you.”
Kim smiled again. “I know. I wasn’t criticizing your appearance. I just mean that it is easy to forget how old you are. Unless we are talking like this, you are just my little boy.”
George stopped moving and stared at Kim. “Really? You think of me as your son?”
“Yes, of course. Cort and I both do.”
George continued to stare as he quietly said, “I know Cort loves me. I assumed that you did not because I am not born of you.”
“No you are not. But you are my son, nonetheless. I want you to grow up with Dalek. I want to watch you both grow into your potential.” Kim put her arm around her son and pulled him against her again. “I love you, George.”
George leaned against Kim’s breast and whispered, “I love you too, Mom.”
He didn’t see the new, happier tears, stream down Kim’s cheeks. Without looking up, he said, “I can help Father.”
Kim sat up, wiping the tears from her face. “What do you mean?”
“I have access to the complete datanet. I can mine the ‘net and find the people who tried to kill him. The people who killed Dar. But it would violate Father’s instructions.”
Staring at him for a moment, Kim made a decision. “Do it. I will handle your father.”
“Okay.” George looked at Kimberly for a moment. “Do you think I have a soul, Mother?”
Kim didn’t hesitate. “You said you love us, so you must. Don’t you think?”
George scooted away from Kimberly and leaned over to put his head in her lap. As she put her hand on his shoulder, he closed his eyes and began to work.
Two
In orbit above Earth, Cort awoke in the Kalashnikov’s infirmary. The left side of his face was tingling, a sure sign that the bio-synthetics in his blood were busy rebuilding his face. His neck and the other side of his face also felt as if they were asleep, but it was his left eye socket that actually woke him up. Turning his head to find the source of a noise on that side, a H’uuman doctor looked back at him. The tall, cockroach-like being looked at Cort and shook his antennae in a way that Cort had come to realize was disapproving.
Handing Cort a comm unit and waiting until it was inside Cort’s ear, the bug clicked in his native tongue and the comm unit translated the noise almost instantly. Cort was surprised, because for the first time in all his communication with the species, he only heard the translation.
“General, not only are you very hard to kill, you are incredibly asinine.”
“Thanks, doc. Why don’t I hear clicking?”
“Because you only have one ear right now. Why did you cut your eye out? Do you realize how long it will take it to grow back? You are going to spend months looking like a one-eyed fool. First Queen Heroc led us to believe you were an intelligent human. I fail to share that assessment.”
“How bad am I?”
“Your face will be permanently damaged. The bomb did a very good job of marring you. Your eyesight and hearing will return, and your bone structure will be repaired, but the surface will more resemble how you looked when you first battled the Cuplans.”
The H’uumans and the Cuplans were actually the same species. The three-meter tall insectoids went the by name of their Supreme Leader. At the time Cort fought them, Cupla was their leader. When Cort destroyed their ability to make war, he allowed them one planet to be ruled by a male named H’uum.
One of the captive insectoids, a female named Heroc, had negotiated the treaty that allowed her species to survive. One of the terms of the treaty stipulated that the species never leave their planet without Ares permission. Later, when Heroc became First Queen of the H’uuman Empire, her immediate contribution to the canon of laws that guided H’uuman life was to swear her species’ fealty to Dalek. Cort’s son was pronounced prince and living god to the insects. Heroc’s Law
Kim smiled again. “I know. I wasn’t criticizing your appearance. I just mean that it is easy to forget how old you are. Unless we are talking like this, you are just my little boy.”
George stopped moving and stared at Kim. “Really? You think of me as your son?”
“Yes, of course. Cort and I both do.”
George continued to stare as he quietly said, “I know Cort loves me. I assumed that you did not because I am not born of you.”
“No you are not. But you are my son, nonetheless. I want you to grow up with Dalek. I want to watch you both grow into your potential.” Kim put her arm around her son and pulled him against her again. “I love you, George.”
George leaned against Kim’s breast and whispered, “I love you too, Mom.”
He didn’t see the new, happier tears, stream down Kim’s cheeks. Without looking up, he said, “I can help Father.”
Kim sat up, wiping the tears from her face. “What do you mean?”
“I have access to the complete datanet. I can mine the ‘net and find the people who tried to kill him. The people who killed Dar. But it would violate Father’s instructions.”
Staring at him for a moment, Kim made a decision. “Do it. I will handle your father.”
“Okay.” George looked at Kimberly for a moment. “Do you think I have a soul, Mother?”
Kim didn’t hesitate. “You said you love us, so you must. Don’t you think?”
George scooted away from Kimberly and leaned over to put his head in her lap. As she put her hand on his shoulder, he closed his eyes and began to work.
Two
In orbit above Earth, Cort awoke in the Kalashnikov’s infirmary. The left side of his face was tingling, a sure sign that the bio-synthetics in his blood were busy rebuilding his face. His neck and the other side of his face also felt as if they were asleep, but it was his left eye socket that actually woke him up. Turning his head to find the source of a noise on that side, a H’uuman doctor looked back at him. The tall, cockroach-like being looked at Cort and shook his antennae in a way that Cort had come to realize was disapproving.
Handing Cort a comm unit and waiting until it was inside Cort’s ear, the bug clicked in his native tongue and the comm unit translated the noise almost instantly. Cort was surprised, because for the first time in all his communication with the species, he only heard the translation.
“General, not only are you very hard to kill, you are incredibly asinine.”
“Thanks, doc. Why don’t I hear clicking?”
“Because you only have one ear right now. Why did you cut your eye out? Do you realize how long it will take it to grow back? You are going to spend months looking like a one-eyed fool. First Queen Heroc led us to believe you were an intelligent human. I fail to share that assessment.”
“How bad am I?”
“Your face will be permanently damaged. The bomb did a very good job of marring you. Your eyesight and hearing will return, and your bone structure will be repaired, but the surface will more resemble how you looked when you first battled the Cuplans.”
The H’uumans and the Cuplans were actually the same species. The three-meter tall insectoids went the by name of their Supreme Leader. At the time Cort fought them, Cupla was their leader. When Cort destroyed their ability to make war, he allowed them one planet to be ruled by a male named H’uum.
One of the captive insectoids, a female named Heroc, had negotiated the treaty that allowed her species to survive. One of the terms of the treaty stipulated that the species never leave their planet without Ares permission. Later, when Heroc became First Queen of the H’uuman Empire, her immediate contribution to the canon of laws that guided H’uuman life was to swear her species’ fealty to Dalek. Cort’s son was pronounced prince and living god to the insects. Heroc’s Law
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