Mother Dearest

Before Jax could pull the trigger, the ground shook.

This wasn't the rumble of a beast. This was the tectonic shift of a god.

The sky above the Whispering Woods tore open. A shadow fell over the clearing, blotting out the bruised sun.

Jax looked up. "Oh no."

Looming over the horizon was a shape so large it defied comprehension. It looked like a skyscraper made of storm clouds and eyes. Thousands of tentacles, each the size of a suspension bridge, trailed from its main mass.

**[CLASS 1 ENTITY DETECTED: THE MOTHER]**

"Mommy’s home," Kara whispered, raising her rifle, though she knew it was useless.

The Mother let out a sound that shattered the windows of the Rover. *WHERRRRRE IS MY BAAAAAABYYYY?*

The sheer psychic pressure of her presence forced Jax to his knees. His nose began to bleed. The reality bubble around them started to crack.

"She’s going to crush us," Jax gasped, struggling to stand. "She thinks we kidnapped it."

Squishy—the baby—was crying now. Its wedding chapel was dissolving. It shrieked, a high, keen wail of distress.

The Mother roared in response. A massive tentacle descended from the clouds, smashing into the forest a hundred yards away. Trees were vaporized. The shockwave knocked Jax and Kara flat.

"We can't fight that!" Kara yelled over the wind.

Jax looked at the Mother. Then he looked at Kara.

He saw the fear in her eyes. He saw the end.

"I have a plan," Jax shouted, crawling toward the Rover.

"What plan?"

Jax grabbed his pack. He pulled out every brick of C4 he had. He started wiring them together with trembling hands.

"I’m going to create a diversion," Jax said. "I’ll draw her fire. You take the baby and run. If you give it back to her, maybe she’ll spare you."

"Jax, no!" Kara scrambled toward him. "That’s suicide! You can't outrun a blast radius that big!"

"I’m not planning to outrun it!" Jax looked at her. His eyes were wild, desperate. "I can't let you die, Kara! I can't!"

He stood up, holding the detonator. He turned toward the colossus looming over them.

"Hey! Ugly!" Jax screamed at the sky. "Over here!"

The Mother turned her thousand eyes toward him. The pressure intensified. Jax felt his ribs creaking.

"Jax, put it down!" Kara screamed.

"Get out of here, Kara!" Jax yelled, tears mixing with the dust on his face. "I love you, okay? I’ve loved you since boot camp! I loved you when you broke my nose in sparring! I love you so much it’s literally manifesting a monster wedding! Now go!"

He put his thumb on the detonator.