"More than likely, they didn't want to shift less Kraven use them to lead to the others...", Peter sighed as he glanced to the triplets. "Doubtful that man sounded like the kind to simply let them go and apologize for capturing them if he knew the truth.".
The warrior chuckled, "Lord Rajah and Lady Biva said the very same thing.", and Gwen smiled fondly, "Like parents, like daughters.", before looking curiously, "And you said that one of your people, a young boy named Mensa was there too?".
The warrior nodded, "Yes… Mensa found his way outside of our protection and unfortunately, Kraven and his men discovered him and enslaved him. If not for him, Lord Rajah and Lady Biva might not have had such a miraculous escape.".
"I think I can speak for my entire family…", Jasmine said. "That we're all deeply in his debt as well as your kingdom's for what you have done for us.".
The warrior smiled warmly, "I appreciate that, and I am sure my king will be glad to hear of it, Your Highness…Or should I say Sultana Jasmine?".
Jasmine replied, "As I'm a guest of your king, please just call me Jasmine as we're not on a formal occasion.", and the warrior nodded respectfully. "And how did Mensa help our daughter and Rajah?", Jean asked curiously, looking at the female warrior.
"Mensa was able to first free them from their cell, well, actually, he managed to incapacitate the guards watching their captivity first, before freeing them. After that, he led them to where there was an escape. Apparently, he had tried it once before but didn't get very far thanks to the cruel irons they had on him.", the warrior explained.
Peter growled, hearing that, "Sounds all too familiar if anyone remembers their history…". His mind drifting back to school and the horrors and cruelty of slavery. Or that one time for a few weeks in class they watched Roots.
Every adult nodded somberly, frowning in agreement, feeling for Mensa, and the warrior was radioed by the pilot, "We're coming up on the Watson house, apparently, Ben and May Parker are there as well.".
Peter chuckled, "Uncle Ben and Aunt May is as close as they could be in this family, and that includes babysitting Mary Jane when Ellen and Phillip are in the mood for romantic dates and such, and of course, the triplets, and Rhodes…They love being the grandparents in a way that they spoil the kids.".
The warrior nodded in understanding, and Jean smiled, "I'll receive them to come in the ship in a couple minutes.", and the warrior radioed the pilot to lower the ship in the backyard.
"Hopefully that's not going to be too much of a shock to them.", Jasmine chuckled. "Well, we did at least give them a slight heads up about being picked up.", George said. "But they're probably just as happy as the rest of us that Rajah and Biva are alright and are safe…".
"Yes, thank goodness…", Jasmine took a deep breath. Obviously, she wouldn't be completely whole again until she was finally wrapping her arms in a tight hug around the two of them.
Peter squeezed her shoulder lovingly, and Jasmine gave him a grateful look as the ship landed in the backyard, and Jean came out as soon as the ramp lowered down, heading to the back door, and knocked on it.
Phillip opened it with a smile, "Good timing, Jean. Mary Jane is over the moon that Biva and Rajah are entirely safe.", and Jean chuckled, "I bet. You got your stuff ready?".
Phillip nodded, and Jean kissed Ellen's cheek as she came out with Mary Jane who giggled happily, "Jeannie!", and Jean grinned, "Hey, MJ, ready for the awesome ride?".
"Yes!", Mary Jane nodded, and Ben laughed, "She couldn't stop thinking what kind of ride it could be.", as he and May headed out, with Phillip carrying the luggage, and Jean helped him.
"Hopefully she doesn't get air sickness, this thing will be flying fairly fast.", Gwen said as the warrior smiled, "Hardly a worry, I promise you. These ships are designed to not give its crew or passengers that issue.", as the others came in.
"That's good.", Phillip said. "Mary Jane's never been in a plane or anything like that before and perhaps you know what it's like to have infants travel in a limited space.".
The warrior chuckled, "Indeed. Some of us warriors have children, and when it's...what do you call it, oh, yes, take your kid to work day, infants or older little ones usually have fun, and right now, the little darlings here are unscathed.", smiling at the toddlers wrestling or talking to each other as Mary Jane happily was let down by Ellen, greeting Ace who waved at her.
Ellen smiled, "That's good to know.", as they settled in, and the warrior radioed the pilot, and so the ramp came up, and the ship then hovered up above the neighborhood, then started to fly fairly smoothly and fast.
The family caught the others up, and May and Ben were shocked to find out that they are great-grandparents, amazed, and then Gwen asked, "Where did exactly Mensa get caught before by Kraven?", wanting to keep listening to the story.
"Just right outside of the shield that protects Wakanda. From what we've learned, and we've sent a small force to destroy Kraven's encampment, he somehow was only a few miles away from our borders.", the warrior said. "Certainly quite a surprise but I get the honest feeling that Kraven didn't realize how close he was to us himself.".
Peter whistled, "Damn...And where did they escape?", and the warrior replied, "Apparently, Kraven's personal hunting grounds...He outfitted the entire area with traps and tunnels, yet it was still the wild Savannah and such...He usually had many rich tyrants, businessmen, and all by the black market to hunt there...Many different animals he brought off the black market, from all over the world...The small force my king sent out is to ensure that the animals are either to recover for some time before being put back into the wild where they belong, or that if there are animals that are basically extinct, to have them in a safe sanctuary without fear of being hunted, and to breed at their own time without force.".
"Either way, Kraven and his group are done, one way or another.", Peter said. "If you've captured any of them...", Jean added. "They'll probably prefer imprisonment to you compared to anyone that might owe if there's an animal or something they needed to deliver... I get a feeling a few of those customers might not be so forgiving to things changing and would take out their aggression on his men.".
The warrior chuckled, "Oh, don't worry, we have been on the start to trace the black-market buyers for their crimes, with my king convincing the other governments to see to punish them for their wrongdoings, but as for Kraven being dead, yet with the reward on him, it's now into a personal account for the dear cubs within Lady Biva's womb, and the group, we're seeing into jail or very strict community service.".
Ben nodded, "That's very good. Your king sure works fast.", and the warrior smiled proudly, "Like the black panther, Wakanda strikes fast at the enemy.".
Jasmine exhaled deeply, "And what happened? The incident you were saying about?", biting her lip curiously yet worriedly.
The warrior paused, "It... it might be better to hear if from Lady Biva and Lord Rajah's own words...". That certainly caused a worried mood to come over the others; the warrior claimed they were alright... but why the need to hold her tongue?
Skyler then replied, "Is there a way to make a call then? I don't know about the rest of you, but I think Jasmine would be so relieved to hear Biva's voice while waiting all this way which would take how long?", looking at the warrior.
"At least 4 hours, way faster than a normal airplane or even the Red Eye Kraven used to transport Lady Biva and Lord Rajah.", the warrior replied.
"Four hours...", Jasmine sighed. "I... I can wait... but just barely.", she said as Peter rubbed her shoulders again, "Maybe it might be better to take a nap... make the trip quicker.".
The warrior replied, "Calls can be made very easily...I have a feeling that Lady Biva would want to hear your voice too, for the time being if Princess Shuri is right about the soon-to-be arrival.", and everybody was much more curious when they heard the last part.
Jasmine's eyes swelled up in tears, "Yes, please, I want to hear my baby girl.", and the warrior nodded, going to a console, grabbing a phone, calling Okoye, her captain, to pass on the call to the room Lady Biva is surely in by right now...
Meanwhile, Rajah and Biva are taking much deserved rest in a fancy bed, not caring about the early hour, and Rajah is smiling upon his beautiful love of his life, stroking her baby bump as Biva was exhausted, sleeping in his arms, barely bothered by the occasional contraction.
He himself earlier took some sleep while Biva ate much needed food, preparing for the birth of their cub who is a miracle...He figured that Bast is giving Biva much needed ease slowly into the labor process, which is really thankful as it was so much chaos earlier with the escape, the near-fatal incident, the life-saving healing of the heart-shaped herb, the acceleration of Biva's pregnancy, and having been brought to a safe, luxurious yet warm and comfortable bedroom.
He honestly felt much better now that they were safe from harm and especially with what Kraven had planned for them. Now they weren't going to lose their children, they would be safe in their arms and hopefully safe for many years to come. Sure, one can't truly predict what the future would hold for them and their children, but Rajah felt confident that they certainly would be well protected and grow up in a fairly safe and especially loving environment.
Of course, he was still amazed that their smallest one survived with Bast's help, and now is the very first one to be born, way ahead of its siblings...He is scared, yes, but with Biva by his side, and the family behind them, it feels like an amazing moment to feel happy, especially with his love of his life in his arms...
He has a feeling that he would have to wait for that day far in the future where he can learn to ravish and pleasure his mate the human way, but he's willing to be patient especially when he will be busy learning to be a parent with their cubs...Gods, three children, and one is soon to be born, being the technically only child in one litter while the next litter would be the twins...
Rajah is indeed very fortunate to have a beautiful woman, and he would always be thankful for everything that helped them through last night. He heard the phone quietly ringing, and he reached over, taking the phone.
He spoke quietly, "Hello?", and Okoye's voice replied, "Lord Rajah, pardon me for the early hour, but I have an insistent phone call for you and Lady Biva. Do you want for me to connect you to the call?".
"Let me guess... it's family?", Okoye gave a sound of affirmation as he took a deep breath, "Alright then. I'll take it... I probably should let her keep sleeping right now.". He looked to Biva.
Okoye's voice replied, "Yes, sir. A few moments, please.", and Rajah waited patiently with a loving smile at Biva, looking so serene and beautiful as she slept, gently getting off the bed to sit on the recliner nearby.
A few moments later, Jasmine's voice spoke, "H-hello?", and Rajah smiled radiantly as he answered, "Hey, Jasmine.", and Jasmine choked up, "Rajah! Thank Allah you're safe! Where's my baby girl?".
Rajah shushed her gently, "Breathe, Jasmine...Easy, we need to be quiet...Biva is sleeping...She had a big...how do I say this...a big change overnight.", and Jasmine asked, "Is she okay? Hold on, I'm putting you on speaker.".
"Wait, Jas-", Too late as she obviously put him on speaker. "Rajah, please... the warriors here have been a little tight lipped on what happened.", Jean's voice came through. "What exactly went on after you escaped?".
Rajah sighed deeply and looked at Biva with a weary, soft smile, "Biva is more than okay right now, but it was a different story right after we escaped...We ran for at least a couple of hours, with Mensa helping out finding landmarks to Wakanda, and we...we had a feeling that the guys of Kraven were upset, trying to track us down, but apparently, we were proven right as Kraven had microchipped us without our knowledge, along with tagging us...".
Peter's voice replied, "Shit...", and Rajah replied, "That about sums it up...We were near exhaustion, with our adrenaline keeping us going, and we thought we were home free when Mensa saw the final landmark, with Wakanda right up ahead...Then they came out of nowhere, those bastards on motorcycles and jeeps...".
"I think I can guess what happened...", Gwen admitted as Rajah sighed, "Yeah... one of them hit Biva... got her right where the cubs were. I think the rider obviously was trying to avoid her. Didn't want to damage 'their profits'... but they did...".
Gasps of horror and shock were heard when they heard Rajah's words, and Jasmine sobbed out loud, "My baby girl! She must have suffered!", wanting to appear out somehow and hold her daughter for experiencing a similar experience...Are her daughters cursed to be suffering like she once did?
"But she's alright now, right?", Peter asked as Rajah nodded, though obviously no one could see, "Thankfully, the Wakandans helped, but for a little while there... it looked like we were going to lose our smallest... the runt of the litter that... the child wasn't growing right...".
Jean's voice replied, "That's right, the little one was already stressed out by having a bad heart and having its mother stressed out, right?".
Rajah sighed, "Yes, that was what Princess Shuri found out...Allah, Biva was really distressed and distraught...She was in so much pain...The other two cubs were somehow out of the way when the jeep hit her in the side, and happily developing in their fetus stages, thankfully...but the little one, it hit the water bag, stressing its bad heart already, and it was barely holding on...The Wakandans rushed us to the hospital/science center...".
Gwen exhaled, "Dear god...", sounding shocked, and Rajah took a deep breath, "Princess Shuri and her people were really thinking urgently of what to do when King T'Challa came in, and was contacted by Wakanda's beloved goddess, Bast, and after the vision ended, T'Challa ordered Shuri to make a potion out of a special herb...Biva was so exhausted and hurting so much...I prayed so much as she did as I gave her the potion to drink...".
"A healing potion?", Jean asked, and Rajah spoke, "Yes, but it was more different compared to Skyler/Onyx's efforts to heal the dark magic from Jasmine...The potion healed Biva and our littlest one, yet it did far more...It gave the little one a new strength, a life of a strong heart and healthy disposition as it accelerated the cub's development...So, you can say that Biva is resting with a hearty and healthy baby bump, and the little one is no longer a runt, but waiting for the moment to be born any time now...", with a soft smile as he saw a sign of a kick within Biva's baby bump from his viewpoint.
"Wow...", Jasmine said. "Certainly sounds like a rush through the pregnancy... I really hope the other ones aren't going to feel the need to join that one when the time comes.".
"I think it'll be alright... but... I'm worried for Biva... Jasmine, she's... she's a bit worried about what we had done and all, listen, I understand if you're upset about the fact that you'll already be a grandmother.", Rajah responded.
Jasmine's voice replied, "Rajah, it wasn't your fault nor hers...You two got drugged by catnip in that grove in Central Park.", and Rajah widened his eyes, "What? Seriously?!", incidentally bringing his voice up, and he realized it too late as he looked over to see Biva instinctively reaching over to his empty side of the bed, and blurrily opening her eyes, "Rajah?", blinking before noticing him in the recliner seat...
"Rajah...It's too early to wake up...", Biva sighed sleepily, "Who are you talking to?", and Rajah gave a sheepish smile, "Our family...".
Her eyes widened. "Just relax, okay? No sudden movements.", Rajah told her. "I'll join you back in a few minutes, let me just finish speaking, okay?". She gave a small nod as his attention was back on the call. "Sorry, she just woke up...", he apologized.
Jasmine's voice replied, "Let me talk to her. I don't want her to wait and worry about myself being upset when I'm not.", and Rajah nodded softly as he gently got up, sitting back down on the bed, and smiled at Biva reassuringly, "She's not upset, I promise. She missed you.", before handing the phone to her.
Biva took it, "Mama?", and Jasmine sobbed happily, "Oh, Biva! We're all here, baby! I missed your voice so much!", choking up.
