The Journal Entries

Alasse means joy, and as a noun has several meanings. The most common usage in Pendrii is that of 'party,' a poor translation as there are several connotations that come along.

This Alasse was the celebration of a successful survey of an Alderson-Dyson sphere by a hastily but carefully selected team, that, other than one little stickler, had done all right.

In case you're curious, an Alderson-Dyson sphere is a double- shelled sphere with the atmosphere and biomass held between the two shells. That way's there no dependence on a high-tech approach for gravity; there simply is none. A zero-g world, 'habitable' by men. And even larger then Pendor, by a longshot.

We'd (well, actually, Kurt's team had) found a stand of 'trees,' if you will, huge things anchored to the deliberately roughened outer shell that grew towards the sun, compost circulating inside the stand gently moved by wind, their tops huge leafy things, the kind of trees children love to climb in, and, as I soon discovered, so did adults. For one thing, if you went just a little ways, you could soon be out of sight of the rest of your team.

Which is what leads me to this introspection. Passing hand-over- hand along the branches, the only conviction of direction the sunlight, I heard... laughter and pleasure below me. The voices were familiar, and, considering where I was, I thought Richard and Sue had probably broken off from the singing crowd above me and had taken this opportunity.

Someone tapped my shoulder. I whirled, zero-g combat kicking in, since I hadn't heard anybody coming up on me. It was only...

Susan? Then that meant... Richard... And P'nyssa? What? A million emotions shot through me in mere seconds. Typically human, the anger, but I ignored it, a long time ago convinced that of all things, jealousy was something we the living can do without. Then it clicked.

Susan? No way. She and Richard had been together, truly monogamous for... two hundred odd years. Inseparable. I'd been their friend for almost as long, but... No way.

"Susan?"

"Ken?" She smiled. "Make love to me." Soft, but sure, her voice, and as sexy today as it was way back then. I nodded, completely mute with confusion, but watching her peel off that tunic made sure at least that the male in me awoke. Gods, Susan, you are still one of the most beautiful creatures on God's Earth, even if you left that accursed little ball in 0106. Having two kids hadn't marred her a touch. Her belly was flat and smooth and clean, her pubes as blond as her hair. My hands reached out to her. I began to help her, drifting over and slowly unbuckling her belt, her boots.

When she was completely naked, she looked at me, and chuckled. "Sometimes you wear the silliest clothes." She began undoing the belt to my pants, urban camouflage, and then she almost tore off my Greenpeace shirt. "Hey, careful," I said. I like that shirt.

She pulled me towards her, and I was surprised by her forwardness. She was determined to have me, a thought that I found somewhat disturbing, probably because I'd always thought of Susan as a mother, and a wife, and all the old meanings that I'd held so dear on Earth and rejected when I'd reached the stars came back. But when her fingers rather determinedly found my cock and began to stroke it, well... There's very little that stops a man from responding to that.

I felt somewhat... awkward. I was used to being 'on top,' so to speak, and here was this woman, acting so uncharacteristically, taking me. Her fingers floated up to my chin, and lifted it, and she slowly kissed me, her tongue exploring my mouth, my tongue responding, of course, tasting Susan. Gods, she's a hot woman. In the kiss I closed my eyes, and I realized then what really bothered me. It was so bright out, we were close to the sunlit top, and it was a spring breeze blowing the leaves. I felt naked, uncomfortable, exposed, although I knew that naked as I was I was a damned arsenal, able to summon a pair of Burroughs pistols or a rifle instantly, or even my Valturm. I giggled, realizing just how damned silly I was.

She laughed too, her voice like soft rain, and I looked at her again, and smiled, nodded. She returned the gestures, and slowly she slid down (pushed me up?) in the zero-gravity and looked at my throbbing hard on. Now that my heart was in the right place, my hard was too, and she pulled me towards her, her mouth perched near my cock, examining it, and then she kissed the head, slowly opening her mouth, and I could feel her lips pass over the head, and down the shaft. Slowly, she began to suck, and I admired her technique, and I told her so in a very ancient way. I moaned, appreciatively.

Her mouth was warm, and her teeth were sharp, and she was careful. Susan sucked my cock slowly. Her zero-g abilities were impressive, I mused silently, watching her hair fly loosely around. I stroked it down. She looked up at me, and pulled away from my cock. Her grin told me she wanted more.

Slowly she pulled me up, and we floated together in this wooden wonderland, and then she was higher than me, her pussy above my cock. She shifted down, my cock poised at her cunt, and, one hand guiding my cock and one hand holding us together in the zero-g, she pulled us together. I felt my cock slip past her golden hair into her, and her face came up even with mine, and I looked into her eyes, and she into mine.

Making love in null gravity is not impossible, but... it is more difficult than usual. Not only do you have to push, but pull as well. We fucked slowly, my cock gently pushing into her, and her cunt was tight around me. Her breasts were large and soft, and I bent towards them, taking a nipple into my mouth. Apparently they were sensitive, because I managed to elicit a small groan from her, the first sound I'd heard from her that was of my doing. A small victory. I smiled, our hips slowly moving together in the light of the place.

We began to move faster, the need, the urge, coming upon me as I slowly fucked her. Her eyes closed and her breathing began to come more ragged and careful. We sped faster, onwards now towards consummation, harder, and oh, gods, I was going to come inside her very soon. Faster, the pain that precedes coming on, and now, I could feel...

Now! I felt my cock throb, and explode inside her. She groaned in happy response, my orgasm subsiding already, my head spinning with lust that now might never be sated, Susan being so new, so special.

I kissed her, but I also felt faint, and exhausted. I said so.

"Figures," said a new voice, from above me, that is to say, towards the sun. Hi, P'nyssa. "Doesn't eat right, doesn't get enough sleep. I tell you, Richard, he's killing himself, and he's been at it for three hundred fifty years."

I looked up. Why in hell did I feel like I'd been the victim of a conspiracy?

Probably, because, as usual, I had.