My skinny, red-headed trouble maker sees me walk out of the farm house and blips toward me in stuttering jumps “MOMMA!” She says as her last blip has her barreling into me like the most adorable cannon ball ever.
“Hi honey. I’m excited to see you too.” I sniff a little as her excitement to see me hits me in the feels. “Has Auntie Jenna been coddling you, or teaching you proper?”
“She punched a few of my teeth out last night because I was bored and not paying attention. She was so stunned that I was bleeding so much, that had time to I bite her and she screamed real loud!”
If I’d never seen her leave teeth in things like trees and wooden furniture, I would likely be worried and furious with Jenna. Getting bitten with our nasty shark teeth is punishment enough though. I paw Zia’s face and look for how far along her healing is. New teeth almost fully descended, nice.
“Moooom, stahp. You’re embarrassing!”
“Oh yeah? Well you’re the cutiest patootie!” I smooch around her whole face until she blips away to take a breather. I fall over laughing like a grown-ass adult. “Sorry not sorry, honey. Now c’mere so I can teleport us home.” I look over to Francesca and Jenna. “Do you guys need anything? And thank you both for watching over Zia.”
“She’s very energetic, but she keeps Jenna busy while I work, so I can’t complain.” Franny winks at her partner.
“Not my fault the Admiral put my classes on hold.”
“Probably going to be a few more months, so try not to go crazy. Unless you want to help me setup the Herrati colony in a few weeks.”
“I think I’d like that, actually. Where we settling them?”
“Kepler-C I think? No name yet, but it’s the only full-sized habitable planet that I know of from here to Earth. Having to clear an already settled, or a heavily bombarded moon didn’t seem like a fun thing to do.”
“Oh, I’m coming. New planet with new life? Sign me up.” She points her drink at me, “you’re letting me take samples.”
“Samples, sure. Research station? No dice. If they have a botanist I will allow conversation, but they will be physically isolated once we set up their town. No one in or out after that.”
“You’re establishing a POW camp on a habitable world?”
“I am indeed. Limited Exchange access and basic provision allowances. It’s the most decent thing I can think of for a surrendered enemy whose race I am still at war with.”
“No complaints here. Especially if no humans are allowed to go there and harass them.” The big softie Jenna replies. She receives a collective eyebrow. “What? I assume you’ll be limiting their exchange purchases so they can’t just leave, and it eliminates all sorts of guard-prisoner abuse issues.”
“Considering that World War I POW camps treated their wards like actual people instead of criminals, I’m inclined to call them that. That’s neither here nor there. I’ll let you know when I head over for that mission. Before that, I need to see if Petra has drank all of my booze, and follow through on some crating promises I made Zia.”
“Mama says I can have my own shuttle when I reach tier 1! She also says that I need to learn at least one trade besides fighting, and I have to find out what my second element is. Then I get a shuttle!”
“Not going to teach her the value of money and that being rich isn’t everything?” Dr. Summers dampens the mood.
“Nah. Being rich is a lot. I want her to understand the value of contributing with effort, money, or both. You know, like spending millions of credits to build cities for citizens, splurging on Astorian crafts, amongst other things.” I’m about to go off on a tangent when Zia tugs at my elbow.
“Can we go float on the river for dinner today?”
“Oh heck yeah!” I look over to Fran and Jenna, “See ya ladies, and thanks again.” I teleport to my top floor garden, grab a few galaxy fruits. “Baby, can you grab some berries for us? I should check if Auntie Petra is alive before I get in the river.”
She nods and blips over to the nearest bush and starts foraging while I skip the elevator right to the hot tub and bar area. I blip in to see Petra sitting with bubbles on, talking loudly at Owen while he massages her scalp while refreshing her drink.
“Since when do you give massages Owen?!”
“Penny! Your helper robot is very capable, the perfect bartender. He knows to listen and keep the vodka coming.” Her face his flush, but her speech is barely altered as she gestures with her glass full of booze.
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“Miss Petra asked if I could download some modules. I used the budget you’ve allotted me or developmental purposes. I’ve also kept up to date on trends across the Empire as you’ve requested. When will I be allowed to socialize with the other AI?” I hear loneliness in his voice. He’s been following my mandate of diversifying his personality as well.
“A few months more, Owen. Please understand why I require Empire Ais to socialize with our citizens, as for why I’ve asked you not to reach out to Alaris and the other ships is purely scientific. Alaris was sentient on delivery, and Mab and Titania had to come up to speed with ship tactics for the conflict. Tessa is really the only AI I know that primarily personalized with Humans and has a body of her own. I want to see if your having a body, a physical sense of self, changes your development. I’m also asking because your neural matrix is the a proto version of the one Zia has, but you were never imprinted with a brain scan. Your waves are self developing and I would like to do that with the future of my progeny if it is viable.”
“I always pictured you having kids someday, Penny. Me too, at some point. It would have been me and your wife taking care of our businesses, teaching our kids how to make money and shake down lowlifes while you and Ivanka conquered the Galaxy.” Petra drains her glass and stares blankly at the water. I blip out of my suit and slide into the hot tub next to her, pulling her into a hug. She stiffens for a moment before wrapping her arms around me.
“You’re welcome to share this suit with Tessa, Zia, and me for as long as you like.”
She nods into my shoulder. “For a few days maybe. Ivanka and I were talking with Katie. I think I’ll follow up on that, once I don’t want to murder everyone.”
“I love that you’re a stabilizing presence wherever you go.”
“And we loved you, you know?” She pulls back and stares into my eyes. I nod, I did know, but Ivanka’s brand of affection was not for me. I would have gone to war for that bitch, but her need for control in relationships is not my jam.
She moves in slowly but surely, and I don’t move to stop her. Our kiss is sad and understanding, like a song that you love that makes you cry. After a few moments, I put my hands on her cheeks and gently pull us apart. “There was a time I could have comforted you like this, but I’m not that person anymore.”
“Dah, but I’ve been wanting to do that for years.” She sigs, “I know that, but still I would come if you called. I’m the kind that latches on, but you probably knew that.”
I chuckle at that and hug her head to my shoulder. “I do.” I sigh, wishing I could think of more to do for her. “Do you want to eat dinner with Zia and me?”
“I don’t think I have room for food tonight. Perhaps tomorrow.” She pulls away, sinking back into her seat and towards Owen’s hands. I pull the bottle that Ivanka left me for this exact moment, sit on the edge of the tub and pour a shot for each of us.
“Nostrovia, comrade.”
Petra grabbed the shot, nodded her head at me and muttered goodbye to her lost lover before chasing the night away with Vodka.
***
“Mamma, you have your own food! Stop stealing mine!”
“Strong words for a girl who doesn’t work. What’re you, six months old? Time to get a job missy.”
“Nooo! I get to be a kid until I get tier one! You Said!” I chuckle at her squeals and the ‘world is ending’ tone.
“Hmm, so, if you’re still a kid, I can still do this!” I reach for her sides for merciless tickles, but she’s fast and blips away. I smirk as she hasn’t seen me teleport other people yet.
I pose my arms to grab her and wiggle my fingers with a menacing grin. “There is no escape ZiZi!” She chuckles with glee as we blip all around the suite until she blips away and I blip her back into my arms.
She squeals louder than I have ever heard a person squeal as I tickle her little riblets. “Cheater! Cheater! Nooo!” She tries to blip away again, but before she can finish the transfer I pull her back and just hug her close.
“And I will cheat every time to get a snuggle from my ZiZi.” I teleport us to a pool lounger and pull her on top of me, just loving the feel of her small weight making me relax. We lie there for at least half an hour, before I feel her tiny body shiver.
“You want a shower or sudsy bath?”
“Can we do onsies and crafting?” I immediately picture Zia sticking her tongue out while engraving a stone while in dinosaur pajamas.
“Why have I never done that?!”
“Because you’re old?”
“Rude! Probably true though. Onesies!” I teleport us back to our room and sigh as Zia is so excited about onsies that I have to hold her under the shower while she navigates the brightly colored catalogue. After she waddles out naked and dripping, paying no attention to the towel half flopped over her head, I hop in for a quick rinse. My pearlescent pink and lavender unicorn PJs are waiting for me on the bed and Zia is already prancing around in in her orange polka-dotted dino suit. She’s so stinking cute.
“So what’ll it be baby? Engraving, enchanting, or other?”
“Can’t we do something with knives or something?”
“I can teach you how to make a knife?”
“Yeah!! That. I want to learn how to make that stuff.”
“Okay honey, I’m going to need you to get your shield bracelets and roll up your sleeves.” She dutifully does so and holds out her hand for me to grab. Lazy child makes me smile as I grab her hand and port her to my workshop.
I start my Aether forge sans the enchanted corundum and order the supplies We’ll need to make her very first knife. After a couple of hours it’s hard to keep her on task, so I start shutting things down and tell her that we’ll start from where we left off tomorrow. She starts falling asleep while getting ready for bed and barely makes it to the bed before she’s out like a light. I kiss her cute little face and pull her up next to me, when I hear feet shuffle at my door.
Standing in the door in white and grey cat PJ’s is a drunk Russian. “It took me a long time to order this . . . is it too late for Pajama Party?”
“If by party, you mean snuggles and sleeping, then you are right on time. Come her kitten.” Petra’s eyes lock with mine and widen before looking away again and shuddering. I pat the bed next to me and leave and arm out for her to lay on. I tuck Zia close and let Petra situate herself next to me. She wraps an arm around me and tucks her head into my shoulder.
We all sigh, nearly in synch, as the stresses we’ve accumulated start seeping away into the night. It’s good to feel a semblance of being both at Home and a peace.