When Nick woke up, an unfamiliar ceiling loomed over him. He stared at it blankly, just concentrating on breathing. His side hurt a little with each breath, but the pain was...sort of distant. Unimportant. Each time he blinked, it took a moment for his eyes to refocus.

I feel a bit spacey. Hah. 'Cause I'm in space.

Eventually, he realized that he was in Sickbay aboard the Kalash-Quovo.

"Petra?"

"Yes, Nick?"

"Status, please."

"Your health is increasing. Doctor Vickall did small cutting of your body. You need to not move a lot."

"Petra, 'cutting the body' to heal someone is called 'surgery.' The doc did 'minor surgery.'"

"Thank you, Nick. The doc wants to speak with you."

"All right."

The door opened, and Dr. Vickall stepped in. "Hello, Nick of Earth. How are you feeling?"

"I'm..." Nick stopped and blinked a couple of times. "It's hard to think."

"Oh?" The doctor stepped up to something that looked like a control panel. "Let me change a little. Tell me if pain is too much." She worked some controls. Within a few seconds, Nick's head cleared, and his side began to throb a bit with pain. "How's that?"

"I can think now, thank you. My side is throbbing."

"That last didn't translate. Rephrase, please?"

"Um...Nick waved his hand vaguely at his side, in and out. "Pain, pain, pain, pain..." he chanted.

"Ah. It is lameshak. Thrubbing, as you say."

"Throbbing."

"Yes." The doctor looked at him, then back at the panel in front of her. "I do not know how fast your species increases health, but you are improving. I guess three days in bed, then you can move a little."

"It could be worse. Thank you, doc."

The alien rubbed her nose. "Thank you for honor."

Nick blinked. "Sorry? I didn't understand that."

The doctor looked surprised, then seemed to grope for words a moment. "You said you will give them live if I helped you. My people live. What you say, you do. The fuak!a listen to you. You say, they do." Nick noticed with a little jealousy that the Goldaskian was able to make the sounds of the Kthufu language without apparent difficulty.

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"Are they all down on the planet now?"

"Yes. All but not ten of us."

"Do you want to stay?"

"Very yes. Life on ship is better than life on the planet."

"Do your people need you down there?"

The alien lifted one shoulder—it looked odd, like half a shrug. "They want me. They do not need me but not they are stupid. If I go with you, I can send message, tell home world to send rescue. Their heads are full of meat."

Nick snorted, then winced. "We have the same saying on Earth. We have people like that, too. Often they are in the military."

The doctor nodded. "If a world not have people like that, I want to go there."

"How long have I been asleep?"

"Two days."

"How long is a day on ship?"

"Twenty-two hours, thirteen minutes, eight seconds," Petra supplied.

"That," the doctor added helpfully.

"Thank you, doctor. Can I see a fuakala visitor?"

"Yes. I will tell Geh!kin you are awake."

"Thanks again, doc."

"Same, Nick of Earth." The doctor left.

It was only a couple of minutes later that the door opened again, and it was Geh!aoa. "Nik!eh, it is good you are increasing health."

"Thank you. How is everything?"

"We held the na!ko!o!a without you. We are sorry but we could not wait."

"That one word didn't translate."

"We gather and speak of the ones who died."

Nick's throat got tight. It took him a moment before he could say, "The word is 'funeral'. I am sorry I missed it." He pursed his lips, feeling unsettled. "Jen-Ana. I'm sorry, Geh...aowa—"

"How you say is good, Nik!eh."

"Thank you. I wanted to ask...how did Ktheg...uh...lik die?"

Geh!aoa's ears folded most of the way over her face. "I am sorry, Nik!eh. I am not sure, but I think Ktheg!lik died to save me."

Nik!eh sucked in a breath. That's a heavy burden. "What happened?"

"I used flash-bangs and grenades. I was zezenka... I can't see. I can't hear. Someone take me, pull me into bathroom, fall on me. When I can see, I look. It was Ktheg!lik. She was shot." Her ears had slowly started opening, but closed up again. "I think they wanted to shoot me. I think they shot us two at same time. Ktheg!lik took most of it, and I survived, with...help." She gestured vaguely at her chest. There was no green fog there now, but Nick remembered seeing it.

"There wasn't enough left to save her," Nick told her. "Instead, it saved three other people, including you."

Geh!aoa's ears unfolded. "You told Petra to save us?" Nick nodded. "Thank you, Nik!eh. You saved me."

"No," Nick disagreed. "No, Petra saved you, and Kathy—Kthegulik—saved you."

There was a pause. Geh!aoa sighed, and said, "Ktheg!lik was my friend. We went to learning-village together. She was two years more than me. She was...good to me when I was new." She looked directly at Nick. "She was your friend too, I think."

Nick nodded, his throat tight, and blinked back tears.

Geh!aoa's ears flexed a bit. "Nik!eh...you cannot...say you are sad?"

He cleared his throat. "I am sad."

"I mean...you cannot say our names, you cannot make the ! sound. We say ! when we are very sad."

Nick cleared his throat again. "Humans...eyes get water...and we make other sounds, when we are very sad." He reached up and wiped his eyes quickly. "Human males...hide eye water, hide sounds."

"Oh."

The two of them were quiet for several moments. Nick was remembering Ktheg!lik, and expected Geh!aoa was doing the same. Finally, Geh!aoa straightened, and seemed to fold her ears back very deliberately. "There is good news," she offered.

"Yes?"

"We use the ship's scanners, and we find more survivors."

"That is good news. How many?"

"Eight now. We think we will find many more. This ship can save them. We will not stop until we rescue every fuak!a still alive, Nik!eh. We will not leave any of them to die."

"That's good. That's good."

Geh!aoa nodded. It looked as if she were trying to close her ears again but resisting. "I think Ktheg!lik is very happy we find more fuak!a, Nick. I think she think it is good. I think Ktheg!lik is happy she die, because it help us get this ship, and help more and more fuak!a live, and help you live, Nik!eh."

Nick's vision blurred.

"I will go now. When you are alone, you do not need to hide eye water. Get well soon, Nik!eh." Geh!aoa let herself out, and no one came in for a long while.

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