Orbital Academy XV

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by MaddiroseX

Questions, comment, praise or critiques?
Please let me know at maddirosex@gmail.com!

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General Hunter wanted to heave his personal screen across the
room, but instead he simply heaved a sigh. Newcomers to the
station would often compliment him on how organized and easy it
was to request resources from Orbital Pivot; few considered just
how difficult it was to organize. As if in response to his
frustration, his screen pinged with an incoming message.
*Orbital Minera proposing higher quantity trade, more crysium for
more mining drones. ~Sara*
"Pull up import-export graph between Pivot and Minera," Hunter
sighed, leaning back as the screens at his desk followed his
command. He flicked to the next message.
*Guy came in with over three thousand luxury chips, won't say
where he got them, permission to do a background check? ~Timothy*
"Response: Yes."
*What's Pivot's policy on age of employment? The tests normally
weed out youngin's, but we've got a promising thirteen year old
who just rebuilt a Tanning-Spanly and wants to enlist…
~MkRathly*
Hunter stared at the message for a moment, reading it several
times without registering what it said.


It seemed so long ago that he had been a spry man, in his youth.
For a moment he let himself fondly remember the days when he
could leap to his feet at news of a crisis, or jog down the
hallways in an emergency. Nowadays he just felt *heavy* all the
time, less as if his muscles had atrophied and more as if each
piece of his body simply weighed far more than it used to. He
stared at the readouts in front of him, trying to pull his
attention away from the weight in his muscles and focus again on
his screens. The planetary run had been ill-advised. No matter
how he wrapped his mind around it, he couldn't see a
justification for Auspus to send ill-equipped rookies down to
attack the Terrans on their own.
*Was it some extreme method to train them up? A trial by fire?*
He shook his head, "Would make far more sense to send them to
guard a mining run first, get them acclimated to the surface
before sending them against Terrans." Errisa would've chided him
if she had heard him muttering to himself.
"It makes you sound less wise old man and more doddering senile
old man," she would tease. He still did it when he was alone, but
Hunter tried to avoid it when around others now. *Is he hoarding
some military secret?*
"No reason to hide military matters from another General. Unless
he plans on inter-orbital warfare." He pushed the thought to the
back of his mind with a shudder. The consequences of Auspus
planning an attack on another Orbital were too grim to consider
right now. Hunter looked up at the screen again.


"It's no good," he kept on muttering, saying the words aloud
helped him to focus on the issue, "there's no scenario in which
it makes sense." Discrepancies and oddities in General Auspus'
behavior, slowly piling onto each other. Whether the rookies were
telling the truth or not, it was clear that Auspus wasn't. The
only true question was *what* the true circumstances of Auspus'
position were.
"Every strange decision you've made has been one that only you
oversee," he muttered, "if the rookies hadn't made it here no
other Orbitals would get involved, so you didn't bother covering
your tracks-"
Yithmas' musings were cut short by a subtle red light on the desk
in front of him. He nodded once and flicked a switch, activating
the emergency communication channels between Orbital Academy and
Orbital Pivot.
"Good evening General Hunter," General Auspus' voice sounded as
young as he looked, but Hunter had learned long ago how unwise it
was to underestimating the man. He had seen political opponents
make that mistake, and without fail they were all currently
working in small-time positions on various Orbitals.
"General Auspus, I'm glad you pinged me," Hunter's voice was
gruff.
"I thought you might want to chat, my technicians tell me you've
been doing some searches through our operational records."
"The records are accessible to anyone with the right clearance
level. I didn't break any confidences to get them."
"Of course not my friend," Auspus replied smoothly, "I only
noticed and thought I might answer any questions you might have
directly, to save you the trouble of digging for them."
"Very considerate of you. Why did you send a squad of rookies
down to fight Terrans?" Hunter asked bluntly.


"Their Captain had been pushing for some time to get her team
more involved, to push them far beyond the typical learning curve
of a rookie. Since everyone on that squad tested several years
above their level, and after their excellent results in handling
an attacking exothermic Drake, I decided to trust Captain Appet's
judgement on their abilities." Hunter silently flicked a page of
stats to one of his screens. He had already noticed the mission
against the Drake, but the stats showed that perhaps sending them
against it hadn't been as ambitious as he had first thought.
"That does make sense," he sighed, "heaven knows we'll need more
flyers now that the Drakes are coming up faster."
"That was my thought as well, General."
Hunter frowned. He didn't have any more questions for Auspus, but
he wasn't satisfied. Even with his explanations, Auspus had lied
about how many rookies had escaped. If the rookies weren't
telling the truth, why would Auspus lie? Something just felt
*wrong* somehow, in a way Hunter couldn't quite put his finger
on.
"Oh," General Auspus said, as if he had just thought of
something, and Hunter's stomach tightened, "I thought I should
mention to you. When the rookie squad made their ill-fated
attempt at a rescue, two young ladies aboard Orbital Academy
assisted them, prepping the heavy cruisers and giving them
clearance. In doing so they've broken quite a few of our
Orbital's laws and restrictions, so as well intentioned as they
may have been, we're holding them pending disciplinary action."
"I'm sorry to hear that," Hunter replied cautiously. *What does
this have to do with me? What's your angle Auspus, why are you
telling me this?*
"Two engineers, a mechanic and an administrative, by the names of
Cynthia Cormorant and Samantha Barnes."


Hunter clenched his hands. He had no clue who Cythia was, but he
vaguely remembered Barnes' girl being shipped out to Academy.
More importantly, they were engineers.
"I was under the impression," he said quietly, forcing his voice
quiet, "that in matters of disciplinary action all judgements
were to be rendered on the proper Orbitals."
"I'm sorry?" Auspus had the audacity to pretend confusion, "what
do you mean?"
"The General of the Orbital makes the fucking decisions Auspus,"
Hunter barked, his attempt at cool failing spectacularly, "I
don't take judicial action on Minera miners in Pivot, you don't
take judicial action on engineers at Academy, that's basic orbit
code-"
"Is it really?" The man on the other end of the comm interrupted
smoothly, cutting in with a quiet steel that made his voice sound
like a weapon, "because I have a judicial matter on my hands
General, a matter of nine rookies whose insubordinate actions
placed their lives and valuable equipment at risk. They could've
been killed, they could've fallen into Terran hands, we could've
lost them in any number of ways, and yet they seem to be sitting
safely on Orbital Pivot right at this moment." It took Hunter
leaned forward in his chair, a snarl on his face. *So, we've
stopped pretending to be civil then? Good. I've had enough of
this fucking windabout.* It took him a few moments to realize
that another pretense had been dropped.
"I thought you said they hadn't visited the planet, General."
Hunter said quietly. "How exactly could they be captured by
Terrans?" The comm remained silent for a long moment, and Hunter
took a deep breath, leaning back in his chair. In a way it was a
relief. "Auspus, just tell me what you're doing. If there's some
kind of trouble, I can help you."
"Things are the way they are, General Hunter." There *was*
emotion in Auspus' voice now, it was trembling with it. "The
decision is in your hands at this point. The training Orbital has
judicial jurisdiction over, which means you send the
Academy-trained rookies back to Academy. You can't have it both
ways Hunter. Unless I have my rookies back, I will proceed with a
trial of your engineers on Orbital Academy. I don't need to tell
you what that will imply."
He didn't. Hunter knew what it would imply; by giving up control
over the two engineers, whatever their names were, he would be
letting his Orbital down. Even worse, he would be showing the
other Orbitals that Pivot could be walked all over.
"Why are you doing this, Auspus? What could possibly be worth
what you're expending on this?" Auspus cut the connection without
answering. Hunter sat in his seat, staring through his desk. The
weight in his muscles pressed down into him, and he heaved a sigh
as he began closing the screens he had open. His office slowly
darkened as the screens flicked off. He heaved himself to his
feet and trudged to the door, casting his eyes sadly around the
room as he left it.


***


The General's quarters were sparse compared to the lodgings of
the other officers. While he enjoyed the comforts of Orbital
Pivot, Hunter was raised on Minera, and he found the sprawling
multi-room quarters a bit too empty and open for his tastes.
Essira was happy no matter where they lived, and so he had a
single room in the very tip of the diamond-shaped orbital. When
he stepped out of the elevator the lights instantly dimmed to a
soothing low, and Hunter felt the weight on his muscles lessen
just a bit. Essira sat in the bed, reading a screen, but she set
it aside the second he entered.
"Good evening my hunter," she smiled, and the stress that had
been pressing at his temples all day lessened.
"It's late," he grunted, his face not showing a hint of the
relief he felt that she was still up and awake.
"I had a feeling you would need me to talk to you this evening."
"A feeling?" Hunter raised a sceptical eyebrow, and Essira smiled
as she took his hand and pulled him toward the bed.


"Call it woman's intuition. I intuitively felt that my husband
would need someone to hold him, and comfort him, and take the
stress of the day away."
"Woman's intuition hasn't been hacking into the Orbital's
database today has she?"
"Of course not! That would be against orbit law! I just had a
hunch that perhaps some rookies from Academy are seeking asylum,
and Auspus is trying to blackmail you into returning them."
Essira grinned mischieviously, and Hunter sat heavily down on the
bed.
*God that smile. I would die for that smile if I had to,* the
General drew his face into a hard reproving expression, "Fuck
orbit law Errisa, if you keep plugging into the database you'll
fry yourself."
"I can't change who I am, husband." Errisa kissed Hunter on the
top of his head before she knelt, pulling his heavy boots from
his feet, "Nor can you. You have to accept that I am what I am."
"Hard not to feel guilty about that when you make it so easy to
accept." Hunter sighed. Errisa took one of his feet in her hands,
massaging the knots in them as she listened.


"I just wish I knew why Auspus is pressing this issue. The
Terrans have somehow figured out how to send multiple Drakes in a
year, and we've got no idea when the next attack might be. What
could be so important that it's worth causing tension now of all
times?"
"Perhaps it's the timing that's the clue?" Errisa's hands moved
to his other foot, and the General growled appreciatively, "maybe
General Auspus is counting on everyone being distracted by the
threat of Terrans to seize just a little more control."
"Could be," the General agreed, "hell, maybe he sent the rookies
here on purpose, told them to gain my sympathy so he could press
this issue."
"No," Errisa shook her head definitely, "if you could hear the
way they talk about him you wouldn't think that. They absolutely
despise him."
"You watched the security feed from their rooms?" The General
sighed. The smile on her face answered the question for him, but
he didn't bother lecturing her.
"You can learn a lot watching twenty-one hours of footage over
three prison cells, it took me about five minutes" she said, "do
you want to know what I learned?"
"Someday you're going to see something you shouldn't," the
General's hard demeanor broke, and he chuckled.
"Someday? Ha," Errisa grinned, emboldened by Hunter laugh, "the
blond and brunette went at it the second they were alone, it was
kind of cute."


She grew serious, "They have something in their cell Hunter. A
crystal that they took from the Terrans."
"A weapon?" Hunter stood up, "why didn't you tell me?"
"It's not a weapon, sit back down." Errisa pulled him back into
the bed, "and it's not dangerous or a high priority, it will last
the night."
"How can you tell?" he trusted his wife, but Hunter couldn't
shake the feeling of unease that had been plaguing him ever since
he had been alerted about the heavy cruisers approaching Pivot.
"The rookies are just as in the dark about it as we are," Errisa
said reassuringly, "and like I said, they hate Auspus. They're on
our side."
The General sighed and leaned back into bed, and Errisa crawled
in next to him.
"What would I do without you?" Hunter kissed Errisa on the top of
her head, missing her short cropped black hair.
"Probably overwork yourself, have multiple heart attacks, and
die," Errisa said cheerfully, turning to kiss him under the neck.
He grinned and wrapped a large arm around her shoulders,
squeezing her tight to him. His other hand grabbed her chin and
he tipped her head up to kiss her on the lips.
"Ever the optimist," he rumbled. His hand wandered down her neck,
brushing against her warm skin down to the edge of her shirt. He
glanced down at her body appreciative.


"Mmm," Errisa murmured, "we definitely should." The General loved
that about her, that she could all but read his mind at this
point, answering questions he didn't even have to ask out loud.
"Can you adjust me a little first? I'm a little off-kilter
today."
"Of course." Hunter rose heavily to his feet, moving to retrieve
his tools as his wife stripped her shirt off and laid down on her
stomach on the bed. "Anything in particular bothering you?"
"Nothing too drastic." Errisa smiled at him reassuringly as he
returned to sit next to her on the bed. He began rubbing her
back, his hands calloused from years of mechanical work digging
in to press at the hard areas in her shoulderblades. "That feels
amazing."
"Alright, lets get this over with," The General took a deep
breath, bracing himself as he picked up his instrument. He
checked the small metal spike carefully, making sure there were
no pieces of dirt or fuzz on the delicate sharp tip. *Someday
I'll be able to do this without worrying*
"You'll be alright Hunter," Errisa murmured reassuringly, as if
she read his mind again, "I'm not as fragile as you seem to think
I am."
"I'm allowed to be worried when I'm about to perform surgery on
my wife," Hunter growled.
"Surgery? You're so dramatic," Errisa laughed. The thin seam
along her spine glowed, then separated, and the panels that made
up her back silently slid apart. Taking another breath, the
General carefully reached forward and began his work.


"What am I adjusting?" He asked, the spike in his hand hovering
as he waited.
"I've got a twitch in my leg, so maybe my balance servo?"
"Not leg control?" The General reached inside Errisa, carefully
pushing a bundle of thin wires to one side so he could see the
connections to her balance motherboard.
"No, I'm pretty sure-"
"Ah, there it is," Hunter said, carefully adjusting a wire that
had come loose, "you were right, it was in the balance cluster."
"It's almost as if I know myself," Errisa teased.
"Next?"
"I think my emotional core is a bit off. I'm not normally so
rebellious or snarky."
"Yes you are." Hunter grinned.
"A little less green core, a little more purple? Please?" The
General complied, adjusting small sliders along the sphere that
controlled Errisa's different cores.
"I can move your worry down a bit if you like."
"Worry is good to have. Keeps me on my toes," Errisa shook her
head, "I don't want to be the type to lounge around all day, not
caring what's happening to the people around me."
"What about horniness? Should I increase that a bit?"
"No!" Hunter grinned at his wife's exclamation, "god no Hunter, I
already have to masturbate once or twice a week when you've got
to much work to come take care of me."
"Alright then. Anything else?"
"I think that'll do Hunter. Unless..." the General's face grew
somber; he knew what she was about to ask, "...unless you'd like
to open the bottleneck? Let me grow to my full potential?"


Hunter leaned back with a sigh, and ran a weary hand through his
buzz-cut hair. Errisa turned, careful to not jostle any of the
exposed wires coming out of her back.
"I'm sorry." She said quietly, "I shouldn't have asked that."
"It's been awhile since you've asked," Hunter's voice was just as
soft as hers. *It always comes down to this.* "I had hoped..."
"I know. I know Hunter, I'm sorry. I shouldn't ask, it's not fair
to you to..." Errisa looked close to tears, and Hunter winced at
the look on her face.
"Let's get you sealed back up." He said roughly, and Errisa
turned back to the bed. They sat in silence for long minutes as
General Hunter carefully sealed the wires inside his wife into
neat bundles of cable, and strapped them to the motherboards that
kept her running. He had to pause for a moment to angrily brush
his watering eye before screwing the fasteners.
"You know I love you, right?" Errisa said it so quietly that
Hunter could barely hear.
"I know." It came out more gruffly than he intended.
"Just because my mind makes me push...it doesn't mean I don't
love you."
"I know it."
"If I could make myself stop trying, I would." Hunter didn't
repeat it a third time, he simply slid her back panels back into
place, resuming the shoulder rub he had given her to begin with.
*It's not her fault,* he reminded himself, angrily, *you knew
about this when you married her. She'll never stop doing what she
can to get the bottlenecks removed.* As if whispered in his ear,
the doubt followed his thoughts. *And what better way for a
sentient AI to escape her restrictions, than to convince an old
fool the she loves him, knowing that someday he won't be able to
say no to her?*


"I know what you're thinking, when you look at me like that,"
Errisa said sadly, startling Hunter out of his musing.
"I'm thinking that I love you," he said, gruff and terse.
"You're thinking that you love me too much," she whispered.
General Hunter opened his mouth to say something reassuring, but
the weight and weariness of the day seemed to press against him,
and all he could do was close his eyes and lean back against the
pillow. He felt Errisa settle in next to him, nuzzling against
his stubbly chin and breathing a sigh.
"It must be hard, being you." She murmured, stroking his chest.
"Politics, lies, backstabbing. Dealing with innocent rookies and
crazy robot wives."
"Wives, plural?" The General chuckled, "are there more of you
hiding around here somewhere? Because I think that might kill
me." Errisa giggled, and Hunter's heart jumped in his chest.
"There's only one Errisa, darling Hunter," she said, "and she
belongs to you."
"Nonsense." the General grumbled. His eyes still closed, he
groped for her hand, taking it in his large paw and squeezing
gently, "you're your own woman through and through."
"I'm yours," Errisa insisted, "all of me, every inch. This is
yours," She moved his hand and brushed it down the side of her
face, "and these are yours," she moved his hand to her naked
breast, squeezing his fingers to make him fondle her, "and
especially this." Errisa pulled his hand down across her stomach,
until it nestled between her legs. Hunter growled appreciatively,
rubbing two fingers back and forth across the material of her
pants with a gentle motion.


"You wanted to relax, earlier, Hunter," Errisa whispered, hooking
a thumb over the waistband of her pants and stretching them down
a bit. Hunter's thumb brushed through her soft pubic hair, and he
nodded his head. He came to the same conclusion he always did in
these moments. If Errisa's love for him was faked, it was faked
too well to question. If it was a farce, it was too wonderful a
farce not to enjoy. He kept brushing his thumb back and forth,
his fingernail grazing skin that felt soft and real as any human
woman's. Errisa let him, not doing anything to hasten him, simply
keeping her head resting on his chest, her own chest rising and
falling rhythmically.
"Tell me about your troubles," Errisa said quietly, and Hunter
considered for a moment.
"He's lying Errisa. Auspus is lying, and I don't know what to do
about it."
"You do," his wife said gently. Hunter didn't respond, searching
his thoughts as he ran his fingers in small circles over her
mound.
He tugged very lightly at the tufts of hair between her legs,
thinking on all sides of the subject and considering before he
spoke.
"I don't want to get the High General involved in this," he said
finally, "Orbital Pivot is my domain, and every time the High
General gets involved in Orbital affairs it ends up the worse for
them."
"That wasn't the case the last time, was it?" Errisa's fingers
worked at the sealing clasp on his pants as she spoke, her words
a little breathy as Hunter gently tugged at her pubic hair. "The
last time the High General got involved in Pivot, he made you the
General. That was good, wasn't it?"
"Was it though?" Hunter sighed as his wife slid the heavy
material of his pants down his legs, freeing his member to harden
beneath her hand. She simply held his length, possessively but
still, allowing him to finish his thought. "General Yathmus was
doing a fine job running Pivot, everyone in the Orbital was
thriving..."
"Besides the slaves Yathmus was selling," Errisa interrupted,
stroking her hand up and down once, slowly.
"Yathmus needed to be removed, I'm not arguing that, but getting
rid of his whole power structure? Cutting off the head of the
Orbital and sticking some young-gun Captain in their place? Sure
it worked out, but I'm still not convinced it was the right thing
to do, even if it put me here." Hunter slid his hand further
down, and his wife spread her legs accommodatingly.


"Who knows if the High General will even get involved?" Errisa
sighed as Hunter brushed his fingertips between her legs, his
hands moving automatically as his brow furrowed in thought.
"Auspus is making this an issue, something far more than it
should be. He's not one to state anything outright, but I think
he's hinting at a declaration of war."
"Then prepare for the worst Hunter. What would you do if he was
that desperate to get his rookies back?"
Hunter slid a finger between her lips, slowly moving it up and
down and enjoying the scent of her sex in the room. She was
matching his pace, her fingers gently brushing back and forth
over the top of his cock. It was sensual and utterly relaxing,
and the two of them lay in silence for several minutes,
considering her question.
"I can't let him bully me," General Hunter finally said. "If I
give way on this issue at the threat of war, then Auspus will
take whatever he wants from me, whenever he wants it, on threat
of war. Today he wants his rookies back, without telling me what
they've actually done or why he wants them. Who knows what comes
tomorrow? Maybe he doesn't feel like sending us the Pilots we
need. Maybe he demands Pivot send more engineers or ships. I
can't set this precedent, it's too dangerous."
"So you've decided?" Errisa asked.
"I've decided. Either he tells me why he wants the rookies, and
gives me time to think on it, or he can fuck off. And if he
decides to punish Pivot-trained scrubs for this standoff between
us," Hunter frowned, "then I suppose we'll have to press back.
That's my decision. I know what to do."


"Good," Errisa said in a satisfied voice, "because I have been
thoroughly teased enough." Hunter grinned as his wife sat up and
threw a long leg over him, straddling him at the waist. Her slick
sex was warm against his cock, and now that he was satisfied with
his plans he could dedicate his full attention to the feeling. He
lifted a rough hand and ran his fingers through her short black
hair, and she smiled in response, nuzzling her cheek against it.
Hunter didn't have to move at all as Errisa reached down,
stroking him a few more times as she positioned it at her
opening, and then gently pressed down, taking him inside of her
to the hilt. Hunter sighed at the feeling as she leaned down,
pressing her forehead against his and giving him a peck on the
lips.
"You're the best thing that has ever happened to me," he
murmured, kissing her again as his arms wrapped around her to
crush her tight against him. Errisa held him as well, rocking her
hips to move him around inside her rather than thrust in and out.
"You always get so sentimental when you're in me," she smiled.
"Are you ready?"
"Not yet," Hunter rubbed her back, working at her muscles even as
she slowly moved her hips back and forth, "I want to lay like
this for a while longer." Errisa complied, resting on him with a
sigh and kissing the side of his neck.
"And I'm always sentimental," he grinned, and was rewarded with
her chuckle in his ear. Feeling her tongue flick against his
earlobe, Hunter closed his eyes, his hands moving up and down her
back, occasionally pausing to squeeze her butt.
"Oh always," his wife giggled into his ear, "it's embarrassing
really, how you're always spilling your emotions all over the
place, you mushy fool." Hunter chuckled, but her voice low in his
ear was making him harden even further inside of her.
"Now I'm ready," he growled, and Errisa sat up, looking down at
him with lusty affection.
"About time," she smiled, and then came.


Hunter felt her body tremble, her pussy quivering around him. He
grabbed her by the hips and thrust, hard, enjoying the feeling.
She was so wet that he penetrated her without pause even despite
her cunt's tightness, and the walls of her sex squeezed and
clamped on his cock with each deep thrust. Errisa came down from
her orgasm slowly, but she moved her hips to take him deeper.
"More," he breathed, and his wife smiled down at him and came
again.
"Oh, Hunter," she breathed, and his hips left the bed as he tried
to push into her even harder. Her second orgasm was no less
intense than the first, her sex twitching against him, her face
flushed, and she moaned every time he pulled away from her. She
came the third time without being asked, her sighs of pleasure
even louder as she leaned over him. Her breasts hung inches away
from Hunter's face, and they bounced appealingly each time he
lifted to slam his cock into her body. Every stress of the day
was gone from Hunter's mind, blown away by the smells of sweat
and sex, by the sounds of Errisa's moans and his cock slamming
into her wet pussy, and the feeling of her tight walls around his
entire length. He came hard, his abs shaking as he pulled her
down onto him. Errisa pushed down on him, knowing exactly what to
do to make him cum harder and reading his pulse and breathing
rate to know exactly when.
"Oh my god Hunter, fill me with your cum," she breathed, a split
second before he exploded inside her. His wife had never said
those words before, but somehow she knew how to hit every kink
Hunter had, sometimes before he even knew them himself. She met
his eyes as he came, her fingers stroking his chest as he bucked
and jerked, his mind almost blanking out at the pleasure as he
filled her.
Errisa moved slowly and deliberately, letting his limp member
slip out of her slowly before she lay on her back next to him.
Hunter panted, trying to catch his breath as he stroked her pubic
hair again, now matted with juices and sweat. His wife was
smiling, not a single drop of sweat on her forehead and her
breath coming out as even and measured as ever.
"Your turn," Hunter grinned, propping himself up on an elbow.
"But I already came, Hunter," Errisa raised her eyebrows
innocently, "three times. Didn't you feel me?"
"Your turn for real," Hunter reached up and tugged gently on her
earlobe, and Errisa gasped.
"If you like," she said uncertainly, but Hunter was already
leaning over her, running his fingers down the sides of her neck.


It had taken them a long time to reach this point in their
relationship, one where he could give his wife real orgasms
rather than the simulated ones she could so effortlessly control
with her software. Hunter had learned his wife's body clumsily
and with much trial and error, and Errisa had needed quite some
time before she could let go of her embarrassment and
awkwardness. Hunter continued sliding a finger up and down her
neck, making careful note of his pace and counting off the
seconds in his head.
"You're getting better at that," Errisa whispered, and Hunter
noted with satisfaction that he had raised goosebumps on her
skin. Continuing his slow onslaught on her neck, Hunter began
rubbing very small circles into her forehead with another finger.
It helped to picture what was going on beneath her skin as he did
so, the shoots of sensation in her neck crossing at just the
right time with the sensors in her head, creating a delicate
bouquet of pleasure, real pleasure, in Errisa's brain. He pressed
his fingers harder, digging them into her neck and forehead in a
way that would be painful and uncomfortable to a human. Errisa's
pain circuits in those two specific areas, both firing at the
same time, would hit her motherboard at the same instant, locking
up the receptors and suddenly removing every physical perception
from her but pleasure for a few moments.
"Mmm, right there," Errisa's voice was steady, but she squirmed
on the bed, her fingers digging into the sheets. Hunter smiled in
spite of himself. *Such human reactions at times.*
His brow furrowed as he tried to get the timing just right. He
paused and began counting, trying not to get distracted by his
wife's involuntary whimper of pleasure. Errisa stayed still so
that he could count without distraction, trying to base his count
on her steady breaths rather than his erratic ones. *...and
eight, and nine, and ten.* As close to the turn of the second as
he could manage, Hunter pressed his thumb into Errisa's throat,
hard enough that if she were human he would worry about causing
irreparable damage. If he had timed it right, the blast of pain
would hit her motherboard just as the receptors reset,
overloading it and transferring the sensation to backup panels; a
split second of pain followed by a rush of more pleasure than a
human being was physically capable of feeling.


Errisa's back arched, her fingers clawed at the sheets. Hunter
sat back, satisfied, watching his wife having her own version of
an orgasm. Her simulation of a human cumming was delightful in
its own way, but he enjoyed this more, knowing that this type of
orgasm was more "real" to her than anything they had done a few
moments ago. She screamed in pleasure, a long loud moan that was
beautiful and genuine, and then her body collapsed to the bed as
it was overloaded, unable to do anything but enjoy the bursts of
pleasure that were running through every inch of her. Her eyes
went white as the high-definition displays in them blanked out,
unable to handle their normal tasks and the pleasure at the same
time. For a few moments she lay completely still, the only
movement her lips as she whispered a single word.
"Hunter."
The orgasm lasted less than a minute before Errisa blinked and
sighed. Hunter smiled when she looked over at him, adoration on
her face.
"Welcome back to the land of the living," he joked.
"Don't tease me about that," Errisa said weakly, "you know I'm
embarrassed by it."
"No reason to be embarrassed about your husband giving you an
orgasm," Hunter replied gruffly, laying next to her.
"There is when you cum as strangely as I do," Errisa snuggled in
next to him. Hunter decided not to argue with her, instead making
a gesture in the air that the room would identify. The lights
dimmed out, and the two of them lay in the darkness together. He
stared at the ceiling for long minutes, until a small hiss
indicated that his wife had fallen asleep, the tiny panel behind
her ear unsealing and allowing access. After pulling up his pants
and locating his shirt in a crumpled ball at the foot of the bed,
Hunter rose. A quick search beneath the bed yielded the cord that
came up through the floor, linked directly to the power core of
Orbital Pivot, and he plugged it into the panel behind Errisa's
ear before he made his way back to the elevator. As he waited for
it to arrive, he gave one last longing glance behind him at his
naked wife, sprawled on the bed, her bare chest rising and
falling with her deep breaths. He shook his head once as the
elevator door opened, and stepped inside. *Still work to be
done.*


His screen was flashing to indicate new messages, of course.
Hunter allowed himself the momentary luxury of settling into his
seat before he flipped through them.
*We have a custom ship request from Basura, shall we put it
through? ~Aaron*
"Respond: We'll have to put some designers on the job. I'll grab
a list and talk to them in the morning." The computer filled out
an appropriate response as he flicked to the next message.
*Minera lost a few mining drones on the surface. Careless miners,
not Terrans, but they aren't due for a resupply for a few months.
~Sara*
"Respond: We owe General Buramis a favor, go ahead and send him a
handful."
The next several messages made him lean up in his chair, his brow
furrowed. They were from several different sources; security had
received alerts to prepare for an escort, hangar bay had gotten
scheduling requests and refueling alerts. The messages built a
complete picture of what was happening, so Hunter didn't even
need to read the last message, marked official and with high
priority, to know what it said. He pulled it up anyway, a frown
building on his face at the terse message.
*Coming to Pivot tomorrow, arriving at 1300. Bringing the
engineers, and a prison ship for the returning rookies. ~Auspus*