Mothers

A dog had just given birth to six puppies in the alley where the dumpsters were. Among the pile of trashes, she found shelter under a broken box. The dog licked her puppies lovingly, staying still as they suckled from her.

A kind passerby saw them and was touched by how cute the puppies were. However, she was just a student and couldn't take them home. So, she returned to the alley and presented the dog and puppies with a basket, filled with a warm blanket. When she was about to touch the the puppies, the dog growls in warning, and the student understood. Because of the dog's terrible experiences with humans as a stray, she wasn't quick to trust the student's intentions.

The schoolgirl understood the dog's caution, so she placed an empty fish flat can and poured milk into it. Then, she put some dog food nearby.

She wouldn't be able to return to this area, but she wished the dog well before leaving forever.

After the schoolgirl was gone, the dog greedily drank the milk and ate the dog food. She couldn't blame herself; she was hungry and needed to nourish her pups.

Apparently, not all humans were cruel.

The puppies grew healthy, but six puppies at once created a lot of noise. Just separated by the wall from the alley where she sheltered, a woman named Liana had just gotten home from the hospital alone—her husband was too busy working to pick her up.

Liana needed a calm environment to rest, as her baby would cry unexpectedly in every 2 hours. At times, she was sleep-deprived and stressed from doing everything alone. Her husband got home late at night, smelling of alcohol, claiming he had just gotten off from overtime, and immediately crashed, leaving Liana alone with their baby.

She desperately needed rest.

Unaware of what had gotten into her, she felt angry that day. She walked into the alley and found the noisy puppies.

In a fit of rage, she slammed the puppies one by one to the ground, making the dog watch helplessly.

All of them... died.

The dog could only howl to the sky, apologizing to her pups for being unable to protect them. She licked her dead puppies and gather them in her body, as if refusing to believe that her puppies are gone, and trying to sleep the sadness away.

A few days later...

It was midnight, most people already sleep. A young Argonarian woman ran for her life, chased by a group of armed men. They wore gray uniforms with an insignia on their left chest— a yellow triangle with a red border.

She was still dressed in the hospital gown worn by women after labor, and pain pulsed through her belly. But she had no time to rest. They were after her baby. She knew how special he was, but there was no way she would let them take him.

He deserves to live, he deserves freedom.

They were using a DNA tracker to hunt her down. It was illegal for non-law enforcement to track civilians with no criminal record, but they didn't care. That terrified her. It meant these people had power, money—and no regard for the law.

She found a hiding spot beside a trash dumpster. It would be a while before they found her. She needed to hide the baby while she led them away. As she frantically thought of a plan, she heard the soft cries of a newborn from beyond the wall, followed by an angry voice of a man; "Liana!! Calm your baby I need to sleep!"

Peering through a small window in the wall she was hiding against, she saw an exhausted mother with a newborn baby. That must be Liana and her baby.

An idea crossed her mind.

The Argonarian mother found an old, discarded basket and gently placed her baby inside, covering him with a plastic trash bag to keep him hidden.

Then, she slipped through the open window. Liana were fast asleep. Finally rest after a labor day doing everything alone and trying to not upset her husband. Carefully, she lifted Liana's baby into her arms.

Luck was on her side. The baby slept soundly, and the mother, exhausted, didn't stir. The father was upstairs, resting—he had to work in the morning. He wouldn't be waking up at 3 AM just for a crying baby.

With the child secured in her arms, she slipped back out the same window.

Now, it was time to run.

She made sure they saw her.

And just as she planned—they chased her.

Why didn't she switch her baby instead? Because that was never the plan. Her goal was to make sure they believed she was fleeing the city with her baby, leading them away. Once she escaped, she intended to return to the city by morning and return Liana's baby. 

However, plan doesn't work well. 

She jump on a motorboat and got shot in the head by a sniper.

Those men in uniform took Liana's baby to the lab, believing it to be the Argonarian newborn.

Her son was abandoned, alone. But like all Argonarian babies, he did not cry. He snuggled vulnerably in the basket, feeling the cold of the night, sleeping soundly—unaware that his mother was no longer there.

A pair of glowing yellow eyes emerged from the darkness of the alley as a creature slowly approached. Sharp teeth gleamed inside her mouth, grinning as she noticed a vulnerable young human lying in the basket where her puppies had once been.

She sniffed the Argonarian baby.

The fate of the child lay in the dog's decision. Would she see this as the universe settling the score—an opportunity to take revenge on another species for the merciless slaughter of her six puppies?

No.

She licked the baby lovingly and rested her head over him, covering the black dragon tattoo that sprawled across his chest, its head resting on his right shoulder. Her body heat warmed the newborn Argonarian against the cold night.

She decided that this was not a chance for a vengeance but an opportunity to thank the universe for the gift. She close her eyes in peace, knowing her job as a mother hasn't end yet.