We return to the village and all of the Drandroka are bragging about their kills. The fields around the village are littered with the fallen enemies. There are dozens of alien bodies lying in pools of their own blood, but they’re all green. I take a breath of relief when I don’t see any blue among them.
Turic is carrying Tin Tom under his arm. The robot is still muttering phrases in his new leprechaun voice. It’s already starting to get on everyone’s nerves.
“Just put him out of his misery,” Rolanda says, rolling her eyes.
“Follow the rainbow to get to me gold,” he says as Turic drops him to his wheels. He sways back and forth, looking like he’s going to tumble over.
“No,” I say defensively. “He saved our lives. He lied to his master to save us. He told him that the three of us are pregnant. Isn’t that right, Tin Tom?”
“They’re after me lucky charms!” he answers as a spark flies off of his body.
Avery steps beside me with a mischievous grin on her face. “Maybe he wasn’t lying,” she says, rubbing my stomach.
“Tin Tom,” Rolanda says with a stern voice. “Were you lying?”
Pontuck and Straykeer lean forward, waiting intently for the broken robot’s answer.
“Tom was trying to save you earthling humans but he is programmed so that he cannot lie to his master,” he says, making my jaw drop.
“I’m pregnant?” I say with a gasp. My hands slide over my stomach as I stare at the robot in shock.
“Get the fuck out of here!” Rolanda says, staring at the robot with unbelieving eyes. “How do you know?”
“Tom is equipped with a scanner to check the reproductive viability of the earthling women taken for Emperor Rsordan.”
“Tin Tom,” I say, stepping forward. “Am I pregnant?” I have to hear him say the words before I can believe it.
“If you’re not pregnant then Tom doesn’t have a hidden pot of gold at the bottom of a rainbow,” he says in his new thick Irish accent.
“What the fuck does that mean? Tin Tom!” Rolanda barks. “Yes or no. Are we pregnant?”
“Yes,” the robot says.
My skin tingles as my heart races. I’m pregnant.
I slowly turn to Straykeer. He’s gazing at me with watery eyes, looking drunk with happiness.
“I guess we’re going to have a baby,” I say with a shrug of my shoulders. I hope that’s what he wanted.
Straykeer rushes forward, picks me up in his arms, and spins us around as he hugs me. He crushes his lips to mine and when he finally pulls away, my head is spinning.
“My Mandy,” he says, dropping to a knee. He kisses my flat stomach then looks up at me with a grin that cannot be contained. “Straykeer is so happy to have bred you.”
I laugh. My mate is so romantic. He might not always have the perfect words to say but I know that he loves me and will be an excellent father.
“Congratulations,” Avery says, rushing over to give me a crushing hug. “We’re both knocked up!”
“All three of us are,” I say, motioning to Rolanda with my eyes.
Pontuck’s eyes are watering as he holds his pink warrior chick. She looks happy.
We all do.
I guess Zandipor isn’t so bad after all. And something tells me that it’s about to get a whole lot better.
twelve
Well, I’m definitely pregnant.
My stomach has been growing out every day. It’s been a month and I already look like I’m nine months pregnant. I’d be worried if it wasn’t for Avery. She grew big really fast but then the growing stopped.
It seems that the majority of the growing occurs in the first trimester, or first moon cycle as Straykeer explained it.
“Come dance!” Avery says, grunting as she pulls me to my feet. “You too, Rolanda.”
“I’m not dancing,” Rolanda says with a chuckle. She’s holding her belly which is as big as mine. “My ankles are so swollen that I can’t even take a step.”
“Ah, come on,” Avery says, grabbing her wrist and pulling her up anyway. “Where’s that warrior spirit that we all love so much?”
Rolanda sighs as she gets to her swollen feet. “This baby has sucked it right out of me,” she says. “All I want to do is sleep and nap.”
I know exactly what she means. I’ve never been so hungry. These half human, half Roka babies need a lot of food. Lucky for me, my sexy blue mate is always ready with something tasty for me to eat.
The bonfire in the middle of the town square is roaring and the Drandrokas of the village are dancing around it, drinking and laughing like it’s New Year’s Eve and not just some regular Tuesday.
I love the life out here. It’s just friends and good times. No unpaid bills, traffic, stress, jobs, stupid bosses, or any of the other crap that causes early heart attacks or strokes back home. Sure there’s an occasional dinosaur attack but our army of blueberries usually handle that.
And if not we always have our powerful Saku to protect us.
“What are you laughing at?” Avery asks me.
“Nothing,” I say, smiling at her. “It’s just, holy shit this was unexpected. When we got abducted, our lives got really shitty, really fast but then it completely turned around.”