James's Descent Ch. 03

Another fine... not sunny day... Cloudy, but they saw worse. The family had been on this lost world for over two weeks. A very productive couple of weeks. They had decent shelter, plenty of food... and just a bit of confusion about the date. In truth, it had been only one week, but the game is a simulation, a compression of events where all those messy, unpleasant details can be glossed over. Focus on the real. Technically, a year only had 60 days, but they'd experience six times that many. Their memories would form the idea that more time has passed to justify the actions they saw. After all, one person would need one week just to raise a very crap mud hut. But many excuses existed here.

Pam woke up with a feeling that today was going to be pleasant. She had no idea where the feeling came from, but she'd take it. Better to go to work in a good mood. Today she had to build... nothing. Oh, that's where the good feeling came from. The girl finished all they needed for the "forward base" which would just be a staging ground to work on the real one. It surprised her to have had that much ambition within just a few days, but... why not? It was probably going to take years, but she'd be damn proud of it when it finished.

The girl went to get breakfast with a bit more eagerness than usual, since now they had better food. Just some tomatoes from some lost cargo pods meant that their meat diet could now go with a side of veggies... and they now had water set aside since she built that well. Everything was coming together. All her work led to more comfort... but that left plenty more work ahead. But she'll take the moment.

"You look a bit too happy for my comfort."

No, not even Nathan could ruin her mood. The boy mirrored her actions, walking out of his room and towards the storage freezer to get his meal as well. They'd meet at the table, but today the girl was down to being pleasant with him.

"No more building for now! But, plenty of mining for you. Get into that mountain!"

"Ugh. I noticed. Yeah, that's gonna take... a while."

"We've got time. Maybe by the time you get halfway, you might have mother make you a helper. Looks like you've got something going."

"We're not putting the kids to work. Mom wants them to get as best of an education as we can give them."

"Mmmmh.... Maybe I could set up some desks for them. But not today!"

Nathan would not burst her bubble. He was happy as well with them having their bases covered. It felt like they had been playing catch-up for the last... two... or more weeks? Well, it was enough time. Now they might go on with a better base behind them. Unless the bloody raiders show up again. They had one more from the IDF which earned him another hole where he did not want it. Damned lizard people and their shotguns.

"Today you're staying inside and making stuff. Put that smithy to good use. Could use an upgrade on our gear."

"Oh, I'll make us stuff, oh yeah."

Chestplates, gladii and muskets. Yes, you could make those at a smithy. Better guns needed the table that needed power... which needed generation... and James decided to just not use power until they went into the big base. Though they were behind on research... none of them were good at it, but some visitors pitched in. Whoever comes out of Anna is getting a physics degree... or at least a passion for researching. Her other tasks were to finally get the pelt coats out. Yes, they took an insane amount of material but the insulation was equally insane and the stuff was like medium armor. And they looked badass. A priority because summer was halfway done... by James's reckoning... they would experience plenty of boring days to make them catch up with the flow of time. Confusing and difficult for the being organizing this.

"Well, let me know when some stuff is done. Might feel better with some steel on me."

Decent meal. Anna knew her stuff. She'd be along shortly to once again consume two people's rate of food. Pregnancy hit hard, but she was already showing a bump. Unfortunately, babies came with morning sickness... which she was currently suffering in their bathroom. And once that was done she had to take a long bathroom break because putting a lot of food in you means a lot of... stuff... has to come out.

Pam waved him off as she took her plate over for cleaning and took a moment to walk outside and look at the sky. Odd, she was no longer getting that feeling of being watched over. It was almost a certainty, but not constant... like the gaze moved all around, but lingered a lot on the base itself. A five-minute walk around the gardens to watch those growing plants did not have that feeling return. Oh well... they might be busy. She'd actually like it if it rained. No reason to go outside, having the calming sound of falling water remind her of safety and warmth inside.

Just before she went back inside, a small notice came on the pad. Visitor... from... far away. Usually, it showed which other faction they were from. Well, mister James from far away, come in and hopefully, they'll be of the pleasant variety.

*

"This has to be a dream."

James was standing in the middle of... nowhere. He was dressed, not in his comfortable pajamas, but in the outfit he might wear when going anywhere outside. Trainers, jeans, shirt and t-shirt... and that nice burgundy police coat which was the only damned coat he could find on sale that wasn't for women. Unless he wanted to order a 500$ one from overseas. Comfy wear for autumn... or summer in an area such as this.

"And I'm pretty lucid, which means I now get superpowers."

Finger snap while pointing to his right. No lightning.

"Damn. Okay, have it your way, dream."

The last thing he remembered was going to sleep. This was not his bedroom nor was there a bed for him to rise from. Awareness came to him standing. No matter how much he'd try to jolt himself awake, it was not happening. And the dream was not obeying his desires. A dozen naked women who were not his dead mother would not appear before him.

Might as well start walking. There was something about that cliff to the north that drew his attention. The man would become consciously aware of it a few minutes later. A faint smoke trail and the whiff of food being cooked. However, something else drew his attention as the man rounded a rocky outcrop and turned his sight to some brown blobs at the edge of his vision. The sight made him stop in his tracks.

"Are those fucking mammoths?"

Mammoths they were, fucking they were not, at least not literally. Furry elephants with bigger tusks. The boreal forests had them around. If he'd have come during winter he'd see the wooly stegosaurus from that extinct animals mod he put in... and the mammoths were also from it.

A shrug and he kept walking. This was a dream... weird stuff happened in dreams. Once he was given a task by someone he hadn't seen in years, making his grandma's front door lead to the other side of the country. Though things so far had been rather coherent. Fishing in his pocket, the man found that he was not lacking in smokes, though his phone was very absent. Why do phones NEVER appear in dreams? The lighter gave him no trouble.

Walking on, James could start to notice where that idea came from. The faint sound of something striking stone could be heard, that smell of food was more tangible... and he noticed an almost obvious perimeter wall, even as it was made from rock that looked a lot like it was natural. Rocks don't grow in perfectly straight lines to make up this wide passage ending in a roofed end, where he could just make out the waist-high half-walls.

Wait.

This was... very much like the improv kill corridor he made for the base... before they upgraded to the big one. A look down confirmed it. The ground was battered and barren beyond an invisible line connecting the corner of that wall with the straight one running parallel to it. A kill box, if without any of the ridiculous measures some use.

"Really, dream? Am I going to go inside and find those three sex-eager people? Eh, why not? Maybe I can get some dream sex and not cum in my underwear."

Go right to the end, turn right when you hit the barricades and the door was there, nestled in a door-sized hole in the wall. He imagined these walls to be maybe three meters tall, but he was looking more at five. Makes sense if it keeps the colossi out. Nathan must be excavating bloody Moria in there rather than a cramped hallway. And the door was unlocked. He slipped inside.

To his right, the long, wooden structure, hugging the south rock formation, a dirt path before him running beside the building with enough width to park two cars and have room to open the doors on the inside of the path. To his left, growing areas, segmented into five by five for the first two, then five by eleven, then two eleven by eleven. Seemed to be meters because he could fit two and a half of his height in the path width. Bless that man for rejecting the American measurement units. Or maybe it was him rejecting it.

And then... movement. The door further ahead opened to have a human figure walk out toward the garden plot. Girl, younger. If James had his logic straight, that wanted to be Pam. A slow walk in her direction to at least say a pleasant hello. He stopped in his tracks once the girl reached the growing area and went ahead with her mischievous idea.

Several minutes ago...

The girl and her mother were in the workroom, each to her task as Anna kept up the mass-production cooking and Pam hammered away at their new weapons. An idea came to her. A naughty idea. Visitors had been rather dismissive of their ways, but they were secure in them the more they went further. She was expecting this one to be... at best... just weirded out by the mere mention of family fucking or them being cool about toilet play.

"Think it might be fun to make a small show in front of that visitor?"

"Up to no good, are you?"

"Oh, come on... you're getting annoyed with them too! Why are we even allowing them in?"

"Because they've been buying my food and your hats."

Plenty of hats since that space battle that dropped like 20 corpses. But they were not touching that meat. James had not put the bill yet for kibble. Though he would once they planted some haygrass... why waste their proper vegetables?

"Ugh. Still annoying. So, think I'm gonna have a bit of fun. Just a small show... see the look on their face."

"Don't cause a war."

"Eh, there's thirteen factions hating us. What's one more?"

She'd wait to see when the guy entered the perimeter before making her way outside.

And now...

Pam turned to face that... cute guy... and lift her tribalwear, her pussy becoming exposed to the air. His look darted to her nethers as that man stopped right there to stare at her. It took effort to pee like this... and they had toilets, so this was just her being her playful self... but she could push out a decent ten-second stream. Legs parted, the line of piss would erupt from her cunt to fall to the ground in a noisy patter.

But the look she was getting was not even approaching what the others gave at mere words.

This... was what James liked. He had a soft spot for women peeing. Tingled an instinct inside him to protect the one doing that. There were fewer issues since he assumed there would come no harm to him here... or at least no real harm. At best, he might just be scared awake. And as expected, the girl did not mind being watched.

But why piss outside? They had toilets. Maybe the dream was giving him some things he wanted. He'd stare for the entire duration before looking up. Pam was... pretty cute. There was a spark of intelligence behind those brown eyes, her short and mildly unkempt hair giving her a tomboy look, that slim body hiding her practical muscles. Not much on the tits or ass department, but the man did not qualify a woman solely on that.

Though, he was at a loss for what to say. The man just looked into her eyes... those eyes looked back. A shy smile from her, his automatic, resting barely-smile for James. It felt like a Mexican standoff. Anna was wondering what was taking so long. She heard no sounds to indicate some issue.

"Hey... coming to visit?" She finally got some words out.

"Guess I am. Shame I'll only see that sight once."

A smirk from her.

"You're some sort of pervert. Everyone else would just scream at me even having my kitty out."

"Oh, more than some sort."

For some reason, the man decided to not reveal what he knew. It was a fun game to just play at being another visitor. Plus, if the dream wanted, they'd know. The girl let the dress fall, coming a bit closer. Something about this man was... drawing her. She stopped just under a meter away from him. Why was she so tongue-tied?

"And... you came to see how the pervert faction is doing? Bet you want to do some stuff as well. We haven't really given... options... for guests."

"Aw, and here I was hoping I might buy an hour of your time." Beat. "Well, if I did have some silver on me. Checked my pockets and I have none."

"Shame. Well, beds are free. For now."

"That they are."

Until he sets up the private guest rooms which cost a hundred silver per stay. You want privacy and your own bathroom, you pay. Pam was still not going away. And the man was still looking at her. James found her to have an adorable cuteness that tempted him to pet her head... but he knew to abstain from that.

"You look like you're holding back something. Don't worry about being honest around me. I think being honest is pretty good. None of that bullshit that others engage in."

"Right? So many just..."

"Wasting our fucking time with denying reality."

A chuckle from her. A cute laugh. If any of her family members were here they'd spot a crush at a glance. What was it about the man... other than the fact that she was now much more secure with her unshackled mouth.

"You still haven't said what you want to say."

"Just... it's nice to finally have someone that's not us and... accept it. I mean, I kinda accepted we'd be the weirdos for good and just have to make people who'd accept us. You know, the actual... making people way."

"Your own big family. But... there are people to accept. In fact, there might be more than you think. A lot are doing what they are doing just to fit in with the rest, even when there is no one around... just stuck in the herd logic."

"And you don't."

"I don't really give a fuck what most people do. I see what are the facts, then go where those lead me. Following the crowd is for cattle."

"Question everything."

"And find the answers at the end."

Huh, she never heard that. Was that a code phrase? James just came up with it on the spot. The girl held up a finger to hold that thought as she pulled the pad from her pocket. The word of the outsider was practically a favorite. She searched for that exact phrase and... how did she not see that before? Because it was not there. It was now.

"You follow True family?" There was astonishment in her voice.

"Could say that. Though... I don't have anyone to follow it with."

"Everyone around you is into some other stupid belief?"

"A lot of stupid beliefs. In the end, it might be more important what they do with it, but most just use them as excuses to be assholes."

"Bleh. Oh, mom has to see this! She's our caretaker... uh, you know what that is, right?"

"Moral guide. But a bit rusty on it. Don't assume I know everything."

"Eh, can't expect that of anyone."

Her hand took his, a softness that the man enjoyed. When was the last time a person touched him? The girl was cute... practical, pleasant... kinky. Oh, if only she was real. Maybe he can get a good fuck before the dream decided to end. He'd keep the play going. No need to tell them anything extra. Better not slip any details that he has no legitimate means of knowing.

Pam practically dragged him inside, where the woman was busy next to the stove, pots warming up their future meals. Yak beef and tomatoes in what was almost a ground-down mixture, but they were getting a good sauteeing to soften that beef and bring out the flavor of tomatoes.

"You look... chipper. Oh, hello. Come to visit?"

"Mom! He is also into what we are!"

James raised a hand to Anna, taking brief glances at the workroom. A bit cramped, and might remind one more of a sweatshop, but he had to make good use of space. The stove had a vent above it to let the cooking fumes and steam get out of the space.

"Hm. Didn't expect to find a pervert. Came here just to have fun?"

"Yes, he's that, but he follows the outsider!"

A pause. That was unusual. The woman had expected no one else to follow that religion by now. However, there could always be those to pretend. Time for a test.

"Oh... well, just to make sure. What does the outsider say about strangers?"

James just made up stuff on the spot. It was influenced by his own philosophy on life.

"Strangers deserve a chance, one... to see if they can be friends or if they want to be enemies. I guess I'm a stranger now."

"True. Even if we might share a belief. Still... quite refreshing. I was getting tired of the disapproval from the other guests."

"Always going on about their way, hmm?"

The smell of food was tempting the man. His stomach made a noise disapproving of its less-than-full state. But if he had his facts straight... he had one problem.

"Hungry? We'll still have to ask you to pay for anything besides the bed."

"Apparently, but I'm not a fan of tomatoes."

"Why not? They're full of flavor and quite filling. And good at so many things."

"Used to like them, had an issue from them, and lost the taste for good. Plus, I can't afford it. Kinda light in the pocket."

"Well, I'm tempted to make an exception, but you make one and they all want to be one."

A look across the room. The research bench sat there, no one to further their knowledge. The man pointed in the direction of it.

"I could work for it. Maybe you need a hand with tech."

"Hm. We do need some help there. I think I can allow that. And if you have such a problem with tomatoes, we have other food around for picky eaters."

It sounded like she was chiding him, but the man knew what he was and would not deny it. Might as well step over to the bench. How DID research work? Turns out they just read through stuff to cobble together a working model. Or listen in on transmissions to fill the gaps. Bridge those gaps with your own intuition and knowledge... and you don't need to spend as much time. Right, what was next? Electricity. And industrial generators. Those would go in the power room once Nathan digs it out. They're gonna need an initial jolt of power to get the chemfuel refiner working long enough to fuel the one generator, but then Pam can get to make more. Easy enough. The man knew how power was made... in theory.

Anna was trying to focus on the cooking, but this man's arrival was pleasant news indeed. She felt less strange, less crazy. And he felt smart, so it was not just for idiots who would follow anyone. As he went to work behind her, the woman saw that Pam was... not yet going back to her tasks. The girl seemed to like putting stuff together like it was fun for her... but now she was just looking... that way. OH. A smirk from the mother. She spoke in low tones... which was useless... James had great hearing.

"Someone's got a crush."

Pam looked at her mother with startled eyes. She did? Okay, she did. The girl couldn't stop staring at the guy. He was not pretty... actually, he was a bit below average... a notable gut, a face that was not going to win any contest, and a body that was so out of shape that any more of that and he might be called deformed. Not ugly, but... below average. And yet he had something that drew her. Words? Nah, she was like this before he even spoke. Eyes. It was like... she could see so much in them. So much that she wanted to know. The man looked sad, but putting on a brave, barely-happy face. As if to not worry people. And rage. She could see that there was... so much rage in him. Like if she knew even a bit of it her heart would break. What was this inside her? This desire to protect and nurture and make things better and...