Every Man's Fantasy Ch. 21

"That's the spirit! And, for God's sake, call me Ezra!"

Ryan took Yael aside to tell her what Ezra had said. She laughed when Ryan made his joke about Yael not being worthy. She stuck her tongue out at Ezra, who responded in kind just as Mariotta arrived, to see Ezra sticking out his tongue at Yael.

"Really, Ezra," Mariotta said. "Is that an example to set to my granddaughter? You know how precocious she is. ... See, Yael. I told you boys never grow up."

Yael was woman enough now not to own up.

"Granny! Granny!" It was Freya running from the kitchen. "Aunt Danielle let me do chores!"

"Very kind of her, I'm sure," Mariotta said as she lifted her granddaughter up to kiss her.

"And I slept alone. All night!"

"Really?"

Mariotta had already noticed that Yael and Ryan were in the same clothes as they had on last night. She addressed Yael.

"Do you have anything to tell me, young lady?"

"Only that I had the most amazing day of my life yesterday. ... And that Ryan and I are going to have sex!"

Mariotta gave Ryan a searching look. He looked like a deer caught in the headlights.

"Really? Does he know?"

"Of course, he does!" Yael protested. "It was his idea."

Mariotta took another look at the young man.

"I sincerely doubt that," she thought. Even so, she liked Ryan. He just needed feeding up a bit, and a woman to take charge of him.

"Ezra's been teaching Ryan how to give me multiple orgasms," Yael added happily.

Mariotta might be the broadest-minded woman in the galaxy but even she knew there could be too much uninhibited talk about sex. Meanwhile Ryan blushed bright red and stared at the floor again.

Freya had something to contribute to the conversation.

"Me and Yael heard Mummy and Daddy do a norgasm," she said.

"Yes you did, Sweetie," Annela confirmed, coming from the kitchen. "I was very loud, wasn't I? Did I keep you awake?"

"Yes, Mummy, but I didn't mind."

"However," Annela carried on, "we don't say 'Do an orgasm', we say 'Have an orgasm.'"

"Why, Mummy?"

"I don't know. It's an idiomatic peculiarity of the English language."

Freya tried to say 'idiomatic peculiarity' but failed, so she said "Have a norgasm" again and was happy.

******

That night Ryan and Yael took a hotel room and didn't leave it for two days.

Ryan remembered everything Ezra told him about listening to Yael and being guided by her. The problem was, she was completely silent during sex. The lively vital girl, the girl with something to say to everyone about anything; the vibrant, exuberant, irrepressible chatterbox barely made a peep all the time they made love.

While Ryan kissed her, fondled her, licked her nipples and sucked on her gorgeous tits, she was in such a heavenly trance, such an erotic dream-world, that she could only shut her eyes and float. Occasionally she sighed or gasped. But if her voice was trapped within her, everything she felt and would normally have said leaked out in physical movements, in a sensual kind of dance that somehow put her in exactly the place Ryan wanted her to be.

She squirmed under him, slowly bucking her pelvis. She arched her back and pushed her tits up to meet his mouth. She arched further when he licked the thin slit of her navel and the pretty rounded muscles of her belly.

She wrapped her long thin legs around his waist and, when he teased and delayed until he almost had a norgasm himself, he finally put his mouth on her pussy. She arched and hooked her legs over his shoulders, moaning loudly for the first time, an incoherent keening and exhalation of joy.

The first time he makes love, a man feels at one with the whole universe, as if every pleasure in the world flows through him. Yael felt like that, multiplied exponentially by the number of different erotic responses a woman has, compared to a man's measly one.

So many times was her heart beating too loudly for her to hear Ryan speak. So many times she held her breath, and then held it even longer, unable to let go, otherwise the joy would erupt, making her shake her head and convulse her body because it was almost too painful to feel. Then she let her breath out and the sharp unbearable pleasure washed over her, followed by the blood-rushing warmth of an orgasm breaking over her belly, chest and back, running in ripples of delight to her toes. Even her ears tingled with pleasure.

Although Yael didn't talk in all the hours they made love, she gradually made more noise, small moans and soft cries that Ryan was looking for.

His mouth on a tit, his tongue grazing the hard nipple; his fingers on her clitoris; his warm skin against hers; and, finally, his cock thrusting into her pussy: everything was just right. It earned him the most satisfying responses, when she gasped out her pleasure and let urgent squeals of delight escape, as back-arching orgasms made her convulse in ecstasy.

In between times, she held him tightly and refused to let him get up or even roll over, until the last ounce of happy tension had drained from her body. Then she curled up and rested in warm contentment, until he was ready to go again.

6 The bombshell

There had been ten days of the conference, so far. Ten amicable and productive days, in which Outworld Ventures had discussed technical matters regarding the survival and prosperity of the colony and rarely mentioned the question of who owns Samothea.

During that time, Gloria gradually took a greater part in the discussions. She was firm but not obstructive, politely questioning the delegates from Outworld Ventures about their long-term plans for the colony and what they wanted in exchange for their help.

Intransigent as Gloria was on the issue of the ownership of Samothea, everyone none the less expected the women of Samothea to agree to a mutually beneficial compromise with Outworld Ventures. Thus, on the second Friday afternoon, when the session closed, Gloria took back to her Advisory Council a list of proposals from Outworld Ventures on how the colonisation of Samothea might re-start.

Colonists would be invited to Samothea to work, build, farm and develop the planet. There would be mining, industrial production, trade, forestry and other financially-beneficial activities under the auspices of Outworld Ventures but with the Prefect of Samothea and her Advisory Council vetting the colonists who apply to buy land on the inhabited continent.

On the uninhabited continents, however, Outworld Ventures would be free to sell land unvetted. This would pay for the various benefits the company would bring to the women of Samothea, such as new technology, livestock and rejuvenation therapies.

The proposed compromise for the relatives of the original colonists was that they should be invited to take up their claims in person but that they couldn't sell their claims on without the buyer being vetted by the women of Samothea.

It was a good compromise deal and everyone expected the women of Samothea to accept it. The major benefit was the medical technology: rejuvenation therapies cost thousands of pounds on Earth and would double the lives of the population of Samothea and fix the problem of their cloning. It was a generous offer.

It reflected the importance of the decision by the women of Samothea, as transmitted by Gloria on the following Monday, that almost the entire Samothea Project Team and all the inhabitants of Samothea presently on Celetaris came to the conference that morning.

Because the offer was so generous, it was a little shocking, even to those on Gloria's side, when Gloria politely told the conference that the women of Samothea had decided by vote to decline the offer from Outworld Ventures. The question of the sovereignty of Samothea was non-negotiable at every level. Even those who were for re-starting the colonisation of their planet and keen to invite men to come and live there were adamant that their own government should have the final say on who is allowed to immigrate to their planet - on any continent, not only the inhabited one.

There was a stir in the auditorium. At last, there was something for the somnolent news organisations to report. The chairman of the conference, the Anglosphere ambassador, perked up and asked a few questions for clarification.

"Madam Gloria: are you making a counter-offer or issuing a flat rejection?" he asked.

"It is a flat rejection in regard to sovereignty but I am authorised to approve everything else on the list of suggestions given by Outworld Ventures."

"Is that your final position?" he wanted to be sure.

"That is what the women of Samothea voted for: we must have full control over who comes to live and work on our planet."

"I see."

He didn't sound happy and invited the delegate from Outworld Ventures to respond. He rose to speak, saying:

"I know, Madam Gloria, you understand that our offer represents a careful analysis of the cost of bringing technology and a stable ecosystem to Samothea, besides helping its human inhabitants achieve the standards of living, health and longevity common to the Anglosphere. If my company cannot sell land on the uninhabited continents, then we cannot recoup our costs, far less make a profit."

"We can be flexible on any detail," he assured the conference, "but we must at least cover our costs; and we can see no other way of doing this than by selling or renting land."

"It will be decades, if ever, before industrial production on Samothea is profitable enough to pay for the benefits we are offering you," he added, "even ignoring the extra costs of shielding from the x-rays, which adds ten and twenty percent to the cost of technology on Samothea."

"I understand," Gloria said, "but I'm afraid this is the decision of the women of Samothea."

There had been so much good will on both sides that no one expected the offer from Outworld Ventures to be completely rejected. The chairman closed the meeting early, asking Gloria to solicit the colony's reply to the settler company's response. They would convene again next morning.

On Tuesday morning, there was a noticeable change. There was a new principal spokesman for Outworld Ventures. He had previously been sitting one or two rows behind but now he took centre-place at the front of the delegation. A tall, handsome man in a dark suit, with slicked back black hair and a Roman nose, he exuded dignity and presence.

When Gloria reiterated the position of the Samothea delegation to reject the compromise on ownership, he stood to address the meeting.

"He's a lawyer," Paul whispered to Gloria and Roger. "Possibly an outside expert. Something's about to happen."

"Your Excellency," said the lawyer, "the delegation from Samothea have rejected the compromise deal we have been generating for the last fortnight. However, at the beginning of the conference, we agreed to accept your arbitration if we could not reach agreement between ourselves. We have reached this point. So, Outworld Ventures humbly requests that you act as arbitrator and adjudicate the matter."

"What do you mean by 'adjudicate'? You know I am not a judge, nor even a trained lawyer," the ambassador queried. "Do you mean you have something like evidence or a legal argument that would normally be presented in a court of law?"

"Yes, Sir," the lawyer said, "that's exactly what we mean."

"Then it would surely be better to bring a court-case," the ambassador said.

"Yes, Sir, it would, except for the great cost and the delay involved in legal action, which (as it happens) Outworld Ventures can afford more readily than the people of Samothea. We know that arbitration is not legally binding, but both sides have been willing to compromise so far on everything except the ownership of Samothea, and we have a means to resolve that dispute."

"You have evidence regarding the ownership of Samothea?"

"Yes, Sir."

The ambassador addressed Gloria and the Samothea Project Team.

"You have already agreed to the arbitration of the ambassadorial service but it is not legally binding and this sounds like a matter for the courts. You need not hear the argument of Outworld Ventures, but if you refuse, they may take the issue to court."

"Your Excellency," Paul replied, after a quick consultation with his team. "We share the concern of Outworld Ventures with regard to the cost and duration of a court-case and are willing to hear the argument. If there is valid evidence, then it would need to be disclosed to us before any court-case. In which case, we would see it anyway."

"Very well," the ambassador said, and the representative from Outworld Ventures stood again.

He projected a document onto the table so everyone could see it.

"This document entitles Outworld Ventures to full ownership of Samothea for another fifty years. We have the right to sell unowned land on the both the inhabited continent and the uninhabited continents to new settlers. We also recognise the land-claims of the relatives of the original settlers."

There was shock on the Samothea Team bench. The ambassador also looked disapproving.

"This is a very different claim from the offer you made yesterday," he said, "I see little of the spirit of compromise here."

"No, Sir," the lawyer said. "as the legal owner of Samothea, Outworld Ventures is not obliged to offer a compromise."

"So I see. Talk me through your document."

"This is a claim for the bounty offered by Outworld Ventures for the rediscovery of the planet Samothea. Please note the Earth date of 2554."

"Outworld Ventures takes its responsibility to Samothea seriously and thinks this is best done by invoking the provision in the Planetary Homesteading Act by which a settler company can take full ownership over a failing colony by sending an agent to that colony within the first hundred-years of its establishment."

"What agent?" Paul Kessler interrupted and received a frown from the ambassador; but he motioned the settler company's lawyer to answer the question.

The lawyer adjusted the projector to focus on a signature at the bottom of the document.

"We recognise Ezra Goldrick as the official agent of Outworld Ventures in its claim to Samothea according to the Planetary Homesteading Act."

There was consternation now on the Samothean bench.

"But Ezra is an advocate for the people of Samothea!" Paul protested.

"The letter he lodged with Outworld Ventures claiming a bounty for the rediscovery of Samothea made him an agent of the Company. Our claim to ownership of Samothea was legally renewed when Ezra landed on Samothea, five years ago ..."

"Good God!" said Paul.

"... which, as you know, was the ninety-ninth year of the colony and therefore within the period of original ownership. We submit that Outworld Ventures' ownership of Samothea has been automatically extended another fifty years because the colony was failing in multiple areas."

"Mr Kessler," the ambassador asked. "Do you have a response?"

"We dispute the assertion that Samothea is failing. As you can see, there are four people from Samothea here, including a natural-born child. They are proof that Samothea is a thriving colony with a growing population."

"But the population is unsustainable," the company lawyer replied. "Not everyone can reproduce by normal means. Half the population uses cloning and the other half can have only girls. Also, because mammals on Samothea need to be cloned, the ecology of Samothea is unsustainable in the normal sense of the term."

The argument went on half-an-hour longer because Ezra maintained that he hadn't claimed his bounty from Outworld Ventures and would refuse it if it was offered to him. The ambassador listened politely to him and to the lawyer's contrary argument, that Ezra's intentions in claiming the bounty took precedence for the sake of the Planetary Homesteading Act.

At the time he landed on Samothea, Ezra intended to demand his bounty. In that moment, therefore, he was a willing agent of the Settler Company. That he changed his mind later was irrelevant.

"I see this is a matter for a judge, not a diplomat," the ambassador said when there was a gap in the argument.

"Unfortunately, we must bring the conference to a close, admitting the failure of the ambassadorial service to arbitrate the dispute. We can see that no agreement is possible on the question of ownership. The women of Samothea will not compromise on the matter and Outworld Ventures has now made ownership of the planet a legal question. There is no role for an arbitrator or conciliator. The case must pass to a properly constituted court. A judge will have to decide who owns Samothea."

"I'm sorry," Ezra said to Gloria, who sat next to him on the bench. "I had no idea this would happen."

"It's all right, Ezra," she said. "We have a clever lawyer, too. We'll find a way to fight this."