Clones on Earth

Hives

(This is in mando'a. Translation at the end.)

The next morning Fern woke up to the sound of her racing heart, the vivid memories of her past still fresh in her mind. Glancing at the clock beside her, she notes the time, 2:30 am.

Sighing, she dresses for the day into a white men's shirt with black short sleeves, a long grey wool jumper and a pair of dark blue jeans. Fern silently creeps downstairs to her ariary and underground haven. She begins feeding her pets, first Jeremy and then the insects below. Fern prepares the food for her Fire Ants, a whole mouse. She knows this will last them a few days, so in her haste to supply food to the rest of the terrariums, she decides to quickly drop the rodent into the tank without protective gear. The teen near immediately regrets her choice as a sharp, alarming pain registers in her wrist. Hissing in pain, she slams her other hand to her skin. Pulling back, Fern notes the now squished, single worker Fire Ant on her hand.

A sudden crash from the kitchen had Fern leaping up the ladder to see what was wrong. What she did not expect to see at four in the morning was Fives having Echo in a headlock with cereal smeared across the both of them. All the other men in the house were also there, either cheering their brothers on or attempting to disrupt them. They all, however, freeze when Fern enters the room.

The girl scans the room before sighing. Turning her head to the wall, and the light switch, she flicks it off, casting the clones into darkness. When the lights are returned, all the clones were sat at the main table and the connecting living rooms sofas.

"Meg te?!"

Fern gaze becomes stern, "Alright, I won't question who started but I'll be the one to finish it. Fives, Echo? You may want both want to shower, that stuff sets like concrete when dry." The two named men jump up and clamber over each other in an effort to reach the shower first as the remaining clones begin to explain the situation.

Fern simply raises her hand, "I said I won't question it. Did anyone get to eat before I came up?" She asks while itching her bitten wrist. The clones shake their heads and Fern begins to make her way to the kitchen.

An hour later, and all prior issues have been remedied. Echo and Fives finished removing the cereal out of their hair, the mess in the kitchen was cleared and all in the household had eaten. Fern had retreated to the basement to enjoy the company of her insects. Jessie was curious about the child, so he followed after her a while later.

What he found was Fern uncontrollably scratching every inch of her skin. The bare skin that was visible was angry, raised and red, with Fern's constant attempts to relive the irritable sensation only causing further damage.

"Oh nayc, Kix!"

The called clone comes rushing down the stairs and after a brief moment to analyse the situation, helped his brother to guide the now violently jerking girl up the ladder. When they reached the living room Fern wasn't looking well. The bright red blotches could be seen crawling up the girl's neck and face, mixing with her frustrated tears. Kix moved to examine the rash when Fern stopped him, "Fern, I need to see this."

"No need, it's Hives! Ugg! Don't touch it!" Fern gasps out through gritted teeth. Fives pops his head through the doorway, "Yes?"

"I said Hives, not Fives!" The teen snaps slightly, the rash becoming increasingly painful. Fives notices the state the young girl is in and rushes over to aid her. Kix engages into full medic mode, "Fern, I need you to tell me. What is this?"

The girl groans harshly, "It's not a virus or anything, so don't worry. It's essentially an allergic reaction. I got bit by one of the Fire Ants earlier, it's fine, just hurts!" Jessie speaks up, "Why would that cause this to happen?"

"Well," Fern begins sheepishly, "I'm somewhat allergic to bug bites."

"Then why would you keep them around?!"

"THEY'RE GOOD COMPANY!"

By now, all of the soldiers have come to see what the commotion was, only to panic to various degrees. There was the Captain and Commander, who shared worried glances and hovered at the back of the clone mass,  there was Echo, Waxer, Boil, and Jessie who were pushed to the middle and visibly concerned. And then there were the one's upfront. Hardcase was full-on panicking, Fives was just worried about how he could help the girl, and Kix was trying his best to calm down both his brothers and Fern.

Eventually, the teen managed to stutter out a command for the green worn backpack on the chair at the table. Hardcase was there and back in a moment, shoving the bag into Fern's face so she could begin her search.

After a moment she pulls out an Epipen and removes the cover, preparing to jab herself. Motioning for room to move, she stabs the medication into her thigh and holds it for a few seconds.

The clones watch with anticipation as the redness in her skin fades away and Fern begins to sit up and relax. Sighing with relief, Fern spins the Epipen around in her grasp, "Good thing I always have one of these things around, ain't it?"

The rest of the day continued as normal, apart from a few clones insisting they followed Fern around. Ret'lini, they said. Fern was curious as to what they said, as she had heard other similar-sounding words throughout the clones stay.

'Perhaps I'll ask another time' she thought, watching the clones mess around at the dinner table.

(Ok, the chapter is done! It feels good to write again. Well as promised, here are the Mando'a translations:

"Meg te?!"   means "What the?!"

"Oh nayc, Kix!" means "Oh no, Kix!"

'Ret'lini' means 'just in case'

(I hope this was good enough for everyone. See you next month.)