Free Determinant -Guardians of Vesturon [3] by A.M. Hargrove Page A

finger on it. As I moved along, my heightened senses were on red alert for anything unusual.
    My otherworldly abilities were in overdrive, as I searched throughout the area. I finally noticed a subtle difference in the air around me...an odor that I was beginning to detect. My sense of smell was much keener than even any animal on earth, so I used that gift to hone in on my target. As I moved nearer to it, the odor became recognizable to me. It was the sweet, cloying odor of sickness. Whoever this was emanating from was severely ill. I quickly increased my pace until the scent became overpowering. This could only indicate one thing; whoever was suffering was in need of serious medical treatment.
    I navigated around a rhododendron thicket and in the distance I could see a car parked on an old, unused forestry service road. I shook my head, trying to figure this out. Why would someone come all the way out here if they were seriously ill? Maybe they became ill after they arrived. It simply made no sense to me.
    When I arrived at the car, I realized it was abandoned. The stench of impending death nearly overpowered me. Whoever the source, they were in pressing need of assistance. I called out to see if I would receive an answer, but there was no response initially. When I first heard the voice, it was so weakened, that even my acute sense of hearing could barely detect it. I followed the sound until I arrived at the source.
    I gasped and my heart did a free fall to my knees when I saw who it was. Curled up and lying on the ground was the beautiful young female I had saved from a car collision several months before. She was the one who had captivated me...the one who I had thought of constantly ever since I had laid eyes on her. And here she was...struggling to breathe and fighting for her life. My gut clenched and revolted against what I was seeing. Her ghostly pale skin was covered with deep purple and black splotches everywhere. Her silvery gold hair was tangled and matted and her cracked lips were caked with dried blood. I placed my hand on her forehead and her skin was on fire with fever.
    The coolness of my hand on her skin must have awakened her because her eyes fluttered open, only to close again. I aimed my shadar toward her and the holographs appeared. She was indeed extremely ill, but I was certain my shadar was malfunctioning by the reading I was getting. I quickly tapped the communicator and called Julian, our healer on Vesturon, my home planet that was located in a distant galaxy.
    “My lord, what can I assist you with today?” he asked.
    “Julian, I may have a malfunctioning shadar. I need a diagnosis confirmed on a gravely ill human female. Can you lock in on my location and we can proceed from there?”
    “One moment… I have you in my zone now. Hmm, this cannot be correct.”
    “Julian, what is your reading?” I asked desperately.
    “My lord, my scanner is diagnosing her with hemorrhagic small pox.”
    “Oh no! Then my shadar was not malfunctioning after all. That is the same reading I had.”
    “My lord, small pox was eradicated from Earth over 30 years ago. And the type she has was uncommon even then. It is a very virulent form of the virus called variola major . What is her appearance?”
    “As you are aware, her body temperature is 104 degrees. She is dehydrated and has black and purplish blotches all over her skin and the whites of her eyes are deep red. Give me a moment and I will have her hologram available for you.”
    The image was up and I heard the words I had been dreading.
    “I do not have to tell you Rykerian that she may have very limited time,” Julian said with hesitancy. “She needs immediate medical treatment if she is to survive this.”
    “I cannot take her to Talasi because of the risk of spreading this disease.”
    “You are correct, my lord. You must take her to the Compound.”
    “Julian, I know not how to treat this. I know it is normally not allowed for you to intervene,