. It ta"es our planet E8? days to ma"e a trip around the sun. .e "ept this year divided into twelve months, January through ecember,

and the wee"s seven days in length, 'ust li"e the earth system. ;ut we added days to the months themselves. There are 0? days in our months e&cept for 8arch, June, September, and ecember, they each have 08 days.3 3That ma"es for pretty long months,3 he said. 3 oesn!t it "ind of drag on43 3It!s all that I!ve ever been used to,3 she replied with a shrug. 3%nd really, what difference does it ma"e4 % calendar and a cloc" are only methods used to measure time passage, to "eep trac" of it. Time is time and it passes at the pace that it does no matter what system of categori$ation we utili$e to mar" how much has gone by since yesterday or since last winter. *ur day to day method of measurement is different than that of 2arth as well.3 3 ay to day43 he as"ed, his head swimming with this concept of different time. 3.hat do you mean43 3.ell,3 she said, 3the passage of one day is mar"ed by how long it ta"es the planet to rotate once on its a&is, right43 3Aight,3 he said, seeing where she was heading with this. 3%nd 8ars doesn!t rotate at the same rate as 2arth, does it43 39o it doesn!t. It!s remar"ably close, but not the same. *ur day has an e&tra C? minutes in it. That is C? minutes that has to be accounted for. This was actually much more inconvenient than the differing revolutionary period. .hen we were a part of .est,em and on their system the actual, official time had no relationship to what time of the day or night it was. That e&tra C? minutes 'ac"s everything up. 0CC0 could 'ust as easily be high noon as it could be the early morning hours. F?00 could 'ust as easily be the middle of the night as it could be the end of the wor"day. It re#uired the assistance of a computer to figure out if an appointment you were setting for a few wee"s in the future was actually during business hours or not.3

3That sounds pretty damn strange,3 he commented, trying to imagine living in a world where day and night did not coordinate with the time every day. It was hard to even conceive of what that was li"e. 3=es,3 she agreed. 3%gain, I!m a post+revolutionary child so I never actually e&perienced this, but from what I!ve been told it left people a bit disassociated with things, even generations after leaving 2arth, even when they had never e&perienced anything else.3 3So how did you account for that e&tra C? minutes43 he wanted to "now. 32ach hour between 0E00 and F?00 has EF minutes instead of E0,3 she e&plained. 3%nd each hour between F?00 and 0E00 has E/ minutes. That adds an additional C? minutes to each twenty+ four hour period and insures that F/00 hours will always be the middle of the day and 0000 hours will always be the middle of the night. =ou!ll notice that we placed the ma'ority of those e&tra minutes in the traditional non+wor"ing hours.3 3=es,3 he said. 3I did notice that.3 3It was felt that if we had to e&tend the length of the day it would be better to add as many minutes to the recreational and sleeping periods as possible instead of to the wor"day. 2&tending the wor" period would have been a very .est,em thing to do.3 3.ow,3 he said again, pic"ing up his cup for another drin". To his surprise he saw that it was empty. 3.ould you li"e a little more43 she as"ed him. 3Please.3 She pic"ed up his cup and left the room, e&iting through the

sliding door once more and into the tiled hall. .hile she was gone he tried to sort through all that he had been told. ,e was very confused, full of conflicting emotions. ominating his thoughts was a blac" depression that wanted to crush him and reduce him to a blubbering mass of flesh. ,aving one!s old life swept away seemingly in an instant was a shoc"ing thing. ,e had not 'ust lost his wife but everything and everybody else that he cared about. ,is parents were gone, his friends, his career. ,e was #uite literally a man out of time, out of his place in the great scheme of things. ;ut 'ust underneath the depression, straining to come to the surface, was curiosity and e&citement. ,e could feel the desire to learn about this new reality that he found himself in, to e&plore it. ,ow much had changed in the past two hundred years4 ,ow many discoveries had been made4 There were a thousand #uestions to as", a thousand things to "now, to find out. ;ut underneath the e&citement of discovery there was also a distinct dagger of suspicion and cynicism at what he had been told so far. ,e had been awa"ened from a two hundred+year cryogenic state at what was undoubtedly considerable e&pense and effort. .hy4 Though octor 5alentine + she of the trashy accent and the trashy clothing + had assured him that it was simply because of his late wife!s wishes, that was somewhat of a hard sell in his opinion. In the world as he "new it, people did not spend money and waste research time 'ust to fulfill a long+ dead woman!s wishes. If they went to all the trouble to wa"e him up, then they must want something from him. .hether it was commercial e&ploitation, as some sort of e&pendable freedom fighter, or something that he could hardly even conceive of, it had to be something. They wouldn!t have awa"ened him 'ust so he could en'oy their so+called common sense oriented society and the clean 8artian air. %nd who was to say that he was really on 8ars in the first place4 .hat proof did he have of that4 ,e had seen nothing but two people calling themselves doctors and an admittedly advanced hospital room. .as this all some "ind of elaborate charade for some un"nown

purpose4 Though he had no proof of that either, he certainly could not rule that out. ,e could not rule anything out. ,e would have to "eep his eyes and ears open and watch for deceit. %s a former police officer he was an e&pert at identifying deceit. .hen 5alentine returned to his room she handed him his fresh ginger ale and then resumed her seat ne&t to his bed without waiting for an invitation. 3So tell me,3 he as"ed her after ta"ing a sip and setting the cup down, 3how do you "now so much about me4 I mean my personal life. =ou "new my wife!s name and her wishes, the history of my son. o you become such an e&pert on all of your patients43 3%s a matter of fact,3 she replied, 3I do. It helps ease them through the wa"ing phase if the doctor "nows something about their lives. 8ost of this information is easily obtained by loo"ing up old records or, in your case, news stories. Since you were a police officer "illed in the line of duty there were #uite a few stories available in past issues of the San Jose Tribune. The te&t of all of this is available in our historical data ban"s.3 3Aeally43 he as"ed, his eyes searching her face. ,e could sense that she wasn!t telling him the complete truth about where she had gathered her information about him. .hy wasn!t she4 .hat was she leaving out4 3The man who shot me,3 he in#uired. 3.as he convicted of murder43 39o,3 she said. 3,e was shot and "illed by the police officers that arrived to ta"e him into custody. The accounts of what happened were variable, depending upon who was telling the story. The police officers say he came out of the house with the rifle in his hand, brandishing it at them. % witness down the street states he came out with his hands up and they shot him anyway. The official department ruling cleared the officers of any wrongdoing. There was a brief spate of editorials and articles about the police ta"ing the law into their own hands and then the issue was forgotten. =ou, however, were hailed as a hero. =ou were given a posthumous medal of valor by the police department. They even named a par" after you.3

3% hero,3 he said, sha"ing his head a little. 3.hat!s so heroic about getting shot4 I did something stupid and got too close.3 3;ut you also managed to get your partner down alive,3 she reminded him. 38ost of the articles dealing with your heroics mentioned that aspect over and over.3 3%nd my wife43 he as"ed ne&t, feeling the tears trying to well up inside of him at the mere mention. 3.hat became of her4 =ou told me she died at E8 of this 2bola thing, but what happened in the meantime4 ,ow did the rest of her life go4 ,ow did my son!s life go43 3(en,3 she said gently, 3why don!t we tal" about that later4 %fter you!ve had a little time to...3 3It!s all right,3 he interrupted. 3I can ta"e it. %fter all, she!s long dead and gone, right4 Just tell me what happened to her. id she remarry43 3She remarried,3 she said reluctantly. 3She met a man and moved to Te&as about five years after your death. That was where she lived out the rest of her life. ;ut even after that, she made sure that your son would pass on to his descendants the drive to one day restore you, to ma"e sure that your body was "ept safe. 2ven after remarriage, she was still obsessed with you and was still in love with you.3 Though it seemed li"e he should, he could not develop any strong emotions for the thought that %nnie had married another. ,e was, in effect, tapped out. ,e was on mental overload. Too many things had happened, had been revealed on this very strange day. 3 id she... did she have any more children43 he as"ed, unsure why that was important to him but "nowing it was. 39o,3 5alentine told him. 3(en Jr. was her only one. I don!t "now the e&act reasons why she didn!t have any with her second

husband + he was childless as well + but .orld .ar III started a few years after the marriage and she might not have wanted to bring a child into that world. That would have been #uite understandable. =ou see, things were pretty 'ac"ed during the war years. 8illions were "illed, millions more were starving, a large part of the western Bnited States was occupied by the %sian Powers, and %merican cities were sub'ected to constant bombardment. The outcome of the war was very much in #uestion until nearly three+#uarters of the way through it. %nd after the war, the birthing restrictions were put into place in .est,em.3 3;irthing restrictions43 he as"ed numbly. 3*ne child per female,3 she said. 3It was strictly enforced to control the population problems. If a woman got pregnant a second time she was compelled to have an abortion or face having the child ta"en from her and a year in prison. This is something still enforced even today in .est,em and 2ast,em. *f course here we have no such restrictions. .e want babies on 8ars. .e want our population to grow and spread.3 3.ho did she marry43 he as"ed, refusing to be drawn into a sidebar about birthing restrictions and population problems. 3(en,3 she said gently, 3are you sure that you want to hear this4 This must be terribly painful for you.3 3I want to hear,3 he insisted. 3I 'ust want to "now that she was all right after my... my death.3 3,e was an investment counselor,3 she finally said. 3,is name was avid ;rown. ,e was educated at the Bniversity of Te&as and owned a fairly successful private firm in -orpus -hristi. ,e wasn!t a millionaire but he was comfortable. They met while he was visiting San Jose and... well... they seemed to hit it off very well together. Their courtship period was only a few months in length. She moved to -orpus -hristi to be with him. (en Jr.

didn!t care too much for him at first but eventually grew to treat him as a father. ,e died in the same epidemic that "illed %nnie.3 3.ell,3 (en said, sighing a little and wiping a tear from his face, 3I!m glad she found happiness after me. I wouldn!t want her to... you "now... to become a spinster or anything.3 3She was happy,3 5alentine assured him. 3%nd, li"e I said, she never did stop loving you and obsessing that you would one day be revived. =our son became a doctor because this obsession was passed onto him.3 3% doctor43 he said, feeling a twinge of pride in the son he would never meet. 3Aeally43 3Aeally,3 she said. 3(en Jr. was than"fully too young to serve in .orld .ar III. ,e was only si& years old when it started, si&teen when the cease+fire was signed. ,e graduated with honors from high school and was accepted into the Bniversity of Te&as the ne&t year. In a way it!s "ind of ironic that your death was a big part of why he was able to go to medical school.3 38y death4 .hat do you mean43 3%nnie received a considerable amount of money as a result of your line of duty death. ;etween the pension settlement and the contributions from the San Jose Police Bnion fund and several state groups, she was given more than a #uarter of a million dollars, plus a lifetime pension. .hen she married avid ;rown he was able to invest that money and ma"e it grow. ;y the time (en Jr. was ready to go to college, money was not a barrier to him as it was to so many other families in that period of history. =ou see, by the end of the war, college was a lu&ury that was available only to the offspring of the wealthy. (en Jr. probably would not have been able to attend had you still been alive and wor"ing as a policeman. =ou simply would not have been able to afford it.3

(en snorted a little, not #uite sure how to ta"e that. 3I!m glad I did him such a favor,3 he said. 5alentine gave him a sorrowful loo". 3Sorry,3 she said. 3I didn!t mean for that to be so blunt. .e 8artians usually say what!s on our mind.3 3 on!t let it "eep you awa"e at night,3 he responded. 3This is all 'ust "ind of bi$arre. I!m sitting here listening to you tal" about my family and about events that haven!t even happened yet from my perspective as if they!re history. It!s disconcerting. It 'ust seems li"e yesterday I was putting my hand on %nnie!s belly and feeling my son "ic" me from inside of it. %nd now you!re telling me about %nnie!s new husband and about (en Jr!s college e&periences from the perspective of hundreds of years after they happened.3 3.ould you li"e me to stop43 she as"ed. 3.e can continue this discussion later. *r we can 'ust tal" about something else. Surely you have a thousand #uestions about things that have happened from the year /00C on 2arth to the year /F on 8ars.3 39o,3 he said, sha"ing his head and ta"ing a drin". 3I!d rather hear how my son fared in life. .as he a good doctor43 3,e was very good in his field,3 she told him. 3,e became an internist, concentrating on diseases and trauma to the vital organs. It seems that %nnie!s influence upon him might have steered his choice of specialty, wouldn!t you say4 )rom what I understand, (en grew up worshipping you. ,e married relatively young for a person of his class in that day and age. ,e was /8. 8ost upper class men married closer to mid+thirties or early forties. It seemed (en found the perfect mate however. She was a fellow medical school student. They had their one child in /0CE and named him Joshua.3 3% grandson,3 (en said softly. )or some reason he had not even considered that he might have had family beyond his son. It was

'ust too strange of a thought. 3=es indeed,3 5alentine told him. 3Things were very happy for (en Jr. during this part of his life. Things were considerably 'ac"ed in the world at large, but with the )ra$ier family, things were pleasant. %t least for a while.3 3.hat happened then43 he as"ed. 3The 2bola epidemic I mentioned earlier. 2bola is a virulent, hemorrhagic disease that is very contagious and very lethal. % strain of it hit .est,em in late /0C8, popping up in the ghettos and "illing millions. ;y early /0CI it spread beyond the ghettos and "illed millions more from all wal"s of life. %nnie and her husband, as I!ve mentioned, were among them. So was (en Jr.!s wife, 8ichelle. Joshua and (en both contracted the disease but were among the five percent of those infected that were able to fight it off. .hen it was all over, your son and grandson were alone in the world.3 3Poor %nnie,3 he said sorrowfully, imagining her dying of a hideous bleeding disease. It was a physically painful thought. 3%nd poor (en Jr. %s if he hadn!t had enough sorrow in his life already.3 3=es,3 she said, 3but, li"e many events in life, this one had profound effects upon the state of your family in the future.3 3.hat do you mean43 3(en, along with a si$able amount of other people of above average intelligence for the time, strongly suspected the 2bola epidemic was a deliberate act by the .est,em government.3 3.hat43 he said in disbelief. The government starting a deadly epidemic itself4 That was a paranoid delusion, the ravings of a madman. .hat was this woman trying to feed him4

3Sounds rather shoc"ing to you from your point of view, doesn!t it43 she as"ed him. 3I!m sorry to say that (en!s suspicions about this were more than li"ely correct. ;y /0C8 overpopulation was a very serious problem in .est,em and 2ast,em ali"e. Bnemployment was at its highest level ever and inflation was completely out of control because all of these unemployed people had to be housed and fed at government e&pense. There were simply too many people and too little 'obs and resources to supply them.3 3;ut to "ill their own people43 (en said, searching her eyes for signs of deceit and seeing none. She was either an e&ceptionally good liar or she really believed what she was telling him. 3.hy wouldn!t they43 she as"ed him pointedly. 3The welfare recipients were a drain on their profits and a detriment to their economic system. .est,em corporations and the .est,em government were the ones to benefit the most from having more than half of the welfare class suddenly die.3 (en shoo" his head. 3Just because someone benefits in some way from a tragedy,3 he said, 3doesn!t mean it!s a conspiracy. That would be li"e blaming a homeowner that wanted a new house for a hurricane that "noc"ed it down and allowed him to collect the insurance. .hen you start seeing government plots behind a natural occurrence li"e an epidemic or a flood...3 3.ith all due respect, (en,3 5alentine interrupted, 3you really don!t "now what you!re tal"ing about. The 2bola epidemic was not a natural occurrence. There was never any doubt that it was a deliberate act, not even when it was occurring. The outbrea"s began in the ghettos of more than si&ty ma'or cities across .est,em, all within days of each other and mostly in the :atin %merican portion of the nation. Sau Paulo, ;uenos %ires, 8e&ico -ity, Ti'uana, and ,avana were the hardest hit. 2bola is a disease that, if it is going to infect a population naturally, will start from a single point and move outward from there. It would not magically pop up in over si&ty ma'or cities at once, nor

would it tend to infect those in the ghettos first since it was a disease that would have first arrived by aircraft from the %frica region of 2ast,em. Bnemployed ghetto inhabitants of that time did not have much contact with people that would have been on an international airliner.3 3Terrorists then,3 (en suggested, refusing to accept that a legitimate government, no matter how corrupt or how soulless, would even consider such a thing, let alone initiate it. 3-ouldn!t terrorists or these 2ast,em people have started the epidemic43 3They could have,3 5alentine allowed, 3but why would they target the ghettos4 Terrorists generally fight the wealthy and the elite. They would not have targeted the hopeless and the unemployed. It is that class of people in whose name they commit their acts of terrorism. 9or would 2ast,em have done such a thing either for much the same reasons. 2ast,em would have targeted the armed forces and the government leaders, not the poor. Terrorists were of course blamed for the outbrea" and a group was even tried and e&ecuted for the crime, but the evidence was very lac"ing and completely circumstantial. The suspicious fact remains that the .est,em elite were the only ones to gain any sort of advantage from the outbrea". It was the ultimate manifestation of the evil of that system of government.3 3-hrist,3 (en said, frustrated and scared. 3.hat "ind of place did I wa"e up in4 2ither I!m in the hands of a bunch of conspiracy theory frea"s or I!m living in a world... e&cuse me, a solar system, where governments "ill millions of their own people 'ust to beef up the economy.3 ,e shoo" his head. 3.hichever way it is, it!s not a pretty thought.3 3The governments on earth are not very pretty,3 she told him, 3and they never have been. These "inds of atrocities are not 'ust limited to the post .orld .ar III era. 1overnments have always loo"ed at the common people and the poor as nothing more than pawns or lab sub'ects.3

3;ut you fol"s are different, huh43 he as"ed cynically. 3=es,3 she said matter+of+factly and without the slightest hesitation, 3we are. =ou will see that in time, (en.3 3=ou!ll forgive me if I don!t start singing your national anthem 'ust yet,3 he told her. 3*f course,3 she said. 3%nd besides, we don!t have a national anthem. .e don!t have a flag either. It is our belief that such displays of patriotism serve only to encourage pre'udice against others outside of the group. It is our hope that one day all of human"ind will be united under our constitution or one similar to it. .e do not teach our children to loo" down on those that are not from 8ars. .e teach them that we are all one species and that all are worthy of respect and fulfillment.3 (en felt his nervousness "ic" up a few notches as he heard this 8anson+li"e outpouring. id this woman really believe what she was spouting4 id she4 Somehow, the thought that she did was more frightening than the thought that she was simply bullshitting him. 3That was #uite a speech,3 he told her. 3;ut it sounded "ind of... uh... programmed to me.3 She shrugged, unoffended. 3Ta"e it for what you will,3 she said. 3I!m confident you will change your mind about us once you see our system in action. ;ut we have digressed a bit, haven!t we4 .e were tal"ing about your son.3 3=es,3 he said, nodding, 3we were. ,e believed the 2bola epidemic was deliberate. So what did he do about it4 id he become the founder of this new religion or government of yours43 39o,3 she replied, 3not #uite. In that day and age there wasn!t much a simple doctor could do about something li"e that. ,e never even made official his suspicions. ,e continued to do his wor" and to raise his son the best he could. ;ut the outbrea" left

a very bitter taste in his mouth. .hen the coloni$ation of 8ars began in /0D8, (en Jr. applied for and was accepted as one of the physicians at the settlement. ,e and Joshua, who was F/ at the time, climbed aboard a ship and made the trip here, to 9ew Pittsburgh, which was the first 8artian city. ,e never went bac".3 3So my son was an original 8artian43 3,e was,3 she said. 3In those early days 8ars was a very pleasant place to be. Since it was e&pensive to ship people halfway across the solar system, only those with employment guaranteed upon their arrival were allowed to ma"e the trip. )or more than fifty years, through the steel mining boom and through the agricultural rush that followed it, there was virtually no unemployment on our planet. Since there was no unemployment, there was very little crime. =our son established himself here during those days and became a well+respected member of our early society.3 31ood for him,3 (en said. 3,e was successful enough in his practice that he was able to send Joshua bac" to earth to be educated at Stanford Bniversity and ,arvard 8edical School. ,e became the second generation r. )ra$ier. .hile he was in medical school he met and married an attractive, though rather shallow young woman whose goal in life was social climbing. ,e brought her bac" to 8ars with him when he established his practice. The marriage did not last for very long but it did produce a child in /0E?. 8ar'orie )ra$ier, your great+granddaughter, stayed with her father after her mother divorced Joshua and returned to 2arth.3 espite his earlier s"epticism at her words, (en now found himself fascinated by them. :istening to someone e&plain what one!s descendents had done in their lives was a uni#ue and e&hilarating e&perience. ,ow many people throughout history had had the chance to listen to such a lecture4

3Joshua, li"e his father, became interested in the field of longevity and organ repair and replacement. ,e 'oined a research team that searched for ways to e&tend human life. This put him somewhat at odds with .est,em authorities at times. =ou see, .est,em was not particularly interested in the field of human longevity. espite the 2bola epidemic they were still struggling with a horrendous population and unemployment problem. The last thing they wanted to do was support research that would ma"e people live even longer. 8any of his group!s findings were suppressed or redirected into less harmful directions. Joshua managed to avoid any really nasty confrontations with them over the years, partially because of other pursuits that he was passionate about.3 3*ther pursuits43 (en as"ed. 3,e was appalled by the fact that he had to go to earth to learn how to be a doctor. %s a direct result of his persistence and fund+raising abilities, 8ars! first accredited medical school was established in 2den, our largest city. ,is daughter, 8ar'orie, would attend it eventually.3 3Three generations of doctors,3 (en said whimsically. 3.ho!d of thought43 3.ho indeed43 she agreed. 3It was a pretty near thing with 8ar'orie though. ;y the time she was ready for medical school she was barely able to get into it. Though she was an e&cellent student and though her family had more than enough money to put her through, the school was mostly attended by 2arthlings at that point.3 32arthlings43 3The children of the corporate managers and businessmen that were running things here on our fair planet. *ur medical school #uic"ly developed a rating that was among the best in .est,em. %fter all, its facilities and e#uipment were the most

modern available. Since the board of trustees and the admissions staff were all 2arthlings as well, it became almost impossible for someone of 8artian birth to get in. =ou see, by then 8artian+born people were the sub'ect of pretty intense pre'udice in most aspects of life. .e were thought to be stupid, inferior, la$y, criminal + you name it, we were accused of it.3 3.hy would they thin" that43 (en as"ed. 3=ou were all originally from 2arth.3 3.hy do human beings thin" anyone inferior to themselves43 she returned. 3It doesn!t ta"e much of a reason for stereotyping and pre'udice to get started. If there!s one thing we humans li"e to do more than thin" about money it!s to loo" down upon others. In the case of us 8artians, we were thought to be la$y and criminal because the ma'ority of our people came here from the unemployed class of .est,em.3 3=ou mean from the ghettos43 he as"ed, surprised. 3)uc"in! aye,3 she said, nodding. 3The )ra$ier family was in the minority of our early immigrants. .ell over ninety+five percent of those that made the trip had been unemployed on 2arth, most for generations. That was why they came here. They didn!t want to live out their lives in s#ualor and doom their children to generations of public assistance and public housing buildings. They came because 8ars was where the 'obs were and they were willing to leave their home planet behind so they could wor" and live li"e human beings.3 It was obvious, by listening to her, that r. 5alentine had tremendous reverence for these early 8artian settlers. 3(ind of li"e the pilgrims coming to the 9ew .orld in the seventeenth century, right43 (en as"ed. 3In a way,3 she agreed. 3They came because there was nothing left for them on 2arth. 8ars was a new start.3

3=our accent,3 he said. 3That e&plains why you tal" the way you do.3 3=ou mean our manner of speech43 she said, smiling once more. 3I suppose to you it sounds li"e we are all... what would be the term you would have used on earth43 3Trash,3 he said, slightly apologetically. 3=ou sound li"e the street people I used to deal with when I wor"ed in a patrol car. 2ven some of your phrases are the same7 3fuc"in! aye3 and 3down with it3. Those were slang terms bac" in my day. They seem to have become accepted methods of 2nglish language here. 2ven your computer uses them.3 3.e sound li"e ghetto dwellers because most of us were ghetto dwellers when we came here. The speech patterns were passed on, parents to child. id you "now that to me you sound li"e a coc"y, arrogant, puffed+up corporate 2arthling43 ,e laughed loudly, finding that amusingly ironic. 3Turnabout is fair play, huh43 3)uc"in! aye,3 she told him, ma"ing him laugh harder. It was the warmest moment that they had shared since his awa"ening. 3So what happened to 8ar'orie43 he as"ed when it was over. 3 id my great+granddaughter finish medical school as well43 3She did,3 5alentine confirmed, a #ueer smile upon her face. 3She was near the top of her class in fact. She was very much her father!s daughter in every way, up to and including her choice of specialty. She became an internist with interests in research. ,er passion was longevity studies6 ways to e&tend human life.3 3Just li"e her father,3 (en said. 3*nly a little more aggressive,3 5alentine added. 38ar'orie was #uite driven when it came to her wor". She did not ta"e very

"indly to having her studies suppressed or her funding cut off 'ust because she was wor"ing on something the .est,em government didn!t li"e. She continually ran afoul of her superiors and the powers that be. She was removed from several pro'ects early in her career and was eventually forced out of the research field entirely. She ended up wor"ing as a general surgeon at the 2den welfare hospital. It has only been since the revolution that some of her wor" and theories have seen the light of day.3 3It sounds li"e she was a very headstrong person,3 (en observed, trying to imagine her. 3=es,3 5alentine agreed, again with a strange smile, 3headstrong is a good word for 8ar'orie. 2ven during her e&ile at the welfare hospital she continued to create a headache for .est,em authorities. She became somewhat of a political advocate for the poor and the unemployed. =ou see, by that time the agricultural rush had pretty much come to an end and the mass layoffs of construction wor"ers, steel wor"ers, and other, related professions was in full force. 1hettos sprung up in all of our cities for the first time. 8ar'orie tried to help push through a form of sociali$ed health care for these people that was something other than the mess that was the welfare system. She tried to initiate 'obs programs and push for the abolition of the birthing restrictions. Bnfortunately these clashes would eventually lead to the revocation of her medical license on trumped up charges. %s you can probably imagine, the 8artian 8edical :icensing ;oard was made up entirely of .est,em doctors. She would never practice medicine again.3 3She was railroaded,3 (en said, unsurprised. .hen you stepped on the wrong toes too many times, as 8ar'orie apparently had, measures were ta"en to get rid of you. That was the way the world had wor"ed in his when and that was apparently how it had wor"ed in his great granddaughter!s when as well. 3Aailroaded43 5alentine said thoughtfully. 3Is that what you

called it43 3=es,3 he said, nodding. 3I believe the term refers to the rapidity by which a person is moved from one place to another6 as if they were on rails.3 3.e call it getting fuc"ed,3 5alentine said with a completely straight face. (en could not contain his laughter. 3I thin" your term is probably more apt,3 he said. 3So what became of 8ar'orie after she was... uh... fuc"ed.3 3.ell,3 she said, 3before I go any further with this, there is one thing I should probably tell you about her.3 3.hat!s that43 She lic"ed her lips a few times, again seeming to debate whether or not to release some little bit of information. %t last she said7 38ar'orie met and married her husband 'ust before she entered medical school. ,e was a fellow 8artian, top of his class both in high school and college, and with ambitions towards the field of medicine. Bnfortunately he was not allowed admission to med school with her. This was because of that anti+8artian pre'udice I was telling you about. Stuart did not have any family connections to help get him in. ;ut 8ar'orie was not a snob by any means. She loved Stuart and she married him anyway. ,e would end up wor"ing as a nurse in various hospitals, mostly on an on+call basis since he assumed the role of caregiver when their child, ale, was born in /0I0.3 She too" a deep breath and loo"ed at him levelly. 3.e 8artians have cast aside many of the traditions our 2arthling ancestors used to hold dear. .e did much of this even before our revolution. ;ut one tradition that has survived, even to this day, is that of a woman ta"ing her husband!s last name upon marriage.3 3*"ay,3 (en said carefully, wondering what this had to do with

anything. ,e soon found out. 3.hen 8ar'orie got married to Stuart, her name changed from )ra$ier to 5alentine.3 It too" a moment for that to sin" in. 35alentine,3 he said at last. 3That!s uh... that!s your last name, isn!t it43 3=es it is,3 she confirmed. 3%re you telling me,3 he as"ed slowly, 3that you are... related to me43 3I am 8ar'orie!s great granddaughter,3 she told him. 3% direct descendent of your bloodline. I am, in fact, your fifth generation granddaughter.3 3Jesus,3 he said slowly, loo"ing at this blonde woman before him. ,is distant granddaughter4 ,e e&amined her face carefully, with the eyes of the career police officer he had been. The family resemblance was not terribly obvious but, once he "new to loo" for it, it was unmista"able. ,er nose was shaped 'ust li"e his and the curve of her chee"bones was #uite similar to %nnie!s. ,e "new instinctively she was not lying to him. ,e simply "new it. 38y granddaughter,3 he said, trying the word on for si$e. 3.elcome bac" to your family,3 she told him, a tear running down her face now. 3It!s been a long time, but we!re still here.3 Bnable to help himself he leaned forward and too" her into his arms. She came willingly, giving a hug that had been waiting for five generations and F88 years. octor 8ende$ was a tall, tough loo"ing gentleman who appeared, to (en!s eyes anyway, to still be in his teenage years. ,e was wearing the same thing r. Jerico had worn, namely a pair of white shorts and a plain cotton tan" top. 2&cept for the

lac" of earrings or 'ailhouse tattoos, he loo"ed e&actly li"e a :atino gang+member from south San Jose. ,e came in the room shortly after r. 5alentine!s revelation regarding her lineage and as"ed if it would be a good time to perform the medical e&amination. Though his features were unmista"ably :atin %merican in origin his accent was far from what (en e&pected. ,is annunciation and terminology was very similar to that of 5alentine and Jerico. Strangely, as 8ende$ was about to begin, (en had a sudden attac" of modesty at the thought of being na"ed before 5alentine, or (aren, as he was beginning to thin" of her. True, she had undoubtedly already seen him in all of his glory many, many times and true, he had felt no such self+consciousness before he had "nown that she was his granddaughter, but there it was anyway. 3(aren,3 he said softly, feeling a blush rising to his face, 3would you mind... you "now... uh...3 3-ertainly,3 she said, seeming to catch his drift. 3I!ll step out until r. 8ende$ is done.3 3Than" you,3 he said gratefully. 3I "now it!s stupid, but...3 3 on!t thin" twice about it,3 she reassured him. 3,ere on 8ars we believe in honoring a person!s desires without #uestioning them. I!ll see if I can go dig you up some clothes to wear while I!m gone. If you!re up to it and if r. 8ende$ agrees that it!s all right, we!ll ta"e a little wal" around the facility, maybe go get you some food from the roach pit.3 3The roach pit43 he said, not really li"ing the sound of that. 3Bh, what you used to call a...3 she thought for a second, 3... a cafeteria I believe.3 3*h, of course,3 he said, nodding doubtfully, but nevertheless e&cited at the thought of seeing something other than this room. 3That sounds li"e a good idea. Than"s.3

She flashed him one last warm loo" and then disappeared through the door without another word. %s soon as it slid shut behind her, 8ende$ opened a small plastic case he carried and began to lay instruments + some familiar loo"ing to (en, most unfamiliar + out on the table ne&t to the bed. 3I!d 'ust li"e to say, 8r. )ra$ier,3 8ende$ said as he pic"ed up a small plastic device and turned it on, 3that it!s truly an honor being allowed to tal" to you after all this time. I have been your primary physical physician since you were removed from storage and I don!t usually get to tal" to such people after treating them.3 3=ou mean cryogenic people43 he as"ed, nervously eyeing a piece of e#uipment that loo"ed suspiciously li"e a taser gun. 3Aight,3 8ende$ agreed. 3I!ve been wor"ing with (aren for #uite some time now on this pro'ect. I handle putting the bodies bac" in shape and she handles putting the mind bac" in shape. I don!t "now if she told you how rare it is for us to get someone bac".3 3She said that I was number si& out of a hundred.3 3% hundred and twelve to be e&act,3 8ende$ corrected. 3%nd though I!ve only tal"ed to you for a few minutes here I can already tell that you!re the best+recovered so far. The other times I!ve done the post+awa"ening e&am the patient has been pretty gor"ed still.3 31or"ed43 (en said, raising his eyebrows a tad. It was going to ta"e him a while to get used to these 8artians! e&pressions. 3Bh... lethargic,3 he translated. 3The first three too" more than a wee" before they were even able to remember their names. The last two were a little better but it still too" them #uite some time before their memories and thoughts came bac". I guess that new warming se#uence (aren developed had a beneficial

effect.3 3I guess it did,3 (en agreed, loo"ing at the doctor thoughtfully. There was something about the way he was saying (aren!s name every time, some lilt to his voice. 3If you don!t mind my as"ing,3 he said, 3'ust how old are you anyway4 =ou!ll forgive me if I say that you don!t e&actly loo" old enough to be a doctor.3 3I assure you I!m old enough,3 8ende$ smiled. 3*n my last birthday I was seventeen years old.3 (en almost cho"ed for a moment until it occurred to him the doctor was probably referencing the 8artian calendar instead of the 2arth calendar. 3Seventeen,3 he said, the number sounding strange on his lips. 3So that would ma"e you... uh...3 3%bout C/ on your calendar,3 he said. 3I graduated with honors from the 9ew Pittsburgh school system and went on to get my master!s degree in biological engineering here at .hiting Bniversity. )rom there I was accepted into the medical school, which I also graduated from with honors, and I then performed a two+year residency in internal medicine. 8y primary 'ob is as an internist here at the medical center but I!ve been helping (aren with her pro'ect since it!s inception. I loo" so young to you probably because of our medical techni#ues. .e have managed to ma"e significant advances in the reversal of the aging process.3 3It would seem so,3 he agreed. ,e shifted nervously on his bed for a moment. 3=ou and (aren,3 he finally broached. 3%re you... that is to say, have you... uh...3 3.e!re very good friends,3 8ende$ said, somewhat mysteriously. 3.e!ve wor"ed closely together for #uite some time. She!s a brilliant physician and a very warm person. She has good common sense too.3 31ood common sense43 he as"ed, wondering what that had to

do with anything. 8ende$ loo"ed at him for a moment and then chuc"led. 3Sorry,3 he said, 3it!s hard for me to remember that you!re not familiar with a lot of our sayings.3 3Imagine how it is from my end,3 (en told him. 3=es,3 he said, nodding. 3I suppose it is fairly difficult for you as well. %nyway, common sense is "ind of a sacred concept among us 8artians. It is what our constitution and all of our laws and practices are based upon. It is considered one of the highest complements to say someone has good common sense.3 3I see,3 (en said a little doubtfully. 3*f course it is also a compliment that is not given lightly. .e have sort of a cultural taboo against 'er"ing someone off with that e&pression. It is generally not said unless it is really meant. *n the other end of that thought, it is considered a very grave insult to tell someone that they don!t have any common sense.3 3So if I want to get my ass "ic"ed in a bar,3 (en said, 3then I tell someone they have no common sense, right43 3Those would certainly be fighting words,3 8ende$ agreed, 3although the penalty for assault and battery is rather severe here, so watch what you do.3 ,e nodded, wondering what the doctor meant by severe. ,e would as" (aren later perhaps. 39ow then,3 8ende$ said, pic"ing up one of his instruments. 3Shall we begin43 3)uc"in! aye,3 (en told him. 3 o your worst.3 8ende$ chuc"led again. 3=ou!re a fast learner, 8r. )ra$ier. % very fast learner.3 ,e loo"ed up at the ceiling. 3-omputer,3 he

said, 3run general physical diagnostic program for an adult male please.3 The computer answered with its typical ac"nowledgment and they began. The e&am itself was a curious mi&ture of old techni#ues he was familiar with and newer, more high tech methods of deriving information from his body. ,is refle&es were tested with a rubber mallet upon his "nees, his eyes and ears were e&amined with a small penlight type of device, and his abdomen and legs were palpated by a bare hand. 8ende$ as"ed him a serious of #uestions about whether anything hurt, did he have any nausea, was he di$$y. ,e answered them all truthfully, unable to sha"e the sensation he was being e&amined by a 'uvenile hall inmate. Several scanning devices were also passed over his body, with 8ende$ peering at the computer screen behind him as they made their 'ourney. The entire process too" about twenty minutes. 3:oo"in! pretty static, 8r. )ra$ier,3 8ende$ finally announced. 3Static43 he as"ed carefully. 3.ould that mean good43 3It means good,3 he assured him. 3%ll of your vital functions are well within operational parameters. 8ost of them are near the top of the chart. .ere you in good physical shape before you were put in cryogenics43 3=es,3 he said. 3I used to run twenty miles a wee" and lift weights.3 3That might have contributed to your overall recovery,3 he suggested. 3.hen I first started putting you bac" together I noticed you were in remar"able shape for someone from that era. There was the liver damage of course and the crude stapling and tying of the various arteries and veins surrounding it, but aside from some light vessel and organ necrosis from the to&ins

in your blood, everything else was in static shape. That might even have been the reason you were able to live through the original in'ury in the first place.3 3I!m glad all that running came in handy for something,3 he said. 3I used to hate doing it. The only reason I did was so I could "eep my blood pressure down without ta"ing pills. ,ypertension ran in my family and they made you ta"e a physical every year to maintain your pilot!s license if you were diagnosed with it.3 3=es,3 8ende$ said, 3I noted the hypertensive gene when I first e&amined you. I shut it off for you.3 (en blin"ed. 3=ou... shut it off43 3.ell, sure, why wouldn!t I43 he as"ed, seemingly afraid he had violated some sort of eti#uette. 3.as that all right4 I also shut off the genes that would have led to nearsightedness and rheumatoid arthritis in a few years. I can turn them bac" on if you wish, but...3 39o, no,3 (en said, sha"ing his head. 3That!s all right. It!s 'ust that... well... they couldn!t do things li"e that bac" in my day. =ou were pretty much stuc" with the high blood pressure and the arthritis and the failing eyesight. It was all part of getting old.3 3There!s a lot of things that we do that were unheard of bac" in your day, 8r. )ra$ier,3 8ende$ told him. 3.e have managed to isolate and eliminate almost all of the traits of aging and almost every disease process. 9o longer do people die of cancer or coronary artery disease or chronic respiratory problems. .e!ve eliminated diabetes, epilepsy, and all birth defects. .e can cure or prevent any bacterial or viral infection. The average human lifespan has been increased tremendously in the last /F years and a lot of the techni#ues we use started with r. 8ar'orie 5alentine, your relative. *nce we were free of .est,em

influence and able to concentrate our energies without interference, medical science advanced e&ponentially.3 3,ow long do people live now43 he as"ed, fascinated. 3.e don!t have a very large statistical base yet,3 he replied, 3since it!s only been /0 years or so. ;ut eighty years seems to be where we stand at this point in history for an average lifespan.3 32ighty years43 he as"ed. 3That would be by the 8artian calendar, right43 3Aight. %bout a hundred and fifty years by the .est,em calendar. The limitation to our ability to eliminate disease entirely lies within the brain. .e can fi& 'ust about everything that could go wrong with a person!s body but the brain is different.3 3That!s what (aren said about the revival process,3 he said. 3She should "now,3 8ende$ agreed. 3The problem is that we still have no idea 'ust how the brain stores memories, thoughts, information, and all of the other millions of things it does. .hat seems to happen at about seventy+five years of age or so is the brain simply gets too full. It loses the ability to store any more information and therefore starts purging some things. The more intelligent a person is, the sooner this process occurs. Senility sets in and #uic"ly becomes worse, month by month until the point is reached where the autonomic functions start to go.3 3It!s li"e %l$heimer!s disease,3 (en said. 32&actly,3 8ende$ told him. 3That is basically what the disease "nown as %l$heimer!s was bac" in your day. It struc" your people earlier than it does ours because the factor of a healthy body and support system was not there in your day. The aging of the organs that supply the brain seems to have a lot to do with the onset of the process. .e have managed to push the

disease bac" considerably but not eliminate it entirely.3 ,e brightened a little. 3;ut we!re wor"ing on it. (aren is heavily involved in the research towards those ends. If she and her team can crac" the code by which the brain stores information, we can manipulate it and prevent the onset of senility. ,uman beings will become almost immortal.3 3.ow,3 he said, sha"ing his head a little in awe. ,e was now living in a world where he could e&pect to be alive for another F/0 years or so. ,e wasn!t really sure how to feel about that. The loss of %nnie was still heavy on his heart and he wasn!t sure that he really wanted to go that long without seeing her again. ,e had never been a particularly religious man in his old life but a big part of him did believe that there was something after death, some place in which loved ones would meet again. ,adn!t he told his partner that 'ust after he!d been shot4

3%re you sure it!s o"ay to go out in public dressed li"e this43 (en as"ed (aren doubtfully as he modeled the gray shorts and brief half+shirt she had dug up for him. The shorts were very high upon his thighs, the hem only inches below his crotch. There was no underwear of any "ind to go with them. :i"e a swimsuit from his day, the underwear was included as a portion of the shorts. 3*f course it!s o"ay,3 (aren said, amused by his discomfort. 3This is what everyone wears on 8ars.3 She tossed him a pair of moccasin type shoes. 3,ere, these go with it.3 32veryone wears this43 he as"ed in disbelief. 3%re you telling me that lawyers, businessmen, accountants, and people going out to eat in fancy restaurants wear little shorts and a half+shirt43 3.ell,3 she said, 3here on 8ars we don!t have very many lawyers and we have even fewer businessmen and accountants, but, yes, they wear e&actly what you are wearing to their offices

and when they meet with their clients. This is how we dress here. .hy would we dress any different4 The temperature is always // degrees. It never changes, it never rains, and there!s never any wind. *f course those who wor" in the agricultural greenhouses dress in long pants and longer shirts, and the police officers wear body armor and guns, and the soldiers wear biosuits when they have to go outside into the environment, but those of us who stay in prefer to be comfortable.3 3There are no business suits or anything li"e that4 9o special dressing up for certain occasions43 he as"ed. 3,ow about 'ob interviews43 39ope,3 she said. 3Such trappings were part of the .est,em system of elitism. .hether it was conscious or unconscious, the manner in which a person dressed evolved into a status symbol, a reminder that some people thought themselves better than others because of their profession or their earnings.3 3%nd having everybody dress li"e -hippendale dancers and hoo"ers has eliminated that43 She scratched her head a little. 3.ell,3 she said, 3I!m not #uite sure what a -hippendale dancer is and we don!t refer to prostitutes as hoo"ers anymore, but no, the manner of dress has not eliminated those problems. ress differences were only a symptom of a much larger class struggle, a struggle we have tried to ta"e care of in many other ways. .e 8artians believe that dress should be for comfort and so we dress comfortably. These shorts and cotton shirts are comfortable for our controlled environment and do not imply any sort of superiority to others.3 3.ell why isn!t everybody na"ed then43 he as"ed. 3.ouldn!t nudity be even more comfortable than wearing anything at all43 3There are some parts of our planet where nudity is practiced in public,3 she said. 32den is a much more liberal city than 9ew

Pittsburgh and there are large sections where nudism is acceptable. %s for the rest of us, I would put it down to several factors. In the first place, I won!t deny that some habits from our early history die hard. .e have not eliminated all of the problems of .est,em life, not by a long shot. .e still have crime here on 8ars and we still have greed to a certain degree and we still have people who thin" only of themselves and how they can manipulate our system to their best advantage at the e&pense of others. .e also still have some aspect of modesty in e&posing our breasts and genitals to others. %nother factor in dressing li"e this is se&ual in nature.3 3Se&ual,3 he said slowly, finding himself acutely embarrassed to be discussing se& with his granddaughter. 3*ur se&ual mores are #uite different than what you are used to,3 she e&plained to him. 3.e do not treat the act of intercourse and the study of se&uality with the same... oh... s#ueamishness that those from your century treated it with. ;ut all the same, the idea of e&posing one!s genitals to everyone is somewhat frowned upon, at least in the casual pubic setting. It is believed that these e&posures should be reserved only for those whom we elect to have se&ual relations with. It maintains a sense of mystery and e&clusiveness to the act. )or that reason we "eep them covered up in public.3 3I uh...3 he stammered, his face blushing, sorry that he had brought this up in the first place. ,e decided to change the sub'ect. 3.hy don!t we go for that wal" now, shall we43 She laughed, patting him on the bac". 3Sorry to ma"e you blush, 1ramps,3 she told him. 3;ut you!ll see what I mean when you get out there.3 3%nd please,3 he pleaded, 3don!t call me !1ramps. I!m only CC years old for god!s sa"e. That!s much too young to be called gramps. 2specially by a woman who is only a few years younger than I am.3

3*"ay, (en,3 she corrected. 3.hatever you want. That!s the way we li"e it here. ;ut I would stop calling yourself CC years old if I were you. =ou might as well start getting used to our calendar. ,ere you are about... well... let me as" the computer. I!m horrible at doing math in my head.3 She loo"ed up at the ceiling to as" but (en stopped her. 3 o you mind,3 he as"ed a little hesitantly, 3if I do that43 3=ou mean as" the computer43 she said. 3=es,3 he said, smiling a little sheepishly. 3I!ve never tal"ed to a computer before.3 She shrugged. 3(ic" your ass,3 she told him. 3.hat43 he as"ed, confused. 3It means go ahead,3 she clarified. 3*h,3 he said, loo"ing up at the ceiling. ,e too" a deep breath and said7 3-omputer43 9othing happened. 3.hat!s wrong43 he as"ed her. 3.hy didn!t it answer me43 3;ecause you didn!t as" it anything,3 she said. 3Spea"ing the word !computer! activates the voice recognition system for the room terminal but you have to follow it up with something. %fter you say the word, you then 'ust go ahead with your command.3 3*h,3 he said, nodding, 3I see.3 ,e tried again. 3-omputer, how old am I on the 8artian system of measurement43 3Please specify who you are and what your current age is,3 the computer!s voice replied. 3I do not have your voice print in my data ban"s and therefore I!m not down with your identity.3

,e turned to (aren. 3It!s not down with me,3 he said, causing both of them to giggle a little. 3Tell it your name and how many earth years you have been alive,3 she suggested, 3and then as" it to convert that to the 8artian calendar.3 3Aight,3 he said, loo"ing up at the ceiling again. 3-omputer, I am (en )ra$ier. I am CC years old under the earth system of measurement. ,ow old does that ma"e me in the 8artian system43 3=ou are F?.00? 8artian years old,3 it instantly replied, 3assuming of course, that today is your birthday. %nd I have logged your voice print for future recall.3 3Than" you,3 he said, pleased at the result. *f course it wasn!t his birthday but that ballpar" figure was close enough for his purposes. 3)uc"in! aye,3 the computer shot bac" at him. 3So I!m seventeen and a half,3 he said to (aren. 3%ma$ing. I remember thin"ing that I!d "ill to be seventeen again a time or two. 1uess I got my wish, huh43 3In a manner of spea"ing,3 she said. 3;y the way,3 he in#uired, 3why do we loo" at the ceiling when we tal" to the computer4 o we have to do that43 She began to laugh, though seemingly not at him. 3.hat43 he as"ed. 3Sorry,3 she said, still chuc"ling. 3It!s 'ust one of those cultural things people do, something stand+up comedians li"e to ma"e fun of. There!s no real reason to loo" up at the ceiling when you tal" to a computer. It can hear you perfectly no matter how

#uietly you spea" or where you happen to be loo"ing. ;ut in most buildings, in most rooms, the microphone is installed in the ceiling. .e humans have an unbrea"able desire to loo" at whomever we!re tal"ing to.3 3So it!s a human nature thing,3 he said. 32&actly. 1ood old human nature. .here would we be without it43 3.here indeed43 he as"ed. 3-ome on,3 she bec"oned, heading for the door. 3:et!s go show you around.3 ,e hesitated a little. 3%re there going to be a bunch of people out there staring at me and as"ing me a bunch of #uestions about what its li"e to come bac" from the dead43 39o,3 she said firmly. 3;elieve it or not, not a lot of people even "now what the circumstances behind your presence here is. This is a busy hospital and 8artians tend to mind their own business about most things. =ou!ll 'ust be another person in the halls, I promise.3 3So there!s no media or reporters or curious wor"ers out there then43 he as"ed, not #uite sure whether to believe that or not. 39ot a single one,3 she assured him. 3%re you ready43 3I guess so,3 he said, stepping towards her. The door opened up when she approached it, once again showing him the tiled hallway beyond. This time however, he was able to wal" through the door and see the whole thing. In a way it was a bit anti+climatic. The hallway stretched off in both direction, with doors spaced every ten feet or so. 2ach door had a number printed in blac" upon it. %t one end of the hall was a

perfectly normal loo"ing nurse!s station staffed by a young dar" s"inned woman who was spea"ing softly towards a computer terminal before her. They wal"ed that way, their moccasins s#uea"ing softly upon the floor. The young woman loo"ed up as they approached. 3,ow they hangin! today, (aren43 she as"ed, giving a friendly smile. 3They!re hangin! in there,3 (aren returned. 3(en, this is :oretta, one of the nurses on this floor. If you need anything when I!m not here she!ll be happy to help you. %ll you have to do is as" the computer to alert her or push the button on the rail of your bed.3 3*"ay,3 (en said shyly, casting his eyes downward as she smiled at him. ,e still could not believe he was wal"ing around in a public place dressed in brief shorts and a half+shirt. 3Jeal will be your night shift nurse,3 :oretta said. 3She comes on at F80E and wor"s until 0E00. It!s nice to see you up and around so soon.3 3Than" you,3 he said, casting a suspicious loo" at (aren. 3:oretta is your nurse,3 she said, catching the meaning of his glare. 3She has to "now what your condition is.3 3Bh huh,3 he mumbled. 3.e!re gonna go ta"e a little wal", :oretta,3 (aren told her. 3.e shouldn!t be too long.3 3*"ay,3 she returned. 3I!ll see if I can arrange for a shower and a rubdown when you get bac". ,ow does that sound43 3Bh... fine,3 he said. 35ery good.3

.ith that, (aren continued down the hallway. (en hesitated for the briefest moment and then followed. The hallway was not perfectly straight, instead gently curving inward, as if the building was cylindrical. There were no windows to the outside. Several times they passed other people who were shuffling from one place to another. (en was comforted by the fact that all of them, males and females ali"e, were dressed almost e&actly the same as he was. 2very thirty feet or so along the walls a yellow warning sign was posted stating ;:%ST **A + ST%9 -:2%A .,29 %:%A8 S*B9 S. In the floor and ceiling near each of these signs was a groove about two inches wide that stretched from wall to wall. The floor groove was outlined by bright yellow lines on either side. 3=ou!ll get used to seeing those real #uic",3 (aren told him when she noticed his interest in them. 3They!re everywhere on 8ars. 2very ten meters in buildings constructed since the revolution, every twenty in buildings built before it. =ou!ll also find them every thirty meters on every street. If there is ever a decompression problem in the section you!re in, a very distinctive alarm will sound and arrows will flash on the ground pointing you out of the affected area if that is still possible.3 3.hat if it!s not possible43 he as"ed. 3If the lea" is severe,3 she said, 3the doors will slam shut instantly and seal off the section before other areas lose compression as well.3 3%nd if I!m still inside43 he wanted to "now. 3 o o&ygen mas"s drop down or anything li"e that43 39o,3 she said pointedly. 3If you are in an area that loses compression, you will die whether you have supplemental o&ygen or not. The outside atmospheric pressure is so low that your body will not be able to tolerate it.3

3,ow nice,3 he said, feeling claustrophobia creeping through him as he imagined dying in such a way. It occurred to him for the first time that he was now living someplace man was not meant to live in. 3%nd what if I happen to be going through the door when it shuts43 3It will sever anything in its path,3 she told him. 3They are designed to create a seal no matter what.3 She smiled a little, trying to ma"e light of this. 3Just try to ma"e sure your torso is through. If your legs get cut off we can clone you some new ones.3 3-hrist,3 he mumbled. 3=ou people have learned to live with the fact that a simple hole in the ceiling will "ill you all43 She shrugged. 3*ur engineers, even before the revolution, were #uite fanatical on the sub'ect of safety,3 she told him. 3In all of 8artian history the only time any sort of decompressions occurred was during the Jupiter .ar about ten years before our revolutionary war. Those came as a result of deliberate laser shots fired from enemy attac" craft and even then the blast doors wor"ed e&actly as they were supposed to.3 3;ut what if the power goes out and your o&ygen e&tractor things stop wor"ing43 3The power does not go out here,3 she said confidently. 32very system that runs our cities has multiple built+in redundancies. ;oth the artificial gravity and the power generators run off of a series of fusion generators that are fully automatic. If everyone died right now for some other reason, those generators would continue to run on their own until their fuel was e&hausted. That is at least ten years, maybe more, depending upon when it was loaded.3 ,e shoo" his head, not very much comforted. 3=ou!re completely dependent upon technology,3 he said. 3Bnli"e on 2arth, your people cannot continue to live without it. If there

were a collapse of civili$ation for whatever reason, everyone would die here. It wouldn!t be possible for anyone to survive.3 She did not seem terribly fa$ed by this argument. 3.ell, we!ll 'ust have to ma"e sure our civili$ation doesn!t collapse now, won!t we43 Shortly they came to a ban" of five elevators. (aren touched her finger to a small panel, causing it to light up. % display on a small screen 'ust above this showed the current location of the various cars. (en loo"ed at this display carefully for a moment and wondered if he was reading it correctly. 3%re there really FF8 stories to the building we!re in43 he as"ed carefully. 3=es,3 she said. 3This building encompasses not only the .hiting 8edical -enter but the entire university campus as well, including the dormitories. There are more than two million cubic meters of floor space.3 3.ow,3 (en said, impressed. 3That!s an awfully big building.3 39ot really,3 (aren replied. 3,ere on 8ars we tend to ta"e advantage of vertical space instead of sprawling out hori$ontally. ,igh rise buildings are the staples of our life. There are buildings here in 9ew Pittsburgh that are more than two hundred stories tall. The old %gricorp building in 2den is /?8 stories tall. It used to be the head#uarters of the most powerful of the corporations that ruled us. 9ow it!s an upper+ end housing comple&.3 3/?8 stories43 he said, trying to imagine a building that tall. 3That!s... uh...3 3Just over a "ilometer,3 she said. 3I!ve been up to the observation platform on top a few times. The view is #uite impressive from up there.3 .hile he was pondering the unsettling thought of a pressuri$ed

building that stood more than a half a mile high, the doors of one of the elevators suddenly slid open revealing an eight foot by eight foot compartment. Ten or twelve people, all of them dressed in shorts and s"impy shirts, were inside. Some of them were chatting amongst themselves, all in the trashy accent (en was starting to become accustomed to. 9one of them paid the least bit of attention to the two new passengers. (aren and (en stepped inside and the doors slid shut behind them. %nother display above the doors showed the floors that had been chosen as stops and the current floor that the elevator was on. It stood at CC when they got in. 3Serenity level,3 (aren said and a pleasant, female computer voice replied7 3fuc"in! aye.3 % moment later the numeric display rapidly began to move upward, almost fast enough to blur the numbers. This was somewhat dis#uieting to (en not so much because of the speed with which they were ascending but because he could not sense the least bit of motion. It was li"e they were standing still. 9obody, however, seemed to find this unusual or alarming. 3Is this thing bro"en43 he whispered to (aren. 3;ro"en43 she said, ta"ing a glance at the display. 39o, I don!t thin" so. .hy43 ,e loo"ed at her as if she were daft. 3.e!re not moving,3 he said. 3*h,3 she said, smiling in amusement. 3*nce again I forgot that you!re not familiar with a lot of our amenities. .e actually are moving, and very rapidly, but you can!t feel it. *ne of the effects of the artificial gravity field is inertial dampening. =ou don!t feel the acceleration or deceleration because the field ma"es you a part of the structure. .hen the elevator is moved, you move with it. .hen it stops, you stop with it. %ll of your body parts, your cells, your internal organs, your very molecules and atoms

are all "ept in tune with the device, in motion at the e&act same rate. In a way it!s "ind of li"e you!re staying in one place and the rest of the building is moving downward.3 %s if to lend credence to this e&planation, the numbers came to a very sudden halt on ED and the doors slid open, revealing what was #uite obviously a different floor of the building. This seemed to be part of the university portion. =oung people milled about, moving from place to place before them. Signs on the wall directed people to )I92 %ATS which was to the left or T,2%T2A STB I2S which was to the right. Several of the occupants e&ited the elevator and 'oined the throngs. The doors slid shut once again and the numbers began to blur upward once more, coming to another rapid halt at ?/. 3%ma$ing,3 (en said, watching this. 3So this elevator can come to an instant halt from full speed without anyone even noticing.3 3Aight,3 she told him. 3The same inertial damping system is in all of our public transportation trains, our inter+city trains, and most spacecraft. It can be a little disorienting on the trains and the orbital craft though. If you!re loo"ing out a window while your moving, your eyes tell you that you!re in motion but your inner ear tells you that you are not. Those two parts of the body do not li"e to be in conflict with each other. It creates a reverse motion sic"ness to those who are susceptible to it.3 They made three more stops, at ?0, 8E, and ID, disgorging the other passengers one by one until (aren and (en were the only two remaining. 3.here are we going43 (en as"ed as the numbers began to blur upward again. 3There!s a picnic area and observation center on the roof,3 she answered. 3It!s called the serenity level because the students go there to study. I thought maybe you!d li"e to ta"e a loo" around

your new planet.3 3*h, uh sure,3 he said with a distinct lac" of enthusiasm. Though he was a pilot, or had been anyway, he was nevertheless an&ious about standing atop a pressuri$ed s"yscraper on a hostile planet. ,e was dealing with principals of engineering he did not understand. :i"e most pilots he did not en'oy trusting his fate at heights to the hands of others. 3It!s not #uite the view from atop the %gricorp building,3 (aren told him, sensing his nervousness a little, 3but it!s still pretty ran"in!. This is a newer building and, as such, its not completely surrounded by other high+rises yet. =ou can see some of the landscape around us as well as the main part of the city.3 The car came to another of its unfelt stops at FF8 and the doors slid open. (en had not been #uite sure what to e&pect on the 3serenity level3 but he was surprised to see lush grass and a duc" pond before him. The entire top of the building had been made into an actual par". Plastic picnic tables surrounded the pond and a cement path led around the perimeter of it as well as branching off in several alternate directions. %t many of the tables people were sitting and tal"ing to each other or loo"ing at small plastic devices that loo"ed li"e palm computers. Several others were lying or sitting on the grass itself or on benches near the pond, feeding the duc"s that swam and played within it. The sight of the par" however, as ma'estic as it was, captured (en!s attention for less than two seconds before it was drawn to what lay beyond it. The roof of the building was completely enclosed on all sides and above by clear glass that allowed him to loo" in all directions at his surroundings. ,e was rendered speechless by what he saw, his mouth dropping open as if on hinges. If he had needed any proof he was really on 8ars, he now had it. *n the other side of the glass the sun was shining, but not as

brightly as he was accustomed to. It hung about midway in the s"y directly in front of him, its circumference significantly smaller than it appeared on 2arth. =ou could stare at this sun without having to loo" away. The s"y, instead of the blue he was used to, was instead light pin" in color and completely cloudless. In the direction he was loo"ing in he could see a series of rolling red hills that stretched off to the hori$on6 a hori$on that was much closer than it was on his home planet. ust blew through the air on the tops of those hills, not #uite thic" enough to hamper visuali$ation but enough for him to see hundreds of dust devils and drifts in motion. It was a strangely beautiful, forbidding+loo"ing landscape. 3.hat do you thin"43 (aren said, ta"ing his hand in hers and pulling him from the elevator. 3Jesus,3 he muttered, in awe as his eyes continued to ta"e everything in. *nce away from the elevator housing the view opened up and became more panoramic. ,e turned slowly, seeing what else there was to see. The wild, sterile wasteland in front of him was sharply contrasted by the sight of the city that rose from it. *nce, when he was in the army, (en had made a trip to 9ew =or" -ity!s 8anhattan Island. The sight of all of those s"yscrapers stretching into the s"y had been very impressive, even awe+inspiring. That view had nothing on the view of 9ew Pittsburgh. 9ew =or"!s famous s"yline would loo" li"e the crude constructions of a child in comparison. The buildings of the 8artian city were gleaming steel and glass behemoths that towered above them, bloc"ing out everything with their mass. They were crowded close together, structures of all shapes and si$es, some triangular, some rectangular, some combinations of both, most utili$ing principals of architecture that would have been unimagined on 2arth. The only thing they all had in common was their height. 9ot a single one, and there were literally thousands in view, seemed to be less than the height of -hicago!s Sears tower or San )rancisco!s Trans%merica

building. 8ost were hundreds of feet taller. The sunlight reflected off of the windows ma"ing them shine li"e multicolored 'ewels against the s"y. 3Pretty, isn!t it43 (aren as"ed. 3*f course 2den and Proctor are larger and newer cities and their s"ylines are much more impressive to see, but I!ve always been down with this view here. This is our capital after all, and our oldest city. It!s also the city I was born and raised in. That ma"es it "ind of special to me.3 3,ow many people live here43 (en as"ed, loo"ing from place to place, trying to ta"e everything in at once. 3%bout nine million,3 she said. 3.e!re the third largest of the twelve terrestrial cities. 2den has si&teen million and Proctor has about twelve million.3 3I had no idea it would be so big,3 he said, sha"ing his head a little. 3I thought that... well... that there would be a little dome or something with a couple of thousand people living it. 9ine million all live right there43 3%nd getting bigger every year,3 she said, smiling warmly. 3That!s what we get for repealing the birthing restrictions.3 ,e began to wal" closer to the edge of the building that faced the city, wal"ing along the cement path past the pond, his nervousness, his grief forgotten, overridden by childli"e wonder. % pair of duc"s came trotting over to him, obviously hoping for a handout of some "ind. .hen he failed to offer anything they s#uaw"ed angrily at him and retreated bac" to the water. ,e ignored them, hardly even noticing the entire episode. (aren trailed along behind him, watching. The glass that made up the enclosure was not li"e any sort of glass he had ever seen before. %s he touched it the sensation was of a rubbery substance, only without the give of rubber. ,is fingers left no prints upon it. *utside he could now see far below, where the street level was. % series of straight and curving avenues led away from the building they were in and

towards various points in the main collection of buildings in the city itself. 2ach street, as (aren had mentioned earlier, was enclosed with the same sort of glass that made up the wall before him. Through this layer of glass he could ma"e out the tiny figures of people wal"ing to and fro on the streets, darting in and out of other buildings, going about their 8artian lives. %top of many of the streets, built upon the glass roof itself, were blac", steel lines he finally identified as train trac"s when he saw some of the trains moving along them. These trains moved rapidly, at least D0 mph, and would then come to an abrupt halt ne&t to glass enclosed stations that were also above the street level. They would then rapidly accelerate again, traveling to the ne&t station along the line. 3There are twelve cities li"e this on 8ars43 he as"ed. 3Twelve43 3Twelve on the surface,3 she said, 3plus Triad, the orbiting city. In all, our planetary population is almost I0 million people.3 3I0 million,3 he said, pondering that for a moment as he continued to watch the sights below him. 3That!s a lot of 8artians. ,ow do you feed everybody4 =ou said something about agricultural fields earlier. o you grow enough to feed the whole planet or do you have to buy food from 2arth43 39o, we don!t have to buy food from 2arth,3 she told him. 3Kuite the contrary in fact. *ur biggest planetary industries are agriculture and food production. .e feed not only ourselves but more than si&ty percent of 2arth and the 2arth colonies as well. 2ast,em and .est,em would both suffer from biblical scale famines, not to mention complete economic collapse, if not for our agriculture.3 3 o you mean,3 he said, 3that you grow enough food on this planet to feed billions of people43 3=es we do,3 she told him. 3*f our twelve terrestrial cities, eight of them are located on the e#uator. These $ero latitude cities,

li"e 2den, are surrounded by millions of s#uare "ilometers of greenhouses. They stretch from hori$on to hori$on. .e grow everything from corn to rice to alfalfa to soybeans. .e have cattle gra$ing greenhouses and greenhouses full of apple trees. If it!s food, we grow it here. That was what made our planet so valuable to .est,em before the revolution.3 3;ut how do you grow food on 8ars43 he as"ed. 3There!s no water here, and no air.3 3That!s where you!re wrong,3 she told him. 3.e have nearly limitless water in huge a#uifers 'ust beneath the surface. %ll we have to do is tap them, filter out a few impurities, and pump the water where we want it. %s for air, we!ve already discussed how we supply ourselves with breathable air. .e use o&ygen and nitrogen e&tractors. *ur soil has a very high iron content which, when a few other essential nutrients are mi&ed in, is ideal for growing 'ust about anything. The conditions within the greenhouses can be ad'usted to the perfect temperature and humidity for whatever the particular crop happens to be. ,ere on 8ars we can grow anything, all year around, without worrying about weather or bugs. *ur average yearly tonnage of food e&ports, now this is 'ust e&ports, it doesn!t include the food we consume ourselves, is more than five billion tons.3 (en didn!t "now whether to be impressed by that number or not + he had no basis for comparison or perspective + but he was pretty sure she wouldn!t have spo"en the number in that awe+ inspiring tone if it wasn!t formidable. 3So all those profits the .est,em corporations used to get from producing this food,3 he said, 3are now yours to "eep, right4 Is that what your revolution was about4 Instead of them using you to ma"e money, you too" over and sell the stuff to them43 She gave a croo"ed smile. 39ot really,3 she said. 3.e trade our agriculture to them for a few items that we do not or can not produce here. -offee is one thing that doesn!t seem to grow very well on 8ars, no matter what we do. It 'ust comes out tasting

li"e shit. Tobacco is another thing. 2arth is also the best source of wine and other alcoholic beverages. .e don!t have very many breweries or distilleries. They send us shiploads of that in e&change for the foodstuffs we ship them. Their governments and companies pretend it!s a fair trade even though we e&port a thousand times more than we import.3 (en was confused. 3 o you mean that they don!t give you any money for your products4 They 'ust give you a few loads of coffee, boo$e, and cigarettes and you call it even43 3=ou!re down with it,3 she said. 3.e!re not on the same monetary system as they are anyway. This "eeps our economy from being tied in any way to theirs.3 39ow wait a minute,3 he said, having a lot of trouble with this concept. Though he was not an accountant or a financial analyst by any means, he was smart enough to reali$e that what she was saying seemed to go against every principal of economics he had ever heard of. 3,ow do you pay all of those wor"ers who produce all of this food if you don!t get any money for it4 =ou are supplying a product for free. .ho pays for the water, the labor costs, the fertili$er, the fuel for the ships that transport it43 3The 8artian 1overnment,3 she told him. 3*ur agricultural industry, li"e most of our other essential industries, is nationali$ed. The fertili$er and the fuel for the ships and the water are also products of nationali$ation. The wor"ers who produce all of these products are paid in 8artian credits, the amount depending upon the 'ob they do.3 ,e loo"ed at her with suspicion and more than a little distaste. 3=ou!re tal"ing about communism,3 he accused. She shrugged a little. 3*ur system of government has many elements of communism in it, that is true, but it also has many elements of democracy and capitalism as well. I thin" labeling it

communism or socialism is a bit simplistic. .e have nationali$ed most industries, all those essential to our prosperity, but we also encourage others to start new industries based upon lu&ury items and non+essentials. .e also have an elected upper government house instead of a party system. 8ost important of all, corporations or conglomerates of any "ind are absolutely against the law.3 3;ut nationalism of industries doesn!t wor",3 he insisted stubbornly. 3That was proven with Aussia and -uba and 2astern 2urope bac" in my day. Their economies and their governments collapsed. They were rife with rebellions and coups and blac" mar"ets. =ou can!t run an economy that way.3 3Those systems collapsed,3 she retorted, 3because they were flawed and because they had their economies tied to capitalistic systems. Just because a few countries tried to nationali$e and failed, you cannot conclude the entire concept is in error. In the first place those systems contained loopholes in which a few were able to ac#uire great power over others and abuse it. *n 8ars we have written our constitution in such a way so that no individuals or groups of individuals are able to empower themselves in that way. .e have many chec"s and balances that insure that the common people, that humanity as a whole, are the ones to benefit from any advances.3 3;ut...3 he started, unable to accept that such a government could wor". 3:oo" out there,3 (aren insisted, pointing out the window at the high+rise buildings before them. 3 oes that loo" li"e our system is not wor"ing4 .e have been independent and operating under this system for /F years. That is D0 of your years. Since we initiated it our standard of living has improved greatly. 2ven the poorest of 8artians now live in ab'ect lu&ury, their every basic need ta"en care of. *ur education system is of a caliber that could have only been dreamed of before the revolution. 2very 8artian now has a constitutional right to attend college free.

%bsolutely and completely free, do you understand that4 %ctually it!s more than free6 you are paid to attend. o you see all of these people studying up here4 o you see them43 She waved her hands at the students that were utili$ing the par". 3=es,3 he answered slowly. 3This is one of the top rated universities on the planet. 2ach and every one of these students, no matter who they are, no matter what "ind of family they came from, no matter what their relatives did for a living, is being paid two hundred credits a month for attending here. That is two hundred credits they can use for anything they wish. They don!t have to spend it on housing because every 8artian citi$en is entitled to free housing. They don!t have to spend it on food because every 8artian citi$en is entitled to a wee"ly allotment of food. They don!t have to spend it on health care insurance because every citi$en is entitled to free health care. It is our education system we value most. %s a result of this system you say cannot wor", greater than eighty percent of the adults in my age range on this planet have a bachelors degree at worst. 8ore than forty percent of them have a master!s degree or better. .e have become, in /F short years, the most educated people in the whole of human history.3 (en shoo" his head in bewilderment. 3I was 'ust brought up to believe that a system li"e that is impossible. =ou!re tal"ing about a Btopian society. There is no such thing as that. ,ow can it wor"4 ,ow can you "eep human nature and the instinct to loo" out for yourself first from screwing everything up43 3.ith common sense and lots of chec"s and balances,3 she told him. 3I!m not saying we!re perfect, not by any means. .e still have our share of problems and our share of old pre+ Aevolutionary ideals floating around. ;ut we!re much better off than any society has ever been before. *ur system wor"s, (en. It really does. =ou 'ust don!t want to believe it does because your society always told you life is not fair and complete

happiness is not possible. Isn!t that what they always told you43 3=es,3 he said. 3That was a generally accepted fact. %nd it was true. :ife was not fair.3 3 id it ever occur to you,3 she as"ed, 3that they only told people things li"e that so they would accept it, so they would not try to change the system and come up with something that was fair4 ;ecause when you thin" about it, who was life not fair to4 .as it not fair to you or was it not fair to the leaders and the corporations43 3.ell... it wasn!t fair to me,3 he said. 32&actly,3 she said. 3It wasn!t fair to you. The advantages went to those who had the money and the power. %nd if you were to try and ta"e some of those advantages, some of that fairness, and shift it over to your side, that would necessarily ta"e some of it away from their side. They didn!t want that. So they told you 'ust to accept the fact that life wasn!t fair. They told you that in a thousand different ways each and every day from the time you were born throughout your entire life until you and everyone li"e you became convinced that this was an indisputable fact of life, an unbrea"able natural law. It carried the same weight as a law of physics. Parents taught this concept to their children, they believed it so much. Teachers taught it to their students. :ife is not fair and we!ll 'ust have to live with that and do the best that we can with the crumbs we!ve been given. Isn!t that how it was43 3=es,3 (en said, his eyes widening. She was right. That was how it was. 3;ut did you ever stop to thin", even for a moment, even 'ust fleetingly, why life had to be unfair4 There really are no natural laws that say this has to be so. )airness and unfairness is a human state of mind and their e&ecutions are products of human society. .hy shouldn!t life be fair4 .hy couldn!t it43

(en shoo" his head, speechless once again as he considered her words. This idea had never occurred to him before. It was #uite a simple concept, but it had never crossed his mind. .hy couldn!t life be fair4 .hy4 3,ere,3 (aren told him, 3life is fair. %t least it!s as fair as we can possibly ma"e it, for everyone. )rom the lowliest of the unemployed class to our 1overnor herself, all of us are treated the same and measured with the same laser calibrator. 9o one is considered inherently better than anyone else and no one is given an uneven advantage in our society because of who they are or how many credits they have. 9ow I!m not saying we!re all e#ual in stature. 9ot at all. % doctor still ma"es more money and is able to afford nicer things than the person who pic"s up the garbage. %fter all, a doctor is better educated and has much more responsibility. .hy shouldn!t they get paid more4 ;ut that!s fair, isn!t it4 .e still have rich parts of town and poor parts of town. The doctors live in the upper floors of the housing buildings and have more s#uare meters of living space than the garbage collectors. They have better views and their neighbors tend to be other professionals. ;ut that!s fair too, isn!t it4 The garbage collectors are doing their 'ob by choice, "nowing what they will ma"e before they get into it. They chose not to pursue the educational opportunities our system offers and as a result, they are confined to a certain income and lifestyle. If they wish to change this, the universities are still there and there is still a place for them in them.3 3=ou certainly sound convincing enough,3 (en said hesitantly, his mind pondering what she had said. -ould it be true4 -ould these 8artians, who were descended from the welfare trash he used to police, have really come up with a society that was fair4 It 'ust didn!t seem possible. 3;ut again, I!ve heard all this before. *ur own eclaration of Independence swore that all men were created e#ual but in the world I lived in, that was far from evident.3 3 on!t you see, (en,3 she e&plained, 3that it!s those very

contradictions, that very abuse of power that led to the system that we are under now. .est,em was nothing more than a larger version of the Bnited States with more people to e&ploit and discriminate against. It was ruled by the same government under the same constitution6 a constitution that favored the wealthy. *ur constitution was developed and written by the people who had received the short end of that stic" for hundreds of years. It was their intent that everything be fair for everyone. .e have made it impossible for a ruling class or a wealthy elite class to even e&ist.3 3;ut you said that doctors and other educated people ma"e more than the common garbage collectors. oesn!t that ma"e you an elite class43 39o,3 she insisted. 3That is 'ust a matter of an educated professional ma"ing more than a blue collar wor"er. % garbage collector ma"es about four thousand credits a year. This money is his or hers to spend as they please. 9ow everyone is entitled to free housing so this garbage collector can live in the public housing buildings if he wishes but more than li"ely he is going to use some of that money to live in a little nicer of a place with more room. ,e!ll also use some of it to buy upgraded groceries that are of better #uality and #uantity than the monthly allotment. ,e!ll also probably save some of it so he can go on a vacation a couple of times a year. These credits allow our garbage collector to live nicely in the middle class. 39ow me on the other hand, I am a neurological specialist who spent more than seven years in college, medical school, and residency. %s such, I am entitled to a salary of ten thousand credits a year. This means I can live in some of the nicest housing we have available and can go on vacation maybe four times a year. I can also afford the best food and drin"s when I order my groceries. I am a member of the upper class and I!m #uite proud of it. I!ve earned my salary and I deserve every credit of it.3

(en shoo" his head a little. 3If you!re trying to convince me that there is no elite class,3 he said, 3you!re not ma"ing a very persuasive argument.3 3*h, but I am,3 she begged to differ. 3I am among the highest paid people on this planet. There are very few who ma"e more than I do. That is my point. I ma"e ten thousand a year and the garbage collector ma"es four. That is only a si& thousand credit difference. True, I can buy a lot more and live a lot nicer with those e&tra si& thousand credits, but the difference is not really very staggering. It is, in fact, about the same difference, when ad'usted, between a doctor and a garbage collector in your world. .hat is lac"ing in our society however, is a class of people or groups of people who are above me and my class in stature. .e have no captains of industry, no corporate managers, no real estate developers, no entities of any "ind who ma"e enough money to be able to influence politicians and pervert our democracy for their own purposes. There are no %gricorp or 8ar"s )ood Products corporations who finance elections and own elected officials, getting them to pass laws that benefit them and fuc" over the common fol"s. 9obody ma"es enough money to subvert the government so the government stays reasonably pure and dedicated to its purpose, which is to serve human"ind and benefit the species.3 3So nobody bribes your politicians43 he as"ed. 39obody can,3 she said. 3There is no point in even trying it. *ur law is very severe on the sub'ect of a government official ta"ing a bribe of any "ind, whether you call it a campaign contribution, a gift, or anything else. .hile in the service of the government a person!s financial business is e&amined constantly with severe scrutiny. If they ta"e money or gifts from anybody during their tenure or during an election period, they are sub'ect to spending three years in prison doing hard labor and lifelong revocation of their right to serve. There simply isn!t anybody or any group of anybody!s who can offer enough money to ma"e such a ris" worthwhile.3

,e let his eyes return to the s"yline out the window, home to nine million 8artians. %ccording to his granddaughter, they were all living in relative harmony with each other, all wor"ing towards the betterment of life everywhere. She truly seemed to believe what she was saying and she truly seemed to be an intelligent and thoughtful person. So what did that mean4 It meant that she was either the victim of a vast and comple& society+wide thought control apparatus G"ind of li"e, he reluctantly ac"nowledged, the 3life isn!t fair3 attitude that he was raised withH or... or things really were ideal here. 8aybe this really was a perfect world.

The so+called roach pit was actually a large cafeteria room full of long tables and benches, all constructed of plastic. The room was about half full of a mi&ture of students and faculty + it was difficult to tell the difference between them they were all so youthful loo"ing +scattered in loose groups at the tables. 8ost were eating out of plastic trays and sipping from plastic cups. 8any had those palm si$ed computers (en had noted earlier open before them. (aren led him to the front of the room where a small line had formed before a group of plastic doors installed in the wall ne&t to a stainless steel shelf. In the wall ne&t to these doors were computer screens about a foot s#uare that people were touching with their fingers. (en watched, fascinated, as they then pulled trays of food from the doors. 3=ou ma"e your choice from the screen there,3 (aren e&plained when they reached the front of the line. 3Simply touch the screen ne&t to the entr>e, side+dishes, and drin" that you want and the cafeteria machinery will assemble it for you on the other side of the door.3 39o shit43 he as"ed, peering at the screen. 39o shit,3 she confirmed, smiling as she watched him.

It was li"e loo"ing at a menu from a 8e&ican restaurant he saw as he e&amined the choices. Tacos, burritos, enchiladas, a few things that he had never heard of but with a distinctly ,ispanic sound to them. 3:oo"s li"e its :atin cuisine day today,3 (aren told him as she saw the choices for herself. 3% good portion of our population are :atin %merican descendants. They and the %sian descendants were the chief non+-aucasian members of the unemployed class when we left 2arth and they ma"e up a big part of our culture.3 3:i"e octor 8ende$43 he as"ed slyly as he settled on a beef burrito and side dishes of rice and beans. ,e touched those portions of the screen and the words lit up. She chuc"led a little. 3=es,3 she said. 3:i"e r. 8ende$.3 She offered nothing further on that sub'ect. The screen ne&t as"ed if he would li"e anything to drin". % list of currently available beverages, none of them alcoholic in nature, was listed. ,e pic"ed the one that said SB1%A:2SS -%))2I9%T2 -*:% .IT, I-2. The screen than"ed him for his patronage and a second later there was a thun"ing sound from the other side of the door. =*BA 82%: IS A2% = the screen then told him. ,e slid the door upward and found a plastic tray full of steaming food and a large glass of cola with ice on the other side. Silverware and a nap"in were also sitting there, neatly folded together. ,e pic"ed the tray up and waited as (aren chose two chic"en tacos, rice and beans, and a glass of apple 'uice. *nce she received her tray they wal"ed across the room and found an empty table to sit at. The food was very good. (en didn!t "now if the machine that had prepared it was e&ceptionally gifted or if he was 'ust e&ceptionally hungry. .hatever the case there was very little

conversation between them for the ne&t ten minutes as he chomped and swallowed and dran" greedily. ,e had to stifle a burp with the bac" of his hand when he was done. 3I!ve never seen anyone go after the cafeteria food li"e that before,3 (aren, who was still pic"ing at her first taco, observed lightly. 3That was, without a doubt, the best 8e&ican food I!ve had on 8ars,3 he told her, dabbing at his face with the paper nap"in. She laughed a little, loo"ing at him warmly. 3It!s interesting,3 she said, 3you "now, interacting with you. Though I!ve been waiting for this day for most of my professional career, I always had a hard time imagining what it would be li"e actually tal"ing to you, showing you around.3 3*h43 he said. 3.hat do you mean43 3.ell,3 she said, 3you!re from a completely different era in human history than I am. =ou grew up in a world with different values, with different morals, with different hopes and fears. To tell you the truth I always feared that if I managed to get you bac" you would turn out to be... well... an asshole.3 3%nd have I43 he wanted to "now. She smiled. 39o,3 she told him. 3I mean you have some naLve points of view that come from living in the age of dar"ness.3 3The age of dar"ness43 he as"ed, raising his eyebrows. 3That!s what we 8artians refer to the late twentieth and most of the twenty+first century as. It was an age where government and corporate entities first consolidated their powers into what they eventually became. In other parts of history such abuses inevitably led to revolution and peasant uprisings, usually #uite violent ones. The )rench Aevolution and the Aussian

Aevolution are prime e&amples. ;ut with the Bnited States and .est,em it was different. That was the first time those abusing the power managed to find a way to ma"e it seem li"e they were not. The advent of television and especially the Internet helped greatly with this. It is this that ma"es it hard for you to get down with certain things about your government and those that followed it. The 2bola epidemic for instance. .hat is #uite obvious to us + that .est,em deliberately "illed millions of citi$ens and then let the disease get out of control + was an almost impossible thought for you.3 3I guess I!m an idealist,3 he said sourly, not wanting to start that debate again. 39o,3 she said, 3we are the idealists here. ;ut my point was that I was braced for disappointment when I actually met you and tal"ed to you. The drive to resurrect you has been passed down to me through the generations, through the good times and the bad, and with that drive you were eventually accorded almost saintly #ualities by those passing on the information. I!m smart enough to "now that most legends have a hard time living up to the tales that grow up around them.3 3I wouldn!t e&actly call myself a saint,3 (en said. 3;ut I do li"e to thin" I!m a nice guy.3 3%nd you are,3 she said, ta"ing another nibble from her taco. 3=ou really are. %nd it!s been a thrill showing you around, even in this limited capacity. I hope you!ll let me show you other things as well. %nd Jacob, my brother, your grandson, he would be a great tour guide too.3 3=our brother43 (en as"ed. 3,e!s a few years younger than I,3 she said. 3,e followed in our father!s footsteps and made a career out of the 8artian Planetary 1uard. It seems he!s been passed on your love of flying. ,e commands a s#uadron of 8os#uitoes.3

38os#uitoes4 .hat are 8os#uitoes43 38os#uitoes are anti+tan" planes that are specifically built to fly in our atmosphere,3 she told him. 3They were a big part of how we beat the .est,em marines during the war and they!ve come to "ind of symboli$e the triumph of our military tactics over .est,em!s. %nyway, Jacob is stationed at 2den with his s#uadron but he "nows I was getting close to a brea"through on you. .ill you allow me to tell him you!re awa"e43 3%llow you43 (en as"ed. 3.hy would you as" me if I would allow you to tell him4 .hy wouldn!t you 'ust tell him43 3;ecause now that you!re awa"e you have the right to decide who you want to "now that. I would never presume to release that information if you did not want it released. ;ut I hope you will allow it. ,e had 'ust as much desire as anyone else in the family to have you bac".3 3Bh... sure, you can tell him if you thin" he!ll care about it.3 3*h he!ll care. ,ave no doubt about that.3 She hesitated for a moment. 3There are some other family members too,3 she finally said. 3,ow many43 he as"ed a little cautiously. 3)irst and foremost,3 she told him, 3is 1randma 8ar'orie.3 3=ou mean the 8ar'orie who got her medical license ta"en away43 he as"ed, thin"ing that she had to be tal"ing about some other 8ar'orie. 3=es,3 (aren confirmed. 3The one who made the first advances in human longevity. She always had the strongest drive to bring you bac", at least since %nnie herself. I thin" that if you see no one else, if you tal" to no one else, you should at least see her. She could tell you about your son, (en Jr. She actually "new

him when she was a child.3 3,ow old is she43 (en as"ed, in awe at the thought that there was a member of his family alive that had actually "nown his son. 3She must be ancient<3 3She is si&ty+si& years old,3 (aren said, 3or about...3 she did some mental addition, 3oh... say a hundred and twenty or so of your years. She lives up in Triad, near the main spaceport. I!ve been "eeping her somewhat abreast of my progress in vidclips that we send bac" and forth but she has no idea that I!ve actually awa"ened you. She would be so happy to tal" to you, (en. .ill you let me tell her4 .ill you go see her43 3*f course,3 he replied. 3I would very much li"e to tal" to her. Is she... well is she o"ay... you "now, mentally43 (aren gave a sad loo". 3She!s showing the very earliest signs of senility,3 she said. 3Just a little confused about dates and so forth right now. .hy did you as" that43 ,e e&plained about the conversation he had had with 8ende$ during the e&am. 3=es,3 (aren agreed after hearing this, 38ar'orie is starting to develop the disease process. It!s mostly short+term memory at this point but we can e&pect it will advance rapidly in the ne&t few years. In a way it!s "ind of a compliment it!s happening to her already. =ou see, the more intelligent you are, the sooner the affliction hits you. =ou spawned some very smart descendents, (en.3 3Too smart for their own good apparently,3 he observed. 3=ou say she lives up in Triad. That!s that orbiting city you mentioned earlier43 3Aight,3 she told him. 3It!s our interplanetary spaceport and our space defense base. %bout si& hundred thousand or so live up

there. % lot of our older citi$ens, particularly those who lived in the ghettos before the revolution, chose Triad as their home.3 3,ow would I go about getting up there43 he as"ed. 3I don!t suppose you have teleportation.3 She laughed. 39o,3 she said, 3we!re not #uite that advanced yet, although there are research teams at a few of our universities who are tin"ering with the concept. The only way to get up to Triad is a good old+fashioned chemical roc"et ship. The P+/?s are the standard passenger+bearing surface to orbit craft. %ll of our cities have fairly regular service. -argo, on the other hand, is lifted up in -+F/s or -+F0s. That!s what we brought you down with. They are huge ships that can carry nearly ten thousand tons. They create so much thrust that they have to ta"e off from at least twenty "ilometers away from any city. The P+/?s are a lot smaller though. They can ta"e off right from the edge of the city and have you free of the atmosphere in less than five minutes.3 The thought of blasting off the surface of 8ars and into orbit around it was more than a little unsettling for (en. In his day, being an astronaut was considered one of the most dangerous 'obs in e&istence. 3Is it safe43 he as"ed. 3.e haven!t had a single fatality aboard a surface to orbit craft since the revolution,3 she assured him. 3It!s perfectly safe. %nd the ships are e#uipped with artificial gravity and inertial damping. If you close your eyes and rela&, you won!t even "now that you!re going anywhere.3 3,ow comforting,3 he said. 3;ut I suppose that in order to meet the infamous 8ar'orie 5alentine slash )ra$ier, I can sub'ect myself to it. Is there any other family who would want to meet me4 ,ow many other descendants of mine are alive43 3.ell,3 she told him, 3 ale, 8ar'orie!s son, was unfortunately "illed in the Jupiter .ar in /FCD. ,e and his wife were two of

those casualties we too" from e&plosive decompression as a result of laser blasts breaching our structures. :uc"ily their son, my father, was not with them when it happened. 8ar'orie ended up raising him in the ghettos here in 9ew Pittsburgh. ,e grew up to be a radical separatist. ad was in and out of 'ail for most of his life because of clashes with the .est,em federal authorities.3 3=our dad was a convict43 (en as"ed, unable to "eep the distaste from his voice. 3,e was a revolutionary,3 (aren corrected, her own voice conveying offense at something he had said for the first time. 3,e was arrested for illegal assembly, failure to disperse, conspiracy, and a few other things. It was a common thing during those years between the Jupiter .ar and the eclaration of Independence, particularly among the ghetto class. .hen 1overnor .hiting called for volunteers to fight the .est,em marines, ad was one of the first to sign up. ,e served in the tan" corps and rose to command a platoon before the war was over. ,e fought in two of the bloodiest battles of the war and was wounded in action, almost dying out in the wastelands outside of 2den.3 3I!m sorry,3 (en said diplomatically, regretting his words. 3=ou 'ust have to understand that I was a cop. In my world, when someone was in and out of 'ail, as you said, well, that spo"e a lot about their character.3 3It does in our world as well,3 she said, her tone softening a little. 3;ut during those pre+Aevolutionary years, things were different. I 'ust want you to understand that.3 ,e nodded. 3I do understand,3 he said. 3)orgive me.3 3In any case,3 she went on, 3 ad is still alive. ,e!s C0 years old and lives here in 9ew Pittsburgh with 8om. %fter the war he stayed in the military and eventually rose to the ran" of general

in charge of the tan" corps. ,e!s still pretty active these days even though he!s retired now. ,e lectures at the armed forces training center on a regular basis and has written a few te&ts on military history and tactics. I thin" he would be really pleased to ma"e your ac#uaintance as well, that is if you don!t mind sociali$ing with a former convict.3 3I told you I was sorry,3 he said. 3%nd I would consider it an honor to meet him. .henever you can arrange it, feel free.3 3=ou!re not 'ust saying that43 39o,3 he assured her. 3I 'ust let my mouth get a little ahead of me there. I apologi$e and I really would li"e to see him. ,e!s my grandson after all, isn!t he43 3=es he is,3 she agreed. 3,e carries your blood in his veins. %ll of us do.3

%fter he returned to his hospital room (aren bade him goodbye and announced that she was going home for the evening. 3=ou get yourself some sleep,3 she told him before heading out the door. 3.e!ll do another series of e&ams, both physical and neurological, in the morning. If everything chec"s out well, and there!s no reason to thin" that it won!t, you!ll be discharged.3 3 ischarged43 he as"ed, surprised. 3=ou mean, I won!t be in here anymore43 3.hy would you be43 she as"ed. 3There!s nothing wrong with you. =ou!re a healthy, virile, strong seventeen year old.3 ,e didn!t "now why the thought of leaving the hospital scared him but it did. ,e could feel fear and claustrophobia tightening his chest and ma"ing his heart beat faster. 3;ut... where will I go43 he as"ed. 3.hat will I do4 .ill I have to go live in a hotel,

or what43 (aren loo"ed at him a little e&asperated. 3.ell you!ll stay with me of course,3 she said. 3%t least at first. I have a nice big residence and a guestroom with a good view of the city. =ou!re welcome to stay there as long as you want, until you!re a little more down with your new world.3 3%nd then what43 he as"ed hesitantly. 3%nd then you can start thin"ing about what comes ne&t for you. =ou!re a citi$en of 8ars now, (en and you can do anything you want. =ou can go bac" to school and get a degree, or several of them, you can 'oin a 'ob training program, you can apply for the space fleet as a merchant marine, or you can 'ust do nothing. It!s entirely up to you and you can ta"e all the time you need to ma"e up your mind.3 3;ecause life is now fair, right43 he as"ed, not #uite sarcastically. 3Aight,3 she said. 3I!ll see you in the morning. If you have trouble sleeping, ring for the nurse and she!ll have the computer activate the tran#uil field to help you.3 ,e didn!t even bother as"ing what the tran#uil field was. The answer would 'ust be one more reminder of how far out of his element he was. The night nurse was named Jeal. She was a tall woman, well over si& feet in height, whose ancestry seemed a mishmash of *riental, -aucasian, and :atino, a combination that gave her an e&otic loo". ,er legs were thic" but attractive and her breasts bulged out of her half shirt in a way that distracted (en. ,er stomach was smooth and unlined, with a large gold ring threaded through her naval. (en!s sharp eyes, which had been trained by his police wor" to ta"e in every detail, noted the gold wedding and engagement ring on her left hand, a set that loo"ed

no different than what had been the norm in his time. The scuffed and faded nature of the rings told him that she had worn them for #uite some time. 3Pretty, isn!t it43 (aren as"ed. 3*f course 2den and Proctor are larger and newer cities and their s"ylines are much more impressive to see, but I!ve always been down with this view here. This is our capital after all, and our oldest city. It!s also the city I was born and raised in. That ma"es it "ind of special to me.3 3,ow many people live here43 (en as"ed, loo"ing from place to place, trying to ta"e everything in at once. 3%bout nine million,3 she said. 3.e!re the third largest of the twelve terrestrial cities. 2den has si&teen million and Proctor has about twelve million.3 3I had no idea it would be so big,3 he said, sha"ing his head a little. 3I thought that... well... that there would be a little dome or something with a couple of thousand people living it. 9ine million all live right there43 3%nd getting bigger every year,3 she said, smiling warmly. 3That!s what we get for repealing the birthing restrictions.3 ,e began to wal" closer to the edge of the building that faced the city, wal"ing along the cement path past the pond, his nervousness, his grief forgotten, overridden by childli"e wonder. % pair of duc"s came trotting over to him, obviously hoping for a handout of some "ind. .hen he failed to offer anything they s#uaw"ed angrily at him and retreated bac" to the water. ,e ignored them, hardly even noticing the entire episode. (aren trailed along behind him, watching. The glass that made up the enclosure was not li"e any sort of glass he had ever seen before. %s he touched it the sensation was of a rubbery substance, only without the give of rubber. ,is fingers left no prints upon it. *utside he could now see far below, where the street level was. % series of straight and curving avenues led away from the building they were in and

towards various points in the main collection of buildings in the city itself. 2ach street, as (aren had mentioned earlier, was enclosed with the same sort of glass that made up the wall before him. Through this layer of glass he could ma"e out the tiny figures of people wal"ing to and fro on the streets, darting in and out of other buildings, going about their 8artian lives. %top of many of the streets, built upon the glass roof itself, were blac", steel lines he finally identified as train trac"s when he saw some of the trains moving along them. These trains moved rapidly, at least D0 mph, and would then come to an abrupt halt ne&t to glass enclosed stations that were also above the street level. They would then rapidly accelerate again, traveling to the ne&t station along the line. 3There are twelve cities li"e this on 8ars43 he as"ed. 3Twelve43 3Twelve on the surface,3 she said, 3plus Triad, the orbiting city. In all, our planetary population is almost I0 million people.3 3I0 million,3 he said, pondering that for a moment as he continued to watch the sights below him. 3That!s a lot of 8artians. ,ow do you feed everybody4 =ou said something about agricultural fields earlier. o you grow enough to feed the whole planet or do you have to buy food from 2arth43 39o, we don!t have to buy food from 2arth,3 she told him. 3Kuite the contrary in fact. *ur biggest planetary industries are agriculture and food production. .e feed not only ourselves but more than si&ty percent of 2arth and the 2arth colonies as well. 2ast,em and .est,em would both suffer from biblical scale famines, not to mention complete economic collapse, if not for our agriculture.3 3 o you mean,3 he said, 3that you grow enough food on this planet to feed billions of people43 3=es we do,3 she told him. 3*f our twelve terrestrial cities, eight of them are located on the e#uator. These $ero latitude cities,

li"e 2den, are surrounded by millions of s#uare "ilometers of greenhouses. They stretch from hori$on to hori$on. .e grow everything from corn to rice to alfalfa to soybeans. .e have cattle gra$ing greenhouses and greenhouses full of apple trees. If it!s food, we grow it here. That was what made our planet so valuable to .est,em before the revolution.3 3;ut how do you grow food on 8ars43 he as"ed. 3There!s no water here, and no air.3 3That!s where you!re wrong,3 she told him. 3.e have nearly limitless water in huge a#uifers 'ust beneath the surface. %ll we have to do is tap them, filter out a few impurities, and pump the water where we want it. %s for air, we!ve already discussed how we supply ourselves with breathable air. .e use o&ygen and nitrogen e&tractors. *ur soil has a very high iron content which, when a few other essential nutrients are mi&ed in, is ideal for growing 'ust about anything. The conditions within the greenhouses can be ad'usted to the perfect temperature and humidity for whatever the particular crop happens to be. ,ere on 8ars we can grow anything, all year around, without worrying about weather or bugs. *ur average yearly tonnage of food e&ports, now this is 'ust e&ports, it doesn!t include the food we consume ourselves, is more than five billion tons.3 (en didn!t "now whether to be impressed by that number or not + he had no basis for comparison or perspective + but he was pretty sure she wouldn!t have spo"en the number in that awe+ inspiring tone if it wasn!t formidable. 3So all those profits the .est,em corporations used to get from producing this food,3 he said, 3are now yours to "eep, right4 Is that what your revolution was about4 Instead of them using you to ma"e money, you too" over and sell the stuff to them43 She gave a croo"ed smile. 39ot really,3 she said. 3.e trade our agriculture to them for a few items that we do not or can not produce here. -offee is one thing that doesn!t seem to grow very well on 8ars, no matter what we do. It 'ust comes out tasting

li"e shit. Tobacco is another thing. 2arth is also the best source of wine and other alcoholic beverages. .e don!t have very many breweries or distilleries. They send us shiploads of that in e&change for the foodstuffs we ship them. Their governments and companies pretend it!s a fair trade even though we e&port a thousand times more than we import.3 (en was confused. 3 o you mean that they don!t give you any money for your products4 They 'ust give you a few loads of coffee, boo$e, and cigarettes and you call it even43 3=ou!re down with it,3 she said. 3.e!re not on the same monetary system as they are anyway. This "eeps our economy from being tied in any way to theirs.3 39ow wait a minute,3 he said, having a lot of trouble with this concept. Though he was not an accountant or a financial analyst by any means, he was smart enough to reali$e that what she was saying seemed to go against every principal of economics he had ever heard of. 3,ow do you pay all of those wor"ers who produce all of this food if you don!t get any money for it4 =ou are supplying a product for free. .ho pays for the water, the labor costs, the fertili$er, the fuel for the ships that transport it43 3The 8artian 1overnment,3 she told him. 3*ur agricultural industry, li"e most of our other essential industries, is nationali$ed. The fertili$er and the fuel for the ships and the water are also products of nationali$ation. The wor"ers who produce all of these products are paid in 8artian credits, the amount depending upon the 'ob they do.3 ,e loo"ed at her with suspicion and more than a little distaste. 3=ou!re tal"ing about communism,3 he accused. She shrugged a little. 3*ur system of government has many elements of communism in it, that is true, but it also has many elements of democracy and capitalism as well. I thin" labeling it

communism or socialism is a bit simplistic. .e have nationali$ed most industries, all those essential to our prosperity, but we also encourage others to start new industries based upon lu&ury items and non+essentials. .e also have an elected upper government house instead of a party system. 8ost important of all, corporations or conglomerates of any "ind are absolutely against the law.3 3;ut nationalism of industries doesn!t wor",3 he insisted stubbornly. 3That was proven with Aussia and -uba and 2astern 2urope bac" in my day. Their economies and their governments collapsed. They were rife with rebellions and coups and blac" mar"ets. =ou can!t run an economy that way.3 3Those systems collapsed,3 she retorted, 3because they were flawed and because they had their economies tied to capitalistic systems. Just because a few countries tried to nationali$e and failed, you cannot conclude the entire concept is in error. In the first place those systems contained loopholes in which a few were able to ac#uire great power over others and abuse it. *n 8ars we have written our constitution in such a way so that no individuals or groups of individuals are able to empower themselves in that way. .e have many chec"s and balances that insure that the common people, that humanity as a whole, are the ones to benefit from any advances.3 3;ut...3 he started, unable to accept that such a government could wor". 3:oo" out there,3 (aren insisted, pointing out the window at the high+rise buildings before them. 3 oes that loo" li"e our system is not wor"ing4 .e have been independent and operating under this system for /F years. That is D0 of your years. Since we initiated it our standard of living has improved greatly. 2ven the poorest of 8artians now live in ab'ect lu&ury, their every basic need ta"en care of. *ur education system is of a caliber that could have only been dreamed of before the revolution. 2very 8artian now has a constitutional right to attend college free.

%bsolutely and completely free, do you understand that4 %ctually it!s more than free6 you are paid to attend. o you see all of these people studying up here4 o you see them43 She waved her hands at the students that were utili$ing the par". 3=es,3 he answered slowly. 3This is one of the top rated universities on the planet. 2ach and every one of these students, no matter who they are, no matter what "ind of family they came from, no matter what their relatives did for a living, is being paid two hundred credits a month for attending here. That is two hundred credits they can use for anything they wish. They don!t have to spend it on housing because every 8artian citi$en is entitled to free housing. They don!t have to spend it on food because every 8artian citi$en is entitled to a wee"ly allotment of food. They don!t have to spend it on health care insurance because every citi$en is entitled to free health care. It is our education system we value most. %s a result of this system you say cannot wor", greater than eighty percent of the adults in my age range on this planet have a bachelors degree at worst. 8ore than forty percent of them have a master!s degree or better. .e have become, in /F short years, the most educated people in the whole of human history.3 (en shoo" his head in bewilderment. 3I was 'ust brought up to believe that a system li"e that is impossible. =ou!re tal"ing about a Btopian society. There is no such thing as that. ,ow can it wor"4 ,ow can you "eep human nature and the instinct to loo" out for yourself first from screwing everything up43 3.ith common sense and lots of chec"s and balances,3 she told him. 3I!m not saying we!re perfect, not by any means. .e still have our share of problems and our share of old pre+ Aevolutionary ideals floating around. ;ut we!re much better off than any society has ever been before. *ur system wor"s, (en. It really does. =ou 'ust don!t want to believe it does because your society always told you life is not fair and complete

happiness is not possible. Isn!t that what they always told you43 3=es,3 he said. 3That was a generally accepted fact. %nd it was true. :ife was not fair.3 3 id it ever occur to you,3 she as"ed, 3that they only told people things li"e that so they would accept it, so they would not try to change the system and come up with something that was fair4 ;ecause when you thin" about it, who was life not fair to4 .as it not fair to you or was it not fair to the leaders and the corporations43 3.ell... it wasn!t fair to me,3 he said. 32&actly,3 she said. 3It wasn!t fair to you. The advantages went to those who had the money and the power. %nd if you were to try and ta"e some of those advantages, some of that fairness, and shift it over to your side, that would necessarily ta"e some of it away from their side. They didn!t want that. So they told you 'ust to accept the fact that life wasn!t fair. They told you that in a thousand different ways each and every day from the time you were born throughout your entire life until you and everyone li"e you became convinced that this was an indisputable fact of life, an unbrea"able natural law. It carried the same weight as a law of physics. Parents taught this concept to their children, they believed it so much. Teachers taught it to their students. :ife is not fair and we!ll 'ust have to live with that and do the best that we can with the crumbs we!ve been given. Isn!t that how it was43 3=es,3 (en said, his eyes widening. She was right. That was how it was. 3;ut did you ever stop to thin", even for a moment, even 'ust fleetingly, why life had to be unfair4 There really are no natural laws that say this has to be so. )airness and unfairness is a human state of mind and their e&ecutions are products of human society. .hy shouldn!t life be fair4 .hy couldn!t it43

(en shoo" his head, speechless once again as he considered her words. This idea had never occurred to him before. It was #uite a simple concept, but it had never crossed his mind. .hy couldn!t life be fair4 .hy4 3,ere,3 (aren told him, 3life is fair. %t least it!s as fair as we can possibly ma"e it, for everyone. )rom the lowliest of the unemployed class to our 1overnor herself, all of us are treated the same and measured with the same laser calibrator. 9o one is considered inherently better than anyone else and no one is given an uneven advantage in our society because of who they are or how many credits they have. 9ow I!m not saying we!re all e#ual in stature. 9ot at all. % doctor still ma"es more money and is able to afford nicer things than the person who pic"s up the garbage. %fter all, a doctor is better educated and has much more responsibility. .hy shouldn!t they get paid more4 ;ut that!s fair, isn!t it4 .e still have rich parts of town and poor parts of town. The doctors live in the upper floors of the housing buildings and have more s#uare meters of living space than the garbage collectors. They have better views and their neighbors tend to be other professionals. ;ut that!s fair too, isn!t it4 The garbage collectors are doing their 'ob by choice, "nowing what they will ma"e before they get into it. They chose not to pursue the educational opportunities our system offers and as a result, they are confined to a certain income and lifestyle. If they wish to change this, the universities are still there and there is still a place for them in them.3 3=ou certainly sound convincing enough,3 (en said hesitantly, his mind pondering what she had said. -ould it be true4 -ould these 8artians, who were descended from the welfare trash he used to police, have really come up with a society that was fair4 It 'ust didn!t seem possible. 3;ut again, I!ve heard all this before. *ur own eclaration of Independence swore that all men were created e#ual but in the world I lived in, that was far from evident.3 3 on!t you see, (en,3 she e&plained, 3that it!s those very

contradictions, that very abuse of power that led to the system that we are under now. .est,em was nothing more than a larger version of the Bnited States with more people to e&ploit and discriminate against. It was ruled by the same government under the same constitution6 a constitution that favored the wealthy. *ur constitution was developed and written by the people who had received the short end of that stic" for hundreds of years. It was their intent that everything be fair for everyone. .e have made it impossible for a ruling class or a wealthy elite class to even e&ist.3 3;ut you said that doctors and other educated people ma"e more than the common garbage collectors. oesn!t that ma"e you an elite class43 39o,3 she insisted. 3That is 'ust a matter of an educated professional ma"ing more than a blue collar wor"er. % garbage collector ma"es about four thousand credits a year. This money is his or hers to spend as they please. 9ow everyone is entitled to free housing so this garbage collector can live in the public housing buildings if he wishes but more than li"ely he is going to use some of that money to live in a little nicer of a place with more room. ,e!ll also use some of it to buy upgraded groceries that are of better #uality and #uantity than the monthly allotment. ,e!ll also probably save some of it so he can go on a vacation a couple of times a year. These credits allow our garbage collector to live nicely in the middle class. 39ow me on the other hand, I am a neurological specialist who spent more than seven years in college, medical school, and residency. %s such, I am entitled to a salary of ten thousand credits a year. This means I can live in some of the nicest housing we have available and can go on vacation maybe four times a year. I can also afford the best food and drin"s when I order my groceries. I am a member of the upper class and I!m #uite proud of it. I!ve earned my salary and I deserve every credit of it.3

(en shoo" his head a little. 3If you!re trying to convince me that there is no elite class,3 he said, 3you!re not ma"ing a very persuasive argument.3 3*h, but I am,3 she begged to differ. 3I am among the highest paid people on this planet. There are very few who ma"e more than I do. That is my point. I ma"e ten thousand a year and the garbage collector ma"es four. That is only a si& thousand credit difference. True, I can buy a lot more and live a lot nicer with those e&tra si& thousand credits, but the difference is not really very staggering. It is, in fact, about the same difference, when ad'usted, between a doctor and a garbage collector in your world. .hat is lac"ing in our society however, is a class of people or groups of people who are above me and my class in stature. .e have no captains of industry, no corporate managers, no real estate developers, no entities of any "ind who ma"e enough money to be able to influence politicians and pervert our democracy for their own purposes. There are no %gricorp or 8ar"s )ood Products corporations who finance elections and own elected officials, getting them to pass laws that benefit them and fuc" over the common fol"s. 9obody ma"es enough money to subvert the government so the government stays reasonably pure and dedicated to its purpose, which is to serve human"ind and benefit the species.3 3So nobody bribes your politicians43 he as"ed. 39obody can,3 she said. 3There is no point in even trying it. *ur law is very severe on the sub'ect of a government official ta"ing a bribe of any "ind, whether you call it a campaign contribution, a gift, or anything else. .hile in the service of the government a person!s financial business is e&amined constantly with severe scrutiny. If they ta"e money or gifts from anybody during their tenure or during an election period, they are sub'ect to spending three years in prison doing hard labor and lifelong revocation of their right to serve. There simply isn!t anybody or any group of anybody!s who can offer enough money to ma"e such a ris" worthwhile.3

,e let his eyes return to the s"yline out the window, home to nine million 8artians. %ccording to his granddaughter, they were all living in relative harmony with each other, all wor"ing towards the betterment of life everywhere. She truly seemed to believe what she was saying and she truly seemed to be an intelligent and thoughtful person. So what did that mean4 It meant that she was either the victim of a vast and comple& society+wide thought control apparatus G"ind of li"e, he reluctantly ac"nowledged, the 3life isn!t fair3 attitude that he was raised withH or... or things really were ideal here. 8aybe this really was a perfect world.

The so+called roach pit was actually a large cafeteria room full of long tables and benches, all constructed of plastic. The room was about half full of a mi&ture of students and faculty + it was difficult to tell the difference between them they were all so youthful loo"ing +scattered in loose groups at the tables. 8ost were eating out of plastic trays and sipping from plastic cups. 8any had those palm si$ed computers (en had noted earlier open before them. (aren led him to the front of the room where a small line had formed before a group of plastic doors installed in the wall ne&t to a stainless steel shelf. In the wall ne&t to these doors were computer screens about a foot s#uare that people were touching with their fingers. (en watched, fascinated, as they then pulled trays of food from the doors. 3=ou ma"e your choice from the screen there,3 (aren e&plained when they reached the front of the line. 3Simply touch the screen ne&t to the entr>e, side+dishes, and drin" that you want and the cafeteria machinery will assemble it for you on the other side of the door.3 39o shit43 he as"ed, peering at the screen. 39o shit,3 she confirmed, smiling as she watched him.

It was li"e loo"ing at a menu from a 8e&ican restaurant he saw as he e&amined the choices. Tacos, burritos, enchiladas, a few things that he had never heard of but with a distinctly ,ispanic sound to them. 3:oo"s li"e its :atin cuisine day today,3 (aren told him as she saw the choices for herself. 3% good portion of our population are :atin %merican descendants. They and the %sian descendants were the chief non+-aucasian members of the unemployed class when we left 2arth and they ma"e up a big part of our culture.3 3:i"e octor 8ende$43 he as"ed slyly as he settled on a beef burrito and side dishes of rice and beans. ,e touched those portions of the screen and the words lit up. She chuc"led a little. 3=es,3 she said. 3:i"e r. 8ende$.3 She offered nothing further on that sub'ect. The screen ne&t as"ed if he would li"e anything to drin". % list of currently available beverages, none of them alcoholic in nature, was listed. ,e pic"ed the one that said SB1%A:2SS -%))2I9%T2 -*:% .IT, I-2. The screen than"ed him for his patronage and a second later there was a thun"ing sound from the other side of the door. =*BA 82%: IS A2% = the screen then told him. ,e slid the door upward and found a plastic tray full of steaming food and a large glass of cola with ice on the other side. Silverware and a nap"in were also sitting there, neatly folded together. ,e pic"ed the tray up and waited as (aren chose two chic"en tacos, rice and beans, and a glass of apple 'uice. *nce she received her tray they wal"ed across the room and found an empty table to sit at. The food was very good. (en didn!t "now if the machine that had prepared it was e&ceptionally gifted or if he was 'ust e&ceptionally hungry. .hatever the case there was very little

conversation between them for the ne&t ten minutes as he chomped and swallowed and dran" greedily. ,e had to stifle a burp with the bac" of his hand when he was done. 3I!ve never seen anyone go after the cafeteria food li"e that before,3 (aren, who was still pic"ing at her first taco, observed lightly. 3That was, without a doubt, the best 8e&ican food I!ve had on 8ars,3 he told her, dabbing at his face with the paper nap"in. She laughed a little, loo"ing at him warmly. 3It!s interesting,3 she said, 3you "now, interacting with you. Though I!ve been waiting for this day for most of my professional career, I always had a hard time imagining what it would be li"e actually tal"ing to you, showing you around.3 3*h43 he said. 3.hat do you mean43 3.ell,3 she said, 3you!re from a completely different era in human history than I am. =ou grew up in a world with different values, with different morals, with different hopes and fears. To tell you the truth I always feared that if I managed to get you bac" you would turn out to be... well... an asshole.3 3%nd have I43 he wanted to "now. She smiled. 39o,3 she told him. 3I mean you have some naLve points of view that come from living in the age of dar"ness.3 3The age of dar"ness43 he as"ed, raising his eyebrows. 3That!s what we 8artians refer to the late twentieth and most of the twenty+first century as. It was an age where government and corporate entities first consolidated their powers into what they eventually became. In other parts of history such abuses inevitably led to revolution and peasant uprisings, usually #uite violent ones. The )rench Aevolution and the Aussian

Aevolution are prime e&amples. ;ut with the Bnited States and .est,em it was different. That was the first time those abusing the power managed to find a way to ma"e it seem li"e they were not. The advent of television and especially the Internet helped greatly with this. It is this that ma"es it hard for you to get down with certain things about your government and those that followed it. The 2bola epidemic for instance. .hat is #uite obvious to us + that .est,em deliberately "illed millions of citi$ens and then let the disease get out of control + was an almost impossible thought for you.3 3I guess I!m an idealist,3 he said sourly, not wanting to start that debate again. 39o,3 she said, 3we are the idealists here. ;ut my point was that I was braced for disappointment when I actually met you and tal"ed to you. The drive to resurrect you has been passed down to me through the generations, through the good times and the bad, and with that drive you were eventually accorded almost saintly #ualities by those passing on the information. I!m smart enough to "now that most legends have a hard time living up to the tales that grow up around them.3 3I wouldn!t e&actly call myself a saint,3 (en said. 3;ut I do li"e to thin" I!m a nice guy.3 3%nd you are,3 she said, ta"ing another nibble from her taco. 3=ou really are. %nd it!s been a thrill showing you around, even in this limited capacity. I hope you!ll let me show you other things as well. %nd Jacob, my brother, your grandson, he would be a great tour guide too.3 3=our brother43 (en as"ed. 3,e!s a few years younger than I,3 she said. 3,e followed in our father!s footsteps and made a career out of the 8artian Planetary 1uard. It seems he!s been passed on your love of flying. ,e commands a s#uadron of 8os#uitoes.3

38os#uitoes4 .hat are 8os#uitoes43 38os#uitoes are anti+tan" planes that are specifically built to fly in our atmosphere,3 she told him. 3They were a big part of how we beat the .est,em marines during the war and they!ve come to "ind of symboli$e the triumph of our military tactics over .est,em!s. %nyway, Jacob is stationed at 2den with his s#uadron but he "nows I was getting close to a brea"through on you. .ill you allow me to tell him you!re awa"e43 3%llow you43 (en as"ed. 3.hy would you as" me if I would allow you to tell him4 .hy wouldn!t you 'ust tell him43 3;ecause now that you!re awa"e you have the right to decide who you want to "now that. I would never presume to release that information if you did not want it released. ;ut I hope you will allow it. ,e had 'ust as much desire as anyone else in the family to have you bac".3 3Bh... sure, you can tell him if you thin" he!ll care about it.3 3*h he!ll care. ,ave no doubt about that.3 She hesitated for a moment. 3There are some other family members too,3 she finally said. 3,ow many43 he as"ed a little cautiously. 3)irst and foremost,3 she told him, 3is 1randma 8ar'orie.3 3=ou mean the 8ar'orie who got her medical license ta"en away43 he as"ed, thin"ing that she had to be tal"ing about some other 8ar'orie. 3=es,3 (aren confirmed. 3The one who made the first advances in human longevity. She always had the strongest drive to bring you bac", at least since %nnie herself. I thin" that if you see no one else, if you tal" to no one else, you should at least see her. She could tell you about your son, (en Jr. She actually "new

him when she was a child.3 3,ow old is she43 (en as"ed, in awe at the thought that there was a member of his family alive that had actually "nown his son. 3She must be ancient<3 3She is si&ty+si& years old,3 (aren said, 3or about...3 she did some mental addition, 3oh... say a hundred and twenty or so of your years. She lives up in Triad, near the main spaceport. I!ve been "eeping her somewhat abreast of my progress in vidclips that we send bac" and forth but she has no idea that I!ve actually awa"ened you. She would be so happy to tal" to you, (en. .ill you let me tell her4 .ill you go see her43 3*f course,3 he replied. 3I would very much li"e to tal" to her. Is she... well is she o"ay... you "now, mentally43 (aren gave a sad loo". 3She!s showing the very earliest signs of senility,3 she said. 3Just a little confused about dates and so forth right now. .hy did you as" that43 ,e e&plained about the conversation he had had with 8ende$ during the e&am. 3=es,3 (aren agreed after hearing this, 38ar'orie is starting to develop the disease process. It!s mostly short+term memory at this point but we can e&pect it will advance rapidly in the ne&t few years. In a way it!s "ind of a compliment it!s happening to her already. =ou see, the more intelligent you are, the sooner the affliction hits you. =ou spawned some very smart descendents, (en.3 3Too smart for their own good apparently,3 he observed. 3=ou say she lives up in Triad. That!s that orbiting city you mentioned earlier43 3Aight,3 she told him. 3It!s our interplanetary spaceport and our space defense base. %bout si& hundred thousand or so live up

there. % lot of our older citi$ens, particularly those who lived in the ghettos before the revolution, chose Triad as their home.3 3,ow would I go about getting up there43 he as"ed. 3I don!t suppose you have teleportation.3 She laughed. 39o,3 she said, 3we!re not #uite that advanced yet, although there are research teams at a few of our universities who are tin"ering with the concept. The only way to get up to Triad is a good old+fashioned chemical roc"et ship. The P+/?s are the standard passenger+bearing surface to orbit craft. %ll of our cities have fairly regular service. -argo, on the other hand, is lifted up in -+F/s or -+F0s. That!s what we brought you down with. They are huge ships that can carry nearly ten thousand tons. They create so much thrust that they have to ta"e off from at least twenty "ilometers away from any city. The P+/?s are a lot smaller though. They can ta"e off right from the edge of the city and have you free of the atmosphere in less than five minutes.3 The thought of blasting off the surface of 8ars and into orbit around it was more than a little unsettling for (en. In his day, being an astronaut was considered one of the most dangerous 'obs in e&istence. 3Is it safe43 he as"ed. 3.e haven!t had a single fatality aboard a surface to orbit craft since the revolution,3 she assured him. 3It!s perfectly safe. %nd the ships are e#uipped with artificial gravity and inertial damping. If you close your eyes and rela&, you won!t even "now that you!re going anywhere.3 3,ow comforting,3 he said. 3;ut I suppose that in order to meet the infamous 8ar'orie 5alentine slash )ra$ier, I can sub'ect myself to it. Is there any other family who would want to meet me4 ,ow many other descendants of mine are alive43 3.ell,3 she told him, 3 ale, 8ar'orie!s son, was unfortunately "illed in the Jupiter .ar in /FCD. ,e and his wife were two of

those casualties we too" from e&plosive decompression as a result of laser blasts breaching our structures. :uc"ily their son, my father, was not with them when it happened. 8ar'orie ended up raising him in the ghettos here in 9ew Pittsburgh. ,e grew up to be a radical separatist. ad was in and out of 'ail for most of his life because of clashes with the .est,em federal authorities.3 3=our dad was a convict43 (en as"ed, unable to "eep the distaste from his voice. 3,e was a revolutionary,3 (aren corrected, her own voice conveying offense at something he had said for the first time. 3,e was arrested for illegal assembly, failure to disperse, conspiracy, and a few other things. It was a common thing during those years between the Jupiter .ar and the eclaration of Independence, particularly among the ghetto class. .hen 1overnor .hiting called for volunteers to fight the .est,em marines, ad was one of the first to sign up. ,e served in the tan" corps and rose to command a platoon before the war was over. ,e fought in two of the bloodiest battles of the war and was wounded in action, almost dying out in the wastelands outside of 2den.3 3I!m sorry,3 (en said diplomatically, regretting his words. 3=ou 'ust have to understand that I was a cop. In my world, when someone was in and out of 'ail, as you said, well, that spo"e a lot about their character.3 3It does in our world as well,3 she said, her tone softening a little. 3;ut during those pre+Aevolutionary years, things were different. I 'ust want you to understand that.3 ,e nodded. 3I do understand,3 he said. 3)orgive me.3 3In any case,3 she went on, 3 ad is still alive. ,e!s C0 years old and lives here in 9ew Pittsburgh with 8om. %fter the war he stayed in the military and eventually rose to the ran" of general

in charge of the tan" corps. ,e!s still pretty active these days even though he!s retired now. ,e lectures at the armed forces training center on a regular basis and has written a few te&ts on military history and tactics. I thin" he would be really pleased to ma"e your ac#uaintance as well, that is if you don!t mind sociali$ing with a former convict.3 3I told you I was sorry,3 he said. 3%nd I would consider it an honor to meet him. .henever you can arrange it, feel free.3 3=ou!re not 'ust saying that43 39o,3 he assured her. 3I 'ust let my mouth get a little ahead of me there. I apologi$e and I really would li"e to see him. ,e!s my grandson after all, isn!t he43 3=es he is,3 she agreed. 3,e carries your blood in his veins. %ll of us do.3

%fter he returned to his hospital room (aren bade him goodbye and announced that she was going home for the evening. 3=ou get yourself some sleep,3 she told him before heading out the door. 3.e!ll do another series of e&ams, both physical and neurological, in the morning. If everything chec"s out well, and there!s no reason to thin" that it won!t, you!ll be discharged.3 3 ischarged43 he as"ed, surprised. 3=ou mean, I won!t be in here anymore43 3.hy would you be43 she as"ed. 3There!s nothing wrong with you. =ou!re a healthy, virile, strong seventeen year old.3 ,e didn!t "now why the thought of leaving the hospital scared him but it did. ,e could feel fear and claustrophobia tightening his chest and ma"ing his heart beat faster. 3;ut... where will I go43 he as"ed. 3.hat will I do4 .ill I have to go live in a hotel,

or what43 (aren loo"ed at him a little e&asperated. 3.ell you!ll stay with me of course,3 she said. 3%t least at first. I have a nice big residence and a guestroom with a good view of the city. =ou!re welcome to stay there as long as you want, until you!re a little more down with your new world.3 3%nd then what43 he as"ed hesitantly. 3%nd then you can start thin"ing about what comes ne&t for you. =ou!re a citi$en of 8ars now, (en and you can do anything you want. =ou can go bac" to school and get a degree, or several of them, you can 'oin a 'ob training program, you can apply for the space fleet as a merchant marine, or you can 'ust do nothing. It!s entirely up to you and you can ta"e all the time you need to ma"e up your mind.3 3;ecause life is now fair, right43 he as"ed, not #uite sarcastically. 3Aight,3 she said. 3I!ll see you in the morning. If you have trouble sleeping, ring for the nurse and she!ll have the computer activate the tran#uil field to help you.3 ,e didn!t even bother as"ing what the tran#uil field was. The answer would 'ust be one more reminder of how far out of his element he was. The night nurse was named Jeal. She was a tall woman, well over si& feet in height, whose ancestry seemed a mishmash of *riental, -aucasian, and :atino, a combination that gave her an e&otic loo". ,er legs were thic" but attractive and her breasts bulged out of her half shirt in a way that distracted (en. ,er stomach was smooth and unlined, with a large gold ring threaded through her naval. (en!s sharp eyes, which had been trained by his police wor" to ta"e in every detail, noted the gold wedding and engagement ring on her left hand, a set that loo"ed

no different than what had been the norm in his time. The scuffed and faded nature of the rings told him that she had worn them for #uite some time. espite the e&otic features of her face, her accent was pure 8artian when she introduced herself shortly after (aren left for the night. 3=ou wanna ta"e a shower43 she as"ed him. 3.e!ve "ept you pretty clean since you were brought here of course, but there!s really nothing li"e a hot shower to help sooth a person, is there43 3% shower would be nice,3 (en said after thin"ing it over for a moment. She gave him a smile, one that loo"ed to be 'ust a little more than a professional smile. 3Aight this way,3 she said, heading towards a door near the bac" of the room. The bathroom was a small, si& by si&, sterile loo"ing room. It contained a normal loo"ing toilet as well as a sin" and a mirror. The shower stall had a normal loo"ing plastic curtain drawn across it and a normal loo"ing drain in the low part of the floor but the shower head of the type he was used to had been replaced by a series of small chrome 'et+type outlets. They were spaced at intervals of about eight inches all around the perimeter of the stall, mounted in an even line about a foot higher than head level. Jeal followed him into the room carrying a folded white towel that she set down on the sin". (en, after chec"ing out the strange loo"ing shower, spent a moment loo"ing in the mirror at his reflection, fascinated by what he saw. %ll of the lines on his face, all of the beginnings of the crows feet he had been developing were gone. The s"in itself seemed smoother somehow, no longer showing the ravages of weathering he had put it through in the course of his life. ,e loo"ed at least ten years younger than the last time he had e&amined himself. That would have been 'ust before leaving for wor" the morning he was shot, on a different world, in a different time, when his wife was still alive and his son was still a fetus within her womb. 2ventually, though he could not help but be pleased with his

new appearance, he had to loo" away. %ll he could thin" about was how surprised %nnie would have been. 3 o you "now how to use the shower and the sin"43 Jeal as"ed, noting her patient was upset but probably not understanding why. 3Bh... I!m not sure,3 he replied, wiping at a tear that had formed in his left eye and trying to banish the thought of his wife. 3 o you not use faucet handles anymore43 39o,3 Jeal told him. 3The room computer controls the water flow. )or the shower you need to tell it what "ind of spray you want and at what temperature. The sin" is the same, only you don!t have to name a specific temperature. =ou 'ust say cold, warm, or hot.3 3I see,3 he said a little doubtfully. 3.ould you li"e me to activate it for you43 3I guess maybe you!d better,3 he replied. 3I!ll wait until the ne&t shower to solo.3 Jeal found this funnier than (en had intended it to be and spent a moment laughing loudly. It was somewhat infectious and (en grinned with her. )inally Jeal loo"ed up at the ceiling and said7 3-omputer. Shower on. )ull spray, C8 degrees.3 3)uc"in! aye,3 the computer replied and a second later the chrome 'ets in the stall came to life, shooting a fine stream of water down from all sides. %fter a moment, steam began to rise. 39ow that!s the temperature I prefer for my shower,3 Jeal told him. 3If it!s too hot or too cold for you, 'ust tell the computer to ad'ust temperature to C? or CI or whatever. I!d suggest ad'usting it in increments of one degree. .ait a moment between each ad'ustment and see if that!s what you li"e. *nce

you!re wet enough and ready to wash, you tell the computer !wash! and it will add soap to the water. %s you can see, there are some washcloths stac"ed on the rac" there. !.ash off! will get it to 'ust give you fresh water again. .hen you!re done, 'ust tell it !shower off!.3 3Aight,3 (en said, wondering if this was all really easier than the method he used to use. 3.hat about shampoo and conditioner43 3Shampoo and conditioner43 she as"ed, her eyebrows going up a tad. 3Bh... you "now, to wash my hair with43 She lic"ed her lips in confusion for a second, her pin" tongue moistening her red lips. )inally, seeming to recall some buried piece of information from her mind, she nodded "nowingly. 3*h yes,3 she said. 3=ou used to use different cosmetic soaps on different parts of your body, didn!t you4 It was part of the corporate scheme to sell you things you didn!t need.3 3Bh...3 (en said, unsure how to feel about this. 3Just use the soap in the water for your hair,3 Jeal told him with a smile. 3It will be sufficient to cleanse out the oil and dirt that!s accumulated in your follicles.3 3Bh, well, o"ay,3 he finally said. Jeal left him alone at that point and he undressed, dropping his shorts and shirt to the floor. ,e stuc" his hand beneath the spray and found the water was 'ust a little hotter than he really li"ed it so he directed the computer to ad'ust it to C?. That seemed about perfect. ,e stepped inside, putting himself under the spray, letting the heat and gentle pulsation of the water massage away some of the tension from this very strange day.

3-omputer, wash,3 he said, amused to find himself loo"ing up at the ceiling. The water 'ets pulsed for the briefest second and suddenly frothy soapsuds were forming in the water on his body. The smell was of clean soap, nothing else. 9o lilac, or strawberry, or any other artificial scent. ,e pic"ed up a washrag and scrubbed his body thoroughly and then stuc" his hair into the flow, letting it get soaped up as well. .ith a command to 3wash off3 the flow changed bac" to clear water again. ,e rinsed off and then spent another few minutes, 'ust lu&uriating under the spray. )inally, almost reluctantly, he commanded 3shower off3 and the flow ceased instantly, without even a stray drip coming from the no$$les. ,e pulled open the shower curtain to grab his towel and was startled to see Jeal standing 'ust outside, holding it out for him. 3)eeling better43 she as"ed him, her face showing that slight smile. 3Bh... well, yeah,3 he said, stammering a bit, acutely embarrassed to be standing before her na"ed. ,e too" the towel from her hands and began to dry himself #uic"ly. Jeal made no move as if to leave the room. 3I brought you some fresh clothes from the supply room,3 she told him 3They!re out on the counter in the room. 3Than"s,3 he said, turning his body to "eep his genitals somewhat out of her view, feeling himself blushing. 3%re you all right43 Jeal as"ed him, motherly concern in her tone. 3=ou!re getting flushed. .as the water too hot43 39o, the uh... the water was fine,3 he said. 3,mm,3 she said, stepping closer. She held out her arm and put it against his forehead. ,er s"in was soft and he felt himself 'ump a little at the contact with it. 39ope,3 she concluded. 39o

fever. %re you feeling any ill effects43 39o, not ill. It!s 'ust that... uh... well, I!m not used to having women standing in front of me while I!m... you "now.3 ,er brow scrunched a bit. 3.hile you!re what43 she as"ed. 3.hile I!m not wearing any clothes,3 he said. Bnderstanding dawned on her face. 3*h,3 she said brightly. 3I!m sorry. I "eep forgetting about the differing standards of modesty between your time and ours.3 3That!s all right,3 he said, trying to "eep the towel in a position to cover his crotch. 3=ou see, here, we!re not so 'ac"ed about being seen na"ed by the opposite se&, especially not in a clinical setting such as the hospital room.3 3That!s very interesting,3 (en said, shifting from one foot to another. 3;ut...3 3;ut you don!t have to worry. I!ve been part of the team ta"ing care of you since we brought your body out of stasis. I!ve given you sponge baths and drawn urine from you many times. =ou have nothing to worry about. =ou have a very attractive body. 2specially since r. 8ende$ and his team gave you the 'uice up.3 3.ell... uh... than"s, but...3 3%nd in any case, you have to be nude for your massage.3 38y massage43 3*f course. r. 8ende$ ordered a full body massage to help you rela& before bed. I can!t very well do that if you have your clothes on.3

3% full body massage43 he as"ed, his eyes widening. 3That!s right,3 she said seriously. 3Its good for your s"in, good for your muscle tone, and it!ll help you settle down for sleep. I!m very good at it.3 3Bh... listen, Jeal,3 he said, fidgeting bac" and forth. 3I appreciate the offer, but I really don!t thin" I!m up to a massage 'ust now.3 3*f course you are,3 she scoffed. 32veryone loves a massage. %nd besides, your doctor ordered it. 9ow let!s finish drying you off.3 She reached for the towel, pulling it away from his s"in. 3Jeal,3 he said, 'umping, trying to cover bac" up. 3I can dry myself. Aeally.3 She shrugged, letting go of the towel. 3,ave it your way,3 she told him. 31o ahead and finish up in here. I!ll go out and get the oil ready.3 3The oil43 3)or the massage,3 she said, flashing her smile again. 3I!ll see you out there.3 She turned and wal"ed through the door, which opened automatically before her and then slid shut again once she had passed through. 3*il43 he said, sha"ing his head. Trying to put the thought out of his mind he finished toweling off. .hat "ind of doctor ordered a full body massage with oil from an attractive nurse as part of treatment4 ,e had never heard of such a thing. %nd although he had to admit Jeal was certainly attractive and that he even felt a stirring of se&ual e&citement at the thought of her rubbing oil on his body, he honestly didn!t thin" he was #uite up to such a thing. ,e didn!t want to feel the touch of a woman on his body with %nnie only one day dead from his perspective. That was... well... 'ust wrong. .asn!t it4

,e emerged from the shower room with the towel wrapped around his waste a minute later. Jeal was sitting on the edge of his bed, her legs slightly spread, which afforded him a very nice view between them. ,e could see the crotch of her shorts stretched tightly across her pubic region, could ma"e out her very vaginal slit as the material was suc"ed up into it. ,e gulped and, despite himself felt a small surge of blood rush into his penis. 3:isten, Jeal,3 he said. 3%bout the massage. -ould we maybe 'ust "ind of put that off for today4 %s you can imagine, I!ve been through #uite a bit since I!ve been awa"ened.3 3%ll the more reason for a good massage,3 she said brightly. 3That!s why octor 8ende$ ordered it. I have the oil all ready.3 She pointed to a small plastic container of some sort that stood on a stainless steel hospital tray ne&t to her. It was plugged into a wall outlet by an electrical cord. % digital display on the front was showing the number D0. 3I uh... see that,3 he said. 3;ut...3 39o buts,3 she said firmly, patting the bed. 3:ie down and let!s get it on.3 31et it on43 3The massage,3 she said. 3=ou don!t want me to go against the doctor!s orders do you4 ,e!d be very upset.3 3.ell, no, I wouldn!t want that, but...3 38r. )ra$ier,3 she said. 3Trust me. I "now what I!m doing here. I can see how tensed up you are. =ou!re going to end up with a ran"in tension headache and sore shoulders if I don!t do something about it. 9ow do both of us a favor and come lie down. :et me do my wor".3

.ith a sigh he gave in. 8aybe a massage wouldn!t be so bad after all. %nd it wasn!t li"e he was going to be having se& with her. %nd she was right about him being tense. ,e could feel his shoulder muscles all "notted up, could feel the beginnings of a headache worming into him. ,e wal"ed over to the bed and stood before it. 3Should I lie down on my stomach43 he as"ed. 3=es, the bac" is the best place to start,3 she said. ,e started to lie down. ;efore he even got his "nees on the bed however, Jeal stopped him. 3=ou need to ta"e off your towel,3 she said. 3,ow come43 3;ecause that!s the way it!s done,3 she answered. ,e was about to protest but before he could she reached out and pulled the towel free, leaving him na"ed, his penis right before her face at eye level. ,e nearly threw himself onto the bed, feeling blood rushing simultaneously to his penis and his face at the same time. Jeal seemed to ta"e this all as a matter course, although she did have an amused smir" on her face. 3%re you ready43 she as"ed him. )eeling embarrassed, e&posed, and strangely e&cited all at the same time, (en nodded. 3I uh... guess so,3 he said. 35ery good,3 she said. 3:et!s get you in a little better of a position first, shall we43 .ith that she put her hands on his legs, pushing them a little straighter along the length of the bed. She tried to spread them apart a little but he instinctively "ept closing them. )inally she seemed to give up on this aspect and moved on to her ne&t step. 3I!ll start with your bac",3 she told him. 3The oil is at D0

degrees, 'ust enough to give a pleasant little sting when it contacts your s"in.3 3*"ay,3 he said, his voice unsteady. She pic"ed up a clear, s#uee$able container out of the dispenser and held it over his bac". ,e felt a sharp sensation of heat between his shoulder blades a second later. %s she had said, it imparted 'ust a little bit of a sting, not #uite painful but close. 3The heat will help my hands rela& your muscles,3 she e&plained as her hands came down onto his shoulders. 3The oil itself is osmotic to s"in cells and will absorb within ten minutes.3 She began to spread the oil over his shoulders and upper bac", her soft hands gliding up and down on a slippery film. ,e couldn!t help but sigh at her touch, at the feel of her feminine hands on his body. Soon the oil was smeared everywhere, its heat soa"ing into him, ma"ing a slight sweat brea" out on his brow. 3)eel good43 Jeal as"ed. 3=es,3 he almost cooed. 3%ctually it does.3 3.ell that!s 'ust the oil. ,ere comes the good part.3 ,e felt the bed shift and, with a start, he reali$ed that she was climbing into it with him. ;efore he had a chance to protest she had swung her leg over his and was straddling his prone body. She sat down on his buttoc"s, her legs stretching behind her. ,er could feel her crotch pushing against his butt chee"s, her bare inner thighs rubbing on his outer thighs. It was a stirringly intimate contact and he felt his penis 'er"ing beneath him as it responded to the sensation. 3Jeal, I...3 he started, but she hushed him.

39o tal"ing during the massage,3 she said, her hands coming down onto his shoulders again. 3It distracts from the essence of it.3 She began to "nead the muscles of his shoulders and nec", her hands pushing down firmly, s#uee$ing and rubbing in alternating motions. She did it very forcefully, hard enough to cause the mattress to sag below him. It felt very good, almost heavenly in fact. ,e couldn!t help but sigh in pleasure as he felt the "nots loosening up and rela&ing. 3=ou are good at this,3 he said as she concentrated on the area where his nec" 'oined his shoulders. 3*f course I am,3 she replied. 38assage techni#ue is a re#uired part of nursing education. .asn!t it li"e that in your day43 39o, I!m pretty sure it wasn!t.3 3,mmmph,3 she grunted, as if to say 3barbarians3. She continued her wor", her hands gradually moving from his shoulders onto his upper bac". %s she rubbed and "neaded, as her soft fingers slipped and gripped through the hot oil that covered him, he was able to feel the soft s"in of her legs rubbing against his thighs. ,e could also feel her cloth+covered crotch moving gently bac" and forth on his buttoc"s. This was the first time since he began dating %nnie that he had been in such intimate contact with another woman. espite the horrid longing he felt for his wife, he couldn!t help but en'oy the sensation. ,is penis, which had been 'ust mildly interested in things before, suddenly became very interested. It stiffened up until it was a full+fledged hard+on po"ing into the bed cloth. The up and down motion of her body on top of his caused it to grind against the mattress in a pleasurable way. Soon she began to move her hands further down his bac", mostly following the spine but occasionally stretching her hands

out to the sides. %s she did this she was forced to move bac"wards on the bed in order to maintain leverage. ,er crotch slid off of his buttoc"s and onto his upper thighs, which released a little of the pressure on his erection but which also made him very aware of his bare butt stic"ing up at her. It didn!t help much when she commented on it. 3=ou have a really static ass,3 she said, almost off+handedly, the way one would compliment another person!s automobile. 3Bh... well, than"s,3 he stammered, feeling the flush on his face increase. She finished up with his bac", leaving it feeling loose and better than it had in years, and then she pic"ed up the tube of oil once more. ;efore he had a chance to speculate on what she was going to do now, he felt that stinging heat on his left butt chee". ,e 'umped a little, giving a nervous loo" over his shoulder. She wasn!t going to massage him there was she4 She was. She s#uirted another dab on his right chee" and then her hands came down and started rubbing it in. %s soon as it was spread evenly around she began s#uee$ing and rubbing, one chee" in each hand, wor"ing the heat and the oil into him. 3*h...3 he gasped as he felt this. ,e "new he should stop her from doing this, that she had gone beyond what he considered to be propriety, but he couldn!t #uite bring himself to. 3:i"e that do you43 she as"ed, giving a few more s#uee$es. 3:et me 'ust say that it!s a pleasure to ma"e you feel good. Sometimes I!m really down with this 'ob.3 3It feels uh... very nice,3 he told her. 3See4 I told you that you!d li"e my massage, didn!t I43 .ith that she began to slide her hand between his chee"s, wor"ing the oil into there with a steady, delicious pressure.

,is erection was now almost painful in its intensity. ,e resisted the urge to grind it into the mattress. ,e reali$ed he was almost panting with se&ual arousal. .as this really a standard massage for this day and age4 *r was his nurse molesting him on his first day awa"e4 2ither way, there was no denying that the sensation was e&#uisite. ,is own wife had never even touched him as Jeal was now touching him. ,er hand probed all the way down to where his testicles lay nestled beneath him. ,er fingers wor"ed the oil thoroughly into his crac", even gliding across his anus and probing 'ust a millimeter or two inside of it. ,e 'umped again at this particular intimate touch. 3 on!t li"e things there do you43 she as"ed, not waiting for an answer, 'ust seeming to file that information away. She rubbed his chee"s for another minute or so, until the heat of the oil started to fade away, and then she pulled her hands free and pic"ed up a towel. She wiped her hands for a moment and then raised her body up, so that she was "neeling above him. 31o ahead and roll over now, 8r. )ra$ier,3 she said. 3Bh... roll over43 he nearly gasped, painfully cogni$ant of the rigid hard+on he was sporting at the moment. 3=es,3 she said. 3It!s time to do the front.3 3Bh... maybe we could s"ip the front43 he as"ed. 3S"ip the front4 .hy would we do that4 The front is the important part.3 3Bh... well, maybe we could... you "now... wait a minute or two then,3 he suggested, trying to will his erection to subside, "nowing that such a thing was useless. It was so hard that only orgasm would relieve it, something he was planning on slipping

into the bathroom and producing as soon as his masseuse left the room. 3Is there a problem43 she as"ed, concern in her voice. 3Bh... well...3 he swallowed nervously. 3It!s a little embarrassing, but...3 ,e couldn!t finish. 3Is it your coc"43 she as"ed gently. 3.ell, yes.3 ,er loo" of concern deepened. 3 r. 8ende$ said your reproductive system was in top shape,3 she said. 3I hope he wasn!t wrong.3 (en was a little confused. 3.ell, yes,3 he said. 3It does seem to be in wor"ing order at the moment. That!s "ind of the problem.3 9ow it was she that loo"ed confused. 3It!s wor"ing43 she as"ed. 3%re you sure43 3%m I sure43 3Aoll over and let me see,3 she commanded, her hands going down to his hips and tugging on him. 3Jeal...3 he started, but resisting her was useless. She was very strong and very fast and before he could even gain the leverage to stop her, she had him flipped over onto his bac", his hard penis stic"ing straight up li"e a divining rod. ,er eyes went immediately to it and she smiled. 3.ell there!s nothing wrong here,3 she said. 3=ou have a very nice hard+on.3 3I!m sorry,3 he said, appalled at himself for his lac" of control. 3)or what43 she as"ed.

3)or... you "now,3 he said. 3)or getting a hard+on43 she said, her face scrunching a little. 3.ell... yeah. I usually don!t do things li"e that, you "now, in front of strangers, but... well, the massage you were giving was "ind of... getting to me.3 ,er brow crin"led up again and her brown eyes shifted from his penis to his face. 3=ou thought I would be upset,3 she as"ed carefully, 3because you had a hard+on43 ,e loo"ed up at her, unsure if he understood her. 3Bh... yes,3 he said. 3%ren!t you43 3I would!ve been very upset if my hands didn!t give you a hard+ on,3 she told him. 3I was giving you my best massage there. If you wouldn!t have been ready for sluicing when I rolled you over I would!ve been wondering if I was losing my touch.3 ,e wasn!t e&actly sure what sluicing was but he let that go for the moment. 3%re you telling me that you were trying to get me... uh... erect43 She giggled a little. 3I li"e to listen to your words,3 she said. 3They sound so old fashioned. ;ut yes, one of the main functions of the bac" massage is to prep the coc" for release.3 ,e swallowed. 3Aelease43 3=es, you "now, shooting off43 She pic"ed up the tube of oil again and sprayed some into her palm. 3%nd it!s about time for that now.3 3.ait a minute,3 he said, watching in alarm as she rubbed the oil into her palms, ma"ing them glisten. 3=ou mean that you want to... to...3 38a"e you shoot off,3 she said. 3It!s part of the massage.3 ,er

eyes gleamed a little bit. 3%nd to tell you the truth I!m actually loo"ing forward to this part. =ou are very ran"in you "now.3 3Bh, Jeal...3 he said, trying to thin" of a way to politely get her out of the room. ,e was now #uite certain that his nurse was molesting him. Surely these 8artians, who had come up with an allegedly perfect economic system, who were the most educated people in history, would not advocate a nurse 'ac"ing off one of her patients in the name of therapy. She was obviously some sort of se&ual deviant who had managed to slip through whatever screening process there was for the 'ob she had. id they even perform bac"ground chec"s on their nurses any more4 %nd despite the fact that she really was attractive and that the thought of having her touch his coc" in an intimate way was #uite an e&citing thought, he had 'ust lost his wife Gin a manner of spea"ingH and he didn!t thin" that engaging in se&ual activity on this first day was really proper. 3I!m really flattered that you would want to... you "now...3 3I!m glad to hear that,3 she said, her hand dipping down towards his penis. She encircled it with her left hand, the hand she had her wedding ring on, and s#uee$ed gently. 3*h...3 he said, as he felt the heat spreading through his member. -oupled with the gentle s#uee$ing she was doing, the feeling was wonderful. 3:i"e it43 she whispered to him, her face now flushing along with his. 3Bh... well... yes... but...3 She began to move her hand up and down, slowly, ta"ing it all the way to the base of his coc" and then bringing it bac" up to the head. She gently s#uee$ed her hand as she did this, sending waves of pleasurable sensation radiating throughout his groin. It was, without a doubt, the finest a hand had ever felt upon his coc" before.

3Just lie bac" and let me ma"e you 'i$$,3 she whispered to him as she manipulated him. 3It!ll help you rela& for bed and it!ll clear out all of the build+up that has been in there.3 ;uild up. =es, there would be #uite a bit of build up in his seminal vessels, wouldn!t there4 F88 years worth. %nd even without that factor thrown in, even if he only counted from his perspective, there was still well over a wee"!s worth. %nnie had been hugely pregnant after all before his... his death. She hadn!t been much in the mood. 3There you go,3 Jeal said, smiling as she saw him give into the massage she was providing. 3To tell you the truth, I!ve been loo"ing forward to this all day. Sometimes this is 'ust a wonderful 'ob, you down with it43 3Is this really part of your 'ob43 he as"ed, his voice not steady. 3*f course it is,3 she told him, moving her hand a little faster now, applying a little more pressure. 3.e used to have to practice on each other in nursing school.3 She grinned. 3That was the best part of the class, you as" me.3 ,e didn!t believe her for a moment, but at this point he didn!t really care. .hether she was molesting him or not, what she was doing 'ust felt too damn good. %nd it wasn!t really li"e he was cheating on %nnie. She was... well... dead after all. ,e missed her terribly, felt on the verge of tears even as she manipulated him, but she was dead. 3:et me get a little more comfortable,3 Jeal said. .ithout missing so much as a beat, she climbed bac" onto the bed, swinging her leg over his, until she was straddling him once more. She sat bac" so that her crotch was resting between his thighs. 3That!s better.3 3Bhhh,3 (en groaned as he saw the bounce of her breasts beneath her half+shirt, as he saw the stretched material across

her crotch. ,e saw that the fabric there was visibly damp. 3=ou can touch my tits if you want,3 Jeal told him. 3.hat43 38y tits,3 she said. 3I saw you loo"ing at them. =ou can put your hands on them if it!ll help you come. I don!t mind.3 ,e wanted to tell her that that was going too far, that that was crossing the boundary of what he thought he should participate in. ,e wanted to tell her, but he didn!t. Instead, his hands reached up and cupped the swelling of her breasts. They were firm in his hands and felt very nice. ,e could feel the nipples erect beneath the shirt. 31o ahead, s#uee$e them, play with them,3 Jeal told him, her hand moving even faster now. 3Put your hands under my shirt if you want. They!re all yours.3 ,e put his palms to her bare stomach and slid them upward. The shirt she wore had an elastic band of some sort on the bottom hem. %fter a moment of fumbling he was able to force his fingers beneath it and onto her bare breasts. ;oth of them sighed at the contact. 3=es,3 she said, her face flushing even more. 3=ou can be rough with them if you want. I li"e that.3 ,e s#uee$ed harder, twea"ing her large nipples between his thumb and forefinger as he felt that wonderful hand 'ac"ing up and down with delicious pressure. %n involuntary moan spilled from his mouth. 3That a boy,3 Jeal told him, roc"ing bac" and forth now as her hand became a blur of motion. 3Ji$$ for Jeal. :et!s see that spun". I want to feel it shooting all over my tummy.3

,e began to pant now, a fine sheen of sweat brea"ing out on his forehead. ,is body bas"ed in the tactile sensations that were being received. The feel of her firm thighs against his, the feel of those warm globes in his hands, and of course the feel of her slippery, hot hand on his coc". ,e had never thought that a simple hand'ob, something that, in his day, had been reserved for pre+intercourse teenagers in the bac"s of cars or on their parents! couch, could ever be as erotic as this. 3Ji$$ for me, (en,3 she whispered sensuously. 3Ji$$ all over my tummy. I want to feel that hot spun" splattering against me. -ome on, baby. o it.3 3Bhhhh,3 he groaned, her words having the desired effect upon him. ,e felt the waves of pleasure beginning in his groin and spreading outward. ,e began to buc" up and down beneath her. 3=es,3 she said, smiling widely. 3That a boy. o it<3 She began to 'ac" her hand even faster, to s#uee$e a little harder. The orgasm e&ploded through him, a feeling so intense it was actually frightening as it pea"ed. It too" his breath away it was so powerful, made him moan loudly into the air. % huge 'et of semen blasted out of his coc" and slammed into her belly, 'ust below the hem of her shirt. %nother one #uic"ly followed it, hitting 'ust above her belly button. 3*h yes,3 Jeal said, delighted. 3I love it on my tummy.3 ,e continued to blast her with come, spurt after spurt of it, more than he ever would have thought possible. It drenched her belly button, running down towards her shorts. *ther spurts landed on her shorts themselves, dar"ening the material and soa"ing in. Through it all she continued to move her hand up and down, draining every last drop until finally there was nothing left. 38mmm,3 she said. 3That was a lot.3

,is hands released her tits, slipping from beneath her shirt. ,e now felt drained, as if the strength had been sapped from all of his muscles. ,e also felt more than a little guilty for what he had 'ust participated in now that the pressure had been released. True he had not really been cheating on %nnie, but didn!t he owe her a little bit more of a mourning period before engaging in sordid activities in futuristic hospital rooms4 ,e thought maybe he did. Jeal released his now+wilting coc" from her hand and stood up. ,is semen was still globbed all over her lower stomach and her shorts. 3,ow do you feel43 she as"ed him, her voice going bac" to the motherly concern it had e&hibited earlier. 3Bh... well... good I suppose,3 he said. %nd physically, he did feel good. ;etter than he had in years in fact. 8entally of course, was a different matter entirely. 3I!m glad you li"ed your massage,3 she said. 3It seems I haven!t lost my touch after all.3 39o,3 he agreed. 3=ou definitely haven!t lost your touch.3 3:et!s get cleaned up,3 she said. 3=ou 'ust sit tight there and I!ll ta"e care of everything.3 3Bh... o"ay,3 he said, watching as she wal"ed over to the sin" ne&t to the bed. .ithout any preamble or fanfare, she "ic"ed off her moccasins and pushed her shorts down to the floor, so she was standing nude from her upper stomach down. ,er ass was tight loo"ing and very nice to behold, with no tan lines of any "ind. 3-omputer, water on,3 she said. 3.arm.3 The water began to flow in the sin" and she pic"ed up a washrag from a stac". She wet it thoroughly and then began to rub her stomach and crotch area with it, cleaning up all of the semen he had deposited there. .hen she was done she dropped the cloth into a slot in the wall and it disappeared. She then pic"ed up

another pair of shorts that had been stac"ed there and slipped them on, pulling them up and ad'usting them until they were comfortable. *nce that was complete she too" another washrag, wet it, and carried it over to (en. Soon she was sponging off his crotch and his coc", cleaning up all of the semen that had dribbled onto him. ,er touch was gentle and professional as she did this. 3.as that really an official massage43 he as"ed her as he en'oyed the sensation of the warm water. 3.ell,3 she said, 3I li"e to thin" that I go above and beyond the call sometimes. That!s why I let you feel my tits. % lot of nurses won!t let the patient touch them while they!re performing the massage, but I usually do if they!re nice to me.3 She giggled a little. 3Sometimes I!ve even let them finger my pussy a little. I would!ve let you do that if you!d wanted.3 3I uh... see,3 he said, unsure whether to believe her or not. ,aving a nurse 'ac" you off was li"e something out of a porno flic". It never happened in real life. 2&cept that it 'ust had. %nd the nurse was trying to tell him it was perfectly normal. 3.hat does your husband thin" about you... you "now... giving massages at wor"43 38y husband43 she said. 3,e doesn!t have a problem with it. .hy should he4 ,e "new I was a nurse when he married me. %nd he!s had more than his share of massages too.3 3So he "nows that you... you "now... let them feel you and that you ma"e them... uh... e'aculate and all43 3*f course,3 she said. 3That!s part of being a nurse. %nd even if it wasn!t, it!s not li"e we!re monos or anything.3 38onos43 he as"ed, noting that she had said that word with a distinct ring of distaste. 3.hat!s a mono43

She loo"ed at him with concern for a moment and a certain sense of understanding seemed to come over her face. 3*h, I!m sorry,3 she said. 3I "eep forgetting about where you come from. =ou probably were a mono, weren!t you43 3.hat the hell is a mono43 he as"ed, e&asperated. She swallowed, suddenly uncomfortable, li"e a parent whose child had 'ust as"ed a delicate #uestion about how babies were made. 3:oo", I!m sorry,3 she said. 3:i"e I told you, I "eep forgetting about where you come from and what it was li"e there. There!s nothing wrong with being a mono if that!s what you!re into. I mean, live and let live right4 That!s what being a 8artian is all about.3 3Jeal, I don!t even "now what a mono is.3 She was now blushing furiously, the way someone did when they had committed a grave fau& pau. 3.ell,3 she said #uic"ly. 3I!ve got a few other patients I need to tend to. I!ll be bac" as a part of my rounds in a bit.3 3Jeal...3 3I!m glad you li"ed the massage,3 she said, pic"ing up her oil dispenser and her towels. 3Just bu$$ me with the button if you need anything else. -an you get dressed o"ay43 3Bh... sure,3 he said. 35ery good,3 she told him, her eyes having trouble meeting his. 3I!m sorry about... well... you "now. :et me "now if you want the tran#uil field later.3 3*"ay,3 he said, watching as she dumped the towels and the rest of the old laundry into the chute. She left the room #uic"ly, nearly dashing out of the door, still visibly blushing.

(en was confused. % mono4 .hat the hell was a mono4 *bviously they were something shameful, something that people li"e Jeal seemed to have little patience or tolerance for. %nd she seemed to thin" he was one of them, whatever they were. Slowly he got up and wal"ed over to the counter, where a fresh pair of shorts and a fresh tan"+top shirt was resting. ,is mind troubled, he put them on and then went bac" to the bed and lay down. It wasn!t long before his thoughts turned from 8artians and monos and everything that he had seen and e&perienced this day to other, less pleasant thoughts. ,is entire world, and everything in it, were now gone. %nnie was gone. 2ven though she had been dead and gone for more than a hundred years, it seemed only li"e a day, maybe two to him. The grieving process was only 'ust beginning, had not even entered its most brutal stage yet. .hat good was this new life, this new world if %nnie did not come with it4 ,e began to cry again, not as violently as he had before but with an intensity that promised to sustain itself for #uite some time. %nnie was really gone and he would really never see her again. Though a new life was beginning, the %nnie part of his life was over forever. .hen Jeal came in to chec" on him two hours later he was still weeping, his face buried in the sheets, his body curled in a miserable fetal pose on the mattress. ,e did not even notice the nurse!s presence. Jeal, having been briefed in by (aren, left him alone, e&iting as silently as she had entered. %nd the weeping went on. Some time close to midnight (en fell into an e&hausted sleep, crossing the barrier from consciousness without even reali$ing that he!d been near it. ,e would wa"e up several more times during the night, nearly screaming in fear as he suffered nightmares about that final two minutes aboard the helicopter

and about those first few minutes of awa"ening. en wo"e up the following morning feeling ill+rested and fatigued. The depression and grief of %nnie!s loss was still going full force within him. %ccompanying these emotions were a cornucopia of others, guilt at what had happened between he and his nurse the night before the primary one. ,e had, in a certain sense of the word, had se& with Jeal. ,e had touched her body in intimacy, and she had touched his. Though she had claimed it was a standard massage techni#ue he "new that had to be a bunch of bullshit. She had molested him in his bed and he had allowed it to happen. ,is first day awa"e after F88 years and he ends up being a victim of a se& crime. %nd a willing victim + he couldn!t help but admit + at that. ,e "new if Jeal offered him another of her so+called massages, he would be hard pressed to resist her. It was 'ust after 8700 %8, or 0800 hours in the 8artian way of time telling, when :oretta, the day nurse, brought him a tray of brea"fast and set it before him. It was sausage, eggs, a small stac" of panca"es with maple syrup, a plastic cup full of orange 'uice and another plastic cup full of steaming blac" coffee. Though the food smelled wonderful and tasted even better, he only pic"ed at it, unable to muster the strength to chew and swallow more than a few bites. The wonders of his new reality however, served to drive bac" the feelings of loss and grief to a certain degree. It made him feel strangely guilty whenever some new aspect of technology or medicine that had hardly been conceived of in his time riveted his attention, drawing it away from the grief he was feeling. It was almost li"e %nnie was being cheated out of some of the mourning that she was due. ;ut guilt or not, depression or not, he could not help but be fascinated by the sight of his nurse ordering brea"fast by spea"ing into the ceiling or chec"ing his vital signs by loo"ing at the screen behind him. ,e simply could not help it. *ne such wonder occurred after r. 8ende$ gave him his final

physical e&am before discharge. 3=ou are 'ust the same as yesterday,3 8ende$ told him when the last test was complete. 3.hich is to say you!re perfect, if I do say so myself.3 3Than"s,3 (en muttered a little sourly as he pulled his shorts and half+shirt bac" on. ,e still did not "now what to thin" of 8ende$. ,is instincts were telling him that he was a man not to be trusted but he was smart enough to reali$e that this feeling might be a result of pre'udices he had pic"ed up as a police officer. %fter all, the man loo"ed 'ust li"e a dangerous :atino gangbanger. There was also the fact that he seemed to be romantically involved with his granddaughter. Paternal instincts apparently did not stop after the first or even the fifth generation. 3I 'ust have a few more cosmetic type #uestions for you if you feel up to them,3 8ende$ said as he pac"ed up his instruments. 3-osmetic43 3)uc"in! aye,3 he said with a nod. 39ow, as I told you yesterday, I too" the liberty of turning off the genes responsible for hypertension, nearsightedness, and rheumatoid arthritis because I figured you wouldn!t really want those problems. ;ut there are a few other things that I can help you with that are a matter of personal choice.3 3*h43 (en said, not #uite sure what the doctor was driving at. 3)or instance,3 8ende$ said, 3I noticed from photographs of you that were ta"en... uh... before, that you prefer to be clean shaven. 9o mustache, no beard. Is that correct43 3=es,3 he replied slowly. 3I used to grow a mustache every now and then + it was "ind of a cop thing + but I hated ta"ing care of it. 8ost of the time I "ept my face smooth.3

38ost 8artian men who do not wish to have facial hair have that gene dampened, as it were, so that they don!t have to shave every day. .ould you li"e me to do that for you43 (en loo"ed at him for a moment, trying to digest what he was being offered. 3 ampened43 he finally as"ed. 3 o you mean that you can fi& it so my beard doesn!t grow at all43 3=ou!re down with it,3 he replied. 3It!s 'ust a simple matter of telling your genes to halt hair growth on your facial area. .omen have us do the same thing to their legs and their armpits, their pubic region, also to their face if they!re prone to that sort of thing. .e can also shut off hair growth to your head if you wish but that doesn!t wor" very well unless you want to be completely bald. The hair that protrudes turns gray really #uic"ly if its not constantly growing.3 %fter being assured that this procedure would be in no way painful, dangerous, or irreversible, (en consented to it. .ho wouldn!t embrace the oppurtunity to give up the time+ consuming and inconvenient habit of shaving every day4 The tas" was completed not with the use of hypodermic needles or drugs but with a small headset device 8ende$ clipped on the bac" of his head for about five minutes. It emitted no sound, no vibration, no sensation of any "ind e&cept for a single beep when it was done. 8ende$ then removed it and stashed it bac" in his plastic case. 3If you ever decide to grow a mustache 'ust let me "now,3 he told (en. 3I can hoo" you up to the computer in my office and undampen 'ust the follicles on the upper lip.3 3Than"s, oc,3 he said, running his hand over his scruffy face, marveling that his ne&t shave would be his last. This last shave was accomplished with the assistance of :oretta a few minutes later with a rather scary loo"ing, though painless device called a 3laserator3 which she ran all over his face ma"ing

it as smooth as the proverbial baby!s butt. %nother wonder that was unheard of bac" in his time was the lac" of discharge paperwor". (aren and Jerico gave him another complete neurological e&am shortly after his post+laserator shower. .hen it was done (aren simply said, 3That!s it.3 3That!s it43 he as"ed. 3.hat do you mean43 3I mean you!re in perfect physical and neurological health. =our body and your brain are functioning perfectly. =ou!re officially free of the .hiting 8edical -enter.3 3 on!t I have to sign anything or... well... you "now, anything li"e that43 She shoo" her head. 3The computer has already noted that you!ve been medically cleared and has moved your file into the inactive database. =ou are no longer registered as a patient here.3 3.ow,3 he said, impressed. ,e wondered how many bureaucratic types had lost their 'obs when these 8artians had their revolution. Probably #uite a few if this was any e&ample of how things wor"ed. 8ende$ and Jerico, after offering congratulations to (aren and (en both, made a discrete departure from the room, leaving them alone. 3So what now43 he as"ed. 3 o we go over to your place or what43 3.e can go there now if you wish,3 she told him. 3That might be a good idea if you want to settle in a little. ;ut if you!re up to it we do need to ma"e a trip down to the capital building downtown.3

3.hat for43 he as"ed. 3.e need to get you registered as a citi$en of 8ars. That way you can receive all of the things you!re entitled to, li"e grocery allotments and clothing allowances and a personal computer. It shouldn!t ta"e very long.3 3=ou mean, 'ust li"e that I can become a citi$en4 I don!t have to be a resident for any length of time43 39ope,3 she said. 3%nyone who applies for 8artian citi$enship is immediately accepted as long as they don!t have a history of non+political criminal behavior. .e get about twenty thousand or so immigrants a year from .est,em and 2ast,em. % lot of them are defectors from the cargo ships that go bac" and forth. Some are people who have applied for visas and came over legally. 2very once in a while we get naval or marine personnel who defect and fly to us in spacecraft. *nce the entire crew of a stealth attac" ship surrendered to our navy and as"ed for asylum. I can tell you that .est,em was pretty pissed off about that, even though we did return the ship to them.3 She snorted a little in disgust. 3:i"e we would want one of their little toy ships anyway. They!re still trying to get us to return the officers of that ship so they can try them for treason.3 3%nd that would be bad, right43 he as"ed. 3They would e&ecute them,3 she replied. 3The death penalty is very much in favor for certain types of criminal activity in .est,em. ;ut anyway, we can ma"e the trip tomorrow if you li"e. If you want to 'ust spend your first day getting used to things and ad'usting to your new environment, that!s perfectly static.3 39o,3 he said after a moment!s thought. 3:et!s go downtown. I!m dying to see this place. Bh... so to spea".3 She gave him a pleased loo". 3I was hoping you!d say that,3 she

said. 3:et!s get it on.3

They rode the elevator down to the lobby level of the building and stepped out into a spacious entryway lined with plush carpet. %n information des" manned by a friendly loo"ing young man stood 'ust inside of a set of sliding doors leading out to the street. .,ITI91 %529B2 2MIT read a sign 'ust above the doors. (en e&perienced another moment of self+ consciousness at wal"ing around in public dressed in little better than underwear but it #uic"ly dissipated when he saw that all of the people milling about in the lobby were wearing the same thing. (aren led him to the doors and they opened silently as they approached, sliding along trac"s in the ground. ;eyond was a tile entryway that stretched for about twenty feet and then the street. irectly across the street, which was enclosed from thirty feet above by glass, was the entrance to another building that could be seen rising into the air above them. The sign over the main doors to the structure identified it as the B9I52ASIT= PA*MI8%: ,*BSI91 -*8P:2M N/. *ther buildings and other building entrances were spaced evenly along the length of the street with a few intersections with other streets visible in the distance. *nly by loo"ing directly upward through the glass could the pin" 8artian s"y be seen. The rest of it was bloc"ed out by the bul" of the buildings. The street itself ran as far as could be seen in both directions. It was divided into three distinct sections. % central tiled area about fifteen feet wide ran down the middle. % steady stream of people were wal"ing in both directions down this stretch, most ambling gently along in pairs or in groups of three or four, and most seemed to stic" to the right side of the strip relative to the direction they were moving. *n either side of this central strip were sections about ten feet wide that were paved in some sort of metal alloy that was flat gray in color. The occasional scuff of

blac" rubber on this surface told (en that wheeled vehicles utili$ed these sections of the road although none were visible at the moment. The sound on the street was of a busy city sidewal" + absent of the accompaniment of car horns and engines + with a thousand conversations babbling among the throngs of 8artians. 3The tram station is this way,3 (aren said, turning to the right and cutting diagonally across the paved portion of the street. 3It!s about a two bloc" wal" from this portion of the facility.3 3,ow far is downtown43 (en as"ed, nervous at the thought of riding a 8artian public transport train. (aren, li"e on several occasions before, seemed to be acutely attuned to what he was thin"ing. 3It!s wal"able,3 she said, 3but it would ta"e a while. .e!re tal"ing about eight "ilometers, maybe a little more.3 3:et!s ta"e the tram,3 he said, thin"ing that her definition of what was wal"able and his were two different things. They wal"ed away from the .hiting Bniversity and 8edical -enter building and past two other housing comple&es before turning right on a street called //nd 2&pressway. *nce they made the turn (en was able to see two sets of the blac" single trac" of the train system above them. They were located near the right side of the glass roof and attached by a series of steel mounting braces that were spaced every fifty feet or so. 9o trains were currently visible. (en could see signs on the street before them directing traffic to .B8- ST%TI*9 /. 8any of the pedestrians around them were heading that way. The entrance to the station was a set of sliding glass doors that were loc"ed in a state of perpetual openness as people wal"ed in and out of them. (en and (aren waited patiently in the line that had formed and eventually were able to push through to a wide staircase that climbed steeply upward, doubling bac" twice. %t

the top of the stairs was a broad, flat platform that loo"ed out over the trac" and the roof of the street. :arge groups of people were waiting ne&t to a long row of heavy loo"ing glass doors that opened directly to the outside. (aren e&plained that the train would mate with the doors when it stopped, opening the train door and the platform door at the same time, therefore "eeping intact the integrity of the seal. 8ounted above each of the doors was a computer+generated display that showed a map of the tram system and labeled the trains and the trac"s with numbers and letters. To (en!s eyes the map loo"ed remar"ably li"e a schematic of a large metropolitan freeway system. There was a belt+line that circled the entire city perimeter and multiple spo"e lines that led inward, towards a central hub. %bove the map was the current time7 FFC/ hours, and the ne&t two scheduled train times7 FFC8 hours and FF00 hours. 3 o you have to pay anything to ride this thing43 (en as"ed as they too" their place among the waiting crowd. 39o,3 she said. 3The intra+city public transportation system is free in all of the cities. ;efore the revolution it used to be run by 8arsTrans, which was one of the big .est,em based corporations. They used to charge us to ride and it wasn!t cheap either. That profit margin thing, you "now.3 (en shoo" his head. 3I still don!t understand how a system li"e this can wor". ,ow can your government 'ust pay for all of this stuff without having any money coming bac" to them4 )rom what you!ve told me, they!re paying out billions of these credits you have to all "inds of wor"ers but they don!t seem to have any sort of income. o you pay really high ta&es or what43 3.e don!t pay any ta&es,3 she said. 3Then where does the money come from43 he wanted to "now. 3,ow can your economy "eep going if there is a constant drain on the government ban" without anything going bac" in43

3.ell, in the first place, a lot of credits do go bac" in,3 she said. 3%fter all, it!s the government that sells us or provides us with most of the things that we spend our credits on. The government owns all housing and everything above the minimal public housing level costs credits to get into. %nd then there are certain lu&ury food items, into&icants, coffee, inter+city or e&traterrestrial travel. Those are all things that are provided by the government at a cost. So there is an inflow of credits to the government you see, but you have to understand that this inflow doesn!t really matter to our economy, nor does the outflow because the credits we are paid in and we use to buy things with don!t actually represent anything concrete.3 3I!m sorry,3 he said, loo"ing at her as if she was spea"ing gibberish, 3but I!m not trac"ing with you here. ,ow can they not represent anything43 3They don!t represent anything because our economy, our very e&istence is not based upon the ac#uisition of wealth. The credits only e&ist to provide motivation for wor"ing, to reimburse those who are functioning members of society and contribute something to it. They have value because they are the only means by which to buy things and there is no way to get them e&cept to receive a pay allotment for a 'ob or to have someone give them to you for some service you have provided. There is no finite amount of credits because they are nothing more than notations in the Internet.3 3 oesn!t that cause inflation though43 he as"ed, remembering his college economics electives. ,e had been specifically told that a system such as she was describing could not wor". 3.e have no inflation here,3 she answered. 3%ll prices and all salaries are permanently fi&ed at pre+determined rates. There are of course step raises for e&perience and promotions, but a beginning garbage collector is always going to ma"e four thousand credits a year and his living #uarters are always going to cost whatever it is he is paying for it. % one liter bottle of cola

syrup is always going to cost a half a credit. % slab of filet mignon is always going to cost a credit per "ilo. % two+wee" cruise to Saturn is always going to cost two hundred credits for economy class and four hundred for lu&ury class. These prices and salaries never change, it is forbidden for them to change by our constitution. .hen some new lu&ury item or service enters the mar"etplace, the proprietor is re#uired to go before a common sense committee that is run by the government to have the price fi&ed. ,e or she is then bound to honor this price forever.3 3Price fi&ing,3 he said, scowling a little. 3I was taught that was a false solution, that it would eventually cause economic collapse as faith in the currency was lost.3 3%nd that would be true,3 (aren told him, 3if we were economically tied in any way to any other entity such as 2ast,em or .est,em. ;ut we are not. 8ars is completely self+ contained and able to e&ist without 2arth at all. True, we get some lu&ury items from them but we do not give them our money nor accept theirs. .e have made it so their currency is worthless here and ours is worthless there. It is a strict trade of goods for goods and nothing they provide for us are goods we couldn!t live without. % lot of people would be pissed off if we suddenly couldn!t drin" .est,em coffee or sip a nice bottle of -alifornia or )rench wine or fire up a good smo"e after dinner, but the loss of those things would not be detrimental. *ur system wor"s because we are unified here and because we do not focus obsessively on the ac#uisition of our currency. :i"e I told you before, there is no elite class and no super corporations to pervert us. % credit is 'ust that, it is credit that is given for your contribution to society, whatever that contribution might be. Those who do not contribute, get no credits.3 3So you too" the power out of having money43 (en observed, starting to find a bi$arre "ind of sense in what she was saying. 32&actly,3 she said. 38oney is nice and can buy you things but

that is about all that it can do for you. It is not the focus of our e&istence anymore6 it is instead 'ust a motivating factor to our lives. If you want to have nice things, things that are not a part of your constitutional rights, then you have to wor". The more highly s"illed or dangerous your 'ob is, the nicer of things and living #uarters you can have. .e have no millionaires here. .e have no one willing to sell his or her soul in order to become a millionaire. It really wouldn!t do you any good to have that many credits anyway. There is only so much that you can spend them on.3 3%nd this has wor"ed for forty years43 3Twenty+one by our calendar, but yes, it has. There were a few glitches and loopholes in the early years. That is to be e&pected in any system as comple& as what we have come up with, but our constitution allows us to easily change any portions of it that are being e&ploited for self+interest. The first line of the document reads that common sense and fairness for all will always triumph in any constitutional #uestion.3 3I!d li"e to read this constitution of yours,3 he said. 3It sounds li"e a rather intriguing piece of wor".3 3%s soon as we get you your personal computer,3 she said, 3you can loo" at it any time you want. It!s programmed as part of the hard drive system on every computer. .e revere it the way other countries or political divisions revere their flag and their national anthem.3 .hile (en was sorting through the 8artian economic system in his head, pic"ing at it and trying to come up with some "ind of loophole that would prove that it couldn!t wor" Gand having no successH the station began to rumble slightly. It was not #uite on the level of an earth#ua"e, not even a mild one such as he used to regularly feel in San Jose, but it still made a little burst of adrenaline go flowing through his body. %fter all, he was standing less than twenty feet from a pane of glass that was the

only thing separating the platform he was on from the lethal 8artian atmosphere. .hat was causing it4 .hat would happen because of it4 ,is sudden fear was calmed somewhat by the obvious lac" of concern on every face around him. 8ost of them in fact loo"ed somewhat eager, even as the rumbling and vibration grew marginally worse. The cause of the vibration became clear when the tram that they were waiting for came rushing into view from their right. It consisted of eight cars all attached together with fle&ible airloc"s of some sort, presumably to allow people to wal" from one car to the ne&t. 2ach of the cars was about eight feet high and about twenty+five feet in length. There were no wheels in evidence, only a large groove on the bottom that was an inverted version of the trac" that it rode upon. (en was ama$ed, and more than a little frightened to see that the tram did not actually touch the trac" at all, instead, it hovered impossibly about eight inches above it. It came into the area of the station at such a speed that he at first thought it was simply going to whi$ right on by. It did not seem possible for the thing to stop #uic"ly enough to load and unload passengers at this particular destination. ,e was opening his mouth to as" (aren if this was an e&press train when it did e&actly what he thought it couldn!t do. It ground almost instantly to a full and complete halt, so #uic"ly he almost missed it. *ne moment the train was moving at full speed and the ne&t it was standing still. The doors along the length of the platform all opened at once with a clan" and a slight hissing of air pressure. Jesus, (en thought, feeling the adrenaline course through him again. True, he had seen the rapid starts and stops from the serenity level atop the hospital but it been different from a thousand feet up. ,ow could the people inside possibly put up with such a deceleration4 .ouldn!t they all be smashed up against the seat in front of them4 %nd what about those who were standing4 ;ut even as these #uestions formed in his mind, he remembered the elevator in the hospital6 the one that had

seemed to be standing still even as it shot upward and downward at five floors per second. The inertial dampening device the 8artians used was in action here. (aren had mentioned that all public transportation had it. (nowing this however, did not ma"e him feel a whole lot better about climbing aboard the thing. ,e almost suggested to (aren that they wal" the eight "ilometers downtown after all but when the crowd around him began to surge forward he had little choice but to surge with them. 8ars or not, he still didn!t li"e to ma"e a scene. %nd besides, he had to get used to riding these contraptions eventually, didn!t he4 They were virtually forced through the doors by the stream of scantily clad, trashy+tal"ing 8artians and then the crowd thinned out as people headed off to different parts of the car. There was a center aisle that was about four feet wide that ran the length of the car and rows of double seats on both sides, everywhere e&cept where the doors were. 2ach set of seats had a window ne&t to it that consisted of glass that loo"ed entirely too thin to (en. There were no advertisements or graffiti of any "ind, anywhere in the car but there was a computer display both at the front and the rear that showed the current location of this tram in the system and the current time. ;elow this the ne&t stop + something called I9 BSTAI%: DC ST%TI*9 + was listed along with the estimated time of arrival. 3:et!s get a seat,3 (aren said, leading him along the aisle towards the rear of the car. %bout half of the seats were empty despite the fact that many of the occupants were standing in groups near the doors. They tal"ed to each other in low voices or perused the screens of their personal computers, which (aren informed him were called 3P-!s3 for short. Some of them, (en saw, were actually tal"ing to their P-s, although whether these were modern cell phone conversations or they were 'ust bullshitting with their computers he could not tell. ;efore they found a place to plant themselves, the doors suddenly slid shut with another clan". % second later the tram

was in motion and moving at full speed. Through the windows on his right (en saw the station he had 'ust been standing at rapidly recede and disappear behind them. The scenery directly outside became a blur of buildings shooting by. These were the only indicators he had that they were not still standing still. Though he braced himself and though it seemed li"e he should have been thrown to the floor by the rapid acceleration, there was no sensation of movement at all6 not even when they went around the bend of a rather sharp turn in the trac"s. It was very disconcerting to see that you were moving but not to feel it. )aint nausea began to worm in his stomach. 3%re you o"ay43 (aren as"ed, propelling him into one of the plastic chairs. Though it loo"ed li"e it was made of a firm, hardened material of the sort that used to be found in fast food restaurants it was actually #uite soft and comfortable. 3I thin" I!m getting that reverse motion sic"ness that you were tal"ing about,3 he said. 3Just loo" down at the floor,3 she told him sympathetically. 3If that doesn!t help, then close your eyes. The sensation will go away if you can!t see outside.3 ,e tried loo"ing at the floor, as suggested, and it did help ease the sensation as long as his peripheral vision remained blind to the movement out the windows. ,e probably could have passed the entire trip in this matter but he found his eyes constantly drawn bac" to the view outside in this strange, alien city. ,e was li"e a teenager who happened across a beautiful woman carelessly seated while wearing a short s"irt. ,e could not help but continually ta"e glimpses despite the "nowledge that adverse conse#uences might result. ,e would ta"e ten to twenty second glances as the train wound and twisted its way along its route before the resulting nausea and vertigo forced him to loo" bac" down at the floor for a few seconds. )ortunately the conse#uences in this case were benevolent. %fter about ten minutes his brain began to get used to the conflict in sensory

input allowing his glances to become longer and more detailed. ,e saw high+rise after high+rise stretching into the pin" s"y above and throngs of 8artians wal"ing to and fro on the streets below them. *ccasionally he would catch a brief view of the red landscape when they passed close to the edge of the inhabited area. The train that carried them would dash forward at high speed, sometimes cutting from one side of the roof to the other, sometimes traveling in a straight line, sometimes ta"ing sharp turns. 2very twenty to thirty seconds they would come to a sudden, though unfelt, halt and the doors would clang open allowing a stream of fresh passengers to embar" or old passengers to disembar". 3The system is set up,3 (aren e&plained to him once she saw that he was ta"ing an interest, 3so no point in the city is more than twelve bloc"s from a tram station. *f course some places, li"e the universities and the capital, have several different stops near them due to the large numbers of wor"ers and students.3 3 oesn!t anyone drive to wor"43 he as"ed, remembering the tire mar"s on the road. 39o,3 she said. 3There are no private motor vehicles of any "ind on 8ars. This is something that goes bac" all the way to initial coloni$ation. It is generally agreed, even on 2arth, that the mass transit system in use during your time + that in which every person drove his or her own vehicle + was a terrible, wasteful mista"e. The fuel consumption and the traffic congestion that resulted were insurmountable problems. .hen .orld .ar III started and the %sian powers cut off the supply of 8iddle 2ast and %las"an oil to the Bnited States, the .estern economy was almost destroyed. 9obody could get to wor", supplies could not get from one place to another, and vital chemicals could not be manufactured.3 3I 'ust remember the traffic 'ams,3 (en said, thin"ing bac" on them with absurd nostalgia. ,e would never see a traffic 'am again< 3;ut what about the part of the street alongside the area

where everyone wal"s4 It!s obvious that vehicles of some sort drive on them. .hose vehicles are they43 3 elivery truc"s mostly,3 she answered. 31roceries and consumer items are delivered to your housing area by truc". They mostly do their wor" at night though, when there isn!t as much pedestrian traffic to interfere with them. %lso, the police department uses electric carts as part of their patrol services. They drive on the streets too. So do the dip+hoes.3 3 ip+hoes43 3 epartment of Public ,ealth and Safety,3 she clarified for him. 3 P,S is the official designation although over the years that abbreviation has evolved into dip+hoes. They!re the ones who handle the emergency medical and trauma problems that occur on the streets or anywhere away from the hospital. They do a lot of other things as well. They do emergency repairs on airloc"s. They rescue people if they get stuc" in or on something. They ta"e charge of damage control if such a thing ever becomes necessary. If there!s a fire burning somewhere in the city, they put it out.3 3*h,3 (en said. 3=ou mean they!re firefighters.3 She gave him a stern loo". 3That may be what you called them bac" in your time, but I wouldn!t let one of them hear you say that now. They find that to be a ran"in! offensive term.3 3They do43 3*h yes. .hile it!s true that the dip+hoes evolved from the old traditional fire departments, fighting fire is only a small, very menial portion of their duties. %fter all, it doesn!t ta"e a genius to put out a fire now, does it4 ;ut it does ta"e some pretty e&tensive training to deal with medical and traumatic in'uries and emergency repairs. -alling them firefighters implies that is all that they do and all they are good for.3

3They would rather be called dip+hoes than firefighters43 he as"ed, reflecting upon how strange that concept was. The firefighters that he used to deal with bac" in San Jose had been fiercely, even absurdly proud of their title. 3They would rather be called 2arthlings with no common sense than firefighters,3 (aren assured him. 3%mbulance driver is 'ust as offensive to them by the way. They evolved from that profession as well.3 3%ma$ing,3 (en mumbled for perhaps the tenth time that day. %s they continued along their path (en discovered that the 8artians were fond of large par"s. It seemed that every third or fourth stop brought them either alongside of or directly through an area full of manicured green grass, duc" ponds, football type fields, and children!s play areas. These par"s were all at least ten acres in si$e and one of them, which (aren told him was -olony Par", rivaled 9ew =or" -ity!s -entral Par". (en saw a regulation si$ed golf course, a $oo, and a large astronomical observatory in that one. In all of the par"s, large and small, the glass roof that covered that portion was raised from the normal thirty feet to appro&imately five hundred, probably to give the sensation of spaciousness. ,e supposed it made sense that the 8artians, who were sentenced to live out their lives indoors, would value a good open area to play and recreate in. %nd it was obvious, even with the brief, nauseating glances that he too", that a good many of them were doing 'ust that as they went by. %t (aren!s direction they dismounted the train they were riding on at a stop called ,B; ST%TI*9 D. (en felt a little unsteady on his feet as he followed her through the sliding doors and out onto a huge platform area that was at least three times the si$e of the one they had embar"ed at. This station contained four loading platforms instead of one and hundreds of people were standing patiently at the sliding doors or sitting in rows of chairs ne&t to them.

3,ub D leads to the northern downtown area,3 (aren told him as they wal"ed across the platform, weaving in and out of loitering 8artians. 3That!s where the capital building and many of the other planetary office buildings are located.3 They had to wait about five minutes for the number D train to arrive and (en spent much of this time sha"ing off the seasic"ness sensation that was assaulting him. %s he too" deep breaths of the warm, tasteless air on the platform he too" a loo" at the people around him. ;y now he was starting to get used to the 8artian manner of dress and he began to notice other things about them. )or instance all of them seemed to be very youthful loo"ing and physically fit. Though there were a few varieties of body shape + some were a little chubby, some were very s"inny + there was no one that he could see that could be categori$ed as either obese or emaciated. ,e wondered if the process of turning genes on and off li"e light switches had something to do with that. Probably. If a person had an overeating problem of some sort couldn!t a doctor li"e 8ende$ Gwho might be intimately involved with (aren, his mind insisted upon reminding himH 'ust turn off whatever hormone or gene was responsible4 .hat about depression4 -ould a simple gene reassignment or modification cure that as well4 ,e also noticed a very wide variety of s"in tones ranging anywhere from the pasty white of northern latitude -aucasians to the almost pure blac" of an %frican native. These tones on the e&tremes however, were very much in the minority. 8ost of the people fell s#uarely into a wide middle category of dar" tan to light brown. ,air colors too were of an ama$ing variety, ranging from light blonde li"e (aren!s to the 'et blac" associated with *rientals. %nd again, the e&tremes seemed to be vastly outnumbered by the happy mediums. ar" blonde to rich brunette seemed to be the ma'ority. 3Tell me something,3 (en as"ed, remembering again something he had been told earlier.

3.hat!s that43 3=ou said the 8artians are made up of many different races from 2arth, right43 3)uc"in! aye.3 3Is there a lot of interracial marriages and childbearing4 It loo"s li"e there is.3 She smiled. 3Interracial is not really a term we even use here. .e!re all 'ust 8artians. ;ut in answer to your #uestion, yes, there is. There is no stigma on 8ars about having a relationship or even producing a child with someone who is of a different s"in color than yourself. There never really has been such a stigma, even before the revolution. The type of people who coloni$ed 8ars were, as I!ve told you before, the lower classes of all races and creeds. %nd while race was a big factor on 2arth during the coloni$ation period + and it still is today by the way + we!ve always seemed to reali$e that people are 'ust people. Some of us are bad, some are good, some are stupid, some are la$y, some are downright brilliant, but your underlying ancestry has nothing to do with that. %ny lingering racism we had after coming to 8ars was swept away once we, as a people, became victims of pre'udice from 2arth.3 *n this point (en found himself being very cynical. It was accepted wisdom bac" in his day that racism was uncon#uerable. The best that could be hoped for was legislation of some sort that mandated everything be done fairly for all concerned. ,e mentioned this to (aren, e&pressing disbelief that everyone here had learned, in the immortal words of Aodney (ing, to 'ust get along. The loo" she gave him was a little pitying, very similar to the one she!d offered during their discussion about the 2bola epidemic. 3(en,3 she said gently, 3has it ever occurred to you that the racism you witnessed and possibly even partoo" in

during your lifetime was deliberate43 3 eliberate43 3 eliberate,3 she repeated. 3It served the interests of those in charge for there to be racism in the lower and middle classes. =ou see, it is the lower and middle classes of citi$enry that are the most numerous. They outnumber the ruling classes usually by more than ten thousand to one and it is they from which uprisings and revolutions spring. ,aving these people fight among themselves for whatever reason, "eeps them from concentrating upon and uniting against the real enemy. ;oth racism and class disputes are easily e&ploited human nature triggers that the ruling classes can set into motion. It!s wor"ed throughout human history.3 39ow wait a minute,3 (en said, unable to accept what she was saying. 3.hile I!ll be the first to admit that there was a fair amount of racism in e&istence in my age, the government and society was trying to fight it. .e had affirmative action to give 'obs to minorities and insure that they got into college. .e had groups li"e the 9%%-P. Sometimes they were fighting so hard for minority rights that we who were not minorities suffered from it.3 3 on!t you see (en, that was how they were perpetuating it4 .henever one side is given an advantage over another side there is going to be resentment. It doesn!t matter if its whites over blac"s, blac"s over whites, 8e&icans over blac"s, or everybody non+white over whites. -alling attention to the differences between people perpetuates the racism. Ta"e a loo" at blac" and white relations in your country for instance. Ta"e a loo" at the history of them up to your point.3 3.hat do you mean43 3.ell, bac" when %merica was founded, blac"s were brought there from their homeland in chains, as slaves. 9ow obviously,

that was institutional racism on a significant scale, correct43 3-orrect,3 he agreed. 3The institution of slavery was "ept in place for several hundred years and it was mostly economic in nature. Slaves were, after all, free labor. The slave owners did not see this as a crime against humanity because they did not see the %frican descendents as people. They saw them as animals and they interpreted the scriptures upon which they based their society to 'ustify this. ,owever, eventually, human beings in %merica evolved the morality to recogni$e that enslaving people was wrong. % bitter war was eventually fought over the matter + a war that was admittedly mostly economic in nature as well, at least from the point of view of the ruling classes + and slavery was outlawed. It is at this point in %merican history that the first use of deliberate racism was employed by the ruling class.3 3-ome again43 (en as"ed, having lost her there. 3,ad things been left alone at that point,3 (aren told him, 3blac"s and whites would have been living fairly harmoniously with each other within a few generations. It would have started at the lowest level of society6 with the poor. Poor blac"s and poor whites would have been living in the same neighborhoods, sharing the same misery, enduring the same hardships. They would have eventually felt a "inship that would have allowed them to cast aside their preconceived notions about each other. They would have reali$ed that they were all 'ust people. Pre'udice is spawned when someone points out the differences between people + such as s"in color + and uses them to mas" the similarities. Poor whites and poor blac"s were 'ust that7 poor. They both needed 'obs. They both wanted to feed their families. The rich e&ploited them both in many different ways. If left alone they undoubtedly would have developed this "inship with each other and by the FI00s they would have been interbreeding with each other without any more of a thought than blondes and brunettes interbreed with each other.3

3=ou thin" that Southern blac"s and whites would have bred together43 he as"ed incredulously. 3That!s the most ridiculous thing that I!ve ever heard in my life. =ou don!t really believe that, do you43 3I "now it, (en,3 she replied firmly. 3Try to remember that I am spea"ing to you from a completely different perspective than you are used to. Try also to remember that what I!m telling you has actually occurred here on 8ars because it was allowed to. The southern blac"s and the poor southern whites had no reason to hate each other until the rich whites that were in power gave them a reason. To "eep them from uniting against the ruling class they began to tell the whites that the blac"s were going to ta"e their 'obs, that they were going to rape their women, that they were going to vote blac"s into high office and eventually ta"e over the country. They told the poor whites that the blac"s were inferior to them. .ho, when down on the bottom of the food chain, does not li"e to be told that there are people even lower4 *nce the poor whites accepted the idea that they were better than the blac"s + and it didn!t really ta"e much to convince them of this + the thought that these blac"s were trying to be better than them, were trying to ta"e their 'obs and their women became intolerable. 9aturally violence and repression resulted. :aws were passed forcing the two races to segregate and of course the blac"s ended up with the short end of the stic". This became the status #uo in your country for the ne&t hundred 2arth years.3 3.hat you!re saying is true,3 (en agreed, 3but you!ve twisted the facts a little. I thin" you!re crediting a lot more intelligence behind the decision to segregate than was really there. It was 'ust the way people thought at that time.3 (aren shoo" her head. 3People are people, (en,3 she told him. 3,uman nature does not change and the way people react to certain situations does not change. The poor bac" then were 'ust the same as they were in your day and were 'ust the same as they are in our day. They react based on the information that

they are given from their leaders and they get away with whatever they are allowed to get away with. =our post+-ivil .ar poor whites and middle class whites were told authoritatively that blac"s were the enemy and that they were inferior. They were allowed to treat this enemy as inferior and they did. on!t fool yourself into thin"ing that this was not a conscious decision on the part of your ruling class. on!t thin" that for a moment.3 The platform began to rumble as he pondered these words and the number D train slid neatly into the station, the doors hissing open. .ordlessly, (en followed (aren on board and they found a seat near the front of the car 'ust as the train too" off again. (en!s brain continued to get used to the sensation + or lac" thereof + that was produced by the train. ,e loo"ed out the window more and more as they stopped and started their way towards the center of the city. )inally, at a station called -apital Par" South, (aren touched him on the shoulder. 3:et!s get out here and wal" the rest of the way,3 she said. 3It!s only a half of a "ilometer to the building and -apital Par" is something you should really see.3 3*"ay,3 he said, getting to his feet. They e&ited the train and went down another set of stairs, emerging out onto a street that was a little narrower than the one they had been on earlier. %cross the street was a wide e&panse of grass that made up the par". Trees were spec"led across the surface, some oa"s, a few pines, even a redwood. (en saw that the glass ceiling was particularly high here, nearly F000 feet up. People were picnic"ing in several places under the trees, some of them families with small children, some of them couples. There were small animals that (en assumed to be dogs with a few of the people. (aren led him across the street and onto a cement path that led through the heart of the par". The path meandered bac" and

forth, seeming to have no particular destination in mind. They passed several of the picnic people and (en was surprised, and a little embarrassed, when he noticed that one couple was actually having se& on their blan"et. The woman was dar" haired and light s"inned, a little on the chubby side but, li"e all 8artians that he!d seen so far, nothing that could be called fat. The man was similarly chubby, his hair cut into a strange reverse 8ohaw" pattern and colored bright orange. They had both removed their shorts and the man was lying between the woman!s legs, his butt moving slowly up and down as their hands stro"ed each other!s flesh and their lips were loc"ed in a passionate "iss. 3(aren,3 he whispered, unable to ta"e his eyes off of the scene. To his horror he felt himself becoming erect beneath his s"impy shorts. 3Those people over there are... you "now43 She too" a glance over at them and then smiled. 3)uc"ing43 she as"ed. 3Bh yes,3 he said, blushing. 3 oes that sort of thing go on in public here43 3In the par"s, yes,3 she said. 3Sometimes you!ll see people doing it on the trams too. The serenity level at lunchtime is a fairly common place as well.3 3%nd it!s legal to do that43 he as"ed incredulously. She shrugged. 3.hy wouldn!t it be43 3.ell,3 he nearly sputtered, 3what if "ids saw it43 3*h I!m sure some "ids are probably watching them. .hen I was a girl we used to always stare at people fuc"ing in the par". It!s one of the ways you learn about it.3 38y god,3 (en said, appalled, although strangely aroused at the

same time. (aren gave a "nowing smile. 3I thin" we!ve touched on this discussion before, bac" at the hospital. 5iews on human se&uality have changed #uite a bit since your time, especially here on 8ars where we worship common sense. To us, your se&ual morals are as anti#uated and repressive as your people thought the se&ual morals of the FEth century pilgrims to be.3 3=es, I can see a certain amount of change over time, but to allow people to have se& in the par"4 To let children watch them do it4 I would!ve hauled those people to 'ail for doing that bac" in my day.3 3=ou "eep coming bac" to the children watching it,3 she said. 3Tell me, what harm comes from children observing se&ual activity between adults43 3.ell... because it!s 'ust obscene,3 he said. 3*bscene4 =ou thin" the se& act is obscene43 39o, not the act,3 he said, feeling li"e he was bac"ing himself into a corner. 3It!s 'ust that doing it where other people can see it, especially "ids, is obscene. It should be a private thing, and allowing children to see it, that encourages them to do it themselves.3 3%nd so what if the children are encouraged to play se& games with each other43 she as"ed. 3.hat harm does that do43 3.hat harm does it do43 he hissed. 3They!ll end up having se& before they!re ready for it. =ou!ll have girls pregnant at FC and FD<3 3 idn!t you have those problems in your society anyway43 she as"ed. 3In a society where the se& act was thought obscene and "ept hidden, where nudity was discouraged4 idn!t you still

have girls FC and FD years old ending up pregnant43 3=es we did,3 he said. 3;ut if you encourage them it will 'ust ma"e it worse.3 3.hat would you say if I told you that teenage pregnancy is virtually unheard of here43 she as"ed. 3I!d say you were full of it,3 he responded. 3I!m not e&actly sure what that e&pression means, but I "ind of get the feel of it. %nyway, that!s the truth. 9obody gets pregnant on 8ars or even on 2arth unless they want to. .e manipulate the genes of both males and females at puberty. The girls! eggs will not drop out of the ovaries and the boys cannot produce sperm that are capable of penetrating an egg even if there was one there. .hen a couple decides that they wish to reproduce, they simply have this function reversed. .ithin one month the female will begin dropping healthy eggs. .ithin fifteen e'aculations the males will produce healthy sperm.3 3So you!re saying you have perfect birth control43 3=es,3 she said. 3.e have perfect birth control and we have eliminated all se&ually transmitted diseases. There is no longer a reason to discourage se&uality in people, to classify it as obscene as your society en'oyed doing. .e no longer discourage children from satisfying their natural curiosity about se&uality with each other. This is not to say that we encourage it e&actly, but as far as consenting adults and consenting children go, we 'ust let people do what they will. Se&uality is one of human"ind!s greatest gifts, wouldn!t you say4 It feels good, its free, anyone can do it, and it is not harmful. .hy should we try to regulate it or control it43 ,e continued to loo" at the couple in action. The man was now speeding up his thrusts, obviously wor"ing towards an orgasm. The woman had pulled her legs way bac" and was s#uee$ing his

ass chee"s rhythmically. ,er mouth was attached to his nec", biting at him and lic"ing his flesh. ,e forced his eyes from the sight, trying not to spring a full+ fledged erection, which would undoubtedly tent out #uite noticeably in his shorts. 3.hat about rape43 he as"ed (aren. 3.hat about child molestation4 o you encourage those acts as well4 o you 'ust let people do that if they want to43 39o,3 she said firmly. 3.e most certainly do not. .ith those particular acts you have ta"en the factor of consent out of the e#uation. Aape and child rape are among our most grave criminal offenses. Aapists who attac" adults are usually given five to ten years of hard labor in prison. That is ten to twenty of your years. Those adults who ta"e advantage of a child for se&ual gratification, whether they rape the child or somehow ta"e advantage of the child!s curiosity for such things, they are given life at hard labor. %nd in our society, life means life. They will go into our prison and never come bac" out again.3 3Aeally43 he said. That at least sounded li"e a good idea, li"e something that... well, that made sense. 3So you have an age of consent on this planet then43 3.e have an age that is something of a guideline for consent,3 she said. 3% guideline43 3.ell, when dealing with whether or not something is a se& crime, each case should be e&amined on an individual basis, wouldn!t you say4 .e!ve found that loo"ing at all criminal offenses that way seems to help.3 %gain, (en had to admit that this did ma"e a certain sort of sense. 3So what is that age then43 39ine years old,3 she said. 3*nce a person had passed their

ninth birthday they are considered fully capable of deciding whether or not they wish to engage in se&ual activity with anyone.3 39ine,3 he said, once again struggling with the concept of the 8artian calendar. 3So that would be... eighteen or so of my years43 3Aoughly seventeen I believe,3 she said. 3;ut again, this is 'ust the top end. There are circumstances where someone can have se& before they!re nine and the law is down with it. %s I said, every case is considered individually.3 3.hat circumstances would those be43 he as"ed. 3.ell, for instance, suppose an eight year old boy and an eight year old girl decided to have se& together. *bviously that would not be a crime.3 3It wouldn!t4 ,ow come43 3.ell, because they!re basically the same age. They!re adolescents e&perimenting with se&uality, as adolescents have always done and always will do. %s long as both parties consent to the act and there is no force or coercion, there is no problem, right43 39o problem4 *f course there!s a problem. ;y ma"ing it effectively legal you!re encouraging underage "ids to have se&.3 3So what43 (aren as"ed. 3.hat!s wrong with them having se& with each other4 Aemember, there are no se&ually transmitted diseases anymore and our birth control is perfect. .hy shouldn!t these two young people be allowed to e&press their affection for each other se&ually if that is what they both want43 3.ell... because it!s 'ust wrong to encourage "ids to do that,3 he said, although he was really unable to thin" of a concrete reason

'ust why it was wrong. 3I as" you again, what harm does it do43 3I don!t "now,3 he admitted. 38aybe it doesn!t do any harm for a couple of si&teen year olds to have se&. ;ut where do you draw the line4 .ill you let twelve year olds have se& with each other43 3That would be around five years old on our calendar,3 she answered, 3and the answer is yes, we will allow two five year olds to have se& with each other as long as they were both consenting parties to the act and as long as they were not encouraged or coerced to do so by adults for the purposes of their own gratification. %gain, you must remember that this is all stuff that went on in your time, even though it was forbidden.3 3So you 'ust gave up43 (en as"ed. 3=ou decided that since "ids are going to do this anyway that there!s no point in trying to discourage them43 39o,3 she said, sha"ing her head. 3That!s not what we!ve done at all. I "eep trying to e&plain to you, (en, we do not loo" at se& the same way your people did. .e perform the same acts with each other and we share the same fascination with the act and all of its attributes, but we are not as... well... hypocritical about it as people used to be. .e!ve accepted the fact that from puberty on we are se&ual creatures and we have embraced that gift instead of trying unsuccessfully to repress it and cast shame upon it.3 (en too" one more glance over at the couple on the grass. They had now finished up their copulation and were lying together on their bac"s, their arms intertwined, the woman!s head resting on the man!s shoulder. Their genitals were plainly visible to anyone wal"ing by. The man!s now deflated penis, obviously wet, was hanging to one side. The woman!s vagina, the lips still swollen and glistening, were open and dripping the 'uices of

their union onto the grass. 9obody seemed to be paying much attention to them. 3Bnbelievable,3 (en said softly, dragging his eyes away. 3=ou ta"e a little nap for F88 years and you wa"e up and everybody is screwing in the par".3 (aren too" his hand and began leading him down the path again, away from the lovers and towards the far end. 3I guess I should!ve tal"ed to you a little more about the changes in how we do things before I too" you outside,3 she said. 3=ou!re the first of our cryogenic people who was able to leave the hospital so #uic"ly. The others were all given somewhat of an indoctrination to our culture by watching our media files on the computer before they were actually e&posed to our lifestyles. This must bring a whole new meaning to the e&pression 3generation gap3, doesn!t it43 3It will ta"e a bit of getting used to,3 he said. 3Jeal told me about your reaction to your massage last night,3 she said. 3I guess I should!ve warned you about that.3 38y massage43 he as"ed, loo"ing at her sharply. 3She told you about... about my massage43 3.ell, of course,3 (aren said. 3It was a medical order on your chart that she perform one for you. She had to document the response to it of course.3 3 ocument it43 he as"ed, horrified at the thought of the se&ual act that he had participated in being written down in his chart. 3 id she document... well... everything that happened43 3She put down that she gave you a standard therapeutic rela&ation massage with minor titillatory enticements.3 3Titillatory enticements43

3Bsually that means she allowed you to feel her up a bit. She did do that, didn!t she43 ,e loo"ed at (aren to see if she were 'o"ing or not, or to see if this was some "ind of offhanded interrogation designed to elicit a confession from him. It seemed to be neither. She seemed perfectly serious about what she was as"ing. 3%re you saying,3 he as"ed, 3that her letting me... touch her... is a standard part of a massage43 3It depends on the nurse,3 (aren said, 3but basically, yes. It helps the patient to 'i$$ a lot of the time. Some people can!t get off with simple manual stimulation alone. % good nurse, and Jeal is a very good one, will do whatever it ta"es to achieve the end result of the massage.3 3%nd the end result would be43 3.ell, orgasm of course. That!s the rela&ing part of the massage. If she 'ust rubbed you down and left without giving you an orgasm you would!ve been all tensed up from se&ual frustration, which would be the e&act opposite of what the massage is intended for.3 3So you!re telling me that her... ma"ing me... uh, orgasm, was what she was supposed to be doing4 She wasn!t 'ust molesting me for her own pleasure43 (aren laughed, ma"ing him blush. 3I!m sorry,3 she said. 3This all comes bac" to me and my team not briefing you in on what life is li"e these days as opposed to in your time. ;ut no, she wasn!t molesting you. Though I!m certain that she achieved a great deal of pleasure out of giving you the massage, she was 'ust doing what she had been ordered to do, something that all nurses often do.3 3So all of those patients in your hospital get 'ac"ed off by their nurses43

3.ell, not all of them, but a great many of them do. Those that are capable of it anyway. It is simply a nurse!s duty these days.3 ,e shoo" his head a little in numb disbelief, envisioning a thousand night nurses giving hand'obs to their patients each night. It was a wonder the whole population wasn!t constantly trying to get into the hospital 'ust for that. ,e was however, strangely comforted by the revelation that Jeal had not been molesting him. Instead of feeling as if he!d been used for someone else!s gratification he could tell himself he was simply a man caught in the strangeness of another culture. ,e debated for a moment as"ing (aren + since they were on the sub'ect of 8artian se&uality + of what a 3mono3 was. In the end he decided to let that mystery linger a little longer. ,is head was already #uite full of shoc"ing information about these people and their se& lives. ,e wasn!t sure if he was #uite ready for another dose 'ust yet. They wal"ed on in silence for a few minutes, the buildings on the far end of the par" gradually growing closer. They passed another large duc" pond, a huge rose garden in which the multicolored flowers were all in bloom, and a grove of huge oa" trees that sprawled up towards the glass roof far above. The path they were on 'oined another, larger path that led directly through the center of the par". Soon they were standing beside what appeared to be a monument. It was a large polished granite wall into which the figures of soldiers of some sort had been carved. The soldiers were all wearing what appeared to be space suits and had compact loo"ing rifles in their hands. ;elow the carvings were rows of names, most of them prefaced by some sort of military ran". Stretching across the top of the monument, in large calligraphy script, were the words7 2 I-%T2 T* T,*S2 .,* 1%52 T,2IA :I52S T,%T .2 8I1,T ;2 )A22. 8%= T,2IA B:TI8%T2 S%-AI)I-2 9252A ;2 )*A1*TT29 %9 8%= T,2A2 9252A ;2 % 922 T* A2P2%T IT. 3*ur revolutionary war memorial,3 (aren said as she saw him

loo"ing at it. 3.e lost almost FF,000 men and women fighting the 2arthlings for this planet. %ll of their names are carved there. % cold comfort to their families of course, but we felt the need to do something to remember them.3 (en saw that, li"e at the 5ietnam memorial in his time, flowers and cards had been left at the base. 3FF,000 men and women,3 he said. 3,ow many 2arthlings did you "ill in e&change for that43 She gave him a strange smile, one that was part sad, part predatory. 3The e&act numbers were never "nown,3 she said. 3;ut our best estimations put it in the neighborhood of half a million.3 3,alf a million,3 he said, whistling in appreciation. 3It sounds li"e you put a serious hurt on us 2arthlings.3 3It was the only way they would let us be free,3 she said. 3The first shots of the revolution were fired 'ust up ahead, in the capital building lobby. .est,em federal agents attempted to ta"e our governor, :aura .hiting, into custody on trumped up corruption charges. =ou see, :aura .hiting was the woman who convinced us to rebel, that we didn!t have to operate under the .est,em government any more. 9aturally the 2arthlings were trying to get rid of her. That was January Fst, =ear F. That!s the date our calendar dates from and our capital building is somewhat of a 8ecca to the 8artian people.3 3So that!s when the war started43 3That was the day we sei$ed the planet from .est,em. The 8artian Planetary 1uard soldiers who were guarding :aura .hiting fired on the feds and captured most of them. )rom there the rest of the 8P1 was mobili$ed. They captured all military and federal installations on the planet within hours. It was ran"in easy to do since the .est,em!s were too cheap to "eep many soldiers here. .e also captured all of the naval ships

at anchor at Triad 9aval ;ase.3 3So you captured the planet in one day43 he as"ed. 3*ne day,3 she confirmed. 3That was the easy part. The hard part was holding it when the .est,em!s came to ta"e it bac". They sent half a million troops for the first assault. It too" them twelve wee"s to organi$e and ma"e the trip across space and they landed outside four of our cities, including 9ew Pittsburgh.3 3They landed outside the city4 =ou mean out in the atmosphere43 3Three hundred "ilometers away,3 she said. 3That was and is standard doctrine for the invasion of an e&traterrestrial body. The beachhead is to be established C00 to D00 "ilometers from the nearest defensive emplacement. That "eeps the invasion force safe from anti+air and artillery attac" while they are coming down and assembling. That was what allowed us to defeat them. They had to march C00 "ilometers through the wastelands 'ust to get to our defenses. .e sent out special forces teams that pic"ed at them from the moment they touched down. .e sent our 8os#uitoes out to blast their armor. .hen they finally reached our main defenses their numbers were down to less than a three to one advantage over us.3 3%nd the advantage goes to the defender,3 (en said, citing a standard rule of thumb for military engagements, a rule that went all the way bac" to %le&ander the 1reat and that presumably went all the way forward to the 8artian Aevolutionary .ar as well. 32&actly,3 she said. 3*ur forces were well dug+in and highly motivated for their tas". In addition, by the time they reached our main line, the .est,em marines were #uite demorali$ed by the guerrilla warfare we!d been hitting them with. The battle raged for two days on all of the fronts and in each case we beat

the shit out of them. 9one of our cities fell. The .est,ems were forced to pull bac" to their landing sites and then bac" to orbit to regroup. They attempted two more landings outside 2den and 9ew Pittsburgh and again we beat them bac" into orbit. This time they were forced to return to 2arth. They crawled bac" with their tails between their legs.3 3;ut they tried again43 he as"ed. 3They tried two more times, each with more troops than the last,3 she said. 3;ut their only real chance of ta"ing the planet bac" from us had already passed them by. uring the first assault it was only a few months after our revolt. *ur wor"ers and our economy were still in turmoil. .e were without a firm constitution and there was still a small but vocal minority of our people who didn!t thin" that it was possible to beat them. If they had not underestimated us so badly, they might very well have won there. *nce we threw them bac" into space however, it was no longer really possible for them to defeat us. *ur people were confidant and unified, our factories were churning out tan"s and aircraft in huge numbers, and the 8P1 was getting bigger and better trained by the wee". .est,em!s second and third attempts were nothing but useless slaughter. To this day the wastelands outside of 2den and 9ew Pittsburgh are littered with burned out .est,em tan"s and %P-s.3 3So they finally gave up huh43 3.ell, in a manner of spea"ing,3 she said. 3They haven!t sent any more troops here, so I suppose that is the important part. There has never been a formal armistice however and they have never publicly admitted that we are an autonomous planet. They tell their citi$ens that communist terrorists are in control of 8ars and are holding all of the citi$ens hostage. They promise that we will be liberated someday soon and returned to the rule of law under their system.3 3;ut you trade with them43 he as"ed. 3,ow is that possible if

they haven!t recogni$ed your independence43 3;ecause they would starve if they didn!t trade with us,3 she e&plained. 3It is no longer possible for either 2ast,em or .est,em to feed themselves without our agricultural shipments. %fter their third attempt to reta"e 8ars failed, .est,em was forced to enter into an unofficial trade agreement with us or their economy would have collapsed and famine would have "illed millions. Thus, we grow food here and we give it to them. They, in turn, give us a few to"en goods and don!t try to attac" us any more.3 (en!s military mind was a bit confounded by what she was telling him. 3So you!re saying that you could cut off their food supply and starve them into submission, yet you don!t do it43 3.hy would we wish to do that43 she as"ed. 3%ll that would accomplish is to cause a famine among the common people and the poor. Those in charge would still have enough to eat and drin". They always do. 9o, our sacred decree on this planet is to better human"ind, not to cause the deaths of millions through starvation. It is our purpose on this planet to feed everyone, be they friend or foe, and that is what we do and what we will always do. Some day the people of 2ast,em and .est,em will rise up and overthrow the corrupt governments they live under and 'oin us in our form of government or something li"e it. Bntil that day however, we have no means to facilitate that process and no wish to attempt to blac"mail 2arth into our way of thin"ing. If common sense government is to wor" it must be voluntarily adopted.3 3Interesting,3 (en said, loo"ing at the monument before him, at the names carved in granite. If what (aren was telling him was the truth + and he had no reason to thin" it wasn!t + those people had actually died for something. They had not gone to their deaths in some muggy Southeast %sian 'ungle for %merican business interests, or some godforsa"en 8iddle+2ast desert in order to "eep oil prices down, they had truly died for freedom

and a better way of life, something that his society had always given lip service to when people or soldiers were "illed but which was rarely, if ever, actually the case.

The 8artian capital building stood at the east end of the par". Though it was an impressive building by (en!s standards of architecture, rising F/0 stories into the pin" s"y, it was by no means a ma'estic one or even very different from the other s"yscrapers that surrounded it. There were no marble steps leading up to the entrance. In fact, there were no steps at all, 'ust a ban" of sliding glass doors at street level. There was an abundance of people crowded around these doors, some entering or leaving the building, some 'ust milling about. %ll were dressed in the standard 8artian garb of shorts and s"impy shirts of varying color. There were no suits or ties to be seen. There were no guards or security of any "ind on the doors. (en and (aren wal"ed straight through into a spacious lobby with high ceilings. ,andsome, 8artian red tile lined the floors. People wal"ed to and fro across it, most seemingly heading deeper into the building. In the center of the lobby was a marble fountain, its 'ets spraying water nearly to the ceiling before allowing it to cascade bac" down. %ll along the walls were paintings, some of them strangely beautiful 8artian landscapes, some of them cityscapes, some portraits of people. Just beyond the fountain was a tall statue of a handsome woman who appeared to be about thirty. ,er face was pensive, staring off into space. %n inscription on the pedestal identified the figure as :aura .hiting herself. 9ear the far end of the lobby, near a sign for the elevators, two guards were stationed in a small booth, both of them dressed in red T+shirts, both with what appeared to be sidearms strapped to their waists, although the guns themselves were very small as compared to (en!s Imm pistol he had carried for the police department. (aren allowed him to loo" about the lobby for a few moments

and then she led him over to the guard booth. The guards, a male and a female, both very youthful in appearance li"e most 8artians, smiled politely at their approach but (en saw them loo"ing him up and down watchfully. 3.hat the fuc" you want43 the male of the pair as"ed in a polite, businessli"e manner. 3)uc" your momma, ass+lic"er,3 (aren replied, 'ust as politely. 38y awg here be needin! the citi$enship process. =ou down with it43 3Aan"in,3 the guard replied. 3That!ll be the si&ty+eight floor. Turn right out of the elevator and follow the signs to the immigration department.3 3)uc"in aye than"s,3 (aren told him, and then led (en down a hallway to a ban" of elevators. (en e&perienced another of those motionless rides up into a s"yscraper, the car stopping several times along the way to let people out or in. .hen they reached the si&ty+eighth floor they followed the directional signs through a series of hallways until they came to a sliding door labeled7 I88I1A%TI*9 2P%AT829T. (en was e&pecting a huge room, somewhat li"e a 85 office, with hundreds of people standing in line and sitting in uncomfortable plastic chairs awaiting their turn to tal" to whatever bureaucrats were in charge of getting the citi$enship ball rolling. Instead he found a very small, though plush office with a single man sitting behind a des". % computer terminal stood before him and soft, strange music played from unseen spea"ers. The man!s features were strongly *riental, though with a hint of %frican+%merican. ,e loo"ed up as they entered. 3.hat the fuc"!s the haps43 he en#uired.

38y friend here would li"e 8artian citi$enship,3 (aren told him. 3.ell fuc"in aye,3 the man said. 3=ou!ve come to the right place. 1o ahead and chill your shit out.3 3-hill our shit out43 (en whispered to (aren. 3It means sit down,3 she told him. 3*h.3 They sat in plastic chairs before the des". 38y name is Taft,3 the man told them, turning his computer screen towards him. 3(en )ra$ier,3 (en said. 3That!s the shit,3 Taft responded. 31o ahead and lay some derm for me, (en and we!ll get this thing cho"ed out.3 3Bh... lay some derm43 (en said. 3It means you should put your right inde& finger on that pad there,3 (aren e&plained, pointing to a small computer screen set into the des". 3That!s how we identify ourselves to computer systems. =our fingerprint is stored in the Internet database and lin"s to everything the computer "nows about you. It!s also the way you sign your name to documents and gain access through the door loc"s you!re authori$ed to use.3 3I see,3 (en said, e&periencing another moment of fascination. 3.ell it won!t have my fingerprint on file, that!s for sure.3 3*f course it will,3 Taft said. 32verybody is on file.3 .ith a shrug (en put his finger on the pad. There was a small beep from Taft!s screen and he began to stare at it. 3(enneth

)ra$ier,3 he read. 3% .est,em native I see. .ell welcome to 8ars.3 3=ou mean I!m in that computer43 he as"ed, surprised. 3=ou were fingerprinted in your... uh... previous life, weren!t you43 (aren as"ed. 3.ell... yes... but...3 3.e have access to everything that!s ever been put on the Internet about you then,3 (aren said. 3The old records are never purged.3 3.ait a minute,3 Taft said as he read through what he was seeing. 3.hat the fuc" is this4 ;orn in FIEI4 :ast employment in /00C43 3=ou!re down with it,3 (aren assured him. 38r. )ra$ier has 'ust been awa"ened from cryogenic sleep.3 39o shit43 the male said. 39o shit,3 (aren confirmed. 3(aren,3 (en hissed. ,e didn!t want anyone to "now about his origins. 3,e has to "now that, (en,3 she said. 3,e!s an official with the government. on!t worry though. ,e won!t discuss your personal information with anyone. It!s a confidentiality thing, right43 3*h, fuc"in aye,3 Taft said, his eyes loo"ing (en over with new interest. 3.e!re not allowed to discuss anything we encounter in the course of our duties with other people. ;ut fuc" my ass. I!ve heard there were some people .hiting Bniversity was reviving but I!ve never met one before. It must be pretty ran"in, huh )ra$ier43

3Bh... yeah,3 (en said. 3It!s very uh... ran"in.3 3.ell let!s see what we got here,3 Taft said. 39o criminal convictions, no petty offenses, not even any political trouble. I do have a certificate of death for you on file though. That!s a bit of a problem, ain!t it43 3)uc"in aye,3 (aren said. 3-omputer,3 Taft said. 3%dd an addendum to )ra$ier!s death certificate that it was issued in error.3 3)uc"in aye,3 the computer responded. 3There we go,3 Taft said with a smile. 3-omputer, are there any e&clusions to )ra$ier!s application for 8artian citi$enship.3 39ope.3 3%ll right then,3 Taft said. 3-omputer, process )ra$ier.3 3Processing,3 the computer said and then, a second later, 3done.3 31ood deal,3 Taft said. 38r. )ra$ier, you!re now a citi$en of 8ars with all of the rights and privileges.3 3=ou mean we!re done43 (en as"ed. 3)uc"in aye,3 Taft told him. 3=ou can pic" up a P- at any communications store. =ou have a credit account set up for when you secure a means of income. =our clothing and food access notations are full. =our clothing allowance will renew every month. =our food allowance will renew every wee". If you wish to live in public housing I!ll get you an apartment assigned.3 3,e!ll be living with me for the time being,3 (aren said.

3I!m down with that,3 Taft said. 3If you decide to move into public housing at some point, 'ust access the housing department site on your P-.3 3Bh... sure,3 (en stammered, his mind on overload. 3,ave a "ic"+ass day,3 Taft said, turning his attention bac" to his computer screen. (aren stood up. (en loo"ed at her in confusion. 3.ait a minute,3 he said slowly. 3%re you telling me that we!re actually done4 The entire citi$enship application process has been initiated and approved43 3)uc"in aye,3 (aren said. 3.hat else would there be to do43 3I don!t "now,3 he said. 3It!s 'ust a little strange to me to wal" into a government building for something, spend two minutes in there, and I!m done. I mean, you couldn!t even buy stamps that easily in my time.3 3.hat the fuc" are stamps43 as"ed Taft, who was following the conversation. 3Things move a bit more efficiently these days,3 (aren said, ignoring him. 3The computer searched through its database about you and found nothing that precluded you from 8artian citi$enship e&cept for your death certificate, which was fi&ed. That!s all there is to it.3 3.ow,3 (en said, standing up. 3.ho would!ve thought a government agency could wor" li"e that43 3It only ma"es sense, 8r. )ra$ier,3 Taft said with a smile. They left the capital building and boarded another of the elevated transportation trains a bloc" over. They rode this train bac" out to the beltline and then got on another for the trip to

(aren!s neighborhood. The trip too" fifteen minutes and during it (en was able to become a little more ad'usted to the #ueasy sensation caused by the inertial damping system on the train. They e&ited at a stop called ,I1,:%9 S C. The streets here were a little narrower than they had been at the university section of the city, a little wider than they had been downtown. There were less people wal"ing about as well and the buildings that stretched into the s"y were a little further apart. %s they wal"ed (en was able to catch glimpses of the red 8artian soil between some of the buildings. 3%re we near the edge of the city43 he as"ed (aren. 3)uc"in aye,3 she replied. 3The more e&pensive housing units tend to be on the edges of the city so a view of the landscape is possible. The public housing and the lower end upgraded housing are all closer to downtown. Bsually you can only see other buildings out the windows, particularly from the lower floors.3 3.ell, its nice to see that some things don!t change.3 3.hat do you mean43 3That!s how it was in my time too. The rich people lived in the places with the views and the poorer people lived near downtown.3 3.ell, li"e I told you,3 (aren said, 3I!ve spent eight years in school to do what I do and I have a lot of responsibility. .hy shouldn!t I be able to live in a nice place with a nice view for my efforts43 3I guess you should,3 he had to admit. 3,ere!s my building,3 (aren told him, leading him across the street.

,er building was called 32dgewood Towers ,ousing -omple&3. It rose higher than all of the surrounding buildings by at least thirty floors. Aed carpeting covered the entrance foyer. The doors slid open as (aren approached and they were in a spacious lobby that loo"ed li"e one that might be found in a fancy hotel. There was another of the fountains in the center and shops of various "inds lined both sides. 3:ets get you a P- first of all,3 (aren told him, 3and then we!ll have lunch. I!ll show you how financial transactions are carried out these days.3 3=ou don!t use cash or credit cards43 39o,3 she said. 3-ash hasn!t been used since shortly after .orld .ar III. %nd on 8ars there is no such thing as a line of credit for consumer items. =ou can get loans from the government for certain things but if you wish to buy everyday items you have to have credits in your account.3 3So everything is done by computer now43 (en as"ed. 3=ou bet your ass. -ome on, I!ll show you. :et!s go to the electronics store.3 She led him across the lobby to a shop near the elevators. Jander!s 2lectronics Shop was the name of it. They wal"ed inside and (en saw it was sort of a futuristic Aadio Shac". -omputer terminals, spea"ers, wiring and components, and large television type screens were mounted on displays throughout the store. % short, dar" s"inned man, completely bald, was sitting behind a counter with a computer terminal mounted on it. ,e seemed to be watching some sort of entertainment program. ,e loo"ed up at them as they entered and gave an inviting smile. (en loo"ed around in fascination at all of the merchandise. 3So all of this stuff in here is sold by the government43 he as"ed.

3*h no,3 (aren said, sha"ing her head. 3This is a private shop. 8ost of our consumer shops are privately owned.3 3Aeally43 (en said. 3I thought you said the government provided everything.3 39ot everything,3 she said. 3Just the basic items that are considered necessities to life. Jander here rents this space from the government, who owns this building after all, but he purchases most of his inventory from private suppliers and then sells it at a fi&ed rate. ,e does of course provide government items as well. That is part of his mission.3 3So you do allow private enterprise under you system43 (en as"ed. 3*f course we do,3 she said. 3I told you that our system had elements of capitalism as well as communism. There has to be private businesses to fill the gap between the necessities and the lu&uries. Jander and people li"e him provide things for you to spend your credits on in order to ma"e your life more lu&urious. )or instance, the government provides you with a computer in your living space because that is considered essential to life these days. The government does not provide you with large screens for video entertainment, or holographic generators for feature films, or 5A e#uipment for pornography. If you want those things you have to wor", save enough credits, and buy them. If you don!t "now how to install them you have to pay one of Janders! sons to install it for you.3 3 id you say 5A e#uipment for pornography43 (en as"ed. 3)uc"in aye,3 she said. 3Pornography is a big business on 8ars. The best porn is virtual reality porn, although it can be somewhat e&pensive. =ou put a 5A helmet on and stimulation attachments to your genitals and hands.3 3=ou!re "idding.3

39ot at all.3 She frowned a little. 3It!s not as good as the real thing of course, but then porn is mainly a masturbation function anyway, isn!t it4 I imagine its #uite a bit more ran"in than the porn you are accustomed to. I have some of the attachments in my house if you!d li"e to try it out.3 (en found himself blushing again. 3Bh... I!ll uh... thin" about it,3 he stammered. (aren smiled. 3It!s "ind of cute how prudish you are,3 she said. 3I!m sorry I embarrassed you, but I do engage in masturbation #uite fre#uently you "now. 2veryone does. It!s nothing to be ashamed of.3 3I "now,3 he said. 3It!s 'ust that it!s a little embarrassing to tal" about it.3 3.e don!t consider that to be so,3 she said. 3*n 8ars, masturbation principals and techni#ue are taught in primary school in fifth and si&th grade. It has been found that regular release of se&ual build+up is an important part of maintaining good physical and mental health. =ou see...3 3Bh... could we maybe tal" about this some other time43 (en whispered in interruption after noting that Jander, the proprietor, was avidly following their conversation. 3Sure,3 she said. 3,ave it your way. That!s what we!re down with. -ome on, let!s go get you set up.3 She led him up to the counter where Jander was sitting. ,e smiled at her in a familiar manner. 3 octor 5alentine,3 he greeted. 3,ow the fuc" you be43 3Just gnarly, Jander,3 she said. 3Just fuc"in gnarly.3 3That!s the shit,3 Jander said. 3,ow are those new spea"ers wor"ing out for your system4 id I give you the straight shit or

did I fuc" you over43 3It!s the straight,3 (aren said. 3They sound li"e a fuc"in rampage, I!m here to tell you. =ou really "ic"ed my ass. %nd than" your nice son for putting that in for me. ,e did his normal ran"in 'ob.3 3,e appreciates those tips you give him,3 Jander said. 3I!m telling you, those two fight over who gets to do the 'ob when you need something done.3 3.ell they deserve it,3 (aren said with a smile. She pointed to (en. 3Jander, this is (en )ra$ier, a relative of mine from .est,em. ,e 'ust became a citi$en today.3 3.ell suc" my hairy ass,3 Jander said, holding out his hand. 3,ow the fuc" are you, (en43 3Bh... I!m uh... fine, than"s,3 he said, still trying to interpret in his mind most of what had 'ust been said. %nd had Jander 'ust told him to suc" his hairy ass4 .as that a common e&pression4 ,ad Jander told him that bac" in San Jose they might very well have been fighting a few seconds later. Slowly he stuc" out his hand and it was sha"en. 3Shit on me,3 Jander said. 3That is one thic" .est,em accent you have there, my butt buddy. 9o mista"ing where you!re from.3 8y butt buddy4 (en thought, resisting the urge to wipe his hand on his shorts. 3Bh... I guess not,3 he said. 3So what!s the shit today43 Jander as"ed, his tone turning businessli"e. 3(en needs a P-43 3That ain!t no shit,3 (aren told him. 3.e 'ust came from the capital.3

3*"ay then,3 Jander said. 3.e tal"ing 8ars issue here4 *r would he li"e something a little upgraded43 3Something a little upgraded I thin",3 (aren said. 3I!ll pay for the diff.3 3)uc"in aye. .hat "ind of upgrades do we want43 (en simply watched as (aren and Jander discussed the features of various personal computers using guttural street slang. ,e didn!t follow most of what was said although a few terms 'umped out at him. ,olographic generator was one such thing. Phased connection was another. 2ventually they were able to come to a mutual agreement on which P- would be perfect for him. Jander then reached into a display shelf behind him and pulled out a small device that was a little bit smaller than a cellular phone from his day. It was mostly blac", with the words 39PI 2lectronics3 stenciled in gold on the front. There was a small touch screen on the bottom of it and a flip+up cover of some sort on the top. *n the bac" of it was a metal clip. Jander set it down on the counter before him and then reached into a drawer and pulled out an electrical cord, which he sat ne&t to it. 3*"ay,3 Jander said. 3*ne 9PI model I. .ith the government deduction subtracted that!s gonna run you eight credits.3 3)uc"in aye,3 (aren said. 3(en, if you!ll lay some derm for me, I!ll verify that you!re entitled to the government deduction.3 (en hesitated for a second, remembering what happened last time he was as"ed to 3lay some derm3. 3Bh... will that show everything about me li"e at the capital43 he as"ed (aren. 3*f course not,3 she told him. 3Jander is not entitled to view your personal files li"e the government agents are. %ll his computer will do is chec" with the government files to see if

you!re entitled to a P- at the moment.3 3*h, o"ay,3 he said a little doubtfully. Put he put his right inde& finger down on the screen. 3:oo"s li"e the system is down with you,3 Jander said. ,e turned to (aren. 3*"ay, if you!ll lay some derm for me we!ll wrap this shit up.3 (aren put her finger down on the screen. There was a beep from the computer screen before Jander and he loo"ed at it absently, giving a nod. 3That!ll do it,3 he said. 3%nything else today43 39o, Jander,3 (aren said. 3That should do it.3 (aren and Jander e&changed a few more profane pleasantries with each other while (en pic"ed up his new P-. It was very light in his hands, lighter even than a child!s toy phone. The plastic casing felt very flimsy. 3:et!s go get some lunch, (en,3 (aren said, leading him out the shop. 3Sure,3 he said, following behind her. ;ac" out in the lobby they started wal"ing further towards the bac" of the building. 3So you see,3 (aren said. 3In this day and age, all of our financial transactions are handled by the computer. Internet connects Jander!s system to the main 8artian system, 'ust li"e any place that ta"es money for a service. .e don!t have any ban"s anymore li"e you used to have. %ll of our money is stored in our computer files the government maintains. .hen I pay for something, li"e your P- there, I simply put my finger on his pad, which identifies me to the system. ,is computer chec"s my account to see if I have the re#uired amount of credits for the purchase. If so, those credits are deducted from my account and

added to Janders! business account. )rom that account Janders will pay his employees, who in this case, are his two sons. That!s pretty much how all transactions are handled these days.3 3Interesting,3 (en said, thin"ing it over. 3So there is no need for cash anymore.3 32&actly,3 she said, coming to a halt before another of the shops. 3This is ;elinda!s. % nice place for lunch when you want to go to a restaurant. 9ot too elaborate. Just ran"in food.3 (en read the sign out front. 3;elinda!s 2ats and Shit43 he said doubtfully. 3Is that really the name43 3.hat!s wrong with that43 (aren as"ed in complete seriousness. 39othing,3 he said dismissively. 3If you say its good, then its good.3 They went inside, (en still carrying his new P- and power cord in his hands. The restaurant loo"ed pretty much li"e what a restaurant in his day and age had loo"ed li"e. Tables were geometrically arranged throughout the middle of the dining area, and booths were arranged along the walls. %bout half of the booths and about a third of the tables were occupied with scantily clad 8artians in pairs or groups of three and four. % few solitary diners sat at a counter near the entrance to what (en presumed was the "itchen. .aiters and waitresses, all dressed in light green uniforms of shorts and half shirts, moved to and fro among the tables, delivering food or ta"ing away dishes. The smell was of coo"ing meat and spices. Instead of waiting to be seated, which had been the custom in (en!s time, (aren simply led him to one of the empty booths. .hen they sat down (en saw there was a small computer screen imbedded in the table surface on both sides. .2:-*82 T* ;2:I9 %!S 2%TS %9 S,IT, read large lettering on the screen. ;elow this were touch pads that were labeled 29TA22S,

%PP2TIJ2AS, AI9(S, and 2SS2AT. 3:ets get some drin"s first,3 (aren suggested. 3Just touch the screen where it says !drin"s! and a menu will pop up. =ou touch whichever drin" you want and the server will bring it over to you. *nce we get that coming, we can order our lunch.3 (en touched the pad and another series of menus appeared, this one subdivided into categories of drin"s. There was S* %, T2%, -*))22, and ;**J2. 3If you li"e wine,3 (aren said, 3try a glass of the )rench -hardonnay. It!s one of the imports we get from 2ast,em. It!s really static.3 3Bh... o"ay,3 he said, pushing ;**J2 and then paging through a few more submenus until he found the selection that she was tal"ing about. ,e read from the description which said that the wine was 3premium, grade % shit, with 'ust enough boo$e in it to bu$$ you after two glasses3. The price was listed at .D credits. ,e pushed the button and a friendly female voice told him that his order had been sent. 3:et!s get your P- activated,3 (aren said after she had sent her own drin" order off. 3*"ay,3 he said, pic"ing it up from the table. ,e loo"ed at it closely for the first time, noting that, aside from the flip up panel and the touch screen, there did not seem to be any buttons of any "ind on it. There was a small hole in the bac" where the power cord presumably plugged in, but that was about it. 39ow the thing you want to remember about your P- is to always carry it with you. It is the most important possession you have in this society. It serves as a communication device, as a computer access terminal, and it "eeps trac" of all of your finances for you.3

3So its li"e a cellular phone from my day43 (en as"ed. 3Just a little more sophisticated.3 3% lot more sophisticated actually, but yes, the cellular phones in the early /Fst century are the ancestors of what you are now holding. *nce active, that P- will wor" only for you. It will recogni$e your voiceprint and your fingerprint. 1o ahead and flip open the screen.3 ,e did so, and was met with nothing but a blan" screen. 3Tell it to turn on,3 she said ne&t. 3Bh... computer, turn on,3 he said into it, feeling a little sheepish to be doing so. ,is efforts were rewarded however, when the screen lit up, showing a logo for something called 8artian Internet Services. 3.hat the fuc" is your name, awg43 the computer said in a rough, male voice. ,e loo"ed at (aren, who nodded for him to go ahead. 3(en )ra$ier,3 he said. 35oice print recorded,3 the voice said. 3.ill (en )ra$ier be the owner of this P-43 3=es,3 he told it. 3:ay some derm on the touch screen for verification.3 ,e laid some derm and there was a beep. 3Identification verified,3 it said. 3 ownloading data.3 % pause of about two seconds. 3 ownload complete. =ou may now use this P-.3 3So what e&actly did it do43 he as"ed.

3It accessed the 8artian Internet by loc"ing onto a cellular antenna,3 she e&plained. 3It downloaded all of the personal information it needs about you to be your P-. =our financial data, your address, that "ind of shit. If you tell it to go to com, which is communications, you can establish your I number. That!s "ind of li"e a telephone number in your age but it also lin"s to mail as well.3 ,e told his computer to go to com and the small screen lit up with a communications icon. %t the same time the touch pad came to life with a variety of options for him to choose from. (aren wal"ed him through the process of finding out what his I number was. It turned out to be a F0+digit number that loo"ed 'ust li"e a traditional phone number with the area code included. 3That was the basis for the original numbering system,3 (aren confirmed when he mentioned this. 3That will be your number for life, no matter where you move to, unless you re#uest to have it changed. 9ow tell me what it is and we!ll try it out.3 She too" out her own P-, which was a slightly different model by the same company. ,e read the number off to her and she in turn read it into her P-. 3Store under (en )ra$ier,3 she told her P-, to which it responded, 3fuc"in aye.3 She then told her P- to contact (en )ra$ier. 3 irect com from (aren 5alentine,3 the voice from his machine told him a second later. 3Tell it to answer,3 (aren advised. 3Bh... answer,3 (en said. % second later a tiny, three dimensional hologram of (aren!s head and upper body suddenly appeared in front of his screen, seeming to hover in the air, its movements mimic"ing (aren!s e&actly. It was so real

that it loo"ed li"e he could reach down and pic" it up. ,e tried this in fact but his fingers only met empty air. 3=ou see43 (aren and her hologram said. 3Simple as can be. Just say end call and the connection will stop.3 32nd call,3 he said and the image disappeared. 3.ould you li"e to input (aren 5alentine!s I number into the database43 the P- as"ed him ne&t. ,e loo"ed at (aren and she nodded. 3Bh... yes,3 he said. 3)uc"in aye,3 the P- told him. 3It!s done.3 The screen then returned to the communications icon. 3That!s some shit,3 (en said in wonder. 3If you ever need to get hold of me for anything,3 she said, 3all you have to do is go to com on your P- and tell it to contact (aren 5alentine. If I can!t answer you at the moment my mail system will ta"e a video message from you. I!ll show you how to set up your own mail message too.3 3,ow much does all of this cost43 he as"ed, thin"ing that the monthly service fee must be outrageous. 39othing,3 she said. 3Internet, communications, ban"ing, and everything else on the P- or on the home computer system are provided by the government as part of their mission. They are deemed vital to life and so they are a constitutional right.3 3;ecause it ma"es sense, right43 3;ecause it ma"es sense,3 she confirmed. % waiter came a moment later and delivered a glass of wine for each of them. (en sipped at his and found it was a pretty ordinary tasting variety of -hardonnay, no different from what

he had once en'oyed with his wife in her pre+pregnancy days. They then spent a few minutes paging through the food options and placing their orders. (en was surprised to see the cuisine was very much the same as what might!ve been found in a enny!s or :yon!s restaurant. ,e ordered a cheeseburger with mushrooms and )rench fries and a side of salad. The computer screen promised his meal would be there shortly. .hile they waited they sipped their wine and (aren e&plained more of the features of his P- to him. She showed him how to ad'ust the volume and how to change the voice the P- tal"ed to him with Ghe chose a more gentle, feminine voice instead of the gruff male oneH. She then had him go to the financial screen, where his credit account was displayed Gthere was a balance of 0 in itH and where the items he was entitled to under the constitution were listed. 3%ll of this stuff is free43 he as"ed, reading through it. It listed ten pairs of shorts, ten shirts, two pairs of moccasins, housing credit for public housing, and a lengthy list of grocery items such as meat, cereal, mil", vegetables, and various condiments. 3Those are your basic constitutional allowances,3 she said. 3%s you can see in the notations, the food items renew every wee", the clothing renews every two months, and the housing credits are indefinite. .hen you go into the shops you!ll find the constitutional items are mar"ed with a 8artian symbol. That!s a silhouette of the planet with the moons in orbit above it. If you want upgraded items + better meat or vegetables or better #uality clothing + the cost of your constitutional items will be deducted from the upgrades.3 3So the constitutional food and clothes aren!t all that good43 he as"ed. 3They!re not bad,3 she said with a shrug. 32specially the basic staples. 8il" and most of the vegetables I get from the store are my constitutionals. The beef however is only hamburger,

:ondon broil, hot dogs, and things of that sort. I li"e to get nicer cuts so I pay the difference. I also li"e pre+cut and pre+boned chic"en instead of a whole chic"en. That costs me a little more too. %s for clothes, well, my wardrobe is about half 1overnment issue and half upgrades. %s you!ve seen, we don!t have #uite as much interest in fashion as your people did, although we do have an e&tensive lingerie mar"et.3 3:ingerie43 he said. 3*h yes. 8artian women love lingerie. *f course the lingerie items are all considered lu&uries so you!ll have to pay for them yourself.3 3*f course,3 he said slowly. 3Is it 'ust me, or do you 8artians seem to be well... somewhat preoccupied with se&43 39o more so than any other culture in history,3 she said. 3The difference here is that we embrace it instead of trying to hide it.3 The waiter brought their food a moment later, setting two steaming plates down before them. (en, who was #uite hungry by now, dug into his cheeseburger, finding it to be nothing short of delicious. The meat was thic", tender, and very flavorful. The lettuce was crisp and green. The tomatoes had the unmista"able taste of vine+ripened. 2ven the cheese, which was sharp cheddar, seemed to have a te&ture that was much superior to what he was used to. 3=ou down with your food43 (aren as"ed as she watched him chomp and chew. 3)uc"in aye,3 he told her, hardly reali$ing he was using the 8artian e&pression. 3I thin" this is the best hamburger I!ve ever had.3 3.e ta"e our food very seriously on 8ars,3 she said. 3That entire burger you!re eating is made from 8artian agricultural

products. The meat and the cheese comes from the cattle production facilities outside of Proctor. The vegetables are from the greenhouses outside of 2den. 2ven the bread is made from wheat grown in the :ibby greenhouses. *ur #uality control and production standards are #uite stringent.3 3I guess so,3 he said. 3Is all the food on 8ars this good43 3=ou ain!t tasted shit yet,3 she said. 3This is nothing but a low budget convenience restaurant. .ait until I ta"e you up to ;ranner!s -howdown up on top of the building. That!s an e&clusive, gourmet restaurant. 2ven that has nothing on 8arcella!s coo"ing though.3 38arcella4 .ho is 8arcella43 38y bitch,3 she said. 3=our... bitch43 3Bh huh,3 (aren said with a nod. 3I guess the closest thing you would call it is a...3 She thought for a moment, trying to recall the terms, 3uh... a house"eeper or a maid. %nyway, she ma"es most of my dinners on the nights I!m home. She!s a culinary arts ma'or at the university.3 3=ou have a house"eeper43 he as"ed. 3% bitch is what we call them,3 she said. 3She "eeps the house clean, does most of my shopping for me, coo"s my meals, and does my laundry. I pay her F00 credits a month and give her room and board. She!s a nice girl. .ants to open her own restaurant someday. =ou!ll li"e her I thin".3 3I see,3 he said. 3.hat do you call them if they!re male43 3% bitch,3 she said. 3The term is unise&ual.3 3*f course.3

(en had a few more bites of his burger, sipping from his wine between chews. 3So I would assume,3 he said during the ne&t pause, 3that your restaurant business is private industry as well43 3That!s right,3 (aren confirmed. 32ating out is a lu&ury item. This restaurant is run by ;elinda 8a&ely and her husband.3 3So it!s not part of a franchise or anything li"e that43 3.e don!t allow franchises on 8ars,3 she said. 3That would be a violation of the anti+corporation clause of the constitution. *ur founding parents were very clear on that point. 9othing that resembles big business will ever be allowed here.3 3So where do you draw the line43 he wanted to "now. 3.hat if this ;elinda person wants to open another restaurant43 3She would not be allowed to,3 (aren said. 3% citi$en is only allowed to operate one business for their livelihood. She can change locations and open up somewhere else, but she cannot lease another space and open another shop.3 3 oesn!t that "ind of unfairly limit her43 39ot at all,3 she said. 3%s I told you before, prices are fi&ed here. In ;elinda!s case, she is allowed to charge a certain percentage for each menu item above what it cost her to assemble the ingredients. This percentage allows for all overhead costs, such as lease of the space and employee salaries, both of which are also fi&ed under the law, and a fair profit margin. If she has a proper location and fills a need at that location + which she most certainly does here + she will ma"e a comfortable living and maybe, if she is really good at what she does, become fairly wealthy. 9either she, nor any other business owner is allowed to e&pand beyond that however, and, as I mentioned before, there is really no need to. *nce a business reaches a certain si$e, once the owner becomes removed from the day to day operations,

corruption and inefficiency sets in.3 3So ;elinda!s 2ats and Shit is a one of a "ind place43 3:ocated only in this building,3 (aren confirmed. 3*ther housing and commercial buildings have their own restaurants + all uni#ue and run by individual owners. In fact, it somewhat wor"s out that each housing building tends to be li"e a small community within itself. In this building for instance, we have a butcher, a grocer, a caffeine 'oint, several into&icant bars, an electronics store, two clothing stores, a 'ewelry store, and a fine furnishings outlet. 2ach one of these stores is run by individuals or a family. 8ost of the people who live in this building shop at these stores for their day to day needs.3 3So it!s "ind of li"e you!re living in a small town, right here in this building,3 he said, starting to catch the concept. 3)uc"in aye,3 she said. 3It really is "ind of the way things were in small towns in the pre+corporation days on 2arth. *ur business owners are really the bac"bone of the lu&ury business on 8ars and most of them thrive. )ully C0 percent of our wor"ing population are business owners or employees of them.3 3.hat about unions4 o you have those4 Is there a grocers union or a restaurant servers union43 3.e have no need for unions on 8ars,3 she said. 3In effect, the government itself serves as the union. .or"ers rights are a big section of our constitution. Salaries are fi&ed at a set level. *ur standard wor"day is eight hours and our standard wor"wee" is C/ hours. %ny overtime, either at the daily level or at the wee"ly level, must be voluntary on the part of the wor"er and must be compensated at double time. Paid vacations are also regulated by the government and increase according to time on the 'ob. %ny grievances are handled #uic"ly by an impartial government moderator.3

(en was fascinated by her e&planation. It really did seem that these 8artians "new what they were doing. 3%nd since you don!t allow big business or corporations,3 he said, following a train of thought she!d brought up the previous day, 3it would be hard for your employers to lobby government officials to change the rules in their favor, or to corrupt the moderators.3 3It would be impossible,3 she confirmed. 3%s I told you, our government officials remain reasonably pure to their mission, which is to "eep the planet running fairly for everyone.3 They finished up their meal a few minutes later and (aren pushed an icon on the menu screen that said 3The amages3. % bill for D.0E credits appeared along with an advisement to pay at their convenience and a than" you for patroni$ing ;elinda!s 2ats and Shit. 39ow then,3 (aren said, pulling out her P-, 3I!ll tell you what I!m going to do. I!m going to give you two hundred credits out of my account and you can buy lunch for me.3 3=ou don!t have to give me any money,3 (en protested. 3I "now that I don!t have to,3 she said, 3but I really want to. There are things you!re going to want to buy while you get used to living here. Bntil you get a 'ob or some other means of income, you won!t be able to get credits any other way. on!t worry, I can afford it.3 3;ut...3 39o buts,3 she said. 3I insist. It!s the least I can do after 'er"ing you out of F88 years of sleep.3 She opened her P-. 3-omputer on, financial.3 She waited a moment, loo"ing at the screen, and then said, 3-omputer, transfer two hundred credits to account of (en )ra$ier.3 3)uc"in aye,3 it said. 3:ay some derm for verification.3

She put her finger on her touch pad and there was a beep. 3Transferred,3 her P- told her. 39ow then,3 she said, flipping hers bac" shut again and putting it bac" in her poc"et, 3go ahead and ta"e yours out. 1o to financial and you should see two hundred credits in your account.3 ,e did as she said and sure enough, he was now showing a balance of two hundred. 3.ouldn!t it be "ind of easy to rob you if that!s how you transfer money43 he as"ed. 3.hat!s to stop a robber from stic"ing a gun in your face and telling you to transfer all of your money to his account43 3Several things,3 she said. 3)irst and foremost is the fact that there will be a record of whose account the money has been transferred to, wouldn!t there43 3*h yeah,3 he said. 3I guess that ma"es sense.3 3-oupled with that is the fact that robbery of any "ind is a ran"in offense. *ffenders will do five to ten years at hard labor, depending on the violence of the crime. 9ot many people are going to commit a crime they!re certain to get caught at when that is the penalty. *ne thing you!ll find on 8ars is that our criminal 'ustice system wor"s e&tremely well. *ur prisons are unpleasant places to be and we do not allow people to get off on technicalities or because they!re rich or influential. %s a result, we really don!t have all that much serious crime anymore. -ertainly nothing li"e what it was in your days. I!m not saying that we!re crime free by any means, but you can wal" the streets here in 'ust about any part of town in safety.3 3So your cops have it "ind of easy then43 3.ell, they stay busy,3 she said. 3%lthough probably not in the same way that you used to stay busy on 2arth. If you!d li"e I can

arrange for you to accompany a patrol team during their shift. 8y brother has a little pull with the 9PP .3 3I thin" I!d li"e that,3 he said, e&cited at the idea of watching future cops operate. 3I!ll start wor"ing on that as soon as I can,3 she said. 3In the meantime, why don!t you pay the bill and we!ll go up to my house.3 3*"ay. ,ow do I pay the bill43 3Just touch the menu screen where it says pay.3 ,e did so and the screen as"ed if he would care to leave a gratuity for his server. 3I guess some things never change,3 he mused. 3,ow much should I leave43 3Ten percent is the customary amount,3 (aren told him. 3So that would be .D0 credits.3 3*"ay,3 he said. ,e pushed the yes icon and a numeric pad appeared, as"ing for the amount. ,e punched in .D0 and then 3done3. The screen showed him his new total + which was 0.0F credits + and as"ed him to confirm. ,e did so and was then as"ed to lay some derm for verification. ,e put his right inde& on the screen and there was a beep and another than" you. %t the same time his P- + which was still open on the table ne&t to him + beeped and the amount of his account balance was ad'usted to FID.II credits. 3%nd that!s it,3 (aren said. 3Shall we head up43 3I guess so,3 he said, standing up.

(aren!s living #uarters were on the F/Crd floor of the building, 'ust si& floors below the roof level. They rode the elevator up

and stepped out into a spacious hallway that was lined with oil paintings and potted plants. The doors in this hallway were spaced a considerable distance apart, which led (en to believe that the apartments up here would be large. This was a supposition that turned out to be entirely correct. The door was a plain sliding one, not unli"e all of the others (en had seen so far. It had the number F/C0E stenciled in blac" upon it. 9e&t to it was a simple touch screen. 3=our fingerprint serves as your "ey these days,3 (aren e&plained to him. 3I!ll have my computer authori$e you for unrestricted entry into the apartment. %ll you do is touch the screen, and...3 she touched it and the doors slid silently open, revealing a marble tiled entryway. They stepped inside and the door slid shut behind them. (en loo"ed around in ama$ement. (aren!s apartment was not 'ust large, it was huge, considerably larger than the house he had lived in in Pleasanton. The entryway led to a large room that appeared to be a family room or entertainment room of some sort. % marble fountain spewing a soft cascade of water was the centerpiece. %rranged around it was a collection of plush loo"ing furniture in matching shades of earth tones. % large bar, complete with glass rac", sat in one corner. It appeared to have been constructed of oa" wood or something damn near li"e it. *n the opposite wall was a huge television type screen. The floor was beautifully polished hardwood with several rugs in strategic places. :eading off from this room were several hallways. 3This is the party room,3 (aren said. 3I don!t entertain all that much but I do have a few intimate guests over from time to time. This room is primarily for that function.3 3It!s nice,3 (en said, ta"ing it all in. 3I!m glad you li"e it. .hen you want to watch some movies I

have the big screen and Janders! best sound system.3 She started wal"ing towards the far end of the room. ;efore she made it more than a few steps however, there was a curious trumpeting noise+ obviously made by an animal + from one of the hallways. It was followed by unmista"able thudding of heavy feet hitting the floor in an enthusiastic manner. % second later the animal in #uestion burst into the room, heading directly for (aren. %t first (en thought it was a dog since its basic si$e was about the same as that of a :abrador retriever. The si$e however, was where the canine similarity ended. Instead of fur the animal had gray s"in with only a few hairs stic"ing out here and there. %nd instead of a snout full of doggy teeth and a pin" tongue there was a long trun" that hung to the floor. ;elow the trun" a pair of sharp loo"ing tus"s protruded. 3,i, Pee+Pee,3 (aren said with a smile, leaning down as the animal lumbered enthusiastically up to her. 3Is that an elephant43 (en as"ed, although he could plainly see that it was. 3This is Peanut,3 she said as the diminutive pacaderm wrapped its trun" around her leg affectionately. 3,e!s an Indian elephant. I!ve had him since I graduated from med school.3 She scratched the top of his head with her fingernail and Peanut made a contented rumbling nose from deep within his throat. 3,e!s so small,3 (en said. 3Is he a real elephant43 3.ell, he!s been genetically engineered to grow only to this si$e,3 she said, 3but other than that, yes, he!s a real elephant.3 Peanut unwrapped his trun" from (aren!s arm and then wal"ed over to (en, his large eyes loo"ing him up and down. ,e stuc" out his trun" and began to sniff at (en, starting with his torso and moving upward until he was at his nec". (en stood nervously as he felt the warm moisture of the trun" opening

touching his s"in. Suddenly the trun" slid down his arm and wrapped around his wrist, tightening there. ,e felt his arm pulled towards the elephant!s head. 3,e wants you to scratch his head,3 (aren said. 3,e li"es that.3 (en scratched the rough s"in 'ust over the eyes and his arm was released. Peanut made another of those contented growls. 3I thin" he li"es you,3 (aren said. 3 o many people on 8ars have elephants as pets43 he as"ed, continuing to scratch. 3*h sure,3 she said. 32lephants, tigers, lions, bears, you name it. The e&otic, engineered pets became popular here bac" in our early colonial days.3 3 oes anyone have cats and dogs43 3There are a lot of those as well,3 she said. 3I!ve always li"ed elephants though, that!s why I got Pee+Pee. ,uh, Pee+Pee43 %t the sound of his nic"name Peanut pulled away from (en and went bac" over to (aren, who had "nelt down on the floor. ,e put his trun" up on her shoulders and rubbed it against the side of her face. (aren petted the end of it with her fingers for a moment and then stood bac" up. 3.ell then,3 she said. 3:et!s show you the rest of the place.3 She led him around from room to room, obviously proud of her apartment. (en could not help but be awed by it. There was a large dining room 'ust ad'acent to an even larger "itchen area. ;eyond this was another, smaller family type room with more furniture and a smaller screen television set+up. There was an office 'ust ad'acent to this and then a huge master bedroom complete with a Jacu$$i, over large bathtub, and a shower stall big enough for five people to fit in. There was a smaller, though

still spacious secondary bedroom 'ust ne&t to it that (aren said was the guest room. 3It!s where you!ll be staying,3 she said, leading him inside. The main part of the room consisted of a large bed, a few furnishings, and a des" with a computer terminal on it. %ttached to the room was a private bathroom with a standard si$ed shower and a slightly larger than normal bath. 38arcella will clean your room for you and ma"e your bed every morning,3 (aren said. 3%nd if you put your laundry into the hamper in the bathroom she!ll ma"e sure it!s washed, dried, and put away by the ne&t morning. The other room opposite the guest bathroom is 8arcella!s by the way. on!t go in there unless you!re invited. That!s considered very impolite in our society.3 3Bh... o"ay. .here is 8arcella4 Is she in there now43 39o, she!s in school right now. She does her morning chores and then heads out for classes every wee"day. She comes bac" at around F0C0, does another clean up, and usually has dinner ready at around F800. She has the wee"ends off but she usually hangs out here anyway and tries to "eep ahead of the mess. .e have to ma"e our own dinners on Saturday and Sunday night though.3 3That sounds reasonable,3 (en said. 3%nd it is the law after all,3 (aren remar"ed, leading him bac" through the house into the entertainment room. 3-omputer, lights to low,3 she said and the lighting dimmed down. 3.hat did you do that for43 (en as"ed. 3I wanted to show you the view,3 she said. 3It!s really ran"in from here. -omputer, blinds open in entertainment room.3

*n the wall opposite the television screen, blinds suddenly slid upward into a hidden slot, revealing a huge picture window that stretched the length of the room. (en loo"ed at the view that was revealed and whistled appreciatively. %s (aren had said, it was pretty ran"in. They were on the very edge of the city and this window faced outward over the 8artian surface. The red surface dotted with rolling hills stretched off to the hori$on before him. Aising above that hori$on, from well beyond it, the 'agged pea"s of mountains could be seen. *ff to the right side of the window the city s"yline came into view with its towering buildings reflecting the dim sunlight. *ff to the left side, several miles distant, was a large flat area that loo"ed li"e an airport. Strange vehicles that loo"ed li"e aircraft without wings were visible moving from place to place. 3That!s ,alligan ,eights over there to the east,3 (aren pointed out. 3It!s another high+end housing area. *ver there to the west you can see the spaceport. %nd due north of us there, those are the foothills of the -asa Aoyal 8ountains. Just over the hori$on are some of the larger pea"s of the range.3 3It!s beautiful,3 (en said #uite honestly as he too" it in. It was a soothing mi& of wild desolation and science fiction+li"e grandeur. ,e thought he could sit here and stare for hours. 3It costs me a buttload,3 she said. 3That ain!t no shit. ;ut I love scenery so I!m willing to pay the e&tra rent for a house with a view.3 3,ow much does this place cost4 If you don!t mind my as"ing that is.3 3000 credits a month,3 she said. 3*r about si&ty percent of my base income. Pretty hefty I!ll admit, but to me it!s worth it.3 3%nd the government is your landlord43 3.ell, we don!t really use that term anymore, but yes, the

government owns this building, as they do every building on 8ars, and I pay those credits to them to live here. The lease for the shops downstairs is also paid to the government.3 3%nd so that!s where the government gets all of its money then43 39o,3 she said, 3you!re oversimplifying things again. Aemember what I told you earlier4 The credits do not actually represent anything other than a medium of e&change. The government has as many credits as it needs. There is no finite amount of them and the only trac"ing that is done is to ma"e sure that people pay what is owed to the government for products or services that it provides. .hen I pay my 000 credits for the month the government computers 'ust note that I!ve paid and the amount is subtracted from my account. Those credits then effectively disappear forever. .hen the government then has to pay someone, say a construction wor"er or a maintenance wor"er in this building, then they 'ust add however many credits are re#uired to that wor"er!s account. They cannot run out or have a budget deficit because they are the ones who create the credits in the first place.3 3That is such a bi$arre concept,3 (en said, sha"ing his head. 3To you perhaps,3 she said. 3;ut to us, it only ma"es sense to do it this way. The citi$ens have an impetus to wor" and are rewarded for their achievements. ,ard wor" and greater education entitles you to positions that pay more credits. ,aving more credits allows you to buy nicer things and live in nicer housing. That "eeps the motivation factor strong among the populace. %nd from the government end of things, when something needs to be built or funded, they don!t have to scramble around trying to find the money to budget for it. If we need another school, or another college, or more greenhouses, then they are 'ust built and the wor"ers who build them are 'ust paid. If we need to hire more police officers or dip+hoes or teachers, we 'ust do it. %ny person on 8ars can run out of

money or not have enough for something, but the government never can.3 3 oesn!t that lead to a lot of wasteful spending though43 he as"ed. 3.hat!s wasteful43 she as"ed. 3If you have an infinite supply of something it!s "ind of hard to waste it, isn!t it4 ;ut in answer to your #uestion, no, we only build things or staff things that ma"e sense in any particular situation. The government itself is staffed with 'ust enough employees to ma"e it run. %s you saw from the capital building, we have a minimum of bureaucracy and things tend to run rather smoothly.3 3That was rather #uic",3 he said. 3So anyway, that!s the house,3 she said, wal"ing over towards the bar. 31o ahead an ma"e yourself at home. I too" the liberty yesterday of getting you some e&tra clothes and basic hygiene things li"e a toothbrush and a few combs. They!re in the drawers in your bedroom and your bathroom.3 3*h... well, than"s you.3 3=ou!re welcome,3 she said. 3%nd now, how about we rela& for a bit. o want a drin"4 *r maybe some smo"e43 3Some smo"e43 he as"ed. 3=ou "now, mari'uana4 I have some really good 2den green.3 3Is mari'uana legal now43 he as"ed, wal"ing over to the bar. 3)uc"in aye,3 she said. 3It has been since about mid+way through .orld .ar III. The .est,em government needed to raise money for the war so they made it legal and ta&ed the shit out it. .e!ve always grown really good weed here on 8ars. It seems to love the iron rich soil.3

She pulled out a small metal bo& and set it on the bar. It had a picture of a mari'uana leaf on the lid and the words7 8artian %gricultural epartment 2den 1reenbud Aan"in, ,igh Kuality Shit She opened the lid and the inside was lined with wet, stic"y loo"ing buds. The pungent odor wafted out. She pic"ed up one of the smaller buds and set it on the bar. She then reached down below the bar and pulled up a metal and plastic device that loo"ed li"e a bong of some sort with a hose running out from it. She flipped up a small panel on the top of the device and put the bud she had fished out inside. She then closed the panel and pic"ed up the hose. The end of the hose went into her mouth and she pushed a button at the tip. % whirring sound issued from the bong and (aren suc"ed in. She held the smo"e for a moment and then e&haled it into the room. She then offered the hose to (en. 3-are for a hit43 3I haven!t really smo"ed any since I was in college,3 he said. 3The army and the police department "ind of frowned on it.3 3=es, I imagine they did,3 she said. 3;ut it!s nice and legal now. Smo"e is very much a social thing in our culture these days, even more so than alcohol, although that will always be the "ing of the into&icants. So what do you say4 Ta"e a few hits with me and then we!ll have a drin" and tal". I!ll try to catch you up on everything that!s happened in the solar system since you went to sleep.3 3.ell... when in 9ew Pittsburgh,3 he said with a shrug and too" the hose.

.hatever else happened on 8ars in his new life, (en "new one thing for sure. ,e had made himself a friend for life in the form of Peanut the diminutive pet elephant. The two hundred pound pacaderm had been following him around all day and all

evening, caressing him with his trun" whenever he sat down and pulling his hand to his gray head so he could scratch it. Through dinner+which had been an impressive beef lasagna prepared by 8arcella, the maid, or bitch as (aren called her+ Peanut had sat ne&t to him on his hind#uarters, begging li"e a dog despite (aren!s admonishments that he should never be fed at the table. ,e was in (en!s room now, at /CC0, lying on the floor ne&t to him with his trun" e&tended and resting on (en!s leg as he sat in the chair before the computer terminal. %ctually, to be perfectly correct, the room was Peanut!s and (en was the one who was the guest. In the corner were the elephant!s food and a small water fountain for him to drin" out of. 9e&t to it was a sealed structure, somewhat li"e a small shed, which served as an elephant bo&. The touch screen outside the sliding door was even programmed to open to Peanut!s trun" print. 2very once in a while (en would pic" up a walnut from a 'ar of them on the des" and hold it up in the air. Peanut would grab it with his trun", put it in his large mouth, and happily crunch it up, always giving (en an affectionate caress on the nec" as than"s. ;efore going to bed for the evening (aren had taught (en how to access the 8artian Internet, both to watch television programming and to view information. It was a remar"ably easy thing to do. The web sites, though infinitely more sophisticated than those in (en!s days, were set up much the same way. Instead of a mouse moving a curser, you simply touched the screen to open a new lin" or to page up and down, but the pages themselves and the process of surfing was very much the same. (en "new he should get some sleep. 9ot only was he tired from the long day, the alcohol, and the mari'uana that he!d consumed, but he also had to get up early in the morning. (aren had arranged for them to fly to Triad Space Station the ne&t day to meet 8ar'orie, his great granddaughter. The spaceship they had been boo"ed on was scheduled to leave 9ew Pittsburgh Spaceport at 0800. %nd (aren had assured him that 0800

meant 0800 e&actly. ;ut despite his fatigue he could not drag himself away from the computer terminal. %n e&citing world of information was literally at his fingertips, information on everything that had happened over the last F88 years while he!d been fro$en in time. 2ach new fact that he uncovered, each new historical date and milestone, would inevitably lead him down another path of fascination. 9ot even his nervousness about flying on a spacecraft the ne&t day, not even the numbing grief over the loss of his wife and family from his life, could detract him from the wonder he felt. (aren had given him a basic overview of solar system history during their tal". The four and half hours he had spent before this terminal had supplied many more details. ,e was finding that he now had a very uni#ue perspective on historical events. ,e was a man from /00C who was able to see everything that would happen in his future. ,e had learned that the world had gone on pretty much as it had been in the years immediately after his shooting. %merica had fought a brief war with Ira# shortly after his death and then another, briefer war with :ibya in /000. The economy had drifted into a near depression in the years following this but otherwise, nothing much happened until /00I. That was when things too" a drastic turn. .orld .ar III was the focus of many of the entries he had loo"ed over. Though he had not even begun to scratch the surface of everything that had happened during the ten years of the war, he had a fairly good idea of 'ust what had transpired. The war had begun on January Fst, /00I when Indian and -hinese forces numbering in the millions suddenly burst across the -hinese border into Aussia, overwhelming the country in a matter of wee"s. )rom Aussia the Indians moved west, digging in on a broad line across 2astern 2urope, and then south, into the oil rich 8iddle 2ast. The -hinese, moving in the other direction, #uic"ly captured Siberia and then, in a move that had been thought impossible at the time, staged a seaborne invasion

of %las"a by using Japanese car carrying ships and the entire inventory of the Japanese and -hinese navies. )rom %las"a, the -hinese burst into -anada and then began moving south, towards the continental Bnited States. The .est,em armed forces, which consisted of the armies of the Bnited States, -anada, 8e&ico, ;ra$il, and 5ene$uela, rallied to try to meet the onslaught but were hampered by the sheer numbers of men, tan"s, and aircraft coming at them. They were slowly ground bac"ward, into .ashington and then to the -olumbia Aiver on the border with *regon where they were finally able to stop the -hinese from advancing further. )rom there a broad front opened up on the plains of .ashington, Idaho, and 8ontana, a front that stretched from the Pacific *cean to the Aoc"ies. % stalemate developed, similar to that e&perienced in )rance in .orld .ar I but much larger and much deadlier. 9either side could force the other bac"ward, neither would retreat. )or the ne&t seven years the two combatants bashed at each other, "illing millions on both sides. %merican cities, particularly those with ma'or factories and those that were transportation hubs, were continuously bombed by -hinese aircraft. It was only the development of a practical anti+tan" and anti+aircraft laser system by the .est,em forces in /0F? that finally bro"e the stalemate. )rom there, another two and a half years was spent slowly pushing the -hinese bac" to -hina and the Indians bac" to India. It was cruelly ironic that the very substance that the war had been fought over in the first place + oil + was almost completely depleted during ten years of battle. The end of .orld .ar III mar"ed the end of human culture!s reliance on fossil fuel. In addition to depleting the oil, the 2arth!s supply of easily mined iron ore, another basic staple of industrial life + was similarly eradicated by the war. ;illions of tons of steel were turned into bombs, aircraft, artillery shells, armored vehicles, ships, railroad cars, and every other "ind of war material, much of which was e&ploded and burned over the battlefields. The history that (en was now a part of stemmed directly as a result

of these war caused depletions. 2ast,em and .est,em turned from allies to cold war enemies within two years of the unconditional surrender of the %sian Powers in Tiannamen S#uare. .ithin ten years of this a frantic space race was begun when 2ast,em placed a settlement on the lunar surface in order to secure a supply of iron ore. .est,em countered by setting up its own mining colony on the surface of 8ars, where the ore was easier to reach and water supplies were more plentiful. That first colony was the settlement of 9ew Pittsburgh, where he now lived. )rom there, other mining cities were built in the northern latitudes of the planet. %nd then, as an e&periment, an agricultural development was placed on the 8artian e#uator. It was thought at first that the e&periment would fail and that food would have to continue to be shipped from 2arth to supply the wor"ers and administrators that made the mining operations wor". To the surprise and delight of the powers+that+be however, it was found that nearly any crop would grow e&tremely well in the controlled environment of a 8artian greenhouse. 2den, the first of these agricultural cities, #uic"ly e&panded and was soon supplying all of the food to the hungry 8artians. )rom there, other agricultural cities sprang up along the e#uator and within twenty years surplus food was being shipped in the other direction, bac" to 2arth. This period of 8artian history was referred to as the %gricultural Aush. )rom the ran"s of the unemployed class of .est,em, millions of people made the trip across space in search of 'obs in the agricultural, mining, and construction industry. It was touted as the largest, fastest mass migration in human history. The problems began when e#uilibrium was reached and there were finally enough greenhouses to supply all of the food needs. -onstruction wor"ers were laid off by the millions, creating huge ghettos in the formerly pristine planet. )rom there, the unemployment grew worse as the 2arthling corporations that owned everything began to merge with each other and streamline their operations. The 8artians

themselves, especially those of the second and third generation, were considered inferior to the 2arthlings and were sub'ected to blatant pre'udice. They were not allowed in management positions so when there were layoffs it was they that too" the brunt of the losses. The persecution of the 8artians in the name of profit margins gradually worsened over the years and the resentment this caused stewed li"e broth in a coo"ing pot. )inally this stew was whipped up into a bris" boil by the actions of 8artian governor :aura .hiting in the year /FDE. Thought to be a proper politician by her .est,em masters + which meant that she was corrupted by their money and would do whatever they told her + she showed her true colors during her inauguration speech when she declared that her one and only goal was to ma"e 8ars free of .est,em. %ccording to the articles he was reading, :aura .hiting was a charismatic woman with the ability to rile a crowd into a fren$y with her speeches. %nd rile she did. So much so that the federal authorities tried to indict her on trumped up corruption charges. It was this indictment, and the attempt by federal authorities to ta"e her into custody for e&tradition bac" to 2arth, that led to the firing of the first shots of the revolt. %fter nearly two years and the deaths of more than FF,000 8artians and more than half a million 2arthlings, 8ars was completely free and the constitution they now lived under was in place. (en paged bac" and forth through this timeline on the 8artian Internet, traversing the time between .orld .ar III and the 8artian Aevolution. ,e did not stic" to chronological order by any means, he simply surfed from place to place, ta"ing any sidelines that struc" his fancy. ,e read article after article, viewed holographic files and video files, listened to sound bytes, perused charts and statistics graphs. ,e stared at the screen despite his sore eyes and the ache in his lower bac", petting and feeding the pet elephant ne&t to him every once in a while. Just before midnight he was deep into an article about the

development of fusion power, a thread that he had surfed to from an article about rationing during .orld .ar III. =et again the perspective that he was receiving by viewing issues from his day from F88 years in the future astounded him. %ccording to 8artian historical sources, practical cold fusion, which was a source of cheap, clean, and environmentally safe power, had been developed and perfected in the Bnited States around the year FI8I. ,ad it been desired, fusion plants could have been set up in every city and could have been supplying limitless electricity at a cost of nearly nothing by the year FII0. ,owever the process was "ept secret due to pressure from oil companies and power generating corporations, both of whom had enormous power over the government and had much to lose if cheap power became readily available. It was only after .orld .ar III was raging and most of the western oil supply was cut off that fusion became 3officially3 perfected and generating plants were constructed. 3I really lived in some slea$y times,3 he whispered to himself, hardly aware that he was spea"ing aloud. ;eside him Peanut, who had been do$ing, raised his trun" up at the sound of his voice, rubbed it along his flan" for a moment, and then put it bac" on his leg. % voice suddenly issued from the air around him. It was a soft feminine voice that he recogni$ed as belonging to 8arcella. 3(en,3 she said. 3 o you mind if I come in for a second43 She was spea"ing to him through the intercom system that was part of the door mechanism. (aren had done this several times earlier in the evening. 3Sure,3 he replied, stifling a yawn. 3-ome on in.3 The door slid open and she entered the room. She was a petite woman, standing only a little taller than five feet. ,er features were mostly -aucasian though with a liberal sprin"ling of ,ispanic and possibly %frican+%merican as well. ,er hair was light brunette and shoulder length, though the ponytail that it

was tied into was colored bright yellow. ,er half shirt, which matched her ponytail, was even briefer than most, almost bi"ini+li"e, and did little to restrain her larger than average breasts. Though she was ten years old on the 8artian calendar, which made her almost twenty under his calendar, the medical science of the 8artians made her loo" li"e she was about fifteen, si&teen at the most. They had been introduced earlier that day when she!d come home from school and she had been in and out of the living room while he and (aren had been having their tal" earlier. She had also had dinner with them. She didn!t tal" very much but she seemed very nice. 3I thought I saw a light under the door,3 she said, smiling a bit. 3=ou!d better get to bed soon. =ou have an early flight tomorrow.3 3I "now,3 he said. 3I!m 'ust catching up on some history. I feel a bit out of place as you can imagine.3 3I bet that ain!t no shit,3 she said sympathetically. 8arcella, as (aren!s 3bitch3, and member of her household, "new what (en!s origins were. (en had again e&pressed reservations that his secret was out and was again assured that confidentiality would not be bro"en. 8arcella, as an employee of (aren, was obligated not to discuss any information that she gained about her employer!s business, habits, or anything else with anyone else. (en!s reservations had then switched to whether or not 8arcella would honor that commitment but (aren had assured him that confidentiality obligations were ta"en very seriously in 8artian culture and that breaching them was considered the ultimate fau& pas. 3:et me tell you again how much I en'oyed your dinner tonight,3 (en said. 3That was, without a doubt, the best lasagna I!ve ever had + in either one of my lives.3 3Than" you,3 she said with a smile. 3I!m glad to see that my culinary education hasn!t been wasted so far. -an I get you

something else4 I!ll fi& you up some pi$$a or some tacos for a midnight snac" if you want.3 3*h, no than"s,3 he said. 3=ou don!t have to fuss over me. I!ll be going to bed pretty soon.3 3,ow about a drin" then43 she countered. 3I!ll fi& you something from the bar. (aren also has some nice beer imported from 2arth if you li"e that.3 39o, I!m fine, than" you.3 3*"ay,3 she said, stepping a little closer, so that she was behind him. 3,ow about a little something to help you rela& then4 =ou loo" awfully tense.3 3:i"e what43 he as"ed, thin"ing that she had some sort of over the counter drug or herbal tea. 3.ell, I give a really ran"in blow'ob,3 she said, her face perfectly composed. ,is eyebrows came up. 3% blow'ob43 3=es,3 she said. 3=ou "now4 Suc"ing your coc"4 Slurping some schlong4 idn!t they do that bac" in your day43 3.ell... uh... yes,3 he stammered. 3;ut not usually... you "now, uh... only when in an intimate type of relationship usually.3 3,mmmph,3 she grunted, sha"ing her head a little. 3=ou people were pretty fuc"in prudish, weren!t you4 .hy don!t you come over to the bed and I!ll show you what I can do.3 3.ell, than"s for the... uh... the offer, but shouldn!t we get to "now each other a little better first43 She laughed as if he had made a particularly funny 'o"e. 3I "now that you!re a guest of (aren who is having trouble sleeping on

his first night,3 she said. 3.hat more do I need to "now43 3.ell yes... but...3 3=ou don!t want to insult my hospitality, do you43 she as"ed, giving a feigned pout. 39o, I wouldn!t want to do that, but...3 3.ell all right then,3 she said sweetly, wal"ing around so that she was in front of him. She nudged Peanut with her bare foot, causing him to raise his head up. 31o lay down somewhere, Pee+ Pee,3 she told him. 3I!ve got wor" to do.3 Peanut gave a little trumpet of displeasure but slowly got to his feet. ,e wal"ed over to his water dish, too" a #uic" drin", and then lay down in a heap, his eyes staring vindictively at 8arcella. 3Poor little Peanut,3 she cooed sadly and then turned her attention bac" to (en. She slowly dropped down to her "nees so that her head was between his legs. She lic"ed her lips and then loo"ed up at him. 3.ell, are you going to ta"e out your coc" for me43 3Bh... 8arcella, maybe we should thin" about this for a minute,3 he said. She sighed playfully. 3*"ay, I!ll ta"e it out then. I guess a bitch!s wor" is never done.3 She reached forward and grabbed the waist of his shorts. .ith a #uic", e&pert tug she pulled the front down. ,is limp coc" flopped out at her. (en was still trying to thin" of a way to protest her actions, to tell her that this 'ust wasn!t right, when she leaned forward and ran her tongue over the top of his member. %t her touch his protestations died in his mouth and he felt the first surge of blood go rushing in.

38mmm,3 8arcella said playfully as she tongued up and down, ma"ing him stiffen a little more. 35intage /Fst century coc". Tastes pretty damn good.3 She swirled her tongue around the head a few times, wetting it with her saliva. ,e groaned a little at the sensation and more blood rushed in, firming him up to a full hard+on. .hatever his own misgivings were, his coc" surely li"ed what was going on. ,is coc" thought that life in the //nd century was 'ust grand. She put her hand on him now, grabbing him gently around the base and starting to slowly move up and down. %fter one last lic" of the head she too" it gently between her lips. (en felt himself enclosed in a wet, warm cavern and he groaned louder this time, his head going bac" on his shoulders. 38mmm,3 8arcella moaned around his coc", her mouth dipping lower down upon him, her tongue swirling teasingly about. (en!s hands dropped down of their own volition and found her hair. It was baby soft and very fine. ,e loo"ed down at her, watching as she bobbed her head up and down slowly. ,er eyes were loo"ing directly up at him, staring into his own. She smiled around his coc" and he was again struc" by how youthful she loo"ed. ,er face was so innocent loo"ing, so sweet. It loo"ed li"e high school sophomore + probably a member of the glee club + was wor"ing him over. This thought only served to shamefully arouse him even further. She continued to slurp on him, setting a steady up and down rhythm accompanied by firm pressure from her 'ac"ing hand. She suc"ed steadily as she performed, with 'ust enough pressure to ma"e his manhood throb in delight. (en had had #uite a few blow'obs in his life, from his wife, his girlfriends, cop groupies, even professional whores in ;ahrain during his army days. 9ever had the sensation felt better than what 8arcella was providing for him. .hatever else they were, these 8artians

really "new how to perform se& acts. ,e let his hands slide further down, across her bulging chee"s and onto her nec". ,e caressed her there for a second and then let them go lower, until his fingertips were touching the tops of breasts protruding from her half shirt. Aeceiving no signs of discouragement from her, he pushed them into her top, so that her large breasts were in his palms. They were firm beneath his grip, the nipples pushing forcefully out at him. ,e s#uee$ed them gently and she moaned out her pleasure from around his coc". She began to move faster, her hands s#uee$ing 'ust a little harder, her mouth head bobbing up and down li"e a machine. .ith her free hand she began to caress his balls, rubbing them 'ust enough to elicit a new dimension to the pleasure that he was feeling. (en was completely lost in the blow'ob now, his mind clear of historical facts, new customs, even his missing wife. The only thing in the world for him was the suc"ing mouth upon his coc" and the sweet, teenager!s face it was attached to. .hen she began to hum, imparting a gentle vibration to his manhood, (en felt the orgasm machinery start to gear up. 8arcella, noting the involuntary thrusting of his hips, the tightening of his hands on her breasts, reali$ed this as well and increased her efforts. (en felt the waves of pleasure build to a crescendo and then burst throughout his body. ,e groaned aloud and began to erupt 'ets of semen. 8arcella never missed a beat. She continued to 'ac" up and down, continued to suc", her throat wor"ing frantically as she swallowed his offering down. *nly when the last of the pleasure spasms had faded away did she slowly let his coc" pop free of her mouth. It was glistening with her saliva but spar"ling clean, without so much a drop of his sperm remaining. She lic"ed her lips a few times and smiled up at him. 3.ell, how do you feel now43 she as"ed.

,e too" inventory of his body and found that he really did feel rela&ed, his muscles no longer tense, his bac" no longer aching. %nd he could feel a warm fatigue settling over him, wanting to ta"e him away. 31ood,3 he said. 3Aeally good. Than" you.3 31lad to help,3 she said, standing up. She leaned over and gave him a "iss on the chee". ,e could smell the mus" of his semen on her breath as she did so. 3%nytime you have a little trouble sleeping, you 'ust let me "now and I!ll come in and rela& you, o"ay43 She gave him a saucy loo". 3I!ve been "nown to do a little more than blow'obs to help with such things too.3 3=ou have43 3*h yes,3 she said. 3Just as" (aren. She says I!m the best bitch she!s ever had.3 She laughed a little. 3*f course I!m the only bitch she!s ever had, but what can you do43 3%re you saying that what you 'ust did was part of your 'ob43 3The blow'ob4 .ell, not e&actly. I don!t have to do anything beyond my official duties. ;ut a good bitch goes above and beyond the call of her mission and I!m a good bitch. ;esides, you!re cute and I "ind of wanted to see what "ind of coc" you have. 9ow I "now.3 3I guess you do,3 he said. 3.ell, I!m off to bed. If you need anything else, 'ust tell the computer to call me in my room.3 3*"ay, goodnight, 8arcella.3 31oodnight, (en. ,ave wet dreams.3 .ith that she wal"ed through the door, leaving him sitting there with his shorts pulled down. ,e pulled them bac" up again and stood up, loo"ing at the door as it shut behind her. Peanut, now

that she was gone, came over and assumed the begging position. %bsently, (en pic"ed up a walnut and gave it to him. ,e still felt rela&ed and sleepy. 3-omputer, terminal off,3 he said, loo"ing up at the ceiling. The screen clic"ed off silently. ,e wal"ed over to his bed and pulled bac" the covers, lying down in them. 3-omputer, lights out.3 The lights blin"ed off leaving him in dar"ness. :ess than five minutes later he was asleep. ,e slept soundly and dreamlessly for the first time since his reawa"ening. The passenger window of the surface+to+orbit spacecraft was a little bigger than aircraft windows in the /Fst century. It was about two feet s#uare, (en estimated, and not composed of the thic", blurry double panes of glass as were passenger aircraft windows. Instead, the barrier between himself and the lethal 8artian atmosphere was nothing but a thin layer of the same sort of clear ple&iglass that made up the walls of the serenity level on top of the university building, or the glass that made up the windows of (aren!s house. It loo"ed dangerously flimsy to (en!s eyes and was so clean, one could hardly tell it was even there. ,e could see perfectly through it to where the ta&iway of the spaceport was rolling by outside. =ellow lines were painted on the edges of the ta&iway and blowing 8artian dust drifted by on the dunes beyond. %ll around him he could feel the gentle thrum of the spacecraft!s engines at idle. The inertial damping system was at wor" again and he could feel no motion. 3Tell me again how safe these things are,3 he said to (aren, who was sitting in the plush seat ne&t to him. They were seated near the front of the vehicle, 'ust five rows bac" from the coc"pit door. %ll around them other 8artians were rela&ing in their seats, some peering out the window as he was doing, others loo"ing at the screens of their P-s or tal"ing softly to each other. 3There has never been a fatal accident of a surface+to+orbit craft

since the revolution,3 she assured him. 39ot even one. )or every ta"e+off, there was a landing or a doc"ing with all hands e&iting safely.3 ,e sensed no deceit at her words and they did ma"e him feel better about being blasted into space toward an orbiting city in geosynchronous orbit on the other side of the planet. 3.hat about before the revolution43 he as"ed. 3.ell...3 she said slowly, 3there were occasionally some incidents bac" then. The 2arthlings who ran the spacecraft industry in those days weren!t #uite as safety minded as we 8artians are. They tended to sacrifice safety features if they were deemed too e&pensive to install or maintain. It was "ind of li"e the airline industry bac" in your time, I imagine.3 3.hat "ind of incidents43 he as"ed. 3.ere they crashes43 3,istorically, the most common type of surface+to+orbit accident occurs during reentry as a result of something damaging the heat shield. Bnfortunately, that usually results in everyone getting smo"ed.3 3I see,3 he said, chewing his lip thoughtfully. ,e loo"ed bac" out the window and noted they were now turning onto another ta&iway, the landscape spinning slowly to another angle. They began to accelerate again, the lines on the ground pic"ing up speed as they shot past them. % female voice from the intercom system then began to spea". 31ood morning, my butt buddies,3 it said. 3.hat the fuc"!s the haps4 They call me :auren and I!ll be flying this heap of shit for you today. .e!re tal"in! about one hour and thirty+three minutes from lift+off to doc"ing at Triad Spaceport, if we don!t erupt in a ball of fuc"in! flame halfway up.3 There was a laugh from the rest of the passengers at her words. (en however, didn!t thin" it was the least bit funny. 3I can!t

believe she 'ust said that,3 he told (aren. She shrugged, disinterested. 3That!s one of the oldest lines on the hard drive,3 she said. 3So anyway,3 :auren, the faceless pilot continued, 3'ust "ic" your shit bac", have yourself some of our smo"e if you!re into it, and slap out with the ride.3 They continued to head down the ta&iway, traveling at about forty miles per hour, (en estimated. *nce again he reached down to chec" his seatbelt and once again became distressed when he remembered there weren!t any seatbelts. Though his chair was #uite comfortable, there was absolutely nothing to secure him to it. %nd something else was missing as well, he suddenly reali$ed. 3 on!t the flight attendants give a safety lecture before we ta"e off43 he as"ed (aren. 3% safety lecture43 she as"ed, her brow furrowing in confusion. 3=eah, you "now, li"e what we should do if there!s an emergency while we!re in flight, a decompression or something li"e that43 3If something li"e that happens,3 she said simply, 3then we!ll all die. .hat!s the point of having a safety lecture if there!s nothing to do about the problem43 (en really didn!t have an answer for that one. ,e decided to 'ust sit bac" and not thin" about the fact of what was about to happen. It was something he didn!t do a very good 'ob of. %fter ten minutes of rolling along the ta&iway (en sensed a change in the thrum of the engines. ,e loo"ed outside and saw that they were slowing down. The spacecraft turned one more time, edged forward a little, and then came to a halt. They sat there for a few seconds and then there was a clan"ing noise,

clearly audible throughout the cabin. 3.hat was that43 he as"ed. 3The launching ramp loc"ing onto us,3 she said. 3It!s built into the ground. *nce we!re par"ed on it and secured to it, it will elevate us to launch attitude, which is si&ty degrees.3 3So the front of the craft is going to lift up into the air43 3It!s already happening,3 she said, pointing out his window. ,e loo"ed and was startled to see they were indeed rising into the air, the front of the spacecraft being elevated to point at the red 8artian s"y. ,is head began that uncomfortable swimming sensation again at the conflict in sensory and movement input. ,e should have been pushed bac" in his seat, should have been holding on for dear life to "eep from falling bac"wards toward the rear of the cabin. Instead, he was sitting nicely in his chair as if he were on level ground. ,e felt as if he could even get up and wal" around in the aisles if he wanted, nearly perpendicular to the ground outside. In fact, three or four people were wal"ing around at the moment, two of them uniformed flight attendants, one a passenger returning from the restroom. 3This is 'ust too weird,3 he said, tearing his eyes from the outside so he wouldn!t have to loo" at it. 3=ou!ve gotta love artificial gravity,3 (aren said as she fiddled with the computer console installed on the bac" of the seat in front of her. 3.here would we be without it43 3Safely bac" on 2arth43 he as"ed. She seemed to thin" this was a 'o"e and she laughed. 3,ow about some smo"e43 she as"ed him, pulling a long hose out of a slot. 3I 'ust ordered up a few hits of some 2den green.3

3=ou!re going to smo"e mari'uana now43 he as"ed her. 3.hy not43 she as"ed, putting the hose in her mouth. 3It!s the only way to fly.3 She began to suc" on the hose, drawing in a large hit. .hen she finished she tried to hand it to him. 3Bh... no than"s,3 he said. 3I!ve already got enough of the paranoids.3 3Suit yourself,3 she said. 3;ut if you want to order some boo$e instead, 'ust access the menu on the screen in front of you.3 3;oo$e4 Its only eight in the morning.3 This prompted another loo" of confusion from her. 3.hat does that have to do with anything43 3%re you "idding43 he as"ed. 3I don!t thin" so. Is there something wrong with using into&icants at eight in the morning43 ,e too" a really good loo" at the other passengers for the first time and noticed that many of them were in fact sipping from bottles of beer or glasses filled with obviously alcoholic beverages. %nd they weren!t ;loody 8arys either, the one drin" that had been deemed socially acceptable to consume in the morning hours in his time. 3.ell, bac" in my day,3 he said, 3it was considered... uh... uncouth to drin" alcohol before noon.3 3.hy43 ,e found he really didn!t have an answer for her. 3I!m not sure, now that you mention it,3 he admitted. 3.hat the hell4 8aybe a little boo$e will mellow me out.3 39ow you!re tal"ing,3 (aren said, ta"ing another hit from her hose.

,e ordered a rum and cola drin" from the menu screen. 9o sooner had he finished pushing the buttons than a scantily clad and very attractive flight attendant appeared with it in her hand. She smiled flirtatiously at him, passed a few trashy words, and then told him he owed her a #uarter of a credit. ,e laid some derm on her screen and she disappeared bac" down the aisle once more. ,e sipped from his drin", finding it refreshingly heavy on the rum. It warmed his stomach nicely as it went down. % minute later the captain announced they had been cleared for lift+off. (en had time for one last nervous loo" at (aren before the entire spacecraft began to thrum with power. (aren reached out and too" his hand comfortingly as thic" smo"e erupted outside the window, obscuring the view. 3%nd we!re off,3 (aren said, ta"ing another hit from her hose. (en, fascinated and terrified, continued to loo" out the window. The smo"e and dust cleared a moment later and he saw they were now several hundred feet above the ground and rising #uic"ly. The spaceport dropped away below them, opening up in a panorama of ta&iways and buildings. The speed of their ascent increased e&ponentially and within seconds, the entire city of 9ew Pittsburgh became visible. %nd again, there was that uneasy feeling of not being able to feel any motion, even though his eyes could clearly see they were moving nearly straight up at a tremendous speed under what had to be crippling acceleration. 3.hat do you thin"43 (aren as"ed, watching his face. ,e tore his eyes away from the window and loo"ed at her. 3I thin" I need a drin",3 he said, putting his glass to his lips and gulping nearly half of it in one swallow. The engines continued to blast and they continued to rise higher and higher. *utside, the pin" tinge of the s"y gradually

dar"ened to the blac" of space. ;elow them the landscape became a wide+open view of the cratered 8artian surface, with no signs of human habitation visible. ,e could clearly see the curvature of the planet now. Si& minutes into the flight the captain announced they were now free of the atmosphere and would be throttling down a bit for in'ection into the geosynchronous orbital path. There was a moderate lessening of the powerful vibration and a few mute pops that (aren e&plained were the maneuvering thrusters firing, ad'usting their course. The engines burned for another ten minutes, during which (en finished his first drin" and half of a second one, and then suddenly cut off, leaving an eerie sense of silence. 3.hat now43 he as"ed, still loo"ing out the window to the planet far below. % ways in front of them he could see the terminator between day and night approaching. 39ow we!re 'ust coasting,3 she said. 3They!ve got us on a path that will carry us up to geosynchronous orbit and allow us to catch up to Triad, but that will "eep us from actually brea"ing orbit and heading off into space. .hen we get closer they!ll turn the ship around so they can decelerate us for doc"ing.3 3%nd Triad is on the night side of the planet right now43 3Aight,3 she said. 3%ll of the terrestrial cities are in the western hemisphere. Triad orbits over the eastern hemisphere. That!s so surface+to+orbit craft don!t have to ma"e a complete orbit to doc". They 'ust blast up to the proper altitude and by the time they get there, they!re at the station. It ma"es things much more efficient that way. .e don!t have to wait for a certain window to launch toward Triad or head bac" down to the surface.3 ,e nodded, ta"ing another sip. ,e was starting to rela& and en'oy being in orbit now. 3.on!t it be the middle of the night on Triad though43 he as"ed. 39o, it!s the same time in Triad as it is in 9ew Pittsburgh. Since

it!s an orbiting city the actual position of the sun doesn!t mean very much. The lights will be bright there and it will be the middle of the wor"day. uring the evening hours the streetlights are dimmed down to help "eep body rhythms aligned.3 3I see,3 he said, his mind trying to grapple with that one and finally succeeding. They floated in silence for a while. The ship overtoo" the terminator of the planet and the view of the landscape was replaced by total blac"ness. *utside, where the bul" of the surface didn!t intrude, the stars shone with a brilliance he had never imagined. 9ot even in the clearest deserts of 2arth, not even atop the highest mountain could they shine with this intensity and in these numbers. The individual constellations were meaningless, unrecogni$able due to the sheer amount of other stars that ordinarily couldn!t be seen. The white glow of the 8il"y .ay, which was never more than a vague dusting on 2arth, loo"ed li"e an endless band of glowing steam, clearly visible in three dimensions. 3There!s 2arth,3 (aren said, leaning into his shoulder and pointing at a particularly bright, bluish colored star. 3It loo"s li"e it!s about three+#uarter phase right now.3 (en loo"ed where she was pointing, fascinated at the thought of viewing his home planet from a hundred million miles away, further than any human had ever been from it in his time. 3.ow,3 he said, mostly to himself. 3It!s so small from here.3 3,ard to believe that more than twelve billion people live on that little blue blob, isn!t it43 (aren as"ed. 3=ou can!t tell by loo"ing at it with the na"ed eye, although with a good telescopic magnifying program you can ma"e out the city lights on the surface. If you loo" close you can ma"e out the moon at about three o!cloc".3

,e averted his eyes 'ust a little, so that he wasn!t loo"ing directly at the planet, and sure enough he could see a dim point of light 'ust to the right of it. 3%nd there are cities on the moon too43 he as"ed. 3*h yes,3 she said. 3%lmost as many people live on the moon as live on 8ars. It!s 2ast,em!s primary mining colony. They have seven large cities on the surface and a comple& economy.3 (en shoo" his head a little in wonder. 3It!s hard to imagine all of that,3 he said #uietly. 3I mean, I was up half the night reading about your history on the Internet and I!ve even seen pictures of it, but my mind 'ust has a hard time accepting it. I 'ust can!t grasp that there are now people living on the moon, even people living on 8ars and I!m now one of them.3 3-ulture shoc",3 she said sympathetically. 3%s I told you yesterday, all of our cryogenic people have gone through it but you!re probably e&periencing it the worst, because we had no time to ease you into the way things are these days.3 3=es, it is mighty shoc"ing all right.3 3=ou seem to be handling it fairly well so far, though,3 she said. 3%nd in time you!ll ad'ust and even embrace our way of life, I thin". =ou 'ust need to see a little more of it in action. Jacob is going to be at 8ar'orie!s house when you meet her. I!ll tal" to him about arranging that police ride+a+long I told you about.3 3Jacob is your brother, right43 he as"ed, trying to remember all of the names she had thrown at him the day before. 3)uc"in! aye,3 she said. 38y little brother, although he!s half a meter taller than me and outweighs me by more than twenty "ilos. ,e caught a military flight up from 2den, where he!s stationed.3 3,e lives in 2den but he!ll be able to arrange a ride+a+long for

me with the 9ew Pittsburgh police43 3*h yes,3 she said. 3,is husband used to wor" for 9PP .3 (en wasn!t sure that he had heard her correctly. 3 id you say, his husband43 3)uc"in! aye,3 she said casually. 3,is name is ;elung. ,e and Jacob met when Jacob was in flight training at 9ew Pittsburgh. They 'ust had their third anniversary.3 (en swallowed slowly. 3%re you saying that Jacob is a... is a...3 3% faggot43 she as"ed. 3Bh... well, I was going to say gay, but...3 (aren laughed. 39ow that!s a really old+fashioned word. .ow. The only place you see gay used is in ancient literature. ,ere, the polite term for a male who li"es to e&clusively fuc" the same gender is faggot, although rump+ranger, dic"+smo"er, and fudge+pac"er are also acceptable terms in mi&ed company.3 3Those were all... you "now... derogatory slang terms bac" in my day,3 he said, still trying to grapple with the fact that his grandson was... well... a faggot. 3=es,3 she said, nodding. 3:i"e !fuc"in! aye! and !down with it! and !suc" my hairy ass, ! right43 3.ell, I never told anyone to suc" my hairy ass, but... yes, I guess so.3 3The normal evolution of words over the generations,3 (aren said. 3%lthough here on 8ars I imagine it evolved a little #uic"er than usual. Aemember who our ancestors were, after all.3 3=eah,3 he said. 3I suppose that ma"es sense.3 ,e swallowed

again. 3So on 8ars gay... uh, faggots, are allowed to marry each other43 3=es,3 she said. 3,omose&ual and polygamous marriage has been legal on 8ars since pre+revolutionary times, although the 2arthlings didn!t recogni$e such things when they ran the place. They still don!t on 2arth, by the way, in 2ast,em and .est,em both.3 3Polygamous marriage is legal too43 3*f course,3 she said. 3If any two people or three people or ten people of any se& or combination of se&es wish to get married, what right does the government have to say they can!t4 .hat business is it of the government43 3.ell, bac" in my day they used to thin" it was a lot of their business. 8arriage was heavily regulated and controlled. There was a lot of paperwor" involved. %nd only a man and woman could get married.3 3%nd, if I!m not mista"en,3 she said, 3you had a divorce rate that was nearly fifty percent, right43 3=es,3 he said. 3That sounds about right. .hat is your divorce rate43 3:ess than five percent,3 she said. 3It!s gone down considerably since we post+revolutionary children started to reach marriage age.3 3:ess than five percent43 he said in disbelief. 3=ou have men marrying men, women marrying women, three and four people marrying each other, and only five percent of them get divorced43 3.ell, polygamous marriages of more than three are pretty rare, but yes, that!s how it is. =ou have to understand though,

marriage is viewed differently by us than it was by you.3 3 ifferently4 In what way43 3It is considered an almost sacred thing among 8artians,3 she said. 3To marry a person is to ma"e a deep commitment to them, to declare that you love them and you wish to spend your life with them.3 3That!s what marriage was in my day as well,3 (en said. 39o,3 she said sternly. 3That is not what marriage was in your day. That is what you pretended marriage was. .hat marriage actually represented to your society, and what it still represents to 2arth society to this day, is a social conformity for both se&es. =ou were told by society that you must marry in order to be normal and so what happened was the desire for marriage became independent of the desire to find someone you actually wanted to spend your life with. =our people ended up marrying someone they thought they could get along with instead of someone they loved. .omen ended up marrying for status and for what their husband did for a living. 8en ended up marrying because career advancement demanded that a man maintain a family.3 3That!s not true,3 (en said. 3I married %nnie because I loved her. I did want to spend the rest of my life with her. %nd obviously she loved me as well or she wouldn!t have had me fro$en and shipped off to space instead of 'ust letting me die.3 3%nnie did love you, (en, of that there is no denying. %nd I have no doubt you loved %nnie as well. Bnfortunately, however, you are a rarity among 2arthlings of your time period. Surely you must see that, don!t you4 Thin" bac" to others you "new. ,ad most of your friends and ac#uaintances married by the time they turned thirty of your years old43 3=es,3 he said.

3%nd of all the people you "new who did that, how many of them were truly happy4 ;e honest now. ,ow many43 ,e did as re#uested and gave an honest evaluation of the people he had "nown and the status of their marriages. %nd, shoc"ingly, he discovered she was right. ,is best friend at the SJP was Jac" Stellon. ,e and his wife barely tolerated each other. They had gone through two trial separations and both routinely cheated on each other. They remained a couple in name only for the sa"e of their children. ,is other two close friends, Aic" Palestine and Jason 8ar"ley were both divorced and paying child support. 2ven his own parents had divorced when he was si&teen years old. %nnie!s friends were no different. %t the time of his death %nnie!s best friend at the school had been "nee+deep in divorce and child custody hearings. %nnie!s parents had divorced when she was a teenager too. ,er sister, at the time of his shooting, had been slogging through a loveless marriage to a wealthy accountant and popping anti+depressant pills and 5alium 'ust to "eep her sanity. *f all the people he "new, he honestly could not say any of them had a marriage as happy as the one he had shared with %nnie. 9ot even one< 38y guess is you can!t thin" of any, right43 (aren as"ed gently. 39o,3 he admitted. 3I guess I can!t.3 3The sanctity of marriage is a beautiful thing,3 she said. 3It is symbolic of love and respect and is the basis for childbearing and childrearing. =ou 2arthlings at some point perverted the institution to the point where you had people marrying because they felt they had to, because they didn!t want to be different from their friends, because they thought that was what a life had to encompass in order for happiness to occur. %nd what you ended up with was a world full of miserable people who eventually ended up hating each other. There were, of course, e&ceptions to this rule but they were rare. =our marriage to %nnie was one such e&ception. =ou were one of the luc"y few

who happened to find someone you actually loved to marry. If I understand my family history correctly, you met %nnie #uite by chance, didn!t you43 3=es,3 he said. 3.e met when I demonstrated for her class the helicopter I flew.3 3% very fortunate turn of events,3 she said. 3;ut suppose you hadn!t met her that day4 Suppose she had been sic" or there had been some emergency that would have precluded you from demonstrating your aircraft for her. .hat would have happened in your life then4 .ould you have gone on searching for that perfect woman until you found her4 *r would you have married someone else because you thought it was time to get married43 %gain he employed some brutally honest self+e&amination and again he found she was entirely correct. ,e had been C/ years old that day he had met her and had been dating semi+regularly for the past eight months an emergency room nurse he had met in a cop bar. ,e had vividly clear memories of turning the marriage idea over and over in his head in those days. %nd why had he been considering marriage to Jessica the nurse4 ,ad it been because he loved her, or even because he thought he loved her4 9o. *f that there was absolutely no doubt. ,e had been thin"ing about it because it had seemed he was getting too old to be single, because people might start to wonder if there was something wrong with him, because his parents and his friends were always as"ing him when he was going to settle down. If he hadn!t met %nnie when he did it is very li"ely he might have proposed to Jessica the nurse within si& months, surely no more than a year. %nd would they have been happy together4 %fter living with %nnie for two years, after en'oying a marriage to a woman he truly loved, he "new he would not have been. .ithin si& or seven years, after producing a few children, no doubt, they would have been 'ust another divorce statistic or 'ust another couple enduring a loveless life of staying together for the sa"e of the children.

3I would!ve married someone else,3 he said. 3.hether you loved her or not43 3.hether I loved her or not.3 She smiled sympathetically at him. 3That!s e&actly the sort of thing we have gotten away from here,3 she said. 3The average age of marriage on 8ars is around seventeen years old+about the age you are now. There is no legal basis for this, of course. %nyone on 8ars can legally marry once they reach the age of nine. 8ost, however, choose not to. 8ost of us choose to e&plore life for si& or seven years, to develop the maturity re#uired to ma"e such an important decision, to e&plore all aspects of se&uality. It has also been found that encountering true, mutual love, that finding the right person 'ust ta"es that long. Sometimes it ta"es longer. There are people I "now who are more than twenty years old before they find that special someone. *ne of the doctors at the hospital is /0 and still hasn!t found that person. ;ut in our society we are conditioned to wait until love finds us the same way your society used to condition you to marry young whether love e&isted or not.3 3%nd there is no stigma attached to being /0 years old and unmarried43 he as"ed. 3People don!t start to... you "now... wonder if you!re all right43 39o. .e 8artians tend to mind our own business about that sort of thing. It is assumed that if someone hasn!t married yet, they 'ust haven!t found anyone they want to marry yet.3 3%nd there is no stigma about being... uh... a faggot either43 39ot among the ma'ority of the population,3 she said. 3.e are however a very diverse society by nature, so naturally there are some people who oppose homose&ual unions both on the se&ual level and the marital level.3

3Aeally4 .ho are they43 38ostly 1od+frea"s,3 she said. 3%s I said, we have all types here on 8ars.3 31od+frea"s4 .hat are those43 3%dherents to the ancient 2arth religious teachings,3 she told him. 3.e don!t have much organi$ed religion here but what we do have is often very vocal. There are some 8ormons, some ;aptists, a few -atholics and 8uslims. They li"e to tell the rest of us we!re sinners, damned to hell, destined to be thrown into a pit of fire, and other such bullshit. They bag on the chosen lifestyle of the ma'ority and spend a lot of their days trying to convert others to their viewpoint.3 She shrugged. 38ost people 'ust find them amusing. .ho doesn!t li"e being compared to Sodom and 1omorrah, after all43 3%re you saying that religious people are the minority here43 he as"ed. 3That most of the people are atheists43 39o, I wouldn!t say that most of us are atheists,3 she said. 3It!s 'ust that most of us aren!t down with organi$ed religion. .e don!t believe there is a 1od somewhere who is going to punish us after we die because we li"e to engage in pre+marital or e&tra+ marital se&uality, or because we have homose&ual encounters, or because we don!t believe e&actly what has been written that we should believe. It!s a common sense issue for most of us. The bible and the (oran are illogical and are obviously written with the idea of behavioral control of the population in mind. %s (arl 8ar& said, religion is the opiate of the masses. It is designed to "eep us in line by laying down a set of rules to follow on the threat of eternal damnation. It is designed to #uell the urge for revolt by promising a better life after death. .hy try to change the miserable system you live under if you get paradise after you die4 .ell here on 8ars, we have revolted, we have changed the miserable system we lived under, and we have achieved a fairly decent lifestyle for the masses. 8ost of the people feel no need

for religion here. 8any of us+myself included+believe there is a higher power and there is even a ,eaven and a ,ell we may go to after death. ;ut we also believe admission to that ,eaven or that ,ell is dependent on your deeds here in this life, not on the beliefs you hold or the deity you chose to worship. .e believe your afterlife, if there is such a thing, is probably a reflection of the pain you have caused others throughout your lifetime. .e believe pleasure is a virtue to be embraced and shared, not to be ashamed of and hidden.3 39o shit43 (en said in wonder, finding, much to his astonishment, that her religious theories actually made a certain sort of sense. )undamentalist -hristians wouldn!t thin" so, of course, but then they had never been big proponents of common sense anyway. (aren gave a dreamy smile. 3=ou!ll have to e&cuse me,3 she said. 3I get really philosophical when I get stoned. %nyway, that!s the 8artian view of religion and spirituality for the most part. There are some atheists among us and there are the 1od+frea"s. The atheists tend to "eep to themselves. The 1od+frea"s tend to get a bit annoying at times but most people 'ust ignore them.3 3I see,3 (en said. 3;ut going bac" to this marriage thing for a minute.3 3Sure,3 she said. 3.hat about it43 3=ou 'ust got done telling me how sacred you 8artians view the institution of marriage, how seriously you ta"e it.3 3)uc"in! aye.3 3.ell, the other day, when I was in the hospital, and Jeal, the nurse, gave me that... uh... massage.3 3=es, what about it43

3I as"ed her what her husband thought about her giving such massages and she told me he didn!t mind.3 She loo"ed at him, perple&ed. 3I!m not #uite down with where you!re going with this.3 3She implied to me that she often did other things with patients as well as... you "now, other se&ual things. I also got the distinct impression she did se&ual things with other people who weren!t patients as well.3 3=es,3 (aren said, a strange smile on her face. 3That!s Jeal all right. ,er husband has been "nown to do a few things se&ual too.3 9ow it was (en who had the perple&ed loo". 3That doesn!t e&actly sound li"e people who revere the institution of marriage to me.3 3.hy not43 she as"ed. 3I "now Jeal and Stellon very well. They love each other very much and they!re absolutely static parents to their three children.3 3;ut they!re having se& with other people,3 he said, e&asperated. (aren shrugged. 3They!re not monos,3 she said. 3That word again,3 he said. 3Jeal said that same thing to me when I as"ed her about it. .hat the hell is a mono anyway43 She gave him a sympathetic loo". 3% mono is a person who believes in the practice of monogamy within a relationship,3 she told him. 3I understand that in your society such a thing was considered normal, wasn!t it43 3=es, monogamy was considered the foundation of both a marriage and a relationship.3 3%nd how many people, particularly men, actually adhered to

it43 she as"ed him. 3That!s not the point,3 he protested. 3%ctually, that!s e&actly the point,3 she said. 38ost of the monos here on 8ars are the 1od+frea"s and that!s for a reason. The practice of se&ual monogamy is religious in nature, not biological. .e believe that se& and love are not mutually e&clusive. Se&ual pleasure is a great gift and it is not meant to be confined to only one person or even only two people or three. Se&uality is to be shared among friends, to be practiced and perfected. Just because a person commits to a marital relationship with someone does not mean the urge to engage in se& with others should be repressed.3 3So you!re telling me,3 he said carefully, 3that you 8artians all engage in e&tra+marital se&, with the full "nowledge of your spouses, and everyone is o"ay with that43 32&cept for the monos, yes, to varying degrees we fuc" others of both se&es and no one minds. .e!ve accepted that it!s a part of life.3 3So you get together all the time and 'ust have a bunch of orgies43 3*rgies are fairly common here on 8ars,3 she said, 3but I would say that most of the e&tra+marital se& that goes on is done in the normal fashion. % man and a woman, or a woman and a woman, or a man and a man meet someone they wish to have se& with and if the feeling is mutual, they do it, either alone or with the participation of the spouse. It all depends on what people want. %gain, this is all stuff that went on in your society on a regular basis but was "ept hidden and underground. %s I!ve told you before, we have come to grips with our se&uality here and we embrace our urges with relish.3 3%ma$ing,3 he said, sha"ing his head a little. ,e wanted to be

appalled at what he was hearing, but, in all honesty, he simply couldn!t. She was right. .hat she was describing was something that had gone on regularly in his day. Though he had never cheated on %nnie, it was undeniable that he had never stopped finding other women attractive, that he had never stopped imagining what it would be li"e to touch them, to be na"ed with them, to have se& with them. ,e could not deny that he had even been tempted at times to cultivate a se&ual relationship with one, although he had never #uite been able to ta"e that step. %nd the male friends he had had throughout his life. ,ow many of them had routinely cheated on their spouses4 9early all of them. %ll the 8artians had done was to bring this out into the light and made legitimate what had once been clandestine. 3It!s 'ust life on 8ars,3 she said with a shrug. 3Try to understand however, you don!t have to participate in se& with anyone you don!t wish to. I don!t want you to thin" it is an obligation or anything li"e that. %nd pressuring someone to have se& when they don!t wish to is considered very poor taste here.3 3*h is it now43 he as"ed. 3.hat about Jeal and her hand'ob4 .hat about 8arcella last night43 3.hat about 8arcella last night43 (aren as"ed mischievously. (en blushed, cursing himself for allowing his mouth to get ahead of his brain. 3.ell... she came to my room last night... and... she "ind of... you "now43 3)uc"ed you43 ,e blushed a deeper shade. 39ot #uite. She gave me a... she uh... orally copulated me.3 (aren loo"ed at him in astonishment for a moment and then burst out in laughter. 3*rally copulated you43 she as"ed, loud enough so that several nearby passengers loo"ed at her #ui$$ically.

3Jesus, (aren,3 he hissed at her. 3-ould you maybe yell it a little louder4 I don!t thin" the pilots up in the coc"pit were able to hear you.3 3Sorry,3 she said, lowering her voice but still chuc"ling a little. 3It!s 'ust that I!ve never heard a blow'ob referred to li"e that before. % twentieth century term, I ta"e it43 3That was the legal term for a... a blow'ob,3 he said. 3;ut my point is that with both Jeal and 8arcella, I told them I didn!t want... you "now... se&ual contact with them and they did it anyway.3 3*h really43 (aren as"ed. 3=ou didn!t want se&ual contact with them43 39o,3 he said. 3I!m not #uite used to your 8artian ways yet, and I...3 3%re you saying you were raped43 she interrupted, a slight teasing light in her eyes. 3;ecause if you were, both Jeal and 8arcella are in big trouble with our legal system. 9on+ consensual se& is a ma'or crime here, as I!ve e&plained.3 3.ell... no, I!m not saying I was raped,3 he said. 3It!s 'ust that I was somewhat reluctant at first and they both pushed forward.3 3;ut at some point+and rather #uic"ly if I "now those two+you became a willing and enthusiastic participant in what they were doing, right43 3Bh... I guess I did,3 he admitted. 3Then I would say you were seduced,3 she said. 3Seduction is not a crime. It!s static to convince someone to have se& with you. 8ost of us li"e seduction, in fact, wouldn!t you say4 .hen it becomes wrong is when you are forced, either through threats or physical contact, to participate in se&. o you see the

distinction I am ma"ing43 3=es,3 he said. 3I do.3 3So which category would you place your e&periences in43 3Seduction,3 he said, almost reluctantly. 32&actly,3 (aren said. 3That!s how things wor" here in our relationships. =ou may as well get used to seduction attempts, (en. =ou!re a good+loo"ing guy and you!re going to get them a lot, from both se&es. Sometimes you will be as"ed straight out if you want to fuc", sometimes it will be subtler, but it is going to happen fre#uently. 8ars is a planet of se&ual creatures. .e have replaced the greed that used to drive your society with lust and decadence. 8y suggestion is that you simply en'oy yourself. :earn to cast aside the guilt you feel at such encounters. If someone wants to fuc" you and you find him or her attractive, go ahead and do it. That!s what being a 8artian is all about. ;ut if you decide you don!t wish to do it with someone, 'ust tell him or her no in a firm manner. They will respect your wishes without hard feelings. That too is the 8artian way.3 (en too" another sip of his drin" as he pondered this. 3I thin" I!ll have to tell the men no,3 he said. 3I have nothing against... uh... faggots, but I!m 'ust not into that sort of thing myself.3 She shrugged. 3%nd that is your prerogative,3 she told him. 3% lot of our men shun homose&ual se& among themselves as a matter of course. %ll you have to say is that you aren!t down with fudge+pac"ing or rump+rutting or something li"e that. They!ll understand.3 ,e couldn!t help laughing a little. 3%nd that!s the polite way to do it, huh43 3=es,3 she said, in all serious. 3-an you thin" of a nicer way43

%n hour later (en caught his first glimpse of the orbiting city as the spaceship drifted steadily toward it. :i"e most of the other scenery he had witnessed since awa"ening, the view was awe+ inspiring, a testament to human engineering s"ills. It loo"ed li"e a glittering diamond floating impossibly in the blac"ness of space. %s they drew closer he was able to see that the lights came from tall buildings that protruded both upward and downward from a centrali$ed support structure similar to the street level of 9ew Pittsburgh. 3It!s huge,3 (en said in awe, his eyes loo"ing everywhere at once. 3Aemember how I told you that we 8artians tend to ta"e advantage of vertical space instead of sprawling out hori$ontally43 (aren as"ed. 3=es,3 he said, pressing his face against the window li"e a child. 3The same principal applies on Triad, even more so, in fact. -onstruction in space is horribly labor intensive and, before the revolution, was very e&pensive as well. Since Triad is in orbit there is no ground level to worry about so the vertical advantage wor"s both up and down from the main street level. Aight there in the middle is where the traffic moves about, and the buildings are constructed in both directions from there. The most e&pensive buildings on Triad are the ones that reach downward, toward the planet. The view tends to be nicer.3 3This was 'ust so completely unimaginable in my time,3 he said. 3It too" us more than a decade and the resources of many different countries 'ust to get a simple space station built in low orbit.3 3=es, the International Space Station,3 she said with a condescending chuc"le. 3It was abandoned bac" in .orld .ar III and almost de+orbited before they were able to nudge it bac" up. The entire structure is now in a museum in eparture -ity.3

The spacecraft drew closer and closer, until the point that it was impossible to see the entire city at once. Soon they were drifting along about a mile from the edge, the maneuvering thrusters firing short blasts every once in a while. (en could see the navigation lights of other spacecraft around them and concluded they were in some sort of an approach pattern. )inally, e&actly on schedule, there was a brief flurry of thruster firings and they eased up to what loo"ed li"e a steel tunnel stic"ing out from a portion of the city. %round them he could see other such tunnels, some with spacecraft doc"ed to them, others empty. There was a loud clan"ing noise and the pilot came on the overhead to announce that they were doc"ed. 3.elcome to Triad Spaceport,3 she said. 39ow get your asses off my ship.3 The spaceport itself loo"ed to (en li"e a large %merican international airport. There were luggage collection areas and shops, arrival and departure screens on every wall, trashy 8artian voices on the overhead announcing which ships were boarding, and hundreds of people moving to and fro or waiting in lounges. Since they had no luggage to collect (aren and (en were able to move #uic"ly through the busy place and e&it through a series of sliding doors out to a main street. %s in 9ew Pittsburgh there was a glass ceiling fifty or si&ty feet above them, through which could be seen the shapes of the high+rise buildings stretching off into space. %rtificial lighting was present, illuminating the environment as brightly as high noon. There was no sense whatsoever of being in an orbiting space station F?,000 "ilometers above the far side of the planet. Instead, the sense was of being in a city+a vibrant, alive, and active metropolitan area. % large tram station was across the street and within five minutes they were able to catch one of the trains toward the section where 8ar'orie 5alentine, his great granddaughter, lived. They e&ited the tram after a ten+minute ride and wal"ed two

bloc"s through the narrow streets until they came to a building called the Phobos5iew Tower. The main lobby was not #uite as opulent in appearance as that of (aren!s building, though it was far from cheap or trashy loo"ing. They entered an elevator at the rear of the lobby. % sign over the top of it read7 :*.2A ):**AS *9:=. (aren told the computer they wished to go to floor :ower 8?. %fter a few minutes of stops and starts to let other passengers out they arrived and stepped out into a narrow though lushly carpeted hallway. (en found himself becoming nervous as they wal"ed along and stopped before apartment :8?F/. 3=ou!re gonna love her,3 (aren assured him as she pushed the doorbell button on the access screen. 3.ho the fuc" is it43 a pleasant female voice responded from the spea"er. 3It!s (aren, 9ana,3 she said. 3.e!re here.3 There was a brief pause and then 8ar'orie!s voice spo"e again. 3-ome on in,3 she said. % second later the door slid open before them, revealing a co$y entryway. ;eyond it was a sparsely furnished living room. 3-ome on,3 (aren said, leading him inside. ,e followed her in and sitting in a chair before a large wall+ mounted computer screen was a pleasant+loo"ing dar" haired woman. She was very fit loo"ing and smiling broadly. (en!s first thought was that she couldn!t possibly be the woman he had come here to meet. 8ar'orie was F/0 years old. This woman loo"ed no more than fifty at most, and a young loo"ing fifty at that. ,er face was unlined, her s"in unwrin"led, not a trace of gray in her hair. :oo"ing at her eyes however, made him reali$e that maybe this really was her. ,er eyes, though clear and bright blue, li"e (aren!s, were ancient. They were eyes that had seen more than a century of turbulent life.

3(en,3 (aren said softly. 38eet 8ar'orie 5alentine, your great+ granddaughter. 9ana, this is (en.3 8ar'orie stood slowly, the smile on her face widening, a single tear falling from her eye and trac"ing down her face. 3It!s really you,3 she said. 3%fter all these years, after all this time, it!s really you. ;ac" among us.3 (en felt the emotion of the moment affecting him as well. This was his great+granddaughter, a woman who had "nown his son, a woman who had helped pass on the family legends and drive that had brought him bac" from the dead after F88 years. ,e felt his throat tighten, felt tears of his own 'ust under the surface. 3It!s... it!s very nice to meet you, 8ar'orie,3 he told her. 3=ou can!t imagine how nice it is to meet you, (en,3 she said, her voice brea"ing into a sob of 'oy. 3-ome here. :et me touch you. :et me ma"e sure you!re really there.3 ,e stepped forward and they embraced, her small arms going around his bac" and pulling him tightly against her. ,e returned the hug gladly, feeling his own tears start to fall now.

She gave him a tour of her modest apartment, the most impressive aspect of which was the view from the living room window, which loo"ed out over the planet 8ars far below. ,e also met 2ucalyptus, her pet, whom he was told was given to her by (aren two years before on her birthday. 2ucalyptus was a four+foot tall giraffe that was fond of lic"ing the nec"s of guests with his rough tongue and who lived off the leaves from the tops of the many plants 8ar'orie "ept about the house. %fter the tour 8ar'orie, ever the pleasant 8artian host, made each of them powerful drin"s from her bar and then proceeded to open up a brass bo& that contained mari'uana, scissors, and thin white papers. She spilled some of the grass out onto the surface of the bo& and #uic"ly rolled a 'oint.

3I hope you don!t mind smo"ing out this way,3 she said apologetically as she sealed it shut by lic"ing the end. 3(aren and Jacob are always getting on my ass about using the bongs and water pipes they!ve given me, but I!m a bit of a traditionalist when it comes to my buds. =ou down with it43 3Bh... no problem,3 (en said, feeling decidedly strange at the thought of getting high with a F/0 year old woman. ;ut get high they did. %s (aren had told him the night before, smo"ing mari'uana seemed to be an important social aspect of 8artian culture. 8ar'orie spar"ed up the 'oint with some sort of laser ignition device, too" a huge hit of it, and then passed it over to (en. ,e hesitated for the briefest instance and then too" a large hit of his own, feeling the effects going to his brain almost immediately. 3This is some pretty good shit, 8ar'orie,3 he said as he e&haled the fragrant smo"e into the room. 31ood old 2den green,3 she said. 3(aren, watch the spit on the end< ,ow many times do I have to tell you that43 3Sorry, 9ana,3 she s#uea"ed, wiping her saliva free and passing the 'oint bac" to her. *nce the 'oint was nothing but a roach and they were all en'oying the into&icating effects, they sipped their drin"s and tal"ed. )or the most part (en played the roll of listener as 8ar'orie tal"ed of the life she had lived as the first of his descendents to be born on 8ars. She concentrated heavily on her memories of (en Jr., his son, her grandfather, whom she had "nown for the first CD 2arth years of her life. 3,e was a good man,3 she told him. 3*ne of the finest I!ve ever had the privilege of "nowing. It was his encouragement that persuaded me to gear my life toward medical school bac" when I was in high school. It was his connections that allowed me to

get into medical school in a time when we greenies weren!t considered worthy of it.3 31reenies43 (en said, raising his eyebrows a bit. 3That!s what the 2arthlings called 8artian natives,3 8ar'orie told him. 3It!s what they still call us, in fact. %s one of the original greenies, I can tell you the name evolved from an old term people from your era had for fictional aliens who lived on 8ars.3 3:ittle green men,3 (en said. 3)uc"in! aye,3 8ar'orie said. 3It was a ran"in! offensive term when it came out of those 2arthling mouths, I!m here to tell you. It was the e#uivalent of calling an %frican descendent from your day a...3 she hesitated. 3.hat was it you used to call them43 3Bh... a nigger43 he said hesitantly, calling up the most offensive term for a blac" person that had been in general use in his day. 3That!s it,3 she said. 3That term was still used a little on 8ars when I was a child. It had died out by the time I started my practice, although I wouldn!t be surprised if it was still in use on 2arth. There!s still #uite a bit of ine#uality along s"in color lines on that horrid planet, you "now, particularly in 2ast,em. 8ost of the continent of %frica is a huge ghetto, I!m told. ;ut anyway, I was tal"ing about your son. Sometimes I 'ust ramble on, you "now. It!s part of the organic brain syndrome process. id (aren tell you about that43 3=es,3 he said slowly. She gave him a win". 3It!s worse when I get loaded,3 she said. 3*h well. If you gotta lose it, may as well be with some good green. That!s what I always say.3 .ith that she pic"ed up the roach and lit it up, ta"ing another tremendous hit.

)or the better part of two hours they tal"ed of (en Jr., of Joshua, 8ar'orie!s father, and of life on 8ars during the %gricultural rush and beyond. (en was fascinated by what he was hearing, listening to an eyewitness dissertation of the events he had spent hours reading about the night before. ,e was also enthralled to hear the tales of his son, was in fact able to get a sense of what "ind of man he had been+this man he had last seen as a swelling in his wife!s abdomen. She also told him of the strong, almost obsessive drive to revive him from his slumber+a drive passed on by %nnie and (en Jr. to the rest of the family. 3It!s all we ever heard about while we were growing up,3 she said. 3)rom my generation all the way up to (aren here, who actually went and did it.3 3Bsing a lot of your original research ideas,3 added (aren, whose eyes were half+lidded and very bloodshot. 3*h dear, don!t give credit where it isn!t due,3 8ar'orie scolded. 3It was mostly you. I 'ust provided the starting point. I wouldn!t have been able to do it with the technology we had in those days even if the .est,em assholes would!ve allowed me to continue down that road.3 She turned to (en. 3 id you "now that (aren!s research in reviving you from sleep is being applied for many other things as well4 She probably didn!t tell you that, did she43 39o,3 he said. 3She didn!t.3 3:ong distance space flight is the most obvious application,3 8ar'orie said. 39ow that we "now how to place people in stasis and bring them bac" out of it again, our space administration is starting to loo" at manned interstellar flights. It could be that pretty soon a manned mission may be heading off to %lpha -entauri to ta"e a good loo" at 'ust what is there.3 3That!s still a few years in the future, 9ana,3 (aren told her.

(en!s eyes widened as he heard this. 3%lpha -entauri43 he said. 3=ou!ll be able to do that43 3;et your ass,3 8ar'orie said proudly. 3%nd (aren!s techni#ue will be what ma"es it possible.3 3There are a lot of factors involved in that as well,3 (aren said. 3Putting people into stasis and bringing them bac" out of it is only the start. .e have to figure out how to do it automatically, without any human intervention. .e!re still a year or so away from that. %nd then there!s the spacecraft that will carry them. .e!ve sent a probe to %lpha -entauri of course.3 3=ou have43 (en as"ed. 3This was shortly after the revolution itself,3 (aren said. 3Bsing fusion drive and the largest propellant tan" ever built, we were able to accelerate the probe up to twenty percent of light speed, faster than any other man+made ob'ect has ever been accelerated.3 3That!s pretty fast,3 (en said, impressed. 3Incredibly fast,3 (aren said. 3*ur fastest manned spacecraft can only achieve a little more than a half percent of light speed because they have to retain enough fuel to turn around and slow to orbital speed once they get to where they!re going. *ur probe was traveling forty times as fast as that and even so, it still too" almost ten of our years to get to its destination. *nce it made it there, there was no way to slow it down so it shot through the entire system in less than thirty+si& hours and went off into deep space. It then too" another two years for the data transmission to ma"e it bac" to us so it could be analy$ed.3 3%nd what did it show43 (en wanted to "now. 3There are twelve planets in the system,3 she said. 3)our of them are gas giants, the rest are roc"y planets, varying in si$e

from as large as 2arth to as small as 8ercury. *ne of the roc"y planets, the fourth from the sun, has a thic" atmosphere consisting of o&ygen and nitrogen, 'ust li"e 2arth. There are continents and li#uid oceans and the mean temperature seems to be similar to that of 2arth as well. There is evidence of e&tensive plant life on the surface although no signs of advanced intelligent animal life. 9o cities or orbiting spacecraft were noted.3 3So you have evidence that life does e&ist apart from 2arth, though43 he as"ed. 3.ell, sure,3 (aren told him. 3.e have life other than 2arth right here in this solar system.3 3There is43 32uropa has an e&tensive ecosystem of primitive sea creatures in its oceans,3 (aren said. 3That was discovered shortly after .orld .ar III. % few have been studied, put in a#uariums, and that sort of thing but for the most part they!ve been left alone. 9othing to e&ploit about them and there!s nothing on 2uropa that anyone wants. There are also lichens that grow here on 8ars and Titan has some simple single cell organisms as well. ;ut with %lpha -entauri I5 there!s a good possibility we!ll find comple& organisms, possibly even sentient organisms for the first time in human history. The problem is getting there intact in a reasonable amount of time.3 3%nd putting people into stasis is the answer,3 8ar'orie said. 3.ell, that and the spacecraft. The advances in antimatter research are what will eventually get us there.3 3%ntimatter research43 (en said. 3=ou mean li"e on Star Tre"43 (aren furrowed her brow a little. 3I!m not sure what Star Tre" is,3 she said. 3;ut if you!re referring to matter@anti+matter drive,

yes, you!re down with it. .e!ve been able to produce anti+matter since your time, (en. The problem is producing enough to provide sustained power for a space drive. Aight now both we and the 2arthlings can produce enough to manufacture weapons.3 3.eapons43 (en said appalled at the thought. %s if thermonuclear bombs weren!t bad enough. 3*h yes,3 she said with a sigh. 3%s long as 2ast,em and .est,em are enemies to each other they are both potential enemies to us as well. They both have antimatter weapons and so, therefore, we must have them as well. )or the most part they are used as anti+ship torpedoes for space battle. They are #uite effective in that manifestation. ,owever, all three of us also have them in stealth platforms attached to re+entry vehicles in case full scale war should brea" out. 8utually %ssured estruction, a term from your day, is very much in play in our day as well.3 3Just how powerful are these weapons43 (en as"ed. 38atter@anti+matter produces an almost perfect energy release,3 she said. 3So the e&plosion is #uite powerful indeed. The standard weapon is probably ten to twenty times as powerful as the most lethal thermonuclear device from the early /Fst century. That is #uite enough to destroy a starship from /00 "ilometers away, or to flatten an entire city from ten thousand meters altitude. The amount of antimatter needed for such a detonation is minimal, less than a "ilogram.3 3That!s all43 he as"ed, shoc"ed. 3It ta"es far less effort to destroy than it does to build,3 8ar'orie said sadly. 3)uc"in! aye,3 (aren agreed. 3The amount that will be needed to propel a starship to %lpha -entauri will be considerably more,

unfortunately.3 3,ow much more43 as"ed (en. 3Something on the order of si& hundred tons,3 she said. 3If we could manufacture and store antimatter in that amount and perfect a drive system to utili$e it, it would be enough to accelerate the ship up to thirty percent the speed of light, allow it to slow to orbital speed for e&ploration of the system and then re+accelerate and re+decelerate in order to return to 8ars when the mission is done. Total mission time would be something on the order of twenty+five years.3 38ars years, right43 as"ed (en. 3Aight,3 (aren said. 3% little more than fifty of your years, though of course with the stasis and the 2insteinian effects of traveling at thirty percent light speed, the humans involved will have aged no more than a year.3 3.ow,3 (en said, struggling with that concept for a bit with his into&icated mind. The conversation shifted from 2insteinian theory and antimatter powered spacecraft bac" to (en Jr. and his accomplishments as one of the original 8artian colonists. %s they were discussing his political views in regard to 8artian independence there was a pleasant ringing sound from the overhead spea"ers in the room. 3That must be Jacob,3 (aren said. 3,e said he would be here around FD00.3 3I swear,3 said 8ar'orie with a sha"e of the head. 3=ou have to wa"e an ancient relative from the dead to get that boy to visit his 9ana.3 She loo"ed up at the ceiling. 3-omputer, show front door view.3

3)uc"in! aye,3 the computer responded. Instantly the large screen monitor at the front of the room, which had been blan", came to life with a close up view of a man!s face. It was a pleasant loo"ing man who appeared to (en to be about twenty years old. ,e was clean+shaven, his brown hair cut short and neatly styled. The family resemblance to (aren was obvious. 3-omputer, open front door,3 said 8ar'orie. % moment later the screen blan"ed out again and the door at the end of the room slid obediently open on its trac". Jacob came strolling in the room. ,e was dressed in the 8artian e#uivalent of civilian clothes, namely a tight pair of shorts and a loose fitting tan" top. ,e appeared to be in e&#uisite physical shape, as if he wor"ed out regularly. ,is brown eyes loc"ed immediately onto (en. 3.ell fuc" my ass,3 he said softly, his voice full of awe. 3She really went and did it.3 )ormal introductions, such as they were in 8artian culture, were made and Jacob, tears lea"ing from his eyes, gave (en a tight bear hug, nearly lifting him off the ground in his enthusiasm. %fter releasing him he e&claimed over and over again how he 'ust couldn!t believe he was actually standing there, loo"ing at (en )ra$ier, tal"ing to him, after all these years. They settled down into their chairs and 8ar'orie #uic"ly rolled another 'oint from her supply and fired it up. She started passing it around and (en, feeling #uite overwhelmed by all of the into&icating substances he!d imbibed over the past forty+ eight hours, attempted to pass on consuming any more. % few loo"s and whispered words from (aren conveyed the message that it would be considered rude if he did not smo"e at least a little bit with Jacob. In order to preserve family harmony he too" a few hits of the weed and was soon flying high again.

The conversation pic"ed bac" up and 8ar'orie soon distributed fresh drin"s. %s they tal"ed (en found that Jacob was a very li"eable and charismatic person, his demeanor straightforward and honest. ,e possessed the air of a career military man, used to giving orders and having those orders followed. Though he was as foul+mouthed and crude as the other 8artians he!d encountered since awa"ening, he also e&uded that typical intelligence he!d noted as well. ,e had no mannerisms that would have been associated with homose&uality in (en!s day. ,e did not lisp or act the least bit effeminate. .hen he started telling (en of his 'ob with the 8artian Planetary 1uard!s air wing (en, as a fellow pilot, found himself #uite entranced. 3The wingspan of the 8os#uito is how much43 he as"ed at one point. 3Thirty meters,3 Jacob said. 3%nd wingspan is "ind of a relative term, you see, because the entire aircraft is basically a flying wing. It has to be in order to get any lift out of the thin atmosphere.3 3.hat "ind of stall speed do you have then43 3Probably pretty fuc"in! high compared to what you!re used to,3 he said. 3In order to achieve lift, a fully loaded 8os#uito needs to accelerate to C80 "ilometers per hour. .e!re .I mach 'ust ta"ing off. .e cruise and ma"e attac" runs at E00 "ps.3 39o shit43 (en said. 3.hat "ind of armament do you carry43 39ot much really. Twin anti+tan" lasers with a cycle time of eight seconds apiece. That means it ta"es them eight seconds to recharge between shots. .e also have a thirty+millimeter, high velocity cannon for strafing runs although not much of that is done in practice. 1enerally, the 8os#uito is an anti+armor platform. .e s"im the ground near enemy columns, pop up at the last second, ta"e out two targets, and then dive bac" down to safety before anti+air lasers can get a shot at us. *ur doctrine

is to ignore the tan"s and go after the %P-s. *ur anti+tan" units can handle the tan"s by themselves when they reach the main defenses. *ur goal is to "ill as many infantry troops as we can before they get to the battle area.3 3%nd that!s a sound doctrine43 (en as"ed. In his army days Bnited States doctrine had been 'ust the opposite. Ta"ing out the tan"s first had been a sacred decree. 3It "ept those 2arthling fuc"s from ta"ing our cities in the Aevolutionary .ar,3 he answered. 3;etween the 8os#uitoes and the special forces teams, more than a third of their infantry troops were "illed or ta"en out of action before they even reached our main line of defense.3 ,e gave a predatory grin. 3I guess we made enough of an impression on them bac" then. They haven!t tried us again since.3 3I!d li"e to see one of these 8os#uitoes up close sometime,3 (en mused. 3I can do you even better than that,3 Jacob offered. 3I can ta"e you up for a flight in one. ,ell, I!ll sign out a trainer and let you fly the fuc"in! thing if you want.3 3=ou can do that43 3.hy wouldn!t I be able to43 3.ell, you "now, liability and all that,3 (en said. Jacob loo"ed at him confused. 3:iability4 .hat do you mean43 3.ell, you "now, if you crashed or something while I was on board, wouldn!t they be afraid I!d sue43 3Sue4 .hat!s that43 he as"ed. (aren, who was apparently more of a historian than her brother, spo"e up at this point. 3That was a custom of (en!s

day,3 she said. 3.hen something li"e what he described occurred, a lawsuit would be filed in a court of their law. The ob'ect was to ma"e the entity pay money for the accident.3 3,ow would that help anything43 Jacob wanted to "now. 3I don!t see the point.3 3It was to punish the agency responsible for the accident,3 (en said. 3It was also to recover money for in'uries or death that was caused.3 Jacob shoo" his head in astonishment. 3.e don!t really do things li"e that here,3 he said. 3If I were to crash with you on board and you were in'ured, the government would ta"e care of your medical e&penses automatically, 'ust li"e they do anyone who is in'ured by any means. If I were responsible for the accident through negligence then I!d be criminally liable, 'ust li"e I would if you weren!t on board. If poor maintenance or some other form of neglect caused the accident, then whoever was responsible would be punished criminally. If it was 'ust one of those things that happens, then it!s 'ust one of those things.3 3So nobody sues anyone on 8ars43 (en as"ed. 39ot in the sense that you mean,3 (aren replied. 3.e do have civil law, of course, a society has to have such a thing, but its not administered the same way that you did it. It!s more closely tied to criminal law here. In your society the civil law was eventually perverted to the point that it became #uite a #uagmire, wasn!t it43 3=es,3 (en said. 3I!d say that!s a pretty good word for what it was. =ou had everyone suing everyone else for every little thing that happened. Someone always had to be responsible, even if it was an act of 1od, even if it was your own stupid fault. %nd usually the person they went after was whoever had the most money.3

3Aight,3 (aren said. 3%nd it was the lawyers who ended up encouraging the whole thing and ma"ing all the money from it, was it not43 3That!s correct.3 31ive me an e&ample of a lawsuit in your day and I!ll tell you how it would be handled here,3 Jacob said. 3*"ay,3 (en said, thin"ing for a moment. 3*"ay, here!s a famous one that everyone was tal"ing about 'ust before my... uh... my shooting. % woman goes to a fast food restaurant and orders some coffee. They sell it to her and, as she!s driving home in her car, she spills it on her leg and burns herself. She sued the restaurant for not warning her the coffee was hot.3 %ll three of the 8artians stared at him for a moment in astonishment. )inally it was (aren who spo"e. 3She sued the restaurant for not telling her the coffee was hot43 she as"ed. 3That!s right,3 (en said. 3That was a fairly typical type of lawsuit for my day.3 3That!s fuc"in! insane<3 Jacob said. 3*f course the fuc"in! coffee is hot< It!s fuc"in! coffee<3 3The cup they sold it in wasn!t defective or anything li"e that43 8ar'orie as"ed. 39o, my understanding is she simply spilled it while she was driving. =ou have to understand, though, the purpose of a lawsuit such as this is not to go to court and fight it out. The hope is that the company in #uestion will offer a settlement in order to dismiss the suit. 8ost big companies did that. They give this woman ten thousand buc"s or so and she agrees to drop the suit. The lawyer ta"es forty percent of that and the woman gets the rest. The company does this because it!s cheaper for them to throw money at someone and ma"e it go

away then to pay their own lawyers to litigate to the end.3 3I!ve read about shit li"e this,3 (aren said with a bewildered sha"e of the head, 3but to be honest, I always thought it was propaganda. =ou!re saying this actually happened43 3Kuite regularly,3 (en assured them. 3,ow would such a thing be handled here on 8ars43 3.ell,3 Jacob said, 3in the first place, there are no private lawyers on 8ars. %ll of the lawyers wor" for the government in one way or another. If you have a problem you thin" re#uires the assistance of a lawyer, you go to the epartment of Justice and e&plain your problem to them. They will investigate the matter and, if warranted, will bring the matter before a 'udge or refer the problem to the criminal 'ustice system if they feel that is needed. In this case the woman would be laughed out of the office the moment she e&plained what her problem was.3 3It!s generally understood here on 8ars,3 said 8ar'orie, 3that coffee is hot and will burn you if you spill it on your s"in.3 3That was generally understood in my day too,3 (en replied. 3The problem was it became so commonplace for these big settlements to occur whenever a company was sued that people started doing it for every little accident that happened. That led to ridiculous warning labels on everything. %fter the coffee lawsuit they started putting warnings on coffee cups that the contents were hot. The whole issue of responsibility shifted from the individual to the manufacturers.3 3.hich ma"es absolutely no sense,3 (aren said. 3Aight,3 (en agreed, finding himself thin"ing in the 8artian way. 39o sense at all.3

:J!S ,*BS2 *) 9%ST=+%SS 2;%B-,2A= read the lighted

sign out in front of the establishment. %bove the letters were crudely intoned silhouettes of a male and female engaged in rear+entry intercourse. 9e&t to this+unchanged over the centuries+was the universal sign for coc"tails, a martini glass. 9e&t to this was the apparent universal sign for mari'uana use+a smoldering 'oint. 3:J!s house of nasty+ass debauchery,3 (en said as they approached the entrance. 3=ou 8artians and your business names.3 3I "now,3 Jacob said apologetically. 3It sounds a bit pompous, doesn!t it4 It!s not really as high class as the name ma"es it out to be, though.3 (en loo"ed at him for a moment to see if he was 'o"ing or not and, after a moment, determined that he wasn!t. ,e sighed a little, thin"ing that even if he did live another /00 years, he was never going to get used to these 8artians. It was /0C0 hours and the lights had dimmed down on the streets of Triad to artificial night levels. Jacob and (aren were ta"ing (en out for a taste of the 8artian nightlife, which, they had assured him, was somewhat sedate up here on Triad but still something worth e&periencing. ,e was reasonably well rested for a night of drin"ing and smo"ing and whatever else 8artians did on a wee"night. %fter tal"ing until nearly FE00 with Jacob, (aren, and 8ar'orie, he had crashed out in 8ar'orie!s spare bedroom for a much+needed nap. %fter a shower, a change of clothes, and an e&#uisite dinner prepared by 8ar'orie herself he had agreed to accompany them on their night out. 9ow, reading the sign in front of the establishment and seeing the symbols, he wasn!t so sure. .hat e&actly went on in a place li"e this4 ,e followed his two fifth generation grandchildren through the sliding doors that led into the place. %nother set of interior doors stood 'ust beyond this. % sign mounted on them read7 ;2

9I92 =2%AS *: *A 12T T,2 )B-( *BT. There was no doorman chec"ing identifications at these doors, simply a computer terminal where each person approaching laid some derm on a pad, presumably so they could be identified and their age verified. %fter each laying of the derm the door would slide open long enough for that person to wal" through. (aren e&plained to him that if someone attempted to slip through on the heels of another an alarm would alert the bouncers inside. )irst (aren then Jacob then (en himself put their fingers on the pad and were allowed admission. The moment the doors slid open the sound of loud music assaulted his ears and the smell of mari'uana and tobacco smo"e assaulted his nose. They stepped into a large, s#uare room that was set up much li"e the dance clubs (en used to visit before he got married. % bar, staffed by three bartenders, ran the length of one wall. 8artians were crowded two deep around it, waiting for their turn to order. -oc"tail tables were scattered around the bar, most with two or three or four people sitting at them, a few empty. % dance floor too" up the bul" of the room and it was pac"ed very tightly with couples, triples, even #uadruples of 8artians bumping and grinding against each other in a manner that seemed vaguely li"e dancing but was much more erotic and physical than what had been the norm in even the raunchiest clubs on 2arth. They slid their crotches together, gyrating them in time to the music. They ran their hands up and down each other!s bodies, obviously s#uee$ing and palpating various locations as they did so. They "issed each other deeply, seeming to ta"e care to continue moving to the beat as they did so. The dancer combinations were mostly male and female but with more than a few female@female and male@male thrown in. (en was entranced by them, particularly by two attractive females who had hoo"ed their legs together and were rubbing their crotches up and down while they lic"ed at each other!s nec"s. ,e felt his penis begin to stir a little in his pants at the sight. 3:et!s get some drin"s,3 (aren said, her voice loud over the

pounding music. 3)uc"in! aye,3 agreed Jacob. 3I!ll get the first round.3 .hile he headed off to the bar (aren led (en to one of the empty tables and they sat down, facing the dance floor. (en continued to watch the dancers and after a moment reali$ed that a few of them were not 'ust simulating intercourse but were actually engaging in it. Just at the edge of the floor, about fifteen feet from their table, a man and woman were twined together, her leg up in the air and wrapped around his bac". The crotch of her shorts had been pulled to the side, as had his, and he was thrusting himself into her, using long, rotating stro"es timed to the beat. % few feet over from them another couple was utili$ing the rear entry position, she bent slightly over at the waist, he gyrating in and out of her from behind while his hands s#uee$ed her breasts beneath her shirt. %gain, this was with the crotch of their shorts pulled to the side and all carefully in rhythm with the music. 9or were these acts of public intercourse the only se&ual acts ta"ing place on the dance floor. %s he loo"ed closer he saw that many of the dancers were doing more than 'ust rubbing against one another through their clothing. )ingers were being slid beneath shirts and shorts so that bare body parts could be stro"ed. Shirts were being pushed up so that nipples could be suc"led and lic"ed. %sses were being palpated by hands driven into the hem of shorts. *ne of the foursomes out there, which consisted of three men and one woman, were actually full+tilt into a bona fide group grope with each member using one of his hands to stimulate the person ne&t to him. 3This is considered tame43 (en as"ed (aren after finally dragging his eyes away. She nodded a little sadly. 3Triad is a really conservative city,3 she told him. 3The botching that goes on in the clubs is somewhat restrictive.3

3;otching43 3That!s what they!re doing out on the floor there. .e call it botching. It!s a word that evolved from debauchery. That!s what ma"es the name of this club somewhat pretentious sounding.3 3;otching,3 he said slowly. 3I see. %nd uh... this botching here is considered restrictive43 3=ou!ll notice they!re "eeping their clothes on,3 she said. 3That!s the custom up here. own in the 9ew Pittsburgh clubs it!s #uite acceptable to strip down on the floor once you get rolling. In 2den, which is probably our most liberal city, the clothes usually come off before you even enter the floor, sometimes before you even enter the club if you!re in the nudist section of the city.3 3I see,3 he said. 3%nd the purpose of this botching is... 43 She gave him a strange loo". 3.ell... to have fun,3 she answered. 3.hat else would it be for43 ,e cast another loo" at the dance floor. =es, it certainly did loo" as if they were having fun out there. 3So it!s "ind of an upgraded version of dancing from my days.3 32&actly,3 she said. 3It!s a chance to go out, meet people you don!t "now, and fuc" them.3 3%nd do you do this sort of thing a lot43 he as"ed her. 39ot as much as I used to,3 she said. 3I!ve been putting in a lot of hours these last few years concentrating on getting you awa"e so I haven!t been able to go out on the town much. This is the first time I!ve been botching in about si& months or so.3 She smiled. 3I!m loo"ing forward to it. I!ve been told I!m #uite the botcher, you "now.3

(en blin"ed, preferring not to thin" of his granddaughter in that manner. 3.ell, you go ahead and botch,3 he said. 3I!ll 'ust sit over here and have a few drin"s and...3 3*h no, you don!t,3 she said. 3.e brought you here to have a good time. I e&pect you to go out on the floor and botch along with the rest of us.3 3.ell... I!ve uh, never botched before, as you can probably imagine,3 he said. 3%nd I!m not really sure I!m #uite ready to botch now. I!m still missing %nnie terribly and I!m still having more than a little culture shoc" at the place I find myself in.3 3)uc" that,3 she said, sha"ing her head. 3,aving fun transcends grief. That!s one of life!s great truths. Instead of stewing in your grief you need to go out and have a good time, loosen up. That!s also what you need to do to get used to living here. 8ars is a se&ual society, (en. That!s a good thing, not a bad thing. I "now you!re used to much more conservative times, but you!re here now, where pleasures of the flesh are given freely to anyone who wants them. Instead of 'udging us, why don!t you try our lifestyle for a bit43 3.ell...3 he said, doubtfully. 3;esides,3 she added. 3I don!t thin" you!re going to be able to sit here undisturbed for long anyway. I can already see several people giving you the eye. ;efore long someone is going to come over and as" you to botch. %re you going to turn them down all night43 ,e loo"ed around and, sure enough, he saw that several women and, to his discomfort, several men were loo"ing him over, not the least bit surreptitiously. *ne of the men in fact gave him a little wave as their eyes met. ,e #uic"ly loo"ed away. 3*"ay,3 he said. 3I see what you mean. 8aybe I will try it, after I get a few drin"s in me.3

3That!s the shit,3 she said with a grin. 3I "new my hot 8artian blood came from somewhere.3 3;ut I don!t want to botch with any men,3 he said. 3I really don!t swing that way.3 3That!s fine,3 she told him. 3It!s a very common attitude, in fact. Aemember what I told you before. If a man wants to botch with you all you have to do is tell him you!re not down with rump+ rutting. Trust me, they won!t be offended.3 3I!m not down with rump+rutting,3 he repeated. 3.ell, where in the hell did I get my genes from then43 as"ed Jacob, who was suddenly behind them with their drin"s in his hand. (en flushed as he heard this and opened his mouth to apologi$e for the remar". ,e closed it again, however when he saw that Jacob was chuc"ling. 3Bh... I!m not sure,3 he said. 3 on!t get me wrong, though,3 Jacob told him, setting the drin"s down and grabbing a seat. 3I li"e a nice tight pussy every once in a while too. .hat man doesn!t4 ;ut you haven!t lived until you!ve slid your coc" into a rough, hairy ass. That!s what I always say.3 3=ou!re embarrassing him, Ja"e,3 (aren admonished. 3Aemember where he came from. )aggots were uncouth in those days.3 3=es, the dar" ages,3 he said. 3Tell me the truth, (en, does it bother you that one of your grandsons is a rump+ranger4 =ou can tell me if it does.3 39o,3 he said honestly. 3It really doesn!t. 8y partner the day I got shot was a lesbian, in fact, and she was one of my best friends. -alifornia was probably the most tolerant part of the

country for homose&uals. They were 'ust part of the scenery.3 Jacob gave him a confidential loo". 3 id you ever smo"e the old control stic" yourself4 Just to see what it was li"e43 3Ja"e,3 (aren said, e&asperated. 3In (en!s time that was private information. -hill your shit.3 3Sorry, (en,3 he said, seeming anything but. 3It!s o"ay,3 (en said, feeling overwhelmed. 3%nd the answer is no, I never did.3 3)air enough,3 Jacob said. ,e swallowed half of his drin" at once and then stood bac" up. 3I see my first target of the evening right over there. It!s time to botch. I 'ust wish ;elung could!ve come up with me. *h well, he!s probably botching down at that cop bar he hangs out at anyway, the little slut.3 .ith that, he headed across the room, weaving in and out of the people and stopping at a table where two men and three women were sipping drin"s. ,e conversed with one of the men for a moment and then the two of them headed out to the floor. Soon they were moving to the beat, their crotches rotating around and coming into fre#uent contact. 3There are a few points of eti#uette to botching that you!ll probably want to "now,3 (aren said, sipping from her own drin". 3*"ay. :ay them on me.3 She smiled. 3The first rule is that you never force anybody to do anything they don!t want to do. If someone is pulling bac" from you when you put your hands onto certain things, you stop doing that until they either tell you to go ahead or start doing it themselves.3 3Sounds reasonable,3 (en said.

3The second rule has to do with coming.3 3-oming43 he said slowly. 3=ou mean... uh...3 32'aculating in your case,3 she said. 3*rgasm for the women. =ou don!t want to do it out on the botch floor. That!s considered rude.3 3So you can have se&, but you can!t finish up43 3That!s right,3 she said. 3;otching is not considered se&, it!s more li"e foreplay. The idea is to get as se&ually aroused as possible without release. Some people li"e to move from person to person in order to do this. That!s "ind of the approach I favor. *thers li"e to stic" to one person for the night. ;ut don!t finish up out on the floor.3 3So all these people out there are doing that to each other and none of them get to come43 3I didn!t say that,3 she said. 3=ou 'ust don!t do it on the botch floor. .hen you can!t stand it anymore you as" someone to leave the floor with you. Then you ta"e them over to the *+ section.3 3The *+section43 3That dar" area bac" there behind the botch floor,3 she said, pointing to a gloomy area he hadn!t noticed before. 3There are chairs and couches and things bac" there where you can finish up. If you!re with a woman, be sure she comes before you do. It!s the ultimate fau& pas to leave a woman hanging.3 3.ow,3 he said, sha"ing his head in ama$ement. 3%nd again, this is all considered tame43 35ery tame,3 she said. 3=ou!ll simply have to visit 2den one of these days. %nyway, once you!ve both come you come bac" out

here, recharge a little, and then do it all over again. .ith your new, healthy body you should be able to cycle through at least three orgasms in one night.3 3Three in one night,3 he said appreciatively. 3That is pretty impressive.3 3%nd you have us doctors to than" for that,3 she said. 3.hat about, you "now, body fluid mi&ing and pregnancy and all that4 9one of that is a problem43 39o. %s I told you, we have no se&ually transmitted diseases here, we!ve eliminated them all. %nd everyone here has their birth control genes turned on. 9o one would ever come out to a botch club if they were fertile.3 3.hat about me43 he as"ed. 3%m I fertile43 She shoo" her head. 3 r. 8ende$ activated your birth control gene as a routine part of his re+awa"ening e&am. It!s standard practice here.3 3I see,3 he said, unsure how to feel about that. 3So have no fear,3 she said. 3Put your coc" into anything you want, spread body fluids from here to 2den, get down and stin"y, and all you have to do is ta"e a shower when you!re done. Isn!t 8ars static43 ,e was a bit ta"en abac" by her blunt words but he did have to agree that 8ars was pretty static. % minute later a young red+headed woman came over to their table. (en figured she was going to as" him to botch with her and was prepared to turn her down+he simply had not had enough alcohol yet to do what everyone else was doing. To his surprise, however, it was (aren she wanted to botch with. To his

further surprise (aren accepted. 3See you out there, (en,3 she said over her shoulder as she followed the woman onto the botch floor. Soon they were rubbing themselves together, going through the preliminary steps of botching. 3Jesus,3 (en whispered to himself. 3.hat have I gotten myself into here43 ,e swallowed down his drin" and then went to the bar to order another. ,e figured he was savvy enough with 8artian civili$ation to at least do that. It too" him a total of five drin"s before he developed enough courage to go out to the floor with someone. uring the time it too" him to consume these five drin"s eight people+si& women and two men+approached him and as"ed him to botch. The women he politely turned down, stating that he was a recent arrival from 2arth and had never botched before. They all seemed sympathetic and understanding to this, most of them offering to chec" bac" with him later. .hen the men as"ed he nervously told them that he was not down with rump+rutting, 'ust as (aren had suggested. %nd, as she had promised, neither of them seemed the least bit offended by this. They simply too" it in course and went to another table to find another partner. They always did within a few minutes. (aren and Jacob both came bac" to the table between botches to sip on their drin"s and offer him encouragement. (aren was always sweaty and flushed, her nipples clearly visible po"ing through her shirt. Jacob was always sporting an impressive bulge in his own shorts. It was somewhat disturbing to him to see his grandchildren in a state of se&ual arousal, but the more alcohol he dumped into his stomach, the less it bothered him. ,e finally agreed to botch with a tall, dar"+s"inned woman. She had been one of the first to as" him and she was the first to ma"e a return trip. She was e&otic loo"ing, her features a mi&ture of *riental and Pacific Islander. ,er outfit consisted of a tight+fitting blue half+shirt and a matching pair of loose+fitting

shorts+the "ind of shorts that would be easy to pull to one side. She had already been botching for half the night and, li"e (aren, she was flushed and glowing, her nipples hard little points stic"ing out of her shirt. The crotch of her shorts was visibly damp. ,er smile was infectious and when she as"ed him if he was ready to give it a try yet, he smiled bac" and told her he guessed he was. She too" his hand in hers and led him out onto the floor. (en had been a fairly good dancer bac" in his day and the 8artian music+a mi&ture of electric guitars, synthesi$ers, and a pounding drum beat+was easy to "eep time to. )eeling acute embarrassment he began to imitate what everyone else was doing, swinging his hips forward and bac", touching his partner about the shoulders and bac". ;ut this wasn!t the dancing he was used to and within seconds his partner was pushing forward against him, her crotch coming into fleeting contact with his, her breasts pushing against his chest and rubbing up and down. %lmost instantly he began to get erect beneath his shorts. 3%re you sure you haven!t done this before43 his partner as"ed. 3=ou seem li"e a natural.3 3I!m #uite certain I haven!t done this before,3 he replied with a laugh, feeling himself flush as her hands slide briefly down and cupped the chee"s of his ass. She laughed. 3I li"e your 2arthling accent,3 she told him. 3I don!t thin" I!ve ever heard a thic"er one. ,ow long have you been here43 3Just a few days,3 he said, letting his own hands venture down onto her upper bac". ,er shirt was slightly damp with perspiration and he could feel her muscles moving beneath. 3 on!t be shy,3 she told him, her hands giving his ass another s#uee$e. She ground her crotch against him once more. 3Touch

me where you want to touch me. I don!t mind.3 -ontinuing to move to the beat and reali$ing that he was becoming #uite aroused now, he let his hands slide even lower, into the small of her bac". 8eanwhile, she slid her own hands around to the front, trailing her fingers up his thighs and briefly brushing over his e&panding coc". ,e 'er"ed a little at the contact, momentarily losing the beat. 3Stay with the music,3 she told him sweetly, leaning forward and planting a #uic" "iss on his chin. 3That!s the most important thing, not to lose the beat.3 3*f course,3 he said, starting to pant a little now. They continued to move while the song played on and she continued to get closer and closer to him, to rub her body more and more suggestively against his. ,er breasts were now moving up and down over his chest, tracing circular patterns around it. ,e could feel the delicious weight of them and his own hands dipped even lower, onto the smooth bare flesh on the bac" of her upper thighs. ,e moved them up again, briefly s#uee$ing her shapely ass. She moaned a little as he did this, grinding against his crotch again, putting e&#uisite pressure on his coc", which was now as hard as a rail spi"e. 31ood to see you out here,3 a voice said on his right. ,e loo"ed and saw that (aren and her current partner, a young man of %frican descent, had botched their way over to his position. Bnli"e Jacob, who stuc" primarily to males, (aren seemed to have no compunctions about botching with either se&. She had spent an e#ual amount of time rubbing herself against women as she did against men. ,er current partner had his hands firmly down the bac" of her shorts and was s#uee$ing her butt rhythmically. She had her hands in a similar position, performing a similar act.

3I guess I finally had enough to drin",3 he told her, trying not to loo" at what she was doing. 3Aemember, pace yourself,3 she said breathlessly as her partner fastened his mouth to her nec" and started "issing her. 3=ou only have about three good blasts a night.3 3Aight,3 he said, giving a shiver of his own as his partner ran her hand under his shirt and pinched one of his nipples. 3Pace myself.3 They botched off and disappeared in the mass of the crowd, leaving him to concentrate his energies on his partner once again. ,e reali$ed he was s#uee$ing her ass, having her s#uee$e his, and he didn!t even "now her name. ,e discovered he didn!t really want to "now her name, that not "nowing who she was seemed to add to the se&ual e&citement of the situation. It seemed that maybe that was one of the attractions of botching in the first place, that you could do it with total strangers and never see them again when it was over. It didn!t ta"e long for his partner to up the ante a little. She slid her hands around from his ass to the front of his thighs and then, in a beautifully graceful maneuver, pushed them up under the hem of his shorts into his crotch. ,e felt her soft fingers cup his balls and then grip the shaft of his coc" with a #uic", teasing stro"e before sliding bac" out again and running up to his stomach. 39ice unit,3 she told him with a se&y smile. 3Than"s,3 he said, proud of himself for managing to "eep with the beat while she had done this. ,e then made a move of his own, something he!d seen some of the other botchers do #uite fre#uently. ,e slid his hands around her waist until they came together in the front, right below her bare belly+button. ,e moved them upward, his fingertips

gliding over her stomach and underneath her shirt. ,e forced them into her cleavage and then slid each hand to the side, so he was cupping her breasts. The flesh here was damp with perspiration and slippery to the touch. The nipples pushed insistently against his palms. ,e twea"ed each one briefly between his thumb and forefinger and then slid his hands bac" out, bringing them bac" to her ass. 38mmm,3 she moaned softly. 3=ou!re getting down with this real well.3 3=es,3 he said lustily, feeling as horny as he ever remembered feeling in his life. 3I thin" I am.3 They came together chest to chest again, her hands going down the bac" of his shorts to feel his ass and to pull his crotch tighter against hers, so his hard+on was grinding into her. ,e put his own hands up the bac" of her shirt, onto her bare bac", his fingers ma"ing ever increasing circles across it. ,er head came forward, so her hot breath was blowing on the s"in of his nec". ,e felt her tongue ma"e contact, 'ust above his shoulder, and run slowly, sensuously up to his chin. ,e growled deep in his throat at the sensation. She gave a #uic" suc" on his chin and then moved her mouth higher, so her lips were against his. ,er tongue stabbed out again, lic"ing his upper lip, driving slightly into his mouth to caress the underside of it. ,is own tongue reached out to touch it, slipping around it, twirling together. She gave it a #uic" suc" and then released it, moving her mouth bac" to his nec", where she began to suc" and give gentle bites in time with the beat of the music. %s she "issed his nec", lic"ing the sweat from his s"in, and as his fingers touched her sweaty bac" and his hardness ground against her crotch, he began to understand that there was an opulent discipline involved in botching. The only rule was to "eep moving to the beat of the music+a seemingly simple thing to accomplish. In practice however, it too" every ounce of his willpower to "eep from savaging her without regard to "eeping

in time, to "eep from throwing her down on the floor right there and rutting into her li"e an animal. Somehow he did manage to "eep with the rhythm though, maintaining the necessary discipline, pushing things further and further by the minute. ,e "ept his hands busy, moving them all over her body, from place to place, lingering for a second or two before moving onto the ne&t destination. ,e paid particular attention to her breasts, running his hands over and around them, stimulating the nipples, palpating every s#uare millimeter of their form. ,e would then drive his hands into the bac" of her shorts to touch her ass again, clutching each chee", even letting his finger dab between them. )inally, when both of them were nearly insane with lust, he let his hands slide up her soft legs and under the hem of her shorts. ,er pussy was smooth and hot, completely bare of hair. The lips were swollen and saturated with her 'uices. ,e put first one and then two fingers inside, sliding them in and out to the beat, feeling her slippery membranes clutching at him, drawing him in further. She moaned loudly at the intrusion of her se&, her face a mas" of na"ed desire. She "issed and suc"ed her way up his nec" to his ears, where she lic"ed the lobe and then slid her tongue briefly inside. %nd then she was whispering in his ear, her voice soft and dripping with se&. 3I want it now,3 she told him. 3%re you ready to fuc" me43 3Bh... yeah,3 he said, swallowing nervously. 3 o me from behind,3 she told him. 3That!s the easiest for a beginner.3 3Aight,3 he said. Still dancing and grinding, she slowly turned herself around, so that her bac" was against his chest, her firm butt pushing against the bulge in his shorts. She bent forward at the waist, her ass shuffling bac" and forth against him. 3Aemember to

"eep with the beat,3 she told him. 3Just pull my shorts to the side and put it in.3 3)uc"in! aye,3 he heard himself say. ,e too" a moment to feel self+conscious about doing this in the middle of a crowded dance floor but buried the emotion when a #uic" loo" showed that no one was paying the least bit of attention to them. 8ost were busy doing 'ust what he was about to do, or wor"ing their way up to it. ,e reached down to the crotch of his own shorts and, after fumbling about and almost losing the beat, managed to pull his turgid coc" out from around the hem, so it was stic"ing out before him, purple and dripping pre+come. Bsing his other hand he pulled the hem of her shorts to the side, e&posing her gaping slit. It was an almost angry red, the lips open and ready for action. 3 o it,3 she encouraged, her voice almost desperate. 3 rive it into me.3 ,e angled forward, touching the tip of his coc" to her lips and then drove into her in one fluid stro"e, burying himself in her tightness to the hilt. They both moaned at the penetration. ,er muscles clenched at him "nowingly, s#uee$ing him almost li"e a wet hand. ,is hands went to her waist and he began to thrust in and out, feeling her clench and release in time to the music. %gain the discipline of botching came into play as he fought to simultaneously "eep in rhythm and avoid committing the fau& pas of coming inside her on the dance floor. I can!t believe I!m doing this, he thought as he moved in and out. I!m actually fuc"ing a woman in the middle of a dance floor. %nd not only that, but he was fuc"ing someone who had an almost supernatural control of her vaginal muscles. The way she s#uee$ed his coc", drawing him in and out, was beyond anything he had ever e&perienced in his considerable se&ual history. The sensation mi&ed with the nastiness of doing it in a crowd had him fighting furiously 'ust to maintain control of himself. %re all 8artian women this good4 he wondered. *r is

this one 'ust a flu"e4 ,e had a feeling he would get a chance to e&plore this #uestion considerably before he left the club that night. Just when it seemed he wouldn!t be able to ta"e it any more, that he must come in her or e&plode from trying to hold it in, the song ended in a flurry of drums and guitar chords. Their thrusts came to a halt as well. She loosened her vaginal grip on him and pulled away, causing his wet and swollen coc" to slip out of her in a gush of 'uices. ,er shorts fell bac" into position and she turned around, a dreamy smile on her face. 39ot bad for a beginner,3 she told him, leaning forward and giving him a little pec" on the chee". 3I!ll "eep my eye out for you later, o"ay43 3Bh... sure, o"ay,3 he said, da$ed, hardly aware that his coc" was still hanging out in front of him. .ith that, she wandered off, #uic"ly disappearing into the crowd. Sha"ing with desire, he reached down and put himself away. %s the ne&t song started up on the sound system he left the floor and wal"ed slowly bac" to their table, the front of his shorts wet and bulging noticeably outward. 9either Jacob nor (aren were there. ,e too" a #uic" sip of his drin" and then sat down to catch his breath. ,is coc" remained hard, stubbornly refusing to deflate. ;efore five minutes went by another woman came to his table to as" him to botch with her. This one was a tall brunette, her primary ancestry obviously -aucasian. She had very large breasts that bulged and bounced from the bottom of a half+shirt that was incredibly brief, even by 8artian standards. She loo"ed very young, younger even than 8arcella, another testament to the 8artian medical procedures no doubt. ,e allowed her to lead him by the hand out to the floor and soon he was in the middle of yet another botch.

This one moved a little slower than his first partner. She felt up under his shirt and grabbed #uic" stro"es of his ass through his shorts but stayed well clear of his coc" for the longest time. She allowed and encouraged him to feel her large breasts, even going so far as to shove his hands in there, but she bac"ed away when he tried to move his hands up her thighs to her crotch. Aemembering (aren!s admonishment, he didn!t attempt to force the issue, simply contenting himself with playing with her tits. ,is patience eventually did have its reward. %fter nearly twenty minutes and three songs, her flushed face began to ta"e on the unmista"able e&pression of barely controlled lust that he was becoming familiar with. She then began thrusting her crotch at him, obviously encouraging him to resume e&plorations of that part of her anatomy. It was an encouragement he too" her up on, starting at her upper thighs and #uic"ly $eroing in under the hem of her shorts. Soon his fingers were rubbing across another hairless, stic"y pussy, sliding into yet another set of tight lips. ,er own hands began to move over the bulge in his shorts, even dipping beneath once in a while until she wor"ed her way up to grasping him tightly, stro"ing up and down. Shortly after that, as one song ended and another began, she turned around, presenting her ass to him and bending over at the waist. (eeping carefully to the beat, she pulled the crotch of her shorts to the side, displaying her slit for him. ,e slid his fingers in and out a few times and then bared his coc" for the second time that night. ,e thrust into her tightness and began to fuc" her to the beat, discovering she too was as adept with her vaginal muscles as his first partner. They copulated nastily, moving bac" and forth, occasionally bumping into other botchers, the beat guiding their thrusts. *nce again (en found himself struggling to "eep from coming. %nd, once again, when the song ended, they disengaged from each other, she gave him a polite "iss on the chee", than"ed him for the botch, and disappeared into the crowd. ,e didn!t even ma"e it off the floor before another woman grabbed him. This one was very dar" s"inned, an almost full+

blooded %frican descendent. ,er breasts were small and her body was trim and petite. She started off by rubbing her smooth legs against his while suc"ing on his nec". ;efore the first song was even over she was bent over at the waist, her crotch pulled to the side while (en thrust into her tight slit from behind. She too had an obvious mastery of her vaginal muscles, leading him to believe it was something 8artian women were taught and practiced, probably in grammar school based on his earlier discussions about 8artian se& education. %fter that encounter he had time to consume one more drin" and let the perspiration dry from his s"in a little. ,is coc", however, throbbed the entire time and his balls were aching with the congestion of blue+balls. ,e needed relief and he needed it #uic"ly. )ortunately his ne&t partner, a tall, full+ bodied ,ispanic woman with large, 'iggling breasts, needed the same thing. :i"e the woman before him, she moved #uic"ly, with an almost desperate air. She grabbed his hands right away and pulled them to her breasts for a few s#uee$es before shoving them into her crotch. %s he fingered her saturated pussy beneath her shorts she "issed him deeply, putting her tongue obscenely far into his mouth while she 'ac"ed his coc" up and down, smearing his pre+come around. Then, without any preliminaries, she hoo"ed her leg around his bac", pulled his coc" out the bottom of his shorts, and pulled him against her slit. -ontinuing to tongue "iss her and being careful to "eep with the beat, he slid inside her, fuc"ing face to face for the first time, feeling the now familiar s#uee$ing and pulsing of her vaginal muscles against him. %gain he had to fight mightily to "eep his orgasm at bay, "nowing that soon the fight would be lost. 2very muscle in his body cried out for release. ,e felt almost desperate with it. ,e managed to hold off until the end of the song, though he was actually trembling with desire as it faded away. They stopped their thrusts and pulled apart, both of them fi&ing their clothing to conceal their privates. Instead of "issing his chee" and

departing this time, she lic"ed his nec" and put her mouth against his ear. ,e could feel her hot breath panting against him. She whispered, 3 o you want to go to the *+section with me4 I need it.3 3)uc"in! aye,3 he instantly replied. She smiled and led him off the floor. *n the way they passed Jacob, who was in the middle of a group grope between three men and a woman. ,e seemed to be en'oying himself greatly. ,e caught (en!s eye as they passed and gave him a thumbs+up. The *+section of the club was nothing more than a dimly lit area near the bac". -ouches, chairs, and other types of furniture that loo"ed li"e unfolded lawn recliners were scattered here and there. 8ost held couples, even a few triples, in the act of fornication in a variety of positions. ,e saw two women, their clothes off, lustily involved in a frantic EI. ,e saw two men doing the same a few chairs over. *n one of the couches a woman was being fuc"ed from behind while she ate another woman!s pussy. %t yet another, a woman was bouncing enthusiastically atop a man!s coc" in the female superior position. The sound of moans and unmas"ed profanity filled the air, as did the almost overpowering odor of se&ual mus". ,is partner led him to an empty recliner chair. .asting no time, she pushed her shorts down and "ic"ed them off, revealing her wet, swollen, and hairless pussy to his greedy eyes. 3Sit down,3 she told him. 3I want to sit on your lap and fuc" you while you suc" my tits. That always ma"es me come fast.3 3)uc"in! aye,3 (en agreed, unhesitantly pushing his own shorts down and spinning around to sit on the plush chair. The moment he was down she straddled his legs and brought her pussy lips down to touch his coc". She rubbed him bac" and forth for a moment and then sat down, impaling herself on him, sin"ing down to the hilt.

(en groaned as he felt her tightness, his hands pushing up the front of her shirt, baring her breasts. They were sweaty and slippery, the nipples engorged with blood. ,e put his mouth on the nearest one and began to suc" as she started to raise and lower herself atop him, s#uee$ing him all the while in that 8artian way. It went very #uic"ly for both of them. ,er thrusts were hard and fast, almost violent, designed to draw the orgasm from her body as rapidly as possible. She rubbed her clit with her fingers as she fuc"ed him and he switched from one nipple to the other, suc"ing and biting them. .ithin seconds she was panting uncontrollably, her vaginal muscles going from controlled s#uee$es to fren$ied, delicious spasm. ,er free hand gripped his shoulder nearly hard enough to hurt and she screamed out her pleasure to the room as her 'uices flooded his crotch. ,is own orgasm was right behind. ;efore her spasms even stopped, his began, building up #uic"ly, uncontrollably, with an intensity he!d rarely e&perienced in his life, that was almost frightening in power. The waves of pleasure burst throughout him, tightening every muscle, momentarily stopping his breathing, and then e&ploded as his congested coc" began to blast her insides with 'et after 'et of hot semen, so much that it #uic"ly overflowed and ran down onto his legs. The thrusts came to a gradual halt and his mouth finally disengaged from her nipple. They both panted in place for a moment, their hearts hammering in their chests, their fingers stro"ing each other affectionately. )inally she loo"ed up at him and gave him a slow "iss on the mouth, her tongue probing between his lips for a few seconds. 38mmm,3 she said, her 8artian accent thic". 3The first one of the night is always the best, don!t you thin"43 3=eah,3 he breathed, still overwhelmed.

She "issed him again, more chaste this time, and then stood up. She bent over and pic"ed up her shorts. 3.ell,3 she told him, 3I!m off to the shitter to clean up. 9ice doing the * with you.3 3=es, it was,3 he agreed. 3See you around,3 she said over her shoulder, wal"ing away. % moment later she was out of sight. ,e sat there for a moment, his coc" wilting for the first time in several hours, his mind vaguely troubled by what he had 'ust done now that the release had come. ,e could not believe he had 'ust fuc"ed a total stranger in a recliner in the bac" of a bar and had come in her pussy. 2very value he had been raised with screamed at him that it was immoral, damning behavior, especially for one only two days in mourning over his wife. =et, what was really wrong with what he had done4 .as there anything wrong with it4 There were no worries of se&ually transmitted disease, no worries of illegitimate pregnancy. The women in #uestion had all been willing, enthusiastic participants in what had ta"en place, particularly the last of them. This was all something that was socially acceptable among the inhabitants of this planet, that was even considered tame by some. So was there anything to feel guilty about4 .as there really4 3,ey, asshole,3 said a gruff, 8artian accented voice. 3=ou thin" this is a fuc"in! lounge or something43 ,e loo"ed up to see a sweating, aroused man standing with an e#ually sweaty and aroused young woman. Their e&pressions were of clear annoyance. ,e reali$ed they wanted to utili$e the chair he was sitting in and he was impeding that process by sitting in it alone. 3Bh, sorry,3 he said, #uic"ly standing up. ,e leaned down and pic"ed up his shorts, slipping them on over his legs. ;efore he was able to wal" away the couple #uic"ly stripped off their own

clothing and fell into the chair, the man atop the woman. ,e shoved his coc" in and began pounding into her. (en dragged his eyes away and left the *+section. ,e stopped at the bar on the way and ordered another drin", still vaguely troubled. ;ut by the time that drin" was in his stomach his unease had faded mostly away. .hen a young *riental woman approached him a few minutes later and as"ed him to botch he too" her hand and let her lead him bac" out to the floor. (aren turned out to be wrong. ;y 0/C0 hours, when they finally left the botch club and headed bac" to 8ar'orie!s apartment, (en had managed to blast off four times. The office, only si& s#uare meters total, was actually somewhat modest considering its occupant was the most powerful person on 8ars. The des", made of synthetic material, was no different than any other des" found in any other office in the 8artian capital building. There was no lu&urious couch, no wet bar, no real trappings of power such as what would be found in a head of state!s office in (en!s day. % computer monitor sat atop the des" with a printer ne&t to it. The carpet was standard pile, not e&actly low #uality, but certainly not as nice as what (aren 5alentine en'oyed in her home. The plainness of the office was deliberate, symbolic of the fact that the woman who occupied it was considered no better than any other 8artian on the planet. 1overnor 8itsy ;rown was /F years old. She was marginally attractive, with pleasantly styled brunette hair, piercing brown eyes, and the dar" s"in that indicated a considerable amount of %frican+%merican and *riental blood in her ancestry. :i"e any 8artian who wor"ed in an office building for a living, her clothing was very s"impy, not the least bit elitist. %s she sat behind her des", sipping a cup of coffee brewed from .est,em beans, she was dressed in a pair of brief tan shorts and a bright blue half+top that showed off her cleavage, which was her most impressive feature. She was not a representative of the ruling class, for there was no ruling class on 8ars. She was a high school teacher by trade, her sub'ect political science. ,er career

in 8artian politics had begun only seven years earlier, when she received notice that she had been selected for planetary legislature duty for 2den!s district FI. The lower house of the 8artian congress was, at any particular time, filled at least one third full of conscripts to the 'ob instead of elected officials. The 8artian constitution stated that participating in government was not 'ust a right of every citi$en, but a responsibility. Positions in the legislature were filled in much the same manner 'ury duty had once been filled on 2arth. 2ach legislative district consisted of appro&imately /00,000 people. %ny adult in that district over the age of eleven, who possessed a bachelor!s degree or better and who had no criminal record, was eligible for conscription. The term was for one year of service and very few e&cuses for why a person could not accept the duties of office were accepted. %fter a person served his or her year he or she could then retire from politics for life and go bac" to his or her 'ob Gthe 8artian constitution demanded that the 'ob be held for them during their serviceH, or they could run for re+election to the office for another term. If they chose the latter option, as 8itsy ;rown had, their name was put on the ballot for their district in the ne&t election, their opponent the un"nown new conscript. There were no political parties or platforms on 8ars, only individuals. If the legislature member had done a good enough 'ob that their constituents felt they were a better bet than the un"nown new person, they would be re+elected. If they weren!t re+elected, they were banned from politics for life. The limit for the planetary legislature was three terms. %t that point a candidate was eligible to run for a position in the senate, the upper house of 8artian congress. The senate, where most of the important decisions were made, consisted entirely of elected officials who had ma&ed out their legislative terms. *nly those who had gained the respect of their districts as well as the surrounding districts were voted in. 2ach 8artian city was allowed two members of the senate, for a

grand total of /E members for the entire body. 8artian citi$ens had learned since the revolution to research their choice for senator very carefully before voting. 1one were the days when ten+second sound bytes during political commercials or who was the most attractive on television swayed the average voter. 8artians now voted based on the record of the individual running and whether the politician!s views agreed with their own. 8itsy ;rown, li"e most of the post+revolutionary 8artian governors before her, had not grown up with the ambition to one day administer policy over the entire planet. Instead, she had found that she had a flair for the 'ob of politician, a natural leadership ability, and so, after her first term as a conscript, she had steadily moved forward, impressing enough of those who voted each time that she was always overwhelmingly elected to each higher office. She was now eight 8artian months into her first term as governor and had already been touted as one of the most effective at the 'ob since the great :aura .hiting herself. She herself found the 'ob much lower "ey than she had e&pected. In truth, there was not all that much turmoil, not all that many agoni$ing decisions to be made. ;y this point in 8artian history the government and the citi$ens had both evolved to the point that things practically ran by themselves. Today, however, things were 'ust a little different. Today the first ma'or crisis of her governorship had been placed before her, a crisis that could potentially damage the planet in ways worse than a fully armed surprise attac" by 2ast,em and .est,em forces. It was a crisis that had been many years in development, spanning the administration of three previous governors but that was now coming to full+blown worrisome status during her tenure. idn!t she 'ust have all the luc"4 Sitting before her des" was Aoscoe Aeamer, the Planetary Security %dvisor. ,e was twenty+five years old and had spent the ma'ority of his wor"ing life in the intelligence business, steadily rising through the ran"s due to his almost uncanny

efficiency at the tas"s of gathering and analy$ing information. ,e had been in his current position for almost seven years now and had advised two previous governors on how to "eep the planet safe from .est,em or 2ast,em encroachment or influence. Bnli"e in the 2arthling systems, past and present, his was not a position that changed with each new administration. It was simply part of the government apparatus. %lso present in the room were iana 8ingus, a senior member of the senate, and Aeef ,averty, a senior member of the legislature. They were here for observation of the briefing she was to receive since the classified information clause of the constitution had been invo"ed for the matter at hand. Secrecy in government operations was forbidden in the 8artian system e&cept in grave matters of planetary security where public "nowledge of what was being discussed could potentially 'eopardi$e lives. In the rare instance that a discussion was declared classified, congressional oversight by one member of each house was mandatory. 3-omputer,3 8itsy said. 3This is a classified discussion. Invo"e clause seventeen+assfuc"+nine.3 3)uc"in! aye,3 the computer replied. 3-onfirmation is re#uired.3 3:egislature 8ingus is down with it and confirms,3 8ingus said. 3Senator ,averty is down with it and confirms as well,3 ,averty added. 3)uc"in! aye,3 the computer said cheerfully. 3I!m down with the confirmation. Seventeen+assfuc"+nine is in effect in this room until ordered terminated. Aecording devices are still in operation but no public release of the transcript will be allowed unless authori$ed by legally prescribed means.3 31ood enough,3 8itsy said, ta"ing another sip of her coffee. 3Aoscoe, lay the briefing on us.3

3)uc"in! aye,3 he told her, leaning forward over the des". ,e too" a deep breath, his e&pression grave. ,e was obviously not very happy about what he had to report. 3.e have 'ust received conformation that the Sythro particle accelerator lab facility in 8e&ico -ity has gone into full production of anti+matter.3 8itsy winced as she heard the report. Though she had been e&pecting 'ust such affirmation of her fears, it was still a shoc" to hear it come out of his mouth. 3This is certain43 she as"ed. 3)uc"in! aye,3 he said solemnly. 3.e have numerous assets in Southern .est,em, including two reliable contacts inside the Sythro facility itself. 8y analysts assure me this is solid information. Sythro is now wor"ing three shifts at double capacity on all three particle accelerators on site. .e also have preliminary evidence that the Sythro :ab sites in -algary and Tulsa are gearing up for greatly increased production as well. .est,em is planning to produce a shitload of anti+matter, much more than normal or even abnormal weapons production would call for.3 3I see,3 8itsy said softly, pulling a cigarette out of bo& on her des" and lighting it up. She too" a deep drag and then e&haled the smo"e slowly into the room. 3%nd you are certain that this anti+matter is not for an advanced propulsion drive for a new spacecraft43 3%bsolutely certain,3 he replied. 3.e have every shipbuilding facility in .est,em and 2ast,em thoroughly infiltrated by men and women loyal to our ideology. If there was an advanced spacecraft pro'ect going on in any of the e&isting facilities, we would have gotten wind of it long before they reached the point of producing anti+matter for it. In addition, neither .est,em nor 2ast,em has the technology available to them to produce the amount of anti+matter needed for such a ship even if they were building one. .e are at least a decade ahead of them in #uantum physics technology and we are still nowhere near being able to produce anti+matter on that sort of scale.3

3%ssuming a worst case scenario,3 8itsy as"ed, 3how much will they be able to produce4 %nd how fast will they be able to produce it43 3*ur "nowledge of their particle accelerator specifics is #uite detailed,3 he said. 3If every particle accelerator in .est,em ran full+speed ahead, /D hours a day, with only routine maintenance shut+downs made, they will be able to produce appro&imately /00 "ilograms per 2arth year, or about 000 "ilos per 8artian year.3 8itsy whistled softly. 3*h :aura,3 she said nervously. 3That!s a worse case scenario,3 ;eamer reminded her. 3% more li"ely scenario is of only half that amount. I seriously doubt that .est,em would commit all of its particle accelerators to such a pro'ect, no matter how compelling their reasoning is.3 3They!re still producing an awful lot of anti+matter though, aren!t they43 3They are,3 he agreed. 3.hich forces us to as" ourselves why the .est,em government, an institution thoroughly corrupted and motivated only by profit margin, would e&pend vast amounts of capital to manufacture this material in this amount.3 3%nd only one e&planation seems to ma"e sense,3 8itsy said. It was not a #uestion. 3-orrect,3 Aeamer said, ta"ing out a cigarette of his own. ,e paused to light it, too" a #uic" drag, and then loo"ed at his boss. 3They!re incapable of producing enough to power a propulsion system but they are producing many times more than is re#uired for weapons needs. There is only one anti+matter application that re#uires the amount they could conceivably produce. I!m afraid our worst fear is going to come true. .est,em is preparing to utili$e the "nowledge they ac#uired on Pro'ect :emondrop.3

3Pro'ect :emondrop,3 8itsy said angrily. 3Those flapping physicists at the Bniversity of Triad. They should have never been allowed to pursue that line of research.3 Aeamer "ept his face neutral. The last three governors had all said the same thing every time they!d been briefed on some aspect of Pro'ect :emondrop or the aftermath of it. 3That is unfortunately a moot statement,3 he told the current governor. 3The drive in the early post+revolutionary days was to pursue every conceivable avenue of physics and medicine that had not been allowed under the .est,em system because of funding problems. The superior education our students received at the new universities provided the brainpower for the research to ta"e place. :emondrop was only one more intriguing aspect of #uantum physics that demanded e&ploration, 'ust li"e the research into teleportation and anti+matter production. Those scientists and engineers probably had no idea they would actually come up with a functioning system. They thought they were 'ust going to prove that :emondrop couldn!t be done.3 3;ut did they ever consider the ramifications of what they were doing43 8itsy as"ed. 3They had to "now that .est,em would copy their research and try to duplicate it.3 3Sadly, the thirst for "nowledge often drowns out such concerns. In any case, what is done is done. The research was done, was perfected, and .est,em did manage to get their hands on a copy of it. %nd now it very much appears that the so+ called deep space research station they!ve been constructing beyond the orbit of Pluto is e&actly what we!ve always been afraid it was.3 8itsy nodded solemnly. That an ambitious construction pro'ect of some sort had been ta"ing place in interstellar space beyond Pluto had been evident to both 8artian intelligence and 2ast,em intelligence for the past four 8artian years. The suspicious nature of the pro'ect had been #uite evident as well. The .est,em navy had declared the site a military e&clusion

$one with a perimeter of more than half a million "ilometers. // -alifornia class superdreadnoughts, C0 *wl stealth attac" ships, and 00 long+range destroyers, nearly half of the .est,em navy, patrolled this perimeter. %ny 2ast,em or 8artian vessel attempting to enter this perimeter was immediately challenged and driven off. This was a particularly aggressive and e&pensive method of protecting a deep+space research station, which is what .est,em claimed the structure was. That the structure was actually a Pro'ect :emondrop application had been suspected from the start. 9ow, with the anti+matter production intelligence, the suspicion was as good as confirmed. 3It is truly frightening to thin" what .est,em will try to do with this application,3 8itsy said. 3)or :aura!s sa"e, don!t they reali$e the possible conse#uences43 3The conse#uences could be far+reaching and #uite vast,3 Aeamer said. 3%nd there is truly no way to predict what they may be. That is why we outlawed further research into :emondrop and further testing of the application. It was only common sense.3 32&actly,3 8itsy said. 3;ut with .est,em, you!re not dealing with people who utili$e common sense. They see a possible advantage by utili$ing :emondrop and, once those in power appear to be in favor of it, those who advise them will twist and distort their analysis to support the use of it instead of giving a fair and impartial report. %ny scientist or engineer who disagrees with what the powers+ that+be want done, anyone who will try to say, 3,ey, maybe we!d better thin" about this a little,3 will be discredited and dismissed from their position. That!s how things wor" on 2arth. That!s the way things have always wor"ed on 2arth.3 8itsy sighed again, hiding the fear she felt inside. 3-an we prevent them from carrying out the pro'ect43 she as"ed.

3If you!re tal"ing militarily, that is doubtful,3 he replied. 3*ur navy is technologically more advanced than theirs, but much smaller in si$e. .e have enough ships and weapons to prevent invasion of our planet or of Ahea, where our fuel gathering facilities are based. .e have enough stealth attac" ships to hit their supply lines very hard and to protect our own. .e do not, however, have enough firepower to force our way through the e&clusion $one around that research station and still guarantee its destruction. 2ven attempting such a thing would re#uire enough ships that we not be able to protect 8ars and Ahea from counterattac". That, as I!m sure you!re aware, is a direct violation of our military doctrine and I!m #uite sure the commander of the 9avy would refuse such an order as the constitution demands she do.3 3So we can!t directly attac" the facility,3 8itsy said. 3-orrect,3 he confirmed. 3The other military option would be to try attac"ing the supply ships carrying the anti+matter itself as they delivered it to the station. This is not really viable either. The .est,em navy will undoubtedly utili$e numerous heavily armed escorts for each shipment and will probably use dupe supply ships within the convey itself. )inding the e&act ship that carries the material and successfully destroying it will be e&tremely difficult to accomplish and would probably result in unacceptable losses.3 3So you!re telling me there is no way to prevent .est,em from utili$ing :emondrop,3 she said. 3=ou!re down with it,3 he confirmed. 3That is totally the shit. In appro&imately two years, maybe a little more, they will have enough anti+matter produced for a single utili$ation of :emondrop and there is really no way for us to prevent it.3 3So what are our options43 8itsy as"ed him, although she already had a pretty good idea.

3.e need to initiate *peration -ounterdrop,3 he said simply. 3%nd we need to initiate it as soon as possible.3 3That!s what I was afraid you would say,3 she said. -ounterdrop was one of the few secret military plans that had been formulated by the 8artians since the revolution. Its details, its very e&istence in fact, was "nown only by a few people in the planetary security department, a few scientists and engineers, a few top military leaders, the governor, and the two members of the e&ecutive oversight team. Its inception had been a direct result of the possibility that either .est,em or 2ast,em would try to utili$e Pro'ect :emondrop technology for their own means. 3There is really no other choice,3 Aeamer said. 3.e have to construct our own :emondrop reactor in order to counter theirs. %nd we have to construct it in secrecy, in order to "eep them from learning we plan to counter them. )ortunately, we have all of the components, including that of the reactor itself, pre+fabricated and in storage at .hiting -ity in orbit around Ahea. It!s 'ust a matter of transporting these components and a construction crew to the assembly location.3 3=ou say that li"e it!s an easy tas",3 8itsy said. 3=ou!re tal"ing about moving si& hundred thousand tons of materials and more than eight hundred construction wor"ers from Ahea to interstellar space without 2ast,em or .est,em detecting it.3 3There is a plan for doing this. .e!ll use stealth attac" ships with s"eleton crews to transport everything little by little and "eep the pro'ect supplied. It will ta"e fifteen months to complete delivery of the components and another three months to assemble them. .e are confident this can be done without detection.3 3%nd what about the other aspects of the plan43 she as"ed. 3The anti+matter production comes primarily to mind. .e will need to produce twice as much anti+matter as .est,em, will we

not43 3)uc"in! aye,3 he agreed. 3.e will have to utili$e :emondrop twice where they will only have to utili$e it once. ;ut as I told you earlier, our particle accelerator technology is much more advanced than .est,em!s. The numbers have been crunched many times. .e can produce enough in the time allotted to carry off the operation. *f course, there is the matter of the e&planation for the increased production.3 3=es,3 8itsy said, distaste clearly audible in her tone. 3.e have to lie to the citi$ens. Something I too" an oath never to do.3 3I find it as repugnant as you do,3 Aeamer told her. 3I myself too" that oath as well. ;ut in that same oath was the vow to use our common sense in all official decisions and matters. The common sense of "eeping the pro'ect secret overrules the demand for honesty in this case. .e simply cannot hide the increased production of anti+matter. 9or can we give a vague e&planation for what we want it for. 8ars is rife with .est,em and 2ast,em spies, 8itsy. =ou "now that as well as I do.3 3=es,3 she said. 3I do.3 %nd it was true. 2ach year 2ast,em and .est,em sent do$ens of intelligence agents to 8ars mi&ed in among the thousands of legitimate immigrants. Though well over half of these spies decided after less than a year that they li"ed the 8artian way of living better and defected, turning over their e#uipment and giving up the names of their contacts to 8artian authorities, the other half was infiltrated far and wide throughout 8artian society. This was how the Pro'ect :emondrop information had gotten to .est,em in the first place, by a .est,em spy on the research team. 3=ou can bet your ass they have agents within the particle accelerator facilities,3 Aeamer said. 3The moment we increase production, they!ll "now about it, 'ust as we "new about their increased production. The cover pro'ect is an integral part of -ounterdrop. .e have to have, not 'ust an e&planation for why

we need the anti+matter, but an e&planation bac"ed up by concrete facts that they will actually believe. That!s why there really is an interstellar ship pro'ect. That!s why we really are wor"ing on an anti+matter drive. 9ot 'ust so we can e&plore %lpha -entauri, but so, if the time came, as it now has, we could e&plain why we suddenly need to produce two tons of anti+ matter. It isn!t enough for a full+blown drive of course, but it!s a plausible amount to test a prototype engine in laboratory conditions. The fact that we are actually close to producing such a prototype drive, and that there are undoubtedly .est,em spies on the research team who can confirm this, will set the .est,em intelligence services at ease, especially if they catch no hint that we!re constructing any large structures in deep space.3 3I understand the concept, Aoscoe,3 8itsy said. 3It doesn!t mean I have to li"e it. It goes against the 8artian grain. It!s a very 2arthling thing to do.3 3;ut you!ll order it put into effect43 he as"ed. 3=es,3 she sighed. 3I!ll order it put into effect.3 She loo"ed at 8ingus and ,averty. 3This order will re#uire oversight confirmation,3 she told them. 3 o both of you understand the ramifications and specifics of what is being proposed here43 3)uc"in! aye,3 8ingus said softly. 3I don!t li"e it either. It ma"es me feel s"an"y 'ust to contemplate it, but I confirm the order.3 3%s do I,3 ,averty said. 3The order is confirmed.3 3)uc" my ass then,3 Aeamer said. 3I!ll start ma"ing the preparations immediately.3

3Aeally, 8arcella,3 (en said nervously, loo"ing down at his na"ed crotch, 3I don!t thin" I can do this. This is starting to loo" li"e one of those videos they used to show us in aviator survival

school about what the enemy would do if they captured you.3 8arcella seemed to thin" this was a 'o"e. She laughed dutifully and continued attaching the electrical connection to his rapidly deflating penis. Just a minute before he had been as turgid as steel in her hand, as he always was when she touched him in intimacy, but now, as she clamped the 52 , or 3virtual enhancement device3 to him, the blood was rapidly fleeing to other parts of his body. The 52 was an evil+loo"ing plastic thing that fit over his entire coc" and was connected to the computer plug+in via a cord that loo"ed li"e a coa&ial cable. It was, according to 8arcella, the means by which most 8artian men and boys masturbated these days. 3,as anyone ever been in'ured by one of these things43 (en as"ed her. 39o,3 she said simply. 3%lthough there are those who become addicted to them and never leave their house. Trust me, you!ll li"e it.3 3;ut what e&actly is it going to do to me43 he wanted to "now. 3=ou told me it wor"s electrically. In my day, guys did not li"e having the word !electricity! and !penis! mentioned in the same sentence.3 3It!s not e&actly electricity,3 she told him. 3%t least not in the way you!re thin"ing about it. %ll it does is stimulate your nerve cells artificially, so they!re fooled into thin"ing you!re really feeling the sensations that occur inside the 5A fantasy. So, if you!re in a fantasy and the computer woman is suc"ing your coc", the cells will be stimulated in such a way so your coc" actually feels li"e it!s in a mouth. If you!re fuc"ing a pussy, it!ll feel li"e you!re in a pussy. =ou see4 5ery simple.3 35ery simple, huh43 he as"ed, dubious. 3This thing is sending electrical charges into my nerve cells, manipulating them, and it!s very simple43

3)uc"in! aye,3 she said, ma"ing one last ad'ustment. She pic"ed up two more attachments, each of which loo"ed li"e a thic" woolen mitten with coa&ial trailing out of the end. 3The same principal applies to the nerve cells in your hands. =ou put these on and, when you touch the computer woman!s tits in the fantasy, you!ll feel li"e you!re touching real tits. .hen you slide a finger in her pussy, you!ll feel li"e you!re doing that too.3 3%nd this doesn!t cause cancer or anything li"e that43 This truly made her laugh. 3-ancer43 she cac"led, sha"ing her head. 3Spread my chee"s and lic" between !em. There!s no such thing as cancer anymore. That!s li"e as"ing if fuc"ing will give you %I S.3 3I see,3 he said slowly. ,e still wasn!t #uite used to the fact that things that had been deadly serious issues bac" in his time+ cancer, %I S, heart disease, stro"es, spinal cord in'uries+were nothing but e&amples of how primitive the twentieth and twenty+first century 2arthlings had been to the 8artians. They worried about such things about as much as people in his day used to worry about scurvy, or blood poisoning, or polio. This was not the first such revelation he!d had in the two wee"s he!d been awa"e about how the advanced 8artian medical science created entirely different outloo"s on life. In a society where no contagious disease e&isted, where no debilitating medical conditions lur"ed in the shadows, where virtually the only things that caused death were accidents and e&tremely old age, the entire psyche of the populace was on a different plain. The biggest e&ample of this he!d noticed was how sacred the 8artians considered the sanctity of life. In e&tending their lifespan to levels unheard of in human history, the 8artians had created a fear of accidental or unnatural death that bordered on the psychotically paranoid. 8artians did not engage in any sport or hobby that conceivably could cause death as a result of simple malfunction or miscalculation. There was no drive to

build fast vehicles for the purpose of racing them. There was no s"ydiving for fun, no bullfighting or bull riding, no hang gliding. The word daredevil was simply not in the 8artian vocabulary. This paranoia e&tended into the wor"place as well. 8artian factory wor"ers, construction wor"ers, pilots, agricultural wor"ers, and other occupations that were inherently dangerous wor"ed under the strict guidelines of an occupational and safety administration that demanded enough safety e#uipment and procedures to all but guarantee a wor"er could not be "illed by misfortune or negligence at his or her wor"site. Spacesuits for those wor"ers who had to go outside the safety of the city environment contained multiple failsafe and bac"+up systems so no one could suffocate or decompress in the event of a problem. -onstruction wor"ers were outfitted with magnetic boots and tethered with unbrea"able hemp ropes at all times. %gricultural machinery was outfitted with computer+operated pro&imity detectors that would shut everything down if a wor"er came into a $one where he or she could be placed in any danger of death. 2ven the military, as dangerous a 'ob as that was, had been outfitted with enough safety devices and protection systems to ma"e accidental death during flight, or armored e&ercise, or infantry training, to be all but unheard of. In the event of an actual war, 8artian military doctrine itself was designed with the preservation of the lives of the soldiers its prime directive, even at the e&pense of losing territory and "ey positions. Since awa"ening, (en had been following closely the 8artian newscasts on the Internet stations in order to help acclimate himself to their culture. In the past two wee"s one of the top stories had concerned a twelve+year+old woman in the city of :ibby who had been "illed accidentally while wor"ing in the city!s water recycling plant. %pparently a piece of steel debris had become lodged in a compressed air line somewhere, creating a build+up of high pressure. .hile trying to clear the line, the debris had come loose, shot out of the line at high

velocity, and struc" the woman in the head with enough force to "ill despite the helmet she!d been wearing. In (en!s day, this would have been considered 'ust one of those #uir"y events that occurred, worthy of no more than a few lines of print in the bac" of the local section of the newspaper. *n 8ars, it was planetary news on the order of the -hallenger disaster or the *"lahoma -ity bombing. 2&pressions of sadness, horror, sympathy emanated from every city on 8ars. 8artian citi$ens were demanding answers as to how such a thing could have happened and how it could be prevented from happening again. The 8artian *S,%+an agency with broad police and subpoena powers+was pulling out all stops in its investigation. 2ngineering e&perts from all over the planet were e&amining everything and everyone involved, from the supervisory staff of the plant to the composition of the helmet and the pipe itself. 2very day updates were given on the discoveries of the previous day. *n the streets, in the bars, and in the coffee shops of 9ew Pittsburgh, the incident was the main topic of conversation. (aren had told him that any industrial accident that caused death was treated with the same gravity and, as such, incidents of this sort were e&tremely rare, occurring no more than once every two 8artian years or so on average. In star" contrast to this fear of premature death, the 8artians had a rec"lessness toward mere in'ury that seemed contradictory on the surface but, with some careful e&amination, actually wasn!t. 8artians absolutely adored physical sports, both on the amateur and professional level. )ootball, a little different from what had been played in (en!s day, but still the same basic sport, was the planetary favorite. Their version of football was played without much protective e#uipment save a helmet and "nee+pads. There were no rules regarding roughing of the #uarterbac" or the "ic"er. -lipping, holding, and face+mas"ing were all perfectly acceptable methods of bloc"ing and tac"ling. :ate hits were still against the rules but the interpretation of what e&actly constituted a late hit was much more liberal. 2very city on the planet supported a

professional football team that consisted of the best players from among the city residents. In addition, each city had do$ens of organi$ed amateur leagues where men and women competed for pleasure in their off+time. ;ro"en bones, torn ligaments, concussions, even paraly$ing in'uries were very commonplace in all levels of the sport. ;ut, since actual death was not li"ely to occur as a result of the sport, the 8artians played it and cheered it on fanatically. There was no fear of the in'uries that could and did happen because such in'uries were easily fi&ed by 8artian medical science. ;ro"en bones, torn ligaments, even spinal cord in'uries, could be mended in a matter of days by means of accelerated cell stimulation. The medical care itself was completely free, one of the constitutional rights. 2ven the specter of income loss as a result of recovering from the in'uries was not a concern since the government compensated any wor"er who could not physically perform his or her 'ob until such time as they could return. The fact that the in'uries were suffered during a leisure activity was not considered the least bit relevant. %nother significant change that had been forged by the 8artian medical science was something that (en was still having a difficult time getting used to. Since infectious disease, both viral and bacterial, had either been wiped out completely or was easily cured, the 8artian people had no fear whatsoever of germs or microbes. The botching e&periences (en had participated in three times now were perhaps the best e&ample of this indifference. 8en and women, most total strangers to each other, touched, groped, slid their tongues in and out of each other!s mouths, even copulated in an environment where other total strangers had been doing the same before them. In (en!s day this would have spread gonorrhea, syphilis, mononucleosis, %I S, hepatitis, the common cold, influen$a, and a do$en other things far and wide. *n 8ars it was 'ust ta"en as a matter of course and the only thing done after a night of botching was a simple shower to cleanse the sweat and bodily secretions off.

;ut se&uality was not the only place this fearless attitude towards germs manifested itself. 8artians had no #ualms about another person!s saliva, even a stranger!s, coming into contact with their mouths or hands. People who hardly "new each other would share drin"s in a bar out of the same glass, or use the same mari'uana hose or pass cigarettes bac" and forth. 8artians didn!t wash their hands routinely after performing such tas"s as using the bathroom or cleaning something up or playing with a pet. If something was accidentally dropped into a garbage container and needed to be retrieved, they would plunge their hands in unhesitantly, grab it, and shove it in their poc"et with only a brief wiping of any clinging material. 9or was Salmonella a concern. (en had watched 8arcella prepare dinner on several occasions and had been astounded by how she would carelessly cut up raw chic"en on a cutting board and then cut up lettuce for a salad on the same surface, with the same "nife, five minutes later without wiping either down first. .ith these thoughts in mind, (en suddenly had another reason to be nervous about the devices 8arcella had attached to his genitals and hands. 3,as anyone else ever used these things before43 he as"ed her, not sure he really wanted to "now the answer. She loo"ed at him and shrugged a little. ;y now she was used to his strange #uestions. 3I suppose 8anny might!ve used them a few times before,3 she said, referring to r. 8ende$, who was indeed romantically involved with (aren. 3Sometimes he stays over for a day or two. Jacob probably uses them when he!s in town too. Is that a problem43 3Bh... well... no,3 he said, feeling a little #ueasy at the thought that his coc" was resting in something that 8ende$ or his grandson had e'aculated into. 3Just how well do they clean these things out afterward though43 She chuc"led a little. 3=ou and your germ obsession,3 she told him. 3,ow many times to I have to tell you, that!s nothing to

worry about43 3Bh... sure.3 3;ut in answer to your #uestion, the coc"+piece is rinsed out with water when you!re done. The hand+pieces are 'ust left as they are for the most part but they!re run through the washing machine every ten or twelve uses to clean the sweat out of them. oes that ma"e you feel better43 3Sure,3 he said slowly, although it really didn!t. 8arcella gave him a smile and "issed him gently, though sensuously on the chee", her tongue 'ust touching his s"in. 3Just chill your shit out,3 she said softly. 3I promise you, you!ll li"e this.3 % little bit of the blood flow returned to his penis at the contact, as she had no doubt "nown it would. ;y now 8arcella "new him very well, perhaps better than (aren herself. (aren, after all, had gone bac" to wor" a few days after his awa"ening and saw him only in the evenings when she returned home. 8arcella was in and out of the house all day, cleaning, coo"ing, and doing laundry. (en had been out on several e&cursions by himself and with (aren and had even spent three days in 2den with Jacob, but for the most part he tended to stay in the house most of the time, browsing the Internet, catching up on 8artian history and modern society. ,e and the 3bitch3 of the house had spent a lot of time tal"ing about anything and everything. She had been his best source of helpful information on 8artian eti#uette and morals. She had also been his most fre#uent se&ual partner, displaying an appetite for fornication that would have been considered #uite slutty in his day but that was merely the norm for a F0+ year+old 8artian woman. 2very night before he retired she treated him to an enthusiastic blow'ob, always unhesitantly swallowing his offering at the completion. %t least once during

the daytime hours they retired to his or her bedroom for an e&tended session of steamy, lustful fuc"ing in 'ust about every position imaginable, and even a few that weren!t. There was absolutely nothing she wouldn!t do in the bedroom. She loved anal se& most particularly, seeming to prefer it to the vaginal variety. She also had no #ualms about putting her tongue on and in his ass and would spend half an hour giving him a slow oral massage of this part of his body before 'ac"ing him off until he came all over her face. In return for all this se& she e&pected nothing at all. To her, it was 'ust an en'oyable way to spend her brea" periods. ;y no means was he the only one she had se& with. *n the contrary, she had two steady boyfriends who came over to visit her on the wee"ends. 8ore than once he had come into the living room to find her copulating with one and even both of them on the couch or the dining room table. These interruptions were e&tremely embarrassing to (en but 8arcella had treated them no differently than if he had wal"ed in on her watching television or reading a boo". She had even invited him to 'oin in once, an offer he had respectfully declined. 8ost shoc"ing however, was what had happened 'ust two days before, about an hour after bedtime. ,e!d been having trouble falling asleep so he!d gotten up to get a bottle of beer from the refrigerator. ,e!d entered the entertainment room and there, on the couch, had been (aren, her shorts off, her legs spread wide, her head thrown bac", an e&pression of bliss on her sweaty face. ;etween her legs had been 8arcella, lapping contentedly away at her pussy, her face smeared with secretions. (en had actually gasped at this sight, ma"ing enough noise to prompt both of them to loo" up at him. 3*h, hi, (en,3 (aren had commented nonchalantly. 3.hat are you doing up43 3=eah,3 8arcella had added. 3 idn!t my blow'ob rela& you enough43

,e!d stammered out some sort of reply and bolted immediately bac" to his bedroom, closing the door securely behind him. ,e had no idea why the sight of this shoc"ed or surprised him. %fter all, he!d been out botching with (aren twice now, had seen her affinity for affection with both males and females. 8arcella too had hinted on more than one occasion that such things went on between her and her employer. Still, actually seeing it in the flesh, actually witnessing the casualness with which being interrupted in such a manner was treated, was astounding. ,e had no doubt that after his e&it from the room they had simply shrugged in that pu$$led way they had when dealing with his ancient morals and had gone bac" to what they were doing. 3*"ay,3 8arcella said now, smiling at his now hardening coc". 3:et me show you how the poor people and the adolescents do it first.3 3Bh... sure,3 he said. 3-omputer, open standard se&ual stimulation program for male.3 3)uc"in! aye,3 the computer replied. 3Program open. efault preference is heterose&ual encounter. %re you down with this43 3.ell43 she said. 3%re you down with it43 3=es,3 he told the computer. 3I!m down with it.3 3)uc"in! aye. =ou want pre+set stimulation or manual43 ,e loo"ed over at 8arcella. 3.hich one do I want43 3Try manual first,3 she advised. 3Then you 'ust tell the computer what stimulation you!d li"e to feel and it will provide it.3 3Aeally43 3Aeally,3 she confirmed.

,e told the computer he wanted manual and it told him to fire when ready. %gain he loo"ed to 8arcella for advice. 3Try touch first. That!s what most people li"e to do. Tell it you!re touching tits.3 3*"ay.3 ,e too" a deep breath. 3-omputer, I!m touching tits.3 The computer did not ac"nowledge him in any way but a second later it became obvious that it had heard him. ,is hands suddenly felt as if they were resting against a soft set of breasts. The sensation was very realistic. ,e could feel the smooth, feminine flesh, could feel the press of nipples against each palm. 3.ow,3 he said, impressed, his coc" ta"ing another lurch beneath the probe. 39ice, huh43 8arcella said, smiling again as she watched the wonder on his face. 39ow move your hands li"e you!re s#uee$ing them.3 ,e did so, moving his fingers as if he were s#uee$ing the invisible tits. ,e could feel the flesh s#uishing and pulsing under his hands. The nipples actually seemed to get harder against him. ,e tried moving his hands bac" and forth and, sure enough, the sensation of sliding over the tits was transmitted to him. ,e was starting to see the appeal this form of masturbation had. 39ow tell it your left hand is feeling pussy,3 8arcella suggested. 38y left hand is feeling pussy,3 he said. The sensation of the breast flesh against his left hand was immediately replaced by the feel of his palm lightly touching a slippery, warm wetness. ,e could feel each individual lip, the smoothness of the mons, even the slight protrusion of the clitoris. ,e moved his hand a little and the sensation changed,

as if he were putting pressure on the unseen vagina. ,e twisted his hands and curled a finger inward and it felt as if he!d 'ust inserted his finger in between the two lips. It felt hot and wet in there, indistinguishable from a real pussy. 3This is really static,3 he said, curling another finger inward and giving another s#uee$e of the breast with his right hand. ,is coc" was now fully erect beneath the sheath. 3=ou haven!t even tried the one on your coc" yet,3 8arcella pointed out. 3Tell it there!s a hand stro"ing you.3 ,e was still a little nervous about having electrical impulses applied to his coc" but he did as she suggested. ,e was pleasantly surprised by the sensation. It felt 'ust li"e a soft, feminine hand had gripped his shaft and was stro"ing softly up and down. So authentic was the sensation that he actually loo"ed down to see if 8arcella had gripped him while he was occupied with the feel sensations. She hadn!t. There was nothing on his coc" but the sheath. 3Try suc"ing,3 8arcella suggested. ,e told the computer that his coc" was being suc"ed and the sensation instantly changed to a wet, teasing mouth, bobbing up and down upon him. It was here that the unreality of the device first became apparent. The feeling of the mouth moving up and down was incredibly real. ,e could even feel the slight chill that came from wet flesh meeting the air. .hat was missing however were the other sensations that were associated with a normal blow 'ob. ,e could not feel hair tic"ling his stomach, could not feel the press of a feminine body against the inside of his legs, could not feel any sensation at all on his testicles. Still, the suc"ing mouth feel would be #uite enough to bring him to orgasm if he let it continue. Instead of waiting for that to happen he too" some initiative and told the computer that he was fuc"ing. The mouth sensation

was replaced with the feeling of a wet, tight vagina sliding down onto his coc". It began to move up and down, gripping him rhythmically every stro"e in that way that 8artian women had G8arcella had confirmed for him that this was a s"ill taught to 8artian girls in early se&uality classes in middle schoolH. %gain, though the sensation was very nice and would easily lead to orgasm if allowed to continue, it would never replace the real thing. There was no press of a female body against his anywhere but his hands. There was no mouth to "iss, no nec" to suc", no arms around him. 3*"ay,3 8arcella said. 3That!s the free program you!re using there. :et me show you the really nice way to do it now. Tell the computer to end program.3 (en was reluctant to end the sensations but, being curious about what the 3really nice way3 might be, he obeyed her. The moment the words left his mouth the sensations stopped, leaving him a little breathless. 3(aren subscribes to a couple of static porn services,3 8arcella told him. 3They have custom 5A porn.3 3-ustom 5A porn43 3)uc"in! aye,3 she said, opening a drawer on the des". She reached inside and pulled out a medieval loo"ing blac" helmet. There was no opening for eyes to loo" out either in the front or the bac". angling from the bottom was another length of coa&ial cable. 3I thin" you!re gonna li"e this little piece of modern technology.3

(en had seen #uite a lot of 8artian technology over the past two wee"s, some things that had been vague science fiction ideas in his time, some things that had been completely unimaginable. ,is ride+along with a patrol unit of the 9ew Pittsburgh Police epartment the wee" before had been liberally filled with

technological wonders. The cops he rode with were %rmand .oo and enise Jac"son, both five year veterans of the department, both friends of ;elung, Jacob!s husband. %t (aren and Jacob!s suggestion, and after being assured that they would "eep the information to themselves, (en had shared with the partners his origins as well as his former occupation. This served to ma"e .oo and Jac"son as fascinated by (en as he was by them. % good portion of the idle hours of the shift had been ta"en up by discussing the differences between law enforcement then and law enforcement now. 8uch of the e#uipment the two cops wore on duty was the same in function, yet fundamentally different. They carried guns on their waists but instead of the bul"y I+millimeter pistols the San Jose P had pac"ed, theirs were tiny C+millimeter models, constructed almost entirely of plastic, which fit #uite neatly into the palm of one hand. .oo told (en that the Cmm was a high velocity weapon, relying on the speed of the pro'ectile instead of the mass of it to inflict damage on a human body. The miniscule bullet traveled more than four times faster than a pistol bullet from his day, which gave it better stopping power than a .DD magnum at close range and better penetrating power than an 8+FE round. They allowed (en to fire a few maga$ines at the holographic targets in the police station!s basement pistol range and he had been #uite impressed by the e&perience. Instead of aiming through fi&ed sights or even using a laser designator, a targeting rectical was pro'ected on a small heads+up display, or ,B , that hung down from the patrol helmet. .hen the weapon was moved up or down, left or right, the rectical moved as well, showing where the bullet would stri"e if it were fired at the particular moment. .oo told him that the patrol computer, which is what generated the rectical, too" into account all environmental factors such as distance to target, bullet drop, and movement of the operator. In addition, the pistol could not be fired by anyone but the operator, which prevented a common

cause of police shootings in (en!s day, that of a cop being "illed by having his own weapon wrestled away in a fight and used against him. The 9ew Pittsburgh Police carried no mace or pepper spray on patrol. Such things had gone out of fashion late in the /Fst century. .hat they did carry was something called a tanner. This was an e&tendable aluminum rod capable of delivering an incapacitating electric shoc" to a combative suspect with the simple push of a button. It could shoc" through clothing and even body armor but would not affect anyone who happened to be touching the person at the time. The shoc" would render the suspect completely inert for the better part of five minutes and caused no lasting physical damage. :i"e the pistol, the tanner could not be used by anyone but the operator. Searching a suspect by hand was something that was no longer done in the course of a cop!s duties. Instead they carried an electronic scanner the si$e of a cellular phone from (en!s day. This was passed from head to toe over a suspect!s body from a distance of up to two meters. Bsing a combination of M+rays and a miniature phased 8AI it would #uic"ly+with F00 percent accuracy+inventory every single thing in a person!s possession and display a list on the officer!s ,B . % danger signal would be generated if the scanner detected anything that could be used as a weapon. The handcuffs they carried were very similar to the ones (en had carried in his own patrol days. They were stainless steel, ad'ustable bracelets attached together by a metal chain. It seemed technology had precious little to improve upon in the area of wrist restraints. The only ma'or technological difference here was the manner of unloc"ing them for removal. Instead of a "ey, a command from the arresting officer was used and the patrol computer would disengage the mechanism, allowing them to fall free. The 8artian fear of accidental or violent death was very much

in evidence in the way patrol officers dressed for their duties, (en found. They wore dar" blue pullover shirts and long, cotton pants, but that was 'ust the bottom layer. *ver the torso they wore thic", (evlar armor, capable of protecting their vital organs from everything but a military rifle round. *n their heads they wore heavy (evlar helmets with bulletproof face+ shields. They loo"ed li"e troops manning a s"irmish line against roc"+throwing rioters instead of cops out on routine patrol. 3%re you shot at a lot43 (en wanted to "now when he saw all of the armor. 39o,3 .oo had told him. 3,ardly ever happens anymore. Private ownership of guns has been against the law since 'ust after the revolution. There hasn!t been a cop "illed in the line of duty on 8ars in more than nine years.3 3Then why all the protection43 (en had as"ed. 3I used to wor" patrol in the worst ghetto in San Jose and we only wore a simple vest over our chest area for protection.3 3It!s still possible that someone might try to shoot at us,3 .oo told him. 3There were millions of guns out on the streets before the revolution, literally millions of them. Since we outlawed the manufacture and possession of firearms for public use, we!ve gotten rid of most of them but there are still some out there. It!s still conceivable that some criminal somewhere who is loo"ing at a long stretch in prison might try to shoot it out. If that happens, we need to be protected.3 3I see,3 (en said thoughtfully. 3;ut that hasn!t happened anywhere on the planet in more than nine years4 9ine 8artian years43 3)uc"in! aye. 8ost of the people who have the remaining guns are 'ust "eeping them as collectors. They don!t dare ta"e them out of their hiding places. If you!re caught in possession of a firearm out on the streets, that!s an automatic five years at hard

labor. If you use a firearm in the commission of a crime, including 'ust threatening someone with it, you!re loo"ing at ten years hard labor tac"ed onto whatever the original crime was.3 3%nd that serves as a good deterrent43 (en as"ed. 3=ou bet your hard+on,3 .oo assured him. 3.ould you ris" it 'ust to pac" a piece out on the streets43 3I guess I wouldn!t,3 he said. *ne thing about the 9PP that was not very technologically advanced was their patrol cars. (en was actually a little disappointed when he saw one for the first time. It was basically an electric golf cart, painted traditional blac" and white, with the police emblem stenciled on the side. The cab was enclosed with bulletproof ple&iglass and (evlar and there was a small, caged area in the rear for transportation of prisoners. There was no siren, only a horn, and the only light was a small blue flasher mounted on the roof. The inside was nothing but seats and storage space. There were no radios or computers since the patrol computer each cop carried served these functions by themselves. The top speed of the cart was a whopping D0 "ilometers per hour. 3*ur patrol area is not very big,3 Jac"son e&plained to him as they climbed in for the first time. 3*ur primary beat encompasses only si& s#uare bloc"s, so we usually don!t have to get very far in a hurry.3 3Si& s#uare bloc"s43 (en as"ed incredulously. The beats in San Jose had been an average of three s#uare miles apiece. 3.e!re not a sprawled out city,3 Jac"son reminded him. 3Aemember, each one of our residential buildings, particularly down in the public housing area where we wor", contains about F0,000 residents and ten or fifteen commercial establishments. There are four patrol units assigned to each beat and we "eep

#uite busy. .e run an average of si& calls per eight hour shift.3 It turned out that during the course of (en!s ride+a+long, they ran only five calls, but it was a very eye+opening e&perience nonetheless. The first ma'or difference (en noted between cops in his day and cops on 8ars had less to do with technology than it did with attitude. .oo and Jac"son, as well as the other cops they encountered in the course of the day, had a much different outloo" toward their 'ob than (en and his co+wor"ers. In the Bnited States in the twentieth and twenty+first century, the average urban police officer of any e&perience was a cynical and, fre#uently, burned+out individual. The feeling that one was shoveling shit against the tide, that one was ma"ing absolutely no difference to the city, the county, the environment in which he or she wor"ed, was strongly prevalent. -ops in his day would throw dangerous thugs into 'ail only to have them released on their own recogni$ance the ne&t day so they could commit more offensive acts they wouldn!t be punished for. They would see the same sad crimes, the same sad people, day in and day out, year in and year out, with no hope for any meaningful change to ta"e place in the system. They got to feel that they were only barely holding bac" reversion to complete and total savagery, that they were surrounded by a public that hated and feared them, by politicians and 'ournalists who loved to ma"e sensational e&amples of them and who refused to support them. The 8artian cops, on the other hand, felt none of this. They carried an enthusiasm toward their wor" that was unmatched in even the most gung+ho roo"ie from the SJP . The reason for this was because the 8artian criminal 'ustice system wor"ed. .hen a 8artian cop put someone in 'ail it was with the "nowledge that person was going to stay there and was going to be punished for what he or she had done and that this punishment served as a fairly effective deterrent to others who might come after and contemplate the same act. %s a result, the entire focus of what constituted a serious crime had shifted wildly on its a&is.

.oo and Jac"son!s beat was the 8artian version of a ghetto. It was where those 8artians who elected to live in public housing made their homes. %ccording to .oo, only twenty percent of those who lived in public housing were unemployed. The ma'ority of those who paid nothing for their residences were college students trying to stretch their /00 credit per month stipend to the ma&imum6 men, women, or families who were saving their credits to one day purchase or open a small business of their own6 or those wor"ers who were employed in the more menial professions out of choice+agricultural pic"ers, 'anitors, laborers+and wanted to ma"e the most of their small salaries. ;ut it was with the twenty percent of the populace that were habitually and by choice unemployed that eighty percent of the police calls originated from. 3These are the dregs of our society,3 .oo told (en as they cruised slowly up and down the beat, weaving their way between buildings and through alleys. 3It!s not that they can!t wor", because on 8ars there is a 'ob available somewhere for anyone who wants one, it!s 'ust that they don!t want to. They say they!re content without an income but they!re really not. .hat ends up happening is they have far too much time on their hands. 8ost of them end up becoming addicted to into&icants. The problem here is they!re not given any credits by the public assistance system so they have a hard time buying the into&icants. Some of them will wor" for a day or two at various things until they have enough to buy a few bottles of boo$e or a few grams of smo"e, and then they!ll #uit. *thers will steal things from other people and try to fence them for credits. *thers will try to stri"e up a fuc"+buddy relationship with someone who does have a 'ob so they can use their credits. %nd then, when they do get their boo$e or their smo"e, they fight about it with each other. %ll of this leads to assaults, domestic fights, shit li"e that. .e go in and try to mediate things, try to solve the theft crimes, try to ta"e care of the assaults. That!s the ma'ority of our 'ob these days.3

These problems in and of themselves were not terribly different than what (en had dealt with in his own patrol days, although on a much smaller scale. The ma'or difference was in how the police handled the situations. The first call of the day was a perfect e&ample of the contrast. It was on the D8th floor of a FCE story residential building. There, in a public housing apartment that was at least twice as large as a welfare apartment from (en!s day, they found a drun"en man bleeding from a small cut that had been opened on the side of his face. (en discovered that a drun" on 8ars loo"ed and smelled much the same as a drun" in San Jose. ,is clothing, though briefer, was disheveled, dirty, and smelled of old sweat. ,e told a story of an argument with his ne&t+door neighbor. They had both wor"ed refinishing some furniture for another apartment resident earlier in the day and had been paid two credits apiece for their efforts. They had pooled these credits together and gone in on a case of beer together. They had spent the afternoon drin"ing the beer and then the neighbor had accused him of drin"ing more than his share and had then assaulted him with his fist. %fter hearing this story, Jac"son and .oo went to the neighbor!s house and got his version of the events. The neighbor, they found, had also been struc" in the face, which had "noc"ed two teeth loose and cut open his lip. ,is story was that the argument had occurred as told, but that the accuser had struc" the first blow, hitting him in the mouth with a beer can and he had merely been defending himself. In (en!s days on street patrol, this was what was called a mutual assault. .hat was generally done was nothing. 2ach person involved would be advised that he or she could pursue misdemeanor assault charges against the other by way of placing each other under citi$en!s arrest. Aarely did the combatants elect to ta"e this option, especially since the police officers would actively try to tal" them out of it. 2ven if they did elect this option, nothing but a citation was issued and the district attorney would generally drop each case if it reached his

des". The role of the police officer in the situation was to restore the peace of the neighborhood, at least temporarily, not to administer 'ustice. The criminal 'ustice system was far too overloaded with serious criminals to waste time with bullshit assaults. .oo and Jac"son however, too" this call very seriously, carefully #uestioning and interrogating each individual for every last detail of what occurred. They then trac"ed down and interviewed the three witnesses to the scuffle, #uestioning each of them 'ust as intently until they had a clear idea of the e&act se#uence of events. This se#uence of events turned out to be that the first man had in fact been the first one to stri"e a blow by bashing his beer+buddy in the face with the can. The first man was then placed under arrest for aggravated assault and they transported him to a nearby police station for processing. The man begged and cried the entire trip, obviously fearful of the fate that awaited him. 3.hat will happen to him now43 (en had as"ed after the boo"ing process had been completed. 39ow he!ll be tried for the assault charge, probably tomorrow sometime. The case is pretty clear+cut so he!ll more than li"ely be found guilty.3 3%nd then what43 3,e has a prior assault conviction on his record, so my guess is he!ll get si& months in 'ail at hard labor. That should hopefully teach him not to be so #uic" with his fists the ne&t time he gets fuc"ed up on boo$e.3 Si& months in 'ail at hard labor for a simple assault. That was almost a year!s worth of 'ail in 2arth time. %nd on 8ars, si& months meant si& months. There was no time off for good behavior, no early release because the 'ail was full. =es, that would probably teach the man to thin" the ne&t time he balled

up his fists in anger. %s ama$ing as that call was to (en, the ne&t one easily topped it. They were sent to another public housing building where they found a /0 year old woman on the 08th floor who claimed that her diamond pendent, a gift from her husband, had been stolen. The person she suspected of the theft was a ten+year+old man who had been fuc"ing her daughter of late. 3,e!s a no+good piece of shit,3 the woman told the two police officers. 39ever held a 'ob, never been to college, 'ust tries to mooch on all of my smo"e all the time. I wor" hard down at the loading doc"s so I can afford my own smo"e and I!ll be fuc"ed if I!m gonna let that asshole have mine 'ust !cause he!s cunt+ slappin! my daughter at night. .hen I came home from wor" today my motherfuc"in! pendent was gone. -indy+that!s my daughter+"eeps tellin! me he didn!t ta"e it but she admitted that dic"wad was in the house today<3 %gain, there was a sharp contrast to how the situation would!ve been handled in (en!s day and the way the 9ew Pittsburgh Police epartment handled it. %t the San Jose P , such a call would!ve been considered a nuisance by the responding cops. % report would have been ta"en for insurance purposes and then filed in some detective!s bo&, more than li"ely never to be loo"ed at. The suspected thief would never be #uestioned and there certainly would!ve been no chance whatsoever of recovering the pendent. .oo and Jac"son behaved as if the ,ope iamond had 'ust been stolen instead of a piece of 'un" 'ewelry worth /0 credits. .ithin ten minutes of ta"ing the report, a complete forensics team was in the apartment, pouring over the mother!s bedroom with scanners, small vacuums, and digital imaging devices. They were able to recover two fingerprints on the 'ewelry bo& that did not belong to either the mother or the daughter. % chec" of a database indicated they belonged to one Jogan 8allard, the boyfriend in #uestion. In addition to the fingerprints, two s"in

fla"es were found inside the small compartment where the pendent had rested. These fla"es were put into an analysis machine the forensics unit carried and instantly 9% typed. %gain, the database was consulted and a match was made to 8r. 8allard. 8eanwhile, .oo and Jac"son located the daughter, too" her into one of the bedrooms, and spent the better part of twenty minutes interrogating her about what had ta"en place that afternoon. She reluctantly admitted that her boyfriend had been as"ing her all day to get some smo"e for him, seeming almost desperate at times. %fter a fuc"ing session he had left the room to go to the bathroom and had been gone an inordinate amount of time. Shortly after this he abruptly said he had to leave and disappeared. 3.e have enough probable cause to pic" him up,3 .oo said after a discussion of the evidence with Jac"son and the forensics team. 3:et!s get a trac"ing warrant.3 .oo used his patrol computer to send a transcript of all of the evidence that had been gathered to a 'udge. The 'udge gave permission to trac" the suspected thief and pic" him up for interrogation. The means by which he was trac"ed was his personal computer, which, li"e a cellular phone, gave out a recognition signal when it was turned on so incoming communications could be received. .ithin ten seconds of as"ing the patrol computer for the current whereabouts of Jogan 8allard, five different cellular antennas triangulated this recognition signal and a red blip appeared on a mapping display. ,e was eight bloc"s away, in the basement of a housing comple&. .hen .oo, Jac"son, and (en arrived, they found him inside a pawnshop, the pendent in his hands, trying to convince the pawnbro"er that he really was the legal owner of the 'ewelry despite the fact there was no record of it having been sold or given to him. 8allard tensed up at the sight of the two cops and put on a brief act of defiance when they told him he was under arrest for theft. ,is resistance ended the second the tanners

were pulled from their holsters. ,e turned around and put his hands behind his bac" as told and a few moments later, he was in the bac" of the police cart. :i"e the assault suspect before him, he cried all the way to 'ail. 3,ow much time will he do43 (en as"ed them after the boo"ing process. 3)or a first offense theft,3 .oo opined, 3he!ll probably get F8 months at hard labor.3 This translated into almost three 2arth years in prison. 32nough to ma"e him thin" twice about stealing something after he gets out,3 Jac"son added. 3If he does it again, he!ll get four years, he does it a third time, and he!ll get ten.3 3 o people ever become institutionali$ed in your prisons43 (en as"ed. 3Institutionali$ed43 .oo as"ed, confused. 3=ou "now, where they learn to li"e it and don!t want to leave4 %nd when you release them, they commit another crime to get bac" in43 The two police officers loo"ed at him in disbelief for a moment and then burst out laughing. 39o,3 Jac"son said, still chuc"ling, 3we don!t have much of a problem with that on 8ars. =ou see, no one wants to be in our prisons. It doesn!t matter how long you!ve been in there or how used to it you!ve become, you would rather be on the outside. ,ard labor means 'ust that, hard labor. *ur prisoners wor" eight hours a day, four days a wee" doing the "inds of things no free person wants to do. They clear land for new construction, they ra$e magna+trac" beds when those are being built, they wor" in the solid waste recycling plant, they do a do$en other menial, labor intensive 'obs. In addition, within the prisons themselves, there are no lu&uries nor any means of ac#uiring them. They don!t get into&icants or tobacco

or pornography or free Internet access. .hen they!re not wor"ing, they live in small cells with three other people and their every move is watched by camera. They are allowed no se&ual contact, not even with each other. They can only masturbate by hand and only after lights out beneath their covers. They can have visitation once a month if they can get someone to come see them, but this right is sub'ect to revocation if they become discipline problems and it does not include face to face contact.3 3That does sound pretty miserable,3 (en had to agree, especially in comparison to the country club atmosphere that %merican prisons had become in his day. 3 o you ever get on 2arth Internet and loo" at some of their news programs about 8ars43 .oo as"ed. 3=es,3 (en said. 3I have done that a few times.3 %nd indeed he had. The 2arthlings, both .est,em and 2ast,em, had been allowed by the 8artian government to place communications satellites into 8artian orbit and their complete public Internet was available to any 8artian who wished to see how things were portrayed on the mother planet. Their news reports, entertainment shows, and even their pornography was accessible to anyone with a personal computer or a des"top in their home. The .est,em and the 2ast,em services were under the impression that they were enlightening the average 8artian with !the truth! about their planet, their government, and their system of economics. The average 8artian however, if he or she accessed it at all, treated it as gaudy entertainment, somewhat li"e the average %merican had once treated supermar"et tabloids. The 2arthling Internet declared that the 8artian system of government was brutal communism and referred to 1overnor 8itsy ;rown and her predecessors as ruthless dictators. They tal"ed of the need of the 8artian citi$ens+who they maintained were really .est,em citi$ens being held hostage+to be liberated from the evil regime that ruled with an iron fist. This regime was accused of rounding up

and imprisoning dissidents, men and women who dared to vocally oppose the corrupt 8artian leaders. 8artian prisons were reportedly full of such political prisoners. 3=ou "now those dissidents we!re always accused of rounding up43 .oo as"ed. 3=es,3 (en said. .oo gave a smile. 3Those dissidents are the people we!ve thrown into 'ail today. Jogan 8allard+political prisoner. The 'ails are 'ust full of !em.3

The wor" ethic (en observed in officers Jac"son and .oo was impressive to behold. It was also, he!d come to discover, #uite typical for most 8artians, no matter what their 'ob. 8artians revered their ability to contribute to society almost as much as they revered gross into&ication and se&ual contact with each other once the wor"day was done. %nd on the 'ob itself, no matter what that 'ob happened to be, a typical 8artian performed his or her tas" to the very best of his or her abilities. 2very employed 8artian+from the lowliest 'anitor to the occupant of the 1overnor!s office+wor"ed under a mission statement and was e&pected to completely dedicate his or her wor"ing hours to the fulfillment of that mission. The mission statement was more than 'ust a 'ob description or a listing of duties, it was a declaration as to what purpose that particular 'ob held in society. The 'anitor!s mission statement, for instance, would read that the purpose is to provide a clean environment to building M or floor = or room J and to insure that all wor"ers and@or visitors would be able to en'oy the environment without clutter or ha$ardous conditions. %nd that was what the 'anitor in #uestion!s focus was e&pected to be dedicated to, to the e&clusion of all other concerns. In the case of Jac"son, .oo, and every other police officer employed by the

9PP , their mission statement was to provide fair and impartial enforcement of all planetary and municipal laws and to "eep the city safe from those who profaned the laws. In the case of (aren and all the other doctors on the planet, the ,ippocratic oath+with a few modern updates+served as their mission statement. .ith Jacob, his mission was to fly 8os#uito anti+tan" aircraft under the orders of the 8artian chain of command Gas long as those orders made sense+8artian military personnel were e&pected to disregard orders that didn!tH and to train and perfect his s"ills to the best of his ability. )ailure to be dedicated to one!s mission statement, to act in a manner that showed disrespect for your mission, was a terminable offense at all levels of 8artian society. (aren and Jacob were perfect e&amples of the shift in personality from wor"ing 8artian to off+duty 8artian. (en had spent a great deal of time with both of them over the last two wee"s, including accompanying both to their 'obs on several occasions. In their off hours, both were as depraved and wild as anyone (en had ever met. They started off their mornings with a cup of strong 2arthling coffee and a couple of bonghits. ;y ten o!cloc" in the morning, they would be drin"ing beer or some other alcoholic beverage. ;y noon, both would be #uite into&icated and would spend the ma'ority of the day in that state. *n wor"days however, they would forego all into&icating substances+even the coffee. They would get up early in the morning, eat a balanced and nutritious brea"fast, and then time their commute so they arrived at their respective duty stations at least thirty minutes early. Though they would 'o"e around with their co+wor"ers during light moments, when the conversation turned to a wor" topic the atmosphere would turn deadly serious, the words geared toward solving a problem or conveying information in a way that was concise, accurate, and efficient. (en remembered standing with Jacob and the crew chief for his aircraft 'ust before Jacob too" him up for his first 8os#uito flight. Jacob, a 8a'or, and the crew chief, a Sergeant, were good friends and were apparently in the habit of going out partying

together on their days off. .hile (en had listened, the two men had gone on and on for nearly fifteen minutes about a married couple they had pic"ed up at a botch club and had se& with several wee"s before. 3I!m telling you,3 Jacob said, sha"ing his head, a lecherous loo" in his eyes, 3that guy suc"ed my dic" so fuc"in! good he had to of been a rump+ranger in disguise. ,e suc"ed me all the way down to the balls and even stuc" his tongue up the old e&haust port. ,e smo"ed the control stic" better than ;elung, and you "now how ran"in ;elung is at it.3 3*h fuc"in! aye,3 the crew chief had agreed, his 'aw wor"ing on a big plug of chewing tobacco. 3I remember the first time you had me and the wife over for dinner. Aemember4 .e had that bet that my wife could ma"e you blast off before ;elung made me blast off43 3;elung beat your old lady!s time by almost three minutes as I recall.3 38y point,3 the crew chief conceded. 31uy must!ve been pretty fuc"in! good if you thin" he!s better than ;elung. %lthough his old lady was no slouch herself. She could suc"+start a hydro+ generator without a petroleum infusion.3 %nd then, a second later, the tal" turned to the maintenance routine the aircraft had 'ust undergone and it was almost li"e two different people were standing there. Jacob too" on the role of the tough, unforgiving pilot and the crew chief too" on the roll of the highly s"illed but subordinate technician. 3 id you ad'ust the burn ration down a little43 Jacob as"ed him, his eyes now serious, without a hint of the 'ovial loo" (en had come to "now in them. 3The range on this thing needs to be at least a thousand "ilometers and it!s been coming up at only I00 lately.3

3%d'usted it and replaced two relays that were showing wear,3 the crew chief answered. 3That!s probably what was causing the low mi&ture. If you don!t get at least a thousand out of it today, I!ll go bac" in and revamp the whole o&ygen delivery system.3 3=ou!d fuc"in! well better,3 Jacob advised. 3I need to be able to hit the .est,em armor C00 ( out, with o&ygen left over for maneuvering. If we can!t hit the columns at the :J, we might as well 'ust hand over the fuc"in! cities to them when they touch down.3 3I!m down with it,3 the crew chief agreed humbly. Jacob ended up ta"ing (en up for three flights on two consecutive days during his trip to 2den, and behind the controls of the aircraft this serious attitude was consistently displayed. Jacob did not 'o"e when strapped into the 8os#uito or when lecturing (en on its features. ,is voice was dead serious and commanding and he made absolutely sure that (en understood everything he was saying at all times. 32'ection procedures,3 he would say. 3They!re completely automatic. If the computer reads a critical failure in any system or series of systems that will lead to a crash, it will automatically "ic" you out. The mechanism for doing this is similar to that used in fighter aircraft of your day, namely, a roc"et+powered e'ection seat. The difference in the 8os#uito is that there is no parachute and you do not separate from the seat once you!re clear of the aircraft. =ou remain strapped into the seat and the retro+roc"et pac" on the bottom will drift you neatly down to the surface. =ou don!t need to steer or ad'ust anything. The internal computer system will automatically pic" a suitable :J for you. *nce you!re down, the bio+suit you!re wearing will support you in the atmosphere indefinitely, or at least until you run out of food gel.3 The bio+suit of which he spo"e was a form+fitting, head to toe suit made of synthetic material. It "ept the human body at a

precise temperature and pressure so the wearer could venture outside into the lethal 8artian atmosphere. .eighing about thirty pounds and computer operated, it provided o&ygen by e&tracting it from the thin air and storing it in a small tan". It also provided drin"ing water, food gel, and a place to both urinate and defecate if that became necessary. )or all the high technology of the bio+suit however, the 8os#uito itself was about the most simplistic machine (en had seen on 8ars so far. Shaped li"e a giant boomerang, the 8os#uito had one hydrogen+burning, semi+roc"et engine that provided thrust. The controls were no different than that belonging to a crop+dusting biplane in (en!s day. There was a control stic" between the pilot!s legs, a set of rudder pedals, and a throttle lever. The heads up display was provided by the bio+ suit. There was no artificial gravity or inertial damping in the aircraft since the machinery re#uired for such things was too heavy and created too much heat, which was the primary method for detecting military aircraft these days. Thus, when they went through the airloc" and out onto the 2den 8ilitary ;ase!s ta&iways, (en e&perienced the sensation of 3lightening3 for the first time. 3It!s a bit unpleasant,3 Jacob warned him, spea"ing through the biosuit!s communications lin". 3Try not to get sic" in your suit though. The rule is, if you pu"e in it, you clean it out, and I!m here to tell you it!s a bitch to do.3 Bnpleasant turned out to be a bit of an understatement. The moment the airloc" was depressuri$ed, the gravity conduits were switched off, instantly causing (en, Jacob, and the entire aircraft to weigh about one third of what they had a moment before. The sensation this caused was of falling, as if he were plunging downward uncontrollably, although his eyes could plainly see he was sitting still. ,e didn!t pu"e, but he came awfully close before his e#uilibrium was able to stabili$e a few minutes later.

3=ou get used to it after you go through it a few times,3 Jacob advised. 3%lthough, to tell you the truth, you never learn to en'oy it.3 .hat he did en'oy however, was the flight. %s a man who felt he had been born to fly, (en was e&hilarated to be strapped into an aircraft once again, to feel the /1!s of acceleration as they shot down the runway and leapt into the pin" 8artian s"y. Jacob too" them up to ?000 meters, or about //,000 feet, much higher than a 8os#uito typically operated but ideal for initiating a new pilot to its controls. The scenery as seen from this height made the lightening sensation worthwhile. 2den was 8ars! largest city, home to more than fourteen million people. The high+rises here, including the old %gricorp ;uilding at /EC stories, were #uite impressive to behold. ;ut the city itself was dwarfed by the greenhouses that surrounded it. 2ach one was two "ilometers s#uare and there were literally hundreds of thousands of them. They were set up in geometric grid patterns and stretched beyond the hori$on in every direction. Jacob told him that the 2den area greenhouses had reached the point where they were nestled up against the greenhouses in :ibby, which was FF00 "ilometers to the west. 3% lot of fuc"in! farmland down there,3 Jacob said as they cruised over the top of it. 3%nd what you can see from here is only about one percent of the whole thing. I!m sure (aren told you that agriculture is 8ars! reason for being.3 3)uc"in! aye,3 (en agreed, awed by the sight. They cleared the greenhouses a few minutes later and came out over mountainous terrain about /00 "ilometers north of the 8artian e#uator. ,ere, Jacob!s serious attitude became as serious as (en had ever seen it when he prepared his grandfather for the tas" of doing some basic maneuvers in the 8os#uito.

39ow you!ve flown fi&ed wing aircraft before, right43 he as"ed. 3=es,3 (en answered. 38ost helicopter pilots are fi&ed wing pilots too. I never got my commercial rating but I had more than a thousand hours in a -essna F00.3 39ot sure what the fuc" a -essna F00 is,3 he said, 3but I assume the controls were the same.3 3)uc"in! aye.3 3*"ay then. :et!s see what you got. .e!ll start with some basic turns and ban"s so you can get the feel of it. Aemember, we!re going a hell of a lot faster than any aircraft you!ve flown in before. .e!re at mach two up here. The 8os#uito is very responsive and the thin air ma"es stress on the airframe low, but don!t go trying to put us in a ninety degree ban" at this speed. )orty+degree ban"s are the ma& at this velocity, and remember, the altitude will drop sharply in a ban" in this thin air. -ompensate a lot more than you did in 2arth atmosphere.3 3Aight,3 (en said, and he too" the controls. )or the ne&t forty minutes he happily turned and ban"ed, accelerated and decelerated, dived and climbed over the wastelands of e#uatorial 8ars. Jacob never let him descend lower than 0000 meters, citing safety concerns with having a new pilot flying the aircraft too close to the ground. (en didn!t care. ,e was thrilled enough to be behind the controls of an aircraft again, to feel a machine responding to his touch. ,e #uic"ly got the feel of the aircraft!s controls and idiosyncrasies. 3=ou did pretty fuc"in! static,3 Jacob told him on the flight bac", as they were descending towards the 2den 8ilitary ;ase!s landing pattern. 39ow I "now where I get my flying genes, if not my rump+ranger genes.3 (en laughed. ;y now he was #uite used to Jacob!s fre#uent references to his se&ual preference. 3It felt good to fly again,3 he

said wistfully. 3It!s what I!ve always wanted to do. I want to do it here too.3 3)ly for a living43 Jacob as"ed. 3)uc"in! aye. I have to start thin"ing about getting a 'ob soon, don!t I4 I can!t go on living with (aren forever. .hat do I have to do to fly one of these things for a living43 3.ell, unfortunately,3 Jacob said, 3you won!t be able to fly a 8os#uito. =ou see, the 8os#uito is a military aircraft with no civilian counterpart. =ou would be allowed into the military but, since you!re a recent immigrant from 2arth, you would more than li"ely not be allowed into a sensitive position, such as attac" pilot.3 3I wouldn!t4 ,ow come43 3.e get a lot of .est,em and 2ast,em spies coming over disguised as normal immigrants. .e!ve found it best over the years to e&clude immigrants from sensitive positions in the military. =ou have to either have been born on 8ars or brought here as a child for consideration.3 3I see,3 (en said slowly. 3Isn!t that discriminatory43 Jacob shrugged, something that wasn!t easy to accomplish while wearing a biosuit and strapped into an aircraft. 3*f course it is,3 he said. 3;ut its discrimination that ma"es sense, so it!s allowed.3 3I see,3 (en repeated, his mind ta"ing a moment but finally finding logic there. 3There is another aircraft you!d probably en'oy flying though,3 Jacob said. 3*h43

3The ,ummingbird,3 he told him. 3It!s a pilot!s aircraft, li"e the 8os#uito. 9o computer controls e&cept for navigation and the fly by wire system.3 3The ,ummingbird43 (en as"ed, thin"ing that was a pretty pansy+ass name for an aircraft. 3It!s a vertical ta"e off and landing capable aircraft,3 Jacob e&plained. 3Kuite a bit bigger than the 8os#uito. It!s similar to the 'ump 'ets your military used to employ in the pre+.orld .ar III days on 2arth. It!s a twin+engine atmospheric craft with thrusters that swing up and down for the 5T*: effect. In the military we use them to transport special forces teams out into the field and supply them. =ou wouldn!t be able to fly them for us for the same reason you can!t fly the 8os#uito, but there is a civilian counterpart that is used for transporting wor" teams out into the wastelands.3 3%nd I would be allowed to fly the civilian model43 (en as"ed. 3I don!t see why not,3 he answered. 3There!s a training class you can ta"e here in 2den that will get you #ualified. It ta"es about seven months, I thin". %fter that you can go to wor" for the construction industry.3 3,ow much does the training class cost43 Jacob laughed, sha"ing his head a little. 3Still not used to the 8artian way, are you43 he as"ed. 3The class doesn!t cost anything. In fact, you get a standard college stipend for attending. %ll you have to do is #ualify for admission. Since you!ve already been a pilot, I!m sure you wouldn!t have any problem with that.3 39o shit43 (en said, interested. 3 o you have any of these aircraft lying around at the base43 3;et your ass,3 Jacob told him. 3%s soon as we land and get our

gear off we!ll ta"e a wal" down to the hangar.3 (en fell in love with the aircraft at first sight. Sitting atop four landing wheels, the fuselage was about the si$e of that on a ;lac"haw" helicopter, only a little longer and narrower. Inside was space for a pilot, two gunners, and a fully e#uipped ten+ person s#uad. The passengers entered through a ramp that e&tended from the bac". %ttached to the fuselage were two sets of e&tendable wings that were currently folded into the storage position. The forward set was mounted on the bottom of the fuselage, the rear set was mounted on the top. There were four pivoting thrusters to provide momentum, one attached to each wing@fuselage 'unction. 32&actly li"e the civilian version e&cept for the guns,3 Jacob told him. 3The wings e&tend outward to a span of F0 meters. )rom the base, it ta"es off 'ust li"e a regular aircraft. *ut in the wastelands however, it comes to a hover and sets down li"e a helicopter. Ta"es off out there the same way.3 3.hat!s the range43 (en as"ed. 3% thousand "ilometers, 'ust li"e the 8os#uito,3 he replied. 3That!s standard doctrine for all 8artian military aircraft. The civilian model actually has a little more range since it doesn!t have the armor and armament to add e&tra weight.3 3I want it,3 (en said, running his hand over the alloy of the body. Jacob grinned. 3Then we!ll get it for you,3 he said. 3It!s the 8artian way.3

That had been eight days before. Since then, Jacob, true to his word, had arranged for (en to ta"e the #ualification e&am for the ne&t ,ummingbird pilot training class in two months. The day after tomorrow he would ta"e the intra+city train on the si&

hour trip to 2den once again. The e&am itself was touted as a general "nowledge and spatial relationship test designed to determine whether a person had what it too" physically and mentally to fly an aircraft. 8artians, with their paranoia about death, were naturally very careful in whom they selected to fill such rolls in society. In true 8artian fashion there was no means by which to study for the test or to ta"e a sample e&amination to see what you were up against. There were no study boo"s or computer programs, no tutors, no education programs that stuffed you full of 'ust what you would need to succeed. The 8artian view on the matter was that you either had what it too" or you didn!t and that being able to study would 'ust allow a certain number of un#ualified applicants into the fold, applicants that at best would have to be weeded out later, and that at worst would ma"e it through and be an unsafe pilot. The impending trip had been very much on (en!s mind the last few days, occupying most of his wa"ing thoughts. 9ow, however, it was the virtual reality masturbation program that 8arcella was installing him into that was at the forefront of his brain. ,e loo"ed at the helmet she was offering with a mi&ture of trepidation and arousal. 31o ahead and put the helmet on while I hoo" it up to the computer,3 8arcella told him, handing it over. 3%nd what e&actly is this helmet going to do for me43 (en as"ed. 3Is it going to plug into my brain or something li"e that43 39o,3 8arcella said. 3*ur 5A technology is not #uite that advanced, although (aren and her colleagues are loo"ing into the possibilities of direct connect. .hat this helmet does is somewhat similar to what the gloves and the genital attachments do. It sends out electrical impulses that tric" your various nerves into thin"ing they sense the environment of the program you!re running. =our eyes will thin" you!re seeing the environment in three dimensions, your nose will smell the

environment, your ears will hear it, and your tongue will taste it.3 3So if I tell it I!m lic"ing a pussy...3 3=ou!ll feel and taste it,3 she confirmed. 3.ow,3 he said. 3Jac"ing off has come a long ways.3 3)uc"in! aye,3 she told him. 39ow go ahead and put it on.3 ,e put it on. It fit snugly for a moment and then seemed to self ad'ust. ,e had a moment of claustrophobia as blac"ness engulfed him and it seemed li"e he couldn!t breath. The claustrophobia was replaced by wonder when light suddenly bloomed in his vision and he found himself loo"ing at a beautiful par"+li"e landscape. 1reen fields stretched out before him with a small la"e visible in the distance. Bnli"e the real 8artian par"s, there was no ceiling here, no windows. ,e could hear the babbling of a broo" somewhere behind him and he could feel the sensation of a light bree$e against his face. ,e inhaled through his nose and sure enough, the odor of freshly cut grass filled his senses. 3This is the default opening scenery you!re loo"ing at,3 said 8arcella!s voice, which seemed to be coming from thin air somewhere above him. 3=ou!ll notice it loo"s li"e an 2arth landscape. That!s popular among 8artians since we have to live our lives inside. 8ost of us have never actually seen such a thing.3 3Interesting,3 (en said, turning his head this way and that, which allowed him to loo" around at the scenery as if he were really there. 3That!s 'ust the 5A lounge,3 she told him. 3:et!s get to the real interesting part. Tell the computer to access the Manadu Pornorama site.3

(en did as she as"ed. % moment later the field disappeared and he found himself standing in a plush hotel lobby. Sitting behind a des" was a gorgeous, na"ed brunette, her eyes loo"ing at him. She smiled. 31ood morning,3 she told him. 3.elcome to Manadu Pornorama, where your every fantasy is our reality. Please state your name for voice authori$ation.3 3Bh... (en )ra$ier,3 he said. ,er smile grew wider. 3%hhh, 8r. )ra$ier,3 she said. 3.e!ve been e&pecting you. (aren 5alentine has sponsored you for a one+wee" trial pass. This allows you unrestricted access to all our services. .ould you li"e a pre+programmed e&perience or would you prefer to custom+design one43 3-ustom design one,3 8arcella!s voice suggested. 3That!s the best part of Manadu.3 3-ustom design,3 (en said. 35ery good,3 the woman told him. 3I!ll be your assistant in getting your fantasy started. ,ow many se&ual partners would you li"e43 3,ow many43 (en as"ed. 8arcella!s voice chuc"led in his ear. 3I!m telling you, anything goes in here,3 she said. 3=ou can fuc" men, women, geriatrics, animals, underage, or all of them at the same time. :et your imagination run wild.3 3=ou!re "idding,3 (en said. 3Bnderage4 I thought that was illegal.3 3It!s illegal to actually do it,3 she told him. 3It!s not illegal to fantasi$e about it. If four+year olds are your thing, this is the place to do it.3

3That!s disgusting,3 (en told her. 3To each their own,3 8arcella said. 3.hat goes on in the porn sites stays in the porn sites. They are forbidden by law to divulge their clients! fantasies. They don!t even store them as a matter of fact. %nd on that note, I!ll be leaving you now so I can get some meat marinating for dinner. I thin" you!ll be able to figure out things from here.3 3;ut...3 39o buts,3 8arcella said. 3% person!s fantasy is supposed to be their own in the 5A site. Just have fun and I!ll tal" to you when you!re finished.3 She made a few "issing noises and then she was gone. 38r. )ra$ier43 the woman as"ed, her e&pression en#uiring. 3,ave you decided how many se&ual partners you would li"e yet43 ,e too" a deep breath, his mind reeling with the thought that he could program virtually anyone or anything and in as many numbers as he wanted. :eave it to the 8artians to e&pend effort perfecting this sort of technology. %s tempting as it was to go hog+wild and have an entire lesbian nunnery seduce him, he decided to start simple. 3*ne,3 he told her. 3Just one for now.3 3Static,3 she said. 3%nd did you have any particular person in mind4 *r would you prefer to manufacture one43 3,ow about we manufacture one43 he said hesitantly. 3Static,3 she said again. 38ale, female, or hermaphrodite43 ,ermaphrodite4 Jesus -hrist, these people really were twisted. 3Bhh, female please,3 he answered. 3%nd what age would you li"e her to be43

,e thought for a moment, almost said C0 years old, and then remembered that 8artian years were nearly twice as long as 2arth years. 3%round fifteen, I thin".3 35ery good. ,air color and style43 3:ight brunette, shoulder length.3 %fter hair, they discussed s"in color and then body style, and then breasts, and then legs, and then vaginal appearance, the #uestions becoming more and more specific as they went along. It was only after the process was complete and the computer receptionist presented him with a view of what he!d come up with, did he reali$e he had been describing %nnie. 3Jesus,3 he muttered, loo"ing the three+dimensional apparition up and down in awe. It was not a perfect representation of his wife, not by a long shot, but the resemblance was close enough to send a chill up his spine. 3.ill this be static, 8r. )ra$ier43 the receptionist as"ed. 39o,3 he told her. ,e was not #uite ready to engage in a masturbation fantasy starring a woman who loo"ed li"e his dead wife. It was too painful. 39ot good at all.3 3.hat would you li"e to change43 she as"ed. ,e basically started over and created a new woman. This one was younger, only F/ 8artian years old, her hair blonde, her breasts large. .hen presented with the finished product he smiled in satisfaction. She loo"ed li"e a stereotypical male adolescent fantasy girl and nothing at all li"e his dead wife. 3Perfect,3 he told the computer. 3%bsolutely perfect.3 35ery good,3 the woman said. 39ow where would you li"e your fantasy to ta"e place43

3.here43 he as"ed. 3.hat do you mean43 3.hat setting would you li"e to fuc" her in43 3Bh... what are the choices43 3*ur database is all inclusive,3 she said. 3%ny "nown geographical location can be recreated. Should I tell you some of our more popular choices43 3Sure,3 he said. 3The top dec" of the old %gricorp ;uilding is very popular. This can be done with or without bystanders of course. The ,oneymoon Suite of the .hiting :u&ury ,otel in orbit of Ahea is another static one. The views of Jupiter are #uite ran"in. Inside of a bio+shelter atop *lympus 8ons is commonly pic"ed by the adventurous types. If you prefer 2arth locations we have an e&tensive database of those as well. =ou can be placed atop a roc" outcropping in the 1rand -anyon, be put inside a hot air balloon at /000 meters altitude over any geographic location, visit any of the famous hotel suites, past and present, or even be put out on a sailing vessel in the middle of the ocean.3 39o shit43 he said, fascinated. 39o shit,3 she replied. 3,ow about the hot air balloon over the 1rand -anyon4 Is that possible43 3)uc"in! aye,3 she confirmed. 3Sounds good,3 he said. 3;oo" it.3 3.ould you li"e the modern 1rand -anyon or the historic one43 3Bh... what!s the difference43

3The modern 1rand -anyon has residential comple&es lining both sides of it and the river below has been dammed in several places. 8any of our visitors prefer an earlier version of the scenery.3 32arlier version, definitely,3 he said. 3.hat 2arth year would you li"e43 she as"ed. 3.e can simulate the 1rand -anyon!s appearance from early formation period to modern times.3 ,e paused for a moment to consider this, thin"ing how static it would be to see the 1rand -anyon during its early formation period, but finally elected to go with /00C, the year he was shot. 3/00C it is,3 she said. 39ow what would you li"e your partner to be wearing43 3,mmm,3 he said, considering. 3,ow about a white summer dress with lacy white panties on beneath4 9obody wears any fuc"in! panties on 8ars and I "ind of miss ta"ing them off.3 3.hite summer dress and lacy white panties,3 the woman said, unsmiling at his 'ibe. 3Jesus, I!m 'o"ing with a damn computer image,3 he said, giving a sha"e of the head. %gain, the woman made no comment. She simply as"ed him a few more #uestions about the fantasy he was constructing, finali$ing the details of whether he wanted his partner to be dominant or submissive, willing or reluctant, passionate or passive. ,e answered everything, becoming more e&cited by each en#uiry, and finally the woman declared she had enough information to begin his program. 32n'oy your whac"+off,3 she told him. 3.hen done, 'ust say7 !get me the fuc" out! and you will be returned to the main menu.3

,e opened his mouth to than" her but before he could, the hotel lobby disappeared, the woman with it. ,e was in blac"ness for a few seconds and then the panorama of the 1rand -anyon suddenly opened up all around him, his perspective that of a man floating about si& thousand feet above it. 3,oly shit,3 he said in awe, grappling for a second with his e#uilibrium. The illusion was nearly perfect in all ways. )ar below he could see the canyon stretching off before him, could see shadows cast by the late afternoon sun, could see wispy clouds floating by above, could see the tric"le of the -olorado Aiver running through the midst of the canyon floor. %bove him, a colorful red and blue hot air balloon reached into the s"y. ;efore him and around him, the wic"er bas"et of the balloon encircled him. ,e could feel the soft bree$e against his face, could hear the flapping of the canvas, could smell the sharp odor of propane gas, could feel his hands gripping the railing of the bas"et. ,e turned around to ta"e in the scenery behind him and there stood his fantasy woman, leaning against the railing of the bas"et on the other side, her blue eyes loo"ing at him, a smile on her face. %s with the scenery, the visual illusion of her was perfect. It really loo"ed li"e a blonde woman in a white summer dress was standing before him. The e&pression on her face was one of e&cited arousal. 3I really love it up here, (en,3 she said, her voice soft and se&y. 3)lying ma"es me sooooo horny.3 3 oes it43 he said, his eyes loo"ing her body up and down now and ignoring the staggering scenery. 3*h yes,3 she said, leaning bac" a little more. She let her legs open slightly and her hands went down to the hem of her dress. Slowly, sensuously, she began to pull it up. 3 id I show you my new panties43 she as"ed him.

39o,3 he said, feeling his coc" stiffen beneath the probe. 3I haven!t seen them yet.3 She pulled the dress up higher, until the panties became visible. They were 'ust as he!d described+white and lacy. The crotch was slightly damp. 3.hat do you thin"43 she as"ed him. 35ery nice,3 he said, almost forgetting that he was tal"ing to a computer illusion. 35ery nice indeed.3 3.ouldn!t you li"e to ta"e them off and get a better loo"43 she as"ed coyly, opening her legs 'ust a little more. 3=es,3 he said. 3I thin" I would.3 ,ere is where some of the limitations of the virtual environment became apparent. espite what his eyes were seeing, (en was not actually standing in a balloon, he was sitting in a des" chair. The only sensory inputs being simulated for him were on his hands, head, and coc". ,is legs still felt the chair beneath him. ,is feet "new they were not really in a standing position. %nd, though he could loo" down at himself and see a simulated body, he could not actually move it himself. *nly his hands and head responded to movements from his actual body. ,e had to rely on the computer to ma"e the movements for him. The computer did so a second later, moving his simulated body into a "neeling position before the simulated woman. This gave him a momentary sensation of vertigo but it #uic"ly passed as he stared at a close+up view of the spar"ling white panties. ,e too" a deep breath and caught 'ust the faintest odor of aroused mus" in his nose. ,e then reached out with his hands and put them on the outside of her thighs, feeling soft, feminine s"in on his fingertips. 39ice,3 he said, running his fingers up and down a few times. The computer woman cooed at his touch.

,e let his hands slide upward to the top of the panties and he inserted his fingers into the band. ,e pulled downward and they slid down her legs, baring a wet, aroused pussy capped with neatly trimmed blonde hair. The odor of mus" grew stronger in his nose as he pulled the panties off her legs. 3=ou!re not loo"ing at my panties,3 the woman said playfully. 3 id you find something more interesting43 3=es,3 he said. 3I thin" I did.3 ,e let his finger slide through her pubic hair and across the wetness of her lips. ,e slid it in past the first "nuc"le, twisting it and turning it a few times. %gain, he was ama$ed by how realistic the sensation was. 38aybe you!d li"e to give it a little "iss43 the woman as"ed him. 3*h yeah,3 (en said, leaning forward and doing 'ust that. ,e stuc" out his tongue and lic"ed between the two lips, gathering 'uices on his tongue, tasting the tart tang of her. She moaned deliciously at the contact. %s he had programmed her to be, she was very responsive to his touch. ,e lic"ed her up and down for a few minutes, running his hands up and down her legs as he did so, occasionally s#uee$ing her tight ass. (nowing this was not a real woman, he #uic"ly became bored with this activity and his coc" was now straining for release. 3I!m gonna fuc" you now,3 he said, signaling to the computer that it was time to move onto that activity. 3*h yes,3 she said, and a second later, (en!s computer body was standing, his head even with hers. 3Should I put it in43 3=es,3 he told her. 3Put it in.3

She spread her legs a little wider, opening herself up, and then her hand reached down and grabbed his computer coc". %s she did, he felt the sensation of a soft, dainty hand gripping his real coc". ,e felt as if he were being pulled forward and then rubbed through the slippery wetness of her lips. 31ive it to me hard,3 she said. ,e pushed forward with his hips in his des" chair and at the same time, his simulated hips moved forward as well. ,e felt his coc" sliding into a tight, slippery sheath, felt the clench of muscles gripping him. 39ice,3 he said. 35ery nice.3 3*h yes,3 the woman said. 3)uc" me. )uc" me hard<3 ,e began to move in and out, fuc"ing her, his hands gripping her by the waist. %s before, there was really no mista"ing what he was doing now for the real thing. Though the sensation on his coc" was perfect in every way and coordinated e&actly with the thrusts he was doing, it was only his coc" that felt it. ,e could not feel her legs pushing on his, could not feel her stomach nestled into him, could not feel her arms wrapped around his bac". %nd though he could "iss her, could even put his tongue in her mouth+again with perfect simulation of the sensations+he could feel no contact with her from the chin down. ;ut this activity was not designed to replace the real thing or to fool a person into thin"ing it was the real thing. This was simply an upgraded version of 'ac"ing off to Internet porn from his day and it that regard, it was far superior. It too" only a few minutes of pushing his simulated coc" in and out of the woman and listening to her whisper e&citing, nasty things in his ear, before orgasm came upon him. ,e began to move faster, more erratically, and soon he was groaning out his pleasure as the spasms of delight coursed through his body. ,e came hard,

feeling li"e he was shooting his come into a gripping, slippery pussy instead of into an electronic simulation device. (en too" a moment to stare out at the ama$ing scenery while he caught his breath. The woman let her dress fall bac" over her thighs but said nothing further. She simply smiled at him dreamily. )inally, with nothing left to do, he said, 31et me the fuc" out of here.3 Instantly he found himself bac" in the hotel lobby, loo"ing at the na"ed receptionist. 3 id you en'oy your whac"+off43 she as"ed him. 3=es, than" you,3 he told her. 3Static,3 she said. 3.ould you li"e to construct another fantasy, 'oin in a pre+programmed one, or leave Manadu Pornorama for now43 3I!ll leave for now,3 he said. 31oodbye, visit us again soon.3 The hotel lobby disappeared and he found himself standing in the field once again. ,e reached up with his hands and removed the mas" from his head, returning him to the reality of the bedroom. ,is hands were still in the gloves and his wilted coc" was still encased with the stimulation device. 9e&t to his chair, Peanut was lying on his side, sleeping, soft snores coming from his trun". ,e removed the gloves and set them on the des". ,e then reached down and e&tricated his coc" from the device. The inside of it was filled with his semen. ,e unplugged the coa&ial cable that connected it to the computer terminal and then stood up. Peanut, hearing him stand, wo"e up and loo"ed at him.

3I thin" I!m starting to li"e it here on 8ars,3 he said to Peanut as he wal"ed to the bathroom. Peanut, in the manner that elephants had, gave a trumpet of approval at this statement. The 8SS Ingram drifted silently above the planet 2arth, E00 "ilometers above the cloud tops, completing one orbit every IC minutes. The ultra+modern ship was ?0 meters long with a beam of F0 meters. Its fusion engines were currently at idle, doing no more than providing power for the life support systems, the computers, and the temperature regulation system. The ship was constructed of radar absorbent materials that prevented even the smallest of returns from that anti#uated detection system. The temperature regulation system+one of the most advanced on any ship in the solar system+"ept the hull temperature at a constant, neutral level that would not show up on any active or passive infrared detection system. In short, Ingram was a stealth platform, an invisible shadow being pulled in endless circles over the 2arth. It had been circling the planet more than a wee" now, actually below the 2ast,em and .est,em orbiting cities and naval bases. The 2arthlings had no idea it was there, and would not have believed it was possible for a 8artian ship to approach their planet so closely. -rewed with D0 8artian naval personnel and /0 members of the 8artian 8ilitary Intelligence department, Ingram!s mission was intelligence and espionage. The outside of its hull Gthe 8artians did not refer to their ships as 3he3 or 3she,3 'ust 3it3H bristled with passive sensors that pulled in and recorded every electromagnetic fre#uency in every "nown spectrum. These sensors collected radio waves, digital signals, even communications lasers, as they were beamed bac" and forth between ground stations, orbital platforms, and relay satellites. Inside the ship itself, computers running decryption programs years more advanced than what 2arth mathematicians and engineers could even dream of, wor"ed around the cloc" decoding these signals and putting them into readable form. The 2arthlings would have been #uite surprised to learn that

the 8artians they held in such contempt were able to access almost anything sent from place to place or stored in a database somewhere. *nly the most secure government and corporate sites were hidden from them, and this was only because accessing such places would be detectable, not because it couldn!t be done. Julie ittmeyer was a member of the Intelligence crew. ,er designation was that of 3)ield *perative,3 which meant she was an e&pert in 2arthling language annunciation and had been specially trained to operate covertly in .est,em or 2ast,em society. :i"e most employed 8artians, she too" her 'ob seriously and was very good at what she did. She could fit in anywhere on 2arth or on the 2arth space colonies and fool the inhabitants into thin"ing she was a native. In the course of her four year career as an operative she had made seven covert trips to 2arth, posing as a military officer, a prostitute, an accountant, a police officer, and even a ;aptist minister on one memorable occasion. 9ot once had her true identity been detected or even suspected. %s the Ingram approached the west coast of South %frica on its F0?th orbit of this special mission, Julie was strapped into an e&ercise machine, going through the dull rigor of her re#uired daily physical wor"out. Bnli"e most other spaceships, both civilian and military, stealth platforms were not e#uipped with artificial gravity or inertial damping since the heat and electromagnetic waves created would destroy the stealth effect. This meant the men and women who crewed them were forced to live for several months at a time in either $ero gravity or the e&tremely low gravity that came from acceleration. ;ecause of this, physical e&ercise was mandatory to "eep the muscles and vital organs from atrophy. ressed in a tight pair of cotton shorts and a see+through athletic brassiere, she was twenty+five minutes into the wor"out and sweating freely, the drops beading up on her s"in and occasionally brea"ing free to float about the room until the ventilation system captured them and

suc"ed them in. She had the windowless wor"out room all to herself at the moment+a rare instance of privacy on the crowded vessel+and, as such, she had the Internet system set to a music station and cran"ing out the tunes at top volume. She sang along with one of the more popular 8artian tunes, her arms and legs pulling and pushing the hydraulic resistance bars to the beat. She loo"ed up in annoyance as the music suddenly cut out, overridden by the ship!s intercom system. ,er annoyance increased when her name was mentioned in the announcement. 3 ittmeyer,3 came the voice of Aon Sampson, the commander of the Intelligence contingent, 3get your cute little ass to I-- on the double.3 3)uc"head,3 she muttered under her breath, letting the e&ercise machine return slowly to the neutral position. She loo"ed up at the ceiling. 3-omputer, open com lin" to Sampson.3 3)uc"in! aye,3 the computer replied. 3:in" is open.3 3Aon, this is Julie,3 she said, still loo"ing at the ceiling. 3,ow important is this shit4 I!m doing my wor"out right now. -an it wait a few43 3-an!t wait, Sweet -unt,3 he told her, using a term of endearment he!d given her when they used to fuc" each other a few months earlier. 3I!ve got an assignment for you. Just towel off and get your ass on up here.3 3)uc"in! aye,3 she told him with a sigh. 3I guess you!re used to seeing me all sweaty, ain!t ya43 3I guess I am,3 he said with a laugh. 3See you in a few.3 She disengaged herself from the machine and allowed her body to drift up into the air. She spun around so she was facing the

front of the room and then "ic"ed off the wall with her feet, propelling herself toward her water bottle and her towel. She pic"ed up the former and had a long drin" of the cool water before pic"ing up the latter and toweling the sweat from her smooth s"in. She stowed both in her wor"out bag and then "ic"ed off the wall again, propelling herself over to the hatch and the ladder that led upward. Bnli"e a conventional spaceship, which was oriented towards fore and aft li"e a seagoing ship, a stealth ship was oriented up and down, li"e a stationary building. ;ecause of this design feature the crew was able to ta"e advantage of the meager gravity produced when the ship was under acceleration, and actually stand on the floor or sit in a chair or climb up and down the ladders between dec"s instead of being pushed constantly bac"ward. -urrently the ship was not under acceleration, of course, so instead of climbing the ladder, Julie simply used her arms to pull herself to the ne&t dec". She continued upward, moving through five more dec"s, passing sailors going about their daily tas"s and a few of her colleagues going about theirs. 8ost gave a friendly wave and a smile to her as she passed. The crew of the Ingram, as on most stealth ships, was small enough to be li"e family. )inally she reached the level 'ust below the command bridge. ,ere, ne&t to the tiny wardroom, was the larger intelligence command center, the only restricted portion on the entire ship. She put her finger on the computer pad and the door slid open, revealing a soundproof room, ten by ten meters, completely pac"ed with computer terminals and monitoring devices. %bout half of the intelligence team were currently at wor" behind those terminals, most staring intently at whatever they were trac"ing, some spea"ing softly to their computers. % large computer monitor was mounted at the front of the room. It was currently showing a view of the planetary surface below, along with a collection of digital cloc"s displaying current time for various portions of the planet. 9ear the rear of the room, at a

des" that was slightly elevated above everything else, sat Aon Sampson. ,e was a good+loo"ing man of primarily %frican descent. ,is head was shaved bald and his only clothing was a pair of green shorts that barely covered his genitals. ,e was strapped loosely into his chair by 5elcro fasteners to "eep from drifting upward. 3,ey, Sweet -unt,3 he hailed as Julie drifted over the top of the other team members and settled down in the chair ne&t to his. 3,ey, Stubby -oc",3 she returned, a sweet smile on her face. She "new that particular nic"name irritated him to no end. 3It may be stubby,3 he told her, 3but I!ve never had any complaints about its functionality, have I43 She had to admit he was right, of course. She had fuc"ed him numerous times since being assigned to his team the year before and even by 8artian standards, he was e&tremely good at se&uality. ,e could move his fat, stubby coc" in such a way that made it seem centimeters longer than it actually was. ,e was especially good at $ero gravity fuc"ing, an activity that was the main means of off+duty entertainment when assigned to a stealth ship. 39o,3 she told him. 3=ou really haven!t. In fact, maybe you could give me another sample of it after watch tonight, 'ust so I can ma"e sure43 3I!d love to,3 he said, 3but I!ve been invited to a $ero+1 botch party with the 2ngineering epartment tonight. ;esides, I thin" you!re gonna be a little busy studying your new identity to ma"e use of any appendages.3 This was the signal that the raunchy formalities of the meeting had come to an end and it was time to tal" business. In typical 8artian fashion, Julie turned immediately serious and assigned her complete attention to the discussion at hand. 3=ou found something we can use down there43

3.e thin" so,3 he told her, his own e&pression becoming serious as well. 32ver since 1overnor ;rown activated *peration -ounterdrop, we!ve been searching for some way to get someone close to one of the .est,em scientists involved in their :emondrop pro'ect. %s you "now, it!s absolutely vital that we find out e&actly what they plan to do when they activate that reactor. If we don!t "now the specific details, we won!t be able to counter it.3 3.hich means we!re going to have to get someone to loosen his or her lips,3 she said. 3Is there someone on the team who might be inclined to do that43 38aybe,3 he said. 3.e!ve been scouring through Internet records ever since we established orbit. .e!ve loo"ed into everything available about every "nown scientist on the team. Several wea"nesses have turned up that we may be able to e&ploit. =ou!re going to go after one of the most promising ones. *f course, for security reasons, I won!t tell you anything about the others.3 3*f course,3 she said. 3.hat!s mine4 %re we tal"ing ideology, money, or se& as the motivating factor43 3Se&.3 She smiled, letting the serious e&pression slip 'ust a bit. 3%hhh, the most en'oyable way to wor" a contact. .ho is he43 3,e is a she actually,3 Aon said. 3-omputer, open file on r. %manda ,esper.3 3)uc"in! aye,3 the computer replied. % second later a female face appeared on the screen before them. It was a face that could have been pretty had its owner tried to ma"e it so. The eyes were bright, the nose small and aristocratically pointed, the lips narrow and tight. The hair that framed this face was long but was pulled bac" into a tight, conservative bun right out of the

early twenty+first century. %n 2arthling word+3nerd3+came immediately to mind when one loo"ed at the photograph. 3This is my mar"43 Julie as"ed, her trained memory ta"ing in all the details. 3This is your mar",3 Aon confirmed. 3%manda ,ester. )orty earth years old. 2mployed by Sythro :aboratories Incorporated and assigned a top secret security clearance by the .est,em government. She holds a doctoral degree in #uantum physics and has been identified as a primary member of the .est,em :emondrop team. In the past four years she has made three trips to their deep space research station where the reactor is being built. The probability that she would "now the details we need in order to successfully pull off -ounterdrop is rated as e&tremely high.3 3I see,3 Julie said. 3%nd you have reason to believe she might be inclined to spill those details to me43 3.e have reason to believe that,3 he said. 3.e!ve determined that ,esper is a lesbian.3 Julie nodded. 3In the closet I assume43 Society in both .est,em and 2ast,em tended to endlessly cycle through periods of liberalism and conservatism in regard to se&uality and interpersonal relationships. These cycles were appro&imately forty to fifty years long and in constant opposition among the two halves of the planet. -urrently, as was well "nown by the 8artian intelligence services, 2ast,em was in a wildly liberal state and .est,em was in a staunchly conservative state. Aeligious fundamentalism and rigid family values were the domineering themes of life in .est,em. 3)uc"in! aye,3 Aon agreed. 3,omose&uality in .est,em, along with e&tra+marital and pre+marital heterose&ual se&, has been illegal since the so+called Public 8orals %ct of /F?0. This puts r. ,esper in a particularly vulnerable position. If she were

caught engaging in !immoral se&uality, ! her security clearance would be immediately voided, she would lose her 'ob, they would revo"e her doctorate degree, and she would be charged with a criminal offense. So, yes, she "eeps this aspect of her personality well+hidden.3 3;ut not well+hidden enough, apparently43 39ot from the all+seeing eyes of the 8artian Intelligence Service,3 he said with a sly grin. 3It really is astounding how little respect the 2arthlings have for our capabilities. They "now our computer programmers and mathematicians are years ahead of theirs yet they refuse to even fathom what we!ve been able to do with this technological edge. .e "now everything %manda ,esper has ever done from the time she activated her first P- at the age of si& to what she bought at the store yesterday evening. 2very monetary transaction, every school paper, every evaluation, every photograph of her, every e+mail she ever sent or received is all stored in databases we can access. The only thing we can!t loo" at is her file with the )ederal Investigation ;ureau and her personnel file with Sythro.3 3%nd a pattern has turned up43 3% definite pattern,3 he said. 3She!s been careful all of her life to "eep her desires suppressed. She does not act on her ingrained se&uality very often and when she does, she is discreet to the point of paranoia. 9evertheless, though there are some things she can conceal from the .est,em )I;, our ability to cross+ reference various databases ma"es it impossible to conceal from us.3 3.hat do we have43 ,e tapped the screen with his finger, calling up a new window. 9ow showing was a list of various files that had been dug up on %manda ,esper. ,e tapped the first one. 3%ge FC,3 he said.

3%nd all of these ages are in 2arth years for simplicity.3 3)uc"in! aye,3 Julie said. 3%t age FC she was ta"en to a psychiatrist by her mother. *f course, the records were sealed but we were able to find them and access them in the psychiatrist!s inactive file. It seems %manda!s mother caught young %manda and her best friend na"ed in bed together, their fingers caressing each other!s pussies. %t this point in .est,em medical circles, homose&uality was considered a mental disorder that could be treated, particularly among the adolescents.3 3They certainly cycle in and out of that school of thought, don!t they43 Julie as"ed, a sad sha"e of the head. 8artian medicine, which was eons more advanced than 2arthling medicine, had conclusively proven more than two decades before that homose&uality+pure homose&uality as opposed to e&perimentation+was actually biological in nature, rooted deep within the brain. It was not something that could be 3cured3 or 3caused3 or 3prevented.3 3,ow it is classified depends on where they are in the cycle of society. .hen they!re entrenched in the conservative part of the cycle they loo" at it as a psychological problem and classify it as a crime. .hen they!re in the liberal part of the cycle they loo" at it as an aberration but a #uasi+acceptable one. In any case, shrin"s saw both %manda and her friend after they were caught together. ;y e&amining the transcripts of both sessions we!ve determined that %manda was the initiator of the se&ual contact and the prime driver of it. The other girl felt tremendous guilt for en'oying what happened between her and her friend and is currently a practicing, committed heterose&ual by all indications. %manda herself felt a small measure of societal induced guilt but none at the act itself. She continued through si& wee"s of intensive therapy that the .est,ems thought would cure her of her misguided feelings for females.3

3%nd it didn!t wor"43 Julie as"ed sarcastically. 39ope,3 he said. 3.e had r. 8ing loo" over the file...3 r. 8ing was the intelligence team!s psychiatric e&pert, 3and he concludes that %manda+a very bright young woman+simply fa"ed the signs they were loo"ing for, told them what they wanted to hear, and was declared cured at the end of the therapy.3 3Si& wee"s and you!re cured,3 Julie laughed. 3Those .est,ems have a solution for everything, don!t they43 3)uc"in! aye. .e should be envious of them. ;ut anyway, that!s our first indication. The ne&t comes three years later, when she was si&teen. She graduated high school two years early and was a freshman at the Bniversity of Spo"ane. She had a brief se&ual affair with a woman she met in her Sociology elective class. This was determined through emails and te&t messages the two of them e&changed during the relationship. It seems they bro"e up because the older woman wanted to ma"e their relationship more open. There is a small but vocal segment of .est,em society that believes in challenging the Public 8orals %ct by flaunting their lifestyle. %manda, even then, was focused on her career path and determined to "eep her se&uality secret. They parted on bad terms but the relationship was never e&posed. 3%fter that, she avoided relationships for a while. )rom her te&t messages and emails, it appears she had the occasional one+ night stand with other closet lesbians, including one of her physics instructors, but other than that, she avoided female+ female contact. She had several boyfriends during this period, and it appears she had se&ual relations with them at societally appropriate times. Though pre+marital se& is technically illegal it is perhaps the most commonly violated law in .est,em and, for the most part, the authorities pretend it doesn!t happen as long as the participants don!t draw too much attention to themselves. .ith %manda, these relationships were usually short and always terminated by the male in #uestion. The

common complaint we read in the emails these men e&changed with their friends after the brea"ups was she was unfeeling and listless, as if she 'ust didn!t give a damn about them, didn!t see them as people. r. 8ing tells us this is #uite typical behavior for a closet homose&ual attempting to "eep up normal appearances.3 3This pattern continued until her second year of post+graduate study at Stanford Bniversity in -alifornia. There she had an e&tended relationship with a woman she met while doing re#uired volunteer wor" at a local hospital. The woman+:oraine (ensington was her name+was a nurse who was married to a prominent doctor. %gain, most of this relationship has been reconstructed by reading the emails and te&t messages they e&changed. ;oth of them were very careful not to leave any other trail that the average 2arthling intelligence official would!ve been able to follow. This affair started off as a friendship at first. The messages they e&changed for the first five months were non+se&ual in nature, 'ust the correspondence of good friends. r. 8ing says it is #uite li"ely that %manda and :oraine were in love with each other and that both were so careful to "eep their true desires hidden, neither made a move for the longest time. This changed very suddenly when the two of them too" an overnight trip to the :a"e Tahoe area for s"iing. They stayed in the same hotel room together and had a little too much alcohol before retiring. It!s unclear who made the first move, but they became lovers that night, "ic"ing off a very intense se&ual affair that lasted for nearly two years.3 3They carried on for two years43 Julie said with a whistle. 3%nd they were very careful about it. They communicated through te&t messaging only, which is thought by the .est,ems to be uninterceptable. They met either in %manda!s apartment or in :oraine!s house when her husband and children were not at home. They never met in a hotel room or in any place where a transaction record would be generated. This affair was never discovered by the woman!s husband or any of

%manda!s friends as far as we can tell. There is obviously no record of it in the bac"ground investigation she underwent prior to receiving her security clearance or she never would have received it. The affair ended abruptly one night and the two never communicated with each other again.3 3.hat happened43 Julie wanted to "now. 3.e!re not entirely sure,3 he replied. 3.e have email e&changes indicating they planned to meet at %manda!s apartment on the night in #uestion. The ne&t day, communication between the two of them ceased entirely and they never saw each other again. There was no hint of problems between them up to this point so we must conclude that something strange happened during the meeting itself. Perhaps they had a fight and bro"e up, but r. 8ing says it!s unli"ely a single fight, no matter what the sub'ect, would have "ept them apart indefinitely. .hatever it was, it was significantly traumati$ing to both of them to ma"e them swear off their natural inclinations for #uite some time.3 3*h43 3.e bac"+chec"ed :oraine 'ust as a matter of course in the investigation. She had no further affairs with women for the ne&t five years. %s for %manda, she stayed away from women for almost eleven years after that night.3 32leven years43 Julie said in near horror. 3She actually went eleven years without se&ual contact43 3.ell, not e&actly. She continued her pattern of dating men for form!s sa"e, and about two years after her brea"+up with :oraine, she married a man named Stephen :ar"spur. ,e was another physicist at the Bniversity where she was employed. Their marriage, by all indications, was about as stale as such a union can possibly be. They divorced after only three years. 9o children were produced. uring this time %manda was a fre#uent downloader of lesbian oriented Internet pornography,

although she was very careful about this as well. She accessed it by means of a false identity. *ur ability to cross+reference databases pic"ed this up. .est,em!s inability to do this means they undoubtedly did not pic" it up.3 3So she li"es hoochie porn43 Julie said thoughtfully. 3She does,3 he said. 3%nd she continued to access it under a variety of identities on a fairly infre#uent but regular basis after the marriage bro"e up. This pattern continues to this day. She accessed such sites as recently as two wee"s ago.3 3%nd she hasn!t downloaded any porn with coc"s and balls in it43 39ot a single time in her life,3 he responded. 3.e also have a record of her utili$ing female prostitutes covered as interior decorating consultants four times over the past si& years.3 3Interior decorating consultants43 Julie as"ed. 3That!s the current ruse the prostitution industry is forced to utili$e in .est,em society. It used to be massage therapists but, as you "now, the act of massaging a human body is one of the things made illegal in the Public 8orals %ct.3 3,ow do those people live43 Julie as"ed, sha"ing her head in bewilderment. 39ot very happily,3 Sampson said. 3In any case, as you can imagine, employing prostitutes is e&tremely ris"y behavior for her. 2ven though she!s utili$ing false identities and ban" accounts to arrange for the services and pay for them, if she were to be caught, she would not only lose her 'ob and her security clearance, she would go to prison for violating the terms of the security clearance. -onsorting with prostitutes is definitely frowned on, for males and females ali"e. r. 8ing tells us these episodes of paid se& are desperation measures,

underta"en when she can!t stand the pressure of going without se&ual gratification anymore. She "nows how dangerous it is to do it, but she 'ust can!t help herself.3 3,ow long has it been since she!s last munched some muff43 Julie as"ed, her "een mind already seeing where he was heading with this. 3She last employed a prostitute fifteen 2arth months ago,3 he answered. 3%s far as we can determine, she has had no other se&ual contact with a woman since then. In fact, other than the prostitutes, she has had no se&ual relationships with women at all since she and :oraine parted company.3 3So she!s ripe for the pic"ing,3 Julie said, a sad smile on her face. She actually felt a considerable amount of empathy for the woman who would become her target, a woman who was prevented from following her own bodily urges by a repressive and hypocritical system. 32&actly,3 Aon said. 3This is the most promising prospect for several reasons. The primary reason, of course, is that she!s desperate for female companionship. The secondary reason is that she lives alone in a fairly e&clusive part of the -alifornia region of .est,em. %s you "now, 2arthlings still buy and sell real estate and housing. %s it happens, the house ne&t door to %manda!s has 'ust gone up for sale.3 3%nd you want me to buy it,3 Julie said. 3)uc"in! aye I do,3 he replied. 3,ere!s the plan. Tell me if it ma"es sense to you.3 3:ay it on me,3 she told him, "nowing of course, that if the plan didn!t ma"e sense, or seemed too dangerous to her, she was e&pected to refuse it. 3.e!ll send you down there and create the cover of a divorced,

professional woman. The 'ob we came up with is a mid+level accountant with %gricorp. This is both vague enough and boring enough so you won!t have to e&plain your 'ob too much to her once a relationship is established. 2veryone "nows that accounting is the most boring 'ob on 2arth, right43 3)uc"in! aye,3 Julie agreed. 3The programming team is already at wor" setting up ban" accounts and a past for you in the .est,em Internet. =ou!re pretty good on 9orth %merican geography, particularly .est -oast, so we!re going to have you born in Seattle. =our parents were both mid+level %gricorp managers as well. =ou were educated at the Bniversity of Seattle and hired by %gricorp shortly after graduation. =ou!ve moved steadily up the ran"s to the position you now hold, wor"ing in Seattle, Spo"ane, Aedding, and San )rancisco before being transferred to Sacramento operations. The house you!ll be buying is in Stoc"ton, I0 "ilometers from Sacramento, where your alleged 'ob is, and E0 "ilometers from :ivermore, where %manda spends most of her wor"ing hours. .e!ll give you a good credit rating and enough capital to #ualify for the house. =ou!ll ma"e an offer the seller won!t turn down and you should be able to move in within one 2arth month. In the meantime, we!ve already rented you an apartment four "ilometers away from the house.3 3.hat about family43 Julie as"ed. %lthough she "new she!d soon get a complete briefing document with every last detail in it, she was curious about how they!d handled this part. 3Parents still live in Seattle, although they are divorced,3 he replied. 3=our e&+husband lives in San )rancisco and you have no contact with him other than to collect your monthly alimony allotment. ,e wor"s for %gricorp too, as a sales representative. =ou have not given birth to the one child you!re allowed yet. That ma"es it short and sweet, yet believable in the unli"ely event anyone goes snooping around your bac" trail.3

3Sounds static,3 she said. 3I!ll have r. 8ing give you a more thorough briefing on the best means of prosecuting this mar", but as you!ve already guessed, romance is the angle we!re going after here. %nd we!re not tal"ing about simple se& either. =ou!re going to have to get closer to her than 'ust muff munching if you want her to spill details of their :emondrop pro'ect. =ou!re going to have to become very close to her and ma"e her feel very close to you.3 3I understand,3 she said. 3%ny problems with seducing a woman43 he as"ed her, more out of formality than anything else. ,e already "new Julie, although primarily heterose&ual, was fond of munching a little muff when the opportunity presented itself. 39o,3 she said. 3%nd she!s actually "ind of cute. I ta"e it the slow approach is the "ey here43 3)uc"in! aye. r. 8ing warns that she!ll be very cautious, possibly even terrified about entering into another relationship with a woman. =ou!re going to have to be her friend first and then gradually wor" the se& into the e#uation.3 3I love a challenge,3 she said. 3.hen do I head down43 3In forty+eight hours we!ll have a window to get you down there. I!ll have the briefing materials to you in an hour so you can start studying them.3

Two days later Julie stood in the main evacuation room amidships, a specially designed biosuit covering her body. Ingram was currently under .081 of acceleration+its ass end pointed into its orbit in order to slow the ship to sub+orbital speed. This allowed Julie, and everyone else on board, to stand on the dec" without floating away... 081 was far from normal

gravity, of course+a simple fle&ing of the calf muscles in the wrong way could propel you all the way up to the ceiling+but it was certainly better than the $ero+1 conditions under which they spent most of their time. Ingram!s captain, Julie "new, absolutely hated performing the covert entry maneuver, which was why they were under acceleration. The entire ship was slowly sin"ing toward the surface of the 2arth, no longer traveling fast enough to maintain an indefinite orbit. If something went wrong with the engines right now, they would be forced to abandon ship and possibly be sub'ected to capture by either 2ast,em or .est,em authorities, at which point they would be treated li"e spies. %lthough such a thing had never happened before, it was within the realm of possibility and enough to cause worry. ;ut the ris" was necessary in order to initiate the mission, and therefore made sense, and therefore was being underta"en. The captain didn!t have to li"e it, but he "new it had to be done. 3I hate these fuc"ing suits,3 Julie said, her voice transmitted through the radio lin" to the room!s intercom system. 3I "now, Julie,3 Aon said soothingly. ,e "new it wasn!t really the suit Julie disli"ed+it was the insertion pod she was about to climb into while dressed in it. To the safety conscious 8artians, the idea of descending to the surface of a hostile planet in an unpowered vehicle, with nothing but a thin layer of heat+proof, radar+absorbent alloy to protect you, was particularly frightening. 2ven though her common sense told her it was perfectly safe, even though past statistics told her an agent had never been "illed, in'ured, or captured because of the insertion method, the mere thought of strea"ing through the atmosphere li"e a meteor and relying on a parachute to "eep you from smashing into the ocean was enough to ma"e her sweat. 39o offense, ittmeyer,3 said :ieutenant -ommander ,oratio 8orales, -aptain of the Ingram, 3but the sooner you get your sweet little butt chee"s in that thing and separate from the ship,

the more time we!ll have to deal with an engine problem if one occurs. So how about shagging ass into the pod now, huh43 Julie gave 8orales a sour loo" but said nothing. :i"e most 8artian naval officers who rose to command ran", he was notoriously stiff with little sense of humor. It came from the awareness of being constantly on the 'ob while out in space, a situation that left one constantly in the serious wor" attitude. 8orales never went to after+hours botch parties in the engineering spaces, never went to the after+hours into&icant bar ad'acent to the "itchen because, for him, there were no after hours. The insertion pod was cylindrical in shape, three meters long by two meters wide. It was set into the bottom of the dec" and connected to hydraulic machinery that would allow it to be lowered into the airloc" on the ne&t dec" down and then e'ected through the side of the ship. It had no windows, 'ust a solid door that was currently standing invitingly open. Julie too" a last loo" at those assembled to see her off and then pic"ed up her watertight bac"pac". She attached it behind her biosuit and then pushed upward with her feet, allowing her to drift into the air. .ith a #uic" twist of her body her legs swung into the pod and the miniscule gravity floated her gently down into the cramped seat. She s#uirmed bac" and forth a few times, settling in, and then pulled the restraint harness over her shoulders and latched it. 3-omputer,3 she said, 3close hatch.3 The computer didn!t answer her verbally but immediately lowered the access door into place and sealed it, hiding her from view. % dim red light blin"ed on in the pod, allowing her to see the computer screen before her, which displayed a series of readouts showing her current status. She ran through a #uic" pre+release chec"list, manually chec"ing pressuri$ation, power level, and a half do$en other things.

3,ow you doing in there, ittmeyer43 came 8orales! voice over the intercom lin" when she finished. 3%ll systems online,3 she reported bac". 3Aeady for e'ection.3 3Stand by for e'ection procedure,3 he told her. 31ood luc" down there. Bse your common sense.3 3)uc"in! aye, -ap,3 she said. 3(ic" me out when ready.3 % moment later she felt the sensation of movement and heard the low+pitched whine of the hydraulic arms in motion. 3=ou!re in the airloc" now, ittmeyer,3 8orales reported. 3 epressuri$ing.3 3-opy,3 she said, ta"ing a few breaths of her canned air. % minute of virtual silence elapsed before 8orales reported the depressuri$ation of the airloc" was complete and the outer doors were opening. Julie, loo"ing at her status screen, confirmed this information. 32'ection in five seconds,3 8orales said. 3:aura be with you. )ive, four, three, two, one.3 There was a sharp 'olt as the hydraulic arm forcibly e'ected the pod from the capsule, "ic"ing it loose into the vacuum of space. Instantly the slight acceleration she had been under disappeared. She didn!t mourn its loss. She "new it would be bac" in spades before long. .ith the pod cut loose and falling toward the planet on its own, Ingram retracted the hydraulic arm, closed the airloc", and cut its engines bac" to idle. %s the pod drifted further and further away, utili$ing the slight momentum supplied to it by the e'ection arm, Ingram used short blasts of its maneuvering thrusters to spin itself around, so the rear end was facing away

from the orbit once more. The engines lit up again, providing . 081 of thrust, only this time in the opposite direction. Slowly, almost immeasurably, the stealth ship began to rise bac" to its normal orbital altitude. *nce there it would cut its engines and drift, remaining on station until either Julie returned safely to orbit or another stealth ship relieved it. In the meantime, however, Ingram had another 'ob to do, one vital to the successful insertion of Julie!s pod. Though the pod itself was constructed of radar+absorbent material and would not produce sufficient heat while in orbit to be detected by infrared scanners, soon it would be contacting the atmosphere of 2arth. There was no possible way to conceal the heat of reentry from the 2ast,em and .est,em trac"ing stations. They would have to be made to thin" the pod was something else, something the governmental authorities would not concern themselves with. ,ac"ing programs on the ship, utili$ing communications lasers on a fre#uency the .est,ems thought unbrea"able and secure, accessed a military satellite lin"ed to the far+space defense and detection system. There, a false radar and infrared image was inserted, giving the software the impression that an iron meteorite, /.0 meters in diameter, had 'ust come into detection range from the direction of the ecliptic. %s the seconds tic"ed by, Ingram!s computers continually updated this false image, creating the illusion the phantom meteorite was moving rapidly toward an intersection with 2arth!s atmosphere. Software in the 2arthling trac"ing system #uic"ly evaluated the speed, mass, and course of this meteorite and determined it was not on a collision course with any orbiting structure and not large enough to pose a danger of a ground stri"e. The computers continued to trac" the ob'ect as a matter of course but, per the programming, no human operator was informed of the ob'ect. Julie!s pod, traveling at /?,000 "ilometers per hour, made three more revolutions of the planet before finally contacting the upper atmosphere over the Indian *cean. 5elocity was

converted to heat by means of atmospheric friction, slowing the pod gently at first and then with considerable force. Ioni$ed plasma was produced from the superheated air, leaving a fiery trail visible on hundreds of trac"ing screens and to the na"ed eyes of hundreds of millions of people on the surface. %t e&actly the same moment as atmospheric contact, the computer+ generated meteorite being produced by Ingram was in e&actly the same geographic location. That display then ended and was replaced by the imagery from the actual pod without so much as a hitch on the scope. 9o alarm was raised. It simply loo"ed li"e a particularly large falling star, the li"es of which occurred at least once a month somewhere on the planet. Inside the pod, the temperature remained a steady C0 degrees but Julie was enduring nearly D1!s of deceleration force. She braced herself uncomfortably, ta"ing shallow, #uic" breaths as the harness bit into her biosuit. It felt as if an elephant was sitting on her chest. )or all the love she had of her 'ob, for all the importance she "new it held, this was the part she hated most. The pod strea"ed over the Indian subcontinent, past the south coast of -hina, and then out over the Pacific *cean, descending rapidly, slowing rapidly, the 1+forces gradually easing up until terminal velocity was reached //,000 meters up in the night s"y 'ust off the coast of -alifornia. )rom here, the pod fell more or less li"e a roc", almost straight down, the interior returned once more to a state of $ero gravity than"s to the free+fall effect. %t /000 meters up, e&plosive bolts blew open a compartment door in the rear of the pod and a large, blac" parachute ballooned out, slowing the fall from terminal velocity to a gentle three meters per second. Bnseen by human eyes, undetected by trac"ing devices, the pod dropped gently into the calm waters of the Pacific eight "ilometers from the Santa -ru$ waterfront. %nother set of e&plosive bolts blew the hatch free. Julie gave a final command to the pod computer system, setting a timer in motion. %s the countdown started, she released her harness and

climbed carefully out of the pod, letting herself fall into the water, her pac" still attached to her bac". She bobbed on the surface for a moment until her suit computer opened a series of valves, allowing ballast water into several bladders on the outside of the suit. ,er buoyancy eliminated, she san" slowly beneath the waves to a depth of /0 meters, at which point compressed air was automatically released into other bladders, creating neutral buoyancy. Bsing a navigation display in her helmet, she aligned herself toward the shore. .ith a command to the suit computer, a water 'et propulsion system attached to the front of her suit activated, providing forward thrust. 8oving at the lightening+fast speed of /.0 "ilometers per hour, she headed ashore. )ive minutes after she set out, the timer in the pod finished its countdown. % series of seals around the bottom of the ship opened up, allowing seawater into the interior. .ithin a minute the pod san" beneath the surface. It fell slowly, la$ily to the bottom, /00 meters below, its purpose served. The trip to shore too" nearly two hours to complete. %s the sea bottom began to slope upward toward the brea"ing waves, the suit automatically ad'usted and read'usted the buoyancy, slowly raising her up. ,er head breached the surface F/0 meters offshore of a sandy beach, three "ilometers south of the main Santa -ru$ pier. % readout in her suit goggles informed her it was 0CC? hours, Pacific Standard Time. Infrared enhancement in the goggles helped her scan the shoreline for signs of human habitation. She spotted a pair of lovers engaged in se&ual congress near the high tide mar" some 000 meters north of her position. *ther than that, the beach was deserted. She angled away from the lovers as much as possible, "eeping her eyes on the loo"out, and finally cleared the brea"ers five minutes later, dragging herself ashore in the heavy suit, her body straining slightly in the gravity that had been mostly absent from her life the past two months. (nowing this was the part of the insertion when she was most vulnerable to

discovery+when she was standing on a hostile shore wearing a 8artian biosuit and in possession of various spy paraphernalia+ she moved as rapidly as possible, #uic"ly finding a place of concealment among the sand dunes. It too" her only three minutes to remove the biosuit from her body. Standing na"ed in the sand, she folded the suit, the face piece, and the control mechanisms into a pac"age small enough to fit into her bac"pac". She then removed a set of .est,em style clothes from the bac"pac" and got dressed. The clothes were much more modest than what the typical 8artian woman wore. .hite nylon panties went over her crotch. ,er large and alluring breasts were pac"ed tightly into a plain white brassiere, the li"es of which had never been seen on 8ars. % pair of baggy cotton pants, drab in color, went on her legs. % loose fitting, long+sleeved cotton shirt, in a matching but e#ually drab color, went over her chest. ,er long brown hair was pulled bac" into a simple ponytail. Sensible blac" shoes went on her feet. ,er s"in almost immediately started to itch from what she considered e&cess adornment. It was a sensation she "new would ta"e two or three days to go away. *nce fully dressed she was indistinguishable from any other upper+middle class 2arthling woman. She had a .est,em model P- clipped onto her waist. If a police officer were to stop and #uestion her, she had already prepared a cover story as to why she was out so late. She could give the story in a perfect 2arthling accent and bac" up the story with a fingerprint on the officer!s patrol computer that would identify her as Julie ittmeyer of C/D0E Spaniard -ourt in Stoc"ton. *nly a search of her bac"pac" would reveal anything out of the ordinary, but this was a worry that was minimal at best since 2arthling police had been pretty much stripped of their ability to search a person!s personal belongings over the years. In the more li"ely event that she was accosted by one of the many thugs that prowled any 2arthling metropolitan area, her P- was capable of delivering an incapacitating 'olt of electricity similar to that of a

tanner. So prepared, she began to wal", wor"ing her way out of the dunes, her pac" strapped securely to her bac". She crossed the narrow strip of beach, coming to a set of concrete steps built into a small hillside. She climbed them and 'ust li"e that, she was in the urban area of Santa -ru$, standing on a boulevard lined with high+rent apartment buildings and private homes whose price tags were in the neighborhood of F00 to F/0 million dollars apiece. The streets supported a little more activity than the beach had. In the alleyways between some of the buildings, homeless 2arthlings prowled, digging through garbage cans to subside on the food the wealthy threw away. )urther down, in a neighborhood a little seedier, a house of prostitution thinly disguised as a card house spilled its light out onto the pavement. %fter ta"ing a moment to orient herself to her location she turned in that direction. 9e&t door to the whorehouse would be a tram station. ,er pod had come down e&actly where it was supposed to and she had come ashore less than fifty meters from her planned ingress point. 9ot bad navigation for a bunch of people who were considered the scum of the solar system by the 2arthlings. 8ore homeless people were lounging around at the elevated tram station, some sleeping on the benches, some begging for handouts. Though Julie!s heart ached for them, she ignored them completely 'ust as a professional upper+middle class .est,em woman should. .hen the magna+train slid into the station ten minutes later she boarded it, utili$ing her fingerprint on the payment screen. The PacificTrans computer detected no problem with her I or with withdrawing O00 from the ban" account that had been created for her out of thin air less than twenty+four hours before. She found a seat near the rear of the mostly+empty train. The ride to the inter+city train station too" only fifteen minutes. *nce there, she purchased admission to Stoc"ton+a ninety+ minute ride. The bullet train left the station only thirty minutes

after her arrival. She pretended to sleep as it strea"ed its way over the low coastal hills and into the central valley of -alifornia+'ust another traveler bushed from a day of traveling. In reality she was #uite wide+awa"e. Though it was 0D00 on the .est -oast of -alifornia, her body rhythm, which was used to life aboard Ingram, thought it was F000, or mid+afternoon. It was summer in the western hemisphere of 2arth and, as such, the sun was 'ust starting to po"e above the eastern hori$on when she arrived in Stoc"ton. The sun seemed so large here, so harsh. Bnli"e the gentle, soothing sun of 8ars, you couldn!t even loo" at this one without having to avert your eyes. %s she wal"ed to the Stoc"ton public transit station ne&t door to the inter+city terminal, she pulled a pair of sunglasses from her poc"et and put them on to cut the glare. Societal norms on 2arth had recently liberali$ed to the point where a woman could wear such things without being considered slutty or unladyli"e. There were even more homeless people on the Stoc"ton loading platform since it was in a much seedier neighborhood. %s she had done in Santa -ru$, she ignored them, occasionally manufacturing a loo" of disgust, as if she was appalled to be in such surroundings. The transit train arrived almost ten minutes late, which was actually pretty good for an 2arth transit system. She climbed aboard among the early morning commuters and waited through si&teen stops and nearly an hour of travel before reaching the ;ellafont Street station in the fashionable section of the city. The landscape here was dominated by the .est,em version of high+rise apartment buildings. 2ach was fifteen to twenty stories tall, containing E0 to F00 units each. Aents were in the range of OF/,000 to OFD,000 per 2arth month. %t the San Joa#uin Towers building, which was owned by one of the largest housing corporations in .est,em, a two+bedroom, C00 s#uare meter apartment was waiting for Julie!s arrival. It would serve as her temporary home until she could facilitate the purchase of the house ne&t door to %manda ,esper. The hac"ers aboard

Ingram had already inserted her name into the accounting and trac"ing computer that controlled day+to+day operations at the San Joa#uin Towers. The database would show that Julie had already toured the apartment, passed a credit and bac"ground chec", provided the management company with first and last month!s rent and a O/0,000 security deposit, and had put her fingerprint to a month+to+month rental agreement. 9ot even the on+site management personnel, if they bothered to loo" at their tenant list, would find any fault with this since the only person listed as having had face to face contact with Julie was a manager who had been transferred to another building some wee"s before and would not be able to tell anyone that the contact in #uestion had never actually occurred. She entered the building without incident, her fingerprint opening the security controlled main lobby doors and the security controlled elevator. The apartment door slid easily open with a simple touch of the finger on the pad. The inside was empty, of course, since no furniture delivery had been arranged yet, but that didn!t bother her. She set the thermostat on the wall for // degrees+the universal temperature on 8ars+and stripped off all of the uncomfortable 2arth clothing, hanging it neatly in the closet. 9ude, she sat on the window ledge loo"ing at the city, memori$ing the layout, chec"ing out her surroundings. Aush hour was now in full swing and the sidewal"s below were crowded with neatly dressed men and women heading toward the public transit stations where they would crowd in li"e cattle. 8eanwhile, in the s"y 000 meters above the higher rooftops, small aircraft "nown as condors $ipped bac" and forth, carrying the wealthier members of society to their respective 'obs. The condors were winged craft with two variable tilt engines. They too" off and landed li"e helicopters, but once in flight, the engines swung downward for hori$ontal flight. The elite who rode in them did not actually fly them, of course. They simply told the flight computer where they wanted to go and a central air traffic control system

coupled with 1PS locaters in the aircraft too" care of the rest. The 2arthling Julie was imitating would not be #uite wealthy enough to own her own condor and would have to suffer the indignities of public transit when she wanted to go from one place to another. She didn!t really mind. .est,ems were not nearly as safety conscious as 8artians and, as a result, the condors occasionally crashed, usually with lethal results. .hen she felt she had the details around her committed to memory, she turned away from the window and pic"ed up her 2arth P-. She used this to access a variety of Internet sites, purchasing furniture, coo"ing utensils, toiletries, and all of the other items she would need to get by as a citi$en of .est,em. The money was deducted from her considerable ban" account or tac"ed onto her considerable line of credit. She ordered rush delivery for everything. :ater, she would have to go out and buy a complete wardrobe, but before she could get to that, she had an appointment to "eep. She had one more change of clothes in her bac"pac", this one a professional business suit favored by .est,em women. She showered, washed and set her hair, and then put the bul"y, uncomfortable clothing on, grimacing as she got a loo" at her appearance in the bathroom mirror. 1od, but these .est,ems were so fuc"ing prudish. The swell of her breasts was almost completely obscured, as was the firmness of her ass. ,ow in the hell was she supposed to attract her mar" when she couldn!t show off her body4 *h well, she would have to use her other assets. She!d done it before. She left the apartment and wal"ed down to the transit station again. This time the train was almost twenty minutes late. .hen she got off, she had to run the three and a half bloc"s to ma"e her appointment. The house she intended to buy was a pleasant loo"ing two+story, thirty 2arth+years old. :i"e most homes built since the .orld .ar III era, it was built on as small of a lot as possible to

conserve precious real estate. There was no lawn, no driveway, no bac"yard, only a small cement strip surrounding the perimeter and separating it from its neighbors. She loo"ed it over only for the briefest of seconds before letting her eyes go to the house ne&t door, where her mar" lived. That house was identical e&cept for the color and the address numbers stenciled near the front door. %manda ,esper, the resident closet lesbian, was nowhere to be seen. Joshua -hambers, the real estate agent representing the house, was there, however. ,e was standing near the front door, a conservative business suit covering his body, a salesman!s grin on his face. 38iss ittmeyer, I presume43 he said, his 2arthling accent thic" and very pompous sounding to her 8artian ears. 3=es indeed,3 she answered, her fa"e but realistic 2arthling accent sounding, if anything, even more pompous than his. 3Than" you for seeing me on such short notice.3 That notice was actually even shorter than he reali$ed. ,e was under the impression that she!d made an appointment to see the house a wee" before+which was indeed very little time in the 2arthling way of doing things. %ctually, the hac"ers had inserted her into his schedule the previous day, ma"ing it loo" li"e she!d made the appointment the previous wee". That was the beauty of automated appointment systems. 39o problem at all,3 he told her. 3=ou pic"ed a fine home to loo" at today. % fine home indeed. .e!ve been getting a lot of en#uiries on this beauty.3 3I!ll bet,3 she said smartly, as if she believed him. In truth, she "new from perusing computer records that the house had been on the mar"et for nearly a year now and the price had been dropped five times. They shoo" hands and he led her inside. The house was neatly

"ept but smelled slightly musty. The furnishings were e&pensive but impractical to a common sense+oriented person. The layout of the house itself was even worse, with much wasted space designed to loo" attractive to the eye but actually serving no useful function. 9one of this mattered to Julie. She oohed and ahhed over everything, playing the part of a superficial, appearance+oriented woman who had stumbled onto the e&act thing she was loo"ing for. .ithout laying it on too terribly thic", she gave -hambers the impression she was a serious prospect for finally unloading this house. 3The as"ing price is nine and a half million,3 -hambers told her when the tour was finished. 3%lthough, in truth, they 'ust might let it go for nine and a #uarter if you!d agree to a #uic" escrow.3 Julie "new they would more than li"ely let it go for eight and a half million, possibly even a flat eight, but she "ept this observation to herself. 8oney, after all, was no ob'ect to her than"s to Ingram!s hac"ers and nine and a half was well within the range of what she would #ualify for. 3That!s a little more than I was really wanting to pay,3 she said politely. 3;ut I really do li"e the house. I!ll have to thin" on it for a day or two if that!s o"ay. I want to go loo" at some of the other prospects I!ve seen since I!ve been loo"ing.3 3*"ay,3 he said dubiously, 3but, li"e I said, there!s been a lot of interest in this property. I!d hate to see you lose it by hesitating too long.3 3I guess I!ll 'ust have to ta"e my chances,3 she told him. They wal"ed outside and spent a moment e&changing a few more pleasantries. %s they stood there, movement from the house ne&t door caught her eye. It was %manda ,esper, wal"ing out of her house to tend to a few flower pots arranged on her front porch. She was dressed casually, though still very conservatively, with a baggy pair of denim 'eans covering her legs and a long+sleeved, drab shirt on her upper body. ,er hair

was pulled bac" into a tight bun. She carried a watering can in her hands and was about to pour some into the first pot when her glance happened onto the two figures fifteen meters away. She was good, Julie thought as she observed the reaction. %n untrained observer would have noticed nothing unusual about the glance she gave them, about the way her eyes lingered for 'ust the briefest of seconds, about the way her breath momentarily stopped, about the slight hesitation in the pouring motion. ;ut Julie was a trained observer and she did notice these things and she had a pretty good idea of 'ust what they meant. %manda had noticed her and had been interested in what she had seen. 5ery interested. Julie returned the ga$e for an instant, flashing a #uic", friendly smile before turning her attention bac" to -hambers and his salesman blather. She didn!t loo" over there again or pay any other sort of attention to %manda. Soon after, she left, wal"ing slowly bac" to the transit station. Two days later, she would return and, at that time, ma"e an offer on the house and put down the re#uired deposit. )rom there, the lawyers would have to get involved. *n 2arth it was impossible to complete any sort of financial transaction for anything worth more than five thousand dollars without securing a lawyer to loo" over the sales agreement. If no snags were met+and there was no reason why there should+she could be moving into the house in about si& wee"s, maybe eight. )rom there, the long, slow seduction could begin.

(en stepped out of the elevator onto the serenity level atop the Bniversity of 8ars at 2den building. The par" setting up here was nicer than that found atop .hiting Bniversity, with a larger duc" pond, more rolling hills, a more e&tensive networ" of paths, even a few short trees. It was also higher, since the B82 building contained a medical school, a complete teaching

hospital, a veterinary science department, and a complete aeronautical and surface+to+orbital engineering department in addition to the standard Bniversity classes and departments. %s such, the building stood F8D stories above the street level of 8ars! largest city. %lthough this serenity level was larger and higher, the view actually left a lot to be desired. ;uilt in the old downtown district from pre+revolutionary days, all that could be seen were other high+rise buildings stretching into the s"y on all sides. (en didn!t mind the lac" of a view outside the windows. ,e had figured out some time before that he actually li"ed loo"ing at the trees and the water and the duc"s instead. The glass walls, the forbidding landscape outside of it, and the pin" s"y above only served to remind him that he was not on his home planet. The par" setting, with its smells, its sounds, its tran#uility, at least gave the illusion of 2arthli"e openness. ,e had been awa"e for si& months now+8ars months, not 2arth months+and li"ed to consider himself fully acclimated to life in the future on a strange planet. Though he still had an 2arthling accent thic" enough to cause fre#uent comment by 8artians he encountered, he had all but mastered their vocabulary and was able to understand pretty much everything said to him, no matter how crude or profane the phrasing. ,e had long since moved out of (aren!s house in 9ew Pittsburgh and into his own small but comfortable apartment in 2den near the Bniversity. ,e was a full time student enrolled in the ,ummingbird training class and getting mar"s near the highest in the program. ,e also had a part+time 'ob as a plow operator in one of the agricultural fields, spending four hours a day, four days a wee" churning up 8artian soil in the greenhouses so new crops could be planted. This helped supplement the /00 credits a month he received for being a student and allowed him to pay for housing nicer than what he could have had for free. Though he lived among college students, most of them nine to eleven years old, which made him sometimes feel as if he were living in

an unsupervised high school summer camp where the inhabitants were allowed unfettered access to beer and mari'uana, it was some place he could call home. .hile living with (aren and, for a short time when he!d first moved, Jacob, he!d always felt li"e a guest, no matter how accommodating and gracious they were as hosts. )or the most part, (en was happy with the life he was living. %s cynical and disbelieving as he!d been at first about the very concept, he had to admit that life on 8ars, under their system of government and laws, really was fair and really did ma"e sense most of the time. 8ost of the 8artians he met were happy and trusting, very friendly by nature, and completely lac"ing in that guarded way of thought that most 2arthlings from his day had been infected with. .hen a business proposition was suggested on 8ars the first thought to come to mind was not7 how is this person trying to screw me4 .hen a stranger struc" up a conversation with you on the transit bus or in an elevator or while waiting in line, the first thought was not7 Is this person potentially dangerous to me4 .hen parents sent their young children off to school or to the scouts or to a gymnastics class, when they hired a babysitter to watch over them for an evening, they did not have to worry that they had 'ust employed a pedophile who was going to ta"e advantage of the situation. Things li"e that simply did not happen here. .hen dealing with the government on any level, there was a startling lac" of bureaucracy involved and one!s thoughts did not turn to how the ultimate of bosses was going to screw you over, cheat you blind, or display criminal incompetence. =ou could wal" the streets of a 8artian city, any city, anywhere within it, and not fear robbery or assault or rape. %nd if some dispute did flair up, either with another person or with a business or even with the government itself, you did not have to hire a lawyer to deal with it, did not have to fear that your side would be dismissed simply because you didn!t ma"e as much money or have as much influence. =es, after observing things in action for one 2arth year now, (en could do nothing but conclude that (aren had been entirely serious that first day in

the hospital when she!d e&plained 8artian society to him. :ife was fair here and it was fair for everyone. This really was a perfect world. ,e wal"ed along the footpath of the serenity level now, his Pclipped to his waistband, his well+bro"en+in moccasins slapping on the concrete. It was lunchtime and around him other people, mostly students but a few faculty as well, were sitting at the picnic tables or stretched out on the grass. Some were studying from their P-s, some were napping, some were do$ing, a few were engaging in some form of se&ual activity. %bout half of the serenity dec" visitors, whether they were engaging in se& or not, were completely nude since nudism was a common and accepted practice in this section of 2den. (en hardly noticed anymore, he had become so used to the sight of people na"ed and even fornicating in public. ,e went to the very bac" corner of the par", where two of the glass walls came together. % small hill was landscaped here and atop it was a walnut tree about eight meters tall. ,e made his way to the base of the tree and sat down against it, facing out over the par" instead of over the landscape. This was his favorite place to spend his study periods, communing with what passed for nature. ,e too" out his P- and, with a few voice commands, soon had a small holographic display of the hydrogen@o&ygen combustion chamber of a ,ummingbird engine floating in the air above his screen. Pilots were re#uired to intimately "now the inner wor"ings of their aircraft and the combustion chamber was the focus of this wee"!s lessons. Since he was naturally mechanically inclined, (en had already memori$ed all of the ma'or parts that made the engine wor". ,e 'ust wanted to go over a few of the minor parts for a test scheduled for later that day. The instructors were notorious hard+asses when it came to learning their material and he did not want to incur their wrath. %s he studied the three+dimensional schematic, touching here and there to switch the view bac" and forth and to e&pand certain pieces for closer e&amination, he reached into the poc"et

of his shorts and pulled out a pac" of unfiltered cigarettes that had been manufactured on the east coast of 9orth %merica and imported to 8ars by %gricorp, the largest food supplier on 2arth. ,e shoo" one out, stuc" it in his mouth, and spar"ed it up using a laser lighter. ,e too" a deep drag and slowly e&haled the smo"e out into the par", feeling the effects of the nicotine coursing through his veins. Smo"ing was something he had done in his previous life but had given up as unhealthy shortly after 'oining the army in his twenties. Though he had always en'oyed the rela&ing sensation of smo"ing, he had not fancied the thought of one day contracting emphysema or lung cancer as the trade+off. ,ere on 8ars, there was really no health+ related reason not to smo"e since cancer had been eliminated as a concern, and emphysema and heart problems were easily cured by cloning a new set of lungs or a new heart and replacing the damaged items. .ith the health concerns ta"en care of, most 8artians no longer considered it against common sense to smo"e and well over three+#uarters of the adult population engaged in the habit these days. (en had resisted for the first three months of his stay on 8ars and then, in a drun"en ha$e at a botch club with Jacob one night, he had lit up the first cigarette when one was offered to him. .ithin a wee" he was smo"ing half a pac" a day again and loving every one of them. % fat brown s#uirrel, one of hundreds that called the Bniversity!s serenity level home, saw (en sitting there and scrambled down the trun" of the tree to the ground. It loo"ed him over for a moment, flipping its bushy tail at him, and then scampered forward until its paws were resting against his outstretched leg. (en loo"ed up at and smiled. 3,ey, buddy,3 he said, reaching forward and scratching the animal between its ears. 3,ow are you doing today43 The s#uirrel chattered insistently at him in reply and then 'umped completely onto his leg, running up until it was perched on his thigh. (en reached into his poc"et again and pulled out an unshelled peanut, a supply of which he habitually carried

around for 'ust such occasions. The s#uirrels of 8ars had been imported from 2arth+where they were an endangered species+in the early post+revolutionary days. They served absolutely no purpose in the artificial environment e&cept for adding a bit of character to the many par"s. Par" visitors rarely, if ever, mistreated them and, as a result, they had completely lost their natural fear of humans over the generations. 3,ere you go,3 (en said, handing over the nut. The s#uirrel happily too" it from his fingers and began to chew it open, leaving a small pile of shell debris on (en!s thigh. 3So you have friends after all, do you43 a female voice said from his side. ,e loo"ed over and saw (elly Stanford standing there. She was one of his classmates in the ,ummingbird class. %t ten years old, she was at the low end of average in age among those striving to be a civilian pilot. :i"e most 8artians, she loo"ed much younger to (en!s eyes than she actually was. She had a very fair comple&ion+a rarity in the hodgepodge of the 8artian gene pool+and flaming red hair that could only be natural. She was not a subscriber to the nudism school of thought and, as such, her small but per"y breasts were covered with a brief half+ top and her lower half was clad in a pair of B82 shorts. She and (en sat ne&t to each other in the class and had studied together a few times up on the serenity level. She en'oyed teasing (en about the solitude he typically displayed, a solitude that went somewhat against the 8artian grain. 3I have a few,3 he said, reaching down and giving the s#uirrel another scratch between the ears. 3%lthough I do seem to attract all the wrong types, don!t I43 She laughed, sitting down ne&t to him without waiting to be invited. 3=ou 2arthlings have the strangest sense of humor,3 she said.

3I!ve heard that a time or two,3 he said. 3I!ve even been told mine is stranger than most.3 3)uc"in! aye,3 she said. 3%lthough I thin" it!s pussy.3 Pussy, he!d come to learn, was a 8artian slang term for cute and cuddly, li"e a rabbit or a s#uirrel. It was the first time he!d heard his sense of humor referred to in that manner. 3I!ll ta"e that as a compliment,3 he replied. She laughed again. 3=ou!ll ta"e that as a compliment,3 she said, sha"ing her head. 3Spread my chee"s and lic" between !em. =ou got a million of !em, don!t you43 3% million and si&,3 he said. 3% million and si&. So what brings you out to my little tree4 ,aving trouble memori$ing the combustion chamber components43 Since this signaled the start of a sub'ect related discussion, she turned immediately serious, the smile fading from her face, her eyes ta"ing on a somber loo". 3I!m down with the anatomy of the chamber,3 she told him. 3It!s the physiology of some of the minor components I!m having a fuc"stic" about. :i"e the ;entley bearing4 Is that for feeding the secondary blow+by recirculation valve, or is that the camber fitting43 3That!s the camber fitting,3 he said. 3The ;entley bearing is what!s connected to the gimble of the primary hydrogen line. It!s what "eeps the pressure constant during fuel fluctuation.3 She shoo" her head in frustration. 3:ic" my clit, I 'ust can!t remember the difference between those fuc"ing things. I swear to :aura, I!m gonna flun" this test today and they!re gonna "ic" my slutty ass out of there. I!ll end up flipping burgers in my mom!s goddamned roach pit for my first career.3 3*h, come on,3 he encouraged, giving her a companionable shove on the shoulder. 3It!s not that bad. :et!s 'ust go over the

chamber part by part again. .e!ll get it.3 She favored him with a grateful smile. 3Than"s, (en,3 she told him. 3=ou have good common sense.3 They started from scratch, both of them loo"ing at holograms of the chamber in #uestion and dissecting each little piece by touching it. It too" the better part of twenty minutes to accomplish since the combustion chamber of a semi+roc"et engine was a fairly complicated piece of machinery. %s they went through each piece they too" turns naming it off and describing its function, both specific and in the greater scheme of things. The parts they had trouble with they went bac" and covered again, flipping to entries in the electronic te&tboo" in order to supply description. 3)eel better now43 (en as"ed her when they finished. 3)uc"in! aye,3 she told him. 3I thin" maybe I!ll get through this test after all.3 31oddamned right you will,3 he said. 3*f course I!ll 'ust flun" the ne&t one when we cover the hydrogen circulation system,3 she said sourly. 3=ou will not,3 (en said. 3.e!ll study that one together too, o"ay43 She smiled again. 3*"ay. Than"s again, (en. =ou really are an infected asshole, you "now that43 This was considered a high compliment on 8ars so he gave the smile bac" to her. 3That!s the nicest thing anyone has ever said to me,3 he said. She scooted closer to him, so her body was in contact with his, shoulder to shoulder, bare leg to bare leg. ,er leg was smooth

and warm. She made sure she rubbed it against his a little, allowing him to feel the femininity of it. 3,ow about I give you a proper than" you for helping me43 she as"ed him, her hand dropping to his thigh, up high, near his crotch. In his early days on 8ars, he would have been embarrassed by such a blatant come+on from a woman with whom he had only a casual ac#uaintance. ,e would!ve said something li"e7 3I li"e helping you, but you really don!t need to than" me.3 Those days had long since gone by the wayside. The moment her soft fingers touched his bare thigh a surge of blood rushed to his coc", stiffening it up. ,e "new 8artians well enough by now to "now that she would not be offering herself to him if she didn!t want him. 3That would be static,3 he said casually, as if she were offering no more than a sip from her drin" or a light for his cigarette. She leaned over him and "issed his nec", slowly and softly, her full lips leaving a dab of saliva on his s"in. %t the same time her hand slid upward, gliding over the e&panding bulge of his coc" beneath his shorts and up to his bare stomach. She rubbed bac" and forth here, 'ust below his navel, her touch barely perceptible but enough to raise goose bumps on his flesh. 38mmm,3 he sighed, his own hand sliding over her bac" and up to the scruff of her nec". ,e caressed her s"in here, scratching it with his fingertips. She "issed his nec" a few more times, ma"ing little love bites and suc"s. She then moved her mouth a little lower, to the point where his chest 'oined his throat. She lic"ed here with broad stro"es, using both the top and the underside of her tongue. ,er hand began to move downward again, this time going under the band of his shorts. % few seconds later, he felt her fingers encircling his coc". She began to slowly 'ac" it up and down, using practiced stro"es, clenching at 'ust the right time. ,e #uic"ly achieved a full and willing erection under this

treatment. She ad'usted her body ne&t to him and then lowered her head to his lap. .ith a #uic" tug of her free hand, his coc" was released from its confines and in the open air of the par". She slurped it into her warm mouth and began to bob her head up and down, suc"ing on each upstro"e, 'ac"ing with her hand on each downstro"e. The sensation was e&#uisite, everything he had come to e&pect from a 8artian woman who had been instructed by the public education system in the ways of human se&uality. 3)uc"in! aye,3 he groaned, his head falling bac"ward in pleasure, his hands coming up to run through her red hair. 38mmm,3 she moaned from around his coc", giving him a particularly enthusiastic suc". Soon, her drool was running down his shaft, wetting his balls. Bsing her free hand she cupped them and smeared her saliva around his sac", ma"ing it slippery and sending tingly sensation throughout his groin. She let one finger play with his ass for 'ust the briefest of seconds and then, when he gave no ob'ection, she inserted it, sliding it in about half an inch. 3%hhhhh,3 he groaned, feeling his body tense up, but in a pleasurable way. *ver the past si& months he had had se&ual encounters with #uite a few 8artian women and had learned to en'oy the anal intrusion that most of them favored. %s long as they confined it to a single finger, it was pleasurable, adding a new dimension to whatever se& act was being performed. It was particularly en'oyable during orgasm. ,e let his left hand slide downward from her head across her bac" and to the bac" of her shorts. ,e went lower, stro"ing the smooth s"in of her upper thighs, letting his fingers delve between them. She opened her legs for him and he pushed two fingers under the crotch of her shorts. ,e found a very wet pussy there, the lips eager to suc" his digits into her body. She

moaned as he penetrated her, her mouth brea"ing stride on his coc" for 'ust the briefest of instances. ,e began to finger+fuc" her, sliding in and out in rhythm to her head bobbing. ,er 'uices #uic"ly began to saturate his hand and drip down onto his wrist. ,er pelvis began to gyrate bac" and forth, her thighs opening even wider, encouraging more and more. 3*h, :aura,3 she said, brea"ing contact with his coc" and raising her head up. ,er face was flushed, with 'ust a hint of perspiration on it. 3.hy don!t we fuc"4 =ou down with that43 3I!m down with it,3 he said, pulling his fingers free. ,e patted his lap. 3-limb aboard.3 She #uic"ly whipped off her shorts, dropping them to the ground. %s was the case with most 8artian women, her vaginal area was completely bare of pubic hair+a result of having the hair+growing genes for this part of the body deactivated. ,er lips were swollen an angry red and very wet. ,er clit was standing at attention, as hard as his coc". ,e too" his own shorts off, completely unmindful of the other occupants of the par", most of whom could plainly see what they were doing. ,e stro"ed his wet coc" with his hand while she swung one leg over his and straddled him. She brought her pussy into contact with the head of his coc", roc"ed bac" and forth a few times to spread the moisture around, and then san" down on him, engulfing him in her tight body. ;oth of them sighed in sheer pleasure at the con'unction. They began to move together, both using practiced motions of hips and pelvis, motions designed to give and receive as much physical sensation as possible. ,is hands went to her ass, his fingers digging into the chee"s, using them as leverage to help move her up and down upon him. ,er hands went to the bac" of his head, her fingers running through his hair.

39ice,3 she said, grinning in arousal. 3I "new you!d be nice.3 3)uc"in! aye,3 he agreed, pushing upward, his mouth going to her nec" and "issing it. She lifted up her shirt, baring her small breasts to him. They were pale, the hard nipples barely dar"er than the surrounding s"in. ,e too" the left one in his mouth, suc"ling it, bathing it in his saliva, even biting it when she encouraged him to do so. ,e then switched to the right nipple, giving it the same treatment, arousing her further and further on the climb toward clima&. %s a general rule, 8artian women did not fa"e orgasms. Se&uality was considered such an important aspect of the culture that pretending for the sa"e of a poor performer!s ego was considered a grave disservice to those who came after. Similarly, it was considered the ultimate in bad manners for a man to allow himself to have an orgasm before the woman had at least one herself. Techni#ues for enhancing the female!s pleasure during coitus while simultaneously controlling the urge to come from the stimulation were taught to 8artian males in middle school and high school. (en had never had such classes of course, but he had enough se&ual e&perience in his previous life to have learned such things on his own. So far he had never committed the ultimate in bad manners with any of the partners he had coupled Gand tripledH with but it was a struggle at times, especially with that manner of clenching their vaginal muscles 8artian women had. .ith (elly, no such struggle was ta"ing place, even though the physical sensation was 'ust as pleasant as with any other woman. ,e had utili$ed his Internet masturbation connection before leaving his apartment that day, engaging in a common fantasy of his that involved a graduating class of -atholic schoolgirls and a bottle of baby oil. That particular session had resulted in two orgasms into the 52 and, as such, he was now able to easily hold off while (elly ground herself to first one and then two clima&es while riding his coc". )inally, sweating and

panting, his hands digging into her ass, his tongue deep within her mouth and dueling with hers, he released the bloc" he had put in place and allowed the mechanisms within to complete their 'ourney. 3=es, oh fuc"in! aye<3 (elly cried enthusiastically as she felt him tensing up, as she felt his thrusts become more powerful, less controlled. 3%hhh,3 he cried, pulling her tightly against him as the pleasure burst throughout his body and the 'ets of semen went blasting up his coc" and into her tightness. They held each other for a few moments, e&changing affectionate "isses, their hands stro"ing softly. *nce the sweat started to dry on their s"in they gave each other one last "iss and (elly climbed off, her pussy disengaging from his coc" with a slurping sound and a drool of their combined 'uices. She stood up, pic"ing her shorts up from the ground and slipping them onto her legs. She pulled them up, catching the 'uices that were oo$ing out of her in the crotch piece, which had been designed by 8artian fashion engineers with 'ust that purpose in mind. 3I!d better get down to the roach pit and grab some chow before we go bac" to class,3 she told him, absently pulling her shirt down over her breasts once again. 3Static,3 (en said, leaning bac" against the tree, not bothering with his shorts for the moment. ,e preferred letting his privates air+dry before dressing. 3-atch you later, (elly.3 3-atch you later,3 she said, giggling. 3=ou and your 2arthling e&pressions. %nyway, have wet dreams.3 3,ave wet dreams,3 he returned. She wal"ed off, heading toward the elevators. ,e watched her go for a moment and then let his eyes wander bac" to the duc"

pond and the trees again, see"ing serenity in his surroundings, finding some, but never #uite as much as he was after. Such was the story of his life here on 8ars. ,e had no complaints about the lifestyle he was living in his second life. :ife on 8ars was li"e living in a cross between a Btopian novel and a pornographic movie. Society was fair for everyone and tilted in favor of no one. Those who were willing to contribute to society were rewarded for their efforts. Those who chose not to contribute were given basic services and nothing more. There was little crime, little conflict, and little day+to+day strife. .hat there was a whole lot of was se&, in every way, shape, form, and function. ,is encounter with (elly was a perfect e&ample of 'ust how casual se&uality had become+ sort of li"e a very intimate handsha"e between ac#uaintances. 9ever, not even in his most adolescent fantasies, had (en ever envisioned a constant flow of varied se& such as he was e&periencing on 8ars. 2ven for someone with a reputation for shyness and "eeping to himself, he was able to get laid on very short notice at least three times a wee", usually with someone he barely "new. %nd if a few days went by without any action and he started to get horny, there was always the botch clubs. %nd even if he was a little short on credits and couldn!t afford to spend a night botching, there was still Internet porn that was almost as good as really getting laid. 9o, there was no se&ual frustration in this life. .hen he needed relief, it was never far away. ;ut even with all of this, he found himself increasingly on the serenity level of the Bniversity or in one of the par"s near his home, staring at the trees, the water, the duc"s and s#uirrels, and trying not to notice the glass walls that surrounded him or the futuristic buildings outside those glass walls, or the alien landscape of 8ars! surface beyond that. ,e found himself longing at times for the smell of burned e&haust, the sound of hon"ing horns, the roar of traffic whi$$ing by him. ,e missed the feel of rain on his face, of ocean fog clinging to his hair and

ma"ing it damp, the feel of a damp, icy wind in his face. In short, he felt li"e a man out of place in his environment, a man a long way from home. The e&pression 3you can!t go home again3 was very much on his mind at times. ,e doubted that anyone, anywhere, had ever been able to apply those words #uite as literally as he could. 2ven if he were to return to 2arth, the planet of his birth, even if he were to ta"e up residence in -alifornia, he would still be in an alien environment, surrounded by people who were generations apart from him, buildings that were covering all of the open spaces he was used to, and a political system that was F88 years more corrupt and malevolent than what he!d left behind. 2&cept for brief, pitifully inade#uate escapes into the virtual reality environments of the Internet, he was trapped forever in a place and time he wasn!t meant to be in. ,e was used to his surroundings now and even en'oyed them most of the time. %fter all, what wasn!t there to en'oy in such a place4 ;ut he "new he would never grow completely ad'usted to things here and would never completely fit in. ,e would 'ust have to ma"e the best of the cards he had been dealt. ,e pic"ed up his shorts and shoo" the loose grass from them. Aaising his hips off the ground, he pulled them bac" over his legs and up, ta"ing a moment to ad'ust them. ,e chec"ed the time on his watch and saw that he still had twenty minutes before class resumed. .ith a small sigh, he pulled his P- from his waist and powered it up. 3-omputer, access storage folders,3 he told it. 3)uc"in! aye,3 it replied in the feminine voice he!d programmed it with. 3.hich files are you down with43 38y pictures,3 he said, and then, 3%nnie.3 3)uc"in! aye. igital photo software is activated for viewing.3

% menu of the pictures appeared on the screen. ,e loo"ed at it for a moment and touched one of them. % second later a picture of %nnie at age CE appeared above the screen in two+ dimensional holographic form. :i"e all of the photos he had of her, it had been pulled from ancient records on the .est,em Internet. The only shots available for him were photos that had been ta"en in some official capacity or put in news publications during her life. This particular shot was an identification photo ta"en by a computer+operated camera in /00E at a 85 office. ,e stared at it for a moment, smiling at his wife!s "ind eyes, at her full mouth, at the face he loved and had hoped to spend the rest of his life with. .ell, things 'ust hadn!t wor"ed out that way, had they4 ,e pic"ed another photo, this one from the San Jose newspaper. It was a shot of her attending his funeral, receiving the folded %merican flag from the captain of the honor guard. She was wearing a blac" dress of mourning and her face appeared composed, although 'ust barely so. ,e didn!t stare at this shot too long as the emotional response it invo"ed was not altogether pleasant. The ne&t shot was from later in her life, after her remarriage, during .orld .ar III. It was another newspaper shot, this time from the -orpus -hristi publication. She was at a blac"+tie fundraiser for the war effort, sitting at a table full of dignitaries. She was wearing a red coc"tail dress that loo"ed absolutely stunning and had a beautiful, happy smile on her face. Sitting ne&t to her, a contented smile on his face as well, was avid ;rown, the man she had married three years after his funeral. It was one of the few photos of ;rown that (en had been able to find. ,e was a handsome man in an average sort of way, older than %nnie by about ten years, it appeared. ,is hair was a dar" blonde color and his eyes were bright blue. ,e loo"ed li"e a decent man if appearances meant anything and, from the family legends (aren and Jacob had told him, that was 'ust what he was. (en had e&pected there to be a resemblance between

;rown and himself+his ego telling him that %nnie had been so much in love with him that ;rown was merely a replacement. ;ut in this he was wrong. ;rown loo"ed nothing li"e (en at all. ,e loo"ed, in fact, li"e the epitome of an investment counselor. (en tried not to harbor any hard feelings towards the man for marrying the love of his life, but sometimes it was hard. Sometimes it was very hard. ,e called up another picture of %nnie, this one of her alone. It had been ta"en in /000, at the dedication ceremonies for the (en )ra$ier regional par", which had been named in honor of him getting his dumb ass blown away. This shot was his favorite. In it, she was standing near the pla#ue that had been placed near the playground in his memory. She was reading the inscription upon it, a pensive loo" on her face. She was wearing a sleeveless white blouse and a pair of tan slac"s. ,er wedding ring was still on her finger in the shot. ,e stared at this picture for a long time. 3%nnie,3 he said softly, spea"ing to her image. 3This is really some "ind of place I!m in now. =ou wouldn!t believe all of the things I!ve seen here, all of the things they have.3 She didn!t answer him. She never did. ,e sighed again and then closed out the picture, leaving only blan"ness behind. 3I 'ust wish you were here to share it with me, hon,3 he said. 39ew Pittsburgh tower, this is civ+air flight si&+nine,3 (en said into the intercom microphone in his bio suit helmet. 3.hat the fuc"!s the haps, civ+air si&+nine43 answered the air traffic controller on duty at the low altitude terminal. (en recogni$ed the voice as belonging to John -allahan, a man he had gone out to into&icant clubs with a few times. John had once allowed (en to fuc" his wife from behind while she fellated him from the front. 3.e!re clear the air+loc" and on the ta&iway. %ll systems are

green. =ou down with it43 3.e!re down with it,3 he confirmed. 31ot your flight plan on my screen now. -onfirm destination and load.3 3)our wor"ers and /00 "ilos of tools, bound for magna+trac" maintenance station C?C+;uttfuc". )uel and o&ygen supplies are at ma&imum, transponder is set, altimeter is calibrated.3 3)uc"in! aye, si&+nine. =ou!re second in line for ta"e+off, behind civ+air four+four. =ou got a visual on it43 (en loo"ed down the ta&iway and saw another hummingbird 000 meters in front of him. It was identical to the one he was now piloting, namely, it was a civilian model that belonged to the nationali$ed 8artian construction and maintenance industry. The civilian models of the aircraft were all painted fluorescent green, a color that contrasted star"ly with the 8artian surface in case search and rescue was ever needed. (en "new that 2lisa 8c1overn, one of his colleagues, was piloting the other aircraft on a mission to transport consumables to yet another magna+trac" maintenance point. 3I got a visual,3 he confirmed. 3I copy I!m second in line for ta"e+off behind her. 9o incomings43 3)uc" no,3 he replied. 39othing until a flight of 8P1 8os#uitoes enter the landing pattern in F0 minutes. 1o ahead and get your ass in the air as soon as four+four clears the runway. .inds are from /?E at CC (P,. Turn left to 0E0 upon ta"e+off. =our assigned altitude until clear of the perimeter is /F00 meters.3 3I!m down with it,3 (en told him, adding a little throttle to the aircraft. 3Tal" to you when I get bac".3 3)uc"in! aye.3 (en pic"ed up speed until he was rolling along the ta&iway at D0

"ilometers per hour. ;efore him, 8artian sand, blown by the constant wind across the surface, created a gentle patter against the windshield. *n 8ars, blowing sand was something every engineer for every piece of machinery or construction had to deal with in some way. The runway and ta&iways he was driving on at the moment had to be plowed twice a day in order to "eep the painted lines visible. *n the aircraft!s air inta"e manifolds, where the thin atmosphere was suc"ed in so the meager amounts of o&ygen could be utili$ed for the semi+roc"et engines, special screens that had to be changed after every three flight hours were in place. 3Ta"e off in about two minutes or so,3 (en said into his flight intercom for the benefit of the four passengers he was carrying. They were sitting in the cargo area, strapped into small seats, all of them wearing biosuits as well. They all nodded at his words and then went bac" to the conversation they were having among themselves. %ll were veterans of ,ummingbird flights and the least e&perienced of them still had nearly five times as many hours in one than (en himself. ,e brought the aircraft to a halt at the limit line /00 meters before the head of the runway. %head of him, 2lisa had 'ust turned her aircraft onto it and was throttling up for ta"e+off. She strea"ed down the runway, accelerating rapidly and finally lifting off into the s"y. She ban"ed right and disappeared over the set of low hills south of the airport, still climbing. (en throttled up again, 'ust a bit, moving forward once more. Bsing the rudder petals he turned onto the runway and made a #uic" visual chec" for any obstructions that might be in his path. *f course there was nothing+sensors built into the runway itself would have detected anything larger than a pea+but it was part of his chec"list to loo" anyway. If there was one thing that had been ingrained in him during his training at B82, it was safety first, even to the point of mind+numbing redundancy. *nce aligned on the runway, he pushed the two main throttles

slowly forward to ma&imum thrust. % roar of power filled the aircraft, sending gentle but insistent vibration through the fuselage as hydrogen and o&ygen combusted in the two engines and the thrust was e&pelled out behind them. They pic"ed up speed #uic"ly, the digital speedometer on his ,B winding upward so fast the individual numbers were unreadable. %t C/0 "ilometers per hour he pulled bac" on the control stic" with his right hand. The nose of the aircraft came up and there was a slight thump as the landing wheels left the surface of the runway. There was no ocean to define sea+level on 8ars, so the base 0 altitude, from which every other surface altitude was calculated, was the ground floor of the -apital ;uilding in downtown 9ew Pittsburgh, home of the first settlement on 8ars. The altimeter display began to wind upward, from 0F0 meters at ground level through 000 meters in a matter of seconds. ,e pulled a lever on the panel and retracted the landing gear. %t the same time he ban"ed to the left at thirty degrees, evening out the ban" at a compass heading of 0E0 degrees. ,e throttled down a bit and leveled the aircraft off at an altitude of /F00 meters. ,e cleared the air traffic perimeter five minutes later, then ban"ed bac" to the right a few degrees. ;elow him, winding bac" and forth between the hills, he could see the elevated inter+ city magna+trac". This was the main line that ran from 9ew Pittsburgh to 2den, carrying both passengers and freight at speeds of up to 000 "ilometers per hour. It consisted of a single trac" for much of its length although every fifteen "ilometers a one "ilometer section of double+trac"ing was beside it to allow trains moving in opposite directions to pass each other. -urrently, no trains were visible from hori$on to hori$on although that would change soon since passenger trains left both cities every 00 minutes throughout the day. 8aintenance station C?C+; was e&actly C?C "ilometers outside of 9ew Pittsburgh. It consisted of a platform connected to the trac"ing. % covered structure housed a small transport vehicle

the maintenance team in the cargo area would use to ma"e their way out to the section of the trac" they were scheduled to wor" on. The flight out there too" 'ust under an hour. %s he got close, (en slowly let the aircraft descend. .hen the platform came into sight ahead of him he was F000 meters above the ground. ,e pulled up on the control stic", bringing the nose up, and, with his other hand, manipulated the controls for the thrusters, spinning them slowly downward, changing the aircraft from hori$ontal flight to vertical. The transition went smoothly enough+by now he had almost three hundred hours at the stic"+ and he descended slowly toward the landing circle on the edge of the platform. ,e put the gear down, chec"ed that they were all loc"ed into place, and a minute and a half later came to a soft landing in the middle of the circle, the blast from the engines blowing all of the dust that had settled there free. ,e went through the power+down chec"list step by step, shutting everything but the %PB down. Then, and only then, did he open the rear door, allowing the wor" crew to e&it. They than"ed him for the flight and began to gather the many tools they had brought with them and carry them outside onto the platform. (en remained in the pilot!s chair, forbidden by *S,% rules to assist them with the unloading lest he become in'ured and rendered unable to fly them out of there in a hurry if such a thing became necessary. ,e was also forbidden to leave the crew out here and pic" them up later. If something went wrong with a biosuit, or if someone became critically in'ured on the 'ob+both e&tremely unli"ely scenarios at best+he had to be able to fly them out of there in minutes. The life of a civilian pilot on 8ars was more sitting around and waiting than anything else. (en didn!t mind. It allowed him to engage in two of his favorite non+se&ual activities+reading and browsing the 8artian Internet+during the waiting period. *nce the wor" crew was clear of the aircraft and loading their e#uipment into the transport vehicle, (en wal"ed out through the bac" ramp onto the platform, carrying a C0+meter length of

electrical cable looped over his left arm. ,e plugged one end of the cable into an outlet on the edge of the platform. The outlet was powered by the main electrical supply of the trac" itself, which, in turn, was powered by a fusion reactor bac" in 9ew Pittsburgh. ,e stretched out the cord and carried the other end bac" to the aircraft. Inside an access panel near the number one engine was a shore line 'ac". ,e opened the panel and plugged the cord in. It would provide enough power to "eep his engines warm and his communications e#uipment operating. ,e climbed bac" into the aircraft, shut the rear ramp to "eep the blowing sand out, and then powered down the %PB. That done, he settled into his chair for the long haul, his radio tuned to the emergency fre#uency in case the wor" crew needed him. ,e opened the Internet connection on his suit computer. The home page he had programmed appeared on the heads up display in his helmet. % mouse pad of sorts was installed in the "nee section of the suit. Bsing this to move the curser on the display, he #uic"ly navigated to a site he had been perusing the day before. ,e had developed an interest lately in the 8artian Supreme -ourt and the various rulings it had handed down in the course of its history. ,e was continuously ama$ed at the cases that came before this body and the means by which they came to and e&plained their ta"e on constitutional issues. -ommon sense and the good of society, as opposed to an individual, were the guidelines the court used in ma"ing their rulings and nothing else was allowed to matter. The case he was reading now was titled ;rannigan vs. 8ars and had been ruled upon ten years after the 8artian revolution. 8agellan ;rannigan was a man who thought that wor"ing for a living was an activity he 'ust did not en'oy participating in. In the course of his adult years he had wor"ed a variety of 'obs, usually for less than a month at a time, and always with large gaps of unemployment between them. *ne day, during a period of unemployment, he had been drun" and participating in a football game with other residents of the public housing

neighborhood in which he lived. ,e too" a particularly hard hit and his spinal cord snapped in his bac", rendering him paraly$ed from the waist down. *rdinarily this was not a big deal. Simple accelerated cell regeneration could restore the nerve impulses in a matter of wee"s, leaving the victim as good as new. ;ut in the case of 8r. ;rannigan, he refused to go through with the cell regeneration, stating his religious beliefs forbade him from undergoing advanced medical procedures. This was all fine and dandy with the 8artian government. If someone did not wish to have their paralysis cured, it was his or her constitutional right. The problem started when 8r. ;rannigan applied for permanently disabled status, a designation under the constitution that one was assigned when one was no longer able to wor" due to a physical disability. This would have entitled ;rannigan to a monthly government pension for the rest of his life, based on the amount of credits he had earned in previous years. %lthough most people would not be willing to give up their ability to wal" and have se&ual relations in e&change for a mere F0C credits per month and a lifetime without having to wor", ;rannigan seemed to thin" this was a fine deal. The 8artian government, on the other hand, did not agree and denied him permanently disabled status on the grounds that he was ma"ing the choice to be permanently disabled. ;rannigan appealed the case and, in the way of the 8artian bureaucracy, the Supreme -ourt heard the arguments two wee"s later. ;rannigan argued that the 8artian government was discriminating against his religious beliefs+something that was e&plicitly forbidden under the constitution. The 'ustices however, did not #uite see things this way. .hile they agreed that ;rannigan was entitled to refuse medical care on religious grounds+or on any other grounds for that matter+he was not entitled to collect a disability pension when the disability in #uestion could easily be cured by modern medicine. ,e was free to remain crippled if he wished and could continue to not wor" if he wished and could continue to live in public housing and collect his grocery and clothing allotments 'ust li"e any other

citi$en, but he would receive no credits from the 8artian government unless he developed a disability that could not be cured. %s was the case with Supreme -ourt decisions in his day, the ramifications of 8artian Supreme -ourt decision stretched well beyond the case in #uestion because of the precedent that was set. ;rannigan vs. 8ars was applied from that day forward to many less e&treme cases that fell along similar lines. Bntil that point it had been common practice for members of society with a similar wor" ethic to ;rannigan!s, when they became in'ured in some way, to refuse the accelerated treatment offered by the 8artian medical science in order to e&tend the amount of time+ off wor" to which they were entitled. That all came to an end with the ;rannigan decision. )rom that point onward, if a wor"er refused to accept medical treatment that would allow him or her to return #uic"ly to productive status in society, the payment of credits from the 8artian government would stop at the point where they would have reasonably been able to have returned had they accepted it. Though the decree of the nine+'udge Supreme -ourt was that ma'ority ruled, the decisions they handed down tended to be unanimous. Such was the case with ;rannigan vs. 8ars. (en was in the midst of reading through the actual opinion document itself when an icon in the upper right corner of his view suddenly appeared, indicating he had an incoming communication re#uest+the futuristic e#uivalent of being told he had a phone call. The te&t beneath the icon told him his caller was Slurry ;agwell. Slurry was a part+time wor"er in the cafeteria bac" at the civilian ,ummingbird terminal. She was twelve years old and very reclusive for a 8artian+almost as reclusive as (en himself. Bp until a few days before, (en had barely tal"ed to her, had barely noticed her at all, in fact. %nd then she had been assigned to the preparation area where the food orders were actually ta"en instead of the cleaning section. Since then (en had come

into increasing contact with her and his initial impression was that she was not #uite the brightest bunny in the forest. She tal"ed to him at strange times, both in person and on his computer lin", but never seemed to have anything important to say. This was a very un+8artian manner of communication. 3%nswer,3 he said, 'ust a hint of impatience in his voice. The te&t document he had been reading instantly disappeared and was replaced by a three+dimensional image of Slurry!s face hovering before him. ,er ancestry seemed to be largely ,ispanic and -aucasian. ,er s"in was somewhere between olive and pin", her hair straight and dar" brunette, her lips pouting. Though she was not heart stoppingly attractive, she was far from what would be considered ugly. 3,i, Slurry,3 he said. 3.hat!s the haps43 3*h, hi... uh, (en,3 she said, giving a nervous giggle. 3.hat!s down with you4 %re you flying43 3Bh... no,3 he said slowly. 3If I were flying right now, I really wouldn!t have been able to answer your com.3 3*h... fuc"in! aye,3 she said, blushing. 3I guess that ma"es sense, doesn!t it43 She shoo" her head. 3I act li"e such an 2arthling sometimes.3 ,er face became alarmed and she blushed deeper. 3Bh... that is... not an 2arthling li"e you... but... you "now... an 2arthling li"e...3 3It!s o"ay, Slurry,3 he reassured her. 3I "now what you meant.3 3I!m sorry,3 she said, seemingly near tears now. 3I!ll 'ust leave you alone. Tal" to you later.3 3Slurry,3 he said patiently, 3did you com me for some reason43 3Aeason43 3=eah,3 he said. 3=ou "now, to convey or re#uest some

information4 That!s usually why someone coms someone else.3 She shoo" her head again and then too" a deep breath. 3I 'ust wanted to "now if you!d be bac" for lunch or not,3 she finally said. 3=ou "now, so I could ta"e the lunch order for you and your crew43 ,e too" a moment to gather his thoughts before he replied. This was a perfect e&ample of unnecessary communication from her. Instead of calling him up to as" him if he and his crew would be bac" for lunch, she could have simply as"ed the operations computer+where an itinerary of his daily schedule had been downloaded+and learned the answer to her en#uiry in a #uarter of the time. 3Bh... no Slurry,3 he said. 3.e won!t be bac" for lunch. They!re inspecting rivets on a one+"ilometer stretch of line today. That!ll ta"e !em about si& hours. :oo"s li"e we!re eating the protein gel for lunch.3 3%www, that!s an ass+fuc" with a sandpaper dildo,3 she said sympathetically. She had probably never eaten the protein gel herself since she was not an outside wor"er, but its reputation was notorious. (en himself actually didn!t thin" it was all that bad. It came in a variety of flavors ranging from sirloin stea" to crab souffl> and did a good 'ob of filling the hole in your belly. To the native 8artian pallet, which was, after all, accustomed to a high degree of #uality even in the cheapest fast food, the consistency of the gel was an abomination before :aura. 3.ell, that!s the life we have to live when we choose to put on the biosuit, isn!t it43 (en as"ed. 3)uc"in! aye,3 Slurry replied, a tinge of awe in her voice. 3.here would 8ars be without people li"e you, (en43 (en couldn!t #uite decide if she was serious or not. 2ven after a year of living in their society, he still didn!t #uite understand the 8artian sense of humor. ,e suspected that she wasn!t 'o"ing. Slurry was not much of a comedian. 3Aight in the shitter, I

guess,3 he said. 3%nyway, than"s for as"ing.3 3It!s too bad you won!t be bac",3 she said. 3.e!re ma"ing meat loaf today, double sauced, with mac and cheese casserole on the side.3 3Bh... yeah, it is too bad,3 he said, with real regret. The cafeteria!s specialty was good old white trash style meals and the wor"ers who prepared them displayed typical 8artian pride in their wor". Their meatloaf was the best he had ever tasted. 3I!d save you some for when you got bac",3 she said, 3but you "now how fast the meatloaf goes.3 3That!s all right, Slurry,3 he said. 38aybe...3 3.e!re having bratwurst and potato salad too,3 she cut in. 38aybe there!ll be a little of that left over. Bsually that gets all eaten up too, but I thin" enough people will have the meatloaf or the stroganoff that there might be...3 3Bh, Slurry,3 he said, swallowing thic"ly. 3=eah43 3-ould we stop tal"ing about food4 =ou!re ma"ing my protein gel lunch sound less and less appeti$ing by the second here.3 She giggled again. 3I!m sorry, (en,3 she told him. 3I!m torturing you, ain!t I4 .ill you forgive me43 3I forgive you,3 he assured her. % silence developed, during which time they both simply stared at each other!s image. )inally, Slurry said, 3So... how are things going out there4 =ou "eeping busy43 3Just, uh... doing some reading,3 he said. 3That!s how I occupy myself during the waiting periods.3

She smiled whimsically. 3=ou struc" me as a reader,3 she said. 3There!s 'ust something about you. I love to read too, you "now43 3Bh... no, I didn!t "now that.3 3*h, fuc"in! aye. 8ostly I read stuff for school. I!m a student at .hiting. ;ut when I do get to read for pleasure I li"e to read historical fiction. =ou ever read any of that43 3Bh... well, in a manner of spea"ing, yes, I!ve read lots of historical fiction. 8ost of it more historical than what you!re probably used to.3 3:i"e what43 she as"ed, her eyebrows per"ing up. ,e hadn!t really e&pected her to as" this. ,e phrased his reply carefully. 3*h, writers from the twentieth century mostly,3 he said. 3=ou!ve probably never heard of them.3 She gave him an amused grin. 3I!ll bet you I have,3 she said. 3*h really43 3Aeally,3 she said, her demeanor more confident now than he!d ever seen it. 3=ou wanna bet on it43 39o, that!s not really necessary,3 he said, trying to "eep the e&asperation out of his voice. .hy was she still tal"ing to him4 Just what was the point of this conversation4 ,ere he was, sitting almost D00 "ilometers out in the 8artian wastelands having a non+productive conversation over an Internet lin" with a ditsy cafeteria wor"er. 3-ome on,3 she challenged again. 3%t least tell me who your favorite is. =ou tell me yours and I!ll tell you mine.3 )iguring it was the best way to get rid of her, so he could go bac" to reading, he decided he might as well answer her. Then

she could say she!d never heard of him and they could terminate the connection. 3*"ay,3 he said. 3I have lots of favorites, but the author I li"e best from that... uh... era is a guy named James 8ichener.3 She smiled. 38ichener is pretty fuc"ing good,3 she said. 3=ou!re saying you!ve heard of him43 he as"ed with unmas"ed disbelief. 3)uc"in! aye,3 she confirmed. 3,e wrote ,awaii, Poland, -entennial, The -ovenant, 'ust to name a few. The #uality of his research was impressive for the time period, as was the honesty of his narrative, particularly the boo"s he wrote after the corporations began to rise in power. I thin" Space is my favorite by him. It!s a good loo" at the history of orbital flight.3 (en blin"ed, staring at her image. 3=ou!ve read his wor"s43 3%ll of them,3 she said. 38y favorite author from the era is ,erman .ou" though. ,ave you read him43 3=es,3 he said numbly. 38ost of his wor" anyway.3 3)or entertainment value, The -aine 8utiny is undoubtedly the best. ;ut for sheer historical value, the .inds of .ar and .ar and Aemembrance series gives an eerily accurate picture of .orld .ar II on all fronts. .hat!s uni#ue about this series is that it does not merely utili$e the allied point of view, as most .orld .ar II literature of the day did. *ne also gets the Aussian, 1erman, and even the Japanese view of the war as well.3 %gain, he loo"ed at her in sheer surprise, almost unable to believe he was tal"ing to the same person. The dit$y cafeteria wor"er had suddenly turned into an authority on twentieth century historical literature. ,ow in the hell had that happened4 She even used the proper terms for the ethnicities+

Aussian, 1erman, Japanese. 2very other 8artian he!d discussed history with in any way simply used the term 32arthling3 to describe anyone from the mother planet, no matter what their geographic location or time period. 3I!ve uh... read that series several times,3 he said. 3=ou!re right. It is a comprehensive novel on the war.3 3I told you I!d "now who you were tal"ing about,3 she said, somewhat huffily. 3I have a bit of a fascination with that particular time period. It was the height of the moralistic hypocrisy period, the beginnings of the corporate ta"e+over of the government. The naivet> and the passion of the people of the time is an interesting historical contrast. 5irtually the only place you can see it honestly portrayed is in certain fictional wor"s of the time.3 3Bh... yeah,3 (en agreed slowly. That did ma"e actually ma"e sense. 3)or instance, in 8ichener!s ,awaii, you get a basic step+by+ step microcosm of the way big business comes to dominate and eventually control a culture. %nd this was written nearly twenty 2arth years before the super corporations actually began their rise on the mainland. ,e was very insightful for an 2arthling. I!m inclined to believe he was the ancestor of a future 8artian. The 8artian style of common sense and honesty is reflected in his wor".3 3I uh... never thought of it that way,3 (en said wea"ly. In 'ust the space of a few minutes he had gone from thin"ing that Slurry was mentally slow despite 8artian medical science to feeling li"e a complete dumb+ass before her. She shared more of her insights on twentieth century literature, covering authors from John Irving to Tom -lancy to Stephen (ing and e&plaining how each one!s style reflected the attitudes and contradictions of the time. (en found himself fascinated by what she was saying and before long was adding insights of his

own and discussing the symbolism and themes in the stories he had read. ;efore he even reali$ed it, more than an hour had gone by and it was time for Slurry to start wor"ing on the lunch menu. 3Its been ran"in! bullshitting with you about all of this,3 she told him. 3There aren!t many people on 8ars who give an asswipe about 2arthling literary wor"s. 9ot even the first generation 2arthlings care. They!re usually 'ust happy to have escaped from the place.3 3I!ve been accused of being more than a little different than the average 2arthling at times,3 (en admitted, smiling. ,er eyes twin"led. 3)uc"in! aye. =ou are that. ;ut that!s ran"in!, cause I!ve been accused of being a little different than the average 8artian.3 3=ou are that, Slurry,3 he told her. 3I!d love to tal" to you about this again sometime. )eel free to com me again if you get bored.3 3I probably won!t get much of a chance today,3 she said. 3;ut I!m off wor" at F000. =ou get off at F?00, don!t you43 3%ssuming I!m bac" from the last flight,3 he said. 38aybe we can get together for a drin" or something after you get off,3 she suggested. 3,ow about dinner and a drin"43 he countered, reali$ing, as the words came out of his mouth, that he was as"ing a woman out on a date for the first time since he!d as"ed %nnie in his previous life. ,e!d had plenty of se& on 8ars, but no dates. ,e!d never met anyone he cared to do more than fuc" until now. 3=ou tal"ed me into it,3 she said. 3I!ll upload my I number to you and you can put it in your P- when you get bac". -om me

when you get off wor".3 3Aight,3 he said. 3I!ll do that.3 The shy smile was bac" on her face. It loo"ed happier now than it had earlier. 3;ye, (en,3 she said. 3,ave wet dreams.3 3.et dreams,3 he said, returning the standard 8artian farewell statement. % moment later she clic"ed off and the te&t of the 8artian Supreme -ourt opinion returned to his vision. It was only then that he reali$ed he did not have the slightest idea 'ust how 8artians went about dating.

Slurry!s housing building was about two "ilometers from .hiting Bniversity+the place where (en had been reawa"ened. ,e rode the tram to the nearest station, arriving at F8C0 and then wal"ing four bloc"s from there. ,er building had no name, 'ust an address7 DC00 2ast ;radford %venue. ,e entered the lobby and wal"ed past the various commercial businesses, finally coming to the ban" of elevators. ,e pushed the call button and a minute later the doors opened. ,e spo"e to the computer, telling it to ta"e him to the E8th floor. %fter reali$ing that he actually had a date with a woman, (en had commed (aren at her office to get a crash course in 8artian dating eti#uette. She filled him in on the basics which+as he!d suspected+had changed considerably since his previous dating days. )or instance, there were no longer any automobiles or personal transportation. So how did one go about meeting one!s date4 ,e wasn!t sure if he was supposed to ride the tram over and pic" her up, have her come over to his place, or meet her at the intended destination. The answer to this #uestion, (aren told him, depended on 'ust what the circumstances of the date happened to be. 3.ho as"ed who out43 she wanted to "now.

3Bh... well, it was "ind of a mutual thing,3 he said. 3She suggested drin"s and then I suggested drin"s and dinner.3 3I see, so it was you who modified the initial plan, so that means you were the one who as"ed her out. If that is the case, you should go pic" her up at her place, but first, you let her pic" her favorite restaurant. If your intentions toward her are more than 'ust fuc"ing her+and that is usually why we go on dates on 8ars+ the last thing you want is to have her go to a restaurant in or near your own building. That!s suggestive that you want #uic" se& and is considered rude.3 3So I don!t want #uic" se&43 he as"ed. 3:aura no,3 she said. 3The purpose of dating is to see if you li"e someone enough to establish a relationship with them. =ou don!t want to have se& right away with a potential mate. The more you li"e each other, the longer you wait until you fuc" the first time.3 3=ou!re putting me on,3 he said. 39ot at all. 8anny and I didn!t fuc" until we!d been dating for almost two months.3 3=ou went two months without se&43 he as"ed in disbelief. *n 8ars, among the non+religious population, that had to be near a record. 39o, I went two months without fuc"ing 8anny,3 she corrected. 3I still had all the normal se&.3 3:et me get this straight,3 he said. 3If I li"e this woman, I can!t fuc" her, but it!s still o"ay to fuc" other people while we!re waiting.3 3*f course,3 she said. 3Aemember, love and se& aren!t mutual in 8artian society. There!s no need to curtail your physical urges

during the initial aspects of the relationship, in fact, most people would go insane if they did.3 3I see,3 he said slowly. 3So remember, if you go out with someone and they fuc" you on the first date, that means they do not wish to have a second date with you. That is also what you should do if you decide you don!t want to go out with her again+start trying to initiate se&ual activity with her.3 %ll day long he had been pondering this bi$arre concept. If he got laid tonight, that meant he had been shot down in flames. If he left Slurry at the door to her apartment and received no more than a handsha"e or a pec" on the chee", that meant she li"ed him and wanted to go out with him again. :eave it to the 8artians to come up with a set of rules li"e that. 3,i, (en,3 Slurry!s voice said now in response to his ringing of her doorbell. 3-ome on in. I!ll be there in a second.3 The door slid open before him and he stepped into a small, very neat apartment living room. Slurry was nowhere to be seen but a genetically engineered gri$$ly bear came hobbling over to him, standing on its hind legs when it reached him. It was a little more than a meter tall fully stretched out, and maybe twenty "ilos in weight. (en reached down and petted it absently+by now he was #uite used to the strange pets 8artians "ept+and it nu$$led his wrist, rubbing its wet nose bac" and forth across him. Slurry wal"ed out of the bedroom a moment later. She was dressed in a pair of yellow shorts and a matching half shirt, both of which were somewhat conservative by 8artian standards. ,er dar" hair was flowing loosely around her shoulders, framing her face in a manner that made it loo" prettier than it usually did at wor" when the hair was pinned up. 3I see you met ;en,3 she told him. 3Isn!t he pussy43

5ery pussy,3 (en agreed. 3The pussiest bear I!ve ever seen.3 ,earing his name, ;en went over and nu$$led his owner!s hand, lic"ing it with a long, pin" tongue. 3I li"e to thin" so,3 she said. 3,e!s named after a character in an old media show from the twentieth century. It was about a man who lived up in the mountains of the western Bnited States. ,e had this pet bear he!d raised from a cub, and...3 31ri$$ly %dams,3 (en said, smiling. ,er face turned to shoc"ed delight. 3=ou!ve heard of 1ri$$ly %dams too4 I thought I was the only one willing to dig deep enough into the 2arthling Internet to find propaganda li"e that.3 3I!ve been pretty deep into the 2arthling propaganda in my time,3 he told her. 35ery deep.3 3=ou fuc"in! aye must have,3 she said, her eyes twin"ling in an affectionate way. 3I "new there was something about you. Somehow, I 'ust "new we!d have similar interests.3 3 id you43 She nodded. 38aybe it was your accent. I!ve always been a slut+ whore for a thic" 2arthling accent, and I!ve never heard one as thic" as yours. *r maybe it was the way you "eep to yourself all the time. =ou!ve probably noticed, I!m somewhat the same way.3 3=es,3 he said. 3I did notice that. It!s "ind of pussy actually, now that I thin" about it.3 She blushed. 3Than" you,3 she said shyly. 3I!ve never uh... well... uh...3 She shoo" her head. 3I guess we!d better get our dildos in the orifice, shouldn!t we4 %re you ready to go43 3I!m ready to go,3 he said, already feeling the strong tug of

affection at her un+8artian+li"e aw"wardness. They left ;en to guard the apartment and headed downstairs. They went out through the lobby and crossed the street, entering another housing comple&, this one a bit more upscale. There, in the lobby, was a business establishment called Jean!s ;u$$ and 1orge. %s far as 8artian restaurants went, it was about middle+of+the+road in classiness. It was a combination of a bar and grille and the theme of the food seemed to be beef. Since it was evening they had to wait to be seated but the wait was short. They were led to a table near the bac", wal"ing through a ha$e of cigarette and mari'uana smo"e. 3The bonghits are pretty good here,3 Slurry told him. 31ets your appetite up for the stea".3 3Sounds li"e a plan,3 he said, bringing up the into&icant menu on the table screen. 3I don!t have to fly tomorrow.3 They ordered two bonghits apiece and a bottle of chardonnay. .hile waiting for the waiter to bring them over they sipped from glasses of water and loo"ed at each other, neither able to thin" of anything to say. )inally (en bro"e the silence by bringing up the topic that had engaged them the longest. 3,ow did you end up developing such an interest in twentieth century literature43 3.ell actually,3 she said, 3it!s more than 'ust literature, it!s everything about the time period. I!m a historian.3 3% historian43 he as"ed, again trying to e#uate the cafeteria wor"er with what he was being told. She nodded. 3I have a master!s degree in ,uman ,istory. Aight now I!m wor"ing on my Ph . That!s what I do at .hiting B, research and wor" on my doctoral.3 39o shit43 he said, ama$ed, and suddenly more than a little

intimidated. Though among 8artians+the most highly educated people in human history+a 8aster!s degree was as common among the regular fol" as a bachelor!s degree had been in his day, actual doctoral degrees were still at about the same very low ratio. They were advanced specialty degrees+far more advanced and difficult to complete now+reserved for the very brightest and most focused members of society. 39o shit,3 she confirmed. 38y specialty area is the twentieth century, as you can probably tell. 8y doctoral is on the rise of the conglomerates in the late twentieth and early twenty+first and how they came to control the government during this time period, eventually to the point where they effectively became the government, as they are now.3 3That!s uh... a very interesting topic,3 he said. 3It!s actually #uite fascinating how they did it,3 she said. 3Industry by industry, service by service, product by product, small companies and providers of service were forged together, bit by bit, both voluntarily and involuntarily, until they became huge, multi+national, obscenely rich and powerful entities with lives of their own but with absolutely no souls or compassion. They s#uee$ed out or bought out any independents that offered any "ind of competition to them. It was where all of the contradictions of capitalism finally became apparent+at least to those of us with hindsight, huh43 3)uc"in! aye,3 he said, with sincerity this time. %fter all, he had the uni#ue perspective of having lived in those times and of having e&perienced them in hindsight. 3I don!t "now where my interest in this sub'ect came from,3 she told him. 3I!m a fourth generation 8artian. 8y great+great+ grandparents came here during the %gricultural Aush. I!ve never even been to 2arth+although I!d love to visit it some day. ;ut even when I was a little girl, I always loved reading about ancient history, about what life was li"e on 2arth during those

dar" times.3 3,ere!s your shit,3 a voice said on their right. It was the waitress, bringing their into&icant orders. She set an electric water bong, a small plate of 2den greenbud, and a bottle of white wine before them. 3Than" you,3 (en said. 3It ain!t no s"in off my ass,3 she replied politely, giving a standard 8artian version of 3you!re welcome3. They each sipped out of their wine. It was e&cellent, as were most of the wines imported to 8ars from 2arth. The 8artians would accept nothing less in their vices. Slurry then did the honor of loading up the bong with a healthy pinch of the bud. Since she was the hostess of the date, she passed it to (en for the first hit. ,e too" it with enthusiasm. ,e had developed #uite a taste for mari'uana since being awa"ened. The smo"e filled his lungs and the effects of the drug within rushed through his bloodstream and went immediately to his head. ,e smiled as he felt the familiar into&ication. 3So,3 Slurry said after ta"ing her own hit and another sip of wine to chase it, 3I!ve told you why I "now so much about the twentieth century. ,ow about you4 id you ma'or in history as well43 3.ell... no, not in a manner of spea"ing,3 he said. 3.hat do you mean43 ,e loo"ed at her, coming to a decision in his mind, a decision he would have made differently the previous year, no matter how close to someone he was. ,e had no desire to have his past history "nown by most people+had once lived in fear of it, in fact. ;ut as he had come to "now the 8artian way of thin"ing and acting he had gradually reali$ed that (aren had been telling

the truth bac" in those early days when she said that 8artians tended to mind their own business and to ta"e confidential information very seriously. 2ven though he didn!t "now Slurry all that well yet, he "new she would "eep his secret to herself if he wished her to. That was 'ust what 8artians did. 3,ave you heard of r. (aren 5alentine43 he as"ed her. 3*h, fuc"in! aye,3 Slurry told him. 32veryone at .hiting B has heard of her, especially in the history department. I actually interviewed one of the people she awa"ened as part of my research.3 3Aeally43 (en as"ed, surprised. ,e "new that (aren had awa"ened others before him+and three others since him+but he had never met any of these people and "new little about them. Slurry made a sour face. 3,e was a very unpleasant person+not very happy with the way things operate here on 8ars. ,e had been the richest man on 2arth in his day+the head of one of the earliest conglomerates in the computer industry. That was why he was able to afford to be put into cryogenic storage in the first place. =ou!d of thought he would!ve been glad 'ust to be alive and healthy again+after all, he!d been 'ust about to die of multiple cancers when they fro$e him+but not him. ,e 'ust seemed to thin" it was his destiny to be pulled from death. ,e was ran"in! pissed off to find out that all of his wealth and power were gone and he couldn!t recover it. ,e actually thought they were going to ma"e him head of his corporation again.3 3So his company is still there43 3*h yes,3 Slurry said. 3It!s still there all right. It goes under a different name now, but its still one of the most powerful corporations in the technology industry of .est,em. ,e actually had it put into his will that once he was revived he would resume as head of the corporation.3 She chuc"led a little. 3%s if he really thought they would allow that. .hen he tried to assume control they simply refused to ac"nowledge him. .hen

he tried to travel to 2arth his visa was denied. .hen he tried to file a legal challenge over the Internet it was dismissed by the first 'udge to hear it.3 3Pretty ironic, isn!t it43 (en as"ed, #uite amused with her tale, especially since he had a strong suspicion about who they were tal"ing about, although he "new Slurry would never brea" the confidence and confirm or deny the identity if he as"ed. 3Ironic indeed,3 she said. 3;ut he was #uite the little capitalist here all the same. ,e charged the Bniversity 000 credits for the interview with me and I didn!t get a fuc"ing thing of interest out of it. ,e was so far removed from the common people in his day that I "new more about what life had been li"e in those days than he did. I hear he!s in prison now in :ibby. ,e managed to get a successful business going and made a fair amount of money but it apparently wasn!t enough for him. ,e tried to bribe a government official into introducing a bill that gave him an e&ception to the anti+corporate law so he could open a second business.3 She shoo" her head in ama$ement. 3Isn!t that that most insane thing you!ve ever heard of4 Trying to bribe a legislative member43 3In this here and now, yes,3 (en agreed. 3;ac" in his day, it was as routine as ta"ing a piss.3 3True,3 she said. 3That was how he got so powerful in the first place, but you would also thin" he was smart enough to reali$e things don!t wor" that way here.3 3They had a saying bac" then,3 (en said. 3They used to say !everyone has their price.! I imagine that is the angle he was going for.3 3I!m sure it was,3 she agreed. 3%nd it may be true that everyone has their price, it!s 'ust that on 8ars, no one can afford to pay anyone else!s price for something li"e that.3

3That too is true,3 he said. 3;ut anyway,3 she said, 3you mentioned r. 5alentine. o you "now her43 3I do,3 he said. ,e too" a deep breath. 3She!s my granddaughter.3 Slurry loo"ed at him, pu$$led, not getting what he was saying. 3=our granddaughter43 38y granddaughter,3 he said. 3Specifically, my fifth generation granddaughter.3 3=our fifth...3 Bnderstanding dawned in her eyes. 3=ou mean... are you saying... you are one of the people she... she... wo"e up43 ,e nodded. 3I was born in FIEI,3 he said. 3In /00C I was a police department helicopter pilot in San Jose, -alifornia. I was shot in the stomach with a rifle and my liver was destroyed. 8y wife arranged to have me cryogenically fro$en using a techni#ue that was #uite advanced for the time. The drive to wa"e me up was passed down through the generations until (aren, with the help of the rest of the medical staff at .hiting B, was able to actually do it.3 3*h :aura,3 she said, obviously stunned. 3=ou!re not fuc"ing with me, are you43 3I!m not fuc"ing with you,3 he assured her. 3The reason I "now so much about the twentieth century is because I was born and lived most of my life there.3 3% real twentieth century inhabitant,3 she said in wonder. 3;ut you!re so... so nice<3 ,e chuc"led. 3.e weren!t all a bunch of capitalist pigs,3 he said. 39o, that!s not what I meant... I mean... well...3

3It!s o"ay, Slurry,3 he told her. 3I!m down with you.3 ,is e&pression turned serious. 3So, "nowing that... do you still want to... you "now... go out with me43 3,uh4 %re you shitting out your asshole4 *f course I do. :aura, this is so static< %n actual twentieth< I "new there was something about you.3 3*h yes, there!s something about me all right.3 3%nd you were a common person too,3 she said. 3I mean... well... weren!t you43 3.ell, I wouldn!t e&actly say common maybe, but I was middle class, both in upbringing and profession. I wasn!t a mover or a sha"er, which I imagine most of the others (aren wo"e up were. I had a mortgage that I had to wor" full+time to pay. I had credit card debt that I probably wasn!t ever going to get out from under. I drove a car to wor" on freeways cho"ed with other cars. I downloaded primitive Internet porn and hoped my employer never found out about it.3 3=ou witnessed the rise of the corporations,3 she said, her e&citement barely contained. 3=ou were right there in the early days of their consolidation.3 3.ell... that!s more your area of e&pertise than mine. I was 'ust a man trying to live in a society that was more unfair than I ever believed possible.3 3;ut you were there,3 she insisted. 3=ou would!ve seen the most visible aspects of it, when the consolidation really started to ta"e place. %nd you, as a common person, were one of the people it affected the most.3 ,e thought about this for a moment and reali$ed she was right. ,e had witnessed the beginnings of what was "nown as the rise of the corporations. 3It was happening so gradually,3 he told

her, 3that none of us living through it at the time really noticed what was going on. It!s only when you loo" bac" on it as a whole do you reali$e what was done.3 3That!s by design,3 she said. 3It started slow, probably without even a coherent plan. Tell me about it. .hat "ind of things did you notice43 ,e sipped at his wine again, strangely pleased that his previous life and what he had witnessed would be so fascinating to someone. Though he didn!t discuss his past with most 8artians, those he had discussed it with+(aren, Jacob and ;elung, 8ar'orie, ale, 8arcella+had never really cared to hear about any details of that time period. Instinctively, he "new most other 8artians would feel the same. 8artians loo"ed at people from that age as barbaric, rude, self+centered, and delusional. 31rocery stores are the thing that comes immediately to mind,3 he told her. 31rocery stores43 she said, her e&pression encouraging him to elaborate. 3.ell, when I was a "id, we had neighborhood grocery stores, even out in the suburbs where I grew up. They were named things li"e 8i"e!s 8ar"et or Joe!s 1roceries, or something li"e that. 2ach of them were privately owned and not connected to any other store+pretty much li"e the way grocery stores are here.3 3)uc"in! aye,3 she said, nearly drooling as she listened to him. 38y mom used to shop at 8i"e!s 8ar"et around the corner. It was a small store but it had everything we would need for the wee". The cler"s were all friendly and they all "new the regular customers. They would call my mom by name when she came in and chat with her about her family. They would cash a chec" without chec"ing her identification. They would even give her credit if we needed to buy something before my dad!s payday.

8i"e, the owner of the store, would wor" there every day, stoc"ing shelves or running the register.3 3The way a business should be,3 Slurry said. 3Aight,3 he said, although, until arriving on 8ars, he had never really thought about it that way. 3%nd then, sometime around when I was twelve or so, I thin", another grocery store was built about two miles+sorry, about three "ilometers+further down the main road. It was a place called %llanson!s.3 3%llanson!s,3 she said in ama$ement. 3The first name of what would eventually become %gricorp.3 3Aeally43 he as"ed. ,e hadn!t "nown that part. 3Started in :os %ngeles, -alifornia, in FI?F, by Aic" %llanson, Jeff Peterson, and Aobert -allahan. %llanson was a multi+ millionaire by then, having built a grocery empire from one store to nine in the :% area. Peterson and -allahan were his competitors, with three and four stores apiece, respectively. They merged their assets and changed the names of -allahan!s and Peterson!s stores to %llanson!s since it was the most recogni$able. They grew #uic"ly in the Southern -alifornia region, buying out those independent stores that were in favorable locations, strangling those that weren!t to avoid the competition. In FI?C they began to move to other regions of -alifornia, including the San )rancisco ;ay %rea.3 3=es, I guess it was about then,3 he said, ama$ed at the wealth of "nowledge she was able to pull off the top of her head li"e that. 38y mom held out from shopping at them for a few months because she really li"ed going to 8i"e!s, but eventually she simply couldn!t ignore how much cheaper everything was at %llanson!s. I mean, they used to put out ads in the newspaper and she would read them and she couldn!t help but ma"e the comparison.3

3That!s the primary tool of the corporate entity in the early stages,3 Slurry said. 3Bndercutting the competition. It!s #uite easy for them to do for many reasons. In the first place, their wholesale cost is much less than the independent store!s since they buy in volumes that are hundreds of times greater. They also don!t need to maintain a profit margin per individual store as great as what an independent does since the sum of their total profits comes from the sum of all the stores, not 'ust one.3 3=ep,3 (en agreed. 3That!s pretty much what happened. ;efore long, mom was doing the ma'ority of her shopping at %llanson!s because she saved so much money that way. The only time she would go to 8i"e!s would be to pic" up something small. .hen we would go there it would usually be almost empty. .ithin a year, they went ban"rupt and closed. 9ot long after that, there were other big grocery stores going up. 8alibu!s was the ne&t one, I thin".3 3Started in the 9orthern -alifornia region,3 Slurry recited. 32ventually merged with ;rannigan!s from %ri$ona. 2ventually, long after you went into storage, this corporation was merged as well with what would become %gricorp.3 3%ll I "now is that by the time I was able to drive a car, there weren!t any independent grocery stores left. If you wanted to go shopping, you went to %llanson!s or 8alibu!s or ;rannigan!s because that was all there was. The same thing happened with drug stores. I remember my mom filling our prescriptions at a neighborhood pharmacy. ;y the time I was an adult they were all gone too, replaced by 8ed %id and Short!s rug Stores. ,ardware stores were another thing. There used to be neighborhood hardware stores when I was "id where you could go get nails or tools or plumbing stuff. %nd then along came ,ousehold .arehouse+an impossibly huge place with everything from nails to lumber to washing machines and dishwashers, all of which you could buy cheaper than at the neighborhood hardware store. Pretty soon, there were no more neighborhood hardware stores. It all happened so gradually,

you didn!t notice it.3 32&actly,3 Slurry said. 3%nd as these corporations ac#uired assets and s#uee$ed out the competition, they grew larger, richer, and more powerful. Soon they got to the point where they could influence politicians, both on the local level and the federal level. *nce that process began, the government was effectively ta"en completely out of the hands of the common people. This process was pretty much complete by the time you were shot. 8y #uestion to you is, did you reali$e that43 3 id I reali$e that I, as a common person, was not represented in any way by my elected officials43 3=es,3 she said. 3That!s always been a burning #uestion for me as a historian of the time. id the common people reali$e what was going on in the beginnings43 3In a way I did,3 he said. 3I "new that my local politicians were controlled by real estate developers and other special interests. I "new that the president of the Bnited States was controlled by big business and other special interests. I "new that most of congress was the same. I thin" #uite a few people of intelligence reali$ed this bac" then, at least on some level. The big #uestion is7 why was nothing ever done about it4 That one I can!t really answer.3 She seemed pleased by his answer. 32ventually, someone did do something about it,3 she told him. 3%t least here on 8ars we did.3 3=es, you certainly did, didn!t you4 %ny my descendents helped do it.3 3That!s something to be proud of,3 she assured him. 3Something to be proud of indeed.3 They continued to tal", e&changing "nowledge about (en!s age

for more than an hour before they even got around to ordering their dinner from the computer screen on the table. Slurry as"ed him #uestions about day+to+day life on 2arth, concentrating on little details instead of broad observations. She wanted to "now things about how one got one!s automobile repaired and how corrupt was that industry, about how one attended a professional sports game, about the industry of prostitution and how it was managed, about purchasing various household items li"e furniture or carpeting. She listened to his answers eagerly and, in return, offered observations of her own about his time, telling him things he certainly hadn!t "nown about when he!d been living in the midst of them. She told him about pharmaceutical industry and how they had bloc"ed research into what should have been an easy cure for common diseases li"e the cold, influen$a, and arthritis because they made so much money selling over+the+counter symptom relievers for these ailments. She told him of the timber and beer industries and how they had conspired for years to bloc" any serious attempt to legali$e mari'uana. 3The timber and beer industry43 he as"ed incredulously. 3.hy did they care about mari'uana43 3.ell, the beer industry angle should be #uite obvious,3 she replied. 3They sell into&icants. 8ari'uana is a competing into&icant. They were afraid if people were allowed to buy mari'uana legally it would cut into beer sales. This turned out not to be the case when they finally did legali$e it during .orld .ar III, certainly not to the e&tent of what they feared. They spent probably a thousand times more money bribing politicians and paying lobbyists to "eep it illegal than they ever would have lost in sales had they 'ust allowed it to be legali$ed. ;ut, such is capitalism, right43 3I!ve come to learn that,3 he told her. 3.hat about the timber industry43 3Their thin"ing was a bit more 'ustified, strangely enough,

although their solution to the problem was pure genius as it turned out. The timber industry of the time did not 'ust provide lumber for building things. ;y far the biggest use of timber was the manufacture of paper products. Paper products can be made much easier and much cheaper by using hemp instead of wood. ,emp is the natural byproduct of mari'uana production. ;y legali$ing mari'uana the demand for timber for paper was virtually wiped out, 'ust as they!d always feared. ;ut the timber industry certainly didn!t fold up because of this. They simply got into the mari'uana business instead, an easy solution. Soon they found their profits nearly tripled since hemp grows in much higher #uantities per acre+not to mention about ten thousand times faster+than trees.3 *ther insights she had to share with him were even more startling, seeming to 'ustify the rampant paranoia that some of the fringe members of society had spouted bac" then. They tal"ed of the practical cold fusion conspiracy he!d discovered early in his reawa"ening, and the 2bola epidemic that eventually "illed his wife and her new husband. They also tal"ed of old conspiracy theories and what the historical perspective on them now was. 3The %pollo moon landings were not fa"ed,3 she said. 3%merican astronauts really did land on the surface in FIEI and on all the historical dates after. There is absolutely no doubt about that now. %nd the September FF, /00F terrorist attac"s were not fa"ed either, although there were many who came to believe they were in the years that followed since the government too" horrible advantage of them in order to 'ustify wars and to increase surveillance of private citi$ens. *ne conspiracy theory that was correct, however, was the John ). (ennedy assassination.3 3Aeally43 he as"ed, fascinated. 3There is proof43 39o actual smo"ing gun,3 she said, using a twentieth century e&pression not common on 8ars. 3;ut there!s enough

circumstantial evidence that a 'ury would be convinced if it were presented. The culprit behind the assassination was the %merican government itself+a very clumsy effort, I might add, but they were new at that sort of thing then. J)( was the last of the e&ecutive leaders who actually was able to e&ert any sort of control separate from what the corporations and big business wanted. In a way, his assassination was the turning point in %merican history. ;y this point most of congress was owned by big business and (ennedy, as powerful and rich as he was, was actually "nown to use his own common sense and 'udgment. The -uban missile crisis was a perfect e&ample. If he had actually done what his advisors suggested during that particular moment in history, it is li"ely there would have been no further history. .e historians loo" bac" on that age with horror these days. Those of you living in the time had no idea how close you really came to having those nuclear missiles fly. =our powers+ that+be of the time, e#uipped with nuclear arms, were the e#uivalent of letting a two year old child play with a hand grenade in a crowded room. It!s only by sheer luc" the pin was never pulled. 3In any case, (ennedy was a huge annoyance to the emerging corporate powers that were 'ust starting to get a handle on the reins of government. ,e crossed them one too many times and they arranged for his death. It very nearly bac"fired on them, but they were ultimately successful. 2very president after that was nothing more than a tool of big business+a puppet on a string. ;y the time of your shooting, it was pretty much impossible to get elected to any sort of political office higher than the school board without being approved of by the corporate entities. The collusion of the media was what made this process of control both possible and undetectable by most of the common people of the time.3 3The collusion of the media43 he as"ed. 3%gain, this is something that happened in your time but the implications of it weren!t considered. It started when the

%merican government began to allow the various media formats to merge under a single owner. ;efore long, every television news service, every newspaper, every Internet news service, every publishing house, every radio station was owned in one way or another by a handful of powerful corporations. The independent news sources were swallowed up, destroyed, or discredited as a reliable source of information. *nce this point was reached, the only source of information for the public to base their very opinions upon was controlled by big business. 9o boo" was published, no newspaper story was printed, no news story was aired that they did not approve of. It was e&actly for this reason that this sort of merging of media was forbidden in the first place.3 Their food arrived as he was pondering this rather unsavory thought. %s he chewed his stea" and sipped from a glass of red wine, he was forced to admit to himself that he, along with most of the rest of the common people of his age, had been little more than sheep in a certain sense, their political and sociological opinions spoon+fed to them by a corporate owned media. 3-oming here, to this planet,3 he told Slurry, 3has been li"e having blinders removed from my eyes. I!ve had to change my entire manner of thin"ing about so many things.3 3%nd has it been for the better43 she as"ed. 3=es,3 he said, without hesitation. 3It has been for the better.3 %fter finishing dinner, having dessert, and then engaging in one last round of drin"s and a bonghit apiece, (en was shoc"ed to find it was nearly /C00 hours. They had been tal"ing for almost four hours straight. %nd still he craved more. )or the first time since his awa"ening, since being told his wife was long dead and he would live the rest of a long life without her, he found himself feeling something a bit more than infatuation for a woman. 9or was this feeling his alone. Slurry seemed #uite ta"en with him as well+especially after being told his

bac"ground. ,e escorted her bac" to the lobby of her apartment building, all the way to the elevators. They stood there for a moment, awaiting the descent of a car to the lobby. 3I had a ran"in! time tonight, (en,3 she told him. 3I!m glad we went out.3 38e too,3 he told her. 3=ou can!t imagine how nice it is to tal" to someone who can actually relate to where I came from, what life was li"e bac" then.3 3%ctually,3 she said with a slight giggle, 3I can imagine it. Aemember, I!m in the same boat. I!m considered somewhat of an odd person, you "now. I!m shy and I don!t open up to people very easily. ,istorians who study 2arth life are considered "ind of... oh... what is the word you would have used43 She thought for a second and then seemed to come up with it. 39erdy,3 she said. 3I!m considered a nerd among 8artians. If you "now what I mean.3 ,e smiled. 3I!ve always had a fondness for nerds,3 he said. 3%nd I thin" you!re #uite fascinating.3 The elevator doors suddenly slid open, the empty car waiting for a rider. They both loo"ed at it for a moment and then bac" at each other. (en held out his hand to her. She loo"ed at it nervously for a moment and then too" it in hers. They shoo" gently, with great affection. 31ood night, (en,3 she told him, still holding onto his hand. 31ood night, Slurry,3 he said. 3-an I com you tomorrow4 8aybe we can go out again.3 3I!ll be loo"ing forward to it,3 she said.

They let their hands remain in contact for a few more seconds and then reluctantly disengaged. Slurry stepped into the elevator car alone and gave him one last wave as the doors slid shut. (en watched the closed doors for a moment and then turned away. ,e wal"ed out of the lobby and bac" to the tram station alone and not the least bit saddened about it. ,e was starting to thin" that the strange 8artian dating rituals actually made sense after all. Sythro :aboratories particle accelerator and Aesearch )acility+ :ivermore, .est,em %manda ,esper wal"ed purposefully through the halls of the research facility at FD00 that afternoon, her uncomfortable high+heeled shoes clac"ing on the sterile tile floor. %s was the case with any female professional in these ultra+conservative times, she was wearing a considerable amount of clothing+much more than necessary for mere comfort in the environment of the wor"place. % dar" colored, long+sleeve button+up blouse covered her upper body and a blac", shin+length s"irt covered most of her legs. Bnder the blouse was a tightly constraining brassiere, and under the s"irt was a thic", "nee+length slip and a pair of non+transparent nylons. Pinned to her blouse was a red and white security badge containing her photograph. The colors indicated the highest level and allowed almost unrestricted access to the facility. She passed through two security chec"points, clearing them after a retinal scan, a fingerprint e&am, and a voiceprint. %t last she came to the electric door that guarded the office of Thomas ,entman, the Sythro director for the pro'ect she had been wor"ing on the last si& years of her life. She put her finger on the door panel, bu$$ing him, and a second later his voice issued from the spea"er, inviting her in. ,e was e&pecting her. She herself had re#uested the meeting two hours earlier. The door slid open and she entered. It was a modest office considering the importance of the occupant but still much nicer than the one she inhabited on the other side of the building. ,e

had a des" of genuine oa" wood, and plush carpeting covered the floor. Potted plants were sitting here and there and a large tropical a#uarium was set up in the corner. There were no windows in the office due to security concerns and the interior was chec"ed for listening devices at least twice a day by a security team. ,entman himself, dressed in a white shirt and a conservative tie, sat behind the des". ,e loo"ed up as she entered. 31ood day, %manda,3 he greeted, his voice amicable enough. ,e waved to a chair before the des". 3,ave a seat.3 3Than" you, 8r. ,entman,3 she said, addressing him as propriety dictated she should. She wal"ed over and sat down, ad'usting herself in a ladyli"e manner, so that nothing more than the top of her an"le showed from beneath her s"irt. To accidentally flash one!s "nee was considered #uite slutty. 3.hat I can do for you43 he as"ed, once she was settled. 3.ell, sir,3 she said. 3It!s about the trip out to the site.3 The site, of course, meant the :emondrop reactor that was being assembled in far space, out beyond Pluto, where its activation would+probably+not cause any damage to an inhabited area or draw a nearby planet from its orbit. % critical step in the construction was fast approaching and %manda and her team had been ordered to oversee it in person. 3.hat about the trip out to the site43 he as"ed. 3%re you having trouble arranging for care of your residence4 If that!s the case we can...3 39o, sir,3 she said. 3There is no problem with that. It!s 'ust that... well... I thought maybe I could sit this particular trip out.3 3Sit this trip out43 ,entman as"ed, as if he wasn!t #uite sure he was hearing her correctly.

3=es, sir. =ou see, my final research into the pro'ect side effects is coming to a culmination and I really thin" I would be more useful here, finali$ing the details and running sims. 8y team is well briefed in the component assembly process for the sub+ reactor and I!m #uite sure they can oversee the assembly without me.3 ,entman!s e&pression dar"ened, his face becoming almost a scowl. 3=ou want to stay here on 2arth while your assistants oversee the sub+reactor assembly43 3=es, sir,3 she said. 3I thin" that would be for the best.3 3%manda...3 he shoo" his head a little. 3That!s the most insane thing I!ve ever heard you say. =ou "now you can!t stay here and let your team handle this. =ou "now that. .e don!t dare allow communications out of the site. If your team runs into a problem, they won!t be able to contact you for guidance. =our presence out there is absolutely mandatory.3 %manda blushed, casting her eyes downward, already cursing herself for having as"ed. =es, she did "now her presence out there was mandatory. So why had she come in here and as"ed to be relieved of the trip4 ,adn!t she "nown this was how the meeting would go4 3I!m sorry, sir,3 she said mee"ly. 3=ou!re right, of course.3 3%manda,3 he said. 3I have to be honest with you. =our as"ing me this disturbs me. I can!t believe you could even consider such a thing. =ou!ve wor"ed for si& years on the engineering and construction of this reactor. =ou "now what the sta"es are. The entire future of .est,em may very well depend on our success here. .hy in 1od!s name are you coming in here and as"ing me this now43 =es, she had 'ust made a big mista"e, a mista"e that could potentially draw a lot of unwanted attention to her. She thought fast, her sharp mind+which, after all, was used to deception+

#uic"ly groping for an e&planation for her strange behavior that would sound reasonable. 3I!m sorry, sir,3 she said again. 3I thin" I!m having an attac" of nerves now that we!re getting close to assembly. Please forget I even as"ed.3 ,entman loo"ed at her, at the strain on her face. ,e "new %manda was one of the most brilliant physicists in the solar system, her reputation unimpeachable. ;ut for all her intelligence and s"ill, she was still a woman. 2very .est,em male "new that the female half of his species could be notoriously moody and unstable at times. .eren!t they always portrayed as such in the popular media4 %nd she was in charge of what was perhaps the most critical portion of the pro'ect. ,er plea of stress did not seem all that unli"ely. 9o, it really didn!t at all. 3%re you going to be o"ay, %manda43 he as"ed gently, switching over to the protective father+figure roll almost without reali$ing it. 3=es, sir,3 she said. 3,onestly, I apologi$e. I!ve been wor"ing #uite a bit lately and I!m so tired all the time, and... well... I guess I 'ust lost it for a little bit there. I don!t "now what I was thin"ing. %ll of a sudden those side effect studies 'ust seemed to be the most important thing in the solar system, and... well... you "now43 3I "now,3 he said soothingly, his hand reaching out to pat hers across the des". 3.e!ve all been wor"ing hard lately and we!re all getting nervous as we start to get closer to final assembly. ;ut don!t worry. I have the greatest confidence in you and your team. 2verything will wor" 'ust as it was designed to.3 3=es, sir.3 3.hy don!t you ta"e the rest of the day off43 he said. 31et a little rest at home. o something unrelated to physics or reactors. I thin" you need it and I am #uite sure you!ve earned it.3 3I don!t want to do that, sir,3 she said in moc" protest, although

that was e&actly what she wanted to do. 3I insist,3 ,entman told her. 3=ou go home and rela& for the rest of the day and I!ll 'ust forget this little conversation we had, o"ay43 3=es, sir,3 she said, inwardly breathing a sigh of relief. 38aybe that!s not such a bad idea after all.3 Twenty minutes later, she had cleared the various security chec"points and was climbing aboard a public transit train. She found a seat near the front, away from the thugs and criminals who were gathered in the rear. She stared out the window as they began to move, heading east toward the %ltamont Pass, the gateway to the -entral 5alley and her home. She saw nothing of the urban scenery as it flashed by, her mind still cursing her for the stupidity she had 'ust displayed to her boss. .hat in the name of 1od was I thin"ing4 she demanded of herself. id I really thin" ,entman was going to let me stay here on 2arth4 id I really4 ,er re#uest had seemed so reasonable to her before she!d made it. 9ow, after the humiliation of having it re'ected, she saw it for what it was, an act of irrational madness, a decision based on emotions she "new should be "ept deeply buried. %nd she "new what was churning these buried emotions to the surface, compelling her to act in a self+destructive manner. It was love. That great, irrational force that had destroyed more lives and careers than all of man"ind!s wars combined, she would venture. She was thoroughly and completely in love with her neighbor, Julie ittmeyer, and could not bear the thought of spending eight months in the blac"ness of space without seeing or tal"ing to her. She had first seen Julie si& months before, when she!d been touring the house ne&t door prior to purchasing it. %manda had long before come to grips with her se&uality and had felt no guilt when her breath caught in her throat at that first sight, when

she felt a small gush of moisture flood her se&. Julie was a beautiful creature, even dressed in the frumpy clothes women were re#uired to don in these repressive times. %manda spent the ne&t month hoping the glorious vision she!d spotted would be the one who finally purchased the long vacant house. ,er wish came true. :ittle more than si& wee"s after that first glimpse, Julie was moving in and setting up residence. )or the first two months the infatuation had remained on a strictly visual level. Julie had introduced herself+as neighbors do+only a few short days after moving in, telling %manda she was an accountant for %gricorp, divorced, but other than that, very little information. %manda!s appreciation for her new neighbor!s beauty had ta"en a sharp step upward at that first meeting but it remained no more than a physical attraction pretty much li"e what she felt for almost every woman of beauty she met in her day to day life. True romantic feelings did not come until later, as they got to "now each other better, and even then, they crept up on her so slowly, so gradually, that she hadn!t really noticed them for what they were. Bntil today, until she!d made a complete ass out of herself and ris"ed her very security clearance. She sighed wistfully now, thin"ing of how she had vowed she would never let herself fall in love with a woman again, not after what had happened with :orraine all those years before, not after the near disaster and near ruination that relationship had brought to her life, not after the humiliation of what she had to undergo to "eep it a secret. She had wor"ed very hard since that horrible day to "eep herself distant from attractive women, to "eep herself distant from everyone. %nd now, despite all of her precautions, despite all of her vows to the contrary, she had let herself fall head over heels yet again, she had let herself become emotionally involved. She wasn!t 'ust lusting after Julie. She was in love with her. In love< %nd the worst part was, she wasn!t even sure if Julie felt the same about her. She had no idea if the woman she wanted so

badly even thought of her as anything other than a good friend, a platonic friend. They had never been intimate with each other, nor had Julie ever given her anything more than a slight vibe that she might even be inclined to be intimate with the same se&. There had been no overt innuendo, nor any subtle innuendo. 9ot a single time had Julie spo"en a phrase or even a word that could be construed as se&ually suggestive in any way. ;ut at the same time, there was something there. Somehow, some way, she had the distinct feeling that Julie would be receptive to... well... a more personal "ind of friendship. .as it instinct telling her this4 *r was it wishful thin"ing4 She didn!t "now, couldn!t tell. The only other time she had felt this way had been in the early days of her relationship with :orraine, before they had become physically active with each other. ,er instinct had been right then. .as it right now4 id she even want it to be right now4 3I am so confused,3 she mumbled to herself. She arrived home an hour later, after wal"ing from the tram station. It was the middle of the wor"day and the neighborhood was #uiet. %s she wal"ed up to her front door she cast a glance at Julie!s house. It was dar" and appeared #uite empty, of course. Julie didn!t generally get home from wor" until almost FI00. %manda "new this because she often peered out her window, an&iously awaiting the appearance of her friend wal"ing up the street from the tram station. *h, how she had lusted after that vision, first in physical infatuation, and then, as Julie came over to visit more and as they became closer and closer, with hopeless love. 2ven now, the very sight of Julie!s empty house stirred deep feelings in the pit of her stomach. Julie sleeps in there, her mind told her. She undresses and showers and wal"s around na"ed in there< 3Stop it,3 she told herself, dragging her eyes away. The image of her beautiful friend sleeping in the nude+as she had once confessed she routinely did+and rubbing soap all over her breasts in the shower, was almost more than she could bear. She

wal"ed up to her door and put her fingerprint on the pad, opening the series of loc"s that guarded her domicile. The door swung open and she nearly dove inside, as if trying to outrun the erotic visions.

8eanwhile, twenty "ilometers away, in :odi, Julie ittmeyer was lying on the bed in the bac" room of a two+bedroom apartment located in the middle of a sprawling, moderate+ income comple&. This was the residence of .illiam Scramm, another member of the 8artian intelligence services who had been on assignment on 2arth for the better part of a 8artian year now. Scramm was covered as a 'anitor at the Sythro :ab comple& and it was he who ran most of the 8artian agents that had been infiltrated into that particular facility. 2very wor"day, from 0800 to F8C0 hours, Julie holed up in his apartment in order to reinforce the belief of the neighbors in her primary neighborhood and %manda herself that she was going to wor" at the %gricorp building in downtown Sacramento. It was the most boring part of her assignment, without a doubt. There was little to do here day after day e&cept browse through the 2arthling Internet sites and watch 2arthling entertainment or news shows. That generally "ept her interested for the first thirty minutes or so. %fter that, she was left with nothing but her thoughts. She was na"ed as she lay there, the prudish business outfit she had worn that morning when she left her house now hanging neatly on a hanger in the closet. She had already masturbated herself to orgasm twice this long day and was now doing nothing more than chain smo"ing cigarettes and watching the cloc" for it to be time to go home. :aura, the sacrifices she put up with for her planet. %bout the worse torture you could offer to a person of 8artian heritage was boredom. That was one of the reasons 8artian prisons were considered such miserable places. %nd then there was this awful growth of pubic hair.

;efore leaving Ingram for her assignment, the hair+growing gene in her pubic region had been turned bac" on, allowing the regeneration of her bush. .est,em women were forbidden from shaving themselves there. 32mail alert,3 the voice of her P- suddenly intoned, brea"ing the silence. Julie raised her eyebrows a bit and then sat up. %lthough false records of past emails from a variety of real and imaginary people had been programmed into her server!s memory ban"s as a means of reinforcing her cover, the only people who ever actually emailed her were %manda or Aon Sampson up on the Ingram. In the case of %manda it was usually to respond to an email Julie had herself sent or to discuss some aspect of plans they might have made. In the case of Aon+who naturally did not email directly since it might seem a bit odd to the .est,em government that one of their citi$ens was receiving messages from a ship they didn!t even "now was in orbit around their planet+it would be to discuss some operational aspect of the mission or to pass on information that had been discovered. 9o matter what the case was now, it would at least "ill a few minutes of the torturous nothing she was enduring. She pic"ed up her P- and told it to access the mail server. % moment later the face of a non+descript man appeared in holographic form above the screen. 3,ello, 8iss ittmeyer,3 he said. 38y name is John Jen"ins and I represent the Third ;an" of .est,em credit department, the provider of your recent home loan. .e have been loo"ing at your account and notice you have not as"ed for a home e#uity line of credit. .e are prepared to offer you such a line in the amount of E00,000 dollars at our favorable customer rate of only FC.8P. This money can be used for anything from...3 3Stop message and purge,3 she interrupted. Instantly the non+ descript man disappeared. %n unsolicited advertisement email+ one of the scourges of .est,em civili$ation. The average

.est,em citi$en over the age of F/ years of age received more than fifteen such messages daily, despite the almost universal condemnation of them and despite their clinically proven infectiveness as an advertising medium. ;ut this message held some interest for Julie because such messages were usually filtered from her account by special 8artian software. The only time one was allowed to get through was to send a message for her to call Ingram. She stood up and pulled a robe from the closet, loosely covering her nudity. She then too" her P- and wal"ed through the apartment, going into Scramm!s bedroom. Scramm, li"e men the solar system over, was #uite typical in his aversion to neatness. The bed was unmade and several days! worth of laundry littered the floor. She gave a little grunt of disgust and sat down on the bed, reaching over to open the blinds covering the window. The apartment had been carefully chosen so it would en'oy an unobstructed view to the southwest. In that direction, si&ty "ilometers away, 8ount True.est+which had been "nown as 8ount iablo before the corporate name placement cra$e began in the early /Fst century+po"ed its summit up over the hori$on. %top 8ount True.est+the highest point in the bay area+a comple& array of communications e#uipment was mounted, including .est,em military dishes. 3-omputer,3 Julie told her P-, 3switch to alpha mode.3 35oice authori$ation confirmed,3 the P- replied. 3Spea" authori$ation code.3 She rattled off a si&+digit code, thus satisfying the security re#uirement. ,er P- loo"ed e&actly li"e a standard .est,em model but had actually been manufactured by the 8artian intelligence services and thus contained some special hardware and software. *ne such thing was a communications laser system.

3-ontact Sampson,3 Julie told the P-, after ma"ing sure it was setting on the table and facing 8ount True.est. 3-ontacting,3 it replied. 3 on!t touch or move until communication is complete.3 .ith that the P- #uic"ly oriented itself using .est,em 1PS data. It then sent an outbound signal to a military laser reception dish atop 8ount True.est, the laser a tight, undetectable half+millimeter in width. It struc" the dish only si& centimeters off center and sent the hail into the .est,em military system, utili$ing a side band that 8artian intelligence had long since installed for their own use. The signal was transmitted via fiber optic cable to an encryption center in San )rancisco, and from there it was sent via microwave dish to another communications array atop 8ount %gricorp+which had once been "nown as 8ount Shasta. There, a transmitter encoded the signal yet again and sent it to a military satellite in geosynchronous orbit above South %merica. 9ormal .est,em software should have sent the signal to enver+the capital of .est,em+at this point, but instead it was sent out in another direction+towards what the .est,em intelligence services would have assumed was empty space in low orbit. The space was not currently empty however. Ingram floated there, its own sensor arrays searching for 'ust such a signal. Seven tenths of a second after Julie!s words, the hail re#uest was appearing on Aon Sampson!s terminal in the intelligence room of Ingram. ,e returned it, establishing the communications lin", but the return signal did not follow the same route. Instead, it went to a civilian communications satellite in geosynchronous orbit over the %tlantic *cean and sent the signal down to a standard cellular communications system in the San )rancisco ;ay area. There the signal found Julie!s P- four fifths of a second later, although the signal was encrypted and the fact it was sent would never register in the True.est -ommunication -orporation trac"ing computer. Sampson!s hologram appeared above the P-, his face cordial,

though obviously showing the strain of so long in $ero gravity. 3,ow you doing down there, Sweet -unt43 he as"ed her. 31etting a lot of 2arthling dic"43 3.ouldn!t want it,3 she returned. 3=ou "now how 2arthlings are in the fuc"ing department4 %bout as good as they are at "eeping their communications secure.3 ,e chuc"led. 31ood analogy,3 he told her. 3I trust Scramm has been ta"ing care of your needs though43 3*h yes,3 she said. 3,e hoses me down about once a wee" or so, time permitting. If it wasn!t for a little taste of some good old+ fashioned 8artian coc" once in a while, I thin" I might!ve gone insane down here by now. So anyway, what!s the haps4 =ou didn!t call me to tal" about my se& life, did you43 3%s ran"in! as I find the sub'ect, no, I didn!t. I went through your wee"ly report yesterday and was a bit dismayed to hear your target is going to be out in deep space for eight months or more. That might set our timetable bac" a bit.3 39o shit,3 she replied. 3She 'ust told me that last wee". She!s pretty vague about 'ust what she!s going to be doing out there or even where she!s going. %ll she tells me is that it!s for a pro'ect she is wor"ing on. I haven!t pushed her too hard, other than to let her "now I!m saddened she!s leaving.3 3.ell, it seems she!s a bit saddened she is leaving as well. .e!ve 'ust developed some pretty ran"in! information up here about her.3 3=eah4 :ay it on me.3 3.ell, in the first place, she left wor" early today, at around FDC0.3 3,mmm, a brea" in the routine all right,3 Julie agreed. She

didn!t need to as" how Sampson had come up with that information. It was the intelligence team!s 'ob to trac" everything her target was doing by any means available to them, especially now that Julie was in contact with her and in potential danger if things too" a wrong turn. Sampson would "now what time %manda had left wor" by the computer trail she left behind her. She would have used her ban" account to pay for her ride on the tram. The transportation corporation computer would also ma"e a notation of her presence on a particular train at a particular time, as well as any transfers she might ma"e. It was virtually impossible to travel anywhere or enter any building in .est,em without some computer, somewhere, ma"ing note of it. 3She!s probably home now,3 Sampson said. 3;ut that!s not the interesting part. She apparently had a meeting with her boss+ Thomas ,entman+today, 'ust before she left. *f course we don!t have any listening devices or anything else in ,entman!s office, nor do we dare tap into the Sythro email or messaging server+ but it seems that ,entman is good friends with another manager at the facility+a man by the name of -linton ;arbason. ;arbason is in charge of the anti+matter production department for the :emondrop pro'ect. Shortly after we received record of %manda boarding the transit train, ,entman used his personal computer account to send an email to ;arbason!s personal computer. The transcript of the message was somewhat contemptuous and se&ist in nature, alluding to the underlying biology and wea"ness of the female se&. .hat he describes is %manda coming into his office and re#uesting to be relieved of the upcoming trip to !the site! because she was suffering from !nerves.!3 3*h :aura,3 Julie said, grimacing. 3 id she really do that43 3.e have no way of confirming this information,3 he told her. 3;ut analysis tends to sway in favor of its truthfulness. .e can!t imagine why he would say such a thing to his friend if it wasn!t true.3

3=eah, that ma"es sense,3 she agreed. 3She left the office shortly after that, leading us to believe she was told to go home, hopefully 'ust for the day. %bout twenty minutes after she got there she used one of her false identities to access a lesbian pornography site. I don!t thin" I have to tell you what "ind of pictures she was loo"ing at.3 39o, I don!t thin" you do,3 Julie said. 2ver since she and %mada had become friendly with each other there had been a sharp increase in the amount of time %manda spent perusing such illegal databases. %nd the pictures she downloaded most often+ and seemed to spend the greatest amount of time e&amining+ were those that portrayed petite, dar" brunettes with medium breasts and athletic legs. In other words, women who closely resembled what Julie herself loo"ed li"e. ;ac" chec"s of her previous downloads confirmed she had never shown a particular preference for this type of woman until meeting Julie. 3So what we have here is a case of good news and bad news. The good news is that she seems to be falling in love with you, 'ust as we!d hoped. The bad news is that it!s starting to ma"e her do stupid things+to override the caution she!s always had on the sub'ect of her se&uality.3 3If she "eeps behaving this way,3 Julie said, 3she!ll be removed from the pro'ect and I won!t be able to get any details from her.3 3That is our consensus up here,3 Sampson told her. 3:aura "nows you!re the one in control of the situation and any decisions will rest with you. That!s only common sense. ;ut we!re wondering if it!s not time to maybe nudge things along a little faster.3 3=ou mean ma"e a move on her.3 3)uc"in! aye. She would still go to the :emondrop site for eight months but if you have more than 'ust a platonic relationship

wor"ing by the time she leaves she would more than li"ely have her caution restored. =ou!ve been wor"ing on her for several months now. o you thin" she would react favorably to an escalation in your relationship now43 Julie smiled, thin"ing of the way she!d teased and tortured the poor 2arthling over the past month or so with the 3accidental3 glimpses of her body, or the seemingly inadvertent rubs of her breasts across her bac" when in close #uarters. 3I thin" she might,3 she answered. 3I!ve given her more than a few openings to try something with me but so far she hasn!t ta"en the bait. She!s probably scared of re'ection, which is understandable given her situation and the prevailing attitude here. I!ve held bac" from being the aggressor so far because I!m afraid of blowing the contact if she!s not #uite ready. =ou understand that is a ris" I would run if I try something43 3)uc"in! aye,3 he said. 3%nd again, I!ll leave the ultimate decision up to you. =ou "now her much better than we do. %ll we do is trac" her by computer. =ou actually tal" to her, "now what ma"es her tic", as it were. She does seem to be in love with you. o you thin" it!s ris"ier to send her off for eight months with that love unreali$ed or to ris" re'ection by trying to push it43 3% ran"in! tough call to ma"e,3 she said reflectively. 3That!s why we pay you the big credits,3 he reminded her. 3=eah, I guess it is.3 She thought #uic"ly for a second, "nowing she could not "eep the communication lin" up for very long. In the end, she decided to go with good old gut instinct. 3I!ll give it a shot.3 ,e nodded. 3I thought maybe you would.3 3%nd maybe,3 she said, her mind continuing to race along, to analy$e, 3this setbac" might be the perfect opportunity to slide

in the bac" door+as it were.3

%manda was lying on her bed when the bu$$ing sound from her computer terminal bro"e the silence, informing her of an incoming com. She had been crying, her mind troubled and rac"ed with guilt over the idiotic move she!d made today and over the lustful, dangerous indulgence in illegal pornography that had been her response to it. .hen she loo"ed up at the bedroom terminal and saw that Julie was the person attempting to tal" to her, she almost didn!t answer it. %fter all, Julie was the source of all the conflicting feelings she had been having these last months, was the catalyst for the disastrous meeting she had called today. She "new the best thing for her to do was to brea" all communication with her friend, to attempt to brea" the hold she had on her before anything else happened. ;ut 'ust seeing her name there on the identification screen, 'ust seeing the arrangement of letters in that specific order, tugged harshly on her heart, sent wanting coursing through her body. espite what had happened she could not "eep from seeing her face, from hearing her voice. She #uic"ly got up and wal"ed over to the des", the same des" where she had masturbated to a furious orgasm while drooling over digital images of Julie loo"+ ali"es not two hours before. She sat down in the chair, too" a deep breath, and told the computer to answer. % holograph of Julie!s face appeared before the screen, the hair tied bac" in its usual ponytail, her eyes spar"ling. 3,ey, 8andy,3 she said, smiling. 3,ow are you doing today43 3I!m fine,3 she said softly. 3,ow are you, Julie43 3It!s been "ind of a long day. I 'ust got home and thought I!d com you to see what you!re doing.3 ,er eyes focused more intently. 3%re you o"ay43 3=es,3 %manda answered. 3I!m fine.3

3=ou loo" li"e your hard drive!s about to crash. Is there anything wrong43 %manda marveled, not for the first time, how her friend seemed to "now her moods 'ust by glancing at her, even over the impersonal Internet communications system. It was both eerie and thrilling. 3.ell,3 she answered. 3I!ve had a bit of a long day as well. I!m all right though... really.3 3=ou poor thing,3 Julie said sympathetically. 3:isten, I scored a couple of stea"s from the %gricorp store on the way home today. They!re 8artian stea"s and you "now how good those greenies are at growing cows. ,ow about I come over and coo" them up for us43 3I couldn!t as" you to do that,3 she said, though without much conviction in her voice. 3*h, the hell you can!t,3 Julie scoffed, using a phrase that was borderline ris#u> for something transmitted across the Internet. 3I!ve also got some fresh mushrooms, some 8artian articho"es, and a bottle of 8erlot from the %gricorp wineries. I must insist you don!t force me to eat and drin" all of this alone.3 3.ell...3 she said, the conviction brea"ing completely. 3If you really don!t mind.3 3I really don!t mind. :et me 'ust throw it all in a bag and I!ll be over in a few minutes.3 %s promised, Julie showed up at the front door five minutes later, two grocery bags in hand, a warm smile on her face. She was wearing a thic" blouse and a bland cotton s"irt that fell to the top of her shins+about as revealing an outfit as a woman could get away with in public. %manda helped her carry in the bags, their fingers touching for an instant as they changed hands. %s always she felt an electric thrill shoot through her at even this simple, innocent contact.

Julie #uic"ly too" over command of her "itchen, getting a pot of water boiling for the articho"es and the rest of her supplies spread over the various countertops. It turned out she had actually brought two bottles of wine+one the 8erlot she!d described during the com, the other a chilled -hardonnay from )rance. 32ast,em wine43 Julie gasped, loo"ing at the bottle. 3.here did you get that43 3% good friend gave it to me last year,3 she said. 3It!s been hiding away in the bac" of my refrigerator ever since, 'ust waiting for the proper occasion.3 3Julie, that!s illegal,3 she told her. It was, in fact, a federal felony to possess any item that had been manufactured by 2ast,em. This was because of a trade embargo that dated bac" to the 8artian Aevolution more than forty years earlier. 2ast,em had recogni$ed the 8artian government as legitimate in the first few days of the revolt and had supplied them with hydrogen fuel so they could carry out combat operations against the .est,em forces trying to ta"e the planet bac". It was said that the 2ast,em!s had also supplied weapons and even troops to the 8artians as well+a story that any thin"ing person instinctively "new was nothing but propaganda spread to e&plain why the outnumbered 8artians had "ic"ed the asses of the .est,em marines so badly. 3.ell I guess we!d better get rid of the evidence then, shouldn!t we43 Julie as"ed, popping open the top on the wine bottle. She poured two glasses and handed one across. She then raised hers in a toast. 3To good friends,3 she said. %manda, still nervous about having a bottle of illegal alcohol in her house, nevertheless could not refuse to honor such a toast. She pic"ed up the glass before her and clin"ed it to Julie!s. 31ood friends,3 she repeated.

They dran". %manda marveled over the smooth, crisp taste of the -hardonnay. True, those 2ast,ems were nothing but a bunch of sadistic, pagan fascists bent on ruling the entire solar system and destroying the .est,em way of life+or at least that!s what .est,em Internet always told her+but they sure did "now how to ma"e good wine. They dran" down the entire bottle, finishing it off while the articho"es boiled and the stea"s si$$led in the broiler and the mushrooms saut>ed on the methane burning stovetop, chatting all the while about the normal sorts of things they chatted about. %manda was not much of a drin"er+it was considered unladyli"e+and by the time Julie put the food on the table and opened up the 8erlot, she was already bu$$ing #uite strongly and a bit unsteady on her feet. The second bottle went a little slower but did serve to maintain the into&ication she was developing. They ate every bite of Julie!s dinner, leaving no scraps e&cept the articho"e leaves. They dumped the dishes in the sin" and Julie poured each of them one last glass of wine. They then sat down on the couch in the living room, Julie sitting a bit nearer than was the norm. %manda loo"ed at her, pu$$led, but did not protest. *n the contrary, she felt the glow of se&uality burning within her once again. .ith it however, came the familiar confusion. .as she misreading the signals her friend was sending4 .as Julie even sending signals4 %nd if so, did she dare act on them4 3=ou!re still loo"ing a little tense, 8ands,3 Julie told her, using a nic"name she!d given her that no one else would have dared utter. 3:i"e I said,3 %manda replied, 3It!s been a long day.3 %bruptly, Julie chugged the rest of the wine in her glass. She set the glass down and scooted closer. 3,ere,3 she said. 3:et me help you with that.3 3Bh... help me43

She too" the wineglass from her hands+it was almost empty in any case+and set it down on the table ne&t to her own. 3Turn toward the wall,3 she told her. 3:et me see if I can get some of the tension out of your shoulders.3 %manda was not #uite sure what she meant at first. %nd then Julie!s soft hands came down on her shoulders and gently turned her so she was facing away from her. They began to s#uee$e and rub on her shoulders, "neading the muscles in a way that was both soothing and erotic. She couldn!t help but sigh in pleasure. 9or could she help but be thrilled at the sensation of Julie!s hands on her body, no matter how innocent the touch. 3That feels glorious,3 she told Julie. 3=es, you!re as tense as a spring,3 Julie said, her voice very near her ear. 32ven worse than you loo".3 ,er hands moved a bit lower, onto the scapula, rubbing and "neading there now, trying to loosen muscles that had been hopelessly "notted with tension. %nd gradually, loosen they did, 'ust a little, but enough for her to feel a distinct difference. 3*h Julie, I can!t believe how good this feels,3 she nearly swooned, her mouth loosened by the alcohol. 3.here did you learn this43 Julie chuc"led in a naughty way. 3I don!t "now if I should tell you,3 she said. 3=ou!d thin" me a bit scandalous if I did.3 This definitely pi#ued %manda!s interest. 3I already thin" you!re a bit scandalous,3 she said. 3=ou sleep na"ed, remember4 .hat would your bosses at %gricorp thin" of you if that got out43 3They!d all tal" about how shoc"ing it was among themselves and then go home and polish their silos thin"ing about it.3 %manda bar"ed out a stream of embarrassed giggles. That was by far the raunchiest thing she had ever heard her friend say. 3I bet they would,3 she said. 3So tell me where you learned to

massage43 3I don!t thin" I should,3 Julie said. 3It!s a little more scandalous than how I sleep.3 3=ou won!t even tell your best friend43 she as"ed, manufacturing a little pout. 1od, but she was en'oying this conversation, those hands on her bac" and shoulders, even as she felt guilty for allowing it. Such affections between any two people who weren!t married, let alone two women, were severely frowned upon by society. 3=ou might not want to be my friend anymore if I told you,3 Julie replied. 3Just en'oy the benefits of it.3 3,ow about if I tell you a secret of mine43 she suggested. 3Something scandalous43 3=ou4 Scandalous43 she scoffed in a playful manner. 3=ou!ve got to be "idding.3 3.ell, will you43 3It would have to be pretty scandalous indeed,3 Julie said. 3*h, it is,3 she said. 3It really is.3 3*"ay then, let!s hear it.3 %manda felt herself blushing, "new the wine was having an effect on her 'udgment, but blurted out her 3scandalous3 story anyway. 3.ell,3 she said, a giggle escaping, 3ever since you told me about... you "now... how nice it felt to sleep without any clothes on... well... I!ve "ind of been doing it too.3 31et off the planet<3 Julie e&claimed. 3=ou have not.3 3I have,3 she said, giggling again. 3I really have. I haven!t worn my nightgown for more than a month.3

3=ou naughty little girl,3 Julie said teasingly, her mouth once again shoc"ingly close to %manda!s ear. 3.hat would your bosses thin" if they "new that43 3I!d probably lose my security clearance,3 she said, only half 'o"ing. 3%nd you!re right. It does feel very... liberating to sleep without... you "now4 Bnclothed.3 3 oesn!t it though43 Julie said. 32specially with nice clean sheets. 8mmm, delicious.3 %manda swallowed. )or 'ust a second there, while Julie had been saying 3delicious3, the tips of her fingers had touched the sides of her breasts, sending another 'olt through her body. ,ad it been accidental4 ,ad it been purposeful4 3=ou o"ay, 8ands43 3=eah,3 she breathed. 3I!m fine. 9ow I told you my secret. :et me hear yours.3 3%re you sure you want to hear this43 she as"ed. Suddenly she wasn!t really sure she did, but she felt compelled all the same. 3=es,3 she told her. 3I do.3 3*"ay then, here goes.3 Julie too" a deep breath, her hands traveling a little further down %manda!s bac", so they were gently rubbing along the lower thoracic region, right along the spine. 3.hen I was in college, I had a friend named 2lectra.3 32lectra43 %manda said. 3That sounds li"e a greenie name.3 3It is,3 Julie told her. 32lectra was from 8ars.3 3)rom 8ars43 %manda as"ed, awed. 3,ow did she get here4 id the greenies let her leave the planet43 It was of course well "nown that the reason there were not many 8artians on 2arth was because the corrupt regime that controlled that planet would not allow them to leave. It was said that the current

dictator of 8ars+a horrid woman named 8itsy ;rown+had ordered the torture and e&ecution of more than a thousand people who had merely protested in favor of free immigration to 2arth. 3,er family escaped aboard a food supply ship when she was a teen,3 Julie said. 3That in itself was #uite a story, but anyway, when I met her, she was wor"ing as an environmental services engineer at the university. 9o one else li"ed her very much because she was a 8artian but I got to "now her a little and I found out she was actually "ind of smart+for a greenie anyway.3 3Aeally4 % smart greenie43 -onventional wisdom proclaimed there was no such thing. %fter all, the greenies were evolved from the welfare trash of 2arth, weren!t they4 3Strange but true,3 Julie confirmed. 3.e used to tal" for hours and she would tell me all about life on 8ars, how horrible it was and how glad she was to get out of there.3 3I can imagine,3 %manda said. 3%s you "now, on 8ars, they are very... well... decadent.3 3*h yes,3 she said, thin"ing of the news reports she!d seen over the years. The 8artians believed in open se&uality, in allowing anyone to do anything with anyone they chose. The normal dress there was almost completely na"ed and there were even places where they could wal" around fully nude in public. It was reported they had dance halls where na"ed people actually... well... touched each other on the dance floor, both men and women. ;otching, they called it. 2ven though she herself was considered a se&ual deviant by her peers, %manda still found this 8artian behavior shoc"ing to her prudish upbringing. 32lectra!s family was religious,3 Julie continued. 3I don!t have to tell you how religious people are treated on 8ars. ;ut anyway, she and her family were never a part of all of the decadence that

goes on there. They went to the secret church services and tried the best they could to follow all the teachings of The :ord without getting caught by the Secret Police the 8artians have.3 3I!ve heard horror stories about them,3 %manda said. 3%ll true,3 Julie assured her. 3So, for the most part, 2lectra and her family are 'ust li"e everyone else in .est,em. ;ut a few things from the 8artian way of life did manage to get through. *ne of those things was giving massages.3 38assages43 she as"ed. 3=ou don!t mean...3 she gulped, 38artian massages, do you43 3.ell, not the full 8artian massage,3 she amended. 3Just the first part, where you put the oil on the s"in and rub it in.3 3.ow,3 she said, awed and, suddenly very aroused. 8assages such as that had been outlawed many years before on .est,em, and for good reason. They unnaturally set loose the prurient interests of both the sub'ect and masseuse. 2ven those who were married were not allowed to practice such a thing. 3 id you ever... I mean, did she ever... I mean... I mean...3 3I let her massage me one night,3 Julie said softly. 3She put the oil all over my bare bac" and rubbed it in.3 3=our... your... bare bac"43 %manda croa"ed, her head spinning with the vision of Julie lying down na"ed and oily. 3It felt wonderful,3 she said. 3I!ve never felt anything li"e it before or since. %nd when she was done, all of my muscles were nice and loose and I felt 'ust... mmmm, 'ust delicious. She even did my legs too.3 3=our... legs43 38y bare legs,3 she confirmed. 3I could hardly wal" on them

afterward they were so rela&ed.3 3So you were... na"ed in front of her43 3.ell, "ind of. There was a towel covering my butt and she didn!t touch me there. %nd I stayed on my tummy so my breasts were covered. I!m not a complete pagan you "now.3 %manda blushed red. 3I wasn!t trying to say you were,3 she said #uic"ly. 3I was 'ust...3 she shoo" her head, unable to get the vision of her friend being massaged by a woman out of her head. 1od, that was so se&y, so nasty, so arousing. 3So anyway,3 Julie told her, 3that!s where I learned to massage. I only got the oil massage once+we didn!t dare do it again since someone might have caught us+but she did teach me this "ind of massage. 9ot as nice, but not #uite against the law either, right43 3Aight,3 %manda said. 3;ut...3 3;ut what43 3*h, never mind,3 Julie said. 3It!s 'ust the wine tal"ing.3 39o, tell me,3 %manda said. Julie seemed to thin" about it for a second. 3.ell,3 she finally said, 3I was going to say that... I thin" I "now how to give the other "ind of massage too.3 3The 8artian massage43 she as"ed, her voice thic". 3.ell, li"e I said, not the full massage,3 she said. 3Just the oil part. ;ut if you want, maybe I could show you.3 She gulped. 3Show me43

3*nly if you want,3 Julie whispered to her. 3It really does feel good and it!ll help these muscles rela&. ;esides, I!ve been dying to try it out on someone. =ou wouldn!t report me to the police for it, would you43 39o,3 %manda said, unaware she was lic"ing her lips. 3;ut I don!t thin" we should do that.3 3.hy not43 )or a moment she couldn!t answer, so torn was she between her guilt and her desire and her fear of the law. 3It!s wrong,3 she said. 3They made it against the law for a reason.3 3I suppose so,3 Julie said, shrugging. 3)orget I mentioned it.3 She too" her hands off %manda!s bac" and leaned bac". 3That!s about as loose as I!ll be able to get you that way though.3 3*h... well, uh... than"s,3 she said, her hands actually trembling now, her emotions at war within her. 3%re you o"ay, 8ands43 Julie as"ed, concern in her face. 3I didn!t shoc" you too much, did I43 39o,3 she said, her voice seeming to come from a thousand "ilometers away. %lready she missed her friend!s touch upon her. She wanted those hands bac" on her body, and not 'ust through her shirt either. There was no denying it, no hiding it. 39ot at all... uh... well, maybe a little... but... but...3 3;ut what43 3.ell, maybe we could 'ust... you "now... try that 8artian massage thing4 8aybe 'ust for a few minutes43 Julie smiled, her eyes giving no hint of what was going on behind them. 38aybe for 'ust a few minutes,3 she said. 3.hy don!t we go to your bedroom4 It!ll be more comfortable in

there.3 ,er bedroom< The words sent fresh shivers through her. Julie wanted to go to her bedroom with her< 3*"ay,3 she s#uea"ed. ,er bedroom was in the very rear of the house, a large room, tastefully and conservatively decorated in earth tones. There was the inevitable computer terminal in one corner and a large, four+post bed centered between imitation wood nightstands. :eading off opposite the main doorway was the master bathroom. %manda turned on the lights as they entered and then stood nervously near the foot of the bed. 3The 8artians use a special oil for their massages,3 Julie told her. 3Since we don!t have any of that available I guess we!ll have to improvise. o you have any mineral oil43 3Sure,3 she said, moving #uic"ly to the bathroom. In a drawer in the cabinet was a bottle of ,enderson Pharmaceuticals mineral oil. Such a substance was available by prescription only since it was deemed an encouragement to masturbation and deviant se&uality. %manda, li"e half the population of .est,em, had complained to her doctor of chaff mar"s on her feet as a means to secure a supply. *f course she didn!t use it for her feet, she used it to lube up the cucumbers she purchased from the %gricorp store so she could masturbate with them. She too" it out of the drawer now with a hand that trembled. The plastic surface of the bottle was slippery to the touch. 3%nd what, may I as", do you use this for43 Julie as"ed when she returned with it, a sly grin on her face. %manda blushed, unable to loo" her in the eye. 3Just li"e it says on the bottle. )or my feet.3 3Bh huh,3 Julie said. 3%nd how many of those cucumbers that the greenies ship over here do you thin" are actually put in salads4 =ou ever wonder that43

39o,3 she said. 3I!ve never wondered that.3 Julie giggled. 3:ighten up, 8ands,3 she told her. 3.e!re having a good time here, remember4 .hat you do with your mineral oil and your cucumbers is your business, no one else!s. o you have a towel we can put down on the bed43 She went and retrieved a towel, moving more slowly this time, wondering again 'ust what was happening here. .as she really about to receive an illegal 8artian massage from her best friend4 .as that all that Julie was going to do4 .hy was Julie tal"ing so boldly, so blatantly se&ual to her all of a sudden4 8aybe she should 'ust put a stop to this right now, before things went too far. ;ut she couldn!t. %s nervous as she was, as guilty as she felt, she was also dying to feel her friend!s hands on her. ,er vagina was 'uicing at the very thought. She too" the towel bac" to the bedroom and laid it neatly on the bed. 39ow what43 she as"ed. 39ow, you ta"e off your clothes and lay down,3 Julie said softly. 3%ll of them43 3=ou can leave your underwear on,3 she said, her tone indicating, however, that she wouldn!t mind if she too" those off as well. 3I!ll turn around. Just lay down on the bed on your tummy when you!re done.3 She turned her bac" to her, so she was loo"ing at the wall. %manda had another moment in which she almost lost her nerve. 9ot since :orraine had she undressed in front of another person. 9ot even the prostitutes she had employed in her more desperate hours had seen her na"ed, nor she them. They had all serviced her in the dar". ;ut the lure of that bottle of oil and those se&y hands called to her. ,er trembling fingers went to the buttons on her blouse and she began to open them, one by one. .hen it was all the way open she pulled it off, dropping it

to the floor. She then un$ipped her floor length s"irt and removed it as well, leaving her standing in a full slip and tight brassiere. She removed the slip ne&t, baring her legs. The panties beneath were white, since no other color was available e&cept on the blac" mar"et. They waistband was high, well over her navel. Bnderwear was deemed to be a garment to cover the forbidden region, not something to draw attention to it, and this pair did its 'ob admirably. 3,ow we doing43 Julie as"ed, "eeping her bac" turned towards her. 3%lmost done,3 she answered, gathering her courage. )inally she reached behind her and released the catch on the brassiere. It fell away, revealing her moderate si$ed breasts. They were pale, of course, since they never saw the light of the sun, but aesthetically pleasing all the same. The nipples were #uite hard and she could not even begin to tell herself it was because of the chill in the room. She lay down on the bed, her breasts flattening beneath her, her legs tightly closed. She too" another deep breath and then said, 3*"ay, I!m ready.3 .ith her peripheral vision she saw Julie turn around and loo" at her. She could feel her eyes moving up and down the bare flesh of her body and the ga$e seemed to burn her s"in. 3=ou!ve got a nice body, 8ands,3 Julie said appreciatively. 3I thought you probably did but it!s hard to tell with all the clothes they ma"e us girls wear.3 3Bh... well... uh... than"s,3 she stammered, a fresh blush arising. 3I really thin" you!re going to li"e this,3 she said, pic"ing up the bottle of oil. She wal"ed over to the bed and "nelt down on it, her "nees ne&t to %manda!s buttoc"s. 3I thin" you!re going to li"e this a lot.3 She couldn!t see what Julie was doing but she heard the sound

of oil dribbling out of the bottle followed by Julie!s hands rubbing together. % second later those hands came down on her bare shoulders, slippery and warm, and they began to rub her with 'ust the right amount of firmness, "neading the muscles, rela&ing them. It felt incredibly sensuous, unli"e anything she had ever felt before. % sigh escaped her lips. 3=ou ain!t felt nothing yet,3 Julie said. 3.ait until I really go to town on you.3 Julie poured more oil, and her hands came down once more, a little lower on %manda!s bac" this time. She rubbed it in, ma"ing la$y circles with her hands, alternately touching %manda with the fingertips and then the heels, spreading the oil all along her scapula and her upper spinal region and then darting bac" up to the shoulders. The guilt and the fear began to subside, replaced by bliss at the touch of those feminine hands on her bare flesh. 3=ou li"e it, 8ands43 Julie as"ed her. 3=essss,3 she sighed. 3It feels heavenly.3 She oiled her hands again and then began to massage the lower bac", her hands circling down and down until they were touching the waistband of her underwear. %manda felt fresh 'uices gush from her se& at the forbidden touch and resisted the urge to rub her legs together. 9ow her entire bac" was slic" with oil. She moaned again as Julie began running her fingers up and down the length of her spinal column, stopping at each vertebrae to give it a gentle push. She spent particular time on the lower vertebrae, 'ust above her waistband, and then went bac" to the top and wor"ed her way down again. She did this three or four times, spending about a minute per cycle and by the end her entire spine felt realigned, the dull ache that came from sitting in an office chair day in and day out reduced to a pleasant throb that was more se&ual in nature than painful.

3=ou!re starting to loo" really rela&ed now,3 Julie commented. 3I am,3 she told her. 3*h 1od, I really am.3 3:et me wor" on the big muscles of your bac" now.3 .ith that, she used her forearms to rub on each side of her bac", leaning forward and putting her weight on them and then sliding them up and down in alternating circles, pushing the flesh before them li"e a rolling pin. The pressure was enough to drive some of the air from her lungs and flirted with the border of pain and pleasure, staying 'ust on the proper side of the line. She did this for nearly five more minutes, stopping every once in a while to oil her forearms to "eep the friction low. .hen this phase was over %manda was nearly breathless with pleasure, her muscles loose and #uivering. 3%nd now, the legs,3 Julie said, oiling up her hands again. 3The legs43 she as"ed. 3=ou do those too43 3It!s part of the massage,3 Julie replied, shifting position on the bed. 3=ou start with the feet.3 3*hhh,3 %manda s#uealed as she felt her right foot lifted and those slippery hands engulf it. She wor"ed each foot individually, pushing, pulling, pressing, even massaging the toes one by one. )rom there, she wor"ed up each an"le, paying particular attention to the calves, her fingers stopping at the bac" of the "nee and using teasing stro"es there. %manda had to fight to "eep still during this portion. This part of her body was very sensitive and the contact was ma"ing her clitoris swell between her legs. 3;ring your legs apart a little,3 Julie told her. 3 o... do what43 she as"ed. ;ring her legs apart4 She couldn!t

do that. The crotch of her panties were absolutely soa"ed with her 'uices and she "new the dampness of the cotton in that area would be plainly visible to Julie!s eyes. Julie noticed the hesitation and too" matters into her own hands. She inserted her fingers into the gap between the "nees and pulled, compelling the e&tremities to come apart. %manda fought the intrusion at first, embarrassed, aroused, unsure how her friend would react, but Julie was insistent. 3I can!t get the inside of your thighs if they!re closed li"e that,3 she told her, continuing to pull. 3 on!t worry, 8ands, I!m aware of the effect the massage has on certain... oh... perspiration glands. It had the same effect on me when 2lectra gave me the massage.3 3It did43 she as"ed, still fighting against the pressure, though not #uite as firmly. 3It did,3 she assured her. 3It!s nothing to be ashamed of. It!s natural, beautiful even. 9ow bring your legs apart and let me continue.3 She!s telling me that she "nows I!m wet, %manda thought, her body shuddering a little. She!s telling me that and she says it!s natural. .hat is she trying to do to me4 Should I let her4 The answer didn!t ta"e her long to come to. Julie!s hands felt far too good upon her body and she was far too se&ually aroused to stop her now. 9ot since :orraine herself had she been this turned on. She let her legs fall open, revealing her wet crotch to Julie!s ga$e. Julie did not let the view go uncommented upon. 3It loo"s li"e I!m doing a very good 'ob, huh 8ands43 she as"ed playfully. 3It smells li"e it, too.3 %manda could do nothing but blush. 9ot even :orraine had been this blatantly forward. ;ut still, she could not muster the

will to stop her. The oily hands came down once again, this time onto her right thigh, 'ust above the "nee. She encircled her leg and began to move her hand upward, "neading and caressing the flesh as she went, spreading the oil about, moving higher and higher with agoni$ing slowness. .hen she reached the top of the thigh her "nuc"les brushed against the crotch of her panties 'ust for the briefest of seconds, imparting a hint of pressure against her swollen se& beneath the cotton. 3*h,3 she s#uea"ed, her body 'umping. 3Sorry, 8ands,3 Julie said, sounding anything but. She then removed her hands and oiled them up again before going to the left leg and starting the process over. %gain it too" seemingly forever for her hands to wor" their way to the top of the thigh. This time, when the "nuc"les came into contact with her crotch, the pressure was greater, ma"ing her moan aloud, and it lingered much longer. There was absolutely no way she could tell herself the touch was accidental or that it was not se&ual in nature. Just what was going on here4 .as Julie trying to... to... do things with her4 To do the things %manda had dreamed of doing with her4 38ands,3 Julie!s voice said softly as her hands pulled off her leg, 3I have a bit of a confession to ma"e.3 3.hu... whu... what is it43 she as"ed, her voice brea"ing in fear and desire. 3.hen I told you 2lectra didn!t teach me the full 8artian massage... I lied. She did.3 3=ou... you... mean... 43 3=es,3 she whispered, her weight shifting on the bed behind her, and suddenly there was a new sensation on her body. She felt a

wet tongue touching the bac" of her "nee, swirling around, lic"ing up and down. 3*hhh, uh... Julie...3 she stammered, unsure what she was going to say, but ma"ing no move to stop her friend from doing what she was doing. 3Shhh,3 Julie whispered, her tongue moving upward now, trailing wetly up the bac" of her thigh, moving higher and higher. 3*h 1od,3 she whimpered, trembling all over now but mesmeri$ed by the glorious feel of that tongue moving across her flesh. It moved to the bottom edge of her underwear and then stabbed gently beneath a few times. Then, still slow and deliberate, it began to follow the elastic band of the leg inward, toward her center, lic"ing across the tendon of her thigh, Julie!s nose rubbing softly onto her pubis through the cotton covering. Two fingers suddenly reached into the crotch of the underwear and pulled them to the side, baring her se&. %nd then the tongue was upon her, lic"ing between her swollen lips, tasting her very essence. 3*hhhh, Julie... *hhhhhhh,3 she groaned in fearful ecstasy. Julie was lic"ing her vagina< .as putting her tongue upon her 'ust li"e she!d always dreamed. .as this a dream now4 Just a particularly vivid wish fulfillment fantasy played out in her mind while she slumbered4 Julie!s tongue plunging all the way inside her slit #uic"ly demolished that theory. The 'olts of pleasure that shot through her body at this action were too real, too intense to be anything but blessed reality. This was really happening. Julie was really copulating her with her mouth. %fter all this time, after all of the fantasies, it was really happening<

She was lost at that moment, all thoughts of putting an end to the encounter vanished. She moaned again and opened her legs wider, giving her friend+and now, lover+better access to what she sought. Julie was #uic" to ta"e advantage. She plunged her tongue in and out several times and then began to lap up and down the length of her slit in broad stro"es, passing over her swollen clit at the bottom of each stro"e, going nearly to her anus at the top. She varied her speed and pressure as she went, drawing every ounce of pleasure she could. %manda could only moan and shudder, her fists clenching the sheets of the bed. Julie pulled her mouth away suddenly and then pulled her face bac". She grabbed hold of %manda!s leg and began to pull on it. 3Aoll over, 8ands,3 she ordered. 3:et me do this right.3 %manda didn!t hesitate. She allowed herself to be rolled onto her bac". .hen Julie grabbed at the waistband of her underwear to remove them she lifted her hips up, allowing them to be slid down her legs and off. 9ow na"ed, she spread her legs widely, loo"ing with lust upon the face of her lover. Julie!s mouth and nose were wet with her 'uices. ,er tongue snuc" out and lic"ed at her lip. 3I!ve wanted to do this to you ever since I met you,3 Julie told her. 3*h god,3 %manda whimpered. 3%nd you!ve wanted me too, haven!t you43 3=es,3 she said. 3)rom the first moment.3 3I "new you were li"e me,3 Julie told her. 3I 'ust "new it.3 3=es, oh yes.3 3%nd now I!m going to finish what I started.3 .ith that, she lowered her face to %manda!s crotch and soon that tongue was

bac" within her, lic"ing her up and down, that mouth suc"ing and teasing and bringing pleasure to her. 3So good,3 %manda moaned over and over again. 3So good.3 .hen Julie began to suc" on her clitoris, the orgasm 'ust e&ploded through her, waves of pleasure roc"eting up and down her nerve pathways. She screamed out at the ceiling, her fists ripping the sheets free of the bed, her pelvis mashing up and down as if she were convulsing. %nd still Julie "ept suc"ing, "eeping up the pressure, drawing out every last ounce of pleasure. %s the last spasm faded away, leaving %manda!s body drained and satiated, Julie pulled her face from her dripping crotch and "neeled between her legs. She stared down at her new lover, her face hungry, her eyes full of lust. 3It!s my turn now,3 she told %manda. 3=ou... your turn43 she as"ed her, unaware she was lic"ing her lips. 3I!m gonna put my pussy on your face now, and you!re gonna eat it,3 she said. 3*h 1od,3 %manda panted. 3%ren!t you, 8ands4 =ou!re gonna lic" me until I come all over your little le$$y face, right43 3=es, oh yes,3 %manda cried, already 'uicing up again at the thought. 31ive it to me<3 3Thought I didn!t notice you loo"ing at me all those times, didn!t you43 Julie as"ed, pulling up the hem of her s"irt a little, so her an"les and then "nees came into view. She wore no nylons and her legs were smooth shaven.

3=es... no... I don!t "now,3 she said, her hand reaching out and touching Julie!s "nee. The s"in was so soft, so feminine. Just li"e s"in should be. Just li"e she!d imagined it would be. 3=ou "now,3 Julie said, raising the s"irt 'ust a bit higher, so the bottom of her smooth thighs came into view. She began to inch forward, moving her pelvis up onto %manda!s, the s"irt inching higher and higher. 3I saw your eyes loo"ing at me, I felt you wanting to touch me. Aemember when I accidentally wal"ed out of my bedroom without my pants and panties on4 Aemember that4 I told you I!d forgot you were there.3 3=es,3 %manda said, her mouth watering now as Julie!s upper thighs came into view. They were creamy loo"ing, dar"er than that of most women. 3That wasn!t an accident,3 she said, inching further up her body, her crotch moving onto %manda!s bare tummy now, the s"irt going 'ust a little higher on her thighs, though not high enough for her to see what was between them. 3I wanted you to see me. I was hoping you would try something with me. =ou could have had me that night, you "now43 39o, I... I didn!t "now,3 she s#uea"ed. 3;ut you "now you can have me now, right43 she as"ed, inching further up, over her breasts, up to her nec", the warm s"in of her lower thighs now touching the side of %manda!s face. 3=es,3 she said, her hands going to those thighs, stro"ing them, bas"ing in the sensation. 3%nd you want me now, don!t you43 ,er fingers gripped the hem of the s"irt tighter. 38ore than anything, Julie,3 she cried. 3*h 1od, give it to me< 1ive me your pussy<3

Julie smiled and raised her s"irt the rest of the way up, until it was bunched around her stomach. %manda gasped as she saw what was revealed. Julie wasn!t wearing any underwear, not a single stitch. ,er vaginal lips were plainly visible pee"ing out through the mat of dar" pubic hair, swollen and dripping with 'uice. The clit was hard, 'ust begging to be suc"ed. 3It!s all yours, baby,3 she said, inching forward the final distance. 3Ta"e me.3 %manda pulled her crotch into her face, 'abbing out with her tongue, tasting for the first time the mus"y 'uices of the woman she loved. Julie dropped the hem of her s"irt bac" down, so it was covering her face and the only thing visible to her eyes was that beautiful female organ before her. %manda feasted on her, tasting her everywhere, lic"ing everything, suc"ing her clit, attac"ing her wet lips with her mouth, her lust and love driving her onward, all thoughts of her idiocy earlier that day erased from her mind. They made love for the better part of an hour, spea"ing little e&cept for moans and grunts of pleasure. They stripped off their clothes and bas"ed in the forbidden pleasures of the female flesh, drawing orgasms from each other in as many ways as they could imagine. %manda, by far, was the beneficiary of greater "nowledge in the encounter. She came no less than seven times, each orgasm more powerful than the one before. Still, she didn!t give too terribly bad either. She managed to draw four from Julie, three with her mouth and one with her fingers. )inally, satiated, e&hausted, and dripping with the sweat of lovers, they lay na"ed together atop the destroyed bedcovers, flesh to flesh, their hands caressing gently, their mouths occasionally sharing a soft "iss flavored with mus". )or almost another hour they simply stayed li"e that, neither spea"ing, 'ust being. )inally %manda, her mind still confused, bro"e the silence. 3=ou!ve done this before43 she as"ed.

38ade love to a woman43 Julie as"ed her. 3=es. I have. %nd so have you.3 3=es,3 she admitted. 3I!m a lesbian. I always have been.3 3So am I,3 Julie told her. 3I didn!t "now that until 2lectra gave me the massage that time, but I!d "nown something was different about me. I 'ust never li"ed men the way all my friends did. I was afraid to tell anyone. I!m sure you "now what I mean.3 3*h yes,3 %manda said, delighted at hearing this. ,ere was someone who could understand where she was coming from< 3I "now e&actly what you mean.3 They tal"ed. She told Julie everything about her past, starting with her first feelings for the same se& at puberty. She told of her best friend in high school, how she had seduced her, and how she had ended up with an e&tensive therapy session as a result. 3%s if what we feel could be cured,3 Julie nearly spat. 3Aight,3 %manda agreed. 3I love .est,em as much as anyone,3 she told her. 3I fly the flag every 5% day, 'ust li"e everyone else, but our leaders! views on se&uality are horribly distorted, wouldn!t you say4 Sometimes I thin" those damn greenies have got the right idea. I hear that on 8ars women li"e us can marry each other if they want, and no one cares about it.3 %manda had to concede that, as perverted and decadent as the 8artian people were reported to be, in some regards there was a lot to admire them for. She continued her story, wor"ing her way through her college affairs and finally around to :orraine, the only woman she had

loved+at least until now. She told of how they had met and how they had become friends. In wistful, melancholy tones she told of how they had ta"en a trip to South :a"e Tahoe and how, after a night of drin"ing, they had fallen into each other!s arms in much the same way as now. 3:orraine initiated it,3 she told her. 3I was pretty sure by that point that she wanted to... you "now... ma"e love with me, but I didn!t have the nerve to ma"e the first move. )inally she 'ust "issed me. It was one of those "isses that could!ve been friendly or could!ve been passionate, depending on what happened ne&t. If I would!ve pulled bac" from her, she would!ve said it was friendly, but I didn!t, and she "ept "issing me, and then she put her tongue in my mouth.3 She sighed, thin"ing of the memory. 3.e stayed up the rest of the night after that. It was the beginning of a long relationship.3 3,ow long43 Julie as"ed. 3Two years,3 she said. 3.e were together for almost two years.3 3.hy did you stop43 She swallowed, feeling a lump in her throat, feeling her s"in burn with the embarrassment and shame that memory brought. 3.e got caught,3 she finally said. 3;y her husband.3 3,e caught you43 3I thin" he was starting to suspect what was going on between us,3 she said. 3*ne day he only pretended to go to wor". .e met at her house that day and we started ma"ing love, 'ust li"e we always did. ,e came in and caught us right in the middle of it.3 3 amn,3 Julie whispered. 3.hat did he do43 3,e...3 She paused to wipe a tear from her eye. 3,e... too" advantage of the situation.3

3*h43 She nodded, dabbing again at her eye. 3,e told us what was going to happen if he let it be "nown what was going on. 8y career would have been derailed right there. I would!ve ended up living in the ghetto, probably wor"ing as a prostitute. :orraine would!ve been divorced without any alimony or support. She would!ve probably ended up there with me. ,is price for silence was...3 % sob escaped from her. 3.as to have both of us for the night.3 3,e raped you,3 Julie said. 3=es,3 she said with a nod. 3Several times that night. ,e even put it in my... you "now... my anus while he made me lic" :orraine out so he could watch. It was the most horrible thing that!s ever been done to me. ,e too" my love for her and turned it into a twisted, perverted thing for his pleasure.3 38en are li"e that,3 Julie told her, emphasi$ing the word 3men3 negatively. 3=es, they are, aren!t they4 %ll of them.3 3%ll of them,3 Julie agreed. 3.e never saw each other again after that night. ,er husband "ept his word+at least there!s that. 9o one ever found out about :orraine and me, at least not until now.3 3I!ll never tell, 8andy,3 she said. 3=ou "now that, don!t you43 3=es,3 she said, crying openly now. 3I "now.3 Julie too" %manda in her arms, holding her close, caressing her, comforting her. She was very good at it, almost too good. 3*h Julie,3 she said. 3.hat!s happening here4 I told myself after :orraine that I would never let myself fall in love with anyone

again. %nd, 1od help me, it!s happened anyway. I love you.3 3I "now you do,3 she whispered in her ear. 3%nd I love you too. I have for #uite some time.3 ,earing the words, she bro"e into fresh sobs. Julie continued to hold her, to stro"e her bac", whispering soothing words in her ear. 3.hat are we going to do43 %manda as"ed at last. 3.omen aren!t allowed to be in love in this world. If we!re found out I!ll lose my 'ob, I might even go to prison.3 3.e won!t be found out,3 Julie assured her. 3I don!t have a husband, at least not anymore. 9obody is going to catch us. .e both "now how to be careful.3 She wanted to be reassured by the words but, because of what had happened earlier that day, she couldn!t. 3I used to "now how,3 she said. 3I used to thin" I "new how to do that.3 3=ou do, 8andy,3 she said. 3I "now you do.3 3That!s 'ust it,3 she said, pulling bac". 3I don!t. I did something really stupid today. Something very dangerous. %nd I did it because I love you.3 3.hat did you do43 Julie as"ed her. She sighed. 3Aemember the trip I told you about4 The trip to space43 3=es,3 she said. 3The one you couldn!t tal" about.3 3I still can!t tal" about it,3 she said. 3%ll I can tell you is that I!m in charge of a very important part of a very important pro'ect for the .est,em government, something with far+reaching implications. .e!re assembling a portion of this pro'ect in space soon. That!s why I have to go there. ;ut I couldn!t bear the

thought of not seeing you for eight months. It was tearing me apart. I!m in love with you, Julie. ,opelessly in love. o you understand43 3I do,3 she said softly. 3.hat did you do43 3I was out of my head,3 she said. 3I went into my boss! office and as"ed if I could stay on 2arth. I gave him an e&cuse that was completely ridiculous for why I needed to do this.3 3I see. %nd what did he do43 3,e turned down my re#uest, of course,3 she said. 3I could see in his eyes that I shoo" his trust in me simply by ma"ing it. I drew attention to myself, Julie, and I did it because I!m in love with a woman. I put everything at ris", including my part of the pro'ect. I "now how damned important this pro'ect is, and yet I did that anyway.3 3;ut you!re still going43 she as"ed, her voice unreadable. She nodded. 3I!m still going. If I don!t do any other stupid things between then and now.3 3So your 'ob is still safe at the moment4 %nd you didn!t tell your boss the real reason why you wanted to stay43 3=es,3 she said, 3but I did raise his suspicions. Probably not enough for him to recommend an investigation into me, but enough for him to start "eeping a closer eye on me.3 3=ou made a mista"e,3 Julie said. 3It happens. 2specially when you!re dealing with love. =ou won!t ma"e that mista"e again though, will you43 39ot that one,3 she said. 3;ut what about others43 3.hen do you leave43 Julie as"ed her.

3Two wee"s,3 she said. 3They!re in the process of shipping the components we need up to eparture. *nce that!s done, we head out. I can!t tell you where we!re going, but it!s a long trip there and bac".3 She let out another sob. 31od, I!m going to miss you.3 3I!m going to miss you, too,3 Julie said. 3;ut I!ll still be here when you get bac". I promise.3 3=ou will43 3I will,3 she promised. 3%nd your 'ob while you!re gone is to thin" about me, how much I love you, what we mean to each other, but not to let anyone else "now you!re thin"ing about me. Just do your 'ob li"e you always have. I have no idea what it is you do for Sythro, but obviously you!re good at it or they wouldn!t have put you in charge of something so important. =ou 'ust "eep on li"e you always have and remember that someone bac" here on 2arth loves you and is waiting for you. -an you do that43 She cried again. 3I can do that,3 she sobbed. Julie held her again, comforting her. 2ventually the sobs petered out and the comforting caresses began to ta"e on the tones of passion. Soon they were ma"ing love again. It was no less passionate than the first time.

38ission accomplished,3 Julie told the hologram of Sampson the ne&t morning. She was once again in Scramm!s room, sitting atop his bed, facing 8ount True.est. 3.e did the nasty all night long.3 35ery good,3 Sampson replied, grinning lecherously. 3,ow was she43 39ot bad for an 2arthling,3 she said. 3% little prudish but she!s

not bad at eating pussy. She actually made me come a few times.3 3% bonus you didn!t e&pect,3 he said. 3)uc"in! aye,3 she agreed. 3%nyway, it loo"s li"e I got her bac" on trac" as long as her boss "eeps her actions yesterday on an unofficial level. She declared her love for me and I promised I!d be here for her when she gets bac". ,opefully that will get her to utili$e the caution she!s always shown before. I thin" it will.3 31ood 'ob, Julie,3 he said. 3I "now this assignment is hard on you. =ou!ve never had to spend so much time down in that pit of hypocrisy before.3 3=ou ain!t shitting,3 she said, rubbing at her vagina a bit. It was still sore from the enthusiastic mouth that had been after it last night. 3%nd it!s not 'ust the length of the mission that gets to me, it!s the sub'ect.3 3)eeling guilt at playing with your target this way43 he as"ed "nowingly. She nodded. 3She!s different than the other 2arthlings I!ve manipulated. She actually loves me and I!ve been telling her that I love her, too. I!m not going to get all soft on you or anything, but it 'ust bothers me a little.3 She shrugged. 3I!ll get over it, I suppose.3 3=ou can empathi$e with her,3 he said. 3It happens to all of us from time to time. ;ut 'ust remember your purpose down there. Aemember what she!s helping to set in motion. If they succeed in what they are doing and we don!t succeed in -ounterdrop, it may very well be the end of all we "now. .e can!t allow that to happen.3 3I "now,3 she said, a twisted smile on her face. 3:i"e I said, I "now what my 'ob is and I "now what %manda ,esper

represents. I!ll 'ust be glad when this assignment is over with.3 3So will we all,3 he said. 3So will we all.3 The 9ew Pittsburgh -ity %dministration building was FFF stories high, located in the older section of downtown, five bloc"s from the capital building itself. :i"e most of the buildings in this part of the city, it was of pre+revolutionary construction and the drabness of the architecture+which had been designed with cost+savings in mind as opposed to aesthetics+was its primary feature. It was within this building that the 9ew Pittsburgh branch of the 8artian court system dwelled, ta"ing up all of the office space on floors 00 through 0D. In the bac" corner of the 0Crd floor was -ourtroom 0, which was currently the realm of Judge iode S"inman. The courtroom was a large, open room carpeted in 8artian red, as were most of the government offices on the planet. It resembled an 2arth courtroom in only a superficial manner. The Judge!s podium was not really a podium at all, 'ust a standard plastic office des" sitting atop a portion of the floor that had been raised about a meter. 9e&t to the des", still on the raised portion, was a chair that served as the witness stand. *n the main level of the floor, three meters in front of the testimony area, were two simple tables, one for each of the lawyers and the principals of whatever case was being discussed. -ircling around the entire assemblage, in optimum position for viewing the proceedings, were twenty chairs for the fifteen 'ury members and five alternates. %gainst the bac" wall was a bleacher style arrangement of seats for the public to sit in should they be so inclined. Though not many people bothered viewing trials on 8ars, on this day things were a little different. 2very one of the public seats was filled with reporters, family members of the defendant, family members of the victim in this case, and the 'ust plain curious. The case of 8ars vs. 1riffith+a possible murder that had captured the attention of the entire planet+was about to be heard. (en )ra$ier was sitting in the third from the middle of the 'ury

bo& chairs. This was his tenth and last day of serving as one of Judge S"inman!s 'urors, his mandatory two+wee" stint at an end. Jury duty on 8ars, as he had found, was not #uite the same as it had been bac" on 2arth. ,ere on 8ars the rules and procedures of doing one!s civic duty actually made sense and were designed to be as painless as possible. The selection of those who would serve 'ury duty was pretty much the same+a random assortment of citi$ens from the city in which the courtroom was located, their names pulled from the census computer. *n 8ars, though, one did not easily get himself or herself e&cused from fulfilling the duty. 5ery few e&cuses were accepted in regard to employment or family obligations since the 8artian government paid the full salary of a wor"er for the duration and professional, in+home childcare was provided at no cost to those who needed it. %s a result, a comprehensive cross section of 8artian society would typically be found in any 'ury bo&, not only the retirees, the unemployed, and the 'ust plain morons who weren!t smart enough to get out of it. The two+wee" duration of 'ury service was another difference from 2arth days. % 8artian 'uror was put into a 'ury that sat in 'udgment over every case that came through that particular 'udge!s courtroom over the course of ten wor"ing days. 9o longer were lawyers for either side allowed to pic" and choose what "ind of 'urors they wished to hear their cases. They were not allowed to #uestion them or "now anything about them at all. % 'uror!s personal views or past e&periences were considered irrelevant. The only valid reasons for removal from a particular case was personal "nowledge of one of the principals involved or some sort of clear ethical conflict of interest. This system wor"ed because unanimity was no longer re#uired for conviction in a criminal case or for a verdict in a civil case. 9o longer could a single 'uror with a radical viewpoint or a terminal case of stupidity or simple preconceived notions hang a 'ury and cause a mistrial. If ten or more of the fifteen 'urors agreed a

suspect was guilty, he or she was deemed guilty. )or a verdict of innocence or for decision in a civil suit, a simple ma'ority was all that was needed. The speed and efficiency of the 8artian 'ustice system meant that in a two+wee" period the average 'uror could hear testimony in as many as five different matters every single day. 8artian trials moved #uic"ly. Showmanship, blustering, and misdirection were not allowed and were rarely attempted. The lawyers for each side of whatever case were employees of the 8artian government and, though they were charged with being the advocate of the side they represented, they were bound by stringent ethical rules. Their overriding concern was not to win their case at all costs but to e&pose The Truth, no matter what The Truth was and regardless of whether or not it was a hindrance to their client or to the state. 1one were the days when each side would have its own e&pert witnesses on certain matters, each paid handsomely to say whatever the lawyer wanted him or her to say. The average trial these days came to the court!s attention less than a wee" after the matter in #uestion and lasted less than an hour. (en had initially been a bit s"eptical of such a system, so ingrained with twentieth century attitudes toward crime and punishment was he. .hen first told of how 8artian 'ustice operated it actually made him a bit uneasy+visions of 9a$i 1ermany or %frican nation show trials spinning in his head. The defense team wor"ing for the same government agency as the prosecution4 :imits on what "ind of defense testimony was allowed4 ;ut after seeing the system in action and participating in it, he was forced to conclude it really was fair, impartial, and most of all, efficient. ,e had sat in 'udgment over matters both criminal and civil and in each case the testimony delivered was succinct and to the point. %ssault cases, theft cases, a robbery, a case of child abuse, a dispute between business partners over ownership of a valuable component, a breach of contract case between two other business partners+all were laid out in a

matter of an hour or less and sent to the 'ury in less than two hours. In no case did (en get the impression he was being led by the nose toward a forgone conclusion or that he was merely a rubber stamp for a decision that had already been made, this despite the fact that in every criminal case so far the verdict had been a unanimous guilty one and that in every civil case the plaintiff had prevailed. That was simply because of the fact that cases without merit were not brought to trial in the first place. %nd now, by simple luc" of the draw, he would hear the case of 8ars vs. 1riffith, which had been all everyone had tal"ed about for the past wee" planet wide. 8urders on 8ars, while drastically less common than had been the case on 2arth, were not unheard of. The 9ew Pittsburgh Police epartment investigated, on average, fifteen to twenty homicides every 8artian calendar year. 8ost of these were spur of the moment murders committed in a fit of rage, either between spouses or s#uabbling ac#uaintances. %s in (en!s day, such incidents were usually fueled by alcohol or drugs and tended to be confined to the lower classes of society. %ngleworth 1riffith, on the other hand, was one of the richest men in 9ew Pittsburgh, the owner of a prominent Internet advertising agency and, instead of being accused of a spur of the moment "illing in a fit of rage, he was accused of the cold+blooded, pre+meditated murder of his wife, (insley 1riffith, a well+"nown actress who had starred in several entertainment movies over the years. *nly the barest facts of the case were currently "nown to the general public, including (en and his fellow 'urors. The 8artian media, though completely independent and, for the most part, free, were bound by a stringent code of ethics and sub'ect to oversight. They were not allowed to report speculation or innuendo as fact and the 9ew Pittsburgh Police and the 8artian court system were not allowed to release any investigation details prior to trial. %ll that was "nown was that (insley 1riffith had filed for divorce from %ngleworth two months before. 9o reason for divorce was re#uired on 8ars and none

was given in this case. % wee" after the filing, (insley was reported missing by %ngleworth. % search was underta"en for the actress but nothing turned up until si& wee"s later when her decomposing body was finally found in a large la"e at the Aed ,ills 1olf -ourse in the south part of the city. %n autopsy was performed. Two days later, 1riffith was arrested and charged with murder. % preliminary hearing was held the ne&t day+in secret as was the 8artian custom+and he was ordered tried. 9ow, eight days later, the case was being called on (en!s last day of 'ury service. % uniformed and fully armored 9ew Pittsburgh police officer stood near the 'udge!s des" and served as the bailiff. ,e had been perusing something on his P- but now he per"ed up as he heard a transmission over his radio lin". ,e nodded to himself and then made the announcement that court was returning to session. 3,ere come The 8an,3 he said. The doors at the rear of the courtroom slid open and Judge S"inman strolled in. 9o one rose in his honor+it simply was not done on 8ars+but the babble of conversation that had been permeating the room died down. There were no elaborate trappings to the office of 'udge as had been the case on 2arth+no blac" robes, no wigs, no hats. S"inman wore a faded T+shirt, upon which was a silhouette of a couple practicing rear entry intercourse. The inscription on the shirt declared that his honor had won the Stin"y Slut -lub!s annual botching contest the previous year. ,e sat down in his chair, belched wetly, crac"ed his "nuc"les, and then loo"ed at the crowd that had gathered. 3.hat the fuc"!s the haps43 he greeted politely, leaning bac" a bit and yawning. ,e loo"ed at his 'urors. 3I trust you all got down and stin"y on your lunch hour43 he as"ed them. 3I "now I did.3 9o one answered his rhetorical #uestion, although (en had certainly gotten down and stin"y, as he had every one of the last si& lunch hours of 'ury duty. The two companions he had gotten

down and stin"y with, a$$le =amamoto and Sandra 8ende$, were sitting on either side of him. ;oth chuc"led at the 'udge!s words, giving meaningful glances to (en. The loo"s did not go unnoticed by S"inman. 3.ell then,3 he said, offering a "nowing grin, 3It!s good to "now the freedoms won by our )ounding Parents are not going unused. :aura bless 8ars. %nd now, to business. 9e&t on the doc"et is the case of 8ars vs. 1riffith, a murder trial.3 ,e glanced at the lawyers! tables, where the prosecuting and defense attorney were both seated. 3I see council for both sides is here. 8r. Aagney, are your witnesses all present43 3)uc"in! aye,3 the prosecuting attorney replied. 3They!re chillin! in the holding rooms.3 3That!s the shit,3 S"inman responded. 3%nd you, 8rs. .aggins4 %re your witnesses present43 3)uc"in! aye,3 she said. S"inman nodded. 3.ell, lets get some lube on the asshole then,3 he said. ,e turned to the bailiff. 3Jinger, bring in the defendant.3 3)uc"in! aye,3 the bailiff said. ,e spo"e into his radio lin" for a second. % minute later the side doors of the courtroom slid open and another police officer led in %ngleworth 1riffith. 1riffith was tall and conservatively groomed for 8artian culture, his hair short, neat, and uncolored by any sort of genetic stimulation. ,e was dressed the same as any prisoner being held in the 9ew Pittsburgh 'ail facility+in a pair of brief orange shorts and a matching half shirt with 9PP PAIS*92A stenciled boldly on the front and bac". ,is hands were manacled in front of him but other than that no restraints were binding him. 2scape from the courtroom might be theoretically possible if he moved very #uic"ly and the 9PP officers on shift

were very incompetent, but there was no way he would ever get further than the stairway before the building was loc"ed down tight and he was trac"ed by means of a bracelet attached to his left wrist that was fitted with a triangulation transmitter and was virtually irremovable if the 9PP didn!t wish it removed or if the person in #uestion did not have access to a fully e#uipped machine shop. ,e was led over to the defendant!s table where he too" a seat ne&t to the lawyer assigned to his case. 1riffith!s face was e&pressionless as he settled in. 9o communication was e&changed, either verbal or through body language, as he settled in. 3%ngleworth 1riffith,3 Judge S"inman said formally, 3you stand accused of one count of pre+meditated murder. %t your preliminary hearing you pled not guilty. oes that plea still stand43 3)uc"in! aye,3 1riffith said. 3The court!s down with it,3 S"inman answered bac". ,e turned to the prosecuting attorney. 3:et!s get it on.3 ,e got it on. It too" him 'ust under ninety minutes to present the entire case. ,e made a brief opening statement in which he declared he would show that circumstantial evidence pointed to the conclusion that 1riffith had strangled his wife in their home, transported her body to the la"e in which it was eventually found, and sun" it there by using metal chains. ,e then began calling witnesses. 2ach one was on the stand less than ten minutes, with the e&ception of the lead police detective, who was there for nearly thirty. The story of the alleged murder was presented in chronological order for the most part. It was shown that after 1riffith!s wife had filed for divorce, 1riffith had been heard complaining to ac#uaintances in the -ovington ,eights Social -lub+a rather high class into&icant and botch establishment+that the liberal 8artian divorce laws were going to allow her much more of his fortune than he really

wanted to part with. This testimony was offered by the bartender and one of the regulars to the club. The prosecution pointed out that no less than si& other people could testify to the same basic conversation if need be. 9eed did not be. The defense attorney conceded that the point had been made. Si& days later, 1riffith!s wife turned up missing. The police officer who too" the report testified that 1riffith told her he had last seen his wife the night before, when she!d gone to bed in a separate room of the house. 1riffith!s story was that he went to wor" the ne&t morning without chec"ing on her and found her missing upon his return that evening. 8rs. 1riffith!s P-+which she could have been trac"ed with+was still on her bedroom dresser, something that raised immediate concern. It was #uite unusual in modern culture for a person to leave their house voluntarily while not in possession of their P-. The lead detective+who had uncovered the witnesses from the -ovington ,eights Social -lub+e&plained how he had used that information, coupled with the mysterious disappearance, to obtain a search warrant for 1riffith!s house and office. In the house he found soil and moss residue on the bottom of a pair of 1riffith!s shoes. )resh laundry soap residue was found on the sheets and pillowcases of 8rs. 1riffith!s bed, suggesting that the linen here had been recently laundered. % chec" of the lint trap in their dryer turned up fibers that matched this linen, confirming it had been in the last load run through, this despite the fact that their bitch+a woman named arla San"ey+had been on vacation for the three days proceeding the disappearance and the other laundry had been piling up since. % further loo" at the bed itself turned up trace amounts of 8rs. 1riffith!s blood on the mattress+blood that decay rate analysis proved had been there less than ?/ hours. .hen the detective as"ed 8r. 1riffith about these discoveries his answers were far from enlightening. ,e claimed no "nowledge of when the linen had been washed last even though analysis of the soap residue indicated it had been washed in a twelve+hour window that fit #uite neatly into

the time period in which anyone but 8r. 1riffith had last seen 8rs. 1riffith and well after the departure of the bitch for vacation. 1riffith also claimed to have no "nowledge of where the soil and moss residue on his shoes had come from, although he offered a vague e&planation about how he had gone to a nearby par" for a wal" the day before her disappearance. %nd as for the blood residue, he had no e&planation whatsoever and claimed complete ignorance of how it might have come to be there. It was then e&plained by a forensics e&pert how the soil sample from 1riffith!s shoe was analy$ed and compared with the soil from the nearby par" he!d claimed to have visited. Since every par" in 9ew Pittsburgh was constructed directly on the bare soil at that particular geographic region, it was #uite easy to eliminate that particular par" as the source of the shoe soil. It was also nothing more than a process of elimination to start going through other areas in the city where bare soil was e&posed, one by one, and comparing a sample in each with the shoe soil until a match was made. It too" several wee"s but eventually pay dirt was struc" at the Aed ,ills 1olf -ourse. *n the eleventh hole of the course, near a sharp dogleg left, FC0 meters from the green, a near perfect match was found beside a la"e. Infrared spectrographs were brought in and, sure enough, there was 8rs. 1riffith!s body, stuffed in a canvas bag and wrapped with heavy metal chains, sitting at the bottom. %n autopsy revealed she had died from strangulation and had suffered several cuts to her face 'ust prior to death. There was no evidence of se&ual assault. )ibers stuc" in her clothing revealed she had been lying on the linen that had been found on her bed shortly before her death. The type of canvas bag she had been wrapped in was identical to the type used at 1riffith!s office for storing computer components. The type of chains used to weight her down were identical to the type used by the maintenance department of the building in which his office was located for doing outside maintenance. *ne such set of chains

had been noted to be missing from the building!s inventory during the investigation. %t this point in the trial, the prosecution rested its case and the defense attorney too" over. *n 2arth, in (en!s day, any decent ambulance chaser would have been able to get 1riffith off, especially considering his fame. The evidence was entirely circumstantial and the burden of proof that would have been re#uired was 3beyond a reasonable doubt.3 In addition, speculation about any number of wild, improbable theories could have been introduced to the 'ury as possible e&planations for the damning facts. *n 8ars, however, defense attorneys were forbidden from employing such antics. If no evidence for a harebrained e&planation was forthcoming, said e&planation would not be introduced. This included the defendant!s own harebrained e&planations. 1riffith!s attorney was able to do little more than repeat that 1riffith claimed he hadn!t "illed his wife. Though she had been charged by the constitution with investigating his story in every way, with running down every lead he gave her that might have suggested his innocence, she had received no such leads and there had been nothing to run down. She had no witnesses to call and her half of the trial lasted less than ten minutes. %fter brief closing statements, the case was given to the 'ury. 3-hec" it, my fine ass+fuc"ers,3 S"inman told them before sending them to deliberation. 3;y now, I!m sure you!re down with the standards of the 8artian court system. =ou!ve heard all the testimony, been told all the facts that have been uncovered. If your common sense tells you that %ngleworth 1riffith murdered his wife, then you must vote guilty. If your common sense also tells you that %ngleworth 1riffith pre+meditated this murder, you must vote that he!s guilty of pre+meditation. That!s the shit. 9ow go get it on.3 The deliberation too" less than ten minutes. %n initial vote on the #uestion of innocence or guilt proved unanimous in favor of the latter. % brief discussion was re#uired on the issue of pre+

meditation, with two of the 'urors speculating that maybe... 'ust maybe, it might have been an impulsive act of violence, but in the end, that vote too was unanimous. Their foreman+in this case a forewoman, a$$le =amamoto+noted down their verdict and told the computer they were ready. They were led bac" to the courtroom where the 'udge, the defendant, and everyone else were still sitting. 3=ou have a verdict43 S"inman as"ed. 3)uc"in! aye,3 a$$le told him. 3That!s the shit,3 S"inman said. 3:ay it on me.3 31uilty as charged,3 she said immediately, without pausing for dramatic purposes. 3The vote43 the Judge wanted to "now. 3Bnanimous.3 31uilty of murder then,3 S"inman said. 3%nd on the sub'ect of pre+meditation43 31uilty as charged, unanimous as a motherfuc"er.3 S"inman nodded, stifling a belch and reaching down to scratch his balls. 3I guess that!ll do it then,3 he said. ,e turned to %ngleworth, who had buried his head in his hands. 38r. 1riffith, loo" up at me.3 %ngleworth raised his head, revealing fear on his face now and a few tears streaming down from his eyes. 3=ou!ve been found guilty of pre+meditated murder,3 he told him. 3The penalty for such a crime under 8artian law is life imprisonment at hard labor. =our ass is outta here. =ou are hereby stripped of all constitutional rights and will be remanded to the custody of the 8artian Planetary Penal System, effective

immediately. 9ow ta"e a flying fuc" at Phobos, you slimy scumbag. This trial is ad'ourned.3 The same police officer who had escorted him into the room now escorted him bac" out. 1riffith continued to weep but did not resist. ;y day!s end he would be discharged from the 9ew Pittsburgh 'ail and transferred to a planetary prison facility. ,e could appeal his sentence from there if he wished but the appellate court and the 8artian Supreme -ourt itself would not hear the case unless there was a clear case of misconduct during the trial or unless some new evidence to suggest innocence was discovered. .hat he could do there, however, was end his own life. 9ot only were lifers not "ept on suicide watch but they were provided with a lethal dose of narcotics if they re#uested it. %bout half of those sentenced to life in prison too" this particular road within their first si& months. The reporters, members of the public, and family members of the principals all made their way out of the courtroom through the bac" door. The lawyers, after a brief conference with S"inman, e&ited through a side door. This left the 'urors alone with the 'udge. ,e loo"ed at his watch, seemed to thin" for a minute, and then began to spea". 3The ne&t on the doc"et is 8ars vs. -ousely, which is another assault case. .e probably have time to run it out before F?00 but I say, fuc" it. This is the last day of 'ury service for you motherfuc"ers and it!s within the realm of conceivability that his case 'ust might ta"e longer than the end of this particular day. So, with that in mind, I!ll dismiss you early. =ou!ve been a good 'ury. Than" you for getting down with your civic duty and you!re all free of further 'ury service obligation for two years. -ourt is ad'ourned for the wee"end. Party on, 8artians.3 .ith that he stood, belched again, farted, and then strolled out through the bac" door to his chambers. The 'urors all loo"ed at each other for a moment and then stood. They spent a few moments saying farewell since they would not be meeting again. ,ugs were e&changed, even a few "isses, particularly among

those cli#ues that had formed. (en gave very large hugs to Sandra and a$$le, the members of his particular cli#ue. a$$le was a fourteen+year+old mother of three. She wor"ed part time as a childcare specialist for the 8artian ay -are system. Sandra was a professional woman of nineteen. % computer systems engineer, she wor"ed for the 8artian 1overnment in the communications department. She had yet to find that special someone to marry and have children with although, li"e most women her age, she was e&tremely passionate about se&. 3It!s been a lot of fun fuc"ing you two,3 (en told them as they wal"ed arm in arm out the door. ,e didn!t offer to "eep in touch with them because he really didn!t want to, nor did they him, or each other for that matter. They were really nothing more than casual ac#uaintances. It was 'ust that on 8ars, casual ac#uaintances li"ed to fuc" each other. 3=es,3 a$$le agreed. 3=ou guys made 'ury duty a little less boring.3 3I thought it was pretty static too,3 Sandra put in. 3%nd hey, since S"inman let us out early, why don!t we go and tear off one more #uic" one4 I don!t have anything better to do.3 3Sounds good to me,3 a$$le said casually, ta"ing a #uic" glance at her watch. (en loo"ed at his own watch. 3I!m meeting my girlfriend after 'ury duty today,3 he said. 3;ut since we are out early, I guess I could come over for a bit.3 3.ell fuc"in! aye then,3 Sandra said, smiling. 3:et!s go.3 They went, wal"ing the si& bloc"s to Sandra!s apartment+the scene of most of their earlier forays. *nce inside they wasted little time before getting down to business. They stripped off their clothing in the doorway and headed directly for the living room. (en sat down on the couch and the two women "nelt

before him, passing his coc" bac" and forth so each could suc" it, bringing him to an impressive state of erection. They ran their hands over each other!s bodies as they ministered to him, paying particular attention to the breasts. *nce all were #uite hot and bothered, they switched positions, a$$le sitting on the couch and Sandra "neeling between her legs to lic" her bald pussy. (en got behind Sandra and lic"ed her pussy for a while, en'oying the taste, before sitting up and putting himself inside her from the rear, slamming in and out of her aggressively in a manner he!d learned she preferred. %fter a$$le!s orgasm, the ladies switched places. a$$le had a bit of an anal fetish and immediately attac"ed Sandra!s asshole with her mouth. (en fuc"ed a$$le in the pussy for a few stro"es and then pulled out and put himself in her ass. She was very tight here and had impressive control of her muscles. ,e rubbed her clitoris as he fuc"ed, 'ust barely managing to give her another orgasm before shooting his own load deep into her bowels. (en rested for a bit after pulling out of her, smo"ing a cigarette while the two women pleasured each other in a EI. %fter butting his smo"e in an ashtray he was hard again so he slid himself into Sandra once more, plunging in and out while a$$le lic"ed and suc"ed her clitoris. This sent Sandra careening into a multi+ orgasmic fren$y that lasted nearly ten minutes and left her a #uivering mess at the end of it. a$$le then e&tricated herself from the bottom of the pile and went around behind (en. %s he pushed and pulled out of the semi+catatonic Sandra, a$$le ran her tongue up and down in the crac" of his ass, probing into his rear hole from time to time until he blasted another load. She then "nelt down and suc"ed all of his offering from Sandra!s pussy. ,e loo"ed at his watch once again and was shoc"ed to see that it was now F?00. ,e was supposed to meet Slurry at his home in only ten minutes. 3Shit,3 he e&claimed, 'umping to his feet. 3I gotta go.3 ,e dressed #uic"ly and said his final goodbyes to his two 'ury

duty companions. They gave him one last "iss apiece and went bac" to their embrace of each other as he headed out the door. %s he wal"ed to the nearest tram station he pulled out his P-. 3-om Slurry,3 he told it. % few seconds went by and the hologram of her face appeared before him. 3,i, (en,3 she said, smiling. 3=ou running late43 3=eah,3 he said. 3I lost trac" of time. Sorry. .here are you at now43 3I!m at your place,3 she said. 3Just got here. =ou didn!t answer the door so I went ahead and went in. ,ow long until you get home43 ,e was not concerned or surprised that Slurry had gone right into his apartment. They had been dating for three months now and he had long since given her access to his residence, as she had given access to hers. They spent as much time together as they could spare from their other obligations and both had even slept over at the other!s place on several occasions, although always in separate bedrooms. True to the 8artian tradition of courtship, they still hadn!t had se&ual contact with each other+ nothing more than the occasional passionate session of tongue "issing when things were particularly heated. %s a result, they had been able to e&plore their growing friendship with each other without complicating it by se&uality. It was a friendship that had grown into what (en could only describe as love, although neither of them had declared this emotion to each other yet. 3I!m still downtown,3 he said. 3)igure about half an hour or so if I catch a tram right at the station.3 3*"ay, you fla"e,3 she said affectionately. 3I!ll 'ust have to find something to do here while I wait. See you in a bit.3 3See you then, Slur,3 he said. 3%nd I!m sorry about the time. =ou

"now it!s not li"e me.3 3)uc"in! aye,3 she said, and then blew him a "iss. She signed off and her hologram disappeared. ,e smiled warmly and put the P- away. ,e arrived at his building e&actly CC minutes later, ta"ing the elevator up to his apartment and using his fingerprint to open the door. ,e saw that Slurry had indeed found something to do while she waited. She was sitting in his des" chair before his computer screen, his 5A helmet on her head, his 5A gloves on her hands, and female enhancement stimulators sna"ing both under her half+shirt, where they connected with her breasts, and under the leg of her shorts, where a stimulus would be cupped around her vaginal region. She was breathing very heavily, her pelvic region roc"ing slowly bac" and forth. (en smiled as he loo"ed at her, feeling a stirring of se&ual wanting within him that was much stronger than he had felt with his 'ury duty companions earlier. Seeing Slurry moving her body in passion, hearing the moans of pleasure from her mouth, he could imagine what it would be li"e when it was time for him to finally ma"e love to her. Though Slurry was certainly not the most attractive woman he!d had dealings with on 8ars, and though she was far from the se&iest, it was her that he desired more than any 8artian who had come before. ,e desired her nearly as much as he had desired %nnie all of those years ago, with his heart and soul instead of merely with his body. ,e "new now how the 8artians were able to separate se&uality from love+how they could differentiate between the two. Se& was nothing but a pleasure of the flesh+a desire for reproduction that all humans shared, whether they wanted to admit it or not. :ove was a feeling from within. %nd though it triggered strong se&ual desire in and of itself, it was still a completely different emotion. 3-omputer,3 he said, wal"ing over to her. 3Pause program.3

3%re you high43 the computer as"ed, which was its way of as"ing for confirmation of a command. 3Slurry ;agwell is in the middle of a 5A porno program.3 3Pause program,3 he repeated. 3I!ll ta"e the conse#uences for my actions.3 3)uc"in! aye,3 the computer responded, actually seeming to sigh in a don!t+say+I+didn!t+warn+you tone of voice. 3%hhh<3 Slurry suddenly bar"ed, her body twitching in a mini sei$ure, her hands gripping tightly beneath the gloves. 3.hat the shit43 ,e let his hands drop down to her shoulders and he massaged her for a second, letting her "now he was there. She rela&ed against him at his touch so he reached down and lifted the helmet up, revealing her face. It was flushed and slightly damp with perspiration. 3It!s 'ust me, Slur,3 he told her. 3:aura damn it<3 she said. 3I was in that 8ount 2verest program and had the fuc"ing =eti stic"ing it to me from behind while a Sherpa suc"ed my clit< -ouldn!t you have waited five more minutes43 3,aven!t you done that program enough43 he as"ed, leaning down and giving her a soft "iss on the mouth. She returned the "iss, the tip of her tongue 'ust flitting out to touch his lip. 3I could never do that program enough,3 she told him. 3%nd what!s that I taste on your lips4 Is that why you!re late4 =ou been suc"ing pussy when you should have been coming home to me43 3=eah, sorry,3 he said. 3The 'udge let us out early and things got a bit out of control bac" at Sandra!s place. =ou "now how it is43 She gave him a scowl, though a minor one+the sort a wife from

(en!s day might have given when her husband was late coming home because he stopped to have a few drin"s with the boys. 3The least you could!ve done was let me finish with the =eti,3 she told him. 3It!s only on pause,3 he said. 3I need to go ta"e a #uic" shower anyway. .hy don!t you go ahead and finish up43 3.ell... o"ay,3 she said, appeased. She "issed him again, a little longer this time, the tongue touching his lip with a bit more contact. 3She does taste pretty good.3 ,e chuc"led as he headed for the bathroom, hardly even pausing to marvel at the 8artian morality he was now a part of. In the early days of his relationship with Slurry he used to feel incredible guilt at the e&tra+curricular se&uality he participated in. )or a time he actually tried to stop having se&ual encounters+ although that only lasted a bare two wee"s before 8arcella enticed him into a heated session when he!d been over to visit (aren. %fter that, he!d actually tried to "eep his escapades secret from his beloved, convinced that, despite everything he!d been told and had read, she would be infuriated at him for fuc"ing other women while they were dating. In a way, she had become infuriated+but only because of the admittedly wea" lies he!d offered her as e&cuses. She cared not in the least who or how many he fuc"ed, nor did she e&pect him to care about the same thing in her. That too had ta"en a little getting used to. %s far as se&uality went, Slurry, li"e (aren, was a committed bise&ual. She had been sleeping with the female manager of the flight line!s cafeteria ever since her first wee" of employment there and had not even considered brea"ing off the relationship when she!d started dating (en. She was also in the habit of fuc"ing one of her male doctoral advisors whenever they got together to discuss her dissertation. %gain, this was a relationship that it simply had never occurred to her to discontinue. She would have been #uite offended in fact, if (en had as"ed her to. %nd

then there were the casual fuc"s she en'oyed+those random men and women she came across in her day to day life that a se&ual spar" clic"ed with and which, in true 8artian fashion, she pursued to completion despite her terminal shyness. Aising %utoman, one of the senior pilots at the facility, was one such person. % little over a month into (en!s relationship with Slurry he had patted (en on the bac" and described an encounter in which he and Slurry had slipped into a supply closet after wor" and she had suc"ed him off and let him come all over her tits. 3She has good techni#ue,3 he!d told (en analytically, the way a man would describe to a friend how a particular golf club functioned, or how a particular brand of clothing stood up to normal wear and tear. 3The tongue action could use a little more practice and the timing on the switchover from mouth to hand was a bit off, but I!m sure that!s because she!s not #uite as e&perienced as most women.3 3Probably,3 (en had replied thoughtfully, part of him wanting to throttle Aising for spea"ing of his girlfriend that way, part of him grateful for the information. ;ut, as (en had learned on 8ars, 'ust about anything can be accepted eventually, up to and including the sharing of one!s girlfriend!s se&ual favors with a variety of others. %ctually, it wasn!t really even sharing per se, at least not yet, since he himself had yet to benefit from said favors. ,e had "issed Slurry, had put his tongue in her mouth, had even tasted the essence of another woman!s vaginal secretions on her lips much as she!d 'ust done to his lips, but his hand had never touched her breasts, either through her clothing or beneath it. ,er hand had never touched his penis, either directly or indirectly. *nce, in a fit of lustful passion after a date, she had let her hand stray down to brush across his ass for the briefest of seconds, a touch that had sent tingles running through his being.

%nd 'ust when could he e&pect to finally en'oy Slurry!s body4 ,e had posed that #uestion to the three 8artian advisors who "ept him current on such things+8arcella, (aren, and Jacob. Their replies had been unanimous, leaving no room for misinterpretation. The 8artian courtship ritual was actually #uite simple. % couple interested in more than a casual se&ual relationship would abstain from any se&ual contact other than hugging or "issing until such time as they declared their mutual love for each other. So far, such a thing had not occurred. Such a declaration was considered a sacred thing among 8artians and was not ta"en lightly. The 8artians revered the concept of love, considering it the greatest gift to humanity. :oathed was the person who falsely or mista"enly claimed its e&istence. Such a person was sub'ect to scorn on the order of a se&ual criminal. )or this reason, before ma"ing the declaration, one needed to be sure, not only that one really loved his or her partner, but that the love was mutual. *ne of the great heartbrea"ing moments in 8artian culture was to declare your love only to have your partner tell you it was not returned. Such was the thing sad songs were written about, that tragic poetry was penned in honor of. (en turned such things through his mind as the warm water washed the bodily secretions of his 'ury partners from his s"in. ,is penis and testicles had a raw, used ache to them, the sort of pain that came from overuse. 2ven so, he "new from e&perience he would need to use his masturbation program when he got home in order to relieve the se&ual congestion that being with Slurry aroused in him+particularly if they engaged in a session of "issing at the culmination of the date. Part of that was the 'uice+up the 8artian medical science had given to his body but most of it was simply the feelings she stirred in him. ,e always felt li"e a teenager returning from a date instead of a full+grown man. .hen he emerged from the bathroom dressed in a fresh pair of shorts and a fresh half+shirt, his teeth brushed and rinsed, his hair damp and neatly combed, Slurry was standing at the

"itchen sin", rinsing off the 5A attachments she had used. ,er s"in was still lightly flushed and she had a contented e&pression on her face. 3,ow was the =eti43 (en as"ed her, his hand rubbing the small of her bac". 3% fuc"in! animal, li"e always,3 she said with a smile. 3I don!t "now how women in your day got along with nothing but vibrators and trashy romance novels. There weren!t even decent porno pictures.3 3=es,3 he said. 3The age of dar"ness. :ove it or leave it.3 She loo"ed at him with a note of confusion. 2ven after all this time, she still didn!t understand many of his humorous references. She was at least attuned to him well enough now to "now that he was 'o"ing. 3I need to ta"e a shower too,3 she said at last. 3I smell li"e pussy.3 39othing wrong with smelling li"e pussy,3 he said. 3In fact, its one of my favorite smells.3 3I!m sure it is,3 she said, 3but tonight we!re going to a nice place for dinner.3 3.e are4 I thought I!d 'ust coo" us up a couple of stea"s and open some of that 2ast,em wine.3 39o fuc"in! way,3 she said. 3Tonight is a special occasion. I have something to celebrate.3 3=ou do4 .hat is it43 3:ater,3 she said, handing him the 5A attachments, which were still dripping with water. 3%ll will come in time.3 She pec"ed him on the chee" and wal"ed past him, heading for his bathroom. % moment later the door slid shut behind her.

It turned out she was not e&aggerating in the least when she said they were going to a nice place. They rode the tram to the -alistoga district on the edge of the newer section of the city, about five "ilometers from downtown. ,ere, on the very edge of the inhabited area, stood the tallest building in 9ew Pittsburgh+ the -alistoga Tower. Aising /D0 floors above the street level, the -alistoga Tower was a top+end housing and commercial building. Some of the richest people on 8ars lived and shopped within its walls+it was in fact where %ngleworth 1riffith and wife had made their home before the latter too" up residence in the duc" pond and the former too" up residence in the penal system. *n the top floor of this building was what was arguably the nicest, most e&clusive restaurant on 8ars+Jalibu!s -howdown. 3,ow did you get a reservation at Jalibu!s43 (en as"ed her as they entered the lobby of the building. Jalibu!s was one of the few restaurants on 8ars that even too" reservations and the waiting list was rumored to be nearly a month long at any given time. Bnli"e what had been the case on 2arth, bribery of the maitre d or being a well+"nown person was of absolutely no help whatsoever. 3.ell...3 she said furtively, her eyes casting downward in mild shame, 3I probably shouldn!t say.3 (en loo"ed at her, shoc"ed. 3=ou didn!t43 he as"ed. 3=ou bought reservations43 .hat he was referring to was the blac" mar"et+ something that e&isted in every society to one degree or another. In the case of 8ars the items that could be illegally obtained were limited mostly to such things as concert and sporting event tic"ets that had sold out and reservations to places such as Jalibu!s. 5arious unsavory entrepreneurs ris"ed criminal fines that amounted to ten to thirty percent of their monthly salary in order to obtain such items and sell them at inflated cost to others by word of mouth. -ollege campuses were

particularly active blac" mar"ets. 3Sorry, but I really wanted to ta"e you here tonight,3 she said. 3I hope you don!t thin" badly of me.3 3Jee$, Slurry,3 he said. 3,ow much did you pay43 3It wasn!t bad, 'ust ten credits.3 3Ten credits<3 3Shush,3 she told him, putting her finger to his lips. 3:i"e I said, it!s a special occasion.3 They rode the elevator up to the top of the building and stepped out into the restaurant foyer. Jalibu!s was one of the only places that utili$ed the old fashioned method of service in that they had an actual maitre d, actual paper menus, and servers who actually too" the orders manually. It was also one of the few restaurants that served seafood, which was a rarity on 8ars since there were no oceans. %ll seafood on 8ars was shipped either live or fro$en from 2arth, the only meat product that was actually imported. (en inhaled the savory smell of coo"ing fish and shrimp as they approached the reservation des". The maitre d was a bald, %sian+descended man of about twenty. ,e loo"ed them up and down as they approached, his face friendly. 3.hat the fuc" you want43 he as"ed them politely. 3.e have FI00 reservations for uh... (illian,3 Slurry said. The maitre d!s face scowled a bit as he heard this. 3(illian huh43 he as"ed "nowingly. 3)uc"in! aye,3 Slurry agreed. ,e chec"ed his computer screen for a moment and then nodded. 3Shag your asses after me,3 he told them. 3.e have a table with a view for you, 8rs. (illian, as re#uested.3

3I!m 8rs. ;agwell,3 she told him in order to "eep from contradicting her name when it came time to pay the bill. 3This is 8r. (illian here.3 3*f course it is,3 he said, turning and leading them into the restaurant. (en felt his face flushing as they turned the corner and entered the main dining area. ,e hated doing things that were illegal, even if the offense was nothing more than the e#uivalent of fudging a bit on ta&es in his day or of buying a dime bag of mari'uana. ,is guilty conscience was assuaged #uite a bit when he saw the view they were being provided with. The entire southern and eastern walls of the dining room were transparent, allowing a beautiful view of the wastelands and the downtown high rises. The sun had 'ust set, leaving a twilight glow on everything. 2ven as someone who flew for a living and regularly saw things from a panoramic height, (en was still impressed. 3This is very nice, Slurry,3 he told her. 3)uc"in! aye it is,3 she replied as he pulled her chair out for her at the corner table. 3I!ve never been here before. It!s pretty fuc"in! ran"in!.3 (en, still instilled with his twentieth century upbringing, waited until she was seated before he himself too" a seat. *nce they were settled the maitre d told them that ;illings would be their waitress for the evening and that the into&icant steward would be with them shortly to arrange for pre+dinner wine and bonghits. 3Than" you,3 Slurry told him. 3%in!t no s"in off my ass,3 he said, turning and leaving them. They ordered two hits apiece of some good 2den greenbud and a bottle of )rench chardonnay. They then were given menus to peruse. (en blanched as he saw the prices.

3Jesus, Slurry,3 he said. 3I!ve never seen food so e&pensive on 8ars before.3 3Aent is high in this building,3 Slurry told him. 3%lso, Jalibu has three times the employees to pay as any other restaurateur. I!m sure his profit margin is within legal limits.3 3I!m sure it is,3 he said. 3;ut you can!t afford this on a student stipend and a cafeteria wor"er!s salary< .hy don!t you let me pay for it43 3*h, ta"e your twentieth century chivalry and shove it up your ass,3 she said. 3I invited you and I!m paying. ;esides, you!re 8r. (illian, remember4 =ou can!t pay unless you re+program the ban"ing computer to recogni$e you by that name.3 3Sorry, but...3 39o buts. I want to do this, (en. I!ve always wanted to come here and tonight is the perfect occasion.3 3*"ay,3 he said. 3;ut what!s the news you told me about4 I!m dying of curiosity.3 3.ait until the wine comes,3 she said. 3.e have to toast this one.3 The bonghits actually came first. They suc"ed them up through lemon+flavored ice water and felt the effects go immediately to their heads. )inally the wine was delivered. The into&icant steward poured them each a glass and then beat a retreat, leaving them alone. 3*"ay,3 Slurry said, barely able to contain her e&citement. 3%re you ready for the news43 3)uc"in! aye.3 She reached across the table and too" his hand in hers. 3I got a

com today about a 'ob I applied for after my doctoral is finished.3 3=eah43 he said, pleased. 9ow that she was nearly done with her studies and her dissertation was almost complete, she had been applying for various positions, most of them at universities as a professor of history. 3.ho was it43 3I!ll give you one hint,3 she said. 3The com came from the capital building.3 3The capital building...3 ,e loo"ed up at her, "nowing immediately what she was tal"ing about. *ne month before she had submitted an application for a position with the 8artian ,istorical %dvisement epartment. This was a government agency that concerned itself with the study of history and research into all aspects of it. They advised on te&tboo" standards for the 8artian schools, researching and verifying facts when needed. They wrote opinion pieces on various historical precedents if a controversial sub'ect came up. They gave historical briefings to the 8artian Supreme -ourt, the 8artian -ongress, and the 2&ecutive *ffice when such bodies had to deal with a sub'ect in which a perspective of history was re#uired. 8ost of all, they researched everything historical, verifying and investigating sub'ects beyond the university level. )or a historian it was perhaps the most prestigious position available and Slurry+though a well+respected doctoral student+ had applied for it only as a fantasy, with no hope they would actually consider her. 3.hat did they say43 (en as"ed. 3They were impressed with the portions of my doctorate I submitted to them,3 she said. 3They need a 'unior research specialist for the late /0th to early /Fst century period. They!ve offered me the position as soon as my Ph is complete.3 3Slurry, that!s ran"in!,3 he told her, s#uee$ing her hand, pleased for her. It was always nice to see someone obtain a life goal, especially when that person was someone who had wor"ed as

hard as Slurry had. 3Isn!t it43 she said, e&citement radiating from her. 3I!m gonna wor" in the capital building, (en. I!m going to be wor" where I!ve always wanted to wor", with access to everything the 8artian government can hac" into from the 2arth computer system< It!s a dream come true. It!s almost as good as meeting you in the first place< The information I!ll be able to get< %nd I!ll be able to cross chec" a lot of it by as"ing you about it< This is perfect for a first career< %bsolutely fuc"ing perfect<3 They toasted her success multiple times, plowing their way through the first bottle of wine before even giving their dinner order to ;illings, the waitress. Slurry tal"ed e&citedly the entire time about the research she would be able to accomplish, the prestige she would be able to en'oy, the 8artian officials she would be able to brief. It was conceivable that she might give a briefing to 8itsy ;rown herself. ,er enthusiasm was contagious and (en found himself sharing it with her. inner was nothing short of e&#uisite, especially for (en, who had not had any seafood since he!d lived on 2arth. They en'oyed steamed clams, breaded white fish, crab legs, and saut>ed shrimp, washing all of it down with another bottle of )rench -hardonnay. ;y the time the plates were ta"en away and Slurry paid the bill+she coughed up eighteen credits, an obscene amount for a two person dinner+both were #uite stuffed, feeling the wonderful sensation that came from e&treme gluttony. 3:et!s ta"e a wal",3 Slurry suggested when they reached the ground floor of the building. 3It!ll help settle our food down.3 3Sounds li"e a plan,3 he said, rubbing his bulging stomach. 3.here should we go4 The par"43 3)uc"in! aye,3 she replied, leading him out the lobby doors and turning left, toward Starview Par", one of the larger recreational areas of 9ew Pittsburgh.

The south entrance of the par" was ten bloc"s away+a short 'aunt to a 8artian+and they reached it twenty minutes later. :i"e in all 8artian par"s, the glass ceiling here was several hundred meters above the ground level. ;ut unli"e most par"s, this one faced out over the wastelands on two sides instead of being completely surrounded by high+rise buildings. The landscaping was simple, consisting of grassy, tree+lined hills of varying si$e with concrete footpaths winding this way and that between them. It was perhaps the closest thing to a forest to be found on the planet. Since it was now well after sunset, the par" was dar" with only a few strategically placed lamps on the foot trails and the ambient lighting from the distant buildings providing illumination. The two lovers wal"ed hand in hand along one of the trails, heading by unspo"en consent toward the most isolated portion of the par". They passed several other people as they strolled, most couples or triples of lovers. 3:et!s climb the hill,3 Slurry suggested when they reached the far corner of the enclosure. They were at the base of one of the taller hills. It stretched about F00 meters toward the ceiling, its slopes lined with pine and redwood trees but its summit bare. 3:et!s do it,3 (en agreed. They mounted the moderately steep slope and began wor"ing their way upward, following along a well worn pathway created by others who had gone this way before them. .hen they entered the clearing at the top they were able to see how the par" had gotten its name. The bul" of the other hills behind them bloc"ed the city lights from reaching the perch. %bove them, shining in all their glory, were the bright diamonds of a billion stars stretching across the s"y in all directions. %bout thirty degrees above the southern hori$on, Phobos, the larger of the two 8artian moons, was ma"ing one of its thrice daily trips across the s"y. %ppearing about half the si$e of 2arth!s moon in a relative way, and glowing a beautiful pin"ish+white, its movement from west to east was plainly visible as they lay on their bac"s on the hill.

3This is one of the few places in the city you can get a good loo" at Phobos,3 Slurry said, putting the bac" of her head on (en!s shoulder. 3It!s so low in the s"y and so small. ,ave you ever been to *re -ity43 *re -ity was the third oldest city on 8ars, high in the northern latitudes, located over a particularly rich iron ore deposit. 39ever,3 (en said, putting his arm around her shoulders and drawing her closer, en'oying the feel of her body against his, en'oying the moment. 3I spent a few months there between my master!s degree and starting my doctoral. =ou can!t see Phobos at all from there+it!s below the hori$on. %nd you can only see eimos about ten degrees over the hori$on. I missed the moons while I was there, more than I ever would have thought.3 3They!re really pretty from 2den,3 (en said. 3They both go right over the top of you since it!s a $ero latitude city. I used to lay on the serenity level at night sometimes and 'ust stare at them as they went by. I would marvel that I was really on 8ars, that I was really hundreds of millions of miles from my home, on an alien planet. Sometimes it would ma"e me sad, homesic" in a certain sort of way.3 3 o you miss the 2arth!s moon43 she as"ed him, snuggling a little closer. 3=eah,3 he said. 3I really do. It was the one I grew up with, that I used to loo" at through a telescope, that I used to imagine wal"ing on someday, even though I "new it would never happen.3 38aybe you!ll get to go to 2arth sometime, so you can see it again.3 ,e shrugged. 3It wouldn!t be the same,3 he told her. 3.hen I used to loo" at the moon there was nothing on it, 'ust the

craters and the shadows. I!ve seen the pictures of what it loo"s li"e now. There are cities up there. =ou can see the sunlight reflecting off the buildings. =ou can see the orbiting cities going around and around it. 2ven when it!s a new moon, when you shouldn!t be able to see it at all, the city lights glow all over the surface.3 3Some people thin" that!s beautiful,3 Slurry said. 3%nd in a way, it is. ;ut it!s not the moon I left behind.3 3=ou miss living in that time, don!t you43 she as"ed him. ,e sighed. 3Sometimes,3 he told her. 3I li"e living on 8ars and I li"e living under your common sense rules, but sometimes I 'ust long for home+for my home, the way it used to be. Part of it is living indoors all the time. 9o matter where you are on this planet, even here, in this par", among all of these trees, we!re still inside. .e!re under a ceiling. =ou have no idea what its li"e to be outside, do you43 39o,3 she said. 3I don!t.3 3=ou!ve never felt wind on your face or rain coming down on you. =ou!ve never felt how nice it is to 'ump into a swimming pool when it!s hot outside. =ou!ve never swam in the ocean at all, or been out on a boat, or gone on a camping trip, or gone fishing. =ou!ve never been in a real forest before, way up in the mountains, feeling the chilly air that comes with high altitude, smelling the pine trees, "nowing there!s no one else around for miles. 9ot everything about 2arth was bad.3 3I!d love to e&perience those things someday,3 she said wistfully. 3%nd that!s the problem,3 he said. 38ost of them you can!t do anymore, even if you do live on 2arth. *nly the very rich have private swimming pools now, swimming in the ocean and private fishing is illegal because of their environmental laws,

and all of the mountainous areas have either been turned into housing developments or they!re owned by the government and trespassing is illegal.3 3True,3 she said. 3It wouldn!t be the same as your day. 9ot even close. ;ut that!s not all you miss from that time, is it43 39o,3 he said, not bothering to fib. They had tal"ed at length on several occasions about %nnie and what his relationship with her had been li"e. 3I still miss her. I thin" maybe I always will.3 3=ou had true love,3 she said. 3It happens here on 8ars fairly often since we!ve managed to separate the concepts of love and se& and to remove the societal pressure from marriage, but in your day it was rare indeed. =ou were a luc"y man.3 3=es,3 he said solemnly. 3%nd it was that love that has allowed me to live here now, in this time. %nnie had me fro$en because we loved each other so much, because she thought we!d be able to meet again some day. 8ost other wives of the time wouldn!t have done that.3 3=ou feel guilty sometimes because you!re still alive and she!s dead,3 Slurry said. It was not a #uestion. ,e nodded. 32specially lately,3 he told her. % pause, a deep breath. 3Since I met you.3 3*h43 3)uc"in! aye,3 he said. 3;ecause... well... because I seem to have stumbled across that perfect person for the second time in my life.3 ,er eyes widened. She sat up a little and loo"ed into his eyes. 3.hat do you mean, (en43 3I thin" you "now what I mean,3 he said.

3I thin" you!re right,3 she said. 3;ut I 'ust want to be clear. It!s the 8artian way, you "now.3 3=es, it is, isn!t it43 ,e sighed again, wondering if this was the right time to say it or not, "nowing that one way or another he was going to have to. 3I love you, Slurry. I!ve "nown it for #uite some time and maybe I should have told you this earlier, but I do. I!m in love with you. =ou are that special person.3 She sniffed a little, a tear trac"ing down the side of her face. 3I love you too, (en,3 she said. 3I have since maybe our first date. I should have told you earlier, too. I "now how you feel about me, I really do... but... I also "now about the issue you have with it.3 3The issue43 She nodded. 3=ou love me,3 she said. 3;ut you don!t love me as much as you did %nnie, do you43 3Slurry...3 he started. 3It!s o"ay, (en,3 she said. 3It really is. True love has degrees, even when it!s mutual, as ours is. I understand that I can never replace %nnie, that I!ll never be her e#ual in your heart. I!m 'ust glad you!ve found a place for me in it, that you do feel the same way about me as I feel about you.3 ,e smiled, leaning forward and planting a "iss on her nose. 3=ou really are an incredible woman, Slurry ;agwell,3 he told her. 3=ou!re incredibly smart, even in a culture where high IKs are as common as ragweed, and you!re very perceptive.3 3I am what I am,3 she said. 3=ou 'ust #uoted Popeye,3 he said. She giggled. 3It seemed to fit the occasion.3 She rolled over, so she was laying half on his chest. 3 on!t feel guilty for loving me

while %nnie is dead,3 she told him. 3It!s possible to love more than one person in a lifetime. Aeally it is. .e have people here on 8ars that even love more than one at the same time. :oo" at John and 8ar" and Jillian. They all love each other, don!t they43 John and 8ar" and Jillian were the triple that lived in the residence ne&t door to Slurry and were occasional social ac#uaintances. The only polygamous marriage that (en had ever had close contact with, they did indeed e&ude a clear vibe that they were all deeply in love with each other. 3=es, they do.3 3So you see4 It can and does happen. .e have something special (en+not as special as what you en'oyed with %nnie, but still special all the same. So let!s en'oy it, nurture it, see where it goes, shall we4 .e both have a long lifetime in front of us and, though I never "new %nnie, I!m certain she wouldn!t have wanted you to spend the second chance at life she gave to you all alone, mourning her year after year. I thin" she would!ve wanted you to find love again. %ren!t you glad she found the same43 3=es,3 he said truthfully. 3Then there!s nothing to feel guilty for. .e love each other and the world is a good place. :et!s en'oy ourselves. That!s what being in love is all about, isn!t it43 3)uc"in! aye,3 he said. 3That!s what it!s all about.3 They lay in silence for a few minutes, each pondering the gravity of what had 'ust occurred, their arms around each other, their eyes watching Phobos as it continued its tre" across the s"y. )rom around them came the pleasant chirping of cric"ets and the occasional hooting of a night owl calling to a companion. (en let his fingertips rub up and down the bare s"in of Slurry!s upper arm as she snuggled to him. She cuddled closer in response and he turned his face to hers, leaning forward and

planting a soft "iss on her mouth. They held the "iss, letting it linger, "eeping it romantic for the first few moments but gradually letting it heat up to something a bit more passionate. (en!s tongue stabbed out and lic"ed at her upper lip. ,er tongue emerged to greet it, tip to tip at first, and then a full+fledged caress. They rolled toward each other as their tongues danced, their arms going to each other!s bac"s. (en felt the smooth flesh of her lower bac", running his fingertips up and down on it. Slurry slid her bare leg against his, rubbing it softly up and down, thigh to thigh, her toes gliding over his an"le. The "issing #uic"ly grew more heated, going from passionate to lustful, tongues plunging deeply into mouths, hands ma"ing more daring e&plorations. Slurry put her hands under the bac" of his shirt, feeling the muscles there, her fingernails scratching at his s"in in a way that sent shivers up and down his spine. ,e let his own hands move around her body to the front, so he was touching her belly, someplace he had never touched her before. ,er flesh here was baby soft, almost sil"y. It was not a roc"+ hard abdomen by any means since most 8artians did not bother with physical e&ercises designed to tone such body parts Gthere were no health clubs or e&ercise rooms on 8ars since genetic manipulation was a far superior means of preventing obesityH, but neither was it a fat one either. (en li"ed the way it felt under his hand, en'oyed the sensation much more than he had when he!d touched the bellies of other women. 3(iss my nec",3 Slurry whispered to him, brea"ing the "iss. 3I love it when you "iss my nec".3 38mmm,3 (en moaned, moving his mouth downward 'ust a bit and fastening his lips 'ust below her ear. ,e "issed and lic"ed, running the bac" of his tongue down the line of her 'aw from the earlobe. ,e felt her hands tighten on his bac" as he did so. 3*h yes,3 she sighed. 3I love you, (en. I love you<3

3I love you too, Slurry,3 he said again, "nowing she wanted to "eep hearing it, en'oying hearing it himself. %lready they had gone much farther in se&uality than they had ever gone with each other before. (en found himself on unfamiliar ground, in a state of nervous uncertainty unli"e anything he!d e&perienced since his days as a teen fumbling with a date in the bac" seat of a car. ,ow far should this encounter go4 ,e "new that once love was declared the relationship could be consummated, but was there other eti#uette involved4 .as one e&pected to ma"e arrangements in advance for a romantic setting4 .as there any sort of ceremony involved4 %nd what about the se& itself4 .ere you supposed to do the physical, lustful, need release sort of se& you did with your other partners4 *r were you supposed to be more tender4 Should he stop this encounter now4 *r was he supposed to go forth with it immediately upon ma"ing the declaration4 3=our hands feel nice on me,3 Slurry whispered, her fingers scratching at the bac" of his nec" now. 3=es,3 he mumbled, continuing to "iss her nec", his brain whirring with #uestions of should I or shouldn!t I, will she or won!t she. 3.hy don!t you move them up a little43 she suggested. 3I thin" I!d really li"e to feel them in other places too.3 3*"ay,3 he said, a little breathlessly. 3I thin" they!d li"e to feel you in other places.3 They went bac" to "issing, their tongues resuming the duel. (en let his hand move upward, pushing it beneath the elastic of her half+shirt. ,e felt the underswell of her breasts pushing against his fingers. ,e caressed her for a few seconds and then moved up further, cupping the breast in his hand. ,er nipple was hard and pushed into his palm. She sighed into his mouth at the contact, her body twisting into him to increase the pressure. ,e

let his hand move to the side, to the other breast, cupping that one as well, comparing it to its twin, and then, unable to help himself, he lifted up on his arm, pushing her top toward her nec", baring both breasts to his eyes. Slurry trembled a little but made no move to stop him. ,e bro"e the "iss and loo"ed down at what was revealed. Though the light was dim, there was enough available for him to drin" in the sight of her na"ed chest. ,er breasts were neither large nor small, nothing that would have graced the pages of a pornographic maga$ine from his day, but beautiful to his eyes all the same. The si$e of oranges and with the slightest sag, they were the set that 8other 9ature had intended Slurry to have. 8artian women all had natural breasts. There was no such thing as enhancement surgery, nor was it fashionable to genetically alter the natural growth of the mammaries. (en let his fingertip touch the tip of one nipple, swirling his finger around it, manipulating it. )inally, he could ta"e no more and he lowered his mouth to it, suc"ling the nipple between his lips. 3*h yes, (en,3 Slurry moaned, her hand going to the bac" of his nec" to encourage him. 3*h :aura yes<3 ,e suc"ed and slurped and "issed all around the nipple, his hand busy s#uee$ing and palpating the other breast. .hen it was as hard as a pebble and protruding upward he switched to the other one, marveling at how sensuous what he was doing to Slurry felt in comparison to the nipples he!s suc"led during botching trips or his other meaningless encounters. These were nipples he had fantasi$ed about for months, nipples he!d seen po"ing through her shirt at times that had driven him mad with desire. ,e tongued and lic"ed, suc"ed and touched, even bit gently from time to time, relishing every moan his actions produced. Slurry, meanwhile, apparently decided to put her hands on a few things she!d been fantasi$ing about as well. ,er fingers went into the bac" of his shorts, to his ass, where she s#uee$ed

and felt the chee"s, touching them everywhere, pulling his body tighter against her, so his coc" was pushing into her thigh. She then let her hand slide around under the shorts to the front. ,e felt her fingers on his upper thigh and then they were touching his coc", sliding up and down the shaft. 3*h yes, (en,3 she breathed as she got a firm grasp on him. 3 o you "now how long I!ve been staring at that bulge in your shorts, wanting to get in there43 38mmm,3 he said, en'oying her hand action. 3%bout as long as I!ve wanted to get my mouth on these tits.3 3Ta"e me now, (en,3 she said. 3Aight here< I want to feel you inside me.3 3Shouldn!t we uh... go bac" to my place43 he as"ed hesitantly, again wondering of the eti#uette of the situation. 39o,3 she told him firmly, desire dripping from her tone. 3I want you right now, under the stars, under Phobos. Ta"e my shorts off and ma"e love to me. )uc" me<3 ,e didn!t need to be told twice. ,e was barely able to control his own desire as it was. ,e raised up and grasped the waist of her shorts, pulling them down and off of her legs. She spread them for him as soon as the shorts were clear and he was startled to see what had been revealed. Slurry had pubic hair, not a lot of it+the area of her vaginal lips was smooth and there was only a tuft on the pubic region+but it was startling to see in a society where every other woman he!d been with was bare. 3 o you li"e it43 she as"ed him, seeing his interest. 3I had it done in /Fst century 'ust for you.3 3It!s gorgeous,3 he said with honesty. Though the smooth+ shaven loo" of 8artian women had been e&citing at first he was still a product of his upbringing and li"ed to see a little hair on

his woman. 39ow let!s put it to use,3 she said, her hand reaching out and grasping the bulge in his shorts. 31et these things off and show me how much you love me. :et me feel it.3 ,e slid his shorts down and, after a bit of clumsy fumbling, managed to get them off. ,is coc" was e&tremely hard despite its earlier usage, almost painful in its rigidity. Slurry stro"ed it one last time and then lay on her bac", her legs spread widely. There was 'ust enough light for him to see how swollen her lips were, to see the slight glint of Phobos! light in the moisture clinging to her. ,e too" his shirt off as well and then brought his body down atop hers, his bare chest against her breasts, his outer thighs touching her inner thighs. ,is coc" slid through her pubic hair and he moved it downward until it was sliding through the wetness of her lips. 3=es, (en,3 she whispered in his ear, her hands caressing his bare bac". 3 o it to me. It!s time.3 3=es,3 he moaned, leaning down to "iss her. %s his tongue touched hers he pushed forward, sliding the head of his coc" into her body, spreading the moisture around. *nce firmly seated he thrust into her, burying himself to the hilt in her tightness. ;oth of them sighed in sheer pleasure at the intrusion. ,e moved in and out of her, feeling her grip him in the 8artian way, feeling her pelvis rise up to meet each of his stro"es. In a purely physical sense she was no different than any other 8artian woman he!d had, was in fact not #uite as adept as many. ;ut the emotional sensation of doing it with someone he loved, with someone he had desired so badly made it the difference between night and day. This was Slurry he was thrusting into, it was Slurry!s se& that caressed his coc", Slurry!s mus" that was rising up into the air around them, Slurry!s 'uices that were clinging to his coc" and saturating his balls. That

made it so much better than anything else+better in fact, he hated to admit+than ma"ing love to %nnie had been since %nnie had never had the se&uality training that 8artian women received in the public school system. 3*h yes, (en,3 Slurry told him between "isses. 3So good. I "new it would be. I 'ust "new it would.3 38e too,3 he grunted in agreement, pic"ing up the pace a little as more of the lust of the situation too" over. 38e too.3 (en was, of course, well versed in the e&pectations of 8artian se&uality by now. Though it was a struggle, he held himself bac" from orgasm as he ground against her, stimulating her clit with each stro"e. )ortunately, Slurry was as "eyed up with desire as he was. It was less than five minutes before her body began to sha"e and twitch with the onset of orgasm. ,er legs went up around his bac" and tightened there. ,er hands went to his ass, pulling him harder into her body, ma"ing him grind at her with more force. .hen she reached her pea" her fingernails ra"ed into his ass, leaving mar"s. ,er mouth bit down on his lower lip nearly hard enough to draw blood. 2ven before the spasms died down she began encouraging him to let his own pleasure come forth. 3-ome in me, (en,3 she panted, biting and lic"ing at his nec". 3I want to feel you shoot inside my pussy<3 ,e began to thrust even harder, releasing the mental bloc" he!d placed on his orgasm. *nce done, it hit with overwhelming speed and power, the waves of pleasure e&ploding throughout his groin and abdomen, leaving him momentarily breathless. .ith a cry of ecstasy he began to shoot inside her, blasting against her cervi&, shot after shot, his hips undulating wildly. 3*h yessss<3 Slurry cried, feeling it. 3That!s it< =esssssss<3 They lay there afterward for nearly twenty minutes, still loc"ed

in their embrace, the sweat slowly drying from their s"in. Phobos continued to trac" across the s"y and finally disappeared over the eastern hori$on. It would rise again in about eight hours in the west. They shared a few "isses but tal"ed little, simply en'oyed the closeness. It was only when another couple+this one two women+emerged from the tree line to have their own romantic encounter atop the hill, that they finally bro"e apart. 3:et!s go bac" to your place,3 Slurry suggested. 38aybe we can find something to do there.3 38aybe we can,3 (en agreed. They "issed and felt each other!s body during most of the tram ride to (en!s. *nce there they went to the bedroom. They didn!t sleep very much that night. Ingram and its crew had long since been relieved from station, replaced by Aellington, another stealth ship. Sampson and the others who had been aboard Ingram were undoubtedly bac" on 8ars by now, the sailors reac#uainting themselves with their families and friends, the intelligence operatives wor"ing in nice, clean offices in a Triad high rise, analy$ing data and submitting reports. ;ut Julie was still here on 2arth, still operating in the guise of an %gricorp accountant. It had been well over a year now since she!d splashed down in the ocean off the coast and assumed her new identity and still there was no end in sight. ;ut at least now, she thought as she initiated the communications lin"+up, things would start to happen again. The last eight 2arth months had been an agony of boredom. 3.hat the fuc"!s the haps, Julie43 as"ed the hologram of -um#uat -ypress, commander of the intelligence contingent aboard Aellington. -ypress was a no+nonsense woman, /E years of age, and one of the most e&perienced field operatives in the employ of the 8artian government. She had been one of the instructors at the Intelligence *peratives School where Julie had initially trained, her previous covert missions to 2arth

legendary even then. 3Same old shit, -ummy,3 Julie told her. 3I!m 'ust sitting in this :aura+forsa"en apartment day after fuc"ing day, stic"ing my fingers in my pussy. Then I go home to my official house at night and stic" my fingers in my pussy some more. =ou "now you!ve been someplace too long when even masturbation gets boring.3 3.ell at least you can hang out long enough to get dic"ed by Scramm every night,3 she said, using her best loo"+on+the+ bright+side voice. 3%t least there!s that,3 Julie replied, suppressing a sigh. In truth, even Scramm was getting old. 8artians weren!t meant to fuc" the same person day after day for more than a year. ;ut there was no point in complaining. She had a 'ob to do and a cover to maintain, even if her mar" was off the planet at the moment. 3So what!s the word43 3The %lberta battle group is well inside the orbit of 2arth!s moon now. The lead ships are 'ust finishing up their deceleration burns. =our mar"!s ship should be at doc" in eparture as scheduled.3 3Than" :aura,3 she sighed. %lberta was the -alifornia class superdreadnought that was the flagship for the armada that had escorted %manda ,esper, her team, and+it was suspected+the sub reactor for the .est,em :emondrop pro'ect to the 3research facility3 in deep space. 8artian intelligence and the 8artian navy had trac"ed and shadowed the armada ever since it had left eparture nine months before. Its mission presumably accomplished, the battle group was now nearly home again. 3)uc"in! aye,3 -ypress agreed. 39ow you can start wor"ing her again. %s I!ve told you before, most of the other contacts we!ve tried to wor" on their :emondrop team have bombed out. .e!ve

gotten a few stitches of information but no one else is even close to ferreting out anything solid.3 3It!s nice to "now the entire fate of 8ars rests on me,3 she said dryly. 3That does a lot for the old confidence, you "now what I mean43 3=ou!re done a ran"in! 'ob so far,3 -ypress told her. 32verything we possibly could as". %nd it loo"s li"e she!s managed to maintain her composure while she was gone. The email you got from her is a very good sign of that.3 Julie nodded. =es, the email was a very good sign. It had come 'ust the previous day, the first communication she!d received since %manda had left for 2dwards Space ;ase at the beginning of her 'ourney. It was nothing dramatic or shoc"ing, of course. Just a #uic", emotionless message from one female friend to another, telling her she was bac" in the neighborhood and would be home soon and as"ing how her plants and her house were holding up. %manda wouldn!t have dared send anything else through a military ship!s computer server. ;ut the very fact that she had communicated at all tended to support the notion that there had been no more emotional slip+ups during the trip, nothing to cast suspicion upon %manda!s character. 3,opefully she!ll send me a more meaningful message once she gets to eparture and they let her have her P- bac". 8y greatest fear is that she!s been out there long enough to lose interest in me.3 3Possible, but not li"ely,3 -ypress said analytically. 3 r. 8owfat has gone over all of the reports from r. 8ing on Ingram. ,e seems to feel, as 8ing did, that ,esper is really in love with you. True love wouldn!t have faded over a nine month absence. It would have only grown stronger. 2specially since you had time to fully consummate your physical relationship in the wee"s between your first encounter and her departure for deep space.3 3 id we ever,3 Julie said. 3I chewed a new hole in her pussy and she damn near swallowed mine.3

3Is she any good at it43 as"ed -ypress, who was not adverse to a little girl+girl action when the mood struc" her. 3She!ll never be as good as a 8artian woman,3 she said. 3*r even a 8artian man, for that matter. These people are 'ust too repressed in their upbringing to let themselves go when they fuc". ;ut I did teach her a thing or two and she did have some rudimentary s"ills of her own. She!s getting better.3 3So the assignment!s not all bad then, is it4 =ou get to teach an 2arthling the way of the 8artian.3 3.ell, I do have to hold myself bac" a bit as well,3 Julie said. 3I wouldn!t want her to get suspicious about where I learned all of this. That!s where Scramm comes in handy. ,e helps relieve the tension that develops.3 3=es, I!ve sampled Scramm a few times myself. I was his training officer, you "now43 3,e told me that,3 she said. 3% good agent. ,e actually li"es living on 2arth, which is a good thing since he!s been here almost three years now.3 3:aura forbid I should have to stay here that long,3 Julie said, contemplating the horror of being stuc" in this place for si& of their years. 3=ou won!t,3 -ypress assured her. 3.hatever the outcome is, you won!t be on assignment any longer than the activation of their :emondrop reactor. %nd our best estimates are less then one 8artian year before they have the construction complete and enough anti+matter manufactured for that to occur.3 3:ess than a year4 %re we that critical43 3They!ve devoted considerably more of their particle accelerator

capability towards anti+matter production than we originally thought they would. They seem #uite desperate to get this reactor active.3 3Idiots,3 Julie said, sha"ing her head. 3They have no idea what they!re playing with. They could very well end up destroying all life in the solar system.3 3They seem to feel this is the only way to save their society. Typical 2arthling thin"ing. Their entire economy and way of life is on the verge of collapse because of their greed, mistrust, and contradictions, but instead of trying to fi& that, they try to harm us instead, thin"ing that will ma"e the problem go away. In any case, the "ey word I!m trying to convey to you is desperate. They are desperate enough to do almost anything with this reactor, to try anything. .e may be able to counter what they try but we must activate our own reactor before they activate theirs+and we must, we absolutely must "now what they plan to do. .ithout that "nowledge we may 'ust as well surrender to them.3 3I was well+briefed on the sta"es we!re playing for,3 Julie told her, a bit of testiness escaping from her mouth. 3I "now, Julie, and forgive me for harping on you. I 'ust wanted to ma"e sure you "new we!re desperate as well, and time is running out on us. =ou!ve got the best chance to get us the "nowledge we need so badly but you also are wor"ing under a deadline. It!s going to ta"e a lot of confidence on your target!s part to reveal top+secret information to you.3 3I!ll get the information,3 Julie vowed. 3*ne way or another, I!ll get it.3 3I!m forced to have the utmost confidence in you,3 -ypress told her. 3=our mar" comes home shortly. Start wor"ing on her right away.3 3I will,3 Julie said. 3I!ll give her a homecoming she won!t soon

forget.3

1etting personnel and cargo bac" and forth from orbital platforms and the planetary surface was much more efficient on 2arth than it was on 8ars or on the moons of Jupiter and Saturn. The factor that enabled this was the same factor that had made life possible on 2arth in the first place7 the thic" o&ygen@nitrogen atmosphere. The atmosphere allowed for winged flight during ta"e+off and final landing, which allowed for far less consumption of hydrogen fuel per trip. This, in turn, allowed much larger payloads to be transported. 8ore than 800 metric tons of cargo and nearly a thousand passengers could be ta"en up or down on each trip. The (enfield+,amiliton -orporation surface+to+orbit lifter was the primary wor"horse for such purposes in .est,em society. The fuselage of this craft was /C0 meters in length with a diameter of F0 meters. )our semi+roc"et engines with a combined thrust of /000 tons powered it. The civilian version of the craft was called the (,-+I00 and was operated by all of the big three corporate owned spacelines. The military version, which was operated by the .est,em Space 9aval )orces, was called the S*-:+F/. It was one of the latter that made its fiery entry into the atmosphere on this day, its destination7 2dwards Space ;ase in the southern -alifornia region. %s the shield on the belly of the craft absorbed the tremendous heat generated by the friction slowing the craft from orbital to atmospheric flight speed, %manda ,esper loo"ed out nervously from her window seat on the upper dec" where the passengers were seated. 2arthling society was not #uite as safety conscious as 8artian society and, as such, two or three surface to orbit lifters malfunctioned every year, usually with all hands lost, and usually during reentry. She could see nothing out the window other than the glowing ioni$ed plasma but she stared anyway, the way a person loo"s at

something that terrifies them. 1radually, as the craft slowed, the friction decreased and the plasma disappeared, allowing a view of the Pacific *cean some C0,000 meters below. She breathed a sigh of relief as she heard the whine of machinery. The four huge wings were unfolding from where they had been tuc"ed against the fuselage, turning the spacecraft from a falling ob'ect to a powered flight machine. They continued to descend, the coast of -alifornia soon coming into view. The huge landing gear unfolded from the bottom as they ban"ed into the landing pattern over the desert base. They touched down only ten minutes late, the wheels contacting the pavement of the landing strip at a speed of D00 "ilometers per hour and rolling toward the cargo terminal eight "ilometers away. *nce the spacecraft was secured to the terminal the passengers began to disembar". Since it was a military flight most of the passengers were naval personnel returning to 2arth for leave. 8ost, in fact, were the sailors who had staffed the ships of the %lberta battle group. %manda and her team did not tal" to them or sociali$e with them in any way+none of the sailors were even aware that this group of thirty civilians had even been out in space with them all of those long months. They grabbed their bags from the overhead storage bins and made their way into the terminal, gathering in a group near the far end where transportation to the atmospheric flight terminal had allegedly been arranged. The members of her team all tal"ed #uietly among themselves as they waited, none of them including %manda in their discussions. Though they respected her greatly for her "nowledge and s"ill as a physicist and a leader, none of them had much use for her as a friend. ,er reputation was of a cold fish, without humor or warmth. She was, in short, a nerd among nerds. She didn!t mind their perception of her. There were few people she wanted to sociali$e with anyway. She decided it was now safe enough to try to get in touch with the one person she did want to sociali$e with. She wal"ed a bit

away from the rest of the team and pulled out her P-, which had been ta"en from her at the beginning of her trip for security reasons and which she had gotten bac" before leaving eparture. Julie would be at wor" right now, of course, but, being an accountant, she could usually ta"e coms from friends as long as they were brief. %manda longed to see her lover!s face, to hear her voice. It had been pure torture living without her these last months. .hat if she didn!t want her anymore4 .hat if she had found someone else4 .hat if... horror of horrors... she had moved to another house during her absence4 3-om Julie,3 she told her P- nervously, hoping against hope that the computer wouldn!t tell her that Julie was no longer available for comming. ,er an&iety increased when it too" several moments for the connection to go through. )inally, the screen cleared and a hologram of that beautiful face appeared above her screen. She couldn!t help but smile as she saw it. 3,i, %manda,3 Julie said, offering a slight return smile. 3%re you bac" on 2arth43 3I!m at 2dwards,3 she said neutrally. 3.e 'ust got in from eparture.3 3It!s good to hear from you,3 Julie said. 3I got your email the other day but there was no way to reply to you. %nyway, your plants are all still alive and the house hasn!t burned down.3 3That!s good to "now,3 she told her. There were a thousand things she wanted to as" her lover, a thousand things she wanted to say, but they didn!t dare engage in anything other than normal, politically correct conversation on the unsecured communication line because there were a thousand places where the digital signal could be intercepted and eavesdropped on, most notably by the .est,em government, who had legal authority to scan private coms for 3indecent images or content.3

%ll the better to protect the public morals. 3.hen are you going to be home43 Julie as"ed her. 38aybe we can have some tea together after wor".3 %manda frowned. 39ot until very late,3 she said. 3I!ll get bac" to :ivermore in a few hours but we have a lot of computer wor" to do3+which meant she had an e&tensive debrief session to undergo regarding the installation of the sub+reactor. Since communication into and out of the :emondrop site was forbidden, her boss had received no updates. 3*h, well that!s too bad then,3 Julie said. 38aybe tomorrow after wor" then43 3.ell, my computer wor" might ta"e awhile,3 she said regretfully. 3I!ll be wor"ing late for most of the rest of this month. %t some point we!ll simply have to get together, though.3 She nodded. 3Sounds good, %manda. It!s nice to hear you!re bac". I!ll tal" to you when you can.3 3*"ay, Julie,3 she told her. 3Than"s for ta"ing care of my house for me.3 They discontinued the com and %manda had to sigh as she lost sight of that beautiful face. 1od, she was so horny for Julie. It had been nine long months since she!d last felt her touch, her lips upon her, had smelled her feminine odor. %nd to ma"e matters worse, she had not had access to pornography of any "ind during her trip, not so much as a picture of a breast in a medical 'ournal. 9or had there been much opportunity to masturbate, so close were the #uarters. The only time she had been able to accomplish this badly needed method of release had been in the toilet in the mornings, and even then it had to be #uic"ly done, leaving little satisfaction. She needed some real se&, a real set of hands on her body, a real mouth on her s"in. She had grown #uite addicted to Julie!s body in the short time

they!d been able to share together before she left. ,ow many more days would it be before they could get together4 %s much as a wee"4 8aybe more4 That was almost as torturous a thought as going on the trip had been in the first place. The shuttle arrived a few minutes later to ta"e them to the atmospheric flight terminal. %s they climbed aboard and found their seats her P- began to vibrate slightly, in short bursts+the signal that a te&t message had been received. She felt another burst of e&citement. The only person who ever te&t messaged her was Julie and, unli"e normal coms, te&t could be sent undetected and unscanned by anyone, thus assuring their privacy. 3 isplay message,3 she whispered to her P-. The screen cleared and showed her what had been sent. %s she read it, her breath hitched and a gush of moisture flooded her se&. )A*87 Julie S29T7 F0// hrs 0C+0?+/FIC 82SS%127 I can!t wait to get my lips on your pussy again<

%manda stepped off the commuter train at the stop near her house at 0FC0 the ne&t morning. ,er eyes were bloodshot with fatigue and 'et lag and her body ached in every 'oint. *ver her shoulder she carried the one bag she had ta"en with her on the trip+a bag that contained everything she!d been allowed to ta"e for a nine+month deployment. The damp wind of early 8arch blew across her as she made her way down the residential street and she wondered if she even had the energy to ma"e it home. .hy couldn!t that asshole ,entman have let her have 'ust a single day off before the start of the debriefing4 Sure the pro'ect was important to .est,em, but it wasn!t that important, was it4

,er heels clac"ed along the pavement as she turned onto her street and her house came into view for the first time in nine months. It was dar", of course, as were all the other houses on the street at this hour of the day. That included Julie!s house ne&t door to hers. She loo"ed at its familiar outline longingly and with a little depression. She had "nown it, too, would be dar", since Julie had to go to her own 'ob later this morning, but a part of her had still hoped to see a light in the living room, a welcoming sign that her friend and lover was still awa"e, perhaps awaiting her arrival. 9o such luc". 3,ome sweet home,3 she sighed, shifting her bag from one shoulder to the other. She clac"ed her way up the front wal" and put her fingerprint on the pad. The door slid obediently open, revealing her living room. To her surprise, it was not completely dar" in the room+ far from it. Instead a mellow glow permeated the gloom, generated by the lit candles that had been laid out across the floor in a trail that led to the hallway. She stared at this for so long that the door slid shut again, leaving her still standing out on the porch. 9umbly she touched her finger to the pad again, opening it again. This time she stepped through, her eyes loo"ing at the gentle flic"ers of firelight, her nose ta"ing in the scent of vanilla wa&. .hat was going on here4 .hy were all these candles lit4 3Julie43 she called, feeling a flic"er of e&citement inside her as the name left her lips. .ho else would have done such a thing4 ;ut Julie did not answer. 9o one answered. The candles 'ust continued to flic"er away, bec"oning her. Slowly, she put her bag down on the ground and began to follow the trail. She wal"ed through the living room and into the hallway, seeing another soft glow coming from the end of it, where the master bedroom was. She entered her room and saw the candle trail led through it, into the bathing room. ,er oversi$ed tub was here

and that is where the trail finally ended. The tub was filled with steaming water. 8ore candles had been set around the perimeter of the tub+nearly ten of them+and all were lit, creating a semi+lightness that was #uite romantic. In the bathwater rose petals were floating. 3.ow,3 she whispered softly, feeling her heart patter in her chest. In all her life she had never seen such a thing. 3.elcome home, 8ands,3 a soft voice spo"e from the wal"+in closet. She turned towards it and saw Julie standing there, emerging from the small room. ,er hair was down, flowing over her shoulders. She was dressed in a short camisole that appeared to be made of sil". It was tied loosely at her waist, allowing most of her bare breasts to show through the gap. ,er long, se&y legs were bare as well and %manda felt herself becoming wet 'ust at the sight of them. 3Julie,3 she said, her eyes ta"ing in the sight of her. 3.hat are you doing here43 3I couldn!t wait to see you,3 she said, stepping closer. 3I thought I!d give you a nice welcome home. I figured you would li"e a nice, hot bath after spending nine months out in space.3 3*h yes,3 she said. 3% bath would be heavenly. ;ut it!s even nicer to see you. 2specially... you "now... dressed li"e that.3 3 o you li"e it43 she said, twirling around to model it for her. %s she moved, the hem lifted up, revealing the briefest flash of her butt chee"s and the dar"ness of her pubic hair. She was na"ed under it< -ompletely na"ed< 3.here... where... did you get that43 she stammered. Such lingerie was #uite illegal under the Public 8orals %ct.

3*n the blac" mar"et,3 she said. 3I wanted to dress special for you. o you thin" it ma"es me loo" fat43 39o,3 she said, sha"ing her head numbly. 3=ou loo"... well... stunning. 5ery beautiful.3 % tear trac"ed down her face and a sob suddenly burst from her mouth, ta"ing her by surprise. 3*h 1od, Julie, it!s so good to see you< I missed you so much<3 She rushed forward, ta"ing her friend in her arms. 3I missed you too, 8andy,3 Julie told her, hugging her bac", planting a soft, se&y "iss on the side of her nec". %nd then suddenly, she bro"e the embrace, pushing %manda away from her. 3:et!s get you in the bath,3 she said. 3Perhaps a little rub+ down is in order. .hat do you thin"43 3*h yes,3 %manda said, her se& now 'uicing up #uite nicely. 3That sounds li"e a grand idea.3 Julie!s hands began to move, going to the buttons of %manda!s top, opening them, undressing her. She removed the top and then the bra, leaving her nude from the waist up. %manda was not surprised to see that her nipples were star"ly erect. Julie rubbed her fingers across them playfully, sending tingles through her body. 3*hhhh,3 %manda moaned, leaning in to "iss her. 39ot yet,3 Julie told her, dodging the move. 3:et!s get this bath going first.3 3*"ay,3 she breathed, unable to resist running out her hand to touch Julie!s bare thigh. 3=ou naughty girl,3 Julie giggled, pulling bac" from this touch as well. She then began to wor" on %manda!s s"irt, undoing the $ipper and letting it fall to the floor. 3,ow did you "now what time I would be home43 %manda

as"ed. 3So you would have the bath ready43 3*h, I have my ways,3 she replied mysteriously. 3:et!s 'ust say that someone gave me a com when you climbed onto the tram in :ivermore to come home.3 3Someone gave you a com43 she as"ed. 3.ho4 .as it one of the people in the station43 3Something li"e that,3 Julie said, tugging on her slip. %s she did so she dropped to her "nees to help her get it off, her face right on level with the crotch of %manda!s pantyhose. .ith a se&y smile she leaned forward and "issed her right on the crotch, where the dampness was starting to permeate through. 3*hh, uhh,3 %manda s#uealed, feeling pleasure burst through her 'ust at that simple touch. She #uic"ly forgot all about how her lover might have "nown she was nearing home. 3Just a taste,3 Julie whispered, inserting her fingers into the elastic at the top of the pantyhose. 3I!ve had dreams about the flavor of your pussy while you were gone, do you "now that43 39o,3 she gasped, thrilled, as she always was, with Julie!s filthy mouth. 3It!s true,3 she said. 3=ou have the sweetest taste. 8y tongue is simply in love with it. %nd soon I!ll be able to taste it from the source again. =ou don!t mind me "eeping you up a little late for that, do you43 39o,3 she breathed. 39ot at all.3 She pulled the pantyhose down and wor"ed them off her legs, leaving her nude. She then stood bac" up, her hands going to %manda!s shoulders. She stro"ed her softly there and then steered her toward the tub. 3Inside,3 she told her. 3:et the water rela& you. %nd then I!ll do a little rela&ing of my own.3

The hot water felt divine as she submerged herself in it. It seeped into her pores, easing the tension from her day of travel and debriefing. 1od, it was so nice to be bac" in her own home instead of the cramped cabin aboard the %lberta, or the even more cramped #uarters at the :emondrop facility. There had been no baths in either place, 'ust lu"ewarm showers twice a wee". %nd there had certainly been no Julie to rub her shoulders for her, to caress her, to love her. 3%hhhhh,3 she sighed as Julie!s hands went to wor" on her in earnest. They s#uirted body wash on her e&posed s"in and rubbed gently, soaping her up, rubbing in circles from her shoulders down to her bac" and then, deliciously, around to the front, to her breasts. 3*h yes,3 she moaned as the fingers wor"ed over her nipples, pinching them and twisting them with a delicious pressure. 38y pussy is dripping for you right now,3 Julie whispered in her ear, her tongue lic"ing 'ust behind the earlobe. 3I can!t wait to feel you touching me, lic"ing me. ,ave you missed my pussy as much as she!s missed you43 %manda was not capable of coherent speech, she was so aroused. She moaned deeply in the bac" of her throat and then attac"ed Julie!s mouth with her own, 'amming her tongue between her lips, see"ing out her lover!s tongue. This time Julie did not deny her the pleasure. She returned the "iss passionately, her hands now going lower, beneath the water line, see"ing and finding the center of her pleasure $one. 3*h 1od, Julie... *h 1od<3 %manda cried as Julie!s fingers plunged inside her and began to move in and out. This was not a tender act at all, but a purely lustful finger+fuc" designed to draw a sharp, rapid orgasm from her body. It was a design that wor"ed admirably. .ithin seconds %manda felt the pleasure e&plode within her, her pelvis roc"ing up and down, splashing bathwater and soggy rose petals to the floor.

3.hy don!t you get out of the tub now43 Julie as"ed her, her voice hus"y with desire. 3=es,3 %manda responded, standing, letting the water drip from her. 3I thin" that!s a good idea.3 They moved #uic"ly to %manda!s bed, Julie pushing her nude, still wet body down on the comforter. She opened her camisole, revealing her na"edness, and let it drop to the floor. She eased up onto the bed, straddling %manda!s thighs, her own legs spread, her se& wet and dripping. The odor of her arousal was thic" about her, ma"ing %manda!s mouth water. 3I thin" I need a little wor" first,3 Julie said, easing forward, sliding her wetness over %manda!s crotch, and then up onto her belly. Soon she wor"ed it all the way forward, so it was hovering over %manda!s mouth. 3)uc" me with your mouth,3 she told her. 3I!m so tired of using my fingers all the time.3 .ith a growl of yearning, %manda pulled her down, slathering her tongue all over those wet lips, reveling in the tart taste, the sharp smell of feminine mus". She lic"ed her up and down, bac" and forth, plunging her tongue in and out of the slit, lashing the clitoris, even delving down low, to the puc"ered anus, utili$ing all of the pleasure+giving techni#ues her friend had taught her prior to their parting. It wasn!t long before Julie was coming, her pelvis mashing up and down almost painfully atop %manda!s face, her cries of ecstasy echoing through the room. .ith the edge ta"en off their lust, they went slower now, cuddling together, pressing their nude bodies against each other, their hands and fingers stro"ing up and down, their lips "issing mouths and nec"s and ears. They wor"ed themselves up gradually to a fren$y of desire, ta"ing nearly thirty minutes before Julie finally suc"led an erect nipple between her lips, before her fingers probed once more between %manda!s very wet vaginal lips. )rom there, Julie wor"ed her mouth downward, "issing every s#uare millimeter of %manda!s flesh

between her nipples and her vagina, but avoiding that most erotic of $ones and continuing even lower, onto the legs. She wor"ed her way down to the feet, suc"ing and tonguing each toe before "issing her way bac" up, moving along the inner leg, the inner thigh, before finally reaching the heavenly gates and driving her tongue inside. 3*hhhhhhh, yessss<3 %manda screamed to the room as she felt that touch on her. 3I love you, Julie< 1od, how I love you<3 Julie stopped her lic"ing 'ust long enough to tell %manda she loved her too. She then got right bac" to wor", giving pleasure to her. She wouldn!t stop until %manda was a #uivering mess, sweaty and panting from multiple orgasms.

They slept together, both of them drifting off into a contented sleep after satiating their lust. The computer wo"e them up 'ust before sunrise, little more than two hours after they had drifted off. %manda was groggy and out of sorts from sleep deprivation, wanting nothing more than to remain cuddled with her lover in a na"ed embrace. 3%re you sure you have to go in today43 Julie as"ed with a yawn. 3I!ll call in sic" if you do. .e!ll spend all morning in bed and then I!ll ma"e you brea"fast.3 %manda groaned. 3=ou don!t "now how tempting that is,3 she said with sharp regret. 3;ut I can!t. I have to finish the debriefing from my... uh... mission. They!ll get suspicious if I don!t come in. I don!t want to have them scrutini$ing me. 2specially not now.3 Julie "issed her softly on the chee". 3I can!t believe what you have to put up with wor"ing there,3 she said. 3They!ll be suspicious for ta"ing a sic" day43 3I!m one of the few female physicists at Sythro involved in the

pro'ect we!re wor"ing on. =ou "now how men feel about us women these days.3 3=eah,3 she grunted. 3I "now how they feel.3 She sighed, nu$$ling her face against %manda!s bare shoulder. 3I guess this pro'ect you!re wor"ing on must be pretty important, huh43 3=ou "now I can!t tal" about it,3 she said lightly. 3That!s why they gave me a top secret security clearance.3 3I "now,3 she said. 3I 'ust get curious sometimes. 9ot that I understand what you physicists do or anything. I bet it!s a secret military weapon. Something we!ll be able to use to finally beat those 2ast,em fascists and maybe even ta"e 8ars bac" from those horrible greenies. %m I close43 39o,3 %manda said. 3It!s not a weapon. It!s something a lot more comple& than a weapon.3 3;ut it!ll help us liberate those greenies on 8ars43 she as"ed. 3-an you at least tell me that43 3=es,3 she said, feeling only the slightest pang of guilt at this technical violation of her secrecy oath. %fter all, Julie was her lover, and she was an accountant. It wasn!t li"e the information was going to go anywhere, was it4 3It!s something that will help us liberate the greenies from that horrible government. %nd the best part is, no one will have to die doing it. That!s why I have to go in.3 3I see,3 Julie said thoughtfully. 3.ell I guess I!d better let you get ready then.3 She brightened. 3;ut first, maybe 'ust one more little "iss.3 3*h Julie, I don!t have time,3 she said, "nowing of course that Julie was not tal"ing about a "iss on the lips+at least not the ones on her face.

3There!s always time,3 Julie whispered, moving her lips over %manda!s shoulder and then to her nipple. ;y the time she suc"ed the nipple into her mouth %manda was lost in the sensation. She gladly opened her legs for her lover when she began to move lower on her body. Soon the room was filled once more with the sounds of feminine love. ;y the time the orgasm began to burst through her body, %manda had nearly forgotten the little lapse of security she had 'ust displayed. ;ut Julie hadn!t. True, it was information that was almost useless, doing nothing more than confirming what the 8artian intelligence service already "new, but it was a piece of information %manda shouldn!t have shared nonetheless. %nd Julie "new that now that the crac" in the secrecy oath had been opened, it would get wider with time+hopefully wide enough in a short enough amount of time for her to learn what so desperately needed to be learned. The 8SS Aoachclip was a proud ship, owned and operated by the 8artian government, as was every other vessel that flew under the 8artian flag Galthough there was no actual 8artian flag for them to flyH. It was a well+designed, ultra+ modern fusion drive ship capable of sustaining acceleration at a full /1s for /D hours, which, in turn, allowed it to cruise at a velocity of nearly si& million "ilometers per hour and cover interplanetary distances in a matter of a few days or wee"s, depending on which planets were being visited and what their current alignment was. Aoachclip was nearly a "ilometer in length with a beam of F00 meters, although, li"e any interplanetary ship, the propellant tan"s where the li#uid hydrogen was stored too" up fully fifty percent of its length. Though the 8artian 9avy operated the ship it was not a ship of war. The only weapons it was outfitted with were the anti+meteor lasers that all space faring vessels possessed. 9or was it a merchant ship, designed to haul 8artian food to 2arth and the 2arth colonies. Aoachclip was a lu&ury vacation cruise vessel, one of a fleet of /0 that the 9avy!s Pleasure epartment operated as part of their mission to

provide entertainment to those 8artians who wanted to spend their vacation periods this way. Aoachclip was near the top of the line as far as cruise ships went, surpassing even the 2ast,em cruisers that catered to the wealthy of :ondon and ;erlin and Paris. .ith berthing for C/00 passengers and F800 crew members, it was outfitted with four swimming pools, ten restaurants, twelve virtual reality holographic simulation rooms, and, of course, eight fully e#uipped botch clubs, including a special $ero+1 room for those partial to Gand capable ofH such maneuvering. Aoachclip had left its berth at Triad 9aval ;ase twelve days before with a full complement of happy, paying 8artian passengers and was now at anchor at the orbiting metropolis of .hiting -ity, /000 "ilometers above the cratered surface of Ahea, second largest moon of the planet Saturn. (en and Slurry )ra$ier, happy newlyweds who had been 'oined in legal 8artian matrimony eight hours before Aoachclip!s departure from Triad, were the occupants of cabin C80? on the starboard side of the ship, their lu&urious honeymoon suite a wedding present from (aren and Jacob 5alentine. The cabin was small, as shipboard accommodations tended to be, but it contained 'ust about every amenity a vacationing person might desire. There was a self+serve wet bar, a small sitting room with real leather furniture, a sun"en hot tub ne&t to the bathroom, and a holographic surround sound entertainment system on the far wall. %ll of this was crammed tastefully into C00 s#uare meters of living space. It was 0E00 hours aboard the ship and (en+awa"ened by the room computer as re#uested the night before+was 'ust emerging na"ed from the "ing+si$ed bed. ,e put his feet on the carpeted floor and yawned, feeling a straining in his bladder and a mild ache in his head, both remnants of the into&icant use from the previous night when he and Slurry had given the $ero+1 botch club a whirl. ,e went into the bathroom, relieved his bladder, and then stepped into the shower to wash the sweat and bodily

secretions from his s"in. ,e was going to be in close #uarters with other people today and wanted to ma"e sure he was clean. %fter toweling off he emerged bac" into the main room of the cabin to find his bride awa"e and sitting up in bed, her bare breasts on display above the synthetic sil" sheet that covered the rest of her body. The e&pression on her face was not a happy one and (en "new it wasn!t from the early hour or the into&icant hangover. They were e&periencing the first disagreement of their marriage and the issue had been far from resolved upon their retirement the night before. 31ood morning, Slurry,3 he told her, wal"ing over to the bed and leaning down to "iss her. She gave him a slight pec", about as chaste as a "iss could be in 8artian culture. 38orning,3 she mumbled, frowning. 3So you!re really going43 3I!m really going,3 he said with a sigh. 3I told you that last night. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity. I can!t turn down a chance to go diving into Saturn!s atmosphere. That was something no one even dreamed of doing in my day.3 38aybe because you can die doing it,3 she said. (en turned away from her, sha"ing his head in wonder at her overprotectiveness while she shoo" her head in wonder at his rec"lessness. .hat they were dealing with was a ma'or clash of societal attitudes as to what did and did not constitute unacceptably ha$ardous behavior. The planet Saturn+a gas giant li"e Jupiter+was the source of the hydrogen fuel 8ars used for its military vehicles, its surface to orbit craft, and as propellant for its spacecraft. This hydrogen was gathered from the upper reaches of Saturn!s atmosphere by special spacecraft that actually dived down into the cloud tops and scooped it into holding tan"s for transport bac" to .hiting

-ity, where it would be refined into pure form and shipped bac" to 8ars aboard huge tan"er ships. The pilots of these hydro+ divers, as they were called, were widely regarded as mentally deranged, even suicidal by the safety conscious 8artians. ,ydro+divers not only had to slow to sub+orbital speed around an unforgiving planet, but they had to actually ma"e contact with the atmosphere at the blistering velocity of F08,000 "ilometers per hour. *nce in the atmosphere, they were beyond help if something went wrong. %nd inside the atmosphere there was #uite a lot that could go wrong. The intense radiation emanating from the planet effectively blinded any radar signals and made radio communications spotty and unreliable. There were poc"ets of unstable air that could rip a spacecraft apart at that velocity. There were bolts of lightening a thousand times as powerful as those found on earth, lightening that could burn through the protective shielding and the insulation of a hydro+ diver and fry every electronic system, rendering it flightless. *f course the 8artians, being 8artians, had eliminated every ha$ard they possibly could for the pilots of these craft, achieving a safety record considerably better than their 2ast,em and .est,em counterparts who flew their own hydro+divers into Jupiter!s turbulent atmosphere, but there was still a component of random chance and unpredictability involved. ,ydro+diver pilots occasionally died doing their 'ob+a grand total of twelve of them since Saturn atmospheric mining had begun five years after the last shots of the 8artian Aevolt. To (en, this was not a significant number, especially considering that ten to twenty hydro+dives were made each and every day of each and every wee". This made for one catastrophic crash for every F00,000 or so dives. In his time, more people had died on 2arth each day in car crashes, or gas station robberies, or 'ust wal"ing down the street minding their own business. ;ut to Slurry, who had been sociali$ed to have the screaming horrors at the thought of an accidental death and who lived in a culture where one of the prime directives was to eliminate the mere possibility of being "illed before your time

was up, these odds were not high enough for her husband to ta"e the ris". There was a one in one hundred thousand chance he would perish in a ball of fire in the turbulent clouds of Saturn and that was simply too much to contemplate. 3I!m not gonna die, Slurry,3 (en told her as he pulled on a pair of shorts and a fresh half shirt. 3I "now the ris"s involved and to me, they!re acceptable. The chance to do something li"e this overrides the miniscule chance of death. I 'ust can!t turn down an offer to go hydro+diving on Saturn. on!t you understand that4 =ou, who!ve studied us twentieth century frea"s all of your life43 That placated her the tiniest bit. =es, she did understand the twentieth century drive to find e&citement, to participate in dangerous activities, particularly among the males. This was, after all, a culture that had thrown themselves out of aircraft and relied on nothing but a piece of fabric to brea" their fall. They had built huge roller coasters and strapped themselves inside 'ust to feel the thrill of high 1+force maneuvering and momentary weightlessness. They had strapped on air tan"s and descended beneath the oceans 'ust to loo" around. They had climbed mountains and glaciers and large roc"s using only the most rudimentary of safety e#uipment. They had ridden at brea"nec" speed on two+wheeled motori$ed vehicles on crowded freeways and surface streets. 3=es,3 she allowed, ma"ing sure that not the slightest hint of approval penetrated her voice. 3I 'ust wish we would never have gone to the :aura damned bar the other night. If we would!ve 'ust gone botching on the ship we never would!ve met that pilot.3 3-oulda, woulda, shoulda,3 (en said, throwing a twentieth century phrase at her. 3;ut we did go that night and we did meet -arrie and she did invite me to go along with her. %nd as I recall, you didn!t mind the part before she invited me along, did you43 3*h, shut the fuc" up,3 Slurry said, a grin unwillingly coming to

her face at the mention of -arrie. =es, that had been #uite a night. That had been their first day in port at the legendary .hiting -ity and they had been wandering around the orbiting city+home to half a million 8artians who wanted to live in a place even more liberal than 2den+when they came across a small into&icant club near the space port. There they met -arrie Slaw+a twelve+year+old hydro+diver pilot who was loo"ing for some new people to hoo" up with. %nd hoo" up they had. They had gone bac" to -arrie!s spacious 00th floor residence and spent the night fuc"ing and suc"ing each other in a variety of combinations and positions. It was only afterward, while rela&ing na"ed on her couch and smo"ing scented cigarettes, that the tal" had turned to the specifics of each other!s professions. )inding out that (en was a ,ummingbird pilot, she had invited him to accompany her on her ne&t run if he was of a mind. She had made the offer semi+'o"ingly of course. The hydro+diver pilots were well aware of what the rest of 8artian society thought of them. ;ut to the surprise of -arrie and especially Slurry, (en had immediately accepted. %nd thus had begun the argument. 3I promise I!ll be o"ay, Slurry,3 (en told her as he slipped his feet into his moccasins. 3=ou can!t promise something li"e that,3 she pouted. 3=ou have no control over whether that ship is going to be the one in one hundred thousand that will crash so it!s not within your power to enforce such a promise.3 3True,3 he said. 3;ut I promise anyway. I!ll see you tonight.3 3If you die,3 she threatened as he went out the door into the passageway, 3I!m never going to forgive you. =ou "now that, don!t you43 3I "now,3 he said, blowing her a "iss. % moment later he stepped through the door, letting it close behind him.

It too" him ten minutes to wor" his way through the passageways and staircases and get off the ship. It was another fifteen+minute wal" through the streets of .hiting -ity to the base facility from which the hydro+divers deployed. ,e arrived e&actly on time, as was the 8artian custom, and found -arrie Slaw at the entrance gate waiting for him, as promised. She was a tall, slightly chubby woman of primarily %frican ancestry. ,er s"in was very dar", about as dar" as could be found in 8artian culture and, as was common among the ran"s of hydro+divers, she had several tattoos decorating her upper arms and stomach, all done in sharply contrasting white in". 3.hat the fuc"!s the haps, (en43 she as"ed, stepping forward and giving him a friendly "iss of greeting+which, among 8artians, meant she slid her tongue into his mouth and swirled it around his three or four times while s#uee$ing his ass. 3I!m ready to dive into some hydrogen,3 he said after giving her some tongue and a few s#uee$es of the ass in return. 3.ell let!s get it on then,3 she told him. 3I!m glad you decided to come. 9ot many people are cra$y enough to go for a ride with us. I "inda thought Slurry was gonna tal" you out of it. She seems a very sensible girl.3 3She tried,3 (en said. 3;ut I 'ust had to chec" this out.3 She put her finger on the security computer screen that guarded the entrance. 3=ou!re as cra$y as we are,3 she said. 3-ra$ier even. .e at least get paid to do this.3 %s had happened time and time again since (en was awa"ened, he found himself astounded by the difference between how things were done by 8artians and by how they had been done in his day. In his day, had a person volunteered to accompany a team embar"ing upon what was considered the most dangerous 'ob in the society, he would have been re#uired to sign liability release forms, to undergo some sort of safety class, and to have

his approval forwarded through a thic" ha$e of bureaucracy designed to find a reason why he shouldn!t go. 9one of that happened in this culture. ,e was simply ta"en to the pilots! ready room and a notation was made in the flight manifest. 3That!s in case we fireball,3 -arrie e&plained, using the term the pilots used for a catastrophic failure of the ship. 3They!ll "now you were on the ship and can account for you.3 39ice to "now,3 (en said, feeling a slight hint of fear now at the thought of what he was about to do. The ship itself was #uite large+half a "ilometer long with a beam of 00 meters+but the hydrogen tan"s occupied the vast ma'ority of that space. The smaller of the two tan"s was for the propellant the ship would use to ma"e the half+million "ilometer trip and then return. The other tan", which was eight times as large, was currently empty. It would hold the hydrogen the ship would gather during its run. The crew compartment of the ship was comparatively tiny, hardly visible when the ship was viewed as a whole. It sat amidships, on top of the collection tan", and was nothing more than a two+seat flight dec" and a small restroom. Thirty meters bac" from the flight dec" was the navigation and early warning probe, which would separate from the ship and stay safely above the atmosphere during the diving run to provide guidance to the pilot by means of a D00 "ilometer, hair thin strand of fiber optic cable encased in heat proof casing. This was an innovation developed by 8artian engineers to help protect the hydro+diver pilots by alerting them to potentially dangerous atmospheric disturbances in their path. It was one piece of technology the 8artians had offered to share with their 2ast,em and .est,em counterparts in the interest of protecting their hydro+diver pilots as well but both of those entities had deemed the improvement too costly to manufacture, install, and maintain on their privately owned ships. %nd so both 2ast,em and .est,em continued to lose five to ten hydro+diver pilots every one of their calendar years, a ratio that was deemed an acceptable loss.

-arrie and (en boarded the ship, entering through an airloc" on the starboard side. (en loo"ed around in interest as they moved to the control seats. The coc"pit contained no flight controls, only a large, interactive computer screen that was used to navigate and control the vessel. There was a large window to the outside+an actual window and not a digital image screen. The bow of the ship stretched out before them, its surface dirty and scarred. The target of their trip+Saturn+could be seen shining beautifully before them, ta"ing up nearly twenty degrees of the visible s"y. Bp this close the planet!s atmospheric bands appeared in varying shades of yellow and the signature rings were visible only as a thin edged lined along the e#uator. Still, (en found himself staring in fascination at the sight+as he had done on numerous occasions from the stateroom window aboard Aoachclip since their arrival. ,is fear at the mission before them was nearly forgotten as he considered that he would soon be seeing that planet from a much closer viewpoint. 31o ahead and grab a seat,3 -arrie told him, pointing him toward the right side chair. 3Aight,3 (en said, sitting down. ,e saw that, unli"e most spacecraft seats, this one had a seatbelt, and not 'ust any seatbelt, but a four+point harness. 3=ou don!t have to put it on now,3 -arrie e&plained when he as"ed about it. 3Just when we ma"e the run. 2very once in a while we!ll hit really violent turbulence and it!ll "noc" out the inertial damping system. .e!ll be pulling C1!s in the atmosphere and the climb out, so you!ll wanna be restrained in case that happens.3 3I see,3 he said, the nervousness coming bac" a little. The ground crew had already activated the fusion reactors and filled the propulsion system tan" with fresh li#uid hydrogen from the base!s huge storage tan"s. -arrie ran through a ten minute pre+flight chec" and then re#uested clearance to leave

the berth and head for the departure corridor. Permission was granted and a minute later she activated the maneuvering thrusters on the side of the ship and began to ease away from the doc". It too" almost twenty minutes before they were far enough away from Salinous and in the proper alignment to begin their main engine burn. 3, +?0?, ready for burn,3 -arrie told the flight controller when all systems were go. 3)uc"in! aye,3 replied the controller. 3:ight your shit up when ready. -atch your ass when you get bac", if you don!t fireball that is.3 3:ightin! my shit up,3 -arrie said, pushing the initiation button. The fusion engines came to life at full thrust, imparting a hum and a slight vibration to the coc"pit. The instrumentation screen told (en they were now accelerating at three times the force of gravity+or, in other words, pic"ing up speed at the rate of almost thirty meters per second. 3.e!ll accelerate at C1!s for EF minutes,3 -arrie told him. 3That will have us traveling about C80,000 "ilometers per hour. .e!ll idle the fusion drive at that point and coast for ninety minutes. Then we!ll turn around and decelerate at C1s to Saturn!s orbital speed. That!s F/0,000 (P,. .e!ll loo" for a relatively smooth section of the atmosphere and then decelerate again, to 'ust below sub+orbital speed. Then we!ll release the probe, put our nose forward and drift on down into the atmosphere. *nce we ma"e contact, we put on the engines and match our speed to the probe to "eep it from ripping free.3 3,ow long will the run ta"e43 3%bout C0 minutes to fill the collection tan". %nother ten or fifteen to pull bac" out into space. .e!ll finish our circle around the planet and then light up the engines again and head for

home.3 3%s simple as that, huh43 3%s simple as that,3 she confirmed with a smile. 3%nd you do this twice a wee"43 39ot a bad wor"wee", is it43 she as"ed. 3That leaves five full days for into&icants, botching, and fuc"ing.3 3%nd what do you do on vacation43 he wanted to "now. She laughed. 3I go to 8ars and visit my family and live li"e a respectable 8artian.3 Saturn continued to grow bigger before them, soon ta"ing up almost the entire field of view. It disappeared when they turned their ass toward it to begin the deceleration burn. The sight of the ringed planet was replaced by an awe+inspiring view of four of its moons drifting before them. ;eyond this, Jupiter could be seen along the ecliptic and beyond that, 8ars, glowing li"e a red blotch. (en stared at these sights for the longest time, still ama$ed that he was more than a billion "ilometers from 8ars and 2arth, riding in a fusion spacecraft traveling faster than anything ever conceived in his day. %nd even this ship, this hydro+diver that made a trip of more than half a million "ilometers in a few hours, was moving at only a fraction of the speed that Aoachclip had been moving at the top of its acceleration cycle. They came in past the rings of the planet6 close enough for (en to see the individual ice chun"s of which they were composed. They were pulled by gravity into a low orbit, less than F00 "ilometers above the cloud tops. -arrie oriented the ship so it was level, but facing bac"ward. 9o longer could the entire planet be made out from their perspective. It was now as if they were above a pale yellow ocean stretching off in all directions.

There was a hori$on now, ra$or straight, dividing Saturn from the blac"ness of space around it. 3.e!re above a pretty smooth stretch now,3 -arrie said, her fingers pushing buttons on the screen. 3Starting the de+orbit burn.3 She burned the engines at full thrust for ten minutes and then shut them off. 3 eploying the probe,3 she said, pushing a few more buttons. % whir of machinery sounded as the housing opened and the probe was "ic"ed loose. It was e#uipped with its own maneuvering thrusters and they began to fire, pushing it upward. It flew off above them, soon disappearing from sight. -arrie monitored telemetry and oppler radar images it sent bac"+most of which made no sense to (en+and seemed to li"e what she was seeing. 3*"ay,3 she said. 3Still loo"ing good. .e!re heading in.3 They dropped lower and lower, though it was hardly noticeable by loo"ing out the window. -arrie used the maneuvering thrusters to turn the ship so it was facing forward. 3%tmospheric contact in about /0 seconds,3 she said. 32ngines are on computer assist compensation mode.3 3.hat!s that43 (en wanted to "now. 3That means they!ll fire on their own to compensate for the atmospheric drag that will be trying to slow us down. If we slow down too much, the probe will run out of cable and rip free. .e!ll also have to burn the engines a lot longer to get bac" out. *f course the trade off is that friction and heat increases, but the ship can ta"e it.3

3That!s good to "now,3 he said. 31o ahead and buc"le up your harness now,3 she directed, reaching for her own. 3I!ve never had an inertial damper failure before, but I!d hate to have to clean your brains off the windshield if it happened today.3 3Aight,3 (en said, grabbing the harness and pulling it over his head. ,e clipped it into place and pulled it as tight as possible. In a way, the initial contact with the atmosphere was anti+ climatic. %s far as (en could see, nothing happened. ,e had been e&pecting a 'olt and a flare of heat from the nose of the ship. That did not occur. The only actual evidence that they were no longer in vacuum was the speed indicator, which began to tic" slowly downward, and the hull temperature indicator, which began to tic" slowly upward. The engines did not even "ic" in to compensate. 3.e!re at the very top of the atmosphere right now,3 -arrie e&plained. 3It!s still "ind of thin. .ait till we drop down a little lower, then things will start to get e&citing.3 She was right. Things #uic"ly became more e&citing. %s the hydrogen and helium atmosphere got thic"er, the speed indicator and the hull temperature began to move faster and faster. The front of the ship began to glow pin" and then red. Strange sounds began to fill the coc"pit+the crea"ing and popping of metal, the shuddering of components. %s they slowed further, the engines lit bac" up, with minimal thrust at first but slowly adding power as they dropped lower. The speed indicator stopped its downward spiral and steadied on a reading of C/ "ilometers per second. The ship continued to drop and soon the entire vessel was sha"ing violently, although the inertial damper "ept (en and -arrie from feeling it. The engines became a roar of thrust. The pin" glow from the nose turned to a fiery ha$e of red plasma that strea"ed over the ship and obscured all views from the windshield.

3This is e&citing,3 (en said, a tremor in his voice, his hands clenched in fear. This, he "new, was where every 8artian hydro+diver who had been lost had met his or her fate, during the high+friction period. 3Isn!t it43 -arrie said, a bit of tension in her voice for the first time. (en saw that she was scared as well, although not of anything happening at the moment, 'ust of the unpredictable portion of her flight. 3The probe is showing an area of category D turbulence ahead. I!m gonna maneuver clear of it.3 She pushed a few buttons and (en watched the indicator on the screen as the maneuvering thrusters fired, pushing them to the west about three degrees. 3,ow bad is category D43 (en as"ed. 3The scale goes up to 8, so it probably wouldn!t have hurt us,3 she answered. 3.e would!ve been 'olted around a bit and it would!ve made a lot of noise. ;ut there!s no sense sub'ecting ourselves to it if we don!t have to, right43 3Aight,3 he agreed. 3.e hydro+divers aren!t completely insane,3 she said, ta"ing a moment to pat his leg affectionately. She then turned her attention bac" to the instruments. 3*"ay, the air is thic" enough here. Time to get the 'ob done. I!m opening the scoop now so we can start filling the tan". The engines are gonna "ic" up #uite a bit as soon as I do. The scoop increases our drag by about /0P. It!s also gonna ma"e the ride a little bumpier+at least for the ship.3 There was a whir of machinery and then a roar as the engines increased to three+#uarters thrust. The noise of crea"ing metal and banging machinery parts increased considerably, so that normal conversation in the coc"pit was difficult. The collection tan" readout on the screen came to life, showing how much atmospheric gas had been suc"ed up. %s he watched, it moved

slowly to FP and "ept climbing, reaching /P in about twenty seconds. In all, it too" 'ust under thirty minutes for the tan" to reach F00P capacity. uring that time -arrie maneuvered the ship twice to go around atmospheric disturbances or electrical storms in their path. *nce the tan" was full she shut the scoop and then pointed the nose of the ship upward. The engines increased to full throttle and they clawed their way out of the atmosphere. The fiery plasma they were creating petered out slowly and then died completely. The hull temperature began to return to normal. The view out the window was restored, showing once again the pale yellow ocean of Saturn!s surface. 2&actly 0C minutes after ma"ing first contact with the atmosphere, they were safely bac" in space again. 3%nd that!s how 8ars gets its fuel,3 -arrie told him with satisfaction as the probe began to retract bac" towards the housing. 3I have to say,3 (en told her, 3you hydro+divers deserve every credit they pay you, and you really are insane.3

,e got bac" to Aoachclip at FIC0 that evening, 'ust in time to catch the early dinner seating in the main dining room. ,e showered, put on fresh clothes, and met Slurry+who had been on a tour group visiting Ahea -ity on the surface of the moon+at their assigned table. She was still obviously upset with him over his decision to accompany -arrie on her run, but was also #uite glad he had made it bac" safely. 3.as it worth it43 she as"ed him as they suc"ed up their pre+ dinner bonghits. 3It scared the living shit out of me,3 he told her. 3;ut it was also one of the most e&hilarating things I!ve ever done.3

She nodded. 3;ut was it worth it43 she repeated. 3The ne&t time someone as"s you to do some dumb+ass dangerous thing, are you going to thin" twice about it43 ,e sighed. 3It depends on what the dumb+ass dangerous thing is,3 he said. 3I didn!t consider that to be dangerous, Slurry, even though you did. %nd if someone else offers me a chance to do something similar and the odds are about the same... yes, I!ll probably do it.3 She shoo" her head in bewilderment, but a small smile came to her face nonetheless. 3I guess that!s what I get for marrying a cra$y+ass twentieth, huh43 3I guess it is,3 he told her, reaching over and s#uee$ing her hand. inner that night was roasted chic"en and mashed potatoes. %s was all the food on the cruise ship, it was mouth+watering delicious. They consumed every last bite, even ordering seconds before settling down for their desert of bread pudding. .hile waiting for their server to bring it out their tal" turned bac" to another issue they had been mulling over since deciding to get married+that of children. 3%re you sure you want to have them right away43 (en as"ed. 3I mean, I want to raise a child 'ust as much as you do, but isn!t it somewhat of a 8artian tradition to wait a few years after marriage and en'oy each other!s company alone first4 on!t you want to do that43 3Is that what you want43 she as"ed him, sipping from her third glass of white wine. 3It doesn!t really matter to me,3 he said honestly. 3%lthough I!ve fathered multiple generations of 8artians, I!ve never got to actually e&perience being a father, if you "now what I mean. I!m "ind of loo"ing forward to the e&perience. ;ut are you ready to

become a mother4 =ou!re going to be starting your new 'ob when we get bac". on!t you want to get settled in a little before you have a child43 3I 'ust don!t see a reason why we should wait,3 she said. 3.e can wor" our schedules so that one of us is always home with the baby and still have time to spend together. .e both want "ids, so is there really a point in delaying it for a few years4 I really love children and I want one of my own, I want to have a family.3 %s much as he loved her, as long as he had "nown her, (en was still mystified at times by Slurry!s attitude and behavior. %t times, she was pure 8artian, li"e with her concern with his hydro+diving trip. ;ut at other times, she was 'ust as impulsive and unthin"ing as a twentieth century resident, li"e with her children obsession. 3I want to have a family too,3 he told her. 3%nd if you really want to start one right away, that!s fine with me.3 31ood,3 she said. 3It!s settled then. .e can get the ship!s doctor to remove our reproductive bloc"s tonight. That way, we!ll be fertile by this time ne&t month, and...3 3;ut...3 he inter'ected. She frowned. 3There!s always a but.3 39o, not much of a but,3 he said. 3.hat I was going to suggest, was how about we wait until we get bac", let you get settled into your new 'ob for at least a month before we go to the doctor and get the reproductive bloc"s removed.3 3% month43 she said, distressed. 3That way, you!ll at least have the basic routine of the place down. If you still feel this strongly about having a child after a month, then we!ll do it. That!s not unreasonable, is it43

She obviously wanted to say that it was unreasonable, but she couldn!t #uite bring herself to. 3I suppose,3 she finally allowed. 3Then it!s settled,3 he said, leaning across the table and giving her a "iss. 3.e have nothing but time, don!t we43 39othing but time,3 she agreed. 2&actly one 8artian month later, Slurry was sitting behind her des" on the 0Ith floor of the 8artian capital building. ,er office was small and did not feature a view, or even a window for that matter, but it was hers, CE s#uare meters of real estate, e#uipped with a plastic des" and a computer terminal and featuring her recently bestowed title on the door7 A. S:BAA= )A%JI2A + ,IST*AI%9. She was as proud of that title as she was of the office itself. Slurry was deliriously happy these days. She was about to start a family with the man she loved and, professionally, she was doing e&actly what she had always wanted to do with her life, not teaching, for she didn!t have the necessary patience for that, but researching. She loved loo"ing up facts, ferreting out details from the endless stream of information on the Internet, loved the thrill that came with the discovery of each corroborating or dissenting notation or memo uncovered. She thought she could happily spend her entire first career in this office doing e&actly that, and maybe even her second career as well. *f course being the new "id on the bloc"+and one of the youngest ever accepted into the ran"s of the elite 8artian ,istorical %dvisement epartment+the official research she was assigned was not all that important yet. In fact, it was #uite mundane. ,er first two wee"s had been limited to learning the computer system and the procedures to be followed in referencing and chec"ing facts. She had then been given her first assignment+cross chec"ing minor points in the new edition of the ninth grade ,istory te&ts the 8artian school system would be using for the upcoming school session. The facts in #uestion were those relating to her area of e&pertise+the mid+ twentieth to mid twenty+first centuries+and mostly had to do

with non+controversial sub'ects such as price+inde&es, crop growing methods, land use, and specific dates and times of certain events. %nyone but a dedicated historian would have been bored to tears by now but Slurry found it e&hilarating wor", especially when she considered that she would eventually be assigned to more important research. .hat was most fascinating about her new 'ob was not the research she was now assigned or would some day be assigned but the method used to compile that research. Since she was now a part of the 8,% she had been given a security clearance+something she had been unaware the 8artian government ever did. 9ow that she was cleared and had agreed not to discuss the methods by which information came her way, she had the full power of the 8artian computer hac"ing technology at her fingertips and, as she had discovered, that power was almost omnipotent when it came to penetrating both the 2ast,em and .est,em networ"s. The 8artian government was able to see 'ust about anything stored on any 2arth computer database anywhere and from any time period. 9o birth record or death record or inter+department memo or photograph or te&t message or email or financial transaction was out of her reach if she "new where to loo" for it. %nd with the ability of the 8artian computers to cross+reference millions of individual databases, it wasn!t difficult to find where to loo" for things. She had access to information the 2arthlings themselves didn!t even "now had been stored, and could read the most private thoughts of people throughout the timeline from when computeri$ation of data became standard. This ability to read and e&amine the most secretive records of the time period was a historian!s greatest dream, allowing the ability to discover what had actually happened in the past instead of what the corrupt and biased media sources said had happened. Though her official duties did not often re#uire her to dig very far into this vast sea of data+at least not yet+she was allowed,

even encouraged, to browse it for her own pleasure and curiosity on her brea"s and during her lunch period or after hours. This was something she did with relish, with a compulsiveness that was almost addictive in nature. She spent her lunch hour every wor"day at her des" where she would eat a cold cafeteria sandwich and delve into the secret files of .est,em and 2ast,em history. *n at least one of her days off each wee"+usually when (en was wor"ing+she would come in on her own time and spend si& to eight hours doing the same. She had been able to uncover so many things during these free+ lance periods, and had dug up so many covert deals and blatantly deliberate historical inaccuracies. 8ost of the things she discovered had long been "nown by the 8artians and were already noted in official 8artian history. The pharmaceutical industry corruption she had told (en about on their first date was one such thing. It was a well+"nown fact that such corruption e&isted. 8artian high school and college students were taught about it as part of the curriculum on how their parent society operated. Specific e&amples+such as the suppression of medical research into diseases li"e the common cold and influen$a because of the fear of losing the profits treating symptoms of those diseases generated+were cited as well. ;ut now, with her omnipotent computer access, Slurry could actually see the discussions and negotiations that led to that corruption, that had set it in motion and maintained it for generations. She had spent the greater part of her last day off e&amining financial transactions, secret memos, and personal te&t messages from a period spanning almost a hundred years. She had trac"ed how money had flowed from the pharmaceutical -2*s to politicians and members of both the )ood and rug %dministration and the %merican 8edical %ssociation+which, by the turn of the twentieth century had become nothing but corporate tools of these drug companies with little interest in the health and well+being of the populace. She had read memos

discussing how certain avenues of viral research needed to be shut down, either by cutting off their funding or discrediting the teams that were performing the research. She had seen how politicians owned by these companies made sure to appoint only 3reliable3 people to the ) %+which meant they would do what they were told by their political masters. She had seen how the %8% members had been appointed in a similar manner. 2ventually, the corruption spread beyond research suppression into out+and+out profiteering. She read memos from pharmaceutical -2*s ordering the %8% to change diagnoses and treatment guidelines for certain diseases such as hypertension, depression, and attention deficit disorder so more doctors would be forced to prescribe pills to treat them. She had seen how this same body had basically fabricated new diseases, such as fibromyalgia and chronic fatigue syndrome, that doctors could diagnose hypochondriacs with and the pharmaceutical companies could then sell pills to treat. She had seen memos ordering the ) % to fast+trac" approvals of these and other drugs of #uestionable safety and effectiveness for real and imaginary maladies so they could hit the mar"et and start bringing in the profit. She had seen how the ) % would refuse to certify other pharmaceutical remedies, such as herbal drugs, that did not come from the companies that sponsored them. It was a loo" into the evolution of the corporate mindset that was both fascinating and horrifying. ;y no means was this sort of corruption and single+mindedness confined only to the pharmaceutical industry. *n the contrary, it permeated every national corporation to one degree or another and grew worse as time went by. She was able to see the actual memos that led to the suppression of cold fusion technology by the energy corporations. She was able to see the transactions that led to the suppression of alternate fuel technology by the oil corporations. She trac"ed illicit connections between tobacco companies and the .estern -ancer Prevention %ssociation charity. She trac"ed similar

connections between gun manufacturers and a national anti+ crime group, between a feminist healthcare corporation and an anti+abortion group, between a homose&ual rights group and the -atholic -hurch. She found that even during the dar"est days of .orld .ar III, when the %sian Powers were pushing southward down the west coast of the 9orth %merican continent and the fate of the entire free world was in peril, the deals were still going on. %rms manufacturers were bribing politicians to choose e&clusive contracts instead of allowing every factory capable of producing war materials to churn them out. The big auto manufacturing conglomerates were trying to out+bribe and undercut each other to see who would be allowed to produce battle tan"s and %P-s. The aircraft industries were doing the same to see who could e&clusively produce specific warplanes. There was no end to it and it was a process that was still going on in both 2ast,em and .est,em to this very day. Slurry thought it astounding that they had managed to carry on with this contradictory economic and political system as long as they had. In any other society the citi$ens would have risen up and smashed the ruling class down long ago, but the complete control of the sources of information+namely the media+had so far "ept this from happening. 3,ow much longer can they "eep going43 Slurry had as"ed Aigger Johannesburg, the senior twentieth century historian assigned to train her in her duties. 3%t what point will the common people finally decide enough is enough and do what we did here on 8ars4 .ill it ever happen43 3It has to happen at some point,3 replied Aigger, who was DD years old and close to final retirement. 3It!s as inevitable as the yearly dust storms. They simply cannot go on li"e this indefinitely before the pressure becomes so great an e&plosion will occur. ;oth .est,em and 2ast,em reali$e this on some level but refuse to ac"nowledge it on another level. They continue to try to deal with the problem the way they always have+with the cycles of alternating permissiveness they are

perpetually loc"ed in. .est,em is currently using fear as their anti+revolt weapon. They demand conformity from their citi$ens according to a rigid set of behavioral rules and enforce it by e&cessive surveillance, oppressive laws, and encouragement of betrayal of each other. 2ast,em, on the other hand, has already run this weapon to the point where it was about to blow up in their face so they counter the revolt instinct by liberali$ing their society, granting new freedoms of se&uality and dress, by repealing the old laws and giving their citi$ens the illusion that reform is ta"ing place. .hen these freedoms begin to have the opposite effect intended and encourage demands of greater reforms, such as nationali$ation of industries or the legali$ation of non+corporate owned businesses, the pendulum will swing in the other direction and their conservative cycle will start bac" up again. %t about the same time, .est,em will have reached the point where their oppressive cycle has reached the end of its effectiveness and they!ll start to liberali$e. That!s how it!s always been on 2arth but it is the belief of most of us here that this may be the last cycle they get away with before the collapse finally comes. The common people+from which revolution stems+ simply aren!t responding to it as easily and as deeply as they have before. % lot of that has to do with our successful revolution here on 8ars. .e have shown it is possible to brea" free of that system for good and no matter what lies they tell in their media, no matter how evil and decadent they portray us to their people, they simply cannot deny the fact that we are, in fact, free and that we are, in fact, productive enough under our system to supply them with the bul" of their food. If we ignorant greenies can brea" free and form our own government, than they could do it too, if they so desire.3 3;ut the powers+that+be won!t let it happen without a fight,3 Slurry said. 39o,3 he said, sha"ing his head sadly. 3%nd as they reali$e more clearly what a predicament they!re in, they!re liable to do anything in response. %bsolutely anything.3

That thought was often in Slurry!s head these days as she reali$ed 'ust how important she and her more e&perienced colleagues really were to the 8artian government, how important and vital their historical advice was, how critical it was that they uncover every last detail of how that perverted capitalistic system operated and what e&cesses they were capable of. This made her become all the more fascinated and obsessed with her wor", all the more dedicated to the mission statement she had vowed to uphold when inducted into the ran"s of the 8,% . *n this day, however, as the end of her official office hours drew near, her thoughts were on more mundane matters of history. She had 'ust received a data+dump from the .est,em system in response to a re#uest made earlier and she was sorting through a batch of search results one by one, loo"ing for the e&act figures she needed. It concerned the corporate ta"eover of the %merican farm industry in the FI80s, when the ma'ority of the country!s independent farmers were forced to sell out under threat of foreclosure. The .est,em history boo"s and official historical sources naturally did not give any e&planation of how this ta"eover had come to pass. They didn!t mention it at all. They 'ust pretended %gricorp and 8ar"s )oods -orporation and Proctor %griproducts -orporation had always owned all of the farmland. The 8artian te&tboo", on the other hand, re#uired a detailed synopsis of 'ust how the ta"eover had been accomplished and which particular pre+merger era corporations had set it all in motion. %nd they wanted this all in chronological order with cross+references. The previous edition covered how the ta"eover came about. The corporations in #uestion used their political influence to lower crop prices so the independent farmers could not possibly sell enough of what they grew to cover the mortgage payments on their land, and then followed up by pressuring the ban"s to foreclose. .hat was lac"ing was the timeline of the who and when. This was Slurry!s assignment for the wee"+to research and write such a chronology so Aigger could verify it and have it printed up in

the ne&t edition. She spent the remainder of her day bac"+ chec"ing through old memos and money transfers, matching them together to confirm the first "nown instance of the plan being put into place. %t F000 she received a com from Aigger, startling her out of the ma$e of computer records and data+base entries. 3Time to call it a day, Slurry,3 he told her. 3I chec"ed over what you sent me today and it!s loo"ing good. =ou have a real flair for this "ind of wor".3 3Than"s, Aig,3 she replied, rubbing her tired eyes and stifling a yawn. 3I!m glad you li"ed it.3 3-an I wal" you down to the tram station, or are you staying late again43 3I!m gonna stay 'ust for a little while,3 she said. 3(en is wor"ing today and won!t be home until F?C0 anyway.3 3=ou newbies and your enthusiasm,3 he said affectionately. 3Just don!t burn yourself out.3 3I won!t, Aig,3 she promised. 3Truth in history,3 he said companionably. This was the motto and prime directive of the 8,% , and was often used as both a greeting and a farewell between members of the department. 3Truth in history,3 she returned. 3See you tomorrow.3 Aig bro"e the connection and her computer screen returned to her database inde&. She loo"ed at it for a moment, debating finishing up a few more entries, but finally decided to put it aside until tomorrow. She was on her own time now and there was something of a personal nature that she had wanted to loo" up. 9ow was as good a time as any.

3-omputer,3 she said. 39ew search. .est,em Internet.3 3)uc"in! aye,3 the computer replied. 31immee the shit.3 3-ross reference the 8artian Internet and get a digital image of (enneth )ra$ier. %ny one ta"en in the last year will do.3 3%re you down with this one43 the computer as"ed two seconds later. % picture of (en appeared on the screen. It was the official identification photo that had been ta"en of him when he!d been hired at his current 'ob. :i"e bureaucratic issued photos throughout the history of the solar system, it was not the most flattering li"eness. ,is hair was out of place and the camera had caught him with a goofy, fa"e smile on his lips. ;ut that didn!t matter for Slurry!s purposes. 3I!m down with it,3 she replied. 3Perform facial recognition analysis and search the .est,em Internet for all pictures that match those analysis #ualities.3 .hat she had 'ust ordered was for (en!s digital image to be 3fingerprinted,3 or bro"en down into more than a hundred distinct points that were uni#ue from person to person. The computer would then loo" for matches of (en!s face in the vast sea of .est,em data. In theory, this would return every picture of her husband that had been stored in any database anywhere from the time (en was an adolescent to the time when he last appeared in a newspaper article several years after his shooting in /00C. Slurry was primarily interested in the younger pictures of her husband+pictures that could only be found by this method since they li"ely would not be referenced in the database with his name or any other identifying information. 3)uc"in! aye,3 the computer said, and then, a second later, 3Ae#uest sent. %waiting reply.3 The reply, she "new, was going to ta"e about si&teen minutes.

This was not because of the time needed to search through the databases+8artian computer technology made this sort of search almost instantaneous+but rather because of the biggest inconvenience the 8,% and other governmental offices based on 8ars faced in their hac"ing duties, that of the light speed barrier. 8ars and 2arth were currently FDE million "ilometers apart and the speed of light was 'ust under F8 million "ilometers per minute. ,er re#uest was digiti$ed, encrypted, and sent through a secure communications system out into interplanetary space, heading toward a civilian communications satellite in geosynchronous orbit over the Pacific *cean. It would ta"e eight minutes to get there and another eight minutes to get bac". .hile she waited, she paged through other entries she had pulled in during her lunch brea". She #uic"ly lost herself in the flurry of secret memos and transactions between the Bnited States government and the various oil corporations 'ust prior to the BS invasion of Ira# in /00C. This was one of the more fascinating case studies for historians because it was a te&tboo" e&ample of how easily the ma'ority of a populace could be swayed to support a war of con#uest by being told it was something else. People wanted to believe so badly that their government was acting in their best interests instead of in the best interests of their corporate sponsors that they would rally behind even the most ludicrous of e&planations as long as the e&planation was presented to them properly and as long as even the differing points of view within their media seemed to agree with the underlying reasoning. The Ira# con#uest of /00C had been the first ma'or test of this theory after the consolidation of the media companies under corporate ownership had begun. It had been somewhat rough going, particularly in the aftermath, but could only be counted as a success by the corporations because the ma'ority of the %merican population had enthusiastically cast aside what *ccam!s Aa$or should have told them was nothing more than a grab for the second largest oil reserves in the world.

3=o, Slurry,3 the computer said, interrupting her perusal. 3The shit you as"ed for is here. .e!re tal"ing ED8 photos found. *f these, CCE of them were not labeled with name, and /FF of them were not labeled with the date ta"en. *f the undated ones, a notation has been added telling the date the photo was digiti$ed and put in the database as well as what database it was found in. =ou down with it43 3I!m down with it,3 she said, pleased with the amount of gold her little prospecting mission had uncovered. 3Store everything in my personal file under (en Photos .est,em Internet and set me up a menu to access with a thumbnail on each entry.3 3)uc"in! aye,3 the computer told her. % second later, 3 one.3 She loo"ed at her watch, seeing it was now almost F0C0. She only had another thirty minutes or so to loo" at information. It was her day to coo" dinner and she needed to get home by FEC0 if she wanted the filet mignon she was coo"ing to be ready when (en arrived home from his 'ob. She wished they could afford to hire a bitch to ta"e care of dinner and cleaning but they had opted to use their dual income to pay for a nicer apartment instead of domestic help. So, with the short time she had, should she continue to loo" at the secret Ira# .ar correspondence or should she start loo"ing through the photos she!d brought bac"4 ,er logic told her she could never even begin to loo" at every one of the photos and should put them aside until her ne&t day off, when she could come in and peruse them for hours. ;ut her logic was overridden by her curiosity. She really wanted to see some shots of her husband in his younger days. It wouldn!t hurt to loo" at 'ust a few of them. She #uic"ly stored the Ira# information in another section of her personal file and called up the newly created menu of (en!s photos. 2ach entry consisted of a tiny representation of the photo that had been found and a line of te&t e&plaining where it had been found+or at least when it had been stored. The entries were in chronological order, starting with the earliest. She

loo"ed at the first one and smiled, suppressing a giggle. It was a shot from FI8C, when (en had been fourteen 2arth years of age+which would be near the lower limit of when his facial features would be close enough to what they were as an adult for a match to be made. The notation stated the shot had been found in what had once been a .eb site maintained by John and arlene )ra$ier, (en!s parents. It had been put onto the .eb site in FIIE, seven years before (en was shot. She touched her finger to the thumbnail and a larger version of the photo instantly appeared on her screen. 38y :aura,3 she giggled, loo"ing at it. ,e was so young< %nd so cute< It was apparently a family vacation photo ta"en at =osemite. (en was tall and s"inny, his hair long, almost down to his shoulders. ,e was standing at the base of a waterfall+she wasn!t sure which one it was+and wearing shorts and a long T+ shirt that had the name of something called 3Judas Priest3 printed upon it. ,is e&pression was one of bored contempt, as if he were 'ust barely tolerating the indignity of being photographed by his parents+an e&pression universal to the adolescents of the solar system, even here on 8ars. She marveled over the image for a minute or two and then moved onto the ne&t. It was another one ta"en from the same database although it was dated about a year later. In this one (en was dressed up in a suit and posing with his mother and father, who were also dressed up. The occasion was apparently a wedding ceremony of someone named 3:isa 1illian3. ,is hair was a little longer in this one, although neatly styled. The facial e&pression of pained acceptance was the same. Slurry spent the ne&t twenty minutes loo"ing at photo after photo of her husband!s past, stic"ing primarily to the early portion of the menu since those were the shots she!d been mostly after. She saw him at fifteen when his family too" a trip to ,awaii. She saw his first driver!s license photo at si&teen. She saw a shot of him dressed up for the 'unior prom at seventeen and another shot of him at the senior prom the following year.

She saw graduation photos+the last ta"en with the long hair+and then photos ta"en during his early college years. 9e&t came the photos from his army days+during basic training, his head now nearly bald+and then a shot of him in a flight suit standing ne&t to a training helicopter. ;y the time she wor"ed her way to his stint in the Persian 1ulf .ar in FIIF, she "new it was about time to shut things down for the day and get on home. *ut of simple curiosity she scrolled the photo menu downward, 'ust to see what "ind of shots had been gathered in the later years. ,ere things grew a bit more grim since the entire last section of photos were mostly posthumous newspaper images that accompanied articles dealing with his shooting and its aftermath. These were somewhat depressing and she did not call any of them up for e&amination. ,er mouth was opening to tell the computer to shut down for the day when her eyes happened across the very last image pulled from a database. She stopped, staring at it, pu$$led. 38ust be a mismatch,3 she said to herself as she loo"ed at the accompanying e&planation line. %lthough the 8artian governmental computer did not ma"e many mista"es+and those it did were always due to human originated programming errors+that was the only possible reason for what she was seeing. To confirm this she touched her finger to the thumbnail. The photo filled the screen and her breath caught in her throat as she saw it. There had been no mista"e. % security camera at some place called the ;ull 5alley Indian -asino and ;ingo Parlor had ta"en the image. It was undoubtedly a picture of her husband. ;ut how was it possible4 %nd what did it mean4 3Impossible,3 she mumbled, feeling goosebumps brea" out on her flesh. 3This is 'ust impossible.3 %ll thoughts of getting home in time to ma"e dinner left her. There was no way she could 'ust wal" away until she got to the bottom of this, until she figured out 'ust how what she was

seeing had happened. 3-omputer,3 she said, her voice now trembling a little, 39ew search. .est,em Internet.3

(en was in a good mood as he rode the elevator up to the 8Eth floor of the upper class housing building he and Slurry lived in. It was F?C0 and he was anticipating a nice stea" dinner with all of the fi&ings, a few glasses of good red wine, and, afterward, a long session of lovema"ing to help the food settle. Perhaps they would be prudes tonight and actually do it in the bedroom instead of in the hot tub or on the "itchen floor or on the playground slide up on the serenity level. %fter all, there was a lot to be said for the missionary position in an actual bed, wasn!t there4 The elevator doors opened and he stepped out into the hallway, turning right and heading toward the door mar"ed 8EFC. *n the way he passed several of his neighbors+most of them married couples or triples with children+who were either returning to their own homes after wor" or heading out for a night on the town. ,e greeted them by name as they passed+"nowing one!s neighbors was a common and traditional thing on 8ars+even stopping to chat with -olander 1lobosely outside her door for a few moments. -olander and her husband were the owners of 1lobosely!s (ic"+%ss 8eats, the butcher shop in the lobby of the building. ;oth were in their late twenties, the butcher shop their second careers, and both had been hinting #uite strongly of late that they!d en'oy a little spousal swapping session with (en and Slurry. This was e&actly what -olander was hinting about now, in fact. 3%egis and I are going to be coo"ing up some lobster we scored from the last 2arth shipment tomorrow night,3 she said, her eyes unabashedly loo"ing up and down (en!s body in a manner that could only be described as greedy. 3=ou and Slurry are

welcome to 'oin us if you!re down with it. .e!ll have some bonghits and some wine, boil up the scavengers, and then see what "ind of stin"y things pop up from there.3 3That sounds really static, -ollie,3 (en told her with sincerity. Though -olander was in her late fifties in 2arth years, she certainly did not loo" it. % si&ty+year+old 8artian woman would easily pass for under thirty had she been bac" on 2arth in his time and -olander was no e&ception. %nd, as (en had delightfully discovered during past encounters with other older 8artian women, forty years of e&perience at the act made for an incredible, almost sublime session of se&uality. 3I!ll tal" to Slurry tonight and see what she has to say about it. I imagine she!ll say yes. She!s been wanting to get together with you two for #uite some time now.3 3That!s the shit,3 -olander told him, putting a "iss on her finger and then touching it lightly to (en!s crotch. 3%nd since you and Slurry are thin"ing about starting a family we!ll have to ma"e this happen before you get your reproductive bloc"s turned off.3 3That is true,3 (en agreed. %nd it was. ,e and Slurry were planning to see 8anny 8ende$, (aren!s now husband, the following wee" to have their reproductive systems activated. *nce that happened a 8artian couple practiced strict monogamy until conception of a child was confirmed. %t that point the male had his reproductive drive turned bac" off and, according to 8artian tradition, the couple then invited all of their friends to their house so they could share the good news and host an orgy. (en was particularly loo"ing forward to this part. )or all of the se& he!d had since awa"ening, he still had never been to an actual orgy. ,e and -olander said their goodbyes and went their separate ways down the hall. (en arrived at his front door a minute later+ his mind still thin"ing of reproduction and announcement orgies+and put his finger on the "eypad. The door slid open and he wal"ed in. ,e had been e&pecting the smell of coo"ing stea"

to greet him. ,is mouth was actually watering in anticipation. ;ut the odor of the apartment was nothing but fresh air. 9or was there any sound. Slurry was nowhere to be seen. 3Slurry43 he called. There was no answer. .hat the hell4 ,e almost performed a search of the house to confirm she wasn!t there. 2ven after all of his time on 8ars he still couldn!t sha"e some old habits from 2arth. ,e stopped himself and instead as"ed the computer if Slurry was there, which was a #uic"er and more efficient means of confirming or denying her absence. 3She ain!t been here,3 the computer told him. 3She left at 08CC and ain!t come bac" through the door yet.3 3,mm,3 (en said thoughtfully. That was very odd. Slurry, despite her fascination with her wor", was never late getting home, especially not on nights she was supposed to coo" dinner. %nd even if she were going to be late, surely she would have commed him to let him "now, as he did her when he had a flight mission that too" longer than scheduled. ,e wal"ed over to the nearest computer terminal, which was on the coffee table ne&t to the living room couch. 3-omputer, com Slurry,3 he told it. Instantly, Slurry!s pre+recorded face appeared on the screen. It was her video mail server. The fact that it had popped up immediately meant that Slurry had directed her P- not to accept coms from anyone. This was something she occasionally did if she was in a meeting, but it was well past her office hours now and she had always allowed calls from him+even if no one else+when she was not wor"ing. Things were getting odder by the minute. 3-omputer,3 he said. 3Trac"ing re#uest. )ind Slurry for me.3 ,e was as"ing the computer to utili$e the law enforcement system!s

trac"ing computers to locate his wife by triangulating on her P-. The 8artians were big on personal privacy rights so this was not something that was done lightly. Though 8artian children and adolescents could be trac"ed by their parents without their permission or "nowledge, adults could not. ;y re#uesting this, a signal would be sent to Slurry!s P- letting her "now who was attempting to trac" her and as"ing her permission to allow it. *nly if she agreed would triangulation occur and her location revealed to (en. %nd even so, a log of the re#uest would be permanently stored in the 9ew Pittsburgh Police epartment!s statistic computer. If the re#uests became a routine thing+as they often did in domestic violence households or in cases of stal"ing+a patrol team would eventually be sent to their address 'ust to ma"e sure things were o"ay. (en had never felt the need to trac" Slurry before so he wasn!t e&actly sure how long it would ta"e. 9or did he find out now. 3Slurry )ra$ier has denied your trac"ing re#uest,3 the computer told him thirty seconds later. 3 enied43 he as"ed, feeling his alarm deepen. 3)uc"in! aye,3 the computer confirmed. 3 e+nied<3 This was so wildly out of character for her that he "new something dreadful had to have happened. ;ut what4 .as she having an affair4 That was absurd. There was no need to have an affair in a society where you could pretty much screw anyone you wanted to anyway. ,ad she been "idnapped4 That was even more absurd. 9o one "idnapped anyone on 8ars. .as she 'ust pissed off at him4 Possible, but for what4 %s far as he "new he had done nothing to offend her. ,e had commed her during her lunch period today and she had been fine+her normal, bubbly self. %nswers were not forthcoming. )or the ne&t hour he tried to com her every five minutes, getting her mail server every time. ,e tried to trac" her every ten minutes, receiving denials bac"

every time. )inally, convinced he had no other options, he wal"ed to the computer screen and commed the police department. %t the 9PP , li"e all 8artian police agencies, the com+ta"ers and dispatchers were all senior police officers instead of civilian employees. The face that appeared on the hologram in response to (en!s com appeared to be about forty 2arth years old, which meant he was actually in the neighborhood of C0 8artian years of age. ,is eyes had the perpetual ga$e of cynicism career law enforcement officers tended to develop, even, it seemed, on a perfect world. 3.assup, awg43 he as"ed (en. 3I!m *fficer -hadworth, 9PP . =ou got some serious shit goin! down, or what43 3Bh... well,3 (en said nervously. 3I!m not sure if it!s serious shit or not, but I!m worried about my wife.3 3:ay some facts on me,3 -hadworth told him. 3Tell me what!s got your butt plug too far up your ass.3 (en told him what was going on. -hadworth listened attentively, nodding from time to time, but not as"ing any #uestions until the tale was told. ,is face gave no hint to what he was thin"ing. 3So your old lady has never shut you out of the com loop before43 he as"ed after (en finished. 39ever,3 he said. 3.e!ve never even really had a serious fight, e&cept for when I wanted to go hydro+diving on Saturn on our honeymoon, and even that was 'ust a disagreement.3 3=ou went hydro+diving on your honeymoon43 -hadworth said, raising his eyebrows a tad, as a man does when he suddenly reali$es he is dealing with a mentally ill person. 3=eah,3 (en said dismissively. 3;ut we!ve long since resolved that. I!m telling you, we 'ust don!t fight very often. %nd she was

her normal self earlier today.3 -hadworth scratched his chin for a second and then stifled a burp. 3I!ll tell you what I!ll do, my ass buddy,3 he said. 3I!ll send an emergency brea"through signal to her P-. If she has it turned on, it!ll force it to answer so, if nothing else, she!ll at least be able to hear me tal"ing to her.3 3%nd then you!ll let me tal" to her43 (en as"ed eagerly. 39o, I!ll as" her if she!s o"ay and let her "now you want to spea" with her. If she!s not under duress of any "ind and she still doesn!t want to tal" to you, then you!re shit outta luc".3 3I see,3 (en said. 3%nd what if she doesn!t answer you43 3.ell, then we!ll start to thin" about getting a trac"ing order from the 'udge so we can see where she!s at. Sound li"e a blow'ob43 3It does,3 (en said gratefully. 3Than"s.3 3%in!t no s"in off my ass,3 -hadworth assured him. 3,ang on the screen. I!m gonna put you on hold.3 ,is holograph disappeared and was replaced by on+hold entertainment, something else that had certainly changed since the old telephone and automated answering system days. Instead of cheesy pop music from the previous generation, a clip from a pornographic movie appeared. It was a threesome between two men and a woman. (en hardly watched it. ,e lit up a cigarette and paced nervously around the computer des". ,e managed to smo"e it all the way down to the butt and fire up another one before the screen changed and -hadworth!s hologram reappeared. 3=ou there, awg43 he as"ed.

3I!m here,3 (en said, rushing bac" over. 3 id you get hold of her4 id she answer you43 3)uc"in! aye,3 -hadworth said. 3The emergency brea"through did the tric".3 3Is she o"ay4 .hat did she say4 .hy isn!t she answering me43 3She!s o"ay,3 he said. 3%lthough she seems to be a bit into&icated.3 3Into&icated43 he as"ed. 3)uc"in! aye, on alcohol it would seem. %nyway, she hasn!t been "idnapped or anything li"e that. She 'ust seems to be ran"in! pissed off at you.3 3Pissed off at me4 .hat for43 3She didn!t say,3 he said. 3%nd it ain!t none of my business anyway. %ll she told me was she is o"ay and she "nows you were trying to com her and trac" her but she don!t want to tal" to you right now.3 3;ut...3 3She said to tell you she!ll be home when she gets home,3 he said. 3%nd then she d@c!d the com.3 3.ell, can you com her bac" and...3 3)uc" no, I won!t com her bac",3 he said. 3That was one fired up slut, my ass buddy. If I was you, I wouldn!t do whatever it was that you did to get her li"e that again.3 3;ut I don!t "now what I did,3 (en replied. 3 on!t "now what to tell you,3 -hadworth told him. 3In any case, she!s where she!s at and doing what she!s doing of her own

free will, in my opinion, so there!s no need for the cops to be involved any further. =ou down with it43 3=eah,3 he sighed. 3I!m down with it.3 3)uc"in! aye then. ,ave wet dreams, awg.3 .ith that, the screen went blan". (en continued to stare at it, puffing on his cigarette from time to time, wondering 'ust what the hell was going on.

It was after midnight when the front door finally slid open and Slurry came staggering in. ,er hair was in disarray and the odor of alcohol e&uded from her li"e a low+grade gas. ,er eyes were bloodshot and she had several scrapes on her "nees, as if she!d fallen down a few times. (en was sitting on the couch, waiting for her, an overflowing ashtray and several empty beer bottles before him. ,e stood up to meet her and winced at the glare she shot at him. 3Slurry43 he said carefully. 3.hat!s going on43 3Ta"e a flying fuc" at Phobos,3 she spat at him, her words heavily slurred. 3:oo", obviously you!re upset about something I!ve done, but...3 She bar"ed out sarcastic laughter, interrupting him. 3*bviously I!m upset4 .ell that!s the :aura+damned understatement of the fuc"ing post+revolutionary period, isn!t it43 3.hat did I do, Slurry43 he as"ed, "eeping his voice as calm as possible. 3I have no idea what!s going on.3 3It!s not what you!ve done,3 she said, a sob brea"ing out of her mouth, seemingly against her will. 3It!s what you!re going to do<3

3.hat I!m going to do4 .hat do you mean43 ,er sobs grew worse and her words #uic"ly became incoherent. She cried great, drun"en tears of grief and anger and (en had not the slightest idea why. ,e tried to ta"e her in his arms, to comfort her, but she shoo" him off almost violently, storming away toward the spare bedroom. 3Slurry,3 he cried, going after her. 3:eave me alone<3 she yelled, stepping through the door. 3Just leave me the fuc" alone<3 The door slid shut, leaving him standing in the hallway. ,e heard a beep from the control panel ne&t to it, indicating she had loc"ed it from the inside. ,e could have easily overridden the loc"+it was his right as one of the registered residents+but he didn!t. %s a former cop he "new that trying to reason with someone as hostile as Slurry was+especially when such a person was drun"+was a recipe for disaster. ,e would 'ust let her cool off for the night and maybe she would discuss this with him rationally tomorrow. ,e went to bed a little bit later but it was several hours before he managed to fall into a fitful sleep. .hen he awo"e at 0800 the ne&t morning, Slurry was still in the spare bedroom. It was nearly F000 before she finally emerged, still wearing the same clothes she had worn the night before, her face a te&tboo" e&ample of pain and misery. The hostility seemed to have diminished considerably but she was still #uite obviously upset as she went to the "itchen and poured herself a large glass of e,ang+a 8artian developed hangover remedy that was a mi&ture of water, sodium, potassium, acetaminophen, vitamin ;+F/, and glucose. She dran" down nearly a liter of it before staggering into the living room and plopping herself on the couch. She moaned, putting an ice pac" against her forehead and leaning bac"ward.

3%re you o"ay43 (en as"ed her softly. 3I!ll live,3 she grunted. Silence ruled for another five minutes, both of them 'ust sitting there. )inally (en forced himself to brea" it. 3%re you going to tell me what this is all about43 She sighed. 3I can!t,3 she told him. 3=ou can!t43 3I can!t,3 she repeated. 3It would be a violation of my secrecy oath.3 9ow he felt anger stirring within him. 3So you get all pissed off at me, ignore my coms, call me names, loc" yourself in the spare bedroom all night, and now you tell me you can!t say what I!ve done to warrant this because of a frea"in! secrecy oath43 3That!s right,3 she said. 3That!s unacceptable, Slurry,3 he said. 3=ou can!t treat me li"e this and not tell me why. =ou said it was because of something I!m going to do. .hat the hell does that mean43 %nother sigh. 3To tell you the truth, (en, I really don!t "now what it means.3 3Slurry...3 3I can!t say anymore,3 she told him. 3I can!t< %nd for more than one reason too. In the first place, I don!t even understand what I!ve found out. %ll I "now is that you!re going to brea" my heart.3 3;rea" your heart4 .hat do you mean4 I would never do that< I love you Slurry. That!s why I as"ed you to marry me.3

3I "now you love me, (en,3 she said. 3I really do. %nd I love you too. That!s why this hurts so much.3 3.hy what hurts so much43 he cried, frustrated and confused. 3.hat you!re going to do.3 3.hat in the fuc" am I going to do43 he nearly screamed, his temper flirting with the brea"ing point. ;ut she was insistent that she couldn!t tell him and no matter how much he demanded it of her, she would not give him so much of a hint. Aound and round they went on the sub'ect, not approaching anything that even resembled a compromise or a middle ground. 3So where do we go from here43 he finally as"ed. 3%re you going to divorce me43 3I thought about it,3 she said slowly. 3I really did.3 3%nd43 3%nd I don!t thin" I will,3 she said analytically. 3I see.3 3I!m sorry, (en,3 she said, showing something li"e affection for the first time. 3I "now how all of this must seem to you and I "now that, in a way, it!s unfair of me to be angry with you for something you haven!t even done yet. I 'ust can!t help myself. I!m still in shoc".3 ,e "new better than to as" what she was in shoc" about. They had already beaten that particular issue well into the ground. 3So that still leaves us with the #uestion of what happens now43 3I!m going to try to get over this,3 she said. 3I thin" I can do that. I!m strong.3

3Slurry...3 3I thin" maybe we can get bac" to where we were,3 she said. 3It!s worth a try anyway. I thin" maybe I can forgive you in advance.3 3Jee$,3 (en said. 3This conversation is li"e something out of frea"in! %lice in .onderland.3 3I "now,3 she said. 3%nd again, I!m sorry. :et!s try to go on, o"ay. :et!s 'ust try. I thin" it!s important, for more than one reason.3 3*"ay,3 he said. .hat else was there to say4 3;ut there is one thing,3 she said, her voice dropping lower, a tear forming in her eye. 3.hat!s that43 3.e need to "eep our reproductive bloc"s active,3 she said. 3(eep them active4 ;ut Slurry, I thought you wanted to have children right away. .hy would we stop those plans now43 3It!s 'ust not a good idea right now,3 she said. 3=ou!ll have to trust me, (en. .e need to wait and see how this is going to pan out before we have "ids.3 This precipitated another long discussion that became #uite heated at times, but in the end he was forced to agree with her. They would leave the reproductive bloc"s in place for now.

3I handled it #uite badly I!m afraid,3 Slurry told Aigger Johannesburg the ne&t day. 3=es,3 Aigger agreed. 3It sounds li"e you did. %lthough I must say it!s understandable considering the magnitude of what

you!ve discovered. I!m not sure if I would have handled it any better. 2ven so, you were flirting with violating your secrecy oath.3 3I "now,3 she said. 3I!m sorry. I let my emotions get out of control.3 3%gain, understandable if not condonable. =ou can!t let this happen again though. If it does...3 ,e let the threat remain open. Slurry got the message. 3I!m down with it,3 she said. 3;ut Aig, what does it mean4 ,ow could those modifications to the digital images have possibly been put there4 ,ow43 3I don!t "now,3 he said. 39ot e&actly anyway, although it is #uite suggestive, isn!t it43 3It!s ran"in! terrifying to thin" about it.3 3;ut obviously, it!s meant to be,3 he said. 3%nd we as historians have to consider that very carefully.3 3.hat do you mean43 ,e gave her a pitying loo". 3I suspect there will come a time, and very soon now if I read this correctly, when the fulfillment of what is meant to be and the choice of not fulfilling it will rest on your shoulders.3 38ine43 she as"ed. 3,ow could it rest on mine4 I don!t understand.3 3=ou will,3 he told her cryptically.

;ac" on earth, %manda breathed, 3*h my 1od,3 trembling with desire as she saw Julie emerge from the bedroom. It was now

#uite evident what Julie had meant when she said she had a surprise for her. 3=ou wanted to see me, 8a!am43 Julie as"ed, ma"ing her voice high pitched and nervous, the voice of an innocent teen called to the teacher!s office. 3I hope I haven!t done anything wrong.3 %manda could hardly tal" for a moment as she continued to ta"e in her lover!s attire. The -atholic schoolgirl outfit had changed little in the past /00 years. 9ot even the length of the pleated s"irt had suffered from the Public 8orals %ct restrictions since, as a religious symbol Gas the horny old men who had written the law deemed itH it was e&empt from the 3no higher than the distal end of the tibia3 mandate other s"irts were bound by. The hem was si& centimeters below Julie!s pretty "nees, 'ust ten centimeters above the top of the white "nee soc"s. Julie had also done her hair in classic -atholic schoolgirl fashion. It was braided into pigtails that hung down to her shoulders. The net effect of all this was both startling and gloriously erotic. Julie!s youthful face combined with the outfit made her loo" e&actly li"e what she was portraying+a si&teen year old girl from a religious school. 38a!am43 Julie repeated, ta"ing tentative, nervous steps forward, acting the part as well as loo"ing it. 3This isn!t about me and -indy loo"ing at the dirty .eb site, is it43 3.here... where did you get that43 %manda stammered, unable to ta"e her eyes from her legs in that s"irt. 3.e 'ust found that site accidentally, 8a!am,3 Julie said, not allowing herself to be 'er"ed from her role. 3.e didn!t mean to loo" at it.3 3Julie... I... uh... ,3 %manda continued to stammer, unsure what to say, what to do, alternately terrified of this game her lover was playing and incredibly aroused by it. She had always harbored fantasies about pubescent -atholic schoolgirls and

their oh+so+erotic outfits. %nd now, here was Julie before her, dressed and loo"ing e&actly li"e a manifestation of that fantasy come to life. Julie, of course, had not 'ust stumbled upon this particular se& fantasy by chance6 although that was the impression she intended to leave %manda. Study of the porn sites %manda had perused over the years and the pictures she had seemed most smitten with had revealed this potential "in" in her armor long before. 9ow was 'ust the right time to finally give it a shot. The schoolgirl outfit+as well as all of the lingerie she had worn for %manda during their relationship+had come down a few months before from one of the 8artian stealth platforms in orbit around 2arth during a routine personnel change out. 3I "now it was naughty, 8a!am,3 she said, ta"ing another clumsy step forward, 3but I hope you!re not going to... you "now... span" me or anything.3 3Sp... sp... span" you43 %manda said #uietly, her eye nearly gla$ing over with lust at the very word. Julie suppressed a smile. She "new she was playing e&tremely dirty now. Span"ing was another one of %manda!s dar", secret fantasies, both giving and receiving of. 3=es,3 she said. 3I "now that!s the punishment for getting caught loo"ing at naughty pictures, but you don!t really have to do that, do you4 =ou don!t have to ma"e me lay on your lap so you can pull up my little s"irt and span" my bottom... do you43 3*h 1od,3 %manda breathed, going through another shudder. The gla$e in her eyes became almost insane. 38a!am43 Julie as"ed, allowing her bottom lip to #uiver. 3=ou!re not going to do it... are you43 The prudish part of %manda was shoved to the side by desire. =ou could almost see it happen. 3=es,3 she said at last. 3I am going to span" you. That is the punishment for being... for

being... a bad girl.3 3*h please, 8a!am,3 Julie said, her considerable acting s"ills putting a pleading tone in her voice. 3I promise I won!t ever do it again. I!m not a bad girl.3 3=ou are though,3 %manda told her. 3=ou!ve been a very bad girl. 9ow come over here and ta"e your punishment.3 Julie wal"ed forward, stopping 'ust before %manda!s legs, her eyes downcast as if in shame, her hands clasped behind her bac". 3:ay across my lap,3 %manda told her, her tongue lic"ing her lips unconsciously. Submissively, Julie put her petite body across %manda!s lap so her butt was in the perfect position. In truth, she was actually getting a bit wet herself. Span"ing was one of those things she li"ed to fantasi$e about as well. 3=ou!re not going to pull my panties down and span" my bare butt, are you43 she as"ed. 3=es I am, young lady,3 %manda told her, obviously getting into how things wor"ed in this game. 3=ou will receive the full punishment.3 3*h no, not the full punishment<3 Julie cried. 3=es,3 %manda said gleefully. 3The full treatment.3 %manda pulled the hem of Julie!s s"irt upward, over her se&y legs, revealing her tight butt. Julie was wearing plain cotton panties+as any -atholic schoolgirl should+but this certainly did not detract from the se&iness of the situation. %manda put her hand on the material, unable to "eep herself from caressing for a few moments. She then hoo"ed her fingers into the waistband and pulled them down, e&posing the pale, white ass chee"s.

3*h please, 8a!am,3 Julie pleaded, "eeping up her role. 3;e #uiet, young lady,3 %manda told her, 3or it!ll only be worse.3 %manda slapped her hand down on Julie!s butt, the crac" of her palm hitting flesh echoing through the room. Julie cried out at the impact, 'ust as she was e&pected to, although it didn!t really hurt. %manda span"ed her again, and then again, her arm rising and falling, some of the blows soft and loving, some of them hard and almost painful. Julie "new her ass chee"s were getting red from the punishment, an effect that would undoubtedly drive %manda even further into the land of lust. To someone with a span"ing fetish, there was nothing #uite li"e the sight of a reddened bottom. It went on for almost five minutes, %manda span"ing Julie until her chee"s were numb and tingling, and, Julie had to admit to herself, her pussy sopping wet and lea"ing 'uices onto the cotton of %manda!s s"irt. )inally the hand stopped. %manda hesitated. She was panting with lust and as turned on as Julie had ever seen her, but she didn!t "now what to do ne&t. The role+playing game was new for her. ;ut Julie "new. She stood up, her panties still around her "nees, turning so she was right before %manda, her crotch 'ust below face level. 3It hurts so bad, 8a!am,3 she said pitifully. 3.ell, I uh... hope you!ve learned your lesson, young lady,3 %manda told her, playing along. 3;ut... something happened to me while you were span"ing me,3 she said ne&t. 3.hat!s that43 3I got all... wet down there... in my poochie.3 3=our poochie43 %manda as"ed, her eyes widening.

3=es 8a!am,3 she said. 38y poochie. That!s what Sister *!-allahan wants us to call it. It!s the same thing that happened when -indy and I were loo"ing at those naughty pictures. 8y poochie got all wet. o you thin" there!s something wrong with it43 3Bh... no, there!s nothing wrong with it,3 %manda said hesitantly, missing her opening. ;ut again, Julie "new what to do. 3.ell,3 she said, lifting her s"irt up slowly, revealing said poochie in all its wet and hairy glory, 3can you 'ust loo" at it for me4 8a"e sure everything is o"ay. It!s "ind of itchy too, li"e I need to scratch it.3 This pushed %manda neatly over the edge. ,er hands reached out, grasping Julie by her reddened ass, and pulled her crotch forcefully into her face. Julie moaned in true pleasure as she felt that e&perienced tongue 'abbing out, lic"ing up and down her swollen lips, gathering that wetness, savoring it. 3*h... 8a!am,3 Julie moaned, letting the sensation ta"e her away. %manda ate her to orgasm right there, her hands gripping her ass, her lips suc"ing her clit until she nearly e&ploded into her mouth. She then too" her to the floor and ate her some more, driving her face into her, rubbing it bac" and forth, lic"ing and suc"ing at her li"e a woman possessed. She drew two more orgasms from Julie before they even left the floor. 2ven then, they didn!t go far. %manda stripped off her pantyhose from beneath her prim and proper s"irt and sat down on the couch. She grabbed Julie by the pigtails and yan"ed on them, drawing her face into her own crotch. Julie gave her best, as she always did. It was only a matter of minutes before %manda!s first come of the evening e&ploded from her+its force nearly enough to ma"e her pass out.

2ventually, they moved to %manda!s bedroom. Though %manda #uic"ly stripped off all of her own clothing, she insisted that Julie "eep the schoolgirl outfit on and the pigtails in her hair. It was a re#uest Julie complied with gladly. The passion brought out in %manda by the sight of her in the outfit surpassed even her wildest dreams. )or the ne&t ninety minutes they engaged in a lustful, sweaty, profane, and most of all, satisfying session of lovema"ing. %manda came no less than si& times, Julie eight, a record for her with a non+8artian partner. )inally, after the last tingles of orgasm faded away, they cuddled together atop the covers, Julie resting her head on %manda!s bare breast, %manda!s hand still gently caressing that beautiful, reddened ass beneath the s"irt. 31od, I love you, Julie,3 %manda told her. 3I!ve never felt anything li"e what I feel for you right now. 9ot even with :oraine. ,ow did you "now about my -atholic schoolgirl "in"4 %nd the span"ing4 I!ve never told anyone about that before.3 3I love you too, 8ands,3 Julie answered, craning her head up and planting a #uic" "iss on her lover!s mouth. ;y now she didn!t even felt guilty when she told the lie, when she played with her mar"!s emotions as she was now doing. It was something that had to be done, that was all. 3%nd everyone who li"es poochie li"es a -atholic schoolgirl. It wasn!t that hard to set up.3 %manda giggled. 3=ou must have #uite the blac" mar"et connections, you naughty girl. ,ow much did an outfit li"e that cost you anyway43 39ot nearly as much as you might thin",3 Julie said slyly. 3.ell it certainly got my attention. 8y 1od. =ou loo" so damn hot in that thing. Just li"e a si&teen+year+old girl, pigtails and all. .ill you wear it for me again sometime43

3%nytime you want, baby,3 she told her. 3%nytime you want.3 They bas"ed a little more, both of them cuddling, feeling their flesh pressed together, en'oying the body heat they shared. Julie was actually starting to drift off toward sleep when %manda finally spo"e up again. 3I really do love you, you "now43 she said softly. 3I "now you do, 8ands,3 she said sleepily. 3%nd I really do love you. It!s a pity we can!t be out in the open, isn!t it43 3=es,3 %manda hissed, sha"ing her head in anger. 3%ll because people thin" what we do is perverted and wrong. .hat are we doing that!s hurting anyone43 39othing,3 Julie said, the fatigue bac"ing off a bit as she sensed the anger in her lover. 3.e!re doing nothing wrong.3 3%m I a poor physicist because I li"e to sleep with women43 %manda as"ed. 3 oes that ma"e me more incompetent, more of a security ris"43 3*f course not,3 Julie told her. 3I!m sorry,3 she said, sha"ing her head. 3I!m 'ust lost in one of my in'ustice moods. It really gets my chic"en sometimes how we!re treated. ,ow we have to hide who we are. I mean, I love .est,em as much as anyone, but it!s not my fault I fell in love with a woman, that my desires are for women. I didn!t as" for this. .hy should they have the right to tell me I can!t do what my heart wants43 3They shouldn!t,3 Julie said, her mind whi$$ing as she tried to thin" of a way to ta"e advantage of this situation. 3 amn right they shouldn!t,3 %manda said bitterly, lapsing into uncharacteristic profanity.

Julie too" a chance. 3=ou ever thought that maybe...3 she stopped, "nowing of course that %manda wouldn!t allow her to drop it. 39ever mind.3 39o,3 %manda said. 3.hat were you going to say43 3.ell...3 she said carefully. 3I was 'ust thin"ing... maybe those greenies aren!t so bad after all.3 3The greenies43 she as"ed. 3They!re a bunch of fascist pigs< 2veryone "nows that.3 3=es,3 Julie said, 3but they do allow homose&ual couples to wed, don!t they4 =ou ever thought about... you "now... snea"ing off to 8ars4 :i"e those navy people did that time in that stealth ship4 :i"e those sailors and merchant marines do when they!re in port there4 %fter all, if we went there, we could get married. .e could be with each other all the time. I hear the greenies will even let you have children if you can find a sperm donor.3 %manda didn!t spea" for the longest time. Julie was afraid that maybe she had spo"en too much, that she had maybe tipped her hand and aroused %manda!s suspicions that her lover was really too good to be true. She held her breath, "nowing that she should not be the ne&t one to tal", that trying to convince %manda further would do nothing but raise those suspicions if they were present. 3It is tempting,3 %manda finally said. Julie suppressed a sigh of relief. 3Then maybe we should thin" about it,3 she said. 3I mean, really, you "now that 8ars can!t be as bad as they say it is, right4 %nd we could be together.3 There was another long pause. )inally, she said, 3It wouldn!t do any good.3 3.hat do you mean43 Julie as"ed carefully. 3I "now it would be

hard to get there, but we could at least...3 39o,3 %manda interrupted. 3=ou don!t understand. It really wouldn!t do any good. In about a year things will be different on 8ars. They!ll be the same as they are in .est,em.3 Julie commanded herself to mentally count to ten before replying. :aura, she was getting so close here. She could not screw this up now. 3.hat do you mean, 8ands43 she finally as"ed. 3,ow much different could it be43 35ery different,3 she said sadly. 3=ou!ll have to trust me on this.3 3Is it because of that weapon you!re wor"ing on43 3It!s not a weapon,3 %manda told her. 3It!s not going to "ill anyone, but it will change 8ars very suddenly.3 3,ow much could it change them43 Julie as"ed her. 3I mean, sure, we!ll occupy the planet again and be in control of all their food, but .est,em won!t be able to 'ust change how all 8artians feel. They!ll still have to let the greenies have most of the things they already have. I mean, maybe they!ll ma"e homose&ual marriage illegal, but the people will still remember they accepted it and we would be able to live together there without anyone minding or arresting us.3 39o,3 %manda insisted. 3=ou don!t understand.3 38a"e me understand,3 Julie said, ta"ing a huge chance. 3.hy wouldn!t we be allowed to be together if we went to 8ars43 %manda loo"ed at her seriously. 3If I tell you, you can!t tell anyone else,3 she said. 39ot ever. 9ot even when you!re an old woman in a nursing home about to die.3 3*"ay,3 Julie said, fighting bac" the e&citement. %manda too" a deep breath. 3.hen the pro'ect I!m wor"ing on

goes on line ne&t year, 8ars will go bac" to being a .est,em colony instantly, without any fighting, without any invasion. It will be li"e the greenies were never independent in the first place.3 3.hat do you mean43 3It!s called a :emondrop reactor,3 %manda said. 3It!s something that .est,em spies stole from the 8artians about ten years after their revolution, something their physicists developed and tested but that they then decided was too dangerous. They shelved the technology, buried it, but we still had it. %nd now, we!re about to use it for our own purposes, to right what shouldn!t have happened in the first place+namely, the 8artian Aevolution.3 3.hat does a :emondrop reactor do43 Julie as"ed. %manda told her. Julie did an e&cellent 'ob of feigning shoc". 3=ou!re "idding,3 she said. 3That!s not possible, is it43 3It!s more than possible,3 she said. 3The greenies have already tested a small reactor bac" when they first developed the technology. Their test was rather benign but it wor"ed 'ust li"e it was supposed to. =ou have to understand that the reactor burns itself out during use so we can only ma"e one and manufacture enough anti+matter for one, but we!re pretty sure we "now what to do.3 3That!s insane, 8andy,3 Julie said. 3,ow can you possibly "now what!s going to happen if you start messing around with stuff li"e that43 3*h, we!re being very careful,3 %manda assured her. 3;elieve me, our scientists and historians have been wor"ing for years on 'ust how to utili$e the one shot we!ll get. They!ve come up with a scenario that will have very little impact on anything but the

8artian revolution itself.3 3,ow could they do that43 Julie as"ed. She did a commendable 'ob of ma"ing it sound li"e casual curiosity even though it was perhaps the most important #uestion she, or anyone else in the history of the solar system, had ever as"ed before. 3It!s very simple,3 %manda told her. 39ow remember, you cannot tell anyone about what I!m saying. I!m violating my security clearance.3 3I won!t,3 Julie promised. 3*"ay,3 %manda said, satisfied with her sincerity. 3.hat they!re going to do is...3

It too" less than F/ hours for the information to ma"e its way to the 8artian capital building and the office of 8itsy ;rown. She was told to cancel her early meetings so she could receive a briefing on Pro'ect -ounterdrop first thing this Tuesday morning. Such a proclamation guaranteed it would be done. %t this point there was absolutely nothing more deserving of attention from the 8artian e&ecutive branch than Pro'ect -ounterdrop. The entire fate of 8ars, and possibly the solar system in general, rested upon it. Aoscoe Aeamer, Planetary Security %dviser, was the one giving the briefing. %s was the norm during classified discussions, ianne 8ingus and Aeef ,averty, senior members of the Senate and :egislature, respectively, were present as well to provide the constitutionally re#uired oversight for matters of secrecy. 3.e "now what they!re going to do,3 Aeamer announced once the meeting was called to order. 3Than" :aura,3 whispered both 8ingus and ,averty in unison. Though they were only providing oversight, both had been privy

to the -ounterdrop information long enough that the thought of .est,em actually activating that reactor "ept them awa"e at night. 8itsy "ept her divine gratitude to herself for the time being. She was all business. 3:ay it on us,3 she told Aeamer. ,e laid it on them, spea"ing almost verbatim the words that %manda ,esper had told Julie ittmeyer half a day before. 3Idiots,3 8itsy said, sha"ing her head. 3,ave we confirmed this information43 3.e have not,3 Aeamer admitted. 39or are we li"ely to. The source, however, has been deemed an eight on the F+F0 scale of reliability. I!d rather not reveal 'ust how we came by it, but let!s say it is a contact that has been wor"ed for nearly a year now. *ur agent on the ground on 2arth and our intelligence department both feel this is reliable information.3 3%nd it!s the only information we!re li"ely to get43 8itsy as"ed. 3)uc"in! aye,3 Aeamer said. 38y thoughts are that we have no other choice but to assume it correct. .e!re not going to get anything else in the time we have left.3 3:aura,3 8itsy said. 3 o they really thin" that utili$ing that reactor for something li"e this is harmless4 They!re deluded.3 Aeamer shrugged. The #uestion of whether the .est,ems thought their plan harmless or not was immaterial to him, the important point was that they planned to try it. 3In any case, we at least have a starting point for our -ounterdrop team. .e need to start ma"ing our plans immediately.3 3I agree,3 8itsy said. 3I!ll get started right away,3 Aeamer said. 3There is one other

thing though.3 3.hat!s that43 3I thin" we should get the 8,% involved in this. They!ll be a great help.3 3)uc"in! aye,3 8itsy told him. 38a"e it so.3 Slurry, (en, and Aigger Johannesburg, Slurry!s boss, stood atop the elevated first tee bloc" of the Point Three+2ight 1olf and -ountry -lub. Their golf bags, which were strapped securely into robotic wheeled transporters, sat idly behind them. The grass of the tee bloc" and of the fairway that stretched out before them was a lush and rich green, neatly trimmed and maintained by an army of city paid landscapers. The ceiling over the golf course was very high, almost 000 meters up. Slurry was peering through a set of digital enhancement binoculars and range finders that had been issued to each member of the threesome along with the transporter carts. 3It loo"s li"e they!re far enough away now,3 she told her companions, referring to the foursome that had set off on the hole in front of them. 31o ahead and fire it up, (en.3 3)uc"in! aye,3 (en said, plugging a white golf ball and a plastic tee into the springy grass between the championship tee bloc"s. ,e stepped bac" from the ball and peered down the straight fairway. ,e could not see the pin but he could ma"e out two la"es and three sand bun"ers in the general vicinity of the landing area. 3.hat!s the range on this hole again43 he as"ed Slurry. She consulted her P-, upon which a course schematic and ball locator program had been loaded. 3?E8 meters from the blue tees,3 she told him. 3Par four.3 3?E8 meters,3 he said wonderingly. 3%in!t that some shit43

Though (en and Slurry were both golf enthusiasts, this was their first trip to the infamous Point Three+2ight -lub, which derived its name from the fact that it was the only course on 8ars to utili$e natural 8artian gravity instead of the artificial "ind. 8ars gravity was .C81, e#ual to about a third of standard 2arth gravity. 3Aemember,3 said Aigger, who had invited them and had paid the outrageously high price demanded for a round, 3air pressure friction will be the same as on any other course. .e!re still at 2arth sea level standard. It!s 'ust the gravity that!s different. This means your ball will go a little more than twice as far as on a regular course and any mista"es you ma"e in aiming or slicing will be compounded by a factor of two.3 3%s if I wasn!t bad enough as it is,3 said (en, who was e&aggerating considerably. Since starting his career as a ,ummingbird pilot he had ample free time to perfect his golf game. ,is 8artian 1olf %ssociation official handicap stood at a solid I, much better than the /F he had maintained in his previous life. ,e lined up for his shot and too" a few practice swings, getting the feel of the club in the reduced gravity. )inally he addressed the ball and too" a deep breath. Slurry and Aigger stood silently behind him, not wanting to disturb his concentration. ,e too" one last loo" down the fairway and then at the ball. Smoothly and confidently, he too" his shot, the driver ma"ing good contact and blasting the ball away from the tee with a resounding and satisfying smac". 3% tight pussy of a shot,3 Aigger said, impressed. 3I thin" you!re gonna li"e it.3 (en 'ust stared, ama$ed, as the ball flew effortlessly in a high ballistic arc, still going up after passing the /00+meter mar". It dwindled with distance and soon disappeared from his sight entirely. The monitor on his P-, which was trac"ing the ball by

means of a cellular triangulation receiver, told him it had landed 0C8 meters from the tee bloc" and rolled another twenty meters after that. ,e had 'ust hit a golf ball more than half a "ilometer. Aigger, a veteran of this course and a D+handicap player, #uic"ly outdid him. ,e blasted his tee shot 0E? meters directly down the center of the fairway. 39ice fuc"in! shot,3 Slurry said, putting her own ball into the ground. Though she was a E handicap herself, she was #uite unused to maneuvering about in reduced gravity. .hen she too" her swing her weight shifted more than she wanted it too. She lost her balance and fell to the ground ne&t to the tee, uttering a grunt of embarrassment. ,er golf ball traveled less than a hundred meters, arcing off into the deep rough alongside the fairway. 3That!s an ass+fuc" with a reversible drill,3 Aigger commented as his prot>g> pic"ed herself up off the ground. 3 on!t worry. =ou!ll get used to it.3 39ow I "now what the .est,em marines went through when they tried to 'ac" the planet from us,3 she said good+naturedly. *ne of the ma'or factors in the .est,em defeat during the 8artian Aevolution had been the unfamiliarity of the invading marines with reduced gravity. They had found it difficult to wal" on the surface and up and down hills, fre#uently stumbling and falling. They had also found it hard to hit the dirt when under attac" since the gravity pulled them much more slowly toward said dirt than they were used to. The threesome wal"ed off toward their balls, their electric carts trailing obediently behind them. %ll three were sipping from bottles of beer even though it was only 0800 in the morning. (en had long since learned to disregard the taboo against pre+ noon drin"ing he had been raised with. Slurry!s second shot was a bit smoother. She blasted it out of the

rough and bac" into the fairway CD0 meters downrange. They then had to wait a bit while the group in front of them cleared the green. %s they did they all passed a 'oint bac" and forth, getting pleasantly stoned. 3=ou "now what smo"ing bud does to me,3 Slurry warned (en after e&haling her last hit. 3.hy do you thin" I gave you some43 he as"ed slyly, "nowing that before the round was finished she would be giving him a blow'ob at the very least. 8ari'uana made her e&tremely horny. 3Schemer,3 she said, slapping at him playfully. It was a gesture that was mostly sincere but (en, even through his own stoned ha$e, was able to see the underlying dread that seemed to pop up in her more and more fre#uently these days. Their relationship had never completely recovered from whatever had happened to Slurry that one awful night. In most aspects they were still happy newlyweds. They spent as much time together as they possibly could. They went golfing at least once a wee" and botching every wee"end. 2very night after wor" they ate dinner together, either a home coo"ed meal or one prepared at one of the many favorite restaurants they had discovered. 8ost importantly, however, their ability to communicate with other+the foundation of their relationship+ was still intact. They still loved tal"ing to each other and were still best friends. Their favorite activity remained nothing more than simple conversation. It didn!t matter if the sub'ect was historical literature or aspects of the 8artian constitution or who had the nicest tits at each other!s respective wor"place, they could and did still tal". ;ut at the same time, something had definitely changed about Slurry. She had clearly mar"ed certain conversational sub'ects as off limits and she absolutely refused to tal" about them. The most significant of these sub'ects was whatever it was that had pissed her off so badly on that night two months before. True to

her word, she would not discuss it, would, in fact, hardly ac"nowledge that the incident had even occurred. If he tried to bring it up, either directly or in a roundabout way, she would change the sub'ect, clam up completely, or, if he persisted, simply leave the room. The other taboo issue was that of children. %ny attempt he made to reopen that topic was 'ust as neatly cut off at the "nees. Still, things had gone as they should as long as (en stayed away from those forbidden topics. 8ost of the time he was able to forget about the dar" spot on their marriage, as Slurry seemed to have done. %s she had said she would, it seemed she had forgiven him in advance for whatever it was that she thought he was going to do to her. %t least that was how things had been until three days ago. *n that day, Slurry had called him at the end of her wor"day and told him she had an emergency meeting to attend and would be home late. She had come home at the time she said she would, and didn!t smell of into&icants, but ever since then her attitude had undergone another significant change. It was subtle, something only her husband would have noticed, but to (en it was as plain as the nipples on her tits Gas the 8artian e&pression wentH. She didn!t smile as much and her conversations with him seemed strained, even when discussing benign and neutral things. She wanted to spend more time alone, often shutting herself into the study for hours. ,e had even detected the swelling and redness of eyes, the telltale symptoms of crying. %s with everything else that fell under the umbrella of being related to that night, she refused to discuss it with him or to even ac"nowledge there was anything to discuss. 2ven when as"ing him to go on this golf trip+something that had once been a high point of their relationship+he sensed an air of dread and sadness about her. The smile and affection he!d 'ust en'oyed+though a shadow of its former self+was the best he!d had from her all wee". Aigger finished up the hole by sin"ing a neat, twelve+meter putt

for birdie. (en, though he had put his ball on the green in a regulation two shots, still ended up with a bogey since he was unfamiliar with putting in .C8 gravity. Slurry, even more unfamiliar with reduced gravity, finally managed to chip on the green with her fourth shot and three+putt for a triple+bogey. 3=ou!ll get the hang of it, Slurry,3 Aigger promised as they cleared the green and headed for the ne&t hole. She gave him a sour loo", the same one she!d been sporting for most of the past seven days. 3=es,3 she said. 3If there!s one thing I!m getting good at, it!s getting used to things, huh43 (en let the comment lie, even though he "new it was directed at him. They mounted the ne&t tee bloc", which overloo"ed a monstrous 8?E+meter par five that doglegged D0 degrees to the right. Slurry employed her binoculars and found the foursome in front of them was 'ust approaching their initial drives. They settled in to wait, Aigger pulling out a cigar and (en pulling out a cigarette. They spar"ed up, puffing fragrant tobacco smo"e into the still air. Aigger and Slurry passed a few loo"s between them, seeming to employ some sort of silent communication (en was unable to fathom. ,e was 'ust about to as" what was going on when Slurry spo"e up. 3(en, there!s something that... well... that Aigger and I want to as" you,3 she said, having trouble getting the words out. 3.hat!s that43 he as"ed, loo"ing at them carefully. Their e&pressions were pained and serious at the same time. Slurry sighed. 3;ecause of your... well... your bac"ground, the 8,% has as"ed me to as" you if they could... well... employ you in a certain capacity.3 38y bac"ground43 he said, raising his eyebrows. 3 o you mean my...3 he cast a loo" at Aigger. 38y origins43

3Aigger "nows about you,3 she said. 3I hope you don!t mind, and I "now I should have as"ed you first before sharing details of your life with my co+wor"ers, but it seemed li"e a very important thing.3 ,e was a bit ta"en abac" by the fact that she had done this. Though he was not nearly as paranoid as he had once been about revealing his bac"ground, it was still something he preferred to "eep close, if for no other reason than to avoid being labeled as different. 3It!s all right,3 he said. 3(ind of, anyway. ;ut what e&actly do you mean about... employing me4 oes someone want to interview me43 39ot e&actly,3 Slurry said. She loo"ed to Aigger for help and he promptly pic"ed up the thread. 3(en,3 he said, 3please don!t be angry with Slurry for sharing your uni#ue upbringing with us. She did "eep your personal life to herself until a certain issue recently came to our attention at the 8,% . This is an issue she felt you would be able to assist us+and subse#uently the 8artian government itself+with. That is the only reason she let us "now where you!d come from.3 3.hat issue are we tal"ing about here43 he as"ed. 3I!m afraid I can!t really give you any details at the moment. If you agree to help us you will be cleared for top+secret material and then everything will be e&plained in detail.3 3.ell, what is it you want me to do43 he as"ed ne&t. 3I!m not going to agree to anything if I don!t "now what it is first.3 Slurry and Aigger loo"ed at each other again, both sharing another moment of silent communication that ended in mutual shrugs. 3:et!s 'ust say,3 Aigger finally said, 3that your intimate "nowledge of twentieth and early twenty+first century life in %merica would be invaluable to a pro'ect being put together. =ou don!t have to decide whether or not to do it right now. %ll

we as" for is your agreement to go through the security clearance process so we can then e&plain what we wish you to do. If, at that point, you do not wish to help us, it is your right and obligation as a 8artian citi$en to tell us to go fuc" ourselves. 2very other member of the pro'ect would be e&pected to do the same.3 3I see,3 he said, although he really didn!t. 3So... so... what do you say43 Slurry as"ed, her eyes giving (en mi&ed messages. She seemed to be desperate for him to agree and disagree at the same time. ,e loo"ed at Aigger, seeing he was eagerly anticipating a reply as well. ,e obviously wanted (en to say yes. Aigger was one of the most emotionless people (en had ever met. .hatever this pro'ect was, it had to be big to ma"e him act antsy li"e that. ,e loo"ed bac" at Slurry. 3-an I tal" to you alone for a minute43 3Bh... sure,3 she said. They stepped off the tee bloc" into the shadow of a portable restroom about C0 meters away. Aigger stayed behind. 3.hat do you thin" I should do43 (en as"ed Slurry. 3I presume you "now e&actly what!s going on here, right43 39ot e&actly,3 she said. 3;ut I "now most of it. 2nough.3 3I can see you have mi&ed emotions about... about whatever we!re not tal"ing about here. Tell me what!s on your mind.3 She sighed again, going through some sort of internal struggle. 3Part of me wants to say you should tell us to ta"e a flying fuc" at Phobos. ;ut that!s the personal part of me, the heart.3 She shoo" her head. 3*h fuc" it, I won!t be violating anything by saying this much. .hat we!re going to as" you to do is dangerous, (en, maybe one of the most dangerous things ever

attempted.3 3 angerous in what way43 he as"ed. 3Physically, emotionally, metaphysically, every which way,3 she said. 3I don!t thin" I can say any more at the moment, but my point has been made, I thin". This is not 'ust an interview for your "nowledge. =ou!ll be as"ed to put your life on the line.3 8etaphysically4 .hat the hell did that mean4 ,e let that lie for the moment. 3.ell, I do have some common sense, Slurry,3 he told her. 3If I thin" whatever you!re tal"ing about is too dangerous, I will say no.3 3=ou won!t thin" it!s too dangerous,3 she said gloomily. 3If you agree to hear what we have to say, you!ll say yes. I already "now that.3 3=ou can!t "now that,3 he said. 3I do,3 she said stubbornly, insistently. 3So you want me to turn you down43 he as"ed. 3I will if you as" me to. This isn!t hydro+diving into Saturn, apparently. If you really thin" it!s too dangerous, if you really don!t want me to do it, I won!t.3 She let her head fall down for a moment, so she was staring at the cement path that led to the shithouse. 3*h :aura,3 she moaned. She loo"ed bac" up at him. 3That!s what my heart is telling me to say,3 she told him. 3;ut I!m also a 8artian and I have to listen to my brain as well.3 3%nd your brain says43 38y brain says this is something that could potentially affect the entire history of 8ars. It!s that important. %nd your involvement in what we want to do is a vital part of what is

being planned. =ou could mean the difference between 8ars standing and 8ars falling.3 3=ou!re shitting me,3 he said. 3I wish I were,3 she replied. 3I!m not. =ou really would be a "ey part of this... this mission. %nd so, even though I "now the danger, even though I "now what you!re going to...3 she trailed off, as if she had almost said too much. 32ven with all that, I have to as" you to come in and hear what we have to say. I have to beg you to do that, in fact. 8ars needs you, (en. Please help us.3 3%re you sure, Slurry43 he as"ed, unconvinced of her sincerity. 3=es,3 she said with a nod. 3I!m sure.3 3*"ay,3 he said. 3I!ll go in.3

The ne&t day the process of granting (en one of the rare top+ secret security clearances issued by the 8artian government was underta"en. Since (en was a first generation 8artian, meaning he had been born on 2arth, he technically did not #ualify for such a clearance since virtually all of the spies who passed information to 2ast,em and .est,em were first generation. -ommon sense, however, was something that could be applied to any rule and used to overrule it and such was done in this case. This did add an e&tra layer of scrutiny and bureaucracy to the process, which, in turn, meant the process too" nearly three times as long as usual. %s such, it was nearly two hours before all of the bac"ground chec"s were done and the order granting his clearance was signed by 1overnor 8itsy ;rown herself. That night Slurry told (en he had been approved and would accompany her to the capital building the ne&t morning to ta"e the secrecy oath and receive his briefing. Though he was

scheduled to wor" at his normal 'ob, the e&ecutive branch of the 8artian government intervened with the head of the construction department and he was removed from the flight schedule and reassigned to 8artian government service. ,e would continue to draw the same salary and his 'ob would be held for him until his return. It was the same process used when one was assigned to 'ury duty or to legislative service, so no one thought it unusual. ,e rode downtown with Slurry the ne&t morning, catching the 0I00 train and entering the capital building by 0IC0. She accompanied him up to the IEth floor, where the 8artian Intelligence Services utili$ed most of the office space. %fter clearing a security chec"point they were directed to the office of )lint Pac"ing, the director of the 8IS. ,e was a short, rounded man of Pacific Islander ancestry. ,e directed (en and Slurry to sit before his des" and then e&plained the ramifications of the top+secret security clearance to (en. 3.hat this means is that you will be privy, not only to sensitive information but also the means by which it was gathered. There is not much we consider worthy of this distinction under our constitution and, in the early post+revolutionary days we actually attempted to ma"e all such distinctions illegal. .hat we have found, though, is that there are certain things a government does in the protection of its citi$ens that simply has to remain secret when an antagonistic relationship is going on with another government, or, as is the case here, with two other governments. The lac" of secrecy in our early days is what led to the problem we are facing now, (en.3 3.hat do you mean43 he as"ed. 3=ou!ll find out later, I!m sure,3 he said. 3In any case, that is why a certain select few, most in the Intelligence department and the upper reaches of government, are given a top secret security clearance. =our wife Slurry, as I!m sure you "now, is neither a high ran"ing government official nor an intelligence officer, but

she and her colleagues at the 8,% are privy to the methods with which we gather information about 2ast,em and .est,em and that is why she is restricted from tal"ing about it.3 3.hat methods are those43 he as"ed carefully, thoughts of torture and truth serums going through his head. Pac"ing seemed to read his mind. ,e chuc"led in amusement. 39othing cloa" and dagger li"e what you!re thin"ing,3 he replied. 38ost of what we get is from our computer technology, isn!t that right, Slurry43 3)uc"in! aye,3 she agreed. 3It!s uh... #uite a bit more advanced than what most 8artians thin".3 32&actly,3 Pac"ing said. 3%nd if Slurry or anyone else at the 8,% were allowed to tal" about how they came by their findings, it wouldn!t be long before either a .est,em or an 2ast,em spy heard about it as well. If the 2arthlings actually "new how much of their computeri$ed information we were actually able to read... well, who "nows what would happen4 In any case, that!s the reasoning behind the top+secret clearances. 9ow let me e&plain 'ust what the clearance means to you. =ou down with it43 3I!m down with it,3 (en agreed. 3)uc"in! aye,3 he said with a satisfied nod. 3If you lay some derm on the clearance screen, what you!ll be agreeing to is this7 =ou will be privy to sensitive information in your capacity as an intelligence consultant+which is what your title will be. =ou will agree not to discuss or otherwise disclose anything you hear or see in this capacity with anyone who does not possess a top+ secret clearance as well. This includes all forms of communication+verbal, written, photographic, drawing, even forms of communication that have not been developed yet, such as telepathic. The duration upon which you are not allowed to

discuss any particular sub'ect is infinite, or, until such time as the information becomes declassified+something that does happen from time to time. )urthermore, you are discouraged from even mentioning that such a thing as a top+secret security clearance even e&ists in the first place and, if such a thing does e&ist, that you hold such a clearance. %re you down with what I!m saying here, (en43 3=es,3 he said. 3=ou!re saying that I need to "eep my frea"in! mouth shut, no matter what.3 3=ou!re down with it,3 he said. 39ow if you do not "eep your frea"in! mouth shut and you release any forbidden information, whether willingly or unwittingly, you will be sub'ect to criminal charges that carry a penalty of five years in prison at the very least. )urthermore, you will be "ept in isolation if convicted in order to prevent you from revealing any other information. %nd if the information you do reveal results in the death of someone, you will be charged with murder as well. I!m sure you!re aware of the penalty for that.3 3)uc"in! aye,3 he said. 39ow of course, common sense still applies here, as it does in any situation, and can be used as a defense for violation of the secrecy oath.3 3.hat do you mean43 (en as"ed. 3.ell, for e&ample, suppose the government was doing something illegal, or immoral, or something that had a high potential for causing harm. :et!s say you went to your briefing and were told that we were developing a genetically engineered virus that was going to be released on 2arth and "ill large numbers of their population so we could then invade. That!s an e&treme e&ample, of course, but in that case your common sense would tell you that violation of your secrecy oath was the right thing to do, right43

3Aight,3 he agreed. 3In fact, in that case, I imagine you could be sub'ect to criminal charges if you did not violate the secrecy oath. That is a precedent that goes all the way bac" to the 9uremberg trials in FID0.3 3I understand,3 (en said. 31ood,3 Pac"ing told him. 3So, now that you understand the ramifications of the secrecy oath, let!s go ahead and review it and you can lay some derm.3 This too" less than five minutes to accomplish. (en read through the actual te&t of the oath on Pac"ing!s computer screen. It was four pages in length and basically spelled out e&actly what Pac"ing had 'ust e&plained. :i"e all 8artian documents, it was written in plain language instead of indecipherable legalese, as an 2arth document would have been. .hen he finished reading it, he put his fingerprint on the pad, signing it. %nd 'ust li"e that, he now held a 8artian top+ secret security clearance. 3:et!s get to the briefing,3 Slurry told him. 3It starts at F000.3 They than"ed Pac"ing for his time G39o s"in off my ass3, he repliedH and then left the office, heading bac" to the elevators and going up to the FF8th floor, only two stories from the very top. (en began to feel a bit nervous as the doors opened up and they emerged into a carpeted hallway. The upper five floors of the capital building, he "new, were all assigned to the e&ecutive branch of the government, which meant the governor!s office. 3Just who is going to be at this briefing, anyway43 he as"ed Slurry, who seemed a bit nervous as well. 3Some very important people,3 she told him. 35ery important.3

It was 0I08 hours when they came to the door where they had been told to report. 2M2-BTI52 ;AI2)I91 A**8 was printed on the panel. Two uniformed 8artian Planetary 1uard security police stood outside, sidearms strapped to their waists and 8+/D assault rifles slung over the shoulder portions of their body armor. They were polite and efficient as they ran weapon and e&plosive scanners over (en and Slurry and then chec"ed their fingerprints on a computer screen for confirmation. 31o on in,3 the first guard said when the process was complete. 3The governor is e&pecting you.3 3The governor43 (en as"ed incredulously. 3)uc"in! aye,3 the guard replied, pushing a panel and allowing the door to slide open. The briefing room was fairly large, ta"ing up enough s#uare meterage to accommodate four or five standard offices. The centerpiece was a large table, about twenty meters long by five meters wide, with about fifty chairs arranged around it. 2ach chair had a small computer screen mounted on the table before it. The front and bac" of the room both contained large, wall+ mounted screens big enough to watch movies on. 1athered near the front of the table, sitting in the chairs 'ust under the northern screen, was a group of people of varying ages. (en instantly recogni$ed the woman sitting at the head of the table as the governor of 8ars. The guards had not been "idding. 3-ome in, come in,3 the governor told them, waving them over. 3=ou must be (en and Slurry )ra$ier, our twentieth century e&perts. Aigger told us about you. .hat the fuc"!s the haps43 They both muttered that nothing much was the haps and shuffled their way over to the table, ta"ing seats ne&t to Aigger Johannesburg, who was the only other person (en "new by face. Aigger greeted them #uietly and than"ed them for coming.

3(en, :aura,3 8itsy ;rown said, 3-an we get you some coffee4 *r maybe a cigarette43 39o, than" you, 1overnor,3 (en replied nervously, awed to be in the presence of such an important woman. 39o, than" you, 1overnor,3 replied Slurry, who was, if anything, even more an&ious. 3*h fuc" that !1overnor! shit,3 ;rown said. 3-all me 8itsy. I!m an ordinary citi$en. I swallow cum one 'i$$ at a time, 'ust li"e everyone else, o"ay43 3=es, 1ov... uh... 8itsy,3 (en stammered. 3I!m sure you do.3 3%nd she!s pretty fuc"in! good at it too,3 one of the other meeting participants, a man in his twenties, said, causing a round of laughter to erupt at the table. (en blushed, trying to imagine having a meeting with the President of the Bnited States in his day and having someone ma"e such a remar". ;ut 8itsy ;rown didn!t seem to mind. She was laughing as much as everyone else. .hen the laughter trailed off, 8itsy ;rown put on her time+for+ business face, signaling to the other participants to do the same. She pic"ed up her coffee cup, too" a sip, and then loo"ed at the group that had gathered before her, ma"ing a point to meet each set of eyes one by one. 39ow that we!re all present,3 she said, 3we will begin. The first thing I!d li"e to do is go around the table and have everyone introduce themselves and get everyone down with what you do.3 She turned to the man on her right, the man who had made the remar" about her being pretty fuc"in! good. 3Aoscoe, why don!t we start with you43 3)uc"in! aye,3 he said. 3I!m Aoscoe Aeamer, Planetary Security %dvisor.3 ;rown turned to her left, where a blac" man in his late teens sat.

,e caught the loo" and introduced himself ne&t. 3I!m Aon Sampson,3 he said. 3I command a field intelligence contingent with the 8IS. 8y guess is that I will be in charge of the intelligence aspect of whatever field operation is being planned.3 35ery insightful, Aonnie,3 ;rown told him. 3=ou are indeed correct.3 She turned to an early twenties woman of ,ispanic origin who sat ne&t to him and gave her the loo". 3I am -ommander 8argo ,uffy, 8artian 9avy, special operations division. I!m the captain of the 8SS -alistoga, one of the stealth monitoring platforms.3 Seated directly across from -ommander ,uffy was an e&#uisitely fit man in his mid+teens. ;rown loo"ed at him ne&t and he introduced himself as :ieutenant Jiffy Span"worth of the 8artian Planetary 1uard special operations division. ,e commanded a special forces platoon+the 8P1 e#uivalent of BS 9avy Seals or BS %rmy Aangers. ;rown then turned to Slurry and Aigger, each of whom introduced themselves as members of the 8artian ,istorical %dvisement epartment. %t last she turned to (en. 3I!m (en )ra$ier,3 he said. 3I!m a ,ummingbird pilot for the construction industry. I!m not e&actly sure why I!m here but it seems I!ve been tagged as a historical e&pert of some sort.3 3Indeed you are, (en,3 the governor said. 3Perhaps you should tell us why you!re such an e&pert in twentieth and early twenty+ first century culture.3 3*h... uh, sure,3 he said, flushing a bit. 3I am one of the people awa"ened by r. (aren 5alentine at .hiting Bniversity+a cryogenic person. Perhaps you!ve heard of us4 In any case, I was born on 2arth in FIEI and lived out the ma'ority of my life in the San )rancisco ;ay area until I was... uh... well "illed, for lac" of a better term, in the year /00C.3

This revelation caused a loo" to be passed between -ommander ,uffy and :ieutenant Span"worth, a loo" that implied some dreadful suspicion of theirs had 'ust been confirmed. (en felt his uneasiness deepen. Just what was being planned here anyway4 *bviously it was enough to ma"e a special forces member and an elite ship captain nervous. 3)or those of you who already "now what this is about,3 ;rown said, 3you can obviously see what advantage our awg )ra$ier will bring+assuming he!s down with what we!re planning.3 3)uc"in! aye,3 muttered several people+Aigger Johannesburg and Aoscoe Aeamer chief among them. 3In any case,3 ;rown said ne&t, 3everyone who we hope will be directly involved in the mission has been introduced. These other two motherfuc"ers here...3 she indicated a man and woman who had yet to be introduced, 3are Senator ianne 8ingus and :egislature Aeef ,averty. They represent our constitutionally mandated congressional oversight for classified material in government and have been observers throughout the long process that has brought us to this meeting. Is everyone down with it43 2veryone indicated they were down with it in the 8artian manner, by "eeping their mouths shut. 31ood,3 ;rown told them, ta"ing another #uic" sip of her coffee. 3In that case, we will begin.3 She instructed the computer to invo"e the secrecy clause, which it did after receiving confirmation from 8ingus and ,averty. She then turned the chair over to Aoscoe Aeamer. 3Than" you, 8itsy,3 Aeamer said, giving his crotch a suggestive s#uee$e, which, on 8ars, was ta"en as a deep gesture of affection. 3%in!t no s"in off my ass,3 she replied, sitting bac" in her chair

and "ic"ing one of her feet up onto the table. Aeamer then stood and loo"ed over the assembled team. 3*"ay then,3 he said. 3%s 8itsy said, some of you already "now why you!re here and some of you do not. )or the sa"e of this latter group I will start at the beginning and let you "now 'ust what "ind of shit is going down and what role we hope you will play in it. .e are facing a gnarly+ass crisis here on 8ars+potentially the gnarliest+ass that has faced not only the 8artian people but the entire human race since the beginnings of the nuclear age.3 3The :emondrop Aeactor,3 -ommander ,uffy said. 3*h :aura. Tell me that!s not what this is about43 3I!m afraid you!ve hit the pussy right on the clit,3 Aeamer told her. 3.e have confirmation that .est,em has developed and built a :emondrop Aeactor in deep space beyond the orbit of Pluto and that they plan to activate this reactor in less than four 2arth months.3 This caused an uproar around the table, and more than a fair amount of angry profanity. (en reali$ed that everyone seemed to "now what a :emondrop reactor was e&cept him. Though his usual posture in such settings was to "eep #uiet he was forced to interrupt and as" e&actly what they were tal"ing about. 3Something that shouldn!t have been researched and developed in the first place,3 8itsy ;rown said angrily. 3Something we have no one to blame but ourselves for allowing those .est,em idiots to get their hands on.3 3.hat!s done is done, 8itsy,3 Aeamer said matter+of+factly. 3.e!ve been over this point a thousand times before.3 ,e turned to (en. 3% :emondrop reactor is something developed by 8artian physicists shortly after our revolution, as the first generation of our people became highly educated for the first time and were released from the constraints of .est,em influence into their research and development of physics.3

3.hat do you mean43 (en as"ed. 3Prior to the revolution,3 he e&plained, 3all research was controlled, either directly or indirectly, by .est,em corporations, who, as I!m sure you!re aware, are who really runs the .est,em nation. They weren!t interested in anything that didn!t have the potential for profit. %nd they were absolutely opposed to anything that would serve to e&tend human life or significantly improve the #uality of life. %fter the revolution, as we became the most highly educated culture in human history, e&ponential advances were made in the fields of medicine, biology, life sciences of all "inds, and particularly physics+both hard physics and #uantum physics. % truly unified theory was developed and proven for the first time in history. The fledgling 8artian government put no restraints on any field of study and, as such, the :emondrop pro'ect+a direct application of the unified theory+was born. 9o one ever thought it would actually bear fruit but, much to the surprise and horror of those in government and even those involved in the pro'ect, it wor"ed perfectly.3 3.hat wor"ed perfectly43 (en as"ed. 3.hat in the hell does a :emondrop reactor do43 3It uses a controlled and channeled matter@anti+matter reaction of tremendous proportion to create an artificial and stable wormhole in the space+time continuum,3 Aeamer said. 3The space+time continuum43 3)uc"in! aye,3 he said. 3In other words, it opens up a pathway to the past.3 3The past43 (en said slowly. 3%re you telling me that you have invented a... time machine43 3)uc"in! aye,3 Aeamer said. 3%n actual, wor"ing time machine, although it!s actually more of a time tunnel. .e developed it

but, reali$ing the danger of such a thing, we outlawed any further research into it or use of it. Bnfortunately, however, .est,em spies stole the technology from us. 9ow they!re planning to utili$e their own reactor to go bac" in time and undo the entire 8artian Aevolution.3 3,oly :aura,3 whispered Slurry beside him. 3I was afraid that!s what they were going to do.3 3.ait a minute,3 (en said, momentarily forgetting he was in the presence of high 8artian officials. 3=ou!re telling me you can travel bac" in time4 That you can actually go bac" to the past and change things43 3.e actually can and have gone bac" in time,3 Aeamer confirmed. 3The :emondrop reactor our physicists and engineers built in year 8 was functional and did operate. %s to whether or not you can change the past... well... that!s simply un"nown, but our assumption has to be for the worst+that the past can be changed and even the slightest change could have disastrous conse#uences here in the present. -onse#uences up to and including e&tinction of the human race.3 3=ou went bac" in time43 (en as"ed, fascinated, half convinced this was an elaborate practical 'o"e. 3.ho went bac"4 .hat did they do43 3% person was not sent bac",3 8itsy ;rown told him. 3The machine was nothing more than a prototype, capable of generating a wormhole of only ten centimeters in diameter and burrowing bac" in time only three 8artian years. 2ven so, it too" nearly a #uarter ton of anti+matter to fuel the reactor for the C0 seconds the wormhole was open. This too" place in far solar orbit, out beyond Pluto, which is the only place such a thing can be opened due to the e&treme gravitational waves that are generated. .hat they put through was a recording device that would 'ust drift in space. It was programmed to record all communications on a certain fre#uency and to then send out a

homing beacon precisely three years and one hour after ma"ing the trip. Sure enough, one hour after being sent through the wormhole the homing beacon came to life. It was pic"ed up by a shuttlecraft and, when analy$ed, was found to contain three years worth of communications signals in the specified fre#uency. This proved the time tunnel wor"ed 'ust as theori$ed.3 3.ow,3 (en said, ama$ed. They had a time machine< %n actual, wor"ing time machine< 3;ut you!ve never sent a person bac"43 3.e!ve never sent anything else bac",3 Aeamer said. 3That recording device was the only thing that ever made a trip through time. %s I said, the :emondrop team never thought their invention was going to actually wor". Sure, the physics made sense and told them it should wor", but it was assumed at the time that time travel was impossible, that some undiscovered aspect of physics would prevent it. That was actually what they were trying to discover. .hen they saw that time travel was not impossible they immediately reali$ed the implications of what they had done. *ur scientists and our government were smart enough to close the lid on this particular thing because of the huge un"nowns involved. .est,em, on the other hand, is #uite a different story. They were able to get a copy of the research and reactor schematics sent off to 2arth before the files on the :emondrop reactor were sealed. Their industrial and technological capabilities were not up to the tas" of building and fueling such a reactor at the time, but that has since changed.3 3So... do we even "now if it!s possible to send a person bac"43 as"ed -ommander ,uffy. 39o e&periments have been done with animals or anything43 3Just the recording device,3 Aeamer repeated. 3There were not even bacteria present on it when it was sent through since all such things are sterili$ed before ma"ing a trip li"e that. ,owever, there is nothing in the theory that suggests living

beings cannot go through the tunnel. The trip itself is nothing more than a #uic" acceleration of eight to ten 1!s, well within that stress levels of modern spacecraft, and, even without inertial damping, well within the survivability limits of human beings as long as the acceleration is brief, which, I might add, it is+less than thirty seconds worth. The recording device that went through our e&perimental wormhole was thoroughly analy$ed for damage and none was found.3 3,as .est,em tested a reactor of their own43 Slurry as"ed. 3,ave they sent anything bac" yet43 39o,3 Aeamer replied. 3They have not. =ou need to understand a few things about a :emondrop reactor. In the first place, they are e&tremely comple& and time consuming to build. The engineering of the specific components stretched even our advanced capacities to the limit. %n entire new generation of centrifuges, synthetic alloys, and fabrication machinery needed to be developed first. .est,em had to duplicate this effort and assign a si$able portion of their high tech industrial capacity toward it. The reactor also destroys itself during use, which ma"es a test run impossible unless you build two. Then there!s the factor of the antimatter, which must be manufactured in huge #uantities to produce the tremendous amounts of energy re#uired for the wormhole to open. The larger the wormhole you want to produce, the longer you want it to stay open, and the further bac" in time you wish to go, the more antimatter you!re going to need. .e used a #uarter ton of antimatter 'ust for a ten centimeter, thirty second duration wormhole going bac" three years. The .est,ems are planning a wormhole si&ty meters in diameter burrowing bac" nearly seventy times as far and will need it to stay open at least one minute for a spacecraft si$ed body to successfully ma"e it through. This will re#uire appro&imately three tons of antimatter.3 3That!s a lot of fuc"ing antimatter,3 said -ommander ,uffy, who was intimately familiar with matter@antimatter torpedoes, the li"es of which produced a ,erculean e&plosion capable of

destroying a -alifornia class superdreadnought from /00 "ilometers away by utili$ing less than a "ilogram of the material. 3)uc"in! aye,3 Aeamer agreed. 3It!s ta"en .est,em nearly two years, using every one of their available particle accelerators to manufacture antimatter in this amount. This means they!ve been able to produce no new %8 weapons or anything else that re#uires particle accelerator use in that time period. That factor alone should serve to tell you how dedicated to this pro'ect they are. Three different competing corporations own those facilities, all of which control different aspects of the .est,em government. They are usually bitter enemies to each other. )or them to pull together for a common goal is unheard of in .est,em culture, and goes to prove 'ust how desperately they view their situation.3 3Is their situation really that desperate43 as"ed :ieutenant Span"worth. 3I!m sure our homies from the 8,% here could give you a detailed answer on that, am I right43 3)uc"in! aye,3 Aigger said. 3*ur best estimates are that both .est,em and 2ast,em are within a generation of complete economic and sociological collapse.3 3So yes, they are that desperate,3 Aeamer said. 3%nd not only that, they blame us 8artians for the coming collapse of their society. They believe that by undoing our revolution they will reverse the spiral they are currently in and allow the perpetual continuation of their way of life.3 There was a moment of silence at the table as everyone let that soa" in. )inally -ommander ,uffy as"ed, 3.hat are they planning to do4 %re they going to go bac" and warn the pre+ revolutionary .est,em government about Aed Sei$ure so they can prevent it43 Aed Sei$ure was the name of the operation that had initially captured the planet 8ars from .est,em on that

day+January F, =ear F+when federal troops had tried to ta"e 1overnor :aura .hiting into custody. 39o,3 Aeamer said. 3Their plans are a little more comple& than that. ,ere is where we get to .est,em delusionary thin"ing at its finest. =ou see, they do reali$e there is significant danger in messing around with the past. They even ac"nowledge the fact that any radical changes in the time stream may lead to some fuc"ed up conse#uences for the future. This thin"ing caused them to rule out some obvious ways of trying to undo our revolt+ sharing Aed Sei$ure plans with the .est,em government of the time, "illing or discrediting :aura .hiting before she is elected to her first political office, or arranging for the veto of the formation of the 8artian Planetary 1uard force after the Jupiter .ar. %ll of these scenarios were recogni$ed by the .est,em thin" tan"s to be too unpredictable. .hat they eventually decided to do was ma"e a very subtle change to the time stream that will serve to remove an important factor in our revolt but will not involve the sharing of future "nowledge with any members of the past and will not involve the "illing of anyone.3 3%nything they do could have disastrous conse#uences,3 Aigger protested. 3,ell, even our sending of that simple recording device bac" three years could have potentially caused a parado&.3 3=es,3 Aeamer said, 3that is e&actly why we stopped fuc"ing around with this time travel shit. .e were smart enough to close Pandora!s ;o& once we crea"ed it open and saw what was inside. The .est,ems, however, have convinced themselves that if they only ma"e a minor ad'ustment to the time stream and don!t "ill anyone, everything will turn out 'ust li"e they want. %s I said, their thin"ing is #uite delusional.3 3%nd do we "now e&actly what they!re going to do43 as"ed Slurry, who had figured out that if they "new e&act details they might be able to counter it.

3.e believe so,3 Aeamer said. 3That is why you are all here today. =ou see, our intelligence networ" on 2arth, both in 2ast,em and .est,em, is #uite e&tensive. .e have people wor"ing in their particle accelerator facilities, people wor"ing in their physics labs, even people serving as elected officials in their government. The fact that they were building their reactor and planning to use it did not escape us for very long. The e&act details of 'ust what they were going to do with it too" a bit longer to ferret out, but eventually we managed to get that as well. I won!t tell you 'ust how we did this, but let!s say we got someone close to one of their physicists and this person was eventually able to e&tract the details of their plans.3 3She probably gave him some good old 8artian se&,3 :ieutenant Span"worth said with a grin. 3That!ll open anyone!s mouth on that flying ball of hypocrisy.3 39o comment,3 Aeamer replied with a confirming chuc"le. 3In any case, the information developed from this source is the only intelligence on specifics we have and are li"ely to get. That!s the bad news. The good news is that it!s rated as an eight on the reliability scale. .e!re reasonably certain that what I!m about to describe is what they!re going to attempt. If that is the case, we stand a very good chance of stopping them before they can do any damage.3 3So what is it43 Aigger as"ed. 3,ow do they thin" they can prevent our revolution43 3.ell, their plans, as you might have guessed, focus around the single most important factor in our revolution.3 3:aura .hiting,3 several people said at once. 3)uc"in! aye,3 Aeamer said. 3Perhaps the most significant person in 8artian history. I!m sure Slurry and Aigger here will agree that without :aura .hiting!s influence, 8ars would never have become free.3

Aigger loo"ed over at Slurry, inviting her to answer the #uestion. She flushed but did so. 3That is generally accepted as a fact at the 8,% ,3 she said. 3:aura was able to stir the resentment the 8artian people had for .est,em from a simmer to a full+blown boil. She did this by carefully concealing her 8artian nationalism for more than twenty 2arth years until she was elected to a position where she could effect change. She then riled up the population into an anti+.est,em fren$y, ma"ing possible the solidarity that allowed us to capture the planet on Aed Sei$ure ay and, more importantly, to defeat the .est,em marines when they landed on the planet. She was also the prime mover for the formation of the 8artian Planetary 1uard in the first place. This, as you will recall, was in /FC/, right after the Jupiter .ar. isgusted with the way 8ars had been left undefended during this conflict because .est,em thought it too e&pensive to station troops here, she rallied for a volunteer force of 8artian citi$ens to be formed to help repel any invasion. The 8P1 was born because of her and it was the 8P1 that too" the planet on Aed Sei$ure ay, twenty years later. .ithout :aura .hiting we may have still revolted at some point+after all, .est,em pushed us pretty hard+but it is li"ely the revolt would have been crushed and we would still be under .est,em rule today.3 32&actly,3 Aeamer said. 3So :aura .hiting is the one single person whose removal from 8artian history could prevent our revolution. The .est,ems "now this as well as we do. They also have the advantage of her being a revered person. .e worship her the way they worship Jesus and %llah and ;uddha. This means that virtually every detail of :aura .hiting!s history, even the history of her family, has been written down somewhere and is available in easily accessible public records.3 3So what are they going to try to do to her43 as"ed -ommander ,uffy. 3=ou said they weren!t going to "ill her.3 3They!re going to do nothing to :aura .hiting herself,3 Aeamer said. 3In the scenario they!ve wor"ed up, :aura .hiting will still

live, she 'ust won!t live on 8ars.3 3,uh43 ,uffy said, confused. 3,ow are they going to do that43 3.ell, I must give them a bit of credit,3 Aeamer said. 3Their plan is rather detailed and fairly well thought out for the goal it see"s to achieve. *nce again, in manner of e&planation, perhaps I could bother our awg Slurry )ra$ier for a synopsis of 'ust how :aura .hiting came to be a 8artian in the first place. .ould you do me the favor, Slurry43 3Bh... fuc"in! aye,3 she said, still nervous but warming up to her role as lecturer. 3:aura .hiting was a fifth generation 8artian. ,er great+great+great+grandfather, 8ar" .hiting, was an orbital engineer who helped build Triad when the planet was first coloni$ed in /0D8. The .hiting family settled in 9ew Pittsburgh once the surface was coloni$ed and stayed there ever since.3 32&actly,3 Aeamer said. 38ar" .hiting was the first of that family to come to 8ars and it is with him that the .est,ems hope to divert this path.3 3They!re going to "eep 8ar" .hiting from leaving 2arth43 as"ed Slurry. 3That is their plan,3 Aeamer said. 3Tell us more about the history of 8ar" .hiting, Slurry. That will help everyone understand e&actly what they!re going to change.3 3Bh... o"ay,3 she said. 3,e was born in FII? in Aoseville, -alifornia, Bnited States. ,is father was a federal law enforcement officer+a BS -ustoms agent to be e&act+and his mother was an elementary school teacher. This was before the birthing restrictions so he had one older sibling, a brother. 8ar" was twelve years old when .orld .ar III began in /00I. ,is mother was "illed in /0F/ when a -hinese bomber was shot down and crashed into the school where she was teaching a

class. %fter graduating high school in /0F0 he signed up for the armed services, hoping to 'oin the army and be sent to the front line. Instead, his %S5%; indicated high potential for pilot s"ills. The %sian Powers had en'oyed air superiority over the battlefield since the beginning and by that point in the war the .est,em air forces had been decimated and pilots were in short supply. )or this reason, there was no longer a college degree re#uirement for pilot training and the training itself had been shortened to a matter of months instead of the two+year program it had been before the war. 8ar" .hiting was trained as a pilot and flew %+/F *wls+which were medium range tactical bombers. ,e flew many missions during the trench warfare period and was a s#uadron commander in the 9orthwest ;rea"through when planes e#uipped with the first laser weapons smashed the -hinese air superiority and annihilated their airfields in occupied .ashington and Idaho. ,e also flew missions on I+day, when .est,em forces invaded South (orea and pushed toward ;ei'ing at the end of the war. ,e was discharged from the service in /0FI and went to the Bniversity of -alifornia at avis in /0/0 on the 1I ;ill. ,e obtained a masters degree in *rbital 2ngineering and was involved in the .est,em space program his entire career. ,e helped build eparture in 2arth orbit in /0C0, and in /0D? he came to 8ars to help build Triad.3 3Than" you, Slurry,3 Aeamer said, giving her a respectful crotch s#uee$e as praise. ,e then turned bac" toward the rest of the table. 3The "ey to the .est,em plan lies in 8ar" .hiting!s career goals and the path he follows as a result of the war. :aura!s ancestor, you see, was a born engineer. Slurry, what does the literature say about his childhood days43 3,is memoirs indicate he was interested in engineering principals since the age of eight 2arth years. ,is parents used to buy him toys to encourage this development. ,e "new by the age of twelve, when the war started, that he wanted to be an engineer one day. Though he was a natural pilot as well, he left

that s"ill behind the moment his service to .est,em was no longer re#uired. ,e never piloted a plane again after his last mission in /0FI+which was a bombing run over ;ei'ing F/ hours before the cease fire went into effect.3 3Aight,3 Aeamer said. 3So here we have a young man who wants to be an engineer more than anything else in life. ,ad the war not interrupted him, it is li"ely he would have started college in /0F0 instead of /0/0. It is in this five year period that the destiny of the .hiting family became written in history, as it were.3 3.hat do you mean43 Slurry as"ed, now #uite fascinated herself. 3Suppose that 8ar" .hiting did not go into the service of his country upon graduating high school, what would have happened to him then43 3.hy wouldn!t he have gone into the service43 Slurry as"ed. 3The war was raging. 2veryone went into the service. If he wouldn!t have volunteered, he would!ve been drafted.3 3True,3 said Aeamer. 3;ut let us 'ust suppose he could not 'oin the service. .hat would!ve become of him43 Slurry glanced at Aigger for help but he gave her a loo" that said she should field this one on her own. She thought for a moment and then said, 3.ell, he would!ve gone to college right away, I suppose. There would!ve been no reason for him not to.3 32&actly,3 Aeamer said. 3The .hiting family wasn!t rich by any means, but they were certainly well off enough to send 8ar" to college for an engineering degree.3 3So how would that change anything43 Slurry as"ed. 3The drive for engineering was still there so he would!ve...3 she stopped, slapping herself in the forehead suddenly as she reali$ed what

he was getting at. 3.ait a :aura+damned minute<3 she yelled. 3,e would!ve gone into Structural 2ngineering instead of *rbital 2ngineering< There were no *rbital 2ngineering programs at a school 8ar" could!ve gotten into in /0F0. It wasn!t a common field.3 3)uc"in! aye, Slurry,3 Aeamer said, giving her another crotch s#uee$e. 3=ou!ve got a "nac" for this sort of thing. %nyone ever tell you that43 Aigger, 8itsy, and Slurry herself obviously "new what she was tal"ing about. It was #uite clear that everyone else around the table was missing the point, however. Slurry was encouraged to e&plain. 3;efore and during .orld .ar III,3 she said, 3the Bnited States space program wasn!t much of anything. It e&isted to "eep satellites in orbit and the only manned program was the International Space Station, which was notoriously underfunded. There wasn!t that much of a demand for orbital engineers so the only place you could get a degree in such a thing were places li"e 8IT or -al+Tech or some other rit$y+ass college that only the elite could afford. Structural 2ngineering, however, was available at 'ust about any college and it was this field that 8ar" .hiting was interested in during that time period.3 3;ut this changed after the war43 as"ed ,uffy. 3)uc"in! aye it did,3 Slurry said. 3;y war!s end it was reali$ed that the planet!s petroleum reserves and easily accessible iron ore reserves had been seriously depleted. The only place to replace a primary fuel supply and a supply of iron for industry was in space. The stage was set for the space race between 2ast,em and .est,em, the victors in the war. Aeali$ing this, there was suddenly a great demand for orbital engineers to help design and build space dwellings. They began offering the program at nearly every college, including B- avis. That was

why 8ar" .hiting became an orbital engineer+because it was an up and coming field he!d developed an interest in during his years as a pilot.3 3=ou got the cumshot right on the bunghole, Slurry,3 Aeamer told her. 3If 8ar" .hiting doesn!t go to war, he!ll go to college right out of high school. If that happens, he!ll get his degree in structural engineering instead of orbital engineering. ,e will more than li"ely earn his masters in the field and be committed to it by the time orbital engineering is the up and coming thing. Since he!ll be a structural engineer he!ll more than li"ely be involved in the massive rebuilding effort that too" place in the post+war years. ,e!ll help design and construct launching facilities and hydrogen processing plants maybe, but his wor" will "eep him firmly on the ground. .hen the time comes to build eparture and Triad, he won!t be involved in it. 9or will he be on 8ars to help build 9ew Pittsburgh or 2den since those were designed by orbital engineers as well. In short, he!ll stay put on 2arth and, by the logic of the .est,ems anyway, his great+great+great granddaughter will still live, but she!ll be on 2arth, a part of .est,em culture, incapable of developing the anti+.est,em point of view that led to her successful fomentation of the 8artian Aevolution.3 3%nd they thin" that doing that is not fuc"ing too much with the timeline43 Aigger said in a tone that could only be described as horror. 3That is their thin"ing,3 Aeamer confirmed calmly. 3It ma"es perfect sense to them.3 38orons<3 Aigger screamed. 3 on!t they reali$e the e&ponential effect of changing history4 They really could destroy all life in the solar system. They could put us bac" to the :aura fuc"ing Stone %ge< They could...3 3,ow are they going to do it43 Slurry interrupted, also horrified but "eeping her cool for the moment. 3,ow are they going to try

to "eep 8ar" .hiting from 'oining the service43 3%gain,3 Aeamer said, 3by utili$ing a little bit of technology they got from us, in this case, something we gave them instead of something they stole.3 3.hat43 Aigger as"ed. 3% genetic manipulator device,3 he replied. 3%s you "now, our medical technology is significantly more advanced than .est,em!s. .e have shared our "nowledge with them in the interests of bettering their people but they have such a horrid population problem they have no interest in prolonging human life on their planet. The genetic manipulation we routinely use to prevent disease and aging is not offered to the average 2arthling and, as a result, their average lifespan is still in the neighborhood of around eighty 2arth years. ;ut there are still genetic manipulators in use on 2arth.3 3)or the rich,3 8itsy ;rown said cynically. 3.ho else43 Aeamer said. 3The heads of corporations and government leaders and the e&tremely wealthy ma"e fre#uent use of our medical technology to "eep themselves young. Private medical centers typically charge around ten million dollars to eliminate each particular malady. I myself have had the genes for hypertension, male pattern baldness, arthritis, and macular degeneration turned off. This is fairly typical for a 8artian citi$en but on 2arth it would!ve cost me forty million dollars for this alone. This is not to mention all of the other traits of aging we routinely shut down and all of the cosmetic things we have done.3 3That!s obscene,3 (en said. 3They!re letting people die at eighty while those who have money get to live to be a hundred and fifty43 3That!s .est,em for you,3 Aeamer said. 3;ut my point is not

that the rich are utili$ing our genetic manipulation technology, it!s that they possess the technology in the first place and that it!s very easy to use. %nd the technology wor"s in both directions. They can use it to turn on genes that otherwise would have been dormant. That!s what they plan to do to 8ar" .hiting.3 3They!re going to ma"e him ineligible for the armed services,3 Slurry guessed. 3=ou!re down with it,3 Aeamer said, smiling. 3*n *ctober /E, /00?, 8ar" .hiting+who was ten 2arth years old at the time+ developed his third case of tonsillitis in two years. ,is doctor recommended he undergo a fairly common surgical procedure for the time and have his tonsils removed. ,e was admitted to Aoseville -ommunity ,ospital on *ctober CF of that year to undergo this surgery. That is the target date for the special forces team the .est,em government is planning to send. They plan to infiltrate the hospital in the early hours after his surgery and apply a genetic manipulator to him, which will activate genes that will cause him to develop a case of type+/ diabetes by age fifteen. ;eing a diabetic will dis#ualify him from military service of any "ind when he graduates high school. ,e will therefore go to college in /0F0 instead of /0/0 and will study structural engineering instead of orbital engineering.3 3That!s their fuc"ing plan43 Aigger as"ed incredulously. 3It!s insane< The entire timeline could alter from the second they wal" into that hospital. %nd it will sure as shit alter from the moment he develops diabetes. ,is complete life history will be different, not 'ust in the matter of his college admission date. .hat about all of those missions he flies in the war4 .hat about the lives he is supposed to interact with4 .hat about his wife4 ,e meets her in flight training and marries her after the war. If they "eep him from going to war that will never happen. ,e!ll marry someone else and she!ll marry someone else, and with each life that doesn!t go the way it!s supposed to, an e&ponential amount of other lives will be affected since the people they do

end up marrying and having "ids with won!t be marrying and having "ids with the people they!re supposed to, either. This will reverberate upward toward the present, impacting more and more lives with each generation. Thousands, maybe millions of people who are supposed to be alive will be simply removed from e&istence. Some of those people will undoubtedly be figures who are important to scientific or medical or sociological development. They might erase "ey members of the engineering team that developed artificial gravity. That would affect the entire history of space development. That!s 'ust the first scenario I can thin" of off the top of my head. The possibilities are infinite and none of them are good.3 3That has been our evaluation from the start,3 Aeamer said. 3There is no such thing as a subtle change to the time stream. 9ot only will millions of people who are supposed to live be erased from e&istence, millions more who were not supposed to live will be generated to replace them. .ho is to "now what some of those people might do4 *ne of them might be another %dolph ,itler, or another 1eorge .. ;ush. That!s why we have to stop them before they can do any damage, and that!s why all of you have been called here today.3 3%re we going to do a military stri"e on their asses43 as"ed :ieutenant Span"worth. 3,it their reactor before they have a chance to activate it43 3I!m afraid not,3 Aeamer said. 3The possibility of military intervention has already been evaluated and re'ected as either impractical, too costly in terms of losses, or not sure enough. 9o, there is only one reliable way to stop them.3 3%ctivate a reactor of our own,3 Slurry said slowly. Aeamer loo"ed at her in surprise, and more than a little alarm. 3=es,3 he said. 3That is what we are planning. It was reali$ed when we outlawed research into the :emondrop pro'ect that .est,em or 2ast,em might try to utili$e the technology for

their own means. %s such, the components for building the reactors were "ept in storage 'ust in case. .e have secretly assembled two reactors in deep space so an intervention team can be sent bac" to prevent .est,em for initiating their plans. The #uestion is, how did you "now that, Slurry4 ,as our security been breached43 38y own common sense,3 she said carefully. 3That!s the only way to be sure.3 Aeamer gave her a stern loo" and then seemed to accept her e&planation. (en didn!t. ,e "new her well enough to "now she wasn!t telling the complete truth. She "new something she wasn!t supposed to. ;efore he could speculate too much about this, -ommander ,uffy cut in. 3Two reactors43 she said. 3.hy do we have two43 3I would thin" that would be #uite obvious,3 Aeamer answered. 3Bnli"e the .est,ems, we intend to bring our intervention team bac" after their mission has been completed. That will re#uire one reactor to send them and one to open a reverse wormhole so they can come home.3 3=ou mean the .est,ems aren!t going to be bringing their team bac"43 Aigger as"ed. 3.hat are they going to do4 Surely they!re not going to 'ust leave them on twenty+first century 2arth with complete "nowledge of the future4 That!s more insane than changing 8ar" .hiting!s future in the first place. The temptation to ta"e advantage of stoc" trends and other bits of "nowledge in order to achieve money and influence would be tremendous. Those people could end up with an infinite amount of wealth and power<3 3*ur source tells us that .est,em has thought of this contingency,3 Aeamer said. 3*h43 Aigger as"ed. 3%nd how do they plan to deal with it4 %s"

their people not to ta"e advantage4 Say pretty please with a blow'ob and an ass+fuc"43 3.ell... yes and no,3 Aeamer said. 3The individuals who will be underta"ing this mission are a special forces team and a navy stealth ship crew. %ll of them understand it is a one+way trip. .est,em resources are 'ust not enough to get them bac". They will be told that they are to blend in with 2arthling society after the mission and not do anything that will adversely affect the time stream. Just live out their lives anonymously. Their ship will be auto+programmed to brea" orbit once they!re all down and crash into the sun.3 3So they!re 'ust trusting almost a hundred people not to ta"e advantage of their pre+"nowledge43 Slurry as"ed. 3Surely they!re not naLve enough to thin" they won!t do it43 39o,3 he said, 3they!re not that naLve. It is the members of the crew and the special forces team who are the naLve ones. 2ach of them will be given an inoculation prior to going through the wormhole. They will be told this inoculation is to prevent them from inadvertently spreading viral infections among the 2arth people. .hat it is actually is a time+release poison that will cause them all to drop dead D00 hours after landing on 2arth.3 39ice,3 (en said, shuddering to thin" he had actually been a part of that same military once. 3That!s .est,em for you,3 Aeamer said, seemingly unfa$ed by this callousness. 3In any case, what .est,em plans to do with these people is neither here nor there. If things are allowed to get to that point it will be too late for us anyway. .hat we must do is ma"e sure things do not get to that point.3 3%nd that!s where we come in,3 said :ieutenant Span"worth resignedly. 3=ou want to send me and my team bac" in time.3 3That is what we hope to do,3 Aeamer said. 3%lthough, with any

luc", the interdiction of the .est,ems can be made before the 2arthlings get close enough to send their teams down.3 3;ut it!s my ship you wish to put through,3 -ommander ,uffy said pointedly. 38y ship and my crew.3 3=ou!re down with it,3 Aeamer said. 3.e want to activate one of our :emondrop reactors in deep space and send the -alistoga through, where it will arrive several months before the .est,em team goes through their own wormhole. *ur hope is that the -alistoga will be in position and be able to detect the .est,em ship as it approaches 2arth orbit. If that is done you can either capture it or destroy it before it can offload the special forces team. This, obviously, will be the easiest solution to the problem, and the one with the least potential impact on the time stream.3 -ommander ,uffy had a few thoughts on this matter and didn!t hesitate to ma"e them "nown. 3%ssuming I would even agree to go along with this,3 she said, 3something I!ll have to really thin" about, I!m sure you reali$e how difficult it is to detect and intercept a .est,em stealth ship4 They call them stealth ships for a reason, you "now. 2ven with their inferior technology and our superior passive sensor arrays, trying to find a stealth ship in 2arth orbit is li"e trying to find a can of tuna in a botch club using only your nose. .ouldn!t it be easier to simply hang out in deep space where we "now their wormhole will open and hit them there, a couple billion "ilometers from 2arth43 3It would be easier if we "new e&actly where and when they were going to materiali$e,3 Aeamer said. 3;ut, unfortunately, we do not. The .est,ems! engineering of the reactor components and the energy burst that fuels the wormhole is not as e&act as ours. %s a result, this gives them a relatively large degree of inaccuracy as to the e&act time the wormhole will open in the past and the e&act geographic location.3 This was yet another truly alarming thought. 3Just how large of

a margin for error are we tal"ing43 as"ed ,uffy. 39ot as large as you might thin",3 Aeamer said. 3They won!t accidentally open the wormhole into the solar system and pull one of the planets or a moon out of orbit, nor will they accidentally end up in the Stone %ge. .e!re tal"ing twenty to thirty days margin for error chronologically and twenty to thirty million "ilometers geographically. %nd they will ad'ust so this margin will be well within a safe $one, meaning if they!re thirty million "ilometers off target, they!ll end up thirty million "ilometers further out in space instead of closer in. %nd if they!re thirty days off target, they!ll ma"e sure it!s thirty days before their target date instead of after it. .hat this does mean, however, is that it will be impossible for you to station your ship e&actly where they!re going to appear and wait for them there because they themselves do not even "now where and when that will be. =ou!ll have to arrive far enough in front of them to get to 2arth and try to detect them during their deceleration burn as they approach the planet.3 3.hat are the odds of being able to do that43 8itsy ;rown as"ed ,uffy. 3Ten to one at best,3 ,uffy replied. 38aybe eight to one if they don!t reali$e we!re loo"ing for them.3 3.hich, hopefully, they shouldn!t,3 Aeamer said. 3If you do detect them, you draw a bead on their ship and order them to surrender and be boarded. If that is successful, our special forces team can secure the ship and we can bring it bac" to deep space for e&traction when we open the return wormhole. If they refuse to surrender, you are to destroy the ship by whatever means necessary and then vapori$e the debris as much as possible with an %8 warhead detonated in the midst of it.3 3%nd if we don!t detect them43 ,uffy as"ed. 3Then I!m afraid you!ll be forced to go with plan ;,3 Aeamer told

her. 31oing down to the surface,3 said :ieutenant Span"worth. 3)uc"in! aye,3 Aeamer said. 3If the ship cannot be intercepted prior to sending its team members down, we will have to send a team of our own down to stop them from completing their mission. That!s where you and your team come in, :ieutenant.3 ,e turned to (en. 3That is also where you come in, 8r. )ra$ier.3 38e43 he said. 3=ou want to send me bac" in time4 I!m not a special forces member. I!m not even in the service.3 3;ut you are from the twentieth and twenty+first century,3 he said. 3.hen we sought advice on this matter from the 8,% , they assigned Aigger and his young assistant+your wife, Slurry+ to provide us with historical details. Bntil today we haven!t told them e&actly what was going on+'ust the fact that we would need to travel bac" to the year /00? in order to prevent .est,em forces from committing a crime against history. Slurry immediately suggested your potential usefulness to the completion of this mission.3 (en!s mind was spinning. They wanted him to go bac" to the past, bac" to a point 'ust four years after he had been shot4 ;ac" to 2arth and its traffic and its hypocritical attitudes4 3.hy43 he as"ed. 3,ow would I be helpful43 3.e study 2arth history, (en,3 Slurry told him. 3=ou have actually lived it. There are hundreds of things we don!t "now, hundreds of things that would "eep us from blending into that society. Slang terms, language nuances, cultural references are only a few. =ou "now how to tal" to people from that time period li"e no one else we have available.3 3=ou also "now how to drive a motor vehicle, do you not43 Aeamer said, pic"ing up the thread. 3% large part of this plan would involve securing transportation and driving it to various

locations. .e could build a simulator and train :ieutenant Span"worth!s people to do such a thing, but that would hardly be the same as actual e&perience. =ou spent years driving in the traffic of the time period. =ou "now how to navigate twenty+first century cities, how to go through the ritual of refueling the vehicle, the various laws regarding speeding and par"ing. It goes without saying that having you pilot a vehicle would ma"e the most sense.3 3)uc"in! aye on that,3 Span"worth said. 3The first principal of special forces is to assign the right person for the 'ob. If I!m going to agree to this mad scheme, I want a native on the team.3 (en loo"ed at Slurry for guidance. She loo"ed sad at the thought of him going but determined. 3It!s the right thing to do,3 she told him. 3=ou "now me, I wouldn!t suggest it if I didn!t thin" it was right.3 39o,3 he said. 3I guess you wouldn!t.3 3=ou don!t need to ma"e a decision right this second, (en,3 Aeamer said. 39one of you do. .e are all 8artians here and 8itsy and I both understand we are as"ing something undeniably dangerous and unsure in a society where we loathe such things. 2very person involved will have the opportunity to refuse participation in this mission if he or she feels it is too dangerous.3 3%nd everyone will have an opportunity to listen to a lecture by r. Mandude, the physicist in charge of the :emondrop reactors we!ve assembled,3 said 8itsy ;rown. 3,e will e&plain the construction of the reactor and the physics of it so you have a complete understanding of 'ust what you!re getting into. ,e is pretty sure of the safety of the process but you have to "eep in mind that no living beings have ever been put through a wormhole. There may be factors that haven!t been encountered.3

3That!s a nice thought,3 Span"worth said sourly. 3%nd we would be derelict in our duties if we failed to mention it,3 Aeamer said. 3That!s how things wor" on 8ars. So for now, we!ll ad'ourn. :ieutenant Span"worth and -ommander ,uffy, the rest of your respective crews are being assembled in briefing rooms down the hall where you may fill them in on what is being as"ed for this mission. The same rules apply to them. Participation in the mission is voluntary, but I would li"e to point out the importance of what we!re trying to accomplish. The entire fate of the human race may very well depend on our success. Please try to "eep that in mind and to impart that to your people.3 ,uffy and Span"worth both agreed to accept that responsibility. 3%s for you, r. and 8r. )ra$ier, r. Johannesburg, you will be assigned to guest #uarters on the ICrd floor of the building. I am sorry to say that no matter what you decide, you will not be allowed outside the capital building until the mission is either aborted or the stealth ship enters the wormhole.3 3.hat43 (en said. 3%re you saying we can!t leave4 2ven if we decide not to go43 3=ou!re fuc"in! aye right,3 Aeamer told him apologetically. 3 on!t ta"e it personally, but common sense dictates we ta"e no chances whatsoever that word of what we!re planning lea" out. =ou will be "ept in isolation until the mission is completed.3 Slurry and Aigger didn!t seem surprised by this. They simply nodded their ac#uiescence. (en had much more he wanted to say, but he already "new it would be futile. 3 r. Mandude!s lecture on the :emondrop reactor will be at FI00 tonight,3 8itsy said. 3.e!ll give everyone a night to thin" on things and then we!ll as" for your decisions in the morning. Bntil then, this meeting is ad'ourned. ,ave wet dreams

everyone.3

Slurry and (en were given a rather nice room overloo"ing -apital Par". It had all the amenities they could possibly need for an e&tended stay, including a fully e#uipped into&icant bar and coo"ing facilities in case they wanted to s"ip the food in the cafeteria or one of the three restaurants they were allowed to use. The only thing they were not allowed to do was to leave the ICrd floor without being accompanied by an armed 8P1 guard, or to leave the capital building at all. 3I!m sorry for dragging you into this, (en,3 Slurry said for perhaps the tenth time. 3I didn!t "now they were going to confine us to the building.3 3It!s o"ay,3 he said, stretching out on the bed and sipping from the scotch and soda he!d made at the bar. 3=ou were doing what you thought was right. I!ll never come down on anyone for that. This is gonna get "ind of boring if we decide not to go, though. ,ow long will it ta"e for the ship to reach the reactor site43 She set her own drin" on the nightstand and then lay down ne&t to him. 3%bout si&ty days,3 she said. 3%nother two days to get the reactor spun up and the ship through. Si& hours later, the return wormhole is opened and they either come bac", or they don!t. If we!re still here, we can go home at that point.3 3If we!re still here,3 he said. 3Aight,3 she said, her hand reaching out to stro"e his hair. ,e en'oyed the sensation of her hand for a moment, his eyes closed. Slowly he opened them bac" up. 3 id you follow that lecture any better than I did43 he as"ed her. 39ot much,3 she admitted. 3Physics has never been my thing. I can!t even tell you how the artificial gravity field wor"s. I

understand the wormhole is a basic principal stemming from the concept of 2Q8- s#uared. % controlled singularity is created, burrowing into the fabric of space+time. %nd r. Mandude seems to thin" the resulting wormhole will be stable enough to suc" a ship through and spit it out the other side without damaging it or "illing everyone inside. %t least there!s no reason to thin" it won!t. It!s untested and incapable of being tested before use.3 3That!s pretty much what I got out of it,3 he said. 3It!s )8.3 3)8,3 she agreed. 3)uc"in! magic.3 %nother silence. )inally (en said, 3=ou don!t thin" I should go, do you43 She too" a deep breath, releasing it in a sigh. % tear momentarily formed in her eye and then dissipated. 3=ou have to go,3 she said. 3It!s common sense.3 3Screw common sense, Slurry,3 he told her. 3They can pull this mission off without me. If you don!t want me to go, I won!t. I!ll stay with you.3 39o,3 she said. 3%s much as I want you to stay, I "now this is for the best. =ou have to go. I have to go too, even though the very thought of going through a wormhole scares the living shit out of me. It!s meant to be, (en. .e have to.3 She too" another deep breath. 3%nd you want to go. I can tell. =ou want to travel bac" to your own time again.3 ,e couldn!t deny that+didn!t even try. =es, he did want to go, despite the many un"nown factors, despite the obvious danger. ,e wanted to wal" on his home planet again, in his own time. ,e wanted to ga$e up at a moon not cho"ed with city lights, to smell air polluted with hydrocarbons. %nd there was another reason as well, something he!d barely even admitted to himself.

;ut Slurry "new this as well. 3%nnie will be very close to your operational area,3 she said. 3%nd she!ll still be alive. That!s a part of it too, isn!t it43 3I won!t be able to see her again,3 (en said. 3.e!ll be less than two hundred "ilometers from her... but it will really be no closer than I am now. It!s not li"e I!ll be able to go wandering around -alifornia. %nd even if I could...3 he shoo" his head. 3I!m 'ust torturing myself, and you too, aren!t I43 3I!ll be fine,3 she said hollowly. 3%nd my mind is made up in any case. The mission needs a historical e&pert. That!s the role I!m best suited for, so I!m going, for better or worse. =ou!re the best person to help accomplish the mission on the ground+I would even say you!re vital to its success. If you thin" it!s too dangerous, if your common sense tells you that you might die by coming along, then you should stay. ;ut if you!re worried about my feelings, one way or the other, that!s not a reason to stay. 8ars has been good to you, (en. It!s time for you to pay us bac".3 ,e nodded, not feeling right about it, but not feeling wrong about it either. 3*"ay,3 he said. 3I!ll go.3 She didn!t smile. Instead, another tear trac"ed down her face. The 8SS -alistoga was 0F days into its 'ourney to :emondrop reactor site %+the reactor that was to send the 8artian -ounterdrop team on their 'ourney bac" in time. The ship had finished its acceleration burn DC days before and was now coasting through the vacuum of space between the orbits of 9eptune and Pluto at 'ust below E million "ilometers per hour. :i"e the Ingram and the Aellington, -alistoga was a stealth platform ship, its primary mission to remain invisible deep in enemy territory. %s such it was ideally suited for the mission it was embar"ed upon. It had traveled well over D billion "ilometers since leaving Triad 9aval ;ase and, by all indications, neither the .est,em nor the 2ast,em navies+who

both "ept stealth ships of their own constantly on station 'ust outside the F00,000 "ilometer limit of 8artian territorial space+ had any idea they had even left. -alistoga and the D0 men and women inside it were absolutely and completely alone in this region of space and would remain so until they arrived at their 'ump off point in nine days. Though a stealth ship, -alistoga did not rely on its invisibility alone for protection. It was #uite heavily armed, particularly for this mission, where there was a good possibility that both defensive and offensive weapons would be needed. In the torpedo hold in the bow of the ship, nine torpedoes e#uipped with matter@anti+matter warheads were stored, ready to be launched through one of three torpedo tubes toward an enemy vessel. Si& F00+millimeter high+energy laser cannons were attached at various points on the outside of the ship. 2ach of these weapons had a charge rate of less than ten seconds and was capable of burning a F00+millimeter hole through the titanium alloy of any enemy ship and incinerating anything on the other side. In addition, nine C0+millimeter anti+torpedo lasers were mounted on each side of the ship and three on both the bow and the stern. These had a charge rate of less than five seconds and were capable of disabling the warhead of any approaching anti+ship weapon provided the active sensors could burn through the built+in infrared 'amming device each weapon carried. -alistoga was far from helpless, its weapons technology nearly a generation more advanced than the best .est,em or 2ast,em had to offer. Bnderscoring the importance of the mission, not a single passenger or crew of -alistoga had declined to participate in -ounterdrop, despite the cultural terror 8artians had about engaging in possibly life+threatening activities. %ll thought the interdiction of the .est,em special forces team important enough to the survival of their planet and possibly the human species to disregard their sacred safety and go forth into the un"nown. This was not to say that they were rec"less about their mission. 9ot in the least. 8ost of their idle time during the

long 'ourney was spent going every last detail of the coming mission, trying to anticipate anything and everything that could go wrong, and ma"ing contingency plans to deal with such situations. % good portion of each day was ta"en up by lectures and training sessions as each member of the intervention team went over his or her role in the mission and taught it to others in case he or she became disabled. The section of the ship where this training too" place was the wardroom, two dec"s below the intelligence gathering dec". This room too" up nearly the entire dec" and doubled as the dining room at mealtimes. *n the fore and aft walls were large, interactive computer screens tied into the main computer. % lecturer could use them to outline details of his or her lesson for the benefit of those in the audience. (en, who was considered their operational area map e&pert, was having his turn in the barrel and describing the geography of the target area to the special forces team to which he now belonged. (en had only been to the Sacramento area+of which Aoseville was a part+a few times in his previous life and was completely unfamiliar with its layout when he agreed to participate in the mission. That had since changed. )or the past 0F days he had been studying every available map, picture, satellite image, and old traffic report he could dig up on Sacramento!s freeway and traffic system. %nd, though he had done precious little driving in the region for which he was training, it was still -alifornia, and -alifornia traffic was pretty much the same in any of the urban areas within its borders+crowded, congested, rude, frustrating, and something to be rec"oned with in this "ind of mission. ,e was sitting in a chair before the lectern loo"ing at a small screen before him. 5elcro straps around his waist "ept him from drifting off into the air in the $ero gravity conditions the ship was currently under. Strapped into seats at the cafeteria tables Gwhich themselves were bolted to the floorH were the five men and three women who made up Second S#uad of Third Platoon

of -harlie -ompany, of the /Crd Special )orces ;attalion of the 8artian Planetary 1uard. The eight members of Second S#uad and :ieutenant Span"worth himself were all that had come along for this mission. They had been divided further into two four+person teams+one the primary, one the reserve+although both (en and Span"worth were slated to 'oin whichever was the team that actually too" down the .est,em team assuming, of course, such a thing became necessary. 3This is Aoseville -ommunity ,ospital,3 (en told them, moving the pointer on the screen before him that pro'ected a finely detailed /00E edition of a map of the -ity of Aoseville, -alifornia. *n the larger screen behind him was an e&act duplicate of his smaller one. 3%s you can see, the hospital is located at the very north end of Sunrise ;oulevard, a ma'or traffic artery through the eastern Sacramento metropolitan region. This is the only vehicular access to the hospital north of this road here.3 ,e pointed to another part of the map. 3This is Aoseville Par"way+a ma'or east+west thoroughfare across the suburb. That is the most important thing to remember. If something goes wrong at the hospital and the police are notified, they can easily prevent us from escaping by motor vehicle by stationing a single patrol unit at this particular intersection. %bove all else, we must clear this cho"epoint before a police response can arrive there, otherwise, we!ll have to travel overland on foot trying to lug unconscious prisoners with us. 9ot an enviable situation, especially considering that there are no less than four law enforcement helicopters, all e#uipped with forward loo"ing infrared pods, within a thirty mile radius.3 The special forces team all nodded thoughtfully, obviously impressed by his "nowledge of the target area. (en rela&ed a little as he saw the respect in their eyes. ,e had been nervous about giving his lecture today, particularly in light of the caliber of people in his audience. ,e had met other special forces members from time to time and they all had one characteristic

in common+they were serious about their 'obs and wanted as much "nowledge as possible beforehand. These 8artian special forces soldiers were, if anything, more fanatical on that sub'ect than their twentieth century 2arthling counterparts. The fact that he had impressed them did wonders for (en!s confidence and made the many hours he had spent learning what he was now lecturing on worthwhile. 3=ou!ve mentioned the traffic conditions in this time period,3 said Sergeant 8c1raw, the s#uad leader and leader of the primary team. She was fourteen years old and a five+year member of the 8P1, signing up immediately after high school graduation. :i"e all special forces members, she was impressively fit, her body without an ounce of unnecessary fat. ,er light blonde hair had been militarily short at the beginning of the voyage but was now shoulder length so she could pass as an average 2arth woman on the mission. 3=es,3 (en said, nodding. 3This is at the very end of the .est,em reliance on automobiles for transport. Traffic was horrible at best, gridloc" at worst.3 3,ow does that factor in for egress43 8c1raw as"ed. 3If our ta"edown isn!t clean and they send the cops after us, how li"ely is it that we!re going to get stuc" in gridloc" traffic43 It was clear that the idea of heavy traffic was the single greatest worry of the both the special forces s#uad and the intelligence team. 2arthling traffic 'ams were a legendary part of history and, as such things often are, had been e&aggerated somewhat in stature over the generations. The 8artians were under the impression that traffic was always horrible at every hour of the day and night. (en, who "new this was not really the case, did his best to ease their minds. 3I don!t thin" traffic will be much of a concern,3 he said. 3*ur information is that the .est,em team is going to ma"e their intervention attempt in the early morning hours+between 0F00 and 0000+correct43

3)uc"in! aye,3 Span"worth said from his seat near the front. 3%t least that!s what the word is.3 3If they do ma"e their attempt in the e&pected time period,3 (en said, 3there will be minimal traffic on the roads throughout the entire metropolitan area. .hile it!s true that traffic was #uite bad, that was only during the wa"ing hours, particularly wee"days between the hours of 0E00 and 0I00 and between F000 and FI00. If intelligence is wrong and the .est,ems try to ma"e their grab during the day, then yes, traffic will definitely be a concern and I have mapped out what appears to be the least congested routes out of the area. If intelligence is correct, though, and they ma"e the attempt at night, the roads will be almost empty and we!ll be miles away from the hospital in a matter of minutes.3 38iles,3 8c1raw said, sha"ing her head in frustration. 3I!m having a hard time with that concept. .hat a fuc"ed up system of measurement your people had, )ra$ier.3 (en smiled, feeling absurdly proud that he was able to grasp a concept they weren!t. It had been decided that they would only use %merican standard measurements when planning and discussing the mission since that was how everything was going to be in the target area. .est,em would not go fully metric until after .orld .ar III so all of the street signs, all of the mapping references, all of the automobile speedometers and odometers would be in miles. 3I agree completely,3 he told them now. 3;ut I must admit it!s comforting to tal" in those terms again after so long on 8ars. I was brought up with them after all.3 3That!s very interesting, )ra$ier,3 Span"worth said, ta"ing a plug of .est,em chewing tobacco out of a can and putting it in his lip. 3;ut let!s get the coc" bac" in the snatch here, shall we4 %ssuming intelligence is correct, what!s our egress43 3Aight, :T,3 (en said, loo"ing down at the map. 3.e!re

fortunate that young 8r. .hiting is being chec"ed into this particular hospital. It is less than three minutes drive+time to the freeway, assuming no traffic, which we should be able to assume if it ta"es place as scheduled. The most li"ely access point the .est,em team will use is the service entrance here on the east side of the main building, right ne&t to the 2mergency Aoom entrance. The recovery room, where .hiting will be staying, is three floors up and this is the closest access. There is also plenty of public par"ing and strange people loitering in vehicles will not necessarily cause undo attention because that!s the sort of thing hospital security will be used to seeing outside the 2A. This, of course, wor"s both for us and the .est,ems.3 3True,3 Span"worth said with a nod. 3*nce you ma"e the ta"edown and we get the people bac" in the van, we head out this way.3 ,e began to trace their route with the cursor. 3 own this long access road past the main building, bac" to Sunrise ;oulevard. .e continue south, past the cho"epoint at Sunrise and Aoseville Par"way, down to 2ure"a road, which is half a mile south of the cho"epoint. .e turn right, toward the west, from there. Aemember, if I!m disabled and someone else has to drive, you can ma"e a right turn on a red light in -alifornia. It would loo" suspicious, in fact, if traffic was clear and you didn!t ma"e the turn. %lways remember that the early morning hours are when the drun" drivers are out in force. oing something unusual, li"e driving with your lights out or not turning right at a red when it!s clear, are things that will draw the attention of the police or the highway patrol.3 3That!s a :aura+damned good point,3 said 8c1raw, who was ne&t in line to drive if (en couldn!t since she had spent the most time in the twenty+first century driving simulation program. 3In any case, we!ll follow 2ure"a west for about a mile until we get to the onramps for Interstate 80, the freeway that will ta"e us all the way bac" to San )rancisco and our ride bac" to orbit. .e will be ta"ing westbound I+80 and the ramp is accessed

from the left+hand lane here. Aemember that, because most freeway onramps are on the right side.3 ,e paused while everyone made a few notes and then continued on, giving small details of freeway nuances li"e road splits, toll bridges, and which lane to be in at which time, all the way across the ;ay ;ridge to the San )rancisco city limits I? miles away. )rom there, he went through the easiest possible route to -hina ;each in the Sea -liff section of the city. There+on the isolated beach, though very close to civili$ation+is where their submergible amphibious surface+to+orbit craft would be waiting for them, staffed by two pilots waiting patiently under si&ty feet of water two hundred yards off shore. That was where the details (en was responsible for came to an end. ,e then went bac" to Aoseville hospital and started over, this time pointing out some alternate routes he had put together in the event something went wrong. In all, he tal"ed for more than an hour and still had much that he needed to tell them. ,e would pic" up where he left off tomorrow. 9ow it was Span"worth!s turn for his portion of the lecture. (en unstrapped from the 5elcro and allowed himself to drift into the air. %fter DC days of $ero+1 he was now #uite used to maneuvering in it and had learned to actually li"e it. ,e was a bit sad that gravity would be returning to the environment the ne&t day when they started their deceleration burn. 3Than" you, )ra$ier,3 Span"worth told him as he drifted over and too" his place at the lectern. 39o s"in off my ass,3 (en replied, floating across the room and setting down in the seat the lieutenant had 'ust vacated. Span"worth had given the most lectures on mission re#uirements and procedures. ,e had a gruff, efficient, and humorless method of imparting information on his team. ,e reached into the poc"et of his shorts and pulled out a small blac" device that resembled a P-. 3I!m sure )ra$ier can tell me

what this is,3 he said. 3)uc"in! aye,3 (en said, recogni$ing it instantly and feeling a pang of nostalgia. 3It!s a cell phone from my day, or at least from around my day.3 3This is a copy of a lower end model cellular phone from the year /00E,3 Span"worth said. 32ach ground team member will be issued a model similar to, though not e&actly li"e, this one. The reason they will not all be the same is that there were do$ens of different cellular service providers and hundreds of different phone models on 2arth during this time period. The li"elihood that si& random people+which is what we will be pretending to be+would all have the e&act same cell phone model would be #uite remote. The differences, however, will be more visual than anything else. 2ach of these phones will be fully functional for what they are supposed to be, and will even be assigned one of five different cellular providers who do business in the Sacramento region. To anyone e&amining these devices superficially, they will be indistinguishable from your average, everyday cell phone. They are, of course, a bit more than that beneath the surface. 3The most important thing they are is a fully functioning 8artian P-. 2ach will be programmed to respond not only to the voice commands of the team member assigned to it, but to any of the other team members as well. That means that each of you can use the other!s phone for any of the functions but that no one else on 2arth+including the .est,em team+can. They will be lin"ed to both the 2arthling Internet and their communications satellite system. These little devices will be about ten thousand times faster and more capable then the best 2arth computers of the day. They are programmed with our best hac"ing software so we can manipulate the 2arthling databases in the event of an emergency. 3These phones also contain the weapons we will use to ta"e down the .est,em interdiction team. Pushing /, C, ?, 0, on the

"eyboard will activate the tanner function of the device.3 ,e pushed the se#uence and heard a small beep from the phone. 3The button on the side+which the 2arthlings of the time use for a lin"ed one+way radio system with other users+will e&tend the tanner probe from the front of the phone.3 ,e did this and a hair+thin metallic strand, rigid, though it loo"ed li"e it shouldn!t be, e&tended about eight inches. 3The tanner charging time is three seconds, but the battery is only capable of holding enough energy for four shots before the unit needs to be recharged. The probe itself can e&tend out to four meters+e&cuse me, about twelve feet+and you discharge it by hitting any button on the "eyboard. :i"e a police tanner, this will wor" through any clothing or armor our .est,em friends happen to be wearing. %fter being hit with the energy our sub'ects will be flaccid for the better part of ten minutes, long enough for us to get them to our vehicle where we can handcuff them and restrain them chemically for the trip bac" to the lander. 3That!s the basic plan, in a cumshot. )rom the moment .hiting enters that hospital, we!ll be sta"ing it out. The composition of the team that will ma"e the attempt is un"nown, but logic says it will be a small team, no more than three, and maybe only a single person. They will be disguising themselves as hospital staff+specifically, the 'anitorial staff, who are able to move unnoticed throughout all sections of the hospital. .e will be able to distinguish them from the real 'anitorial staff by the genetic manipulator they possess. 1enetic manipulators use a gamma ray generator powered by radioactive centuriam isotopes. This is an element that was developed in a 8artian laboratory and would be found nowhere on 2arth in the year /00? e&cept inside a genetic manipulator device from the future. .e will be scanning the hospital area for this isotope and should pic" it up the moment they get within a #uarter mile or so. *nce we!ve identified them, we immediately ma"e our move. .e, too, will be dressed as 'anitorial wor"ers to avoid notice. .e will ta"e them down #uic"ly and #uietly+hopefully before they get inside the service entrance+and then move them

to the van and get the hell out of the whorehouse.3 3 o we have any idea on whether or not they!ll be pac"ing43 as"ed 5ega Sanche$, a 'unior member of the team. 3There are no specifics from intelligence on that,3 Span"worth replied. 3They will undoubtedly be armed with tanners such as ours, at the very least, and possibly with firearms, either modern ones or weapons they ac#uired on 2arth.3 3I doubt they would get weapons on 2arth,3 (en put in. 3Bnless they changed the laws significantly between the time I was shot and /00?, there was a waiting period to buy guns in -alifornia. 2ven if their credentials were in order they would still have to wait two wee"s before they could pic" up the weapons.3 39o shit43 Span"worth said. 3I didn!t "now that.3 .hich wasn!t surprising. The proliferation of firearms in .est,em society+ while un#uestionably bad+was another one of those things that had been wildly e&aggerated in the minds of most 8artians. It was generally believed you could wal" into any convenience store in twenty+first century %merica and wal" out with a handgun five minutes later. 3That!s why we brought him along,3 8c1raw said with a smile. Span"worth ignored her comment. 3.ere there any e&ceptions to the waiting period43 he as"ed. 3Aemember, these .est,em agents, li"e us, can pretend to be 'ust about anyone and use their computer technology to bac" it up.3 3Peace officers are the only e&ception to the waiting period,3 (en said. 3I suppose they could go to the trouble of ma"ing a fa"e badge and programming the epartment of Justice computer to recogni$e them as cops, but would they really go to all that trouble 'ust to get guns43 3% good point,3 Span"worth allowed. 3In any case, we hope to

have surprise on our side so the issue of whether or not they!re armed is academic. .e will be armed with nothing more than our tanners. If the .est,ems have guns and we!re not able to ta"e them by surprise, the mission will be blown in any case and shooting it out with them outside a hospital will probably damage the time stream 'ust as much as what they!re intending to do anyway.3 Span"worth!s lecture went on for another two hours. ,e covered every aspect of what they planned to do in e&cruciating detail and then reviewed the entire strategy several more times, inserting contingency plans at each point where things could conceivably go wrong. :i"e (en before him, he really only scratched the surface of preparation in the time period he was allotted. There would more lectures in the ensuing days as well as simulator training with 5A goggles once gravity returned to the ship. )inally, he wrapped up and everyone too" a ten+ minute brea"+most floating off toward the lavatory where straining bladders were relieved into the vacuum tubes that served as toilets. %t the end of the brea" everyone resumed their seats and Aon Sampson, head of the Intelligence aspect of the mission, too" his place at the lectern. 3I!ll be brief,3 Sampson told them. 3I "now everyone is loo"ing forward to dinner and to the final $ero+1 party tonight after the dishes are done.3 3)uc"in! aye on that shit,3 said 8c1raw, eliciting a chuc"le from everyone else in the room, Sampson included. 3I!ve been listening closely to all of the planning that!s been going on,3 Sampson continued, 3and it sounds to me that you!re all doing a typical bang+up 8artian 'ob of anticipating everything. 8y own part in this is rather small but let me e&plain what I!ll be setting up for you down there on the surface of ar" %ges 2arth. 3If -ommander ,uffy and her crew are unable to intercept the

.est,em ship prior to their sending down their interdiction team, me and my people will hac" into the 2arthling Internet, much as we do when sending operatives down to the more modern version of 2arth in our time. %ccessing their secure databases will be #uite easy for our software to accomplish. .e will assign 2arthling identities for each of you, complete with residence history, credit history, ban" accounts, credit cards, and employment history. )ra$ier, it will be you who!ll deal with the natives when such a thing becomes necessary, so it!s your identity that needs to serve as more than 'ust a shell. I will set up a ban" account for you with about ten thousand dollars in it and give you a high credit rating. %fter you and the team ma"e landfall it will be you who purchases the vehicle you!ll use to travel from San )rancisco to Aoseville and bac". Since you obviously "now much more about vehicles of the time I will leave the actual ma"e and model to your discretion. Sound li"e an ass+fuc"43 3Bh... sure,3 (en said. 3So you!ll 'ust create a ban" account for me out of thin air, complete with credit history, credit cards, and all that43 3I!ll change your name and date of birth 'ust a bit,3 Sampson said. 3That will "eep your identity from conflicting with the... uh... the other (en )ra$ier, the one who is in a cryogenic warehouse in :os %ngeles and who has a death certificate signed for him... but yes, that!s what I!ll do.3 3%nd this identity will stand up li"e a real one43 he as"ed. 3It will be a real one,3 Sampson told him. 3*ur software will hac" into every computer it needs to in order to establish your e&istence. % birth certificate will be recorded in the hall of records, a social security number and wor" history will be created, a driver!s license record and driving history will be placed in the 85, medical records will be created and stored in the appropriate places. The );I itself could do a bac"ground chec" on you and would find absolutely nothing amiss.3

3.ow,3 he said, ama$ed. 3.e can do this same thing to modern .est,em,3 Sampson said. 3That!s how we developed the information that led us to this point in the first place. ,ac"ing into the twenty+first century Internet will be child!s play.3

inner that night was filet mignon, articho"es, and ba"ed potato s"ins with sour cream and cheese. It was served from special platters that "ept the food from floating about the room. It wasn!t #uite up to the standards usually en'oyed aboard the ship since only those personnel deemed absolutely vital to running the -alistoga had come on the mission. The culinary department+which normally consisted of ten members+was one such victim of personnel cuts. Aesponsibility for the meals consumed each day was now rotated among one of seven teams that had been formed by -ommander ,uffy. 9o person on board was e&empt from "itchen duty, including ,uffy herself, and, while most of the food turned out to be #uite palatable, since culinary s"ills were common and highly regarded among 8artians, it would never be mista"en for restaurant chow either. %lso missing was the ability to use utensils in the normal fashion. It was e&tremely difficult to cut meat in $ero gravity without 9ewton!s :aw of 8otion causing it to go flying off across the room in a spray of particles and 'uice, where it would li"ely bounce off another person!s head or get suc"ed into an air circulation vent. So instead of "nives and for"s, the members of -alistoga!s crew used their bare hands, pic"ing up slabs of meat and tearing into them with their teeth, li"e animals. It was crude but effective and did little to detract from the flavor of the meal. %fter the last piece of meat was chewed down, after the last potato s"in was swallowed, after the last articho"e heart was

smeared with garlic mayonnaise and chomped to pieces, it was time for clean+up. 2veryone but those who had actually done the coo"ing or who were actually engaged in some aspect of operating the ship was re#uired to participate in the house"eeping chores. ishes and utensils that had been used were carried through the rear door of the wardroom to the galley and placed in the automatic dishwashing machine. amp towels were used to wipe down the walls and table surfaces. )inally, an automatic robotic vacuum cleaner was set loose to clean up all of the crumbs and li#uid droplets drifting about in the air currents. This machine navigated freely around the interior of the room, propelling itself with small bursts of compressed air from a series of tiny maneuvering thrusters and finding its way to each individual crumb by means of an active radar dish installed on the top of it. .hen the robot was finally done clearing the air in the wardroom, the recreational period for the wee" officially began. These periods were times set aside by -ommander ,uffy in which the wardroom became the scene of a 8artian+style party. %lcohol and mari'uana would be available for the en'oyment of a selected portion of the participants+the number allowed held at F8 since this would leave more than half of the ship!s compliment sober in the event of an emergency re#uiring shipboard firefighting or general #uarters. This particular recreational period promised to be a memorable one since it would be the last to ta"e place in $ero gravity until well after they!d passed through the :emondrop wormhole and started heading toward /00? 2arth+which was to say, it was possible that this might be the last recreational period they would ever en'oy, anywhere. In all, about thirty people remained for the party, including -ommander ,uffy, who had forbidden herself to enter the into&icant lottery but who did li"e a 8artian+style good time as much as anyone else on board. She sat sipping a cup of herbal tea and smo"ing a tobacco pipe, blowing smo"e rings across the

room while running her hand up and down the leg of Aon Sampson, who had entered the into&icant lottery and was already wor"ing on his third drin". (en and Slurry had both drawn into&icant cards for this evening and they happily helped themselves to the rum and fruit 'uice concoction that had been whipped up for the occasion. %ny drin" with carbonation in it+ such as beer or drin"s with soda in them+did not maintain proper consistency in $ero or even reduced gravity, so fruit 'uice was always the stealth ship mi&er of choice. They sipped their drin"s out of sealed pressure+fed containers specially designed for $ero+1 drin"ing while passing a self+contained bong of 2den green from one person to the other. Soon the entire wardroom was thic" with pungent smo"e and the sound of modern dance music reverberated off the walls. Things remained fairly sedate for a while, with only a few couples and triples performing mild $ero+1 botching moves near the ceiling. (en and Slurry sat together near :ieutenant Span"worth and Sergeant 8c1raw, both of whom were in the into&icant pool as well. %s Spacer Second -lass Stinson who wor"ed in the 2ngineering epartment, and =olanda Santini, a member of the Intelligence epartment, twisted and s#uirmed above them, their mouths occasionally ma"ing brief, wet contact, their groins grinding together, the four of them discussed the upcoming wormhole entry. 3The probe in the original :emondrop reactor test showed a little over 81!s of acceleration,3 Slurry said after e&haling her latest hit. 3That!s some serious shit. 9ot even 8os#uito pilots endure more than D1s.3 3.e all did E1s in the centrifuge at T9; before we left,3 8c1raw said, referring to the testing all members of the crew had undergone prior to departure. 3I!ll be the first to admit it wasn!t the most pleasurable thing I!ve ever done, but it wasn!t lethal.3 3It felt li"e I was being s#uashed in a :aura+damned hose+

wringer,3 Slurry said. 3%nd this will be another /1s on top of that. .e won!t even be able to breathe.3 3It!s less than thirty seconds though,3 (en felt compelled to point out, even though he wasn!t too "een on enduring the e&pected acceleration either. 3.e were in the centrifuge for almost four minutes.3 3Thirty seconds too long, if you as" me,3 Slurry said sourly, ta"ing a tremendous shot of her drin". 3Isn!t there a way to shorten it43 3The amount of acceleration we endure is pretty much a constant,3 8c1raw said, repeating what had been told to them in the lecture. 3The duration of the acceleration is the variable factor. It has to do with how close to the wormhole we are when it opens. .e!ll be 800 meters from it. If we get closer, we!ll still undergo 81s. It!ll 'ust be for shorter duration and the trade+off will be that we ris" getting fried by the flash waves from the anti+matter reaction.3 3=eah, I guess that!s not really the way to go then, is it43 Slurry said. 39ope,3 8c1raw agreed. 39ot really the way at all.3 Slurry seemed li"e she had something else to add but was interrupted when =olanda Santini!s half+shirt came spinning through the air and struc" her in the face, wrapping neatly around her head. 3Sorry, Slur,3 chuc"led Spacer Stinson, who had been the flinger of the errant garment. ,e was floating upside down about two meters away, his hands lustily palpating the bared breasts of =olanda, who was floating at a ninety+degree angle to him and lic"ing at his stomach with her long tongue. 3I was overcome in a moment of passion.3

3=ou could!ve put my eye out with this thing,3 Slurry said 'o"ingly, flinging it bac" toward them. It glanced off =olanda!s thigh, continued on a new trac" across the room, and then wrapped itself around the foot of :ieutenant 8ango Tightgash+a helm officer who was loc"ed in her own passionate embrace with Spacer )irst -lass 1lory Trower. Tightgash gave it an irritated "ic", sending it off in yet another direction. 3:aura+damn it<3 bar"ed -ommander ,uffy, #uite clearly irritated. 3.e have a fuc"ing rule about throwing clothing around, do we not4 They clog the circulation vents and cover the smo"e detectors. 1o get that ass+tapping shirt and stow it somewhere, right now<3 3Sorry, ,uff,3 Stinson said with a flush, instantly brea"ing his embrace with =olanda and propelling himself toward the errant shirt, which had indeed ended up against an air circulation vent and was indeed bloc"ing it. 3(eep yourselves under control or I swear to :aura I!ll cut off into&icant rations,3 ,uffy threatened. 3I want my crew to have a good time but you will obey the rules. 9o more fuc"ing clothing fights, is that clear43 3=es, ,uff,3 Stinson said, his eyes downcast. 3Sorry, ,uff,3 Slurry said, her eyes doing the same. It didn!t ta"e long for things to lighten bac" up. .ithin five minutes of ,uffy!s outburst, she was floating near the center of the room, her own top neatly stowed and her bare nipples in the suc"ling mouths of Tightgash and Trower, who seemed to be involved in some sort of contest as to whether they could ma"e their captain orgasm from breast stimulation alone. Though it seemed doubtful this would be the case, ,uffy was certainly en'oying their efforts. ,er legs were about halfway open and a prominent wet spot was plainly visible in the crotch of her shorts.

8eanwhile, on the other side of the room, Stinson and =olanda had progressed #uite a bit in their e&plorations as well. ;oth were now completely nude and Stinson!s face was planted firmly between =olanda!s dar" legs, his mouth fastened to her clitoris. ,e was still floating upside down, his feet toward the ceiling, while she remained hori$ontal about a meter above the dec". *ne of the torpedo crew, seeing this, came floating over, his body doing la$y somersaults as he slid his shorts down his legs and off. ,e stuffed the shorts into his shirt and, as his last somersault brought him bac" to hori$ontal, he angled downward so his erect coc" doc"ed gently with =olanda!s lips. She slurped him inside without so much as a blin" of her eyes, her hands going to his ass to stabili$e the last of his forward momentum. In other parts of the room, other couples and triples+and in one case, a #uadruple+began to 'oin together in se&ual congress of varying type and degree. There were women and women, men and women, men and men, all trying their best to utili$e positions unavailable to the gravity restricted. They formed T!s and :!s and .!s, they made daisy chains of mouths and genitals and anuses. 8oans of pleasure mi&ed with profane encouragements to fuc" harder, suc" faster, put it in deeper were undercut by the s#uishing and slurping noises. The heavy smell of female and male pheromones grew thic" in the air, going straight to the brains of those not yet involved, compelling them to cast off their clothes and ma"e the daisy chains longer or find partners of their own and form new ones. 3I!m going after ,uffy,3 Slurry told (en, a glint of mad lust in her eyes. 3I!ve wanted that cunt!s cunt in my mouth this whole fuc"ing trip. It!s time to ta"e it.3 3It loo"s li"e she!s about ready for it,3 (en said, seeing that the wet spot in her crotch had now spread to the point that her swollen lips were plainly visible beneath. Tightgash and Trower were still suc"ling away at her breasts but their hands were now in on the act as well, caressing her bare belly and her upper thighs.

Slurry gave (en a #uic" "iss on the mouth and "ic"ed off her chair. %fter doing a #uic" spin and twist maneuver to orient herself in the proper direction, she e&tended her bare feet toward him and as"ed for a push. ,e dutifully placed his hand on the sole of her left foot and shoved, sending her careening across the room toward her target. ,er aim was almost perfect and she crashed into ,uffy, her face impacting directly on the wet crotch, her momentum forcing the entire foursome toward the wall before air friction caused them to come to a halt. ,uffy s#uealed in delight as Slurry!s tongue wormed under the crotch band of her shorts and dove between those wet lips. (en was now #uite erect himself and ready to become an active participant in the escalating orgy. ,e slid his shorts and shirt off and placed them carefully under the bench he was hovering above, ma"ing sure they were secure so they wouldn!t go drifting off. ,e then began to scan the room, searching for a place to doc" his own erection. The rules of a 8artian orgy were #uite simple. *ne need only approach any participant, male or female, that one wished to have se&ual contact with and touch him or her with a hand. If the person was down with the se&ual contact he or she would give a nod or some other sign of acceptance. If the person was not down with it+usually for lac" of homose&ual or heterose&ual inclinations but no reason was necessary or e&pected+a sha"e of the head was given and the wisher of the contact was obligated to bac" off. To do otherwise was to ris" being prosecuted for rape+a precedent the 8artian Supreme -ourt had ruled in favor of in the early post+ revolutionary days. Those were the rules in 8artian society as a whole. *nboard -alistoga, the system was even more simplistic. ,ere, with only /8 women and F? men, all living in close #uarters for the past 0F days, everyone already "new who was strictly homose&ual and who was strictly heterose&ual. 2veryone had already discovered who did not wish to have contact with whom, both inside and outside the bounds of an official orgy. %s such, the need for the

initial permission+en#uiring hand tap was not necessary in most cases, as Slurry had 'ust demonstrated by diving into ,uffy!s crotch, and as the torpedo crewman had 'ust demonstrated with =olanda. 2veryone already "new everyone else!s "in"s and respected whatever boundaries had already been set. .ith these thoughts in mind, (en!s eyes settled on Sergeant 8c1raw, the young blonde s#uad leader of the special forces team. She had yet to find a partner to couple with but was obviously reasonably aroused by the sights, sounds, and smells going on around her. :i"e most of the others in the room, she had already removed her clothing and stashed it in a safe place. She was hovering near the far wall, where the inter+dec" ladder led up to the ne&t level, floating hori$ontally, her stomach toward the floor. ,er left hand was caressing her nipple, pulling on it, ma"ing it grow, while her right hand was between her legs, the fingertips sliding slowly up and down her vaginal lips, smearing the moisture around preparatory to an all+out masturbatory attac". (en had not fuc"ed her yet, or had any other "ind of se&ual contact with her for that matter, but he "new she was down with him from conversations they!d shared. The appeti$ing sight of her swollen lips told him it was time to ma"e his move. ,e pushed down on his seat, causing his body to rise into the air. .ith a #uic" twist he was facing her, arms outstretched. ,e gave a gentle "ic" off the table with his feet, propelling himself toward her. ,alfway there he rolled over ninety degrees, with his bac" toward the floor, so when he reached her he was able to slide himself neatly beneath her body. ,e angled his head forward as he passed under her leg and stuc" out his tongue, touching it to the s"in of her shin. ,is momentum continued to carry him along toward her head, his tongue lic"ing up her leg, across her "nee and thigh, up to her hip before the friction brought him to a halt. 3*ooh,3 she s#uealed at the contact, loo"ing down to see who had made it and smiling when she saw him. 39ice move,

)ra$ier.3 3I thought you!d appreciate that one,3 he said, lic"ing at the 'unction of her thigh and hip. 3=ou 'ust loo"ed so cute hovering here playing with yourself.3 3%nd you thought you!d give me a hand43 she as"ed, spreading her legs a little wider. (en could smell her wet pussy now, the sharp tang of aroused secretions. 3,and, foot, tongue, whatever you!re into,3 he said, giving a suc" this time, moving his mouth a little closer to center. 3It would be easier to list what I!m not into,3 she said, reaching down and grabbing a handful of his hair. .ith a sharp, almost painful tug, she pulled his face forcibly to her crotch. (en found himself with a mouthful of wet, bald pussy, his head pushed so hard into it he could barely breathe. ,e stuc" out his tongue and began to lic", slow up and down stro"es across her wet lips, gathering her 'uices, tasting her essence. %n aficionado of cunnilingus, (en had found that vaginal 'uices were li"e snowfla"es, every woman tasted a little different. 3*ooh, yeah, baby,3 8c1raw encouraged. 3=ou!ve learned the 8artian way since you!ve been here, haven!t you43 ,e didn!t answer, 'ust "ept eating, plunging his tongue inside her, wor"ing his way toward her clit, which was rigid and demanding some attention. 8c1raw en'oyed the sensation for a few minutes and then became a bit more proactive in the encounter. She nimbly repositioned herself, both twisting herself around and rolling over at the same time, all without allowing her pussy to brea" contact with (en!s mouth. %t the end of the maneuver they were in the perfect EI position, with 8c1raw on top. She lowered her head and swallowed (en!s coc" into her mouth, deep+throating him in one smooth stro"e.

9ow it was (en!s turn to moan as he felt her e&pert mouth go to wor" on him. ,e too" a few deep, pleasurable breaths and then dove bac" down on her pussy, attac"ing her clit with his lips. %ll of the moving and twisting imparted a slow spin to their act. %s they slurped and suc"ed their bodies pitched forward, li"e a )erris wheel, 8c1raw!s feet going up toward the ceiling, (en!s head moving toward the floor. 8c1raw!s foot touched the top of a table and she "ic"ed off it, propelling them on a leisurely trac" across the room. ;y the time they reached the opposite wall, both were flushed from se&ual e&citement and starting to perspire. 3)uc" me now,3 8c1raw told him after they!d bumped into a bul"head and bounced off, disturbing the rhythm. 3I want some meat in me.3 (en didn!t have to be told twice. ,e did another spin around, so they were facing each other, and pulled her to him. She wrapped her legs around his ass and he slid his hardness into her wetness, feeling the e&#uisite tightness 8artian women wor"ed to maintain, feeling the clench of those internal muscles at wor", feeling her bare pubis against his crotch. 3*h yeah,3 she grunted, her fingers biting into his bac", her mouth attaching itself to her nec". 3,ammer me. I li"e it hard.3 ,e began to rut in and out of her, his pelvis mashing up and down to meet hers. She "ic"ed off the wall again, imparting yet another spin to their con'unction, sending them cartwheeling toward the other side of the room. They bumped momentarily into another couple who were cartwheeling in the other direction and rebounded upward. (en!s ass struc" the ceiling and they began heading toward the floor, barely missing the foursome Slurry was a part of, and finally settling down 'ust above one of the cafeteria tables. They bounced bac" into the air where their momentum finally came to a halt. ;y this point they were driving into each other with everything they had, barely noticing their positioning.

8c1raw came hard, screaming against his nec", her teeth gnashing down on his sweaty flesh as her body did a reverse 'ac""nife with nearly enough force to toss him off her. Somehow he hung on through the spasms and then released the mental bloc" holding his own orgasm at bay. It too" only seconds before the spasms started deep within him, driven on by her desperate pleas in his ear to cum in her. .ith a grunt and a tightening of his own body, he blasted her insides with his hot sperm, firing it deep inside of her hungry body. 9o sooner had the last 'et erupted when she bro"e free of him, pushing herself up into the center of the room. 3I got a fresh load from )ra$ier here,3 she announced loudly. 3.ho wants it43 38e<3 a voice called from the other side of the room. This was Spacer Third -lass Jac" *verhaul, an off+duty helm operator. ,e was primarily homose&ual but en'oyed dallying with the fairer se& when the occasion called for it, particularly during orgies. ,e had been sliding his lubricated hard+on in and out of :ieutenant Span"worth!s spread ass near the lower dec" ladder but abandoned him in an instant after hearing 8c1raw!s offer to share (en!s deposit. *verhaul had been trying to get in (en!s pants since the moment he!d come aboard and had been acutely disappointed when informed of (en!s dedicated heterose&ual preferences. 3=ou gonna rim me after you eat, Jac"ie43 8c1raw as"ed him. 3That!s the price.3 3.hatever you want, baby,3 he replied hungrily. 3:et me at it.3 (en watched with mi&ed emotions as *verhaul came floating across the room, weaving in an out of other participants, to bury his face between 8c1raw!s widely spread legs. ,e started lapping at her li"e a hungry cat at a bowl of mil", driving his tongue far up inside her, gathering up every last drop possible and grunting happily. 8c1raw tightened her legs around him and sighed, running her fingers through his short hair.

(en turned away and began scanning the room again, spotting the foursome that Slurry was a part of writhing and twisting about two meters off the floor. Slurry had already removed ,uffy!s shorts and was ma"ing an : shape with the captain, her legs stic"ing up and her face connected to ,uffy!s crotch. Tightgash had floated up and was forming another : by putting her face in Slurry!s crotch and Trower, electing not to form a complete daisy chain, was still lapping away at ,uffy!s nipples, alternating from one to the other. (en pushed himself in that direction. 3I could use a little recharge, ,uff,3 (en said. 3=ou up for it43 3;ring it here,3 she panted, her eyes gla$ed with yearning. She held out her arms and sei$ed him by the hips, pulling him to her. % moment later his flaccid coc" was in her mouth and she was lic"ing all the e&cess sperm and vaginal secretions from it. ,er mouth was #uite talented and within minutes she had him rigid and ready for action once more. 3Than"s, ,uff,3 he told her, pulling free with a pop, leaving a trail of her saliva to go spinning off across the room. 39o, than" you,3 she told him. 38c1raw tastes pretty fuc"in! good.3 ,e loo"ed around for a convenient place to place his recharged member and #uic"ly found one. Trower!s pretty hind#uarters were floating in the air 'ust a meter to his right. ,e did a few maneuvers, twisting one way and the other, until he was directly behind her. ,e reached out and touched her wet pussy, sliding his fingers in and out a few times, wetting them. ,e then began to smear the 'uice over her puc"ered anus, testing the waters. 38mmm hmmm,3 she grunted enthusiastically from around ,uffy!s nipple as she felt this. 3 o it.3

,e slid his fingers into her ass a few times, loosening it up, and then, satisfied it was ready for penetration, he let himself float up 'ust a little higher. ,e spread her chee"s with his hands and then put the head against his target. .ith a slow, deliberate motion, he pulled her against him, sliding his coc" inch by inch into her bac" door. She cooed with pleasure when he finally bottomed out. *ver the ne&t ninety minutes (en came two more times and Slurry came no less than si&. Though the party was still in full swing, both decided they were a bit tired so they said their goodbyes and made their way to the bathing facility three dec"s below. Showers were impossible in $ero+1 so sponge baths were the best that could be done. They soaped and rinsed each other until they were clean, their actions loving but not se&ual. %s they toweled off they shared a few "isses and then left the room, floating na"ed through the corridors and ladders to the berthing area 'ust above the engine room. Several sailors greeted them as they passed, paying not the least bit of attention to their nudity. Since space was at a premium on a stealth ship, they shared their berthing room with five other people. Their bun" was a small, enclosed space near the bac" of the room. Slurry un$ipped the cover and they pulled themselves inside. The #uarters were tight, causing them to float s"in to s"in. (en wrapped a blan"et around them and held his wife tightly. 3I!m gonna miss sleeping in $ero+1,3 Slurry said, snuggling into him and stifling a yawn. 3It!s the ultimate soft mattress.3 38e too,3 (en said. 3%lthough I won!t miss having to spend an hour on the e&ercise machine every day.3 3=eah,3 she scoffed. 3*nce we go to ./01 we!ll only have to wor" out for half an hour every two days. That!s a big relief, isn!t it4 I!m telling you, 8artians aren!t made to have to wor" out. That!s what we spent all that time perfecting our :aura+damned medical science for. So we wouldn!t have to wor" out and diet to

stay healthy.3 3=ou loo" cute when you!re strapped into the machine, though,3 (en teased. 38aybe we!ll get one for the office when we get home, huh43 ,e e&pected her to laugh at his 'o"e but she didn!t+#uite the opposite in fact. She seemed to be upset by it. 3=eah,3 she said bitterly. 38aybe we!ll do that.3 3Slur,3 he said carefully. 3%re you o"ay43 She sniffed. 3)ine,3 she told him. 3:et!s get some sleep, huh4 I have "itchen duty tomorrow.3 3Slurry,3 he said, trying again. 31ood night, (en,3 she said firmly, closing the sub'ect. 3I had a good time tonight. 9ow let!s get some sleep.3 ,e dropped it. Soon both of them drifted off into an uncomfortable slumber.

3She!s gone,3 Julie ittmeyer told the hologram of -um#uat -ypress. 3She boarded the 08FI flight to 2dwards this morning. She!s probably up on eparture by now, waiting to board the %lberta.3 3=es,3 -ypress said, 3we have confirmation the battle group is about to sail, and it ain!t no ordinary sailing either. They!ve reinforced the armada with five e&tra stealth ships, ten e&tra anti+stealth destroyers, two more battleships, an additional superdreadnought, and a grand total of si&teen Panama class cargo carriers.3 3So the antimatter is in one of them,3 Julie guessed. 3They really are going to do it.3

3It would seem so,3 -ypress agreed. 3 id you really have any doubts43 She shoo" her head. 39o. I always "new %manda was telling me the truth... it!s 'ust that... you "now... to get confirmation that they!re really going to try to fuc" with the time stream li"e that. They!re mad. %bsolutely fuc"ing mad.3 39o argument there,3 -ypress told her. 3Than" :aura you were able to get the information from her in time for us to do something about it. =our s"illful tongue may have saved the human race, Julie. =ou "now that43 Julie chuc"led whimsically. 3I never thought of it that way, but I guess you!re right. It!s hard to believe I!m never going to see her again. I!ve grown to "ind of li"e her a little this last year+well as much as I could li"e any 2arthling who is trying to destroy my planet.3 38aybe you!ll see her again,3 -ypress said. 3%ssuming everything wor"s out, we!ll have one of our agents ma"e contact with her when she returns to 2arth. .e!ll offer to smuggle her off the planet and give her asylum on 8ars. It will probably seem li"e an attractive option when we e&plain that she is the reason that their :emondrop plan failed and that there will be a significant possibility the 2arthling agents will figure that out.3 3,opefully she!ll ta"e you up on it. 2ven if she does, though, I hardly thin" she!ll want to see me again bac" on 8ars after she learns I!ve been using her and pretending to love her all this time. =ou "now how 2arthlings are about that shit43 -ypress shrugged, obviously not terribly interested in the sub'ect. 3That!s the way the cumshot splatters,3 she said, #uoting an old 8artian saying. 3I suppose so,3 she said. 3So anyway, the interdiction team is almost in place43

3The -alistoga is 'ust finishing up its deceleration burn as we spea". They!ll be activating the first reactor in about D8 hours now. The second reactor, which will generate the return wormhole, will be activated si& hours after that. If they come bac" out of it, we!ll "now how things are going to go.3 Julie shoo" her head in ama$ement. 3This time travel shit is hard to grasp sometimes,3 she said. 3In less than si&ty hours, we!ll already "now whether or not the mission was successful, more than a month before the .est,em team even enters their own wormhole.3 3=ou thin" that!s a mind+fuc" of a concept43 -ypress as"ed. 3,ave you considered the fact that if we!re successful and our special forces team manages to capture that ship and bring it bac", both the ship and its crew will e&ist in two different places in the same time. There will be one ship and crew headed for the .est,em reactor site, and there will be one ship and crew under guard that 'ust emerged from our return wormhole.3 Julie hadn!t really thought about that. -ypress was right. It was a mind+fuc" of a concept. 3I thin" I need a bonghit to consider all the ramifications of that one,3 she said. -ypress gave a dutiful chuc"le and then returned bac" to seriousness. 3In any case, security will be absolutely the most important thing from our end until the .est,ems enter their wormhole. %s you said, inside of si&ty hours or so, we!ll already "now if we were successful or not, but the .est,ems will not "now what we!ve done and it is of utmost importance that they get no hint whatsoever. That!s why we!re "eeping you in place until they activate their reactor. *n the off chance that someone is "eeping an eye on you or has some sort of suspicion about your relationship with %manda, we don!t want you suddenly disappearing now that she!s on her way to the reactor site. *nce they activate, it won!t matter anymore and we can all go home. Bntil that time, however, you must go about your daily life, 'ust as always.3

3I understand,3 Julie said with a sigh. 3%t least the end is in sight.3 3%+fuc"ing+men to that,3 replied -ypress. 3I!m getting really tired of $ero+1 se&. I can!t wait to get home and tear one off on a normal bed for once.3

38aneuvering thrusters are idle,3 reported Spacer Jac" *verhaul, who was strapped into the main helm control seat. 3The bow is e&actly 800 meters from the pro'ected wormhole site. :ateral and forward motions are at $ero relative to the target area. .e!re in position, ,uff.3 3Than"s, Jac",3 replied ,uffy, who was strapped into the command chair. She loo"ed around the command bridge, ma"ing sure everyone was in position. 2very person on the bridge of -alistoga was wearing an emergency decompression suit and was strapped firmly into his or her chair with recently installed four point harnesses. The chairs themselves had undergone a retrofit prior to leaving Triad 9aval ;ase in order to accommodate the 1+forces they were about to encounter. 3:oo"ing good up here. Slurry, (en, are those straps on tight enough43 (en and Slurry, though not part of the bridge crew, had been assigned the two spare seats up there for lac" of anywhere else to put them. They had no actual function other than to sit #uietly and "eep their mouths shut. 3I!m good, ,uff,3 (en replied. 3I!ve got them pulled as tight as I could.3 38e too,3 Slurry said. 31ood enough,3 ,uffy said. 3;ridge is go for the wormhole.3 She pushed a button on her panel. 3%ll departments, this is ,uffy. Aeport go or no+go for the wormhole.3 The departments began to report in one by one in a pre+

determined order. .eapons bay, engineering, sic"+bay, Intelligence, special forces berthing. %ll reported go for the wormhole, which meant all had their emergency decompression suits on and were strapped into their designated acceleration chairs. ,uffy ac"nowledged each report by repeating their words bac" to the person reporting. )inally, satisfied that the ship was as ready as it was going to be, she "eyed up the communications system and contacted the control ship, which, li"e all of the other ships involved in the -ounterdrop pro'ect, had pulled bac" more than two million "ilometers to "eep clear of the worst of the effects of the wormhole. .hile the wormhole was open, its gravitational attraction would be greater than that of the sun. 3-ontrol, this is -alistoga,3 ,uffy said. 3.e are in position, stabili$ed 800 meters away from the pro'ected site and we are go for wormhole opening. %ll systems nominal.3 3.e!re down with that shit, -alistoga,3 a male voice replied. 3Telemetry from the reactor indicates all systems nominal there. .e!re gonna go ahead and send the pre+ignition warm+up command.3 3)uc"in! aye,3 ,uffy said. 3)ire it up.3 Two minutes later they received confirmation that the warm+up se#uence was underway. %t this point it was still possible to abort the mission. *nce the reactor was started, that possibility no longer e&isted. .arm+up too" the better part of fifteen minutes. uring this time conversation on the bridge was minimal, not because of any command by ,uffy, but simply because everyone was too frightened to spea". They were, after all, the first living organisms to attempt travel through a wormhole. It was entirely possible there was some undiscovered aspect of physics that would prevent such a thing, and the way it would prevent it would undoubtedly be by "illing them. 3.arm+up se#uence complete,3 the voice said at last. 3Aeactor

is in standby mode. .e will initiate on your mar".3 3I!m down with that shit,3 ,uffy replied. She loo"ed around at the crew. 3Is everyone ready43 9o one answered, which meant they were ready. 3%ll right then.3 She flipped on the intercom again. 3%ll departments, this is ,uffy. The reactor is warmed up and ready to fire. It!s time for us to cram our coc"s in the asshole or wipe off the lube. If any department is not ready, let me "now right now or I!ll have them give the command.3 9o department reported bac", which meant they were all ready. 3*"ay then,3 she said calmly. She "eyed up the radio lin". 3-ommand, go with the reactor se#uence.3 The distance caused a bit of a communications lag, which seemed to stretch out indefinitely. )inally, the voice of the controller said, 3Initiating reactor se#uence. .e are past the point of no return now. The wormhole will open in C8 seconds.3 ,uffy repeated this information to the rest of the ship and then ordered the computer to count down over the intercom. % pleasant female voice began the count. .hen she reached F0 seconds ,uffy gave one last command. 32veryone brace for acceleration.3 (en, strapped to his chair, gripped the armrests tightly and made sure his head was firmly against the seatbac". ,e could feel his heart hammering in his chest, could feel the adrenaline surging through his body. .as he really about to be thrown through a wormhole into the past4 ,ad he really agreed to such a mad thing4 =es, he really had. %s the final seconds tic"ed down, his mind insisted on replaying everything that could possibly go wrong. eath by an un"nown aspect of physics. eath by the destruction of the ship because of underestimation

of the gravitational forces. % slow lingering death in the vacuum of space because of a hull breach in the past, where rescue would be impossible. 3)ive, four, three...3 counted the computer. 3I love you, (en,3 said Slurry, her voice terrified. 3%lways remember that.3 3I love you too,3 he said, 'ust as the computer reached one. There were no windows on the bridge, 'ust digital camera images on view screens. They showed nothing dramatic as the reactor fired and the wormhole opened. There was nothing to see. The wormhole was a singularity+its gravitation so powerful that no light could escape from it. %ll that could be seen was the blac"ness of space+the stars that made up the bac"ground disappearing from view. 9either was there any sound, since no sound wave could be transmitted in the vacuum of interstellar space. )or the merest fraction of a second, it seemed that the reactor hadn!t wor"ed after all, that they had come all this way and psyched themselves up for nothing. ;ut then the acceleration "ic"ed in as the tremendous gravity grabbed the -alistoga and pulled it inside. (en felt the air driven from his lungs as he was slammed bac"ward with 81s of force. It was li"e an elephant had 'ust laid down on him, covering his body, smashing him. ,is eyeballs were pushed bac" in his head, blurring his vision. ,e was unable to breathe, to refill his lungs, because his diaphragm and chest muscles were simply not strong enough to overcome the pressure. imly, he heard alarms sounding from the computer console. ,e heard the crea"ing and moaning of tortured metal as the ship was 'er"ed through space. It went on seemingly forever+an eternity+and he began to fear it was never going to end. ,e felt his consciousness starting to wane as the effects of hypo&ia began to manifest themselves. =es, it seemed he really was going to die. Surely more than thirty seconds had gone by.

%nd then, 'ust before he lost consciousness, the weight was suddenly gone. ,e was in $ero+1 again, weightless, with the elephant gone from his body. ,e too" in great gasping breaths of the wonderful air, filling his lungs, appreciating the o&ygenated atmosphere of the ship li"e he!d never appreciated it before. ,e loo"ed up at the view screens as his vision cleared, seeing nothing but stars spinning before them. ,ad they gone through4 *r were they in the same place4 *ne thing was certain. The ship was moving and was out of control. This was something that ,uffy reali$ed as well. 3,elm,3 she bar"ed, her voice brea"ing and breathless. 31et us stabili$ed.3 3.or"ing on it,3 s#uea"ed *verhaul, who was sha"ing his hands and trying to get some feeling bac" in them. )inally, he put them on the panel and began to manipulate the controls, enlisting the aid of the computer. (en heard the muted roar of the maneuvering thrusters being fired, felt the 'er"ing of the ship as *verhaul wor"ed to stabili$e their spin and get them oriented. It too" a while+for the ship was spinning both head over heels and laterally+but, eventually, the star field stopped moving on the screens and the thrusters went silent. 3.e!re stable, ,uff,3 *verhaul reported, a little less breathless now. 3%lthough we don!t have a position fi& yet. I!m not really sure where in the hell we are.3 31ood 'ob, Jac",3 she said, unstrapping her harness and pulling the hood of her emergency suit bac". 39avigation, get us a fi& as soon as you can. .e need to "now where in the hell and+when you get around to it+when in the hell we are. 3.or"ing on it,3 replied :ieutenant arla *gle, the chief navigation officer. She unstrapped her own harness and pulled her hood down before going to wor" on her panel.

3Is everyone o"ay up here43 ,uffy as"ed the bridge at large. 9o one replied that they weren!t, which meant they were. She nodded and then turned on the intercom. 3%ll departments, report in. amage reports if you got !em.3 *ne by one the departments chec"ed in, all reporting everything was well. It seemed the ship had suffered no damage, the crew no in'uries. ,earing this, ,uffy ordered the ship to general #uarters until they determined 'ust e&actly what conditions were li"e outside. (en and Slurry remained where they were, since their general #uarters station was nowhere specific+they were 'ust supposed to be on standby to 'oin a firefighting team in the event of damage. 39avigation, how we doing43 ,uffy as"ed, floating up above her chair now, rubbing at a sore spot on her shoulder. 3I!m getting no 1PS data from 8ars or Saturn,3 she said. 3In fact, I!m getting no signals of any "ind e&cept from the vicinity of 2arth+and those aren!t modern 1PS signals at all. I!m thin"ing we really did go bac" in time, ,uff.3 3I need confirmation,3 she said. 3*ur margin for error was plus or minus ten thousand "ilometers geographically and plus or minus si& hours timewise. Start ma"ing some star sightings and see if you can correlate our time and position to when and where we!re supposed to be.3 3)uc"in! aye, ,uff,3 she said, turning bac" to her panel. It too" her about three minutes to train her scopes on the various constellations and for the computers to churn out the data. )inally, she announced, 3It!s loo"ing good.3 3.hat do you mean43 ,uffy as"ed. 3.ell, we need confirmation from another source to be sure, but the constellations and the planets are lined up as they should be

if we were /800 "ilometers on bearing E8 mar" 0/0 from our pro'ected drop off point at or about June ?, /00?, appro&imately 0C00 hours 1reenwich 8ean Time. Bntil we get e&act time data from another source, I won!t be able to correlate e&actly however.3 3So we!re here43 ,uffy as"ed. 3Is that what you!re saying43 3=es, it appears we are.3 ,uffy nodded, drifting bac" down to her chair and pulling herself inside. She flipped a switch on her intercom. 3Intelligence,3 she said. 3This is ,uffy. %re your instruments up and running yet43 3.e 'ust went on line,3 replied the voice of Aon Sampson. 3.e!re starting to sort through the signals now. %ll are coming from the vicinity of 2arth or 2arth orbit.3 3.e need a time confirmation so we can fi& our position,3 ,uffy told him. 31ive it to me as soon as you have it.3 3)uc"in! aye, ,uff,3 he replied. 3I!m getting some television signals. -an you send the )ra$iers down here so they can help me sort through this shit43 She loo"ed over at (en and Slurry, both of whom nodded and pushed off across the room, heading toward the ladder. 3They!re on the way,3 ,uffy told him. They entered the Intelligence room a minute later. It was a bustle of activity as the si& intelligence operatives that had come along for the 'ourney sorted through the ma$e of audio and video signals they were pulling in from planet 2arth. Sampson was in the command chair, using his controls to flip through several signals at one time on the large screen at the front of the room. (en saw a ..) wrestling match, a soft+core pornographic movie, and an episode of :ove ;oat playing up

there. 3=ou recogni$e this crap43 Sampson as"ed (en as he floated in and too" a seat. 3=es,3 (en said, naming off what he was seeing. 3.ell, we!re in the past, that!s for sure,3 Sampson said. 39othing that helps us establish a date, though.3 ,e continued to flip from fre#uency to fre#uency, pausing at each one so (en could tell him what it was. (en recogni$ed about half of the broadcasts. ,e saw old reruns of sit+coms, more pornography, movies such as Saving Private Ayan and %irplane, a few infomercials. The things he didn!t recogni$e were broadcasts in foreign languages, usually Spanish but also Aussian, )rench, 1erman, and %rabic. )inally there was what appeared to be the opening scene from a news broadcast. 3,old there,3 (en said. 3They should give the date, maybe even the time.3 ,is insight proved correct. %n impossibly handsome male and a heavily made+up and surgically altered female, both wearing dar" suits, sat before a des". The graphics stated it was -hannel I Aeports from -harlotte, 9orth -arolina. 31ood evening,3 the male newscaster said. 3It!s five o!cloc", June E, /00?, and we have news for you... ne&t.3 The broadcast then cut to a commercial for 8c onald!s hamburgers, but everyone ignored it. 3.e got it,3 Sampson said, consulting a computer screen. ,e patched his voice through to ,uffy. 3,uff, I thin" we can confirm here. .e 'ust got a time@date stamp from a news broadcast from the Bnited States. They put it at F?00 hours, June E, /00?.3 31ive me the calculations,3 ,uffy!s voice replied. 3:et!s see if they match what navigation came up with.3

3.or"ing it,3 he said. 3:et!s see... -harlotte, 9orth -arolina is in the 2astern time $one. June E is within the daylight savings period. That means it was /F00 1reenwich 8ean Time when that broadcast was sent. If we!re where we!re supposed to be that means the signal too"...3 ,e did a few calculations, 3'ust over si& hours to get to us. That would put us at 'ust a hair past 0C00 on June ?, /00?. That sound li"e what navigation came up with43 3=ou!ve hit the pussy right on the clit,3 ,uffy told him. 3%ttention all compartments+we have confirmation. .e have successfully traversed the wormhole and have arrived in the past. It is currently June ?, /00? and we will shortly begin accelerating toward our target area. 1ood 'ob everyone.3 June /8, /00? The 8SS -alistoga was traveling once more at its cruising velocity of si& million "ilometers per hour, its eight+day, ./01 acceleration burn having come to an end almost two wee"s before. The ship was now between the orbits of Branus and Saturn, though the planets themselves were both on the far sides of their orbits and barely visible. -alistoga would, however, pass within two million "ilometers of 8ars, an event the crew was loo"ing forward to as it would allow them to ma"e some observations of their home planet during a time human beings had yet to visit it and when the only man+made devices were a few probes circling in orbit or discarded on the surface. % viewing party had already been scheduled for the date when the flyby too" place. %fter passing 8ars, the -alistoga would continue on past the orbit of 2arth without slowing. 2arth was inconveniently located on the other side of the sun at the moment. They would pass within C0 million "ilometers of 5enus, FD million "ilometers of 8ercury, and D0 million "ilometers of the sun, close enough that the heat damping system would be forced to do triple duty. The sun!s gravity would give them a course ad'ustment, 'ust enough to steer them directly toward 2arth!s

position. They would then begin their deceleration burn and enter low 2arth orbit, or :2*, on September D. *nce there, the waiting would begin. There would be a lot of it, even under the best of circumstances. %s of yet, they didn!t even "now if the .est,em stealth ship had made its trip or not. %ssuming the .est,ems did ma"e it through, ,uffy would attempt to pin down their location and intercept them as they approached :2* some ?0 days after they emerged into the past. There was high hope among the crew that this plot would be successful and the entire mission could be completed without anyone having to ma"e the trip to the surface. ;ut no matter what the outcome, the -alistoga and its crew absolutely needed to be bac" in deep space beyond Pluto on January /8, /008. That was the pre+determined time the return wormhole was to be opened to bring them bac" home. This fact, in and of itself, was one the crew often mused about. 3Thin" about it,3 Slurry was fond of saying whenever the sub'ect came up. 3They opened that return wormhole si& hours after we left. Si& hours< )rom their perspective, this mission is already over and done, for better or for worse, and we!re on our way home. =et here we are, wee"s later, still plowing through space on the way to our target. It!s a :aura+fuc"ing mind trip.3 It was generally agreed that this was indeed a :aura+fuc"ing mind trip. 9or was it the only one the crew discussed obsessively. The potential parado& that had occurred to -um#uat -ypress had also occurred to Slurry and a few others. If their mission were successful, they would emerge from the wormhole only si& hours after entering it. The ship they were coming to stop would still be on its way to its 'ump+off point and would potentially be emerging from the return wormhole at the same time. 3Is that even possible43 was a sub'ect that was debated endlessly. 3.hat about the prohibition about creating matter without e&pending energy43 they would demand 3That!s a law of

physics, isn!t it4 =et that!s e&actly what we!ll be doing. The same matter will e&ist in two different places at the same time. It can!t happen.3 ;ut there were those who argued that it could happen and that it already had happened. This argument was #uite compelling and involved (en )ra$ier. 3,e!s here with us, right now, correct43 someone would as", usually+for dramatic effect+while (en was floating in view of the conversation or actually a part of it. It would of course be agreed that (en )ra$ier was indeed there with them, right at that particular time, living and breathing and thin"ing. 3*"ay, so he!s here on this ship with us, but he!s also in a warehouse in :os %ngeles, cryogenically fro$en, at this very moment. (en )ra$ier is already e&isting in two places at the same time, isn!t he43 There were, of course, counter+arguments to this. 3(en is not the same person who is in that warehouse, at least not on a cellular and subatomic level. ,e spent almost three years on 8ars after being awa"ened. ,is cells have regenerated and replaced themselves. ,e is not made of the same matter as the (en )ra$ier in the warehouse. ,is thoughts and memories are still stored and he is, in essence, the same person, but the matter he is composed of is different. .e haven!t created matter without e&pending energy.3 Aound and round these debates would go. %nd while the possibility or impossibility of their mission was argued, the ship "ept drawing closer and closer to 2arth and the potential confrontation with the .est,em team. )or the most part, the routines of the ship continued as they always had. This group of D0 people had been aboard the cramped confines of -alistoga for almost I0 days and the day+ to+day activities served both to "eep them busy and provide comfort in the face of the un"nown. .hile cleaning the dec"s or doing the laundry or coo"ing meals or participating in $ero+1 orgies, one did not have to thin" too much about what was

going to happen when they reached 2arth, or what would happen if they failed to stop the .est,em team from changing the past and their entire e&istence was eliminated. ;ut no matter how much wor" needed to be done each day and no matter how many orgies and botch sessions -ommander ,uffy allowed, there was still a lot of idle time on a trip of such a huge distance. The training sessions went on, of course, the special forces team and the ship!s crew drilling endlessly through every conceivable contingency that could possibly arise in every step of the mission, but even this still left hours to fill in each day. Aon Sampson helped fill some of this time by opening the intelligence department!s spare computer terminals to the crew to probe through the signals being received from /00? 2arth. This #uic"ly became a favorite activity. The syndicated reruns of situation comedies and dramatic series shows proved to be most popular, not for the entertainment value, but for the sheer amusement at how unrealistically life was portrayed. They most en'oyed the ones that purported to be 3family values3 type shows, in which problems were encountered and neatly solved in // minutes. )ull ,ouse reruns were a particular favorite, as were episodes of )amily Ties, :ittle ,ouse on the Prairie, Seventh ,eaven, and The -osby Show. )ollowing a close second for sheer hilarity were the documentary shows broadcast on the so+called science channels in between commercials for psychic networ"s and get rich #uic" schemes. %nd then there were the commercials themselves. The sheer volume of advertisements 2arthlings of the age were forced to and willing to put up with ama$ed everyone e&cept (en. *n 8ars advertising did e&ist, and there were even commercials slipped into the beginnings and ends of broadcast entertainment, but the ratio was around 00 seconds of commercial time for every EF minutes of programming. There was also a rigidly enforced truth in advertising law on 8ars, something that was alleged to e&ist in the Bnited States, but which really didn!t in practice. Slurry and Aigger were

particularly fascinated by the advertisements and would fre#uently #uestion (en about something they!d seen. 3So these two corporations are both selling aspirin tablets, right43 Slurry would as". 3Aight,3 (en would agree. 3%nd they!re both basically the same drug in the same dosage and the same amount, right43 3Aight.3 3=et this company is going on television and claiming that its aspirin pills are better than the other corporation!s aspirin pills because they come in a gel form. They actually say the pills will wor" faster in this form when even I, who am not a doctor, "now this cannot be true. %spirin is aspirin. id people actually fall for this43 3% certain percentage of the population did,3 (en told her. 3These corporations spent billions on advertising and what you see here was the main way of ma"ing their product stand out from other products that were essentially e&actly the same, by creative pac"aging and out+of+conte&t innuendo. 9otice that they don!t actually say their aspirin absorbs faster than the competitors.3 3They did too,3 Slurry protested. 3%h, but they didn!t,3 he countered. 3They said their new gel tabs get the medicine #uic"ly to where it is needed. %nd they show you the competing brand!s boring+loo"ing, outdated, white tablet. The implication that their pill absorbs faster and is more effective is there, but they didn!t actually say it, did they43 39o,3 she said after considering for a moment. 3They didn!t.3

3%nd that!s how they get around the truth in advertising rules. It!s a loophole that violates the spirit of the rule but not the letter, so it!s allowed. %dvertisers use a thousand loopholes li"e that one. Smart people learned to see through them and dumb people+which, I!m sad to say, ma"e up the ma'ority of the populace+fell for it.3 (en found himself watching many of the shows as well, though not with the same sort of hilarity the rest of the crew en'oyed. Instead, he would view episodes of -heers or Seinfeld or 8R%RSR, with a sense of nostalgia so strong it was li"e a physical sensation. These were the shows he used to watch in his youth and as a young adult. These were the reruns he used to watch late at night with his wife, both of them sipping a glass of wine, laughing at the admittedly simplistic humor. ,adn!t he and %nnie stayed up late and watched an old rerun of -heers the very night before he was shot4 =es, li"e everything else about that last day, he remembered it well. .hen he wasn!t viewing old reruns (en would tune into audio+ only channels+the radio stations+and listen for hours to roc" and roll tunes from his past, songs by Journey, :ed Jeppelin, Pearl Jam, %lice in -hains, songs he used to hear in his car on the way to wor", that he would play on his - player while wor"ing in the garage. ,e had tuned into the 2arthling Internet on 8ars and pulled copies of these songs from it on occasion, but such occurrences had been rare and had not carried #uite the same weight then as they did now. ,e was actually in his own time now+hearing the songs only hours after they!d been spit out of some transmitter in :os %ngeles or 9ew =or" or enver. *nce he had pulled in an actual San Jose station and had listened for almost three hours, hearing advertisements for businesses he "new, hearing disc 'oc"eys who had spun - s in his previous life, wondering at the "nowledge that %nnie was in San Jose at that very moment and had maybe been listening to the very broadcast. %nnie was never far from his mind as he grew closer and closer

to her, though he too" great pains to hide this fact from Slurry. If they went down to the surface to ta"e the .est,em team down he would be within si&ty miles of her when they made landfall+she in San Jose, living the life of a police widow, he in San )rancisco. .hat did she do now4 ,ow did she spend her days4 id she still miss him as much as he missed her4 It was a given that her grief had faded enough for her to enter another romantic relationship. Though she was yet to meet avid ;rown+who would become her ne&t husband+the encounter was not terribly far in her future. Still, she would love him enough to retain the drive to "eep him alive, the drive that would eventually succeed five generations later. %nd what of his son4 The son he had never met would be in San Jose as well+three 2arth years old and probably 'ust getting out of diapers. id %nnie tell him stories of his father yet4 .as she even now planting the seed that would culminate in his resurrection F80 years from now4 %t times (en would find himself staring at the main view screen on the bridge of -alistoga, fi&ating on the bright blue and white blob that was 2arth. ,e would use the $oom controls to bring the image closer, until he could ma"e out the blurry forms of the continents covered with clouds. They were down there and he would be so close to them, yet he "new he would not be able to see them, to meet them, to even put himself in the same telephone area code with them. This was not 'ust because :ieutenant Span"worth would forbid such a thing+though he would. It was too dangerous to the time stream, potentially more dangerous then what the .est,ems were planning. If %nnie saw him or heard from him, it might sway her from the path she was supposed to follow. She might not end up marrying avid ;rown+which would mean his son would grow up without a father figure, which might have detrimental effects on his future life. %lso, if they didn!t become attached to avid ;rown, they would not move to -orpus -hristi, Te&as. Perhaps this would have no effect on her future, but there was a good possibility it would. San Jose, -alifornia was a ma'or

transportation hub and a ma'or producer of electronics. uring .orld .ar III, it would be e&tensively bombed by -hinese planes operating out of occupied .ashington and flying in low over the ocean. Tens of thousands of San Jose citi$ens would be "illed as a result. .ould %nnie and (en Jr. be among them if they stayed4 It was enough of a possibility that it had to be assumed to be a fact. If the life of %nnie or (en Jr. were changed in any small way in /00?, it was possible that the means by which (en himself would one day be awa"ened would change as well. So no, he could not visit %nnie, could not see her, could not tal" to her. %s he had told Slurry, she might as well still be C0 million miles and F88 years away, 'ust as she had been on 8ars.

There was no actual night and day aboard a spacecraft, only adherence to an agreed upon reference point of time"eeping. *n 2ast,em and .est,em vessels that reference point was 1reenwich 8ean Time. %board 8artian vessels the reference point was 9ew Pittsburgh time since the original 8artian settlement served as the prime meridian on 8ars. .hen -alistoga had been in its own time period it had adhered to 9P Standard time as the time aboard the ship 'ust li"e any other 8artian vessel. 9ow that it had crossed into the past, the reference point had been changed to coordinate with the time in their target area+namely Pacific aylight Time. This had ta"en a bit of an ad'ustment for the crew since on the day they had gone through the apparent time on the ship had shifted forward eight and a half hours, but now, as they entered the third wee" since emerging in the past, everyone had sha"en off the 'et lag and were ad'usted to living on 2arth time. %t //CD hours on a )riday night, (en, Slurry, and -ommander ,uffy were all in ,uffy!s small but comparatively lu&urious cabin 'ust aft of the bridge. The doors were shut and loc"ed and the computer screen was on stand+by, showing a screensaver image of classic 8artian naval vessels. The room was warm and

steamy, the scent of lust thic" in the air, as were the sounds of moaning and the purrs of pleasure. The three of them were floating about a meter over ,uffy!s bed, their bodies intertwined and sweaty. Slurry was on the bottom of the pile, floating hori$ontally, her bac" to the floor, her legs spread wide. (en was vertical, his head toward the ceiling, his feet hoo"ed into the headboard of the bed to anchor them, his throbbing penis buried in his wife!s vagina, thrusting enthusiastically in and out. ,uffy was by far receiving the most sensation. She was floating hori$ontally li"e Slurry, only with her chest facing the floor. ,er legs were wrapped tightly around Slurry!s head, her wet pussy pressed against Slurry!s suc"ing lips. ,er own lips were down low, 'ust above the 'unction where (en and Slurry were 'oined together. ,er long tongue was stic"ing out, mostly stabbing at Slurry!s erect clit but occasionally lic"ing the 'uices from (en!s shaft as it slid in and out. 3:aura bless the 8artians,3 (en grunted as he powered in and out, feeling the tightness of Slurry!s body gripping him and the simultaneous touch of his commander!s tongue. ,is left hand was holding Slurry!s body against his by the thigh while his right hand caressed ,uffy!s breast, his fingers twea"ing the nipple in a way he had come to "now she li"ed. ,e could tell Slurry was fast approaching orgasm. ,er pelvis was starting to gyrate in an uncontrolled manor and he could hear the muffled grunts of her moans from within ,uffy!s crotch. ,e himself was under tight control as he had already cum once earlier+that time in ,uffy!s suc"ing mouth, where she had shared the deposit with Slurry in a deep tongue "iss that had been visually erotic enough to recharge him for the mission he was participating in now. It was 'ust as Slurry!s spasms really started to go into overdrive that they were interrupted. The emergency intercom system suddenly beeped out its shrill alarm and the voice of arla *gle, the navigation officer who currently had the con, spo"e out7 3-ommander ,uffy to the bridge, immediately. I repeat,

-ommander ,uffy to the bridge, immediately.3 39oooooooo,3 Slurry whined. 3Aape my nostrils with a pig!s coc"< 9ot now<3 ,uffy raised her head without hesitation and pushed off the sweating, lusty pile, floating up into the air. She became businessli"e in an instant, loo"ing at the intercom terminal. 3*n the way,3 she said. She didn!t bother getting dressed or even toweling off. She put one foot on the side of the bed and pushed toward the hatch that led to the bridge. Seeing this, and alarmed by the tone that had been in *gle!s voice, (en disengaged from Slurry as well, pulling his shiny, dripping coc" from her body. 3(en<3 Slurry yelled. 31et that thing bac" inside me<3 3.e!ll finish up in a minute,3 he promised. 3:et!s see what!s going on.3 3*h, for the love of :aura,3 Slurry panted, watching helplessly as (en pushed off the bed and followed ,uffy to the hatch. The night shift bridge crew were all peering intently at their instruments as ,uffy floated into the room, drops of sweat, saliva, and vaginal secretions spinning off her body. 3.hat!s going on43 she as"ed. 3.e!ve 'ust had an une&plained change in momentum and course,3 *gle reported. 35elocity dropped by .0CD percent, course changed by nearly a tenth of a degree to the right. Some "ind of force 'ust acted on us.3 ,uffy frowned as she heard this. Since they were coasting in the vacuum of space, their momentum and course should have remained fi&ed at what it had been when their engine burn had ceased. This was in accordance to 9ewton!s :aws of 8otion,

which stated that an ob'ect in motion would remain in motion and travel in a straight line until a force acted upon it to change that. 3%re we still being influenced43 she as"ed. 39o,3 *gle replied. 3The duration of the force was CF seconds and then it cut off.3 3-hec" all systems to see if there was any rogue maneuvering thruster activity,3 she ordered, pushing off the wall again and drifting over to her command chair. She set herself down in it and strapped in. ;ehind her, (en, e#ually na"ed and dripping, floated into the center of the room and loo"ed over her shoulder. Slurry, her curiosity now aroused since her se&uality was not, came floating in from the hatch to see what was going on. She, li"e her partners, was still dressed in her birthday suit. *gle spo"e a few commands into the computer and the te&t on her screen changed momentarily. She peered at it and then shoo" her head. 39o thruster activity has occurred since an hour before the cessation of our acceleration burn. This is confirmed through computer record and e&terior sensors.3 3 id we vent anything43 ,uffy as"ed ne&t. 3There have been no hull breach alarms,3 *gle said. 3I!ll chec" the propellant and the atmospheric generators, but we!ve had no indications of lea"s from there either. In any case, if we!d vented enough to ad'ust our course that radically there would be no air left for us to breathe.3 31ood point,3 ,uffy said thoughtfully, scratching at her swollen vaginal lips. *gle went through an abbreviated diagnostic of -alistoga!s systems and confirmed that everything was wor"ing 'ust as it should, with no detectable e&pellation of gas into space, certainly not enough to affect the velocity of the ship. 39othing in the ship caused this, ,uff,3 she said. 3The force had to be

e&ternal. ;est guess is gravitational.3 31ravitational,3 ,uffy said, a strange grin on her face. 3%nd there!s only one thing we "now of that would cause a CF second pull of gravity powerful enough to move us off course, isn!t there43 3% wormhole opening,3 Slurry said. 3)uc"in! aye,3 ,uffy said. 3I thin" our friends 'ust came through.3 She turned to :ieutenant 8i"e Spammer, who was wor"ing the detection and countermeasures terminal. 3Spammy, get the computer to crunch the numbers and see if we can pinpoint the location of that gravitational source. If we can find where they came through, we can pro'ect their course and narrow down the search field.3 Spammer loo"ed doubtful. 3I!ll see what I can do, ,uff,3 he said. 3;ut there are a lot of un"nown factors here. If we don!t "now e&actly how powerful the gravitational influence was and how far away it was, we!re not gonna be able to pinpoint anything. .e need to "now at least one variable for the e#uation to be solved.3 3Bse the force of our wormhole as an appro&imation of theirs,3 she said. 3It!ll at least be in the erogenous $one, if not e&act. That!ll give us a bearing and a starting point, if nothing else.3 3=ou got it, ,uff,3 he said, turning to his panel. 3*nce you get that figured out, concentrate the passive sensors in that section of space. I "now they!re too far away to detect, but at least we!ll get in the habit of loo"ing for them there.3 3Aight.3 3,elm,3 she said, turning bac" to *gle. 3Sound the acceleration alarm and get us bac" on course. o it carefully. *ur ass end is

probably pointing toward the .est,ems. I "now they!re probably too far off to detect us even if we burned our engines at full throttle, but we!ll ta"e no chances. The burn will be at no more a tenth of a 1.3 3)uc"in! aye, ,uff,3 *gle responded. 3Sound acceleration and begin course correction. 2ngines at point one+$ero 1.3 3)rom this moment out,3 ,uffy announced, 3we operate under the assumption that the .est,ems are out there and closing in. Stealth procedures are now in effect. .aste heat is to be accumulated in the outer hull spaces and vented in controlled bursts. I don!t want that ship detecting our presence in this time, not even a hint of it. If they find out we!re here before they ma"e their move, the whole fuc"in! mission is blown.3

Since they did not "now e&actly where in space the .est,em wormhole had opened, what time it had opened, or how powerful the gravitational influence it had caused actually was, their calculations involved more guesswor" than fact. ;ased on the manner in which this force had acted upon -alistoga, they were able to determine at least the general direction to e&plore. The pull of gravity had come from an arc of space some thirty degrees wide and fifty degrees from top to bottom. This was, of course, a huge area, encompassing many millions of "ilometers of space, but 8artians tended to be glass+half+full type of people and ,uffy and her crew were grateful to have eliminated more than ?0 percent of their potential search area. %s far as determining distance, travel time, and e&act course, their data was based on the assumption that the .est,em wormhole had been appro&imately of the same force as the 8artian wormhole. This narrowed their search field down even further, but the margin for error was calculated out to a depressingly large factor. ,uffy and the rest of the ship!s operational crew were forced to admit that the chances of

actually finding the .est,em vessel before it entered orbit around 2arth were rather slim. It was an assumption that turned out to be correct. -alistoga continued on toward its target, day+by+day, night+by+ night. The detection crew "ept a sharp eye out for the slightest indication of heat in the designated search area, but they received no hint of any "ind that there was even a ship out there. If not for the gravitational influence they!d encountered, they might have been prone to believing the .est,em wormhole had failed. In the meantime, the ship!s routines went on. Training sessions continued every day until every member of the interdiction team was familiar with every aspect of the mission and had hundreds of contingency plans ready. 8eals were prepared and consumed, and the mess cleaned up. 5arious members of the ship!s crew got together during their off+duty hours and en'oyed recreation with each other in the grandest 8artian tradition. %t least once a wee" -ommander ,uffy gave authori$ation for into&icant use and a party in the wardroom, which always turned into a full+blown se&ual orgy. 8orale remained high and the crew remained focused. (en reali$ed about twelve days after the .est,em wormhole had opened that he had now had se& with every female member of the crew. ,e felt absurdly proud of himself for this accomplishment. %fter all, how many sailors in his day could have truthfully made such a claim4 In the meantime, he "ept a vigilant watch on Planet 2arth as it grew larger and larger in the view screens. ,is home was getting closer and, as it did so, he found himself thin"ing more and more of %nnie and his son. They were down there, with no idea that the patriarch of their family was approaching them at more than FE00 "ilometers a second.

*n %ugust F8, /00?, -alistoga used bursts of its maneuvering

thrusters to turn its ass toward 2arth. The fusion engines were lit at a thrust of .F01 and the deceleration burn began. *ver the ne&t eight days the ship was slowed from a velocity of si& million "ilometers per hour to a mere /?,000 (P,, which was orbital speed for 2arth. Bpon reaching this magic number the burn ended and the ship continued to coast toward its ob'ective. *n September D, 2arth!s gravity pulled -alistoga into a polar orbit at an altitude of 800 "ilometers. They had arrived. 3 etection, how are we loo"ing43 ,uffy as"ed from her command chair as the first of what promised to be many orbits began. Spacer 1lory Trower was on duty at the time and her holographic display was liberally lit up with contacts and radio sources. 3Still sorting through it, ,uff,3 she replied. 3% lot of these contacts are so outdated the computer is having trouble classifying them. %s it stands now, I!ve identified the International Space Station with a space shuttle and a Soyu$ capsule doc"ed to it, F/D satellites, and more than twelve thousand pieces of space debris ranging in si$e from si& millimeters to a meter and a half in :2*. *ur orbit is not a standard altitude for the time so there is nothing in our pro'ected path to worry about.3 3Twelve thousand pieces of debris,3 ,uffy said sadly, sha"ing her head. 3 on!t they "now they!re going to have to come up and clean up all of this shit eventually43 ,er #uestion was rhetorical, of course. They did not "now they were going to have to perform all of that 3house"eeping,3 at least not yet. They would learn that the hard way after several ships were lost due to collisions with this debris when the space race went into overdrive in the post .orld .ar III era. 3In addition,3 Trower continued, 3there are 0I satellites in geosynchronous orbit+mostly communications, weather, or military birds. The coverage is such that we!ll be able to tap into at least ten of them at any given point in our orbit.3

35ery good,3 ,uffy said. 3%nd how about 2S843 she as"ed, referring to the detection of active sensors. 3I!m getting a shitload of search radar activity,3 she reported. 3;ut all of it is ground based. Their coverage is spread throughout the globe but it!s not really uniform. It overlaps in many places and there are huge gaps in it. 8y guess is it is not coordinated.3 3It!s not,3 ,uffy said. 32very country with the capability is doing its own thing. The %mericans and the Aussians and the -hinese all have trac"ing stations in operation around the globe but refuse to cooperate with each other.3 3In any case,3 Trower said, 3there is nothing I!m pic"ing up that is capable of detecting us up here. There is no active IA scan at all and the radar is so primitive it wouldn!t get a hit off us unless we were less than twenty "ilometers away. 2ven our advanced satellite passive infrared is incapable of detecting a stealth ship in orbit. I hardly thin" their system is anything to worry about, as long as we don!t emit any unencrypted radio signals.3 ,uffy nodded and then used her intercom to contact the Intelligence epartment. 3,ow are we loo"ing down there43 she as"ed Sampson. 3I!ve already tapped into the com+sats of all the ma'or military powers,3 he reported. 3Their encryption systems are a 'o"e. I thin" the computer actually yawned while it bro"e their codes. 9othing but routine traffic going on, certainly nothing li"e what you!d e&pect if they!d 'ust discovered a strange space ship establishing orbit around their planet. I!m confident they have no idea we!re here.3 3Perfect,3 ,uffy said. She turned to the bridge crew. 3:et!s start getting our buoys laid, shall we43 *ver the ne&t two hours, the amount of time it too" to complete

an orbit, si& passive detection satellites "nown in naval tradition as 3buoys3 were launched from the top of -alistoga. 2ach buoy was one meter in diameter and constructed of radar+absorbent, infrared+neutral material that made it pretty much impossible to be detected even by modern sensors, let alone by primitive 2arthling devices. These buoys used electric roc"ets to push themselves slowly upward into a high polar orbit where they would "eep watch on the approaches to the planet. The hope was that they would detect the .est,em ship during its deceleration burn. The buoys also "ept their electronic eyes glued to the orbital plane itself where, if they failed in the first mission, they would at least detect the separation and deceleration of a landing ship. They were spaced so their coverage was e&actly uniform, covering all portions of the globe and all areas approaching it, in overlapping patterns. .hen the mission was complete, they would be collected before the return to modern time. If, for whatever reason, they could not be collected, their orbital speed was such that within si& months they would be pulled into the atmosphere and incinerated. 3%ll buoys operating within parameters,3 Trower reported when the 'ob was complete, loo"ing at a new series of displays the telemetry from the buoys had prompted. 39othing but normal contacts so far.3 35ery good,3 ,uffy said, satisfied. 39ow its time to do some more waiting.3 3.e!re definitely getting good at that,3 replied the helm operator.

The days and nights went by and the routine aboard -alistoga continued, for the most part, unabated. The si& billion 2arthlings below and the si& men and women onboard the International Space Station had no in"ling that a futuristic space vessel was orbiting their planet, listening in on their

communications, probing their Internet, and watching their television shows. Three days after establishing orbit the crew watched as the space shuttle iscovery left the International Space Station and headed home to -ape -anaveral, )lorida. uring its re+entry burn it passed within si&ty miles of -alistoga, again without anyone on 2arth or above reali$ing it. The trac"ing crew on -alistoga used the event as a practical e&ercise in using their own passive detection e#uipment, including the buoys. They trac"ed iscovery from separation to landing with better coverage than could be seen on the 9%S% telemetry+which was also being monitored. The test was not all that realistic in comparison to trac"ing a .est,em landing ship+the space shuttle burned more than fifty times hotter since its engines were so primitively inefficient+but it did serve to test the e#uipment and brea" up the boredom. *ne thing that did not pass was the fascination the crew held for actually being in the past. The spare computer terminals were in such demand that ,uffy modified a security rule and allowed everyone to tap into the stream of data being received with their P-s. *nce this became effective almost everyone spent all of their spare time loo"ing at their computers and surfing through various 2arth databases or watching T5 shows. The main topic of conversation became who had seen what and where it could be found. ,eld in particularly high contempt was the pornography, or what passed for it. *n 8ars, erotic cinematography was considered among the highest of the fine arts, right up there with ballet and opera. % 8artian porno flic" was a masterpiece of plot and action, heavy on characteri$ation and symbolism. %n 2arthling pornographic movie was basically nothing more than people fuc"ing, usually with no e&planation of who the characters were or why they were fuc"ing, elements considered essential to any good stro"e flic". 3=our people are down there polishing their torpedoes to this shit43 :ieutenant Span"worth demanded of (en after one such

viewing. 3,ow does it even arouse them4 It!s two sluts with fa"e tits and dyed hair suc"ing some steroid+enhanced asshole!s dic". There was no build+up at all< The scene 'ust opened up with them already na"ed and getting stin"y<3 (en simply shrugged. 3The idea was 'ust to produce porn cheaply and sell it through pac"aging,3 he said. 3They didn!t waste money on things li"e writers or directors.3 3%nd what!s with pulling the coc" out and cumming all over the slut!s face or all over her ass43 as"ed 8c1raw, who had watched with them. 3I mean, I can see doing that once in a while 'ust to have a little variety, but every fuc"ing time4 2very one of these garbage flic"s I!ve seen, that!s how they end the shot.3 3That!s what they thought everyone wanted to see,3 (en said. This, as Slurry and Aigger both pointed out, was one of the fundamental problems with having the decision ma"ers in any business too far removed from the operations. The porn industry was far from the only place in /Fst century society where the people producing the product told themselves they "new e&actly what their customers wanted when in reality they had not the slightest clue. 9early the entire entertainment industry was guilty of this in some way. -onstant updates and news flashes were given about the romantic relationship between two famous actors when nobody really gave a shit. 8ainstream movies full of da$$ling special effects had no actual story other than a wea" plot designed to hold the effects together. 8aga$ines did multi+page storylines and pictorial layouts no one actually read. The entire .estern .orld media apparatus was filled with such things and the fascination with the drivel it produced was rampant among the -alistoga!s crew. If the rest of the crew was merely fascinated with the pre+ modern 2arthling Internet, Slurry was downright obsessed with it. ;y being in the same time period as the sub'ect she studied and by having unfettered access to their communications and

Internet systems, she was able to tap into things she never could have bac" on 8ars. She spent nearly all of her free time using her P- to eavesdrop on telephone conversations and instant messages between individuals down on the surface. She heard secure transmissions between military leaders, between spies, between high government officials. She listened to conversations held by the President of the Bnited States himself, by the Prime 8inister of the Bnited (ingdom, by other 2nglish+spea"ing heads of state. She also listened to hundreds, if not thousands of conversations between ordinary citi$ens, getting a feel for the way those she studied tal"ed and their motivations. She too" copious notes on what she heard and recorded hours of audio and te&t files for storage in -alistoga!s memory ban"s for more detailed perusal when they got home. 3This is a ran"in! goldmine,3 she told (en e&citedly. 3The information I!ve pulled in. It!s unprecedented. I could stay here for years and never get bored with it.3 Aigger too became #uite gripped by the wealth of firsthand historical sourcing now available to him. Instead of listening to conversations and reading instant messages, he spent his time using the high+magnification cameras to actually peer down at the surface. .ith a resolution undreamed of in the best spy satellites of the day, he photographed and filmed everything he thought was even remotely interesting. ,e paid particular attention to historical structures that were no longer in e&istence in modern times, things such as the 1olden 1ate ;ridge, The 1reat .all of -hina, The Bnited States -apital ;uilding Gafter merging into .est,em, the location of the national capital was moved to enverH, the Sistine -hapel, ;ig ;en, ;uc"ingham Palace, or the infamous :as 5egas strip. ,e spent an e#ual amount of time peering down at -hina, Japan, and India, documenting the frantic preparations for war that were being underta"en under the nose of the .estern world. In this endeavor, (en often 'oined him. %s a former military man, he too was fascinated by the thought that the biggest war in

human history was being set up as they watched and the countries that would be attac"ed had not the slightest clue. 3The global powers of the day, particularly the Bnited States, vastly underestimated the abilities of the %sian Powers,3 Aigger lectured him as they made a pass over the area of interest one morning. 3Those clever bastards constructed hundreds of thousands of armored vehicles, airplanes, bombs, missiles, and every other "ind of war supply in the Japanese and -hinese factories, and then they moved all of this e#uipment, along with more than three million men, to staging areas on the Aussian border and nobody "new they had done it until the attac" came on January F, /00I. *f course, all the clues were there. ,indsight would ma"e them slap their heads and as" how they hadn!t figured it out, but right now, the %sian Powers are full+ steam into war production, and the other countries are sitting fat and happy, thin"ing that global war is a thing of the past.3 %nd when (en saw the shots of -hina and Japan and India that -alistoga!s cameras too", he was awed at the efficiency of what the %sian Powers were doing. 3:oo" at that, right there,3 Aigger said e&citedly, peering at the screen where the image he was currently shooting was displayed. (en loo"ed and saw a column of tan"s, %P-s, and deuce and a half truc"s moving up a highway from the port city of alian on the southeast coast of -hina toward the staging area on the Siberian border with Aussia. The column was maybe half a mile long, using standard highways, and plainly visible. 3That!s how they did it,3 Aigger told him. 3They moved their armor a little bit at a time, in between spy satellite passes. ;efore the ne&t satellite comes overhead, they!ll pull off the road at a pre+set location and pull specially made camouflage netting over the entire column. This netting will dampen infrared imagery, absorb radar imagery, and cover visual to ma"e it loo"

li"e 'ust part of the landscape. This was something they had to do every two hours on average while they made their march. Their discipline is something to be admired. It too" them almost ten years to produce everything and move it into position, but on the night of the attac", all of it was there and raring to go. That!s how they pushed so far into Aussia on the first day and did what no other invader in history was able to do+capture Aussia in two wee"s in the midst of winter and hold it.3 Aigger also homed the cameras in on the staging areas themselves, which were mostly crude tunnels and underground bun"ers and which were also superbly camouflaged. Tread mar"s from the vehicles were carefully scrubbed clean by special vehicles between satellite passes. )uel and ammunition depots were hidden in plain site, disguised as water towers, storage buildings, or other civilian infrastructure. %ir bases were disguised as civilian airports, with the military aircraft disassembled and stored in secret hangers. 3%nd while all this is going on,3 Aigger said, 3these countries that will comprise the core of the %sian Powers are pretending to be in conflict with each other. -hina, Japan, and India are all supposed to be antagonists. They snipe at each other in the Bnited 9ations meetings. They occasionally have minor military s"irmishes. %ll of it is nothing more than an act. Their unity will be #uite tight when the time comes to attac".3 In addition to helping Aigger peer down at the surface for historical information, the cameras served a function for (en as well. Twice every day, at FC00 hours and 0F00 hours, -alistoga passed over the western Bnited States. (en was given control of the ship!s camera at these times so he could ta"e photos of their target area in Aoseville and adapt them into maps for mission briefings. ,e too" shots of the geography around the hospital, paying particular attention to the roads and traffic conditions. The resolution was such that he could actually $oom in on street signs with enough clarity to read them. ,e could pic" out individual faces wal"ing about in the hospital par"ing lot or peering out of windows. *n one occasion he had actually been

able to read the badge number from a security guard!s chest. It was during such passes that (en put his "nowledge of the camera system and the -alistoga main computer to other, more personal, uses as well. ,e was able to $oom in on his old house in Pleasanton, the house where %nnie still lived. ,e would stare at the simple single story tract house tuc"ed away in a standard suburban neighborhood. It loo"ed almost e&actly the same as he remembered it, save a few landscaping additions and a swing set in the bac" yard. That swing set, he "new, was for his son+for (en Jr. I!m loo"ing at my bac"yard, he would thin" at such times, the bac"yard where my wife pushes my son on those swings, where he digs in that plastic sandbo& I see. I!m loo"ing at this four years after I!ve been "illed in that world. Inevitably, no matter how many times he saw this sight, thought these thoughts, chills would race up and down his spine. ,e was actually in the same time with %nnie. She was right down there, living out her life. If only he could see her. %nd of course, eventually, he did see her. It was during the FC00 pass on September D, a beautiful day down in the south bay. The ocean fog had burned off and the cloud cover was minimal to non+e&istent, allowing crystal clear clarity. %s he always did, he too" his shots of the Aoseville area first, shots he would later go over in minute detail, loo"ing for road construction, closed streets, traffic signals out of order, anything that would possibly affect the upcoming mission. *nce these shots were ta"en he spo"e a command to the computer, giving longitude and latitude coordinates. The cameras swung slightly on their a&is and $oomed in and he was loo"ing at %nnie!s house once more, e&pecting to see nothing but the empty bac"yard, the empty driveway, the front yard. *nly this time, the bac" yard was not empty. ,e saw (en Jr. first, spotting him because the human eye is drawn toward movement. ,is son was playing on the slide, a

tiny figure in blue shorts and white shirt climbing aw"wardly up the small ladder that led to the top of the slide. ,is breath caught in his throat. %nd then he noticed %nnie and his heart seemed to stop for a moment. %nnie, dressed in a yellow bi"ini, was lying on her bac" on a towel in the middle of the lawn, ta"ing advantage of the weather and doing a little sunbathing. 3*h :aura,3 (en whispered in awe, not reali$ing he!d spo"en aloud. ,e $oomed in the shot as much as he could, which was a considerable amount in the clear air. %nnie soon filled the entire screen, the resolution so clear it was almost as if he were hovering directly above her. ,e could see drops of perspiration on her chest and upper lip, could see the rise and fall of her breasts with each breath she too". She was so beautiful< ,er bi"ini was s"impy, smaller than what she had worn in her pre+ pregnancy days. %nd, despite having produced a child, she still did 'ustice to it. ,er breasts were fuller than they had been, bulging erotically from the sides of the bi"ini cups. ,er belly was not completely flat but it was close, the small array of stretch mar"s and the infinitesimal bulge doing nothing but accenting her beauty. ,er legs were truly magnificent, well toned and muscled, as if she were in the habit of running. They were the sort of legs that caused men to stare after them when they were seen in shorts or below the hem of a dress, the "ind of legs that drove men to enough distraction that they were in danger of rear+ending the car in front of them if encountered while driving. ;ut it was her face that drew his attention more than anything. That lovely, innocent+loo"ing face he had fallen in love with nearly at first sight. It loo"ed a little older than he remembered, of course, with a few lines where there had not been lines before, but it was the same face nonetheless, a face he!d "issed, stared into, caressed with his hand. It was the face of the woman he loved more than any other. ,er head was turned to the side, toward (en Jr!s position, her eyes open and "eeping a watch on his actions. ,er e&pression was neutral, neither happy nor sad, neither whimsical nor melancholy. She would occasionally crac" a small smile at something her son

said or did. (en $oomed out a little, so he could see (en Jr. again. ,is son was now standing at the bottom of the slide, a plastic baseball bat in his hands. ,e banged the bat on the slide a few times, obviously relishing the noise it made. ,e might!ve continued doing this for some time but %nnie apparently didn!t care for the repetition and said something to him. ,e seemed to plead with her but it seemed his appeal was re'ected. .ith a pout he threw down the bat and sul"ed about, "ic"ing at a plastic ball. 9ot receiving any sort of attention from this display, he gave up the effort and wal"ed bac" to the ladder of the slide. ,e began to climb again. (en watched the two of them for almost fifteen minutes, until -alistoga passed out of range. .hen they finally disappeared from his view he sat there for a long time, strapped into the chair before the terminal, eyes oblivious to the display, 'ust thin"ing over what he had seen. ,e had been loo"ing at his family down there, the family that cran"ed+out asshole had stolen from him. ,e had not been seeing mere photographs of them, or video clips, but had actually been loo"ing at them live. The nostalgia and love this e&perience produced in him was so powerful he actually felt sic" to his stomach. So close, he thought again. So close and yet so far.

September passed, leading into *ctober, and still there was no sign of the approaching .est,em ship. -alistoga!s passive sensors and the detection buoys scanned everywhere, loo"ing for the slightest hint of artificial heat or electromagnetic radiation and saw nothing, not even a false alarm. ;y *ctober F0, ,uffy began to suspect their best window of opportunity to find their enemy had already passed, that the .est,em ship had already entered orbit around 2arth and was merely waiting for the right time to send down its interdiction team.

-onfirmation of this assumption came on *ctober /0. %s chance would have it, ,uffy herself had the con when it happened. It was 0I08 hours, 'ust after brea"fast cleanup, and she was sitting in her command chair filling out the first of her daily log entries. Suddenly 1lory Trower on the secondary detection terminal per"ed up. 3I got something from ;uoy 0, ,uff,3 she said, e&citement in her tone. 3% radio burst from bearing FD0 mar" ?8 relative to the buoy. It!s still going on.3 ,uffy "new that ;uoy 0 was about a third of the way further along in its orbital plane than -alistoga, and about 80 degrees further west. -alistoga was currently passing over the 2astern 8editerranean Sea, heading in the direction of the 9orth Pole. This meant the radio source being detected was coming from a position roughly over 8anchuria. 3Is there anything 2arthling or natural there that could be causing the burst43 she as"ed. 39othing,3 Trower said. 3The nearest 2arth ob'ect I have is a military satellite at a relative bearing of I8 mar" F00.3 3 esignate it as an un"nown contact and try to catch it with ;uoy D or E,3 ,uffy ordered. 3:et!s get a triangulation on it and pin down the e&act location and course. 8eanwhile, ship the transmission telemetry to Intelligence and get it decoded.3 3)uc"in! aye, ,uff,3 Trower said, turning to her terminal. Things moved #uic"ly for the ne&t five minutes. The radio transmission they were detecting lasted less than forty seconds but ;uoy D was able to get enough of a hit on it that -alistoga!s computers could triangulate on the source with a fair degree of accuracy. They determined the source was moving at orbital speed in a due south direction, meaning it was in the far side of a polar orbit. 9e&t, the Intelligence section decoded the signal and determined it had been directed at several military satellites

in geosynchronous orbit. 3It!s a .est,em signal,3 Aon Sampson confirmed. 39othing from this time period could encrypt a message li"e that. They!re setting up to mas" an infrared re+entry signature from detection by the 2arthlings.3 3That!s confirmation,3 ,uffy announced. 3That!s our fuc"ing target and they!re about to launch a re+entry vehicle. etection, mar" it as a positive hostile contact.3 3)uc"in! aye, ,uff,3 Trower answered. 3,elm,3 ,uffy said ne&t, 3plot an intercept course. I need to "now how long it will ta"e us to get into interception range.3 She already "new it would probably be too long. -atching up to another vehicle in :2* without having your own ship brea" orbit was not as simple as changing direction and putting on some gas. It was an e&ercise in time consumption. 3I!m on the motherfuc"er, ,uff,3 replied arla *gle, who had the helm. ,er fingers began to fly over her terminal, calling up the proper screens. It too" her less than a minute to get the calculations. 3Si& hours, at best,3 she announced. 3.e!ll have to change course and burn the engines at ./0 for about an hour.3 3)uc" me with a red 'ac"hammer,3 ,uffy said. 3That!s too much time.3 3.e!ll run a fifty+fifty chance of them spotting us if we burn at that level and they have detection buoys of their own up,3 added Trower. 3Too ris"y,3 ,uffy said. 3-hances are they!re going to launch their re+entry vehicle in the ne&t hour, maybe less. 9avigation, what!s their optimum window based on their pro'ected course and assuming they!re going to land off+shore the west coast of -alifornia43

3-hec"ing,3 said the navigation officer. ,e consulted his screen for a moment, then said, 30ID0 hours appro&imately. That!ll have them 'ust over %ntarctica for separation and bring them in for splashdown right off the San )rancisco ;ay area. That!s assuming they!re going ballistic separation and re+entry, of course.3 3*f course,3 she said, nodding thoughtfully, mentally mulling over her options. It loo"ed very much li"e preventing the .est,ems from launching their team was not going to be in the cards. -onceding that, she would need to move more cautiously. She turned to *gle. 3Plot a course to catch up with them utili$ing a tenth of a 1 burn. .e!ll ta"e position behind them and move on them after our interdiction team ta"es their landing party down.3 3Aight, ,uff,3 She said. She did a few more calculations on the screen. 3It!ll ta"e eighteen hours to get behind them at point one+$ero 1.3 ,uffy nodded. =ou too" what you could get. 3Sound the acceleration alarm and light !em up,3 she ordered. 3)uc"in! aye, ,uff,3 *gle replied. % minute later the acceleration alarm brayed throughout the ship, warning that gravity was about to return to the environment. Two minutes after that, the maneuvering thrusters fired, turning the nose of the ship in a new direction, then the fusion engines came to life, slowly pushing the ship in pursuit of their enemies.

The navigation officer!s estimate turned out to be off by only four minutes. %t 0IDD hours, from a position ??8 "ilometers over the %ntarctic continent, two of the passive buoys detected heat sources in the high infrared spectrum.

3That!s a positive fusion engine burn,3 Trower said. 3I!ve even got an engine signature. The contact is positively identified as the .SS Aumsfeld, a -heney+class .est,em stealth attac" ship. It!s burning at point three 1!s. Aed shift shows the burn is decelerating the vessel. 5elocity will reach sub+orbital speed in twelve minutes, eight seconds.3 38ar" it and designate it,3 ,uffy ordered, going over the information in her mind. % -heney+class ship was far from state of the art in the .est,em naval inventory. In fact, the -heneys had been outdated even before the 8artian Aevolutionary .ar, which meant the Aumsfeld was now at least eighty 2arth years old. They must!ve pulled it out of a mothball fleet for this mission. That was typical .est,em thin"ing, ,uffy reflected. .hy waste an e&pensive, modern ship on a one+way mission that would end with the ship in #uestion being crashed into the sun4 In any case, .est,em!s choice of vessel would ma"e the 'ob of trac"ing and capturing it child!s play. Though an admirable stealth platform, the ship!s armament left much to be desired. -heneys were e#uipped with underpowered I/+ millimeter anti+ship lasers that would not even be able to burn through the hull of -alistoga, let alone disable it. The anti+ torpedo lasers were /0+millimeters controlled by servos notorious for 'amming up and aimed by a software system notorious for loc"ing up. In addition, the passive sensors on the vessel were at least four generations behind what a modern .est,em ship was e#uipped with. They would be luc"y to detect the -alistoga if it actually collided with them. In short, a match+up between the -alistoga and the Aumsfeld was the e#uivalent of a nuclear powered attac" submarine from the /Fst century facing off against a .orld .ar II B+boat. 3%t least they!re ma"ing our 'ob a little easier for us, huh ,uff43 as"ed Trower, who was staring at the holographic display before her. 3Than" :aura for #uic" orgasms,3 ,uffy agreed, pulling a cigarette from her pac" and spar"ing up.

Thirteen minutes after it had begun, the deceleration burn from Aumsfeld came to an abrupt end. .ith the e&tinguishment of the engines came the loss of the loc" the passive buoys held, but that hardly mattered. They had pinned down the e&act location, course, and speed. .ith this information, they were now able to "eep trac" of where the ship would be at any given moment without actually having to see it. Ten more minutes clic"ed by before they made another detection, this one a burst of heat being released in the low+ infrared spectrum. 3They 'ust vented some atmospheric gas,3 Trower reported. 3Probably evacuating an airloc".3 3They!re launching their re+entry vehicle,3 ,uffy said with a sigh. 3It loo"s li"e it.3 Sure enough, four minutes later they made another detection, this one a small, moving heat source, not #uite as stealthy as the main ship, punctuated with occasional sharp spi"es of hotter heat from around its perimeter. 3That!s a confirmed re+entry pod,3 Trower said after isolating it. 3The spi"es are bursts of maneuvering thrusters. It!s drifting away from the ship, toward the surface.3 3-an we maintain a loc" on it43 ,uffy as"ed. 3)uc"in! aye,3 she replied. 3I ma"e it as a small pod, maybe five meters in length by two meters wide. Too small to have an engine or fuel storage. Strictly a ballistic vehicle.3 3,ow many people can something li"e that hold43 she muttered to herself and then "eyed the intercom button. 3Intelligence,3 she said. 3=ou copying all this43

3)uc"in! aye,3 came Aon Sampson!s voice. 3:oo"s li"e they!re heading in.3 3.hat can you tell me about that re+entry vehicle4 ,ave we ever observed any such thing from the .est,ems or the 2ast,ems before43 3=es and no,3 Sampson responded. 3The 2arthlings aren!t much into stealthy atmospheric entry. That!s more our forte!. ;ut it loo"s li"e they!ve done a bit of improvising with this thing. )rom what I can see, it!s a modified emergency re+entry pod of the sort used on 2&ecutive -ommittee or corporate spacecraft. =ou "now, the shit they use to ma"e sure their rich pric"s are safe if their private spaceship ta"es a shit on them4 They!ve obviously put a heat and radar absorbent layer on it to "eep the natives here from detecting it and they!ve thought far enough ahead to hac" into the satellites so they won!t detect the re+entry heat.3 3So how many people can it hold43 she as"ed ne&t. 3The standard escape pod holds four in comfort, maybe si& in discomfort. It doesn!t loo" li"e they!ve made it any bigger. If anything, they!ve probably sacrificed internal room to put on the stealth layer.3 ,uffy nodded. 3Than"s, Aon,3 she said. 39o s"in off my ass,3 he shot bac". She puffed on her cigarette, blowing a smo"e ring across the room. It was now official. The .est,em team was on its way down to the surface. The attempt to ta"e their ship into custody beforehand had failed. She "eyed up her intercom again, getting :ieutenant Span"worth on the line. She saw she had interrupted him in the middle of a recreational activity. ,is face was drenched with sweat and Spacer Jiffleman!s erect coc" was floating centimeters from his lips. 3Span"y,3 she said, 3this is

,uffy. Sorry to interrupt your leisure time.3 39o problem, ,uff,3 he said, shrugging. 3Just "illing some time.3 3.ell, time!s at a premium now,3 she told him. 3The .est,em team is heading for re+entry. 1et your people together and get them ready to head in. .e!ll launch you at the first available window.3

Bnli"e the .est,ems, who had cheaply fashioned a stealth entry vehicle for their mission, the 8artians had put their best engineers on the 'ob. Though the standard method of infiltrating agents to the surface of 2arth in normal time was a pod not much unli"e what the 2arthlings had used, this mission needed a vessel that could bring the crew bac" up to orbit in addition to getting them down. That meant a powered vehicle. Thus the S2S*5+0F, or Stealth 2arth Surface+to+*rbit 5essel, 8odel F, had been developed by the 8artian 9avy specifically for this mission. The S2S*5!s passenger compartment was ten meters long by three meters wide and was capable of carrying fifteen passengers and their e#uipment in addition to the two pilots. ;ehind the passenger compartment was an additional twenty meters of fuel and o&idi$er storage and then the two main semi+ roc"et engines, which added another si& meters of length. The entire vessel was composed of radar and infrared absorbent composites, was completely watertight for ocean ta"e+off and landing, and had internal ballast tan"s and a water+'et propulsion system so it could travel beneath the surface. It could suc" in ocean water after landing and separate it into hydrogen for fuel and o&ygen for o&idi$er, thus refueling itself for the return trip. It was the most modern, state of the art, and well+engineered spacecraft currently in e&istence and it absolutely terrified every 8artian who was slated to ride on it

because it was also untested. 3=ou as" me, this is the most dangerous part of the whole fuc"in! trip,3 said Sergeant 8c1raw as the S2S*5, having finished its deceleration burn more than an hour before, descended slowly toward the planetary surface and the first contact with the atmosphere. 3.e!re about to go screaming in at seventeen thousand miles an hour in a re+entry vehicle that has never passed through air before. It!s a fuc"in! theory on the engineer!s computer screen and we!re gonna trust our lives to it.3 3.hat the fuc"43 as"ed Span"worth with feigned casualness. ,e was strapped into the seat directly behind the pilot. 3=ou wanna live forever or something43 3=eah, 8c1raw,3 added -orporal 8i"e ;ingbutt, who was sitting near the rear of the passenger compartment. 3This is why they pay us the big credits. .e!re fuc"ing test dummies for 8artian Industries prototype spacecraft.3 3%s if going through a wormhole wasn!t dangerous enough,3 said -orporal Aosarita .ing, the 'unior member of team+or at least she had been 'unior until (en!s inception. (en, sitting in the third row of reinforced seats, "ept his mouth shut. Though he was more than a bit nervous at the thought of going through a fiery re+entry in an untested vehicle, his twentieth century upbringing "ept him from being as wary as his fellow passengers obviously were. The stin" of terror radiated from them in waves. 2ven the pilots were terrified. ;ut (en 'ust sat placidly in his seat, the four+point harness strapped tightly against his chest, his eyes loo"ing out the small window toward the surface far below. %ntarctica could be seen below them, a solid white landmass stretching off to the ocean. They had 'ust passed over the South Pole and started bac" in a northerly direction. In less than ten minutes they would be over the South Pacific *cean west of %rgentina, where re+entry

would begin in earnest. ,e wasn!t e&actly loo"ing forward to it, but he was an&ious to get it over with all the same. ,e was going home. %fter all this time, he was actually going home. The comments by the passengers withered as they made first contact with the atmosphere. %s had been the case when (en had dived into Saturn!s blan"et of gas, there was nothing detectable at first e&cept minute changes in the speed and temperature display the pilots were monitoring. %s had also been the case with the Saturn dive, that soon changed. 3The air!s thic"ening up,3 -indee 8arshall, the pilot, reported as strea"s of red began to appear outside the windows. 3)uc"in! aye it is,3 agreed iffy (alahari, the co+pilot. %s the red strea"s of the ioni$ed atmospheric gas increased, finally obscuring the view of the surface, gravity returned to the environment with a vengeance. (en felt himself pushed steadily downward in his seat, with more and more force, the sensation #uic"ly becoming uncomfortable. It continued to build for the better part of five minutes before finally leveling off at what 8arshall reported to be C.E1s. 3Just a wal" in the par" compared to what we went through at the wormhole,3 Span"worth remar"ed optimistically. 3=eah,3 replied 8c1raw, ever the pessimist, 3but we only had to endure that for thirty seconds. This is gonna ta"e a bit longer, isn!t it43 Indeed it did. )or the better part of fifteen minutes they were smashed downward in their seats as the friction of re+entry slowed them from orbital speed to atmospheric flight speed. It was during this portion that the 8artians were most terrified, undoubtedly thin"ing of the fiery death that would suddenly engulf them if the 8artian engineers or manufacturers+ dedicated and efficient as they were+had been wrong about even

one little thing. They were not wrong. The red strea"s slowly dissipated and the huge weight on their chests gradually lifted. They remained alive and drawing breath. %s the view cleared they saw the Pacific *cean below them, much closer now. 8arshall and (alahari allowed the ship to continue falling until they reached an altitude of E0,000 feet. %t this point they powered up the engines and unfolded the four wings that would provide lift. The ballistic re+entry vehicle became a powered aircraft, heading for a water landing off the coast of -alifornia. They descended to less than a thousand feet above the wave+ tops and then leveled out, flying at supersonic speed in a northeasterly direction for about an hour. It was 'ust after sunset when they touched down eighteen nautical miles west of San )rancisco, the spacecraft hitting the choppy water at a speed of F/D "nots. There was a violent shudder and everyone was thrown forward against their restraints. ;ut the ship held together, 'ust as promised, and soon they were at a complete stop, the main engines shut down. They bobbed up and down in ten+foot swells, rising and falling in a nauseating rhythm. 3I!m gonna pu"e if this shit doesn!t stop,3 moaned 8c1raw. 3Is this what seasic"ness is, )ra$ier43 3)uc"in! aye,3 (en replied. The environment was perfect for it+ an enclosed space without much view of the outside. ,e was a man who had once made a yearly tradition out of deep+sea fishing and had never been bothered by seasic"ness before but even he could feel nausea worming through his system now. ,e could imagine how it was for his 8artian friends, who had never even seen the ocean before, let alone been tossed around on it. 3.e!re chec"ing systems for water integrity now,3 reported 8arshall, who loo"ed li"e she was pretty close to vomiting herself. 3*nce we get under the surface the roc"ing will stop.3

3Than" :aura for that,3 Span"worth said, his head down between his "nees, his eyes tightly closed. The systems chec" too" about five minutes, during which time both 8c1raw and Aosarita .ing had to utili$e the barf bags thoughtfully stored by the maintenance crew. )inally, the ballast tan"s were flooded and the ship san" beneath the waves. The roc"ing stopped, only to be replaced by the ominous crea"s and pops of metal being sub'ected to high water pressure. 3.e!re at si& hundred feet,3 (alahari reported. 3Still getting 1PS signals.3 3:et!s trim the tan"s and head in,3 8arshall said. They moved through the blac"ness, the only sound the light hum of the electric engines driving the water 'ets. The ship was capable of traveling at /0 "nots submerged. (en+an avid reader of Tom -lancy and other such authors in his previous life+ e&pressed concern that perhaps the Bnited States 9avy or -oast 1uard might detect the sound of their ship moving through the water. This suggestion earned him a round of contemptuous laughter from the two pilots. 31ive us a little credit, )ra$ier,3 8arshall told him. 3% minnow farting radiates more noise than this ship. .e!re perfectly safe from any a#uatic detection technology of the day.3 The condescending way in which 8arshall said 3a#uatic detection technology3 convinced him she spo"e the truth. ,e stopped worrying about being depth charged by a naval destroyer or torpedoed by an attac" submarine. )ifty+si& minutes after submerging, 8arshall throttled down the engines and slowly brought up the ship to a depth of twenty feet. She utili$ed a hair thin periscope to pee" at the surface, confirming they were /00 yards off the shore of -hina ;each. (en, able to view the same screen, saw the familiar s"yline of

San )rancisco+-oit Tower, the Trans%merica building, the piers of )isherman!s .harf. ,e saw automobile headlights crawling along in the evening traffic and the specter of the 1olden 1ate ;ridge off to the northeast. 3I!m home,3 he whispered, his words barely audible, but Span"worth still heard them. 39o,3 he said firmly, 3you!re not home. 8ars is your home. =ou!re not here for a stroll down memory lane. =ou!re an agent of 8ars operating in enemy territory. on!t ever forget that, )ra$ier.3 3Sorry, Span"y,3 he mumbled, pretending not to notice the watchful loo" he was getting. 3I won!t forget.3 The section of -hina ;each they were planning to land on was at the far eastern reach, nestled up against a roc"y cliff. It was a section that would typically be deserted, that had been deserted every time they!d peered at it through -alistoga!s cameras. ;ut now that they were actually trying to come ashore and slip into the city undetected, human activity was occurring there. Pairs of men continually climbed down onto this section of the beach from a scenic loo"out above to have se& with each other in the shadows. 3,ow did we miss this43 an e&asperated Span"worth as"ed after they!d watched the fourth such couple engaging in either rear+ entry anal se& or oral copulation. 3,ow in the fuc" did we miss the fact that our :aura+damned landing beach is a public se& $one43 3.e never loo"ed at it at this time of the evening,3 (en said. 3*ur passes were always at FC00, when it!s bright daylight, and 0F00, when the place really is deserted. %pparently this section of -hina ;each is where the rump rangers li"e to meet each other and do their thing.3

3%nd how long will this go on43 Span"worth as"ed him. (en shrugged. 3It!ll stop some time before 0F00,3 he said. 3I!m pretty sure of that.3 3)uc" me with a gun barrel,3 Span"worth sighed, settling in to wait. %s it turned out, the homose&ual activity reached a furious pea" around /000 hours and then tapered off by /F00. ;y /FC0, the section of beach was finally deserted enough to allow them to go ashore. Span"worth, 8c1raw, ;ingbutt, .ing, and (en all stripped off their 8artian shorts and half+shirts and put on insulated blac" wetsuits that would protect them from the frigid waters of San )rancisco ;ay. They covered their faces with blac" mas"s that contained o&ygen e&traction e#uipment that would allow them to breath underwater. They then pic"ed up their e#uipment bags, which contained clothing of the period, several sets of identification, and a cell phone that wasn!t really a cell phone. They attached the bags to their bac"s and made their way to the rear of the passenger compartment where a two+ person airloc" was installed in the ceiling. 3)ra$ier, you and ;ingbutt go first,3 Span"worth ordered. 3)loat up and wait for the rest of us.3 The airloc" was a tight fit and they had to suc" in their breath to allow the door to close behind them. *nce it was shut, a valve opened with a muted clan" and seawater began to pour in from above them at a rate of fifty gallons a minute. It too" the better part of two minutes before the level of water cleared their heads and all of the air was evacuated. (en felt mildly claustrophobic as he suc"ed in processed air through his facemas". There was another muted clan" and the hatch opened above them. (en went out first, pushing up as if he were still in $ero 1 and pulling himself free of the top of the ship. ,e inflated the air bladders in his suit 'ust enough to achieve neutral buoyancy

and "ic"ed his way to the surface. It too" a surprisingly long time to come up but finally his head bro"e through into the air and he loo"ed around, trying to get his bearings. ,e turned bac" and forth until he was facing the beach /00 yards away. The miniscule waves that made it into the nec" of the bay were brea"ing gently on the shore in the age+old rhythm, producing a sound that was unheard on 8ars e&cept on audio files. *nce again he got that nostalgic feeling of coming home.

It too" ten minutes to get all five of them out of the ship and up to the surface. Span"worth and 8c1raw both made a recon chec" with their night vision goggles and, satisfied the beach was still deserted, nodded to the others. They began to swim toward the beach, "ic"ing their feet and paddling with their arms, their e#uipment bags weighting them down but the air bladders "eeping them easily afloat. )inally, their feet were padding through the roc"y sand 'ust outside the brea"ers and they were able to stand. They plodded onward, timing their approach between waves until they were standing on wet sand 'ust above the low tide mar". This section of the beach was perhaps the dar"est place that could be found in the entire city of San )rancisco. They too" off their mas"s and (en was able to detect the sour odor of the seashore, an odor that smelled li"e heaven to his nose. Span"worth wasted no time sampling the odors or the sounds. This was when they were most vulnerable, when they were standing on an enemy shore in possession of futuristic suits and e#uipment. 3:et!s move,3 he said #uietly. 3=ou "now the drill.3 %nd indeed they did. They had practiced the insertion in simulations more than a thousand times. They "new every s#uare inch of -hina ;each from recon photos. 8oving #uic"ly they trotted across the sand toward a secluded section of roc"s 'ust below the path that led to the top of the cliff+the section

most heavily occupied by the homose&ual lovers. Bp close now, they saw it was littered with used condoms, condom wrappers, cigarette butts, and empty li#uor bottles+debris that had not shown up on -alistoga!s cameras. They moved into the most secluded portion they could find+ which happened to be where the condoms and boo$e bottles were in thic"est concentration+and stripped off their wetsuits, deflating them and folding them into small pac"ages of less than half a meter s#uare. The night air was somewhat chilly and they shivered violently while they pulled on their first 2arth outfits of the mission. (en put on a perfectly forged pair of :evi!s denim 'eans, a pair of forged 9i"e tennis shoes, and a white sweater that had an %merican flag on the front with 3Support *ur Troops3 under that. *nce dressed, he felt the worst of the chill passing. ,e shouldered his e#uipment bag, designed to loo" li"e a normal, %merican gym bag, and loo"ed around while he waited for his comrades to finish. *nce everyone was ready, Span"worth loo"ed at (en. 3*"ay, )ra$ier,3 he said. 3=ou!ve got the most time in this place. Ta"e the point and get us to our ob'ective.3 3Aight, Span"y,3 he said. 3)rom this point out,3 Span"worth reminded the rest of them, 3)ra$ier does the tal"ing whenever possible. 2veryone else, "eep your fuc"ing mouths shut. *ur accents will sound strange as hell to the natives here.3 2veryone ac"nowledged with silence+the 8artian way. (en too" a deep breath, inhaling that wonderful sea air one more time, and then headed for the trail that led to the top of the cliff. ,e began to climb, finding that wal"ing in F1 too" a bit of getting used to after so long in $ero+1, and the rest of the team followed him up. They reached the top of the cliff and then followed a footpath

through the par"land, finally coming out in a small public par"ing lot. % few cars par"ed in the more isolated sections displayed the steamed up windows that mar"ed them as being occupied by lovers. (en "ept the group as far away from the cars as possible as they strolled casually across the pavement. If their presence was noted by any of the lovers, it went unchallenged. Soon they were on the access road+Sea -liff %venue+a narrow, dar", two+laner that twisted and turned over the hills. % #uarter mile hi"e brought them to 2l -amino, a high income residential street lined with multi+million dollar mansions. (en, "nowing their presence in such a place would #uic"ly attract the notice of the S)P , moved them along as #uic"ly as possible, finally bringing them to /0th %venue, a main north+south artery. They headed south on /0th and began to encounter other people+the natives, as Span"worth li"ed to put it+in the cars that $oomed up and down the street and wal"ing on the sidewal"s, heading to and from whatever business they had. (en listened to their voices, relishing the 2arthling accents that made them sound arrogant and aristocratic to the 8artians. (en and his group stayed in single file, moving efficiently southward, ignoring everyone as much as possible and trying to ma"e a minimal impression. 9o one seemed to pay them any undue notice and they soon reached their first ob'ective7 the bus stop at the intersection of /0th %venue and -alifornia Street. They waited for the ne&t bus. 3Aemember,3 Span"worth whispered to (en, 3we only get on a bus if it!s at least half+empty.3 3I remember,3 (en replied, fighting to "eep the annoyance out of his voice. ,adn!t they gone over that particular point ten or fifteen thousand times now4 Though the prime directive of their mission was to prevent the manipulation of 8ar" .hiting by the .est,em operatives, their secondary directive was to do everything possible to avoid impacting the timeline themselves in the process. There was no

way of telling 'ust how much their interaction could change things and what the conse#uences of those changes might be in the long run. It was ac"nowledged that the simple act of splashing down in the ocean could potentially cause a catastrophic shift in the time stream. This was the reason why time travel had been outlawed in the first place. ;ut, since the danger of inaction was clearly greater than the un"nown danger of action, and since they were forced to e&ist in this time period and interact with the natives, they would do everything in their power to minimi$e the ris" of changing things whenever they could. %s such, they would not get on a bus that was full or nearly full for fear of displacing a passenger who should have been on that particular bus at that particular time. They would not chec" into a hotel that was nearly full for the same reason. It may be that nothing would transpire if they did displace a random bus passenger or a random hotel patron, but it was remotely possible such a simple act might destroy all of man"ind. %s it was, there was no need to worry about the bus situation on this particular evening. %n orange and white city bus pulled up ten minutes later with only about fifteen people aboard. Btili$ing dollar bills forged by 8artian printers that were indistinguishable from the real thing, they paid their fare and sat down near the middle of the bus leaving substantial space between themselves and their fellow passengers. The 8artians were all nervous about riding in such a large, unsafe contraption, but they hid it well as the vehicle pulled away from the curb with a crea" and a hiss of bra"es and began to bump and bounce its way from one stop to the ne&t. Their plan was to disembar" in the 9ob ,ill section of the city where Sampson and his computer team had already reserved them a room at the Paradise 5alley ,otel. They arrived without incident and climbed off the bus, ma"ing the two bloc" wal" to the hotel entrance. The Paradise 5alley was a si&teen story lu&ury accommodation that overloo"ed the

)inancial istrict and offered views of the ;ay ;ridge and the downtown s"yscrapers. (en and 8c1raw, who would pose as a married couple, entered the lobby to chec" in while the rest of the team wandered through the lobby, pretending to browse the shops. It was here that (en began to feel a bit nervous. .hat if their fa"e I didn!t stand up4 .hat if their fa"e credit cards were re'ected4 .hat if the des" cler" tal"ed to 8c1raw and became suspicious of her accent4 ,e commanded himself to remain calm and went to the des", 8c1raw on his arm. Two bored+loo"ing cler"s were on duty, both attractive females. ,e chose the blonde one on the theory that she would be the dit$ier of the two and less li"ely to notice anything amiss. 3I have a reservation for 8r. and 8rs. )rawler,3 he told her, spea"ing in a deliberate 2arthling accent and utili$ing the fa"e name he!d been assigned. The cler" gave him a flash of her professional smile and then put her manicured nails to her computer "eyboard. She found his reservation immediately and chec"ed him in. She then as"ed for his credit card and identification. ,e pulled a forged 5isa and a forged -alifornia river!s license from his wallet and handed them to her. ,e watched carefully as she swiped the 5isa through her machine and waited for authori$ation. If there was going to be a problem, this is where it would be. ;ut there wasn!t one. The card went through 'ust as Sampson had promised it would. ,e signed the form and the deal was done. 3,ere you are, 8r. )rawler,3 the cler" told him, handing over two electronic pass"eys. It was almost too easy. Ten minutes later, the entire group was on the fourteenth floor, se#uestered safely behind the loc"ed door of their suite. .hile Span"worth chec"ed in with -alistoga to report their safe arrival, and while 8c1raw and .ing entertained ;ingbutt by stripping off their clothes and engaging in a lesbian love+fest on

the double bed, (en sat down by the window, staring out at the ;ay ;ridge and the traffic moving across it. ,e was home. :ess than E0 miles from %nnie. %lmost close enough to touch. 3.e don!t get many fol"s in here who 'ust want a plain van,3 the grinning car salesman told (en. 3%re you sure I can!t tal" you into a few upgrades4 Some carpeting in the rear4 *r at least some side windows43 The van in #uestion was a /008 model. %ccording to the research done by Span"worth in the computer records, it had 'ust been delivered to 8ission 8otors from the factory two days before. It was as stripped down as a van could be. The paint was factory white, the floorboards were bare metal, and the only windows, aside from the windshield were on the driver, passenger, and rear doors. In short, it was the perfect vehicle for transporting a special forces team to Aoseville and then bringing a captured enemy team bac" to San )rancisco. 3That won!t be necessary,3 (en replied. 3I!m gonna customi$e it myself. It!s for a business I!m going to be starting up.3 3*h yeah43 the salesman said, feigning interest. 3.hat "inda business43 3% mobile coffee service,3 (en told him, repeating the cover story he!d come up with bac" aboard the -alistoga long before they!d even come through the wormhole. 3I!m gonna install espresso machines, cappuccino ma"ers, coffee grinders, and brewing machines in the bac". *nce I!m set up I!m gonna go around to places where people wor" the night shift and deliver coffee drin"s right to their wor" stations. I figure I!ll ma"e some contacts at hospitals, manufacturing plants, places li"e that.3 39o "idding43 the salesman said. 3=ou thin" people will go for that43

3)uc"in! aye,3 (en replied, only reali$ing after the words had come out of his mouth that it wasn!t e&actly a polite ac"nowledgment in this time. The salesman+whose name was ;ob+wasn!t offended. ,e laughed loudly as if that was the funniest thing he!d ever heard and then began trying to get (en to buy that carpet upgrade at least. 3=ou don!t want your coffee machines sitting on bare metal now, do you43 3I!ve already got some carpeting in my garage,3 (en told him. 3.ell, I!m sure it!s not li"e our custom carpeting though,3 ;ob said, not missing a beat. ,e went on for several more minutes, e&plaining how 8ission 8otors! specially treated stain+resistant carpet was designed for use in a commercial van where standard home carpeting was not. (en listened respectfully, "eeping a neutral e&pression on his face throughout the spiel despite the fact that he was annoyed as hell. ,e had always hated dealing with commission sales people of any "ind but had a particular hatred for car salesmen. ;eing on 8ars for the past few years, where there was no such thing as commission sales, had served to increase the annoyance he was feeling now. There was a certain satisfaction in "nowing that ;ob and all li"e him would one day be made obsolete by a common sense revolution. 3That all sounds very intriguing,3 (en said when he finally wound down, 3but I thin" I!ll 'ust ta"e the van as it is.3 3.hatever you want, 8r. )rawler,3 ;ob said. 3That!s the way we li"e it here. Just li"e that hamburger place. So, how about we go tal" some business, huh43 3Sounds li"e an ass...3 he snapped his mouth shut, cogni$ant that he!d 'ust about told him it sounded li"e an ass fuc". ,e was really going to have to watch his 8artian e&pressions. 3It... uh...

sounds li"e a plan.3 They went inside the building, wal"ing past the showroom, where shiny models of the latest SB5s and hybrids were set up on display. %ttractive women in business dresses staffed a reception area in one corner. Soft music played on an overhead spea"er system and a few salesman wearing suits and ties wandered here and there, eyeing for potential customers. ;ob led him into a small office with a table and a few chairs and gestured toward a chair. (en sat down and ;ob gave him a Styrofoam cup of coffee unas"ed. (en too" a sip and almost gagged at the taste. 2ven the crappy coffee aboard -alistoga was worlds better than this garbage. 39ow then,3 ;ob said. 3I can see you!re interested in the van there. That!s one of our best models, even stripped down li"e that. The list price is OC8,000 and I!m afraid there!s not a lot of room for negotiation on that figure. That!s not very much above invoice you "now.3 3*f course not,3 (en said dryly. 3.hy don!t we start with what "ind of payments you!re loo"ing for4 =ou said your credit was good43 38y credit is e&cellent,3 (en said, hoping that was true. %fter all, the man named (en )rawler hadn!t even e&isted D8 hours before, but Sampson up on -alistoga had created an ideal person as far as ;ob and his sales manager would be concerned. (en )rawler owned his own home in 8arin -ounty, in which he had accumulated C0P e#uity. ,e had wor"ed for the past ten years as a well+paid aircraft mechanic for Bnited %irlines at San )rancisco International %irport. ,e had very little credit card or other consumer debt. ,e also had more than twelve thousand dollars in his savings account, an amount that promised a nice down payment on an automobile loan. ,e dic"ered bac" and forth with the salesman for about twenty

minutes, more to "eep in character than out of any real need to bring the price down. %fter all, when one could create money in one!s account at will, one hardly had to worry about the price of a van. )inally he conceded the bic"ering after bringing the price down to OCE,000, though he was sure he could!ve dic"ered down another two or three grand had he really wanted to. The Sales 8anager came in at that point and collected (en!s driver!s license and had him fill out the credit paperwor". %s he did so, the Sales 8anager too" his shot at selling him a few upgrades and an e&tended service warranty, all of which (en politely declined. (en!s information was run through the computer and everything turned out to be 'ust as perfect as promised. ,e was given nearly the highest score possible on his credit rating. That, coupled with the OCE00 chec" he wrote as a down payment, entitled him to a /D+month loan at an interest rate of 0.CP. The first monthly payment+which (en "new would never be made+ was due on ecember F. ;y that time he should be well on his way bac" to deep space and the return wormhole and all records of the van!s manufacture, ownership, and purchase would have been purged from 2arth history by Sampson and his Intelligence epartment. The only record of the van ever having been sold to anyone would be in ;ob the salesman and Aic" the Sales 8anager!s memory. %nd how li"ely would it be that they would remember him by then4 9ot very li"ely since he!d gone to great pains to ma"e himself a forgettable customer. The paperwor" too" the better part of an hour to complete but finally he was handed a set of "eys and led out to his new van. 31ood luc" with that coffee thing, 8r. )rawler,3 ;ob told him as he climbed into the driver!s seat. 3%nd than" you for doing business with us.3 39o s"in off my ass,3 he said automatically. 3,uh43 ;ob said, his eyes wide.

(en winced internally. 1otta watch that, he chastised himself. 3Bh... I mean... you!re welcome. Than"s for all your help.3 ,e closed the door #uic"ly before he could ma"e any more verbal errors and fumbled with the "ey for a moment, finally locating the ignition slot. This would be his first time driving an automobile in... well, nearly FI0 years, but in a relative si& years. 9ow he would have to drive a large vehicle with limited visibility in San )rancisco traffic, which was among the worst in the nation. ,e hoped li"e hell he didn!t crash the thing pulling out of the par"ing lot. ,e fired up the diesel engine and spent a few moments familiari$ing himself with the controls on this model. Things had changed little in the three years since he!d been placed in storage as far as dashboard layouts went so he too" a deep breath, fastened his seatbelt, and dropped the gearshift into drive. ,e released the par"ing bra"e and pulled forward, ignoring the friendly wave of ;ob the salesman as he weaved in and out of rows of vehicles in front of the service center. ,e waited a long time for a brea" in traffic on the main road but finally was able to pull out. ,e began heading toward the hotel. The s"ills of driving, he found, were li"e riding a bicycle or performing cunnilingus. *ne did not forget them or lose them easily. .ithin three bloc"s it was li"e he!d never been away. ,e was stopping and starting smoothly, chec"ing his mirrors when appropriate, his confidence high that he would be able to complete the driving portion of the mission flawlessly. ,e arrived at the hotel and pulled into the par"ing lot, easing the van into a spot near the very bac". *nce the engine was shut down he pulled out his cell phone and dialed it up on 8artian communications mode. Span"worth, the mission commander, answered his hail. 3I!m down in the par"ing lot,3 (en told him. 32verything went well.3

3That!s what I li"e to hear,3 Span"worth replied. 3.e!re on our way.3 They came down and gathered around the van, all of their bags, including (en!s, with them. There was no need for them to officially chec" out of their accommodations. Span"worth had already accessed the hotel computer through his cell phone and erased all record of their ever having been there in the first place, even going so far as to remove the money (en had paid from the hotel!s ban" account in case some auditor down the line noticed a discrepancy. 3.e!re going to be riding in this fuc"ing thing43 8c1raw as"ed nervously as she loo"ed over the van. 3It!s a :aura+damned death trap<3 3It!s safer than most of the small cars,3 Span"worth said reassuringly, although it was obvious that he was less than thrilled about riding in it as well. 3=eah,3 said .ing. 3The way a pistol is safer than a rifle.3 3.e "new this would be a dangerous mission when we signed up for it,3 Span"worth told them. 39o sense complaining about it now. -ome on, let!s get these identification placards put on so we can get our asses out of here.3 The identification placards were a set of forged -alifornia commercial license plates, part of the belongings they had brought down with them from -alistoga. .hile (en used a screwdriver to install them on the bumpers, Span"worth used his P- to access the 85 computer and ma"e them legitimate. ,e matched them to the vehicle identification number, or 5I9, in the dash of the van and 'ust li"e that, the van was officially registered to (en )rawler of 8ill 5alley, -alifornia. % few more minutes and he had accessed the Interstate Insurance -orporation computer and programmed in full coverage for the vehicle.

32verything!s set,3 Span"worth said when he was done, which happened to be at the same time as (en finished his tas". 3:et!s move.3 3)uc"in! aye,3 (en said, stowing the screwdriver away. 3:et!s move.3 They piled in and (en closed the doors behind them. Span"worth, pulling ran", climbed into the passenger seat and spent a few moments fumbling with his seatbelt before finally figuring out how to secure it. ;ingbutt, 8c1raw, and .ing sat unsecured on the bare floor, their bac"s against the metal walls. (en fired up the engine once more and pulled out of the hotel!s par"ing lot. ,e drove with the flow of traffic, ma"ing his way toward the freeway entrance that led to the ;ay ;ridge and their route out of San )rancisco. Traffic was about as light as it ever got during a wee"day in San )rancisco and it too" only fifteen minutes before they mounted the span. %t the far end of the bridge the highway split into two separate Interstates. (en loo"ed at the sign as they approached. Staying to the left would ta"e him to I+80 2ast toward Sacramento. To the right was I+880 South, towards San Jose. ,e stared at the sign for a long time as they approached, his heart pulling him strongly to the right. ,e listened to his head instead, and "ept the van in the far left lane.

3.e have engine shut+down, ,uff,3 reported arla *gle. 3That oughta put us right where we want to be.3 3Than"s, arla,3 said ,uffy, who was strapped into her command chair and smo"ing a cigarette. They had 'ust completed a three+hour deceleration burn at .001, about the lowest specific thrust their fusion engines were capable of producing. The artificial gravity generated by such a burn was so slight as to be unnoticed. -rewmembers could still float

around and propel themselves up and down through the dec"s, the only difference a slight tendency to drift toward the floor. ,uffy hadn!t even bothered to sound the acceleration alarm at the beginning of the burn. 3Should I spin us around now43 arla as"ed ne&t. 3,old off on that for a few,3 she answered. 3 etection, how we loo"ing on the target4 -onfirm matched velocities.3 3.or"ing it, ,uff,3 Spammer said, his head bent over his screen. 3%t a glance, it loo"s good though.3 3)acts, Spammy,3 ,uffy said. 31et me some ass+tapping facts. I don!t want what it loo"s li"e at a glance. It would be "ind of embarrassing if that tub of shit detected us because we were moving a hair faster than they are and got into their feeble little range.3 3Sorry, ,uff,3 he said, somewhat ta"en abac" by her gruff tone. .ell, she was under a lot of stress, being in command of the most important mission in the history of the solar system. ,e began to wor" the numbers, confirming what he already suspected. 3*"ay, got it,3 he told ,uffy. 3.e!re ten "ilometers from Aumsfeld, right in their baffles, orbits and velocities matched e&actly. They!ve made no move that would indicate to me they "now we!re bac" here. 9o radio or laser transmission, no evasive maneuvers.3 3That!s what I wanna hear, Spammy,3 ,uffy said, smiling. 3That earns you a rim+'ob later. ,elm, go ahead and turn us around so we can bring weapons to bear. Bse minimum thrust. .e aren!t in a hurry here.3 3Aight, ,uff,3 *gle said, her fingers going to her controls. The maneuvering thrusters began to fire, burning at their lowest settings. Slowly, meter+by+meter, -alistoga turned around on its

a&is, so its front end was facing Aumsfeld!s rear end in the classic pursuit formation. It too" the better part of thirty minutes to accomplish but the heat signature generated by the thrusters remained well outside the detection range of a front line .est,em stealth ship, let alone a -heney+class. 3.eapons,3 ,uffy addressed the weapons panel once the turn was complete, 3how we loo"ing4 .e got a loc" on them43 3*h fuc"in! aye, ,uff,3 replied :ieutenant (elly (illigan, the officer in charge of that particular section. 3.e got the lasers loc"ed on their engine room, their %PB, and their environmental control section. =ou 'ust say the word and that piece of shit is Swiss fuc"ing cheese.3 3That too is what I li"e to hear,3 ,uffy said, smiling in a predatory manner. Though they were much too close to use their matter@anti+matter torpedoes against Aumsfeld Gnot to mention that the 2arthlings would surely notice a two gigaton e&plosion ta"ing place in low orbit, especially since it would fry most of their communications satellitesH, the high+energy lasers would be more than enough to ta"e out the ship if it became necessary. ,opefully, when the time came, they would surrender peacefully. ,aving a disabled .est,em stealth ship in 2arth orbit would create complications for the e&it strategy. 9ot that a contingency plan had not been made for such an event, it would 'ust be easier for all concerned if they didn!t have to tow Aumsfeld out of orbit and sling it into the sun on their way bac" to the return wormhole. 9ow that Aumsfeld was safely brac"eted, ,uffy was able to turn her attention to other matters. She turned the con over to (illigan and unstrapped from her seat. .ith a few acrobatic twists and turns, she was facing the inter+dec" ladder. She "ic"ed off her chair and pulled herself down, arriving in an upside+down orientation before the Intelligence epartment!s secured doorway. % tap of her hand on the control gained her entrance and she pulled herself inside, flipping over to right+

side+up orientation as she came in. The room was crowded, as usual, with off+duty crewmembers occupying every spare computer terminal to view 2arthling broadcasts. % group of them over in the corner were watching something called )ear )actor with horrified concentration mi&ed with hilarity. In the other corner, Aigger Johannesburg and Slurry )ra$ier were sharing a terminal to continue gathering every cellular phone conversation they could home in on. Sampson was in his own command chair, smo"ing a cigarette and paging through two screens worth of te&t files. % sealed cup of coffee sat secured in the magnetic holder beside him. ,e loo"ed up as she came drifting over. 3,ow!s the 'uices flowing today, boss43 he as"ed her, pic"ing up his pac" and offering her a smo"e. 39ice and slippery,3 she told him, ta"ing the smo"e and leaning in to get a light from him. She blew out her drag and then positioned herself over his shoulder. Sampson and most of his staff were attempting to find the .est,em team!s hideout location so they could be ta"en down there instead of at the hospital. :i"e the attempt to intercept the ship before it established orbit, it was a mission that didn!t hold much hope. 3%ny luc"43 ,uffy as"ed. 39othing,3 Sampson told her. 3I!ve been pouring through the records of every hotel, motel, and slea$y fleabag room rental establishment in the entire Sacramento region loo"ing for something that stands out. There!s 'ust no way of "nowing if I!m seeing anything or not. The rest of the team is loo"ing through the credit reporting agencies, 85, and automobile sales records, hoping to find an entry that doesn!t fit well. 9othing from them either.3 She nodded, ta"ing another drag. 3.ell, what can you do4 If nothing else, we!ve got the ship brac"eted and our own team is almost in position. Things are still loo"ing good.3

3I 'ust wish we could figure out how many people they sent down,3 Sampson said. 3That!s the vital piece of information.3 ,uffy shrugged. 3I "now what you mean,3 she said. 3,opefully, we!ll bag everyone at the hospital. I can!t imagine why they!d send down more than they need for that part of the mission. If worse comes to worse, though, and we do miss someone, at least there!s the inoculation they gave them. If we have to leave one of their agents on 2arth when we leave he won!t be able to do too much damage since he!ll be dead in ten days anyway.3 3-old comfort,3 he said gloomily. 3There!s 'ust no telling how much damage to the time stream a person can do in ten days.3 39ot as much as he could do in a lifetime,3 she said optimistically. 3.e wor" with what we get.3 3)uc"in! aye,3 he agreed. 3I!d 'ust feel a lot better if we had a handle on every one they!ve put down there.3

Aoseville, -alifornia *ctober /?, /00? The house where 8ar" .hiting lived with his mother, father, and older brother was unremar"able for the time period. It was a simple two+story tract house in a middle+class neighborhood full of similar houses. The neatly mowed front lawn was covered with a carpet of maple leaves from the tree planted in the middle of it. The window shades were all pulled, bloc"ing visual e&amination of the interior, but (en and 8c1raw "new their sub'ects were in there. They were in the front seat of the van, par"ed two bloc"s away, pulled legally to the curb ad'acent to the side+yard of one of the houses. In case one of the neighbors became curious about their presence and called the Aoseville Police to come chec" them out, Span"worth, bac" at the motel, was monitoring the police radio fre#uency and had tapped into their computer+aided

dispatch system. If a patrol car was sent in their direction, they would "now about it long in advance. 3,ow much longer until they leave43 8c1raw as"ed him, a hint of impatience in her voice. (en loo"ed at the display on his forged Time& watch. It was I7C0 %8. 3%ny time now, I would thin",3 he told her. 38ar"!s appointment is at ten. 8ost people li"e to get there a little early.3 3Static,3 she said, leaning bac" in her chair and stretching. The appointment he was referring to was with 8ar" .hiting!s pediatrician+ r. 8artin Still. Today was the day that :aura .hiting!s pre+pubescent great+great+great grandfather would visit r. Still, suffering from a nasty case of laryngitis, and the recommendation for surgery would be made. The 8artians considered it unli"ely that the .est,em team would attempt to move on 8ar" .hiting today, but it was not something that could be ruled out entirely. Therefore, (en and 8c1raw had been assigned to tail him during his travels 'ust in case. (en was glad for the assignment, even though it would li"ely not bear fruit. It got him out of the motel room for a while and let him e&plore his time period a bit. %s they drove around he relished almost everything he saw that was absent in his 8artian life. ,e loved the traffic 'ams, the ha$e of smog that hung over the city, the smell of burned hydrocarbons, even the clothing of the natives. It had been years since he!d seen a woman dressed in anything but shorts and a half+shirt. 9ow he saw them in tight 'eans, in business dresses, in pantsuits. ,e was forced to conclude that 8artian dress did get a bit old after awhile and that there was at least something to be said for fashion. 3The vehicle access door is opening,3 8c1raw said suddenly, per"ing up a bit. 3=ou mean the garage door43 (en as"ed, loo"ing and seeing

that it was indeed sliding up on its trac". 3.hatever.3 %s soon as the door was open a burgundy -hevy Suburban bac"ed slowly down the driveway to the street. Jooming in with a pair of period binoculars, 8c1raw was able to ma"e a positive identification of the two occupants. 3It!s the .hitings,3 she said, a bit of religious awe in her tone. This was, after all, the relative of a figure that 8artians worshiped li"e 1od. (en fired up the engine of the van. 3Aight on schedule,3 he said. 3I!ll wait until they pass and then slip in behind them. I don!t thin" 8rs. .hiting will notice a tail.3 8r. .hiting might have, since he was a federal agent. ,e than"ed :aura the patriarch of the family had gone to wor" today. ,e pulled out and stayed about two bloc"s behind them, the large vehicle easy to tail through the light mid+morning traffic. 8rs. .hiting made his tas" very easy. She was a cautious and courteous driver, never running through yellow traffic lights or speeding. 8c1raw had the isotope scanner open on her lap. It was probing the surrounding area for any trace of the genetic manipulator device the .est,ems planned to use. So far, nothing was 'iggling it. 3.hy are they driving in an all+terrain vehicle to the doctor!s office43 8c1raw as"ed. 3They don!t have to go onto unpaved roads to get there, right43 3Aight,3 (en said with a chuc"le. 38ost of the people who own those things in this time have never ta"en them off the road and don!t even "now how to put them in four+wheel drive. They!re 'ust status symbols. )amilies buy them because they tell others that we!re an e&citing family that does off+road things and goes on adventures, even though that!s rarely the case. .hat ends up happening is that the SB5s use so much gas and are so e&pensive to operate, that the person who stays home and

shuttles the "ids around ends up driving it while the person who commutes to wor" drives something smaller that gets better mileage.3 8c1raw too" her eyes off the scanner to give him a loo". Seeing that he wasn!t "idding, she shoo" her head a little. 39o wonder people li"e Slurry ma"e a living out of trying to understand your people, )ra$ier,3 she said. 3It!s something that will ta"e a career or two to accomplish.3 r. Still!s office was in a medical building about half a mile from Aoseville -ommunity ,ospital. 8rs. .hiting pulled into the par"ing lot and slid her Suburban into a spot near the bac". (en pulled the van into the par"ing lot of a strip mall across the street and par"ed facing the building. They watched as 8rs. .hiting and young 8ar" got out of the vehicle and started heading for the entrance. 8rs. .hiting was CE years old, a brunette, slightly overweight but attractive. She was dressed in a pair of 'eans and a fashionable sweater. 3I!d do her,3 8c1raw said analytically. 3% pity she!ll be dead in a few years, isn!t it43 3=eah,3 (en said blea"ly, watching young 8ar" instead of his mother. ,e was dressed in a pair of 'eans and a sweater as well, his hair cut short and spi"ed upward in what was apparently the latest rage. 2ven from this distance it was obvious the child wasn!t feeling well. ,is s"in was flushed as if with fever and he seemed to be shivering. 3.hat!s it li"e to be sic", )ra$ier43 8c1raw as"ed him once their targets had entered the building. 3,ave you ever had this tonsillitis thing43 3I had it once or twice when I was a "id,3 he replied. 39ot enough that they wanted to ta"e them out. They 'ust gave me antibiotics.3

3 oes it hurt43 ,e shrugged. 3It ma"es it hard to swallow,3 he said. 3%nd when you get a fever, you get the chills and you shiver a lot and your muscles all ache.3 3Sounds li"e torture,3 she said with distaste, the words of wisdom of a woman who had never been sic" and never would, who lived in a world where fever and sniffles and body aches were a thing of the past. The .hitings remained in the medical office for D8 minutes. uring that time there was no sign of the .est,em team and their genetic manipulator. )rom the medical office, (en tailed them to a Short!s rug Store pharmacy where a computer chec" by Span"worth confirmed they were filling a prescription for amo&icillin. )rom the pharmacy, they went home, pulling the Suburban bac" into the garage from which it had come. The .est,em team did not ma"e itself "nown. 3.ell, that!s that,3 8c1raw said once the door was shut behind them. It was now 'ust before noon. 3,ow about we pic" up some of that so+called food for the troops on the way bac"43 3Sounds li"e an ass+fuc",3 (en told her, dropping the gearshift into drive. The motel they were staying in was not nearly as lu&urious as the accommodations they!d en'oyed in San )rancisco. In fact, the )amily Inn, as it was called, was little more than a dive. It was a three story building surrounded by par"ing lot on the corner of ouglas and Sunrise, 'ust two miles from Aoseville -ommunity ,ospital. Their room was what passed for a delu&e model there. It had two "ing beds, a television, an alarm cloc", and a bathroom. % few cheap pictures hung on the wall and the television remote was bolted to the nightstand to "eep it from being stolen.

.hen 8c1raw and (en entered the room at F/7C0 P8 that day, the smell of se& assaulted their noses. ;ingbutt and .ing were both na"ed on one of the beds, ;ingbutt lying on his bac" while .ing ground up and down on his coc". ;oth were sweaty and seemed to be near the grand finale of their act. They didn!t ac"nowledge the return of their teammates. Span"worth was sitting at the des", his cell phone@P- before him. Ignoring the se&ual activity going on behind him, he was grinning at whatever he was monitoring with the computer. 3.hat you got, Span"y43 8c1raw as"ed. 3Something good43 3)uc"in! aye,3 he said. 3I!m tapped into the good doctor!s phone line. ,e 'ust called Aoseville ,ospital to ma"e the admission arrangements for 8ar" .hiting. ,e!s now scheduled for a tonsillectomy at F000 hours on *ctober CF. Just li"e history says.3 3.as there ever any doubt43 (en as"ed, tossing the 8c onald!s bags on the unoccupied bed and grabbing a seat. *n the other bed, .ing was in the throes of orgasm, her breath tearing in and out, her mutterings graphic and obscene. 39othing is a given,3 Span"worth told him, reciting a fundamental training credo of the special forces. 3So what "ind of shitty 2arth food did you bring us today4 -ould it be worse than that Taco ;ell crap you fed us last night43 3=es,3 agreed (en, who had found 2arth fast food 'ust as distasteful as his companions did after so long en'oying 8artian food. 3It is worse, but it won!t "ill you. That!s the best that can be said about it.3 They opened their food bags and dug in unenthusiastically. They continued to wait.

*ctober CF, /00? G,alloweenH Aoseville, -alifornia

The Aoseville -ommunity ,ospital was the centerpiece of a vast medical center campus that stretched over nearly seventy acres of land in the northern portion of the suburb. Surrounding the main ten+story hospital building were do$ens of outpatient clinics, medical office buildings, and administrative offices. %ccess roads wound between the buildings, and par"ing lots were strategically placed amid groves of oa" trees the real estate developers had been forbidden by law to remove during construction. Since it was a wee"day and since ,alloween was not a national holiday, business was bris" at all of the medical center!s offices and all of the par"ing lots were moderately full of cars. In the northwest corner of the emergency room par"ing area the white van sat, its front end facing both the 2A entrance and the side hospital entrance where it was assumed the .est,em team would attempt their entry. %ll five members of the interdiction team were in the van, (en and 8c1raw in the front seats scanning the area visually, while .ing, ;ingbutt, and Span"worth sat in the bac" scanning computer e#uipment that would detect the genetic manipulator isotope as well as provide digital images pulled from any of the hospital!s /?/ security cameras. The team had been in position since ? %8. ;y F/7C0 P8, they were all getting a bit restless. 3This is 'ust disgusting,3 said .ing, who was utili$ing the bathroom facilities+such as they were. She had pulled down her pants and underwear and was s#uatting over a mason 'ar, trying desperately to direct her stream of urine into it without spilling any on her hands or the floor. 3.hy couldn!t we have brought some piss+catchers from the biosuits with us43 3Piss catchers are modern e#uipment,3 Span"worth replied absently. ,e was staring at an image of the hospital receiving doc"s where a crew was unloading the contents of a delivery truc". 3.hat would happen if we got into a traffic accident or something and the cops found the piss catchers in the van4 They!re made of synthetics that don!t even e&ist today.3

3=eah yeah,3 .ing said, rolling her eyes a bit. 3The things we have to put up with in special forces. I don!t remember them saying anything in my indoctrination about pissing in little fruit 'ars.3 3%t least .hiting got his tonsillitis in *ctober,3 (en said. 3If it would!ve happened in July or %ugust, the temperature in this van would!ve been unbearable. It routinely got to be over a hundred degrees in the valley in summer. That would!ve made it F00 or so in the van.3 3That )ahrenheit mumbo+'umbo don!t mean shit to me,3 8c1raw said. 3.hat!s that in real temperature43 3%bout E0,3 (en said. 8c1raw whistled. 3That is pretty fuc"in! hot,3 she agreed. -onversation waned and everyone went bac" to waiting for something to happen. Twenty minutes later, something did. (en spotted the maroon -hevy Suburban pulling into the visitor par"ing lot two+hundred yards west of them. 3I!ve got the .hitings,3 he said, pointing at them for the benefit of the others. 3They!re circling the par"ing lot now, loo"ing for a spot.3 8c1raw put her binoculars to her eyes to $oom in on the vehicle. She confirmed the identity both by license plate and by visuali$ation of 8rs. .hiting, who was sitting in the passenger seat. 8r. .hiting, the father, was behind the wheel. This was not une&pected. They had been listening in on the .hitings! phone conversations since arriving and "new he had planned to sit vigil with his wife during the surgery. avid .hiting, 8ar"!s older brother, had been shipped off to spend the night with a friend. 8r. .hiting finally found a par"ing spot and pulled into it. ,e,

his wife, and young 8ar" e&ited the vehicle a moment later and began heading across the par"ing lot. 8c1raw and (en trac"ed their movements while the rest of the team stood ready to spring into action on the off+chance that the .est,ems tried to hit them in the par"ing lot. They didn!t. The .hiting family made it safely into the building where Span"worth, monitoring the security cameras, soon pic"ed them up at the main admission des" filling out paperwor". )rom the admission des" they moved to the elevators and up to the pre+operation area. They filled out more paperwor" there and then moved to a waiting room down the hall where they too" chairs and began to wait, all three of them loo"ing e&tremely nervous at what was about to transpire. 3They have no idea that the fate of our entire culture rests on them,3 Span"worth said, staring at their images in awe. 3%nd hopefully never will,3 ;ingbutt said confidently. The day dragged on. Btili$ing the security cameras, they trac"ed 8ar" .hiting!s progress into the pre+op room where he was undressed, e&amined, and an intravenous line started on him. ,is parents remained with him there, holding his hand and tal"ing to him in a soothing manner. ,is nervousness remained apparent until a nurse in'ected something into his I5 line. % moment later he was smiling and happy, a dopey e&pression on his face. 3That would be the 5ersed,3 said (en, who remembered his own encounter with surgical procedure when he had his appendectomy. 3.hat!s it do43 as"ed 8c1raw. 3It!s li"e 5alium, only stronger. 1ets you stoned and shuts down the an&iety center in your brain. They give you some of that shit and you!re incapable of worrying about anything.3

39o shit43 as"ed .ing. 3%nd I thought your people had crappy into&icants. =ou!ve been holding out on us.3 They had a laugh at this and went bac" to waiting. %t C7F0 P8, only ten minutes late, they finally separated 8ar" .hiting from his parents and wheeled him into an operating room. %t this point Span"worth lost contact with him, as there were no security cameras in the *A. The older .hitings were hustled into a large waiting room down the hall. They sat nervously ne&t to each other, holding hands and loo"ing at maga$ines. They loo"ed li"e they could use a little 5ersed themselves. %bout forty+five minutes later, they caught a brief image of 8ar" .hiting being wheeled out of the *A and into a post+op recovery room. ,e was unconscious, an o&ygen mas" on his face and blood tinged around his lips. They lost him again when he went through the door, since post+op had no cameras installed in it either. %nother twenty minutes went by before a scrub+ suited man entered the waiting room to tal" to the parents. ,e discussed something with them for about two minutes and then disappeared. % nurse showed up right behind him to escort them to the post+op room. They disappeared inside. The ne&t view they got of the .hiting family came an hour later when he was wheeled from post+op to the elevators. ,e was now awa"e though very dopey loo"ing. ;oth the o&ygen mas" and the blood tinge were gone, though the I5 remained and a suction tube had been inserted in his mouth. The parents seemed to be much more rela&ed now and were even 'o"ing with the nurse who was pushing the bed. They got out of the elevator and went down a hall and past a nurse!s station before disappearing once more into one of the admission rooms. 3Aoom CFFF,3 Span"worth said with satisfaction. 3,e!s now where he!s gonna be when they ma"e the attempt.3

It was F7C0 in the morning when (en spotted the headlights

moving along the access road toward their position. Traffic had long since died down to almost nothing at the medical center and most of the par"ing lots were now empty. Though the 2A par"ing lot still had plenty of cars, actual comings and goings were few and far between. 35ehicles coming down the road,3 (en reported, pic"ing up the binoculars. 3:oo"s li"e two of them.3 39othing on the isotope scan,3 ;ingbutt reported. 3If it!s our friends they don!t have their genetic manipulator with them.3 Sure enough, he was right. 3It!s another ambulance,3 (en reported when he made positive identification. 3%nd there!s a Aoseville P car following it.3 39othing that concerns us then,3 Span"worth said with a yawn that was half boredom and half fatigue. They had been in the par"ing lot for almost eighteen hours now. ,e went bac" to flipping through the security camera views, hoping to spot another se&ual tryst such as the one he!d witnessed between an 2(1 tech and a security guard a few hours before in one of the stairwells. There was nothing doing at the moment though. (en watched the red and white ambulance and the blac" and white police car as they par"ed near the emergency room entrance fifty yards away. The ambulance bac"ed into a bay right ne&t to the doors while the cop par"ed his vehicle in a red $one 'ust ad'acent to it. % female paramedic 'umped out of the driver!s seat of the ambulance and went around to the bac" where she opened the doors. ,er male partner 'umped out and they removed the gurney, which had a scraggly loo"ing man strapped to it. 2ven from this distance (en could see that he was the victim of a severe beating about the head and face. The cop+a bald male in his mid+thirties dressed in the traditional dar" blue uniform+strolled over and a brief conversation ensued between the paramedics and him. There were a few head nods and shoulder shrugs and then the entire group went inside,

disappearing from sight. 3*h my :aura,3 came .ing!s voice from behind him. 3This is fuc"ing disgusting.3 (en loo"ed and saw that she had 'ust bitten into a pre+pac"aged convenience store sandwich+part of the food supply he!d secured for them on the way out here. It was the ham version, different only from the roast beef or the tur"ey in that the meat was a different shade of gray. 3I told you,3 he said with a chuc"le, 3if you have to choose between starvation and one of those sandwiches, it!s something you!ll have to thin" over first.3 She spit the mouthful she!d 'ust ta"en bac" into the pac"age and threw the whole thing into the garbage container. 3There are people who eat this shit43 she as"ed. 3The bums and the other homeless people li"e them,3 (en said. 3;ut then they li"e digging food out of garbage dumpsters, too.3 3%t least that way you!ll "now the food was made this year sometime,3 .ing said. 3To thin", my ancestors lived on this disgusting planet.3 They all settled bac" into their seats and #uieted down. ;ingbutt let out a yawn and 8c1raw let out a rather 'uicy fart Gfarting was considered an art among 8artiansH. (en sighed and watched as the female paramedic wheeled the empty gurney bac" to the ambulance. She pulled out a bottle of disinfectant and sprayed it down, then too" out a blue towel and began wiping it off. 3I got something,3 ;ingbutt suddenly announced. 3The scanner is getting hits off the isotope from bearing FI0.3 (en tore his eyes off the paramedic and loo"ed down the access

road. Sure enough, the glow of headlights was now visible. 3There!s a vehicle coming down the road,3 he said. 3-an!t ma"e out 'ust what "ind yet.3 2verybody suddenly per"ed up as adrenaline began to flow. 3This loo"s li"e it might be it,3 Span"worth said. 3Ta"e+down team, let!s get ready.3 .ing, ;ingbutt, and 8c1raw all chec"ed to ma"e sure their cell phone@tanners were in the poc"ets of the environmental services uniforms they were wearing. %ll seemed satisfied with what they found. The headlights continued to grow brighter and (en, loo"ing through binoculars, was able to identify the car. 3It!s an old )ord )alcon,3 he said. 3Two occupants. :icense plate is -alifornia.3 ,e strained to read the numbers and letters. .hen he was able to ma"e it out+it was F9;-?8I+he read it off using standard 8artian phonetic words. 3*ne, 9a"ed, ;uttfuc", -umshot, seven, eight, nine.3 31ot it,3 Span"worth said. 3Aunning it now.3 The car continued into the emergency room par"ing lot and passed within twenty yards of where they were sitting. The isotope readings grew stronger and the bearing changed as the vehicle went by, confirming they were in possession of a genetic manipulator device. 8eanwhile Span"worth got the 85 data on the license plate and cross+referenced it with other databases. The car was registered to a John Smith of F/CD 8ain Street in Sacramento. John Smith!s driver!s license number was listed as %F/CD0E?. ,is place of employment was listed as Smith Industries at 0E?8 8ain Street in Sacramento. 35ery original with their alias, aren!t they43 (en as"ed, sha"ing his head. 3.e!re dealing with a bunch of morons here,3 Span"worth agreed. 3,ave they par"ed yet43

3They have,3 (en said. 3.ell away from the other vehicles in the par"ing lot. That!s not very smart either. It 'ust draws attention to their car.3 3Par for the fuc"ing course,3 .ing said. 3%t least they shouldn!t be too hard to ta"e down.3 (en "ept the binoculars trained on them as they got out of their car. They met near the front of it and then began to wal" toward the side entrance. %s they passed into the arc of one of the overhead lights, he got his first good loo" at them. ;oth were -aucasian men, both about si& feet tall. They had neatly trimmed crew cuts and were e&#uisitely fit. In short, they loo"ed e&actly li"e a couple of special forces soldiers dressed in environmental services employee uniforms. 3*ne of them is carrying a fuc"ing briefcase,3 (en said in disbelief. 3,e!s pretending to be a 'anitor and carrying a leather briefcase with him. ,ow stupid can you get43 3That!ll be where the genetic manipulator is,3 Span"worth said. 3,ow about weapons, )ra$ier4 %re they pac"ing43 39othing obvious,3 he said, his trained eyes loo"ing for the telltale bulge at the waistlines that would indicate a concealed pistol. 3*"ay,3 Span"worth said, ta"ing a deep breath. 3.e!d better ta"e these assholes out before hospital security gets a good loo" at them. Ta"edown team, get moving. o it 'ust li"e we planned.3 8c1raw, ;ingbutt, and .ing opened the side door of the van and stepped out, leaving the door open behind them. 8oving #uic"ly and silently, they dodged between cars heading for the side door on an intercept course that would get them there at about the same time as the two .est,em soldiers. Bnli"e their prey, they actually loo"ed li"e three 'anitorial staff members

heading bac" to the hospital after a brea". The .est,em men saw them approaching and didn!t seem to be the least bit alarmed by them or by the cellular phones each held in his or her hand. 3I thin" this is gonna wor",3 said Span"worth, who had moved up to the passenger seat to watch developments. 3I thin" you!re right,3 (en said, watching as the two groups drew closer and closer together. ,e scanned his eyes around the dar" par"ing lots and saw the only other person in sight was the female paramedic, who was still wiping down her gurney. She was inside of a recessed wall, with no line of sight to the side entrance where the action was about to ta"e place. 2verything seemed perfect. %s was usually the case in such matters, when things went wrong, they went wrong #uic"ly and for a reason that had never been anticipated during the hundreds of hours they!d spent going over every possible contingency. Just as the 8artian team was about to ma"e contact with the .est,em team, 'ust as they e&tended the tanner probes on their cell phones to stri"e, the Aoseville police officer who had followed the ambulance in came strolling out of the 2A doors. 3Shit,3 (en bar"ed. 3The cop.3 3I see him,3 Span"worth said, his eyes darting bac" and forth between the cop and the .est,em team. 3I hope he stays bac" there.3 (en silently agreed. 8aybe he would tal" to the female paramedic for a minute or two before leaving the recessed area. She was "ind of cute. If (en were the cop, he would have flirted with her for at least a moment or two before heading on to other calls. ;ut the Aoseville cop didn!t. 9one of the 8artians would ever

"now that the cop and the female paramedic had once had a romantic relationship with each other+a relationship that had gone bad a few wee"s before when the former had refused to leave his wife for the latter. %ll they "new is that he wal"ed right on by without ac"nowledging her in any way and right out into the line of sight of the confrontation between the 8artians and the .est,ems. ,e glanced over that way only to ma"e sure there wasn!t a car coming from that direction but his timing was perfect. ,e saw a two flashes of blue o$one and two large men+ obviously, to his eyes, someone pretending to be 'anitorial wor"ers+drop to the ground as if they!d been shot. 3)uc" me with a piece of chic"enwire<3 Span"worth said, watching helplessly as the cop!s hand dropped down to his holstered gun and he began to trot that way. 3,ey<3 the cop yelled, pulling his gun out and positioning it alongside his leg. 3.hat the hell is going on here43 The female paramedic, hearing his tone, loo"ed up and saw that he was heading purposefully in the other direction, his gun out. She immediately moved out of the enclave to see what was going on. .ithin two seconds she was able to view the entire situation. 3*h, this 'ust gets better and better, doesn!t it43 (en said. 3I don!t thin" there!s an easy way out of this one,3 Span"worth said, resigned. The cop slowed his approach as he got closer but the gun stayed down. 3Step away from those men,3 he told the 8artians. 3;ring your hands up where I can see them.3 It was 8c1raw who acted. She brought her hands up to optimum position, as if she were doing what he!d ordered, and then e&tended the tanner probe on her cell phone out to its ma&imum length. The cop 'ust had time to reali$e that

something was touching him, had 'ust started to bring his Imm to bear when there was another blue flash, this time from his chest. ,e dropped li"e a roc", the pistol clattering to the pavement ne&t to him. 35ictor<3 the female paramedic screamed. 3*h my god<3 She only wasted a second or two with this e&clamation, however. ,er instincts "ic"ed in and she dove bac" into the ambulance bay, her hands pulling her portable radio from her belt as she went. %s she rushed in the 2A doors (en was able to see her yelling into the radio. 3.e need to get the fuc" out of here now,3 (en told Span"worth. 3:i"e fuc"ing yesterday<3 39o shit,3 Span"worth said, 'umping out the doors. 31et them over here<3 he yelled at the team. 38ove it<3 .hile .ing secured the briefcase, ;ingbutt and 8c1raw each grabbed one of the men by the armpits and began to drag them across the pavement toward the van. It was agoni$ingly slow wor". The men were much larger than they!d anticipated in training and they themselves were not in the best of physical shape after spending so much time in $ero+1. ;y the time they got them to the van (en saw do$ens of eyes loo"ing out at them through the ambulance bay doors. 9urses, doctors, security personnel, the female paramedic who had called it in. 9one of them dared to come out and try to stop what was going on, but all of them would see the van as it left and would undoubtedly get the license number. 31et them in,3 Span"worth said, grabbing the first man and helping to pull him inside. ,e rolled him toward the bac" and then helped with the second. *nce he was in, ;ingbutt, 8c1raw, and .ing 'umped in after. 31o )ra$ier<3 he bar"ed. 3-ontingency three on their car.3 3Aight,3 (en said, resigned, "nowing that time was critically

short. ,e fired up the engine and bac"ed #uic"ly out of the spot, pointing the van in the direction of the .est,em team!s car, which needed to be ta"en care of before they left. The prime mission plan had been for the ta"edown team to be undetected and for Span"worth and (en to search through their car for any futuristic items that might be found there. They no longer had that lu&ury but they still needed to ma"e sure nothing was found in that )ord )alcon that would tell an investigator the occupants had come from the future. (en screeched to a halt and 'umped out of the van, going #uic"ly around to the side door. Span"worth handed him a can of gasoline, a freeway flare, and a crowbar. ,e used the crowbar to smash open the driver!s side window of the )alcon. ,e then opened the door, poured the gas all over the front and bac" seats, and set the half+full can on the floorboard. ,e pulled the cap off the flare, struc" it alight, and then tossed it in through the open window. There was a whooshing sound, a blast of heat, and the car was a flaming pyre. .ithin minutes it would be fully involved and everything inside it would be incinerated beyond recognition. Smelling of gas, the bac" of his hand slightly singed, (en 'umped bac" into the still+idling van and dropped it into drive. ,e floored the accelerator and did a sharp B+turn, heading bac" down the access road, #uic"ly getting up to nearly seventy miles per hour on the /0mph speed limit road. % glance in the mirror showed that Span"worth, 8c1raw, and ;ingbutt had managed to get handcuffs on the two unconscious .est,em soldiers and were even now stic"ing air syringes into their arms to sedate them even longer. 3,ow much time do we have43 Span"worth as"ed as he whipped around a sharp turn. 39ot much,3 (en said. 3That was maybe the worst thing that could!ve happened. 9othing will get the cops here faster and in more numbers than having one of their own ta"en down. They!ll

put a perimeter around this whole fuc"ing section of the city in a matter of minutes. They!ll have helicopters and dogs and infrared cameras loo"ing for us everywhere and they won!t stop until they find us.3 3.hat do you suggest43 Span"worth as"ed calmly. 3Should we go with %ssfuc"+seven43 (en thought that one over for a second. -ontingency plan %+? was a plan of last resort, to be utili$ed if they couldn!t clear the cho"epoint at Aoseville Par"way and Sunrise before the cops shut it down. It involved them dragging their prisoners overland, through cree" beds and drainage tunnels, hoping to hole up in a tunnel somewhere and clear the perimeter when the heat died down. 3I don!t thin" we!re that desperate yet,3 he said. 3;esides, the dogs would be able to trac" us if we moved overland on foot. I thin" ;uttfuc"+five is a better option. It!s been less than three minutes since the emergency call went out and it went out on the ambulance channel, not the cops!. That means more time went by before it got from one dispatch center to the other. .e should be able to clear the cho"epoint and get into the residential neighborhoods before the first cops get here.3 3It!s your call,3 Span"worth said. 31o with it.3 3)uc"in! aye,3 he said, praying to :aura he wasn!t wrong. ,e wasn!t, but 'ust barely. %s he ran through the red light at Aoseville Par"way and Sunrise he could see the flashing blue and red light bars of multiple police units coming at him in the distance from the south, east, and west. ,e turned a sharp left at Aoseville Par"way, heading toward the most distant set of oncoming lights, e&tinguishing his own headlights as he drove. % #uarter of a mile down a two+lane road led off to the south, winding through a new residential tract. ,e turned down it, stomping the accelerator to the floor.

% half a mile down he turned left onto another two+lane road. % #uarter mile after that, he turned onto another. %s he had noted on his many hours of studying the geography of the region, this part of Aoseville was still under development. ,e was now in a neighborhood of model homes and homes under construction. ,e pulled the van up ne&t to a house that was nearly completed, and came to a stop. 3In there,3 he said, his eyes loo"ing around for any other living being. ,e saw nothing but a curious raccoon about /00 yards down the road. 3I!ll get rid of the van and get bac" to you.3 The team didn!t hesitate. Thirty seconds later they were all gone, dragging their prisoners and all of their e#uipment across the undeveloped front lawn, intending to brea" in through a bac" door and hole up. 9o sooner were they out before (en was heading off again, ta"ing left and right turns, driving himself further and further into the subdivision. %t the south end was another section of half+completed houses. ,e pulled the van into a driveway and 'umped out, wal"ing up to the front door. ,e tried the "nob and found without surprise that it was loc"ed. Bndaunted, he pic"ed up a roc" from the front yard and smashed in the front window, reaching through and undoing the latch. ,e climbed through, finding himself in an empty house where the drywall had only recently been installed. There was no carpet on the floor, 'ust bare cement. There was no tile in the "itchen, no plumbing fi&tures, no cabinetry. The smell of raw lumber, glue, and plaster dust was everywhere. ,e wor"ed his way through the dar" house, stumbling into walls a few times but finally finding the garage. % few moments of searching led to the roller garage door. ,e felt along its length until he found the latch. ,e turned it, releasing the mechanism with a clan" and then pushed the door upward on its trac". The front of the van was directly in front of him. In the distance he could hear the wail of sirens and the whopping of

helicopter blades. ,e 'umped into the driver!s seat and pulled the van into the garage, not stopping until the grill was against the bac" wall. ,e 'umped out, leaving the "eys in the ignition and loo"ed around under the glow of the interior lights for anything that might be left behind. It seemed all traces of the future had been removed so he slammed the door shut and then wal"ed out through the open garage door. ,e closed it behind him and then set off on foot, moving through the unfenced bac"yards until he was two streets over. ,e then turned right, 'ogging past houses in various stages of construction and empty lots where houses would one day stand. The sound of sirens was even closer now and he could see the searchlights of two different police helicopters circling around to the east and south of him, probing for any sign of the men who had dared to assault a police officer. .hen one of the helicopters started to circle in his direction, he too" cover in a half complete house and hid in the one room that did not feature a window to the outside+the guest bathroom. The helicopter came closer and closer, flying in large circles over him and past him. The spotlight probed here and there but never lit up the interior of the house. This did not comfort (en, however. ,e "new the helicopter was e#uipped with a forward loo"ing infrared pod, or a ):IA, and that it was being used to sweep the area in search of heat sources, such as a human body. If he were to go out in the open while they were in the vicinity he would be spotted in an instant. ,e pulled out his cell phone and dialed up 8artian communication mode. 3Span"y,3 he said into it, 3this is )ra$ier. =ou there43 3.e!re here,3 Span"worth!s voice answered bac". 3.e got a chopper circling over us but no sign they!ve found us yet. .e!re in the bathroom, li"e you told us.3 31ood,3 (en said. 3The ):IA won!t get a hit off you in there. I!m

holed up in a house too, about half a mile from your location.3 3% nice little clusterfuc" we got going here, ain!t it43 Span"worth as"ed. 3I got .ing scanning the police fre#uencies. Those cops sound almighty pissed off at us. They!re not sure what "ind of weapon we hit their friend with, but they!re under the impression he might die. In addition to the Aoseville P units, they!re getting cars from the Placer -ounty Sheriff!s epartment, the Aoc"lin P , the Sacramento -ounty Sheriff!s epartment, and the -itrus ,eights P . They!ve got a solid perimeter around us now. 9o way we!re getting out of here until they brea" it down. Is the van secure43 3)uc"in! aye,3 he replied. 3%ll according to plan.3 31ood old ;uttfuc"+five,3 he said. 3I!m glad we brought you along for this, )ra$ier. =ou may have saved our asses bac" there.3 3;e glad after we get out of this mess,3 he said. 3Things aren!t loo"ing too cheery at the moment.3 3True. So, how diligent are they gonna search for us4 .ill they go house to house43 3If they find the van they will,3 he said. 3If they don!t find the van there!s a good possibility they!ll conclude we s#uea"ed through their perimeter before they closed it on us. ;y then they!ll have figured out that the cop 8c1raw hit isn!t going to die and wasn!t even really in'ured. That!ll ta"e some of the venom out of them and they 'ust might brea" down the perimeter.3 3:et!s hope to :aura they don!t find the van then,3 he said. 3;e sure to get rid of all of the (en )rawler identification you have. They!ve run the plate on the van and got that name out of 85. I changed the photos in all of the computer databases, so they!ll be loo"ing for a bald male in his fifties instead of someone who

loo"s li"e you. I also changed the fingerprints so they!re different from yours.3 2ven with the danger he was currently in, (en couldn!t help but be ama$ed once more at the 8artian computer technology and the ease with which they could manipulate 2arthling databases. .ith only a few spo"en commands from Span"worth, every picture that had been planted of (enneth )rawler had been changed in every database in which it had e&isted, and every fingerprint record in every computer file had undergone a similar metamorphosis. 9or was that all. Since (en )rawler was now supposed to loo" li"e a fifty+year+old man, his date of birth and wor" history would have been changed as well. In a matter of minutes, from a place of hiding in an unoccupied house in Aoseville, Span"worth had erased one person!s identity from the time stream and replaced it with another. 3I!ll destroy the I as soon as I can,3 (en said, irrationally dropping his voice to a whisper as the helicopter made another pass over him. 3.hich I should I use now4 I don!t have any of the papers with me+they!re all in the bag that!s with you, but I!ve memori$ed all of them. If they happen to pic" me up, who should I say I am43 3Bse the (evin )reeman persona,3 Span"worth told him. 3I!ll have the computer input it now.3 3(evin )reeman, got it,3 he replied, nodding. (evin )reeman was a Aoseville resident with a minor criminal bac"ground. ,e was homeless with a history of alcohol and drug abuse. If the cops pic"ed him up it was plausible they would buy that he had 'ust bro"en into an unoccupied house to stay the night. %ssuming, of course, that they didn!t find the van, which was teeming with (en )ra$ier!s fingerprints. 3:et!s hope you don!t have to use it,3 Span"worth told him. 3I!ll "eep you updated on what the cops are doing. Span"y out.3

3)ra$ier out,3 he said, clic"ing off the phone. ,e sat down on the floor and settled in to wait.

3)uc" a s#uirrel,3 ,uffy bar"ed after hearing the situation report from Span"worth. The situation down there was far from under control, and with a high potential to deteriorate #uic"ly. 3Sorry, ,uff,3 Span"worth replied, his voice issuing from the bridge!s spea"er system. 3It!s not your fault, Span"y,3 she said. 3Just plain old bad luc". I!m glad you had )ra$ier down there with you or you might!ve already been pic"ed up by now.3 3=ou and me both,3 he said. 3In the meantime, though, I!m still scanning their radio fre#uency. They!ve decided we have to be in the housing tract somewhere. )our helicopters are circling above us and they!ve got two S.%T teams staging to move into the perimeter to start searching house to house. It!s only a matter of time before they find the van or )ra$ier or us. Is there anything you can do about it from up there43 3If I may,3 interrupted (en )ra$ier!s voice. (en had been monitoring the conversation. 3=ou may, )ra$ier,3 ,uffy said. 3If you!ve got an idea, let!s hear it.3 3.e need to draw their attention away from us, ma"e them thin" we!re somewhere else. If we do that, they!ll move the perimeter in closer.3 3,ow do we do that43 ,uffy as"ed. 3-an you tap into the phone system and ma"e a IFF call to the police department.3

3-hild!s play,3 ,uffy scoffed. 3=ou should "now that.3 39o, you don!t understand,3 (en said. 3=ou!d have to ma"e it appear that this IFF call came from a certain house. The phone number and address for that house would have to register on their dispatcher!s screen as being correct. In fact, to truly get their attention, we!d have to do this from a couple of different houses.3 3.hat are you suggesting43 ,uffy as"ed, not #uite understanding. 3.e send them fa"e IFF calls from the occupied corner of the perimeter up in the northwest area. If they thin" a few residents are calling in and reporting people moving through their bac"yard, and those people match their descriptions of us, they!ll focus heavily on that area and ta"e the heat off us over here.3 3,mmm,3 ,uffy said thoughtfully. 3Intelligence, are you copying this43 3)uc"in! aye, ,uff,3 Sampson replied. 3I thin" I might be able to do that with a little wor". ;ut what!s going to happen when they go to tal" to those people and find out they didn!t really ma"e the call43 3)ra$ier43 ,uffy as"ed. 3The pussy is on your coc".3 There was a pause as he thought this over. )inally, he said, 3It will be a while before they actually chec" on something li"e that, especially if there is a series of calls from the area. It!s not a perfect plan, I!ll agree, but it!s better than 'ust sitting here and waiting to get sniffed out by the dogs, isn!t it43 3=ou ma"e a good point,3 ,uffy agreed. 3Sampson, start wor"ing on it.3

3Aight, ,uff,3 he replied. 3)ra$ier, Span"y, we!re gonna go with it. Sampson!s figuring out the logistics of it now. .e!ll let you "now before...3 3-on, detection<3 bar"ed 8i"e Spammer from his display. 3Shit,3 ,uffy said. 3.hat now4 Surface teams, stand by a minute. .e got some shit going down up here now.3 She turned to Spammer. 3.hat!s up, Spammy43 32ncrypted radio signals being broadcast from Aumsfeld. They!re hitting a com+sat in 12*. I!m sending the signal to Intelligence now.3 3*"ay,3 ,uffy said. 3Probably 'ust a communication attempt to see if their team was successful. Sampson, you getting it43 3The computer!s crunching the code now, ,uff.3 3I!m getting a return signal from the same com+sat,3 Spammer said a moment later, trashing her theory. 3Somebody answered them. 8ore signals going out from Aumsfeld in reply.3 3Somebody answered them43 ,uffy said, alarmed. 3.hat the fuc"4 .ho in the hell are they tal"ing to down there4 .e have their team in custody<3 3It seems they sent at least one more person to the surface with their team,3 Sampson said #uietly. 3Someone who wasn!t there when they made the attempt.3 ,uffy buried her face in her hands. 3I was afraid of this,3 she said. The bursts of radio traffic went on for D0 seconds before ceasing. -alistoga!s decryption software was #uite adept at brea"ing .est,em encryption algorithms and two minutes after the last transmission a clear audio copy was ready. The two

people tal"ing were positively identified by the e&tensive database Intelligence "ept on .est,em naval personnel. They were -aptain Aobert Stanhope, a career naval officer who had commanded three separate stealth attac" ships and r. Stephen :indley, who had spent his career as a physician aboard naval vessels. 3Put it on spea"ers,3 ,uffy ordered. There was a pop and then a male voice, spea"ing in a thic" 2arthling accent, confirmed their worst fears. 3:indley, this is Stanhope, do you copy me43 3:indley here,3 replied a cultured voice. 3Is there trouble43 3Something went wrong down there,3 Stanhope said. 3%nd I thin" something might be going wrong up here, too. .e!re scanning the police fre#uencies in Aoseville. There!s a ma'or commotion going on that started at the hospital.3 3 id the police get our team43 :indley as"ed calmly. 3If they find that genetic manipulator, there will be no doubt it!s from the future.3 3They don!t have our team yet, but it loo"s li"e the whole mission might be blown. %ccording to the police broadcasts, two people, a man and a woman, dressed in the same sort of clothes as our people, disabled them before they made it into the building. They then disabled a police officer who tried to stop them.3 3 isabled them43 3They report hitting them with a blue flash of light that caused them to collapse.3 There was a pause, and then :indley said, 3Police tanners.3

3.hich means someone from the future,3 Stanhope confirmed. 3There!s another ship out here somewhere. 8artians maybe, but more li"ely 2ast,ems. I don!t thin" the greenies would be capable of mounting a counter+mission such as this.3 3.hat do we do now43 :indley as"ed. 3The mission is a failure, no matter what,3 Stanhope told him. 3;ut really, what do we care4 Since you were "ind enough to reverse the little problem our superiors saddled us with, we can still set ourselves up #uite the empire down there, can!t we4 This changes nothing. *ur government tried to "ill us for our service, so why should we give a damn if we weren!t able to perform that service43 3True,3 the doctor replied. 3So we proceed with our plan43 3.e proceed,3 Stanhope told him. 3;ut we have to assume that whoever sent down that team will be loo"ing for us. .e!ll bump things up a bit. %t the ne&t window I!m going to bring everyone down in the escape pods. .e!ll gather them together at the pre+ determined location and... you "now... wait for the vaccinations to wor" on them. That!ll be in about ten days, right43 31ive or ta"e a few hours,3 :indley agreed. 31et away from where you!re at immediately,3 Stanhope said. 3Start setting up our accommodations to wait out the vaccine. I!ll bring the crew to you there.3 3.hat about the interdiction team4 .hat happens if the cops get them43 3That has nothing to do with us,3 Stanhope said. 3They!ll "eep their mouths shut long enough for the vaccine to wor" in them. Their part in this is over now.3 3Sounds good, ;ob. I!ll see you down here.3

3% few more wee"s, Steve, and we!ll be living li"e "ings for the rest of our lives. Just "eep the faith.3 3=ou "now it. :indley out.3 3Stanhope out.3 There was silence on the -alistoga bridge for a few seconds after the transmission ended, all of the crewmembers loo"ing at each other in horror at what they had 'ust heard. )inally it was ,uffy who spo"e. 3.hat do you thin", Aon43 she as"ed Sampson. 3It sounds li"e the ship!s doctor figured out that they!d been given the time release poison,3 he said. 3)uc"in! aye,3 ,uffy said. 3%nd he reversed it in himself and the ship!s captain but left it alone in everyone else.3 She shoo" her head angrily. 3The .est,em willingness to commit murder or to stand by and let it occur. I!ll never understand it. 9ot if I live to be ninety.3 3=ou reali$e they!re planning to ta"e full advantage of their pre+ "nowledge,3 Sampson said. 3They have absolutely no compunctions about !living li"e (ings, ! as they put it. They may very well be able to set themselves up as rulers within a few 2arth years if they play their cards right. The entire stream of human history will change if we don!t stop them.3 3I have every intention of stopping them,3 ,uffy said firmly. 3,ow are we doing with that police call thing )ra$ier suggested43 3It loo"s li"e it might wor",3 Sampson said. 3It!ll ta"e another ten minutes or so to insert a program into the computer to send false signals to the IFF trace program.3 3:et!s get it done,3 ,uffy said. She turned to the navigation officer. 3,ow long until the Aumsfeld can start releasing escape

pods toward the surface, assuming they!re going to be landing somewhere off the west coast of -alifornia43 39ine hours, ,uff,3 was the immediate reply. 3Aight,3 ,uffy said. 3%s soon as we get our people out of that trap they!re in down there, we ta"e down that ship. I!m done fuc"ing around with those .est,em assholes.3 The Aoseville Police epartment, being one of the more affluent agencies in the Sacramento area, owned a large motor home that had been converted into a command vehicle for ma'or incidents. Inside, most of the furniture had been removed and replaced by ban"s of computers, radio e#uipment, coffee ma"ers, and detail maps of the surrounding region. The command vehicle had been ta"en out of storage for the first time in more than a year and was now sitting in a par"ing lot at the intersection of Aoseville Par"way and 2nglewood %venue, the point where the white van they were loo"ing for had entered the residential tract and disappeared. :ieutenant on 8ichaels+ the night watch commander for Aoseville P +sat in the command chair facing a radio microphone and two computer screens. *ne screen displayed a map that outlined the positions of all of the units he had sitting on the perimeter. The other screen displayed the dispatch software that allowed him to send and receive messages. ,e sipped from a cup of coffee and monitored the radio traffic, waiting for word that the two S.%T teams he!d assembled+one from his agency, one from the Sacramento Sheriff!s epartment+were ready to move into the perimeter and begin their search. 3Phone call for you, 2l+tee,3 said Sergeant *!,ara, who was normally the dispatch supervisor but was now serving as 8ichaels! secretary. 3It!s ;ailey over at the hospital.3 3Than"s, John,3 he said, ta"ing the phone from him, feeling a worm of dread going through his guts. This would be the call regarding *fficer 5ic Singer, the officer who had been... well, they weren!t sure what had happened to him, other than he!d

been hauled into the 2A completely unresponsive. .as ;ailey going to tell him Singer had been declared dead4 Aoseville P + which was basically a suburban department+hadn!t had a line of duty death in nearly ten years. 38ichaels here. .hat!s the word43 3,e!s awa"e, 2l+tee,3 ;ailey said. 3.hat did you say43 he as"ed, sure that he had heard wrong. 3,e!s awa"e,3 ;ailey repeated. 3%wa"e and tal"ing. I 'ust came out of his room. ,e has a little bit of a headache, but other than that he feels fine.3 3=ou!re "idding,3 8ichaels said, feeling more uneasy than elated. Something very strange was going on with this situation. 3I wouldn!t "id about something li"e that, :ieutenant,3 ;ailey told him, sounding a bit miffed. 3,e!s wide awa"e and remembers everything, right up to when... well, when whatever happened to him happened.3 3.hat do the docs say43 8ichaels as"ed. 3 id they find out what happened to him4 .as it a taser gun they hit him with4 .as he shot4 .hat43 3There!s nothing wrong with him that they can find. 9ot a damn thing. 9o mar"s on his body whatsoever. -T scan was negative. To& screen was negative. ;lood sugar was normal. %ll of the labs and e&ams show nothing. There was no reason whatsoever why he should!ve been unconscious li"e that, but he was. ,e was so unconscious that he wouldn!t even withdraw from pain.3 3%nd 'ust li"e that, he wo"e up43 3Just li"e that,3 ;ailey said. 3%nd that!s not all.3 3.hat else43

3I had security pull the tapes from the security cameras covering that entrance, 'ust li"e you as"ed.3 3Bh huh43 3;oth of the cameras malfunctioned 'ust before it happened, about thirty seconds before it, in fact. %nd both of them came bac" on line two minutes after it was over. The security supervisor said he!s never seen anything li"e it before, that he didn!t even thin" it was possible. The camera maintenance guy is coming in... but... well... you "now.3 3 id any of the other cameras in the system malfunction43 8ichaels as"ed slowly. 39o,3 ;ailey responded. 32verything else was wor"ing fine.3 3I see,3 8ichaels said slowly. 3 id 5ic give you a statement43 39othing official yet,3 he said. 3I figured I!d let the detectives ta"e the official one, but li"e I said, he remembers everything right up to the moment it happened. ,e says he saw two guys who loo"ed li"e soldiers or professional wrestlers but they were dressed in house"eeping uniforms. *ne of them was carrying a briefcase. ,e says there was no way in hell they were really house"eeping staff. Three other people, two chic"s and a dude, all of them dressed in house"eeping uniforms, too, met them and... flashed them with the same sort of thing that too" 5ic down. ,e says he saw two blue flashes and the guys dropped li"e they!d been shot. ,e went over to detain them and something touched him on the chest. ,e thin"s it was a wire or a strand of metal coming out from the cell phone the blonde chic" was carrying. The ne&t thing he "nows, he!s wa"ing up in the 2A with an I5 and tubes stic"ing out of him.3 3That matches what the paramedic saw,3 8ichaels said. 3Bh huh,3 ;ailey said. 3=ou "now that 5ic was tapping the

paramedic, right43 39o,3 he sighed, 3but it doesn!t really surprise me. 5ic is one of our more... uh... active officers off+duty, isn!t he43 3That!s what they say,3 ;ailey said diplomatically. 39ot my concern,3 8ichaels said. 3It doesn!t seem li"e she!s covering up for anything, does it43 39o,3 he said. 3She!s a hot loo"ing piece but there!s not a whole lot of personality there. I mean, she bought that whole !my wife doesn!t understand me! bullshit 5ic laid on her. I don!t thin" she!s capable of lying on that sort of level.3 3:et!s 'ust try to "eep their relationship, whatever it might have been, away from the boys and girls in the press, shall we4 It!s not their concern either.3 3=ou "now it, 2l+tee. In any case, I don!t thin" there!s any funny business going on with the story. .ho would ma"e up some bi$arre shit li"e that43 38y feelings e&actly,3 8ichaels said, leaning bac" in his seat and stifling a yawn. ,e sat bac" up again. 3=ou "now something, ;ailey43 3.hat!s that, 2l+tee43 3I!ve been a cop for twenty+four years and I!ve seen a lot of strange shit, but I thin" I!m loo"ing at the strangest thing I!ve ever encountered tonight. .hat in the fuc" happened at that hospital4 .hy would two men who loo" li"e soldiers show up at a hospital in the middle of the night dressed li"e 'anitors and carrying a motherfuc"in! leather briefcase4 .hy would another group of people dressed in the same clothes attac" them with some weapon we!ve never seen or heard of before and then drag them off in their van4 .hy would they burn down a car in the

par"ing lot before they left4 id you hear who the car was registered to43 3John Smith,3 ;ailey said. 3% man who lives at F/CD 8ain Street in Sacramento and wor"s at CD0E 8ain Street in Sacramento+ e&cept there ain!t no fuc"ing 8ain Street in Sacramento.3 3Aight,3 8ichaels said. 3,ow in the fuc" did they get that address through 854 %nd the date of birth4 January F, FI804 =ou ever heard a more pathetic alias before43 39o,3 he said. 3%ctually I haven!t.3 3=et, somehow, they got 85 to accept that crap. The license wasn!t forged+it was valid, bac"ed up by the computer and everything, which means there!s a birth record on file with social security somewhere.3 %s he articulated it, the strangeness of the whole thing struc" him anew. ,e shoo" his head. 39one of this ma"es any sense.3 3.e need to get our hands on these people,3 ;ailey said. 3,ow!s it loo"ing for that43 3.e!ve got a solid perimeter over the whole residential tract. .e!re pretty certain they!re in there somewhere. .e got a solid witness statement from some residents who saw them pass through this intersection and we got our perimeter up #uic" enough that they couldn!t have come out the other side. It!s 'ust a matter of sniffing them out. *ur S.%T team and Sac sheriff!s are about to head in from opposite sides. Si& (+I units will be going in with them.3 3,opefully they!ll resist arrest,3 ;ailey said, meaning, of course, that he hoped the cops who finally too" them into custody would beat the shit out of them first. 39o comment on that,3 8ichaels said, his voice conveying that he very much hoped for the same thing. 3(eep me updated if

you learn anything else.3 3.ill do,3 ;ailey told him. 8ichaels hung up the telephone and loo"ed at his computer screen again, his eyes appraising the positioning of the perimeter units for about the twentieth time, loo"ing for holes the suspects could potentially slip through. There were none that he could see, especially not with four helicopters circling overhead, probing with their ):IAs. 3:incoln+one,3 said the voice of the dispatcher. She sounded e&cited. ,e pic"ed up the microphone and "eyed up. 3:incoln+one, go ahead.3 3.e!re online with a female resident from /D0E Pussywillow. She!s reporting several males 'ust climbed the fence into her bac"yard and went out the other side.3 ,e loo"ed immediately at the map, his finger tracing over the screen until it was resting on Pussywillow Street. It was in the southeastern corner of the residential tract, near the very edge of the inhabited portion of Aoseville, well inside the perimeter. ,e decided he would send one of his air units to go chec" it out. 8ore than li"ely it was a false report called in by a nervous 9ellie who had heard all of the commotion and was starting to imagine things. ,is opinion began to wea"en a moment later when the dispatcher reported another call, two houses over, in which yet another woman complained of several men 'umping her fence and running through her bac"yard. The third and fourth calls+ three and five houses down respectively+erased all doubt. The men who had hospitali$ed one of his cops, who had burned up a car in a hospital par"ing lot, who had possibly "idnapped two even more mysterious men, were on the move, heading for the

edge of the perimeter. 3%ll units on the perimeter, this is :incoln one,3 he said into the microphone. 3.e have multiple reports of several men moving through bac"yards in the vicinity of Pussywillow and eer -ree". %ir units, move in and see if you can spot them. 1round units, let!s move the main perimeter in.3 ,e consulted his map and began ordering his core units inward, tightening up the noose around them. ,e shuffled his mutual aid units+cars from Sacramento -ounty, Placer -ounty, -itrus ,eights, and Aoc"lin+around to different positions, creating a looser perimeter on the outside in case some of the men had separated from the main group. ,e listened to all of the units ac"nowledge his orders and then used the mouse to update their positions on the map. ,is eyes loo"ed for any holes, especially in the outer perimeter. It was a little loose out there, but he saw no patch of ground where someone could wal" out without passing before the peering eyes of at least one patrol unit. 3.e!ve got you, motherfuc"ers,3 he whispered. 3.e!ve got you.3

In the empty house under construction, an e&act duplicate of 8ichaels! map floated in the air before (en!s eyes, captured by the 8artian hac"ing technology and generated by the holographic hardware in his cell phone. ,e was disappointed but not terribly surprised that an outer perimeter had been left in place as a 'ust+in+case measure. It was what he would have done had he been in the incident commander!s place and had access to so many units. 3,ow we loo"ing, )ra$ier43 en#uired Sampson up on -alistoga. 3 o you see any holes that I don!t see43 3.ell,3 he said, 3the perimeter!s been loosened up #uite a bit, but it!s still intact. .e!re not gonna be able to 'ust stroll on out

of here.3 3,ow much time before they discover we!re not really where they thin" we are43 3If they don!t find a trace of us after fifteen or twenty minutes, they!ll start tal"ing to some of the residents where the IFF calls came. *nce they reali$e those calls were never made... well, I don!t really "now what will happen. It depends on what the guy in charge of things ma"es of it. )rom what I see here, though, he seems pretty competent at what he does. If I could get inside his head a little, maybe I could come up with something, but other than that, I don!t see an easy way out.3 3I can help you get inside his head,3 Sampson said. 3The incident commander is :ieutenant onald .illiam 8ichaels, age D8. ,ired by the Aoseville Police epartment %ugust /, FI8C. ,e!s got a bachelor!s degree in -riminal Justice with a minor in ;usiness %dministration. Two children, both of whom are in college. 9ight watch commander since a promotion to lieutenant five years ago. ;efore that, he spent fourteen years as a patrol sergeant and five years as a ran" and file patrol officer. ;elongs to the )irst Presbyterian -hurch of Aoseville, though not a fre#uent patron of the establishment. *n his second marriage and his current wife is being pharmaceutically treated for clinical depression. ,e has a mistress named oreen Johnson, age CF, whom he has been seeing secretly for the past two years. ,e has two alternate names on his Internet access that he uses to subscribe to various pornographic sites with. ,is se&ual "in"s+based on the type of material he stores on his computer+seems to be submissive se&ual games involving women dressed in blac" leather outfits and tying him up to a bed. ,e also...3 3.hoa,3 (en interrupted. 3,ang on a second. ,ow do you "now all of this shit43 3It!s standard Intelligence doctrine to gather all possible

information about one!s adversaries. *ur hac"ing software pulled up his personnel file, Internet habits, and even loo"ed through the hard+drive of his home computer. .e!ve not only done this for 8ichaels, but for every officer staffing the perimeter.3 3Aeally43 (en as"ed. 32very officer43 3%s I said,3 Sampson told him. 3It!s standard doctrine. Is there anything in 8ichaels! file that might help you predict his ne&t move4 That!s why we do it.3 39o... it!s very interesting, but it doesn!t really help much.3 38aybe there!s something about one of the other officers then,3 Sampson suggested. 3*ne of the ones on the perimeter. The computer automatically outlines information that!s potentially compromising against the current moral standards.3 3,uh43 (en said, not #uite getting him, and certainly not seeing how any of this would help. 3)or instance,3 Sampson said. 3*fficer 8ichelle Ainger with the Sacramento Sheriff!s epartment has a husband who often hits her, sometimes hard enough to get her hospitali$ed. *fficer Jim 2dwards with the Placer -ounty Sheriff!s epartment has an addiction to a prescription drug called Mana& and often uses a false Internet identification to get it. *fficer Todd 8adison with the Aoc"lin Police epartment is a pedophile with an e&tremely large collection of child pornography stored on his home hard+ drive. *fficer Aandolph Smith of the -itrus ,eights Police epartment is embe$$ling money from the police union. *fficer...3 3,old up a second,3 (en interrupted, a glimmer of an idea flashing through his mind. 31o bac" to the child molester guy. Tell me more about him.3

3*fficer Todd ,enry 8adison,3 Sampson said. 3;orn July ?, FI?F. Joined the Aoc"lin Police epartment in FIIC. .e have evidence of the standard psychological problems that such people go through in their adolescent years. It seems he came to grips with his desires right around the time of his college graduation. ,is target group is eight to eleven year old boys. .e have no actual incidents on file of him fulfilling his urges to have se& with young boys but that!s only because such things are not generally documented. There is anecdotal evidence to suggest he does engage in such activities on a regular basis. ,e is unmarried and only dates single mothers with eight to eleven year old male children. ,e volunteers as a little league baseball coach and as a ;oy Scout leader+both activities that pedophiles fre#uently pursue in this society as it puts them in close pro&imity with their target. -ross references of several children he!s been in contact with over the years show classic psychological profiles consistent with those who have been molested by people such as Todd. %nd the pornography collection on his hard+drive, as I!ve mentioned, is #uite e&tensive. ,e has over si& thousand images of na"ed boys alone, engaging in se& acts with each other, and engaging in se& acts with men. 9inety+si& percent of these images are classified as illegal under current federal and state law.3 3-an you access those images43 (en as"ed. 3 id he leave his home computer turned on43 3,e didn!t leave it turned on,3 Sampson said, 3but that doesn!t matter to us. It!s still hoo"ed up to an Internet access line. That means we can get into it. Is there something we can use here, )ra$ier4 I don!t have to tell you that time is ran"in! short.3 3.here is he on the perimeter43 (en as"ed, his mind whi$$ing along at a mile a minute, trying to formulate a plan. 3,e!s holding the intersection of .histling *a" and ;lac" *a",3 Sampson told him.

(en loo"ed at the map, his eyes going to that intersection. =es< That point in the perimeter was not visible to the surrounding units. ,e e&panded the map view so it showed the streets beyond the perimeter. =es again< If they could get by that particular point they could get out to an unguarded main artery without being seen. ,e e&panded the map even further, loo"ing for potential pitfalls, loo"ing for the #uic"est route out of the area. It could wor". .ith a little luc", it could wor". 3)ra$ier43 Sampson as"ed. 3=ou still with me, awg43 3I!m here,3 (en said. 3:isten up. This is my plan...3

Todd 8adison sat slumped behind the wheel of his patrol car, his eyes trac"ing over the landscape before him. ,is point in the outer perimeter sat at the edge of the developed area. To the south of him were empty lots where construction had yet to begin. To the north of him was a row of silent, dar"ened model homes and a few lots where the frames of houses had started to go up. In the far distance, several miles away, he could see the lights of the circling helicopters as they tried to flush out the suspects that had assaulted a Aoseville P officer and put him in the hospital. Todd was only semi+interested in the great scheme of which he was a part. ,e hoped they would catch the people who had ta"en down one of his colleagues but he was more interested in a #uic" end to the situation so he could go bac" to Aoc"lin and find a dar" par"ing lot and catch a few win"s. ,e hated wor"ing the goddamned night shift but he was doing his time, ma"ing the good+old+boy networ" that ran Aoc"lin P happy so he could maybe get his dream assignment sometime ne&t year. If he played his cards right he would be the ne&t Aoc"lin 2lementary School istrict resource officer when that fuc"stic" John Stevenson finally retired. The very thought caused his coc" to stiffen in e&citement. ,e would be the cop assigned to all of

Aoc"lin!s elementary schools< *h the young boys he would come into contact with in that assignment< The most troubled of them+which meant those who were his most li"ely targets+ would actually be assigned to counseling sessions with him. ,e had wor"ed his entire career to achieve such a posting. The opportunities it would produce would be much greater than his ;oy Scout gig or his youth baseball gig. ,e might get his hands on some young, hot, innocent piece of boyhood once a month instead of the two to three times a year he now averaged. 3*h 1od,3 he sighed, his coc" now fully erect as he imagined the possibilities. Tal" about your dreams come true. % beep emanated from the computer terminal mounted between the front seats. ,e turned toward it absently, figuring it was a personal message from one of the other Aoc"lin P units staffing the perimeter. ;ut it wasn!t. ,is breath caught in his throat as he saw what was on the screen. ,is erection instantly wilted, driven away by the burst of adrenaline that surged through his body. Aoc"lin P , li"e many upscale suburban police departments with budget money to burn, made a point to utili$e the latest in technology. %s such, the mobile communication terminals in each patrol car were more than simple te&t screens. They were fully functional noteboo" computers, powered by the latest Intel computer chip and the latest version of .indows. Though they weren!t normally used for displaying digital photograph files, they were certainly more than capable of that function, as evidenced by the fact that a high+resolution picture in full color was now gracing Todd!s screen. ,e recogni$ed the photo instantly. It was one that he had stored on his hard+drive at home, one he had ac#uired by means of a false identity and stolen credit card data. It was a picture of a young boy, around nine years old, na"ed and "neeling before a hairy, fully grown, and e#ually na"ed man with a large, erect coc". The boy had this coc" in his hand and was about to put it in his mouth. The e&pression on the boy!s face was one of nervous anticipation.

3.hat the fuc"43 he whispered in horror. .hat was this picture doing on his 8 T4 ,ow had it gotten there4 ;efore he had time to fully comprehend these #uestions, there was a beep and the picture disappeared, only to be replaced by another image+this one of a na"ed eleven year old boy bending over in the classic position of se&ual submissiveness. This image was also one that was on his hard+drive, was in fact one he fre#uently used for masturbation. There was another beep, and another image appeared, and then another, and then yet another. They began to go by #uic"ly, each appearing for about two seconds and each an image from the collection he "ept on his hard+drive+images he had collected over a ten+year period from a variety of Internet sources. .ith each beep, with each new shot on his wor" screen, more adrenaline surged through him and his sense of panic increased. ,ow was this happening4 .ho was doing it4 %nd, most important, how had they found his collection4 ,e had always been so careful to hide the shots in secure, password+protected files. ,ow in the hell was this possible4 The slide show went on for almost two minutes, displaying all of his favorite shots in what seemed to be the order of preference. ,e could not tear his eyes away from it. )inally, the images stopped and a message appeared instead. )I52 T* T29 =2%AS I9 PAIS*9, T* , it said. T,%T!S .,%T T,2 (I = P*A9 *9 =*BA -*8PBT2A %:*92 .I:: 12T =*B, ;BT IT .*9!T 29 T,2A2, .I:: IT4 3.huu... whuu,3 he stammered, now trembling from fear. Todd< They had called him by name. %nother message appeared. IT 1*2S .IT,*BT S%=I91 T,%T =*B!:: :*S2 =*BA J*; %9 T,%T =*BA 9%82 .I:: ;2 %:: *52A T,2 P%P2AS. ;BT IT .*9!T 29 T,2A2. T,2=!:: (9*. =*B!52 *92 8*A2 T,%9 *.9:*% I::21%: P*A9. T,2=!:: ST%AT :**(I91 %T

T,2 ;*= S-*BTS =*B!52 ,% I9 =*BA TA**P, %T T,2 ;*=S =*B!52 -*%-,2 I9 ;%S2;%::, %T T,2 S*9S *) T,2 .*829 =*B!52 ;229 %TI91. =*B!A2 % -*P. ,*. :*91 * =*B T,I9( IT .I:: T%(2 ;2)*A2 T,2 )IAST (I -*82S )*A.%A 4 ,*. :*91 * =*B T,I9( IT .I:: T%(2 ;2)*A2 T,2 *8I9*2S ST%AT T* )%:: %)T2A T,%T4 ,e was now completely incapable of speech. ,e had never been more terrified in his life. 2verything that his 8 T was telling him was correct. ,e could not begin to delude himself that it wasn!t. If his collection of pictures came to light it would be a matter of wee"s before some "id somewhere would spill his guts. ,e would go to prison, probably not for life, but his life would be ruined and he would be re#uired to register as a se& offender forever. There was another beep. ;BT IT *2S9!T ,%52 T* ;2 T,IS .%=, the message read. T,2A2 IS % .%= *BT *) T,IS 82SS. % way out4 ,ow4 ,ow could there be a way out4 .hat in the hell was going on here4 .2 *9!T 1I52 % A%T!S %SS %;*BT =*B *A =*BA (I I2 P*A9, T* . T,2A2 %A2 T,I91S 1*I91 *9 ,2A2 T*9I1,T T,%T %A2 8*A2 I8P*AT%9T T,%9 =*BA P2A52AT2 :ITT:2 ;A%I9 -*B: 252A ,*P2 T* -*9-2I52 *). T,2 P2AI82T2A =*B %A2 ST%))I91 IS J2*P%A IJI91 %9 *91*I91 1*52A9829T *P2A%TI*9 A2:%T2 T* T,2 .%A *9 T2AA*A. T,2 P%TAI*TI- 829 %9 .*829 TA%PP2 I9 T,IS P2AI82T2A 8BST ;2 %::*.2 T* -*8P:2T2 T,2IA 8ISSI*9 .IT,*BT I9T2A)2A29-2. *92 *) *BA %129TS IS 1*I91 T* %PPA*%-, =*B )A*8 T,2 .2ST, JBST ;2,I9 T,2 8* 2: ,*82. =*B .I:: %::*. ,I8 T* -*82 -:*S2 29*B1, T* -*952AS2 .IT, =*B. =*B 8%= (22P =*BA .2%P*9 ;2:T *9 ;BT * 9*T %TT28PT T* A%. =*BA

PIST*: %9 * 9*T -*88B9I-%T2 .IT, %9=*92 5I% =*BA A% I*. I) =*B -**P2A%T2, =*BA :ITT:2 ,*;;= .I:: A28%I9 =*BA S2-A2T. I) =*B * 9*T, =*B .I:: ;2 I9 % J%I: -2:: %.%ITI91 TAI%: .IT,I9 /D ,*BAS. I) =*B %1A22 T* T,IS, ST2P *BTSI 2 *) =*BA 52,I-:2 %9 ST%9 %T T,2 )A*9T *) IT. % government operation< he thought, his terrified mind grasping at this straw. That made perfect sense< ,e had always suspected the Bnited States 1overnment was more powerful than it let on. .ho else would "now about his... well... his habits and computer files4 %nd the bi$arre circumstances of what had happened at the hospital tonight served to lend credence to this e&planation. .hen you came down to it, it really made no sense that a group of men dressed as 'anitors would attac" another group of men with some unidentified weapon and then burn down their car before leaving. Bnless, there was some sort of shadowy government conspiracy behind it. The 8 T beeped again. TI82 IS S,*AT, T* %9 .2!A2 *92 )B-(I91 %A*B9 .IT, =*B. ST2P *BTSI 2 =*BA 52,I-:2 I9 T,2 92MT )IT229 S2-*9 S *A T,2 *))2A IS .IT, A%.9 %9 % -*8P:2T2 -*P= *) =*BA -*8PBT2A ,%A + AI52 .I:: ;2 S29T T* 252A= P*:I-2 %129-= I9 T,2 1A2%T2A S%-A%829T* %A2%, I9-:B I91 T,2 );I %9 T,2 *J< 8*52 IT, %SS,*:2< ,e had no time to thin" things over or try to analy$e the situation. There was only one clear course of action, and that was to do what he was told and hope that whoever was communicating with him was sincere. ,e opened his car door and stepped out, "eeping his trembling hands well away from his holstered pistol. ,e wal"ed over to the front of the car and stopped, his eyes loo"ing over at the model homes. % few seconds passed and there was movement from that direction. % man stepped out of the dar"er shadows and started heading toward him, not running but not e&actly wal"ing either. %s he got closer Todd!s police+trained eyes automatically catalogued

him. .hite male, mid+twenties, si& feet, maybe F80 pounds, wearing blue 'eans and a short+sleeved shirt. ,e held something in his right hand but it wasn!t a gun. .hen he got about twenty feet away+'ust out of effective pistol range+he stopped. 3.hat now43 Todd as"ed, his voice sha"y. 3%s en'oyable as it would be to castrate you with a rusty "nife,3 the man said conversationally, 3the message on your 8 T was truthful. =ou will not be harmed and your secret will not be revealed as long as you cooperate.3 3=ou want me to 'ust let you and your people wal" through here43 he as"ed. 3I can do that, but chances are you!ll get pic"ed up again before you can...3 3That!s not e&actly what I had in mind,3 the man interrupted, pointing his hand at him. Todd instinctively dropped his hand down to the butt of his gun, his thumb releasing the snap that held it in place. 31et that fuc"ing hand bac" up<3 the man bar"ed. 3I told you, I!m not going to hurt you.3 Todd did as he was told, though reluctantly. ,e saw something e&tend from the ob'ect in the man!s hand, something that loo"ed li"e a rigid piece of wire. It glinted in the moonlight as it traversed the distance between the man and himself. It nestled up against his chest, touching him 'ust below the badge. ,e tried to bac" away. 3Stay where you!re at and listen carefully if you want to get out of this,3 the man told him. 3%s I said, time is short. =ou down with it43 3Bh... well... yeah, I!m uh... down with it,3 he said, eyeing the piece of metal that was touching him.

3This is a stun gun of sorts,3 the man said. 3It will put you out li"e the cop at the hospital was put out and you!ll wa"e up in thirty minutes or so no worse for wear.3 3I don!t want to... I mean, you can 'ust...3 3Shut your ass,3 the man bar"ed. 3It doesn!t hurt. I 'ust need you out of the way and I need your car. .hen you wa"e up, tell them someone snuc" up on you and that!s the last thing you remember. 1ot it43 3Bh... yes, but, can!t we...3 39o,3 the man said. 3.e can!t.3 Todd had the vaguest impression of a blue flash and then he "new no more. ,e was unconscious even before he hit the pavement.

(en stepped over the prostrate body of the pedophile cop, resisting the urge to deliver a swift "ic" to his groin. ,e opened the driver!s door of the blue and white -rown 5ictoria and sat down in the driver!s seat. % wave of fresh nostalgia washed over him as he settled in. ,e was in a police car again after all these years< %lthough he was stealing it instead of wor"ing in it, it still smelled the same as he remembered, still felt the same, was still full of familiar e#uipment. 39o time for sentimental bullshit,3 he whispered to himself. ,e set his cell phone down in his lap and turned the ignition "ey, hearing the engine roar to life with eight cylinders of power. ,e dropped the gearshift into reverse and bac"ed around for a few feet so he wouldn!t run over his good friend Todd. ,e then dropped it into drive and put the accelerator down, tearing down .hispering *a" Street at high speed. ,e "ept the headlights off as he drove, navigating by moonlight. *nce he was well underway he pic"ed up the cell phone again and dialed

up Span"worth. 3)ra$ier here,3 he said. 3The child molester is down and I!m in the car. I!ll be there in less than three minutes. 1et everyone out front.3 31ood 'ob, )ra$ier,3 Span"y!s voice said. 3.e!ll be waiting.3 2&actly two minutes and twenty+three seconds later he screeched to a halt in front of the house. %s promised, .ing, ;ingbutt, Span"worth, and 8c1raw were out front. Span"worth and 8c1raw were dragging the still unconscious .est,em operatives. (en fumbled around the interior for a moment until he found the trun" release lever. The lid slid smoothly upward and, wor"ing together, the four 8artians unceremoniously lifted the .est,em operatives up and dumped them in the trun". They slammed the lid down and then got in the car, Span"worth in front, ;ingbutt, .ing, and 8c1raw cramming uncomfortably together in the bac". The moment the doors were shut, (en tore out of there, ma"ing a screeching B+turn and heading bac" the way he!d come. Soon they were passing the unconscious Aoc"lin police officer and moving unseen out of the perimeter. 3;rilliant, )ra$ier,3 Span"worth said, clapping him on the shoulder. 3%bsolutely fuc"ing brilliant the way you pulled that off.3 3 on!t than" me yet,3 (en said, turning on the headlights now that they were clear. 3.e!re not out of this yet. 9othing is easier to spot than a stolen police car stuffed full of people who aren!t wearing cop uniforms. %s long as we!re in this car, we!re still vulnerable.3 3.here are we going43 8c1raw as"ed. 3%way from the populated areas for now,3 he answered. 3I!m gonna s"irt out of Aoseville on the bac" roads and head toward

)olsom :a"e. .e!ll find a place to ditch the car and then hole up somewhere for the night until the heat dies down.3 3.hat are the odds of us ma"ing it43 Span"worth wanted to "now. (en smiled a little. 3Ironically, pretty good. %ll the cops in the vicinity are staffing the perimeter we 'ust escaped from. That!ll ma"e it a little hard for them to blunder across us.3 ,e too" a deep breath, feeling his adrenaline start to evaporate. It was a good feeling. 3)or what it!s worth, I thin" we might!ve done it.3

Twenty+five minutes after (en and the special forces team made their escape, -ommander ,uffy drifted into -alistoga!s intelligence department. She positioned herself over Sampson!s shoulder, an&iously awaiting the latest news from the surface, too impatient to even wait for it to be sent through the intercom. 3They 'ust found the unconscious cop on the perimeter, ,uff,3 reported Sampson, who was monitoring the Placer -ounty emergency communications system, of which Aoseville P was a part. 3They!ll "now they got out now and they!ll "now to start loo"ing for the police car.3 3I!m down with it,3 ,uffy said, reaching into her poc"et and pulling out her thirty+ninth cigarette of the day. 3Is our team in the clear yet43 3)or the most part,3 he replied. 3)ra$ier dropped them off at another housing development in 1ranite ;ay and then ditched the car under a cree" overpass about two miles away. ,e says they won!t be able to spot it from the air or from the road. The only way they!re going to locate it is for someone to blunder across it. ,e!s ma"ing his way to )olsom now so he can secure transportation in the morning.3

She nodded, letting a touch of a smile come to her face. She hadn!t been so sure about the common sense of allowing )ra$ier to descend to the surface for the mission. ,e was too attached to his past life and he was also untrained in many aspects of special operations, but :aura+damned if he didn!t 'ust prove himself down there. ,e had gotten them out of one of the hairiest situations imaginable+a situation that had seemed #uite impossible to escape. 3Than"s, Aon,3 she said. 3,ow are the cops in charge down there ta"ing things43 3I!ve been monitoring communications between :ieutenant 8ichaels, the incident commander, and eputy -hief 1rigsby, the commander of the patrol division. It!s pretty apparent that 8ichaels is uneasy about what happened down there, particularly about the bogus phone calls that drew their perimeter in. 2verything else they can "ind of half+assed e&plain to themselves, but not that. That!s well beyond technology as they "now it.3 3Is there any indication that this 8ichaels suspects the truth of what happened43 she as"ed. 39o way of "nowing for sure,3 Sampson replied. 3;ut it goes without saying he "nows something outside the range of his e&perience has ta"en place. %s for what conclusions he!ll draw... well, your guess is as good as mine.3 3%nd the time stream43 she as"ed ne&t. 3,ow badly is it going to be affected by this little clusterfuc"4 *bviously none of this was meant to happen. .hat if one of those cops was supposed to intervene in something else while all of this was going on4 .hat if the pedophile changes his habits or gets rid of evidence that will someday result in his conviction4 .hat if...3 3Bh... e&cuse me, ,uff,3 a timid voice spo"e up from two terminals over. It was Slurry )ra$ier, who had been riveted to a computer terminal in the room for the past eighteen hours, disappearing only infre#uently to use the head.

3.hat is it, Slurry43 she said, controlling her annoyance at being interrupted. 3This was supposed to happen,3 she said. 3.hat was supposed to happen43 ,uffy as"ed. 3%ll of this,3 she said. 3The police officer being ta"en down, the automobile fire, the search... everything.3 3.hat are you tal"ing about43 Sampson said. 3 on!t you thin" we would!ve "nown about it if a ma'or incident li"e what we!ve precipitated down there too" place on the night of our mission4 There was nothing in the history about it.3 3;ut there was,3 she insisted. 3It 'ust wasn!t reported as a single incident.3 ,uffy turned herself around so she could stare at the young historian. 3Start ma"ing some sense, Slurry,3 she said. 3%re you telling me that what has happened down there was written into history43 3I accessed the 2arthling Internet for every conceivable source of information surrounding the hospital on this date and the ne&t day before we left 8ars,3 she said. 3I!ve got articles from all of the Sacramento area newspapers and video clips from all of the news stations. The things that are happening down there right now were reported but significantly downplayed for some reason. % big deal was not made out of them. It will be made to seem li"e nothing more than a series of random events that are not connected. That!s why I didn!t associate it with our mission down there. :oo" here, I!ll show you the entries.3 3Please do,3 ,uffy said numbly. .as it possible4 Slurry spo"e a few words to her computer terminal and an entry appeared on the main screen at the front of the room. It was an article from the Sacramento newspaper. 3This is a small blurb

about the first police officer,3 she said. 3It will appear in the 8etro section of the paper day after tomorrow. %s you can see, it!s 'ust a blurb that says an unnamed Aoseville police officer was assaulted by an unidentified man with a stun gun near Aoseville -ommunity ,ospital and that he was treated and released. The search for the suspect is underway. There was no other entry about it that I was able to find.3 3-ould it be a coincidence43 ,uffy as"ed. 3The time matches,3 Slurry said. 3%nd you!ve been monitoring police communications. ,as there been any other Aoseville cops attac"ed with a stun gun tonight43 9o one bothered to answer this. They "new there hadn!t been. 3%nd this,3 Slurry said, calling up a new entry on the screen. 3This is from the police and fire department log in the Aoseville newspaper five days from now. This is a wee"ly section in the very bac" of the paper where the previous wee"!s minor incidents are listed. It only says that the fire department responded to a vehicle fire near Sunrise and Aoseville Par"way on 9ovember F, in which a )ord )alcon was burned up. 9o time or e&act location is given. It says arson is suspected but there!s no suspect information. %gain, I didn!t see the significance of this when I downloaded the info so I didn!t follow up by chec"ing the investigation files.3 3Bnderstandable,3 ,uffy said, feeling a chill running up and down her spine now. 3.hat else do you got43 She spo"e and another entry appeared. 3This is from the same police and fire log. It describes how the Aoseville Police epartment, with assistance from !allied agencies! set up a perimeter in the Sierra 5iew subdivision early 9ovember F to catch a !felony assault! suspect. The suspect was not found. There is no mention of the van, the fact that there was more than one suspect, or the assault on the Aoc"lin Police officer.

There is also no mention that this is related to the stun gun attac" on the Aoseville Police *fficer.3 Silence ruled the room as everyone pondered this information and the ramifications of it. If what Slurry was saying was true, that meant they had not changed the time stream at all, they had merely affected what was supposed to have happened in the first place. 3.hat does this all mean43 ,uffy as"ed. 3,ow could those things have been in history when we hadn!t come bac" in time yet4 3;ecause they!re meant to happen,3 Slurry said. 3They were meant to happen so they did.3 3 oes that mean that history can!t be changed then43 Sampson as"ed. 3 o we have any free will here at all4 *r is it 'ust an illusion43 9obody had an answer for that. ;ut Slurry had an even better #uestion. 3.hy did they downplay this incident so much43 she wanted to "now. 3I!ve been reading %merican and .est,em media reporting ever since I was in high school. 8y doctorate was based on studying how they report things. .hat happened down there tonight should have been front+page news on every paper across the nation. It!s got all of the elements the corporate media love so much. So why did they virtually ignore it43 3;ecause they were never told the real story,3 said Aigger, who had been silent throughout the entire discussion. 3Someone high up+in the police department would be my guess+ stonewalled this incident for some reason. Someone even higher up then instructed the various media representatives not to push too terribly hard for more facts.3 3.ho would!ve done that43 ,uffy as"ed.

3There is only one logical e&planation,3 Aigger said simply. 3.e told them to.3 3.e43 Sampson said. 3.hat are you suggesting43 3Slurry,3 Aigger said, turning to her. 3=ou read all of these entries before we left 8ars, long before we entered the time tunnel, yet the randomness of it never suggested to you that these seemingly isolated incidents were related to our mission down there on this night, correct43 3)uc"in! aye,3 she said. 3If I would have suspected they were related, I would!ve mentioned it. =ou have to "now that.3 3.e do,3 Aigger said. 3I came up with the same entries during my own research before the mission and I never suspected we would be a part of them either. That is what brings me to my point. %s incompetent and unprepared as .est,em was for this mission, it is safe to assume that they too studied everything they could find in their historical files about this particular date, correct43 3-orrect,3 Sampson agreed. 3%nd what do you suppose they would have done if, when studying for this mission, they found newspaper articles e&plaining how two mysterious men were attac"ed outside the hospital entrance at F7C0 %8 the day they were planning to perform their mission4 If they saw e&tensive reporting about how the people who did this also disabled a police officer with a strange, un"nown weapon4 If they saw that those same people then burned down a car4 .hat would they have done43 3They would!ve "nown we were going to try to stop them and then pic"ed a different piece of history to alter,3 Sampson said. 3;ut it doesn!t ma"e sense that the story would already be in their history. It hadn!t happened yet<3

3;ut it had,3 Aigger insisted. 3This is happening in the past, remember4 .e are in the past and in our time, all of this has already happened, has already been recorded by history. The fact that these stories were already written before we even left proves that. It also means that it is we who are responsible for getting the reporting minimi$ed. 9o one else on this planet or above it has the motivation to see that the details are "ept vague enough so that no one in the future will be able to see that something unusual is occurring on this night.3 3;ut how in :aura!s name do we do that43 ,uffy as"ed. 3%nd do we "now we!re really supposed to43 3.e "now we are really supposed to do it because we can conclude by loo"ing at the historical records that it was done,3 Aigger said. 3It has already been determined and, since we!re the only ones with something to gain by doing it, we must further conclude that it was us and not some other entity or entities. %s for the how, it is really nothing more challenging than pretending to be one of the so+called !powers that be! and ma"ing a few phone calls to the right people. That is how things wor" in the corporate world. If the right people spea" in the right ears, the story will be "illed. The participants will still tal" among themselves, a cover+up will be suspected, but in the historical record, nothing will be noted.3 3The right people,3 ,uffy said. 3.ho are the right people4 %re we supposed to call the head of every news station down there4 2very newspaper reporter4 The chief of every law enforcement agency involved43 3It won!t be #uite that comple&,3 Slurry said. 3.e!re well into the corporate ta"e+over of .est,em here. %ll of the media down there+whether it!s print media, radio, or television+is corporate owned by either )ree -hannel -ommunications, 8aster-om -ommunications, or -hrono+ angeson Inc. %ll we need to do to strangle this story is put in a call to each of the heads of the regional operations and pretend to be a higher+up

in the chain. The regional directors are all far enough up on the ladder to "now there are shady connections with the government. .e tell them what (en told that child molester+ that this is a sensitive government operation, that they should not #uestion too vigorously what!s going on, and that they shouldn!t spea" of this to anyone. They will contact each media outlet under their command and pass on our orders.3 3.ill we be able to convince them we!re sincere43 ,uffy as"ed. Slurry turned to Sampson. 3The mouth!s on your coc",3 she told him. 3.e can convince them,3 he said confidently. 3%ll we have to do is have the right name, location, and title and cross+reference it with the proper communications codes.3 3;ut what about the cops43 ,uffy as"ed. 3They!re not corporate owned, are they43 39ot e&actly, no,3 Aigger said. 3;ut again, they will bend to the will if the order comes from high enough up and is directed at the right person. I thin" a phone call from the e&ecutive branch of the Bnited States government to the mayor of Aoseville would do the tric"+if it could be pulled off.3 %gain, the eyes turned to Sampson, who nodded. 3.e can do it,3 he said. 3;ut what if we!re wrong43 as"ed ,uffy, who had responsibility for ma"ing the final decision. 3If we!re wrong, then we might fuc" up the time stream bad enough that the chain reaction destroys our own e&istence.3 ,uffy blin"ed. 3%nd that!s supposed to ma"e me feel better43 39o, that was a common sense answer to your #uestion,3 Aigger

said. 3)or what it!s worth, though, I don!t thin" we!re wrong. This feels right. It feels li"e something we!re supposed to do. I don!t "now if that!s my own instinct telling me that, or if it!s wishful thin"ing, or delusions of grandeur, or the guiding hand of some supernatural fate, but it feels li"e what we!re supposed to do. .henever I thin" about not doing it, my nerves 'angle, li"e I!m considering a course of action that would be destructive.3 ,uffy considered this for a moment, pondering Aigger!s words. =es, as strange as it sounded, what was being suggested did feel li"e something they were supposed to do and the thought of not doing it did feel wrong, dangerous even. 3*"ay,3 she said, giving in and going with gut instinct. 3Set it up and initiate it as soon as possible, within the hour if you can. :et!s get it done so we can ta"e that .est,em ship into custody.3

It was E7C0 %8 and ,uffy was do$ing in her command chair, sheer e&haustion having ta"en her an hour before. ,er breath pulled slowly in and out of her lungs and a slight sheen of drool that had formed around her mouth drifted drop by tiny drop into the air where it would eventually be captured by the ventilation system. Those "eeping stations at the various terminals in the bridge remained wide awa"e and did not begrudge their commander for nodding off. They wor"ed eight hours shifts and were relieved. ,uffy had no one to relieve her. 3,uff, this is Aon,3 Sampson!s voice said from the intercom spea"er. ,er eyes snapped open and then blin"ed a few times. She shoo" her head to clear it, loo"ed up at the cloc" on the master computer screen, and said, 31o ahead, Aon.3 3It loo"s li"e we pulled it off,3 he told her. 3I!ve been trac"ing communications from the principals we contacted earlier and

they!ve all ordered the story "illed, or at least downplayed as much as possible. The press conference that Aoseville P was going to give has been cancelled and none of the media reps are even as"ing why. The newspaper reporters have been ordered to modify their stories. )or the most part, no e&planation was given or as"ed for. I get the impression this sort of thing is sadly common in this time period.3 3There was nothing on the morning news broadcast then43 ,uffy as"ed. 39ot a word,3 he confirmed. 3.e have monitored #uite a bit of cellular phone activity between the various line cops who were covering the perimeter. They are certainly perple&ed about the lac" of attention this thing is receiving. %ctually, perple&ed is maybe a fuc"ed up choice of words. They!re ran"in! pissed off and they are demanding to "now why it!s being covered up.3 3%nd what "ind of response are they getting43 3Their sergeants are passing the re#uests up the chain of command and the lieutenants are 'er"ing them off. This is, I imagine, pretty much what they would e&pect in such a situation anyway. %mong themselves, they have all "inds of wild theories about what happened last night and why it!s being stonewalled. 8ost of the theories revolve around a government or big business+related conspiracy.3 ,uffy nodded thoughtfully. 3%nd are any of these theories even remotely close to what actually happened43 Sampson bar"ed out a laugh. 3That time travelers from the future fought a battle outside the hospital over a ten year old boy in the surgery department4 9o, no one has come up with anything li"e that. 8y best guess is that Slurry and Aigger were right. .e were supposed to do this. 2verything is falling into place. The cops will be chattering about this among themselves in their after wor" bars for the ne&t twenty years, but nothing

official will go into the historical record that both .est,em and ourselves will study in preparation for this mission.3 3So we pulled it off then43 ,uffy said. 3.ell, e&cept for the .est,em doctor on the surface, we have. ,e is still at large down there and still capable of causing all "inds of havoc with the time stream.3 3,e!s not 'ust capable of it,3 ,uffy said. 3,e intends to do it. ;ut one thing at a time. .e!ll deal with him after we ta"e the Aumsfeld down. %re Span"worth and the rest of the team stable43 3%s stable as they!re li"ely to get for the ne&t si& hours or so. The team is standing by at the house where they were dropped off. The construction company is not scheduled to do any wor" on that particular structure for the ne&t two days. The police still haven!t found the missing patrol car and, in truth, they!re not really loo"ing for it all that hard since we blew all that smo"e up their ass about downplaying things. )ra$ier is outside of an automobile dealer in )olsom. They open at F000 hours. ,e!s already destroyed all of his previous identification and we!ve activated the (evin )reeman persona he was briefed on prior to deployment. ,e!ll run the same bullshit about starting up a mobile coffee service and will purchase yet another van. .ith any luc", we!ll have the team and the two .est,em soldiers bac" aboard the landing ship shortly after sunset tonight and bac" aboard this ship for the 0FC0 pass over.3 She smiled tiredly. 3It would nice if things went according to plan for once.3 3.ell, according to Slurry and Aigger, things did go according to plan. %ll of this was fated to happen.3 She nodded. 3,opefully fate has no other surprises in store for us then,3 she rephrased. 3Than"s for the update, Aon.3

39o s"in off my ass.3 They signed off and ,uffy undid the strap on her chair, allowing herself to float free. She too" reports from the various helm stations, assuring herself that everything was as she had left it, and then floated over to the lavatory to relieve her bladder. %fter finishing her business, she stopped at the coffee machine and in'ected a fresh C00 milliliters of the potent brew into her vacuum cup. She returned to her seat, settled bac" in, and had a few sips. .hen she felt she was awa"e enough she loo"ed at her bridge crew. 3.hat do you say, awgs43 she as"ed them. 3Aeady to "ic" some 2arthling ass43 % chorus of enthusiastic 3fuc"in! ayes3 was their reply. 3:et!s do it then,3 she said. She opened the ship!s intercom system and sounded the general #uarters alarm. 3;attle stations everyone,3 she said. 3%ll personnel report to your battle stations. .e!re gonna ta"e down the Aumsfeld.3 The crew was well drilled in their general #uarters response. It too" less than three minutes before all stations reported staffed and ready. 2very person on the ship secured any loose ob'ects, put on their emergency decompression suits and headed to their assigned battle stations. %irtight doors were sealed shut between dec"s to minimi$e decompression in the even of battle damage. The attac" lasers and the anti+torpedo lasers were charged and swung toward the direction of the Aumsfeld. The torpedo crew, even though they "new they probably wouldn!t be needed, loaded a decoy and a torpedo into two of the forward tubes. 31ood 'ob, everyone,3 ,uffy praised over the intercom. 3I!ll "eep everyone updated on what we!re doing. ,uffy out.3 She flipped off the intercom and turned to the bridge crew. 3 etection, let!s let !em "now we!re bac" here. 1o active.3

3)uc"in! aye, ,uff,3 said :ieutenant Spammer. 31oing active. This oughta 'olt !em a bit.3 ,e pushed a few buttons on his panel and -alistoga!s active detection systems came to life. etection lasers, active infrared scans, and radar beams washed over Aumsfeld, bathing it in electromagnetic energy and undoubtedly nearly overwhelming its passive detectors and 2S8 gear. 3%ny response from the target43 ,uffy as"ed after two minutes. 39othing,3 Spammer reported. 3;ut you can bet your ass they "now we!re here. Probably too busy shitting themselves to try anything. 2ither that, or...3 he loo"ed at his screen. 3.e got something now. Their laser sets are going active. :oo"s li"e they!re charging them up.3 ,uffy rolled her eyes. 3It too" them long enough,3 she said in disgust. 3.hat "ind of moronic crew do they have running that shitheap4 They get active scanning from an obvious enemy from a range of ten "ilometers and it ta"es them two fuc"ing minutes to charge up their lasers43 3.ell,3 offered Sampson, who was monitoring developments from the ne&t dec", 3they sent a throw+away ship for the mission, it stands to reason they!d send a throw+away crew too. These are probably the biggest dumbshits in the .est,em navy we!re dealing with here.3 3.hich ma"es them somewhat unpredictable, unfortunately,3 ,uffy said. 3-ommunications. *pen a channel. ,ail them on the 1uard fre#uency using a directional radio beam. 9o sense having the natives pic" up the conversation.3 3)uc"in! aye, ,uff,3 said Jason 1oodbud, the communications officer. ,e fiddled with his panel for a moment and then said, 3-hannel open, ,uff.3 3Than"s, 1oody,3 she told him. She flipped a switch, focusing

the audio and video e#uipment on her. 3.SS Aumsfeld,3 she said. 3This is the 8SS -alistoga, -ommander 8argo ,uffy. %s I!m sure you!re aware by now, we!re ten "ilometers behind you, in your baffles. .e have all of our attac" lasers loc"ed on your ship. Stand down your defensive and offensive weapons immediately and prepare to be boarded. *ur orders are to ta"e you into custody or destroy you.3 39o response,3 1oodbud told her after a minute. 3:asers are still charged,3 Spammer said. 3The rear ones are probably loc"ed onto our position by now.3 39othing comes easy today, does it43 she said with a sigh. She let loose a moist fart and then pushed the transmit switch again. 3Aumsfeld,3 she said, annoyance clearly in her tone, 3ignoring us is not going to ma"e us go away. I!m sure you!ve loo"ed up the specifications on our ship by now and "now that you!re no match for us. =our lasers aren!t even capable of burning through our hull. =ou have no chance whatsoever of escape. =ou will establish communications with us immediately and submit to boarding or we will burn that piece of shit you call a ship into a crisp and toss your asses into the sun on our way home. Aespond immediately<3 3I!m getting a reply,3 1oodbud reported. 3They!re responding with directional on 1uard.3 3*n the screen,3 ,uffy ordered. 3)uc"in! aye,3 1oodbud said. The image of a balding, middle+aged 2arthling appeared on the screen. ,e was dressed in full naval uniform, per regulations aboard a .est,em ship. The e&pression on his face was nervous but controlled. 3This is -aptain Stanhope, commander of the .SS Aumsfeld,3 he said. 3,ow dare you threaten us, -alistoga. =ou are in 2arthling space in violation of the *uter

Space Bsage Treaty. I demand you pull bac" beyond the F00,000 "ilometer territorial limit immediately.3 ,uffy rolled her eyes. 3The *uter Space Bsage Treaty was signed in /008,3 she said. 3It is currently /00?, as you!ll recall.3 3 on!t mince semantics with me, greenie,3 Stanhope replied. 3.e are engaged in a peaceful, scientific historical research mission,3 Stanhope replied. 3=ou are interfering with us in violation of international law.3 3=ou are attempting to change the past, Stanhope,3 she told him. 3.e are stopping you from doing it. .e have ta"en your special forces team into custody and we will now either ta"e you and your ship into custody, or we will destroy you. I want those lasers on your ship powered down in the ne&t twenty seconds or we will put a shot right through your bridge to convince you we!re serious.3 3That!s an act of war<3 Stanhope said. 3=ou wouldn!t dare<3 3=ou!re not going to bluff and bluster your way out of this,3 ,uffy told him. 3I have my orders, they ma"e sense, and I will follow them. =ou have fifteen seconds.3 Stanhope continued to stare from the computer screen for a few seconds and then slowly he dropped his eyes. 3%ll right,3 he said at last. 3.e!ll power down our weapons.3 3%nd submit to boarding,3 ,uffy said. 3That!s the important part, remember43 3%nd we!ll submit to boarding,3 he agreed with a sigh. 3;ut be advised, we will be lodging a formal complaint regarding this violation of the *uter Space Bsage Treaty and the conse#uences are apt to be severe<3 3I!ll be sure to "eep that in mind,3 ,uffy said, rolling her eyes

again and ma"ing the universal 'er"ing off motion with her right hand. 39ow let!s see those lasers powered down. =ou have ten seconds left.3 Stanhope!s image disappeared from the screen. )ive seconds later, Spammer confirmed that Aumsfeld!s lasers were powered down. 3*"ay,3 ,uffy said. 39ow we!re getting somewhere. She flipped on her intercom. 3Special forces reserve team. The Aumsfeld has agreed to submit to boarding. 1et your weapons ready and get aboard the tender. I want you dawgs on board that heap of shit in thirty minutes.3 9o sooner had Sergeant ;ongwater of the reserve s#uad confirmed her order than Spammer announced a new detection. 3.hat is it43 ,uffy as"ed. 3I!m getting a radio transmission from Aumsfeld,3 he reported. 32ncrypted, burst signal, aimed at a com sat. The same code they used to contact the doctor earlier.3 3Ship it to Intelligence,3 ,uffy ordered. 3Aon, give me a transcript as soon as it!s bro"en.3 3I!m getting it now, ,uff,3 Sampson told her. 3Should have it in a few seconds. .e!ve already bro"en this code.3 There was a pause. 3It!s coming up now. ,e!s hailing octor :indley down on the surface.3 3See if you can trace bac" any reply,3 ,uffy ordered. 3.e need to pin down the good doctor!s location.3 3Aeply is coming now.3 3*n spea"er,3 ,uffy said. 3)uc"in! aye.3

3:indley here,3 the cultured voice said from the sound system. 3I copy the emergency signal. .hat!s going on43 3This is Stanhope,3 said the captain!s voice. 3% 8artian stealth attac" ship is ten "ilometers behind us and has us pinned down. They!re threatening to destroy us if we don!t submit to boarding.3 3I see,3 :indley said slowly. 3.hat are you going to do to counter it43 3I!ve told them we!re surrendering to buy us some time,3 Stanhope said. 3.e don!t have a chance if we try to fight it out with them. Those greenie lasers are something to be rec"oned with and this ship is so old they!ll destroy us before we can even get a burn+through on their hull. I!m going to order the crew to abandon ship. .e!ll get in the lifeboats and use the emergency deceleration engines to bring everyone down to the surface.3 3.on!t they shoot down the lifeboats43 :indley as"ed. 3That!s a war crime,3 Stanhope told him with absurd confidence. 3They wouldn!t dare.3 3I see,3 :indley said. =ou could hear the doubt plainly in his tone. 3;ut where would you come down at4 *bviously you!re not in the optimum window at the moment.3 3I!ve already factored in the burn and reentry data. Starting in eighteen minutes we!ll have a nine minute window that will bring us down in the %ustralian *utbac",3 Stanhope said. 3I!ll get the crew to an isolated settlement and wait for them to... well, to submit to the effects of the inoculation. Then I!ll program myself an identity and wor" my way bac" to the Bnited States.3 3%nd what about me43 :indley as"ed him. 3 o they "now where I!m at4 *r what identity I!m using43

3There!s no way they could,3 he said. 3;ut I!d suggest you change your identity and go into hiding immediately 'ust in case. :eave -alifornia and blend in somewhere without ma"ing any sign of your presence for at least si& months. I!ll do the same. .e!ll meet at F0 %8 on June F of ne&t year at the .ashington 8onument. ;y that time we should be in the clear and we can start putting our plans into action.3 3*"ay,3 :indley said. 31ood luc" to you.3 3%nd to you,3 Stanhope told him. 3Aemember, June F, F0 %8, .ashington 8onument. % year after that, the world will be ours.3 3The world will be ours,3 :indley said with a chuc"le. There was a clic" and a hiss of static. 3Transmission has ended, ,uff,3 Sampson said. 3So it has,3 she said. 3 id you get a trace on the signal43 3It originated from a government communications dish in the %rden Par" section of Sacramento. That!s the closest I could get. 8y guess is he was using a remote transmitter with a line of sight on the dish. ,e could be anywhere within eight s#uare "ilometers of it.3 ,uffy frowned. 3%nd the population density within that radius43 3Aan"in! thic",3 he said sadly. 3F/0D private residential buildings, /CD commercial buildings, eighteen ma'or roads, CD0 minor roads, and an estimated current population of ED0C people.3 3So, in other words, there!s not a chance in hell of finding him, even if we did have people in the vicinity43

39ot unless he starts transmitting again and we can triangulate on the original signal,3 Sampson said. 3.hich isn!t very li"ely to happen,3 ,uffy said. 3*"ay then. .e!ve officially lost him.3 3Sorry, ,uff,3 Sampson said. 3I tried.3 3I "now you did,3 she said. 3*h well, no sense crying over a wasted cumshot. .e!ll deal with r. :indley somehow. In the meantime, I guess we oughtta send another transmission to Aumsfeld and let them "now we!re privy to their evil plot, huh43 3I guess so,3 Sampson said. 31oody,3 she said. 3*pen a channel on 1uard again. I guess we!re gonna have to get nasty with those fol"s.3 39obody gets nasty li"e you do, ,uff,3 1oodbud said.

Two hours later, -aptain Stanhope sat before Aon Sampson and ,uffy in ,uffy!s #uarters. ,is uniform had been removed and he was now wearing a pair of 8artian shorts and a half+shirt. ,is waist was strapped in with the standard 5elcro fastener but he was otherwise unrestrained. Sampson had a police tanner clipped to his own waist in case Stanhope decided to do something unwise. 3I don!t "now where he!s at,3 Stanhope said for perhaps the thirtieth time since being ta"en into custody. 3If you heard the communication between us, then you "now I told him to disappear.3 3=es, we heard the conversation,3 Sampson said. 3.e have a recording of it, as a matter of fact. .e understand that you don!t "now e&actly where r. :indley is hiding out, but you must "now something that will help us find him. Is there a general

vicinity we should be loo"ing4 Is there a certain identity we should be searching for4 Is there any means available to trac" him4 ,ow about we start with those #uestions and wor" our way forward from there43 Stanhope loo"ed at Sampson as if he were a moron. 3I!ve given you my name, ran", and service number,3 he said. 3That!s all I!m re#uired to give you even if you hadn!t captured me during the illegal sei$ure of my vessel.3 Sampson too" a deep breath. ,e was by now #uite tired of listening to Stanhope go on and on about the legal significance of the -alistoga sei$ing his vessel. 3I can see,3 he said, allowing himself to float a little bit closer, 3that you!re not #uite grasping all of the ramifications of your capture, -aptain.3 3.hat do you mean43 3I!ve e&plained to you that we have a return wormhole scheduled to open for us and that we will be ta"ing you and your crew bac" to 8ars. =ou understand that, correct43 Stanhope shrugged. 3So you can stic" me in one of your political prisons4 *r e&ecute me after some moc" trial on your propaganda networ"4 .hat of it43 3=our fate is up to our political leadership,3 Sampson said. 3%lthough I!m sure it is nothing li"e what you!re suggesting, it is not for me to say what may or may not happen to you. That, however, is not my point. .hat I want you to understand is that you will be coming bac" to the present time with us. 9o matter what happens with r. :indley, you will be going through that wormhole. =our little plot to use your "nowledge of what will occur in history to ta"e over the world and shape it to your choosing has failed. %re you down with that43 ,e said nothing, but the angry downcast of his eyes showed that he was indeed down with that particular fact.

3*"ay then,3 Sampson continued. 3.e are indeed on the same wavelength. 9ow let us ta"e that thought a step further. .hat is going to happen if r. :indley is allowed to have free rein down there on /Fst -entury 2arth43 3I don!t "now what you mean,3 he said. 3Then let me e&plain it in terms that even a moronic .est,em will understand. If r. :indley is left to his own devices, he will destroy the time stream you and I both "now. ,e will not simply alter a few minor pieces of it as your government planned, he will change everything we "new to his own bidding. =ou "now that as well as I do. =ou yourself were planning to do the same thing, were you not43 3I told you, we are here on a historical research mission,3 Stanhope repeated, as if by rote. 3Bh huh,3 Sampson said. 3:et!s 'ust forget about the hows and whys here, shall we, -aptain4 Instead, allow us to consider for a moment the real dilemma we!re facing with r. :indley being out on the loose down there. .hat do you thin" is going to happen to us if everything we "now is completely different in the present because r. :indley has shaped everything to his advantage43 Stanhope said nothing, although it was clear he had been given some food for thought. 3:et me give you our best estimate,3 Sampson said. 3If your doctor is allowed to remain free, with all of his pre+"nowledge in place, it is li"ely he will change the stream of history enough that the events that led us to be here in the first place will never occur. o you "now what that means43 3It means we!ll find a different solar system when we return,3 Stanhope said with a shrug. 3*ne controlled by descendents of :indley, perhaps and one in which 8ars is probably still an

2arth colony.3 3.rong,3 Sampson said. 3I can see you!re not grasping the big picture here. If :indley changes things such as you describe then there will be no mission to the past. If there!s no mission to the past, there will be no return wormhole to open up for us.3 39o return wormhole43 Stanhope said, showing actual alarm for the first time. 39o return wormhole,3 ,uffy said, ta"ing a thoughtful drag from her cigarette. 3.hy would there be if there was never a mission for anyone to return from in the first place4 So there we!ll be, sitting out in deep space beyond Pluto, waiting for a doorway that will never open. %nd that!s not even the worst of it. o you want to "now what the worst of it is43 3.hat43 Stanhope said slowly. 3.e only have enough propellant for one more acceleration and deceleration cycle. .e will burn out our fuel tan"s getting into position for the wormhole opening. If it doesn!t open, we!ll be stuc" out there.3 3Stuc" out in deep space43 he said with horror. That was every naval officer!s greatest nightmare. 3.ell, not e&actly stuc" for good,3 ,uffy said. 3If the doorway doesn!t open we!ll have enough propellant left in the tan"s to burn at a #uarter of a 1 for maybe four hours. That!s 'ust enough to get us moving at around FD0,000 "ilometers per hour. 9ot very fast, I!m sure you!ll agree. *ur wormhole site is D0 %stronomical Bnits from 2arth. If you!re remiss in your addition s"ills, that means it!s about E.? billion "ilometers away.3 3That!s a long motherfuc"ing drive,3 Sampson said.

35ery long,3 ,uffy agreed. 3%t that velocity it would ta"e us almost five years to return to the only part of the solar system where civili$ation e&ists in this time. )ive years, Stanhope. .e have enough consumables on board to last maybe si& months if we ration them, maybe eight if we ration them severely. If we resort to cannibalism we might ma"e it another five or si& months but of course by then we!ll all be dying of scurvy anyway. =ou remember reading about scurvy in your history classes4 % horrible way to go, I!m told.3 ,er speech was having the desired effect on Stanhope. The horror in his face was #uite plain by now. 3.e need to stay here then,3 he said. 3%ccept that the wormhole isn!t going to open and go down to the surface. .e could live li"e "ings down there<3 ,uffy shoo" her head sadly. 3%las, that is not to be,3 she said. 38y orders are #uite clear and my common sense tells me I should follow them. 9o matter what happens, we are not to go down to the surface and start interacting with the time stream, especially not in the numbers we have on this ship. 9o, I!m afraid that we will depart 2arth orbit in one wee" no matter what the outcome below and we will position ourselves at the wormhole as scheduled. If it doesn!t open I will use the remaining propellant to aim this ship at the sun. *f course we!ll all be long dead before it gets there, but what can you do43 3=ou would commit suicide and "ill your entire crew 'ust to "eep them off the 2arth43 he as"ed. 3*ff an 2arth that is already going to be changed by :indley4 That!s insane<3 3=ou don!t have much room to morali$e to me about "illing my entire crew,3 ,uffy said sternly. 3=ou were willing to do the same to yours, if you recall.3 Stanhope didn!t have anything to say to this. ,e could hardly deny his participation in that event.

3%nd, in answer to your argument, yes, I!m willing to do that and my crew is willing to accept that. They agreed to such a thing in advance, before they boarded this vessel bac" on Triad. They "new this mission might mean their lives and they all "now their own lives are not nearly as important as the ninety million 8artians we!re here protecting.3 3;ut the time stream will already be changed<3 Stanhope shouted again. 3:indley is already down there and has already disappeared. If you go down to the surface to live you might be able to counter him. I can help you< =ou can!t 'ust "ill us all< =ou can!t<3 ,uffy shoo" her head again. 39ot to be,3 she said. 3.e are going to leave orbit in one wee" and we are going to be in position when it!s time for that wormhole to open. That is all there is to it. So, my suggestion to you is for you to assist us in any way you can to get our hands on r. :indley in that time period. If we get him, the wormhole will more than li"ely open as scheduled. If we don!t, it!s more than li"ely a slow, agoni$ing death out in deep space. =ou decide, -aptain. ,ow!s it going to be43 Si&ty+five miles west of the 1olden 1ate, in the near absolute dar"ness of a moonless night out in the Pacific *cean, a hair thin periscope po"ed its way upward from the gently rolling waves. *utfitted with visual cameras, infrared imaging systems, and one of the most modern passive electromagnetic detectors ever fashioned, it spun slowly around, chec"ing the patch of ocean from hori$on to hori$on for the slightest sign of any vessel or aircraft. It detected nothing in the danger $one, which had been e&pected since passive sonar sensors in its ship below had already confirmed nothing but biological sound sources in the surrounding one hundred "ilometers. 3Surface search chec"s clear within parameters,3 reported iffy (alahari inside the landing ship. 3There!s a floc" of seabirds eighteen "lic"s to the northwest, a pile of floating garbage twelve "lic"s to the south, and an airliner cruising at eleven thousand meters FD0 "lic"s southeast. *ther than that, we!re

alone.3 -indee 8arshall, the pilot, nodded happily. 3That!s a wet tongue on a hard clit,3 she said. 3:et!s surface and get our asses off this planet.3 She flipped a switch on her panel and compressed air was pumped into the ballast tan"s, e'ecting the water and changing the buoyancy of the spacecraft from neutral to positive. The ship rose up and a minute later they were on the surface, bobbing up and down in the waves. The sic"ening, nausea+inducing motion roused (en from the do$e he!d been en'oying for the past ninety minutes. ,e opened his eyes slowly and loo"ed around the cramped confines of the landing ship. ;ehind him, Span"worth and ;ingbutt were coming out of their own slumbers. ;ehind them, 8c1raw and .ing were still fully awa"e and "eeping an eye on the two recently revived .est,em operatives. 3I!m gonna throw up if this roc"ing doesn!t stop,3 whined the larger of the two. ,is name, they!d learned, was :ieutenant 8ec"le. 3This is against the 1eneva convention, you "now.3 3I demand a safer form of transport bac" up to space,3 put in the other one. ,e was :ieutenant Plusman. 3=ou can!t 'ust put us in some greenie+built spacecraft. Section 0+%, subsection C of the International Aules of .arfare clearly states that...3 3*h shut the fuc" up,3 growled 8c1raw, who was #uite tired of listening to the two .est,ems whine. It was virtually all they had done from the moment their sedation had been reversed shortly after boarding the landing craft. 3That!s abuse of a prisoner,3 Plusman accused. 3Bsing profanity in the presence of P*.s has been deemed upsetting and abusive. It can lead to post+traumatic stress syndrome<3 3*h :aura,3 8c1raw said, leaning her head bac" and closing her eyes for a second. 3If you two are the best of the best in the

.est,em military it!s no fuc"ing wonder we "ic"ed your asses from 2den to 9ew Pittsburgh during the revolution.3 3=ou greenies didn!t win that war<3 8ec"le said. 3.e simply had to pull bac" for logistical reasons.3 3It wasn!t a war anyway,3 Plusman added. 3It was a hostage rescue mission. The marines were simply trying to rescue all of those citi$ens that :aura .hiting bitch was holding in bondage.3 3,olding in bondage43 8c1raw said, rolling her eyes. 3It!s really scary how brainwashed you two are, you "now that43 ;oth of them opened their mouths to counter this statement but Span"worth, tired of the whole discussion, stepped in at this point and threatened to sedate them again if they didn!t "eep their fuc"ing mouths shut. %fter only two threats of what their lawyers were going to do and one demand to be ta"en to the nearest friendly embassy, they too" his warning to heart and "ept #uiet. )inally, 'ust as 8c1raw and ;ingbutt were about to reach for the vomit bags, 8arshall finished the pre+flight chec" and powered up the hydrogen engines. 3.e!re ready for lift+off,3 she told Sampson up on -alistoga, which was even now breaching over the coastline of 2cuador. 3.e!re down with it,3 Sampson replied. 3.e!re tapped into all appropriate detection satellites. =our thermal plume will show up on all of them but they!ll never see it in the monitoring stations.3 3:aura bless modern technology,3 8arshall said, advancing the throttle and getting them moving. The ship strea"ed across the waves, bouncing and shuddering violently until it achieved a velocity of /00 "ilometers per hour.

%t this speed the air moving past the unfolded wings was sufficient to provide lift and the spacecraft rose into the air, smoothing the ride out considerably. 8arshall turned to a northeasterly heading and leveled off at D000 meters. She then turned control of the ship over to the computer, which already had an intercept course laid in for a rende$vous with -alistoga over the ;ering Straight. % cloc" tic"ed slowly down to $ero and the engines+which had been running at less than ten percent thrust+"ic"ed into high gear. The ship nosed up and all inside were pushed forcefully bac" in their seats at 'ust over C1s. ,igher and higher they climbed, strea"ing into the stratosphere and out the other side, finally clearing the atmosphere altogether and achieving orbit. The engines shut down, returning them to $ero+1 conditions, and they drifted along, waiting for -alistoga+which was moving slightly faster+to catch up with them. -atch up it did twenty minutes later. The navigation had been right on the mar" and -alistoga passed over the top of them at a range of D0I meters. 8arshall assumed control of the spacecraft once more and used the maneuvering thrusters to match velocities. Slowly, inch by inch, she brought them in for a smooth doc"ing on the underside of the stealth ship. The mechanical arms latched on and pulled them inside the belly. The doc"ing bay was recompressed and that was that. They were bac" safe, another triumph of 8artian engineering and navigation. ,uffy, Sampson, and two enlisted crewmembers with police tanners entered the doc"ing room 'ust as 8arshall opened the hatch. 3.elcome bac",3 ,uffy greeted, suppressing a yawn. It was obvious by loo"ing at her that she was on the verge of total e&haustion. 3Than"s, ,uff,3 said Span"worth, who was almost as e&hausted. 3It!s good to be bac" in what passes for home.3

31ood flight43 3%s fine as nine year old pussy,3 Span"worth assured her, allowing himself to float free into the room. 3.here do you wanna put our .est,em friends43 3Ta"e them to sic"bay first,3 ,uffy ordered. 3.e!ll have the doc neutrali$e the poison they were given and then Sampson and I have a few #uestions for them about r. :indley.3 3Poison43 said Plusman, who had been trying to s#uirm out of the hatch with his hands cuffed behind his bac". 3.hat do you mean, poison43 3%hhh, you haven!t told him yet43 ,uffy as"ed Span"worth. 3.e only wo"e them up a few hours ago,3 Span"worth replied, grabbing Plusman by the upper arm and yan"ing him free into the room. 3They didn!t seem to be #uite in the mood for that yet.3 3.hat about poison43 as"ed 8ec"le, his head appearing in the hatch. ,e turned toward Span"worth. 3=ou gave us poison43 39ot us,3 Span"worth told him. 3=our government did it. They didn!t want you lingering around in the past after your mission and botching things up for the present.3 3That!s a vicious lie<3 Plusman shouted angrily. 3,ow dare you greenies ma"e accusations li"e that<3 3Aemember the inoculations you received before the mission43 ,uffy as"ed. 3The ones that were supposed to protect you from past diseases4 .ell they had more than vaccine in them. =ou were given a time release poison that will activate and "ill you in about ten more days if we don!t neutrali$e it.3 3:ies<3 Plusman shouted again.

39ice try,3 8ec"le added, although he loo"ed li"e he might be considering the matter. ,uffy simply shrugged. 3.hat ma"es more sense43 she as"ed the two soldiers. 3That your government would allow nearly a hundred people to go down to the surface of 2arth in the past and trust them not to change anything or ta"e advantage of their situation, or that they would ta"e steps to insure that any damage caused would be minimal and short+lived4 Thin" about it, gentlemen. Is your government really that trusting43 ;oth of them gave the standard denials of course. ;ut it was #uite clear they had been given some fairly nutritious food for thought. %s the two enlisted crewmen assisted them up the hatch and out of the doc"ing area, they e&changed a few troubled loo"s, as if they!d always suspected their release on an unsuspecting past was something a little too good to be true. 3% typical response so far,3 Sampson said when they were gone. 3Some part of them has suspected the truth all along. They!ll bluster and spout the .est,em line for a while, but they won!t refuse the neutrali$ation procedure.3 3So all of the other crewmembers have been neutrali$ed43 Span"worth as"ed as (en and ;ingbutt emerged into the room. Sampson nodded. 3.e!re "eeping them over on the Aumsfeld, all e&cept -aptain Stanhope anyway. .e had to put him into protective custody once his crew found out he "new about the poison all the time and had it reversed only in himself and the doctor. *ur doc spent the day over there shooting everyone up with the antidote.3 3The reserve team is over on Aumsfeld "eeping an eye on them43 Span"worth as"ed. 3)uc"in! aye,3 ,uffy said. 3.hen it comes time to leave, the .est,em crew can operate the ship for us under the

supervision of you and your people. So far they!re pretty cooperative. % lot of them weren!t too wild about the idea of being left in the past, especially not once they found out they were all gonna die in a few days.3 3That does tend to put a damper on things,3 8c1raw observed. 3So what now43 Span"worth as"ed. 3.e still have that doctor down there. %ny luc" in pinning down his whereabouts43 3 on!t worry about that right now,3 ,uffy told him. 3I have but one order for you and the rest of the away team. Ta"e twelve hours to get yourself fed and rested. =ou!ve all been up for almost forty+eight hours and you must be e&hausted. I "now I am. So let!s all drop everything for now and get refreshed so we can thin" the problem through with clear heads. .e!ll have a staff meeting in the wardroom after lunch tomorrow.3 3;ut what about...3 Span"worth started. 3Tomorrow,3 ,uffy insisted. 39othing is going to change with the situation in the ne&t twelve hours. 1et some rest. That!s an order.3 Span"worth crac"ed a smile. 3If you insist,3 he said. ,e turned to the rest of his team, who by now had all come out of the landing ship. 3=ou heard ,uff,3 he told them. 31et yourselves fed and rested. Staff meeting at FCC0 tomorrow.3 (en, who was more e&hausted than hungry, decided he would ignore the first part of the order and go immediately to the last. ,e pulled himself through the hatch and propelled himself across the staging room toward the inter+dec" ladder. Bsing his hands to propel himself, he moved downward, toward his berthing area. ,e passed other crewmembers on his way, each of whom too" the time to welcome him bac". ,e returned their greetings listlessly, grateful when he finally arrived at his room.

Slurry was in the rac", strapped in but not sleeping. ,e e&pected her to smile as she saw him but she didn!t. She loo"ed as if she had been crying. 3I!m bac",3 he said, wondering why she was upset. .as it the thought that they might all die in space if the wormhole didn!t open4 That seemed logical but somehow he "new it wasn!t the case. 3I "now,3 she said, her tone e&pressionless. 3I!ve been waiting for you.3 ,e floated over and embraced her, feeling her familiar body against his, smelling her familiar smell. She thawed a little at his touch, her arms going around him, her face burying itself in his nec". ,e felt the coolness of fresh tears on his flesh. 3Slurry4 .hat!s the matter4 I!m bac" safe. .e "ept the .est,ems from changing 8ar" .hiting. 2verything is going to be o"ay.3 3I "now it is,3 she said. 3That!s why I!m sad, (en. 2verything is going to be o"ay.3 3I!m not following what you!re saying,3 he said. 3.hy would that ma"e you sad43 39ever mind,3 she said. 3Just hold me. ,old me while we!ve got the time.3 3.hile we!ve got the time4 .hat do you mean43 39ever mind for now,3 she said, sobbing a little, but s#uee$ing him tighter. 3=ou!ll find out soon enough.3 3Slurry, what is going on43 he as"ed. ;ut she wouldn!t answer him.

Soon, despite his worries, despite the strange behavior of his wife, fatigue had its way with him and he drifted off into a deep, dreamless sleep. ,e would not so much as stir for the ne&t ten hours.

%s was the custom at a 8artian meeting in which important information was to be discussed, everyone showed up a little early in order to dispense with the small tal" and preliminaries before the business at hand was mulled over. ,uffy was the first to arrive. She came floating in the door at 'ust after FC00, loo"ing refreshed for the first time in days. She had ta"en her own advice and crashed out in her #uarters after the interrogation of the two .est,em operatives, finding the time for a solid si& hours of slumber. Aigger Johannesburg arrived ne&t, floating in the door 'ust ahead of :ieutenant Span"worth. 9e&t came Aon Sampson carrying a fresh supply of coffee and garlic bread from the galley. The last to arrive were (en and Slurry, both of them freshly bathed, both loo"ing vaguely troubled. They spent ten minutes complimenting each other!s various body parts and se&ual s"ills with typical 8artian crudity. Span"worth, Aigger, and ,uffy then engaged in a brief flatulence contest in which the smell, decibel level, and duration were the main factors affecting the score. Span"worth, who had eaten nothing but processed 2arthling food for the past D8 hours won #uite easily, earning the respect and admiration of all. The preliminaries were wrapped up with a discussion period of past e&periences with alcohol and mari'uana into&ication and the bi$arre se&ual encounters that resulted from over+ into&ication. ,uffy easily too" the best story pri$e here with her narration of the time she!d gotten stoned with a group of wor"ers in a 8artian chic"en farm. 3*"ay then,3 ,uffy said when her tale was told. 3It loo"s li"e its FCC0. ,ow about we get down to some serious coc" suc"ing

here43 %nd with those words, everyone put on a serious face and settled in. The official meeting was begun. ,uffy immediately turned the floor over to Sampson. 3Than"s, ,uff,3 he said, allowing himself to float a bit above his chair. 3%s you all "now by now, we have ourselves a bit of a clusterfuc" in the ma"ing down on the surface. Span"y, you and )ra$ier and the rest of the interdiction team did an ass+"ic"ing 'ob down there, especially considering the twist of events with the native police officer. .hat you didn!t and couldn!t "now, however, because we didn!t "now either, was that the .est,ems sent three people down to the surface in that escape pod, not 'ust two. The third person was this man...3 ,e clic"ed a few spots on his P- and a holographic face appeared above the display. 3This is r. Stephen :indley+a career naval physician for .est,em, which means he!s more than li"ely a pretty shitty doctor, since career naval physicians in that system tend to be as such. Shitty or not, he managed to discover that everyone sent bac" in time aboard Aumsfeld had been inoculated with a time release poison.3 3,ow did he discover this43 Span"worth as"ed. 3%ccording to -aptain Stanhope, whom we!ve spent a considerable time debriefing, it was entirely accidental. *ne of the engineering crewmembers was infected with a case of gonorrhea prior to the mission and did not manifest symptoms until after they were underway.3 31onorrhea43 as"ed Span"worth. 3Isn!t that a se&ually transmitted disease43 3)uc"in! aye,3 Sampson said. 3.e, as you "now, have wiped out all forms of ST long ago, but such things are allowed to e&ist in .est,em culture because they believe it is a punishment from 1od for immoral se&ual activities. Those who contract it are

routinely arrested and charged with violation of the Public 8orals %ct.3 3;arbarians,3 Span"worth hissed, appalled at the thought of allowing a disease nic"named 3the drip3 to e&ist when you could prevent it. Sampson+who had spent his entire career studying 2arthling culture+simply shrugged. 3The practices of .est,em culture are not important to this discussion,3 he said. 3.hat is important is that this disease does e&ist and this crewman did contract it before leaving. ;y the time he began to show symptoms of it, they were halfway to their :emondrop reactor site. Since this crewman was somewhat vital to the engineering department and it was unfeasible to replace him, the decision was made to treat him on the ship and forget about any formal charges. 3 uring the routine blood wor" r. :indley discovered a strange protein in the crewman!s blood+something that turned out to be synthetic,3 he continued. 3That was the time+release coating for the poison. %fter analy$ing it and ma"ing the determination of what it was, he tested the rest of the crew and found everyone aboard had been infected. )rom there, the thought that their release into an unsuspecting past was too good to be true, finally hit home. 3 r. :indley told Stanhope about this discovery and they decided to "eep their findings secret from the rest of the crew. :indley reversed the poison innoculations in both of them and they began to plot with all the $eal that two men who discovered their country had betrayed them could muster. Their plan was to proceed with their mission and then allow the crew to succumb to the inoculations. %t that point, they would set themselves up as wealthy investors using computer hac"ing technology that, while nowhere near as good or intrusive as ours, is efficient enough to penetrate the most secure systems of /00?. Their plans were nothing short of complete world domination within a decade of the end of .orld .ar III.3

3%mbitious little fuc"s, aren!t they43 (en said. 3Indeed,3 Sampson agreed. 3 r. :indley was sent down to the surface with the interdiction team. This was ostensibly to monitor the medical aspects of the genetic manipulation process, but in reality his 'ob was to begin setting up a safe haven for the crew while they underwent their 3orientation.3 3Their orientation43 Span"worth as"ed. 3They were told they were going to be held in this camp for a few wee"s so they could be indoctrinated in life in the past before being released into it,3 Sampson said. 3%fter the indoctrination they would be given forgettable identities and enough money so they would never have to wor" and they could then settle wherever in the world they wished.3 3They told the crew e&actly what they e&pected to hear,3 (en said. 3)uc"in! aye,3 Sampson said. 3In reality, the property :indley was wor"ing on purchasing was an old campground in the remote Sierra 9evada 8ountains. The plan was to ta"e the entire crew there, put them through some bullshit indoctrination classes 'ust to pass the time, and 'ust wait for the poison to "ill them all so they could bury their bodies in secrecy and then go about their own plans. :indley assumed an identity under the name of Stanley Stevens, complete with good credit rating, lots of money in reserve, and a first+rate cover story to dump on the real estate agents involved. ,e was actually well into the ac#uisition process on the day the .est,em team made their attempt to alter 8ar" .hiting!s genetics.3 3;ut we screwed that all up,3 ,uffy said. 3.e did,3 Sampson said. 3They abandoned their plot the moment it became apparent they had been followed into the past and intervention had been done. :indley fled the motel

room the moment he got word, though he didn!t change his identity until we brac"eted the .est,em ship and Stanhope sent that second message, telling him to disappear. It would seem he too" that advice to heart. The Stevens identity has been erased from e&istence and :indley is now presumably operating under a new alias, complete with financial and personal bac"ground. .e do not "now what this identity is, nor does -aptain Stanhope.3 3%nd therein lies our problem,3 ,uffy said. 3.e must leave orbit and start heading bac" to deep space in eight days in order to be in position for our wormhole opening. If we disregard our safety cushion and assume that absolutely nothing will delay our return trip, we could stay as long as eighteen more days. 2ither way though, it seems unli"ely that we will be able to locate and neutrali$e :indley in that time period. If we leave without doing that, logic tells us that the time stream will be altered enough that the wormhole will not open because in the present time there never would have been a mission sent bac" in the first place.3 3That would be bad,3 (en said. 3That would be the worst thing imaginable,3 ,uffy said. 3%s I told Stanhope, we would be effectively stuc" out there. The fuel tan"s do not hold enough propellant to get us bac" to 2arth #uic"ly enough to avoid starving to death out in space. 9ot that we would come bac" to 2arth even if they did. .e have no place in this time period.3 2veryone considered that unpleasant thought for a few moments. )inally Span"worth spo"e up. 3.e have to find him then,3 he said. 3That!s all there is to it. .e need to scour that fuc"ing planet until he turns up.3 32asier said than done,3 Sampson said. 3,e "nows we!re loo"ing for him. ,e has already changed his identity and is unli"ely to do anything in the ne&t few months to draw

attention to himself. I have my people using our computers to pour through every 2arthling database in search of some anomaly that will shed light on his new identity, but I fear we!re doing nothing more than pissing up a flagpole.3 3 o we "now anything43 Span"worth as"ed. 3%nything at all Stanhope or one of the Aumsfeld crew told you that will help us find him43 3=es, there are a few things we "now,3 Sampson said. 3)irst and foremost, we "now what he loo"s li"e and have digital images of his face. .e!re now tapped into multiple databases that will inform us if that face wal"s in front of any one of more than a million security cameras throughout the Bnited States. The problem here is that unless :indley is a complete and total moron, he will have anticipated us doing this and will stay away from any place that has an Internet lin"ed security camera. 3%nother thing we "now for sure is that Stanhope did not completely trust the man. )or that reason, he was sent down with only a single P- and a single battery to power it. *nce that battery dies+something that li"ely has already happened+he will no longer be able to manipulate the 2arthling databases.3 3.on!t he be able to recharge the battery43 (en as"ed. 3I mean, can!t he 'ust get an %- adapter and plug in to an outlet li"e everyone else43 39o,3 Sampson said. 3The electrical delivery system is completely different in this time than what is used for a modern .est,em P-. .hile a modern electrical engineer would probably be able to construct an adapter of some sort to convert primitive electrical delivery to a modern device, :indley is not an electrical engineer, nor would he dare trying to enlist an electrical engineer from this time period to help him. It would reveal his futuristic status and the engineer from this time period probably wouldn!t be able to help him anyway since the principals would be far too advanced.3

3So he!s stuc" with the identity he has,3 Span"worth said. 3That!s good news, isn!t it4 2ven if we can!t find him, it limits how much damage he!ll be able to cause to the time stream.3 3It limits it,3 Sampson said, 3but it certainly doesn!t eliminate it. .hether he has the ability to manipulate computer data or not, he still has his pre+"nowledge of history. That is his most valuable possession. 2ven the dumbest, most unresourceful person could ta"e tremendous advantage of such a thing and we already "now that :indley has every intention of doing so. 8y guess is that by the end of .orld .ar III he will already be a multi+millionaire. %ll he!ll do from there is get richer and more powerful. 2ach share of stoc" that he ac#uires is a share that won!t go to someone else. 2ach contract whatever corporation he sets up is awarded is a contract that won!t go to someone else. The reverberations won!t seem li"e much here, but they!ll have e&ponential effect further down the time stream.3 3=ou!re describing a hopeless situation then,3 (en said. 3=ou!re saying we won!t be able to find him before its time to leave. If we can!t find him before we leave, there will be no wormhole to open for us. If there!s no wormhole to open for us, we!ll all die out in space.3 3%nd be crashed into the sun,3 Span"worth added helpfully. 3 on!t forget about that part.3 (en shot him a sour loo". ,e had been trying to forget about that part. 3There is one thing that nobody else is considering here,3 a voice said. It was Aigger Johannesburg, who had not fastened his 5elcro and was therefore hovering 'ust above the table. Bntil this moment, it was the first time he!d spo"en during the meeting. 3.hat!s that, Aigger43 ,uffy as"ed him.

3There is a solution to our dilemma,3 he said. 3There has to be.3 3.hat do you mean there has to be43 Sampson as"ed, irritated. 3There doesn!t have to be anything. The only sure things in life are death and masturbation.3 3%nd ordinarily that would be true,3 Aigger said. 3;ut we!re not dealing with mere life here, are we4 .e are dealing with metaphysics+specifically time travel. %ll of you seem to have forgotten that what is going on here is not 'ust a #uir" of fate. It is something that was meant to be, something that, in our time, has already happened and was already solved long before any of us+with the e&ception of (en )ra$ier+were even born.3 3,uh43 Span"worth said. 3.e have established that everything else that occurred down on the surface+the encounter with the Aoseville cop, the burning of the .est,em!s car, the pursuit and the perimeter+are things that were written into the history of time before we even left 8ars. So why is it that you all seem to thin" that this situation with r. :indley is not something that is meant to occur, too43 2veryone e&changed loo"s as they considered this possibility. ,uffy loo"ed at Aigger and said, 3If you "now something, you old fuc", how about you get to the point4 .e don!t have time for any mysterious ;uddha+figure shit.3 3*ld fuc"43 Aigger said, feigning bruised feelings. 38y my, ,uff. id we forget that this old fuc" was able to give you si&teen orgasms in a twelve+minute time period4 I recall you telling me that was a record brea"ing event for you.3 Surprisingly, ,uffy blushed, something that many would have said was an impossibility. 3)orgive me,3 she said. 3I thin" perhaps the pressure is getting to me.3 3Si&teen43 Sampson said, raising his eyebrows. 38y :aura,

Aigger. That is impressive, even for a 8artian.3 39ever mind the si&teen orgasms,3 ,uffy snapped. She too" a deep breath and calmed herself. 3Aigger, you seem to "now something. Please enlighten us.3 Aigger smiled mysteriously and then nodded. 3Since you as"ed politely,3 he said. 3I believe that Slurry and I already "now how this problem is to be solved. ;efore we left on this mission, before we even heard of it, in fact, Slurry uncovered some rather startling facts while doing personal research in the .est,em history databases.3 3.hat did you find43 ,uffy as"ed. 3.e!ll get to that,3 Aigger replied, answering for her. 3*ne orgasm at a time here, shall we43 ,uffy gave him another sour loo" but said nothing. 3There is a location and a time,3 Aigger said, 3where we "now r. :indley will show up, correct43 3=ou mean at the .ashington 8onument on June F43 ,uffy as"ed. 3-orrect,3 Aigger said. 3The day he is supposed to meet up with -aptain Stanhope so that the two of them can begin their bid to rule the world. 9ow I suspected at first that :indley would have no intention of "eeping that appointment. .hy should he4 ,e already has his own identity and he probably reali$es that -aptain Stanhope was either "illed or captured trying to ma"e good his escape. ,owever, this information about the Pbattery has made me re+thin" this supposition. I now believe that he li"ely will show up at this appointment 'ust on the off chance that he!ll be able to ac#uire more batteries or another P-. ,aving a functioning, modern computer would ma"e his plans so much easier and faster to accomplish. :indley also has

no reason to believe that we monitored the communication that sent him to this appointment. %s you found out from -aptain Stanhope, our decryption technology was #uite a surprise to the .est,em mind.3 3I really don!t see how this is helpful in any way, Aigger,3 ,uffy said. 3June F is eight 2arth months from now. *ur wormhole is scheduled to open %pril F0. .e!ll be long gone by then.3 3=es,3 Aigger agreed. 3.e will be long gone by then, hopefully approaching 8ars in our own time.3 3So please e&plain how "nowing that :indley will be at the .ashington 8onument two and a half months after our wormhole opens is going to help us43 ,uffy as"ed patiently. 3I would thin" that is #uite obvious by now,3 Aigger told her. 3.e must leave someone behind to ma"e contact with :indley on that date and neutrali$e him.3 ,uffy stared at him in disbelief for a moment and then rolled her eyes to the ceiling. 3*h :aura,3 she said in disgust. 3That!s your brilliant idea4 .ell than"s for wasting three minutes of our valuable time here, Aigger. =ou "now as well as I do that we can!t leave anyone behind on 2arth. 8y orders are #uite clear on that point and my common sense agrees with them. .hat would be the point of eliminating one person with pre+ "nowledge from the time stream 'ust so we can replace him with someone else who will fuc" it all up43 Aigger seemed unfa$ed by her harsh words. 3.hat would be the point, you as"4 The point is that you are once again missing the point. .e will leave someone behind when we go. I "now this because we have already done so. It is written in the history and is as meant to be as the encounter with the cop outside the hospital. It is something that has to be done in order to insure the time stream remains true so we will do it.3 3=ou!re telling me,3 ,uffy said, 3that I!m going to disregard the

one order in this mission that had absolutely no room for negotiation4 That I!m going to disregard a specific instruction given to me personally by 1overnor 8itsy ;rown before we boarded this ship4 Is that what you!re trying to say to me43 3=ou!re down with it,3 Aigger said. 3=ou!re going to disregard the order because it ma"es sense to disregard the order. ,uff, we can argue about this all day long if you want and it won!t ma"e any difference. I already "now we!re going to do it. I!ve "nown this the entire mission+even before the mission in fact. I have documented proof that we do it. I didn!t understand how or why we were going to leave someone behind until today, but I "new we were going to. %s I said, Slurry figured this out before we even "new about the :emondrop reactor, before we even "new we were going to be going anywhere.3 3.ho43 Sampson said. 3.ho is this person that we!re supposed to trust enough to stay behind on 2arth, that we!re supposed to trust not to ta"e advantage of his or her pre+"nowledge li"e :indley is planning4 o we have a saint among us that I!m not aware of4 ;ecause he or she would have to be to avoid the temptation.3 3It!s me,3 (en said slowly, his eyes loc"ed onto Slurry!s. 3Isn!t it43 Slurry nodded, a tear forming in her eye. 3It!s you,3 she confirmed. 3*h, that!s 'ust fuc"ing brilliant,3 ,uffy said. 3:eave )ra$ier here, the one man who can actually pass for a native because he is a fuc"ing native. The man who has a wife and child down there. The man who+no offense, )ra$ier+was raised with twentieth century morality instead of 8artian morality. I!m sorry, Aigger, but no suc"y+fuc"y on this one. )ra$ier is the last person on this ship I would allow to remain behind.3 3%gain, ,uff,3 Aigger said, 3you!re missing the point. )ra$ier is

supposed to remain behind. It!s meant to be.3 3Bh huh,3 she said. 3%nd what happens when he goes and meets up with his wife down there4 on!t even try to convince me that he won!t. )ra$ier, I saw how many times you loo"ed down at her house through the cameras, how many times you loo"ed up her vital statistics on the various Internet sites. I saw you loo"ing through her grocery store records and her ban" account. =ou still love her. If I sent you down there you would end up interfering with her ne&t marriage and your entire history would be altered.3 (en opened his mouth to deny he would do this but then closed it again. ,e "new he would be lying if he did. ,e loved %nnie, deeply and thoroughly. If he were sent bac" to 2arth to live, there would be no way he would be able to stay away from her, even if the entire history of time were at sta"e. Slurry saw this in his face and another tear formed, drifting off into the room. ,e tried to ta"e her hand but she refused it, pulling her own arm against her chest. 3I thin" ,uff is right,3 (en said. 3I!m not fit to be left on 2arth. I li"e to thin" I wouldn!t try to rule the world or anything li"e that+ruling the world seems li"e a headache+but I wouldn!t be able to stay away from %nnie. I would end up screwing up her ne&t marriage.3 3=ou won!t screw up her ne&t marriage,3 Slurry said, her voice barely under control. 3=ou are her ne&t marriage. (en, you are avid ;rown.3 This time everyone+with the e&ception of Aigger+loo"ed at Slurry in open+mouthed surprise. 3I am avid ;rown43 he as"ed. 3.hat do you mean4 ,ow is that possible4 I!ve seen pictures of the guy on the Internet. ,e doesn!t loo" anything li"e me.3

3Than"s to 8artian technology,3 Slurry said. 3.hat are you tal"ing about, Slurry43 ,uffy demanded. 3Start ma"ing some sense.3 3Pictures of avid ;rown in the databases are rare,3 Slurry said. 3(en noticed that himself in his early days on 8ars. .hile there are hundreds, even thousands of pictures of 'ust about everyone else, avid ;rown seemed to be somewhat camera shy. There were no personal pictures of the man at all. The only ones available were various bureaucratic shots such as driver!s license photos, I card photos, the occasional newspaper photo, and a few shots ta"en from security cameras. %ll of those photos showed this man.3 She whispered a few words to the computer and a second later an image of avid ;rown appeared, showing him at about age forty. 3This is an identification card photo. The Te&as epartment of ,omeland Security too" it 'ust after .orld .ar III. %s you!ll note, avid ;rown is a rather handsome guy and he loo"s nothing li"e (en. ,e also doesn!t e&ist. The photo is a fabrication, manipulated by a 8artian computer program.3 3.hat do you mean43 as"ed Sampson. 3% program was inserted into the 2arthling databases. It was difficult to find, but it permeates virtually every computer in the world because it was inserted into the software that each computer uses by means of a silent virus. This virus has but one purpose and one purpose only. .henever a picture of (en )ra$ier!s face is encountered after 9ovember /, /00?, the computer in #uestion will change the digital files that ma"e up the photograph into a date+appropriate shot of avid ;rown.3 ,uffy was sha"ing her head. 3I can!t accept this,3 she said. 3.hat you!re telling me is insane.3 38ore insane than going bac" in time in the first place43 Aigger as"ed. 38ore insane than finding out that every #uir" of the mission we!ve seemingly randomly encountered was already

pre+recorded in our own history43 3:aura,3 ,uffy said, rubbing her temples. 3I need more information. Tell me how you "now all this, how you discovered it.3 %ll eyes turned to Slurry, who seemed to have gotten her tears under control for the moment. 3It was right after I started wor"ing at the 8,% ,3 she said. 3I was in my office after hours one day, using the hac"ing technology to probe through 2arthling databases. I was searching for something personal that day, old photos of (en from his previous life. I wanted to ma"e a collage.3 She sniffed a little and wiped at her eye. 3I had the computer perform a facial recognition analysis on a current digital image of (en and then told it to search through the .est,em Internet for any matches. It sent me bac" almost seven hundred pictures from various points in his life. 8ostly they were family shots ta"en by his parents, or by his wife before he was shot. Toward the end there were a bunch ta"en from news service files+pictures that accompanied stories about his funeral or about the par" they named after him. The pictures were listed chronologically, by the date they were stored in the database in which they were found. Just before I shut down for the day I too" a loo" at the very last picture and I saw something I couldn!t #uite believe.3 3.hat was it43 (en as"ed. 3It was a picture ta"en from some place called the ;ull 5alley Indian -asino and ;ingo Parlor,3 she said. 3The ;ull 5alley Indian -asino43 (en as"ed. 3I!ve never been in anyplace with that name.3 39ot yet you haven!t,3 Slurry said. 3The picture I found was ta"en %ugust /F, /0FI.3 (en, along with everyone else, was stunned. 3/0FI43 he as"ed.

3.as there some mista"e43 3*h there was a mista"e all right,3 Slurry said bitterly. 3;ut it wasn!t on our part. The ;ull 5alley -asino is located 'ust outside of -orpus -hristi, Te&as. .hen they opened in /0F? they tried to cut costs by using a South %merican computer company to set up their electronic security apparatus. This company was e&perimenting with an operating system for their computers that had been developed by one of their own programmers instead of the system nearly every other computer of the time used. %s such, the virus that changed shots of (en )ra$ier into avid ;rown was not part of its programming. %nd, as fate would have it, the alleged avid ;rown, for whatever reason, decided to visit and play a little blac"'ac" one %ugust day in /0FI. %pparently he was doing well enough at the game that the people monitoring the camera system decided to snap a screen shot of him and save it in the database. Then, F80 years later, (en )ra$ier!s new wife Slurry happens across this photo when loo"ing for collage shots.3 3 o you have a copy of the shot43 (en as"ed, his mind trying to come to grips with what she was saying. % sob escaped from her mouth. She hiccupped once and got herself bac" under control. 3=es,3 she said. 3-omputer, display image 08/F/0FIa from file Slurry )ra$ier ,istory Photos.3 The shot of avid ;rown disappeared and was replaced by a grainy, color image of what could only be (en )ra$ier. ,e was slightly older loo"ing, but not much. The shot was from the mid+chest up. ,is hair was short and neatly styled, his face clean+shaven. % drin" stood on the blac"'ac" table before him. Standing behind him, resting her hand on his shoulder and smiling, was an older, though still #uite attractive %nnie )ra$ier. 3*h my 1od,3 (en whispered in awe, staring at the image almost religiously. It was true. 9o wonder Slurry had acted so strangely toward him since that day. She had "nown all this

time that he was going to leave her, that it was fated to happen. 3Is this the only shot43 as"ed ,uffy, who seemed more than a little stunned herself. 3It!s the only one that slipped through the virus,3 Slurry said. 3;ut that!s all it too" for me to start digging around. That very night I started loo"ing through the other shots of avid ;rown and discovered the virus itself. % little more bac" chec"ing and I was able to see when it was inserted7 9ovember /, /00?+ tomorrow. %nd once we actually made the trip bac" in time I was able to get absolute proof that avid ;rown and (en are the same person.3 3.hat proof is that43 Sampson as"ed. 3If you search through the 2arthling Internet right now, at this moment, you will find that there is no avid ;rown. %t least there isn!t one with the date of birth and social security number and other vital statistics that match those of the man %nnie )ra$ier will marry. There!s no record of his birth, no record of his parents even, no trace whatsoever of him in the computer system. avid ;rown doesn!t e&ist right now because we haven!t created him yet.3 3;ut you thin" we will create him tomorrow43 Sampson said. 3That we!ll create him and insert a custom computer virus into the 2arthling Internet to change all pictures of (en )ra$ier43 3.e don!t thin" that,3 Aigger said. 3.e "now it.3 ,uffy lit a cigarette and blew a plume of acrid smo"e out into the room. 3I!m not sure I!m convinced on this,3 she said. 3=our argument is very persuasive, Slurry, but you!re as"ing me to violate a direct order and set a man with pre+"nowledge of the future loose on 2arth, to come and go as he pleases, to do any number of things that could screw up the time stream as bad as, or even worse, than 'ust leaving :indley down there.3

Slurry snorted, a sound that was half bitter amusement and half disgust. 3)or :aura!s sa"e,3 she said, helping herself to one of ,uffy!s cigarettes. 3In all the thin"ing and agoni$ing I!ve done since finding out that my husband was going to abandon me for his dead wife, I never thought I would be the one who would have to defend the fuc"ing idea in the first place<3 3Slurry,3 (en started. 3I haven!t...3 39ot now, (en,3 she said. 3.e!ll tal" about this later if you want, but don!t interrupt me now.3 3Sorry,3 he mumbled. 3:oo", ,uff,3 Slurry said. 3If you use a little logic and common sense here, you!ll reali$e that (en is the perfect person to put down there on 2arth to ta"e care of this :indley problem for us. =ou!re worried about him changing the time stream. ,e won!t do that. ,e can!t< ,e!s supposed to be down on 2arth. ,e is part of the time stream you!re worried about interfering with. ,is own future and the future of his descendents are tied up in him completing the mission of stopping :indley and then "eeping an e&tremely low profile afterward. If he starts ma"ing radical changes to history he will interfere with the process that had him awa"ened in the first place. If he does that... who "nows what might happen43 She loo"ed at (en directly. 3=ou will have to go down there and convince your wife that you really are her dead husband returned to her from the future. =ou will have to do that and then ma"e sure she never tells anyone. =ou!ll have to move her away from her home and everyone who "new you in your previous life. =ou!ll have to lie to your own child, tell him you!re avid ;rown and let him die still believing that, so his children will carry on the obsession that will eventually wa"e you up. If you fail in any of this, you will li"ely never be awa"ened in the first place. If you are never awa"ened in the first place... what happens then4 .ill you simply disappear from e&istence4 .ill everything you!ve done disappear as well4 .e don!t "now, we can!t "now, but it!s certainly a possibility,

isn!t it43 3This is too much for me,3 (en said, feeling a stress headache forming in his shoulders. 3.ay too much. Slurry, you should!ve told me about this a long time ago.3 3I couldn!t,3 she said, reaching out and ta"ing his hand now. 3.hen Aigger and I reali$ed we were dealing with time travel we had to consider the ramifications of it. .e "new you were going to end up bac" on 2arth in /00? but we didn!t "now how or why. Telling you might have done something to upset the process.3 3.ell what if I refuse to go down there43 he nearly screamed. 3.ouldn!t that upset the fuc"ing process43 Slurry seemed ta"en abac" by this response. -learly she had never considered that he would refuse to go. 3 o I have any free will here at all43 he as"ed. 3=ou "eep telling us that this is meant to be, that it!s written in history, that it!s already happened. .hat about me though4 The me right here and right now4 %re you telling me I!m incapable of deciding not to go4 Suppose I do4 .ill ,uff load me into that transporter at gunpoint and force me to go down there43 39o,3 ,uffy answered for him. 3I wouldn!t do that. The decision to let you go down or not will ultimately rest with me and I must say that Slurry is doing a good 'ob of convincing me that this is the right thing to do, but I will not force you. If you decide to stay, (en, then you stay, and the conse#uences be damned.3 3;ut you will decide to go, (en,3 Slurry told him. 3I "now you will. =ou!ll do it because you love %nnie, but that!s only part of it. =ou!ll do it mostly because you!re a moral person with good common sense and you "now this is the right thing to do. :indley has to be stopped and you!re the only one who can do it. That!s why I!m sitting here trying to tal" you into it, trying to

tal" ,uff into allowing it. This is what is supposed to happen, what will protect the ninety million people who live on 8ars and allow them to "eep living the life that our founding parents fought and died for. =ou may be reluctant now because of some sense of love and loyalty to me, but ultimately your common sense is going to force you into that landing craft much more effectively than any gun could. 8ars is depending on you, (en. =our descendents are depending on you. 8y ancestors who brought my family to 8ars are depending on you. %s much as I love you, I "now you have to go down there and I!m willing to accept the bro"en heart that goes along with it.3 (en didn!t "now how to respond to this. ,is emotions were tearing him in two directions at once. ,e loved Slurry deeply and the last thing in the solar system he wanted was to see her hurt, to "now he had caused the hurt. ;ut on the other hand, he was being offered a chance to not 'ust see %nnie again, but to be with her, to live with her as her husband, to raise his child as a father should. ,e was avid ;rown< The man he had envied from afar, that he had felt insanely 'ealous of at times. It had been him all along. They wanted him to abandon new love for old. .as it the right thing to do4 .as it selfish4 3I can!t ma"e a decision right now,3 he said. 3There!s too much to thin" about, too much to consider.3 3I agree,3 ,uffy said. 3This is a decision that has far+reaching implications. It should not be made under the influence of strong emotions or impulsively. (en, thin" it over, tal" it over with Slurry, with Aigger, with whomever you need to. I!ll do the same and we!ll get bac" together tonight, o"ay43 3*"ay,3 (en said. 3Sounds li"e an ass+fuc".3

The weapons room at -alistoga!s bow was the largest compartment aboard the ship. It was also the emptiest since they were not currently in battle conditions. Since privacy was

not the easiest thing to come by on a stealth ship, (en and Slurry found their way to this cavernous section to discuss the situation facing them. They floated face to face near the forward bul"head, 'ust under the ventilation shaft. Storage rac"s on both sides held antimatter torpedoes+each si& meters long by a meter wide, painted dull gray and mar"ed with the universal danger symbol+that were fastened with magnetic security straps. To their left and right were the forward torpedo tube hatches, their airloc" doors sealed shut. 3I almost died when I found that picture,3 Slurry told him. 3.hen I figured out you were going to leave me, that you were going to end up on 2arth with %nnie again, I wanted to rip your head off. I hated you for a while, (en, I really did.3 3I "now,3 he replied softly, his eyes downcast. 3%nd you never #uite recovered from it either.3 39o, I never really did.3 She sighed. 3It hurts, (en. I!ve gotten used to the idea, I!ve been braced for it this entire trip, but it still hurts to "now...3 She hitched a little as a sob bro"e out. 3... to "now that this is the final day for us. That we!ll be heading bac" without you.3 3That hasn!t been decided yet, Slurry,3 he told her. 3=es it has,3 she told him. ,e didn!t contradict her. The words had sounded li"e a lie, had felt li"e a lie even as they left his lips. 3I!m sorry,3 he said instead. 3I don!t "now what to say, what to tell you to ma"e this better. .hat I do "now is that if you as" me to stay with you, I will, and I!ll do it happily. I do love %nnie. I won!t even try to convince you I don!t, but I love you too. .hen we got married I promised to spend my life with you. I don!t brea" my promises lightly.3 3=ou can!t stay, (en,3 she said. 38ars is depending on you

going. So is the rest of this crew, including myself. If you stay with me we!ll all die out in deep space. 2ven if %nnie wasn!t a factor in this, you would have to go. It!s the only thing that ma"es...3 % hitch of the chest, a slight sob. 3... That ma"es sense. I see that. I!m pretty sure ,uffy sees that. Surely you see it as well.3 ,e nodded. 3I do,3 he said. 3I!m actually glad that this :indley #uac" is the reason you have to stay,3 she said. 3It eases my mind.3 3.hat do you mean43 She wiped a tear away from her eye and too" a breath. 3I didn!t "now :indley was going to be what made you stay behind until yesterday. I thought... I thought you were going to... you "now... snea" away while you were down there. That being so close to %nnie was going to ma"e you... 'ust decide on your own to stay.3 3=ou thought I was going to snea" away from the landing team43 he as"ed, shoc"ed. 3That I was going to violate my orders and put the entire time stream at ris"4 =ou really thought I would do that43 3I!m sorry,3 she said. 3It did seem out of character for you, I will admit. ;ut with the information I had before yesterday, I didn!t see any other reason why you would!ve been left here other than... you "now... 'ust slipping away.3 ,e was dismayed that she would thin" such a thing of him. ,e was also surprised about something else as well. 3=ou thought I was going to slip away from the landing team while we were down there, that I was going to hide somewhere for a month until you were forced to leave without me, that I was going to endanger everything, yet... yet you didn!t tell anyone about it4 =ou didn!t warn ,uffy or Span"y43

3I didn!t warn them,3 she admitted. 3Partially because I "new it was meant to be anyway+that!s why Aigger didn!t warn them either+but mostly because I love you, (en. I love you and all I want is for you to be happy... whether or not that includes me.3 9ow a tear escaped from (en!s eye. ,e wiped at it. 3I love you too, Slurry. I wish you could come with me.3 She actually giggled. 3Somehow, I don!t thin" %nnie would be down with that.3 38aybe not,3 he admitted. 3%nd I don!t thin" ,uffy would be down with it either. ;esides, I have my life on 8ars. I!ll get over you eventually, (en. I!ll never meet another man li"e you, but I!ll meet someone else, someday. I!ll move on. I!ll have my children and I!ll have my career in history. =ou belong in this time, on this planet. I don!t.3 39o,3 he said. 3I suppose you don!t.3 3=our 'ob is to ma"e sure I have a planet to go bac" to. I thin" maybe that!s why you were brought bac" in the first place.3 ,e considered this. 38aybe you!re right,3 he said. 38aybe you!re right.3 38a"e love to me,3 she said. 3*ne last time43 3Aight here, in the torpedo room43 he as"ed. 3)uc"in! aye,3 she said. 3I bet you and %nnie have never done it against a two gigaton missile before.3 ,e laughed. 39o,3 he told her. 3I can!t say that we have. 9or are we ever li"ely to.3 3Then I got something that she don!t got,3 Slurry said. 3-ome

on. :et!s do the nasty. *ne more time pays for all.3 ,e smiled and held out his hands to her. 3I find you ma"e a good argument, dear,3 he said.

The meeting with ,uffy that night too" place in her #uarters. It included Sampson, Aigger, Slurry, (en, and ,uffy herself. It was short, sweet, and to the point. 3I reviewed everything we "now about this incident,3 ,uffy announced. 3I!ve poured through every computer file we have on hand to support the argument Slurry made. I!ve tal"ed it over with Sampson and his team and with Aigger. .hat I!ve found is that the most sensible thing to do is to utili$e my constitutional duty to violate an order that doesn!t ma"e sense and act on my own initiative. (en, we need you to stay behind on 2arth and ta"e care of :indley for us. I will not compel you to do this. =ou must do it of your own free will.3 3I!ve tal"ed it over with my wife,3 (en said. 3%nd I agree it ma"es sense for me to stay. I will do so.3 3*"ay,3 ,uffy said. 39ow let me drop the euphemisms and ma"e sure we!re down with the same se& act here. o you understand that you!re going to have to "ill him43 3I understand,3 he said. 3%nd are you prepared to do that43 ,e nodded. 3I!m prepared.3 3That!s that then,3 she said. 3*ur ne&t window to get you down there is in si& hours. I!ll have Sampson set up the avid ;rown identity for you as soon as we ad'ourn. ;e ready to board the landing ship at /CC0 hours. =ou will ta"e nothing but yourself and your clothing down.3

3I understand.3 She smiled. 3That means we have a few hours to "ill. There!s a botch party going on in the wardroom. %nyone care to 'oin me43 It turned out that everyone cared to 'oin her.

/CC0 hours came #uic"ly but (en managed to say a fond farewell to 'ust about everyone on board -alistoga. They wished him good luc" and wet dreams. 8ore than a few than"ed him profusely for volunteering to stay behind in a primitive culture so they might live. There were a few tears shed for him, both from men and women. There were many hugs and "isses. There was even a farewell blow'ob from Sergeant 8c1raw, who 'ust didn!t "now how to say goodbye any other way. %t last, with Slurry in tow, he reported to the doc"ing compartment, where 8arshall and (alahari were inside the landing ship performing their pre+flight chec"s. Span"worth, ,uffy, and Sampson were there to see him off on what was li"ely to be the last space voyage of his life. 3Than"s again for what you!re doing,3 Span"worth told him, his voice steady but his eyes full of gratitude. 3It wasn!t an easy decision,3 (en told him, 3but I!m glad to help out.3 ,e held out his hand. 3It was an honor serving with you, Span"y. Than"s for putting up with an amateur all this time.3 3*h, ta"e a flying fuc" at Phobos with that shit,3 Span"worth said as he shoo" hands with him. 3=ou were bad+ass. If it wasn!t for you we!d be stuc" in some 'ail cell down there. =ou!re welcome on my team anytime.3 (en released his hand and gave him a hug. 3Ta"e care of yourself, Span"y. ,ave wet dreams.3

3.et dreams,3 Span"y repeated, his voice not #uite steady. %s he floated off he was wiping his eyes. Sampson came over ne&t. 39ice clothes,3 he told (en with a smile. It was his department that had manufactured them for him. 3=ou li"e them43 (en as"ed. ,e was dressed in a pair of blue 'eans, tennis shoes, and a sweater. ,e had a wallet with newly printed identification in the name of avid ;rown in the bac" poc"et. 3I had a good tailor.3 39othing but the finest for our operatives,3 Sampson said. 3I 'ust wish we!d had more time to brief you on your new identity.3 3I "now everything I need to "now about avid ;rown,3 (en said. 3I loo"ed him up enough times bac" on 8ars.3 3=ou!re all set to ma"e the move to Te&as then43 3)uc"in! aye,3 he said. 3I!ll rent a hotel room until I can buy my house in -orpus -hristi. *nce I!m settled in, I!ll head bac" to San Jose and meet up with %nnie. That!s gonna be "ind of interesting for both of us I thin".3 3Interesting in a good way, I hope.3 38e too,3 he said. 3%lthough I must be successful at convincing her since we already "now she ends up married to me.3 ,e shoo" his head. 3This time travel shit is confusing sometimes. I don!t thin" we!re really meant to be screwing around with it.3 3I thin" you!re right,3 Sampson said. 31ood luc" to you down there, and than"s for what you!re doing for us.3 39o s"in off my ass,3 (en assured him. They shoo" hands and Sampson floated off. ,uffy floated over ne&t. She was stoic in appearance but it was

obvious she was #uite emotional as well. 3I guess this is it,3 she said, reaching out and twirling a piece of his hair affectionately. 3=ou have your landing clothes and your I and that!s all you get. I trust you remember the date and place of your rende$vous with r. :indley43 3=ou "now it,3 he said. 3%nd as I told Span"y, it!s been an honor serving under you, ,uff. =ou do the 8artian 9avy proud.3 3Than"s, (en,3 she told him. 3%nd it!s been an honor having you along as well. %nd you!re not a bad fuc" for an 2arthling either.3 3I!ll ta"e that as a compliment,3 he said. 3That!s how it was meant,3 she said. She drifted forward and embraced him, giving him a tight, s#uee$ing hug that nearly drove the breath from his lungs. She "issed him on the side of the nec" and then on the mouth, her tongue darting against his for the briefest of instances. She tasted strongly of 8c1raw!s vaginal secretions, which she had been feasting on during the botch party earlier. 3;ye, ,uff,3 he said when she released him. 31et these people home safely.3 3I!ll do my part,3 she said. 3=ou ma"e sure there!s a wormhole open for us when we get there.3 3 eal,3 he said. She floated off, leaving him alone with Slurry. ,er swollen eyes were already lea"ing tears as they turned to each other. 3I didn!t want it to end this way, Slurry,3 he said. 3I "now,3 she said. 3=ou!re doing what has to be done.3 3I!m gonna miss you terribly.3

3I would hope so,3 she said, chuc"ling the slightest bit. She then sniffed and a few more tears bro"e free of her eyes and drifted off into the room. 3I!m gonna miss you too, (en. =ou!re my first love, the first man who understood me, who really listened to me. I!ll never forget you.3 3;ut you promise to move on43 he as"ed. 3=ou won!t become the 8artian e#uivalent of a spinster43 3I promise,3 she said. (en felt the tears spring from his own eyes now, felt the pain of departure in his heart. ,e pulled her against him, holding her firm body one last time. She returned the embrace, burying her head in his shoulder, her hot tears soa"ing into the synthetic material of his sweater. They held each other li"e that for almost three minutes, until ,uffy floated over and told him their window was approaching and he really had to go now. 31oodbye, Slurry,3 he said before he let her go. 3I!ll always love you.3 31oodbye, (en,3 she said. 3I!ll always love you too.3 ,e boarded the landing craft a minute later, pulling himself in through the metal hatch. ,e gave her one last loo", blew her one last "iss, then duc"ed inside and shut the hatch behind him. )ive minutes later, the air was evacuated from the compartment and the landing craft drifted slowly away from the -alistoga. % few minutes after that, the engines were fired. To an observer, it seemed as if the landing craft was strea"ing away from its mother ship. In reality, it was 'ust the opposite. -alistoga was staying on its pre+determined course. The landing craft and its very special passenger was slowing down, being pulled by a universal force towards the deep, blue planet below. San Jose, -alifornia8arch C, /008

School had let out for the day nearly an hour before and all of the children had long since departed the campus, pic"ed up by their parents, or by the school bus, or by one of the day care vans. The administration office was still open, however, and about half of the teachers assigned to Aonald Aeagan 2lementary were inside, filing paperwor" or preparing their ne&t day!s lesson plans. %nnie )ra$ier+who taught third grade+ was one such teacher. She sat at the end of the table in the conference room, her papers stac"ed neatly before her. 3I!m blowing this scene,3 declared Jenny *!Ailey, who sat ne&t to her. 3I have a date tonight. I!ve been teaching this crap to those little shits long enough now that I should be able to wing it, shouldn!t I43 3=ou could probably do it in your sleep,3 %nnie agreed, the barest hint of a smile on her face. 3.ho you going out with this time43 She loo"ed around furtively and lowered her voice. 3 oug!s ta"ing me to the -he$ ;olo,3 she whispered. 3(eep that to yourself, huh43 oug 8asterson was the school principal+a man, it was said, who was going places in the San Jose Bnified School istrict. %nnie shoo" her head resignedly as she heard this. 3,aven!t you learned your lesson about married men43 she as"ed her friend. 3It!s not li"e that at all,3 Jenny assured her. 3,e and his wife don!t get along with each other. They sleep in separate rooms. They haven!t... you "now... had se& for almost two years now.3 3Then why doesn!t he leave her43 3,e wants to wait until the "ids are older,3 she said. 3=ou "now, so it won!t be so hard on them.3 %nnie loo"ed at her pointedly. 3 o you really believe all that

crap he!s handing you43 she as"ed. 3*r do you 'ust pretend to believe it to assuage your own guilt43 Jenny loo"ed shoc"ed for a moment and then softened. She grinned. 3I 'ust try not to dwell too much on it,3 she admitted. 3If I thin" too much about my own motivations, my whole house of cards might come crashing down on me.3 3%nd we can!t have that nasty morality getting in our way now, can we43 %nnie as"ed her. 32&actly,3 Jenny said. 3The plain and simple fact of the matter is that married men are better in bed. Single guys have no idea what the hell they!re doing. They 'ust want to get you drun" so they can shove it in and blast off in two minutes. I never had an orgasm with a lover until I got it on with one of my married professors at San Jose State. %fter that, I was hoo"ed. .ho am I to go #uestioning their rationale4 They!re the ones cheating, not me.3 3%n interesting way of loo"ing at it,3 %nnie told her. 3I loo" at it whatever way assures me of good se&,3 she said. 3%nd what about you43 3.hat about me43 %nnie as"ed. 3.hen are you going to go out and get your chassis lubed4 =ou must be rusty as hell after all this time.3 3Put in your usual delicate way,3 %nnie said sourly. 3:i"e I told you before when you tried to fi& me up with your brother+your married brother+I!m not #uite ready to start that whole dating thing again. %ll I!ll do is end up comparing whoever it is to (en.3 3%nnie,3 she said, 3It!s been almost five years now. )ive years. It!s time to move on with your life, isn!t it43

,er e&pression turned whimsical. 3I don!t thin" it is,3 she said softly. 3It should be... but something is telling me to wait a little longer.3 3That sounds li"e a bunch of spiritual mumbo+'umbo,3 Jenny told her. 3It does, doesn!t it43 %nnie said. 3Sometimes I thin" that myself. 2specially when I get really... you "now...3 3,orny43 Jenny suggested. %nnie giggled. 3Aight... horny,3 she said. 3%nd I!m telling you, that!s been happening a lot lately.3 3If you don!t mind my as"ing,3 Jenny said, 3,ave you been laid at all since (en... since he...3 3 ied,3 she said. 3Since (en died. It!s o"ay to say it.3 3Sorry,3 Jenny said, "nowing that her friend had spent a considerable amount of money to actually free$e the body of her dead husband and that she was continuing to pay a large monthly rent so he would remain fro$en in the whac"ed out hope that someday he would be revived. 3 ied. ;ut have you4 ;een laid, that is43 3I haven!t been with a man since (en,3 she said, actually telling a little white lie of omission. True, she had not been with a man in any way, but she had developed a relationship with Janet, (en!s partner, the lesbian woman he had been flying with on the day he was shot. It had started as a comfort friendship in the months after (en!s shooting. Janet had been (en!s best friend, as strange of a concept as that was, and she had ta"en to chec"ing up on his widow from time to time. %nd then one night, about a year after the funeral, it had turned into something else. They had had a few glasses of wine together during a lunch date and had hugged and, before either really

"new what was happening, they had ended up in bed together. Since then, they had made love si& or seven times a year, usually when %nnie!s se&ual frustration reached the point of near+ madness. It was a booty call relationship at its very finest, but it "ept her from going insane while she was... while she was waiting for something. She no longer believed that (en was going to be awa"ened+at least not in her lifetime. ;ut something, some force, some compulsion, was telling her to wait nonetheless, that her patience would be rewarded. 3.e need to get you laid, girlfriend,3 Jenny told her, appalled at the thought of a relatively young, rich widow going for five years without se&. 3.hy don!t you let me fi& you up with one of my friends4 % no+strings+attached "ind of thing. I "now guys who will hose you down until you pass out. .e can double date some night.3 39ot 'ust yet,3 %nnie told her politely. 3;ut than"s for the offer.3 Jenny pic"ed up her papers and her purse and stood up. 3.ell, thin" it over,3 she said. 3The offer is always good.3 She left a moment later, pausing for a few seconds in the main office to ma"e googly+eyes at oug. %nnie went bac" to her ne&t day!s lesson plan and finished up ten minutes later. She pac"ed up her own papers, grabbed her own purse, and made her way out into the staff par"ing lot. She sighed as she fired up the engine on her 5olvo and started heading for the day care center where :ittle (en spent his days while she was wor"ing. (en Jr. loo"ed so much li"e his father it was painful at times. *n this day, as she snapped him into his car seat in the par"ing lot, the resemblance seemed particularly strong. ,e was dressed in a pair of blue overalls with a Sponge ;ob sweater underneath. ,is brown eyes were happy and e&cited and his brown hair, recently cut short as was the current fashion, loo"ed e&actly li"e her dead husband!s. She felt a small shiver running up her spine as she saw him smile at her. The smile was the same one (en

had given when he was e&cited about something. 3.hat!s got you all happy, little boy43 she heard herself as" him. 3 addy!s par"<3 he said enthusiastically. 3=ou said we!d go to addy!s par" today<3 She suppressed a sigh. =es, she had told him she!d ta"e him to addy!s par" on the way home today but she!d been hoping he might have forgotten about it. %pparently not. 3%ny chance we could do that tomorrow instead43 she as"ed him. ,is pouting at this suggestion #uic"ly got the better of her, especially when he yelled, 3;ut you promised<3 3*"ay, o"ay,3 she assured him, planting herself behind the wheel. 3.e!ll go to addy!s par". ;ut 'ust for a little while.3 3=ay<3 he yelled delighted. 3.e!re going to addy!s par"<3 addy!s par", "nown to the rest of San Jose as the (enneth )ra$ier 8emorial Par", was only two miles away from her school, on the border between a middle class neighborhood and a semi+ghetto. It was not much as far as par"s went. -omposed of only three acres, it contained a playground, a small grove of *a" trees, a few cement paths, and a couple of bas"etball courts. She par"ed her 5olvo in the small par"ing lot ad'acent to it and unbuc"led her son from his car seat so he could run free. %s was always the case, the first place he went was the pla#ue that dedicated the par" to her husband. The pla#ue was 'ust ad'acent to the playground, a granite bloc" with her husband!s name and dates of birth and death on it. :ittle (en ran his fingers over the dates and then traced the letters in the inscription, letters he could not yet read but that he!d long since memori$ed. I9 828*A= *) *))I-2A (2992T, )A%JI2A, S%9 J*S2 P*:I-2 2P%AT829T, it said, .,* 1%52 ,IS :I)2 I9 S2A5I-2 *) T,2 -ITIJ29S

*) T,IS -IT=. 3 addy,3 (en Jr. whispered, almost in awe as he stared at the pla#ue. 3They named this par" for addy.3 3That!s right, sweetie,3 she told him. 3This is addy!s par". ,is name will be there forever.3 3)orever,3 (en Jr. said. %nd with that, the spell was seemingly bro"en. ,e turned from the pla#ue and headed for the playground. .ithin a minute he was climbing on the mon"ey bars li"e the mon"ey he was, terrifying his mother by ascending all the way to the top. She buried her motherly concerns for his safety and wal"ed over to one of the benches that brac"eted the play area. *n the other benches a few other mothers were sitting, watching the smattering of "ids who were playing alongside (en Jr. 9one of them paid her any attention as she sat down alone. ;eyond the mon"ey bars a few other "ids were playing in the oa" grove, including one who was nearly fifty feet up in the branches of a tree. In the bas"etball courts some older "ids+teenagers mostly+ were heavily involved in a game of three on three. Their immature curses came drifting over from time to time, occasionally drawing a disapproving loo" from one of the younger "ids! mothers. %nnie twirled her hair in her fingers a few times and watched her son climb and 'ump and slide. She loo"ed at her watch, "nowing that for every minute she stayed in San Jose, the traffic would be that much worse when she headed bac" up the freeway towards her home in Pleasanton. 2&perience told her that if she allowed (en Jr. to play for fifteen minutes he wouldn!t protest too hard when she forced him out of there. That meant she had about nine minutes left. She settled in to wait, her mind not thin"ing of much, 'ust en'oying the pre+ spring warmth the ocean currents had brought the South ;ay on this day.

% man came wal"ing up the cement path from the direction of the far par"ing lot+the one opposite where she had left her 5olvo. ,e loo"ed, at first glance, to be nothing more than a lower class city dweller, the "ind of person who was no stranger to living on the streets or spending the occasional night in 'ail. ,e was tall, with long, obviously dyed blonde hair that was tied bac" in a ponytail. % pair of cheap sunglasses covered his eyes. % battered San Jose State sweater covered his torso and a pair of faded 'eans covered his legs. ,e was someone she should have dismissed from her mind immediately, perhaps with a slight sense of caution and distaste, but instead, she found her eyes instantly riveted to him for some reason. 3.hat the hell43 she whispered to herself, wondering why this man had attracted her attention so much. She felt no sense of danger from him+not that she was the most streetwise woman in the world+but her heart began to race in her chest all the same. %fter a moment she reali$ed that he loo"ed a little bit li"e (en, her dead husband, or at least he loo"ed li"e (en would loo" ten years or so younger and with long, blonde hair. The facial features were what were doing it. The nose and the lips loo"ed almost e&actly the same, as did the manner of wal"ing. It was weird, she thought, trying to turn her eyes away. This man could be (en!s younger brother, the resemblance was that strong. ,e continued to stroll toward her, seemingly in no particular hurry. She had the impression he was loo"ing at her but she couldn!t tell for sure since the dar" glasses hid his eyes. .ith each step that brought him closer to her, the resemblance to (en grew stronger. ;y the time he was twenty feet away, the chills were running freely up and down her spine. If she hadn!t "nown better, if she hadn!t seen her husband!s body in a cryogenic storage tan" in :os %ngeles with her own eyes, she would have sworn this was (en wearing a disguise. ,er breath almost fro$e in her lungs when the man passed directly in front of her and then stopped. ,e turned toward her,

his face e&pressionless, but his hands trembling 'ust the slightest bit. She should have been alarmed by him stopping before her but somehow she wasn!t. 3,ello,3 the man said, with a voice that even sounded li"e (en!s, not 'ust superficially, but e&actly. 3% nice day, isn!t it43 3Bh...3 she stammered, her heart hammering in her chest now, 3Bh... yeah... I mean... uh sure, it is.3 3=ou wouldn!t believe how good it feels to have wind blowing in your face,3 he said. 3*r how the smell of wet grass is almost into&icating at times. *r even the moon.3 ,e pointed upward, where a pale, #uarter moon was thirty degrees above the hori$on. 3Sometimes I thin" that!s the most beautiful thing in the solar system. =ou ever thought of the moon that way43 %gain, his statement should have alarmed her, should have put her hac"les up. This man was spouting some pretty weird shit. ;ut her body felt nothing li"e fear at his words. Instead, she felt wonder. ,is voice sounded so much li"e (en!s. So much. 39o,3 she finally managed to say. 3I!ve never really thought about the moon that way.3 ,e nodded as if he had e&pected her to say that. 3I suppose you haven!t,3 he said. 3It!s one of those things you don!t appreciate unless you don!t have it anymore. (ind of li"e going outside whenever you want. % lu&ury reserved for 2arth dwellers.3 ,e had totally lost her with that one. She could almost hear his words whooshing over her head. She lic"ed her lips a little and too" a breath. 3Is there uh... uh... something I can help you with43 she as"ed him. % slight smile touched the man!s face. 3I noticed you loo"ing at me as I wal"ed up,3 he said. 3I!m uh... uh... sorry,3 she replied. 39o offense. =ou uh... "ind of

loo" li"e someone I used to "now.3 The smile widened. 38aybe I am that someone,3 he said. 3=ou never "now when old friends are going to turn up. =ou loo" li"e someone I used to "now, too.3 She shoo" her head almost violently, feeling the first tinges of nervousness now. 9ot at the man himself, but at the reali$ation that something very strange was going on here. 39o,3 she told him. 3I don!t thin" so. 8y friend is... is... no longer with us.3 3=ou mean dead43 the man as"ed. She nodded. 3=es. ,e died a long time ago.3 3Shot in a helicopter, was he43 he as"ed. %drenaline went pouring into her veins at these words. 31et away from me,3 she said. 31et away or I!ll call the police.3 The man didn!t move. Instead, he too" off his sunglasses, revealing a startlingly familiar set of brown eyes. 3I don!t thin" you really want to do that,3 he said. %nnie!s hands were now sha"ing li"e a paint mi&er, her heart hammering at nearly FE0 beats per minute. She felt a sheen of nervous sweat brea" out on her forehead. 39o,3 she whispered. 3This can!t be. =ou!re dead. =ou can!t be standing in front of me.3 3I!m not a ghost, %nnie,3 (en told her. 3There!s nothing supernatural about this. It!s really me.3 3It can!t be,3 she insisted. 3It can!t<3 3I told you I!d see you again someday, didn!t I4 .ell here I am.3 3*h my 1od,3 she said, her eyes wide in terror, but also with hope. ,ow could this be happening4 ,ow could (en be

standing right her in front of her4 31od had nothing to do with it,3 (en said. 3*ur descendents did... or they will anyway. It is me though. (en )ra$ier, the man you married, the man who gave you that child over there. I!m bac", %nnie. I!m bac" if you!ll ta"e me bac".3 .hat she was being told was impossible, but her eyes could not deny it. This was (en. Somehow, someway, (en was actually standing before her. %nd something inside of her was not the least bit surprised by it. Something inside had been e&pecting this all along. 3(en,3 she whispered. 3This is... I mean... I mean... oh wow.3 ,e chuc"led. 3*h wow is right,3 he said. 3It!s been #uite a 'ourney, %nnie, but I found my way bac" to you.3 3,ow43 she said. 3It!s "ind of a long story,3 he said. 3=ou wouldn!t believe what I!ve done, what I!ve seen, since the last time I tal"ed to you. I!ve been in space, %nnie. I!ve flown on aircraft on 8ars. I!ve gone hydro+diving on Saturn. I!ve gone through an artificial wormhole out beyond Pluto.3 3That!s cra$y... (en,3 she said, the name coming from her mouth much more easily than she would!ve e&pected. 3%s cra$y as me standing before you right now while there!s another version of me in a warehouse in :os %ngeles43 %nother shudder wor"ed its way through her. 3*h Jesus,3 she whispered, her voice crac"ed. 3,e had nothing to do with it either,3 (en said. 3%s I said, it!s #uite the tale I have to tell. .ould you li"e to hear it43 She nodded, now almost incapable of speech.

38ay I sit down with you43 he as"ed. 3=es,3 she said. 3Please. Sit down... (en.3 The smile grew broader. 3-an I have a hug first43 he as"ed. 3It!s been so long since I!ve put my arms around you. I!m not sure I can ta"e another minute without it.3 She didn!t answer verbally, but a second later she flew off the bench and too" him in her arms, s#uee$ing him almost painfully, her mouth "issing his chee", his nose, his lips. %ny lingering doubts as to the authenticity of this encounter disappeared at that moment. 9othing had ever seemed more right.

.ashington, istrict of -olumbiaJune F, /008 r. Stephen :indley emerged from the 8etro station and began wal"ing bris"ly toward the towering .ashington 8onument before him. The mall was crowded this morning, as it was every morning in the summer months, with hundreds, if not thousands of tourists wal"ing to and fro, snapping pictures, clumping together in crowds at the various attractions. :indley wiped sweat from his brow as his feet carried him toward his destination. It was only I7D0 in the morning but already the heat was oppressive, with humidity nearly thic" enough to cut with a "nife. .hat a miserable place for a nation!s capital, he thought bitterly as a fat mos#uito bu$$ed near his ear. ,e could see why they would move it to enver after the upcoming war. enver had miserable winters, that was true, but at least it was reasonably pleasant in the summer months. *h well, he would only be in this shithole of a city for another si& hours. ,e would chec" for Stanhope at the appointed place 'ust on the off chance he had escaped the greenies. It was more than li"ely a fool!s mission, but if Stanhope did show up and he did have e&tra batteries or a

charging system for the P- he!d brought with him, his rise to the seat of power would be ever so much easier. ,e too" no particular security precautions as he strolled to the base of the monument. The thought that someone might be tailing him had never even crossed his mind. Though he had no idea what had become of the greenies who had followed the Aumsfeld bac" to this primitive time+they might have gone bac" through a return wormhole or they might have settled on the planetary surface or, most li"ely, they might have been given some time+release poison such as the .est,em government had tried to push off on him+the thought that they could have found out about this rende$vous through interrogating Stanhope or through monitored communications had never appeared in his rather dim imagination. ,e reached the base of the monument and loo"ed around at the crowd, his eyes searching for the familiar profile of Stanhope. 9o such profile was in evidence. ,e chec"ed his watch+a gold, top of the line Aole&+and then found a bench to sit down on. It was only I700. ,e settled in to wait. ,e stayed until eleven 'ust to be sure. ;y that time, after wal"ing around the base of the monument three times and loo"ing over every face in the crowd, he felt safe in assuming that Stanhope would not show. ,e had probably been shot down in his escape pod shortly after abandoning the Aumsfeld and was now nothing but a scum of ashes floating in the South Pacific somewhere. That idea in and of itself was not a particularly unpleasant one. ,e had never really li"ed Stanhope, nor had he really ever trusted him. ,e had only conspired with him out of necessity. True, the ac#uisition of a new P- or a means to charge his dead one would have been nice, but he was doing 'ust fine without it. The identity he had set himself up with prior to his P- dying was a wealthy one, with more than two million dollars in assets. ,e had used this capital to purchase a house in the one portion of the Bnited States that would be completely untouched by -hinese bombers in the

coming war. )rom there, he would begin to build his empire, focusing mostly on stoc"s he "new were going to rise with the war. =es, by the time the armistice was signed in Tiannamen S#uare he would be in a position to start influencing politicians in the great .est,em tradition. )rom there, he and his yet to be produced descendents would be the most powerful people in the world by the beginning of the Space -oloni$ation %ge. ,e wal"ed slowly bac" to the 8etro station ad'acent to the mall and waited patiently for the ne&t train to arrive. ,e boarded it, pushing in among the throngs of passengers, and found a seat near the front of the last car. The train only too" him three stops down the line+an easy wal"ing distance had he chosen to do so+ before he disembar"ed and wal"ed half a bloc" to the entrance of the .ashington - ,ilton ,otel, where he had stayed in one of the suites the previous night. ,e entered the lobby and went to the elevators, riding up to the top floor. It was time for him to leave this depressing, muggy, miserable city and head bac" to the tropical paradise in which he lived. ,is suite was nearly fifteen hundred s#uare feet of lu&urious living space. It included a hot tub+which he had put to good use the night before with a couple of two thousand dollar a night whores+an oversi$ed bed, a sitting room, and a fully stoc"ed bar. ,e soa"ed in the blessed air conditioning for a few moments and then made himself a scotch on the roc"s. %s he sipped it he pic"ed up the phone and called the chartered 'et company he did business with. ,e told them he wished to leave for home as soon as possible. They promised to have a limousine in front of his hotel in thirty+five minutes and to have him at the airport twenty minutes after that. ,e than"ed the faceless receptionist brus#uely, as a rich man should than" a mere servant, and then drained the rest of his scotch. ,e was 'ust about to get up and start pac"ing his belongings when there was a "noc" on the door. 3.ho is it43 he yelled, careful to in'ect the right amount of annoyance into his tone. ,e wasn!t really annoyed but he was

playing the part of a rich and powerful man and had an image to uphold. 3,otel maintenance department,3 a male voice responded. 3-an I come in for a moment, sir43 ,e sighed and wal"ed over to the door, opening it up. *n the other side was a tall, brown+haired man dressed in a "ha"i uniform shirt and slac"s. % tool belt was strapped around his waist and an identification tag hung from his shirt poc"et. 3Is there a problem43 :indley as"ed sourly. 3Just a little one, sir,3 the man told him. 3There have been some problems with the toilets up on this level and they told me to come chec" all of them out.3 3I haven!t had any problems with the toilet.3 31ood to hear, sir,3 the man said. 3,opefully you won!t develop one either. o you mind if I 'ust ta"e a #uic" loo" though43 :indley shrugged and stepped aside. 3 o what you need to do,3 he told him, dismissing the man from his view. The man than"ed him graciously and headed for the bathroom. :indley watched him for a moment until he started pulling the tan" off the toilet. %t that point he decided he!d seen enough. *ne thing he had not gotten used to in this culture was the primitive plumbing fi&tures they used. They were noisy and smelly and cold to the touch, nothing li"e the modern toilets he!d been accustomed to on modern 2arth. .hile the maintenance man tin"ered and banged on the toilet, he went to the sleeping room and began to pac" his clothing into his suitcase. ;efore he even got halfway done, the maintenance man reappeared. 32verything is perfect in there, sir,3 he said. 3I apologi$e for the

intrusion.3 :indley gave him a shallow loo" and a non+verbal dismissal and a moment later, the man left. :indley finished pac"ing his clothing and then went into the bathroom to get his toiletry articles. ,e pac"ed his shaver, his toothbrush, his toothpaste, his combs and hair gel, his deodorant and after+shave. ,e then called for a bellboy to come get his luggage. Twenty minutes later he was down in the lobby. Ten minutes after that, he was in the bac" of the limo heading for the airport. %n hour after that, he was in a private :ear forty+two thousand feet above 5irginia, heading for a refueling stop in San )rancisco. ;arring any head winds or landing delays, he would be bac" in his own home by nine that night.

The man the world "new as avid ;rown but whom his new wife called (en sat in a .ashington - hotel room, a laptop computer open on the des" before him. %s was his usual habit when alone, he was na"ed, his fit body soa"ing up the atmosphere of the room. ,e sipped from a glass that contained two ounces of Jac" aniels, a few ice cubes, and four ounces of Pepsi+cola. In the ashtray beside him were several cigarette butts and the remains of a 'oint he!d smo"ed earlier in the day while staring at a red dot as it moved across a map of the Bnited States on the laptop. It was now two in the morning and the red dot had finally come to what seemed li"e a halt. The red dot in #uestion was produced by a tiny transmitter (en had planted inside :indley!s deodorant container when he!d entered his hotel room earlier that day. The transmitter, receiver, and supporting software had cost him nearly ten thousand dollars but they were top of the line, satellite+lin"ed, 1PS+based technology, about the best thing available for private

use in this day and age. ,e could now get a position fi& on that particular deodorant container no matter where on the planet it went+a fi& accurate to less than a meter. .hat his software was now telling him was that :indley!s deodorant+and more than li"ely :indley himself+were now stationary at /C :ihue :ane, which was a small street on a cliff overloo"ing the Pacific *cean 'ust outside :ahaina, on the ,awaiian Island of 8aui. ,e had found what was, presumably, :indley!s home. *f course he could have ta"en out :indley in .ashington, either on the mall itself or in his hotel room. ;ut the death of :indley might not have been enough to protect the time stream. :indley was still in possession of a .est,em P- in addition to whatever other futuristic devices or articles he might have been carrying with him when he originally came down. It was vital that those things be collected and destroyed as well to insure that no twenty+first century investigator happened across them and discovered technology that did not yet e&ist. )or that reason he had planted the transmitter and followed its course bac" to ,awaii. 9ow that he had an address, he put the trac"ing software into the bac"ground of the computer and called up his search software. avid ;rown was not nearly as well off as the man he was trac"ing, but he was certainly wealthy enough to afford a subscription to the best commercially available private investigation search engine. Though it was not nearly as intrusive as what the San Jose P , or any other police department had access to, it was more than enough for his purposes here. It too" him less than five minutes to learn that :indley!s address was registered to a man named .alter :incoln, who had an alleged date of birth of January F, FIE0. 38r. :incoln,3 (en said to himself as he saved this information, 3=ou!re not the most potent bud on the pot plant, are you43 It certainly didn!t seem so. .alter :incoln was the name :indley had registered under at the .ashington ,ilton+a fact that a

fifty+dollar bill and a few flirtatious loo"s had weaseled out of the registration cler" that morning. The moron had actually used his real name when he!d registered. %rmed with a name, address, and date of birth, (en soon had a wealth of information about his prey. -alling on ,awaiian 85 files, he learned that 8r. :incoln had a ;8., a 8ercedes, and a ,arley+ avidson )atboy registered to him. -alling on credit reporting files, he found that :incoln did his ban"ing at the )irst ;an" of ,awaii and the 9agamoro Savings and :oan. ,e had an e&cellent credit rating with his only outstanding debt being the F.C million dollar mortgage on his home. %nd, most important, he was unmarried and there was no other person using his address as a mailing location. (en saved all the information and then called up an airline+ tic"eting site. %s he smo"ed another cigarette and too" a hit off the roach, he boo"ed a ?7C0 P8 flight from .ashington to ,onolulu and a transfer flight from ,onolulu to :ahaina.

,e planned the murder as only a former cop could, ta"ing no chances, eliminating every loose end he possibly could. ,e sta"ed out :indley!s house for nearly two wee"s, watching his comings and goings and, most importantly, what he did when he was home. ,e found that :indley lived alone but had a maid come in three times a wee" to clean up after him. :indley had no friends as far as he could tell but he did have hoo"ers come to his house+sometimes alone, sometimes in pairs+about as often as the maid visits. Through a tap on his phone, (en found the only phone calls he made were to arrange for these prostitutes! visits through a popular escort service that did business on the island. It was this aspect of :indley!s life around which (en formulated his plan. %c#uiring the gun was the most dangerous part. (en had guns of his own, of course+%nnie had "ept the various handguns and

hunting weapons he!d owned in his previous life+but he didn!t dare use them for this particular mission. Instead, he stole one in ,onolulu after sta"ing out a gun store and following a new owner home. Two days later, he was able to steal the weapon out of the gun owner!s car when he stopped at a bar after a few hours at the shooting range. It was a nice weapon, a Smith and .esson .D0 caliber. Bsing s"ills he!d learned on the Internet, he fashioned a silencer using an oil filter and some steel wool. *n June /F, he made his move. ,is phone tap told him that :indley had called the escort service and arranged for two of his favorite whores to visit him at nine that night. (en simply called bac" the service and, pretending to be :indley, cancelled the visit. %t nine he pulled up in front of :indley!s house, driving a Toyota -amry he!d stolen two hours earlier from the lot of a bargain tourist hotel in :ahaina. ,e par"ed to the far right side of the driveway, where there was no view from inside the house. ,is reconnaissance had already told him that :indley had no security cameras. ,e pulled a pair of late& gloves onto his hands so he would leave no fingerprints. ,e then stepped out of the car and wal"ed purposefully up the wal"way to the front door, the .D0 caliber in his right hand behind his bac", the silencer tuc"ed safely into a fanny pac" strapped around his waist. Standing off to the side, well out of range of the peephole or any of the windows, he rang the doorbell, surprised at how calm he felt now that the final moment had come. The door swung open and he found himself face to face with :indley. The pleasant, wanting smile on the doctor!s face disappeared in an instance as he saw a man standing on his porch instead of his two whores. ,is e&pression turned to fear as he recogni$ed the face as the maintenance man from .ashington. 3.hat!s this43 he as"ed, trying to sound tough.

(en brought the gun forward and pointed it at him. 3This is a home invasion robbery,3 (en said, his voice even tougher. 3If you want to live, you!ll do e&actly as I say.3 :indley shuddered and trembled for a moment, his eyes flitting from place to place as if loo"ing for help. There was none to be found. 3I don!t have any money in the house,3 he told (en. 32verything is tied up in stoc"s and bonds.3 (en ignored him and stepped forward, pushing the door open and stepping through. :indley too" a few steps bac", putting his hands up. (en "ic"ed the door shut behind him and pushed :indley towards the nearest couch, which appeared to be an F8th -entury anti#ue. 3Sit down,3 he told him. 3:oo",3 :indley said. 3.e can tal" about this, can!t we4 There!s no need for...3 3I said, sit down,3 (en told him menacingly. 3I don!t have time for this shit.3 :indley wal"ed to the couch on wobbly legs and sat down. (en rela&ed a little when he did so. :i"e any cop, he felt better when his sub'ect was off his feet and unable to move #uic"ly. 3I!m going to as" you a simple #uestion, r. :indley, and you!re going to give me a simple answer,3 (en told him. :indley paled even further as he heard his name spo"en. 3.hat did you call me43 he as"ed. 3=ou!re r. Stephen :indley,3 (en said. 3=ou were born in .est,em and you traveled bac" in time aboard the .SS Aumsfeld. I don!t have time for any pathetic denials or a game of twenty #uestions. I!m here for one thing. I will as" you one #uestion and you will answer it for me. If you lie to me, I will "ill you. If you cooperate, you will live. o you understand me, :indley43

,e swallowed nervously, his eyes remaining fi&ed on the weapon in (en!s hand. 3=es,3 he said, his voice barely audible. 31ood,3 (en said, nodding. 3.here is the P- you brought bac" with you43 :indley opened his mouth, obviously about to deny that he had a P-. 39o lies,3 (en warned before anything could come out of it. 3Aemember, my time is short and so is my patience. .here is it43 ,e seemed to ta"e the threat seriously. 3It!s in my safe, upstairs,3 he said. (en breathed a sigh of relief. ,e had been afraid :indley might have stored it in a safe deposit bo& somewhere+something that would have complicated his plan immensely. 3:et!s go get it,3 he told :indley. 3Stand up slowly and wal" in front of me. on!t ma"e any sudden moves.3 The doctor led him upstairs, his fear and adrenaline so great he could barely wal" a straight line. The bedroom was #uite large. It had a bay window that overloo"ed the crashing surf below. ,is bed was a waterbed directly out of the seventies, complete with a leopard s"in bedspread. % huge wal"+in closet was opposite the window. :indley opened it and went inside. *n a shelf above the hanging clothes was a fireproof safe. ,e stopped before it. 3Is there a gun in that safe43 (en as"ed. :indley hesitated for a second and then nodded. 3=es.3 3*pen the safe,3 (en said. 3If you try to pic" up the gun, you!ll see your brains flying out the front of your head before your fingers can even close on it, understand43

3I understand,3 he said. .ith trembling hands he wor"ed the dial, messing up the process three times before he managed to do it correctly. ,e flipped the latch and swung the door open. (en loo"ed over his shoulder and saw the vague shape of a semi+automatic pistol among a clutter of other items in the dim space. 3Ta"e out the P-, very carefully,3 (en told him. ,e reached in and dug around for a few seconds, ma"ing an almost comical effort to "eep his hands clear of the gun. %t last he grasped something and pulled it out. 3:et me see it,3 (en said. ,e turned slowly and opened his palm. Aesting in it was a small, blac" device the si$e of a cellular phone. It had the name brand of a .est,em electronics company on the front. 35ery good,3 (en told him, bac"ing out of the closet. 39ow go sit in that des" chair over there.3 ,e pointed across the room toward a small writing des". 3Set the P- on the bed as you go by.3 :indley dropped it where told and sat where told. ,e loo"ed up at (en. 3 o you have a power supply for it43 he as"ed. 3Is that why you want it43 3Something li"e that,3 (en said. 3I can help you,3 he said e&citedly. 3I "now how to use this thing. I "now which databases to use to program anything you want. I can ma"e us 1ods. :et me be your partner.3 3I don!t need any partners,3 (en told him. 3Is there anything else that you brought bac" from the future4 %ny other P-s, or weapons, or electronics.3

,is lac" of hesitation confirmed for (en he was telling the truth. 39othing,3 he said. 3That asshole Stanhope only gave me the P-. :oo", I really thin" you should consider letting me help you out with that thing. =ou!re a greenie, right43 3.e greenies find that a ran"in! offensive term coming from an 2arthling mouth, r. :indley,3 he said blandly. 3I!m sorry,3 :indley said. 38artian. If you!re a 8artian, you won!t "now how to use a .est,em P-. *ur technology is much more advanced than yours. o you even "now what we can do with something li"e that4 I can change your whole identity around. I can give you a ban" account with ten million dollars in it. I can...3 3=ou can shut your mouth,3 (en told him. 3=our assistance won!t be needed. 9ow turn around in that chair and face forward.3 :indley paled as he heard this. 3,ow come43 3I!m going to handcuff you to the chair before I leave,3 he said. 3The maid comes tomorrow morning, doesn!t she4 She!ll find you and let you go.3 3=ou!re going to leave me here all night43 :indley sniveled. 3=ou don!t have to do that< I won!t call the police. .hat would I tell them, anyway43 3Just do what you!re told, :indley,3 (en bar"ed. 3Turn around and put your hands behind your bac".3 Slowly, reluctantly, :indley did as he was told, turning himself and the chair so they were facing the des". %s soon as he could no longer see what (en was doing, (en opened his fanny pac" and removed the bul"y silencer. Though the nearest neighbor was more than a #uarter mile away, it was best not to ta"e chances. %s had been the case at Aoseville ,ospital, if the cops

were alerted before he cleared the area, they would be able to easily trap him inside a perimeter. The road outside the house was the only way bac" down from the cliff. 3:isten,3 :indley pleaded, 3.on!t you at least consider letting me help you with the P-4 I mean, there!s so much it!s capable of.3 (en slipped the silencer over the barrel of the weapon and tightened it in place. ,e e&tended the gun, pointing it at the bac" of :indley!s head, aiming at the base of the s"ull, where the medulla was located, the section of the brain that controlled breathing and heartbeat. .ithout allowing himself to thin" about what he was doing, he pulled the trigger. The gun made a muted pop, li"e a cor" flying out of a champagne bottle. % small hole appeared in the bac" of :indley!s head. The front of his head e&ploded in a spray of blood, brains, teeth, and s"ull fragments, splattering all over the des" in front of him. ,e slumped over to the side and didn!t move. (en slowly lowered the gun, feeling his heart pounding in his chest, feeling a vague sense of nausea deep in his stomach. ,e had 'ust "illed a man, shot him e&ecution style from behind. ,e had "illed people before+do$ens at least, maybe more+during his stint as a helicopter pilot in the Persian 1ulf .ar. ;ut that had been from afar, while loo"ing at glowing images of trac"ed vehicles from several miles away. ,e had never stood up close to someone and shot him, never seen him go from life to lifelessness in an instant because of his hand. ,e "new he should feel guilty but he didn!t. ,e had done what needed to be done, that was all. ,e had protected the time stream, prevented the usurpation of thousands, maybe millions of lives. ,e unscrewed the silencer and put it bac" in his fanny pac", then safed the pistol and put it in his belt. ,e searched around on the floor until he found the e&pended shell casing and put it in his poc"et. Then he wal"ed over to :indley!s still+open safe and rummaged around in it, seeing what else it held. The pistol

inside was a ;rowning Imm and didn!t even have a round 'ac"ed into the chamber. There were stoc" certificates, a copy of his birth certificate, documentation about his house, and a small bag that contained about an eighth of an ounce of cocaine. It contained nothing else that had come from the future. (en closed the safe and left the closet. ,e too" one last loo" at :indley!s body and pic"ed up the P- from the bed. ,e put in his poc"et and left the house. ,e dumped the gun and the silencer in the ocean three miles from :indley!s home, and abandoned the car on the outs"irts of :ahaina. ,e "ept the P-. ,e "new he should get rid of it as well, but something told him he shouldn!t, that it might come in handy some day. ,e pac"ed it in his luggage and the ne&t day boo"ed a flight on the same air charter company :indley himself had used. It was e&pensive but it would "eep security agents from going through his luggage.

June /C, /008-orpus -hristi, Te&as Their house was only a few steps above modest, encompassing C000 s#uare feet of living space on two acres of land overloo"ing the 1ulf of 8e&ico. The night was warm and muggy but far from unpleasant. (en and %nnie sat in redwood recliner chairs in their bac"yard watching the navigation lights of ships out in the gulf. % baby monitor sat between them, tuned to the fre#uency of the companion transmitter in (en Jr!s second floor bedroom. They could hear the regular pattern of his breathing+a soothing, almost serene sound. 3So what!s the difference between this stuff and the stuff you get from that 8e&ican guy43 %nnie as"ed as she too" the mari'uana pipe and lighter from his hands. ,e e&haled the fragrant hit he had 'ust ta"en and too" a few breaths before he answered. 3This is 8aui .owie,3 he told her.

3The best shit commercially available in the Bnited States. =ou haven!t smo"ed out until you!ve smo"ed out with this gan'a.3 She giggled a little and shoo" her head. 2ven after all these months she still couldn!t believe the strange habits her husband had pic"ed up during his time away from her. 8ari'uana smo"ing was 'ust one thing. There were things they did in the bedroom+and outside of it. % whole new dimension of se&ual e&perimentation had opened up for them since his return, things her prudish upbringing had never imagined before. 3It smells li"e crap,3 she said. 3%nd tastes li"e it, too,3 he said. 3;ut wait until you feel it hit you. It!s a very mellow stoning. %lmost as good as 8artian bud, and that!s saying a buttload.3 She giggled again. ,is language was something else that had changed considerably, especially when he was drin"ing or smo"ing. 3%nd you!re sure this stuff is going to be legal in a few years, right43 3)uc"in! aye,3 he said. 3%bout mid+way through the war they!ll legali$e it to help raise ta& dollars. So smo"e up now while you can still get the thrill of doing something wrong.3 3)uc"in! aye,3 she agreed, mimic"ing his words, and too" a tremendous hit. %fter only three hits they were both #uite annihilated. %s was usually the case when they did this, their libidos soon "ic"ed into overdrive and (en moved over to her chair and began "issing her. Soon their hands were groping under clothing, see"ing out bare flesh, stro"ing erogenous $ones. %nd then the clothing began to come off, cast aside li"e e&cess baggage. They coupled slowly at first but soon heated up to full+blown passion, grunting and sweating. It went on for nearly twenty minutes, with %nnie shuddering her way through three orgasms before (en shot his seedless offering deep into her body, his

reproductive genes having been shut off before he!d even been awa"ened. %fter, they lay against each other, 'ust holding and stro"ing, occasionally sharing a loving "iss. 3I love you, avid ;rown,3 %nnie told him. 3I!m glad you came bac" into my life.3 3I love you too, 8rs. ;rown,3 he replied. 3%nd I!m glad you were still here for me.3 She watched him for a moment in silence, loo"ing at his young face, at the chee"s that never grew whis"ers because of genetic manipulation, at the trim stomach that burned fat before it could collect. ,e had been changed by his time on 8ars, of that there could be no doubt, but in many ways he was still the same person he had once been, the man she had fallen in love with, who had given her a child. She watched his eyes as they stared up at the night s"y. She loo"ed where he was staring and saw the red dot that was the planet 8ars. She "new he was thin"ing of Slurry, the woman he had loved there, the woman he had left to re'oin her. 3I!m sure she!s all right,3 she told him softly. 3=ou did everything you were supposed to do.3 ,e nodded. 3I "illed a man, %nnie,3 he said. 3I put a gun to a man!s head and pulled the trigger to help protect them and everyone li"e them. I committed murder for them.3 3=ou did what you had to do,3 she said. 3I "now,3 he said. 3I didn!t en'oy it. I couldn!t do it for a living. ;ut I don!t regret it. I don!t feel guilty about it. ,e was a bad man, an evil man even. Someone who might have turned out worse than ,itler if I wouldn!t have acted. .hat bothers me is that I!ll never "now if I really did any good for Slurry, for ,uffy,

for Span"y, for all of them. .hat if he managed to change things 'ust enough to "eep their wormhole from opening4 They might be out there right now, all of them dead aboard that ship+ dead of starvation, 'ust drifting on autopilot toward the sun to be burned up.3 ,e sighed. 3That image haunts me sometimes.3 3=ou did what you could,3 she told him. 3They!re probably all right.3 3;ut I!ll never "now, %nnie. I!ll never "now.3 She had no answer for him, so she did the best that she could. She held him. ;efore long, they were ma"ing love again.

*ctober F0, /008-orpus -hristi, Te&as %n early rainstorm battered the windows of his upstairs office, the wind causing the window to sha"e every now and then, the visibility cut to only a mile or so out over the water. (en watched the whitecaps on the gray water of the 1ulf for a while and then turned on his computer, waiting patiently while it powered up. %s on most wee"day afternoons, he was alone in the house. %nnie was at her new 'ob teaching second grade at a nearby elementary school. (en Jr. was at an even more nearby elementary school, sitting in "indergarten class starting the long road of education that would eventually ma"e him a medical doctor. (en would pic" him up in another two hours+his son+the boy who would always thin" of him as a stepfather, who could never "now the truth. They had gotten rid of all the pictures of (en from his previous life to "eep him from noticing the resemblance. They communicated with no one, including %nnie!s sister and all her friends from San Jose, who would recogni$e avid ;rown as (en. In a way %nnie had given up 'ust as much as he had for their life together. %nd she seemed 'ust as happy to have done so.

(en put these thoughts aside and opened his email program+his usual first step after turning on the computer for the day. There were a few emails from new ac#uaintances he and %nnie had made in Te&as and the usual amount of spam, which he began to delete one by one. 9ear the bottom of the list was a message that loo"ed li"e spam at a glance but that made his heart nearly stop when he saw the address of the sender. Slurryfrom8arsS-alistoga.net was the address. Slurry from 8ars4 -alistoga.net4 .as it possible4 .as he hallucinating4 .ith a trembling hand he used the mouse to clic" open the email. ,is eyes widened and began to tear up as he read. %pril FC, /008 ear (en, It!s not very 8artian to mince words, so I won!t do it now. If you!re reading this email, then a wormhole has opened up for us out here in deep space. I!m writing this now, two days before it is scheduled to open. ,uffy brought us into position at the pre+ arranged spot right on schedule. 9ow all we have to do is wait for the time to be right. I will program the ship!s computer to send this to the 2arth Internet with instructions not to deliver it until si& months after we are gone. If the wormhole opens as it is supposed to, I will transmit it 'ust as the acceleration starts to pull us in. If the wormhole does not open, I will delete it and you will never hear from me. ,uffy gave her approval to this plan, agreeing with my rationale that you deserved to "now if we made it. %fter all, it will be you who ma"es that wormhole open. I pray to :aura that you will be reading this on *ctober F0, as much for your own piece of mind as for our lives. :ive your life to the fullest, (en, and always remember that I love you. Ta"e care of %nnie and that child who will one day coloni$e our planet. ,ave wet dreams always,

=our .ife, Slurry P.S. Than" you ,e wiped the tears from his eyes as he pondered her words. 39o s"in off my ass, Slurry,3 he said. 39o s"in off my ass.3