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"Your deeds have earned you a gift, and a star is falling."
Yes! "Incoming... "
"Lord Arne! Lord Arne! Kima heard voice say a star is falling! Kima saw orange light! So pretty!"
We just look at Kima who is so excited and starts to do her happy dance, and it kind of make sense if the Star Fall is for copper, since Kima did explore the cave and found the really good ore. The Star Fall announcement is echoed by the others and we all smile, with a couple of high fives.
Xuela watch from above as our retrieval team of Kima, Bokyli and Vekalie soon returns and it is again several packages, and the two obvious is the heavy sledge and pickaxe looking things with dark blue handles. Technically Kima did mine the ore so both make sense. Kima just didn't need to use tools. But we can use them for stone work here on the cliff, and proper tools are very nice to have, so I also appreciate the blue marked tool roll with two smaller half hammer-pickaxes, a hammer, tong, pliers and two files. I would say the blue Star Fall was for a combination of mining and producing metal from ore. Had the DAB's even considered that someone would make iron from bacteria and dirt in a stream? Getting iron from dinosaur blood might give a reward. We should get working on that.
The are two red packages, but both are flexible. As soon as I see the dark brown pattern style, I feel the material, and it is no doubt it is armour material matching Bokyli's corset in look. The pieces don't make much sense until we figure out it is a matching short skirt add-on and long armed top with a high collar. So keeping the look that Bokyli loves, which also annoys Reiley, but combined with her combat corset Bokyli now have good arm, neck, torso and lower body armour. Just head, hands and from knees down will be unprotected, and I'm relieved that Bokyli got more armour.
It is a bit worrying that both Xuela and Queral have commented on how pretty they think Bokyli's corset is. Then again, both like big contrasts and black, and go for fashion before common sense, although Queral have enough common sense to want camouflage and armour in this dangerous world. And guns. Big, big fecking guns.
The second red package is another camouflage armoured coverall and likely for Kima, since she did get the notification. Also, even after all that has happened, Xuela still won't wear camouflage like ours as her every day clothes even if it is armour, and admittedly it would make her more visible against the sky. Xuela have started praying for something pretty since Seyrla's attack did scare her, but Xuela have accepted one of the camouflage capes and store it folded up in her 'rucksack', as it does feel good to have if she have to take cover on the ground, especially if it is really pouring down. Koru have her very good shark tested armour she is satisfied with, so Xuela, Vekalie, Queral and Nilma are now the only ones without armour. Well, we have those body armour vests for Queral and Vekalie, although I expect that most will insist I start wearing one of those body armours too now that Kima have a coverall.
But, I have been thinking, and it is possible to modify a body armour vest. The material can be cut or made a hole through, especially if a very hot tool is used as the material will even be welded together like nylon, but the body armour vest splits in a front piece with pockets and a back piece without. The material also attach to itself in the overlap, so by just folding it to make a loop and using straps, one piece would work as front and side body armour for two people, and without a back piece even Xuela could wear that, and in Queral's case the vest half would cover pretty much her whole back too. So Queral, Xuela, Vekalie and Nilma could have body armour. Damn. We actually have at least some proper armour for everyone, and three Star Fall bows and two Star Fall crossbows. Plus a few good bows and crossbows. Plus plenty of other good weapons, or tools that will work as weapons.
When I peek into the small white package, I just sigh. This time it's probably for Bokyli, and just my look on them, means that Xuela and Koru also understand the content and smile, and Reiley sigh and point to Bokyli who smilingly takes the package without saying anything while curiously peeking inside. I hope the DAB's include the lingerie as an extra bonus just because they find the whole thing damn funny, instead of it replacing really useful stuff.
Crap; they are damn alien bastards, so it's probably replacing useful stuff.
I need to talk with Reiley and Bokyli to stop that praying as they now have more lingerie than other clothes. Kima, Vekalie, Nilma and Queral just looks confused, but doesn't say anything. Crap. Vekalie might start to pray too in a couple of weeks. Will I actually start to care more about Vekalie as she change to look more human, or will the sex? Or won't I start to have feelings for her like I have for Bokyli? Those are interesting thought, and I will try to remember to be attentive of that, since I really want to avoid it.
The final large white package contain four more camouflage rucksacks, and truthfully I won't complain about that since they're good, and this group now have nine people. Me, Reiley and Bokyli use ours a lot, and the last one have seen a lot of use from Koru or Vekalie. Now almost everyone can have their own, and Queral have her small decorated back and can't carry much anyway, so Koru and Vekalie gets their own since they do carry stuff. Just like the armour material the rucksack material is quite cut and puncture resistant and waterproof, and can be cut and melted together with a very hot tool, or sewn together. There isn't much material in a rucksack, but we might make something else from the material. Like simple camouflage clothes to combine with a vest, or maybe gloves or more hats. Gloves would be nice, but sewing good seams that won't chafe is hard. And exterior seams are not ideal. Frankly, leg and foot protection for Bokyli and Vekalie would be nice, just to protect against sharp rocks and branches.
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We have gotten unbelievably much stuff over the last two weeks, and it's mostly been blue Star Falls with several bonuses each time, so tech levels have proven very worthy to focus on, and Reiley and Bokyli is so smugly proud over me, while Xuela is pleased with her decision to join our team, and to be careful who she directed here. Koru just gets more certain that surrendering and oath bounding herself to me was the best decision she made since waking up in this world. Kima, Vekalie, Queral and Nilma have no real baseline since they been with us for just a couple of days, and we told them we don't expect to get this much gear in the future, but Vekalie seems quite pleased to be here, and according to Bokyli she really like to be part of a group again and have a nice home instead of being alone and running, and Vekalie have decided to stay. With all the consequences that will have.
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I'm lying in bed with Bokyli, and I truthfully enjoy our after sex snuggles way too much, which isn't good considering my relationship with Reiley. There will be no cuddling with Vekalie. Instead of cuddling with Bokyli, I should shower and make myself ready for going to sleep with Reiley, and the scented soap will help cover Bokyli's scent on my body. Bokyli is playfully toying with the whip as we talk about the 'clothes' intended for Seyrla. It's damn hard to decide what information to tell them about anything, and trying to explain about human inventiveness when it comes to sex is especially hard. It's not like Reiley or Bokyli have had sex education or something like the internet since before puberty, and just the lingerie or how we have huge shops filled with clothes like that, is very alien for them. It's good that just the fairly benign sex stuff are way out there for them, so the truly hard to explain stuff isn't a subject, although Tiola told Reiley way too much.
Bokyli is pleased about the stiletto heels for Seyrla, and obviously know about the high heeled pair Reiley got a couple of weeks ago. Those high heels actually fit Reiley's feet, and after trying them on Reiley got the DAB's joke as she can't understand why anyone would wear high heels even on hard flat floor. But Bokyli is basically running on her toe hoofs all the time, and like that human women have shoes to change their posture and sort of do the same thing. And that it is considered sexy. I have not told her about heel less heels and similar things, but I bet Bokyli would be pleased that they exist. I might be slightly annoyed that they have gotten four lingerie packages, but I don't complain about seeing them in lingerie, and Bokyli looks damn sexy in her new black set. Honestly, seeing how she is playing with that whip and stroking herself or me as she smiles, is kind of hot, and her lovely glowing eyes are like magnets for mine. Except her feet, four fingers, tail and horns, Bokyli could just be a human woman in body makeup with short hair, and humans do body mods, wear contact lenses and there are those with more fingers and toes. With the right covering clothes, accessories and makeup Bokyli would not really stand out in human society, especially in some situations. Neither would Reiley, but even with makeup her face would attract far more attention than Bokyli.
Of course the subject of if this will be our life, or if there is a way to get back, have come up, but I have not told them about the yellow Star Fall. I don't know how many it will take, and if it is something like 8 just for me, even that is very unlikely to be achieved. So no use dangling that bait or having that as a true goal for our lives here. To be honest that also proves that the damn alien bastards really are assholes as most people ending up here have practically no chance of ever leaving. If people had volunteer that would be one thing, but forced? Bastards. There is also the issue about actually returning home to Earth. There will be a lot of questions, and going back to my old life will probably not be possible. Who knows how much time have passed on Earth if there is some Faster Than Light time compression? Or they just stuck me in some kind of time freezing chamber where 1 day for me was 1 year on Earth. Even though Reiley or Bokyli might blend in fairly well, bringing them back to Earth will also be a no-go for obvious reasons they haven't really understood, and I haven't told them about.
So the only option if I want to leave and have a life with them, is in some Alien civilization, which will be hard and probably need a lot of money. And the damn alien bastards must understand that. It makes me kind of wish this is some alien game show transmitted across galactic civilizations, and that the winners becomes filthy rich. I don't know if gold have any value out there, but we got some and I will store it just in case. It's far more likely that something personal and unique would sell for far more, if there is a similar fandom like shows on Earth can have.
I would still kick the damn alien bastards responsible in the balls or do much worse, and maybe it is possible to get away with murder if you're famous and filthy rich. Unfortunately, I think it is very likely that 'winners' will have the same fate as the winners in that 1980s Schwarzenegger movie 'Running Man', i.e. dead and CGI is used to lure the public that they're alive and happy. Especially if they win by being a murderous asshole.
Still, it's good to have goals even if they're distant and unlikely. So:
Step 1: Try to accumulate yellow Star Falls, without becoming a total murderous asshole.
Step 2: Leave this planet, preferably with Reiley and Bokyli.
Step 3: Kick the damn alien bastards in charge in the balls, or maybe murder them.
Step 4: Try to have a happy and long life in luxury.
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The End of Book 1