Spider Bight

Chapter Ten

They rode a shuttle down to the surface. The two-woman Moran flight crew only addressed Emi and paid no heed to Aaron, Caph, or Ford, as if the men were little more than cargo.

Emi didn’t know if it irritated her or her men more.

For their part, the men hadn’t enjoyed their walk through the space station to the shuttle port. The intense, appraising looks from Moran females and males alike disconcerted all of them. Emi felt their discomfort as keenly as her own.

A Moran woman with reddish blonde hair met them at the shuttle port greeting center upon their arrival. “Captain Doctor Hypatia? I am Twren Klay’Baltin, but you may call me Baltin. I am the assistant to Mauri Dob’antu. I was sent to greet you and take you to the Imperial Home to meet with our leader.”

“Hi. Nice to meet you, but Doctor Hypatia is fine.”

“Oh, all right. I have arranged for a kennel for your men.”

That pulled Emi up short. “Kennel? They aren’t animals.”

Baltin turned. Emi felt a wave of horror from her. “Oh, I am sorry, Doctor Hypatia. I meant no offense. That is simply what we call them.” She pointed over to a row of several rooms with observation windows on the front. Comfortable benches, and a sink and toilet, outfitted each room. “They can wait there until you return and will be safe.”

Emi glanced at Aaron. She didn’t want to be separated from them. He tipped his head at her to agree to it.

“Oh, okay. If you’re sure they will be safe.”

“Absolutely.” Baltin led them over to one of the rooms. The other rooms were currently empty.

Emi kissed each man as they walked in, Aaron going last. “It’s okay, Em,” he whispered in her ear. “We’ll be fine. Get this over with and we can go back to the Bight.” He brushed her cheek with his lips before going inside.

Baltin locked the door and handed Emi the key. “Security, of course, has a key in case of an emergency, but they will be safe until your return.”

“Thanks.” She pocketed it, smiling to herself when her fingers brushed against Bucky hiding in her trouser pocket.

Emi followed Baltin from the greeting center to a tram. As they took a short ride from the greeting center, Emi looked around, amazed. The planet’s temperate climate made it the perfect resort planet. No wonder wealthy women enjoyed journeying here for their playground. “Is your entire planet like this?” Emi asked her, indicating the lush landscaping.

“Mostly. There are polar ice caps, and around our oceans we have what I think are called beaches in standard. We have many plans for more resorts in those areas as our city expands.”

“I’m sure those will be quite popular.”

They debarked the tram at a station near a guarded entrance. Baltin showed her ID and introduced Emi to the guards, who allowed them to pass.

Inside, Emi had to force herself to keep following Baltin and not stop and stare. She couldn’t get used to seeing the naked men working all around. In the gardens lining the paths leading to the ruling palace, they worked without making eye contact, like silent ghosts.

She tried to keep her scientist’s hat firmly in place. “Is this all part of the Imperial Home?”

“Oh, yes. It is the center of our city.” Emi didn’t notice any supervisors, male or female, overseeing the workers. Baltin noticed Emi’s blatant curiosity. “Only certain utility males are allowed access like this inside the grounds of the Imperial Home. Otherwise, only our trainers, breeders, and the Imperial pleasure males are allowed to come and go freely. Notice the utility males’ collars?”

Emi had. Emerald green with what looked like a small gold crest in the front. “What does that mean?”

“That is the Imperial Seal. It is every utility male’s wish to be accepted at the very least as an Imperial worker. It is a very high honor.”

Another guard at the entrance to a huge home opened the door for them and bowed her head at Baltin as they passed. They climbed an ornate stairway, inlaid with gold, from the looks of it. The Imperial Home was lavishly decorated inside, and climate controlled. All the guards they encountered were women. They tipped their heads respectfully to Emi and Baltin as they passed.

Emi saw no men working inside.

They paused at a huge set of double doors, where Baltin spoke to a female guard in their native language. The guard nodded, then led the way as a small cadre of guards fell into step behind them.

More long, twisting passages. I hope they don’t expect me to find my way out of this maze by myself. After what felt like minutes, the guards stopped before another large, ornate set of doors and opened them. They stepped out of the way and bowed to Emi and Baltin.

“Come, Doctor,” Baltin said, leading the way.

The middle-aged woman seated at a desk under the windows stood at their approach. Baltin bowed her head. “Mauri Dob’antu, this is Captain Doctor Emilia Hypatia, from the DSMC vessel Tamora Bight.”

“Thank you, Baltin,” the woman said in rich, warm tone, her English standard only slightly more accented compared to Baltin’s. “You may wait for us outside.”

“Thank you, Mauri.”

When they were alone, the woman smiled. “So how did you like your preview of our society, Captain Doctor Hypatia?”

“Just Doctor is fine.”

“Very well. Your impressions, Doctor Hypatia?”

“Very…interesting.”

One of the woman’s eyebrows arched skyward as a slight smile curved her lips. “That is an unusual choice of words. I take it you do not approve?”

“I never said that, ma’am.”

The woman laughed. “Relax, Doctor. I am…how do you say? Teasing you. And you may call me Mauri.” She pointed to a large, comfy sofa along one wall. “Please, let us sit and talk.” She indicated the other end. Emi sat. As Mauri sat, she touched a button on a console on the coffee table in front of the sofa.

Almost immediately, a man appeared through a small door Emi hadn’t noticed before. As naked as the other men, only his collar was of a rich purple, bearing the same gold seal.

Mauri said something to him in Moran. He bowed and quickly left the room. “He will bring us some refreshments,” she explained as she settled back. “Now, please, may I ask you something?”

“Of course.”

“I am very intrigued. I heard from Commander Ren’yawlkin that you own not one, but three men. Is that correct? I was left puzzled by her explanation. I suspect I either misunderstood her or she was confused.”

Emi blushed a little, but nodded. “I don’t own my men. They are my husbands.”

Mauri looked puzzled. “Husbands?”

“That’s right. On Earth, we allow plural marriages. They are married not just to me, but to each other as well.”

“Oh, I do not doubt they are bonded to each other. Such is the nature of males. They seek their own. But how do you deal with them?”

“I don’t understand the question.”

“Commander Ren’yawlkin told me they are allowed to wear clothing and are not restrained or collared in any way. I am very interested in learning how you control them.”

Emi wasn’t sure what Mauri wanted to hear. “Control?”

“How do you correct them? Train them? Keep them in line?”

“Our society is set up differently from yours. We are equal partners.”

Mauri frowned. “Impossible. Males are not capable of that. They become violent and unmanageable when left to their own devices. I can see perhaps keeping one in line, but when they bond together as a pack, they are wont to get unruly.”

Emi tried again. “We love each other. We don’t have a social structure like you do. I love them, and they love me.”

She arched an eyebrow in apparent amusement. “Of course a well-trained male should love its owner.”

“I’m not their owner. And they don’t own me, either. We’re equals.”

Both of Mauri’s eyebrows launched skyward as Emi felt a wave of disbelief from the leader.

Emi tread carefully. “Our societies are different, that’s all.”

“Apparently quite different. I had never given much thought to the human male social structure before. The few I have encountered have come here with their female owners and were very docile and well-behaved. I do not have much contact with males from other races.”

Emi chose to ignore the part about “owners” and hopefully change the subject. “You all speak English standard very well, it seems.”

“Language courses. And we hired a tutor who spoke standard to come in and give our teachers lessons. But I have never been off the planet, personally. I could never leave my people without a leader.”

The servant returned with a gold tray on which he carried an ornate crystal pitcher and two cups. He poured them and offered them with a low bow.

Mauri and Emi took the offered cups, and then Mauri dismissed the man. She held her cup up. “To differences, Doctor Hypatia,” Mauri toasted.

Emi smiled and held her cup up as well. “To differences.”

After chatting a few more minutes, the Moran leader wanted to take Emi on a personal tour of some of the Imperial Home’s facilities. Mauri called Baltin back into the room and the three of them set off through another vast series of corridors. They emerged at a different entrance to the Imperial Home than Baltin had brought Emi through.

“I never pass up an opportunity to show off our facilities to others,” Mauri told Emi. “I would consider it an honor to take you on this tour personally.”

Emi thought about her men sitting back in the “kennel” in the greeting center. “I’m not trying to rush you, but I really can’t spend a lot of time down here. I need to get back to our ship.”

“Oh, this will not take long, Doctor Hypatia.”

With four guards falling in line behind them, Mauri led Emi down perfectly manicured and shaded pathways that wound under lush trees. “I am very proud of the Imperial Stables,” Mauri said.

“Stables?”

“Yes. It is where we house the best of the breeders and feral males. Also, it is our largest training facility to break in males when they reach the proper age. We house our young males in separate dormitories on the other end of the Imperial grounds.”

Emi was still a little confused, but let the leader speak without interruption. I can get out of here faster if I ask fewer questions.

“We have a total of ten such stable and dormitory configurations around the city. We have five feral maintenance facilities as well.”

She couldn’t help herself. “Why don’t you have other cities?”

The leader frowned, confused. “Other cities?”

“Yes. Besides this one.”

“Oh, we would not have other cities. There is no need. We have some approved settlers and developers who are allowed to take up residence outside the city walls if need requires it, but they must go through extensive training and screening before we allow it.”

“Why is that?”

“It is quite dangerous out there.” A large, gleaming white building came into view. “That is where we are going.”

Emi was still stuck on the dangerous part. “Dangerous?”

“Extremely.”

Emi didn’t remember reading anything about that in the files she’d scanned, but she let it go for now. “But how do you expand your lands?”

“Oh, we expand at a controlled pace. No one wants overcrowding. Just as no one wants to risk their lives needlessly.”

“Wasn’t the entire planet settled at some point?” Emi knew the main city was huge, as vast as some countries back on Earth.

“Yes, ages ago. Before the wars. And people needlessly lost their lives then, too. When we finally ended the wars and brought males under control, there were not that many survivors left, unfortunately. We picked up the pieces of our society and decided that the only way to survive would be to band together. And we have thrived since then. It is what has allowed us to become who we are today. We feel no need to change it.”

They walked up to a large door where two guards stood watch. The women bowed and parted for Mauri. The door slid open. “I hope you enjoy what you see, Doctor,” Mauri said as she stepped through.

Emi, Baltin, and the four guards followed. As Emi looked around, she wondered if she’d walked into a fantasy or a nightmare.