Schemes of the Unknown Unknown Ch. 05

Beatrice reflected on the changes to come as she relaxed on her expansive bed: a black girl on one side and a pale freckled one on the other. She would soon leave the sheltered domes of Venus and travel across the Solar System to the colony of Ecstasy. There was much she regretted having to leave behind but she was also excited at the prospect of new lovers and the sight again of the black void through which she would travel.

"We most certainlydohave a need for a well-qualified Emergency Services Officer on the Yossarian," said the recruiting officer of the meteoroid mining ship. "And few come with as good qualifications as you. But I have to ask: why do you want to leave Venus for a journey to the most remote locations in the inner planetary orbits?"

"My marriage..." said Beatrice tearfully. "I've just divorced my husband. I want to make a fresh start."

"There are many more marriageable men and women on Venus than you'll ever find in deep space," said Chief Petty Officer Durer who was also conducting the interview. "But you won't be the first divorcee to volunteer for such a reason."

"It's been very painful," said Beatrice. "I know it'll be a challenge, but it's one I'm prepared to confront."

"I don't think you'll be nearly as busy as you've been in the past," remarked the recruiting officer. "It's very rare that we suffer the kind of disaster you regularly face on Venus."

"If I save only one life, it will be a duty well served," said Beatrice.

"We haven't exactly been overwhelmed with candidates for the position who are nearly as well qualified as you," said the Chief Petty Officer. "The greatest challenge I think you'll confront may well be boredom. Do you think life on a space ship, confined to less than five cubic kilometres of habitable space, is really a fair exchange for life in a Venusian dome?"

"I'm sure I'll get used to it," said Beatrice, who didn't want to explain just how well-suited she was. A century or more of her life had already been spent in much more confined conditions in interstellar space. The journey from Proxima Centauri would have been impossible for a human, even in the near torpor of her resting state.

"You'll have time to fuck every man and woman on the ship," commented Daphne when Beatrice told her lover of her imminent departure.

Beatrice nibbled at Daphne's reddish pubic hairs. "I'm sure I can rise to the challenge," she said with a wicked smile.