Ethereal Lives: A Romantic Sci-Fi Novel

Chapter 28

Ariane stared unseeingly out the control room viewing window. This seemed to be all she did at the moment. Against her will, she had been banished from the engine room. Apparently...It was too dangerous for a reproducing female.

Trel would no longer train her to fight...It was too dangerous.

She was no longer allowed to get her own meals...It was too dangerous. As soon as her pregnancy had been confirmed, Brise had told her she couldn't prepare her own food. She didn't know enough about their produce to know what was safe for her to eat. He, on the other hand, was doing extensive research on the subject.

Everything was now too dangerous.

With nothing to do the days seemed never-ending, even using the computer had grown tiresome. As they headed closer to the Sixth Galaxy in search of Ax, Ariane found time dragging with no way to occupy herself. She couldn't move without someone hovering over her ensuring she was alright.

No one had any idea how her pregnancy would progress, this was new territory. Apparently, when Ethereals reproduced they merged their particles in their natural state and when they separated each left a piece of themselves behind to create another Ethereal. It appeared Ariane was doing things the human way but did she carry a human? She had no way of knowing.

Resting her hand on her stomach, she gently rubbed it as she sent loving thoughts to the child inside. No matter what it was, as part of her and Ax, she would love it.

"What's wrong?"

She jumped when Sek appeared on her right, worry creasing his face.

"Why would anything be wrong?"

"You rubbed your belly." He indicated her hand, which still rested low on her abdomen.

"And?"

"I thought maybe it was hurting."

Ariane removed her hand and slumped into a seat. "It was just an affectionate gesture. I'm fine."

Relief washed over his face. "Oh, good."

She rose, only to be stopped by his hand on her shoulder.

"What do you want? I'll get it for you."

She nudged his hand away. "I don't want anything."

"Then where are you going?" Panic seemed to be rolling off of him as he hovered above her.

"To the bathroom," she gritted out between her teeth. Spinning away, she stormed from the room, her footsteps thumping down the corridor. When she encountered Praid, he stepped out of her way, obviously seeing the anger in her face and in no hurry to question it.

Entering a room she'd claimed as her own, she flopped onto the bed and groaned. This was getting ridiculous. The men were hovering over her like mother hens, refusing to let her do anything. It had to stop. Ax was missing, and despite Praid's best efforts, they hadn't been able to track the escape pod. They had more important things to worry about than what she could have for breakfast. Resting her hand on her stomach, she instantly felt guilty for the thought. She had to be careful with the new life she carried. That didn't mean she needed the men watching over her every second of the day, though. She felt fine. Besides a hint of sickness, she was healthy. It was easy to believe she wasn't really pregnant, but the men were convinced the test was correct. She found herself longing for the day when she would feel movement and have confirmation there really was a child inside her and that was alive and well.

Knocking on the door caused her to grip the bed covers in frustration and groan again.

"Ariane are you alright?"