Everyone in the maternity clinic exclaimed in shock and horror and held their hands up in surrender as a black and white gel-cap pill barged in with his hand cannon aimed dangerously at them, especially husbands who accompanied their pregnant wives who tried protecting them in their arms and cowering at the closest corner possible to avoid getting shot. A few security guards tried to sneak up behind the pill but they were immediately slashed into half and melted into a pile of goo by a virus who was carrying a very pregnant and very due T4 cell in one arm.
“Alright, who’s the leading midwife here?” the pill demanded as he stole a look at the cell who groaned in the virus’ arms before addressing back to the crowd. When no one replied, he activated his hand cannon and aimed at the nearest nurse. “I’d appreciate a response, if you know what’s good for you.”
“I…I will take you to him,” a male clinic attendant stood up from where he was lying, holding up a shaking hand. “Please, please don’t hurt anybody.”
“Make it snappy,” the virus growled as he kicked the attendant, urging him to make a move as the pill used the cannon to shoot some sort of hardening gel around the entrance of the clinic and the windows so that no one would be able to escape. “And if I hear anyone doing anything funny, I will burn down this building and everyone in it, understood?”
It was a no-brainer that this was a hostage situation, and the perpetrators were no other than Thrax and Drix who tried to bring the pregnant Ozzie to a nearest midwife possible. Unlike normal cell pregnancies, Ozzie’s gestation period was approximately about 5 months. They were in this city of Larry about to take it down when the day before their scheduled assassination, Ozzie’s water suddenly broke and he soon went into labour. They couldn’t go to the hospital at the risk of blowing their cover and no clinic or hospice would let them in without the possibility of being found and reported to the authorities. Once Ozzie’s contractions started to get closer and more frequent and both the virus and the pill were not equipped in the birth department to help the cell deliver the child, they knew they had no choice but to resort to this hostile situation. Telling Chance, who had grown into a rather large and built mature germ dog, to guard the hostages, Drix took Ozzie in his arms and followed behind Thrax as the virus held the flat side of his killer claw against the attendant’s back to make him go faster.
“Mmh…!! Oh Frank, Drips, it hurts…!!” Ozzie moaned, trying to hold back the tears that were threatening to flow out of his eyes.
“It’s OK, Jones,” Drix said as he cradled the cell closer. “We’re almost there. Just hang in there. We’re gonna get this baby out in no time.”
“Oh, Frank-dammit, I feel like I’m gonna explode…!!”
“Ya ain’t gonna explode, baby,” Thrax turned to caress the cell’s sweaty forehead while still ushering the attendant. “I promise it’ll be all over before you know it.”
The attendant led them all the way to the back of the clinic and walked down a short corridor that led them into a smaller building connected to the main one was where it came in handy for emergency births for those who couldn’t make it to the hospital in time or those who are just around the neighbourhood. Under the threat of Thrax’s killer claw, the attendant opened the door to the midwife’s office without knocking and was met with an annoyed look by the midwife who was looking through some files along with a young cell who looked like a midwife trainee.
“Thomas, what is the meaning of this? Don’t you know how to knock anymore?” the midwife asked in an annoyed tone.
“I’m sorry, Brendan,” the attendant named Thomas said as he revealed the trio behind him. “We’ve…got a situation.”
“Great mother of Larry!” the midwife called Brendan widened his eyes in shock at the sight of Thrax and Ozzie in Drix’s arms. “A virus and a T4 cell! Wh…What are you doing here…?!”
“Get out,” Thrax growled at the trainee, who wasted no time in leaving the office. He then turned to Brendan and said, “As you can see, we are gonna need your help.”
“No, absolutely not! Pregnant or in labour or not, you are an abomination and an illegal to this city. I’m gonna have to report you…”
Thrax roared and slammed his killer claw onto the telephone and swept the midwife’s cell phone off the table, smashing it to pieces, before he could reach over to get it to make the call. Grabbing Brendan by the collar and slamming him against the wall, the virus held his killer claw threateningly close against his face and glared at him, a murderous rumble escaping his throat.
“You will help my mate deliver my child, or else!”
“Or else what?” Brendan challenged. “Kill me? You don’t scare me, virus.”
“Well, I won’t kill you. It’ll be too easy on you. If you don’t help us, I’m gonna have to start bringing in those patients waiting outside there one by one and slaughter them right in front of you, and if you still won’t help, I’m gonna kill your staff next. You wouldn’t want to have their blood on your hands now, would you?”
“You wouldn’t dare!”
“Oh, believe me,” Thrax said as he jerked his head at Drix, who in turn shoved Thomas towards Thrax. Thrax pointed the tip of his killer claw at Thomas’ jugular, the sharp end dangerously hovering just inches above the membrane before continuing, “Believe me, doc. I have done far worse things than you can imagine.”
Brendan seemed hesitant, but from the way the virus behaved, he knew resistance was futile. He let out an exasperated sigh.
“Thomas, go prep up the delivery room. Call in June and Patricia and bring Masha who just ran out back here as well. It’s about time she gets her first practical lesson.”
--:--
Ozzie could no longer control the tears that flowed out of his eyes like rain. Beads of cold sweat littered his forehead and face and drenched through the clinic gown he was wearing as he held his mate’s hand in a death grip. He let out a groan as another contraction hit and gasped for breath, trying to keep his mind in focus.
“C’mon, push along with the contractions! Don’t hold back!”
Ozzie screamed as he bore down as hard as he could, his other hand gripping hard at Drix’s. Just like the day he miscarried Finn’s spawn back in the rat city where they met Cox, they discovered that lucky for Ozzie, he wasn’t going to explode like the usual cells that get infected with a virus’ spawn as Brendan found a birth canal slowly forming at the area between his anus and his balls from his modified physique as a T4 cell. He was fully dilated an hour after being prepped and ready lying on the birthing bed and had been pushing for almost half an hour now. At another push, Brendan told him to stop and take a break before proceeding.
“Fuck, fuck, fuck, it hurts…!!!” Ozzie moaned as he lay back, the pain strewn across his face as he tried to regulate his breathing.
“It’s OK, baby,” Thrax said as he stroked his hair. “You’re doing very well. You can do this.”
“Easy for you to say…! You’re not the one pregnant…!”
“Baby, please…”
“I hate you! It’s all your fault! I hate you, I hate you, I hate you!!!”
“It’s just the pain talking,” Drix replied. “Don’t mind him.”
“Frank-dammit, it hurts…!! Please get it out of me…!!” Ozzie whined, letting go of his hold on Drix’s hand and gripped at Thrax’s trenchcoat, sobbing as his shoulders shook hard.
“I’m here, baby, I’m here,” Thrax whispered. “I’m here for you, baby. Just think about how beautiful our child’s gonna be once it’s in our arms, baby, please.”
“I’m sorry, Thrax…I’m sorry, I didn’t mean what I said…Please don’t hate me…”
“No, I don’t hate you. I would never hate you. I understand you’re in pain. I’m right here for you, Ozzie baby.”
“Alright,” Brendan said as he returned to his position to catch the baby. “It’s time to start pushing again.”
Ozzie whined in protest, clinging onto Thrax. Thrax took his chin and kissed him deeply, trying the best he could to ease his pain if only just a little bit. At upon breaking from the kiss, Ozzie bit his lip and shook his head.
“I can’t…I can’t do this, Thrax…!!”
“It’s OK, baby. You can do this. Our child needs to see us as soon as possible, baby.”
“We got your back, Jones,” Drix joined in to encourage him as well. “You’re doing great so far. Keep it up.”
Ozzie took a few deep breaths before followed Brendan’s coaching, pushing as hard as he could to get the child out. Thrax and Drix joined in the coaching as they showered their encouragements to the cell to help him along with the birth. As Brendan advised, Ozzie pushed whenever he felt a contraction. He could slowly feel the dull ache between his legs growing worse and more painful and the little lump getting bigger as he struggled to bring his child out into the world. When Brendan announced that he could see most of the head out, the pain of splitting in half hit tenfold, causing the tentacle blades to spring out in defense mode beyond Ozzie’s control, tearing through the clinic gown and shocking everyone who didn’t know his ability present at this phenomena. Some of the tentacle blades shrank back in but a new one would spring out whenever a jolt of pain from pushing shot through the cell’s body.
“You’re…You’re almost there, sir,” Brendan said as he took hold of the baby. He realized as he pried the baby out the birth canal that it was covered with a thick protective film. He tried to feel for a loose end of the film and started tugging at it gently, trying to pull it out.
“Spit!! Fuckin’ spit, it hurts!!” Ozzie screamed, another tentacle blade shot out of his back.
“You’re doing very good, Ozzie baby,” Thrax said as he winced at the pain of being cut by a tentacle blade that shot out of the cell’s knuckles. “Keep going, baby!”
“Just a bit more, Jones!” Drix encouraged as well. “You can do this.”
Ozzie panted for a moment or two before bearing down hard.
“Just a little bit more, sir. Just a little bit more.”
Another tentacle blade shot out of Ozzie’s leg, grazing Brendan on the shoulder.
“Push harder, sir! You’re almost there!”
Ozzie bit his lip until it bled as he felt his saline blood soak through the sheet and more blades shot out of his knuckles, cutting the two who supported him unintentionally.
“Come on, baby, you’re almost there.”
Ozzie tossed his head from side to side, the pain feeling as if it was eating through his membrane.
“Keep going, Jones!”
A blade shot out of his hip and slashed through the bed sheets as Ozzie looked like he was going to hyperventilate.
“One last push, sir. Give it all you got. Push, push!”
Ozzie fell back onto the bed, gasped for breath for a few seconds with his teary eyes wide open and shut them tight before taking a deep breath and arched his back, screaming as he gave it his all, making that last push with all his might. In that split second, tentacle blades of all conceivable shape and sizes shot out from every part of his body (except his nether regions), slashing, cutting and stabbing through anything within their proximity. Thrax and Drix, who had somehow sensed this was going to happen, had moved out of range when the blades shot out of the cell’s neck, missing them by just inches, although their hands suffered the wrath of the tiny spikes that stabbed through their palms. Thomas was also lucky as he was standing a little bit beside Brendan with the blanket ready to hold the baby, the blade that shot out of Ozzie’s ankle pressed against his elbow, pricking it a little and drawing a little blood.
The rest were not so lucky. Brendan’s assistants June and Patricia were on either side of the bed handing small towels to Brendan to wipe down the blood and monitoring Ozzie and the baby’s condition when the blades on Ozzie’s hips shot out like spears and stabbed through their guts. Masha, the midwife trainee that Thrax shooed out before, had her first and last practical training as she tried to wipe Ozzie’s sweat when she was in the way of the blades that shot out of his chest, literally impaling her. Brendan was equally impaled through his forehead with a really long thorn-like blade that shot out of Ozzie’s middle. As soon as Ozzie could no longer feel the excruciating pain from the lump between his legs, he relaxed back onto the bed and his blades shrank back, sending the dead bodies tumbling to the ground.
“Oh…Oh Frank…I…I didn’t mean to…” Ozzie sobbed in horror as he saw what he had unintentionally done.
“Don’t mind them, baby,” Thrax said as he held his bleeding hand. “Next time, we’re gonna have to look for a midwife that is related to the HIV family. If the runt is right about ‘em dogs as their life sustainer, that is.”
“Is…Is it a boy or a girl?” Drix asked, bringing the stunned Thomas back to his senses.
Thomas seemed to be in shock as he picked up the bundle covered in protective film in shaking arms. Carrying it to a nearby counter mechanically, he took out a scalpel and cut through the thick film as the trio held their breaths, watching him do his work. He tore off the film surrounding the bundle of joy and turned to them with a face paler than a sheet of paper.
“C-C-Con…gratulations…” Thomas stuttered. “Y-Y-You have t-t-twins. A…boy and a g-g-girl…”
“Twins…??” Ozzie cupped his mouth, fresh tears flowing out of his eyes. “Oh my Frank…!!”
Thrax walked over to the attendant and took the twins off his hands, in which the attendant soon fell on his knees in a stupor, his face in a traumatized state as his mind was still trying to digest what had just happened. Overwhelmed by the arrival of their children, Thrax and Ozzie was momentarily oblivious to the situation as they showered hugs and kisses on the squalling babies. Drix smiled and left the room to check on the hostages while the proud parents studied their babies’ features. They were born with mostly Ozzie’s features but with Thrax’s colour both on their outer and inner body with a hint of blue for the membrane and had hair like Ozzie the faint colour of Thrax’s dreads. The baby boy’s hair was dangling lazily on one side of his face while the baby girl’s hair was leaning a little towards the other side of her face and was shoulder-length. The girl had claws like Thrax while the boy hadn’t, but occasionally his left index finger flexed and retracted on its own, glowing just like Thrax’s killer claw. Thrax chuckled and stroke his babies’ hair and kissed Ozzie’s sweaty forehead.
“They are beautiful, baby, just like you.”
“They got half your eyes though,” Ozzie smiled as he noticed that while the baby boy had yellow surrounded by greenish field on his right eye, the girl had it on her left.
“Thought of any names yet?”
“Names later, guys,” Drix said as he came back with Chance in tow. “The feds are here. It’ll be a matter of time before we’re surrounded.”
“Right,” Thrax nodded and grabbed Thomas’ collar, shaking him. “Hey, got an exit round here?”
“Back…door…” Thomas breathed, his facial expression looked like he was still out of it. “Straight…left…dark…alley…”
“Thanks to you, you’ll live long enough to tell this to your grandchildren,” Thrax smirked as he patted at the attendant’s pale face. “C’mon, let’s split.”
As Thrax carried Ozzie bridal style while Drix helped carry one of the twins and made out of the exit, the sirens outside grew louder and Thomas continued staring in space, unaware that a tear trickled down his face.
--:--
The trio sat on the window sill and watched behind the glass as the medics came in to carry the body of Jenkins and spraying disinfectant around the area, preparing it for quarantine. A huge crowd gathered below the apartment they were at, looking up at their direction to find out what was going on and wondering if Jenkins was another unfortunate victim of the Red Death’s wrath. A whine from both the twins brought their attention.
“Looks like our little Ozzex hungry for their Mama’s milk,” Thrax said as he took their son out of the makeshift sling around his shoulder. “We’re gonna need to get a proper baby carrier soon.”
“Yup, so is our little Ozma,” Ozzie replied as he took the daughter out of his makeshift sling and undid the buttons of his shirt. He let Thrax pass him the boy and soon started feeding them. Chance whined in curiosity as it peered over Ozzie’s shoulder to see the babies suckling hungrily on their ‘mother’.
“I still can’t help feeling fascinated over this,” Drix said as he observed the feeding along with Chance. “Not only your body automatically develops a birth canal for the birth, your body actually automatically lactates to feed your child, although I must say, your breasts are not as big as I had expected it to be.”
“I’m still a guy, mind you,” Ozzie looked incredulously at the cold pill. “It’d be weird to see a guy with jugs now, don’t cha think?”
“Yeah, I guess.”
“How long are you going to tag along with us, cold pill?” Thrax grumbled as he wrapped a possessive arm around Ozzie’s shoulder. “You promised to leave as soon as Ozzie’s given birth, so what are you still doing here? It’s been three weeks.”
“I told you, virus, I’ll leave when I find a suitable body,” Drix retorted back as he checked his chest plates to see if his supply of ammos have regenerated. Ever since that fateful day he leapt off the albino rat and onto the seagull to follow after Ozzie and Thrax, he had been indirectly assisting the virus in his reign of terror to spread his disease. He claimed to be worried about Ozzie and offered to look out for the cell during his pregnancy and had promised to leave as soon as he gave birth, but in truth it was an excuse to convince them to let him stay with them. Thrax said that since he was going to be around, he might as well be useful, so his condition for allowing Drix to tag along was to allow him to infect him so that he could be of use to his killing spree. As reluctant as he was, Drix knew he had no choice if he wanted to stay with Ozzie, so he braced himself to be infected. The infection gave him the power of super-strength and regenerative properties of his ammos so he didn’t have to get supplies all the time to reload his chest storage, but the infection bleached off his usual red-and-yellow complexion, making him black and white as he was now. He officially became Thrax’s lackey and Ozzie’s bodyguard as he did his bidding, invading cities and bringing it down to cinders just like the virus did to Frank and all others.
“That’s what you said last week and the week before!”
“Yeah, well, none of them are of my taste, so you’re gonna have to deal with it until I do find a city I want to spend the rest of my life in.”
“I swear, cold pill, I’ll…”
“I know, Drips,” Ozzie suddenly voiced out, stopping Thrax from whatever he wanted to say.
“What do you mean? What do you know, Jones?” Drix asked in surprise.
“How you feel for me.”
“What are you talking about? I don’t…”
“He means he knows your stupid little semi-platonic-semi-romantic boy-next-door crush on you, you imbecile,” Thrax huffed at Drix’s futile attempts of denial. “I told you before, and I’m telling you now: You ain’t gonna get it.”
Drix was rendered speechless, twiddling his thumbs as he blushed, looking tentatively at Ozzie. Ozzie stared long and hard at Drix before he checked to see the twins had their fill or not and burped them.
“You can stay, Drips.”
“What?” Drix and Thrax exclaimed simultaneously as they watched in disbelief at Ozzie putting the babies in their respective slings nonchalantly.
“You know I can never return your feelings, Drips, but I know for sure that my kids are going to need someone I can trust to take care of them,” Ozzie chuckled at Chance’s yap of protest, “Yes, Chance, you’re a real good bodyguard for your little Master and Mistress, but at the way our lifestyle is heading, they are going to need all the protection they can get.”
“But…But, baby, why him?” Thrax asked.
“I hope it’s OK with you, hun,” Ozzie looked up at him with those eyes that Thrax love and hate at the same time because he knew they would make him balk. “I mean, if not Drips, who else can you trust?”
Thrax looked at Drix grudgingly. He knew his mate was right. He trusted no one, not even his own side of the family, to look after his children. He wanted to raise his spawns his own way without having anyone from the family to corrupt them or interfere. He grew up in the circumstances that were not the most desirable of lives, and he didn’t want history to repeat itself on his own flesh and blood. Besides, Drix had been with them long enough to go along with his conquest to spread his reign of terror, and had been very helpful thanks to his infection on him, and he had been keeping him in line when he promised his beloved that if he wanted to go around killing, he had to find someone who truly deserved death, like this Jenkins who was known to be a serial rapist but was released early from prison on a technicality. What else has he got to lose?
“Fine,” Thrax sighed in defeat. “But if I see a hair missing out of my little pets…”
“I will personally stab myself with your claw and kill myself, don’t worry,” Drix said as he held up his hand in a swearing-in mode.
“Good.”
As they looked down at the crowd below and watched as they took out their hand-held cameras and cell phones to take photos of Jenkins’ body being taken out of the apartment and into the ambulance while being ushered by quarantine doctors and policemen to stay away, they hear a song that was played from a radio held by a teenager who stood a few feet away from the crowd watching the scene. Ozzie paid special attention to the lyrics and smiled inwardly at how it matched their relationship. Looking up at Thrax, he could tell that the virus felt the same way as well and shared a passionate kiss as the song carried on playing:
I wanna love you but I better not touch
I wanna hold you but my senses tell me to stop
I wanna kiss you but I want it too much
I wanna taste you but your lips are venom
Poison…
Your poison running through my veins
You’re poison…
I don’t wanna break these chains…
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