Exiled for her high ideals, Asa leaves her home planet to continue her medical career on Concordia in the Eulian Outskirts. Though the Celest-ruled empire is a drastic change from her nomadic tribe, she is determined to take the species' knowledge t...
"There. I couldn't get enough of everything you asked. But there's plenty of the kei plant. They horde it like none other," Evrel huffed.
Without warning, the Lynren flung his spindly arms around both of them and let out a strange whimper.
"I love you both so much."
The medic froze, unable to hug back while the Firu squirmed.
"Hey, I'm not the one doing this, you know!" Evrel pushing away his arm to the best of her ability. Yet the ends of her lips curled upward momentarily. Finnley released them with a long inhale, the gurgling of snot coming with it.
"I know, I know I'm just—"
"Having a moment, we get it."
Asa laughed. The pair's eyes widened. While the Firu glanced between her and him, a large smile spread across the Lynren's face.
"You laughed. He does make you happy, doesn't he?"
The medic's gaze fell to the floor, her face warming. Her tail curled around her as she remembered Renvir wiping away her tears. She grinned sheepishly.
"He does."
"In more ways than one, too," Evrel said. Finnley jabbed her with his elbow, and the Firu rolled her eyes. Asa's body warmed, and her blush grew. Acting as though he were attending one of the pods in front of them, the Lynren knelt down.
"Have you thought about staying with him?"
The plan in her head was simple: get him and the egg out. What lay beyond that hadn't reached her mind. Raking his suggestion over, she fidgeted with her nails.
"I hadn't thought about it."
"You might want to. If you get caught, you won't be coming back. Or worse, if one of the superiors catch you"
The medic's stomach dropped.
"Evrel!" Finnley said. His eyes narrowing at his roommate.
A chime signaled the end of the hatchery worker's break, and, shortly after, Reformers clad in pink gowns entered back in. The thought clung to her even after she excused herself to her room. After exiting the nursery, she flinched at the stares of the Reformers passing.
Their wings flapped, and a handful snarled as they saw her. They knew what she'd done. Compacting herself to weave through the ambling crowds, she flew through like the bending grasses of the plains.
The colorless walls and vague, swirling patterns no longer greeted her with familiarity but disdain. The Reformers' gaze accused her of her interspecies sin. No empathy or understanding followed. Instead, they kept away from her with a growing distance.
They didn't leave room for error.
Asa sighed in relief as she locked the door to her room. The plan would start in two Celestial hours. Catching her breath, she stayed propped against the door. Nagging ideas pounded inside her skull as though at the door, asking to be let in.
A single beam of light cast itself onto the floor. It illuminated a straight line from her to the nearly empty bag she'd packed in case it rained hard enough she couldn't travel back that night.
The medic moved toward it, sinking to her knees. The satchel held a few nams and the cloth Renvir gave her. Her eyes wandered to the trunk at the end of her bed. Even if she didn't get caught, would here ever feel like home again?
She scooted on her knees the meter or so to the wooden container and cracked it open. Fishing out the rest of the income she'd received, she transferred it into the satchel in her bag. Her heart clenched. The sack couldn't hold the rest of her possessions, and neither could she, especially with the weight of the meds and egg.
While she hoped Renvir could help her carry the items, she had a feeling he wouldn't be able to hold much.
Her hands skimmed over the various items. A medicinal scroll her mother gave her when she first became a medic, a carefully pressed and sap-preserved leaf from her home planet, and a handmade blanket were placed inside the bag. Asa pulled out and put on her overcoat, tying it around her neck.
All that lay inside were papers and medical records. At first, the medic didn't consider bringing them. Most of them detailed what she knew well already. But one journal, a personal one she'd been filling out since her exile, caught her eye. Its hide cover welcomed her as she picked it up.
Her discoveries, both medical and personal, were written here. Asa smiled. Even though Zienna had taken her notes, she didn't take everything she'd learned.
Flipping open the cover, Asa flipped through entries. The spine landed on the one she'd made shortly after Renvir's flare. Her fingers ran over the parchment, recalling the instance with great detail. The idea of leaving grew more comfortable the more she read. Her belly filled with renewed fervor.
"I'll get you both out of here. I promise."
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