Free AL:ICE-9 by Charles Lamb

asking her directly about their destination. Instead, he just enjoyed the ride and her company. They chatted as the trip progressed and as they passed over the LA area, Jake was even more convinced he knew their destination.
    Once they were over water, Sara started to strip down, inviting Jake to do the same. She produced two swimsuits, one for each of them. To Jake’s disappointment, hers was not the one he had originally provided her on their first trip. That moment passed quickly though as he remembered how little time she actually wore the suit, spending most of the time completely naked in the water or on the beach.
    By the time they reached the island, Jake was in a swimsuit, with a t-shirt covering his wrapped ribs. Sara had a similar t-shirt on over her 2-piece swimsuit. Instead of landing at the beach as they had on the first trip, the helicopter continued up to the airstrip, slightly around and back onto the island.
    Once on the ground, the door opened, allowing Jake and Sara to disembark. Jake was shocked at what lay before him. Several more aircraft sat parked along the airstrip, with people moving between the aircraft and the building. The people were working on the structures, clearly making repairs. At this point, one of the many jeep type vehicles pulled up next to the pair. Having come from one of the nearby buildings where it had been stored, Jake assumed it was their ride. Sara grabbed their bags and dropped them in the back, motioning for Jake to climb in.
    “Get in,” Sara told the confused Jake.
    “What’s going on here?” Jake asked, pointing at all the activity as he got in.
    “We are upgrading the island. Wasn’t it your idea for this to be a regular rest and relaxation facility,” Sara replied, “isn’t that what you and ALICE originally planned?”
    “Sure,” Jake replied, “I just didn’t think that was in motion yet.”
    “Oh no,” Sara answered, “we’ve been working on this place and rotating staff though here for months.”
    They had been talking as the jeep passed the construction on the buildings along the way. All the work consisted mostly of human efforts, with the occasional bot or automated construction equipment tossed in. As they turned down the familiar path to the beach, Jake was surprised to see several more people either playing in the water or lounging in the sand and sun.
    Pulling up in front of the same container like box he and Sara had occupied before, Jake noted several more identical boxes lined up down the beach, each pushed back next to the bank and all had their awnings out and doors open.
    All up and down the beach, he could see mostly women, with the occasional couple, taking full advantage of their down time. He had a bit of a flashback to the pre-disaster California. The only thing missing were the surfers.
    As they climbed out of the jeep and grabbed their bags, Jake turned to the sound of someone calling his name. In the surf, waving at him were two immediately recognizable women. Becky was there, having been the one who hailed him. She was wearing the black two-piece bikini ALICE had made up, similar to the one he had made Sara. This one however, Becky had insisted be made smaller, to one up her sister. Standing next to her was Sandy, in a pink with white polka dot suit, far more conservative than Becky’s bikini, but still smaller than most of the other 2-piece suits on the beach.
    Jake tended to avoid making comparisons of the different women he was involved with, preferring to think of each of them individually. This however was completely unavoidable while watching the two younger women standing together in their swimsuits. He had always considered Sandy to have the bigger bust line while Becky was just curvy. He now realized Sandy was all boobs, with a slender body beneath while Becky was every bit as busty, just more balanced. Both women were built to entice.
    Shaking his head and waving back to both, Jake turned back to Sara with a confused