Baby

for their hubris, the Womb altered the minion’s ability to become Elders after discovering their fateful mistake, forever preventing healing of humans but not other life forms. Now, minion expiration came thru old age or the birth process. It appears for some reason, Brother’s own genetic instructions, meant to prevent the conversion, failed. She could not know for sure without a laboratory at her disposal. Her mind, distracted by the biology, pondered the complexity of their enzymes.
    She wondered if she could achieve that lofty state of Elder herself. Had she already? She easily surpassed her normal life span long ago. She would never know until the first opportunity to heal a Brother or Sister presented itself. Yet she refused to try until she decided this species deserved it. As of yet, her doubts remained strong.
    She could stay in the Hive as long as it took but she was in doubt as to the amount of time the Womb would allow her. She wanted to take her time until she received a sign of worthiness. But she was terribly lonely. Her species thrived with close contact. They lived in communal groups; hives. Similar to what was called families here on Earth, only much larger. She noticed that even most of the other species of this planet lived in families. Of course, she expected human life on this planet to have evolved similar habits. Sighing, she worried about the damage perpetual isolation would do to her mental state.
    The Hive, under the supervision of the Womb would always take care of all needs a carbon based life form required to survive; irrespective of their metabolisms. The Womb, being indestructible, easily accomplished all tasks in the pursuit of creating life. But she remained alone, unable to stop the toll her isolation undeniably looked to extract. Surely, her own iridescent eyes dimmed. Maybe the time to do something about her dilemma neared.
    The creature planned to take an excursion to the surface sometime soon. She needed to check on the various groups that clustered in small buildings on land that previously grew stunning fruit orchards.
    Her monumental shock when she witnessed the fruit trees ripped from the earth, destroying a unique gift given to the humans, shook her to her core. Gone—the orchards that would feed so many, for so long. Within a decade, the miracle seeds from those trees and the crops would spread naturally, all over the world, feeding everyone; the wanton waste so unforgivable. As a result, the Womb angrily intensified its plan for revenge. This species clearly refused to learn. How they became programmed for self-destruction, she did not know. Perhaps if the Elders acquiesced differently to the Womb after the discovery of their forbidden experiment, they could have intervened, guiding evolution to a more satisfactory outcome. The very guidance that the Womb enjoyed exerting everywhere else, feeling no planet too insignificant. But the Womb had forbidden the guidance. The humans were on their own, a punishment they were unaware of.
    The creature disconnected from the Hive wall, her tail dry as it withdrew from the thick membrane. Leaving her private chamber, she shuffled and bobbed her way up the long lonely trail to the outside world.
    Arriving at the end of the underground trail, the creature reached her hand into the cavern wall, asking it to part. When the wall parted, she squeezed and contorted her way around the rocks and boulders blocking and disguising the Hive. Glancing back, she made sure the Hive closed behind her.
    She remembered the blame for the catastrophic events of a century ago belonged partially to her. After her Emergence, she left her Brother behind in his helpless hibernation state in her zeal to explore topside. If her Emergence occurred back on Oolah, surrounded by all the help her Brother needed to emerge from hibernation and begin transition, his eventual expiration would have been successful. She herself would receive proper guidance, allowing the time for her awareness to digest all the stimuli being transmitted to her mind from her own transcription cells. She would not have run off halfcocked and uninformed, failing to require the Hive to close behind her, making the fatal mistake that allowed the Sister to enter and discover her birth Brother.
    Having reached maturity, she realized her birth Brother must have called the human to use for his own recovery but she doubted her Brother’s powers were strong enough.
    The Womb creates the energy