Vai

It was the first time since the Shadow left Earth that the ship landed on another planet instead of orbiting and letting the shuttles land on it. Now that no one on board had the Corruption, there was no stopping any of us from exiting through the Aether field.

It was also Shel's eighteenth birthday. We planned a small celebration later with just the few of us. He seemed a little somber as we waited to land in the docking bay. I was sure he was missing both his parents. Minmin stayed close to him. Her expression was similar to Shel's. Her birthday was only a few days away and she would spend it without her parents too. And we knew her mom was dead.

"Do you have your list?" Hani asked Spencer. Hani, Spencer and Nathan stood near us. They were going planetside to restock for the Starrise.

"Yes," he said as he fiddled with his okulus. "There won't be any good chocolate on this colony, but there are other supplies I can find and we can change up the menu a little bit to provide traditional Bundu-Jo meals instead of Earth meals." He looked down at Owen. "I still can't believe you got the captain to release the chocolate and give me such a low price."

"I am amazing, friend," Owen said easily. "It's what I do."

"Although," Spencer said, "I do wish the supplies didn't have to be split with the Museum Delectables."

Owen shrugged his small shoulders. "Fair is fair," he said. "And it was the captain's orders."

The light specialists - including me - were the first to exit the ship. We were now the most recognized faces in the Gathering. I knew my knowledge of the light was not adequate enough to be considered a light specialist, but we were the first in the entire Gathering to have and learn about the light so I guessed we were the closest thing to a light specialist the Gathering had. The Awakened One would stay behind on the ship until we could gauge how the colony would react to him. He was frightening to look upon, but he was the only true one who could be called a light specialist.

He had told all of us in the G.E.F. that we should have our light shields up constantly whether we thought we were safe or not until it became as second nature as breathing. The first of us - my friends and Lieutenant Tanpo - now could keep our light shields up even while we slept. As far as I knew, we were the only ones able to achieve this so far.

Outside the ship we were met with a clear blue sky, a white sun, a cool breeze, the smell of grass and flowers and tens of thousands of Bundu-Jos cheering for us as we stepped from the ship and were ushered onto a platform.

Owen loved it of course. He waved both his hands to the crowd with a huge smile on his face. Minmin followed his lead when the crowd's cheers grew louder. Esther waved almost immediately after Minmin. Shel and I looked at each other. He sighed not wanting to join in. I knew how he felt, but we had to. We represented something bigger than us now whether we wanted to or not. We both waved to the crowd at the same time.

"Why are we waving, sir?" I looked behind me to see Warpaint waving all three of his arms vigorously. I couldn't stop the smile that came to me at the sight.

"I'm not sure," I replied, "but the crowd seems happy with us."

"I would be happy if you waved at me too, sir."

I was about to turn back to the crowd, but I saw Lieutenant Tanpo, my dad and Owen's parents standing not too far behind us, just observing us and the crowds. Mr. Morgan said something to my dad. My dad nodded in turn and the corners of his mouth curved up slightly. Behind them the rest of those on the ship were being ushered down a separate ramp.

"I guess we have to get used to this," Shel said to me. His eyes trailed the exiting crew members. Then his eyes met mine. "I think we will always be lead to the spotlight now."

I didn't like the sound of that, but Shel was right. I had to accept that this was the way it was going to be.

"As governor of Bundu-Turelno, let me welcome you, the light specialists, to our humble colony." A tall male Bundu-Jo said as stepped up onto the platform next to us. His image and ours was projected and magnified above us across the sky. His voice boomed over the crowds.

"Thank you, thank you, my friends." Owen stepped forward as if he was made for this. His voice was projected across the expanse. "We are humbled and grateful to be here. Soon you all will have the greatest weapon against our enemy. You will personally be able to keep their mind stealing selves out of your brains. Your children will be able to protect themselves. Your grandparents will be able to protect themselves. We will win this war and take back the Gathering as ours."

The crowd roared and clapped. Their hands flew up in the air in cheers that drowned out everything else. Owen smiled quite pleased with himself. Owen and the governor shook hands and the cacophony became even louder. Owen and the governor paused with their hands held together for photo opportunities and any news stations wanting to pick this up and I was sure there were plenty of news crews there. Probably just local ones, but their stories would be picked up by the bigger Gathering stations.

I couldn't have been prouder of Owen and happier that he was there. None of the rest of us could have handled that like he did. I, quite frankly, didn't want to be in the spotlight.

Owen released the governor's hand and raised both of his own to quiet the crowd. It was immediately quiet.

"Today, we will open the light in you and you in turn can open it in your families and friends and so on and so forth and let the light spread wider than the ocean. Let it spread until every single Bundu-Jo, human, Starwatcher and K'thaktra have it."

"No!" someone near the front of the crowd shouted.

That silenced Owen and confused us all.

I stretched out with my green light.

"You are all being fooled," the Bundu-Jo continued. "The miasmids aren't something to be feared."

My light touched him and I saw them - hundreds of them - in his brain. Controlling him. I spread my light out further and let it touch random people in the crowds.

"They are to be revered," the Bundu-Jo said. Those around him were beginning to get angry or embarrassed. A few tried to shush him.

"He has the Corruption inside him," I said. I had only meant for my friends to hear it, but it boomed across the crowds. "And he has the Corruption." I pointed to someone further back on the left side. "And her," I pointed to a woman in the middle on the right. "And her." I pointed to a child. The crowd began to murmur and move. They didn't go anywhere, just moved to get a good look at those I was pointing out. And I continued to point out more.

I didn't really have a plan in pointing them out. They were there and I wanted to expose the Corruption. They were small in number. They couldn't win with us there. I wasn't sure why they even came. They had to have known that they would be exposed. Then again, maybe they didn't. Maybe I had just revealed to the Corruption and everyone else in the Gathering that I could see who had the Corruption in them and who didn't without waiting to see the pink glint in their eyes.

"You can't win." I hadn't noticed the first male Bundu-Jo had scrambled onto the platform with us. Bundu-Jo peacekeepers moved to intercept him, but they were slow. "The miasmids always win."

And then the first bomb went off. And then immediately a second. Everything happened so quickly. I knew what happened because my light still touched them. A few of those I had just pointed to exploded. Fire rose from the crowds and rushed to engulf all the Bundu-Jo. I stood there helpless. People screamed. People pushed to get out of the way. People ran.

Lieutenant Tanpo screamed and her shield burst from her in two orange orbs that flew over the crowds and settled over the explosions keeping them contained. I didn't know she could do that. It must have been taking a toll on her though because she collapsed to her knees as she focused her two orb shields over the fire and the continuing explosions.

"Stay behind me, sir."

Warpaint moved in front of us. The red lines on his metallic body spread over the white. The Bundu-Jo that had stepped onto the platform rushed us. I saw the detonator in his hand I hadn't noticed before. The governor screamed and ran behind us towards the Shadow. The Bundu-Jo with the Corruption pushed the detonator and a third bomb centered around him went off.

Warpaint's Aether shield surrounded the Bundu-Jo and he did no real damage other than kill himself and damage the part of the platform he was on, but the other two bombs in the crowds -

Lieutenant Tanpo's two shields narrowed in on themselves limiting the fire and damage further. But the damage had been done. It could have been worse. Much worse without Tanpo's and Warpaint's shields, but the three Bundu-Jo who set off the explosions were dead. Those nearest the two Bundu-Jo's in the crowds were dead. Many near the explosions were lying on the ground and dying.

I spread out my light to those two areas and began to heal. I didn't heal one at a time. I healed all injuries. I couldn't differentiate whose injury belonged to who. They were all blended in to one mass of injuries. I closed veins, mended bones, regulated heart beats, expanded collapsed lungs, healed burns, fixed bruises and cuts.

"Vai."

My vision went. I could no longer see anything around me. Only the injuries encompassed me.

"Vai!"

Something slapped my cheek. Hard. My eyes fluttered opened and bent over me were my friends and Warpaint. Beyond them was blue sky and wisps of black smoke. I had no idea when I had collapsed to the ground or when I had closed my eyes.

Did someone slap me? I thought I asked it out loud, but no one answered and on an internal inspection, I hadn't actually moved my mouth. I couldn't move my mouth. Or anything else. It wasn't enough. They were still dying. Still injured.

My eyes closed.

"Vai!"

This time I knew someone shook my shoulders. My eyes fluttered open again. It was incredibly difficult to keep them open.

Esther bent over me. Her hands were on my shoulders. Was she the one who slapped me? Their calls to me all blended into one voice and I couldn't differentiate them.

"You can't save them all," she said. "Stop," she pleaded quietly. "We need you. Don't lose yourself in the light."

I had to save them. My mouth didn't move to tell her so. I closed my eyes instead.

"Vai!" she screamed or maybe it was Owen. Funny how I couldn't tell them apart when they sounded nothing alike.

"Vai." Someone gripped my chin.

I managed to open my eyes again. It was Shel bending over me this time - forcing my face to turn to his.

"Don't try to heal every injury," he said. "Just stop the life threatening injuries. Leave the rest to the doctors. Dr. Rags is already tending to the wounded and there are more doctors and nurses here. Let them do their jobs."

Esther ripped his hand away from my face. "What are you telling him? Look at him. He needs to stop."

"He won't stop no matter what we say," Shel said and he was right. I couldn't let those people die.

My eyes closed again.

"Vai, only heal the life threatening injuries, please," Shel begged before I tuned them all out completely.

Shel was right. I wouldn't last at this pace. It was difficult. At first I still only saw one mass of injuries and couldn't differentiate the seriousness of one from the other. I focused everything I had to find only the bigger injuries. I closed tears in the lungs and heart. I mended a brain and closed the skull, but not the skin around the skull. I stopped the bleeding in the person whose leg had been severed and moved on. I went from person to person skipping those who only had broken bones, bruises or cuts until I fell into darkness and stillness and knew nothing more.