by Elin Wyn
We made quick work of the Xathi. The pink mist of the cure was different than it was last time. It had dissipated relatively quickly during the first strike. Now, it hung in thick, cloud-like clusters.
Apparently, our scientific team had made good use of our notes for them.
It totally blinded the Xathi. None of them could pinpoint exactly where we were as we attacked from outside the cloud.
“That wasn’t as satisfying as I thought it would be,” Dax huffed as he yanked out an arrow that was deeply embedded in the head of a dead Xathi.
“I know what you mean,” Sakev replied. “We’re getting too used to fighting them.”
“You say that like it’s a bad thing,” I chuckled. “Would you like me to drop you off at the entrance to the Xathi ship? Would that be more exciting?”
“Would you, General?” Axtin rested his hammer across his shoulders. “I still have some unfinished business there.”
Some time ago, Axtin had led the charge into the belly of the Xathi ship to rescue Leena and other humans that the Xathi held captive. One of which was a little girl who’d become part of his and Leena’s family.
She was fine now, but I’d heard she still had nightmares.
“We all do,” Vrehx added.
“We’ll get our chance,” Tu’ver assured them.
“We’d better,” Sk’lar’s tone was grim.
“We’ll take them down after we finish crippling their forces,” I said. “Taking away their hybrids is a good start to that. Now, let’s get these poor people to Glymna.”
There were more in this camp than there had been in the first. I assumed Vidia was already in Glymna, waiting. I switched to her comm channel.
“Sending survivors through shortly,” I explained. “Let the doctors and volunteers know they should be prepared for more people than last time.”
“Understood,” she said briskly before clicking off the channel.
That was strange.
Usually, Vidia had hundreds of questions.
Evie and Leena had made modifications to this batch of the cure. Didn’t Vidia want to know how it went?
I put it out of my mind. She was probably in the middle of something else and didn’t have time to talk. I’d certainly done the same any number of times.
She’d track me down as soon as I entered Glymna.
My crew made quick work of the hybrids that weren’t affected by the cure. There’d been around thirty at the last camp. At this camp, there were only twenty.
The cure appeared to work faster this time, more effectively, as well.
The crystal coating on people’s skin was easier to chip away. The humans seemed to come to their senses a little bit faster, although more people had blotchy red skin where the cure had touched them directly.
An allergic reaction, I’d been told. And one I was sure the victims would be willing to risk.
Once I was sure all threats had been eliminated, I pulled out my comm again.
“Fen, open the rift to Glymna, please,” I ordered.
“Yes, General,” a voice replied.
It wasn’t Fen.
“Amira, is that you?”
“It is!” She sounded so excited. “Fen wanted a break from being everyone’s personal doorman into space. She’s letting me control the Gateway.”
A shimmering rift opened, with the city square of Glymna on the other side.
“Excellent.”
I smiled, although I knew she couldn’t see it.
Several of the survivors recognized Glymna and didn’t hesitate in going through the rift, but many were still apprehensive. Of course, the only rift they’d seen before was the one that their tormentors had fallen through.
A few of my crew went through to assist the survivors that had already crossed into Glymna. The rest of us stayed behind to coax the hesitant ones.
One survivor, a young woman that looked similar in age to Vidia’s friend Hannah, was too exhausted to move. She lay down on the ground and desperately tried to sleep, but every time she closed her eyes, she became afraid.
“Let me help,” I said softly. “Right on the other side of that rift is a doctor who will give you medicine. There are citizens who will feed you and a nice bed where you can sleep for days if you want to.”
It took some patience. Eventually, I got her to put her arms around my neck so I could carry her through the rift.
I took her right to the designated area for survivors that were worse off than the others. I sat with her, talking to her and telling her stories about whatever random thing I could think of. I needed to distract her until I placed her in the arms of one of the doctors.
As she was carried away, I realized I hadn’t gotten her name. I wondered if she knew it herself. I swore I’d keep an eye out for her when she came out of the examination room.
Until then, I wanted to find Vidia. Even if she was too busy to talk, I was sure she could use an extra pair of hands to boss around.
I found her in the center of the square where the volunteer tables were set up. She was scrolling through two datapads at the same time, her jaw set with determination.
“Vidia.” I smiled when I approached her.
I knew something wasn’t right when she didn’t smile back.
“What’s wrong?” I asked.
“Nothing,” she said quickly. “Aside from the hundreds of people in need of medical attention,” she added.
A tinge of humor touched her voice, but it didn’t sound right. Strained, forced.
“Let me know how I can help,” I said.
“Preparing for the next strike would be the most productive thing you could do,” she replied without looking up from her datapads.
Something was definitely wrong. Just yesterday, she was putting me to work and urging me to stay as long as I could. Now it felt like she didn’t want me here.
“Are you sure everything is alright?” I asked again.
She let out a short sigh and picked up the two datapads, as well as a handful of others.
“Everything is all right, I’m just very busy.” She flashed a quick, fake smile, before walking away from the table.
I followed her. I didn’t believe for a second that everything was all right.
“Whatever it is, you can tell me,” I said to her back since she wouldn’t walk beside me. “I’m sure I can help.”
“I appreciate the offer,” she replied.
That, at least, sounded like normal Vidia.
“But there’s nothing I need help with. I’d actually prefer to be alone.”
I reached out and gently grabbed Vidia’s arm, forcing her to stop and look at me.
Skrell. Tears welled in her eyes.
“If you tell me what it is, I promise I’ll let you be alone,” I said. “But I need you to tell me, so I won’t worry all day.”
“I told you, nothing’s wrong!” She tried to jerk her arm out of my grip.
“I don’t know how you expect me to believe that when you’re acting like this,” I said.
A terrible thought crossed my mind. “Was there an attack here? Did the Xathi queen have more control over the survivors than we thought?”
I whirled around, pushing Vidia behind me, all senses stretched and alert, ready for an attack.
Why hadn’t I heard about it?
I shouldn’t have been in the field, cut off from the reports.
Cut off from protecting her.
“You’re being ridiculous,” Vidia snapped.
I surveyed the square again. Everyone seemed busy, but calm. The air wasn’t filled with the scent of fear.
No one was acting under duress.
The Xathi weren’t here.
But then… An attack from an enemy I understood was preferable to this mysterious tension rolling off her.
I narrowed my eyes, checked her once again for an injury. How could humans be so delicate? Why didn’t I insist she stay on the Aurora?
She pushed me away g
ently. “I’m just in a bad mood,” she sighed. “Isn’t that allowed?”
“Of course, it is,” I said suspiciously. Vidia didn’t do bad moods, not in all the time I’d known her.
Tired, frustrated? Sure.
But a general bad mood?
Never.
“I think there’s more to it than that.”
“Well, there’s not.”
But as she spoke, a tear slipped down her cheek. I reached to wipe it away, and she finally relaxed, shoulders slumping as she stood before me.
“Tell me,” I whispered.
She tipped her face upward to stop the tears from falling, eyes not meeting mine.
There was a moment of silence on her part. Then, she looked at me.
“It’s just so hard being near you when I know you’re going to leave in the end,” she sighed. “I thought I could handle it, but I can’t. I’m sorry.”
Her words shocked me, as hard as any enemy’s blow.
She slipped away from me and disappeared into the crowded square.
Leaving me alone.
Once again, just me and my duty.
18
Vidia
My eyes stung, as if full of sand, and my chest felt shredded between ragged gasps.
Why did Rouhr have to fight me so hard when I asked to be left alone?
Of course, I knew the answer to that already.
Because he cared.
Had our roles been reversed, I would’ve done the same thing.
Rouhr was never supposed to know how upset I was.
I thought I’d be able to pretend better, to smile, be his friend again.
Not have every moment he was near a bitter reminder of how little time we had left.
I realized how silly it was for me to hope that Rouhr would simply allow our relationship to revert to friendship.
Anything more would break my heart.
I was stupid for hoping it would be that easy.
Cowardly. Foolish.
And now the damage was done. Rouhr knew how I felt about him leaving. He’d be smart enough not to entangle himself.
I knew the score. I shouldn’t have let myself fall so hard.
He didn’t need that sort of distraction, not when he was fighting to save my planet and then lead his men back to a war in their home galaxy.
Away from Ankau.
Away from me.
I walked around the square in a daze. There were a million things I needed to get done in time for tomorrow’s third and final cure strike.
And I couldn’t focus on any of them.
Thankfully, the doctors had found their own rhythm for examining patients. They knew exactly what to look for now. A handful of hybridism relapses were caught and handled immediately upon discovery with stronger doses.
The volunteers were quickly becoming professionals in dealing with nervous and distressed survivors.
I was amazed by the number of residents who had generously opened their homes to the survivors. Some people were only able to take one or two survivors. Others, who lived in huge houses, were able to take as many as ten.
I didn’t realize how many hours had passed when one of the volunteers found me and told me I was receiving a call on one of the comm units. I rushed to answer. I hadn’t been wearing a comm link all day.
If someone on the Aurora needed me, they wouldn’t have been able to reach me.
“Hello?” I put the comm unit to my ear.
“Vidia, where are you?” It was Evie.
“I’m in Glymna,” I replied. “Why, is everything okay?”
“Yeah, everything is fine in the lab,” she said quickly. “But Rouhr’s been in a low mood. I haven’t seen you in a while, thought you might know what was going on.”
I winced.
“Oh.” I scrambled for something to say. “I’m going to be staying here another night. There’s a lot that needs to be done before the people from the third hybrid camp arrive here.”
“I bet,” Evie agreed. There was a pause before she spoke again. “Are you alright? You seem a little off.”
“I’m just tired, that’s all.” I forced some perkiness into my voice to convince her. “I’ve been running around like a crazy person all day.”
“Okay,” Evie said slowly. “Well, make sure to take time to focus on your needs. Remember to eat, get plenty of sleep.”
“Yes, Mom.” I rolled my eyes, even though Evie couldn’t see me.
I turned off the comm unit and handed it back to the volunteer. I was grateful to have a friend like Evie.
But that didn’t mean I was going to listen to her advice.
I worked late into the night and slept for a few fitful hours in the same inn Rouhr and I had slept in the previous night.
The memories of what might have been kept me tossing and turning.
In the morning, I was groggy and irritated. The last thing I wanted was to go back to the Aurora.
But I didn’t want to miss out on the final cure strike. This was what we’d been working toward for so long.
I borrowed a comm to contact Fen, so she could open a rift for me. When I stepped onto the main deck of the Aurora, the first thing I did was look for Rouhr. I couldn’t bear seeing him yet.
“There you are!” I heard Evie’s voice coming up behind me.
I smiled weakly, unable to match her brightness.
“You look like crap. I told you not to overwork yourself.”
“You know me,” I shrugged, thankful that my bad habits were enough to cover up my real distress. “I can’t help it.”
“Clearly.” Evie shoved her thermos full of coffee into my hand. “Drink. You need it more than I do. Before we take off, I want to show you something. I think it’ll make you happy.”
Evie gently dragged me as I drank her coffee, finally pulling me into a small office adjacent to Rouhr’s.
My heart sped up, but thankfully, he wasn’t inside.
“Look!” She gestured proudly to a map of our planet.
Half of the small cities were circled in pale blue. There were other markings in various colors. I didn’t know what any of them meant.
“What am I looking at exactly?” I asked.
Evie let out an exasperated sigh.
“The areas circled in blue are certified Xathi-free!” she declared. “Everyone inside has been given the pills, and the Urai have set up sonic barriers.”
“That’s amazing!” My eyes went wide as I realized how much work Evie and the Urai crew had done between cure strikes. “We’re taking back our planet.”
“Yes, we are,” Evie grinned. “Remember those hybrid patrols we wanted to attract to the main camps?”
“Yes.” I’d been so focused on helping people from the camps, I’d entirely forgotten about the rest of the plan.
Focused on the people, and on Rouhr, to be honest.
But that was over now.
“Some of those patrols were closing in on these towns. Yesterday, Sakev got bored and started chucking cure canisters at them. I yelled at him for it at first, but it actually worked. He’s off the hook for being impulsive,” she laughed. “For now.”
“Where are the people from the patrols now?” I asked. “They haven’t been sent to Glymna.”
“They’re recovering within the safe zones.” Evie tapped on one of the blue-circled cities. “I taught people in each town how to treat hybridism. I gave them the number to the comm unit in my office, so they can call me in case anything goes wrong.”
“It’s amazing how much you were able to accomplish.” I was in awe.
“Traveling by Gateway saves so much time,” Evie said. “Imagine how much we could’ve accomplished by now if we’d had it from the beginning.”
“We’d have rebuilt our planet ten times over,” I chuckled, “if we’d had the Gateway, and the sonic barrier. And the cure. It’s a long list, but finally we have an edge.”
Evie and I stared at the board for a few moments, looking
at all that had been accomplished and all that still needed to be done.
“We better get down to the docking bay before they leave without us.” Evie broke the silence.
“Right.” Anxiety bubbled in my stomach.
Or maybe it was just the coffee.
Evie drank really strong coffee.
Everyone was gathered in the docking bay. When I arrived, I grabbed my cure canisters, my comm, and my vision goggles, then slid into my seat in D’val’s transport unit before he was in his pilot’s seat.
“You’re in a hurry today,” he commented when he climbed into his seat in front of me.
“Aren’t you?” I replied. “This is the last one. Then we’re done.”
“Not quite,” D’val corrected. “We still have to deal with the Xathi.”
“I don’t think I’ll be allowed to join in that fight,” I chuckled weakly.
D’val laughed as well.
“Yeah, the general probably isn’t going to bend on that one. Either way, it was nice working with you.”
“Nice working with you, too.” I gave him a friendly pat on the shoulder.
We lifted off and flew through the Gateway, so that we were positioned above the third camp. This camp was only three miles from where the Vengeance had crashed. No one knew why the Xathi had picked this spot for a camp.
“Drop your canisters,” Evie ordered.
I had two this time. I pulled the tabs and dropped them one after the other through the chute over the side of the unit.
“Let’s go,” I said to D’val.
“Don’t you want to watch anything?”
“Not today,” I replied. “I have too much to do.”
“If you say so.” He flew us back to the Aurora.
This time we were the first ones back.
“See you around,” I said to him before turning in my vision goggles.
I kept the comm on me, so I would know when to expect more survivors in Glymna. I asked Fen to open a rift and swiftly left the Aurora.
I threw myself into my work. I fetched blankets for cots, helped a few confused survivors from the last rescue find family members and places to stay, relocated those who were ready to move out of the hospital wards--any chore that needed to be done.
When a rift opened in the middle of the city square, I was prepared. Newly cured people flooded through, looking dazed and confused. I directed them to the doctors, who were ready and waiting. So far, none of the crew had come through with them.
