Page 18 of Alien Healer's Touch

"Thank you." Kavan's voice dropped lower, sending an unexpected shiver down my spine despite the danger we'd just faced.

I stepped back, suddenly aware of our proximity and the intensity of what we'd just survived together. "We should find a safe place to rest. You need time to let that wound heal properly."

He nodded, his golden eyes lingering on mine. "There is a clearing ahead where we can make camp for the night. The medicinal plants there will help strengthen the healing process."

"Can you travel?" I asked, my medical concern evident.

"The treatment you've provided has already accelerated healing," he said, rising with careful but deliberate movements. "Your methods complemented by my lifelines have accomplished what neither could achieve alone."

We gathered our supplies, leaving behind the site of our narrow escape. Kavan moved with determination despite his injury, leading us deeper into the forest. The light gradually softened as evening approached, casting long shadows through the trees.

The clearing, when we reached it, offered protection - ringed by ancient trees with dense canopies that would shield us from the elements. Kavan carefully arranged stones for a small fire pit while I unpacked our medical supplies, checking his wound once more before we settled for the night.

"I will meditate while you rest," he said, settling cross-legged on the forest floor. "Nyxari healing traditions include focusing energy toward injured areas."

I nodded, arranging my pack as a makeshift pillow. "Wake me in a few hours. We should change your bandage before morning."

The last thing I saw before closing my eyes was Kavan's imposing form, perfectly still in meditation, his lifelines glowing softly in the gathering darkness.

As sleep began to claim me, I couldn't help but wonder what other abilities—both his and mine—remained undiscovered between us, waiting just beneath the surface like the deadly predators we'd narrowly escaped.

KAVEN

Isensed the vibration before my fingers registered it. One moment I was deep in meditation, the next fully alert as the soil whispered its warning through my palms. Every Nyxari born on Arenix recognizes this message in their bones—the first breath of the coming storm.

"We need to move," I told Selene, already on my feet gathering our supplies. "The first major tremor of the season is building."

She looked up, startled by my transformation from peaceful healer to urgent motion. "How can you tell?"

"Trust me." I tossed her pack toward her while scanning the horizon. "The earth speaks if you listen. This is the prelude. We have moments at most."

We had just secured the last medicinal herbs when the next vibration rippled through the ground—no longer a suggestion but a declaration. Selene stumbled against me, surprise flashing across her face.

"This direction," I pointed, calculating our safest path. "Stay close."

We barely cleared our campsite when Arenix answered with fury. The earth dropped several feet beneath us without warning. The sound split the air—not merely ground breaking, but a world fracturing.

I caught Selene's arm as she pitched forward, pulling her against me. Trees swayed dangerously, their roots fighting for purchase in the shifting soil. An ancient trunk surrendered with a tortured groan, crashing down mere paces away. Jagged fissures opened across what had been level ground moments before.

My reflexes took command. I swept Selene against my chest, my tail stabilizing our balance as I leapt across a widening split in the earth. Her arms locked around my neck, her breath quick against my skin.

"Hold tight," I ordered, searching for stable ground.

The tremor intensified beyond the minor shakes that had occurred since the humans' arrival. The vibrations grew until maintaining footing became nearly impossible. I braced us against a stone outcropping, curling protectively around Selene's smaller form. Through our contact, I felt her pulse racing alongside the quaking earth.

When the violence subsided, we emerged to find the forest transformed. New ravines cut through once-familiar terrain. Steam vented from freshly opened thermal pockets, carrying the mineral scent that preceded the full storms. Along the distant horizon, dark clouds gathered—the true harbinger of what approached.

"Ancestors," I murmured, surveying the changed landscape.

"How often does this happen?" Selene asked, still pressed against me.

I released her reluctantly, noting how the place where my back had been injured now held only slight tenderness. Her treatment had worked beyond expectations—the integration of her human surgical techniques with my lifelines created healing neither of our traditions could achieve alone.

"The season builds," I explained, checking our supplies for damage. "This is merely the first warning. The true storms bring acid rains and wake the deep predators from hibernation."

Selene brushed dirt from her clothing. "I've experienced tremors since landing, but nothing like this."

"Those were echoes. This is the voice." I pointed toward the sky. "And that is the promise of worse to come."

---