MAX
I balled up against the wall, unsure of the fate of my best friend. He was dying and it looked like he most likely wasn't going to make it. I could do nothing for him... My best friend was gone... Was this how it felt when everyone thought that I was dead? No wonder it was so hard to understand when I returned. There's so much emotion that I can't express... I just... I can't do anything for him...
The door opened and Mr. Holt walked in. I swallowed hard, waiting for the harrowing news that I already knew. Mars was dead... Mars was gone...
"Do you know why Adah and I named our son Marsdon?" I shook my head no, wondering where he was going. "Adah loves space and the possibilities of it. She's always been a believer in aliens and my job made that something in my belief too I couldn't tell her that, of course, but my love of science and mythology matched her whimsy. Mars is the Red Planet, mysterious, angry, and yet very protective. When Adah was pregnant, she wanted to name him Jupiter. I didn't like the name, didn't suit him. She also thought of Pluto, but it reminded us of the dog and well, he was the god of the underworld...
"Titan was on the table for a long time... until one day, Mars was close in orbit, giving off that red, bloody glow. "What about Mars?" she had said. We thought that Mars by itself was just a little unsophisticated, so we made a name that sounded better: Marsden. Marsden Jupiter Holt..." Mr. Holt chuckled dryly. "Adah just had to get that Jupiter in there... They say the names you give your animals can sometimes determine how they develop in personality. The same can be said of children. Whoever knew that his name -the god of war and anger, protection, and rage- would define his whole being... And then there's you."
I gulped as he glared at me and then I glared at him, trying to figure out what this elaborate biography was getting to.
"Is Mars dead or not? What's with all the charades? If he's dead then just say it."
"He's not dead." I blinked. "*Yet. He's barely alive, but he's not dead." I sobbed into my knees in relief. Even though it was a long shot for his survival, I was so happy. "He won't be for long, though. That baby grew so fast that it moved his organs around, causing massive tears and ruptures. Fucking tough guy..." He crossed his arms. "I'm taking out the child."
"Don't."
"It's killing him!"
"Don't do anything. The aliens are on their way. Olympus can hear you and if you try to take him out you may cause more damage."
"Now it's a telepathic baby?"
"They're *that advanced. You don't know anything about them and since you don't, it would be best if you left it up to their own species to figure things out. I can guarantee that they are coming here soon; they need this planet."
"For what?"
"What does it look like they're here for? If you don't know what it is by now then I'm not going to inform you. You'll just have to wait."
"I can get it out of you if I wanted." Mr. Holt threatened.
I growled, standing up and facing him. "Fine, go ahead. You can do all you want to to me. I've been through worse, had done to me worse, and there's nothing you can do to me that could be any worse. So: do your worst."
Mr. Holt stared at me but finally turned away.
"If it starts causing anymore problems, I'm going to take that child out of my son."
"Leave Olympus alone."
"Who's Olympus?"
"The baby, of course."
"The baby named itself?"
"No, Mars named him." I said sarcastically.
"Mars has been comatose for the past hour and a half. How could he have named anything?"
"While he was having a seizure he said something to the effect of 'I'm sorry, Olympus'. I would assume he's not just talking about the home of the Greek gods." I growled.
"Isn't there a way to speak with him or the child or something? Didn't you guys do some sort of mind meld when you went into your coma?"
"I'd have to be unconscious and it depends on the depth of that unconsciousness if I can talk to him. It varies. I have a feeling I would have to go into a deep unconscious state in order to eve get close to talking to him."
"Shit..." He said, pacing as he rubbed his face angrily. "How long do we need to wait for the aliens to come?"
"I don't know but, I would focus on Mars' life, not destroying his child's. Olympus probably knows what he's done and he doesn't need his... grandfather shoving it in his face by ripping him out of his own father and wagging a finger at him when he doesn't realize what he's done."
"Graphic."
"Does it help you understand the sophistication of these beings? Olympus isn't just a "baby", he's far more than that. Don't mess around with things you don't understand."
Mr. Holt looked at me with a pensive look and motioned for me to follow him.
"You understand a lot more than I do so you're going to help me."
I made a face but followed him out of the room.
****************
We walked down a few more hallways and then into a room that looked like some sort of medical room. There were a couple of people walking around the looking a machines, carrying clipboards in their hands and wearing lab coats. Mars was in a hospital bed with one of those breathing things on his face. His stomach was exposed, like he was getting prepped for abdominal surgery. I saw the set up like when I accidentally got a hold of my parent's album from when I was born. Mom had a C-section and this was the same set up.
A gurgling sound caught me by surprise and I looked over, finding a livestream of the inside of Mars' stomach. I walked over to it, watching Olympus as he did tiny movements and such. It was fascinating but I needed to know what was going on.
"What are you trying to do here? I told you not to-"
"Tell this baby to stop."
"Run that again?"
"Tell the baby to stop screwing up my son."
"Uh, I can't do that. It's not my baby; I don't have the same type of connection that Mars would have with it."
"Then how do you get in to speak with my son?!" he screamed angrily.
He was scared... scared to lose his only son. Scared of what was happening to him, what he couldn't do to help... Was this the feeling that my parents had about me when they first saw me?
"What if we put you under anesthesia?"
"Dude, listen to me! That's not how it works."
"It worked for Mars. You said it yourself. He took sleeping pills in order to get into your head. "
"That was an accident. Mars fell asleep and ended up being able to communicate with me and he thought that being asleep longer and deeper would help. He didn't know that your wife changed the dosage."
"Is there nothing you can do?"
I sighed, looking at my best friend as he lay there, dying slowly. I walked over to him and looked at the bulging mass that was exposed to everyone. I tentatively reached out and touched his bare skin, finding it so weird to be touching someone else's pregnant stomach. It was even weirder that it was my best friend and he was a boy... Something moved under my hand and I pulled back a little and then pressed back. It moved again and I moved my finger across Mars' stomach. A small blob followed my finger and it was most likely the baby's hand.
"Can you hear me?" I whispered, unsure what Lym was capable of. "Your papa is in a lot of pain... I know you didn't mean to do anything, but you have to try and help him stay alive. You're all we have at the moment... Do whatever you can, however you can. The Elbaskins are on their way and when they come, they will help us out in whatever way we need. Until then, please try to take things at a minimum. Show me a sign on the screen if you understood anything I just said."
I looked up at the screen and saw the baby move his arm and move his little fingers into a weird looking thumbs up. Mr. Holt moved his glasses up as he stared up at Olympus in awe.
"Amazing..."
"There's nothing else I can really do..."
"If you'll allow us to take a blood sample, I'd greatly appreciate it."
There wasn't much I could do and I wanted to watch over Mars. I nodded and they led me to a table to sit at.
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a/n: we are heading into the close of this story 😱