Space Cherry Pt. 05

Author's Note:

Many, many thanks for the very kind ratings and comments on Cherry's story so far. Really glad folks seem to be enjoying it! Plenty more to come.

***

There was no response to their attempts at communication and it took over an hour to execute the manual docking. Scans showed E16 was completely without power and they had no way to open the shuttle bay doors remotely. Their only way in was to dock manually to one of the external hatches.

It was a complicated and dangerous series of procedures and maneuvers that were all new to Cherry and she struggled to keep her focus on them. Despite her best efforts, her mind couldn't help trying to make sense of the data it was presented with.

With no power readings, that meant no life support. No way for Tor or Fem to breath. George's scanners, admittedly not the most advanced, registered no signs of life whatsoever. Even if Tor and Fem had managed to get themselves into emergency suits, she should have been picking up some faint heat signatures but there was nothing at all coming from E16. Going by the sensor readings, she could have been sitting there like this for a thousand years.

Still, Cherry couldn't bring herself to accept the obvious conclusion from this data. Neither could Heb. He was utterly focused on the task at hand and Cherry was grateful for his calm and professional demeanor.

As Heb operated the controls, making the many manual adjustments necessary to sync George's course with E16's spin, Cherry monitored their position and called out sensor data to assist him.

Finally, they felt the soft impact of contact with the mothership and the thump of the docking clamps engaging. The lights on her panel indicated a safe, hard seal. Heb rose from the pilot's station with intent and focus in his eyes. Cherry was sure she saw fear there as well but her Captain was doing his best to conceal it for her benefit.

"Come on. Let's see what the hell is going on here," he declared.

They suited up and used the manual controls to gain entry to E16. They found their home in complete darkness. Tools and personal items floated here and there, untethered by the artificial gravity that was offline. They stood for a moment at the open airlock, only the light of their helmet torches showing the way.

"We've got to get to the bridge," Heb announced and began moving slowly forward, magnetic boots keeping him on the floor.

It took Cherry a moment to make herself follow. A terror that she had never known threatened to consume her and every time she closed her eyes she couldn't help picturing the frozen bodies of her missing shipmates drifting lifeless in front of her.

But as they made their way to the bridge, they saw nothing but the floating detritus of their lives and the bridge itself was as empty and silent as the rest of the ship.

Heb moved to a panel near the back of the space where Cherry knew the emergency power controls were. In a few seconds, lights began to flicker and her helmet's external microphones captured the sounds of air being pumped out of the vents once again.

"There," Heb announced, turning around and removing his helmet as the bridge's dim emergency lighting pushed back the darkness just a little. "I've got us hooked up to the shuttle's power, should be enough for life support and a few critical systems for a couple of hours anyway."

Without needing to be told, Cherry moved quickly to a workstation, removing her own helmet as she went, and brought up the controls for E16's internal scanners and sensors. As she feared though, they showed no signs of life anywhere on board.

"Fuck!" Her fist came crashing down on the panel in front of her as her fear threatened to get the better of her until she felt Heb's calming hand on her shoulder.

"It's OK Cherry, we'll find them," he said, as reassuringly as he could.

"Now," he went on quickly, "with the internal cameras still down, I'll have to make a visual inspection of the ship. While I'm doing that I want you to see if you can call up sensor logs, camera logs, anything that could tell us what happened to Tor and Fem."

"Aye, aye Skip. On it," she replied, snapped back to focus through Heb's influence once again. "We know they were here 34 hours ago, they responded to our message when we left Gasprol, so I'll start there and work forward."

"OK. Call me if you find anything. Use the suit comms, ship's comms is still down."

Alone now on the bridge, Cherry worked quickly. She needed to use all her still limited understanding of E16 and her various systems to search for the automatic CCTV recordings of activity on board and to divert power as she needed it to play the recorded video. It didn't take her long to discover what she was looking for and she called Heb immediately.

"Hey Skip, you can come back up here. You're not going to find them."

"On my way," came the immediate reply and Heb was standing beside her only a minute or two later.

Together, they viewed the internal camera recordings that showed Tor and Fem heading to the galley around eight hours previously. They had just completed their work on removing the broken coil and were taking a break, but before they reached the galley a proximity warning brought them back to the bridge.

Cherry and Heb both noted the unease they could hear in Tor's voice when he commented that George had made good time. He must have known it couldn't have been them, must have known that it was too soon. And he must have known that every other alternative spelled danger.

What Tor clearly suspected but couldn't have known for certain, but Cherry and Heb could now see from the recordings of the external cameras, was that it certainly was danger and with a very large capital D.

The ship they could see in the recording, approaching E16 with quiet, slow menace, was something neither of them had ever seen before. It was massive: incredibly long, perhaps a kilometer or more, yet slender, widening as it went aft.

Despite the absence of light to be reflected, Cherry could have sworn it glinted. Like a giant ice pick in space.

They returned to the bridge feed recording and saw that Tor and Fem's reaction to the intruder was much the same as theirs and they went about doing what Cherry and Heb might have done themselves: trying to scan the new ship, trying to make contact. Without engines, attempting an escape was pointless.

And then Cherry and Heb saw a bright flash suddenly fill the screen for just a moment before everything went black.

Feverishly, Cherry went through every sensor and camera log on the ship only to find they all blacked out at precisely the same moment.

"Nothing," she said when she finally admitted defeat. "So either, they were boarded and taken prisoner, or..." she drifted off without finishing the thought out loud, though in her mind she couldn't help but picture some terrifying alien weapon reducing Tor and Fem to atoms.

Heb was silent for a long moment but in his eyes, Cherry could see his mind was working.

"A new and dangerous presence," he said finally, and Cherry remembered Shoba's warning on their departure from Gasprol.

With remarkable timing, their brief reverie was interrupted by the unmistakable chime of the proximity alarm. With only a small crew, the bridge of E16 was sometimes unattended, so many years previously an ancestor of Heb's had programmed the proximity alarm to sound throughout the ship with a very distinct noise.

Cherry looked at Heb and as he looked back at her she could see the dread in his eyes. They both knew what it was.

With no power for the main screen at the front of the bridge, Cherry managed to display a live image from the external cameras on the smaller screen in front of them.

Just as they had seen in the recording a moment ago, it moved slowly towards them. Long, silver and menacing. Before either of them had time to speak again, the same flash that had filled their screen a moment previous now filled their vision.

And then everything went black.

*

When Cherry opened her eyes, she was conscious only of bright light and the beating of her own heart. Its pace seemed to increase as her awareness slowly returned, her eyes adjusted to the brightness, and she remembered the terrifying vision on the screen.

"Hello Cherry. Welcome." The disembodied voice startled her. Fear gripped her and her pulse thrummed even faster.

"Who...?" was all she could manage.

"Please Cherry, do not worry. You are quite safe here." While not quite monotone, she felt the voice had a clearly synthetic quality to it. The feeling only heightened her uneasiness as she struggled to understand who, or what, had evidently kidnapped the entire crew of E16.

Hey eyes fully adjusted now, Cherry's field of vision was limited but she knew she was lying naked, flat on her back, on a hard bed or platform in the middle of a large, well lit room. Her arms and legs were restrained somehow so that she couldn't move them.

She knew she should be afraid.

Still, it didn't take long for her to get control of her fear. She felt her breathing slow and she closed her eyes and focused on doing what the Captain might do. Assess the situation, take in all information, wait for my chance.

"Good, that's better," the voice said.

"Who are you?" More in control now, her voice was clear and loud.

"I am afraid my true name would be unpronounceable in your language. But you may call be Xan. Welcome Cherry."

"Welcome? I'm not sure how things go with your species Xan, but generally when someone of my species has been kidnapped, they definitely don't feel welcome. Where is the rest of my crew?"

"I am sorry for the way we had to meet Cherry but believe me, you are quite safe here, as are your shipmates. And I mean you no harm."

"Well if that's true, what do you mean then? Why have you brought us here?"

"My species is not from this realm. We come from... another plane you might say. As such, your part of the universe is completely unknown to us. We simply wish to learn." Xan's voice never wavered or altered in pitch. Cherry was sure now the sound was synthetic.

"So, you're what? A scout? Some kind of scientist?"

"You are impressively intuitive Cherry. Indeed I am both scout and scientist. I have been sent here, as a scientist, to scout your part of the universe and learn as much as I can about you."

"Shit Xan, I can tell you definitely have a lot to learn about us if you think I am going to let you experiment on me without fighting back. I don't know how it is on your plane or whatever, but round here we don't experiment on sentient beings without their consent." Cherry felt she was still able to keep the fear from her voice as she tried again to move her arms and legs but found them still held solidly in place by their invisible restraints.

"Please Cherry, do not be concerned. I understand your reluctance. Please be assured that I only wish to learn. I will not harm you."

After he had finished saying this, Cherry felt her body begin to move. For a few seconds, she didn't understand what was happening, with her arms and legs restrained it was difficult for her to maneuver herself to look around, but she soon became aware that the platform she was lying on was changing shape.

"Xan?! What's happening?!" she asked, a clear note of panic in her voice.

"All is well Cherry, do not be alarmed. I am merely repositioning your body slightly so that you might engage more comfortably with the experiment."

From the way it was repositioning her body, Cherry had a pretty good idea what kind of experiment her disembodied captor was talking about.

Her hands remained tightly restrained at her sides but the platform now ended just below her ass and two wings had sprouted that held her legs wide apart and raised up in the air just a little. At the same time, Cherry felt her mind start to go foggy. She was somehow aware that what was happening should be cause for fear, even terror and yet she felt only content, at worst an absent-minded stillness.

"Hmm, Xan?" The sound of her own voice seemed distant to her.

"Yes Cherry?"

"What... experiment...?"

"My particular area of interest, Cherry, is in sexual interaction and biological reproduction. This concept is most strange to us. I have already learned a great deal. For example, I already know that for your species, as for almost all in this part of space, most kinds of sexual interaction produces extremely powerful physical and emotional responses and most sexual interaction is not done with the intention of reproduction, which is the biological function the sexual interaction evolved to achieve. I have found these concepts to be most difficult to understand. They are completely unknown to my species and I have studied them in detail."

Cherry heard him, but she struggled to take much of it in. What she did take from it was that something sexual was about to happen to her. Again, she felt she should struggle against this and now felt sure that the reason she wasn't was that he had done something to her, drugged her somehow maybe. Instead of the terror and anger she knew she should be feeling her reaction was something more like intrigue, even curious anticipation.

"You may be aware by now Cherry that I have learned that I can use simple chemical processes to stimulate your brain. This is why you are feeling no fear. I believe, based on the results of previous experiments, that by stimulating you in this way you will enjoy the experiment enormously."

The fog in Cherry's brain now began to clear somewhat and she became aware of a strange sensation travelling along her body. Her skin felt ultra-sensitive. As if to test this, she felt a small puff of air blow across her torso, causing her to jerk.

"Oh!" There was no doubt about it now, whatever chemicals or manipulation Xan was using on her were definitely not limited to easing her fear response. More puffs of air crossed over her body, each one causing a jolt of sexual energy to pass through her. It was as if he had made her entire body one huge erogenous zone.

"What..." she panted, struggling to make sense of the stimulation her body was receiving, "What are you doing to me?"

"I have stimulated those areas of your brain that are most receptive to sexual pleasure. I trust you are finding the experience a positive one?"

She wanted to be mad, to scream at him for this uninvited violation of her, for making her feel things she didn't want to feel, but all she could manage was a long, low moan. With her eyes fluttering it was difficult to focus her attention on her surroundings, but she was vaguely conscious of movement around her.

Using all the effort she could muster, she struggled to lift her head. She noticed a number of hinged arms had begun to move around the platform she was confined to, with various appendages at the ends.

She felt things, not hands for sure but things, forms roughly the size of hands but softer, make contact with her body across her stomach and begin to caress her slowly. They felt warm against her bare skin and there were at least three of them she was distinctly aware of. Two moved up towards her breasts, one towards her pussy. The ones at her breasts began applying gentle, kneading pressure. When she felt the other reach her pussy, she became aware that she was very wet. It covered itself over her and, applying pressure, began to move back and forth.

Cherry started to breath heavier and she moaned again.

"Xan... what... is happening?"

"The experiment has begun Cherry. Does it feel pleasurable?"

"Mmm... yes..." was all she could manage. In the state she was in, it was difficult to focus on small details but she was still aware that the hand-things working on her breasts were changing subtly their tactics, increasing and decreasing pressure. Occasionally, they brushed over her nipples, now hard and engorged. As they did this with increasing pressure and frequency, Cherry groaned loudly.

"Fascinating Cherry. You are clearly very susceptible to the stimulation of your nipples."

"Mmm hmm... yes Xan... more..."

At the same time, the hand-thing ministering to her pussy was also trying different movements and degrees of pressure. As it increased the speed and pressure of its rubbing, Cherry's moaning also grew in intensity and her hips moved up involuntarily, aching for more contact.

"Very good Cherry. You are responding very well. I am getting much useful data from this experiment."

"Mmm, more Xan, more... please..." Cherry became conscious for the first time in a while that her hands were restrained. She longed to move them, to guide Xan's hand-things.

"Please Xan... make me cum..." she moaned, almost desperate for release.

"Hmm, very interesting Cherry. Your responses to the stimulation are very rapid."

"Please Xan..." she squirmed now, desperately trying to illicit the touches, the pressure she needed to send her over the edge.

"I apologize Cherry. It is necessary for experimental purposes to build the stimulation over time in order to record the changes in your responses. Rest assured, I will bring you to your climax shortly."

Cherry moaned loudly in expectation as she felt the hand-things increase their pace and pressure on her body. Though her eyes were mostly closed, she was aware of a sound and some new movement over her. She felt the hand-thing on her pussy move slightly, exposing her slit, opening her up.

Almost at the same instant, she felt a new presence there. In normal circumstances, in this state of arousal, she would have felt sure it was the head of a cock. She opened her eyes and angled her head down to see that Xan had created a reasonable approximation of one.

It was on the end of one of the arms attached to the platform and it looked to be an almost perfect cylinder, tapered at one end. It shone silvery bright like the exterior of Xan's ship. As cocks went, Cherry thought, it was on the short and narrow end of the spectrum. Still, she gasped with expectation as it first nuzzled up to her opening and then slid inside.

"Hmm, that feels good Xan..." she moaned, a little surprised that the cold looking metallic object was actually very warm as it pressed into her.

"I am pleased you are enjoying the experiment Cherry. Note that the new tool that has been introduced may undergo some changes in size and shape as the experiment continues, based on your responses." Xan's synthetic voice maintained its scientific detachment. For her part, having had some experience with shape-shifting cocks, Cherry felt not only her arousal but her expectation and desire grow with this new information.

In short order, she started to feel what Xan was talking about. She felt the cock-thing ease its length out of her pussy and as it moved back in slowly, it was obviously thicker and longer. It continued to grow over the next few strokes before it seemed to settle on a particular size and slowly, methodically increased its pace. The hand-things meanwhile continued their ministrations and the one on her pussy now focused it's attention on her clit. As the cock-thing's pace continued to grow, Cherry felt her orgasm building.

"Yes Xan, make it fuck me like that... fuck!" Cherry's back arched and her hips bucked as she felt herself getting closer and closer.

"Very good Cherry. You are responding excellently. The experiment is nearly complete."

"No Xan, don't stop... please... make it fuck me... make it make me cum!" Cherry's movements took on increased urgency as her body reacted to the fear of Xan ending the experiment prematurely.

As if sensing her concern, Cherry felt the cock-thing change shape a little once more and also change its angle of attack. The few inches towards the top seemed to have angled upward a little. It knew exactly what shape and angle to use to stimulate her completely. With the hand-thing stimulating her clit on the outside and the cock-thing relentlessly now working her g-spot, Cherry's pleasure started to peak.