Earth's Children
Summary: The parents of Harper tell their tale of life and love in Post-Commonwealth Earth.
Author: Luna Sealeaf
Rating: PG-13 (for the ending)
Disclaimer: Again, I do not own any Andromeda characters, so don't sue me, etc. Nor do I own the lyrics of the songs both parents sing. I'm not making any profit, and since my total life savings accumulates to a whopping 8 bucks, there's really no point in suing me.
Archive: It didn't occur to me before, but if anyone wants to they can. I dunno where this fic would fit in though...
Summertime
an' de livin' is easy
fish are jumpin'
an' de cotton is high
oh yo' daddy's rich
an' yo ma's good lookin'
so hush little baby don' you cry
One of dese mornins
you goin' to rise up singin'
den you'll spread yo' wings
an' you'll take the sky
But till that mornin'
deres a nothin' can harm you
with daddy an' mommy standin' by
-Ancient Earth Lyrics (Porgy and Bess, George Gershwin..)
Episode Twelve
"Aunt Rose! Aunt Rose, look, I lost another one!"
The smiling little girl, red curls flying everywhere, practically threw herself onto my lap, hand held palm up so I could inspect the precious item she held. Feigning deep reverence and astonishment, I shook my head slowly.
"My, Siobhan, you sure are growing up fast." Laughing, I hugged her tightly until she squirmed away from my grasp.
"I'm going to go show Aunt Orla!" She exclaimed, and then raced up the stairs. With a yawn, I stood up from my chair and stretched, letting the clothing I'd been mending fall to the floor. Over the past few weeks it had been a constant race between Declan and Siobhan to see who lost their baby teeth the fastest. So far Siobhan was ahead by one, counting the tooth she'd just shown me. Feeling a tug on my knee length skirt (I wore black leggings underneath them) I looked down to smile at my four year old son.
"Momma, I lost a tooth too. See?" I knelt down in front of him, smiling fondly at his earnest blue gaze.
"Let's see then love," I held out my hand. Proudly Seamus deposited a handful of small pebbles into my hand. Holding his hand in my own for a moment, stroking it lovingly, I replied gently,
"These are lovely dear, but they're not teeth." His crestfallen face was almost immediately replaced by a small grin and a sparkle in his eye.
"I know Momma, I was only pretending." It had become his favorite line lately.
I laughed to myself as he raced off, planning to go show 'Cousin Brendan' his 'teeth'.
"Declan? Where are you? It's your turn!" Orla came into the room, carrying a sleepy Caitlin on one hip. Not being able to resist the sight of my little blonde haired, brown eyed niece, especially when she was so adorable, I went to take her into my own arms.
"How'd she like her bath?" I asked, grinning. Orla returned my smile though her eyes were shadowed from lack of sleep. In the past two years we'd managed to settle into our new life fairly easily, but when Brendan and Seamus had come down with bad fevers, Seamus recovered from his by now; there had been little sleep for anyone.
"I think she screamed herself to exhaustion," She said, giving a small laugh and patting her daughter on the back.
"Anyway, I better go get Declan before the water's cold." I nodded and wandered around the small room quietly, letting Caitlin fall asleep on my shoulder. I'd surprised myself by wanting another baby these past two years. After Seamus'...interesting...birth, I had been sure that I would never want another child. Seeing Orla and Devin with both Caitlin and Brendan had changed my mind though. Besides, I wanted Seamus to have a sibling. Still, as Evan had pointed out when I confessed my wish to him, there was only so much he and I could do.
Looking out the small window by the door, I found myself smiling. This past year had treated us well. Food was as abundant as it could get, we'd been healthy, and there hadn't even been a whisper of any Magog attacks. If I just closed my eyes to the rest of the city, especially on a day like this, when the sun was shining unusually fiercely and the sky was a true blue, I could imagine that life was good. That Earth wasn't a slave planet. If I just ignored the screams in the night, from people attacking other people or from Nietzscheans having fun, if I just pretended that Devin and Evan were out wandering the streets rather than in the mines, if I just imagined that Liam and Lughna had moved away, instead of having their ashes scattered to the winds...
If, if, if. 'If' was a dangerous thing, and I refused to allow myself to walk down that path. Opening my eyes, I left the grimy window to lay Caitlin down for a nap.
"Daddy! Uncle Devin!" Hearing the door open, Seamus leaped down the stairs, leaving me to wince as I pictured what would happen should he trip, and flung himself into his father's outstretched arms. With a sound loud enough to wake the dead Siobhan and Declan came down after him, with cries of, "Uncle Evan! Uncle Devin!" The three got hugs from both dust-covered men before I shooed them away to give them my own hugs. Every day they came back safe and whole was a blessing. When we'd first moved here neither had reported for work. Carla and several other people had assured us that no one would notice; the Ubers were too busy. But just after Caitlin was born three Nietzschean guards had arrived at our house demanding to see them. Terrified that they would be killed, I tried to tell them to hide, but Evan refused. After roughing them up a bit, the Ubers ordered them to report to their jobs everyday from then on.
"Hello sis," Devin greeted me, smiling. I kissed his cheek, ignoring how bad he and my husband smelled.
"Devin," Orla followed down the stairs at a much more sedate pace than her nephews and niece. The two embraced while I went over to hug Evan, giving him a quick peck on the cheek as he smiled tiredly at me.
"How's Brendan and Caitlin?" Devin asked anxiously.
"Brendan's doing much better. Give him a day or two and he'll be running around with the rest of these little savages," Orla said with a smile. Of all the children, only Caitlin looked on the rest of us with silence. Although a few months past her second year, Caitlin had not uttered a sound except to cry. Orla and Devin were terribly worried about her, but we couldn't be sure whether she was deaf or just mute. Her mind, however, was intact, to our relief; she had learned to shake her head 'yes' and 'no' when asked a question she understood. Devin had talked about searching for someone who knew sign language, but there wasn't much chance of that happening. Although the ancient system of communication had survived, despite the fact that for hundreds of years deafness and blindness could both be cured by a simple operation, nowadays those with such disabilities rarely made it to old age which made it difficult to find people who still knew the silent language.
"We had baths today," Declan announced solemnly, breaking my train of thoughts.
"Really? That sounds like fun," Evan picked up Seamus with one arm and Declan with the other before finding the nearest chair and sitting down heavily.
"A bath sounds wonderful," Devin said wistfully. I nodded in sympathy with his request, running a hand through his spiked, dark hair.
"Sorry Devin, there's only enough water for a quick clean." He nodded before going to find his own chair, Caitlin going over to climb into his lap. Orla and I exchanged worried glances. We had both foregone bathing ourselves in hopes that there'd be enough for the boys; but we'd had to boil and re-boil the water so many times in order to get the children clean that there was only a bucketful left. Needless to say that we only went through this ordeal about twice a year. Clean water was harder and more expensive to come by then Evan's beer.
I volunteered to fix dinner, and Orla gave me a grateful smile. Going upstairs, she returned with Brendan and went to the last chair, making room for Siobhan to sit in her lap as well. The three adults talked, the children occasionally offering comments. I studied them all for a minute. When had we gotten so old? I it really be true?...twenty-eight! My mother had been only four years older than I was now when she was killed. If I died when I was only thirty-two, then Seamus would just be eight years old. The thought filled me with uneasiness as I watched his golden hair, the same color as his father's, and heard his childish laugh.
'Stop it!' I ordered myself. 'You simply have to make sure that nothing happens to you until he's old enough to take care of himself'. This thought wasn't comforting; to a mother, no child is ever old enough to take care of themselves.
Berating myself for such dark thoughts, I went into the kitchen and began putting a meal together. The conversation and laughter we shared over the dinner was enough to push all sad thoughts from my mind; for the time being, at least.
Later that night, lying in bed with Evan's arms around me and listening to the breathing of both him and Seamus, who was sleeping on a little bed at the other end of the room, I sighed with contentment. So many people were worse off than me and my family. Carla Bennet, for example. I couldn't imagine losing an eight year old daughter to such brutality. And if I did, at least I would have the rest of my family. As Carla had said herself, she had no one. No one except her 'boys'. Silently, eyes closed tightly, I begged to Fate, the Universe, God, whatever you wished to call it, that my family be spared further pain; surely we'd given up enough to last a life time. Like so many prayers; mine was not answered.
The next few weeks passed happily. Then a month, and then two. To my joyous surprise, I found myself to be pregnant, or at least I believed I was. When enough time had passed for me to be sure, I told Evan first, and then the others, with happiness glowing on my face. Pregnant or no, there was work to be done and other children to be taken care of and I had to continue to do my part.
On Saturdays, as usual, we attended the little gala underneath the streets of Boston. The music would rejuvenate us for another long, hard week of life, and we all waited with anticipation for the next Saturday. A few times I went out to visit friends; usually either Carla or Theresa and Vince. Of course, 'friend' was a relative term in the camp. You might share an evening of fun or swapping sad stories with a person. You may even see them everyday for months, exchange names, and meet the others' family, but if you met that same person late at night in a dark street and were alone, they could easily mug you without a second glance or regret. While I Trusted Carla –and even Theresa and Vince to some extent- I knew this truth as every other person living in Boston did.
Orla and I also took the children to and from school. This used to be Devin and Evan's job, but now they had to work in the mines all day. Sometimes Carla would accompany us; she had taken a deep liking to Siobhan, and although I worried about her using my niece as a replacement for her own daughter, I also knew that both children were as safe, or safer, with Carla than with Orla and I.
Then, one morning, our lives were changed horribly and forever. Though painful, I will be true to my memory and that of my family's, and do my best to describe what happened as fully as I can.
It started one night when first Caitlin, and then Brendan, awoke with high fevers. Although worried, this wasn't unusual, and the illness didn't seem life-threatening. For a few days Seamus seemed fine, so we assumed that neither he nor the twins had caught it.
I helped Orla take care of the children while our husbands went to work. I didn't have time to take the others to school, I was too busy, and so when Carla stopped by to help out, I was relieved beyond words. Two days after Caitlin and Brendan had fallen ill; Carla offered to help take the other three children to school. Orla assured me that she'd be fine with her two kids for a little while, so I agreed. Carla took Siobhan and Declan's hands as they skipped playfully beside her. I took hold of Seamus' hand, and we went through the streets with little care or worries to speak of. By now I was almost five months through my term, but luckily my stomach hadn't filled out enough to make it difficult to walk.
"Momma, I don't feel good," Seamus said in a quiet voice.
"Do you feel well enough to go to school?" I asked, leaning down to put a hand to his forehead. Carla paused, both children still holding her hands. Seamus shook his head tearfully and I sighed as I realized he had a fever. Murmuring comforting words, I picked him up and hugged him.
"You better take him back; he doesn't look too good." Carla said, looking at my son with sympathy.
"Will you be alright with those two?" I nodded to my niece and nephew.
"We'll be fine," Carla said softly, smiling down at the little girl. They both smiled up at her, and I gave a nod of consent.
"You two be good for Carla, ok? I'll see you later." I bent down to kiss their heads quickly, thanked Carla, and turned back towards home. Seamus whimpered softly and laid his head against my shoulder. Although he was heavy, I didn't mind carrying him. Lately he'd become too independent to allow himself to be cuddled by his mother very often. Only on occasions like this, when he wanted comforting, did he allow me to hold him. Together we passed other people in the streets in an effort to return home.
Then it happened.
The sky above us darkened suddenly. At first I assumed that a sky had passed over the sun, but when several people around me began to scream, my blood froze and I knew what it was. Breath catching in my throat, I looked up. Magog swarm ships. Again. But I didn't have time to dwell on the horror that was the Magog. Clutching Seamus tightly, I started to run, as did everyone else around us. At first I headed for home, but quickly I realized that it would take too long. We needed to find somewhere to hide now. Seamus started to cry, but I didn't have time to calm him down. I had to think. Where could I hide? There was an old saying that Magog disliked water. I don't know if that is true or not, but at the time it simply popped into my head. The cave!
Months ago, Evan and I had wandered around the ocean shore. There we learned of a small cave beneath the rocks. It was closer than home, so I changed directions and continued to run. (How I could manage to move so quickly in my condition, and carrying a child, is a testament to my fear. I can only attribute my sudden strength to the adrenaline that filled me)
All around me the city was erupting into chaos. Screams filled my ears; explosions made me flinch as the swarm ships blew buildings away. Then the scenery changed abruptly; I slipped on a few loose rocks and slid to the sandy beach. I didn't have time to check and see if Seamus had been hurt from the fall. Back on my feet in an instant, I reached the cave in record time. To my surprise, it was crowded. Thankfully people made room for me and I was soon jostled to the back of the cave, pushed up against the rock wall. The water reached my knees, making it difficult to keep my footing. Seamus clung to me tightly, making no noise.
Except for muffled crying around me and the gentle sound of water slapping against rock, there was no sound. My arms and back began to ache from holding Seamus. As the day wore on the water rose to my waist, and another fear began to fill my mind: had I escaped the Magog only to drown in a watery grave? The water didn't rise any higher though, and soon the worst part was just the long, nearly unbearable, waiting and not knowing what was happening outside. I couldn't remain standing for long, and eventually, as the water returned to a lower level, I sat down, still holding my son tightly. I checked his fever; it was still high. He shivered in my grasp. As time wore on, my thoughts drifted to the others; were they ok? The mines were surrounded by Nietzschean guards, surely enough to fight off Magog. At least I hoped so. Perhaps Evan and my brother could hide in the tunnels. And Orla, Brendan, and Caitlin? Our house had a cellar, much like the ones we'd made back in Dunwich; usually we kept food down there in case thieves entered our home. It could be locked from both the inside and the outside; they would be safe.
That left Siobhan and Declan, left alone with Carla. Their circumstances depended on where they had been when the Magog had attacked. Still, I had confidence in Carla's streetwise abilities. It was more than likely that she knew several good hiding places. In any case, there was nothing I could do, so worrying was pointless.
At last someone (more or less) volunteered to leave the small cavern and see what was happening. We waited tensely as time passed and they didn't return. When they finally did come back, it was with a somber mood. Slowly word reached the back of the cave; there were still Magog wandering the streets, but they were few, and the Ubers had, once again, beaten the monsters back. For a moment there was silence as everyone breathed in relief. Then panic for loved ones and possessions returned, and I was nearly crushed as people rushed out to find their homes. I considered staying there for awhile longer, just to be safe, but the thought of being alone in that cold and dark water-filled cavern was too much. I went out into the faint light along with the others.
My legs were stiff and tired from standing for so long. An entire day had passed; it was morning and the air was cold against our drenched skin and clothing. Seamus was shivering hard in my arms and I knew that I had to get him dry, warm, and fed, if I wanted our survival to mean anything.
Thousands of thoughts, some important, most meaningless, went through my mind as I walked back to our house. I had to make Seamus walk; my arms couldn't carry him any longer, and I needed a free hand to pull out the long knife I kept in my boot, gripping it tightly in my right hand, the other holding onto Seamus' just as hard. Every few steps I stopped and held a hand to my stomach; there had been a dull ache all through our time in the cave, but as every other part of my body hurt as well, I'd ignored it. Silently I promised both Seamus and the child I now carried that I would keep them safe, no matter what I had to do to keep that promise.
I almost cried with happiness and relief when I found my home still standing and, for the most part, undamaged. A small corner in the back had been burned when nearby buildings caught fire. I wasn't complaining.
"Oh thank the gods!"
"Orla!" I yelled in happiness as she flung her arms around me. The door to the cellar was still opened, and I assumed that she had just deemed it safe to come back up.
"Are you alright?" We both asked at once, looking each other over. Orla placed a hand on my stomach, but I smiled in an effort to reassure her.
"Josephine I was so worried!" Orla hugged me again before turning to Seamus.
"Oh...thank you, thank you..." She whispered as she picked up my son and hugged him, tears streaming down her face.
"Mommy?" Came a cry. A moment later Brendan climbed up out of the cellar; when he caught sight of me and Seamus, he ran over just as his mother had done.
"Aunt Rose! Shay!" He hugged my legs and I knelt to kiss him all over his face. Orla went to get Caitlin as well, and we spent a few moments just being glad that we were still alive. I asked her if she knew anything about the others, but she was just as clueless as I.
"I should go out and look for them," I said at last, my agitation increasing. Orla put a hand on my arm to stop me from standing.
"Josephine, you can't; not in your condition. And I can't leave you alone with the children either. We'll have to wait until Evan and Devin get back." She said, unusually firm. I didn't like it, but I accepted her decision. She was right; for the moment, there was little we could do. Lighting some candles and gathering blankets, I took Seamus into my lap, Brendan and Caitlin climbed into Orla's, and we waited for our husbands to return. Several people, some who we knew, others who were strangers, stopped by to beg for food or provisions, or news of their families. We gave them what we could; asking about our own lost ones each time. No one knew anything.
Evening came; the children, exhausted by the ordeal, fell asleep, and my sister-in-law and I waited in silence. Then, like music to our ears, the door opened and the two dirt-covered figures of the boys, men, I should say, came into the house.
Needless to say that with our cries of happiness, the children soon awoke.
"You're alive!" I cried, as the four of us clung to each other.
"The kids?" Evan asked tersely. He looked over my shoulder and I felt him relax slightly when he saw Seamus. After the children had greeted their fathers, and vice versa, I explained what had happened to Siobhan and Declan, both alone with Carla. Despite how tired they were neither Evan nor my brother hesitated.
"You two stay here, we'll go find them." Evan said quietly. His eyes held mine for a moment, and then he nodded to Devin and the two of them left once more. Caitlin started to cry as her father left, and while Orla comforted her I distracted Brendan and Seamus with stories. More hours passed; Orla tried to get me to lie down and rest, but I refused. Instead we put the children to bed for the night and again waited in silence. It was near midnight, I think, when they finally returned.
When we heard their footsteps Orla rushed to the door to let them in while I gathered blankets and my few remaining herbal medicines, just in case. I heard Orla gasp and I turned around, afraid of what I would mind. My fears were justified, for in Devin and Evan's arms were the stiff, prone figures of my niece and nephew.
"They can't be..." Orla bit her lip, too overcome to continue.
"They're alive," Devin said quietly, going to lay Declan down on a blanket. Evan followed behind him with Siobhan. Relieved at their words, I knelt awkwardly to look at their wounds. Both were covered in blood; a chunk of hair was gone from Declan's head and blood covered the spot where it had been. Both of their clothing was torn to rags, and there were large, bloody bite marks on their necks...
"NO! Oh no..." My hand flew to my mouth as I staggered to my feet. Evan came behind me, gripping my shoulders.
"What's wrong?" Orla asked anxiously. I could almost feel the blood drain from my face as I turned, shaking so hard that I couldn't feel my hands.
"They've been infested." I struggled to get each word out.
"What can we do?" Orla had taken my place by the twins, taking a rag and trying to clean off the blood that had dried on their face.
"I think they've been paralyzed..." Devin said quietly. I looked at Evan, but he too seemed at a loss. I looked back down at the two children, nearly eight years old, and their eyes the only part of them that, for the moment, could move. They were wide with fear.
"I don't know...I just...don't...know..." I felt myself slipping away, and the last image I recall is that of the still bodies lying on the floor.
"Josephine, Josephine, wake up." A hand was running through my hair in an effort to soothe me. Although I wanted to continue sleeping, my eyes disobeyed me and opened. Above me, the face of Evan smiled and kissed me.
"How are you feeling?" He asked. I could sense that he was anxious, though he kept his voice calm.
"Tired..." I started to say, my throat dry. "I –I hurt." I said suddenly as pain gripped me.
"What happened?" Memories flooded through my mind, but it was too much and I couldn't make sense of them.
"You, you lost the baby love. Orla said she thinks it was the trauma of it all, but..."
"I miscarried?" His words didn't make much sense to me, but he nodded in response to my question. So that explained the pain I felt in every part of my body.
"Declan! Siobhan, where are they?" I struggled to sit up, and Evan helped to me to stand.
"You have to be careful Josephine; otherwise I won't let you out of this bed." Evan said sternly. But he helped me to go down the stairs, one at a time, talking as he did.
"They can move now, but we still don't know what to do. We've asked everyone I know, but the only advice they offered was...unacceptable." His voice turned hard and bitter at the end.
"What happened to Carla?" I asked quietly.
"She was ripped to pieces, near where we found the twins." He said tersely. I nodded, not commenting except to ask,
"What do you mean, 'unacceptable'?"
"They said the only thing to do is to kill them, to keep the Magog from hatching. Kill them? My own flesh and blood? Rose, they're...they're Liam's...I can't.." His voice caught and I said, softly,
"I know."
We made it to the bottom of the stairs, and the twins were laying where I had last seen them, though this time their faces turned to look at me. Siobhan offered a brave smile and tried to say my name. I went over to their sides, feeling terrible that I hadn't been there for them when they needed me. All of us were at our wits end. Days passed, broken only by the sound of the screams of Declan and Siobhan. Seamus had tried to go sit by them, but when they screamed, he had run to my arms crying. After that, he and Caitlin stayed upstairs. None of us knew what to do. But the decision was soon made for us. Every night one of us stayed downstairs with them; it was my turn, and as soon as I'd drifted to sleep, I awoke to Declan's painful scream, and Siobhan's frightened one.
Rushing to their side, I turned on a few lights, trying to see what was wrong. Declan's stomach was moving more than it had in the past few days. Suddenly I knew what was happening. It was like a nightmare: I tried to scream for help, but my voice had left me. Stumbling to the wall, I knocked into a table and something clattered to the floor. Declan's cries for help increased, as did Siobhan's. Looking down, I saw what had dropped to the floor. My knife. It was fate, if there is such a thing. I knelt down, feeling as though I were still in a dream, taking the knife into my hands.
"Forgive me." I said, finally finding my breath. The words were said to everyone; Liam, Lughna, the two children whose lives I was about to take. No, that wasn't fair; their lives had already been taken, I was only ending the suffering they had left. I walked over to their side, clutched them to me for a moment, and then cut Declan's throat. Siobhan stopped screaming, she was so shocked. I held her a moment longer then did the same. Blood was everywhere; on me, on the floor. I considered taking my own life then and there, just to watch my blood mingle with theirs. I lifted the blade to my own throat, but before I could my hand was knocked away roughly. The others, hearing their screams, had rushed downstairs, but luckily not until after the terrible deed had been done.
"I'm so sorry," I cried, looking up wildly into the faces surrounding me. No one said anything, but Evan lifted me into his arms and carried me upstairs to my bed, leaving Devin and Orla to take care of the twins. He told me to try and sleep, but I couldn't. Instead I cried that entire, long night, into his shoulder as he held me, and I felt his tears on me; the blood of Liam's children staining both of us.
Author's Note:
Thanks so much for the reviews and the support (both for the story and for real life) I can't give you guys enough thanks; this story means a lot to me and I'm glad others are reading and liking it as well. I hope the next episode will be happier, but I can't make any promises...
-Luna Sealeaf