A/N: Hey folks, welcome to chapter 24, sorry for the long wait. To be honest I've had the absolute worst case of writer's block. I've even considered ending the story early but that wouldn't actually solve my problems of 'completing' the story so I will do my best to finish it for you guys. This chapter should open up some doors and help you guys to understand somethings. Enjoy!

*****************************
Twenty-four:

Number

noun  twen·ty-four  \ ˌtwen-tē-fôr\, ˌtwən-fôr\

1.)
      The cardinal number that is the sum of twenty-three and one.
*****************************

Knock-knock.

"Iris." A deep voice echoed through the door.

'Deep breathe in, deep breathe out.' Iris coached herself as she leaned tiredly against the steel headboard like surface she spent the last four weeks hiding out on.

Though she had forgiven KyRue for his rude telling of her lackings as a parent, Iris wouldn't lie and say she felt the need to be around him.

Infact, she pretty much had stuck to herself the last few weeks of this particular excursion (excluding the random visits from her 'used to be but not really' believed parents, KyRue, and from time to time CReSin would magically appear). Iris could tell from the looks on everyone's faces that they were worried about her and the children. The fact that she only left the room to get the children what they needed, which was either early in the morning or late at night, and an occasional snack for herself- Iris knew it was causing frustration to the others on board. Heck, both Erik and KyRue had stated so plenty of times over the last few weeks.

Though Erik usually sent CReSin to message her, and KyRue spent the time yelling at her through the door.

And to be perfectly honest with herself, Iris was slightly worried too. She couldn't describe her sudden need to stay within the expanded four walls of her pod- besides depression.

I mean, look at what all she had been through in the last few months... It had to be some form of depression, nothing else made sense.

Of course, a normal person might be wondering, 'Well, Iris, why don't you just leave the room? Even if just for a moment, at least to help the others around you not to worry.'

The truth was Iris couldn't.

Physically, Iris could make her feet leave the room but not for longer than necessary. Not when just in the corner laid something that confused, worried, and comforted her beyond belief.

'What is to the left of the bed?' Another person might wonder. 

That being a much easier question to answer; the thing that laid perfectly against the far wall to the left of her bed was a steel capsule. And inside that large healing capsule was where all her sudden troubles lay. A large beast of a man with thickly smooth hair, shaved lowly on the sides while the top displayed the vivid color of a Raven's night, his face angled to the heavens with strong cheekbones to show for it, his frame littered with both, perfectly shaped tattoos and intensively shaped muscles. His clothes had been badly damaged during his transition into the pod (thanks to the fire from the dragon), so he was believably naked beneath the singular covering that entangled his perfect 'V' ensnaring hips; against the deeply saturated velvet back ground of the pod. Peaceful is what his face displayed, though Iris could almost feel the pain screaming out to her from his burn marks. Or at least, she used to. Thankfully, after two weeks of him being inside the healing pod his once smooth skin was seemingly back to a perfection Iris had never before seen.

And yet, he hadn't awoken.

Upon the third week of him still laying asleep Iris had become agitated, 'why hadn't he woken up yet?' She had even began to fidgeted with the healing pod, thinking that maybe if he felt the cool breeze from the surrounding vents something would click in his brain to awake. But unfortunately, she couldn't open the hatch. The only thing that would allow the healing mechanism to cease and release the lever of the hatch, was the awakening of the person within. CReSin had repeated this numerously to her on one of her many strange visits.

So in other words...

Iris had to stay put and wait it out. Her body refusing to leave the stranger, her worry for him causing her to feel as if she knew him her whole life. Heck, Iris had known Drax longer than she did this man. And Drax  had even saved her and her children, yet her mind and heart told her this stranger was more important than Drax.

Why? She didn't know.

Knock-knock-knock. "Iris will you please answer me so I know that you are okay!!" The voice of KyRue rang through her door once again, causing her to awaken from her thoughts and troubles.

Instead of answering right away, Iris stared down into the innocent faces of her three sons. Their heat surrounding her in an array of giggles and mischief as they pulled at her clothes.

Knock-knock-knock-knock-knock-knock. "I know you're ignoring me, Iris! Answer the door, I just want to know that you are okay!"

Again Iris sighed out in annoyance at the disturbance. She was not in the mood to deal with KyRue. Not because she was angry with him, but just because he was starting to annoy her with his sudden hourly visits.

Knock-knock-knock-knock-knock-knock-knock-knock! "Iris will you open the damned door!? What's going on in there? Has the prisoner been released from the pod yet? You two better not be-as Erik mentioned- whippo making in there! Especially not with my nephews-"

"Oh my God, KyRue! There is nothing going on because he's not even awake! Is that why you have been harrassing me all morning?! Because Erik told you I was busy sleeping with the stranger?!?" Iris hadn't even noticed when she had stood from the bed, all she knew was that she stood within the door frame, the handle to the door gripped extremely tight in her hand, her chest rushing to echo her breathes as she breathed out her words aggressively to her brother.

"Erik mentioned nothing of sleeping, he said whippo making-"

"First of all, it's called 'making whoopie' Second of all, I don't give a damn what Erik said! Erik can go choke on a camel's hump for all I care! Thirdly, the stranger's not even fucking awake yet!!! He is still trapped inside that damned machine! So you can stop with all these stupid little visits because I am this close to asking CReSin to release you through the airlock just so I can get some peace and quiet around here!!!!" Iris yelled out in anger as she raised her pincher fingers to display an inch of what patience she had left to deal with the nonsense aboard this ship.

KyRue was quiet for a moment as he stared down at her, his worry and annoyance becoming evident on his face before he sighed out loud, "I do not mean to anger you. I only want to help. You are my sister, Iris, is it not my responsibility to worry for you? You have been locked inside this room for the last month, I understand that all this may be hard to process. Especially with the children added into the mix, but you cannot lock yourself away. Things will not become better by separating yourself from the ones you love and who love you..." He said softly as he placed his large palm on her shoulder in a calming matter.

"KyRue, I am not a child. I don't need you to look after me. I get that you guys are worried but trying to force me to be happy around you when I am unbelievably miserable is... It's torture." Iris stated simply, tears pooling in her eyes.

"What reason would you have to be miserable-"

Throwing her hand up in exasperation, she said, "Are you kidding me?! Have you not been present these last few months? Everything in my life has been twisted and turned until it's all unrecognizable. My parents, Erik, the truth about myself, my birth father trying to kill me for no apparent reason, you and Drax, caring for not one or two but three babies, all of which are being treated like freaking shit by their father!.. And it feels like this, none of it, is even the worst of what is going to happen. I'm trying to pull my self together but this has all hit me at once and I feel like I can't breathe..."

"And yet, here. you. are. Don't wallow in self pity, Iris. Only thing that will lead you to is a self destruction. Yes, you have been through these things but they make you stronger-" KyRue tried to offer but was cut off.

"I don't feel very strong at the moment." The tears Iris had been holding back seemed to release like a waterfall at her confession, leaving long streaks to flow down her flustered cheeks.

If anything Iris just felt unbelievably tired, worn down, and truthfully older than her younger years.

KyRue could feel his sister crumbling into pieces and ripping at the seams before him, it broke his heart and at the same time it angered him. The emotions Iris was feeling were not uncommon for people of their kind, let alone someone who had dealt with the things Iris had in the last few weeks. But he needed her to pull herself together and keep moving forwards.

They had to. Especially with the knowledge that CReSin had bestowed upon them when traveling to the O'meTRÉ Galaxy...

Their father, Elias, was now drawing ever closer to them with each passing moment. Somehow he had located them before they used the hyperdrive to jump through space. Of course, this wouldn't have been a problem with any other ship that was in search of them, but KyRue knew that his father was excellent at calculating jumper successions. So in other words, Elias most likely would be able to estimate the distance they jumped and locate their destination.

And he would without a doubt be headed there right now.

They were all racing against the clock to Port and abandon ship, or make it someplace where he would never think to look. But there wasn't much in the O'meTRÉ Galaxy, which is why Erik had originally chose it as the perfect place to hideout. But now they needed all hands on deck for ideas of where to go and a fully functional escape route. KyRue knew things would go better for them if he could get his sister's help. Especially with her new found ability of teleportation. She just needed to shake off this depressive state and get back to business.

But before that, KyRue wouldn't mind laying some truth out there for her. She seemed as if she really needed it right about now.

"It is because you concentrate on the pain of it all. And this is what worries me, Iris. You allow that pain too much control over your actions. This stress you allow to chew you up and spit you out, separating yourself, becoming overly angered, it is not you, Iris. Our kind are never good with the stages of grief or depression, infact many say we become gráTinö FraYÁ."

"Gratin-frapa-what?" Iris stared at KyRue with a new found annoyance as well as confusion. Her tears long forgotten as the new emotions rang through.

KyRue always did this; he'd have these moments where they would be having a serious conversation then he'd say something in another language that would have her utterly confused on his points. Most of the time Iris would have to ask him to repeat himself as if she hadn't heard him the first time and even then, she still could not comprehend what he was trying to say. Then there were the times she'd just let him continue with his fussing with no interruptions because she just knew she would never understand.

And don't get her started on when he became so focused on points that his French/Russian like accent would become heavy with every word that fluttered out from his lips. Of course, his accent was neither of those things; neither French, nor Russian. But sometimes when he got agitated and spoke, Iris could swear he spoke with either accent.

"Um, I believe the perfect word to translate that would be... unstable, we become very unstable. Our minds becoming warped in someway, any powers we might have start to fluctuate, unable to control them we either end up damaging the things around us or we damage ourselves. Neither of those things I wish to see happen to you, it is why I bother you so much. We-" KyRue paused seemingly looking like he was struggling to explain something.

"-We, as in our kind, are like the wolven creatures of your planet. Separation from the pack causes a weakening in our body and our state of mind. Mainly because we are not used to being alone, so we look for connections in other people or things. Sometimes it's not even to our knowledge, it's just something we do. I think it is because we were created in pairs, you know, to belong to one another. Though, many say that is just the belief of silly young ones who dream of a time with princes or princesses. I-It was always something my mother taught me and I believe it. We were made in pairs, to complete one another, to love, cherish, worship, and appreciate another being with everything that lies within us. To be forever bound to this person, no matter where they are. It can be felt so deeply entrenched in ones heart that you can feel every emotion and pain they feel; if they are happy so are you, if they are sad so are you. To know that that person belongs to you and no one else. It is a bond so tight, once forged, that not even large distances could break it. Of course, I imagine it would be a great deal weakened otherwise that'd just be strange.. but you get what I'm saying, I think it is because of this concept that we can become frantic looking for such a connection with another. It's probably why Erik latched on to you the way he did. From what he has described, Erik had been left on the planet EArth for at least a year or two before he even noticed you."

"-And even being in the same schooling system with you and yet he never made the connection with you, not until he could feel you were like him in some way. Plus, he, himself had been separated from his own connections. That is a long time to go without a connection, by the way. But it was you, who made him feel sane again without him even knowing that you were in essence just alike. Not that I agree with his methods, not in the littlest of bits." KyRue said, releasing a growl towards the end, before continuing.

"I also think this is why you connected so well to Drax. He once said that he felt you in the atmosphere long before we were falling through the sky. Iris, Drax was one of the most powerful beings in that particular area and of all people he could feel you calling out to him. You were in need of a connection, and he gave you the trust needed to make it."

'So basically I'm like a teen in McDonald's, trying to connect to the free WiFi but I keep getting the wrong signals? Is that what he's telling me?' Iris thought sarcastically to herself. Though she was having a hard time accepting everything KyRue was saying to her, Iris couldn't deny that some of it really made sense.

For instance: Her connections with Erik and Drax...

They were both a bit random and yet at the time they served a purpose. A purpose that left her happy or rather, content. At least until things started going haywire.

But this information also brought to light questions, like, if they were made in pairs what did that make Erik and Drax to her? At the time of her meetings with them she had felt so much better than what she felt now, was that why she felt the way she did now? Her connection with Erik was broken beyond repair, and Drax... She didn't know what had happened to Drax.

So she was once again connection-less. Right back where she started in the first place.

And thinking back, just as KyRue had mentioned, her powers had been fluctuating all over the place. I mean, she had literally almost choked Erik with her powers back at Drax's house, then she had been fazing in and out of a spot on the bed less than a month ago, and she has transported to that jail place where she had originally met the man in the healing pod, then again when she found him running from a freaking dragon....

"What does all of this mean? I mean, can I fix it?"

"Of course, Iris. Your connections don't have to be with only people you are considering as mates."

"Then why couldn't I just be satisfied back home with just Michael being around, though I didn't know he was anything along the lines of nonhuman."

"I believe that had something to do with the potion he had taken to transform himself. It must have been able to really block everything out from his alien form. Include his ability to be recognized in the brain waves  of others. Amazing." KyRue suggested before continuing on once again, "Seeing as how, I am part of your connections and you are my sister, Iris. As long as my life force is willing, I will help you navigate through this life. You simply need to re-establish the links you've formed before. Come, gather the children."

"The links I had before?" Iris questioned.

"Yes, with your parents and maybe even Erik." KyRue offered.

"KyRue, whatever relationship I had with Erik has officially decayed. And I am fine with Michael and Jenny." She said trying to think of more reasons not to leave the room minus the one that sat to the left in a healing pod. Iris knew, KyRue cared not for her stranger and she didn't want to anger him by bringing up the healing man. Especially not after all this talk about her making connections with people to fight off her surrounding loneliness and depression.

"Iris, you haven't even had a full conversation with your parents since you got back. And you call them by their real names. " KyRue breathed out, his attitude slightly flickering.

"Well, what else am I going to call them, those are their names!? And yes I have had a conversation with them, I've had plenty." She said folding her arms over her chest. 

"Really? Then tell me, how is Michael?" KyRue quirked.

"What do you mean? He's fine, I saw him.." Iris said, pausing as she started tapping her chin trying to recall the last time she saw Michael. "Okay, I can't recall the last time I saw him but I'm sure he's fine, this is a small ship and it's not like he-"

"See! You can't even remember when you saw him last." KyRue said, his eyes being unable to control their rolling as he watched his sister considering if she should insist she was right even though she knew she'd been wrong in the first place.

"Fine, what's your point? What's wrong with him?" Iris questioned, worry slipping into her slightly guilted voice.

"That is my point! I will allow you to find that out for yourself what is wrong with Michael. As for now gather the children."  KyRue advise with his arms out stretched for a nephew to hold.

I wanted to Dedicated this chapter to a few people who, in one way or another, encouraged me to keep pushing through my writer's block. Thank you loves!: 

alexisanneb
Choppedtriumphs

And to all my other wonderful readers out there who have been patiently waiting. Thank you, also lovelies! 😍😄😚😘

Next chapter will be full of surprises!