CH. 018

The impenetrable blackness of John's sleep began to brighten, as his unconscious mind realised with some trepidation that he was experiencing another dream. The swirling ethereal eddies of the dream world began to coalesce into a distinctive form and then abruptly they snapped into sharp focus.

John was bestride a world, vast numbers of subjugated women kneeling at his feet in worship. Scattered around him were the husks of minions he had used up and cast aside, casually discarded when they were no longer useful for his schemes.

A sinister lurking presence gloated in the ether, applauding John as he seized his birthright. The stygian abomination suddenly paused, its smug demeanour dissipating as it stared at him, unseen eyes boring into his consciousness and causing John to writhe in terror.

The malignant presence seemed to scrutinise the scene around him closely and John could sense it's revulsion. He looked down and saw that instead of the vast legions of women, there were four. Rather than eviscerated husks, the women were simply sleeping, serene contentment on their faces.

Dark tendrils formed out of the unending darkness, coiling and undulating with sickening and twisted purpose. John stared through fearful eyes and saw a multitude of barbed hooks topping each writhing cord of blackness as they approached him.

John thought all hope lost when suddenly a faint nimbus of light began to pool at his feet, slowly enveloping him in it's comforting effervescence.

The abyssal tendrils struck and John flinched against their terrible intent, the gleaming ebony hooks slashing at him with a hungry desire to feast upon his flesh. They were suddenly brought up short, clawing in vain against the soft glow that swathed him. The shadowy presence roared with impotent rage and then in an instant John was snapped back into wakefulness.

"Ahhh! Fuck me!" He blurted, his heart racing and his breathing laboured as he sat bolt upright.

Desperate to regain a sense of order against the chaos of the dream, he rushed to adopt a meditative pose and took a long deep breath into his hammering chest. He gradually released it slowly, gathering his focus and centring himself. Repeating this twice more and he felt he was back in control, the terrors of the dream world now seeming insubstantial and no longer a concern.

John opened his eyes and looked about him, seeing the four girls snuggled up on the bed. He smiled contentedly when he recalled the events of the previous evening, proud that he had been able to satisfy each of the lovely young women. He looked over at Jade, her dark green skin rippling with rings of soft verdant light, as they spread out over her body. Jade had adopted an almost identical body shape to Alyssa, youthful, lithe and athletic. Jade was beautiful in her own way; her dainty features seemed both cute and innocent, rather than elegant and seductive. Although she was certainly well over three centuries old, John couldn't help but think of her as a young woman, like the other teenagers surrounding him.

He settled back on the bed and tucked his arms under the girls, his warm presence causing them to burrow in closer to him with blissful sighs. Feeling at peace and no longer worried about the otherworldly interruption to his night's rest, he drifted off to sleep once again.

The next morning everyone began to gradually awaken, until all five of them were happily snuggled up together under the covers. John looked down to see four beautiful sets of eyes looking up at him and once again he felt lucky to be alive.

"Good morning ladies!" he said cheerfully, to a chorus of good mornings in return.

"Calara and I had a really interesting discussion yesterday and now I have you all here, with no interruptions for once, I thought it would be a good chance to discuss things." he said reasonably.

The girls all looked intrigued, throwing off the covers so they could sit up in a semicircle in front of him.

"How are you feeling this morning Jade?" He asked, with concern.

He looked at the dark green girl and saw her skin catching the light in places, sparkling with a dull lustre. He saw that her stomach had returned to its previous svelte form and except for the viridian swirls that highlighted her luscious curves, the strange pulsing circles had disappeared.

"This one feels wonderful master!" She said cheerfully.

"Do you remember what happened with your stomach yesterday?" he asked curiously.

"Yes master, Jade remembers swallowing your delicious seed." she said enthusiastically.

"How about anything else, the rippling circles on your body maybe?" John asked her.

"No master, this one would have remembered something like that." Jade said with certainty.

"Would you mind swallowing my cum again this morning please?" he asked her politely. "I'd like to try a little experiment." he said mysteriously.

"Of course master!" She said, clapping her hands together excitedly.

Jade's eyes sparkled with delight and she moved to kneel in front of him. She curled one of her hands under his length and then brought his growing erection to her lips, kissing his head lovingly before she sank down, enveloping him in her mouth.

"That's the most roundabout way of asking for a blowjob I've ever heard!" Alyssa said with a laugh.

The other girls joined her good spiritedly laughter and then leaned forward to stroke Jade's exotic body, causing her to purr in delight, the sound muffled by John's cock sinking into her throat. John relaxed, enjoying the wonderful sensations rippling up and down his length.

"So what's this experiment John?" Sparks asked curiously.

John ran his hand's through Jade's hair, feeling the silky softness and letting the black strands slip through his fingers, the light picking up the hint of green in her lustrous locks. He smiled contentedly and then looked at Sparks.

"Sorry honey, I got a bit distracted." he said, sighing happily as Jade bobbed worshipfully in his lap. "Do you remember how you used to drift into a daze the first few times you went down on me?" He asked her.

"Yeah I remember." Sparks replied. "On the third time I think it was, I shrugged off this feeling of sleepiness and then found your monster cock shoved down my throat!" She said, laughing.

John looked towards Calara.

"It was about the third or fourth one, I can't really recall." she said, her head tilted to the side as she tried to remember. "I spent a lot of time on my knees for a couple of weeks!" she said with a grin on her lovely olive skinned face.

"It was during my fourth time" Alyssa said, smiling at him fondly.

"Oh I see!" Sparks said, suddenly understanding. "This will be third time you've filled up Jade and you're hoping she will snap out of it the same way?" The redhead asked him.

"Well she seems to have been a bit more resilient to the effects. She didn't go into a daze for one thing, but we'll see." he replied.

John looked down at the beautiful green hued Alien, who was lovingly stroking his cock in and out of her mouth and throat, her tongue doing extraordinary things as it danced along his length.

"Sorry Jade for talking above you like this." John said apologetically, as he moved her curtain of hair to the side so that he could look into her sparkling emerald eyes.

Jade's eyes twinkled up at him happily, the corners of her widely stretched mouth turning up into a smile and John instinctively knew he was forgiven. The look in her eyes turned hungry and she stared up at him unblinking, as she increased the pace with the tight grip of her throat. John stared right back, his hips moving gently as he felt the urge to come rising in his balls. Finally he couldn't hold back any longer and his quad clenched as they began to shoot their load into Jade's waiting stomach. Jade's eyes still remained unblinking, but the vertical irises in her cat-like eyes flared as she felt him pumping his cum into her and her eyelids lowered, growing heavy with lust. John finished riding the rush of his protracted climax and felt light headed after such extreme sensations, before Jade relented the suction and let him slip from her mouth.

"Master is so good to Jade." She sighed contentedly.

"Oh!" she gasped cutely as she sat up and noticed the concentric rings of light pulsing outwards from her hugely swollen belly.

"This has never happened to Jade before master!" she exclaimed with shocked surprise.

She seemed fascinated by the ethereal viridian lines that glowed mysteriously as they travelled over her body. She held out her arm and watched one of the ripples of light travel down the full length and up to her fingertips, shivering as it completed its journey.

"Are you ok Jade?" John asked with concern.

"This one knew master was potent, but this is beyond Jade's wildest dreams!" she said excitedly.

"Do you know what's happening to you?" Calara asked, moving in close and stroking the green skinned girl's stomach comfortingly.

"This one feels master's power... Jade feels... stronger." The Nymph said, struggling to for words as a shiver ran down her spine.

Jade ran her tongue over her lips sensually, tasting the cum that John had brushed on them as he had pulled back from her body.

"Oh!" the green skinned girl gasped as she remembered what she had discovered the previous night.

"Master!" She blurted out. "Jade has wonderful news!" she said excitedly.

"Go ahead Jade, what's up?" John said, intrigued.

"Master and Jade are genetically compatible! Master may breed with this one if he desires!" She said ecstatically.

"But I thought..." John mumbled, before shaking his head. "I thought Nymphs weren't compatible with humans?"

"Master is definitely not human." Jade said with absolute conviction.

"Do you know what I am then?" John asked, hope suddenly burning brightly in his chest that the green skinned girl might somehow hold the answers to his decades long question.

"No, but Master feels... familiar." Jade replied haltingly.

The other three girls remained spellbound by this entire interaction between John and the strange alien girl. Alyssa suddenly thought of something.

"Jade, are there many species that Nymphs are able to breed with?" she asked tentatively.

"No Alyssa, there are none." She said with finality.

A puzzled look crossed the beautiful blonde's face. "You're entire species is female though right? How do Nymphs breed normally?" she asked curiously.

"Nymphs do not." Jade replied solemnly.

"Wait, what?" Sparks cut in. "If your species can't breed, how did all the Nymphs appear on..." she stopped, struggling to remember the name.

"Lenarra." Calara supplied helpfully.

"That's it, thanks!" The redhead said appreciatively to Calara. "How did all the Nymphs appear on Lenarra if you can't even breed with each other?" Sparks asked the dark hued girl, confused.

"This one is sorry Sparks, it happened too long ago for Jade to remember." The nymph replied, spreading her hands helplessly.

"Do you know how old you are exactly?" Calara asked gently.

"This one does not know." Jade replied apologetically.

She turned back to face John and looked at him with deep longing in her eyes. "Would master wish to breed with this one?" she asked, her voice trembling and filled with hope.

John looked startled at the blunt question. His eyes darted to Calara and Alyssa who were both gazing at him with doe eyed looks on their faces and he recalled the promise he had made to them weeks before. He glanced at Sparks and was shocked to see the same expression on her face too.

He turned his focus back to Jade who waited patiently for his answer. He instinctively knew that if he refused, it would crush the guileless young alien woman, but he had only met her yesterday!

Reading the conundrum burning in his mind, Alyssa decided to intercede.

"John's already said that he'd like to have a baby with Calara and I, but we have to wait until he's ready. Perhaps when that time comes, you could ask him again?" she suggested gently.

"Please accept this one's apologies Alyssa. Jade was so excited at the news, this one forgot that he already had beautiful mates." She said with a bowed head.

"There's nothing to apologise for Jade." Alyssa said with a friendly smile and moved to wrap the girl in a tender embrace.

Calara moved forward to hug the green skinned girl too and Jade relaxed when she saw the Latina's reassuring smile.

"Wait a minute!" Sparks blurted. "John agreed to knock both of you up?! When did that happen?" She asked, bewildered.

John flashed Alyssa an annoyed look and she shrugged at him helplessly. He suddenly realised that Alyssa had done the best thing she could to help him out of a tight spot. He did really like Jade, but he barely knew her!

*Sorry honey, you handled that well* he apologised.

"It happened before you came on board Sparks." Calara said to the redhead.

"I was going to speak to you about it, but John asked me not to." Alyssa said. "He was worried that you had enough to deal with at the time." she said, smiling fondly at her man.

Sparks looked them in turn, realising that they were only acting with her best interests at heart and she smiled at them all warmly.

"Let's discuss this later." John said, throwing a pointed glace in Jade's direction.

The girls all nodded their agreement.

"Ok now all that's out the way, let me get back to what I wanted to talk to you all about in the first place!" John said, smiling at just how much they had been sidetracked.

"Calara and I had a long chat yesterday and we realised something interesting. Do you want to explain honey?" He asked the Latina.

Calara nodded eagerly and then turned to face Alyssa and Sparks. Jade had curled up on her side, stroking her belly full of John's cum and looking up at him adoringly, as glowing bands of light pulsed around her body.

"Firstly, I just want to say thank you so much for putting your lives in danger against the pirates, just to give me a sense of closure!" The brunette said, still reeling from how much her lovers had been willing to sacrifice for her emotional wellbeing.

Alyssa and Sparks moved to embrace the overwhelmed Latina.

"We'd do anything for you." Alyssa said lovingly.

"Sisters do that." Sparks said vehemently, hugging her tightly.

Calara gulped down the lump in her throat, her eyes welling with emotion, as the three teenagers hugged each other fiercely.

Sensing that the lovely brunette was lost for words for the moment, John waited for them to pull apart from their hug and then continued the discussion for her.

"Calara and I were talking and she noticed something that we've all pretty much missed. We've been so focused on all the wonderful physical changes you've been going through, we'd missed that you've been going through mental changes too" he said, raising the subject tentatively.

"What do you mean?" Sparks asked curiously.

"Well Calara noticed that she's become much brighter and more perceptive than ever before. You also can't have failed to notice her uncannily accurate shooting against the pirates and the Kirrix?" John asked, wondering just how much the other girls had picked up on.

"Yeah, she's a hell of a good shot." Alyssa conceded. "I think I only saw her miss a handful of times in hours of combat!"

"No-one's that good." Calara stated firmly.

"So what are you saying exactly? You've been turned into some kind of super accurate, tactical genius?" Sparks said, her eyebrows furrowed at how ludicrous it sounded.

"Well I wouldn't go that far, but I've never heard of anyone maintaining this kind of hit percentage." Calara explained. "At the very least, my spatial awareness and reflexes have been greatly enhanced. Also, the way I was able to track down the pirate base would take a team of analysts weeks to discover."

"And you did it on your own in about a week." Sparks said, nodding her understanding.

"Oh! Oh! What about Alyssa and turning into a ship's Navigator practically overnight!" the redhead blurted excitedly.

"Or how about the way you hacked your way through military grade encryption like it was nothing?" John said to Sparks gently.

The redhead looked at him and her eyes suddenly widened with shock.

"You're right!" she gasped excitedly. "I was mainly interested in mechanical engineering back on Karron, but I played around with hacking for a while. I started looking into it again the last few days, what with all the computer systems I'm dealing with now." Sparks admitted freely.

"Now that you mention it, I've felt clearer, less distracted." She had a look of wonder on her beautiful face as she recalled just how much she had studied and absorbed since she'd arrived on the Invictus.

"There's one more thing" John said, looking at Calara and Sparks intently.

"Honey, do you want to tell them?" he asked Alyssa.

The beautiful blonde nodded her head in agreement.

"You know how much I love you both right?" Alyssa said to the two girls earnestly.

They both looked at her and nodded, smiling at her warmly.

"Well I can feel how much you love me back." Alyssa explained to them both carefully.

"Ah Alyssa, you're so sweet!" Sparks said and gave her old friend a hug.

"No I really mean it!" Alyssa insisted. "I can sense your emotions." she admitted.

Calara looked amazed, but considering her own mental enhancements she had discussed with John, this wasn't too big a jump for her to take.

"You're kidding right?" Sparks scoffed, falling at the first hurdle.

"It's not that crazy Sparks, there's a few alien species with Psychic abilities." Calara said helpfully.

"And she can read my mind like a book." John interjected with a wry smile.

"Why don't you test me?" Alyssa said, smiling at her friend indulgently.

"Ok then, I will!" Sparks said, accepting the challenge. "Go in the bathroom and shut the door. I'll tell John a series of numbers and then just come back in and repeat them."

"You're the boss!" Alyssa said, leaning in to give the redhead a kiss before getting up to go into the bathroom.

Calara got up and went with her, the pair of them gliding gracefully into the bathroom. "I'll check there's no peeking!" she said to Sparks, smiling reassuringly.

As soon as Alyssa had shut the door, Sparks moved up to John's side and began to whisper a series of numbers into his ear. As soon as she was done, Calara opened the door without being prompted.

"She told me you were done." Calara said, looking at Alyssa warily, her previous composure shaken slightly when confronted with the reality of psychic powers.

The beautiful blonde swept back into the room, her long athletic legs leading the way.

"17, 93, 84, 127, 16, 300..." She said, reeling off the numbers unfalteringly.

"And... 1,265,389!" She said, frowning at the redhead chastisingly.

"Wow!!" Sparks gasped in amazement. "That's fucking awesome!" She said, grinning at Alyssa.

Alyssa grinned back and breathed a sigh of relief, overjoyed that her friend was now accepting her new gift so readily.

"Do you think we'll become Psychic too?" Sparks asked excitedly, fascinated to know what it would be liked to read John's mind.

Alyssa threw a glance towards John, who recalled their earlier conversation. He shrugged having no new answers.

"I don't know Sparks, but I suspect not." Alyssa said gently.

"Oh, that's a shame." The redhead said in disappointment.

"What makes you so sure?" Calara asked curiously.

"Everything that's happened to all of us so far hasn't happened at random. It's as though there's a hidden set of rules that are guiding everything that happens to us." Alyssa explained her reasoning.

John let the exquisite young woman continue, but her words echoed in his mind, resonating with what felt like an undeniable truth.

"What do you mean?" Calara asked.

"Well the 14 hours to awaken after the first time John fills up her belly..." Alyssa said, counting off with her fingers.

"Shrugging off the memory loss after absorbing enough of his cum... " another finger counted off.

"The physical changes..." a third finger.

"The healing..." a fourth.

"Being unaware of the changes until they're pointed out to us..." her hand lay unfurled before them.

"The transformation we've each gone through has all followed the same pattern." she said.

"Except you have psychic powers!" Sparks said.

"Yes, and we don't . Well at least I don't!" Calara said, smiling at the redhead.

"Yeah me neither." Sparks said dejectedly, confirming what they already guessed.

"Jade has psychic ability, but I think its limited to her sensing what form a new master wishes her to take." Alyssa said, looking at the green hued girl.

"Am I right Jade?" she asked the exotic alien curiously.

"Yes Alyssa. Sadly, master's thoughts are a mystery to Jade." She sighed sadly. "To be able to hear master's thoughts must be wonderful!" she said wistfully.

Alyssa smiled fondly at John, unable to deny just how much she enjoyed his constant presence in her mind.

"So why you then?" Calara said curiously. "As far as I'm aware, there's no record of humans having Psychic powers before."

Alyssa shrugged helplessly. "I've no idea why, sorry."

They all sat quietly for a few moments, processing what they had just discussed. Suddenly Alyssa looked across at John, her eyes narrowed perceptively.

"You've changed as well John." she said with certainty.

"What? Me? No, I'm just the same as I've always been." John said, smiling at them all happily.

Alyssa shook her head, batting aside his denial.

"Some of the changes have been subtle, but they are definitely there. When I first met you, you were obsessed with cleanliness and I spent days with you scrubbing the Fool's Gold. Now things like the mess in the Hangar bay don't trouble you at all." she said astutely.

"We have the cleaning robots..." he said defensively.

"It's not the same, John." the beautiful blonde girl replied, tapping the side of her head pointedly. "I know." she said with finality.

"Ok I'm not as obsessed with cleaning as I used to be," John admitted, "but that's not a big deal."

"The cyborg Pirate Captain." Alyssa said in a tone that challenged him to counter that argument.

John was about to object but his words faltered as he recalled the events on the Calypso.

"What happened?" Sparks asked, burning with curiosity.

"Do you remember when we came back from the Calypso and John was black and blue with bruises?" Alyssa asked the redhead.

Sparks nodded, recalling the punishment to John's body.

"That beast was huge, easily 400lbs of him, his chest and right arm replaced by massive metal parts." Alyssa explained.

Calara gasped in shock. "That was the cyborg that whipped me on that freighter!" she exclaimed, remembering the demented pirate captain that had flogged her mercilessly.

"If it's any consolation, he died horribly." Alyssa said, with a macabre smile.

"John literally ripped him apart with his bare hands." She said, still amazed by the events she had witnessed. "He tore through steel like it was tissue paper." Alyssa whispered in awe.

John flushed with embarrassment with the looks the girls were giving him. There was no fear, just appreciation, reverence and wonder.

"It must have just been some kind of crazy adrenalin rush or something!" he claimed defensively.

"I was trying to save your life at the time, so I had a lot of motivation." he said to Alyssa, smiling at her disarmingly.

"Well whatever happened, you did save my life. So thanks again." Alyssa said coming over to him and kissing him tenderly.

John returned her loving kisses, holding her slender warm body in his arms as she showed him her gratitude with her full soft lips, brushing gently against his own. Finally breaking apart, they sighed happily and turned back to the others.

"So that's it. I think we're all caught up unless anyone else has any startling revelations?" John said, smiling at each of his girls in turn.

They shook their heads, with happy smiles on their faces as they looked back at him. He finally turned to Alyssa who breathed a big sigh of relief.

"I feel..." she began, searching for the right words.

"Unburdened, is probably the best way to describe it." She said, relaxing. "Please lets share anything new with the group as soon as anything like this crops up." she asked everyone reasonably.

Everyone nodded their heads in agreement, even Jade, who had struggled to follow most of the conversation, but was happy to just be basking in John's presence.

"Oh there is one thing." Sparks said haltingly. "I'm thinking about changing my name." she said shyly.

"Really Sparks why's that?" Alyssa asked curiously, having known the girl as 'Sparks' for years.

"The name 'Sparks' suited a geeky, pale skinned, spiky haired waif of a girl." Sparks elaborated.

She spread her arms as if showing herself to them in her delectable entirety.

"I don't think it suits me any more." she said, ruefully.

"We'll call you whatever you like." John said reassuringly. "We'll love you just the same!" he said smiling affectionately.

Sparks grinned back at them, Alyssa and Calara nodding their heads in agreement.

"Ok, I'll think it over and let you know." She said, smiling self consciously.

"Alright then. Let's go and grab some breakfast." John suggested enthusiastically. "I don't know about you girls, but I'm famished!" he said, grinning.

The girls smiled at him and nodded their agreement. They all dressed quickly and then retired to the officers lounge to begin their day.

After breakfast was done, they went their separate ways, with promises to gather again for lunch. Sparks went up to the bridge, to use the computers up there to browse the Engineer's Almanac and prepare her shopping list for the workshop. She still found it difficult to believe that she was being given carte blanche to spend whatever she liked, but she knew John would never lie to her about something like that, so she grew more and more excited as she planned out all her purchases.

Alyssa persuaded Calara to come with her to the firing range, so that the brunette could polish up her skills with firearms. Calara had received basic firearms familiarity training while at the Terran Federation Academy, but having been groomed for a role as bridge crew, handguns were never something she had expressed much interest in.

Finally John went to the gym to go and swim some lengths in the swimming pool. After all the long days of action and excitement recently, he was looking forward to just being able to relax and enjoy himself. Jade asked if she could accompany him and he agreed, happy to have some company.

The green hued girl showed no fear as she sat by the edge of the pool and John glided back and forth, his body moving rapidly through the water with powerful strokes of his arms. Jade admired his physical form and felt giddy with happiness at the unexpected turn for the better her life had suddenly taken so recently. She glanced down at her rounded stomach, seeing the ethereal green lines radiating outwards and spreading over her body, leaving her quivering with excitement.

John spent a few hours really trying to push his body to the limit, as he surged his way through the water. Finally getting tired, he reached the shallow end and looked up at Jade who was watching him attentively. He noticed that her stomach had returned to its normal slim shape and she sat on the edge of the pool looking lithe and athletic.

"Can you swim Jade?" he asked her curiously.

"This one is not sure master. Jade seems to have spent most of her time in various bedrooms." she said, honestly.

John felt sad for the young woman, or not so young when he remembered how old she actually was. He just couldn't think of the naive, youthful seeming girl that way though.

"Come and join me and we'll soon find out!" he said, smiling at her warmly.

A lovely grin spread across the girl's face, her white teeth sparking brightly in contrast to the mysterious lustre of her dark green lips. She slipped smoothly into the shallow water with confidence and glided over towards him, smiling happily.

John opened his arms and she wrapped herself around him, sighing with contentment.

"Hello." he said, smiling at her and enjoying the feel of her body as she brushed against him, before leaning in to give her a kiss.

Jade kissed him back hungrily, eager to feel his touch against her. Reluctantly John pulled away from the enthusiastic Nymph, much to the protestations of his cock, which had risen eagerly to attention.

"You aren't going to be able to do much swimming if we keep this up." John said to her playfully.

"This one doesn't mind. Jade would love to be joined with master!" the green girl purred excitedly.

John paused a moment and looked down into her adoring eyes. "You said earlier that I could get you pregnant if I wanted to." he said cautiously.

Jade nodded her head, her emerald eyes flashing with excitement.

"Do we need to use some kind of precautions until then?" he asked warily.

"No master." Jade admitted reluctantly. "If master wishes it, this one will only conceive when master gives her permission to do so".

John looked down at her and smiled reassuringly, before running his fingers over her toned stomach possessively. The thought of this devoted young woman carrying his progeny in her verdant tummy was growing more and more appealing. He leaned down and gave her a gentle kiss on the lips, which caused her to swoon happily.

Reluctantly he pulled away from her a small distance.

"Let's see about the swimming first, then we can have some fun later." he promised.

Jade nodded cutely, her face lighting up at the prospect.

"Do you want to just try to swim first?" he asked tentatively. "I know you said you aren't sure, but if you do know how, then we'll find out pretty quickly."

Jade smiled her agreement and then eased forward into the water, comfortably keeping herself afloat with a gentle relaxed breaststroke.

"I guess that answers that question!" John said, delighted.

"Do you know any other swimming styles?" he asked the alien woman curiously.

"Would master mind demonstrating them? This one will attempt to copy." Jade requested.

"Of course not honey!" John said, grinning.

He started off with a deliberately slow freestyle stroke, which he'd used during his swimming session that morning. Jade watched him closely, her cat-like eyes watching the movements of his body closely, before she copied him with clean athletic finesse. John applauded her, impressed by how quickly she had picked it up and when she returned to his end of the pool she beamed up at him, basking in his obvious approval.

"Can you go a bit faster though?" he said, throwing down the gauntlet as he grinned at her playfully.

Jade grinned up at him and nodded eagerly. They started out at the same time, with John getting faster and Jade keeping pace. He performed a racing turn and she copied it fluidly, matching him stroke for stroke.

"Let's see if she can keep up with this!" he thought to himself excitedly, enjoying the physical exertion.

John pushed himself faster, going as fast as he was able to and was astounded that Jade was able to keep up with him. Suddenly, delicate aquamarine coloured fins rippled into place on her arms and legs and she shot ahead of him, cutting through the water like a knife. Jade reached the end of the length, flipped to kick off the end of the pool and then submerged completely, her body undulating as she scythed through the water like some kind of lithe, athletic fish. John stopped open mouthed in shock as the girl flashed back and forth under the water in a green blur. She eventually surged out of the water, flipping in the air before diving back down, the surface of the pool barely making a ripple when she descended beneath its surface.

Jade swam up to him and appeared at his side, her firm breasts heaving on her chest with her excitement.

"I guess that's a yes then." John thought, grinning at her in amazement.

Jade laughed enchantingly, her laughter sounding completely free and unrestrained. It made John's heart lift just to hear the pure delight in the woman's voice.

"How were you able to do that?" he asked in wonder as he looked at the delicate fins on her arms.

Jade looked down at her body, her eyes widening in shock. "This one has no idea master!" she said in awe, lifting her arms to peer at the fins in amazement.

"I know you can change physical shape for a new master, but have you ever made changes to your body other than that?" he asked her curiously.

"No master, never..." Jade replied, before pausing as she remembered the previous evening. "Actually yes, this one's hand and tongue changed shape last night when assisting master with his mates."

"Can you make any changes to yourself at the moment?" He asked her curiously.

Jade concentrated on her arm, her eyebrows furrowing cutely. She looked up at him in amazement as the slender turquoise fin slowly merged back into her body. John nodded at her arm encouragingly and the girl looked back at the same spot and then focused hard, her eyes narrowing with the effort. The tip of the turquoise fin steadily reappeared, pushing out from her body until it matched its original size.

"Very impressive!" John praised her.

Jade was panting from the effort and she grinned up at him, delighted to have found a new way to please her master.

John offered her his hand and they climbed out of the pool, the swimming lesson over.

"Thank you for a fun morning." John said gratefully. "I really enjoyed spending time with you." he told her sincerely.

"Thank you master!" Jade said, looking up at him adoringly. "This one had a wonderful time."

They were about to head out of the gym when John noticed that the girl still had the elegant turquoise fins protruding from her forearms and legs. Jade noticed where he was looking and then smiled at him in thanks.

The green skinned girl took a deep breath and then closed her eyes and relaxed her breathing. Her chest rose and fell slowly as she calmed herself and John noticed the fins on her arms and legs receding, enveloped back into her body.

"May I have a look?" he asked, holding out his hand for her arm.

"Of course master!" Jade replied and presented her arm for his inspection.

John held her cool arm in his hand and looked closely at her dark green skin. Up close he could see lighter flecks on the surface that reflected the light and gave her skin its gentle sheen. He rotated her arm gently and carefully, but he could see no marks on her arm that would show where the fin had been. He took his hand and gently ran it along her flesh, feeling for any join but finding only perfect smoothness and causing her skin to quiver in the wake behind his fingertips.

"Master's touch feels so good." She sighed breathily.

"Would master like to have some fun now?" She asked hopefully, remembering his promise from earlier.

John smiled down at the beautiful girl and nodded eagerly. He took her hand and let her up to his room, Jade following at his side, giddy with excitement.

Alyssa was currently standing by Calara's side in the firing range as the Latina let off rounds at the distant targets. Alyssa had been pleased with the girl's progress so far and she had gone from being wary of the assault rifles to comfortably firing three round bursts down the lane. Listening in on John's thoughts as she normally did, she smiled affectionately as she eavesdropped on his conversation with Jade.

Truth be told, Alyssa was still scared of the pool and although she was trying really hard to conquer that fear, she worried that she would never be confident enough to really challenge John in the water. Knowing how much he enjoyed his swimming, she was delighted when Jade took to it, almost literally like a fish to water. She couldn't help but feel a little bit smug about her latest bit of recruitment in her role as Executive Officer.

Alyssa looked at the image of Jade in her mind and was surprised to see that the mosaic had changed slightly. The green skinned young woman was still depicted as kneeling at John's feet, looking up at him enraptured, but now her arms and legs had sprouted delicate looking aquamarine fins. Alyssa focused on the image of Jade's face and saw her expression had changed to one of pure unadulterated delight. Happy for the girl, Alyssa turned back to Calara to give her a few more pointers.

John had led Jade back up to his quarters and they were now lying on his bed, with Jade on her back and him lying to her side. She looked up at him adoringly and he felt a little daunted when faced with such unquestioning obedience and reverence. He had rescued the girl from captivity at the hands of the pirate lord and helped save her from the exploding heavy cruiser; but in John's opinion his other lovers all shared in the responsibility for that rescue, so it felt wrong for the alien girl to devote herself so completely at him. He sighed, realising that it was just the way that Nymph's were and he resolved to do his very best to make sure she had a wonderful time here with them on the ship.

He began to trace the lightly glowing curves that highlighted the girl's breasts, making her breath catch as her nipples hardened with arousal. John kissed Jade briefly on the lips, then moved away quickly, trailing kisses down her slender neck. He moved further down nibbling, licking and kissing her skin softly and gently causing excited little gasps from the Nymph. Taking an erect nipple in his mouth, he suckled it lovingly and watched the vertical slits of her irises expand as she grew more excited. John switched to the other nipple, leaving the first hard and pointed and he covered that breast with his hand, massaging her gently and feeling the erect little pebble brush against his palm.

He moved lower, kissing her stomach with light grazes of his lips and watched her skin turn to goose bumps as her sensitive flesh reacted to his playful teases. He repositioned himself on the bed so that he was hovering over her legs and Jade spread them for him unhesitatingly. John kissed and licked the velvety soft skin on the inside of her thighs, before moving directly between her legs to begin paying attention to her completely hairless pussy. His tongue darted out to each side of her lips, running the tip along the deliciously smooth skin as she writhed underneath him. He placed his strong hands on her thighs, holding her squirming body tightly in place and then began to lightly lap at the top of her pussy. He smiled to himself at the taste of her, it reminded him of mint, fresh and delicious to his palate.

"Oh master, that feels marvellous!" Jade moaned appreciatively and he felt her hands move down to run through his hair, her fingertips gently stroking his head.

Determined to make this one for the history books, John focused entirely on pleasuring the selfless young woman, concentrating entirely on making her feel good. For the next hour he worked the green skinned girl's body, licking and stroking at her responsive flesh and building her towards a crescendo of orgasms, each one more powerful than the last. Finally she begged for mercy and pleaded to him with outstretched arms to come up to join her.

"Master, Jade has never felt this much pleasure... ever." She whispered passionately between breaths, her chest heaving for breath.

"You're mine now." John said, smiling at her expression as she looked up at him with wonder. "I only want you to be happy and to experience pleasure." he said softly.

The girl looked up at him and a tear fell from her eyes and rolled gently down her cheek.

"Oh master..." She sighed rapturously.

John eased himself between her legs and carefully positioned the head of his cock at the entrance to her wet pussy. Jade's legs came up to either side of him, the toned muscles in her calves crossed over the small of his back as she raised her hips and enveloped his length inside her.

"Master fits inside this one so well." she moaned contentedly, as she effortlessly took his entire length inside her body in one long motion.

John felt her body ripple along his length as he pushed into her, marvelling at the different feel of fucking his first alien girl. Even though he was able to slide back and forth inside her slick pussy with ease, she was still incredibly tight and her body seemed to grip him and massage his length in strange and unusual ways he had not experienced before. Although Jade's skin was cooler to the touch than his other women, her pussy was slightly warmer and he enjoyed the contrast immensely.

Jade looked up at him with her emerald eyes, sensing his delight as he thrust back and forth inside her for the first time. She smiled up at him happily and John saw that her cat-like irises had expanded so widely that they seemed to almost completely touch the edges of her shimmering emerald eyes. He leaned down, resting his body against hers, her big breasts presenting a delightful yielding pillow for his chest.

Now only inches above her face, he moved to kiss her and she returned it passionately, her lips moving eagerly against his own. John stared into her eyes and she stared back at him unblinking, as he began to thrust harder and more deliberately inside her exotic body.

Jade nodded excitedly as she felt her master grow closer to orgasm, his powerful thrusts filling her body over and over again. She yearned for him to cum inside her, to feel his potent sperm inside her womb, even if it was just a teasing prelude to what she really hoped she could offer her master.

Finally John's muscles tensed and his taut quad trembled as he could hold off no longer and he began to send long shooting blasts of his cum inside the trembling girl beneath him. Jade's back arched powerfully, supporting his body above her, as he rode her responsive flesh and drove every last ounce of his cum into her sucking pussy. The girls dark green belly began to expand to house his mighty load and she groaned as she joined him in a crashing climax, waves of pleasure cascading over her.

Both spent, they collapsed on the bed and John carefully kept his weight off her, so that he wouldn't squash the enormous sphere of her stomach. He eased his length out of her pussy, her body feeling like it was kissing him goodbye as he slid gently out of her. Jade rolled to her side, her hands cupping her spunk bloated belly protectively and John moved behind her, sliding his arm under her head for her to use as a pillow. With his free hand he cupped her abdomen, feeling proud of having yet another conquest lying happily in his arms.

"This one has no words to describe how Jade feel's about you master." The Nymph said to him honestly.

John kissed her tenderly on the side of her face and wrapped her in a warm hug. Sighing with blissful contentment, Jade settled into those caring arms and feel asleep.

He lay there with her, basking in the afterglow and enjoying the feel of her phenomenal body against him. John lay a hand carefully against Jade's taut belly and stroked it possessively. His mind wandered and he imagined being surrounded by his girls, each of them with their stomach's hugely swollen with his offspring. He delighted in being able to have the right and privilege to caress each of them in the intimate way he was stroking Jade and he realised he wanted it as much as they did. They were too young though at the moment, he reminded himself, but it was something he definitely desired for the future.

Feeling contented, he dozed off, enjoying the feel of the lovely girl in his arms.

Everyone reconvened for a light lunch a few hours later and immediately noticed the pulsing green lights travelling around Jade's body, centred on the tight roundness of her swollen belly. Alyssa, Calara and Sparks all came up to kiss the girl, pleased to see how delighted she looked as they ran their hands over her lovingly.

After eating, they went their separate ways again, continuing from where they left off that morning. John decided to cook a big roast dinner for his crew that evening and had fun in the kitchen preparing everything. Jade stayed at his side, eager to help him in any way and he was pleased that they made a good team. The alien girl was a quick study and with her dextrous hands she made an ideal sous chef, helping him prepare the ingredients for the meal.

For her part, Jade had a fabulous time, enjoying the simple pleasures of cooking and preparing food, whilst being able to stay in lovely close proximity to her master.

In no time, the evening rolled around and Calara, Sparks and Alyssa assembled in the officer's lounge, excited to see what the pair of them had whipped up in the kitchen. Sunday roasts, even though it wasn't actually a Sunday, were a novelty for all the girls. However, experience with John's cooking made them eager to try everything he had prepared and in no time the delicious feast had disappeared.

John left the girls to the clean up and he moved to the sofas with a whiskey in hand, watching his women work swiftly and efficiently to make everything presentable again. They cleaned everything up and then assembled at the bar, while Calara played bartender pouring out drinks for each of the young women. He smiled at them affectionately as they all glided up to him, moving with a sinuous grace that bedevilled the eye. The girls all paused when they arrived at the sofa, not sure how to arrange themselves, then looked at each other and laughed.

"Let's do this chronologically." Sparks said selflessly.

Alyssa sat to John's right, with Calara on his left. Sparks moved in to sit next to Alyssa and tucked her legs up on to the sofa, so that she was leaning in against her old friend. Jade went to join Calara on the other side, but Alyssa held out her hand as she passed her by, halting her as she walked in front of John.

"I'd like to try something fun." Alyssa said, smiling playfully.

"Jade, would you like to have John fill your belly again?" she asked the green skilled girl, noting the nymphs flat dark skinned stomach and already knowing the answer.

"Oh yes Alyssa. If master's mates allowed it, Jade would love that very much."

"What do you think ladies?" She asked Calara and Sparks, who both nodded their approval with smiles on their faces.

"What do you think John?" Alyssa purred at him seductively. "Would you like to make the newest addition to the Invictus a happy girl?" she smiled at him impishly.

John grinned and unbuckled his belt.

Jade took her cue and in no time she was humming happily as her head bobbed between his legs. Relaxed and happy, John made no effort to hold back, knowing that Jade wanted his release as much as he did. He came hard and filled her awaiting stomach, rounding her waistline out nicely.

Alyssa stood up and offered Jade her seat next to John, before heading over to the door with a slinky walk, to flick off the lights. She walked back to them confidently and cuddled up behind Calara, as Jade's stomach began to ripple with an ethereal radiance, the concentric rings travelling around her body and sending spirals of light around the darkened officer's lounge. The five of them watched the stars, illuminated softly by the viridian glow rippling outwards from the dark green girl.

"This is so beautiful." Calara sighed happily, entranced by the enchanting light show.

"Well worth skipping desert for." Sparks grinned as she gently ran her hand over Jade's effervescent belly, momentarily disrupting the rings spiralling across the ceiling.

"Nice idea honey, thank you." John said to Alyssa, smiling at her fondly.

Jade just sighed a long deep sigh, marvelling that she had such good fortune to have met such amazing people.

They eventually headed back to John's quarters, the gentle illumination coming from Jade guiding their way until they reached the brightly lit corridor outside the lounge. They retired to bed and then drifted into dreamless, restful sleep.

The next day followed a similar pattern. Taking it in turns to provide relief for John, mealtimes together and the girls separating to pursue their current tasks. At dinner time that night Sparks presented John with a tentative list for equipment she had thought necessary, chewing her fingernail softly as she waited for his verdict.

"14 million credits." he whistled appreciatively.

"You did say to pick everything I could think of!" the redhead said defensively.

"Sure, that's fine." he said, handing the list back to her nonchalantly.

Sparks stared at him wide eyed, as he calmly agreed to an absolute fortune in top of the range equipment. It made her feel pretty bad about how she'd treated him back on Karron. Replacing her entire workshop there could have been done on a shoestring budget, costing no more than 15 to 20 thousand and even then, that was buying everything brand new, rather the reconditioned collection she had built up over 10 years.

"Why don't you place the order after dinner, then all the manufacturers can have everything in place when we arrive at Olympus." he suggested thoughtfully. "I'll come with you and order the retrofit for the loading ramp for your workshop too".

Sparks grinned back at him, hardly believing her luck.

Alyssa applauded her, smiling. "Not bad Sparks, you have me beat as a big spender." she grinned mischievously.

"I don't think any of us are going to beat your record though, are we handsome?" Alyssa said to John affectionately.

"Yeah it was an expensive trip to Olympus." he smiled back.

"Was that when you bought the Invictus?" Calara asked curiously and John nodded in reply.

"150 million credits!" Alyssa said impishly.

Sparks' mouth opened in shock at the astronomical sum of money.

"Worth every cent though." John said, grinning happily. "Gained me a hot redhead and a gorgeous nymph into the bargain!"

The girls all laughed along with him.

The next morning, Sparks was at a bit of a loose end, having now placed her order for all the new equipment for her workshop. She remembered the Kirrix dropship and their chitinous carapace armour that she'd been interested in, so decided to spend the last few days before they arrived at the port doing some investigation into the bizarre insectoid technology.

Alyssa took a now enthusiastic Calara back to the firing range for more training, waving goodbye as they walked away hand in hand. The blonde teenager sashayed impressively with the added counterweight John had pumped into her toned young belly only minutes before.

John and Jade went back to the gym again, where John enjoyed a great morning swimming lengths, while Jade cavorted around him scything through the water in her aquatic form. She seemed to be able to stay under the water for lengthy periods at a time and when she hadn't surfaced for a while, he began to grow worried. He stood up in the shallow end and looked about for her, feeling relieved when she streaked through the water up to him and surfaced with a big grin on her face.

"How are you staying under water for so long?" He asked her curiously.

"This one isn't sure master." The green skinned alien replied, looking puzzled. "Jade doesn't feel like she has been holding her breath for a long time."

John noticed slight movements on her neck and leaned in to have a closer look. Jade tilted her neck back and her head to the side trustingly.

"Oh wow!" John said in amazement. "You've grown gills!" He said with surprise.

Jade brought her hand up to the base of her neck and gently felt the horizontal slits that had been allowing her to breathe comfortably under water. She suddenly smiled at him alluringly.

"The other girls mentioned a hot tub to this one. Would master be so kind as to show it to Jade?" She asked sweetly.

"Of course honey, that sounds like a great idea!" John said enthusiastically.

They got out of the pool and walked over to the back of the gym. John turned on the hot tub and the burbling water sounded quite enticing to the green hued girl. John climbed in first and then offered his hand to Jade, as she gracefully sank into the water beside him. Rather than sitting on one of the benches beside him however, she moved into the middle of the tub and gently parted his legs with her hands.

John saw the hungry look she gave him with her sparkling emerald eyes, as she disappeared below the bubbling surface of the water. Seconds later he felt the hot warmth of her mouth covering him and then he groaned as she began to fellate him. Jade had changed techniques this time and instead of the typical way she normally went down on him, as though on a mission to stimulate him as much as possible, today was very different. She massaged him languidly with her throat, like a gentle relaxing caress, brushing against his cock in lots of places. Combined with the warm streams of air bubbling over his body in the hot tub, he found himself getting incredibly relaxed, practically melting into the tub.

After Jade had been under water for what seemed like forever, he brushed the bubbles on the surface aside to check to see if she was ok. Her eyes looked back at him from under the water and he could feel her mouth moving into a smile, her lips spread tightly around his girth. Relaxing back and marvelling at how useful her gills were, John sighed contentedly and let Jade bring him to a long, drawn out orgasm. He held her head tightly to his lap as he came, feeling her sucking on him lovingly as he emptied his quad into her stomach.

"That was incredible!" he said to her gratefully as the green skinned girl emerged slowly from the water, her rounded stomach throwing circles of light around the interior of the hot tub.

They kissed affectionately, before getting out of the tub and John got dressed quickly. John wanted to see how Sparks was getting on in the Hangar bay and they eventually found the redhead hip deep inside a maintenance panel on the Kirrix dropship. John knocked gently on the side of the ship, to let her know they had arrived.

"Oh! Hey, how's it going?" Sparks said happily as she carefully extracted herself out of the ship.

She had her long hair tied back in a pony tail, to avoid it getting snagged on the innards of the Kirrix vessel and she blew an errant strand of dark auburn hair out of her eyes, as she turned to look at them.

"You've been having a good time I see!" Sparks said good naturedly to Jade, noticing the viridian lines radiating out from her rounded belly.

Jade grinned at the redhead, her teeth gleaming in a wide smile as she nodded her head enthusiastically.

"Yeah, It's been a pretty awesome morning." John said, smiling happily. "How about you? Learnt anything interesting so far?" he said to his Chief Engineer.

"Yeah this ship is fascinating!" Sparks said excitedly. "I've never seen technology like it. I think they actually grow these panels before fitting the ship together!" she said in amazement.

She turned and pointed to where the Kirrix corpses had been and John saw that the bodies had been removed and there was a neat pile of body armour in their place.

"Those armoured carapaces are actually body armour suits. They aren't part of the Kirrix troopers." Sparks said. "It's a really clever design. The carapace armour splits down the side and tiny hooks latch it into place when you activate the right control."

"Is there anything you can adapt from them for our gear?" John asked curiously, always keen to look for any kind of edge in a fight.

"Mmm yes, definitely." Sparks agreed. "I'll need my workshop before I can start prototyping though."

"Excellent work Chief Engineer!" John said playfully.

"Thank you Commander!" Sparks said, throwing him a cheeky salute.

John leaned down to kiss her affectionately. "I'll see you tonight!" he told the adorable redhead with a twinkle in his eye.

Sparks grinned up at him and sighed happily.

The last couple of days flew past and before they knew it, they had jumped into the Alpha Centauri system and were at their final destination; the Olympus Shipyard, bastion of the Terran Federation. They all went up to the bridge to watch Alyssa bring the Invictus back to its birthplace. Everyone took their places and Jade sat at a free chair in a dimmed station near the back left of the room.

As they got closer to the titanic spaceport, a light flashed on Alyssa's console, indicating an incoming hail. She pushed a button to receive the communication.

"Incoming assault cruiser, please identify yourself and your business at Olympus." a military communications officer requested politely.

"Commander John Blake on the Invictus, requesting docking clearance at the shipyard for retrofitting." he replied confidently.

There followed a brief pause before the officer replied. "Please approach docking bay 11 Commander."

Already anticipating docking clearance at the shipyard, Alyssa had approached Olympus from the drydock side, so they were able to fly directly towards the station rather than circling it like last time.

Sparks watched the approaching shipyard with open mouthed amazement. The colossal example of human innovation in construction, sprawled out ahead of them for kilometres into the distance. There was a huge central hub, which was surrounded by long sections comprised of docking bays, spreading out like spokes of a wheel. Enormous turreted weapons adorned the top deck of the shipyard, the fearsome batteries powerful enough to threaten ships many times larger than their assault cruiser.

The Invictus prowled closer, staying under port speed at Alyssa's careful behest. They moved into the drydock and marvelled at the enormous craft assembled there. To their starboard side, a huge behemoth of a ship was under construction and as they passed along its 3000 metre long hull, they read the words "Thor's Hammer" in 20 metre high lettering near the bow of the ship.

"That's a dreadnought." John said to the girls quietly, not wanting to break the hushed silence of the bridge.

"They probably used the Tyrenium we brought last time to build those..." he said, pointing at two pairs of vast weapons on the topdeck of the dreadnought that promised unspeakable devastation.

"What are they?" Sparks whispered in awe.

"Singularity drivers." Calara said in a reverent voice.

Sparks shuddered and realised she didn't want to know what these terrifying weapons could do.

The Invictus moved on, passing by the area of the drydock used to repair damaged vessels. The destroyer that John and Alyssa had passed last time was gone, but in its place devastated ships told their own tale of how the war with the Kintark Empire was progressing. One Heavy cruiser they passed had been scoured by plasma burns, the terrible destructive power of the weapons charring huge welts across the flank of the ship. Another light carrier had been left a mangled wreck, the rear of the ship almost completely obliterated. Sparks wondered how they had even managed to bring the ship back to Olympus.

Finally docking bay 11 yawned open in front of them, more than big enough to house the 500 metre length of their assault cruiser with ease. Alyssa brought the Invictus in to land smoothly, following the guide path provided by the docking computer, as the Olympus Shipyard welcomed home her wayward daughter.

"Let's go and see if we can find Vice Admiral Harris." John said to the girls as he rose from his chair.

The young women of his crew left their chairs and moved to join him at the elevator. John glanced at Jade's delightfully nude form and raised an eyebrow.

"I think you could probably do with wearing something a little less revealing." he joked.

"I'm sure we can find you something nice!" Alyssa said happily as they went down to deck two. She held Jade's hand and led her off to her quarters to pick out something for her friend to wear.

John, Calara and Sparks waited for the two girls by the elevator.

Calara suddenly laughed out loud, causing the others to look at her in surprise.

"What?" John asked curiously.

"This will be the first time I've set foot outside the ship since I joined your crew!" Calara said in amusement.

John laughed along with her. "You shouldn't be so deadly with the Invictus, then I'd let you out more!" he said, grinning at her affectionately.

Calara smiled back at him happily.

After a relatively short wait, Alyssa and Jade strode back to join them. Alyssa was wearing her charcoal pencil skirt suit, while Jade was wearing black knee length boots, a form fitting black jumpsuit and a finely tailored red jacket.

"Wow! Very nice ladies!" John said, whistling appreciatively and the girls' eyes sparkled at his open appreciation of their efforts.

The group reconvened in the elevator and then headed to the airlock when they reached the lowest level.

"Be my guest." John said, smiling at Calara, as he remembered she hadn't left the ship yet.

The gorgeous young Latina walked up to the door and placed her hand on the DNA reader, grinning back at him. The green light flickered as it travelled across the panel and then flashed red when it scanned her hand.

"Unauthorised access." the computer said in a dispassionate voice.

Looking puzzled, Calara placed her other hand on the DNA reader. The green light swept across the panel, flashing red once again.

"Unauthorised access." the computer repeated stubbornly.

"I thought you added Calara to the list of personnel with security clearance for the airlock?" John asked Alyssa with surprise.

"I definitely did, as soon as she joined the crew!" Alyssa said, confused. "I did the same for Sparks and Jade as well!" she protested.

Calara stepped back and made room for Sparks to place her hand on the DNA reader.

"Unauthorised access." the computer repeated infuriatingly.

"Please try as well, would you Jade." John asked her politely.

"Of course master!" Jade smiled at him happily and strode up to the panel by the side of the airlock as Sparks moved out of the way. She placed her hand on the panel like the other girls before her.

"Unauthorised access." the computer repeated, sounding almost smug this time.

Alyssa and John shot each other a worried look.

"Is the ship malfunctioning?" Alyssa asked him with concern.

"I'm not sure, but this doesn't look good." John replied.

Alyssa walked up to the airlock and tentatively placed her hand on the panel. The green light flickered over the panel reading her DNA and then beeped softly as it recognised her. The airlock door spiralled open smoothly.

"What's going on?" Alyssa asked in confusion.

"We'll have to take a look at it later." John said, looking behind her at the figures gathered in the docking bay waiting for them. "It looks like we have a welcoming committee!"