Role Reversal (Part 1)
Wedding Day...so many thoughts going through my head, it is hard to describe it. The dress looks stunningly white, the cathedral is packed, and while I am not much on a binary system, the two golden stars in the sky make the room glow with dazzling lights all around. This is not even a dream that I had ever thought, but now, I could not be any happier. The road here seemed impossible, and as I smile back at the one who helped bring me this far, I'm overwhelmed with love and ready to spend the rest of my life with them. To fully appreciate this moment, let's go back a few months...
The explosions of the oncoming army would be deafening if not for the audio filters in their helmets. Their army, dressed in traditional dark gray, was now the last defense before the last major city of Drisil. This planet has been undersiege for years by the Mezmik, a ruthlessly efficient race that overruns a planet to make it part of their society. One might use the word “assimilation” but that is more friendly than what they do. They sometimes enslave the populace, sometimes they use them for military target practice, or sometimes they are just experimented upon in whatever way the Mezmik see fit.
Danc hunkers down in a shallow trench next to his commanding officer. They are mounting another counteroffensive, perhaps their last. The average height and build of the defensive army seems big, compared to the much smaller in size offensive army. Nevertheless, Danc grips his rifle, knowing he has little hope of survival with the comparative numbers of troops in each army, but then if they do not try and stop the Mezmik, then there is no hope for his family, his friends, his way of life back home.
His commanding officer receives the signal, so he stands, as those around him do as well. Their final move to repel the invaders has begun. Danc is not fully at attention before the explosive round hits the ground beneath him and his commander. Both are sent backwards, as the rest of their comrades push forwards. The commander breathes his last just before hitting the ground, while Danc lies motionless, stunned by the blast.
Blinking his eyes, Danc sits up partially, “What happened?” He looks around the silent field to see nothing but bodies littering the field in dark gray, each unmoving one with a blackened mark of a blaster on them. He groans from trying to move, his body partially covered in dirt and debris. Why bother, he thinks dejectedly, looks like we lost.
He sees movement, as two medics are tending to wounded. The medics appear to be female, but rather tall (as compared to Mezmik soldiers) but curvy as you would expect them to be. Their outfits are tight-fitting and shiny (what is it made of? he thinks absently), and covers them from head to toe. They seem out of place, as they look so pristine in their white dresses and hats, both trimmed in bright red. Why, he thinks with a surprising chuckle, even their boots look clean.
He sees them come up to a wounded soldier not far from him. He recognizes the man as being in his platoon, but he can't quite remember his name. The man reaches up a hand towards them. Danc hears one say, “Ah, another injured one.” He hears the seconds reply, “I see you are hurt.” The other, “We are here to help.” The second reaches into the medic bag, labeled with a doctor's symbol. As she pulls out a white blaster with a medical symbol on the side, Danc hears in disbelief, “This will not hurt at all.” And with a fatal blast, the soldier slumps to the ground, face blackened.
Danc cannot believe what he just saw. Those nurses just killed a helpless prisoner of war. They are violating the 2nd and 3rd codes of warfare, he screams internally. As the “death nurses” straighten up, she replaces her blaster in the bag and both begin moving towards Danc's direction. I imagine, he reasons, they will not listen to reason, so hoping the courts rule in my favor will not help. Laying back down, he closes his eyes, remaining very still and mostly covered by the damage of war.
Their movements make a slight squeaking sound, so he knows they are close. “Ah, and another...” he hears. “Your turn,” says the other. Danc can hear the sound of an object rubbing against another, then “This will not hurt at all.” The discharge makes Danc twitch, but he can tell instantly the shot was not as near to him as he thought. Breathing a soft sigh of relief, he decides to continue playing dead until the nurses are gone.
Laying there, he ponders his next move. Ok, as he works it through in his head, they have captured the planet, so I need to get off of it. Reasoning through that, he adds, I'm sure there will be a resistance movement coming together soon, so I need to hook up with them. I don't want to run, he convinces himself that he is not a coward, but I am no good to anyone as another dead soldier.
His thoughts swirl around him, distracting him from a loud noise that gets louder. What is that sound? He wonders, still fearful to open his eyes. It makes thumping sounds along with a loud “whooshing” sound. As he tries to isolate it, he almost thinks that it sounds like a vacuum cleaner at his grandparents house back when he was a kid. Opening his eyes slightly, he sees a huge dump-truck-looking machine nearby. In front of it appears to be a large attachment, like what you would see on a vacuum cleaner. Opening his eyes more, he can see it swaying side to side, sucking one dead person after another into it. Unbelievable, he thinks in astonishment, it really is a vacuum cleaner!
Not sure what it does with the bodies, but I don't want to find out, Danc thinks in a panic. Tilting his head to take in more of the field around him, he scans for anyone else that might notice a “corpse” walking around. Not seeing anyone, he starts to slowly remove items from himself, unearthing his body from the mess he has been laying in all day. Wresting his feet free of his commander who was draped across them, Danc slides slowly on his back from his current position. He does not even get a foot before he feels his feet being pulled up into the air. Looking down at them, he sees a giant black hole of the vacuum cleaner on top of him.
Figuring it is too late for subtlety, he moves to run. Pulling his feet down, he rolls over and crouches to jump away, only to be pulled up into the large tubing. Like a ball, he bounces along the corrugated plastic tube, along with all the other soldiers around him. He can see nothing, and his ears are saturated with the sucking sound of the device. Within moments, he falls into a large container of bodies and debris. He knows he has to move, as he could be crushed or suffocated by the sheer weight of all this machine is picking up and throwing in here. But as soon as he hits the top of the pile, he is covered with the carnage of war, unable to move. To keep his lucky streak going, the machine was nearly full, so although he cannot move, he is not crushed by the weight.
If he could see outside, the machine was having its container removed and having it replaced with an empty one. Once secure, it carries on throughout the field. The full container is loaded onto a cargo transport and taken into orbit, where the “garbage truck” waits to be full before moving onto its next stop. The garbage freighter has hundreds of containers in its hold, waiting to be delivered to the planet of Crescet. One of the races on the Crescet planet runs a recycling service for military campaigns. The metal and plastic and all other inorganic goods are recycled at a fee, then the organic material is burned and turned into energy that the local cities buy as electricity.
Total darkness and near suffocation give way to pale light and freedom as Danc is deposited with the rest onto a conveyor belt. His sore body stiffly stretches from the trip. Robotic arms come out and start sorting the bodies, straightening them for the next station. Danc can hear lots of mechanical noises, and figures he is in some type of factory or industrial complex. He tilts his head and sees what he figured: a massive warehouse building filled with robotic arms and conveyor belts and tubes and the like.
He reaches the next station and finds his body armor removed carefully. Next, his clothes are taken, again with the utmost care. Lastly, he had been holding onto a weapon, which was wrestled from his hands. He wondered why they cared so much about not harming the dead, but he figured it makes the clean up easier if there isn't any. And lastly, each conveyor belt of naked bodies leads to a larger conveyor belt that leads to a very bright light at the end. Danc ponders this, as the light looks painfully bright.
“You know,” he rasps, “I don't think I want to go in there.” He can see a scanner up ahead and another right near the door into the light. Hmmm, he figures, probably counting the material going in and making sure none falls off. He knows he has to get off this ride before that first scan. Not sure how far off the ground he us, but at that point he doesn't care, he rolls off the conveyor belt and falls less than 3 feet.
Smiling to himself, he stays low and moves through the busy factory. As best as he can tell, nothing has noticed him, and as long as he does not interfere with their movements, he should be able to leave with ease. Making himself a prophet, he does just that and makes his way naked into the woods outside of the factory, having not seen a single living person since “waking up” in the factory. He knows all of his comrade-in-arms are gone now, so he needs to stay alive to avenge them. The only problem: he does not even know what planet he is on.
The grass underfoot is relatively soft, and the soft sounds of the summer night are soothing. He does not fear the environment, as it all seems very organic. Assured that no machine is following him, he slows his pace. In the distance he can see lights from a small town, so he heads towards that. Further beyond, he can see even brighter lights of a much larger metropolis. Ok, he thinks, I'll grab some clothes here, then find transport to the city. Hopefully, he thinks while jumping over a fallen tree, I can find a way off this planet without being caught.
The small town is just that: small. It appears to have a main street of shops, with a town square in the middle. There are rows of neighborhoods around it, and the main road seems to stretch into the big city in the distance. He spies a billboard over the road, advertising a drink of some kind. He can read the sign, so at least he will know their language. The woman in the advertisement looks much taller and thicker than the man, who seems well-built, just smaller. Huh, he ponders, guess they are somebody famous.
Since it is near closing time, based on the shops that are open and some that are closed, he is able to sneak into the Men's Clothes for Men store. Once inside, the only worker is at the register counting the credits from the day. He goes through to the bathroom, and washes off the dirt and muck from his body. The paper towels act as rags and he quickly deposits them into the trash bag by the back door. He starts going through the inventory, but everything he finds is too small or too short or too tight. Danc says in frustration, “Clothes for Men? More like clothes for boys.” Sneaking back out into the night, he is cleaner now, but still naked.
The next store, Fashion for All, seems more promising. He gets in the back again, but this time, there are two employees and a couple of customers. Peaking through the open door from the back of the store, he sees a couple buying some clothes, with a male sales person. The female is at least 6 feet tall, while both men are 5 feet at best. He can see that the male sales rep is wearing heels of sorts to boost his height. The woman does not look fat or like a body builder, she is just taller than them and again, thicker or maybe fuller-bodied. As he ponders this, a female sales rep walks by the door. Danc notices that she is also nearly 6 feet tall. Where am I? He wonders.
From what he can tell, the women are taller than the men, yet they still have impressive racks (especially the sales rep). The men wear button-down shirts and slacks, while the women are both in dresses. The woman's outfits are rather tight and have a sheen to them that is sexy, Danc thinks. The men wear what he would have worn at home, except that they wear heels to be taller and still fall at least a foot too short, as the women wear similar to what his ex-wife would have worn (if she had been into tight somewhat-shiny outfits). The men seem to have long hair, while the women wear short hair, but that could just be the people he has seen so far. Trying to maintain hope, he says to himself, Ok, so maybe this is going to be okay. He figures that he cannot stay here forever, but his ability to blend in seems promising.
The couple leave and the sales reps start walking to the back, the man making a clicking sound with his heels and the woman making a klunking sound with her flats. He hides in a closet, waiting for them to leave for the night. It takes about 30 minutes, but the store is eventually locked up and Danc can come out of the closet. “Ok,” he whispers, “Let's find something to wear.”
He decides that if this is going to work, he is going to need some help. Walking over into one section of the single-story shop, he finds a mannequin. She is wearing a red skirt with a white top, made of that same material that seems stretchy with a slight sheen to it. The shoes are basically flats that do not cover the ankle. Lastly, it has some type of glove that is fingerless but goes mostly up the forearm. Shaking his head, he starts hunting for something that will fit.
He has to try on multiple ones before a fit. He looks down at the skirt, which clearly shoes his manly bulge. “Ok,” he sighs, “Maybe I better find some underwear,” and as he looks around he adds, “Or more precisely, panties and a bra.” He says the last word with complete disdain.
In the very small lingerie section, he finds a pastel green underwear set. The panties are a boy-short cut, so they look like short shorts (I am not wearing a thong, he says to himself). The bra is sized for a flat chest, so it has a slight curvature to help with that sensitive topic. The straps cross back and forth lower on his back, which he had to unknot (twice) in attempting to get it on. Looking in a mirror, he can hardly hold back his laughter. “I have got to be the ugliest woman ever.”
Moving back to the outfit he picked out, he slips on the shirt which fits much better now, as does the skirt. However, his manly bulge still shows, ever so slightly. Knowing this will give him away, he returns the clothes to their rack and moves onto the next mannequin. This one is wearing a black one-piece dress. It is made of a heavier material, almost like a thick rubber (Danc likens it to the tires on a jeep). Walking behind the mannequin, the upper part of the back is showing, but all her “cleavage” is covered, and the skirt comes almost to the knee. Smiling to himself, he looks for his size.
Within moments, he has the skirt pulled up over his hips. He inserts his arms into the short-sleeved part and pulls it onto him. He zips up the lower back of the dress, then he fastens the choker section that covers his neck. Looking in the mirror, he has a solid black, thick-rubber dress, and with the material being so thick, his manly bulge does not show. “I think we have a winner,” he snickers. His hairy legs have to be covered, so he searches the meager shoe section for boots. Fortunately, he finds a silver pair that go above his knee. To his surprise, they have almost no heel, unlike the men's shoes he saw earlier. I guess the women here have no need to be taller, but the men do.
He hunts down a pair of the fingerless gauntlets that match the color of his boots. Since each mannequin has a matching pair to their shoes, he figures he should do the same. Again, he checks the mirror, and starring at the feet, he sees silvery boots of a leather-type material stretching up over the knees and slightly under a black rubber dress, stretched tight around the waist and breasts. The silver gloved hands play with the combover-style hair of a gorgeous...man? Ugh, he thinks, I still look like a freak. “It's a good thing I had my facial hair removed earlier this week,” he comments while rubbing his face, “Should be clean shaven for another couple of weeks.” He snags some magnetic earrings, that dangle almost down to his shoulders, from a display. They are silvery looking and feel incredibly light. He connects them to his ear, using the magnetic backing, which took him almost as long to attach properly as it did to get dressed.
Going to the register, he searches for some money, knowing that he is eventually going to have to leave in this outfit, and he will need something to buy food and maybe transportation. He cannot get the register open, but he does find a stack of gift cards. Rummaging through them, he can use the scanner on the desk to find that some of them still have money on them. He reaches over the counter and grabs a purse that acts as a belt, and stuffs a half dozen gifts cards in it. The belt-purse hangs on his hip in silver to match his gloves and boots, and if he does say so himself, looks rather sexy on his hip. Ok, he says to himself, enough of this...time to get out of here.
With the backdoor wired for a burglar (he saw the sales reps arm it on the way out), he heads to the front of the store. The door lock appears to be one that can be locked then closed. Stepping out into the warm night, he turns around to close the door. Alright, this is it, he says as a pep talk, I'm about to leave my hiding place to go public. Gulping audibly, he runs every scenario through his head, but nothing gives him any confidence except this plan. He closes the door, and then pushes on it to make sure it is closed. As he turns around, a couple walking by, turn to walk up to him.
“Excuse me, miss,” the lady says, “Are you closed for the night?” The woman is a couple of inches taller than Danc, wearing a similar dress to his, but it is red and has a large hole in the front to show lots of her very impressive cleavage. He notices she has a slight bulge around her waist, making her not in the best of shape, but her make-up is light and tasteful, and her hair is blonde in a crew cut. The man clicks in his 2-inch heels as he strides alongside her. He looks well-built, even if small. His face looks chiseled from rock, and his mustache is thick, to match his full head of hair that comes just past his shoulders. He has on a sweater vest and denim-looking pants.
Danc replies softly, hoping to hide his more masculine voice, “I'm sorry, closed?” The man says in a deep, deep voice that seems out of place, “Yes, my wife wants to know if your store is still open for the night.” Well, Danc thinks, if all men have that deep of a voice, I might be okay after all. “Oh, I'm sorry,” he says making up a story, “But the manager has gone home and I don't have the key to get back-in.” Danc moves to walk away, as the woman peers inside the windows, he notices a look he has used before: the man is undressing Danc with his eyes. The man looks Danc up and down quickly, taking note of the boots and skirt. Seriously, dude, Danc says to the man internally, your wife is so much hotter than me.
“Well,” she says finally, “We can come back later in the week. We are just here for the night from the capital.” The man nods his head, allowing him another look at Danc, “Yeah, we live in downtown New Cres, just out for a bite to eat and some shopping in the suburbs.” Ah, Danc says thankfully, I'm getting to know more of what I need. The woman smiles at him and says, “Thank you anyway,” as she puts her arm in her husband's. Danc replies, “Have a nice evening,” and walks out from them. He can hear the man say in a tone that he does not like, “Hmm, you have a nice...evening, too.” Yuck, was I that creepy and disgusting back home?
Danc walks down the main street, seeing a few people but not many. All the men match what he has seen so far, just as the women. A couple of people have nodded as he walked by, so he nodded back. The boots are comfortable without the heel, and the dress, though heavy, actually feels quite natural like it was made for his body type. Next stop, he figures, a bus or train station, but as his stomach growls, he adds, “Maybe some food first.” I cannot remember the last time I ate.
Reaching the end of the block, he looks left to see a darkened street with a few street lights going into a neighborhood. Looking right, he sees about the same thing. He takes another quick look each way, thinking through his next move. Gonna avoid those, as I will stick out too obviously, he thinks. Putting his hands on his hips, he takes an extra moment to contemplate what to do.
As he stands there, a car pulls up quietly beside him. Turning to look, he sees two police officers in a cruiser looking at him. They do not look happy, and his facial expression does not help. Uh oh, he panics, are they looking for me? Both step out of the car, and even though he is genuinely scared, they are not as intimidating as you might think.
Each is just under 5 foot, thin built, wearing navy blue pants and a lighter blue shirt with badges on them and black, flat-heeled boots. They have weapons on their belt, and Danc cannot help but stare: a blaster could go a long way. The mustached officer pulls out a stick and holds it out towards Danc. Danc moves to recoil, but finds he cannot move anything but his head. “Wha?” he says, visibly surprised. “Keep your mouth shut.” he says. His partner adds, “Yeah, we ask the questions here.” Danc, hands frozen to his hips, nods slowly. Whatever you do, he says to himself, do not give away that you are out of place here.
“So, lady,” the mustache asks, “Are you working tonight?” Danc puzzled by that replies, “Uh, no sir, I'm not working now.” The partner adds, “Really? Cuz it looks like you might be working it now.” Danc, still puzzled by their questions, says, “Uh, no, I'm not working now.” The mustached officer removes Danc's purse from his waist and looks into it. “Hmmm, where's your ID?” His partner adds, “Yeah, even a hooker has that.” He starts rummaging through it, finding only gift cards, lip stick, and some breath mints (all found in the desk drawer, Danc thinks in satisfaction, making the purse look more believable).
Finally, Danc figures it out and laughs internally, but chuckles outwardly. These guys think I'm a prostitute, what a couple of nearsighted morons! They note his chuckle and ask, “What's so funny?” Danc whips up a quick story and says nervously, no need to put on an act about that, “Well, I'm new here, and it appears I left my ID somewhere in town. I was shopping, of course, because that is what I love to do, and well, I must have just left it somewhere. You know?” Ugh, Danc moans, did that sound completely unbelievable or what?
They look at each other, “That's a pretty weak story, lady.” The one with the “freezing” stick holds it up to him again, “Maybe we need a statement at the police station.” Danc sees him turn the handle on the stick, and he can feel his muscles tightening even more. In fact, his neck muscles tighten, forcing his head to turn forward. His face even freezes, relaxes, then freezes again in a neutral expression. “I guess you get the feet and I'll get the head,” they say reaching to pick him up. No, no, no, Danc screams internally, I'll never get out of here if I'm stuck in a prison cell. He struggles to move, but his own muscles hold him tight in his stance. But before they can even touch him, they get a call over the radio.
“Car #2, come in Car #2,” the radio squeals. They pause what they were doing, allowing one of them (can't turn my head to check) to pick up the receiver. “This is Car #2, go ahead.” There is a brief pause, “We have a 417 reported in CleerView.” The two officers react the same way, “A streaker?” Danc moans again to himself, uh oh, this does not sound good.
“Widow lady Johnson says she saw a naked person run through her yard this evening,” the radio voice continues, “And now, old man Wilson has his double-barreled blaster in his lap on his front porch across the street from her.” Danc can almost hear the officers roll their eyes. “Alright, dispatch, we are on our way.” Danc can feel them reattaching his purse, and then the sound of two car doors open and close, then one of the officers say as they start to pull away, “You just wait right here until we get back,” laughing at his own joke.
Danc tries to will himself to move. He feels so vulnerable on the street corner, frozen like a statue of some type. The night air is warm, but there is a slight cool breeze, so he would be comfortable, if he were walking anywhere but here. Fortunately, the affects of the “freeze” stick start to wear off, and Danc is able to move again slowly. Knowing he has to get off the street but someplace public, he starts walking up the main road again towards a nearby restaurant.
Looking over his shoulder, he keeps a close eye on the direction the officers went. As he nears the parking lot, he can clearly see the Nider's Diner sign. It looks like a mom-n-pop place, a sit down casual restaurant. There are plenty of large windows all around it, and the parking lot is small, with the diner itself not being very big.
Stepping into the parking lot, he nervously looks around. Ok, Danc confesses, walking in a dress on a dark street is one thing, but stepping into a crowded restaurant is another. He looks back up the street, sees headlights, wonders if that is the police cruiser. Wanting to avoid their direct eye contact, he steps closer to the restaurant.
Unbeknownest to him, a man in a dark suit has been watching him since he walked into the parking lot. His looks Danc up and down, noting the fine dress “she” wears. The boots, though not his favorite, look like a perfect fit to the outfit. Danc's hair is not slicked down like the current trend, which this man likes the more natural look anyway, and makes those earrings sparkle all the more. He notes that “she” keeps looking over “her” shoulder, like someone is after “her”. His watch beeps, causing him to look at it. It shows him that a police car is coming down the main road, most likely headed here. Hmm, are they after me, or “her”? Taking a chance, he steps away from his car towards “her”.
Danc is looking over his shoulder and nearly walks into the man in front of him. His suit looks expensive and tailored to him. His dark brown hair looks almost black, and his facial features are strong like every man Danc has seen so far. He smiles slightly and says in a deep voice, “Miss, are you waiting for someone?” Danc knows this is a pick-up line, and he is definitely not interested. “Actually, I'm not, but thanks anyway,” as Danc moves to walk past him.
The man shifts slightly to block his way, and asks again, “You seem to be in a hurry to get inside, and it appears that my date for the evening is a no-show. I have reservations already for two...if you care to join me.” Danc again moves to go past him, but looking back, he sees the police cruiser come into view. “Miss, I am just as interested in avoiding the police as you are, so please,” he pauses and extends his elbow for Danc to take it, “Join me for dinner...my treat.” Danc is so unsure of everything right now, but with a slight grumble of his stomach that he will not be able to hide, he awkwardly slips his arm into the man's and replies, “Well, I am hungry.”
The two police officers pull up to the diner, and see their near-prisoner in the arms of a well-dressed man. “I told you we should have thrown her in the trunk,” the mustached one says dejectedly. The other replies, “Give it time. She may not leave with him. Besides, this parking lot is on our route, so let's see how this plays out.” They both nod and pull up to the curve, giving them a great view of the restaurant and its surrounding parking lot.
Danc and the man step into the busy restaurant. From what he can see, Danc thinks this looks like every other casual dining place he has been to. I guess they are intergalactic in their appeal and look, he reasons. The robotic hostess confirms his name, “Delvin Baxter, please follow me.” Danc and Delvin follow the robot to their booth.
Danc notices that the robot is humanoid with a hard plastic-looking shell that is articulated at the joints. The height is about the size of an average man but the single wheel it balances on may make it a bit taller,. The outfit or uniform looks more like a pair of overalls, but they are shorts. The material is like denim, but grey. The head has a helmet look to it, with the “eyes” being a single, thin visor, and the mouth a speaker. We don't have anything this sophisticated back home, Danc marvels.
Since Delvin is leading him, Danc takes a quick glance to the parking lot to make sure the officers are still there (they are). He notes the outfits of the patrons while he casually looks out towards the window. Every woman is tall, large frame and wearing a skirt or dress (no exceptions). Every skirt or dress has a sheen to it, some more than others, but all are “shiny” to a certain degree. The men are all wearing pants (no exceptions) that seem kind of tight with no sheen at all. Their tops or shirts have a bit of sheen to them, and are rather-tight as well, unless they are wearing a coat or jacket or sweater, then that is loose. Almost every woman in flats, and almost every man in heels. Huh, Danc marvels again, I guess I'm not that out of place in a dress and flats after all.
The robot places menus on the table, and Delvin waits for Danc to sit down before he does. The robot says something cordial, then leaves. Delvin breaks the ice with, “They will not risk coming in here without more evidence, miss...” Danc snaps his head back to face the man across from him. “Oh, uh, and what makes you...I'm sorry, what did you say?” Delvin chuckles, “Look, let's get this out now: I do not want to be found by the police anymore than you do. While I think they are most interested in you, that interest could send them on my trail, which I want to avoid.” Danc wonders, so what would you be running from?
“Now, let's just pretend to be whatever facade we have concocted and enjoy our evening, yes?” Delvin seems very sure of himself, and Danc believes that is not the facade but the real man behind the facade. Before he can answer, the waitress walks up. She is over 6 feet, fiery red hair, and filling her entire uniform dress with curves (that are covered) and cleavage (that is mostly covered). “Welcome to Nider's, home of the best burger in town, what can I get you two to drink?”
Danc cannot help but have a blank look on his face, as he has not even thought of what to order. When he looks at the menu, he notices it is completely segregated, where men have one side they order from and women have another. He looks down at this with puzzlement, so then Delvin says facing Danc, “I'm sorry, darling, but I have been talking and not letting you look.” He turns to the waitress, “Bring her a Pink Blossom, large, and I'll have the Rocky Blue Peak, also large. Thank you.” Danc can see him flash the waitress a winning, sly grin, and she marks down the orders and leaves, with a wink. Danc cuts a quick look at her backside as she leaves, and the shiny dress uniform that comes just above her knees which is stretched rather tightly.
“So,” he begins, “I cannot call you 'darling' or 'honey' all night, so what's your name?” Danc tries to think what he should do here. There are so many possibilities, but he decides to keep with what Delvin said earlier. “My name is Danica. And I guess, I can call you Delvin?” He nods, “Yes, that is preferred.” And so from there, the evening of education begins, as both work to school the other in their facade, while trying to read what they can.
Danc knows Delvin (if that is his real name) has an illegal side business, which is covered (quite literally) by a fashion distribution center that he runs. He is single, lives in a 3-story apartment, as part of a high rise development in the capital. From Delvin's side, he thinks I am from the other side of the planet, a country that's in a bitter civil war that is being stifled by the media. He knows I am wanted for questioning, but not why I am. He knows I'm single, but I have been married once but not anymore (this is actually true...my ex-wife was killed in a war-related incident, which lead to my enlisting in the military). He was very surprised when I told him my 'husband' left me, as “how could any man not want to spend all his time with such a beautiful and charming woman, such as yourself?” Yuck, what a cheesy line, right?
The evening had gone from weird to somewhat normal, until Danc had to go to the bathroom. Danc had just finished his fourth Pink Blossom (wow, so good), and really needed some relief. So, he excuses himself (Delvin standing briefly as Danc leaves) and walks to the women's bathroom. The icon on the door looked like the male icon, except taller, so he walks in the one marked with the tall icon. As he opens the door and turns the corner, he sees a row of urinals. Oops, Danc curses, I walked in the wrong one. Sneaking back out, he walks over to the other door, which opens as he gets to it.
A man walks out and says to Danc's surprised face, “Miss, you seem to be going the wrong way.” Danc blushes (literally) and replies, “Oh, yes, you are right. I got all turned around.” Saying thanks, as he nods, Danc turns on his boots and walks back into the women's bathroom. In that brief course of time, another woman must have walked in, as he turns the corner, she is standing at the urinal. Wait, why is she doing that? He questions himself, until he hears the familiar sound of a man relieving himself. Danc just stops and stares, you have got to be kidding me.
Walking up to the urinal next to her, and facing the wall, Danc looks over and sees that she has pulled up her skirt and pushed over her panties. From there, she has a clean, smooth “manhood” sticking out. Well, Danc thinks, I guess it is a “womanhood” here. Feeling my eyes, she turns and says, “Jealous? You should be.” Finishing up, she pulls her panties over and skirt down. Danc looks forward and fumbles to do what she did. She spanks his skirted butt and says, “Biggest in town!” He mumbles something soft in return, then finally gets his manhood out. The frisky lady washes her hands and primps, while Danc relieves himself.
Nearly done, she adds as she leaves, “And by the way, I don't walk up to my man and stick it in. I stick it in, then walk up to him.” The door closes behind her and Danc just stands there dumbfounded. What world am I on? I don't even know what to think now. How can my gender here be so feminine, yet so masculine on my world? I think I might...muh, throw up. And with that thought, Danc rushes towards the toilets and does just that, trying to conceal his embarrassing outburst in the stalls.
When he stumbles out, another woman walks into the bathroom. She looks to be older than Danc, her dark hair is streaked with some gray, but her figure and size look quite healthy. She sees Danc and walks up to him, “Oh my dear, you look so pale. Are you alright?” Danc nods absently, headed for the sink. He splashes some water on his face and reaches for a paper towel, that the older woman hands to him. “Here,” she says, “Let's throw a little bit of color on you. I always keep a sample pack in my bag in case I need it.” Danc shakes his head, so the lady is not looking as she unclips her purse from her waist.
She pulls out a small bag and opens it. Danc can see brushes and tubes inside. “Really, lady, that is not necessary.” She puts a brush up to his face and says, “Nonsense, you can't go back to that handsome man without something to spruce you up.” With a quick stroke, Danc gets some blush on each check. Closed eyes and another two strokes, Danc has some eye shadow. When he opens his eyes, she squirts something onto his bottom lip. “Work it around, then pucker up.” Danc follows her lead, while she puts her bag away. “There, still kind of pale, but better.” Danc looks into the mirror and sees himself with a light skin tone foundation or blush or whatever it is, he grumbles. The eye shadow is a bit of a gray or silver, while the lip stick or lip goo is black. Huh, he thinks to himself, actually, this will help my disguise.
“Thank you, miss,” he says, “I really appreciate it, and sorry if I was short with you earlier.” She smiles and gives him a hug, “No worries, deary. Us ladies gotta look out for each other.” And with a wink, she turns and steps up to a urinal. Ok, Danc says weakly, gotta get out of here now.
When he gets back to the table, Delvin asks, “You were gone a long time, everything okay?” Danc smiles and nods, “Yeah, uh yes, I was just talking to someone in the bathroom. You know, girl talk.” Ugh, how cheesy is that? Danc mentally rolls his eyes.
With dinner done and the policed cruiser still out there, Delvin decides to press forward, “So, Danica, I guess we need to decide our next move. Tell me, what do you need to be safe?” Danc takes another swig of his drink and says, “I need off world, at least temporarily, but I have no ID.” Delvin nods, “I assume your activity here is from your country's request, and that getting home is your own problem, which in this case, is a big problem.” Danc nods, unsure of where he is going with this.
“Well, as it turns out, my night time business has associates that can make IDs to get you into the spaceport downtown. Not an easy task, mind you,” he says with added emphasis. “But, the process will take 3-4 weeks most likely.” Danc draws a breath to protest, so Delvin holds up a hand. “Believe me, I know how the system works, and those two out there are the least of your worries.” Danc sits back as he continues, “So here is my proposal, I will secure for you one spaceport-approved ID and a ticket on a transport someplace in system. All I need from you are 3 things. Interested?”
Danc looks out the window. I need a plan, he thinks. His mind has been turning that over since he stepped into the restaurant, but nothing comes to mind...nothing. I mean, he thinks dejectedly, I still don't know what planet I'm on. There is so much unknown, but what he does know is this: getting offworld needs some type of credentials, and there may be only one person who can help me. “Let me hear what you want, since you know what I want.”
“First, I need your looks for some upcoming events. My less-than-legal associates find it hard to trust me when I show up with a different girl every time, and they know I paid good money for her that night. If I don't show some stability soon, I'm gonna lose some clients...big paying clients.” Danc nods his head. OK, he's in the local mob or underground, which is usually family run and more traditional in their relationship values.
Danc's silence causes Delvin to continue, “Second, you will have to stay at my place, and pretend in public that we are together. Inside the home and in private, we will be nothing but roommates.” Danc does not like where this is headed, but knowing he has the power still between his legs, he is not as worried. I cannot fall for his lines, like some woman would, but on the other hand, what choice do I have at the moment?
Then finally, “Third, I am missing a driver and model, so you will have to dress as an android to drive me certain places, and wear certain outfits at particular times. My regular android chaffeur will be repaired within the next couple of days, and I hope to have a full-time model on staff by then as well.” Danc laughs loudly, “So you want me to beep-beep around like a wind-up toy so that you can dress me up and order me around? You are crazy if you are thinking I will do that.”
Delvin sighed heavily, “Yes, yes, that is why I saved the third one for last. It is a stretch, but if you knew what you were asking, you might not be so quick to say 'no'.” The silence is long, but Delvin cuts it with, “Think about it, and let me know soon,” casting a look out the window. Danc nods his head and says to himself, nope, not gonna do it...ever.
Delvin pays and Danc has his arm in Delvin's as they walk to his car. Delvin drives a very nice-looking sports car. It's a two-seater, silver, and very low to the ground. He opens the door for Danc, which opens up and not out. Danc has to nearly fold himself in half to get in, but once he does, it is quite comfortable. Delvin closes the door and comes around and hops in easily. The car instantly starts when he closes his door. “So, let's see if we get an escort to the city limits.” And with that, Delvin pulls out onto the main road, followed by the police.
Danc looks behind them, “They are still back there.” Delvin detects Danc's tone, “Don't worry, they are to ensure trouble stays out of town or leaves town. They won't go into the capital city limits, since they have no jurisdiction there.” As if a prophet, as soon as they cross the city-limit line (noted by the sign: “Sorry to see you go...”), the police cruiser does a u-turn and heads back. Danc can breathe a sigh of relief. One problem solved, but am I riding into an even bigger one with Delvin?