Suddenly, the chamber sparked! Seams glowed blue! Blue-purple flashes illuminated the lab. Gasps from my coworkers! Smoke burned my nose.

Citsa waved for a cleaner sim.

The irradiation chamber shuddered. Clanked on the counter. A chain reaction began— "Prog One. Open dimportal!" Swirling green appeared behind it. I waved a calcs screen. Shouted coordinates from a list. The first glowed red. The second, green. Red. Red. Red. Too slow! Progs run.

“Location Two!” Pulled the dimportal over the chamber. Flung it through the ceiling!

I used my hands. Instead of speaking the coordinates my holographic grid indicated, I used my hands. A perilous habit.

“Tracking!” A holo followed it into the sky. It exploded in blue and purple over the Barrens where I meant. We are safe.

If I had spoken more of them, it would have gone off here. Did not trust progs to contain such a powerful reaction here!

"That was extremely dangerous!" With a step towards me, Ossy stared at burns on the meltedsand counter. Black streaks against white inin. "What if you missed the Barrens and hit Kleideu?"

"The tracking prog shows, it ported there, in the middle of the Barrens." I pointed to the Prog One holo, Eicken's standard emergency prog, and made sure he saw. Coordinates that I carefully put in order, with the most remote first. My hand shook so I pulled it down. Two weeks’ work! Gone.

Progs ran to check for people, ships, portals or important work. Commands to contain any reaction with a certain density, height, strength. Progs to alert anyone in the Barrens. Progs to choose alternate locations.

The most essential ones ran first and called 50 others. I wrote my emergency protocols carefully, so that if I panicked and used my hands, no one but myself would be hurt. But, if my prog had run properly, I would be vaporized on the Barrens, with my experiment! I gasped, but my mouth just opened.

Vonn checked my display and nodded. A prog ran to verify the health of every scientist, every citizen in our colony. One holo glowed red. Mine?

Felt the faint tingle of radiation burns—through a 1000x containment field! I stared at my hand in disbelief. Both hands. White with the charred dust left when ANW burns. My hands came into direct contact with part of the reaction. The acrid smell included the bitter smell of ANW!

Vonn waved hygiene on my hands and steered me to a chair by my quivering elbows. “Be calm. I will get help—”

Citsa frowned at me. "How did that happen?"

"It was not Adia's fault. The irradiation chamber failed; her quick action saved us!”

Derees stood by Vonn. His hand quivered on my shoulder. "Leave us! Both of you have work."

Tanda brought an ointment and smeared it over my trembling fingers.

A holo showed what happened. Prog One records all incidents. Takes holos from every person's angle and combines them into one. Director Pragate and Security surely see it now. The holo clearly showed my hands going too far into the dimportal.

If I had spoken all the coords and waited for verification, as procedures demanded, the explosion would have happened here, in the lab.

A simulation predicted the 1000x field would not have contained it. Flagged an error in the 1000x code. Sent the sim to Safety. Safety Section made an error? That is how my hands slipped into the portal?

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“Age must have weakened the containment field generator. Infoserver." Vonn said, "Help Adia. Medical databases."

"Infoserver malfunction. Databases not found."

We stared at each other. "That is not possible."

Derees waved. "Access medical databases."

"Databases not found."

Tingling grew to pain! Close contact to an explosion was unheard of in the five years of the Eicken Project's existence. Medical databases were requested very infrequently.

Regen will save me, will it? Pain took my breath. Will I set off the EDs? Sight faded.

“We need a healer! Is there one in the Director’s Office?”

“A healer? No, we do not employ them except in Eicken Hospital. You must take an injured person there—”

“I will not take my colleague in that place!” Derees slashed the holo off!

“My trade bal—is not—enough—” My voice whispered.

Vonn held onto me. “Derees, try to contact Kleideu for a healer! I have trade, Adia. We must—” He startled, as my arms dropped.

Footsteps. Sudden impact. I stared down at medium-blue boots. Felt warmth, at my wrists. With it, strength. Twin fingers held my wrists and swelling vanished from my hands. I reached for them as my eyes found his.

Golden eyes opened impossibly wide. That round face smiled at me. “Does my healing help you?”

Calm penetrated me. Heard the singing, in my mind. Pragate became ill after he introduced the Zheien. That singing I heard as he healed him.

"What did you do?" Derees gasped. Touched my fingers. My red skin showed no sign of injury. Strength returned to my wilting body. Redness left, and with it, pain.

"Thank you." What to say? Heat crept into my face! Oh, my heart pounded even more! Surely an ED will alarm!

Ryonne~ moved a hand to my shoulder. Warmth. I sat upright in the chair. "Is Zheien healing."

Vonn smiled and let go of my shoulders. Looked at our visitor.

His orange skin paled as calm slowed my breathing more. "Are you well?"

"Other than losing two weeks of work, yes, I am well." I smiled, and so did he. Still expected the DF to come. Worked harder to control my breathing. Sleep pulled at my eyelids. Warmth from his hand stopped. The touch of his twin fingers, the nearness of him—does it show, how he affects me?

The two security men watched us. One came to Ryonne~. The other walked to Vonn. Am I in trouble?

"Ambassador, now that we had our little excitement, let us find the ANW lab." One of the two men in black Eicken Security uniform pulled at his arm.

The other asked Vonn questions about what happened. Vonn brought up a holo of Safety's Department Leader, Leherr Firs. Many scientists gathered around to discuss it! My father had silver eyebrows all the way up, but relaxed as he saw me. Dreaded what he would say to me. I took several breaths.

"But, excuse me, this is the ANW lab.” Citsa pointed at my charred and melted workspace. She still had that scowl, mouth curled high above her teeth. If expressions could set off an ED, that was one.

Maintenance progs ran to clean and reform it. Who ran those? I heard no spoken—

“At least, there is what is left of it. Adia Rayaline, here, is the only ANW researcher." Her tone suggested I was the only scientist who would risk such insanity.

I looked down. She stomped off to her station, across the room. Ossy followed her.

The security man looked uncomfortable as the other glared at him. The second one bowed to the Otherworlder in the blue onepiece. "We will leave you here, Ambassador. If you need anything, have them call for us. The rest of you, continue your work. All is secure here." Vonn smiled as that one waved down his holos. I breathed. How can he smile? Expected his anger. Blinked to hide quick tears.

"Thank you, Minister Mar, Minister Braun." Ryonne~ bowed but kept his large eyes on them. Dark curls waved in the breeze the aircirc created. As they left, he turned to us. "I am sorry not to explain my purpose for intruding."

"I am certainly glad you chose that particular time to 'intrude', sir." Spoke too fast, trying not to smile. Ossy and Citsa watch me. EDs also!

"I am happy to be here. Madame Rayaline, you published much on your ANW research in the holographic journals. Our Science Council followed her for two years, because I also research the fuel shortage. May I join your team for a few weeks, if your Lead Scientist agrees?"