Love And War Bk. 04

"Ok, kids. Ready Room. Let's get the AAR analyzed." Rachael stood and led them to her office.

Jason gave her the report chip, and she plugged it into her console. She grinned and shook her head. "If you keep pulling off perfect missions like this, Starfleet is going to run out of medals to give you all. As it stands, I'm putting the entire Wing in for the Solar Standard for this one."

"Thank you, ma'am." Jason said with a smile. "I didn't even have to call all the shots this time. They knew what to do and when to do it."

"Because you trained them to the peak of perfection, guys!" She grinned then got a surprised look in her eyes. "Ryan! The baby kicked!"

Ryan's eyes lit up and he moved to her side and placed his hand on her belly. "He's a fighter pilot, baby!" He grinned as the baby kicked again. "He knows a perfect mission when he sees one!"

Everyone laughed at that, even Rachael. "We'll have him flying combat missions before he's out of diapers!" She said finally after her laugh had turned to a chuckle.

"Then I'd better start training him the day after you give birth, honey." Ryan kissed her before she could laugh again.

"I know what his callsign will be. 'Babyface' would work well." Delaara grinned as she said it.

"Brandon!" Rachael said. "We'll name him after my father."

"I like it. Brandon 'Babyface' Rasher." Ryan smiled and kissed her again lovingly.

They all laughed again, and Rachael said "Ok, you two. Get to 11Forward and buy a round for your boys and girls. I need to have some alone time with my hubby here. Now, get moving you wankers!" She chuckled as they went.

*****

Jason and Delaara entered the bar to find Bounce dancing with Marie, Alex dancing with Jenny, Doc dancing with Tanya, and Arrow sitting with the Angels at their usual table.

"Skulls! Drinks are on me!" Jason shouted to thunderous cheers.

*****

Enterprise arrived shortly before the repairs to Bombay had been completed to take the crew of the Cardassian ship into custody. Bombay limped back to Starbase at Warp 2 for repairs, and Nimitz accompanied Enterprise back to Starfleet Command on Earth as an escort after scuttling the Cardassian ship, sending it into the core of the nearby gas giant.

-------------------------------------------------

Angel of Darkness

Above Starfleet Headquarters, Earth.

Jason and Delaara lay in bed, kissing and cuddling. It had been a month since they'd conceived their child, and she was positively radiant. The best thing about a pregnant Romulan woman was that her morning sickness was very brief, lasting barely a week. She was, however, very horny during her first trimester, and she took advantage of Jason whenever possible.

"Mmmmmm God, sweetheart." Jason said after his breathing finally returned to normal. "If you keep this up, I'm going to be dead before our baby's born!" He chuckled and kissed her lovingly.

"I can't help it, baby. I'm horny pretty much all the time now!" Delaara replied. Once the baby was large enough, he'd pulled her from flight duty, for hers and their baby's safety.

"I know, honey. I'm sorry. Let me grab some more oysters, and I should be ready to go again." He winked and stepped to the replicator naked.

"Jason, why can't I fly with you anymore?" She asked with a hurt tone, fighting back tears.

He turned and ran back to the bed, holding her close. The mood swings were another hazard, but he was willing to endure them. "You know why, sweetheart." He said it softly, holding her as she finished fighting back her tears and returned to normal.

"I'm sorry, Jason. Oh my God, I can't believe these mood swings!" She chuckled.

"Maybe we should see Doc and he might be able to prescribe something to help?" Jason asked, shrugging hopefully.

"NO! I WILL NOT SUBJECT MY BABY TO DRUGS!" She shouted and snarled at him. Jason felt the almost unbearable urge to dive for cover under her withering glare.

She shook herself and looked at him again. "I'm so sorry, baby. I think we might want to talk to Doc. If I'm snapping at you like this..." She shook her head and pulled him to her, hugging and kissing him lovingly.

"Ok, then let's get dressed and go see him." Jason dressed quickly as she did, praying that she didn't go ballistic on him again.

*****

"I can give you something for the mood swings, Delaara." Doc Tavolk said with a nod. "Your baby will be fine." He smiled his little smile that would have been a full fledged grin on other species. It was the most emotion the ostracized Vulcan ever showed. He wasn't completely emotionless, which had caused a serious rift between him and his family back home, but had made him good friends with Ambassador Spock.

"Thanks, Doc." Jason breathed a sigh of relief. Between the mood swings and her excessive horniness lately, he'd been getting very little sleep at night.

"No problem, Jason." Doc nodded. On this ship full of mavericks, he fit right in. As far as Jason and most of the rest of the crew was concerned, the popular opinion was that he was the best damn doctor in Starfleet.

"Thank you, Doc. Will it also alleviate my.... horniness?" Delaara blushed and grimaced a bit.

"It will balance your hormones, Delaara. Since your child is half Human as well as half Romulan, it is sending your hormones into, for lack of a better term, overdrive. But since your physiology is nearly identical to Vulcan females, this medication will work for you as well.

Delaara knew that sometimes Vulcan women mated with Humans, so Doc knew what was needed. "Thank you again, Doc." She breathed a huge sigh of relief.

Jason had suspected that there might be problems with her pregnancy, so if this was the most severe, he could live with that, as could she.

She looked at him and smiled her radiant smile. "I'm going to be a mommy!" She grinned and hugged Jason to her, kissing him softly.

"The most beautiful mommy in the galaxy, my love." Jason replied in perfect Romulan.

"I love it when you speak Romulan, baby. You don't even have an accent." She smiled warmly at her husband.

"I worked hard to get rid of it when speaking your language, love." He smiled back as the words rolled off his tongue.

"Tonight, my shining star, I wish for you to hold me as we sleep, and to keep me in your arms." She said in a verse from an old Romulan poem.

"Then I shall hold you for the rest of our lives, my darkest angel." He replied from the male verse of the same poem.

Delaara was once again shocked. "You know 'Love of Light and Darkness', baby?"

Jason shrugged. "Romulan poetry is the most romantic I've ever read, to be honest." He smiled and blushed.

Delaara couldn't believe it. Jason had to be Romulan in a past life. There was no other explanation. She grinned. "You have a Romulan soul, my dearest one." She whispered in his ear in her language.

"I will take that as a compliment, then." He smiled and kissed her lovingly.

"I hate to break this up, but I've given you your shot, Delaara, You should be feeling normal again soon. Now, make sure you come back in one week for another checkup and possible shot." Doc said.

"Thank you, Doc." Delaara said with a warm smile for their friend. She hadn't even felt the shot in her arm, since she'd been distracted by Jason's poetic prowess.

"It was my pleasure. Now, if you would please kindly un-ass my workspace, I would be most grateful." Doc said in his usual monotone, which caused Jason and Delaara to laugh.

"You got it, Doc. We'll get out of your hair." Jason said as they left.

As they walked from medbay back to the turbolift, Jason said "Oh, we now have 48 hours off, in case we want to head home for a bit." He'd heard from Rachael that she was authorizing shore leave while in Earth orbit. Enterprise was also doing the same.

"Yes! Oh, baby! We can break the news to the Bikers!" Delaara was grinning ear to ear.

"Big Lou is going to shit himself!" Jason grinned in agreement. "Let's go."

They went to the transporter and beamed down to their house, which had once belonged to his parents before their deaths. They changed into jeans, t-shirts, boots, and leather jackets.

"Damn, you look great in jeans, leather, and that Trivium shirt, baby!" Jason grinned at his biker babe wife. Her breasts had already started growing due to her pregnancy, and she was nearly a D-cup now.

"Well, you grabbed the Wolfsbane shirt." She slipped her arms around his neck and kissed him lovingly.

Jason kissed her back tenderly, handed her the safety goggles, and said in Romulan "Ready to ride, my love?"

"Always, my darling," she replied in her native language.

They walked out to the garage, and Jason fired up his Harley. Delaara swung her leg over behind him, and slid her arms around his waist as he gunned the engine and raised the garage door with his remote switch. The Hog roared as he accelerated outside, and the door closed behind them as they turned left towards their hangout.

They pulled into Big Lou's a few minutes later, and he helped her off the bike after sliding out of the seat himself.

"Why thank you, kind sir." She winked as she switched to her southern drawl. Since Romulus had very few accents, she'd been experimenting with Earth accents, and had found the southern American to be her favorite.

Jason chuckled as they walked to the door, and he opened it for her.

"WELL HOLY SHIT!" Lou shouted in his usual greeting as he rumbled across the floor to grab them both in his bear hug.

Jason and Delaara were laughing by the time the big Biker and former Marine let them go. "Great to see you, Lou!" Jason said. "Where's Kralla?"

"She's in the back with little Vinnie. One sec." He turned. "Hey, Kralla! Bring Vinnie out here. We got some visitors!"

They were the only ones in the bar at that point, since it was still before noon. Sally hadn't even arrived for her shift yet. Kralla came out of the back with her toddler in her arms. He had obvious Klingon features with some Human characteristics. Kralla looked and saw them, and her face lit up. "Jay! Del! Hot damn!" She marched up to them, handed Vincent to his father, and hugged them both tight. "How the hell have ya both been?" She grinned.

"Wonderful, Kralla!" Delaara said. "We're pregnant!"

The Klingon woman's jaw dropped, then spread in a huge grin. "That's wonderful!" She grinned and squealed like a girl. She hugged them both again. "You hear that, Lou? They're gonna have a baby!"

"Hell yeah, I heard! Getting them some drinks right now!" Lou shouted from the bar. "Come on over and let's celebrate!"

They walked towards the bar and Lou handed Delaara a synthbeer and Jason a real beer. He then handed a beer to Kralla and sat his son on the bar. Vinnie grinned at them all, feeling the positive energy in the room. Jason picked him up in one arm as he swigged his beer.

"How ya doin', champ?" He asked with a grin, and Vinnie hugged his 'Uncle Jay' around the neck.

"Gud Unca Jay," Vinnie said in his toddler voice. He then said "Aunty Del!" and nearly jumped out of Jason's arms at his Romulan 'Aunt'.

Delaara held him then, and she felt what it was like to be a mom for the first time. She smiled at him. "How's my favorite nephew? You're going to have a cousin to play with soon!" She tapped him on his little nose, and he giggled.

They were all playing with Vinnie when the first thrums of Federation Transporters brought in Ryan, Will, Jean-Luc, Alex, Jenny, Tony, and Marie.

"Hey, Rash!" Lou stood up and ran to hug his Biker buddy, picking him up in his customary Bear Hug.

"Oof. Lemme go, Lou. I love ya too!" Ryan laughed as he introduced first Captain Picard, Commander Riker, Alex, Jenny, Tony, and Marie.

"Good to meet ya." Lou grinned. "Any friends of Rash, Jay, and Del are family of mine! Come on up to the bar and meet my missus and baby boy!"

They all came up to the bar, and most were surprised to see Kralla there with Vinnie in her arms. She and Del were laughing at his antics, and soon Will joined in. Then the thrum of more transporter beams as Worf and Deanna beamed in.

Surprisingly, they were all dressed in civvies, and most had on jeans, t-shirts, and leather jackets.

"Lou here is a thirty year vet of the Marines, and his story with Kralla isn't much different than ours." Jason said to his friends.

"Yeah, we met first during the Cardassian Conflict." Lou said as he kissed his wife.

Then the sound of a powerful V-Twin from the parking lot made Lou's eyes go wide as he looked out the window. "I'd recognize the sound of a Ducati anywhere!" He nearly ran towards the door.

"And that would be Rachael unleashing her inner Biker." Rash was grinning ear to ear as he followed the big Biker out into the parking lot.

The next they saw him, Lou had Rash and Rachael under each arm and brought them into the bar, grinning like a kid in a candy store.

"Are you sure you should ride while five months pregnant, Rachael?" Will asked in mild surprise.

"Bloody hell, Will. This kid's going to know how to ride by the time he's born!" Rachael grinned and kissed Ryan lovingly.

"He's gonna know how to fly a Valkyrie before he's potty trained, too!" Ryan added after their kiss.

Everyone laughed as the conversation really got underway.

"Lou, Alex and Jenny are together, by the way." Jason informed his friends.

"Yeah, sorta figured that, the way he's got his arm around her waist." Lou grinned. "You got yourself a good man there, Jen!"

"I know, Lou! He treats me right." Jenny replied with a grin of her own.

Kralla looked at Captain Picard. "What can I get ya to drink, hon?"

"Oh, well, I guess whatever you have on tap." Jean-Luc answered with a smile.

"Comin' right up, Cap." She answered with a smile. "Anyone else want a beer?"

Everyone except Rachael and Delaara ordered one of their galaxy famous beers, and Jason grinned as his second beer really hit the spot.

"This is excellent beer!" Jean-Luc said in surprise.

"Jean-Luc, Lou makes even better beer than Quark." Delaara grinned.

"I can see that, Delaara!" Jean-Luc smiled and drank some more.

"Kralla, do you think I could hold him?" Deanna asked with a smile. Jason knew that she and Will were trying for a baby.

"Sure, hon. Then I'm gonna have to put him down for his nap." She handed Vincent to Deanna, who held him for a few minutes, then handed him back. Vinnie loved her, but then Vinnie loved all his parents' friends, as they were all extended family to him.

"Ok, Lugnut!" Kralla yelled to Lou. "I'm gonna put Vinnie down for his nap, and Suze should be here soon."

"Oorah, sweetheart." He shouted back to her.

"Bloody hell, Gunny!" Rachael laughed. "You've been out how long now, and still with the 'oorah'?"

"Once a Marine, always a Marine, darlin'. From what Ryan's been sayin', your kid's already kickin' like a Jarhead!" He grinned at her shocked face.

"I don't think so! He's going to be a fighter pilot or starship captain!" Rachael grinned and laughed.

"Didn't you hear, Rachael?" Jean-Luc asked. "Starfleet Fighter Command now falls under the Marines for rank structure purposes." He chuckled at her look.

"Well, Oorah!" Jason shouted.

"How do you mean?" Rachael asked.

"Since Fighter Command is also set up for Air support of ground operations, which are conducted by Marines, and since Starfleet protocol would have a Wing Commander as a Captain, the same title as a Captain of a Starship, it was decided that Colonel fit better." Jean-Luc explained.

"So that means I'm promoting Jason to Colonel now?" She chuckled, and everyone laughed at Jason's face as his shock registered.

Rachael saw him and laughed. "Not yet, boy! Just the next time I promote you."

Jason laughed. "That's just cruel, Rachael."

"I'm pregnant. It's my prerogative!" She grinned at him.

"Don't give Delaara any ideas, boss lady!" Jason laughed.

"I'm not cruel enough yet, loverboy," Delaara said as she pulled him tight against her and kissed him hard, biting his lower lip.

Jason felt himself get hard in his jeans as Delaara bit his lip. "Wow!" He finally said as his toes started to uncurl after the kiss ended.

"Now THAT was a kiss!" Kralla exclaimed as she stood in the door after walking back out from putting Vinnie down for his nap. The sight of them kissing had stopped her dead in her tracks.

"Got that right, Kralla," said Jason, still slightly in shock.

"Semper Fi, Jay!" Lou was grinning and nodding in respect.

"Oorah, Gunny!" Jason replied to his long-time friend.

The day went by and the Enterprise crew got introduced to Lou and Kralla's world famous Buffalo wings, more of Jay and Del's friends, and even a couple of lowlifes that Jason and Delaara had thought long gone to a penal colony.

Lou nearly grabbed his old phaser rifle when Gina Lee and Tommy Hest showed up at about 1500 hours. Jason turned and so did Delaara. Delaara dropped into a non-obtrusive yet effective combat stance she'd learned as a Praetorian, but Jason made no effort to hide his readiness. Ryan was also about ready to draw down on them if necessary.

Tommy put his hands up, palms forward. "No need for that, Jay. We just wanted to apologize for the last time you and your wife were here." He smiled apologetically, and so did Gina. She'd had her teeth replaced after Delaara had knocked them out of her head during their last encounter.

"And why should I believe you, Tommy? You've been nothing but a piss stain ever since I've known you, which is most of our lives." Jason didn't raise his voice, and kept a completely even tone. Everyone there recognized the implacable look in his eyes which often heralded swift and precise violence.

"Because it's true, Jay. We read about what you did during the wars, and how you single-handedly won the Ferengi-Orion War. You lead the best fighter squadron in the entire Federation." Tommy shrugged. "You actually inspired us."

"My question is why aren't you both in a Federation penal colony doing hard labor?" Delaara had an icy look in her eyes, and murderous intent in her heart. However, she also kept her voice even.

"We were released on a technicality, to be honest." Gina admitted.

Delaara knew when people were lying, through her hearing and Praetorian training that could tell when someone's heart was beating erratically. She could sense the false apology a kilometer away. She whispered to Jason "They're lying about the apology, baby."

"I sort of figured that, sweetheart," he whispered back. "Let's find out how much."

Jason smiled suddenly and walked towards them both. "Then let's shake on it, shall we?" He held out his hand to Tommy as Delaara fell in beside him, smiling at Gina.

The entire bar stopped to watch what happened next. Jason reached out his right hand for Tommy's. Tommy was smiling broadly as he reached his out but had his left hand going behind his back. Delaara saw a similar move from Gina, and both closed the distance even faster. Tommy's left hand came back out holding a pistol, but Jason had already closed and grabbed the weapon. He bent it backwards and snapped Tommy's trigger finger at the same time.

Delaara had grabbed Gina's pistol and slammed her hand against the wall, making her drop the weapon as well. She then headbutted the redhead in the face, knocking out her newly replaced teeth.

Tommy screamed as his finger snapped, but Jason wasn't done yet. He slammed his elbow into the criminal's jaw, knocking out a handful of teeth, and then bent Tommy's arm around behind his back in a classic arm lock.

Delaara had hiptossed Gina to the floor and had her face down with her arm up and behind her, with her foot down on Gina's shoulder.

They heard the sirens then, and the flashing lights of the Santa Barbara PD pulled into the parking lot. Lou came forward and opened the door for the cops. He grinned when he saw Shawn and Julie leading the way.