They were so traumatised that they didn’t respond to anything, just lay there not helping or hindering the Escorii’s ministrations. The Wracki were asking to be taken to their home planet, a six day detour for Acorus, but it would keep him away from Jo for longer so he agreed to it. Obviously the Terrans would go to Terra and the Chomanay would join the group living on Scerior.
Taking the Wracki home also gave the humans time to respond to the Escorii’s care, and if they didn’t they would be euthanised. A kindness as far as the Sceriae were concerned. Heading to the Wracki’s planet, Zaa-wrack, Acorus decided that they would stop off at Pinaar to pick up gems for jewellery and also for industry. The Pinaarans loved to trade with Scerior and were delighted that Lord General Acorus was visiting them personally. So delighted that they threw a banquet for him and his officers.
Promising to take some treats back for the officers on duty, the group set off to Pinaar.
Pinaar was purely a mining planet run by the Sceriae. Males from every planet came to work in the mines. It was hard back breaking work but two years on Pinaar could set a male up for life.
The Pinaarans, when it was discovered how many precious gems were on their planet had turned to Scerior for help in maintaining peace among the many species who lived there. Instead of moving in and taking over, the Sceriae purely charged a security fee which they took in gems, and allowed the Pinaarans to keep the wealth of their planet.
No Sceriae worked in the mines, but an army of Sceriae kept them secure. They were relieved every three months and every full time soldier took their turn guarding Pinaar. Landing close to the main city Acorus was pleased to see that the Pinaarans were working hard to make their planet a decent place to live. Buildings were made of natural stone the colour of blue marble and hardy plants grew in profusion. Having a cool climate, but not too cold in winter, Pinaar was a pleasant place to live or visit.
As Acorus and his officers walked towards the city gates, open but guarded, the Pinaaran council walked out to greet them. The chief councilman had held the position for many years and Acorus thought highly of him. Clasping arms the two friends were delighted to see each other, and talked animatedly on the way back into the city. Once seated in the banqueting hall, Geme, the chief councilman, quizzed Acorus about the attack on the Xenorii. When he was told the reason for the attack he was in total agreement, and was pleased that Pinaar wouldn’t have to worry about them any more.
Then Geme mentioned that he had heard that a human female had been made Acorus’s legal mate. Acorus told him that it was true, her name was Jo-Anna and one day he would bring her to meet Geme and his mate. The Pinaarans were striking to look at having humanoid features, covered in golden skin. Their faces were long with deep set eyes, a straight nose, deep unlined forehead and cleft chin. Their hair was white and worn long by both sexes. They mated for life and had many children, so Geme guessed that Lady Jo-Anna must be something special for Lady Ileya to step down in favour of her.
The way Acorus talked about her also told Geme that, surprisingly, his Sceriae friend was smitten with her. As the Sceriae had never before shown any feelings other than lust for a female, Geme was looking forward to meeting Jo, as she must be a very special female.
When Acorus said that he wished to purchase gems, Geme waved that aside and insisted that Acorus take them as a gift from one friend to another. Acorus wouldn’t insult Geme by arguing but insisted that the industrial gems would be payed for. Geme sent word to prepare a shipment and have it taken to Acorus’s ship.
The female Pinaarans were shy of strangers and stayed in their homes caring for their young. They got together with family groups and close friends for their entertainment, so it was only males at the banquet. After a few hours of good food and convivial company the Sceriae took their leave, with Acorus promising to bring Jo to meet his friend.
By the time they left Pinaar the five star ships that had decimated the Xenorii main fleet had caught up with the other seven. Acorus decided to send nine star ships home to Scerior while the other three dropped off the Wracki. One ship would deliver the Terrans home and the Chomanay would be taken back to Scerior to join the group already living there. They travelled together until the point where the three would veer off to Zaa-wrack.
Acorus sent a message to Jo saying he was safe and would be home soon. He also told her to be prepared for when he got home, knowing she would know what he meant.
Chapter 54
After the success of the party for the American girls, Jo had flung herself into pairing off the slave trade girls. The males chosen for them were in their mid to late twenties; all had their own houses, some being full time soldiers and some part time. Some worked in technical services, others worked as managers in factories and some owned farms or businesses.
Jo, Kylie or Alexis spoke to each girl before they were taken to the male’s house, and senior Sceriae males had spoken to each of them. All the males were warned that if any girl was damaged or killed, they would be punished. Each girl would take with them, the Escorii who had looked after them, books and music from Earth and the clothes they had been given on the star ship. When Jo spoke to the girls she was pleased to find out that they were healthy and looking forward to their new lives. A few were nervous about sex with the Sceriae but talking to Jo, Kylie or Alexis were reassured.
Talking to the girls about sex, made Jo long for when Acorus’s return. She’d had her first period and started the contraceptive pills, another week and she should be safe from an unwanted pregnancy. She loved Jacki dearly, but didn’t have to be with her with her all the time. She was getting bigger by the day and in another week or two would be ready for nursery. Tchu had assured Jo that her milk would dry up quickly once Jacki was weaned.
Jo had to admit that having a baby on Scerior was a lot easier than having one on Earth. There, most young mothers had to work until just before the baby was born, then they looked after the baby, mostly by themselves, and went back to work after three months. On Scerior a mother was treated like a princess. Pampered before birth and after, only having to work if she wanted to.
Jo kept herself busy, calling on the girls and encouraging them to meet each other. She arranged language classes in Sceria, and parties so that the girls could introduce their mate to their friends. She could now speak reasonable Sceria but went to some classes to encourage the girls. Kylie and Alexis were also working tirelessly to help the girls adjust. A lot were pregnant already. Many liked or loved their mate and some were just happy to have a comfortable life.
Only a few were downright unhappy. Some of the males were harsh or uncaring about their female’s feelings or treated them like their personal slave. Because Jo, Kylie and Alexis insisted on seeing each girl privately they quickly found out the unhappy ones. They were removed and taken back to one of the houses that the girls had lived in on arrival on Scerior. The Sceriae males were spoken to by older males and a note went on their record. They wouldn’t be given another girl as there were many males waiting for a mate. If a girl was pregnant she stayed at the house until after the baby was born, when she was given a chance to meet other males to see if one might suit her. It was all quite complicated but with the Sceriae’s organisational ability it would work in the end. It was better than girls being killed or committing suicide.
The human females were slowly putting their mark on Scerior, much to Kylie’s and Alexis’s delight. Regular reports were sent to the committee from the brothels scattered over the planet. The call girls had all settled in well. They were running their own houses and had organised everything so well that the Sceriae were happy to let them carry on. After all as a few of the women’s leaders had pointed out they knew a lot more about sex than the Sceriae did. Every brothel had long waiting lists and there had been no trouble in any of them. However Jo wanted to see for herself how these houses were being run, so arranged to go and visit every one.
On her first tour she started at the far side of the planet. She wanted to visit the houses without warning, so with Kylie and Tchu and a contingent of eight guards she arrived unannounced. Opening the door she walked into a large reception room where a dozen Sceriae were chatting, eating and drinking. All was calm and very civilised. At the moment there were no women present and the males all wore tunics and trousers with no armour in sight.
When Jo and Kylie walked in some of the males thought they were call girls and appreciative noises were made. However the other males were soldiers and recognised Jo. They jumped up and saluted her, then one said “Welcome Lady Jo-Anna, we are honoured to meet you”.
Realising who Jo was the others stopped grinning at her and bowed, looking embarrassed. Jo smiled and bowed pleased that she wasn’t blushing. An inner door opened and one of the older women hurried into the room.
Smiling she said “Oh how nice of you to visit us. Can I offer you some refreshment?”
“I hope you don’t mind me just dropping in. I wanted to make sure that everything is alright”.
Leading Jo into a smaller room, the woman who introduced herself as Celia, sent for food and drink. Kylie, Tchu and Jo sat down and Jo said “I hope it won’t disrupt things too much if I have a quick word with all your ladies?”
“Mmm, I’ll arrange for each one to see you, in between customers, if that’s alright?”
“Yes it won’t take long, just to make sure there are no problems” Jo replied
Once food and drink was brought, the women started to call in to speak to Jo and Kylie. Jo was pleased to see that they were all nicely made up, their hair was clean and shiny and they all wore pretty kaftans. Talking to them individually Jo found that they were all happy. As far as the women were concerned a whore’s life was easier on Scerior than on Earth. All the males were clean, respectful and all had beautiful bodies. Teaching them how to treat a human female was fun, they didn’t have strange requests or fetishes, and if a woman liked one in particular and was getting pleasure out of their work, the Sceriae could fuck for hours! Laughing at that Jo and Kylie asked if there were any problems and were pleased to learn that there wasn’t. The women could choose how many customers a day they took. Some took more than others and some days they wouldn’t work at all. Lovely food was provided every day, the Escorii pampered them, and they could shop ‘til they dropped.
“What more could a woman want?” one asked.
“What indeed?” Jo laughed.
Satisfied that all was going well, Jo visited two more houses on the way home. These also had no problems, so pleased with their day Jo and Kylie headed for home. When Jo got Acorus’s message she suddenly felt very hot all over, he’d be with her soon!
Chapter 55
During the three days it took to reach Zaa-wrack Acorus spent as much time as he could spare talking to the Wracki, called Erta, about life on Zaa-wrack and why the Wracki wandered the galaxy trading in one thing or another. Originally the Wracki had purchased a spaceship from Terra. The Terrans had landed on Zaa-wrack thousands of years ago. Zaa-wrack was a heavily forested planet with hundreds of fruits and vegetables. The Wracki were omnivores and welcomed the Terrans fish and shellfish, so the two races became allies.
The Wracki were more adventurous than the Terrans and eventually had purchased the technology to build their own spaceships. Their ships were small and generally crewed by one extended family. Many were happy to stay at home, farming or making goods for sale but others became galactic traders. They were non aggressive and most planet welcomed them and traded with them. Nearly all the fruit and vegetables the Pinaarans ate were bought from the Wracki with precious gems. The Wracki females were the ones who made beautiful jewellery from precious metals and gems, or simple cheap jewellery, from shells, large seeds and polished stones. This was much sought after by most races and Zaa-wrack had become wealthy through all this trade.
The Sceriae traded with them but because theirs was a peaceful planet, Acorus had never been there. He wanted to meet the planet’s leaders to let them know that he was angry that humans had fallen into Wracki hands and that it must never happen again.
Acorus visited the human females once a day to see how they were recovering. Because they were so passive and even a gently phrased request brought instant obedience, the Escorii had been able to administer their depression and trauma reducing drugs. One of the girls was making steady progress, two were slowly becoming healthier, but one was still so traumatised that the Escorii were worried that she might never recover.
Seeing the dreadful condition of these young females, Acorus was deeply affected. Knowing how intelligent Jo was, he imagined her being treated as they had and was so furious he could have killed Bezra himself. He was determined that she be properly punished.
As they neared Zaa-wrack, a message was sent to their leaders, saying that General Acorus wished to return the Wracki taken by the Xenorii. The Wracki leaders replied welcoming him and inviting him and his party to meet with them at their council chambers.
Taking just ten officers with him Acorus descended to Zaa-wrack by fighter ships, two for him and his officers and two for the Wracki.
The Wracki leaders met him at his landing site and with much ceremony led him into their main city. Wracki lined the wide roads as the procession of Wracki leaders and Sceriae officers made their way to the council chambers. As the rescued Wracki and their saviours walked into town there were cheers and greetings for both. The rescued Wracki strutted along as if it was them who were the heroes. Smiling grimly to himself Acorus took in the beauty of the countryside and the city buildings. It was time the Sceriae had an outpost here, to protect the Wracki of course! Zaa-wrack was an ideal planet from which to keep an eye on the Xenorii.
When they reached the council chambers, there were many speeches praising the Sceriae for rescuing some of their people. Then it was Acorus’s turn to speak. He started by telling them that he was pleased to rescue any specie from the Xenorii. But, he was extremely angry that the Wracki had bought human females. This had turned his attention to Zaa-wrack. The execution of Urma and his eldest sons had shown how lenient the Sceriae were. Another race would have executed the whole clan. And the way the females had been treated disgusted him. Was this how the Wracki treated other species? The leaders squirmed in their seats and didn’t know where to look. Then he stated that Bezra, the disgraced doctor would pay with her life, for her part in this.
The Wracki nodded and clapped, declaring that General Acorus was indeed a fair person to deal with. Finally Acorus got round to his real reason for visiting Zaa-wrack.
Because of the danger from the Xenorii he had generously decided to station a star ship, with full crew at a base on Zaa-wrack. That would protect them in the same way as Terra and Pinaar. And he apologised for not realising this need sooner. When he sat down there was silence for a while. Then as the stunned leaders read between the lines of Acorus’s speech muted cheers and clapping broke out. Gazing round in amusement he watched each Wracki as they reacted to his speech. By angering him they had added Zaa-wrack to his fleet of star bases.
The Wracki had prepared a feast and had remembered that the Sceriae were vegetarian so Acorus and his soldiers ate the fruit and vegetable dishes laid out before them. As he took his leave Acorus told them that as soon as he reached Scerior he would despatch two star ships and crew to build a base where suitable on Zaa-wrack. Through gritted teeth the Wracki council thanked him for his kindness. As he headed back to his ship he was laughing to himself. Maybe in future the Wracki would be careful what they traded.
Once aboard his ship he set course for home and Jo.
Chapter 56
While Acorus was on Zaa-wrack Jo had continued working with the new girls and was pleased with how things were progressing. Then one day Kylie joined her and they decided to visit the remaining two br
othels. These two were actually in the city, as that was the main base for the army, so they didn’t have far to travel.
The visit to the first house went smoothly as normal, and they left feeling happy with how things were being run. The next house was closest to home and Jo went in feeling pleased that her plan to bring call girls to Scerior was going so well.
The manager, or madam as she would have been called on Earth, had been warned by her friend at the previous house, so had laid on lunch for Lady Jo-Anna. Content that this house too held happy girls, Jo was pleased to sit and chat to some who weren’t working, over lunch. The girls were very outspoken and occasionally Jo felt herself start to blush. Some of the tales they told about the males who visited them were very explicit and even had Kylie giggling self consciously.
Two of the girls were laughing about a large Sceriae called Gunta who had taken on the two of them. Describing him and what he had done to them, made Jo pay attention to what they were saying. He was a highly placed officer who had come with eight guards. He had no appointment but was given his choice from fifteen girls. He had taken two and tired them both out. They hadn’t been able to work the next day and were sore for ages.
Jo’s mind was racing and she gazed round the room thinking, “No, he wouldn’t”.
Then her gaze landed on an Escorii who was trying not to look at Jo. Controlling her mind Jo threw the question at her “It was Lord Acorus, wasn’t it?”
The Escorii tried to block her mind but Jo was insistent and finally learned what she didn’t want to hear. Feeling sick Jo managed to maintain a calm exterior but got up to leave sooner than she would have. Claiming pressure of work and her baby, Jo was gracious to her host, and walked proudly to her transport. Sitting down she buried her head in her hands and said “The bastard. I’ll never forgive him. Liar! ‘I’ve never had to pay to mate and I won’t start now’ indeed. I wonder how many other brothels he’s visited? And two! I’m obviously not enough for him. What a fool I am, to think that, that big headed, power crazed, insatiable beast could ever love!”
Scerior Page 52
