"She's fading, isn't she?" Aeron said out of nowhere.
Every Tuann in the room stiffened before eyeing the general with hostility.
"What is he talking about?" Raider's gaze moved from Wren to Graydon and finally to Finn. "Someone explain to the poor, dumb human in the room."
Aeron's lips quirked in a humorless smile. "It's a sign of extreme grief."
Graydon raised his head at the vague note of knowing in Aeron's voice. As if the general had experience with this phenomenon.
"Why would she be grieving? There's no reason for that. Everyone is still alive," Raider said with an edge in his voice, looking like he'd explode if anyone tried to correct him.
"Jin isn't elsewhere on the ship, is he?" Aeron asked, acting like he hadn't heard. "The Tsavitee have him."
Raider pointed at him. "Shut your mouth. You don't know what you're talking about."
"She's connected to the soul bound in some way. That's why he's different from the rest. She's sustaining him and without him here to complete the bond, she's dying."
There was a crack. Aeron slumped to the floor unconscious as Raider stared in confusion.
"Thank you," Graydon told Finn.
The oshota gave him a firm nod. "He talked too much."
"He's wrong though, right?" Raider pressed. "Elena and Jin aren't dead. There's no reason for Kira to fade or whatever."
The silence that answered filled Raider's face with desperation.
"They're all fine, right?" he asked again, emotion thickening his voice.
Wren moved to comfort Raider. "I'm sure they are."
"Then why?" Raider asked, his gaze following Graydon as he stalked to the door.
His coli needed rest in a place where she could heal. Not to stand around while her secrets were spilled without her consent.
"Her body is acting like they are," Wren said as Graydon stepped into the corridor.
Raider glared at the seon'yer he shared with Kira. "What is that supposed to mean?"
"That if we don't find Elena and Jin before too long, they won't be the only ones we lose."
Six
Elena - Tsavitee Planet
Elena slunk along the edges of the cavernous room that had been her home for the last week, careful to avoid the pockets of Tsavitee clustered in the middle of the room. Meal times were always a feeding frenzy around here. The most dangerous part of the day as the horde competed for their share.
To survive, Elena had been forced to scurry around like a mouse.
Not that there was anything wrong with scurrying. She was a champion scurrier. Just ask Tommy, her nemesis, occasional friend, and fellow ward of Aunt Selene.
It was just that she was tired, cold, and hungry.
The last week had been a lesson in exhaustion. Her belly had almost forgotten what it was like to feel full. She'd barely gotten more than a few minutes of sleep at a time for fear of what would happen if a Tsavitee happened on her in a moment of inattention.
She'd already killed five of them since arriving. A skyling, two cannon fodder, a class one drudge and a class two war drone.
After that last one, the rest of the horde had left her mostly alone.
