Zha Quin inclined his chin once, sharply, and said, “Proceed.”
He couldn’t help the snarls that left his throat at the sight of his Healing Master laying hands on his female, but thankfully, the healer ignored him. The healer did think to tell one of his assistants to move the onlookers away from the windows to spare the little human too much of an audience.
Zha Quin looked over his shoulder once the assistant returned and saw that everyone had been moved across the main room of the medical suite, and his males were standing with their backs to the healing chamber room, keeping all others at bay. They were the same males that had escorted him from the slave ship as he carried her. And the two that had hesitated to move aside to give him access to where she’d been chained were blocking the entrance to the room they were now in.
After the healer had her cloak pulled back, he ran a scanner over her body. A long series of beeps sounding as a listing in their own language of all her injuries and her vital signs began scrolling across the clear, three-dimensional holographic screen that had appeared in the center of the room.
Zha Quin’s once dormant heart nearly stopped as he watched the ever-growing list scroll across the screen.
The healer reached for what looked like a slender metal syringe, snapped a glass tube containing a colored liquid into it and pressed it to her neck.
Immediately Vivian's body tensed.
Zha Quin snarled and reached out toward the healer, gripping his clothing in his huge fist. Hurriedly the healer explained, “It is nothing more than antibiotics and nutrients. This female is in poor condition. We must treat her infection quickly and she is malnourished. We must boost her immune system. The healing chamber will work, but only to a certain level. It will repair bones and tears in her flesh, but the infection will require more attention.”
“Do not cause her more pain,” Zha Quin snarled. He released his grip on the healer’s clothing and watched closely as the healer took up two more cylinders and pressed them against her neck as well, injecting whatever they contained into her unconscious body.
After several intense moments, the healer once again scanned Vivian with the first tool he’d used. He turned and watched the screen. He seemed satisfied with the change in readings that he saw there and turned back to Zha Quin.
“Her body temperature is falling. We have disrupted her fever. She is momentarily stabilized, and I’ve injected several combinations of nutrients and antibiotics into her bloodstream. The sudden burst of nutrients should have awakened her, revived her at least to a small degree. It is a testament to her weakness that she still sleeps. We need to enclose her in the chamber as soon as possible, Sire.”
The healer reached above himself and pressed a button on the lid of the healing chamber. It slowly started its descent.
It slowed to a stop as it approached her form where it lay. The healer looked around quickly, trying to determine what was stopping the chamber from its final descent so that it could seal. He was somewhat perturbed when he saw that Zha Quin was in the way. He said, “The sensors will not allow it to descend any further because your arm is breaking the beam.”
Zha Quin, confused at his remark, looked down and saw that he was holding her hand in his, and his arm was indeed breaking the beam being emitted from the lid as it descended toward his female. The beam was focused on every edge of the table where it would soon attach itself and seal. It couldn’t begin its healing process unless it was fully sealed, and Zha Quin’s hand holding hers was breaking that beam.
Zha Quin rubbed his thumb across her hand and reluctantly let it go. He stepped back, allowing the silver lid to fall into place over and around her. Though the table was large enough for one of his species to lay upon comfortably, when the lid was down, it was still a small enclosed space. The top of the lid, however, was glass to allow the inhabitants to be observed by medical personnel as they were treated for their injuries. It was this clear top that allowed Zha Quin to see a small, dirty hand suddenly press up against it. Her scream immediately followed, and that scream was followed by a pounding on the sides and tops of the chamber lid.
Zha Quin ordered, “Get her out!”
“Sire, she is merely frightened, she must be healed. Give her a moment. She will see that she will not be harmed, and she will fall unconscious as the healing begins.”
Zha Quin could hear her sobbing, and her words, though unknown to him, no doubt begging them to please let her out. He could feel her fear. Even in that hell he’d found her in, she’d not had this level of fear. She’d had anger, but no fear. Now she was terrified.
“Get her out, now!” he bellowed, as he tried to pry the lid open with his own fingers.
“But, Sire…” the healer tried again.
“NOW!!!” Zha Quin snarled so loudly that the female medical assistants ran from the room.
The healer pressed a pattern of buttons on the side of the lid, and it began to rise back toward the ceiling. As soon as there was enough space, Vivian edged her way out from beneath the chamber lid, thankfully toward Zha Quin’s side of the table, nearly falling off it. He reached for her, taking her in his arms and holding her against his chest. Vivian immediately recognized the huge red alien and wrapped her arms around his neck, locking her arms tightly together, so he couldn’t put her back inside the damn box she’d woken up in.
He held her tightly, speaking to her in his own language. Trying his best to reassure her. But she had no idea what he was saying, only that he was snarling at her. She flinched. Then he dropped his voice to almost a whisper and kept a running commentary of anything he could think of to keep her focused on his voice.
Vivian’s heart was pounding. She was practically hyperventilating and holding him so tight there would be no chance of prying her off — not that he wanted her to release him.
“All is well. It is a healing chamber. It will heal your injuries, heal your wounds. Repair any damage you have endured. But you must be sealed inside for it to work. It cannot heal the entire room; it will heal only those enclosed within the chamber itself.”
Vivian leaned her head away from the huge male as she listened to the computerized voice tell her in several languages what he’d said. The problem was that she spoke none of them. She thought she recognized Italian and was sure she heard French. One of the languages sounded like Spanish, but English was not among them. She thought perhaps they were trying to communicate with her. She blinked slowly while watching his face as he spoke to her — she was exhausted. As she watched him, her brow quirked, and she huffed a halfhearted laugh — the sensation of watching him speak, then the foreign words as the computer spoke slightly behind his own words reminded her of watching old Japanese B movies of Godzilla and the like. The actor would speak in Japanese, then the audio delay would kick in, and English would be spouted through the television completely out of sync with the actors’ moving lips. She giggled weakly in spite of herself, imagining that a Japanese monster held her, and surely somewhere an audience laughed at the absurdity of it all. If only one of them were English, she might know what this male was trying to tell her. She wondered at her mental state. All she’d survived and here she was in the arms of a really big, really scary alien, giggling because he reminded her of a Japanese B movie.
Zha Quin was hurriedly explaining everything he could to his female, in a hushed voice of course, because when he spoke in his normal tone, she seemed to wince a little. He suspected that his language must sound too forceful, as though he were angry. So he kept his words hushed. He didn’t believe that she’d understood a word he’d said, but at one point she’d leaned back to watch him speak to her. Then she’d smiled. She’d smiled at him. He’d almost been undone in that single moment in time, almost dropped to his knees in complete submission to her every whim. He’d traveled the universe, lived for more years than he cared to, and never, never had he ever seen such astounding beauty that moved him to his very core. He knew at that moment, if there’d been any doubt before, that his life
belonged to his little human female. He’d spend the rest of his days protecting her, providing for her, serving her, loving her. Doing anything in his power to make her smile that smile for him over and over again.
He stroked a hand over her back between her shoulder blades and while doing so tried to explain that she had to be healed. He knew that the translator was continually trying different options for Earth’s languages, but so far, had not located one that she understood. He just kept talking, hoping that at some point, she’d understand his words. While speaking to her, he took a few steps toward the healing table. Once she realized where he was headed, she tried to climb up his body to get away from the box she’d been locked in when she’d awoken. Even in her weakened state, she was scared enough of the chamber to try to escape it.
He stopped moving toward the chamber, stopping where he stood to try to soothe her, calm her. The healer came up behind her and pressed a metal tube against her neck, which had her crying out and her body tensing in his arms.
She turned, trying to lash out at whatever had caused pain in her neck, but the healer had already moved back away from her.
Vivian turned accusing eyes on Zha Quin as her body began to relax despite her attempts to remain in control. “What did you do?!” Zha Quin demanded of the healer.
“I only gave her a sedative. She needs to be healed, Sire. Her fever is returning, she needs to be healed!” he said emphatically.
Zha Quin watched her fight valiantly to remain awake, never taking his eyes from hers while still holding her tightly against his chest as he told the healer, “You touch my female without my permission for any reason, ever again, and I’ll kill you.”
He’d been so caught up in his female that he’d not been aware that three of his most trusted males, who were also personal friends of his, had entered the treatment room until he heard them activate their weapons in preparation of protecting his female should he order it.
Vivian still wasn’t sure of whatever the alien had snarled, the blood was loudly rushing in her ears, but it seemed he was upset at the other alien that had injected her with whatever was making her blood rush and causing her to become drowsy. She could barely hold her head up. She closed her eyes, resting her heavy head against Red’s chest.
“If she is your Ehlealah, heal her, before you lose her — heal her,” the healer said to Zha Quin passionately.
Zha Quin knew the healer was right, but he didn’t want to let her go. He didn’t realize he’d said it out loud until the healer responded.
“Would you rather let her go forever, or for just a little while to insure her health?”
Zha Quin nodded, “You are right. Please, heal her.” He stepped forward and laid her on the table again. At the cold sensation of the table beneath her body, her eyes lazily opened, she saw the chamber lid lowering toward her and the red alien standing, watching. She tried to call out, and a tear slipped from her eye as she struggled to move to the edge of the table she lay upon so she wouldn’t be sealed in the small box again. She hated small places, was terrified of being locked in small spaces, actually.
Zha Quin saw the tear slip down her face, and he couldn’t take it. He reached a hand out to break the beam, causing the lid to stop its descent again. He didn’t look at the healer, but continued to look at Vivian, as he spoke aloud, “Raise it.”
The healer responded, “But, Sire…”
“Raise it now!” Zha Quin demanded.
The healer sighed with frustration as he pushed in the button commands to make the lid rise again.
Once it was sufficiently high enough for Zha Quin’s needs, he waited no longer. He stripped off his clothes and dropped them on the floor at his feet. He was careful to place his dagger — her dagger — on top of the pile of clothing. When he wore nothing more than the small stretchy undergarment all the males of his species wore to keep their mating parts contained, he slipped under the lid to lay on the table beside Vivian.
She was startled by his actions and tried to move away from him, but he gathered her in his arms, placing her head on his chest, her body laying atop his. He placed one hand on her head, holding her to him and the other across her body, his hand lying in the small of her back.
Then he spoke, “Lower it, start the healing process. Do not open it until she is sufficiently healed.”
“But, Sire, you are not injured. When you emerge, you will be drained. You will need a great deal of rest to return to your usual strength. You should allow me to heal her alone,” his healer explained.
Zha Quin was extremely tired of this healer telling him what he should and shouldn’t do. With a snarl he snapped, “Do not presume to tell me what I should and should not do! I will not leave my Ehlealah alone when she is frightened as she is. Heal her. Now! While I hold her!” Out of the corner of his eye he caught a flash of slate gray and black. He recognized it immediately, his best friend and second in command, “Ba Re’ Non Tol, you are in command here until we emerge. And if necessary, while I recuperate afterward. Coordinate with General Lo’ San as necessary.”
“Yes, Sire,” was the last thing Zha Quin heard as the healing chamber closed around them.
Zha Quin stroked the back of the female who held his entire existence in her little human hands, and as of yet, had no clue that she did.
She shifted, just slightly, the sedative almost fully in effect now. She struggled, but managed to adjust her head so that she could look at him. Her heart was pounding, she hated small spaces. The terror that suffused her beyond all reason. She even had nightmares of waking up in a small space, suspended in a thick green-tinged liquid, alive but unable to move or control her body. The viscous substance filling her lungs, her mouth, her eyes. This small space wasn’t like the one in her dreams, but it scared her just as much. Her eyes drifted to the sides of the metallic box-like chamber, now completely surrounding her, then to his eyes. He grimaced at her. He raised a hand, stroked her hair back from her face, then grimaced again. Her eyebrows drew up in confusion as she watched him repeatedly grimace at her. Then, he lifted his hand and with one finger pushed one corner of her mouth up. Ahhh! A smile. He was trying to smile at her. It looked like he wanted to eat her, but he was trying to smile at her. She offered a small smile to him, and he grimaced again, hugely. Yep, that was it, his grimace was actually a smile.
She wasn’t altogether sure that she should trust this male. But he’d been kind so far, and he was in the box with her, so she decided to hedge her bets and align herself with him — at least for now. She struggled to scoot her way up his body enough to allow her to raise her hand to one of his horns. Finally, she reached it. She wrapped her hand around it as best she could to make sure that he couldn’t leave her in this damn box alone. He let out a soft groan as she gripped his horn and snuggled her closer, gently moving her further up his body. She’d maintained eye contact with him the whole time, but as he settled her more comfortably on top of him, she finally allowed her eyes to close. She whispered, “Don’t leave me in here,” on a sob, her eyes fluttering open once more, struggling to focus on the sides of the box they were in, before allowing them to slam shut.
Zha Quin knew she was afraid of being locked inside the healing chamber. She’d even struggled to open her eyes once more to look at it again before a sob left her tiny, frail body. She’d closed her eyes before he could reassure her. He stroked her eyelid until, with great effort, she opened her eyes again to find him looking directly into them. He shook his head gently, pointed at the side of the box, then at her. He wrapped his arms tighter around her and snarled softly. Vivian wished she knew what he meant, but she took it to mean that he wouldn’t leave her and closed her eyes once more, unable to fight the sedative any longer. She fell into a deep, drug-induced sleep. The steady beeping of the healing chamber not even a blip on her consciousness, she slept so deeply.
Chapter 4
Hours later, Zha Quin was awakened by the slight sound of a vacuum lock being broken. He opened his
eyes and looked around as the lid to the healing chamber started to rise.
The first thing he saw as the lid was raised above his eye level were the backs of his warriors — his friends, standing around the chamber, their backs to him, fully armed and at attention as they stood guard while he tended his Ehlealah.
Ba Re’ reached back with one hand and laid his green cloak on the table beside them.
“Thank you,” Zha Quin said in a rough voice.
Ba Re’ didn’t answer, but a sharp nod of his head let Zha Quin know that he’d heard him.
Zha Quin gathered his female and lifted her away from his body as he sat up, reaching for the cloak to cover her with. “How long have we been asleep?”
“Almost five hours, Sire. We have kept watch over you. General Lo’ San has maintained command of the bridge. All is well.”
“Thank you, Ba Re’,” Zha Quin answered, just as the healer was entering the room to assess the little human.
“Sire, if you would please lay her on the table,” his Healing Master requested.
Zha Quin’s eyes became murderous as he glared at the healer.
“Sire, I must determine her health. Another chamber session may be required.”
“Why is she still sleeping? Wake her!” he snapped.
“I’m sure it’s a combination of the sedative and the chamber itself, Sire. But I need to determine her status. I can’t do that if I am unable to examine her. Please, may I examine her?”
Zha Quin slipped from the table, his female in his arms, and turned to place her where he’d just lain with her. His head bent when he tried to stand, and he smiled, realizing that she had a death grip on his horn still. He reached up, loosening her grip, and placed her hand across her own chest as she lay still wrapped in his cloak. He stood at her side, remembering her fear of being closed in the healing chamber alone. He reached out, placing his arm deliberately across the edge of the table, being sure to break the beam and impede the lid from lowering again should it start to.
Haven 1: Ascend Page 3