Jack's Righteous Gig

Author's Notes:

'Jack's Righteous Gig' is the seventh story in the saga of Jack Danner. Minimal effort is made in this tale to explain the backstory, so it is highly recommended you read the first six stories in the following order:

• Jack's New Job
• Jack's New Position
• Jack's Daily Grind
• Jack's Wage Slavery Parts 1 & 2
• Jack's Snow Day
• Jack's True Calling

All characters engaging in sexual relationships or activities are 18 years old or older.

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Jack's Righteous Gig

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Chapter 1

Jack tasted the metallic tang of blood as he struggled to slow and calm his breathing. He closed his eyes to ride out the pain in his side. Once he got control over his gasping again, he opened his eyes and risked a glance down at the spot where the pain was centered. The red stain was spreading. Damn.

He'd been running through the dense jungle since dawn, and so far, he'd managed to avoid capture. Granted, he'd been shot when he raced through an ambush point. They hadn't hit anything vital, so he still had a chance. If he reached the river, he was free.

He had two teams after him. He'd gotten cocky, thinking his speed would be enough, but one of the teams had that attribute as well. The ambush he'd run through had been theirs. He'd barely managed to escape, and once he got some distance on them, he pushed himself beyond anything he'd done before to stay out ahead. His endurance, while exceptional, couldn't last forever, and they'd just about caught up, trapping him within view of his goal.

Taking a lesson from Gee and Bal, Jack did the unexpected.

He went up.

Now, despite Jack's human origins, his current anatomy was no longer well suited to climbing around in the canopy of trees. When the Altarian virus altered his DNA, his body changed in strange and wondrous ways to include genetic features of a species more at home running across open grasslands. After the last time these genes activated, Jinnae, his Altarian doctor, dragged him into the hospital and did a head to toe review of the changes he'd undergone. She was concerned that the changes continued to happen when he should have stabilized.

Aside from his hair color changing from blond to deepest black, the newest addition was an augmentation of the tendons and ligaments in his feet. It was so subtle the doctor almost missed it. He was just grateful the change hadn't left him with hooves. That said, his modified feet were much better suited to running, so he wasn't going to complain.

With his long legs, broad chest, strong arms, and his extra-wide neck, which supported a fortified cranium sporting two deadly fourteen inch black horns, he should have been running full out across a savannah, not struggling to push his bulk upwards through dense foliage.

From his vantage point in the canopy, he could see both teams now hunting him below, cautiously picking their way through the dense greenery, watching for an ambush. They were almost invisible, but he knew they'd be on him in a flash if he made a sound.

Sucking air in slowly, he desperately looked for a means to escape. He was too close to give up now.

He looked around for something to use as a weapon but quickly realized how stupid that thought was. They were four to his one, these were trained combatants, and his fighting skills were minimal by comparison.

No, escape was his only option.

Looking below, his adversaries were almost to the river's edge. Jack eased himself forward through the treetop branches, his horns getting caught every few feet. How was he going to get from fifty feet above the ground to the river, which was just forty feet away horizontally? If he climbed down, the moment he left the upper canopy, he'd be visible.

He realized he was just inches from the top of the leafy layer, so he pushed his head up and cleared the branches. Ahead he could see the gap in the trees caused by the winding river. He wished the canopy surface was firm enough to run across, but that was just fantasy.

He spotted an odd tree at the river's edge ahead, taller than the others, with its top branches projecting almost horizontally. From the tips of these branches sprouted long vines which hung down to rest atop the surrounding canopy. The vines grew broad leaves in clumps to steal the rays from the other trees. One of the vines was passing close by, so he carefully reached out and pulled it closer. It seemed pretty strong. Bracing himself carefully in the swaying branches, Jack pulled his utility knife from his pocket and discovered the super-tough vine wouldn't cut. He tucked the blade away as he contemplated the vine.

Then he got the craziest idea.

If it didn't work, he could die.

If it did, he'd escape and live to see another day.

As most of his crazy ideas typically failed, he put this one aside as he took another survey of his options.

Five minutes later, he was back to his crazy idea.

Carefully inching his way back down to the bottom of the canopy, he was still forty-five feet from the ground. A potentially fatal distance to fall should he lose his grip. He looked towards the river and saw a gap through the tree trunks he could use.

Channeling his best Johnny Weismuller, Jack unleashed a mighty Tarzan call. The sound seemed to come from everywhere as it bounced off the surrounding trees. He took a two-handed death grip on the vine he'd dragged down through the canopy and leapt out into a gap between the branches.

Time slowed as he burst clear of the leaves hiding him with nothing but open air beneath him. As he plummeted towards the ground, he wondered why he thought this crazy idea would turn out differently.

Suddenly, the vine in his grip tightened as the slack was taken up. He began to move in an arc, accelerating and swinging towards the river.

Tree trunks flew past on either side of him, reminding him that his path might end against the side of one of these pillars.

His weight increased as the pendulum swung closer to the ground, and it was all he could do to hang on.

Tree trunks near him took hits as the enemy tried a few wild shots to take him out. By now, he was moving too quickly for their shots to be accurate.

Seconds before his vine reached it, Jack saw the stout branch from the vine tree at the water's edge. He swung in under the branch, but the pendulum's arc ended there, as the vine he clung to curled upwards suddenly, flinging Jack free like the crack of a whip. He was airborne and cartwheeling madly over the river.

He landed headfirst with a loud smack midway across the river and quickly went deep, but he was so dazed and dizzy he couldn't tell which way was up. He relaxed his body and let a little air out. The bubbles tickled his chin and neck, so he knew he was head down. He paddled himself upright and kicked his way to the surface. The moment he broke through to the air, his collar was grabbed by two hands, and he felt himself being tugged towards the shore. He let his muscles go limp as he was done.

Gee and Bal pulled him into the shallow water at the edge of the jungle and looked down at him with almost unreadable expressions.

There were definitely some emotions he could read.

Incredulous anger. Yeah, that was there. Fear too. The rest flashed by too quickly.

Gee finally found her voice. "What were you thinking? Were you thinking?"

Bal just glowered at him.

Jack sighed wearily and smiled up at them. "I made it to the river, so I won," Gee growled and stomped off into the greenery. Bal followed with an angry glance over her shoulder.

Jack looked up at the blue sky, and for the first time since the exercise began, he let himself relax and enjoy the scenery. It truly was a gorgeous day in the jungle.

Adina and Zaina suddenly dropped from above into the water on each side of Jack to frantically check him for injuries. Zaina tugged his shirt up to see the angry looking welt on his side where the paintball she'd fired grazed him. The red paint on his shirt was fading in the water, but it looked like it was going to leave a stain.

Adina gently slapped his shoulder. "You frightened us! First with that crazed roar, then when you fell from the upper branches-"

"How did you get up there?" Zaina blurted, interrupting her sister. "There are no lower branches on any of the trees this close to the river!"

Jack looked over his shoulder back at the trees and was surprised to see she was right. Aside from a few sparse branches on the vine tree, none of the other trees had any lower branches, just tall, smooth-barked trunks. He'd have had no luck in climbing down from the canopy at all.

"Huh. Well, I found a tree much further back which I could climb, then I stayed in the canopy to make my way closer. I knew you guys were about to catch me, so the only place I could go where you might not see me was up."

Gee burst out of the jungle to glare down at him from the shore. "So you admit you had no idea there was no reasonable way back down to the ground when you climbed up there!" She'd been close by, listening in.

Jack sat up with a sigh and turned to face Gee. He untied the black bandana he'd wrapped around his neck to hide the gleam of his slave collar and wiped his face with the wet cloth. "This morning, you told me I needed to prove I could protect myself while escaping from an abduction. You said I don't take these threats seriously and insisted I treat the test as if it was real. You two were armed with shock sticks, and the twins had paintball guns, so there would be pain for failing. I acted as if my life was on the line. That's what you got. Nothing less than maximum effort."

Gee held his eyes for a few moments. "Why didn't you stop when Zaina shot you?" she asked in a quieter voice.

"She grazed me. It wouldn't have been a critical injury with a real weapon, so I treated it as such," he explained.

Bal pushed through the dense grasses. "What was that horrible scream?"

Jack snorted and drew scowls from the Altarians. He controlled his expression. "That wasn't a scream. That was a Tarzan yell." The two former agents glanced at one another wearily. "It's from an old Earth story about a man who grew from a baby to an adult living in the jungle, raised by gorillas. When he became an adult, he would make that call to let all the creatures of the Jungle know he was coming. To shake them up." He grinned. "In this case, to confuse and disturb my captors. I'd say it worked." Jack stood and climbed out of the river with the twins following him onto the shore.

Bal stepped right up to glare up at his face. "We were disturbed because of your falling from the treetops while screaming!"

Jack reached out to pull Bal and Gee against his chest. He kissed their heads as they struggled to free themselves. He knew they could easily break free, but they were going through the motions. They needed the assurance of his hug to settle their nerves.

The moment Jack released the Altarians, they stepped back, and Adina and Zaina were in their place getting hugs as well.

When everyone settled down, Jack turned to each of them. "My apologies for frightening you. This exercise was very intense. It was almost guaranteed to create some stressful situations. Thank you for your honest efforts today." He received reluctant nods from the group.

"Was it fun?" Zaina asked, pointing to the vine.

Jack smiled at the young female. "I was too frightened to enjoy it."

He looked to the Altarians. "Do either of you have any water?"

Gee handed him a small squeeze bottle. Jack raised an eyebrow at the minimal amount of water they carried. Still, it would do.

He poured some water in his mouth, swirled it around, and spat out the bloody water. He instantly had Bal tilting his head down while Gee opened his jaw and peered in his mouth intensely. She relaxed and gestured for Bal to release him, which she did.

"What the hell?!?" Jack barked.

"When did you cut the inside of your cheek?" Gee asked calmly.

He scowled at her. "I fell while running. Tripped on a root, hit the ground, and bit it."

They nodded, and Gee pulled out a comm. She called in the transport to pick them up. It would be there in fifteen minutes.

Jack finished the water and handed the squeeze bottle back. Gee tucked it away in an inner pocket. As she walked away, he settled himself down on the grass with his back against a tree and relaxed.

He'd been living on Chuuruthia with his family for twelve years. The planet had been a haven for the Danners, especially the children. The education they received at the schools was second to none, the class environment was exceptionally civil, and they'd made many friends.

The only one with travel restrictions on Altaria was Jack, so the rest of the family got to visit and stay overnight with their family there. Mostly though, they spent their time on Chuuruthia.

The twins were eighteen now and as tall as Gee and Bal, taller than their mother. They'd reached adult height and were in peak physical condition. While Gee and Bal continued to train them, they'd surpassed their teachers in strength and speed. The masters were very pleased with their students, though right now, Zaina was getting a talking to for her attempt to shoot Jack during his swing to freedom. Jack knew better than to interfere and pretended not to hear.

He was incredibly proud of them as he was with his other children.

Of course, living in a house with a bunch of teenagers had its challenges.

The twins weren't too much trouble except when Doug got home from Altaria, where he apprenticed at the Embassy working with his 'Auntie' Karrel. She'd switched from Trade Commissioner to Ambassador when Jack had been forced to leave the position... and the world.

The use of the term 'Auntie' came from Jack as Altarians didn't use such relationship terms. Karrel found it mildly annoying yet amusing, so even a serious boy like Doug liked to use it, from time to time.

At the end of each day, Doug would meet his mother, Aaros, and sister Zoe at the Gate Terminal on Altaria to come home to Chuuruthia, where they lived with Jack in his large mansion atop the hill. Or inside the hilltop as that's how the Chuuruthian's built their homes, integrated with nature, not dominating it.

Aaros and Jack's daughter, Zoe, who was now 12, shared her brother's unique black and white coloring but in broader stripes, so the twins weren't as dazzled. She attended school on Altaria to make it easier for her mom to drop her off and pick her up each day on her way to and from work. They were very close.

The twins eagerly awaited Doug's arrival as both were more than a little infatuated with him. Truth be told, he seemed rather fond of them as well. Jack, SennLann, and Aaros were keeping a close eye on the three.

Emily, Diana and Jack's daughter, was proving she'd inherited her mother's beauty and body shape. Her long blonde locks came from her father's original hair color, and his height may have assisted her growth. At six-foot, she towered over her Chuuruthian friends and her siblings.

Except for Joseph, the boy Jack and Eve rescued from the Allsa Komanae home planet. He was growing into his biological father's height, and they expected in the next couple of years he'd shoot up a few more inches to slip past Emily.

Where his blonde sister had discovered an affinity for music, singing like an angel and pulling the most beautiful tones from instrument after instrument, Joseph liked to dye his hair black to match Jack's new coloring and had an artist's soul. He'd gone through a phase where he constantly painted, producing work after work, which Eve had shown in galleries on Chuuruthia, Altaria, and even Earth.

These days Joseph was working with the medium of glass, and his pieces were in high demand. The work made him happy, so Jack and Eve were thrilled.

Emily and Joseph had an affinity as the only human children in the family and were very close.

Not all of his kids were currently living on Chuuruthia with Jack. Some only came to visit now.

Karrel's Alexander was nineteen and back living with his mom on Altaria. He worked at a law firm, studying to be a lawyer. His goal was to modernize some antiquated laws like the one that kept his father from visiting Altaria for more than a few hours. Brief weekend visits to see Alex and his sister, twelve-year-old Rebecca, wasn't enough.

Elissa's son Maximilian was 19, and daughter Gwendolyn was 18. Both moved back to Altaria, and their mother's home, after their schooling. They now involved themselves in the family business, Royal business.

Max was a broad-shouldered, barrel-chested prime specimen of male Altarian. With his horns and royal dynasty, he was highly sought after by Altarian females. Thankfully, he didn't let this popularity go to his head. If anything, he was a little too oblivious to their attention.

Gwendolyn was working closely with her mother and showed signs of the Queen's calm, even temperament. Wisdom would come with time and experience.

Leffera's firstborn, Lillian, was now 19 and training to be a doctor on Altaria. She was dedicating her life towards finding a cure to the chronic condition her mother suffered after the birth of Lillian's brother, Benjamin, who was now 12.

Leffera and Benjamin lived with Jack. Following in his sibling's hoof prints, Ben attended school on Chuuruthia.

While not immediately life-threatening, Leffera's condition caused her mental and physical lethargy. Jack discovered that he could temporarily alleviate the symptoms with a few nights of cuddling and a little frisky-time. He understood he wasn't a cure, and he was only one man. There were thousands of females who suffered from this thankfully rare postpartum ailment. He'd been able to help stabilize her condition for the past twelve years, but she wasn't getting better.

Their ride interrupted his thoughts as it arrived with a whooshing sound as it finally swooped in over the trees and dropped down to hover at the water's edge. Adina and Zaina jumped into the vehicle and quickly moved into the rear seat. Jack followed them in with Gee and Bal bringing up the rear. The Altarians settled on the bench seat next to Jack as the vehicle rose back into the sky to fly them home.

Jack felt Gee gently leaning against his arm, so he lifted it over the back of the seat so she could cuddle against his right side. Then, with his right hand, he reached over and began massaging the muscles at the base of Bal's neck. He heard her sigh with pleasure, and her muscles began to loosen.

He struggled to keep the smile from his lips. Even after all these years, these two preferred to hide their emotional connection with him.

It made these little private moments that much more intimate and special.

Chapter 2

Callosephia was a hot, desert world with its drinkable water hidden deep underground. A few salty seas covered small areas of the surface, but the rest was sand. This desert surface wasn't suitable for Altarians, and most Altarian citizens would have been in favor of abandoning it... except for who wanted it.

The planet was well within Altarian space and a significant distance from the border of their aggressive neighbor, the Sanosians. Truthfully, the desert-dwelling race would have made better use of the planet, but due to its location, the Altarian's had no choice but to set up a colony to protect their claim.

The Sanosians made no effort to hide the fact that they coveted the planet. To them, from space, it looked like a glass orb of swirling colors, each representing a separate and distinct type of sand. They'd tried, again and again, to convince the grass eaters to hand over the planet, but the Altarians always refused.