Page 47 of Alien Healer's Touch

I squinted, focusing my new vision. Shapes moved along the chamber edges - pale, elongated bodies slithering across stone. As my perception sharpened, details emerged - slick, almost translucent skin, no discernible eyes, and mouths filled with needle-like teeth.

"Cave lurkers," Kavan murmured. "Blind hunters that sense vibration. Highly territorial."

My medical mind analyzed. "No eyes, so they developed alternative sensory systems. Lateral line organs like Earth fish, perhaps."

"Step exactly where I step," Kavan instructed. "Minimal pressure. Slow movement." He demonstrated, placing his foot with deliberate care, then transferring weight gradually. I mimicked his movements, hyperaware of every muscle. The creatures ahead continued their restless patrol.

That's when I noticed it. "They're avoiding something."

Kavan paused. "Explain."

"Look at their movement." I pointed to the nearest lurker. "They all curve around those outcroppings." Crystalline formations jutted from the wall at irregular intervals - pale blue deposits that showed faintly. None of the creatures ventured within a meter of the crystals.

"Minerals they find repulsive? Or harmful to them?" Kavan studied the pattern.

"We can use them as waypoints." I analyzed the chamber. "A path connecting those deposits would keep us furthest from their hunting grounds."

Kavan nodded. "Sharp observation."

We plotted our course, moving from crystal formation to crystal formation with painstaking precision. Each step demanded total concentration - too much pressure might send vibrations through stone.

We'd almost reached the chamber's far side when my foot slipped on a slick patch. My leg shot forward, scraping against stone with a faint but distinct sound.

The effect was immediate. Every lurker in the chamber froze, then oriented toward us, mouths gaping.

"Run," Kavan abandoned stealth for speed. The creatures moved with terrifying quickness, slithering across rock and ceiling. Three lunged from above while two more cut off our exit path.

Kavan stepped in front of me, his body shifting subtly - shoulders widening, spine straightening. The warrior stance emerged fully. His tail whipped through air, connecting with the first lurker mid-lunge. The impact sent it flying against the cavern wall. Another creature latched onto his arm, needle teeth sinking into emerald skin. Without hesitation, Kavan grabbed it behind the head, squeezing until something cracked. Viscous blue fluid spurted from the creature's mouth as he tore it off and flung it away.

I grabbed a crystal formation, breaking off a jagged shard. When a lurker launched itself at me, I drove the crystal into its body. It convulsed upon contact, then went limp.

"The crystals are toxic to them," I called out.

Kavan understood immediately. He broke off another shard, using it to slice through the next attacker. The remaining lurkers retreated, slithering into crevices.

I knelt beside one of the fallen creatures, medical curiosity overcoming revulsion. The blue fluid leaking from its wounds smelled familiar—acrid yet medicinal. "Kavan, this composition... it's structurally similar to the Luraxi Fever treatment." He crouched beside me, examining it briefly. "Potential anticoagulant properties as well."

"I need a sample," I said, quickly retrieving a container from my medical kit. While I collected the fluid, Kavan stood guard. "Nature provides what healers require, even in darkness," he observed quietly. I secured the container. "Let's hope Hammond never finds out."

A distant rumble interrupted our contemplation - deep and ominous, vibrating through the stone beneath us.

"Seismic activity," Kavan warned. "Increasing."

The rumble grew to a roar. Small stones skittered across the cavern floor as the entire passage shook. Cracks appeared in the ceiling.

"Move!" Kavan grabbed my arm, pulling me toward the exit passage as a section of ceiling collapsed behind us. The underground river surged with sudden force. Water level rose visibly, swallowing the path we'd traveled. The tremors intensified, driving us deeper into the tunnel system as water chased at our heels.

"Higher ground," I gasped as ice-cold water reached our ankles. The temperature indicated deep underground origins, possibly glacial meltwater. The tunnel branched ahead. One path sloped downward - now a rushing waterway. The other angled upward at a steep incline.

"There!" Kavan pointed to the ascending passage. As we climbed, I noticed markings carved into the rock wall - symbols similar to those we'd encountered in the medical facility, but older, more primitive versions.

"Nyxari writings," Kavan traced the symbols with his fingers. "Ancient dialect."

"Can you read them?"

He tilted his head, studying the markings. "Directional indicators. And... warnings? No, guidance. Toward something sacred."

Water surged below us, filling the lower passages entirely. The climbing path narrowed, occasionally branching. At each junction, Kavan examined the wall markings to determine our route. "The symbols grow more elaborate," he observed as we proceeded. "More precisely carved. We approach something significant."

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