Date: Fri, 2 May 2014 08:37:05 -0500
From: Vic James <vicjames2@hotmail.com>
Subject: Beast Chapter 18

                             Beasts
                          By Vic James
                      vicjames2@hotmail.com
                   Copyright 2014 by Vic James
                     http://www.vicjames.com


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                            Eighteen
   We walked to my mother's room.
   "Hello, dear," she said, hugging me.
   "Digger has decided to go into the box."
   "Really? Why, Digger?"
   "I want to be Beast 3.0, so our children are."
   Mom nodded. Then she sighed.
   "I'm having second thoughts about it."
   "Is there something that made you change your mind?"
   "I haven't changed it." She chuckled. "At least not at this
moment. It's just."
   "Scary?" I suggested.
   She nodded.
   "Mom, I was not aware of time passing at all. You are going
to open your eyes and it will be done."
   "Yes. It."
   I smiled at her.
   "If you don't want to be an Ape, you could always be one of
Richard's Mermaids."
   She laughed. "On Mars?"
   "Well, you would probably have to settle for an indoor
swimming pool."
   We all laughed.
   "I know it is a good idea. There are many good reasons to do
it.Look!"
   She showed me her fingernails. They were ragged.
   "You've been chewing them?"
   She nodded.
   "Mom, please do it for me, if not for yourself. I need you to
babysit."
   Mom laughed.
   "I'm not on death's door, Eric!"
   "I know, but now I'm going to live longer and I want you to,
too."
   She sighed.
   "Is that important to you, Eric?"
   "Very. I love you."
   She smiled.
   "Then I will. I missed part of your life. I don't want to
miss too much of the rest of it."
   "Yeah. Especially now that it's becoming so very weird."
   Digger chuckled and then laughed out loud. We joined in.
   "Jib boarded Jeff's shuttle a few minutes ago," she said.
   "Oh, good!"
   "Are you excited about seeing Alek?" she asked.
   I froze. I had no idea what to say-to her. I remembered
Digger saying she asked about a three-party marriage. I needed to
get over embarrassment about it and sex, in general with her.
After all I promised to give Pan and Jock kids and being a
mother, she knew sex was almost a requirement for that!
   "I am. I'm excited to see Pan and Jock, too." I took a deep
breath. She tilted her head. "I told Jock and Pan that I would
give them kids."
   Several expressions flitted across her face.
   "Eric wondered if his father would be impressed if he had
four babies by four different fathers," Digger said.
   Mom tried not to laugh, but it burst out. I chuckled, too.
   "Oh, good lord! If he finds out, I would love to see the
expression on his face!" she said.
   "I bet he has trouble speaking for at least a couple of
seconds," I added.
   We all laughed.
   "That's very generous of you, Eric. Will you have C-
sections?"
   "No, Dr. Rosenbloom said I wouldn't."
   She shook her head. "Amazing. Simply amazing. I am going to
have a lot of grandchildren."
   I nodded.
   We chatted for a few more minutes. She seemed relieved to me.
I suppose she had definitely decided to become a Beast. She
showed us photos of Jib. He was attractive. He was big. There was
a photo of him standing next to her. The top of her head was at
mid-chest level on him.
   "How did you two meet?"
   "We met on the flight to Shanghai. We sat next to each other
and started talking. He told me about a jerk he read about named
Martin LaRoche."
   Digger and I laughed. Mom chuckled.
   "I kept wondering if I should tell him. I spent hours
wondering. Finally, when I realized I really liked Jib, I did.
For the longest time, he thought I was joking. Then I thought to
show him my ID. He couldn't believe it, of course. He apologized
for calling my husband a jerk-"
   "Hey! If the shoe fits." I said.
   She nodded, chuckling.
   "I told him not to apologize. If you want to know the truth,
after he found out, he became rather. Hmm."
   "Angry?" I suggested.
   She laughed.
   "He tried to seduce me!"
   I laughed.
   "So, not angry."
   "No."
   "I had just left Martin and I wasn't ready to jump into bed,
even with someone like Jib. What we did, was become friends. He
had been to Shanghai before. He helped me find a place to live,
that coincidentally, was next door to him."
   Digger and I laughed.
   "Smooth!"
   "Yes! He showed me around. It was all very innocent for about
two weeks. By that time, I was certain I was in love with him,
but I didn't know how he felt about me. I knew we were good
friends, of course, but I didn't know if he was still
romantically interested. He hadn't made any more passes. But it
turned out he felt the same."
   I smiled.
   "How old is Jib?" I asked.
   My mother's face changed expression. It went blank.
   "Does that matter?"
   "No, Mom. I was just curious. It doesn't matter at all."
   She let out a deep breath.
   "He's fourteen years younger than me."
   I nodded.
   "How much younger is Harry than Dr. Rosenbloom?" I asked
Digger.
   He grinned.
   "Two hundred years, at least."
   Mom smiled.
   "Thank you for that, Eric. You've grown up to be a fine
person." She sighed. "I'm ashamed to admit I learned a lot about
you from Digger. I was so proud of the person he described. I
wish I could claim credit for it, but you did it by yourself.
I've always regretted leaving you."
   "Mom, we talked every day. I didn't feel left behind, at all.
You told me often enough that I could live with you. But I didn't
know about Jib for a couple of years. Why did you hide him from
me?"
   "I was afraid your father would find out and come after me. I
was hiding our relationship from him, not you. I didn't divorce
him because Martin doesn't believe in divorce and I promised him
when we married that I would never divorce him. I explained all
that to Jib and he understood. Martin would never understand.
It's Adultery. Capital A. I knew you wouldn't deliberately tell
him, if I asked you not to, but I was afraid it would slip out.
It would be just like him to monitor your calls, and if you
didn't know..."
   I nodded.
   "Was he always anti-Beast?" I asked.
   "No. I wouldn't have married him. He has changed into another
person. He met a Neo named Justin Davis who led him down the path
he took. Justin is also on the moon, I'm happy to say. Did you
ever meet him?"
   "Yes. He gave me the creeps. There was always something slimy
about the man. I took an instant dislike to him," I told her.
   Mom nodded.
   "I mentioned to Jib that if I converted we would be able to
have kids. He got all choked up and couldn't talk for a while.
Then he said he didn't want to influence me. I got the impression
he really wants them. So I'll have them. You seem happy. Maybe I
won't mess the next batch up too badly, either."
   "I'm sure you'll do even better, now that you've had
practice," I said, grinning.
   Digger laughed.
   I was getting sleepy.
   "I think I will take a nap. Maybe on my wedding day, I'll be
able to stay awake an entire day."
   "I'm sure Digger won't mind if you have to take a nap, even
tomorrow."
   "I won't," Digger said.
   I tried to stand and had trouble.
   "You are tired," Digger said. He helped me up.
   "I don't know why I couldn't stand right away. I wonder if
something is wrong."
   "No. Jeff warned us about that," Mother said.
   "Your body has different signals than you are used to,"
Digger said. "Your muscles are just worn out. Your body is
telling you it needs rest. You won't get muscle cramps or
strains, when they need a rest, you will get sleepy. Your muscles
will get stronger each day and you will stop getting sleepy as
often."
   "Oh. I guess that's good. Who wants muscle cramps?"
   "Actually, I got the impression from Jeff that you would
mostly sleep the first few days," Mom said. "I wouldn't try to
fight it."
   "I guess I will stop worrying, then."
   We walked slowly to our room. Digger offered to carry me, but
that seemed a little extreme to me. We lay down together and I
fell asleep.
   When I woke up, Digger wasn't in the room. I called him.
   "The Sunvision crew is here. I'm talking to Marshall."
   "Oh. OK."
   "I'll be right there," Digger said.
   "OK."
   A couple of minutes later, Digger walked into the room.
   "Are you ready to meet them?"
   "Sure."
   I put on a shirt. I started to put on shoes, but saw Digger
wasn't wearing them. I decided against them. All the rooms were
carpeted. I remembered Dr. Rosenbloom saying we would have to
wear shoes when we went outside on the moon. It made me smile.
   We left our room and Digger led me to a conference room.
There were four men and two women. One of the men was a Chimp.
Another was a human who wore an ear camera and had another one
floating next to him. There were two other human men and the
women were both human. One of the woman had purple hair which
curved up and over her head like a giant purple question mark. I
tried to not stare at it. She was grinning at me. She seemed
happy and her smile made me feel a little more at ease. They all
stood as we walked into the room. One of the humans held out his
hand.
   "Eric, I'm Marshall Owens. This is my partner Jud."
   He pointed to the Chimp.
   I shook Marshall's hand.
   "It's nice to meet you."
   "Next to Jud is Tom Hopkins."
   He was the cameraman. Tom nodded. Tom was quite attractive. I
wondered why he wasn't in front of the camera, rather than behind
it.
   "This is Jake Thomas, the captain of the EL-61 shuttle that
brought us here and will take us to the moon."
   He nodded to the other human.
   "Hello, Jake."
   He nodded at me. He looked like he was about fifty. He looked
bored. I could understand that. He probably had a little less
than no interest in my wedding.
   The door opened and Harry walked in.
   "How are you feeling, Eric?" Harry asked me.
   "Fine."
   Harry had a bottle with him. He put it down on the table. It
appeared to be made of metal and it was a shiny gold color.
   We all sat.
   "Digger, these are more nanites, it wouldn't hurt to give
yourself some more an hour or two before you go outside for the
service."
   Harry handed the bottle to Digger.
   "How many nanites are in there?" the woman with the purple
hair asked.
   "About sixty trillion, so don't lose the bottle."
   The captain barked out a laugh. The rest of us were amazed,
judging by the others' expressions.
   "Harry, Eric, this is Constance Rudjik. She is an ordained
Unitarian Universalist minister and is licensed to perform civil
and religious marriages."
   She grinned.
   "I am so excited about this!" she said. "This is my spouse,
Judith," she said, nodding to the woman with the purple hair.
'Judith' didn't seem to fit her. It sounded formal and she looked
anything but.
   "I'm pleased to meet you."
   "Eric, I thought we would make arrangements for the service
first and then I would like to interview you," Marshall said.
   "That's fine."
   "Digger asked us to make the arrangements for the wedding,"
Marshall said.
   "Oh, great!"
   They still needed our opinions about a lot of things. There
was some resistance coming from lunar authorities about having
the wedding outside on the surface. It seemed the lunar colonies
frowned on people going out airlocks without spacesuits, and
there were rules against it. I found that very humorous.
Fortunately, Sunvision was handling all that. I would have given
up and gotten married indoors, instead. After all, the wedding
was the important thing and even it wasn't essential. Digger and
I could have spent our whole lives together without a marriage
license. Then I worried that I should have included my mother in
the arrangements. She might have preferences for how things would
be. I decided to call her.
   "Hi, Mom. We're discussing the wedding arrangements. Do you
want to help decide things?"
   "Absolutely not. It's your wedding, not mine. If you need my
help, I'll be happy to give it, but you and Digger should have
the wedding you want."
   I sighed. I didn't want a wedding, I just wanted to be
married. I reminded myself that I was doing it for Dr.
Rosenbloom.
   "OK. It isn't any fun deciding all these things."
   She chuckled.
   "I know. Jib and I had a simple ceremony and there were many
things to decide. Music, food, guests, type of ceremony, type of
vows, witnesses, videoing the ceremony. It went on and on."
   I sighed.
   "OK. Bye."
   I disconnected.
   I started noticing the smells in the room. I could smell each
person with my new Beast nose. Each had a distinct odor.
   "Eric?"
   "I'm sorry. What did you ask?"
   "I asked what you two were planning to wear."
   Clothes, I thought.
   "Something simple, I said. Very casual. No tuxedos."
   After I said that, I worried that maybe Digger wanted us to
wear tuxedos. I looked at him, and he was nodding his head.
   "So that's all right with you?" I asked him.
   "Yes. I think Dr. Rosenbloom would prefer that. What do you
think, Harry?"
   "He just wants it to be obvious you aren't wearing protection
from the elements." Harry chuckled. "Or from the lack of
elements."
   I wondered about Mars. I wanted to ask Harry about how many
commitments Dr. Rosenbloom had gotten, but we were being videoed
and changing the subject seemed like a bad idea. Still, I
wondered if seeing us walk outside on the moon would convince
anyone to become a Martian colonist. It might, I thought, and
that connection between the marriage and the colonization of an
entire planet appealed to me.
   Marshall asked, "How many nanites are necessary to protect
Eric and Digger when they are outside."
   "A minimum of about ten billion to survive," Harry said. "The
more you have, the more comfortable you are in a challenging
environment, and the more adaptations they can make to the
conditions. With the minimum number, you might not be able to
open your eyes, for example. There wouldn't be enough to protect
them fully. Your skin would be damaged by vacuum, as skin cells
died."
   "That is fascinating," Judith said.
   The others nodded their heads.
   "How are they administered?" Digger asked.
   "Hold the nozzle against your forearm and press. A dose of
about fifteen billion will be injected. If your mother or her
husband want to attend the wedding without suits, they should
take two doses at least six hours before the service. That will
give the nanites time to get into position and begin stockpiling
oxygen. Still, I can't recommend it for your mother. She would be
fairly uncomfortable and very cold at the wedding of her only
child."
   Only child, so far, I thought. She might be having more.
   "So they work on humans?" the captain asked.
   Harry nodded.
   "With a high enough dose, they will keep humans from
suffocating for about forty minutes. But they will not protect
humans from the cold, the heat, or the radiation. Outer layers of
skin will die after about twenty minutes, but that should be long
enough for the ceremony. I brought plenty, in case any of the
rest of you wanted to go out without protection," Harry said to
the other people at the table.
   The others looked like that was the last thing they wanted to
do. I could understand that. They would have to spend the whole
time worrying about how long they'd been out.
   My mind started drifting. I started thinking about my father.
My mother, my father, and I would all be on the moon at the same
time. But he was in prison. Where he belonged.
   "Eric, you don't look like you are having any fun," Judith
said.
   I didn't want to bring up my father. This event had nothing
to do with him, and he wouldn't have wanted to attend our
wedding, even if he wasn't in prison.
   "I'm thinking about Mars," I said, instead.
   All of the others at the table nodded their heads.
   "Are you two planning to join the colony?" Marshall asked.
   "Yes, we are," Digger said.
   "We are thinking about it," Jud said.
   Marshall nodded. "The start of the colony should be
documented. We could do that."
   "That's true," Digger said. "And if there are enough
colonists, we will want our own news source and newsies."
   Marshall and Jud nodded their heads.
   "Harry, can you tell us what kind of response Dr. Rosenbloom
has gotten to his announcement?" Marshall asked him.
   "He had gotten well over three thousand firm commitments,
when I came in here. He is in the process of revising the plans
for the site. It will need to be much larger than he envisioned."
   "Wow!" I said. "And he hoped to get two hundred! Were many
willing to make financial commitments?"
   "All of them were willing to. Obviously not all of them are
wealthy, but wealth is not a requirement for being a colonist.
The colonists' capabilities are at least as important. We need
engineers more than sales clerks. He is also considering their
situations on Earth. If they are a target, or likely target of
extremists, he would like them to join us, regardless of their
money or their skills."
   "When will work of the site begin?" Marshall asked Harry.
   "Immediately. The contractor and some of his people along
with several engineers, and construction robots are on their way
to Mars. They left about four hours ago. We are just past the
optimal time for a trip to Mars. The longer we delay, the longer
the flight will be."
   Jake, the captain, nodded his head.
   "He is arranging for a second ship carrying manufactured
materials from Earth, and a third ship with fabricators and
various ores and water ice from Vesta Mining. That ship will
arrive first, actually."
   "How did he arrange everything so quickly?" I asked.
   "He has been considering it for a while, even before the
first Neo attack. He had the plans drawn up when you and Digger
first arrived on the station."
   Finally, everything had been decided. Harry took the other
people to the rooms they would be using until we left for the
moon. Marshall and Jud stayed with in the conference room. The
interview began immediately.
   "What were your first thoughts when you regained
consciousness, Eric?"
   "I looked up into Digger's face. He asked me if I recognized
him, which I thought was funny. I wasn't aware of time passing. I
remembered walking on the sidewalk with Digger and Alek and
nothing past that point."
   "How did you feel when you were told you were a Beast?"
Marshall asked me.
   "I guess, disbelieving, at first. Then they explained what
happened and why they changed me. I understood. I think they made
the right decision. If I had been able to decide for myself, it
is what I would have chosen."
   "Has it been difficult for you to adjust?"
   "Hmm. Not really. If I was on my own, I probably would have
had more trouble, but with Digger here and my mother, I really
haven't thought that much about it. It's a surprise looking in a
mirror, but that's all. I'm happy."
   "How do you feel about the men who shot you?"
   "I haven't given them any thought at all. They are in prison
where they belong."
   "Are you living in fear? Is that why you are going to Mars?"
   "I suppose that is part of it. I didn't feel particularly
threatened and I got shot. I'm certainly more aware of the danger
to us. I don't want to worry every time I'm out in public. It
just seems like a good idea."
   Jud nodded his head.
   "Digger, I'm sure you are delighted to have Eric back. Has
adjusting to his appearance been difficult?"
   "I think I already adjusted while he was in the tank. I
watched him change. As a matter of fact, we made a time-lapse
video of the change."
   "Oh! I want to see it!" I said to Digger.
   "Could we use that in our story?" Marshall asked Digger.
   "Yes. That's why I brought it up."
   "Do you want to watch it now?" Digger asked me.
   Marshall, Jud, and I said, "Yes."
   Digger touched my meme. I saw the file and opened it. The
camera was looking down into the box. You could see my head,
shoulders, and upper chest. I covered my mouth when I saw my
face. I was a mess. My hair had been removed and the damage the
bullets did was obvious. It was hard to believe that I was alive.
I certainly didn't look it, and my skin was a bluish color. I
assumed my body temperature had been lowered. 'Day 1' appeared at
the bottom of the video. Then days began flashing by at about the
rate of two per second. The wound in my head shrunk while my face
healed. Hair began growing on my head. My face slowly began to
change. Aside from the horrific appearance of me on day one, I
found the video completely fascinating. I was so glad Digger made
it. At about day one hundred and twenty, I looked half-old me,
half-new me. By day two hundred and fifty, I looked like the new
me. I assumed internal changes were still occurring, because I
was in the tank for many more days after that. The video ended.
   "Thank you, Digger, for videoing that," I said to him.
   Marshall smiled.
   "We would like to purchase exclusive rights to that video,
Digger. Are you interested in selling it?"
   I looked at Digger. He shrugged.
   "I suppose."
   I wondered for the first time why Dr. Rosenbloom hadn't just
had me rebuilt as a human. I knew Beasts could convert to humans,
so the conversion tank was capable of doing it. I decided not to
ask, though. Rosenbloom had his reasons, I was sure, and they
might not have been technological. If I began questioning it,
Digger and possibly even my mother might feel I was unhappy with
their decision to make me into a Beast, and I wasn't. If we were
going to live on Mars, I wanted to be a Beast.
   "Eric, I hope you don't mind this question, but it is
something people who have followed your story will be wondering.
How do you feel about Alek Bright? Is there any resentment for
his role in what happened to you?"
   "No. None. I don't blame him at all. I only blame the two
people who shot us." I sighed. "And my father. The day it
happened, I thought the danger was over. He thought the danger
was over. I care about Alek very much. I really hope he will come
with us to Mars. I think both of us consider him part of our
family."
   I looked at Digger and he smiled. Marshall nodded.
   "I know he feels, or felt, very bad about that. He said in an
interview later that you had specifically said you didn't want to
be in a sex flik. I think that is only of the reasons he felt so
badly about what happened."
   I sighed.
   "It's over. He made a mistake. I don't like him-no, I don't
love him less because of it. I'm going to have his baby, if wants
a child."
   Marshall and Jud looked shocked.
   "Have his baby?"
   "Yes. I'm not sure he wants one, but if he does, I will carry
it for him."
   They looked confused.
   "Eric's new body can become pregnant," Digger said. "We plan
to have children."
   Jud's mouth dropped open. Marshall looked gleeful. They
didn't know about that capability. I supposed it was a scoop. I
almost laughed. Marshall looked deliriously happy.
   I wondered why Dr. Rosenbloom or Harry hadn't told them, but
they were busy planning a Martian colony. Or maybe this was
exactly how he wanted the news to come out. I was a walking, and
especially talking Beast 3.0. Our wedding was an advertisement,
and my pregnancy would be, too.
   "We have to go," Marshall said to Jud.
   "Now? Is the interview over?" Jud asked.
   Marshall laughed.
   "No. To Mars! I can cover the first male pregnancy in
history!" Marshall said.
   "It's fine with me," Jud said. "I told you I was willing to
go."
   Marshall grinned and turned to me.
   "Are you a hermaphrodite?"
   "He's fully male," Digger said. "But with a series of hormone
injections, he can become pregnant anally."
   "Was your body customized for you?"
   I looked at Digger. He shook his head.
   "Dr. Rosenbloom told me I was in a Beast 3.0 body. The
enhancements are the ability to tolerate non-Earthlike conditions
and the ability for a male to become pregnant. As far as I know,
any human or Beast who chooses to get a Beast 3.0 body will gain
these abilities."
   Marshall and Jud looked at each other and smiled.
   "That means you, Marshall," Jud said.
   "I don't want to miss anything. If I am covering the
establishment of the colony and Eric's pregnancy, I can't be
stuck in a conversion tank for months. Maybe after we are on
Mars."
   "Have you wanted kids?" Digger asked them.
   "We were resigned to not having them. We decided not to
adopt. Mixed Beast-human couples are still frowned upon by many.
We only got the right to wed a year ago. We didn't want to deal
with all that in an adoption," Marshall said. "But, yes, we do. I
am going to edit all this about us out of the video. Jud and I
are not news. You are.
   "How did you feel when he told you that you could get
pregnant?" Marshall asked me.
   I laughed.
   "Stunned. I think I still am. I woke up in a new body. I
found I had been shot. That I'd been asleep for a year. I found
myself in space. I was told I could get pregnant. I found out I
could step out of the station through an airlock door and be
exposed to space with no discomfort. I found there will be a new
Mars colony. We decided to join the colony. That's all in two
days!"
   Digger chuckled. Marshall nodded.
   "What was it like, Eric? Being in space without a suit? Were
you scared? Was it painful at all? You said there was no
discomfort, but it's hard to believe."
   "I wasn't uncomfortable and I wasn't scared. It was not
really very different from being in this room. I couldn't open my
mouth, but that wasn't scary."
   Marshall shook his head.
   "Like being in this room! That is amazing!"
   I nodded.
   "How did it make you feel?"
   I thought about it.
   "I think it made me proud to be human. I'm still human. I
have my original brain, I just had a sort of body transplant. One
man did all this. I owe him a lot. If one human could do all
this, imagine what the whole race could do if we put aside
arguing about differences and focused on how we can make life
better for ourselves, our neighbors, and our descendants."
   I looked around and they were all smiling at me, especially
Harry, who gave me a thumbs up.
   "I wish everyone felt that way, Eric," Marshall said. "I
really do. Conflict is the opposite of progress, in my opinion."
   I nodded my head. I had never thought about it, but when did
conflict help? I supposed it was inevitable, but did it ever
help? Did it ever move things forward? Consensus did that.
   "Eric, you'll be on the moon tomorrow. Do you wish you could
visit your father while you are there?"
   "No. I have nothing to say to him and no desire to hear what
he might say to me."
   Marshall nodded.
   "How do you feel about losing almost a year of your life?"
Marshall asked me.
   "Are you asking if I'm angry I was shot?"
   Marshall smiled and said, "Yes."
   "I suppose I am. I'm not wasting much time at it, though. I
have better things to do, now."
   Digger squeezed my hand under the table. I reached over and
groped him. I felt him stiffen. Jud winked at me. I realized he
could smell my lust. I sniffed. I could smell lots of things, but
I didn't know which smell was lust.
   "Would you be willing to allow us to film you in space? I
mean outside this station."
   "I don't see why not."
   Harry called me, silently.
   "Jeff has already sent a signal to your queen that you will
be exposed to space. It should be exactly like last time. I will
send the signal before the wedding ceremony, since Jeff will be
unconscious in the tank."
   "Thank you. Do you know how to open the room were in before
to space?"
   "It's an airlock. Yes. I plan to go with you."
   "We can continue the interview later. I have to tell you, I
am really excited about watching this. I feel like I'm present at
the next stage of human evolution!" Marshall said.
   "You are, but please don't inflame the extremists with talk
like that," Harry said.
   "We can't let them control us, Harry," Marshall said. "I
decide what I think, do, and say. But don't worry. As we
discussed with Dr. Rosenbloom, we plan to emphasize that Eric was
born human, not Beast. The video Digger took of his
transformation proves that. It makes his new capabilities even
more remarkable."
   Harry didn't say anything. I could understand his concern.
   We got up and walked to the same room I'd been in before.
This time, I held onto a handle on the wall. A ball camera was
attached to the wall next to me.
   "Wait! I have an idea," Marshall said. "Is there a sheet of
paper that I can shred? I would like to film it being sucked out
into space."
   "Hmm," Harry said. "I'm sure I can find something. I'll be
right back."
   Harry left.
   "I would feel better if that cable was wrapped around your
wrist," Digger said. "You might lose your grip and have to wait
for us to suit up to rescue you."
   "I don't mind, but I don't know how to lower it," I said.
   "I saw Dr. Rosenbloom do it."
   Digger touched something on a viewscreen and the white cable
dropped from the ceiling. I secured myself.
   Harry reappeared with a cup holding what looked like dirt.
   "It's from a potted palm tree in our room. Tip the cup as the
floor opens."
   I took the cup and nodded.
   "Ready?" Marshall asked.
   I nodded. The door to the station closed, and a moment later,
the one below me slid away. I tipped the cup and the dirt shot
out of the airlock with the air just as my eyes and mouth snapped
shut. A moment later, I could open them. I turned and waved to
the cameraman and Marshall. Marshall was grinning and shaking his
head. I got a call on my meme.
   "This is Marshall. Please tell our viewers how it feels."
   "It feels strange. I can't open my mouth. I have no control
over it. That is to keep the air in my lungs. Dr. Rosenbloom told
me that the nanites in my lungs are converting the carbon dioxide
my body produces back into oxygen to be used again. From what
Harry said, I guess they stockpiled oxygen earlier and I can use
that, too. My skin tingles. It feels a little like a mild
electrical shock. It isn't painful, though. While I can see,
there is a coating over my eyes, which makes everything darker.
When the air disappeared, my eyes shut automatically. I guess the
film over them was built while they were closed. Things aren't as
dark as a pair of sunglasses might make it, but definitely
darker."
   "Do your eyes bother you at all?"
   "No. Other than the tingling, and the inability of opening my
mouth, or breathing through my nose, I feel the same as before."
   I heard Harry's voice, then.
   I looked down as the floor, or I supposed it was really a
door to the airlock. It only seemed like the floor because I was
pressed against it. From space, it was a door.
   I heard a hiss as the airlock filled with air. Then the door
opened.
   "Remarkable!" Marshall said.
   I was able to open my mouth. I did.
   "It is. I think it will seem stranger to me on the moon."
   Marshall nodded.
   "That's it," Marshall said to the cameraman.
   The cameraman plucked the floating camera out of the air.
   "Would you two like to have a foursome?" Jud asked me.
   I called Digger, silently.
   "Do you think he means sex?" I asked.
   "Yes."
   "I don't have any interest in it," I said. "I would rather
have sex with Richard."
   "Then tell him no. I'm not that interested, either. Alek will
be here soon, with Pan and Jock. We will be having lots and lots
of sex with them. I think I will tell them."
   "Thanks, but I don't think so. I just got Eric back. I want
to spend time alone with him," Digger said.
   "Of course. We understand. If you ever change your mind, let
one of us know."
   "We will."
   "Let me show you to your rooms," Harry said to Marshall, Jud,
and the cameraman.
   They left and we walked to our room.
   "How do you feel about sex with Pan and Jock?"
   "I'm excited about it. I just hope it doesn't hurt things
between them."
   "It won't. We could be having five-ways, if Alek joins in.
Even six-ways with Richard. Does that appeal to you?"
   I decided he wondered whether it was the multiple partner
thing that bothered me.
   "I loved the three-ways with Alek and with Richard. I guess
it does appeal to me. I just didn't have any interest in Marshall
and Jud." I paused. "What if they want to kiss me? I mean Pan or
Jock. I don't know if that is a good idea or not."
   Digger nodded.
   "You are still worried about them breaking up to move in with
you."
   "Uh. No. I just don't want to strain their relationship."
   "You are worrying way too much. If things start to look bad,
which they won't, you'll stop. End of problem. Don't worry about
kissing or not kissing. If one of them wants to kiss you, are you
going to say no?"
   I shrugged.
   "Will Alek call me Gorillaboy?"
   Digger burst out laughing. "Like Dogboy?"
   "Right."
   "If he does, refuse to have sex with him. He will apologize
very sincerely."
   I chuckled.
   "I wonder if he will call Richard Goatboy."
   "I am sure he won't. You do know that Alek really likes you,
right? He didn't like Tim," Digger said.
   "I know. I was kidding."
   "Good."
   Digger pulled me into his arms. Then he reached behind me and
pulled my cheeks apart. I felt a finger from each hand push
inside me. I groaned. I felt Digger's erection pressed against
mine.
   "I want you inside me, Digger."
   "Yeah? Which end?"
   "Fuck me."
   "My pleasure."
   He pushed his shorts down and I did the same. He turned me
around so my back was facing him. He pulled me against him and
used his other hand to guide his cock to my hole. He pushed
inside me, making both of us groan. He leaned back and I laughed
as my feet left the ground.
   "What a powerful dick you have!"
   "Yes. It's beautiful, too," Digger said.
   "Don't brag."
   "I was quoting you."
   "Oh. Right."
   "When I am in the tank and I fuck you on Aegina, I may take a
Minotaur body," Digger said.
   I laughed.
   "Oh, god! That two-foot long cock will come out my mouth when
you fuck me!" I said, laughing.
   "It's a virtual environment, so it won't hurt you."
   "That's true! And I will finally be able to suck your cock
while you fuck me!"
   "Yeah."
   Digger began sucking on my neck. One arm was wrapped around
me. He lowered me to the ground again. He began making short
thrusts into me. Then he began stroking me with one hand. He
sucked on my earlobe.
   "Oh, Digger!"
   "Do you like that?"
   "Oh, man! It's great!"
   I closed my eyes and enjoyed all the pleasure he was giving
me.
   "You are about to come, aren't you?" he asked.
   "I'm close."
   "I thought I could feel that. Your hole tightens up when you
are close."
   He pulled out of me. He took my hand and we climbed into bed.
   "I want to see if I can make you come with just my finger."
   I grinned at him.
   "OK."
   We kissed again while he finger-fucked me. It only took a
couple of minutes for him to bring me. I moaned into his mouth as
I shot against our bodies. Afterwards, I pulled away and lay on
my back.
   Digger wiped my cum off his fur. He brought his finger to my
mouth. I licked it off. He wiped some of it off me and I licked
that off his finger, too. He wiped both of us clean, grinning at
me the whole time.
   "When Alek gets here, you'll finally get as much semen as you
want."
   I laughed.
   "I know it's weird," I said.
   "I like it. I love knowing that you want mine." He rubbed my
bottom lip. "Don't ever feel embarrassed about wanting it. As a
matter of fact, I'm about to give you some. Orally and then
anally."
   "Yeah?"
   "When Jock gets here, I want you to taste his. I told him you
love it, but of course he knew it. He'd seen the video of you
drinking Alek's."
   I sighed.
   "He won't think I'm weird, will he?"
   "No. Pan told me that Jock watched the video many times.
Sometimes Pan sucked him while he watched it."
   "So I guess he enjoyed it."
   Digger laughed.
   "You guess? He wanted to get sucked while he watched it over
and over and you 'guess'?"
   "Let me rephrase: he probably liked it."
   Digger laughed.
   "Like Pan, Alek, and me, he will be very glad he can make you
happy so easily. All he has to do is pull his dick out and let
you suck it."
   I remembered sucking Pan in Digger's bar. That reminded me of
Dack, the only other Gorilla I had sucked, and George and Henry
at Two Stones restaurant. When we had breakfast there, the place
had been full of male Gorillas. I wondered if any of them would
be joining the colony. Or Stefan. I wondered if he was still mad
that I cancelled my furniture order. Then I remembered that was a
year ago.
   I scooted down on the bed and swallowed his cock. I heard him
sigh. I closed my eyes and sucked.
   I opened my eyes. I was disoriented. We were in bed. Digger's
arms were wrapped around me.
   "What happened?" I asked.
   "You fell asleep sucking me."
   I groaned.
   "I'm sorry!"
   He chuckled.
   "Don't be. Going out is space probably had something to do
with it. It must have stressed your body a little. Besides,
holding you while you sleep is almost as wonderful as getting
sucked by you and it lasts longer."


   If you enjoyed it, please let me know.