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“Your situation is difficult to explain,” Quin says.
I sigh, frustrated by our current situation and everything else, really. “Maybe when I’m not watching every step in a dim lava tube, you can fill me in on the details.”
“Maybe I can,” he answers, then stops.
I run into him. “What?”
He blows out a breath. “Bikking Kostans.” Running a hand through his feathers, he adds, “They’ve got S’Tou.”
“Holy fuck,” I breathe. Not wanting to hear the worst but needing to know, I ask, “And Cinq?”
A few seconds lasting for an eternity pass before Quin answers me with, “I don’t know. Nilt says they left him for dead, but can’t be sure until he can check for a pulse.”
I turn around and begin climbing back to the exit. “We need to go back and get him. Make plans for Aard to get us off this rock and rescue S’Tou.”
“No, we don’t.” He takes my arm. “The Kostans know we’re on the planet but don’t know where. Nilt’s put in a call to Aard, alerted S’Tou’s family, and is waiting to retrieve Cinq.”
Facing Quin, I ask, “Why not go get him now?”
“Because everyone’s insisting I take you to safety.” He pulls on me a little. “Come on, let’s go to the habitat. The sooner I get you there, the sooner I can help Nilt with Cinq. You can get everything ready for us while we bring him in.”
Damn it, he has a point. I begin following him again. “We should hurry, if possible.”
“I agree,” Quin says. We’re both quiet, concentrating on each step since the path hasn’t been smoothed like the tunnel has.
What feels like hours later, I notice the tube has become wider. Trying to not sound like a petulant child, I ask, “Are we almost there?”
Quin chuckles. “We are, actually. See?”
I peer around Quin’s back and sure enough, there’s a wall. We approach and he pulls a lever, opening a hidden door to the bedroom. “This is terrific. Clever of Cinq to create an escape hatch.”
“Yeah, and I hoped to never use it.” He goes in first, waiting for me and shutting the door once I’m inside, too. It’s amazing because I can’t tell where the door was.
Quin hurries to the larger living area and I follow. Everything is too neat around here. “Where are the medical supplies?”
He gives me a long look before shaking his head. “This is impossible. Damn the rules, we need to communicate.”
“What do you mean?” I ask, his concerned expression giving me goosebumps in a bad way. “Is Cinq dead?”
“No, not yet.” Quin takes my shoulders. “If something happens to the three of us, you’ll need to contact Aard and get off this rock.” His eyes cloud for a few seconds before he shakes his head. “Again, this is going to seem kinky, but it’s not. It’s the fastest knowledge transfer possible. I don’t have time to modify these for Earthers, but considering how hybrid I am, it must work.”
He brings me in for a kiss and I’m too stunned to move at first. Okay, now there’s a little tongue. I’m more than a little squicked out but like he’s said, it’s not sexual at all. Just perfunctory. He lets me go and I frown. “That’s it?”
“Things will start changing soon.” He goes over to the replicator, bringing me a couple of sporks. “You’ll have a craving for metal. Just put one in your mouth, two if necessary, and don’t be worried about it. Your system will need the materials.”
I take the utensils with a shaky hand. “Now you’re scaring me.”
“Don’t be afraid. We all go through it when we’re children.” He goes on to the entrance. “We have fruit flavored metals to eat while our nanos begin working. Seriously, it’s not a concern where I’m from.”
“You’ll come back with Cinq and Nilt, won’t you?” I ask, following him back into the bedroom.
“Yes, or die trying,” he answers and disappears through the tunnel.
I can almost hear my breathing echo in the cavern. In a bit of a daze and with utensils in hand, I go over to sit on the sofa. I stare at a spork handle and run my thumb over the smooth surface. He’s right. The metal will taste good on my tongue. Slick, tangy, almost like fear in the back of my throat or when someone yanks the hair at the small of my neck.
I put the spork’s bowl in my mouth and close my eyes because it tastes so good. Yes, it’s creepy but I can almost see lights dancing behind my eyelids. Odd and random memories come back to me like there’s a viewscreen in my head. When I fell off my bike. My dad’s face when he walked out on mom. Graduating college. Making the decision that mom needed a true nursing home. Tears fill my eyes and fall down my cheeks but I don’t move. There’s too much going on. I hear chatter, too, like my head’s an old time am fm radio trying to tune in.
Quin’s given me nanos, then, He really went and gave me alien tech. The tears aren’t enough and I begin to sob. Unless something drastic happens, I’m trapped here, never able to return to Earth. I bite my lip to keep from sobbing any more, resigned to let the nanos do their work and let me access the rest of the advanced galaxy. Cinq had mentioned using nanos like a cell phone, so I’m not as cut off now as I was even a minute ago.
Jessica?
Holy shit, I hear Nilt’s voice in my head as if I’m wearing ear buds. How the hell does this work? Yes? I send, wondering if it’ll work.
Welcome to the rest of the galaxy. We have Cinq and are bringing him in. You’ll want to be familiar with the replicator and Gharian physiology.
This…is going to be interesting.
