John woke up early the next morning, still cuddled up tight to Niki. A quick check confirmed his pants were still on, and he didn't get an accidental thigh job or anything while he was sleeping. He was almost surprised about that, and maybe a little disappointed.

  Damn it, man, calm the heck down. You are not a horny teenager, no matter what DEN is doing to you!

  Niki appeared to be asleep still and was purring softly in his arms.

  Hmm... I should do something nice for her. How about breakfast in bed? That should work. Now, how do I extract myself without waking her?

  He slowly got out of bed, wrapping her back up in the bnket, and made his way down to the galley. He started to py with the food synth again, amazed once again with how it worked.

  "This is great. I can make whatever I want, as much as I want, but it only contains the calories I need. Too bad some of it tastes weird. Oh, I should register Niki in the ships system so it registers her as a crew member." He said to himself, then opened up his Link. A few strokes ter, and Niki was registered as a member of the ship's company.

  John had a quick bite of food, then loaded up another breakfast on a tray, along with a couple of coffees. He made his way back to his cabin, where Niki was still passed out on the bed. He set the tray down on the nightstand and sat on the bed beside her.

  "Niki, wake up." He said softly. She didn't stir. He shook her shoulder lightly and repeated himself.

  "Mmm... that smells good," She said, her eyes slowly opening. She blinked a few times, then looked up at him. "Oh, Master, did you make this for me?"

  "Yes, I did. I figured you needed it." He replied, smiling down at her.

  "You shouldn't have, Master, it's not right for you to serve your IDS in bed, that's my job!" She said, sounding indignant.

  "Okay, Niki, we need to talk about this Master thing. I really don't like it in everyday situations."

  "But, you are my Master, Master."

  "Sure, but I would prefer John. Or if we are in public, Sir or Captain, if you don't want to call me John."

  "When we are not in public, then?"

  John sighed. "Fine, if we are alone, you can call me Master, but I would really prefer that you call me John."

  "Okay, Master." She said with a slight smirk on her face.

  "You really don't want to call me by my name, do you?"

  "I don't think it is right, Master. If the wrong person hears me, your IDS, calling you by name, they could cause you problems. I would rather you didn't have any more problems because of me."

  Is that really a thing? I will have to investigate that further with Katrina. Still, I want to mess with her a little bit.

  "Fine. Now, as your Master, I wanted to pamper my IDS before she begins her day of training. You are not allowed to compin, understand." He said, changing his voice to sound a little sterner.

  "Yes, Sir." She replied.

  "Good, now sit up. I am going to feed you breakfast."

  "Umm... you are going to... feed me?" She said, sounding nervous.

  "Yep. No compints! Now sit!" He said, a rge smile forming on his face.

  "Okay... Master." She replied, a confused look on her face.

  She sat up, and John pulled the tray closer to them. "Open up." He said and started to feed her breakfast. She looked a little annoyed and embarrassed when he 'missed' her mouth a couple times, dabbing her nose with something that looked like mashed potatoes but tasted like eggs. He didn't care; she was cute even with a little of the faux potato on her nose.

  After a few more minutes of messing around, John let her finish her breakfast on her own. "When you are done, go get dressed and meet me in the cockpit. It is just at the far end of this deck. Then we will get started on your training."

  "Yes, Master." She said, her cheeks still flushed in embarrassment from the feeding.

  "Oh, and take this pill. It will help you retain the information more easily." He said, handing her a ball of Substance X. He took one as well, as he would be training as well.

  "What is it?" She asked, her gaze fixed intently on the bck marble.

  "It is called Substance X. Consider it a health product that lets you learn things more easily. There are a few side effects, but as long as you don't drink alcohol with it, you should be fine. I have been using it for a while now."

  "What happens if you drink alcohol with it?"

  "Umm... well, for me it removes my filter and acts almost like a truth serum. I tend to overshare my thoughts if I mix them. Still, its benefits outweigh the drawbacks. Oh, and don't take it in the evening unless you want to stay up all night, it acts like a stimunt."

  "Okay, I'll try it." She said and swallowed the pill.

  "Good. See you in a little bit." He said, then left the room.

  John made his way there and sat down in his command chair. "Okay, let's see. Most mercs tend to be te risers, apparently, but the dwarves and Ash went to deal with Serena's accident st night. Tanya and Chris are probably asleep, though Chris might be awake, dealing with that pod. Greg could still be with Serena. I have no idea about Ash, but she is Serena’s friend as well, so she might still be there. Let's start with Chris."

  *Beep, Beep*

  "Morning, Hoss, what are ya doing up before the crack of Noon? Ain't ya a merc?" Chris said when she answered his call.

  "Morning to you too. Yeah, I heard that mercenaries tend to sleep all day. Not my thing." He replied.

  "All the better then. My yabouts, whom I call family and friends, could learn a thing or two from ya. What's up?"

  "I was just about to ask you the same thing. How did st night go?"

  "To shit. After we split up, we made it to the dock. Had to argue with the dockmaster fer a bit, but eventually got our hands on the pod, or rather what is left of it. Once we got it back here, I have been going over the remains, and yeah, it's pretty much a complete write-off. I doubt I will be able to salvage much more than a few parts from inside the cockpit."

  "Damn. How is Serena doing?"

  "No idea, Tanya joined Greg and Ash over there and didn't come back yet. Probably fell asleep there."

  "So no updates then. I'm going to give them a call and check in."

  "Alright. I'm going to keep trying to strip the remains of this thing fer parts. If they ask, just tell 'em he needs to buy a new pod."

  "Will do. Take care." John said, then finished up the call. He then dialed Greg, but there was no answer, so he tried Tanya.

  "Morning Hoss, *Yawn*, How ya hanging?" Tanya answered, sounding like she just woke up.

  Pretty hard considering Niki has been rubbing my crotch all night, but I won't tell her that.

  "Probably better than you guys. How is Serena?"

  "Ahh... She got off light, all things considered. Some severe burns and a fractured hip. Some spinal injuries. Nothing a few sessions with the Auto-Doc can't handle. The Doc says she and Annie will be unconscious until tomorrow at the earliest, but should mend up fine."

  "That's good. Do you want me to come by and use my magic on her? I might be able to hasten that process."

  "Hmm... I'll ask Greg when he wakes up. Ya think ya can do better than the Auto-Doc?"

  "Honestly, I don't know. On my own body, no, but I have healed some pretty nasty wounds before. I remember this one guy had a lot of the skin and muscles in his hand shredded off. It festered for days, and he honestly should have lost the limb, but I managed to fix it." John said, thinking about Bazaan.

  Tanya didn't say anything for a moment, and when she finally replied, John realized he made a mistake. "Wait, are your memories coming back?"

  Shit!

  "Huh, I'm not sure... I remember healing a guy, but... I am having a hard time putting a name and face to him. I have a few glimpses of my past like that." He said, hating that he needed to lie again.

  "That is great! That means your memories are returning! You should stop by the hospital here. We can get the doc to take a look at you after you help Serena."

  Fuck... I don't... what should I do?

  "Sure, I'll stop by sometime this evening and check her out. Oh, Chris wanted me to pass on the bad news about the pod. She says it is a complete write off." He said, changing the subject.

  "Shit. Greg is going to hate that."

  "Why? I mean, I know he supported her racing as a sponsor, but why would he hate it?"

  "Some weird cuse in the sponsor contract. He gets a percentage of her winnings but also a percentage of her losses."

  "That is weird."

  "Tell me about it. I've never heard of an investor being held liable for damages the owner does, but apparently it is pretty common in pod racing."

  "But why? Makes no obvious sense."

  "You would have to talk with Greg about it. I have no idea about the business side, I just watch the races."

  "Speaking of, how is he doing?"

  "Good. He passed out waiting for Serena's assessment. I'll let him nap a bit longer, then drag his ass home."

  "Seems they are close."

  "Yeah. Truth be told, Greg was dating her brother, back when he was also a mercenary. Sadly, he had to return home and take over their *Yawn* house or something like that. So Greg has been watching out for her ever since. It's too bad, they made a cute couple if you could believe it. Hah, Greg always hated when I called 'em cute. *Yawn* Maybe I'll wake his ass up now, else I will pass out too."

  "Alright, you do that. I'm going get Niki ready to start her training. Let me know if you need anything."

  "*Yawn* Sounds good. Oh! Hold on to those credits fer us, eh? Our cut of the salvage. I think Greg might have done something dumb, and we'll need those creds. He wouldn't tell me what he did, though."

  Oh, I almost forgot they were supposed to get a cut of the salvage. Gd she reminded me. Wait, he did something stupid? Is he gambling again?

  "Is he gambling again?"

  "He'd better hope that isn't it, else I will kick him out an airlock. He might be able to beat Chris up, but I am undefeated fighting his bitch ass."

  "Tanya, are you going to be okay?"

  "Oh yeah, all else fails, we go home too. Father will bail his ass out."

  "Okay, well, I hope it doesn't come to that. Wake his ass up, and I'll talk to you ter."

  "Will do, Hoss, ter!" She said and hung up.

  John closed his Link, then leaned back in his chair. He was slightly concerned about whatever Greg did, but there was nothing he could do about it now.

  He wanted to call Ash and give her a piece of his mind, but he needed to ask Niki more about what the hell they had talked about yesterday first to make her want to, well, that. Without some context, he could end up shing out at her for a misunderstanding. Still, it wasn't cool to make her feel that she needed to service him that way.

  He put the Elf out of his mind for the time being and opened up the training materials Jahred sent him. Niki wants to be useful to him, and the best way to do so would be to train her and build up her self-confidence. He would focus on that and worry about the kinky Elf situation ter.

  The rest of the day went smoothly. Niki turned out to be a sponge for learning how to operate the Phoenix Hawks systems, to the point that she was teaching him by the afternoon. Sure, he could fly it, but she showed him other systems he didn't even know existed. Electronic countermeasures, active armour regeneration, and a 3D holographic dispy that provided a tactical view of the entire sor system with the aid of a bunch of probes that the ship could unch. Then there was 'The Bubble', an interdiction system that, when deployed, would draw in ships traveling at light speed nearby and force them to drop out of warp in the bubble.

  He thanked her profusely for her hard work, which made her blush and smile. He left her to it and made time to both work out and study his spell tomes. He couldn't get the barrier spell to work yet, but he made progress on another of the combat spells, Darkness. He could cast it on an object, creating a bck ball that was three feet in diameter around it. It stuck to whatever he cast it on. In theory, if he cast the spell on a person's head, they would be effectively blinded.

  Eventually, he met back up with Niki at supper time, and after a meal, he broached the subject of Ash. "Niki, st night you said something about Ash telling you something you needed to do for me? Can you tell me what she said?"

  "Oh, umm..."

  Yesterday, At The Store

  "Ahh, you're awake now? Sorry, I didn't think you would pass out at the thought of having his children. I was just teasing you." Ash said, holding Niki's head in her p. They were sitting on a bench near the changing rooms.

  "Umm... I'm sorry." Niki replied, still groggy.

  "Don't be sorry, Niki. I took it too far, I am sorry. Though I am curious, what do you want out of your time with John?"

  "My time? What do you mean?"

  "Well, you told me you have over half a million in debt to him. You have no skills, so no matter how nice he is, he will only be allowed to pay you a paltry sum of money. You will be with him for at least the next thirty years, at a minimum, possibly longer. You will be in your fifties by the time you pay him off. Now, he might pay you more once you are trained, but that will still be a significant amount of your life gone before you are free."

  "That is... I haven't really had time to think about it."

  "I know you haven't, but you need to. Do you want to have a boyfriend? A husband? A family?"

  "Of course I do, but when I got stuck with my parents' debts, I tossed that all away just to survive."

  "Well, now you don't have to worry about survival. You found John. Yeah, he is a little older than you, but is that a big deal? He is good-looking, rich, and can protect you from just about anything. Also, with the government's ws on forcing us to have children, you are in a wonderful position to have a man take care of you instead of the damn IVF treatments."

  "I umm... where are you going with this?"

  "I am just saying, Niki, that you should be proactive in pursuing him as soon as possible. Men have needs that need to be taken care of, and John is no exception. I almost wish I were in your pce."

  "Wait, you want to be indebted to him for the next few decades? Are you insane?"

  "No. Listen, I haven't told him yet, but my family... let's just say if I don't return home soon, they will send people to search for me. If I don't find some way to tie myself down somewhere or to someone, I won't be able to live out my dreams of becoming the best fighter pilot in the gaxy. If I were an IDS, by w, they couldn't touch me. If I were John's IDS, I could keep working towards my dream."

  "Then why haven't you told him that yet?"

  Ash ughed. "Yeah, that will go over well. 'Oh, John, we just met, but can you take me as an IDS and protect me from my family. Don't worry, they only have a few thousand guards at their beck and call to come and collect me.' Yeah, that will just send him running." She sighed. "Niki, I probably won't be able to make my dreams come true, but that doesn't mean I can't help you make yours possible. You want to be a trader and a mother? Well, get close to John, and he can help you make your dreams come true. You had a rough life so far; you deserve to be happy."

  "Okay then, what should I do?" Niki replied.

  "Well, first off..."

  Back To The Present

  "So yeah. She said I should try wearing that lingerie and offer myself to you. Like I said st night, I wanted that, you... I am just nervous about it." Niki said, sounding awkward.

  John just sat there doing some mental math.

  450000 x 30%... 585000 GSC. Jahred said the most I can pay an IDS Operator is 1500 GSC a month. Any more and the INP will question the transaction amounts. That would be 32 years if she didn't spend a dime of it. Holy crap, she will be attached to me for the rest of my life at that rate.

  "Master?" She said after a few moments, bringing John out of his contemptions.

  "Niki." He started and paused again. This world had different values than he did, but that didn't mean he had to compromise on his own. "Niki, thank you for sharing this with me. Still, I am not comfortable jumping into a retionship like this. You just got out of a bad situation, and you are emotionally vulnerable right now. I refuse to take advantage of you in this situation.

  In time, once you have gotten back on your feet again, we can talk about taking the next steps. I am not rejecting you, nor will I abandon you. I just want you to be in a more stable position before we consider starting a retionship together." He said, expining his thoughts.

  "O-okay. Ahh, Master, can we still cuddle at night at least? I haven't slept that soundly for years." She asked sheepishly.

  Oh, you are pying a dangerous game, John. She is so adorable, but I fear she is hiding a tiger beneath her innocence.

  "Sure." He said, knowing he missed sleeping next to someone, too. He really needed to see Nanael again.

  I am so going to hell.

  They finished up their dinner with some small talk, then John returned to his room to have a bath before heading to the hospital. He was gd he had that conversation with her, but that left him confused about what to do about that Elf. He y back and submerged himself in the water, making a pn to confront her soon.

  But what should I do?