“No problem.I could parallel park when I was twelve.”She chuckled.“And I got a solid seventy-five on my pilot’s exam.Out of two hundred.”
“Excellent.Good thing we can all cram in the backup vehicle.It will be snug but should be entertaining.”Gertrude laughed.
“Right.Going in.Look, ma, no hands.”She used the manual controls and got them lined up and eased forward.They glided in, and she settled them in the cradle that was waiting for them.
She set them down and gave a “Woo!”The guys nearly collapsed from relief.
“Oh, breathe.Now come on.From what I heard in her voice, the cargo is gonna be heavy.”
Baket blinked.“How can you be so cheerful?”
“Two orgasms and a good night’s sleep.Does wonders for the mood.”
Arven said, “So, you weren’t joking.”
“I was not.Active sex drive and no outlets would be unpleasant.Fortunately, I can manage things myself.I just go to the recreation spaces for a deep tissue massage.I still prefer to be touched.”
Soven stared at her as she got out of the pilot’s seat.“So, you were mocking him?”
“No.Was completely truthful.He was asking the wrong questions.”She smiled brightly and skipped down the hall toward the cargo hatch.
She checked that the array shields were holding and lowered the hatch.She whistled and walked onto the cargo bay for the array as the other three were behind her.Chloe and Skylar were still asleep.
Cori sprinted past her and toward one of the loading docks.Margo chuckled.“Either she saw someone she knows, or she has to pee.”
Laughter floated in the air behind her.When a figure moved in the shadows behind Cori, cloaked arms rose, and Cori hugged it, spinning her around.
Margo grinned.“I think she knows the creature.”
They walked up to the couple who were crying and holding each other.Cori sobbed and stroked the other woman’s face.
Margo said, “So, you have met.”
Cori laughed.“Margo, this is my elder sister, Isolde.Issy, this is the pilot of our as-yet-unnamed ship.Behind her are the other three males who were hired to crew the ship.They are Zowoth.”
Isolde chuckled.“Orcs.”
Baket sighed.“If that is what your people call us, Zowoth, orcs, we are them.”
Margo looked at the giant med unit that Isolde was leaning on.“Is this it?”
Isolde nodded.“I just unplugged it.It has an hour before it needs to be powered again.”
“What’s in it?”Margo asked.“I haven’t seen one this size before.”
“My best friend.She just needs some more time to help with her radiation issue.”Isolde touched the machine.“She’s been giving me all kinds of tips about the baby.”
Margo looked at the long tube.“What’s her name?”
Isode and Cori turned toward the ship and walked slowly.“Geri.”
Margo paused.“Of course it is.”She looked at the guys.“Does someone want to give me a hand with this?”
Her crew came around, and they lifted the unit up.Margo remembered Aken-Var’s casual strength, and she shook her head.She shrugged and walked after the woman and her sister, catching the pregnant roll to her step and understanding.
She asked the guys, “How are Zowoth around pregnant women?”
The three came to a sudden halt.Baket asked, “Why?”
