News

Lyndon Carson scratched absentmindedly at the stubble on his chin. He was tired; it had been a long couple of days. He hadn’t slept much in the zero-G, and moving the plants had been laborious, even in the simulated Martian gravity. He had neither the time nor inclination to play games, yet that was, apparently, exactly what Tara Dayton wanted to do with him.

Come to my room in 5 minutes, said the message on his intercom. He knocked back the last of the precious coffee in his mug, dropped it off at the kitchen, and headed to her. He tapped on the door softly and heard her tell him to enter.

Dayton was sitting on her bed, her long blonde hair unkempt. She looked as tired as he felt.

“Sup Tara?”

“Hello Carson, do sit down,” she said, indicating to the small bunk. “I have an update.”

“An… update?”

“An update,” she repeated seriously. “We have a bit of a problem,” she said as she pulled up a screen on her laptop and tilted it toward him.

“CORPORATE FIGHTING,” screamed the headline on the news article. Below the headline, the picture showed the Green Mars Corp building, smoke rising from several windows.

“The fuck?”

“I got the report after the storm abated, but getting more now. The SpaceY folks and some other enemies have struck out HQ, the base in Texas and a couple ancillary locations. No reports on casualties yet.”

“Our security hitting back,” he asked, suddenly wide awake.

“Yes, they hit SpaceY and GuardianCorps, their security HQ. No word on damage. They haven’t told me how well it went yet.”

“What… What’s this mean for us Tara,” he asked, feeling a pang of fear in his chest. If the company was wiped out, support would go with it. “Does the crew know?”

“I’ll brief them in a bit, and they’ll have seen the news on the company net of course. Spies Carson, spies are what you need to worry about.”

“What? I thought we,” he started before Dayton cut him off.

“Yeah yeah we checked everyone. Well the company is nervous now and wants us to recheck. Maximum attentiveness.”

“What happens if we catch a spy Tara,” he said, getting worried. He didn’t sign up for this.

“We’re going to be rechecking by whatever means we can,” she responded, ignoring his question. “Get on it.”

“How?”

“You’ll figure it out mister Carson.”

Carson sensed opportunity. Dayton looked nervous, more so than he’d seen her before. He smelled weakness and he pressed his advantage.

“What’s in in for me?”

“Excuse me,” she said venomously, her eyes snapping onto him.

“You heard me, Tara.”

“I’ll tell you what’s in it for you, mister Carson. Not taking a walk in space.” A shiver of fear climbed up Carson’s spine.

“W-what?”

“You head me you presumptuous fuck. Head office expects a spy and if you don’t find the spy, I’ll have to assume it’s you.”

“You wouldn’t,” he began.

“Wouldn’t I mister? Never forget that you’re here because I want you here. That can change at ANY time. Do I make myself clear?”

“Yes Tara.”

“Get the fuck out of my room and find me a spy,” she spat. Then she turned, her voice softened. “Oh and Carson? Mention as little as you can about this to the crew for now.”

Shaken, Carson obeyed and left, closing the sliding door behind him. He noticed his hands were shaking. He’d never been so afraid of a person, let alone a woman he was attracted to before. He didn’t know if he was scared or horny, but it didn’t matter; he had to find a spy or at least make a good effort of finding one. He walked back to the kitchen to mull it over.

“Hey Lyndon,” said Pamala Sheldon as he walked into the room. She was sitting alone, her long dark hair tied back in a ponytail, an empty plate and a steaming mug of tea in front of her.

“How’s the tea,” he asked, still standing.

“It’s nice, well done,” she said with a smile, lifting her mug in salute.

“Thanks. I like that blend, plus it grows fast,” he said, pouring himself some from the thermos on the kitchen counter. “May I?”

“Of course,” smiled Sheldon, inviting him to sit. “Have you heard?”

“About what,” he asked as he sat down, playing dumb.

“The attack of course. It’s awful.”

That’s interesting, he thought, that she was so keen to bring it up. He dismissed the thought seconds later. It’s paranoia, of course this is big news, he told himself. Stay focused.

“Yeah, Tara was just telling me. It’s fucked up.”

“Does she know anything about damage or casualties?”

“Not that she told me.”

“I hope our guys make em pay,” she responded fiercely. Carson nodded.

“In the meantime,” he said after a pause, “thanks for the good work on the plants. You did good work.”

“They’re all settling back in, eh?”

“Yep, tucked in and comfortable haha. Didn’t lose any actually, I’m very happy. They’re thriving in fact.”

“I’m happy to hear it. That storm was pretty crazy.”

“That it was. Still, there were… benefits,” he added with a chuckle. Sheldon blushed a little.

“Oh yeah um, I may have been um, a little, uh, excited by the zero-G I guess,” she said awkwardly.

“You don’t need to be shy Pam,” he said, brushing his hand against her hand, and added, “I don’t think anyone minds.”

“Good,” she said, gently holding his hand, “I don’t want anyone to feel… weird, but like, it was pretty awesome.”

“I sure enjoyed the view,” he smiled, making her blush again. He wasn’t lying; that night, or whatever time that was, had been like being on set of a zero-G porno. The memory of Pamala’s face, wild with ecstasy as Hermann pumped his cum into her, came into his mind.

“Thanks,” she giggled a little shyly.

The two heard footsteps and as Hans Hermann walked into the kitchen, she pulled her hand away from his. Hermann’s eyes flicked between the two of them, and he quickly sat next to Sheldon.

“Hello, Pamala, how are you gorgeous,” he asked, putting his arm around her. “Hi Lyndon.”

“Oh hey Hans,” said Sheldon, seeming shy. She didn’t really return his touch, but she remained friendly. The two made small talk for a while, Hermann seemed to actively ignore him while they spoke. Carson started to wonder if Hermann was jealous, like he could sense a chemistry between Carson and Sheldon. Was there one? He didn’t know, but something about Sheldon intrigued him.

“So Pamala,” said Hermann, putting his arm around her, “I was thinking I would go to the gym in a few minutes. Would you care to join me?”

“No I think I’m good for now Hans, thank you,” she said. Her eyes flicked back to Carson, then to Hermann, and Carson felt her foot brushing against his.

“Fitness,” began Hermann, like he was addressing a two person sermon, “is essential. We must keep our bodies in peak condition. Mars will demand this.” As he spoke, Sheldon’s foot slid up and down Carson’s calf, and he could tell it was deliberate. Hermann was still prattling on about working out, but Sheldon’s eyes seemed to burn when they looked at Carson.

“Yes, it’s true Hans, I’m just tired OK,” she said, patting him on the leg.

“I will see you later yes,” he asked, rising.

“Yes of course, it’s a small ship hun,” she said, and he laughed in agreement.

“Tell me something Lyndon,” she said, turning to look into his eyes as she spoke, “how bad is it? Back home, I mean, the company…”

“I’ve just seen the report on the net,” he lied.

“If you hear something, you’ll let me know right,” she asked, her hand brushing his again. It was unmistakably deliberate. “I.. I have friends at HQ and I’m worried sick.”

“I will, I promise,” he assured her, holding her hands in his. “If I know more, I’ll tell you. I think Tara will tell us all soon.”

“Thank you, Lyndon. Anyway… I gotta uh, I gotta go find Hans. He’s right, have to stay fit, and I’m just bein’ lazy and chatting here.” She stood and left, looking back to smile at him as she left.

Carson sat in the kitchen for a time, reflecting. It had been a strange sort of conversation, he didn’t think he knew much more about spies, but he was very confident she wanted him. She had been curious about the attack sure, but why would a spy want that information? It’s not like he’d know anything useful.

His mind drifted. He imagined that cute face of hers sucking his cock, and he felt it twitch in his drawers. It made him mad that weird prick Hermann was getting to fuck her. Were they a couple? It seemed that way recently, but you never know. He was sure she was flirting with him, maybe she’s bored of German sermons. I wonder if she swallows, he thought, before the tap of steps broke his train of thought.

Ramona Wagner and Raynor Schwartz walked in together. When they saw Carson, they both separated farther apart, and Ramona awkwardly greeted him.

“Oh, um, hello Lyndon, how are you?

Carson chuckled inwardly. They were obviously sleeping together but were trying to keep it a secret. Had been for a while too, though he couldn’t quite figure out when. Carson had always assumed Schwartz had insisted Wagner be brought along because she was fucking him. He insisted he wasn’t, but the dirty doctor must have been getting his.

“Fine fine, just on my way to the plants next. You two were… checking on them I assume,” he asked, watching her facial expression change a little when he spoke. He would keep their secret for now.

“Yes! That’s exactly what we were doing,” she said hastily. “They’re doing well, no damage from the movements or radiation.”

She would make a terrible poker player thought Carson. At least she probably isn’t a spy; she’d get made in hours. Her man thought… that was another matter.

“So Lyndon,” said Schwartz, sitting across from him, “the news is dire yes?”

“Dire? Naw, I doubt it. Our guys took some hits but we’re OK, I’m sure. I’m not going to panic just yet.”

“Panic? No not panic,” he explained, “but organize.”

“Organize what exactly,” he asked pointedly, sensing something big.

“Contingency plans! What happens if we’re on our way to Mars without home base to help us?”

“What? We’re good man, our net’s still up, they’re talking to us, we’re going to be fine.” The idea of being alone on their way to Mars made a ball form in the pit of his stomach. What if Tara was lying? He pushed aside that fear, what he said was correct. He added, “there’s no reason for a contingency for something that hasn’t and won’t happen.”

“Is it not feasible that we would have a delay to support operations? We should plan for this surely.”

“And if it happens, Tara will guys. Look, I gotta get some checks done. It’ll be fine, relax.” Carson strode off to the botany hall. Their fears, he thought, were justified, but he didn’t want to show it. He couldn’t show it he told himself.

Also, he wondered, how is someone as high strung as the Doc even able to also sneak around with his pretty little student? What’s he even worried about? He ain’t losing his tenure now.

Carson had a lot to consider as he pondered. Sheldon, Schwartz, Hermann, half this damn crew counted as suspicious as far as he was concerned. Where do you start?

As he walked through the botany hall, he wondered what all Dayton’s cameras could see. He wondered just how much that freaky bitch knew. He didn’t know if he thought she was hot as fuck or terrifying, or both. They’re not mutually exclusive he pondered. The one thing he wanted more than to fuck Tara again, was for her not to throw him out of an airlock.

I wonder if I can have it both ways?