Total Eclipse

Depends on how bad it is, Lewis said, already moving in the direction of the locked medicine cabinets. On a scale of one to ten?

David thought about it, then sighed and rubbed a distracted hand over his short brown hair. Twenty-five.

Luis didnt seem surprised. He retrieved a preloaded syringe, came back, and unceremoniously delivered a jab to Davids biceps. David flinched, lips parting in shock, and said, incredulously, Ow! He sounded horribly betrayed by the pain. I wondered how long it had been since hed really been subject to a human nervous systemone he couldnt control, anyway. What was that?

Wait for it, Lewis said, as he disposed of the hypo in a medical waste container. Should be aboutnow.

David suddenly relaxednot quite enough to collapse, but I saw the tension just bleed out of him. His eyes widened and went a little unfocused. Oh, he said. Well, thats better.

Welcome to modern medicine.

Its nice, David said, and raised his eyebrows. Its really nice. He slid off the bed, landed on his bare feet, and padded over to claim the chair Lewis had been using. Before he sat, he bent over and kissed me, long and sweet and slow, and I savored every bit of it.

Lewis cleared his throat.

Oh, bite me, big man, I said, too full of relief to care. Youre okay, honey? Davids skin felt warm against my handhuman warm, not the banked fire of a Dji

Ill be fine, he said, and sat down. As long as you are. He turned his head toward Lewis, and his body language altered itself, just a little. Although I couldnt get the subtleties, it seemed to me that he was making an effort to be friendly, but he wanted Lewis to be anywhere but here. Lewis. What do you know?

About what happened to the Dji

Davids eyes went briefly blank, and I knew that, like me, he was struggling not to relive that awful sound. There was something about it that just wouldnt die; it was like an endless recorded loop, playing in the back of my mind. The best you could do was keep the sound turned low. No, he said. Thats not what happened. Jo understands.

I did? I didnt. I shook my head.

You saw it before, he said. At the coast. You saw it take me.

I had no idea what he meant, and I was about to say so. . . . And then it came to me, like a physical slap. I sat up, staring at him. No.

Yes, he said. Exactly that.

Butthe Wardens would know.

Not if she didnt wish them to.

Excuse me, Lewis said, a little too loudly. Somebody want to clue me in?

David was the one to say it, which was good, because I wasnt sure I had it in me. Its the Mother, he said. It was her scream, echoing through the Dji

I watched Lewiss face go very quickly pale. He put out a hand to steady himself. Youre saying

Im saying that the Earth is awake, David said. At least, I believe she is coming awake. The Dji

This was, beyond any doubt, the worst thing that could happen. The Earth slept. We liked it that way. Even in sleep she was difficult, but once that vast, slow consciousness was roused . . . we had no idea what she would do, except that it almost certainly would end in extinction for a great many species, and the end of human civilization, at the very least. The Earth could not be reasoned with, or even directly communicated with. Not even the Dji

Thinking of the Oracles made me think about my daughter, Imara, and I felt a leap of terrible fear. Had she screamed, like the others? Had she lost herself, too?

No, David said, and his fingers tightened on mine. Shes all right, Imara is all right. Wed know His voice trailed off, and I saw a flash of panic in his eyes. We wouldnt know. We were only human now, and our daughter, our child whod been born half Dji

We both turned immediately to Lewis.

I dont know about the Oracles. I havent heard anything, he said. He knew immediately what we were thinking about, and the frown on his face said that he was worried about it, too. Ill get somebody on it. David, do you know why she summoned the Dji

Pain, David said softly. You heard the scream. That was her pain.

It rolled over me in a fresh, overwhelming wave of memory, and I had to concentrate hard to keep myself from shaking with the intensity of the experience. The black corner, I said. Shes been hurt. Thats why shes waking up. We did this.

David visibly swallowed, then nodded. Our hands tightened together, the only real comfort we could offer each other. It had been bad enough when wed been responsible for the pain and death of Dji

Well find a way to get back to ourselves, he said. We have to find a way.

I wished I could believe him. Lewis wasnt looking at me, and I could tell that he was trying not to reveal his own doubts. He pushed away from the bulkhead wall and said, You asked what we were going to do. I dont see that theres any reason to change the plan. We hit land, the Wardens scatter to handle crisis events. Id like you two at Warden HQ for the time being. Itll be easier to work with you there, and you can help us with coordination.

Coordination.

If the Earth was really waking up, really angry, really hurtwed be coordinating firefighting during a nuclear war. And it was a waste. He was sidelining us, and I didnt like it.

We have something more important to do, Lewis. I know youre trying to keep us out of the way, but we have to try to find a way to get our powers back, I said. David cant live like this. You know that. We have to see the Oracles. If anybody knows, they do.

I cant give you help.

We dont need any, David said. This will work, or it wont. But isnt it worth a shot?

Lewis thought about it for a moment, then nodded. Yes, he said. Its worth a shot. But if it doesnt work, I need you at Warden HQ. Understand?

Understood, I said.

No way in hell.

I got used to feeling sealed inside myself over the next two days; if David didnt, he hid it well. We didnt need confinement in hospital beds, so we checked ourselves out while Lewis wasnt looking. It wasnt really our fault, though. Cherise instigated it.

No way am I sleeping in this horrible bed the rest of the trip, she declared within a couple of hours of waking up. For Cherise, she looked ragged. For anyone else, she looked magazine-cover ready, but I could spot the subtletiesa smudge under her eyes, a slight pallor under her tan, hair that wasnt quite as bouncy as usual. And the shower in here sucks. What is this shampoo stuff, anyway? Medical soap? Ugh. No. I am not doing without product. Theres a limit.

With that, and without anybody giving her permission to vacate the bed, she was up and moving, wrapped in a sheet and searching for her clothes. David helpedmore afraid that shed end up dropping the sheet and hed see more of Cherise than he intended, I thinkand once shed laid her hands on her shorts, shirt, and shoes, there was no stopping her.

Which was all fine with me, actually. I was heartily sick of this room. I dressed quickly. David was hilariously slow; I wondered how often hed actually had to pull on his own pants in the last few thousand years. Probably zero times.

Sunshine, Cherise declared as we followed her out of the medical area and into the more spacious public area of the ship. The utilitarian carpet and walls were replaced by lusher stuff the higher we went, and by the time we could see daylight streaming through windows, we were in posh territory, with fancy sitting rooms and dark wood paneling. And bars. A lot of bars. A few were even serving.