Brenda: But I will be here. And it will be temporary. Your goal is to keep the residence, not close it. You will find a way. And when you do, then I’ll be the present that I asked for.
Robby: You still want that? To be given to him as a present? As a lover and wife, like Honey did for me and the others?
Brenda: I love him, Master. I will do anything you let me. Of course, if you decide to let Princess Cupcake and Lily have their way then it won’t be necessary.
Robby (Laughing): Let Cupcake and Lily make her disappear in a swamp somewhere? We can’t do that with family. And I can’t just offer her a fortune to run away and never come back. I offered Clark the chance to make some changes, but he thinks that in a few years that they’ll be ready to move somewhere else, as long as I make it worth Irene’s while. Damn her! I really do think that I hate that woman. Let me think about this.
The video shut off and Brenda said, “And, after thinking about it, we decided that I would change myself and stay here. Robby and Joshua would make Clarice and Ellie and Mandy and Wendy and someday, when everything was made right again, I would be made whole and given to Joshua as a wedding present. That happened this morning, in his bedroom with Lark and Clarice.
Chapter 27 Bonding and Planning
No one knew quite what to say. There were so many issues here. It seem like it was up to me now.
I said, “Brenda, thank you for sharing that with us. Are you convinced that we love you?”
Brenda said quietly, “I am. I really am. Of course, Lark shocked the hell out of me when she ‘pounced’ on me this morning, but it convinced me that I am accepted, and well, other things.”
I wanted her to go on as much as she wanted, so I asked, “What other things?”
Brenda smiled. She said, “Well, it convinced me that I don’t have to wear an ugly dress or underwear.”
Raven broke in and said, “No! Of course not. And you are very beautiful.”
Brenda thanked her and went on, “Everyone was naked and we were all with Joshua and everyone was happy and nobody was mad at me for being in his bed. And then, Lark wanted to show me just how intimately she accepted my presence, and that was really nice. Emotionally. And then, she and Clarice gave me to Joshua as a lover and gave me permission to be like all of you.”
Raven again broke in and added, “Always. Brenda, we just met you, but you are absolutely one of us. Just look at you. You are clearly one of us, an ‘exceptional woman’ as Joshua says. So, you had your first experience with him? Did you do the baptism? You have to do the baptism. It is wonderful. And see our tokens,” and Raven showed Brenda the collar and the crest around her neck.
Brenda looked bashful and said, “Raven that’s really nice, but you know that I’m…not like you, right?”
Raven said, “You mean you have metal bones and a super brain? Yeah, of course. Hey, wait. Does that mean that you have coconut milk? I haven’t tried it yet, because, well because Joshua hasn’t been around and I don’t want to do it without him. But, I would like to try it someday, if I could. Lark said it’s really good. But, I don’t have to, you know, unless it happens sometime. But the token is part of the whole package, right, Joshua? Brenda gets that too, doesn’t she?”
I said, “Of course she does. As soon as we can. In fact, I think I have a plan and I think that it will be soon.”
Raven said, “Good. We want Brenda to be happy with us. I love her. I mean it. Brenda, I love you and you can be with me anytime you want to or you can ask me to do anything for you.”
Brenda stared at Raven in awe. After a few minutes of silence, she started to push her chair back from the table and said, “Raven come with me. The rest of you can come if you want to.”
Brenda led us all to the living area where she sat at one end of a large sofa. She sat down and said, “Raven, come here and do something for me. Lay down here on the sofa and put your head in my lap.”
Raven happily complied, saying, “Um, that sounds really nice. I won’t mind if you want to hug me or something.”
Brenda smiled and as Raven lay down, Brenda placed her right arm under Raven’s neck. She pulled the smaller girl against her chest and rocked her very gently, holder her face with her left hand.
She said, “Raven, you made me feel really loved.”
As Raven relaxed and sighed, Brenda very gently guided Raven’s lips to her right breast, so that the large nipple just touched them. Raven opened her eyes wide and stared at Brenda. Brenda smiled warmly and winked. At that, Raven very tentatively opened her mouth and Brenda lowered her breast between Raven’s soft lips.
Raven closed her eyes, puckered her lips around the gift being offered to her, like a babe with her mother, and sucked very gently. She didn’t show any sign of surprise or excitement. What happened was that her face completely relaxed and a look of peace overtook her.
Brenda stroked her hair and said, “Raven, I love you. I have always loved you. From now on, I am always here for you. Every night, I will tuck you into bed. And every morning, I will welcome you to another new day of love and togetherness. When you feel like you need it, come to me and I will feed you from my breasts and refresh you and do what I can to make your day better. Thank you for loving me the way that you do. I will repay your acceptance and love in any way that I can. Some days I will be your sister. Some days I am your playmate. Some days I am your partner in loving our master. And some days, I am your mother.”
Raven sighed and removed her lips from Brenda just long enough to whisper, “My fairy princess godmother.”
Brenda stroked her hair and said, “Yes dear. Just like that.”
Raven stayed in Brenda’s lap, suckling tenderly, and Brenda continued to whisper loving words to Raven. The rest of us just stood watching. We did sit down after a while, but we kept watching in silence as Brenda poured love into the tiny Raven.
After maybe seven to ten minutes, Brenda whispered, “She’s asleep. She fell asleep on her own. Master, let me use the sleep music so that she won’t be disturbed if I put her to bed. She should sleep and rest. But, I don’t want her to wake up alone.”
I said, “Keep her asleep, and put her in my bed. Don’t let her wake up until I’m with her. She can wake up with me.”
Brenda smiled and gently lifted Raven and carried her downstairs to the bedrooms.
I said to the others, “That was beautiful. Does anyone have any questions about Brenda, before she comes back?”
I knew that Brenda could hear us if she wanted to, but this gave us a chance to talk about her without having to look at her.
The girls, Viola and Lark, both said that they were very happy that Brenda had been rescued and that she was definitely one of us and they loved her already. It seemed settled, as far as what Brenda’s status in the house was: she was one of us. One of my bedmates. And loved by all of us.
When Brenda came back, she sat down on the arm of the big chair that I was in. I told her how very beautiful what she had done was, and how happy I was about it.
Then I said, “Now, let’s talk about the day ahead. I think one agenda item is for Viola to pick out a bedroom.”
Viola looked surprised and Ellie told her that we all had bedrooms and that she would get to pick one right away.
Mandy said, “We need food again. We have more princesses now and we have to go shopping.”
I asked, “What about the lumber yard, the roads, and the Moon Maids?”
Viola had a question about the moon maids, and again, Ellie offered to explain it later.
Clarice said, “The road to the lumber yard is drivable. We are starting to clear the yard itself today. It will all be done by the tractors, so no one needs to do anything there. The yard will be clear by evening. We will run the portable saw mill at low speed to reduce noise, but you might want to warn people about strange sounds.”
I said, “I’ll spread the word that people should ignore them for now. This is a haunted wood, after all.”
Clarice went on, “The
roads are progressing. The road to the west, downstream will take some time. If we plan to drive all the way to the bridge, it will need a lot of work on the last mile. We will probably need to build a few short bridges along the way. I want to talk to you about a design for hidden barriers to keep the entrances private.”
I said, “Good. So the moon maids?”
Clarice said, “Brenda and I can work on that and we’ll need your help. Pops taught you a lot and you had the same talent for mechanical design that he did. The bodies are very similar to existing designs for the elves and nymphs, but with several simplifications. I want you to approve them. We don’t build anything without Joshua’s approval, right, ladies?”
She said it like she was reinforcing a strict rule and the nymphs all nodded in agreement.
Clarice went on, “When the design is approved, I can have the machines in the lair start making parts. It will take two days to get molds ready, but by then we should have enough parts for at least a few of them ready for assembly. You should be part of that. You will enjoy it. And, I think that’s about it. The pool is coming along, the bedrooms are all almost ready, and we are in a pretty much livable state.”
I asked, “Are we ready for Aspen to come? Is there any reason to wait before we bring her here?”
Brenda said, “I’m good with it.”
Viola said, “I think that she is more than ready. Of course, I just got here and haven’t even seen what this place is yet, but Aspen is ready to come.”
Lark said, “I’m all for it. We have so many changes every day, and if we take care of Aspen, maybe we can play and get to know each other, all of us together. Do you know what a swimming pool is? It’s a big cove for swimming, but indoors in a giant room. It’s amazing.”
I said, “OK. Here’s my thoughts. We need food. So, Viola, Brenda, and I…” but Lark interrupted.
She said, “And Brenda’s baptism. And I want to come to it.”
I said, “Good thought. OK. Viola goes back to the farm this afternoon. She and Aspen do whatever they need to do. Brenda and I will go shopping; Brenda, I assume that you know what to shop for, and we will bring the groceries to the farm. I’ll take Brenda to the jeweler’s and get the license and the token. Viola, Brenda, Aspen and I will have dinner with Paul at the farm. I’m thinking that Viola, Brenda, and I will sleep together and Aspen will sleep by herself in the spare room. In the middle of the night, I will wake Aspen and take her away into the woods while it’s still dark. Brenda and Viola can bring the groceries back here then. How much moonlight will there be tonight?”
Clarice said, “If Brenda and Viola leave first, you can take the road by the river. The moonlight on the river should be plenty and the road is smooth now. You shouldn’t have any problem.”
I smiled and said, “Does that sound OK to everyone?”
Brenda said, “I have never been outside the house. Not except for the gardens. I have never talked to anyone but family. And only really just you all and Clark and Irene. I know how to buy groceries, but I have never been to a market before. And I have never had dinner in someone else’s home. In fact, this morning was the first time I had ever sat down to a meal at all.”
Clarice said, “Then you are in for a treat. When Joshua took me out the first time, I cried several times. It is wonderful. Everyone will love you.”
Brenda looked dubious, but said, “OK. I will do whatever you say.”
I continued, “Tomorrow, I’ll be with Aspen, and I don’t know how long it will be before we get back here. I plan to stay away most of the day, I think. One other thing. The farther that the network reaches, the better, I think. How feasible is it to extend it to all eight villages? It’s a seventy mile loop.”
Brenda was still sitting on the arm of my chair, but now slid down into my lap.
Clarice said, “We anticipated the potential need for short range nodes after things settled down. We have several hundred in storage. They are very small and are easily installed in the trees. In most cases, they would never be noticed. If nodes were placed in the trees on both sides of the river, they would all be in range of nodes on the opposite bank. For a seventy mile loop, minus the roughly ten miles we have coverage for already, we might use another forty or so.”
I said, “And what about another set that goes to the far side of each village?”
She said, “Add another eight to twelve.”
I asked, “Do we have a boat? That we can travel to the villages in?”
Clarice said, “We have a hard-hulled inflatable that holds six people. It has a fast electric motor and is fairly quiet, especially at slower speeds. The top speed is about twenty-five miles an hour. Do you want us to get it ready?”
I said, “Yeah, I think so. Think about taking some night trips along the river with quick stops to secretly install network nodes. We could take several nights to do all of it.”
Brenda grabbed my hand and placed it over her breast. I complied, and it did feel really nice, but I stayed mostly focused on the planning.
Clarice, and the others, smiled as Clarice said, “We can take six of us. You, me, Brenda, and the nymphs. Go across the river and drop off a nymph. Zig zag back to this side to the next spot, and drop off another. Back to the opposite side, and in a village, drop two of us. Then, run back to the first point and pick every one up. Then run farther up the river and repeat the process. We have to stay within range of the network at all times, so we can’t just go to the end and work our way back. It probably works best if we just stay together for the few minutes that it takes to install each node, until we get to a village. Then, someone hops out, does the river side node, then runs off to the other side of the village and does that node and we pick them up later.”
Wendy said, “We have lots. And we can throw really good and we are really good at finding things, so do it like that.”
I asked, “Wendy, where did you come from?”
She laughed and said, “I finished my chores, so the stork brought me. But if we take the boat and just go up the middle, then Clarice and Brenda can just throw the nodes at the beaches and then when we go all the way to the end, then we can go back and find them and put them in the trees and bring back the extra ones. If you throw them in the grass, they probably won’t get broken. And we could put them in special hard eggs and that will protect them. Nymphs are good otters and we could swim back from the top and it will be faster.”
Clarice said, “That could work. Wendy, I’m proud of you. If we take the boat up the middle of the river, Brenda or I could throw nodes along the way. Because they will be near the ground, and not in the trees, we would distribute twice as many. When we reach the end of where we want them. We let someone out on each side of the river. They install a node, measure a signal, and then pick up the redundant one, Then move on to the next. We run the boat to a half way point and drop off another of us on each side of the river to do the same. When the ones up river are done, we pick them up in the boat and bring them home.”
Wendy said, “But we go half way by throwing the eggs, then two of us can jump out and start planting them in the trees.”
Clarice said, “That’s true. Let’s see. Thirty minutes to get ready and launch. An hour to throw the first half; we need to come to a stop for each throw. Another hour for the second half. Maybe three hours for installation, including the far sides of the villages. The time line could be launch from here at twelve-thirty, drop off the first crew at one-thirty, drop off the second crew at two-thirty. The first crew finishes at four-thirty. The second crew at five-thirty.”
Brenda said, “If Joshua can handle the boat, I can do installations too.”
Clarice said, “He has handled a lot of boats, but I can also handle it remotely, as long as I’m in range. OK. We shave a bit off the travel time, have Brenda work on this side of the river, because this is where the most villages are. We deduct time for the nodes that are already done along Golden Wood, and we plan for everything to be finished by fo
ur-thirty AM. If we run into trouble, we just quit and finish another night.”
I asked, “And will everyone be safe?”
Clarice said, “We are really good swimmers. And, we don’t have to breathe. We will have safety protocols, but if anything did go wrong, I’m confident that we can handle it and recover everyone easily enough. The risk is very low. Like if we encounter a giant mutant river shark level of risk.”
I looked concerned and Clarice said, “No, there aren’t any. Remember, the cataclysm was a volcano and earthquake, not nuclear fallout. No giant mutant three-headed fresh water sharks. Joshua, if you want us to, we could start on it tonight while you’re gone. It might be done by morning.”
I said, “But Brenda will be with me.”
Brenda said, “But only until everyone falls asleep. They could pick me and Viola up on the way. Or, as soon as Aspen is asleep, Viola and I can bring the groceries and be ready by twelve-thirty anyway. That way, Viola doesn’t even have to go with us in the boat.”
Clarice said, “Being in the boat will be more fun during the day when we can enjoy it more. If we do this, Viola should just come back to the house and sleep.”
I said, “But, about that, if you are all gone, what happens to the house?”
Clarice said, “I’m never gone. Just my avatar. My body. The house still works fine.”
Wendy said, “And everybody will be asleep and if they get lonely, they can play with Roger.”
I said, “OK. I guess that settles it. I better go wake up Raven and then Brenda and Viola and I will head to Paul’s. Lark, are you happy to stay here?”
Lark said, “I am. And Raven and I will get the swimming pool ready. Wait till you see it. It’s so freaking cool.”
I asked, “Freaking cool?”
Lark smiled and said, “That’s what I’m told. Viola and I will get Brenda a dress.”
I went down the stairs to my room, and went to the bed where Raven lay sleeping peacefully. Apparently, Brenda had undressed her and raised the temperature to a comfortable level for Raven to be sleeping on top of the bed with nothing covering her naked body. She was lying on her back, her legs spread comfortably. She was beautiful and for a moment, I thought about making love to her when she woke up, but I had already been with Brenda twice this morning and a bit more recovery time sounded better right now.
The Wounded Page 26
