I don't own these characters or profit from them
Don't touch my daughter
By, Clayton Overstreet
Melfina yawned and pushed back the covers on her bed. In the three months she'd been pregnant she had been sleeping more and more. Stretching she swung her legs over the side of the bed and stood up. She barely managed to grab the bedpost before falling over. "Ah!"
Gene, who had been asleep next to her, opened his eyes and looked at her. "What's wrong Mel?" Melfina turned to look at him. "Whoa! What happened to you?"
Melfina's stomach was huge. It jutted out from her like a beach ball. "I don't know."
They all sat around Melfina while the doctor examined her. Aisha stuck out a finger and poked at her stomach. "You know, I saw a movie like this once. The girl's stomach swelled until it popped and a bunch of aliens climbed out."
Melfina whimpered and Jim looked art her. "Not funny Aisha!"
Suzuka looked at the doctor. "Can you tell us what is wrong?"
The doctor put his equipment into a bag and smiled. "Oh, nothing is wrong with her if the information that the boy gave me is correct. I must say that your friend Melfina here is a very interesting bioandroid. She has soul and everything. I could write a paper."
Gene frowned. "Forget about that, tell us what happened."
"Well according to the data, she was designed to be your ship's navigation computer. Whoever made her didn't want her to be out of commission in the off chance that she had a baby." A door opened in his chest and he put his equipment bag away. "The pregnancy was meant to last four months and then finish."
Gene looked at the twinkling sensors that passed for the doctor's eyes. "What do you mean 'finish'?"
The doctor smiled. "It's all very interesting. Your life force linked with hers... all very interesting. You could conceivably live forever." At Gene's dark look he continued. "What you need to do is get her back to your ship and into her tube, where she will give birth. Once she has the baby will access your computer to gain all pertinent information and begin growing until she reaches the physical age of her mother." He smiled at them. "Are you certain you won't let me record this?"
Gene looked at Jim. "Now."
Jim nodded and hit some keys on his computer. The doctor's eyes flashed for a second then he smiled amiably. "Oh hello. I believe you wanted something?"
Gene shook his head. "False alarm. It was just a nosebleed. Sorry to have bothered you."
The doctor nodded and walked out the door. When he was gone Melfina looked at Gene nervously. "So... I'm going to be all right? And the baby is going to be fine too?"
Gene smiled and squeezed her hand. "You're going to be fine Mel."
Aisha scratched her head. "So the baby isn't going to be a baby?"
Jim nodded. "Apparently she'll be full grown person, just like Melfina was. And um... she'll be your last kid."
Melfina looked at him. "You mean I can only have one baby?" Jim nodded. She bit her lip. "Oh..."
Suzuka frowned and tapped her sword on the table. "Will the child be like Melfina? I mean will she be able to do all the things she can?"
Jim nodded. "Yeah, I think so." He looked at Melfina and Gene. "But she will be an individual. She won't be linked like the two of you or look and act just like Melfina. She is part of Gene too after all."
Gene looked at him. "How do you know it's a girl?"
Aisha grinned. "More importantly is she going to have Gene's attitude?"
Gene frowned. "Shut up Aisha!"
Jim laughed. "Well I don't know what she'll be like, but I know she's a girl because the doctor said so."
Melfina suddenly moaned and grabbed her stomach. "Ow! I think we should get to the ship now." She moaned again and closed her eyes tightly. The others all gathered around her and began helping her to the car.
As they lowered her into the tube, Melfina looked up at Gene. "I love you."
Gene smiled and rubbed her cheek. "I love you too Mel. Don't worry, everything will be fine." She smiled at him and the lid closed over her. The tube rose up and they could see her inside.
"Are you sure it is wise to do this?" Gilliam asked.
Jim nodded. "It's what the information we stole from the pirates said."
Gilliam seemed unconvinced. "I feel odd Jim. Unfamiliar programs are running and I am not sure what they do."
Jim didn't answer, as he and the others stared in fascination as Melfina began to lie back at an angle in her tube. She closed her eyes and spread her legs open. Then her eyes popped open and she opened her mouth in a silent scream. Some blood swirled into the liquid as they saw the head pop out.
Gene suddenly fell backwards onto the deck. The others crowded around him as his vision began to dim. Moments later everything went black.
Gene looked down at his hands. They glowed a dull red. Looking around he saw the strange world of cyberspace. "Melfina? Are you here?"
From behind him he heard a soft voice. "Over here Gene."
He turned and saw her floating there, glowing a bright blue color, a set of wings spread out behind her. Gene floated over to her and took her hand. "It's going to be all right Melfina."
She smiled and held him close. "I know it will Gene. I... I can feel her coming."
Gene kissed her cheek. "Just hold on a little longer Melfina."
Melfina dug her fingers into his back and clenched her teeth. Then her eyes took on softness and she smiled at him. "It's over."
An orange glow formed next to them. It took on the shape of a baby as they watched and smiled at them. "Mama... Dada..."
Melfina reached out and took the baby into her arms. "Our baby."
Gene smiled and looked down at her too. "She's beautiful, just like her mother."
"Gilliam, are you sure they are O.K.?" Jim asked.
A Gilliam drone nodded. "Yes Jim, I can see them now. They have the baby with them."
They all looked back at the tube, where Melfina was holding her newborn daughter in her arms. On the floor Gene lay with his eyes closed and a smile on his face.
"Jim, isn't there some way for you to talk to them?" Aisha asked.
Jim nodded, pounding at the keys on his computer. "I'm working on it Aisha."
Suzuka and Aisha leaned over his shoulders as Gene, Melfina, and the baby appeared on the screen. Gene smiled as he saw them. "Hi guys! Welcome to the party."
"Do you two need any help?" Suzuka asked.
Gene shook his head. "No, everything seems fine here. How are we doing out there?"
"Well Melfina and the baby seem fine, but you passed out on the floor." Aisha said, poking at Gene's unconscious form with her foot.
Gene nodded. "Jim, how long do you think we'll be in here?"
"I don't really know. The baby should be in there for at least two days. It looks like you'll be in there with her until whatever happens is finished." Jim said.
Melfina smiled at him as the baby grabbed her finger. "That's all right Jim. Just make sure Gene is fine."
"Hey Jim, while we're waiting, why don't you send Aisha and Suzuka out for some party supplies? We can have a birthday party." Gene said. Jim looked at Aisha and Suzuka. They smiled and nodded. "And make sure Suzuka is the one to get the food!" He yelled.
"Hey! Why can't I get the food?" Aisha yelled.
Suzuka grinned. "Because we want the food to make it back here."
Aisha growled, but Jim put a hand on her shoulder. "Why don't you be in charge of presents? She'll need clothes and things."
"Fine," She said. "But there had better be chocolate cake when I get back."
On the screen Gene looked down at his daughter. "Auntie Aisha has a big mouth doesn't she?"
Aisha sniffed. "So does her daddy." The baby giggled and looked up her mother.
Melfina smiled back. "Don't worry, they're always like this."
Aisha looked over the clothing rack. She had already picked out a dress; similar to the ones Melfina liked to wear. That was what Melfina had said to get anyway. The hardest part about this was picking out the gifts for everyone else.
Suzuka had told her to get the girl some regular clothes as well. Aisha had picked out some pants and shirts, about Melfina's size. She just hoped she wouldn't have to come back to return any of it. As an after thought she also got some shoes.
Jim had said he was going to get her a car later, so he was covered. Aisha grinned, thinking about her gift for the baby. She hadn't gone too overboard. It was a simple silver necklace with a small bell at the end.
Of course Gene's taste in gifts had been a bit more straightforward. He had insisted that once she was done at the mall, she go to a man he knew and buy a caster. Melfina had been against it at first, but Gene wouldn't back down. He'd said, "Don't worry, I'll teach her the basics first, but she'll need to be able to protect herself." Which had made Aisha and Suzuka promise to teach her some martial arts.
At the other end of town Suzuka had finished her own shopping. First she had gotten a chocolate cake with the words 'Happy Birthday' written on it. Then she had decided to pick up some punch and sandwiches from Subway. It wouldn't have been right for her first meal to just be cake.
It wasn't until she began walking back to the spaceport with her bags of food, that she noticed she was being followed. Two men were trying very hard to act like they weren't the least bit interested in her. In Suzuka's experience that meant they were very interested.
She turned the corner and headed on towards the ship anyway. If she was lucky, they might get bored and go away. If not, then they still couldn't get into the ship without permission. But just in case she watched them very closely out of the corner of her eye.
They didn't look like pirates. The men had a stiffness about them that reminded her of a trained soldier. Their movements seemed synchronized with each other as they moved down the sidewalk behind her.
A block from the spaceport Aisha stepped out of an alley and began walking next to her. Suzuka noticed a man and a woman slip out of the same alley to join the people behind her. "I see you've got some too."
Aisha nodded, but kept looking ahead. "Yeah, there are the ones behind us and two on the roof tops. Should we try to lose them?"
"No, they probably know where we're going and they can't follow us there. Let's just get back and talk with the others before doing anything." She said.
Once they reached the edge of the spaceport the people following them simply stopped and watched as they headed for the ship. When they got into the elevator Aisha and Suzuka both took a careful look at them. Each one had bulges in their clothes that indicated weapons.
When they got inside Jim smiled at them. "So did you get everything?"
Suzuka nodded. "Yes and we brought along some uninvited guests."
"Take a look through the cameras." Aisha said.
While Jim did that both of them glanced at Melfina's tube. Inside the baby had grown a bit and had a head of red hair. "Did they pick a name yet?" Aisha asked.
Jim nodded. "Yes, while you were out they decided to name her Nita."
Suzuka smiled at their images on the computer. "That is a very pretty name."
Melfina smiled. "Thank you Suzuka."
The baby giggled. "Ni... ta."
"Now would you look at that? She knows her own name already." Gene said.
"Then we know she didn't get her brains from you." Jim said. "Hey Aisha, Suzuka, both of you come look at this."
They gathered around him and looked at the security monitors. Near the edge of the spaceport, others were joining the people that had been following them. One figure in particular caught their attention. They couldn't make out much, because whoever it was wore a dark cloak with a hood. What caught their attention was that the others seemed to be listening to this person.
"Well now we know who's in charge out there." Aisha said.
Suzuka nodded. "Yeah, now all we need to do is figure out what they want."
Several hours passed by and the people outside didn't do anything. Meanwhile, inside cyber space, Nita had learned each of their names and began walking. Melfina and Gene helped her at first, catching her and picking her up when she fell down. But then Nita did something startling.
Trying to walk again she stepped away from Gene and Melfina. She took about five steps, and then fell down. As Gene and Melfina bent down to pick her up she shook her head and said, "No." Then, as they backed up, she put her hands under her and pushed up to her feet.
Everyone cheered and applauded, especially Nita's parents who ran forward and hugged her proudly. Nita smiled and hugged them back.
The rest of the day went by with similar events. They all watched as Nita discovered new and interesting things. The group outside kept up their visual, but otherwise did nothing. They seemed content just to watch.
When night fell Jim, Aisha, and Suzuka decided to call it a day and told Gilliam to keep an eye on the people. Gene and Melfina didn't feel tired so they decided to stay up with Nita, who didn't understand sleep yet.
Instead their daughter began asking them questions. She was already six years old, physically. Fortunately, most of them were things that they knew about, and as she asked them the information seemed to load directly to her brain. The only parts she had trouble with, was things the computer didn't know about. "Why do you do a job you know is so dangerous?"
Melfina seemed to enjoy that one and grinned. "I'd like to hear this one too Gene."
"Well..." He rubbed the back of his neck. "I suppose it's just the way I am. I like the challenges and the danger... as long as I'm the only one that gets hurt."
"But what if someone hurt Mom and me? Or the others?" Nita asked.
Gene frowned and reached out to rub both her and Melfina's chins. "Then I would hurt them a lot worse. Just like your mother would."
Nita looked up at Melfina and smiled. "Really?"
Melfina nodded. "Yes, but I only fight when I have to. Gene does it whenever he can."
"Hey!" Gene said, trying not to grin.
"I wish I knew how to fight." Nita said. Then she got the blank stare that she got when the computer gave her information.
Melfina sighed. "Be careful what you wish for Nita."
"O.K. Mom." Nita said. Suddenly she got a look on her face. "We're not like other people, are we, Daddy?"
Gene frowned. "What do you mean?"
She looked at him. "I mean Mom and I are different."
Melfina hugged her close and Gene smiled. "You're right of course Nita. Melfina and you are bioandroids."
She shook her head. "No we aren't. We're different. The computer says so." So Gene and Melfina told her about their adventures looking for the galactic ley line. With each sentence Nita's eyes seemed to get bigger and bigger. She looked very sad when they told her about Hilda and she laughed when they told her how they met Aisha. But the part about the ley line was what really got her attention.
"... And them we flew right down Hazanko's throat." Gene said. "Then we got out just before the whole thing vanished."
Melfina smiled wistfully. "Gene looked so handsome when he did that."
Gene smirked. "And Melfina looked gorgeous." He leaned in and kissed Melfina on the lips.
Nita wrinkled her nose. "Yuck!"
Melfina smiled. "You'll feel differently about it later."
"When?" She asked.
Gene smiled and rubbed her head. "In about two more days." Nita looked sad. "What's wrong?"
"Well... you and Mommy... you said you might be immortal. What about me? Or Uncle Jim and Aunty Suzuka? What's going to happen to us?" She asked.
Melfina smiled and hugged her tight. "You're going to be fine Nita."
"But what about..." She started.
Gene reached out and squeezed her cheek, pulling it to the side. "Nita, don't tell Aisha I said this, but I do agree with her on one thing."
Melfina grinned. "Oh I've got to hear this."
Gene frowned at her, but continued. "She always says if there is a question like this, not to worry about it. If there is something you can change than do it, but otherwise it's really not a problem."
Nita looked confused. Melfina smiled. "I thought her exact words were 'Don't bother me with things I can't change, I'm hungry.'"
Gene sighed. "She does, but I was hoping Nita wouldn't start talking like her."
Nita giggled and started asking more questions again. Gene and Melfina gave the best answers they could.
Two days passed rather quickly while Nita grew into a beautiful young woman. The times she was a teenager were the worst. Between the zits (which Aisha said had to be from Gene) and the hormonal mood swings, it had been a rough ride. But by the end of it she had turned out very pretty.
Nita looked most like her mother, but she had her father's red hair and was a bit more muscular than Melfina. The hair grew long down her back, but (much to Suzuka's dismay) she informed hem that she planned to cut it short when she got out. While her outward appearance was like Melfina's her personality was a lot like Gene's. Apparently she thought he was cool.
With less than an hour to go, Jim and the others began setting up for the party. Everything seemed to be going right on schedule.
"Jim, you asked me to inform you when the people watching the ship moved. They are moving in this direction." Gilliam said.
Jim cursed and sat down, accessing the security cameras. Most of the people were walking in some kind of obvious pattern. But the person in the cloak walked along casually. Jim still couldn't make out a face, but the figure appeared to be a woman. "Are you two sure you can handle this bunch? They look really well trained."
Aisha sniffed. "Oh come on Jim. You don't think these guys have any chance against me or Suzu, do you?"
Ten minutes later.
Jim was tied back to back with Aisha and Suzuka. He tapped his fingers and looked up at Gilliam. "What I don't understand is why you let them in."
"She is a listed member of the crew." Gilliam responded.
"Who is?" Suzuka asked.
The woman in the cloak stepped forward and removed her hood. "I am."
They all stared at her in shock. "Melfina?" The woman who stood before them looked exactly like Melfina, except for the self assured sneer she wore. If the real Melfina hadn't been in the large tube they would have thought it was her, just for a moment.
The fake Melfina laughed. "Yes and no. My name is Melfina, but I am not the one you know. I am..."
"My mother." Melfina said from the tube. "I remember you being there for just a minute. Then you left."
The sneer melted from the other woman's face. She looked truly sad at that moment. "As soon as you were born they made sure I wasn't needed and dragged me out." She looked down at Gene on the floor, then up at his image on the screen. "I didn't have someone like him to help. When they were done they packed away in that damn case and shoved into the back of their vault. Even Melfina's father Lealong left me there."
Gene smirked. "Why am I not surprised?"
Aisha frowned. "If the pirates had you, why did they want Melfina?"
"Because she wasn't born, she was assembled. She's the original bioandroid so while she feels, thinks, and looks just like our Melfina; she's missing the one thing that let Mel into the ley line." Jim said.
"She wasn't born so she doesn't have a soul that lives after death..." Suzuka whispered.
On the screen Gene frowned. "So what does she want with us?"
The other Melfina smiled. "Me? I don't want anything. But the people who found me in the vault and pay my salary now... they want her." She pointed at Nita.
In the tube Melfina's arms circled her daughter's waist. "You can't have her."
Suzuka frowned. "So who is it you work for?"
"She works for the military. It's the only real answer. The well trained men. Plus they're the only others with any knowledge of the XGP or the pirate's vault." Gene said.
"Well I don't care what she says, I'm not going anywhere with anyone." Nita said.
"Ley line project command: It was you who broke my mason plate." One of the men said. All three bioandroids closed their eyes and leaned forward while the computer image went blank.
"Jim, I thought you deprogrammed Melfina!" Aisha said.
Jim sighed. "I did, but I haven't done Nita yet and they're linked."
Suzuka frowned. "Why do you want Nita? Why not Melfina or the one you have already?"
Then man smiled and hefted their android over his shoulders. "It's because they can't produce others." He motioned his men to get Nita. "Wait!"
His men looked at him confused and saw Gene standing next to him with his caster pointed at the man's head. "You know what I love about you guys?" He slammed the butt of his gun on the man's head, knocking him unconscious. "You always talk to much. Now the rest of you, step away from my family."
They hesitated for a moment, and then looked at his eyes. They quickly moved back towards the door. "Tell your superiors that they'll have to stick with what they have." He rolled the man and Melfina's mother over to them. They gathered her up and left the ship.
Gene went over to untie the others. "I'm out for three days and everything falls apart."
Aisha snorted. "Like we wouldn't have broken free. We were just waiting for the right time, right Suzu?"
"Uh... right." Suzuka said.
Jim smiled and scratched under Aisha's chin causing her to purr. "We believe you Aisha. So Gene, should I wake them up now?"
"Yeah, just give me a minute to lay down first. I still have a bump on my head from the last time." He eased into the captain's seat.
"Breakfast is served with a silver spoon." Jim said.
Nita and Melfina's eyes opened and the computer came on, showing Gene with them in cyberspace. "Where did everybody go?" They both asked.
An hour later the party was under way and they were all introducing Nita to the world. First they ate a lot of food, and then they gave her their presents. She loved each of them and gave everyone a hug.
After she was dressed, Melfina took her hand. "Nita, there is one last thing I really want to show you."
Nita smiled and followed her. "What is it Mommy?"
Melfina smiled and covered her eyes while the others watched in interest. "Well when I was activated, we had to flee into space almost immediately and it was night time. I want you to see something I didn't get to for a long time." She led Nita out the door and to the edge of the elevator frame.
As the others crowded behind them, Melfina tilted Nita's head up and removed her hand, giving her daughter her first look at the sky.
Nita stared in utter fascination. She knew what the sky was of course, but she'd never seen it. "It's so big... can we go there?"
Gene smiled and put a hand on her shoulder. "That's why we have a spaceship Nita."
"The most advanced ship in the galaxy." Gilliam chimed in.
Nita smiled as she stood in her parent's arms, staring up at the sky. For someone who had only lived three days she had an interesting life. And it could only get better from here.
TO BE CONTINUED...
Hey, it's me Nita. In the next story I have to find a place to fit in. For a while I'm going to have a little trouble, but don't worry. I think I can talk my dad into letting me be a mechanic for the space ship. Could even build my own seat. Unfortunately I seem to have inherited my dad's fear of space flight. Plus having the military mad at us in addition to the military being mad at us now isn't helping any. And who is this McDougal guy following us around trying to convince me to run away with him? I can't believe mom almost bought this geek's lines.
All this and more in the next Clayton Overstreet fan fic "Family business."
Author's note
Well what did you think? I came up with my own character. Everyone keeps emailing me about Melfina's kid. Now she's here. Sorry for you Aisha and Suzuka fans. Don't worry; next time around they'll have more lines. In the mean time, tell me what you think at clayton_n@hotmail.com
Don't touch my daughter
By, Clayton Overstreet
Melfina yawned and pushed back the covers on her bed. In the three months she'd been pregnant she had been sleeping more and more. Stretching she swung her legs over the side of the bed and stood up. She barely managed to grab the bedpost before falling over. "Ah!"
Gene, who had been asleep next to her, opened his eyes and looked at her. "What's wrong Mel?" Melfina turned to look at him. "Whoa! What happened to you?"
Melfina's stomach was huge. It jutted out from her like a beach ball. "I don't know."
They all sat around Melfina while the doctor examined her. Aisha stuck out a finger and poked at her stomach. "You know, I saw a movie like this once. The girl's stomach swelled until it popped and a bunch of aliens climbed out."
Melfina whimpered and Jim looked art her. "Not funny Aisha!"
Suzuka looked at the doctor. "Can you tell us what is wrong?"
The doctor put his equipment into a bag and smiled. "Oh, nothing is wrong with her if the information that the boy gave me is correct. I must say that your friend Melfina here is a very interesting bioandroid. She has soul and everything. I could write a paper."
Gene frowned. "Forget about that, tell us what happened."
"Well according to the data, she was designed to be your ship's navigation computer. Whoever made her didn't want her to be out of commission in the off chance that she had a baby." A door opened in his chest and he put his equipment bag away. "The pregnancy was meant to last four months and then finish."
Gene looked at the twinkling sensors that passed for the doctor's eyes. "What do you mean 'finish'?"
The doctor smiled. "It's all very interesting. Your life force linked with hers... all very interesting. You could conceivably live forever." At Gene's dark look he continued. "What you need to do is get her back to your ship and into her tube, where she will give birth. Once she has the baby will access your computer to gain all pertinent information and begin growing until she reaches the physical age of her mother." He smiled at them. "Are you certain you won't let me record this?"
Gene looked at Jim. "Now."
Jim nodded and hit some keys on his computer. The doctor's eyes flashed for a second then he smiled amiably. "Oh hello. I believe you wanted something?"
Gene shook his head. "False alarm. It was just a nosebleed. Sorry to have bothered you."
The doctor nodded and walked out the door. When he was gone Melfina looked at Gene nervously. "So... I'm going to be all right? And the baby is going to be fine too?"
Gene smiled and squeezed her hand. "You're going to be fine Mel."
Aisha scratched her head. "So the baby isn't going to be a baby?"
Jim nodded. "Apparently she'll be full grown person, just like Melfina was. And um... she'll be your last kid."
Melfina looked at him. "You mean I can only have one baby?" Jim nodded. She bit her lip. "Oh..."
Suzuka frowned and tapped her sword on the table. "Will the child be like Melfina? I mean will she be able to do all the things she can?"
Jim nodded. "Yeah, I think so." He looked at Melfina and Gene. "But she will be an individual. She won't be linked like the two of you or look and act just like Melfina. She is part of Gene too after all."
Gene looked at him. "How do you know it's a girl?"
Aisha grinned. "More importantly is she going to have Gene's attitude?"
Gene frowned. "Shut up Aisha!"
Jim laughed. "Well I don't know what she'll be like, but I know she's a girl because the doctor said so."
Melfina suddenly moaned and grabbed her stomach. "Ow! I think we should get to the ship now." She moaned again and closed her eyes tightly. The others all gathered around her and began helping her to the car.
As they lowered her into the tube, Melfina looked up at Gene. "I love you."
Gene smiled and rubbed her cheek. "I love you too Mel. Don't worry, everything will be fine." She smiled at him and the lid closed over her. The tube rose up and they could see her inside.
"Are you sure it is wise to do this?" Gilliam asked.
Jim nodded. "It's what the information we stole from the pirates said."
Gilliam seemed unconvinced. "I feel odd Jim. Unfamiliar programs are running and I am not sure what they do."
Jim didn't answer, as he and the others stared in fascination as Melfina began to lie back at an angle in her tube. She closed her eyes and spread her legs open. Then her eyes popped open and she opened her mouth in a silent scream. Some blood swirled into the liquid as they saw the head pop out.
Gene suddenly fell backwards onto the deck. The others crowded around him as his vision began to dim. Moments later everything went black.
Gene looked down at his hands. They glowed a dull red. Looking around he saw the strange world of cyberspace. "Melfina? Are you here?"
From behind him he heard a soft voice. "Over here Gene."
He turned and saw her floating there, glowing a bright blue color, a set of wings spread out behind her. Gene floated over to her and took her hand. "It's going to be all right Melfina."
She smiled and held him close. "I know it will Gene. I... I can feel her coming."
Gene kissed her cheek. "Just hold on a little longer Melfina."
Melfina dug her fingers into his back and clenched her teeth. Then her eyes took on softness and she smiled at him. "It's over."
An orange glow formed next to them. It took on the shape of a baby as they watched and smiled at them. "Mama... Dada..."
Melfina reached out and took the baby into her arms. "Our baby."
Gene smiled and looked down at her too. "She's beautiful, just like her mother."
"Gilliam, are you sure they are O.K.?" Jim asked.
A Gilliam drone nodded. "Yes Jim, I can see them now. They have the baby with them."
They all looked back at the tube, where Melfina was holding her newborn daughter in her arms. On the floor Gene lay with his eyes closed and a smile on his face.
"Jim, isn't there some way for you to talk to them?" Aisha asked.
Jim nodded, pounding at the keys on his computer. "I'm working on it Aisha."
Suzuka and Aisha leaned over his shoulders as Gene, Melfina, and the baby appeared on the screen. Gene smiled as he saw them. "Hi guys! Welcome to the party."
"Do you two need any help?" Suzuka asked.
Gene shook his head. "No, everything seems fine here. How are we doing out there?"
"Well Melfina and the baby seem fine, but you passed out on the floor." Aisha said, poking at Gene's unconscious form with her foot.
Gene nodded. "Jim, how long do you think we'll be in here?"
"I don't really know. The baby should be in there for at least two days. It looks like you'll be in there with her until whatever happens is finished." Jim said.
Melfina smiled at him as the baby grabbed her finger. "That's all right Jim. Just make sure Gene is fine."
"Hey Jim, while we're waiting, why don't you send Aisha and Suzuka out for some party supplies? We can have a birthday party." Gene said. Jim looked at Aisha and Suzuka. They smiled and nodded. "And make sure Suzuka is the one to get the food!" He yelled.
"Hey! Why can't I get the food?" Aisha yelled.
Suzuka grinned. "Because we want the food to make it back here."
Aisha growled, but Jim put a hand on her shoulder. "Why don't you be in charge of presents? She'll need clothes and things."
"Fine," She said. "But there had better be chocolate cake when I get back."
On the screen Gene looked down at his daughter. "Auntie Aisha has a big mouth doesn't she?"
Aisha sniffed. "So does her daddy." The baby giggled and looked up her mother.
Melfina smiled back. "Don't worry, they're always like this."
Aisha looked over the clothing rack. She had already picked out a dress; similar to the ones Melfina liked to wear. That was what Melfina had said to get anyway. The hardest part about this was picking out the gifts for everyone else.
Suzuka had told her to get the girl some regular clothes as well. Aisha had picked out some pants and shirts, about Melfina's size. She just hoped she wouldn't have to come back to return any of it. As an after thought she also got some shoes.
Jim had said he was going to get her a car later, so he was covered. Aisha grinned, thinking about her gift for the baby. She hadn't gone too overboard. It was a simple silver necklace with a small bell at the end.
Of course Gene's taste in gifts had been a bit more straightforward. He had insisted that once she was done at the mall, she go to a man he knew and buy a caster. Melfina had been against it at first, but Gene wouldn't back down. He'd said, "Don't worry, I'll teach her the basics first, but she'll need to be able to protect herself." Which had made Aisha and Suzuka promise to teach her some martial arts.
At the other end of town Suzuka had finished her own shopping. First she had gotten a chocolate cake with the words 'Happy Birthday' written on it. Then she had decided to pick up some punch and sandwiches from Subway. It wouldn't have been right for her first meal to just be cake.
It wasn't until she began walking back to the spaceport with her bags of food, that she noticed she was being followed. Two men were trying very hard to act like they weren't the least bit interested in her. In Suzuka's experience that meant they were very interested.
She turned the corner and headed on towards the ship anyway. If she was lucky, they might get bored and go away. If not, then they still couldn't get into the ship without permission. But just in case she watched them very closely out of the corner of her eye.
They didn't look like pirates. The men had a stiffness about them that reminded her of a trained soldier. Their movements seemed synchronized with each other as they moved down the sidewalk behind her.
A block from the spaceport Aisha stepped out of an alley and began walking next to her. Suzuka noticed a man and a woman slip out of the same alley to join the people behind her. "I see you've got some too."
Aisha nodded, but kept looking ahead. "Yeah, there are the ones behind us and two on the roof tops. Should we try to lose them?"
"No, they probably know where we're going and they can't follow us there. Let's just get back and talk with the others before doing anything." She said.
Once they reached the edge of the spaceport the people following them simply stopped and watched as they headed for the ship. When they got into the elevator Aisha and Suzuka both took a careful look at them. Each one had bulges in their clothes that indicated weapons.
When they got inside Jim smiled at them. "So did you get everything?"
Suzuka nodded. "Yes and we brought along some uninvited guests."
"Take a look through the cameras." Aisha said.
While Jim did that both of them glanced at Melfina's tube. Inside the baby had grown a bit and had a head of red hair. "Did they pick a name yet?" Aisha asked.
Jim nodded. "Yes, while you were out they decided to name her Nita."
Suzuka smiled at their images on the computer. "That is a very pretty name."
Melfina smiled. "Thank you Suzuka."
The baby giggled. "Ni... ta."
"Now would you look at that? She knows her own name already." Gene said.
"Then we know she didn't get her brains from you." Jim said. "Hey Aisha, Suzuka, both of you come look at this."
They gathered around him and looked at the security monitors. Near the edge of the spaceport, others were joining the people that had been following them. One figure in particular caught their attention. They couldn't make out much, because whoever it was wore a dark cloak with a hood. What caught their attention was that the others seemed to be listening to this person.
"Well now we know who's in charge out there." Aisha said.
Suzuka nodded. "Yeah, now all we need to do is figure out what they want."
Several hours passed by and the people outside didn't do anything. Meanwhile, inside cyber space, Nita had learned each of their names and began walking. Melfina and Gene helped her at first, catching her and picking her up when she fell down. But then Nita did something startling.
Trying to walk again she stepped away from Gene and Melfina. She took about five steps, and then fell down. As Gene and Melfina bent down to pick her up she shook her head and said, "No." Then, as they backed up, she put her hands under her and pushed up to her feet.
Everyone cheered and applauded, especially Nita's parents who ran forward and hugged her proudly. Nita smiled and hugged them back.
The rest of the day went by with similar events. They all watched as Nita discovered new and interesting things. The group outside kept up their visual, but otherwise did nothing. They seemed content just to watch.
When night fell Jim, Aisha, and Suzuka decided to call it a day and told Gilliam to keep an eye on the people. Gene and Melfina didn't feel tired so they decided to stay up with Nita, who didn't understand sleep yet.
Instead their daughter began asking them questions. She was already six years old, physically. Fortunately, most of them were things that they knew about, and as she asked them the information seemed to load directly to her brain. The only parts she had trouble with, was things the computer didn't know about. "Why do you do a job you know is so dangerous?"
Melfina seemed to enjoy that one and grinned. "I'd like to hear this one too Gene."
"Well..." He rubbed the back of his neck. "I suppose it's just the way I am. I like the challenges and the danger... as long as I'm the only one that gets hurt."
"But what if someone hurt Mom and me? Or the others?" Nita asked.
Gene frowned and reached out to rub both her and Melfina's chins. "Then I would hurt them a lot worse. Just like your mother would."
Nita looked up at Melfina and smiled. "Really?"
Melfina nodded. "Yes, but I only fight when I have to. Gene does it whenever he can."
"Hey!" Gene said, trying not to grin.
"I wish I knew how to fight." Nita said. Then she got the blank stare that she got when the computer gave her information.
Melfina sighed. "Be careful what you wish for Nita."
"O.K. Mom." Nita said. Suddenly she got a look on her face. "We're not like other people, are we, Daddy?"
Gene frowned. "What do you mean?"
She looked at him. "I mean Mom and I are different."
Melfina hugged her close and Gene smiled. "You're right of course Nita. Melfina and you are bioandroids."
She shook her head. "No we aren't. We're different. The computer says so." So Gene and Melfina told her about their adventures looking for the galactic ley line. With each sentence Nita's eyes seemed to get bigger and bigger. She looked very sad when they told her about Hilda and she laughed when they told her how they met Aisha. But the part about the ley line was what really got her attention.
"... And them we flew right down Hazanko's throat." Gene said. "Then we got out just before the whole thing vanished."
Melfina smiled wistfully. "Gene looked so handsome when he did that."
Gene smirked. "And Melfina looked gorgeous." He leaned in and kissed Melfina on the lips.
Nita wrinkled her nose. "Yuck!"
Melfina smiled. "You'll feel differently about it later."
"When?" She asked.
Gene smiled and rubbed her head. "In about two more days." Nita looked sad. "What's wrong?"
"Well... you and Mommy... you said you might be immortal. What about me? Or Uncle Jim and Aunty Suzuka? What's going to happen to us?" She asked.
Melfina smiled and hugged her tight. "You're going to be fine Nita."
"But what about..." She started.
Gene reached out and squeezed her cheek, pulling it to the side. "Nita, don't tell Aisha I said this, but I do agree with her on one thing."
Melfina grinned. "Oh I've got to hear this."
Gene frowned at her, but continued. "She always says if there is a question like this, not to worry about it. If there is something you can change than do it, but otherwise it's really not a problem."
Nita looked confused. Melfina smiled. "I thought her exact words were 'Don't bother me with things I can't change, I'm hungry.'"
Gene sighed. "She does, but I was hoping Nita wouldn't start talking like her."
Nita giggled and started asking more questions again. Gene and Melfina gave the best answers they could.
Two days passed rather quickly while Nita grew into a beautiful young woman. The times she was a teenager were the worst. Between the zits (which Aisha said had to be from Gene) and the hormonal mood swings, it had been a rough ride. But by the end of it she had turned out very pretty.
Nita looked most like her mother, but she had her father's red hair and was a bit more muscular than Melfina. The hair grew long down her back, but (much to Suzuka's dismay) she informed hem that she planned to cut it short when she got out. While her outward appearance was like Melfina's her personality was a lot like Gene's. Apparently she thought he was cool.
With less than an hour to go, Jim and the others began setting up for the party. Everything seemed to be going right on schedule.
"Jim, you asked me to inform you when the people watching the ship moved. They are moving in this direction." Gilliam said.
Jim cursed and sat down, accessing the security cameras. Most of the people were walking in some kind of obvious pattern. But the person in the cloak walked along casually. Jim still couldn't make out a face, but the figure appeared to be a woman. "Are you two sure you can handle this bunch? They look really well trained."
Aisha sniffed. "Oh come on Jim. You don't think these guys have any chance against me or Suzu, do you?"
Ten minutes later.
Jim was tied back to back with Aisha and Suzuka. He tapped his fingers and looked up at Gilliam. "What I don't understand is why you let them in."
"She is a listed member of the crew." Gilliam responded.
"Who is?" Suzuka asked.
The woman in the cloak stepped forward and removed her hood. "I am."
They all stared at her in shock. "Melfina?" The woman who stood before them looked exactly like Melfina, except for the self assured sneer she wore. If the real Melfina hadn't been in the large tube they would have thought it was her, just for a moment.
The fake Melfina laughed. "Yes and no. My name is Melfina, but I am not the one you know. I am..."
"My mother." Melfina said from the tube. "I remember you being there for just a minute. Then you left."
The sneer melted from the other woman's face. She looked truly sad at that moment. "As soon as you were born they made sure I wasn't needed and dragged me out." She looked down at Gene on the floor, then up at his image on the screen. "I didn't have someone like him to help. When they were done they packed away in that damn case and shoved into the back of their vault. Even Melfina's father Lealong left me there."
Gene smirked. "Why am I not surprised?"
Aisha frowned. "If the pirates had you, why did they want Melfina?"
"Because she wasn't born, she was assembled. She's the original bioandroid so while she feels, thinks, and looks just like our Melfina; she's missing the one thing that let Mel into the ley line." Jim said.
"She wasn't born so she doesn't have a soul that lives after death..." Suzuka whispered.
On the screen Gene frowned. "So what does she want with us?"
The other Melfina smiled. "Me? I don't want anything. But the people who found me in the vault and pay my salary now... they want her." She pointed at Nita.
In the tube Melfina's arms circled her daughter's waist. "You can't have her."
Suzuka frowned. "So who is it you work for?"
"She works for the military. It's the only real answer. The well trained men. Plus they're the only others with any knowledge of the XGP or the pirate's vault." Gene said.
"Well I don't care what she says, I'm not going anywhere with anyone." Nita said.
"Ley line project command: It was you who broke my mason plate." One of the men said. All three bioandroids closed their eyes and leaned forward while the computer image went blank.
"Jim, I thought you deprogrammed Melfina!" Aisha said.
Jim sighed. "I did, but I haven't done Nita yet and they're linked."
Suzuka frowned. "Why do you want Nita? Why not Melfina or the one you have already?"
Then man smiled and hefted their android over his shoulders. "It's because they can't produce others." He motioned his men to get Nita. "Wait!"
His men looked at him confused and saw Gene standing next to him with his caster pointed at the man's head. "You know what I love about you guys?" He slammed the butt of his gun on the man's head, knocking him unconscious. "You always talk to much. Now the rest of you, step away from my family."
They hesitated for a moment, and then looked at his eyes. They quickly moved back towards the door. "Tell your superiors that they'll have to stick with what they have." He rolled the man and Melfina's mother over to them. They gathered her up and left the ship.
Gene went over to untie the others. "I'm out for three days and everything falls apart."
Aisha snorted. "Like we wouldn't have broken free. We were just waiting for the right time, right Suzu?"
"Uh... right." Suzuka said.
Jim smiled and scratched under Aisha's chin causing her to purr. "We believe you Aisha. So Gene, should I wake them up now?"
"Yeah, just give me a minute to lay down first. I still have a bump on my head from the last time." He eased into the captain's seat.
"Breakfast is served with a silver spoon." Jim said.
Nita and Melfina's eyes opened and the computer came on, showing Gene with them in cyberspace. "Where did everybody go?" They both asked.
An hour later the party was under way and they were all introducing Nita to the world. First they ate a lot of food, and then they gave her their presents. She loved each of them and gave everyone a hug.
After she was dressed, Melfina took her hand. "Nita, there is one last thing I really want to show you."
Nita smiled and followed her. "What is it Mommy?"
Melfina smiled and covered her eyes while the others watched in interest. "Well when I was activated, we had to flee into space almost immediately and it was night time. I want you to see something I didn't get to for a long time." She led Nita out the door and to the edge of the elevator frame.
As the others crowded behind them, Melfina tilted Nita's head up and removed her hand, giving her daughter her first look at the sky.
Nita stared in utter fascination. She knew what the sky was of course, but she'd never seen it. "It's so big... can we go there?"
Gene smiled and put a hand on her shoulder. "That's why we have a spaceship Nita."
"The most advanced ship in the galaxy." Gilliam chimed in.
Nita smiled as she stood in her parent's arms, staring up at the sky. For someone who had only lived three days she had an interesting life. And it could only get better from here.
TO BE CONTINUED...
Hey, it's me Nita. In the next story I have to find a place to fit in. For a while I'm going to have a little trouble, but don't worry. I think I can talk my dad into letting me be a mechanic for the space ship. Could even build my own seat. Unfortunately I seem to have inherited my dad's fear of space flight. Plus having the military mad at us in addition to the military being mad at us now isn't helping any. And who is this McDougal guy following us around trying to convince me to run away with him? I can't believe mom almost bought this geek's lines.
All this and more in the next Clayton Overstreet fan fic "Family business."
Author's note
Well what did you think? I came up with my own character. Everyone keeps emailing me about Melfina's kid. Now she's here. Sorry for you Aisha and Suzuka fans. Don't worry; next time around they'll have more lines. In the mean time, tell me what you think at clayton_n@hotmail.com