“You know, things to help their brain and motor skills develop…” He briefly covered the phone to reply to someone—probably Baltasar—who’d decidednowwas the time to involve themselves. “Like reading books to them or singing songs, playing with age-appropriate toys, tummy time…”
What in Stellaria’s name is tummy time?
“Do Earthling children not have fully developed brains when they’re born?” I deflated, internally questioningwhyI’d chosen to ask a lower life form for tips in the first place.
Zion laughed. Again. “Of course not! Supes develop faster than normies, thanks to genetics and being trained in certain areas from a young age. In general, though, Earthling brains aren’t finished developing until their mid-to-late 20s.”
WHAT?!
Despite having lived on Earth for over fifty years, this was news to me, since I rarely bothered researching the early life cycle of whatever planet I was infiltrating. My marks were always full-grown adults, and most alien species could survive on their own soon after birth.
Even if they shouldn’t have to.
Shaking off my own unpleasant memories of early childhood, I refocused on this shocking intel.
Wait.
“Does this mean Micah will becomesmarter?”I asked, unable to keep the excitement out of my voice.
My stellar collision was already one of the most impressive creatures I’d ever met, but he’d only recently turned 25 in Earth years. If his brain was still developing, there was no limit to how intelligenthe might become.
I must breed him immediately.
“Have you managed to knock up my brother, Andromeda?” Zion’s voice snapped me back to reality. “Is that why you’re asking me all this?”
“W-what?” I stuttered, strangely caught off guard. “No. We are currently transporting a newborn of unknown origin to Stellaria and need to keep it…themalive until then. Besides, Micah and I aren’t in compatible forms for reproduction and haven’t discussed?—”
“Hey, no judgement!” he interrupted my rambling with a huff. “Lord knows, Daisy wasn’t exactly a planned pregnancy…” The muffled sound of Baltasar in the background again had Zion’s tone turning serious. “But, uh, if youwerein, you know…compatible forms,would it be possible?”
As much as my traitorous heart pounded at the idea of actually impregnating Micah—or having him do the same to me—this wasnota topic I wished to discuss with Zion Salah.
The entire extended family would know by nightfall.
“Inyourcase,Lacertus,you’d simply need Baltasar to develop the necessary female reproductive organs,” I huffed, already mentally done with this useless conversation.
A crash followed by the sound of pounding feet had me frowning down at my phone.
“Thanks, Star Hopper,” Zion chuckled darkly, his voice dropping the way it did when he tookhistrue form. “Good luck with parenting.”
Parenting?!
The miniatureLacertusabruptly hung up, which saved me from needing to reply to his closing words.
Small mercies.
Returning my phone to the charger, I star hopped to the kitchen, only to find the room empty. Unleashing a few exploratory tendrils, I found Micah and Pedro in the weapons room, and from the rhythmic vibrations surrounding them, I determined Micah was… singing.
Of course, my incredibly intelligent mate already knew about “enrichment.”
Despite the resonance building in my chest, I stubbornly resisted the urge towatchhim care for the child—to imagine this random creature was one we’d created together.
Just complete your mission, Ziggy.
Then you’ll never need to worry about this again…
7
MICAH
