CH27
"How are we doing?" Johanna steps up behind her husband and places her hands on his shoulders.
"Not much has changed. We're still a little behind and far off to one side. Our storm that is helping to hide us is still going the same direction the Hunter ship is going. Without it they are likely to have seen us and blown us to hell and gone by now." Jim answers her question.
"How is our blood supply?" Jim asks with his throat burning so badly it felt like it was on fire.
"We've got a little under 2 months left and your next bag is in about half an hour." Johanna taps his shoulders. It got Jim to sigh, he could almost taste it already. He was long since ready to make the pain go away.
"Aren't those two in the same boat as us?" Johanna knew they ate food, but that had to be replenished too.
"Yes." Jim responds, knowing that if they didn't find a system either, they were just as dead in about the same amount of time as they were. "Their shielding is better than I gave it credit. It has been pushing storms out of the way without too much trouble. However most if not all of them have been the smaller variety."
Jim was glad they didn't have to find out if a proton bomb would take out their ship, since it might not work completely.
"How are we on fuel?" Johanna asks, since it was their only other non-renewable item.
"It'll last only a little longer than the blood sounds like." Jim was forced to answer.
Great, just great. Johanna was thinking. While they are dying from lack of blood they'll also be freezing to death. It did not sound appealing. "Is following them our only option?" Johanna wanted to find the girls or at least a system to get more blood and fuel.
"I don't know of any other options. At least being this far off to one side allows us to see off to one side. If they find something we should know about it, and if we find something way at the edge of our scanners but out of theirs, ..." Jim trailed off. It allowed them to have a wide angle of scanning for something. A better chance of finding something.
Johanna kissed his head. "Trade you places while you go get a blood bag." Johanna tells him.
"Thanks." Jim gets up and kisses his wife and heads for the bank of refrigerators that only one of them had anything in now.
Jim was soon back standing behind his wife looking at the screens as he sucked the blood out of the bag, and then eventually ripped it open to lick every last drop out of it before putting it in the trash.
"TRASH!" Jim ran back to his seat where Johanna was sitting looking at the screens. "Up honey, I have an idea."
Jim sat in his seat and started looking at his screens, and was soon looking at the recordings of all his scans. "What are you doing?" Johanna was watching but not really following what her husband is doing.
"We put our empty blood bags in the trash and every once in a while eject our trash out into space." Jim tells her.
It got Johanna to slap her hands over her mouth. The girls would have done the same. "Anything?" Johanna prayed there was something out there. Jim however was shaking his head, however he had months worth of scans to go over while keeping his eyes on the live scans.
Johanna was pacing back and fourth behind her husband. This had to work, it had to.
"THERE!" Jim pointed to one of his screens. "It's a small amount of trash still roughly bound together, about a month after the girls would have entered the area."
Johanna was practically jumping out of her skin and started kissing the back of her husband's head.
It was sometime later when Jim spoke up again. "Another one." Jim pointed.
Johanna was ready to burst. They were right behind the girls and they finally had concrete evidence that they were on the right track.
Jim however never saw another one. "What does that mean?" Johanna asks him now deflated.
"Could be anything. There is no wreckage of a ship so the girls haven't had their ship destroyed on them because of the storms. … Those same storms could have dispersed their trash to the point that I can't find them. … The girls may have stopped discharging their trash. … Or, ..." Jim trails off.
"OR?" Johanna was dying here.
"Or we are going the wrong way after the girls made a course change for whatever reason." Jim is forced to offer another option.
Johanna placed her head down on her husband's shoulder. "Please!" Johanna whispered out, her heart couldn't take much more of this. Getting Jim to place a hand on her head. He could only agree.
Josh was lying next to Tom after the two of them had just finished making love to each other. Tom was asleep, however Josh couldn't. He was worried too much. He was also the worrier of the two of them.
They had less than two months worth of food and they were going to have to be careful how they used the fuel they had left or it would run out first. Plus they were still chasing a ghost of fuel residue as burned off by a ship.
They were only hoping it was the Beckett's. Still it was a ship which hopefully meant there was a system near for it to go to.
They were already down to eating rations for food and water (Think MRE's). They couldn't even do laundry or water the plants anymore. The plants were starting to look ill already.
Josh got up and headed for the bridge to look at the screens. They needed to find something soon. Josh didn't even bother to get dressed, his clothes had all been worn anyway and needed to be cleaned so he might as well go without.
He was still looking at the screens hours later when Tom showed up behind him and ran his hands down his chest from behind kissing the back of his head. "Anything?" Tom asked him.
"Nothing new on the Beckett's or any system. Our fuel is running low too, plus we really need to stop soon to do maintenance on the shield emitters. They are way past their usual maintenance or replacement time." Josh points out.
"In the middle of the tormented zone with storms all around us, not likely to happen unless one of them fails." Tom counters.
"We don't and one of them fails and we'll have even bigger trouble." Josh points out.
"And changing an emitter means a spacewalk. Are you volunteering?" Tom asks knowing the answer. Listening to Josh remain silent. "Did you get any sleep?" Watching Josh shake his head no.
"You better go sleep. Anything happens soon you need to be rested, now go." Tom pokes him in the back.
It was enough to get Josh up and kiss Tom as he headed for his room to get some sleep.
Tom took the chair feeling it already warmed from Josh's heat. Getting him to remember the heat the two of them had not long ago created together. At least they had each other.
Kate sat up quickly. "What's interesting?" Kate was getting scared. What had the EMH found? Found with Alexis and found with her. "What have you found?" Kate's voice was cracking, her fear for Alexis was getting to her.
"The child, …." Kate interrupts him.
"Her name is Alexis, mine is Kate." Kate explains. Alexis wasn't just some child, she was a person and she was her's.
"My apologies. Alexis's scans indicate that she has a fraction of vampire DNA in her system. To have this amount of non-human DNA would indicate that one of her parents would have vampire DNA in their system when she was conceived. Also these genes appear to be dormant and may or may not remain that way.
Scans would suggest that it was the father, however I cannot rule out that it was the mother. However it was certainly not both." The EMH explains.
Kate is shocked silent and turns to look at Alexis. "Alexis is part vampire?" Kate asks still looking at a silent Alexis.
"She has only a fraction of vampire DNA, it is not enough to alter her human system in any way. She will not develop any vampire traits more than likely. However when she reaches puberty her vampire DNA may manifest itself in some small way. It is more likely that nothing will happen. It is presently inactive" The EMH explains.
"I'm a vampire?" Alexis had heard but not really understood.
It got Kate off the bed and into Kate's arms. "No honey, you are human. You're just not 100% pure human. I don't know what that means as you grow up, but likely nothing will happen." Kate tells her kissing her head.
"But I want to be just like you mom. … PLEASE?" Alexis loved Kate, couldn't she be more like her mom?
"I can extract some of your vampire DNA and attach it to hers so that when Alexis reaches puberty she will exhibit more vampire traits. However she will never be a full vampire." The EMH points out.
"However such a procedure will need to be delayed several months." The EMH adds.
"Delayed, as in a medical reason for a delay?" Kate keeps her arms around Alexis but looks at the EMH. "Why, what's wrong with me?"
"There is nothing wrong with you. You and your child are perfectly healthy." The EMH tells her.
That got Kate to start breathing again. Alexis was perfectly healthy. "If Alexis is perfectly healthy, why is the delay necessary?" Not that Kate was going to have her DNA introduced into Alexis without Rick's approval, no matter how much Alexis begged her.
"Alexis is healthy, although she is beginning to develop a cavity in one of her teeth, which is not uncommon and can be easily repaired. Also you and your child are perfectly healthy, even if it is extremely early." The EMH tells her.
"Alexis is, …. my child. …. MY CHILD! AS IN I'M PREGNANT?" Kate's mouth falls to the floor and she stops breathing again.
"You are presently about 2 weeks pregnant. Initial scans suggests that the child is part vampire and part human. Also initial scans suggests that it shares DNA with Alexis. Which suggests that the father of your child is also the father of Alexis.
Plus since Alexis has a fraction of vampire DNA in her it is likely that it is the father that gave her this DNA." The EMH explains.
Kate's mouth is still on the floor and her mind is still having trouble wrapping her mind around her being pregnant. "Your pregnant mom?" Alexis had no trouble grasping the concept, since she was smiling wide. Her dream of having a baby sister or baby brother was coming true.
That got Kate to snap her head around to look at Alexis. "Rick has vampire DNA?" Kate whispers out.
"If this Rick is the father of Alexis and your child, then yes, he has a fraction of vampire DNA in his system. Likely it is small enough that it does not manifest itself and unless he has had his DNA examined he would not be aware of it. Most likely his vampire DNA is as inactive as Alexis's." The EMH explains.
Kate sits back on the heels of her feet while still holding onto Alexis. "I'm pregnant." Kate was slowly wrapping her mind around this. Alexis however was still grinning wide.
"What does being half vampire and half human mean for the baby?" Kate asks. If she really was pregnant she didn't want to lose the baby.
"Difficult to tell at this time. Your pregnancy is still too early. It will likely take until the third trimester to answer that question with any confidence. … Since you are 100% vampire I suggest you start drinking blood more often. Your baby, even a half human baby will require you to be drinking more often to keep the baby healthy. You will also need to stay away from biting strange people who have not had their blood examined.
Drugs or alcohol in their blood stream could be detrimental to the baby since their blood becomes a part of your system." The EMH advises.
That was easy since Kate was only drinking from blood bags. She wasn't even biting Rick anymore since they had more than enough blood bags.
"I'm pregnant." Kate stared out into nowhere, still shocked.
Alexis however launched herself at Kate and hugged her. "I love you mom."
"Alexis is your child?" The EMH asks, a little confused since he knew Alexis looked to be about 6 while Kate looked to be about 19. It was not entirely beyond the realm of possibility, just not likely.
"It's a long story, but I'm not her biological mother." Kate explains. The EMH remains silent since the answer did not involve any medical information.
Kate looked at Alexis. "You do not tell your father honey. Not until I have a chance to explain it to him. … Promise me." Kate looks directly into Alexis's eyes. "You need to promise me honey, please." Kate begged her with her eyes.
"O-kay." Alexis really did want to tell her dad.
"Promise?" Kate tries again, watching Alexis draw a cross on her chest and then zip her lips closed.
Kate takes Alexis into her arms and holds her tight. "You cannot tell your father honey. Not until I tell him, this is very important." Kate whispers into her ear.
"Does this mean you can make me a vampire like you?" Alexis having a new prayer.
"Not until Kate has delivered the baby." The EMH answers her question for Kate. "We cannot risk causing any damage to the unborn child while it is developing inside Kate. However the sooner the vampire DNA is introduced into your system it will give your body time to adapt to the new DNA material and utilize this vampire DNA when you reach puberty."
"I'm pregnant." Kate stated it believing it this time. "Two weeks?" Kate turns her head to look at the EMH.
"Close to two weeks to the day." The EMH confirms.
Kate knew her and Rick had been making love to each other for roughly two months now. They hadn't used any protection even though Rick had offered. Kate was so sure that she couldn't get pregnant since Rick was human.
Except now it looked likely that Rick wasn't 100% human. Kate suddenly sat up straight, even though she still had Alexis in her arms. Did this help explain why Rick and even Alexis to a lesser extent smelled so good?
Rick was a hybrid human/vampire, even if the vampire part of him was only a fraction. Maybe that was why Kate loved the smell of Rick so much, he was special. He might be the only hybrid on the planet.
He did say he didn't know who his father was.
"I'm only 2 weeks pregnant, can you not remove my DNA now while it is still early and attach it to Alexis's?" Kate needed options.
The EMH was silent for a time while its program used the computer to run some simulations. "So long as we avoid your uterus wall and only take the required DNA from say your stomach area, it is likely the baby will not be affected at this early stage." The EMH answers her question.
"And you can do this procedure here, with this equipment?" It was all Kate had, even her parents ship wasn't going to be any better. And both ships were already years ahead of anything on Earth. Lanie had been moaning constantly about how far behind the times this planet was.
"Yes, the entire process will take approximately an hour." The EMH answers her question.
"Can you also assist Lanie in removing a bullet lodged against Rick's spinal column?" Kate needed Rick healthy and not looking at being rendered paralyzed.
"I will need to place Rick under the scanner and have time to analyze the findings, however it is likely that it could be accomplished." The EMH answers.
Kate had a lot to think about and needed time to think about all this. "We need to go home." Kate tells Alexis. "We'll be back, EMH off." Kate calls out and watches the EMH vanish in an instant.
Kate took Alexis with her back to the bridge where she started shutting the systems back down again, putting the ship to sleep again. "Come on honey, let's go home."
Kate had Alexis strapped in tight since the ride home was going to be bumpy. "The ride home is going to get scary so try and relax honey, but we'll be fine." Kate warns her before letting the shuttle plummet down to the planet like a meteor. Leveling out just above the water in the Atlantic Ocean and making her way towards Rick's building just like the other times.
They found the roof access door closed so Kate walked over to the edge of the building and picked Alexis up. "Remember honey, you can't talk to your father about anything we learned, not until I tell you that you can. … Promise?" It got Alexis to zip her mouth closed.
"That's my girl." Kate gave her head a quick kiss.
It also got Alexis to wrap her arms around Kate's neck. "I love you mom." And I'm going to be a vampire just like mom!
"I love you too Alexis. … Now we are going to step off the roof and land on the ground below. Everything will be fine." Kate warns her.
"Can I do this when I'm a vampire?" Alexis asks.
It initially scared Kate, they were going to have to have a long talk with Alexis about her getting some of Kate's vampire DNA, and why she wants it so bad and what it means for her.
"I don't know honey, and we need to talk about that long before we add my DNA to your system." Kate tries to get her less excited about this. Being more vampire was a big decision and once her DNA was bonded with Alexis, it couldn't be removed when or if Alexis didn't like the results.
"But I want to be like you mom! …. I love you." Alexis held Kate tighter and buried her face in Kate's neck.
It got Kate's heart to flip a few times and forced Kate to blink back the tears. Alexis had gotten so far into her heart it was difficult to deny Alexis anything.
Kate jostled Alexis. "Ready?" Kate looked around to make sure the area was empty. Getting a nod from Alexis, Kate stepped off the roof and dropped to the ground, bending her knees a little on impact.
"COOL!" Alexis could hardly wait until she could do that.
Kate carried Alexis all the way back into the loft, using her own key to get in. Kate let Alexis down who immediately went looking for her dad. "HEY DAD, we're back!"
Alexis found Rick in his study. "It was really cool dad!" Kate could hear Alexis from the front door where she was still standing.
Telling Alexis that she loved her and taken a lot of her courage. Telling Rick that she was pregnant was going to take even more. And then add to that, "Oh by the way, you and Alexis each have vampire DNA in your system". Kate ran her hands over her face.
"You better get here soon mom, I'm dying here." Kate exhaled her breath heavily.
Kate made her way into Rick's study and stood in the doorway listening to Alexis tell Rick all about her trip to Kate's ship.
Alexis tried to describe the bridge area, the kitchen, the sofa in front of a TV, space for 3 bunk beds, the one bathroom, and the area where the shuttle landed.
"What did the ship look like?" Rick asks Alexis after she slows down enough for Rick to get a word in.
"Oooops, I forgot to let her see." Kate answered his question, making a face of apology.
"So you enjoyed it?" Rick asks Alexis, kinda stating the obvious.
"It was cool dad!" Alexis was out in space and on a real space ship.
"It's your bedtime pumpkin, better go get ready and I'll be up to tuck you in." Rick sets Alexis down on the floor. "Now shoo." Rick gives her a little nudge to get Alexis going.
Rick saved his work and went upstairs with Kate right behind him. "Did you wash and brush your teeth?" Rick asks as he tucks Alexis into bed.
"Yes dad." Alexis asks a little exasperated that her dad would think she wouldn't.
"Good night pumpkin, I love you." Rick kisses her forehead.
"I love you too dad." Alexis meant it too. Rick had been there for her every time she needed him.
Rick stopped just outside the door, but could still see in. "Good night honey." Kate kissed her head too. "I love you too."
"Night m, … Kate, I love you too." Alexis almost broke her promise not to call Kate mom where her dad could hear. "Are you going to tell dad?" Alexis whispered softer.
"Yes honey, I promise to tell your dad. Now go to sleep." Kate stroked her hair and kissed her again.
Rick walked with Kate down the stairs. "Tell me what?" Rick asks.