Page 58 of Alien Healer's Touch

A tremor shook the ridge, nearly dislodging us. As the ground settled, I noticed my lifelines glowing with unusual intensity, pulsing in rhythm with the blue shimmer of the vexlin scales below.

"Your markings," I said, nodding toward Selene's wrists where her silver patterns pulsated similarly.

She examined her hands. "They're responding to something. Like an interference pattern."

The vexlin below scurried in agitated circles, suddenly confused. Several fought amongst themselves, while others dug frantically at the ground.

"Something else approaches," I warned, sensing vibrations through the stone.

The earth erupted as burrowing creatures broke through the surface—mita tunnelers, normally solitary animals that excavated complex underground homes. Each was roughly hand-sized, with powerful front claws and a soil-pushing snout.

These mita moved in perfect synchronicity, hundreds pouring from holes in a coordinated swarm. Their fur, usually soft brown, bristled with static electricity, tiny blue sparks jumping between them.

"This defies nature," I said. "Mita attack each other on sight."

The swarm flowed across the ground, engulfing several vexlin. The lizard-creatures fought back viciously but were quickly overwhelmed.

"We really need to move," I urged. "If we reach that outcropping, we might find a defensible position."

Selene nodded, and we hurried along the narrow ridgeline. Behind us, the mita swarm changed course to pursue.

"They're herding us," Selene called.

She was right. The vexlin had repositioned to block our path forward, while the mita drove us from behind. Instead of fighting each other, the two species appeared to be cooperating.

We reached the outcropping—a jutting formation overhanging a steep drop. The mita flowed around the base while vexlin climbed the sides, trapping us.

"There," Selene pointed to a narrow crevice in the rock face. "Can we fit through?"

I assessed quickly. "You first. I'll cover our retreat."

As Selene squeezed into the crevice, I faced the approaching creatures. My lifelines blazed, golden light pulsing beneath my emerald skin. The vexlin nearest me hesitated, their blue glow flickering erratically.

I pressed forward, drawing my knife and channeling energy through my markings—not for healing now, but outward. The golden light intensified, spreading from my lifelines across my entire form.

The effect was immediate. The vexlin scattered, their coordination dissolving. Below, the mita swarm dispersed, individual animals burrowing back into the earth or fleeing across open ground.

"Kavan!" Selene called from inside. "There's a path through here. And my markings—they're doing something strange."

I backed toward the opening, maintaining the energy projection that disrupted the creatures. Inside the narrow passage, I saw Selene's silver markings emitting cool light that revealed a path through darkness.

We pushed through the tight space, emerging on the ridge's other side into a sheltered gully protected from the landscape changes.

"What just happened?" Selene asked, examining her still-glowing markings.

I touched my own lifelines, now returned to normal. "The creatures behaved as if controlled. And our markings..."

"Interfered with that control," she finished. "Like competing frequencies."

A small tremor rippled through the ground. "The seismic activity must be affecting their neurological systems."

"My thoughts exactly," Selene agreed. "Earth ecology studies describe similar phenomena during electromagnetic disturbances. The animals' brains become receivers for abnormal signals."

"The ancient facility connected to Arenix's environmental systems," I said. "Perhaps damage to those systems created energy disruptions affecting wildlife."

"And our markings respond to those same energies differently."

We continued through the gully, alert for further abnormal behavior. The route curved toward the eastern border of Nyxari territory.

---