To Touch the Stars (Founding of the Federation Book 2)

by Chris Hechtl

  “True,” Nak'nak'chick replied. She didn't envy her grandmother's generation or those that had proceeded before. They had had to give birth in water like the fins on Earth. They'd had to keep close to the surface, breathe, and once the calf was born get it to the surface, then under to nurse. Tricky, but nature had worked out the steps long ago. The Neo fins were naturals in null gravity now; they loved it. Sure there were issues with bone loss, cardio problems, and eye issues, but the medics were on top of that. As long as they exercised regularly and took their supplements, they were fine.

  She was about to give birth to the latest generation. Generation 8.5 as Doctor Lagroose called it. She swam about lazily, conserving her energy. She rolled slightly, eying the young as they moved off in pods, playing and jumping about. They are calves; all about to enter school for the first time she realized. They were smarter, easier to communicate with humans, far smarter than the gen 1 through two mods that had come long ago. They were taking on more human style names but had less contacts and association with the earliest generations. In some ways she rather regretted that; a lot of their history and culture were being lost in the zeal of the moment.

  She wondered about her calf. She'd requested of Doctor Castill, Hannah, to be the first to birth a calf with flukes that had been modified with grasping digits like the primates had. The doctor hadn't committed to such things but had pointed out that her child would have a lot of the latest changes. And with all the modeling and testing they had done, there was an incredibly slim chance the calf would be born as a mutant.

  She felt a contraction hit her and sighed. “Coming close time?” Tw'tw'ch'ka asked, scanning her with her sonar. “Yes, not long now,” she pulsed. Nak'nak'chick frowned ever so slightly. Her grandmother lost a lot of her vocabulary when she was stressed.

  Tw'tw'ch'ka was acting as her midwife. She preferred it that way. Some of the cetaceans were trying to take over as their own healers and caregivers. It wasn't working out as well as they'd hoped, one had to have human hands to do a lot of things, but they were getting better. Implants allowed them to control robotic arms to do a lot of probing that a human had once done. Soon they would be able to do such things on their own.

  A trickle of urine dribbled out of her despite her attempt to control it. Another dolphin midwife directed a robot to clean it up before it spread through the habitat. “It's normal,” she chattered. The mother to be bobbed a nod.

  Some cetaceans had begun to lobby for additional Cetacean species to be included in the Neo program. Stenos were a popular idea, as were true bottlenose dolphins, orca, and even whales. She had no idea how they'd do that; she didn't want to try to give birth to one of those monsters! This one was bad enough. She rolled, and then her sharp eyes caught the sight of Doctors Lagroose and Castill nearby on a landing watching. The two-leg elder gripped the railing, watching expectantly.

  “Doesn't she have anything better to do?” the expectant mother grumbled.

  “Now now, she's being supportive,” the fin nurse murmured, clicking fast to do a scan. That was one advantage they had over two-legs; their ultrasound allowed them to scan internals without the need of a machine. “A few more contractions. Try not to bear down and push until I tell you,” the nurse warned. Again the mother nodded.

  “How is she?” Doctor Castill asked loudly. It took a moment for Nak'nak'chick to realize the woman was using the speakers. She clapped her jaws in annoyance as the midwife went over to report. She felt a soft nudge then a presence. She rolled her left eye to see her grandmother alongside her. Their flippers touched. Her fingertips touched the top of her grandmother's pectoral fin, then her flank.

  “You good,” her grandmother told her.

  “I'm trying,” she said, then oofed as a contraction took hold. When it finally subsided, she breathed out through her blow hole. “That was a strong one.”

  “Getting closer.”

  “Yes. Close,” Nak’nak’chick replied, then gasped as another contraction ripped into her, faster than expected. She fought the urge to bear down until she smelled the puff of blood.

  “Okay, you can bear down on the next one,” the nurse said, returning to her right flank. The mother thrashed her head in annoyance and agreement. A second contraction rippled through her body and she thrashed, instinctively arching as the baby crowned and then seemed to explode from her womb in a cloud of fluid.

  “It's out!” The nurse said, twisting to check on the third nurse who had wrangled the newborn and nudged it back to its mother. Nak'nak'chick's grandmother moved aside as the infant was escorted in. She looked, rolling her tired eye to the calf. It was white, very white. Also beautiful.

  “It's a girl,” the nurse told her.

  “I know,” the mother said as the nurse nudged the calf to her side. She rolled, allowing it to feed. “I was thinking of Atlantia, but the color … I may go with Winter or Arctica,” she said.

  “She's definitely different,” the nurse said as she studied the calf. “Not what I expected. But she is well developed. We're scanning her now for the records. Congratulations,” she said.

  Nak'nak'chick grunted, but didn't reply as she felt the small beak probe her underside for her teat. She felt herself relax and her eyes close as the calf began to suckle.

  -*-*-^-*-*-

  Working with the dolphins, especially the calves, put some things into perspective with Hannah. She decided she would stay in for them, the kids, the innocent. They were sweet, sometimes mischievous, but she loved how cute they were. Arctica was striking, one of her new favorites. She'd thought the calf's lack of pigmentation had been a serious defect until Aurelia had told her that the dolphin had Beluga whale genes. She wasn't a full Beluga, really a half hybrid, but she would be a stepping stone to scale up and diversify the Neo fin species. Aurelia had been a bit smug about the accomplishment.

  Hannah had resented that interference and high handed tampering until Nak'nak'chick had told her it was okay. The new mother hadn't seemed happy about Aurelia's tampering, but she'd accepted the situation since she loved her daughter. Hannah shook her head. That was more than she could do, she thought, but now she understood a little about why Aurelia insisted on natural birth … though not why the woman kept tinkering. The children though, they were what mattered. They were the future, she thought. She'd do her best by them for as long as she could she vowed. And she'd find a way to get Aurelia to stick to her fin agreement before she pulled more stunts like that.

  Tw'tw'ch'ka had accepted the calf, her fortieth grandcalf, technically her first great-grandcalf, but she hadn't been so sanguine about the tampering as her granddaughter. She'd chattered at Doctor Lagroose for some time and even brought a few of the fin pod leaders on board. They'd come to an agreement; a fin board that would oversee and approve of any further changes to their genome. The parents of each change would also be consulted before the mother was impregnated.

  Aurelia worked on the gen 8.6 project right into her third and final trimester. Her hands had been tied by the fin genome board which had aggravated her at first, but she'd apparently come to a grudging acceptance of the inevitable. Hannah wondered if Jack had anything to do with that or not.

  She was two weeks before her due date, visiting the dolphins when Wendy decided it was time for her appearance. Before she could be escorted to the maternity wing or even off the platform she and Hannah had been standing on, her water broke, and she went into labor. Water soaked her pants and smock, then the pain of labor kicked in, doubling Aurelia over.

  “Are you okay?” Hannah demanded, then noticed the water. “Oh shit. Please tell me you just wet yourself,” she asked halfheartedly.

  “I wish,” Aurelia said, hands gripping the handrail. She pulled herself down. “Here. Now,” she said, panting as another contraction hit her.

  “Are you serious?” Hannah demanded, kneeling between her boss's legs and helping the other woman pull her soaked pants down. “Not much blood,” she observed.

  “
Good,” Aurelia murmured. “Vitals are normal according to my implants,” she said, passing her implant feed to Hannah. Her distress over birth had sent out an alarm to Jack and Athena. Hopefully things would be moving quickly. She was amused that she was doing it just like the fins and some of the other Neos did, open with an audience. Which was growing, she thought, looking at the fins who were stopping to linger.

  “Payback,” Hannah murmured as she played catcher. “For all the times you watched them,” she said.

  “Apparently so,” Aurelia agreed. “At least I can do it here in the clinic,” she grunted. “Or not,” she said as another contract hit her. “Those are close together.”

  “It seems you aren't going anywhere,” Hannah said, checking her. “Your cervix is fully dilated.”

  “I was afraid of that,” Aurelia said as a soft ping sounded. She looked up. “Yes?” she demanded.

  “Doctor Lagroose your husband has been paged. He's a bit annoyed that you aren't on the same space station,” Athena said.

  “Thank you,” Hannah said for her.

  “And that's the other thing. I don't think I would have handled a shuttle ride back home right about now,” Aurelia said, fighting for her composure as her pain increased. “Damn! Can't you give me anything?” she demanded, panting.

  “When you feel the contraction bear down. The baby has already crowned,” Hannah said to her. “And no, you know why,” she said, hands busy.

  “Damn it. I know. Too late,” Aurelia said, sweating profusely. “Still would … have … been nice,” she grunted, then relaxed when the contraction cut off. The effort was making her sweat. She shook her hand and then wiped at her brow. She wished someone else could help. She snorted when a curious fin came by, jostling others to watch. “Not even some privacy? Figures.” She got a thought and looked at her audience with a glower. “This had better not end up on the net. None of it. Pictures either. You do and I'll …” the threat was cut off as the contraction hit her. There was a smattering of amused squawks at that. She could hear the clicks as the fins studied her with their ultrasound. A fin came by and tossed something at her. Her free hand caught it before it could hit her in the face. It was a wadded up cloth. “Thanks,” she said, dabbing at her face and neck with the cloth.

  She sucked in a breath then bore down at Hannah's urging when the next contraction hit her. She pushed, groaning as people, humans, Neos and robots came piling in through the door in a massive traffic jam. In null G there was nothing for her to grab to bear down on though so the effort was difficult. “Shoulda thought this through,” she mumbled tiredly, eyes drooping in wasted effort. Jack practically flew over the group. A fin caught him midair and then redirected him back to the landing platform.

  “You do have a wonderful sense of timing, dear,” he said, landing beside his wife. “And a following,” he teased, looking about.

  “Don't blame me, blame her,” Aurelia said, panting as she indicated her abdomen. He knelt at her side. “She chose the time and place,” she said, sucking in her breath. She clutched at his leg.

  “Like mother, like daughter. She's already set in her ways and letting us know it,” Jack teased as he caught her hand. Her grip was like iron despite the slick sweat. “Yeah,” he grunted in surprise. He looked at the mess of his wife's medical smock.

  “Wendy, you ….” Aurelia leaned back against her husband as the contraction hit. She bore down, pushing the infant out. She was rewarded with a happy cry from Hannah and the crowd and a sharp angry wail of a newborn child.

  Hannah cooed, cradling the red angry girl as she dabbed at her nose and mouth. Paramedics behind her passed her a towel and bulb to begin cleaning the child.

  “She's got a full head of blond hair,” Hannah observed as Aurelia smiled tiredly at the sight of her daughter. “And a good set of lungs,” she observed. Jack and the watching crowd chuckled.

  The crowd began to disperse, some calling out welcomes and congratulations as community leaders urged them to get back to work and give the newborn her space.

  “So, a girl, huh?” Jack asked. “And here I thought you'd make me wait until you got past thirteen boys to hit the girls,” he said.

  “Oh hell no,” Aurelia murmured as the swaddled child was laid into her arms.

  “Want to cut the umbilical, Dad?” Hannah teased, holding up a pair of old fashioned medical sheers. Jack shook his head. She snorted and did the deed, then used a laser to cauterize the bleeder. The afterbirth and umbilical was bagged for further processing.

  “Let's get you to my clinic,” Hannah urged.

  “I'm not sure I can walk. My legs are rubber,” Aurelia complained as helping hands tried to help her up.

  “That's okay, we've got you, ma'am,” a gorilla medic said, slipping a back board under her. She felt straps placed around her body, enough to secure her to the board. The backrest was up so she was comfortable.

  “Easy,” she murmured as they jostled her. She protested a few times, each weakly as she was moved to the lock. She felt Wendy nuzzle her and pulled down her top a bit to give the infant access. The infant's eyes locked with hers briefly before the mouth find the nipple. She needed no urging. After a moment her eyes looked away and closed slightly.

  -*-*-^-*-*-

  Jack noted Wendy tracking him with her eyes whenever he held her. He didn't understand the significance at first, but it caught up to him eventually while he worked two, no three weeks after her birth. It had been such a whirlwind of frantic activity the past couple of weeks … he was exhausted. The boys hadn't been half as exhausting as his little princess was!

  But now that Aurelia had insisted they return to light duty, he had time to think. He sat there at his desk as he thought of Wendy's reactions and its implications. She was a baby; he didn't understand how she could develop so quickly. She wasn't even a month old, and she could hold her head up! The muscles in her neck, the coordination … the eyes … he shook his head. Something was going on, and he dearly wanted to ask his wife about it. But he also remembered the old attorney saying, “never ask a question you don't want an answer to.”

  When he finished his day … well, technically it would never be over but enough was enough, it was dinner time and he was hungry … he returned to their quarters, hell bent on sitting Aurelia down and getting some straight answers. He found Hannah there. The young lady, technically a doctor, he reminded himself smiled to him as he entered. “Sorry, Mister Lagroose, Doctor Lagroose got tied up with a problem with the Neos.”

  “Nothing serious?” he asked as he watched her feeding Wendy with a bottle. The little girl's chubby hands tried to grab the bottle. He frowned thoughtfully. Her eyes tracked to him but then returned to more important things right in front of her.

  “I'm not sure, but she said don't wait up,” Hannah said as she gently jounced the little girl.

  “You aren't sure?”

  “She didn't say. It's not a medical emergency or she'd of called me in too. It might be genetic, or classified …” she shrugged slightly. “I'm not sure, and she cut me off,” she said.

  “Ah, I see,” Jack murmured. “Well, I can take care of the brat pack,” he said with a smile.

  Hannah looked up. “I know you need to relax, boss; I can help the kids with their homework before I go. Besides, I promised … okay, threatened Zack with a rematch at chess when he finished,” she said, nodding to the boy laboring over his homework at the dining room table.

  Jack looked over and smiled in approval. The old chess set he'd had as a boy was set up waiting nearby. “Good. I'll play the winner,” he said. “Where is Yorrick?”

  “He's … out,” Hannah said evasively. Jack cocked his head at her. She shrugged again. “Out cold. He really had a good time at recess and exhausted himself. He could barely keep his head up through classes afterward the teacher said.”

  “That bad? I'll have to chat with the boy about pacing himself better,” Jack murmured. He went over to his son's room to check. Yorrick wa
s sleeping on his tummy, out cold indeed. He snorted softly and slowly shut the door once more. He turned to see Zack looking up at him. “What? Finished?”

  “Almost. Do I have to stay in calculus? It's a pain, and I'm not very good at it,” Zack grumbled.

  “Son, sometimes the more you struggle to achieve something, the sweeter the victory is. You'll get this.”

  “Don't tell me it's good for my character. I hate that,” Zack grumbled. Jack chuckled and ruffled the boy's hair. It was short as usual. He was proud of the kid; he was already a senior in high school at 11. He was taking college courses too, tough ones while keeping up with his martial arts and shooting. The boy was a dynamo. He was envious of the energy of youth, Jack thought wryly.

  “I'll take her,” a soft feminine voice said behind him. Jack turned to see Bonnie holding out her brown arms to Hannah expectantly. Hannah smiled a tight lipped smile and bowed slightly as she passed the drowsy infant to the bonobo nanny. Wendy in the hands of the small bonobo looked absurd, but her tiny wiry frame had hidden strength reserves few humans could match. She took the child easily, cradling her in her long arms as she made soft cooing sounds to lull her muted protests at the transfer.

  “Still playing the house elf I see?” Hannah teased, tweaking the ape's brown sundress. The bonobo rolled her brown eyes. Hannah smiled again. The bonobo hooted slightly, then chuffed as she waddled to the nursery with her tender package.

  “House elf?” Jack asked, looking at Hannah.

  “Ancient reference. Harry Potter I believe,” Hannah said, stretching. “She looks good in that brown dress, but I wish she'd dress up a bit more.”

  “She's shy,” Zack said from the table, not looking up. “Leave Aunt Bonnie alone. Mom's tried to get her to go out. She's not interested.”

  “She's a good mother,” Hannah said thoughtfully, looking off to where the ape had retreated. “Clyde's single, right?”