Vai

More ships jumped in around us, above us, below us. More K'thaktran ships, a handful of Starwatcher ships, many more Brist ships and a few Gathering warships that I thought might be on our side until they fired on the Nebula. I hadn't heard of any Gathering warships go missing, but they must have for them to be with the Corruption.

The connection with the SingingStar was broken. Captain Axa immediately made a ship wide announcement. "All non-essential personnel are to enter space and use their light to defend the G.E.F. All children 14 and under are to gather in the Starrise. The Starrise staff will stay on hand to protect the children."

I wondered if Spencer had been informed of this before hand or if Captain Axa had made a spur of the moment decision. Captain Axa ended the ship wide transmission and turned to us. Minmin hopped off her chair and stood beside us.

"Stay close to Lieutenant Tanpo. Let her shield protect you if the Corruption show up. Vai, if anyone from our side is injured heal them as soon as possible. That is your main objective out there. Keep our people fighting for as long as possible."

I nodded.

"Remember," she addressed all of us light specialists, "everyone out there fighting on our side will be watching you. You must be their example. You must be their hope. You must succeed and you must survive."

"They will be everyone's shining beacon," Warpaint exclaimed enthusiastically.

A smile barely touched the corner of Captain Axa's blue lips. "And if you find the opportunity," she added, "destroy as many of their ships as you can."

She dismissed us and we quickly made our way to the shuttle bay. Owen's dad as well as Hani's and Nathan's families minus the littlest ones passed through the Aether field and out into space as we arrived. Mrs. Morgan would have been one of the essential personnel to stay on board. The Awakened One and Lieutenant Tanpo waited for us near the Aether field.

"You'll need to shield me from the K'thaktran ships's beams," Lieutenant Tanpo said. "I don't know why my shield won't deflect them while yours will."

"Why can yours keep out the Corruption in vast numbers while ours cannot?" the Awakened One said. "It is your light's power. All of our powers have weaknesses."

"We'll protect you and you'll protect us," Owen said with ease.

We drifted from the ship out to space. All around us ships fired on other ships. There were many of us in space using our light against the enemy ships. The nearest ship was a Brist ship.

"Stay close to me, sir," Warpaint said. The red lines on his white, chrome body spread until most of him was red.

The Awakened One didn't waste any time as he used his gray light to rip off a large sheet of metal and sent it back hurtling towards the Brist ship. It stuck in the side, but didn't seem to cause much damage. Another sheet of metal ripped off the ship as the ship turned its weapons to us. We split apart as a green beam sparked through the area we had just been in.

Shel's purple light centered around the weapon. The weapon crushed into itself over and over again until it was useless. It had a second weapon, however, that it quickly fired towards Shel. I wasn't sure where he came from, but Owen's dad was suddenly there next to Shel. He pulled him away just as the green beam hit that space.

"Our shields don't keep out the Brist weapons," Mr. Morgan warned.

"Be sure to stay away from the green beam, sir," Warpaint said pointedly to me. He was so close to me, his shoulder touched mine. He stretched a hand out towards the vessel and an Aether beam shot a small hole into the side of the ship.

I wondered briefly how Mr. Morgan knew about the green beams until I saw Nathan's father. His light shield was weak, but it still surrounded him. The sleeve on his left arm had been completely burned away and his arm was red and black - scorched. He was in pain, but he hid it as he continued to fight with his one good arm. Anyone with the light who looked on him would see that his shield was weakening though. Nathan and his mother looked on his father more than once with concern as they battled another nearby Brist ship.

The green tendrils of my light stretched out over Nathan's father. I mended tissue and muscle. Repaired and renewed nerves. This was when he looked over at me. The pain eased slightly on his brow. Finally, I repaired the layers of skin until all the black and red had been peeled away and fresh skin took its place. Nathan caught my attention. He nodded his thanks. Then he, his dad and mom moved back to the other Brist ship and continued their attacks on it.

I turned my attention briefly back to my companions. They were all safe at the moment. Owen and Minmin had drawn closer to the Brist ship. Warpaint continued to fire Aether at it, but he always kept a watchful eye on me. From the looks of the other crushed weapon on the Brist ship, Shel's power had done its work. Esther used her power to help propel the metal the Awakened One used to further damage the ship. There were many holes now in the Brist ship. Some of the tiny Brist had been sucked through them and were dying in space. The Corruption quickly abandoned the dying Brist, but instead of joining the fray the Corruption were retreating into space.

Owen and Minmin were near the holes that the Awakened One had caused in the ship. Owen's fire and Minmin's lightning swirled together and damaged the already damaged ship. And as aware as I was of the dying Brist at that moment, I knew more died inside the ship by Owen's fire and Minmin's lightning.

My first instinct was to heal the Brist floating in space even though that would have been a never ending process. They were in space, they wouldn't have reprieve from its affects and I wouldn't be able to heal them forever. My light stretched out for them anyway. I couldn't help it. Lieutenant Tanpo was suddenly in front of me blocking my view of the dying Brists. I could still feel them though.

"Stop," she ordered, but not unkindly. "You can't save all of them and our people need you."

"This is true, sir," Warpaint said. He stopped his Aether attacks so he could focus on me and Lieutenant Tanpo. Tanpo turned me so I faced more of those fighting for the G.E.F. I hadn't noticed, but there were several of those with burns similar to Nathan's father. Even as I watched, someone I didn't know - a female Bundu-Jo - passed out and lost her light shield.

I surrounded her with my light even as I went through the expanse to them. Warpaint as always by my side. I healed her of space's effects until I reached her and surrounded her with my shield. I healed the effects of space first and then the burns. Her eyes opened and her own shield immediately went back up. I left her without a word.

Instead of going to each individual that needed to be healed, I stretched out my light in all directions to heal them.

"Don't overdo it," Lieutenant Tanpo said by my side. I hadn't realized she had followed me.

"Yes, sir," Warpaint said. "Please be careful. I've had to move you twice now or the Brist's beam would have hit you and you didn't even notice."

I hadn't noticed. "Thank you, Warpaint," I said. I looked back to the ship my friends had been fighting. Minmin and Owen were back beside Shel, Esther and the Awakened One. The first Brist that had drifted out into space were long dead. Many Brist inside the ship were dead either do to the effects of space or Minmin's lightning and Owen's fire.

Esther used her pink light to push the now incapacitated Brist ship away from the fighting. It drifted away rolling over and over in space. It knocked into one Brist ship on its way out which changed its course slightly, but it still was away from the fighting. The second Brist ship it hit lost part of a deck. More Brist floated out into space from the large hole in that second ship. My friends looked at me and Lieutenant Tanpo.

A new presence touched us. I looked around the many ships and people, but didn't see anything that would cause it.

Not yet. The Awakened One's thoughts touched all of us that held the light and as one we stopped fighting to stare at him. It is too soon to reveal yourselves. Soon. I will tell you when to come.

The presence I felt moments before retreated. More of us were injured in our distraction. I focused again on the task of healing. I was beginning to grow weary.

The Awakened One led my friends to the second damaged Brist ship and they continued their fight as I continued to heal. And I knew that we were all growing weary.