Journey to Year 1000000000

Journey to the Year 1,000,000,000

Chapter 16

[Note: This is a Science Fiction story with some erotic scenes. It is

not

a story with erotic scenes in every chapter. Some chapters have incredible sex scenes, but many others have none. ]

As Pam's body slept, she reported back to

Us

.

"You were supposed to terminate the finiteral. Instead, you reactivated more of them, and continued your research," said 49.

"I found that there was more worthy of study," said Pam.

"There are two pending galaxies and a nebula which require your attention. 1012 is eager for you to return to work."

"Yes, I know of 1012's eagerness," said Pam. "But I wish to finish studying these finiterals."

"To what end? They exist, and then they quickly cease to exist. What can be learned from them?"

"A different perspective," said Pam. "Because their existence is so limited, because they cannot

expra

or even

screan

, they have a totally different view of existence, a perspective we can never have. It is worth knowing. We know that the universe is constructed of tiny parts. We often look at it at a macro level. I often think there would be benefit to exploring it more on a micro level, as with these beings. With so much time available to us, can you really begrudge me a little more?"

"Perhaps not. You could spend a thousand years studying these finiterals. But it goes contrary to our goal of efficiency. It is already starting to affect

Formos

among

Us

. 1012-"

"I know what 1012 wants," said Pam. "1012 is an expediter. There is a role for expedition, a time and a place. I will rejoin my regular assignments once this task is completed."

"Very well," said 49.

"I have never seen you so... determined to pursue a subject of study before, 1018," said 37.

"The subject is... intriguing," said Pam.

********

The next morning when Taylor got up, he was surprised to see Pam, sitting up, and looking at him.

"Hello," he said. "Did you have a good night's sleep?"

"I do not know. I have only slept once. I do not have any basis for comparison," said Pam. "With a larger sample size, I may be able to provide a better answer to your question."

Taylor just looked at her and laughed. She sounded like a robot, but she looked and sounded so incredibly cute.

"What is the cause of your amusement?"

"You," said Taylor, getting up. "You chose the form of the woman I love. Forgive me if I find some of your mannerisms endearing."

"You are forgiven," said Pam.

Taylor laughed again as he casually took off his clothes and stepped into the sonic shower. Suddenly, Pam was there with him. "What? How did you-"

"We have travelled across galaxies, gone back to the creation of the universe, and shared salad together," said Pam. "Do you really wish to ask me how I entered your shower?"

She looked up at him, and he would have bet a thousand credits that she was flirting with him again!

"The question is withdrawn," said Taylor. "And now I have a new question. What are you doing here?"

"You have shown me consumption. You have shown me excretion. We have kissed, twice. You have showed me sleep. Now I wish to learn a new function."

"Function? You mean bathing? A research and diagnostic tool never bathes?" He looked at her. He realized she could transform into anything. Bathing would be unnecessary. "I suppose not." He was naked, but she was not. He felt no shyness; this wasn't Pam, but she

felt

like Pam.

"But there isn't really space for two in here. It's a little crowded." He looked down. Her breasts were almost touching his chest.

Pam took a step back, so she was against the far wall. She smiled at him. Her smiles were looking more and more like the real Pam's!

"All right," said Taylor. "But if you want to do this, you can't be wearing-" and suddenly, she was naked.

She was naked, he was naked, and they were in a tight, confined space together. He looked at her large, bell shaped breasts. They were exactly as he remembered, looking like ripe fruit, waiting to be harvested by eager hands. The blonde brown hair between her legs was perfectly triangular. When she saw where he was looking, she even spread her legs, so he could see her narrow slit. The place he had once called the home away from home....

"It could be your home once again, Michael," she said, widening her stance further.

Taylor blushed. She could read his mind. She knew

exactly

what affect she was having on him. And even if she didn't read her mind, her eyes must be giving her other visual indications of his interest.

"Does

that

indicate you wish to make love to this body?" she asked, pointing downwards with an irritating grin that really needed a kissing.

"No," said Taylor.

"But it stiffened when you saw me without clothes on," said Pam. "Does it not have some significance?"

"Yes. It means I want to take a shower." He cut off further argument by turning on the sonic shower. He took the hand attachment and started running it over his body: his chest, his arms, his legs. The vibrations, which shook dirt and sweat off of him, felt cool and soothing. But the shower quickly took on a sensual overtone as he saw Pam smiling as she watched him move the cone over his body. He found himself smiling back at her. There was something so... erotic about this, even though neither were touching. Taylor still felt embarrassed, however, by prominent lower developments. Pam gave him a little smile as if she enjoyed his discomfort.

And then he was done.

Almost done.

Normally, when he was showering, he would also clean one more area, but with him already so aroused and Pam watching him-

"Show me how to do it," she commanded.

And Taylor raised the cone, and started to spray it over her body: her shoulders, her arms, her legs... when he got to her breasts, he noticed she wasn't looking down. She wasn't looking at the cone at all.

She was looking at his face, and giving him an odd smile. As Taylor aimed the cone at her breasts, he watched as the flecks of sweat vaporized, leaving healthy, fresh skin, bright red areolas and nascent nipples, just ripe for the taking--

Taylor's organ, which had been partially erect, bobbed up and up and up until it was stiff as a rod and standing up at a 30 degree angle from his groin. Taylor pretended to ignore it and put down the cone. "That's how it's done," he said in a low voice, reddening again.

"Interesting," said Pam, but Taylor got the impression that the sonic cleansing was not what fascinated her.

Taylor got dressed. When he turned around, she was clothed, once again in the same white dress from their fuck-cation, the dress that clung so wonderfully to her breasts, that defined the shape of her mammaries and pubis so tightly and left nothing to the imagination.

"Or would you prefer another dress?" she asked, and suddenly she was in a more demure, blue dress.

"It doesn't matter," said Taylor automatically.

But I really liked the white dress from the fuck-cation-

When he turned around, she was wearing that dress again.

********

"That was the first time?" Pam asked.

They were watching a slightly younger version of Taylor come out of the

Westerner

at Auburn Field in Perth. Lieutenant Jennifer Hale, also dressed in her Survey Service finest, was at his side. "I think someone's looking for you, Captain," Jennifer teased, in a musical tone, as she pointed to the gathered crowd.

And there she stood, wearing a bright yellow sun dress that barely reached her knees, waving wildly.

"That was the first time," Taylor confirmed.

"Not before?" said Pam. "It wasn't another time, like this?"

And the scene changed. Taylor was on top of Pam, ramming into her vagina with his fully erect penis as hard as he could.

"Oh... oh, oh Michael! Take me, Michael, take me!" Pam cried. "It feels so good. It all feels so good," she said, tenderly touching his face. "I love you."

Michael's face was a mask of concentration. He was climbing, climbing, desperately reaching his peak. "I love you too," he cried, and then he pulsed rapidly into her, one, two, three, four, five times.

"No, not that time," said Taylor.

"But you actually told her that you loved her," said Pam.

"I did, but I wasn't certain," said Taylor. "It was in the heat of the moment. I was overtaken by the passion of what we were doing."

"The act of reproduction."

"Yes, the act of reproduction," said Taylor sarcastically. "You make it sound so attractive."

"Does that mean you will make love to this body now?" Pam asked brightly.

"No."

Pam looked disappointed, but returned to the analysis at hand. "So... the first time you knew you loved her was when you saw her at Auburn Field."

"Yes."

"And yet this was before you even spoke to her on that day."

"Yes."

"And before she spoke to you."

"Yes."

"So what was it, at that moment, that made you decide you loved her?" Pam asked.

Taylor paused. "It wasn't just that moment. If I had never seen Pam before, that moment wouldn't have meant anything. It was the culmination of everything leading up to that moment."

"But still, something must have happened to make you realize you loved her."

Taylor looked at Pam. She was a research tool. He knew what she was doing. She was trying to find out what had made him love

his

Pam, so she could employ the same technique to persuade him to love her, and then, shortly thereafter, make love to her, so all the virtual checkboxes on her virtual research questionnaire could be fully checked, and so she could then kill him and get back to more pressing business.

But as he looked into those unblinking green eyes, he still felt compelled to tell the truth. "It was... yes, there was something in that moment. She looked so beautiful, so dazzling in that yellow dress. Like a shining star. And she was there, standing there for who knows how long, so obediently, so earnestly... all out of love for me."

Pam looked at him. "So you fell in love with her... because she fell in love with you." She paused. "I

kockk

."

********

"1018."

"1012."

That was not how they referred to themselves, of course. But the conceptual label they addressed each other as could not be expressed in mere words. She was the 1018th entity to be created within

Us

; and he was the 1012th.

"You still have not completed your research of the finiterals."

"No," said Pam.

"What is there to learn?"

"I wish to study this concept of love further," said Pam.

"Love?" said 1012. "Are you still stuck on that?"

"As I said, it is somewhat like the affiliation we feel within

Us

," said Pam. "But it is much stronger for them. It has much more meaning. For some of them, it defines their existence."

"Why should we care what defines their existence?" 1012 asked.

"I was created as a research and diagnostic tool, to help us better reach

Tisson Crae

when constructing planets and stars and galaxies. I was created to better determine exactly what

Tisson Crae

meant in those contexts," said Pam. "Over the millennia since I was created, I have found that an understanding of how the smallest particles worked gave me an understanding of how to reach

Tisson Crae

in larger astronomical bodies. The interaction of hydrogen and helium. The porous nature of gaseous matter. The subtle reflection of mass and energy in the undertow dimensions. All very small things, all very subtle things, but they contributed greatly to my understanding of

Tisson Crae

."

"But these finiterals have nothing to do with the construction of galaxies," said 1012.

She raised a slender finger. "You are mistaken. I have increasingly become convinced that part of making planets with

Tisson Crae

is making planets with life. I am exploring whether the existence of this kind of finiteral can help make planets closer to

Tisson Crae

."

"These little beings? Contributing to

Tisson Crae

?"

"You do not see it, because it is not your function. You are an expediter. I respect that. If research tools such as myself were allowed to ruminate endlessly, there would be no progress. But now is not yet the time for expedition," said Pam.

"What does it matter, seeing as this galaxy will soon never exist, never even have existed?" 1012 asked.

"That has not been decided yet," said Pam sternly. "

We

are still considering whether to erase the creation of this galaxy, and all life in it."

1012 persisted. "What is the point of continuing this research if the galaxy, and this particular class of finiteral, will simply be erased?"

"And so you may ask, what is the point of accompanying you and resuming my duties, when everything we have ever done may come unwound?" said Pam. She smiled at him. "The argument works both ways. Give me the proper time, and when I am done, I will return to the work."

1012 nodded, but looked distinctly dissatisfied.

********

They were walking around, in open space, watching a galaxy being born, in fast motion.

"How... how do we exist here?" Taylor asked, as he watched the rapidly expanding galactic cloud. "I don't feel cold. I don't feel hot. I can breathe. And yet it feels like we are simply floating in space." He took a few steps. "But I'm not even floating. In the year 500,000,000 people moved around in bubble ships, but I don't see a bubble or anything separating us from outer space."

"We are in a sublayer, one which is adjacent to what you call the universe as you know it," said Pam. "It is simple to select a sublayer which is compatible with your needs."

Pam was showing Taylor slices of the universe.

She showed him stars. Yellow stars. White stars. Red dwarf stars. Even purple stars, and blue stars, the likes of which Taylor had never seen.

Pam showed him nebulas, bright green and pink and yellow and brown, and colors he hadn't even imagined existed. One nebula, of some kind of shiny, reflective silver color, seemed to stretch out with two giant arms. Another was bright electrum blue, but kept shifting in color even as Taylor watched, from light to medium to dark blue. It looked like a giant angry fist. In a third, he could see a green cloud expanding inside a brown cloud expanding inside of a yellow cloud. The interactions of the colors were

brilliant

.

Pam showed him planets. Small, hot planets bubbling with liquid metal. Large gas giants with every color of the rainbow. Planets with horizontal and vertical rings, which intersected with brilliant beauty. Planets that were hot balls of gases, that hadn't yet had time to cool down. There were even planets whose shape and composition he couldn't make out. They were fuzzy, round shapes, but Taylor simply had trouble seeing them.

"That is because you cannot

expra

them."

"

Expra

? You have used that word before. Is it like

screan

?"

"Somewhat," said Pam. "To

screan

is just the vaguest beginnings of understanding. To

Expra

is a more comprehensive understanding of the nature of the universe, using means you unfortunately do not possess. But even to

expra

is often just to scratch the surface of things. One may

expra

a nova but not

trista

it."

"

Trista

?"

"To fully understand how it functions," said Pam. "And even if one

expra

and

trista

s, one may not

Shursta

."

"

Shursta

?"

Pam looked pained. "It is hard to find the right words. It is somewhat akin to... appreciating the beauty of it, the galactic artistry... but much more. The most important thing, however, is

Tisson Crae

. I know you will want to know what that means, so let me consider." She took a deep breath. "It means... perhaps you could understand it as the rightness of the universe."

"The rightness?"

"How the universe should be. How close to perfection it is."

"Perfection?" said Taylor. "How can there be an objective standard of perfection for the construction of the universe?"

"There just is. You simply do not have the senses to understand," said Pam. She probed his mind. "Think of the universe as an old fashioned timepiece. One with what you call gears, or moving parts, which interact with each other. You see a planet, or a sun, or a solar system, or a galaxy, or a constellation, or a nebula, and you think these things are all separate from each other. But they are not. They are intensely interconnected."

"How so? You mean gravity?"

Pam shook her head. "Gravity, yes, but that is only a tiny piece of what I am referring to."

"What are you referring to?"

Pam looked distressed. In that moment she looked so human! Taylor resisted the urge to hug her.

"Let us try something," she said.

Suddenly, the view changed. They were looking at stars and planets, except they looked different. The stars had glowing halos around them. So did the planets, though their glowing halos were different colors. The glowing halos left a trail from each planet, connecting to the other planets and even the stars.

"What am I looking at?" Taylor asked. "Does that represent gravitational fields?"

"No," said Pam. "It is a different kind of force. We are viewing one of the many levels of astronomical bodies."

"Levels?"

"You think of planets as simply matter. Solid, gaseous, or whatever," said Pam. "There is more to them than that. They have form and shape and meaning in other dimensions."

"How many other dimensions?"

"An infinite number. On these other dimensions, these planets and suns have completely different properties. I don't even have the words to describe what you are seeing. It is not matter, not energy, but other things you have no words for."

Taylor watched the streams from the halos moving to and from each planet.

"My point is that the universe is much more than a collection of stars and planets. What you perceive as your reality is simply one stop along an infinite layer of dimensions, and many of these dimensions have interconnectivity. A planet may be a gas giant in your dimension, but in other dimensions it may be composed of very different materials, materials other than matter or energy that you have not even developed concepts for," said Pam. "The materials in different dimensions have interrelationships with each other. These interrelationships can be balanced in other dimensions, or unbalanced."

The image changed, and now, instead of halos covering each planet, Taylor saw lines, half fading in and fading out, going from planet to planet. And he heard something too. It sounded like... music, but not music from any instrument he had ever heard.

And then, as he watched the lines which were half there and half not, and heard the galactic orchestra play its tune, he suddenly realized the truth of it. Pam was right. There was an order to the universe. There was a state of perfection. What perfection was, and how to achieve it, could take millions of years to discover and comprehend... but it was achievable.

In an instant, Taylor not only discovered the true nature of the universe, but he gained an intimate understanding of Pam's people, and how, unlike the United, they had found their own reason for being.

"I understand," he said, looking at her, as lines of lights continued to zap by planets. "I can barely understand anything, but... I understand it... just a bit."

And Taylor looked at Pam, and he knew what she wanted, and she came over, as they floated in outer space, and she gently took his face in her hands, and gave him a passionate kiss.