Misty Clouds Above sat at the front desk and watched the snow fall out the windows of Northwestern Memorial Hospital. As a flower she had strongly disliked the cold and as a human she did not care for the city's icy weather. Once again she considered if it would not be better to move to one of the warmer cities on this planet. But in the warm hospital it's fun to watch the snow fall, protected from the cold wind, it was oddly peaceful.
Her thoughts were interrupted as the door to the outside suddenly burst opened and two people rushed in from the cold winter night. Blowing wind sent snow swirling around them as they enter. Misty gaped upon seeing the taller one held someone. A smear of bright red blood on the body being carried. Misty Clouds Above's body trembled at the thought of what must have happened to the poor Soul.
"Oh please," said the shorter Soul who came in with the taller, "there's been an accident."
Misty Clouds Above hands shook, but she remembered her duty and quickly picked up the phone to call for help. The stout woman approached the counter as Misty made her call and she took a few spare moments to look her over. Her body was a short middle-aged woman with curly reddish hair. In the bright lights of the hospital the silver in her eyes reflect like twin mirrors. As she finished calling for on-call Healer she asks the woman, "Oh dear, what happened to her?"
The red-haired Soul smiled gently and explained, "She was in a car accident. She hit her head and has a serious wound. I'm Autumn Gusting Wind and my friend found her. We brought her here right away." She glanced back to her companion who still held the injured woman carefully.
"Well Autumn, we'll have a Healer down here soon. Your friend can sit her down if he's tired," says Misty. She found herself impressed by how strong Autumn's friend was to support the injuyered woman.
Misty wondered if she saw a flicker of worry in Autumn's face but assumed it was out of concern for the hurt woman. With a small smile she said, "No, he will be okay. But more importantly you need to contact Healer Matthew."
"Why?" asked Misty.
Autumn pointed to the small blond-haired woman unconscious in her friend's arms, and said, "She is Sings from the Shadows, Healer Matthew's partner."
####
Marc followed Autumn Gusting Wind at a careful distance as the two Healers wheeled the injured Sings from the Shadows into what he assumed was a surgery room. Soul medical technology was a mystery to Marc. He had seen wounded Seekers miraculous recovery from battles with humans when the Souls were still fighting for control of the city. However, he had seen little of how the medicine worked. Early on in the invasion hospitals became insertion centers for the alien Souls. Sick humans went in, cured Souls came out. Marc and his friends learned to stay far away from such places. As curious as he was about how Sings from the Shadows would be healed, he felt desperately anxious as he walked after the Souls.
As planned Autumn was doing all the talking with the Healers and so far no Soul had taken much notice of Marc. He had not liked the idea of bringing Autumn into this bizarre rescue operation Scott had started, but saw no other choice. He listened as she explained what had happened. She was not lying to the healers so much as leaving out a few key details. They seemed satisfied with her explanations and had hardly asked him any questions at all.
Hopefully he would be able to make a discreet exit and get back to Scott. Marc worried about his friend. He understood the pain Scott was going through. But what Scott had done put all Humans in their little community in danger. Usually Scott was the level-headed in their small band of renegades.
The Healers stopped at a small room and with great care moved Sings from the Shadows from the gurney to a bed. They talked softly among themselves as they checked her head wound and began open a small white container labeled INSIDE CLEAN. Marc felt he would be pushing his luck staying longer and moved to speak with Autumn when he heard a voice behind him and his blood ran cold.
A familiar irritating voice said, "Well how else would you explain the situation?"
Marc fought himself to not cringe into the wall as two Souls dressed in black uniforms walked right past him without noticing him. The smaller of two a woman with short black hair walked with a tall man with a graduly receding hairline. The Seeker from the train station!
With his heart in his throat, Marc followed after the two Seekers as they turned down a corridor. He could not make out what the male Seeker was saying, but the female Seekers voice traveled down the hall. She sounded very agitated.
"We have Soul attacked on the train, what else could it be than a human?"
Marc's stomach lurched and he felt himself starting to sweat. He hoped fretfully no one would notice as he drew closer to the pair of Seekers. They stopped at a small room and Marc quickly ducked into a nearby empty room. He strained to listen through the wall.
"Now, Long Starless Night, can you explain what happened?" asked a man. Marc groaned as his fears were confirmed.
"Well," said a soft voice Marc had to strive to hear," I don't exactly remember. I know I was sitting next to a Soul who called himself Sings of Twilight. He was…acting oddly. Then the next thing I know I was waking up with the train conductor and several healers around me."
The irritated Seeker woman said, "Are you certain it was one of us…not a human?"
"Human!?" said Long Starless Night in apparent panic.
A man expressed in a cheerful voice, "Now, we don't know that for sure. We just need to ask you some questions so we can understand what happened." Marc assumed it was the male Seeker.
"I wish I could be more helpful," explained Long Starless Night, "but I don't know exactly what happened. What became of Sings of Twilight? He seemed so…upset."
"We are looking for him now. He will have much to answer for," said the woman. Her agitation growing as she talked to Long Starless Night.
"We will be reviewing video footage from the train and we'll learn more about what occurred," explained the other Seeker. Marc filched but was already exiting the room. This night just got worse by the minute.
He made his way back to where Auntie was waiting. He hoped she had not gotten worried by his unexpected departure. As he turned the corner he saw she was talking to a blond-haired Soul in scrubs. The young man's face was white and his eyes were fretfully watching events going on in the small room. Marc walked past without stopping. If things were different he would have liked to meet this Matthew. Maybe Scott was right, this Healer could be sympathetic to the Humans and an ally like Autumn Gusting Wind. But for now he had more pressing issues.
"No rest for the wicked," grumbled Marc to himself.
####
Scott waited in the shadows of the empty parking garage. He pulled his coat tighter around himself and rubbed his hands to generate some warmth. While the garage did give protection from the icy wind, it was still terribly cold. He wondered how much longer he should wait for Autumn Gusting Wind. Of course he could be falling into a trap. For all he knew a team of Seekers would be showing up, not the kindly Soul. But he was responsible for this whole crazy affair, he would see it through.
He heard the sound of a door opening and then the muffled voices of two people. Looking out from his hiding spot, Scott saw two familiar people, the short plump body of Autumn Gusting Wind and the taller one of Matthew. They strolled into the garage, their voices calm and gentle like all Souls.
"You never informed the Seekers?" asked Matthew.
Autumn responded, "Many times I thought about contacting the Seekers. I know it was our expected duty, but I never do. I think of the way Marc grins, Kate laughs, or the way Nancy and Greg look at each other and I can't do it. I'll not be responsible for bring them to an end…to erase them."
"Do you not worry they could become violent? When I found the two humans in the hospital basement I was so worried they were going to attack me," said Matthew as the two Souls walked down the aisle.
"I know some humans are violent…I've seen them. But Marc and his friends have never been anything but kind to me," said Autumn.
Matthew paused to consider. "How can you be sure? Could they not be deceiving you?"
"I know, because I love them," answered Autumn directly, her voice thick with emotion.
Scott pulled himself from the shadows and said, "Love you too Auntie."
Both Souls jumped at the sound of Scott's voice and the Human tried hard to not laugh as he carefully walked into the light of the central aisle. He smiled at the two and held up his hands in a gesture of peace. "Sorry about that, force of habit."
Autumn Gusting Wind composed herself and indicated to Matthew. "Healer Matthew, this is Scott Adelman."
The healer's eyes were as wide as possible as he took in Scott. In a near whisper he asked, "You saved my Sings?"
Scott nodded his head once. "I did. Is she going to be alright?"
Matthew swallowed hard as Scott slowly approached. "She will. Thank you for saving her." Matthew's nervous expression weakened and became replaced with curiosity. "Why did you save her?"
Scott thought through tonight's events. How his actions lead him to this Soul, who stared at him with a mix of fear and wonder. Scott supposed it would easy to think of this as some sort of miracle, a chance meeting when he needed it most. Or maybe it was just a cosmic amount of dumb luck. In the end, there was never going to be a way to know for sure, and he knew it did not matter. Only that he saved a life.
"I suppose," began Scott, "you could say we owed you for saving Jason. But I don't want to you to think this was some type of payment." Scott paused as he struggled to put words to his conflicted thoughts. "It would be natural to think of my actions as just some sort of trade…a life for a life. There is an old saying…Whomever saves one life saves the whole world. I don't think before tonight I ever really understood those words, but I do now."
Matthew's brows came together in confusion. "Saving a life is saving a world?" The Soul considered Scott's words and then smiled faintly. "I think I understand. Sings from the Shadows is…my whole world. And you saved that world."
Scott extended his hand and for a moment Matthew stared blankly, not understanding the gesture. But then with a geniune smile he took Scott's hand with his own in a firm handshake.
Autumn also smiled at the beginning of the new friendship but then frowned, lightly dismayed. "Scott, where is Marc? He left the hospital in such a rush…is everything alright?"
Scott sighed and rubbed his temples, knowing he's the source of this particular problem. "Marc…had to take care of a little problem."
####
"Slow down Eric. I don't type that fast," complained Marc as he keyed in a very long set of commands into the computer terminal. He could hear an irritated sigh on the other end of the phone. For all of Eric's skill with computers, he wasn't very good at explaining how to work them. Eric always insisted he was a computer hacker, not a helpdesk technician. Marc had not known there was a difference.
Marc sat in a small office of the Chicago Transport Authority office. At this hour no one was working in the building and Marc was operating in nearly complete darkness to not attract attention. Getting into the building was easy. The office's basement was readily accessible from the tunnels. However, getting a connection to their resident hacker was a bit more complicated. Marc could only roll his eyes as Eric, with exagerated pride in his voice, explained his ingenious setup using words Marc would swear were not English.
"Okay, tell me what you see on the screen," asked Eric's voice through the phone's speaker.
Marc looked over the screen, most of it indescribable lines of text. The part he did understand was the video file he was watching. "I see the video of me knocking the Soul out. You sure it's not easier to just delete the file?"
"Trust me," explained Eric, "if they see the file missing the Seekers will know something is up. My way is better. We'll edit your fight out of the video. It will just show you getting up from the seat. We just need to delete a few key video frames from the file and then re-encode the time stamp."
Marc groaned, "Eric, I only understood about one in four words in that sentence."
"Understanding is not required, only obedience." Marc could practically feel Eric smugness over the phone.
Marc bit his tongue and did not respond to the insult. If they survived this, he was adding Eric to the people he planned on dumping into a sewage pool. "Fine, just tell me what to do."
####
The snow had stopped falling but at this late hour Autumn's visitors had decided to stay the night and not risk going home until morning. Now only the Soul and the Nun remained awake. Sister Mary-Margret stirred her tea while Autumn Gusting Wind prepared her own cup. "May I ask why you call Marc your little stray?"
Autumn smiled at the question. "When I first moved here there was a stray cat I was attempting to feed. One night I heard a noise outside and thought it was the cat. I was very surprised to find a young human rummaging through my garbage can looking for food. At first I was very frightened. I thought he would attack me. But as Marc stood there shivering in the cold I found myself offering him food."
"A beautiful story of compassion," said Mary-Margret smiling fondly at Autumn Gusting Wind.
Autumn looked down sadly at her tea. "I'm afraid many of my kind would not agree with me or my actions."
Mary-Margret quietly replied, "The Good Samaritan"
Autumn frowned lightly and asked, "What does that mean?"
"It is a parable…a story. A man traveling is set upon by thieves, beaten, robbed, and left for dead." She watched as the Soul's eyes grew large as she shivered. The nun smiled reassuringly to Autumn and continued. "Several people pass by the dying man and ignore him. Then a Samaritan finds the man. The Samaritans are enemies to the injuyered man. Of all the people who could help him, the Samaritan should be the last one to help. But instead of ignoring him, the Samaritan takes the dying man and treats his wounds and cares for him until he recovers."
Autumn considered the story and then turned in her seat and looked into the living room where Scott was on the couch, softly dozing. "Just as Scott helped Sings from the Shadows tonight."
"Yes," nodded Mary-Margret. "Your simple act of kindness had a profound effect on Marc. He learned not all Souls wanted us destroyed. You helped him to survive in this new world. He then helped others. Now Scott's actions will have an effect on Matthew and his partner. The smallest of mercies can end up moving mountains."
Autumn reflected on the Nun's words. She smiled but then her shoulders slumped as she grew sad. "I wish other of my kind could hear your words. Mary-Margret you are proof we Souls were wrong about humanity. But I fear no one will listen."
Mary-Margret smiled at her new friend. "While you are correct, many Souls would only see us as a threat to end, we have found two Souls who share in your beliefs. Perhaps there are others."
A soft knock on the door interrupted the two women and Autumn rose and walked down the hall to open the door. She smiled as Marc came through the and gave her a huge hug. They spoke in soft tones as he followed Autumn back into the kitchen. Marc smiled at Sister Mary-Margret, but then opened his mouth in a huge yawn.
"Marc, you didn't need to come all the way back tonight," admonished Mary-Margret.
"Needed to make sure everyone is safe," said Marc sleepily. "Is Scott alright?"
"He will be. Now I believe you need to get some rest Marc," said Sister Mary-Margret.
"I'm all right," replied Marc. But another giant yawn betrayed him.
Autumn Gusting Wind joined in. "My little stray, to bed with you."
Marc looked between the two women and gave up trying fight them. He smiled a sleepy grin and said, "Yes Sister. Yes Mother." This earned him a blushing smile from Autumn and annoyed look from Mary-Margret. They both watched him go, joining the others already sleeping in the living room. He laid down next to Scott and within minutes was fast asleep.