It was a troubling problem.  Would he have cheated on Molly – and he knew that was what he was doing – if he hadn't felt trapped by the aliens?  Or would he have remained untouched by her blandishments?  His hands reached up, almost of their own accord, to pull at her tunic, letting her breasts bounce free.  He felt himself stiffen as her hand reached into his pants ...

... And knew he was lost.

***

The Captain, according to Royal Naval regulations, was the sole source of authority on any given starship.  There was, James had learnt at the Academy, plenty of case law to back up the assertion that the Captain had a wide range of authority to reward or punish his crew, even rewrite the specific words of orders as long as the intent remained in place.  But, by the same token, involving the Captain in a disciplinary matter meant that it would be recorded in the ship’s log.  If the matter was not serious, XOs preferred to handle it off the record and ensure that nothing was ever written down.

He sighed as he studied the three crewmen facing him, both trying not to look guilty and failing miserably.  It wouldn't have been a problem, he knew, if they’d kept their wits about them, but they’d been stupid enough to let rumours spread out.  Crewwomen Sally Fletcher had lost a bet with Senior Crewman Daniel Meyer and Shuttle Technician Abdul Richardson and, as a result of the terms, had had to perform a striptease in front of a dozen crewmen.  Gambling was bad enough – it wasn't technically forbidden, even though there were limits – but the striptease was a definite no-no.  Luckily, the Boatswain had caught wind of the plot before Sally found herself humiliated in front of the entire crew.

“It's at times like these,” James announced, carefully not looking at each of them, “that I wish it was the lash tradition that we'd kept, rather than alcohol and sodomy.”

All three of the crewmen flinched.  The Captain’s Mast might be official punishment, but there were limits.  James had a far wider range of authority to issue punishments, provided he didn't do anything that was brought to the Captain’s attention.  Whipping the three of them through the ship was permitted, if someone took a careful look at regulations, but it was normally reserved for thieves or idiots who endangered their fellow officers.

“I confess I have great difficulty in understanding what you were thinking,” James added, sweetly.  “Please.  What were you thinking?”

He looked from face to face, feeling his temper start to flare.  “Let me guess,” he added, when none of them seemed inclined to answer the question.  “You reached the limits of what could be legally gambled, so you started searching for forfeits.  And one of you two idiots” – he gazed at the two men – “had the bright idea of a striptease.  Right?”

“Yes, sir,” Richardson stammered.