Copyright 2024 – Daemon D. Hart
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The Human Bearer
Milking and other weird inspections aside, Xeus proved to be the real deal. At the moment, he was escorting Riordan to dinner, moving one step behind him and holding a possessive hand on his shoulder. Even without checking, Riordan had a pretty good idea of the curious looks thrown his way. Their little trio had to be quite the sight. He was holding Junior close as his eyes darted sideways now and then. The mere thought that there was a traitor among them sent chills down his spine every now and then.
He felt his face stretching into a big smile as he noticed Cario waving at him. That was one friend he had neglected to see since he'd returned from his suicide mission. Seeing how much Cario's special brand of sangar had helped him during that time, it was an omission for which he had to apologize and do it properly.
"Can I sit there?" he asked Xeus politely, pointing at the empty seat next to Cario.
His former self would snort and shake his head at his manners. Before, he had used to lack them altogether. Now... now was different. He was in frigging space, and he was a mommy. When people said they felt like they had become different persons, they had to be talking about this kind of thing.
"Yes," his father-in-law replied in his usual curt manner. "I will join the high commander and His Excellency. Refrain from any sort of conflict."
"I'm here for dinner. And what conflict--"
His words died on his lips. Jasno was there, surrounded by what looked like a bunch of groupies. Several bearers were fawning over him, while he coquetishly played with his hair, rolled his eyes and whispered conspiratorially from time to time. Doll face raised his eyes and his good mood turned sour when he noticed Riordan.
"Don't worry, I'll behave," Riordan said and forced a smile while he pressed Junior close to his chest. Jasno must have been in the wrong place at the wrong time, but hitting a baby was wrong, too. Even a schmuck from the wrong side of the tracks like Riordan knew that.
It had to be the mommy part of him that reacted like that. Although he had seen Jasno earlier, as long as he'd been by himself, he hadn't cared too much. But now, a thread of anger coiled slowly around his heart. Jasno would never put his hands on Junior again, unless he wanted to experience what it felt like to have his limbs torn from his body.
Riordan blinked away the imaginary bloodshed. Could he blame it on hormones or something like that? Xeno doctors – if he were to use Ferix as a standard model for the profession – would probably know. Or maybe he'd seen enough bloodshed lately to warrant such a reaction on his part.
He gave Jasno a short nod. For everyone's sake, he would be civil. He moved his eyes away from doll face and sat by Cario's side. His friend used his only free arm to wrap him into a hug. "Didn't I tell you, Riordan? I would meet your Xenolite, and here you are, the two of you."
"You're one hell of a fortuneteller," Riordan admitted with a smile. "Junior," he whipered into the mop of dark hair, "there's a little guy who'd like to meet you."
From his parent's arms, Dario was watching Junior with keen eyes. Junior also turned his head to watch this new guy, but he held his arms wrapped firmly around Riordan's neck, wary as he seemed to venture out of the safety of his mommy's arms. A slow hiss rose from him, and Dario answered with one of his own, their eyes never leaving each other.
Riordan was about to scold Junior for his behavior, when Cario began laughing. "I believe they will become friends quickly."
"If you say so," Riordan replied, not entirely convinced.
"Let's eat," Cario suggested in his usual pleasant voice.
Riordan took another look around. He would have liked to talk to Cario alone, but he could always ask for a meeting after dinner. However, one thing was on his mind, and who else to ask than the guy who knew almost everything happening around the ship?
"Hey Cario," he whispered, "do you happen to know if Florent is coming to have dinner with us?"
"Florent Kasido," Cario said slowly. A sly smirk passed his lips for a moment. "I believe the high commander took it upon himself to take dinner back to his quarters. And yes, that means Florent now shares the same living space with our dear Master Vai."
"Master Vai," Riordan said slowly and gave Cario a grin of his own. "Sometimes I forget that's how I should call the guy, too."
"Well, not all of us have your penchant for getting into such trouble that being on first-name basis with the big guys appears as nothing but an endearing quirk of character."
"So endearing," Riordan muttered under his breath but looked at Cario with eyes full of meaning. "By the way, man, thanks for that stuff. I believe it saved my life, and not only mine."
"You will have to give me a thorough account on it," Cario said quietly. "But only when we're alone, and there aren't so many ears listening in."
A short look around was enough to let Riordan know that the others were stealing glances at him – and Cario for that matter – but tried to be inconspicuous about it.
"I see that my rival has his own crowd," he said, dropping his voice to a whisper. "And I thought you were the queen bee." He meant it as a joke, but then he realized that maybe Cario would take offense at it. "Sorry--"
"Don't worry. It was just a matter of time for the old alliances and cohorts to re-emerge. Despite the late upheaval and your mission against Gamni Gafilos, the need for unity is bound to falter here and there." Cario brought a glass of water to his lips and sipped delicately. "Get together a group of bearers with nothing on their mind but boredom, and you will get a bit more than just gossip."
"You're not bored," Riordan pointed out.
"Sex with my master and child rearing are enough to keep me occupied," Cario said, his eyelashes dropping coyly.
"You don't say," Riordan said with a snort. "I know for sure you're a man of many other talents."
"Well, having hobbies is healthy," Cario agreed with a courteous nod. "Too bad others' only hobbies are backstabbing and getting ahead."
Riordan looked over at Jasno for a moment. Doll face seemed busy chatting with his buddies, but it took only a moment for their eyes to meet.
"Fuck," Riordan muttered under his breath. "And I thought that after I died and came back from the dead, too, I'd get some peace and quiet."
"You have me. You're not alone, and my queen bee status sits higher than his," Cario assured him, the same charming smile never leaving his face, thus preventing outsiders from guessing what he was actually talking about.
"I'm counting on it. Politics gives me headaches. And Marn--" Riordan stopped. "We'll talk later."
"Of course. Let's enjoy our dinner. Just one more question before we demurely see about our meal," Cario said. "How is life with Xeus Lei?"
"As you'd imagine," Riordan replied and balanced Junior on one arm while getting busy with the other hand. It came as a surprise to realize how hungry he was. A well-balanced dish containing grilled meat, poached vegetables and some kind of sauce lay on his plate.
"I see. No wonder you're glowing," Cario commented.
"Oh, please," Riordan grunted. "You don't want to know."
"But I do," Cario said and laughed. "Your life is so interesting, Riordan. Allow me to live vicariously through you."
Riordan didn't comment further. "How do you think they provide us with all this food?" He took a bite and his stomach grumbled in anticipation. It wasn't half-bad. "I doubt they have a cattle farm stashed somewhere on the ship."
"That would be something, but no. It all comes from frozen packages. I think the Xenos are light years ahead of us, as far as refrigeration and food preservation are concerned."
Riordan threw around a look loaded with unease. He remembered when he'd been used by Lewis's husbands to reach the seth quota. "And it's enough to take us all to Tanez?"
"More than enough," Cario assured him. "Remember that we should have been a lot more numerous than this. There are ten dining halls on the ship. Only this one's in use."
Riordan felt the familiar knot forming in his throat. "So many, dead."
"Yes," Cario said and he stared at the food on his plate. "We can't change the past. But I'm sure as hell that I want to have a say about our future."
It was a good thing to have Cario Hamen in his corner, for certain. It felt good not being alone for a change. He had Xeus, too, despite his being a Xeno with his own beliefs and agenda. And even if Xana was still unconscious, a part of him lived and breathed and grew up. Riordan gave Junior a small kiss on the head, and the little one blinked slowly and smiled at him. Yes, Junior had his dark eyes, but the way he leaned his head to one side to look at his mommy was all Xana.
Xeus was by his side the second dinner was over and the maintenance personnel, a group of smaller lizards than the ones working on the ship as guards, began cleaning the tables. Riordan had to admit that he had his curiosities about that species, especially given the recent events, but he put them on hold. The first thing he needed to ask daddy-in-law was for allowance to visit Cario in his quarters so that he could have a longer chat with his friend.
"No," Xeus said curtly, in that manner of his that let anyone know that arguing would be pointless.
Riordan, however, insisted. "Cario Hamen is my friend. Also, he can give me pointers on how to raise Junior better."
"You have no need for such things. You are doing well."
Wow, was that a compliment? A touching thing to say, especially coming from someone like daddy-in-law.
"Do you plan on subjecting me to some other weird experiments?"
The metallic glint in the alien's eyes reminded him that the father, unlike the son, had no inclination to indulge him unless some logical reason was at play.
"Fine," Riordan continued, "but I hope you're not going to keep me cooped up indoors all day. I need to stretch my legs."
"Today, you stretched your legs plenty," Xeus replied. "You do not understand your importance. Typical of your race."
"You just mentioned that I'm a good mommy to Junior." Riordan hiked the little one higher on his arms and pressed his cheek against the dark head. "Wait, today was today. So, what about tomorrow?"
"Ask me again tomorrow."
Riordan waved at Cario to let him understand that a visit wasn't in the cards right now. "Have you gone to see Xana?" he asked as Xeus began guiding him back to his quarters.
"Ferix Baserat is the best Xeno can offer, in terms of medical knowledge and expertise," Xeus replied.
"Yes, but that isn't what I asked. Don't you want to see your son?"
"I don't see how having me staring at him while he's unconscious and under treatment would be of any use to him."
Riordan pondered over his following words. `Or to you. Right?"
"Your Earthian reasoning still baffles me."
"Well, since you're new to it and everything, it doesn't surprise me."
"You've influenced Xana. You made him reckless."
"Wow, wow, let's chill," Riordan said. "You can't know that for sure. Also, you've been away for the last twenty years of his life or so."
"Eighteen."
"Right." His wry comment missed his mark, as usual. "We're so different," he added and decided not to insist.
"Yes," Xeus agreed, "and yet."
Riordan waited, his ears perked up. "And yet what?" he asked impatiently when there was no follow-up to that intriguing comment.
"It is beyond your human understanding. About your Earthian friend."
"Cario Hamen," Riordan said quickly, hoping that if he repeated the name enough times, Xeus would recall it eventually. If Xana had been so influenced by him, maybe he could work on daddy-in-law, too.
"His master plans on putting a second egg inside him. His free time will become limited. I suggest that you plan your visit accordingly."
"Okay, thanks for the info," Riordan murmured, wondering why Cario hadn't mentioned that.
Unless he had no idea about Drato's intentions, although that seemed a hard thing to believe, given how in the loop Cario kept himself.
"What about Dario? Will his dad send him to school already?" He meant it as a half-joke.
"Yes. And my grandchild will follow suit soon."
"What? But he's barely... Come on, he's too young."
"They have to start learning fast. We don't have time for mollycoddling."
Riordan looked at the Xenolite sleeping in his arms. Xeus could say all he wanted that human reasoning baffled him. It worked the other way around, as well. At the same time, the thought of being parted with Junior so soon made his heart ache. It was better to ask than jump to conclusions like a paranoid mommy.
"Wait," he said, "will I still be able to see him?"
"He will still need your milk. And he will continue to live with us. But a part of his day will be dedicated to becoming a Xeno."
That could mean so many things. Riordan had a long list of questions, but they had to wait. "And when we have to wean him off my tit? What happens then?"
Xeus's hand on his shoulder was heavy but warm. "Then, you will have to consider receiving another egg inside your womb."
Riordan clenched his jaw and said nothing for a while. "I won't have anyone but Xana," he said stubbornly. "I don't give a damn what Marn says."
"You should address him properly," Xeus said in an icy tone.
"Save me the spiel," Riordan hissed and looked around to see if others were eavesdropping on their conversation. "The way I see it, what's left of the Xeno race owes me big time."
He hadn't been alone in everything he had done for Tu'lek, and he knew that he had only done all those things because he loved Xana and his son. Love didn't make people just and noble. At least, in his case, things didn't work that way. He couldn't allow anyone else to be like that with him, no matter what plans Marn and others had for his womb.
"Have you reconsidered?" he asked, his voice loaded and harsh. "Do you want to be next?"
"I have no interest in having another offspring. That is the prerogative of the younger generation," Xeus replied promptly. "I can tell that anything I say, it only upsets you more. What will you have me do, Riordan?"
"What indeed. Maybe I want you to think of Xana and his son first. Your family. But I suppose Xeno families are not the same as Earthian ones, right?"
"You had no family on Earth," Xeus pointed out. "Are you comparing us to an ideal you have no experience of?"
The question took him by surprise. Riordan blinked away a couple of tears. "Thanks for throwing it in my face. The thing is, I have a family now. And I care about not having a stranger intervene between us."
"Very well. Then I will have you."
Riordan groaned and turned to look at daddy-in-law. "That is so not what I meant."
Xeus pursed his lips. "So difficult to please. It was a lot easier when we put our eggs into other species. Yours is a bother."
They walked into their shared quarters and Riordan slowly coaxed Junior into having his evening meal, as well. The little one didn't need that much encouragement. At a moment's notice, he latched on his mommy's nipple, drinking greedily. An infant barely out of the womb, and they wanted to send him to school already. And once Junior no longer needed to be breastfed, Riordan's womb was up for grabs.
"I'd rather not have you, either," Xeus said and caressed Riordan's cheek in a sudden and unexpected manifestation of affection. "But what do you believe would hurt Xana more? Would a stranger, as you say, be a better option?"
Riordan looked up and stared into the deep green eyes. He batted Xeus's hand away. "Are you trying to manipulate me? Like Marn?"
"In order to make things easier for you." Xeus put his hand again on Riordan's cheek, cupping the jaw slowly. "I will postpone the moment of having to put a second progeny of mine inside you for as long as it is possible. But eventually, His Excellency will ask to see results. You talk about manipulation. Do you even realize what I'm doing for you now?"
"Wow, quite the speech," Riordan said stubbornly, but Xeus's touch was getting to him. He felt the imperious need to push his head into that slow caress and let all his worries melt. The alien was, without a doubt, reaching inside his brain, getting him to believe that he actually wanted that.
"You like words, many and unnecessary. I offer you what you need. Assurance."
"What I need? It's not the same as what I want, it seems. Because," Riordan said as he set his gaze on the patrician face, "what I want is for Xana to be happy. And he won't be if he wakes up to his husband carrying his father's egg."
Xeus moved his hand away and stared at Riordan for long moments. The air was still, a pin falling on the floor would have been too loud.
"Xana is still a Xeno. We all make sacrifices to help the Xeno race prevail. And he's no stranger to such sacrifices, I assure you."
There was something terrible and ominous in how Xeus said those words. Riordan had no idea what to make of them. "Xana sacrificed himself already. He almost died at Gamni Gafilos's hands."
"Because of a selfish reason."
"Really?" Riordan sputtered. "Like saving his child? Which, by the way, was what you did."
"I knew from the start I could destroy the general," Xeus replied. The temperature in the room was slowly dropping. Junior squirmed in Riordan's arms and whined softly. "Xana had to know he had no chance. A selfish, reckless thing to do."
"That may be so," Riordan agreed bitterly. "It has to be why I love your son. Your selfish, reckless son."
"Two of a kind, the both of you," Xeus said with undisguised contempt. "I will protect my bloodline, bearer. Whether you like it or not."
"Of course. Marn must have put a lot of this stuff into your head during dinner. You seemed like a nicer guy before."
"I have no interest in being nice. To you or anyone else."
"I got it. Now, can you please switch off your anger? Junior hates the cold." Riordan didn't mention that he could feel his teeth starting to clatter.
"A weakness inherited from you," Xeus spat and turned away.
Riordan watched as his father-in-law disappeared through the door. Where the hell was he going, and in the middle of a conversation on top of it all? It didn't matter. The temperature got back to normal, and Junior relaxed in his arms again. "Don't listen to him," he whispered. "You're the strongest baby ever. And if you're going to have a brother or a sister, it's going to be your daddy's and no one else's."
They better not underestimate him. Sure, he had no idea what chances he had against such powerful aliens, but Riordan had no intention to behave like a weakling. He'd find a way, as always.
tbc
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