Shadows May Fall

Petra's Solution

Petra Delphiki walked into the genetic research facility, unbeknownst to her ever growing other half. She had thought long, she had thought hard. She knew that Bean was at some point relatively soon would die, his heart would give out and he would be gone, gone forever.

Petra wasn't going to let that happen. She'd done some research after she made the decision to someway, somehow give Bean what he wanted the most, a child. But she did admit, she was afraid. Would any kind of child conceived have Bean's disorder? Would they die along with their father?

She tried not to think about that as she walked into the office of the specialist that she had contacted. A dark haired woman sat at a shiny topped wooden desk with two chairs sitting in front, the woman behind the desk. Posters cover the walls, advertising drugs, new procedures, all kinds of medical things.

Petra smiled a nervous smile at the older woman and sat down in the left of the two chairs in front of the lacquered desk. "Good morning." The specialist said with a bright smile. "I'm Doctor Kushner, I believe we spoke on the phone yesterday about our implantation and cryogenics procedures for embryos?"

Petra nodded, "Yes." An silence filled the room before she continued, "My husband has a specific condition that won't allow him to live for much longer and the thing that he desires and that I desire most is to have a child."

Doctor Kushner scribbled down some notes on the thin tablet that layed on her desktop. "Okay, can you share what this condition may be?"

"Um, I'm not sure if you've heard of it before, its not common."

Doctor Kushner looked up from her tablet, "Petra, I'm a licensed genetisict, I've worked on countless cures for diseases. I think I'll know what it is."

Petra wrung her hands in her lap and bit her lip, "Well, he was a genetic condition called Anton's Key. Thats atleast what its known as to Bean."

Petra's brown eyes met the doctors, "Anton's Key." She nodded. "And Bean? As in Julian 'Bean' Delphiki?"

"Yes." Petra frowned. "Is there some sort of problem with that?"

The doctor shook her head, "No, no. Its just a shock to hear of that boy again after three years. I thought he'd be gone by now."

Petra furrowed her eyebrows, "Am I missing something?"

Doctor Kushner smiled kindly, "Three years ago I was called into the planet of Eros to aid in the case of Bean. I'm one of the specialists that's currently working with the IF to find a cure for Anton's Key."

A vibrant smile crossed Petra's face, there was someone out there helping her Bean. "That's great!"

Doctor Kushner grinned, "I'd highly recommend this procedure for Bean's health, we've been trying to find a way to see if younger cells containing the same genetic abnormality can be altered in certain ways to halt the giagantism that Bean's condition brings along with his incredible gift."

Petra's face soon mirrored the smile on Doctor Kushner's face, "Oh thank you Doctor Kushner, this means so much to the both of us."

The geneticist looked to a screen laying on her desk and began to explain a variety of different options and procedures to Petra as she thought of the piece of Bean that she could possibly maintain after he was gone.

The thing that really thrilled Petra was that she still may have a chance to keep the boy that had been with her through all the rough times, through Ender's many phases, his rejection of her most of all. Although Petra knew that she and the savior of Earth would have made brilliant children, Petra knew that Bean was better.

Bean was smarter, more strategic, and with his ever growing mental capacity there was no limits to the knowledge of Bean. What many thought that Bean was lacking was leadership qualities.

Petra knew this was a lie, when Ender had his extended stay on Earth after the death of Bonzo Madrid, Bean was the one who stood in, that was truly the first time that Petra began to notice Bean as Bean, not just as Ender's little shadow, then around a little under five feet tall due to his early stunted growth in life.

Petra's gaze moved up from the desk to Doctor Kushner as the doctor finished going over the options that Petra could employ to bring Bean a child.

~~~~~~~~~~~

Petra returned a few hours later to the home that she and Bean shared with Nikolai Delphiki and the funny cloned puppy. Little to the knowledge of her exponentially growing husband, Petra had set up an appointment the next day for the creation and implantation of an embryo.

The geneticist had created a scheme that the only genetic material necessary from Bean was a hair sample or something of a similar nature. Petra knew that Bean was most likely spending time on the beach with the one he was cloned from and the cloned puppy.

She peeked out the window of the kitchen and saw the unusually large boy on one side of a volleyball net and a significantly shorter version of Bean on the other side. A yappy black puppy running between the two sides of the net as a white ball was hit between the two brothers. Petra smiled at the sight.

Even if Bean didnt last long enough to see his child, Petra knew that the child would embrace Bean's likeness, emulating a father whom they may never meet or either create a bond with. Even if Petra lost Bean, she could take comfort in the happiness of these last few weeks for Bean since he himself was essentially still trying to make up for the childhood that he had never had due to his rough early life on the streets.

And the past that continued to follow him in the form of Achilles whom had killed the only woman that had been some sort of a mother to him. Petra knew that if Achilles were to show again near Bean, he would be gone.

Bean would fall into a state much like the state of Ender Wiggin after destroying the Formic Planet.

Petra wouldn't let that happen. She would keep Achilles far away from her Bean and then he would have what he never could never fathom himself having.

Julian Delphiki would have a child.