Love on the Frontier

"But my name is--" Carl started to say.

"Save it. While I'm sure it's a nice name, I just don't care. We color-coded the islands for quick reference and it makes more sense for us to identify you that way instead of learning your names. Besides, I'm sure you'll agree, if you're having a life or death emergency, then us knowing exactly where to go without looking it up is in everyone's best interest."

Considering we'll be several hours away, it wouldn't matter one way or another, I thought as he continued.

"Same with the reports, we need to know about the stations, not about your personal issues, so keep that shit to yourself."

"According to the company handbook, you're suppose to have professionals on hand for any issue, both medical and mental," Alejandro said. "What if we have one of those?"

He tapped at his computer, "We have a standard medical program with a virtual doctor who can help you with whatever need arises. And if you're feeling down, talk to that, or... which of you took the marriage deal?"

I nodded, "We all did."

"Well, there you go, talk to them, or each other, I don't care." We had more questions, but, again, he ignored us. "As part of the job, you've been assigned a home to live in, and a jumper that'll allow you to get to the stations, and back and forth to this settlement, if need be. I'll be honest, that shouldn't be a weekly or a monthly thing. You're paid to stay on the island in case of an emergency and that's where we want you, on the island preventing shit from going wrong. If I see you more than twice a year, and even then only during the scheduled maintenance months, I'm going to want to know why. Don't worry, you'll get regular airdrops of supplies once a week. Any questions?"

He started speaking again without waiting for a question, but Dave cut him off. "What if we want something that can only be gotten in town?"

With a large huff, he gritted his teeth and said, "Order it and it'll be added to the weekly drop, along with any packages you get from off-planet. Look, those machines have already been down for a week longer than we planned waiting on you, I don't have time to go through all of this stuff, it's on the data file, and it's pretty self-explanatory."

"I thought we were in the rainy season and couldn't do anything until it was over," Dave said.

Creed laughed. "This ain't the rainy season. We don't allow ships to land in the rainy season. We tried and it didn't end well for anyone." He waved away another question Dave had and said, "Look, for every minute you're standing here, our bonus is getting smaller."

We glanced at Alejandro who clarified. "For every quarter we come in over production, we get a bonus that'll be directly deposited into your accounts along with the rest of your pay."

"Company policy." The way Creed said 'Company policy' told us all that he hated the fact he couldn't control our pay along with our lives. "So, unless you've got the money to pay off your debts just standing here, I suggest you go." We stared at him until he looked at us like we were idiots and said, "What're you waiting for, get out, be productive, make the company money."

"Isn't someone going with us, to show us around, give us the tour or something," Dave asked.

"There's a virtual tour on the chips, besides, you're supposed to be smart, you'll figure it out. Oh, that reminds me, if I have to send someone out, you'll pay the costs."

"What if we have an emergency," I asked, "or if something breaks down?"

"Either deal with it or pay the repair fee."

"According to the company handbook," Alejandro said, "we are not responsible for the repair expenses of the machines."

"What the fuck? Did you memorize that thing. Yes, if it a true emergency, or if it was out of your control to prevent the machine from breaking down, then the company will repair it at no cost to you, but if you call us for some bullshit reason, and if we find out it broke due to your negligence then you are paying for our time and effort to get you back up and running. Look, the company shuts these things down twice a year for bi-annual cleaning and maintenance, which we just performed, you shouldn't have emergencies, and with that, I'm done talking. Your jumper is out back, just follow the GPS and you'll be fine. See you in a six months or so." We looked at each other and the others shrugged and looked at me. I sighed and he looked up. "What?"

"The marriages?"

"You just sent us your forms. We're still looking, but I promise, it's a priority."

The way he smiled made me nervous. Suddenly, I was concerned I'd be at home and a younger version of the bored teenager in his office would knock on my door. I might have been many things, but a pedophile wasn't one of them.

"I'm sure this doesn't have to be said, but I'm not looking for anyone underage," I said glancing at his assistant.

He snorted. "Don't worry, Boy Scout, she's legal. Been that way for a few years."

That didn't make me feel better and I began cursing myself for not listening to all the alarms that had been going off in my head since I first started the application. Those buddies of mine, good old loneliness and desperation (L&D) were my blinders that blocked me from seeing anything I didn't want to see. As I walked to the back of the building the more I thought about my arranged marriage and the more I began to wish I had said fuck it and continued working at the local factory back on my home world. Of course, his entire demeanor kind of turned my stomach so I thought maybe it was that. I doubted it, but I was desperate, fucking D, to hope I hadn't thrown my life away for a piece of jail bait ass. Or worse.

The jumpers looked as dingy and messed up as the rest of the town, but Dave, it turned out, use to be a flier technician and our jumpers were modeled after those. He showed us how to do a start up diagnostic and how to program the GPS. They weren't the newest model, and Dave said they could use a good refurbishing, but he said they didn't look like they would fall from the sky anytime soon and that gave us hope. As it ran through the diagnostic program, I looked it over and found it's design strange. It looked like a teardrop with a window. Dave said that design made it moved like a bullet through the atmosphere, but because of the smaller engine it was limited to a range of about two thousand miles before it need to rest and recharge.

Then he said we were lucky. He said the small machines had solar panels on the roof that would recharge the batteries if we lost charge away from home. He said the most we'd be stuck somewhere was about a half a day as it charged up. He also said that as soon as we got home we should probably give them a good washing since the film over the panels wouldn't let light through.

It wasn't a comforting thought, but I couldn't imagine I'd be somewhere without a charge so I wasn't too worried about it. Of course, it was nice to know I wouldn't die because I forgot to plug the damn thing in at night. When I said that, Dave gave us a lecture on proper charging techniques. Ten minutes of talking just so it could all boil down to, the landing pad was also the charging pad. Just park it in the right spot and forget about it.

After that, I kept the rest of my thoughts to myself and continued my inspection. The most annoying thing was that the anti-grav engine took up most of the space in the back. Granted, I had no idea why I would need more than the rear storage compartment could hold, but for some reason, I wanted it to be more. Finally, all the lights turned green and we were ready. Like Dave showed us, I inserted the data file and a flight path appear on the inside of the glass. My destination was designated as Green One Home. I shook my head, tossed a wave toward the others and took off.

The first month was what I expected. Eat, sleep, and go inspect the machines. That along with the occasional alert actually kept us super busy. We were exhausted most of the time, especially since most of the alerts were clogs in the intake valves that for some reason needed human eyes to review. Apparently, if the clog was organic, we had to take special precautions to keep it safe. I got it, Union Environmental laws and all, but the three machines I was responsible for sucked in hundreds gallons of water a day. My thought was, if something alive got sucked in, it wasn't coming back out in the same condition, but regulations demanded we had to take every measure blah, blah, blah. I hated rules that made no sense.

After a while, it became apparent that the machines were pretty damn impressive and would run just this side of forever and unless an alert went off, we didn't have to monitor them all that much, and even then only about once a week. Between the flying to each one, and whatever we might have to do, we worked a total of four hours a week. Suddenly, I went from barely having any time to having too much time on my hands, we all did.

Like in the cabin on the transport ship, we started getting together during the day to pass the time. Granted even with the limited access to our computers and the universal internet, we were still able to watch more than the same six vids, and because Dave loved doing it, he slowly refurbished our jumpers.

When he was done, he said, "I also fixed the communicators so now they'll change frequencies to something other than the company band."

"Can't we get in trouble for changing things," Carl asked for the hundredth time.

I sighed and said, "For the last time, Alejandro told you, legally the company can't restrict the communicators or any part of the jumper. It's a safety issue." He started to say something but I cut him off. "Look, if you get called out, just tell them I said it was alright. That way they'll come looking for me instead of you."

He nodded, mollified, and stopped worrying. At least a little. We were finding out that out in the world, Carl was a bit of a worrier. Of course he was the same way on the transport, but then we all were so it seemed normal. I couldn't count how many times I'd been woken up in the middle of the night not for an alert but because Carl was worried about something. Honestly, I'm pretty sure if we hadn't started getting together during the day, one of us would've had a nervous breakdown. Probably Carl, but the companionship helped and he calmed down enough that I was able to get more sleep.

And that's how it was, we all had our little roles we played. Alejandro was the guy who knew about things like the company handbook and the law. Dave was the mechanic, an actual mechanic and not someone like me who pointed drones at a problem. Carl was a worrier and a damn fine cook. I thought it was because cooking seemed to calm him so he did it all the time, and the others agreed. Then there was me. I was the Creed whisperer. The guys said as Green One, it made the most sense. I said the guys were chicken shits and they shrugged and agreed.

I wouldn't say I could convince Creed to do anything as a true whisperer could, but I wasn't afraid to contact him either. It was probably because, since I was the one responsible for gathering the data from the others and making sure nothing was missing, I talked to him the most anyway. And it just made sense that would be when I'd ask him for things, like our wives. At first, he put us off, like he did in his office, but then I set up a reoccurring email that hit his computer first thing every morning and once in the afternoon. I got cursed for that, but since I didn't give a shit and wanted to get laid, I let it run.

Because of my interactions with him, I saw his power was illusionary. We thought of him as powerful, but in reality, he was just there as support for us. As long as we did our jobs per the company handbook, the one Alejandro knew by heart, he couldn't really do shit. I knew it, he knew it, and he hated me for it. Not to say he still didn't find ways to make my life miserable at times, but it wasn't anything I couldn't bear. One of those ways was to delay our arranged marriages, but after six weeks of constant harassment, he relented and gave us access to the company's arranged marriage site.

I know it makes me sound bad to say, but the photos were meh, at least until I saw Ky. She was head and shoulders above all the other girls, at least in my mind. The others showed me the ones they liked. Again, meh.

Because of the limitations with the equipment, we could only email. Voice and video chat was restricted to true emergencies or we had to pay. I called bullshit and Creed returned with his favorite response, "Company policy." It was annoying, but it really did allow me to get to know my intended. For example, during one of our emails I found out she believed in traditional gender roles.

As long as you did your man thing, I'll do my woman thing, she wrote. I'll cook, clean, and put you to bed every night with a full belly full and empty balls. I laughed when I read that and was making another discovery, she didn't hesitate to be clear. I wasn't sure how that would translate to real life, but on paper, she was amazing and I was comfortable with her almost instantly.

It was funny really. Back home, it would've taken me months if not years to become so intimate, emotionally, with a woman, but through email, with her, I had no problems. I could talk not only dirty to her, but I could talk to her about anything... except what I was like. I mean, I sent her photos and she could see that I wasn't a bad looking guy, but I needed help describing my personality. I asked the guys and immediately regretted it.

Now, the guys had their own little quirks, but they were there lickity split when things got stupid on the machines, same as me when they needed help, but on the arranged marriage topic, we all reverted back to those juveniles shit heads we had been on the transport. We were stupid and thought we were funny. I mean, we were, of course, but when I asked for help this is what I heard.

"Tell her you're like a grumpy teddy bear," Carl said.

"What does that even mean?"

"You know, like you're sort of round, kind of hairy--"

"Especially with that beard," Dave added.

"Yeah, and you roll your eyes and growl under your breath all the time," Carl finished.

"It is a fact that women like cats," Alejandro said thoughtfully, "tell her you're a cat and all that growling is actually purring."

"How's that supposed to help me?"

"Well, it may encourage her to pet you when she's near."

"Hmm," Dave said, "I'm going to tell my girl I'm a cat too." He made a few growling sound. "How's that sound?"

"Sounds like you got caught in one of the intake tubes," Carl said and we laughed.

After much deliberation on their part, and much eye rolling on mine, they came up with, 'Short, round teddy bear like man, who has more hair on his face than on his head is looking for a woman who'll ride him like a stallion.'

"Add this," Dave said, "'I'm smart, charming, and hung like a horse... Just kidding, I'm not that charming.'"

We laughed and I wrote, I've been described as a teddy bear because of my height, my growl, and my full beard. Except for the top of my head, I've been going bald since I was fifteen so I keep it shaved. I figure it looks better this way. And the guys say I'm round, but I feel like I'm more stocky, if anything. I rambled on for a few more pages before attaching a photo and sending it.

When it returned, I got more than I could hope. Oh my God, you do look like a teddy bear! I love teddy bears and can't wait to feel you growling as I lay on your chest while I'm rubbing your smooth bald... head. I laughed until I saw her photo, she was slender and athletic with long warm brown hair. She had hazel eyes and a dazzling smile, but what I couldn't help staring at the most was her curves. Her breasts were small, almost flat and her ass barely had a curve to it, but even still all I wanted was to bury myself in both.

The photo's really got the heavy flirting going, and once we crossed that line, we took off like a shot. It got to the point where I was masturbating to her emails every night. Eventually, I got up the nerve and asked her to marry me. She gave me a very enthusiastic yes.

Because of the contract we'd signed with the company, our matches couldn't come to the planet unless we were married. Personally, I figured there was some kind of kickback happening, but couldn't see where they'd be getting any money from us marrying so I didn't complain... too much.

Honestly, I was so use to pushing back on him that it was a knee jerk reaction to everything I didn't like. I mean, I had pestered him to get on the site and then suspected him for letting us get on the site. We hated each other and both of us were okay with that.

It was just before the rainy season ended and we were in the few months of Spring when we got legally married. Me at Creed's office and her at her local spaceport. Seeing her on screen for the first time was more than I could ask for since it confirmed her photo were really her and not a catfish. I tried to say hi but Creed yelled time was money and told the official to put it in gear. I growled but let it slide when she said I had a cute growl. Creed snorted and I gave him the bird. He just smiled that creepy smile that said he was up to something. I'd looked over the entire contract twice and didn't see any mention of jail time or any other thing I would need to be concerned about. From what I could tell, she was a twenty-five-year-old healthy and sane woman who wanted to marry me. It was everything I wanted and that worried me. Again, I figured it was my reaction to Creed, but couldn't prove it.

I almost punched the nasty old man as he stood to the side and fondled his twenty-year old companion, but what really almost got him killed and me fired was when the officiant pronounced us legally married that Creed ended the link before we could say love you or bye or anything.

"What the fuck?!"

Again, he gave me that smile. "They're not going to hold the transport forever, and those machines aren't going to take care of themselves."

I kicked his trash can across the office on my way out and he laughed. Within a week, all of us were legally married and all of our brides were on their way. Like us, they all rode together and had to be collected from different planets, and like us, it took them two months to get to Kricker 5.

It was the longest two months of our lives because we couldn't talk to the women in transit. We could get updates on the ship's location but because the messages would have had to go through the crew we all agreed it wouldn't be prudent to try to have conversations until they arrived.

All of us had planned accordingly. We did our weekly maintenance each day to make sure we'd have enough time for our honeymoons. I even set up a nice area on one of the machines so that Ky and I could watch the suns set over the ocean. We never really got a daily night, I mean, we kept ourselves to a set day/night schedule, but since both suns set but at different times we never got a true night time. Except once every thirty-four days, then both would sink below the horizon and you could see the moons shining over the water. It was spectacular and pretty romantic. I hadn't told Ky and wanted to surprise her. Who knew an hour after she'd arrived I would've been on the communicator screaming at Creed. For close to two hours he listened to me rant and rave.

"I don't know why you're yelling at me," Creed said with a shit eating smile, "you're the one who picked--."

"I thought I was picking someone else. You lied to me!"

"I never lie," he lied. "You asked for a companion and you got a companion."

"I asked for a marriage!"

"And you got that too."