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Later; please stay tuned and have patience!

Stardate 2401.9

On board the Freighter "Lost Cause"

The vixen smiled.  Standing in the shower, she softly rubbed her mons with one hand, squeezing her right breast with her other hand.  Playing with herself in the shower was something she sometimes did, the feeling of the water running down over her fur adding to the sensual delights.  But this time, she had other things in mind than pleasing herself......  Leaning back against the wall of the shower stall, she let the water play over her crotch, as she worked two fingers  in and out of her pussy... It felt good, but she had to keep her mind about her; she was hunting an elusive quarry......

It showed just as she was savoring the aftershocks of her climax; it almost made it to her foot, emerging from the drain, a black viscous flow moving countercurrent to the water.  The jury-rigged vacuum hose was ready and dancing back, the vixen bent, to suck the little darling into the holding tank.

Wanda looked up from her medical journal as the vixen, still damp from her shower, sashayed into the Wardroom, a cylindrical, clear plastic container under one arm.  Within it, something black and oily surged back and forth, its motions not quite matching that of the Vixen's movements.  "You're looking happy today" the Wolverine lass commented.  "Hinoki finally get around to giving you the antidote?"  Zassa's look sobered a little; "No... he still hasn't quite found the time for that.  And I'm starting to go a little numb too.  Its getting harder and harder to bring myself off.

The Wolverine lass smiled and held up a small hypodermic, with a cork on the end of the needle; "I thought that might be the case; I've rigged up a little 'persuader' from our research on the science vessel to cover just such an eventuality."  Zassa grinned; "is it....?"  Wanda's grin widened; "Yeah.  I tried just a little on Kath, and the poor thing's going crazy.  She's......"  Both Wanda and Zassa's heads turned as voices were heard down the corridor.  "I'll tell you about it later; do you want me to use it on him now?"  Zassa chuckled "Yeah!  Fits in well with another little surprise I've got planned; but won't he notice you sticking him with that thing?"  Wanda chuckled and hid the syringe in the folds of her magazine; "No, silly, you don't inject it; its absorbed through the skin.  Of course the more drops I can put on him, the worse it'll be, the sooner it'll take effect, and sadly, the longer it'll last."  Zassa pouted; "you mean he won't need an antidote?"  Wanda sighed and shook her head no; "Just have to convince him quickly to give you YOUR antidote...."  Glumly the Vixen just nodded.

 "Convince who?"  Zassa turned from the sink and looked at Roland, her frown deepening a little.  She still hadn't forgotten their "run-in" on the Brethren's near-deserted station.  Hinoki was right behind him, the two of them moving into the Wardroom, headed for the coffee pot.  Zassa looked at Hinoki, shaking a finger wet from washing out her coffee mug; "with spots, there.  He knows what I'm talking about."  Hinoki twisted and ducked at the flying droplets, and smiled softly; "you know, if its becoming a problem, you could always come by for another treatment."  Before Zassa could frame a retort, a voice from the corner made heads turn; "I'm sorry, but I seem to be out of the loop here; could someone explain what the problem is?"  Zassa tried not to do a double-take.  Smith, the... Coyote?  Was sitting quietly in the corner.  He'd been so still, she hadn't even noticed him there.  Or had he somehow just materialized out of thin air?  She wouldn't really put that past him...  How much had he heard?  Would he give them away?  Wanda chuckled; "on our last voyage, Hinoki played a small practical joke on our lusty Vixen here; he injected her with a tailored virus that would deaden her sexual responses.  The temporary antidote seems to be his semen; if he doesn't make love to her twice a day, she goes a little numb."  Smith's face was deadpan as he looked at Hinoki; "Diabolical, but how do you know.... " his gaze shifting back to the Vixen, "That its only HIS semen that will work?"  Zassa's mouth dropped open, and she looked at the Cheetah, only to look back at Smith, in wonder.

Roland smiled and elbowed Hinoki; "Maybe he isn't the only one that can affect a cure.  He was the only male on your last trip, wasn't he?  MAYBE you need to investigate what someone else might be able to do for you....."  Zassa turned to look at the Badger as if seeing him for the first time; "you know, maybe you're right."  As Roland broke into a smile, the Vixen turned back to the.... Wolf?  "Mr. Smith, you have a very intriguing point. Would you care to help me prove your theorem?"  For once, Smith seemed to be caught by surprise, but he recovered quickly and after a moment he smiled, and rose; offering his arm wordlessly to the Vixen with a small bow.  Zassa took his arm, and as they left the Wardroom, she turned and stuck her tongue out at the Cheetah.

"Damn!"  Roland shook his head; "Thought for a moment there I'd have a shot at her."  Hinoki smiled; "If I know her, you will.  I haven't seen her let a functional male go by yet without trying him out.  Just bide your time....  This trip won't be over for a while yet.

Wanda smiled softly as she watched the two males fill their coffee mugs, turning a page in her magazine she looked at the now-empty syringe, shielded from their view by the pages of the thick nursing journal and smiled.  When Zassa had shook her finger at him, she'd managed to spritz a few droplets on his side and back, with no one even noticing.  Later she'd see to it that it went into the recycler, and then she'd check the floor for errant drops.  It wouldn't do at all for someone like Tanj to step on a drop and suddenly go hyper-sensitive....  In the meantime no one would find it surprising if she just sat there, reading and sipping her coffee, until the wardroom was empty.....

Roland got himself a cup of coffee and sat down in the seat vacated by Smith.  Leaning forward, he poked at the plastic cylinder; within the black goo surged, not in response to the motion of the cylinder, but towards Roland's finger.  "What's this?"  Hinoki chuckled "One of Zassa's pets; looks hungry, too, although I can't imagine her not feeding it."  The Badger frowned; "a pet?  It looks like a puddle of thin tar.  You mean... its Alive?"  Hinoki chuckled and poked about in the fridge, bent over.  His voice was muffled, but clear; "Yeah, its an alien creature, highly illegal.  It feeds off your sexual energy, but in return it'll give you some of the best orgasms of your life.  Feed 'em too much and they reproduce by fission.  And that's Zassa's problem; she keeps feeding 'em too much"  Straightening the Cheetah put a plate of leftover linguini on the table and took a seat.

Across the table, Roland had drawn back against the far wall, his eyes locked on the container; "you mean it.... It......."  Wanda chuckled; "Yeah, it does.  From what I've heard it handles both sexes equally well.  In fact, I got one for Kath; she seems very fond of it....."  Hinoki took in the strained look on Roland's face and grinned wickedly; "One of the Vixen's biggest problems, though, is keeping them from escaping; seems they'll fuck her into insensibility, and then crawl off to reproduce.  Every once in a while, you'll find one stalking you.....

Roland kept himself from looking around, from checking the baseboards and under the table, and the ceiling overhead.  Barely.  "I think it's.... disgusting.  If one of those things comes anywhere near me, it'll be the last thing it ever does!"  Forgetting his coffee, the Badger rose and stormed out into the hallway.

Wanda lowered her magazine and Hmmmmed; "Seems our friend is a bit unnerved by Zassa's pets."  Hinoki forked another mouthful of noodles into his mouth and grunted; "Gotta be illegal in the Empire for SOME reason; maybe his reaction is typical and we're the weirdos."  Wanda just laughed; "Maybe so!"

Corey smiled as he read through the Science Vessel's research material, quietly muttering to himself; "Ah, yes, Brunkowski's theorem; I hadn't thought of that... VERY good."  Scribbing on his own notepad, the Lynx paused, erased half of his scribblings and started over.  He was so lost in his train of thought that he completely missed the gentle knock on the door, and a few minutes later, the opening of that door, under Tanj's touch.  The Cheetah stood there, in the doorway for a few minutes, watching the Lynx work, his head turning from the PADD with the science vessel's stolen research, to his own hard-bound notebook, and back, his mumblings almost a constant litany.... "Duchovney?  They're citing HIS work?  HA!  If they think his multiphasic investigations bear any relationship to this phenomenon, well, THAT'll lead 'em on a wild goose-chase!  Ah, but Zenkowitz.....  Yes.... That might... Hmmmm.... Going to have to check that out....  Urrrrrr, but it'll be expensive for the tachyon generator... still, can't be helped...."  Tanj shook her head and quietly closed the door.

As she walked towards the wardroom, the Cheetah sighed; she'd wound up with quite a bit of cash from the demise of the Brethren, and for a while it looked as if money would be the last of her worries. But after listening to Corey mumble to herself, she wondered if the not-so-small fortune she'd recently acquired would be enough.....  "Ah, well" she grinned to herself; "Once a pirate, always a Pirate.  And I know where to find more money...."  Vowing to get herself a cup of coffee and a snack, Tanj turned her attention to her network of agents outside the Elysium system.  She'd have to get them back to work, identifying targets of opportunity for the Black Fleet.......

The sounds coming out of Zassa's cabin gave Tanj pause; her pace slowing significantly, the Cheetah peered through the not-quite-closed door.  To her amazement, the Vixen was sprawled on her bed, legs widespread.... Well, allright, that wasn't THAT amazing, or even uncommon; what made the Cheetah pause, however, was that Smith was kneeling at the side of the bed, apparently the source of the Vixen's moans and shudders, as he used his tongue on her sex, with apparent skill and ingenuity, until she was clawing at the bedding.  Shaking her head in amazement, Tanj started to ease the door closed... but then stopped, wondering if it had been left ajar for a reason?  Shrugging, Tanj turned and resumed her trek to the wardroom, and coffee.

"Morning, Capt'n."  Tanj looked up at the Badger and smiled; "Morning, Roland; something wrong?"  The Badger nodded; "I was just told about the.... Creatures that the Vixen seems to be keeping.....  Tanj smiled and nodded; "Would you like to borrow one?"  The look of horror on the Badger's face made her take a step back; "Good LORD, NO!  What I wanted... was to ask you, are there REALLY any loose on the ship?"  Tanj thought for a moment; "There might be one or two; she DOES keep pretty good track of 'em, but sometimes its hard to tell if one's reproduced while it was loose."  From the look on the Badger's face, the Cheetah had to smile; "I wouldn't worry about it, Roland; they're not dangerous."  The Badger shook his head; "I'm sorry, Captain, but the thought of one of them touching me makes my skin crawl!  If you don't mind, I'll take a few precautions..."  Tanj smiled reassuringly and nodded; "whatever it takes to make you feel comfortable. Leaving the Badger, Tanj made her way to the Wardroom door.

Roland realized that he'd left his coffee cup behind.  Weighing the desire for a good hot cup, with the terror of being in the same room with that... THING, he decided that he could stand it, long enough to retrieve his mug.  Turning, he followed the Cheetah.

"Hey, Hinoki.  'Lo, Wanda."  Tanj moved across the wardroom to the coffee pot.  Not unexpectedly, it was almost empty.  Her crew had a thing about NOT being the last one to empty the pot (and therefor earning the right to make the next pot) and frequently it was left with only a few dribbles in the bottom.  With a sigh, Tanj dumped the contents of the pot into the sink, rinsed it out, and set it in place.  Opening the cupboard she groaned, finding the box of filter-packs even more empty than the pot had been.  As she fumbled through the cupboard, looking for a new box, she listened to Hinoki and Roland talk.

"Yeah, she's eminently spankable.  Sometimes all you have to do is to suggest it and she'll hop into your lap."  "That's the approach I'd normally take" the Badger rumbled; " 'course, right now, she's just a little ticked at me, and the usual straight-forward approach probably wouldn't work for me."  Tanj smiled as she moved the big box of pancake mix, searching for more coffee; "Bet she'd do it for me, though; she and I haven't had a good session in a LONG time.... Of course with her... "diminished sensation" problem, she'd probably find it more frustrating than exciting."  Turning to look at Hinoki, the Cheetah fem smirked; "So when ARE you going to give her the cure?"  Hinoki shrugged; "probably not for a while yet.  In fact, I think in the next couple of hours I'm going to go clean out the port induction vents.... It'd have to be when I get done with that, at the earliest.  But I'm really in no hurry."  The Cheetah Male grinned; "I'm having much too much fun with this...."  Tanj set the family size can of baked beans on the counter and turned to look at the male; "Clean the port.... The induction vents were cleaned less than a month ago; why would you....."  Exchanging a rapid look with Wanda, Tanj smiled; "Ah, I get it.  Yeah, might not be a bad idea."

Roland looked from face to face; "What am I missing here?"  Wanda chuckled and turned the page in her magazine, not even looking up; "Simple.  Its not HINOKI'S sperm that's the temporary antidote for Zassa's problem; its ANY sperm.  Our stud told a small fib there....  When Zassa finds out that making love to Smith is just as effective as humping our Cheetah friend here, she's probably going to be on the warpath.  And I do admit, the induction vents are a good place to hide.  Messy in there.  She's not likely to search there first...."  Tanj chuckled; "Unless they've just been cleaned, in which case it won't be TOO bad....."

Tanj Sighed and started putting things back in the cupboard.  No coffee.  With a sigh she filled her mug with water and stuck it in the microwave.  Tea would have to do, until she could get down into stores and find more coffee.  It just figured.  When the microwave beeped, she threw a teabag of Earl Gray into it, and turned back to the cupboard for some honey, fondly thinking of the starship captain that so favored that blend.  The little squeezebottle was sticky... and essentially empty.  With a sigh that went into the recycler.  Picking up the tea, unsweetened, she waved bye to her crew and headed back to the flight deck.  Work beckoned.

Roland watched  the Cheetah stroll from the wardroom, and then turned to grin at Hinoki; "wouldn't mind paddling that behind either.  Man, I Envy you!"  As Wanda snickered, the two males left the wardroom, Hinoki heading down towards Engineering, the Badger heading towards the cargo bay, for a work-out, his now almost cold coffee cup clutched possessively in one paw.

Zassa moaned softly, panting.  Smith had cum in her once already, the enigmatic creature forming a "knot" like most canines, tying them together; it apparently had given his spunk time to work on her, as by the time the knot had receded, her level of sensation was significantly increased.  Increased enough that she had clenched down using her "inner hand" to keep him from pulling out.  It hadn't taken long for him to get throbbingly hard again, and now she sat astride his hips, gazing down at him, as she sloooowly rode his cock, savoring every single little sensation.  It was bliss.

Smith watched the Vixen through slitted eyes, his hands reaching up to softly squeeze her breasts as she moved.  With a wry smile, he thought "Ah, to be young again."  Then his smile froze a little; Hinoki obviously didn't appreciate what he had here.  And Roland.... Smiling, he was amazed as he realized that for the first time in years, possibly decades, he was in competition with others for the favors of a female!  His grin spread; with age comes experience, and he was sure he could out-do those other two; he KNEW how to treat a lady right.  It really shouldn't be much of a contest at all.....  Letting both hands shift to each side as he caressed those marvelous globes, he trapped her nipples between thumbs and forefingers, tugging slightly, rolling them back and forth softly as he pressed her breasts together.  His reward was Zassa's soft gasp, and an increase in her motions as she rose and fell on his shaft.

Hinoki paused outside the door to Zassa's cabin.  It was still ajar, and he was certain it had been left that way just so he couldn't help but notice what she was doing to the.... Wolf?  And from the sound of it, his secret was out.  Turning, he strode down the corridor.  He needed a quiet place to think, to plan his next move.  The "battle" may have been lost, but that didn't mean the "war" was over.  Oh, no, not yet!

Roland tossed his towel over a convenient shipping container and started to strip down.  He preferred to do his work-outs in the nude, and it certainly didn't seem as if anyone on THIS ship would mind.  Tossing his clothes on top of the towel he started stretching, and bending.....  keeping one eye out for shadows that moved by themselves.  Thinking of the oily black creatures he couldn't help but shudder.

Tanj smiled to herself; ever since Zassa's little "disappearance" in the cargo bay, she'd kept one of the multifunction displays on the security camera there.  She had a ton of e-mail to go through, and some serious thinking and planning to do, but it was difficult, with the image of the nude Badger there, moving like he was.

Zassa smiled and kissed Smith goodbye.  As the somewhat exhausted fellow left, the Vixen laid back on her rumpled bed, and stretched languorously.   Smith had been right; she could feel her sexual response increasing.  Purrring, she moved one paw down between her legs to stroke herself, smiling at the matted fur, slick with their commingled juices.  Purrring deeply she let her finger slide up her still distended sex, until, with a little electric jolt, it glided over her once-again sensitive clitty.....

Hinoki stripped out of his shorts and stuffed them in a small plastic bag.  He had the brush and some cleaning supplies with him, but that was mostly for show.  He also had a data PADD loaded with the latest video thriller, and a couple of best-selling novels in text.  The bottle labeled "solvent" had been carefully cleaned and now contained spring water.  He'd be good in there, until he had to come out to get something to eat, or to use the head.  Pulling the access hatch off, he placed his "cleaning supplies" in the duct and crawled in after them.  The Access hatch was leaned against the duct; it wasn't quite closed but it wasn't obviously open either.  And even if the vixen found out where he was, if she secured the access hatch, he had at least three other ways out.  And a lot of duct to play hide and seek in, should she come in after him.  For a moment he indulged in the fantasy of turning the tables on her, pinning her to the dirty floor, and giving her another "dose of his medicine"....  THAT could be fun.  Grinning, he moved off down the duct, bent almost double, headed for the little nook he planned to call home for a bit.

Zassa stepped out of the shower and smiled; the hand-held shower head had a pulsation setting and it was always fun to direct it upwards between her legs.  GOOOOOD clean fun.  Moving over the teakwood grating, she hit the switch for the fur dryer and as the tornado of hot, dry air swirled around her, she started combing out her hair.  Suddenly, life seemed good again.......

Tanj glanced up from the latest message from the D'huatha cartel, her eye catching the badger's miniature form as he worked out in the cargo bay; still nude, and now just a little sweaty, he was going through a martial arts regime.  Watching his muscles ripple for a moment, the Cheetah wondered if perhaps she should take a break and go down there and ask him to spar with her.  The D'huatha deserved a reply; the intelligence they provided was quite good, and she owed them more than a few tidbits.... But it could wait.  Smiling, she rose from her station chair, glanced over the flight instruments, and with a wry grin on her face, left the flight deck.

"You seem to be in a good mood."  Zassa chuckled and almost danced across the Wardroom, to open the 'fridge, to look for a snack; "Yes, Wanda, I am.  The.....  Um, well, whatever Smith is, he's GOOD!  I had a very good, um, "Treatment" for my little problem, and its left me with a, well, call it an improved outlook on life.  The Wolverine lass made a noncommittal noise, and the Vixen turned to look at her.  Wanda was leaning back in her chair, head and shoulders against the wall behind her.... And there was a Mink tail sticking out from the other side of the table.  Wanda's eyes were closed, but there was a tense look on her face.  As she watched, the Wolverine grunted out; "Yes, getting laid can do that to you...."  The Vixen leaned back against the counter and smiled; "Wanda, I'm getting the feeling you know more about that than you've been letting on, of late."  The Wolverine lass opened her eyes just a little and smiled; "Yes, That's true.... But I've got a LONG way to go before I catch up with the rest of you!"  Zassa smiled and chuckled; "Well, if you're so inclined, you ought to take Smith for a ride; he's actually one of the better studs I've run across lately, and that's saying some!

Wanda's body shuddered, and she gasped; one hand moved under the table, and Zassa wasn't sure if she was caressing the Mink's head, or just holding it to her crotch.  "Ummmmm..... ah.....  Better than Hinoki?"  Zassa thought for a moment; "Hinoki can be VERY good, when he wants to be; lets just say there's a small difference in attitude between the two, and sometimes that makes all the difference.  Where is he anyways?  I still need to get the permanent cure from him!

Wanda groaned again, her body twitching under the Mink's tongue; "Um..... Hinoki?   Ah....  Think he said something  about going into hiding....."  Zassa picked up the yogurt container and a spoon and nodded; "That's OK, I'll track him down; the ship's only so big, and I already know most of the really good hiding places."  As she slipped through the door, the Vixen turned and smiled; "you two have fun, now, y'hear?"  Given the look on Wanda's face, and the way the Mink's tail was twitching back and forth, there was a good chance neither one of them ever heard her....

Tanj slipped through the personnel door to the cargo bay, stepping sideways to just watch, leaning against the wall next to the door.  The Badger was going through a complex kata, seemingly fighting against four opponents at the same time, his tail flying out behind him as he twisted and turned.  Smiling to herself, she admired his "form"......

Hinoki frowned.  He'd found the nook he'd been looking for, a wedge shaped portion off to one side of the duct; it looked as if the shipwrights had put it in, in anticipation of some engine upgrade or another, as there was nothing connected to it.  With the insystem drive shut down, the normal flow of cooling air through the ducts was off, there was only a slight tang of ozone remaining, so it wasn't as if he had to shelter from the hurricane-force winds.  It was merely a convenient place somewhat out of sight, should someone go poking around in the duct.  Settling down, he considered the paw he'd just wiped along the floor, and shook his head; yes, the ducts had been recently cleaned, but they shouldn't be THIS clean.  It was almost as if someone else had been here, had made this place a little cleaner for whatever their purposes might be.  Shrugging it off, he settled himself.  The "headlight" rested on his head like a sweatband, the bulb centered between his eyes and just a little up on his forehead.  It gave him decent illumination for reading.  Picking up his padd, he opened the first text file and started reading.......

Roland stood, panting hard, his fists clenched; the kata ended he relaxed his concentration only to become aware of someone watching him.  Turning he found the Ship's captain, that Cheetah fem, leaning casually against the wall, watching him with a smile.  Straightening, he made no move to cover his nudity; after all, he was proud of his body, wasn't he?  "Nice form" she rumbled, almost as if reading his mind.  Grinning back, the Badger nodded; "Thanks, I try hard to keep in shape."  The Cheetah chuckled; "I meant your fighting style, but yes, that too.  Care to spar a few rounds?  I could use the exercise."  Roland smiled as he looked her up and down.  Somehow he found her a tad too thin, as most Cheetahs were; "Well, I suppose, but somehow I doubt you'd be serious competition for me...."  Tanj just laughed, and walked out into the "practice area" of the cargo bay with the easy grace all felines possess; "we'll see.  I've had some good instructors".  Roland held up a paw, a mock-serious look on his face; "Oh, no you don't; if you're going to spar with me you gotta strip down too!"  Laughing, Tanj pulled down the zipper to her flight suit, shrugging it off her shoulders.  Roland wasn't really surprised to find she wasn't wearing a bra, but the lack of panties did surprise him a little.....

Hinoki's head snapped up and he looked around wildly; somehow he'd managed to fall asleep, but something had awakened him.  There'd been a noise...  Looking around, glancing up the duct first one way and then the other, he frowned; it seemed MUCH noiser in here than he'd thought, when he'd entered the ductwork.  In fact, he could hear the auxilliary power reactor's cooling pumps.  And that high pitched whine would have to be the ozone generator in the air recycling system..... and that low basso rumble would be the warp drive plasma modulator....  Frowning, he swiveled his ears around, just listening to the normal noises of the ship, amazed at how clearly he was suddenly hearing everything.  Settling back down the Cheetah frowned again; he felt like he could feel every grain of dust, every irregularity in the ductwork below him.....  Picking up his PADD, he tried to dismiss it, trying to get back into the novel he'd been reading.....

Tanj dropped to the floor, swinging her legs hard, ending with a quick roll and a bounce back to her feet; she'd almost knocked Roland's legs out from under him with that maneuver, but he'd jumped at the last second.  Now, however he was out-of-position, and with a shout the Cheetah stepped forward and executed a side-kick, her foot glancing off the Badger's arm as he moved to block her.

Roland panted hard, eyes a little wide as he blocked again, and stepped in for his own snap-kick/punch combination, somehow, though, the Cheetah just didn't quite seem to be where the kick and punch were directed.  Dang, but she was fast.  Still, she was panting harder than he was.  Cheetahs had speed but not much endurance.  Maybe he could wear her down.......

Zassa sat at the systems operations console on the flight deck and took another spoonful of yogurt.  It wasn't difficult to use the ship's sensors to locate folks; not with their security system.  That furr there had to be Corey, in his cabin (still)... and there was Tanj and Roland in the cargo bay.  Wanda and Kath had retired to Wanda's cabin.  The Vixen smiled at that one; the sensors put them so close that their images merged.  Smith seemed to be in his cabin, but the image there was a little vague and indistinct.  Taking another spoonful of yogurt, Zassa wondered how he did that.....  Finally there was an image down in Engineering, on the port side.  Zeroing in on that one, the Vixen frowned; "Dang it, he's found my favorite hiding place."  Grinning to herself, setting the spoon aside and using her tongue to remove the last traces of yogurt from the container, the Vixen decided that maybe she needed to do something to make it not quite such a favorite place.....

Hinoki set the PADD down with what sounded like a crash.  He'd found that the "headlight" seemed unusually bright; that if he turned it off, he could almost read the PADD in the dark.  Something was thudding rythmically, and it took him  a while to realize that it was his own heartbeat.  Closing his eyes, he imagined he could hear the blood flowing through his veins.  Something was wrong.  Sure that the Vixen had somehow started her counterattack, he mentally reviewed the day, wondering what she was up to, and how she was doing this to him.  Shifting again, he tried to find a comfortable position.....  Maybe this little bout of hypersensitivity would pass in a little bit.....

Tanj smiled and panted hard; the bout had probably gone to the Badger on points, but he hadn't achieved a clean "kill".  Now they were resting, before resuming.  "You look all wore-out, Captain; are you sure you want to go again?"  Tanj looked at the Badger and forced a smile; "Sure, just give me a minute to cool down, and I'll be ready to go again."  Roland smiled; "We seem to be pretty evenly matched; care to make a small wager on the outcome of this round?"  Tanj chuckled; "What you got in mind?"  Roland smiled; "What I've got in mind is YOU.  Hinoki's been telling me some stories about you, about what a fine sex slave you are.  I'd like to see what he's talking about."

Zassa purrred as she opened the access port.  The container in her hand surged; the creatures imprisoned therein restless, eager to escape.  She hadn't fed them since their capture (or re-capture), and they were hungry.  Carefully sliding the lid off the container, she dumped the lot of them into the duct, hastily sliding its cover back over the access port.  By the time those little darlings found Hinoki, he should be well primed for them.

Roland watched the Cheetah's face; had he gone too far?  He was, after all just a passenger here, and she WAS the ship's captain.....  He didn't want to have to walk to their destination.  After a moment the Cheetah chuckled; "I can just imagine some of the stories Hinoki has to tell.  Yeah, sure, why not?  I can spare an hour, or two, I guess."  Roland smiled to himself.  Bingo.  "I was thinking of something a little longer; say, the duration of the voyage."  Tanj laughed and flopped back on the mat, her chest still rising and falling as she panted; "No way.  I've got MUCH too much to do between now and the time we dock at Jenka's.  Two hours, Max.  Period.  Oh, and if there are any shipboard emergencies in that time, all bets are off.  And nothing is done that'll cause permanent harm."  Roland sighed; "Not much time in which to find out what a sex slave is capable of; I guess I could survive with a night, dusk till dawn, but not a moment less."  Tanj tilted her head to one side and looked at the Badger, as if evaluating him.  "Four hours; not a second longer.  And I get a safeword.  After all, I don't know you that well....."  Roland mused for a moment; "There's got to be a penalty attached for using the safeword; otherwise you might use it just to get out of an uncomfortable situation....."  Tanj settled back to stare at the ceiling; "I can't imagine using a safeword short of something that'd cause permanent damage, and four hours isn't THAT long a period.  OK, if I have to use my safeword, the clock starts over, at the next mutually agreeable time.  How's that?"  Roland grinned; "Done."  Rising to his feet he smiled; maybe he could push her to use her safeword in the last minutes of the time period, making her once again his, the next night.  If he did this right, he could string it out for a LONG time.  As he dropped into his fighting stance, he made a mental note to find Hinoki and ask him about the things she REALLY didn't like.....

Hinoki knelt in the middle of the duct.  The pounding of his own heart was loud in his ears.  He could hear the air rushing in and out of his lungs, the blood flowing through his veins.  And the normal shipboard noises were a cacaphony, almost painfully loud.  Worse, he felt like he could feel every hair on his body.  The hypersensitivity had only grown, until he thought he was going to go insane.  And now, he thought he heard something down the duct; something that seemed to be slithering in his direction.  It HAD to be his imagination... didn't it?

Tanj ducked, swiveled, and brought her leg up, to land a light kick on the Badger's chest; but before she could swing clear, she felt his fists, most of the power pulled from the punches, land one-two on her ribs.  Twisting, she lashed out at him with her tail while she tried to maneuver for her next assault.  She'd been holding back in the previous rounds, hesitant to show this ex-marine what she was capable of... but now it seemed as if he'd been holding back too.  They sparred with all the viciousness of mortal enemies, all the efficiency of unarmed-combat masters.  Ducking under a punch, Tanj caught his arm, trying for a judo throw.....  But somehow he twisted clear, just in time.

Hinoki felt something touch his foot.  He didn't want to turn on the light, it was way too bright for his eyes, but he had to look.  Reaching up, feeling each muscle group distinctively, he switched on the light.  The beam was dazzling, the sound of the switch as it made contact seemed like a cannon shot, but what really took his breath away were the half-dozen inky blobs closing in on him from all directions......

"I should be able to handle him" Tanj thought to herself.  "I've been practicing with my Master, and surely a full-grown Lion's more of a threat than a Badger".  For a moment, her thoughts shifted; how long HAD it been since she sparred with her Master?  Where was he now?  Would she EVER see him again?

Interlude:  Elsewhere

The way was narrow, doubly so for someone of his bulk, but the Lion managed somehow to squeeze his way through the short  corridor.  Raider ships were built for a specific purpose and crew-comforts weren't on the list.  The life support system was sized to handle just two or three furrs, the bubble of life-giving warmth and pressure no larger than it had to be, amongst the more important functions of drive, sensors, shields and weapons.  With a grunt, the Lion shoved his head through the flight deck hatch, his eyes roving first over the banks of instruments and controls, and then over the two occupants.  After a moment he growled; "Listen; I don't care what the Ops team said to you in the mission briefing.  You are to come back, and in one piece.  We just don't have that many ships, especially warp-capable ones.  You are NOT to risk the vessel.  Go, look, and scram.  No heroics, no side-trips, no adventures.  Got it?"

Clark grinned and looked at his partner; "I guess we don't count, Lou; they're more interested in getting the ship back than they are about us!"  The Rabbit frowned back at his partner; "That's Lewis, and its an entirely reasonable request, considering how few of us there are left here.  Besides, a scouting mission is of no value to anyone if the scouts don't report back."  Clark sighed and shook his head; "Lou, you're no fun at all, you know that?"  Turning to look at the Lion, the Fox chuckled; "Don't worry about us, Boss; we'll make it back for that big bonus you promised."  Before the Lion could speak, the Rabbit grumbled "Hey, no one said anything to ME about a bonus!"  The Lion looked hard at the grinning fox and rumbled "That's because no one ever said anything about a bonus; but I promise, you guys come back with the straight dope on what's out there beyond the jump points, and I'll personally see you get a week at the best resort on Elysium."  The Fox grinned and nudged his partner; "See, Lou, I told you it'd work!"  The Rabbit looked confused; "tell..... no, you never told me!"  The Lion just shook his head and patted the Rabbit on the shoulder; "Try not to kill him before you get back.  Good luck."  With that he started inching his way back the way he'd come, no room to even turn around.

Ben looked at the Lion as he emerged from the airlock, one eyebrow raised; "well?"  The Lion shook his head; "are you SURE the psych boys said they're the right ones for the job?"  The Wolf just shrugged; "so they say."  The Lion turned and watched through the viewport as the Raider ship undocked  from the Overlord, slowly moving off; "Well, I think we'll be lucky they don't kill each other; they may be the best pilot and the best Navigator we've got, but......"

The Fox's ears swiveled straight up, and his eyes widened as he straightened in his seat.  Lewis turned and looked at him for a long moment, before the Fox uttered a soft "Oh, CRAP".  After a moment the Fox turned and looked at the Rabbit; "It just hit me; what's the best Resort on Elysium?"  The Rabbit shrugged; "I don't know; I suppose it depends on what you're after.  Avalanche is the best ski resort.  Tumareg Island is the best beach resort.  The best diving is near Coz....."  "No, no, the BEST resort is the one with the Girls and Gambling!"  The Rabbit smiled; "Ah, you mean "Lost Wages," Of course I should have known...  But isn't that....?"  The Fox sighed "Yeah.... Its in Reds territory."  Lewis just laughed at the stricken look on the Fox's face.

As the jump point approached, Lewis was delighted to find the Fox all business.  Wise cracks, jokes and slander had slowed and fallen off, and now he was calling off a stream of numbers.... Running his eyes over the instruments, Lewis checked his systems.  The fusion generators were both performing flawlessly, shields were good, in-system drive good, Jump Drive was up to power and all in the green.  Plasma weapons on pre-heat, missiles all "spun up".....  They were as ready as he could make them.  Watching the Fox, his paw hovered over the key.....  Clark muttered "thirty-two oh five, twenty four ninety seven, nineteen eighty four, eleven oh four, seven sixty two, three eleven, and.... NOW!"  Lewis leisurely pressed the key and with a whine the Jump Drive engaged.

And then they were elsewhere.  The Fox's head shifted with all the precision of a turret lathe to the sensor display; "initial passive scan shows no targets, starting optical scan now.  Active scan shows no targets to 300,000 kilometers...... No..... no nothing.  We have a primary, and so far, no.... no, wait, got one planet, 9,000 kilometers in diameter....  We have an asteroid belt further out, but its very sparse..... got a frozen ball of ice WAY out, a mere 1500 kilometers in diameter....  And not a heck of a lot else.  I show three comets, and a few odd rocks."  Lewis nodded; "I have nothing on the electromagnetic spectrum except background noise from the primary and the usual interstellar static.  Nothing that resembles a signal."  The Fox's head shifted again; "nothing resembling phased neutrino communications, pulsed tachyons, or anything resembling subspace."  The two looked up from their consoles at each other; the Rabbit shrugged and the Fox muttered; "looks like a dead system."

Lewis sighed, his head lifting from the 'scope; "If there's anything in this system aside from rock, I can't find it.  No signs of life support systems, no residual traces of drives, no non-natural magnetic fields, no pure metals.  Zilch."  The Rabbit nodded distractedly; "I find no other jump points, and I've determined our position.  We're about forty-eight light years from where we started, and there are several systems that wouldn't be hard to reach with the Warp Drive.  But I don't see any point in going to any of 'em.  Not yet anyways.  The Fox nodded and shrugged; "well, back to the new Elysium system, I guess.  Lets just hope that jump point takes us back to where we started...."

The Lion's image was a little grainy on the Raider's comm console, but his voice came through strong and undistorted.  "Well, its less than I'd hoped for, but at least there aren't hordes of invaders poised there to complicate our problems.  Go on and head for the other jump point, but BE CAREFUL!"  As the image faded, Lewis looked at the fox, a slight frown on his face; "Invaders?  Do you think he knows something he's not telling us?"  Clark just chuckled "Aw, come ON, Lou!  You know the Brou device tossed us here when it interacted with that doomsday device the Elysium Government tried to use!  There probably aren't going to be any more life signs in the next system than there were in the one we just came from!  We'll be lucky if there's another jump point to another system.  Personally, I'm wagering we're going to be at this for a while....."  The Rabbit's frown deepened... "I dunno about that...."  But seeing the look on the Fox's face, he turned back to his controls, not willing to pursue it.  As his gaze swept his board, it lingered for a moment on the shields and weapons he hoped he wouldn't have to use.....

Back on the Lost Cause:

Roland saw the Cheetah hesitate.  Something had robbed her of her concentration; it was all the opening he needed.  Lunging forward he lashed out with one leg, following up with a series of jabs.  Off-balance, the Cheetah fell backwards to the mat, the Badger leaping to pin her hard; even so, she almost rolled out of reach.  After some squirming, seeking escape, she finally acknowledged defeat, her muscles going limp.  Roland smiled and reached out to straighten a lock of hair; "you ARE mine, little one...."  Tanj chuckled and shrugged; "Eighteen-hundred hours, tonight.  Until then, I've got things to do."  Taking the cue, Roland eased back and then helped her to her feet.  As she padded out of the cargo bay, the Badger muttered to himself with a grin "now THIS is going to be interesting...."

Tanj heard his comment, and wondered if she'd been meant to hear it.  Smiling she nodded to herself; "Yes, this WILL be interesting."

Hinoki leapt; the only way to avoid the creatures was to leap over them and then move faster than they were capable of moving, until he was clear.  All thoughts of hiding from Zassa pushed aside, he gathered his legs under him, ready to leap.  Moving with surprising speed, one of the inky blobs flowed over his left foot, seemingly gluing him to the floor of the duct; his leap turned into a high-energy fall, and arms flailing, he fell forward, to hit the floor with a crash!  As sensitive as his body was, the sensations were just too much, and for a moment he blacked out.......

Tanj settled into the pilot's couch, and for a moment just sipped her coffee.  She was sweaty, and needed a shower, but for the moment she just needed to think, and this was her favorite place for thinking.  Eyes scanning the instruments automatically, she let her gaze drift to the stars.  Somewhere, out there, was her Lion.  Could she find him?  Was she fooling herself?  And had she thrown that fight on purpose?  Doing the Badger's bidding could be fun, for an evening.  Did she really miss that life that much, that she'd purposefully loose a bet?  With a sigh she took another sip of the coffee and wondered where her mind was truly at.

Hinoki groaned.  Consciousness slowly returned....  At least he thought he was conscious.  For some reason he couldn't open his eyes.  Nor could he move. Thinking for a moment, he realized he WAS conscious again; his nose throbbed, and he could have sworn he could feel bruises forming at every point where his body had hit the deck.  He felt as if he'd fallen a dozen feet or more.....  Besides that, it didn't seem too bad; the floor had somehow gotten a whole lot softer, and the sounds that had been bothering him so, were somewhat deadened....  And it felt as if someone, someone with a great deal of skill and experience was sucking on his cock......  Just the way he liked it.  Purrring softly, he arched his back in response, in the process realizing that his hands and feet seemed to be solidly stuck to the floor.  Grinning to himself he gave a mental shrug.  If there was no way to escape, he might as well just settle back and enjoy it.  It wasn't as if the creatures were dangerous......  And then he remembered just how sensitive he seemed to have become in the last few hours.....

The Vixen smiled, and slipped into the Badger's cabin.  Grinning, ,she looked around.  Essentially identical to her own, she stepped to the miniscule closet and slid the door aside.  Dumping the last of her little darlings into a partially open carryall bag, she slid the closet door closed quickly and then rapidly retreated back to the corridor.  THAT would repay the Badger for the way he'd treated her on the Brethren's station.  Teach HIM to mind his manners!  Looking both ways, she smiled; the coast was clear; no one had seen her.  With a grin and a light step she sashayed down the corridor to the wardroom.

Hinoki's body shuddered as he orgasmed almost violently; his body was SO sensitive, it took hardly any stimulation at all to produce the desired results.  The creatures seemed to sense this, and had been treating him gently, almost with a feather touch, for what seemed like hours.  One of them had extruded a rather thick tendril into his ass, where it had been squirming and twisting, frequently stroking across his prostate, sending shivers through his spine.  Another tendril had worked its way into his mouth, alternating between a wild tongue that danced with his, and a phallic shape, giving him something to suck on.  And through it all he felt like each individual cell in his body was reporting the pleasures of the flesh to his overtaxed brain.

Roland smiled as he stepped out of the head, his fur still damp.  Somehow it'd seemed a shame to put his clothes back on, so just wrapped in a towel, he made his way back to the cabin they'd assigned him.  Laying down on the bed, he stretched, thinking pleasant thoughts of the Cheetah-that-was-to-be-his.  Figuring he should be well rested for their playtime later he closed his eyes; but sleep avoided him; something was wrong, he could feel it......

Lost in an orgasmic haze, the male cheetah writhed; he'd lost count of the orgasms he'd had, but somehow he thought that at least three of the creatures had been sated, and had oozed off somewhere.  Somehow they'd managed to manipulate him over on his side, somehow working together; one of them now held his wrists together, his back arched, so that his wrists and ankles were connected in a classic hog-tie.  Whether it was one, or two of the creatures holding him so, he couldn't tell; one still worked at his poor, overtaxed asshole while another made delightful love to his now rather tender cock.  And through it all, his body reported every sensation at an almost horribly enhanced level.  He could feel the slight breeze through the ductwork moving individual hairs, he could feel his heart pounding in his chest... and he could feel EVERY motion the little creatures made, as they continued to torment him....

Roland was having a dream.  A monster, a slithering puddle of goo was coming for him, to envelop him, to suffocate him, to cover him completely and digest him.  With a shout he jerked himself awake, sitting up in the bed.  "Only a dream" he muttered to himself, and then he remembered the creature in Zassa's jar.  Shivering in disgust he reached over and manually clicked on the cabin light.  For a moment he thought it was a trick of the light.... And then with a howl he found his feet, rising to stand on the bed.  There, just oozing out from under the closet door, was another of the monsters!

Tanj looked at the Chrono and smiled; she should go take a shower, and get ready for her evening of servitude to the Badger.  Already her mind was filled with tactics to try, for their NEXT bout......  Maybe next time she wouldn't loose.  But what would she do with a male slave?  The usual answers filled her mind, but in a deep, dark corner a voice kept asking, 'wouldn't you have more fun if you lost again?'  Telling that portion of her person to pipe down, she growled "you still have to see what kind of a master he's going to be....."  And off in that corner of her mind, she smirked at herself.....

Roland shivered, looking left and right; what could he use to stop the creature, to capture it?  His eyes flashed over his backpack, over a canteen, across the miniscule desk.... There, by the desk was a recycling slot; if he could just get the creature in there, it'd be broken back down to its constituent atoms......  But how?  Flicking his gaze back, he realized it had crawled out of sight.  Under the bed?  Desperately he searched the cabin for it.....

Blackness crept over the edge of the bed, just as the Badger conceived a desperate plan; his vacuum suit helmet was on the far side of the room.  A magazine, borrowed from Hinoki lay near it, large enough to cover the opening.  Panting heavily, waiting with mounting dread as the creature flowed closer and closer, the Badger gathered his legs under himself and prepared to leap.

The Cabin really was too small for such a maneuver; waiting as long as he dared, Roland jumped; his head hit the ceiling and as stars filled his vision, he crashed into the far wall.  Somehow he managed to scoop up the helmet and the magazine, pushing his back against the door.  Watching the creature carefully, as it reversed direction, to flow across the rumpled bedclothes like a mutant shadow, he wondered if they could jump......

Panting hard, Roland watched the creature flow over the edge of the bed, falling to the floor with a soft plop.  It seemed to gather itself and then come on towards him.  He'd had an inspiration, putting down the magazine and picking up one of the vacuum suit gauntlets.  As the creature flowed closer, he reached out, holding the gauntlet gingerly in one hand, lowering it.  The creature seemed to pause, and then as the gauntlet came down, it extruded a pseudopod upwards, to grab the glove; it almost looked as if the creature were trying to shake hands.... Roland lifted the gauntlet with a grimace of distaste, surprised at how heavy the thing was; it hung from the gauntlet, like a glob of..... something obscene.  Holding the vacuum helmet directly under it, should he have to let go, Roland moved quickly; as the creature tried to flow up over the gauntlet he swung his hand, slinging the gauntlet, creature and all, into the recycler slot.

As the recycler flashed blue, a much larger display than was usual, Roland howled with triumph!

Tanj was rubbing a towel through her hair as she exited the Head; for a moment she paused.... What was that sound?  Turning, she headed away from her cabin, ears perked up to follow the sound.....

Roland grinned and danced a little jig; one monster down!  That'd teach 'em to mess with HIM!

Tanj listened for a moment at the Badger's door; It almost seemed as if he were in pain, howling like that.  Concerned, she knocked on his door.....

Hinoki groaned, and slowly opened one eye.  He was lying on his side, and he felt like he'd been beaten; his cock felt raw, and his asshole felt like it'd been stretched wide enough to take a city bus.  Moving slowly, carefully, he made his way to his knees.  His head hurt, his blood pounding in his temples, and he felt as sore as if he'd run a marathon... but the sensations were all of a more normal level; the hypersensitivity had faded.....  Gathering his things, he walked VERY carefully to the access port.

Roland heard the knock on his door, and turning, jerked it open, to see a rather surprised and wide-eyed Cheetah.  "Um.... Are you all right?  You....."  Roland growled; "I was just attacked by one of those infernal beasts that seem to infest your ship, Captain!  But its OK, I managed to kill it!"  Tanj blinked; "you killed it?....  But those little darlings aren't dangerous!  Why I've had one for years!...."  Roland nodded savagely, fangs bared; "They're Monsters, and yes, I killed it.  Just as I'll do any other that crosses my path!"  Tanj nodded and swallowed, taking a step back.  Without a word she turned and headed back to her cabin.....

Roland panted hard as he watched the Cheetah go.  As she turned the corner, the thought suddenly struck him that she'd merely been expressing concern for him, and that he'd probably come across a little harsh.  Shaking his head, he turned to look back into his cabin, eyes searching the corners, examining the dark spots; "well, if she'd run a tighter ship, this whole thing wouldn't have happened!"  Wondering if he should find another place to sleep, the Badger turned, to head for the Cargo Bay.  He needed to borrow another vacuum suit gauntlet; he'd be damned if he'd sleep in just his fur on THIS ship again!

Zassa came around the corner of the corridor, an armful of veggies from the Hydroponics tanks in her arms, as Hinoki staggered towards the crew quarters.  The Vixen slowed to a stop, eyes widening; "What happened to YOU?"  Hinoki stopped, and drew himself up, mustering as much dignity as he could; "I was in the induction ducts, doing some preventative maintenance, when I was ambushed; I do believe we have a vermin problem......"  The Vixen looked him up and down, and then smirked; "you don't say!"

Roland fumbled through the locker, searching, and shook his head; these people were crazy, if they could tolerate monsters like that infesting their ship!  Then he grinned; if the Vixen bred them, well, then it was obviously HER fault that one of them got loose and "assaulted" him, wasn't it?  Grinning widely he wondered how he could turn this to his advantage.....

The Badger sipped the cup of coffee as he listened to Hinoki's tale.  The Cheetah male was just a little dirty, and seemed to be having trouble moving, as if he were totally exhausted.  "So you say there are more of these vermin on the ship?"  Hinoki grinned weakly and nodded; "Yeah, at least six."  "Seven" Kath muttered, from the other end of the table.  As the Badger turned to stare at her, she smiled and shrugged; "Mistress lets me keep one as a pet, for, ah "special rewards".....  Roland shook his head in amazement; "and Zassa breeds them?"  Wanda glanced at Kath, who blushed and then turned back to the Badger; "I don't think she's got much choice in the matter.  She makes use of 'em, and when they've grown fat enough, they divide by fission.  For her to stop raising them, she'd have to stop playing with 'em, and I don't think she's about to do that...."  Next to her, Kath shook her head in agreement.  Roland nodded; "So the one that... assaulted me was most likely one of her pets?" Without waiting for an answer, the Badger continued; "I think I need to have a little talk with Zassa about this.  Do you know where she is?"  Wanda shrugged, but Kath smirked; "I think you'll find her with Smith, getting another "treatment" for her little problem....."  Next to her, Hinoki just winced.

The Badger paced, back and forth, in the corridor.  When Zassa left Smith's cabin, she would most likely come this way, and that's when he'd have it out with her.  As he paced, he ran through his mind over and over just what he'd say.... The problem was, it wasn't convincing, even to himself.  She wasn't likely to surrender herself to him, just because one of her pets escaped and tried to attack him, no matter HOW irate he was about it.  In fact, she was more likely to laugh.  And he probably wouldn't be able to get too much support from the ship's Captain, not if she thought of them as "little darlings"......  but perhaps there was another way; it was risky, and might even be a little distasteful, but.....  It wasn't his usual direct approach to a problem, but in this case, a circuitous approach might yield better results.  Nodding to himself, he turned, and in the best tradition of the Marines, prepared to invade a hostile environment.... Zassa's quarters.

Zassa purrrrred and squirmed in delight.  Squirming was about all she could do; After riding Smith's cock, sitting astride him, to several nice climaxes, she'd managed to get him to cum; now she was even more sensitive, a fact that he seemed to be taking advantage of.  Acting like a furr many years younger, the... Wolf?  had taken her ankles and lifted them, spreading them wide as he covered her body bent double, with his own.  She was pinned to the bed in a most delightful manner, Smith's technique still insuring that she was yowling through her third climax by the time he came again.....

Roland peeked under the bed, and then scowled.  He'd found a dozen empty plastic containers, exactly what he thought the Vixen might keep the creatures in... but they were all empty.  For his plan to work, he needed at least three, possibly more of the creatures...  Where could they be?  Well, he knew where one of them was, anyways.  Taking a look around, making sure Zassa's cabin looked undisturbed (how could anyone possibly tell?  Didn't the Vixen EVER tidy up?) he slipped out and headed for the Cheetah's cabin.

Smith smiled and kissed the Vixen softly; "Of course, whenever you feel the need.  But you know, I really shouldn't monopolize you; certainly there are others who might have an interest in you?"  Zassa smiled and tilted her head to one side; "such as Hinoki?  Perhaps, but I'm still mad at him.  And I don't think that Corey's quite my type.  In fact, I'm not sure he knows I exist.  YOU on the other hand, are a perfect Gentlefurr."  Smith smiled and shrugged; "well, you know, Roland's kinda had his eye on you...."  Zassa just shook her head; "Perhaps, some day, if he learns some manners.  That one could take lessons from you, you know."  Smith smiled and shrugged noncommittally.  As the Vixen turned and walked off down the corridor, Smith thought to himself; "I truly am blessed.  Not only is she the sexiest thing I've run across in ages, but I don't seem to have any serious competition at all!"  Smiling, Smith stepped back to close the door to his cabin; she was an exhausting little thing, and he'd need his rest for later.....

Roland looked at the door carefully, inch by inch.  Finally he grinned and nodded; "I thought so; thought she'd have a security system on her cabin!"  It proved fairly simple to defeat.  Wondering what else the Cheetah might have stashed away, the Badger looked both ways and then quietly snuck into her cabin.  Ignoring the jewelry, and the comm console, he looked for places to stash a container about the size of a shoebox, searching under the bed and in her closet,  His face registered his triumph with a big smile as he brought out the clear plastic container holding her living dress.  Slipping out, he reset the alarm system.

On the flight deck, Tanj missed the flashing yellow light on the operations console, buried in her fuel consumption calculations.  The ship's computer, however, dutifully logged the event.

The holographic display was almost transparent, but the sight of it still made Roland a little uneasy.  He'd seen too many things like that in real life.  Wanda was carefully working through a lab in her subspace radio college course, working on what appeared to be a rather nasty stomach wound in a young Weasel.  As she moved, sensors in her gloves monitored the movement of her hands in relationship to the projected image, and the computer automatically graded her on her procedure.  Waiting until she'd resectioned the bowel and closed the wound, Roland leaned against the doorjam and just watched.  From what he could see, the Wolverine girl had the makings of a fine surgeon......

When she was done, Wanda turned, stripping off her gloves, the body on the ship's small operating table vanishing in a flurry of static.  Looking at Roland, she quirked an eyebrow upwards; "Can I help you?"  The Badger shrugged; "I've just been wondering about those... creatures.  I figured as the ship's medical expert, you'd know more about them than anyone."  Wanda shrugged; "I've tried to take tissue samples, but its never worked; I can't seem to split off a portion of any of them.  A hypodermic needle goes straight through them without picking up anything; they just flow around it."  Roland nodded; "what are they afraid of?  What hurts them?"  Wanda shrugged again; "One was found in the freezer one time; it was hard as a rock; but when it thawed out, it came back to life, hungrier than ever.  I can't say as we've had any occasion to see how much heat they could stand, but I know for a fact they don't like electricity, or magnetic fields, or something like that.  One time Zassa was playing with one of hers, and she turned on a vibrator; whether it was stray currents or the magnetic field around the motor, or whatever, the creature wouldn't go near it.  But so far we haven't found anything that would kill one, not that we've really been trying."  Roland nodded; "And what lures them?  What makes them start hunting you?  I mean, they're not exactly following crewfurrs down the corridors, waiting to pounce."  Wanda shrugged and then smiled; "I believe a certain initial degree of arousal is required; I think Zassa would know more about that, though.  Somehow she's always able to catch the ones that get away from her...."  Roland nodded and smiled; "Thanks, you've been a big help."

Hinoki grinned; "Yeah, I was down in Engineering when it happened; why?"  Roland smiled; "well, you know, I won a small bet with your Captain; tonight she'll be my slave for a few hours, and I was thinking that it might be an interesting way to finish up the evening, possibly using her to catch all the errant little monsters.  I'd hate to get ambushed like that again, and I'm SURE I could get her warmed up enough to attract the little buggers."  Hinoki chuckled "Yeah, I bet you could, too.  And there are plenty of things you can tie a person to, or across down there.  Lets see, you'd need something near the port induction ductwork....."

Tanj finished combing out her hair, and stole a glance at the chronometer.  Smiling, she tied her hair back at the nape of her neck with a simple leather thong; rising she paused to look at herself, turning to check her profile.  Her tummy was still fairly flat, her breasts still high and firm. Thinking that she still looked fairly good, she turned and padded over to her dresser.  Pulling open the top drawer, she removed her collar, and with a motion born of long practice, fastened it around her neck. After glancing in the mirror one last time she grinned, and padded from her cabin, nude, to go present herself to the Badger.  A bet, after all, was a bet, but the collar said that while she might be his for the evening, she still belonged, in her heart, to the Lion.  As she moved through her ship, her thoughts once again turned to him.  How was he faring?  Did he miss her?

Elsewhere:

Lewis found himself unaccountably nervous as they approached the second jump point.  Inhabited systems were still more the exception than the rule, and the odds of them finding "neighbors" were still vanishingly small.... But they DID exist.  After one dead system, the chances of them finding something in the next system were somewhat higher.....  As Clark called off the distance, the Rabbit's finger hovered over the Jump Drive button... He had a funny feeling about this......

The Jump effect faded and Clark turned to his sensors.  The first hurried look made the fur on the back of his neck stand up, and forced him to look again, and then again.  He could feel the Rabbit's eyes on him, waiting....  Breaking his gaze, he lifted his chin to look at the Pilot; "we have two signals, obviously artificial.  They're on the system's fringes and while I've never seen waveforms like that before, I'll bet you a month's pay that they're bouys marking jump points.......

The passive scan took time.  The Raider was set up for it, but it STILL took a while for the ship's automated telescopes to look at every portion of the space surrounding them.  Clark fretted, tweaking instruments, drumming his fingers on the console, shifting in his seat, while Lewis forced  his body to show at least an outward semblance of calm.  The sensor console's alarm caught them both by surprise.  "Looks as if something's coming through one of the jump points" Clark whispered, as if the approaching ship might hear him if he talked too loud.  Lewis just nodded; "Interesting subspace distortion pattern.  Are you logging all this?"  Clark swallowed and nodded; "Got three separate recorders running.  Yeah, we're getting it."  Lewis shifted one of the Raider's telescopes from the passive optical search and slewed it towards the suspected jump point.  He could see the multifaceted object that was the source of the strange emanations...... and a few seconds later a bright greenish-white flower blossomed near it, the outline of something forming.....  "No doubt about it; that's a jump point, and there's a ship coming through....."  "Yeah, but have you ever seen anything like that in your life?"  Lewis stared at the image and shook his head; what he saw seemed to be a collection of tapered cylindrical objects, all pointing in the same directions, held together by what seemed to be flying buttresses....  Once clear of the Jump Field distortion, it seemed to gather itself and then leap forward at an amazing speed.  Lewis checked the sensor display and then whistled; "well over 200 G's acceleration; remarkable for something that big."  Clark nodded; "I'm  not seeing any sign of a structural integrity field, nor any sort of exhaust.... But I am picking up extremely strong gravity waves.  I think they're using some sort of induced gravity drive."  Lewis nodded; "I can't seem to pick up any sort of power curve; no idea what they're using for a power supply, but whatever it is, its got to be fairly large to accelerate so large a ship like that."  Looking up and turning slightly, Lewis fixed Clark with a stare; "so now what do we do?"

"No, I don't think it's a warship; I don't see anything that looks like emitters, or launchers."  "You can't figure out what makes it go, either; what makes you think you could recognize weapons?"  The Fox sighed and shrugged; "OK, so maybe it wouldn't be so good an idea to try and take it as a prize.  But we can't just go home with pictures from half a system away!"  The Rabbit sighed; "I guess not, but whatever we do, we cannot let them know where we came from."  The Fox nodded; "so we warp out, wait for them to jump out, and then warp back and use our own jump point home."  Lewis shook his head no; "How will we know if they leave a reconnaissance package behind?  A heavily stealthed package could evade our sensors and track our every movement.  No, I'll go along with you, we'll get a closer look, but then we warp out and head back on Warp drive.  Astrometrics say we're only about 12 light-years from the New Elysium system; we've plenty of fuel for that.  It'll only be a couple of days."  The Fox sighed and waved a paw in grudging agreement.

Lewis checked the course, checked the drives, checked the reactors and then checked the sensors.  And then he checked everything again.  When he kicked the Raider into gear, they'd make a high speed pass, on Impulse Power, scan the ship at their point of closest approach and then head for the fringes of the system, taking evasive maneuvers.  They'd wait until the alien ship was almost to the system's other jump point before making their approach so they wouldn't have far to go to a safe place to engage the warp drive.  And in the mean time the Rabbit had nothing to do but wait and check his systems......

<<<Overseer, the Ship reports that we are receiving strange emanations from some unknown object.>>>  <<<Are the emanations hazardous?>>>   <<<No, overseer; the ship calculates a 0.639 probability that the emanations are some sort of active sensor.  The unknown object approaches at a high rate of speed, but is not on a collision course.>>>  <<<  An Alien vessel?  Or could this be a ploy by the Ghu?>>>  <<<Unknown, Overseer; we are too deep in the Territories for likely contact with Aliens.>>>  <<<Agreed.  It is most likely the Ghu; but what could they be up to now?>>>  <<<Unknown, Overseer.  I shall have the ship record the event, so that we might file a protest with the Trade Consortium.>>>

"We're being scanned.... I think."  Lewis ignored the Fox, concentrating on his flying.  The Raider flashed within half a thousand kilometers, at an appreciable fraction of the speed of light.  And then they were past, heading out into deep space, on a purely random course.  Lewis concentrated on the gravimetric readout, forcing himself to count to ten slowly, after it flashed green, before engaging the Warp drive.  As the ship settled down, Lewis started a long, slow curve, following a path generated by the computer, that should confuse any sensors capable of tracking them, reducing the odds of guessing their final course to almost nothing.... But then the chances of encountering anyone out here had been almost nothing, too.....

<<<Overseer, the unknown object has vanished.>>>  <<<You mean they have hidden themselves from us?>>>   <<<Perhaps, but if that is what they did, it was by a technology completely unknown to us.>>>   <<<Perhaps they committed ritual suicide by allowing us to detect them in the first place?>>>   <<<Unlikely, Overseer; no traces remain.>>>   <<<Most curious; we shall report this to the Competitive Technologies Division upon the conclusion of our voyage.  If the Ghu were behind the unknown object they may be testing something new.  We cannot afford to let them gain any more advantage over us!  Have the ship compile its memories of the event for analysis on our arrival.>>>

The Lion frowned; "Yes, Ben, I realize they're overdue.  But I'm not going to launch a "rescue" mission quite yet.  There might be a completely logical reason why they didn't jump right back.  But it is a concern.  Now, what's the status of the Overlord?"  Ben sighed, his tail drooping slightly as he spoke; "I think we've done all we can do in secret.  Either we enter low orbit around Elysium to shuttle equipment and technicians back and forth, or we find a shipyard somewhere."  The Lion nodded; "But if push came to shove, we can fight.... Right?"  The Wolf's nod was hesitant.  "Weapons are at 58%.  Shields at 73%.  Warp drive is at a nominal 95% and the Jump Drive's essentially untouched.  The Impulse Engines, however, are in pretty grim shape.  I don't think we could push her over quarter light-speed.  Environmental's about 80% although we're having trouble with alcohols building up in the air.  They're still working on that one.  Communication's at a nominal 95%, now that all the antennas have been replaced.  Sensors are at about 85%.  And we've managed to smuggle enough food and water up from Elysium to keep us going for a couple of months."  The Lion nodded; "and fuel?"  The Wolf shrugged; "got enough deuterium slush from Elysium to fill the tanks.  Antimatter's only about 1/3 of capacity.  Enough for one medium voyage, or a long one, one-way."  The Lion nodded slowly.  "If they don't come back, if we have to launch a rescue mission, we use the Overlord."  The Wolf winced but nodded; "I was afraid you were going to say that.....  But yeah, that's kinda what I was thinking too."

Lewis watched the sensors, and at the last second cut the Warp drive.  The lurch beneath their feet was almost imperceptible as the ship re-entered normal space.  "Cut it a mite close, didn't you?" the Fox chuckled.  Lewis just shrugged.  "See if you can get 'em on a tight-beam.  They're going to want to know why we're late, and I don't think they're going to want what we have to say spread around......

The Lion was the first one through the airlock, once again squeezing through the tight corridors to the flight deck.  The Rabbit was still in his pilot's couch, but the Fox looked as if he was ready to leave the ship.  The Lion motioned him back into his seat and growled; "Run the tapes.  Put it on the main viewer, I want to see EXACTLY what you saw."  When the tape had run its course, he motioned for the Fox to get up, and with no small amount of grunting and squirming, the two managed to exchange places.  The Lion's paws danced over the sensor console, examining settings, evaluating resolutions, and re-running segments of the log again and again.  Finally he downloaded the logs to three data crystals, one of which he put in his pocket.   Turning to look at the Rabbit and Fox he nodded slowly; "You two did good work.  Very good.  We're going to have to think about this, but I suspect you're going to have to go back out, to see if you can find where that ship was going, and where it was coming from.  Before we risk contact with them, we need to know a BUNCH more about them.  Get your ship turned around and ready for flight, and then stand down.  Take a couple of days off  while we figure out the next step.

Cromwell's face was a mask, and the Lion was glad he wasn't playing poker with him.  "As you can see, we have neighbors.  Neighbors who quite conceivably have a higher tech level than we do."  Cromwell nodded; "But so far they don't know we're here."  The Lion just shrugged; "maybe they do, maybe they don't.  No way to tell so far."  Cromwell nodded; "I'm afraid our priorities right now are to stabilize things down here.  The Reds are still pushing at the margins.  The Lion nodded; "I've heard.  If they make that push down the Fulda Corridor, we'll be overhead within an hour, ready to give Orbit-to-Ground fire support.  But having said that, I don't think we can ignore the.... "external" situation."  Cromwell nodded; "And that means more antimatter.  I've had my people looking at what it would take to build a production facility, and they're not optimistic.  There are just too many other things to do."  The Lion grinned; "True  However, my folks have come up with the plans for an automated facility, designed to orbit the sun.  It wouldn't make much antimatter, but it also wouldn't tax your resources too badly.... And once the facility is set up, it wouldn't be hard to make more.  And remember, Sir, if we're in low orbit, running shields, drives, AND energy weapons, our power consumption will exceed what the fusion reactors can supply."  Cromwell sighed; "Very well, send me the designs; but I'm not promising anything."  The Lion just grinned and pushed a button on the console; "on its way."

When the connection was broken, Ben growled; "you're not going to tell him you're sending them back out?"  The Lion turned to face him, shrugging sheepishly; "he has his priorities, and we'll help him with them as much as possible.... But we ARE in charge of "system defense", and as such we have to know as much as possible about external threats... don't we?"  Ben just shook his head; "I think you're looking for someone or something that can tell us where we are and how to get home.  Not that I'm arguing too heavily against it, mind you, but Cromwell does have a point.  If the Blues fall to the Reds we're going to be in big trouble;  Keeping the Blues in business has to be our first priority....."  With a sigh, the Lion nodded; "Yeah, I know...."

On the Lost Cause:

Roland stepped into the wardroom and smiled.  The vixen, wearing only an apron that said "kiss the cook" was stirring something savory on the stove.  Taking a seat near the end of the table he smiled.  The apron left her back bare, framing her delicious ass sooooo nicely.  Almost 1800 hours.  Turning his chair a little so he could watch the door, and the vixen at the same time, he smiled faintly.

Tanj paused before the door, took a deep breath, and then chuckled at herself "Girl, its not like you've never done this before!" she muttered to herself; somewhere deep insider her, a voice responded; "Yeah, but you've really gotten out of the habit; gotten way too independent."  Another voice responded "you'll never forget and you'll never be free of it; its what you truly are...."  Before the conflicting emotions could get out of control, she took a step forward, the door hissing open.  Then, seemingly on Automatic, she found herself gliding across the floor, to present herself to the Badger.

Zassa turned from the Irish Stew, and smirked at the Cheetah; when she wanted to, she could be the most sensual sex slave in the Quadrant.  Flicking her gaze from Tanj to the Badger, her grin widened; it was obvious that Roland was drinking in the vision before him, failing just a little to maintain his calm, cool demeanor.  Turning back she lifted the stirring spoon, sampling the stew.  Maybe just a little more pepper......

Roland looked at the slave kneeling by his feet; her position was perfect, knees well spread, back straight, head down.  Smiling he took the leash he'd brought and clipped it to her collar; "Come, Slave, we have things to do."  The confusion on Tanj's face was present for just a second, but it was obvious she'd expected to serve him dinner.... Still, it was his time, he could do with it as he wished.  Rising smoothly, never letting the leash go taut, she followed him from the wardroom.

Zassa stared as they left, letting out a soft "Huh!" as the door slid closed behind them.  At the far end of the table, Hinoki chuckled; "For some, there are more important things than eating...."  Zassa turned to look at him; "more important than my great Aunt's Irish Stew?  Even I'LL pass up sex for THAT!"  Hinoki just laughed.

Tanj was able to keep her eyes down, as she was led, but her curiosity rose as she was led down into Engineering... "why here?" kept running through her mind.  There were more "toys" in their corner in the cargo bay.....  Finally the Badger stopped.  Sliding smoothly around behind Tanj, he pushed her up against a cooling water return line; the line was a good 30 inches in diameter, roughly three feet off the deck; smiling he pushed her forward, until she lay across the pipe.  "Stay there, slave; don't move."  Tanj felt a blindfold being pulled across her eyes, felt it buckled to the back of her collar.  She felt cuffs being locked around her wrists and ankles, her wrists locked together and then locked to a chain that seemed to already be fastened to the floor.  Her feet were pulled wide apart, and similarly chained to something very immobile.  It was as if she'd been tied around an exercise horse, except she could feel the water rushing through the pipe, a thrumming vibration that actually felt rather nice.  The returning cooling water was just a little warm; in all, it was a rather comfortable position.  Mentally she gave the Badger two points for originality and creativity.....

Roland smiled and sat down by the Cheetah's spread legs, his head just about at the height of her cleft.  Smiling, he started to caress her, slowly working his fingers up the insides of her thighs.....

"mmmmmm, that's nice" Tanj thought.  Laying on the pipe, blindfolded, she had little to concentrate on besides the feel of his fingers and the vibration of the pipe; the vibration was changing with a rhythmic pattern, as if a control valve somewhere wasn't tuned properly, and the flow was varying in a sine wave.  That'd have to be attended to... couldn't be good for the valve actuator.... But it was nice for her, the pipe almost pulsing with her heartbeat....  As the Badger's fingers stroked higher and higher she purrrrred in anticipation.

Roland smiled as his slave squirmed.  He'd opened the grating to the port induction duct earlier, when he'd laid out his toys.  If the creatures were in there, well, he was dangling some delicious bait right in front of  them....  Now all he had to do was to make sure his "bait" was as attractive to them as possible....  Running his fingers over the Cheetah's labia he teased her lightly.....

Tanj groaned; the Badger was good; he knew just how to work a girl, just where to touch, just how to stroke, to bring her to a white heat.  Problem was, he wasn't giving her any release, just keeping her on edge.  It seemed like she'd been on the verge of a climax for hours, maybe even weeks.  Why didn't he just fuck her?  What was he waiting for?

Roland watched in amusement as a fat drop trickled down the inside of the Cheetah's thigh; she certainly was a moist little thing!  Trying to ignore his own erection, tightly constrained within his pants, he flicked a finger over her clitty, teasing her hard for just a moment, little droplets of her juices flying with each motion.  And then he stopped; he didn't want to get her too close to a climax; not yet.......

The arrival of the first of the creatures was a surprise.  It literally fell from overhead, to land on the Cheetah's rump with a smack.  Spreading out, it flowed over her hips, and almost over Roland's hand, with amazing speed, until it had formed tendrils around her waist and between her legs.  Roland watched in horror and morbid fascination as more and more of the creature flowed into the Cheetah's wet sex, driving itself deep into her pussy.  Taking a quick look around, to make sure no others where sneaking up on him, the Badger swung himself over the pipe, so that he could crouch by the Cheetah's head.  Bending down he whispered; "You're the Captain of this ship; all that happens here is ultimately your responsibility.  You should have done something to keep passengers from being ambushed, and assaulted by these vermin; now you're going to help me capture them all, and in the process, pay for your "crime".  What do you think of THAT, my little slave?

Tanj groaned and squirmed; she'd recognized the creature for what it was when it landed on her rump; however, she'd been so close to her climax for so long that she didn't much care what it was, just so long as it gave her what she wanted.  Sending a mental image to the creature, she felt it respond almost immediately.  As it formed a thick phallic plug and started pumping it in and out of her pussy, she groaned with delight; her climax was SO close.....  When the Badger started talking, whispering in her ear, she scarce heard the words....

The cold came as a shock to Tanj; something ice cold was near her ass!  Mewling, moaning she squirmed in her restraints, as the creature within her moved slower and slower, its mass slowly contracting.......

Roland grimaced, and worked the cube of dry ice over the creature's point of greatest mass; directly over the Cheetah's crotch; slowly the creature shrank, its tendrils around her waist parting.... Finally, using the thick acid-proof gauntlets, barely able to bring himself to touch the thing, he was able to pull it off her, an almost perfect mold of her crotch with a thick phallic shape in the center.  For a moment he looked at it, marveling at the "sculpture"... and then he dropped it in the plastic bucket and sealed the lid.  Bending over Tanj he purred in her ear; "Not let, little slave; no release for you yet; we have others to catch."  As Tanj wailed her protests, the Badger sat back down to resume his teasing of her still wet, and now rather cold crotch...

Tanj groaned; she was sooooo frustrated; she hadn't been this frustrated in YEARS; the Badger was VERY good at what he did, stroking her, teasing her, keeping her at a fever pitch, but never allowing her to cum.  The only time anything other than his finger entered her was when one of the creatures was lured by the scent of her arousal, or more likely by the psychic emanations coming from her tormented brain.  Then, for a while, she was fucked rather nicely as the creature started to feed.  But the Badger seemed to have an almost inexhaustible supply of dry ice, and one by one, the creatures were captured, and her teasing resumed.  After a while her pride had evaporated, and she'd pleaded with him, begged him to be allowed to cum, but when he got tired of hearing her cries, she'd been gagged.  Now, all she could do was to moan into her gag and wait....... Quivering, trembling, and filled with lust.....

Roland counted the buckets.  He had eleven, and no more of the creatures had shown up in the last half hour.  At one point he'd been busy, while one of them diddled the Cheetah, running around  icing inky black puddles as they crept towards her... towards HIM.  He'd successfully intercepted two of them that way, but had been forced to retreat when a third tried to assault HIM.  Still, he'd been able to capture it before things had gotten too far out of control.  Smiling, he bent forward to drag his tongue over the Cheetah's heated, dripping flesh; she'd been in torment for hours now, well past the time period agreed upon in their wager... but he thought he had a way to escape her wrath there......

Tanj jerked as she felt the hand crash down on her left asscheek; jerking in her bonds, she almost immediately started purring as she again felt his tongue teasing her sex, gliding over her clitty... and then a hand crashed down on her opposite asscheek.  Alternating between howling and purrring she suffered between torments, as the Badger did as he wished with her....

Roland smiled as he smacked his paw down on her once again.  Bending forward he drove his tongue as far as he could into her pussy; she liked it when he licked forcefully right there, and he let the tip of his tongue dance over her sensitive spot for a moment.  Pulling his tongue out, sitting back, he brought his hand down on her ass once more; he could almost see her body react, as if asking, begging for the sensual touch that always seemed to follow...   Instead he said, almost conversationally; "Don't you agree, that for allowing so MANY of these little devils to infest your ship, that you should be punished?"  Her only response was a muffled moan that probably was more protest over the lack of soft touch than protest over his accusation.  Gliding a finger along her dripping slit, he flicked her clitty and then brought a paw down on her ass again; "Well, I think you should be punished and I think I'm just the person to do it too."  Tanj groaned into her gag, her body shaking; her ass was on fire, but the heat there was nothing compared to the raging inferno in her loins.  At this point she didn't care WHAT he did to her, as long as he brought her off... but moaning into her gag, writhing in her bonds, she had no way to tell him that.....

Zassa looked up from her video, and sniffed the air; grinning the Vixen shook her head; "What IS he doing to her, that I can smell her scent all the way up here?"  More than a little envious, the Vixen tried to force her attention back to her program.

Roland smiled and checked the area again; no signs of any more of the little devils; rising, he undid his pants, letting them fall to the floor.  Kicking them off, he made his way to the other side of the pipe; taking the Cheetah's head in his hands, he undid her gag, pulling it out, and letting it fall to the floor with a soft thud.  Tilting her head up, he looked into her eyes.  Nodding in appreciation for the look of desperation, of animal lust he saw there, he purrred; "Don't you agree you should be punished?  The spanking was just the beginning.  I think you need a much greater reminder of your crime.  Tell you what, agree to your punishment and I'll let you cum.  Is it a deal?"

Tanj groaned; all she'd heard, all that had sunk in, had been something about letting her cum; eagerly she nodded her head.

Roland smiled.  He didn't think, in her state, that the Cheetah had fully understood what he'd said, but it WAS a defense of sorts.  The holocamera he'd set up had captured her assent, and he had the videotape of the capture of the little monsters, so he had SOME defense, assuming he lived long enough to present it to anyone...  Smiling he stepped forward, letting the head of his hard cock nuzzle against her lips.  Taking him eagerly, the Cheetah started sucking as if she were desperate for his cum.  Leaning forward, the Badger occasionally brought one paw, or the other down on her tender ass; each time he spanked her, her sucking became more frantic, more eager, and that made him smile.

Tanj gulped hard as the Badger started to cum; she swallowed every drop she could, eagerly, hoping to please him enough that he'd fulfil his promise and grant her her release.....  The sensation of something flowing up her left leg was completely missed, until something pushed into her pussy; groaning around his cock, Tanj lost herself in the pleasures as another of the creatures started to take her.

Roland pulled out of her mouth and grinned; so there had been another of the creatures after all.  This one, though was small......  For a moment he thought about moving around behind the Cheetah, and presenting the head of his still-hard cock to her asshole; however, that would put him MUCH too close to the despicable creature.  It almost seemed as if the foul thing had read his mind, though, as it almost immediately extruded a tendril, driving it deep into her bowels.  Roland just stood and watched as the creature fucked the bound Cheetah in pussy and ass.

Tanj groaned and panted hard; being taken in both holes, after all the teasing was almost more than she could stand; it was as if she'd been fed some of the sensitivity drug; every nerve fiber was on edge, every neuron ready to fire.  When her climax finally arrived, much, much delayed, its power was overwhelming.  Drowning in pleasure, her body shuddering, she passed out cold.

Roland grimaced; with the Cheetah unconscious, the creature was starting to look for someone else to feed on.  Checking his gloves, Roland grabbed one of the remaining chunks of dry ice.  Icing it down, the Badger slipped in into an empty bucket and snapped the lid.  Smiling, he untied the Cheetah, and throwing her over his shoulder, he picked up three of the buckets and headed for the nearest airlock.

It didn't take much to disable the suit's radios.  It was more difficult to get the limp Cheetah into a vacuum suit.  Her arms bound behind her with tape, she made a lumpy bundle.  After checking the suit's systems, Roland opened the buckets one by one, pouring the creatures through the open face plate.  Snapping the face place closed, he checked the telltales and then picking up his roll of tape, he started taping the suited Cheetah to a convenient series of conduits.  Grinning, he wondered if the Cheetah would enjoy the treatment he'd almost been subjected to back in his cabin, the assault of the creatures.  But, as she kept one herself, she probably would.  Grinning, he headed back to Engineering.  Nine pails, three remaining males.  One very Interesting night and he should be the only functional male left to ease the Vixen's problem.

Zassa knocked on the door to Hinoki's cabin; like most of them, unless he was in need of privacy, the door was ajar.  The Cheetah male looked up from the book he was reading; seeing Zassa, he quirked an eyebrow upwards.  Zassa crossed her arms under her breasts (making Hinoki's eyes go just a tad wider, an effect he was certain the Vixen had not intended).  "I think you know why I'm here....." the Vixen growled.  Somehow her voice was still a sexy contralto.  Hinoki smiled and carefully marked his place in the book; setting it aside, he sat up; "Um, well, lets see; could it have anything to do with the sudden rash of prohibited lifeforms the ship seems to be having?  Seeing the look on the Vixen's face he hurriedly went on; "could it have anything to do with the strange bout of hypersensitivity I recently suffered?  Could it have had anything to do with that truly horrible stew we had for....." At the look of stormclouds gathering on the vixen's face, Hinoki grinned; "Or maybe you've come for that antidote I promised...."  At the curt nod from the Vixen, Hinoki sighed and shrugged, and turned.

Zassa smiled; as the Cheetah turned, she unfolded her arms just enough to squirt a drop from a little squeezebulb onto the Cheetah's thigh.  Moving as quickly as she dared, she recrossed her arms, her left hand concealing the small plastic bulb.   Picking up a bottle of water, with a trendy company logo on it, he handed it to the Vixen; "the antidote's in that; it should be effective within a few hours."  Zassa regarded the bottle cooly and then raised an eyebrow; "the old "hide in plain sight" gimmick?"  Hinoki grinned; "Yup.  It was right there every time I fucked you on this bed."  The vixen looked from the bottle to the Cheetah and just shook her head; "you really ARE a Devil......"  The Cheetah just laughed.

Zassa stood in the corridor and regarded the bottle.  With a shrug she twisted off the cap, noticing the seal had already been broken, and took a long swig.  It tasted just a little funny, as if it were coppery...  Gritting her teeth she swallowed all but the last swallow.  Carefully putting the cap back on, she headed down to sick bay; maybe Wanda could tell her what it was she'd just swallowed......

Wanda looked up from the scanner and frowned.  Across Sick Bay, Zassa was squirming in the "visitor's" chair.  "Something wrong?"  The vixen sighed; "I think I must have gotten a drop from that ampoule you gave me on my paw when I concealed it after use.  I'm feeling.... Kinda tingly."  Wanda nodded; "I told you to be careful; did you use the barrier cream like I told you?  Zassa nodded; "Yeah.... But I just used it on the pads of my paws; I was afraid it would show up on my fur....."  Wanda chuckled; "Well, the good news is it only lasts a short time, and if Hinoki can take the full dose, you should be able to take a drop....  But maybe its just the effects of this stuff he gave you.  As near as I can tell, it's a tailored enzyme, and will probably break down that virus.  Gotta run some more tests to tell for sure, though.  At worst, its harmless, near as I can tell."  Zassa smiled and hugged the Wolverine lass; "Thanks, Wanda, you've been a big help!"

Tanj sighed and squirmed some more; with her arms bound behind her, there was no way she could possibly escape the vacuum suit.  She'd hit the chin switches in the helmet repeatedly, but the radios were dead.  And she couldn't move from where she was so she assumed that she was tied to something out of her field of view.  Helpless.  She was completely helpless.  AND at the mercy of the creatures that seemed to be cohabiting the suit with her.  Not that that was such a bad thing; it certainly helped pass the time.    One of them was spread across her chest, teasing and tormenting her nipples, squeezing her breasts rhythmically as the others covered her crotch, working over pussy, clitty and anus.....  She felt like the suit should be half-full of her juices by now....  Wondering about the possibilities for telepathic instruction once the creatures had been sated, she tried to relax and just enjoy it... under the right circumstances, bondage such as this could be a delightful experience....  But right now she wondered just what that Badger was doing loose on her ship; what WAS he up to?

Roland smiled; the ship was quiet, well into its "night" cycle.  Moving with all the stealth of a born commando, he worked his way down the corridor.  The locks, when they were used, were simple ones, easy to overcome, but mostly all he had to do was to slide the door slightly open, and stick a hand through, to up-end one of the buckets.  So far the only close call seemed to have been in Hinoki's cabin, where the Cheetah was sleeping restlessly....

Corey was used to dreaming; when he was frustrated, some scientific problem escaping his conscious mind, frequently he found his subconscious mind working on it while he slept.  Often the answers would come to him in the middle of the night.  For that reason he kept a PADD on his nightstand, to record his inspirations before he forgot them in the light of the morning.  This dream, however, was not what he was used to.  Erotic dreams of this nature hadn't plagued him since he was young.  He'd thought he'd put such trivialities as the pleasures of the flesh behind him...... But now, now the fevered dreams of youth were with him again.  Purrrrring  he squirmed on his bed as the most delightful visions ran through his mind.....

Zassa squatted on the floor of her cabin, nude, and Hmmmmed.  The fabric of her jumpsuit had become irritating and then unbearable.  She couldn't sit on her own bed, the satin sheets feeling like rough concrete.  With only the pads of her feet in contact with the floor, the Vixen considered asking Tanj to kill the artificial gravity; that might help....  Smiling, she considered the problems with hypersensitivity, and the trick she'd played on Hinoki.  Did HE feel this way?  Did he think he could feel every hair on his body?  For a moment, the Vixen considered what the assault of her pets must have felt like.  The sensation was electrifying; unconsciously her right paw had descended, to stroke lightly between her legs, a gesture she often made when alone... and sometimes when not alone....  This time, however, it had been a massive surge of sensation, instead of the mere tickle it normally was.  Grinning, Zassa decided that if Hinoki could take it, so could she; besides, she'd been kinda numb down there for WAY too long.  What better way to celebrate the return of sensation?

Zassa panted hard; somehow she still managed to balance, in a full squat, both paws between her widespread legs.  Her heart pounded in her ears, her breath rasped through her throat, through her lungs, and the floor felt like ground glass beneath her feet.  Her muscles ached from holding the strained position for so long, but all those sensations were minor, almost forgotten, in the face of the sensations of one fingertip stroking slickly along her sex.  Using the fingers of one paw to hold the petals of her sex apart, she slooooooowly stroked one finger, now soaked with her own juices back and forth through her cleft.  Just getting her fingertip near her clitty was almost enough to bring her to an instant and powerful climax.....

Her climax much delayed, the stimulus overwhelming, Zassa toppled from her crouch as her body convulsed; the climax was SO powerful that her howl caught in her throat, only a strangled gasp emerging.  Bright points of light danced in her vision and for a moment she was neither conscious nor unconscious, but hovering somewhere on the fields of Nirvana....  When her vision cleared, when her wits returned, the Vixen shook her head; "This could be Heaven, and this could be Hell........"  Grinning, stiffly, she rose; her experience being something she wanted to repeat, while she could, the Vixen fetched a few of her favorite toys.  After all, if a little was good, more would be better, wouldn't it?

Zassa gasped and shuddered, the pain almost making her pass out.  The nipple clamps were some of the milder ones she had, but it still felt as if her nipple was being savaged by some particularly small and vicious animal.  Gasping, the Vixen grinned around her self-imposed gag, and released the other clamp, letting it fasten itself on her other nipple.  As the sensation coursed through her, she came as close to having a climax from pure pain as she'd ever come.  "At least the gag stifled my screams" she thought to herself.  Positioning herself just so, she made sure the vibrator was running, and then clasping her paws behind her back, slowly lowered herself on to the buzzing phallus.  It was one of the smaller ones she had, but it still felt as if she were shoving a utility pole up her quim.  She'd never felt so stretched, so very, very filled.  Panting, teetering on the edge of another of those instant climaxes, she settled herself, kneeling, paws holding ankles, as the vibrations rocked her world.

Zassa shook her head and grinned around her gag; this was good, but she knew what would take it just a little higher.  Fortunately all her toys were close at hand, and she didn't even have to rise off the vibrator to fetch them.  Cuffs went around her ankles, held in place with double-ended harness hooks through the hasps.  Similar cuffs went around her wrists.  And the ends of all four harness hooks clipped to the folding eye-bolt in the floor.  Sure, she could free herself whenever she wanted, but with just a little effort she could pretend she was well and truly bound.  Squirming a little, testing the limits of her now restrained movement she moaned into her gag.  The spice of self-bondage, along with the droning vibrator and the hypersensitivity threw her into a series of short, sharp firecracker-like climaxes that left her dazed and panting.

The Vixen shuddered, and tried to move.  The vibrator had been small, and the power cell correspondingly small, and yet in its brief life, it had brought her to an incredible number of climaxes.  Now she lay on her side, panting hard, trying to recover.  She was sure she was a mess, hair tangled, fur matted.  The scent of her arousal must have permeated the entire ship by now.....  And yet the hypersensitivity remained.....  "Gotta make hay while the sun shines" she muttered to herself, forcing herself back up to her knees, unclipping just enough of her restraints to let her move.  Crawling across the room, she fetched another toy, a lopsided grin on her face.

Zassa stood, legs held wide by the spreader bar, chest heaving.  The toy was actually a training device, although a much kinder one than she'd ever used at the academy.  Made of borosilicate glass, it was almost a work of art in its own right.  U-shaped, each of the verticals a ribbed and studded dildo, it had a third member, angled off one of the verticals.  With the back vertical buried in her ass, the front vertical buried in her pussy, the third member angled up and over her mons.  This third member could be used as a handle, to move the other two dongs in and out of their respective orifices, but that wasn't its main purpose.  The device was meant to be manipulated by the user's internal muscles, pulled up into the body, and then allowed to slide back down; the reward for mastering the use of Kegel and pelvic floor muscles was the abrasion of the angled third member against her clitty.  Talk about an incentive to train!  And with her body hypersensitive, the Vixen found that she could isolate different muscle groups with much greater ease; of course the fruits of her labors were driving her to repeated and powerful climaxes, but.... she was still achieving more in this manner than she had in years of practice.  "Gotta tell Tanj about this" she purrred to herself, and with her hands behind her neck, using only her "inner hand" the Vixen pulled the device up and into herself, and as the angled member sawed against her pussy, she groaned into the gag she still wore, yet another climax raging through her.....

Hinoki groaned; once again, he was aware of almost everything.  The rush of air through the vents in his cabin sounded like a hurricane.  His heartbeat was as loud as a pile driver, and he could swear he could hear the blood rushing through his veins.  If he concentrated, he thought he could even hear the valves in his heart opening and closing..... although that might have been his imagination.  He'd put the satin sheets on his bed, momentos of a tryst long ago, and while they felt cool and soft against his hypersensitive body, he could feel every wrinkle and bump as if it were a mountain ridge.  The soft sound of his door opening and closing was lost amongst the background noises, as the Cheetah tried to find a way to sleep.  The touch of something against one ankle however, was distinctive enough to cause him to open one eye, and then the other, and then to sit up.  "oh, no.... not AGAIN!"

Smith smiled, his dreams full of Zassa.  The Vixen was, as always, a delight......  Letting a hand trail down over his chest, towards where the Vixen's mouth was doing such delightful things to his cock, he found.... Something soft and smooth; as if his waist was covered in smooth rubber.  Coming a little more awake, he opened his eyes to LOOK......

Corey shuddered; it had been a long while, and it hadn't taken much stimulus to produce an orgasmic result.  With a sigh, he reached over to turn on the nightstand light, sure that he had something to clean up......  Biological events like this could be nice, but sometimes the aftermath was a bit messy....  As he sat up carefully, he looked down, eyes widening in surprise; "well..... hello!  What DO we have here?"

Hinoki grabbed the headboard with both hands, the smooth painted metal seeming rough against the pads of his paws.  The little monsters were working him over like nothing he'd ever felt before; obviously these three were learning, almost as if they'd been the ones that had assaulted him down in engineering.... If they were, they'd been moving fast!  Or they'd had help.  Shuddering again as another orgasm ripped through him, he tried hard not to loose consciousness from the extremes of pleasure.  The hypersensitivity was both a blessing and a curse....

Smith reclined on his bed, head and shoulders propped up by a pillow against the headboard.  Panting lightly, he watched in amazement as the inky black creatures took turns doing the most...... obscene?  No, that wasn't quite right... Stimulating?  Certainly that, but it also wasn't what he was trying to describe.... Amazing?  That too, but.....  At a loss for words, Smith watched passively as the creatures brought him to another thundering orgasm.  It was as if they knew just what he was feeling, knew what he liked and didn't like.....  Eyes wide, he wondered if they were dangerous?  How would he know?  And in the back of his mind, a little voice suggested that if they weren't dangerous, how could he catch and keep one?  Something like this could make those long nights on assignment, where he dare not dally with a female, a little more pleasurable.  And if they were dangerous, well, maybe if he survived he could figure out a way to use that to his advantage too.......

Corey found that as long as he didn't try and stop the creatures, they wouldn't interfere with what he was doing.  Or trying to do, at least; given his state of arousal, concentration was somewhat difficult....  At the moment at least a portion of his mind was occupied with making notes on what was happening......  Of course when he'd risen from his bed and moved to the chair at the cabin's tiny desk, one of the creatures had found that motion a convenient excuse to slide a tendril into his ass.  A most curious sensation...... not.... entirely unpleasurable....  Looking around, the Lynx wondered what instruments he might have at hand to study these creatures..... well, what he might use as soon as..... Oh, Lord! With a quiet howl, the Lynx came again.....

Tanj shuddered and bit her lower lip.  The creatures were moving slower, but they had gained SO much in proficiency.  One of them was assaulting her clitty with a thousand miniscule fingers, in a manner that made her want to yowl.  Another had filled her ass, and was moving in counterpoint to the one that filled her pussy.  With the three working as a team they were driving her to one thundering climax after another.......  Gritting her teeth, the Cheetah fem resisted the urge to howl, and instead tried to clear her mind, to see if she could get them to obey ANY mental commands.....  Somehow, at the moment, she thought that wasn't going to happen for a while yet.....

Hinoki groaned; he was sore, but the creatures seemed to know that; they'd shifted to the lightest, most sensual of touches... and they were STILL driving him crazy.  Panting hard, he thrashed on his bed, clawing at the sheets.  One of them had literally crawled up into his ass, to tease and torment his prostate; another was rhythmically squeezing his balls, making them bulge, the skin tight as the creature seemed to try and force them as far away from his body as possible.  The third seemed to have grown several dozen tentacles and with half of them entwined in his bellyfur, was stroking his cock......  Panting harder and harder, he came again, his jism splattering high up on his chest.  Groaning, he wondered how long this could go on?

Corey staggered down the hall, towards the compartment where they'd stored some of his instruments.  For a while he'd been concerned about being seen nude, but the cunning little creatures had shifted, to sheath his hips... to cover his erection.  Of course it looked as if his cock was forming a tent-pole, the black "fabric" pulled tight to a cone-shape protruding from his crotch.... And all the while one of the creatures worked on his shaft, stroking it, slowly building him towards another one of those orgasm things......  If it hadn't been so embarrassing, it would have been funny.  And if it wasn't so funny, it would have been... very nice?  However, it was the middle of the ship's night, and there was no one up and about to see.....

Roland listened to the air hiss through the regulator and smiled; he really doubted any of the creatures could get through his vacuum suit, to him.  Idly he wondered how the Captain was doing; he doubted the creatures could get OUT of that vacuum suit any better than one could get IN to his.  "Probably going to be hell to pay, for that one" he mused to himself.....  Ah, well, she SHOULD have run a tighter ship and made sure those things weren't around to bother passengers.

Smith groaned, shuddering, as his cock spurted again.  It seemed as if the inky black things were tiring.  "as well you should" he muttered, one finger stroking the surface of the one furthest up his belly.  Smiling, he wondered just how smart these things were.  Could they be trained?  How flexible were they?  As he laid back, enjoying the pleasures of the flesh, he wondered if they could be used to hold a dagger, or some other weapon against him, where it wouldn't be suspected.... Imagining two bands of black around his right thigh, he was surprised to feel the creatures moving.  One of them was still slooooowly humping his shaft, but the other two had moved to his left thigh, forming the bands he'd imagined.  "now THAT'S interesting" he mused.  "What else can you do?"

Corey smiled.  The creatures hadn't reacted to extremes of acid or base, but hadn't much liked electric shock (he hadn't enjoyed that particular experiment either as they seemed to be excellent conductors).  Heat didn't seem to bother them much, but they definitely didn't like cold.  Pausing for a moment as one of the creatures again brought him to an orgasm, a sensation he was starting to relish, the Lynx wondered how they'd react to various other stimuli from the electromagnetic spectrum......

Hinoki groaned, and slowly sat up; he felt as if a thousand tongues had licked him to a frazzle.....  Opening his eyes, he observed with no small relief that the lights once again seemed normal.  His bed was a mess.... But there was no sign of the three little inkblots that had made his night so.... Memorable?  Disasterous?  Rising stiffly, he staggered, still nude, towards the ship's head.

Corey smiled as he urged the creature into a plastic container with a pyrex rod.  It was obvious that after a night of most interesting stimulus, that each of the creatures were now in a state of exhaustion and quiescence.  Closing the lid, he tucked the three containers under his arm and turned to return to his cabin, an odd little smile on his face.

Hinoki paused in the corridor, and then turned to look; there was something strange about the Lynx who'd just passed him....  Something about the way the scientist was dressed.  However, the Lynx had vanished into his cabin before the Cheetah could focus on him.  Shrugging he turned and resumed his trek towards the head.

Smith smiled, idly stroking one of the creatures with a fingertip.  Their imitation of fur wasn't so good, yet, although they were learning fast.  Under his mental command, he'd found that they could come very close to providing almost instant disguises...as long as the creature he wanted them to imitate was black.  Grinning he looked at himself in the cabin's small mirror; with three of the creatures hugging his head, he looked very much like a black panther, at least in the face...  There was nothing he could do about his size, or his build, not without a heck of a lot more of the creatures.  And that might be something he couldn't survive......  Smiling, he felt the creatures move, and flow, until the image looking back at him also smiled.  "This could be VERY interesting" he thought to himself.....

Tanj growled in frustration; she'd issued mental commands to the exhausted creatures to form an arm of sorts in the right sleeve of the spacesuit; but without tactile feedback there was no way she could get the creatures to free her.  There were just too many knots out of her vision, no matter how she squirmed.  Growling softly to herself, she looked at the readout in her helmet's heads-up display and wondered if the Badger would come and rescue her before her air ran out.  It was getting kinda close.

Roland pulled out a chair and after examining the area carefully, to the extent of even checking under the table, settled himself in the wardroom.  The Mink, naked except for an apron, was cooking breakfast and it smelled wonderful.  As he waited, he idly daydreamed about winning her from the Wolverine girl in a game of chance; he was sure there were things he could do to improve her training.....

Hinoki staggered into the wardroom, and plopped down into his usual chair.  Wanda lowered her text just enough to gaze at him over its edge.  Her face was mostly hidden, but the laughter couldn't be kept from her voice; "Have a rough night?"  Hinoki nodded; "Yes, Nurse; I had another bout of that hypersensitivity.... There seems to be something that draws the living-dress creatures in that; lets just say that I was plagued by them throughout the night......"  Roland harrumphed and shook his head; "should have done what I did; I slept in my vacuum suit; slept like a baby too.  I tell you, someone needs to talk to that Vixen about them; its simply criminal the way she's let them get out of hand!  At the stove, Kath turned and pouted; "Gee, I wasn't bothered by a single one last night....."  Wanda chuckled and put down her text; "feeling jealous, Pet?"  The Mink just nodded and grinned at her Mistress.

Smith slipped in, seated almost before Hinoki realized he was there; "I had a visit from the little things too, although I admit, I'm not exactly sorry."  Roland raised both eyebrows in surprise, looking at the... Coyote?  "Did they.....?"  Smith smiled and looked down, embarrassment and amusement warring on his face; "Ohhhhh YEAH!  But I found that when they'd had their fill, they become Quite tractable.... In fact, I've captured the three of 'em, and have plans for them."  Roland scowled "I hope your plans include putting them out the airlock!"  Smith smiled again and shook his head; "not in the least!  In fact, I'll pay handsomely for any more you can catch for me.  You wouldn't believe what I've trained them to do!"

Corey filled his coffee cup, and sat, perhaps a little tenderly; "and what is that, Mr. Smith?"  Smith smiled; "I've trained them to adhere to my face, and change shape at my mental command; imagine a mutable mask that will let you look like almost any species, or even any person, almost instantaneously.  Corey sipped his coffee and then looked up; "I might have a pair I could sell you, if the price was right.  I do believe I only need to retain one for my, ah, "research."  Roland raised an eyebrow; "you too?  How many of these things ARE there on the ship?"  Hinoki shrugged; "Dunno.  Hey, has anyone seen Tanj?  Usually she's up by now."

Roland swallowed; "Ah... yes, the Captain.  Um..... well, I left her a little...."  Wanda grinned; "Tied up?"  At Roland's nod, the Wolverine chuckled; "And at this point, you're just a little worried that she'll not be too pleased to see you, after you left her like that all night?"  Roland opened his mouth to speak, one hand making a dismissive gesture, but Wanda's laugh cut him off; "Yeah, right.  Tell you what; you tell me where she is and Kath and I will go rescue her..."  Roland smiled and then shrugged "All right, if you wish.  She's in Engineering, near the airlock there; shouldn't be able to miss her."

Wanda hadn't quite departed when Zassa padded in; her cut-offs were scandalously short, as was her crop-top.  Her hair was mussed and she looked almost as bad as Hinoki.  Kath growled with mock-ferocity and punched the Vixen in the shoulder; "Mad at you!  Here your little creatures run riot through the ship and not a single one of them visited ME!"  Wanda chuckled nodded to the Vixen; "Nor me; she's right, its not fair!" Hinoki looked up at Zassa, taking in the rumpled fur, and strained posture; "you look like you've had a rough night too; your pets gang up on you too?"  Zassa yawned and shook her head; "No, actually, I came down with a bout of that hypersensitivity you described.  It wasn't exactly.. pleasant.....  In fact, I'm still just a little... sensitive."  Hinoki's eyebrows went up in surprise; "Really?  Gee, maybe its contagious.....  Your first, ah, "attack?"  Zassa yawned again and nodded.  Hinoki nodded sagely in response; "Yes, my first attack was worse too; the second one didn't last quite as long...."  "That's because I spilled half the dose on me" Zassa thought to herself; "But if its worn off you, how come I'm still sensitive?"

Wanda shrugged; "Perhaps it has to do with your physiology..."  Hinoki chuckled; "you mean girls could get it worse than guys?"  Wanda shrugged; "or maybe foxes are more sensitive than Cheetahs.  Or it could be something else...."  Roland smiled; "Such as her little medical complaint."  Looking around, pointedly, the Badger grinned and continued; "It seems that your little pets have given you a small problem; if you require a daily dose of jism to retain your sensitivity, well, right now it looks as if Hinoki's kinda out of service, and if the stories I'm hearing are true, you might find both Mr. Smith and the Professor having trouble, ah, "getting it up"....."  The Vixen looked from Corey, who blushed, to Smith, who sadly bowed his head in silent assent, to the Cheetah who just smirked.  Finally she looked back at the Badger, crooking her eyebrow upwards in a silent question.  Roland smiled and spread his paws, "I'd be glad to do the honors, but there'd be a price.  You see, I think you need to be punished for allowing this situation to come about in the first place.  Its obvious you haven't kept your pets under proper control, to the point of endangering and terrorizing the rest of the crew and passengers.  I've already had a small discussion with your Captain, and she's graciously suffered her own.... "Chastisement" for allowing this situation to exist on her ship.  Now, I think its YOUR turn."  Behind her, Kath chuckled; "Yeah, I think she should be spanked!  Her pets run riot and not a SINGLE ONE of them comes to visit me!  THAT just ain't fair!"  From her corner, Wanda chuckled "I agree; Zassa needs a spanking."  Turning to look at the Wolverine, Zassa caught the wink; reflecting on her words, Zassa realized that Wanda hadn't said she deserved a spanking, but that she needed one.....  Thinking to herself that it HAD been a while, and thinking that the Badger just might be able to do it properly, the Vixen tilted her head to one side and smiled at the Badger; "I think I can pay that price.... For the cure you so generously offer......"  Roland crossed his arms over his chest and nodded; "Half hour from now, in the cargo bay.  Make sure you present yourself there properly, Slave!"

Zassa smiled and gave the Badger a half-bow, and turning, padded from the wardroom.  Wanda grabbed Kath and headed out almost on the Vixen's heels; "I guess we'd best go free Tanj...."  Roland quietly finished his breakfast, amid a rather subdued crowd, and then also took his leave.

In the corridor, Wanda caught up with Zassa; "Hey, Hinoki gave you the cure last night; you don't NEED his....."  Zassa paused in the doorway to her cabin and grinned over her shoulder; "of course not.... But don't you see what's happened?"  Wanda shot Kath a blank look and then turned back to the Vixen; "um.... No, not really."  Zassa chuckled; "Smith, Hinoki, and Corey EACH were assaulted by three of the creatures.  Not a natural occurrence, I suspect."  Kath looked at Wanda and then back at Zassa; "you mean.....?"  The Vixen turned in the doorway and leaned forward to kiss first Kath and then Wanda; "exactly.  He set it all up.  He set it all up so that I'd HAVE to screw him, if I wanted the cure; of course he had no way of knowing Hinoki gave me the remedy last night."  Wanda's countenance darkened "why that scheeming...."  Zassa chuckled and shook her head; "Yeah... but on the other hand, I don't think ANYONE has ever gone to so much trouble to get into my pants.  In a way, its kinda flattering!"  Kath shook her head, "but....  What about the spanking?  If HE set it up, he can't very well blame you!"  "OR Tanj" Wanda muttered; "Speaking of which, we'd best go find her; who knows how this SOB left her!"  Zassa grinned; "Yes, give her my love when you see her; right now, I've got to get ready."  With a grin, the vixen turned and disappeared into her quarters, pulling her top off over her head as she went.

Smith sipped his coffee, and then turned to look at the Cheetah; "you know, there's something awful strange about this."  Hinoki took another bite of his now mostly cold omlet and nodded; "moreso than you know.  I gave Zassa the cure last night, at her insistence."  Smith smiled; "I was referring to how every male on the ship, save for him got, ah, "tagged" last night."  Corey examined the contents of his fork minutely and muttered; "Statistically most improbable".  Hinoki chuckled and shrugged; "You think our Badger friend is to blame?"  Before Smith could answer, the Cheetah laughed; "come to think of it, so do I; he seemed most interested in where I was when the little monsters latched on to me....."  Smith looked  out the door; "so he's finally contrived to get what he wanted.  I suppose I should be mad, but......"  Hinoki chuckled and nodded "Yeah.... Me too..... so, what do you think we should do to get him back?"  Smith just smiled.

Tanj groaned, and shuddered in delight; apparently one of the creatures co-inhabiting the vacuum suit with her wanted desert; something was most delightfully stroking her pussy.  Panting softly, eyes closed, she missed the shadow that fell across the helmet's faceplate....

Wanda sighed and looked at the bound figure of the Cheetah; "Looks like the Badger knows his knots, eh, Pet?"  Kath chuckled and shook her head; "think he left her anything nice in there?"  Wanda Hmmmed?  Kath grinned; "you know, like a vibrator... or maybe what seem to be becoming his signature gifts, some more of the little black creatures he says he hates so much?"  Wanda smiled and reached  for the locking rings on the Helmet; "there's only one way to find out."

Tanj gasped as the helmet was lifted off; the timing was impeccable; she was just coming down from the first climax of the morning.....  Blinking, shaking her head, she looked up into Wanda's smiling face.  "Mmmmm.  Didn't expect you.  Where IS that bastard anyways?  What time is it?  What's going on?"  Wanda chuckled; "we're on course, and on schedule; the ship is running just fine, Hinoki and Zassa are checking the flight deck periodically.  But it seems as if Roland has executed a rather interesting little plot to get into Zassa's pants.  If you want to be in on the final act, we'd best get you out of there......"  Tanj's mouth opened to reply; she meant to say "Damn straight!" but what came out was only a soft moan, as the creature renewed its assault on her sex.

Tanj stood on wobbly legs.  She was dripping wet, and had a powerful odor about her.  The fact that the one creature was still fastened hard about her loins, a tendril pumping in and out of her pussy didn't help.....  Wanda examined the inside of the suit and made a face; then her gaze shifted to Kath; "you know, Pet, you were expressing disappointment at not having been visited last night.....  I think maybe its time you found out that wanting is not always the same as having...."  The look on Kath's face was commingled horror and lust, her resistance only token as the Wolverine bound her hands behind her back and bodily stuffed her into the vacuum suit Tanj had so recently inhabited.  "Best let me change the air tanks on that" Tanj muttered, as Wanda worked at the waist seal.  Wanda looked up, amused; "its plugged into the ship's environmental system; the air tanks may be near empty but there's no way you could have run out of air.  And the batteries are at full charge."  Tanj shook her head; "and here I was worried about running out of air.... Well, at least the bastard made sure I wouldn't suffocate!"  Wanda laughed, nodded, and kissed Kath, a long, and sensual kiss; "you have fun in there with your new friends, and I'll be back in a day or so!"  Kath's squeals were cut off as the helmet descended over her head, the locking ring rotating under the Wolverine's fingers.  Wanda checked to make sure that the suit was properly lashed to the supports and then turned; "Come on, Tanj, lets go see what the others are up to....."

Zassa checked the suppleness of the cane and grinned; she didn't think he'd use it on her, but.....   She'd laid out a number of her favorite toys on the mat in the Cargo bay.  Restraints, gags, an assortment of clamps and clothes pins (like the starship actually had a clothes line....), a violet wand.... And a nice selection of paddles, whips and floggers. In a way it was mind games; by laying out various implements she told him that felt sure she could take anything he could dish out.  That she was no stranger to such things.  What would the Badger think of her display?  Of her collection?  Would he be shocked, amused, or would he understand that the Vixen liked a little pain with her pleasure?  Settling herself into the proper position, knees apart, back straight, head down, she set herself to await his arrival......

Tanj was still a mess when she, and Wanda crossed paths with Roland.  The Badger noted the steel in her eyes and swallowed the flip comment he was about to make; still, he couldn't keep the smile from his face.  "Wanda's told me about your little.... Agreement with Zassa.  Know this:  Do any permanent damage and I can guarantee you no one will ever find your body."  The Badger looked shocked; "Why Captain, I promise you, nothing of the sort will happen.  After all, didn't I deal with YOUR punishment in a correct and proper manner?"  Tanj frowned slightly, nodded noncommittally, and turned, to stride off down the corridor; after a few steps she growled; "I'll be watching."  Wanda chuckled and caught the Badger's eye; looking straight at him she purred; "and that's even if our Vixen begs for it.  Some times she doesn't know her own limits.  Understand?"  Roland just laughed; "Don't worry, Nurse, she won't need your skills when I'm done with her.  Promise!"  Wanda just smiled sweetly and nodded, and turning, moved to follow Tanj.

The flight deck was crowded.  Tanj, still sweaty, and sticky, her fur matted and her hair disheveled, sat in the pilot's chair.  The forward view was on one of the multi-function displays, with the engineering display on another, and the navigation display on a third.  Hinoki sat at the sensor operator's station, only half paying attention to the space surrounding the ship.  It didn't matter, the computer would alarm long before anything could get too close.  And with the mood that Tanj seemed to be in, anything less than  a full-fledged Kzinti invasion force was likely to regret coming anywhere close to them.....  Everyone's attention was on the main viewscreen, currently set to a four-part display, from each corner of the cargo bay.  In the middle of the mats, to one side of her carefully laid out implements, the Vixen knelt, bright red and cream on gray.  As the Badger strode into the cargo bay, it seemed as if everyone held their breath.

Roland looked around the cargo bay and shook his head in disappointment; "all the things you've laid out and you haven't got the one thing that I really need.  Wait here."  Without a second glance at the kneeling Zassa, the Badger turned and left the cargo bay.  As soon as he was gone, Zassa, turned her head, to look over all her toys, a look of confusion on her face.  On the flight deck Hinoki Hmmmmed, deep in thought, while everyone else exchanged blank looks and shrugs.  Tanj reached out to press a few keys, using the ship's internal security monitors to follow the Badger as he retraced his steps not to his quarters, as she'd expected, but to the wardroom.  Pausing there only briefly, he picked up a chair and headed back to the cargo bay.

Roland stepped into the cargo bay, holding the chair before him.  Placing it on the floor, just off the mat, and in front of the kneeling Vixen he took a seat.  For a long moment he just looked at her, paws on his knees, back straight.  Tanj noticed the steely glint in his eye, and the Military posture.... It was obvious the Badger was in full "command" mode.... Or more likely full "Master" mode.  The moment stretched on, until finally he gave a grunt.  If he had any criticism of Zassa's posture, or position he made no comment.  "Come here, Slave; lay yourself across my lap.  I'm sure you know the position."

Zassa leaned forward and smoothly moved her paws to the mat; somehow she made the act of crawling to him seem the most sensual thing Wanda had ever seen.  Barely pausing, she approached the Badger from his left side, somehow managing to flow onto his lap, until her hips jutted off his left side, her breasts dangled freely just beyond his right thigh.  After a moment she placed her hands behind her head, and then was still.  After another long moment, Roland nodded; "I can see you've done this before."

The touch came as a surprise.  Zassa had been expecting the first stinging blow of her spanking, but his gentle caress of the right globe of her ass was unexpected.  She had to stop herself from moaning softly as he expertly stroked her, kneading gently.....

Tanj smiled, and then yawned deeply; she was bone-tired from her "night's play" and wanted nothing more than a shower and a good long nap.... But she had to make sure her friend and crewmate wasn't mistreated.  It was HER responsibility.  Across the flight deck, Hinoki nodded approvingly; "He knows the technique."  Wanda looked at the Cheetah and raised an eyebrow.  Hinoki caught the look and chuckled; "He'll intersperse the spanking with small acts of kindness; it's the way to break down someone's resistance, the first steps in making them your slave."  Wanda oh'ed and nodded slowly, and Tanj could just see the wheels turning as she thought about how to translate this to her "training" of Kath....

Zassa jumped, in spite of herself, as the Badger's hand crashed down on her left asscheek; she'd been expecting him to change his approach, and sure enough, he had.  But despite herself she'd not been as ready as she'd wanted to be, and as a result, had actually moved on his lap.  Above her, the Badger chuckled at her reaction, even as his hand came down again on her other asscheek.  "Count them for me, Slave."  Zassa grunted out a "Two" even as he struck again, and again.  After five, he stopped, his paw lingering, to caress the stinging flesh of her ass.....

Roland smiled; his paw had slipped down between her thighs, and as he'd expected, she'd been quite wet.  "It's a rare one" he thought to himself "that gets excited at the prospect of a spanking.  A little training and I could have her begging me every night to be spanked...."  His finger teased her as he contemplated the thought, softly stroking the Vixen's sex, teasing her labia, spreading her juices a little.....  Letting his paw stroke up, over the globes of her magnificent ass he smiled and struck again, suddenly, three rapid strokes.

Zassa grunted out a "Six, Seven, Eight", her head lifting slightly with each stroke.  And then he was teasing her again..... Trying hard not to squirm, the Vixen started to pant lightly... He DID know how to push all her buttons.....

Hinoki leaned on his console, head propped in one palm, elbow resting on a portion of the console that didn't have any controls, and studied the Badger's style.  "I wonder who taught him?" he mused out loud.  Wanda chuckled; "What, you think he's not a natural talent?"  Hinoki shrugged eloquently; "Look at the way he cups his paw to catch the lower curve of her ass, making sure the whole of his paw connects.  See how he varies that with a broad stroke across each asscheek.  I see elements of Masuchita's style in his, but there's also a touch of Bishop's....  And to the best of my knowledge, those two masters were never in the same place at the same time.  He's either widely traveled, or he's been taught by someone who studied under both of them."  Tanj chuckled and then yawned again: "That, or he's just studied their techniques from various holos....."  Hinoki raised an eyebrow and grinned; "If that's the case then he IS very gifted...."

Smith only half listened to the conversation, as he watched.  It was obvious that whatever Roland was doing, the Vixen was eating it up.  Oh, she was trying hard not to show it, but after decades of studying furrs, he could tell.  It was something he'd have to talk to her about, something he needed to explore, if he ever hoped to get back into her bed again......

Zassa bit her lower lip, the groan escaping her anyways.  The Badger had found her clitty, and was rubbing it softly, with a circular motion, in one of his frequent breaks from the paddling......  Roland smiled as he looked down at the Vixen; at this point he could almost read her mind.... "Don't cum without permission, Slave, or I'll have to punish you."  The groan Zassa let out only confirmed his suspicions, his grin widening to a full smile.

Zassa took the next stinging slap as a welcome break from his teasing; she'd been so close.....  Doing her best to hide a smile, she wondered what his "punishment" might be, and whether she'd like it more than he'd think.....

Wanda watched the Badger slowly diddle the Vixen; he'd stretched her until he could piston two fingers in and out of her sex, moving with a teasing slowness she knew must be driving the Vixen wild.  Still, Zassa was controlling herself.....  after a long minute, he withdrew his hand and slapped her again, again and then again.  He pauses for a moment, until he thought the Vixen was anticipating another sensual touch, and then slapped her again, five times, with no apparent rhythm.  Then, once again, his paw returned to between her legs to tease her back to the verge of a climax......

Zassa groaned softly.....  The bastard was really getting to her...  Twice now, she'd almost climaxed... But he'd read her body like an open book and stopped just seconds short..... Ah, but she had a plan......

Tanj grunted and shifted in her seat; she'd fallen asleep, but for how long?  Focusing her bleary eyes on the main viewscreen she wondered if anyone had noticed....

"Thirty Seven...... Thirty Eight..... Thirty Nine..."  The Vixen's voice was just a little breathless, which was strange as her chest was heaving as she panted hard.  Roland frowned.... The first time he thought she'd made a simple mistake, or perhaps that he had, but this time he was sure she'd gotten the count wrong.  Not high, as might be expected, but low...  Why would she do that?  Grinning, the Badger gave her another three quick slaps, wondering if she was really enjoying it that much?

Zassa moaned, barely able to keep giving the count; no longer trying to hold herself immobile, she moved on the Badger's lap, being as "naughty" as she dared... Could she make him loose control enough to drive her over the edge?  And if she did, what would her punishment be?  She could think of a lot of things, but she really didn't know this guy very well... not yet anyways; she had no clue which way he'd jump.

Hinoki shook his head and sighed; "She's loosing it.  I'm disappointed in her; I thought she'd take it without breaking discipline."  Tanj yawned and then smiled; "Oh, she's not loosing it; she knows just what she's doing.  And I expect the Badger to catch on too any minute."  Wanda raised an eyebrow, turning to look at Tanj; "and what's that?  What's she doing?"  Tanj smiled and yawned again, and muttered in a sleepy voice; "Oh, she's been on the edge of a climax for so long, she's trying to make him hit her harder, hard enough to push her over the edge.  And he has been hitting her harder, every time she squirms, or botches the count."

Roland smiled; it would be walking a fine line, but he thought he could do it; as the Vixen chanted "forty-six, forty-seven, forty-eight" he smacked the globes of her ass, alternating side to side, just as hard as he could... but not quite rapidly enough; he knew she was near the edge and he knew she thought she could get off on just the spanking, but..... he wasn't about to let her.  Grinning, he paused, to stroke his fingers through her cleft; she was so wet his fingers came away dripping.  Pausing, he rubbed one finger over her asshole, and then slid the finger into her back passage.  Zassa purrrrred, and he was sure there was a smile on her face.  Pulling his finger out rapidly, he smacked her left asscheek and then her right......  And then, as she counted "forty-nine, fifty", he rested his paw on the heated flesh of her ass; "You have some things to learn about taking a spanking, slave, but we'll work on that.  Now, I want you to slide down between my legs and suck me off; perhaps if you do a good job, I'll let you cum; but only if you do a good job!"

Zassa stifled the groan; this bastard wasn't going to finish her?  She was SO hot, so CLOSE!  Urrrrr!"  Doing her best not to show her anger, the Vixen complied, nuzzling his crotch, unfastening his pants with her teeth, until his cock was exposed.  Apparently all that squirming on his lap had a predictable effect and he was throbbingly hard....  Purring she leaned forward to give him a long, slow lick.

Wanda smiled as she watched the Vixen suck off the Badger, making mental notes; some day she'd have to learn how to do that as well as the Vixen did.....  She wondered if she'd ever be good enough to make any guy get the look that Roland had on his face at the moment.....

Zassa purrrrrrrred as she worked; now the tables were turned; with his cock in her mouth she was in control, no matter what he thought; she could tease him, bring him to the very edge and then let him hang there, slowly twisting in the wind.  Using all her skill, she did what she could to give the Badger a little payback.....

Roland grunted, resisting the urge to grab her ears and fuck her face; "Finish me, Slave; finish me now, or no reward!"  Zassa smiled to herself and shoved her head forward, completely engulfing his cock, taking him over the edge....

Roland was panting as hard as the Vixen had been earlier, and had to make a physical effort to uncross his eyes; it had been a mind-blowing orgasm.  When he could focus again, he found the Vixen kneeling before him, ostentatiously licking her lips; her posture was correct, but he could read "smirk" in the way she held herself.  Well, he could do something about that.... "I promised you a reward if you did that well, and indeed you did it tolerably well; therefor, Strum!"  Zassa looked blank, and almost raised her eyes to his; "Master.... Strum?"  Roland sighed; "I can't believe your training omitted that; On your back, heels by your rump, knees wide apart; hold your labia apart with one hand and strum the fingers of your other hand over your clit as rapidly as you can!  I want to see you strum for a good hundred strokes, but after that you may cum whenever you wish.  Now get TO it!"

On the flight deck, Hinoki chuckled softly and shook his head.  Tanj yawned again and smiled; "I remember them making me do that at the academy; but then, I was a little shy when I first got there; it's a great way to humiliate a novice.....  and I can see how Zassa might never have earned that particular "punishment"....

Zassa rapidly assumed the position, and looking down through the valley between her breasts she held herself open to his gaze as her fingers started stroking through her cleft.  "Harder, Slave; Faster!" the Badger growled; "I want to see your juices spraying from the flicking of your fingers!"  Zassa grunted and started twisting her hand harder, her fingertips blipping over her exposed clitty......  The result was predictable and within seconds, the Vixen was fighting to restrain her climax.  "and he expects me to COUNT through this?" she wondered to herself, as her passions started to rise, her lusts threatening to spin out of control....

Roland watched the Vixen; such a wanton lass; she didn't seem disturbed about putting on such a display in the least.  What a gem!

Zassa could stand it no longer, arching her back, bridging between heels and the back of her head, her body rose off the floor as her long-awaited climax arrived, lightning bolts seemingly ricocheting around the inside of her skull as she came.

Roland smiled; it hadn't taken her long at all; in fact she'd been shy of the 100 strokes he'd told her to count.  Not by much, perhaps, but definitely shy.....

Zassa sagged back to the floor and opened her eyes to find the Badger grinning down at her; "Impressive, but unfortunately you still weren't counting too well, were you?  You only strummed 86 times, and I told you not to cum until you reached 100.  I'm afraid you've earned yourself yet another punishment....."

Zassa found herself tied across the seat of the chair; it certainly wasn't the most uncomfortable position she'd ever been tied in, but it was easily as effective; she didn't think she'd be able to get loose without help......  With the tip of her tail tied to the back of her collar, her ass was once again exposed, and she wondered if the Badger was about to resume his paddling?

Roland smiled and gently stroked the Vixen's posterior: "I was going to give you a good fucking to send you on your way, but now, given your amazing inability to count, I've decided to modify that a little.  Oh, I'll still take my pleasures, and have my way with you, but as a punishment I've decided to fuck you in your ass."

Zassa almost laughed, and lowered her head to keep him from seeing the smile on her face; "is that all?" she mused to herself?  HMPH!  Some punishment!"

Roland plunged two fingers into the Vixen's pussy, making her squeal in surprise.  Transferring a copious amount of her juices to his once again hard cock, he smiled and went back for some more, this time teasing her anus with his slick fingers, probing gently, making sure she was ready for him....

Zassa groaned, and squirmed, starting to pant again; this one certainly DID know how to tease.... When he finally moved up behind her, to present the head of his cock to her rosebud, she groaned in delight, gasping just a little as she stretched to accommodate him.  She mewled as she felt him sink his shaft into her bowels, balls deep, and then pull out suddenly.  For several long minutes he fucked her in this manner, pressing in slowly and then pulling out rapidly.....

Hinoki yawned in sympathy and shot Tanj a grin.  Finding the Cheetah sound asleep in the pilot's chair, he turned back to study the Badger's technique, surprised at his gentleness, given the fact that this was "punishment".....

Zassa tugged at her bonds and groaned; the Badger was once again driving her wild, her ass burning around his cock, her pussy once again dripping, just begging for his touch.... Just one simple little touch, that was all she needed......

Roland's movements had picked up in pace a little, his paws squeezing her ass hard as he thrust.....  He wanted this moment to last for eternity, but events and his own body seemed to be conspiring against him.  Trembling on the verge of his second orgasm, he reached around the Vixen's waist, to lightly stroke her mons.....  Her response was electric, her body instantly convulsing in a sudden climax; as he felt her anal ring spasm around his cock, he lost it and throwing back his head, howled at the top of his lungs as he came again.

The Badger jerked his hips back almost convulsively and wrapping his hand around his spurting shaft, he stroked himself, spraying as much of Zassa's ass with his seed as he could.  When his orgasm subsided, he rose shakily to his feet.  "I'm sure one of your friends will release you, Slave.  Maybe they'll even use you first, before they untie you; they have my permission to do so."  Grinning wider; "I'm not doing this to be mean, you understand; but its one way I'm SURE to get to the shower before you do!"  Picking up his clothes, the Badger turned and quietly padded from the cargo bay.

Tanj yawned and rose; "The HELL he will; I've put off my shower long enough!"  Grinning she took one last glance over the instruments, nodded in satisfaction, and padded through the flight deck door.

As the door whooshed closed behind her, Hinoki rose, and stretched; "well, its late enough, and I think I'm going to turn in.  See Y'all in the morning."

Smith looked at Wanda and shrugged; "would you like to go untie Zassa... or should I?"  Wanda chuckled "Oh, I think you're MUCH better at rescuing fair damsels than I am.... I'll go check on Kath, and see how she's doing, and leave the Vixen to you."  Smith just nodded and rose, padding out.

Roland frowned, slowing to a stop in front of the ship's only bathroom.  The door was closed and he could hear the shower running.  "Figures...."  With a sigh he settled down to wait.

Zassa jerked when she felt the gentle touch on her ass.  "Oh, sorry, should have realized you'd be tender there."  Zassa chuckled and turned her head to look at Smith; "that's OK, I just didn't hear you coming."  Smith smiled and padded around to sit on the floor, facing the Vixen; "You realize, I trust, that we were all watching on the security cameras.  Oh, the Captain said it was to make sure he didn't go too far with you, but I assure you, my presence there was purely to satisfy my curiosity.....  You actually looked as if you enjoyed this evening's, ah, "activities"...."  Zassa smiled, and shrugged as best she could; "mostly, I did; giving a spanking in a manner that drives you wild with sexual frustration is an art form all its own, and he's fairly good at it.  Oh, maybe he's not quite as good as Tschorvald back at the Academy, but he's good.  Quite good."  Smith steepled his fingers, resting their tips against his chin; "I see...."

Tanj smiled at the Badger as she stepped from the Head, her fur still damp, her hair smelling of her shampoo.  Completely unconcerned about her nudity, she strolled off towards her cabin.  Roland watched her go, half in irritation, half in amazement.  Turning he stepped into the head, mildly surprised to find it spic-and-span.  Twisting the tap in the shower he smiled; "that's one of the good things about fusion-powered hot water heaters" he mused to himself as he shed his clothes.  The hot water felt good as it sluiced down his back.

Smith nodded, as he listened, fascinated; "its obvious I've led too sheltered a life"  Zassa looked askance at the ..... coyote? And then smiled; "I can't believe YOU have led a sheltered life, but its obvious that you haven't had the benefits of the education a place like the Academy can bestow upon you...."  For a moment Zassa reflected on what might happen if they tried to kidnap someone like Smith to a place like that.  The building in flames and corpses littering the compound....  Shaking her head almost violently she tried to force the image, no matter how attractive, from her mind.

Smith watched the Vixen pause, smile wider, and then shake her head, and wondered what was running through her mind.  "Well, its doubtful that I'd have time to take any night courses there, even if we knew where Elysium was at the moment.... But maybe you could give me some, ah, "instruction".  I'm sure how you can see how knowledge of some of these techniques could come in handy, in my line of work...."  The Vixen's smile widened again, seemingly lighting up the room; "you mean if someday you have to seduce someone like me...."  Smith just smiled and nodded.

Roland was still trying to make some order of his fur when he stepped into the wardroom.  The dryer in the head was set a little strong for his tastes, and he felt as if he'd just gone for a ride in a tropical tornado.  Poking around in the 'fridge, for a late-night snack, the exclamation from the flight deck made him start, the top of his head striking the roof of the 'fridge.  Grumbling, taking the package of ready-to-eat pudding, he made his way towards the flight deck.

Hinoki grinned up from the operations console; "you gotta come look; you won't BELIEVE what's going on down there!"  Roland shuffled around behind the Cheetah, his eyes widening in surprise.  There was the Vixen, still tied to the chair, calmly giving instructions to Smith on how to give a spanking.  Watching, listening to the running commentary, Roland could only shake his head; "Twice in one night...."  Hinoki chuckled and tilted his head back until he was looking up at the Badger behind him; "yeah, our Zassa's something else, all right......"

Roland  watched the screen, taking in the images of the Vixen, still tightly tied, encouraging Smith to paddle her behind.  It was almost like watching one of his favorite spanking videos... or maybe a really bizarre and perverted training film.  The Cheetah's touch however, broke his attention, and he looked down in surprise.  Hinoki had somehow turned to straddle the station chair, facing backwards; with his arms folded along his back, his chin on folded arms, his muzzle was just about crotch height.  Grinning up at the surprised Badger, Hinoki purrred; "you seem to be getting rather excited... you watch, and I'll handle the little bulge you seem to be developing there....."  The Badger just grinned and lifted his eyes back to the monitor.....

Smith smiled and stroked the Vixen's dripping pussy with the tip of one finger.  She'd never been this wet, or felt this hot when they'd shared a more standard way of making love... for that's truly what he thought of it.  In his own way, he was still making love to her......"  Zassa panted lightly and murrrred; "Ummmmm, that's nice... it'd be delightful if you'd finish me now...."  Smith laughed; "oh, it would, would it?  Not yet.  I'm not done with you yet."  As he spoke he let his finger slide downwards a little, to graze lightly over the Vixen's clitty.  As she shuddered, as her body started to stiffen at his touch, he pulled his finger away, leaving her frustrated, inches away from her release.  He paused, smiling, letting the tension build, and then brought his paw down on her left asscheek.  Zassa yelped in surprise, obviously expecting him to resume his intimate touch instead.  Chuckling to herself, the Vixen purrred; "it is obvious that you, Sir, are a fast learner..... and that I may have taught you TOO well."  Smith just smiled.

Roland groaned, as Hinoki's tongue worked over his throbbingly hard cock.  The Cheetah had been trained well, and worked at his self-appointed task with enthusiasm.  His eyes locked to the monitor, he watched as Smith spanked and teased the Vixen, until she climaxed.  Groaning, he came with her, filling the Cheetah's mouth with his seed.

Smith smiled and helped Zassa to her feet; "I would imagine you're rather stiff after being tied in that position for so long...."  Zassa smiled and stretched; "Yes, but its something I'm used to.  Nothing a hot shower won't fix, though."  Smith smiled; "Perhaps you'd allow me to wash your back?  Maybe I could massage some of the kinks out...?"  Zassa smiled; "Oh, I doubt it; I'm as kinky as they come and I doubt you could ever change that... but I'd love a good massage."  Smith grinned at the pun and offered an arm; together they left the cargo bay, the chair and a few ropes giving silent testimony to the lessons taught that night.

Tanj stepped into the Wardroom, looking smart in a starched blue jumpsuit.  Pouring herself a cup of coffee, she nodded to Wanda and then headed back towards the door.  "No breakfast this morning?" the Wolverine lass called.  Tanj paused, took another sip of her coffee and then waved a paw; "no, we should be coming up on Jenka's station pretty soon, and I'd best be on the flight deck.  I'll duck out a bit later and grab something, if there's time...  Wanda nodded and then grinned; "Maybe I'll have Kath bring you something; she's, ah, a little tied up right now."  Tanj chuckled and nodded, resuming her trek towards the flight deck.

"Roger that, Lost Cause, we've been expecting you."  Tanj nodded at the image of the helmeted furr and tried to remember his name.  He was, or had been, at least, one of the Brethren, but now he was following Black Fleet protocols.  Frowning slightly, Tanj turned to look over the Nav displays.  Here she was at least six hours out, and she'd been intercepted by no less than three patrols.  It was obvious that the size of Jenka's forces had increased dramatically, and that she was putting them to good use, searching the spacelanes for victims.  Reaching out, she stabbed at a button; "Flight Deck to Hinoki; I think I could use you up here, traffic's getting a little thick..."

"On my way."  Hinoki stabbed at the com button and then rolled out of bed, trying not to disturb the sleeping Badger.  Grinning he picked up a pair of shorts off the floor, took a quick glance to make sure they were his, and with them in one hand, padded out.

Roland watched the Cheetah go through slitted eyes, and then sat up; the previous night had been most interesting... and most tiring.  Rising he tidied up the place a little and then headed for his own cabin.  Not being crew, he felt as if he could grab a few more hours sleep before they docked.

Jenka looked at the Stallion and smiled; "She is?  Its about time!  I am going to have to have a word or two with my wayward pet about her tardiness.  Now, go and make sure all the preparations have been made; just like I told you!"

Tanj smiled as the docking clamps took hold.  The voyage had seemed like it had taken mere hours and had lasted for years.  And in a way, she hadn't wanted it to end; now she'd have to really face the fact that the Lion was gone, possibly forever.....  As the fusion reactors shifted to stand-by, as the normal ship-sounds diminished and as station power started flowing, she rose, and stretched.  It'd been a while since she'd been here, and she was eager to see Jenka again, despite the circumstances.  Turning, she made her way to the lock.

Both the inner and the outer locks were open, and the Cheetah fem smiled; obviously her crew had been as eager to go stationside as she was.  Stepping from her ship, she looked around at the comparatively deserted dockside.  Blinking in surprise she looked around as she muttered to herself; "Gee, I would have expected at least SOMEONE to meet...    OOOF!"  Grunting as something, or someone slammed into her from behind, she found herself knocked to the deck.  Strong arms held her, while another set pulled her paws behind her back, to be bound at wrist and elbow.  Other hands seemed to be slicing at her jumpsuit, peeling it from her body, while someone else pulled a dark, loose hood over her head and then fastened a thick collar around her neck.  It seemed like only moments before she was trussed and naked, forced into a kneeling position, a rough hand pushing at the back of her head, making her bow her head.  Feet shuffled, and bodies moved and then she heard a familiar chuckle.  As the hood was pulled off, she dared to raise her eyes just a bit, and caught just a glimpse of Jenka, resplendent in a skin-tight, snow white leather catsuit, before the rough hand forced her head back down, and other hands forcing a plug-gag into her mouth.

Jenka smiled; "Ah, there's my wayward pet now!  Its about time you showed up; I've been expecting you for weeks now!"  Leaning over, she used the tip of her riding crop to tilt the Cheetah's chin upwards, so that she could look into her eyes; "I guess now that the Lion's gone, you're all mine!"  Before Tanj could even blink in surprise, Jenka reached out to clip a leash to her collar, and tugging on it insistently, dragged her to her feet.  Turning, not bothering to look back, confident that the Cheetah would follow, Jenka strolled off down the corridor towards her private quarters, her "new" pet following obediently at the end of her leash.

Elsewhere:  On Elysium

Xyloff looked at the message flimsy and scowled; looking up at his aide, he growled; "So the Blues are checking out the Jump Points.  So what?  Let them waste time and effort on futile endeavors."  Grinning, letting a small chuckle slip, he growled; "Do they think they're going to find allies out there?  Do they think the Empire is just around the corner?"  The aide shrugged; "Comrade Secretary, I don't know.  But our intelligence says the ship departed by Jump Drive and returned on Warp drive."  Xyloff waved a paw dismissively; "So that Jump Point is one-way; they're not exactly unknown.  Now, if you have nothing more important....."   The aide shook his head no, and retreated.  Xyloff watched him go and then turned, to step onto the balcony.  A shout greeted his appearance and he smiled, raising one paw to wave.  The Youth Rally in the Capital was both pageant and indoctrination.  While he'd helped to craft the activities for the Party Youth, making sure that each was directed towards instilling the proper attitude in those fertile young minds, this evening's torchlit parade was purely for the Media.  And amongst all the banners, and smartly uniformed Youth, he would stand out, the one who brought "Liberty" to Elysium... or would, as soon as he'd settled with those Blues scum.  Hearing the music start he turned and looked to his right, as the first of the formations approached down the boulevard.

Kukendall watched from the throng as another group of Party Youth marched by, banners and torches held high, all in perfect step, singing at the top of their lungs.  As he watched them pass, he wondered how long it would take for cynicism to set in, for those fervent young minds to realize they'd been had.  Maybe some of them already had suspicions.  Turning his gaze to the balcony of the new Party Headquarters, he spotted Xyloff's form.  It would be sooooo easy for a sniper to hit him from this distance, but he had other orders.  The Blues felt that it would be far better to disgrace and discredit the current Hero of the Party than it would be to merely remove him.  After all, if he were merely removed, someone else would step up and assume control of the party; the party machinery would continue, and little would change.  No, the machine had to be broken before anything could change, and throwing the entire party into disarray with a good scandal would work much better.  Smiling he turned and slowly melted back into the crowd.  With everyone watching the parade, it would be possible to gain entrance to places otherwise occupied, otherwise guarded....

Amelia smiled, and adjusted the strap.  Feeling very dangerous in the skintight jet-black catsuit the Bunny waited for the wind to pick up and then, with a jaunty wave at the Blues soldiers that had been her escort, and equipment bearers, she took a short run and launched herself into the night.  The wind was cold as it whistled around her, the hang glider's fabric rapidly filling, taking a bite of the air; her precipitous descent from the cliff face turned rapidly into horizontal flight.  The night vision goggles showed her the pine forests below.... The camp fires of the Reds border guards flaring bright.  Her hang glider was all carbon fiber composites, invisible to radar, but would the Reds have infra-red detectors looking up?  She hoped not.  The time-frame for her mission was too short for her to "insert" into Reds territory any other way.  If they spotted her, it'd all be over real quick.  It might be, even if they didn't spot her; landing the hang glider in the rocky forests below could also be fatal.  But then, Danger was her middle name, wasn't it?  Wasn't she one of the new breed of secret agents, top of her class?  License to kill and all that?  If she couldn't do it, Nobody Could!  Seeking out every updraft she could find, Amelia Kennedy sought to put as much distance between her and the border as possible, as she flew into her first mission......

This story is a work of fiction, and any resemblance to any characters, living, dead or imaginary is purely a coincidence.  Tanj is copyright Kittiara's player.  Kittiara can be found on Furrymuck; telnet 24.164.231.38 8888.  Hinoki, and Zassa are copyright their players (Zassa can be found on FurryMuck, and Hinoki on Tapestries or on FurryMuck. Roland is copyright IronBadger.  Copyright 2001.  Comments, suggestions, or flames can be directed to ha_seng@hotmail.com.