Adia, Scientist

Dangerous Emotion

Tears fell from my eyes, and the vaporizer ran. It is shame to cry. We are emotional, we use our children's nitrogen.

This is ne so. Ryee shook with anger. They punish you for showing emotion? He thought of the last time an ED took his arm. In the Eicken Library, and one of my research holos played.

He laughed at the sight of me casually throwing a cylinder of ANW over my shoulder, which exploded in blue and green flames. Holos of all my coworkers scattered with panicked looks! Then they looked back at me, standing there neat in my lab coat, and laughed.

The explosion was real, but I put together holos and the faces did not quite match. Ossy and Citsa were quite offended, but Tanda, Derees and Vonn laughed. Why should reports be solemn and boring?

He walked with the sim to Otherworlder Authorities, and it whispered the rules that we all heard when DF came for us. I shuddered. "Strong emotion is bad. You use your children's nitrogen because you lack emotional control—" His arm swelled terribly, even though he did not struggle as it clamped onto him. How is it Areon thinks to control minds? I shall report this. Perhaps I can ask of Areonians and bring their testimony to Cevit Ion. Merely to laugh brings one?

Any emotion. Love. Jealousy. Anger. Excitement. Was the pain terrible?

Ne. After I spoke with Mr. Koch, I went to my ship and put ea fae on it.

Ea fae?

A foam that heals. He showed me spreading much on his poor arm and swelling vanished.

I held a handful of it and put on his face. Horrible swelling, dark red on pallor, and ea fae healed. O, my husband, we are married eleven days. Can you wake and let me see your golden eyes? I sobbed as I put more on him. Bruises, everywhere! Eyes barely open showed jittering orange and huge pupils. Eyelids swollen, but wrinkled after ea fae. The sorrow I felt suggested that he was dying. My body shuddered.

We both gasped. How did this happen?

Another of my nightmares opened. A black place with shiny walls. I leaned over him. Eriganh laughed. I stood hidden in that room. His shiny red boots. Reflections in them showed my terrified blue eyes, my face pale and thin. Ryee struggled to raise his head, to make his shuddering arms push. His face hit the polished black floor and left a streak of orange and deep green sparkles. O, if rage were a weapon, it would be Eriganh on that floor and not my—

That place, it is the fortress Kajarians built on D'gharr!

I hugged him tightly. You can't go there, you can't send your people there, they will all die and your mission will fail! I sobbed, and my body shuddered again. I did not hold the strong, muscular man who thrilled me so. I held a thin, quivering body that shocked me in its frailness, soft and hot with bruises that Eriganh put there to take all of my hopes!

Eja fae ne! Lead her mind from this harm! I need my ennead!

Ryee hummed and I tried to calm myself, but I could not let go of him. His gentle fingers quivered on my forehead. Moved back in a line.

Pas wept. Evil ones, to do such damage, to a maiden!

I could not stop.

What happened? Vonn held one of my arms.

Adia, can you tell us? Ryee, she is shaking! Are you healing her?

Pas—he heals. Ryee's voice shook.