The Blindness

essence of my keeper

It was nearly a week before Emethfinally allowed the Elder to remove the Huntress from the maturation pool. She was still fairly weak when he did, and she required the Elders constant attention for nearly another week. It pleased the Huntress greatly when her Parvana refused to leave her side, but the physical toll carrying multiple wraith-kin, had taken on her body was greater than anyone expected. Even with repeated gift's of life from the Elder her body still healed slower then it should have. The Huntress was not even on her feet yet, when her Hive commander brought someone to meet her that would change her world forever.

When Emeth entered the Huntress quarters the Elder was sitting next to her bed and she was fast sleep. The Hive commander was carrying a large bundle of cloth that covered nearly his whole upper torso. When the elder questioned him silently Emeth just looked at the bundle and then at the Huntress. The elder quickly realized what he was carrying, and nodded in approval. When the Elder moved aside so Emeth could sit next to the Huntress, the bundle he carried moved and made a small growling noise. Emeth turned to look inside the bundle, he purred softly and shook it until it calmed in his arm's.

"What is going on?" the Huntress' voice was a whisper as she began to stir. Emeth glanced over to the Elder who just watched him calmly. When Emeth silently asked for approval, again, the Elder gave it with a nod.

"I have brought someone to meet you, Huntress." Emeth purred.

"I'm tired, go away." she rolled away from him with a groan. Emeth reached up and removed the wrappings from around the object he carried to reveal the small light gray skinned child beneath. When the light hit the child's eye's he made a noise that made the Huntress's heart drop through her feet. She immediately turned back to face the Hive commander sitting on the edge of her bed, who couldn't hide his enjoyment in her reaction. The Huntress reached out with a gasp and Emeth placed the child in her arm's. The Huntress embraced him, with both her arms and her mind.

> Zah'ren < the child's mind purred. The Huntress tried desperately to control her emotions as she felt over every inch of the child before her. He was big, a toddler by human standard's, and the sounds he made where multi toned, like his sire she thought. The child pawed at her face with his claws, she could not tell if they were just uncut or actually thick and wraithlike. He did not hurt her, he was just playing, mimicking her as she examined his flesh with her hands. After several minutes it was much easier for the Huntress to control her emotions.

"I don't understand?" she turned to Emeth inquisitively.

"I was with him when it happened." Emeth stated calmly.

"When what happened?" the Huntress didn't even give the Hive commander time to take a breath.

"The pod's systems began shutting down, the Hive released him." Emeth was calm but it did not seam to sooth the Huntress worry.

"He is...?" she couldn't bring herself to ask, she was told he would remain under the Hives care for up to two year's, it had been barely one, it concerned her greatly.

"Healthy, strong, and as fierce as..." Emeth stopped himself before he could mention the Keeper, but the Huntress already heard his thought's.

"...his sire." she finished his sentence. Even as the child made noise and tore at the blanket next to her, she smiled and turned to the Elder who she knew was standing on the far side of the room. He was calm, soothing even, there was no rage or anger in him. The Huntress mentally thanked him for allowing her this moment, to truly indulge in the life she created with another, unchallenged.

"Essence of My Keeper." she whispered into the child's ear as he played on her lap. "I certainly cant call you that all the time." she laughed after a moment.

"The child will choose his own name in time, until then you may call him whatever you wish." Emeth purred as he watched the two interact joyfully, it was the first time the Huntress had truly smiled in months. Both the Elder and Hive commander found some kinda peace in watching her play with the child for hours.

*************   ( the last message home ) ***********

"There is one last thing I need to do." the Huntress turned to the Elder late in the evening, once they were alone. When he did not respond to her, she just continued anyway. "Your the only one who an help me with this." she pushed him to answer her.

"Sending a message to Atlantis could prove detrimental." he did not want to say it, but she pushed him into it. He knew what she wanted.

"I know how much you fear, what Shepard will do, if he ever found out I'm here, in your bed. This is not about that." the Huntress groaned.

"I do not fear Shepard." the Elder growled.

"I never said you did." she growled back at him. When he did not give in she continued. "I said you fear what he will do. Even I do." the Huntress admission seemed to calm the Elder Wraith. After several more groans, he finally agreed to the logic in her word's.

"Shepard could be a threat to you, a threat to us." he groaned.

"That's why I have to alleviate that threat." the Huntress sighed. "You know as well as I do. No matter what we do, one day I will cross Shepard's path. When that day come's, would you rather he be, an enemy or an Allie?"

"I will not let him separate us, again." the Elder growled scornfully, he still blamed Shepard for keeping him from his Parvana for so long.

"That's why I must do this... Help me?" the Huntress asked calmly, as she tugged on the elder's arm. Eventually, he gave into to her request, preparing a console to visually record her as she spoke, so there could be no question as to the source of the message. Once everything was prepared he placed her in front of the console and told her she could begin whenever she was ready.