Kal, Male, 38

	- Narrator, disaster survivor and castaway

	- Husband of Kate, Bailey, Keekah, and Amy, father of Katie

	- 6'1, 190lbs, straight, shoulder-length dark-brown hair

Kate, Female, 37

	- Wife of Kal and Amy

	- 5'8, 150lbs, pale skin, shoulder-length curly red hair

Nina, Female, 26

	- Lover of Kate, Kal, and Hakee

	- 5'4, 120lbs, light-brown tanned skin, straight shoulder-length brown hair

Bailey, Female, 15

	- Wife of Kal, mother of Katie

	- 5'5, 130lbs, golden-brown tanned skin, shoulder-length light yellow-brown sun-streaked hair

Keekah, Female, 16

	- Wife of Kal, pregnant, daughter of Manu, sister of Hakee and Mie, cousin of Poln

	- 5'6, 150lbs, mocha-brown skin, waist-length mostly-straight black hair

Gale, Female, 44

	- Wife of Tok

	- 5'5, 130lbs, dark tanned skin, waist-length dark reddish-brown hair

Manu, Female, 33

	- Survivor from Hahonoko, mother of Keekah, Hakee, and Mie, aunt of Poln

	- 5'5, 150lbs, mocha-brown skin, butt-length straight black hair

Hakee, Female, 18
 
	- Survivor from Hahonoko, daughter of Manu, sister of Keekah and Mie, cousin of Poln

	- 5'9, 145lbs, mocha-brown skin, butt-length straight black hair

Mie, Female, 12

	- Survivor from Hahonoko, daughter of Manu, sister of Keekah and Hakee, cousin of Poln

	- 5'0, 100lbs, mocha-brown skin, shoulder-length wavy black hair

Poln, Male, 11

	- Survivor from Hahonoko, nephew of Manu, cousin of Keekah, Hakee, and Mie

	- 4'11, 115lbs, mocha-brown skin, short, wavy dark-brown hair

Tok, Male, 35

	- Survivor from Hahonoko, husband of Gale

	- 6'3, 205lbs, brown skin, shoulder-length wavy dark-brown hair

Amy, Female, 16

	- Wife of Kal and Kate, pregnant

	- 5'7, 135lbs, pale skin, shoulder-length straight black hair

Amu (Amutoko), Male, 52-53

	- Newcomer to the island, widowed hermit

	- 5'6, 150lbs, medium-brown skin, tight-curly black hair

Kylana, Female, 15

	- Uhonamonan visiting the island, sister of Hunamu, Tika, and Tila

	- 5'8, 140lbs, dark-brown skin, long dark-brown hair in braids

Hunamu, Male, 14

	- Uhonamonan visiting the island, brother of Kylana, Tika, and Tila

	- 5'10, 150lbs, dark-brown skin, cropped curly black hair

Tika, Female, 13

	- Uhonamonan visiting the island, twin sister of Tila, sister of Kylana and Humanu

	- 5'4, 125lbs, dark-brown skin, wavy dark-brown back-length hair

Tila, Female, 13

	- Uhonamonan visiting the island, twin sister of Tika, sister of Kylana and Humanu

	- 5'4, 125lbs, dark-brown skin, wavy dark-brown back-length hair

Popko, Male, 20

	- Uhonomonan native

	- 5'10, 165lbs, dark-brown skin, short curly black hair

Katie, Female, 9 months

	- Daughter of Kal and Bailey, first child born on Phoenix

	- Infant, beige skin, sandy red hair

Amy was out of the tub and on a mattress nearby, resting relatively comfortably with several pillows behind her back. She smiled at me weakly when she saw me enter.

“Hey, Sweetheart. How are you doing?” I asked as I knelt down beside her. Kate was sitting on her other side, holding her hand in her lap.

“Alright,” Amy said, closing her eyes again. “I'm so tired.”

“I know, Love,” I told her, softly stroking her black hair, “hang in there. You're doing great.”

She smiled but didn't respond. I used a clean cloth to wipe the sweat from her brow.

Kate said quietly, “Her contractions are about five minutes apart, and she's about four centimeters dilated, so she's getting closer. Manu says it will still be a few hours. She needs to dilate to about eight centimeters, contractions somewhere around every two minutes before Amy can start pushing.”

As if on cue, Amy strained as her body tensed, gritting her teeth, her fingers digging into my bruised hand. I didn't show the discomfort I was feeling. I knew it was nothing compared to what Amy would go through soon enough.

Once the contraction had passed and Amy was relaxing again, Kate asked me, “Weren't you going to rest a while?”

“I tried. Mie made me lunch and I think I dozed a few minutes. But I didn't want to stay away from Amy for long.”

Kate smiled and nodded, “Understood. Spell me a while, then? I could really use a pee and something to eat.”

“Sure, take your time. I'll be here.”

- - -

Amy's labor had started in the middle of the night and continued long after darkness fell again over the island. Kate and I took turns keeping the pregnant teen company while Manu came and went every twenty minutes or so to check on the girl. The rest of the camp had eaten supper and was well into the late-evening wind-down when Amy's contractions became more urgent and painful.

Manu gave her another dose of the tincture and measured her again. “Okay,” Manu said with determination, “now it comes to it. You are ready to push, Amy. Remember the practice? Each time you feel a contraction, bear down. Don't worry about anything else, just push like I taught you.”

Amy nodded as I wiped sweat from her face and shoulders. Her vulva looked spongy and swollen.

Manu was quiet a moment, eyes closed, then when Amy groaned in pain again, Manu said, “yes, coming every ninety seconds. You are dilated enough. Rest a moment, then let's move you to the bath.”

Two minutes later, we guided Amy to her knees in the tub where warm water was slowly flowing in. Manu had offered that it was a more comfortable position and gave her a better angle for assisting the birth.

Kylana and Bailey were at Manu's sides, ready to do their part. Kate had stepped back and watched from the edge of the room. I sat close to Amy's head, holding her hands and once more bearing the vice grip as her contractions became intense and more frequent.

“Aaaaaaahhhh!” Amy cried out as she pushed for the first time.

“Good!” Manu said calmly, “keep it up! Keep it up!”

Amy grunted, her eyes closed, her teeth bared and gritted.

After about a minute, the contraction ended and Amy tried to catch her breath. Her eyes flickered open and she watched me as I emphasized the breathing rhythm Manu had taught us. Amy did her best to calm herself. It took just another few seconds for another contraction to hit and once more, Amy bore down to Manu's encouragement to push.

Flatulence is extraordinarily common, Manu had assured us, and it was then that Amy's bowels shifted and she farted. No one laughed or gave pause. It was just part of the process. We were all too focused in seeing Amy safely through those moments to pay it any mind. Even Manu, who was in the directly line of it showed no concern.

A few rounds of pushing and resting later, during a particularly intense push, Manu told Bailey, “hurry, catch that...”

I heard sputtering and realized Amy was emptying her bowels. Once more, we were all clinical, so close to the birth of Amy's child that we ignored all else. Even Bailey, whose job it was to keep Amy's bowel movement from sliding down over the teen's vagina stayed focused, and once she had caught it all, Kylana moved in to clean the teen with a fresh moistened cloth.

Amy's eyes flickered open slightly while she briefly rested. “I pooed, didn't I...”

I smiled and shrugged, “don't worry about it.”

“I couldn't really feel it,” she said wearily, “but I smell it...”

“You're close, Amy,” I said, trying to take her mind off that potential embarrassment, “so close.”

“I feel it,” Manu said as she gently probed Amy's vagina, “she's coming.”

I didn't miss that Manu had used the gendered pronoun, but had no further thought about the sex of the child.

“Hear that?” I asked Amy, “you're almost there.”

Amy smiled weakly, “almost there...” She was sweating profusely and I quickly wiped her face and back and arms with a fresh cloth.

“Amy, next one, give me everything and keep pushing until you can't do any more,” Manu told her. “Once you feel it hit, give me everything.”

“I will...” Amy said, bracing herself against me.

I felt her tense and the teen's body arched slightly as she put all her effort into the push. I tried to keep her breathing in rhythm throughout, but the effort was taxing her quickly. It was in that moment that I realized how bloody the water in the tub had become.

“Keep it up!” Manu said, a bit of excitement in her voice, “she's coming!” The contraction stopped and Manu continued, “rest ten seconds, then start pushing again, give me everything, Amy!”

Amy watched my face, eyes wide, using my breathing as her guide, then she bore down hard.

“That's it!” Manu exclaimed, “I've got the head. She's coming out. Kylana, get ready to catch her!”

In what seemed like an eternity but was no more than thirty seconds, Manu and Kylana worked the child out of Amy's vagina, a wet, sloppy plop followed by a steady dripping sound in the water below.

Bailey rushed in, and with Manu and Kylana, settled down onto the prepared area in front of the tub. I could see them wiping the baby, focused concentration along with Manu's quick words of direction keeping them working.

A long minute passed, then another. I could feel my heart racing, and I tried not to show the concern I felt as I watched Manu at her task. Amy watched me, panting, eyes wide again. “Well?! Tell me!”

Manu was quiet just a moment, then said, “We need to work here, please have patience...”

It did nothing to stop the sinking feeling developing in my stomach. Something was wrong, and I could no longer hide my fear from Amy. “Oh, no...” Amy said, ready to break into tears. “No... please, no...”

“Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaa” came a weak cry from behind Amy's body, “wwwaaaaaaaaaaaaa...”

Amy's eyes penetrated mine, and she finally turned back to see Manu wrapping the crying child carefully, the umbilical cord still attached and running back inside Amy's body. Manu's arms were covered in birth fluids, and some was even splattered on her face.

Kylana and Bailey helped Amy carefully reposition herself, keeping the cord from pulling on the attached infant, moving the teen so that she could sit back and rest against the side of the tub. Manu smiled as she showed Amy the newborn. “She's fine, Amy. She's beautiful.”

I noticed then the infant's skin.

The child's flesh was a light shade of brown, perhaps a rich bronze. There was no doubt that Tok was now a father.

I didn't feel disappointed at all. In fact, my heart swelled to know that my best male friend in the world was now a father. I recalled that he'd been a widower, his wife dead many years earlier from a fever. She'd never conceived. Now, my friend had fulfilled what I knew he had longed for. He had a daughter.

Carefully, Manu brought the child to Amy and and rested the infant on her chest. Amy's tears flowed freely then as she gently cradled her daughter.

“Oh, Amy,” was all I could manage, my own tears falling as well. The release of tension came so suddenly that I lost my composure, weeping like a child.

“What will you call her?” Bailey asked gently.

The one time we'd talked about names, Amy had said she didn't want to pick one until the baby was born, not wanting to attach herself in such a way should something go wrong. There was no doubt in her voice when she said quietly, “Azure... like the color of the sky where it meets the water on a clear day...”

“Azure... that's beautiful,” Bailey replied. “So beautiful...”

I wept with relief and joy and joined the others in congratulating Amy and welcoming Azure to our family.

- - -

The rest of the evening involved a lot of careful cleanup and observation. Manu had a variety of things she needed to do to ensure the infant was well after her birth, eventually separating the cord after the placenta had flushed out of Amy's body.

The other campers had come in, one-by-one, to visit and meet Azure despite the late hours. Amy was eventually able to rest and sleep. She stayed in the bathhouse that night, and Kate and I stayed with her, along with Manu.

Azure took to suckling almost immediately, and Amy's body produced milk as it was designed to do, feeding her child after dozing a while. Azure's skin was rich bronze all over, a light dusting of curly dark hair on her head. She seemed a bit small to my eyes, and privately, Manu told me that she'd probably been born a bit early so that was to be expected. The child was not premature, thankfully, and Manu's examinations turned up nothing but a healthy girl.

Amy slept for a while, and Manu took Azure and kept her warm in a small cradle filled with towels and a small blanket. Other than her first cries upon emerging from Amy's vagina, the girl had been mostly quiet and still, seemingly as exhausted by the day-long labor as was her mother.

I couldn't wait to tell Tok the good news. I barely slept that night and just before dawn, I made sure Amy and Azure were okay before heading out to get things going for the camp. I felt energized, despite the previous long day, and I had sweetened oatmeal and coffee ready before daybreak. I brought a small bowl for Amy when I saw she was awake, and she ate greedily, then asked for seconds.

There was a decided excitement around the camp. The healthy birth of Azure was an event when lifted everyone's spirits, not that we'd felt low before. But I knew that many of us had worried about Amy's pregnancy, that the slender teen's body might make her delivery difficult, that there might be serious complications. When Azure was born late in the night, seemingly healthy, and Amy had made it through the process as well, the relief we all felt made us double our efforts during chores.

With Manu speaking her native language, closely related to Uhonamonan, we tried to raise the other island during a mid-morning break. Neither end continuously monitored the radios, but when the sun was providing a charge to the batteries through the solar panels, we sometimes left our end on in case an attempt to contact came through. It was still two days before our scheduled weekly conversation, so we held little hope that anyone would be listening.

To our surprise, a female voice answered. Manu relayed my words to the woman, asking after Tok. We were told he was out on a boat, not due back until that evening. She would be certain to let him know to contact once he was in. I told her, through Manu, to have him contact us regardless the hour. We made sure to let her know we had good news, not bad.

- - -

I'd fallen asleep near the radio where it sat on a shelf in the common shelter, it's solar panels run out ahead of the camp to collect each day's light without the overhanging trees. We'd had enough sun to not worry about running the battery low since very little power was needed to simply monitor the designated channel.

I awoke to the sound of a male voice and static. I opened my eyes, glancing around to find myself alone. I remembered that Amy had been able to move back to our shelter for the night, along with Azure. Bailey, Keekah, and Kate were keeping by her side.

The voice came through again, and I thought it sounded like Tok. He spoke English, so I was able to respond. “Tok!”

“Hello, my friend,” he replied, “I understand you attempted to reach me this morning?”

“Yes,” the excitement in my voice was probably heard about the static, “I have wonderful news.”

“Tell me.”

“Congratulations. You're a father!”

“Oh my!” Tok exclaimed, “this is so? Amy has had my child?”

“She has. No doubt she is yours.”

“'She?' I have a daughter, then?” I could hear his voice matching my excitement.

“Yes! She's beautiful, Tok. And healthy.”

“What is her name?”

“Amy called her Azure, after the sky just above the water during a clear day,” I explained.

“Azure,” he said, then repeated himself. “Azure... I love this. My daughter, Azure. Kal... I'm a father?” Tok asked it as a question, but I knew he was just overwhelmed by the news.

“You are. I wish you were here to celebrate.”

“As do I. And Amy, she is well?” He asked.

“Fine. She's very tired, but she did great. She wishes you were here, too.”

I heard Tok sigh, then he said, “I do not know when I will be able to see my daughter, Kal, but... now that this is true and I have a child... I wish to return. I must discuss this with Gale immediately.”

“Understood. I certainly wish you to be here, but I know this might be hard for her. She seems to have grown attached to Uhonamona.”

“She has, but not so much that her heart has moved from Phoenix. When is the next scheduled contact?”

“Two days.”

“I will discuss with Gale and I will try to have a plan by then. Oh, my friend. This is a wonderful day!”

I congratulated him again before we signed off.

I leaned back and exhaled, racing from sharing the news with Tok. I was restless, certainly in no mood for sleep at that time. It was late, for sure, probably after midnight. I poked my head into the shelter where Amy and the others had settled down for the night and found them all sleeping. Katie was in her crib, and Azure was swaddled and being gently cradled next to Amy. I nearly cried again at the lovely scene.

I stepped outside and took a deep breath.

Movement caught my eye, and I realized I was not alone in the warm night. Someone was walking down by the shore to the East. I hastened to catch up with the person.

As I got closer, I realized it was Kylana. She was by herself, naked as we always were when the weather was warm, slowly strolling along the edge of the surf. I called out to her so as not to surprise her, and she turned to meet me.

“Can't sleep?” I asked, guessing by the position of the stars that it was well after midnight.

She shook her head. “Too excited.”

I took her hand and we walked slowly together to the East. “You did great today. Manu was really proud of you and Bailey.”

I could hear the smile in her voice, “thanks. I've never been through this before. A new child is so... exciting...”

I agreed, “Azure is beautiful. Amy is thrilled. And so is Tok.”

“Oh, you speak with him?” she asked.

“Just moments ago.”

Kylana was quiet a moment, then said, “does it hurt that he is the father?”

“Not in the least... I knew it was possible Tok was the one, but it changes nothing. I love Amy. I love Tok. Azure is a treasure I'll treat no different than if she was from my seed.”

“This is lovely to hear. I thought... maybe you jealous... that she no yours.”

I shook my head. “I don't feel that way. Amy's happy and healthy. So is Azure. I'm excited and thrilled and relieved. Plus, my good friend Tok is finally a father.” I told Kylana a bit of Tok's story, how he'd lost his first wife to fever and never had children before. “I expect he's not sleeping tonight, either.”

Kylana stopped and looked at me. “One day... I wish to be a mother.”

“Well... then I hope that happens when you are ready.”

“It could happen soon, yes?”

I shrugged, “every time you let one of us ejaculate inside you... that's possible...”

I could just see her nodding in the starlight, the moon just a sliver over the Western waters. “I know how babies are made. I know what may happen. I accept this each time.”

I nodded. “Good. You're a woman, Kylana. The decisions you make are your own. I know what is at stake when I'm the man ejaculating inside you... it makes me feel much better about it to know you understand as well.”

She kissed me suddenly, pressing her face to mine, an urgent need coming through in her lips and tongue. I didn't resist, letting the teen press her body onto me, her soft breasts against my chest, her scratchy pubes resting along one thigh. My penis rose to rest near her genitals.

“I am excited by this. All this. I am wet, see?” Kylana ran a finger through her slit and brought it to my mouth. I sucked on her flesh, tasting her pungent sweetness.

“Mmm... you taste so good, Kylana...”

“I want you inside, Kal...”

Neither of us had brought a towel, but that didn't stop us from doing what we were compelled to do, a desire burning through my body and hers. Kylana brought a knee up and I held it high while she used her hands to bring the tip of my cock to her silky wet pussy. One leg still on the sand, she pushed her hips forward and sank onto my dick. I swelled and groaned in response, bringing my face back to hers and kissing her deeply.

We moved together with an urgency, a powerful need bringing us to rut in that moment. Neither of us lasted long. Kylana moaned into my mouth, her clit rubbing against my groin, as she climaxed, and seconds later, I grunted in her ear as I filled her with my hot, sticky seed. We both knew what might happen if my sperm found her egg, and I honestly think that made each of us enjoy our mating even more.

Her leg dropped and she sank to her knees, me right beside her. We kissed together a while, no words needing said, then slipped into the surf to wash away the sweat and sand and intimate fluids.

I kissed her goodnight after rinsing off with fresh water. She went to the newer shelter she shared with her siblings, and I went to the one I shared with my wives. There was no room on our oversized bed for me the way the others were sleeping, and so I pulled the smaller mattress as close as possible and rested my body facing Amy, Azure still held gently against her, the infant breathing lightly and looking very peaceful.

I don't know exactly when sleep found me, but I bet there was still a smile on my face when it did.