Three Square Meals Ch. 026

"Come in." John called out in his strong voice.

The door swished open and one of the Ashanath engineers walked in, just as Jade glided past him majestically, the glowing ethereal bands on her engorged belly casting curving light across the ceiling. The Grey's huge black eyes blinked extremely rapidly as it stared in amazement at the resplendent Nymph and she smiled at the diminutive alien coyly as she sashayed away.

John stifled a laugh at Jade's impromptu exhibitionism and the devastating effect it had on the poor Ashanath engineer.

"Everything ok there?" he asked the stunned Grey.

"Oh my yes..." The Ashanath said in its whispery voice, the normally unemotional speech of the computer managing to pick up the sheer wonderment in his voice.

Abruptly the Grey managed to pull itself together and then turned to face John.

"Dana wishes me to inform you that she will be removing the elevator shortly, so asked that you collect any belongings from your quarters before then. The elevator will be out of commission for at least 6 hours." The engineer stated, passing the message on in its eerie, echoing voice.

"Thanks for passing on the message." John said gratefully.

"You are welcome JohnBlake." Engineer Zanthus replied, before leaving the room to return to the rest of its tasks.

"Ok then." John said rubbing his chin thoughtfully. "Calara and Jade, could you gather up a set of outdoor clothes for us please and then put together a packed lunch."

"Sure John, are we going out somewhere?" Calara asked him curiously.

"If Jade feels like taking us for a flight, there's somewhere interesting I'd like you to see." he said with a mysterious smile.

The Nymph clapped her hands with glee and bounced up and down excitedly, somehow managing to keep her balance with her swollen belly.

"Oh I'd love that!" Jade gasped delightedly.

"Great!" John said, looking at her affectionately. "Meet back here when you're ready and we'll gather up Dana too before heading out."

The Latina and the Nymph nodded eagerly and then headed out of the door, chatting to each other happily as they speculated on what they would see that afternoon. The door closed behind them, leaving the gym quiet and peaceful, which made for a startling change after all the raucous activity so far that morning.

Alyssa glanced up at him with a smile.

"And then there were two." she said with amusement.

"Two who both have abilities they need to train." John replied quietly as he sank to the ground and adopted a meditative pose.

Alyssa sat in front of him and copied his position. She smiled at him warmly and then they closed their eyes as they took deep breaths, slowing their breathing and centring themselves. After a few minutes of relaxation in the gentle stillness of the gym, they both felt themselves achieve a state of focus.

"Let's start with you first." John suggested calmly.

"You've said that you can sense the girls' emotions and you know their whereabouts. Describe to me where they are and what they're feeling right now." he requested gently.

Alyssa studied the presences in her mind that represented each of her friends. John was centred and foremost in her thoughts, with Jade, Calara and Dana positioned around him in the little sections of her mind that she had reserved for them. With a start, Alyssa realised that she had instinctively compartmentalised her mind, just as High Councillor Talari had taught her and each of the presences occupied their own small compartment.

"This is helping!" Alyssa said excitedly.

"Shh..." John said soothingly. "You're doing really well, just stay calm and focus on the task at hand."

The beautiful blonde girl nodded obediently and then concentrated on each of the girls in turn.

"Calara is currently in the kitchen in the officer's lounge. She's radiating with happiness and contentment." Alyssa said with a smile.

"She's... thinking about how proud she'll be introducing you to her parents!" she gasped. "John, I heard her thinking clearly in my mind! I've only had snippets of words before." the blonde girl said in amazement.

"Well done honey." John said encouragingly. "Now relax and focus on the others."

"Dana's in..." Alyssa paused, her eyebrows furrowing. "What is she up to?" she frowned. "She's not in any of the rooms, it feels like she's inside the structure of the ship!"

She focused intently to see if she could pinpoint the redhead's exact location. "She's... in a maintenance tunnel!" Alyssa blurted out. "An image of what she's seeing just flashed in my mind!" she exclaimed in wonder.

Curious to see if she could pick up Dana's thoughts the same way she had with Calara, she concentrated on the presence in her mind, trying to listen for any words.

"I can hear her!" Alyssa said with a happy grin. "Ugh! I can't understand half of what's she's thinking though, it's all science stuff." the blonde girl groaned.

John chuckled softly. "You're doing great honey. Now move on to Jade." he prompted her.

"Jade's mosaic shows her in her Nymph form. She's looking up at the image of you and..." Alyssa paused, concentrating on the happy expression on the image depicting Jade's face. "She loves you so much!"

Alyssa's eyes flew open, amazed at the purity and intensity of the emotion pouring from the image.

"Oh John, I wish you could feel this too, it's so beautiful!" Alyssa exclaimed with a sob, a tear sliding down her cheek as she smiled happily.

John opened his eyes and smiled at her fondly. He spread his arms invitingly and Alyssa moved forward to sit in his lap, wrapping her arms around him. They cuddled like that for a little while, as Alyssa recovered from the startling experiences gleaned from the exploration of her abilities.

"Thanks John." she sighed with a contented smile. "That was really helpful."

"You did brilliantly." he said proudly, holding her in his strong arms.

Alyssa felt the comforting strength of that wonderful embrace and she tilted her head to whisper in his ear.

"It's your turn now." she said softly. "Show me what you can do." she urged him.

John breathed in deeply, holding the beautiful girl in his arms and nuzzling his head into her hair, feeling the wonderful softness against his cheek. He took in a deep breath, filling the air in his lungs with her wonderful scent, feeling almost dizzy with intoxication. He opened his eyes and stared into Alyssa's, losing himself in her sky blue eyes.

"I'm ready." he said solemnly, feeling truly at peace.

Alyssa rose gracefully and John followed after her. He walked calmly over to the bench press in the heavy weights section of the gym.

"Two hundred and fifty pounds." John noted, looking at the weights stacked on the bar. "That's normally my limit." he admitted.

He sat down on the bench and then lay back, looking up at the bar where it rested on a sturdy steel cradle. He reached up and then took the bar with both hands, pushing up to lift it from the cradle and then moving it back an inch or so to clear the edge. He smoothly benched the weight, doing three reps before placing it back on the steel frame.

"That's normally a struggle." he said with surprise. "That didn't feel too bad at all."

He looked up at Alyssa who was watching him from behind his head. "Please could you add another... 25lbs to each side." he said tentatively.

Alyssa nodded eagerly and collected the additional plates, adding them to either side and locking them in place. John pushed up to take the weight and then smoothly moved through the three reps.

"More?" Alyssa asked him excitedly.

John looked up at her and nodded cautiously. The blonde girl moved to the rack of plates and came back to add more.

"What are we at now?" John asked her.

"Four hundred pounds." Alyssa said, glancing at the readout.

"Ok before we go any further." John said tentatively. "If I get in trouble you won't be strong enough to assist. Just flick the red safeties to the side on the bar and the anti-grav cyclics will kick in and help me lift off the weight."

"I see them." Alyssa nodded. "Don't worry, I'll keep you safe!" she said reassuringly.

John reached up and grasped the bar with a firm grip. He pushed up and really felt the weight this time. He breathed in deeply and then moved the bar down to his chest and back up, wavering slightly. Confident that he still had control of the weight, he slowly lowered and then raised the bar twice more before hooking it back on the cradle.

"That was amazing..." Alyssa said, moving forward to look down at him with wide eyes. "Do you want to do more?" she asked him eagerly.

John nodded and closed his eyes, focusing on breathing. He heard the clanging of metal plates being added to the bar as Alyssa added more weight.

"Ok you're all set." she said eventually.

"What are we at now?" John asked curiously.

"500lbs." Alyssa replied, her cerulean eyes sparkling.

John took a deep breath and then pushed up, struggling to lift the bar. He tried twice more then relaxed back.

"I think we reached my limit." he said ruefully.

"Just close your eyes." Alyssa said, kneeling down so that her head was next to his. "Just think how much you love me and the girls." she whispered in his ear.

"How much you want to protect us and look after us." she said soothingly. "You're a good, powerful man with girls who love you so much." she said gently.

"I know you can lift this weight with no problem. Show me why I'm right to dedicate my life to being with you." she urged him.

John opened his eyes and his pupils dilated with the adrenalin in his system. "Ok let's do this." John said with a surge of confidence.

Alyssa eye's gleamed as she moved back out of the way and John grasped the bar firmly in his hands. He took a deep breath and then pushed up, hearing the bar creak ominously as he lifted it smoothly in his grasp. He brought it down to his chest and then pushed it back up, doing 12 reps in a smooth controlled manner. He carefully repositioned the bar and then looked up at Alyssa's face as she stared at him in awe.

"That was awesome!" John grinned. "let's see if I can do 550!" he said eagerly.

"You already did..." Alyssa whispered. "That was everything..."

"Hah! Very funny." John laughed good naturedly.

He sat up and saw that he had an audience. Calara and Jade were standing a few metres away, staring at him with their mouths open in shock, the picnic basket and the bundle of clothes lying on the floor where they'd dropped them.

"What's up with you two?" John said puzzled.

He turned to look at the bar and his jaw dropped in shock. Alyssa had been lying about the weight alright. The bar was fully loaded with high density plates and he counted 900lbs on the bar he'd just done 12 reps with effortlessly.

"That can't be right..." he stammered, standing to look at the bar and trying to wrap his brain around what had just happened.

There was a long moment of absolute silence as everyone there stood and stared.

"Oh that was magnificent master!" Jade gasped breathlessly, finally breaking the spell.

Alyssa, Calara and Jade glided up to him and ran their arms over his body, murmuring appreciatively.

"I knew you could do it!" Alyssa exclaimed, beaming at him with a dazzling smile.

"You're so strong!" Calara breathed, stroking his biceps lovingly.

"You're so powerful John!" Jade sighed ecstatically.

John felt a moment of worry and doubt and then just thought... "Ah fuck it!"

"That was pretty awesome!" he grinned delightedly.

He swept Alyssa up in his arms, hugging her happily.

"Thanks for the pep talk honey, that was just what I needed to hear!" he laughed.

The girls all hugged him, revelling in his moment of triumph and proud of how he had begun to tap into his hidden potential.

"We need to get Sparks to work on a way for you to lift more!" Alyssa grinned excitedly.

"Where is she right now?" John asked curiously.

Alyssa closed her eyes, focusing on her auburn haired friend and trying to picture her location.

"Still in the maintenance tunnels, inside the mass drivers!" the blonde girl exclaimed.

"That's a shame." John said sadly. "We'll just have to take our trip without her." he said with a resigned expression.

He turned to face Jade and smiled at her warmly. "Are you ready to take us on our mystery flight?" he asked the Nymph playfully.

Jade nodded at him excitedly and then she gathered up the clothes she had dropped and handed them out to John and Alyssa. They got dressed in comfortable trousers, tops and jackets and pulled on sturdy boots.

"Let's go!" John grinned as Alyssa stood, putting her arms through her jacket sleeves.

They left the gym and headed down the corridor to the elevator, taking it down to deck 9 where the Raptor gunship awaited them.

***

Dana crawled out of the maintenance tunnels and breathed a huge sigh of relief that was muted by the mask she was wearing. She pulled it off and let it dangle by the cord around her neck and lifted the goggles off her eyes and placed them on top of her head. Taking a look at the magnetic rails had been a grubby job and annoyingly time consuming, but well worth the effort. They showed no signs of stress fracturing and she was sure that boosting the power would not have any adverse effects. Now she just needed to get the Ashanath to begin fabrication of the customised Tachyon field generator she had designed, that would help launch the shells out at even faster warp speeds and her upgrades would be complete.

Grinning happily she strolled out into the corridor and then headed over to the elevator shaft. A couple of Grey engineers from Team Elevator were hard at work, overseeing the final removal of the soon to be retired elevator cabin. The industrious Ashanath had widened out the elevator entrance at ground level and as she arrived and looked down the shaft, the elevator cabin disappeared from view out of the doorway. Dana hopped on one of the anti-grav pads that had been placed in the elevator shaft and held on to the security rail as she sank down to ground level.

"Everything going ok?" she asked the engineers in a friendly tone.

"Everything is proceeding according to plan." One of the engineers said, as the elevator disappeared out through the big double doors into the cargo bay, riding on an anti-grav sled.

"Great work!" Dana said enthusiastically. "Let me know if there's any problems installing the new grav-tubes." she requested.

"We will alert you immediately if there is a problem." the Grey said, bowing to her reverently and then returned to examining the dimensions of the elevator shaft.

Dana walked out into the cargo bay and stopped by the big elevator that was now lying forlornly on the grav sled. She looked around furtively to make sure no-one was watching and then pulled out a portable power supply from her pocket and hooked it up to power leads for the elevator cabin. Flipping on the power, the elevator chimed mournfully for the last time and the doors swished quietly open as if waving goodbye.

"You did good work..." Dana said to the elevator proudly, before patting it gently on its side and unhooking the power supply.

She heard the approach of another Ashanath and she turned to see who was arriving.

"Dana, we have fitted the new power core." The engineer said tentatively in its quiet eerie voice.

"Oh that's great news!" The redhead said excitedly. "Is it hooked up to the Invictus' systems?" she asked curiously.

"We have made the connections, but have not yet begun the flow of power. Would you like us to do so now?" the engineer asked cautiously.

"It's ok, I'm going to go up to the engineering bay in a few moments anyway. I can do it from there." Dana said with a dismissive hand wave. "I'm more familiar with the power relays on the assault cruiser, so it's probably best I do it myself."

"As you wish." The engineer said quietly, bowing respectfully.

"If Team Core is now finished, I have a new task for you." Dana said with a big grin on her face.

"We are ready for your instructions." the engineer said softly.

"I've confirmed that the plans I've made for the Mass driver upgrades will work. When I go up to my workshop, I'll send the schematics to the workbench outside." Dana said eagerly. "Get everyone from Team Core and Team Drive working on them as soon as they finished installing the new components."

"We will begin work immediately." the Ashanath murmured and then turned to gather his teammates.

Humming happily to herself, Dana took the loading lift up from the cargo bay to her workshop. Everything seemed to be going brilliantly well with the refit, except for the thorny problem with the new alloy for the armour. She had initially thought that the addition of a couple of extra elements to the mix would let her create a viable alloy. Unfortunately the Onyxium ore and Etherite crystals had stubbornly refused to bond together with any type of base metal, no matter what other elements she had added so far.

Putting that problem aside for the moment, she darted up the glowing steps of the podium to face the numerous consoles that operated the ship's systems. Dana powered off the backup core that was currently keeping everything running and after taking a deep breath, she fired up the new power core.

Nothing immediately exploded, so she let out the breath she was holding and grinned excitedly. She moved to the console on her right and pressed the button that would activate the energy distribution hologram for the power core. There was a shower of sparks and the console dimmed out as the panel was overloaded. Dana winced and looked around quickly to check no-one else was around to see her make such a silly mistake. Of course she would need to upgrade the power regulator for the console, she chastised herself as she walked over to the component storage to retrieve a replacement.

A few minutes later, she popped the maintenance panel back into place on the console and then tentatively hit the button that would active the energy distribution hologram. The hologram activated, but showed no power readings for the core.

"What's wrong now?" she asked herself in frustration. "We've got power, because everything else is still on." she mused to herself.

Suddenly realising the problem, she rolled her eyes at herself and then recalibrated the hologram to allow for the much larger power ranges. She frowned again as she cycled tentatively through the magnification ratings. Double, triple, quadruple... still nothing showed on the hologram, as she slowly cycled through the amplification settings.

"Ugh... what have I missed now?" she exclaimed in annoyance and span the dial in irritation.

The hologram flickered briefly and then went dark again. Freezing her hand on the dial, she gradually wound it back again until the amplification rating reached twelve and the energy distribution hologram sprang into life, bathing the console in a cheerful green glow. The energy graphs looked stable showing minimal power fluctuations.

"That can't be right!" Dana gasped, double checking the readout and rubbing her tired eyes.

A second look confirmed it. They were now running at 1189% power, nearly 12 times the power that the old power core had been able to supply.

"Holy fuck!" Dana swore animatedly, her mind racing at the possibilities this vast source of power now provided.

She shook her head in amazement and then gently patted the console.

"Looks like we've got one hell of a new heart for you." she said affectionately to the Invictus.

***

John had taken the girls on a tour of the various vast canyons and floating plateau cities that covered the surface of Ashana. The girls had thoroughly enjoyed the views out over the distinctive terrain on the reddish-orange surface of the planet and they had finally stopped for lunch by a waterfall that dropped off into a seemingly bottomless chasm. The refracting light above the waterfall had formed spectacular rainbows and they had admired the crystal clear colours as they ate their picnic in the scenic spot. It reminded them of the ambush from the pirate heavy cruiser and their narrow escape through the ice fields, which had reflected the light in the same dazzling way.