Chapter 18: Sweet Dreams

Alderaan

Kitten quietly slipped into the electronics room. She was still wearing the robe she had put on when Stanley and the others sat down for a morning meal. She waved at the monitor where Stanley could be seen in the shower. "Are his clothes back from the lab yet? I can't keep holding him off."

One of the technicians looked up. "Sorry boss, but we haven't received anything. The last I heard, they were dreaming up new tests."

Kitten rolled her eyes. "Typical," she fumed. "Did you scan the clothes before sending them off to the lab?"

"Sure thing. I've got a copy right here." The technician held up a datachip. "I also sent a copy to the central server for safe keeping."

Kitten sighed. "Well, at least we have that. What does the scan show? Any complications?"

The technician grinned. "Nope. No CPU mesh, no climate controls – nothing. Just your basic do-nothing passive cloth, although the fiber itself is apparently unusual."

Kitten smiled. "That makes things easier. Print three sets of clothes patterned on the originals. We'll tell Stanley the laundry service screwed up and give him the new sets as an apology. Let the lab keep the originals for all I care." Kitten exited the electronics room via the hallway. She didn't want to risk being seen opening the mirror door that led straight into the Master's bedroom. She headed down the hall to wait for the 3D printer to complete its task.

Stanley successfully turned off the shower – an accomplishment in his opinion. This shower could do a lot of spray options in directions the Lexx never dreamed of, but it was also complicated. It made Stanley wish for the simplicity of the Lexx.

As Stanley began to dry off, he heard the sound of bare feet padding into the bathroom. Not again! he thought, and covered his face with his towel to conceal a groan. "Lillie, I do like you, really, but I also need time to recover before…." Stanley uncovered his face. "Gaaa!" he exclaimed.

It was Heather standing there naked, looking at Stanley with a predatory grin. "Let's take a shower," she commanded, and snatched away Stanley's towel. She tossed the towel over her shoulder without looking back and pushed her way forward, forcing Stanley back into the shower stall.

"But I just finished showering!" Stanley protested to no avail.

Heather closed the sliding door behind her. "You missed a spot." She reached around Stanley while keeping him pinned in and turned on the water. She turned on the side sprays as well and set them to pulse, making a lot of noise in the small space. She suddenly seized Stanley and pulled him close face-to-face, their bodies jammed together.

While keeping Stanley pinned to herself with one strong arm, Heather reached down with the other and grabbed hold. She leaned forward and whispered into his ear, "If you don't want to lose the family jewels, talk!"

"Talk?" Stanley squeaked. "Talk about what?" He was feeling panicky, his heart pounding, and strangely aroused at same time.

Heather slowly grinned. "My, you are frisky. Does danger excite you?" she breathed softly in his ear. "Consider your manhood to be at risk. Where did you come up with that Giggerota story? A cute play on my real name. What did you do, hack my therapist's records?"

"Isn't your name Heather?" Stanley said weakly. He closed his eyes and wished his body would quit responding to Heather's ministrations.

Heather laughed. "Of course not! We all use house names when we're with clients! Well, except for the clones. They might as well be Billie, Lillie, and Millie. My real name is Ginger Rota."

Stanley's eyes snapped back open. "You mean you really are Giggerota?" His panic level was rising again. Ginger rolled her eyes and suddenly kissed Stanley hard on the lips, forcing her tongue into his mouth. Stanley could only go "Oooooooooo!" as he floundered ineffectively.

Ginger finally stopped, allowing Stanley to come up for air. "Did that feel like some sort of weird snake tongue to you?" she demanded as Stanley gasped like a fish.

"Ah… no?" Stanley flashed a weak, toothy grin. He took in a deep breath. "Look Heather, Ginger, whatever your name is. We only arrived yesterday, and the first thing I did was to come here. How could I possibly have known you would be here at this particular brothel, a brothel picked by someone else, not me, and have time to hack records in a language I can't read? Or even know you have a therapist? Do I look that smart or clever to you?"

Ginger held Stanley tightly to her, looking him in the eyes. After a few seconds, she relaxed her grip. "I suppose not," she finally conceded. "But still, it's very weird. Your story is strikingly similar to some recurring nightmares I've had." Ginger shuttered at the recollection, and brought herself back to the present. She grinned at Stanley again. "Speaking of snakes, let's not let yours go to waste."

Stanley froze in place. "Ahhhh…" was all he could manage.

Ginger sighed. "Come on Stanley, let's put on a show." She took charge and slipped him into position. She put her hands on Stanley's lower back, keeping him firmly pressed to her. She whispered in his ear once again. "I'm pretty sure this whole bedroom suite is bugged. I wouldn't put it past them to bug the shower too. That's why I have everything on in here. I want a private conversation."

"What?" Stanley gasped. He started to pull away from Ginger.

Ginger pulled Stanley back to her and began sensually moving her hips. "Oh buck up, Stanley, and put your arms around me like you mean it. There, that's better," she said as Stanley complied. "The regular news hasn't reporting anything, but amateur video of a strange ship blowing away two destroyers like nothing to it keeps popping up on the net, only to disappear again, sometimes after only a few minutes. Would that have something to do with you?"

"It might," Stanley replied guardedly. Being forced to think about what Giggerota… no, Ginger, was telling him caused his physical passion, so urgent moments ago, to evaporate. "Sorry, I'm losing it," he said quietly.

"It doesn't matter," Ginger said. She kissed him again, this time with tenderness. "But let's keep pretending for a little longer, just in case." Out loud she said, "Oh Stanley! You really are the man!"

"Hey, wait a minute!" said Stanley as a thought occurred to him. "If our arrival hasn't been generally reported, then how did Kitten know who I was and call me 'the hero of Alderaan?'"

"Kitten?" replied Ginger. She moaned loudly for effect and leaned in closer. "Don't know her – don't trust her. Yesterday was the first time I've ever seen her. Supposedly she's from an affiliated house, except she arrived with several military-looking types. Upstairs was off limits for about half an hour before everything went back to normal, except a storage room now has a combination lock. Then Kitten changed into a ridiculous see-through outfit and sat downstairs, reading a tablet, ignoring all the regulars until you arrived."

"You mean this whole thing is a setup?" Stanley paused for a moment before remembering they were faking sex. He started countering Ginger's hip movement.

"Not entirely. I really do work here, and so do the clones. I don't think Billie, Lillie and Millie have a clue what's going on." Ginger grinned. "Lillie likes you, you know."

"She does?" Stanley was pleased and a little troubled. "She has a funny way of showing it, flashing her lady parts and all."

Ginger smiled somewhat sadly. "The clones grew up in this house. Poor Lillie doesn't know anything else. Me? Sex work is for the young and I'm already in my mid-thirty's. I don't plan to do this forever."

Ginger kissed Stanley with passion and ran her fingernails up and down Stanley's back, sending waves of excitement through his body. This version of Giggerota (Ginger!) was turning out to be a much more interesting person than he expected. He was starting to like her, and he was beginning to feel genuine desire again. "You know what, Ginger?" he said. "We may not have to fake it after all."

Ginger rubbed noses with Stanley. "I'd like that," she breathed. "And I mean that personally, not professionally."

Kitten keyed in her pass code in the hallway and entered the electronics room. "How's it going?"

"You should see this," responded one of the technicians. With a few quick keystrokes he had an image of the bathroom pulled up on a monitor. Ginger was there, pushing Stanley back into the shower stall. The door closed and the water turned on.

"Can you clean that up?" asked Kitten. "I need to know what they're saying."

"We're already working on it, boss, but I can't make any guarantees. That water spray really messes with the sound pickup. As for what they're doing, well, that's pretty obvious."

Kitten cursed under her breath. "Ginger is just a little too clever for her own good. They might just be having a good time, but unless you can get the sound cleaned up, we'll never know." Kitten fumed for a few seconds and then sighed. "I know you'll do your best. Let me know when you have something."

"Sure thing, boss."

Stanley was starting to see Kitten in a new light. When he and Ginger came out of the shower, Kitten was waiting in the bedroom with three brand new sets of clothes. Kitten said something about the laundry service messing up, but it left Stanley wondering if there wasn't more to it. Actually, he was delighted to have new clothes, even if they were copies of his old security guard uniform. These were much nicer than the original, and most importantly, they didn't itch! He didn't have the heart to tell Kitten any men's clothing would have been fine.

Stanley dressed and admired himself in the wall mirror. "Well," he said as he made a small adjustment to the angle of his cap. "It's been a blast, but I should be getting back to my ship." He looked over at Kitten, who was now wearing a conservative off-white dress that went all the way down to the floor. Her hair was pulled up into large buns, covering both ears.

Kitten noticed Stanley's look. "Princess Leia wears her hair like this." She turned her head back and forth. "It's the latest fashion. What do you think?" she said with a smile.

"I thought you were wearing headphones," he quipped. Kitten kept her smile fixed because she did, in fact, have a transceiver/recorder in her right ear, hidden underneath her hair. "Now, about checking out…" Stanley said uncomfortably, wondering if that credit chip was too good to be true.

Kitten waved her hand. "It's all taken care of. You don't have to worry about a thing," she said reassuringly.

Yeah, I'll bet the government picked up the tab, Stanley thought. Not Bail Organa personally. "That's a relief," he said out loud. "When will Major Organa be by to pick me up?"

"Major Organa won't be coming," replied Kitten. "One of your crewmembers will be picking you up instead, in something called a 'moth?'" She thought that was an odd term for a shuttle, but Stanley nodded his understanding. "We thought it would be easier for him to find the park nearby than picking out one landing pad among many in the residential area. The park is just two blocks east from here. It's a pretty day. We can wait there if you like."

"We?" said Stanley, wondering where this was going.

"Well," said Kitten, looking down. "I was hoping–"

"Yes, we," interrupted a voice at the door. It was Ginger, wearing a light blue pantsuit with a dark blue jacket. Her hair was fluffed out on the sides with bangs over her eyes. It was disturbingly similar to the way Giggerota had worn her hair, but at least the pantsuit wasn't skin tone. That would have been too much for Stanley. "Remember? You invited me up to your ship." Ginger gave Stanley a significant look.

"Oh, right!" Stanley rallied, pointing his finger at Ginger. "Yes I did, didn't I? And Kai will be picking me up in a moth." Stanley looked over at Kitten and sucked in air through pursed lips. "A moth is small. It doesn't have the carrying capacity of one of your shuttles." Stanley shrugged with a fixed toothy grin.

"Oh I'm sure it can carry more than one passenger," Kitten said smoothly. Underneath, she was alarmed at the way Ginger was manipulating Stanley.

"Which means Lillie can come too!" Ginger said brightly. "Remember how you promised to invite Lillie first, if she wants to come?"

A blur zoomed across the room and jumped on Stanley. He staggered back, barely managing to remain upright. "You're inviting me to your ship?" Lillie squealed with delight, her arms and legs wrapped around him. She began planting kisses all over Stanley's face. "No one ever invites me to anything! I'll get to see Alderaan from space! Thank you thank you thank you! I'll be right back!" Lillie dropped down and zoomed out of the room, leaving Stanley breathless.

Stanley looked at Kitten apologetically. "Three is a crowd; four is the absolute limit in a moth."

Kitten was fuming, but she couldn't do anything about the current situation without revealing more than she was prepared to do at the moment. "I'll come to the park with you," she said. "If nothing else, I'd like to see this 'moth' for myself." With luck, Stanley will change his mind about who's going.

"Ready!" Lillie called from the door. Stanley's jaw dropped. If Kitten and Ginger were dressed conservatively, Lillie was the polar opposite. She had on sandals with thin silver straps. She was wearing the tiniest pair of low-cut silver metallic shorts Stanley had ever seen. They were so form-fitting he had to believe she was wearing nothing underneath. A lose silver crop-top with mid-length sleeves completed the ensemble. The material flowed freely, emphasizing her nipples and flashing the bottom edge of her breasts with virtually every step. Stanley was starting to understand what Ginger meant when she said living in this house was the only life Lillie knew.

"Goodness! Don't you look lovely!" he said, not knowing what else to say. "Let's get going!"

The park was ten minutes away, a pleasant stroll along a tree-shaded footpath. As they went, Lillie skipped and jumped excitedly like a hyperactive puppy. Every time she jumped, her breasts were briefly on view. Stanley was becoming increasingly nervous, sure Lillie's antics would get them into trouble. Ten minutes seemed to take forever.

At last they arrived. There were a few benches shaded by trees, and an open grassy field marked for some sort of game. Stanley found an empty bench and sat down. Kitten and Ginger sat on either side of him, but Lillie was too excited to sit still.

Stanley looked around. The park had several visitors. Some were jogging along footpaths or exercising; others were sitting on shaded benches, and still others were out in the field sunning. It was very pleasant. This has got to be the nicest planet I've ever visited, Stanley thought. I wonder…. Could we live here permanently?

His thoughts were interrupted when Lillie came bouncing up. She kicked off her sandals. "Could you hang on to this for me?" She pulled off her crop-top in one quick motion and tossed it to Stanley. She ran out into the field wearing nothing but her silver shorts and began to do cartwheels.

Stanley's heart jumped as he spotted a pair of men wearing uniforms strolling along a park path. "Oh no! What if those guys see Lillie?"

Ginger laughed. "You mean the Guardia? I'm sure they already see her – she's quite the attention-seeker. Why do you ask?"

Stanley looked around the park. Like himself, the majority of the people here were fully dressed, but among those who had removed their tops, he began to realize they were pretty evenly split between men and women. Comprehension dawned as he realized Lillie was not the only topless female present. "Okay, never mind," he said, relieved. Is this a great planet or what?

Lillie finally came back and sat down in the shade, breathing hard. "That was fun!" she said, while fanning herself with her hands. She was perspiring freely.

"Do you want this back?" Stanley asked while holding out her crop-top.

Lillie shook her head. "Not yet – I need to cool off first."

A few seconds later, they all heard the sound of flapping wings and a loud chirping sound.

Stanley looked up. "There it is!" He pointed as he spotted the arriving moth. As the moth circled the park, the people out in the field began to pick up their things and move out of the way. As soon as the center of the field was clear, the moth began to descend vertically. Lillie jumped up and ran out to see the moth, leaving Stanley holding her crop-top.

"Wow!" said Kitten. She looked at Stanley with wide eyes. "When you said it was a moth, you really meant it, didn't you?"

"You betcha!" Stanley replied with a grin. He looked over at Ginger, who didn't appear to be doing well. She was staring hard at the moth as if not quite believing her eyes. "Ginger? Are you okay? How are you feeling?"

"Hungry?" Ginger muttered, and shook her head. "That's gross! I don't know what I feel."

Kitten reached over and patted Ginger on the arm. "If you don't feel well, perhaps you should return home."

"No!" Ginger exclaimed and jumped up from the bench. "Stanley invited me and that's that! I'm going." She began to trudge off towards the moth.

Stanley and Kitten stood up together. "Stanley?" Kitten put her hand on his arm. "Don't hesitate to call if you need help with Ginger. We all care about her."

How could you possibly care about Ginger? You only met yesterday, Stanley thought. "I will," he said aloud. He reached down and scooped up Lillie's shoes. "Want to see the moth up close?" he asked, jerking his head towards the field.

"I thought you'd never ask," Kitten replied with a smile. Together they began to walk to the moth.

As they approached, there seemed to be some sort of altercation going on. The right side canopy was open and Kai was standing beside the moth, unmistakably blocking Ginger's way. Lillie, meanwhile, was peeking curiously inside and occasionally glancing back at Kai and Ginger with a concerned expression. Ginger, for her part, was arguing with Kai.

"Hello Stanley," said Kai as Stanley and Kitten walked up. "It would seem Giggerota survived the destruction of Brunnis."

"And I'm telling you for the third time, I AM NOT GIGGEROTA!" Ginger yelled, fists clinched, her face flushed with anger. Kai was unmoved by her denials.

"Ginger!" called Stanley. "Give us a minute, will you?"

"Fine!" growled Ginger. She stalked off away from the moth. Kitten followed Ginger.

"Hey! Kai old buddy!" Stanley said. "Giggerota – our Giggerota anyway – is dead. There's no way she could have survived the Brunnis super nova."

"Then who is that?" Kai asked, still eying Ginger with suspicion. Ginger and Kitten were talking quietly.

"Well, she goes by 'Ginger Rota' – I know, real close – and yeah, she looks like Giggerota too, but beyond that she seems to be a different person. It's like she's some sort of partial reincarnation of Giggerota." Stanley shook his head. "I can't explain it. Anyway, she seems okay. She warned me that Kitten…" Stanley pointed to Kitten. "…is apparently some sort of spy or government agent."

"That is not surprising," replied Kai. "They are curious about us, and some officials are worried we might be associated with their local Empire."

"Well that's silly!" exclaimed Stanley. He paused and frowned. "Wait, how do you know that?"

"Major Bail Organa said as much when he asked permission for a team to search the Lexx. He was rather apologetic. It is clear he doesn't believe we have ties to the Empire."

Stanley was surprised. "And you allowed this?" he asked in disbelief.

"It seemed diplomatic to do so," Kai replied. "And they cannot control the Lexx. As Major Organa pointed out, the Lexx is large enough to hide an entire army with supporting units."

Stanley rolled his eyes. "If there was an army on board, I think we'd know about it by now," he groused. "I am quickly getting tired of all this covert spy crap."

Lillie came bouncing up and put an arm around Stanley's waist. "Who's your handsome friend?" she said, eying Kai, clearly attracted.

"That's Kai, and no, he's not interested," Stanley snapped, slightly jealous. Lillie looked taken aback, and Stanley realized he was being overly rude. "Sorry," he said. He put his arm around Lillie's shoulders and gave her a squeeze. "What I mean is, it's just not in Kai's nature to be interested."

"He doesn't like girls?" Lillie asked. She reached up with a hand a jiggled a bare breast at Kai. There was no reaction. "I see what you mean," she said while watching Kai. She looked up at Stanley and grinned. "Can we go see your ship now?" she said excitedly, bouncing slightly on the balls of her feet.

"Sure, why not?" replied Stanley. He held out Lillie's crop-top and shoes. "Wanna put this stuff back on?"

Lillie stuck out her lower lip. "Aw, do I have to?" she teased, and broke into a grin.

"Well, I suppose technically you don't have to…" Stanley said as he grinned back. "Our ship, our rules, but apparently there are other visitors on board." Lillie took her clothes.

As Lillie adjusted her top, Stanley said to Kai, "Do you think we can get four people in the moth?"

"It will be tight, but yes," replied Kai.

"Oh! I like tight!" Lillie laughed, and batted her eyes at Kai. Again, there was absolutely no reaction. "Geez, he might as well be dead!" she said, and walked over to the moth.

"Got it in one," Stanley muttered to himself. "Okay, let's go!" He called out. Lillie was already inside. Ginger came up with a determined expression on her face and climbed in. She sat in back, jammed shoulder to shoulder with Lillie.

Stanley gave Kitten a hug. "Don't worry, I'm sure you'll get to see the Lexx another time," he said without really meaning it. He turned away and climbed in, along with Kai.

"Take care of the girls!" Kitten called and waved as the wings began to flutter. With a rapid beat, the moth took off a little more slowly than usual and circled the park once or twice as it gained altitude. It finally took off in a straight line and disappeared from view.

Kitten hurried back to the house. As she entered, the protocol droid looked up. "Doctor Kitt? The technicians say they have something for you."

"Thank you, 3P2." Kitten walked upstairs. She keyed in her pass code and entered the electronics room.

"Hey boss!" called one of the technicians. "We got that shower chat cleaned up. We couldn't get everything, but it's enough to get the gist of the conversation."

Kitten listened silently to the playback. "Damn! I was afraid of that. Get hold of Major Organa in the Alderaan Guard and route the call to my office."

Kitten went down the hall and opened the door to a small bedroom converted into a temporary office. As she worked on a report for the Viceroy, her intercom buzzed. "Major Organa for you, Doctor Kitt," the droid said over the intercom.

"Lara!" said Major Bail's voice. "If you're going to play psychoanalytical roll games or whatever it is you do, at least give me some warning! Do you have any idea how hard it was for me to stand there pretending I didn't know you and watch some stranger fondle my sister's tits?"

"Sorry Baily," Kitten replied. "I didn't know it would be you delivering Stanley Tweedle. Uncle Bail knew I had a setup here and pressed me into service as an impromptu spy, but that's not why I called. I need access to the Lexx – stat."

"I'm up on the Lexx now. Why do you need to come up here?"

"Because one of my patients, Ginger Rota, is riding with Stanley Tweedle in a giant moth back to the Lexx as we speak. She's sold Stanley on her spy fantasy, and there seems to be a strange connection between Ginger and the Lexx people. It could undo months of therapy!"

"Look, Lara, I understand you're dedicated to the tough cases, but I still don't get why–"

"Baily! We're talking about someone who might try to act out cannibalism fantasies!"

"Hang on…." A few seconds passed. "Okay, a shuttle is on its way to your location," Major Bail replied.

"Thank you!" Kitten said with relief. "I hope I won't be too late."