Cowboys and Aliens

48. Recovery

Waking

up at his usual time, Mark threw on his robe, exited the room, grabbed a cup of coffee at the bar and went out to the walkway to take the stairs down one level to the bridge.

It surprised him to find Ardala was already up as well, still in her robe and drinking some tea as she looked out over the park from the walkway.

Mark asked, "Usually I'm the first one up around here, did you have trouble sleeping?"

Ardala smiled, "No, after last night, I slept great. I've always been an early riser, and I just woke up as well. Why are you up so early?"

"I've always been an early riser as well, but I typically use this time to go through my daily reports. Usually I use my office, but since I don't have an office on this ship, I've been using the bridge."

"Don't let me upset your routine. Do you mind if I accompany you as you go through your reports?"

"Not at all! Follow me."

They both grabbed their cups and made their way toward the stairs in the corner, which is also where the elevator pad was.

Mark then had an epiphany, "Actually, we should go put you in a medibed and make you a citizen; you are the elected leader of Garedon, it's only fitting that you become a citizen."

Ardala said, "OK!", as he selected PA0 on the keypad and they floated down to the corner of the medical centre. They went into the first room and Mark instructed Ardala to remove her clothes and hop into the medibed.

As he turned around, she was already standing there in all her naked glory, as he helped her up onto the edge of the medibed.

Ardala gave him a sly smile as she spread her legs wide and used her fingers to spread her pussy open, exposing her beautiful inner pinkness.

Mark smiled and said, "Wait until after you get out of the medibed."

With a faux pout, she downed the rest of her tea, handed him the cup and lay down in the medibed. Mark closed it and started the tune up routine, remembering to select the 'Install Wrist Comm' option, which he learned is what gives people the wrist computer device and there is an online tutorial on how to use it in the library.

It

took about half an hour until Ardala came out of the medibed, enough time that Cricket and Mark had actually gone over his daily reports. The big news was the discovery of Rift 13 about halfway to the Norn world, but Mark already knew about that. So with a couple of chances now to return home, Derek will have no problems recruiting people for his mission.

As expected, Ardala was thirsty, so Mark offered her a cup of water, since there was a drink dispenser in every room.

After relishing the cool water wetting her mouth and throat, Ardala asked, "So how long was I out for?"

"Roughly 30 minutes, long enough that I actually finished my daily reports."

"Anything new in the reports?"

"We found Rift 13 about halfway to the Norn world, so that's an excellent find."

"It's good because of that mission that guy is recruiting people for?"

"Exactly! If the rifts are sequential, then they know they'll have options for changes when they reach Rift 13. Once they go back in, they're on their own unless we find more. So far the only rifts we have found are 1, 2, 5 and 13."

Ardala handed Mark back the empty water cup, which he turned around and dropped into the recycle bin.

Ardala just laughed, "I understand now, it just still strikes me as odd that you get a good solid cup from the dispenser, use it once and then just throw it in the recycle bin."

Mark laughed, "That took a bit of getting used to for me as well. You get plates, utensils, cups, pots, pans and so on... use everything once and then just throw it in the recycler. After thinking about it though you realize, it's a zero waste system, the material from the cup recycles as soon as you're done with it, and the water you drank gets returned to the system when you go to the washroom after your body has taken what it needs from it."

Ardala had a look of realization, "Wow, I never looked at it that way, but you're right! You really can't get anymore efficient than that!"

"I have to remember when I visit and eat at other places, that you don't just throw away the plates and utensils. I've just about done that a few times. One time they asked why I would do that, and I just said I'm used to an efficient zero-waste system, then they said that by washing and reusing the plates and utensils they weren't wasting anything either, until I pointed out that they wasted any food scraps on the plates and all the water, detergents and energy for washing and drying. By simply recycling the plates, utensils and any food scraps and then generating brand new ones on demand, there was zero waste and no washing, drying or storing and everything is 100% sterile and clean."

"I just realized the extent of the services that the Federation provides people for free! I can see why it would be difficult to leave the Federation after you join."

"Yup, it's a game changer when you don't have to pay for waste management, electricity, maintenance, public transit, medical, food and clothing. It would be tough for any civilization to go back to the old ways, especially after you get used to working part time or simply volunteering.

One technology that people really like is the rebuilder construx. An engineer puts one in a building and then within a day it will provide a complete scan of everything in it... wiring, lighting, plumbing, ductwork, windows, doors, appliances, heating and cooling, everything. Then they can remodel the home using the same basic structure, but with all the added amenities the Federation can offer... and the best thing is you don't need to move everything out to do it!"

"Wow, that will revolutionize everything. How much does that cost?"

"I'm not exactly sure, to tell you the truth, as I've never actually done it myself. I know it actually costs nothing to do it as the material itself comes from the structure that's being rebuilt, the only cost would be the architect's time for the remodel. So I wouldn't think it costs very much."

Ardala lay back, pulled her feet up onto the edge of the bed and spread her legs wide, using her fingers to spread her pussy open, exposing her beautiful inner pinkness.

Mark smiled as he leaned over and kissed his way down her leg, starting with her knee, where he kissed her exposed clit, before sucking on it and then licking deep into her, savouring her sweet nectar.

A minute or two of performing fellatio on that beautiful flower had Ardala screaming in orgasm and begging for Mark to fuck her.

Mark obliged, of course, sinking his already rock hard cock deep into the Senator, then after a few strokes Mark felt the tingling and his cock expanded slightly until the head was just touching her womb. Enjoying the deep thrusts, it didn't take but another couple of minutes before Mark was erupting hot cum directly into her womb.

As the couple recovered from their orgasmic bliss, Mark's cock returned to its normal size and a copious amount of cum flowed out of her pussy as he withdrew, leaving her pussy pulsing in the open air, as Mark began cleaning up the mess.

Realizing it was time for breakfast, Mark introduced Ardala to a clothing synth as she got dressed and then Mark got changed into his normal attire, sans the cowboy hat he had left in the bedroom. Again, Ardala realized the extent that Federation society really wastes nothing and in doing so, makes everything so much more convenient.

They went back upstairs to the common area, where Ra'ki and Luna were making a simple breakfast of eggs, bacon, toast and fruit. Once everyone was eating, the usual conversation of discussing what the plan was for the day. Liyana suggested he needed to make an announcement for all the personnel, as they rushed to be here and are sitting on the sidelines.

Once they had finished breakfast, Mark grabbed his cowboy hat and everyone followed him down to the bridge to make the announcement using the ship wide intercom, "Good morning everybody! Today we get started helping Garedon recover from this virus!

We will distribute outreach centres to every community in the country. However, for the larger cities, we will use the shuttle busses to bring people up here for treatment, with the fore and aft medical centres able to treat about 2,000 people at a time.

So today, even if you have a medivac, your task will be to contact the mayor or elected official of each community and give them a construx, with instructions to find a location for the outreach centre and to press the button. We can build the outreach centre atop rubble, an empty building or an open space. Once they press the button, a hologram of the outreach centre will appear within a few minutes and a guide will talk them through it.

We have over 21,000 destinations across the country, so it's going to be a busy couple of days just distributing the construx. We're going to start with the smaller towns, since they probably have fewer infected and they likely have more room to build an outreach centre, plus they will benefit the most from our other services and amenities. For the larger cities, they'll also get a construx, but we'll shuttle the infected up here for treatment, so we're going to need anybody with medical training running the facilities up here and assisting and organize incoming visitors.

Good luck and be safe!"

Ardala said, "So how long will it take before shuttles are on their way to dispatch the outreach devices?"

Cricket's hologram popped up, "All shuttles are preparing for departure as we speak. They should be on their way within minutes."

"Wow, you guys work fast! How many shuttles do you have and how will they know where to go?"

Cricket again answered, "We currently have 512 shuttles, and we have given each shuttle a list of destinations to make deployment as efficient as possible."

"We should probably get down there and make a public announcement. Where should people meet in the larger cities?"

Mark asked, "We should! Maren, can you take us down to the Acadia parliamentary buildings? Who else wants to go?"

Rayven asked, "Is it going to be sitting in meetings all day?"

"I'm not exactly sure? Probably part of it will be, I really don't know."

Liyana said, "I think we'll stay up here and help with coordination. If we have over 50 shuttle busses running around and thousands of people up here, we're going to need all hands on deck keeping things organized up here."

Mark said, "Good idea, Liyana. I'll go it alone today, especially since I don't know what the plan is. The rest of you try to control the chaos."

Mark, Gyges, Maren and Ardala went off to the shuttle and once they were en route, Ardala asked her question again, "So where should people go in the cities?"

"I'm thinking they should meet at city hall or wherever the elected official is. Typically, it's near the centre of the city and it's usually easy to access via public transportation."

"Ok, so what cities will the busses be going to?"

Mark lifted her left arm, and the list was there for her to view.

"So I got this because I became a citizen? How do I use it?"

Mark laughed, "Yes, all citizens can get those once they reach 10 years of age, but they have limited functionality for the first few years. For instance, until they reach 16 years of age, any contacts they add get approved by a parent or guardian. Stuff like that! As for how to use it... there's a full tutorial about it in the library."

Mark showed her some basics until Maren announced they were arriving at the parliamentary buildings.

As

they exited, Mark told Maren she could return to the CityShip and help with chaos control.

The news crews had readied themselves when the shuttle landed, but Ardala just told them she needed to update the assembly first.

The trio walked inside as everyone was just getting in the assembly hall.

The house leader called the assembly to order and immediately asked Mark, "Did you come up with a plan last night?"

Mark stood up, "Yes, actually it's already being implemented. We have 512 shuttles distributing construx devices for outreach centres to every incorporated municipality in the country. If they don't finish the delivery today, then tomorrow. If the elected officials get them placed and start the construction, then any infected people can simply go there for treatment as soon as the construction is complete. For the larger cities, we have 50 shuttle busses and I propose we use city hall as the meeting place for the shuttles and we will collect people on a schedule and take them up to the CityShip for treatment.

Once every municipality has an outreach centre, we will assign teams to the largest cities and work with the town councils to get them setup with an outreach hubs and centres. If all goes well, we should have this virus eradicated from Garedon within a week or two."

There was a round of applause from the assembly as Mark sat down.

The house leader waited for the applause to diminish, "The Federation does indeed function efficiently. My king, I realize what I am about to ask is probably in the library, but could you tell us. What is the democratic structure and process in the Federation?"

Mark stood to respond, "The structure would be in the library, and the process probably is as well. Yesterday I said, Governor Ardala is effectively Senator Ardala now, which is the highest elected rank in the Federation political hierarchy, then the elected leaders of each region are now Governors. If more countries on Virgohn decide to join the Federation, they would be the same, although once you have over two Senators on a planet, they elect one to be the Head of the Senate Committee, who then becomes the planetary representative that reports to me.

As for how the senate works, typically we build a senate chamber and they are the same on every planet, just scaled in size depending on the number of representatives, but I think the senate chamber comes after a planet has 4 senators, but all meetings can be online. Then it functions just like you do here, except the Head of the Senate Committee takes over the role of house leader. Any issues to go before the senate, must be submitted prior to the meeting, and then you work through the list."

The house leader then asked, "If we decide almost everything in the senate, where do you fit in?"

"As King, I'm in charge of security, emergency services and foreign relations, but regarding the senate... I only get involved if they can't decide something on their own."

One of the other Governors spoke up, "So we have no say in our own security?"

"Not really. We standardize security across the Federation as explained in Liyana's presentation. I'm guessing your concern is that certain areas will be lower on the priority list or if someone in security does something untoward or questionable.

To put your mind at ease... no security personnel on the ground would ever do something that would jeopardize their job. That would cost them far more than just losing their job, but also all personnel on the ground only get involved if a security drone detects an issue. So that takes away all the guesswork, profiling, racism and unlawfulness, the security drones watch them, just like everyone else, they can't break laws either. You'll see once the system gets turned on, but by removing security and emergency services from the local governments makes for a much more efficient and standardized system."

The former opposition leader then asked, "Since everything is changing so fast, and you're in your wheelhouse dealing with this viral pandemic, which definitely qualifies as an emergency... what do you think our next move should be?"

"Personally, I would head back to your ridings. Talk to your people and coordinate things, then move your office into the outreach centre or hub nearest to you. You will have a desk similar to what the senators have, but you also have access to the Federation library and computer system, which is very beneficial during the transition process, plus you can still hold assembly like this. It's just done virtually!"

Ardala then asked, "My King, how long do you estimate it will take until the virus is eradicated?"

"I can't say for sure, but we should have outreach centres distributed to every city and town today or tomorrow. Then it depends on how quickly the mayors or elected officials can get them placed and construction started. Once they're up and running, it shouldn't take long to get glowing people treated. On the upside, people should be able to avoid infected people, so that should prevent any further spread of the virus. If all goes well, we should have the virus eradicated or at least very much under control within a week."

The former opposition leader said, "You really think you can do it in a week?"

"Well, I'm not sure how people are on this planet, but from my experience on other planets, there's always some people that are just plain stubborn and/or stupid and won't accept help or believe anything the government says.

We can only hope they bow to public pressure and get treated, just to get rid of the green glow around them."

One of the other opposition politicians then said, "Speaking of the green glow, I've heard that they have started a petition in my area asking for the green glow to be turned off as it's an invasion of privacy."

"No, it isn't. Garedon requested to join the Federation, so even if we aren't actively enforcing all of our laws, the laws are still there. The green glow is a public health and safety advisory, we haven't done a single thing to anyone, we're simply scanning for the virus, we don't know Jack from Jill at this point."

At that point, the house leader brought the assembly back to order, "Shall we have a quick vote to adjourn parliament for a week, while you move your offices into the outreach centres and the Federation takes on this virus?"

Everyone quickly voted, and it was unanimous, so Ardala and Mark met up to go out and address the news crews.

Before heading outside, Ardala waited for her assistant. Mark hadn't realized it, but she had sent her assistant off to tell the website people what the pickup locations were, and to print off a list of the locations to give to all the news crews.

Once Britney, her assistant, showed up with the papers, they went outside to address the media.

Britney

distributed the papers to the various news crews. While they were setting up at the bottom of the stairs.

Ardala stepped up to the podium, once Britney had distributed the papers, "People of Garedon, today marks the first day in our recovery from this viral pandemic. The Federation is already distributing outreach centres to every municipality, once those buildings are ready, residents may go get treated.

For the largest cities, we ask that people make their way toward city hall over the next few days. Today will be for everyone currently in hospital, then starting tomorrow will be anyone glowing green with a last name starting with A through L, then the day after will be M through Z. If you can't make your pickup, you can get treated locally once the outreach centres are operational in the cities.

Does anyone have questions?"

One reporter in the front asked, "How long do these outreach centres take to build and will you use local construction companies for their construction?"

Ardala gestured to Mark and said, "The King of the Atlantean Federation would be better to answer that question."

Mark stepped up to the podium, "No, we will not be using local contractors, the outreach centres are automatic buildings, you simply place it on the lot and press the button. A hologram pops up, asks you a few customization questions and then the building auto-constructs. Depending on the size of the building, it could be active within a few hours, but within a day."