So the truth was coming out gradually. The Council needed to have a portable system to be created much like Fetch himself. The room full of quantum and quark processors needed to run the Immersion needed to be radically modified to run on transistors albeit of the most advanced types and not be taking up at the back end entire warehouses with cold rooms down to -271 C close to zero kelvin to keep from frying. The Council would never give away their hard won technology to Baclet and Threeme who did not contribute blood, sweat and pain to develop it. So when Jongi realized how advanced Fetch was, they got Charlie on board and paid him well to allow them to largely copy many of his tremendous portable capabilities to run Immersion-lite software that he helped them to create in a few weeks to reprogram the corrupted minds. They were glad to take advantage not just of the new software running on a modified version of Fetch’s operating system, but using his powerful portable hardware build too. Charlie would be getting significant licensing rights on both the software credits and the hardware organization to run it. It is amazing how fast this was done and actually used on some human guinea pigs already with good results. I suppose if one was told ‘you allow us to do this to reprogram your brain versus going to jail for twenty years’, the choice was pretty obvious. Now the truth came out that Charlie wanted Jonah to vet the software and hardware combo to get at any glitches. He had it up and running right here in this living room. Of course, Jonah as always would do anything for Charlie, as would Charlie for him. He spoke to Jessi in his mind, “This might be the way to bargain with Charlie to get him to go on the trip with us!” She said, “Bargain gently though Darling.” He said, “Absolutely, space has too many dangers to not be honest with him- full disclosure here sweetheart.”
The program was running and Jonah could see that there was a special effort made toward cooling the humming hardware. The computer system had its own special air conditioning tub that surrounded the towers with their trays. This is a souped up system. Charlie said that this was going to be able to stay with him going froward. He now had in his home systems that top of the line governments and Industry could only salivate over and to that end he had had to agree to connect to the Government’s high tech security grid. No longer can you even pass by here on the street or come up this driveway without having the hair up your nostril under careful examination and be put in a folder to be checked out. A lot of farm operations had to be moved off to a separate entrance on the farm so that unvetted people could no longer just waltz up here. Life changes, you pay taxes and then you die, they say!
Jonah said, “Charlie, what do we have to do to get you to take the trip with us? We will be gone for two weeks give or take and your presence would undoubtedly be a boon in case there are any glitches.” Charlie said, “You know, that already has been offered and seriously I was expecting you to ask too. I will tell you this, I will think about it and let you know. It is not my ‘cup o tea’, but we have been buddies ever since we realized that we were separate beings from our mothers and with you being there, I have to say that I am seriously considering taking the trip.” His new girlfriend Janey nodded her ascent. Jonah and Jessi mind talked, “It would certainly be nice to have him. I’d bet 60% chance. He will need some training though. Maybe we could get him into my Dad’s simulator?” Jessi said. Jonah said, “Fair enough, but you’ll need some training so that you’ll enjoy it and not be just terribly nauseous all the time. So make up your mind quickly my brother.”
With that, Jonah got up from his chair along with Charlie and they walked over to the hotshot computer terminal. Janey actually lagged behind a bit but was watching attentively. Jonah sat down and hands on the keyboard, he started typing some well practiced command strokes with the occasional prompting by Charlie. He then seemed to freeze to all appearances and about two minutes later while watching the screen said, “Three glitches found and then some technical jargon flowed between the two of them. Charlie was recording the verdicts on his vidphone and at the same time saying additional things into the vidcom recording that he’d need to check later too, like check file pathway this and that etc. Then Jonah put his hands on the cabling from the keyboard and froze again, this time for about thirty seconds. When he unfroze and he said, “the trays and equipment all feel smooth, no hotspots, no slow downs all checks are ok.” Charlie said, “Thank you as always. This went better than I thought. I will get those pathways smoothed out. Let’s go to meet and hang out with our friends out back.”
There was mass movement out of the living room as Charlie put the computer systems in a shutdown mode. Time to meet and greet. We are Six, we play hard, work hard and have a lot of fun after all! Lo and behold, Charlie’s parents were in the barn which was warm, well lit and had a space cleared for dancing, neatly arranged seating around long tables with an excellent looking buffet ready. In fact there was plenty of evidence that many of the folks had already been tucking in. There was a good selection of sweet and savory dishes. Jessi and Jonah had eaten not long before, so they gravitated towards a few light sweet desserts. They got Charlie to introduce them to the two teams of three techies led by Richie and Sonia. They were mostly in their twenties and a only one was in the thirties. They were calm and relaxed and had each come with their spouses. We learned that although they would not be going through full astronaut training, they were all, not including spouses, to report for simulator and other safety orientation in two days. Things were indeed heating up! The three sets of computers for Baclet and two for Threeme for the deprograming, would be receiving their final tweaks that would include fixes for what Jonah had just found to ensure all would be efficient. They would be carrying entire backups of trays of equipment in case of failures. Six would be ready to do their part in their way too.
The meeting and greeting over, people were mingling and Jessi and Jonah were with different groups of folks networking as they are wont to do. They were checking in periodically with each other any other members of Six Only one member of Five was missing, Serena off with her parents on a long promised trip but she was due to be back in a day or so and the others were filling her in on developments. A few couples were dancing and exchanging partners. Jonah and Jessi too had their twirls. Jessi and Jonah lost themselves in each other’s arms for a while, savoring being among their friends and colleagues and experiencing the joy of seeing Charlie find his way into the limelight too. It was nice to see his parents looking at their boy with such pride. He too was making it into the big leagues just like Jonah. The night went well. Behind all this was Six and the members of Five too, taking turns to do a scan of their surroundings. Now while at Charlie’s place, with twenty four hour surveillance by satellite capable of seeing through clouds and programmed with algorithms to detect unusual activity, there was a bit more measure of confidence. The vidcoms of Charlie and even his parents were now hooked up to the national security systems and would warn them of anything abnormal too. Believe me, whatever his parents targeted with weapons got hit! They were both excellent shots with old fashioned guns as well as the more modern blasters. Attack drones could be here in fifteen minutes too to help if they needed it.
So all in all, it worked out to be a very pleasant evening and Jessi and Jonah crawled back to their bedrooms at 1 am after helping with cleanup. Food scraps left in the barn was not ‘kosher’ as they say. It would only encourage vermin and this was a working farm where this was not allowed. Everyone one was safely on their way home by 1130pm except the few who lived nearby like Mehia along with her Dillion who was obviously going to spend the night at her home too. Janey and Rona along with Josh and Maryann all rode together. All of the techies who had been involved with Charlie on their ground breaking work to essentially miniaturize the Immersion style equipment lived within two hours of Charlie. It was apparently one of the requirements when they were being chosen to work collaboratively with him. The rest of Six and Team Five had also left.
14. FAMILY TIME
Jonah and Jessi took turns in the bathroom to s
hower and were soon ensconced in bed. They were still a little buzzed by the surprise afternoon engagement and they chatted for one half hour before falling asleep. The morning came quickly and Jonah was gone by 5am to get some chores done early as he had promised his Dad. Now that their trip was getting more likely, he wanted to get as much done to help his Mom and Dad before they had to leave for up topside. So he even beat his Dad to the start of chores. His Dad joined him out there after an hour and they were finally joined by a delegation comprised of his Mom Elma and Jessi riding on one of their tractors at around 9 am. The early morning fog had already completely burnt off about the time the ladies came bearing hot mid morning tea. By 1130am all the chores for the day were complete before the full heat of the sun became obviously uncomfortable, but only after some considerable drama though.
A few of the fruit trees had fallen and could not be salvaged, thus needed to be chain sawed, a mighty dangerous activity which could easily result in the de-limbing of the unfortunate operator, but it was so much fun though! Jessi who had gotten very involved in farm work insisted on at least cutting up some of the smaller limbs. When Jonah refused to allow her to take over the machine, insisting on how dangerous it was, she said, “ I know you are scared for me, so I promise I’ll be careful. I have watched you do it so many times; I’ve got to try this myself. You’ll still have to love me if I cut off a leg!” Jonah relented and handed over the chainsaw. Everyone stopped what they were doing to watch. Jessi got a good hold of the surging beast of a machine that seemed to want to fly out of her hand with every gentle blip of the throttle. At that moment she did have second thoughts, but banished them from her mind. “It was put up or shut up time!” She thought silently. She had seen even Elma get down and dirty with the saw too. Anyway she had her fill, making short work of the thigh sized branches and being careful to use the safer sweet spot of the saw blade where there was less chance of snagging, jumping or the chain crimping. Her loving husband stood five feet away giving encouraging tips and growing more relaxed as the moments went by safely. Her father-in-law also stood by as if ready to run to get an ice bucket to put her limb in for transport to the hospital for reattachment. Nobody did any work for the five minutes she was working. It was with great relief to everyone when she got tired and her hand going numb from the vibration, handed the tormenting machine back to Jonah after she’d safety locked it’s spinning chain. Jessi quickly removed the work gloves and massaged her hands. Jonah fully disconnected the saw and took her hands in his and embraced her. She was a suburban girl who grew up privileged and far from the grunt work of a farm. He was proud of her, a ‘modern’ marrying a ‘noncom’ farmer and being willing to learn, pitch in and adapt to life on a farm. This is why he reasoned to himself, his love for her stuck like a bone in his throat, sometimes making it difficult to even swallow when he thought of her, or looked at her pert little backside sashaying away from him or getting ready to come give him some hot nucky! Man, he loved his Jessi.
Jessi, standing there with her arms around Jonah’s midriff, feeling his muscles around his spine bunch-up and unbundle as he shifted, felt relieved and happy all at the same time. She could see that Jonah Sr was looking at her with pride and the slightest of smiles, but even now seemed a little paralyzed with the fear and worry of her working with those springy unpredictable branches and that totally unforgiving revving chain on a grooved bar that would not notice the difference between a tree branch and a femur bone. He seemed to catch himself in a bit of a reverie and shake himself free of it. He walked over the few feet to his Darling Elma and taking her by the hand, he removed his glove as she did the same and hand in hand they walked over to the tractor cab. Opening the door, Elma knowing what he wanted, reached in to open the box on the floor and proceeded to pour him a cup of tea. She got one herself and they leaned their backs against the cab gazing out over their fields side to side touching each other. Jessi could feel Jonah’s body heat and smell his body scent as her face lay two inches from his chest. The fabric of his coarse work pants rubbed over her low abdomen just around her pubic area. She had this intense urge and felt herself clench down below. She realized that she had groaned softly and must have clenched him tightly while crossing her legs quickly. Jonah looked down deeply into her golden brown eyes for a long moment losing himself deeply into her very being, feeling the intense desires swirling there. They both had to dig deep to just not jump each other’s bones. There was work to be finished. All those branches that had been pruned and those of the fallen trees needed to be cut up to size and the smaller branches put in the chipper to pulverize them and then these had to be composted in a way that termites would not get to breed in them. The larger branches after being chipped into larger bricks needed to be sold to recyclers to make furniture etc. No time right now for love making.
‘Funny’ Jessi thought, ‘how one thing makes me so horny, danger!’ Jonah reading her thoughts in an unfiltered moment, mumbled softly to her audibly, “Yes Jessi, I have noticed that the greater the danger you face, the more horny you are afterwards. I just love it though, I confess.” She gave him a nice sexy little pinch where his love handles should be, grabbed her gloves and stalked off to gather up the smaller branches and headed for the chipper. “Oh Lord Meneer, no!” Both Jonah and Jonah Sr moved like lightening to grab the branches from her, but she was there like a flash, feeding her first branches into its gaping maw. All they could do was stand back and beseech her to make sure to throw the branches in and not hold onto them, lest she gets pulled into the chipper. Also make sure none of the branches snag on her clothing! They were all twitching in nervousness. Finally Jonah said out aloud, “OK Jessi, enough, enough. You are giving us all a heart attack. Please stop.” She said in mind talk to him, “I like danger remember. You know what I’m going to do to you later, right.” He said silently back to her, “Jessi I love you and yes you can have your way with me later. I surrender. Just stop. Look at Dad. He is about to have a heart attack.” She said out aloud, “Which is more dangerous, wrangling Outlaws or feeding this little chipper here?”
He said aloud, “We would never forgive ourselves if we didn’t protest you playing with dangerous farm equipment and then something went wrong.” She said, “So your worry is all about your conscience right?” Elma gave her a good salutary clap as in ‘go girl’ with a big smile on her face. Both Jonahs frowned at Mom Elma and Jonah said, “Mommy, surely you’re not going to encourage this young hard-head of mine, are you?” Elma said, “She is right, she is one tough young lady.” Elma proceeded to carry more of the small brambles over to Jessi saying, “Darling just make sure your light jacket is tightly buttoned so there is no loose clothing to get entrapped, ok.” Jessi nodded and smiled and the two proceeded to continue the chipping. Finally with frowns and scowls on their faces, the two men grabbed two chain saws and proceeded to continue working. Two hours later with the two ladies working the chipper, the whole lot was done. Woman power wins!
After the chores were done, Jonah Sr helped to stow the equipment in the bed of the pickup truck hitched to the large trailer and chipper on wheels too and his wife jumped in beside him. Off they went and Jessi along with Jonah were left with the tractor. Jonah made sure to stand behind Jessi and provide unneeded assistance to her by gently giving her lifting help from behind with both his hands under her rear. He was particularly careful to make sure that the tips of his fingers were all over her seat. Oh dear, did he get more than he wanted! She turned to him with a grin saying, “Sampling the merchandise much Mr. Capri! I hope when my fangs come out you’re man enough to stand the bite young man.” He just giggled, slowly reached around her tummy making a slow show of buckling her in with his lips just gently and momentarily brushing against her chest. Even through her jacket, shirt and bra, he could feel his effect on her. There was the sharp intake of her breath and she was silent. Then he went around to the other side and started the engine with a belch of aromatic fumes that smelt of olive skins among other things
and off to the farmhouse and barns they went. He dropped her off and she headed in. He knew that she would head for the shower and he would too after the tractor was properly stowed. His father looked like he was already unhitched from the trailer full of fragrant smelling wood chips some distance from the barn. Then he walked back the few hundred yards to the farm house. He thought of how they had been able to afford recently to make some much needed improvements to their farm buildings including building some tall water towers with automatic sprinkling systems in the barns in case of a fire. That was something long recommended as their home was so close by, but only recently could they afford it. Their insurance rates had dropped steeply as a result.
When he got to the house their AI security system popped the door open at his approach as programmed. It was nice to not even have to touch the front door anymore. More stuff that’s had been upgraded he thought. Not bad for a small ‘noncom’ family. Their farm was profitable yes, but it wasn’t until Jonah and the rest had formed Team Six that they could comfortably do these extras to make life more secure and indeed comfortable for themselves and parents. Jonah felt a calm sense of satisfaction spread through him. To be blessed with such a wonderful mate as Jessi was ‘beyond a blessing’ it was ‘Lagniappe’ a word from old earth New Orleans area he’d heard, whatever and wherever that was! To the bedroom he went.
Jessi was finishing her quick shower and he stripped off and was standing there in all his glory just outside the shower door, admiring her back and everything else. She jumped slightly when she opened her eyes to see him staring languidly at her, but her eyes drifted downward and she smiled deliciously. Oh, that was when that thing - love, lust whatever caught him in the throat again and it was all he could do to not go berserk like a Viking. She probably realized that he was super energized and so slid quickly past him through the only partly opened shower door with her towel wrapped around her. He slipped in and made the shower colder than usual to help himself regain some control. Then after a thorough toweling, making sure to think of the upcoming trip as a distraction, he went up to the bed and slipped under the covers next to her. She had had her eyes closed as if resting, but he knew better.
KILLER GAMERS Page 10
