Page 22

KAVAN

S team vented from fresh cracks in the earth as we picked our way through the altered landscape. The seismic activity had transformed familiar terrain into something unrecognizable.

"This passage should lead to the valley approach," I pointed to a narrow trail winding between two recently formed ridges. "From there, we follow the eastern tributary to the settlement."

Selene nodded, perspiration glistening on her mahogany skin. "I wouldn't recognize this area. The quakes have reshaped everything."

I offered my hand to help her across a fissure. Her markings flickered at my touch, sending a ripple of awareness through my senses. The connection we had formed in the ancient facility had altered us both in ways I was still discovering.

"The land speaks a new language now," I said. "We must listen more carefully."

We crossed a field of broken stone, remnants of what was once a smooth plateau. My tail provided balance as I navigated the unstable ground, occasionally reaching back to steady Selene. Her adaptation to Arenix impressed me—most humans would have faltered hours ago.

A strange chittering stopped us both. I raised my hand for silence.

"Vexlin," I whispered. "Something's wrong."

The small, six-legged lizard creatures typically scavenged within forests, avoiding open spaces and heat. Yet here they were, a dozen or more, scurrying across sun-baked rocks directly in our path.

"Aren't they nocturnal?" Selene asked quietly.

"They avoid daylight. Their scales dry quickly in direct sun." I watched their erratic movements with growing unease. "They should seek shelter, not expose themselves."

The nearest vexlin spotted us. Instead of retreating, it rose on its hind legs and released a high-pitched shriek. The others turned toward us as one.

"..."

"This isn't normal behavior," I said, reaching for my knife.

The creatures moved with unnatural coordination, fanning out to encircle us. Their normally dull gray scales had taken on an iridescent blue sheen, pulsing with internal light.

"Back to the rocks," I directed, keeping my voice level despite my concern.

We retreated slowly, but the vexlin advanced, multiple eyes fixed upon us with predatory focus.

"They hunt insects and small rodents," I explained. "Never anything our size."

"Until today, apparently," Selene replied.

The first vexlin launched itself through the air toward Selene's leg. I swung my knife, knocking it aside without killing it. Another leapt from a different angle. I caught it with my tail, flinging it back.

"They're moving as a unit," Selene observed, using a branch to fend off another attacker. "Coordinated rather than individual."

Three more vexlin sprang at us simultaneously from different directions. I pulled Selene behind me, using my frame as a shield. One latched onto my arm, teeth breaking skin. I winced but resisted crushing it, instead prying it loose and tossing it away.

"The ridgeline," I called, pointing to higher ground. "We need elevation."

We dashed across open ground, vexlin snapping at our heels. I boosted Selene up first, then scrambled after her as tiny jaws clamped onto my boot. A swift kick dislodged the creature as I reached safety.

From our vantage point, we saw dozens more vexlin emerging from earth cracks, all displaying the same unnatural blue glow.

"Look at their movement patterns," Selene said. "Almost as if they're being directed."

A tremor shook the ridge, nearly dislodging us. As the ground settled, I noticed my lifelines glowing with unusual intensity, pulsing in rhythm with the blue shimmer of the vexlin scales below.

"Your markings," I said, nodding toward Selene's wrists where her silver patterns pulsated similarly.

She examined her hands. "They're responding to something. Like an interference pattern."

The vexlin below scurried in agitated circles, suddenly confused. Several fought amongst themselves, while others dug frantically at the ground.

"Something else approaches," I warned, sensing vibrations through the stone.

The earth erupted as burrowing creatures broke through the surface—mita tunnelers, normally solitary animals that excavated complex underground homes. Each was roughly hand-sized, with powerful front claws and a soil-pushing snout.

These mita moved in perfect synchronicity, hundreds pouring from holes in a coordinated swarm. Their fur, usually soft brown, bristled with static electricity, tiny blue sparks jumping between them.

"This defies nature," I said. "Mita attack each other on sight."

The swarm flowed across the ground, engulfing several vexlin. The lizard-creatures fought back viciously but were quickly overwhelmed.

"We really need to move," I urged. "If we reach that outcropping, we might find a defensible position."

Selene nodded, and we hurried along the narrow ridgeline. Behind us, the mita swarm changed course to pursue.

"They're herding us," Selene called.

She was right. The vexlin had repositioned to block our path forward, while the mita drove us from behind. Instead of fighting each other, the two species appeared to be cooperating.

We reached the outcropping—a jutting formation overhanging a steep drop. The mita flowed around the base while vexlin climbed the sides, trapping us.

"There," Selene pointed to a narrow crevice in the rock face. "Can we fit through?"

I assessed quickly. "You first. I'll cover our retreat."

As Selene squeezed into the crevice, I faced the approaching creatures. My lifelines blazed, golden light pulsing beneath my emerald skin. The vexlin nearest me hesitated, their blue glow flickering erratically.

I pressed forward, drawing my knife and channeling energy through my markings—not for healing now, but outward. The golden light intensified, spreading from my lifelines across my entire form.

The effect was immediate. The vexlin scattered, their coordination dissolving. Below, the mita swarm dispersed, individual animals burrowing back into the earth or fleeing across open ground.

"!" Selene called from inside. "There's a path through here. And my markings—they're doing something strange."

I backed toward the opening, maintaining the energy projection that disrupted the creatures. Inside the narrow passage, I saw Selene's silver markings emitting cool light that revealed a path through darkness.

We pushed through the tight space, emerging on the ridge's other side into a sheltered gully protected from the landscape changes.

"What just happened?" Selene asked, examining her still-glowing markings.

I touched my own lifelines, now returned to normal. "The creatures behaved as if controlled. And our markings..."

"Interfered with that control," she finished. "Like competing frequencies."

A small tremor rippled through the ground. "The seismic activity must be affecting their neurological systems."

"My thoughts exactly," Selene agreed. "Earth ecology studies describe similar phenomena during electromagnetic disturbances. The animals' brains become receivers for abnormal signals."

"The ancient facility connected to Arenix's environmental systems," I said. "Perhaps damage to those systems created energy disruptions affecting wildlife."

"And our markings respond to those same energies differently."

We continued through the gully, alert for further abnormal behavior. The route curved toward the eastern border of Nyxari territory.

"I recognize this formation," I said as we emerged into more open terrain. "The settlement isn't far."

Selene stopped, pointing to disturbed earth ahead. "More tunnels."

Fresh mita burrows pockmarked the ground, but these appeared normal—individual entrances spaced appropriately for their territorial nature. The influence causing swarm behavior had diminished here.

"The settlement's protection stones may buffer the effects," I suggested. "The elders placed resonating crystals along the perimeter generations ago."

As we approached the invisible boundary marking Nyxari territory, rustling from vegetation to our right made us freeze.

"Movement," I whispered, positioning myself slightly before Selene.

Three figures emerged from the forest edge—tall, powerful Nyxari warriors carrying readied spears, their golden eyes gleaming in fading light.

"Who approaches?" called a deep voice I recognized as Terith's, one of Lazrin's hunt-brothers.

", healer of the Eastern Settlement," I responded formally. "I return with Selene Carter of the human enclave."

The warriors lowered their weapons immediately, moving forward.

"?" Terith stepped closer, copper-hued hair catching late afternoon sun. "We've searched the territories for three days. Lazrin feared you both lost in the great shaking."

"We found shelter," I explained, "but the return path was... complicated."

Terith nodded, but his eyes narrowed as he studied me. "Your energy signature has changed, healer."

I tensed, wondering how much was visible. The connection Selene and I formed was personal, private.

"The journey was difficult," I answered simply.

Terith accepted this with a nod, asking nothing more. "Come. The settlement prepares for nightfall, and the elders will want news of your return."

As we followed the patrol homeward, Selene caught my eye, a silent question in her expression.

"Nothing concerning," I murmured. "Our people sense energy patterns, but such changes aren't uncommon after intensive healing work."

She relaxed slightly but stayed close as we walked. The warriors led us along paths that skirted the areas most affected by recent seismic activity, eventually bringing us to the familiar approaches of the Eastern Settlement.

The sight of the living-stone structures of my home brought unexpected relief. With all we had experienced, all we had learned, I had wondered if this place would feel different.

It did—but not as I had feared. Rather than feeling constrained by its boundaries, I now saw it as a starting point for something new.