p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"A woman with a black lob haircut swallowed a little white pill. Time had advanced and so had medicine but the annoying little disorder of Lactose Intolerance hung around like a cockroach after the apocalypse. "Zerg sure do sound like little shits," she said, smiling in the mirror, the same mirror that Jim Raynor stared into. He envied her. He envied their child. They grew up in a time where Zerg were nonexistent./p
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p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"They were unaware of the destruction, the carnage the death the Zerg left in their wake. "Well, you and little Mollie are lucky you won't ever face a Zerg infestation like I had," smiled Jim. He placed a bear paw of a hand upon her stomach. There wasn't much there aside from a little bump, a coming of attractions sort of deal. The sequel to fatherhood. "As is little Nathan Raynor."/p
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p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"Violet Raynor looked away and blushed, it was still so amazing to her a man as big as Jim, as tough as Jim was so romantic and so sweet with their kids. Violet kissed Jim on the cheek and went to the kitchen to make some morning tea for herself. "Ah, good mornin', Mrs. Raynor!" smiled Tychus, his teeth stained from the cigars of the past. "Is Mr. Raynor up yet?"/p
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p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"The man in the hulking armor was sitting at the kitchen table, chowing down on some cereal and orange juice. She rolled her eyes, she just loved how Tychus felt it fine to waltz right in and help himself to their home, while Matt and Gabriel knocked and asked permission. Jim joined the two in the kitchen slash dining room, picking up the paper. "Can't believe it's almost Halloween!" he sighed./p
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p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"Jim took a sip of some coffee, his mouth flooding with that bitter yet somehow still sweet brown taste. He looked up at the window that was behind the kitchen table. Thick syrupy sunlight flooded into the window, silent and warm. "Mollie's first Halloween."/p
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p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"Tychus looked up when the sound of baby cries floated and swirled through the air. "Uh-oh, daddy, someone's up," chuckled Tychus. Jim rolled the paper up and smacked Tychus. He continued to laugh, and Jim could smell Tychus's breath and it smelled of cigars and beers and strange. "I wonder if she made a stinky for daddy to clean up?"/p
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p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"The doorbell rang, Violet kissed Jim's cheek before they went off, Jim to Mollie's nursery and Violet to the front door. It was Matt Horner, a familiar face. "Good morning, Mrs. Raynor," said Matt with a bow. He always did look handsome in his pressed and neat uniform./p
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p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;""What brings you to our neck of the woods, Matt?" asked Violet. Matt's handsome face, usually so calm and collected, but it was now a twisted mask of terror./p
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p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;""Well, Mrs. Raynor, I believe this is something I need to talk to your husband about. It's about…well…the future. Mollie and Nathans." Matt hoped Violet would whisk off and fetch Jim. "And I just made that sound like a college ad." Matt blushed but Violet still didn't move. "It's urgent."/p
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p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"Tychus came up behind Violet. "What's so important, Horner?"/p
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p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;""The Zerg. Stetmann found activity close by." Tychus's eyes grew big at Matt's words. "An attack is inevitable, I'm afraid. And coming sooner than later." Tychus pushed past Violet and took Matt outside. He closed the door./p
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p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"Violet Raynor was seething! Violet narrowed her eyes at the men, why wouldn't they let her talk of Zergs? The baby started crying again, had Jim scared the baby, again? Poor Mollie, she hated daddy's Zerg skeleton keepsake. She smiled and leaned against the doorframe. "My daughter isn't giving daddy any trouble, is she?"/p
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p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;""Never, she's a Raynor! Oh her best behavior, just like her daddy. Well, most of the time, anyway," chuckled Jim. He used to get drunk and visit the local bar on an almost daily basis, but he traded in whiskey and cigars for diapers and spit up stains. "I was thinking, after lunch, we could go to the park for a bit."/p
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p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"Violet smiled. "Yeah, sounds like fun."/p
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p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;""Jimmy! Vi! You guys need to come see this!" screamed Tychus. He sounded far away, the living room perhaps./p
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p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;""Tychus?" called out Jim. "Everything okay?"/p
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p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"The TV was on a live feed, and Tychus and Matt, for once, shared the same expression. "Followed by…yes, followed by a swarm. A huge swarm. You should have seen them, sir! It was massive!" It was Egon./p
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p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;""The hell did Egon say?" said Tychus./p
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p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;"Jim Raynor's face had gone so white it was almost transparent. "Oh, no," whimpered Jim, his eyes glinting with tears. He wasn't afraid for himself. He wasn't afraid of the Zerg. He was afraid for his family./p
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p class="MsoNormal" style="text-indent: .5in;""This isn't really happening is it?" asked Violet. Matt pushed her to the ground as a window broke and a few Zerg entered the house. Tychus took the three space cricket like creatures out easily./p