After Looch assigned new warriors to stay with Jessie’s friends, Looch and Leigh took Jessie back to their cabin for some bonding. They ordered food to be brought to their cabin. Leigh thought eating in the common room was too tempting for the remaining warriors aboard the ship to try and win Jessie’s favor for a night or two. All the males desired a female to love. Arenian males knew who their one true ayah was just by her alluring scent alone, but until they found her, it didn’t mean they couldn’t have fun with a female if one was willing.
They all sat in silence as they ate. Jessie was overwhelmed by all the different foods there were, but became almost terrified when Looch thrust a weird purple piece of food at her intending to hand feed her. “Eat. It’s good.” Looch dictated.
Jessie grabbed the purple mango looking thing out of Looch’s fingers and plopped it to her nose to smell it. It smelled somewhat like pineapple. Jessie popped the purple food into her mouth and audibly moaned with the delectable taste. She noticed both men tensed with her moan. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to be rude. This stuff is yummy.”
Leigh smiled, “It’s not rude Jessie. Looch and I always want to bring you pleasure.”
Looch looked at Leigh with surprise at his bold words. Quickly he looked back to Jessie, hiding his shock and tried to smile.
Jessie stared at the strange look on Looch’s face. “Was he trying to smile?” She thought. Looking back to Leigh she murmured, “Okay then. What’s it called?”
“It’s called Meekie fruit. It comes from a Meekie tree.” Leigh responded.
With a pained expression on his face, Looch rose from his seat and announced he was needed on the bridge. He abruptly turned and stormed out the door.
“Don’t mind him, Jessie. He believes you find him to be a monster since he terminated your male friend. He’s a proud man and due to his and my elevated station on our planet he resigned himself to a loveless bonding. He never imagined finding our ayah. He’s confused and in turmoil over this situation.” Leigh quietly drawled.
Jessie looked at Leigh with surprise on her face. “I don’t think Looch is a monster, maybe a little overbearing, but a monster? No. He saved me. Mac was a good man before he contracted MEDS. Looch did what he had to do. I wouldn’t have liked it, but if the roles were reversed, I would have done the same thing.”
“Jessie, what’s MEDS?” Leigh asked in a somber tone.
“About eight months ago rumors of the sickness surfaced. The sickness affected every male on Earth. No one knows where it came from, but at least someone named it before most of the population died out from all the violence. It was the male version of Episodic Dyscontrol Syndrome or MEDS for short. It wasn’t a virus, bacteria or even a parasite. No one could pinpoint a source. They looked at pollutants, air and water quality and biological terrorism. Once the sickness took hold there was no reversing it; it just got progressively worse. At first, men became increasingly agitated to the point they seemed to all be on massive doses of steroids. Then the worse behavior imaginable started happening. It seemed all men turned into violent zombies, possessed by the devil himself. Husbands raped their wives, fathers killed their whole families, and even little boys tried to kill but were overtaken by larger men. Each guy was different in a way. Some would rape and kill; some would keep you alive just to torture you. Some men would turn on each other and kill one another.” After a long sigh Jessie continued. “Some men would move in packs like wolves. Packs were harder to escape since those men were elite killing machines. I’m not an angel Leigh. It was kill or be killed. I’ve killed countless men in the last several months. If anyone is a monster, it’s me.”
“You’re not a monster Jessie. You’re a warrior, a leader, and a survivor. You saved female lives. Your world changed. You may not see it this way, but Earth’s population was already dead. You just needed to accept it. I can’t imagine the things you’ve seen. I’m so sorry ayah.” Leigh said with regret as he brushed his fingers over Jessie’s cheek.
A chirp from Leigh’s comlink interrupted them. “Forgive me Master Healer, but we have a situation in the healing ward needing your expertise.” Said the unfamiliar voice.
“It’s all right. What’s the situation?”
“An Earth female was brought to the healing bay after discovering she was in labor.”
Jessie saw Leigh visibly tense before answering in a low tone. “I see. I’ll be right there.”
Perplexed, Jessie asked, “What’s the issue, Leigh? Why can’t they help the woman?”
“Two things are worrying me about the situation. One, I worry the woman carries male offspring. Two, although we’re all healers and know the mechanics of delivering young, it’s something usually passed down from mother to daughter. The bonded males are not even permitted to be there during births, and from what I’ve derived, most females don’t want males in their presence when birthing.”
“Are you serious? I assure you Earth women want you there. They need support.” Jessie continued. “Well, it’s a good thing I’m here then. I’ve helped deliver countless babies.”
“You have?”
“They were all of the four-legged, furry, variety but yes, I’ve delivered a lot of babies. The secret with any mom’s delivery is to go in with confidence. If she sees weakness, she’ll be nervous and not concentrate on what needs to happen which is bringing a beautiful baby into the world.”
“So you’re a healer then too. Another reason I want to bond with you, ayah. Let us go and help the female.” Leigh said with a smile.
They both rushed to the healing ward. Leigh was excited at the prospect of delivering a babe. Apparently, all the excitement of aliens falling from the sky sent the poor female into labor. Leigh just hoped the woman carries a female.
When they arrived at the healing ward, Leigh saw the woman with a huge rounded belly in distress. She was breathing in pants and sweat was beaded on her face. The healers on duty were at a loss as to what to do. They looked to Leigh for guidance. Leigh finally announced, “Healer Jessie will be delivering the babe.”
Jessie didn’t miss a beat and went straight to work. “What’s your name hon?” Jessie asked as she dresses in a protective covering.
“Monica…my name is Monica. I’m scared. This is my first time.” The woman panted out.
“Do you know if you’re having a girl or a boy? How far along are you? Did your doctor say there was anything I need to be aware of?” Jessie rattled off.
Monica moaned in pain, “I’m having twin girls. I’m thirty-seven weeks along, and I haven’t had the best prenatal care if you know what I mean.”
Jessie looked at Leigh then back to Monica with a smile. “I understand. I’m so glad you said twins, Monica. I was afraid you had one big baby in there. Thirty-seven weeks for twins is perfect. If twins are what you have then this will be a piece of cake. You’ve got this.”
“Easy for you to say,” Monica said in between pants. “Are you even old enough to deliver babies?”
“I’ve done this lots of times Monica.”
“You don’t look old enough to have done this even once.”
“Don’t you worry about me, Monica. I guess you know this whole situation is a little jacked up since you’re delivering babies on an alien ship. We don’t have equipment up here as we would on Earth, so you’re going to have to do this the old-fashioned way. I need you to listen to me and follow my instructions, and we’ll get through this fine. Okay?” Jessie continued, “You and you. What are your names?”
“Zaw and Nopal,” Leigh answered for them.
“Monica is scared and needs help delivering these beautiful babies. I want both of you on each side of her and grab her legs at the knee and gently hold them back towards her head.” Jessie barked out. Zaw and Nopal didn’t hesitate and did what Jessie asked.
Monica screamed out, “They’re coming. I need to push…I need to push.”
As Monica was screaming in pain, Jessie noticed Zaw and Nopal’s usual glowing tan skin tone was stark white. “Are you with me guys?” Jessie said a little more harshly than intended.
Their pleading eyes targeted hers. “Forgive us healer Jessie; we’re not accustomed to a female in so much pain and not being able to do anything about it. It’s overwhelming.”
Nodding to them both Jessie said, “You’re doing fine guys. Just concentrate on helping her.”
Jessie turned her attention back to Monica “See Monica? Mother Nature is taking over. Your body knows what to do. In fact, I can already see the head, Monica. You are doing fine. Give me a long controlled push.”
Leigh stood by Jessie and watched in awe as she helped Monica bare the first babe. When the first female was born Jessie cleaned the child quickly and wrapped her up in a blanket. Jessie then turned to Leigh and said, “Your turn. The other one will be along in a few minutes. You just need to do the same thing I did. I’m here supervising if you need any help. Monica, you did so well. She’s healthy and absolutely stunning. Do you feel like you need to push yet? The quicker we get your other precious gift out, the quicker you can rest.”
Leigh was apprehensive, but what an enjoyable learning experience. He took a deep breath while getting into position. Monica nodded at Jessie groaning with another contraction. “Yes, I need to push. Are you sure you know what you’re doing down there buddy?”
With a wry smile and a chuckle, Leigh replied, “No, but Jessie is right here to help me, and it seems you’ll be doing most of the work.”
Zaw and Nopal once again helped Monica get into position to start pushing. Monica grunted and moaned then finally started pushing. Baby number two seemed to come a little easier. Jessie was right there guiding Leigh on what to do. “Leigh is a natural.” Jessie thought. As soon as the second baby was free from her mother, Jessie showed Leigh how to clean the baby, and she took care of the afterbirth.
Jessie pulled Leigh aside. “Is the healing unit capable of tending to her? The reason I ask is that she’s lost the father of her children and probably went through hell down there. I would hate for her to have to recuperate on her own.”
Leigh thought for a moment before responding. “The healing unit would heal her, and she’d wake feeling rested. She’ll be ready to take care of her delightful females.” Turning to Monica, Leigh presented both tiny females. “Thank you for trusting me, Monica,” Leigh said.
“Thank you for helping me. I just wish Robert was here to see his little girls.” Monica said with tears freely flowing down her cheeks.
Although Leigh knew Monica wasn’t Zaw and Nopal’s ayah, he knew them to be fierce protectors and knew they would take care of Monica until she found her bonded males. “If you don’t mind, Zaw and Nopal will be your honorary guardians. They will care for you and your offspring. This experience has changed them as much as it has changed me. In our culture, knowledge of birthing is passed from mother to daughter. If the mother isn’t available, then another female will step in to help.” Leigh stated.
After Jessie explained to Monica what the healing unit would do for her and she needed to save her strength to keep up with these two bundles of joy Monica consented if Jessie stayed with the babies until she woke. Jessie assured Monica, she wasn’t going anywhere and would be right by her side.
After Monica fell asleep in the healing unit, Zaw and Nopal asked an extensive amount of questions about labor and babies. Jessie was a little taken aback with all the questions, but she could understand why they had so many of them. Zaw and Nopal held the babies in their arms smiling at them. When Monica woke a short time later, Zaw and Nopal gave the babies over to Monica to try and feed. Although this was Monica’s first time being a mom, she was a pro. The babies latched on immediately and started sucking. Just when all the excitement had died down, Looch crashed through the door startling everyone, roaring. “Where is she?”