“The Rebirth of River and Lyric” (54.8) (Zeta)

River was on the ground now. After putting two magic injury healing crystals together to try and save Lyric, they lit up in a burst of energy that sent her careening backwards. She stirred.

"Lyric..." River groaned as she got up. "Lyric!"

Tik was still upright, but she was unconscious. The two crystals swirled around her, pulling her off of the piece of metal jutting through her chest. River shouted as the crystals moved faster and faster, Tik looking like a ragdoll as she was raised upward. Then, another burst of energy, and a lump fell to the ground, the two crystals now merged.

"I don't remember anything past the fight," Tik said.

"So this is new to all of us," Mars said.

"Typically, the Atrian crystals healed wounds, not...whatever that was." Tik said.

River hunched over the crystal, trying to touch it but burning her hand in the process. She sobbed as she spoke, not much of what she was saying making much sense.

"Tik? Are you there? I'll fix this, I promise," River said. "Please talk to me."

River was there for a long while. Tik didn't seem to want to push the memory forward, not wanting to lose sight of the image of River. Or maybe analyzing the moment for any clues.

"River told me she couldn't find her mother afterwards," Tik said. "And left to follow the path her brother took."

"What happened to you?" I asked. "If it's not too hard to talk about."

"I..." Tik's breath caught, and I saw something familiar in her expression. I'd felt it myself, I'd seen it on Oka's face. That look of panic hitting. Mars and Kara spotted it immediately, and were by Tik's side in moments. The vision before us dissipated like mist.

"It's alright, deep breaths," Kara said.

"You're with friends, we're safe here," Mars said.

Stella and Dr. Diast came over to Tik's chair as well, but didn't get too close so they weren't crowding around her. Gradually, she came down from the high anxiety, looking embarrassed that she'd been seen so off.

"I'm sorry," Tik said. "I've been dreading seeing that again for so long, and..."

"It's OK," I said. "I get it. That's how...yeah. You saw me when my parents showed up."

"We're an anxious lot, aren't we?" Stella said. "You're in good company."

"Water's always good after a panic attack," Diast said. "Do we maybe have some in that bar setup?"

"On it," Mars said.

As Mars got us all glasses of water on ice, Tik further composed herself before we continued, choosing her words carefuly.

"I'm sorry that after so long this is all such a mess," Tik said. "I don't know if any of that made the slightest bit of sense, but I think it was important to face it. And I at least owe you some explanation on this if we're to continue studying these."

"It's fine if you need more time," I said. "I can't imagine wanting to see any of that again, that must have been so tough."

"Thank you," Tik said. "But I can at least say this." She held a hand forward, conjuring another image. A swirl of emerald and violet twisted, and Tik floated within it. "After my injury, I woke up in that place. I didn't know if I was alive, and for a long while I remained there, trying to understand the situation I found myself in. My wound was healed, and I wasn't hungry, thirsty, or tired in this place, so I couldn't ignore the possibility that I'd died. I am not sure how long I waited. Eventually, I felt a pull to use my powers. I reached out, and..."

The younger Tik floating in the swirling emptiness held her hands out, just as she'd done now to use her powers. Instead of showing a vision of the past, a ghostly copy of herself came from her powers, flying forward. The world went mushy again, and the ghostly Tik emerged onto a beach, where River sat alone at a campfire. River's eyes welled up immediately, and the vision abruptly ended.

"It became quickly clear that I was trapped in the merged crystals," Tik said. "And River made it her life's mission to free me."

Tik was fine by us now, so River must have succeeded. I tried not to speculate as to why she wasn't with Tik now, as just beginning to form thoughts about that made my tummy upset.

"We'll continue from there another day," Tik said. "I think that's about all I have in me right now."