••••
’Why did you bring Loveth?’ I mentally ask Vage.
’What she says is true. You will need her to stop the demons. She needs to know everything and be just as capable.’
The doorway opens up, and I walk Loveth into the pitch black rectangle. Waiting for my eyes to adjust to the red light, I continue, but Loveth remains rooted where she stands.
"Nick, I can’t see," her voice quavers, and I look to see terror in her blind eyes.
"Relax, Loveth. I can see just fine. I promise no one is going to hurt you," I reassure her.
I can see her nod, and I wrap my arms around her bare flesh, hugging her tight to me, as we walk along the suspended walkway, following the arrows in my vision.
’She will need the nanites, too. Make sure she is quiet when you walk in. I have an applicator ready in here.’
I stop where we are and speak to my sister. "When we get there, I will have to give you the nanites. You will be able to see, and after a few seconds, we will be able to send messages mentally to each other." I give her a serious look, before I remember she can’t see me. "Once we walk into that room, you can’t say a word. Make as little noise as possible."
She nods, but asks, "Why?"
"She is incubating... her... children," I almost mess up and say, ’our children.’
"So, there will be even more aliens up here?" She asks, and I’m glad to see she is starting to relax. I wonder how much of that is because in our minds, we can both see Vage sitting on her cylinder.
"Yeah," I tell her uncomfortably. "Now be quiet, and don’t make a noise. They are sensitive to light and sound."
Loveth nods, and we walk in. I hope that Loveth handles the nanites better than I did at first and that she can stay quiet.
I needn’t have worried, though, as Vage directs me to a separate room, where the applicator with the nanites waits. As soon as we walk in, the door closes silently behind us.
"We are actually in a different room now," I tell her. "Brace yourself, these don’t feel very good at first."
I did not wait for a reply before grabbing up the instrument and injecting the tiny robots into her thigh.
She yelps and grabs the spot where I’ve injected her. I can see her veins change color as the things enter her bloodstream and spread.
"Oh, god, it feels like fire," Loveth moans.
I step up to her and hug her tight, knowing she will be okay. Her arms squeeze me tight in return, and I hold her, through her screams and agony, until it’s over.
I mentally tell her to think about her words to me.
’Like this?’ Her words appear before my eyes, and I nod, knowing that she can see me now. ’Why is everything red?’ she asks next.
’I have been thinking about that. I think the nanites allow us to see into the infrared, but it appears red to us.’ She seems to accept this explanation, only to have Vage confirm it to both of us a moment later. ’Are you ready to meet Vage?’
When she nods, the doorway opens, and we walk into the other room.
===================================
The front door slamming wakes me up. I figure it’s just mom finally getting home from up north, and I try to roll over, but I run into something.
Or rather, someone.
My eyes flash open at the same time Loveth’s do, and we realize the predicament we’re in. We’re both still naked, and she is in my bed.
Panic-stricken, we both jump out of bed. Well, I try to, but my legs get caught up in the blankets, and I hit the floor with a thud.
My lovely, sweet, beautiful, and sexy sister titters at me, and I glare back as I get to my feet. We can hear mom coming down the hallway, and I know there is no time for her to get out. I point to the closet. Loveth nods and jumps in, just in time for my door to creak open.
"Mom!" I protest, standing there naked, and trying to cover myself up.
"Oh, it’s not like I haven’t seen it—" she cuts herself short, as she sniffs a couple times. Her sharp eyes look deep into me for a few loud heartbeats. She looks around my room, then back at me, before continuing to talk, "I brought breakfast home. You look like you’re feeling better, so get dressed, and, um, tell your sister, too." She turns and closes the door.
I know we’ve been busted even before we walk out of my room. Loveth goes to her bedroom to get dressed, and I find Mom setting out a fast-food breakfast on the table.
’How much trouble do you think we’re in?’ Loveth’s words flash in front of my eyes. I don’t know, and I tell her so.
"Mom, I—" I try to say something, but her sharp look locks my tongue up tight.
"We will wait for your sister, and then we can talk," she tells me, and from her tone, I know there is no arguing with her. I wonder how much trouble we’re in.
When Loveth joins us, we all sit at the table, in silence. Mom is the first to speak, her tone flat and emotionless.
"I knew your dad was cheating on me for years. It hurt, but I had no choice, because if I left him, I knew I’d lose everything."
Her eyes go back and forth between us as she speaks, as if to make sure we’re listening. Part of me feels shame for hurting her, but another part of me says that we’re not an official thing, so it wasn’t really cheating. She is my mom, and we can never really be together.
"I can’t tell you that what you’re doing is wrong, or even gross, because of what we’ve already done, Nick," my Mom said with the same emotionless tone, and I wish she hadn’t said that.
Loveth’s eyes grow large as she figures out what Mom means. She hits my arm and looks at me in shock.
"No way! You and mom?" she demands, and the exact words flash in front of my vision; she was so shocked that her thoughts and mouth were speaking the same thing.