Mission to a New World Ch. 01

"I do not mean to embarrass you," The Captain interrupts my agonizing thoughts. "There is no way for me to say this delicately, but this expedition may be especially difficult for you, given your..." He brings his hands to his own chest. "Let's say, your physical makeup."

I know what Rileymen means. He is referring to my size. That is, he hints at my big boobs. I am a short girl with ample breasts. Longton attire will leave little to the imagination.

"I understand Sir," I try to retain my composure against the unavoidable embarrassment.

"In fact, the very reason you are best suited for this mission is because of your physical makeup. As I'm sure you already know from your studies, men with the highest status are often served by the women with the largest..."

He does not need to continue. It is another oddity of the male dominated Longton society. Female breasts are used as a way to display status. The leader of a village nearly always has the mate with the largest boobs. The same is true for an unusually rich or successful man. My own double-D cups means my male companion would be a very important man, but that assumes I will have a male companion.

"Can I assume I will be with someone?"

"Of course," The Captain fills in the blanks. "A woman traveling alone on the Longton planet would instantly arise suspicion. It would be culturally incorrect, and it might also be dangerous. You will be the female traveling companion of Lt. Stockton."

"Brian?" I questioned. "Do you mean Lt. Brian Stockton?"

The Captain nods.

"But sir, he only just arrived a few weeks ago. He doesn't have any experience."

"But he is the most suitable," Rileymen does not appear to hear my objection. "He is an ex-Marine, specifically assigned to your analysis lab to learn as much about the Longtons as possible. It was our intent to eventually use him on another mission down to the planet's surface once we got approval from the politicians back on Earth. He will just be going down a lot earlier than planned."

"But sir," I try to object. "A lot of others know a lot more about the Longton culture than Brian... I mean Lt. Stockton."

"I see you are already on a first name basis," Rileymen notes. "That is good. It will make the training go easier."

"Training?"

"You need to give Lt. Stockton - or Brian - a crash course on the Longton culture. Forget about the structured course. He needs to learn as fast as possible. The doctors tell me it takes 5 days for the swelling from the plastic surgery to go down. You will have that long to work with him."

"But Brian?" I continue to object. "Beg your pardon sir, but there's others in the lab who are a lot more deserving."

"But the others are all female," He points out. "Out of a staff of 32 personnel, I believe there are 30 who are female. And we can't very well send two females down there together."

His numbers are correct. That is one disadvantage of a lab full of women.

"The mission is yours if you want it," He tells me. "As I already hinted, we don't have much time. We need an answer right away. A doctor is already standing by in the infirmary. He tells me the operation will take about two hours, and you are on his schedule for tomorrow morning."

I feel a momentary desire to jump at the chance. I picture myself leaping up and telling him that I am honored to accept the mission. It is the opportunity of a lifetime, a chance to put my many years of study to the test. I often dreamed about going down to the surface and meeting a real live Longton. I feel stupid to resist.

Yet when the opportunity is thrust upon me, I hesitate. I feel only anxiety. I worry my knowledge is inadequate and my assumptions are all wrong. I can't help but imagine in my mind what it will feel like to walk around in the sparsely clad Longton clothing. I grow with trepidation.

"The mission is yours if you want it," Captain Rileymen offers me again. "Your acceptance will be a tremendous service to your country. It will even help to serve the Longton people, and you will probably save the lives of whatever Longtons eventually succeed in opening the reactor."

His words fall heavy on my mind.

"However, I will not disguise the fact some danger is involved," He argues against himself. "The mission is far from safe, and I am sure it will be very difficult. Many things could go wrong, including a radiation leak."

I haven't considered this, and it frightens me. Even a small radiation leak could put me at a higher risk of cancer for the rest of my life.

"Do not accept right now," He cautions wisely. "I want you to check into the infirmary tonight so the doctors can conduct some tests. If all goes according to plan, you have until morning to make up your mind. You need to sleep on it and think it over very carefully. I obviously prefer you to accept, but you need to be certain for yourself. There will be no turning back."

I look up to see him standing. We are done. Rileymen is a busy man and has many other jobs to do.

"Thank you for the offer," I shake his hand. "It is a lot to consider."

I bid him goodbye and ask his secretary directions to the infirmary.

* * * * *

I laugh at Captain Rileymen's instructions to sleep on it. If he expects me to sleep, he is greatly mistaken. I lay wide-awake in bed. I lay on a hospital bed in the infirmary, dreading the morning and feeling confused and very hungry.

The doctors refused me anything to eat after they completed the physical. "It might have a negative effect on the operation," they told me; something to do with the drugs they will have to give me to perform the plastic surgery...provided I am still willing to go through with the surgery.

I still am not sure. There is a lot to consider.

There is the fear of failure. 'What if I can't speak the language well enough?' I ask myself. I never conversed with a Longton before. 'What if I do something stupid or make a mistake?' And there is the further danger of walking into a village contaminated with plutonium. Radiation cannot be ignored. I might have to walk around the rest of my life in fear of an increased risk of cancer.

But on the opposite side, it is the opportunity of a lifetime. It will be a chance to fulfill my curiosity and pose all my questions. It will be my only opportunity to test my knowledge of the Longtonese language and interface with the subjects of my study. I know I will never get a chance to go down to the surface again. Any future expeditions - assuming the politicians back on Earth even allow any future expeditions - will almost certainly be by all- male teams. They will never let a woman go except for the most dreadful circumstance.

Yet the very fact I am a woman scares me. I will have to live in a society where the men are masters. I will be merely a slave, forced into subjugation of my male owner, forced to wear the clothing of the Longton women.

And then there is the clothing to consider. Longton clothing scares me, especially given my figure. I am not accustomed to wearing provocative clothing, yet on the surface of the planet I will be forced to wear little. The most clothing I will ever be able to wear is the equivalent of a small bikini.

Another problem is Brian. I couldn't voice my objection in front of Captain Rileymen because he would never understand, but I don't like Brian. The problem is that he's been trying to hit on me since the first day he got to Crion, probably because of my big boobs. I despise men who treat my boobs as a prize and my body like a piece of meat. I haven't known Brian for very long, yet I already get the impression he is a stereotypical young Marine who thinks he is God's gift to women. I have difficult time with him in the lab. On the surface, I know it will be much more challenging.

Still, Brian does have one redeeming feature. He has a tall, muscular build and handsome appearance; traits specifically selected so he would someday more easily fit in with the Longton men. This will make him look excellent, I know, when clothed in the attire worn by the Longton men, for their clothing is just as meager as the females. I like looking at men in loincloths.

To be continued...