Myeyes were open, but I barely registered Stevanion’s puzzled look. The soundsaround me were now dimmed and replaced by tones a lot clearer and crisper thanreality. A white veil from both sides of my field of vision closed off the viewof my surroundings completely and displayed—the Vision. And I watched allof this through a nauseating combination of fear and curiosity.
A man is lying still on an erected wooden bed. He is pale,his eyes closed, and I can feel the recognition rising at the back of my mind.I don’t want to let it surface. I focus on the figure lying there that hardly resemblesmy current companion.
At that moment, he coughs a heavy, throaty cough, hisface a grimace of pain. Someone else is there, too. I see the back of a woman,wearing a light brown dress. She comes to him, supports his shoulders until hiscoughing frenzy stops, and then helps him lie gentlyback on the bed. He resumes his corpselike posture, not moving, barelybreathing.
“What is wrong with him?” the woman next to him asks andas she turns, I realize that it is me.
Another woman comes into my Vision scene. She haslong dark hair and is also wearing loose beige clothes.
“I’m sorry, Dora,” she says. “I don’t know. It seemshe has a flu. Just a regular flu.It normally lasts for a few days only, but it’s as if his body doesn’t have themeans to fight it.”
I look back at him.
Stevanion is dying.
Dying from a viral disease that Descendant immunesystems never learned to fight.
TheVision disappeared at that moment, and I was looking right into Stevanion’swide eyes.
“Youhad a Vision. You can see while awake!”he said.
“Stevanion,we are not alone. There are people living here. And we need to find them,fast.” I stood up and started walking, continuing in the same direction.Stevanion followed, trying to keep up.
“Thisis truly significant.” He was breathing fast and talking at the same time.“This occasion is unique. This is something the High Council needs to knowright away. What did you see? Which Descendants?” He caught up and looked atme.
Istopped and turned to him.
“Ido not know. I can not say,” I said, breaking our locked gaze. “I have neverseen them before.”
“But… you have been to so many Uni planets,Dana.”
“Theyseemed… well, different.”
Stevanionmoved backward just a little bit with a slight sense of fear in his eyes.
“Couldit be that we are in the Human settlement? Somewhere on Zema4?”
He might actually be right.
“Icannot tell. I do not know,” I said out loud.
“Werethe people in your Vision… amicable?”
“Yes,”I said without hesitation. “And we need to find them soon. Or they us.”
“Why?What is the urgency?”
Ilooked at him, not sure if I should tell him the truth.
“Thereis something else I saw.”
Hewaited patiently and calmly, in true Senthien manner.
“Stevanion,in my Vision, you are sick. And it is caused by something on this planet. Andwe need to find people, soon, because they might be able to help you.”
“Andyou are sure they will want to help us?” he asked, asif he wasn’t concerned about the information about his health he just received.
“Iam sure their intentions are to help us, yes.”
“Allright. Let us continue,” he said in a flat voice as he took a step forward.
Isighed silently and continued walking. I understood him perfectly. Any Senthienwould act exactly the same way, taking the Vision on an as-is basis and actingin the best possible way to enable the best possible outcome.
Itook the rest of the food bars from my pocket and offered one to Stevanion. He acceptedone with a bow of acknowledgment.
Ihoped we would find people fast, because without food, we would not be able tolast much longer.
Wehad been walking at a good pace for the first sixty passes, but with the lackof food and water, we got tired quickly and kept tripping over branches andholding onto trees and lianas as we passed. I was in the front, keeping leavesand bushes out of our way, when all of a sudden, I stopped in my tracks.
Iwas not standing on densely covered undergrowth anymore. I was standing on a beatenpath.
Mymind was racing.
This path has been used.
Bysomebody. Recently.
Iquickly looked to the right and then to the left. On both sides, the forestmade a green tunnel above the trail, the top of it still slightly opened to therays of this planet’s star. My heart was pounding, and I could hardly controlmy breathing to keep from giving away my excitement.
“Weare standing on a path, Stevanion. Someone made this path.”
Stevaniondidn’t respond.
Iturned to look at him.
Hiseyes were closed, as if the brightness around him was blinding, and his bodyposture showed exhaustion.
“Wewill find them, Stevanion,” I said with obvious emotion in my voice, my usual neutraltone gone.
Hethen opened his eyes and looked at me. I expected him to say something, but hedidn’t. There was no strength in him anymore. Then he closed his eyes again,swayed a little bit, and fell on his knees. Just before he hit the ground, Ijumped toward him and caught him under his arms.
Hisbody was pressed to mine and his head slumped over my shoulder. I closed myeyes tightly. I had to exert all my willpower to endure this lack of IP and notlet him go. I sat on my knees and leaned Stevanion’s head on my lap. Then Ilifted my head and looked both ways on the path, wondering what to do.
Atthat moment, an image came to my mind, as clear as a recent memory.
A Vision. In an awakestate. Again.
Iclosed my eyes. Keeping them open felt pointless. I dived into the subconsciousdisplay behind my eyelids I could not escape from. After a short moment, theVision was gone.
Iblinked few times. I did not understand this at all. I never heard of anyonehaving Visions in an awake state—and now I’d had two of them.
Why?
Why now?
Why here?
Ilooked around at the green surrounding me, satiating my craving for pure nature.
It’s this place.
It must be.
Itook a deep breath. In some illogical way, I felt the musical harmony of thebirds above binding me to
