Delta: #5 - Harmony
Kris Me
Delta Series:
#5 - Harmony
By: Kris Me
Introduction:
Lee and Sean have decided that they would put a Dome settlement on Utopia's sister planet Tychy for the people of Earth. They don't want the Earthlings muscling in on Utopia. However, things don't quite work out as they plan.
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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: 24/01/2016. Last Updated: 30/01/2021
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/.
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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 fifth book:
The series 'Delta' was the first set of books I wrote for the Keltrian Universe 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 Star System.
In the thirty-four weeks since they left Earth, a lot has happened to them. The trip to Delta Pavonis had not been smooth sailing, and they lost three crew members along the way.
After they had arrived in system, a member of the crew, Professor Essco had intervened and ensured they went to the planet of his choice. He was under secret orders to find a special crystal that the crew of Explorer GJ10 had found on the planet.
Captain Allan Ubobo had been sent to this system four years before, but his ship had malfunctioned, and his crew had to settle on the planet. He had been expecting the people of Earth to turn up eventually, but he didn't want to go home as he had new life on Utopia.
Kyle and Lee have found love, and they have married their partners on the planet called Utopia and in their new settlement called Futura. Lee and Kyle's wife, Debora, are both pregnant.
Kyle and Lee can't go back to Earth. They had been claimed by two of the wizard's boxes they found and are now responsible for protecting the people of Utopia. Many of the other crew members had also found love when the locals started to move to their new town.
Captain Clark was being to suspect he wouldn't be taking all of his crew back to Earth.
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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
~~ August - Week 35 ~~
Sean and Lee were having their first real argument, and it was a doozy.
Sean was adamant that Lee was not going to Tychy. Lee was equally adamant that she would be on that ship doing her job, just as he would be. The fact she was pregnant was irrelevant as far as Lee was concerned. They only planned to be gone for twelve weeks.
Sparky was also having an argument with Ross. She was adamant she was going with Sean and Lee. In Ross's instance, he probably had more of a case because Sparky was due in four to five weeks.
This meant Sparky would have the baby before they got back. Ciar was the only female faerie that wasn't pregnant. Sparky told Ross that if Ciar and Torcán came with them, then she would be fine.
She also told Ross that she needed to be with Lee, and if Lee went, then she would be going. When Ross told Sean, he tried to use this argument that Lee was needed on Utopia and it could affect the birth of his grandchild and his child.
The arguments were settled in the dining room when Lee did the creepy voice thing when Sparky asked her, "Lee, do you need to go on this trip, and will I be safer going with you?"
Lee's face had gone blank, and she had replied, "Yes."
Sean then asked if they would all come back safely if she didn't go?
Lee had replied, "No."
When Sean asked her to qualify, her face cleared, and she said in her normal voice that she didn't know why she had to go, just that she did. Ross had learnt, as well as Sean had, that if Lee said something like this, it was better to go with her wishes.
Kyle, Tony and Debora wouldn't be coming on this trip. Debora had no intention of getting on the starship, and Tony was adamant he was staying with Debora. While Kyle wanted to go, Lee had convinced him that Debora also needed him.
As she had to go, then he would have to stay to look after their people, human and otherwise. Someone had to oversee all the projects that they currently had in progress.
They would have a ship's crew of forty-one. Engineering was taking just one team, and even helm was cutting back to half the crew. So was Hospitality, and only twelve of the scientists were coming on the trip. The aim was to set up the domes for Earth and have a quick look around.
Sean was leaving his people, Ellen, Abe, James and Joanna, to look after the construction crews and provide law enforcement. Abe was also doubling as the Chief of Police in Sean's absence.
They had hired six of the people they had gained from Prince Carl de Bou's little army to help with policing issues and even set up a Police Station. Abe had been put in charge of training them. Philip, as the Mayor, and his wife, Ulani, would also be staying to run things with Kyle and Abe.
Sparky planned to leave Íde in charge. Íde was the elected Mayor of her village, and Sparky knew she could trust her to keep things running smoothly. Not that they had many problems. Hers was a very peaceful little village.
It even had a new section of six homes that were linked to the community platform via a second platform. Half of them were also occupied. She would miss her lovely home.
Like Lee, she didn't know why she had to go, but something inside her kept insisting that she did.
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An interesting development occurred during the week when Ivan and Iran said they wanted to come.
Then their girlfriends, Wendy and Sasha, and Sasha's Brother, Bray, also volunteered for the trip. The Burgis teens said they would be happy to do whatever jobs the Captain and Sean wanted them to do on board the ship.
Ivan and Iran argued that with Sean leaving four of his team behind, they could help construct the domes. Bray also pointed out he would be able to help Robby with the animals and cleaning. The girls said they could help in hydroponics and the kitchens just as they did now.
Gary and DT backed the boys' request. Robby was more than happy to have Bray along as he had been up to help on the ship many times, and he was a good worker. Tina and Larry also said they would have no problems with the girls coming to help, as they too were good workers.
The next lot of volunteers were the Pix, Dye Martyn, the Genteli, Zan de Nar and the Prol family of six consisting of Bruit Bolo, his wife Francis and their kids, Franke, Grieves, Rina and Ivey.
Dye said she would be coming as the B&C Office representative, and she could make sure the equipment left behind complied with the manifest the Captain had supplied for what effectively belonged to UNSEC.
Zan had joined the construction crew a few weeks before. Gary said he had no problem bringing him. The guy worked hard, and while he was still learning how they did things, he took instructions well and got on well with the rest of the crew.
The Bolos said they would do whatever was required. Francis could cook, and Bruit and the boys would do cleaning and general labouring for the engineering crews. The girls would also clean and help wherever needed. They said they were happy to assist in the same capacities at the other end.
Sean and the Captain had been surprised when Essco said he was coming. Then Essco informed them he was the representative for GB & JK Corp. Since they were planning to set up Tychy as belonging to UNSEC, he had permission to determine where the domes were set up and to claim certain mining rights. Essco supplied a summary of his rights, excluding the crystals.
This was the first time that he had admitted his involvement with the company behind this expedition. At first, Sean wondered why Essco hadn't kicked up more of a fuss when they settled on the continent called Jahnville on Utopia. Then he remembered they had used political reasons.
Essco had obviously agreed that the situation on this planet was more delicate, as it was inhabited. Tychy, however, was a different kettle of fish. They had found no indication on the scans that there was habitation by higher lifeforms as far as any buildings, light pollution, or infrastructure like roads went.
Rai Jindal, the other atmospheric physicist, had been studying Tychy as her primary project since Sandra was looking after Utopia. Helen Christian, a Geophysicist, had been working on the project with her. They were coming on this trip.
They had found one area that interested them. They said strange readings were coming from this area, but they had no idea what they were. The signal was coming from one of the larger islands in the north.
It was located in the lower temperate to tropical regions on the east coast of the island. The island was about Madagascar's size, and a lot of smaller islands were situated near it. The multitude of mineral scans in the general area and the surrounding islands were promising.
A wide, river valley close to where the signal came from was hemmed in by a long, wide mountain range on the west, running mostly north-south and the coastal ridge. The undulating basin was about 10km across and about 100km long before going to the sea.
The team planned to check this area out first. Sean made sure Essco had this information. He, too, agreed this looked like an excellent place to set up. Sean was amused that the mineral scans had him more interested than the actual location.
So, the crew ended up as fifty-four, plus four faeries. The crew was told since the cleaning crews were reduced, they would have to clean their own rooms. The science team was also told they might be asked to help with other jobs as required. Most agreed readily and only a few grudgingly.
The starship had all the equipment they intended to leave on Tychy loaded by the end of the week. Since they had the second large replicator near Gavin's Village up and running, they used it primarily to reconstruct the pieces for the new domes and the equipment needed.
Robbo and Dave had reconfigured the animal enclosures on the starship to include the camlas and reptii. They had learnt that the adult reptii didn't like the starship, so they only brought one older female and thirty hatchings from several clutches.
Their friends in Copperton and Vander had helped with the supply of hatchlings, and they even had twenty eggs in the incubator. The old reptii seemed happy enough watching over the babies.
They planned to leave them on Tychy if the conditions were favourable. André had more than enough camla, pig, and reptii meat stored in the freezers, dried as jerky, pickled or tinned to last the crew for six months. They planned to leave half of it on Tychy.
Sean had been replacing the bulkier GE-Cells on the starship with 'Sean's Crystal Cells' or SC-cells as they were being called, that he had designed. The starship now had enough stored energy that they weren't going to have energy issues.
The starship's solar sails had also kept them well charged when they needed topping up. They hadn't run the ship's generators for weeks, except to make sure they did still worked.
Removing all of the GE Cells had even reduced the starship's weight since the SC-cells were only a tenth of the weight and took up far less space. They could even distribute the cells around the starship to even out voltage and loading issues and provide a more stable electrical grid. The cells also required little to no maintenance.
This freed up several utility rooms, which could now be used for storage. They had turned two of these rooms into huge freezers and another room into dry-goods and canned storage.
They had enough food on the ship to feed a full crew of a hundred for six months without collecting from hydroponics or culling the animals. As most of the animals they kept on board were for breeding, this was all good.
Hydroponics had reinstated the entire dome, and four sections were filled with fast-growing trees, saplings, shrubs, grasses, and grains to be planted out. Most of the trees and shrubs were of the fruit, berries or nut-bearing varieties. Rice and Lucerne still had their own sections.
Lee had reprogrammed the environmental system to match the region they were going to, and the starship's gravity had been set back to 1g after they left Utopia.
They planned to leave the domes they were going to place and the surrounding area ready for human habitation.
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They had redesigned the domes.
The first thing they changed was to decrease the thickness. Since it was going onto a planet with a protective atmosphere, Earth protocols were that only half the width was required.
They planned to set up one, big-arse, triple-level primary dome with six large satellite domes. Each one was to be set up for different purposes. This would mean that the domes would only take up the same amount of space and weight on the ship that the original design required.
They had replaced the replicator in Engineering with a larger unit. So, a lot of the support equipment could be loaded as base elements and produced as required when they got there, thus, taking up even less space on the ship.
The new habitat should be able to house two hundred and fifty people comfortably with a full hydroponics section in one of the satellite domes, and one other was dedicated for the animals.
Sean had determined it would probably take about a week to get the area prepped for construction. Two weeks were required for the central dome to be built since it was so much bigger. Another two weeks were needed for the satellite domes.
Gary and DT had the domes packed so they could each be erected in two days with their current crew. The extra Burgis and Prol workers would only help speed this up. Sean had estimated two weeks to get the systems up and running.
Most of the labs were to be left as empty offices. The equipment designs were in the replicator and could be built as required when new people were sent to Tychy to inhabit the dome.
They had allowed for a week of observation before landing and an extra two weeks barring any problems and for propagation. Two weeks were required for travel to and from the planet to make up the twelve-week trip.
When the crew list was posted, Sean's arguments were harder to maintain because so many people came up to Lee and said they knew everything would be fine since she was going. Kyle was also mollified when they told him that they were happy he was staying with them.
All was good.
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The night before they left, Don assured Lee and Sean that the ponies would be exercised and looked after while they were gone.
Everyone laughed when Don asked Lee if her mare could be mated to Kyle's stallion as she was coming into heat. When he assured her, the mare was only a second cousin to the stallion, they laughed even harder. Lee had smiled at Kyle and concurred.
Kyle took Don for a drink and explained his and Lee's history, and Don also had to laugh at the coincidence.
Tony later told Lee that the thought of his stallion doing her mare had tickled Kyle's fancy, and he had even gone to watch. He and Debora had a hard time satisfying him that night. He was as randy as Tony had ever seen or felt him.
Lee knew that as much as Kyle loved the other two, a part of his heart would always be hers. She wasn't sure if she should be sad or glad; it was simply a fact of life. She hadn't told the others, but she knew she and Kyle had been changed.
They would outlive their current partners probably by several lifetimes if what she had read were true. One day, she and Kyle could well end up together. Nevertheless, Lee hoped that time would still be a very long time coming. She did not intend to give up her Sean until she absolutely had to.
She hadn't discussed this with Kyle, but she had a feeling he knew. He was happy to wait and see what happened, as he also was happy with his current circumstances. He really did love Debora and Tony.
Although Lee was sure that if she put the hard word on Kyle, he would have her naked and under him in a flash anytime in between. She had enjoyed their time together on the beach.
While Kyle wasn't Sean, he still turned her on with little effort, as he always had, even if she had never let him know it or had not done anything about it. She had always felt it wasn't the right time. She was still not sure if she was the right person for him either; time would tell.
She had a feeling it was Kyle's wishes amplified by Tony's, which had compelled her and Sean to act the way they did that day on the beach. She had asked Sean if he was okay with what had happened when they got back.
He had kissed her stupid and simply told her what happened on bivouac stayed on bivouac. He was cool with it. It never hurt a bloke to step out of his comfort zone now and then. After all, it's not every day that he was told what a good cocksucker he was, though he did prefer sucking on a particular cunnie.
He had then proceeded to demonstrate his preference, so Lee had left the topic alone.
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Chapter 2
~~ September - Week 36 & Tychy Week 1 ~~
Things were a bit different on this trip.
The crews had elected a floating work schedule. As long as the work was done, they did it as required. In engineering, they all helped each other. Lee and Bing taught everyone how to perform necessary engine checks.
Lee, Bing or Terry would still do the main checks and repairs. The others could help by taking a short night shift every few nights to do the simple walk around checks.
Hydroponics elected for a similar loose roster as they were mostly only preserving what was growing and didn't really need to do a nightshift. Kitchens would do the three basic meals and otherwise keep the self-help fridge and freezer stocked. Everyone was happy with this arrangement.
Robby, Bray, Sasha and Iran also set up a roster to look after the animals over the night periods. Sasha and Iran often did the first half of the night, and Bray and Robby shared the other.
Rai and Ian also had pilot and-or navigation credentials. They were more than happy to pitch in as required and did short stints in the helm with Penny, Terry, Sung, Nick and Sean. It only took the crews a couple of days to get into their new routines.
They headed out of Utopia's orbit to get the ship up to speed. They didn't plan to do warp-jumps on this trip. When they got a quarter of the way around the planets' orbit, they would drop off a new probe. They would slow again near the mid-way point and drop another probe.
Then at the third-quarter location, to drop the last probe before reverse thrusting to get into orbit around Tychy. The direction they were going in was to the opposite side of Delta to where the current mid-way probe was located.
They wanted to have probes on both sides for faster communications. The probes would also act as warning devices as they would also monitor the space the two planets orbit in for asteroids and other spaceships.
They would drop new probes on the return trip on the other half of the orbit.
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Gossip aboard the ship that week was centred on Tammy and Bray.
Everyone watched with interest as the young man tried to chat-up Tammy. No one could work out his fascination with Tammy. Most of them had gotten into the habit of avoiding her. However, Bray made his interest and intent known the first night aboard.
After dinner, he invited Tammy for a walk on the observation deck. She disdainfully refused. Undaunted, Bray told her it was a shame. A lovely lady such as herself should be bathed in starlight. He informed her he would be going up for a look if she changed her mind. Tammy didn't go.
The next morning, she found a small potted strawberry plant on her doorstep. The note attached said, 'They remind me of your sweet lips, your Bray'. Tammy wasn't sure what to do with the plant or about the note.
It had been a long time since someone had pursued her. Even she could recognise it as a gesture that he was interested in her. She wondered if he had a bet going to see if he could get into her knickers. It wasn't the first time this had happened to her.
She confronted him at dinnertime. With anger, she asked, "So what's the bet?"
Bray was confused. "What is a bet? I am not sure of this word."
Heatedly she said, "A bet is a wager or gamble. What is the prize you receive if you can get me into bed?"
Bray looked at the others. Ivan said to him in their language, "The lady believes you are trying to seduce her as a wager, and she does not believe your intentions are honourable."
Bray stood and bowed at Tammy, "There is no bet, as you say. I would simply like to get to know you better. I find you fascinating and very beautiful."
Essco overheard the conversation. Snidely, he said, "I wouldn't waste your time, boy. She is not worth it, and she's a lousy fuck."
Tammy was appalled at this statement by Essco. As were many others as the diner was reasonably full. Sean went to intervene, but Lee stopped him and nodded at Bray.
Bray stood at his full height and looked coldly at Essco, "You, Sir, are a poor excuse for a man. Offending a lady in public in such a manner only belittles yourself."
He went on, "You are lucky we are not on Utopia, or I would call you out. I also believe it is not the lady's fault but your own if you were not able to please her to your mutual satisfaction."
Bray bowed at Tammy again, "My Lady, I think I should escort you to your room so you may recover from that man's appalling behaviour." He gently placed Tammy's arm in his and escorted her out of the dining room.
Everyone gave Essco a disgusted look, and they refused to talk to him. Even Hue was appalled, and for once, he let his disgust show on his face.
Unfortunately, for Essco, he had thought everyone would find his comment funny. He wasn't happy it had backfired on him. 'Fuck the slut and fuck them,' he thought.
The animosity directed at him had him returning to his lab after he finished his meal.
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Bray escorted Tammy to her room.
As they walked, Bray asked her if she was all right, and did she wish him to stay for a while until she gained her composure?
Tammy didn't answer, and once she had entered her room, she sat on her bed. She had one of the smaller double-bed rooms on Level 3 for this trip. She had requested a room as far from the inner hulls as she could get.
Bray followed her in and pulled over the chair. He sat on it beside her bed and took her hand in his. He just sat quietly beside her while she wept. He offered her his hankie and waited until she was ready to talk.
Tammy sniffled and blew her nose. She looked at him, and she said bitterly, "Why are you still here? Didn't you hear him? I'm not worth your trouble."
Bray laid her hand out over his and gently traced over the fingers with his other hand. "You have beautiful hands, such long supple fingers. Do you play a musical instrument?"
Surprised by both his actions and words, Tammy blurted out, "I used to play the piano. My sisters liked to hear me play."
"What is a piano?" Bray asked as he continued to trace his thicker fingers over her hand. Distracted by the feel of his roughened fingers, delicately sliding over hers, Tammy explained as best she could.
"Do you have some of this music which I might hear?" Bray asked politely.
Tammy retrieved her tingling hand. She got up to activate a recording of a concert she had played. When she sat back down, Bray immediately retrieved her hand. They sat quietly and listened to the music.
When the piece finished, Bray said, "I enjoyed that piece very much, thank you. The player is very gifted; do you know the artist?"
Tammy blushed and told him it was herself. Bray looked at her with amazement. "You were playing! You have a fine musical talent. I could listen to you play all day," he told her sincerely.
Tammy realised that it had been many years since she played. She had forgotten how soothing she found playing to be. She could forget about what her father did to her most nights when she did. Tammy took a longer look at the young man beside her. He was several years younger, she was sure. He was several inches shorter too.
Even so, he did have a robust physique. He was all muscle with broad shoulders, and she had noticed the little arse and solid thighs. He had dark curly bluey-black hair that was cut short and deep golden-brown eyes, which seemed to see into her soul.
Tammy shivered, and he gripped her hand a little firmer as if to reassure her she was safe with him. "Do you want to sleep with me?" she asked, surprising herself.
Bray chuckled and squeezed her hand gently. "Very much so, my lovely Lady, but not today."
His statement took Tammy aback. "Why not today?"
Bray kissed the back of her hand. Then he simply said, "Because you are not ready for that step in our relationship."
"We have a relationship?" she queried, amazed at this young man's audacity.
"Of course," he replied. "A man normally has a relationship with the woman he is courting."
'Courting?' She couldn't believe what he was telling her. She doubted she had ever been courted by anyone in her whole life. She tended to just fall into or out of relationships.
Bray stood and moved in front of her. He gently cupped her face and asked, "May I have your permission to kiss you, my sweet?"
Mutely, Tammy nodded. Bray gently touched his lips to hers and softly kissed her lips. "Thank you. Would you consent to have dinner with me tomorrow?" he asked as he gently caressed her cheek.
Dumbly, Tammy nodded at him. Bray kissed her again. This time, he gently sucked her lips into his and softly wiped his tongue over her lips. He released her and smiled. He bowed his head at her and left a perplexed woman sitting on the bed.
In the morning, Tammy found a package on the doorstep. Inside it, were four beautiful hand-embroidered hankies with little flowers in the corners. Tammy had to smile.
She had to tuck one into her bra just to have it with her for the day.
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Later that day, Essco came into her lab.
"So, did you fuck the little foreign bastard or just suck him off?" he asked snidely.
"Fuck off, Essco. You and your tiny, teeny willy. You would have to be the worst fuck I ever had. No wonder Debora got rid of you. You couldn't even get me wet, let alone make me come. Go and find your hole and crawl back into it," she spat at him.
She sat there glaring at him until he huffed and left. "Arse-hole," she shot at him as he walked out the door. Tammy couldn't believe how much better she felt for telling him off.
Absently, she rubbed the hankie tucked in her bra as she watched him go down the hallway.
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Chapter 3
~~ September - Week 36 & Tychy Week 1 ~~
Tammy went back to work.
As the day progressed, she found the music she had played the night before, stayed in her head all day. She even found herself humming the tune. With a lighter heart, she got involved with her work.
It was much later that she was interrupted by Bray when he came into her lab. "My sweet, it is dinner time," he told her.
He caressed the back of her neck and dropped a kiss under her ear. Tammy shivered at the delightful sensation. Tammy turned and looked at Bray.
"Sorry," he said. "But I just have to kiss that lovely mouth."
He let forward and started kissing her gently. As he went to pull back, she wrapped a hand around his neck and then pulled him back to her lips and laid one on him. Their tongues were soon duelling.
Tammy had spread her legs and pulled Bray between them when she was getting into the kissing. Bray had very mobile lips and lovely tongue action. She was tingling at the desire she felt. Finally, he pulled back and stepped away from her.
"My sweet, we have to stop before I have you naked across that table," Bray told her, smiling broadly at Tammy's heaving chest and confused expression. "As much as I would enjoy doing it to you, I have a surprise for you."
Coming back to her senses, his words registered. Intrigued, Tammy asked, "What surprise?"
"Unh, unh, unh, come my pretty," he said as he held out his hand for her to take. While he was a shortish man by human standards, she noticed that he had big hands. It felt nice having his big warm hand wrapped around her slim, cooler one.
Bray led her to the diner. As they walked in, Tammy spied the Baby Grand Piano over in the corner where the stage was set up.
"Oh, my goodness," she said in amazement, looking at the gleaming white piano that had been set up for her.
Bray pulled the stool back so she could sit. Tammy ran her hands over the pristine, white keys and played a few practice bars to familiarise herself with the layout. Then she started playing the song Bray had heard the night before, and that had been in her head all day.
Bray grabbed a fold-up chair and sat next to the stage where he could watch her play, and she could see him if she turned her head. Both the music and the player fascinated him. He had been watching her for weeks in Utopia but thought he would never have a chance to win her.
Tammy started playing another tune, and then she began to sing. Now, Bray was mesmerised. He loved her voice as it seemed to call to his soul. Tammy finished the song and looked over to ask Bray what he thought.
Tammy was astonished to find twenty other people sitting with Bray. She hadn't seen or heard them come in and sit down. Then they started clapping and asked her for more. Bray grinned at her. Tammy was in shock. It had been so long since she played in public, she had forgotten why she had stopped.
"Please," Bray pleaded with admiration in his eyes.
She couldn't deny him. The gift he had given her was just too fantastic. So, she played an old love song that she remembered. She glanced at the crowd now and then and only found fascinated and smiling faces. They clapped again when she finished.
She quietly closed the keyboard cover and stood. She took a short bow, and everyone clapped again. Bray put his hand out to her to help her down off the low stage. He then tucked her arm in his as everyone congratulated her on her playing.
They enthused over how much they had enjoyed it, and they wanted her to do it again, please? Tammy was overwhelmed. She wasn't used to people being kind to her or being happy knowing her.
She consented to play again after dinner, and the group dispersed to have their own.
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Bray led Tammy to one of the booths.
It was set up with a tablecloth and a flower arrangement towards the back of the table. Water and wine glasses, a jug of water and cutlery were laid out. Bray's sister turned up with a cloth over her arm and bowed her head at Tammy.
She asked Tammy what she would like to drink? She handed them a hand-printed menu card done in an old English script. She took their orders and was back placing the drinks in just moments. She said she would be back shortly to take their dinner orders.
Tammy looked at Bray in amazement, "You had all this set up for me?"
Bray smiled, "I don't know many of your customs, but I believe when a gentleman is courting a lady, he takes her to dinner."
Tammy smiled back. He was so cute, and he was taking this courting of her very seriously. "Where on Earth did you get a piano from?" she had to ask him.
Bray's smile broadened. "That replicator thingy is a wonderful invention. Lee found a copy in the engineering one, and we got it made. We only had to put the legs and the cover on. Anita said she knew how to tune one. They all helped me set it up in here for you."
"But why?" Tammy asked. She was flabbergasted that he and others had gone to so much trouble for her.
A serious look came over Bray's face, "When I was a boy, my grandfather had an accident and lost two fingers on his left hand. He was no longer able to play his fiddle. He got grumpy and sad and cussed everyone."
"This went on for several years. My father made him a flute, which suited his fingers and told him to go into the forest and not come back until he had mastered it. It was nice to have my happy grandfather back," he finished.
Tammy looked at him in wonder. She had remembered why she had stopped playing. When she was eight, her mother had started an affair with a piano teacher. She had loved learning, and the teacher had said she was gifted. Her mother moved on to a new conquest two years later.
Tammy begged to keep going to practice, and her father had insisted she play for him. After hearing her, he let her continue. By the time she had turned fifteen, she was doing concerts and was earning a name for herself.
One night her father invited friends over and had her play for them. They had gotten very drunk and high on all sorts of designer drugs. One of her father's friends said he would pay a thousand dollars to play with her. Her father agreed, but only if the group could watch.
The guy made her kneel on the stool with her hands on the keyboard, and he fucked her in front of the others to their cheers and catcalls. Her father had even helped the guy undress her. She never touched that piano again. She couldn't even go near it. Her love for it had been violated.
Her father beat her the next day when she refused to play for his friends again that night. He planned to sell her again. He was even planning on having her sisters join the fun. She refused and told him she would tell her mother and go to the police if he tried that shit again.
She had grown up and learnt that the things he did to her and her sisters weren't right. She had even told him she had pictures of her bruises and him screwing her sisters and would post them on the net if he touched her again. She went out, bought a deadbolt and put it on her door. She refused her father entry from that night.
The beating was the last time he touched her, after she issued the threat to expose him and his friends. A couple of weeks later, her mother sent her away to a Finishing School. She hadn't seen any of her family since. Her loving father had told her never to darken his doorstep again, and she never did.
Tammy nodded her understanding at Bray. She had tears in her eyes. He just took her hand and held it while she composed herself. Sasha came back and took their orders.
Bray distracted Tammy by telling her amusing incidents from his childhood. She ended up enjoying the evening far more than she had thought she would. It had been a long time since she had enjoyed being entertained by a man in this fashion.
She decided it was time to leave the bad past in the past. 'It is, what it is,' she thought. She couldn't change it, but she didn't have to let the past control the rest of her life. So, she got into the spirit of the dinner and even contributed some good memories that she had of her sisters and holidays without her father.
She was nervous when she went to play the piano again. Bray just smiled at her and sat where she could see him. She played several songs. Then someone asked for a particular song, and she knew it, so she played it and then several more requests.
After an hour, her fingers being out of practice started cramping, so she stopped, but no one argued. They had all enjoyed the entertainment and thanked her with a standing ovation.
Hue came up to her. "I have missed you're playing Tammy. I heard you many years ago. I was very upset when your father said you had stopped playing for your health. Thank you for playing for us tonight. We all hope you will do it again," he bowed and left.
Tammy had to smile at him. 'It was more likely my father was worried about his own health,' she thought. She wished she had stood up to him sooner. Maybe things would be different in the future.
She shrugged it off, 'If wishes were fishes.' It had felt so good to play again. At least she had gotten the best part of her past back.
Bray took her to the observation deck and simply sat holding her hands and massaging them for her. He pried small stories out of her. After an hour, he took her back to her room and kissed her goodnight very thoroughly.
However, he didn't touch her intimately. Tammy went to invite him in, but Bray smiled and bowed. He told her he would see her at dinner on the morrow and left. Tammy stood there, looking at his receding back.
She was so wet for him that she couldn't believe he hadn't stayed. She couldn't remember the last time a man had gotten her wet without her having alcohol in her system to help.
She was baffled.
------
The next day Tammy found a small posy of flowers on her doorstep.
Tammy went and found Sasha. "Do you know what game your brother is playing?" she asked with worry in her voice.
Sasha shrugged at her. "My brother is a very honourable man. He would not play a game with your feelings. I believe he truly wishes to be with you."
Sasha was in two minds about Tammy. She couldn't quite see what her brother saw in the woman but to each their own. She had enjoyed the music, and the woman had seemed more alive and even happy when she played.
Sasha decided that she would watch as see what happened. She just hoped her brother didn't get hurt, pursuing the human woman. She knew he didn't have a good track record with girlfriends.
The courtship went on for the next two nights. Bray would come to collect Tammy from her lab and take her to dinner. He would leave a small present on her doorstep each morning.
The first night, he asked her what her favourite film was and then took her to the rec-room to watch it with him, simply holding her hand as they shared popcorn. He saw her home and kissed her goodnight.
The next night he organised music for dancing. A lot of the crew stayed as well, and everyone had a good time. Sean and Lee even cut in on one dance. Tammy found herself going from the shorter man to a very tall man.
Sean effortlessly had her in step with him. "Dr Bell, it is a pleasure to see you smiling. If I wasn't already spoken for, I'd seriously consider giving Bray a run for his money."
Tammy had to laugh at the absurdity of the statement. Sean passed her off on DT. DT spun her around and soon had her in step with him too.
"Dr Bell, I hadn't realised you were such an excellent dancer; you should dance more often," he smiled at her, then passed her on to Qu.
Qu soon had her in step as well, and this time Tammy got in the first quip. "Do all of you Army boys dance so well?"
Qu laughed, "Of course. It's part of our training. Although it is a lot nicer when your partner knows her left foot from her right. It must be your musical talent. I have been enjoying your lovely playing. Thank you for entertaining us."
Before Qu could pass her off, Bray cut back in, "Crikey, I'm going to have to watch that lot of bloody smooth talkers."
Tammy laughed and pulled him closer. She had noticed his tendency to pick up the Aussie slang in his speech as Iran and Ivan had. She enjoyed dancing with Bray and being in his arms. Tammy was again left at her door with a cunnie drenching kiss.
She was getting very frustrated.
------------------------------------------------
Chapter 4
~~ September - Week 36 & Tychy Week 1 ~~
The following day at lunch, Tammy got her food and sat down.
Not long after, a gentle hand caressed her neck, and Bray kissed her under the ear. She loved his greeting of her. It made her feel special. She could smell the musky smell of animals on him, but it wasn't unpleasant.
Tammy said, "Did you know that, animal faeces is fascinating stuff."
Bray laughed and sat. "Yes, it is fascinating in how it always sticks to the shovel and your boots. You have to shake it or scrape it to get it off."
Tammy let out a laugh, with a hic-cough in the middle. Bray smiled at her, "I love your laugh. I will have to think of some more amusing stories so I can hear it again."
Tammy sat, looking at the young man. She had smiled and laughed more in the last five days than she had in a very long time. Bray wiggled his eyebrows at her and blew her a kiss.
Tammy found she was wet, and her cunnie was itching to be scratched. How and why he turned her on, she had no idea, but she sure liked the effects he was having on her.
Bray surprised her by asking, "Have you ever milked a camla?" She shook her head.
"Would you like to have a try? Admittedly some people do not find it exciting, but my mother always found it soothing," he told her.
Tammy decided, 'What the hell.' "Why not," she told Bray.
Bray looked at her attire, "You would find it more comfortable to change into a jumpsuit." He was wearing one himself, and it outlined his lovely physique to perfection as far as Tammy was concerned. She liked watching him walk towards her. The walking away was nearly as good.
Frowning, she said, "I'm not sure if a jumpsuit would look as good on me as it does on you."
Bray put his hand over his heart, "Oh my beating heart, a compliment. I am flattered, my lovely lady."
Tammy laughed her sexy laugh again, and Bray beamed at her. He escorted her to a replicator. So, she could get a suit and a pair of wrap-over shoes. Then he followed her to her room so she could change.
Tammy saucily asked if he wanted to help her get into it. He groaned, smacked her gently on the bum and told her, "Just hurry up, wench."
It had been a long five days, and he wasn't sure how much longer he would last before giving in and taking her up on one of her offers.
When she came out, she felt self-conscious being in the skin-tight suit. Bray gave her a whistle and walked around her, gently rubbing her bum as he went, "Damn, girl, that is sizzling. If we don't move from this door, I'll have you back inside in a heartbeat."
Tammy stood up straighter and pulled her shoulders back, making her small breasts more prominent.
Bray groaned. "Woman, you are making it hard for me to stay the gentleman here," he said, taking her hand and directing her back to the lift. Tammy giggled and rubbed her hip against his.
They went down to the animal holds.
------
Bray introduced her to his camla.
Tammy found that they were fascinating animals. She hadn't bothered to investigate them previously since her specialty was Biochemistry rather than just Biology.
Bray set up a stool for her and retrieved a sterile bucket. He got her to wash her hands, and then he showed her how to wash the teats, so they too were sterile before she started. He told her they had an automatic milker, but he liked milking, and it seemed that the human contact kept the animals' content.
Bray knelt beside her and showed her how to grip the teats, so her thumb stripped the milk from them as she pulled on them the right way to get the milk to flow. He told her to occasionally bump the udder to get the camies (their girl name for the camla) to let down more milk.
After a couple of tries, she worked out the rhythm. She was soon happily milking the animal. Bray set up at another animal and proceeded to milk his. Tammy noticed he rested his head against the animal's side.
"Why are you resting your head like that?" she asked.
"The calves often rest against the mother as part of the bonding process. The camies tend to let the milk down better if you do."
She noticed that he already had more milk in his bucket. So, she rested her head against the side of the animal and resumed milking. A funny little song came into her head, and she started singing softly as she milked. The camie must have liked it because Tammy was soon filling the bucket.
Bray watched her as she milked. She was totally relaxed, and as her beautiful voice washed over him, he felt her happiness, and it lightened his soul. There was a lot of sadness, pain and anger that she still needed to let go of to heal. But he felt she had made a step in the right direction.
He had heard many stories about how mean and nasty she could be, but when he looked at her, he just saw a beautiful woman who had been badly hurt. He had noticed the smiles were already coming faster to her face, and he hadn't heard her say anything nasty for days unless someone pissed her off.
He had even overheard a comment from one of the crew that hoped Bray kept doing whatever he was doing as Tammy was a lot nicer to have around this trip. Bray had smiled as he quietly walked away. He knew he was risking his heart, but if he could help her even a little, he felt it was worth it.
He had a feeling that she had been hurt at a young age, and it had compounded over the years. He didn't for a minute think that he could solve all her problems.
But he hoped he could lighten the load for her.
------
Bray finished milking his camie.
He lifted the bucket to take to the milk-processing machine before it was bottled. Tammy realised she had finished as well and followed with her bucket.
"Thank you," she said. Bray just smiled his gentle smile at her. "How many more do we have to do?" she asked.
"We only brought four milkers in the camla and four in the goats. They will stay on the ship. The rest of the animals, we hope to leave on Tychy. The girls provide more than enough milk for this many people as they have to be milked at least twice a day."
"The camies you can do three times a day, as they tend to have twins, and the calves grow fast. I'll do the other two now and all of the girls again before dinner," he explained.
Tammy said, "Well, come on then. If I help you with the other two, then you can spend some time seeing if you can get any milk out of me."
Bray laughed at her offer. He grinned and had to kiss her. For the first time, he actually touched her breasts. Tammy found his erotic circling of her hard nipples as his tongue moved in her mouth had her wanting more.
Bray stepped back from her shaking his head at her. "You are really making this very hard for me to be good."
Tammy looked down at his groin when he said hard. Oh yeah, that was impressive. Going by the bulge in his jumpsuit, her little man may not be so little in other places. She grinned at him and licked her lips, giving him a saucy look.
He waved a finger at her, "Behave."
Tammy giggled as he turned away to get two more buckets. He set her up with the next camie and settled down to milk his. Tammy was soon milking away and thinking of Bray. "Bray?"
"Yes, Tammy?"
"I, um, well, shit!" she said and went quiet for a minute. "I just don't see why you want me. Ask anyone I'm a queen bitch, faster with a put-down than a smile. I'm sure you have heard them talk about me. I'm one screwed-up woman. Surely you could have just about any girl? You're a sexy guy, funny and very charming."
"Thank you for the compliments," Bray flashed a smile at her and then went serious. "Actually, that's part of my problem. I'm probably just as screwed-up as you are, but most likely for different reasons."
Tammy looked at him with raised eyebrows. How could he be more screwed-up than she was? He looked at her again and sighed. 'Well, better now than later,' he thought.
"Did you know my name is actually Braudon?"
"No," she said, wondering what the significance was.
"I got the, what you call a nickname, of Bray when I was fifteen. Have you ever heard the noise a stallion makes when he is on a mare?"
"Umm, no, I don't think so." She was getting confused with the change in topic.
"Well, at home, they say that they bray."
"You bray when you come?" she said, still thinking this conversation was confusing.
Bray laughed, "I wish that were the problem. No, my problem is because I have a big... Umm, what do you call it?" he pointed down to his crotch, a bit embarrassed.
Tammy looked at him with raised eyebrows and a grin, "Cock, you have a big cock?"
"Yes. One day when we were swimming, I saw this pretty girl and got umm... big."
"You got a hard-on?" Tammy supplied with a grin.
"Yes, that's one word you use. The problem was, many of those who were swimming with us saw this, and that is when I got the nickname. Then the girls, they always wanted me to... ah, fuck, yes, fuck me."
He was blushing hard, and Tammy had to smile. Most guys didn't have a problem with girls wanting to fuck them. "So, your problem is that girls want you for your big cock?"
"Yes and no. That part is bad enough, but the other problem is with the girls I am with. Many find I hurt them when we uh... fuck, I'm too big for them," he blushed again furiously.
Tammy nodded in understanding.
Bray continued, "So that is why I left home when Iain said to come to Futura. The problem was that my reputation followed. I was with one of the girls that came with us for a little while, but it didn't last long because she said I was too big and hurt her."
"So why is this important to us?" Tammy asked.
"Because I'm not sure if you would be happy with me once you found out. I really want you to be with me, and I don't want to hurt you," he sighed. "I'm saying this very badly, aren't I?" he sighed again.
Tammy looked back down at her hands. She didn't think she would get much more out of the camie, so she patted her side and got up. She put the stool out of the way and then took the bucket to the processor.
Bray joined her. He put the milk in the machine and started it up. He rinsed the buckets out, and Tammy helped. They then let the camla back into the other pen. When they were finished, she took Bray's hand and took him back to her room.
Bray wasn't sure why she was doing this, but he went with her.
------------------------------------------------
Chapter 5
~~ September - Week 36 & Tychy Week 1 ~~
Tammy let Bray into her room and faced him.
"Okay, stud, drop-em'," Tammy said.
He wasn't sure of some of the words she used and didn't move. So, Tammy stepped closer to him, then started to open his jumpsuit and helped him out of it. He didn't wear anything under it as he found the human underwear too restrictive, especially when he was around Tammy.
Tammy soon had him stripped. She stepped back to look at him. 'Damn,' she thought. 'He wasn't even up yet, and what he had was impressive. "Hmm, I think he needs some help," she said and grinned at Bray.
She kicked off her shoes and removed her jumpsuit so that she, too, was naked. Bray feasted his eyes on her. She was very slim, and while her breasts were small, he thought they suited her figure. He very much liked what he saw.
He smiled at her, "You are a very beautiful woman."
"You're not serious! I'm skinny and have no tits," Tammy said.
Bray stepped up to her and licked a nipple, and it hardened instantly. She gasped, so he licked the other nipple and watched it harden. He then sucked it into his mouth as he ran his tongue around the nipple and rubbed her other nipple and breast with his other hand.
Tammy dropped her hand and stroked his cock. It was already well on the way to being fully erect, and he was right; it was a lovely, long, very thick cock. Tammy pulled his head up and kissed him as she rubbed herself against him.
She put her hand down and pushed his cock down, so he was between her legs and rubbing her pussy. He rocked his hips back and forth as he kissed the shit out of her. He rocked back far enough, so his cock head slipped up to rub her cunnie lips.
Bray pushed forwards so that he just entered her. Tammy rolled her hips forward and grabbed his arse so he didn't escape. He pushed again and then again as she moaned in delight as he forced her flesh to accept him.
He grabbed her hips and pushed in even further. One more push, and his groin was locked to hers. She rolled her hips back and forth on his cock and groaned with pleasure. "Oh, you lovely man, you feel so good in me."
Bray was surprised that she was rocking her pubic bone on his, and he was fully in her. He pulled back and humped into her. He could feel his cock was smacking on her cervix, and she was groaning on him and squeezing her muscles around his cock.
He pulled back and rammed into her again as he pulled her hips into his. She squeezed again and moaned in pleasure, hugging his shoulders to stay upright.
"Damn, woman, I really need to fuck you. I want you on the bed," he said.
He gently pulled back out of her tight pussy, so she could get on the bed. Tammy didn't argue and quickly lay down and spread her legs. She wanted that lovely cock back in her. Bray crawled between her legs.
He looked at her eager face and decided he just might make a quick pit stop on the way. He buried his face between her legs. He soon had Tammy humping into his mouth. He stuck his thick middle finger into her and pumped her as he sucked on her pussy lips and licked her.
He sped up his penetration with more fingers added as she started to moan and thrust down on them. He removed them so he could suck on her while penetrating her with his tongue. She flicked her hips up into his mouth and moaned. He kept thrusting and sucking as her moans got louder.
She arched up and moaned out, "Oh, wow-wee, Bray."
He put his fingers back in her. He folded them back to find the rough spot on top to make sure he rubbed it as he pumped them in and out of her. As she got more erratic, he pumped harder into her until her hips shook.
He pulled his fingers out, sucked and licked her again as her hips jammed into his face repeatedly, and she shuddered again with little groans. Happy, he then kissed his way back up to those cute little tits and soon had one in his mouth.
He lifted his hips and found his cock heading home. He was soon pushing into her and pulling back in long slow strokes as he worked Tammy's nipples to a rosy hue. He loved her sensitive, little titties.
"Fuck me, please," Tammy moaned at him as she wiggled her hips, trying to get him to speed up.
Bray lined up and jammed his hips forward until he connected with her pubic bone. Bray rocked up and then slipped back, happy to do it again. Tammy was soon fucking him back as forcefully as he was ramming into her. She leant forward and captured his lips as he fucked her and kissed him deeply.
She released his lips. "Go, baby, go," she entreated him.
Bray complied. His pubic bone was hitting hers so roughly he thought she might end with bruises, but she kept encouraging him to keep going. He felt his balls tighten and sped up his assault.
Tammy stiffened under him and moaned really loud and long, then started shaking on his cock as her head whipped back and forth. She moaned out, "Oh, wow, baby, you are so lovely in me."
"Sweet heavens above," Bray groaned, and his cock pulsed and spat into her. He flexed his hips again and then groaned some more as he blew again and again. He stayed still for half a minute. He was rigid inside Tammy as she shook around his very appreciative cock.
"Far out, you are bloody glorious, my sweet," he told her. He gently rocked his hips into her as she slowly came down.
"Me?" she questioned, still breathing arduously.
He leaned forward so he could kiss her. "Yes, you. You are bloody wonderful."
She smiled at him, "No, it's not me that's wonderful. You are fucking amazing, babe."
Tammy dragged in a few more big breaths to slow her racing heart down. She looked at Bray and smiled the most beautiful smile that he had ever seen on her face.
"Would you like to know something extraordinary about what you just did?" she asked him.
"What, my sweet?" he asked.
He was still happily rocking his cock in her hot, slippery pussy. He agreed that what they had shared was special. She took him all and didn't cry out that he was too big and that he was hurting her. He certainly saw no pain in her face. Plus, she wouldn't be rocking her hips back into his like she was if he had hurt her.
She gave him a brilliant smile, "You made me come. I really came."
He looked at her quizzically, wondering why this was planet shattering, other than the fact it felt bloody marvellous from his side of the story. Then he had a thought, "You have never come like that before?"
She shook her head and smiled at him again, "I learnt how to fake it, but no. I never knew that the real thing was that wonderful."
Bray was still rocking into her, and he felt his cock stiffen again as he grasped that he had brought her real pleasure and not pain. He started sliding his hips back further, them back into her again.
Tammy had also comprehended that the lovely man was not finished with her at this point, and he was ready to go again. She happily pushed back down on to him as he entered her again.
Bray decided he wanted another go at her tits. He loved her thick nipples. He leaned back down to pull a nipple into his mouth. Tammy arched up into him as he hit home again, and he soon had her rocking, backing into him firmly again.
She was just as enthusiastic if not more so, this time, as she had been the last. Bray was happily filling her with his cock as fast and as often as he could. Tammy started clenching and moaning, so he fucked her harder and faster.
He felt her stiffen, moan and relax, then stiffen again before she started shaking on him. He kept fucking her until she was just coming and coming on him. At last satisfied that she was happy, he filled her again with his seed.
After a while, he rolled off her and hugged her to him, and she occasionally shook as she came down. He had to smile to himself, 'Yes, that's what making love is about.' He happily hugged her and kissed her forehead.
He sighed a very contented sigh.
------
Bray thought back to why he was on the starship.
When he had found out Tammy was coming on this trip, he has convinced Ivan, Iran and the girls they should come too. He didn't think they guessed why he wanted to come. But he couldn't see any other way to get close to her.
Back in Futura, she wouldn't give him the time of day. He'd fallen for her the first time he saw her. He had only moved in with Heidi because she had wanted him, and he never expected to have a chance with Tammy. But that turned out to be disastrous.
Heidi found him too painful if he accidentally thrust into her too hard. They had only lasted about a week, and then she moved out. He was glad that she had moved in with Mik Putin, as they seemed very happy together.
Tammy thumped him.
"Ouch," he said as she had distracted him from his thoughts rather than the thump hurting him.
"You made me wait a whole week to find out you are an awesome lover," she ragged on him.
Bray laughed, "Oh, I don't know, somehow I think it was worth the wait. It just made it all the sweeter to have you come on me as you did. Plus, I've been waiting for you a lot longer than a week, my lovely."
Tammy huffed at him and then giggled, "I don't remember hearing you, bray, my stallion?"
Bray laughed and started tickling her. She started squirming, giggling and tried to tickle him back. He was much stronger than she was, so she cheated and rolled over on top of him and started kissing him instead.
She soon decided a nice ride was in order since he was happily poking her again and wiggled down onto his erect cock. He didn't disappoint her.
Bray happily kissed her and hugged her after their last effort. She happily hugged him too. She had never felt this content or happy in her whole miserable life. She also did not intend to let her little stallion get away either.
They might be from different cultures and even races, but she knew she had found her home. It was wherever Bray was. They would work out the rest.
It was a damn shame she had forgotten to get her birth-control tag replaced when she was sick.
------------------------------------------------
Chapter 6
~~ September - Week 37 & Tychy Week 2 ~~
They spent the week in orbit around Tychy.
They sent down a probe for samples and a second observation probe in a closer orbit than the current one was. They sent a sample probe to Tychy's moon as well. Nicko wanted samples to compare to the ones from the Asteroid Belt.
They were now getting clear pictures of the surface of Tychy and speculations were rife. The scientists were still trying to work out precisely what level of development she was at. They believed Tychy had been bombarded several times since being in its current orbit, but the ecosystem appeared to have been stable for some time.
The common consensus was that it was in an age similar to our early Triassic period. Though how it had developed to this stage, if it had only been in this orbit about 50 to 80 million years, they didn't know.
The probe had identified several large animals on the main continents and in the sea. They hadn't, however, found any evidence of human-type occupation. If there was sentient life, it was either at an early development or entirely different from humans.
They concentrated on the valley on the island they were thinking of setting the domes in. They planned to explore other areas later. The mountains' primary tree growths appeared to be similar to conifers and cycads with ferns, mosses and fungi as the dominant ground foliage.
There were swampy forests in the low-lying areas, and the plains were mostly small flowering plants, ferns, vines and even several species of grass. They also picked out large floating beds of some form of seaweed in the warm oceans.
Life did team on this very, pretty little planet.
------
Sean organised the landing party.
Lee knew he wouldn't want to include her, but she told him straight out, she was going down to the surface too.
He went to argue, but she gave him that gentle smile she used when she was sure her presence was required. He was smart enough to know the argument was over before it started. This only worried him more.
Lee and the botanist, Cath Cheboi, were the only two civvies on this trip down, the rest being Sean's team. Three large rivers split the valley indicating the island had good rainfall.
They had decided that the top northern portion that was about 10km by 35km, was the best place to set up. Two large creeks split an area off in the central-western portion that was about 2km by 5km. It had a hard rock area surrounded by dark soils and low growths.
Sean's team thought this area would be easier to fence to keep the local wildlife away so they could work safely on building the domes. They decided two days spent enclosing a 1km square area (100 ha [hectares] or 247 acres) of land could save a lot of grief later. Nicko, Essco and the Captain agreed this was prudent.
The fence was a 2m high mesh roll that was unwound off the low platform. A post ram was mounted on the back corner. As the platform moved forward, the pickets were inserted into the ground and the mesh wound off behind it.
Clips fed into a clip gun were used to hold the fence to the star pickets. Depending on the terrain, a heavy steel post was used for stronger support every fifty metres or so. Four gates at the centre of each side were to be included. An electric fence mounted at 60cm, and 150cm was to be clipped on to the outside of the fence.
With the team of eight, they thought they should easily do two klicks a day. Lee was assigned as the driver of the platform. Minnie's primary job was lookout unless she needed to be swapped for one of the other tasks.
The first trip down was for samples. They also decided to map and plan where the fences and the domes would go. They would set up the dome tent and take the loaders and the fencing platform down as well.
If the environment proved hostile, it simply meant they would have to stay in their suits. The valley was just in the tropical region, and it was into autumn here. It was still warm, but not that hot that it was uncomfortable.
It would get cooler as their eight to ten weeks on the planet wound down. They would have to watch their hydration levels and exposure to high UV as the atmosphere on Tychy was thinner than Utopia's.
The transporter hovered ten to fifteen metres off the ground, and Terry blasted a 100m area where they would set up camp. He then landed on the highest flat point within the zone they expected to occupy.
Terry set up the monitors, and a quick scan showed the area clear of anything larger than a mouse. Sean wasn't happy with the spot for the transporter. So, he and Gary got the loaders out and flattened a new area at the back of the blasted zone.
DT set up the equipment to survey the best spot for the placement of the domes. Lee and the rest started unloading the equipment for setting up the dome tent away from where Sean and Gary were working. Half an hour later, Sean had Terry blast the new area again and set down the transporter again.
They had decided not to stay on the planet for the first couple of nights. Once the fences were up and anything identified as hazardous within the zone was eradicated, they would move down.
They would sterilise the area before planting grains and other plants from their own stores and from what they had collected on Utopia. Some of the scientific crew were not pleased and didn't want the local ecology altered.
It was pointed out to them that they did not intend to alter it any more than they had to. One of the reasons they had selected the island was to reduce their footprint. There were still eight continents and hundreds of other islands they did not intend to touch before they were explored.
Another reason for this island was the strange signal, but most of the crew didn't know about this. The fact this island had extensive mineral deposits didn't hurt either. If Earth decided to mine here, the ecology would be affected more than what they planned on this trip.
The crew got the tent up and the temporary electric fence. Gary with DT as his guard got out a linger. They were soon plotting the fence line. Then they concentrated on the area for the domes and deciding how they would place them.
Sean, Lee and Cath headed off in a northerly direction towards the nearest creek to collect samples, while Juanita, Minnie and Qu headed west towards the mountains.
The largest, flattest section of land was between the creeks and rivers. Most of the flatter and rockier areas had small flowering plants, vines and mosses growing between the rocks. There was evidence that the plains had once been covered by forests.
However, the change to a dryer climate had obviously affected these growths, and the areas were mostly covered in lush low growing plants in the fertile soil. Cath thought they wouldn't have any problems planting here.
The two groups happily collected bits of everything. Cath kicked over what appeared to be a rotting log. The next thing she knew, she was on her arse on the ground. When she looked up, Lee had what appeared to be a huge scorpion that was about 30cm long, impaled on the end of her extended wand.
Sean hadn't even seen her move. One second she was beside him; the next, she was holding up her prize.
"Oh, my goodness!" squealed Cath. "Look at the stinger on that thing." She quickly got up and checked herself over.
"Be careful what you kick, Cath," Lee said with a grin.
Sean pulled out one of the larger thick sample bags, and they managed to get the nasty looking critter in it. Lee poked around with her wand, found a smaller scorpion about 10cm long and zapped it. They put it into a live-specimen box.
"I don't think I killed it, so mark it as 'Alive'. Dewa is going to love them," Lee told Sean with a big grin.
Cath also found some unusual fungal growths, so she bagged them as well. They moved on closer to the creek. As they entered the edge of the forest, growth leading to the river, Lee stopped them.
Sean immediately palmed his pistol. He hadn't heard anything, but he trusted Lee implicitly. He handed the Zapper pole to Cath. Lee had also extended her wand, and Sean tensed up in response to Lee's actions.
They heard a rustle in the fern growth. Then they heard a high-pitched scream and a thrashing in the undergrowth. Sean went to go help the creature in distress, but Lee indicated no. More screams pierced the air, followed by more trashing and snapping of the undergrowth.
All three felt a cold shiver go up their spines at the screams of the dying creature. After a while, it stopped. It was deathly quiet for several minutes. Next, they heard crunching, ripping and gulping sounds. The hair on Sean's neck was hackled.
They waited quietly until Lee motioned them to move. Sean had Cath stay behind him, and they slowly and quietly advanced to the edge of a small clearing. Sean stood there and just gawked at the monster.
He had no idea what it was eating. But it was definitely a relative of the crocodile family. It was enormous. It stood at nearly a metre tall and was about 12m in length. Its legs were sturdier than modern crocodiles on Earth, and it was very agile in the lighter gravity of Tychy.
'Shit! I hope the fences are going to be strong enough,' he thought at Lee.
Lee motioned a retreat, and they moved back out of the forest. Lee hugged Cath and rubbed her back. She was shaking like a leaf.
Sean looked at Lee, "We are going to need bigger guns and a stronger fence."
"Hopefully, with colder weather coming, she was stocking up to move further south," she said. Sean hoped so as well.
They moved further north and entered the area again, taking samples as they went. They got to the creek, which was about 40m wide. It was slow-flowing, and Lee and Sean looked carefully for mudslides. They didn't see any. Hopefully, the big mama was only visiting and didn't have relatives nearby.
They took their water samples, and Sean tossed out a tightly woven throw net. He let it sink to the bottom, hoping it didn't snag and pulled it back in. He got a good haul. It took them a while to untangle the collection of fish and things.
Sean made Lee stay on guard. He and Cath recognised several different crustaceans', snails and slugs as being similar to Earth varieties. Other wiggly things had them baffled, but they bagged and tagged them anyway.
The team decided they had enough to keep the scientists happy and loaded the lifter-cart. Sean loved the carts that June had built. They sure made lugging a heap of gear around easier. He had changed the power source to the SC-cells, making them even lighter.
They rarely needed recharging from a generation source as long as they got an hour in the sun every so often. The smaller, lighter battery also meant they could put more weight in them.
The trio headed back and told the others about the crocodile and shared the vid that Lee had taken. They then showed them the scorpions. Cath said there was no way she was going exploring without a guard or, even better, two.
Minnie then showed off her lovely collection of roaches. Except for Lee, who thought they were amazing, the other women and DT were appalled at the sizes and variety of roaches.
The others got more excited by the finds from the creek.
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Chapter 7
~~ September - Week 37 & Tychy Week 2 ~~
Because of the wildlife, they decided to modify the fencing project.
The bottom half of the mesh fence was more tightly woven than the top half. Gary recommended they get the cable trencher out. Once they had flattened the fence line, they'd dig the bottom of the fence line out to 20cm, and Bear brick it on either side as they went.
It would be more work. But since they were starting a little early, they had the time to do it. They decided that they would also increase the number of heavier posts to every 25m to strengthen the fence.
With the probes in place, it took just over an hour to get a message to Utopia. So, if they were going to be longer, at least, they could tell them. Nicko relayed a status report to Philip and Natali every night.
It was played on the news channel, so everyone could be kept up to date. Natali had told Nicko he had excellent ratings every night. The crew liked to rib Nicko about his star status.
Lee hadn't told them she could talk to Kyle a lot quicker. Lee and Kyle chatted once a day as well. Apparently, the crystal balls from their magic boxes didn't abide by the laws of physics or was it, psychic abilities, as we knew them?