�The traders I met with said this planet�s name was Alteria. They told an interesting tale of mac��
�Johnman a vessel is approaching on an intercept course. They�re charging weapons!�
�Shields up! Power up the weapon�s array. What do you have on that ship?� I asked SAI while bringing up weapon�s control on my display.
�The vessel is a thunderbolt class attack ship. It is about twice our mass and heavily armed. They�re not responding to our hails!�
As the control panel switched to tactical display a weapon�s blast rocked the cockpit. The shock knocked me to the ground and when I got up everything was blurry.
�SAI get us the hell out of here. Jump to light speed.� I ordered weakly and climbed back into my chair.
�Hyperdrive is offline. I�m initiating evasive maneuvers at full thrusters but the enemy ship�s weapons are almost ready to fire again.� SAI report.
�Lock weapons onto that ship and hit it with everything we�ve got!�
�Firing all weapons�� SAI reported as the space outside lit up with blaster blots and torpedoes.
I had just begun to scan the planet for a landing site when SAI reported the results of our attack, �Johnman our weapons didn�t penetrate their shields and they�re fir��
The next jolt set an electrical charge through the power grid and my panel exploded. I fell straight back onto the floor and everything went black�
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As I began to regain consciousness a numbing pain filled my body. Slowly my eyes opened to the sight of a soft light above me, like a glass ceiling or lamp�
�Good morning.� A friendly feline voice said.
I rolled over in bed and found an 8ft panther furry entering the room. Her beautiful midnight fur seemed to almost shine under the soft light of the room. The gorgeous she-panther was wearing a white blouse, hat, and a matching set of sneakers.
�Who are you? Where am I?� I asked weakly.
�My name is nurse Shitara and you are at the zone 27 medical facility. How do you feel?�
�Like I just got hit by a truck.�
�That�s the concussion and a few other injuries. We don�t get many human patients here but luckily Dr. Tilo has had experience in your physiology. You�ll be fine after some treatment.�
�Thank you nurse Shitara��
�Please call me Diane.� The panther interjected.
�Ok Diane.�
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Over the next week Diana came to visit regularly and nursed me back to health. Here pleasant bedside manners were a great comfort during my recovery. However after the third day I was starting to get some signals from her. Perhaps she was just trying to be nice or maybe something more. It was hard to tell.
Once my strength was back up I started to look for my cloths and gear. It didn�t take long to find them neatly tucked away in a small closet next to the bed. Luckily the blaster and scanner were still in my flight jacket where I left them. But my communicator was nowhere to be found. It must have fell out when I was knocked to the floor during the attack.
The best I could figure was that SAI transported me to the surface during the battle. The furs on this planet must have found me. Unfortunately whether my ship survived or not was another story. So for the time being I decided to make the best of the situation.
Throughout the week my suspicions of Diane�s interest seemed to grow. Perhaps she was just curious about me but the signals were definitely there. Although her job was to nurse me back to health, on my last day at the hospital Diane asked me out. This all but confirmed the signals I had been receiving.
That night the panther showed me the sights and took me out to eat. Over dinner we discussed the attack in orbit and my reason for coming to this planet. Much to my surprise, she believed everything and even offered to take me to a local preserve. Apparently there were some reports of a UFO over that area a week ago. Perhaps SAI had managed to land the ship.
After dinner we went back to her place. The beautiful feline insisted on freshen up after the long day and jumped in the shower.
While I waited in the living room the news came on. The big story of the night was a hacker attack on the city�s medical facility computers. Police believe the hackers were trying to break into the patient files but couldn�t figure out why. There was something about that news report that bothered me but I couldn�t put a finger on it...
Just then Diane walked back into the room and sat down on the couch. Allowing fear to get the best of me, I situated myself on the lounge chair opposite the sofa. Diane looked a little disappointed but quickly started talking about plans for tomorrow. However while listening I saw my opportunity, someone was rubbing her paws.
That little subconscious action opened the door for me. I walked over to Diane, sat down on the opposite end of the couch, and gently lifted her feet into my lap. At first she wasn�t sure what I was doing but spoke up a moment later.
�Oh Johnman you really don�t have to...�
But instead of allowing her to finish I found a key pressure point and pressed in. Her objection was immediately substituted by a loud moan. I hit a tender spot. Then before she could object again I started to deeply massage the soft leather pads on her sole. After a moment the only thing coming out of her mouth was a soothing purr.
For two hours I pampered Diane�s huge feline paws. But then they were abruptly lifted off of my lap. When I went to object she placed a toe on my lips.
�Shhhhhhh. That felt wonderful but now it�s time for me to return the favor.�
Then she got up. The feline took off her shirt with a mischievous grin. A moment later the panther was on top of me�
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�Diane where are my pants?�
�A� I think I ripped them off of you last night.�
�Oh right you did�� I replied with a smirk.
�Don�t worry Johnman I�ve got an old pair of jeans that should fit you.�
A moment later Diane came in with the jeans. They fit like a glove.
After getting dressed I went into the dining room. Over breakfast, Diane and I discussed our trip to the preserve. Choosing a good spot to start wasn�t too important since my scanner had a 5-mile ground radius. All we had to do was get close and it would do the rest.
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The trip to the mountain was long and difficult. After leaving the main road Diane and I had to travel on foot for several miles. However once we reached the two-mile mark my scanner picked up an energy signature. Luckily the signature was strong enough for us to follow and it didn�t take long to find the source.
�Johnman is that your ship?�
�No Diane but I�ve seen it before. That�s the ship that attacked me in orbit. But why did they land? According to my scanner their engines are fully operational.�
�Because Mr. Johnman we hadn�t found what we came for. But it was so nice of you to walk right into our hands.� A voice from behind announced.
Slowly we turned around to find two Arcadians pointing blasters at us. Arcadians are known to be among the galaxy�s most persistent bounty hunters. From what they already said, it was obvious someone had a price on my head.
The two Arcadians led Diane and I down into the middle of their camp. Once we arrived about 30 of them came out of the nearby tents and ship to inspect their prize.
�Welcome to our little camp. Of course now that you�re here we�ll have to break up this little party but that�s alright. The 20000 credits you�re worth will make up for it very nicely.� The head Arcadian told me and started to laugh.
�20000 credits! Who put out a 20000 credit reward for me?� I asked bewildered.
The caption didn�t reply, instead something caught his attention. I turned around and found Diane had walked over to one of the tents. She was taking off her cloths erotically and smiling at the men.
That little distraction was enough for me and I made a bolt for it. Unfortunately the Arcadians noticed and threw some sort of chain. The chain�s plastic links wrapped around my legs in one clean motion and I fell to the ground.
Now that I was recaptured the men turned their attention back to Diane. However the expressions on their faces had turned to fear as the naked goddess grew. As her body slowly lifted into the sky a massive shadow engulfed the camp. The ground beneath her feet started to buckle and sink under the growing weight. Once finished the feline had grown to over a 150 feet.
Without hesitation Diane lowered her bloody foot down on another group of nearby men. This time she applied weight to the trapped bounty hunters gradually, allowing them to suffer. A gruesome series of pops echoed throughout the mountains as the Arcadians succumbed to the pressure and burst. Once the paw settled the panther curled her toes in cruel delight grinding the remains into mush.
Cunningly Diane allowed the surviving Arcadians to flee to their ship. Once they were sealed inside and starting the engines she made her move. The mega panther grabbed a hold of a nearby rock face and started to pull at it. Within a few moments a boulder one and half times the size of the ship had been freed. Although struggling under the weight of the stone, Diane still was able to lift it over the starship and send it crashing down.
A thunderous roar filled the air and the ground shook violently. The massive boulder had smashed the ship completely flat. Nothing of the once mighty vessel could be seen from under the stone.
All counted, not a single Arcadian survived Diane�s rage. Satisfied that the threat was over, the panther returned to normal size and got dressed. The dangerous lady then casually strolled over to me and began to untie the chains.
�You�re a macro?� Was the only thing I could think to say?
�Yes Johnman, we all are.�
�What does that mea��
�Shhhhh. Listen, you told me that you came to this planet looking for macros. Well you found a whole race of them. You should be happy.� She replied softy and smiled.
�But your city� I mean� Every one is normal size.� I stuttered out bewildered.
�Of course they are silly. It�s illegal to grow within city limits for safety reasons. We�re only allowed to grow in the designated preserves, like this one. In this preserve, and others like it, my people can indulge in their wild sides.�
�Do you do this� I mean� You just killed�� I stuttered.
�Those men.� She replied and looked down at her paws, �No. My people don�t hunt other people. But they were going to hurt you, I could see it in their eyes. I had to do something!�
I smiled and stroked her head, �Thank you.�
I put my index finger over her lips, �Shhhhhh. It�s all right. I understand.�
�Are you going to leave me now?� Diane replied with a tear in her eye.
A lump formed in my throat as I answered, �Yes� I need to find out who was behind this.�
�But I can protect you��
�I know but they won�t give up easily. Besides this is something I need to take care of myself.�
�I understand. Just promise me you�ll come back. Promise me��
With a smile I nodded my head. Diane wiped back a tear and kissed me on the cheek. Then the lady that nursed me back to health disappeared into to the woods.
�SAI this is Johnman.� I called into my communicator.
�Johnman are you alright?�
�Yes. Is the transporter online?�
�Affirmative Johnman and I�ve got a lock on your signal now.� SAI responded obediently.
�Good. Beam me up.�
A moment later I rematerialized in the ship�s transporter room. Once I reached the bridge SAI informed me that the Arcadians stopped attacking after she beamed me down. SAI tried looking for me but the sensors were damaged in the attack.
But none of that mattered now. Now I had to focus on who put this bounty on me. Because there wasn�t a place in the galaxy I would be safe until they were stopped.
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