by Robert Lyon
“What about the chain of command?” Hauldbalm got irritated and said, “That is what got us here in the first place and given your role in the trial you were the last person I expected to try and stay in the ‘I out rank work’ category.” Brosuer with his arms folded seemed to be brushing flies away from the elbow nearest the master chief as he uttered softly while nodding,
“okay, okay, okay”
Artimus drew near the end of his speech stating clearly as though he were still in charge, “I won’t have you making me a liar and go to war, with your shipmates. They were your friends and they are just trying to survive, and if I were still a captain that would be an order to you and them, but I expect you’ll still stand for what is right and in this case, obvious.”
Were it not for his somewhat obvious, or at least obvious to some, manipulations this might have been an acceptable management technique. But, he had a tendency to disgrace people that were about to receive a medal with an equally disgraceful ‘initiation’. He once tried to award a sailor with the medal of valor, the initiation was to have a three gallon bucket of horse semen dumped over the sailor first, the medal was refused and it is rumored that man returned with Dave’s wife’s head in a box, and showed it to him then disposed of all the remains. This was Dave’s karma; that is, both his fate
derived from his personality traits, and just a manifestation of his passive aggressive ‘intensity’. He was an ideal candidate to command a Spruance class destroyer.
Once Artimus finished his speech Gunners mate Smity asked the crowd, “Is that not your Captain?” QM2 Koleson responded, “I think I can answer that.” Artimus’s entire body braced and he held himself back in a manner befitting a man, then turned and walked away.
Chief Casius said inquisitively, “Maybe we should give him a second chance?” To which Chief Carl quickly responded, “Fuck you.”
For Artimus it was now or never, he would put it all on the table and do the unthinkable. He would head over to the beach front beneath the cliff and enter what had become the enlisted club, an act of flagrant disrespect to the privacy and dignity of the enlisted man. To imply the need for formality and respect for station in that type of social environment was an intrusive abuse of rank. As he turned the corner and saw the enlisted there their eyes went wide, this is where they go when they are on the verge of killing an officer. Their fists clinched and Artimus knew that that one piece of obscure tradition and etiquette not being adhered to might cost him not only his political play but perhaps an eye or a lung as well.
Artimus avoided making eye contact and announced,
“I’ve just spoken with the senate and things could get worse. I knew this is where you relax and I’ll be brief…I’m just going to say it; I am offering to be your captain again. I think it should be made a vote over on the beach head.” Then he turned and walked away listening for the sound of gorilla enlisted storming him from behind. He headed straight to the pentagon to once again piss in ‘his spot’. His shifted contextualization’s were
intentional, even if misplaced. He had in effect started a rumor in the enlisted club that there was talk of restoring him as captain, he had made his negotiations seem dangerous and heroic, he had made a play for power and had not yet revealed that there was to be a trade authority, he had implied he accepted his loss of authority, and that doom lies on the horizon. All in total a typical Navy captain of the sunken ship variety, but he was banking on increased productivity under his stewardship and he was in fact found guilty at trial, by his own crew, of criminal neglect. For this Captain, that was a ‘winning’ formula
.
It didn’t take long for the agitation in the enlisted club to set in. They returned at such a hurried pace it looked as though they would break into a run and start a tackling assault of the first people they came across.
‘Why did you send him over there?’ was their first question and it seemed like their second question though mixed with doubt and insecurity, reducing their assertion to near gibberish was, ‘What are we going to do without him?’
Branson asked, “What is he doing now?” Milson responded, “Well boats, it seems he won’t let us die after all.”
Branson pointed at the judges table and asked, “What are those?” Milson smirked and said, “That’s what he got for us.”
Branson and Cair walked up and stirred the dominos after flipping the face down and selected the middle tile then commenced a game of dominos.
Cair said, “I know this sounds silly but as far as things he could get us this is pretty good.” Milson replied, “I got the winner next game.” Branson looked at him with a blank psychotic look and asked, “You play dominos?” Milson said,
“I’m better at pool, but ya.” Branson laughed and said, “You
ain’t got a chance…you don’t have your cowboy boots on.” Cair snickered and covered his mouth just before he bent over with laughter as if he were holding in his dentures. Branson looked over at the crowd watching the group that had stayed exclusively at the enlisted club since it started with the exception of getting food and said, “If he’s still a captain then I’m still a first class.
Deck division, quarters in the morning for work detail! Consider today a Sunday.”
Ensign Clarkson had a huge smile draw crossed her face and glanced at Swishzel. Swishzel glanced around at the crowd and noticed everyone seemed to accept the order. Then he glanced at Ensign Lees and he too was grinning ear to ear.
Artimus heard what was said from within the pentagon and his cabin boy stepped in and asked, “Sir, did you call for quarters in the morning.” Artimus sighed a sigh of relief and replied, “Here, let me explain a few things to you. Come sit in my lap.” Wildly gulped loudly and followed that order.
As Clarkson headed to the pentagon to inform her captain she saw Lieutenant Capes dart out of the pentagon toward her and he asked, “You weren’t going in there were you?” She asked smugly, “Why?” Capes answered, “Their doing professional development again.” Becky scoffed, “I thought he agreed it was just a delirium of fever?” Koleson standing nearby interjected in a comically feminine inflection, “He’s had more of those than you realize.” Jane stepped up and retorted, “Oh bullshit you bitch. It’s just sexually, he’s evil.”
Once again we sat at the end of our day in the boiler site tallying our day of survival. The fishing was done and once again successful, the water had been made, we had finished the cistern but waited the drying of the cement, and had built a wall.
We started setting ourselves up to fall asleep next to those we
trusted and were comfortable with and drifted to sleep by the faint light of the boiler fires. The gate for the wall would be up soon and this time I caught an interloper. I had hoped at first it was another boar, instead a female of the militant camp had apparently been practicing our sleeping ritual of ‘safe comfort’ for weeks.
Atrisia slipped in and lay beside Tommi and took her hand. Tommi whimpered and rolled over turning her back to
Atrisia and Atrisia nuzzled in with a sigh of contentment.
Tommi began to dream; She was on a wooden ship dressed in coveralls and from the decks she hear a rumble bellow and the Captain yelled for her to investigate and report, but the captain was not Artimus it was Capes. She replied, “Aye,
Aye sir.” and rushed down a short wooden stair well striking below. From the glow of the kerosene lanterns she saw a hull plank kick in, in such a way that it should have broken or spilt water and a wooden barrel fell over and rolled to her.
As the barrel approached her she felt a Hot breath against her ear and just before she turned to look again the hull planks jumped inward, this time spilling some sea water. Tommi gasped and tried to run but her legs were intangled in a coil of line that had fallen on the deck. She reached up to a net in the overhead and pulled up to free herself from the line. As she did her shirt pulled tight and lifted exposing her midriff to the warm breeze that now filled the inside of the s
hip. She briefly considered that there may be a fire and realized this was not the destroyer she had served on but another ship. She pulled hard on the net and the buttons of her shirt popped off revealing her breast and warm drips of water landed on her nipples feeling like warm wax.
The hull smacked again and the hull planks broke sea water spilled in and began to flood the ship. There in the murk dark waters was some sort of creature swimming around and
Tommi yelled, “Shark!!” She heard mummers from the deck above her and realized they hadn’t heard her. She kicked at the line around her boots and knock her boats off and the line fell away, but her hands were now trapped in the net. As she struggled she realized she had forgotten her belt and feared one of the men discovering her predicament, the very notion of being caught that way made her body tingle down her spine. She decided to flip upside down and use her feet to free herself from the net, but could not manage to get her feet that high and the creature in the water was alerted to her by her movement. She saw one dark eye press up against the hull. The creatures body was slick and shiny black, it was so large it blocked the hole in the hull stopping the water. She thought, ‘that must be a whale’ but then there was a shrill and tentacles slid up through the water and wrapped around her naked legs. Tommi quivered in fear, feeling a slimmy black tentacle slithering up her leg feeling for a path along her leg to take her down. Tommi moaned short and soft sighs as the octopus slammed the hull again.
The tentacle had reached the upper slop of her hip and began to entwine itself around her thigh. She felt the suction cups biting at her ass. She whispered to herself, “Don’t let it go in, don’t let it go in.” She cried out, “Please!!” and the tentacle released then slapped up again sharply at her ass then slid down like a tongue between her buttocks right against the soft sensitive anus. Tommi let out shuttering breaths and moaned loudly, she knew one of the men would hear, but she needed help and it was time to sacrifice her pride to save her life.
The tentacle wrapped tightly and painfully around her right tigh and tickled at her knee by sliding back and forth like a tongue lick a lollipop. From out of the spraying sea water came an explosion of blood and a second tentacle grabbed her left ankle and pulled sharply as if to split her in half. She felt hot water pouring down her chest from the overhead, run down her labia and down her thigh. And a tentacle passed like a stealthy cat over the net and around it grabbing her chest, pressing against her breasts forcefully. It then crawled with tingles up and around her neck and chocked her so that she could barely breath.
And yet another tentacle rose out of the water to try and tare her in two, it pressed hard on her exposed labia and lips. She finally managed to free one of her hand and reached down pulling it away from her, but the tentacle slid between her hands and penetrated her pussy. Tommi screamed in fear and pain, then realized it didn’t hurt and feared she might not feel the pain because she was dying.
She began to faint from being strangled and her trapped hand came free. She reached down with both hands pulling at the tentacle penetrating her and just when she thought she would succeed in removing it, it would turn soft and slip through her hands like warm butter. The tentacle around her neck loosened and the tip slipped a crossed her lips. Tommi realized the beast was tasting her and it was the blood of her monthly cycle that had drawn it. The octopus drank from her vagina as she hung there impaled on a slippery black tentacle covered in slime and only as firm as it need to be to get what it wanted. Instead of trying to grasp her arms and hands the octopus was content to squeeze her chest and chock her as he held open her legs at the ankles and bracing her right thigh. The tentacle had become hot as it drank and Tommi realized she was
strong and powerful, no other woman she knew would survive this.
She kicked the tentacle from her left ankle and it released her, but that tentacle had been supporting her weight and now with more of her weight upon the impaling tentacle her lips pulled away from each other painfully. She cried out, “Oh god!!” The tentacle that had been holding her ankle and pulling her apart now licked at her anus, and the one that had brushed against her lower lip and left slime had now covered her mouth as though to regain that slime so as to leave no trace.
Tommi fought to pull the tentacle from her chest and watched as her breasts under that pressure wept with milk from her nipples, in shock she cried out, “I can’t get pregnant!!”
Atrisia lying next to Tommi felt her go into fever and noticed her breathing was short and labored. Atrisia whispered in Tommi’s ear, “That’s right bitch get some.” Atrisia loosened
Tommi’s belt and slipped her hand down into her panties all the while with a smug smile on her face. Atrisia found what she had expected, Tommi was hot, wet, and swollen. Atrisia moistened
Tommi’s clitoris with her own fluids, then slipped her hand up to Tommi’s mouth and moisten her lips and dabbed at her nose so that she would smell and taste herself.
Then she reached into her own pants, free of panties she could not be caught dead in she moisten her own clitoris and then moistened Tommi’s lips with her fluids and dabbed at her nose after drawing again from her own well of lust. The she reached in and tickled at Tommi’s anus while hugging her tight a crossed the breasts. Tommi shifted, rocking herself trying to escape that grasp in her sleep while Atrisia sniffed at the back of her neck and tasted the sweat there, all the while rubbing herself into an orgasmic frenzy. Atrisia let out sharp breaths with a
‘utsht utsht’ sound. Then slowly slipped away from Tommi, whispering in her ear, “I hope your pussy aches for me all night you tease.” Then she left through the gate.
I had hoped I was dreaming but none the less that gate was a priority for tomorrow. The next morning we awoke at about the same time and Tommi headed back into the bushes, she called out to Joseph that she needed some help untangling some line. Joseph pulled back his unkempt hair and checked his fly, as he walked over to the bushes he said, “I’ve heard that one before.” I looked over at Michelle, she lay there staring at me and used her finger to signal me over then pointed at her feet. As
I moved toward her I said, “I had a fucked up dream and we’ve got to get that gate done today.” She replied, “Uh ha and again pointed at her feet with a sly smile.” Athena sat up and interjected, “Okay, well I’m going for my morning shit.” Dave
Miles replied, “Bury it please, I stepped in the last one.” Tim commented, “I think that was mine.” I watched Athena’s ass sway as she walked away and saw her pull her panties from her ass crack then looked back at Michelle. Michelle looked at me sternly and said in a loud whispered, “Feet.”
Chapter Eleven
Life begins
We had just finished the sixth rib for the ship ‘Woodenpeg’ and decide to try and make them in groups of three. We had dug a vent for the heat to travel up a hill and bubble out of a mud puddle steaming the wood. For that paper bellows assembly I actually considered a wind vane, but that would have required too many on planning, and pulled resources for something that
was just as well manual labor. I had a project I had been concealing and the time I had available for it came in spurts.
As we laid the last of the individually made ribs we had a celebration. We sang songs composed of misheard lyrics as we lashed the rib to the keel and used what still vaguely resembled keys to wheedle out holes for fastening pegs and dowels. We figured once they were seal by smoke and glued by tree sap they would absolutely hold as though it had grown that way. Some said they felt like they were building a cathedral, so we used one of the vases to baptize them when they least expected it. As the cistern filled use of water became more liberal and Michelle’s feet were finally clean!
We took those scraps of hide from the one boar we had taken so far and hollowed out some wood and made bongos, or at least a couple of drums of sorts. Tim turned out to be alright with leather working and said once we had enough he’d make himself a bomber jacket.
The drums were play
ing as a myriad of former sailors placed the first layer of hull planks. Athena’s clay ocarina played an upbeat tune like birds at play, and we danced passing bread and fish and our newly discovered leeches, the only fruit of the island in season.
Tournaments of dominos and Chinese checkers filled the early day; we danced as though it were a completion and sang together as one choir. Male verses female wrestling matches were my favorite, the trick was knowing when to let her win. It was a completion amongst the men to hit exactly the right moment to let her turn the tides, and the bragging was based on the after effect of her amorous aggressions, no one amongst us could deny that a ‘win’ was in fact a ‘win’.
Joseph Leos was quite skilled at losing to Tommi Gruble, but he had been practicing since before the wrestling matches were conceived. Against Athena Williams I lost well and she was very stirred; but against Michelle, I thought I was going to become barefoot and pregnant. Michael was the worst when he wrestled Jennifer, he didn’t let her win at all but she seemed to find the fear of him not stopping just as exciting as finally being on top was for the other women. When it came to Tim we couldn’t form a consensus, to some he appeared very good, to others the repeated knee to his groin seemed absolutely real and
Michelle had never done that to me but in Tim’s case she wouldn’t stop until he sounded like a female cartoon character crying about her acorns.