Founders

54: Thursday July 23, 2043 0900 hours CST: Khushi, My Everything

After showering together and dressing, Colleen and Zach were hungry. They gravitated to the kitchen in search of breakfast. Everybody was gathered there, and Aanya was sobbing. Berte was hugging her tightly, tears streaming down her face as well. "She got her period this morning," Colby said to Colleen softly.

"Breeding Bitches will take you out," encouraged Michaela. "You can drink! At least for brief time. Do not fret little one. We are big girls and know chance is not one hundred percent, even for Sack. He got 66 percent. Will just take little tiny bit extra time is all. Now is instead time for many drinks!"

"You're right," said Aanya, wiping her tears. "But I was so sure! I felt her inside me."

"Is coming," Michaela soothed.

Enthusiastic plans were made to take Aanya out on the town that evening. Michaela became the master of ceremonies since she could drink alcohol along with Aanya. Anming could drink too, and reluctantly agreed to join them for a round or two. All the other women were either already pregnant or actively being bred. They would join this core group but only eat a few marijuana wafers.

Zach left for work, a naked Anming and Colette in tow. The women hid under the picnic blankets to get onto the base undetected. They drove to Zach's office and went in the back door of the clinic. Colette dressed in the skirt and blouse she'd left there. She went off to meet Alexis in the visualization lab. Anming stayed with Zach in his office.

Zach and Anming worked happily together side by side for a few hours. He noticed that she glanced at the window whenever an airman walked by. These passerby were only a yard away from looking in and seeing her nakedness revealed. Zach checked her and found that she was dripping wet and her mind was racing. It seemed that it was time to escalate matters. He could see whether it excited her more or whether it was too much and became frightening. It would be easy to regulate and stop. His office had a large window facing a fenced-in outdoor garden. It provided some much needed greenery to all the offices along one side of the building. "Anming, I'm going to call a young airmen I know, swear him to secrecy, and invite him to come through the garden gate to my back window."

Anming looked at Zach levelly. Her gaze didn't falter. In fact, he sensed excitement in her demeanor. "Yes, my husband," she said, noncommittally. Her chin trembled. She was frightened.

He made the call. "Hey, Declan. Can you take a break? Half an hour should be plenty. I have something I know you'll enjoy seeing. You know the kind of sensitive matters I'm involved in? It needs to stay between us. Thank you. Just you, for now. Yes. No, it's not safe for work. Okay, okay. Here's what I want you to do." He told Declan how to get into the back garden to his window.

Ten minutes later, Declan showed up at Zach's back window. He was quite a handsome young man. He was a smidgen below six feet with brown crew cut hair and a pleasant smile. He beamed at the sight of Anming's naked back as she tapped innocently at her laptop. Zach knew him to be twenty one, but he looked younger. The garden was shady, so Declan could already see Anming's naked body right through Zach's window. "Anming, my friend Declan is here. Would you turn around and face the back window?"

Anming turned around. Upon seeing Declan, her eyes dropped in shyness. She wrenched them back up to meet the young man's gaze. "Is he handsome?" Zach asked her.

"Yes, my husband," said Anming.

"You drive all men wild with desire," said Zach.

"Don't torture me, my husband," Anming pouted. "A handsome young man like this one has much younger, prettier, paler women who would come running at his call. Furthermore, if he were close enough to see my scars, he would run away in horror."

"Let's find out," said Zach. He rang up Declan and put him on speaker. "Hi Declan."

"She's magnificent!" Declan breathed. Anming smiled uncontrollably. Her eyes fluttered with the effort of not turning away with shyness.

"You're not just saying that to be polite, are you?" asked Zach.

"Absolutely not, man! She's stunning, exotic! Oh look, she's shy," Declan said.

"Yeah," said Zach. "She thinks she's ugly. Can you believe it?"

"That's tragic," said Declan. Anming blushed, which showed up as a slight darkening of her face. "Who is she?"

"This is where it really needs to stay between us," said Zach.

"I swear," said Declan.

"You're a newlywed, right?" asked Zach.

"Yes, six months," said Declan.

"And young, too, as I recall," said Zach.

"Yes, she's in junior college. Nineteen," said Declan.

"How does this woman compare in looks?" asked Zach.

"Luna is very pretty, but this woman here is like a movie star!" said Declan. "It really isn't a fair comparison."

"She's not just anybody with knockout good looks. She's also arguably the most brilliant person who has ever lived. And she's a Nobel Prize winner," said Zach.

"This is Anming Tang??" said Declan incredulously. "I guess I really haven't looked closely at the images of her. I'm in awe. Can you hear me... um... Professor Tang?"

"You can call her Anming," said Zach.

"Can you hear me, Anming?" asked Declan.

"Yes, young man," said Anming.

"You're beautiful," Declan gushed.

Anming smiled but said nothing. She was embarrassed and trying to hold it together. She turned to Zach and said, "This is depraved. In my country, we would all be found out and spend ten years in prison for this, or worse."

"Do you want to stop?" asked Zach. Anming regarded him levelly and said nothing.

"Stand up, sweetheart," said Zach. "Let the young man really see you." Anming stood up. At first, her arms were clenched over her breasts, but slowly she let them drop to her sides.

"Wow," said Declan encouragingly.

"Turn around slowly, darling," said Zach. Anming turned around slowly as instructed, slowly around and around. He gently spanked her ass so that Declan could see how it was the perfect composition of muscle and pulchritude.

"You astronauts really stay in shape," Declan commented.

"If you can't keep up the exercise regimen, you don't stay in the program," Zach said. "Darling, would you sit down again? Great. Now roll right up to the glass so that Declan can see you nice and close." Haltingly, Anming rolled her chair up to the back window. Zach came over and leaned against the window himself so he could see her face for this next part. "Okay, spread your legs for the young man." She hesitated, then without a word, did as Zach asked. "Knees right on the glass." She rolled her chair closer to the window so her knees touched the glass with her legs spread wide. The sunlight filtered through the leaves of the back garden onto her skin, dappling it. Cream was brimming on the slit of her closed vulva. "Now spread your labia." She hesitated again, but then reached down with both hands and complied. Her inner labia smacked open juicily as she parted them. She was dripping, glistening wet.

"Huh," said Declan. "You weren't kidding about not safe for work. This is... wow."

"We wouldn't mind if you rubbed one out. I'm sure she'd be very excited by watching you jerk off to her," said Zach.

"It doesn't feel right," said Declan. "I'm a married man."

"Darling, start masturbating yourself. Give yourself an orgasm looking at this nice young man. Look at him looking so reverently at your beauty. You want to give him a treat, don't you?" Anming hesitated for maybe twenty seconds. She closed her eyes. This gave her the courage to start rubbing around her slippery clitoris in slow circles. She dipped down to her urethra then back up again to slowly circle her clitoris. She was already extremely excited. Her breath quickened rapidly as her fingers worked.

"Wow," said Declan. "Well, I give up." With that, he unzipped and pulled out his penis, already raging hard, and started jacking it, staring intensely at Anming masturbating. He looked up at her face and down at her vulva, back and forth.

Anming continued, her hips beginning to tense and release, tense and release. "Open your eyes and watch him. Watch him getting off on your beauty." She wrenched her eyes open. They focused on Declan's cock, throbbing as he jacked it. His hips were tensing. He was getting close.

Anming looked up into Declan's face. Overwhelmed, she looked back down at his cock. Her hips pumped and shook. Zach held his phone next to Anming. Declan had kept his phone pressed to his ear. He could hear her ragged breathing now. She growled, "Grrrrrr! EEP!" She thrashed and climaxed staring at Declan's cock.

"Wow, did she just-" asked Declan.

"Yep," said Zach.

"Grrrrrr! EEP!" Anming climaxed again.

"Oh, wow, oh..." said Declan, jacking harder.

Anming looked up into Declan's face with an intense, fully erotic gaze, "Grrrrrr! EEP!"

"Oh... OH!" said Declan. His ejaculate spattered forcefully onto the window glass between them, once, twice. Anming, feeling some kind of release from seeing Declan ejaculate and finish, slowed down and stopped with relief. They were looking away from each other, breathing. Declan said, "I need to think about this. Don't worry, I can keep a secret. I've got to go." He gave Anming a long, intense, thirsty look.

"Thanks for coming," said Zach. "Don't bother cleaning up. We'll get it." Declan quickly arranged himself and left.

Hiding her under the picnic blanket, Zach took Anming into the side yard. They stopped in front of his window where Declan had ejaculated. He had her lick Declan's semen off the window and window pane onto which it had dribbled. He knew she wanted to.

Soon after, Zach's alarm went off. It was time to inseminate Charisse. He took off Anming's leather collar and leash. She put on a not-entirely-sheer summer dress. It was perfect attire for a civilian on base considering the hot weather. The dress was unremarkable if she had been wearing underwear, but she was not. Her dark nipples and tribble muff were distinct if the dress fell just right. They left to visit Charisse and Aanya at the greenhouse. There was a stiff headwind all the way to the greenhouse. A dozen airmen got a sweet masturbatory fantasy for that evening. Anming tried to ignore it, but her face stayed a little dark with blushing. She did not look at the airmen as they passed her, their eyes raking her body.

Zach and Anming found Charisse and Aanya in front of a large glass enclosure. Inside, it looked like the Martian desert, except the ground was discolored, dirty looking. There was a bit of junk near some rocks in the middle of the enclosure. It looked like a bit of discarded food, a green grape.

"This is the culmination of all our work. It actually works, Zach!" said Charisse. "Aanya, I forgive you all your crazy, panicky behavior now. You are a magician!"

"You're right to question my workaholic tendencies," said Aanya, staring at the enclosure. "We accomplished this in the bosom of your serene optimism. I'll never forget that."

"Are we looking at what I think we're looking at?" asked Anming.

"This is the first plant biome that is surviving, growing, and reproducing in Martian environmental conditions. Is that what you were guessing?" said Charisse.

"Radiation?" asked Zach with alarm.

"No, not radiation," clarified Aanya. "Just pressure, temperature, humidity, and atmospheric composition. We're not there in terms of radiation, yet."

Now Zach knew why the glass was so thick. This was a pressure chamber. It was nearly a vaccuum in there. "So that little green grape in there is a plant?"

"Yes!" said Aanya, excitedly, "Charisse's plant!"

"And everything else is Aanya's," Charisse quickly added.

"Everything else?" asked Zach.

"Yes," said Charisse. "You see the discoloration? That's lichen, and mold, and many different strains of bacteria. It takes a very complex biome for macroscopic plant life to survive successfully. My little cactus wouldn't survive for even a day without Aanya's microorganisms, molds, and so forth."

"Any concerns about reverse contamination?" asked Anming.

"All this life is genetically engineered from the ground up. It's far too simple to compete with Earth life, especially under Earth conditions. It simply wouldn't survive," explained Aanya. "Plus, we engineered it to be safe. The organisms are as safe as any other FDA-approved GMO."

"How are you going to keep it from being relentlessly bashed to pieces by the radiation pouring down on Mars?" asked Zach.

"Interesting," said Charisse. "That's a technique Aanya developed that formed the basis for my own research and development. Aanya is the original queen of this whole thing."

"Oh, you're too kind," said Aanya.

"No, it's true! I discovered her work when I was a grad student. I've worked on and off with her over the years-"

"Radiation?" prompted Zach.

Charisse explained, "These organisms are similar, from the single cell life all the way up to my tough little cactus. All of them have special characteristics in their DNA and cell structure to make them highly radiation-hardened. First of all, each chromosome contains many multiple copies of its entire genetic information. CRISPR segments produced by the cell constantly check copies of this genetic information and destroy corrupted copies."

"Unfortunately, many items in this batch are not radiation hardened enough," groaned Aanya.

"Is there a way to fix it?" asked Anming.

"Yes, Anming," said Charisse, "Nice dress, by the way! Very scenic."

"Thank you," said Anming, cringing a little, then standing up straight again and looking at Charisse levelly.

"Do you have to recite it?" asked Zach.

"I don't believe so, my husband-"

"Recite it, loud and clear, please," insisted Zach. Charisse and Aanya regarded Anming with fascination.

Anming recited her pledge, first softly and with embarrassment, but with increasing confidence and forcefulness to the two genius botanists. "I am my husband's favored pet. I am beautiful beyond imagining." She slipped her summer dress off over her head. "Displaying my nude body proudly, I am desired by all men. I own and know my own exquisite mind and power of choice. Only one man owns my exquisite self. Zachary owns my exquisite body. Zachary owns all my pleasurable holes and erogenous zones. Zachary owns my soul. Zachary owns my spirit. I am content in my exquisite perfection."

"That's wonderful, Anming. Very inspiring," said Charisse.

"I want to point out that she explicitly retains her power to think for herself and choose this," said Zach.

"I noticed that," said Charisse.

"There's something delicious about what you said," said Aanya. "It's like you're being raped all the time!"

Anming looked uncomfortable. "I don't think you really mean that," she said to Aanya.

"Oh no!" said Aanya, remembering Anming's brutal rape. She didn't know the gang rape part, but she knew enough. "Not rape-rape! I mean... what do I mean?" She considered a moment. "What I mean is, you don't know this, Anming, but I'm also a victim of rape. It was not physically violent like your rape. I suppressed it. I literally didn't even realize it was rape until Zach pointed it out to me. I was so deluded. At university, my academic advisor required me to perform sexual favors for him. I needed him to get a class I needed to graduate on time. Both times, he bent me over his desk and penetrated me vaginally with his penis. Both times, I was dry and unprepared. The first time, I bled quite a bit from my hymen being ruptured. It hurt very badly. The second time, it hurt worse because I was so terrified that it hurt the previous time. I forced myself to do it anyway, which was the very worst part."

"After that, I was done with sex. Except that lately I had been determined to grit my teeth again to have a child. Zach opened my eyes to a whole world of love and pleasure, to what sex really is. But I was so frightened. I'm still frightened. To push away my terror, I want everything completely different from the way it was those times. Instead of that sedate, dry, passionless, aloof act, I crave violent intimate passion. Instead of controlling myself physically to endure like the original rape, I want to be completely and passionately controlled. I don't want sedate. I want my hair pulled. I want to be choked. So you see, when I say 'rape' now, I don't mean rape-rape, or anything like what you suffered. I can't even imagine what you suffered. My fantasy is exactly the opposite of what I forced myself to endure in order to graduate on time."

"Could you find a different word for it?" asked Anming. "What about saying 'passion'?"

"No, that doesn't work," said Aanya. "It's a whole fantasy I have, not just passion. I can let go of myself instead of forcing myself. I can be swept up in passionate, intimate, dirty, with all the fluids, violent action. I guess I really can't describe it. There isn't a word."

"No, no, you're communicating something," said Anming. "I understand that the pledges I make are like the letting go that you do. I think it's the same. I fall and our husband catches me."

"Exactly," said Aanya.

Charisse said, "Listening to you two, I sort of understand. But this whole thing disturbs me. I've made mistakes in my sexual partners from time to time. I've been pressured, stalked, and even beaten by jealous, violent men in the past. The thought of me giving up any tiny shred of my autonomy to anybody is unsettling. Even a man as earnest as Zach, forget it. That thing you just recited, Anming? It gives me the heebee-jeebees, even though I understand you could change your mind at any moment. It still gives me the heebee-jeebees."

"Zach is trying to teach me to see myself as he sees me," said Anming. "I still think I'm an ugly sow, oh-oh."

"I'm right here!" said Zach. "Recite it."

Anming recited her pledge again.

Charisse said, "Well, before I get you into any more trouble, Anming, shall we do what you came for, Zach?" She grabbed and kissed him passionately. He tugged her dress up. She led him into the other room, the one with the dirt pile. Anming and Aanya continued to chat amicably. As the two women chatted, they chuckled together from time to time. It sounded like a whole choir practice was going on next door.

Half an hour later, the lovers emerged. Charisse was naked, covered in dirt, and beaming from ear to ear. Zach staggered in, looking like he'd just run ten wind sprints, covered in dirt, with a shy expression. "We're going to go take showers," said Charisse cheerily. "Oh my flower is so happy." She kissed him. "So very pollinated." They left arm-in-arm to go use the greenhouse's emergency shower.

Khushi came to meet them at the greenhouse. Anming stayed with the two brilliant botanists. She declared that working on her laptop naked among all the greenery was very inspiring. With the delicate work and the large pressure chamber, the greenhouse was a high security area. Nobody could just saunter in to find Anming naked. That would have to wait for other settings, thought Zach hopefully.

Zach and Khushi met Pete Frankel at the press conference room. They sat backstage together for an hour before the press conference. Doctor Frankel had no advice regarding how to handle the reporters that would be out there this time. They were likely to be asked anything. Both scientists worked on their laptops. Zach caught up on his never-ending pile of medical journals. Khushi looked in on a number of ASIC simulations she was running on her compute cluster.

They walked out on stage to some applause from the press corps. A NASA dignitary was there to say a few words, as always. He was the associate executive director of something, and he thanked everybody, especially thanking everybody who thanked everybody last time.