A Very Schticky Thing To Do - 18. Chapter 18

The trip to Bazt was an adventure for Thabbt who never believed he’d ever have a chance to travel in a real spaceship. The only problem was the spaceship he was in was a ’xrsc transport, which like all things ’xrsc, existed in six dimensions, while the quarters where he and Zzppd spent most of their time were, for all intents and purposes, three dimensional and maintained a constant, current time. The rest of the ship travelled through the multiverse along pathways through the recondite dimensions and arrived in orbit around Bazt exactly two days before they left, though they did not know this nor were they told. The ’xrsc knew humans could not accept the fact that via recondite dimensional travel one often arrived before they left, but the intervening distance through space and time was so great you could never communicate this fact to your previous self.

Their quarters consisted of a common area furnished in the Bazt style with lots of soft carpets, billowy pillows and cushions, and low tables where refreshments could be enjoyed. There was an entertainment vid on one wall. Four doors opened off the common area. Two connected to bedrooms with a smaller common area between them. One door went to the bath and waste receptacle. The fourth door opened out onto a hallway where many species of humans travelled to the ship’s common areas where food was served, where they could socialize, and where they could amuse themselves with a variety of exercise equipment. The ’xrsc encouraged all human species to commingle in their social intercourse with the intent of brief trysts where genetic material might be exchanged and eventually nurtured to birth, thereby enabling the human genera to continue to diversify. Very few humans knew the ’xrsc had plans for their special sentient friends.

Thabbt never fully realized how much the human species had mutated after the great dispersals from Terra and was genuinely surprised at the many derivations on the human theme represented among the passengers. Zzppd, on the other hand, who had a need to know everything he could about everything and sought such information on the ’xrsc databases seemed to recognize almost every one of the more “normal” mutations, i.e., those that kept cocks on the men and kept women as the birth partner. There were a few humans on board who exhibited physical characteristics he wasn’t fully certain were human, yet upon further examination and research on the databases came to the conclusion that some mutations went a bit too far. He was fully cognizant of the fact that the Bazt and the Schtickist mutations were, also, the exception to the rule. Surprisingly, he was amazed at the number of mutations where homosexual behavior was not only fully accepted, but equally encouraged as a means of keeping populations at manageable levels. Of course, homosexual activity was the last thing the ’xrsc wanted from its guests.

On three occasions, both men found themselves in situations where their manly attributes were actively pursued by other humans. Each time they had to explain their part in the birth cycle, which immediately led to them being summarily excused from further participation in a gene sharing event.

On two occasions, they encountered males from a species of indeterminate sexual identity that were solely interested in a little sex play. They were polite, but stressed they were married and did not stray outside their mutual commitment, which was met with derision and ridicule.

In the end, Thabbt and Zzppd spent most of the trip in their quarters going over the layout of their new home; and spent a lot of time discussing what they were going to do with Dimp. Mostly, though, those discussions quickly turned into arguments, verbal battles where love prevented a clear winner.

“I want permission to fuck him,” Thabbt said when they entered high orbit over Bazt. They were in bed and had been trying to have a little intimacy, but Dimp kept getting in the way as he had the closer they got to Bazt.

“Why?” Zzppd asked. “Why do you have this need to fuck him?”

“Because you didn’t when you had the chance,” Thabbt said. “He needs to know where he stands in the pecking order of our relationship.”

“He may see it as you giving yourself to him,” Zzppd said with a smile. “He was an initiate in the cult of Büd and is fully capable of accepting a fuck if you are incapable of the same. You have to understand it goes both ways in both cults, though each has its clearly defined orientation in a relationship. But, before you do anything rash, I think we need to at least allow him explain how he feels about our relationship; that is, if he is capable of understanding two men can marry in Bazt society.”

“Then you’re giving me permission to fuck him,” Thabbt said.

“We made a commitment to stay within our relationship,” Zzppd said, turning away from Thabbt. He was growing impatient with Thabbt’s desire for Dimp’s ass, which he hadn’t actually seen. “If your desire for Dimp’s ass is greater than your commitment to me, what can I say that will change your mind? Or, are you simply jealous that he and I knew each other before I met you?”

“By Hurl’s snotty nose, will you say I can fuck Dimp?” Thabbt said, frustration boiling in his veins.

“Be very careful of what you say about our mother god, she can be quite vengeful, even toward nonbelievers.”

“Why can’t you simply say yes? Why do you have to be so difficult?”

“Okay, you can fuck Dimp, but I reserve the right to fuck whoever I decide is prettier than you,” Zzppd offered with a smile.

“You can’t do that,” Thabbt countered, amazed that Zzppd would actually consider doing the same thing he wanted. “What is so special about Dimp Nivl?”

“I don’t know. I haven’t seen him since I was transported to Bazt Four and he wasn’t. I don’t know what’s become of him. But, I will give you this, since you are so adamant about sticking your cock in that boy’s ass, if he asks for a fuck, you may do so, but I have to be there when you do it.”

“I’m not agreeing to that, either,” Thabbt said, clearly frustrated. “Why can’t you just say yes?”

“Because I love you and don’t want to lose you to a boy who very much wanted to be fucked when he owned me,” Zzppd said as he took his husband in his arms and held him tightly against his body.

Thabbt’s anger slowly faded into a vague realization that Zzts were different from Bazts and although they did, both, agree to remain faithful to the other, Bazts—who had strong feelings toward commitments—took relational commitments as something to be forgiven when the time came for a renewal of the relationship. In a Bazt to Bazt marriage both parties knew the other was going to step outside, but that was okay because mutual forgiveness was such an integral part of their marriage.

With the Zzt, that obviously was not the case. If he was going to fuck Dimp, he’d have to accept Zzppd into the bed, which was something he very much did not want to do. There were things he wanted to say to Dimp that Zzppd could never hear. Not only did Dimp need to know where he didn’t stand in the pecking order, he actually needed to find another place of employment. Thabbt knew he could not live in a house with both Büd and Vini lurking in the woodwork.

* * * * * * *

Although they could’ve transported down to their new home via a recondite dimensional shift, Thabbt insisted they take a shuttle. The ’xrsc gave in only because they were special guests, their house was an official ’xrsc site, and the ’xrsc felt the local populace, now totally Bazt, needed a little demonstration of who was financing and facilitating the recolonization of Bazt.

It was a small vessel and, surprisingly to Thabbt and Zzppd, totally three-dimensional, which they suspected was only for show, which the ’xrsc seemed to like doing a lot. Give them a chance to make a splash and they’d do everything they could to impress.

Of course, their new home was constructed in six dimensions, although most of the interior had a three-dimensional orientation so that the humans wouldn’t open a door and suddenly be in some other part of the multiverse last week or worse a million years before dinosaurs died out on Terra. This wasn’t an imposition to the ’xrsc as they could easily move through recondite dimensions within the three-dimensional construct without the slightest problem with dimensional obstruction, which sometimes occurred for unknown reasons when they attempted a here-now-there-then shift over fifty parsecs. They suspected it had a lot to do with distance and quite possibly, though not yet proven, some dimensional boundaries were more solid than others. Some ’xrsc programs felt they did not exist in all universes and the obstructions only became apparent when attempting a shift through one of those universes, which shouldn’t be a problem, but obviously was.

When the boys disembarked they were met by what was obviously the head robot as it was the most human in appearance (i.e., only two legs, two upper appendages, one head, and a torso with, surprisingly, representations of two nipples and a navel, though there was no indication of sex) and clearly stood apart from the other assembled bots.

“Welcome, sirs, to Nits Knob, I hope you will find your habitat to be accommodating,” the bot said in a clear, distinct, not artificial sounding voice. Zzppd heard inside his head a faint translation in the Gurdian dialect of UMS Standard Argottean, the language of UMS. Clearly, the Bazt had not discovered the ’xrsc-link implanted in his brain shortly after birth; of course, it was small, no more than a few molecules across, and performed a lot of functions the ’xrsc felt humans needed, like exploding and thus ending the human’s life if the ’xrsc felt that human needed that. It was one of their ways of letting humans know who was running the show.

“Thank you,” Zzppd said in UMS Standard with a slight ’xrscian accent clearly to let the ’xrsc know he was not to be trifled with and to let the household bots know that at least one human in the house could understand every word of the many whispers that commonly occur among household staff. The effect was immediate.

“Yes, well, please allow me to escort you on a little tour of your residence,” the head bot said in Bazt.

“Where is Dimp Nivl?” Thabbt asked. “I expected him to be here when we arrived.”

“The human is cleaning as is his place in the household,” the head bot said as it continued to walk toward the lift.

“He is a ’xrsc slave?” Zzppd asked, knowingly.

“Uh, yes, Master Dimp’s mental capabilities are somewhat diminished due to the aftereffects of the Bazt introduced virus and the ’xrsc felt until you arrived it would be best to keep him occupied with meaningful tasks.”

“Dimp will not be a servant,” Zzppd said. “I don’t know what his current mental capabilities are, but I will not have him cleaning. Is that understood?”

“Yes, sir,” the head bot said, though the ‘sir’ came a bit late and Zzppd knew he was going to have problems with the head bot who obviously felt this was its facility.

“Good, I want to meet with Dimp, now,” Zzppd said with a smile that let the head bot know it had better review its system programs and alter a few things or someone was going to be in for some serious reprogramming.

“Bit of a prig,” Thabbt whispered.

“Do not speak, not even in a whisper, the ’xrsc can hear every word you say,” Zzppd advised.

“Peachy!” Thabbt exclaimed.

After leaving the lift, they were led across a large room where Dimp was cleaning a window, one of the many windows he cleaned. He did not acknowledge their approach or presence. The head bot slipped into a recondite dimension and disappeared, though was probably standing quite near only a few milliseconds before or after, just beyond the awareness capabilities of the human brain.

“Dimp, it’s good to see you,” Zzppd said in Gurdian.

“You may speak Bazt,” Dimp said, flatly. “I speak Bazt. It is the language we use. I cannot speak my old way or I’ll be punished. Please excuse me, I must finish this window in the allotted time or I’ll fall behind and be punished.”

Dimp turned away and went back to cleaning.

“Do you want to fuck him now?” Zzppd asked, pointedly.

“No, though he does have a cute ass, what I can see of it,” Thabbt said as he tried to get some sense of the boy’s physique under the faded green coveralls he was wearing. He and Zzppd were wearing the shorts they wore on the ship. “Maybe we can get him in a threesome, later.”

“I doubt very much if he has any idea what a threesome is,” Zzppd said. “Look, he is so focused on cleaning that window, he completely ignores us. Bot! I know bots have trouble cleaning glass, so you’d better find someone else to do this.”

“Yes, sir,” the head bot said after reappearing. “Are there any specifications?”

“Female, older, preferably Schtickist, but I will consider one of these altered Bazts,” Zzppd said. “Dimp, Dimp, stop cleaning the window.”

Dimp put the rag down and turned. He immediately knelt before Zzppd, lowered his head, and placed his hands behind his neck.

“Stop that! Get to your feet! What have they done to you?” Zzppd screamed.

“What’s wrong?” Thabbt asked as Dimp slowly rose, but kept his hands behind his lowered head.

“That’s the position a Schtickist assumes when he expects to be vaporized,” Zzppd stammered with anger. “Dimp put your hand at your sides.”

“Yes, sir,” Dimp whispered. He kept his head lowered in subservience.

“Thabbt, you have experience with slavery, do you think you can do anything to help?” Zzppd asked.

“Well, yes, I suppose, but they’ve really done him up good,” Thabbt said as he stepped closer to Dimp. “Look how he totally ignores us. I believe he fully expects one of us to beat him, or worse. Dimp, look at me.”

Dimp raised his head, but his eyes seemed incapable of seeing as Thabbt expected.

“What is your name?” Thabbt asked.

“My name is Master Dimp, sir,” Dimp said in a subservient voice that grated on Thabbt’s memories of the Minto. “They call me, Master, but I respond to Dimp, too.”

“No, your name is Dimp Nivl,” Zzppd said. “Bot! This boy’s name is Dimp Nivl. Do you understand?”

“Reprogramming has been initiated, sir,” the head bot said in a crisp Bazt voice.

“May we see your quarters?” Thabbt asked.

Dimp didn’t say anything.

“Dimp, I asked if we could see where you live,” Thabbt said.

Dimp slowly raised his hands behind his head as he knelt down into his punishment position. Thabbt squatted down next to him and pulled the boy’s hands from the back of his head.

“You are Dimp Nibel, or however you say it in that god forsaken Argottean, who was a very special friend of my husband,” Thabbt said. “We are not here to harm you. I want you to understand we are your friends. Look at me. Come on, look at me.”

Dimp slowly turned his head, but his eyes were empty of emotion. He simply looked at the Bazt as if not understanding any of what had just been said, other than he was supposed to look at this Bazt.

“Will you show us where you live?” Thabbt asked quietly.

Dimp made to move back in his position, but Thabbt restrained him causing Dimp to immediately relax his muscles.

“Why can’t we see where you live?” Thabbt asked, again in a quiet voice.

“I’m not worthy of your attention,” Dimp whispered. “I am nothing. I am from before. Any day now they will come for me and I will be no more. It is better that you kill me now.”

“Bot! Explain!” Zzppd demanded.

“The local Bazt occupation force is readying the area for recolonization and forbids the presence of the previous humans here. We have informed them that this is a ’xrsc facility and not bound by their laws. They informed us the young Gurdian must be given to them for elimination.”

“Any attempt by any Bazt official to approach this residence will be treated as an attack upon my person,” Zzppd said. “Do they have beam or pulse weapons capable of striking this structure?”

“Yes, but they will be ineffective. The outer wall is but an illusion. You are not in their time.”

“We exist in a recondite dimension?” Thabbt asked.

If the head bot could’ve smiled, it might have done just that. It looked at Thabbt, who was still squatting beside Dimp and said, “No, the interior of this structure exists three milliseconds in their past.”

“Oops, sorry I asked, Zzppd you’re on,” Thabbt said, turning his attention to Dimp, who was still looking at him with empty eyes. “Dimp, I want you to stand with me, please.”

Thabbt stood, but practically had to pull the young man to his feet. Dimp hung his head trying to appear subservient to the Bazt overlord. The Schtickist, well, he wasn’t too certain how to take that one, but he knew he had to be careful around the Bazt. Back in the camps, he’d heard being vaporized was practically painless if done humanely, which he hoped this Bazt would do if it came to that.

“Okay, Dimp, let’s go,” Thabbt said. “We don’t need to be here when the bot explains the situation to Zzppd.”

“Thabbt!” Zzppd interrupted.

“Yes?”

“I hope you do not plan on doing what I think you’re planning,” Zzppd said.

“No, Zzppd, the boy obviously has no idea who you are and likely doesn’t remember who he was, either,” Thabbt said. “At least he can talk, though. He’s definitely not like someone who has been addled; and, there still seems to be some of Dimp left in that head of his. Why didn’t you tell me he was so cute?”

“Because you’d be jealous,” Zzppd said.

“Yes, I am, but this boy definitely is not on my fuck list,” Thabbt said. “Come on, Dimp, I want you to show me the house.”

Dimp turned to Thabbt and looked very scared.

“What now?” Thabbt asked with frustration.

“I’m not allowed,” Dimp whispered.

“See that young man over there, he’s in charge, now,” Thabbt said, as he physically turned Dimp’s body. “Zzppd, tell this young Gurdian it is okay for him to show me around.”

“No! You mustn’t say that word,” Dimp said loudly, surprising Thabbt and Zzppd.

“What, I can’t say Gurdian?” Thabbt asked.

“No! Please, do not do that,” Dimp cried as he tried to drop into his punishment position. Thabbt restrained him and looked to Zzppd for help.

“Don’t look at me like that,” Zzppd said. “You’re the one who said the naughty word. Dimp?”

“Yes, sir,” Dimp said, quietly.

“I am Zzppd and this is Thabbt,” Zzppd said with a smile. “You will use our names when speaking to us. Do you understand?”

“Yes, Zzppd,” Dimp said with a frown. He didn’t like being ordered by a Schtickist, even if he was with this Bazt.

“And, Dimp, I want you to know, I knew you before,” Zzppd said.

It wasn’t recognition that washed over Dimp’s face, but there was some bit of recollection as if the boy was trying to place Zzppd into the before times. He scrunched his face in thought, but realized whatever memories he had of this man were lost. He did recognize, though, that this man was a Schtickist and he remembered knowing a Schtickist boy, but he couldn’t join the two memories.

“Come along, Zzppd needs to talk business with the bot and we’re only going to be in the way,” Thabbt said, pulling at the Gurdian’s arm. Dimp turned and looked questioningly at Thabbt, who sighed. “Okay, I’ll walk through the house and if I ask you where we are, will you tell me?”

“Yes, Thabbt,” Dimp said, quietly.

“Good, it’s not the same as a tour, but it’ll have to do,” Thabbt said. “Zzppd, where do we meet up, again?”

“If this house is laid out like a Bazt home, I suppose the lounge,” Zzppd said. “Is there a lounge, bot?”

“Yes, there are four and one is outside Dimp’s quarters,” the head bot said. “We felt it necessary to have him close to where the children will be. Is that correct?”

“Yes, but I want him moved to a room near where Thabbt and I will be staying,” Zzppd said. “He is special to me and I want him close.”

“Yes, his quarters will be reprogrammed,” the head bot said. “Will there be anything else?”

“Probably, why don’t you give me the tour and we’ll discuss the local Bazts at the same time,” Zzppd said. “Firstly, though, I want Dimp given a full nano physical.”

“Uh, sir, that is not permitted under the current Bazt rules of occupation,” the head bot said.

“We are separate from Bazt rules,” Zzppd said. “You know who I am, who my daughter is and will become, and who my future children are and will become. I am Spid Doop and I am Schtickist to the core. I want this to be a happy place for me and my family, speaking of which, has there been any word on where my Pubi, Mamt, and Dwim are located?”

“No, we have not located their position,” the head bot said.

* * * * * * *

Thabbt stood inside the lift car looking at Dimp standing outside.

“Don’t tell me, you’re not permitted to use the lifts in this house,” Thabbt said.

“The bots are very specific,” Dimp said.

“Dimp, come here,” Thabbt said. The boy looked around then darted into the car. “Which button goes to your floor? Push it.”

“I am not allowed visitors,” Dimp said, quietly.

“Is that why you wouldn’t do anything when we were with the head bot?” Thabbt asked, knowingly.

“I am not permitted to be in its presence,” Dimp said. “If he finds out that I allowed you into my space, I will be punished.”

“How? How do they punish you?” Thabbt asked, hoping his curiosity would be taken the wrong way.

“I can’t say,” Dimp whispered.

“I didn’t think so,” Thabbt said. “Well, here we are. Go on, get out of the car.”

“If one of them sees me coming out of the lift, I’ll be punished,” Dimp said.

“Not anymore, you’re one of us and will never be punished, again,” Thabbt said. “Come on, I want to see your room.”

“Will you want to have sex with me, too?” Dimp asked with a worried look.

“What?” Thabbt asked, not believing what he just heard.

“In the camps, when someone came to your room it was to have sex,” Dimp said. “I know how to take you both ways, and I can do only you if you so desire.”

“Wait a minute; get back on that lift,” Thabbt said. “What do you mean you know how to take it both ways?”

“In the before, I was trained to be receptive to other men,” Dimp said with a smile. “I can remember that. It wasn’t taken from me by the disease.”

“Wait a minute; you’re speaking a lot clearer than when we first met,” Thabbt said, wondering what was going on.

“I have to be that way with the bots or they will kill me,” Dimp said. “People from before who weren’t affected by the disease as much as others have been killed. The bots like to vaporize from the feet up, slowly. People scream very loud as their bodies are dissolved into nothingness. You can see their eyes watching the approaching beam until their heads turn into a misty cloud of free molecules. I don’t know who that Schtickist is, though. I think I knew him, but I can’t remember that part of the before. Is he the boy I owned?”

“You remember owning a Schtickist?” Thabbt asked.

“Yes, but I can’t remember who he was or why I owned him,” Dimp said. “Do you want to have sex with me?”

“No, Zzppd is my husband,” Thabbt said. “And, Dimp, you are too special to me.”

“May I have sex with the Schtickist?” Dimp asked. “Do you own him?”

“I said Zzppd is my husband,” Thabbt said. “I do not own him.”

“But he is a Schtickist, they are defective, they exist at the whim of the government,” Dimp said. “I can have sex with him if I want, but I was only asking to be polite, as you are a foreigner to this planet.”

“Dimp, do you know what happened, why most of the people died?” Thabbt asked.

“No, I assume it was some sort of virus,” Dimp said.

“The virus was introduced by my people, the Bazt,” Thabbt said. “This was their planet before they left. Now, they are returning and all living Gurdians will either be put to death or put into subservient positions until they are no longer needed and then put to death. Oh, yes, one more thing, the virus was designed not to affect the Schtickists.”

“But they’re all dead,” Dimp said. “They were the first ones affected by the virus. There are no Schtickists on Gurd, anymore. Except, of course, for the one you own. Can we have sex with him, now?”

“No, and I think it’s best if you return to your quarters for the time being,” Thabbt said.

“I can say no,” Dimp said.

“Bots! Remove this Gurdian from my presence,” Thabbt said.

Two bots instantaneously appeared and took hold of Dimp’s arms.

“He is not to be punished or harmed in any manner, but he must not leave his quarters,” Thabbt said.

“Yes, sir,” one of the bots said. “Come along, Dimp, you have worn out your welcome.”

“You can’t do this, I’m Gurdian,” Dimp screamed as the bots pulled him into a recondite dimension.

* * * * * * *

“We have a problem,” Thabbt said as he sat down next to Zzppd at the dining table in the lounge outside their rooms. They were on the fourth level of the habitat and had a broad view of the central gardens, the lawn sloping down to the swimming pool, and via a little ’xrsc trickery, a wide view of the surrounding territory toward Burpiburg, the previous capitol of Gurd, and now designated as habitation complex 3.B.4.7.C7.

Zzppd seemed lost in thought, so Thabbt gathered a few bits of a leafy vegetable, a couple slices of some kind of dark meat, and sprinkled a bit of the green sauce Zzppd always seemed to have at the table. He sat back and began to eat.

“The Bazt have massacred all Schtickists everywhere,” Zzppd said, flatly. “My parents and brother are dead. Argotte has declared war on Bazt. The ’xrsc, who normally don’t take sides in any war, have pledged full support to the Argotteans, as they feel betrayed by the Bazt. You are not dead and will not be killed because you are my husband and will provide the eggs that will become our children. Now, what is your problem?”

“Dimp remembers more than he lets on,” Thabbt said, putting his meal back on the table. “He thinks I own you and he wants both of us to have sex with you.”

“I know,” Zzppd said. “Don’t look so surprised. The ’xrsc have him under constant surveillance. What should we do with him?”

“Well, your book says our children love him,” Thabbt said. “So, obviously, we’re going to come up with some solution. What do you have in mind?”

“The ’xrsc advised injecting nanos to alter his mind,” Zzppd said. “In other words, do the damage the virus failed to do.”

“Addle him,” Thabbt said, sadly.

“No, just reduce his capabilities and remove all of his memories from before the virus,” Zzppd said.

“Sort of what they did to me, except they’ll erase his memory,” Thabbt said.

“Exactly,” Zzppd said, flatly. “They will also remove all sexual functions in his brain. He’s already been rendered incapable of passing on genes by the Bazt occupiers, but this will effectively turn him into a eunuch.”

“So, we end up with a simpleton who has no desire for sex, but will be good with the children,” Thabbt mused.

“Exactly,” Zzppd said. “Do you have a better idea?”

“No, I’ve met the bad Dimp when I was expecting a good Dimp,” Thabbt said. “What’s to become of us with the war and all?”

“We will continue to live here on Nits Knob,” Zzppd said.

“We’re all ones of a kind, you know,” Thabbt said.

“What do you mean?” Zzppd asked.

“Most of Dimp’s people are dead, most, if not all, of your people are dead, and I’m fairly certain most of my people will soon be among the dead, too,” Thabbt said. “It’s a shame about Dimp, though; he is very cute, for a Gurdian. Though, I don’t think he’d have any qualms about killing you.”

“No, the Gurdians were ruthless,” Zzppd said. “But, it seems the Bazt are, too.”

“Too bad the nanos can’t turn Dimp into a sex toy,” Thabbt mused.

“And, let him babysit our children?” Zzppd spat.

“He’s just so cute,” Thabbt said, dreamily.

“Well, yes, he is that,” Zzppd admitted. “But, deep down he’s a Gurdian and hates Schtickists. He would be a danger to our children. He must be altered.”

“I agree,” Thabbt said. “He did offer himself to me, you know.”

“Yes, I saw it on the monitor,” Zzppd said.

“Well, I guess I’m just going to have to fuck you,” Thabbt said as he pushed Zzppd down onto the cushions and shoved his tongue down his husband’s throat.