34

"Look, I think you need to wind your neck in!" Rhys was arguing with his sister, her face one of anger as she stood toe to toe with him, demanding the return of HER child.

"Annie is mine, has been since you handed her to me in the birthing suite for fucksake!" he spat "Remember that? 'Oh, another girl. I don't want it' ya said. Remember? You called her it? Still so new she was covered in blood and gunk… you didn't even let her have the tit for the first feed!"

"But now you have Anwen, you don't need two and you know she's the only dark-haired girl I ever had!" she replied. "All these red headed buggers are like animals. She is so well behaved!"

"Look Sonya, I know you can't seem to make another little dark haired girl but the agreement was that I pay your overdue tickets you owed because your fuckface boyfriend at the time can't park his hover in the right zone and was about to go to jail, I get the next one you pop out. Come on, ya have four, this latest one you are working on is clearly gonna be a boy… you have to accept that Annie is mine. Besides, she and Anwen are inseparable!"

"But she's mine!"

"Stop it" Jack finally cut into the argument, totally done with it "The girls are with Rhys and Andy. From the moment she was born, she was Rhys' little princes. The fact another little girl has joined the family, it does not mean he has to kick your one out to make room. I suggest you check yourself girl!"

"Girl! I am thirty five years…"

"I am hundreds of years old!" Jack laughed "And I have so many generations of offspring around us right now… don't throw shit at me sweetie, it will bounce back on you! Besides. You are with child right now…. Twins isn't it, isn't your brood enough?"

"What?" she squawked, her horror clear as she placed her hands on her stomach and then with a cry of horror, she took off.

"Good one. Shit, is she?"

"Nah, but the fear will remind her why she doesn't want any more than one at a time" Jack winked, then his grin faded as he turned to look to his left "Ianto's coming back… with company."

"What kind?"

"I don't know."

.

.

Ianto was walking confidently towards the picnic area, the two huge monsters flanking him like overgrown dogs had everyone frozen in place, the horrific snarls on their faces making even the strongest men step back from the approaching team.

"Hi, Jack? This is Markel and his brother Filish. They want to know if they can have a sit down with our elders to work out some rules." Ianto called out like it was no big deal.

"Ah… well… hello?" Jack shrugged, stepping in to look up at the monsters. "We met one of you already but… he was not friendly."

SORRY ABOUT THAT HE WAS A JUVENILE IN HEAT

Jack winced at the voice in his head boomed like thunder, those around him also wincing… well… those mutants with empathic and telepathic abilities.

"It seems that there has been a miscommunication from the start. The first colonists did not become these creatures, these creatures are indigenous to this region. The first colonists were eaten by those fuzzy fuckers" Ianto explained, the images from the monsters filling minds and some said 'ew' softly.

"Then… this secondary crew came in and decided to blame them, then because the number of those they saw were the same a the missing crew, they decided they WERE the missing crew. As they did not have telepathic ability, they could not communicate the real facts" Ianto motioned for them all to sit and now Jack was close to one without fear he saw that they were amiable creatures, and he now felt badly for the first impressions made.

"So… this is a fucked-up situation" Jack huffed folding his arms as he glared at Ianto to show that he would rather not be doing this.

Ianto pulled a face at him and then Jack could not help but give in, Ianto was right. They needed the facts. Once again, they were working with only half the information, and it was becoming a bit of a fucking joke. This planet was built on lie after lie.

And if this was true… a pact would mean no need for fear.

For fucksake!