by Nhys Glover
So I watched the road every chance I got, waiting for the first sight of her. We had grown very close after her rescue. Knowing more about her past life made her more of a person and not just a mother to me. And I respected the woman she had become. In her own way she was as strong as I was.
The airling problem was challenging. All the lads of the first wave of recruits had been claimed. But more than one airling was trying to claim a rider. Calun said it was unheard of. But raw airlings were coming to already claimed lads and, not understanding, the lads happily greeted any that approached. Only Zem and Flea knew what the airlings' behaviour meant.
Some very vicious fights had broken out among the creatures who staked a claim on the same rider. The unrest among them conveyed itself to everyone, and we were all on edge. Our hope was that when there were more recruits to choose from the airlings would no longer feel the need to fight over them. Until then, it became a juggling exercise to keep the competing airlings away from each other.
Airshin had even been claimed, much to my husbands' disgust. Though they had relaxed their stand on him since he'd moderated his attitude to me, they still didn't like him. And they couldn't understand why the airlings would claim him. Love was blind, yes. But not so blind as to ignore Airshin's attitude to the beastlings. He wasn't exactly cruel to them, but he wasn't kind either.
And for all his claims to want to fly, he'd backed away from the experience every chance he got. I was coming to the conclusion that my brother really was a coward and had come to us to avoid having to join the troops fighting the Godling. He'd never expected to have to ride an airling. Mayhap he'd leave with Mother when she returned to Beyen.
As I stood watching the road one morning, feeling a deep ache in my back that had been coming and going most of the night, a particularly bad fight broke out between two airlings as one of the lads went out with dried grass for the flock. One beastling knocked the lad over trying to reach him first. The other arrived shortly after, and wings began to flap and talons to scratch. Calun was close by, and raced in to drag the lad out of danger.
I spotted Airshin standing at the fence, looking on, a smug expression on his pale face. It was as if he was pleased by what he saw. What would make him happy to see airlings fighting? Or could it be he disliked the lad who'd been knocked down and was glad he'd been injured? I didn't know.
"Those two airlings haven't shown any interest in any of the lads before. Now they're both trying to claim a lad who's already claimed by another? It doesn't make sense. I'm just glad we've started pinning them all again, or they'd be flying over the fences to get at each other," Darkin said, coming up behind me.
"What is happening to them? It's so uncharacteristic. They are usually so peace-loving."
I felt Dark shrug behind me. "Calun thinks it might be the stress of the coming war. It's one thing for the Goddess to Will them to join us, it's another for them to be happy about it. They've been in training here for moons now. It's draining us humans, and them as well, it seems."
"I'd hate it if they changed their nature because of this war. It's hard enough knowing they're going to be risking their lives. But to imagine they might became permanently changed by the experience... I can't bear thinking about it."
I leaned back into Dark's warm strength, and he wrapped his arms around me. I was past feeling like a fat old crone, now I felt like a snowball on legs. Not that I was on those legs very much anymore. My days were mostly spent flat on my back, my swollen ankles and feet up to relieve the pressure on them.
When I wasn't sleeping, I had taken to mending all the recruits clothing, as well as that of my husbands. And with the airlings behaving as they were, there were more and more damaged tunics to repair.
My energy levels were depleted. I couldn't even fly anymore. I felt like a blister that was ready to pop. But I didn't want to pop until Mother and the midwife arrived. Childbirth was a dangerous thing at the best of times, but when you were having twins it was more than doubly so.
My heightened sexuality had gone with my energy. Though my men still shared my bed, and seemed happy enough about the situation, there was no sharing of pleasure between us. Being held, like Darkin was doing now, was about the most I could hope for until the babes were born.
"If this keeps up we'll have to abandon the whole scheme. The airlings can't be trusted the way they are now. I'm caught between wanting to bring in new recruits to see if that settles them down and abandoning the whole project. What does your Knowing tell you?"
I had found my Knowing becoming less present as the pregnancy went along. I hadn't had a significant instance since I Knew I was having a magical daughter.
"Nothing. I get nothing. It's been like this for moons now. What if it never comes back? Without it we wouldn't have known Mother's return to Westsealund was a trap. When we enter the war properly we'll need my Knowing or we'll be lost."
Dark rubbed my bulging belly comfortingly. "It'll return. Try not to worry. It's bad for the babes. Focus on you and them for now. They're your principal concern. I hope your mother arrives soon. I have nightmares that I have to deliver the babes and I drop them. It's horrible."
I laughed. "You drop them?"
I turned in his arms so I could see his expression.
He looked chagrined and the tips of his ears had gone red. "They're slippery with blood, alright? It seems a very legitimate concern."
I imagined him juggling two slippery newborns, one sliding out of one hand while he tried to keep a hold of the second babe with the other. Then he tripped, and both babes flew through the air to land with a wet plop on top of him, giggling like they'd done it on purpose.
"Stop laughing, it's not funny. You have the worst sense of humour," he grumbled as the tears of laughter started running down my bloated cheeks.
"It is so funny. And there I thought Jaron was the husband who made me laugh." I leaned up and kissed his lips. "Thank you. I needed that."
After the kiss, he gave up feeling mortified and joined me in laughter. He was as much in need of a good laugh as I was. But it didn't last long.
Abruptly, I stopped laughing. A pain so intense it had me gasping, radiated out from my lower back. Had I hurt my spine with all the laughing? I cried out and arched into the pain, hoping to ease it.
A warm liquid ran down my leg. My first thought was that the laughter had pushed on my bladder. The second was that I was bleeding and about to lose my childlings. I looked down at the wooden veranda floor and saw the fluid was clear. Not blood then.
"Your water's broken," Darkin announced as if it were the end of the world.
In that moment, as I realised the truth of his words, it felt like it was!
I was going into labour early and without my mother and midwife!
Chapter Twenty
AIRSHA
It was happening. I was going to have my babes and the only knowledgeable woman around was Bertil. But she'd had her own childlings over sixty suncycles ago. And though she had assisted with the birth of several of her sister's babes after that, it was still so long ago. When she came into our bedroom to check on me, I could see the uncertainty written all over her face.
"What?" I demanded, breathing normally again after the last painful contraction had ended.
"It's too early. And I've not had nothing to do with twins. I'm not sure..."
"Be sure! You're the only one with experience. Do you want to trust me to my husbands?" I cried, almost beside myself with fear and fury.
She shrugged helplessly. Flea came up to stand beside her at the edge of the monstrous bed. "I can help. I've seen babes born. My Mam sometimes birthed babes in the shambles where we lived. A couple of times I helped her."
What the recruits or Airshin would think of a lad helping with a delivery I didn't know, but in this moment I didn't care. I needed all the assistance I could get.
Dark had sent word to the others and my husbands all piled into the room looking as terrified as I felt.
/> "What in the gods' names is happening?" Rama demanded, rushing to my side. "You can't be in labour. It's too early. Use your magic. Get them to stop!"
I hadn't thought of my healing magic. It had helped Calun when he needed it, so couldn't I use it on myself? Rama was right, I needed to stop the birth. Or hold it off until my mother and the midwife arrived. But I'd had so little magic lately that I wasn't sure I could do anything.
"You canna stop it now the water's broke. The babes must come," Bertil said tersely, her hearing better than I expected. But then, Rama had been almost yelling at me.
"I can try. Surely I can try," I said furiously. I would not have these babes without my mother. I wouldn't!
Bertil shrugged and backed away from the bed, as if she'd washed her hands of the whole business. Or mayhap it was simply that my husbands had crowded in and she had nowhere else to go but back.
I let everything else go, took Calun's hand so I could draw on his mental strength, shut my eyes and began feeling for the still, silent place within me. I felt Calun's warmth and comfort envelope me like a blanket. I felt the energy of the rest of my husbands cocooning me in love. It was so beautiful that for several long minutes all I did was bathe in the feeling.
Then a twinge that forewarned of the next contraction came and I focused inward, placing my hands on my bulbous belly. I felt the Knowing coursing through my veins. I saw my childlings perfectly in tune with each other, perfectly at peace in their warm liquid world. Then, as the contraction claimed me, I felt them rouse from their slumber and shift downward. It was like they were airlings beginning their descent, proud and sure of themselves.
I Knew in that moment that I couldn't stop them now. They were coming, whether I was ready or not. They were excited about their journey, though they had no sense of where it would lead.
I drew back and opened my eyes, still flinching from the excruciating pain that held me clamped in its grip. My peaceful acceptance must have conveyed itself to my loved ones because I could feel the tension in the room ease.
"They're coming. I Know they're coming and it's time," I announced with quiet confidence.
"Then let's do this," Dark said through gritted teeth. "Where's Bertil?"
Jaron must have left the room because he returned moments later. "She's boiling water and collecting bits and pieces she'll need. Flea, go help her brew a potion. She wants you to help her."
Flea, who had also stepped away when my husbands surrounded me, jumped into action. She seemed relieved to be given something to do.
The pain had gone now and I relaxed against the soft mattress. I was going to be messing up the linens if I wasn't careful. "Jaron, can you find waterproof skins to lay under me. I don't want to soil the bed."
"Damn the bed!" Rama growled, clutching at the hand Calun wasn't holding. Somehow, during the lovely time I'd spent with my babes and the Knowing, he'd climbed up onto the bed beside me. His scarred face, lined further with concern, was so beautiful to me in that moment I wanted to cry.
"It will be all right, my darling. Do not be so afraid. They want to take this journey now. They're ready," I told him.
"But I'm not. Is it him? Is he the one who's forcing this to happen now? Is he bigger than her? Is she even alive?"
I cupped his burning cheek in my hand and looked into his bright blue eyes. "They are both just fine. They share a bond, a loving bond. I felt it. They won't be like Airshin and I. They're so close."
Rama's eyes told me he wanted to believe me but it seemed too good to be true. He'd convinced himself that his daughter was in danger and he would have to defend her from his monstrous son.
Jaron must have gone for skins to cover the bed because he was back with them almost immediately. He had Calun and Rama lift me up so he could slide it up under the bottom sheet. It wasn't perfect but it would do.
Another contraction had me screaming in agony. They were coming so fast. How long had it been since the last pain? I wasn't sure. Not long. I felt the urge to push, but I fought it. I knew from what I'd heard in the harem that a woman had to be fully open before the babe could traverse the channel. If they came before then they would be stuck. I couldn't let that happen.
"You need to look at my opening," I told Darkin. "I can't push until I'm wide enough. I know that much."
Darkin looked at Rama and then at Calun, both of whom were clinging to my hands as if to hold me away from a raging river. Lastly, he looked at Jaron. Did he think one of them would do this chore for him?
Whatever he read on their faces made him grit his teeth and set his jaw. Lifting my damp gown, he looked between my legs. After a moment he reappeared, shaking his head.
The contraction ended and I relaxed again. Holding back from pushing was worse than the actual contraction itself.
"It's too dark. I can't see anything." His voice held a note of panic.
"I'll light a lamp," Jaron offered. "Push back her hem. In fact, take her gown off completely."
Being naked in front of my husbands had never been a problem, but if Bertil and Flea came back I would be embarrassed. But, as I relaxed again, I realised I didn't much care anymore about my modesty. These babes were on their way.
Rama and Calun pulled the gown over my head. It was not one that did up in front, which was a pity. But soon I was lying naked on the bed again and Darkin was between my legs while Jaron held a lamp to brighten the dark recess' opening.
"That's better. But how far in do I have to look? I can't tell."
"Use your fingers and see if anything feels different," I suggested, not having any idea of what I was talking about.
Dark did as I said and then looked up in amazement. "It feels like a head. It can't be a head yet can it?"
I shrugged. "Measure the edge around the head, or whatever it is you feel. It needs to be the width of your hand. I remember someone saying the opening has to be the width of your hand," I muttered distractedly as I felt another contraction starting.
"My hand or yours?" Darkin demanded, sounding truly panicked. He was looking around at the others as if any one of them would be better placed to be making this decision.
"Mine.... I think. It would be... a woman's hand. Women... deliver babes," I huffed out as I tried to hold back from pushing. It was like trying to stop a climax. Possible but so very hard.
Darkin took another look and I felt his fingers slide inside me again. When he looked up he seemed somewhat surprised. "I might be wrong but I think it's wide enough." He looked at Jaron. "You have a look and see what you think."
"Never one to pass up looking at Airsha's lady parts," Jaron joked, moving to replace Darkin between my legs. But his voice lacked its usual lightness. He was scared.
But he had Darkin move the lamp closer and ducked down to look at my channel. His fingers slid into me and then out, almost immediately.
"That feels really strange. I hope it goes back to normal."
I groaned. "Will someone hit him for me please. Joking doesn't help. Oh... Oh, gods' balls, here comes another one. Oh... Oh.... I can't... I can't hold back."
I gave in to the urge to push and I felt something shift inside me. One of my childlings was on its way. Gripping onto Rama and Calun's hands, I screamed out my pain and determination. When it was over I panted hard. Jaron had moved away from between my legs and was wiping the sweat from my brow.
"You're the Goddess Incarnate, Sweetling. Remember that. This'll be easy for you."
I wanted to laugh as the contraction abated. Easy for me? Was he meaning to be funny? This was the furthest thing from easy I'd ever felt. No, mayhap being imprisoned in a hole by my father and then tied to a post and whipped was worse. But not by much.
Flea hurried into the room and her eyes grew round at the sight of me. "Oh gods. What's happening? Should I... Well, should I go?"
I broke from Rama's hold so I could hold out my shaky hand for the cup she held. "Give me that, Flea, and stop gawking. I am having a babe not indulging in pleasure wit
h my husbands."
She blushed bright red and looked at the floor. I had to laugh. Until I had to cry out in pain again. Rama grabbed the cup from my hand after I swallowed a mouthful of bitter brew and I began to push again.
Darkin was between my legs and he looked so pale I thought he was going to pass out. "Gods, where's Bertil? She should be doing this. Is that the head? I can see something dark in there. Is that a head?" He looked up at me like he was witnessing impossible magic. Or like a child seeing rain for the first time. There was true wonder in his dark blue eyes.
I smiled at him and took another swallow from the brew Flea had brought for me. Though the pain was awful, I felt sublime happiness.
Then I was wracked with pain again, and I gave another hard push. There was a shifting, a giving way, and then I felt something slipping from me in a rush. Darkin had time to get his hands in place before a small red lump landed in them. He stared down at it for the longest time, stunned.
"What's wrong with it? Why isn't it moving?" Rama cried anxiously.
"Turn it upside down and smack it on the back to make it cry" Flea advised like a veteran midwife.
Darkin sprang into action. He did as she told him and immediately a soft wail split the air. Our daughter was born!
"She's so tiny," Darkin said, cupping her in his hands. "How can she be so tiny and yet so perfect?"
I turned to smile at Rama who was staring at the little slimy lump as if it had magically appeared from the ethers. "Nothing wrong with her lungs. I heard tell that babes born early have problems with their lungs."
Flea handed Darkin a pair of shears and he cut and tied off the umbilical cord.
I didn't have a chance to answer, feel the euphoria hovering on the edges of my mind, or to appreciate the delivery of my first childling. I was feeling another contraction coming on and the need to push again.
Darkin handed off the babe to Jaron and Flea, and stood ready to catch the next babe like an old hand. His face and tunic were streaked with blood and gore but his expression was wondrous. Who said only women delivered babes? My husbands were doing just fine.
