Mandy and the Tentacle Monster (Urf Oomons #1)

The babies all hatched last night while I slept. When I woke this morning there were lavender husks on the floor of the tank like four popped  balloons. And, swimming throughout the water, twirling about each other are the four babies. They aren’t chubby like human babies, they look like tiny little adults, each about a foot long. Odo, the one who looks almost exactly like Seven is the best swimmer. He’s the fastest and he’s doing all these complicated flips and spins around the other three. Jadzia is the slowest, with their human legs they are swimming as a human might by scissoring their legs and paddling their arms. The others hold their upper arms tightly to their sides while their lower tentacle arms do all the work.

When I point Jadzia’s swimming style out to Seven, he is concerned that they might tire themselves out and fail to thrive.

When I suggested that we should just pluck Jadzia out of the tank if they’re having trouble swimming, Seven gaped at me in stupefied surprise.

“Dear One, they are yet too young to leave the tank. Their lungs and digestive systems are not fully developed. They must stay in this tank for months yet.”

Well, that’s disappointing. I had thought that when they hatched I would start being a mom. I would get to work caring for them. But it turns out all my preconceived notions about mothering these alien/hybrid kids were wrong. For one thing, Seven asserts that they are “cognitively mature” already and whenever they are ready to leave the tank, they will be able to care for themselves for the most part. They will be able to feed and wash themselves. They’ll immediately start communicating with us. Apparently all that’s required of Seven and I as parents is that we “guard,” and provide food and education. No bottles, no potty training, no crying babies keeping us up at night.

It breaks my heart a little bit, but I focus on the fact that they are all healthy. They will grow up loved and cared for by Seven and me. That’s all that matters.

*Bang! Bang! Bang!*

Seven and I are startled from our observations by someone knocking on our door. Seven has programmed it to open for only him and me. I get up and go over to the door and it’s Ken.

“Ken, come look! The babies have hatched!” I tell him.

Seven slides in front of me and says, “No,” as he blocks Ken from seeing anything in our room.

Ugh. More “guarding behavior.”

“Seven, cut it out. Let Ken see!”

Ken holds up two tentacles and says, “Do not trouble yourself Tiny. I will meet your progeny in time.”

“Why are you here?” Seven growls at him.

“I have news! Earth has been located!”

I duck under and around Seven’s tentacles then pop out in the hallway next to Ken.

“Really? How?”

We had hit a roadblock trying to detain and interrogate Seereechees. Nobody has seen a Seereechee Queen. Nobody knows how their “hives” are structured. Any drone is immediately disconnected from their “hive-mind” and immediately becomes a drooling idiot unable to answer even simple questions.

“A boosted distress signal revealed the location. Our trade partner Hershtech responded. Look at this footage!” Has walked me over to a security alcove and now he is projecting a video on the wall. It’s earth! The video documents an approach over the east coast of North America and zeroes in on what appears to be Tennessee or maybe northern Georgia. It’s a mountainous, wooded area and there is a tiny little crashed ship wedged inside a gorge. There are three figures huddled together near the crash site, seemingly asleep. Or dead? Nope, not dead. They all three leap to their feet when they notice whatever craft this video is being recorded from. They wave their arms and jump up and down.

I turn to Ken, excitedly hugging him, “It’s Earth!”

He pats my hair with one tentacle and I release him.

“We will fold in twenty minutes and approach Earth’s planetary system immediately. We will be in orbit within an hour.”

I squeal in excitement then jump up and down.

“We are going to search for Lu, correct?” Seven asks. He must have followed us.

“Yes!” I turn toward him to squeeze him in a tight hug, still bouncing with excitement, “And we can report the Seereechees, we can get the intergalactic cops out here to stop them abducting humans!”

“The Federation of Planets does not police this backwater region, Tiny,” Ken explains.

“Well then, we need to figure something out. How do other planets guard them selves from Seereechee slavers?” I demand.

“With the technology necessary to detect an incursion and the weapons to threaten and dissuade them,” Seven answers.

“Maybe we could set up some sort of automated system?” I wonder out loud. I have all those credits still. I could fund the defense of Earth.

“Yes, that could be done, but we would need at least one person on the ground to maintain it,” Seven agrees.

“First we will track down Lu,” Ken interjects, “Everything else is a concern for later.”

We are all in agreement.

This is so exciting!