Nebula Book 1: His Breeder
23

Months multiplied. Terra started walking, running, talking, and Ran followed in her sister’s footsteps.

Three years later, and life at The Ruins was booming. Their population was immense, and their story reached every corner of the planet. New Terran women were found in the wilderness, but Vrox’s brothers still went out for long trips in search of the missing ones.

Using Xulor’s spaceship, Ezron made contact with a foreign planet. It took a lot of debating to get there. Some Ezronians didn’t want to risk communicating with outsiders. Ultimately, everyone voted on it, and the choice pointed to the stars.

No one truly healed from Ak’s passing, but they got better at talking about it. Sometimes, they shared stories over the campfire to honor his memory. Everyone knew that Nebula kept Ak’s journal, but no one commented on it.

“Mama.”

She gently placed the journal aside and smiled at her baby.

“Hi.”

Neil smiled toothlessly. He was eleven months and was already using small words. He was the cutest thing– with his dark skin, bold dimples and baby hair that she hoped would transform into an awesome afro.

“Want to come out of the crib?” she offered.

He sat back down and started to play with a toy. Nebula stroked his hair gently and then picked up the journal once more.

“You are reading Ak’s words again.”

She blinked. Hercu was standing at the entrance, his face blank.

“Huh?”

He pointed to the journal. “Akdronis’ words.”

The mere mention of his name made her stomach clench.

Yes, she still read the entries he wrote about her. They were beautiful, and they made her see him in a new light. They allowed her to create a connection with him even in his passing.

“Oh, um. Yes. Does this bother you?”

She doubted it would. Their relationship was as platonic as day one. The night of Neil’s procreation had been awkward, but it ended quickly, and they hadn’t had sex since. She didn’t regret that night, though. She thanked the skies every day for her baby boy.

“No, it does not.”

Hercu was a good male. He was a distant father, but she knew he had wounds he was trying to heal.

“We should discuss something,” he swallowed.

She smiled, although she already knew what was coming. She had seen his packed bags under his bed. They slept on different beds, but shared the same room.

“Is it about Neil?” she asked, reaching to stroke their son’s hair again.

“How did…”

“I see the way you look at him.”

He fell to his knees and palmed his face. If he could cry, he would be bawling. “I feel like a horrible male. I am so, so, sorry. But every time I look at him, I see my daughter and it hurts, Nebula. I fear I will never love him.”

She pursed her lips. None of this was news to her. He hardly ever touched Neil.

“I will love him enough for both of us. I won’t force you into anything.”

“You are not angry?”

“No, but I’m sad. I can’t be angry, because we agreed this would be a loveless arrangement from day one.”

“I am sorry,” he repeated. “I thought I could warm up to fatherhood again, but I am weak. I am messed up in my head. Niel and you deserve better than me.”

She turned her head, feeling her eyes swell with tears.

“I will always value our friendship. Thank you for the days of exploration and for making my days brighter. I will never forget you. Please forgive my weakness.”

“You won’t do that, right?” she asked, clenching her fists. “You won’t…” She couldn’t even say it. The topic of suicide tore a hole in her chest.

“No. I will only leave The Ruins. Do not worry. I am not considering dark thoughts.”

Silence took over.

“So this is it, then?”

“Yes. Please… please tell Neil I died in a hunting accident. Do not let him know that his father abandoned him.” She heard shuffling as he picked up his bags. “You will find happiness one day.”

She didn’t believe him.

The door shut behind him, and she shoved her face into her pillow. She turned away from Niel to hide her misery and rocked with violent sobs. She hated being alone. Hated seeing her friends glow with happiness while she could only see the ghost of a dead man.

She forgave Ak for his attempts against her, but she was still heartbroken that he didn’t let her have a final word. He should have come clean about his illness earlier, so she could say goodbye.

“Mama.”

She wiped her tears and took strong breaths. Then, she forced a smile onto her face.

“Hi, handsome. Want to give mama a hug?”

After making sure her face was clear of tears, she picked Neil up and carried him to the common room.

“Nebula!” Ran laughed.

“No, Ran! No running!” Vrox scolded the little one. Ran ignored him, as usual, and hugged Nebula’s legs.

“Hi princess. Do you want to play with Neil?”

Terra appeared by her side, and the twins played with the baby.

“You okay?” Kira frowned, noticing her bloodshot eyes.

Nebula only smiled.

“Mommy, look!”

The mothers sat down and gave their undivided attention to their yapping babies. Nebula’s fake smile became a real one, because she genuinely loved these people. She was going to be alright.

– • –

She spent the afternoons organizing the library with Kira. As they worked, Nebula shared her worries, and Kira reminded her a thousand times that she was priceless. She was infuriated with Hercu for abandoning his son, but Nebula managed to calm her down. She never loved Hercu, although they were good friends. She wished she could have done enough to make him move on from his painful past, but he chose his own path and she had to live with it.

Why waste energy hating him when she could use it to love Neil instead?

The books they organized had been salvaged from The Ruins. Most were damaged, so many pages were lost. The library was divided into two sections: post Vanishing and past it. The post section was full of the old books– the ones written by Ezronians. The others were written after the Vanishing.

Kira wrote about their history and had a few engineering books where she listed important equations and facts. Vrox wrote about medicinal plants, and Nebula wrote about geology, pregnancies, and childbearing. She found plenty of patterns, like the gestation periods of women being around six months.

Everyone wanted to prepare for the future, but didn’t want to forget their past.

“Kira, please get off that ladder,” Nebula begged. “If Vrox sees you, he won’t shut the fuck up.”

Kira waved her off. “We need to re-write this book. The ink is getting smudged all over the pages.”

“I can do it.”

“Thanks.”

“Sure. I’ll write the Ezronian translation, too. Just let me change Niel’s diaper first. Can you hold him for a sec?”

“Sure.”

Jaxxon– their guard, laughed from the corner of the room. He had been around for three years and was second only to Vrox in combat. He was mostly like Kyros since he spent the day in mischief.

“Who wrote this nonsense?” he asked, raising up a book.

“What does it say?” Kira asked.

“Buna rocks can only be found in oceans,” he read. “What fool would think this?”

Kira looked nervously at Nebula, who shifted Niel to her hip and glared. “This fool would.”

Jaxxon crossed his arms over his chest. “Well, fix it. This is incorrect.”

Kira looked between the giant and the fuming mother. “Guys, it’s just a rock.”

They glared at her as if she just disrespected the Fates.

“Sorry. I take it back, alright? Rocks are very important.”

Satisfied with that answer, the two continued to glare at each other. Niel pushed against her chest, wanting to be put down. Nebula complied and placed him on the floor.

“Buna rocks can only be found near volcanoes,” Jaxxon argued.

“Bullshit,” Nebula spat.

“It is my planet. I know it better.”

“I know you didn’t just pull that card on me. I have been studying Ezron for three years, dude.”

“Clearly not very well.”

She opened her mouth to fire up another line when she finally noticed that Niel had wobbled away. She looked at the baby who was now standing beside Jaxxon and reaching for his–

“Niel, no!”

The surprised baby fell just as he gripped onto Jaxxon’s loincloth. The thing fell apart, and both women were flashed by Jaxxon’s package.

Nebula spent the next two months avoiding the man like a Vanishing. She kept working on the library, and this particular week she worked abnormal amounts of time. She always did this when Ak’s death anniversary was coming up; always buried herself in work to avoid her sadness.

It was year number four. This time of year was always gut-wrenching for her. She was in denial for the first three years. Neil made her a little less miserable, but her anger and guilt were still there.

After his family paid their respect that morning, she went to visit the gravesite. Vrox guarded her, but kept his distance.

She put her book and pen aside, and kneeled down.

“Hi,” she began, eyes already drowning. “I’ve been doing okay. Niel is walking all over the place, driving me crazy, and…” she sighed. “We all miss you. I know I say this every single time I come here, but I wish we could have said goodbye. I wanted to tell you that I forgive you. You should have never taken that poison. You were wrong, you know? We still need you here. It doesn’t matter that your brothers are adults now. You were important.”

The bucket she brought to water his plants tipped over, but she could swear that her eyes were spilling much more water.

“You should have said goodbye,” she kept on rambling.

“Nebula. It is time to go,” Vrox said. “Come, let us get you some tea.”

“Why didn’t he say goodbye?” she sobbed.

Vrox sighed, feeling as destroyed as her by the loss although four years had gone by. He fell to his knees and pulled her in for a hug. “He lives on in our memories. He would be happy to know that you have moved on and had Neil, and he would be proud to see all the contributions you have made to Ezron. I am certainly proud of you. You are a strong female. Instead of demanding Hercu’s head and cursing him, you got to work and took care of your son.”

“It’s my fault he died,” she cried into him.

“Stop this. Akdronis chose to punish himself. You did not make him. He is at peace now. You deserve peace, too.”

She clung to him, feeling like she was melting. She cried until her head hurt, rambling about her regrets and wishes.

“Come,” Vrox urged.

She stood on shaky legs and followed him home. Neil needed her.

– • –

Long after they left, the water that was spilled continued to trickle down. In the dead of night, the earth trembled.

“Damn it, Kyros, I told you to patch the holes in the ceiling. Look at this, I am all wet.”

Akdronis looked down at his body, but it was too dark to see anything.

“Boys?” he called out to his brothers.

The pages of Nebula’s book flickered in the wind, flipping one after another until stopping on–

SECOND SCALING.

Definition: An unexplained phenomenon that happens rarely within Ezronian males, causing a change in physiology. Ezronians believe it is triggered by religious forces.

Changes include a growth of horns, change in scaling patterns, and boost of strength.

Only one male alive is known to have his condition, but others have been recorded through history.

Akdronis crawled out of the grave, wondering how he got thrown in a ditch. It was probably Kyros’ doing. That idiot.

He looked around, not recognizing his location. When he scratched his head, he found two horns that hadn’t been there before.

What in the mothers is going on?

Wanting to find his brothers, he dove into the wilderness and walked all the way home. He avoided all the men he crossed, not interested in altercations. He just wanted to get home.

He couldn’t remember how he ventured so far away. He must have hit his head somewhere, although that didn’t explain the horns. It took him two full weeks to arrive back at his family’s camp.

The logs that made up the perimeter were destroyed from neglect. A small fire burned low in the middle of camp.

“Kyros?” he called out.

There was a gasp, and a small body scurried away.

Ak frowned. That was definitely not Kyros.

A/N: I hope you enjoyed this rollercoster of emotions. But there's a Book 2!

In summary: Ak was forgiven by the Fates. He died from suicide right around the time his second scaling was happening. This caused an unbalance in equilibrium, so he was tossed in some coma state. When he wakes up, he has no memory of meeting Kira or Nebula. All he remembers is living with his brothers after The Vanishing. Naturally, he goes home in search of his family, and finds a Terran woman there instead.

THE STORY CONTINUES IN BOOK 2!!!! Akdronis also has his own story

I know this story was messy in the sense that there were a lot of time skips. It was hard writing this story because it revolved around what happened in The First Her. I didn’t want to repeat scenes, and I didn’t want to spoil anything either. When I edit the story (in the faaarrrr future), I will make transitions more seamless and do more character build-up.

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