by Alma Nilsson
Babette followed Doctor Anu, fascinated by her long loose navy colored dress with white piping and the amount of jewelry she wore in her long black braided hair. Babette thought that even if she braided her hair, it was so thin and fine, any jewelry would fall right out. She hoped that being an Alliance woman didn’t mean she would have to braid her hair or try to put jewelry in it. I’d have to glue it in, she thought.
When their group arrived in the Space Port One Hospital, they were taken to a large room with over a hundred medical beds, and one whole wall was a large window overlooking the dark blue planet below.
Anu addressed them once they were all in the room, “Please take off your clothing and put on the medical gown provided for you on each bed and then sit down or lie down and relax. We will begin the medical checks as soon as possible.”
There was a bit of grumbling from some women in their group, but it was quickly put to an end with some sharp words from Doctor Anu.
Babette gave Jade a concerned look.
Jade replied, “Well, can you imagine having 1,000 human women to give medical checks to on the same day?”
Babette didn’t answer but just sat on one of the beds closest to the window. She was in awe of the dimly lit dark blue planet below. It was much larger than Earth but darker too. “It’s winter in the Capital City now,” she said absently to Jade. “Do you think it’s snowing?”
“Of course, it is. Maybe not every day, but there will be snow.” Jade was from a climate that had all four seasons, so she had experienced snow every winter and could not understand Babette’s fascination with it. “You could have just moved to Sweden if you wanted to live somewhere cold,” Jade joked. “You didn’t need to move across the galaxy and live with aliens to see snow.”
“I guess I didn’t, but it was part of the allure of moving here. Gray skinned aliens with catlike eyes living in modern snowy metropolises.”
“And in this fantasy, was it your dream to be cold as well?”
“No, to live in a place that is so different and possibly better than home.”
“Not possibly better. You’re right there, it is better,” Jade corrected her.
Before they could continue the conversation, Babette was called in for her examination. She went into the private room adjacent to the large dormitory-style room with all the beds. When she entered the private screening area, she was asked to take off her Alliance medical gown and lay down on the medical bed. She did as she was told without question. However, Babette was slightly put off by the robot, which moved next to the bed and began taking salvia samples and all kinds of other invasive samples before the doctor even started talking to her. But she lay there as still as she could be hoping that this was all normal.
“My name is Doctor Cal. I just looked over your files from the human doctor’s report from our embassy on Earth. I see here from your records that you are reasonably healthy for a human. Which is good. You’ve never been heavier than this in your life?” the doctor asked her.
“Umm,” Babette was surprised by the question, and it took her a second to think about it. “No, I’ve always been like this.” Babette was tall, 176cm, and thin, 64 kilos. She wasn’t necessarily athletic, but she had never been overweight. She just ate healthy food and not a lot of it because food was expensive. Actually, on the voyage over, she thought she might have even put on a bit of weight with all the training and muscle she had gained through the swordplay. “This is the heaviest I’ve ever been actually. Commander Daz made us do a lot of physical exercise, and that made me hungrier than usual.”
“Good,” said the doctor. “And never been pregnant?”
“No, I used birth control until I signed up to come here.”
“Alliance women never use birth control. I’m sorry that you ever had to poison your body with it.”
Babette was shocked at her comment, “I wouldn’t call it poison. I’d call it control.”
“In the Alliance, men are the only ones who use birth control. It makes more sense to control a man who can impregnate countless women every day for most of his life than a woman who can only get pregnant once during a small amount of time once a month only for three decades of her life. It’s as if you humans are doing everything contrary to logic. But that’s what happens when you let men control you.”
Babette felt she should defend humanity in some way, “I wouldn’t say it’s all because of men,” she didn’t wholeheartedly believe this, but she wanted to say something, “Women wanted the control too.”
“Because men had no control?” the doctor asked.
Babette had nothing left to say then.
“I’m sorry,” the Doctor Cal said. “I didn’t mean to offend you. I just hate to see young women’s bodies damaged. I know you have no control over the culture you were raised in, nor should I expect you to just immediately understand and adapt to the Alliance way of thinking. But know this, we are thrilled that you human women have come. Our sisters from across the galaxy and you will be treated well here.”
Babette felt nervous by the seriousness of what the doctor had just said to her, ‘our sisters from across the galaxy.’ “Thank you. Happy to be here,” she said, not knowing what else to say.
“Good. Now to continue, how many boyfriends have you had in your life?”
“A few, nothing too serious. I’m from a small town.”
“And did your boyfriends bring you pleasure?”
Babette looked up at the grey-skinned doctor and smiled, “What do you mean? ‘Bring me pleasure’?” She couldn’t help but think of her past boyfriends then, all so sweet in their own ways.
The doctor did not smile back but looked down at her patiently and explained, “Bring you to orgasm when you were intimate?”
Babette tried to sit up to look at the doctor head-on, but the robot wouldn’t let her, so she just answered, “Well, my boyfriends weren’t the best, but I will give them an ‘E’ for effort. They tried. Sometimes I would help and then I would definitely have an orgasm, but that defeats the purpose, doesn’t it? I did have a one-night stand with a man who I normally would have never gone home with, but you know it was one of those strange nights, and he had the longest tongue and fingers…”
The doctor interrupted her then and said, “So the answer is yes?” Doctor Cal had been searching the Babette’s mind and memories as she explained her experiences. Cal had been overwhelmed with Babette’s warmth for her past boyfriends, healthy relationships, and charmed by her excuses for her past boyfriends’ awkward and inexperienced sexual encounters. Overall, she was pleased that this Babette was not only physically healthy but also mentally sound. She made a note,
Completely physically and mentally fit. Has had some charming and immature relationships, including sex. She seeks sexual pleasure with men even if she must help herself. I have no doubt she will easily find a husband and conform to our society. Subconsciously seeks a strong family. Has an aversion to a doctor's use of influence.
“Yes,” replied Babette feeling embarrassed that she was talking too much now. She didn’t understand why the doctor wouldn’t want to hear everything since she had asked.
Doctor Cal then said, “Now, as I am sure you are aware, we must pierce your nipples. This is a cultural practice all Alliance women practice.”
Babette’s whole body tensed, “Yes, I know. I am ready.” She lied. She would never be ready to have her nipples pierced, but it was part of her contract with the Alliance, so she knew she had to do it as strange and as painful as she imagined it would be. The only thing that comforted her was that at least her breasts were small, as she imagined the larger the breasts, the more awkward it would be for bras and things. Babette could comfortably not wear a bra.
Doctor Cal put a hand on Babette’s shoulder to calm her using influence and said, “It will not hurt, and you will think it is beautiful afterward.”
Babette liked that the doctor now spoke to her gently, but somehow her touch was giving her a headache
. She wanted to ask the doctor not to touch her, but she didn’t want to be rude. She said nothing and waited for the piercing to start.
Suddenly then and without any pain, her nipples were pierced. Babette looked down at her nipples now with silver bars running through them and said while reaching up to touch one with her hand, “I didn’t feel a thing. Is something wrong with me?”
Doctor Cal smiled, “No, it doesn’t have to hurt, and if it does begin to hurt, let someone know so that they can give you some medicine. You are in the Alliance now; we don’t have to suffer from pain if we don’t want to. Now please, put your gown back on. We are finished here.”
Once Babette was dressed, the doctor handed her a small disc in a clear, small container and explained that
“This is what we colloquially called the ‘tab’ and would take care of all blood and pain associated with your period.”
Babette took the small device and asked, “Do I put it up in my vagina when I bleed or all the time? What happens when it’s full?”
“When your period begins. The device will deal with the blood and suppress any cramping,” Doctor Cal was not going to go into details with this woman on how it worked as she didn’t want to be here all day. “When your period ends, the device will let you know by gently vibrating. It is self-cleaning. When you remove it, put it back in its container until you need it again.”
“How does it attach itself inside of me?” Babette was slightly scared and fascinated by this piece of equipment.
Doctor Cal realized that these human women, all being so young and only having experienced a period once in their lives, their first period when they were girls, were utterly ignorant of their bodies. She tried to be patient, “The tab uses suction pads to do its job. There are no side effects, and it is completely safe.”
“Oh,” said Babette looking at the little device. “Thanks.” Then she turned to leave, and suddenly the robot made a terrifying sound like a broken bell, and red lights were flashing around them in the small room. Babette looked to the doctor for an indication of what was happening.
“Gods,” said Doctor Cal looking at the results on a 3D screen. “You have the Zoipli virus. We must quarantine you.”
Babette watched with surprise as the doctor fled the room. She stood there blankly and looked at the robot who was still flashing red lights at her, “What’s the Zoipli virus?” she asked with panic in her voice.
The robot didn’t reply but projected images of aliens with large purple growths on their bodies.
Babette shuddered, “Am I going to get that?”
The robot didn’t reply.
Babette looked at the images and was eager for the doctor to return. As there were no chairs in the small room and the door was locked, she just sat on the medical bed and waited. Soon the bells and red lights stopped.
After a few minutes the doctor’s voice came through the intercom, “Babette, please lie down on the medical bed, we are going to give you something to sleep, and then we will treat the illness. There is no need to worry.”
Babette lay down as she was told and waited. Soon a pink cloud filled the room, and she thought it smelled of fresh flowers. She smiled as she drifted off to sleep pleasantly.
As soon as Babette was asleep, the doctor came into the room and instructed some slaves to move her to a bed in another room. Then as soon as the sleeping cloud had cleared, she called for the next patient.
Babette woke up and couldn’t remember anything. She jumped when she saw a grey-skinned woman standing over.
“It’s okay,” the woman said, touching her arm.
And then Babette remembered everything, she shrugged off the woman’s touch, “Stop that gives me a headache.”
Doctor Cal removed her hand from Babette and hoped that the memory removal had worked. “I’m sorry you have a headache. How do you feel otherwise?”
Babette sat up and felt dizzy. But she wanted to get a feeling for where she was, “Am I still on Space Port One?”
“Yes, you and the other 999 human women had all been exposed to the Zoipli virus, so we had to keep you here for treatment for a little while. No doubt, it was from a passing Dulaxian. But I am pleased to say that you all have recovered completely and now are free to continue down to the Capital Planet.”
Babette rubbed her head. She remembered passing a Dulaxian when they arrived, he or she, she didn’t know if they even had sexes or if they were male or female, stopped to look at them. She remembered being so close to the green alien, so this made sense. But something was still nagging at her, “Why can’t I remember the treatment?”
“It was an invasive treatment, so Chief Medical Officer Anu and Head of House Human Jane decided it was best we wipe your memories of it. Your Head signed the documents permitting all treatments. She didn’t want your first experiences here to be frightening ones. I’ve no doubt she will mention it again to you at your first House meeting.”
Babette felt so weird. She felt something was not right. She knew this doctor was lying, but she couldn’t’ remember what happened, and she couldn’t think of any valid reasons why the doctor would lie. The Alliance had brought them there to be wives not to harm them. Even though she felt uneasy about it all, she had to let it go, “Okay, I guess. Can I leave now?”
Doctor Cal was relieved that Babette was not going to fight against her wiped memory. She and the other 50 women from the Fira had been the most difficult to erase the memories of, and now they were the last to be awoken. “Your belongings are there on the chest. There is a private bathroom through that door. Please feel free to have a shower and get dressed. We’ve provided you with some Alliance clothing as it will be warmer than what you have. Remember it’s still winter. Transports are waiting to take you all down to House Human on the Capital Planet in one hour.”
Babette’s excitement flared when she heard that she would be reaching her new home, finally in just an hour. She suddenly found the energy to jump out of bed. Somewhere in the back of her mind, she found it odd that she could move so quickly if she had been so ill that she had been there for weeks, but then she thought, They do have superior medicine. Don’t question it now. Just get ready and leave.
Babette raced into the bathroom, took a lukewarm shower as the water temperature didn’t go above 30C, and then put on a black Alliance dress with the warm thigh high stockings and left the room to find the other human woman who were all dressed in the same loose-fitting boring dresses. She joined them and discovered she was one of the last to be transported down. Babette was even more suspicious that she was with the same 50 women she came over with. She soon found Jade, though, and after discussing it, they dispelled their own fears about what might have happened to them that they can’t remember in exchange for the excitement of finally getting to the Capital City and beginning their new lives.
House Human
Babette was lucky to get a seat next to the transport window. She strapped herself in and excitedly waited to go down to the planet.
Jade was sitting next to her, “You know this is the last time you are ever going to do this. Remember? As Alliance women, we will never leave this planet.”
Babette didn’t stop looking out the window at the giant dark blue planet, slowly turning below them, “I know. But unlike you, I was never going to leave Earth had this opportunity not come along. I think being on the Alliance Capital Planet for the rest of my life is a better deal than being stuck in Mississippi forever. I know I would have never left that small town. Maybe it feels different for you, as you’ve been so many more places in the galaxy, you know what you are giving up, but being marooned here suits me just fine.”
Jade shook her head, “It’s because I’ve been so many places it is exactly why I know I’m willing to sacrifice all other travels in the galaxy for this.”
Then, the transport began its descent through the atmosphere, and after a few minutes, they were flying high through the skies of the Capital Planet. All the women in the t
ransport were quiet, taking in their new surroundings. Most of the planet was covered in impressively, tall buildings all made out of yellow or grey stone. Which almost looked like a vast stone forest with the dark red sky behind them as the sun was setting.
“This is home,” Jade said to Babette. “I don’t feel any connection to it though. I thought it would feel different when we finally made it here.”
It all looked so modern and alien to Babette, “I know what you mean. At least it’s beautiful. The sunset anyway.”
Jade squeezed her friend’s hand tightly as they looked out the window. Jade wanted to say, ‘I know what I said, but now that we are actually here, I hope this is the right decision.’ But she didn’t say anything to Babette. She knew it was just a fleeting doubt as she saw this alien sky for the first time and how final her decision felt at this moment.
Babette squeezed her friend’s hand back, surprised, “We should have some bourbon to toast to our success at being here once we are settled tonight. I’m proud of us.”
Jade let go of her hand and smiled, “Proud of us for what? Not falling off a warship?”
“No,” Babette laughed and turned to look at Jade, “Proud of us for not crying at any point through this or having a complete breakdown. It’s not easy to leave your home, no matter how great the opportunity on the other end might be.”
