Ghosting the Hero (7 page)

“By the laws of your own traditions, the sacred gardens are open to all who would seek the blessings of the gods. Today, I sought their blessings as any wanderer might.”

“You used your talent to make the tree touch you.”

Simry raised her eyebrows. “You know that it is not how my talent works. I can only bring myself to walk without my body, an abomination in your eyes but still what the gods gifted me with.”

“Your leg has been healed.”

Simry nodded. “I wandered far from here and begged for help until finally I lay back and let the healing happen.”

It was the truth, more or less. She had fought Reset, but there was only one way for her leg to stay healed, and it was by forcing the body to remember its own genetic code. The sensation had been incredible and not one she would wish on her worst enemy. If she had had any secrets, she would have spilled them all during that marathon of healing.

Reset referred to Simry as having a belligerent genetic code.

“The gods healed you?”

She snorted. “I certainly didn’t do it.”

Simry leaned on her cane. “The sacred tree offered me this cane years ago, and today, it gave me its blessing for my wandering. My sister has also received the blessing, so please, stand aside and let us continue on our path.”

A blast wave of power burned through the sky. Hero had completed the rescue and it was time for Simry to take control of the situation. She moved her hand to the back of her neck and tapped three times.

Standing next to herself was odd, but she sent her other body to the beacon in the ship and woke it up. Full camouflage was on board and active. It was going to look like a travelling heatwave.

Minel took her arm and led her away from the priests, down to the path and, slowly, out of the village on the opposite side of the approach.

While she walked, using the cane more than she normally would, her mind was picking up the fleeing Hero and the woman in his arms.

The guards tried to block them, and Minel faced off against them. “You have no right to ban wanderers. We are doing as nature has dictated. Stand aside or face the wrath of the gods.”

The air pressure around them changed, and the guards took the divine hint. Flying a shuttle at low altitude while walking was a trick she was not going to keep in her repertoire. Once was more than enough.

The path was clear, and around the nearest hill was a flat plain where the shuttle could land for a moment.

“What is wrong with you, Simry?” Minel whispered it softly.

“I am multitasking. I am not very good at it.”

The pressure wave of the ship passed over them and around the hill.

The moment the ship was down, Simry started moving faster. “Around the hill to Drebon-Hek’s field. Look for a series of wedges in the grain.”

They made it to the field, and Simry ran for the ship. She opened the door at their approach and boosted Minel into the shuttle before the steps descended.

Hero reached down and hauled her in. She took off a moment later, the ship rising with the reflective shields still on.

“I don’t know what you are doing, but the ship controls won’t respond to me.”

She locked the doors, pressurized the ship and took them into the cloud layer before dropping the shields and making her way to the front of the ship. “Sorry, Teemya.”

The recruiter was sitting in a jump seat with Minel next to her. They were holding hands with a death grip.

She slid into the command chair and pulled the ship up and out of the atmosphere by force of will. It felt weird to be driving and flying at the same time, but she wasn’t able to pull out of the ship just yet. She didn’t want to stress the systems.

By law, she couldn’t let the ship be seen, so she waited until they were behind the moon before she returned to her body completely.

The ship turned idly on its trajectory. The heading remained straight.

“
Now
the ship will respond to you. Sorry. I was driving.” She shivered as her body went into short muscle spasms.

“Are you all right?” Hero was concerned.

“I am fine or as fine as I can get. I need to lie down. Can you get us to Thoola?”

“I can. Are you sure you are all right?”

“Check on me in a few hours. That was not something I would like to do again, but it is nice to know that I can do it if I have to. Ah, I am conflicted.” She made a face.

“Stop being conflicted and get some rest. I will man things from here. Who is the young woman?”

“That is my sister, Minel. She is going to Thoola, and my new status as Guardsman is going to pay her way.” She chuckled. “It is her first time away from home. Make sure she is safe.”

“I think you have already done that. Get some rest.”

She nodded and staggered past Teemya and Minel. “See you later, behave. Both of you. Hero is spoken for.”

Teemya chuckled and Minel smiled weakly. “See you later, Simry.”

The custom bed felt like heaven when Simry managed to get herself settled. Her muscle groups were tightening, one by one. The suit pulsed against her limbs, and it helped, but only rest would manage to loosen her completely. Well, that or a rubdown, but it seemed that N’kad was busy being a hero.

* * * *

N’kad checked the display that kept tabs on Simry’s body. It showed that she was slowly being wracked with knotted muscles and probably a lot of pain.

“Teemya!”

“Yes, Hero?”

“Can you take the controls?”

“Sure. Where are we heading?”

“Citadel Education Center, Thoola.”

“Got it. When is the next jump site?”

“Two hours. It is on automatic, just keep me posted if anything flashes, beeps or belches.”

“What are you going to do?”

“I am taking care of my partner.”

Simry’s sister looked up at him. “Is she all right?”

“She is in pain. The more she uses her mind, the more her body suffers. I am going to help her relax. You can come and keep her company if you like.”

Minel blinked and cautiously got to her feet. “Lead the way.”

N’kad smiled and led the way to where Simry was struggling to find comfort. “Minel is here to help keep you calm.”

Simry whispered. “Don’t let her touch me.”

Minel paused with her hand an inch away from her sister’s head.

“Is there a reason that you don’t want her to touch you?”

“She is an untested healer, and if she is a contact healer, this would be painful for her. I don’t want that.” She made a face and twisted on the bed.

N’kad nodded and went to the supply locker. He came out with some gloves and offered them to Minel. She smiled softly and pulled them on before stroking her sister’s hair.

“I am going to work on some of your pressure points. Try to relax and keep breathing.” He used his knuckles over her suit, moving with the low massaging pulses that ran along her skin.

After half an hour, N’kad was covered in sweat and Simry was asleep.

Minel frowned and removed her gloves. “She was really in rough shape.”

He waved her to whisper.

Minel grinned. “You could set off a thunderstorm next to her and she would merely snore and roll over. When she is tired, she is tired.”

“Really? She snores?”

“It is more of a wheeze.” Minel looked at him with a smile. “You look tired. I can do something about that.”

Before he could move, she snapped forward and pressed her hand to his. A rush of energy crept up his arm, and he watched the healer look exhausted for a moment before colour filled her face again.

“You are a contact healer.”

She shrugged. “I don’t know what that is, but if I had touched her while she was like that, I would have been on the ground until my body healed it.”

N’kad led her to the galley and got her a cup of tea and a snack. “Sit and explain why you had to be taken away.”

Minel sighed. “The priests were coming for me. Each day, they brought in more and more of their men for me to heal. They were defying their own laws, our laws, by using my talent to heal others.”

“Did Simry know that?”

“No. She just knew that I was a healer and that I needed to leave, just as she needed to leave.”

N’kad looked toward the cargo hold where Simry slept. “Why didn’t you tell her about that?”

“She would have done something and someone might have gotten hurt, including her. I didn’t want that.”

“Very wise. Your sister tends to do things with her whole being.”

Minel smiled and stirred her tea. “When I was little, she was slow on her cane, but she still sent shivers of fear through the school when she came in to speak to my teachers. Our parents were busy with daily chores, and since she was what she was, she had time to attend to my education. I guess she is still doing it.”

He smiled and looked around. “You are adapting well to being on a spacecraft.”

“Recruiter Teemya gave me a mind burst that prepared me for travel in space and life on a new world. She said she did the same for Simry when she had to leave.”

He nodded. “Of course. Did you see how I ran the machines?”

Minel smiled and nodded. “I did. I think I can get my own tea and food.”

“I will send Teemya back to you, and I want you to both get some sleep. She has been held in chains and you have just taken my fatigue. You both need rest, and thanks to you, I am good to get us to Thoola.” He smiled.

She nodded and swallowed. “Thank you for taking care of her.”

N’kad chuckled. “It is my pleasure to return the favour that she did me.”

He returned to the controls, and Teemya headed for the back with a sigh of gratitude. Within an hour, he piloted a ship full of sleeping women through the stars, and he couldn’t be happier.

Simry woke when the ship’s engines indicated a change of direction. They were headed down to Thoola.

She rolled out of her couch, stretched and grabbed two mugs of tea. Simry headed to the controls, and she nudged N’kad with her hip, handing him the mug of tea.

Her partner smiled. “Good afternoon, Simry.”

“Good afternoon, N’kad. Are you ready for a break?”

He chuckled and sipped his tea as they approached the world spinning beneath them. “Of course. So, you wake up just in time to take the controls?”

She settled into the nav station. “Go and take a nap.”

He chuckled. “I can’t. Teemya is in my bunk and Simry is in yours.”

He opened the com and got the landing access for the ship. “What will you do when she is gone?”

Simry knew what he meant. “She will begin her life and I will resume mine...as your partner if you will still have me.”

He stared at her. “Of course I want you.”

She raised her brows and colour stained his cheeks.

“Did I say that out loud?”

Simry chuckled. “You did. Frankly, I am glad you went first.”

He smiled brightly. “First?”

“Yes. I will confess presently, but let’s get my little sister off the shuttle before I answer the challenge in your eyes.”

He grinned in delight and focused on bringing the shuttle safely to the surface. She sipped her tea, and he steered them down into the landing pad of one of the most dangerous and educational institutions in the sector.

They settled, and Simry got up to wake Teemya with a gentle shake.

“We have arrived, Recruiter. It is time for you to return to your people and, from there, back into the wide universe.”

“Thank you for the retrieval, Simry. You have no idea how much delight I felt when I saw you and your sister approaching the shuttle.”

“I am glad. It would not have been there for you if you had not been there for me.”

Teemya hugged her and sighed. “I will miss my ship though. Is there any chance it can be retrieved?”

“That is outside my purview. I will put the request in.” She winked. “Now, I have to wake my sister. It might be some time before I see her, so I have to make it good.”

Teemya nodded and headed for the lav.

Simry tiptoed into the next room and sat on the edge of the bed. Her sister looked like a sleeping saint.

Simry took the tail of Minel’s braid, and she tickled her sleeping sister’s lips with it. Minel exhaled hard. Grinning, Simry brushed her sister’s nose with the silky brush of hair. Minel batted at her nose.

Three more minutes of watching Minel beat herself in the face was enough of a smiling memory for Simry. With a sigh, she drew her fingers across Minel’s forehead. “Time to wake up. You are on Thoola.”

Minel blinked and winced. “What happened to my face?”

“Must have had a nightmare.” Simry rolled the braid between her fingers.

“You didn’t...”

“I did. I needed something to remember you by when you are studying.”

Minel sat up and rubbed her face. “The memory of you torturing me?”

“A big sister has to find her joys where she can. Come on. We are at the school.”

“Will they have breakfast?”

Simry chuckled. “They will.”

Simry walked her sister to the door of the shuttle where Teemya and N’kad waited.

The door opened, and the welcoming committee from the school was waiting to do the authorization and registration.

The welcome was warm, and Simry could see that her sister was in good hands, just as she had been.

They had a meal in the pavilion in the courtyard, as N’kad was not the right gender to enter the school.

He did a flight demonstration for the graduating students who were serving lunch to the two Guardsmen and the new recruit.

Simry watched him gracefully arc through the sky, and she sighed at the beauty of the light and power that carried him aloft.

Minel whispered, “You haven’t seen him before.”

“Not like this. I have only known him for two weeks. Three if you count the first mission.”

“You met him on a mission? Wasn’t he using his talent then?”

Simry pursed her lips and tilted her head. “Not so much. He was the victim of foul play.”

“Oh. You saved him?”

“No. I just kept him occupied until his rescuers could arrive.”

Minel smiled slowly. “I think it was more than that. I am going to ask him.”