Double Helix

chapter fourteen
~ Canaan ~

The subterranean room that housed part of the plant chamber was always kept too dark for Conrad's tastes. It took his eyes a moment to adjust to the darkness before he could make out Knives' nude silhouette floating upside down in the plant chamber, his back facing the glass. Conrad knew the free-born plant was completely aware of his presence, but he made no move to acknowledge the doctor's arrival. Clearing his throat, the human decided to get right to the point.

"The EEG we ran on the subject yielded nothing unusual."

Silence hung in the air for long moments as the plant slowly righted himself. "Buuut..."

"But, her blood work came back with some interesting results."

The plant still did not look at him. Conrad stepped further into the room. "There were dynamicytes present."

A twitch and the doctor knew he had the plant's full attention.

"Dynamicytes?" Knives asked, his distorted voice echoing oddly from within the plant core. "From the seedling?"

"No, their circulatory systems don't intermingle. The placenta prevents that. Nutrients go in, waste comes out," Conrad offered a ghost of a smile. "No, I believe that the dynamicytes are hers."

The plant finally turned around. He faced the doctor with a rare expression of perplexity as he slowly made his way toward the edge of the core. Peering at the doctor intently, he asked, "How is that possible? She lacks the glands needed to create dynamicytes."

"I don't know, but I think you're right. Somehow, the seedling is changing her. I can't explain how," the doctor grinned and shook his head, "but she's really putting a spin on all my theories."

Knives' expression became introspective as he considered this new discovery. The existence of dynamicytes in her blood was disturbing, but also miraculous. She truly was the perfect surrogate. The irony would have been amusing had his thoughts not centered on an unspoken hope that he might be able to use her again. There might be the possibility of more... a dynasty... an entire generation of free-born planets...

Knives grinned, ice-blue eyes dancing happily. "There's more, isn't there? Tell me."

"She won't cooperate," the doctor said. "I'm sure she is experiencing other symptoms, but she won't tell us. There are several tests I would like to run but can't because they may harm the fetus."

In an instant, Knives' expression turned dark. "You will not do to her what you parasites did to Tessla. No tests."

"Even blood and urine samples?" Conrad asked, already knowing what the plant meant.

"Don't be obtuse," he growled. "She probably hates you as much as I do and rightly so. You're a traitor to your species and a butcher to mine."

"I'm a scientist."

"I'm not interested in hearing your rationalizations, Conrad. Continue."

"I was told that the morning sickness has passed," he said as he glanced over his notes. The annoyed expression he wore remained firmly in place as he spoke, "Zazie also made it a point to tell me that Meryl is growing increasingly clumsy and often complains about her skin feeling strange... 'sensitive.' There is nothing odd about that. Many women experience similar symptoms during pregnancy, but I asked Meryl about it anyway. She refused to elaborate other than to confirm that she no longer woke up in the middle of the night due to her nausea and her appetite has increased. Again, normal."

"Did you tell her about the dynamicytes you found in her blood sample?"

"No," Conrad said. "I thought it would upset her."

"Wise decision," Knives pushed himself away from the edge of the core. "I'll tell her myself when the time comes."

• • •

A shadow suddenly loomed over Meryl as she raised her fork heavy with food to her waiting lips. Her hand paused in midair for a second before finishing its journey to her mouth. She was not about to let him spoil her lunch.

"I have a gift for you, sister."

The muscles in Meryl's back suddenly tightened, "I don't want it."

Legato smirked behind her, his strangely gentle voice filling the room once more as Zazie placed his gift, a well-worn book, on the table near her plate. "It will help you to understand your place. You only need to read it, understanding will come."

Meryl slammed her fork down on the table when she read the text on the cover of the book.

"You let your pride keep you from seeing the truth," he continued.

"What pride?" Meryl asked as she turned in her chair to face Legato. The shock of seeing him in a coffin had long passed. Now he was just another freak who wanted something from her. "I'm treated like livestock here. Poked and prodded like a damn lab rat. How can I possibly have any pride left to keep me from seeing this so-called truth? That the plants are gods?"

"Yes, pride. I don't think you understand exactly what pride is. You had enough pride to try to kill the blessing within you. You had enough pride to tear open your arm. You have enough pride to resist His will even now." Legato paused as he studied her face. "I am trying to help you."

Voice doubtful, she leveled him with a glare. "Really? Help me how?"

"Help you to see the truth," he said. "Help you to survive."

Meryl snorted, "Ah! I see. Now you're trying to help me. Well, why don't you confirm this for me then, just so we're both clear on exactly what the truth is, okay?"

Legato inclined his head toward her, waiting.

"The truth is I'm nothing more than an incubator and once I'm done being an incubator, I'm going to die." Expression tight with anger, her hand moved over the roundness of her belly. The gesture seemed almost protective. "Isn't that right?"

A small smile filtered across Legato's face as he peered down at his cousin, "I know you don't fear death, but I also know you have a strong will to live. You are a fighter. That is where most of your pride takes root, but you need to choose your fights wisely. You can live if you want to. You can live as long as you are useful to Him."

Meryl snorted and picked up her fork. She stabbed at her food angrily. "Why do you care about my usefulness to him?"

"I care about the plants."

"Of course," she mumbled dryly.

"I resisted my call to service in the beginning, too though my reasons were much different than yours."

The woman chewed her food, pointedly ignoring the psychic cripple behind her.

"You don't have to die," he continued. "You're already showing signs of a miracle. You can—"

"Did Knives send you here to pester me?" Meryl asked hotly.

She felt him smile behind her. "No."

Fatigue welled up inside her as she swallowed the last of her meal. Fears about the future plagued her enough. She didn't need to discuss the subject with someone as bizarre as Legato. "Could you just... leave me alone?" she asked quietly, "Please?"

Silence fell between them as Meryl waited. She didn't turn to look at him, opting instead to stare at the crumbs on her plate, fingers pulling at the hem of her shirt absently.

"You don't have to die, Meryl," he said, his voice almost kind. "We will speak of this another time."

• • •

"He's got to be here."

"But... how can you be so sure?"

Vash pressed his lips together and pointed at the map again, "No one lives in this area of the southern crash zone. It's a graveyard, right? The nearest water source is over..." the plant paused and squinted at the map, "387 iles away. Anything of any worth has already been salvaged from the zone so there is no reason for any human to live there. It's thought to be the most barren part of this barren planet."

Milly bit her lip. "But if we're wrong..."

He sighed and glanced at her, causing her to pause in mid sentence. "Look, I know my brother and I know he's there."

Milly nodded as she lowered her eyes to study the map once more. The blond gunman spent the last few weeks brooding over various items, clues and references that she would have considered unimportant to their search. To Vash there was no detail too minute to ignore.

She knew he was the only one who would be able to locate Meryl, but she couldn't help but to feel curious about what was thinking. He had become something of a recluse, only speaking when he had to and not volunteering any information unless asked a direct question. Even then, he had a tendency to be vague.

Milly couldn't 'read' him as well as she used to and was often surprised by his attitude and mood swings. The only thing consistent about Vash these last few months was his unyielding obsession with finding Knives and Meryl. However, she felt there was more to his need to find them than just going to the aid of a dear friend in need.

Something else was driving him. Something she couldn't put her finger on yet.

Vash wasn't the type of person who wanted to be alone all the time. His sense of guilt and duty was what drove him to behave like a loner, but that wasn't a reflection of his true nature. Therefore, when the plant started to lock himself away and shut people out, Milly couldn't help but worry.

Prompted by her concerns, she finally asked him to tell her what was going on. When he looked at her with suspicion-filled eyes, she couldn't help but to feel a little offended. His eyes softened after she made a remark about trust and friendship, but he remained guarded.

Even so, he still pulled her aside and told her about a place his brother called, 'Canaan.'

Shortly thereafter, the two of them went to the nearest general store and purchased the best map they could find. Since then, the two of them spent several minutes discussing Vash's theory about where his brother could be located.

Milly was having a difficult time keeping up with the outlaw. He seemed certain about where his twin was. He acted as though the revelation came on high and was therefore, glaringly obvious. Milly trusted Vash. She trusted his judgment, but it still worried her that they didn't have any definite proof.

It was just a hunch. A very well thought-out hunch, but still a hunch.

Milly worried that if they went to this place and found it to be empty they would have wasted even more time trying to find Meryl. Time they did not have.

But, Vash seemed so confident, so certain. It was moments like those that Milly longed for Meryl's presence. She could always deal with stuff like this so much easier than her. She was so intelligent. So logical. Milly just wasn't gifted like that. She could certainly understand people much better than her partner could, and normally that was enough, but Vash was acting differently now... she just couldn't read him like she once could. Still, she trusted Vash. She didn't have a reason not to.

"Alright." Milly conceded, "Are we going to bring Chapel?"

Vash straightened and crossed his arms over his chest, "Yes, definitely. I don't expect much out of him but I want to keep an eye on him. I know he's not telling us everything."

Milly's eyes drifted down to study the map once more as she idly scratched her mending shoulder. Contemplative silence hung between them for several moment, each individual trying hard not to let their worst fears get the best of them.

Meryl had been gone for five months. Most of that time had been spent either trying to avoid the sudden increase of bounty hunters on Vash's trail or trying to figure their way out of one dead end after another. With each passing day, their optimism deflated little by little. Maintaining a hopeful attitude was becoming increasingly difficult. Everything Milly knew about Knives' plans created a knot in her belly that whispered her worst fears: the situation is too far-gone... you're already too late...

Vash's quiet voice broke the silence, interrupting Milly's morose thoughts, "I don't think you should arm yourself with just your stun gun, Milly. You still can't quite aim it properly."

She glanced over at him in surprise, "My aim is improving everyday."

"I know," he paused, looking at her closely, "You can shoot a revolver, can't you? Or better yet, a semi-automatic pistol?"

"I haven't shot a gun with live rounds in years," Milly admitted somewhat sheepishly. "My father and a couple of my older brothers collect guns and we all learned how to shoot at a pretty young age. I needed to have something for defense for this line of work, but I just never liked to carry a loaded weapon so my father bought me my first stun gun."

She smiled a bit at the memory, "Gee, that was almost three... no, four years ago."

The plant sighed, "But you're comfortable using one, right?"

"Oh yes! I'm out of practice, but I was a decent shot."

"Good," Vash said solemnly, "I think it would be best if you were armed with a lethal weapon. I know someone who can probably sell us a quality gun for a good price. Besides, they're going to expect you to come with just your stun gun and I think it would be good to surprise them a bit, don't you?"

• • •

A thump against her belly woke Meryl out of a dead sleep. Her first groggy thoughts were of Zazie. Some of the insects that composed the hive were probably crawling all over Meryl as she slept.

It wouldn't be the first time such a thing has happened since Zazie had been assigned to watch over her. Many a night found Meryl roused to wakefulness due to the feeling of creepy-crawlies moving across her flesh. Each time Zazie would claim it to be an accident.

Meryl was finally getting to the point where the sensation was more bothersome than disturbing. After living with Zazie for so many weeks, the little human had no real choice but to adjust to the alien nature of her assigned roommate lest she really start to go mad.

Zazie looked, felt, sounded and even smelled like any other human. If you were to touch her skin it felt as real and normal as the skin of any other human. Even so, Zazie was not human. Meryl doubted they even had a name for what Zazie was.

She seemed to be a hive of a multitude of insects.

As such, some insects were active at night, some during the day. Therefore, Zazie never really slept as a human did. She simply didn't need to. Some part of her strange body was always active and that activity often meant there were insects crawling around the room at any given time during the day or night.

Meryl rolled over on her side, facing away from where Zazie lay on the cot beside her bed. Exhaling deeply, she closed her eyes and tried to force herself to relax. Muscles grew slack as sleep began to overtake her once more when she felt the same strange fluttering again, this time more pronounced. Violet eyes opened to darkness as Meryl waited for the sensation to repeat itself, already knowing she did not feel an insect. A moment later, the movement occurred again. Biting her lip, she rested her hand against her swollen belly. Logic instantly told her what the sensation was, but she still hoped she had somehow imagined it.

With a sudden jolt, Meryl snapped her hand away from her belly. The sensation of the seedling within her sent her heart racing. Tears instantly stung at her eyes as she curled up into a tight ball. Since hearing it's heartbeat she was having an increasingly difficult time rationalizing that the thing inside of her was a monster. On more than one occasion, she caught herself referring to it as a "baby" in her thoughts regardless of how much she tried not to.

"Meryl," Zazie said softly.

The little human squeezed her eyes shut as she quickly tried to compose herself.

"Meryl, what are you doing?"

The distrust in Zazie's voice was evident and Meryl quickly rolled over to face her. "Nothing. I just have some... indigestion I think. I don't think dinner really agreed with me tonight."

The hive looked at her oddly, her eyes shining in the darkness. "Are you okay? Do you need the doctor or something?"

"N-no... I'm fine. It's starting to go away now I think."

Zazie tilted her head to one side as she peered at the petite human for several seconds. Lips pressed together thoughtfully, she assessed her.

"Really," Meryl insisted. "I'm fine."

The hive clenched her jaw and then nodded before settling herself back down onto her cot. "Go back to sleep then."

"I will," Meryl whispered as she gently stroked her belly, unconsciously encouraging the movement within.

AN: Dynamicytes are something I made up. It will be explained in a later chapter... ~_^