“Please release her, Ellia.” Yair asked kindly. Suddenly, Hilargi wished she had not programmed him so he wouldn’t attack any member of the Nymphs, but it was too late to rethink that error now. Because Hlargi’s mind and body had gone into overdrive and she was convinced that Ellia was going to severely injure her or kill her just to prove a point, Hilargi finally snapped.

“Fuck your paradise.” Hilargi spat. “Fuck you for treating me as an expendable instrument and forcing me to create tools of war.”

Ellia’s face became darker for a moment, her grip on Hilargi’s collar tightened. The tall woman’s face was so enshadowed that Hilargi thought she looked possessed by the devil. But finally, Ellia grinned and released Hilargi. She clapped her on the shoulder. Hilargi blinked, baffled by the affection given to her for no apparent reason. Hilargi panted, backing away from Ellia, fearful that she would try to harm her again if she wasn’t careful.

Ellia clasped her hands behind her back, gazing at Hilargi with a surprisingly affectionate smile. “Finally you show some spirit and bite—some sort of desire to live and defend yourself. Good. Now that you know you want to live, you won’t go trying to sacrifice yourself for this empty creature again, will you?” Ellia asked, referring to Yair.

Hilargi glanced at Yair, and then at Ellia. She nodded wordlessly, even though, in her hesart-of-hearts, she knew she most likely would. Yair was her child, and she would always be willing to die for him. Ellia squeezed her shoulder. “Good. Now, why don’t you do three hours of work on those new and improved polymer suits, and then you can have the rest of the day off.”

Hilargi nodded silently again. Ellia went on her way. Hilargi expelled a ragged breath once she was out of the room. She couldn’t deny that she felt something surging within her at Ellia’s praise when she had bit back against her comments. The thing she felt surging was a golden sort of confidence and a sense of camaraderie and equality that had eluded her all of her young life. Having Ellia’s praise… having her tough love meant the world to her, even if she didn’t want it to.

“I am sorry I couldn’t protect you.” Yair stated. Hilargi smiled at him. “Don’t worry about it, Yair.”

She gazed at the prototype suits that were on her work table, feeling an inspiration to work and work hard due to the praise she had received. “Can you fetch my mutant team? We have work to do.”

“Of course.” Yair replied.

Once Yair had fetched her team, she worked for three hours as Ellia had bade her, and was so impassioned by how well her work was turning out that she was tempted to do more, but she resisted. She took one last look at her work on the suit and nodded in approval.

Not only was it stylish—tight with little details like interesting seam placement—but it was also functional. It was heat resistant and bullet proof with a Kevlar vest built into it that could stop most bullet fire. She sighed, feeling electrified by how well it had turned out. She turned to her team. “Alright, break time. If you all would like to keep working, you can, but I’m going to take a little break.” Hilargi didn’t wait to hear their responses.

She found herself moving toward the Last Man’s room. She wanted to thank him for saving her life.

Her thighs burned as she walked up the stairs to his quarters. She grimaced. Well, they didn’t take me captive due to my strength or energy. She reminded herself with a smile on her face. When she arrived at his door, she knocked gingerly. She found herself tugging at her clothes and tucking her stringy hair behind her ears in an attempt to make herself more presentable, and felt ridiculous doing so. Who am I kidding? I can’t compare to Ellia in either looks or personality. I’m just a wet blanket…. She thought to herself miserably.

“Come in.” She heard Nikodemus’ voice bid from inside the room. She creaked his door open and stepped in.

Nikodemus smiled at her. “I thought it would be you. I’m glad you’re okay. You know, I think Ellia was very worried about you.” Hilargi pursed her lips, not wanting to talk about the woman who truly held his affections when she was the one who craved them so badly. “She was. She made it known by pushing me until I said a curse word.”

Nikodemus chuckled heartily, and Hilargi would have been angry at him if his laughter wasn't as wholesome as the heartiest soup. Hilargi’s face turned as sour as a lemon in jealousy for a moment, but then her practical nature took over and she returned to a neutral expression. Nikodemus cocked his head at her briefly sour expression. “I swear, I’ve seen so many of my daughters make that same expression when I’m being an old fuddy-duddy. What did I say that offended you?”

Hilargi gave him a sarcastic half-smile. In some ways, she was happy that he didn’t guess she had a crush on him. In other ways, she was furiously annoyed by it, but more annoyed by the fact that she didn’t have the courage to try and romance him the way the other girls did. He thought of her as a daughter, and didn't consider her a possible mate.

Can’t blame myself… I’m hideous. Why would he ever love me when he could love her? Hilargi crossed her arms while her forehead creased in apprehension. “You said nothing that offended me—I’m just sorry that I said a curse word is all.”