✅ Project SETI Trilogy

Chapter Three - Part XVI: Betrayal

          "For one thing... I don't think we should tell the government," Nova said decisively. He went to sit up, but Gabriel gently put his hand on his chest and motioned for him to remain as he was.

          "Yeah... I can't see them taking kindly to this," Gabriel said as he placed the probe against the egg. "It's smaller than average, but it looks healthy by all appearances. I wonder how long it's been growing in there..."

          Nova looked serious and contemplative as Gabriel finished the more-thorough examination. When he was done, Gabriel threw him a small towel to wipe off the gel. "I'm worried, Gabe—especially with what Julia's told us about how Project SETI was terminated..."

          "I know, sweets. It's a complicated situation," Gabriel blew out a sigh as he gathered his thoughts and moved to get dressed again.

          "... nothing—no one is born evil," Nova said quietly. "I don't think Sam's decision was right."

          "Yeah... Jules didn't feel good about it either, and... neither do I..."

          "What do we do...?" Nova lamented.

          Gabriel pulled him into a reassuring embrace when he finished pulling on his pants again. "What do you want to do, sweetheart? It's your body, after all..."

          "I'm... not entirely sure," he replied apprehensively. "But... is it weird that I kinda want to keep it...?"

          "Naw... even considering what it is, I'd say that's a pretty natural instinct," Gabriel assured him. He moved over to the corner of the room where the couch and table were situated, sat down, and started to roll a joint of a very generous width and length.

          Nova sighed. "I'm also kinda confused as to how this happened. I know I had a huge amount of Daxut fertility drugs in my body, but Julia did an ultrasound and she said there wasn't anything... like that inside..."

          Gabriel was silent while he thought about it and finished rolling the joint, and Nova joined him in the meantime. "Mm... well, there may have been residual sperm or something of that nature, from when you... we... were on the Temetor One. In combination with the fertility drugs, it allowed an egg to form. That's my best guess, anyway..."

          "Goddamn it..."

          Gabriel sparked the joint and took a few pulls on it to light it properly, then passed it to Nova. "Why don't we just relax a little bit before we make any rash decisions."

          Nova took a long drag before he answered. "Yeah... okay."

          "... I actually think we should tell Temet," Gabriel said after they'd passed it back and forth a few times. "It... might cheer her up, maybe..."

          Nova nodded and turned the still-burning joint in his hand while pointedly observing it. "I wonder if Daxut have space-bird-weed that they smoke—" he trailed off into a laugh, "god... I'm trying to imagine Temet ripping a bong and it's a ridiculous mental image."

          Gabriel snorted and took the joint from him. "We can ask her, you know."

          "Right..."

          Gabriel took a few long pulls of the cannabis smoke and held it, then put out the spent end in the ashtray nearby before he took Nova's face in his hands and gently blew a secondhand toke into his lungs. He was going to pull away when he was done, but Nova leaned into him and began to kiss him.