Darryn sat next to the fire in Anaka’s cave, watching as she bustled about, placing all her instruments back in their proper places. Her assistant, Aureth, was stoking the fire with the strange deep-cave moss that the Painted Tribesmen used as fuel during the night. The blue light illuminated the cave, playing off of the walls and giving the place an air of mystery. It was strangely comforting.
Jaxon lay in the middle of the cave, wrapped in fresh bandages. He was finally resting peacefully except for the occasional quiet sound of distress as he continued to toss and turn.
Darryn knew what kind of things were going through Jax’s head. They were the same things he saw whenever he closed his eyes. Images of The War; of death and destruction, friends dying on either side of you, ripped apart by horrible monsters. The horror would never fully go away.
“Jax be alright?” Rocoram’s voice rumbled from the other side of the fire. His huge form was silhouetted against the cave entrance, hunched in a tired manner. Jaxon was strong, and it had been a struggle to hold him still, even for the Gath.
“Time alone will tell,” Anaka said quietly. “But he is strong, and a warrior’s soul beats within him. I think it likely.”
Darryn looked up at her. “Veric tancth.” I cannot repay you.
“It is unnecessary, Arushkta.” She smiled warmly. “I am bound by oath to help those who are ill.”
“Only those of your tribe.”
“Of which you are a part. I told you when you left us six cycles ago it would change nothing.”
“All the same…I don’t know how I can repay you, Anaka.”
“Live, Arushkta.” She knelt down, placing a hand on his shoulder and offering him a bowl of water. “Just live.”
He smiled sadly and accepted the drink. “I’m doing my best, Erta.”
“And that is all one can do.” She stood and filled another bowl from the water skin hanging over the entrance, offering it to Rocky.
“Many thanks,” he rumbled, carefully taking the small bowl in his huge hands. “It is honor to finally meet the great Anaka.”
“Am I so famous, then?” She laughed.
“Captain tell much of you in early days. Say you very fine woman.”
“Arushkta honors me too much. I do only what any other in my place would have.” She stood up. “Now, rest. There is food and water for all. My cave is yours for as long as you need.”
“Be tight fit,” Rocky rumbled in an amused tone.
“My second-daughter will show you where to sleep.” Anaka beckoned to Aureth. “I will watch over your friend.”
“Thank you, Anaka.” Darryn got to his feet and bowed his head respectfully. “May the suns stay forever in your shadow.”
“And you, Arushkta.” She made a shooing motion with her hands. “Now go, get under cover before the suns rise.”
Aureth motioned for them to follow her before lifting the flap and stepping out onto the walkway.
Darryn followed, with Rocoram on his heels.
“Is very young to be daughter of Painted Woman,” the Gath muttered in his ear.
“Granddaughter, Rocky.” Darryn chuckled. “She’s Anaka’s granddaughter.”
“Ah. Make more sense.” Rocky nodded.
Darryn blinked in the moonlight as they exited the cave, and stood a moment, waiting for his eyes to adjust.
Eralis was leaning against the wall, tapping his foot impatiently on the walkway. Honor stood next to him, one eye on the Fed, the other on the cave entrance. Her amber eyes lit up as she saw the two of them exit.
“Well?” She asked.
“He’s gonna make it.” Darryn looked around. “Where’s Mik?”
Honor pointed farther up the walkway. “I think he’s finally getting some rest.”
Darryn turned and scanned the walkway, finally spotting the pilot sitting slumped against the cliff, his head resting on his arms. He did appear to be sleeping.
Darryn didn’t blame him one bit. None of them had been able to get any rest since they had begun their assault on Ventura. But he couldn’t stay out here when the suns came up.
Darryn knelt next to Mik and gently shook his shoulder. “Hey, kid.”
Mik started awake, his eyes wide. “Captain?”
Darryn squeezed Mik’s shoulder. “You did good, kid. Jax is gonna be alright.”
“Jax…” Mik sighed and his eyes closed again.
Darryn smiled fondly. “Come on, Mik. Let’s find you a more comfortable spot to sleep.” He hauled the pilot to his feet and threw Mik’s arm over his shoulder.
Aureth watched curiously. “He is also sick?” she asked tentatively.
“Just exhausted. He’ll be alright tomorrow.”
Aureth shrugged and beckoned them farther down the walkway. “This way, please.”
“What do you know,” Eralis smirked. “She can speak like a human being.”
Honor smacked the back of his head. “You keep a civil tongue in your face, Fed!” She whispered in a threatening tone.
Aureth didn’t seem to notice. “Narerta teach me a bit.” She held the covering aside on a cave a few openings down from Anaka’s. “I never use before.”
“Anaka is a good teacher,” Darryn ducked under the covering. “You speak it very well.”
She smiled. “Goracthand. Many thanks.”
“How Anaka know Common?” Rocky asked as he surveyed the sleeping mats arranged in tidy rows near the cave walls, surrounding a well used fire pit in the center, with two different stacks of cave moss arranged neatly nearby.
“Narerta travel much when young. Even to great metal city.”
“Terminus,” Darryn explained as he deposited Mik on one of the mats. “The spaceport on the other side of the planet.”
Aureth nodded. “Yes. Anaka tell me of metal ships and their great noise. “
“Your grandmother very accomplished woman,” Rocky remarked.
“I…not sure I understand.”
“Is compliment.”
“Oh.” Aureth looked mildly confused, but she shrugged. “Make you comfortable. Food in cave next door. Better eat before suns come up.”
“Thank you, Aureth.” Darryn gave her a grateful smile. “May the suns always be in your shadow.”
She smiled. “And yours.” Aureth nodded to the rest of the group and exited the cave.
“Honor, make our guest comfortable and make sure he isn’t going anywhere.” Darryn began stacking the second kind of cave moss, the one used during the day, inside the fire pit.
“Oh come on,” Eralis growled as Honor pushed him onto a mat in the rear of the cave and began tying his feet together. “Where am I going to go? The suns will turn me to ash the minute I set foot out of the cave!”
“Let’s just say I don’t want you getting any funny ideas.” Darryn finished stacking the moss and began setting flint to steel.
Honor finished tying her knot and gave an experimental tug on the ropes. “There. That oughta hold.”
“Thanks a lot,” Eralis grunted.
There was a whoosh from the fire pit, and a cold blue glow began illuminating the cave. Darryn set the flint and steel aside and sat back, watching the blue flames. He could already feel the cooling effect of the thermal moss.
“What is strange blue moss?” Rocky examined the two piles, picking up bits of each and examining them curiously.
“A strange phenomenon peculiar to Arrida.” Darryn answered. “It grows deep within the cave system, and burns at different rates.”
“It burns cold,” Honor observed, crouching on the other side of the fire. “How is that possible?”
Darryn shrugged. “I’m no scientist. But it’s a fact that this moss burns cold while that moss,” he pointed to the bit in Rocky’s huge hands, “burns warm. The People of the Rock use that for cooking at night, and they use the cool moss for warding off the heat of the three suns.”
“Is very strange.” Rocky put the moss back in the pile. “But we have rock on Gath, is very similar.”
“How long do you think we’ll have to stay here?” Honor poked at the fire with one of her knives.
“That depends on how quickly Jax is able to recover.” Darryn shook his head. “He’s usually pretty fast on the mend, but…it was bad this time.”
“Oh please,” Eralis mumbled to himself in the corner. “You’re deluding yourselves.”
“Not know Jax like we do,” Rocky rumbled. “Is surprising man.”
“Let me tell you something, Gath. If you were somehow able to get him into the best hospital money could buy, with the most incredible of medical minds caring for him, I would be astonished if he managed to walk out of there alive.”
Honor turned her unblinking stare upon Eralis, causing him to flinch and avert his gaze. “I suppose you know everything about the universe?”
“I know about the limits of the human body.” The Fed retaliated. “And I’ve seen the effects of losing that much blood.”
“Is interesting how much things you are professional in.” Rocky seemed genuinely curious. “Must need big head to hold all information.”
“It’s called education, Gath.”
“Must be fascinating thing.”
“You know what’s ‘fascinating’?” Eralis leaned forwards. “What’s ‘fascinating’ is this insane obsession you four have with this ‘no man left behind’ crap. I thought you scavs were supposed to be survivors. And yet here you are, risking capture by the authorities because you’re too sentimental to abandon a dying crew member!”
“Is not dying…”
“So you say!” Eralis interrupted. “But even if he wasn’t, so what? Is one man really worth the risk that the Federation will track us down and kill us all?”
“I don’t know what kind of code you Feds live by,” Honor hissed. “But we don’t leave our people behind.”
Eralis ignored them and looked directly at Darryn. “Every moment we delay, the Federation is one step closer to finding us and regaining that data. I know you, at least, are smart enough to realize that.”
Darryn stared into the fire. “You’re right. The Feds are probably on their way here right now. But that doesn’t matter. I know how you government men think, how you operate. And they won’t be able to find us for some time.”
“You don’t know that…”
“Oh, I do know that.” Darryn’s eyes flashed and he stood up, walking over to where Eralis was sitting. “Do you know why?”
Eralis stared up at him, wide-eyed and pushed himself back until he was sitting against the back of the cave.
Darryn crouched down and grabbed the Fed by the front of his shirt, pulling him forward and keeping his voice so low that Eralis had to strain to hear him. “Because I was like you, once. I didn’t believe in anything, or anyone. I did my duty like a good little soldier, and was left with nothing to show for it. So don’t talk to me about how the Federation operates!”
Eralis took a second to compose himself. “Then you should understand the importance of the mission. How one man’s life cannot be weighed against the common good.”
“And by ‘common good’ you mean, what the Federation wants, of course,” Honor interjected.
“If that’s how you want to see it.”
“See, that’s where you’re wrong, Fed.” Darryn stood up. “Unlike you, I found something to believe in. I don’t care about your mission. And you’ll never persuade me otherwise.”
Eralis chuckled. “That’s where you’re wrong, scav. Once a Fed, always a Fed. You and I are the same underneath. And one day, you’ll figure that out.”
Darryn turned his back on the Agent. “I guess we’ll find out, Fed.”
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