Chapter 27: The Day Goes From Bad to Worse
Pleased that he had managed to help a fellow Sabren, Feral returned to his desk and got back to work. The day finished on a high note and since he'd had a very non-violent and light work day, he decided to knock off early. At four o'clock he called Steele in.
His second arrived in his office and watched his superior put his coat on, obviously preparing to leave.
"I want you to take over for the last hour of the day, please. I'm pleased to say, I was able to help Officer Drake and it appears he may have already found his mate, however, he is reluctant to consummate their attraction but I have no doubt he will do so before he runs into any real problems with his energy. I managed to relieve him of some of his excess energy and though it didn't cause me too much inconvenience at the time, I do feel the need to dump it soon. Since the day has proven to be rather quiet for once, I'll just go home and take care of it," he explained.
Steele smiled back and nodded briskly. "I'm glad you were able to aid him, sir. I'll hold down the fort, so enjoy your evening. I do have to say, with Dark Kat and Turmoil out of the way, it has been fairly quiet. Would be nice if we could get our paws on Viper, though."
"I agree with you on that thorny problem. Viper hasn't shown his slimy self since Razor released him back to that smelly swamp home of his. He's due to cause trouble but all we can do is wait for him to show himself," Feral agreed then waved good bye and walked out the door.
Steele secured the commander's office, notified Feral's assistant, Sgt Fallon, of the commander's departure for the day and where he, himself could be found if there was a need then returned to his own office and the project he was working on.
Feral hummed to himself as walked down the hall to the elevator and pushed the button for the medical wing. Reaching the day care center, he surprised the monitor by his earlier than normal arrival.
"Oh, leaving early today, eh? I'm sure Jeremy will be overjoyed to see you so soon," she said warmly. "I'll get him right away, sir." She got up from her desk and headed into the other room.
Feral could see his son sitting in a corner with the sun shining on him from a nearby window as he read a book. The monitor went up to him and spoke briefly. Jeremy's face lit up as he quickly looked over to the waiting area and saw his mother. Without prompting, he carried the book back and put it away before running to where his things were. The monitor helped him on with his jacket then picked him up to carry him and his backpack to the door.
He immediately reached for his mother as soon as they came through the door. Feral reached out and took him into his arms and took hold of the backpack the monitor handed him.
"See you tomorrow, Jeremy," she called out.
He waved happily to her over his mother's shoulder and then they were through the door which closed behind them. Jeremy chattered happily to his mother as Feral carried him to the elevator and rode it up to the flight line.
He stepped out of the car and walked through the pilot prep area for the hangar. Feral gave the flight line guard a brisk salute as he passed him on the way to his chopper parked just outside the hangar doors. Climbing in, he quickly secured Jeremy into his special seat behind the pilot's chair, put a small helmet on him and gave him a quick kiss, a routine they did every time they flew.
With his son secured, he shut the door then took his seat, put on his helmet then started the engines, as it warmed up, he completed his preflight and notified the tower of his departure. Just before he prepared to lift off, he disconnected the locator beacon then took off for home.
The trip took only fifteen minutes and soon he was sending the chopper into a slow descent to their hidden flight line near their home. As soon as the chopper settled firmly on the ground, only then did he cut the engines. The blades continued to spin as they wound down while Feral took off his helmet, left it on his seat then went to release Jeremy.
His son hopped toward his mother and was clasped tightly in a strong grip as Feral reached for the backpack on the floor below Jeremy's seat then opened the door, ducking to avoid the still moving blades. He walked briskly toward the house with Jeremy giggling and chattering happily.
Once safely inside their home, he let his son down so Jeremy could take off for his room while Feral paused to take his coat off and hang it in the coat closet near the door. Backpack in paw, he made for the kitchen where he left it on the counter then went off to his own bedroom to change clothes.
Jeremy had already taken his coat off and hung it on the hook his father had put on the back of his bedroom door then grabbed his stuffed bear off the bed and went to seek out his mother. He trotted off down the hall and walked into his parent's bedroom, catching Feral pulling his boots off as he sat on his bed. Jeremy climbed onto the bed to wait and watch.
They talked as Feral finished stripping off his uniform and putting on some comfortable sweats and tee. He swept out an arm and scooped up Jeremy, carrying him to the kitchen where he gave his son a small snack while he began dinner.
By the time Chance came home from working at their hangar, the smell of dinner filled the house. His nose twitched and his expression was one of surprise when he walked into the kitchen and found his mate just setting the table and Jeremy sitting in his high chair eating a piece of beef jerky, his favorite bear tucked in beside him. He gave his father a broad smile but continued chewing happily.
Chance gave his son's head a gentle ruffle before going to his mate's side and helping set the table.
"Well, you're home early," he commented, stealing a kiss on the cheek of his passing mate.
"Yeah, well there was nothing going on at work that needed my urgent attention though I did have an interesting day," Ulysses said mildly, taking a seat at the table and serving up dinner.
Chance took his own seat and accepted the filled plate his mate gave him. "Really, tell me about it," he requested.
While they ate dinner, Feral filled him in on what Steele had done, the conversation with Drake and what he had to do to aid the young Sabren.
"Now, that's amazing. Who would have guessed Steele would turn around that well. I'd already noticed he was doing better but this sounds like a real breakthrough. So you really think he'll make a good Chief after you?"
"If he keeps up what he's doing, yeah, I think so."
"Will wonders never cease," Chance said, shaking his head in amazement. "That was a great thing you did for that young Sabren. So I'm guessing you need a power dump then...you don't feel too distressed to me," he said, arching a questioning eyebrow at his mate.
"It's not too bad, but I wouldn't want to wait more than a few more hours," Ulysses admitted.
"Understood," his mate said knowingly. This meant Jeremy would have to go to bed early. If Ulysses was really distressed he would summon Cybertron but since he wasn't, Chance would take care of the problem when their son was abed.
The next few months passed rather pleasantly for all concerned. Chance finally did get bored as Jake had predicted he would and found a job flying test planes for Megakat Aeronautics, enjoying it a lot. The job had considerable flexibility which allowed him to get away when he needed to and made a nice income as well.
Feral was indeed pregnant again but the relief of his mate and Dr. Ainsly, he was handling it with more grace and calm acceptance if not joy. To Dr. Ainsly, it meant a much smoother and easier pregnancy for the Commander.
During this time the only major concern of the city defenders was wondering where Dr. Viper was. The mutant Kat had kept out of sight for a very long time now. Many wanted to hope it was because of the outing of the Sabrens, the death of Dark Kat and the easy capture of Turmoil had convinced the lizard that trying to take over the city might not be worth it.
So far, they might be right, but Feral and the SWAT Kats wouldn't hold their breath on that and would continue to maintain their vigilance. The Pastmaster had also failed to show up and it was going on two years since his last appearance.
Hard Drive seemed to have disappeared as well, at least there had been no whisper of his presence anywhere in the city for little over a year or more. Perhaps Dark Kat's demise spooked him but there was no way of knowing.
With nothing but regular criminals and some gang problems left in the city, the enforcers were able to keep the peace rather handily and the SWAT Kats found themselves needed less and less often. Sometimes they offered their services for rescue missions and errands of mercy which endeared them to the public, though, not so much the enforcers.
As for the young Sabren, Tommy Drake, he had indeed found his mate but he kept him at an arms distance while they dated. Nick Shadwell, a firekat was thrilled to be considered the mate of a Sabren though he was a little surprised when his mate didn't want to be bonded immediately. But after listening to Tommy's past, he understood better why his mate-to-be wanted to hold off. He was willing to do whatever Tommy wanted and if it meant waiting then so be it.
It was more than two months since Feral's pregnancy began and today had begun in an ordinary fashion for everyone except Feral. That morning he'd not felt very well when he climbed from bed. A general feeling of achiness, centering around his mid-section made him somewhat uncomfortable but not particularly worried, so, in his usual stubborn fashion, he ignored it and got ready for work.
"Awfully big frown on your face, love. You okay?" Chance asked as he helped Jeremy get cleaned up after breakfast, not missing the look of discomfort on his mate's face when Uly came into the kitchen to make lunch for himself. A feeling of general unwellness filtered through their bond.
"I just don't feel my best today," Feral said off-handedly, trying to make light of it.
"Really..." Chance murmured, frowning. He put his son on the floor and told him, "Jeremy, go get your jacket, buddy." His son ran off down the hall while the tabby went to his mate's side. He brushed his fingers against Uly's face in concern. "I'm getting more than just a little unwell sensation from you, love."
"Don't worry so much, Chance. Just some achiness from being pregnant."
His mate wasn't so placated. "Promise me you'll check with Dr. Mewser about it, please?"
Feral sighed, "alright if it will make you feel better."
"It will. Call me later and let me know what he said," Chance warned him then turned to Jeremy who'd run back in, jacket on and ready to leave with his mother. His father picked him up for a hug. "You have a good day, Jeremy."
"I will daddy!" His son grinned as he was handed over to his mother.
They were out the door and off to the chopper while Chance went to the garage for his cyclotron.
When he left Jeremy at the day care, Feral felt a brief stab of pain when he leaned down to let his son run into the playroom. He kept his face blank and hid his discomfort from the busy monitor and hurried off to his office.
Reaching his desk, he set to work and tried to ignore his body's complaints. It seemed to work for a while and he managed to clear his desk before leaving to attend a boring meeting at the Mayor's office. Returning to his office, he worked on various projects on his computer. Lunch came and went without him stopping to eat since he didn't feel particularly hungry.
By two in the afternoon, work slowed down and his feelings of unwellness increased. Rubbing a paw over his still flat belly, he frowned and decided, perhaps he should go see Dr. Mewser. At that moment, though, Steel swept into his office holding a report in his paw.
Steele walked up to the pedestal desk and began to speak but no words came out at first. Being this close to the Commander, he immediately went on alert. Feral looked bad! He could see a pinched look on the dark tom's face and his mouth was pulled back in a grimace of discomfort.
Frowning, he plunged on with the reason he was there, hoping to get a chance to ask if something was wrong afterward. "Sir, I've got more of my Sabren Report completed and wanted to run it by you."
Letting his breath hiss out, Feral reached for the report and seemed to force himself to sit quietly and read it. Steele began to fidget, worry starting to crawl up his back. Before he could get up the courage to impose on the Commander's privacy, the tom made a sudden gasping sound, face blanching before lunging from his chair and rushing to his private bathroom.
Eyes widened in shock, Steele raced to the door of the bathroom and heard retching through the closed door.
"Sir! Do you need assistance?" He asked anxiously. Sabrens were notoriously healthy creatures so Feral being ill was cause for alarm.
"No!" Came the short, hoarse answer then the sound of water running. A still very pale Commander came out and walked slowly back to his desk followed by his worried second.
"Excuse me sir, but you don't look so good. Maybe you should just pop down to see Dr. Mewser..." he began to urge but Feral cut him off.
"I was trying to decide if I was willing to be prodded to go for what might just be a case of morning sickness," Feral admitted reluctantly.
"You're pregnant?" Steele asked in surprise, this was the first he'd known of it since Feral wasn't showing yet.
Feral snorted in amusement he didn't really feel. "I was in heat a few months ago, I'm sure you recall. It usually leads to pregnancy."
Steele blushed. "Really? I thought it would be like female kats...not always." He said in surprise. He didn't recall hearing this when he'd spoken with Professor Rendar.
Feral blinked in surprise. "Didn't Rendar tell you that?" Echoing Steele's thought.
"No sir, he mentioned quite a bit about Sabren mating habits and a little about pregnancy but somehow that wasn't mentioned," Steele said unhappily, vowing to plug that hole in his information.
"Well, fortunately for me, my doctor gave me an education on this. Okay, we tend to get pregnant every time we go into heat and before you ask why then are we nearly extinct if that is true, its because a constant high use of energy will halt our cycles or after bearing five kittens whichever happens first. Also we can miscarry just as kats do and that counts as a pregnancy for our bodies. No one seems to know why or how our bodies know to shut down after five but it does."
"Wow! A built in birth control system...wish we had something similar. So, you're pregnant...gee, I hope you get a break this time and don't go the fast route," Steele said, hopefully.
"You, me and my mate are hoping for the same thing, believe me. Anyway, I've been feeling a little puny today but its most likely a bit of morning sickness unlike my first pregnancy which was so problem free," he sighed then returned his attention to the report, quickly reading it over.
Steele politely waited but didn't feel Feral's impression of what was wrong with him was correct. The tom looked too pale and if he wasn't mistaken, appeared to be sweating a bit.
"This is coming along well, Steele. Good work," Feral said, finally, handing over the report back to his second.
"Thank you sir. Forgive me, but there's nothing going on right now, perhaps you should go home if you don't feel a visit to Dr. Mewser is indicated. I know you guys are really hardy, but you truly don't look that good to me, sir," Steele said worriedly.
Feral eyed his second in bemusement. The slim, blond kat truly look concerned. He realized he must look pretty bad for Steele to persist with his concern. "Perhaps you're right, I..."
They were interrupted by Sgt Fallon racing into the room, urgency in his manner as he spit out, "sir, Hard Drive blitzed through the Megakat Treasury setting off all the alarms and making all the security system doors and gates to open and close wildly. To make matters worse a group of bank robbers apparently were waiting for that to happen and tried to rob the mint but the security guards and two patrols stopped them, unfortunately, not before the creeps took hostages. The crooks with their hostages are in a large secured office area just outside the vaults and security is ranged outside."
"Has the SWAT team been called in?" Feral asked as he came down from his desk and hurriedly grabbed his coat and put it on, ignoring the sudden pain he felt in his abdomen.
"Yes sir, they are on their way along with the negotiator," the sergeant told him following his Commander as he and Steele made their way to the elevator.
"And here we were almost certain Hard Drive had left town," Steele said unhappily as they hurried across the flight line to a chopper already waiting for them.
"That's what we get for wishful thinking," Feral grunted, climbing aboard the passenger seat while Sgt Fallon and Steele got into the back, the door sliding behind him by the deck crew.
"Alright let's get to the scene." He told the pilot. Without a word, the pilot took them up and away quickly.