Chapter 13
SERENA SWANDS
"Look! Look through your scopes! There, by the fence entrance. It is Prana, and he is holding a gun at your commander! Prana is the spy!" I shouted at the warriors surrounding me on the table plateau.
"The human female is right! I see it! I see Prana holding a gun at the commander Jaylin Brakin!"
"We must do something!" Another one shouted.
I was in shock, and for the first time in my sniping career, my hands were shaking. What could I do? Both of those alien warriors could be the father of my child. I could not harm Prana because of it. But I did not want to see him kill Jaylin either.
I made a quick decision and I shot at the back of Prana's leg. It was a perfect shot. He went down. Jaylin made his move and I hoped that he would not kill him and instead bring him in. I watched as they fought and my heart was on edge. They rolled across the battlefield. It was chaotic, and there were many warriors falling around them. It was a full on massacre. Then, Prana once again had Jaylin at gunpoint. I didn't think twice: I fired.
“Nice shot, human female,” the warriors around me said as they congratulated me. I watched as Jaylin moved into a speeder heading in the direction of base. I stood up from laying on my belly. I was shaking. It was possible that I just shot the father of my secret alien baby.
I moved to the side and threw up. The warriors looked at each other confused. I could not think straight. I was so sick to my stomach. This wasn’t because of the pregnancy. It was because I had shot Prana. It was because I had to choose in that moment between the alien warrior I loved and one that was possibly the father of my alien baby. It was something that someone should not have to decide in a split second. Yet, I did.
A warrior moved over to me and handed me a jug of water. I wiped my mouth and drank of it, rinsing out my mouth and spitting it out. Then I took another, deeper drink and swallowed.
“Take me back to the base, please,” I asked them.
“Right away, long shot,” the warrior said. A few of the others repeated this new nickname for me.
Long shot.
Any other time I would have indulged in the nickname and been excited and giving high fives to the soldiers around me after such a triumph in the face of battle. But this was a much heavier and personal experience for me. I climbed into a speed racer pod and another warrior drove, which I was glad for because it was a jerky ride when I drove, trying to figure out how the damn thing worked.
When we landed at the rebel base landing point. I saw Jaylin running toward us. I was so happy to see that he had made it back alive.
“Serena! What the hell are you doing? Where were you?” he asked me. But before I could answer the group of warriors I had been on the plateau with answered for me.
“You should have seen her, Commander! She took out the control panel that took down the fence. Then we all saw Prana holding you at gunpoint. She took him out! We call her long shot,” various warriors shouted at him in excitement. I only stared at Jaylin with sorrow on my face. I could not tell him about the baby, not yet. I could not tell him that I shot the possible father of my baby. I just needed to be away from all of it.
“Can we go to the quarters, please?” I whispered to him.
“Yes, let’s go.” We walked side by side to the quarters. Once inside, I erupted into tears. I blamed it on the wrongful imprisonment and the stress of battle. I still could not tell him about the baby.
Days later, the sadness still had not left me. The raid was somewhat of a success because we had the supplies, but many warriors had lost their lives. Now everyone agreed with Jaylin’s first suggestion that the raid be cancelled and all regretted not agreeing with him until it was too late.
Jaylin shocked me when he told me and Official Treen what Prana had confessed to him. When his quarters were searched, all the proof was there. I could not believe that he was such a master of disguise, but he had been doing it since he was very young. This is how he was able to hide his true self from me. He was a master of disguise that could fool an entire society for years. Now I felt worse knowing that not only did Prana have a black heart, but he was also a spy and traitor, and that would be carried over to our child, if it were his. I could scarcely bare it.
I spent most of my time with Maria, Margaret, Elizabeth, and Sarah who had all settled in well in high positions of technology on the base. Margaret was even seeing a warrior. The women did not belong to one warrior or official as a slave. Instead, they were kept as general slaves, but they could at any time be given as a personal slave to a warrior if Official Treen willed it so.
I thought it was ironic that I had fought so hard to not be a slave to any warrior, and in doing so it had sealed my fate as the slave of the commander. It was because of my tricky behavior that I had to be watched. It was because of my escape attempts and fighting back that Official Treen had decided that the commander had to watch over me personally. If I had not done those things, then I would have remained a general slave, belonging to no one, just as the other women from the Madera ship.
But now, I was thankful to be Commander Jaylin Brakin’s slave. I gave myself to him willingly. I loved him. I knew that much. It was because I loved him that I could not tell him about the baby. I did not want to hurt him with news that I was carrying Prana’s child. I would not until I knew absolutely for sure. Weeks passed, and finally it was time to find out.
I went to see Pentor almost daily until the day that I could be tested. Today was that day.
“I’m ready, Pentor. But please, no matter the results, please keep it a secret until I am ready.”
“Yes, of course, Serena,” Pentor said as he laid me down on the table. I lifted my orange, muslin dress and he scanned over my belly. The data was transferred onto the screen behind me.
“Just hold still. It is just gathering the blueprint of the child,” Pentor said.
I remained still, knowing that this was it. I had kept it a secret for as long as I could. If it were Prana’s child, I would hope that Jaylin would accept it as his own and not leave me.
“Done. You can move,” Pentor said as he moved away from me. I pulled my dress down and stood beside him.
“What is it doing?” I asked.
“It is scanning against the blueprint of every warrior on the base until it finds a match. But it does not take long and will only be a few minutes.”
I wanted to tell him that there were only two warriors that he needed to scan, but since the process was already started, I did not. Besides, it was giving me some time to breath and prepare myself.
“Jaylin Brakin,” Pentor said.
“What?!” I shouted.
“See, the match is with Jaylin Brakin. Commander Jaylin Brakin is the father of the human Kalazaron hybrid child.
“He is! Are you sure? Is there any possibility that it can be wrong?” I asked.
“No. Impossible. It is very accurate.”
I jumped up and down and hugged Pentor.
“Now that you know, Serena, I must tell Official Treen as I cannot keep it a secret from him any longer. This information is exceptional and new to us.”
“Yes of course. I will tell him. I wish for him to know, but not the entire base just yet. I do not want to be getting looks everywhere I go because of the fact this has never happened before. I will ask the official to keep it a secret as long as he can.”
He agreed and then I left in high spirits. I had not felt happy in weeks. Now I was going to tell Jaylin the news and I hoped that he would accept it.
“May I speak with you in private?” I asked him as he worked in the landing port.
“Yes, beautiful human female, you may,” he said playfully.
“In the quarters. It is very important,” I said leading him out of the port.
“It must be to need that type of privacy.”
I was nervous the entire walk back to the living quarters. Once we were inside, I sat down on the bed and said. “I have just come from Pentor.”
“Why? Are you ill?” he asked.
“No. I am pregnant with your child.”
His face was frozen in shock. It was the same look I had when I first found out.
“How is that possible? It is not possible! It can’t be. Human females do not become pregnant from Kalazaron warriors.”
“I am aware. Pentor says it is extraordinary. He has run the test. It matches your blueprint. He says it is part human and part Kalazaron. It is your child.”
He stood up quickly. I was frightened that he was angry. I had been so worried about who the father was that I did not stop to think that Jaylin would not want this child.
“Jaylin. Are you happy or angry? What’s to be done?” I asked anxiously.
He turned to me and then he smiled. He hugged me and kissed me and said, “I am happy! I am just shocked! It is the first in the Kalazaron history! It is a lot to take in! But yes I am happy. I want you Serena. I love you. I am in love with you. I want you to be my life mate and together we shall raise this child.
“Oh, do you mean it, Jaylin?”
“Yes. Always,” he said.
I kissed and hugged him back. He laid me gently on the bed and we made love. It was the beginning of a new start for us. It was one that was filled with more happiness and hope than ever before. We were both happy and I shocked myself thinking about how I had set out from Earth as a soldier going off to war, only to find that war somewhere else in the universe. Then for that war to turn into happiness and love—it was a miracle.
Almost a year later we had added tattoos to our skin. Jaylin informed me about tattoos being a way to count the victories that we had made. I felt very special that the warriors had allowed me to gain a tattoo from the victory of shooting the control panel that allowed them to enter the outpost and that had saved their commander. Females, no matter if they were human or Kalazaron, did not receive victory tattoos as they were only reserved for the warriors. But because I had proven myself over and over, and time and again, they allowed me to get one.
It was their idea, in fact, and they urged me to do it. I was more than happy to feel part of a brigade platoon again. I missed the camaraderie of fighting with the men and being respected for my gun skills. Now I was sealing that respect with a tattoo. Now no one would doubt my skills.
Jaylin also received a tattoo from that particular raid and the design was the same as mine. It was a long rectangle and it was meant to symbolize the plateau where we had shot the control panel from. I thought it was a perfect symbol for that particular mission.
But there was more to come. In secret, Jaylin had sought council from Official Treen to wed me. The Official, after knowing the circumstances, granted the marriage. So when he showed up with a silver ring as I stood by the gorgeous waterfall on the mountainside, I was shocked when he said, “It has been granted and I am allowed to make you my life mate, if you will wed me.”
“Yes! I will, Jaylin. Are you sure? This is what you want? The official is aware?” I asked, stumbling over my many questions.
“Yes. He has granted it as soon as the next full moon.”
And so I took the commander Jaylin Brakin as a rightful husband. We were married in the village with a great ceremony, much like the one I had experienced before. There were great bonfires and wild beasts for roasting on spikes for feasting. It was a grand affair, and it was very rare for a human female to marry a warrior.
But the rarest event was yet to come. We had decided to tell Official Treen about my pregnancy. But we urged him not to tell anyone because we did not want everyone to know and gawk at us. We did not let anyone know until I began to show and questions began to be asked. It was only then that we let the base in on our secret. By then it was only a couple of months before I would be due and I could handle those few months of looks and stares.
The Official was very excited about this new prospect. It had never been done before in the history of the planet as we knew it. They brought in scribes to take down the story of how I had met Jaylin and exactly what happened between us. I was grateful that our story would go down in history and not be lost. Now it would bring a sense of wonder and joy.
I wondered what they would think of this in the capital city if they knew. A part of me was frightened of that thought. What if they would come to try to steal our child away? We would fight them to the death if they dare try. So with the addition of a husband and victory tattoos, we waited for the best addition of all. Finally, he came to us.
I was quite frightened when I went into labor. I did not know what to expect because this had never been done before.
"Do not worry, my love. It will all be well. I just know," Jaylin said to me as he squeezed my hand as I laid in the bed.
"I believe you," I said to him. He pushed the hair off of my forehead and then we both waited as I felt the contractions of the birthing happening. Minutes later, we were surrounded by the cries of a loud infant.
"It is a male," Pentor said as he scooped our baby into his arms. He handed the child to me and I cradled him in my arms. He was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. He looked exactly like his father, with black hair and mesmerizing eyes. His skin was tinted blue, but not as dark blue as the alien race. He was the perfect mix of human and the alien Kalazaron.
Jaylin scooped him into his arms and cradled him. I adored watching him hold him and be happy. I was extremely happy and crying tears of joy. I had never thought that it was possible to be this happy in this situation that I found myself. I began as a captive, trying to run away every chance I got. Then I was a slave of this mean commander and a lover of a traitor and master of disguise. I would never have thought that all of that suffering and terrible experiences would end up turning into this. It gave me so much hope that anything that seemed wrong in the future would turn out to be just right.
"He is perfect," Jaylin said.
"Yes he is," I said to him in response.
"Just like his mother," he said.
"And strong, just like his father," I added. We both laughed and sat together holding our child.
"What shall we call him?" he asked me.
"I do not know. I do not know the names of your race."
"Well, if he was completely human, what would you name him?" he asked me.
I thought long and hard and then finally said, “Earth."
"Earth Jaylin Brakin," he said to me. I smiled. I loved it. It made me happy.
"Yes, that is perfect."
He leaned down and kissed me on the forehead.
We had a child. We had a male human and Kalazaron child. He was the most beautiful thing I had ever seen. He became the wonder of the humans and the Kalazaron alike. He became everything to everyone, but most of all to us, his loving and unusual parents. A most unlikely pair that had found love despite the odds against them. We would now share that love with him.
THE END (Flip next page to read Kalazron Thaedon)