Page 23 of Restoring the Ngozii

“The caves have become cramped over the years, the flowers more abundant each year. That particular one comes with a fruit that makes my favorite juice.” She motions to a large silver fruit that looks much like an orange from Earth. I pluck it from the vine and put it in the bag to test when I get back to the lab.

“What should we do?” The concern in her gaze nearly breaks my heart, but I don’t have an answer just yet. There are several things rattling around my brain, and I’d like to test my theories before making decisions.

“To be honest, I’m not sure yet. With this flower being poisonous but its fruit being safe to eat, I have to wonder if there’s a connection here. I need to run some tests, get some answers, work on an antidote to heal your sick, and we’ll go from there. One step at a time.”

She nods in understanding as she watches Kari and I closely before we back away from the flowers. Kari and I uncover our faces, and I swiftly turn for the door, asking the priestess to guide me back. Once again, we walk in silence through the caves until I reach the portal. I take one last glance at Kari as she smiles at me before stepping through to the lab.

I quickly walk across the room and begin to empty my bag on the counter. Vahru rips off his gown and gloves as he heads for me, his hair beginning to fall from the loose bun he’d thrown it in. “What did you find?”

“I found the flower, got samples of the pollen, and found out that this flower is also fruiting, which the priestess says makes a great juice. I need to run some tests to figure out if this juice is an antidote for this pollen because if it is, they may be preventing their own deaths unknowingly.”

Vahru huffs in surprise before grabbing a knife to cut open the fruit. We then squeeze some juice onto the pollen and quickly stick it under the microscope. The pollen begins to fizzle away, and we laugh, shocked by how easy this seems to have turned out. I turn around and note Vyleera standing over the body, which is now sewn up and redressed, and I have to wonder if this is going to be enough to fix this.

Ridding the body of the pollen doesn’t fix the damage it left behind, we still need to find a way to boost their immune systems and heal.

“Vahru, are there plants or teas that you can make with regenerative properties? This juice is the key to ridding the body of the pollen, but we still have to fix the damage, and this damage, at least in my human experience, isn’t something they will heal from on their own without surgeries or life support. They need a miracle.”

He thinks for a long moment and then grabs a paper and pen, making a list of ingredients. “Get Tonya on the comm, we’ll see if she and Atsatsa can gather these ingredients, maybe she’ll know of something.”

“I’ll look in the databases and see if I can’t find anything we can get our hands on,” Vyleera pipes up as she removes her autopsy garb and rushes to the computer, her tail swishing gently along the floor as she sits.

Pulling my comm from my pocket, I dial Tonya’s number, and she answers swiftly. Her song comes through the device, making Vyleera whirl around and gasp at the holo image of Tonya before me. Seconds later, my translator catches up. “Hi, Jeff! What can I do for you?”

“Hey, Tonya, we need your help. Is Atsatsa there with you?”

She lifts her tentacle, the image zooming out enough for me to see Atsatsa sitting on a log near the lake, wrapped in seaweed and shells like a princess. “Melodia and some of the younglings have been giving him a makeover. Isn’t he beautiful!?”

I can’t help but chuckle, shaking my head before I take a breath. “Can you guys gather some ingredients for us? We’ve figured out what it is that’s making the Ngozii sick, but we need some things to whip up an antidotal tea. It’ll be faster if you have them ready when we make it back to the village.”

“Of course, Lieutenant, what do you need?” Atsatsa stands, brushing off some of the seaweed as the younglings moan around his feet. He leaves the shell necklace on, though, and I grin.

“I’ll text you the list when Vahru has it finished. Tonya, do you know of anything with regenerative properties? These people are severely injured and need a miracle to heal from these wounds. Got any tricks to help us?”

“I know of just the thing. You and Vahru hurry back, we’ll have crates waiting for you in the center of the village.” She waves a tentacle at me before ending the call.

Vahru shoves the list my way, and I quickly type it up to send the message to Tonya. Once that’s done, we gather our things and prepare to head for his vehicle, agreeing that will be the best way to handle this while they gather what we need. Vyleera says she’ll finish getting our victim cleaned up and ready for his ceremony while she gathers all we’ll need to make the antidotes, and we rush out of the building.

Chapter 15

Vahru

Mylargestridescarryme quickly from the building and into the blinding sun. Jeff’s steps are more rushed to keep up with my pace as I head across the lot to my vehicle, quickly climbing in and pulling my comm from my pocket. My chest aches, a hollow feeling in the middle at the distance between Kari and I. A yearning like nothing ever before to snuggle her close and never let her go again hits me hard. This is not going to happen again if I can help it.

Dialing her comm, I watch in silence until her face pops up before me as Jeff settles into the seat beside me. “It’s so good to see your face, Princess.” I sigh the words, a smile pulling at my lips at the mere sight of her. She’s my literal dream.

Her smile is beaming as she replies. “It’s good to see you, too. What can I help you with?” I notice the tips of her fingers resting on the upper part of her sternum, a nod to the fact that she could feel through our bond that I’m calling for a reason, not a simple check-in.

“That fruit that Jeff collected with the pollen, we need more, a lot more.” My words freeze as I notice Tavionna lean in close to Kari, who doesn’t even move or seem phased by the intrusion to our conversation. The look on Tavionna’s face is so similar to one my father makes when he’s curious about something but holding his tongue, and I have to shake myself, taken aback by the sight and recognition.

The last thing I want to do is see Tavionna as more than the attempted murderer of my father. I don’t want to accept her as my family, but it’s hard not to when you can clearly see the similarities. This is a thought train for another time when I can properly sort through my decisions and choices.

“May I ask why? What have you found out?” Tavionna’s voice is gentle, polite, and it irritates me. As if being sweet to me after what she’s done will convince me to let go of my anger. Not to mention, the way she speaks, it’s exactly like Father does when he wants information but doesn’t want to press. Yet another similarity despite the vast distance, and the confusion within me melds into my rage. My eyes focus on Kari, and the encouraging smile on her lips, coupled with the trickle of it across our bond, has me gritting my teeth to keep my growl at bay.

Jeff leans over, putting his face into view as he waves at Kari. I hold my arm further out so he can be seen better as he explains for me. “We discovered that the fruit, despite being from the same plant, is a natural antidote, it fights that pollen, so we’re going to need a bunch to make an antidotal tea for the sick. Get us as much as you can spare, please.”

Tavionna’s eyes widen as she pulls back, Kari turning to look at her as she gasps. “I drink the juice of that fruit every night, at least, as it’s my favorite.”

Jeff nods at her words. “That’s probably why you’re not getting sick. It’s fighting off the pollen before it can do any damage to the tissues. You’re lucky. The ones getting sick must not drink much of that juice or eat the fruit.”

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