Dedicated nurse learns of her surprising future as queen of 800 thousand worlds.

Photo by Cottonbro on Pexels.com

Nursing Home Blues

Another weary day. I loved taking care of all the elderly folks. I hated nursing home work. Three people to a room. No space to drag in a Hoyer lift. My back ached. How I longed for time to spend with every eager face, the ones who still responded. So, I enjoyed the sunshine between bus and the front glass doors of Browne Skilled Care. My reflection showed my brown skin and my long, black curls with a neat braid to hold my hair back as it lay on my shoulders. My neat deep blue scrubs won't be by the time I finish my feedings. People think I'm Black, but Daddy's from India, a busy doctor. I'm not as dark as he is because Mama is white.

 I thought maybe a small nursing home would allow me to spend a little time with the residents.

Nope. I worked as a nurse's aide for a couple years while I did my pre-req's for my combo BS/MS degree at GSU, then school full-time, and now I'm an RN. Nine months, and I'm nearly burned out.

I got my cart and filled up my pill cups for my first patient.

"Hey, Alice! Didja hear the news today? The UN's talking about a treaty with the aliens!" Shirley caught me up on our patients. Not much time to talk about anything worldly at shift change. Finally, she told me why she was 15 minutes late coming out of Room 115. Mrs. Thompson passed. We loved her. Stupid infection. If we had enough staff, she'd still be alive.

The aides get burned out. Stay too long at their breaks. Who can keep morale up with 150 patients per shift, per aide? They get all the diaper changes. Shirley never worked as an aide. Never talks to 'em. She sees them as lazy bums who don't want to work. Treated me like dirt until she knew I had my RN. I was glad when we finished and she left.

As I went among the sea of rooms, one lady followed me. "Aliens won't come here, will they, Alice?"

I laughed. "They might solve some of Earth's problems! I saw a news report on the bus how they want to teach us to sell our garbage! It's in the treaty they sent to the UN."

"If they don't take us to feed their kids! They'll come places like here, first."

And, so it went. With Helen yakking, I was slower, but she needs someone to talk to.

Suddenly, a hologram formed in the hall! Helen backed away! I put my arm around her. I helped Helen steer her walker to a padded bench in the hall. Sat her down, and a copy of me sat there with her. "For a minute there, I thought aliens got us!"

My holo laughed. "That light's about to go out. There." The light above us flickered, then went out.

In front of my meds tray, a man had a bow almost like a split going! "Alice Lerner, I am Vanaras, Sixth Galaxy Minister. Your holo will finish for you."

Helen looked sleepy. "I'm gonna go watch the news. See ya later!"

My holo winked at me as she went back to work.

I trembled. "SETI?"

"We are speaking to SETI, but that is nae why I came. Please, come. Ne shall harm you." He held out his arm to me. I put my hand on it and a green swirl showed a room with hundreds of people! We stepped and stood there!

People gasped and bowed to us. Like ballet dancers.

"Ah, we have important business. Excuse us, Friends. Miss Lerner, please come. Here is Milstarrh~, Master Healer. He will stay by us." An older man—these orange-skinned people have twin fingers and toes? Bowed low. His silver curls swung onto his shoulders as he rose.

I tried to return it but Vanaras stopped me with a gentle touch at my shoulders. "I can teach you bows, Maiden. For now, please follow. Ah, Nadt~, come with us. Nadt~, Master Diplomat Of Zhea~, will stay by you at all times." He also bowed. This time, I just stood still. He kept his green eyes on me and those strawberry blond curls bounced as he came up.

We all went into a room with a scene. Vanaras stood in a big family. His domed house was like a bunch of them. In the background were bigger buildings in a huge circle that looked like flat, nine-sided gems! Every color in the rainbow and a few extra. Orange sand and sky but rainbow-colored clouds. Pretty!

We walked through the picture and I tried not to flinch.

A holo came up of a nurse like me! Red-violet scrubs, not the gray we wore here. "Hi, I'm Laura Martin. You're an RN. So am I. So you know how important it is for people's diapers to stay dry, to avoid skin breakdowns.

"Look at this!" She gave me a green cube. "In there is a second skin called an aandat. Everyone on Earth will get a white one. All you have to do is hold it down by your leg and let it ooze out. Gross, I know, but it'll flow up your leg and cover your torso. Once it places itself, it doesn't move again. It's actually a colony of single-celled organisms.

"An aandat does three things for you. It eats all your germs. Viruses, bacteria, any kind of microbe, even the prions that cause Mad Cow Disease! Cuts and bruises'll heal faster.

"You will never need a bathroom again, except for maybe a bath to relax. Your poor patients won't have to endure diaper changes, and any infections will heal up within a day. You won't have to check them. But, your management might require it. Just drag your fingernail along where you want it to open, and it'll peel back. Give it a gentle pat or two to make it cover again."

"But the best thing is, you'll get telepathy! You can learn Zheien Healing, to use your telepathy to heal people! It's like the laying on of hands, but you need training to know how to use it so you don't accidentally hurt someone. Usually takes 2 to 3 days for telepathy to come in."

She smiled, and her green eyes sparkled. Auburn waves framed an enthusiastic face. "Here's what happened when I put mine on."

She was sitting on a bed with other people. A man in white robes—orange skin and twin, rectangular fingers—held a big clear box with a pink mass in it. He touched the bottom corner nearest her and it fell on her leg.

Laura screamed! It zipped up her and vanished! Then, she cried. The holo ended with a man holding her and comforting her. He had twin fingers, too.

"Well, I hope you won't be scared. It didn't hurt. I just felt creepy. Want to put yours on? I'd suggest you do it right now! Your patients need 'em! Once you know what it's like, you can tell them." Didn't have to tell me, twice! I held it down against my thigh, and a lot of it made a puddle on my shoe. Flowed up. I felt a little creepy, but it was warm and soft, not slimy at all!

Didn't pull the hairs on my skin, either, as I expected. In about 15 seconds, it stopped moving. I felt strong! I'd been exhausted. Stress. Deaths.

This spaceship, made of red-violet clear stuff! The color of Laura's scrubs. But hers had Rainbow Head Injury Recovery Center on it. I almost got a job there--

Breath caught in my throat! I thought about getting to Mama, but a hologram showed her, showed our house.

Dad was already there, and a man in white robes was singing. I felt peaceful. Sat on the sofa on Mama's other side. She slept, but she had normal weight on her!

The white robe laughed and I heard him in my mind. Your mahie is cured. She will sleep for hours. Don't worry. "Dr. Lerner, your daughter is on the Embassy Ship. I want to take you there."

"But, you were going to teach me this Zheien Healing--"

"You have to have telepathy. It takes 2 or 3 days to get it. Please, Dr. Lerner—"

"But my relatives are coming! I have to wait for them."

The holo vanished.

"I am very sorry. We sent a diplomat and Siasch, the healer you saw, to your home. They will protect your family. I wish to show you why we came to you. May I?" Vanarah bowed again. Waved up a deep blue bench for us to sit on.

I nodded. Didn't know what to expect.

His twin-fingered hand brushed my forehead. Like hot suede, very soft. The red-violet hull of the ship vanished.

A pale orange Zheien came into the rock-hewn room. Dressed in white tunic and pants with gold trim and a sash with a lot of decorations. So handsome, I caught my breath. Golden hair that flashed tiny rainbows in the light. Deep blue eyes, large eyes, even for a Zheien. And, he carried himself as if he belonged in front of an army.

Carefully, Siasch left the bed and ran to the man. "Ish, you need more rest!"

Ish stumbled as those dark blue eyes rested on me. Opened very wide. "You share the link?" He meant the Diplomatic Link, a telepathic link usually held by diplomats, not healers like me. His voice, deep, yet light, made my heart skip.

In my arms, Aubus cried. "How long before Fa comes to me?"

"Not long, Aubus." I snapped out and sang healing for him until he slept.

When I finished, Ish sat beside me, trembling. "Maiden, may I speak with you?"

I giggled. "My name's Alice. What's yours?" Zheien have shortnames. Let's see what he wants me to call him.

"Ishmarel, of Zhea~, but for you, I am Ish."

Rasch took Aubus out of my arms. Siasch's light-haired son. Siasch put Ish on a leiwege and bent it for him. Then, made himself scarce with a wink.

"Want me to sing a little healing? You look like you've had a rough day."

I felt incredible sadness from him. "All days are so, now." His blue eyes filled with tears. "I came to Siasch, unwell, and his healers cannot heal the damage of setsera after ferefet, a meal I shared with Mesapans. I am foolish, to sit by you, but my mind touched yours and I felt curious. Your thoughts are loud, Maiden." I saw diplomats after Mesapa, who died.

I put my hands on his head, and his mind opened right up. A diplomat, opening that far? I heard his loud thoughts of how beautiful I was. How he'd never—

"Now, why would a handsome man like you ever think you'll never get married?"

"I am unwell!" He sobbed, so I pulled him into my arms and kissed his forehead. Kept a hand on top of his head.

"I see your unwell. I'll take care of you, Ish." What am I saying? I just meet this fella and I'm in love!

Ahstam warned me, many Ahstams warned me to back out of his mind. But, he'd been lonely and I'd been lonely. Both of us knew we violated all of the Zheien protocols and felt bad about it. All these years of devotion to duty. All these years of seeing suffering. Ishmarel lived suffering! Meals of poison. And, that last one, that robbed him of his rightful title. He can't leave this place. He can't travel on a ship.

At lightning speed, using the Diplomatic Link for a purpose it wasn't meant for, we shared our lives. His life: Growing up on Zhea~ itself, where all the hundreds of thousands of Zheien colonies came from. My life: Daughter of a busy doctor, who threatened to disown me when I left med school for a career as a healer. Dad didn't have time to discuss it. I didn't. So, I left Earth determined to succeed, then shove it in his face. Spoiled brat, Alice Lerner. By the time I came back to Earth, Dad was dead of a heart attack. No family left that wouldn't be trying to change me. Adopt-A-Slave didn't want me.

I gasped, as the red-violet walls came back into focus. "That memory was from my point of view, but my hands looked older! I was thirty! But, I'm 18!" One of several 17 year olds in our class. Molly, a much younger student, and I passed our licensing. They didn't.

More memories came faster. I married Ish. He died!

Nadt~ gasped, and he changed into Ish. Bowed. "Maiden, I did nae die. In this future I nae had injury to cause such severe unwells. I am Ishmarel, King Of Zheiea, and I am healthy. Do you love me?"

I nodded. Slowed down my breathing. Tears still got past my blinks. Memories still flooded me!

"Milstarrh~, please, help her! Ahstam is with me!"

He smiled and put his hands on my black curls. Hummed. I felt better. "Eae, I do love you, Ish! Is it proper, that I call you so?" I looked to the side and lifted my right hand.

He took it. Dropped it! "Ee so ya oeo, Alice, emotion is too much!"

"Are you well?"

I looked up into Nadt~'s white face! "Maiden, I lost contact! Fear ne, I have Ahstam. Is our liege unwell?"

He changed again into Ahstam's form, but young with red curls! The same light blue eyes. "He is well! Love is difficult. I listened to healers on your ship. All who saw futures had perils and had to marry! Our portal will take hours, but we have comfort. There is ne pain. I made him to sleep. Fear ne, I will hold him. We left from Alb at ah—"

Vanaras waved a display. "You left at 7:15 am, and should arrive about 3:15 pm our time."

Ahstam hugged me. "I can ne stay, but know I am with him. He will ne die. Is a shock, to see himself so unwell. He had little rest in our travel to Alb, and many meetings. His sleep was unwell last night. Now he can rest so you will see him more well on our arrival. Have you questions, Yea~ Alice?"

The title shocked me, but I nodded. "I am happy you hold him, Pah~ Ahstam. Rest and be well, if you can, inside a portal." I dipped my head.

He did the same and touched my hand. Became Nadt~ again. I struggled not to cry.

Vanaras put me on his lap. "Nae hears. You may cry, Liegess."

I did! The memory of his death hurt. I married his cloned ba, but later they revived him in Rainbow and I stayed with his ba. He married a girl named Harmony. In Rainbow. But, we lived in He Bae, on Zhea~. Dad didn't live long after I left Earth, but he disowned me. Oh, I felt angry. Zheiea needs me more than he does.

"Yea~ Alice, my diplomats explain to your father. We ne expect him to understand, but we can show him the memories of your bravery, with your permission. They might convince him."

"I give you permission, Vanaras. If it works, it works. I shall ne change my mind. I love Ish! Should I call him so, yet?"

He hugged me. "I think it pleases him much! Are you well to speak with King Marel'vanrah? He worries much for you!"

I ran hygiene on my face and stood. "Can you teach me to bow?"

"Ry'nao worries. Ne bow. Adia harmed herself and needed healing! Our emperor feels ne Earthan should bow until they have time for practice. I can begin your teaching later. Please, comfort our liege!"

I smiled. "I am ready."

This time Vanarah stood in front of me and he became Marel'vanrah. He had long, bright silver curls. Deep blue eyes that opened wide. He wasn't as wrinkled as I remembered. With a smile for me, he bowed and came up gracefully, as only a Zheien can. "Miss Lerner, I am Marel'vanrah, Elder King Of Zheiea. You said you love my bae?"

"With all of my love! But, how shall we wait 6 months?" I sobbed.

He hugged me. Pulled me to that bench and held me on his lap. "Neither of you can wait! I asked of our Council and they said if Ish had perils, they wish you to marry! So I do. Ryonne~ had to marry his Adia. If he had ne strength to wait, his telepathy is even stronger than Ish's, so I think my bae can ne wait. Ryee, come."

Ryonne~ ran in and bowed low. "My liege!"

"I beg, be honest with me! Have you unwells?"

"I am well, Liege—"

"May I call your Pas to you?"

He startled. "Ea."

Nadt~ became a healer with black curls, but red-gold eyes. "Ryee? Are you unwell?" Then he saw King Marel'vanrah and paled! Bowed low. "My liege!"

He chuckled. "Ne bow, but see Ryee for me. I wish to know if he has unwells from his quick marriage."

Pas made him sit beside us. Spread his fingertips across Ryonne~'s forehead. Frowned.

"Tell me, honestly, what you see."

Pas paled and Ryonne~ went orange in his face. "Pas, tell our liege honestly. He wishes to know how Ish will fare. He is in a portal until about Hour Four."

A gasp. "A portal? A few of our diplomats and traders took them to other worlds in Alb. About half of them needed healing when they landed! There is too much newness, Liege. Ahstam told me many are very unwell on Zhea~. High emotion, without memories of a future with unwell, is enough to bring perils. Do you have your healer near?"

He laughed. "Pirad made enough clones of Ahstam, every world in Alb shall have one! His host is with me."

"And, is he happy with your schedule?"

Ryonne~ frowned at Pas!