Disclaimer: I do not own Ben 10 or its sequels, spin-offs and related characters. All is the property of Man of Action and Cartoon Network. I'm just borrowing them for some non-profit entertainment.
(A/N: A special thank you to ChicaDCC from right here on and FantacyCrest from Tumblr for helping me with the first part of this chapter. I could not have been able to make this update without their in-put and advice. Thank you. )
If It Can't Break Out of It's Shell
Chapter Twelve: Happy Birthday!
Sitting on a couch that seemed unnecessarily -overly- comfortable, like it was supposed to lull the person sitting on it into a false sense of security- Devlin glared at the therapist his mother had found for him.
Her name was Dr. Borges. If there was a given name to go with that, she did not share it with patients. Twenty or so years ago, she had been hailed as the "best therapist in Bellwood" -a distinction that might actually have been true. That is, up until she was called in for a session with Ben Tennyson. This would have been back in Ben's teens, when he was still just 'Ben 10', long before 'Ben 10,000' was even an idea in his head. That session with Ben didn't go so well, and Dr. Borges discovered that there was a whole other area of study to be explored.
Xeno-psychology.
How aliens think. Group in with this new area of study were all terrestrial Earthlings with powers, and how the fact that they had powers affected how they thought. Their perceptions of the world, how they responded to shock, trauma, or grief. How they coped with those same stressors. As the decades passed and aliens began breeding with humans, a new area of developmental psychology was added onto Xeno-psychology. How did have alien parents, alien blood, alien traits, or just powers different from that of an average Earthling affect a child's natural development? What was age appropriate behavior for a child with powers? Did they develop differently than a child without powers? How did parents instill responsibility in something that could kill them with a tantrum?
After two decades of study, Dr. Borges was once again hailed as the "best therapist in Bellwood".
That may or may not be true. Devlin didn't care. He didn't like her.
She might have been in her prime twenty years ago, now she was just old. Not that there was anything inherently wrong with being old. Max was old and he was super cool! But -before even saying anything- Dr. Borges seemed to have this attitude about her, this air of 'I'm better and smarter than all of you cause I'm old -I have experience!'. Good for her. Devlin had experience too and he was only eleven, and he was pretty damn sure his experiences were way out of her realm of experience. Basically, she thought she knew everything. Devlin thought she didn't know anything.
All this, was before any words were exchanged between either of them.
Dr. Borges watched him from her own armchair. A far less stuffed, but no less comfortable looking affair upholstered in a neutral and unoffensive gray-blue. One her lap rested a tablet, one hand held a stylus, the other propped up her chin as she studied him. Waiting for the boy to speak first.
Devlin knew this game. It was one his father liked to play with new clients he didn't quite know yet. The first one to talk was the weak one. The first one to talk was the loser. What they chose to say when they broke the silence said a lot about them -more about them than they meant to share. Devlin was determined not to speak first. He was not weak. He would not lose. He wasn't going to give anything away to this stranger.
The clock on the wall behind him was digital, not analogue. It didn't tick. Even without the sound of a tick-tock to mark the seconds, the Osmosian was counting the time. His session with Dr. Borges was supposed to be an hour. That was three-thousand six-hundred seconds. If he could count to 3,600 without saying anything then he would win. Right now he was at one thousand seven-hundred, just a little under half-way through.
Dr. Borges tapper her stylus against the tablet's touch screen. The hand that was propping her chin up changed position, laying casually across her lap instead as the doctor straightened her back. "Devlin, do you want to be here?"
She spoke first. That meant that he won and she was weak!
"No." He answered truthfully.
"Do you know why you're here?" She followed up with, not missing a beat.
He glared at her. Did she think he was stupid, or was this another test? "They won't let me back in school until my mom gets me some 'counseling'."
"Yes. That's true." Borges pushed her glasses back up the bridge of her nose. "But do you know why they require you to get counseling before you return to school?"
Devlin glared at her. Who did she think she was? He understood a great deal more than she did. The Osmosian bet she had probably never even been off planet before. She might be older than him, but she didn't really know how things were. School was very different from the real world. School was safe, and nice, and fair. Life was dangerous, mean, and played by different rules. He was sent to counseling to learn how to conform to his school's idea of appropriate behavior.
Dr. Borges tapped her stylus on the tablet again. "You attacked another student."
"Yeah..." He prompted. "I attacked Ben, and Kenny too. I didn't hear them crying to send me to therapy after."
She stopped tapping her stylus and -for the first time since the session began, made a note on her tablet. Devlin's eyes narrowed. What was she writing? Dr. Borges looked back up at him with a patient expression. "You have attacked more people than just the boy from your class. Your own family."
Well, he didn't know that Ben and Kenny were his family at the time. But Devlin wasn't going to argue the point. Instead, he deflected. "Don't they give you files and stuff? Didn't my mother tell you what you were getting into when she got you to shrink me? Do you even know what I am?"
Did she even know who's son he was? What did the name 'Kevin Levin' mean to Dr. Borges?
That patient look she was giving him morphed into a compassionate smile. "I know you're a very troubled boy."
He gave a very short bark of a laugh, sounding uncomfortably like his father even to his own ears. Devlin lowered his head and glared up at her from under his sharp bangs. "Lady, you don't know just how 'troubled' I am."
This time, when Dr. Borges smiled, it wasn't patient or compassionate. It was a smile of satisfaction. As if she'd won. Devlin suddenly wondered if she had been playing a different game than him, or if she pulled a trick his father hadn't taught him. How could she win? She wasn't supposed to win. That wasn't how this was supposed to go.
"Well, I'm glad you're al least able to admit that you have a problem." She said through her smile. "That's the first step. Now, why don't you tell me about your troubles, Devlin."
…
"Can you pick Devlin up from his therapy appointment for me?" Gwendolyn asked, phone to her ear as she walked down the steps that lead to her headquarters under the library at Friedkin. "It gets out around the same time that Kenny gets off from school, so maybe you can take the boys out for smoothies or something."
"You're going to see Kevin again." Ben's voice answered back from the other end. It wasn't a question, just a statement. Who else would keep Gwendolyn from picking her son -her one and only child- up from his first therapy appointment?
Even thought she knew he couldn't see the action, Gwendolyn nodded. "Rook was nice enough to check in on him yesterday. But Rook can't do magic. If Kevin's actually going to be rehabilitated, I need to keep at it until the job's done." She wanted her husband back. "But, after all the things he put Devlin through, I don't want Kevin around him anymore. So, need you to watch Devlin while I'm with his father."
There was a pause on the other end of the line and Gwendolyn wondered if the call was cut off. She was heading underground -technically.
Then she heard a sigh. "And what about after Kevin's back to his old self? Are you gonna let Devlin around him then? What about Devlin? Would you trust him around Kevin after he flat out said his father would be better off dead?"
Now it was Gwendolyn's turn to be silent a moment. "I'll cross that bridge when I come to it."
She ended the call just as she stepped off the final step and found herself in her hidden headquarters. She looked up to see Kevin watching her.
He stood across the room, waiting in the middle of the magic circle. Fully clothed in his proto-tech armor, hear pulled back in a pony tail at the base of his skull. He was waiting for her to come and continue what it was she was doing. He wanted to be himself again -because he wanted to be with her again. It was amazing just how much he'd recovered already, and in such a short time too. Gwendolyn smiled at him, putting her phone back in her purse and setting it down.
"You didn't come yesterday." He said.
"Was busy." She answered by way of explanation.
"I was afraid you weren't gonna show up today too." He continued. "Trouble? Anything I can help with? I'm not totally myself, but I still have some power. You haven't taken it all. I can be useful in a fight." A pause. He met her eyes, his dark irises shining in the dim light. "Let me fight for you."
Gwendolyn only scoffed. "Oh, calm down. Its just domestic responsibilities."
Kevin smirked in response to that. "I'm never calm where you're concerned. Especially not when you're being 'domestic'."
She returned his smirk with one of her own, stepping into the circle with him. Coming so close to him that her breasts were just brushing against the chest plate of his proto-tech armor. Looking up at him through her lashes, Gwendolyn ran a hand up his bare arm and was rewarded when a shiver ran through his body. "Maybe when this is over..." she whispered in a thick bedroom voice "...we can be domestic together."
With an audible gulp, Kevin swallowed. "I'd like that."
Gwendolyn stepped back out of the circle. "Then we should get back to work."
…
When Devlin finally stepped out of Dr. Borges' office he was disgruntled and angry, and just a little uncomfortable. Somehow, and the boy wasn't quite sure how, but somehow she had tricked him into giving away far more than he ever meant to. He didn't like the psychologist. She had a sneaky subtlety about her that the Osmosian wasn't used to dealing with. Some of the pirates, and smugglers, and contraband dealers his father dealt with could be sneaky, some of them could be subtle. But this head-doctor was on a whole other level.
Devlin never meant to tell her that he had attacked Ben and Kenny, or that he rescued his criminal father from the Null Void -even though he was also sure these were things she already knew. And he especially never meant to admit to her that he was 'troubled'. That he had problems, and that he knew it. He never meant to show her weakness. All his life, there were only five people Devlin ever showed weakness to -before Dr. Borges- and of those five, only four of them did he feel comfortable showing that weakness. Kenny, Max, Ben, and his mother -those were the four the Osmosian felt comfortable showing his weakness to.
His father saw him at his weakest, back before Devlin was old enough to understand that he was weak, and vulnerable, and needed people. His father tried to train that weakness out of him. Teach him to control and use his mutation. For the first decade of his young life, Kevin was all Devlin knew. That was why he was so motivated to get him back, rescue him from the Null Void. Kevin tried to make him strong, but all Devlin succeeded in doing was proving to himself just how weak he really was.
The one hour he just spent with Dr. Borges just reminded him of everything he hated about himself, his father, and his life before the Tennysons. Devlin didn't like her. He did not want to go back.
Looking around for his mother, the Osmosian's foul mood was made worse when he realized that she wasn't there.
He might not be in school anymore, but she was still having problems with picking him up.
Debating with himself, Devlin wondered if it was better to wait outside for her, or go back into the office's waiting room. In all honesty, neither option sounded all that appealing to him. Instead he pulled out the brand new phone she got for him and sent her a quick text informing her that he was flying home, and asking her please not to freak out like last time. He was fine. He could take care of himself. He would be at home reading the next Harry Potter book. (He really liked that new Sirius Black character and was looking forward to reading about him and all the important things he would do in the rest of the books.)
Devlin was barely just putting his phone back in his pocket when it began to ring. The caller ID informed him that it was his mother. With a sigh, he answered. "Yeah?"
"Stay at Dr. Borges' office. Ben is picking you up." Were the first words out of her mouth. Not even the pretense of a 'hey, how did it go?'
In the background, the Osmosian clearly heard screams of pain. Male. A man screaming in pain. Growing up with a weapons dealer and smuggler for a father, Devlin heard men scream for lots of reasons. Fear, loss, pain, anger, just to make noise. Each one had a different sound to it, a different tone. What Devlin heard in the background of his mother's phone call... that was definitely pain. The really, really bad kind of pain. The Osmosian raised an eyebrow at the sound. What was she doing wherever she was?
"Everything okay over there?" He asked slowly, not sure if he even should.
"Oh, sure." He could practically hear the nod in her voice. In the background, those screams of pain subsided into pants of exhaustion. "That's just the project I've been working on the past week."
Her project that had been making her late for picking him up all week was torturing some guy? Well, damn. Maybe she was more like his father than Devlin originally thought. He couldn't decide if that was a good thing or a bad thing. They certainly were a match -or a sort.
"Are you killing something?" He pitched it as a joke, but the Osmosian legitimately wanted to know. He wasn't squeamish about cruelty or torture. He nearly broke a boy's hand over a few test answers. But it was something Devlin did not expect to find in his mother. Gwendolyn always seemed so kind, empathetic, and gentle. She was the last person he imagined torturing men with the power she held as High Magus.
"Killing? No." She assured him. "Exercising. It can be painful."
"Exercising? Like in the horror movies?" Devlin blinked. It occurred to him then that he'd actually seen very little of his mother's magic and power. Oh, he saw some of it back in the past when they battled Maltruant in her library. But that was just a few shields and mana orbs. He never saw any real magic. And the Osmosian suddenly realized that he wanted to see more magic. His father was never shy about spamming his powers. "Can I watch?"
"No." Gwendolyn snapped back quickly, a little too quickly. "Not this one. Maybe another time. I'll give you some books on exercising spirits and you can join me next time. I'd love to teach you magic!"
"But-" Devlin began a protest then realized she didn't have any material to argue with.
"Wait for Ben." His mother commanded. "I don't know how long this will take, but I'll definitely be back to take you home before Kenny has to go to bed."
Of course. Devlin might be excused from school on account of his violent and amoral behavior. But tomorrow was Monday and Kenny still had to attend school. Ben might be relaxed and easy-going enough to let the boys have a sleepover on a weeknight, but Kai and Gwendolyn were not. At least he would get to hang out with Kenny. Unlike the other kids at the snooty prep=school his mother sent him to, Kenny understood Devlin. Kenny knew what it was like to have a powerful dad that neglected you from time to time. True, while Ben was negligent he still loved his son, while Kevin never did. But still, Kenny understood Devlin better than any other kid their own age could. Plus, they were cousins. There was a blood connection there too.
"Okay." He sighed. "See you later tonight."
He hung up and slipped his phone back in his pocket.
Putting one fist on his hip, the Osmosian looked around to a place to sit outside. He was not about to go back into Dr. Borges' waiting room. Especially not if he was being picked up by someone who wasn't familiar with the building. Devlin didn't much care for the idea of Ben wandering around looking for him, drawing attention to himself and making a scene. Smugglers and dealers who drew attention usually didn't stay in business very long.
Then again, Ben wasn't a smuggler or a contraband dealer. He was a Hero, and Heroes thrived on attention.
Devlin sat down on the rim of a planter box just outside the building's main door.
...and waited.
It was just a little shy of half an hour later when Ben and Kenny finally did show up. Ben, in the form of Jetray, and Kenny in the form of Stinkfly.
"Hey! We get to hand out again!" Kenny exclaimed happily. His Lepidopterran throat making his voice pitched higher than was normal for a human his age.
"Just remember," Ben cut in with an 'I'm a responsible parent' reminder, "just because Devlin doesn't have school tomorrow doesn't mean you're excused from it. You still have to finish your homework before bed tonight."
Kenny groaned. "But-"
Ben gave him a Look.
It wasn't nearly as stern as some of the Looks Gwendolyn was capable of, but it seemed to make Kenny pause. At least long enough for Ben to add.
"You can either behave and I will trust you to do your homework on your own. Or, you can slack off and have to have your mother watch over you while you do your homework."
Admittedly, Devlin hadn't know Kai very long, but the Osmosian knew which option he would choose if he were the one given that ultimatum. It was always easier to do something on your own terms rather than be forced to with someone hovering over you. Devlin stood from his seat on the planter box.
"Looks like we're flying to Plumbers HQ." If Ben was Jetray, and Kenny was Stinkfly, then Devlin would have to be Devlin 11. He transformed.
Ben looked away. He hoped Devlin didn't notice, but he looked so much like Kevin 11. Actually, he looked exactly like Kevin 11. There was a reason Ben thought Devlin actually was Kevin the first time he broke into Plumbers Headquarters and tried to get into the Null Void chamber. Devlin was the spitting image of Kevin's first mutation, and while the amount of blame Kevin credited to Ben might be disproportionate to his actual blame, that didn't mean that the Hero of the Universe actually felt blameless. After all, even as an egocentric, stupid, and immature ten-year-old, he was still the wielder of the Omnitrix. He was his job to keep the watch save, and keep others safe from the watch. The mutated form that both Devlin and Kevin shared represented Ben's first failure of that responsibility.
"Well, lets get moving." Ben cleared his throat and launched himself into the air.
Kenny followed him, with Devlin after only a moment's hesitation. He did notice how Ben avoided looking at him in his mutant form.
Devlin flapped his Lepidopterran wings just a little faster to pull up along side Ben. If he was going to avoid looking at him, he could at least make up for it with some kind of an explanation.
"My form bothers you." He hissed at the Hero. It was meant to be just a statement. A fact. But it came out like an accusation. "It bothers my dad too."
It was a little hard to read Ben's expression. Jetray's Aerophibian face was just a hair more naturally stoic than a human's. Ben looked at Kenny to see if he could hear them, but the other boy wasn't paying attention. Ben turned his attention back to the Osmosian. He sighed. "Its not your fault. You were literally too young to know what you were doing."
"What?"
"I really shouldn't tell you this." Admitted the older man. Gwendolyn would kill him for telling her son this. "But that form nearly killed your mother."
…
Ben offered Gwendolyn a cup of ice chips. He didn't usually take orders from Kevin, but in this case, the Hero of the Universe agreed with entirely and completely with the Osmosian's instructions: ' Don't let Gwen leave the infirmary.' That was fine. She wasn't looking to good.
It was still several weeks before she was supposed to be due, but her belly looked ready to pop already, she was so big. Her skin was uncomfortably pale, and there were dark circles under her eyes, her hair had turned dry and stringy, and she always seemed to be out of breath. It actually reminded Ben a little bit of when Darkstar had drained almost all of her mana and nearly killed her. This wasn't quite as bad as back then -yet. But it was abundantly clear to anyone who looked at her, that something was draining Gwendolyn's mana. It didn't take a genius to realize that the thing draining her was mutated Osmosian baby in her womb.
Nobody said it out loud, but Kevin totally called it.
Gwendolyn pushed away the cup of ice chips. She wasn't thirsty.
"You need to stay hydrated." Ben reminded her. He took one ice chip out of the cup and popped it in his mouth, let it melt on his tongue, then swallowed. "See? Just like drinking water -but slower."
"You don't need to baby-sit me, Ben." She growled.
He didn't answer immediately, just looked her up and down. Taking in just how bad she really looked. Thin everywhere but her over-sized baby-bump, pale skin waxy, shadows under here eyes, the eyes themselves just noticeably duller. This wasn't quite as bad as when Darkstar had drained her. That happened quickly and abrupt, this was slow, but no less worrisome. As much as Ben didn't want to admit it -not even to himself, really- but, Kevin was right. This baby was killing her. And... and if Gwendolyn died, Ben wanted to be with her when it happened. He was an only child. Gwendolyn was the closest thing Ben ever had to a sister. They even shared the same birthday. As much as he didn't want to watch his twin sister die, he did want to be with her when it happened.
"I'm not baby-sitting you." Ben informed her. He popped another one of her ice chips in his mouth. If she wasn't going to take them, he would. Baby-sitting an Anodite was thirsty work. "I'm keeping you company while your husband is away."
She crossed her arms over her chest and scoffed. "While my husband's away. You mean while he's wandering the Null Void, looking for the man who manipulated and used him."
Ben put a smile on his face, forcing his mouth into a grin that he did not feel. "We're just hanging out."
Gwendolyn opened her mouth, but whatever she was going to say was cut off by a groan of pain as she wrapped her arms around her swollen belly. Ben leapt to his feet, not really sure what to do, but wanting to help in some way.
"Is he kicking again?"
The glare she gave him almost made the Hero of the Universe sit back down. She was every bit as formidable as he was -perhaps more so, in a different way- but how formidable could a person be against something inside them killing them slowly? Instead of sitting back down, Ben lifted the hem of Gwendolyn's shirt, raising it above her swollen belly so he could see her stomach. The skin was stretched and thin. When the baby kicked, Ben could just clearly see the outline of a hand pressing out from behind the flesh. Not kicking then, pressing, punching, clawing. An Osmosian baby, mutated into something grotesque, suddenly finding itself to large for its surroundings, and clawing to get out. Gwendolyn was weeks from her due date, but -once again- Ben found himself agreeing with Kevin. They needed to get that thing out of her.
"What is it?" She demanded, seeing the expression on his face. That horrified expression. "What's wrong?"
He lowered her shirt back down. "I'm not a doctor. I don't... this isn't a normal pregnancy. I don't know what defines 'wrong' and 'not wrong' here."
"Ben!" She snapped.
"Gwen!" He growled back.
Both hands still resting on her belly, she looked away from him. "When will Kevin be back?"
"I don't know."
"I want Kevin." She muttered.
"I know. But I don't know when he'll be back and me going into the Null Void to look for him without even knowing what part of the Null Void he's in isn't gonna help anyone." Ben reminded her. "The best thing I can do is stay with you and make sure you're okay."
That glare was back on her face.
"And how exactly are you making sure I'm okay? You can't even tell the difference between 'wrong' and 'not wrong'! How are you supposed to- ah!" She was cut off by another particularly rough movement of the baby inside her. Both arms wrapping about her round belly, leaning forward, her short red hair falling over her face. Beads of sweat were forming on her forehead, and she panted, short of breath and breathing hard. Stifling a sob, she brushed now sweat soaked hair out of her face. "Ben, please don't tell Kevin this, but... this baby is going to kill me."
Ben found himself swallowing a lump in his throat. He didn't know if he should lie and assure her that that couldn't possibly be true. He'd seen her survive worse. She was too tough, and too strong. She'd get through this and at the end of it she'd have the baby she wanted. Or, be honest and tell her he knew. She was dying. This baby she wanted so much was killing her slowly. She should have just listened to Kevin when she first got pregnant and aborted it before it got too far along. Or else she never should have got pregnant in the first place.
Ben didn't have to say anything. Gwendolyn was still talking.
"When Kevin gets back, will you please tell him that I love him." She said. It was the sort of thing in movies that characters always say while sobbing. Knowing that they were at their end and that there was nothing they could do to prevent it, and crying their eyes out. But Gwendolyn's voice was even and clear. She was not crying. She was giving instructions and she expected them to be followed. "I love him and I wanted this baby because it came from him. Make sure he knows that. I'm having this baby because I love him so much I want there to be more of him in the world, and... and he shouldn't blame the baby. Devlin represents just how much I love him. Make sure he understands that. And... and you'll help Kevin raise him, right?"
"Of course." Ben nodded, his voice cracked as he choked on the emotions her words stirred in him. She might be able to give heartfelt death-speeches with a clear, rational, and even voice, but he could not. "But- but you're not gonna die. Don't talk like that. This is... this is just-"
Fuck! Now he was the one who was crying! Ben reached a hand up to wipe his eyes.
But Gwendolyn grabbed his wrist, forcing him to look at her. "Ben, promise me!"
It took him several tries to get his voice under control before he could speak again. "I promise. I'll tell Kevin you love him and- -and I'll help raise Devlin."
She relaxed noticeably. Leaning back on the infirmary exam table. But no sooner had she leaned back to rest than she was doubled over again in pain. Devlin just was not in the mood to rest it seemed. He was very active inside there. Active and energetic. Clawing and pressing against her belly with all four of his mismatched arms. He wanted out. It was weeks before his due date, but he wanted out. Ben didn't know what to do.
"It hurts!" She moaned. Now Gwendolyn was crying. Not from emotion, but from pure, base, primal pain. Hair plastered to the sides of her face with sweat, eyes pinched shut in pain, tears trickling down her cheeks, mingling with the sweat, and dripping onto her breasts.
"I don't know what to do!" Ben admitted, voice close to panicking. "Tell me what to do!"
Gwendolyn always knew what to do.
But all Gwendolyn managed to do was to continue moaning and sobbing in pain. The baby inside her was hurting her so much she couldn't even think.
Not knowing what else to do, Ben poked his head out of the Plumbers infirmary and called for someone who would know. "Help! She needs help over here!"
He didn't know if he was relieved or more apprehensive when he saw that the ones that came running at his call were Kevin and Rook with Servantis in tow. Fresh from the Null Void teleporter in the hub. Rook leading Servantis in cuffs, and sprinting to the infirmary, a panicked look on his face when he heard Ben shouting.
"What's going on? What's wrong with her?" He demanded, shoving Ben to the side and forcing his way into the infirmary.
Kevin saw his wife on the exam table, bent in pain. As close to 'doubled over' as she could be with that giant pregnant belly in the way. Even with her arms wrapped around the stretched and swollen skin, the Osmosian could see the outline of hand and paw prints pressing outwards against her flesh. Kevin didn't think he just acted. Hand touching the first metal thing he came to in the infirmary, absorbing the matter up to his shoulder, he morphed his hand into a sharp blade.
Someone jumped on his back throwing their arms around him to make him stop before he even got to Gwendolyn on the exam table. Kevin tried to throw them off him and he saw the Omnitrix on one of the arms holding him. "Get off me, Tennyson!"
"What are you doing!?" Ben demanded, practically shouting in the Osmosian's ear.
"Let me go!" Kevin continued to struggled. "We have to get that thing out of her!"
Rook was quickly releasing Servantis' cuffs. "That is why we have brought an expert on Osmosians."
"I'm also a Plumbers trained surgeon." The former Proctor added. It was his vocation, while his avocation was genetics with a special interest in genetic mutations that might give one powers or abilities beyond what was otherwise normal for their species.
Kevin stopped struggling in Ben's arms long enough to look back at Servantis. The man who manipulated and used him as a child was also his best -and probably only- chance for saving his wife from the son he never wanted. Forcing himself to calm down, the Osmosian released the metal of his arms and nodded to the older man. "Do it. Get that thing out of her."
"No!" Gwendolyn sat back upright on the exam table. Her arms were still wrapped around her belly, but this time it was a protective action. "No, its too soon. Kevin, don't let him do this!"
But Kevin wasn't listening to her. He was looking at Servantis. "What do you need?"
Gwendolyn turned her attention to Ben and Rook instead. "Ben! Ben, don't let them do this! Devlin still has weeks to go. If they take him out too soon-!"
But she was cut off by another wave of pain as the baby struggled inside her. Maybe it was a bit premature for a human, or maybe it was over due for one or more of the ten alien species that Devlin shared DNA with. Or, maybe, the adrenaline from her fear and worry over what Servantis was about to do had triggered this latest of fits from the fetus. After all, it didn't know anything outside her body and its own base and primal need for survival. If inside its mother was no longer safe, then it was struggling to get out. If then didn't cut him out of her now...
...then he would rip his way out instead.
Not knowing what was the right thing to do or say, the Hero of the Universe looked away. He wanted to honor the promise he just made to her and take care of her son, but he also didn't want to lose his cousin -the closest thing to a sister he had. Ben was paralyzed by his own conflicting emotions. He just stood there, unmoving as he watched her curl in pain while Servantis pulled out and set up surgery equipment all around her.
"Gwendolyn has, on multiple occasions, made it clear that she wants to carry her offspring to term." Rook reminded all of them. "As the mother of said offspring and the owner of the body its currently inside, we should respect her wishes."
"Nobody here cares about ethics." Servantis informed the Revonnahgander without looking up from his tools. He prepped a cocktail of painkillers and sedative, loaded the solution into a syringe. "Kevin, please hold her still."
The Osmosian came around to the other side of the exam table to hold his wife. The moment she felt his hands on her, trying to restrain her, Gwendolyn redoubled her struggling.
"No! You can't!" She shouted. "Ben! Tell them they can't! Make them stop! Beat Kevin up like you used to whenever he went crazy! Kevin! Kevin, this is crazy!"
Ben looked from Gwendolyn, to Kevin, to Servantis, to her swollen belly, back to Gwendolyn. "I- I don't- I don't know..."
Kevin was holding his wife and Servantis found an injection site. The affect wasn't exactly instantaneous, but it was fast. Gwendolyn's expression shifted from shocked and betrayed, to drowsy, then her body relaxed in her husband's arms. Kevin laid her back down gently on the exam table. She would be blissfully unconscious for what happened next. Kevin looked up at Ben.
"Tennyson, if you're not gonna help, then get the hell out of here." Commanded the Osmosian. "That goes for you too, Rook."
The Revonnahgander met the Osmosian's eyes. "I do not presume to understand Earthling mating. But, I do understand Gwendolyn. She will never forgive you for this."
Kevin nodded. "That's my problem."
Rook took Ben by the arm and dragged the Hero of the Universe from the room. What Kevin and Servantis were doing... it was unethical, but they were doing it to save a life. Who was to say which life held the greater value? The mother, whom was already a fully formed person with a life, a mind, a personality, friends, and people who loved her, a role in the universe, who had helped save the universe multiple time... Or the child, an unborn fetus that didn't even have its own mind yet, that was just a bundle of limbs and a primal driving instinct? Rook didn't know. As a visitor to their world, and an outsider of their species he didn't feel he had the right to an opinion.
He dragged Ben out of the infirmary and heard Kevin lock the door behind them.
In a sort of daze, the Hero of the Universe looked at his partner. Expression weak and vulnerable. Ben didn't know the answer to that question either. "They'll save her, right?" He asked, pleaded actually. "Gwen will be alright? Kevin will save her?"
"Well, from what I know of Kevin..."
…
"Well, clearly, since I'm here and my mother is here, neither of us died." Devlin commented when Ben stopped speaking.
The Hero of the Universe nodded. "Well, yeah. But I have no idea how. I wasn't in the room. I didn't see..."
…
