The Healing Pulse
T he surface of Thalassa stretched out before them, a desolate expanse of scorched earth and ash.
The once-vibrant land bore the scars of war, its forests reduced to skeletal remains, its lakes mere depressions in the cracked terrain.
The air was heavy with the smoke of burned vegetation, mingled with the hollow silence of a landscape devoid of life.
The Rider stood at the edge of a jagged ridge, the Cephei hovering behind him.
Its sleek, dark form reflected the muted sunlight breaking through the ever-present haze, a beacon of hope in a world battered by destruction.
Beside him, Sax worked fast, setting up the kinetic emitter with his usual efficiency.
‘Never thought I’d be terra-forming planets,’ Sax muttered, his tone laced with dry humor. ‘This better freakin succeed, or you owe me a bottle of that fancy vintage of mine you keep hidden in the back of the drinks cabinet on the Cephei.’
Kisan smirked, his hands deftly calibrating his ship’s upgraded propulsion system. ‘If it doesn’t work, your beverage will be the least of our worries. It will come together, you’ll see. I’m injecting a potent dynamic charge into the process and speeding it up.’
The Cephei’s drive began to purr, its mighty engines gathering kinetic potential. The subtle vibrations intensified as the ship prepared to unleash the bio-energetic pulse.
A green glow emanated from the ship’s hull, pulsing rhythmically like a heartbeat.
‘Here we go,’ Kisan said, his voice firm as he keyed in the final command.
Energy bloomed from the ship, a burst of vibrant light, the charge rippling outward like a wave.
The radiance spread across the desolate terrain, its potency illuminating the ashen ground in an almost surreal brilliance.
The vitality seeped into the soil, merging with the dormant seeds and underground plants lying beneath the surface.
‘The second seeding pulse, please, Mirage,’ Kisan instructed.
High above him, the Cephei glided through Orilia’s atmosphere, its sleek, matte-black frame cutting over the dull orange skies.
Below, the landscape stretched like a patchwork of scars—a barren, cracked acridness with dried-out lakes and withered vegetation.
‘Ready?’ Mirage’s voice echoed through the cockpit. Her holographic form materialized in front of the monitor.
Kisan sent her a neural nod. ‘Do it.’
Mirage flicked a series of silver switches on the Cephei’s console.
A slender canister mounted on the wing popped open with a soft hiss, releasing a plume of fine white dust into the air.
The particles shimmered before disappearing into the updrafts of the warm wind.
The particles began their work, each an ordinary speck of salt coated with a nanoscale layer of titanium oxide.
They floated upward, carried by the heat rising from Orilia’s sun-scorched surface until they reached the moisture-laden clouds forming above.
Minutes stretched into hours as the Cephei circled above, releasing more fine dust at calculated intervals.
Kisan kept an eye on the display on the comm tab far below, his jaw tightening as Mirage narrated. ‘The compound attracts water molecules, causing small droplets to form. Those will collide and coalesce and merge til they’re heavy enough to fall. Rain is coming.’
Leaning against a rock, Sax raised a chin. ‘I’m all for miracles, brother. But heck, can this hurry up already?’
Kisan shot him a withering look. ‘Endurance isn’t your strong suit, is it?’
‘Patience is a virtue,’ Sax countered, grinning. ‘Helps that I’ve got ample vices to compensate for it.’
Kisan sucked his teeth at his recalcitrant friend and turned his gaze toward the horizon.
Where the faintest hint of dark clouds began to gather, the sight stirred something in him—a rare glimmer of hope.
Still, Kisan’s forbearance wore thin, his muscles taut with anticipation. He had fought battles, braved storms, and faced down armies, but this waiting was a different kind of agony.
Then, it happened.
A single droplet fell, soft, tentative, landing on his upturned face.
Then another, and another, until the sky opened up in a gentle but steady downpour.
He closed his eyes, feeling the incredible relief against his skin.
The sound of a storm lashing the rocks around was a rhythmic drumming that seemed to echo the planet’s heartbeat.
The rain painted the dry, cracked ground in shades of dark brown, the soil greedily soaking up every drop.
‘ Fokk , it worked,’ Kisan growled, welcoming the rhythm of healing and renewal.
Sax tilted his head back, letting the water stream down his face.
‘Guess I can’t complain about the boots now,’ he rasped. ‘Though I still expect a toast in my honor.’
The view was breathtaking.
The once lifeless plains shimmered as the downpour fell in sheets, pooling in the basins of empty lakes. Streams began to form, snaking across the land like veins, bringing life back to a dying body.
On the ground, a few clicks away from the Sable men, Samira and the Vaelorii stood in stunned silence, faces tilted toward the sky.
Around her, her people emerged from their underground refuge, their expressions a mix of awe and disbelief as they beheld the miracle unfolding before them.
The water soaked their hair and clothes, but they didn’t care.
Children laughed and splashed in the puddles, their delight infectious as it rippled through the crowd.
Elders wept with visible relief, their weeping mingling with the rain that washed away years of despair.
Kisan let the showers drench him. Cool droplets cascaded over his face, soaking into him as he gazed at the rejuvenating land below.
‘ Kralji .’
He snapped his eyes open to see his woman racing toward him. Her hands were outstretched as the precipitation saturated her hair and clothes.
Her eyes shone with unbridled joy, tears blending with the shower on her cheeks.
He laughed as she fell into his arms.
‘It worked,’ he rasped, his voice tinged with relief.
She lifted her eyes to him, her face radiant. ‘You’ve given us our world back.’
He shook his head. ‘We all made it happen, and it’s only the beginning.’
They kissed and stood in a close embrace away, their gaze on the miraculous sight, not caring one iota that they were getting soaked.
The Sable Group’s Oracle materialized beside the couple, her holographic form flickering in the precipitation. ‘The process is stabilizing,’ she reported. ‘We can expect sustained rainfall for the next few days.’
Kisan’s lips twitched into a rare smile. ‘ Sante Mirage. Let it pour.’