Emerald Flight: “Star Wing” (continued)

Hope struggled back to awareness, fearful of what she might find there. It required far more effort than she had imagined it would. She clung to it fiercely, unwilling once again slip into unknowing darkness. What she found was not the fury and chaos that she dreaded, but nor was there peace. There was . . . confusion and . . . fear? No, she realized. It was something other than fear, but akin to it.

While she fought to maintain her tenuous hold on consciousness, other parts of her mind processed her surroundings. A faint, almost imperceptible warmth bathed her cells. She was on a diagnostic bed. Someone was running basic exploratory scans. Although could not see the readout displays, she was fairly certain what they might show. At minimum, she had suffered a badly fractured wrist and left leg. Her body revealed the location of numerous contusions along, but most had already begun to heal. There was no serious internal damage, although two of her organs had been badly bruised by external contact with falling debris.

She found the winged being who had spoken to her mind in distorted Aerian. It had, she was relieved to discover, submitted and remained quiescent, but mostly outwardly so. The confusion she sensed earlier came from the new being. Hope tried to sift through its projections, trying to learn the cause of its anxiety. Another being stood before it, making sounds that it could not understand. They sounded nothing like her own tongue. The being before it moved its limbs as it made its sounds, but the gestures held no meaning for her either.

Humor rippled through Hope’s being as she realized who stood before the winged creature. Filtering past the projected perceptions in her mind, she recognized Tactical Officer Hawkes. She read the message of his motions, understanding the confusion of the being. It had taken a long time living among Humans for her to grasp the meaning of many of their gestures. Even now, she found some of them incomprehensible, particularly those seemingly meant with humorous intent.

She refocused her thoughts on the being’s perceptions, concerned that her own had begun to drift. Her strength was waning and she did not know how much longer should could maintain a sensible consciousness.

<Go.>

Grayness formed like clouds on the edges of her awareness.

<Follow.>

Deep mist filled her inner vision.

<Obey.>

Darkness reclaimed her.