Chapter 57 - An Edible Poet? Well, wouldn't you know it!

After our impromptu "celebration", it was time to get back to work. The girls were excited about the prospect of a new ship, and were looking for contracts. They found two. We were hired to take a load of liquor to Vetitice, and just as we settled on the details of the contract, Angel found us a passenger.

"This young lady informs me that you are heading for Vetitice, Captain. If that is the case, I would like to book passage with you for Ontimaxe. It is quite close to Vetitice, and I will pay full fare, even though you are already heading in that direction." said Ab Bial, a small, red, birdlike humanoid. We reached a deal, and Mr. Bial had his things delivered to the ship. This was going to be another long trip, twelve days to deliver the cargo, then two or three more to deliver Mr. Bial. We were going to need another break after this. Everything was secured, the engines checked, supplies delivered. We were finally ready to leave. Spitfire took us out, as Angel cuddled in my lap. As soon as we entered witchspace, the girls began to plot.

"Girls, you better be careful until we find out what kind of passenger we have here. For all you know, he may be as bad as Mrs. Coursby." Although I didn't really think anyone could be that bad.

“One way to find out...” said Spitfire, as she stripped off her top, and headed for the common room. A few minutes later she returned, looking a bit confused.

“Well, what did he do?” asked Angel.

“Nothing!” answered Spitfire with a frown. “He was reading when I went in and he just glanced at me, said hello, and went right back to his book. He never even blinked!”

“So much for our strip show,” said Angel, “maybe we should try bird calls.” And all of us dissolved into laughter and giggles. At dinner that night, Mr. Bial was amiable enough. But no matter what body part the girls flashed, it was met with complete indifference. After dinner, the girls asked if they could dance, and Mr. Bial had no objections. He watched for a few minutes, and then retired to his room to read. The girls looked at each other with open mouths.

“I think I'm insulted.” said Angel, who was currently hanging upside down from the top of the pole.

“I would be too, if it weren't for Morgan's interest.” said Spitfire, who happened to be sitting in my lap, and could feel my “interest” first hand.

“Personally girls, I would say Mr. Bial just isn't interested in humans. Maybe you'll have better luck next time.” I said.

“We still have Morgan to practice on.” said Spitfire, with her mischievous grin. She got up from my lap and approached Angel on the pole. Angel slid down the pole head first, until her head was even with Spitfire's. Tongue met tongue, then lips met lips as they kissed. Then Angel continued to slowly slide down the pole. The girls licked, kissed, and suckled assorted body parts as they presented themselves. They had gotten much better on the pole than that first night.

And so went the next eleven days. Mr. Bial was pleasant enough, but was completely immune to the girls flirtations and flashing. They were quite put out about it.

“Maybe if we wore chicken costumes...” mused Angel.

Spitfire laughed, “I would try it if we had some!”

We arrived at Vetitice to a clear buoy, and though we saw laser fire in the distance, our approach to the station was uneventful. We were paid for the cargo contract, and after everyone had stretched their legs for a bit, it was time to leave again.

Two days later, we arrived at Ontimaxe, and right into the middle of a battle. Three Galcop Vipers were trading laser fire with five pirate ships. I immediately accelerated to full speed, and targeted one of the pirates. It was all over within minutes. By the time I had accounted for two of the pirates, the others had been destroyed or had witchspaced out. The girls did their usual thank you flashes to the Vipers, then we headed for the station.

Mr. Bial payed us our fee, and a decent, though not jaw dropping bonus. Then, Aria informed us that she needed maintenance. Sigh. Ontimaxe was not the place to have it done, being only a TL7 station. The girls cuddled on my lap to console me, as we looked at the star-charts. Biarge was the closest agreeable system we could see. A TL12 system as well as rich. It was also thirty six hours away. Spitfire was not happy, as both she and Angel headed for the engines. I handled the refuelling and supplies. Four hours and two very grimy, greasy, and dirty girls later, they had done as much as they could. I herded them into the shower, and spirits were raised as I helped them clean up. I tossed the two limp and relaxed girls onto the bed, and crawled in between them.

The next morning, we left for Biarge. Spitfire insisted I be Captain as we entered witchspace, and I didn't argue with her. We were all on edge for the next three days. As soon as we entered the Biarge system, the three of us released a collective breath. We mass-locked on three trade convoys, and a group of five suspicious ships, but we were never hailed. Finally, we landed in the station. We were exhausted from the constant worry of the last three days, and decided to start our repairs in the morning. We all cuddled in a pile and went to sleep.

I awoke the next day with both girls jumping up and down on the bed, so I grabbed an ankle in each hand, and pulled them back down on top of me. I was also happy to have made it safely, and I proceeded to show them both, just how much! Spitfire arranged for the maintenance crew, while Angel and I handled the rest of the chores. Maintenance took nearly twelve hours to finish, and once the crew had left, we decided to just take Nipper for a walk and grab dinner. On the way back to the ship, Spitfire kept looking at a beat up Cobra MKIII, parked down the way from us.

“I know I have seen that Cobra before...” she muttered.

“What's wrong babe?” I asked.

“Nothing, I guess. It's just that Cobra MKIII, I know I have seen that ship before, more than once actually...” she mused.

I looked at the Cobra she was talking about. It was fairly nondescript, except for the fact it was covered with scorch marks and carbon deposits.

“You sure it's the same one?” I asked. She nodded. It was a ship that had seen a lot of combat, like a pirate or bounty hunter. The fact that it bothered Spitfire, bothered me.

“What's say we head down to the planet for our shopping and a short break?” I asked. The girls squealed.

I also wanted to see if the Cobra would follow. With luck, he wouldn't be equipped to land on the planet. We made sure everything was secured, and left the station. We headed straight for the planet surface, watching our rear camera the entire time. Three other ships launched after us, but the Cobra wasn't one of them. I contacted Biarge Planetary Control, and got permission to land at the main spaceport, just outside the city of Krelp. It was early morning here, so we all took a nap, before heading into town.

Once we were coherent again, we took Nipper, climbed on the bikes, and headed for the shopping district. Angel and Spitfire were on the hunt for nano-clothes, and it didn't take long to find them. To make things even better, they were on sale. Angel bought both a bodysuit, and a dress, complete with a full set of controllers. It made a dent in her credit chip, but she didn't seem to care.

“Morgan, what else do I have to spend it on? I have more money now, than I ever dreamed of having in my entire life. I have the perfect job and place to live. And I have you two. What more do I need?” She laughed and grope-kissed me. Good point.

When they asked about the sale, the sales girl told them it was due to the launch of a new line of nano-clothes. The GenTwo series. According to their gossip, the GenTwo series did away with the iridescent material completely. They knew little more about it, other than it was only available on Ceesxe. Two pairs of silver gray eyes looked imploringly at me.

“We will get back there eventually girls, I promise. But we can't make a special trip across the galaxy just for clothes.” I admonished.

Their pouts lasted all of three seconds, before they were once again caught up with their shopping. We really needed a bigger ship, if for no other reason, than to hold their ever growing clothing and shoe collection!

We came to a shop advertising something called “Edible Poets”. We had actually passed a few others offering the same thing, but curiosity finally demanded we find out what they were. As soon as the door opened, the aroma of fresh baked goods made all three of us stop and inhale. As it turned out, Edible Poets are a type of pastry. The most wonderful treats that the girls and I had ever eaten. As a bonus, each one comes wrapped in a sheet of paper, upon which is written a poem. Sometimes the poems are silly, sometimes they are clever. And sometimes, they are a bit eerie.

Angel's was rather clever, and we all laughed as she read:

Kiss me once, now kiss me twice.
There you see? You've kissed me thrice!
Why stop there? Let's have one more.
Add them up, and that makes four.
You kiss so sweet, I must contrive,
To sneak another, and make it five.
But now I'm through, I'm out of tricks.
What's that you say? Let's make it six?
I must have died and gone to heaven.
You kissed me again, and that made seven.
But now the hour is growing late.
Okay, one more, to make it eight.
Another kiss will make you mine?
Then here it is, our number nine.
Tomorrow night we'll do it again.
And if we're quick, we might reach ten!

Spitfire's was short and silly, but strangely fitting:

Once there was a little girl.
A bonny little lass.
With skirts so short, the boys all saw,
Her bonny little ass!

And then I read mine...”

Not all men are Captains,
And not all Captains are men.
You may think this poem is silly.
But you'd better think again.
Beware the Snake,
Of numbers three.
That is the message.
Which I give to thee.

“I don't get it.” said Angel.

“Oh my gods,” said Spitfire, “I do! Don't you see? Angel and I aren't men, but we are Captains. And the Snake, could be the Cobra. You know, the Cobra MKIII from the station!”

I got a cold chill down my back, but said, “I don't know Spitfire. I think you're reaching a bit there.”

She just looked at me with her eyebrow quirked. She ordered a dozen more “poets” to be delivered to the ship. “We can put them in the stasis freezer, and have them for special occasions.” she said. Poetry aside, the pastry's really were good.

They continued to lead me around town, from one store to the next. Clothes, shoes, and anything else that caught their eye. Then they found Domina's Domain, an adult “toy store”. I was ordered to take Nipper for a walk. Sigh. We wandered up and down the street, window shopping and people watching, until the girls reappeared. For the next quarter of an hour, they giggled and laughed every time they looked at me. Girls! We went back to the ship, and waited for the days purchases to arrive.

After the carry-all left, the girls began squirreling away their treasures. Where they hid their mysterious goodies, I didn't pretend to know. Then they had Aria print a poster from one of the pictures they had taken on our last break. They both signed it, and then took Angel's bike to the control center. They returned a short time later, grinning ear to ear, and with the coordinates for a nice little camping spot in the mountains. We had Angel take us there and found a perfect little spot. We made our nest and settled in for the night.

“So what all did you two buy today?” I asked.

“Just never you mind, babe.” answered Angel.

“We are saving them for when we are back on the ship. You know, for when we get bored.” chimed in Spitfire.

“But I don't think I have ever been bored on the ship. Not with you two around, at least.” I said.

“Exactly!” They both answered and laughed. I gave up, and instead I rolled on top of both of them, and tickled them till they screamed. We relaxed and played for the next two days, before deciding it was time to leave. For some reason, all three of us were feeling antsy.

On the last day, we packed up and got ready to go. I was on the bridge waiting for them to get ready, when they both walked through the door.

“What do you think of our “uniforms”?” they asked. They were both wearing their nano-bodysuits. Programmed to pure black, except for the transparent sleeves. They had matching leather caps, in a similar style to the Galcops. They also wore crotch-high black leather boots and their black gun-belts and blasters.

“Wow! Very sexy!” I said. “And now, no one can complain about you not wearing panties.”

They giggled and turned around. The back of each suit was completely transparent, all the way down to their bottoms, or at least the top half. “Okay, maybe not. But I like them!” They did actually look somewhat official, if a little voyeuristic. But it made my black jeans and t-shirt seem fairly drab, and I said as much. That was a mistake. I found myself dressed in my skintight black pants, knee high black leather boots, a black sleeveless shirt that laced up the front. They added my holster and blaster to complete the look. If it wasn't for the britches, showing every bump and bulge, it wouldn't have been so bad.

“Baby, if we can show a little tail, you can show a little something too!” insisted Spitfire, with Angel vigorously nodding in agreement.

“Fine, that's fair enough I guess. But these britches are going to take some getting used to...” I relented.

“It's not going to be easy on us either!” said Angel, eyeing me up and down. “If we don't get moving quick, I'm going to strip him naked again!” And this time, Spitfire did the nodding.

Maybe things weren't so bad after all.

We stopped at the station to see if there were any contracts worth taking. But after finding little of interest, we filled the hold with furs and alcohol, and then looked at the star-chart.

“Babe, we're awfully close to Lave...” said Spitfire.

“It has been a while, and Angel hasn't met Pa and Terra yet.” I agreed.

“You've told me so much about them!” said Angel. And so it was agreed, we would make our way to Lave for a short visit. First, we would stop at Zaonce and sell our cargo. With no passengers aboard, the girls ditched their uniforms, and went back to wearing as little as possible. When they wore anything at all. But as soon as Aria announced our impending arrival, they put their uniforms back on again. I wondered just how long this would last.

We arrived at Zaonce station after two mass-locks, and sold our cargo. Then, surprisingly, found a small cargo contract bound for Lave itself. I quickly signed up for it, and waited for its delivery. Lave was only thirty one hours away, and Spitfire and I were excited. As soon as it was loaded and secured, we left again.

The night before our arrival, I awoke as Angel crept out of bed. Instead of going to the head as I figured, she headed out to the hall. I waited for a while, but when she didn't return, I got up and followed. I found her standing naked on the bridge, her arms wrapped around herself, staring out at the swirling witchspace vortex.

“Angel? Everything okay?” I asked. She jumped as I startled her.

“Damn it Morgan, you scared the hell out of me!” she accused.

“Sorry Sugar, didn't meant to. But that doesn't answer my question.”

“I know, I'm okay I guess.”

I walked up behind her and put my arms around her. We both stared out the window for a while before she said, “I guess I'm a little nervous at meeting your family.”

“You seem to forget, you're my family too.”

I know, but...” she trailed off.

And suddenly, it hit me. I was doing it again. Just as I had done with Spitfire so long ago, I had begun to take Angel for granted. “Oh Sugar, I am so sorry. I got so used to having you here with me, I just took all this for granted.”

She turned in my arms and looked up at me. “What do you mean Morgan?”

“Well, you and I have a rather odd relationship, don't we? Initially, it was Spitfire you were interested in. But through her, I've grown to love you as well, you know that don't you?.”

“Ya, I love you too, Morgan. I never thought I could ever love a man, but ya, you're right. I do love you, and I love Sweet Cheeks too.”

I smiled at her and gave her a deep kiss. “Your relationship with Spitfire is different from yours and mine. Just like my relationship with her, is different from the one I have with you. But that's fine. As a matter of fact, I think that's the main reason that this odd situation works so well. We can accept our relationships with each other, without being jealous of one another. But there is something that Spitfire and I have that you don't, and it bothers you sometimes, doesn't it?”

Angel looked down, and didn't answer.

“You see Sugar, that's what I am sorry for. I should have seen it, and I should have realized that it bothered you.”

“But it d-doesn't really. You two met long before you m-met me... It's not that big of a d-eal...” She was starting to shake, and when I lifted her chin, there were tears running down her cheeks.

“Please forgive me Anghellica.” I said, using her actual name. I picked her up and walked over to the command couch, and settled her in my lap. “So, I love you, and you love me, correct?”

She nodded.

“And you love Spitfire, and you know that she loves you too, is that not also correct?”

Another nod.

“Then it's about damn time you married us, don't you think?” I asked. Her huge eyes shot up to meet mine, her mouth dropping open. She started to speak a couple times, but didn't seem to know what to say. “You don't have to if you don't want to Sugar, but I really do want you to, and I already know Spitfire would say the same thing. As a matter of fact, I think the only reason she hasn't brought it up, is because as far as she is concerned, we already are. But we shouldn't take you for granted like that. So, I'm asking you Anghellica, will you marry us?”

“B-but... I... Oh M-Morgan, are you sure? I just...”

“Yes, I'm sure. I'm also sure, that I should have done this a while ago. I can't imagine you not being here with us, as a real part of our family.”

“But y-you don't have to m-marry me f-for that. I'm not g-going anywhere. You don't have to...” She was shaking her head.

“Babe, I'm not asking you because I think I have to. I'm asking you because I want to. I want to marry you, and I want you to marry me... and Spitfire. Since you can't have one without the other.” I said.

She laugh-sobbed, “No, I can't, c-can I. I found that out a l-long time ago. And n-now, I wouldn't have it any o-other way! I love you b-both, and if you're sure, then yes. I want t-to m-marry you and Spitfire!” She hugged and kissed me, smearing her little wet face all over mine. I didn't care one bit. She was laughing, crying, and kissing all at the same time. And at some point, it all turned into love making. When I was able, I carried her twitching little body back to bed, and laid her beside Spitfire.

“'Bout damn time.” Spitfire mumbled, as she wrapped herself around Angel, and went back to sleep. “How does she always know?” I wondered. I crawled in,wrapped myself around both of them, and was soon asleep as well.