It wasn't over yet, but it was certainly time for celebration.
"How is Navuh holding up?" Kian asked, not sure about the answer he wanted to hear. The male was their mortal enemy, but he was also Areana's mate, and she had pleaded for asylum for him.
"Still critical." Yamanu sounded tired. "Julian is doing what he can for him, but he's limited to the equipment he has in the medical bay. It's mostly up to Navuh's body to repair the damage. In the meantime, Julian is keeping him sedated, which is good for Navuh's healing and for the safety of everyone around him." Yamanu chuckled. "I can't help but feel like we've brought a live grenade on board the sub, and it is about to explode at anymoment. I don't know about you, but I'm not a fan of suicidal empathy."
"I'm not a fan either," Kian said. "And I know what you mean about Navuh. But my mother made a promise to her sister that we would do everything we could to save him and then grant him asylum."
"What?"
"Imprisoned, of course. I'm not about to allow Navuh into the village. He can rot in a cell in the dungeon."
Yamanu's released breath was audible. "I would prefer a sarcophagus in the crypt as his accommodations, but a retrofitted cell would do. If he survives, that is. Julian has very little to work with here, and I bet that the medical facilities in Safe Harbor are not much better. I don't think they even have a physician aside from those working on the exoskeletons, and I doubt any of them have taken care of patients in years."
Kian exchanged a look with Onegus. That was an oversight that needed immediate attention. They were training humans on the island, and humans needed medical care, from simple maladies to emergency surgeries.
The nonverbal exchange was acknowledged by Onegus's slight nod, and then he was typing on his laptop.
"The Safe Harbor medical bay has the basics," Onegus said. "But that's not what Navuh needs."
"We'll cross that bridge when we come to it," Kian said, though privately he agreed with Yamanu.
It would be better for everyone if Navuh didn't survive the journey. A dead enemy was a non-issue. A living enemy who happened to be family was a very big issue.
"Has Safe Harbor surveillance picked up any activity on the island?" Yamanu asked.
Kian glanced at the bank of monitors displaying satellite feeds. "Nothing so far. It's dawn there now, though. They'll discover their leader is missing soon enough."
"And then all hell breaks loose," Yamanu said with grim satisfaction. "Though I have to credit my thrall for keeping everyone in the harem from having the urge to investigate anything. And my lucky socks, of course."
Kian shook his head.
Everyone knew about Yamanu's lucky socks because he credited them with every successful mission.
"I'm dying to take them off," Yamanu continued. "They're soaking wet, and my feet are pruning, but I'm not risking it until we're clear of danger. They'll come off when we reach Safe Harbor, go through a proper wash and dry cycle, and then go right back on my feet until everyone's safely in the village."
Onegus snorted. "You're joking."
"I never joke about my lucky socks," Yamanu said with complete seriousness. "These babies have seen me through countless operations without a single casualty."
Kian caught Wonder's eye roll, but no one said anything. Superstition was harmless enough, and if it gave Yamanu a measure of confidence and comfort before missions, there was no harm in that.
"Can I talk to Tula?" Wonder asked.
"Not yet," Yamanu said. "She needs time to catch her breath and rest after this grueling journey. The poor girl is exhausted."
Kian stopped himself from reminding Yamanu that Tula was much older than him and that calling her a girl was not appropriate. But everyone thought of her as Wonder's little sister, and everyone also thought of Wonder as being twenty-one. It was confusing.
Disappointment flickered across Wonder's face, but she nodded. "Can you please tell her to call me as soon as she's up to it?"
"I will," Yamanu promised. "Right now, she's changing out of the wet clothes and taking a submarine shower, and then she will probably collapse on one of the cots. My bet is that she will sleep all the way to Safe Harbor, which is exactly what the doctor ordered."
Once the call ended, Kian turned to Onegus. "The cell apartment in the keep is not safe enough to contain Navuh. It needs additional security measures. I'm thinking a double-door entry system with room between them, kind of like the decompression chamber on the submarine. That way, Areana can come and go without us having to restrain Navuh each time."
Onegus nodded. "I'll get William and his genius team working on it. The clinic will need extra security measures as well. For the entry, I'm thinking of something similar to what you described for the apartment cell, and also a reinforced door for the patient room he will be staying in.
"The cell apartment is already small," Annani said. "A double-door system will make it even smaller."
Kian lifted a brow. "And the problem is?"
