Tye

Light soars out from the centre of the ship. It's almost blinding as it sears upward and slams into the clouds of murk. It scatters across the sky.

Around me, Shadows, Stalkers, and Faithful freeze in place, looking up. An odd mist starts sprinkling over us.

Rain? I wonder. We've never experienced it, not in my lifetime, not even in the City of Light. But this mist feels almost nothing like the description in the records of thrashing winds, heavy droplets, flooding plains. Instead, it blankets the land in a soft dew. It streaks trails of murk down the faces of the Narians around me.

The roar of an engine draws my attention away from the sky. A zip glider zooms out from the bay of the ship. Within, I catch just the glimpse of a cowled face – a Shadow? His passenger is a face no Narian could forget, Lord Oliver. I level the plasma pulser in my hand at them but they zip away so fast that they're out of range by the time I pull the trigger. The blast of plasma slams harmlessly into the dirt of the crater as the zip glider crests the rim, heading for the city.

Beyond them, a sparkle of light shimmers brighter than anything I've ever known before. It stabs my eyes. I raise a hand to shield my gaze as I watch half with horror, half with wonder as, for the first time in two hundred narcycles, twin suns rise over the horizon.

I swallow, awed, and fall to my knees as I watch in wonder. "She did it," I whisper. I close my eyes and feel the heat of the solars on my face. Around me, Narians roar with joy. I glance around with a grin. Stalkers, Shadows, and Faithful all embrace each other. They stand united, one people of Nar, no longer divided by the walls of the city.

Blake's hand slaps against my back. "She did it," he cries, an echo of my own words.

I nod, then glance at the Elixr. "Yeah, but where is she?"

Tannan, Lyris, and Jenin stand beside me. "Let's go find out," Lyris says. We turn away from the sunrise and head for the ship.

***

Wish

"Why won't she wake up, Tye?"

I hate the way my voice breaks. I'm not some little kid who can't let go. When I saw her collapse beneath Oliver, I thought she was dead. I'd breathed a sigh of relief to feel her skin burning hot. My relief was short because too hot was a bad sign too, but at least she wasn't dead. The dark, betraying part of my mind adds a soft, "yet" to my thoughts. My heart aches.

"They said she'd be okay." I turn to Jenin. "You said she'd wake up. Why won't she wake up?" I glare at her and at Blake who leans on the wall behind her. I wonder if Jenin had lied just to make me feel better.

The soft lights of the med lab blink in muted tones. They still haven't brought Elixr back online but Jenin seems to know her way around the consoles. The diagnostic bay hums and soft tubes go into and out of Niah's body.

Jenin places her hand on my shoulder. "She will wake up, Wish. Have faith. Your sister is very sick. The shock of the plasma blast to her shoulder, the sear at her hip, even her series of bruises from the nine-voids she's been through these last few circuits are taking a toll. It's good that her body is resting; it's healing."

"But she'll get better, right?"

Jenin nods. She glances at a console beside her as the sound it makes changes slightly. Then she turns back to me with a smile. "She'll be just fine. Look." She steps up to Niah's side.

I feel Niah's fingers tighten around mine. My breath catches and I lean close. "Niah?"

Her eyelids flicker, then flutter open. She swallows and runs the tip of her tongue over her lips as if they're dry. Jenin reaches for a bottle of spirit water as Niah tries to sit up.

Tye steps close beside her. He rests a hand at her back. She turns her gaze on him. It lingers there. I fight back the hint of jealousy I feel at the way she looks at him.

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Niah takes a sip of water, then turns back to me. She squeezes my hand again. "I'm okay, Wish." She glances around. "Where am– What happened?"

Tye smiles. "Hey, there," he says, gazing down on her. "You're in the medical lab of the Elixr. You're safe. You did it."

"And Oliver?" The doors to the med lab open as Niah speaks.

"Don't you worry about that," Lyris says, coming into the room.

Tannan follows behind her. Then, the soft hum of hover jets precedes Hart as he enters behind them both. I'm surprised by the dance of joy I feel at the sight of the droid.

"I say, perhaps we should have him jettisoned into deep space. I found his company most unpleasant." The twin blue orbs of Hart's eyes seem to dance, then blink.

Lyris turns and shakes her head. "The Faithful will see to him."

"If the Shadows don't get him first," Blake mutters.

Lyris ignores him. "You did something wonderful for all of Nar, Niah. It's a miracle." Her voice breaks and she glances up through the sheen of tears in her eyes.

Lyris and Tye both peer through the large windows of the med lab. They gaze out at the bright sunshine. It casts light over the rolling hills and valleys. The Shadowlands were no more. The landscape is still barren but somehow, in the light and the sheen of moisture, there is hope that life will bloom there again soon.

***

Niah

Somehow, the light breaking over the Shadowlands is even more beautiful than the artificial suns in the City of Light. Almost as beautiful as watching the pulse of solars in the darkness of space. Almost.

Lyris turns back to me. "You have no idea what this means to us, to all the people of Nar, Niah. I don't know how we can ever thank you."

"But what happened to Lord Oliver?"

Blake shakes his head. "One of his baull-scat loyalists got him out of here in a zip glider."

Tye grimaces. "I can't believe I let him escape."

I turn to him. "He just walked away?"

Wish shakes her head. "He didn't. It was crazy there for a bit. I shoved him off you. He was hurt bad. I mean he might not even live because the plasma got him right in the chest. But I turned my back to check if you were okay and one of the Shadows pulled him out of there."

"A Shadow?"

Tye shrugs. "I saw him too, but I don't know who it was."

"Why would a Shadow help Lord Oliver?"

Blake grimaces. "Trust me, we'll be asking exactly that when we catch up to them."

Lyris steps forward. She places a hand on my shoulder. "Don't you worry about any of this, Niah. Our people will find them. Lord Oliver has no power now. The Faithful are already rising in the City. There's nowhere he can go."

I nod, hoping what she says is true. I squash the lingering doubt in the pit of my stomach. Oliver's smart. He's resourceful. We shouldn't let our guard down. I swallow and close my eyes against the pounding in my head.

I feel Wish lean close. Her fingers tighten around mine. "You're okay, Niah. Right?"

I glance up at her and squeeze her hand. I hope the touch conveys strength but worry she can feel my weakness. "I'll be fine, Wish. Don't worry."

"But your sickness…" Wish trails off and I wonder what she'd been about to say.

"Maybe…" I glance at Lyris, certain she can see the hope in my gaze.

She shakes her head and scans the console beside her again. A deep frown mars her forehead, making her appear older. She turns back to me. "I'll be honest, Niah. Your condition won't improve. The damage to your DNA is extensive. There's nothing we can do for you here. Even Elixr's medical technology does not have the means to cure you."

I feel the tension in Tye's muscles as he stands behind me. "What can we do then?"

There's a long pause. I bite my lip and try not to let the wave of hopelessness I feel crush over me. Then Blake steps forward.

"Actually," he says. All four of our gazes turn to him and he clears his throat.

"What is it, Blake?" Tye asks.

"Well, it's just a rumour, but you know what those are like. We've had two hundred narcycles to turn fact into fiction. All of our legends might have truth buried within them."

"Just say it would you?" I can hear the frustration in Tye's voice.

Lyris places a hand on Blake's arm. "Do you know something that might help Niah?"

"It's in the Starscapes."

"Really?" Lyris asks, there's a soft wonder in her voice. "You've read the Starscapes?" I wonder what they are.

"Well, before my family were banished, my parents guarded Lord Oliver's library. I was little, but I remember."

I lean forward. "What do you remember?"

"There's a distant planet, I don't remember what it's called, but Nar used to trade with them for medical supplies. They were a first stop for Captain Bellamy's mission but I guess they didn't have a cure for the planet. Still, the Starscape Records indicate that they had a fix for pretty much every other ailment known to Nar at the time. If there's anything that can heal your illness, it will be there."

Wish practically bounces with excitement. "If it was Captain Bellamy's first stop, then it'll be recorded in our logs here."

Hope blooms within me, then fades as I remember the state of the ship. "But Elixr, she's grounded."

Lyris smiles. "We can fix her. There's nothing in Nar I can put a wrench to that I can't fix."

Wish grabs my hand. "Me too!" she says, "You do the codes, Niah, but I've got the metal. We can do this! We have to!"

I swallow, smile, and nod.

As the others seem eager to get started right away, I turn to face the sunshine streaming in through the windows. In the warm light from solars that seem to dance around each other in the sky, I let myself hope.

Tye tucks himself close beside me. I feel the soft brush of his breath on the top of my head. I glance up at him as he gazes down on me.

"We'll find a way to save you, Niah," he whispers. "I'll do whatever it takes."

For now, at least, I let myself believe it's possible. But deep in my chest, where breathlessness drags on my lungs and I feel the pull of a sleep that might grip me forever, I worry that even if a cure exists, we might be too late.