As Nikolas and I went on more missions, he got more dangerous tasks to do. I had a suspicion that the transmission hub was trying to set him up for failure. However, I was just too good for the missions in the area. I continued giving him care packages in the form of money weapons and blueprints. By the time that the ninth week came around, his belly was round and ready to burst. He had stretchmarks marring his once perfect skin. There was a nice glow of pregnancy to him as well. I would press my hands on his belly to feel the baby kick. "Niko, were going to be parents! Aren't you excited!?" I said cheerfully. He just looked at me. "I'm a guy and a PEP unit. There is literally nothing that makes me happy about this. There is no reason for me to even be a parent to it. The transmission hub is already telling me to be the incubator of the town." I looked at him. That did not seem fair. I just said "I don't want that for you. Is there anything you can do? Or I can do?" He said "I can't disobey orders given from the transmission hub." "I'll still protect you. You'll have 2 X-frames. That means something."
Being that he was not human, it was a really long shot. "If the transmission hub tells me to, I would have to give them up." Nikolas said. "That's not fair, Niko! I want you to be a part of my clan. Then you can't be pushed around so easily." I pleaded. He just looked at me. "Why do you care? You do not love me. You know that I don't care for you." said Nikolas. I clenched my fist. "That's not the point and you know it Niko! Of course I care about you! You are the parent of my kid. How am I going to raise them to be a good person and love the transmission hub if you're just a breeding mare for the town?" His eyes widened a bit. "You wouldn't dare defy the transmission hub." he said. "Why not!? I'm not a PEP unit. I'm human." I shot back. "You can't do that! I'd stop you." he said, now agitated. "How are you going to stop me when you're getting stuffed by every dick with a semen replicator in town. Or pregnant every 9 months." I said. He glared at me and poked me in the chest. It hurt a bit. "Stop fucking around. I'll kill you." he hissed. "Join us. Please?" I asked. "If the others join too." he said.
Conflicting feelings rose in me. Emil was an asshole and I did not want him in my clan. Or anywhere near it for that matter. I had to swallow all that pride and just do it though. For Nikolas's sake. "Fine. They can all join. As long as you do." I said with grit teeth. Nikolas just raised an eyebrow at me. "I don't understand you." he said with a shake of the head. "It's for the baby." I told him. "Sorry. They do not have much value to us PEP units." he said. I thought that it was insulting. "I will make sure they are protected and not in need for anything." he clarified. That was a bit better. "Please make sure to visit them and make them feel loved. You never know if they might save your life one day." He said "PEP units can do everything. This child will be practically human with enhanced strength and brain power. It would be a very different story if they were Primitive Exploration Automaton units or even the Advanced Exploration Prototypes." I asked what he meant by that. As a PEP unit, he did not have a human's perspective of things in the world. That was cool. It must be really important to all of them.
