Delta: #4 - Neighbours
Kris Me
Delta Series:
#4 - Neighbours
By: Kris Me
Introduction:
Allan Ubobo has become stranded on a planet in the Delta Pavonis Solar System. He had hoped that the people back on Earth hadn't forgotten him.
After four years he is surprised to learn that they have come, but it wasn't to find him and his crew.
Lee and her people are trying to work out how to blend into this new planet's society. The future had a few surprises in store for them.
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Copyright:
Copyright © 2016 Kris Me - All rights are reserved
This story is the work of Kris Me. Before you copy more than one page or ten percent of the content, you must contact me as per the Copyright Act 1968, Australia.
First Published by Storiesonline World Literature Company: 21/01/2016. Last Updated 16/01/2021
The book cover was designed in Microsoft Paint 3D using art that is my own, copyright-free or covered by creative commons license for commercial use from https://pixabay.com/. The image of the chest is by PIRO4D.
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Declaration:
~~ Adult Themes ~~
This book is part of an erotica science fiction series. It is NOT recommended for people under the legal age to access such stories, depending on the reader's country of origin.
The books may contain what some people consider vulgar language, references to religious icons, violence, coercion, murder and-or rape scenes.
Some scenes may describe intimate heterosexual, bi-sexual, gay and-or group sexual activities. If you are homophobic, you may find some scenes in this series of book distasteful. In most cases, these scenes are integral parts of the story.
Some of the books include imaginary races capable of changing their gender and/or form into other animals. Copulation, while the characters are in their alternate animal forms, may be described.
This book DOES NOT contain descriptions of bestiality or coitus between persons closely related by blood.
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Editing:
If you find any of my assumptions fabricated, I would like to remind you this is a fictional story and I have probably taken liberties with reality, as you know it. The humanoids in this story are not based on anyone I know or have read about.
Australian based dictionaries were used for reference, and Grammarly was used as part of the editing suite. The story was written in Microsoft Word.
If you find grammatical or spelling errors, they are not the fault of my editor or proofreaders who did try to fix my work. However, I do tend to fiddle around after the fact, so all errors are my own.
If my Australian colloquialisms or terms need clarification, or you just wish to correspond, I'm more than happy to answer your emails. You can send them to:
kris.me2@inorbit.com
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The Wiki:
https://keltria.fandom.com/wiki/
The Wiki contains information about the Keltrian people, wizards, the Keltrian magical items, colloquialisms and adapted words that have been created for this universe. Maps, character lists and other information that may relate to this book could be found.
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This is the fourth book:
The series 'Delta' was the first set of books I wrote for the Keltrian Universe that is posted on the Storiesonline website.
The books should be read in sequence, as some references to events or information about a character may not be explained in full if they were mentioned or introduced in a previous part.
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Additional Data on this book:
Kyle and Lee were signed aboard the starship Fortune as crew, with ninety-eight other souls to go and explore the Delta Pavonis system.
It has taken them twenty-seven weeks for the crew to get to Utopia and then establish themselves on the continent of Jahnville. The trip was not without its perils, and three of their crew members didn't make it to their destination.
Kyle and Lee had also found some strange boxes in several ruins. The boxes would change their lives. When the boxes opened for them, Lee and Kyle were claimed by the magical items and became wizards and protectors of the Keltrian People.
During their preliminary explorations, Sean adopted a female faerie called Sparky. She was the sole survivor of her clan after a bush fire. She had given the Earthlings permission to set up home in her valley.
They had survived their first cyclone and increased in number when Sparky's betrothed, Ross, and two families of faeries moved with him to live with her.
The Earthlings set up trade with a neighbouring town with the help of Iain, a local Burgis man. They also had their first three children on the way as Lee and Debora had found they had become pregnant. As a result, they also had their first marriages on the new planet.
Kyle and Lee didn't believe they would be going back to Earth. They had new responsibilities and lives on Utopia. Tony and Debora planned to stay with Kyle, but Lee wasn't sure that Sean could stay, due to his Army commitments.
One man who still wasn't happy was Professor William Essco. He still wanted to go to Antalia to find the energy crystals and find out what had happened to the crew of GJ10.
[Special note: The dates for the chapters will be shown in Earth weeks even though the crew of the Fortune adopted the Utopian calendar in Week 29.]
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Acknowledgements:
Special thanks to J. Konietzko and all of the readers who in the past have pointed out I do make mistakes and have helped me to fix them.
And thanks, Lazeez, for your patience and assistance in helping me with my weird requests and questions.
I hope you enjoy the story.
Kris Me
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List of books in series:
Delta: #1 - To Delta
Delta: #2 - In System
Delta: #3 - Utopia
Delta: #4 - Neighbours
Delta: #5 - Harmony
Delta: #6 - Twin Problems
Delta: #7 - Family
Delta: #8 - One People
Delta: #9 - Trixy
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Chapter 1
~~ July - Week 28 ~~
Captain Allan Ubobo was in his old transporter searching for a comms channel the others might be using.
Rumours had reached him that new people were living on Jahnville on the east coast. They were near where Wizard Jahn had transported his people to this planet. The rumours included a machine that went up into the sky and came back to the ground several hours later. This had to be a transporter.
He assumed that the company had finally sent a ship. He didn't know why they went to another continent before contacting him. This had him confused at first. He then wondered if they thought his crew had perished since no ship or probes remained in orbit.
The rumours also said that about a hundred big people had come. That they were working with the new Faerie Queen, who owned that valley. The new people had claimed all the land to the Little Blossom Desert.
There was talk of the new people having built the Faerie folk wondrous homes in the forest, and they promised to protect them. The most disturbing rumour was that two of the big people were wizards.
The new Lord Wizard was a beautiful red-haired lady called Lee, and her cousin Kyle was the Gold Wizard. Also, both the new Lord and Kyle's wife were pregnant. The faeries had even hinted that the children would also be strong in the powers.
'It has to be Kyle and Lee,' Allan thought, as he rubbed the emerald stud in the top of his right ear and under the fold. 'I didn't know they were related! They don't look alike at all.'
The descriptions he had heard definitely reminded him of the couple who hadn't come on the GJ10 Expedition. He wasn't that surprised to learn that they had arrived on the new ship. They had been keen enough the first time until he frightened Lee off.
He did wonder how they had found Jahn's and Rah's wizard boxes and what they did to open them. 'Blast them,' he thought. He was a believer that the boxes did have power. His Gran had been a believer in magic, and he'd seen things that couldn't be otherwise explained.
He had spent two years trying to open the magical box that he had found near the old city on Antalia. His patience, however, had run out and he had used a plasma cutter on the box. When he got the lid open, he found all the silver objects had melted, and the crystal ball had cracked.
He had slammed the lid shut in frustration, and the bloody box had sealed closed again. It then reformed itself and looked like he had never touched it. Wizard Wii had told him not to try opening the box as the box chose its new owner. Not willing to believe him, he had used brute force and paid the price.
Richie, with the help of Wizard Wii, had translated the books from the book box. They had read like diaries and lists of dos' and don'ts', but none of the spells were readable. Wizard Wii had told him the spells were on the other page, but he had never been able to get them to show for him. Allan never had any luck either.
Prince Aeron de Kay on Davinia had accessed a Wizard's Box two years before. It was the reason Allan had gotten desperate to open the one he had. The Davinians still frightened the Antalians. While he knew that he wanted the powers to ensure his rule, he had used the excuse, that it was to protect his people.
So, with Lee and Kyle claiming two of the boxes that only left one unclaimed. He would need to find the box, which had belonged to Wizard Que. He hadn't worried about it before because it was thought to be in one of the bombed sites. He didn't know if he could open it, but he preferred it was accounted for.
Allan had been visiting the transporter regularly over the last couple of weeks, but the new ship wasn't using any of the comm channels his ship had used. He had searched randomly through the different frequencies trying to find the ones they used on the spaceship.
On this day, he had tried a new set of frequencies and was listening to the comms when he heard a call come through.
"Terry here, who's driving the truck today?"
"Qu here Terry, I am."
"Hey Qu, we will be down in five, mate."
"K', we will be there to meet you."
"Terry out."
Allan listened longer but heard no more. He decided the channel was reserved for the platform trucks that serviced the transporter. This made sense to him. It wasn't a general-purpose channel. He recorded the frequency and set up a log to monitor it. He then tried a new frequency.
This time he heard someone call for Lee, and then he got gobbledygook and then silence. 'Must be interference of some sort,' he thought.
He listened for a while longer. He worked out he was on a more general frequency as people often initiated a call then went to another channel.
For some reason, they didn't use their personal comm system. They were using a multi-channel set-up. It was like the old CB Radios his Gran had told him about when he was a kid. So, he set up a new log for this channel. For a while, he trolled some other frequencies.
He identified several channels as popular alternatives. Then he struck lucky when one group cut in over another and were sent to Channel 6. He quickly dialled through the other close frequencies and found the voices of the people who had moved. He recorded the channel number against that frequency.
Now all he needed was someone to talk to from the company. He came back that night and at about 23:00 U-hours, set up encryption for Channel 6, and then he said on the open channel, "Pop-eye to Six, Pop-eye to Six."
He then switched to Channel 6 and waited. He was rewarded a minute later.
"Is that you, Olive?"
"Hash, two-three at five-six," he said.
"Confirmed, Hash, four-five at five-six," the voice returned.
"Confirmed," he answered delighted he had made contact.
The other voice spoke again, "Who do I have?"
"You first," Allan answered.
Essco was ecstatic. He nearly fell off his chair when he heard the Pop-Eye call sign. He had been racking his brain trying to think of a way to contact Allan for weeks. He must have learned of their arrival at last.
"Professor William Essco," he said.
"Professor, how are you? Long-time no see."
"Agreed, Allan, I must apologise for not contacting you sooner. Things didn't go quite to plan." Essco replied, recognising Allan's voice by the Australian twang.
"So, what went wrong?"
"Tychy, this planet's sister was where we were going first, so I had to intervene. Unfortunately, this didn't work exactly as anticipated. I have been trying to get them to come and visit you for weeks," he concluded.
"Back up, what sister planet?"
"Oh yes, very interesting development. Tychy is a planet that they think was once in a similar orbit to our Mars. However, they think a supernova spike blew up the next outer planet near it."
"The bombarding of the planet they call Tychy caused it to be pushed into a new orbit that is one-eighty degrees opposite to Utopia's. Didn't you see it on your scans?"
"No, all our scans had Utopia in the middle of the picture. So why go there, wouldn't it be dead?"
"Oh no, the opposite is true. It has slightly lower gravity than here, just under Earth's since it was a little smaller. It has seas, plant growth and a breathable atmosphere."
"It even has a small moon, so it has softer weather than here. While hotter at the equator, the temperate zones would be very nice to live in and we detected heaps of mineral deposits."
Allan shook his head in disbelief. If they had gone there, they probably would have completed the mission and gone back to Earth rich people. The company wouldn't have to worry about a population being in place, and he would have been set up for life. Fate can play some weird tricks on a bloke, sometimes.
Allan then thought about what he had. While he missed some things from Earth, like his kids, he had made a good life here for himself in the last three years. Plus, here he was a Queen's Consort and rich, that was hard to beat.
"If you're in a company ship, how come you aren't in charge?" Allan asked Essco.
"Well, the costs to build the ship as quickly as they did were prohibitive. The company had to get help. So, it ended up becoming a UNSEC exploratory mission. I ended up with a ship filled with bloody scientists and an Australian Army SOER team of twelve led by a Captain Sean Watson."
"He and that infuriating bitch, Lee Gillian, her cousin Kyle Vella and Professor Philip Goldsmith are running the show these days. Lee and Kyle stopped the ship from breaking up when that idiot Ben Layard had the bloody engines come on after swapping the jump programs. But I at least got us here," Essco said.
Allan sat and digested all that Essco had said. It sounded like the idiot had royally fucked up. Changing jump programs like that was a recipe for disaster. He was amazed the ship survived.
"Why did they land on Jahnville and not Antalia?" Allan asked.
"Politics," Essco answered with a huff. "The scientists were worried about causing issues between the Northern and Southern continents since they worked out there had been a war between the two some time ago. So, they elected to initially set up on Jahnville since it's practically empty."
"They planned to send delegations to the other continents once they were settled. But they are taking their sweet fucking time about it. Watson rescued this Faerie Queen."
"Apparently, she owns the valley we are in. So, they got her permission to set the domes up here. It was an attempt to cover their arses legally. As far as they understood the politics of this world," Essco concluded.
Allan was amazed. They were correct as far as the local politics went. The humans couldn't get in trouble with illegal occupancy having been invited to settle by the legal owner. He could only conclude that many of the rumours were true.
He had checked out the area on his old maps of Jahnville. It was a wide valley with several smaller valleys as you moved to the west. Allan had also gotten a good mix of strong mineral signatures in the mountains and valleys in that area when they passed over it. He even remembered detecting oil reserves.
The surrounding grasslands could support large herds. The small desert ensured others couldn't try setting up beside them. The valley itself with those resources would support a large-sized city for a very long time. That valley was also an excellent place to build a port for trade with Queland and even Davinia, which wasn't to his advantage.
It was a brilliant choice of locations for them to set up a foothold in. That valley was also one of the areas Allan had thought might have the de Ray Crystals growing in them, due to the volcano caldron.
He had learnt that the crystals needed volcanic emissions to grow. However, he wasn't sure if they were there or not as he never got a definitive reading that he could lock down.
He wondered if Kyle knew that he now owned Rahia Island and all the other islands since by the Laws of Utopia, they belonged to the Gold Wizard. Wizard Wii had told him that Wizard Rah had been happy to claim all the islands.
Allan also realised that the continent of Jahnville belonged to Lee if it was true that she was the new Lord and Platinum Wizard. He chuckled to himself. Legally, her claiming land on Jahnville was a moot point, but he didn't tell Essco any of this.
He did wonder what Essco knew about Wizards.
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Chapter 2
~~ July - Week 28 ~~
"Hey, Essco, I've heard a rumour about wizards being on Jahnville?"
"Yeah, the second most popular topic of conversation around here," Essco growled. "It even overshadowed all the bloody stupid, soppy weddings. Lee and Kyle turned up to their wedding wearing this jewellery, rings, amulets and diadems. Kyle's items were gold, and Lee's looked like silver, but I think it was actually platinum and they glowed according to some, not that I could see it."
"Kyle married Lee?" Allan questioned, confused. While marring cousins was accepted here, it didn't often happen in many countries on Earth unless the couple wasn't closely related by blood.
"No, no, they had two group weddings last Sunday. The first one was just three couples from the ship. The big one was the Faerie Queen Sparky and her Prince; Ross, I think they called him."
"Lee married Captain Sean Watson, and Kyle married Debora Smith and his Kiwi boyfriend, Tony Paora. Apparently, they all had to get married because the three girls are pregnant," explained Essco.
"Lee married the Army Captain?" Allan asked.
'Surely she could have done better than an Army Jerk since Captains weren't that high in rank.' Allan thought. 'As for Kyle, that poofter bastard, I bet he fucks Tony, more than he fucks the woman that he got up the duff.'
Allan never did believe the stories about Kyle's conquests. Perhaps it was a bit of professional rivalry since his own reputation was just as prolific even if it didn't include male conquests.
"Yeah, they pretty much run things, since they adopted the Faerie Queen, and she gave them the land. Philip and the ship's Captain, Nick Clark, don't do a thing until they run it past those two first," Essco said in disgust.
'Hmm,' thought Allan. 'That sort of makes sense. The Faerie Queen would know that Lee now effectively owns Jahnville, but she obviously hasn't shared that bit of information. It was fascinating, but then again, faeries can be close-mouthed and don't generally volunteer information unless it directly affects them.'
"So, where does the Company stand in all of this, Essco?"
"To be honest, I'm not sure Allan. I was supposed to find out more about the crystals and work out a deal to get them back to Earth. But Lee and Sean are making things bloody difficult for me. I kept asking about the visits to the other continents, but they are stalling."
"They kept saying that they need the Earth contingent, power base set up first. But now you have contacted me, we can at least sort out something. I can then send a probe back to Earth. Are you in a position to set up a deal for the crystals?" Essco asked excitedly.
Allan wasn't ready to commit without knowing what Lee and Kyle planned to do. He would hedge his bets for now, and if he didn't like what the company offered, he wouldn't deal with Essco, he decided.
"I have contacts," he fed Essco. "But it may be a bit soon to set things up until we know what Lee and Kyle plan to do and if they are going to be a problem. How about you contact me on this channel at the same time next week and we will see how things have progressed?" Allan suggested.
Essco wasn't entirely happy, but he understood Allan's position. A good businessman has to know his competitor's weaknesses and strengths before he signs on the dotted line. So Essco agreed and signed off.
He needed to think about what he needed to do next to get Allan to commit to the deal he and his bosses wanted.
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Allan sat back to think about all that he had learned.
He thought of the delectable Lee, 'Damn she could have been mine if I hadn't scared her off. She was one sizzling babe.'
He considered the fact that she was now on this planet and a wizard. 'No, she was the bloody Lord Wizard, even worse. If she has the powers that budding wizards are said to have, it's probably why she had been able to read my intentions,' he realised.
The fact she was pregnant was interesting to Allan. As the Lord Wizard, if her child were powerful, this would be an interesting development. Lee being in cahoots with and even related to the Gold Wizard, was another worry.
They would be very powerful people who he was not stupid enough to piss off. The dynamics of Utopia were in for a big shake-up. Wizards were back in charge.
He had heard things were changing on Davinia as well. The new Wizard, Prince Aeron de Kay, was against slavery. Some of the Genteli weren't happy that he wanted the slaves to be freed and that they had to pay the slaves proper wages.
Allan had even heard of conflicts between the slavers and the anti-slavery activists. Apparently, Aeron had it in for the Army, as well, and he wanted it reduced as it cost the county a lot to keep. A potential civil war was in the making.
Allan decided that he would need to keep his cards close to his chest. The crystals were his best bargaining chip as long as the visitors didn't find any themselves. They still had a starship and working probes to help them.
'Fuck!' he thought. 'This wasn't how things were supposed to play out. With no bloody Wizard for his people, they were in a weak position. He had fucked up, damaging the box.'
Allan determined that he would have to go to Queland and find the other box. He would have to get it open, without wrecking its contents this time. The problem was, he couldn't use the transporter because the others had refused to maintain it.
He doubted it would fly with the number of system faults it had lit when he checked its status. Plus, the starship would detect it taking off. He would probably have to use one of the stupid Airships, and it would most likely take a couple of weeks to get to Queland and back.
Allan was not happy, but he was resigned with this cause of action.
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Allan headed back to the palace to find someone to take his frustrations out on.
He would have liked to spend time training Nina. However, the silly cow got pregnant on their first try. Now he couldn't touch her for a bloody year or more until she dropped his kid and recovered.
'Looks like Darla would have to do tonight,' he thought. 'She wasn't a bad lay, but she wasn't as energetic as she had been before she had his daughter.'
Allan considered other options. He could try Glenda, or he might have to sniff around the de Hila woman again. Apparently, her useless husband didn't do the deed, and Cara was back on the market for a good time. He had fucked her before, and he knew that she didn't mind a bit of slap with her tickle, either.
He then thought that he could invite Cara on the Airship trip, without her husband. The Genteli tend to come back into season quicker if stimulated right after a failed season. Away from her husband, the man couldn't do shit if Allan fixed Cara up.
Alan smiled, liking the idea, a job for tomorrow, he decided.
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Back in his office, Allan checked the schedule for the mine and grinned.
Ferris had left a note that he would be out there for the next couple of days due to a cave-in they had to dig out. Allan commed Glenda with the signal they had arranged. She picked up.
"Glenda I was wondering if Ferris was there? He doesn't seem to be picking me up," Allan asked.
"That's probably because he is in the mine. They had a cave-in, and he said he would be gone a couple of days, leaving me all alone," Glenda told Allan.
'Leaving me all alone,' was their signal that she was available. Allan hadn't been to see her for weeks, and she decided that she could do with a decent fuck.
Ferris was lucky to fuck her once a week these days if he bothered to come home. He spent more time at the mine fucking his Pix girlfriend that he kept out there.
Glenda told the nanny to keep the kids upstairs as she was expecting a visitor. The nanny knew about her and Allan, and she hated Ferris, so she kept the knowledge of Allan's visits to herself. Glenda drew a bath and cleaned up for her visitor.
Even though it was very late, Allan turned up. Glenda let him in and poured the wine he preferred. They chatted for a while and Allan shared the news from Jahnville.
Glenda was excited that a ship had finally come. She could go home. She hated this fucking planet, and she had no intentions of staying with Ferris either. He could keep his snotty-nosed kids too, she decided.
Glenda also believed the child she now carried was Allan's. She knew he didn't return her love, but he did have a soft spot for her. She would take what she could get until she got off this rock. He at least fucked her until she was satisfied.
That first day he had fucked her on the ship, she had hated his guts, mostly because she had enjoyed him in her; she hadn't come that hard for a long time. Although he could be a bit cold, he had continued to treat her better than Ferris had both, before and since. Allan was definitely the better fuck.
Glenda had only gone back to Ferris when Allan made it clear to her that he was chasing bigger fish. She had been surprised that Ferris took her back. After a while, she learned that he did it only because of the wealth that the Queen had given her.
Glenda got up to refill Allan's glass. Alan stood as well and came behind her. He started kissing her neck and squeezing her boobs while he rubbed her sensitive nipples.
She was still lactating and knew Allan loved sucking on her boobs. Ferris barely touched her boobs when she was lactating since he didn't like to get her milk on himself.
Allan undid the tie on the robe and slipped it off her shoulders so he could stimulate her naked boobs. He soon had milk leaking all over his hands. He turned her and sat back on the chair, pulling her to him and latched onto a boob. He was soon sucking in her milk and had his other hand busy with her cunnie.
Glenda hugged his head to her boob and rocked on his fingers as he rammed them into her. He did have exquisitely long fingers that could get her worked up very nicely. He swapped boobs and kept working her cunnie, shoving two fingers into her harder on each thrust.
He liked it a little rough and Glenda had found she had gotten used to his needs and responded to them. She was so horny, she was soon groaning and coming on his hand in no time. Allan swapped boobs and sucked hard as she came on his fingers.
Once he was happy that Glenda had had an orgasm, he removed his fingers and stood. He stripped and lay down on the thick fur rug. Glenda was soon lowering herself onto his rigid cock. It didn't take her long to get settled, and she was soon rocking on him.
She leant forward and dropped a tit into his waiting mouth. He happily sucked her milk in as he rolled his hips into her while she moved on him. He felt her milk stop flowing, so he concentrated on fucking her instead.
After a while, Glenda began humping him harder, so Allan grabbed her hips and slammed her onto his cock. He felt his balls tighten and rammed her down as hard as he could. He bit her nipple and groaned as he came into her. Glenda wasn't far behind him.
Allan was happy. Glenda wasn't his beautiful Darla, but she was a decent fuck. He enjoyed being able to suck her milk filled boobs while he filled her full of his sperm. He knew he would do her again before he left in the morning.
Glenda sat up, and her pregnancy was more evident than during his last visit. He thought that she must be seven heading towards eight months. He rubbed her belly, wondering if she carried his son or a daughter. He had missed having his kids around since he joined UNSEC.
It was a shame that he was never going to be able to claim this child.
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Chapter 3
~~ July - Week 28 ~~
Futura got visitors this week.
A tribe of Burgis turned up and asked to see the Faerie Queen about using the plains for grazing of their herd of reptiis. Sparky informed him he had to deal with Lord Lee, as she now owned the plains.
This was news to Lee. She decided she and Sparky needed to have a little talk about precisely what she was supposed to own and what she didn't. She suspected Sparky knew more about wizards than she had let on.
Cais Judoc, the head of his little tribe, took Lee, Sean and Dave to see the herd of reptii. Cais wanted to settle his extended family of eight here. The scrubby plains to the south-west were exceptional for his herds, and he was happy to organise a leasing and trade deal with the new people.
He had been to this valley many years before with his father. They hadn't stayed because the only people to trade with were the faeries, and they didn't eat reptii meat. His new wife also didn't enjoy the nomadic lifestyle. As soon as he heard from Iain that these people were here, he packed up and came before any other people did.
For now, Lee had decided that he could stay until they worked out a deal. Not that she had a clue about what was fair, something else she needed to discuss with her daughter.
When they got out to the herds, the humans were amazed at what they saw. The animal resembled a Lystrosaurus dinosaur, according to Dave. They looked like a cross between a pig and a lizard with a very short beak-like snout with no teeth, except for the tusk-like upper canines on the males.
The variety of reptii that the Burgis people herded grew to about 60cm high by 220cm long with half their length, being tail. Apparently, the haunches and tail were their most succulent parts. Cais had a herd of four males, twenty-eight females and ten juveniles of mixed genders.
Cais enlightened his audience about some of the reptiis' habits. He explained that the reptii were a bit lean after coming across the Little Blossom Desert. But on these plains with that scrubby bush they liked, they would fatten up quickly after laying their eggs.
He told them the reptiis would dig a shallow burrow to lay their (ostrich sized) eggs that took eight U-weeks to hatch. The females of the herd would take turns guarding the nests while the others ate. They loved to wallow, could swim and would eat just about anything.
They laid three to four eggs each in a communal nest, often shared by about four females. The reptiis would produce twice a year in the cooler months either side of this region's high summers. The breeders would produce for about fifteen years, and the best age to cull was nine U-months.
[Their calendar had 6 days to a week, 5 weeks to a month and 12 months to a year.]
The area of land Cais wished to lease had a lovely little lake surrounded by scrubby brush, spiny grass and warm sandy soil that was perfect for the nests. It was situated only a few klicks from the pass that DT had blasted.
Lee told him she would get back to him, regarding exactly how much land he could lease and the costs. She had no problem with adding to their meat stores if people liked the meat. She also liked the man and his family and thought that he was basically honest.
The settlement later found the meat tasted like a smoked chicken. (In some countries on Earth, the chicken has a ham-like flavour due to the sodium nitrite salt used to cure them). Some found it was a little peppery but very succulent meat if it was cooked right and it soon became very popular.
This was especially so for Sean, Lee and Kyle, who still couldn't eat most pork products, because of Miss Piggy.
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Lee's solution to what to charge for the land lease was solved by the Pix, Alis and Haf Martyn.
The couple, with their four offspring Dye, Hatti, Jacko and May, turned up the following day as Iain had them on his sailing boat. The Pix family was looking for employment, and Iain had thought that the new people might benefit from their expertise.
Lee went and had a chat with Sparky, Íde and Muirín about, 'what the hell she was to do with the Martyn and the Judoc clans'. The faeries assured her that the Pix were very trustworthy people and could be very helpful to her.
Íde and Sparky came back to the dome with Lee to meet the Martyns. Íde found out that they were scribes, who also had contract experience. She told Lee to employ them as her Contract Agents as she was probably going to need them.
Now that the local people knew they were here, and that they had started a new town and would trade, they would come and visit. Íde told Lee to give the Martyns a list of what items the humans were willing to trade and show them to the Martyns.
The Martyns would help work out a value as they would know what the locals would pay. Then they could work out trade deals for her. All she would have to do was agree or get them to re-negotiate for her.
So, Lee set the Martyns up in one of the four-bed dorm-rooms in the dome; as Haf was the tallest at 128cm, they were happy to share the big beds.
The Martyns loved what they considered luxurious accommodations.
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Lee, Ulani and Debora set up a little office area outside the Martyns' room.
They got Bones to make a small platform and cut the legs off the front of the desks. So, the desks sat half on and half off the platform. Their taller customers could then sit on the other side, but the Pixs would be comfortable on their side.
They found some office equipment for the Martyns to start with until Lee could set up an accounting system. She would have to get them trained to use it on the e-pads that she would give them and the equipment they were supplying.
Finding space to set the Pix up in was no big issue. There was spare space in the dome because they hadn't set up the animal area inside. The room and open area that Lee had chosen were also close to the dining area. This would make it easy for people to find the Martyns when they needed their help.
Little Bear fitted the table and platform and said he could make the room more comfortable for the family. First, he pulled out the big beds and cut four of them down to 160cm long by 60cm wide and high.
He constructed a 200cm platform down one end and placed the four short beds foot facing foot with heads against the sidewalls and put two beds on the platform and two below.
He added a small cupboard and side table combo. He even gave the kids a safety rail for the top floor and curtains for a little privacy on each room and a straight ladder on each end for access to the top bedrooms.
He built a second platform area on the bathroom end of the room with a rail. He added a ladder and curtains. He added a slightly longer bed that was twice as wide for the parents. He included built-in cupboards for storing their things underneath.
Little Bear installed a small fridge with a microwave and several low cupboards for food and dishes. They could use the top to act as benchtops. Bones contributed the table with little chairs for their dining area.
Bear was still left with a little sitting area in the middle of the room. So, he installed a vid screen and big cushions with a low table for them as well. He even put in a smaller seat on the toilet and steps for it and the sink for them.
The Martyns were ecstatic about the renovations. Normally they all shared the same space, so having a little privacy, especially now the kids were older, was appreciated. The kids, who were all actually in the late teenager age to early twenties group, loved having their own bedrooms as they thought of them.
The family also liked that they could use the main dining room, so didn't have to prepare all of their meals. They found humans' meals more than acceptable and even enjoyable. Alis at André's request also taught him how to prepare some of their favourite dishes.
Gary corrupted the teenagers by showing them how to access the old sci-fi vids that he loved. His excuse was that it would help them learn English faster. Ulani one-upped him, by showing them how to access the BBC Drama series and Dr Who, still the longest-running sci-fi show in history. Gary was okay with this, as he loved Dr Who, too.
Bones added his contribution making six sets of tables and chairs in two sizes for their smaller inhabitants in the dining area.
When asked why he made so many by Essco, he said, "What, are you stupid? There may only be six Pixs and nine Burgis today. But buggared if I know how many there will be tomorrow."
No one could argue his logic.
-------
As to the accounting and contracts, Kyle pointed out to Ulani that they already had programs the Martyns could use.
Kyle told her that he could set up a small separate Server for security in about an hour or two as there was already a copy in the replicator. He just needed to load the basic programs in it and give the Martyns access.
Ulani told Lee she could teach the Martyns how to use the programs and the e-pads as she had used the same programs Kyle had indicated, for her business back on Earth. Ulani was more than happy to show the Martyns around as it would give her a chance to learn about their culture and language.
So, Lee palmed the family off onto Ulani. Kyle gave Alis and Haf a minder so they could negotiate the pick-up and drop off of goods and get hold of people when they needed them. Kyle would give them all e-pads with the programs they needed once he'd replicated them.
Natali Imani came over and interviewed the Martyns for the nightly broadcast. She had commandeered a spare office several weeks before. She had set up a News and Current Affairs channel, which she operated for two hours each night.
Natali had even broadcast the weddings as her first show. Since then, she conducted running reports and interviews of what the scientists and everyone else were up to and the developments of the town of Futura.
Sandra even had a spot as the Weather girl. Everyone loved their nightly news show. Mark Gutten and a couple of the blokes also did a comedy skit and-or played music to pad out the show.
The Rugby Leagues games were also now televised on Sunday afternoon and agonised over. The boys were even talking about cricket games since it was summer. They even had several women who wanted to play too.
Kyle had finally got the settlement's wireless receiver system up and running. He, Sung and Ian had designed a new probe to act as the Wireless Network for the colony. He and Sung had set up an old CB style set-up on the planet until they got the system on the ground matched up to the ship and the new satellite.
This was because of the problems they'd had with the stronger magnetic fields affecting communication to the ship. They didn't need to use the open channels anymore and could call each other personally again.
The crew could still use the open channels if they wished. Amusingly, many of them still did for general stuff like looking for some help and not caring who answered, and instant gossip was still popular.
Futura was taking on a life of its own.
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Chapter 4
~~ July - Week 28 ~~
Lee collared the faeries the next day.
She had decided that it was time for some home truths. Her first question was, "Sparky, just what do Sean and I own?"
Sparky looked at the other faeries and decided she had better fess up, "Well technically, Sean owns the valley because it was mine to give away and I had said he could have it. Wizard Jahn had given this valley to my family back when we first came here."
"The small trees that were here weren't very good and didn't suit us. So even when we moved south to where it was cooler, this place remained under the ownership of my family."
"You, well you own everything else on this continent. When the old wizards split up the planet, they each got a continent. We could never work out why Jahn picked the smallest one, but this continent was his choice as the Lord Wizard."
"Wizard Rah didn't want a continent, so he got all the islands, so everyone living on an island are technically his subjects or rather, they are now Kyle's people."
Lee was stunned, she owned a whole bloody continent! Then she giggled, "Damn, Kyle better learn how to teleport himself if he is to visit all the bloody islands," she grinned at the faeries.
Then Lee took on a serious note, "Wait, explain 'everything'?"
"I don't understand?" Sparky said. "Everything is everything, isn't it? The land, the people, the animals, the plants and the surrounding seas are everything. Is that what you mean?"
Lee looked at her with a frown, "The people? How do I own the people?"
"We are all your subjects. All five races must comply with your wishes. It was part of the original contract to come to this planet. We would obey the wizard, and he would bring us here and keep us safe."
"But the old wizards broke that promise, didn't they?" Lee queried.
"Yes," said Sparky. "Although I don't think it was intentional as far as the conditions when we arrived here. My parents told me that they believed that this world would be of similar temperatures as it is now. They didn't mean for so many to die from the extreme heat after they came here. It was the other broken promise, which was their downfall."
"Surely the contract is now null and void if the wizards broke it?" Lee replied.
Ross joined the discussion, "Yes and no, Lord Lee. Wizards Rah and Jahn were very crafty. The contract is written, so it is held by the people of the five races and the holders of the wizard's boxes. There is a clause that an individual wizard can be held accountable, but not their successor, so the contract stands."
Lee nodded as she knew what they meant, so she moved on. "Money and trade are becoming an issue. What systems do you use and how do you determine what something is worth?" she asked.
"It would be best if you talk to the Pix you now employ and even Iain as they know the trade values and probably have the latest agreements from the Pricing Committee. They could explain this better than we could," they told her.
So, Lee trooped off to find the Pix, with Sparky and Ross in tow.
------
Lee decided that she needed help to sort this issue out.
She called Kyle, Philip, Sean, Gavin, Ulani and Magda to meet her in the Pixs' new office. She also called Iain, who hadn't left yet as well. It turned out Captain Clark was with Philip, so Lee told him to bring the Captain too as it probably affected him as well.
She considered these people were the best to have this council of war waged by. They set up a conference table, and Lee posed her first question to the Martyns.
Alis, Haf and their two oldest children, Dye and Hatti, who would be working with them, were happy to answer the group's questions. They had been busy learning and using the incredible computer system and had been converting all their writings from paper to the machines and sorting out all their trade tables into the database.
Ulani had asked them what sort of information they needed to store. She had decided a database was the best way to do what they wanted. Gwen Mc Donald, Bentley's historical research analyst, helped Ulani set up the Trade Database. They now had it up and running, so that it did what the Martyns wanted.
The Martyns agreed it would make doing their job much more efficient. They were happy campers. Dye, with Gwen's help, had already designed the standard trade agreement forms. They were now set up ready for signing and filling out the details. Dye loved the computer system and took to it as though she had used one forever.
Gwen and Ulani were pleased to help. They could both see how the services provided by the Martyns would become invaluable as the town grew.
The Martyns explained to the group that everything had an assigned value. Those values were used to do the calculations. They would calculate the value in dollars and cents against the number of units for sale or purchase, then work out what they could get in trade if actual money weren't to change hands, only goods or a combination of the two.
Lee asked about how inflation and supply and demand affected prices. The Martyns didn't understand the word 'inflation' and Philip explained. The Martyns shook their heads. They told them that these were the issues which inflamed the war.
Haf explained that about fifty years after the big war, the faeries got the leaders, of the people who were left, and got them to thrash out a value for all known items that could be traded. They fixed the price, no inflation.
If you had only a few items left to sell and they were all that was available, the price was still the price. Some sellers of fresh produce sometimes added a little more, if the quality wasn't there, but that was their choice, not the buyers'.
There were only two major exceptions. One was for unique items, such as one-offs like hand-crafted items and items that were considered antiques. The owner could negotiate the price, and it was up to the buyer to agree. These items could also be put up for auction.
The only other exception was for new items. The seller could ask what they wished to start with, but once the item became a common commodity, then the committee would set the price, and that would be the price.
Suppose a producer or supplier wished the price to be higher, particularly if the costs of production or labour used, meant there was less than five percent profit. In that case, they had to send a petition to the Pricing Committee.
This Committee was made up of representatives from all the nations and major cities. The Committee met twice a year. Only if they all agreed could the price be re-negotiated once set.
If the seller didn't like their decision, then they had the option to stop producing and-or selling the item and go do something else or find a cheaper way to make the product.
If the seller used a broker as many did, then one percent of the price would go to the broker, and this was factored into the original pricing system as the Martyns had told Lee when she employed them.
If the seller wished to make more money per item, then they would need to improve their production procedures. However, they must not cause undue stress on their slaves or workers to do this. For example, a slave or worker couldn't be forced to work more than twelve hours in a day.
Most workers worked four, eight to nine-hour days with a half-day. They must have one full day off for rest at least every sixth day. This worked in with the Utopian six-day week, sixty weeks in a year, or five weeks in a month with twelve months.
Haf informed them that all paid workers were entitled to take twenty-four paid days off each calendar year. If they were sick, they could elect to not be paid or be paid from their leave time.
The humans were intrigued as this was very similar to current working conditions on Earth except for the six-day week. That was something they would have to discuss as a group. But they all liked the simplicity of the structure of a year. It had been suggested before.
None of the humans could disagree with this method of pricing. It saved a lot of wheeling and dealing and kept things fair. They all agreed they liked it, as inflation was a pain, and wage increases and price-fixing to push out competition were all problems back on Earth.
It would have to go to the crew to decide.
------
Sean asked them to explain the monetary system used.
Haf opened a pouch onto the table and lined out the coins. The denominations each had a different shape, so if the value started with a one it was square, if it was two, it was triangular if it was five, it was round.
They explained that there were four types of alloys used to make coins, and the committee had set the mixtures and sizes of the acceptable coins. Any community could make their own denominations as long as they complied with the rules.
If a community wanted to keep their precious metals as coins, that was their business. They were still worth exactly what they were and could still only buy what they could. Not many people made the higher denominations, as they were rarely needed.
Land purchases or large goods exchange were generally conducted with help from the banks. A special banknote could be used to transfer large sums of money.
The alloys' values and sizes commonly used were as below:
The lowest values of coins were made of bronze as copper and tin were the easiest metals to find and process. They had the values: 1, 2, 5 and 10 cents. The bronze coins had diameters or side measurements of 20mm and a thickness of 1mm except for the one cent, which was only 15mm to a side.
The lower middle coins were made of brass and worth: 20 cents 50 cents and one dollar. The brass coins were 24mm to a side and 1.5mm thick.
The upper-middle silver coins (nickel, copper and silver) were worth 2, 5 and 10 dollars. The silver coins were 22.5mm to a side and 1.2mm thick.
The gold coins (gold and copper) were used for the highest value coins and were worth 20 dollars and 50 dollars. The gold coins were 18mm to a side and 1.8mm thick.
The humans were fascinated.
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Sean called Berny Rubble and asked him to join them.
While they waited, they discussed what the Martyns believed were reasonable prices for some of the materials and items they currently made or produced.
The Martyns said there were many items and products that there was no current price for. However, they had provided a list of what they believed the Pricing Committee would consider acceptable for those they had seen so far.
They also explained about new item pricing. If the general communities accept the price, before a new item came to the Pricing Committee's attention, it often stayed at that price.
When Berny Rubble joined them, he was intrigued by the coins. Philip asked him if he could get them analysed and make dies to cast one of each in his own design. They must be the correct denomination size, alloy mixture and weight.
He was to give the coins and dies to Kyle to scan them into the replicator. The coins were only to be produced by the Community Leader upon request of the City Council, in this case, Philip and them.
Berny asked what designs he could use? The group said they would go with whatever he wished as none of them particularly cared what was on them, as long as it wasn't pictures of them.
Lee had worked out an exchange rate of about one-dollar Utopian to fifty dollars on Earth regarding the value of coins compared to what that coin would buy, back on Earth when they left. The Martyns said they would keep that in mind if they ever got to trade with Earth.
They then discussed paying people and found the prices fixed as a set value per hour for free workers at $0.60/h or $24.00 for a standard 40-hour week.
The Martyns explained that slaves often got paid $2.40 a week for living expenses and sundries outside what an owner was expected to provide, such as essential clothing, accommodation and food. They also worked a nine-hour day.
Lee said their community was slave-free and they wouldn't tolerate the enslavement of people. They came here as free or not at all. The other humans all agreed that they wouldn't harbour runaway slaves unless they could prove abuse or maltreatment. They would abide by the rules of another community, otherwise.
As Pix people were traditionally slaves, this made the Martyns very happy.
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Chapter 5
~~ July - Week 28 ~~
So now they had to work out how they were going to set up paying the workers.
In theory, the crew collected wages back home. They were already being paid. However, those not going back were not going to be able to use that money.
The Captain suggested the crew be paid dollar for dollar when they cashed in their chips and went home with him. They could be paid in gold bullion at Earth value when they left on the ship for Earth.
They had a healthy stock of gold in storage thanks to Gavin and DT, and since most of it, the silver and other minerals belonged to the Community of Futura, it could be stored back down here, now the Big Recycler was up and going.
They then discussed what sort of banking system should be used in Futura. Magda suggested they could set up a debit account system. They could use an online banking app for the locals and coins for traders and general use.
Regular traders could also apply for an online account to make trading here easier, rather than carrying a lot of coins around. Everyone agreed this was an excellent suggestion.
Ulani thought she and Gwen could set up the banking database with Kyle's help. They would discuss bank loans and banknotes later, as no one wanted credit cards.
Philip had been doing some calculations on his tablet and suggested the City, at the going rate, could easily pay the humans and any of the locals who took community jobs the $0.60/h.
They would get three meals a day, accommodation and access to regular clothing and toiletries currently in the normal replicators. The City would provide these items for their use for $0.60/h.
Any visitors could rent a room and as long as they paid the $0.60/h, or a dollar a day, and they could use the facilities as well. If multiple people were sharing a room, the rate could drop by twenty cents per person, with kids under sixteen at half price.
The Martyns agreed this was more than fair, even very generous by other standards. As a new community and City-state, they had the right to set up the systems how they wished as long as it was consistent for that State. The other humans, Sparky, Ross and Iain also thought this was a fair system.
Sean suggested all trade deals for minerals and produce currently owned by the City would go into the coffers to support the community and pay the wages. That way, they didn't have to worry about taxes.
People who wished to set up cottage industries could buy their supplies from traders or the community, or they went and gathered them themselves from the surrounding areas. They could not farm or mine without permission or the appropriate lease or licence.
Lee added that the mining and land leases, for farming or developing of other industries, had to be applied for from the council. It had to be agreed to by Sean if it was in the valley as it belonged to him and from her or Sean outside the valley as it was supposedly her land as Lord Wizard. All agreed this too was fair.
They would work out the leasing or purchase of the domes with Earth when the issue came up. Sean said if they kicked up too much of a stink, he would have them pulled down. He would send them back and put his own up in place.
Lee chuckled and suggested they could simply make a new set and erect them on Tychy which Earth might have a right to claim, but as far as she was concerned, Earth had no claim to anything on Utopia. The Captain wholeheartedly agreed as Tychy was where they were supposed to be.
Nick mentioned that he would be happy to take a crew to set it up. He felt it was now safe to leave the bulk of people here. They were not alone or under any threat. The others agreed this was very doable.
They also felt the new settlement was as safe a place as they could hope for.
------
The next step was the town charter.
The Martyns and Ulani, who had been taking notes from the discussion, wrote the town charter, for the group at the meeting, to review. The group all agreed it covered what they discussed.
They had also added the proposal to adopt Utopia time and number of days to a week. One problem they did have was the Utopian year was effectively six months out of sync with their own year. What year and month it was, was something they were going to have thrashed out a bit more?
They posted several copies for everyone to read and gave a copy to Natali to present on the News and to tell everyone, there would be a meeting to discuss it in three days. Everyone who could turn up for the meeting did. Everyone else joined in on the community audio channel.
Once the meeting had started and was opened for discussion, Essco brought up that intellectuals having a degree should be paid extra for their efforts and many from the science community sided with him.
When asked how much, he proposed an extra ten cents at least. The Martyns agreed there was a precedent for his claim. They had heard of similar issues on other continents. The Pix agreed that between five and ten cents would be an acceptable figure that the Pricing Committee would most likely accept.
So, Lee told everyone they would be paid $0.65/h for a degree and $0.70/h for a doctorate or higher. So, everyone would be paid at least $0.65/h.
Essco argued it was only for people with degrees or higher, not just everyone here.
Lee sighed and asked anyone who didn't have a degree, to speak up, and she was met with silence. She then explained patiently to Essco that everyone on the ship had a degree in something, even if the persons had signed onto the ship in lower positions such as kitchen hand or cleaners. Lee then cited some examples like Frank Cart and Jim Hoyle.
Many of the scientists were amazed to find that people they considered just blue-collar workers, and on the ship for their comfort were probably even more qualified in their own fields than they were in theirs.
Next, there was a bit of grumbling, particularly by the scientists about paying rent for what was guaranteed by their Earth contracts.
Sean informed them that they were welcome to go live and eat on the ship. However, they would pay for their meals and or accommodation and any materials they used that belonged to the community when they came to Futura.
But if they did this, they would only be paid for what labour they actually did for the community. If they used a Lab, they would have to pay the lease of $6.00 per week.
Otherwise, everyone was guaranteed the minimum of $20:00 a week after rent as long as they did a minimum of 8-hours work for the community in some capacity. Those working more than 8-hours on Futura would be paid for them at the standard rate on top of the minimum until the Fortune returned to Earth.
Most of the crew were smart enough to stop bitching, and the rest were soon told they were more than fair conditions and to go away and think about it. André had put a value of $0.25 for lunch or breakfast, and $0.50 for dinner. They would be served as buffet-style meals for visitors.
They all had access to the pricing system the Martyns had devised for other materials. The smarter ones soon realised they would be a lot worse off if they chose the second option as they would actually have to work at some other job for at least thirty hours a week just to pay for food, rent of a room and a lab.
Essco asked about taxes. Sean explained that the taxes were covered by the leasing of land, purchasing goods, and hiring the city's workers. They didn't have an income tax, and as all the prices for items were set, so they didn't need any of the other charges either.
A couple of people were thinking of arguing about overtime rates, but since there were no taxes, and every cent they earned was theirs, they didn't bother. In this system, if they wanted to earn more, they were not punished for doing so, by being bumped up to the next tax bracket. They liked this system.
Philip also informed the crews that the people sitting out the front would represent the council for Futura at present. They could organise elections for the positions once the Captain and the crew going back left, but for now, the Captain approved the choices so they would stand.
Philip explained the council positions and responsibilities; Sean and Lee represented the landowners and looked after military, policing and utilities. Philip was the town Mayor. He represented the intellectual community and was effectively the Arbitrator of disputes.
Kyle had manufacturing and commerce, and Ulani had social services and assisted Kyle. Gavin looked after mining and Magda farming. Sparky was the indigenous representative and in charge of matters relating to dealing with the indigenous population. The Captain represented UNSEC.
Most people already considered these people in charge of those areas, so they had no grievances. Those that did were smart enough to keep it to themselves for now. They needed a system in place, and they could argue the nitty-gritty later.
When put to the vote, the community agreed to the charter. Most agreed simply because they had a feeling that commerce was coming, and it would be nice to have money to spend when it did and to be paid for their work in the meantime.
They also accepted the local calendar and working week as theirs as of the following Monday. Saturdays would be dropped from their week.
The standard working week for Futura would be four 9-hour days and one 4-hour day. Or the person worked at least 40 hours before being paid the extra.
For example, if they preferred to work four 10-hour days, they got two days off, Sunday or another specified day depending on their roster was a day off. They had to have at least one full day off from their paid job, after five days of work.
The new calendar was set as 25-hour days, 6 days per week, 5 weeks per month and 12 months per year. The Utopian year was effectively 10 days longer than an Earth year because of the longer days. Each worker would earn 40 hours of time off at the end of every 12 weeks. This time also covered sick leave requirements.
There was a bit of a discussion about using holidays as sick leave, but Lee informed them most jobs on Earth didn't pay sick leave if you leave, so you lost it anyway if you didn't take it. They also only paid four weeks a year holidays.
This way you got paid it but could use it as holiday time or take it in cash at the end of the year if you didn't get sick or wanted to take the holidays. There was general agreement that they all liked this idea.
They would adopt the charter and the new calendar from the following week being Week 29 since leaving Earth.
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Chapter 6
~~ July - Weeks 28 - 29 ~~
Some of the scientists weren't happy when they got their roster for their eight hours of Community work.
However, most laughed as they were fewer hours than what they were already doing, so they just kept doing what they were. In most cases, the work was related to their field of study or trade anyway, so it was easy to sign off the hours.
Kyle, Gwen and Ulani had the banking system set up on the Martyns' servers by the end of Week 28, ready for the new Utopian week to start. Kyle issued everyone with their new account number and banking passwords.
They had to provide a fingerprint and sign some forms when they first signed in. They could access the bank through their minders, peepers or e-pads or go and see a teller if they wanted coin. Kyle had even deposited ten weeks of wages, minus rent into everyone's account and sent them a payslip.
A special room was built beside the Martyns' Office to house the Ozlium safe made for Kyle by Little Bear and June. Kyle had filled it with an appropriate number of coins and put the excess bars of gold, rhodium, platinum, palladium, indium and silver into the safe as well.
As the bankers and the contract negotiators, the Martyn family could issue the coins as required. Only Kyle, Lee, Sean, Philip, Alis and Haf Martyn had access to the safe. Little Bear and Bones even set up a banker's front counter for the Martyns and a small day-safe the staff could access as the tellers.
The Bank and Contracts (B&C) Office was ready for business.
-----
Philip surprised Kyle.
He gave Kyle the chest of metals and coins they had collected from Queland telling him to add it to the Community War Chest. Kyle argued that it was his treasure, and the bank would calculate its worth and deposit it in his account, or he could store it in a Bank Box.
Philip argued that it belonged to the community, but Haf agreed with Kyle that if Philip found it and it wasn't owned, then it was his.
Philip said that in that case, it had to be split between the members of the first drop crew or he wouldn't accept any of it. Kyle agreed this was fair, so that is what they did.
The ten members of the original drop crew were amazed to find and extra two grand in their accounts on top of their ten weeks of wages. By Utopian standards, this made them comfortably well off.
They were even more amazed when Haf emailed them that twenty-four of the coins were classed as collectors' items and he would get them sent to Arden in Antalia to be actioned if they agreed.
They all agreed.
------
The most exciting event that week as far as Lee, Sean and Sparky were concerned was the birth of Miss Piggy's piglets.
Sean was woken by her making grunting and squealing noises in her bed. He crawled out of bed and turned on a light. Lee woke as well, and Miss Piggy now had two excited midwives soon to be four as Sparky and Dave were dutifully summoned.
Miss Piggy delivered a healthy litter of four females and two males. Dave was pleased with her first effort. One of the girls was totally black and very tiny, 'the runt' said Dave.
He also said she would be too small for breeding unless they kept a tiny boar for her from some other litter. Sparky immediately claimed Blacky as hers, and no one argued.
It would be another ten weeks before they were weaned, and Dave suggested that Miss Piggy be moved to the special pens he had. She could move back in with Lee after that.
He said she would be much more comfortable there and he could keep an eye on them better. Lee could still come and get Miss Piggy for a walk each day or even just visit her.
Reluctantly Lee agreed, so, they dutifully moved Miss Piggy and the babies to her new temporary home.
------
Iain, Cais and the faerie families were the Martyns' first customers at the B&C Office when it opened on Monday morning.
Iain had also brought his family to Futura. His wife Irene and their boys, Iran and Ivan and his daughter Indi, had agreed to move with him when he announced that he wanted to base his trade out of the new city. It was an opportunity not to be missed.
Iain happily set up bank accounts for himself and his wife and one each for the boys. He had decided to relocate here and set up the deals with the Martyns even if it cost a small amount of his profits.
Iain made the contract costs back as far as he was concerned with the minimal living expenses. He hoped he could soon negotiate a lease to build a new house. They were currently in a tent on a block of land Lee had set aside for visitors to use.
The boys were not as interested in trading as he was and just wanted good jobs. They were nice strapping lads at seventeen and eighteen respectively with purple-black curly hair like their dad.
Both were considered tall among his people at 161cm. They were well built and fit lads, and Iain knew the girls found them handsome. After all, they took after their dad.
After setting up the accounts and receiving their new minders, because they joined the bank, Iain took the boys to meet Sean. He tentatively asked if Sean had any work for the boys.
Sean was overseeing the building of the first set of units, and they planned to get the top floor finished this week, and then the units fitted out. The bottom three levels were being fitted as he spoke. As soon as he got the top floor finished, the crew could get the wind turbines, and the solar panels for electricity set up and people could move in.
Sean took one look at the lads and asked them what they knew about construction. They both admitted not much, but they were more than willing to do anything he asked of them. So, he shook their hands and gave them to Gary to put to work.
Gary was more than happy to have them. No one wanted to be the gophers, yet they were just as important as the brickie or the plumber. Gary explained the set-up to the boys.
He gave them a quick OH&S (safety) lecture, a pair of safety glasses, boots and a hard hat. He gave Iran to Qu and kept Ivan to work with himself.
That night, two very tired but happy lads joined their family in the canteen and excitedly told them of their amazing day.
Gary came over to Iain and said, "You're a bloody, numpty." Iain was both affronted and worried about what he had done wrong.
Gary continued, "Why the bloody hell, didn't you tell me you had these boys? I could have put them to work weeks ago. Have you got any more?" Gary grinned at the stunned man.
Everyone laughed, and Iain said he had some friends and relatives that might be interested. Gary told him that if they worked as hard as his boys did, he would take half a dozen. Iain with a big grin said he would see what he could do.
The family were then stunned when Gary said that since the boys now worked for Futura City, they were entitled to an apartment. He then asked Irene if she was looking to work as well?
With Iain's comings and goings and now that the boys were employed and didn't really need her, she was at a loose end without the farm. So, Irene told Gary that she was happy to work at any job.
When asked what her preferences were, she said she liked working with animals, and she and Indi were deft milkers if that helped. Indi was also sixteen, so she was eligible to work as she had finished their version of school.
Gary commed Dave, "Hey Dave, do you need another couple of workers?"
"Only if they know the difference between the arse end and the front end of an animal. Someone who could milk goats would be great." Poor Dave was run off his feet with the workload he had.
Gary looked at the big grins on Irene and Indi's faces and left the comm open. Irene told Dave she and Indi could milk and make cheese.
Over the comm, Dave yelled, "You're both hired. You start at 05:00 hours tomorrow."
So, Gary took the family to the B&C Office and got them all signed up as Futura workers and into the system. They had to open an account for Indi too since she was to be paid.
Gary told them what they were entitled to and showed them how to get clothes and stuff out of the replicator. In particular, the clothes he wanted the boys to wear in the morning. He had got them the boots out of the system earlier.
Gary got them all to stand in front of the scanner so the machine could work out their sizes and dialled the boys up some work clothes. He showed Irene and Indi how to access the ladies' section so they could pick some clothes for work in the morning.
He also showed them what was free as part of their rent and what they could buy. The family was a little overwhelmed, but they decided to stay in the tent until the new units were finished as it would only be a week or so.
Iain was very pleased with these developments. Irene had been very reluctant to move, as she had liked their little farm, even though it was a lot of hard work for little reward. He had a feeling she was going to love her new job, and the free time she would have.
The fact that the boys were now employed in good jobs was a lot of worry off his mind and his wife's. He also didn't think he would have much trouble collecting more workers for Gary either.
There weren't a lot of opportunities in his old village.
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Chapter 7
~~ July - E-Week 29 ~~
The Faeries visited the Martyns next.
They wanted to negotiate a reasonable exchange rate for their lingerie range, to go onto the price list. They also set up accounts for their businesses. Lee had made sure they all had e-pads in their homes, so conducting business would be easy.
Ulani even set them up a website to sell their wares. She taught Ciar how to look after it, as she loved the new human technology. The faeries even put their honey and other products on the site. It worked a treat, as the humans didn't have to find them to order anything.
Also, they didn't have to set up stalls to sell their wares or even carry around heavy pouches of coins. They loved the direct debit system, and they only had to organise deliveries when the products were ready. This reduced their workload for selling their produce.
June had even designed them a little lifter-cart. It was 60cm to a side and 40cm deep. It could be plugged into an outlet to recharge. The faeries could just pull it along, and it floated behind them. They asked June to put the carts on the list of things to buy so they could pay for more of them later.
The carts became very popular with the humans a well. June had them made in a couple of sizes. They were brilliant for the farms and heaps of other uses people could think of, especially the scientists. The smaller ones became very popular as shopping carts by everyone.
So, June worked out a pricing structure with the council, so she got a percentage as the inventor and set up a webpage for orders as well. The committee even worked out a distinctive colour and an emblem, which identified the carts that belonged to the City.
They then ordered a heap for the mines and farms.
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Sal White was their local butcher.
With the Martyns' help, he and Cais Judoc set up a trade deal for reptii meats and skins on behalf of the City. When Cais had animals reading for culling, he contacted Sal, who contacted André who never said no.
Now the huge replicator was up and running, they had scanned in the large walk-in portable fridge and freezer. They had installed two of each into Sal's butcher shop.
André had found the meals made with the reptii meat were very popular. It was suitable for pickling, roasting, frying and mincing for sausages, and it tasted great.
It also could be preserved for a long time, so André was stocking the ship as well. The council also agreed that Sal would be paid a percentage for the skins he tanned and sold, as they were not a standard product.
Lonnie Omega, who had been one of the cleaners on the ship, also specialised in leatherworking. She had found the reptii skins made excellent leather products. Now that people wanted pouches and handbags to carry coins in, she had a ready market.
Lonnie had also found that many guys wanted real leather belts for their jeans as well. They didn't like the plastic ones that came out of the replicator. So, Lonnie checked with the Martyns what sort of prices she should get for handmade leather products.
Lonnie found many of the items she wanted to make were more than affordable for her efforts, so she started buying the skins from Sal. He also tanned pig and goat skins for her.
Ulani also helped Lonnie set up a web page, and Lonnie even negotiated a lease of a corner office of the East Dome to display her wares and give her a place to work.
She effectively opened the first commercial shop in Futura.
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Cais and Lee also came to an agreement on leasing the land he needed.
He was more than happy with the deal. The Martyns told Lee the prices for land leases were more flexible as it depended on the location, the quantity, the intended use and the quality of the land.