By Raven
�Whoa, it has been a long day.� Christian Somers thought to himself. �How long was it going to take some of the cabinet ministers and senior advisors to accept the kids' appointment in their positions?� The last three days had been spent if full session debates over the prudence of appointing the �Children� to such positions of �Power and Responsibility.� Unlike most democratic countries, the Prime Minster was one for life, subject only to a vote of no confidence by the Senior Members of the Cabinet and the Emeritus Committee. Every other post in the government of the nation of Sagania was completely democratic. Every Sagan born in the world had dual citizenship to the smallest �Country� on the planet.
With land mass roughly equal to Alaska, Sagania is a very important country, and everything that happened here was watched world over. This is the only country in which a sixteen year old could hold a major political office, if the child proved competent. What was not known was what the competency tests were like. Spy business was a big trade in other countries in order to see �What those Sagans are up to.� That means that our counter measures were, by most standards, excessive. Everything we did was in excess in some way. The country�s what would be termed �secret service�- the Velvet Shadows or VS units are the best trained in the world. They are everything that the United States �Alphabet Agencies� and the British MI5 and MI6 were. Governments now sent their people to be trained by us. This truly frightened Chris at some points. Robin and Sean were going to take limited VS training, but there was a good chance they would go for the whole package. After the first course, it would be their choice. Sophie had gone through along with Ethan, Raehne and Casey. They had all made it to being a Red Rose. My stint in VS Two had been all right, but I was a Champagne Tea tactical analysis and support specialist. I was not the trained killer the long stems are. The most coveted rank being the Black Rose.
There is only one Black Rose. Every year trials were held over a three day period. The winner would be the one who earned the Black Rose. To date, since the founding of the country, there had only been one Black Rose, his beloved wife, Raven. For someone as passionate and loving as she is, she had the heart of a stone cold killer at times. He accepted this but at times it was very hard.
There had been one time, when there was a war in China between rebels and the Dragon�s forces, that I had shared my heart with another. Raven was doing a lot of damage on the front lines and, more important, behind the lines. I had gone with the Sagan Assault Teams as a tactical analyst. Guardian was there as the escape route. Horace, Raven�s brother, as chief tactical. Myself as second tactical. Roy Daultry, a long range clairvoyant and telepath, as communications officer. Sara and Sally Keller-Hall, the twin precogs who could piggy-back any clairvoyant to get the fix. Terry Cantrell, the mage that specialized in making us invisible to their whatevers, also second medical. Finally, Rocky �Rolling Thunder� Greybull he was our scout and main defense.
The whole mainland China offensive was fought by small teams of eight. We lived out of ruck sacks, and the troop map was provided by Guardian in a way that was a piece of art in itself. She was our cook, provided shelter, and was our Chief Medical Officer. She took care of all of us. Especially when we had found out that Raven and Horace�s brother Chen was being held prisoner in the Forbidden City. Horace had known something was horribly wrong from the begging he felt, but could not for some reason figure it out.
Raven was on compete �Radio Silence Mode�. We had not actually heard from her team in nearly three weeks. I was worried to the point where I had drunk a small amount of the absinthe I kept with me. Guardian came to me saying that I needed to share my heart in order to free it. I can still remember her words.
�Mother has told me you need to share your heart to stay strong. The night child will understand and accept.� We talked for a while, then she kissed me. We made love in a cave in the middle of a horrible war. I had been giving orders to kill people- human beings. I was felling dirty inside and heartsick. For one moment someone else had given me the strength the way Raven always did. When the war was over and we came home, all returned to normal.
About two years later we all found out that Guardian was pregnant. She would not say who the father was. Shortly before the baby was born we had gone to see Raven�s father, and she approached me.
�The child I carry is yours, Christian. She will be tied to the water of this world. Water of my father's kingdom is the Oceans. Your daughter will serve Mother. She will protect the fresh water, just as my other daughter Artemis protects forests.� she said to me. We all knew that she had a child by John and Kayla�s son T. J. �What will you name your daughter?� she asked me.
�Lily.� I told her. �Call her Lily. Will I ever see her?�
�Whenever you wish. She will always love you.� was Guardian�s quiet response. I sure did and still do. She is all grown up now though. She is the United Nations appointed minister on fresh water conservation. She is also the adviser to Government House as Fresh Water Commissioner. I guess you could say that she was truly daddy�s little girl. 79 years old, but doesn�t look a day over 28.
I never thought it would happen again, but it did. Raven was in the little death when Guardian came to cool the fires as she was told to do by Mother. When she was done she came to me. �Mother has told me that once again you must unburden your heart and soul, that you need me again.� she said to me. We talked, I cried, and then she asked me to do her a favor.
�Simon is lonely. He will not come to us. We choose our mates freely, yet he does not come. To him, we are his sisters. Only I must ask before I breed. I am first born of Mother�s children. All those my sisters produce are like their fathers. For me, it is different. My daughters serve the Mother. Mother has decreed that Simon will have a mate. I am to produce that child. I ask that you be the father. The child is needed now, and Raven�s father is still not ready to give me his heart. So I ask the one who is also the best choice.� she said to me, in her quiet, but not-to-be denied way.
So, once again, I made love to Guardian. Once again I felt something that I thought I would only feel with my wife. A sense of belonging. �What will you call this daughter, Christian?� she asked me as we returned to the house.
�Willow.� I told her. Then I asked her a question. �Why not nine months?�
She smiled. �That is to protect you, so that you may choose or not choose to tell any one. Mother thought it would be best if it was your choice. She knows that Raven will understand, that from her, you need no forgiveness. One day you will understand that Mother and Raven are sisters somehow in service to whom I call Grandmother. I know not what this means but only that Mother says Thank You once again.�
�At least, Mother gives me choices.� I thought, not wanting to upset Guardian. She would be upset if she knew how I felt about being manipulated and controlled by anyone. Except Raven, that is.
As I crawled into bed, I knew Raven would be up for a little while yet. I wondered if I would ever have a child that would be like him, that I could raise one day at a time.
I came back to my station- a large desk in the atrium of Raven�s office in the tower. I had gone down to Gus�s for a large meatball sub with everything. When I approached my desk, I could hear Doc and Raven in the middle of a screaming match. Well, she was screaming, and Doc was being Doc. I activated my internal office monitors- arguments between Stephen and Raven could be quite entertaining.
�I can not and will not watch him deteriorate any longer!�
�Raven, dear, you know we cannot do anything right now without destroying the timeline.�
�Don�t �dear� me, Stephen!�
�Oh, she is pissed!� I thought to myself.
�You know that you have to do so on your own.� Doc continued.
�Oh shit,� I thought. �It�s that conversation.� When we had come to the guild, we knew that Raven would come here and do something. What it was, she would never say, only that the result was, in our past, her father was growing roses, fully restored to youth and vigor. She had told Doc this after one heart breaking visit to his office.
Then, there was a feral growl, followed by the sound of breaking dishes, but not Doc�s customary feigned scream of terror that he affected when Raven was in one of these moods. She was in the last days of pregnancy- that always made her, well, rather vicious. I was used to it. So was Doc, in a way. She usually broke at least a bone or two in these fits.
�Christian, would you give me some assistance? Your wife has gone into full labor.� Stephen called to me over the office intercom.
�You�re kidding, right?� I asked in disbelief.
�No, I am not.� came Doc's voice. �It seems that she has been having contractions for some time, but, she was so upset over her father�s condition that she went into override.�
I rushed into the office, and lifted my wife gently. She was softly sobbing, �I can�t watch him like that, but it hurts too much to stay away.�
�I know, love, just try to relax.� I soothed.
The labor had been relatively easy. It was a ritual for us not to find out the sex of the child till it was born. I was holding little Gabriel Ryan in my arms as they both slept. By the readings Doc and Penny were getting, they suspected she would wake up soon.
I was softly singing to Gabe as I changed the infant. He looked up and saw his wife�s blue eyes looking back at him. Gabriel was the first child that we had here at the guild together, and he was perfect. He had weighed in at seven pounds three ounces. Twenty-one inches long with brown hair and pale blue eyes. The nose was still in question, but the ears were definitely hers.
�How long?� came her voice.
�About three days.� I told her.
�Chris, what are we going to do? I don�t know how long I can keep from interfering with my father.� Raven said worriedly.
�I know. Doc has come up with a possible solution. Before you ask, there is a catch.� I said as I handed her Gabe. She took the fussing child and begun to feed him.
�What is the catch, Christian?� Raven asked.
�You will miss some of his growing up.�
�What do you mean?�
�Doc has found a reliable, stable, and safe way to put you out.�
�Out? How? I don�t understand. Most things that he has tried have strange and unpredictable side effects.�
�It is a chemical that Julia came up with. She had some help.�
�Who?� Raven asked a little more anxious than I had thought she would have.
�Sky, sweety, she was here.�
�Is she still here?� she asked, the pain was full in her voice.
�No, love, she left right after she and Julia finished. She did come and see you though. You must have known she was here, because you said her name and your tattoo and her birthmark both blushed.� I told her. She started weeping softly. Out of all her children, Raven was the closest to Sky Fire. They both knew something that neither would say. Something incredibly powerful and deep.
Robin had once tried to read what it was, and had been knocked out from it. He had told me later that Something had told him �NO, THIS IS NOT FOR YOU.� He and Alex had full open communication, the way Marie and Brett did back home. Alex had flashed also, but something different. �THE NEXT WILL COME FROM YOU.� She passed out cold the same time he did.
�When do we do this?� she asked me when Gabe was finished.
�Julia wants to do a test run and pump some of your breast milk to synthesize.� I said. Raven has an unusual bio-chemistry this was apparent in all her children. Which meant that the replicator was completely out of the question. Julia had come up with a little critter like the things Gomez had made. These little beasts could reproduce any biological component that was injected into them. Consequently, when Raven needed blood now, Julia had a ready supply. The breast milk was also no problem.
�We will set the test for seventy-two hours. If we are going to develop any problems, it will happen then.� I told my wife.
�I�m ready.� she told me, then she kissed both me and Gabe. There was no problem with the test. Julia collected data during the experiment, and was able to predict a time table. The longer she was under, the more hungry she would be. But, with the chemical in her system, she could not assimilate any blood. It was determined that depending how long she was under would be the guide to our next set of actions.
When she woke, we took her back to the little house that was ours. I had always wanted a house constructed in the Japanese tradition. We had a little tea garden that was our favorite place to meditate. I had a small gazebo made and placed under the cherry tree that bloomed in the garden. Her favorite place to meditate was at the base of the tree. She dressed in the kimono that we had renewed our wedding vows in, and lay down on the little palette that was there. There was also a chair and the Katana that she had been given by Masemuni for saving his life in one timeline. The Katana was hung above the door.
�I love you, dark angel.� I said as Raven was sealed in the crystal casket.
Over the intervening years, that gazebo meant a lot of things to both of us. I would bring Gabe there every day when he was little. He covered it with pictures while he learned to draw and paint. He had written his first pieces of music there when he was seven. Cried there the time he was dumped by his first girlfriend. Always though he would talk to her about everything, saying to his friends that they were wrong, that she could hear him when he was little. �I would talk to you, sweet heart, more than we would talk to each other while you were awake.� he insisted he heard. Then I would think about how you were with the other kids. I would remember the strangest things. It was as if you were there, telling me in your own way.
I looked at her- they had her partially sedated. Still, it had taken twenty-six years subjectively before she had come to rescue her father. Gabe was an adult, and had been going on missions since he had proved he was capable at eighteen. He had made a name for himself in many timelines as a top notch negotiator and first contact specialist. He was very well respected and was quite a gifted musician in his off time. Good as Marty. I just had wished they had gotten to know each other. They would have been best friends. They were releasing the sedative slowly, so that her body could catch up. She was nearly to the blood hunger by Julia�s calculations. The sedation had been a precaution especially where Gabe was concerned psychologically. Julia had assessed that in her mind, when she had agreed to the procedure, that only a month, maybe two, would pass.
I had taken lots of pictures all through his life and as he got older, he had done the same. We had made scrap books, and were taking turns now while she was still semi conscious, reading to her. Julia said that this was being most effective for her. In essence, she was suffering from what Horace had suffered from when he had first woke up- hibernation sickness.
The other thing that Gabe had done was tape all of his conversations with her from about seven on. We were playing them on a frequency geared to her subconscious mind. Julia was plainly astounded at the improvements it made in her. The things that helped the most though were the tapes of Gabe�s music and him singing to her.
She had so many children that were like her, but Gabe was my son and I was very proud of him. �Dad, why don�t you head home. I want some time to try out my new scores on Mom, she is after all my biggest fan.� Gabe laughed.
�Have fun and you be sure to get some sleep.� I told him. As I left, I heard a haunting and beautiful melody.
I woke with a start, and a need to go to the pit immediately. It was about one in the morning- he had gone to bed at eight. The need was increasing to nearly a fevered pitch. He got down to the pit as Remmy and Marty were telling Raven to warm up. She picked up the twelve string guitar and began to play the song in his dream. Remmy and Marty were both stumbling over each other when she finished. �I have to have that for the album!� they both said in unison.
�Where did you hear that, mon cher?� Remmy asked.
�Someone played it for me a long time ago. Mind you, this one was also in Sumerian.� Raven said.
�What is it called?� Marty asked.
�A mother's love.� she replied with pride in her voice. �It is kind of a lullaby.�
�Do you mind if I make it a duet?� Marty asked. �I want to sing it back in English so that it can be understood.�
�I think Gabe would like that very much.� Raven thought. She was crying a little as she played the song without the words so Remmy and Marty could learn the music. Yes, Gabe would love that, and so would I.