After the Second Fall Pt. 03.3

"Don't worry about Harold -- he's a genius, in his own way. I don't know what he'll build, but it will work." Esther smirked at the pride in Alexis' voice, but chose not to say anything, instead following slowly behind as the mother bounced and swayed back toward the shop.

It took a full day for Harold the Tinker to design a cart and the necessary modifications to the bike.

Twelve days to fabricate the frame and two more to finish.

A day to pack and and say goodbye, which consisted of Esther and Tilly caring for Monica while Alexis said 'Thank you and goodbye.'

They decided to bypass Marbelo. Alexis was terrified that the city would make her turn over Monica; thinking about it, neither Tilly nor Esther could fault her logic.

So instead they spent one very long day on the bike, going less than half speed, Esther checking behind her obsessively to make sure the cart was still there with mother and daughter packed inside.

Fitzen was still Fitzen. People were amazed at Tilly's recovery and she talked to long known acquaintances deep into the early morning.

After another slow ride, this time a bit shorter, and they pulled up at the Crannert farm, sore and tired, with a very cranky Monica. It was a natural stopping point, but Alexis had insisted on stopping anyway, intent on meeting Pip's other children.

Esther had already met Bethany and Maxine, Linda's daughter, but there should be three more since they had left; she was practically vibrating with excitement to meet them as she led their group forward to the porch where the Crannerts were gathering. Mitsy was already walking toward them with a smile when she caught sight of Monica, still wailing in her mother's arms; she stopped and her mouth dropped open.

"Hi, Mitsy," Esther said with a broad smile. "I think you probably already know my friend Tilly from Fitzen." She stopped and turned, allowing her newest acquaintances to draw even. "I'd like you to meet Alexis and Monica."

"She... it's..." Mitsy took a deep breath. "Jeremiah, bring Barbara here." Her eyes never left Monica.

Jeremiah appeared shortly afterward, a baby held close against his chest. He, too, was brought up short.

Barbara was just weeks older than Monica, and yet the two girls could have been twins, their small difference in ages entirely offset by Alexis' larger genes.

Alexis was the first to find her voice. "Unbelievable."

Mitsy nodded. "Amazing." Then she smiled and, taking toddler Bethany into her arms, walked over to introduce the youngster to her half-sister. The rest of the clan soon gathered round, sharing exclamations, introductions, and hugs.

The next morning, Esther walked to her bike immediately after breakfast and disconnected the complicated mechanism that linked the trailer. Tilly watched from the porch and nodded as her friend returned.

A week later Alexis and Mitsy stood side by side, holding Monica and Barbara, respectively, and waving, as Esther and Tilly headed North once again.

"I'm so happy for them."

"Who?" Esther asked, hunched over the smaller woman.

"All of them, I guess, but I meant Alexis and Monica. It was just..."

"Natural."

"Yeah, natural. That's the right word. I can't believe there are six daughters. Maybe seven."

"Yeah, seven," Esther echoed, irritation clear in her voice. "I'm so torn. I want to keep going, but I also want to castrate Carlos."

"I'll go where you go," Tilly replied.

Esther slowed and then stopped the bike. "I'm not really going to cut his balls off, Tilly. You know that, right?"

"Well, I was pretty sure. It's not like I really know him so I don't particularly care, but he did get the doctors to help me."

"Yeah, I guess that's something. I still don't like that he lied to me."

"Me neither. Esther, I won't ever lie to you."

Smiling down, Esther squeezed the smaller woman. "I know, and thank you." She took a deep breath. "So, skip Marbelo?" Tilly nodded and they sped off toward Fitzen and then points beyond.

They did manage to make it closer to their destination than they had before, but not by much.

Esther hadn't planned to stop in the town at all -- it was so small that there was almost no chance of finding anything useful -- but a chance glance from a frantic looking woman racing down the street changed their plans abruptly. The woman veered suddenly into the road, waving her arms and shouting, forcing Esther to stop the bike with a skid that sent dust blowing and gravel flying.

"What the fuck!" Esther snarled , her heart racing from the close call, but the agitated woman took no notice as she continued to gesture frantically, waving and pointing toward a building down the street. "Stop," Esther said, motioning for calmness with her hands. "Stop, please. Stop!" she finally shouted, her frustration boiling over. "I have no idea what you're saying."

"She said a woman needs your help with a baby," Tilly interjected. "There was more, but I didn't catch it all -- her words are hard to follow."

"Alright," Esther sighed, lifting Tilly off the bike and then dismounting. "Let's see what new emergency will keep us from finding Pip."

Although she was being cynical, the situation was, in fact, an emergency. They were led to a new-looking two-floor building and then into a back room where a woman was laying, barely conscious on a pile of blankets. Her breathing was shallow and uneven, making her distended abdomen quiver; between her legs was a mess of fluid tinged with blood. "Oh, shit," gasped Esther; next to her, Tilly's hand flew to her mouth and she turned away, eyes shut tight.

The woman from the street was still speaking animatedly, but when she saw that Esther wasn't listening, she stopped and put her hand on the bigger woman's elbow. "He-ehhp. Peh-lehhs."

Looking around the room, Esther realized there were three others present, and all of them were looking at her expectantly.

"Tilly, I don't know how to deliver a baby." She looked over at her friend, but rather than offer assistance, Tilly ran from the room." Esther's mouth fell open as she watched in shock, then turned back with eyes wide. "I don't know how to do this. I don't know what to do," she repeated, starting to panic herself.

Again, the woman from the street touched Esther's elbow. "He-ehhp. Peh-lehhs." The woman's eyes were still intense, but no longer manic, and her voice was calmer. Esther nodded vacantly and was pulled forward.

Kneeling, Esther did her best to assess a situation that she knew she was unprepared to handle. She had see litters of cats and dogs, and helped birth a few goats, but that was the extent of her midwife skills. She didn't even like holding babies, let alone removing them from their mothers.

She sighed and leaned forward, placing her hand on the pregnant woman's abdomen, not sure what she was hoping to feel. Nothing -- she felt nothing. "Oh, shit," Esther said again, certain that 'nothing' wasn't a good sign. With a deep breath for courage, she leaned lower, then gasped.

The baby was trying to exit rear end first, and even with her limited knowledge of the birthing process, Esther immediately knew the danger this posed. "Water and soap, quickly," she said to the woman that was now standing at her shoulder. She wasn't immediately understood, so she started pantomiming washing her hands and in less than a hundred beats she was rapidly disinfecting her hands and arms, just as she had seen her father do when she was young.

Later, after the birth, Esther wasn't able to recall precisely what she had done to spin the child. The experiences blended together in an amalgamation of remembered sensations, none of which were pleasant. At some point the baby turned and came quickly. At some point, the baby started breathing. At some point, the new mother held her child for the first and last time.

"You saved her," Tilly said, stepping from the building to find Esther sitting in the dirt by the front door.

"I killed her mother," Esther replied hoarsely.

"She would have died no matter what you did," Tilly replied, placing a comforting hand on the bigger woman's shoulder. "I think she was too far gone for anyone to have been able to help her."

"You don't understand. I felt things... tearing. I really, personally, actually killed her." Esther's tears started again, followed by sobs that shook her whole body.

It wasn't until much later, after the sun had gone down, that Esther finally rose unsteadily to her feet, completely cried out. Through it all Tilly had been with her, rubbing her shoulder or leaning against her side, a comforting presence in a time of acute grief. Esther nodded her thanks and turned slowly, and with a shudder, stepped back into the building.

The mother, whoever she had been, looked at peace, tucked in tightly beneath an old quilt. Across the room, a woman Esther didn't recognize was holding the newborn. Still numb from the ordeal, Esther didn't protest when the baby was placed in her arms not ten beats later.

She came back to herself at some point and realized that she and Tilly were the only adults left in the room. "Where did they all go?"

"I don't know," Tilly answered sadly. "One of the women told me that the mother had no family, so the baby should go with us. Nobody here wants to take care of her."

In an instant Esther's despair was replaced with a rage that stole her breath. "They what?" she growled. Reflexively, Tilly took a step back defensively.

"They... she told me that it's a giant's baby, and since you're a giant, you should be the mother now."

With an effort, Esther managed to let some of the anger bleed off. "Over and over and over again, Tilly. Hate and anger, and this time toward a baby." She looked at the bundle in her arms. At least they had cleaned her, but still, what was she supposed to do now? Despair came rushing back.

"We can take her back to the Crannerts," Tilly said softly. "Or even to Marbelo, if you think that's a better option."

With a shudder, Esther once again came back to herself. "You're right. We can be in Marbelo by morning and get her some milk, or whatever it is she needs. Then we'll see." She looked to Tilly for confirmation and was surprised to see uncertainty instead. "What's wrong?"

"I..." Tilly trailed off, then held out her hands. "May I hold her?" Nodding, Esther immediately transferred the newborn, then waited.

"I don't talk about it, but I was pregnant once, a long time ago. The baby -- my daughter -- she wasn't breathing when she was born. There was nothing to be done."

"Oh no, Tilly, I'm so sorry. No wonder you couldn't stay."

Nodding, the smaller woman reached up and wiped at her eyes. "I am sorry, Esther, but... I just couldn't. I couldn't." Tilly took a deep breath before continuing.

"Whatever happened during the delivery, it made it so I couldn't have children. Something broke in me, I think, and at some point, I just gave up trying. And hoping."

Esther's eyes opened as understanding arrived. "You want to keep her, don't you? You want to be her mother."

Tilly nodded as twin tears raced down her cheeks; Esther's watered sympathetically. "What's her name?" the blonde croaked out.

"Jill, after her mother."

Chapter 24

"I am sorry to inform you that he is gone. For almost a year now."

Esther looked down at the gray-haired woman skeptically, then forced herself to be calm. "May I ask where?"

"Of course," the woman replied politely as the pair walked slowly around a large open courtyard. "He was escorted to the edge of our territory, along the Eastern Highway. Unfortunately, I cannot tell you where he went from there."

"Is the Eastern Highway the road that comes from Marbelo?"

"Just so," the woman replied.

"Excuse me for being blunt, but you are incorrect that Piper returned to Rieckenburg in that direction. I spent months traveling up and down that road, and many others, and no one has seen him, except to say that he and his companion were traveling to Gracia."

The woman, Fatina, raised her arms crookedly in a helpless gesture. "There are many dangers on the road, as you would know. Perhaps he was set upon, or he may have suffered an accident. Who can know?"

"Why do you keep saying 'he'? What about his companion?"

"I am sorry, but the Arenagod you call Piper arrived alone. I will admit that he was distressed, but of course, we did not discuss his journey here."

Sheltered Esther from the Vale was not world wise or street savvy; she was not equipped for political intrigue and twice-spoken lies. Her greatest joys were racing freely through the fields and gossiping with her childhood friends. And yet, late at night as a young girl, staring up at a ceiling of stars, she would visualize the great adventures she would have someday: seeing the great cities of the world, meeting exotic people, and generally righting as-of-yet-unidentified wrongs.

That Esther, for all of her pride and ambition and talent, could not hope to succeed in her search.

The Esther that reached Gracia, however, was similar only in looks to the toe headed farm girl she had been.

"Administrator Fatina, I will be direct," she said, stopping and staring down at the much smaller woman. On either side of the pair, their escorting soldiers tensed. "I was protege to both Lilith Collins and Rachel Frazier, the two most brilliant women in the long history of Rickenburg.

"I was mistress to Carlos Harryx, bastard Mayor and chief liar of Marbelo, whose deviousness far exceeds your own.

"I have come too far and seen too much of this world to accept your lies as truths. Tell me where my friends are." Esther's eyes were cold as she finished, her voice threatening.

Years melted away as the Gracian woman stood taller, her affected humbleness replaced by a cold sneer. "You are nothing to me, mutant. Less than nothing, and you don't frighten me."

"Where are my friends?" Esther demanded again.

"I killed the witch," Fatina snapped defiantly, "and left her floating in the waves."

Esther couldn't hide her shock and her eyes widened, much to the delight of the awful woman in front of her. "And Piper?"

"Gone, I told you," she spit out. "When he saw the witch dead, he fled, like a coward. Our soldiers made sure he was gone, then turned around. I hope he's dead somewhere in the desert."

Instead of being distraught, Esther grinned. "You are a skilled liar, Administrator, but I know Piper. If Rachel died, he would have burned this city to the ground, and you would all be dead."

Realizing she may have misstepped, the smaller woman's expression faltered. Esther saw it, and made sure Fatina knew she had with a raised eyebrow, then continued walking. Faced with being left behind, the Administrator swore under her breath and followed.

"Our soldiers, they killed him," Fatina hissed as she caught up. "On the beach."

Chuckling, Esther shook her head and kept walking. "No, they didn't."

"Our soldiers and our Arenagods. He was no match for--" Esther's abrupt laugh stopped the tirade and Fatina fumbled. "Stop laughing, you miserable witch," she growled threateningly.

Now ahead by a couple paces, Esther paused and looked back, her smile mocking. "What's wrong -- will you kill me, too? Maybe leave me for the fish to eat?"

Fatina's entire face flushed deeper, moving from an angry red to a furious crimon. "I... I..."

"Administrator Fatina!" came an urgent cry from across the yard. "The baby, it's coming! Administrator Fatina, Grandmaster Piper's baby is coming!"

Grinding her teeth, Fatina's demeanor moved back toward angry. "Fuck."

"Another one?" asked Esther, genuinely surprised -- although by this point, she reflected later, she should probably have expected it.

The Administrator looked up at her with narrowed eyes. "There are others?"

"Five that I've met, and maybe more."

"Ridiculous."

Smiling, Esther folded her arms smugly. "It will be a girl, with curly red hair, just like the rest."

"Preposterous. The people of Gracia do not have red hair."

"We'll see."

As the man ran up, excitement in his eyes, Fatina made her decision. "You may come," she said dismissively, but Esther couldn't have cared less.

She followed as the messenger led back the way he had come, onto a broad brick avenue, up a matching street, and then into a series of less maintained labyrinthine alleys and corridors. After more than a quarter bell they emerged suddenly -- a party of five, including the two armed escorts -- in front of an imposing brick edifice.

"Wait here," Fatina barked at Esther, but the blonde didn't slow, following the smaller woman inside. "I said wait outside," the Administrator admonished impatiently.

"I respectfully decline."

"You ungrateful --"

"Esther!"

Both of the women turned to see Rachel sprint down the hallway and throw herself at her one-time assistant. The two embraced fiercely.

When they broke apart they found Fatina scowling at them. "Witch."

Rather than reply in kind, Rachel smiled broadly and transferred her affection to the Administor, pulling her into an equally tight hug. "Thank you for bringing her, Fatina." She pulled back. "How did you find her?"

Fatina rolled her eyes. "She found me. She charmed one of the guard captains, then another. After that she was just stubborn, refusing to leave until they finally brought her to me. I tried to send her away."

"You didn't!" Rachel exclaimed, then grinned. "Let me guess -- she wouldn't leave."

"You witches are all the same: stubborn. And stupid," she added with a glare back at Esther, who was taking in the exchange with wide eyes.

"Don't forget ugly," Rachel added, motioning toward the doorway through which she had come. "We should go -- I think it will be anytime now."

"Rachel, what the fuck is going on?" Esther asked, but the brunette just smiled over her shoulder and signed, 'Later.'

Through a hallway and around a corner they came to an open area with glass on one end; a dozen people were gathered, looking expectantly into the room beyond. Esther stopped, wanting to look through the windows, but afraid to do so. Anticipation and fear fought each other within her chest, her heart's erratic beat evidence of the struggle's uncertain conclusion. It was Rachel's encouraging, excited smile that broke the stalemate and put her feet into motion once again.

There, through the glass, was Pip.

He was sitting beside a hospital bed, hunched beneath the low ceilings, watching several medical people rush around an operating room of some kind. Just past his massive knees she could make out a prone woman, legs splayed wide.

Even in the moment Esther knew she should feel relieved to have found Pip and Rachel, but something felt off. "Rachel, something's wrong."

Rachel turned, and upon seeing Esther's expression, her own smile slipped away. "What do you mean?"

"I don't know, but..." Esther's head snapped back to the window. "The medical people. They're all rushing around, but there's no... no pattern to it."

Pushing her way quickly to the front so she could see better, Rachel soon turned around, then found Fatina in the crowd and motioned toward the entrance, gesturing for Esther to follow. The three were soon just outside the doorway. Rachel began to speak quickly, her voice low. "Esther thinks there's something wrong in the delivery room, and I do, too. The doctor doesn't know what to do and he's trying to hide it."

"What? Why are you saying this?" came the startled reply. "This doctor is the best in the entire city."

"Yes, but this is the first hybrid birth he's seen. And the baby is early by at least a month."

Fatina started to reply, but Esther interrupted. "Rachel, I delivered one of Pip's daughters. The mother died."

"What?" exclaimed Rachel. "Where? When?"

"Um, about a month ago, in the last town before Gracia."