The central characters of Poltergeist: the Legacy do not belong to me –

they are the property of Trilogy and MGM; I’ve only borrowed them for a while.

All other characters are created by me. Hope you enjoy …

POLTERGEIST:

THE LEGACY

AN ULTIMATE RISING

Prolog

No one had known, not exactly, when it was going to happen. They just knew it was close and, each day that passed with nothing happening, the tension just got stronger, more intense. There was no let up, absolutely none. They say the waiting is the hardest to bear. They were right.

The house on Angel Island was as prepared as it could be. Life went on as near to normal as was possible. And they waited, hanging on to shreds of patience, willing, praying that it would come sooner rather than later.

It began in the early hours of the morning. Past two, before three. The night was still and cold. Not a cloud in the sky and the stars twinkled with a frosty gleam. And Merlin woke up from a dreamless sleep to stare at the ceiling, her mouth slightly open, a small frown of concentration on her forehead. Something somewhere was off. Not right. Every sense she had – dulled and almost useless as they were – screamed a warning.

It’s started, she thought and she swallowed. She was nervous.

*****

Nick could hardly breathe. His chest was tight, his eyes fixed and staring. He’d never imagined anything could be like this. So long drawn out.

“You okay?”

It was Rachel who asked, her voice slightly muffled. Her eyes met his and were reassuring. He nodded quickly.

“Yeah. I’m fine.”

She switched her attention back. She didn’t shake her head although she wanted to. Men, she thought. So tough. So .. unrelenting. Masters of their own universe. And then something like this happens .. and the veils are ripped from their eyes. Nick must be finding this hard to endure .. but he’s doing okay. Fine .. that might be a slight exaggeration.

“Peri, you’re doing very well. Everything looks good.”

It was that awkward time of the day – end of the afternoon and the start of the evening. Outside, it was getting dark, the temperature dropping quickly. Merlin was tired. Her mouth was dry, her hair hung lank with sweat. Her hand was closed around Nick’s fingers and she was crushing them. He was surprised she had that much strength left. He was surprised too that she hadn’t screamed or yelled. She’d groaned a few times, softly, low in her throat, her eyes closing, but that was all.

“How much longer?” she asked.

“No one can say. It’ll come when it’s ready, not before.”

Outside, in the corridor, the atmosphere was straining at the seams. If the tension leading up to this day had been terrible, now it was unbearable and it had gotten worse slowly all thru the long hours of this Sunday before Christmas. No one spoke except with their eyes and expressions. Derek paced. Alex leaned against the paneled wall and watched him. Seven paces away, seven paces back. No pause. She was amused by this. He was acting like the expectant father, walking ceaselessly because he could do nothing else, looking anxious and on edge as the doubts raced thru his imagination. At every sound which filtered thru the closed door, Derek’s head would turn to stare and wait, his heart in his eyes, but his pacing never faltered. Every so often, Philip or Andrew would silently appear and Alex would shake her head. No news, not yet. But soon. It had been over fourteen hours now. It couldn’t last much longer .. surely.

“Okay, ready?” Rachel asked, although it was more an order.

Merlin sucked in a deep breath and her chin lowered onto her chest. The grip on Nick’s hand tightened even more. She pushed, grunting deep in her throat.

“Well done. Relax. Nick, you wanna see this?”

Merlin let him go. She appreciated him being here to support her, but this was a once in a lifetime opportunity. He rose and walked on unsteady legs to where Rachel stood. He looked.

“Wow … ” he breathed. “Peri, there’s hair. Dark hair.”

“Oh, great,” she whispered.

“Won’t be long now. Remember the lessons. You have to pant, not push, when the head’s being born.”

“I remember,” she said, her voice tight. Now was not a good time for a lecture.

“Peri, a small push. Just a small one.”

“I can’t. I’m too tired. I have to rest for a while.”

“C’mon, babe,” Nick encouraged. “You can do this. I know you can.”

“I’m tired.” She said it thru gritted teeth.

“You’ll be able to sleep very soon. I promise.”

Merlin felt the next contraction start to bite. Really, it didn’t matter how tired she was, this was a primal reaction. If she took a deep breath, her body took over. She had no control over it at all. It was a strange sensation for someone who’d always practiced total control.

She took a half breath and pushed, her eyes fixed on Rachel and on Nick. His expression was rapt, absorbed. The rest of the world might not have existed.

“Okay, now pant!”

Amazing how she couldn’t do what nature demanded when she panted. The urge, as basic as survival, simply vanished. At least it didn’t hurt now. She’d gone thru the pain and emerged on the other side. Now she was just weary and she wanted this to be over so she could rest.

“There’s the head,” Rachel said, smiling quickly behind her mask. “Two or three more pushes should do it.”

Nick was right there at Rachel’s shoulder, watching his child being born. He was astonished, staggered.

Merlin began to push again. She was sweating with the effort. Thirteen, fourteen hours in labor and no pain relief. A Flamefall birth was usually over in less than five hours and there was no pain. Once again, Merlin walked a lone path across uncharted territory .. for a Flamefall that is. This was being normal with a vengeance. Rachel had offered medication but Merlin wanted to experience everything. She would never get another chance.

“One shoulder .. an’ the other one.”

“Wow,” Nick breathed.

Only one more push, Merlin thought. Only one more, it’ll be over. Just one.

It was easy. She felt something slither out of her body.

There was a moment of perfect silence then Nick said, “It’s a boy.” He sounded amazed. “I have a son.”

“Congratulations,” Rachel said warmly even as she quickly worked, administering a hypo to stimulate the third and final stage of labor and then clamping and cutting the cord.

Merlin looked at Nick and smiled, then her gaze shifted sharply. “How is he?”

A heartbeat, two, and then a thin, furious cry began.

“He’s perfect,” Rachel replied. “Ten fingers an’ toes. A good strong pair of lungs. I have to check him over. Weigh him, measure him. Check those reflexes. You just relax for a while.”

Merlin had already sagged back against the sweat drenched pillows. In only a handful of minutes, Rachel was back. Nick stood with his son wrapped in a white blanket and cradled in his arms. Today, his dream had come true. He couldn’t quite believe he was so blessed. He bent forward so Merlin could take her first good look at her son. A plum colored face with a shock of jet black hair. His eyes were closed and he was sucking noisily on a fist.

Ten minutes after that, it was all over. Rachel cleaned up her patient and made her presentable to the anxiously waiting visitors outside the door. Nick reluctantly surrendered his burden and Rachel went to the door.

“You guys wanna come in?” she asked.

Derek didn’t push past her. He entered almost reverently, Alex on his heels, Philip bringing up the rear.

“Nick? Peri?” Derek questioned.

“We have a son. He was born at five fifty two, weighing eight pounds, thirteen ounces, an’ measuring twenty one inches,” Nick replied. “Mom an’ baby are fine. Beautiful.” He had tears in his eyes. “Being here .. seeing it, sharing in it .. was an honor an’ a privilege.”

“Congratulations, both of you,” Derek said warmly.

“Do you have a name for him yet?” Alex asked, one index finger gently stroking a downy cheek.

“Yeah. We’re gonna call him – ” Merlin began.

“Dominic Michael,” Nick concluded.

It was December 21, and no extra special really bright star shone in the sky. Merlin was glad about that.

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