The Fiercest Storm (The Iridescence Files #2)

Chapter 1

Cassie

“Have you met Cassowary?” The Aviarist placed a cold hand on her shoulder. Cassie hated the subtle clack of metallic joints whenever he touched her. “Pretty little thing, isn’t she? We’ll be demoing her as a companion soon.”

As if it wasn’t enough to be spat out of a luxportal at full speed, the life vest on her Intergalactic Alliance-issued jumpsuit deployed after she found herself waist-deep in floodwater.

Water swirled around her, soaking her through and filling her whole body with cold.

There was nowhere for her to go until someone came to get her.

Even with the life vest, she couldn’t swim, and the water was too high for effective wading.

The bag of her belongings was clutched to her chest as she tried to squint through the pelting water dripping down her head and into her eyes.

A beam of light cut through the darkness of the rain, and a boat cut through the water in her direction. Cassie’s teeth chattered as the fabric of her jumpsuit clung to her in tight discomfort from being soaked.

“I’m here on time, small human Cassie.” A huge yellow-brown scaled latil’e male stared down at her from aboard the boat. “My mate is also a human. She told me she was tall for her species, but I didn’t believe her.”

The male offered a hand, and Cassie accepted it with reluctance. This planet was safe. This town was safe. No one was going to harm her. The IA counselor had promised her that much before sending her off. The latil’e’s movements were brusque and uninterested as he hoisted her up into the boat.

“I’m supposed to offer you this and then take you to the clinic.” He handed her a metallic blanket. “It’s for wearing.”

Cassie nodded, her hands trembling as she unfolded it and wrapped it around herself. Without waiting for her reply, the male revved the boat’s engine.

“We’re leaving now. Hold on to the handles. My mate won’t forgive me if I lose you in the water.”

Her stomach churned with the effects of portal sickness they’d warned her about before she entered the luxportal.

Luckily, she couldn’t remember the last time she’d eaten anything substantial.

It was her own fault for staying the extra three weeks at the resettlement facility instead of leaving on the earlier flight, which would have brought her here before the rain.

Mist sprayed around them as they maneuvered through the wake surrounding the main town center.

It wasn’t long before they pulled up in front of a building with the Universal symbol for medicine.

There were words as well, but Cassie had never learned to read.

The latil’e male dismounted and splashed up to his knees in the water.

He offered his hands again and carried her over to the entrance of the building before setting her down inside.

“You were there on time?” A female voice called out from deeper inside the clinic.

“I was on time. Tell my mate about my timeliness, small human Cassie.”

Cassie shrank. Her voicelock database didn’t have the words required to say something so complex, and she doubted anyone here would understand the hand signs developed by her fellow passeri.

“Give her time to get used to being here before you start bothering her.” A tall blonde woman appeared from around the corner, holding an older datapad model. “Hi there, I’m Eleri. I’m one of the healers here in Laurus. You must be Cassie.”

“Hi, I’m Cassie. How can I be of assistance?” Her voice chirped an upbeat response, but she was certain her facial expression didn’t match. The manufactured words used her vocal cords, not her ideas.

“I’m here to help you, don’t worry about me.” Eleri laughed. Cassie’s fingers tapped idly at the silver implant just below her jawline.

“Thank you!” Her voice oozed enthusiasm even as frustrated tears welled in the corners of her eyes.

“Are you okay?” Eleri moved closer and ran a hand along the hem of her pale blue uniform shirt.

“I didn’t mean to offend you. It must be so hard coming here after everything.

There’s only a bit of information about your history in your medical file.

We can just talk for a few minutes. No need to jump into scans if you’re not ready. ”

“This service is not available.” She started to bawl, realizing her words wouldn’t mean anything to Eleri.

“What service?” Her voice was gentle.

“Her face is leaking. Should I get some hydropods?” The latil’e male moved toward Cassie, which caused Eleri’s lips to thin in a tight line.

“You’re not being helpful. Go wait upstairs while I talk to Cassie.”

The latil’e looked like he had something else to say but decided better of it and stomped up the stairs per Eleri’s request.

“Don’t mind S’samph. He means well, but sometimes he doesn’t understand when to keep his thoughts to himself. If it’s ok with you, I’m going to ask our senior healer to come say hello to you.”

“Thank you!” Cassie exclaimed through full-body sobs. Eleri stood and placed a single pat on her shoulder before leaving her alone in the chair. When she returned, there was another being like Cassie had never seen before, and she’d seen almost every sentient species in IA space.

“Cassie, this is Aglao. Do you mind if they take a look at you?”

“My role is to help you have a positive experience.” Cassie spat the words out through snot. The unfamiliar species approached, pale green limbs floating around a central body.

“Can you tell me your favorite color, Cassie?” The being asked.

“This service is not available,” Cassie said with a sick twist of her stomach. Even if she could have answered, why in the stars would anyone have a favorite color?

“Cassie is voicelocked.” Aglao hummed. A slick, squishy sensation landed on the side of Cassie’s neck as they touched the exact spot where her chip was implanted. “It is likely beyond our skills to disable and remove it here. But perhaps elsewhere?”

Cassie stared. They’d told her it was impossible. A voice lock was for life. But these well-meaning people didn’t know. They couldn’t know. Why else would they offer such a glimpse at false hope?

“Voicelocked?” Eleri asked.

“It’s a cruel practice.” Aglao withdrew from Cassie. “A device is implanted that prevents the vocal cords from moving beyond a few preprogrammed phrases. It is highly illegal in almost every sector. It’s the first time I’ve seen one in person.”

“You can’t be serious.” The healer’s eyes widened. “Stars and stones, and here I’ve been asking you questions like an idiot. I’m sorry.”

The apology just made Cassie feel even smaller. She knew her voicelock was going to cause tension, but the pity twisted darkly in her chest.

“Can I help you with something else?”

“Do you mind if we do a few more scans?” Eleri asked.

“The scans are all non-invasive,” Aglao added with an expectant glance back at Cassie, who nodded. This she could do at least. Simple questions, yes or no. Anything that didn’t require spoken words.

Eleri turned on the interface, pressing a sequence of buttons to make the full body scanner come to life. This was familiar. Predictable. All the residents at the Aviary had been scanned weekly to assess their health. It was essential, given the behavior of their clients.

The hum of the medscanner slowed Cassie’s sputtering heartbeat.

She waited for the familiar words. Perfect as always Cassie.

Your resiliency is next level. You can head to the healing gel pool whenever you’re ready.

The artificial spark of pride that she’d survived another night with only minimal damage.

But instead, it was just a poorly disguised sharp inhale from healer Eleri.

“Can you interpret the readout?” The senior healer asked.

Cassie closed her eyes, not wanting to see the illuminated scan of her body on the holoscreen.

Better to let the voices talk around her and pretend she wasn’t there.

It had never failed her before. She wasn’t here.

She was back in the nursery with the fledglings.

They were singing and learning how to dance to a song so old no one could remember the origin anymore.

They still had their voices then. Cassie had never been a confident singer, but she missed laughing.

She missed shrieking with joy at the top of her lungs.

That’s where she went when she didn’t want to be here anymore.

“Cassie?” The sound of her name from Eleri brought her back to the sterility of the medical clinic.

She blinked slowly as she returned to her body, feeling the ever-present weight of her bones.

Rather than use one of her stock phrases, she tilted her head to indicate she was listening.

“Can you write, Cassie?” The senior healer asked.

Cassie shook her head. “This service is not available.”

“Would you like to learn?” Eleri asked. “I’m sure we can find someone to teach you.”

Cassie gave her a blank stare. On the list of things she was worried about, learning how to read and write was low.

Instead, she held her hands out for Eleri’s datapad.

It took a moment, but Eleri handed it over without complaint.

Cassie opened a blank page and used the stylus to make a sketch of a bed before handing it back to Eleri with an expectant glance.

Right now, the only thing she wanted to know was where she was supposed to stay.

The IA had promised her a private room, somewhere to be alone, away from prying eyes.

“Are you asking about where you’re going to live?” Eleri asked. Cassie nodded confirmation.

“The room above the clinic is empty. Unless you want us to find a family you can stay with until the flooding season is over.”

Cassie shook her head and pointed up toward where she assumed the clinic room would be.

“It would be my pleasure!” Her voice beamed in contrast with her exhausted eyes.

Eleri seemed to grasp the unspoken subtext.

She placed a hand on Cassie’s shoulder and led her toward a staircase at the back of the clinic.

“I’m sure this is a lot. I remember how overwhelmed I was when I first came here. Take as much time as you need to settle in. I’m here every day if you want any company, but if you want to be alone, that’s fine too.” Eleri led her up the staircase.

“We can get you set up. It’s not much, but the cot is comfortable enough.”

“Thank you!” The unearned kindness was unfamiliar, and Cassie knew everything had a price. After stripping off her damp clothes, she settled onto the lumpy bed in the small room and fell into uneasy sleep.