Corso paced, his mind spinning. How did their lives suddenly start to spin out of control, into something he couldn't even think about. They'd come to Carrick Station, only a little concerned about the strong contractions Miriah had experienced periodically for the past couple of days. They'd laughed at her trying to reach the controls of the Stardancer around her belly. She'd kissed him and gone back to the lounge to stretch out, leaving the ship to his command. The trip had been uneventful, but the walk from the hangar to the med station had taken a little longer, Mir not moving too fast these days. When they'd arrived, the tech took her for a scan, and that's when things went crazy. According to the scan, Miriah's body had reached its maximum for containing their son, which would have been okay except his lungs weren't quite ready. They could artificially mature them, but it would take time. Corso paced, trying to reason it out in his mind. Miriah, his heart, was now unconscious, in a chemically induced sleep, in order that every ounce of strength she possessed would be used for getting Devin ready to be born. His son was already weighing in at almost ten pounds, and Miriah's small frame was stretched to its absolute limit, the extra load on her heart also an issue. He ran both his hands over his face, not sure what to do next, his confusion evident in his inability to respond to Akaavi's question over the holo.
"Corso!" he heard her shout, and tried to focus on the holo image, "What is going on there? Where's Miriah?"
"In a chemical stasis, Devin's too big and there's no more room, and her heart…" he couldn't speak around the catch in his throat. Akaavi's eyes softened, seeing the distress that was written all over him.
"She is strong, Corso, a warrior. Do not let the fear push that out of your thoughts. I will catch the shuttle there this afternoon." She signed off, picking up Lucky, the lynx kitten, to take to the foreman for care while she was gone.
Corso saw the tech motion to him to follow, and he shoved the holo in a pocket and jogged behind the him. As they got nearer, he almost turned and ran away. Miriah was under a strange purple light, her beautiful face perfect but motionless, the light making her look….no! don't think that! The machines monitoring both their bodies blinked and numbers endlessly changed. He was trying to figure out what each one was for when he realized the tech was talking to him.
"Wha-what? I'm sorry, I didn't.." He looked sheepishly at the young man, who had a look of resigned boredom on his face.
"Her cardiac output and rate as well as her neural patterns are all over the place. The doctor has suggested that you stay near her and try to calm her, so that our therapies will have greater effect." Corso took a deep breath, almost afraid to touch anything, and moved closer to his wife and child. Her hand was warm, and when he bent to kiss her temple, he caught her usual scent, which calmed him somewhat. At his touch, a blinking number that had been red turned to green and steadied. "Oh, Miriah," he whispered, and the two other red numbers stopped blinking and one of them changed to green. He felt a couple of tears escape and trace down his face to fall in that ebony silk sheet of hair, and he gently laid his head beside hers, grasping her hand in his still. How did we get here, he wondered? How did it all go so wrong? He closed his eyes, preferring to think of her smile rather than see her so still. What could he possibly say to her that might help? He just started speaking, in a low, soothing voice, about the first time he saw her.
"I was just a kid, doing what I had to do to survive, sometimes well and sometimes just scraping by. I had no idea when I saw that freighter skimming down, low over the trees and through the tracer fire, that my life would totally change that day. I'll always see you in my mind, striding down that ramp with your eyes wary and your hair tumbled, staring at Skavak with that smirk I love so much. You took him down a notch, for sure. He'd never met a woman who was immune to him before. I honestly felt my own heart thud. You had my complete and total attention, I couldn't look away if I'd wanted to. I would have done anything, anything to leave with you. I'd like to think I'd have found a way, even if we hadn't been looking for your ship and my blaster." He paused, noting that all the numbers were now green and steady, and that there were several people now just wandering through the area. Maybe they were there before, but he was so focused on his wife he didn't see them. He did see Devin moving, slightly, and it gave him hope. He stroked Miriah's forehead softly, his head still very close to hers, and picked up his story again.
"When we got to Coruscant and I figured out that the tough smuggler gave credits to hungry kids, baby, it was over for me. I was yours, any way you'd have me. I couldn't admit it to you, or even really, to me then, but it was true. I'd have killed Darmas then if he'd touched you, wanted to just for looking you. I guess I did put you on a pedestal, just like you said, but Mir, I couldn't help it. You were, and still are, the center of my universe, you always will be." He took a shaky breath, and slowly let it out. "So here we are, both of us in over our heads, again. I see our son moving, taking everything he needs and leaving you only what you must have, and I'm torn. I love you both, and I want you both to be okay, but I want this to be over. I wonder if you'll be content with only one child? I can't see you do this again, no matter how much we wanted more." He looked at one of the monitors that had started blinking again. She can hear me, he wondered? "I know we didn't plan things this way, but we'll deal with it. I'm here, love, I'm here with you." The monitor numbers steadied again, and he sighed in relief.
Corso looked up as the doctor approached. "She's stabilized, probably because you were able to calm her. We're going to sedate her more now, so that she can rest. We'll come and get you when she wakes." He patted the younger man's shoulder. "Get some rest, Dad, she's going to need you in the next stage"
"What is the next stage? What do we do now?" Corso asked the robed doctor.
"We wait, as long as her body can stand, and monitor everything. She'll stay in this state until the baby's lungs are mature. If all is well when that happens, we'll decide whether to allow the pregnancy to progress to term or deliver. While she's sedated, her body can recuperate as well." He turned to look at his patient. "Just look how well her heart is doing now," he said, pointing at the first monitor. Corso closed his eyes, thinking of the weeks ahead. He'd need to let the family know, but wasn't sure if he could maintain his composure long enough to make anyone understand. It was the first time since he'd met Miriah that he felt alone, truly alone.
Corso wandered the concourse of Carrick Station in a daze, not really seeing or hearing the crowds and the noise, the vendors haggling with customers, the troopers stomping off to the drop areas. He was startled by a hand grabbing his upper arm, and was hauled around to face Akaavi, whose own worry was now showing.
"Corso Riggs, you will not give up! The Captain needs your strength! Now, where have they taken her and our Devin?" She was ready for battle, even though the foe was not really a foe. Her clan, her family, was being threatened and she would respond, as any Mandalorian would. He had to admire her loyalty, and was truly glad she was here. He told her what he knew, and she absorbed it, nodding. " I will notify the sisters, Magdalane will need to know. Maura is still on Dantooine, I believe." She turned and left him staring, knowing she would be a better candidate to relay the details than he would. He still had trouble wrapping his head around the fact that his Miriah was lying unconscious and he wasn't by her side. He felt exhausted with the effort of not breaking down, and just stood in place, the crowds of people flowing around him.
Corso wandered back to the area outside the med station, where he knew his beloved was resting, and tried to settle his mind. He finally sat, his nervous energy evaporated, holding his head in both hands. He focused his thoughts on sending Miriah all his love, and even though he had no force sensitivity at all, Miriah had told him before she could feel his emotions a little. You have to know, he thought to her, how much I love you, have always loved you. He did this for the better part of an hour, and with his eyes closed, felt a warmth wash over him. She knew.