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They have settled down, and settled into a routine. Ronan built a small home
for them to live in, with some help from the boy, Vith. Vith is not who they
thought he was. He was an adult in the technical sense, but he grew up on a
planet not unlike the simulation they’re in now. For him, it was real. They
planted and caught their own food, and built their own structures. And if
they failed at any of these things, they could die for good. He seems to be
of two minds. On the one hand, after he was essentially rescued by
Castlebourne, he realized that he never got a real childhood. On the other,
he isn’t comfortable in the modern world, and actively sought a place that
resembled his original home. Ronan and Mayumi aren’t confident that he is
entirely mentally okay, but instead of trying to exit the dome, and ask for
help, they decided to raise him on their own. Little Talus will have a big
brother to look up to, which they didn’t originally plan.
It’s been nine months now. The harvest is going well, but Vith is having to
work their garden on his own today. Mayumi is in labor. They talked about
this at length before coming to the Nordome Network. Were they going to try
to find someone to help her deliver the child, or do it themselves? In the
end, they decided on the latter. It wasn’t the only way to do it, they were
in it for the long haul. When they form a community, it will come naturally,
not just because they notice a bunch of other people in their vicinity. For
now, it’s just the three of them, and in this room, two.
In over 300 years, Mayumi has never given birth before. They never even had
children, but out there, they would not have done it naturally. This is part
of the experience that they were seeking. They want to know what it was like
before genetic engineering and gestation tanks. They didn’t have to go quite
this far back in the past, but they have other reasons for admiring this
culture, in this time period. She is in a lot of pain. There are no drugs.
There’s a wooden spoon that Vith fashioned for them several months ago. It’s
very soft. Her teeth marks are going to be in it forever. Hopefully, he will
be okay with that. She is screaming her head off, but she is strong, and
she’ll get through this. They will be a complete family again, once Talus
returns.
Ronan can see the head. He encourages her to keep pushing while he guides
the little guy out of her. He’s not crying, and that’s not good. Ronan wipes
the goop from his tiny face, and bounces him up and down a little, tapping
on his chest ever so gently. It takes a couple of minutes, but he finally
does after Ronan sticks his pinky in his mouth, and clears it out. It’s the
loudest scream he’s ever heard—louder than even Mayumi was—but it’s such a
beautiful sound. Apparently curious, Vith walks in. Ronan smiles at him, and
shows off his little brother. Vith doesn’t seem to know what to think, but
he doesn’t seem upset. He is just confused. He knew that Mayumi was
pregnant, and that she was going to give birth. He knows where babies come
from too. The truth is that he’s a little bit of an oddball. That’s okay,
Ronan knows that he’s going to be a good brother.
“Good. We need to let mommy see him, okay?” Ronan goes over and tries to
hand Talus over to his wife. “Mayumi. Mayumi?”
She’s not moving. Ronan too hastily hands baby Talus off to Vith, and tries
to wake Mayumi up, but she doesn’t. She never does again. The three of them
live in that small house for another few weeks, waiting for Mayumi to
appear, having reentered the simulation. It’s not against the rules as it
was an accidental death. But she never comes back, and the winter is about
to get real bad.
