Aika and Karina were facing off in one of the landing pads, using it as a training ground of sorts. Both ladies were covered in small scratched, some already almost closed. They were also breathing hard at the exertion. Something Reece had never seen either of them do before. They usually rolled right over their opponents, no matter how tough or how many of them there were.
Aika held her two katanas at the ready while Karina lazily swept her long spear in graceful arcs, never taking her eyes off her opponent. Both were dressed for battle, wearing stylized and thickly armored suits of Gen-6 Kevlar, packed with tungsten-reinforced steel composite metal foam. Reece recognized the suits from the trade deals they had made in Madagascar. The suits made both women look like bladed tanks in women’s combat boots. He didn’t envy anyone that crossed either of their paths, a shiver riding his spine to the base of his skull from the mere thought of it.
Aika crouched and waited for the blade of Karina’s spear to cross in front of the lilitu’s eyes, blocking her view for the briefest of moments. Aika used the time to launch herself across the distance separating them and sending one blade high and the other low. Despite having no discernable time to react, Karina managed to parry the weapon thrusting at her torso. Aika managed to score a solid hit on Karina’s left leg, sending a splatter of her blood across the surface of the deck. Hissing in pain, Karina did a standing backflip, hitting Aika in the face with each of her booted feet in quick succession. The dual hits sent Aika staggering back for a second before she recovered enough to dip under Karina’s follow-up attack as the spear’s blade narrowly missed her, swinging her head back and out of the way while letting her body fall backward onto the rubbery poly-matte surface of the deck.
Aika’s back hit the springy and durable deck coating, using it to bounce back up enough and employing her powerful legs to partly kip up. Still leaning back, Aika launched herself into a backward somersault to gain some distance. Karina jumped back, high into the air, seemingly to regroup as well. Instead of pausing, Karina pulled her chain blade from her back and launched it straight at Aika’s unprotected left boot. The strange weapon did its work, swiftly wrapping around Aika’s foot and ankle. Aika hit the attached chain with both katanas, but the material was just too strong. Karina used it to simultaneously pull Aika off balance and herself towards the stumbling vampire. Aika turned her stumble into a forward roll, slipping out of the chain and causing Karina to sail over the top of her.
Karina adjusted by sweeping her long spear in a wide backswing once she landed and had planted her feet. Aika was able to narrowly parry the heavy blow, dividing the force of it between both of her katanas. Aika came up with her katanas at the ready as Karina reeled in her chain blade. With the fight seemingly finished, both women nodded begrudgingly at each other.
Reece had never seen the two truly go at it. He was surprised that Aika’s focus on her martial prowess had made her a match for the three-thousand-year-old lilitu and the centuries of real-world battle experience that she possessed. He had a feeling that if the fight were serious, Karina would still emerge victorious, though Aika would give her a long and memorable battle.
The girls came together and shook hands, but Karina pulled Aika into a hug. Leaning back, she looked up at the taller female, pursing her lips in expectation. Aika took the hint and bent down, kissing Karina deeply. Parting a moment later, they were all smiles as Reece walked up to them, clapping his hands earnestly and shaking his head in disbelief.
“That was amazing,” he announced. “I pity anyone who crosses either of you.”
A pang of fear ran up Reece’s spine when he thought about the morning and Taela. He dismissed the thought out of hand. Luckily for him, Karina and Aika weren’t the murderous or jealous types. If they were, Reece had no illusions that he’d be dead ten times over. Reece decided that it was best to be on their good side. They were both virtually unstoppable forces of nature.
“Nice of you to join us,” said Aika, smiling warmly when she turned to hug him.
He smiled back and walked into her embrace, the bulky armor keeping it from becoming the least bit intimate. Pulling away, Aika made up for it by kissing him long and deeply. Her tongue made promises her body would keep later. Reece couldn’t believe how lucky he was to have the love of this amazingly intelligent and extremely powerful woman. Pulling back, he looked down at Karina.
She was smiling warmly, but there was something else that was there. Something he had seen when they had their chat several nights ago on that very deck. A certain sadness that he just couldn’t place. It gnawed at him, but there was nothing he could do about it for now. They had a mission very soon, a mission that despite their power, still scared him more than he cared to admit.
“Hey lover,” she said to him, a little twinkle in her eye.
“Hey yourself,” said Reece as he released Aika and held his arms out for Karina.
She was on him in an instant, throwing her smaller body up into his arms where he caught her, glad that she had left the spear on the battlefield. It had to weigh five times what she did. Her lips were on him, and her tongue was in his mouth before he could blink. It didn’t take him long to return the favor, giving the smaller female a passionate kiss with plenty of tongue play. Then Aika’s arms were around them both. While incredibly nice, deep down, Reece knew this was a just-in-case goodbye. The two women were about to take on the Order headfirst, and despite their combined strength, the outcome was uncertain. There were no guarantees in life, and now in this post-apocalyptic world, that fact was in bold and underlined.
“So, a little early morning training, huh?” asked Reece rhetorically, smiling at the two women as he forced himself to keep a more positive outlook.
“Well, more of a test,” answered Karina cryptically. “We’ve been training like this on the wall for about four months now. She’s almost taken me on a couple of occasions.
“Huh, what sort of test?” asked Reece, furrowing his brow.
“One that was passed with flying colors, why?” asked Karina.
Figuring they didn’t want him to know, he let it drop. He trusted them and knew they would tell him if he needed to know. He felt it was time to change the subject.
“So, are you both ready for this?” he asked.
“Don’t worry about us,” answered Aika. “Just remember, and this is important, Reece... when everything seems lost, and it will, I need you to say these three words; ‘Inanna says hello’. Can you do that?”
“Um… okay,” answered Reece, crinkling his brow while looking to Karina for answers. “What’s this all about?”
“It’s our trump card, Reece,” answered Karina. “You cannot forget to use it when it’s time.”
“Oh, don’t worry pretty, pretty ladies,” cut in Chippo, with a voice that sounded more ‘chirpy’ than usual. “I’ll help him remember.”
Suddenly, Chippo appeared on Reece’s shoulder, mere centimeters from Karina’s face. For the first time that he could remember, Chippo was in his hybrid squirrel form. He was bigger than a normal squirrel and had small but extremely sharp-looking claws. His tufted ears stuck straight up, and his long bushy tail curled up behind him. Otherwise, his body was shaped more like a human than an animal. Karina moved her head back and Reece took the hint, setting the lilitu back down again.
“When did you get here, little guy?” asked Karina, reaching up to pat the head of the weresquirrel who seemed to enjoy the attention immensely, his bushy tail wagging happily behind him.
“What do you mean?” asked Chippo, tilting his head at the question. “I’ve been here the whole time. I never leave his side.”
Karina and Aika just looked at each other. Reece noticed the unspoken agreement passing between them but thought better than to intrude. He trusted them enough to believe that if they were keeping things from him, they had a very good reason.
“Well then, Chippo,” said Aika. “Do you mind if we borrow you for just a few minutes? It’s important.”
“Sure, sure,” answered the ghostly weresquirrel, smiling naively as he hopped over to Aika’s shoulder.
“We’ll be right back,” said Aika to Reece as she too gave Chippo a few head pats while they walked away.
This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.
Leaving Reece standing there with wondering eyes and a tilted head, the girls glided across the deck, Chippo hopping from one lady to the other. While they walked, the trio seemed engaged in chit-chat as they got to know each other a bit better. Whatever they were saying had them giggling and laughing most of the time with the occasional glance back at Reece. True to her word, the conversation only took a few minutes. When it was over, Chippo happily hopped back over to Reece instead of just appearing back on his shoulder. Reece figured he must enjoy the simple activity.
“Should I ask?” said Reece, once Chippo crawled up Reece’s body and regained his perch on his shoulder.
“You can, but it’ll do you no good. No, no,” answered Chippo, shaking his head vigorously from side to side as he crossed his hairy arms in a defensive posture. He had no plans on letting the secret slip.
“Fair enough,” replied Reece before looking over to where Aika and Karina were standing. “I’m gonna go and check in with everyone. I’ll see you at lunch?”
“Okay, see you then,” said Karina, waving back at him.
Reece didn’t know why, but he had a deep desire to see Naeva and Ciera’s progress. It had only been a couple of days for him, but for them, it’d been months. They were probably already starting to show. On his way to their quarters, he bumped into Pasha just coming out of her room.
“Hey, what’s up?” asked Reece, making small talk.
“Ah, just came from Naeva and Ciera’s room. What’re you up to?” she asked in return.
“Huh, same thing. I just wanted to check in with them,” chuckled Reece. “I guess great minds do think alike.”
“Ahh, wait a moment, would you?” asked Pasha, putting a hand on his shoulder.
Reece immediately noted her serious demeanor and began wondering what was wrong. His mind went down a dark path, speculating if there was a problem with one or both pregnancies. The worried look in Pasha’s eyes did nothing to calm his fraying nerves.
“Tell me,” said Reece with a voice filled with iron. He stared back into Pasha’s eyes.
Her eyes softened as she said, “I need you to stay relaxed. everything is totally fine with both deliveries. In fact, you could say things are better than fine.”
“Deliveries? What are you talking about?” asked Reece in total bewilderment. “They couldn’t be more than... what, a few months pregnant.”
“Oops,” said Pasha. “So, yeah...uh, you’ve got a healthy baby boy and two healthy baby girls. Ciera had twins.”
Reece had wondered how many more crazy revelations he could handle. His question was just about to be answered before the world pulled away from him into the infinite darkness of the unconscious. He felt his body falling and then soft arms grabbing him before all sensation left him.
******
Waking up sometime later, Reece found himself lying on the bunk in his quarters. Aika was there with him, snuggling against his side. Karina sat in the chair next to the bed, reading a book to pass the time. Noticing him stirring, she looked up and smiled, almost overly friendly.
“Ahh, he wakes at last,” she exclaimed, waking Aika in the process. “Do you remember what happened?”
Aika looked up into his eyes, trying to read his thoughts while he attempted to gather them. He remembered their insane battle on the deck, then a short conversation with Chippo joining in. Then he had decided to go and check...on...Naeva...and... Ciera. The last few moments came rushing back to him and made him swoon for a moment.
“Yep, he remembers,” quipped Aika.
“What I remember is insane,” added Reece. “Pasha told me that Naeva and Ciera have already given birth, two girls and a boy. How can that be? That’s impossible. The only time it could have happened was a few months ago, I swear. Plus, it’s weird, because it only feels like it’s been a few weeks for me.”
“We know,” comforted Aika. “It’s okay, and yes, you’ve got three healthy children. Do you want to meet them?”
It took a moment for Reece to respond, stunned as he was by the revelations. “Um... yeah, of course, absolutely.”
“Come on in,” said Karina, louder than before. “He’s conscious again, more or less.”
A moment later, the door opened and in walked Ciera, Pasha, and Naeva. Bundled in each of their arms was a tiny cherubic human. The three of them were the cutest babies that Reece had ever seen, though he knew he was a bit biased. He quickly got up and went to each of them. The girls looked at him with purple eyes and they both cooed happily when they saw him. He couldn’t be certain, but they looked at least a couple of months old.
Nothing was making sense, but when he looked at their perfect little faces, it didn’t matter. Walking over to Naeva next, he looked down at the bundle in her arms. A tawny-skinned boy with dark brown eyes stared back at him. Reece put his finger in the boy’s outstretched hand and the child grabbed it and squeezed. Reece was amazed at the strength that the boy already held. His mother’s genes were clearly strong in his tiny body.
“Reece, I’d like you to meet your daughters,” said Ciera, interrupting his thoughts. “This is Persephone, and Pasha is holding Naeva.”
“And this bundle of joy is Angel,” added Naeva, smiling brightly.
Reece could tell something wasn’t quite right. Reece could tell there was a hint of melancholy in Naeva and Ciera’s voices, despite what should be a completely happy occasion, albeit strangely early.
And what was with the names?” he thought to himself before deciding that if they wanted to discuss... it, he’d wait until they brought it up, whatever it was. In the meantime, he wanted to hold his children. The thought was both alien and novel at the same time. It felt weird, but it was a good weird.
“May I hold him?” he asked Naeva softly, giving her his best smile.
“Of course,” she replied, handing the precious bundle over to him.
She seemed to hang on for a moment longer than necessary, as if afraid to let him go. Though he could never truly understand, he empathized with her. Motherhood had to be the most wonderful and scary thing to happen to a woman, or so he thought.
The moment Reece pulled his child into his chest and felt the warmth and weight of the boy, something within him changed. The reality of it started to sink in. He was a dad, a father. How it happened, the swiftness of it, the circumstances, none of it mattered when weighted against the bundle in his arms. It hit him at that moment. Love was limitless. He knew he couldn’t possibly love this child any more than he already did.
He needed to hold all his children. Reluctantly, he kissed the gorgeous boy on the forehead and handed him back to his mother. Next, he grabbed Persephone from Ciera who almost glowed as she handed the purple-eyed little princess to Reece. She cooed the instant she saw his face and reached a tiny hand up to touch him. He raised her to his face so she could explore its crags and stubble. Apparently, his stubble was a bit rough because she quickly pulled her hand away with a startled gurgle. Amazingly, she didn’t cry, and everyone laughed at the funny moment. That lifted the mood even more, but Reece didn’t notice. He was falling in love for the second time in as many minutes.
“Purple eyes?” he inquired, looking up at Ciera for the answer.
She shrugged and smiled. “Hey lover, we’re in uncharted territory here.”
“But we know one thing for sure,” cut in Aika. “The sterilization haze they released either dissipated before we crash-landed on the surface, or it doesn’t affect you. Hopefully, it’s the former, or else you’re going to have a blistering time repopulating the planet.”
“Hah,” laughed Karina. “Good one.”
“Really?” asked Reece rhetorically while giving the two women a dirty look, not finding the implication the least bit funny.
“Yeah, it was funny,” retorted Karina. “Besides, we’re only joking. We need a little bit more diversity in the gene pool if we want to have a healthy population. Sheesh, grow a sense of humor.”
“Fine,” replied Reece flatly. “It is kinda funny when you get over the thought of blistering. I mean, ouch...”
Everyone laughed at that, and it gave Reece a moment to hand Persephone back to Ciera and grab baby Naeva from Pasha. Being twins, she was the spitting image of her sister, yet there was something different about her. Reece knew right then that he could always tell them apart and the love he felt for her was unique and separate from the love he felt for Persephone and baby Angel. He still wasn’t comfortable with the names, but he somehow knew he should just let it be. Nothing good would come of making an issue of it.
Finally handing baby Naeva back to Pasha, Reece was slowly coming to grips with how his world was changing faster than he could keep up with it. At least, that’s how he felt. It just re-emphasized the need to finish this war and begin culling the planet of the undead scourge, one deadhead at a time.
“You know, Reece,” started Naeva, carefully searching Reece’s eyes for his reaction. “Now that we’ve recovered from childbirth, we need to get back out there and help you win this war for our children, our future.”
He surprised them all when he said, “I understand and won’t fight you on this. Besides, with what we’ve still to do, we’ll need all the help we can get.
“Good,” said Ciera. “Because while you were busy collecting fragments, we’ve been busy here too. It’s amazing what Angel can do with a comms system. We’ve managed to cobble together a secure worldwide satellite-linked communications network that works on all known frequencies.”
“Reports have been coming in from all over the world. Unsurprisingly, there are a lot of communities that aren’t keen on the Order’s world domination plans. Maybe they can help against the Order,” added Naeva. “The bad news is that the Order had been planning this for decades and has amassed large armies across almost every continent. Adding to that are the zombies created when the plague struck and consumed the planet. The Order has been getting better at controlling and even enhancing them, trying to make them a more appropriate fit for their use as menial laborers and soldiers.”
“It sounds like we’ve got our work cut out for us then,” murmured Reece. “I hope these communities can truly offer some help. I doubt the nightcore is just going to fix everything, and that assumes we can even get all the pieces together and activate it.”
“Things will work out,” said Karina. “Maybe not perfectly, but I’m sure there’s a bright future ahead for those of us that remain to see it.”
“Well, I’m going to do my best to make sure that we ALL make it through to the end,” insisted Reece. “We need to watch each other’s backs.”
Reece saw as Aika looked away and Karina noticeably winced at his last statement. That familiar cold shiver ran up his spine again. There was something they weren’t telling him, and he wasn’t sure he wanted to know what that might be. Instead, he’d focus on things he could control. It was time to put all their plans into motion.
They all had lunch together and the conversation turned to the next mission and their preparations. Despite the heavy topic, they managed to keep the banter light. Reece was preoccupied and didn’t follow much of what was said, but after the meal, everyone decided to meet up later to say goodbye before Pasha left with the Phoenix for Korea. She’d be taking Aika, Karina, Sora, and the twins with her. Everyone was leaving, so Reece headed for his cabin.