Chapter 42. Expectation.

The men found Alice at the pilot's station with Hilary and Vicky at the communication station.

"What's up?" Charles asked them.'

"Our buddy gave us another destination," Alice told him. "31 Aquilae G8 IV has double the luminosity of the Sun and is nearly 50 light years away."

"Did they say why?"

"Nope."

"Is that where there might be an intelligent species?" James asked.

"Could be," Charles replied. "Assuming it wasn't hit by the microwave blast."

"It's a system in the opposite direction from Earth's in relation to the rift in space," Hilary revealed. "It shouldn't have been wiped clean like Earth was."

"I suppose we should go there," Charles said. "Maybe there's a problem we're not aware of."

"Wouldn't that be a risk?" Ed asked.

"It wouldn't be as bad as it was before we discovered that this ship has a shielding system and weapons."

"I assume that means we're going there," Alice replied.

"Yes. Just keep alert. We don't know what's out there."

Alice activated the tachyon system to begin the faster than light voyage. She also brought up the controls for the shield system and the weapons control.

Charles and the other engineers went to the engineering deck to keep watch on the engine operations.

"I thought we weren't going out anywhere until after the birthing," Dave said.

"Our cyborg buddy wants us to go to a system where there could be an intelligent species," Charles told him. "It's in our interest to obey their commands. They're the main reason we're still alive."

"At least we have the capability to avoid attack by the robotic aliens," Carl said. "The only remaining problem is our situation with the women."

"I think we've finally reached a reasonable peace for now," Charles said. "We'll let them ask us for favors."

"I've noticed that they seem to be more amenable to the idea that we're in control of this ship," Carl said.

"I agree," Dave said. "It appears that they're more interested in entertaining us."

"I believe that the best course is to allow them to decide what sort of relationships they want," Robert added. "That's the best attitude when it involves women."

Charles was happy to see that they had come to a more reasonable attitude about the women, especially since he had no idea what they were faced with on this new journey.

"There doesn't seem to be any problems with the engines," Carl said. "We may as well relax until we arrive at the system."

Everyone agreed. Carl returned to the command deck to see how things were going.

"So far, so good," Alice replied. "We're about halfway there."

"The engines are not showing any signs of stress. We should be okay."

"Should we deploy the shielding when we get there?"

"Yes. We'll decide if we keep it up if there are no threats."

Charles got up and walked to the elevator to go back to his quarters.

When he arrived there, he plopped down in an easy chair and activated a large screen to watch an old video. His cat joined him, lying on his lap so that he could pet it, and just as he was getting into the video, Kristen, Nancy, Lilian, Jane, Felicity, and Yolanda filed into his quarters as if they were marching in unison. They collectively looked up at the screen he was viewing.

"What the hell are you watching?" Jane asked him. "It looks like a cartoon."

"It's 'The Simpsons', one of the most watched animated series in the twentieth century. I like how it predicted several happenings that were considered ridiculous then."

They looked at him as if he were crazy.

"What brings you ladies here?" he asked them, trying not to seem excited.

"We want to use your pool," Jane replied with no sign of emotion.

"Sure," he replied and then pointed to the doorway at the back of his living room. "The water is really cold."

"Yeah, we heard. We don't mind that." She offered an ornery grin. "You can watch us."

He paused to format his reply "I can watch on the screen," he said, pointing to it.

She glanced up at the screen before she replied, sounding disappointed. "Ok."

He watched them walk to the door and disappear into the pool chamber.

The new additions to the female crew stripped and gathered near the pool.

"If he can watch us in here," Nancy said, looking all around. "He could watch us no matter where we are."

Jane laughed. "So what? This vessel is like a fish tank. Everything we do is visible."

"I've heard that our bodies are being altered because of some sort of energy exposure," Kristen said while looking around.

"It's called photo biomodulation." Lilian told her. "It's altering our t-cells and DNA so that our bodies become perfect and won't age."

"Too bad no guys are here to enjoy ogling our perfect bodies," Yolanda said, licking her lips.

"Maybe they are," Nancy said, looking around as if she were being watched.

Felicity jumped up and down. "Enjoy this you perverts!"

They giggled, but they were not happy that no one seemed to be interested in their feminine charms.

The next morning no one was laughing on the command deck. The ship was seconds away from dropping out of faster than light speed, and none of them were happy about what they would find.

As soon as the ship dropped out of faster than light, it allowed the crew to see where they were headed.

"This star is supposed to have four planets," Hilary revealed from the telescopic station. "One is listed at being habitable."

"Any signs of robotic alien craft?" Charles asked.

"None so far," Judy replied from the scanning station. "I'm not detecting any other space craft within ten thousand kilometers."

"I think that's the habitable planet," Hilary said, pointing to a tiny spec of light on the main screen. "It's within the habitable zone."

"Take us there," Charles ordered. "Keep scanning for any vessels."

"So far, so good," Judy revealed.

"It'll take a few hours to arrive at the habitable planet," Alice said. "It's best we keep a low profile."

Charles smiled. "I agree. We have no idea what's on the planet."

"I'm not detecting any radio signals," Beverly reported. "I can't find any laser beams."

"That's a sign that whatever's there is not technically advanced."

"Or they're using a communication method we're not aware of," Carl said.

"Yes, that's a possibility. We'll just have to wait to see if there's any intelligent species on the planet."

"There must be something there," Alice said. "Why would our cyborg buddies want us to go here."

"Yes, you're right. However, it could be some other threat that we wouldn't know about."

"Let's hope not."

The entire crew agreed.

What they found once they achieved orbit around the planet was confusing.

"What in the hell are those things," Hilary pointed at the display of strange domed objects on the surface of the planet.

"Fascinating!" Charles reacted, rubbing his jaw. "They look like domed residents. They don't seem to have any connection to one another."

"Maybe they have underground transits," Vicky replied. "We can do a radar scan to determine that."

"Let's wait until we determine what's in those domes," Charles said, not sure that it would be possible.

"We might have to send down probes to get a better idea of what these are," Carl offered.

Charles nodded. "Good idea. We can determine the conditions on the ground at the same time."

Vicky activated two probes and launched them. After several minutes, data began streaming back. "Oxygen is only ten percent," Vicky revealed. "There seems to be a rather high content of carbon dioxide. It's two percent."

"Maybe that's why the inhabitants, if there are any, are in domed cities," Charles proposed.

"I can't get any indication of what's inside those domes," Hilary revealed. "The material that the domes are made from are extremely dense. I can't get much information out of the X-ray scans."

"We'll have to go down there," Charles said. "But I'm not sure if we can gain entrance to those domes."

"Only one way to find out," Alice said.

The answer would come but at a cost.