Ryder dozed on the sofa in her quarters, willing the baby within her to stop kicking as she was probably one kick away from wetting herself. No one had told her that when she was heavily pregnant, she'd be playing Russian roulette with her own bladder. She still had two months to go and she was over being pregnant, she just wanted her body back.
"Pathfinder?" The sound of SAM's synthesised voice echoed throughout the cabin, making her groan into the sofa cushions.
"What is it, SAM?" She asked huffily.
"Evfra has sent an email requesting your presence on Aya."
She grunted, throwing a cushion in annoyance. "Does he say why?"
"No, he does not. Shall I tell Kallo to change course?"
"Yes, tell Cora that she's in charge. I need to nap and any one who interrupts gets thrown out of the airlock."
"Yes, Pathfinder?"
She sighed as SAM dimmed the lights, hoping to get some decent sleep. The baby became a lot more active in the last month and usually at night when she was trying sleep. It didn't help that Tann and Addison where consistently pissing her off with the constant summons, which she ignored. She knew that Tann would whine about losing a Pathfinder and Addison would moan about another mouth to feed. She was tempted to shut them both up permanently, she was the fucking Pathfinder, if she wanted to kill people then she would.
"Pathfinder?"
She growled, struggling to get herself off of the sofa. "What is it now?"
"Scott is calling. Shall I put him through to your omni-tool?"
"Yes." She flopped down on the bed, pushing a pillow under her bump. "What do you want, Scottie?"
"How are you feeling, sissy?"
"Yesterday, I sneezed and pissed myself." She said bluntly.
Scott let out involuntary snort, holding in his laughter so hard he was close to bursting. "I'm sorry, sis."
"I haven't slept properly in days because Aya keeps kicking my cervix. Hurts like fuck by the way."
"I know. Where are you off to?"
"To Aya, Evfra has summoned me. Shall we come get you so you can see Aya?"
"Hell yeah. Sick of this bloody place. I'm ready and willing, Pathfinder."
She groaned, laughing into a pillow. "You calling me that, sounds weird."
"Whatever, just pick me up so we can terrorise Evfra together."
"See ya soon, Scottie." She hung up, closing her omni tool. "SAM, tell Kallo we are heading to Meridian first."
"Yes, Pathfinder."
Sara had to laugh at Scott when they set foot on to Aya. He was a like kid in a sweet shop; so many places to explore and only one of him. She couldn't blame him though. He'd been stuck on the Hyperion, waiting to be cleared for duty, then the Archon got him, setting him even further back in his recovery. Plus, he had been so good to her since he found out about her pregnancy, so he deserved a little fun. They decided to head to the repository first so she could introduce him to Avela.
Avela greeted them warmly, always pleased to see her favourite human. "Ryder, pleasure to see you." The woman stepped back, casting her eye over Ryder. "You've changed."
Ryder rubbed her bump instinctively, smiling as she felt the movements of the growing child within. "I'm growing a new human."
Avela gasped, putting her hands on Ryder's bump. "Oh, feisty. Is it a boy or girl?"
"A girl. I'm hoping to call her Aya."
"Oh, cant think of someone more deserving." She looked to Scott, who was lost in some remnant tech. "And who is this handsome man?"
"Oh, this is my twin brother, Scott Ryder." She signalled to Scott to join them. "Scottie, this is Avela Kjar. Anything you want to know about the angara, she's the one to ask."
He kissed her hand, giving her a cheeky wink. "It's a pleasure."
She giggled as he let go of her hand, charmed by his handsome face. "Pleasure is all mine. Are you here to see, Evfra?"
"We are, but Scottie really wanted to explore Aya."
"I can show your brother around. You know how impatient Evfra gets."
"Works for me. SAM will let me know if you need me."
"Thank you, Avela." Ryder left them both as she began to tell Scott about their history. She was waddling through the markets when she got a sharp pain in her lower back. She winced, leaning against a wall. A hand grasp her lower arm, making her jump.
"Pathfinder, are you alright?" Asked Vehn Terev as he led her to one of the benches.
"I'm fine, Vehn. Pregnancy isn't very enjoyable at times."
"Have you long to go?" He handed her a drink, that one of the market stall owners had passed to him, as people started to gather.
"A couple of months now. Thank you." She took a sip of water, taking a shaky breath. Looking around, she realised that several angara had taken an interest, confused that the normally slender, fast moving human had changed shape and seemed uncomfortable in her movements.
"I guess no one has seen a pregnant human before."
"Our females don't change during pregnancy."
"Lucky. I cant even see my own feet when I stand up."
"Are you going to see, Evfra?"
"Yeah. Help me up." She struggled to her feet with his help, stretching out her back.
"I'll escort you." He offered her his arm, which she gratefully accepted as they walked slowly to the resistance headquarters.
Evfra paced HQ, much to the annoyance of the Moshae. She hated it when he paced, just endless walking back and forth beside his desk. Everyone knew that when paced, he was worried about something. She was annoyed by the pacing but understood why he was worried. They had received a report that Ryder and her unborn child were in danger from the Roekaar. It concerned them both greatly, knowing if something where to happen to Ryder or the child, then the alliance between them and the Initiative would irrevocably damaged. "Where is that woman?" Evfra grunted as he paced the floor quicker.
"She'll be here, Evfra." The Moshae soothed.
The door to his office opened and Ryder walked through it slowly, using Vehn for support. "What took you?" Evfra grunted.
"Well, in case you didn't notice." She pointed at her bump with both hands. "I'm carrying some extra cargo."
He glanced at her growing belly. "Humans are strange."
"Speak for yourself." She countered.
"Ryder!" The Moshae greeted, giving a quick hug. "How are you?"
"Fat, bored and hungry." She sat down with a blissful sigh, happy to be off of her feet. "Is there a reason I'm here, Evfra?"
"We have reports that the Roekaar are planning to kidnap your infant."
Ryder looked over to Akksul who brooding in a corner nearby. She couldn't help the sneer formed on her lips. "Well…if they come near me or my baby. I'll have all of them killed." She caught his eyes with a hard stare and refused to look away. "You want to tell your friends that, Akksul?"
The former Roekaar leader grunted his reply, before turning to Evfra. "You trust this alien, Evfra?"
Ryder saw red and struggled to her feet, storming to Akksul, quicker than she had been capable of lately. She squared up to him, keeping him pressed against the wall. "Firstly, I'm human, it's not that hard. Secondly, you're not one to be talking about trust, since you shot at one of your own. I could have easily have killed you in that cave, so don't make me regret it. Thirdly, if my baby comes to any harm, I will hurt you so bad, it'll make the kett seem like pacifists." She moved away, flashing a smile at the Moshae. "Pleasure to see you both. Now I must go lie down."
After she left, some of the other angara in the room started to quietly laugh. It was an amusing sight, watching a small, heavily pregnant human, pinning a much larger angara male against the wall with just her anger.
Ryder woke up in the darkness, gasping for breath and startled. She had another bad dream, this time it felt a little too real for her. As she got up from the bed, a sharp pain spread across her stomach, causing her to double over. She limped her way to the bathroom, desperately trying to stop herself from peeing everywhere, she didn't want to have to explain that again to the Hyperion maintenance teams. While on the toilet, the pain spread across her stomach again, making her cry out. "Shit, shit. SAM?" She called out, bracing herself on the sink, fearing she would fall of the toilet.
"Pathfinder. I have called Dr Carlyle. He is on his way."
"No, not him. Where is, Lexi?"
"She is still away with teams exploring Meridian."
"Shit." It was only when she looked down, she realised that spots of blood had stained her panties, making her panic more. "What is happening, SAM?"
"I am unsure. It would be wise to wait for Dr Carlyle."
Harry rushed as fast as he could to Ryder's quarters, fearing the worst. SAM hadnt told him much, but he knew she was in pain and scared. He made it in record time, rushing inside. "Sara?" He called out, moving to the bathroom. He saw her leaning over the toilet, retching and vomiting. "Sara, what's wrong?"
"I don't know, I woke up to pains in my stomach and bleeding. Now I keep being sick." She vomited again.
He put the back of his hand to her head to see if she had a fever. "Sara, you are burning up. I need to get you to the med bay." He helped her to her feet, before scooping her up in his arms. "Hold on, sweetheart. SAM, get me any doctor or nurse you can wake." They got to the med bay, to find a doctor and nurse still there. "Help me get her on the bed." He said to the nurse who sprung into action to help him.
Ryder opened her eyes, realising she was in the med bay. She tried to move, but her body just didn't have the strength. She managed to muster the strength to touch her stomach, almost crying in relief to feel her baby moving within her. A familiar voice called her name, a gentle hand stroking her head. "Scottie?"
"How are you feeling, sissy?"
"Like shit. The baby?"
"Baby is just fine. You gave us quite a scare, Sara." He frowned at her, his eyes filled with sadness.
"What happened?" She croaked out, her throat feeling dry.
"You went into premature labour." Harry started, taking a seat next to her. "Have you been overdoing it?"
"No, I don't think so. I haven't been going out in the field. The crew wont let me do anything remotely physical." She sat up, taking a drink that Scott gave her, taking several big gulps. "What about the fever and the vomiting?"
"It can happen in some women when they go into labour. Now I've stopped the labour, but I've had to put you on indefinite medical leave. You need to rest up, take it easy. Scott is going to make sure you do that."
"Yes, I will."
"You can go and I'll let you have access to my film library to make you behave." Harry stroked her bump gently, leaning down to kiss it. "Be a good girl for mama."
Ryder felt her flutter as he kissed her stomach. Maybe, she thought, there was hope. "Thanks, Harry."
"Call me, any time, if you need anything." When watched her leave with Scott, the tears flowed and his nerves were shot. He felt like the past was trying to relive itself, but he was determined that it wouldn't. The universe took his son, it wouldn't take his daughter too.