Scene 1. Roc

Lilly feels Roc’s back against hers and is relieved to be back to her waking world. She carefully extracts herself from the bed to avoid waking Roc. She is moving slower now, she places her right fore-hoof on her ever expanding abdomen. Well, at least they haven't starting kicking yet. And then she feels a pulse. Really! Already! Why oh why did I ‘pair up’ with an athlete! Despite her discomfort, she makes her way to the kitchen where Elaina has already set up the kids, who are busy splashing in their breakfast.

“Good morning Elina, what are we going to do after you graduate?” Elaina smiles, “Isabella said she would take over as nanny." "She helps me here every now and then, so she knows what to do.” “She is really looking forward to your new kids.” “Everyone is!” Lilly looks on, Everyone but me!

Roc appears at the kitchen doorway with his usual morning smile. “Good morning everyone!” Lilly pulls at her robe, even though it is her ‘pregnant robe’ it no longer closes over her large belly. Roc slides up beside Lilly and embraces her, “Lilly, you are looking even more beautiful this morning!” Lilly tries to smile, “I know that’s not true, but thank you anyway.” Thankfully, it is only for a few more weeks!

Roc continues, “The Chief has asked me to help out over at The Factory.” “If you can do without me for awhile, I would like to try working for him over there.” “I need someplace to work after I am too old to play ball,” “And maybe that is now.” “I am not in the games as much anymore and I hate being away half the year," "Especially now that I have a family, that I love.”

“What about our house?”

"The team manager said that they would sign our house over to us if I retired.”

Lilly looks at him with a smile of appreciation, “Okay. I am sure that ‘your family’ would love to have you around more.” “The Chief and Ellie are great to work for.” “The Factory is not very far away.” “You could even come home for lunch, with me!” “and maybe a ‘nooner’…”

Roc smiles even more, “That sounds great!” “We need more players for ‘the team’!” “What are you going to do today Lilly?”

Lilly smiles back, “I’m going to sit in my chair, listen to my new ‘wireless music player’ and eat pizza until I can’t eat any more,”

“and that’s a lot of pizza!”

Roc looks into the living room at the new ‘wireless music player’, “Everyone loves your new music player Lilly.” “The Factory cannot keep up with the demand for that,” “or for any of your other 'new stuff' either.” “That’s what The Chief wants my help with.” “The Army wants the 'wireless telephone' for the war effort.”

Lilly frowns at Roc’s last statement and meditates on the horrors of war she was shown on Apollo’s ‘frame’, “Roc, let’s not talk about The War.”

Everyone settles down for breakfast, served by Elaina. Afterward Roc stands and looks at Lilly, “Lilly, are you going to be okay here alone today?”

“I think everything will be okay,” “I need to do some drawings today anyway, before I forget.” “I wish I was going with you though.” “I would love to see Ellie and The Chief at The Factory again, and all of those nice, smart, cute technicians.”

“I’ll have them stop over one day, to bring you pizza and visit with the kids.” “They are always asking about you all.” Roc leaves the room to walk to The Factory.

Lilly reflects, It will be great having Roc around more. I guess I had better get started on the drawings. She turns on the 'wireless music player' and instrumental music fills the room. She then pulls out her drawing table in the living room and starts to draw. Now how were those miniature computational elements made again? They worked like the vacuum amplifier bulb but they are much smaller and don’t get as hot.

Lilly massages her large belly as she draws, “Ellie, would you please order me a pizza?”

“You just ate breakfast.”

“I’m hungry again already and I am eating for three..." "Probably...”

"A large veggie special, with extra cheese, as usual!”

…..

Roc returns home in the evening. Lilly is still at the drawing table when he walks in, “How was work at The Factory today?”

Roc walks into the living room, “I love it, it is a great place with great people.” “I am not sure why they think they need me.”

Lilly looks up from her drawings, “Don’t worry, they’ll put you to work.” Lilly drops her pen, “Let’s turn in, I can’t draw any more tonight.”

“Roc!” “Tonight, I request a fully body massage!” “Start at my hooves and end at my horns,” “and take your time with everything in between!”

“Okay, you’ve got it Lilly!”

Lilly makes a shy smile,

Why does this guy love me so? He’ll do anything that I ask. Liz is right, I don’t fully appreciate how lucky I am.

Scene 2. Domestic

Lilly wakes up at Apollo’s home, as usual. Ticktock makes breakfast for them both now, along with cleaning the place. Lilly looks up at the hard-working automaton, “Ticktock, are we working you too hard?”

Ticktock responds dryly to Lilly's thought message, “No.” “It is my ‘mission’ to serve you both.”

‘Mission’ indeed! It is the ‘automatons’ and their ‘missions’ that will likely be the death of all living entities!

Apollo looks at Lilly with a smile, “Today we will visit The Farm, and not just for your routine maintenance.” “We are going to visit all of the animals there. Yes, you are going to ‘greet’ all of them.”

Wow, that does sound interesting. Does anyone else keep ‘pets’ in this world?

Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit.

And so the two walk to The Farm. Lilly walks over to Al’s pen. Lilly sees that one of her daughters standing on Al’s back, “I see you are out bonding with your family today Al.” Al and the kids bounce over to the fence to greet their mate and mother. Al smiles broadly, “Hi Lilly, did you come over here just to play with me today?”

Lilly glares, “Heck no, I am staying right here in this pen, and the hell away from you!” “Get your smell away from me and go play with your kids!”

The farmhands guide the kids into Lilly’s pen for her relief. Another farmhand, wearing gloves, brings out a milk container to help Lilly the rest of the way. Lilly stares at his gloved hands and shakes her head. She then briskly snatches a glove from his hand and starts chewing on it,

No Automatons! no Machines! And no scratchy Gloves! Soft, warm, ‘hands’ only, please!

She then wiggles her large udders at him as a message. The farmhand cannot hear Lilly’s thoughts, but he understands. He reaches out and strokes Lilly’s head with his bare hand. She smiles up at him at his touch. He then removes his glove from Lilly’s chewing mouth and puts both his gloves into his pocket. Lilly nods her head and wiggles her tail in approval, and the gentle hand-milking begins, Aaaaah! Yesss! “Baaaaaah!”

I think you like me! It is too bad that you humans are all so ugly and smell so bad!

After her brief family reunion and her ‘manual relief’ Apollo and Lilly continue to walk around The Farm, to visit the other animals. Starting with the ‘hoofed, vegetarian’ types. The first pen contains horses. The curious horses walk over to the fence and touch noses with Lilly.

Lilly attempts communication, “Can any of you hear me?” No response. Nuts!

Apollo climbs over the fence and walks to a small shed. He removes a strangely shaped leather construct and ‘whistles’. One of the horses, a mare, prances over beside him. He places the leather construct on the back of the horse and fastens a strap on the horse’s belly. Then he jumps up and on to the back of the horse and sits down onto the leather construct. The horse stands still for Apollo during this process, apparently she is used to this activity. Apollo leans down over the horse’s head and places leather straps into her mouth. Apollo leans back up, pulling back on the straps, “Hee! yaa! Giddieup!” The mare bolts into a full gallop around the large horse corral. The other horses run with them. He rides over to Lilly, “I miss this.” “Before I had you, I used to ride all the time, outside even, up to our cliff on the hill with the whole herd following.” “These folks really love to get out and run.”

Apollo continues to ride as Lilly walks up to each of the surrounding pens, containing, cows, sheep, and pigs. At each pen the animals greet Lilly with a nose touch, “Everyone likes goats! But can’t any of you hear me?” No response. Nuts!

Of course, the non-sentient quadruped forms of all of these domestic farm animals like horses exist in Lilly’s world, but this was the first time she had seen one ridden. The large farm animals were historically used for pulling plows and carts, but then they were replaced by steam and oil engines. Some were still kept on farms, for meat and milk.

Apollo returns the mare to her pen, pats her head, and places a treat in her mouth. Lilly and Apollo then walk through a wall separating the facility from the next area. "This Farm area is dedicated to the ‘carnivores’." Apollo and Lilly walk up to a series of small pens, ‘kennels’, containing dogs of all different varieties. Apollo opens the first pen and a medium sized male dog jumps out, excited, a beagle,

“You have ears that flop down like mine.” “I don’t suppose that you can hear me?”

The beagle touches noses with Lilly, both their tails wagging,

Mmmmm you smell good! “Baaaaah!” “Woof!”

I guess these are our ‘voices’ in this world.

The beagle is returned to his small pen and Lilly reflects, They can’t be happy, cramped into this small space.

I am glad Apollo does not keep me in a pen, although he probably should.

Lilly notes that there are many collection areas containing cages, all in enclosed in pens, one for each carnivore species. They enter a pen that is dedicated to domestic cats. Once again Lilly sees all of the cat’s faces pressed up against the cage bars, she cannot hear their thoughts, but their thoughts are clear,

“Let me out!”

They pass cages with containing small rodents. The rats and mice are kept in small cages with wire wheels as exercise equipment. “We also breed both wild and domestic rats and mice here, for use as test subjects in the laboratory.” "We also breed wild and domestic rabbits, for the same purpose." "We also have chipmunks and squirrels, over here".

Sniff, Goodbye, you cute little fellows...

Scene 3. Wild

They pass through another wall. “This area is reserved for the wild animals, animals that were never domesticated, but are of interest to our research.” “The hoofed, wild vegetarians include deer, elk, and antelope.” “The wild carnivores include bears, weasels, wild cats such as lions, tigers and leopards and wild dogs such as wolves and foxes.” Although Lilly is curious, she is very cautious smelling them, I don’t want my nose bitten off by one of these ‘viscous predators’!

Apollo walks up to one of the enclosures in the carnivore area, “Let’s visit the lions!” He states with joy. He enters an enclosure containing a pride of eight lions in a large yard. Apollo proceeds up to an older male lion with a magnificent black mane. The male lion is lying on his side looking out from the top of a small rise, above the female lions, “Hello there King!” “I brought a visitor for you today,” “Lilly!” “And no, not to eat!” Apollo points to Lilly who is standing outside the enclosure and looking in with surprise. King stands proudly and looks out at Lilly, “Roooaaar!”

You have him trained to do that! Pretty cool...

Apollo emerges and they continue their walk observing the animal facilities. “Yes, Lilly, these animals are the wild types." "However the ones we have here are all trained to accept humans in their enclosures, to clean and to inspect the residents for health issues.” They walk past enclosures containing small family groups of other wild cat species.

They walk into the ‘wild dog’ enclosure area. Lilly holds her nose up into the air,

I don’t even have to see, I can smell them. I know what is next, my favorites, the wolves!

The wolf enclosure is much like the lion’s enclosure, a large area, with an extended family group of ten, a pack. Lilly looks in at the pack,

I know, you want me, but only to be lunch!”

“Oh you carnivores, why do I love you all so!

They also walk past enclosures for family groups of foxes, weasels, and bears.

The last enclosure features a variety of creatures that can stand upright and superficially resemble humans. They all have similar ‘hands’, round heads, fleshy ears, and some are tailless. "These are the ‘primates’." Apollo points to a large male in one cage. The large male immediately emits a series of very loud hooting sounds “HOWWWWWT!” “HOWWWWWT!” “HOWWWWWT!” and then screeching, “CHEEEEEEEE!” The other primates all vocalize to join in to the noise fest. Apollo shouts over the noise, “I think you can see how much trouble these are to handle.” "The primates are the only animals that kill for sport!” “In addition to the humans, who are also primates…” “The primates are all clever, dexterous, and dangerous escape artists.” “Although they are not venomous like snakes, their bite is very dangerous.” “The bite can quickly lead to death from bacterial infections if not treated promptly.” “The primates are difficult to keep confined, and difficult to catch should they escape.” “I’ll have more to say about these animals later…” Lilly walks slowly and looks into each of the enclosures, in fascination,

I have never seen, or even heard, of these primate creatures before. They all stink though, just like the humans!

They then leave the living animal compounds and walk into a small wall display hall. Along the wall are photographs and posters display showing pictures of other animals not on display in the compound. Apollo points at picture of the first group, “These are aquatic species of placental mammals. The first group all have highly specialized bodies for moving efficiently in water, the whale and the porpoise. These animals all move in the water with fins and a powerful tail, like fish, but they still have come up from the water to breath air, and they all give birth to living young, in the water.” Apollo moves to the next group of pictures, “This next group of animals are in an intermediate state in their return to the sea. These animals come onto the land to give birth and to rest, the sea lion, the seal, and the walrus.”

Apollo points to the next group of pictures, “These animals are too difficult to keep here as they are very large: the giraffe; the elephant; the rhinoceros; the hippopotamus; and the camel.” “A one hundred and eighty centimeter human is standing next to each in the picture for perspective of their large size.”

“These last pictures are of mammals that are not placentals, the opossum, the kangaroo, the wallaby, the platypus and the spiny anteater.” “These last two are the only mammals that lay eggs.”

Lilly looks at the pictures with fascination, Wow, I would really like to see (and smell!) all of these animals, too bad they don’t have any of them here!”

Apollo is watching the fascinated Lilly, “Okay,” “We can go to other animal parks, and water parks.” “Those parks should display some of the animals we did not see today.” “And some of those parks even have land and aquatic animal performance shows!”

Lilly nods her head and smiles,

Yes, daddy!