John sprawled on the bed, his chest heaving as he panted to get his breath back. He gazed wide-eyed at the stars through the clear-crystal dome, admiring the beautiful sweep of bright starlight that shone down on the trio in the Observatory. The Invictus was in high orbit around New Eden in the Procyon system, located right in the heart of the Core Worlds, so the stars and constellations were reassuringly familiar.

"Oh fuck!" Alyssa squealed, drawing his attention to her.

He glanced across at the blonde, loving the look of bliss on her flushed face as she climaxed on Jade's long, probing tongue. The Nymph had joined them at the tail-end of their frenzied coupling, just as John was pumping the quivering teen full of cum. When he'd toppled over onto the huge bed, thoroughly spent, Jade had immediately taken his place, eagerly getting to work on slurping up his spunk.

Alyssa was currently lying face down, her ass up in the air, propped up by her cum-packed belly as she moaned in ecstasy. The teenager's bronzed skin was covered in a glistening sheen of perspiration, reminding him of those memorable times she'd oiled up her nubile body for some of their naughtier sessions in the playroom. He watched Alyssa climax again for the seventh, or was it eighth time? Actually, he'd lost count of how many times she'd cried out that she was cumming - he'd been too busy pinning her down and roughly fucking her senseless. It had become a time-honoured tradition between the two of them to finish their XO catch-up meetings that way and he'd always considered himself a traditional guy.

"You look gorgeous," he said as he rolled onto his side, brushing the mane of golden hair from her eyes.

She was too exhausted to speak at that moment, desperately panting for breath, but she gave him a loving look with her piercing cerulean eyes. Although her body was still trying to recover from their exertions, her mind was just as active as ever, albeit a little shell-shocked at that particular point in time. *That was fucking amazing! You haven't ridden me like that in months!*

*Now you're making me feel like I've been neglecting you,* he replied with a smile, gently stroking her long locks.

Alyssa shook her head between heavy breaths. *You've been very tender with me and the girls recently. I love it when you're like that, but it's really exhilarating to see you blow off some steam!*

Jade paused in her efforts, withdrawing her prehensile tongue from the gasping blonde. "Would you like me to feed Tashana when we return to your room, Master?" she asked, sounding as eager to please as usual.

He'd gifted the Nymph with enough self-awareness and independence to no longer need to refer to him by that title, but Jade still liked to do so when they were intimate together. Now when she called him "Master", the inflection in her voice had changed, throbbing with love and not just her heartfelt respect and adulation.

Moving down the bed a little, John saw that she'd started to inflate her dark-green breasts with the cum she'd sucked out of Alyssa. He reached out to place his hand on the Nymph's lean abdomen, smiling at her indulgently as he caressed her svelte figure. "This one's for you, Jade. I want to feed you tonight."

She looked surprised and elated, her tummy starting to swell as she diverted his load into her stomach. Jade began to purr with contentment as he stroked her growing belly, her cat-like eyes gazing at him adoringly before she nestled between Alyssa's pert cheeks and went to work once again. Bands of bright viridian light began to spread out around her body, following those sensual curves as they pulsed outwards from her stomach.

John followed after one of those pulses with his fingers, gliding over Jade's soft green skin as he traced its path with his fingertips. Her purring got louder and deeper, which he could only assume meant that she approved of his gentle touch.

Alyssa confirmed that for him a moment later. *She loves being stroked by you, don't stop.*

*You mentioned a few days ago that you thought I should focus on Jade again,* John thought to Alyssa as he caressed the exotic Lenarran. *Is it because she still glows like this when I feed her?*

*Yeah, that's right...* Alyssa replied distractedly, sighing with pleasure. *According to Rachel, those pulses of light mean you're making Jade stronger. I was curious how powerful she could get if you keep feeding her like this...*

Recalling the Nymph's astonishing transformations into a wide variety of massive dinosaurs, John had to admit he was fairly curious himself. *Sure, we could do that, but in all honesty, I'd prefer it if we rethink these marathon feeding sessions. There's so much going on at the moment, it gets a bit awkward focusing on just one girl for that length of time. Poor Tashana keeps having to share with the rest of the crew and I end up feeling guilty for short-changing her.*

*She'll have a week with you pretty-much uninterrupted when we go on holiday, so don't worry about that,* Alyssa said to placate him. *Besides, Tashana's not exactly been complaining... She's been having a great time! Between being overjoyed to be reunited with Irillith, loving her new psychic powers, and relishing every minute she spends with you, she couldn't be happier.*

*It's been wonderful seeing her relaxing and settling in,* John said, as his fingers brushed down Jade's flank, watching viridian lines follow in their wake.

He could feel the active connection with the Nymph in his mind, the image of her glowing with a brilliant white light as she finished filling her stomach with his cum. She was in excellent health at that moment and had fully recovered from the desperate battle on Terra. It had shocked him to see how exhausted she'd been after that fight, with Jade narrowly escaping death at the hands of Mikaboshi's assassins. The poor girl had survived being caught in an explosion, only to be set upon by a team of cyborg ninjas, who'd slashed her scores of times with their deadly swords.

John normally put no conscious thought into the way he nurtured Jade under his psychic care, generally having a vague idea about making her stronger. This time however, he focused specifically on trying to develop her resilience, not wanting to see her get so badly hurt ever again. The lazy pulses of light that flowed out from her stomach intensified in their luminescence, making her body glow with a verdant radiance in their wake.

Jade's vertical irises expanded into black pools of wonder as she sat bolt upright. "Oh! That feels different!"

"I'm not hurting you, am I?" John asked with concern.

She shook her head, sounding excited as she replied, "No, quite the opposite! It feels divine!"

Alyssa had managed to shake off her post-climactic daze and she studied the glowing Nymph in fascination. "Can you tell what John's doing to you?"

Jade slowly nodded, her emerald gaze never leaving John's face for a moment. "Normally I can feel you helping me become more powerful, but this... It's like something was missing before and you're filling that gap!"

"He's good at that," Alyssa replied with a sly smile.

John lay down beside the blonde, then beckoned to Jade. "Come and join us for a moment, honey. There's something I want to talk to you about."

The Nymph moved obediently to lie between them, letting out a rapturous sigh as her two companions gently caressed her heavily rounded belly. Her eyelids got heavy as she started to look drowsy, just as she always did when her body was responding to John's psychic enhancements.

"You can sleep in a few minutes, sexy. You'll want to hear this," Alyssa said, leaning over to kiss Jade's luscious dark-green lips.

John raised himself up on one elbow so that he could study Jade's beautiful face. "We were talking about all the girls and their families earlier, and we had an interesting chat about you."

"You're my family," Jade said, giving them both a tender smile. "I love all of you very much."

"We love you too," Alyssa agreed, cuddling the Nymph.

John nodded, smiling affectionately at the happy girls. He brushed his fingers through Jade's black hair, watching as the green highlights were illuminated in the soft starlight from the dome above. "We were thinking of your original family though; your Lenarran sisters. Would you like us to try and track down any that might have survived after all this time?"

Jade froze, looking at him in shock. "I thought they were all lost forever!" she gasped, sounding amazed. "You can really help me find them?!"

A hint of worry flashed across his face, reluctant as he was to give her any false hope. "I don't want to make any promises I can't keep, but I can promise you we'll try our hardest to find any survivors. I was planning on asking the girls for their help tomorrow."

"Oh, thank you so much, Master!" Jade exclaimed, hugging him tight and planting a flurry of kisses on his face. When she'd finished with John, she snaked her arm around Alyssa, pulling her in close and kissing her just as enthusiastically. "Thank you too, Mistress!"

John shared a smile with Alyssa, then turned back to the excited girl between them. "There's no guarantees, but-"

Shaking her head, Jade replied, "If anyone can find them, it's you, Master, I know it!" She looked practically giddy with excitement, her skin warming up to the touch.

The Nymph's reaction puzzled him slightly. While he'd been expecting her to be very enthusiastic about the idea, she only normally heated up like this when she was aroused.

Alyssa glanced his way and rolled her eyes when he looked at her in confusion. Turning back to the overjoyed Nymph, she asked, "Jade, why does the idea of finding more Nymphs turn you on so much?"

She beamed at John and explained, "When we finally settle down, you promised to keep me pregnant for decades, but I was worried it wouldn't be enough to rebuild the Nymph race." Her emerald eyes gleamed as she added in a hushed voice, "But if we can find more of my sisters to help..."

"Hold on a second!" John said, shaking his head in protest. "I'm not looking to rescue them for that! I just want to save them from captivity!"

Jade sighed with delight. "I know, Master. That's what makes you so wonderful."

He gave her a self-conscious smile. "Well, we'll cross that bridge when we get to it. I think it's time to go to bed, but we'll ask the girls for their help first thing tomorrow morning."

Rising from the bed, he offered both girls a hand. They shared a brief hug, before Alyssa pulled away to collect the clothing they'd hastily discarded earlier. As they walked towards the door, Faye appeared in a bright flash of purple.

"Hello! I wondered if I could talk to you about something important?" she asked, looking at John with a curious expression on her face.

Alyssa hit the button to open the door into the Lagoon and she smiled when she saw there was a cleaning bot waiting outside. Dropping the pile of clothes into the laundry hopper on its back, she held out her hand for Jade. "I'll take our lovely Nymph to bed. We'll see you in a minute."

"Thank you," Jade said quietly, planting a soft kiss on his cheek before gliding out of the room hand-in-hand with Alyssa. They chattered together excitedly until the door closed again, leaving John alone in the Observatory with the purple-hued sprite.

John glanced at the agitated AI and noted with a playful smile, "You're timing was excellent, Faye. Were you watching us?"

She blushed prettily, her cheeks darkening as she did so. "I always keep an eye on you, just in case you need me for anything," she confessed, looking up at him with wide luminous eyes.

"Good to know," he said with a chuckle, knowing full well the scenes of debauchery she must witness on a daily basis. "I hope you don't find everything too... unsettling."

Quickly shaking her head Faye replied, "No not at all! It's all very instructive- err, I mean, interesting!"

John arched an eyebrow at that, then sat down on the bed and patted a space in front of him. "So, what did you want to talk to me about?"

"The cyborg assassin we have locked in the Brig," Faye replied, her normally cheerful voice turning sombre. "I've been keeping him alive, using the maintenance bots to give him food and water, but being limbless for a couple of days is starting to affect his grip on sanity. What do you want done with him?"

"Oh, I'd forgotten about him," John replied, startled by the abrupt shift in tone. He frowned as he mulled it over for a while. "I had planned on handing him over the Terran Federation judiciary, but after everything he's seen, I'm not sure that's wise."

"Shall I just dispose of him then?" Faye asked, tilting her head to one side as she gazed at him.

John grimaced at the thought of just executing their prisoner, years of military training having taught him to adhere to Galactic Council law and treat captives with compassion.

*Don't shed a tear for that piece of shit,* Alyssa said vehemently. *I've seen inside his mind. The man was a murderous psychopath even before he voluntarily turned himself into a cyborg. In fact, that's probably why Mikaboshi chose him. He assassinated over two-hundred people before Faye abruptly ended his career.*

John hesitated for a second, then nodded to the purple sprite. "Alyssa told me he's murdered hundreds, so the courts would have executed him anyway. I don't want to risk him revealing what he knows about you or Alyssa during any interrogations though, so it's better if we handle this ourselves. He probably doesn't deserve the consideration, but make it quick and painless."

"He won't feel a thing," Faye agreed, her expression non-judgemental. She frowned as she added, "I'm sorry to bring that up last thing before you go to bed."

"Don't worry, it was important you reminded me," he replied, rubbing at his eyes. "We've had so much going on recently I forgot all about him."

Faye inched closer and held out a slender hand, her fingers gliding over his. "I know. If there's ever anything I can do to help make things easier, just let me know, okay?"

"You're already doing loads as it is," John replied, giving her a grateful smile. "I'm not exaggerating when I say that I'm not sure what we'd do without you."

Her wings fluttered in response to his praise and she looked like she was about to say something, but caught herself at the last moment. "It's nearly two in the morning, you should get some rest. Don't let me keep you from your bed."

John slowly rose to his feet, as Faye sprang lightly to hers. "You're right, I'm feeling pretty haggard and I'm supposed to be meeting Rachel's dad tomorrow."

"Later today, you mean?" Faye replied with a cheerful smile.

He groaned and replied, "Don't! You're just reminding me how late it is!" He waved her goodbye as he walked towards the door. "I'll leave the ship in your capable hands, Watch Commander."

"Good night, John," she replied softly, returning his wave and watching him stride away across the Bridge over the Lagoon.

***

Edraele awoke to the delicious aroma of cooked breakfast, her stomach rumbling as her eyes fluttered open.

"Good morning!" Nyrelle Aeberos greeted her cheerfully.

"Barely!" Valani Naestina added with some amusement, sounding in good spirits.

"What time is it?" Edraele asked, intending to sit up but changing her mind as she didn't want to disturb the two warm bodies cuddled up against her. She glanced down and saw Almari and Ilyana flanking her and smiled at the pair, while wondering what had happened to Luna.

Soft fingers gently caressed her cheek and Luna murmured, "I'm right here, Edraele. I woke half an hour ago and would have let you rest for longer, but I didn't think you'd want to sleep past noon. I gathered the Young Matriarchs for you."

"You did the right thing, thank you Luna," Edraele said, giving her lover a grateful smile. The two assassins beside her began to stir with all the conversation and they suddenly snapped awake as they'd been trained to do. Edraele calmed them with a mental caress and stroked their backs as she murmured, "It's alright, my beautiful girls. You're safe."

"I wish you didn't have to stay up so late," Leena said, brushing her fingers along her Matriarch's right arm. "We really miss you coming to bed with us."

"It can't be helped unfortunately," Edraele replied, her stomach rumbling again at the tantalising smell of food. "I need to be awake to help John, if he requires my assistance."

Ilyana and Almari released her and sat up, the blue-eyed assassin saying, "You should eat, Edraele."

Edraele couldn't help grinning as she propped herself up on the pillows. "You're right, Almari. This looks and smells amazing!"

Valani slid some trays in front of the three women and said, "We've all eaten already, but I thought you might be hungry, so I made omelettes."

Sure enough, the source of the delicious aroma turned out to be the mouth-watering Terran dish, complete with what Edraele identified as mushrooms and peppers. She picked up the knife and fork then took a bite, sighing happily as she swallowed. "This tastes delightful!" she exclaimed. "Where did you acquire all the ingredients?"

"Calara taught me the recipe a few weeks ago and I ordered everything I needed from Geniya," Valani said with a proud smile. "Luna said you had some good news about John, so I thought you might enjoy a bit of Terran cuisine as a reminder of him. I imagine you're missing him even more than we are!"

Edraele smiled affectionately at the considerate House Naestina Matriarch. "That was a lovely thought, thank you! You're right, I have been really missing him, but I have the most wonderful news for all of you!"

"Before you tell us, I have some good news too!" Kali blurted out, blushing when everyone turned her way. "Sorry to interrupt, but I'll forget if I get all excited thinking about John!"

"Go ahead, Kali," Edraele said, gesturing for her to proceed, before taking another bite.

Kali leaned forward eagerly. "I've been speaking to my Fleet Commander this morning. Emalayne reports that the Kintark were only rotating out their fleets! All the original border forces have pulled back towards their homeworld, leaving only the recently arrived reserves to guard the border!"

"We've all discussed it with our own Fleet Commanders," Leena added, putting her arm around Kali. "The consensus was, that a massive movement of fleet assets like this, might be indicative of an impending attack elsewhere. However, that seems unlikely, as the reserve fleets now on border patrol duty are the Kintark's elite forces."

"Whatever the reason, they don't have enough forces there to pose a threat on their own. Our border is safe again!" Kali gushed, looking immensely relieved.

Edraele finished off her food, then picked up the glass of Natalla berry juice, drinking the mauve-coloured, thirst-quenching drink as she pondered the situation. "You're right, it appears we aren't in any immediate danger," she finally said, smiling at Kali. "By the time those Kintark units return, we'll have our own forces fully upgraded and back on the bor-" Her voice trailed off into silence and she frowned with concern.

"What is it, Edraele?" Luna asked, noting her Matriarch's pensive expression.

Edraele gave her a reassuring smile, then replied, "Nothing to worry about for the moment, I'm probably just being paranoid. I'll discuss it with John, later."

"What was your news about him?" Nyrelle asked, her dark-blue eyes sparkling in the light.

Edraele grinned at the nude women gathered around her. "We're planning a rendezvous on the Terran border! Alyssa requested that all of you come along too!"

"Oh, wow!" Kali gasped, her face lighting up with joy. "How long until we meet with them?"

"Just over a week, but we haven't ironed out all the details yet," Edraele said, sharing the electrifying thrill of excitement that now buzzed in the room. "It'll take us just over four days to reach the border, so we'll need to depart fairly soon."

Nyrelle bit her lower lip, her eyes flaring with lust as she murmured, "Do you think it's time?"

Edraele pushed aside the floating tray, smiling appreciatively at Valani as she did so. "That omelette was delicious, thank you so much!"

Now that the way was clear, she beckoned Nyrelle towards her, a coy smile on her full lips. When the House Aeberos Matriarch obediently approached, Edraele placed her hands on the younger woman's toned abdomen.

"John loves the idea of being with all of you," she said gently, caressing the soft blue skin on Nyrelle's lower-belly and drawing a lusty moan from the trembling girl. "He holds to Terran ideals of long courtships before embarking on parenthood, even though the idea of siring a baby with each of you excites him very much. We might have to gently encourage him to embrace the Maliri way..."

The Young Matriarchs giggled with excitement, hugging each other, eyes sparkling at the prospect of rebuilding their Houses with John. Edraele glanced at Luna, Ilyana, and Almari in turn, seeing the wistful smiles on their faces. Speaking to the trio via telepathy, she said kindly, *It'll be your turn soon, my beautiful, special girls. When it is, it will be glorious!*

***

The sound of quiet conversation finally stirred John from his long sleep and the moment he opened his eyes, he was met with a shower of kisses. The happy purring identified the girl kissing him even before he was able to register the doting emerald eyes gazing down on him.

"Good morning, Jade," he said with an affectionate smile.

The Nymph beamed at him in return, overjoyed to see he was awake. "We've been discussing ways to find my sisters!" she exclaimed, wrapping her arms around him and hugging him tight.

He laughed and returned her hug, before she finally released him. Sitting up, he saw that the girls were all sitting around him on the bed, watching him and Jade with some amusement.

"I hope you didn't mind me telling everyone?" Alyssa asked, leaning in to kiss him in greeting. "You were out like a light, so it seemed like a good use of time while we waited for you to wake up."

"No, I don't mind at all," John replied amiably, looking around at the girls and smiling at them. "Have you come up with any good ideas?"

"We've had a constructive discussion so far," Calara said, looking thoughtful. "Tracking any surviving Lenarrans down will be very difficult, but not necessarily impossible."

"I think we should definitely use Alyssa's suggestion to offer a cash reward for leads," Sakura said with certainty.

John glanced at the blonde sitting beside him. "Did you tell everyone about my reservations?"

Alyssa nodded, looking pleased. "We agree that any remaining Nymphs are probably in the hands of the rich and powerful, but Sakura pointed out something interesting."

"Just because the Nymphs' current owners might be incredibly wealthy, that doesn't mean their servants are..." the Asian girl said, a knowing glint in her dark-brown eyes. "Many of Shinatobe's assassinations were aided by information gathered by bribing security staff and the like."

John looked at her with concern. "I thought I wiped all those implanted memories?"

She returned his look with one of profound gratitude. "You did! I can still remember a lot of what happened, as I've seen those implanted recordings being played back. They're just normal memories now, not sharp and vivid like before."

Alyssa made room for Sakura as she crossed the bed to give John a big hug.

"I'm so glad it worked," John said, feeling tremendously relieved as he put his arms around her.

"I should have listened to you months ago," Sakura replied, glancing up at him and blushing. "Last night was the first time in months that I've slept without any nightmares. I feel so much better this morning!"

"I can't claim all the credit for that," John said with a playful smile. "I believe Dana and Rachel went to considerable effort to tire you out..."

"She was insatiable," Rachel interjected, giving Sakura a fond smile and making her blush even harder. "Having a tummy full of your cum gave her loads of energy!"

Dana grinned at the Asian girl. "When you're being all dominant, you're nearly as bossy as Alyssa on a combat mission!"

Sakura looked mortified to hear that, but John stroked her back soothingly. "I briefly saw the three of you together. Don't worry, it was very exciting to see you enjoying yourself like that! Maybe you'll let me watch the whole thing next time?"

Alyssa flashed her friend a quick glance. *I guarantee you'll love it! Play at being the lesbian dominatrix for him and I'll explain why later...*

Drawing herself up, Sakura arched an eyebrow and nodded, boldly meeting his fascinated gaze. "Tell me which naughty girls you'd like to see disciplined and I'm sure something could be arranged..."

John grinned at her and the rest of the girls, who were looking flushed with arousal. "I'll definitely let you know." Coughing to clear his throat, he continued, "We seem to have got a little sidetracked, but we better get back on topic. Did anyone have any new suggestions on ways to find the Nymphs?"

Faye eagerly raised her hand, her cupid-bow lips quivering in anticipation.

"You don't have to hold up your hand, Faye," he said with a fond smile. "Go ahead, what was your idea?"

"I thought I could go through the news archives for every mention of Nymphs or Lenarrans that I could find!" she began enthusiastically. "Then I could build up a database of their history and perhaps find some clues as to who might currently own any survivors!"

"That's an excellent idea!" Calara agreed, grinning at the AI in her eagerness. "If you can gather that kind of data for me, it'll be much easier to narrow down the search for any Lenarrans that might still be alive."

John noticed Rachel grimace, a pensive expression briefly flickering across her face. "What is it, honey?" he asked, trying to catch her troubled grey eyes.

"I just thought of something, but you might not want to hear it... I'm not sure I want to tell you either. I'm already worried you might think I've got questionable morals as it is," Rachel replied, looking very reluctant to elaborate further.

"If you've thought of something, I definitely want to know what it is," John replied, doing his best to sound encouraging. "I promise I'll listen to your suggestion with an open mind."

Rachel sighed, then glanced at Jade and said, "I know this sounds pretty ghoulish, but I don't think we should restrict our search to the living. If we can locate the resting place for any Nymphs, then..."

"You can bring them back!" Jade blurted out, gaping at John in awe. "She's right! You saved me, you could save all the Nymphs the same way!"

John looked at Rachel in shock. "Is that even possible after all these years?!"

"Nymphs have a radically different physique to a Terran. They wouldn't decompose in the same way we would," she replied quietly. "If we can exhume any Lenarrans, you might be able to bring them back to life, just as you did for Jade."

The room went quiet as everyone pondered that astonishing thought for a moment.

"It's alive!" Dana crowed with a maniacal cackle, elbowing Rachel playfully.

The brunette blushed bright red, shooting a nervous glance at John. "Don't... I'm sure he thinks I'm some kind of mad scientist as it is!"

John glanced down at Sakura and smiled at her as he said, "I think someone else urgently needs a hug."

Sakura laughed and moved out the way as John beckoned Rachel over. The tawny-haired girl joined him, only relaxing when she was in his arms.

John's tone was soothing as he said, "It might be an unconventional idea, but it's an excellent one, just like everything else you come up with. You know I wouldn't think anything bad about you, so why are you so self-conscious all of a sudden?"

She nuzzled into him and murmured, "This visit to my father... It's been preying on my mind. I'm just worried... about everything."

"You'll have me, Alyssa, and Dana there to support you," John said, brushing his fingers through her hair. "I'm sure it won't be as bad as all that."

"You don't know what he's like," she said quietly. "He gets me so mad sometimes."

John glanced at the ship's chronometer to check the time. "We're meeting him for lunch at twelve, right?"

She nodded, turning to look at the clock. "I didn't realise how late it was. We better start getting ready fairly soon."

"Don't worry. It'll be okay," John said, giving her a reassuring smile.

Jade put her arm around the brunette and gave her a tender kiss on the cheek. "Thank you... You've given me real hope we might be able to restore my lost sisters."

"You're welcome," the brunette said, smiling fondly at the Nymph.

"I'll start finding out what I can!" Faye offered, her face lighting up with her enthusiasm. "My boys are nearly done with installing all the power couplings, then they'll be able to move on to installing the Photon Lasers. Once that's out the way, I'll put every available avatar onto researching the Lenarrans."

Calara stretched, then smiled with a look of eager anticipation on her face. "I'll get stuck into this straight away as well. It'll be nice to have something challenging to sink my teeth into." She glanced at Irillith and added, "I know you're going to be busy working on the new software for Faye's body, but can I call on you if I need any hacking assistance?"

"Of course," the Maliri girl replied with an easy-going smile. "I can't claim hacking any of these feeble Terran networks will provide me any kind of challenge but I'll be glad to help."

Calara laughed and grinned at her in thanks. She turned to Jade next. "If you aren't busy now, it might be helpful to get a first-hand account of what you can remember about the Terrans arriving on your world... if you can remember back that far?"

Jade's eyes flicked to John for a moment, then she nodded hesitantly. "I remember what happened."

He spotted that moment of indecision, but decided to ask her about it privately later. Looking around at the group, he said, "There's actually a couple of other points I wanted to raise before we all go our separate ways this morning."

Alyssa gently squeezed his shoulder, giving him a loving smile. "I've already asked Calara and Irillith if they can find out more about my parents. Thank you for remembering."

John returned her smile, then turned to look at Dana. "Alyssa told me you've tried to find out more about your parents, but not had any success?"

The redhead looked surprised by his question, then her expression turned grim. "I haven't found shit so far. Whoever my parents were, they didn't leave any clues to help track them down. Along with the fucking useless records in the Karron orphanage I was dumped at, I've drawn one big blank."

"Do you want us to help?" John asked, giving her a look of sympathy.

Dana looked torn with indecision as she met his searching gaze. Finally, she shook her head and exclaimed vehemently, "Fuck them! They got rid of me and left me in a big pile of shit. My life's fucking awesome now, but that's due to you, Alyssa, and all my new sisters. My parents are dead to me."

He nodded his understanding, putting his arm around her when she came over to join him and Rachel. "If you ever change your mind, you know we'll do whatever we can to help you. Okay?"

She smiled at him and planted a big kiss on his cheek. "That's why being with all of you guys is so fucking great; I never feel like I'm just on my own any more, it's always us as a team. I want to move on with my life though, so I'm not shedding another tear over my past."

"Sounds like a good philosophy to me," he said, giving her shoulder a supportive squeeze.

"Do you want to go over our upcoming plans, handsome?" Alyssa prompted, a twinkle in her eyes. "I'm sure the girls will be fascinated to hear about the cross-border hook-up..."

He stifled a grin at her playful teasing and glanced at the girls who all looked intrigued now. "As you all know, we're planning to visit Rachel's father, then go on a skiing trip to Jericho." He looked at Calara next. "I thought we could all visit your mother at the end of the holiday, but you're welcome to spend as much time with Maria as you like while we're on the planet."

"Once we're settled into the chalet, I better go and catch up with her. She's desperate to know all the details about our wedding," Calara said, sounding more than a little frustrated. "We haven't made any decisions yet, but she expects me to have everything planned out already!"

"She's just excited," John said. "If you want to discuss anything beforehand, just let me know."

"I might just have to take you up on that!" she replied, giving him a grateful smile.

John looked around the gathering of girls again. "So, after the skiing vacation, we were planning on travelling to the Brimorian Enclave. I still want to do that, but we'll make a couple of minor detours along the way. Firstly, I'd like to travel to the Trankaran Republic to exchange some of our tech for materials we can use for the new starbases. It should be a relatively short detour as the Invictus is much faster now."

Alyssa had already calculated the travel times to the second, but she rounded up for convenience. "It'll take us one day, eighteen hours to get from Jericho to the Trankaran loyalist fleet, assuming they're still near the border."

"Thanks, beautiful," John replied, patting her sleek, toned thigh. "While we're there, I'd like to discuss an alliance with Chancellor Niskera. Assuming all goes well, we can load up the Invictus' Primary Hangar with the first batch of ore we trade and arrange for the rest to be transported independently to Maliri Space."

"Wait a minute," Dana said with a frown. "You're planning this cross-border hook-up with the Trankaran Chancellor?! I thought you weren't into the Trankarans and Ashanath?"

He laughed and shook his head. "No! I'm not planning anything like that with Niskera!" Glancing at the Maliri twins, he added, "Edraele was sounding a bit down, so Alyssa suggested we meet up with her near the border. That's why I want to visit the Trankarans first, so we can transport the first batch of ore with us and load up Edraele's ships. They'll be returning to Genthalas immediately afterwards so they can make a start on the first starbase as soon as the refit is done."

"That's not all you'll be loading up!" Alyssa said with a mischievous giggle.

"What a charming way to discuss our mother," Irillith observed archly, flashing a furtive smile at Tashana.

The blonde shook her head and looked coy. "I wasn't just referring to Edraele, either..."

"Oh, of course!" Tashana said, grinning at John as Alyssa's innuendoes made sense at last. "You were planning to father children with the Young Matriarchs!"

"I don't want them to rush into anything," John said warily. "I know three of them are in their early-thirties, but that's still relatively young for Maliri, right?"

Before either Tashana or Irillith could reply, Alyssa said, "Why don't the rest of us leave you three to discuss the finer points of impregnating Maliri girls. We've still got a bit of time before we have to get ready for our visit to New Eden. Do any of you girls care to join me for a bath?"

John watched with amusement as Jade and all the Terran girls immediately agreed, moving in a synchronised group as they slid off the bed and sauntered towards the bathroom. The lingering glances between Alyssa and the twins confirmed that she was planning something, but the smouldering look the two sisters gave him a moment later made him lose his train of thought.

"Maybe we should talk about impregnating Maliri girls in more detail..." Irillith purred, stalking towards him across the covers.

"That sounds like a fascinating conversation," Tashana agreed, a playful smile dancing across her dark-blue lips as she matched her sister in her approach. "What are your thoughts on the matter, John?"

"I'm very much for..." he murmured, transfixed by their bewitching violet eyes.

They stopped in front of him and gently took each of his hands in their own, then guided his fingers to their toned blue tummies. Each girl had a knowing smile on their face as he began to caress them, their own fingers lightly brushing the backs of his hands.

"Our species was originally designed by a Progenitor with just two purposes in mind," Tashana whispered as she stroked his hand. "And I can't see any enemies for us to fight at the moment."

"Are you looking forward to becoming a father?" Irillith asked him, her voice uncharacteristically gentle and wistful. "The Young Matriarchs are so lucky..."

John slid his hands around their waists and pulled the twins closer to him. "The Maliri are exceptionally beautiful, but amongst those billions of gorgeous women, I managed to find the two most precious jewels of your species. If things were different, you know that I'd..."

"Shh... It's okay, we understand," Tashana whispered, giving him a loving kiss. She glanced at her twin, then added, "Even though we wish it could be us, we both know it isn't our time yet. The Young Matriarchs will be quite safe from any danger, protected by our mother on Valaden."

Irillith nuzzled against his ear, her breath sending shivers down his spine. "We'll be with you for eternity, we can be patient for six months..." She pulled back and gazed at him from inches away, her angular eyes drawing him in. "I think we should get lots of practice though..."

"Practice makes perfect," Tashana whispered in agreement, her face appearing next to her sister's.

They both kissed him at once, their soft, dark-blue lips brushing against his own. John returned their kisses, alternating from one twin to the other, then shared a three-way kiss with them both. He had his arms around them and his hands explored their glorious athletic physiques, gliding over the toned muscles in their backs, down to their pert buttocks. A gentle squeeze drew a gasp from both girls, their identical voices sounding like a perfect echo.

He felt a pang of guilt about how much Irillith and Tashana being twins turned him on, despite doing his best to treat them as individuals. Whether the girls noticed a flicker in his expression, or if one of his ever-present Matriarchs let them know his thoughts, he wasn't sure, but he saw a glimmer of recognition in the look they gave him.

"We're twins; there's no point trying to deny what's right in front of your eyes," Irillith said, punctuating her sentence with a lingering kiss.

Tashana stroked his hair, smiling at him tenderly. "Irillith and I were separated for so many years, but you brought us back together again. I love every moment being around her."

Irillith nodded, darting a loving glance at her twin. "I feel complete now that we're reunited."

"You feel that way too?" Tashana murmured, her angular eyes searching the matching pair of violet orbs.

"Mmmhmm," Irillith purred, gently stroking Tashana's face.

They began to kiss, hooded eyes gazing at one another as they let out soft, alluring sighs. John watched in awe at the sensual display, gently stroking their backs to encourage them, but not wanting to do anything to disturb the moment. They inched closer, pressing their firm breasts together, dark-blue nipples disappearing from sight as the flesh swelled with the gentle pressure.

To show they were still acutely aware of his presence, they reached down to grasp his throbbing cock in a delicate combined grip, their hands working together to stroke up and down his length. John couldn't help flexing in response and he saw smiles tease their lips as they felt him react to their touch.

"We love being twins..." Tashana said, glancing at him out of the corner of her eye.

"... and we want you to share us both," Irillith finished for her sister, a gleam of excitement in the lustful look she gave him.

Before John could respond, they eased themselves back on the bed, lying on their sides as they continued to kiss. Intertwined in each other's arms, they raised their upper legs, hooking them over each other. Exposing their slick pussies to his hungry gaze, the two girls gave him a look of open invitation.

He straddled their lower thighs, bringing the blunt head of his cock to Irillith first and swabbing his head against her glistening labia. Pushing forward, her lips parted wide for his impressive girth, smoothly engulfing him as he applied more pressure. John placed one hand on her hip, the other on her limber thigh, using that firm grip to thrust his way deeper into her yielding body.

Irillith let out a low groan in response, biting her flushed lower lip as Tashana snaked her hand between them to stroke her clit. She was used to taking John though and relaxed completely, letting him penetrate her right up to the hilt. It was only then that she squeezed his length with her internal muscles, her pussy rippling over him as if welcoming him home with a loving embrace.

John's four balls rested on Irillith's velvety-smooth inner thigh and the sensation of his quad brushing over her silky skin as he slowly withdrew felt incredible. He pulled almost all the way out, before plunging back inside her again, driving deep into her womb. Irillith could only moan into Tashana's mouth, the two girls kissing passionately as he stroked his cock into her luscious body. He lifted her leg up onto his shoulder, deepening his penetration and making her squeal in surprise as he rubbed his head against her most hidden depths.

Between his driving, full-length thrusts and Tashana's gentle touch on her clit, it didn't take Irillith long to arch her back and cry out with her climax. She bucked against him as he rode her through it, John holding her spectacular blue body firmly in place as he fucked her into a daze. Tashana gasped at the same time, clutching at her twin as she experienced that same rush of pleasure.

Irillith gave him a lovely satiated smile when her tremors subsided, lowering her leg from his shoulder. Wrapping her arms around her sister, she murmured breathily, "It's your turn now, Shan."

John slowly pulled out of Irillith's clutching pussy, then realigned his glistening cock with Tashana. He nudged against her lips, drawing a lusty moan from the panting girl, but he paused for a moment, hesitating before taking the plunge.

Reading his every thought, Alyssa's gentle voice drifted through his mind. *This is nothing like her previous experiences. Don't worry, she's not going to start getting flashbacks.*

Irillith had roused herself from her post-orgasmic haze and she pressed herself against her twin. Between loving kisses, she murmured, "You want him deep inside, don't you, little sister?"

Tashana locked eyes with John, nodding as she whimpered with need. "Please, I want you!"

Trusting in Alyssa's advice, John increased the pressure, easing his way into her body. She wasn't used to relaxing for him yet and she gripped him like a fist as he inched his way into her pussy.

"You're so big..." Tashana groaned, gazing at him in awe.

"Wait a second!" Irillith exclaimed, sudden inspiration in her eyes.

John and Tashana both looked at her in confusion as she twisted around, then lifted Tashana's upper thigh to make room. All became clear when Irillith ducked between them, her long white hair brushing against John's stomach.

"Oh Fuck!" Tashana shrieked, as Irillith began gently lapping at her clit.

"Good girl," John praised Irillith, running his fingers through her snow-white hair and holding her head in place.

He eased back and began pushing his way into Tashana again, smiling at the look of wonder on her face. Between having her pussy stretched this wide for only the second time and her twin's wet tongue gliding over her clit, she was in seventh heaven. She hadn't exactly relaxed for him, but the rippling contractions helped John push all the way inside her, letting her body guide him in. Lifting Tashana's leg up onto his shoulder, he gave her the full penetration her sister had just enjoyed. Holding her firm thigh with his left hand, he stroked Irillith's bobbing head with the other.

Tashana came explosively as soon as he started rubbing the head of his cock against the depths of her womb. She quivered as she climaxed, moaning out their names. John was very careful not to be as rough with her as he had been with Irillith, taking his time and enjoying her pliant body. Slowing his pace let him focus on staving off the rising urge to fill her with cum, while letting him savour her vice-like depths squeezing him for all she was worth. Irillith gasped in her own sympathetic twingasm, as she felt the waves of pleasure wash over her sister.

"Your turn again, beautiful," John said with a grin, gently pulling himself free from Tashana.

Irillith gave him a wild-eyed look over her shoulder, then straddled her twin, tilting up her hips as she presented herself for him. John mounted her quickly this time, burying his throbbing tool up to the balls in one long pussy-stretching thrust. Irillith screamed at being stuffed so shockingly full, then hugged her sister as John began to fuck her.

"I can feel you inside her!" Tashana gasped, the bulge in Irillith's belly where his cock had stretched her, feeling warm against her own tummy.

The two girls kissed frantically, the wet sounds accompanying the squelching of John's cock as he plunged in and out of Irillith. When she was getting close to release, he hooked Tashana's legs over Irillith's splayed thighs, then abruptly pulled out of the groaning Maliri beauty. He lowered his cock and sank up to the quad inside Tashana, her slick passage greedily taking him in one smooth pussy-stuffing motion.

When she was approaching her climax, he switched back to Irillith, riding her for several plunging strokes until he could feel her on the brink. Back and forth he alternated, until the two girls were begging him to let them cum.

"Hold each other tight!" He ordered, not able to hold back any longer.

Tashana moaned as he pulled out of her, gazing at him with lust-fogged eyes as he hilted himself in her sister. He gathered Irillith's hair in a ponytail and rode her furiously, finally letting her climax as his balls clenched, shooting the first blast of cum into her womb. Tashana came too, her arms wrapped tight around her twin, their sweat-slicked breasts mashing together.

She scrunched her eyes closed at first, but they flashed open as she gaped at Irillith. "I can feel his cum shooting into you!"

Neither John nor Irillith could respond beyond animalistic grunts as he pumped her full of spunk. Half-way through, John pulled back then slid up to the balls inside Tashana, making her squeal as she felt that first splash of cum in her womb. He held onto Irillith's quivering body as he pounded in and out of Tashana, loving hearing Irillith mewl through yet another sympathetic orgasm while Tashana screamed his name aloud.

Finally, he was running on empty, every last sperm now packed into the exhausted twins. He was very careful pulling out of Tashana this time, his slow withdrawal acknowledged by a faint whimper. Sitting back on his haunches, he paused to admire the stunning view. Their cum-inflated bellies had lifted up Irillith's hips, giving him a clear view between their splayed thighs. Quiet applause drew his attention and he turned around in surprise, startled to see the rest of the girls sitting on the end of the bed.

"How long were you watching?" he asked with a grin, slumping onto the bed.

Alyssa prowled towards him, her eyes on his groin. "Hearing you fuck their brains out was too exciting to miss!" she exclaimed, before reverently taking his cock in her mouth and cleaning his slick length. *Mmm, I can taste all three of you!*

"You have to take me and Rachel like that!" Dana begged him, her sky-blue eyes wide with excitement.

Jade nodded, emerald eyes sparkling in the light. "When it's my turn, I'd like to partner with Sakura!"

Calara ran her fingers through Alyssa's golden mane. "I suppose I'll have to make do with this foxy lady then," she said, while giving John an eager grin.

John laughed and held up his hands in defeat. "I'd love to oblige, but I'm going to need a rest first!"

Alyssa sat up, licking her lips. "There's no rush, we can start every morning of our holiday that way. It'll be fun giving Tashana a two-course breakfast like that." She glanced at the two Maliri girls and arched an eyebrow. "As hot as that was, I thought you were supposed to be feeding her this morning?"

"I got a bit carried away," he admitted, flashing the panting Maliri girls a satisfied smile.

Irillith and Tashana stared into each other's eyes, an unspoken question behind each of those probing looks. Irillith was the first to react, a hint of a hungry smile teasing at her lips. She dropped her head back, lying supine on the bed. Tashana blushed self-consciously at her audience as she mounted her twin's face, before leaning forward to quickly complete the sixty-nine.

"Holy shit!" Dana gasped, watching spellbound as Tashana began to lap away, her eye's rolling as she flooded her tastebuds with John's cum.

Rachel put her arms around the redhead, resting her head on her shoulders as she enjoyed the show. "I know... they look incredible together."

Alyssa crawled over the bed to kneel beside them, her bright blue eyes flashing with lust as Tashana moaned into her twin's pussy. "That's a good girl, fill up your tummy," Alyssa purred, stroking the Maliri girl's glossy mane of white hair.

John watched in fascination as the twins went down on one another, the lewd sounds of them slurping up his cum filling the bedroom. While he couldn't deny how much it turned him on, he was shocked that they'd moved on to this level of intimacy so quickly.

*It was bound to happen sooner or later,* Alyssa said, as she caressed the blue-skinned beauties. *With them blowing you as a pair, inhibitions were bound to get lowered, especially now you've started fucking them together as well. Besides, they really do love each other and what better way of showing it...* She glanced at him, meeting his entranced gaze. *Especially now they know how much you enjoy seeing them like that.*

John glanced back at Tashana and found her watching him as she ate, her violet eyes burning with desire and a look of satisfaction on her face.

"John, you better go and get a shower," Rachel said softly. "You'll need to hurry if you don't want to be late."

Her reminder shook him out of his voyeuristic stupor. "You're right, I'll be quick," he said, giving her a grateful smile.

John climbed off the bed before heading into the bathroom with an added spring to his step. He had only just stepped foot into the huge cubicle when Alyssa entered the room, joining him in the shower as he turned the water on.

"I remembered you don't like showering alone," she said indulgently, draping her arms around his neck and kissing him.

"You're right, that's much better," he agreed, placing his hands on the curve of her hips.

They shared a brief but heartfelt kiss, before she turned to the soap dispenser and began lathering him up. He closed his eyes, relaxing as she massaged his tired muscles.

"Did you have fun this morning?" she asked playfully, her wet breasts sliding against his back as she worked on his shoulders. "I figured with our upcoming meeting with the Young Matriarchs, you'd particularly enjoy filling up the twins."

"I was wondering how much influence you had in setting that up," John said with a smile. He heard a pair of soft footfalls entering the bathroom, his enhanced hearing making the sound audible even over the noise of the shower. Having a strong hunch who those footsteps might belong to, he added, "I love being with either of them; they're both stunningly beautiful girls with personalities to match. You know how I feel about Irillith, I'm just surprised how quickly I've started falling for Tashana..."

Tashana let out a shocked gasp and Alyssa thought to him, *Very smooth, Mr. Blake.*

John opened his eyes and found the twins standing in front of him, Irillith looking at him with love in her eyes, while Tashana looked stunned. "Hello," John said with a warm smile. "I had a lot of fun with you two this morning."

Irillith stepped over to join him, giving him a glorious smile as he embraced her. "So did we..."

Tashana shrugged off her shock and moved over to join them. She kissed him when he put his arm around her. "Thank you for being so gentle with me... I know why you were being cautious and I appreciate it."

"No bad memories?" John asked quietly, gazing into her eyes.

She smiled and shook her head. "No, it was all wonderful!"

The three of them shared an intimate hug while Alyssa continued to wash his back. She leaned against him when she was done and murmured, "Sorry to interrupt, but we really don't have much time."

"You're right," John said, frowning apologetically at the Maliri twins. "I'm sorry I can't stay longer, I really did have an amazing time with the two of you."

They both kissed him, murmuring that he was forgiven.

Alyssa slipped around behind the gorgeous pair and gave John a teasing smile. "Before you go and get dressed, don't you want to properly admire your handiwork?"

John knew what she was referring to and glanced down at the curved, cum-filled stomachs on the Maliri sirens. His hands gently caressed them both as they watched him with indulgent smiles on their faces.

"Those swollen blue tummies look amazing, don't they?" Alyssa purred. "Just imagine how the Young Matriarchs will look when you give them all a beautiful baby bump..."

"They're so lucky that you've chosen them to be the first women to carry your children," Irillith said, a gentle smile on her face. "I can only imagine how excited they must be..."

Edraele chimed in next, her telepathic voice quiet but crystal-clear in his mind. *Any Maliri noblewoman knows her first duty is to maintain her House line. Until they're safely expecting, those poor girls will be very worried about rebuilding their Houses...*

"She's right," Tashana said, having heard her mother's voice and nodding her agreement. "It was something drummed into me and Irillith as soon as we were old enough to be able expand the House Valaden dynasty."

John listened distractedly, concentrating on his fingertips as they glided over their water-slicked curves. "What's with the hard sell on knocking up the Young Matriarchs?" he asked, a hint of a smile on his lips.

"Hard sell?" Alyssa asked, her eyebrow raised quizzically. "Everything we just said was the truth."

He rolled his eyes. "Come on, you know what I mean."

Irillith and Tashana moulded themselves against him, as they both kissed him on the cheek. "We're all excited to see you become a father," Irillith said, her voice tender. Tashana nodded as she continued, "The Young Matriarchs are Maliri girls, not Terran, so their views on lengthy courtships before parenthood are radically different to your own. Normally they'd be expected to visit the border stations and conceive after a single meeting with one of the males."

"I don't want it to be like that for them," John said quietly, looking at each of the girls in turn. "I'm really fond of those girls and I don't want them to feel like they're just my broodmares... They each deserve my love and attention before we have children together."

Alyssa gave him a tender kiss. "I think my ovaries just went into overdrive."

The twins hugged him tight, nodding their agreement.

Edraele sounded wistful as she said, *I'll let them know your thoughts on the matter, but don't be surprised if that makes them even more eager to be with you. I know I can't wait.*

John kissed each of the three girls in the shower with him and said, "Let's just focus on making the experience as wonderful for them as possible. I appreciate all your encouragement, but I promise it's really not necessary!"

They laughed at his enthusiasm and he grinned as he left the twins in the shower. Alyssa accompanied him and once they'd dried off, they headed into the walk-in-wardrobe. John walked along his row of suits, unsure what he should wear to meet Rachel's father.

"It's mid-summer on New Eden, so it'll be warm," Alyssa said, as she slipped on a matching set of lacy white underwear. "I'd wear the pastel-blue shirt and your stone-coloured cotton suit. Skip the linens, they'll wrinkle and leave you looking crumpled."

John glanced at her in surprise. "It sounds like you've given this some thought."

Alyssa gave him a coy glance over her shoulder before gliding down the racks of clothes to her scores of dresses. Turning back to his own clothes, John found the suit she'd been referring to. It was one he hadn't worn yet, despite having bought it months ago on Gravitus. He quickly dressed, pleased at how light and cool it felt in the mild climate about the Invictus. Putting on his shoes, he glanced at his ties, trying to decide if he should put one on.

"We're going for lunch, not an interview," Alyssa said, her heels clicking as she walked over to join him.

John shrugged amiably, then turned to see what outfit she'd chosen. Her blue summer dress accentuated her perfect figure, whilst still appearing demure and respectable. Her outfit skirted very close to his love of formalwear and he reacted accordingly, his shaft thickening at the mouth-watering sight.

"You look stunning," he murmured as he drank in her appearance.

She sidled up to him, her hand reaching out to gently caress his growing length. "Just the reaction I was hoping for," she said with a look of satisfaction in her cerulean eyes. "We better get going, the others are waiting for us."

John tried to get his libido under control and offered Alyssa his arm, leading the beautiful blonde out into the bedroom. Unfortunately, all his efforts were quickly undone when he saw Rachel and Dana waiting for him. They wore similar dresses, Dana in green and Rachel in yellow, the two girls looking just as delicious as Alyssa. All three of them had their hair loose over their shoulders, but he could tell at a glance that they'd gone to some effort to artfully style a few loose tendrils to frame their beautiful faces.

"Wow..." he breathed, gazing at the two of them in amazement.

Dana giggled at his reaction and twirled for him. "A pretty fucking far cry from the spiky-haired punk you met on Karron, right?" She glanced lovingly at the brunette beside her and added, "The dresses and hair were all Rachel's idea."

John walked over to the brunette, his hand drawn to her long, tawny locks. He smiled as he managed to restrain himself from caressing her. "I don't want to mess with perfection."

She stepped closer and kissed the palm of his hand, her soft lips lightly brushing his skin. "Thank you. I promise I'll be a very good girl for you later..."

He offered Rachel his arm and Dana skipped over to take the other. John suddenly realised that the rest of the girls were sitting on the bed, watching him with amusement. "I'll see you ladies later," he said with a hint of a smile. "Be good while we're away."

They laughed and waved him off as he led the redhead and brunette out to the grav-tube at the end of the corridor.

"Any useful advice for me on how to behave with your dad?" John asked Rachel, feeling a little nervous himself. "I want to make a good impression."

"Just be yourself, you'll win anyone over that way," she said with a faint smile.

He chuckled as they stepped into the red anti-gravity field. "I was hoping for something a little more concrete than that."

Rachel glanced at him, a troubled expression forming on her face as she faltered, "I-I'm not really sure. I've barely managed a civil conversation with my father in nearly ten years."

John was quiet for a moment as he studied her. "Was that all because of your anger towards him?"

"No! He's just as bad!" she replied hotly, then blushed in embarrassment.

"It's alright, beautiful," Alyssa murmured, flooding the brunette's subconscious with soothing waves of calm.

Rachel took a deep steadying breath, then nodded to the blonde in gratitude. "I'm going to need plenty more of that," she said, looking pensive.

They stepped out into the corridor on Deck Nine, with Alyssa waving her hand at the door controls, opening them as they approached. Faye grinned at them through the Raptor's clear-crystal canopy, giving them a cheerful wave as they walked across the Hangar and up the loading ramp. By the time they had reached the cockpit the eager purple sprite had taken off and they were heading towards New Eden.

John took a seat, with Rachel sitting next to him, Dana beside her. Alyssa sat opposite, watching the nervous brunette with a careful eye.

*I hadn't realised how difficult this was going to be for her,* John thought to Alyssa as he put his arm around Rachel. *I'd hoped that after we took out the Armoured Cobras, it might have changed things.*

*It did,* Alyssa replied, her voice quiet and thoughtful. *But she still misses her mother... more so with the recent talk of marriage and children. As much as we all love Calara and her family, seeing her happiness with them is a sharp reminder of what we've lost.*

John glanced at Dana who was murmuring loving words into Rachel's ear, occasionally pausing to give her a tender kiss. *I was impressed by Dana's attitude, but I can see it's still a painful subject for her. Was she sincere about just putting everything behind her?*

Alyssa gave him a slight nod, her piercing blue eyes flicking over to the redhead. *She's remarkably resilient, but she also loves her life with us. I think she's right... whatever she found out would either be deeply sad or disappointing.*

A chime on the console drew John's attention and Faye accepted the incoming call with a glance.

"Incoming vessel, this is restricted airspace. Please identify your name and business," the man requested, his voice firm and authoritative.

Before Faye could reply, Rachel spoke up, "This is Rachel Voss and my Father's expecting us."

"Please proceed, Miss Voss," the man replied immediately, his tone respectful.

A green guide path appeared in the Raptor's HUD as the flight control system at the Voss estate synced up with the Raptor's navigation computer. Faye followed that curving trail as they raced over carefully maintained grounds, approaching the imposing mansion on the hill that overlooked the massive country estate. It was a beautiful day on New Eden and the verdant grounds were bathed in bright sunlight. The view was spectacular, making the Voss estate look more like the carefully manipulated imagery of a holo-commercial than an actual real-life location.

"Fuck me!" Dana gasped as she glanced out the cockpit canopy. She slowly rose to her feet and walked over to the window, staring at the massive stately home in awe. Turning around to stare at Rachel in astonishment, she added, "Babes, you actually lived in that?!"

The brunette nodded, rising from her seat and slowly walking over to join the redhead. "Aside from the staff, it was just my father and me for years. At least until he remarried," she replied, her voice quiet and subdued. "My mother made it feel like home, but it was a very lonely place without her..."

John shot her a sympathetic look and went over to join Dana in hugging the brunette. They watched as Faye followed the gentle arc of the guide path as they circled the Voss mansion and approached the landing pad at the rear of the huge building. Following a text book approach, the purple sprite guided them down to the glowing platform below, touching down in the centre of the pad with barely a tremor.

"Alright, let's get this over with," Rachel said decisively, turning around and walking out of the cockpit.

John and Dana shared a look of concern, then joined Alyssa in following the brunette. When they reached the forward loading room, they saw that Faye had already lowered the access ramp and a smartly suited figure was waiting for them outside. John was expecting it to be Rachel's father, but the middle-aged man waiting for them in the three-piece suit was not Henry Voss.

"Miss Voss! How wonderful to see you again," he said, his eyes widening slightly as he looked at the statuesque brunette. He bowed and greeted her with a warm smile. "It's been far too long."

"Hello, Jennings," she said, returning the smile. "I hope you're well?"

"Absolutely radiant, miss. Thank you for asking," he replied, his eyes flickering towards the rest of the group as they walked down the ramp. "Might I enquire as to the names of your guests?"

She turned to look at her companions and replied, "This is John, Dana, and Alyssa. John's my fiancé, Dana's my girlfriend and Alyssa's my... other friend."

"Oh congratulations, sir!" Jennings exclaimed, not appearing ruffled for one moment as he offered his hand towards John. "Miss Voss is an absolutely charming young woman. You're very lucky!"

John shook his hand, fascinated by the man. "She certainly is and I certainly am."

Jennings turned to look at Dana and bowed "If I may be so bold; I didn't think it was possible for another young lady to rival Miss Voss' beauty, but it appears I was mistaken."

Dana blushed, rendered speechless by the man's flowery compliment and feeling completely out of her depth.

Rachel rolled her eyes as she put her arm around the redhead, grinning as she said, "Come on Jennings, stop embarrassing her. You're laying it on a bit thick." She sounded apprehensive as she added, "Is Meredith here?"

"The Lady of the house is out on a shopping excursion to New Avalon," Jennings explained, sharing a pointed look with Rachel. "Your father thought it prudent to meet you alone for luncheon."

Rachel couldn't help sighing with relief. She glanced up at the huge building and asked, "Where is he at the moment?"

"Mr. Voss had to take an urgent call. He sends his apologies and said he'd join you shortly in the Orangery," Jennings replied, half turning and gesturing to the building. "If you'd care to follow me."

Rachel nodded and he began to walk towards the enormous stately home. Jennings walked ahead of them at a comfortable, measured pace, the tails of his black jacket barely moving with his stiff-backed posture.

"Holy shit! You had a butler?!" Dana whispered furtively to the brunette.

Rachel looked at her in confusion and replied in a hushed voice, "Of course, didn't you?"

Dana looked at her in surprise, then laughed when she saw Rachel doing her best to stifle a smile. "You're so bad, teasing me like that."

Jennings led them up two flights of stone steps, until they reached a terrace that overlooked the grounds at the rear of the mansion. Passing the tables and chairs set up there, they headed inside the building. It took a moment for John's eyes to adjust to the darkened interior, after being exposed to the bright midday sunshine outside. The Voss mansion featured a lot of wood, the dark oak giving the place an air of sober antiquity, further enhanced by the marble sculptures that lined the hall. Although it was impressive to see as a guest, John could well imagine how unwelcoming this house must have felt to Rachel in her formative years.

They walked in silence as Jennings led them along one high-ceilinged hallway after another. Rachel was lost in thought, while the rest of the group tried not to gape at the decor. They ascended a sweeping flight of steps, then proceeded through the east wing of the house, passing six-foot-tall paintings that lined the walls of this upper hallway.

"Who are all these people?" Dana asked, glancing at the portraits which mostly consisted of smart men in suits.

"The Voss line dating back for the last five-hundred-years," Rachel said distractedly. "My father had them commissioned from holo-pictures, taking some artistic license with some of my more unorthodox ancestors. He's desperate to build the Voss family legacy and add a sense of respectability to our name. The Terran Federation aristocracy tend to look down on anyone they perceive to be the 'nouveau riche'."

Dana shook her head in muted disbelief. "Even with everything he's got, it's still not enough to make him happy..."

"Exactly," Rachel agreed, slipping her hand into her lover's and brushing her thumb against Dana's.

Jennings stopped at the end of the hallway and pushed open the double doors, then stood aside so that they could enter. The brick-built orangery had a plated glass roof and long, floor-to-ceiling windows, making the room feel light and airy, especially compared to rest of the sombre mansion. John guessed that they were up on the second floor of the east wing of the huge house, and the elevation gave them an unrestricted view of the breathtaking scenery surrounding the estate.

"My mother used to love it in here," Rachel said wistfully, leading Dana past the tables and out onto the veranda.

"I'll return in a moment with refreshments," Jennings said with a polite bow. "Mr. Voss should be here shortly."

"Thank you," John said, nodding to the man in gratitude.

The butler slipped out of the door, leaving the four of them alone in the room. Alyssa glanced around, a faint smile on her face as her bright blue eyes took in ethereal sights that only she could see. John could see she was distracted, so he turned to look at Rachel, who was leaning against Dana by the stone balustrade. John left Alyssa with the psychic imprints and walked out to join the others, placing a reassuring hand on Rachel's shoulder and drawing her attention to him.

"Jennings seems like a nice guy," he said, darting a look back at the entrance to the Orangery. "Has he been working for your father for long?"

"It must be fifteen years now," Rachel said, shaking her head at how quickly the time had flown.

"If you had servants like him around the house, it can't have been that bad growing up here?" Dana asked, eyes still wide with wonder as she stared at the plush luxury of the estate.

Rachel gave the redhead a sad smile. "He's paid to be obsequious to his employers and Jennings is very good at his job."

"Damn, that's fucked up," Dana muttered, giving the brunette a look of sympathy.

Loud footsteps echoed down the hallway drawing John's attention to the door, the gait of the approaching man very different from Jenning's well-measured tread. He recognised Henry Voss as he strode into the room, having seen him once before when they last visited the estate.

"Sorry to keep you waiting, I had to take an important call," Rachel's father said, his sharp eyes flicking first to Alyssa, then to the group out on the veranda. His face froze as he stared at his daughter, a look of happiness then regret flashing over his features.

"Hi, Dad," Rachel said hesitantly, walking up to him and giving him a slightly awkward hug.

Henry Voss patted her on the back. "You're nearly as tall as me now, Rachel," he muttered in surprise, studying his daughter with a strange expression on his face. "I didn't notice last time."

"I'm wearing higher heels today," she explained, glancing down at her shoes.

There was a moment of uncomfortable silence before her father turned to look curiously at his guests.

"We haven't been properly introduced, Mr. Voss," John said, extending his hand to the older, grey-haired man. "I'm pleased to meet you, my name's John Blake."

"I'd be surprised if anyone in the Terran Federation doesn't know who you are, Vice Admiral Blake," Rachel's father replied, shaking John's hand with a firm grip, while studying him with an appraising eye.

John gave him a friendly smile. "Call me John, please."

"Henry," Rachel's father replied, his grey eyes flicking across to the girls.

"This is Dana and Alyssa," Rachel said, hovering protectively beside the redhead. "They're my crewmates aboard our ship, the Invictus. Alyssa is John's Executive Officer and Dana is our Chief Engineer."

Henry nodded to them politely. "Welcome to you both."

"Dana's also my girlfriend," Rachel announced, a slight hint of defiance in her tone.

Henry's eyes narrowed as he glanced at his daughter. "I see. Is she a biker as well by any chance?"

Rachel bristled at that, but Alyssa eased the tension in her mind and managed to calm her down.

Dana looked very uncomfortable in the tense atmosphere and said quietly, "It's really nice to meet you, Mr. Voss."

He briefly glanced her way and looked like he was about to say something before changing his mind. Instead he turned to John and asked, "So, what brings my daughter's Commanding Officer to my humble abode? For the second time, no less..."

"I'm sorry we weren't able to talk the last time I was here. Considering the circumstances, I thought it best to leave you alone with Rachel," John explained, a look of sympathy on his face. He turned towards the young brunette and continued, "We were back in the Core Worlds for the Award Ceremony and Rachel wanted to take the opportunity to introduce us."

Henry Voss' eyes lit up with sudden understanding and he frowned in disapproval as he looked at his daughter. "Really, Rachel? Both of them? I thought you'd grown past these kinds of games."

"Games? I've no idea what you mean, father," Rachel replied hotly. "Would you care to elaborate?"

John could see the flare of anger in Henry Voss, but in fairness to the man, he managed to bite down his temper. Henry took a deep breath, then turned to look Rachel squarely in the eye. "I'm sorry, I didn't want to fight with you today. After your last visit, I thought things could be better between us."

"I really hoped so too," Rachel said, letting out a heavy sigh. Looking at him with a sheepish expression on her face, she continued, "I'm tired of all the arguments. I just want to go back to the way things used to be."

Henry brightened then, smiling as he said, "Any time you want to end this doctor nonsense, just say the word! You can come back to work for me and learn about my businesses while I mentor you to become my successor! I can pull some strings and get you out of the military without any trouble."

Rachel frowned in irritation. "No, that's not-"

He waved away her objection dismissively. "It's not a problem, I can always grease a few palms. With the right amount of money, anything's possible..."

"Except for saving my mother!" Rachel snarled, her temper exploding in a searing flash. "But you didn't even try to save her, did you? You were too fucking tight-fisted to pay her ransom!"

"How dare you speak to me like that!" Henry snapped, clenching his fists in anger.

"I'm just getting started!" Rachel screamed. "After getting my mother killed, you had ten fucking years to bring her killers to justice! We hunted the bastards down and exterminated them in less than three weeks!"

John glanced at Alyssa in alarm and she looked back at him helplessly. *She's too angry! I can't suppress that much rage...*

Henry faltered, his face wracked with guilt. "I tried, but the private investigators..."

"...were fucking useless, just like your goddamn money!" Rachel barked. "I'll NEVER come back and work for you! What we're fighting for makes your Voss legacy look like a pathetic joke!"

Her father's face twisted into a sneer. "Healing a few burn victims and getting dragged into a couple of battles? You can achieve so much more than that, Rachel! Don't you remember anything I taught you? Whoever controls an empire's finances holds the real power!"

She laughed in contempt. "You think you've got everything all figured out, but you haven't got a fucking clue what's really happening! The Terran Federation is being systematically attacked! Your precious money won't save you from what's coming!"

"What are you talking about?" Henry asked in confusion. "Attacked by what? The Kintark? That war's all but over with now."

"Ah, fuck this! I should never have bothered coming back here!" Rachel snapped, whirling towards the door. "We're leaving!"

"Don't you dare storm off, young lady!" Henry Voss yelled, furious at his daughter. "I'm not having you running wild around the galaxy! Have you any idea how your behaviour reflects on me?!"

Rachel cast a withering glare at him over her shoulder, grey eyes flashing dangerously as she flung open the doors to the Orangery with a crash.

"Rachel," John said, his voice quiet but firm. "Come back here, please."

She froze in her tracks, turning back with a guilty look on her face.

Henry Voss looked at John in surprise, having forgotten the others were there during the explosive argument. His expression darkened with anger. "You stay out of this! It's between me and my daughter! Just because you're sleeping with her doesn't give you, or this redheaded bim-"

"Be quiet, before you say something you'll regret," John said sternly, cutting off the older man and glaring at him in annoyance.

Henry Voss was about to snarl an indignant reply, but he met John's piercing gaze and for the first time in decades, he felt spine-chilling fear. "What are you?" he faltered, stumbling back a step.

"Just someone trying to make a difference." John replied, studying the man carefully before turning to Rachel. "If you want to try and salvage your relationship with your father, show him what you can do. He needs to understand before we can explain what's really happening and why what you're doing is so important."

Rachel watched her father for a long moment, then reached out a hand towards his arm, her eyes starting to glow with a soft nimbus of light.

"Rachel! What the hell?!" Henry Voss exclaimed, shrinking back from her in alarm.

She was quicker, stepping forward and touching his shoulder, the aura around her getting stronger now. "Species: Terran, condition serious; aggravated heart arrhythmia," she murmured, her expression softening as she looked at him with concern. "I didn't know you were sick..."

"It's nothing," he said defensively. "I'm being treated; the doctor said..." His voice trailed off and he looked at her in shock. "How did you know that? Is this some kind of trick? Did you bribe my doctor to access my medical records?!"

"Let me take care of it," Rachel said firmly, the misty aura around her spreading out to envelop her father.

Henry looked wide-eyed with fright at the glowing shroud that surrounded him. He was about to protest, but the gentle tingling sensation that coursed through his body left him speechless. He'd grown accustomed to the racing fluttering in his chest, but it abruptly faded away, leaving him feeling stronger and more vital than he had done in years.

He gaped at Rachel then John, looking shocked to the core. "Will someone please explain what the hell just happened!"

***

"I was out leading a search party in the woods," Jade murmured, her emerald eyes unfocused as she recalled events dating back three centuries. "Women from my tribe hadn't returned from picking berries that morning, so we went looking for them."

"Did you suspect they'd been abducted?" Calara asked, edging closer on the sofa and clasping the Nymph's hand.

"We had no idea..." she whispered, her voice full of sorrow.

Jade's voice fell into a steady rhythm as she began to describe what had happened on Lenarra so many years ago.

***

The forest was deathly quiet, the birds and animals spooked by something. Jade sniffed the air, picking up the faint scent of the three missing tribeswomen.

"They made it this far," she said to her three companions, who crouched beside her, furry ears twitching warily in the unnatural silence. "Fan out and look for signs of predators."

The three women nodded and peeled away, stalking into the foliage without a sound, their lashing tails revealing that they found the woods as unsettling as she did. Jade crouched lower to check the closely spaced tracks, noting the even weight distribution on the three-lobed heel pads, confirming that the women had been walking normally at that point. She loped forward, carefully following the trail, until it came to a sudden halt in the centre of a clearing.

There was no obvious sign of a struggle in the soft forest soil, but those familiar feline pawprints ended in a slight scuffing on the last steps. It was as if her three friends had stopped, then something else had obscured their final standing place. Jade's eyes widened as she saw a new set of tracks continue from that point, but they were ones she'd never seen before in her many long centuries on this world. They were made up of a long curved heel pad and five toe pads, not four.

Her sensitive nose picked up a new scent that made her fur bristle and she crept slowly after those peculiar new tracks, wary for danger. When she reached the treeline, she saw several new sets of prints, but these were even more bizarre. Whatever creature had left them must have had scores of tiny ridges on the base of its paws - or perhaps hooves would be a better description - considering the sharp-edged depression each imprint had left in the soil.

She made a soft clicking noise with her mouth, immediately answered by her three fellow huntresses, letting Jade know that they flanked her. Continuing onward, she saw that whatever manner of strange-pawed animal had taken her tribeswomen, seemed to have stopped next to those hooved creatures. There was still no sign of feline tracks in the soil, but the tracks here were obscured as the two groups had obviously spent some time together, even going so far as to lie down on the forest floor. There was even the sharp scent of male spend in the air, which left Jade feeling even more confused and worried about her missing friends.

Making another click, she proceeded deeper into the woods, following the six peculiar-shaped tracks through the ferns. A faint noise caught her ear, but it was no animal sound, it was definitely distant conversation that she'd heard. Relaxing now, she knew her tribeswomen must be fine, as only the Lenarrans themselves had mastered the art of speech amongst the many creatures on her planet.

Straightening, she glided along the trail, eager to see what strange manner of animals her missing friends had discovered. She heard a crack of a branch being stepped on and she whirled around to her left.

"There's another one, Commander!" a deep voice called out.

"I've got my hands full with this one, Lieutenant," another equally eager voice replied. "Go get her!"

Jade's sharp eyes picked out a strange pink-skinned humanoid approaching from the distance, its furless forepaws spread wide.

"Hey, there," the figure said softly. "I'm not going to hurt you..."

Jade tried to reply, but her mind was suddenly flooded with a flash of images. All she could think about was a long-limbed, furless, pink-skinned humanoid form, very much like the one approaching her. The one in her mind differed significantly though, having large breasts and a long mane of flowing chestnut coloured hair. Her body tingled and she let out a gasp as she felt herself... shift into that shape.

"Are you this one's new master?" she found herself asking, bewildered by the strange turn of phrase.

"Wow! You're gorgeous!" the humanoid gasped, open-mouthed in wonder. He grinned as he added, "Yeah, I can be your new Master!"

"Bring her back to the Darius," his companion shouted. "The Captain wants to see them for himself!"

***

"I'm sorry, Jade," Calara said, gently squeezing her hand. "The crew of this ship, the Darius... I assume they captured the missing Nymphs?"

Jade nodded, letting out a forlorn sigh. "I wouldn't say captured exactly. My sisters had gone with them quite willingly, just as I did with Lieutenant Lawrence Raymond. We all shapeshifted into our new master's idea of a perfect mate and as you can imagine, those men were delighted to get to know us far more intimately."

Calara stroked her arm comfortingly. "What can you tell me about the Darius?"

"It was a survey ship, one of the first sent to Lenarra after the Terrans acquired the planet," Jade explained. "It was relatively small, with a crew of twenty-three, fifteen of them male. The Captain was very egalitarian and let all the crew acquire a new 'travelling companion' from my tribe. The female crewmembers were fine with that plan until they realised Nymphs wouldn't shapeshift for them, at which point they strongly objected, quoting strict quarantine rules. The Captain decided to pull rank on them and they were overruled; he was quite fond of his unquestioningly obedient new Nymph pet by that point."

"Well, it's a good place to start," Calara said, picking up the holo-reader. "I should be able to track the Darius through the ship registration archives. Did they return to Terra after their survey was complete?"

Jade shook her head, a mournful expression on her face. "Word had got out about Lenarra by the time the Darius eventually left and the planet was flooded by Terrans looking for a Nymph of their own. I can only assume there were plenty of military vessels seeking to take 'shore leave' there as well, because it was a few days after leaving the planet that we were interdicted by pirates. The Darius was only lightly armed and they didn't stand a chance. Lawrence was tortured to death and I acquired a new, far more unpleasant Master."

Calara put aside the holo-reader and opened her arms for the Nymph. Jade gave her a grateful smile then leaned into her embrace, resting her chin on the Latina's shoulder as Calara stroked her back.

"I never saw the rest of my sisters again," Jade said softly, sitting back so she could see her friend's face. "I overheard the pirates planning to sell them to slavers, along with the handful of female captives from the Darius. I spent the next few weeks chained up in my new Master's quarters, so I'm afraid I can't tell you any more about the Nymphs I was captured with. I was spared any more of his delightful company when he was shot by one of his men."

"Jesus," Calara muttered, looking appalled.

"I was the property of one sadistic pirate captain after another for what must have been the better part of two-hundred years, until I was eventually purchased by 'the Collector'," Jade said, then gave the shocked teenager a gentle smile. "I'll spare you the gory details of those centuries in captivity, they really aren't very pleasant."

A tear rolled down Calara's cheek as she asked in a choked voice, "How can you just brush everything off like that? What happened to you was horrible..."

"I wasn't the same back then, my only objective in life was to serve my master," Jade replied, a thoughtful expression on her face. "Being with John has changed me in many ways and I wouldn't be able to just blindly suffer through those kinds of torments now."

"I'd never let anything like that happen to you again!" Calara exclaimed fiercely.

Jade gave her an affectionate smile, tracing Calara's jawline with her finger. "I know you wouldn't, little kitten." She laughed as she added, "John's enhanced me so much now, I wouldn't have to. I don't think there's many pirates who'd try to rape a nine-hundred-pound electrified Tiger, let alone a Tyrannosaurus Rex!"

Calara returned her smile, then replied half-jokingly, "I'm not so sure, the ones I met were pretty unhinged."

The Nymph frowned and admitted, "Actually, you're probably right. I suppose I'd just have to kill them all to make sure."

"Now that sounds like a good plan to me," the Latina agreed, stroking Jade's arm. She glanced down at the holo-reader. "Although the Darius is a dead end, it was still useful to know the specifics of what happened. I'll widen my search to include the capture of any pirate vessels in the months after first planetfall on Lenarra. If there were any freed prisoners, they might well include some of your missing sisters."

"I'm glad it was helpful," Jade replied, looking pleased. She relaxed then, leaning back against the sofa. "It felt therapeutic to talk about what happened. That was the first time I've discussed the specifics with anyone, so thank you for being so supportive."

"Any time, Jade," Calara said. "If you ever want to talk again, I'm always here for you."

"You are," the Nymph replied, giving her a beautiful smile.

***

Henry sat and listened in stunned silence as his daughter spelled it all out for him, with Rachel only pausing in her relentless delivery when Jennings arrived with the drinks. As soon as he'd left to arrange lunch, she continued explaining what they had discovered about the genocidal war that occurred ten-thousand years ago, which had ultimately ended Mael'nerak's reign over this part of the galaxy. Then she moved on to the present day and talked about the various attacks orchestrated by this new Progenitor on the Terran Federation, the Ashanath Collective, the Trankaran Republic, and his involvement with the Kintark Empire.

"And only a few members of the Admiralty know about this... Progenitor?" Henry Voss asked, staring intently at John and the girls who sat around the table with him.

"Yes, that's right, at least with regard to the Terran Federation," John said, omitting mention of Jehanna as he met the older man's probing gaze. "The Ashanath High Council and the Maliri Matriarchs are our allies and they're fully aware of the deadly threat the Progenitor poses to everyone. If we can't stop him, he'll obliterate or enslave every empire in this part of space."

"We've seen ancient recordings of the first war," Rachel said, sounding subdued. "The last Progenitor that attacked did so by systematically annihilating one planet after another, murdering billions. Have you ever wondered why there are no Gaia-classification worlds in the Trankaran Republic? There used to be. Mael'nerak made them all, terraforming over a dozen in what is now Trankaran territory, but they were all obliterated in the war. That's why there are so many dense asteroid belts in that area of space."

Henry's eyes widened as he suddenly thought of something. "What about New Eden? You said this Mael'Nerak made all the Gaia worlds?"

Rachel met her father's anxious gaze. "Yes, this used to be one of Mael'nerak's planets. The Ashanath removed any trace of Mael'nerak and his people before they handed New Eden over to the Terran Federation."

John looked grim as he said, "When this new Progenitor starts the war in earnest, if he follows the same kind of strategy as the last one, New Eden will probably be a prime target."

"My God..." Henry murmured, reaching out with a shaking hand to pick up his glass of iced tea. He looked at it and grimaced. "I need something a lot stronger!"

"I'm sorry to just spring all this on you," John said, a look of genuine sympathy on his face. "But you need to understand exactly what Rachel's involved in. We're all fighting for nothing less than humanity's survival."

"But why here and now?" Henry asked apprehensively. "If everything you said was true, the last great war was a fight between two Progenitors! Where's the other one? Is he an ally as well, or another enemy?"

"He's definitely an ally," Rachel said, a warm smile on her face as she turned to look at John.

Henry gaped at him in astonishment as the final piece of the puzzle fell into place. "You! You're the other Progenitor?!"

John nodded, his expression bleak. "We don't know if he's here for me, or if it's simply a coincidence that he's attacking just as I started to become aware of my heritage. Although in my experience, coincidences usually turn out to be anything but..."

Henry frowned as he turned to look at his daughter. "What about your glowing eyes and that grey aura? The way you fixed my heart condition... How's that connected to any of this?!"

"My healing abilities are a gift from John," Rachel replied, gazing at John reverently. "All the crew are gifted in different ways. He needs all of us if we're going to stand any chance of defeating the other Progenitor."

Henry's head snapped around as he glared at John in anger. "Why did you involve my daughter in this?! You should have left her out of it!"

Before John could explain, Rachel jumped in defensively, "He didn't know anything about Mael'nerak or the other Progenitor back then! They were just recruiting a doctor for their ship."

"That's true," Alyssa said, her voice quiet but sincere. "I met Rachel working in a clothing shop on Gravitus about five months ago and we became friends. A few of us got injured in combat with the Drakkar, so I started searching for a doctor who could double as a geneticist to join the crew. I'm sure you're well aware that your daughter is a genius. She is by far the most intelligent person I've ever met and was the perfect candidate for the role."

"She's only eighteen for God's sake!" Henry protested, his voice full of fatherly protectiveness. "You're exposing her to so much danger!"

Rachel looked touched to hear his concern and she reached out to squeeze his hand. "These girls are the same age as me. Besides, if they hadn't come to the Iota Leonis system to interview me for the position as Chief Medical Officer, I would have been killed by the Kintark."

Henry Voss looked aghast, and clutching her hand in alarm, he stammered, "I-I thought that was just a military PR piece!"

John slowly shook his head. "The official reports actually downplay how close to disaster that battle was. When we arrived in the system, the Kintark fleet had launched a large-scale assault with strike craft, intending to cripple Terran Federation logistics in the Dragon March. Port Medea was overrun by Kintark marines, so Alyssa and I landed on the station to protect Rachel," he explained, glancing at the blonde sitting beside him.

Alyssa smiled at him proudly. "John personally killed the Kintark Royal Guard that was trying to smash its way into the bunker where Rachel was hiding." Facing Henry Voss once more, she continued, "The only reason your daughter is still alive, is because of him."

Henry slumped back in his chair, looking at his daughter in shock. He squeezed her hand in return then gave her a hesitant but caring smile. Turning back to John he said earnestly, "Thank you for saving her. It might not be obvious from the way I've behaved, but I've always had Rachel's best interests at heart."

"All of us feel exactly the same way," John replied, his voice sincere. He studied Rachel and her father for a moment before making a decision. "There were a few things I wanted to discuss with you both, but today isn't the right time. I think the rest of us should leave you two to talk in private. Your relationship has been badly broken for years and it's going to take you time and effort to rebuild it."

Rachel's astonishing mind analysed the situation, drawing up a list of potential conversation topics that John might have been reluctant to discuss. Her eyes widened slightly as she correctly predicted one of the things he wanted to speak to her father about. Putting that thought aside for a moment, she looked at her father and gave him a cautious but optimistic smile. "I'm willing to try if you are? I promise I'll be on my best behaviour this time."

He gave her a look full of gratitude, but one that was also tinged with regret. "Thank you, Rachel. Your anger towards me was perfectly understandable, I'm just sorry I let things get so bad between us."

"We'll give you some privacy," John said, rising from his chair.

Dana followed his lead, but her face was tinged with sadness. "I'd love to have the chance to speak to my father. Alyssa and I are orphans, but you two still have each other. Don't waste this opportunity."

Henry looked at her in surprise and humbled by her graciousness, he gave her a wan smile laden with guilt. "I hope you can accept my heartfelt apology for the way I treated you earlier. I was angry and lashed out, but it was totally unwarranted, especially for someone... close to my daughter."

"If you want to make it up to me, be really nice to Rachel," Dana said, giving her girlfriend a loving smile. "She's awesome and totally deserves it."

"I will," Henry said, his tone earnest.

Jennings arrived at that moment, wheeling a trolley full of perfectly cut sandwiches and a tiered display stand full of elaborate little cakes. He looked startled to see John, Alyssa, and Dana all walking towards the door.

"You're leaving already?" he asked in surprise.

Alyssa smiled at him and replied, "If we can take a plate of sandwiches, we'll have a picnic down by the lake. We're giving Rachel and her dad some space to talk things through."

"Of course, Miss," Jennings replied, smoothly retrieving one of the large trays full of food and handing it over to the blonde. He smiled at Dana as she picked out three of the cakes and placed them on top of the stack of sandwiches.

John glanced back at Rachel and her father. "Take as much time as you need."

Rachel waved goodbye, a look of profound gratitude in her eyes, while Henry gave him a respectful nod. The trio left the Voss family in the Orangery to reconcile their differences, walking back along the hallway to the sweeping staircase.

Jennings caught up to them by the time they were half way out of the mansion, a blanket folded over his arm and a bottle of wine and some glasses in his hands. "I thought you might like these!" he gasped, panting for breath after running after them. He smiled as he passed over the items and added, "Thank you for bringing them back together. Mr. Voss has never discussed how much he misses Rachel, but I've seen him staring at pictures of her. I know he bitterly regrets driving her away."

"Hopefully they can start making up for lost time," John said, putting the blanket over his shoulder and glancing at the bottle of wine. His eyebrows climbed as he added, "This looks expensive, Jennings!"

"Ten-thousand credits a bottle," the butler replied with a wink. "I hope you enjoy it!"

***

John, Alyssa, and Dana spent the next few hours down by the lake, admiring the picturesque scene as they ate their picnic. Dana had been astonished that a drink could cost such a ludicrous amount of money and when she took her first sip, she confessed that she couldn't tell the difference between it and the ordinary bottles of wine they'd had on the Invictus. Alyssa laughed, nodding her agreement, equally as shocked by the outrageous price of the wine. While John could appreciate it for the interesting vintage that it was, it still paled in comparison to the House Holaris wines he'd sampled and he couldn't help wondering just how profitable trade with the Maliri might be. It was still very pleasant enjoying the food and drink in the warm New Eden sunshine and they relaxed together and enjoyed the beautiful grounds.

The long trailing branches of a Weeping Willow tree dipped into the edge of the lake and a mallard duck accompanied by her six ducklings weaved through those fronds, searching for food. John and the girls watched the ducklings playing together, laughing as the baby ducks splashed and cheeped excitedly in the water. In the end, Dana tore up the last few sandwiches, throwing them to the family of ducks which gobbled the pieces up as soon as they hit the water.

Between the picnic and the glorious sunshine, the three of them soon got drowsy, so John took off his jacket to use as a pillow and lay down on the blanket. The two girls cuddled up against him and he stroked their backs, quickly lulling them into sleep. John stayed awake though, thinking about Rachel and her father, hoping that they'd be able to work through their differences.

He heard Rachel's footsteps long before he saw her, greeting the brunette with a smile as she knelt down beside Dana on the blanket.

"You three look adorable sleeping out here," Rachel whispered, a tender undercurrent to her voice as she brushed her fingers through Dana's long auburn tresses. "How was the picnic?"

"We've had a lovely afternoon," John replied, shifting his left arm slightly to place his hand on Rachel's deliciously toned thigh. When she glanced down at his hand with a smile and a raised eyebrow, he couldn't help laughing. "That was meant to be supportive, not suggestive."

Rachel took his hand in hers and gently caressed him with her fingers. "You've been amazingly supportive, thank you so much."

"How did it go with your father?" John asked, a hopeful expression on his face.

"There wasn't any more screaming or shouting," she replied, a pink blush appearing in her cheeks. Her grey eyes softened as she added, "Thank you for stopping me from running away again. If I'd stormed off like that, I'm not sure I'd have ever agreed to come back here. I think Dad and I... we might be able to make things better between us."

"I'm really pleased for you, honey," John said, turning his hand so that he could stroke the soft skin of her wrist with his thumb.

She gazed at him for a long moment, then asked in a hushed voice, "You were planning to ask my father for permission to marry me, weren't you?"

"Yes, but this afternoon definitely wasn't the right time. Tempers had been running hot and we just dropped several huge bombshells on the man," John replied, remembering the look of shock on Henry Voss' face. He gave Rachel an affectionate smile as he intertwined his fingers with hers. "Nothing gets past you, does it beautiful?"

"Intelligence, the double-edged sword," she replied with a rueful smile. "It must be wonderful going through life completely oblivious to everything and being able to savour each astonishing new surprise."

"I think it's still possible to keep you on your toes," John replied, an enigmatic expression on his face.

Rachel caught the look, but misinterpreted it this time. She raised his hand to her lips, kissing it lovingly as she said, "I really appreciate that you were thinking about asking him. It's very thoughtful and just the kind of thing you'd do, but my father wasn't ready to hear about our engagement." She glanced down at Dana and added, "I talked to him briefly about my relationship with the two of you. He tried to be understanding, but appearances to the outside world are very important to my father. What we have is unconventional and he... struggled... with the idea."

"I don't want to cause you any kind of extra complications," John said earnestly. "Ultimately all that matters to me is your happiness."

"I know," she replied, kissing his fingers again and letting out a contented sigh. She glanced back at the stately home up on the hill and sounded wistful as she continued, "When you asked Calara's parents for their blessing, I know how much it meant to her. She's very close to her family though, their relationship is light years from mine with my father."

"There's no rush," Alyssa murmured, revealing that she was awake. She sat up and smiled at Rachel. "Things might change between you and your father, it's still early days yet."

Rachel was about to reply, but Dana yawned and stretched, turning around and beaming a sparkling smile at her lover. "Hey, babes... I missed you."

"You fibber, you were fast asleep," Rachel teased the redhead, leaning down to give her a loving kiss.

Dana smiled as they parted, her sky-blue eyes searching her lover's face. "You look happy. I'm sure John already asked if it went well, so I won't make you repeat yourself."

That earned her another kiss from Rachel. "It did. Thank you."

They all sat up and made room for the brunette so that she could sit with them on the blanket too. John watched Rachel as she put her arm around the redhead and spotted when her grey eyes drifted across the lake to the headstone marking her mother's final resting place. He turned to his right to see Alyssa studying him closely, listening to his every thought. She didn't say anything, but just nodded slightly.

"There is something important I wanted to talk to you about, Rachel," John said, his baritone voice calm and gentle.

Rachel pivoted on the blanket so she could face him. His compassionate tone sent her mind whirring, but for the first time in months, she had no idea what was making him look at her that way. She reasoned that by being down at the lake, it had something to do with her mother and that thought made her heart skip a beat.

"What do you want to talk about?" she asked, suddenly apprehensive.

"Something unexpected happened when we went to visit Sakura's home with her," he began cautiously. Glancing to his right for a moment, he continued, "Alyssa showed Sakura the psychic imprints left behind by her family."

"Like you did with my mother," Rachel murmured, her voice catching.

He nodded and reached out to hold her hand. "That's right. But I took it a step further..."

Her eyes widened as she gazed at him in wonder. "Sakura was so different when you returned! Contented, calm, at peace... That can only mean..." Her eyes welled up with tears. "Please... Can you do that for me?"

John smiled at her, then slowly rose to his feet and glanced up the hill at the Voss family home. His eyes started to glow blue as he said to Alyssa, "I need to include the mansion too; this is going to be a lot harder."

Alyssa stood beside him, leaning in to plant a soft kiss on his cheek. All of a sudden, psychic memories flashed before his eyes, the blonde opening a bridge to the Astral Plane and linking it to him. Rachel's mother danced across the grass beside the lake, a beautiful smile on her face as she twirled her daughter around in time to lively music. She'd passed on her high cheekbones and delicate features to Rachel, the similarities between the two quite striking.

"We'll give you everything we've got," Alyssa murmured, wrapping her arms around him and closing her eyes. He felt Edraele's presence strengthening in his mind as she agreed.

Taking a deep breath, John began to gather his will, feeling his body tingling as both his Matriarchs began to channel their energy to him again. This time he was ready for the resistance that sought to oppose him from doing what needed to be done. He focused his willpower to pierce the ethereal barrier once more, feeling the towering but impotent fury of that ancient presence lurking in the Astral Plane.

Eldritch energy began to coil around his arms, the hair standing up as his body crackled with the vast surge of power that was charging within him. He closed his eyes and with a confident smile on his face he blasted that energy across the Astral plane, striking the vast wall and punching his way through.

Suddenly he felt a yawning chasm of sickness and despair, with waves of revulsion and horror washing over him. The astral presence was gloating now, the otherworldly behemoth revelling in his suffering. He felt like rancid fingernails were being scraped across the inside of his eyeballs, and he toppled forward, retching at the stomach-churning sensation.

Alyssa fell to the ground with him, stunned into insensibility as she was assailed by the same feelings of dread and nausea, sharing them in full force over their bond.

"John!" Rachel screamed, sounding absolutely terrified.

"Holy fuck!" Dana cried out in horror.

John could hear the girls scrabbling towards him across the ground, just as an eerie crackling filled the air. He managed to drag his eyes open, fighting against the urge to vomit, and saw a convulsing black portal shimmering in the air a dozen metres away. Thick grey fog poured out of that pulsating rent between the planes, sending misty clouds floating down to the lawn and across the lake.

As he looked on in stunned disbelief, a writhing tentacle slithered through, the slimy appendage covered in a revolting mix of jagged claws and insane eyes. It quivered in the air as if tasting the scent of reality and revelling in that sensation. The loathsome tentacle was quickly joined by a second repulsive limb, this one oozing with black ichor that bubbled when it dripped onto the grass, filling the air with a vile stench.

"Close the portal!" Dana begged him, shaking John in terror.

John tried to shut the channel of energy down, but whatever was opposing him had lashed onto that column of power and was forcing it open with freakish titanic strength. Corrupting his bridge to the Astral Plane, the hideous abnormality was now using it to send its unholy spawn after them, intent on defiling them in unspeakable ways.

*Shut off the power!* he yelled at his Matriarchs.

Edraele's terrified scream filled his mind, before it was abruptly cut off in a heart-stopping instant.

Alyssa was still reeling from the shock and she let out a feeble groan, clutching at her face as she spasmed on the grass next to him.

The tentacles suddenly seemed aware of their presence, coiling ominously as they undulated towards them. Despite the bright afternoon, the sun seemed to dim in their tainted presence, a brooding shroud enveloping the lakeside bank. There was a tortured wailing sound, like hundreds of voices united in their agony as something big thumped against the otherworldly gate, making it bulge obscenely.

Dana grabbed John's shirt, tearing buttons in her haste. "That portal's getting bigger!" she yelled at him frantically. "Do something!"

"John!" Rachel screamed, sounding petrified as the twisted monstrosity of eyes and claws lashed towards her.

He shook his head to try to clear it, then tore off his watch communicator and shoved it into Dana's hand. "Call for backup!" John blurted out, staggering to his feet.

Trying to ignore the pounding in his head, he attempted to will his psychic speed into effect, but his concentration was shattered by the barrage of needle-like pain assaulting his mind. The tentacles surged forward, intent on the brunette who lay paralysed with fear, barbed, hook-like claws rippling with their ghastly hunger. John leapt forward, acting by instinct alone as he formed two telekinetic barriers around his forearms. He blocked the stinging lash with a double armed parry, trying not to get flung backwards by the monstrous strength behind that blow.

The squelching ooze-covered limb attacked next, smashing downwards with a clumsy overhead blow. He blocked it easily, but the thumping impact sent a spray of black ooze outwards, the viscous ichor spattering over his shoulders. There was a tingling sensation for a second before the agonising pain started, his arms burning as the black liquid bubbled with malevolent glee.

"Fuck!" John hissed, lurching back a step.

Rachel had been shocked out of her daze by his cry of pain and she scampered backwards, while John tried to protect her from a second scything strike by the clawed tentacle. It whirled through the air, then surged forward, changing the angle of attack and catching him unprepared. The barbed hooks ripped into his right arm, spraying the black, rubbery tentacle in a fountain of blood. It seemed to shiver in delight, coiling back on itself and smearing the sticky redness over its multitude of eyes.

"There's more of it coming through!" Rachel screamed in warning.

John glanced behind the cavorting tentacles, seeing a huge blunt-toed... hoof... stomp down on the ground as the portal yawned wide. He winced at the searing agony in his arms and shoulders, trying his best to stay on his feet as he battled with the pain. Sensing his weakness, the tentacles looped towards him again, given greater length to attack as more of the creature wedged its way through the rip in reality.

Dana had her arms around Alyssa and was dragging her away from the hideous creature, when she heard the high-pitched scream of retro-thrusters on full burn. "John! Get clear!" she cried out to him in warning.

The slimy tentacle swung down in a heavy overhead blow, but John had no intention of being showered in more of that hideous ooze. He dived to one side, managing to narrowly avoid being splashed by thick black liquid as the tentacle smashed into the ground. The second one whipped across his legs, flaying him from thigh to calf as the barbs tore into his flesh. He crawled backwards, his face a mask of pain as he desperately tried to put some distance between them.

The unnatural gloom was suddenly pierced with a blazing flare of blue light and John heard the distinctive sound of Pulse Cannons opening fire. Faye had brought the Raptor in low over the lake and weapons capable of crippling a two-hundred-metre destroyer unloaded on the ethereal abomination. She strafed the hideous beast with sizzling blue laser bolts, from midway down its writhing tentacles right into the lower torso that was bulging through the groaning portal.

"Yeah, eat that you fucker!" Dana whooped, punching her fist in the air.

Outraged roaring boomed around the lake as the tentacles thrashed in that staccato hail of blue bolts. John sagged with relief, safe in the knowledge that nothing living would be able to survive that storm of laser fire. Abruptly the scream of Pulse Cannon fire cut out, followed a second later by more wrathful bellows, the spine-chilling noise sounding louder than ever. He gaped at the ethereal monster in shock. It was completely unscathed by the laser fire that had raked over its revolting hide!

"There's no fucking way that thing could live..." Dana whispered in horror, realising that the Raptor's weapons had absolutely no effect.

"It's an eldritch monster!" Rachel gasped, her astounding mind searching for answers despite the debilitating fear coursing through her body. She crouched down by John, helping to drag him as he crawled further away from the rampaging beast. "You hurt it before with psychic attacks, it must be vulnerable to them!"

John glanced at Alyssa, but she was lost to unconsciousness, lying limp in Dana's arms. His own body was burning with pain, from the savage rips in his arm and legs, to the still-hissing black ichor that was searing his flesh. He could barely stand, let alone try and fight this beast, even if he could concentrate over the agony.

*YOU WILL SUFFER AN ETERNITY OF TORMENTS FOR YOUR IMPUDENCE!*

The terrible dirge that filled John's mind seemed to echo with a chorus of agonised screams, as if drawn from an endless legion of wretched victims. That baleful cacophony jarred into his very soul and he shrank back from it, his every instinct telling him to flee in terror. With an urgent desperation borne of fear, he did the only thing he could think of, slashing through his mind to sever the source of his connection to that ungodly presence. The backlash blotted everything from his mind, all except the raging wail of frustration from the stygian monstrosity that was hell-bent on his destruction.

The barbed tentacle lunged for John, thrashing with an inhuman thirst for more of his blood. Fighting back her terror, Rachel flung herself over him, shielding his body with her own to buy him a few more precious seconds. She clenched her eyes shut, ignoring Dana's horrified scream as she waited for that moment of agony when the barbs would slice into her flesh...

And she waited...

A screeching cry of indignant fury left her quaking with fear, but it was Dana's sudden gasp of shock that coaxed Rachel into slowly open her eyes. John's face swam into view before her, his eyes rolled back and his mouth agape, her man out cold. She whirled around to look at the massive beast that had assailed them, then gaped at it in stunned amazement as its foul body was forced back through the rapidly closing portal. The tentacles convulsed in the air, dragged backwards as the rift began to seal itself. Despite the creature's concerted efforts, it couldn't keep the portal open and it yanked its tentacles back through the gap with a final blood-curdling roar.

The ethereal fog faded away, as did the revolting stench from the beast. In its place, Rachel picked up the repugnant smell of the black fluid that was still eating into John's shoulders. She acted immediately and grasped his hands, focusing intently on trying to heal his numerous wounds and counter the corrosive effects of the horrible ooze. The misty healing aura rolled down her arms to envelop John, spreading out from his hands and out over his body.

Her concentration was momentarily disrupted as a piercing hiss filled the air, the onyx liquid visibly recoiling from the gentle grey shroud. She watched in fascination as the ooze began to smoke, reacting as though it was being burned by the healing mist. Rachel ramped up the strength of her restorative aura, purifying John's body of this foul corruption. The terrible lacerations across his arm and leg began to boil, smoke pouring from the wounds as she cleansed the tainted residue left behind by those vicious claws.

"What the fuck is that shit?!" Dana asked, a look of revulsion on her face as she crouched down beside them.

When the lingering infestations had all been dealt with, Rachel finally relaxed, concentrating on regenerating John's lacerated flesh. "I've no idea... some kind of toxic residue. It looked and behaved the same way when Irillith got infected after that nightmare."

"Thank God you were here!" Dana suddenly gasped with relief, throwing her arms around her lover. "A minute ago, I was wishing you were anywhere else..."

Rachel sagged into the redhead's arms, overcome by waves of exhaustion. Between Alyssa tapping her for psychic energy and using her powers to cleanse John, she felt a deep weariness down to her bones. "I felt the same way about you," she murmured, breathing deeply. Raising her heavy eyes to her lover, Rachel gave Dana a worried frown. "I'm not going to last much longer. We need to get them back to the Invictus; I can't deal with questions from my father right now."

Dana nodded her understanding. "Let me deal with your father, you just rest." She pressed a button on the watch communicator. "Faye, bring the Raptor down! We need an immediate evac."

"Of course!" Faye replied, the slight waver in her synthetic voice reflecting her worry.

***

"What happened to her?!" Luna gasped, running into the study.

The Maliri girls looked up at her with shock and fear on their faces, four of them kneeling around Edraele who lay unconscious on the floor. Gaenna was standing over them, nibbling a nail anxiously. It was the House Baelora Matriarch that had called for Luna by hitting the panic button on Edraele's desk.

"She just said she was going to help John," Kali said, her voice filled with worry.

Leena nodded, brushing some strands of hair away from Edraele's face. "She was fine one minute, then she just toppled over! There was no warning or anything!"

***

Alyssa let out a low groan, clutching at her head to try and make the pounding stop. She felt hollow inside, as though all the psychic energy had been forcibly drained out of her, which she realised was literally true. The sensation left her trembling with fear, feeling more unsettled than she'd been in months.

"Thank God for that!" Dana blurted out, hugely relieved to see the blonde stir.

"My love, are you alright?" Calara asked, her voice throbbing with concern.

"My head..." Alyssa mumbled. "Where's John or Rachel? I need them to take away the pain..."

She felt cool, strong hands around her and Tashana said softly, "They're still unconscious. Here, take this. Trust me, it'll help..."

Alyssa felt some kind of pill brush against her lips and she opened her mouth to swallow it, placing her full trust in the Maliri girl. She coughed and felt a cool glass touch her lips a moment later. Tashana carefully poured some water into her mouth so she could gulp it down.

"Just ten seconds or so and they'll kick in," Tashana murmured, gently massaging her temple.

Lying cradled in the Maliri girl's arms, she felt a second set of hands expertly stroking her head. She sighed with relief as the combination of their soothing touch and the medication began to counter the debilitating pain. With the pounding headache fading away, she was still left with a raw, hollow emptiness in her chest. Finally able to think again, she lurched in fright as she recognised the aching feeling of loss inside her.

"John! No..." she cried out, lurching bolt upright.

Jade was kneeling beside her and she stroked her arm soothingly. "He's right here... Don't worry, he's just sleeping."

"Rachel healed him, but she passed out a few minutes later," Dana explained, sitting on the far side of the bed beside the brunette.

Shaking her head, Alyssa whimpered, "You don't understand... he broke our bond!"

***

John yawned and carefully stretched, being careful not to disturb the two girls cuddled up next to him. Their long manes of golden-blonde and tawny-brown hair identified them immediately, and he gently hugged Alyssa and Rachel. As he fully awoke, the events by the lake came flooding back to him and his eyes opened wide with alarm.

"It's okay, everyone's safe," Sakura whispered, shifting on the bed and moving into his line of sight. She sounded deeply worried as she added, "How are you feeling?"

"I feel fine actually," John replied in surprise, glancing down at his right arm, which had been torn open earlier that afternoon. It looked completely healed, the skin unbroken and not showing any scars. He realised he had no idea what the time was, but Sakura was blocking his view of the ship's chronometer. "What time is it now?"

"Six in the morning," Faye replied softly, fluttering into view. The purple sprite looked overjoyed to see he was fully recovered. "You've been asleep for fifteen hours!"

John was shocked at how long he'd been out of it, until he remembered that his wounds had healed while he was unconscious, so his body had probably just needed to rest after the psychic healing. That raised a new question though, because he was cut off from his Matriarchs and without them to draw energy from, he shouldn't have been able to regenerate like that. A glance down at Rachel answered that question and he realised she must have healed him. He craned his head to look left and then right, seeing the rest of the girls asleep in bed.

"How come you're up?" he asked Sakura in confusion. "Did you wake early?"

"No, Alyssa asked us to keep watch and wake her up the moment you stirred. I just took over from Calara about an hour ago," the Asian girl explained, her eyes darting to the blonde lying beside him. "Alyssa's been out of her mind with worry. I've never seen her like this before... she's normally so calm and confident."

John looked down at the teenager's tousled blonde mane, his face shadowed with remorse. "I didn't have any choice, I had to do it."

"Break the bond?" Sakura asked him quietly.

He nodded, carefully retrieving his arm from around Rachel and shifting position slightly so he could roll over to embrace Alyssa. "Wake up, beautiful," he said, leaning in to brush his lips against hers.

Alyssa's cerulean eyes fluttered open and she kissed him frantically, moaning into his mouth as she wrapped her arms around him.

"I need you back, my love," John said, his eyes gazing deep into hers.

"Please!" she gasped between kisses, throwing her mind wide open to him.

He could feel her trembling with relief as they merged their consciousness together once again. Alyssa hadn't broken her bond with him, but he'd intentionally severed both their connections to save her from being drained to a husk by the astral leviathan. He could feel her mind interweaving itself with his and he dismissed all the passive mental barriers he had in place to let her roam at will through his thoughts.

This experience felt very different to the last time they'd bonded with each other. The first time, John had been stuck in a mental prison, so his recollection of events seemed like he was watching things through a darkly-shaded window. Alyssa's mind had also grown exponentially more powerful and he felt bolstered by her presence - like he could achieve anything with this astounding woman at his side.

As their two-way bond was re-established, now even stronger than before, he stroked her hair and gave her a tender kiss. "You're back where you belong."

"When I woke up and you weren't there..." she murmured, shivering at the memory of that terrible feeling of loss.

He nodded, kissing her again to quieten her. "You understand why I had to do it? I had no choice..."

"That thing was draining us to power the portal," she replied, her heart skipping a beat as she recalled those dreadful events.

"Edraele!" John suddenly blurted out in alarm. "Is she okay?!"

Alyssa gave him a tentative nod, but she looked worried. "You cut your connection to both of us, but I'm still linked to Edraele and her girls. She was still unconscious before I went to sleep, but I explained to her bodyguards and the Young Matriarchs what happened."

"Have they contacted the ship yet?" he asked, glancing back at Sakura.

The Asian girl frowned as she replied, "Luna called us hours ago. She requested that you contact her as soon as you awoke."

"I better call her immediately," John said, turning to look at Faye, who was sitting cross-legged on the high-backed leather chair. "Could you connect us please?"

With a quick blink, she activated the comm interface at the foot of the bed, the holo-screen appearing before him. "I'll put you through right now!"

It took a few minutes for the call to connect and another couple for it to be answered. John stared at the crossed swords insignia of House Valaden in confusion and asked, "Why isn't she answering?"

"Luna's probably putting on armour," Irillith replied, sharing a glance with her sister. "Remember the penalty for revealing the Maliri's true appearance? There's no way she would take that kind of risk with Terran Federation comm routing."

"Ah, of course," John replied, relaxing as her explanation seemed perfectly plausible.

Another minute later the insignia faded away and a golden armoured helmet appeared on the holo-screen, the faceplate opaque and obscuring the occupant from sight. "It's so good to see you!" Luna said, the tension in her voice quite apparent. "We got your message, but Edraele's still not woken up yet!"

John shot Alyssa a look of alarm. "She's not as strong as you... the energy drain must have taken a much bigger toll!"

"That creature might have started tapping her lifeforce," Alyssa replied, her expression bleak.

Irillith and Tashana clasped hands, looking frightened as they glanced at one another.

Turning back to the screen, John asked bluntly, "How severe is Edraele's condition? Is her life in danger? Do we need to head there immediately?"

Luna paused, clearly thinking carefully about her answer. "The physicians have examined her and believe that she's frail, but stable at the moment. They've never seen anything like it and have no idea what caused her collapse. The consensus was to put her into a medically induced coma."

Rachel shook her head and interjected, "They only suggested that because they want to see if she can recover on her own, while they try to find a solution for the best way to treat her. As soon as we see Edraele, we can resolve this, but I don't want to risk any complications. Please put Edraele into cryostasis, that's the safest option until we arrive."

"Of course, Doctor," Luna replied, nodding to her respectfully.

John mulled over his next course of action for a moment, then said firmly, "Luna, I want you to get a fleet ready as soon as you can, then head towards the Terran border. Alyssa will tell you who to bring and the coordinates for the meeting place."

Following his train of thought, Alyssa said, "It'll take them just under five days to reach the rendezvous point I have in mind."

"Okay, how long until you can depart?" he asked the armoured Maliri assassin.

"I believe the fleet Edraele intended to send to the Ashanath will be ready to depart later this evening," Luna replied, sounding hesitant.

John smiled at her, nodding with satisfaction. "That's perfect! You can commandeer that fleet, they're heading in this direction anyway."

"I'm just Edraele's bodyguard... I don't have that kind of authority!" Luna protested, sounding stunned by the suggestion.

John didn't want to trust the rest of this particular conversation to an open comm channel, so he glanced at Alyssa instead. *Tell her that I'm temporarily appointing her as defacto leader of House Valaden. Anyone who objects is free to contact me to discuss it further.*

*Done,* Alyssa replied, a few seconds later.

Luna straightened up and squared her shoulders. "I won't let you down, John."

"I know you won't," he replied, giving her a warm smile. "We'll see you in five days."

Luna gave him a deep respectful bow, then closed the channel.

Blowing out his breath, John turned back to look at the girls with regret. "I'm sorry, ladies. It looks like we'll have to postpone the skiing holiday."

There were murmurs of support all round, everyone fully understanding his concern for the Maliri Matriarch. Irillith and Tashana wore identical looks of concern for their mother.

"She'll be okay," John said, beckoning the twins over and opening his arms for them.

They went to him gladly, both hugging him for support. "I hated her for years," Irillith murmured softly. "But she's so different now... We can't lose her!" Tashana nestled into him, nodding her heartfelt agreement.

"We won't let anything happen to her," John said, his voice soothing. "In five days, she'll be as good as new again."

Alyssa brushed her fingers over his shoulder. "Are we heading straight into Maliri Space, or do you still want to go ahead with the Trankaran detour? If we left for Valaden right now, we could shorten the wait by two days by intercepting Luna's fleet on the way to the border. I know what Edraele's like though; if we change our previous plans, she'll blame herself and think that she's let you down..."

John mulled over their options with a frown. "A big part of me wants to just rush off to the rescue, but it does seem like a wasted opportunity not to combine the rendezvous with an ore transfer." He turned to Rachel and added, "Will Edraele be safe in cryostasis?"

"She'll be perfectly safe once hibernation is induced," Rachel replied, darting an apologetic look at the twins.

Tashana smiled at her and slowly shook her head. "You're just giving your honest professional opinion; we aren't going to be upset with you for that." She smiled bravely as she added, "Edraele's always been such a strong woman, I know she'll be alright."

Irillith looked up at John and let out a heavy sigh. "As much as my heart says we should race off into Maliri Space, I think the more rational plan is to go ahead with the visit to the Trankarans. We can take care of our business with them, then fly into Maliri Space and still make it to the rendezvous point before mother's fleet can arrive."

"Where are we right now?" John asked Faye, who fluttered excitedly when he looked her way. "Are we still in orbit around New Eden?"

"The Invictus is in orbit around Jericho at the moment!" the purple sprite replied, sounding very excited. "My boys worked all night on the Photon Lasers refit! If the rest of the installations go to schedule, we'll have finished the entire upgrade in four hours, seventeen minutes."

"That's amazing! Thank you so much for that," John said, giving Faye an appreciative grin.

Dana laughed and rolled her eyes. "You're just glad you don't have to personally install new heatsinks again!"

"Absolutely!" John agreed, remembering how laborious a job it had been the last time. He was lost in thought for a moment, then smiled as he continued, "Alright how about this for a plan: While Faye finishes upgrading the Invictus, we visit Jericho for a few hours. It won't be nearly the same as a week's break, but we can have a bit of fun in the snow, then drop by to see Calara's mother. As soon as Faye and her maintenance bots complete the refit, we head for Trankaran territory as we previously planned. We can trade tech for ore and enquire about an alliance, then travel to Maliri Space to heal Edraele."

"My mom would love to meet you three," Calara said, smiling at Sakura and the Maliri girls. Her gaze lingered on the stunning blue-skinned sisters for a moment, a question in her eyes.

"I trust Maria," John said to Irillith and Tashana, realising what the Latina was thinking about. "I'm sure your secret will be safe with her if you want to go without armour..."

The sisters glanced at each other then shared a smile, before nodding towards Calara.

"You're going to blow her mind!" the Latina exclaimed, looking delighted. "She was always intrigued about the Maliri!"

John looked around the group. "Before we get wrapped up warm to go planetside, we should discuss yesterday's fight. Do all of you know roughly what happened?"

Sakura glanced at the other girls, then slowly nodded. "You tried to help Rachel say goodbye to her mother in the same way you helped me with my parents. Something attacked you though, opening some kind of portal to the Astral Plane..."

"That pretty much sums it up," John said, a grim expression on his face. "Whatever it is that keeps forcing me into those nightmares, was lurking in wait to ambush me. When I used my psychic abilities to pierce the Astral Plane, it attacked!"

"The thing that came through the portal, it was just like those fucked-up monsters we saw before," Dana muttered, paling at the deeply disturbing memory.

Faye gazed at John, her big luminous eyes filled with confusion. "I hit that creature with dozens of Pulse Cannon bolts... they had absolutely no effect!"

"We have to assume that they're immune to conventional weaponry," Calara said, looking greatly perturbed. "After what happened to Irillith and that wound she received in that shared nightmare, we guessed they might be able to survive in the real world; this just confirms it..."

"My healing aura burned away the black ooze that infected your wounds," Rachel said, looking intently at John. "It appears I was right; those creatures are probably only vulnerable to psychic attacks!"

"Or crystal Alyssium," John said, hugging Irillith closer. "I remember the way that ooze reacted to the knife I made from the same metal."

"Do you think we're in any more danger of attacks?" Irillith asked, quailing as she recalled her near-death experience after the astral nightmare.

The room went quiet as John thought long and hard about her question. He eventually sighed and gave her a helpless shrug. "The honest answer is: I don't know for sure. I think in this particular case, I brought this attack down on us by delving too deep into the Astral Plane. I'd like to say that as long as I don't try anything like that again, we'll be perfectly safe, but it seems like a very dangerous assumption to make."

"What kind of precautions can we take to keep us safe?" Jade asked, looking around at the girls with concern.

John shared a glance with Sakura. "I've got a few ideas, but I'd like to hear your thoughts, Security Chief."

Her dark-brown eyes narrowed as she said, "It's going to be difficult to prepare for a foe who could attack us anywhere from within our own ship. I'd suggest having everyone carry a sidearm, but that won't be of much use if these Ethereal monsters are immune to conventional weapons."

"We can fix that easily enough," Dana said with a wicked smile. "If they're vulnerable to a crystal Alyssium knife, then some crystal-tipped ammo would really fuck them up."

"It's probably not necessary to have everyone walking around armed inside the ship, at least not yet," John said tentatively. "But we definitely need more Quantum rifles, pistols, and special ammo where we can get our hands on them in an emergency. The armoury in the Combat Bridge is well stocked with the new guns, but we could do with more for the weapon racks in the Briefing Room, the Firing Range, the Engineering Bay, the walk-in-wardrobe, and the fore-armoury by the airlocks."

"That's no problem, I'll start manufacturing all the parts we'll need," Dana said, tilting her head to one side as she mulled over the numbers. "Another twenty rifles and pistols should cover it. I'll need you or Alyssa to make the crystal Alyssium tips for the ammunition."

"I can do that," Alyssa offered. "I'll also reshape our armour when I've finished the ammo. There's a couple of suits in need of repairs, so I'll fix them while I'm at it."

John nodded, then smiled at Dana. "We definitely need you to reinforce the armour afterwards. You imbuing those suits with psychic runes is bound to help."

"Yep, no problem," the redhead replied, before looking at him with a stern frown. "But only if you work on improving your psychic shields! Those wrist buckler things you made were crap! If you'd made a decent sized shield, you wouldn't have ended up covered in corrosive goo!"

"I am going to say I told you so..." Alyssa said, giving him a sad look of disappointment. "Can you imagine how devastated we'd all be if something terrible happened to you? If you're genuine about not wanting to see us get hurt, you'll train harder next time!"

John looked around at the girls, his heart lurching when he saw their beautiful faces looking distraught. He'd been sure that by changing the bond, they'd managed to remove the debilitating effect on them that talk of his early demise had previously triggered. Glancing back at Alyssa, he caught the hint of an impish smile and realised he was being cleverly manipulated by some masterful acting. He let go of the twins and grabbed the mischievous blonde, the rest of the girls laughing as he started tickling Alyssa.

"It's only because we love you!" she managed to squeak between her giggles.

Eventually having mercy, he let go of the panting blonde, giving her a playful smack on the rump as he did so. "You were right, I'm sorry. I promise to train harder from now on. I put the three of you in danger by letting myself get so badly hurt." Looking around at the group, he continued, "We should all probably work on improving our psychic abilities as much as possible."

Sakura nodded her agreement. "If we get caught without weapons right now, we're far too reliant on our lovely Matriarch to protect us with her telekinesis. When Alyssa was incapacitated, it meant that the rest of you were helpless."

"I just wish I'd been there," Jade said, looking guilty. "I know I'd have been able to help protect you and my natural attacks are psychically charged now."

"They're lethal in melee. I wouldn't have wanted to see you get hurt by them, honey," John said, giving the Nymph a reassuring smile. "It's much better if we can attack them at range."

"I should definitely be able to help there; I've been training with Alyssa to improve my Pyrokinesis," Tashana said, before glancing at her twin. "Perhaps you could practice some offensive abilities with her too, Rill?"

Irillith looked thoughtful as she replied, "In all honesty, I didn't think that kind of thing would be particularly useful, so I've focused on hacking and the cyber-realm so far. I'm usually stationed on the Bridge during our recent battles, subverting enemy ships." Thinking about how much danger her friends and lover had been in, sparked a flare of fury in her, reflected in her narrowing violet eyes. "If we get attacked again though, I want to be ready. I'll make them rue the day they decided to cross us!"

"That's the spirit! Tashana's right, it's a great idea," John agreed, putting his arms around the sisters again and giving them both a gentle squeeze. "Plan for the worst and hope for the best..."

Dana sighed in frustration. "Any idea how I can turn my abilities into some kind of anti-personnel attack? It's not like those ugly fuckers were wearing armour I could fuck around with!"

"I'm sure you'll figure something out," John said with a smile. "You're very creative when you put your mind to it."

She frowned and wagged her finger at him. "If you'd just let me shoot fireballs from my eyes, we wouldn't have had a problem!"

Tashana looked at her curiously, her angular eyes shining with an inner glow. Two small flaming spheres burst into life, hovering in front of her violet orbs, before roaring across the bedroom and exploding harmlessly in a shower of embers. "You mean like that?" she asked, the hint of a smile teasing her lips.

Dana stared at her, open-mouthed in shock, before pouting at John in disappointment. "That's not fair! I called dibs on that!"

"Tashana's Pyrokinesis is innate, Sparks!" Alyssa said, rolling her eyes and laughing. "You can't blame John for that one."

"But I wanted to be the fire chick!" Dana grumped. "I've got the red hair and everything! You know it makes sense..."

John smiled as he looked down at the Maliri girl and asked, "How about it? Do you want me to scrub your third helix, then give all of your natural abilities to Dana, so she can unleash her inner pyromaniac?"

Before Tashana could reply, Dana harrumphed, "Fine, you made your point. Fate can fucking bite me though! I had all sorts of awesome shit planned, like firestorms, fiery tornadoes, elemental minions, burning swords, flame-infused ammo, the works!"

Tashana looked at her in surprise, then smiled at John. "You're right, she is very creative!"

Dana blushed as they all laughed, then grinned self-consciously at the Maliri girl. "Maybe I should start fantasising about my own abilities instead."

"I appreciate the suggestions," Tashana replied, with a wink.

"Alright, well that just about wraps everything up," John said, smiling at the girls. "Let's get ready for Jericho and have a bit of fun while we can."

The girls nodded eagerly, dispersing to their own rooms to get showered and ready.

"Rachel, could I speak to you for a moment please," John requested, as the brunette climbed off the bed.

She shared a knowing glance with Alyssa, as the blonde glided past her towards the bathroom, before returning to the bed. "Of course," she replied, prowling across the bed towards him.

John saw the seductive gleam in her eyes and blinked in surprise, then grinned at her. "I wasn't implying something, I did genuinely want to talk to you."

"I know, and I can probably guess what about," Rachel replied, kneeling in front of him and brushing her fingers over the muscles in his chest. "But Alyssa just reminded me that you must be really full up, and the girls will need a healthy breakfast to start the day..."

Lying down and bringing her with him, he gave her a gentle kiss. "I'm sorry, I let you down," he said, looking chagrined.

Rachel blinked at him in surprise, her eyes softening as she realised what was on his mind. "It wasn't your fault," she said, tilting her head up to kiss him. "There's no way you could have predicted what was going to happen."

His voice was full of remorse, as he said, "I know, but I could see how much you wanted to see your mother again. I can't help feeling like I failed you."

"How was what you did for Sakura different from the psychic imprints Alyssa showed me?" Rachel asked, a catch in her voice.

John looked away for a moment, trying to think of the best way to answer her question. "I was able to read all the psychic imprints in Sakura's home and temporarily recreate her parents, giving them physical form. To all intents and purposes, they were real, looking and behaving exactly as her mother and father would have done. Sakura was able to hug them and say her final goodbyes, telling them all the things she'd always wanted to, but never had the chance."

Rachel studied him intently as he spoke, her eyes tearing up as she said, "The things you can do... You're amazing, did you know that? How you twist all these dreadful Progenitor abilities and use them to help us. I can't imagine anything more lovely you could have done for her-" She froze mid-sentence and her voice tremored as she added in a whisper, "You asked her parents for their blessing didn't you?"

He nodded, the expression on his face easily readable to the exceptionally intelligent girl.

A tear rolled down her cheek as she gazed into his eyes. "You were going to ask my mother too, weren't you? You knew how much that would mean to me..."

"I was really hoping she'd say yes," John said with a smile, catching her tear with his thumb. "Before everything went wrong, I actually saw your mother for the first time. The two of you were dancing across the grass and she looked so happy. Catherine was a very beautiful woman; I could see your features in hers."

Rachel hugged him tight, shaking with emotion as she let out quiet sobs. John rolled to his side and held her close, rubbing her back and murmuring loving, supportive words.

When her tears had subsided, he said quietly, "When we make it safe, I promise I'll try again." He smiled at her, a look of eager anticipation in his eyes. "I can't wait to see Catherine's face when she sees the incredible woman you've become..."

Brushing her tousled brown hair from her face, Rachel let out a disbelieving laugh. "Please stop, it's not possible for me to love you any more than I do right now!"

He firmly shook his head. "I'm afraid not, sorry. I really like making you happy."

Rachel laughed again, the sound lighter now and unburdened from her grief. Leaning over him, she kissed him tenderly. "Thank you. For everything you've done and tried to do for me." She looked at him wistfully as she added, "I knew you'd try your hardest to help me reconcile with my father, but everything with my mother too... You were right, you can still surprise me."

"It just takes a little more effort," John said, returning her kiss. "But you're definitely worth it."

She gazed at him in awe and murmured, "Our relationship is so unbalanced... You've given me the Gift and everything that goes with it, but now my parents too; you're constantly trying to fix everything bad in my life and make it all better. You're so selfless with me... with all of us. Why is that?"

Her question took him by surprise and he faltered for a moment, a flicker of guilt crossing his face.

"You feel guilty?!" she marvelled, immediately recognising the brief flash of emotion.

John met her astonished gaze and let out a sad sigh. "I didn't agree with much your father said yesterday, but he was right about one thing. You're still so young and I'm exposing you to terrible danger on an almost daily basis. I love all of you, but you're right, I feel guilty for having dragged any of you into my fight with this other Progenitor."

"You can't face him alone," Rachel said firmly. "I'm sure you know that as well as I do. You need all of us for this battle and there's no shame in asking for that help."

"Just because I need your help, doesn't make it right," he protested. "Half of you are only eighteen! The amount of responsibility I've piled on your shoulders is so unfair!"

"But we're thriving on it!" Rachel insisted, her eyes gleaming as she spoke passionately. "Everything we've achieved... Do you honestly believe we could have accomplished anything like this without your influence? Or even working as a group without you leading us? Dana told me what you said to her: that she's the unsung heroine behind all our victories. She was so blissfully happy when she told me that, and proud too, that she'd been able to make a real difference with her life."

John allowed himself a fond smile. "She's one in a billion alright."

Rachel lowered her voice and whispered, "That dynamite redhead I love with all my heart is a miraculous gift, but she's a gift from you. Dana is the woman she is today because of the careful way you've nurtured her. Be honest with yourself... could the Sparks you first met on Karron cope with the bewildering tech that Dana now takes in her stride?"

He looked at her in surprise for a moment, then slowly shook his head. "No. She had a talent for technology, but nothing like the genius she's become."

"Which is down to you," Rachel said softly. "Alyssa's discussed this with all of us before. We know you harbour guilt for the changes you've made to us, but I can promise you that none of us holds even the slightest bit of resentment towards you for it."

"But is that just because of our Progenitor to Thrall relationship?" he asked, grimacing with distaste at the thought. "I fucking hate that word: Thrall. It rings with contempt and sums up the appalling way my species treat their women."

Rachel's grey eyes sparkled as she exclaimed, "Don't you see? You're nothing like them! The Maliri are a prime example of the way Progenitors normally operate: their species were already genetically programmed to be used as disposable, combat-ready soldiers. Progenitors don't lavish the kind of spectacular genetic enhancements on their Thralls in the way you've enhanced all of us; they don't even upgrade their Matriarchs that way!" A bright smile filled with wonder lit up her face. "Do you have any idea how many people I'll be able to save when I've finished my research into those incurable diseases? We're talking about billions of lives! That's your legacy as much as mine, I've just got the specialist skills to make it happen." She laughed as she finished, "It was even your idea!"

John looked stunned, lying back and gazing at the ceiling as he thought over everything she was saying.

She moved with him, straddling his prone form and gazing down into his eyes. "You need to stop thinking of us as being something apart from you; a group of defenceless women that you 'did something' too. That was never true, but it's irrelevant now anyway. In many ways, we're becoming a gestalt entity, working together to achieve so much more than any of us could do alone. Alyssa is the fulcrum at the centre, with the rest of us contributing what we can to the greater good of the collective."

John was speechless as he stared into her eyes, seeing nothing but love and respect in those enchanting grey orbs.

"She's so very clever," Alyssa said quietly, moving across the bed to join them and brushing her fingers through Rachel's tawny hair. She grinned at John when he glanced up at her. "Aren't you glad you left me in charge of recruitment?"

He chuckled and nodded, pulling down Rachel for a kiss. "Definitely the best decision I ever made," he said, gently stroking her head. He smiled at the brunette and added, "Thank you, for everything you just said. You made a lot of sense."

"Good, because you should feel proud, both of yourself and everything we've been able to achieve working with you," Rachel said firmly. "If you're feeling guilty, it only reflects badly on us. It means we haven't been supportive of your emotional needs and should have spent more time helping you understand just how much you've accomplished. I'm sorry for neglecting you."

"I'm sorry, John. I let you down too," Alyssa murmured, sounding genuinely contrite.

Seven more voices echoed similar sentiments, alerting John to the fact that the rest of the girls had returned and were now sitting in a semi-circle around the bed. He felt bewildered by the unexpected turn this conversation had taken, but he had to admit, everything Rachel said had a ring of truth to it.

"You'd make one hell of a psychologist, honey," John said, smiling at Rachel affectionately. "That was an amazing pep-talk. I feel much better... about everything."

"I'm really glad to hear it," she said, pressing her breasts down onto his chest. "I charge very reasonable rates for my services."

"Really?" John asked, noticing the playful twist to her full lips. "What's your standard fee?"

"One womb full of cum to share with my sisters," Rachel purred, punctuating her sentence by kissing him deeply.

He felt himself stiffening at her very appealing offer, his eyes lingering over her toned physique. "I think I might be able to accommodate you there," he said with a lustful grin.

She shifted her hips, and sat up slightly, lining him up with her eager pussy. "In the spirit of taking care of you for a change, why don't you lie back and let me do all the work," she offered, her eyelids fluttering as she pushed down, smoothly impaling herself on his cock.

She felt wonderfully warm, wet, and tight, but she relaxed and stretched to take him, eagerly engulfing three-quarters of his length. He felt the pressure as the head of his cock nudged into her cervix, drawing a shivering gasp from Rachel, followed by a low moan.

"God, I love this so much," she crooned, gently rocking on top of him to help ease his way into her womb.

John let his hands roam from her slender hips to her firm, gravity-defying breasts, his fingertips revelling in the smooth softness of her skin. He caressed the luscious flesh as she leaned into him, easily supporting her weight as she focused on completing his penetration. Rachel's pliable body relented to the pressure and she slid down a few more inches, groaning when he was fully sheathed inside her.

She sat up then, glorious in her feminine perfection, letting him admire the stunningly beautiful body that was wrapped around his entire length. Her hands joined his at her breasts and she smiled at him coyly. "You made me look like this, do you like what you see?"

He returned her smile, then reached up to cup her beautiful face in his hands. It was the one part of her that hadn't been genetically altered to fit the standard template. "Absolutely breathtaking," he said, pulling her in for a kiss.

Rachel understood his meaning and he could see the warm glow in her eyes as she kissed him back with increasing desire. When she finally pulled back, she laughed and said, "This is about you, not making me feel amazing!" Glancing over her shoulder, she added, "I think I need some help, girls."

There was a flurry of discarded clothes as the girls stripped off and before John knew it, he was surrounded by beautiful faces as they each took turns kissing him. Alyssa stepped in to add some order to the chaotic outburst of affection, with the girls peeling off as she gave them their suggestions.

"Raise yourself up a bit, handsome," she purred, the excitement quite obvious in her voice.

John did as she asked, wondering what she had in mind, but that question was quickly answered as Alyssa slid across the bed to lie down behind him. She spread her thighs, then guided him back so that his head was resting against the marvellous softness of her proud breasts.

"There, that's better. Now you've got a comfy pillow, let's give you something nice to watch," Alyssa said, as she gently massaged his shoulders.

Sakura and Dana flanked Rachel, taking it in turns to kiss her, before trailing lower over her impressive bust. She gasped as Dana took one of her nipples in her mouth and began to suckle, tongue flickering over the erect nub. Sakura followed her lead, and soon Rachel was writhing on his lap letting out sultry moans as the two girls teased and licked her to distraction.

"That's a beautiful sight," John groaned, feeling Rachel gripping and squeezing his shaft in her excitement.

Alyssa leaned down to kiss him, then said, "We're only just getting started. What's the point of a harem this ravishing if you don't take full advantage." Her eyes darted to either side as she continued, "Now we need to give you something nice to listen to, besides Rachel getting increasingly turned on of course."

Calara and Jade knelt beside him, each giving him a loving kiss before drifting lower to his ears. They started by teasing the tips with their tongues, before moving around so their lips were right by his sensitive lobes. They each kissed one, making him shiver, before they both began to speak to him softly, telling him of their love and respect for him. It was like a relentless orgy of praise, designed to massage and inflate his ego. He could feel the earnest sincerity in both their voices and heard the extent of their devotion to him with every word.

As he was reeling from the fresh source of sensory overload, he gazed at Rachel with lust-fogged eyes as she entwined her fingers in Dana's and Sakura's long hair. She bucked against him as she climaxed, her stormy grey eyes wild with passion as they locked onto his. He could feel every rippling squeeze from her nubile young body as she rode his throbbing cock and he barely managed to restrain himself from joining her in release, never wanting this to end.

*Now, we've got two eager mouths left... what would be a good job for Irillith and Tashana?* Alyssa asked him playfully, loving the look of pure pleasure on his face. *Oh! I know...*

John felt gentle pressure on his thighs, soft hands urging him to part them. He didn't resist and a moment later he felt two velvety tongues gliding over his balls, the Maliri twins alternating between licking and kissing his quad.

"Fuck! Don't stop!" he groaned, his hands moving down to hold Rachel's hips.

He pounded up into her, hearing her orgasmic cries getting louder over the softly spoken, but loving words that Calara and Jade were whispering in his ears. His senses were totally overloaded and before his eyes rolled back as he climaxed, he saw Alyssa leaning forward to gaze lovingly into his eyes.

*This is how you deserve to be treated,* she murmured, her voice swirling through his shattered thoughts, swept through by a wave of telepathic pleasure.

John lunged up to the hilt inside Rachel, hearing her scream in ecstasy as he fucked her through a rolling wave of orgasms. His balls clenched hard and began to pump his cum into her, while the Maliri twins sucked and lapped at his taut, pulsing orbs. He very nearly blacked out, he came so hard, the five girls surrounding his torso stroking and caressing him as he exploded into the gasping brunette.

Rachel shuddered through the last of her climax before sagging forward into Dana and Sakura's waiting arms. When John managed to open his eyes again, he saw the two girls stroking Rachel's cum-inflated belly while whispering to her quietly. The beautiful doe-eyed look on her face would have given away the topic of discussion, even if he couldn't hear little snippets of their loving conversation.

"Feel better?" Alyssa asked, wrapping her arms around him and pulling him back against her chest.

He chuckled in a daze and managed to mumble, "I'll let you know when my brain starts working again!"

Jade and Calara snuggled up against him, each giving him a kiss on the cheek. He was now surrounded by nubile young women and couldn't deny just how incredible they'd all made him feel.

*That's what we were aiming for,* Alyssa thought to him, sounding very satisfied.

Rachel sucked in a ragged breath before she blew him a kiss, then reluctantly dismounted with Sakura's help. She lay back on the bed and spread her thighs for Dana, running her hands through her thick auburn hair as her lover nuzzled into her pussy. The brunette gazed at him in adoration, her cheeks flushed with passion as Dana made love to her with her mouth.

All of the girls took a turn at lapping John's cum from Rachel's spunk-stuffed belly, and his mind lit up with a bright glow as he established an active connection with each of them. Jade was the last, and she finished cleaning Rachel's womb with her long tongue, before removing her two fingers from the brunette's mouth where she'd been sharing the load.

John beckoned her over and Rachel moved across the bed, looking deeply satiated as she lay beside him, opposite Dana. "I hope that was as good for you as it was for me?" she asked John, a languid smile on her beautiful face.

"That was better than a three-week vacation," John replied, giving her a grateful kiss. "I feel like I'm floating on a cloud!"

They cuddled together for a couple of minutes, before Alyssa whispered in his ear, "We've only got a few hours... are you going to show me what this snow stuff is all about?"

"You're right," he said, carefully sitting upright when Dana and Rachel released him. "I'll grab a quick shower then we can head out."

The entire group decided to join him and it appeared they hadn't finished making a fuss of him. John was soaped down and massaged by eight sets of hands, which he decided was definitely the best way to get spotlessly clean, even if the raunchy, playful conversation had been anything but.

Everyone dressed quickly after that, bringing fur-lined winter gear with them to put on when they landed on Jericho's surface. The group took the express grav-tubes down to the Hangar, where Faye had warmed up the Raptor for them. Despite the fact that they were only planning to stay for a few hours, the girls were very excited by the prospect of having some fun in the snow. As they took their seats in the cockpit, John shared a grin with Calara as they listened to the Maliri twins trying to explain what snow was like to Alyssa and Dana.

John patted his lap and the Latina came to him immediately, sitting sideways across his thighs. "I'm really sorry we had to cut this short," he said as he wrapped her in his arms. "I know how much you were looking forward to it."

Calara shrugged and gave him a lovely smile. "We can always plan another trip. I'm just happy that we'll be able to drop by and see my mom. It'll be wonderful to see her again and I know she can't wait to see you too."

"I know your dad had to depart a few days ago, but will any of your brothers be there?" John asked, smiling as he thought about her three overprotective elder siblings.

She shook her head. "Unfortunately, none of them could make it this time. We'll all try and meet up for Christmas though."

"I know you weren't sure about Dylan and Eduardo, but what happened to Mateo?" John asked, frowning in confusion. "Wasn't he on extended leave after being captured by the Kintark?"

"He was, but a vacancy as Chief Navigator came up on the Damocles and he leapt at the chance!" she replied with a grin.

"Your father's ship?" John remarked, looking surprised. "I know you're all close to your Dad, but still..."

Calara laughed and rolled her eyes. "Do you remember a certain Lieutenant Campbell?"

"The blonde medical intern?" John replied, with a lop-sided smile. "Emily wasn't it?"

Alyssa nudged him with an elbow and said playfully, "No problem remembering the names of attractive blondes I see..."

"I've recently become quite a fan," he replied, flashing her a grin. He turned back to Calara and quickly added, "And sultry Latinas of course, but that goes without saying."

She laughed and looked around the crowded Raptor cockpit. "I'd say you've got quite a broad and extensive taste in girls."

"Very true," he admitted, stroking her athletic thigh. "Anyway, you were saying about Emily... I take it Mateo had a rather pleasant convalescence aboard your father's ship on the way home?"

"She's the real reason for his transfer," Calara confided in him. "But a position as Chief Navigator is a great opportunity for him too. Hopefully dad can keep Mateo out of trouble this time!"

"Sorry to interrupt," Faye said over her shoulder. "We'll be landing shortly, but I thought you might want to take a look at the view!"

Everyone stood and crowded around the cockpit canopy, looking out at the fields of pristine white snow on Jericho's northern hemisphere. There were snow-capped mountains all around them, but they were approaching an artificially levelled area, sparsely populated with luxurious ski chalets.

"Wow! That looks amazing!" Dana gasped, staring at the expanse of white that gleamed under the bright morning sunshine. "That's really just frozen water?!"

Rachel hugged the redhead from behind, putting her chin on her shoulder. "It looks so beautiful, doesn't it?"

"It really does," Dana agreed, sky-blue eyes wide with exhilaration as she took in the incredible sight.

"That's our chalet down there," John said, pointing to a huge wooden building with plenty of tall windows, giving it a light, airy appearance. "Heated indoor swimming pool, sauna, Jacuzzi, log fires..."

"That sounds wonderful..." Calara murmured, starting to regret their hastily planned departure. "Can you book the same place next time? I'd love to stay there."

"Definitely," he agreed, giving her an indulgent smile.

The building started to loom larger in their view out of the cockpit as Faye manoeuvred around to land on the pad at the rear of the chalet. "We'll be touching down in twenty seconds," she warned them as she began her textbook approach.

John picked up his warm winter coat and shrugged it over his shoulders before grabbing his gloves. "Let's go girls, I want to see you in your winter gear," he said with a flirtatious smile.

They laughed and followed his lead, putting on an array of warm winter clothing, with woollen scarves and hats, insulated gloves, and fur-trimmed coats. One of their shopping objectives on Terra had been to find outfits for this vacation and Alyssa had carefully selected their gear to keep them snug and warm, but also show off their spectacular figures as much as possible.

"How do I look?" Alyssa asked, twirling around for him, with a girlish smile on her beautiful face.

John grinned at her and said, "You look adorable, honey." He looked around at the others, nodding his approval. "You all look scrumptious."

They laughed with delight at his open admiration, then followed him down in the grav-tube to the forward loading area. John hit the button to lower the ramp and the moment the door cracked open, a chill whistling wind blew through the compartment.

"Fuck that's cold!" Dana squeaked, looking at Rachel in shock. "Is it meant to be like that?"

Rachel giggled at her lover and nodded enthusiastically. She looked out at the shimmering field of unbroken snow at the back of the chalet and blurted out, "Let's go and make a snowman!"

The ramp touched down and the girls bounded out of the Raptor, inhaling big lungfuls of the crisp mountain air.

"It's nearly as fresh as the air aboard the Invictus," Jade said, grinning at Dana as she ran out into the snow.

John watched from the top of the ramp as the girls disembarked, the Karron girls last to set foot on the crisp snow. Dana and Alyssa looked at each other in wide-eyed amazement, before gazing up at the sky in wonder as a light dusting of snowflakes fell upon them. They both stuck out their tongues to catch a snowflake and he smiled as he heard their giggles. The girls split up in pairs after that, laughter filling the air as they started making their snowmen. Alyssa and Calara beckoned him over, big grins on their faces as he strode down the ramp to join them.

"This snow stuff is wonderful!" Alyssa gasped, scooping up a big armful of it and throwing it into the air. She laughed in delight as it showered down around her, her face turned up in awe as she gaped at the snowflakes.

Calara had started rolling the first big ball of snow across the ground to make the base for their snowman. She stopped to watch the blonde playing and threw John a happy smile. "I forgot just how much fun it is, the first time you experience snow."

He was about to reply when a wet snowball hit him square in the face, splattering him in snow. The giggles revealed the source of the sneaky throw and he quickly scooped up his own snowball and hurled it back at Rachel. Dana doubled over with laughter, until she was hit by Calara's expertly hurled snowball. Irillith and Tashana turned their snowman into the foundation of a hastily constructed snow fort, the sisters showing their experience in this form of deadly winter combat. Once they were dug in, the twins began hurling a flurry of snowballs at Sakura and Jade, catching them by surprise.

Soon all snowman construction efforts were abandoned as the snowball fight quickly escalated, managing to include everyone. Sakura raced across the field of white to get her revenge and Irillith let out a very unladylike squeal as the Asian girl shoved a fistful of snow down her collar. Things quickly devolved from there, with outraged shrieks and carefree laughter echoing around the chalet.

John activated his psychic speed and helped build Calara and Alyssa a hasty snow fort, which somehow managed to attract the rest of the crew's ire. The three of them dived for cover, hiding from the deluge of snowballs hurled their way. He glanced at both girls, loving the excited sparkle in their bright eyes as they panted for breath and marvelling at how beautiful the pair of them looked.

"On three?" he asked with a huge grin on his face, scooping up a monstrous ball of snow.

Alyssa beamed a smile at him and waved her fingers, creating a stockpile of ammunition with the help of a dozen telekinetic hands.

Calara sculpted her own rather modest trio of snowballs, but they all knew her aim with the powdery missiles was deadly accurate.

"Go!" John shouted, springing to his feet with the snow boulder raised above his head.

He was immediately pelted by all the rest of the girls, and ended up dropping the snow boulder on his own head when he was hit in the face. Alyssa and Calara managed to avenge him though, their laughing targets hit by a fusillade of snowballs.

Eventually Rachel begged for an armistice and when the ceasefire was called, they all celebrated with hugs and kisses. John did his best to shake the snow from his coat, yelping as some of the frozen ice crystals slid down his back and between his cheeks. The girls proved rather unsympathetic to his plight, rolling around on the ground with laughter as he danced about.

When he finally joined them, Dana put her arms around him and gave him a lovely kiss. "Thank you for arranging this for us. I'll never forget my first snowball fight!"

"I'm just sorry we have to leave again so soon," John said, rubbing noses with her. "We'll definitely come back as soon as we can."

A quiet peace settled over the battlefield and snowmen were lovingly constructed, standing tall and rotund in the winter air. They marked a silent vigil over the snow angels that the girls made in the patches of unbroken snow. John watched his crew having fun with a smile of satisfaction on his face. Although their vacation had been cut tragically short, for a brief moment they'd all been able to forget their worries. He could see the tension they'd all been feeling had lifted from the girls and he would freely admit that he'd thoroughly enjoyed himself too.

His watch chimed, letting him know that it was time to depart and he reluctantly turned back towards the Raptor. The girls fell into step beside him, full of chatter about visiting Calara's mother, with Sakura and the Maliri twins particularly excited to meet the woman they had all heard so much about. John was looking forward to seeing Maria again too and he had an extra spring in his step as he strode up the loading ramp.

Alyssa flashed him a knowing smile, choosing not to comment, but her arched eyebrow spoke volumes.