Page 18 of Veiled Vixen

“What about Nyleena?” I ask. “Can she…?”

“I don’t know. Maybe. It’s doubtful though. She was probably pregnant dozens of times before she ever left the Cygnian System. And if she were able to carry full-term Angels then they would never have let her leave with Lyra. So my guess would be no.”

I’m still focused on the words ‘pregnant dozens of times’ and can’t really process the rest. “Wait,” I say, rubbing both hands down my face. “They…”

“Yes,” Veila says when I don’t finish. “Yes. That’s what they do to us. It starts at age eleven and I’m sure that’s what Nyleena’s life was like until she was assigned to a suicide mission with Lyra.”

“But they were sending them to Earth,” I say. “Lyra told us that. To blow it up.”

“Oh, please.” Veila laughs. “They can’t even find Earth. And if they did, the last thing they’d do is blow it up. Not when it’s the secret.” She huffs. “Valor. Earth is where we’re from. Don’t you get it? The reason we can’t reproduce naturally is because we need to be there. The children here, in this galaxy, don’t have the right receptors for the hormones necessary to bring the pregnancy to term. It’s that simple. And the solution is simple as well. We need to go back to Earth because it’s our home.”

“Oh,” I laugh. “Oh, yeah. That’s good.” I point at her. “You had me going for a minute there.”

Veila is scowling at me. “What are you talking about?”

“Earth.” I huff. “Right. I get it. You need to get there. You know we have a spin node here on the station. And somehow you’ve figured out that Luck is in control of it. Fine. I’ll admit to all that. But if you think I’m stupid enough to fall for this…” I pan my hand at the still shot of the babies on the monitor. “This pregnant woman bullshit—”

“What?” she huffs.

“No,” I say. “Nope. Not gonna happen. You’re… you’re… you’re the most disgusting thing I’ve ever seen in my life. And those babies inside you?” I point to her stomach. “They’re better off dying inside you. Oh, God.” I turn away from her and grab my hair. “I can’t even imagine what kind of mother you’d make. Just… gross.”

When I turn back her face is blank.

No emotion there at all.

“You stole someone’s genetics, right? To make those babies? Who did you take them from? Some ten-year-old Akeelian boy?”

“How dare you,” she snarls.

“How dare I?” I laugh. “You were caught on Lair Station milking boys for sperm!”

“Don’t be ridiculous! They don’t even make sperm until they’re eleven.”

“Oh, excuse me,” I say. Placing my hand over my heart in a feigned apologetic gesture. “Some eleven-year-old Akeelian boy. My bad.”

“You’re insane!”

“I’m insane?”

“We weren’t taking sperm from them. We were collecting hormones produced in the testicular glands that are only produced when the second cock—”

I gufaw so loud she startles. “Collecting hormones? You’re unbelievable, you know that? How do you live with yourself? You might be pretty on the outside, Veila. But I have never, in my entire life, seen a more disgusting person on the inside.”

“You don’t understand. We need that hormone and it’s only produced in boys under the age of twelve—”

“Oh.” I throw up my arms. “Well, since you need it, that makes it all better.”

“You have no idea how much I’ve struggled—”

“I don’t give one fucked sun about your struggle, lady. You’re an evil, maniacal bitch and if you think I can be persuaded over to your side with a couple of heartbeats, well…” I shake my head. “I’ll save you the trouble. It’s not going to work.” I point to her stomach. “I hope they die. I want them to die.”

“You’re sick.”

“I’m sick? I’m not the one breeding boys—”

“I’m not breeding boys!”

“Milking boys—”