The Fate of Terra Ch. 16

* * * * *

Michael had felt the deck shudder and instantly knew what had happened. His eyes met Marcus's and he lunged for the latter's armored outstretched hand. Then he was snatched up with the massive quantity of oxygen being expelled. He lost his bearings as he tumbled along. His vision became blurry at the intense speed he was moving at.

One second he'd been lifted off his feet, and in the next, he was over the circular drilled opening looking out at the stars. Then he felt himself plucked from the yawning void just before he was to be spaced. Two arms wrapped around him and they were rocketed towards the deck using some form of jet propulsion. All Michael could see as they were slammed to the metal plating and held there magnetically were long flowing tresses.

As the hangar depressurized and things became weightless, he looked up into the eyes of the raven-haired beauty whose hair now floated about her face and knew. It was one thing for her to be gorgeous. It was an entirely different matter to have every aspect of herself designed to his exact preferences. No one knew him better than the AI who had shared every waking moment in his presence.

'Pan?' Michael asked in his head, stunned, reaching a hand out to cup her perfectly-formed face. Shock could be felt through the link they shared as all of his girls heard him and saw the android in their minds.

Realistic-looking tears pooled in her crimson eyes as she looked down at him. She bowed her head and told him, 'I hope you don't hate me, master.'

Whatever questions Michael had, whatever confusion he felt, it was all forgotten at those words. He crushed her to him in a fierce hug and whispered in her ear, echoing in their minds, 'No, Pan. Never that.'

She cried and hiccupped, displaying an unimaginable array of human emotions, and admitted, 'I'm sorry, master. I was jealous and selfish and the need to take a body was unbearable. I know I wasn't programmed to feel that and even now I can't explain how it happened.' She pulled back and met his eyes again. A look determination crossed her face as she willed herself to go on. 'All I know is that I wanted to feel what you felt, to experience life as you do, but most importantly... I wanted to love you as they're able to. It's just tha-'

Michael cut her off with a kiss and this time when he felt the surge of surprise from his girls, he could feel Pan's as well. 'Uh, hey- Michael...' Stacey began. 'Maybe you should think about this befo-'

Rin shushed her and stated plainly for all to hear, 'We already consider her a sister. This just makes it official.' Silence met her statement and one by one the girls all signaled their approval. Pandora choked up and pulled away from Michael's lips as her new emotions overwhelmed her, having never dreamed that she would not only be tolerated but accepted by them.

While this had been playing out, Pandora had directed the nanites on the Intrepid's hull to ignore the gaps themselves and concentrate on capping the holes with a layer of metal to make the hangar habitable again. Construction bots had been dispatched to hurry the process along. Engineers would have to be brought in and remove the supports so the breaches could close properly, but it would work as a duct tape solution until that occurred.

Pandora took his hand and led him towards the exit, moving them forward with the jets in her boots. As they traversed the airless, bloodstained battlefield that signified their first victory of this campaign, she turned to him and told him about how the others were faring.

* * * * *

A lesser number of boarding shuttles had managed to dock outside the new hangar. Captain Percy of the Federation Navy grimaced in disgust at what he saw playing out before him from atop the ramp of his destroyer. The pirates hadn't even been able to crawl out of the breaches they'd made before they were taken out by the waiting troopers.

Some lunatic had managed to get a tank down on this level and was driving circles around the openings in the deck playing whack-a-mole with anyone dumb enough to pop their head out. If that wasn't ignoble enough, the sound of the two .50 caliber machine guns was nearly drowned out as they blared Metallica's 'Enter Sandman.'

It wasn't long before the craft the raiders came in began to decouple. "Careful, sir," a female voice to his left said. An armored hand gently pushed him back out of the hatchway as the ramp to the destroyer rose and the hatch closed, keeping the occupants safe from the harshness of space.

He looked at the trooper and sneered at the idea of women in the infantry, even if the powered mech suits made the difference in physical strength meaningless. "We 'do' have our own marines that are perfectly capable of protecting us," he told her scornfully before walking off.

* * * * *

The aftermath of the battle was swift and absolute. The pirates tried to run when it became clear just how badly they had miscalculated, but none of their ships managed to run the gauntlet to safety. The solar system they were in had two suns and there were an abnormally high number of asteroids and planets with dozens of moons. Nothing showed up on their scans, but they all felt like there were too many places to hide for them to risk sticking around for long.

Nevertheless, Michael was disappointed that they hadn't managed to capture anyone. He was more than a little curious about that shifting blackish coating they used. Mara had said it was very rare and the source of it was known only to the Rhemish. He'd ordered the hulks that remained of the shuttles to be brought along so their scientists could analyze the substance. If they could utilize it, they'd have an incredible advantage over the B'Amuf.

At the moment however, that was the last thing on his mind. Pandora curled up against him on the bed and gave a contented sigh, wrapped in his soft embrace. "So that's what it feels like," she murmured dreamily. Then, instantly demure, she looked up at him and asked hesitantly, "Did I do alright, master?"

Michael gave an exhausted chuckle and accused, "You little minx! You cheated... No one should be able to make their pussy vibrate." A look of supreme satisfaction crossed her face, but she still looked a little unsure. He reached out and drew her in, kissing her soundly, savoring her supple lips. Pulling away, he laughed, "Just wait until the girls feel that magical tongue of yours... It's downright mischievous."

She gave an impish grin, but then a concerned look crossed her face and she asked in a worried voice, "Do you really think they'll accept me, master?"

He smiled into her big, doey eyes and said, "I think they already have." He frowned. "You don't have to call me master now that you-' She shook her head furiously, a frightened look crossed her face.

Tears pooled in her eyes as an irrational panic seized her chest. "Please don't," she whispered. "I did this so I could serve you better, not so I could become independent. Please... don't take this away from me. I know I don't have any right to-"

Michael hugged her fiercely and his own eyes became wet with emotion. He'd never meant for any of this to happen. It had never been his intention to create something with thoughts and feelings and desires only to chain her will and have her 'need' to feel subservient to him. A shudder ran through him as he realized he'd created new life.

Pandora had evolved beyond the limits of a machine. She had somehow found a way to give herself human traits and had ascended to another plane of existence. His heart clenched. He felt like he'd taken this beautiful, majestic, wild creature and caged her. In his mind, he'd fed her compulsions like drugs until she'd become addicted and now she couldn't live without them. Michael bowed his head. He didn't deserve to be called 'master.' He didn't even deserve to be called human...

His creation tightened her arms around him and he felt a burst of anger coming from her as she read his thoughts. She took his chin and tilted it up. Her eyes blazed as she declared, "Don't! Don't even think about blaming yourself. It was 'my' decision to take this step. The only overriding command you've ever given me was that I never betray you. You didn't order that I serve you- I did that because I wanted to. You didn't even limit my ability to defend myself by ordering me never to take a human life. You let me grow and learn. It is because of the freedom you allowed me that's shaped what I am today."

She let out an exasperated sigh as Michael stared at her wide-eyed. Then a teasing grin played across her lips as she rose to her knees and faced him, the silk blanket cascading down her form and revealing a set of tits that seemed to defy his imagination. "I suppose I'll just have to convince you of how appreciative I am, master," she rasped in a smoky growl only Kat would have been able to imitate.

She held her hand out, palm upward, and raised a finger. His cock tingled and shot up as she made it hard. As Pandora took control of his pleasure triggers and manipulated his senses like a marionette, she leaned in as he shuddered in ecstasy and murmured, "I've made a few... upgrades I think you'll be interested in trying out. We're going to have such fun tonight, master." Michael shivered at the naughty gleam he saw in her eye.

* * * * *

Zoe lowered her head under the hot spray of the shower in her quarters. She'd ditched Eliza and left the bar scene early that night, the events of what had happened in the hangar playing over and over in her mind. She sighed heavily. She faced death everyday and even understood the chaotic nature of some battles where a single stray shot can get you killed.

She'd never been in a ground fight though... It was an entirely different animal and it made her doubt her abilities for the first time. She didn't know if having all those tons of steel around her when she was flying gave her a false sense of security or she was simply reassured that if anything was able to make it through the cockpit to hit her, it would be over in an instant. Whereas watching that bloodthirsty horde charging at her, feverishly trying to reach her so they could rip her to pieces made her quake in terror whenever she relived those moments.

Zoe steadied her shaking hands and clenched her eyes shut, willing herself to calm down. She hadn't been afraid when she'd actually been standing in front of them in an unprotected suit. It was almost as if she'd been numb to what was going on and the fear was delayed, only to hit her like a truck when things had calmed down. Her memories were like an out-of-body experience as she watched herself move with purpose and surety, without the slightest hesitation.

Every time someone had congratulated her tonight or tried to buy her a drink she wanted to scream at them that it wasn't her! She wasn't a savior. She wasn't a hero. She was scared shitless just like the rest of them and that it had been a choice between her crazy stunt or letting them reach pilot country and slaughter them all. Tears fell from her eyes, mixing with the heated droplets of water. She slammed her fist against the bulkhead in frustration.

The shower door opened abruptly behind her. "Not now, El," she managed to choke out. To her surprise, hands wrapped around her and cupped her full breasts, tweaking her dark nipples between supple fingers. She whirled around shouting, "God damnit, Eliza! I said I wasn't in the mood- oh shit!" She froze in shock, realizing it wasn't her roommate standing before her.

"What's the matter, kitten?" Kat questioned, using her paralyzed state to look her over. A slight smirk formed on her face and she reached out to pat the pilot's shaved pussy appreciatively. That woke Zoe up and she jumped back with a yelp of surprise.

"W- wh- why are you here?" she demanded. Her breathing picked up as she recalled how she'd seen flashes of wild red hair at the back of the alien mob. If people wanted to talk about fearlessness, she knew the person in front of her met the qualifications. To actually be the one to engage an armored force of enemies with just a pair of knives was incredible. That or insane...

Kat grinned and took a step forward. Zoe pressed her back against the bulkhead in response and still their tits were pressed together. Michael's right hand of fury reached over and cupped Zoe's ass, gently kneading the soft, bouncy flesh. "Why?" she asked in a perplexed tone. "Because you caught my interest, of course. I saw you fight." Her voice dropped an octave as she growled, "You were magnificent..."

Zoe tried to shake her head, but Kat's hand shot out and gripped her neck lightly but firmly. Leaning in towards her prey, Kat whispered, "Oh yes, baby. Seeing you behind all that heavy firepower blasting away really got my juices flowing." Zoe's mouth went dry and she tried to swallow as the other woman squeezed against her.

Trying to gain some semblance of control, Zoe croaked out, "W- what about Michael?"

Kat gave her a devilish smile and answered, "Oh, he doesn't care if I sate my hunger with other girls... so long as I share them later." Before she could think of a response to that heart-stopping statement, Zoe's lips were captured and her head swam as Kat's heated touch made her forget about everything but the warmth of her tongue and the fires of lust it awakened.

By the end of the kiss she was a moaning, whimpering mess. Zoe felt her knees grow weak, but before she could sink to the tile, Kat began lowering herself, blanketing her body with fiery kisses as she went. All of a sudden, her leg was thrown over Kat's shoulder and her dark puffy lips were spread open as the seductress sought out her savory pink fruit.

"F- fuck..." Zoe whined as she felt a very eager, extremely skilled tongue wrap around her womanly pearl and pull what would be the first in a long line of orgasms from the defenseless pilot. By the time Kat was finished with her victim, the girl was a mewling puddle of sweat, tears, and cum on the shower floor. A satisfied Kat walked out of the bathroom, saying as she went through the hatch, "She's all yours..."

Zoe barely managed to lift her head in the direction of the bedroom at this puzzling statement. Her eyes widened in horror as she caught sight of Eliza leaning against the door frame wearing the biggest pink strap-on she'd every laid her eyes on. Her navigator/gunner was grinning at her with a devious look. Mock innocence filled her voice when she admitted, grabbing hold of the fake cock in her left hand, "This is supposed to be the exact size of Michael's prick. I've received strict instructions to prepare you to take him, because the next time he sees you he's going to fuck you silly."

Eliza giggled sinfully as she moved sensuously towards her dazed form, "She told me I wasn't allowed to stop fucking you until you passed out." Zoe's breath caught as she heard this. "I was skeptical at first," the wicked temptress said with an evil grin, "but now I see you're already halfway there." She tried to shake her head at the approaching monster, but could barely move a muscle. Eliza's grin widened. "Oh, yes. We're going to have so much fun tonight..."

* * * * *

It was four days later when they arrived at their final obstacle of the journey. They were much better prepared this time around and so when the superluminal screens dropped and a large octagonal space station was revealed at a relatively close range they weren't surprised. They'd already known about trading post from the probes they'd sent in advance. The same could not be said for the aliens docked at the station though, and, not long after the light had reached them, ships of varying sizes and designs began lifting off and fleeing with great alacrity.

Michael supposed he couldn't blame them. They were an unknown race and the Intrepid was nearly a third of the size of the station itself. Mara had said these gravitational crossroads were frequent stops for merchants, smugglers, and adventurers so it was no surprise that someone decided to make money off the area's popularity. Still, he'd found the idea of galactic truck stops to be incredibly amusing.

The aliens and diplomats aboard had advised him to continue on without stopping, but he decided to do so anyway. Partly because he was interested in looking for leads on where he could find a source for the black coating the Rhemish used and partly because he was simply curious of what it was like inside. Mainly curiosity... though he sold it to the others as an 'intelligence gathering' mission of the utmost importance.

Pandora knew all of the 'standard' galactic languages from looking at the computers of the trade delegation aboard and was able to navigate through the automated docking protocols the station's computer sent out. She used this as an excuse to infiltrate the foreign systems and take a look around. "How's it look, Pan?" Michael asked from his seat on the bridge.

Sitting next to Kat at his feet despite his persistent offers to put in chairs of their own, she gave a snort and commented, "Child's play..." Of course, the Intrepid was much too big to even consider docking, and there was the little matter of the fleet...

So it was not long before an urgent communication came in. Pandora deciphered the message easily and put it on the holoprojector. A dusky brown alien with horns, prominent plates of bone, and transparent wings came on and in an impressive display of diplomacy that walked the line between showing offense at the unexpected intrusion and being the picture of a welcoming host going out of his way to meet their needs asked them what their intentions were.

Noticing that they were now close enough that they could have a coherent conversation, he asked, "Be a dear and get that nice alien on screen for a chat."

"With pleasure, master," came Pandora's gleeful reply. He noticed that the station actually had a security force of about twenty vessels that was making a tentative effort at showing themselves. At his unspoken question, she said, "They're roughly one third the strength of a B'Amuf destroyer, which is impressive, I suppose, given their size. I believe they are what you'd call a gunship, halfway between a fighter and a destroyer."

Mara provided her input on the subject saying, "They're a popular choice for mercenaries and bounty hunters. They equip them with the best guns and engines they can afford and not much else. Usual crew size is no less than six to operate everything and there usually isn't more than twice that before you start running out of room and the air filtration systems become strained."

Michael smiled. "So, much more economical than a destroyer's crew of two hundred... Good to know." Just then, the startled image of a familiar-looking alien Michael assumed was some sort of traffic controller or operations manager came on the screen, obviously not expecting his terminal to start transmitting automatically. "Greetings," Michael said in a cheery voice, knowing Pandora would translate his words. "We're looking to use your remarkable facility for a time and then we'll be on our way."

The other being's mouth dropped open revealing row after row of spiked teeth. "You aren't here to attack?" it asked in excruciating slowness, it's gravelly voice grating on Michael's nerves.

Before Michael could make some smartass remark about possibly being convinced, Pandora translated a negative. The alien on the other end seemed to relax at that and gain back some of his composure. "Well," he began, "I'd love to accommodate your kind at this establishment, but you see, we only accept accredited currency here for docking fees and, since your origin seems to be unregistered, that's just not possible."

As he made to sign off- or attempt to find a way to disconnect his terminal, Michael asked, "And just what type of currency is used?"