Free Helix by Viola Grace Page A

her onto the next table.
    He covered her with a soft cloth and smiled at her. “Hold still please while I check to make sure that you are completely recovered.”
    “Where am I? What happened?”
    He cleared his throat. “I will answer your questions once I am sure that you have been repaired to my satisfaction.”
    She kept herself quiet while the scanner ran a beam over her from head to toe. It gave her time to take a good look at the man studying the readout.
    He wasn’t brown, he wasn’t blue, but he was something in between. His skin was a few shades lighter than her own, but the blue tinge made up for it. His hair was the truly striking thing about him; it was deep crimson and was braided and studded with small bits of silver and bronze.
    His ears were pointed sharply at the tips, decorated with metal, like his hair, and the rest of his features were lean and elegant. He was very pretty, but she didn’t know who he was any more than she knew who she was.
    He sighed and smiled. “You are fine. Your body is wonderful. Now, we need to set your mind in place.”
    “What?”
    “Sit up, please.” He had a halo in his hands with small tabs set around it.
    She sat up but cringed back. “Why?”
    “You were damaged in a storm. Your memories were blurred, but I have a download of what were able to recover. The halo has them stored and will restore them to you.”
    She blinked suspiciously. “How do I know that you won’t put something else I my mind?”
    “I am a medical professional. I will not take advantage of you. On my honour, you will come to no harm by my hand.” He placed his hand on the centre of his chest.
    She swallowed and nodded, bowing her head forward to accept the halo.
    “There will be a tingle, but as these are your memories, you should be able to absorb the information without pain.”
    She inhaled on a shaky breath and watched him as he pressed the keys that would show her who she was.
     
    Learning to ride a bike and laughing at the freedom.
    High school prom night and her first time getting drunk.
    The thrill of acceptance to the Volunteer program back on Earth.
    Three sisters and a going away party, strippers painted in four different shades of the rainbow.
    A stern commander with horns teaching her to fly a shuttle.
    The images of three dozen worlds and chasing the dawn on every one.
    Harmony Nina Winx. Courier of the Alliance and Terran Volunteer.
     
    More information flooded her, but there were large gaps in her memories.
    “I am Harmony. Alliance Courier. Who are you?”
    He grinned. “You managed more than I thought. I am Nero, physician and restorer.”
    “Pleased to meet you. Now, what the hell am I wearing?”
    “The metal offers you insulation and a protective field.”
    She wrinkled her nose and looked down. “Can’t there be more of it?”
    He chuckled. “It is designed to give you complete freedom of movement.”
    She looked down at the swirls and twists of metal. Her essentials were covered but that was the most that could be said about the concealment it offered. It was more a bikini than a covering.
    She flexed her arms and legs, moving against the slight restraint of the suit. “It feels weird.”
    “Are you cold?”
    “No. I am fairly comfortable.”
    “Good. The suit has the function of reporting to our systems if you have any issues. Would you like to try standing up?”
    She wasn’t sure. Her body felt weird, like it didn’t know what would happen next. “Give me a few minutes. I don’t feel quite right.”
    Aside from the huge gaps in her memory, her callouses were gone. She looked down, and her scars were gone as well. Harmony rubbed her hands together and felt the infant-like smoothness.
    Nero left her alone, and he fussed around a computer terminal on one side of what appeared to be a well-equipped medical bay.
    Harmony continued to check for the scars that should be there while she looked around her. There was the clear wall of a tank in front of her.