Ceraden strolled into the lounge and as soon as he saw John and Alyssa he exclaimed happily, "John! It's wonderful to see you, but what are you doin-" he cut off abruptly when he noticed the other person in the room. "What the fuck are you doing Irillith? Have you completely lost your mind?!" he gasped in stunned horror.

"Be silent you imbecile," she snarled at him, enraged. "How dare you speak to me like that!"

"But... but you know the penalty..." he stammered, shocked beyond belief.

She sneered at him, the expression contorting her otherwise beautiful face, "This is no concern of yours. Get out, before I remove you... permanently!"

Ceraden turn to stare at John, before darting a glance at Irillith, and backing hastily out of the room.

Irillith watched him leave then smiled at John, her face looking stunningly attractive once again, but as he stared at her, he noticed that the alluring smile never reached her striking violet eyes.

"My apologies for the interruption. Let's return to our discussion," she said pleasantly.

*The women from the Ashanath stone pictographs! They were Maliri!* Alyssa thought to him, gaping at the blue-skinned woman in amazement.

John studied the Maliri woman, trying to make his stunned mind process what he was seeing. Irillith was tall, at least five foot eight he guessed, but it was hard to tell with her in armoured boots. Her skin was a lovely light blue colour, reminding him of a clear summer sky. She had delicate, exotic features, with full lips, a slender nose and slightly angular violet eyes. Her black hair was cut short, and retained its carefully styled up look, despite her having worn a helmet. Noticeable with her short hair, were her pointed ears that were shaped very much like his own.

*Black hair,* he managed to blurt telepathically to Alyssa while staring at the alien woman, before throwing a shocked glance her way.

Alyssa nodded, *Yes, that's true! The blue women in the Ashanath mosaics had white hair.*

Irillith looked at John's flabbergasted face and smiled with amusement, "I can see recognition in your eyes, 'Progenitor'. You recognise me and my people now."

He pulled himself together and then said carefully, "Yes, I've seen your species before," he agreed with a curt nod. "But why do you keep saying Progenitor like that?"

"That is what the Ashanath call you, isn't it?" she asked him, smirking at his look of surprise.

Alyssa leaned forward and asked, "How did you know that? The Ashanath's knowledge of the Progenitors seems to be one of their closest held secrets!"

Irillith slowly turned and looked coldly at the blonde, her lip curling slightly in distaste, before she resigned herself to answering her question. "They certainly like to think that, yes," she replied, a contemptuous smile marring her otherwise pretty face.

Alyssa frowned in annoyance at Irillith's tone and attitude. *Ceraden was absolutely right,* she thought to John, rapidly losing patience with the Maliri woman.

Irillith turned to look at John once more, and she smiled at him pleasantly. "So now you know what the Maliri are, you know that I would never dream of trying to harm you. I know that my mother would dearly like to meet you, and your prize would be access to the Laser weaponry that you seek. A meeting doesn't seem too high a price to pay for such a reward, surely?" she asked him playfully.

John looked at her and frowned for a moment, "That's true, but you didn't answer my question. You keep saying 'Progenitor' mockingly."

Irillith looked at him curiously, then asked him, "Would you prefer me to call you Mael'nerak instead?"

He managed to mask his surprise at her use of the bizarre and sinister sounding name, and said, "John will be fine."

She smiled indulgently, and said, "So what do you say, John? Will you accompany me to my homeworld?"

John paused and studied the Maliri woman for a moment. Despite her best efforts, he could see and feel her desperate urgency to get him to agree to her request, but he still had no idea what she could possibly stand to gain out of this bargain.

*Perhaps Ceraden might be more talkative now. He sounded horrified that Irillith had revealed what she really looked like to us,* Alyssa suggested cautiously.

*Stall and explore our options?* John asked her rhetorically. *Yeah, I was thinking the same thing.*

He met Irillith's intense gaze and then said calmly, "My ship requires some urgent repairs, so we'll be in drydock for the next three days. I'd like to discuss your offer with my crew, and then I'll give you my answer. Is that acceptable?"

Irillith's jaw clenched, and he could see her grind her teeth together in annoyance, before she forced herself to nod and smile at him. "Of course, your request is perfectly understandable. Please let me know as soon as possible, as I'll need to arrange safe passage for you and your ship. We wouldn't want any accidents to befall you in Maliri space, after all," she replied in a carefully neutral tone of voice, and he couldn't quite determine whether it was meant to be a veiled threat or not.

Sensing that the meeting was over, John rose to his feet, with Alyssa following his lead a second later. He smiled pleasantly at Irillith, and bowed his head courteously. "I'll be in contact as soon as we've made our decision," he promised her.

Irillith nodded, flashing a strained smile at him, and said, "I look forward to hearing your decision, and I trust you'll seize the unique opportunity that I've offered to you."

With that, John turned to leave, Alyssa walking at his side, turning right as they departed down the corridor they had arrived by. He glanced back the other way, looking for Ceraden, but he was nowhere to be seen.

*Wow! I really didn't see that coming,* Alyssa thought to him wryly as they left the reception area, and walked across the foyer of the Maliri Trading Commission.

John glanced at her and smiled whilst shaking his head. *You and me both,* he admitted.

The blonde slipped her hand through his, and her fingers felt soft, smooth and warm as she gently squeezed his hand. *Which decision are you leaning towards at the moment?* she asked him curiously.

*The way she tells it, it sounds like there's no downsides for us whatsoever, but I don't think I should trust her further then I could throw her,* he replied, using an ancient expression.

Alyssa stifled a laugh at the image that conjured up. *Remember, with your super strength, you could throw her pretty damn far,* she said wistfully at the thought.

John nodded and laughed. *Sorry, poor turn of phrase there,* he said apologetically.

*No need to apologise. Perhaps sending her cartwheeling through the air might wipe that smug little smirk off her pretty blue face,* Alyssa said heatedly.

*I think I see which way you're leaning on this decision,* he said with amusement.

Alyssa paused for a moment, looking up at him as they walked across the merchant district, which was relatively quiet this late in the evening. *You shouldn't let my personal dislike of the woman sway your decision,* she said finally. *There's much more at stake here than that, we just have to decide if it's worth the gamble and risks involved.*

He nodded as he digested what she was saying, and they walked the rest of the way back to the ship in companionable silence.

The girls were all waiting for them in their bedroom when they returned, and after John and Alyssa had put away their heavy pistols in the weapons locker, removed their clothes and finished up in the bathroom, they all gathered together on the bed. They made room for him in the middle, and he assumed his normal position with his back against the headboard, appreciating the attentiveness of the girls as they fanned out around him in a semi-circle.

"Alyssa brought us up to speed," Calara said, watching him carefully.

Dana grinned at him excitedly and said, "So the Maliri were the women from the Ashanath's secret Progenitor tablets? That's crazy! I wish I could have seen her."

Alyssa frowned and darted a glance at John. "She was beautiful, but she's not a very nice person. At least nothing like Ceraden," she said hesitantly. "She seems to know quite a bit about Progenitors though."

John nodded as he met her glance. "She referred to my species by another name as well. 'Mael'nerak', I think it was, if I haven't mangled the pronunciation?" he asked Alyssa.

"No, that sounded pretty close to it. She seemed amused and dismissive of the Ashanath's name for your species..." she replied, before saying, "'Progenitors'," with that same mocking tone that Irillith had used.

John turned to look at the girls, and said, "So as Alyssa has already brought you up to speed with what happened, we have a decision to make. Do we take Irillith at her word, trusting her that we aren't going to get attacked, and then go and meet her mother in exchange for a chance at acquiring Maliri weaponry? Or, do we just forget about the whole thing, stock up on Maliri goods and head for Trankaran space? I'd be interested to hear what you think."

He looked from one beautiful young face to another, seeing each of them looking hesitant. The girls were normally quite vocal and happy to express their opinions, so this indecision was unusual.

Calara noticed his surprise and said gently, "Unfortunately we weren't there, so it's difficult trying to come up with useful advice for you. Obviously I'd love to upgrade our weapons, and it sounds like we might be able to learn more about the Progenitors, but I've no idea how risky a move this is."

Jade, Dana and Rachel all nodded their agreement with the Latina's summary, looking at him apologetically.

John nodded, and said, "That's fair enough. We don't have to give Irillith an answer straight away; I told her that we'd discuss it and get back to her, and she knows we'll be busy with the ship for a few days. So, if any of you want to talk to me about it until we're finished with the upgrades, I'm always interested to hear what you have to say."

They smiled at him, nodding their understanding, and murmuring their agreement to seek him out if they had any advice.

Dana then piped up excitedly, "Speaking of which, the robots are done! I've programmed them to answer to simple voice commands, so they'll be able to assist with removing and then reattaching the armour plating on the hull. The mass fabricators are churning out the sensor array components, so you'll be able to make a start late morning."

"Nice work," John told her appreciatively. "You'll probably need to walk us through the installation of the first one, and then we'll take it from there."

The redhead nodded eagerly. "Sure! And thanks everyone. By helping out with this, I can easily get the other upgrades done in the next couple of days," she told them gratefully.

"Very nice bit of Project Management there," John said to Rachel with a grin.

She blushed a little with embarrassment, but looked thankful for his praise. "I did pay attention a bit at business school before I dropped out," she said with a self-conscious smile.

Alyssa looked around at everyone, to see if any of the other girls wanted to say anything, but it looked like the discussion had run dry for now. "Well I don't know about John, but I got all ready for action, and then it all ended peacefully. I think I need to burn off some of that adrenalin before bed. What do you think John?" she asked him enthusiastically.

He smiled at her, and his smile grew wider, when he saw the flirtatious looks he was now getting from the other four girls as well. "Now that sounds like a gre-," he started to say, but was interrupted by a strange chime that he hadn't heard before.

"That was the button for the intercom by the airlock," Dana informed him helpfully. "There must be someone outside wanting to speak to you."

John frowned, as he climbed out of bed, "That's strange, I wonder why they didn't just contact us over a comm channel."

The girls started to get up too, but John waved them back into bed. "It's nearly eleven, you might as well get some rest. We've got a busy day ahead of us tomorrow," he told them considerately. "I'll let you know if I need your help for anything," he added, mollifying them and they climbed under the covers to settle down for the night.

John strolled into the wardrobe and threw on the t-shirt, combat trousers and boots he was wearing earlier and then walked back through his bedroom, waving goodbye to the girls as he left.

*Are you sure you don't want me to come along too?* Alyssa asked him, her voice echoing through his mind as he walked along the corridor to the grav-tube.

*No, I'm fine. You'll be listening to everything anyway, so you might as well relax in bed while you're doing it,* he replied kindly.

He sensed her acceptance, and he walked up to the airlock, while glancing at the vid-feed on the wall mounted monitor, that had crackled to life for the first time. He was surprised to see Ceraden on the other side of the door, the sparkling jewels in his armour looking resplendent even over the slightly grainy image on the screen. John placed his hand on the DNA reader, and the outer airlock door spiralled open, revealing the agitated Maliri merchant, who glanced furtively around the Docking Bay.

John smiled at the man, and said, "Hey Ceraden, It's good to see you. Come on in."

The Maliri nodded, and stepped through the airlock. He seemed so unsettled, that he didn't even have any witty or cheerful greeting for John as he did. John closed the airlock door after him, and Ceraden turned and watched it spiral shut in silence. The moment it was sealed tight, he turned to John and spoke animatedly.

"You can't trust anything Irillith says!" he blurted out, sounding deeply worried.

John smiled at the troubled Maliri and reached out, placing his hand on the smaller man's shoulder reassuringly. "Let's go and have a drink, then we can talk about it," he suggested amiably, trying to put his friend at ease.

Ceraden nodded vigorously, and followed John over to the grav-tubes. John gave him a brief explanation of how they worked, and then stepped inside to demonstrate, rising smoothly in the soft blue glow. The Maliri followed his lead, and they eventually stepped out onto Deck Two.

"That's a marvellous replacement for elevators," Ceraden said, sounding impressed, and momentarily distracted from his concerns. "All that waiting is so tiresome!"

John smiled at him, gesturing towards the Officers' Lounge, and they began to walk that way. "One of Dana's inventions. She got the idea from the Ashanath," he explained proudly.

"You seem to have surrounded yourself with some quite remarkable women," Ceraden said, with an odd catch in his voice, one John had never heard from the Maliri before.

John nodded. "I don't know what I'd do without them," he agreed wholeheartedly, as he strolled over to the bar, poured himself a whiskey and added some ice. "What do you want to drink?" he asked the other man.

"I'll have the same," Ceraden said, so John poured out another stiff drink and dropped in another couple of ice-cubes, which clinked together merrily in the glass.

John led Ceraden over to the sofas and then they both sat down, with John taking a sip of his drink while watching the Maliri curiously. The armoured alien reached into a compartment at his waist, then pulled out a long straw like device that he dropped into the glass. He leaned over and was about to attach the end to his helmet, when he shook his head with a snort of laughter.

Ceraden put the glass on the table in front of him and then reached up with both hands to clasp his helmet. With a quiet hiss, the pressurised seals unlocked, and he pulled the helmet from his head.

"There's no point bothering with the pretence now, after Irillith's little bombshell this evening," he said, and John could see an expression of disbelief on Ceraden's handsome blue-skinned face.

The Maliri merchant shared the same slightly angular eyes as Irillith, but his were a rich blue instead. He also had short, dark hair, and John could clearly see the tips of the man's pointed ears. Ceraden smiled at him, watching John as he studied him intently.

John blinked and then looked chagrined. "Sorry for staring, It's just that I've known you for years, and finally seeing you without the helmet is a bit of a shock," he said apologetically.

Ceraden put down his helmet on the table, and then removed the straw from the glass, before picking it up and taking a sip. He closed his eyes as he savoured the burn of the alcohol, and then visibly relaxed before re-opening them.

"I have no idea what she was thinking. There are only two capital crimes amongst the Maliri: selling weapon tech to alien races, and revealing our appearance to outsiders. My life is now in your hands, old friend," Ceraden said, staring into John's eyes.

John took a drink as he looked at Ceraden, then said curiously, "I'm honoured that you'd trust me like this, and rest assured, I'll never reveal this to anyone, but why even take that risk?"

Ceraden downed his glass, and then put it on the table. "As soon as I left you with Irillith, I plugged into my Office's secure camera network, and listened to what she said to you. I knew I needed to make a dramatic gesture with you now, to convince you to listen to what I'm saying," he explained sincerely.

John took another sip, staring at Ceraden over the glass, and then asked, "Which is what exactly?"

"You must not go with her!" Ceraden exclaimed, leaning forward earnestly. "You can't trust a thing she says, and even I would never dream of travelling with her to that nest of vipers!"

John looked at him in confusion and asked, "You mean the Noble House that runs this primary shipyard? What makes them so bad? All the Maliri I've ever met, Irillith aside, have been charming, friendly, and pleasant to deal with."

Ceraden slumped back in his chair, and looked up at the ceiling, staring away into the distance. "You've hit the nail on the head my friend," he replied cryptically, his face saddened.

John finished his drink, and then stood and walked back to the bar. Sensing this was going to be a long one, he grabbed the bottle of whiskey, and the bucket of ice, then brought them back to the table and poured another couple of drinks.

"I think you'll need to explain what you mean," John said, pushing a glass over to his friend.

The Maliri merchant picked up the fresh drink, and swirled it in his hand, watching the ice cubes tumble around in the amber coloured liquid. "Maliri society is nothing like your own," he began, before taking a sip, and then swirling the drink once more.

"The men are the breadwinners, the Maliri maidens stay at home and play house?" John said with a grin, remembering what Ceraden had told Rachel earlier that morning.

Ceraden snorted and rolled his eyes. "I must apologise for that lie. Of course nothing could be further from the truth." he said, looking regretful, before he continued. "Maliri society is completely segregated along gender lines, with the men escaping to the border starports for their own sanity as much as personal safety. The matriarchs rule the Noble Houses, and form the ruling government of the Maliri. All positions of power and authority are held by women, and life as a man on the homeworlds would be a depressing one indeed; very much like a second class citizen, if any of the men were still foolish enough to live there!" he added, his voice ringing with frustration.

John looked at him in surprise, and then asked gently, "But why are things so skewed? It seems bizarre to have such an unbalanced society."

Ceraden shrugged and said, "Probably because of the birth ratios; Twenty Maliri girls to every boy."

"That can't be right," John said, looking astonished.

"It's always been that way my friend," Ceraden said in a melancholy voice, sipping his drink again. "The homeworlds are under absolute control of the women, and it's a dangerous place to be. Scheming, plotting, betrayals... political intrigue on a vast scale, and of a complexity so intricate, you could not even begin to imagine it."

John watched the depressed looking Maliri sympathetically, and then said, "It sounds completely dysfunctional. How can your species even survive and reproduce with the genders completely separated like that?"

Ceraden sighed heavily. "The women visit the border stations, alliances and bargains are made, and they then return to their homeworld when the deed is done. We Maliri live a long time compared to the Terrans, so that helps maintain the population," he said matter-of-factly, before looking up at John with a playful smile. "Have a guess as to my age."

John studied the youthful looking blue-skinned man, but the look of experience in those bright blue eyes made him add on another decade to his estimate. "If you were a Terran, and ignoring the blue skin of course, I'd say late thirties," he estimated conservatively.

The Maliri let out a dry chuckle, and replied, "I'm one hundred and twenty seven, using your Terran chronology."

John laughed, and shook his head in amazement, but then thought back to something the Maliri had said before. He asked the man tentatively, "Do you have any children, Ceraden?"

"I have five daughters," Ceraden replied with a smile, before a dark cloud of sadness overcame him. "Had, I should say. Maliri politics is a high stakes game, and my eldest, Sylmae, paid the price for her ambition."

"I'm very sorry, Ceraden," John said sympathetically.

Ceraden looked up at him and smiled. "It's alright, you weren't to know," but then his face took on a bitter cast and he said, "I hadn't spoken to her in over twenty years, so I barely knew her any more."

John was about to ask what happened to cause the rift, but bit his question back, figuring it was none of his business.

The Maliri merchant glanced at him sadly, and said, "I know what you must be thinking. What kind of a father would cut all ties with his daughter like that? I promise you, it was not by my doing. All my daughters were bright, lovely girls, when they were very young, and I used to visit them often. Maliri society has a way of breaking that kind of innocent spirit though, and a woman like Irillith is the end result."

John sipped his drink again, and said, "Which is why you're trying to warn me away now."

The Maliri nodded, and smiled at him. "We always got on well, you and I. It would have been a betrayal of those years of friendship to not forewarn you of the danger you now face."

John paused for a long moment as he pondered everything that Ceraden had told him. He then thought back on something that Irillith had said, and he leaned forward curiously as he said, "Irllith referred to me as Mael'nerak. Do you know what she was referring to?"

Ceraden snorted with derision, and said, "She's clearly as deranged as she is malicious. It would be like you telling me ghosts and goblins are real!"

John smiled at his friend and pushed again, "Indulge me. Who or what is a Mael'nerak?"

The Maliri rolled his eyes and lounged back in his chair, taking a hefty swig of his drink, then poured himself another. "They're a legend, used to scare misbehaving little Maliri girls. 'Be a good girl, or the Mael'nerak will get you!'," he said in a fake scary voice.

He looked at John, and saw that he was listening to him with interest, and with a laugh he waved a hand. "Alright, I'll tell you the story," he said with a chuckle. "I haven't told this one in decades." he added, and a look of sadness flashed across his face for a second.

He took a deep breath and then began the tale, as if telling a bedtime story to a small child, "A long time ago, the Maliri were happy and contented, and they all used to live very well together. But then the evil Mael'nerak saw the Maliri, and grew jealous. He flew down from the heavens and gathered up all the Maliri, telling them that he was going to be in charge from now on, and did terrible things to the poor people. The Mael'nerak left the men behind, telling them that they were no use to him, and disappeared with most of the women, who were never to be seen again. Every few years, the Mael'nerak would return and gather up any women who had been bad, before whisking them away to be punished for being naughty. So all the Maliri girls knew that they had to be good, or the Mael'nerak would come and take them away."

John listened to the man entranced, understanding the likely events that had occurred, and the deeper meaning behind the story.

Ceraden laughed and shook his head, then took another big swig of his drink. "Even our fairy tales are obsessed with gender," he said in a melancholy voice.

"Thanks for telling me the story," John said gratefully. "I'll remind my crew to be good," he added with a smile.

Ceraden laughed hard at that, and then looked at John enviously. "Terrans don't know how good they have it," he said, sounding depressed.

John smiled at him and then reached up and gestured to his pointed ears, "Well as you can see, I'm not exactly Terran."

The Maliri looked at him curiously and leaned forward, his eyes looking a bit glazed from the drinks he'd been downing. "You never brought it up, so I thought it would be rude to ask. What species are you exactly? I assumed you must be half-human, but only the Maliri have the same ears as you, and you don't look all that blue to me," he said with a grin.

John smiled wryly and said, "According to Irillith, I'm the Mael'nerak."

Ceraden laughed and rolled his eyes. "Okay, keep your secrets then," he said good naturedly.

"Honesty, I don't really know anything about my father, but my mother was Terran," John said openly.

"Well whatever species he was, he had the right idea. Terran women seem wonderful," Ceraden said longingly, as he took another drink.

Alyssa had padded quietly into the Lounge, wrapped up in a silk dressing gown, "Why thank you, Ceraden," she said to him playfully.

He sat bolt upright, looking panicked for a moment, and reached for his helmet.

"Relax," John said soothingly. "Alyssa would never reveal your secret, would you beautiful?" he asked her as she glided up to them.

"I promise, your secret is safe with me," she told him earnestly, and tucked herself up against John on the sofa. She then smiled at the Maliri disarmingly, and said, "I just thought I'd come and see what you boys were up to. I'll leave if I'm disturbing you."

Ceraden relaxed back against the sofa, shaking his head, and said with a smile, "No, stay please. I wouldn't dream of sending away such delightful company."

John didn't want to upset Ceraden again, but he realised now was as good a time as any to ask. "What can you tell us about Irillith? There seems to be no love lost between the two of you," he asked curiously.

Ceraden frowned with annoyance and said, "She's been here for a few weeks, overseeing negotiations between a group of women from her House, and men here on Geniya starport. Because my trading license was granted by her House, it means she's been my 'guest', and I've been obliged to provide accommodation for her on-station."

"I assume she was telling the truth about her mother ruling the House?" John asked him.

Ceraden narrowed his angular eyes suspiciously, and said, "You can't seriously be considering her offer, not after everything I told you?"

John shrugged nonchalantly, and replied, "It's just helpful to know as much as you can about anyone expressing an interest in your business. Forewarned is forearmed, right?"

The Maliri studied him for several long moments, then nodded reluctantly. "Alright, I'll tell you a bit about her. Yes, she's the House Matriarch's daughter, but her story sounds utterly implausible. Strictly speaking though, I suppose the House Matriarchs aren't really answerable to anyone, and her mother, Edraele, is the most powerful of the lot," he grudgingly conceded.

Alyssa was listening attentively, and she asked, "So Irillith could be telling the truth. Her mother, Edraele, could actually allow us to purchase Maliri weapons?"

Ceraden was about to reply sharply, but when he saw the genuine curiosity on Alyssa's face, he softened his tone as he replied, "Yes, it is possible, but please believe me, you don't want to meet Edraele. As caustic as Irillith is, Edraele is far worse, and if the stories about her are true, she's from one of the Eldritch bloodlines."

"That sounds exciting!" Alyssa said exuberantly, then winked at Ceraden playfully, letting him know she was joking.

He chuckled and shook his head at her teasing, before saying, "Exciting isn't the word I'd use; terrifying would be more appropriate. There's literally nothing you could offer me, that would make me willingly be in the same room as Edraele."

Ceraden glanced at his wrist, and when a small hologram appeared informing him of the time, he let out a big sigh. "It's getting late, and unfortunately I need to get back to my offices," he said ruefully as he stood up, and lifted his helmet from the table.

John rose to his feet as well, and said solemnly, "Thank you for coming here to tell me this Ceraden, I appreciate the risk you're taking. I swear that neither me, nor my crew, will put you in jeopardy because of it."

Alyssa nodded emphatically as she stood next to John, then said with a sparkling smile, "Besides, you're far too devilishly handsome to hide behind that shiny helmet. I'd love to have you drop by and visit us again sometime, and I'm sure the girls would be fascinated to meet you properly."

Ceraden laughed, and then leaned in to John, pretending to whisper conspiratorially, "Seriously John, I'd trade everything I have for her. Any chance she might be getting bored of you?"

John grinned and then looked down at Alyssa. "What do you say, beautiful? Are you getting bored of me yet?"

The stunning blonde looked up at him, pretending to ponder it for a moment. "You still manage to keep me entertained," she said, with a sparkle in her cerulean eyes.

John turned to look at Ceraden and shrugged. "Sorry, she's not interested," he said with a grin.

"For the moment!" Alyssa interjected, winking flirtatiously at Ceraden.

The Maliri's laughter was genuine, and the worry lines seemed to smooth out on his face. "Lady Luck's most favoured son indeed," he said wryly, and lifted his helmet to place it back on his head.

Alyssa stepped forward and put a hand on his arm, stopping him from donning the helmet. She then leaned forward, and placed a tender kiss on the surprised Maliri's cheek. "We really appreciate you coming to warn us like this. Thank you Ceraden," she told him softly.

He smiled at her warmly, and a sad look of loss briefly passed over his face, before he finally looked at John.

"I think you're a great guy, but I'm not kissing you," John said with a grin, raising his hands in the air.

Ceraden laughed and then held out his hand, which John shook firmly. "Good luck to you, my friend. I sincerely hope you heed my advice, but if you decide to recklessly proceed regardless, then my last words of warning to you are these: Intrigue piled upon lies, stacked with deception, await you deeper in Maliri Space. Take nothing at face value."

John nodded, acknowledging the warning, and then led Ceraden over to the grav-tube. Alyssa waved him goodbye and sashayed away to the bedroom, while John escorted the Maliri to the airlock, where he waved him farewell and sealed up the spiralling airlock behind him. He then headed back up to his bedroom, where the girls were all waiting for him, wide awake.

"I thought you were sleeping?" he asked them in amusement, and they smiled at him, shaking their heads.

Alyssa patted the bed, and so John stripped and climbed onto the bed to sit beside her. "I kept everyone informed on what Ceraden had to say. Rachel has a few interesting theories about the Mael'nerak," she told him in a sombre voice.

John nodded, and said, "Yeah, his story sounded worryingly familiar."

Rachel looked thoughtful and said, "I think there's quite a lot of information hidden in that 'fairy story'. It sounds like this Mael'nerak was a Progenitor, who was using the Maliri to supply him with women for his armies. That massively skewed gender ratio can't be natural either, and If I was a gambling woman, I'd bet big money that the Progenitor genetically altered the Maliri he left behind. That would explain the huge numbers of girls being born, to provide him plenty of women to use at a later date."

John nodded his agreement. "That all sounds logical to me. That titbit about the Maliri having 'Eldritch bloodlines' sounded ominous as well. This Edraele sounded like she could be some kind of psychic to me."

"That's what I was thinking too," Alyssa agreed.

"Oh!" Rachel suddenly exclaimed, before she asked John eagerly, "Have you washed the glass that Ceraden was drinking from yet?"

John thought for a moment, and then shook his head, and she got up and sprinted out of the room before he could ask her why. He looked at Alyssa in confusion, but Dana piped up, and explained, "She's after a sample of his DNA. He was drinking directly from the glass, so she can get a Maliri DNA sample for analysis!"

He looked impressed at her ingenuity, and when the tawny haired brunette returned five minutes later, she confirmed that Dana was right.

"I probably should have asked Ceraden's permission, but I thought I'd just 'requisition it' instead," she said, glancing at John with a grin.

Alyssa laughed with delight, and he groaned good naturedly, as their latest recruit relished the opportunity to get in on the act.

When the laughter had died down, Calara asked, "So have you made your mind up about whether to accept Irillith's offer?"

John shook his head in frustration, and said, "Unfortunately all the information from Ceraden makes the decision to go with Irillith even more complicated. We might be able to learn more about the Progenitors, or whatever the Maliri call them, as well as pick up some massive firepower for the Invictus. The downside is, that it all sounds even riskier than we initially thought."

He looked around, and the girls all nodded sympathetically with his conclusions.

Alyssa glanced at the ship's chronometer, and then suggested gently, "It's nearly one in the morning, we should probably get some sleep."

John and the girls all nodded, and then cuddled under the covers, thinking about everything Ceraden had told them. They began to get drowsy, and then one after another all fell asleep, until only John was left awake. He tossed and turned for a little while, mulling over the choices before him, while trying to be careful not to wake up Calara or Alyssa who were lying on either side of him. He eventually settled back down, and heaved a heavy sigh, resolving to think about it some more tomorrow, before he finally fell asleep.

Alyssa and Calara opened their eyes, and gazed into each other's as they lay against John's chest, his efforts not to disturb them not as effective as he hoped. They spoke silently via telepathy for a while before they made a decision, smiling at one another contentedly, before falling asleep.

***

John woke late the next morning, after the combination of having drunk a fair bit the previous night, and struggling to get to sleep. He stretched lazily, and then was surprised to see that there was only one girl in bed with him that morning. It was Calara, and she smiled up at him warmly. She sat up, and reached over to the side table, then passed him a big glass of chilled water.

"I thought you might be thirsty this morning, after your drinking last night," she explained considerately.

John smiled at her gratefully, and then drank the whole glass in a series of big gulps. He then relaxed back against the pillow, as Calara returned the empty glass to the side table.

"Where is everyone?" he asked her curiously.

The Latina smiled as she said, "It's actually nearly ten in the morning. They've made a start on installing the sensor arrays, while Dana has started working on the shield modulator."

"So Alyssa asked you to keep me company until I woke up?" John guessed with a smile.

Calara shook her head and smiled at him. "I requested some time alone with you actually," she explained, looking up at him with her big brown eyes.

"That sounds intriguing," John said playfully, and leaned on his side so that he could look down at her.

He reached out his hand and brushed it over her flat stomach, feeling the toned muscles underneath her coffee-coloured skin. She glanced at him coyly, and nodded eagerly, so he leaned over to kiss her tenderly on the lips. She kissed him back softly and he enjoyed the feel of her lovely body under his hand. He let his fingers roam higher, before cupping one of her pert breasts, and then began massaging the smooth pliant flesh with a confident touch.

After breaking away from her lips, he began to trail kisses down her throat, across her collarbone, and then over her chest. He glanced up to see she was staring at him with a hood look which was filled with arousal. He began to massage her right breast with his hand, while taking her dark nipple in his mouth and sucking on it gently, feeling it grow erect on his tongue. He switched to her other breast and repeated the same actions. As he began to suck harder, Calara moaned with excitement running her fingers through his hair, and holding his head tightly to her breast.

He let his fingers slip lower, back over her slender stomach, before seeking out her labia and feeling the wetness there. He began to stroke and caress her, while his lips moved from nipple to nipple, and she began to arch her back as she urged him to enter her. Grinning happily, he moved over her as she eagerly parted her legs for him, and within moments he was sinking into her beautiful tight young body.

"Oh God, that feels good!" Calara gasped, when he was finally buried deep inside her.

He paused to let her adjust to being stretched, and then began to move slowly, as she rocked gently underneath him.

"Is this why you wanted to stay in bed with me this morning?" he asked her playfully, leaning down to kiss her.

She kissed him back, and sighed with delight as she said, "I actually wanted to talk to you, but it can wait. This feels amazing!"

John laughed and paused for a moment, with her wrapped around him. "Why didn't you say something?" he asked her curiously.

"You distracted me with your moves," she admitted, blushing alluringly.

He grinned, and kissed her happily which she returned in equal measure. When they finally broke for air, he raised himself up a little so that he could clearly see her face, and asked, "Talk now, or later?"

Calara looked thoughtful, and held on to him tightly, while moving sensually underneath him. "Talk now, if that's alright with you? I like being wrapped around you like this, and it feels wonderfully naughty knowing that all the time we're talking, we'll be moving on to something else as soon as we're done. It's like you have me pinned in place, to make use of me when you're ready," she told him, her eyes flashing with arousal.

He smiled at her affectionately, and brushed a stray lock of dark brown hair from her face as he nodded. "That sounds like a splendid idea to me. Now what did you want to talk about?" he asked her, intrigued.

"You seem to be having a hard time with this decision about going into Maliri Space," she said to him perceptively.

He nodded and explained, "Well, there's lots of risks involved, and I wanted to make sure you girls are all on-board with whichever decision we make."

She smiled up at him indulgently, and shook her head. "You need to stop second guessing yourself, and start trusting your instincts more! They haven't let us down so far. You're our leader, and you must know by now that we'll follow you anywhere," she told him firmly.

He looked down at her in surprise, and she leaned up and planted tender kisses on his throat, while he thought over what she had to say.

"We'll always do our best to give you advice where we can, but ultimately the decision has to come from you. It isn't the decision 'we' make, it's the decision YOU make, and we'll back you unreservedly, with whatever course of action you choose," she said to him supportively.

John looked at her in astonishment, and asked, "How did you know what I was thinking?" before he rolled his eyes in embarrassment, and said knowingly, "Alyssa..."

Calara smiled and nodded at him. "Yes, she's telling me everything that's on your mind, but we decided this would be better coming from me," she told him honestly.

"Because of your military background?" he asked her curiously.

"Yes, that's right. We were both taught in the Academy, that it can be lonely being the one in charge; giving the orders, and hoping that the decisions you make are the right ones. We'll help you by supplying information and advice, that will let you make the best, most well informed choices you can, but ultimately they will be your choices. If we can't provide any guidance, then it's just going to be you making the big choices," she told him sympathetically.

John nodded his understanding, and said, "So this is one of those decisions where it's basically up to me, and you girls can't really provide me any help, because there's too many unknowns?"

"Exactly," she agreed. Then looked at him curiously, and asked, "What do you feel would be the right choice?"

John thought it over, mulling his options, and Calara gently kissed his biceps while she patiently waited for him to make his decision.

"To agree to Irillith's offer," he said decisively.

"Why?" Calara asked him curiously, in a neutral, non-judgemental, tone of voice.

"The chance at being able to upgrade our weapons is too good an opportunity to pass up, but Irillith's knowledge of the Progenitors is even more intriguing. This might be our only chance to find out what the Maliri know about them. As risky as Ceraden makes it sound, we've got an incredibly fast ship, with very resilient armour that's especially effective against laser weaponry. If we get ambushed, we can run like hell for the border with Terran Space, and just forget about the whole thing," he said confidently.

He looked down at her in surprise, and felt his worries and doubts evaporate, as he felt sure of his decision.

Calara nodded firmly, looking pleased. "Excellent, I can't fault your reasoning at all. It's a good plan, with numerous potential rewards, and helps us minimise the risks. Nicely put together, Commodore," she said to him respectfully.

He looked down at her and shook his head in wonder. "Thank you for this talk, it was really helpful," he said gratefully, admiration for this beautiful and talented young woman shining in his eyes.

"You're welcome," she told him lovingly, and began to move languidly beneath him once again.

John smiled at her, and said, "The talk is over?"

She nodded and shot him a smouldering look under her long lashes. He looked down at the gorgeous girl beneath him, and then leaned forward to kiss her passionately. He wondered for a moment how he could reward Calara for her lovely, supportive advice that morning, and she watched him curiously as he mulled it over. He eventually made his decision, and she sighed with delight.

*Are you still telling her everything?* John asked Alyssa playfully.

*Our agreement was, 'word-for-word, until you cum', but I'll leave out this little sidebar conversation,* she informed him with amusement.

John smiled happily, and then took hold of Calara's hands and carefully held them down above her head, using his strength to keep her completely restrained. The Latina panted with arousal as she looked up at him, and he began to move slowly and sensually inside her, setting a torturously slow pace as he kissed her tenderly.

He kept that combination up throughout; utterly irresistible strength pinning her in place, combined with gentle caresses with his lips and tongue, as he communicated how much he cared for her. It drove her absolutely wild, and she thrashed underneath him, as she groaned and pleaded with him to ravage her. John was merciless however, and kept the slow lovemaking going, whilst never letting her forget his strength and dominance over her. Calara eventually screamed and bucked beneath him as she came, driven over the brink as Alyssa told her verbatim everything he was thinking about as he took the gorgeous girl.

After her third orgasm, she sobbed with glorious relief as her tight pussy clenched around his cock, when he held her in place, and came explosively inside her. She looked up at him in awe as he pumped her womb full of his cum, and he released her hands so she could wrap herself around him, while he cradled her head protectively as he rode out his orgasm. When he was finally spent, she looked up at him in amazement, and he leaned down to kiss her gently on her lips.

Calara looked like she was going to say something, but she was lost for words, rendered completely speechless. John smiled down at her beautiful, awestruck face, and then carefully pulled out of her and wrapped her in his arms. They spooned together for a while with her letting out a delighted sigh as he embraced her, whilst resting his hand on her swollen belly possessively.

***

The other girls came down to join them shortly afterwards for a quick snack, and Dana told him excitedly that the robots were performing well, and hadn't had any problems so far. She also reported that the mass fabricators were all busy, working to make the components she needed for the shield modulator, and that it would be built and installed by the evening.

Alyssa crawled over to sit beside him a short while later, licking her lips with satisfaction, while Dana took her place, making Calara writhe and groan with pleasure.

"That was an extremely helpful talk earlier, thanks for your part in that," John said to the blonde with a wry smile.

Alyssa glanced over at Calara and smiled at her fondly. "She's wonderful, isn't she?" she said happily.

He nodded, hugging Alyssa tightly as they watched the Latina arch her back, and cum on Dana's talented tongue.

"I think now would be a good time to replate the ship," John said to Alyssa. "With the Maliri primarily using laser weaponry, it makes sense to improve the reflective qualities of our armour, and we're already stripping off the hull plating. As long as triple shaping such a large volume of Alyssium isn't going to be too taxing for you?"

She shook her head, as she thought it over. "I should be able to manage that alright, but that's probably my limit," she admitted apologetically. "Quadruple shaping your sword was extremely difficult. I'm not even sure I'd be able to get through a suit of armour in a couple of sessions, let alone an armoured panel from the ship."

"There's no need to exert yourself too hard," John said in agreement. "As long as you're not finding it too much of a strain, we'll just get the robots to bring the armour plating down to you, as soon as we remove each plate. They can bring them down to the Hangar Bay, then go through both sets of double doors, and into the Cargo Bay. You can reshape each piece in there, out of sight of prying eyes, and then the robots can bring them back up again, for us to fit them in place."

Alyssa smiled at him enthusiastically, and said, "Sounds like a good plan to me."

***

John went to make himself a quick brunch, and then joined up with the girls to install all the sensors. Removing the old sensor, and then installing Dana's newly upgraded one was a laborious, painstaking process, so the robots ended up sitting around dormant while they waited for them to finish each installation before the panel could be replaced.

Eventually, John, Calara, Jade, and Rachel each took ownership of a separate robot, and repeatedly sent them back to Alyssa with plating from other parts of the ship. When they were nearly done with each sensor installation, they got the robot to remove the panel from the next sensor in line, so they could continue working without pause. It was a lean and efficient process, that saw them get nearly two-thirds of the sensor array fitted in a single day, and the entire ship replated in triple-forged Alyssium.

They were worn out by the time they staggered down to the Officers' Lounge for a late dinner at eight, but Dana had beaten them to it, having already fitted the shield modulator. She had prepared a tasty Shepherd's Pie for them, with some crisp, freshly cooked vegetables. Even Alyssa was surprised, being at the brink of exhaustion after triple reshaping such a vast volume of the psychically sensitive alloy, and not really concentrating on what the redhead was up to. They wolfed down the tasty dinner, having built up a big appetite with all the hard work, and thanked Dana profusely for her thoughtfulness in getting it ready for them.

Dana was the only one with any energy left, when they went to bed for an early night after dinner. She went to work on John enthusiastically, while the others sat around her watching, until she brought him off quickly whilst staring lovingly into his eyes. The girls each got to share some sweet tasting dessert, and they began to feel better within minutes, but John was worn out, so they called it a night and went to sleep.

***

The next morning, John was the first to awaken, feeling bright and full of energy after a great night's sleep. The girls woke up a little later, when he brought them in a big tray full of delicious smelling sausages, eggs, beans, bacon, and toast, so that they could have breakfast in bed. As they munched away on their food, grinning at him gratefully between bites, Rachel suddenly looked thoughtful.

"That's strange," she observed curiously.

John looked at her quizzically as he sat down, and asked, "What is? Not your breakfast I hope!"

She shook her head and laughed, then said, "No, breakfast is delicious, thanks very much for making it. I was just thinking that even though you were totally exhausted last night, you woke up earlier than us with far more energy, even though we all got to absorb your cum, thanks to Dana."

The redhead raised a piece of toast in the air, and waved it to her in friendly acknowledgement, as she chomped her way through a mouthful of fried bacon.

"So you think he received some kind of healing to be this chipper?" Jade said with a smile, as she glanced at John.

Rachel nodded, looking thoughtful, as she drank a glass of fruit juice. "That would be my best guess, yes. The super-telomeres in his body just repair the DNA strands, they don't heal the body as such. I suspect this is some kind of psionic-healing instead."

"Is there any way we can test your theory?" John asked, drinking from his mug of coffee.

The brunette nodded, and said eagerly, "I think we might be able to. As Dana kindly built the Psi-detector for me the other day, I could take a look and see what might be happening. You'll just need to wear yourself out today, and then we can check what happens tonight."

John smiled at her and said, "Sure. I'll help you guys fit the rest of the sensor array in the morning, train with Yamamoto after lunch, then Jade and I can have a lengthy swimming session directly afterwards," he suggested, looking at the Nymph, who nodded enthusiastically. "If we do all that, I should be exhausted by the evening," he added thoughtfully.

"We'll have to empty your quad this morning and tonight, just to make sure we stick to the scientific method, recreating the same events as yesterday," Dana said with a wicked grin. "So, time to pick. Which one of us do you want to fuck senseless, like you did to Calara yesterday morning?"

He smiled at Rachel, and raised an eyebrow. "Are you doing anything important this morning?" he asked her flirtatiously.

She nodded, her face serious. "A Progenitor, apparently," she replied, her face breaking into a playful grin.

Dana clapped excitedly and said, "I'm sure Francis Bacon would approve!"

Jade frowned and asked politely, "I don't think I've met him yet, who is he?"

Dana giggled before she replied, "He's the father of the scie-," but then she saw the mischievous grin on Jade's face, so she blurted out, "Hey! You knew that already!"

The Nymph gave a little shrug and said, "I spent the greater part of three hundred years as a bored sexual plaything. Unlike John, most Terran males aren't quite so... vigorous. So I had quite a bit of free time, and did a bit of reading here and there."

The redhead nodded, looking impressed, then turned to look at John. "I was going to meet up with Rellathis today, and give him a hand with a few other things he was stuck with. Are you alright with me going off to do that, while you're busy screwing Rachel?" she asked eagerly.

The tawny haired girl laughed, and rolled her eyes at Dana's charming turn of phrase, while John nodded in amusement. His expression then turned serious and said, "Make sure you warn Alyssa if you even suspect there's going to be trouble."

"Will do!" Dana nodded gleefully, and bounced out of bed, eager to be on her way.

Calara, Jade and Alyssa smiled at each other, and started to get up too. "I guess that's our cue to leave," Alyssa said with a grin.

Rachel shook her head, and said, "No, you should stay. We're trying to wear him out, remember?" she said with a wicked grin.

Dana laughed as she left the room, seeing John disappear under a tidal wave of athletic young bodies.

***

Rellathis was overjoyed to see Dana when she arrived at Ceraden's office reception half an hour later. He was speaking in friendly terms with the Maliri merchant, and when she strolled into the room, they both bowed to her respectfully. She had decided to wear something slightly more practical today, picking out a white blouse with a plunging neckline, that showcased her cleavage in a spectacular fashion. She had also chosen some long, figure hugging blue trousers, which she wore over a pair of suede kitten heel boots she had borrowed from Rachel.

The outfit seemed to have the desired effect on both of the men, and she beamed a sparkling smile at them ingenuously. She noticed their helmeted heads bobbing slightly as they tried in vain to keep looking politely at her face.

"I can't wait to see what you have in store for me today," she said to Rellathis cheerfully. "Are you having problems with anything else?" she asked him innocently.

The Maliri engineer walked over to greet her, offering her his arm, and she hooked hers through it, letting him lead her away on their tour. "Well firstly, I thought we'd take a look at those troublesome crystallites I was telling you about yesterday," he replied as he led her over to the maintenance door that led to the access tunnels beneath the Merchant District. "Then, if we have some time after that, there's a few other jobs that have been giving me trouble. We've had one of the patrol cruisers dock at the station, asking us to take another look at the power couplings on their starboard Beam laser turrets. I fixed the damn things twice already, but they're saying they've failed again!"

Dana nodded attentively, with a sympathetic smile on her face as she listened to Rellathis discuss the various problems that needed fixing on the patrol cruiser. *Woohoo! Jackpot!* she cheered victoriously to Alyssa, whilst trying to keep her glee from her supportive expression.

Alyssa cautioned her, *Be careful now... This could be a lot more dangerous.*

Dana heard and telepathically acknowledged Alyssa's words of warning, but she soon forgot them. All she could think about was just how delighted John would be with her, if they could get their hands on Maliri laser tech, without even having to leave the Space Station. She struggled to keep her breathing calm, as Rellathis guided her over to his hover car, and opened the bubble canopy for her.

***

John walked onto the Bridge from the grav-tube with a spring in his step, as he made his way to his Ready Room. He'd enjoyed some frenzied fun with the girls that morning, and he'd left them to have a light snack, courtesy of Rachel. He strode over to his desk, and then clicked a button that would open the comms interface as he sank into his chair.

He paused for a moment, as he realised he wasn't sure how to get into direct contact with Irillith, other than through Ceraden's offices. He sighed as he realised how his friend would likely react to his decision, and opened the channel, contacting Ceraden's offices. The call went through, but rather than Ceraden's golden armoured helmet appearing in the viewscreen, it was Irillith's beautiful blue features that greeted him instead.

"Hello, John," she purred to him with delight. "I'm so pleased that you contacted me. Have you made your decision?"

He looked at her in surprise, and asked, "How did this call go through to you directly? I was expecting to have to ask Ceraden to put me through to you."

She waved her hand dismissively. "I assumed that if you wanted to speak to that buffoon, you'd probably come here to visit him in person. Therefore, I configured the comms system to reroute any communications from your ship directly to me instead," she explained as if it were effortless, although hacking the highly secure comms network was no small feat in itself.

John nodded, impressed by her expertise, and said, "I've decided to take you up on your offer to meet with you mother, in exchange for being able to purchase weaponry for my ship. We're finishing our repairs here, and will be done by tomorrow."

Irillith looked overjoyed, and it was a refreshing change to see a genuine smile on her lovely face. "That's perfect! I can be ready to leave by noon tomorrow. You'll find I can be a powerful ally, John. You've made the right choice," she told him eagerly.

He smiled at her pleasantly and nodded, seeing no reason to antagonise her unnecessarily. "I had a couple of questions about the weaponry you're offering to sell me. Firstly, what kind of weapons are for sale? Secondly, what kind of prices are we talking about?"

She smiled at him reassuringly, "Rest assured, the Maliri have significantly more powerful ship-based lasers than the Terran Federation can even dream of. The weapon mounts on Terran and Maliri vessels are not hugely dissimilar, so you should be able to upgrade your whole arsenal. Of course, it won't be cheap, but I'm sure a man of your means wouldn't have been making inquiries of this nature if you didn't have the funds to pay for them."

"You aren't going to tell me any specifics, are you?" he asked her shrewdly.

She smiled at him teasingly, and shook her head. "That is for you and my mother to discuss and come to an agreement. My involvement in this business is to see you safely escorted to her."

He nodded reluctantly, and asked, "So we meet at noon tomorrow? Are you boarding my ship as a passenger?"

She laughed and shook her head, then said, "I have arranged my own passage. I'll rendezvous with you outside Port Geniya at noon tomorrow, and escort you into Maliri Space."

"I'll see you then," he agreed, and she closed the comm channel.

He sat back in the big chair behind the desk, steepling his fingers, as he thought over the conversation. Irillith's refusal to be drawn out on the details of this offer was ringing all sorts of alarm bells, but as he had discussed with Calara, they could always run if they got in trouble. He then stood, heading back to the bedroom to meet with the girls, and finish off the installation of the sensor array.

***

Irillith beamed with delight as she closed the channel. She had been sure that John was going to turn her down, especially after Ceraden snuck off to meet him on his ship, no doubt to warn him against accepting her offer. She could deal with that disloyal cretin later, as it looked like things were working out splendidly. She took a deep breath and composed herself, before quickly opening up the comm interface to inform her mother of the good news.

The channel connected and the familiar icon of House Valaden filled the screen. A few seconds later the stern face of Matriarch Edraele Valaden appeared, staring at her impassively.

"I did it mother! The Mael'nerak has agreed to journey with me to meet with you!" she told her mother eagerly.

Edraele's cold eyes studied her daughter for a long moment, before she said, "This had better not be a waste of my time Irillith. The limits to my tolerance for incompetence are well known."

"I promise you I'm right, mother," Irillith insisted urgently.

Edraele's eyes narrowed, and she asked, "Have you tested him? Verified you're correct?"

"My apologies mother, not yet," Irillith replied, flushing with embarrassment. "I'll escort him to the hunting grounds, and have him ki-"

"No," Edraele cut her off sharply. "If he is who you say he is, then have him eliminate the Fulmanax."

Irillith looked shocked, and blurted out, "But, I don't think tha-"

"Leave the thinking to me," Edraele interrupted her, with a malignant, twisted smile. "That world is ripe for colonisation, but I can't afford to waste the resources necessary to take it. Have your Mael'nerak do it for me."

Irillith was about to protest again, but thought better of it, so she bowed her head and nodded obediently. When she looked up at the viewscreen again, it crackled with static, the comm channel closed. She let out a troubled sigh as she slumped in her chair, and stared off into the distance.

***

John wiped the sweat from his brow, trying not to cover himself in grease from his hands, and stood from where he'd been kneeling next to the sensor component. He checked that all the connections were securely attached as Dana had instructed them, and once he was sure that the device had been correctly installed, he stepped back and called the robot over.

It smiled at him benignly as it floated into position, holding the large armour plate securely in its multi-digit hands. The robot carefully lowered the bulky armour plate, and when John had confirmed that it was correctly slotted into position, he ordered the hovering automaton to back away. He pulled out the multi-tool from his belt and then began to securely fasten the armour plating, making sure that it was locked into place.

Rachel was sitting on the hull of the ship drinking from a canteen of water, watching him as he completed his task. "That was the last one," she told him with relief, before standing and offering him the canteen. "Need a drink?"

John nodded, and grinned at her as he said enthusiastically, "Yeah, make mine a double, with plenty of ice!"

She laughed, and handed over the canteen to him, then watched as he took a long drink of water. "As your physician, I should probably warn you against excessive consumption of alcohol. But then again, I could murder a tall one right now!" she said enthusiastically.

Calara and Alyssa strolled over to Join them, looking equally as flustered after all the hard work that morning, installing the sensor array. Alyssa stood with her hands on her hips, and nodded with satisfaction as she surveyed the glossy white hull of the Invictus, checking to make sure all the armour plating had been replaced correctly.

John looked up at them, and noticed that the lovely green-skinned Nymph was nowhere in sight. "Where's Jade?" he asked them curiously.

"She went to run us a bath," Calara said eagerly. "Come on, I can't wait to get clean again!"

John laughed, and picked up his toolbox, before turning to the robot and saying, "Follow." As he walked over to join the blonde and brunettes, it hovered behind him quietly.

"A bath would be amazing," Rachel sighed happily, as she walked by John's side and held his hand.

He smiled as he looked down at her, and said, "I know the bath is huge, but I think fitting all five of us in there is a bit optimistic."

Alyssa turned to look at him over her shoulder, as they walked over to the maintenance gantry, and her bright blue eyes sparkled as she said, "I guess one of us is going to have to sit in your lap then!"

John laughed along with the others, but as he watched Calara and Alyssa walking ahead of him, he thought that the blonde's suggestion might be a very good idea indeed. He couldn't be certain, but he was sure she put more sway in her walk.

***

It turned out the bath had been big enough for five of them after all. As long as one of the girls was snuggled against his chest, they were all able to comfortably relax in the warm bubbly water. The girls decided that to make sure it was fair on the poor girl who had to sit in his lap, they would all have to take a turn. Getting comfortably settled seemed to take an inordinate amount of wiggling and squirming, but once John was deep inside them, they leaned back against him, sighing happily. He was currently enjoying Jade's tender ministrations, and she squeezed him lightly with her rippling internal muscles, as she rested against him.

The peace and tranquillity was suddenly disturbed by the sound of muttered curses coming from the corridor, and a few moments later, Dana stomped into the room. The redhead looked furious, and she pouted when she arrived, her arms crossed tightly across her chest.

John looked up at her curiously, and asked, "What's the matter, secret agent? You don't look happy."

"I can't fucking believe it! I was so close, and they chucked me out!" Dana exclaimed indignantly.

He smiled at her sympathetically, and said in a soothing voice, "Well you did an incredible job getting all the other schematics. Trying to acquire the clear-crystal tech as well, was probably a bit ambitious."

"Oh I got that, and I found out how they reinforce the lattice," she said offhandedly, frowning with annoyance.

John's face lit up in a wide grin. "That's fantastic! So why are you so upset?" he asked her in confusion.

"Rellathis had begged me to help him fix one of their cruisers! I was moments away from seeing their Beam laser blueprints, on the pretence of finding out how they should be connected to a power coupling, and the Maliri guards threw us out of the docking bay!" she said with frustration.

Rachel smiled as she checked out Dana's impressive cleavage with a raised eyebrow, and asked, "The outfit didn't work its magic on them I take it?"

"No! The guards around the cruiser were women! And I'm sure they called me something very rude. Rellathis refused to translate it," she said with a frown.

They all laughed, and the redhead eventually smiled at them, her face lighting up once again.

"Their weapon tech is amazing," she said with a wistful sigh. "I got a close look at the patrol cruiser, and they have turreted beam weapons!" she added in wonder.

Calara frowned as she looked up at her, and said, "Those turrets must be enormous. Thirty metre long weapons in a turret sounds pretty unwieldy."

"That's just it!" Dana exclaimed in amazement, "The barrels on the Beam lasers couldn't have been more than ten metres long. They must be using some kind of incredibly sophisticated focusing crystals, that would make the ones we use look like a hunk of glass!"

Calara looked distant as she imagined it. "Turreted Beam lasers would be amazingly useful. We'd still be able to put out some real damage while making wild evasive manoeuvres, or even whilst running away," she said her eyes flashing with excitement at the possibilities.

"I know! Awesome, right?" Dana nodded eagerly.

John smiled and said gratefully, "Well thanks for trying so hard, I appreciate it. You've got us some extremely useful tech for free, which means I won't feel that bad about paying big money for the weapons. That's assuming Irillith's mother is actually willing to make some kind of agreement."

Calara looked at him curiously and asked, "You're having more doubts after speaking to Irillith?"

He nodded and replied, "She was very hazy on the details, which didn't instill me with a lot of confidence. I still think it's worth giving it a shot though."

The girls nodded their agreement, and then Dana finally seemed to realise she was missing out on some action. She looked at them hopefully and asked, "Got room for one more?"

Alyssa shook her head sadly, and said, "We're pretty squashed in here at the moment." She looked at Dana's top curiously and asked, "Oh! What's that on your blouse?"

The redhead looked down and plucked at the material, trying to find the offending bit of dirt or lint that the blonde girl was referring to, but without success.

"Not there," Alyssa said shaking her head. "It's a bit lower. Here, let me show you," she added beckoning the other girl closer.

Dana stepped forward, while leaning down so that her friend could point it out, and Alyssa reached out carefully. The redhead let out a shocked squeal when Alyssa suddenly grabbed her, and pulled her fully clothed into the tub with them, sending waves of soapy bubbles splashing over the bathroom floor. Dana sat up and spluttered for a moment, before descending into a fit of giggles, joined by the other girls and John's baritone laughter.

Jade grinned at Dana and said, "Hurry up and strip out of those clothes. I think it's your turn to sit on John's lap."

Everyone started laughing again when Dana's boots sailed across the bathroom, and the redhead splashed around in the tub in a scrambled haste to remove her trousers.

***

They played around in the huge bath for another half an hour, before Dana glanced at the chronometer set into the wall, and regretfully rose from the soapy bubbles.

"I need to get cracking on the Tactical Station upgrades," she said with a sorrowful sigh, as she stepped out of the tub. "All our guns will be out of action while I make the upgrade, so I want to swap it out as fast as possible."

Calara stood too, revealing acres of her smooth, glistening, coffee-coloured skin as she did so. "I'll join you," she said eagerly. "I want to make sure we've got everything covered with the new controls."

Dana laughed and handed the Latina a warm towel. "You worrier," she said affectionately. "You spent hours poring over your designs, I'm sure they're perfect by now."

The brunette blushed, and then shrugged, before saying "Perhaps, but I'd still like to double check, as long as that's alright?"

Dana nodded, then raised an eyebrow at Rachel as she got up as well.

The tawny haired girl smiled at her and said, "I need to learn how to use the Psi-detector if I'm going to be using it properly tonight. I'll join you girls, as long as you don't mind?"

Calara offered Rachel a hand as she stepped out of the tub, and said, "Of course not, we'd enjoy the company, right Dana?" to which the redhead nodded eagerly.

All three waved goodbye to John and the last two girls remaining in the tub. "You two aren't leaving too I hope?" he asked them cautiously.

Alyssa shook her head, and eyed him hungrily. "No. You have something we both want," she told him seductively, before turning to look at the Nymph, and saying leadingly, "It's been a while since it was just us two with you."

Jade shared the look and then grinned happily. She shimmered in a dark green haze for a few seconds, before reappearing as a perfect copy of her beautiful blonde companion.

The authentic Alyssa smiled playfully, then said, "You haven't fucked the twins for a while, fancy having some fun?"

He grinned at her eagerly, and both identical blondes rose and then stepped out of the bath, shooting smouldering looks at him. He followed after them with his cock throbbing with anticipation, and the girls dried each other off in silence, getting themselves ready for him to take them. They walked into the bedroom hand-in-hand, and glanced at him coyly as he finished drying his hair and entered the bedroom behind them.

Alyssa and Jade were lying on the bed, looking like mirror images of each other as they both smiled at him invitingly. He glanced from one girl to the other, looking for any differences, but try as he might he couldn't tell which one was the Nymph, or the genuine article.

"Don't worry about trying to tell us apart, just relax and enjoy," left Alyssa said with a warm smile.

The other stunningly beautiful blonde nodded, and said, "Just pretend we're a horny couple of twins, wanting you to impregnate us at the same time, so we can experience pregnancy together."

Left Alyssa nodded, and shot him an aroused look, and murmured, "We don't have to pretend, if you want to make it really exciting..."

He groaned at the thought, and they both beamed perfect sparkling smiles at him, before leaning over to start kissing each other. John climbed onto the bed with them, but they only stopped their sensual kisses when he eased his rock hard cock between their lips. Two sets of bright blue eyes looked up at him adoringly, as their mouths glided up and down his length, their tongues flickering out to caress his skin.

He knelt like that for a while, just letting them worship his shaft with their hot little mouths, until he pulled back and glanced at right Alyssa. She lay back and spread her bronzed thighs for him, and her slick pussy gripped him as he pushed forward until he was completely sheathed inside her. The other twin knelt as his side, and smiled at him eagerly as he began to pick up the pace, the blonde underneath him, moaning her encouragement.

"I look amazing getting fucked like that. I can see why you're so fond of me," the kneeling Alyssa said to him playfully.

John laughed, and grabbed her before kissing her fiercely, no longer caring which girl was which.

***

Calara watched transfixed as Dana installed the components for the Fire Control System. The redhead was busy fitting and slotting one circuit bank into place by feel alone, as she glanced to her side, looking for the next one in the orderly arrayed parts. She passed each item from one hand to another, not even having to look where it needed to go, having memorised the blueprints for the device that precisely.

The redhead had the Fire Control System hooked up to one of her consoles in what seemed like no time, and her fingers scurried across multiple consoles, writing multiple sections of operating code simultaneously. Calara glanced up at the holographic displays above her, and watched in awe as thousands of lines of code scrolled up above her, moving so fast that she struggled to read one set, let alone the other two that Dana's right hand was flitting between.

"How can you do that?" she asked in astonishment.

Dana looked to her side, and flashed a warm smile at Calara, her coding continuing uninterrupted. "It's been getting easier with practice. Just relax, and let it flow through you," she said encouragingly. "John spent two weeks with you as his sole centre of focus. I bet he put just as much care and attention into you and your gorgeous body, as he did with me."

The Latina looked doubtful, but then she remembered the way John would stare into her eyes as she knelt before him, and a shiver of excitement ran down her spine. "It always felt so intimate," she said, nodding as she remembered. "Like there was a powerful connection between us."

Dana looked away into the distance for a while, a wistful expression on her face. "We'll have to ask Alyssa about just having some alone time with him like that again. Don't get me wrong, I love seeing him with the rest of you, but just being able to stare into his eyes with his complete focus on you as he cums down your throat..." she shivered like Calara had, and then turned and flashed an excited look at the brunette, who nodded knowingly in return.

Calara noticed that Dana had paused, momentarily, and said apologetically, "Sorry, I didn't mean to distract you from what you were doing."

Dana grinned and shook her head as she said, "I'd just finished anyway. I'll start up a simulated demo on Rachel's console at the end there, so you can see what to expect. She isn't using it right now."

The Latina nodded, and then glanced over at their tawny haired friend, who was sitting cross legged on the floor, with the holo-reader in her lap and the Psi-detector in her hand. She was busy reading through the instruction manual that Dana had written for her, and she waved at them with a smile when she heard her name mentioned.

Calara returned her friendly greeting, then strolled over to the console as the redhead started up the simulation. She blinked at the bewildering amount of information being displayed, trying to figure out exactly what it all meant.

"Oops! Sorry about that, let me turn on some filters," Dana apologised, and with several button clicks removed the riot of information. All that was left on the holograph were a dozen small spaceships flying around, that looked like they were probably fighters.

"Alright, so let's start again," Dana said with a smile, turning to look at the simulator. "The Maliri Fire Control System is very sophisticated, tracking and calculating enormous amounts of information from any targets you have selected.

It gathers all the data from the powerful Maliri sensors, allowing you to see that data next to a target, and you can display as much or as little information as you like. So for example, it will show projected flight-paths for targets, based on the flight characteristics of the vessel and movement predictions."

She pressed a button, and with a click, faint lines arced out in front of the fighters, showing their likely flight paths. Calara watched in fascination as the simulated craft dodged around, following the predicted vectors.

"We can also add a targeting reticle for each of those targets," Dana continued, making some adjustments, and a glowing crosshairs appeared slightly in front of each fighter.

"Of course, if you're using different classifications of weapons to shoot at the same target, you can have a different targeting reticle set up for each weapon," she explained, and with a flicker of her fingers, four crosshairs appeared in front of each fighter, representing the Mass Drivers, Beam lasers, laser cannons, and Gatling lasers.

Calara flashed an excited grin at Dana, and asked, "What other information can it display?"

Dana grinned at her, and began to add more information overlays to the simulation, pausing a moment between each one, so that the brunette could see the new data. "Shield strength, armour durability, and locations of ship components like power cores," she said enthusiastically with a wink. "Although we'll need to have performed an active scan on that type of vessel beforehand, to build up a database of ship types and configurations," she added regretfully.

Calara turned, and hugged her friend tightly as she gasped, "This new Fire Control System is amazing! Thanks so much!"

"I should be thanking you, I loved building it!" Dana confessed, hugging her back.

When they separated, Calara walked over to the pile of new parts needed to upgrade the Tactical Station, and picked up one of the ergonomically designed hand controls. "These look amazing, just like the ones I'd envisioned," she said approvingly.

Dana walked over to her side, and smiled as she looked at the completely redesigned joystick. "I'm not sure how you'll be able to manage all those buttons, but as long as you're happy with them, my work is done," she said with a grin.

Calara nodded confidently. "Each stick has a dual-button thumb control that allows me to fire off each of the four Mass Drivers individually, in pairs, or all at once. It's the same for the multi-button trigger controls for the Beam lasers, and for the laser cannons. If I need to fire the Gatling lasers on manual control, I can swap them out for any of the other configured weapons with the flip of a switch, otherwise they'll be set to auto-fire as part of the defence grid," she explained animatedly.

Dana listened attentively, then gently nudged Calara affectionately with her shoulder. "I know. I built them for you, remember," she said teasingly.

Calara laughed and blushed faintly with embarrassment. She smiled at the redhead apologetically, and said, "Sorry, I got a bit carried away there."

Dana grinned back at her and replied, "You looked cute getting all excited like that, no need to apologise."

The Latina was about to reply when a gasp of amazement drew their attention back to Rachel. The lovely young doctor had been studiously examining the instructions for the Psi-detector, and she was now trying it out for the first time.

***

Rachel had found Dana's instructions to be clearly written and informative, and learning how to operate the device, had been relatively quick and painless. The inventive Chief Engineer had made a smaller and more compact version of the Psychic sensor, which had been built into the base of the broken Ashanath Psi-shaper. She had constructed a device that looked like a futuristic gun, which flared out into a sensor at the end. Floating above the hand grip was a holographic display, that translated the psionic energy picked up by the sensor, turning it into a visual representation of Psionic energy waves.

She had picked up the Psi-detector once she was confident on how to operate it, and then pointed it across the room, swinging the sensor in a slow and careful arc as she stared at the display. She had not seen anything unusual in the holographic image until she passed it over Dana and Calara, and what she saw made her gasp with surprise.

They looked at her curiously, and Dana asked, "It sounds like you've found something. Anything interesting?"

Rachel nodded excitedly, and then walked over to join them, and said, "You two are giving off some kind of faint aura, and a softly glowing white line kind of snakes out from you through the ceiling."

They both took it in turns to be scanned by the Psi-detector, so that they could each see what she was referring to. Dana then requested the device, and once Rachel had handed it over, the redhead pointed it at her, and confirmed the same thing.

"I wonder what that line is meant to be," Calara said curiously.

Rachel shrugged, then looked thoughtful as she said, "I'm not sure, but I have a hunch where it leads."

Dana glanced upwards and then grinned as she nodded. "I think you might be right!"

Rachel waved the two of them goodbye, as they began preparations to head up to the Bridge to upgrade the Tactical Station, and she walked out of the Engineering Bay with the Psi-detector in her hand. Now that she knew what to look for, she could see the faintly glowing white line leaving her body and heading up diagonally towards the ceiling. She strolled over to the grav-tube, then stepped inside the blue side, noticing that the glowing line began to flatten out as she rose, until it plateaued out at Deck Two.

She grinned as her hypothesis was proved correct, and she followed the long white line as it led along the corridor and then into the Commander's Quarters at the end. Walking along at a brisk pace, she covered the distance in no time, before striding eagerly into the bedroom following the line with the Psi-detector.

John was lying down in the middle of the bed, with Jade and Alyssa flanking him. They looked up at him adoringly as he gently caressed their swollen bellies, whispering loving words to the pair of them. When he noticed Rachel barge into the room, he smiled at her with amusement and raised his hands in the air.

"We surrender," he said, looking at the futuristic looking ray-gun shape of the Psi-detector that Rachel was pointing in their direction.

She flushed with embarrassment, immediately pointing it away from them, and walked over to join them on the bed. Alyssa and Jade smiled at her welcomingly as she sat down, and she felt her embarrassment disappear immediately.

"Is that the new Psi-detector?" Alyssa asked her, looking at the device curiously.

Rachel nodded eagerly. "I found out something pretty interesting. Here, take it, and point it at me," she requested, handing it over to the blonde.

Alyssa nodded and did as she asked, then stared in fascination at the white line that was trailing out of the brunette. "What is that?" she asked entranced.

"I'm not completely sure, but I followed the trail up here," Rachel said, throwing an inquisitive glance John's way.

Jade was watching curiously, so Alyssa handed over the Psi-detector to her, so that she could take a look at the mysterious white line too. She took it eagerly and then began to experiment, waving it around with interest.

"Did Dana and Calara have these lines too?" Alyssa asked Rachel.

Rachel nodded immediately. "All three lines were pointing at the ceiling down on Deck Seven in Dana's workshop. I guessed where they might lead," she said, looking at John pointedly.

"Unfortunately you were wrong," Jade said to her gently, and they all turned to look at the Nymph.

Jade had climbed off the bed, and moved to the other side of the room, so that she could more easily see the glowing white line coming from Rachel. She had followed that line, and winced at the bright white glare coming from its destination. When her eyes had adjusted and could just about make out the white line against the blinding flare of light, she had spoken up.

"The thin faint line from Rachel leads to you Alyssa, not to John," Jade explained carefully. "There's also three other lines converging on you, too. One I can see is from me, and the other two are coming from below us."

"Really?" Rachel asked in surprise. "Could I take a look please?" she asked politely.

Jade nodded, so Rachel climbed off the bed to join her and had a look through the Psi-Detector once Jade had handed it over. She could see the line coming from Jade, and when she swung the Psi-detector around to follow it to Alyssa, she covered her eyes against the glare from the detector.

"She's absolutely right," Rachel confirmed with a nod, "but there's so much psionic energy pouring off Alyssa, that it gets hard to see."

John looked at her curiously and asked, "How about me? Do you see any lines coming from me as well?"

"I'll move out the way so you can see better," Alyssa said enthusiastically, and she climbed off the bed, and walked over to the other side of the room, to get well clear.

Rachel pointed the Psi-detector at John, then frowned in confusion. "All the girls seemed to have faint white auras, apart from Alyssa's, which is blindingly bright. You don't seem to have an aura at all, though," she said with surprise. She then studied him some more, then said, "but there's a massive glowing white cable linking you and Alyssa together."

He looked surprised at that, sharing glances with Alyssa as he asked, "What do you think that means?"

Rachel shrugged helplessly, then said happily, "I'm not sure, but I love the idea that we're all linked together like that!"

Rachel handed over the Psi-detector to Jade, and stroked her chin thoughtfully. "We could do an experiment to test it, but we'd need a big room and all of us there," she said mysteriously.

John nodded, looking interested, then frowned for a moment. "We'll have to test this later. I've got a training session with Yamamoto, and both Dana and Calara are busy now too, upgrading the Tactical Station."

Alyssa had strolled back to the bed, and opened her arms invitingly. "You can always come and have a cuddle though, while we wait," she said to the brunette playfully.

Rachel grinned and gave John a big kiss as he passed her on the way to the bathroom. She quickly stripped off her clothes, and then joined Alyssa and Jade in bed, who hugged her lovingly. She let out a huge sigh of contentment, and kissed them both as they snuggled together under the covers.

***

"Give the money to orphans," the brooding figure snorted, shaking his head in disbelief.

The disused processing plant was gloomy and unlit, with only a few shards of light from the holes in the ceiling overhead providing any illumination. The man had finished carefully cleaning his tools, and they were spotless, gleaming brightly once more. As he examined each razor sharp, or wickedly barbed implement in turn, he slotted them back into the slots in the black velvet roll of cloth, which was spread out on the grubby table. When they were all back in their place, he flipped over the velvet top, and then carefully rolled up the cloth, before tucking it under his arm.

"Your story is so absurd, I'm inclined to believe you, Mr Koeman," he said, addressing the man in restraints, who was slumped in a chair.

Peter Koeman remained silent, as a dark red pool began to spread out across the dusty floor beneath his feet.

The man in black turned to look at him one last time, and shook his head. "If you hadn't tried to run, it might not have taken you so long to convince me you were telling me the truth," he lamented, before his mouth twisted up in an evil grin. "Still, you'll be a valuable lesson to the others," he added with satisfaction.

The brooding figure strode away purposefully, without a second glance in Mr Koeman's direction, a new course of action already in mind. After his many years in this line of business, he had learned that you just needed to prepare a trap with the right kind of bait.