Hello all of my beautiful, wonderful readers! Thank you all for reviewing, to those of you that did, it all means a lot to me!

Sorry to leave you on a cliffhanger last chapter, but here is the next chapter! I tried a new perspective this chapter, tell me whatcha think!

Also, give me any suggestions! Oh, and I LOVE you guys!

Rainbow

Eight: Lost

"Keep low." Jared says, tightening the pack's strap over his muscular shoulder. We're bent behind a rock-like formation, red and baked in the sun, watching the scene far down below.

"This is as low as I get." I grumble, practically sitting in the sand my squat is so low, rubbing my sore thighs from running. The jeep is parked about two miles from here, and we ran to check out the situation. Now, we are crouched behind this sort of burrow out-look, peeking over the see in the distance the reflecting, silver cars and speck-like people in white suits. A red, flashing light is twirling on top of a white van, but it is too far away for me to see.

"Oh please." Jared rubs a hand on the sensitive part of my lower back, placating me. "Do you think it's humans down there? Seekers caught them?"

"I don't know." I shrug, brushing a stray piece of my dark, shiny hair from my face. Frustrated, I snap a rubber band from around my wrist and tie it back, but a few stray shorter pieces still flutter. "Can I have the binoculars?"

He hands me the special tool, and I hold them to my eyes, focusing with the small dials. Down below, under a few stray trees, I find two Seekers in view, dressed in their traditional all-white attire, their bluish eyes reflecting off of the mid-day Arizona sun. They are talking, a shorter, Asian woman and a man much taller than her with a clean-shaven face.

"Seekers." I mutter, shifting my gaze to the white vehicle. Now that I can get a closer look, it is easy to see that it is an ambulance with its red and blue flashing lights, a few doctors, of "healers" as the souls would call them, around a figure on a stretcher.

"What's wrong, Mel?" Jared nudges my arm, longing to have his own eyes to see.

"Someone's hurt." I don't pull away from my gaze, fiddling with the dial on the seeing device. "Damn, what are all these seekers doing here?" My helping eyes find not only the herds of seekers, but a figure on the stretcher. God, he's sunburnt, whoever it is; I make out an arm blistered with heat, and I remember Wanda and I, when we were one, lost in the desert with our burning, red skin. This person is worse; whoever it is, has fair skin, and it is redder than a tomato.

"Let me see." Jared reaches for the binoculars, but I shy away again.

"Give me a minute." I say, making out the face of the patient. So mangled, sun poisoned, dead-looking. But familiar, so familiar. Strong jaw, black hair, straight nose, unbroken like his brother's.

I drop the binoculars and drop on my hands and knees, panting to get ahold of my breath.

"Melanie!" Jared drops next to me and swears under his breath.

"Ian." I sit upright and hold my head in my hands. That face I would recognize anywhere. When Wanda was inside of me – before she was inserted into Pet's body – she had trained these eyes to recognize that face no matter what. I know it is him.

"What?" He sits me up against the rock, his hands cupping my chin, palms on my cheekbones. "Mel, come on."

"No!" I exclaim, my nervous fingers pulling pieces of my ratty hair from the low ponytail at the nape of my neck. "Ian's down there! Our Ian, damn it, Jared!"

"You're shitting me." He sits back in the sand and picks up a handful of sand, sifting through it with his fingers. "Melanie. Baby, I love you. But Ian… he's gone. He isn't coming back. Mel? Melanie, are you listening to me?" He waves his hand in front of my face, calling me back to reality.

"Look for yourself." I motion to the binoculars on the ground, and he slowly wraps his fingers around the neck strap, holding the lenses to his eyes. I watch as he gazes in fascination through the device, slowly lowering it in surprise as he comes to the same realization I had.

"Fuck." He, too, throws down the goggles and leans back against the boulder-like crevice.

"Told you." I say smugly.

"I was sure he was…" Jared trails off, uncomfortable to talk about Ian in this way. The past – what? – 3 months, everyone has been walking on eggshells on the topic. Wanda, my sister is broken. She goes stiff as soon as he is mentioned. Just sitting there. Waiting.

"Well, he's not." I hiss under my breath and push off from the ground, falling into a sprint.

"Aw, damn it, Melanie!" Jared shouts, grabbing my calf and dragging me down.

"Wanda can't live like this!" I cry as he drags me back while I claw at the sand. "She needs him back!"

"Mel, STOP!" He cries, grabbing me by the waist and throwing me on top of him back behind the rock. "Are you suicidal?!"

"We can fight them off." Struggling, I fight for Ian, for Wanda. She would do it to me if she saw Jared down there. Do anything to get him back, which she did. She sacrificed herself for me, nearly giving her life so I could be happy, to have Jared and Jamie. "Jared, that is Ian down there. Wanda will die – she's so sick. I can't stand her sitting there – staring. She doesn't eat, doesn't sleep. Not even Jamie can help her. It's been over 3 months, Jar. We need to get him back."

"Mel." He wraps his arms around me, burying his face in my neck. I close my eyes, wishing all of this was over. "Come on, Mel. What if he was – road kill. What if they were just picking him up off the side of the road, just a blackened crisp left over from the sun."

"Don't." I wince against his chest, my breathing heavy. "He's alive. I know it."

"And what if he's a soul." Replies Jared after a very long moment of silence. "What then, Melanie."

"I don't care what he is." I tug my fingers in the hair at the back of his neck. "Ian could be like me. Fighting to get out. And whatever he was doing out in the desert – he was almost to Wanda. And that's where he's meant to be. We have to get him back, Jared. We have to."

"Okay." He finally agrees, pushing his thumbs on my cheeks, his fingers behind my ears. "Trust me, Melanie. We'll do our best to get him back." His hot lips touch mine for a few seconds. "I promise. For Wanda."

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Numb.

Frozen.

White.

All things I feel. None of them are emotions. Just things. For an extremely long amount of time I am stuck in this state, going nowhere, just drifting.

Slowly, I come back, beginning to once again have feeling in my fingers and in my toes. I can think clear thoughts. Where am I? Is this the end? Where is Ian? Not here.

Ian, where are you?

I need you, Ian.

Are we dead?

No answer. Empty head, no voice in my brain. I get what I always wanted, a body to myself, for Ian to go away. But why am I not happy?

"Dancing Flame." A gentle voice is urging me, calling me back. "Dancing Flame, can you hear me?"

I think I nod, but I don't feel my head moving.

"Try to move your fingertips if you can hear me." The soothing voice comes again, persuading.

This time, I can feel my fingertips moving, wiggling against a soft, smooth surface that feels like fabric. Maybe cotton.

"Good." The voice, I think it is a woman's, praises. "Now, can you slowly open your eyes?"

With a flutter of my eyelids, I do what she says, opening to a dim, yellow light. Like the sun, only dimmed by a thousand. This color is gentle and warm. Inviting, even.

"Welcome back." The woman speaks, moving the light away from my eyes so I am not blinded. "My name is Healer Rebecca."

I mumble unintelligibly, an action I have no control over. A soft, gentle hand strokes over my hair, smoothing it firmly across my forehead.

"Do you know your name?" Healer Rebecca urges.

"Dancing Flame." I mutter, my tongue tied up around my teeth.

"Yes, that's right. Dancing Flame. And do you remember which planet you hail from?"

"Fire Planet." I spit out more words, unable to create full sentences yet. My brain is not working properly, and Ian is still gone.

"Yes." The healer nods, her soft, auburn hair bobbing at her shoulders. "Do you remember what happened to you, Dancing Flame?" Her silvery eyes reflect the light off the tiny sun-like lamp, bouncing onto the white sheets over my body.

"Water." I moan, my mouth too dry to speak. I need it, I realize that now. They must give me water.

"No, dear soul. You were wandering around in the desert." She is confused by my begging. If only I had drowned, that would be a better way to go.

"No." I gasp through my dry, shriveling lungs. "Water. I… need… water."

With a gloved hand, Healer Rebecca presses a plastic glass to my lips, and I try to sit up to sit the water.

"Do not sit up." She instructs, taking the water away.

"Why?" I rasp, panting. It is like my entire mouth down to my throat has become the dry, hot desert I had been in what seems like only moments ago. When I lay down beneath those trees, closing my eyes. Hot sand everywhere, in my clothes, my eyes, my shoes.

"Drink, Dancing Flame." She ignores my question and again holds out the water. I sip it greedily until the whole glass is drained, and lie back with my head on the cold, flat surface while the healer sets the cup aside.

"Are you feeling better now?" Asks the healer, and I try to nod. That seems to be enough for her, and she swivels her chair towards me again. "The Seekers found you out in the desert. Your heartbeat was hardly there. You hadn't consumed enough water to sustain, say, a mouse, even. It was a wonder you made it that far. The paramedics sustained you. We've been caring for you for three days."

Three days of nothingness. Drifting and not really even thinking until now. It seems impossible.

"You are very sunburnt." Healer Rebecca explains. "We didn't want to treat you until you were awake, but it is very severe."

From where my head is lying, I can tell that I am burnt to a crisp. Reddened, blistered skin on my arms, and I can feel the burning sensation on my face, which I'm sure is the most damaged.

"It's painful." I manage to say, and bite my tongue at the sudden burn on my skin. That part of me even feels swollen and red.

"Don't worry. I'm going to heal you." She takes out a small aerosol-looking can with a misting cap at the top. "This is called COOL. It will repair your damaged layers of burnt skin."

I lie back patiently as she removes the sheets from my body, gingerly spraying the invisible liquid over my burnt skin. It hardly stings, but my skin feels cool, like she's just trailed an ice cube over my body.

"Better." I breathe a sigh of relief.

"Good." She smiles. "We've had you on support a while now, just some IVs to keep you comfortable, hydrate you." My eyes find the needle plugged into my arm, tracing it to a clear bag of liquids. Usually souls just have their special medicines, designed to fix any illness right on the spot. Why are they using methods the humans created long ago?

"Mmm." I close my eyes again.

"Stay with my, Dancing Flame."

I open my eyes again, lifting their lids, and my vision swirls around me.

"There's someone here to see you."

Wanderer, I think dreamily, finding the visions of her beautiful face in my head. She's so beautiful, my love. Focus on her, and all will be well.

"Dancing Flame." A harsher, demanding voice interrupts my thoughts, and Claudette is suddenly standing over me. Her usual, red lipstick is bright against all of the soothing whites and dank yellows in the room.

"He's only just recovering, Seeker." Healer Rebecca interjects, but her time here is finished.

"That will be all, Healer. " Claudette turns to her and gives her a callous glance. "Thank you for your time."

"You're welcome." The Healer exits the room, giving my one last sideways glance.

"Welcome back." The Seeker sits in the chair that was left by my healer, and leans over me. "Feeling better, Dancing Flame?"

"Very much, so. Thank you." I state, somewhat focused. It is very hard to look at her face with that bright lipstick. Like it doesn't belong here.

"I'm not one to say – 'beat around the bush.'" She begins. "I want to know – why were you out in the desert, Dancing Flame?" Claudette's silvery eyes bore into my head, like somehow she can burn a hole through it just by staring.

"I – I don't know." I try to sit up, but something is holding me there. Cold metal is wrapped around my ankles and my wrists. I am restrained. Why am I restrained?! Struggling, I try to become free from the metal clasps, but Claudette's strong hand pushes me down hard.

"You do know." Persists the Seeker. "Tell me, Dancing Flame. Were you searching for Wanderer?" Cold, mean voice. Like a buzzing mosquito in my ear.

Wanda. Me almost dying. Ian dying. Is Ian dead? No, he can't be! The last time I heard his voice, he said goodbye. Is it possible for him to die, and for me to live? Or is it just vice versa? Did I kill Ian?

Yes, I was looking for Wanderer. MY Wanderer. I did not reach her, of course. I will never reach her. She is gone, my beautiful, beautiful love it gone, and I will never hold her in my arms, the sweet, unearthly woman.

"I –" Beginning, I'm not sure what I should say. Is it even worth it to protect Ian anymore now that he is gone? "He lead me out there. I thought it was a nice place to – explore."

I have never lied before, and it sounds so false, even I want to laugh. Any other soul would accept it, but I know a Seeker will not. And Claudette is not amused.

"So, memories – and I say memories, assuming you received some from your host – lead you out here, correct? Close to other sightings of other humans, and near where us seekers have had problems before. And you tell me that you were just going to – explore?" Cocking her head, she crosses her arms over her chest, her eyes narrowed into slits. "Does that even sound convincible to you?"

"Yes?"

"Is that a question?"

"No?"

She sighs, obviously frustrated. "Do you know where you are, then?"

"A hospital." I state, content to finally know the full answer to one of her questions. "They say I was almost dead." Shivering at the thought, I close my eyes for a moment.

"Nope." Annoyingly, she pops the 'p' on the 'nope.' "You, my friend, are at the Seekers' headquarters, Phoenix Arizona: Psychiatric Ward." Claudette arrogantly states, her small nose in the air.

Some I'm in a mental hospital? That is why they've got me tied down. They think I will hurt myself. Or hurt someone else, or even try to escape.

"For what?" I ask.

"You aren't aware of what you happened to be – "mumbling" – while you were sedated?" She stands up and begins to pace, her annoyingly loud high heels clicking on the hard ground. It is like a horse's hooves on asphalt, thought Claudette is nowhere near a horse.

"Well, no." I have the heavy urge to roll my eyes, and I am shocked; that is something Ian would do, not a soul like me.

"You were having a two-sided conversation with yourself." She produces a pad of yellow paper and begins flipping through it. "Dream talk, almost. But – the other side was so unlike you, Dancing Flame. And I thought to myself – who were you arguing with?"

Ian, oh Ian. Was he truly coming through when I was unconscious? Were we having an unknown conversation while we were "asleep?"

"I talk in my sleep." I mumble, turning away somewhat angrily. Ian, please come back to me! I can't lie, you know I can't!

"Not when you're heavily sedated." She stops walking across the room, staring not at me, but with something I can't see. Not while being pinned down this way, anyway.

"So you think I'm crazy?" I ask while trying to work my wrist from one of the tight cuffs. From where I can see where my arm is exposed, a red welch is rising on the skin of my wrist from trying to get free. "You shove me in this – this Insane Asylum?"

Claudette shakes her head, nearly chuckling her bubbly laugh under her breath. "We don't use that word anymore."

"That's what it is." I snap back, acid leeching into my tone.

"Ah." The Seeker laughs. "Are you becoming like Ian, Dancing Flame? Should I call you by that name, now?"

I turn away from her amused tone. This is not fair! Why is she doing this? Does she know that Ian is in my head? Was is my head. Oh, Ian, come back to me! Where are you?! "What do you want, Seeker?"

"What do I want?" She is suddenly beside my bed, or really table, kneeling so we are eye-to-eye. Her face is cold and mink-like, her crazy mouth drawn into a devilish smile. "I want to end the human resistance. I want Earth to be at peace. I want you to stop hiding things from me."

"I'm not hiding anything, Seeker."

Another insensitive laugh. "Keep on telling yourself that, Dancing Flame. Keep on telling yourself that there is nothing wrong with you."

My lip quivers, and I tug aggressively at the restraints. "There isn't wrong with me."

"Tell that to Ian." She hisses right by my ear. And with that, she stands up in one swift motion, striding out of the room.

"Ian." I whisper, my voice wavering as a tear slips over my cheek. "Ian, please."

My mind is empty. No Ian. My own thoughts.

My eye catches the yellow papers Seeker Claudette left on the chair, facing my bedside. Realizing that it is not a pad of notebook paper, I read the words at the top of the medical form.

Scheduled Insertion.

As I read down the papers, I read my own name over and over. And Ian's. And the Seeker's.

No! NO! This can't happen! The Seeker cannot have my body! She cannot have Ian's memories! She cannot get to Wanda! My Wanderer! No! No! NO! I will protect you, I will keep you safe my love. They will never find you, no, no, no.

"Ian." I sob under my breath, the tears streaming down my face. "You need to come back, please, please. Wanda needs you. I need you. We're going to die. They're all going to die."

No answer. Ian is gone.

So what did you think? Let me know, the review box is right down there! I thought this chapter was pretty good, and it is setting up to go into the next few chapters.

I would like to give out the HUGEST SHOUTOUT EVER to aqualizzard. Thank you darling! You helped me come up with the structure for this plot, and I am very grateful!

Also, again to evi ive and MaverickPaxAPunch for once again being my faithful reviewers!

Love you guys, and if you have any ideas, please leave it in the review box! Sorry to be leaving you sort of on another cliffie! Love you guys!

Oh, and if you enjoy Host Fanfictions, I've been reading a good one called "Take What You Can Carry" by straightoneverland. Enjoy, I sure did!

Thanks again!

Rainbow