It wasn’t until hours later, and with a crick in my neck, that I figured out what made the machine tick, and what was malfunctioning. “I think I’ve got it,” I said to Felicia. She’d curled up on a fur and napped for the past hour, wrapped in a section of my tail for warmth. Auby was in the satchel she held to her chest, and it pained me to see her care so tenderly for the currently broken Revenant. Ihadto fix him, for her, for him. I couldn’t stand seeing her sad.
“You do?” she asked, uncurling slowly to blink at me with sleepy eyes. “I knew you could do it,” she added, a smile spreading across her pretty, round face. Lifting her with my tail, I pulled her close and settled her on a coil at my side. Then I began pointing out all the parts I had recognized and the one I’d discovered was failing.
“Last year, a human and her mate came here from Haven and discovered the failing power of Serqethos’ Oracle was because the solar panels had all been covered by sand. I think when we rushed to clear them and fix the situation, this already failing part was suddenly pushed to run back at full speed, and it burned out—thus accelerating the failure of this fishery.” I hadnot yet cleaned the burnt-out circuit, which regulated the flow of water and thus controlled when and if hatches further down the line were opened.
“That doesn’t explain why all of them failed, or is this the only fishery supplying Serqethos?” she asked, very astutely. This was why she had been chosen to test-fly the advanced spaceship with its Faster-Than-Light drive. Because she was smart, clever, and quick in a crisis. She had asked a very good question, and one whose answer I could only speculate about.
“Perhaps because this one is the last in line? Or perhaps because the failed circuit caused this entire device to emit an EM-like pulse, faint but there, that disrupted the others.” I cleaned the circuit very carefully, then began soldering the right connections back into place with my multi-tool. My scales shivered along my spine, and a hint of pride filled me under Felicia’s avid, slightly awed stare.
“You’re just as good as the engineers who built theFuture. I’m impressed,” she said. “Let’s hope this works, Levant. It would be a huge relief to know we’ve managed to restore your people’s food source.” Felicia, like Kaylass, had never once questioned my connection to the Serqethos Clan. They’d talked about them the way I did, like they were my people, my responsibility. They were, but in a way it was nice to hear others acknowledge that. Especially when it seemed natural for an older Shaman to imply it, or for my mate to understand that intuitively. She was mine to care for and protect, but so was Serqethos; so was Serant. Knowing all that, if she asked me right now to fly to Earth with her, I would anyway.
Half an hour later, the circuit was completely restored, and the strange EM signature that had attracted the Burrower turned off. We watched with satisfaction as the machine began a gentle humming and water started flowing. When we retrieved the perimeter alerts, picked up Auby, and left, the overflowing fish nursery was already beginning to empty. “I’ll have to come back soon to make sure it’s functioning as it should and spawning new fish.”
“Yes,” Felicia agreed. “We’ll make sure to do that.”
***
Felicia
The Burrower was gone. It was just… not there when we walked back out of the hole that Auby had cut through the outer wall of the fishery for us. Gone. As in, not there. The sun was dipping low toward the horizon and beamed light straight into the tunnel, so everything was illuminated with a strange violet light. That also made it very obvious that the Burrower had continued digging and curved away into the distance—back toward the surface, perhaps—but it was only darkness in that direction.
“Where did it go?” I asked as both of us stared. Levant and I shared a look, and I knew we were both thinking: back to the North Pole, to my ship. “Do you think it powered back on somehow?” I didn’t have to clarify what I was talking about either. If that machine, that massive Revenant, was built to seek out an EM field–disruptive energy signature, there was only one reason it could have left. It had sensed another source. Eitherthere were more such sources on Serant, or it had gone back to my ship. Either way, we were without a ride back, stranded.
“We’ll head to Serqethos. That way, we can check if the fish truly were released into the lake as well,” Levant said. He took my hand, and the two of us began heading down the passage the Burrower had created, toward the violet light of the evening sun. Excitement tingled through me, rapidly replacing the shock of the missing Revenant. See Serqethos? The Clan Levant talked of it like it was his family, the place he considered his home? I couldn’t wait.
It did not disappoint, either. We came out of the tunnel and then had to cross loose, massive sand dunes to reach the place. It was a true advantage to be able to climb onto Levant’s back and let him do the climbing. His snake-like tail was perfectly suited to cross terrain like this, not sinking into the sand the way my feet did.
That’s how I had all the time in the world to drink in the majestic wonder of the massive lake, the beautiful pink, purple, and gray plants that sprouted all around it, and the ruins of an ancient city. We’d come from that direction, but, surrounded by sand, I hadn’t seen the buildings until we’d gotten to the top of this dune. “Too bad Auby can’t see this right now,” I whispered, full of awe.
Most of all, I was awed by the sight of dozens of colorful tents by the lake, and the gem-bright, glittering beasts that lay slumbering in the sand all around. Dragons. Levant had mentioned them a few times, but I had assumed it was some strange quirk in the translation that had ended up calling local beasts dragons. Well, I guess that was still true, but they did lookexactlythe way dragons were depicted: massive, winged lizards with claws and tails and heads with jaws that could swallow you whole.
As we approached the camp, we were welcomed by a party of Naga. I stared, mouth open, while they greeted us politely and seemed far from surprised to see a human. Levant had told me of Haven several times, but it was clear these Naga knew what a human was too. I wasn’t their first.
Each of these Naga had scales like gold, and though they were horned like Levant, even the one on their chins was black. A female Naga elbowed her way to the front of the throng. “Levant! You’re back!” she shouted with the kind of exuberance that came with confidence and a bright, outgoing personality. She had brawny arms I was honestly a little terrified of, but a smile so bright it invited me to smile back. Despite being confident in my chosen profession, I’d always felt insecure when dating. None of that she’s-so-much-prettier-than-me bullshit struck me this time, though. Levant appeared happy to see her, but then his “yes” came back to me.
“Merish!” Levant responded. “Where is Alshara? And Kaylass? I understand there’s been trouble with the fish in the lake?” The crowd spoke over one another, so loudly that I could make neither heads nor tails of it. When I looked into the many faces, all alien and different, I wasn’t quite sure how thin they were. Levant had sharp cheekbones and a jawline with an even sharper edge, terminating at the ivory horn on his chin. When I compared him to the others, I could see that he had more bulk than them—much more. Even muscular-looking Merish.
It was another Naga who ended the chaos of the crowd. It was a Naga male who arrived from the direction of the tents by the lake. He stood out immediately because it was the first time I’d seen a Naga with scars. It was a bit of a shock, because Levant was unmarked, and nobody in this golden crowd had stood out that way. This male did.
He was older, with gray streaks in his black hair, and scars crisscrossed his chest. He was thinner around the waist, so his ribs stood out; his shoulders were wide but bony. Unlike the Shamans from the council I’d seen through Levant’s communication device, this male had grown old in a way that had marked his life. While the Shamans had been smooth and well-kept, this male was wild and grizzled.
“Arakash,” Levant said, dipping into a respectful bow. “I am glad to see you are still bossing people around.” That made the grizzled Naga male bark out a laugh, and his golden eyes twinkled with mirth. “Allow me to introduce you to all of you my mate, Felicia,” Levant then added, and he pulled me in front of himself and pressed his hands to my shoulders. I could not see it, but I knew all his mating marks had lit up in an impressive display. I knew it because I could see the reflection dance in the many eyes on us, saw it in the awe that filled their faces.
“Congratulations,” Arakash said gruffly, dipping into a bow. Then he took my left hand in his and shook it rapidly up and down. “That is a human greeting, yes?” he asked, and I nodded even though it was wrong, because it was so sweet, and he reminded me a little too much of my dad with that clever sharpness in his eyes.
“I take it we also have you to thank for the return of our fish?” Arakash asked. He released my hand, still smiling, and squeezed Levant’s shoulder before pointing at the lake. I saw it then and gasped with relief. The lake, which was pretty damn huge for being in the middle of a desert, was actually rippling because there were so many fish teeming beneath the surface. Exactly like the fish hatchery had looked beneath the sand, except ten times as big. This wasn’t just fish from the one we’d visited, but many more.
“I believe we have,” Levant agreed modestly. “Would you take us to Alshara so I can consult with her, and of course, introduce my beautiful human mate?” My beautiful human mate… He was talking about me, but it was pretty damn hard to believe he was. It was a good thing I wasn’t required to speak at that moment, but simply to follow our guide through the camp to a tent in the distance. The crowd of Naga that had so eagerly greeted us had turned to the lake after Arakash’s pronouncement, and they were already wading into the water. I’d thought they’d fish with nets or poles, but it appeared they dove straight in, the fish so plentiful they could catch them with their bare hands.
“Tonight we feast!” a female voice roared, sounding like it might have been Merish. The naga cheered, and then a dragon roared, and another, and another, and they lifted into the sky in a dazzling display of color. I stared in awe as they too turned to the water to fish, splashing into the deep and scooping their maws full.
“We did it, Levant,” I whispered, and he squeezed me tight against his chest. It didn’t seem to matter that he forced me to halt in my tracks as he rocked me into a tight hug, his face buried in my hair. I barely even heard the choked, “We did,” hewhispered. We just stood there together, basking in the moment of his Clan’s salvation, knowing we’d done that, thanks to Auby and the Digmaster. We’d solved an otherwise impossible-to-solve problem. It felt good.
Chapter 19
Levant
Alshara had come to the edge of her tent at the sound of the dragons roaring. I saw her watching us as I stood and hugged Felicia. Her face wore a serene expression as always, but I was shocked at the sight of her thinness. Far thinner than anyone else I’d seen so far, and some had lost quite a bit of weight. It appeared Alshara had chosen to lead by example and eat even less than anyone else. That was very typical of her, but also extremely worrisome.
