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“Why are we back here?” John asked as Yutsi led him through the main doors of the Combat Arena.

Once Zorna’s ship had left the station, John had been instructed to follow the Security Chief for the day. She had led him out of the docking bay, through the station’s many corridors, onto the main concourse and then towards the Combat Arena.

“I have reviewed the training you have received so far and decided that you need to start over,” Yutsi replied.

She walked over to where Tetzu was standing and placed her right thumb onto a nearby pad, signing herself in. John smiled at Tetzu as he signed himself in as well. Returning the smile, Tetzu shook her head when she saw John was about to say something.

“This way, John,” Yutsi called out as she headed to the Arena’s locker room.

The entrance to the Combat Arena was a simple square room, just large enough for a desk, a chair, and a few screens. After signing in, you walked through a barrier that reminded John of a turnstile, just made for and by Vipers. Once through, you walked along a short corridor to another set of double doors. The room beyond was rectangular and used as the Arena’s locker room. Just like the rest of the station and the Cruiser John woke up in, the rooms and corridors were made of the same light grey material, with recessed lights in the ceiling.

“What’s wrong with the training I have received so far?” John asked as he watched Yutsi deactivate her collar. The walls around her glowed neon blue as the Nanos retreated across her body and into the reservoir. As she gradually became naked, John instinctively looked away.

“Considering how much time you have spent in a nest with Vipers, I am surprised you are looking away,” Yutsi said as she turned around.

John looked back and saw that she was now naked. The light from above shone off her coal-black scales and reflected off her pink eyes. Yutsi’s turquoise bioluminescence shone brightly as John’s eyes played over her naked body. He had already seen it on the softer inner part of her hood, as well as her long tongue and mouth. What John had not yet seen was her turquoise nipples, both of which were large and erect. His eyes lingered on Yutsi’s huge breasts, bigger than Tetzu’s.

“Do all Terran males have a fascination with breasts?” she asked with a smile.

“Some do,” John admitted.

Yutsi swished her tail back and forth, and John noticed a swirly pattern of turquoise bioluminescence on the top of it. On the underside, he could see a turquoise outline of the larger scales.

“That is enough,” Yutsi said as she activated the collar for her Armoured Nanosuit.

John’s attention was pulled away from the glow emanating from Yutsi’s pussy as her body was covered in Nanos. When her collar had stopped emitting the now-familiar neon blue light, she walked over to a nearby locker and placed her right hand against a palm scanner. The device beeped and then opened the sealed compartment. John watched as Yutsi removed two holsters, each one containing a pistol. She placed one of them against her right hip, the holster snapping against her armoured thigh.

“Your turn,” Yutsi said as she walked over to where John was standing. “You will find your new collar in that locker behind you,” John turned around as she finished speaking.

The locker itself was eight feet tall, made out of metal and painted dark grey. Looking at it, John saw his name projected on the locker’s display. Placing his right hand against the palm reader, he watched as it scanned his hand and then heard it chime. Pulling the locker open, John found the collar for his Armoured Nanosuit resting on one of the three small shelves, set at waist height.

“How come these lockers are so large?” John asked as he picked up the collar, “I’ve never seen anyone wearing anything other than a Nanosuit,” he said while turning around and looking up at the Security Chief.

“Clothing does exist within The Matriarchy,” Yutsi replied. “However, most of the Vipers you will encounter on the station are in the military,” she said and watched John as he deactivated his collar.

“Who all wear Nanosuit Uniforms?” John asked as Yutsi looked up and down his now naked body. She nodded as John turned around to place his collar inside the locker. “Are you sure this is my new collar?” he asked. Upon re-examining it, John noticed that all but one of the extra reservoirs had been removed.

“It is,” Yutsi replied, “I had most of your modifications removed,” she said and then watched as John activated the collar.

The skintight bodysuit appeared first, designed to create a thermal barrier and prevent any potential issues arising from the armoured layer. The material clung to John’s body as though it were a second skin. When he had designed it, John ensured that his feet were well protected and that the area around his groin and backside acted similarly to underwear. Once the first layer had completely covered his body, minus his head, the armour layer appeared.

John walked over to a nearby mirror and watched as the Nanos travelled across his body. The first thing he noticed was that the black carbon fibre look had been replaced by the standard gunmetal appearance that all Armoured Nanosuits had. John then saw that the armoured gauntlets were gone, along with the grappling hooks. However, when his collar had finished deploying, he was glad to see that the clothing, Bevor and Gorget additions, along with his helmet alterations, remained. It was deployed around his head and then folded back into the armoured neckpiece.

“Much better,” Yutsi said as John turned around.

“How come most of my additions have gone?” he asked.

“Who are you?” came Yutsi’s reply as she placed her hands on her wide hips.

“What do you mean?” John asked, not sure what she meant.

“Well, who are you?” she repeated, “What rank do you have in the military? What position do you hold within Matriarchy society?” Yutsi asked. John thought about the questions and then realised what she meant. He looked up at her, and she smiled at him.

“As I am sure you are quite aware, John,” she said, “Vipers enjoy sex, especially with males.” Yutsi handed the second holster to John as she continued to speak. “Sometimes we forget our place, our duty, and focus too much on the next sexual release. Both your guards and Tetzu have been reminded of this fact,” she said as John placed the holster onto his right thigh. The holster mag-locked onto his Armoured Nanosuit.

“While you do hold the Terran rank of Captain, you are not a member of The Matriarchy or our military,” she said, “we, of course, welcomed you with open arms. It is not often that we encounter a new race or even one that we thought primitive,” Yutsi continued to talk as she turned to her right and headed towards the end of the locker room. As she walked, Yutsi gestured for John to follow. He hurried after her.

After exiting the locker room, John followed Yutsi down a series of corridors and then entered the Combat Arena itself. Looking around, he noticed that the configuration had been reset to what John saw on his first visit. In front of them was a simple firing range. Targets of various sizes had been set up in front of where he was standing, and John recognised both the pistol and rifle firing ranges. Yutsi walked over to the pistol range and stood to one side, gesturing for John to take his place inside one of the booths.

Each booth was separated by a ten-foot wall that appeared to be made of reinforced concrete. Standing inside the booth nearest to Yutsi, to his right and set at waist height for John, was a wooden bench that held the practice clips for his pistol.

“Load the first clip into your pistol,” she ordered.

John pulled out the pistol that he had been given and picked up the first clip from the nearby bench. Remembering what Tetzu had told him, the gun was called a Standard Pistol Mark One Male or SPMk1-M for short. The pistol was made exclusively for male Vipers. To John, it looked just like his family heirloom, a black Beretta M9A4. However, the SPMk1 was chunkier, fired rounds made by nanobots, and the pistol was not over one hundred years old.

“I will start the first firing exercise,” Yutsi said, “do not activate your helmet as I want to see how good your aim is without the built-in assist.” John nodded and aimed, making sure to hold the gun with both hands. He heard a beeping noise, and then the targets down range appeared.

Using his knowledge, experience, and muscle memory from before he became an Astronaut, John easily took down the first set of targets. The second set moved oddly, but after adjusting his aim, John was able to hit each one. By the time the fifth set of targets appeared, he noticed a pattern forming, and so the exercise gradually became routine.

*****

_ One Hour Later _

“That is enough, John,” Yutsi said as she appeared at the back of the booth he was using.

Over the last hour, Yutsi had tasked John with reviewing every pistol firing drill she knew. She even came up with a few new ones just to keep the exercise going. John had surprised her with his pistol skills, ability to hit targets without using aim assist, and his stamina.

“While I enjoy shooting guns just as much as the next guy,” John said as he turned around to look at her, “can I rest for a bit?” he asked.

“We are done for now,” Yutsi replied as she looked down at John. “I am impressed. After watching the footage of your two previous combat exercises, as well as the alterations you made to your armour, I thought Tetzu had been giving you too much leeway,” she said.

“What made you think that?” John asked.

“As I was saying before,” Yutsi replied, “you are essentially a civilian, you should not have been given so much access to our technology. However,” she said stepping forward and placing a hand on his left shoulder, “you are outstanding. I would rate you as being close to one of our Spec Op teams,” she then smiled at John.

“Believe it or not,” he replied, “before I got stranded at the other end of the galaxy, I was a former member of the UN’s Special Forces,” John said while returning the smile and placing his right hand on top of hers.

“Considering how well you adapt to changing circumstances and come up with tactics that even I would not have thought of, I believe you,” Yutsi said. “Now, holster your pistol and follow me,” she ordered.

*****

Nisku twirled her right index finger in the drink that had been placed in front of her. She was currently sitting with her sister inside one of the station’s bars. Etsala was next to her and was about three drinks away from getting drunk.

The bar itself was a large dome, just off the main concourse of the station. The walls were painted a dark grey and rose to a height of twelve feet, with the top of the dome around thirty feet high. Hovering in the centre of the room, just below the top of the dome, was a golden chandelier. When switched on, the bar was filled with multi-coloured light as the chandelier went through all of the colours of the rainbow. At ground level and in the centre of the room was the bar itself. A full circle of smooth, off-white metal, set just above the average waist height of a Viper. Set at regular intervals around the circle were thirty stools. Currently, only ten Vipers were sitting at the bar, Nisku and Etsala amongst them.

“It’s so unfair!” Etsala complained as she picked up her drink and downed it in one, “we did nothing wrong, yet we’ve been reassigned. Damn that Viper!” she growled. Etsala waved at one of the waitresses behind the bar.

The Viper stepped forward, and her scales seemed to glow, much stronger than most Vipers’ bioluminescence. Looking closely at the waitress, Nisku saw that she was an albino and that her body was covered in fluorescent paint. Her scales had been painted with intricate patterns, and as Nisku looked closer, she realised that the Viper was naked. With the light from above changing between the colours of the rainbow, the fluorescent paint glowed vibrantly.

“Easy on the drink,” Nisku replied, “we have to report for work in a few hours,” she said. The brightly coloured Viper approached them, “It’s okay, we won’t be ordering any more drinks,” Nisku said, stopping her sister from having any more.

“No fair,” Etsala said as the waitress walked away and headed over to another Viper sitting nearby.

“Come on,” Nisku said as she got off the stool, “let’s get you to Medical, see if the Doctor can detox you before work,” Nisku then took hold of her sister’s left arm.

“I’m coming, I’m coming,” Etsala said as she was half-dragged out of the bar.

A few of the other patrons watched the two guards as they headed for the double doors, shielding their eyes as the gloom of the bar was pierced by the bright light from outside. The naked waitress, standing behind the bar, sighed as she watched them leave.

*****

“The next part of your training will be with the grenades that The Matriarchy uses,” Yutsi said as she walked over to a different section of the Combat Arena. John was following close behind, his helmet deployed as instructed.

As they stopped in front of the grenade training area, John saw a series of walls made from different types of materials, a few vehicles that he did not recognise, target dummies, and several protective booths.

“Here,” Yutsi said as she picked up a small black box and handed it to John.

He took the box from her and examined it. It reminded him of a deck box, similar in design and appearance to what people used for card games. However, the black box he was holding had a blue light on the front, some kind of attachment on the back, and a rectangular opening on the bottom.

“What is it?” John asked.

“That is one of our grenade dispensers,” Yutsi replied, “hold it against your waist, and when your HUD asks if you wish to attach it, double blink your eyelids.” She turned around when she finished speaking and picked up another box.

John watched as Yutsi pressed it against her waist, and after a few seconds, she removed her hand. The grenade dispenser was now fixed to her Armoured Nanosuit. Following her instructions, John placed the dispenser onto his waist, and he watched as a message appeared inside his helmet. Blinking twice, he felt the box attach itself to his Nanosuit.

“Your HUD should now show that you have ten grenades,” Yutsi said.

“Er..yes, I can see them now,” John replied. His heads-up display informed him that he currently had no pistol or rifle equipped, no ammo for either of the two guns, the grenade dispenser had ten grenades available, his Armoured Nanosuit was running at one hundred per cent power, its integrity was all in the green, and that John’s health was at one hundred per cent.

“Follow me and I’ll explain what to do next,” Yutsi ordered.

She led John over to one of the protected booths and waited for him to enter. Placing her right hand against a scanner, the booth’s sliding door closed shut and locked. John watched as Yutsi pressed the blue light, and a small, round object dropped out from the bottom.

“When it is your turn, press down the blue light and double blink when it asks if you want an anti-personnel grenade,” Yutsi said. She held out her right hand, and John saw the small grenade in the palm of her hand. “Find the button on the top, press it down once and then throw the grenade at your target,” Yutsi said. John watched as she primed the grenade and then threw it at a nearby group of target dummies. A few seconds later, the grenade exploded, shredding the dummies. “Your turn,” Yutsi said as she stepped backwards and out of John’s way.

Stepping forward, he pressed his right thumb against the blue light of the grenade dispenser and a message was displayed inside his helmet. It was asking John if he wanted an anti-personnel grenade to be dispensed. Shortly after blinking his eyes twice, a small round grenade dropped out of the bottom of his dispenser, and John caught it. Looking closely at the grenade in his hand, John thought it just looked like a ball of black plastic with a button on the top. Pressing the button down, he threw it overarm at a different group of target dummies. A few seconds later, the anti-personnel grenade exploded, shredding the dummies.

“Not bad,” Yutsi said, “I assume you have used grenades before?” she asked.

“I have,” John nodded, “although ours are bigger and heavier,” he said.

“That is because these are micro grenades,” Yutsi pointed out as her dispenser dropped another grenade into her right hand. “We do use larger ones, however, most of our infantry use these,” Yutsi then turned to face John. “This is an anti-vehicle grenade,” she said. “When it is your turn, press the button, blink once to change which type of grenade the dispenser will make,” Yutsi said as she pressed the button on the grenade and threw it at a nearby vehicle. It hit the mockup, stuck to it like a sticky grenade and then exploded. A medium-sized hole was formed from the explosion.

John stepped forward once Yutsi was out of the way and activated his grenade dispenser. The message from before was displayed on his HUD, and then John blinked once. It changed from anti-personnel to anti-vehicle. Double blinking, a small red grenade fell into his right hand. Activating it, John threw it at one of the vehicles and missed. Shortly after the grenade hit the ground, it exploded, creating a small crater.

“Is your aim assist still off?” Yutsi asked, and John nodded, “Try throwing another grenade, but this time turn on aim assist,” she said.

Remembering how to switch it on, John dispensed, activated, and then threw another anti-vehicle grenade. This time, when he was about to throw it, his helmet displayed a dotted line indicating the optimal path for John to throw the grenade. Following the path as he threw, he saw it being highlighted by his HUD. The anti-vehicle grenade followed the predicted route and stuck to the vehicle. A few seconds later, a medium-sized hole appeared.

“Not bad, John,” Yutsi said, “there are other types of grenades that the dispenser can make. However, as I am sure you have noticed, each grenade uses different amounts of Nanos,” Yutsi finished talking and once again activated her grenade dispenser. This time, a blue grenade appeared a few seconds later. “This one is EMP, and the Nanos have now run out,” Yutsi said.

John looked at the ammo count and noticed that after he had selected the anti-vehicle grenade, it dropped from nine to four. Pressing the blue button, John blinked until his HUD displayed EMP. Then double blinked and watched the ammo count drop down to zero. The grenade dropped into his hand, and he looked at it. Just like the previous two, it was a small sphere, similar in size and shape to a golf ball.

“What happens if I change my mind and want to use a different grenade?” John asked.

“Press the blue light twice and the top will flip open,” Yutsi replied, “drop the grenade back inside, close the top, and the dispenser will reclaim the Nanos,” she said. John watched as Yutsi demonstrated what she had just said. He tried it himself and watched as the ammo count displayed by his helmet’s HUD increased.

*****

“Attention!” Commander Zesta called out.

The main hanger for Border Station Five echoed to the sound of several hundred Viper feet stamping to attention. Shortly afterwards, as the door to their Dropship opened and the ramp descended, several hundred fists slammed against their chests as Matriarchs Eztuh, Ossih, and Szaki walked down the ramp. The trio of Vipers was each wearing a sheer, full-body dress. Each one was tied behind the neck, had a V shape down their torsos and showed off an ample amount of cleavage. The dress fell past their waists, where a simple leather belt was tied. A split was on each side, showing off their thighs, and then the dress ended about a foot from the ground.

Each Matriarch had different colourings and scale patterns. Eztuh’s primary scale colour was navy blue and covered the majority of her body. Her secondary scale colour was a creamy yellow. It started on her bottom jaw, covered the whole of the softer inner parts of her hood, went down her neck, across her huge breasts and nipples, down her abdomen and most intimate of areas and stopped at the insides of her thick thighs. It could also be seen on the soles of her feet, the underside of her tail and from each elbow, covering her whole forearm and hands.

Ossih’s primary scale colour was obsidian black, and it covered the whole of her head, the back of her hood (which was also pointed in a similar way to Milsi’s) and torso, most of her arms, the top of her tail, and the front of her legs. Her secondary scale colour was a vibrant yellow. These scales were found on the softer inner part of her hood, down her neck and torso, the underside of her tail, her backside, and the back of her legs. Criss-crossing the obsidian black scales was a pattern of yellow bioluminescence. Contrasting with the yellow were her glowing pink eyes, mouth, and tongue, as well as her large, pink nipples.

Lastly, Szaki’s primary scale colour was charcoal black, which covered the entire head, hood, back of her torso, legs, and top of her tail. The secondary colour was neon orange. These vibrant scales could be seen running down her neck, across the front of her torso and enormous breasts, on the underside of her tail and the soles of her feet, and finally disappearing between her legs at her groin.

“Sisters, it’s so good to see you again,” Theka said as she stepped forward.

“Good to see you too, Theka,” Ossih said as she too stepped forward and hugged her. Over the next minute, the three Matriarchs greeted and hugged Theka, Ema, and Zesta. “I don’t think I’ve seen you glow so much, Szaki,” Matriarch Theka said as she let go and stepped back.

“My steward has become quite adept at buffing and the basking lamps our battleship has are second to none,” Szaki replied.

“Your bioluminescence is looking lovely, Ema,” Eztuh said as she looked at the Captain.

“Thank you, Matriarch,” she replied with a nod.

“I see you’ve met your new steward,” Ossih chimed in, “when will you be heading back to the homeworld?” she inquired.

“While I have yet to mate with him, I suspect I will head home after the results of John’s meeting are announced,” Ema replied.

“Really?” Szaki seemed surprised, “I would have fucked him straight away, your steward too,” she admitted.

“Szaki!” Theka said, “Perhaps we should move this conversation elsewhere?” she suggested. The four Matriarchs and two officers looked behind them at the assembled crew.

“Perhaps that would be best,” Eztuh replied.

*****

_ Thirty Minutes Later _

“Remind me again why we’re doing this?” John asked as he shouldered his rifle. Using the aim assist built into his helmet, he zeroed in on the target.

The rifle he was using was the Standard Rifle Mark Three Male, or SRMk3-M, and John was glad to be using it. After Tetzu had gone through its use and handed him one, John saw just how big the standard versions were for female Vipers. The SRMk3-M appeared to be a bullpup rifle and was surprisingly comfortable to use. When he had glanced at the specs, John remembered that the overall length was around thirty inches, it had an internal power supply to aid the Nanos when a round type was selected, and that the end of the barrel could be adjusted for different firing modes.

“I wanted to make sure Trainer Tetzu had done her job properly,” Yutsi replied, “as I said before, while in general, The Matriarchy has no issue with the access you have been given, Tetzu went too far,” she said.

“In other words,” John started to say as he fired his rifle. With the aid of his helmet, the shot hit dead centre on the long-range target. “You were happy for me to get trained in Matriarchy combat practices, just in case I chose to join your military fully,” John continued, his helmet retracting into the housing around his neck. “However, allowing me free rein with your technology went beyond the authority Tetzu had,” he then looked up at Yutsi, who was standing nearby.

“Yes,” she replied while nodding.

“Fair enough. What’s next?” John asked.

“I will be leading you through the correct and proper use of a Jump Pack,” Yutsi replied, “hitting stationary and moving targets, as well as how to use it effectively in combat,” she said.

Yutsi turned around and headed for a nearby building. Following close behind, John looked at where she was leading him. Just like the rest of the buildings inside the Combat Arena, this new building appeared to be made out of a concrete-like material, with visible metal reinforcement at set intervals. Square windows, set at waist height for Vipers, could also be seen. The frames were made out of metal, and the glass appeared to be non-reflective. Looking around the Arena, some of the buildings also had metal staircases on the outside. The majority of these would lead you to the first floor of a building. However, there were a few that had multiple levels. Each one had either a set of metal stairs or a ladder.

“Once we are inside,” Yutsi began as they reached the building, “I want you to pick any Jump Pack bay and step back into it,” she said, placing her hand onto the palm reader to the right of the building’s door. It beeped, and then the door opened with a gentle hiss.

Entering the building, John noticed the now-familiar off white and grey walls and recessed lighting. There was a simple desk and chair to his right with several displays projecting scrolling text. Yutsi walked up to the desk and sat down. She typed away at the keyboard, and the lights inside the building came on fully. Looking around the room, John saw there were at least twenty Jump Packs, fixed in place by the arms of each bay they were sitting in. Walking up to the nearest Jump Pack, John turned around and adjusted himself so that it was close to the back of his Armoured Nanosuit. Yutsi stood up from the desk and walked over to where he was standing. She pressed a few buttons on a nearby control pad, and the bay adjusted the height of the Jump Pack. Once it had aligned itself with John’s shoulder blades, it moved forward, and his helmet deployed.

“There should be a message inside your HUD, asking if you want to attach the Jump Pack,” Yutsi said.

“I see it,” John replied, “look at it and double blink?” he asked, and Yutsi nodded. Once he had done so, John felt his Armoured Nanosuit connect the Jump Pack to his back. When it had finished, several new icons appeared on his HUD.

“Those icons display available fuel, power, and how hot the Jump Pack is running,” Yutsi said. “I am sure you already know some of this, but what you have just done is the correct way to affix a Jump Pack to a Nanosuit,” she said.

John stepped out of the bay and felt its arms let go of his Jump Pack. He looked over to where Yutsi was now standing, and she had stepped inside one of the bays herself. Using her tail to activate the bay, John watched as Yutsi’s helmet deployed. A minute later, she stepped out of the bay with a Jump Pack fixed to her Armoured Nanosuit.

“This way, John,” she said, “we will go through the basics of flight, landing, and then some simple pistol and rifle exercises,” Yutsi then headed towards a door at the end of the building.

*****

“So, this is the Terran?” Szaki asked as she watched Yutsi demonstrate the proper usage of a Jump Pack.

Matriarchs Theka, Eztuh, Ossih, and Szaki were currently relaxing inside one of the Combat Arena’s viewing booths. Captain Ema and Commander Zesta were also present, along with all five stewards. Each one was standing just behind their assigned Viper. The lights inside the viewing booth had been lowered, and each Viper’s bioluminescence made the booth glow with vibrant colours.

“It is,” Theka replied, “Yutsi is currently running John through every training exercise that our military has for Armoured Nanosuit usage,” she said.

“I watched the footage of the male when he made his modifications,” Eztuh said as she sipped from a fluted glass. “I was impressed with how quickly he was able to learn the design application. Did anyone teach him?” she asked.

“No,” Ema replied, shaking her head. “From what his guards said when the Commander debriefed them, he spent several hours in his suite making the changes,” she said and then removed her pad from her thigh and accessed a file.

“While getting his cock sucked?” Szaki inquired.

“According to Nisku and Etsala, yes,” Theka replied, “the footage of his exploits has already become popular amongst my fleet and the station’s Vipers,” she said while licking some glowing red paste from a bowl Uszu had given her.

“If John becomes a steward, we’re going to have to put a block on everything recorded so far,” Ossih pointed out, “while that will upset your fleet and crew, Captain, Commander,” she said, looking at both Vipers, “as everyone here knows, stewards must keep their privacy,” there was a collective murmur of agreement.

“What do we do if he says no to becoming a steward?” Szaki asked. She had a small bowl of glowing red paste in her hand.

“He has to pass military training first,” Theka replied, “We can all see that he’s more than capable of using our tech and tactics,” she said.

As though to make the point for her, John flew past their viewing booth, used his landing thrusters to slow his momentum, took aim with his rifle and scored a near-perfect shot on a nearby target. He then flew down towards Yutsi and landed a few metres in front of her.

“Do we know what he did before appearing near Lupine space?” Eztuh asked.

“I believe he told Doctor Mizta that he used to be a member of the UN’s Special Forces,” Ema replied.

“What’s a UN?” Ossih inquired.

“United Nations,” Ema replied, “when John left his planet, they had united under a single banner,” she said.

“Huh, impressive,” Ossih replied, “looks like they managed to survive the creation of atomic weapons,” she said.

“Agreed,” Theka replied, “while his spaceship was primitive, I would say that we can safely assume he’s also a pilot,” she then waved her hand at Uszu. He stepped forward and presented her with the tray he was holding. It had three bowls of glowing paste and a glass of water. Theka picked up the glass and took one of the bowls.

“Has anyone thought about training John to fly a fighter?” Zesta chimed in. The assembled Matriarchs all looked at her. “Just a thought,” she said, recoiling slightly.

“Don’t worry, Zesta,” Theka replied, “while it is a good suggestion, I don’t think we have any training modules on the station,” she said, looking at the other Matriarchs.

“The Ruination of Minerva has training pods,” Eztuh said as she got her steward to massage her shoulders.

“Are you sure that’s wise?” Szaki asked, “A Cruiser and Station is fine, but a Battleship?” She looked up at Eztah’s steward and waved at hers. He bowed, walked over and started to massage her shoulders.

“Contact Admiral Sshuizshallius,” Ossih said, “inform her that we’ll be sending John over tomorrow. Have them contact Doctor Mizta on the Pride. They’ll need his bio scan,” she ordered, looking at Zesta.

“At once, Matriarch,” she replied.

*****

_ An Hour Later _

John turned a corner and ran as fast as he could down a corridor. The modifications that he had made to his Armoured Nanosuit enabled him to reach speeds of up to forty miles an hour. The HUD inside his helmet alerted him to the drain on the Nanosuit’s power. If he wanted to run long distances, then the Armoured Nanosuit would enable John to run for longer than his body was used to. However, since the current version of his Nanosuit did not contain a kinetic converter, it was not advisable to run at such a high speed for extended periods, as the battery would quickly run out.

The rangefinder, displayed at the top of his HUD, informed John that the far wall was only one hundred metres away. With his current speed just below thirty miles an hour, John knew that he had less than ten seconds before he slammed into it. Selecting a breaching grenade from his dispenser, John primed the grenade and threw it. He blinked quickly as it flew through the air and then winked with his left eye. With less than three seconds to go, the breaching grenade exploded. A square section of wall, three metres wide by four metres high, was sent flying. Shortly afterwards, John burst through the cloud of dust.

“Keep going, John!” Yutsi shouted as she adjusted the obstacle course. She relayed the next section of the evolving map to his Nanosuit.

Keeping his speed at a steady twenty-eight miles per hour, John ran up a long ramp. The Combat Arena was creating the obstacle course just in front of him, and Yutsi was standing in the middle, using her pad to adjust the course. As he reached the top of the ramp, John noticed five walls were waiting for him. Adjusting the settings on his Jump Pack and landing thrusters, John jumped off the edge of the platform he was running across and proceeded to wall-run. The computer built into his helmet displayed the best route for him to take, and although he had yet to fully practice wall-running, John was able to get to the other side without falling off.

“You can rest there, John,” Yutsi called out. “I will have the next section deployed within a minute,” she said as John leaned against a nearby wall, panting.

As he leaned against the wall, John heard the Combat Arena being built for the next section. He looked to his left and watched as walls, stairs, ramps, and a few buildings appeared from below the deck. Large doors opened on the floor, and rising on platforms were ready-made sections, each one lifted by a large crane that descended from above. Tetzu had shown him the factory located below the Combat Arena. The Matriarchy was able to utilise raw resources and nanotechnology to build anything it wanted. Once the latest section of the obstacle course was complete, John received an updated map, and a countdown timer started. He had sixty seconds left.

*****

“I haven’t seen an obstacle course in ages,” Theka said as she watched John jump off the platform he was standing on. Everyone in the viewing booth watched as he used his Jump Pack to fly through a series of large circles.

“We don’t use it too often,” Zesta said, “however, we did receive a new shipment of Nanos, and so we’re able to run it a few times.” She picked up her pad as it started to chime. “Message from the Minerva,” Zesta announced, “Admiral Sshuizshallius reports that they’ve received John’s bio scan and they’re converting one of the pods,” she then looked over at the four Matriarchs.

“Thank you, Commander, “ Ossih said, “I suggest we send John over tomorrow, let him rest. I won’t be surprised if the Security Chief plans to have some fun with him,” she said with a smile.

“Urgh, that means I won’t get to try him out,” Szaki complained as she crossed her arms.

“To be honest, I don’t think any of us should fuck John,” Theka said, “unlike the rest of the crew, we have our stewards,” she pointed out.

“I agree with Theka,” Ema chimed in, “wait and see if John chooses to become a steward,” she suggested.

“Good point, Captain,” Eztuh said. There was an audible ‘hmph’ from Szaki.