Crystal Healer

by Viehl, S. L.

  My stomach clenched. “You could have refused to do it.”

  “You don’t refuse the League. You know what they’re capable of.” He gave me a weary look. “They murdered my little brother. They drowned him after my father refused to serve as their chief interrogator.”

  Little wonder the father had made Jylyj—Shon—an outcast for joining them. “But they didn’t know about you or your abilities, or they would never have discharged you from the military.”

  He shook his head. “I concealed what I was from them for years, until one of the aquatic pilots on K-2 fatally injured herself while saving the Skartesh. I found her dying, and because I cared for her, I couldn’t let her go. After I used my ability a second time to save the young leader of a neighboring world, word got back to the League, and they came for me. And I wasn’t discharged from the military, Jarn. I deserted.”

  “You did what was necessary.” I didn’t care if he was a criminal. He had destroyed his life in order to remain true to his oath as a healer and do the work. In my eyes, it had been a noble act. “It must have taken great courage. You have no reason to feel shame.”

  His voice turned bitter. “I will if the League captures me and forces me to use my ability on their prisoners.”

  “The League is not here, and you are not giving yourself to the oKiaf, either.” I jabbed my finger into his chest. “You are going to fight this infection, and give me time to find a treatment for it. You are going to live, Major Valtas.”

  “Why should I?”

  Anger surged inside me.“In all the years Cherijo Grey Veil was hunted for what she was—for what I am—she never gave up healing. It is why we were made, and to deny it or run away from it or to kill yourself rather than face it is the act of a sniveling coward. I am many things, but I am not that, and whatever happens to me, I will not be remembered that way.” I gave him a look of contempt. “Is this how you wish to be remembered?”

  “My father is dead. My tribe would have me imprisoned or sold to slavers.” He closed his eyes. “There is no one left who cares.”

  “There is me, and Duncan. There are others like you and me. They are the brothers and sisters of our hearts.” I took his paw between my hands. “We will be your tribe now.”

  He made a rough sound. “You don’t even like me.”

  “Then give me a reason to. Live. Be my brother.” I gripped his paw as the tears in my eyes spilled over. “Shon, please. I have never met anyone like me. I can’t tell you why, but I know, in here”—I pressed his paw to my heart—“we need you.”

  Some of the pain left his gaze, and then he looked away. “This is a useless conversation. I will not survive the infection.”

  “You let me worry about that.” I draped him with linens and quickly wrapped most of his face and head with gauze. “I need to put you back on dialysis until we can arrange transport off oKia. I will tell them that the crystal is suppurating through your skin and you have to be kept under quarantine.”

  He glanced at his arms. “Crystal is coming out of my skin.”

  “You see? I will not even have to lie,” I said. “The risk of exposure should keep them out of here.” I turned toward the room’s control console. “Deactivate sterile field.”

  I went out of the isolation room and into the corridor. A technician had just finished replacing the charcoal in the filtering reservoir with fresh wood shavings.

  “The patient has crystal erupting through his derma,” I told the technician, whose eyes bulged. “Anyone who enters this room risks exposure and infection, so I am placing it under strict quarantine. No one enters without first obtaining my permission. Show me how to change the security code on this door panel.”

  Once I changed the access code, I wheeled the unit into the isolation room, secured the door, and started the treatment.

  “What do you think of me now, Healer?” he asked.

  “I am glad to know that your name is not Jylyj,” I mentioned as I monitored the level of crystal in his blood. “I never liked it much. It doesn’t suit you at all.”

  “It was that or Hurkuut.”

  I grimaced. “That sounds like someone regurgitating.”

  “So I thought, but the Skartesh language is not known for its lyrical qualities.” He watched the scanner with me. “You did see me coming out of the water that morning on Joren. I couldn’t risk exposing myself by telling you the truth.”

  “I knew it.” I frowned. “But how did you learn to swim? As a Skartesh, you should have gone into shock from being immersed.”

  “I did not acquire the Skartesh’s biological aversion to water.” His voice changed. “Ever since my brother drowned, I’d hated it, and feared it. Then I met Jadaira on K-2, and she was an aquatic. To be with her, I had to learn to swim.”

  I had no great love of water, and silently gave thanks that Reever had not turned out to be an aquatic. “How did that go?”

  “Awkward at first. Dair coaxed me into a little pond, and I thought I’d choke to death on my fear. But she was patient with me, and gradually I learned to tolerate it, and then to relax in it, and finally to love it, as I loved her.”

  The thought of an oKiaf falling in love with an aquatic should have seemed bizarre, but I found it both charming and sad. “You said you lost her. Did she die in the war?”

  “No, I lost her to another male.” He grimaced. “She gave her heart to one of her own kind. They are far more happy together than she and I would have been.”

  “That doesn’t make it any easier to accept.” I thought of all the jealousy I had felt toward Cherijo for being Reever’s first wife. “If you are in love with this aquatic, why have you shown such interest in me?”

  “I don’t know,” he admitted. “It was your scent at first—you may not be beautiful by oKiaf standards, but you smell like the loveliest of females. And then you touched me, and I swear to you, I felt it in my soul. It was as if I recognized you, here.” He tapped his chest. “I didn’t know how complete your bond was with your mate. I guess on some level I wanted to test it.”

  “Duncan and I . . .” How did I explain the complexity of our relationship? “We belong to each other. There will never be another for me, or for him.”

  “I never wished to admit it, but I felt the same for Jadaira. It was never meant to be, however.” He looked over at the dialysis unit. “This will stabilize the infection rate, but that is all it will do. We have never found any method of removing the crystal once it has infiltrated a living body.”

  I was slightly relieved by the change of subject. “It mutates like a virus, spreads like cancer, eats like bacteria. I have never seen any pathogen like it. Yet its composition is mineral—almost identical to that of common quartz.”

  “Perhaps it is a silica-based life-form.” He seemed amused. “If it is, will you name it after me?”

  “Shon’s planet-eating rock?” I suggested.

  “Valtas crystal,” he corrected. “It sounds more dignified.”

  Someone chimed the door panel, and I handed the scanner to Shon before I went to see who it was. Reever and the commander stood waiting in the corridor, and neither looked happy.

  “I’ll return in a moment,” I told him, and stepped outside. To Reever, I said, “I’ve started Sh—Jylyj back on dialysis. His readings are stabilizing, but the infection has advanced. Were you able to signal Xonea?”

  My husband shook his head. “We have been unable to reach the ship at all. The station has been overtaken by mercenaries. They are holding the Elphian hostage and have demanded an exchange. The Valtas have agreed to their terms.”

  I turned to the commander. “You can’t trade my husband and me like we are only commodities. There must be another way to rescue your people.”

  “The mercenaries did not ask for either of you,” the commander said. “They want the Skartesh.”

  Sixteen

  “It is a good trade,” the commander insisted. He couldn’t quite look me in the eye. “The Skart
esh is near death, and nothing can save him.”

  “Forgive me,” I said, “but when did you become a physician? Before or after your military training?”

  The oKiaf gave me a sour look. “What I mean to say is, he will not live long enough to be used by them or suffer at their hands.”

  My astonishment over the fact that the mercenaries had not come for me and Reever became lost in the disgust I felt for this man. “As opposed to be used and made to suffer by you.” I nodded. “I thought you were a stupid man. Now I am sure of it.”

  The commander glanced at my husband. “I cannot sacrifice hundreds to spare one who will not live. We are launching in thirty minutes.” He inclined his head toward me before he walked away.

  “They’re not taking him.” I turned around and unlocked the door panel. “I won’t permit it.”

  “We may have no choice in the matter.” Reever followed me into the isolation room and watched me secure the panel. “Jarn, you can’t barricade yourself in here with Jylyj. The Valtas will simply blast their way in.”

  “You don’t understand,” I said very patiently.

  “We don’t have time to smuggle the Skartesh out of the building, much less the city,” my husband said as he examined the room, “but we may be able to hide him. Is there a gurney we can use to move him?”

  “You don’t understand.” I dragged him around the curtain. “I don’t have a Skartesh in here anymore. Duncan, meet Major Shon Valtas.”

  “Where is . . . Jylyj?” He took a step closer to the table. “Jarn, what have you done to him?”

  “Why does he always assume that I have done it?” I demanded of the ceiling.

  “This is my true appearance. I am oKiaf. The crystal has reversed the alterforming that made me Skartesh.” Shon sat up. “What has happened?”

  Reever told him about the attack on the station, and the commander’s stupid decision.

  Shon swung his legs over the side of the table. “Disconnect the unit, healer.”

  “You are not going along with this.” I stopped him from removing his IV. “Say you go and you do die on board the mercenaries’ ship. What do you think they will do with your body? Eject it into the nearest star?”

  “No. My body has to be destroyed. The oKiaf have some powerful ordnance. Most of it is pulse weaponry and too large for our needs, but there will be a selection of thermal fusion grenades stocked for the infantry.” He regarded me steadily. “You must implant one in my body.”

  I backed away from him. “No.”

  He continued as if I hadn’t spoken. “When I am on board and safely away from the station, I will detonate the grenade.”

  “I am not making you into a bomb,” I shouted.

  “Then the League will pay the mercenaries for my body, harvest my DNA, and use it to create an army of soldiers with my abilities.” He stood, bracing himself for a moment. “I cannot allow them to do that.”

  An alarm sounded, and Reever went to the panel to check the corridor. Medical staff ran in both directions. An oKiaf began speaking over the com.

  “A dozen ships have assumed orbit and are firing on the surface settlements,” Shon said, translating for me. “The Valtas are evacuating all of the tribes above into the underground cities.”

  Outside, the commander appeared with a unit of armed soldiers, and demanded entry.

  Shon went to the wall panel, and before I could stop him, spoke to the commander. “You are as impatient as ever, Dagar.”

  The commander stared at the viewer. “Shon? What are you doing in there? Where is . . .” he stopped as he put it all together. “You are the Skartesh? How can this be?”

  “Give us a moment, if you would.” He lifted his paw to switch off the com, and stared at his crystal-streaked claws. “Reever, can you convince Captain Torin to pursue the ship that takes me?”

  “If the mercenaries have not taken over the Sunlace, and I explain the circumstances,” my husband said, “I believe I can.”

  “The captain cannot take half measures,” Shon said. “The ship I am on must be destroyed.”

  “No.” Everything inside me reacted violently to the thought of Shon sacrificing himself. “We can signal Joren, and hold them off until the HouseClan ships arrive. I was a member of the Ruling Council. They will listen to me.”

  “There is more to protect here than just Shon’s life,” Reever told me. “The League cannot be allowed to discover the crystal on oKia.”

  “To hell with the damned crystal.” I saw from their expressions that they had no intentions of listening to me. “I will not be a part of this.”

  I opened the door panel and strode out into the corridor, nearly walking into the commander. “If you hand Shon over to the mercenaries, they will find out about the crystal. They will tell the League. You cannot do it.”

  “Now that they know I am on oKia,” Shon said from behind me, “they will send every available ship they have in this region, and hire more. I cannot stay. I am a qualified fighter pilot. Give me a strafer, cousin, and I will draw them away before I fly it into the sun.”

  “There is no guarantee they will believe you are the one for whom they came,” Dagar said, and then turned to Reever. “We have made contact with your vessel,” he told my husband. “They intend to engage the mercenaries. I am sending our surface patrols up to assist. They should hold them off long enough to get a launch down to the surface.”

  “One of our team escaped the mercenary attack,” Reever said. “An avatar. He is still on the surface.”

  The commander shook his head. “We found him and brought him down from the surface. He is with the Jorenian and the Takgiba.”

  “We are taking Shon with us,” I said. Before the men could respond, I added, “They know he was part of our expedition. Xonea can transition out of this system and take us back to Joren. Then if they want a fight, they can face the HouseClan fleet.”

  “Why would Joren protect one of us?” Dagar asked.

  “Because Dnoc was wrong about me, Commander,” I told him. “I am not the crystal healer. Your cousin is.”

  I expected more arguments, but for once the men listened to me and agreed to the plan. I quickly rigged a portable version of the dialysis unit that Shon could carry on his back, and took as much heartwood pulp as I could fit into my case.

  We met Qonja, Hawk, and Uorwlan at the launch bay, where one of the Sunlace’s shuttles had just landed. The Takgiba’s black and white fur appeared patchy, and there were some deep scratches on Qonja’s arms, but she seemed calm now.

  “I’m ready to see this place from the display of a remote scanner,” she told Reever. “Let’s jaunt out of here.”

  “There is not enough room for all of us,” Qonja said. “Hawk and I will fly on one of the oKiaf shuttles.”

  Shon stayed behind to speak to the commander alone, and when he walked up the boarding ramp, he looked a little dazed.

  “Come and sit down.” I followed him and checked the lines connected to the unit in his pack before I scanned him. “What is it? Are you feeling weaker?”

  “No, I am well.” He removed the pack carefully, handing it to me before he sat down. “It seems my father lied to me. According to Dagar, he did not carry out his threat. I was never cast out of the tribe.”

  “Is that good news,” I asked, “or bad?”

  “It is confusing,” he admitted. “My father made it very clear what my punishment would be if I joined the League. My defiance enraged him. He never responded to any of the signals I sent after I left oKia.” He ducked his head. “I don’t understand. My father did not make idle threats, and he had every reason to cast me out.”

  “Perhaps he found a reason to forgive you,” I suggested as I fastened the flight harness over him. “It would be fitting for you to do the same.”

  He met my gaze. “My name has not been rubbed away from the tribe’s naming hide. The hunters still call out my name during the winter count. My stories are still told around the fir
es.” This seemed to astound him. “I have never been forgotten.”

  I smiled. “So now you have two tribes.”

  The Jorenian pilot said little to us, and took off as soon as the oKiaf gave him clearance. From the viewports we saw oKiaf strafers patrolling the upper atmosphere, and debris from what appeared to have been a ferocious fight, but no mercenary ships appeared or tried to attack us.

  “They must have been no match for the Sunlace,” I said as we entered the blackness of space and approached the Jorenian vessel.

  “More likely they retreated to call for reinforcements,” my husband said, looking grim.

  Once we were back on board, we were summoned to the command center to meet with Xonea.

  I needed to take Shon to medical, but I wanted to make sure no more bargains were made in my absence. I also thought Xonea should see for himself what the crystal was doing to Shon’s body.

  “I have to signal my ship,” Uorwlan said. “If I still have one.”

  Qonja and Hawk offered to escort her to the communications center, and the three went off together.

  “We should do this briefing quickly,” I told Duncan as we headed for the command center. “Knowing my ClanBrother’s temper, I would leave out the part about the oKiaf holding us prisoner.”

  In one way it was a relief to be back on the ship, and in another it made me feel as if I were back in the locked chamber in the underground city. Already I missed the fresh cold air of the planet, the colors of the trees, and the feel of the ground beneath my feet. Compared to oKia, the Sunlace now seemed sterile and lifeless.

  “How did you escape the takeover at the station?” Reever asked the shuttle pilot, who was following us to the command center.

  The Jorenian checked his wristcom, muttered something, and abruptly changed direction, disappearing down an adjacent corridor.

  I had never seen a member of the crew behave so rudely. Then I thought of how vengeful Cherijo’s adopted people could be. “Do you think Xonea and the crew are angry with us for keeping them from chasing after the mercenaries who survived the battle?”