Lois Regains Control

"No," Lois hissed. Her resolve steeled. She had faced a lot of threats during her life—aliens, supervillains, mad scientists, imps from the fifth dimension—and whatever influence was being used on her, she was not going to succumb to it. This was her body, her life, and she was not going to be controlled by anyone.

She jerked her wrist, sending the cursor careening across the screen. The pink light was flickering around the edges of the screen now, and Lois was sure it had something to do with this. She could feel her hand start to slip back toward the slider, but the reporter focused, even though it was so hard to keep the thought in her head. With aching slowness, she dragged the cursor over to accept.

A cold sweat broke out on her forehead, palms and armpits gone suddenly clammy. Little kicks were shaking her belly. The pink light was brighter now, crowding around the edges of her vision.

It's lonely. The thought came to Lois suddenly. It wants brothers and sisters.

Lois knew that wasn't her. Not really. It was an alien thought, some idea being pushed into her mind.

Prepare to be an only child. She grimaced and clicked the button.

There was a red light. Bright enough to **** Lois to close her eyes, and yet she could still see it, burning through her eyelids. Bright enough, at least for a moment, to break the connection.

Eyes clutched tightly shut, the reporter lurched away from the chair. She felt tired, sore...her whole body felt strained in odd places...and her weight had shifted, lower and forward, reducing her to a waddle. Her tits ached, nipples sore and puffy, the pressure building within. Yet Lois put one foot in front of another, a naked pregnant woman aiming blindly for the door.

"Hey, wait..." Maria's voice, right in front of her. Hands on her bare shoulders. Lois kicked forward, her knee catching the woman right in the crotch. The reporter could feel the woman fold towards her, and instinctively brought her fist up to catch Maria on the chin.

The woman crumpled. Lois leaned against the doorframe, suddenly out of breath. She was shaking, though whether from the adrenaline or something else she wasn't sure about. With trepidation, she chanced opening her eyes.

No pink lights. Her belly loomed in front o f her. It didn't look much bigger, but it was drooping lower.

Forty weeks, she realized. Full term. I could go into labor at any time.

Her skin felt cold, nipples hard and oozing white droplets. I need to get out of here before that happens.