Strange Encounters

Title: Strange Encounters

Rating: M - Contains M/M/Xenophilia/Tent

A/N: This was written in 2003. I found it while looking through some other old fic shit. Didn't even know I had it! Also my first ever put up publicly M rated fic. IT'S FUCKED UP, I KNOW. But there ain't any fics for this particular fandom that involve Lorenzo and I totally still crush on him for some screwy reason. lol Why must I raep my favorite man characters!? S1 Lorenzo only, btw. Uh, and the 'alien-man' has a name though it's not specified in this fic. I should maybe re-write one day. Lazy. (It's Adeius, btw in case you wanted to know) I don't claim to write well, either so if my story is all structured like shit, sorry. I at least try to keep grammar in check.

Disclaimer: I don't own the RAoJQ characters and in no way claim to, either. I did make up the aliens featured in here, though. If you wanna have them molesting people in your fics at least make sure I get some credit for it. :D

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It was nearly 2am. The rain was pouring down hard as two figures in hooded raincoats walked the street outside the docks to their destination. The pair reached the doors to the warehouse they'd been told to make their pick up at. The doors were already open a bit for them. They cautiously went in. The smaller figure looked around the wooden crate filled room. It seemed suspiciously empty even though they had arrived minutes later than they had been designated to. There were no lights on either.

"So where is everybody?" the taller male figure spoke softly.

The smaller figure took down the hood and ran her hand through her short cut, red hair. "I don't know. I can't believe they'd turn up late, though. Something doesn't seem right."

"Maybe you should contact the boss. Tell him we're getting bad vibes on these guys or somethin'?" the man responded.

The woman was about to answer him when a spot light flashed on, startling them both for a moment. The pair both pulled out the guns concealed under their coats and pointed them towards the shadows they could now see approaching through the lights.

"Now, now. There's no need for weapons drawn," said the man in a white suit who stepped forward so he could be seen. He had his hands raised to signal that he was not a threat, and a smile was on his face as well. "We had to make sure you weren't followed or anything like that. This business, you know. Can't ever take too many precautions."

The pair didn't lower their guns any but the man in white stepped up to them casually anyhow.

"You are Surd's people, here for the pick up, yes?" the man in white asked in his light German accent.

The woman nodded. Her eyes were dark and intense, fixed on the man in white like a lioness ready to pounce any moment. "Yes, we are. We've come to collect seven vials. Nothing more, nothing less."

"Yes, yes. Seven vials. Right away. Martin! Briefcase!" the man in white turned and called out to one of the other few men standing in the shadows.

Immediately a man with a small briefcase hurried to the man in white's side. His gloved fingers quickly worked the locks and opened the case up to display the contents to the waiting pair in front of him. Inside the foam lined case were seven small glass vials with an unknown red liquid filling them.

"Here you are, my friends. As promised. Not a drop out of place," the man in white assured them eagerly as the other beside him closed the case back up and locked it, then handed it over.

The woman took the briefcase from the man in white's flunky. "Well then. I believe our transaction here is complete." She then turned to leave, her partner doing the same.

"Ah...well," the man in white began, "I believe we are still in need of our payment."

The woman turned back to him and glared. "I was quite under the impression that you'd been paid in full already. We have nothing on us, if that's what you're after."

The man in white kept smiling oddly and clasped his hands. "Oh, no, no, my dear. You misunderstand. Our payment is right here!"

The group of men who had been circling the room in the shadows now came forward, guns drawn. They drew closer, surrounding the two outsiders and blocking their path of escape from the warehouse.

"What?! What is this?" the red haired woman snarled angrily with a bit of surprise a her suspicions being correct as well.

"Yeah, what's the deal?!" the man who was her partner added with equal upset, his gun aimed on the first man to dare to come to close.

The man in white backed away a little as more of his men came past him and blocked in the two.

"You see...You...are the payment, my friends." With that, he gave a hand signal to his waiting men. "Take them!"

"Damn it!" the woman yelled in frustration and turned to open fire on the man in white if it was the least thing she could get away with before getting shot herself, but the gun was shot from her hands before she could pull the trigger. It went clattering onto the cement floor a few feet away. Two of the body armor clad men working for the man in white jumped at her and lightly tackled her to the ground. The briefcase of serum vials was grabbed before it could be damaged by one of the other men who then held it.

"Julia!"

The man with her squeezed off a few rounds of his sub-machine gun at the other attacking group but they dodged seemingly faster than a normal human would have been able to. He gasped as one of the black clothed men kicked his legs out from under him and sent him sprawling to the ground and dropping his gun. He managed to fight some of them off from tackling and pinning him to the ground as well and tried to get back to his feet.

None of the men were firing upon him for some odd reason. He looked over and saw his partner being restrained while another man in white holding a syringe loomed over her.

"Uaah! Lorenzo, this was some kind of setup!" she yelled and kicked at her enemies as they grabbed her and forced her back to the ground. The man with the syringe bent down to administer whatever it was the syringe held.

"Yeah, I noticed!" Lorenzo yelled back, unsure what exactly to do now besides stand ready to fight as the other men surrounded him again.

"Now, now. No need to put up such a ruckus," said the man in white through the darkness he had retreated back to. "You will not be harmed, I assure you."

There was a soft 'pop' behind Lorenzo and he gasped, feeling a sharp pain in the back of his neck. His hand flew up to the spot and found a small plastic dart embedded in his flesh. "Damn! Uhhhh..." he trailed off as his vision started to blur and his body began to feel heavy and numb. He staggered forward for a step or two before collapsing to the ground. The last thing he saw before he blacked out was the group of armored men closing in on him.

******

The sound of something electronic steadily buzzing came to Lorenzo's ears as he woke from his induced slumber. He grimaced and put a hand to his head, trying to rub away the dull ache. Upon blinking his eyes back open he noticed that he was now in some strange looking area with silvery metallic walls and electronic equipment spread out all over. There were desks lined with computers and papers everywhere as well. It seemed like some sort of laboratory. The lights of the room were not very bright and came only from the surrounding electronics and a few pale blue glowing bulbs lining areas along the walls.

"The guy's awake," a voice called out from nearby.

Lorenzo turned his head to see a worker in a white lab coat standing a few feet away, jotting down notes on some paper attached to a clipboard.

"Hey...what-" Lorenzo stopped as he attempted to pull forward and realised he was held down onto the bench he was sitting on by some sort of plastic straps. He struggled momentarily and realized he couldn't break them. "What's goin' on here? What the hell're you doing with me?!" he demanded angrily. The man with the clipboard said nothing and simply concentrated on his work. "Hey, bastard! I'm talkin' to you!"

"Ah, Mr. Corletta," a woman's voice came from another direction and made Lorenzo's head turn towards it.

A gorgeous fem fatale in a high cut red dress descended the stairs down to the lab area, two men with sunglasses and both clad in black on either side of her. They walked up to where he was being held captive. The woman's hair seemed blond at first but as she entered the lights, it seemed more as if her hair was a straight and pure white. She looked down at him with strange white irises eyes as cold as ice.

"I see you're awake."

Lorenzo stared up at the sinister looking woman. Not even Julia had a predatory stare that spine-chilling.

"So are you gonna tell me what's going on or what?" he asked, narrowing his eyes.

"I can only tell you so much. You've been selected to participate in a little experiment, shall we say. An incredibly classified one. You should be quite thrilled, though. There are very few selected for these types of experiments. Consider yourself part of a very...elite crowd." the woman said with a smirk on her crimson lips.

"Yeah, sure. What am I, in area 51 or somethin'?" Lorenzo asked sarcastically.

The woman in red chuckled with amusement. "Well...Not quite."

The two men beside her came forward and undid the straps holding Lorenzo to the wall and bench. As soon as he was back on his feet, he took a swing at one of the men in attempt to knock them back and try for escape. To Lorenzo's surprise, the man's hand shot up faster than Lorenzo's arm before it finished lashing towards him and caught it.

"Huh!?" Lorenzo gasped as the man held his wrist for a moment.

The man's grip was like a vice. His arm was jerked down and he was put to the floor quickly.

"Uaaah!" Lorenzo cried out in mild pain as his other arm was grabbed by the second man in black and pinned behind his back.

A weight much more intense than a normal human of the men's size was placed on him as the one who had grabbed him first put an arm to the back of his neck and held him down with it. Lorenzo tried struggling but found he couldn't move at all. Not even jerking his arms and body violently made either man sway an inch. They simply stood, unwavering, looking down at him and holding him easily.

"What the hell?!" Lorenzo shouted with growing nervousness.

"Bring him," the woman commanded and turned, walking briskly off to another part of the lab.

Lorenzo was promptly lifted up and right off his feet by the two men, each locking their arm under and around his. They then carried him as if he weighed no more than a feather pillow off to where the woman had begun walking. They traveled down a short, dark hallway into another dimly lit room with shiny metal walls. The room's far end had a line up of five large cylinders attached to multiple pipes and wires that were coming out of the walls beside them. The cylinders were labeled with various numbers and letters, presumably for identification of some sort.

Another man in a lab coat stood at the ready beside a large control panel as the woman in red walked past. He gave a nod to her and pressed a button as the two men holding Lorenzo walked up to the far right cylinder and stood. A loud clank sounded, then a soft hissing of air as the door to the cylinder slid open. Lorenzo's eyes widened with apprehension as he could see into the strange tube now as the men held him in front of it.

The tube was rather brightly lit by several lights that came from the ceiling. The inside walls were coated in some sort of green shaded substance with many blueish vein like things all around as well. Needless to say, it looked quite alien.

Lorenzo gritted his teeth, fear now overcoming him. He kicked out, trying to hold his foot against the side of the doorway before they could jam him inside. "Aaah! No way...no way! What the fuck is this?!" he yelled.

The woman looked slightly annoyed. "Into the chamber, Mr. Corletta," she said indignantly and waved a hand at him.

The two men in black sneered, grabbed his legs as well and forced them straight, then tossed Lorenzo into the cylinder. He landed on the floor of it with a thud and scrambled back to his feet but not in time before the door slid shut once again, trapping him inside. He slammed up against the door desperately.

"NO! Lemme outta here! What the hell're you doin'?! Hey! HEEEEY!"

The sound of his own screaming voice rang around the inside of the bizarre enclosed chamber and back to his own ears, causing mild pain. He swallowed, trying to wet his drying throat and looked around in rapidly growing horror.

The walls of the cylinder were white as well as the floor, but most of it was being covered toward the ceiling back down by the weird looking green and blue veiny covered growth. Even more chilling was the fact that some of the small tendril like protrusions that were sticking out of the mass near the bottom area were moving, swaying back and forth as if they were the tail of a cat. One of them brushed against his shoe, causing him to jump back and slam against the door area again. Lorenzo pressed up against the door as it seemed the only safe non-green-alien-vine-thing covered area at the moment.

There was no way to look back out from the chamber. The walls were opaque and there were no windows. He was lucky he wasn't claustrophobic, or he would've panicked from that alone and not from the weird things that were inside the chamber with him.

"Yaaah!"

Lorenzo yelped and moved again as more of the little tentacle things began snaking against him, now seemingly aware of his presence. Some of them came near and tried to wrap around his legs. He let out another brief scream and slammed back up against the doorway with his back to it. Suddenly there was a rustling from above and drops of some sort of fluid began raining down lightly in spots.

Lorenzo snapped his head up quickly in time to notice the large sack like object suspended from the ceiling. It was a dark green, same as most of the spots that covered the walls. The sack looked almost plant like and had many larger veins attached to it that could have been possibly holding it in place. They covered the area around it and went down the chamber walls a ways. Lorenzo gave a gasp of shock as the sack opened and something began emerging from within.

Several more thicker tentacle protrusions came slithering their way from the sack's insides. Something wrapped inside more of the tentacles was coming out as well, and hung down from the sack for a moment before slowly descending. Lorenzo withdrew, sliding down the side of the chamber to the floor, his arm raised up in front of his face in futile defense. Whatever it was was, it was coming down almost on top of him. It crept further towards the floor before it stopped at the mid point of the chamber and unravelled itself. The remaining tentacles unwrapped from around the thing as it lowered itself to the floor and righted itself to its feet. It landed quite gently on the floor near Lorenzo and stood.

Lorenzo's wide eyes took in the site before him.

The thing that came down from the ceiling was some sort of large, alien-humanoid man, as far as he could tell. The creature's skin was green and grey which tapered off into lighter shades along its arms and legs. It stood about seven or maybe eight feet tall and had a body like a classical greek statue; smooth, hairless, and hard muscles everywhere. Long hair that was gray in color but also had pale streaks of blue in it hung down from its head and along its back a good four or so feet. Its face was framed by long gray bangs with the pale blue tapering off the ends. The face of the being was oddly human looking enough, though the gray and green skin color was unsettling, and the eyes were very strange, being an unearthly shade of greenish blue themselves and having slitted pupils like those of a cat or reptile. They also seemed to glow.

These eyes stared down at Lorenzo with interest.

Lorenzo was still held up against the wall, trembling a little. "H-holy shit!" he managed to blurt out under his breath.

He assumed these were his last moments on earth before the freakish man-monster began sucking out his internal organs or draining all his blood, or something even worse than those horrid thoughts. The tentacles that sprouted from rows along the green man's back were waving around behind him as he stood. Some of them came toward Lorenzo after a few minutes, and began prodding him lightly. Lorenzo screamed and scrambled back once again.

"AAAAH! No! Stay away from me!" he pleaded as if he thought it might actually make the thing leave him alone. The creature simply tilted its head to the side and continued to stare at him with calm amusement.

It suddenly folded its arms and shifted its weight to one side, looking casual.

"You don't have to be afraid. I'm not going to harm you," the alien-man spoke in a very soft, deep voice.

"Oh, you gotta be kiddin' me!" Lorenzo blurted out again and raised a hand to his head.

At least if the thing could speak perfect English, maybe there was some hope that it could at least be reason with.

"D-don't...don't eat me, man! Please! Or whatever the hell you're thinkin' of doin'!" he begged and continued holding his position pressed against the farthest wall from the alien being.

The being cracked a small smile and chuckled.

"I...don't consume humans. If it makes you any more at ease, I'm not actually carnivorous at all. I obtain sustenance through fluid intake, which I need to do very rarely anyway."

It seemed even more strange that he was now having a conversation with the alien thing, Lorenzo thought, feeling almost crazy.

"Okay...Okay...Uh. Well, could'ja tell them to let me outta this thing now, please? How 'bout that?!"

"Hmm," the alien-man hummed and shook his head. "I'm afraid not, as they don't let the subjects free until the session has been completed."

"Session?!" Lorenzo asked hastily.

"Yes," the alien-man responded and began to move closer to Lorenzo before he could slide away again. He then lowered himself to one knee in front of the recoiling human and studied him for a while before finally speaking again. "I must mate with you."

The words seemed to cause a bit of a mental train wreck in Lorenzo's brain. He simply began screaming again.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAH!"

The alien-man drew back his head a bit, tilting it again with curiosity at the reaction. He raised up a light green hand and placed the thumb to his chin and index finger to his top lip while pondering. "I don't quite understand. You still show such intense fear? Your files clearly stated that you were bisexual and that you were also not a virgin to sexual encounter by either gender, so it's not as if it's something you've not done before. Hmmm."

Lorenzo kept himself pressed against the wall like he thought he could somehow phase right through it if he really tried hard enough. His eyes were even wider now that he'd heard that bit of info.

"Wh-What?! How the fuck do you know that?! Who the hell are these people?!" he yelled in angered shock, clutching his head.

The alien-man sat back on his legs with a light sigh. "Well, no matter. The session must still be completed. I'll just have to give you something to help you relax," he said almost comfortingly.

The alien-man's eyes opened a little wider as Lorenzo suddenly sprang up and made a desperate dash to get away from him, if only to the other side of the chamber. Before he could get all that far away, the alien-man's arm shot out and grabbed him by the wrist, pulling him back quite easily.

"You're not making this very easy, are you?" he said softly, the small human's screaming beginning to pain his own ears.

He wrapped the struggling human in his tentacles and held him firmly while he raised a wrist up. Another small tendril emerged from the bottom of the wrist and quickly made its way into the human's mouth. The tip delivered a shot of clear fluid that hit the back of Lorenzo's throat and slid its way down, causing him to involuntarily swallow. Lorenzo grabbed his throat with a free hand and coughed a few times. Things seemed extremely futile now that he'd swallowed whatever mildly sweet tasting alien liquid that had just been forced into him.

"AAAAAH! What the fuck was that?!" Lorenzo yelled with dismay, his hand to his mouth.

"Just a little something to help ease you," the alien-man responded to him with a pleasant smile.

Lorenzo looked quite apprehensive.

"It works rather quickly," said the alien-man softly into Lorenzo's ear.

Lorenzo was already beginning to feel strangely warm very suddenly. The warmth grew from the pit of his stomach out through his whole body and down each limb. His breath grew more rapid for a brief moment as he felt his adrenaline spike and then he began feeling very relaxed. The feeling was quite strange. Lorenzo hoped he wasn't going to end up passing out and being left at the mercy of the alien guy. He waited in tense silence a few minutes and saw that he did remain conscious.

"That's better," the alien-man said pleasantly. He loosened his tentacle-grip on Lorenzo and placed his own arms around him instead. Lorenzo grimaced but didn't have the willpower to struggle against him anymore. It was as if something was now suppressing those senses in his mind.

"Now we can begin."

The alien-man started nuzzling against Lorenzo for a few moments. He then kissed Lorenzo's neck a few times, making the man squirm in his large, green arms.

"Mmm. You smell quite good, little human," the alien-man told his captive partner as he sniffed Lorenzo casually, taking in the scent of his cologne. He began delivering light kisses to Lorenzo's cheek now while his hands fondled Lorenzo's clothed body.

Lorenzo groaned softly through gritted teeth, straining against the sensations being forced on him. It was getting harder and harder to resist arousal as his body was assaulted by pleasure. The alien-man was unrelenting as well. He quickly slipped his hands beneath Lorenzo's black sweatshirt and slid them up over his hairless abs and chest. Once at the chest, he took the left nipple in his fingertips and began playing with it until it became hard while he licked at Lorenzo's neck. Unable to help himself this time, Lorenzo gave a light moan. This time around he was becoming hard.

It was what the alien-man was waiting for. His hands slid back out from beneath the sweatshirt and went to Lorenzo's jeans instead, quickly undoing the button and pulling the zipper down.

"Uuuuhhh, damn it!" Lorenzo managed to groan briefly in frustration.

The alien-man's pleasant smile grew as his hand found the waiting erection and wrapped around it. Lorenzo gasped. The alien-man began sliding his large hand up and down the rigid shaft of flesh. He moved deliberately slow, then gradually went faster as Lorenzo panted and curled his body up a little bit, precum forming on the tip of his cock. The alien-man stopped before bringing him to climax, though.

"Mm. I think I'd rather not waste this one. I'd like to taste you," he said to Lorenzo in an eerily sexy tone.

He then turned Lorenzo on his back and held him again with his tentacles while he pulled down Lorenzo's jeans and underwear a ways. Lorenzo shivered as the alien-man's warm mouth took in his cock and began sucking skillfully. Lorenzo couldn't last much longer. He felt the sensation building up inside his body. After a few more moments, he cried out and came into the alien-man's awaiting mouth. The alien-man swallowed every drop of his release with satisfaction. His tongue even cleaned the remnants from Lorenzo's cock before he pulled off.

"Mmm, I was correct. Delicious!" the alien-man complimented as he wiped saliva from the corner of his lip.

Lorenzo laid beneath him looking slightly dazed.

"I think that's enough of that foreplay for now," the alien-man said contently and picked up Lorenzo again and placed him over his own large thigh. He then began rubbing his finger over Lorenzo's hole in a stimulating manner. Lorenzo gave another gasping cry.

The alien-man rubbed in circles for a little while longer before lifting his fingers back up momentarily. A clear gel like substance formed from the two fingertips and he rubbed them along with the thumb, making the substance cover the fingers. He then placed a finger carefully into Lorenzo's opening. Lorenzo again gave a gasping cry. More followed as the alien-man's fingers began gently thrusting their way in and out of his body.

"Ah, yes. Human males have a small gland inside here that causes great pleasure to be had when light pressure is applied to it. I believe it's...here?" the alien-man said with amusement and pressed in. Lorenzo gave a sharp moan in response as the alien-man's probing fingers located his prostate. He gave a soft chuckle and continued to assault the area, massaging it carefully with his fingers until Lorenzo almost blew his load again. He again stopped short, teasingly, allowing Lorenzo to lay limply and catch his breath for a moment before lifting him up again.

"Now...we mate," said the alien-man, holding Lorenzo up in front of him. He stood and took Lorenzo from the floor to the near wall, setting him back on his feet and then pressing him lightly up against it.

Lorenzo was in too much of a sexually aroused daze to bother attempting to struggle against his inhuman assaulter any more. He knew he couldn't win, anyway.

The smaller tendrils that were covering the alien-man's groin like a speedo pulled back and wrapped to his hips and around his thighs, revealing his large, pale green cock. The erect organ was absolutely dripping with the same clear lubricant that had manifested onto his fingers previously. He placed his hands on Lorenzo's hips and wrapped a few tentacles around his body as well, and then began sliding his wet cock into him. Lorenzo gave a sharp, gasping moan as the large, alien organ slowly filled him.

The alien-man again nuzzled his head against Lorenzo's and kissed the back of his neck as he began to thrust inside Lorenzo gently. Lorenzo's masculine moans of pleasure filled the chamber as he was penetrated by the large being. A good seven minutes passed before Lorenzo gave a cry of orgasm and came, spilling onto the wall and floor. He went temporarily limp in the alien-man's muscular arms as he panted to catch his breath again.

The alien-man kept the pleasant smile on his lips and kept moving inside his human partner for a while longer to bring himself to release. He knew once that happened, things would get a lot more interesting.

Lorenzo pressed his palms against the cool wall and rested against it as he moved with the force of the alien's body behind him. He had already quickly become hard again. The alien-man kissed along his human partner's neck again and rubbed his hands over the lean torso while increasing his pace steadily. After another long moment of listening to Lorenzo's moaning, the alien-man finally gave a groan himself.

"Unnn. I'm coming!" he said softly into Lorenzo's ear.

The rush of warm fluid almost surprised Lorenzo. He gasped again as the large amount of alien cum filled him. It felt oddly satisfying.

"Ah. I hope you aren't getting too worn out, little human. Because this mating session is only just beginning," the alien-man said contently to his human partner.

Lorenzo gave a moan. He was starting to feel warm and tingly, like he was getting even more aroused than he'd been made already. He felt like someone had lit a small fire inside him and it was starting to grow out of control. After a moment of straining, he finally allowed the feeling to overwhelm him.

"Yes," the alien-man said with satisfaction and an even broader smile. "My fluids also contain quite the potent aphrodisiac within them. It helps extend the mating periods of my species to ensure the maximum amount of fertilization is achieved. Of course, you being a human and all, insemination is not really coming into play here. It is simply for ideal use with my own species. But, it does also work on humans quite well as you can now see."

The alien-man pulled Lorenzo back down the the floor with him and took a seated position, keeping Lorenzo in his tentacles while he removed the clothes from his body. Once the human was fully nude, he placed him in his lap and set back to work freely working his hands and tentacles over the male's well toned body and kissing. This time around, Lorenzo responded to every touch, kiss, lick, and nip with uninhibited pleasure. He was now quite submissive and feeling incredibly horny.

The alien-man lifted him up and placed Lorenzo's legs over his own, propping him over his lap. He then pushed his wet cock back inside Lorenzo as he held him against his chest and began thrusting up into him. Lorenzo's cries of ecstasy filled the chamber as the alien-man's dripping cock entered him again and again in a slow, steady rhythm.

"AAAUUUUUUUUUUH!"

This time Lorenzo was screaming in orgasm. He sprayed onto the floor in front of him and relaxed back into the alien-man's arms.

The alien-man had finished up quite satisfactory for the session. He allowed himself to cum inside of his human partner once more. "Oh, yes. That was wonderful. I don't think I've ever had such a feeling with a human before until this day!" he said with much interest and enjoyment. He then slipped Lorenzo off of his cock and allowed the man to rest in his arms.

Lorenzo was looking tired out now. The feeling of sexual euphoria was waning in his body little by little as he regained himself. He faintly felt the alien-man kissing his lips directly before he fell into unconsciousness.

******

"HUH?!"

Lorenzo woke with a start, sitting up in the arm chair he was in. He looked around himself quickly, taking in his surroundings. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. He heard the sound of computers running and the dim light of the screens illuminating the room. His boss was seated in front of the large monitors researching something. Upon turning to the other side he saw his other associate, Julia, seated in the arm chair behind his boss. Her head was resting in her hand and her eyes were closed.

Lorenzo swallowed. "Uh...Julia?" he started to ask.

Julia turned to him, a tired look to her. She stifled a yawn. "What, Lorenzo?"

He hesitated for a moment, not really sure of what to say.

"Uh...I guess I..." he paused and brought a hand to his head. He couldn't really remember much of anything now from the bizarre dream he'd just had. "I had this really fucked up dream. But now I dunno what it was about anymore!" He turned back to Julia. "Say...did you have any crazy dreams? Like...just recently?"

Julia just scoffed at him and rolled her eyes. "Lorenzo, do you ever have anything coherent to say?" She then went back to her relaxing position and closed her eyes again with another yawn.

Lorenzo ran his hands through his brown hair briefly and wondered to himself. "What, nobody else has messed up dreams but me?" he finally said. Then he simply shrugged. He got up and stretched, then walked to the door. "I'm goin' to get some air." He let himself out and shut the door gently behind him.

"I think poor Lorenzo's had an out-of-body experience, Julia," came the electronically synthesized voice of Jeremiah to his underling with a small chuckle following it.

Julia's eyes opened back up but she didn't bother to move her head from its resting position. "I swear, sometimes I don't know what goes through that man's head. Dreams are just dreams. Utterly meaningless. And I don't believe much in astral projection. Even if I did, I doubt someone like Lorenzo would be able to do it," she said with light amusement.

"So you haven't been having any strange visions lately?" Jeremiah inquired with equal amusement, much to Julia's mild confusion.

She laughed softly. "Oh course not. My mind is too focused for bizarre, childish daydreams."

The was a brief moment of silence in the room. Then Jeremiah responded back.

"Well, that's good," he said casually with another light chuckle. He then went back to work, typing up inputs into the key pad set into his wheelchair's hand rest. Julia closed her eyes again and curled up in the chair. The screen briefly flashed and a message appeared from the person Jeremiah had been waiting for a response from for several hours.

[[SHIPMENT HAS BEEN RECEIVED?]]

Jeremiah typed back quickly.

[[Yes. Seven units. Perfect condition, even with the slight mishap.]]

A moment passed and another response came flashing back.

[[SATISFACTORY?]]

Again Jeremiah punched in a response.

[[Quite.]]

Another moment.

[[PLEASURE DOING BUSINESS WITH YOU.]]

Jeremiah typed quickly again.

[[Question. How goes your end of the transaction? Was the data collected helpful?]]

[[IT GOES WELL. INDEED IT WAS.]]

Once more the tapping of keys filling the overall silence of the room.

[[Oh, I just thought you'd like to know. I'd suggest using a little bit more of a memory repression drug. One of the 'subjects' seems to have recalled a bit of the events that transpired this evening. It wasn't enough to pass for anything more that a fleeting bad dream, though.]]

A few moments passed before a new response came back.

[[THANK YOU FOR THAT INFO. WE WILL BE SURE TO WORK ON THAT FOR NEXT TIME. ANY TIME YOU FEEL LIKE MAKING SOME EXTRA MONEY, WE WILL BE HERE.]]

"I'm sure you will," Jeremiah said softly as he stared into the flickering computer screen.