Hiro's vision snapped back into focus as he powered down Strelizia, and his and Zero Two's conciseness separated. With a groan, he stretched. It had been a long three hours, and he was glad he had the rest of the day off. He and Zero Two had just got back from patrolling the surrounding area for any signs of Papa's forces. Over the past month, Papa had been sending FRANXXs after Plantation 13, and it was essential that they took out these forces before they could really threaten the Plantation. Thankfully they'd only had to deal with small FRANXX squads, but that didn't diminish the threat they posed. And Hiro was all too aware that Zero Two became more and more vulnerable the further her pregnancy progressed.

"I'm glad that's over." Zero Two said, as she disengaged herself from Strelizia's controls and stood up stretching.

He smiled. "We'll have to do it again tomorrow."

She sniffed in amusement. "Allow me, my fantasies."

He smiled as he stared at Zero Two, the bulge of her pregnant belly visible now that she was three months pregnant. Zero Two noticing him, smiled and turned profile to him, gently cupping her belly. He chuckled softly. She knew that he loved it when she did that. Standing up, he gave her a kiss on the cheek and then gently placed a hand on her swollen belly.

"I can't believe they haven't noticed yet." She said softly.

With a smile, he shrugged. "Nobody has seen a pregnant person in over a hundred years, plus nobody knows that we had sex."

She shrugged. "I guess you're right, plus we've been doing our best to hide it."

He hummed softly and gently knelt to give her belly a kiss. "I just can't wait until our little one is born. I wanna see her and hold her in my arms so bad."

"It can wait." She said with a smile. "I wanna be pregnant with baby Hiro for a little while longer."

He chuckled and shook his head. "We are never going to agree on this." He said with a sigh.

"Probably not." She giggled

"Well, whatever gender it ends up being, I'll love it all the same."

She smiled warmly, "And that's why you're my Darling."

He chuckled and stood up, holding his hand out for his princess. "Well, what does my lady desire today."

"Oh, stop it." She said, playfully slapping his hand away. Then in a more serious tone, she asked. "Say, Darling. Is there anything we have to do today, I'm pretty sure our schedule is free for the rest of the day."

He nodded. "I don't think so. Ichigo and Goro have patrol this afternoon. Unless there's a surprise raid, I don't foresee anything that would drag us away from Mistleteinn."

Zero Two yawned and stretched. "Good because I think I need a quiet afternoon."

"Then, we should return to Mistleteinn." He said with a smile, holding out his hand again.

Zero Two shook her head but allowed him to take her hand. "Alright then, let's go."

Ikuno sat idly on the couch absentmindedly reading as the rest of the squad hung out and did… Whatever. She scrolled threw a few pages of the book she was reading on her communicator. Kind of bored of reading about electricity. As her eyes scanned her communicator screen, she saw that she had a message. It was from Naomi. With a smile, she tapped on it. As she watched the message load, she inwardly thanked Dr. Franxx for going to the effort of hooking all this up. Dr. Franxx had tried to get a holoprojector to work so that they could interact with Naomi, but unfortunately, the only thing that worked without bugging out was simple messaging.

As the message loaded, she saw an image of what looked like liquid magma in a basin. Curious, she read the accompanying message. "I hope your breakfast was more appetizing than this."

With a smile, she texted back. "Is that magma energy?"

A few moments later, she got her reply. "Yes, and it's tasteless beyond all compare."

"So why drink it?"

"Because Klaxosapiens need it to survive. And I'm dining for thirteen other people at the moment."

"Thirteen?"

"Sorry, I meant twelve." Came the hurried reply.

"How are you managing so far?"

"Fine. They don't do much, except for making me really hungry."

"I can imagine."

Naomi's reply took serval long minutes to get back to her, "Hey, sorry Ikuno, I have to go. Can I talk to you later?"

"Of course." Then her heart thudding in her chest she typed. "I love you."

This time the reply was instant. "I love you too."

Putting her communicator away, she looked up in time to see Hiro and Zero Two arriving back from their morning patrol.

"Find anything?" Goro called over in an amused tone.

"Yeah!" Hiro called back. "A massive army as far as the eye can see."

"Fascinating." Goro laughed. "Everyone prepare to sortie."

Zero Two shook her head and sat down on the couch next to her. Letting out a massive sigh of relief.

"You alright?" She asked kindly.

Zero Two sighed. "Yeah I'm fine, my back is just killing me."

Hiro, who had been joking a moment before jerked his head around and devoted all of his attention to his partner. "Is there something I can do?"

Zero Two shook her head. "No, it's okay. Probably just tweaked it, that's all."

"You know hot water, I find it helps me when I'm in pain." She suggested.

Zero Two smiled and was about to something when.

"Then let's have an all-girls bath!' Miku interjected energetically. "We girls need some girl time away from these things…" She gestured solely at Zorome as she said this.

"Hey! Nobody said that dealing with you wasn't a chore." Zorome fired back.

"You wanna know what. That sounds like a nice idea." Zero Two said more to head off the bickering that was about to come then having any real desire to hang out in the tube. Zero Two stood up and began to make her way over to the bathroom before anybody else made a move.

Hurriedly the rest of the girls got up to follow her, but before they all disappeared, Ichigo turned back to the boys. "If one of you guys peeks, I'll kill all of you." She said with an accusing finger.

"Yes, Ma'am." They all said, stiffening, knowing that Ichigo didn't make idol threats.

Ichigo smirked, "Enjoy the couches." She said with a wave.

As they all began to undress, everyone managed to get out of their clothes fairly quickly, but she noticed that it was taking Zero Two noticeably longer than everyone else. But eventually, she did manage it, and they all jumped into the tub, Ichigo having already turned on the hot water.

Everyone chatted merrily and had fun laughing and joking. Ikuno, however, didn't join in the other merriment, instead quietly studying Zero Two. Something was up, and she couldn't quite put her finger on it. The girl was hiding something… But what?

Ikuno's eyes drifted over Zero Two's body, noting her darkened nipples and crotch. She stared at Zero Two. Something was screaming at her to realize something. Zero Two stood up and turned to walk across the tub, and the bulge of Zero Two's belly accentuated itself as she turned profile to Ikuno, and instantly the answer became obvious.

She gasped and clapped a hand to her mouth.

Everyone's eyes swung to her, concern and curiosity written all over their faces.

"What is it, Ikuno?" Ichigo said, sounding concerned.

"Zero Two," Ikuno said open-mouthed. "Are you pregnant?"

Zero Two flushed scarlet, and instantly everyone's eyes swung to her. They all stared at her waiting to hear the truth.

After a moment, Zero Two smiled and placed a hand on her belly. "Yes, I am."

"I knew it!" Ichigo shouted triumphantly.

Immediately, the bathroom irrupted, with chatter for the rest of the squad, questions, and gasps of surprise, prevalent on everyone's lips.

"How far along are you!?" Miku managed to get through.

"Three months." Zero Two said with a smile.

"Three months!" Miku gasped. "Why didn't you tell us?"

Zero Two chuckled. "I wanted to see how long it would take you guys to notice."

"Does Hiro know?" Kokoro asked.

Zero Two smiled ruefully. "Oh, he knows alright. Hardly thinks about anything else."

"Do you know what gender the baby is," Ikuno questioned.

"I'm convinced it's a boy." Zero Two said. "But Darling is adamant that it's a girl."

The girls stared at her in awe.

"I still can't believe that you're pregnant," Miku said, sounding blown away.

Ichigo just gave a smug smile and leaned back, not surprised in the very least.

"Hey, Ichigo." Zero Two said after a few moments. "You said that you knew I was pregnant. How did you find out?"

Ichigo smiled. "To anyone who knows Hiro, he isn't exactly subtle. I think he tried to hide it, but he won't let you out of his sight for more than a few minutes. Which is unusual even for him. That, combined with a few glimpses of him holding your belly, lead me to suspect that you might be pregnant." And with a triumphant smile, she added. "And I was right!"

Zero Two smiled warmly. "I knew it'd be Darling who gave it away."

"All be honest thou," Ichigo said with a smile. "It's really sweet watching him run around being super protective of you. It shows that he really cares, and I'm sure that he's beyond excited about the baby."

"I love him so much." Zero Two said sweetly, "He's so supportive and caring. Honestly, I don't know what I'd do without him." She paused for a moment. "You know when you find somebody that perfect, you can't help but want to have a child with them. When they love you that much, having the privilege to manifest that love is truly something special." She chuckled softly. "You know, sometimes I think back to the moment that he rescued me. It's so interesting to think that one day I'd be carrying that boy's baby." She sighed, "I don't know, I can't be the only person who's ever thought that thought."

Zero Two blushed and suddenly went very quiet, realizing that she'd been rambling.

The rest of the girls just sat and listened mesmerized. And the silence was so palpable around them you could slice a knife through it.

Suddenly Ichigo's communicator beeped, and the silence was broken.

"That's probably Goro saying I gotta leave soon," Ichigo said with a sigh.

The rest of the girls seemed to jerk back into reality, the spell of Zero Two's confession broken by the fact that Ichigo had to go out and possibly brave the dangers of Papa's forces.

Ichigo jumped out of the tube and waved to them. "Alright, well, I'll see you guys later."

"See you later, Ichigo." They all called back, waving. "And good luck out there."

Once Ichigo had left, conversation quietly resumed, but Zero Two just sat quietly. After another few minutes, she got out of the tub and went to the changing rooms to get dressed. Ikuno immediately got up and followed her. She'd been curious about pregnancy and child-raising for so long, and the chance to have a conversation with somebody who was currently pregnant was an opportunity she couldn't pass up.

Zero Two began to dry herself off, and hurriedly she pretended to do the same. Desperately she looked for an opening to ask her questions without being too obvious.

"You finished too?" Zero Two chatted as she slowly began to dry her beautiful pink hair.

"Yeah, idle chatting isn't really my thing."

"I noticed that." Zero Two said with a smile, "That's probably why you're so observant."

She shook her head. "Not really."

Zero Two smiled. "Well you're the first person to notice I was pregnant."

She blushed, "That just because I knew what to look for. And your belly kind of gave it away."

Zero Two smiled. "I guess you're right, it's kind of hard to hide a second person inside you."

Ikuno felt her heart hammering in her chest. She just had to ask the question. She just had too. "Zero Two." She blurted. "Um… I wanted to know.. W-What does it feel like to be pregnant?"

Zero Two smiled, and she could see the warmth in Zero Two's eyes."Amazing. I never felt anything like it. Just knowing that you're nurturing a life inside you and that within months it'll come into the world and be somebody you love unconditionally." Zero Two beamed, and Ikuno could practically feel the love and joy radiating off her. "It is truly something beyond words."

"That sounds wonderful," Ikuno said, almost longingly.

"It really is." Zero Two beamed. "And the fact that you conceive a child by bonding with the person you love most." Zero Two shivered. "I love that fact so much."

"What was it like?" Ikuno asked after a moment. "The night you and Hiro…"

Zero Two smiled. "Amazing. The sense of bonding we felt was an experience I'll never forget."

"And were you trying to get pregnant?"

Zero Two nodded a huge smile on her face. "Yes… The moment Darling and I found out that we could make a child, we couldn't help ourselves."

"That night?" Ikuno said, sounding surprised. "You didn't want to find out more before trying?"

Zero Two blushed. "That thought never even crossed my mind. I just wanted him in me as soon as possible. I'll admit that I really got caught up in the idea of creating life by connecting with the person I love the most."

"He really means that much to you," Ikuno said softly.

"He means everything to me."

Ikuno thought for a moment. "Does… Does it have to be that way in order to conceive?"

"Ikuno," Zero Two said with a playful smile. "Are you wanting to have a baby?"

She flushed scarlet, "I do…" She whispered. "It sounds like such an amazing experience."

"It is… And it's not overly difficult of a process to start." Zero Two smiled. "And the boys don't need much convincing. If you really wanna take that step, Ikuno. Why don't you ask Futoshi if he'll... You know…"

Ikuno hesitated for a moment. "My problem is however, that I don't really like boys. It's not that I don't like them as friends, but I don't find any of them attractive."

Zero Two looked puzzled at her confession, but ignoring her personal views understood Ikuno's dilemma. "I see… So, it might be hard for you to be intimate with Futoshi if you don't find him attractive."

Ikuno nodded. "I don't suppose you know of a different way of getting pregnant?"

Zero Two shook her head. "I'm sorry, I can't help you. I wish there was something I could do, but…"

Ikuno smiled and finished getting dressed. "It's alright. I'll try to find my own way. Thanks for the offer, though."

"Well… If you have questions, I'll be happy to share my experience." Zero two offered.

Ikuno smiled. "Thanks, I appreciate it."

Zero Two gave her a warm smile and then turned to finish putting on her uniform. Ikuno watched as Zero Two shrugged to make it fit, watching the uniform budged around her belly, and got stuck, as Zero Two tried to zip it around her swollen breasts.

"Zero Two, you can't wear that anymore," Ikuno stated, as she watched Zero Two continue to struggle.

"This is the only type of uniform I have."

Ikuno shook her head. "Zero Two, this isn't going to work anymore. You're pregnant now, you won't be able to um… "fit" into that for much longer."

"Well, I don't know what I'm going to do about it. It's not like I have anything bigger."

"Zero Two, you are going to have to ask the administrators to get you some maternity clothing. There's no way even a five-month pregnant belly is going to fit under that. You need new clothes."

Finally, Zero Two managed to zip up the uniform, but after running a hand over her belly, she let out a sigh. "I guess you're right. I don't know why I thought that I was going to manage to fit into this while pregnant. I'll put in a request."

Ikuno smiled. "They're going to be so surprised."

"Oh, I'm sure." Zero Two chuckled. "That's why I'm too lazy and go and do it now."

"Well worse case scenario, you can have Hiro make you some. He'll do just about anything for you."

"Maybe I'll get him to give me a massage." Zero Two groaned, cracking her back,

She nodded. "I'm sure he'd love to."

"Well then I guess I'm go convince him." Zero Two chuckled turning towards the door.

Ikuno chucked, as she watched Zero Two leave, smiling as she noticed the slight waddle Zero Two walked with. Then quietly she added. "Oh, what I wouldn't give to be you."

Naomi sat down on the edge of the bed, having returned from having her first-morning meal of magma energy. She yawned, knowing that her growing babies would make her hungry again in another few hours. As she sat there, she felt the heaviness of her swollen breasts and knew it would soon be time to feed Numa. She glanced over at her little girl, who was still fast asleep. As she stared at her little girl, a sudden desire came over her. Maya had shown her video after video about how to take care of a baby, and she felt a sudden desire to put that all into practice. Reaching over to her bedside table, she grabbed what looked like a sheet of glass, but as her finger touched it, the display lit up. Carefully she reviewed all the knowledge that she had been taught about caring for children. Then when she felt like she was ready, she set the tablet down and took a deep breath.

Then closing her eyes, she connected her conscience with Maya and Logos and said. "Maya. Logos. Would both of you please come to the cloning chamber."

Logos was the first to arrive, looking calm but inquisitive. "Naomi." He said softly, slithering up to her. "How can I help you?"

She smiled. "I want to wait until Maya gets here." She said softly.

He nodded respectfully. "Very well."

For the next few minutes, both she and Logos chatted idly, waiting for Maya to arrive. When she did, she seemed preoccupied and deep in thought, but then suddenly, she seemed to realize where she was, and concern flashed across her face.

"Did something happen?" She asked nervously.

Naomi shook her head. "No… No, that's not why I called you here." She took another deep breath. "I have a…. A request." She paused, and Maya and Logos watched her with bated breath. "I want to take Numa out of the cloning tube."

They both stared at her in stunned silence.

"Do you believe she's really ready for that," Maya said, sounding scared. "I know that I said she could leave the tube someday, but Naomi, it might still be too early."

Naomi shook her head. "I don't think so. I feel like her healing process is slowing down."

"How so?" Logos asked politely.

Naomi looked over at Numa. "The first time I held her and bonded with her, I felt all her pain, I got to experience what it was like to live in her deformed body." She paused for a moment before continuing. "It has taken me months to reverse all that damage. I don't know how I did it but, her deformities are gone, and she's getting healthier every day. But… I feel like she's reaching a plateau. The cloning fluid is making it difficult for her muscles to strengthen."

Logos nodded thoughtfully. "The fluid is supporting all her weight, she's not forced to support herself."

"But she may still be too weak to survive out here on her own." Maya protested.

"I don't think so," Naomi said, still not taking her eyes off her daughter. "Numa is a fighter. She's ready for this."

Maya closed her eyes and clasped her hands together, looking like she was praying. And after a few minutes looking up at her. "Very well. You are ultimately her mother, and you know best. If you truly feel that she's ready….. Then it's your call."

"Thank you," Naomi said, nodding respectfully.

"Naomi, You do understand that the moment she leaves that tube, she'll require all the things a newborn requires," Maya said, sounding resigned.

"I understand." She said with a nod.

Maya let out a deep breath, "Tell me when you're ready."

Naomi turned and ascended the ladder, and waited by the sealed entrance to the tube, putting on the breathing mask, that she'd need one final time.

"Prepare cloning tube 12 for occupant removal," Maya shouted to the cloning room. "Begin artificial birth conditions."

"What are you doing to her?" Naomi asked, waiting for Maya to tell her it was safe to enter.

"The tube is simulating the condition a baby undergoes at birth," Maya explained quickly. "Reversing this process now would be very difficult, Naomi, I pray that you can bring her into the world successfully."

"I will." She said.

Maya took another deep breath. "She's ready for you."

Naomi nodded, and gently climbed into the tube, and watched as Numa jerked herself awake, her body not used to what she was undergoing.

When Numa saw her, she instantly reached out for her, and Naomi pulled her into an affectionate embrace.

"Hello, Numa." She comforted. "I know it's scary, but its time to bring you into the world."

She felt Numa huddle closer to her, and she could feel Numa's fear. Gently she worked her way up to the top of the tube and stopped only inches below the surface.

"I'm here, Numa." She said softly. "Mommy will always be here for you. So don't be afraid, little one… Because the worlds waiting for you, and its time to be born."

Taking a deep breath, Naomi poked her head above the surface and looked down at Numa, gently keeping her submerged beneath the cloning fluid.

She smiled, blessed her daughter with all the love and affection she could. "It's time to see the world, little one." She whispered.

With a deep breath, she gently pulled Numa into a hug pulling her up and out of the clone fluid. Numa coughed violently as she expelled the fluid from her lungs. Gently Naomi held her knowing that this part Numa had to do on her own. With a final shuttering cough, the last of the fluid was expelled from her lungs, and then she heard it. Numa let out a loud wailing cry the sound of her strong voice echoing around the cloning chamber. Naomi smiled and gently held the crying Numa, who held onto her desperately, the sensations of emerging into this world, almost too much for her to handle.

"I got you." She whispered soothingly into Numa's ear. "Mommy has got you."

Gently she smoothed the sobbing Numa, imbuing her with affectionate and loving thoughts. Quietly she signaled to Maya, and a few moments later, she and Numa were being lifted out of the tube and onto the small platform. Naomi nodded her thanks and returned her attention to her still sobbing little girl. Gently she separated, from Numa and gently looked at her daughter, who was still sobbing her eyes shut tight hiding from the world.

Gently she brushed her fingers against Numa's cheek. "It okay, Numa." She whispered. "Mommy is here."

Numa continued to cry, still terrified to accept her new reality. Slowly, however, Numa began to calm down, and with the guiding hand of her mother, gradually stopped crying. Serval moments later, Numa's eyes flickered open, and Naomi smiled as she and her little girl stared at each other.

"Hi," She said sweetly, gently nuzzling Numa's face. "Welcome to the world, Numa. Mommy is so proud of you."

Numa hummed softly and reached out her little hand to touch her cheek. She smiled warmly and nuzzled Numa's little hand.

Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Maya reach up with her tentacle and place a pair of scissors next to her.

"Separate Numa, from the cloning tube," Maya instructed gently. "Cut her umbilical cord a few inches from her belly."

"Won't that hurt her?" She asked, concerned.

"No. She won't even know you're doing it."

Still slightly apprehensive, she grabbed the scissors and followed Maya's instructions. The cord severed she gazed down at Numa, who had was now finally free of the cloning tube that she had been dependent on for so long. Numa grunted to get her attention, and she smiled. Then laughing with pure joy, scooped up her daughter and hugged her to her chest.

"I love you so much," She sobbed tears of joy cascading down her face.

For serval long minutes, she sat there, clutching her little girl, gently rocking back and forth as cherished being able to hold her little girl out of the tube for the first time. Almost unconsciously, she began to make her way over to the ladder so she could get down, but suddenly she realized that it might be a little difficult to get down with a baby in her arms. Fortunately, Maya was one step ahead of her and was standing at the base of the ladder, her tentacle already ascending to help her down. She nodded her thanks and allowed herself to be picked up and gently lowered to the floor.

For serval long moments, she stood clutching her little girl, smiling down at her little bundle of joy. After a while, she looked up and saw Maya and Logos standing off to the side quietly, watching her.

Smiling, she made her way over to them and gently presented Numa to Maya and Logos as they stared at the reality that they'd thought impossible for so long. Maya reached out a trembling hand hesitantly, almost as if scared that this was some sort of dream that could disappear.

"It's okay," Naomi said softly, gently grabbing Maya's hand.

Maya stared at her, tears streaming down her face. Naomi smiled and guided Maya's hand, to the little girl she had clutched in her arms.

Maya's fingers brushed against Numa's cheek, and Maya burst into tears, silent sobs rippling through her whole body. Naomi watched as Numa reached up her little hand and gently grabbed one of Maya's fingers.

Naomi smiled, and watched the sobbing Maya, as she processed the reality she'd thought doomed for so long.

"Do you want to hold her?" Naomi said gently, offering Numa to her.

"You'd let me do that?…'' Maya sobbed her voice catching in her throat.

Naomi smiled. "Of course… After everything you've sacrificed, after all, you've done for me, I couldn't think of a more worthy person."

"But…"

Naomi chuckled softly and gently pressed Numa into Maya's arms. "No, buts."

Maya gazed in awe, tears cascading down her face, as she held Numa in her arms. All the time and effort she'd spent, all the children she'd lost. And now she held one of them in her arms. The little girl she thought she'd have-to watch suffer and die. Was now safely clutched in her arms, Numa's beautiful glowing eyes full of life and curiosity. It was too much for her to bear, and the Queen of the Klaxosaurs burst once more into fresh tears.

Numa reached up her little hand and gently touched Maya's cheek, instinctually bonding with the person holding her. With a smile, Naomi watched quietly touched by the displays of love and affection that Numa had for the person that had looked after her for so long.

Naomi smiled warmly, and gently sat down on the bed, letting Maya and Logos spend time with the child, that they'd sacrificed so much for.

"You're so beautiful." Maya sobbed, gently kissing Numa's forehead. "I was so afraid that we were going to lose you. But you held out on us, little one."

Numa let out a small cry and snuggled closer to Maya's chest.

"She's reminds me so much of our firstborn." Logos whispered softly.

Naomi's heart ached as she stared at Maya, holding Numa, trying to keep visions of watching her child die out of her mind. She bit her tongue to keep from crying. The thought of watching her own child die, tormenting her.

As she watched Numa, however, she noticed that Numa was becoming more and more restless. No longer content to sit still in Maya's arms, she began to fidget, letting out a soft whimper. The sound forced Naomi out of her own head, her motherly instincts mysteriously stimulated by the sound. And a few moments later, that whimpering turns into full-on crying.

Maya smiled and gave Numa one last kiss, then smiling, she walked over to where she was sitting.

"She wants her mother," Maya said softly, pressing her back into her arms.

Naomi looked down at the crying Numa. "Nah... She's just hungry."

With a smile, she presented her breast to Numa who eagerly latched on, and immediately began to suckle, with an almost desperate enthusiasm.

"Jeez Numa." She chuckled. "Take it easy, I'm not going anywhere."

"Hmmm, mmm." Numa moaned as she clung to her mother.

Naomi sighed and smiled. "I love you," she whispered softly. Closing her eyes, she relaxed into the bond that they shared, feeling her milk let down as she fed her precious little girl.

After a moment, she opened her eyes and looked up and gave Maya a small smile. "Thank you for believing in me."

Maya shook her head, "No… Thank you for caring so much. You're more than I could have ever asked for or ever deserved."

Naomi looked down at Numa. "No.. I just finally have a purpose." Hot tears began to run down her cheeks. "And I'm the luckiest person in the world."

Nine Alpha stood quietly watching as his squad devoured another fallen Klaxosaur, that had fallen victim to their prowling. He stood there almost meekly, watching as his squad descended further and further into madness. But what made him feel even worse was that there was nothing he could do about it. Nothing he could do to help his squad-mates. He didn't even have the courage to refuse to follow Papa's orders. The moment that he and his squad had cleared that cave, a message from Papa had been delivered, giving them their next target. And that's how it had been for the last two months. And the entire time, he had watched his squad descend further and further into madness, the nightmares in his own head, haunting him every time he closed his eyes. He hated this. He hated reliving everything he had been forced to do. The screams of a dying Klaxosaur, crying out in pain, as his squad ripped open its swollen belly, or the sight of little Klaxosaurs, cowering away from the hot glowing edge of his magma spear.

He gripped the shaft of his magma spear, using it to support his weight as he wallowed in his own mystery. He just wanted somebody. Anybody to come and take away this pain. Wouldn't anybody come and put an end to this? Something. Anything. It had to be better than this. Hadn't he done enough?

He hung his head. He didn't know if he could do this anymore. Even for Delta's sake, he didn't know if he had the strength to keep on fighting. He didn't know for how much longer he could keep the flame of his last wish alive. The only thing that kept him for ending it all was seeing Delta's face every night. The only excitement left in his life was waiting for that call. The sound that Delta was looking to confide in him, and wanted someone to assure her that it was going to be alright.

But even he didn't know for how much longer he could keep this up. Because the truth was that they weren't going to be alright. Unless something happened soon. He was going to break.

Suddenly the indicator that he was receiving a message beeped, but when it flashed up onto his screen, and he saw who it was, he almost let out a moan of despair.

Papa's masked face flashed up onto his cockpit screen, the very image of him defiling that little bit of space that he was forced to live in.

"Nine Alpha," Papa said, with almost a smug smile. "Good work on your last mission. Eliminating the target before it has a chance to bear even more of its foul vermin. I wish to see more reports like that."

"You provide the targets, sir." He said, doing his best to hide the bitterness in his voice. "We... We just follow your orders."

Papa grunted in acknowledgment. "Fine point, you make Alpha, but enough of the idle flattery. I have a new mission for you." Papa stared directly at him. "You are to hunt down and kill the entirety of Squad 13, and Plantation 13 should be nothing but rubble when you are finished. But, there is one exception. You are to capture Nine Iota alive. She needs to be punished for betraying me. Also, I would appreciate if you could capture her Stamen as well, but his capture isn't necessary for your success."

"Nine Iota, has betrayed you, Sir?" He said doing his best to focus on Papa's image.

"Yes, she has," Papa said bitterly. "Dr. Franxx put her into a poisonous squad, and she been corrupted by them. It's time we bring her back so that she can face punishment and rehabilitation."

Betrayal, he thought almost wistfully. The idea of it felt so tempting, but unfortunately, he didn't know-how. How did one just betray Papa?

"Where, can I find her…?" He said weakly.

"I'll be sending you coordinates of Plantation 13's search area," Papa said, typing something into a computer. "Unfortunately, the search area is pretty large, but it's the best that we can come up with at the moment. They somehow keep managing to find our spy drones, which is annoying, but I have plenty to spare."

He stared blankly at Papa, not enthusiastic about taking on the task of hunting down, Nine Iota.

"Is there anything else your team requires Nine Alpha," Papa said, interrupting his thoughts.

He shook his head, "No… Papa… Everything will be done as you command."

"Good. I expect to hear good news soon." And with that, the transmission ended, and he was left staring out, at his squad as the finished devouring that last of the fallen Klaxosaur.

A few moments later, he received a message from APE's headquarters, outlining the details of his mission, in print, and providing him with the necessary coordinates to start his search for Plantation 13.

Dully, he stared at the coordinates watching as his FRANXX imputed them into his navigation computer and laid in a course for him to follow.

Resided to this fates, he opened a channel to his teammates. "Nines!" He announced getting their attention.

It took them serval long moments to look away from the fallen Klaxosaur, but eventually, he got their attention. "I have new orders from Papa."

Eagerly they all started forward and gathered around him.

"We are to hunt down and destroy Squad 13. Nine Iota is also to be taken into custody, along with her Stamen, if possible."

"Has Nine Iota, done something to offend Papa?" Delta asked, weakly staring at him with deeply shadowed eyes.

"Nine Iota and Squad 13 have betrayed Papa." He said dryly.

Nine Gamma and Nine Beta, irrupted with indignation and disgust, the borage of hate-filled vitriol almost poisonous to anyone who heard it. He, however, did not join in, disgusted at his squad's lack of self-control, however as he stood there listening to all this poison, he was relieved to see that Delta wasn't joining in. Instead waiting quietly for him to continue speaking.

"Alright, enough!" He shouted, but to no avail. Taking a deep breath, he bellowed. "ENOUGH!"

Beta and Gamma looked at him disgusted, but thankfully they kept their mouths shut.

"Papa has given us a search area of where they could be, which is unfortunately pretty large, but it's the best that we have. Also, it'll take us serval days of direct travel to get to the edge of the search zone."

He watched sadly as Delta involuntarily stumbled, the thought of the pain for not feeding for that long, weighing heavy on her mind.

Mentally he steeled himself hating what he was going to have to put Delta through.

"Is there anything else," Gamma demanded dryly.

"No." He fired back. "Papa's orders ended there."

"Nine Iota…" Beta said, amused. "I wonder if Papa will let me have her after he's finished with her. She may be the very thing I need."

"Nobody is having anybody." He said disgusted.

"Ease off." Beta spat. "She was once your prize."

"I know." He whispered sadly. "And I wish I could take that back now."

"Yeah, but Alpha never managed to claim her!" Gamma cackled.

"Poor Alpha never managed to strip her." Beta sneered. "That gorgeous body of hers. I'd love to harvest her while she squirms naked under me."

"You're sick," Alpha whispered.

In disgust, he sped off in the direction of Plantation 13, Delta falling in behind him almost immediately. The other two eventually noticed and chased after them, with shouts of outrage. For hours they cruised above the surface of the Earth, a red cloud of dust, the only thing marking their passage.

Absentmindedly he gazed up at the afternoon sun, long hours of cruising starting to take there toll. It was then that he noticed it. For a split second, something momentarily blocked out the sun, only to disappear a second later. Abruptly he came to a halt, and the rest of the Nines all frantically came to a screeching stop only inches behind him.

"What is going on!?" Beta demanded angrily.

He didn't respond. As he felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand up. Something felt off, but he couldn't put his finger on it. Something bad was about to happen, but he didn't know what.

All of a sudden, he heard a thunderous roar from directly above him. He looked up, and just barely managed to roll out of the way, as a massive Klaxosaur dragon snatched at him, its talons just barely missing him. Desperately the Nines dispersed, trying to regain some semblance of control, but the dragon was relentless. Immediately it swiped at Gamma, who just barely managed to dodge it. Seeing an opening Gamma dived for it, magma spear raised for a killing blow, but too late. A beam of magma energy sliced through Gamma's arm like a hot knife through butter, and Gamma let out a howl of pain and collapsed to the ground. Mercilessly the dragon lunged forward and with a sickening snap ripped Gamma's FRANXX head clean off, crushing it into a million pieces. A second later, the rest of the FRANXX exploded.

"You bastard!" Beta shouted lunging, at the Klaxosaur.

The Klaxosaur dodge, and swung its massive tail at Beta. Just barely Beta managed to block it, but the force of the blow sent the FRANXX crashing to the Earth, serval meters away.

Delta lunged, the point of her spear aimed right at the dragon's heart. The Klaxosaur swung again with its massive tail, and Delta managed to duck the blow. It was the wrong move. Alpha watched in slow motion as the dragon fired a beam of molten magma energy, right at Delta, and he watched is it skimmed Delta's exposed back. Delta let out a scream of agonized pain, as the nerves in her back her brutally scorched.

"NO!" He screamed, watching as the dragon raked its claws through Delta's FRANXX severing Delta's legs and sending the torso flying from the force of the blow. Single-mindedly he dashed over to the broken body of Delta's FRANXX, barely even noticing as the dragon fired a beam of magma energy at the recovering Beta, who's FRANXX melted and then exploded in one giant fireball.

"DELTA!" He cried, tears streaming down his face as he rushed over to the corpse of Delta's FRANXX.

Desperately he kneeled next to her broken corpse, unsure as to what he should do. If there was still even the smallest chance that Delta was still alive, he didn't want to make the situation worse.

Behind him, he heard the dragon give a roar of challenge and turning he watched as the dragon marched towards him. He knew that the dragon was goading him, so confident in its victory that it wasn't even concerned about any danger he might pose. In despair, he slammed his fist to the ground.

"Damn it all!" He screamed.

Why? Why did it have to be this way? Couldn't the dragon just leave them alone? Delta could be dead or dying, and he was just sitting here waiting to be eliminated.

No! He was not just going to sit here. If there was even the slightest chance that Delta was still alive, then he would defend it with every fiber of his being. He would not let Delta die. After everything that had been taken from him. After all the things he had been forced to endure, this was only thing he refused to back down on. Nothing was going to take away his chance to see Delta again.

He stood and raised his spear in a defensive position, waiting for the blow he knew was coming. The dragon stopped, a few meters away, and stared at him. Again it roared a challenge. But he refused to take the bait. All he cared about was Delta, and he would not do anything to sacrifice her. The dragon's gazed shifted to the destroyed corpse of Delta's FRANXX, and then after a moment, shifted back to him.

Suddenly the dragon swiped at Delta's corpse, with its massive tail. Desperately he used his pike to block the deadly strike, but the force of the blow snapped his pike clean in half, and he was left holding nothing but its pathetic, broken shaft. Numbly he stared at it, his only weapon destroyed with a casual flick of the dragon's tail. But before the dragon could strike again, he kneed in front of Delta's corpse and spread his arms wide. He would not let any more harm come to Delta. No matter what it cost him. Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes and braced himself for the blow he knew was coming. But it never did. He sat for serval agonizing moments but still nothing. Almost not daring to breathe, he opened his eyes.

The dragon stared at him for serval long moments, and he stared almost mesmerized into the Klaxosaurs glowing golden eyes. After another moment, the dragon nodded, almost respectfully and spreading its great black wings flew off into the air, leaving the carnage it had caused covered in a shroud of red dust.

He collapsed forward, dragging in shaky breaths, as all the tension left his body. He stared down almost numbly at the hands of his FRANXX stained blue from Klaxosaur blood. He didn't have the strength to move anymore. He could just keel forward and die for all he cared. He just wanted this nightmare to end.

"Alpha…." He heard faintly over the comms.

"Delta!" He screamed, the sound of her voice dragging him out of the darkness.

He whipped his head around and saw Delta's decimated FRANXX lying only feet away from him. Hurriedly he crawled over to her and then slammed on the deactivation sequence for his FRANXX. Agonizingly it situated itself into a kneeling position, and he felt his conscience separating from the FRANXX. Dragging his arms and legs out of the controls, he made to dash off but was painfully stopped as the pins that kept the feeding mask muzzled to his face tore at his flesh and kept him anchored to the controls. He let out a scream of pain and rage, furious that yet again something had to go wrong. Could there be one time in his life that something went his way?

He let out a snarl and yanked his face away, the pins tearing long gashes in his cheeks as he struggled to get away. Agonizingly he ripped his face away, his own blood splatter in the cockpit of his FRANXX, as he fell backward crashing to the floor. Almost blind with pain, he struggled to his feet and made his way towards the cockpit entrance, his own blood cascading down his face.

Numbly he programmed his FRANXX, and its hand ascended to the cockpit entrance, stepping onto the palm, and descended to the surface, staggering to his knees, into Earth's red soil. With a groan of pain, he struggled upright and numbly ran over to Delta's FRANXX.

"Delta!" He screamed, banging his fist on the faceplate of her FRANXX. "DELTA!"

Nothing.

Desperately he ran over to the emergency release lever. With all of his might he managed to disengage the locking mechanism and letting out a scream of rage, he managed to twist open the release. The faceplate fell to the ground with a deafening crash, but finally, the door to the cockpit was revealed. Digging his fingers into the door seem, he forced the door open and dashed into the cockpit.

"Delta!" He screamed, blinking rapidly as his eyes adjusting to the dark.

"Alpha," Delta's faint voice moaned.

A moment later, he saw her, lying sprawled against the far wall, her body contorted in an unnatural position. Hurriedly he rushed over to her and scooping her up, slumped to the floor.

"Delta." He whispered, staring at the deep gash marks in her cheeks, from the feeding mask ripping free from her face.

Her eyes fluttered open, and she stared up at him, her eyes filled with pain.

"I'm so glad you're alive." He said, tears of relief starting to cascade down his cheeks.

"Y-You came back for me." She crooked.

He smiled. "Of course, I did."

She dragged in a shaky breath. "What… What happened to the Klaxosaur?"

"It killed Beta and Gamma," He said, strangely not feeling a thing for his fallen comrades. "But after that, it flew away."

"Good." She breathed.

She smiled up at him and tried to change her position, so she could snuggle closer to him. But strangely, she failed to move. Instantly the color drained from her face, and she stared down at herself, horrified.

"No!" She cried, her voice trembling. "No, no, no, this can't be happening!"

She began sobbing hysterically, her whole body convulsing with wracking sobs, as she desperately tried to convince herself that this wasn't happening.

"Delta!" He cried, his voice cracking. "What's wrong?"

"I…" She choked. "I can't feel my legs!"

He felt a sinking feeling in his stomach, and it felt like somebody was squeezing hs throat. He glanced down at her legs and saw that they were twisted and splayed in very unnatural positions that should be supremely uncomfortable.

Gently he leaned her against the wall of the cockpit and gently straightened out her legs. "Anything?" He said softly.

She shook her head.

Moving slowly, he started squeezing and poking different points on her legs. He went back and forth, thoroughly testing every inch, and nothing he did provoked any response. As he got higher and higher, he could feel his heart aching as he discovered the extent of Delta's injury. Nothing provoked any response, even when she insisted that he touch between her legs, and around her backside. Nothing. It wasn't until he reached her waist that she showed any response.

Finished, he stared at Delta. His precious Delta. Who lay broken and maimed, paralyzed from the waist down.

"Why?" She sobbed, staring up at him. "Why did this have to happen to me!?"

Gently he gathered her up in his arms and held her, giving her an affectionate nuzzle.

"I don't know." He said, his voice trembling. "I wish I could just make this all go away."

She collapsed against him. "I never did anything wrong." She sobbed. "Not once did I ever disobey Papa. I even suffered through those horrible injections because he ordered me too. Where did I go wrong!?"

"You didn't." He whispered softly.

"I must have!" She sobbed. "This is punishment for something!"

He sobbed, his tears cascading down his cheeks.

Delta went limp in his arms and just sobbed, not even having the strength to keep herself upright anymore. They sat like that for hours, until all their energy had left them, leaving them with nothing but their own sorrow. When the sun seemed to be abandoning them, the oppressive darkness of the cockpit of Delta's FRANXX, closing in on them as they fought to remain in the little light that remained to them.

They lay there enveloped in their own misery, Alpha only just managing to offer his meager support to the broken Delta. As they lay there, however, he felt something warm and wet, beginning to soak his leg, and with a groan, he realized what it was.

Delta let out a sob of frustration as she stared down at herself, the growing dark spot around her crotch becoming more and more apparent. She lay there, helpless tears of frustration and embarrassment, cascading down her cheeks.

"I hate this." She sobbed, her voice thick with self-loathing and embarrassment. "I FUCKING HATE THIS!"

Gently he held her close, showing his undying support for her, even in her weakest moment.

"Let me go." She sobbed, futilely struggling to wriggle free of his embrace.

"Never." He whispered, tightening his hold on her.

"I just want to die." She sobbed as she collapsed against his chest. "Just make it end, Alpha. I can't live like this."

"I won't let you die." He said softly, gently tucking some loose hair behind her ears. "You're too important to me."

"I'm not important to anybody." She sobbed. "I can't even control my own body anymore."

"You're important to me, Delta." He said, holding her still. "And I won't live in a world without you in it."

Delta collapsed, her face in her hands, her whole body shaking with wracking sobs. "What did we do to deserve this?" She choked.

He held her and looked out at the setting sun, the bloody crimson sky mirroring the landscape it overlooked. "I don't know…."

Thank you for reading Chapter 21 of The Jian Bird

It took a little longer than I had planned, but I hope you enjoyed. I'll try to have the next one out as soon as I can.

Stay tuned for Chapter 22: Binding Together