"Damn, that was good. Is it always like that with you, or are you using your ability on ?" Her tone is half breathless, half clinical.
"I haven’t used a switch on you, I promise."
Her eyes grow large as I tell her that. She looks down to where we’re connected, and I do too. I can see slight blood from where we broke her hyn and a fair bit of her natural lubricant. "Then how...?"
I know what she’s asking, and instead of answering, I kiss her. It’s our first kiss, and despite the fact that we’re already this close, she’s hesitant. I don’t let up, though, as I press my tongue against her lips. After a second, she allows passage, but only to the front of her teeth. I use my hips again, and when she moans, my tongue finally slips in to et hers.
She cos again, and when she recovers, she’s fully engaged in the kiss, moaning and grinding her body against mine for all it’s worth.
Her enthusiasm finally does it for , and I begin releasing myself deep inside her, making us both cry out in unison.
Gravity slowly reasserts itself as we co down from our shared ecstasy.
I find that I’m still hard, but Leslie gingerly gets up and grimaces. She notices my still-eager arousal and smiles weakly.
"Looks like the light did its job. The true experint is a success. Unfortunately, you’re going to need to have soone else take care of that. I’m going to be sore for a week!" She shakes her head slowly. "The things I do for science."
She starts to head for her clothes, but thinking quickly, I turn the yellow light on her, and she freezes mid-step. Standing up, I wait until I’m certain she’s fully healed, then move in behind her. She moans in pleasure as her hand reaches back to the back of my head and pulls my lips down to hers.
"I’ve created a monster," I hear her say before we begin again in earnest. My hand at her center easily notices how sensitive she’s beco.
⸻
"Where are Vage and Harana?" I ask my sister as I walk into the compartnt the two aliens are usually in. The door slides open with a soft hiss, and the familiar scent of clean tal and faint ozone greets . The room feels warr than the corridor outside, quieter too, as if the walls themselves are ant to cradle sothing precious.
"Vage is talking with the other ship captains, and Harana is taking care of your kids." She pauses and looks at for a bit, sucking in her bottom lip, and I know she wants to say sothing. Her eyes flick toward the nursery door and then back to . There’s hesitation there, but also resolve.
"Out with it, Loveth. If we can’t be blunt and honest after everything we’ve done, then we’re more screwed up than I thought." I lean against the wall, folding my arms, bracing myself for whatever she’s about to say.
"You never really spend any quality ti with your kids." The words rush out of her, and now I understand her trepidation. I have been avoiding them. It’s not like I’ve left the room when they’re there, but I haven’t gone out of my way for them either. I have spent so ti with them, but she’s right about it not being quality ti. I have stood nearby, watched from a distance, allowed others to handle the feeding and rocking and soothing. They are from my flesh and blood. Sure, they’re not entirely human, but doesn’t that an they need both parents all the sa? If anything, doesn’t that an they need more?
Ha! Both parents. As if I know anything about that. My dad was never there, so what do I have as a role model? Hank Hill? Hor Simpson? What about Clark Kent’s dad? Oh, sure, I know they’re all fictional, but those are all I have. I know nothing about taking care of babies. Nothing about lullabies or swaddling or the right way to hold them so they feel safe. Maybe they’ll be better off if Vage takes care of them. Maybe I’m just the genetic contributor with a god complex and too much power.
"No, Nick," Loveth says forcefully. Damn my broadcasting mind! I’ll bet the Green Lantern never has these problems. Well, maybe when he’s— "And don’t change the subject. Those are your kids in the other room. I’m not going to let you be a father like ours was. Now march your ass in there and get to know them."
To say I feel sha would be to call the Atlantic a pond. It presses down on , thick and suffocating. She’s right, of course. I make sure my thoughts are my own, clamping down on the stray ones that try to leak out. Just because I had a bad example doesn’t an I can’t beco a better one. If I can rewrite reality, surely I can rewrite myself.
Harana is rocking one of the girls when I walk in. She only glances at for a mont, then returns to her task. Her movents are precise and economical, almost chanical in their efficiency. I rember how Vage told that her race doesn’t care for their kids the way humans do, and I can see that in the clinical way Harana manages them. There is no cooing, no soft humming, no instinctive sway. Just asured care. I think the only reason Vage takes such care with them is because we made them together, rather than them being made by her alone. There is sothing personal about them to her. To both of us.
"Can I have a mont with them?" I ask, my voice quieter than before, and Harana lays the girl down on the soft blankets. She leaves the room without comnt, the door sliding shut behind her with a muted sound.
I just stare down at the six half-human babies. They are arranged in a loose semicircle, tiny bodies wrapped in soft fabric, small chests rising and falling in uneven rhythms. I don’t know what to say. Can they even understand ? Of course not! They’re too young. Their brains are still forming connections, still learning light from shadow.
I pick up one of the boys, this one with hands like his mother’s but a skin tone more like mine. His fingers curl reflexively as I lift him. He is small enough to fit comfortably in both of my hands. He opens his too-large eyes and looks at intently for a few monts, as though studying my face, morizing it. Then he reaches his tiny hand out to and smiles. It is not a gas smile. It is deliberate, focused.
My heart lts, and I feel hot tears stream down my cheeks. I did not expect that reaction. I have faced demons without flinching, reshaped matter without blinking, but this... this undoes .
"I’m so sorry," I murmur. "I should have co sooner. I should have spent more ti with you. The demons are coming next week, and I don’t know what to do about them. I brought you all back to life, and for what? To witness your father’s failure?" The words spill out in a rush, heavy with doubt. I shake my head, and the tiny boy looks at , confused by the movent. "And here I am, talking to a baby not even a month old as if you can understand."
The baby boy reaches out his hand again and, this ti, grips my thumb. His grasp is surprisingly strong. Warm. Anchoring.
’You will do fine, Father.’
The words don’t appear the way they do when the nanites are used, but instead seem to enter my mind in a chorus of voices, all speaking in unison. They are clear and layered, like six tones harmonizing into one certainty.
Shocked, I look at my other five children. They’re all looking back at , serious expressions on their faces. Not the unfocused gaze of infants, but sothing aware. Sothing ancient and new at the sa ti.
....
"I don’t hear anything," Loveth says as we look down at my six half-human children. They’re sleeping peacefully right now and haven’t made any more sounds after that one sentence. Their faces are serene, as if nothing extraordinary has happened.
’You will do fine, Father.’
That one sentence still reverberates in my head. Sotis it drowns out all other thoughts, even though they only spoke to that one ti. It echoes in the spaces where fear used to sit. It leaves no room for doubt, and sohow I know I will be able to defeat the demons. Not because I am the most powerful being in the room. Not because I have alien technology or divine allies. But because six small voices believed in without hesitation.
"They’re too young to talk," my sister continues, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear. "You must be exhausted from working with your ability so much. Why don’t you go get so rest? Using the healing light without any real rest can’t be good for you."
She studies carefully, concern replacing her earlier frustration. I realize I must look worse than I feel.
Nodding, I leave the room and ntally ask Harana to take ho, since Vage is still on one of the other angel vessels. The transition is smooth, space folding in on itself for a brief instant before reforming.
There is just sothing that helps reset your fra of mind when you walk into soplace as familiar as my room is to . A feeling of nostalgia sweeps over , even though I’ve only been gone a couple of days. The air slls faintly of fabric softener and old books. The carpet feels the sa beneath my feet.
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