Fire Margins

by Lisanne Norman

  He felt himself sinking downward into a gray mist that totally enveloped him, cushioning his senses from the outside world. Turning inward, he could hear his body rhythms, was aware of the slightest changes in his skin and pelt.

  Gradually even the grayness started to fade into darkness. The monastery. I want to reach the monastery, he reminded himself as he began to try and build an image of it.

  *

  Carrie sat at his side, watching as his eyes closed and his breathing became shallower. Then their Link began to fade, getting weaker and weaker till she could barely feel it.

  “This isn’t the way it happened with me,” said Kaid, sitting at the other side of his bed. “This seems far gentler.”

  “He’s getting cold, Kaid,” said Carrie, reaching out to touch Kusac’s face with first her palm, then the back of her hand. She was frightened. It felt too like that time on the Khalossa when he’d turned to death rather than be without her.

  Her lassitude had gone now, and as his mind began to still and their Link fade, real panic set in. She reached mentally for him and found nothing. Her hands went to the sides of his head as she tried again. Then the chill started.

  With a cry of terror, she let go of him, looking at hands red with burns. Over Kusac a layer of frost had formed, each tiny droplet a perfect snowflake.

  She screamed again, a shriek that pierced the air and echoed round the house. Flinging herself onto Kusac, she reached for him with all the power she could muster.

  “Carrie! He’s all right!” said Kaid, reaching for her, trying to pull her away from Kusac.

  *

  She could sense him, just beyond her reach. A little more energy, and she’d be there, she knew it. Then she felt Kaid’s touch, and immediately she pulled on him, taking his energy into herself and sending it all toward where Kusac was.

  Reality shattered into a thousand fragments as they were whirled into a maelstrom of sight and sound and smell. Helplessly, all three of them were pulled together, then sucked down and down till there was nothing but the sickening flashing of colors, a roaring that filled their ears, and the flames.

  Caught between the two males, Carrie felt first one then the other almost torn from her mental grasp. It was so noisy, she could barely think. There was something she had to do, something important that involved all of them, if she could only stop the roaring long enough to think.

  Let me lead! It was Kaid, his thoughts faint but unmistakable. I know where we must go!

  Yes. He could lead. He knew the way, he’d been there before. She and Kusac would follow. Kusac. Where was he? She could sense him, closer than Kaid, but so confused by what was happening.

  Which way? I need to know which way! he was sending. The drug was confusing him.

  Why didn’t he listen to Kaid? Kaid said he knew the way! Then the memory returned. She was their link to each other. They couldn’t communicate without her, she had to join them all together. How? Dear God, how?

  Fear leaped inside her and she felt it transmitted to Kusac. As it rebounded to her, she felt the gestalt gradually begin to wake inside her. Almost sobbing with relief, she grasped it, harnessing its power to strengthen the bonds between them. Slowly it built, reaching the point where it seemed to explode out from her to touch the minds of Kusac and Kaid, binding them to her. The power surged through their bodies, burning and searing the flesh from their bones till they were nothing: only their minds survived, linked together as one. Then, in one blinding second of light, suddenly they were three not one, and they were tumbling downward.

  *

  Garras heard her scream. Leaving everything, he headed back to the bedroom at full speed. He stopped dead at the door, holding onto the wall for support as he saw what had happened. The anger that had been simmering since he realized Kaid had intended to take the drug, exploded in one roaring shout of rage.

  Minutes later, Dzaka, Meral and T’Chebbi were there.

  “They’ve gone,” he said, his voice hoarse, waving a hand at the three frozen bodies lying on the bed. “We need Ghyan and Vanna—get Ghyan first. And there’s no need to rush.”

  “Tell Master Lijou,” said T’Chebbi.

  Garras looked at her in surprise as the other two left at a run.

  “He and Ghyan know most,” she said. “We may need beds for them. I’ll get them.” She turned and headed off downstairs.

  Garras went over to look down at them. Kaid was half sprawled on the floor and against the side of the bed. Carrie had fallen across Kusac. He shivered, looking round the room. It was freezing. He went to the window, pulling the drapes aside but the windows were closed. What had caused the huge drop in temperature? He looked at them once more. There was nothing he dared do for now. Shaking his head, he went out to the lounge and activated the desk comm to call Lijou.

  *

  The yowls of terror from the temple penetrated through the heavy curtain to the lounge, making everyone look up in surprise. Tiernay was first on his feet and out into the corridor. One of the temple students in his grey homespun robe careened into him, almost sending him flying.

  “Sorry,” he gasped, continuing on his mad dash to the office.

  Tiernay picked himself off the wall and pushed through the curtain into the temple. A small group of students stood between him and a semicircle composed of Goran and the three indoor guards, their rifles pointed at something on the floor.

  Goran looked up at him. “Get blankets, Tiernay, and quick.”

  Tiernay doubled back to his room, returning with several. As he pushed past the students, he looked down to see what the fuss was about. What he saw defied belief.

  He felt Goran twitch the blankets from him, then saw him kneel down to cover up the alien form that lay on the floor between two Sholan males. All three of them looked to be unconscious.

  “Where did they come from?” he asked when he finally found his voice.

  “According to the students, there was a noise like the wind blowing, followed by a blast of heat, then the air seemed to bend, and there they were,” said Goran.

  A squall from one of the females drew their attention back to the people on the floor.

  “He moved! That one moved!”

  Goran signaled to his guards. “Clear this lot out,” he said. “Last thing these folk need is to see dozens of faces staring at them.”

  The guards moved toward the students who backed off, scuttling to their quarters to tell their less fortunate friends what had happened.

  *

  Kaid was the first to fight his way back to consciousness. He could feel Carrie’s mental presence, and though not as strongly, he knew Kusac was there too. It wasn’t enough. He had to see them.

  Groaning, he pulled his good hand to his side and tried to push himself upright. Everything hurt, he discovered, as he managed to raise himself enough to lift his head and look from one side to the other.

  Willing hands took hold of him, helping him sit up before putting a blanket round his shoulders.

  At first his eyes wouldn’t focus, then gradually the blurring passed and he saw that they’d all arrived safely. Someone, thank the God, had covered Carrie with a blanket.

  There was a voice speaking to him, but he couldn’t understand it at first. The aches and pains had resolved themselves now and he could tell that most of them were due to landing face first on the floor beneath him. He pushed the hands away and reached out for Carrie. If she’d landed the way he had …

  He hadn’t the strength to pull the blanket from her and check she was all right. Looking up, he saw the person who was doing all the talking. Why the hell couldn’t he see that she needed help? Angrily, he turned on him.

  “In the God’s name, shut up!” he said. “Check her! She fell. She’s pregnant!”

  The talking stopped but there was confusion all around him. They didn’t know what to do. Then the one beside him spoke.

  “We have. We could see nothing obviously wrong with her, but rest easy, a doctor
is on the way.”

  “Kusac. How’s he?”

  “Your friend is unconscious. Has he been drugged at all?”

  “Yes. La’quo. That’s what brought us here.”

  “Not one we’ve heard of, I’m afraid. My name’s Tiernay. You’re at …”

  “I know where we are,” interrupted Kaid. “We’ve come to see the one called Vartra.”

  “I’m afraid you’ll have to wait,” said Tiernay. “We don’t know who you are or where you came from. You’re a security risk at present.”

  Kaid was beginning to feel more alert by now and as he looked around, his eyes lighted on Goran standing there, rifle at the ready.

  “I know you,” he said. “Goran. You trained with Rezac. Where is he? Has he been taken yet?”

  Startled, Goran and Tiernay exchanged glances. “Taken?”

  “Carrie saw it. She read it from the collar they tried to put on Zashou. Has it happened yet?”

  “How do you know about Rezac and Zashou?” demanded Goran, stepping forward.

  A wave of lightheadedness swept through Kaid and he began to sway. Tiernay caught hold of him before he fell.

  “Look, we’re not from now,” said Kaid as nausea began to hit his stomach. “We’ve come back to warn you. The moon. It was hit by the warship. A meteorite is coming,” he said, clutching hold of Tiernay’s arm as the room began to darken.

  *

  “He’s passed out,” said Tiernay, making a grab for him before he fell. Carefully he laid him on the ground again.

  “Mad, that’s what he is,” said Goran, pulling a stim-twig from his pocket and sticking it in his mouth. “Here’s the doctor. I’m keeping them under guard here. I don’t trust them. Two males and a pregnant female alien turn up out of nowhere? Smells to me, that does. Mark my words, the Valtegans are at the back of this.”

  Both doctors came running across to them. “What’s happened?” demanded Nyaam, kneeling down beside Tiernay. “Let me see him.”

  “They appeared out of thin air, if the students are to be believed,” said Goran.

  “Dr. Kimin,” said Tiernay, looking up at the female Sholan, “Will you look at this one? She’s pregnant and one of the males is afraid she may have hurt herself.”

  Kimin nodded and moved round to the side of the female. Pulling back the blanket, she let out a cry of disbelief.

  “What is it?” demanded Nyaam, breaking off his examination of Kaid to see what had caused his colleague to cry out.

  “She’s an alien,” said Goran, pushing his twig to one side of his mouth. “A furless one.”

  “So I see,” said Kimin, her voice a little faint as she began to check the unknown alien for any obvious signs of injury. “She seems all right, but I don’t know where to start with her! I want her up in the infirmary and settled into a bed,” she said, standing up and moving to the third body.

  “They stay here for now,” said Goran. “That one hasn’t moved.”

  “They can’t stay here!” exclaimed Kimin. “They need to be treated!”

  “Then bed them down here,” growled Goran. “I don’t like the way they suddenly arrived, nor what that first one knew about us.”

  *

  Kaid surfaced again about an hour later. He looked across at the camp beds beside him and saw Carrie and Kusac were also there. With a sigh of relief, he sat up. They were still in the temple, and an armed guard sat watching them. When he saw Kaid moving, he got to his feet and, going to where the crimson curtain had been pulled back, he opened the door, speaking briefly to someone outside.

  While he was doing that, Kaid got up, pleased to find that this time he was steady on his feet. He padded over to Carrie’s bed and quickly checked her pulse for himself. As he did, her eyes flickered and with a groan, she began to move.

  “It’s all right, Carrie,” he said quietly. “We’ve arrived safely. I’m just going to check on Kusac.”

  Another groan and, as she pushed herself up, she opened her eyes. “Gods, if this is what time travel does to you, I don’t think I’ll do it again,” she moaned, putting a shaking hand up to her forehead to push her hair back. “I feel awful, Kaid! How’s Kusac?”

  “I’m just going to see,” he said, leaving her side and padding over to Kusac’s bed.

  “Hey! Get back into bed,” ordered the guard.

  Kaid looked over at him, raising an eye ridge questioningly. “Or what? Don’t be so damned stupid. You can see I’m only checking on my friends. It isn’t as if I’ve got anywhere to conceal a weapon!” He turned his back on the guard and continued to check Kusac.

  Meanwhile, wrapping her blanket around her, Carrie had got up and was now standing beside him.

  “Can you sense him?” asked Kaid.

  “Yes, thank God,” she said, reaching out to touch her mate’s face. “Not like it was back at home.” She looked at Kaid. “I’m sorry, Kaid. I know it was my fault that we all traveled, but I couldn’t bear to be alone. Not being able to feel his mind in mine terrified me. I wasn’t thinking.”

  Kaid gave a lopsided grin. “You’re pregnant. Pregnant females aren’t expected to be logical in what they do,” he said.

  “How is he?”

  “Your friend’s unconscious,” said a voice from behind them.

  They turned round to find themselves face to face with a female who was obviously a medic.

  “My name’s Dr. Kimin,” she said, mouth opening in a friendly smile.

  “He isn’t my friend,” said Carrie. “He’s my Leska and life-mate. We know he’s unconscious. Is there anything else wrong with him?”

  The doctor’s jaw fell further open in shock and she looked from one to the other of them.

  “Please,” said Carrie. “I want to know how he is. He’d taken a drug …” she looked to Kaid.

  “La’quo.”

  “That one, before we left. How is he?”

  “Ah, I’ve never … That’s a new one to me,” she said. “Your … Leska is fine. He should waken any time.”

  As Carrie turned back to Kusac, Kaid decided to try once more. “We’ve come here to see the one called Vartra. Is he here?”

  “Yes, Dr. Vartra is here, but he can’t come to you at the moment,” she said. “You haven’t told me your names yet.”

  “I’m Kaid, the Human is called Carrie, and her Leska is Kusac,” he said.

  “When you say Leska, what exactly do you mean?”

  “You know what a Leska is, Vartra’s been working on and with them! What else could I be talking about?”

  “But she’s not Sholan! She can’t possibly have a Sholan Leska!”

  “Tell her mate that! Look, it should be obvious to you that we aren’t from your time. We’ve only just met the Humans, of course you’ve never seen them before! We need to talk to someone in authority here, preferably Vartra!” Kaid turned as the door open and a tall, slim male of middle years entered.

  “I’ll talk to them, Dr. Kimin,” said the newcomer.

  “You’re Vartra,” said Kaid.

  “I am. How can I help you?” he asked.

  “My name’s Kaid. This is Carrie, and the third member of our group is Kusac, her Leska,” said Kaid, suddenly feeling tired again. He lowered himself down onto his bed.

  “Surely she can’t be his Leska,” said Vartra. “No offense, my dear, but you aren’t Sholan,” he said, looking over at Carrie who had looked round at the mention of his name.

  “No, but if I’m right, you’re the one responsible for the fact that I’m carrying a Sholan cub,” she said. “We’re from your future, fifteen hundred years in your future.”

  Vartra’s ears flicked backward in shock as he looked from her to Kaid. “That’s impossible!”

  “Which?” asked Kaid drily. “That we came back fifteen hundred years, or that my friend is carrying the second cub to have one parent Sholan and the other Human?”

  The silence was broken by the sound of Kusac coming round.

  “He’s going
to throw up,” said Carrie, her attention on Kusac again. “You’d best get him a bowl or something.”

  Kimin moved quickly, but not quickly enough. Kusac just managed to get his head over the side of the bed before throwing up. By the time he’d finished, he was feeling and looking better. One of the students came to clear the mess up, and mumbling apologies, Kusac gratefully took the mug of water Carrie held out to him.

  “Are you all right? Our cub didn’t get hurt, did she?” he asked anxiously as he reached out for Carrie, holding her close. “Why did you come too?”

  “I couldn’t be without you,” she said, relaxing against him. “As far as I know, our cub is fine.” She looked over at the doctor.

  “I could see nothing obviously wrong with you,” she said. “But I know nothing about your people.”

  “You say you’ve come back to warn us. Warn us of what?” asked Vartra.

  Kusac had swung round and was sitting on the edge of his bed, facing them, Carrie sitting beside him.

  “Did the fighting start tonight?” asked Kusac. “Did you stand outside here with Zylisha and hear the blasts from the cities? See a glow in space where the Valtegan warship hit the lesser moon?”

  Vartra looked at Kimin, ears going back in surprise then righting themselves. “Yes, I did. Why?”

  “The debris from the moon will collide with Shola two days from now,” said Kaid.

  “It’ll will cause global destruction,” said Kusac. “Tidal waves, earthquakes—clouds of thick dust that will stay in the sky for months, cutting out sunlight. A Cataclysm that will reduce this civilization to virtually nothing. But before that happens, the Valtegans that haven’t already left Shola will discover you here.”

  “How did you know that the Valtegans have been leaving? That isn’t public knowledge yet!” demanded Vartra.

  “We know a lot,” said Carrie. “This hill is full of crystals that are storing the events that are happening now. I shared the experiences of Rezac and Zashou when they went down with the fever that changed their genes. You had to put them together, pack ice round them to bring their temperatures down, didn’t you? And you,” she pointed at Kimin, “you argued with Nyaam over putting them together and releasing Rezac’s restraints.”