Naissance pt 3

The little hybrid female had positively glowed under the fierce pride shining out of her papa's dark eyes. That his little zn'hre bondmate was also grinning proudly didn't hurt either, but it was her father's approval she treasured.
      Korena had begun her training with the intention of becoming the best second class warrior ever but within several ten-days it was obvious her ki was increasing, slowly and steadily, until now she was hovering between first and second class. 'rena was thrilled, if she could push her ki this far who was to say she couldn't eventually go from 1st class to Elite? It wasn't wholly unheard of after all. 'roto-san, Rad-sama's brother, had been born third class but was now an Elite. Of course, his parents were both Elite while one of hers didn't even rate but there was still the possibility. And Kakarotto's son, Pasunippu, was born high Elite even though at the time his parents had both only been third class. A frown flashed over Korena's exotic little face: Pasunippu - she just didn't understand him. He was strong, very strong, stronger even than Kuri but he wouldn't fight! If 'rena had his level of ki she knew she'd be fighting anyone and everyone just because she could! 'nippu had to be the mildest Saiyan Korena had ever met, an irresistible temptation to try and goad into a response... until Leteetza had growled at her to 'leave the brat alone.' Now the hybrid cub alternated between ignoring him utterly - though she suspected his soft smile when she did so said he knew exactly what she was doing - or enthusing to him about her own training, a roundabout way of trying to spark an interest. Nothing seemed to work though: it was incomprehensible, but 'nippu simply wasn't a fighter.
      Kuri, on the other hand, most definitely was and according to his trainers he had excellent Guard potential. The young male was irritatingly protective of her though, something that drove Korena to distraction on occasion. She was young, yes, but she wasn't a baby and while not very strong at the moment she could - by dint of cunning - hold her own against her half-brother at least some of the time. Unless... she growled, Kuri was letting her win their scuffles? Korena shook her dark, gold splashed mane in dismissal; the big hv'viien's pride over his burgeoning fighting skills wouldn't let him do that! She smirked, Kuri may be strong but she was smart, and she had an edge. All of the hybrids seemed to have the potential for unusual abilities. Kinu could make his ki go cold; her other half-sibling, 'vaasaan, could change how people felt, and 'ani and 'leen were able to explode people's heads! Korena could do something special as well - she could make things move just by thinking about them. It was tricky and sometimes she had to concentrate so hard it hurt her brain but this ability, along with her ki control, was noticeably improving. As far as Korena could remember she'd always been able to do it but didn't think it anything odd until she'd seen the look on Zhak-sama's face when she'd lifted a piece of fruit from the platter and brought it to herself...
      Vinas-san had been fascinated, she could tell, blathering something about the 'unpredictability of the Saiyan something'. A little later 'selaan had sat down with the perplexed cub and attempted to explain it in terms she could understand. The pretty zn'hre pointed out that as far as was known there'd never been any Saiya-jin hybrids before so the abilities she and the others had were new phenomena. Vinas was intrigued by the question of what it was about Saiyans that made their hybrids so versatile.
      But Korena didn't really care about that, she was far more interested in how quickly she could develop her own special talent. It was hard work though, made harder in that, for the most part, she had to muddle it through herself; there was no one else with the same ability who could guide her. The Ssii'iin was able to help a little, slipping into the cub's mind and gently steering her towards the luminescence that was the heart of her power. But once she'd grasped the basics there was no looking back and currently Korena could *lift* her own weight and *hold* it aloft for a short while, which was fine but nowhere near as much fun as sneakily *wrapping* Kuri's ankles and tripping him up...
      Papa was pleased and proud of her, as was Tiamaazi... and Maazi.
      After some gentle encouragement from Zhak-sama and Tiamaazi - and a less than subtle suggestion from Hijau-sama - Korena had begun visiting her mother again. Mahrayne was very... gentle with her, as if she was some nervy little animal that would scatter if the Hassinan moved too quickly. It made Korena uncomfortable but then her maazi wasn't the easiest person to be around at the moment anyway. Korena was aware of an ache, almost, in Mahrayne's scent when Tiamaazi was there. The Hassinan fussed over the hosting zn'hre, genuinely happy for his good fortune, but there was no disguising the longing in her scent. What complicated matters was that Korena knew Kelapa was aware of her mate's desire but because she couldn't do anything about it the warrior was ignoring it. 'rena was concerned enough to mention it to Kinu - of all of them her oldest brother was closest to maazi - but the silver-maned male simply shrugged his shoulders and said it was something between Maazi and MaaziKel that only they could sort out. Ultimately though, Korena didn't waste much time pondering her maazi's problems, cold-season was approaching fast and her training schedule had been stepped up...

Zyelenyi looked tired, Mahrayne thought, but then that was hardly surprising given he was coping with not one, but two pregnant mates.
Peruro, as she'd agreed half a year ago or more, had let her contraceptive implant run out and mere days later had become pregnant. Zyelenyi detected the tiny ki-flare of their child quickly though it was several days before the pregnancy could be confirmed through scientific means. Dignusia was ecstatic, Peruro less so, while the females' Saiyan mate was often seen with a huge smirk on his attractive face. In the general upheaval and joy, though, it had somehow been overlooked that Dignusia's implant was also due for renewal. It wasn't an anticipated event so it was many, many days before any of them thought to connect Dignusia's irritability with anything other than over-tiredness from looking after Peruro. Zyelenyi had confirmed the wood-carver's pregnancy, his dark eyes filled with concern. Vinas-san had been brutally direct about Dignusia's chances of producing a viable child, but... the ki signature was strong and healthy... Dignusia, flanked by her mates, had trailed miserably into the med-centre fully expecting to be told she had to have a termination. A thoughtful Vinas had run a few tests then - to Dignusia's astonishment - suggested they wait a little while before making a decision. The following ten-days had been an anxious time for all of them with Dignusia swinging between hope and despair, Peruro's own unpredictable mood fluctuations, and Zyelenyi - with his own hopes - caught in the middle of it all.
Dignusia had all but held her breath while Vinas analysed the results of another series of tests and her grip on her male's hand had been tight enough for discomfort. Eventually the biotech had looked up from his monitor, ghosted the trio the briefest hint of a smile, then delivered the news that the foetus, a female, was to all appearances healthy and perfectly normal. There was a joyful celebration that evening, their quarters in the Diplomatic Corps building overflowing with Hassinan, Muruanian and Saiya-jin friends and well-wishers. There was music and laughter, an abundance of food, and the occasional half-hearted grumble from Peruro that if she'd known this could happen she wouldn't have put herself to the effort of having a child...

Mahrayne surreptitiously studied the young Saiyan male as he organised the diplomatic paperwork for the next influx of Hassinan. The skin beneath his eyes was heavy and dark and his untidy mane had lost a little of its shine. She could imagine what he was going through at home what with both his mates still in the early, moody, part of their pregnancies. Even Kelapa had given him a sympathetic clap on the shoulder! He wasn't entirely alone though, the small group of Hassinan females based at the Academy - including Mahrayne - were always happy to spend time with his mates when he couldn't, entertain and distract them, keep an eye on them. It's what Hassinan females did for each other after all.
       "Right, that's done." Zyelenyi pushed back from his desk, swivelling his chair to face Mahrayne. "There'll be a transport on its way to G'geckah within a few days."
      "Thank you, I'll let the Lead Speaker know." Mahrayne stood up. She wasn't sure how or why - it would've been more efficient for the Lead Speaker to contact the Diplomatic Corps direct - but she'd become the intermediary between her people and Vejiitasei.
       "There'll be twenty spare berths on this ship," Zyelenyi said quietly, "in case, in the meantime, anyone else changes their mind about staying."
       "I'll pass the information on." The Hassinan inclined her head with a small smile. Manzano - and hence his deputy - were well aware of Marldus' wish to move as many of his people to Vejiitasei as soon as possible. No doubt there'd always be more berths available on the transports than requested, just in case the Lead Speaker managed to persuade others.
       Mahrayne took her leave of the diplomatic aide, promising to look in on his mates before heading back to the Academy and her afternoon classes...

Lento closed the vid-link connection and sighed deeply, the smile on his face fading as 'tiisaan's image faded from the screen - he missed the beautiful zn'hre, missed his smooth, cool body and the uncomplicated companionship they shared. The young male unfolded smoothly from the colourful floor cushion in front of the monitor - the Hassinan still didn't have anything resembling furniture - and went off in search of something to eat.
      Work on making the caves more than just 'habitable' was progressing quickly. The walls in the main living area had been smoothed into gentle curves, following the natural contours that arched up to the roof. Part of the area was now being prepped so Monia, the artist, could begin decorating it while other sections of the complex were being worked. The outlines for the planned mosaic were already in place and Monia was spending every waking moment organising the tiny pieces of coloured rock and glass she'd be using. She was working closely with several of the Muruanian artisans from the nearby township. Not only had the shimmer-eyed aliens eagerly volunteered to help, they'd been very generous in donating materials. The vibrant pieces of gold-speckled purple and blue glass had been specially imported from their homeworld.
      The new Household had discussed at length what the first mosaic should be and it was decided that a representation of Hassina's twin serpents - Etute and Etate - would be a good place to start. Monia had drawn up the design, basing it on part of an ancient mosaic that had been in the old Council meeting chamber.
       The decoration of the caves could probably go on for several lifetimes, depending on how many settled there and how much space was used, but getting their new home comfortable would be a relatively quick process. Right now everyone was focussed on that but Lento was wondering what was going to happen when the task was completed. What were the Hassinan here going to do with themselves? What was he going to do with himself? The hunters would always have something to do, he supposed, as would the artists and those who contributed to the day to day running of the Household. But what of him? He'd been training to be an Effodio but in this cave-system - which was stable, didn't need excavating and didn't have much in the way of metals or gems to extract - what was his role going to be?
       Malum had nodded thoughtfully when the youngster had broached the subject.
       "I can understand your concern, Lento, and - " his jaw tightened as he shifted on the cushion, the only outward sign of his everpresent discomfort, " - while I know it's not how you envisioned your life unfolding I would be very pleased, and grateful, to have you continue as my aide." Malum chuckled. "I'd never have guessed there was so much involved in running a household, even a small one such as this!"
      Lento half-smiled in sympathy: he'd known that Malum's father – while forcing his last surviving son to become involved in the household administration – still hadn't let him have very much responsibility.
      "I'd be honoured to stay with you, Malum, for as long as you need me."
      "Thank you, my friend," the elder male squeezed the youth's shoulder briefly, before continuing on in a business-like manner. "Now, we need to think about where we're going to put the newcomers."
      Lento nodded, spreading open the scaled map of the cave system he and Torvus had made in the original survey. There was ample room for the twenty-seven new immigrants without having to open up any other areas but if – as Malum predicted – there would be more refugees arriving any time soon there'd need to be some serious work done to expand the complex.
      Lento glanced at the names of those already on their way and frowned. His first two intended females were listed there but none of their immediate kin that he recognised. Were the sisters coming here of their own accord? Why? It would be years before they were of an age to be gifted to him. Lento sighed and put the questions aside; he couldn't help feeling that having Cene and Nenia nearby would make things complicated somehow but there wasn't anything he could do about it right now. And anyway, there was far too much to do without worrying about things that hadn't occurred yet...