“What did they ask?” Athan asked.
“They want to know where you are,” she said. “They want to talk to Maxim and Kyven.”
“Why would they want to talk to them?” Athan asked. “They aren’t a part of the Order.”
“I know,” Ellora said. “That has always been one of the greatest comforts and reassurances of my life, but now I’m not as sure.”
“Why?” Athan asked.
“Why weren’t they chosen?” Ellora asked. “Their father, their grandfather, his father before him. They have all been in the Order. How could Aegeus’s sons not be chosen?”
Athan shook his head.
“I don’t know,” Athan replied. “I always expected that if Aegeus had any sons, they would be accepted into the Order immediately. None of us, though, not a single one of us, knows how the Order is built. We don’t know who makes the appointments or why.”
“But how is that possible?” Ellora asked. “How is it possible that none of you know who selects the members or determines what the Order does? I know that there is a hierarchy. Even Aegeus said that the corruption was in the upper levels of the Order. If it is that clear, how can you not know?”
“It isn’t that simple,” Athan said. “Yes, there is a hierarchy. There are those who are leaders within the Order and who are respected to guide and provide structure, as well as uphold the laws and regulations. Many of those were the ones who had become corrupt and who Aegeus wanted to eliminate. Even within that hierarchy though, it isn’t the end. It’s well-known within the Order that there is more than just those on Uoria that we know and who we encounter in our operations. I can only assume that it is those who we never see who make the decisions.”
“They didn’t choose Maxim and Kyven,” Ellora said, starting to feel desperate and worn. “They left them alone. Why do they need them now? What could they possibly want with them now?”
There was something in Athan’s eyes. It burned there, waiting to be spoken and yet pushed away.
“What is it, Athan?” she asked.
“Ellora, your sons are brave. They are stronger than you know. It’s in their blood. They might not have been chosen by the Order, but that doesn’t change who they are. From the moment that they came into existence, it is has been within them to do what they need to do to protect the things that matter to them, and to do what is right. I know you don’t understand, but what they’re doing right now is exactly what they should be doing.”
“The war ended,” Ellora said. “After the battle when…” her voice trailed off and she drew in a breath to calm herself and steel against the emotions threatening her control, “when Aegeus died, everything went quiet. I didn’t hear about any more battles. It was done.”
“It wasn’t done,” Athan said. “This has never ended, it just went quiet. It’s come back now, stronger than ever, and it’s Maxim who is leading. Even Pyra, the strongest and most powerful warrior in all the galaxy, has given his trust and loyalty over to Maxim. They are leading together. You should be proud of him, not resisting what he’s doing.”
“I can’t lose anyone else,” Ellora said. “There’s nothing that could make me willing to offer up my sons.”
“Even for the safety of the galaxy? Of the entire universe?”
“The galaxy can continue without me losing anyone else that I love.”
The inexplicable emotion flashed over Athan’s eyes again and Ellora focused on it. There was something there, something that he wasn’t saying, but that she needed to know.
“What is it, Athan?” she asked again. “Tell me.”
The man took another step toward her. It was a movement that was both comforting and intimidating. At once she felt like he wanted to be closer to her to provide comfort and reassurance, but also that he may be closing her in, blocking her in so that he could control her movement when he finally spoke.
“You haven’t lost anyone you love,” he said.
“How could you say that?” she asked, angered at Athan’s words. “I lost my heart, my love, my life.”
“You haven’t lost anyone,” Athan repeated. “Aegeus is alive.”
His voice trembled slightly when he said it, and Ellora thought for a moment that she had misunderstood him. She had to have misunderstood him. There was no way that what she thought he had said could possibly be true.
“What?” she asked breathlessly.
“Aegeus is alive,” Athan said again. “At least I hope that he is.”
“What does that mean?” Ellora asked.
“Shortly before we left Penthos to return here, we found out that he is still alive, but I can’t promise that that is still true. That’s one of the reasons why it is so important that we get what we need and get back to the planet and the others as quickly as possible.”
“I don’t understand,” Ellora said.
The revelation had overwhelmed her and she was feeling dizzy. Blackness crept into the edges of her vision and small points of light burst in front of her eyes. She felt herself shaking and the strength in her legs slipping away. Reaching for one of the chairs at the table where she had sat with Maxim and Ivy when they first visited, Ellora took a few steps across the floor. She dropped into the seat, but continued to grip the back to stabilize herself.
Athan lowered himself into the seat across from her and dipped his head down to look into her face.
“Aegeus didn’t die during that battle. He was captured and brought to Earth to be used in experiments by a man named Ryan. He has been held captive ever since. Now Ryan is after the others, but Maxim and Kyven especially.”
“Why?” Ellora asked.
“He is working to breed a master race of soldiers that have the powers and capabilities of every species he can find. He wants to take over Uoria and use his soldiers to then conquer the universe. Maxim and Kyven stand in his way. It is their destiny to unify the planet.”
“How?”
Athan shook his head.
“They’ll fight.”
“My husband is alive?” Ellora asked.
“I hope that he still is,” Athan said.
“Did you know?”
“No,” Athan said. “I promise you, I didn’t know. I thought that he died that day, just as you have since then. I had no idea what he was planning to do during the battle, or what happened to him after. If I had known that he was still alive, no matter where he was or what was standing between us, I would have found him, or died trying. You have to know that.”
“I do,” Ellora said, nodding. She took a breath. “And now it’s our chance.”
Chapter Six
Ivy felt butterflies fluttering in her stomach as she approached the small, low building at the edge of the village. She didn’t know what to expect when she stepped inside. Maxim had described this building to her before they left, telling her that this was where she would find the care that she needed. He assumed that she would first go to Ellora and tell her of the pregnancy before she went to see the midwives, but Ivy hadn’t been able to bring herself to have the conversation with her. Ellora seemed tense and on edge from the moment that they arrived, and Ivy hadn’t felt ready to share the news with her. She had been wary of her since they met, though she had begun to warm to her, Ivy was still hesitant and she didn’t know how Ellora would react to finding out that her son had conceived a child in a time of war. Ellora didn’t even want her sons fighting. Ivy couldn’t imagine how she would feel about her grandchild being involved even before its birth. She knew, though, that she needed to find out as much as she could about the pregnancy now, and perhaps then she would be better prepared to tell Ellora.
Taking another breath, Ivy glanced around to make sure that no one saw her standing outside of the midwife building, then gently knocked on the door. A moment later a woman who appeared many years older than Ellora opened the door a few inches and peered out. She stared at Ivy questioningly for a few seconds and then her e
yes widened. She opened the door further.
“You are Maxim’s partner,” she said.
Ivy nodded.
“Yes,” she said. “My name is Ivy.”
“Is Maxim home?” the woman asked.
“No,” Ivy said. “He didn’t return with us.” She noticed the woman’s face change as a flicker of fear went across her face, and she held up a hand to reassure her. “He was safe when we left,” she said. “He chose to stay so that he could continue to fight, but we needed to come back to Uoria. Before we left, he told me to come here. Are you Opaline?”
The woman nodded.
“I am,” she said. “Does that mean…” her voice trailed off, but her eyes lowered along her body to rest on her belly.
Ivy nodded, not wanting to say it and risk someone being nearby and hearing her. She was still guarding the secret vehemently, holding it close as if it somehow kept her closer to Maxim. Protecting this secret was a form of connection between them, something special and precious that, at least for the time, was just for them. She knew now that she had to share it with the midwife. She needed to know more about the child that was growing within her so that she could ensure it was safe and healthy, and could protect it as best as she could.
Opaline’s face lit up and she opened the door the rest of the way so that she could reach out and take Ivy’s hand. She guided her into the building and shut the door behind her.
“Come with me,” she said. “Let me look at you.”
Nervousness filled Ivy as she followed the older woman through the front room of the building and into a smaller space toward the back. She remembered when Eden was pregnant and neither the Denynso nor the Mikana were able to help her because she was human. It wasn’t until Rey, the king of the Mikana kingdom, stepped forward and confessed that he had assisted his mother and grandmother with human births that she had had the help she needed to bring Lysander safely into the world. The thought of what she went through made Ivy worry now. She didn’t know if there had ever been a Mikana baby born to a human woman and what that meant not only for her pregnancy, but also for her child.
As they entered the smaller room, Ivy hesitated. Opaline turned to her and tilted her head quizzically.
“Are you alright?” she asked.
“You know that I’m human,” Ivy said, part-statement, part-question. “Will that make a difference?”
Opaline shook her head, a knowing smile on lips lined by time and emotion.
“I have delivered many, many children. I helped Ellora bring Maxim into the world.”
The revelation filled Ivy with a sense of peace and trust. It made her happy to think of the same woman who saw her love in his first moments being there for the first moments of her baby’s life.
“Rey was able to help Eden when she gave birth,” Ivy said. “He knew what to do when none of the Denynso did.”
“And you think that he learned those skills alone?” Opaline asked with a bigger smile. “Come along, now. Lie down here and let’s see what we can find out about this precious new baby.”
Ivy nodded and took the few steps to the elevated bed in the center of the room. The room didn’t have any of the equipment and machines that she would have expected to see if she went to the doctor during a pregnancy on Earth. She reminded herself that the midwives in the Denynso compound didn’t have any of the equipment, either, and that even midwives on Earth often forewent the machines and equipment. The love that she had found in Maxim and the life that she was even still just beginning to build was nothing like she would have ever expected. She would have to change the way that she thought of everything and her expectations for the future in everything that she did, but as she settled onto the table and lifted her shirt to allow the midwife to see her belly, she knew that she was absolutely willing to do it.
Opaline came up beside the bed and looked down at Ivy’s gently swollen belly. It seemed like it had gotten larger in just the short time since she had told Maxim, and Ivy knew that she wasn’t going to be able to keep it hidden from the others for long. She resolved to tell Ellora after she left the midwife, hoping to share as much information with her as she could, and then find a time to tell the others. She didn’t want the news to become a distraction to the others, but at the same time she also didn’t want them to feel as though she were purposely concealing it from them because she didn’t want them to know, or she didn’t care enough about them to include them.
“Do you know how far along you are?” Opaline asked.
Ivy shook her head.
“I don’t,” she said. “Maxim said that Mikana pregnancies aren’t the same as human ones.”
“He’s right,” Opaline said. “They aren’t. But that’s nothing to worry about. I’m sure that you will be just fine. Both of you.”
Ivy glanced around again, still somewhat concerned about the lack of equipment even though she already knew that it wasn’t there.
“Is there any way that you will be able to tell if the baby is healthy, or when it might be born?” she asked.
“You’re worried that I’m not a doctor,” Opaline said.
Even though the words were almost accusatory, the woman said them with a softness that showed her understanding and compassion.
“I’m sorry,” Ivy said. “I just don’t know what to expect. This is my first baby. To be honest, I never even really saw myself as a mother.”
“Really?” Opaline asked.
Ivy shook her head, resting her hands on the sides of her belly as if to protect the little one growing inside from the words that she had just said.
“I’ve always concentrated on my career. It was just really getting started when I came here to assist my mentor, George.” She gave a short laugh. “He actually wasn’t too happy to see me. I had originally told him that I wasn’t going to be able to come, but then I got the opportunity to, so I came to surprise him. Even after I came, I thought that this was just going to be a brief part of my life. I was going to finish up what I could do here, and then go back to Earth and keep going with my career. I wanted to eventually have my own laboratory and work on my own projects. It never occurred to me that there would be anything beyond my work.”
“But then you met Maxim,” Opaline said.
Ivy couldn’t resist the faint smile that touched her lips at the mention of his name. He had been the most unexpected development of her life. Uoria had been nothing like she anticipated, but it had been discovering Maxim that had surprised her the most. She had fallen so deeply in love with him so quickly, and even though she had wanted to go back to Earth, she knew as soon as she met him that she would never be able to be without Maxim. Now she couldn’t even imagine leaving Uoria permanently. She could easily adapt to life on Uoria and even continue to do more research. He, however, would never be able to live happily on Earth.
“I did,” she said, “and I love him more than I could ever explain. It is only because of him that I can imagine being a mother. I thought that my work would be the only thing that mattered to me in life, and now I know that I have more than that. I’m just worried that I’m going to do something wrong or that I’m not going to be ready when this baby comes.
“You don’t need to worry,” Opaline said. “I can see it in your eyes. You are made to be a mother, and as soon as this little one arrives, you will know what to do. It will come to you.”
“But how do we know when it will arrive?” she asked. “Have you ever helped a human woman through a pregnancy with a Mikana baby?”
She knew that the question was futile. This was unknown.
“I haven’t,” Opaline said. “But I know enough of the signs for both to be able to care for you throughout the pregnancy and until you deliver. We’ll have to be careful, but together we can bring this baby into the world safely and happily. Now let me examine you.”
As Ivy began to undress in preparation for the examination, her mind wandered back to Maxim. She wish
ed that he could be there with her. She longed to be back on Penthos with him. Even though he had made it clear that he didn’t want her returning to the battlefield even when the others came back, she couldn’t imagine staying on Uoria without him. Eden had fought alongside the men while she was pregnant and hadn’t been questioned or stopped. Ivy only wished that the others would see her as strong as they saw Eden, and as capable of taking care of herself and her baby while she continued to be a part of the efforts of the others. It was a thought that she would never have had before she left Earth for Uoria, or even in her first weeks on the planet. Being a part of a war wasn’t something that she would have ever envisioned herself doing, but now all she wanted to do was be back on Penthos with Maxim, fighting to protect the family and the life that had become all that mattered in the world to her.
Chapter Seven
Maxim tucked his arms under Zyyr’s and ran backwards with all of the strength and energy that he could build in his muscles. The sun was beating down on his back with vicious intensity and he could feel it searing through the fabric of his shirt painfully. The heat brought sweat down his face that stung in his eyes and mixed with the blood on his arms and chest. He could feel Zyyr trying to help him get him across the deep, stinging sand. The warrior’s heels dug into the sand, forcing him backwards a few inches for every step that Maxim took.
He could still hear the voices of the hybrids that were marching away from the site of the brief but intense battle that they had just waged. The few that had survived were carrying the wounded, but Maxim hadn’t seen any compassion in the assistance that they gave. It was almost as though they were already dead and their fellow hybrids were merely bringing them back to wherever they had been sleeping on the planet. Maxim got through the gate to the inner compound and released Zyyr so that he lay back on a cushion on the floor.
“Are you alright?” he asked.
The Alien's Glimpse (Uoria Mates IV Book 5) Page 4
