I helped the old man sit down. “May I see your healer’s record, my son?”

He trembled, but waved. This poor man had a slave record in Moro! No healer’s record.

“Where did you come from, my son?”

He shook all over. “Pon Ashen.”

Eanne~ stood close. “Molly, Pon Ashen is a mining colony. It has no tech. If he had a healer there, we cannot contact them. We are told it is automated.”

That’s a sure sign of an illegal mine. Nobody is born in an automated mine.

“Did you have a home before Pon Ashen?”

“My mahie came from Pera.”

I looked it up. Pera Zheien Colony in the Sixth.

“Is she here?”

“Na, Master. She died in Moro.”

I used a prog to check for attached records. Her body was sent to Zhea~. A note said Pirad’s Lab. I smiled. He’ll try to revive her. There were five with similar genetics, so a family group.

I hugged the man. “You are good, my son. Rest while I see you. Did you eat today?”

“I ate, Master.”

“Good. You earned this.” I waved for one of the dahsee to float to a plate I waved down by him.

“I did? O, thank you, Master!” He picked it up with two fingers of his three. Gobbled it. Ishah usually use all three. Slaves are often punished for giving their names. His file said Slopfah. That’s an Elshar insult.

I touched his head, very gently, in back. He wept, so I pulled him into my lap. His white robe fell off his leg, and he didn’t have an aandat. I straightened his robe and waved for one for him.

He gasped and tried to grab it. That thing moved fast!

“My son, you did good work for me today. You earned this. Rest.”

More weeping. I looked, and about ten of them looked in the same condition. I waved dahsee to them, too. Dahsee is like Zheien pastries, most species can eat it and it’s nutritious. They all ate fast. I looked at their readings and none of these poor men had aandats, so I waved for them to get ‘em. Their records came up. More names like Rock, Stone, Heilea. And one grouchy Elshar watched.

I looked at him and those Elshar eyes turned black. “Are these your slaves?”

He walked over. “They work for me. They are Elshar. Legal slaves.” He gave a sneer.

“Andrisch, will you look at this man’s trades today?”

He tried to run, but froze in place. Andrisch stood there with a scowl. Young, had light brown curls, but a scowl that could freeze a river. “I will see your trades.”

The man flicked a finger.

Andrisch looked over his trades. “I want to see all!”

Another screen came up. I expected a light blue portal to Elshar Mashai, but this TS Inspector ran a prog that shone colored lights on the man. “Heden. One of his clones.” I shuddered. Half the ship did!

A man in white came out of a room. This wasn’t bright white like healer’s robes but grayish like Elshar homespun. Very plain cloth. He didn’t wear boots, but sandals.

Didn’t say a word. Eanne~ pulled me up and stood apart from me. An opaque containment went between them and all the kids!

You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.

The man ran a vaporizer on the Elshar! I felt sick. His robes flattened. Terminals of all shapes and sizes floated to me! Men came from out of the rooms and fell on their fronts at my feet! Then he vaporized the robes and went back into that room.

Andrisch came to me and I stood up. He bowed. “Queen Molly, I trust you will send all of these slaves to a healer colony and free them?”

“Esta ay! I have 25 of them, and I will send them now. Thank you.” I spoke Elshar, which seemed to shock everyone. And I leaned so my red curls fell left.

He bowed again. Smiled as he came up.

I waved up manifests as fast as I could.

M’Naga came. “Wish you help, Molly?”

“Yes! How fast can we get these men to Alb? Do we have a source for nesfa and tesfa je?”

He startled. “They will not need them, even if we send them in a portal!”

“For travel, no, but these are slaves fresh from mines! They’ll need healers and herbs.”

Pirad came out. “Molly, I can heal them. How do you want me to proceed?”

I felt panicky. There were 142 in all. Over 100 were in chambers on the Elshar Embassy ship, a cargo ship that just arrived today. “Have we got enough healers and healer helpers to sit with each of these people? Can you make the blue herb?”

“Oh, yes! I do not need to make clones. Healers went to each one. I can supply them with these.” Blue pyramids went to each healer’s hand.

I gave my speech about my rules and waved bahef to all of ‘em, because there wasn’t enough dahsee to go around. I laid in on thick. They’re all good. They earned healing and rest. All of ‘em added their signatures to my Rainbow charter. My title is now Molly, Queen Of Rainbow Colonies. That’s better.

Then I went to anyone who didn’t respond. One was a little Elshar boy. His healer was taking care of another slave, weeping. No healer likes to lose a patient.

Pas sat by me. “Molly, this one is dead. Let me run stasis--”

I put my hands on his little head. Cried. He was maybe nine. But white light blazed around his head. I sang that song about butterflies and rainbows. Ran hygiene on him. I kept singing. His head warmed up.

His hands and feet unrolled. Pas startled. I moved his points. Someone moved a Zheien child’s points, so they looked Elshar? I shuddered. His parents were hiding him, and themselves, with their telepathy. Can’t send a surge of energy into a child. I kept it low. Slowly, he took a breath.

I put a soft, white gown and silky socks on him, thick ones to warm him up. They can feel warm without that, but it’s how it feels to them. Gradually, he warmed enough that his eyes opened. Black. That gray skin should be yellow, so I imagined a yellow sun to warm him up. Birds singing. A gelsai to lay beside him.

And one came to him and did! I smiled. Kept singing.

Slowly, his hand touched the gelsai and petted it.

A slave crept closer. Laid on her front. Pas took her into his lap and put the child’s other hand in hers. She held it against her cheek and wept.

As I sang, slowly, the child looked up. “Mea!”

“Bae!” She held his head. Pas helped her get him in her lap without dislodging my fingers.

I checked his points again. He’ll live! I kept singing until he couldn’t take any more, then stopped. He watched us.

Mom snapped her gaze to me and froze.

I petted her long, black hair. In Zheien, I said, “You are safe here. Your bae is safe. Both of you earned rest and good food.” I bit a bahef and held it to his mouth. He bit it, then I let his mother bite it. She still trembled, but I kept them eating until they got a little wheezy. Then I waved up a whole platter and layered some on his chest. He stared at me until I fixed his little collar shut, then he held my hand. Slept.

Pas carried the mother and child, and I followed, because he wouldn’t let go. We took them to a bed with ten Ishah on it, including that old man. He saw them and reached, so we put them in his arms. Then the boy held onto his hand.

All of them had healing and food and their healers smiled. Pas led me out.

Pas hugged me and wept. Then he waved. A weaver brought borders of embroidered Tessite. They were hot pink like Pas'. The weaver sewed these onto a thicker white robe of a softer material than mine. Then Pas gathered his ennead. “Brothers, Sisters, today I name Molly as Master Healer!” He pulled me to my feet and put the robe on me. That hot pink T-shirt I wore when I showed someone my aandat, not knowing this was coming, matched Pas' family color.

I bowed to him. “Thank you for teaching me, Pas!”

He bowed lower, which brought gasps from his ennead! Master Healers don't do that, ever. “Father Of All taught you with skills I ne possess. Today I ask that you teach me, after my rest, Master. Ahstam is here with us, and he also wishes time with you. His ba Ahstam 300 will stay by you and relay your learning.”

I bowed low, even though I wasn't supposed to. “Brother, I am honored to try to teach you and Ahstam, for the good of all Zheiea and the Thirteen. All of us healers shall help one another learn more.”

Pas led me to the red-violet ship, and Ry'nao spoke to all of Adia's Team. “Now, I present to you new Master Healer Molly, Queen of Rainbow Unwell Colonies!” Everyone cheered! I got really emotional and tears dripped.