Aleena carefully dabbed the damp washcloth around the raw, swollen bruises on the unconscious woman’s face. It had been nearly nine hours since the surviving refugees had flooded into Refuge City’s main hospital. Nearly all 379 had needed some form of medical attention ranging from treatment of dehydration to the setting of broken bones. It seemed there was quite the story behind their frantic flight from Kratos, a dark, primitive world nearly four months travel from Talos. She had heard that the ones who arrived today were only a fraction of the original group. She sighed quietly as she rinsed the soiled washcloth in clean water.

“Has there been any change?”

Aleena’s hazel eyes lifted off her patient as she glanced across to where Dr. Mouser was checking on a sleeping child with a broken arm. His tired pale blue eyes were magnified behind his thick round glasses and the hair that protruded from his rounded, graying ears was more frazzled than normal. He quickly assessed the Paloan girl’s vitals before finally focusing his gaze on her. Aleena slowly shook her head.

“Not really, doctor. She seems to be sleeping well enough, and her body is not rejecting the IV fluids as it did the medications. I figure it will be several hours yet before she awakens. I’m trying to slowly clean her up a bit so we can put more into her profile.”

Mouser sighed heavily as he jotted a few notes on the girl’s chart and continued toward the door to the other rooms beyond.

“Very well. Keep me informed of any changes. This…this has been such a crazy day,” he mumbled and glanced back toward his office in the rear of the large room.

“Doctor? Are you alright?”

“Yes, or at least I will be. I’m just tired and there is still work to be done. I just don’t know how much more I can handle,” he mumbled absently.

“More? I don’t mean to pry, but…”

“Ah, well, the Alpha team and Strike 3 are a few minutes out. Seems one of the team had some sort of accident. I was given no details, but I can only imagine what Raith has gone and done to himself this time. I’ve been preparing for the worst.”

Aleena’s eyes widened briefly. She had been awaiting news of the remaining troops’ return, but quickly decided against questioning the preoccupied doctor any further. The injured man would be in their care soon enough. Had the injury been serious, there would have been more information and Mouser would not be as calm as he was.

“Don’t worry, doctor. I’m sure it can’t be as bad as you think or there would have been more information. But I’ll keep watch over the few left in this room while you tend to whatever comes in.”

“Are you sure, Aleena? You’ve been on duty over twelve hours now. I can send for one of the other nurses.”

“No, it is alright. I wish to finish my current task and I still need to enter my reports. I’d rather get it done today while the information is still somewhat fresh.”

Mouser pondered her words only briefly before shrugging and heading for the door. “Alright, but should you need any assistance, don’t hesitate to call. I wish we could find more like you,” he muttered as he opened the door and disappeared into the room beyond. Aleena smiled fondly before returning her attention to her patient. For all his crazy ideas and overbearing protectiveness of his patients, Mouser was a good man, a great doctor, and more like family to her every day she worked with him in the unpredictable hospital.

Her current charge had added to the stress of the day’s activities. The strange Cassarian woman had been brought to them in dire shape. She had been banged up and bruised and nearly dead from dehydration. Two young children had arrived with her, one of which was the girl across the room with the broken arm. The three had been the only survivors of 27 which had been crammed aboard the ship that had crashed landed just inside the city’s protective barrier. It was a miracle that any of them had survived from what she’d heard about the conditions found aboard that ship. Even now she worked to clean off the dry, nearly tarry mud that all three had arrived covered in. She could only assume the mess had traveled with them from Kratos.

The woman had intrigued Aleena from the moment she was carried in and placed in the intensive care ward. They had not been able to revive her or get a tube into her dry throat to force water in. Aleena had been the one to clean a spot of mud from the woman’s arm to start emergency fluids into her via IV. There had been something unusual about the woman, something she just could not place a finger on. The feelings were strengthened when after the most critical patients had received care, she and Mouser had returned to administer antibiotics and a beginning series of vaccines. The woman’s body had immediately rejected the treatments. They’d had to turn her onto her side as she vomited. After several tries, Mouser had finally given up, deciding that her dehydration must be what was causing the reaction. The medications would have to be administered once she was awake.

The next trial had been even more confusing and frustrating for the doctor. The patient’s body was also rejecting the mandatory nanite treatment. Everyone on Talos was given a small dose of microscopic machines that traveled to the auditory cortex of the brain. This unusual treatment first developed by her parents, then perfected later by a team of Kalatian language specialists, was essential to overcoming the language barriers between the multitudes of species that now resided within the city’s boundaries. Without the treatment, the woman would be not be able to understand those around her unless they spoke her language, and Cassarian languages could be quite diverse. Mouser had tried multiple delivery methods, and after each was rejected, he had resorted to injecting them directly into her carotid artery. It was not his preferred method, but she had not yet shown any signs of rejection.

Aleena set the soiled washcloth aside and stood. The woman’s physical condition was in no way acceptable yet, but she had removed enough of the mud to see that she bore very unusual color patterns for a Cassarian. Cassarians were a very diverse species with many races based on the region of the specific world they originated from. She thought she had seen most of them, but this woman was unique. Very light gray or white seemed to be her dominant fur hue, while unusual patterns of slate blue gray seemed mark her arms and shoulders, and there was hints of the color on her face as well. Something about it seemed…primitive, even tribal. She even wondered if it were natural or dyed. She would have to do a better job of cleaning the mess away.

Aleena took the bowls of soiled water and soiled washcloths to the adjoining nurses’ station. She made quick work of obtaining fresh warm water and clean cloths before returning to the intensive care ward. It was mostly empty now. Only the Cassarian woman, the Paloan girl, and an older Faldaran woman with severe respiratory issues remained. All were peacefully sleeping. She made her way back to the Cassarian’s bedside and deposited her supplies before going to check on the other patients. She was listening to the older woman’s breathing when she heard a sudden sharp gasp.

Aleena’s eyes widened as she froze and glanced back to the Cassarian. The woman’s position had not changed, but something was definitely different. She took a few quick steps in her direction before quickly freezing once more. She thought she saw the woman’s eyes try to flutter open. She sprang back into motion and arrived just in time to see a hint of blue show from under heavy eyelids. Aleena quickly glanced toward the door Mouser had left through. There was no one else around to relay a message-the next rotating nurse was not due for at least twenty minutes.

The air around her suddenly felt charged. Aleena slowly, carefully looked back to her patient. She was greeted by wide, terrified blue eyes. She found herself unable to move, to respond, found herself momentarily mesmerized by the strange hint of neon blue that danced across the woman’s irises. The hesitance was fleeting as after another flash of strange electric color, the woman’s gaze turned dangerous. Aleena slowly lifted her hands before her.

“Please, there’s no need to be afraid. You are safe,” Aleena spoke calmly. She had no idea if the nanites had done their job yet.

The woman attempted to lurch upright, but soon found herself tangled in the bed sheets and IV tubes.

“Please! You have to remain calm! You are safe and no one will harm you. Please!” she started again as she stepped forward in an attempt to keep the frightened woman from hurting herself. She was greeted by a threatening growl as the woman managed to pull herself into a sitting position and draw her knees up to her chest. Her vivid blue eyes were dark and dangerous. Aleena noticed the IV’s tube hung around the railing of the bed. If her patient moved much more, she risked ripping the needle from her arm. She slowly reached her hand toward the railing. At the last minute, the woman lurched away. A snarl of pain erupted as Aleena’s fear unfolded before her.

“Please, you are going to hurt yourself! Please, please calm down!”

“Stay away from me!” she snarled defensively, her wild eyes darting quickly between Aleena and her surroundings. The crazed blue eyes fell to her arm. “Where am I? What have you done to me?” came a threatening snarl as the woman’s hand fell over the now bleeding wound where the IV had once been.

Aleena caught sight of unusual blue blood oozing from the wound before it was covered, but there was no time to dwell on it. She had to calm the frightened and potentially dangerous woman before she brought trouble to the hospital. There was a definite warrior spirit radiating from her patient. She raised her hands before her once more to show that she was unarmed.

“You do not need to be afraid. You are safe, safe in Refuge City. This is our hospital. You and the group of ships you traveled with arrived here on Talos hours ago.”

“Talos? Hospital?” The strange electric glow slowly faded from the woman’s eyes. She cast another quick glance around the room and hesitated when she saw the young girl. Questioning eyes turned back to Aleena.

“Yes, Talos is the name of this world. This city is called Refuge City. It is a sanctuary for those escaping the madness occurring beyond our boundaries. You were brought here to the hospital when you arrived. You were nearly dead from dehydration, and that pain you feel on your arm-it was a device that was delivering fluids to your body to save your life.”

The woman’s eyes fell to the hand that covered the bleeding wound then darted back to where the child lay sleeping.

“The others…They are safe as well?”

Aleena hesitated. There was no telling how long her patient had been unconscious on that ship, but it seemed that it had been long enough to not realize most had perished.

“The girl there and another child I did not tend to are well enough, yes. But the others…the others on your ship did not survive the journey. I’m sorry,” she replied carefully. Aleena expected the shock and sorrow that now filled the other’s gaze. She could only imagine what the group had gone through in their frantic flight from Kraos, what the other individuals on the ship had meant to her.

“I’m very sorry. We did all we could to help everyone, but it appears most had fallen to dehydration even before your ship crashed…”

“Crashed?”

Aleena hesitated once more. She had not meant to say that and now frantically tried to formulate how to respond. “Yes, your ship crash landed. The reports I heard were that the pilot had programmed your ship to follow the others before he or she died. When they arrived here, the programming did not know how to proceed. You three were very lucky. Whatever the programming was, it was enough to keep the crash from being so critical to be fatal.”

Aleena watched in sorrow as the woman once again drew her knees to her chest and held herself. She closed her eyes and laid her forehead on her arms. She felt sorry for her-the frightened woman had awakened to find herself in a strange place and learned that most everyone she had known had died on the journey. Aleena did not know how to proceed. There were still so many more questions the disoriented woman would soon face. She spotted the staining of blood on the woman’s arm-the blue blood she’d seen earlier now appeared a deep crimson.

“Here, let me go fetch the doctor. He can patch that arm up for you and also answer any more questions you may have. We’ll also be able to get you properly processed and into more comfortable quarters. Our leaders will be curious to hear your story when you are ready,” she said quietly and stood.

The fine hair on the back of her neck suddenly stood on end as a powerful wave of charged air washed over her. Aleena’s eyes widened as the woman’s head snapped up off her arms, her eyes burning with that strange electric glow once more.

“No! Please…I need to leave! Not…not safe…” the woman exclaimed before grimacing and bracing her head against her palm. Aleena cautiously stepped forward.

“Do not worry. I promise you are safe here. Just relax while I fetch the doctor…”

“Please! It is you who is not safe. You must help me leave this place-I cannot…no one must know…” The woman was making no sense and appeared to be in sudden pain. She kept grimacing and shaking her head as if to shed some unseen pressure.

“I…I cannot do that. Only the doctor can authorize your discharge. We have protocol that must be followed, for your protection and the protection of every citizen beyond this room,” she replied carefully as her worry grew. Aleena’s hazel eyes widened as the woman’s gaze grew dangerous once again.

“I do not wish harm to come to anyone, but I will be leaving this place, with or without your help. You can assist me or you can get out of the way.”

Aleena took several trembling steps back away from the bed. This was an unexpected turn of events, and there was not much she could do about it. It would be several minutes before the other nurses would be near enough to assist in restraining the crazed woman, and she had no nearby access to communicate the situation. Then there was a small part of her that felt the urgent need to comply with the woman’s request. She cast a quick hesitant glance around the room. She really could not afford any trouble-for the sake of those still in the room and her own. The dangerous look in the woman’s eyes told her there was only one choice. A decision made, Aleena quickly gathered her composure and stepped quickly towards a cabinet next to the bed.

“What you are asking me to do goes against all the rules I have tried to abide by, and I could get into serious trouble. The rules-they are in place for a reason. But I also cannot risk any trouble befalling this place,” she snapped in determination as she retrieved a small package of colorful pills and vials from the cabinet.

“The creatures that reside within this city’s boundaries may very well be all that remains of our entire universe. Great care and diligence has been taken to ensure their survival. Part of that diligence is to ensure every citizen is properly immunized against disease. We were unable to vaccinate you due to your condition. If you want my help in breaking the rules, you will have to promise me that you will take the contents of this package.”

The woman’s gaze became critical as she eyed the package that Aleena held out to her, but she made no immediate move to take it. Aleena’s own gaze became firm.

“If you truly wish no harm to come to the creatures here, you will take this package. Take it or I will take my chances and call for assistance.”

Aleena saw a brief break in the woman’s resolve, saw the strange blue fire dim from her eyes. A hesitant hand slowly reached out and took the package. Aleena quickly stepped back and motioned to the woman to follow her.

“Thank you. Now follow me, and be quick about it. We will not be alone for much longer,” she said and turned toward the door to the nurse’s station. She glanced back to see the woman scrambling to follow. She wavered unsteadily as she stood, dirt and dried muck crumbled to the floor around her feet. Aleena scowled at the sight. It would be hard for the skinny, extremely filthy woman in tattered clothing to leave unnoticed, but whatever happened was now in the woman’s hands. She finally found her footing and began to follow. Aleena snatched up a roll of bandages off a cart as she passed it and paused before the nurse’s station door. She peeked in the window before turned back to the woman.

“Here. Take these bandages for that arm. Beyond this door is a hallway that will lead you to a large open room. It is usually quite in there this time of day, but I cannot guarantee this. In the center of that room is a set of large doors-that is your only escape route. It will dump you into one of the main hallways, which will likely be fairly crowded, but the crowds will help to conceal you. This city is large and I do not have time to give you any pointers. You will be on your own. Please take the contents of that package before you make much contact with anyone-take one pill and one vial of the same color each day until they are gone. Now hurry,” Aleena said and opened the door.

The woman’s gaze was both critical and apprehensive as she silently took the roll of bandages and headed for the door. She paused briefly in the opening and looked back at her. Aleena noticed a hint of gratitude.

“Thank you…” she paused. “I’m sorry I do not know your name.”

Aleena was surprised at the request. “I am Aleena.”

“Thank you, Aleena,” she said quietly and slipped into the hallway.

Aleena heard the sound of voices somewhere in the distance. “Now hurry already. If you get caught, you are on your own. No one here is out to harm you, but if they see you, your identity will be questioned. Just please remain calm and don’t hurt anyone. Also, I never got your name. It would be nice to know who it is I’m breaking the rules for.”

The woman paused before casting a quick glance back. “I am Sarhea,” she replied and hurried down the hall.

Aleena noted the name as she closed the door. Silence once again fell over the room. Now she had to figure out how she was to explain the disappearance of a patient. She stepped quickly back toward the center of the room. Once again, she was going to have to generate a false story. She thought this nasty habit was behind her. Her mind scrambled for answers as she moved towards her office on the other side of the room.