Pigs In Space Pt. 02

The Old Man of the Sea

This is a work of fiction. All characters depicted are over the age of 18.

Mack was alone in the outside lounge, overlooking the pool under cover from the sun. The Braggs were busy with their daily affairs, Roger in a showdown, lawyers at 10 paces, Tanya in her office next door cooking the books. Maya was in the mess hall helping Aisha with her English, Hayley still in bed, Beck off for a horse ride with the kids. A gentle breeze rustled the palm trees outside while a black and white bird filled the air with its morning aria. Replete with coffee and cereal, Mack leant back, savouring the irony of it all. Here he was on a billionaire's private island, surrounded by more free-range pussy than he could poke a dick at, and all because those idiots had fired his ass from offshore. Sure, he'd almost died a few times in the interim, but present situation considered it was a small price to pay. How he longed for a phone, just to take a selfie. In bed with the twins maybe, or by the pool with half a dozen naked chicks sun-baking around him. They'd be so happy for him when they saw it.

At the sound of pounding hooves Mack twisted in his seat in time to see a horse gallop full-throttle onto the patio, an equine no-go zone by order of Mister Bragg who, as the high-end lawyer endlessly griped, was often left to shovel the horseshit. The offending rider was none other than Beck the pilot, barely clad in her striped blue bikini, with riding boots and helmet to complete the ensemble. Vaulting off her mount even as it reared to a halt, she set off running, stopping once to rip off her boots, hopping from foot to foot before hurling them aside then throwing her helmet onto a table as she pelted by. Mack jumped to his feet, heart pounding. Someone must have had taken fall and it sure as hell wasn't her. "Beck? Sweetheart?"

"They're coming!" Beck squealed in unbridled delight, continuing-on into the former admin block where the Braggs kept their offices. Dressed in shirt and tie, wearing the top half of a $10,000 suit with torn Billabong board shorts on the bottom, Bragg muted his feed as the door burst open and Beck leant in. "They're coming!"

Without waiting for a reply, she hurried next door to where Tanya was on the phone haranguing a contractor. "They're coming, Tan! They're back!"

Cutting the call, Tanya joined Beck out in the breezeway. "Damon and the gang?"

"I saw their sails." Beck breathlessly confirmed, "From the strip. About two miles out."

"You sure it's them, Darling? We haven't heard a thing."

"It's them!" Beck insisted jumping up and down. "She's got a black hull and Tiki on the gennaker. They're running downwind. They should be rounding the corner any minute."

Mack joined the scrum. "What's up?" he asked, "What's all the excitement?"

"Looks like we're about to be invaded." Tanya announced.

Mack gave his head a little shake trying to clear it. "Invaded?"

"Pie-rats." Bragg confirmed. He'd ditched the zoom-meeting claiming a legal emergency, leaving his people, Vicky MacDonald, as good as ten men, to talk to their people, ten men, no match for Vicky. In his suit-jacket, shirt and tie and baggy-ass shorts, he looked like someone had done a cut-and-paste- business executive cut off at the waist and pasted on top of an out-of-work surfer. "Finally! It's been days since we heard from them."

"That's why they call him 'under the radar Damon.'" Beck smiled cheekily. "You know I taught him everything he knows."

"Longest two minutes of his life." Bragg said hugging her shoulders. He gestured with his chin at a horse in the distance. "Beck, Sweetheart. Is that your nag having a shit on my patio?"

Beck put a hand to her mouth. "Ooops."

"You WILL clean. It up, won't you?"

"I will, I promise."

"Hang on, Becks," Tanya said, "I'll get you a cup and a teaspoon."

Beck turned and hurried away, plucking a baseball cap from a hat-tree on the way. "Let me just meet them first."

"Let's all go." Tanya sighed. "Beats arguing with a bolshy bogan."

"Who's turning up, exactly?" Mack asked, following Bragg as he shed his sartorial disguise like a wolf throwing off the skin of a lion.

"Damon Watson and his scurvy crew. Merry. His merry crew. including our daughter Sook. And Penny."

"You have a daughter?"

"Sook." Bragg nodded.

'Sook', Mack said to himself. 'Sook'. Some sort of Aussie nickname, obviously.

Maya and Aisha stepped out of the restaurant where they'd been using the big screen for English lessons. "What's going on Unky Rodge?"

"Boat people about to invade." Bragg said, draping his business shirt and tie over the vacant branches of a hat tree.

"Prepare to repel boarders!" Tanya cried then winked at Mack. "A cockroach in the sugar-bowl usually does the trick."

"Umm..." Mack hedged, "... Tan? The horse doo-doo. Would you like me to clean it up?"

Tanya tilted her head, looking up at him. "You'd do that for me?"

"It's only horse droppings, Ma'am."

"'Ma'am'? You do know I'm probably younger than you?"

"Uh huh," Mack nodded, "by ten years if it's a day."

Hand on her heart, Tanya fluttered her eyelids as her cheeks pinked. "Goodness! You don't just shovel shit you talk it as well. You're gonna fit in well here. If you're serious, there's a poo bucket and shovel in the tack-room. It's got 'Poo' written on it, you can't miss it. Dump the load in the flowerbed if you wouldn't mind. Those 16-petal chrysanthemums could use a boost. And if you do, I promise, your efforts won't go unrewarded."

'Good enough for me', Mack thought, though there was one reward he coveted that was probably beyond the pale. In her mid-30s, the woman still wore her effortless sexuality like a mantle, a shining aura, from her open, smiling face to her perfect round breasts, low, canted hips and generous firm ass. And those legs, built to carry a fit, feisty, funny, smart and boundlessly adventurous soul on its life's journey.

"How's our guest settling in?" Bragg asked watching him go.

"Hats girls!" Tanya called, whereupon Maya and Aisha reversed course out of the sunshine to cover their heads. Tanya compressed her lips. "Mmmm... you know, for a yank he's really quite sweet. Thoughtful. Just ask Beck."

Bragg grunted with laughter. "I know. She told me. Her and Hayley at the same time. We'll be lucky if he doesn't sue."

Tanya elbowed her husband in the ribs. "Not feeling threatened are you?"

Bragg's flawless dentition shone white as he laughed. "Me? The billionaire owner of a tropical paradise? With a red-hot wife and all the you-know-what I can eat? Oh, terribly."

"That's my boy."

"Seriously... no... I don't. Not with all I've got. Besides, Teacher would roll in his grave if I was jealous and he's not even in it."

At the sound of approaching hoofbeats they turned. "Lock up your women." Tanya breathed. "Here come those damned Mongorians."

They stood watching the 3 girls dismount. They were in bikini tops as usual, and light-gray yoga shorts, crotches stained dark with sweat and the sort of arousal only a huge, powerful animal, gripped between the thighs could evoke. Pink, elastic-sided Blundstone boots for riding through scrub. And, bless their hearts, they were wearing their helmets. "Can you imagine..." Bragg said dreamily.

"Mmmm hmmm." Tanya nodded. "Know what? I wanna come back as a pair of those shorts. They must share 'em around surely."

"And I wanna be one of their saddles."

Tanya gripped his arm. "And we could be together in the next life! Me astride you, banging up and down."

"You mean just for something different?" Bragg said. "You know? If we as a species weren't facing impending annihilation just how perfect this would be? I mean look at those girls! Look!"

"It IS perfect, Rodge. It's perfect right here, right now, and that's all we've got." Taking a breath, Tanya cupped a hand to her mouth. "Don't let them wander onto the patio, girls! Your mate's got enough shi... poo... to shovel."

"We wonnn't."

"And don't put em' away wet." Bragg added. Thinking that's exactly what he'd love to do with them.

"No Sirrrr."

Handing her reins to Nyamjargal, one of the twins marched over. "And who do we have here?" Tanya asked, fists on hips looking down with a smile.

"Vivi, Aunt. What's up? Is Becky's partner here?"

"Almost by the sounds of it."

"Ummm..." Viviani began, looking anxiously around, while Bragg stood staring from under cover of hastily-installed mirrored shades at the little slice of heaven between her legs "... what should we do?"

"What do you want to do Darling?" Tanya asked gently.

"What I mean is, is this a private affair? Their reunion? Should we stay away?"

Reaching out, Tanya cupped Viviani's chin in the palm of her hand. "Oh, Darling, of course not. You're family."

"Aren't we a tribe? That's what Beck said."

"Same thing, Sweetheart. We're all here for each other."

'Darling.' 'Sweetheart'. In the absence of their own titular mom, the girls often sought-out this strange, lovely woman just to hear those beautiful words, spoken with such genuine affection. Arms spread, feet apart, Viviani looked herself over. "Should we change then?"

Even A-cups were one size too big and Tanya spied a hint of caramel areola peeking out from under a tiny triangle of fabric. "It's not a fashion parade Vivi." she smiled, thinking, if that little stunner so much as crooked a finger.

Bragg gave a wave of dismissal. "You look fine, Vivi. No one's gonna notice." 'Except Damon' he snickered inwardly. And his tired old eyes were gonna to pop right out of his head.

"Cool!" Viviani nodded then turned to stride away.

"And throw some rugs over those gee-gees." Bragg called after her. "And give em' some tucker."

Arm raised, Viviani gave a thumb's-up while Tanya stood, chewing a nail, revelling the girl's rear-view, that narrow waist, that gorgeous ass, those child-bearing hips.

"Now I AM jealous." her husband breathed, reading her mind. "That lucky prick."

"Travis?"

Bragg gave a nod.

"You'd need a light-sabre to chop the head off THAT one."

"Uh huh." Brag replied. "Wait till Damon sees them. He's gonna go ape."

Mission complete, Mack returned to the tack-room to help the girls with the horses, rubbing them down, filling their feed troughs while they rolled in the sand. Oddly replete after the earthy labour, he led his little gaggle like a mother duck to the jetty where the others were gathered, wandering to-and-fro kicking pebbles, waiting for the fabled sails on the horizon. "What's taking them?" Beck demanded grumpily while Aisha and Maya threw chips of coral off the jetty to annoy the fish. "I'm gonna ride back up."

"Have a heart, Becks." Bragg said. "Those poor bloody horses have just knocked off work. Let them be."

"But he's probably run her aground the silly old duffer." Beck huffed. "I should check."

"Okay then. Take an ATV."

Beck snapped her fingers. "Great idea!"

"Want me to come with?" Bragg asked.

Beck's own partner was so close now she could almost taste him and as delicious as Bragg was she shook her head. "Nahh, that's okay. Won't take me a minute."

Beck jogged away while the others watched her go and Tanya shook her head. "She's like a cat on hot bricks."

Bragg shrugged. "Why change the habits of a lifetime?"

"They been apart long?" Mack asked, arm resting on Echo's shoulder. "Beck and her partner?"

"Couple of months." Tanya replied. "Beck was away flying then Damon nipped over to Kiwiland to pick up a yacht."

"Another one?" Mack asked before he could stop himself.

Bragg glanced at Mack from the corner of his eye. "A guy can't have too many yachts you know Travis. N always equals N plus one, remember?"

"N?"

"The minimum number of toys a bloke needs."

"Boys." Tanya rolled her eyes.

"So this new yacht?" Mack asked. "Bigger. Faster?"

The Braggs exchanged a glance. "I guess you could say she's one of a kind. Built for a very special purpose."

"Like going down to the ice?"

"Something like that."

"Racing?"

"Sort of."

"In other words you don't wanna tell me."

Tanya compressed her lips wondering how much to drip-feed the guy. "Look, Trav, it's hard to explain."

'In other words mind your own business' Mack thought. Fair enough. Maybe they were drug-running, or trading guns or poaching. He didn't care.

At the sound of a ATV roaring up the hillside and Tanya put a hand to her mouth. "And slow down!" she called as if Beck might actually hear. "You'll run over Mister Brown."

"He's not real, is he?" Mack said, not so much as question as a statement of fact.

"Beck's partner?" Tanya frowned, "he most certainly is."

"This Mister Brown character. It's just... like... some sort of silly story isn't it? To frighten kids and Americans. Like the drop bears. THEY'RE not real. I goggled them."

"They are bloody so!" Tanya said hotly. "Wait till we take you to Saint Bee's."

All of a sudden, Aisha began jumping up and down, arm outstretched, pointing. "I see them! I see them!" And there, rounding the point, in the process of losing her magnificent gennaker, was a beautiful black yacht, her grey aramid sails luffing briefly through the tack before bellying full again as the vessel took up course.

The first flush of giddy excitement levelled out into a buoyant sense of anticipation. Crowding the end of the jetty, the girls standing on tiptoes the better to see, they watched the yacht on a beat carve through the waves. A figure appeared on the steel-railed pulpit gripping the forestay, and waved. "Who is it?" Tanya asked breathlessly, "Can you see?"

Sweeping its hat off, the figure on the yacht commenced madly waving and Tanya jumped up and down on the spot. "IT'S SOOKIE!" she cried, clapping, "I CAN SEE HER! I CAN SEE HER BLACK HAIR!"

The ATV roared across the patio, strictly forbidden, and barrelled down the jetty, another flogging offence. Beck bailed out one side and Hayley the other- Beck had found the late-sleeper wandering a deserted long-house wanly crying, 'Hello?'

Beck ran in circles shedding excess energy. "They're gonna need ropes. And fenders. And water. And-"

"Slow DOWN Becky-boo." Tanya admonished, catching her around the neck and pulling her close, breasts pressing into the little blonde's sweaty back, "You're gonna burn up in the atmosphere."

Beck gripped Tanya's arm for the simple sense of security. Like clinging to a branch in a raging torrent. Because she knew, and she only knew because her old man had taught her, every time they said goodbye could be the last. It was nature's way he always said and she just had to accept it. And the life they led, reckless, unconventional, often pitting themselves against what seemed like insurmountable odds meant each following reunion was literally a miracle. Looking down, Tanya kissed the top of her head. "You're not wearing a hat."

"Gave it to Comet. She's already got enough freckles."

"That's my baby. Always thinking of others."

The whole thing dragged by in slow-motion, till the yacht at last finally slewed into wind, the sails coming down while several figures scurried about, a small one forward, a middle-sized one amidships, and a taller one at the helm. "Not gonna sail her up to the hard?" Beck said and blew a raspberry. "Scaredy-cat."

"Wouldn't that be awesome?" Bragg nodded, "Eleven hundred nautical miles just to sink at the jetty."

The engine powered up. With the sails furled and fenders portside, the elegant vessel nosed its way towards the dock, one crew member up on the bow, two in the cockpit. When at last they came within earshot, Bragg waved. "Ahoy Captain! Have you heard of this new invention? It's called a radio."

The figure at the helm yelled a reply and Bragg looked squinting at his wife. "What did he say?"

"Cloth-ears!" Tanya scolded. "He said radios are a fad and they'll never catch on." She stood Beck aside, the little blonde's eyes brimming with tears of joy and relief. "OI!" she yelled, "HAVE YOU GOT A BOOKING? WE'RE FULL!"

"OF YOU-KNOW-WHAT!" a laughing female voice replied, the girl at the bow.

Bouncing up and down, hands clutched to her chest, Beck watched the yacht manoeuvre, sidling up to the concrete finger with pulses of power until the fenders squeaked home. Breaking away, she jumped onboard, almost slipping, and fell into a clinch with the old man at the helm. Peering up at the vessel, Mack counted 3 SOB, a little Asian girl and a taller woman of indeterminate age, both bikini-clad, and an old man in baggy board shorts and torn grey T-shirt. A real vagabond, with a week's grey stubble on his jaw, eyes invisible under the shade of a faded blue hat. But no sign of Beck's oft-touted, hairy-chested, steely-eyed, ruggedly handsome other half. Just two young chicks and some old geezer.

Breaking off, the old man said something in Beck's ear and she gave a nod, then hopped down into Bragg's waiting arms. "Rodge," the old man called, "take the forward spring-line?"

While Bragg hurried aft to catch the rope, Hayley, adept at the art, caught the bow-line then she and Bragg crossed paths, the aft-line cleated-off forward, the forward-line aft. The engine chugged away at idle, exhaust-water sloshing out of the stern, as the 3 new arrivals scurried around on-deck, nimbly dressing the sheets and stowing loose gear, tidying-up until the engine shut down. Gathering in the cockpit for a last, congratulatory hug, they stepped down, one by one, onto the hard.

The little Asian girl was first, falling into her parents' embrace for a long, weeping hug. Pushing away, smearing her eyes, Tanya led the girl to Mack who stood trying not to stare. "Travis, this is my daughter, Sook."

Sook held out her hand, beaming, her slitted eyes like little half-moons over bunched, sunburned cheeks. Mack couldn't but help notice a huge, zigzag scar in the shape of a reverse letter 'L', starting at her sternum and ending over her hip. "Travis?" she said, "Sook. So nice to meet you."

"Sook?" Mack nodded, frankly bamboozled. Then the penny dropped and he quickly gathered his wits. Adopted daughter. Why not? "Pleasure to meet you. I have to say you're every bit as lovely as your mom."

"You can see the resemblance, right?" Sook grinned, holding Tanya's hand, pointing from her mother to herself.

"Pretty much identical." Mack said, gesturing at the twins huddled nervously nearby. "Just like this pair."

"Here," Tanya said, leading Sook away, "let me introduce you."

Mack looked around as Beck led another crew member into his space. "Travis, this is Penny. Damon's first-mate."

"Second." Penny said matter-of-factly, "You're his first, always were, always will be."

"Second first-mate then."

Like the Asian girl, Penny was minimally and unabashedly clad in a teeny-weeny bikini. Pink tie-top, B-cup if Mack wasn't mistaken, aqua bottoms. Even under the shade of her baseball cap, he could make out an angry purple scar, starting at the bridge of her nose and extending over the crest of her left cheekbone all the way to her temple. As they shook, he saw even more on her forearms. And her thighs, all the way from the hips to the knees. It looked as if she'd been sewn together from scraps and Mack fleetingly wondered if this dude named Damon went by the surname of 'Frankenstein'. But the girl was striking anyway in spite of the scars, or maybe because of them, fit, slender, with high, firm breasts separated by another purple weal, flat belly with a sweet little navel, wavy brown hair tied back in a ponytail. And an all-over tan, Mack wagered, if he were ever lucky enough to see.

While he and the girl made introductions, crew member number 3, the old man, stepped down into a manly hug from Bragg. That was nice, Mack wistfully thought, Beck's partner must have dragged his dear old dad along for the ride, the sort of thing he often wished he had done with his own father- a road trip maybe, or a mountain hike or back-woods fishing, a reconnection with the once towering figurehead of his own cherished childhood, a reaffirmation of the reverence, all too rarely expressed, he felt for the man.

Once Roger was done with his greeting, Tanya stepped up next, rocking the old codger to-and-fro in a breast-mashing, full-frontal embrace. "Skipper downstairs?" Mack asked Penny absentmindedly, craning his neck to look over the scuppers. For this old man was no ruggedly handsome adventurer, no intrepid sailor with a brass balls and a thousand-yard stare. Or cerebral scribe, or lofty spiritual guide, all the things it said in the brochure. He was... well... old... with sinewy arms and legs hewn from oak, fit for his age to be sure, but a senior citizen nonetheless, sixty if he was a day. And his hat. His sunbleached blue hat. It was covered in little yellow daisies.

"Huh?" Penny frowned. "What do you mean? That's him."

Mack's brain still refused to join the dots. Of course! THIS was the old geezer's boat, and it was Beck's partner who was just along for the ride, in case the old boy stroked-off or chucked a coronary. Suddenly it all made sense. Her partner's yacht was over there, up on the hard, a completely different kettle of fish. Once Tanya was done, Beck took the old man's hand and dragged him over to meet the befuddled Marine. "Travis?" she said, heavy-breathing with excitement, "this is my partner, Damon."

Mack's jaw sagged. "YOU'RE Damon?"

Watson looked around for anyone else who fit the bill, then shrugged and extended his hand. "Apparently."

"Like... THE Damon? I mean there's only one of you? Not, like, a Damon senior and Damon Junior?"

"No, Travis," Tanya said dryly, "we don't do that rubbish down here."

Mack took his hand and they shook. "And you're Beck... Rebekah's partner?"

"In crime." the old man smiled.

"Oh." Mack said, indescribably relieved. All this time he'd been assuming a different sort of partner. "So you're not..."

"Quit teasing, Dommy." Beck admonished. "Don't listen to him, Travis. He's NOT my partner in crime. He's the other sort."

"Her soul-mate." Bragg explained patting Watson's back.

"Well... you see..." the old man hedged, slightly discomforted by the American's bare-faced dismay, "her soul was on special. Half-price. So, you know, since nobody else wanted it."

"Rubbish!" Tanya admonished. "This is what you get when you save a lost girl. When you dive overboard in a storm, miles out to sea. You wind up with her undying love."

"Well there's more to it than that, Tanny." Beck said.

"Well it's a bloody good start if you ask me. But Travis? Why so surprised?"

"He'll get used to it." Beck said waving the American's consternation away. "Trav? Would you like to introduce Damon to the girls?"

Mack shook his head, adjusting the set. "Huh? Oh. Sure. Errr... Vivi? Echo? Jagwar?"

Deep in conversation with Sook the 3 twins looked around and Mack beckoned. As they approached in a knot, Bragg saw the old man's brows hit the roof and hang for a second until he reined in his astonishment. Back on an even keel, he whipped off his daisy hat to expose a head full of thinning white hair, and his face, lined with age, weathered by wind and sun.

The girls formed a phalanx in front of him, Viviani in the middle. The twins had met countless old men over the years- kings and presidents, sheikhs and emirs, barons, dukes and earls. Surgeons, scientists, movie stars and artists, an endless procession of dissipated old males kept more or less upright by medical science and money. And not one of them, over the years, had ever failed to bow to their youth and their beauty.

Viviani held her hand out. "I'm Viviani Carter." she coolly announced and they shook. Diminutive she might have been but she had an iron grip and regal bearing.

"Pleased to meet you, Viviani. Please call me Damon. And you're...?"

"On the run." Viviani said without batting an eye. Neither the blue one nor the brown. "And what about you?"

"It's more of a stroll these days." Watson replied just as earnestly and Tanya snorted into her hand. "I figure if they catch me it's their own stupid fault."

When he looked from the puzzled girl to her sister beside her, he found an identical copy. Same bi-coloured eyes. Same straight-backed precociousness. "I'm Echo." she said.

Taking her tiny hand, Watson shook. Just as small but the same firm grip. "Echo?"

The girl nodded. "Echo."

"As in 'Echo'?" Watson confirmed as Viviani rolled her eyes but before she could object the silly old man went on. "The oread nymph?"

Echo's jaw sagged and she drew a sharp breath. "You know the story?"

Watson dipped his head. "Of course. And I have to say you have always been my favourite."

"Favourite what?"

"Oread Nymph." Watson answered matter-of-factly. "And I was SO bloody angry when Hera laid that curse on you, when all you were doing was just following orders. Orders, I might add, her own husband had just given you. And if you don't mind me saying. That self-absorbed dimwit, Narcissus... he's just not worth it."

Still holding Watson's hand, Echo gave a nod of gratitude. "In all my life, you are the very first person to know my story."

"And what a delightful story it is. And I'm happy to see that curse has worn off. Bloody Hera. She needs to take a good hard look at herself. Narcissus can show her how."

Echo released him and Watson turned to Nyamjargal while Bragg looked on mentally shaking his head. He, Bragg, had meant to blow the old man's mind and here Watson was blithely blowing theirs. "Hi," he smiled sweetly, "you must be twin number three?"

Bragg flung his arms down in exasperation. "Jesus Christ!"

"Who told you?" Mack frowned

"Told me what?"

"'Third twin'. That was our own little joke."

Looking around like he'd just been unfairly accused, Watson hefted a shoulder. "Look, mate, I was just being funny. Like, THIRD twin. Get it?"

"I'm tellin' ya!" Tanya breathed, "The bugger's telepathic."

"Well WE'RE actually-" Echo began and Viviani elbowed her ribs.

For a moment the twins scuffled discreetly, pinching and shoving, while Nyamjargal thrust her pointy little chest out. "I am Princess Nyamjargal." the girl announced, trying to put the incipient cadaver in his place. "I am the daughter of a trillionaire, heir to an empire."

"That's a pretty name." Watson replied, unfazed. "Where is it from?"

"Well," Nyamjargal blinked, taken aback- the old ephemeral was meant to fall to his knees, "my name's Mongolian but I'm from Xibalba."

Watson's brows elevated in surprise. "Xibalba? What was a nice girl like you doing in a joint like that?"

"L... like what?"

"The Mayan underworld."

Bragg palmed his forehead while Tanya stood shaking her head.

Having failed to prevail through shock and awe, Nyamjargal found herself suddenly out of her depth. "How... who told you about Xibalba?"

"I was married to one of the lords." Watson blithely announced while Beck bit a knuckle trying not to laugh, "Vucub-Camé, " he went on, suddenly the centre of rapt attention, "only in female form. Ever come across her?"

Nyamjargal's violet eyes darted side to side. If this old ephemeral was telling the truth, and had been married to one of the lords, who did often change form, she had to concede, then he had to be thousands of years old.

"Seven Death.' he went on, "One for every day of the week." Watson paused and his expression darkened at the memory. "Blows my mind how she kept up such a frantic schedule. A different death every day. Day after day for twenty six bloody years."

Suitably rattled, Nyamjargal retreated back to the twins, hiding behind them while Bragg stepped into the frame. "Well," he said rubbing his hands, "these intrepid sailors must be starving, nothing but bread and water for the past few weeks. Who's for breakfast?"

Watson rolled his eyes. "I thought you'd never ask."

Beck sidled into him. "You naughty boy, Dommy. Really. Married to Seven Death."

Watson nudged her ribs. "I always knew that book would come in handy."

"Beck, Sweetheart," Bragg cut in and Mack observed not so much a flicker of affront in her putative other half, "is that your ATV-"

"Having a poo on the jetty? Sorry, Rodge, I was just so excited."

"Bah! I made a fortune defending people who broke the rules. I'll take it out of your hide later."

"Comet?" Beck asked, "Wanna come with?"

"Can I drive?" Hayley asked brightly. It was either that or risk ruining a pair of undies. Beck apparently couldn't tell the difference between driving a jet and an all-terrain buggy. It was either full throttle or nothing. The pair set off, leaving Aisha and Penny, arms around each other, Maya holding hands with Sook.

Arm around his shoulder, Bragg shepherded the old man towards the longhouse while Tanya beckoned Mack and the four set off in a loose formation. "So, you unsociable old coot," Bragg said, "why no radio calls?"

The old man swabbed his sweating brow with the hat and pulled it back on. "Cos' the bloody thing broke like everything else on the boat. Halfway across the ditch."

"Apart from that? Smooth sailing?"

Watson shook his head with a mournful laugh. "Oh, Rodge, if only you knew."

"Sounds like I'm about to find out."

"That bloody thing's a heap of shit! A bloody heavy heap of shit too, with all the mods. And I don't know what they've done to that keel but she just won't point worth a damn. And tender? We spent half the time with the gunwales in the water. Holy shit! Winches jamming, shit breaking down. What a shit fight! If I get through this I'm never stepping off Aurora again."

"He's joking." Tanya told Mack, taking pains to include him. "There's no problem this old boy can't fix. Just ask Beck."

"That's the bloody problem," Watson griped, "having to fix them. The alternator shat itself two days out. Had a spare but it was all seized up so I had to strip the bloody thing. Me, just a simple old hack. I'm telling you, Mister...

"Please, Sir, just call me Travis."

"I'll call you Travis if you call me Damon. I hear that word, 'sir' and I'm bracing for a frisking."

"It's true." Tanya smirked, "Wanna see him run? Just yell, 'Stop thief!'"

"Or, 'I'm from the government'. But like I was saying, I was just a simple script writer back in the day, I don't know how to do all this shi... stuff. Just lucky Penny was there. Did you know she used to be an instrument technician?"

"Girl of many talents." Tanya nodded.

"She's bloody amazing. Both of them are. When we hit bad weather there they were, steady at the helm, all bundled up in their slickers. Not a peep of complaint."

Tanya exhaled through puffed cheeks. "Well, I mean. After everything they've been through."

"That's what they said. Four bloody days we were in that storm. I was taking the nights while they did the days so it was all a bit of a tag-team. I was so shagged after the last watch that when I finally woke up it was close to midnight. And there I was, still in my rack when my watch should have started hours ago. Imagine what I thought! They've both bloodywell gone overboard. But no, they'd just let me sleep. And there they were, up in the cockpit, drinking hot chocolate while waves crashed over the deck, chatting like two friends in front of the fire."

"What have they been through, exactly?" Mack asked, curiosity piqued. And was that how they got those impressive scars?

"It's not really our story to tell." Tanya said with a pat on his shoulder. "But you had your Xi-blah-blah, right, and your girls to save? Well we had ours. And Damon here, he's the one who went to the rescue-"

"Travis. If they hand you a drink, then ask you to do them a favour, don't drink it. Next thing you know you'll wake up in the Middle East where they still chop people's heads off."

"Don't listen to him." Tanya said. "And when we get back I'd like to offer you a drink."

"I can honestly say it was insane." Watson went on. "The fact we're still here is more down to good luck than good management."

"I'd like to hear that story one day."

"Yeah, well," Watson hedged, "you might wanna take a seat. You know the old saying, 'truth is stranger than fiction?"

Mack nodded, thinking his own recent history was more like the screenplay of a horror flick. In fact the last ordinary event in his life was hovering sideways in the dark towards a raging inferno, over water, with a fearless blonde Aussie dyke hanging out the rear door. After that things just got weird.

Dinner that night was a raucous affair. Tomorrow was barge day, resupply, so they'd gone all out, killing not a fatted calf but spit roasting a lamb instead. With dinner done and the table cleared the dessert wines came out- Bragg had inherited a cellar the size of a warehouse, if by inherited he meant stolen- and he'd vowed to empty the climate-controlled racks to the very last glass. A few rounds in and he got to his feet, clearing his throat. "Teacher." he began, "On the occasion of your triumphant return, and in violation of numerous laws, both state and federal. For you," he raised a finger, "and ONLY you. Hear that you lot?" the finger wagged, "It's only for him... This gift, acquired by my own fair hand, in a state of deep disguise and with no regard for my own personal-"

"While we're still young, Shakespeare." Tanya huffed.

"-well-being. For the prodigal son. And daughters. But hopefully not from the same mum."

"Otherwise we woulda' been breaking a whole bunch of other laws." Penny said and Sook snorted with laughter.

"As if I'd give a shi..." she said, "I mean, as if I'd care."

"You can say the 'S' word, Sook." Viviani said earnestly. "I'm not THAT much of a prude."

"Anyhoo," Bragg went on, getting back on the rails, "this gift, acquired in a dingy bar from Mario-the-goat-fff... goat enthusiast, and ONLY for medicinal purposes."

Fetching a brick-sized loaf wrapped in brown paper from under the table, Bragg gave Watson a second to square up then lobbed it into his waiting hands. Beck's jaw sagged. "I thought you'd given up!"

Watson palpated the package, then held it to his nose and took a deep sniff. "You heard Rodge. It's medicinal."

"For what condition exactly?"

"Errr... demetia?"

"Really? You mean for causing it or curing it?"

"Well," Watson said while the innocents around the table craned their necks the better to see, "that's the beauty of it. It does both."

"Teacher." Bragg said, then tossed a follow-up gift in the form of a solid-silver cigar case, "I rolled you a few."

"So we wouldn't have to sit here for hours watching you do this." Eyes crossed, Beck poked her tongue out, darting it from side to side while she mimed rolling a joint.

"Kids..." Tanya sighed, "they can be SO cruel."

"She can be as cruel as she likes." Watson said, waving a big fat joint in front of Beck's eyes.

A lighter appeared and Watson flashed-up the homecoming gift. Everyone wanted some but no one was willing to out themselves until Beck spoke up. "Rodge?"

"You know the rules, Sweetheart."

"So is that a yes or a no?"

"Twenty four hours from joint to throttle."

"When do you want me to fly?"

"Barring anyone breaking their neck and needing a medevac... and yes, I'm talking about YOU girls... next Tuesday."

"What's today?"

"Friday."

Beck counted off on her fingers. "For reals? That's FIVE days."

Bragg sat back with a big, self-satisfied smile. How he LOVED indulging his people.

"Damon!" Beck said as Watson sucked in a lungful, "Gi wo!"

Cheeks puffed, eyes bulging, Watson shook his head.

"Come on greedy-guts. Share."

Watson shook his head again, his head already starting to spin.

"I'm warning you, Mister. Give me some or you'll be taking it as a suppository. In a pineapple. Maggie? Have you done proctology yet?"

Maya looked up. "Not yet, but I could always use a head-start."

"There!" Beck said. "Now, I'm gonna count to three. One... two..."

Watson beckoned Beck she fused her mouth to the old man's, inhaling as he exhaled. Several bystanders watched longingly as Beck held her breath, waiting for the magic of perfusion, then exhaled a long plume of fragrant blue smoke.

Pushing back, Maya got to her feet. "Damo? Can I?"

"If you take off those latex gloves."

Filling his lungs, Watson blew a hefty slug into Maya, who took her seat as Penny stood up. "Remember that day over in Cornwall. When we got lost in that storm? That was negligence Mister Watson. Roger said I could sue. Unless..."

Bending over Watson, Penny took her pound of smoky flesh, slipping her tongue in for good measure. Once she'd exhaled, she put her lips to Watson's ear. "Thanks, Love. That's a fuck I owe you."

"For a measly lungful of dope? Quick, have another!"

"For getting us here in one piece. AND that lungful of goodness."

Tanya got to her feet. "Oh well, in for a penny."

"You are?" Penny asked. "Must be my lucky day."

"Well I'm only human." Tanya shrugged. Pulling up beside Watson she snapped her fingers. "Garçon?"

Watson frowned at the joint, almost down to a roach. "What am I? Some sort of novelty bong?"

Beck shook her head. "Bloody hell, Roger! This is good shi... stuff."

Viviani shook her hair back. "She means good shit, Mister Bragg."

"Ah!" Bragg nodded, "mystery explained."

"Travis?" Beck asked, "would the girls like to...?"

Mack raised hands. "Don't ask me. I'm only here to carry their bags."

"Girls?"

Viviani and Echo conferred with their eyes. They'd snuck some now and then and found it not unpleasant. But it was so downmarket, so... povvo. "Doesn't it rot your brain?" Viviani asked Watson.

"Bah!" Watson said with a dismissive wave, "Of course not. Not if you're... if it... if they... hang on... what was the question?"

"Look!" Penny said, already nicely intoxicated, "the moon's coming up."

Every one looked to a chorus of 'Oooohs' and 'Ahhhs' as the moon, already a few degrees above the horizon, cast a staircase over the sea, all the way to the shore at their feet. Beck threw off a shudder. "Glad it's ours and not that bloody Ab Aldafran hunk of junk."

"Moosh," Watson said, fishing a fresh joint from the silver case, "hate to break it to you but it's the same bloody one."

"Nah!" Beck shook her head. "Can't be. Either that or the moonbeams were all corrupted passing through that filthy atmosphere."

"Let's not go digging that up." Tanya sighed.

"Right!" her old man warned, "Any more of that and you won't be getting any more of this. Only good vibes allowed."

"You're right!" Beck said, snapping out of it. "Tonight's for celebrating. Girls?"

The twins sat shoving each other in turn with their shoulders. "You go!" Viviani hissed.

"No, YOU go."

"I don't want to kiss that creepy old man."

"Well neither do I."

"Girls?" Beck said, holding a freshly lit joint aloft. "You can take it from me."

Viviani bounced to Beck's side, just as hungry for a taste of the little blonde's mouth as a hit of THC. Echo was waiting when her sister peeled away then Nyamjargal jumped out of her seat.

"Is it just me?" Bragg mused to Tanya, "Or have the wheels come off this thing? I sort of envisaged the elder statesman having a quiet puff then entertaining us young 'uns with his sea stories."

"And just how long have you been delusional?" Tanya asked. "Is this a sudden event? Or more like a creeping condition?"

Bragg looked across the table. "Aisha, Sweetheart?"

"But I have never done this, Mister Bragg."

"Have you ever tried French Champagne?"

Aisha looked around. He knew she had. He'd filled her glass on countless occasions.

"Well this is just French Champagne in smoke-form."

"In my country it is illegal."

"It's illegal in this country too. But so is busting inmates out of jail. And stealing a helicopter. You know the average person breaks several laws every day, not always on purpose mind you, but misdemeanours like-"

"Darling," Tanya warned, "you're waffling."

"But I haven't even had any." Bragg complained.

"Then you better have some. Aisha?" Tanya beckoned, "A little won't hurt, just give it a try."

Good enough for her, Aisha thought. Given all the other times Tanya had urged her to 'just give it a try.' French Champagne, lipstick, perfume. Walking through town in a sun dress with nothing underneath, past milling crowds of black-clad cult-members, staring daggers at her through their letterbox-slots. RNA-denuding of her pubic area, leaving her smooth as a billiard ball down there. Skinny-dipping in the pool, sunbaking naked on the patio. Fingers, tongues, double-dildos, skewering herself on Bragg's massive weapon, working her way down, inch-by-inch while the others cheered her on. And not one single just-give-it-a-try had ever been a bum-steer. "Alright. I will do it!"

"Trav?" Tanya asked as Bragg flashed up a number, best intentions roundly defeated.

Mack raised his hands. "Nooo, no, no, no. That's cool." No stick-in-the-mud, even he had his lines in the sand, and sucking ANY thing from a dude's mouth was one of them.

"Not even from me?" Beck sweetly asked, brandishing the joint.

"From you?"

"Who else?"

Bragg looked at Watson and they both sputtered with laughter. "You do it!"

"No YOU do it!"

"I'll give you fifty bucks."

"I'll give you a hundred."

"A million."

"TWO million."

"For god's sake." Beck said testily. "Trav? Here, it's on the house."

Viviani nudged him with her shoulder. "Go on, Pop. It's really nice."

Mack's eyes bulged and he clenched his teeth.

"I mean POP-ular." Viviani added hastily.

"You just called me-"

"Pop-ULAR." Echo nodded. "Isn't he everyone? Isn't Travis pop-ULAR."

"Most popular bloke I'VE ever met." Hayley concurred, dragging Watson's chair back to sit in his lap.

"I can see where this is going." Beck muttered, already nicely intoxicated.

Hayley shook her head. "Not tonight, Josephine. He's all yours. I'm just here for dessert."

"Well, pop-ULAR guy." Viviani pressed, "before the pretty girl burns her fingers."

"You've done it before." Echo said and Mack's face fell. "Don't worry, we saw you. With Suzanna. And Wendy."

"Ohhh..." Mack frowned, getting to his feet to a round of cat-calls and cheering, "whatthehell." Sucking a huge hit from Beck's mouth, following up with a second, he emptied his lungs then leant in to whisper in her ear. "I only did it for the kiss."

As he straightened Beck looked him straight in the eye. "So did I."

The chemicals kicked in, nothing overwhelming, just subtle, refined, benign yet nonetheless exhilarating. Mack sat for a while as the banter flowed around him and the twins helped themselves to a top-up. And it dawned on him. On a planet of 9 billion people or more, most living lives of abject, grinding poverty, riddled with disease and riven by war, suffocating under the yoke of a few powerful men- self-proclaimed 'elites', the wealthiest humans who had ever existed yet so morally bankrupt their longevity-drug saturated carcasses were barely worth the price of their constituent elements. Amidst all this self-inflicted human suffering here he was, Travis Mack, ex-Marine and former gunship pilot, in the lap of a veritable paradise. A little bubble of alter-universe floating in the void, that might pop at any second, casting him and these otherworldly people presently laughing and joking around him- characters stranger than fiction indeed- into the slow-motion inferno of civilisation's demise.

Joint between his lips, Bragg got to his feet, a semi hard-on the size of a moray eel trying to head-butt its way out of his shorts. "Don't know about you guys but I'm going for a walk up the mountain."

"Umm, Rodge," Tanya said while half a dozen females sat gawking at the thing, "your slip's showing."

Blushing, Bragg looked down and surreptitiously rearranged the contents of his shorts. "Ahem..." he said, clearing his throat, plainly embarrassed, "sorry about that. Just washed the damned thing and can't do jack shit with it."

Hayley leant into Maya. "Poor old Jack Shit. Maybe I can take his place."

As if a go-no-go switch had suddenly been thrown, there was a general mobilisation as partygoers, half-cut, and baked to golden perfection all said, 'What the hey'.

"Walking after a meal stimulates insulin." Maya said earnestly, smoothing her green silk shift then slipping her dainty feet into purple Crocs.

"Is that a good thing?" Hayley asked, straightening her layered skirt and buckling her Tevas before hooking an elbow through Maya's.

"You'd be dead without it."

"I'll take that as a yes."

On their feet, the twins steadied Mack as he stood. "Did you just call me 'pop' in front of all these people?" he growled. "You did, didn't you? That's what it sounded like."

"Maybe we did." Viviani shrugged, and Echo went on, "Maybe we didn't. What's it matter anyway?"

"I'm not your pop, that's what it matters. Harrison Carter is."

"That's different. He's just our father."

"And he's just my boss. He could have me squashed like an ant with the click of his fingers. He already said so."

"But he won't. Not ever. Because we'd never forgive him."

"As if that's gonna stop him."

"It will. Believe us."

"So what happens when you get sick of me?"

"You think that's ever gonna happen?"

"Well if the past is anything to go by."

"Really? So is that in store for us?" the girls demanded. "You're gonna get sick of us?"

'Sick of you?' Mack thought. 'Sick of your endless dramas, all the plots and intrigues and ditchings and abductions? And your father, the ruthless billionaire, just waiting to toss my sorry ass out of an airplane the minute you both tire of me? Sick of being sexually exploited by two gorgeous young girls with apparently insatiable sexual appetites?' Sick of them? "Never!"

"Hmph!" Viviani sniffed. "So there you go. And why should it be any different for us? You might think we're from an entirely different world, one you mostly despise, but don't go thinking we're not capable of normal human emotions."

"Or normal human values." Echo added, "Loyalty, self-sacrifice,"

"Courage, compassion-"

"LOVE!" the girls exclaimed and Mack waved them down.

"So practice what you preach, Pool Man." Viviani said crossly.

"Such as?"

"Semper fi, Mister!" Echo shot back "Isn't that what you say in the Marines?"

"Semper fidelis', Pool Man." Viviani elaborated in case there was any doubt, "It means 'always faithful'."

"Mmm hmmm." Echo nodded. "So shouldn't you have a little more faith? Hmm? in us?"

Mack bowed his head. "I'm sorry, girls. I stand corrected."

"So you should!" the twins chorused

"And Pop?" Viviani innocently said and Mack gnashed his teeth, "Have you had your vitamins today? Because when we get you home you're in for it."

******************************************************************************************

Life settled into a comfortable though puzzling routine. Barge-unloading, dishwasher duty, clean house and do the washing. Even the girls settled down, pitching in without complaint wherever they could, dutifully making the bed in the morning, collecting the wash. Cooking duty- results were mixed, food in the past appeared with the ring of a bell- sweeping the common areas during choring-hour.

And for the first time in their lives they had their own responsibilities, looking after the 4-legged life-forms they'd begged for. Their horses. Every day they diligently laboured away, grooming and feeding them, cleaning their stalls. Before mounting up and thrashing them all over the island. At a flat-out gallop mostly. Cantering was for tired horses, trotting for weaklings and walking for retards. Or Mack on his first and only ride, on a horse who knew she had a schmuck on her back.

His were the running tracks and the 50-meter pool, though he was still only able to wade. Balmy nights out in the open under the moon, or under cover when the rain set in. Good food, fine wine, convivial company, most of it female. A puff of weed now and then to leaven the bliss. Even if the girls DID insist in calling him Pop when they were out of their trees, THC gave an edge to sex that could have sliced through granite.

Yet Mack was gripped by an odd sort of tension, a knot in his gut, a nagging feeling that it was all too good to true. And even IF true then too good to last. One morning on his way to breakfast, he crossed paths with Tanya on her way to the office.

"Tan?"

"Ahoy there, handsome. Awesome morning for it."

"For what?"

"Whatever you like."

"Some answers?"

"To what, Trav? What's on your mind?"

"Well listen Tan, I've been thinking."

"Dammit! I told them not to let you sober up. Go on then."

"Well it's just that... Here I am living like a VVIP and I still haven't seen a bill. Like, I don't belong here, so what the hell am I doing?"

Tanya heaved a sigh of frustration. "Well... where DO you belong? Just let us know and we'd be happy to drop you there."

"No, wait, that's not what I mean. I mean I love it here, how couldn't I? But I guess... I guess... it's just that I'm not feeling particularly useful."

"In what way?"

"In ANY way."

Tanya raked her hair back. "Really, Travis, do you have to be?"

"Pretty sure I do. As a shit-kick... a billionaire's lowly minion. Or is that it? Have I just been thrown on the scrap-heap?"

Tanya looked around, glaring. "Is that what you this? A 'scrap heap'?"

"No, no, no Tan," Mack hastened, waving her down, "no, of course not. Sorry. Poor choice of words."

"That's an understatement" Tanya said under her breath then thought for a moment. "Tell you what, let's grab a coffee."

"I thought you were on your way to the office?"

"And I thought you wanted answers. Come on, I'll make you a nice iced latté and try and give you some.."

"Look," Mack said, falling in beside her, "this may sound strange. But is there any chance of a cup of tea?"

Pulling up, Tanya rounded on him. "Tea for a yank? What's up? Are you missing your mate?"

"I ain't gonna lie."

To his immense surprise, Tanya pulled him into a hug. "She's on her way, Trav." she laughed. "Don't worry."

"Ski... Wendy?"

"So I've heard."

"So you've heard something?"

"A little."

"And you haven't bothered to tell me?"

Tanya pushed him back to arm's length. "Steady on mate, we're all living under the same bloody mushroom here. Yes, we do have information, but it's sketchy at best and sometimes downright wrong. All we've been told is to expect her. To say where she's coming from or by what means... that would put her in danger. My advice is don't fret."

"But I just feel so... so..."

"Forgotten?" Tanya suggested, towing him by the elbow to a sofa by the coffee machine.

"More than that."

Tanya snapped her fingers. "Irrelevant?"

Mack sat down, head bowed, arms, one tanned, the other mottled pink, parked on his thighs. "Impotent."

Tanya's face lit up and she doubled over slapping her knees. "Impotent!" she hooted, then looked around hoping someone might hear. "EVERYBODY, TRAV'S FEELING IMPOTENT!"

"Christ, Tan." Mack scowled, "I was confiding in you."

Tanya stepped up, tears in her eyes, and cupped his stubbled chin in her hand. "Impotent. One of the richest men in the world has entrusted his daughters to you. Plus the little foundling who might just change the course of human history. And you're banging the bum... the living daylights out of all of them. And the other day. When I asked Comet why she was walking funny-"

"Okay, sure, I HAVE been having an awesome time. But I'd hardly call it..."

"Consequential?"

"How do you know so many cool words?"

"My husband's a barrister, Trav. Any legal stoush is just a battle of vocabulary at the end of the day. Besides, we've been hanging out with a writer the past few years. Had a chance to talk to him?"

Mack shook his head.

"You should. He's an interesting guy."

Who happens to be fucking that little blonde goddess, Mack glumly thought. And if he, Mack, was reading the signs, a veritable stable of gorgeous young tail. "I look forward to that."

"I'm serious. He might help you put things in perspective. Sugar, Trav?"

"Huh? Oh... Like Ski... like Wendy says, nothing beats sweet milky tea. Two of each please."

"That's what you call her? Skippy?"

"Well, some other dude actually came up with it but it just sort of stuck."

"You know where that comes from? The name 'Skippy'?"

"TV?"

Tanya gave a nod. "Skippy the Bush Kangaroo. Millions of Aussie kids adored her. It's so sweet you call her that."

Tanya turned away from the bench with two mugs of sugary milk tea. As she bent to place them carefully on the glass-topped coffee table, Mack's gaze strayed on autopilot straight to her cleavage, bracketed by a pair of smooth, round, down-hanging breasts, big and firm, swaying happily to and fro inside her pink-striped business shirt. "I'll get some bikkies." she said and wandered off with her inimitable walk, while Mack admired the perfection of her ass. And not for the first time he thought, 'If only.'

Back from her foraging expedition, she set a packet of jam shortbread biscuits down, then sat down beside him in her denim shorts and Zoom-meeting top. "Tea and bikkies. That should feel you better. Let's face it, that's why you're here."

"For tea and biscuits?"

"To feel better. To recover after saving the girls and almost losing your arm. You know, a lesser man would be sitting on his laurels right now, going, 'Bugger that, I've done my bit, let some other idiot step up'. But not Travis Mack. Oh no. Here you are chomping at the bit to go and get shot at again. Trav, between you and me? What's it gonna take?"

Mack took a sip of his tea and swallowed. Perfect. "For what?" he asked, though he already knew the answer.

"For you to put your hand up and say, 'I'm done.'?"

Mack hefted a shoulder. "I'm not quite sure that's actually an option."

"And why not, pray tell?"

"Come on, Tan. We're literally in a fight for survival right now and it's all hands on deck. Just like the Ghan. Didn't want to be there but there I was."

"But it's not the Ghan, Trav. This is the over-world of the elites."

"Same diff. If you've seen what I've seen, if you've done what I've done."

"Oh Trav, hate to tell you, this is far more dangerous than some silly old war."

Mack compressed his lips. "Well, with respect Ma'am, it was far from silly from where I was standing."

"Of course Travis, I'm sorry, my turn for a poor turn of phrase. But you've seen with your own eyes what we're up against. There are no rules of engagement here, anything goes. If you'd all been killed a dozen times over in Xi-blah-blah it wouldn't have made so much as a ripple. Listen. Knowing what you know now, if you had your time over would you do it again?"

"Do what exactly?" Hover over a burning rig in the dark? Or ditch a perfectly good chopper in the middle of the night? Or enter foreign airspace illegally, twice? Or raid the Mayan underworld?

"That trip to Xi-blah-blah-"

"Xibalba."

"What I just said. Well, would you?"

"Go back to Xibalba?"

Tanya nodded, taking a sip.

"For the girls?"

"Mmm hmm."

"In a heartbeat."

"Why? Not just for the obvious, surely?"

"What 'obvious'?"

"Access all areas. The twins."

"What?" Mack scowled. "No! It's not like that!"

"Well I could hardly blame you. What man wouldn't crawl over a mile of broken glass to hear them pee into a golden bucket? So if not that then what? For the money? Devotion to Harrison Carter?"

"To show that asshole he can't just do what he wants. That there are consequences."

"So it's a statement? Is that what you're saying?"

"Tan. Even while these scumbags all come from Earth it's actually more like an alien invasion. Just like Independence Day they wanna take over the world, and just like Independence Day we gotta fight back."

Tanya snorted with derision. "Give me a break. You know that was a comedy don't you? Independence Day?"

"No Ma'am, it was a parable. Like David and Goliath."

Tanya patted his knee and a thrill ran laps of his body. "'Ma'am'. You're so sweet when you're trying to be earnest."

"I mean it. Those assholes have no idea what they're up against. Or who."

"Hate to break it to you Trav. You're the one with no idea."

"That's where you're wrong."

"Really? Then go ahead and describe him. Agtaar."

Mack rolled his shoulders, suddenly aware he might be missing something. "Well, he's rich. Like, super-duper rich."

"Ultra, Trav, let's not beat around the bush. But do go on."

"No idea of his background, but I guess he started out in business somewhere, got richer and richer and more and more powerful. Eventually as Sal... as a friend of mine always says, his money developed its own sort of gravity that just drew more and more money into his orbit."

"Do you think he's a smart man?"

"Well, yeah, obviously. Not just smart but cunning as a shithouse rat."

"Sophisticated?"

"Well, with that sort of money. Living in his own little world. Or off it in his case. He owns his own space station goddammit so yeah, I'd call that sophisticated."

"An innovator? A leader? A visionary?"

"Well, visionary enough to grab humanity by the balls... ahem... I mean the throat."

"That's hardly visionary Trav." Tanya said. "Listen, would you knowingly, willingly bring civilisation to its knees? No. No normal human would. But he would, in fact he's already started. So why would he do that?"

"He's a leviathan, Tan." Mack said, wishing they could wrap things up- the pool beckoned and Maya was busy baking scones. "There's no telling what goes on in his mind."

"No Trav, you're wrong."

Mack jerked upright, blinking. "Excuse me?"

"You heard me. The ultra, ULTRA-rich- Agtaar, Broom, Anton Bondar... they're all driven by the same basic obsession."

"To make more goddam money."

"To live forever. Now, you can spend millions on Crisper and foetal stem cells and faecal transplants, even cryogenics if you're game. At the same time you can spread your DNA around so if you DO eventually die... and they all will... at least IT will live on. Listen Trav, why does any sexually mature animal eat?"

"Cos' they're hungry?"

"Spot on. And eating just fuels another chance to mate. The leviathans are no different to any other apex predator, they're actually men of very simple needs... the next meal and the next fuck... over and over and over forever."

"You really think it's that simple?"

"I don't think, I know. I used to move in those circles don't forget, not quite leviathans but close. And let me tell you, they're nothing more than carrion-eaters in suits. Cannibals. Unsocialised. Un-CIVILISED. The most primitive humans on Earth. All driven by the basest carnal desires. All those trappings of culture and class, that's just window dressing for the plebs to ogle. Tell me, have you ever been on any superyachts?"

Head down, picking his nails, Mack gave a nod, his thoughts straying back to Carter's birthday in the Mexican Gulf, and a young Brit housekeeper spinning yarns of whales and hippos, abused girls, fouled linen, scrubbing shit from stateroom walls.

"Of course you have." Tanya breathed, "Silly me. Ever see them party?"

"Like there was no tomorrow." Mack glumly replied. "It wasn't pretty."

Tanya cracked a knowing smile. "Remind you of anything?"

"Wanna know the truth?" Mack asked, raising his eyes. "A frikken zoo!"

Tanya snapped her fingers with a wink. "Bingo. Listen, next time you're in a city with a zoo, like an old-fashioned one with actual animals, go to the lion enclosure at feeding time. Watch what happens when the keeper throws in the hindquarters of some poor old horse. Watch what the lion does. I mean preferably a lion, like a male, though a lioness will still make your hair stand on end. Watch its focus and determination, its sheer animal fury, watch it snarl and growl at anything that comes near it. THAT'S a leviathan, only in a furry suit, and that's what we're up against. We are all just prey-animals roaming the virtual savannah... we're up against a creature that would kill us in the blink of an eye... for food if it's hungry, for challenging its dominion if it's not. We can't fight it, we can't reason with it, we can't appeal to some inner goodness because there isn't any."

"So what are you suggesting?"

Pausing, Tanya downed a mouthful of sweet milky tea then licked her lips. "Just enjoy the peace and quiet while you can."

"What-" Mack began then a voice called, 'Hello' and he turned to see a silhouette wade into the shadows.

"Damo!" Tanya replied, "Over here."

"Travis?" Watson said, "Just the man I've been looking for."

Mack sat up, eyes wide with surprise. And after Beck had sworn black and blue her 'partner' wouldn't mind him fucking her brains out. "Sir?"

Watson looked around in fright as if searching for an escape-route. "Damon!" Tanya laughed, taking his hand, "DAMON! It's okay, he's not a cop."

Watson swabbed his brow with the daisy hat. "Brrr... every time I hear that word."

"So what's up you old reprobate? Lost your yacht? It's that big pointy white thing on the hardstand over there."

"Well funny you should say that. Travis? If you're not doing anything we're about to slip Expendable. If you could lend a hand."

"What?" Mack blinked. "Oh, sure, no problem."

"No hurry," Watson hastened as Mack began to rise, "finish your coffee."

"Bringing her up on the hard?" Tanya asked.

Watson nodded, using the hem of his tatty old grey T-shirt to wipe the sweat from his neck. 'Dude's got a six-pack.' Mack thought in borderline dismay. "She's coming out," Watson nodded, "Aurora's going back in. The new tub's got a leak in one of the through-ports. And the bloody gland needs tightening. And she needs an oil-change. Travis? Wanna know the two best days in a yacht owner's life?"

On his feet after downing his tea, Mack gave a nod.

"The day you buy it and the day you sell it. Everything in between is just sheer bloody misery."

"Oh, piffle!" Tanya scoffed. "What about Aurora?"

"Except for Aurora. And even SHE can try your patience sometimes. Travis? When you're right to rock'roll. You can drive the travel-lift."

******************************************************************************************

The girls bounced out of bed next morning straight into the shower, each hastily washing the other, eager to saddle up before the sky turned into a furnace. Kissing Mack goodbye one by one, they crowded the door, jostling for pole position, and disappeared to the sound of running footsteps.

Peace settled over Mack's little world and he lay fondling a half-erection, meat still greasy with semen and girl juice from the morning's workout. The more pussy it got the more the little bastard wanted and Mack worried briefly if it had an addiction. Still, at the end of the day it was just doing its job, a tough gig but someone had to do it.

For a moment he tossed up whether to pull on some shorts and wander down to the pool in case any of the island girls were there. And with any luck feeling horny. On the other hand, he figured, stretching with a groan, it was such a pleasure to just sleep-in. Besides, from what Tanya had hinted these golden days were numbered anyway, and her veiled threat- enjoy it while you can- had been duly lodged in the bank-of-foreboding.

Rolling over, smacking his chops, he bunched the pillow under his head for a little more Mack-time. Just one more dream before breakfast.

No sooner had he drifted off than footsteps pounded the landing outside and the door burst open. "Pool Man!" Viviani exclaimed, all 3 girls jumping on the bed. "Can we go sailing with Beck on Aurora? Over to Hammo? Shopping?"

Not that they actually needed Mack's permission. The girls were pushing 19 and Nyamjargal was in her already 20s, but if he DID say no chances were there'd be a good reason. "Isn't that a little dicey girls?"

"We've all got our dots." Viviani said breathlessly- stick-on patches that changed their biometrics by such a subtle degree no AI ever could see through the disguise, "And our Oakleys and our running shoes." Transitional sunglasses to hide their eyes, running shoes with mis-matched profiles to alter their gait. As far as the surveillance cameras would ever know, they'd be looking at 3 pretty young girls on vacation.

"Who else is going?" Mack rasped, struggling upright.

"Beck and Penny."

"And they reckon its safe?"

"Oh, Beck's sailed that thing halfway around the world." Echo said.

"I mean walking around on Hamilton Island? We're meant to be hiding-out remember?"

"So who'd expect us to be out and about?" Viviani challenged and Mack had to concede she had a point.

"But," Mack pressed, checking the boxes, "we didn't bring any money."

"Beck stole Roger's credit card." Viviani beamed.

"From his hand." Echo nodded. "While he was looking."

"Pleeeeease?" Viviani clasped her hands. "We'll bring you a present."

"Well..." Mack hedged, "if you're-"

That was all the permission they required. Jumping off the bed, they rifled their wardrobes in a shower of clothes, choosing matching short skirts and tank-tops, ankle socks and their modified gimp-shoes, floppy sun-hats to further shade their identities. Buck-naked in a heartbeat, they pulled on their going-to-town black lace knickers, kicking and wriggling to seat them, then shrugged on their matching magenta bras, more for show than function, and shimmied into their tops. "Love you!" Viviani said, stooping to give Mack a kiss before making for the door.

"Girls!" Mack barked then turned his head to take a kiss from Nyamjargal, "This is NOT how we leave our kit."

Reversing, Viviani helped her sisters fold and stow their scattered clothes in record time, then kissed Mack on the mouth again. "Still love you. Bye-eeee."

In a minute they were gone and Mack flopped back, wondering if he'd done the right thing. Then he recalled Viviani's words over the battlefield in Guatemala that night, with tracers ripping through the air like bioluminescent hornets. 'We'll take what's coming.' That's all any of them could do he realised. There was no bunker deep enough, no space-station sufficiently far-flung to shelter them from the coming storm. Hand on his cock, Mack wondered again if he should rub one out to distract his mind from its suddenly gloomy reveries. After all, there was an abundance of arousing material to draw upon- he didn't even have to fantasise- and even that, the fact his life had become such a banquet, was enough to stir his libido.

There was a knock at the door followed by a female voice which said, 'Hel-llooooo.' and Mack reefed the Egyptian cotton sheet up to his neck. The door opened a crack and Tanya poked her head in. "Morning, handsome. You awake?"

Tanya let herself in and Mack's eyes widened as another figure padded in behind her. Maya, in a loose, purple dress decorated with tropical flowers, barefoot, looking slightly nervous.

"We're not interrupting are we?" Tanya asked, sitting on the bed beside him, in yoga pants this morning, and a black lace bustier, her nipple-pigment visible through the weave.

"Interrupting what? What? What do you mean?"

"I was just telling Maya how you were feeling impotent." Tanya explained, tucking her hair behind an ear. "And she's really worried about you."

Maya crawled onto the bed. By accident or more probably design, her slip fell open and Mack looked straight down her cleavage past two pointy little titties over a smooth-skinned torso. Like most of the girls, most of the time, she was wearing not so much as a scrap underneath and her nipples drew zigzags under the fabric as she knelt beside him. "I'm Doctor Maya," she introduced herself, "and this is my colleague Doctor Aunty Tan. I just did ED at med school you know. I came top of my class."

"In curing it she means." Tanya explained. "I mean look at her. She could turn a soggy noodle into a chopstick."

"But..." Mack blinked, pinned by the lights rushing towards him.

"Don't worry," Tanya said, second-guessing Mack's dismay, "we checked with the twins and they said it's okay."

"They did?"

Tanya and Maya nodded in unison and said, "They did!"

"Your eyes are very big, Trav." Tanya giggled. "You're not having an episode are you?"

"Like," Maya breathed, nodding at the bulge under the sheet where Mack was presently trying to throttle his cock into submission, "having a stroke?"

"Do you think it's serious Doctor Maya?" Tanya frowned.

"Worst case I've ever seen."

"Then maybe we should help him out."

"H... h... h...?"

"Hear that Aunty Doc?" Maya said gravely. "Aphasia."

"Oh my god! What should we do?"

"Get his blood pressure down STAT! An orgasm should do the trick."

"Tan?" Mack quavered as Tanya lay her hand over his lap, "What's going on?"

"We're repaying you. For services rendered."

"S... services?"

"Picking up the horse poo. I did say it wouldn't go unrewarded."

"But... but... what about Roger?"

"Busy at the moment I'm afraid. But next time, I'm sure if you ask him..."

"No, I mean, what's he gonna say?"

"Nothing. Cos' he just went down on Sook and you shouldn't talk with your mouth full."

"SOOK?" Mack exclaimed rearing upright.

Tanya raised her eyes to Maya. "Pookie, dear. Did you bring the smelling salts?"

Maya thumbed over her shoulder. "No. But I DID bring the defib."

"But Sook!" Mack said, aghast. "Isn't she your... his...?"

"It was good enough for Woody Allen." Tanya sniffed. "Look, it all started out as a business arrangement- 'adopt' a waif, get in the good books of a greedy Korean developer. A televangelist would you believe. Sook made us millions in the end so we thought what the hell and just adopted her for real. Then, one thing sort of led to the other. Why so shocked?"

Mack chewed his thumbnail, thinking about it. "You know, if this was back in the world..."

"We've been through this." Tanya said patiently. "It's not back in the world... not your old one. It's smack bang in the middle of this one."

Maya flicked her mahogany hair back. "Besides, you try and stop her. Sookie I mean. She's a little tigress."

Tanya heaved a sigh. "Listen, Cowboy, if this is all too much for your little eggshell mind..."

"I'll adapt! I'll adapt!"

Tanya squeezed Mack's hand and the head of the cock it was holding on to. "That's my boy. Maggie, you can put the tranquilliser darts away."

"I was actually gonna tase him." Maya said, up on her knees. Arching her back, she peeled her dress off overhead and her pointy little tits popped out, nipples hard enough to scratch her name in the paintwork.

"Look out with those nips, Darling. You could take somebody's eye out."

Chin on her sternum, Maya cupped her little bubbies, rolling her nipples between fingers and thumb as goosebumps sprang up on her skin. "I am so fucking horny." she said under her breath, "You have no idea."

"Poor Pookie's been feeling left out, haven't you Sweets?"

"You and Roger don't...?" Mack asked, his cheeks reddening at the very thought.

"Mmm... yeahhh... nahh..." Maya replied, "that's actually sort of a bridge too far."

"Their relationship is..." Tanya said, unbuttoning her bustier, "... how can I put this... a little complicated."

"As in strained?" Mack grated, staring without any hint of decorum at Tanya's magnificent breasts- big and round and firm and bouncy- as they sprang into the public domain.

"She means genetically." Maya said as Mack's gaze swivelled to her crotch and her perfect, smooth mound with its glistening pink slit.

"We would tell you," Tanya went on, skimming off the shorts to reveal her almost identical treasures, as if she and her niece had been cast in the same mould, "but it would blow your mind and it's not your mind we came here to blow."

Mack looked at the tent in the sheets. Having struggled to stifle the thing, now he'd given up the fight his cock stood proudly at attention in salute the two beauties sitting on the bed. "Mind if I...?" Maya said, palpating the eruption. "Holy shit!" she breathed, "no wonder those girls are always so happy."

"Let's get rid of that silly old sheet." Tanya said, reefing it down.

Tucking her hair back out of the way, Maya bent to examine the specimen, turning it this way and that. "Is that dried-up semen?" she asked, picking at a flake.

"Someone's been a busy boy." Tanya beamed.

"You want me to...?" Mack asked.

The pair chorused, "NO!" and, her nose an inch from his big, flared knob, Maya took a sniff. "I smell pussy."

"Lucky little bugger." Tanya smiled, patting Mack's shoulder. "Just imagine where he's been."

"Fresh, too." Maya mused, then opened her mouth, lips in the shape of an 'O', and engulfed him to the back of her throat.

Mack arched his back at the incredible sensation as Maya's head bobbed up and down, her dainty hand deftly jacking him at the same time. Burping and gagging as his cock threatened to punch through her pharynx, she worked her magic for a minute or two while Tanya looked on, smiling proudly. Coming off, Maya knelt back, panting for breath, tears coursing over her cheeks. "Goodness," she puffed, swiping her wet mouth, "that's a beauty."

Tanya gave her head a shake. "You can say that again. Those lucky girls."

"Want a go Aunty Tan?"

"Darling, let's scratch that itch of yours first. Trav? Would you mind if we cut to the chase? Poor little Maggie's been like a cat on hot bricks."

Maya threw a leg over and was about to impale herself when Tanya stopped her. "On second thoughts Mags, why don't you let me go first? I'll take him to the edge so he can do the old reset and last a little longer for you."

"Is that okay, Travis?" Maya asked with wide-eyed innocence while Mack lay thinking, Tanya had done her homework.

"Maya? Tan? What if this thing goes off? Like... accidentally? Inside... you?"

They both pulled their ears back. "We're wearing patches, Trav." Maggie scolded. "We're not idiots."

"Right, right."

"But thanks for asking." Tanya said, patting his shoulder. "Always the gentleman."

"Although," Maya intoned, "if I ever DID want to squeeze one out."

Tanya inclined her head. "What?"

"A tiddlywink." Maya replied dreamily. "Don't you think it'd be a nice mixture? My beauty, brains and humility and his... well... what he's got."

Tanya gave Maya's bottom a pat. "Hate to tell you, Darling, there's a queue."

Tanya bent to give Mack a pre-emptive suck, then wrapped her hand around his cock and straddled his hips. "I have been SO looking forward to this." she said, down on one knee, swiping her furrow with the leaking tip of Mack's iron-bar erection. Jamming him in, she swivelled her pelvis, shimmying down his shaft, head back and eyes closed as her skin turned to gooseflesh. "Oh my giddy aunt." she shivered, sucking her belly in as Mack reached up to knead her gorgeous breasts. After a few preliminary excursions, she settled flat on his pubis with Mack's cock up to the hilt inside her.

Mack raised his ass, taking her weight on the tip of his penis. "Take me now, Lord."

"Bugger that." Tanya puffed, arms braced on his chest, fingers digging into his pectorals. "You've got work to do."

"Travis?" Maya chimed, tucking her hair back again, "Would you like to lick me?"

"Ugh!" Mack grunted, "That would be awesome!"

Knees either side of Mack's head, Maya spread her dripping pussy with her fingertips, then dropped down until she felt Mack's tongue worm its way into her vagina. Lapping and licking, sucking her tiny mound whole into his mouth, Mack put his heart into eating her out while Tanya bounced up and down, swivelling her hips, cranking her pelvis to and fro as her pussy squelched in a lather of lubricant. Mack quickly realised he was in the hands of a pro- in her pussy at least- Tanya clenching and convulsing around his meat, squeezing the base one second, his tip the next. Tongue-deep in one gorgeous body, balls-deep in another, it wasn't long before a climax was stalking him.

Then Maya orgasmed, filling his mouth with her warm ejaculate, hands on flat his chest while Tanya's fingernails clawed his skin.

"Pookes?" Tanya panted when Maya came down off the ceiling.

"Want me to play with your clit?"

Tanya nodded. "So... close!"

Reaching down, Maya, still perched firmly on Mack's face, commenced strumming her aunt's clitoris and within minutes Tanya began to climax.

"Guys!" Mack said in a strangled, pussy-muffled plea.

Popping right off him, pussy gaping in surprise, Tanya finished her orgasm empty, squirting all over the bed. Maya put the cherry on top, jamming two fingers in her aunt's hole, and Mack felt his own climax rise like a monster from the depths only to shy away an instant before breaching the surface. When Maya climbed off, Mack half-sat, heavy breathing, propped up on his elbows, watching the females suck face, Maya up to the knuckles in her gorgeous aunt, Tanya driving Maya's hand. Mostly for show, truth be known, for Mack's entertainment, as a 'thank you' for all he'd done. Shovelling horse poo. Manning the dishwasher.

And like Tanya had said, it gave Mack a minute to regroup, dialling him down from Defcon 1 to something a little less precarious.

When they were done, Tanya sat back wiping her mouth. "What do you think, Pookes? Wanna hitch a ride on the old Travis Express?"

"Old?" Mack scowled.

"Ish. Pookie?"

Maya gave a diffident shrug. But she was busting to fuck and couldn't hold out for long. "If it's okay."

"Okay? Is it okay, Trav?"

Mack nodded. "No. It's not okay. It's flippin' awesome!"

"There you go, Pookie. The nice man said 'yes'."

Mack pushed up onto his knees. "Maya? How do you wanna...?"

"Cowgirl?" Tanya asked. "Reverse cowgirl? Doggy? On your side?"

"Know what I'd like?" Maya said, lying down beside Mack.

"That's what we're trying to work out."

"A good old-fashioned." Maya said, on her back, legs spread, arms over her head."

"Missionary?" her aunt chimed. "Great choice! A billion guilt-ridden Christians can't be wrong. Travis. If you don't mind."

Mack looked at squirming girl, her hips jerking and humping with pent-up arousal, abdominals bunched as she held herself in tension. A real hard-body, with not a skerrick of body hair below the eyebrows. Reaching down, Tanya lay a hand on the girl's swollen mound, fingers either side of her slit, and opened Maya's pussy wide. "Ever seen anything so pink and sweet?" she breathed. "It's like candy."

Mack shook his head. Never. At least not in the past hour or so, but he'd just tasted Maya's wares and knew it to be true. She WAS like candy, literally sweet, and now here she was, her delicate insides open to the world oozing 20-weight lube, filling her butt-crack and soaking the sheet.

"Travis?" Maya said plaintively.

Kneeling between her open legs, Mack leant forward, taking his weight on his knees and outstretched arms. Hand wrapped around his cock preventing a kink, Tanya swiped Maya's furrow the way his own girls always did, then thumbed him into her entrance. For a moment Mack wondered if Tanya had used the wrong hole- as hard as he pushed he just couldn't make ground. Opening his mouth to call time-out, he flinched as Maya thrust her hips and he suddenly punched through.

Knees up Maya bit her lip, eyes closed, nose wrinkled, holding her breath as a riot of sensations ran laps of her body. "He's big." she said in a trembling voice.

"Easy does it, Pookes. Don't go giving yourself a tummyache."

"Yeah, no, I was just saying." Maya puffed, squeezing Mack's ass.

"That..." Mack intoned, "... feels freakin' INCREDIBLE."

"Really and truly?"

Mack gave a nod. "So... TIGHT!"

"One small step for man, huh, Travis?" Tanya cheered. "One giant cock for Maya-kind."

Dropping his chin, Mack sucked a little conical breast whole into his mouth then let it fall back into place with hardly a bounce. Looking up, he said, "If I don't survive this girls."

Maya stroked his cheek. "Shoosh you. Doctor Maya's gonna take good care of you."

Carefully at first, in little fits and starts, Maya took him all the way in until he bottomed out somewhere under her diaphragm, then squeezed him out again till the flared base of his knob fetched up behind the constriction of her portal. And again and again as her tract deepened and dimensions adjusted. After 4 or 5 minutes when Mack was sliding smoothly in and out, driving all but an inch or so into her clenching embrace, Maya dug her heels in spurring him on. "Okay to go a little faster, Travis?"

"As fast as you want little lady." Mack said, flexing his back. "Just let me know."

"You know what Travis? You just go for it and I'll just take what you have to give."

'Well, Mack thought, 'she asked for it.'

And this in fact was his favourite sort of fucking. Unbridled. Primal. Frantic, almost bestial. Faster, and faster till he was in a flat-out sprint, cranking his hips, slapping and sliding on a slick of sweat. Utterly consumed yet at the same time completely full, Maya wrapped her arms around his neck, forehead snuggled into his shoulder, ankles locked over the small of his back. Mack summoned his darkest thoughts as a hedge against a lacklustre performance, but here it came, charging-up out of the depths again, old Mister Sperm-whale.

"Jee..." Maya grunted,

"ee...

"SUS!"

Tanya squeezed her niece's thigh. If the bed rocked any harder they'd all be needing seatbelts. "You right there, Maggie. Want him to slow down?"

"Chrii... iii... IST! That's it Travis! Fuck me! FUCK ME!"

Well, Mack thought, he was doing his level best, driving Maya's little body ever nearer the head of the bed, sweat dripping from his chin while he wondered why she didn't just cum already. As if she'd heard, Maya sank her teeth into his pectoral, biting down hard, as her pussy turned frictionless, convulsing around his cock like she was trying to milk him. Teeth clenched, Mack slammed into her, jetting cum, then pulled back and thrust again punching a grunt from her lungs.

"Holy FUCK!" Maya squeaked. "Holy... I can feel it! Your SEMEN!"

So could Mack, huge spurts pulsating through his plumbing to liberally hose her uterus. Straining and growling, he finally held at full penetration, shuddering, while the mutual orgasm ran its course. Heavy breathing in the aftermath, Maya lay with her ankles crossed over Mack's back, toes curled, face twitching, her punch-drunk innards clenching and spasming.

Rolling off the bed, Tanya got to her feet. "Wait a minute while I call an ambulance."

Raising a hand, Maya gave a feeble wave. "White no sugar thanks Aunty Tan. Trav?"

Mack, still flat out on top of her panting for breath, lifted his head and looked around. "How? What? Where am I? WHO am I?"

"Well you might ask." Maya breathed, squeezing his ass. "Hooey! Is it always like that? With you and your girls?"

"Honestly?" Mack replied, rolling his hips side to side, Maya's insides clutching his buried appendage. "I'm always too busy hanging on to notice."

"I bet you are." Maya chuckled as Tanya breezed past, on her way from the kitchenette to the bathroom. "Honestly, Travis, and I mean this. That fuck was as good as my very first time."

Mack buried his face in a pillow to wipe off the sweat, discomforted as always by a compliment.

"With Damon Watson." Maya went on and Mack started.

"Whaaa?"

"I said, that's the best fuck I've had since Damon took my virginity."

"Damon?" Mack blinked. "You mean...?"

"Beck's Damon," Maya said, nodding matter-of-factly, "uh huh." She'd seen how the American looked at the old man, with a mixture of distaste and distrust and a tiny pinch of envy. And something approaching intimidation- that old asshole knew everything about everything. All doubts misplaced but nothing a little course-correction couldn't fix. "When I turned 18. And I was still a virgin."

"Damon?" Mack said again in dismay, picturing the raddled old boiler on top of a youthful Maya, doing to the girl exactly what he'd just done. And for her very first time.

"But... Beck... Does she...?"

"Know? Of course she does. She was right there with us. With Mum and Aunty Tan."

Mack hid his face in the pillow and lay for a while, trying to hammer the revelation into some meaningful frame of reference. Tanya returned and sat on the bed. "Looks like I better cancel that ambulance, Pookes, and just call the undertaker. What have you done to him?"

"I was just saying. That's the very best fuck since my first one with Damon.

"You sure that was wise, Maggie? Look at him."

Maya didn't have to look. She could feel his erection shrivelling at the very thought; that old man's withered cock in her virgin pussy.

Mack looked up. "Guys... guys... cut me some slack. Barely a year ago, when I made out with an intern in the back of a chopper, I thought it was the very pinnacle of debauchery. And I was sooo fucking proud. But that was nothing. Not compared to this. Have a heart. I'm still adjusting."

"And you're doing such a splendid job too." Tanya nodded. "Huh, Pookes?"

Maya wrapped her arms and legs around Mack, rocking him from side to side, almost sorry for what she'd just revealed. All for his own good, of course, and she wagered he would see the old man in a whole new light. And just imagine when he heard about the Blood Moon Tribute and what Watson had done. A warrior like Mack would bow his head in abject reverence.

"Well, kids-" Tanya sighed.

"This won't buy the baby a new dress." Mack said, feeling pretty hip. "I know, I know."

"What baby?" Tanya frowned. "What do you mean?"

Head down, Mack raised his ass, watching the thick, veiny tube, still respectably hard, emerge coated in slime from Maya's clinging insides. "It's just a saying, Tan. Where I come from."

"Pretty silly saying." she scoffed. "Well, kids, we've still got some choring to do. What's say we have that nice cuppa tea then jump into the shower and after that have at it? The chores I mean. Should be done by lunchtime. Then it's party time, and we can all kick back and get fit-shaced."