Three Square Meals Ch. 088

"I feel exactly the same way, Commander," he said, holding her closer for a moment. He glanced at the door and let out a sigh. "Alright, let's get this over with."

She grinned at him and when John opened the door, they strolled out onto the landing. As they descended down the staircase to the ground floor, he could hear plenty of animated chatter coming from the kitchen and dining room. Calara's bedroom was some distance away from both rooms, so John held some small amount of hope that Maria hadn't overheard their enthusiastic coupling.

"Hey, everyone," Calara said brightly, greeting the women there with a sparkling smile.

"Did you have fun?" Maria asked, grinning at her daughter as she walked from the kitchen to the dining room with a stack of plates in her hands. "I told you he'd- ...Holy Fuck!"

Maria gaped at her daughter in stunned disbelief, doing a double-take as the plates slipped from her nerveless fingers. Alyssa had been hovering protectively and with a twitch of her fingertips, the plates stacked themselves up and floated into the dining room, instead of smashing all over the floor. Calara's mother was entirely unaware of the display of telekinesis, her attention was focused solely on her daughter and the enormous cum-swollen tummy that made Calara look nine months pregnant.

"What's the matter, mother?" Calara enquired, arching an eyebrow as she sauntered across the lounge towards her. "I thought there was nothing you hadn't seen before?"

Maria was frozen in shock, her unblinking gaze riveted to her daughter's rounded curves. "You're pregnant!" she balked, eyes widening in astonishment.

"Not yet," Calara said, running her hands over her tummy. "We want to wait until we're married, then we'll start a family."

"If that's not a baby, is that..." Maria asked, turning to stare bug-eyed at John.

He flushed, feeling terrible for shocking the poor woman like this, especially after she'd just been so kind to him. His guilty reaction was all the confirmation that Maria needed. She shook her head, looking astounded as she gaped at Calara's huge belly. Her hands reached towards her daughter in an instinctive gesture, gently caressing her skin through the tightly stretched fabric that hugged her cum-bloated abdomen.

"How is that even possible?" she balked, trying to tear her eyes from the tented material of Calara's summer dress to look at John.

"He's very... potent," Alyssa murmured, putting her arm around Maria. "This is how he healed all of us."

Maria looked amazed, but she managed a little smile at her daughter. "Giving me a shock like that, you should be ashamed of yourself, young lady!"

Calara grinned back at her. "I couldn't resist. You've been telling me for years how you know everything about men!"

"I suppose I was a bit smug, wasn't I?" Maria admitted, hugging Calara. When they parted, she stroked her daughter's rounded belly again, raising an eyebrow as she smirked at John. "I finally see why you were so coy about the details of your abilities."

John gave her a helpless shrug and said awkwardly, "It's the way my healing powers work."

Alyssa joined Maria in placing a possessive hand on her lover's belly and whispered, "Calara looks so beautiful like this, doesn't she?"

The older woman's expression softened and she nodded, a wistful look in her eyes as she smiled at Calara. "I still vividly remember carrying you in my tummy... It feels like it was only yesterday." One of her hands went to her own stomach, her fingers tracing a lazy circle. "It was such a magical experience, I loved being pregnant."

"We'll wait until after we're married," Calara said, glancing at John. "We want a big family though..."

"I was an only child," John explained, sharing a smile with the young Latina before looking at her mother. "I've seen how close your family is and how much Calara loves her brothers. I'd love for my children to experience that too."

Maria hugged John and her daughter, giving them both an affectionate smile. "I think you'll both make wonderful parents. Bringing up a child is a one of life's wonders." She turned to look at Alyssa and the rest of the girls, who were all watching them attentively. "I suppose you're planning on having children with all these beautiful ladies?"

John met her probing gaze and nodded, bracing himself for an angry reaction.

She surprised him by laughing instead and giving him a look of profound sympathy. "Eight moody pregnant women, followed by eight babies? Just dealing with one is hard enough... you'll be desperate to go back to saving the galaxy!" she exclaimed, her brown eyes twinkling with amusement.

He chuckled and put his arms around Calara and Alyssa. "I'm sure I'll be up for the challenge."

Maria gave him a wry smile, but chose not to comment further. The perceptive older woman had picked up on something Alyssa had said earlier and she asked, "You mentioned before that all of you had been healed this way? So, it wasn't just Calara who was badly hurt before joining your crew?"

John slowly shook his head. "Alyssa was the first and she was suffering from severe malnutrition. Some of the other girls had more significant injuries."

Maria's eyes locked on the blonde, curiosity in her eyes, but she stopped herself from asking the question to respect her privacy.

"It's alright, you can see," Alyssa said, nodding towards John. "I was just a skinny waif, but the others had been through far worse."

Glancing at Sakura and Tashana, he said warily, "I'm not sure that's such a good idea, Maria. Some of the girls were hurt very badly. Let me just say that they were in trouble and I helped them."

"It's okay," Sakura said, walking over to join them. "Alyssa told us that you'd explained almost everything to Maria. This is relatively minor in comparison."

Tashana smiled and sounded eager as she said, "I don't mind you showing her. I must admit I'm curious to see myself!"

John considered it for a moment, then gently took Tashana's hand in his. "If you really want to see, I can show you another time, alright?"

The Maliri girl paused for a moment, surprised by his reaction, then nodded her agreement. John brushed his thumb over her fingers, then released her hand and contacted Faye. The purple sprite had been anticipating the request and told him that she had prepared tasteful holographic images of the rest of the girls. After she removed the one of Tashana, a light on the watch flashed when she finished transferring the images.

"Ok, brace yourself," John said to the older Latina. "Some of these images are shocking."

When he brought up the first image of Alyssa, Maria audibly gasped, staring at the image of the painfully-skinny blonde girl. She recovered quickly, putting her arms around Alyssa and giving her a warm hug.

"I lost my parents as a young child," Alyssa explained softly. "An asteroid out on the fringe is no place for an orphan, especially not a young girl..."

"You poor darling," Maria murmured, her voice brimming with compassion. Her eyes flickered to the image again and she shook her head in amazement. "How's that kind of change even possible?!"

"A protein-rich diet really helped fill me out," Alyssa replied, her teasing smile revealing that she was joking.

Maria blushed and couldn't help but laugh, her eyes darting subconsciously to Calara's rounded tummy. She looked at John and asked, "Come on, be serious. I barely recognised Alyssa! How did you do it?"

"It's a complex process," Rachel interjected, glancing at the holo-image with professional curiosity. "Progenitors are able to rewrite genetic code. Any girl ingesting their semen will eventually change physical appearance so that they look like us. Aside from healing any injuries, the benefits of such a radical rework of our DNA include: perfect physical health, immunity to all forms of disease - genetic or otherwise - and... immortality."

"Immortality?" Maria asked in bewilderment, before her mouth twisted into a smile and she wagged a chastising finger at Rachel. "You girls are terrible for teasing me like this."

"She wasn't joking," Calara said quietly, glancing up at John with a smile. "His species live forever and now, so will we."

Maria gaped at them, shocked to the core. "But... that's not possible!" she blurted out, her eyes looking slightly wild.

"Would you like to go and sit down?" John asked, studying her reaction with concern.

She shook her head and had a look of wonder on her face. "You can really keep Callie alive forever?"

"We're not invulnerable to harm," he explained, his voice calm and soothing. "But assuming no fatal accidents or injuries, I can keep Calara in the peak of health, just as she is today."

Maria gave him a fierce hug and said earnestly, "It's just one more amazing thing I have to thank you for." When she pulled back a little she smiled as she added, "You might need to rewrite your wedding vows a little though..."

He laughed and nodded. "We can probably drop the 'In sickness and in health' bit."

She pulled back and glanced at his watch and asked, "Could you show me the others please?"

John lifted his watch and pressed a button to show the next image, revealing another skinny waif, but this girl had spiky bright red hair - along with an angry burn horribly disfiguring one side of her face, neck, and a shoulder. Dana grinned in anticipation, then let out a happy sigh when Maria acted instinctively, wrapping the redhead in a protective, comforting hug.

When the older woman stepped away, she stared at the teenager's face in awe, reaching up to gently stroke her flawless skin. "I don't mean to stare, but I can't help it! You're so stunningly beautiful now, there's not one trace of that scar!"

"I had that burn for most of my life, but it only took John a few days to fix me up!" Dana replied, flashing him a sparkling smile.

"How about the rest of you girls?" Maria asked, a look of fascination on her face.

Rachel smiled at John, her expression filled with gratitude. "I wasn't physically hurt, but he's helped me overcome some significant mental trauma instead."

"Jade wasn't hurt either when she joined the crew," John explained, looking at the Nymph.

"I'm a shapeshifter and I'm able to easily regenerate any injuries," Jade explained, her emerald eyes drawn to him. "The changes he's wrought in my personality are profound though, freeing me from figurative and literal slavery."

"Which brings us to Irillith," John said, pressing the button on his watch to reveal the hideous molten shotgun wound she'd received on Trankara.

Maria gaped at the horrific injury and looked at the Maliri girl in amazement. "How on Terra could you survive that! You must have been in agony!"

"It did smart a bit," Irillith said in a masterful piece of understatement, a wry smile on her face. "John fully healed me in a couple of days though."

"And finally Sakura," John said, hesitating before he pressed the button. "She was kidnapped and forcibly turned into a cyborg. The next image will be disturbing."

Maria steadied herself with a deep breath, then nodded to him that she was ready. He brought up the final image, revealing Sakura's ravaged body. Covered in a patchwork of surgical scars, her skin looked pale and sickly, severely damaged by the repeated overuse of cryogenic freezing. Maria let out a low cry of horror, turning away from the holographic image and moving quickly to embrace Sakura.

"I owe John and the girls a tremendous debt," Sakura murmured, hugging the older woman back. She smiled at John over Maria's shoulder. "Even if he repeatedly tells me I'm being silly and don't owe them a thing."

"How could you survive something like that?!" Maria murmured, sounding appalled.

John walked over to them and stroked Sakura's back. "She's a strong, brave woman, and quite right too; she doesn't owe us anything."

Maria pulled back from Sakura then looked at them all, a troubled expression on her face. "Everything you've all been through... I had no idea how much you've all suffered!"

Giving the girls a proud smile, John said, "That's because they're all such resilient, incredible women. They manage to amaze me on a daily basis."

"Thank you for explaining this to me," Maria said, looking around at the group. "It would be easy to judge a book by its exquisite cover, but there's so much more to all of you isn't there? It was good to learn more about the people Callie is with."

"I love all of them very much," Calara said, smiling at John and the girls.

Maria gave her daughter a fond look, then glanced back at the dinner table. "Unless you're planning on any more surprises, perhaps we should eat? After all the trouble these girls have gone to with dinner, I don't want it to get cold."

Everyone moved to the dining room and sat around the table, with more than just Maria eagerly looking forward to the mouth-watering feast that was spread out before them. Irillith and Tashana supplied the names of each dish when asked, with Maria eagerly complimenting them after trying the exotic Maliri cuisine.

"I love their cooking!" Jade exclaimed, a look of delight on her face as she inhaled the exotic, spicy aromas.

Nodding her agreement, Maria said to the twins, "Thank you both for trusting me with your secret! It's wonderful to learn more about your people."

"You're more than welcome," Tashana replied, giving her a warm smile. "It's a pleasant experience cooking for others. Back on Valaden, the nobility live in constant fear of poisoning, especially by their own relatives."

"That's appalling!" Maria gasped, the expression on her face filled with sympathy. "Can't your father do something about it?"

"Our father?" Irillith replied, looking startled. "He died when we were very young."

The older Latina blushed in embarrassment and threw Calara a disapproving frown. "Somebody told me you two were princesses... that I should ask about the King and Queen."

Irillith's tone was guarded as she met Maria's curious gaze. "The leadership of the Maliri regency has gone through a dramatic change in the last few months. We're still getting used to the radical shift in the status quo."

Tashana shared a thoughtful look with her twin. "I hadn't really thought about it before, but I suppose our mother has effectively become the Queen, even if she hasn't started using the title."

"What's she like?" Maria asked, genuinely interested.

Tashana hesitated for a moment, unsure how to answer, so Irillith replied for her, "Edraele used to be very... unpleasant. Recently she's had a drastic change of heart and has become exceptionally kind, thoughtful, and caring." Her violet eyes widened slightly as she studied the older Latina. "Come to think of it, she actually reminds me a lot of you..."

*Looks like you've been rumbled,* Alyssa murmured, shooting John a knowing look.

*Edraele was a blank slate, I had to use someone as inspiration,* John admitted, catching the curious glance Irillith darted his way.

Maria smiled at Irillith for the compliment, but her brow furrowed in confusion as she asked, "In that case, who's the new King? If he won't do anything about these poisonings, he must be as bad as the rest of the Maliri nobility!"

"No, he's nothing like them," Irillith replied, choosing her words with care. "He doesn't like the term 'King' though, so the Maliri Regency has become the Maliri Protectorate, rather than the Maliri Kingdom..."

"Baen'thelas might be new to the job, but he's already made a huge difference!" Tashana exclaimed, her eyes inadvertently flicking to John. "All the Maliri are united now, working together for the first time in thousands of years. He's managed to stop nearly all the murders and assassinations!"

Maria noticed the glance at John, but didn't pick up on its significance. Struggling with the unfamiliar pronunciation, she asked, "Bayen-thel-as? Is that some form of title, or the actual name of your King?"

"It's not his name," Tashana said with a reverent smile, her violet gaze drawn inexorably to John once again. "It means 'righter of wrongs' in Maliri."

Suddenly everything seemed to click into place for Maria and she let out an incredulous laugh. "I think I've had one too many shocks this morning. My imagination is starting to run wild," she said, shaking her head at herself and turning to look at John. "For a minute there, I thought-" Her words trailed off as she caught the worried frown on his face. In a hushed voice, she blurted out, "It is you! You're their King!"

John grimaced as Calara's perceptive mother pieced everything together. "I'm just their Protector, not their King," he said a little defensively. "One of the first things I did was stop them killing each other."

"You're the leader of the Maliri!" Maria marvelled, staring at him in amazement.

Looking across the table at the twins, John nodded slowly. "Do you remember Mael'nerak? The last Progenitor we told you about? He created the Maliri to use as soldiers in his wars and if I hadn't stepped up to lead them, the other Progenitor would have. I'm not happy about being forced into it, but the alternative is far, far worse."

He went on to explain about Edraele being his Matriarch and how she looked after the Maliri, just as Alyssa helped take care of the girls aboard the Invictus. Maria sat and listened in fascination, enjoying the delicious lunch as she hung on his every word.

When he was finished talking she reached across the table to take his hand in hers. "I understand why you were reluctant to tell me everything, but thank you for the honesty. It's going to take me some time to adjust to all of this, but I greatly appreciate the insight into the man Calara intends to marry."

John smiled, then gently squeezed her hand in return. "I trust you, but please be very careful who you share any of this information with. All of us are safe on the Invictus, but you and your family are more exposed."

"Exposed to what?" Maria asked, looking concerned.

"To threats from the Admiralty," Calara replied, a pained look on her face. "John's warned them of the repercussions should they make any moves against you, but still..."

A troubled frown appeared on her mother's face. "Are they really a threat? Even after everything you've done to help the Terran Federation?"

"They're afraid of me and desperately want the technology we have aboard the Invictus," John explained, his tone grim. "We blasted the assassins base at the end of that TFNN interview to reinforce the warning I gave them after the Battle of Regulus. I'm praying that'll be enough to stop them doing anything reckless, but the last thing I want is for you or your family to be caught in the crossfire."

"Is that a possibility?" Maria asked, trying to be pragmatic, but there was a flicker of fear in her expression.

John saw her instinctive reaction and gave her a supportive smile. "If anyone tries anything, they'll deeply regret it. We have ways of finding out what people have been up to and I have no qualms about doing a spot of spring cleaning in High Command if they push me hard enough."

*Maybe we should do that anyway,* Alyssa thought to him, her eyes narrowing in anger. *Aside from Charles, I've not been particularly impressed with the Admirals we've met so far.*

Shaking his head, John glanced her way, meeting her intense cerulean gaze. *I know your feelings about High Command and how much they've let humanity down by letting a place like Karron exist, but we've got plenty of enemies already. We don't need to start picking unnecessary fights at the moment.*

*Something to savour for the long-term then,* Alyssa said, looking thoughtful as she pondered the future. *I can live with that.*

Turning back to Maria, John saw the unspoken question in her eyes. "I'll leave it up to you how much you want to tell Jack. He's been very supportive and I trust him too, but you understand your husband far better than I do. Some things he might not want to know."