Chapter 5: Chapter 2.1: Journey

      “What the hell is this?” Journey Chase gasped as she looked down at the set of uniforms on the table. She was standing at the quartermaster’s office, which was situated next to the embarkation ramp. She was so close to boarding the Star of Argon, and yet looking down at the assortment of garments laid before her, Journey felt too embarrassed to move.

      She had been allowed a single ruck-sack to bring on board, which was fine with her. Journey had gotten used to traveling with her few belongings. The uniforms she was being given, however, were brand new, and unlike anything she had ever seen before.

      She was grateful to get accepted as a comfort liaison, although her stomach was still tight just thinking about what her duties might entail. Journey wasn’t an idiot, nor was she a fool. This also wouldn’t be the first time she exchanged sexual favors for safe passage. But those were single encounters, or the occasional one night stand. She had never been someones personal comfort liaison before…

      A thought occurred to her that she would be an officers comfort liaison. She would be assigned to him for over a year. That made her throat go dry just thinking about it. 

      The uniforms offered to her were moulded to fit her lean frame. The breast plate was a thin plastic, which gleamed a shocking pink color. The boob plates were curved so that they would fit over her bust comfortably, and even sported nipple buds for some bizarre reason. 

      The pink plastic frame came with shoulder guards. They showed off a crisp badge bearing the ships seal. The words Comfort Liaison were etched along the neck line in thin gold letters. The suit came with white latex stockings, and garter straps. The underwear tying it all together was a laminated latex material that felt strangely like silk. 

      “I have to wear this?” She asked in disbelief.

      “Only on duty,” the answer came from the ships quartermaster. He had fourteen uniforms for her, each were the same. He also had given her a data pad, photo ID’s, and a collection of prescribed medications. 

      He continued, “During your free time, you may wear whatever you wish.”As if that mattered, Journey’s lip twitched. 

      “What’re the meds for?” Journey felt goosebumps just looking at them. Each of the pills were fairly large, but it was the needles that caused her hands to shake.

      “Standard inoculations for newcomers, with additional treatments assigned to comfort liaisons.” He pointed to the three capsules with blue spirals, “These are cryo-genetic beta enhancers, for when you spend the first six months of the voyage in hibernation.”

      Journey planted a hand on her hip and dipped her chin, “Hibernation? Really?”

      “This is a year and a half voyage Ms. Chase. To save on supplies, eighty percent of the crew will spend the first six months in deep hibernation.”

      She just raised an eyebrow. This wouldn’t be the first time she had been in hyper-sleep, but Journey wasn’t fond of it. Going to sleep wasn’t the issue, it was waking up. The feeling of every nerve shocking to life, as blood flow resumed after a cold freeze, was agonizing. Not to mention the hypothermia, nausea, and stabbing migrains that quickly proceeded the rejuvination. 

      “Meanwhile,” The quartermaster continued, “This injection contains a temporary reproductive suppressant. In other words, It’s a birth control. While I’m not a doctor, I am required to inform you that it will suspend your ovulation cycle for no longer than one year.” 

      The quartermaster paused a moment to look over a series of notes, and then coughed into a napkin. “I should also warn you; heightened fertility rates are a common symptom, following the medicine’s expiration date.”

      Journey rolled her eyes, “That’s a suspicious amount of information for a quartermaster.”

      “I’m merely repeating what’s on the notice labels.” He shrugged, “That and I’ve had to repeat this for every new passenger.” 

      It was then that Journey saw the exhaustion buried in the quartermasters face. The lines of his forehead were creased, and the bags under his eyes seemed a shade darker when he sighed. 

      The officer seemed middle aged, although with regenerate treatments anything was possible. He could have been a hundred, as far as Journey could tell. He was tall, lean, and had a long face with a strong nose. The mustache over his lip was thin and grey, It didn’t match his short dark hair. 

      “I’ve had to say this to all comfort liaison’s today,” The quartermaster groaned, “It has been awkward every single time.”

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      Whatever, Journey thought to herself. Regardless, she already had an appointment with the ships physician within the hour. While she wasn’t looking forward to the side-affects, birth control would probably be a good thing right about now.

       The quartermaster then pointed to the next set of medications, the one Journey was not excited about. “These two injections are mild sedatives, your first few hours aboard a starship are always prone to bouts of sickness as you get used to the sudden change of gravity.”

      Journey nodded. She understood that concept, although the previous sedates she had to take were not injections. 

      “What about this last one?” She asked about the last injection with a pink label.

      “That’s an anti-bacterial inoculation. It’s been combined with a mutagen-factor that will prevent further infection for the length of the voyage. It’s to prevent further sexually transmitted diseases from developing on the ship.” The quartermaster answered her delicately.

      “That’s possible?”

      He nodded, “throw hundreds of people in a closed environment, have them share the same food and water for months, and you would be surprised with what new, and nasty, microbes could crop up. This is to help mitigate that threat.”

      It made sense. Journey picked up the tray of meds and swallowed. “Do I take them here?” She asked.

      “You can.” He seemed to catch her hesitation, “If you prefer, I can summon the ships physician to help you. Either way you cannot board until you’ve taken them all. If you’re comfortable with self-injecting, the needle is quick and thin, you’ll barely feel a thing. I can also supply you with swabs to numb the skin if your overly sensitive.”

      Journey nodded. She wasn’t overly sensitive, but didn’t like the pinch anyway. She didn’t feel a need to ask for the doctor, this wasn’t her first time sticking an injection. Each transport she had taken to get to Galli required this of her. In fact, this was the first shuttle that even had a physician to help. 

      Journey cringed, remembering the first time she had to inject herself, it was a simple sedative that made her feel wonky. It was absolutely terrifying having to do it herself, she chose a poor location on her arm, and it still hurt just thinking about it. 

      “Let’s just get this over with,” Journey sighed. It was taxing, just trying to keep her anxiety at bay.

      The pills were hard to swallow, even with a full cup of recycled water to help them go down. It took her a few minutes after the pills to collect herself for the first injection. She chose a spot on her hip, where she could pinch a tiny layer of fat with her fingers. It was a small trick she learned on her second voyage. 

      Each inoculation was a prickle against her skin. The first few were quick, with practiced skill. Thankfully, the sedatives helped take the edge off as well. The last injection was the most severe, causing her to jolt and shriek as the needle pumped a rather large load of liquid into her flesh. 

      Journey yanked the needle out as soon as she finished, and threw it on the tray. “That last one hurt!”

      The quartermaster simply shrugged. “Sorry, I hoped the sedatives would help prevent that. The last injection is prone to being rather more unpleasant.”

      “You don’t say!” Journey stammered in frustration.

      He didn’t seem to care for the humor. “You’ll be assigned to the officer’s deck. Room B19. In there, you’ll find everything else you need. An account has also been opened to carry your incremental wages, along with the bonus stipend. I advise you board the ship within the next fifteen minutes.”

      “Relax I’m going,” She sighed. Journey picked up her uniforms, stuck her tongue out toward the quartermaster, and twirled around. 

      She didn’t wait to see how he would respond. Journey quickly proceeded toward the embarkation ramp with a hop and a skip. As she crossed over the threshold to the interior of the Star of Argon, It came to her attention that she was the last passenger to board the ship. Suddenly, she felt terribly alone. A deep sense of shame washed over her. Her stomach clenched, and her heart raced as she looked down at the gaudy uniforms.

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