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There was still one group of Guardians who were close enough to the medical bay, so Strong Soul diverted them there while the others continued on to the bridge. The assault group was one that was strong enough that she could put them in the back of her mind and let them draw on her as they needed. Wind Blade was as sharp a tactician as she'd ever seen, and she trusted her to do what needed to be done. They'd shared a mind long enough that they thought very similarly, and Strong Soul knew that Wind Blade shared the same motivation. Both despised the violence, but that didn't stop either of them from studying it and training in it for when the time arose to use it, and neither did it allow them to hesitate in its use. Wind Blade would do what needed to be done.

Instead, she focused on the second group, looking through their eyes as they entered the medical bay, cautious about their surroundings, still suspecting a trap, even though they'd tasted the doctor's mind through the link and all of them knew that he spoke the truth. Through the doctor, Strong Soul had felt the presence of other humans near him, but she couldn't get a clear picture of who was there, and she couldn't rule out the chance that the human's mind was so different from hers that he may have been able to conceal something from her.

When they entered, they found the medical bay in full activity, with nurses and attendants moving swiftly between the beds. Mrr'tani and human alike moved with a unified purpose, treating both species as they came in without regard to who or why they were there. This was one of the places where the benefits of the Mrr'ouwffi could be seen, as the Mrr'tani with the River clan and the Desert clan markings were moving as a single unit, a complicated dance that needed no spoken words between any of them. They were like limbs of a single being, each one conserving movement, but when they moved, they were more graceful than Strong Soul had ever seen.

The doctor stood within the door with his arms raised as the group of armed Guardians stormed in the doorway, showing that he was unarmed, and a quick survey of the other humans in the room showed that they were either too busy or too injured to pay any attention to the newcomers save a glance to see if they were bringing in any injured.

"Which of you is the Keeper of Hearts?" he asked, looking over the group with obvious confusion in his eyes.

Strong Soul pushed her mind forward, speaking through Split Arrow's voice.

"You may address me," she said, her voice calm and even. "The Keeper of Hearts is safe, but I speak with her voice, and she hears with my ears."

She could see Steel Heart stiffen in the corner of her vision, and she turned her head that way, watching two humans coming closer. They were dressed in the garb of the orderlies, and they moved slowly, the looks on their faces showing that they posed no threat.

"John and Caleb will go with you. There are a number of us on board who don't agree with the captain's treatment of the Mrr'tani. Or the treatment of your kind in general. When they see these two with you, they'll know that I sent them."

"I understand," Strong Soul answered, nodding. "I will protect them as I do my Mrr'tani. My Guardians will keep them safe."

"They know what they're getting into," the Doctor answered. "But remember, us humans all have our own mind. I don't expect any to turn on their comrades, but I can guarantee that they will at least surrender."

"We don't wish to harm any we don't have to," Strong Soul said, "and I give you my word that none will be harmed by our hand who surrender."

A sudden blow in her mind pushed her out of Split Arrow's mind, leaving her reeling in empty mindspace, casting about frantically for an anchor. It wasn't physical what she felt, but it may as well have been, taking her breath away in the Pride, leaving her gasping and keening, her voice low and mournful, sounding so very lost even in her own mind.

Night Star's lifeline glowed strong and she pulled it, dragging herself back to her own form, hunched over the controls in the Pride, the world slowly solidifying around her, the sound of her sobbing and moaning growing stronger every second until finally she came back to herself and opened her eyes, finding only her own vision behind them.

"Mother of Mothers," Night Star whispered beside her. His voice was so shocked and aghast that it broke Strong Soul from her stupor and she raised her head, feeling the connections between her and Micah and Mary restore. Data flowed back into her mind and as she watched through the screens, she began to understand what happened.

Life signs on objects drifting in space flickered and immediately died as more than a hundred separate bodies floated slowly away from the cruiser's hull. She knew without a doubt that not all of them were Mrr'tani.

"They blew a section. Those pink-skinned, motherless apes," Night Star cursed, his quiet voice conveying only a very sliver of what the Mrr'ouwff did.

Realization was beginning to dawn on the rest of the Mrr'tani, as well, and she felt the rage ignite and spread like a wildfire through the links. The emotions were already raw and charged, just waiting for something like this to spur them to the surface.

Gasping, Strong Soul dove beneath the links again, seeking the ones that would help her the most. Her Frr'a'narr'ahn were easy to find. Trying desperately to outrun the spreading flame, she tied them to her, then dragged Night Star under with them, trusting Micah to keep the Pride safe while they were occupied. She had to get in front of the fire and stop it from spreading, before it consumed them and took them to a place she wasn't willing to go.

We need the joining, love, she commanded across the Mrr'ouwff to Night Star.

To Night Star's credit, he didn't question, and he didn't hesitate. He touched the part of him that made the joining possible, and in only seconds, all of them drifted in the mindspace, united with one single goal and one single mind.

STOP! she cried with all of their combined might.

Everything around her, in all directions and in every place she could touch stopped almost instantly. The only ones who resisted her call were the Frr'a'narr'ahn, moving as they could through the links, trying their best to spread their calm and tamp down the fire. She couldn't leave them there for long, though, as there was still fighting going on, and there had to be action.

Use the rage, Keeper, Stargazer said in her mind. The humans don't know your mind. They know only what you show them.

She hesitated a moment, piecing together his words with the thoughts he was sending her, but it took her little time to work out what he meant. Smiling to herself, she pulled back her restraint a little, feeling the fire kindling to life again, the heat of it crossing the links, and this time, she didn't stop it, she gave it a path with which to cross to all the other Mrr'tani, inflaming their anger and their rage.

This time was different, though, for this time, she kept a tight hold on how much she shared between them all. What remained, she pulled into herself. The anger of everyone around her was like a generator of mental energy, increasing her own power as she drew it in, though she had to be careful not to let it overwhelm her and consume her. The links between her and the Frr'a'narr'ahn flared even brighter and she channeled more of the energy into them, knowing exactly what she was doing to them, and their fear and uneasiness radiated back across to her.

Trust me, she said simply, feeling the hackles rise on the backs of their necks as the energy and rage flowed into them.

When the power grew to the point that she couldn't contain it any longer, she threw it back into the links, filling every one of them with the hot, pulsing energy, flooding Mrr'tani and linked human alike with it. Every one of them took what she gave them and turned it to action, rushing the remaining humans, eyes black as the space outside, ringed with the blood red of the Frr'a'tan'lass'i'ah's power, the feral screams of pure rage and hate enough to drive back all but the most stalwart of the humans.

The ones who resisted still were brought down under a wave of fur and teeth and claws as Strong Soul loosed her Mrr'tani to express their own feelings on those who did not run or lay down their weapons. Those who surrendered were passed over, though not unscathed, some wounded by stray claws, or pushed to the deck and trampled in the press of bodies, but most were left alive, collected by those who came behind the warriors, Guardians who were spared the all-consuming link Strong Soul had incorporated, or humans nearly immune to the bond.

Some of the humans, though, who had chosen to join the Federation looked to anyone observing them from the outside to be nearly Mrr'tani themselves, using fingernails and dull teeth right along with their Mrr'tani kin, though most used their human weapons from a distance to support the mad rush. Each one of them, though showed the signs of their link with the Frr'a'tan'lass'i'ah, their aim more accurate and their shots more true.

There was no thought spared to the humans in the medical bay save to station two of her guardians near the door. She could feel more of the fear and panic she inspired over her link with the doctor, but she couldn't close off his link without closing herself off to the others who needed her. It pained her, but she had to think of her Mrr'tani before anyone else. She did what she could to mitigate the worst of the energy that flowed between them, tamping it down as much as she could, directing it into others who needed it more. That much she could do with but a thought.

Then something else joined her thoughts and she watched the link dim even further. She cast about a moment, finding the source of it. Split Arrow's eyes fell on one of the Mrr'tanoun in the medical bay. He'd broken off from the others and was alone in the corner, eyes closed, concentrating. It was him that she was tasting, and it was a familiar taste. He was a void, the first she'd found beyond Night Star. Cautiously, she reached out and touched his mind with hers, and what she felt radiating back was confidence, but also compassion. Where Night Star was passion and energy, this one was loving and gentle, the perfect one to be found caring for others.

You have more important things to worry about right now, he said when he felt her mind, we will talk when this is over. For now, don't worry about the Mrr'tani in the sickbay, I will contain them.

She felt no deception in his thoughts, only a sincere desire to help, and now that she'd touched his mind, there was no doubt that he shared her goals. She merely sent a wave of thanks and then directed her attention back to the fighting.

With the power that she was feeding the Mrr'tani, especially the guardians, there was little fight left, only pockets of resistance, and she left them to the other Frr'a'narr'ahn while she focused on the Guardians approaching the bridge. When she looked through their eyes, she found herself looking at a corridor littered with sprawled bodies, both human and Mrr'tani, though the humans outnumbered the Mrr'tani nearly two to one. The fight was over and she pushed herself forward into Strong Heart's mind as he stepped onto the bridge.

Melissa turned and stared at him, wonder in her eyes as she stepped out of the command chair and to the side. Strong Soul stepped forward, her mind fully in control of her Guardian's body, and she pressed the button on the arm chair that opened the intercom to the entire ship.

"Humans of the Alan Hayes," she said, her voice reverberating with the energy she was only now bleeding off from the links, "I am the Keeper of Hearts. This ship is now under the control of the Mrr'tani Federation. Lay down your weapons and surrender, and you will be treated as prisoners of war to the letter of the law. Continue to fight and we will tear your throats from your necks."

She heard the collective gasp about her as the other Mrr'tani felt the sincerity in her words.

"Many Mrr'tani have died attempting to uphold my wish to see as little bloodshed as possible. I will no longer restrain them from taking the revenge they rightfully deserve on those who continue to threaten them. The battle is over and I am offering you the opportunity to surrender and eventually return home to your families. Please take it."

She clicked off the intercom and turned to those on the bridge.

"Take the humans to the cells. They will stay there until we can offload them."

"As you say, Keeper," the Guardians intoned in unison, stiffening before they set about their task, collecting the remaining humans and hustling them off the bridge. Others took their place as they filed off the bridge, manning stations that they never thought they would ever control without their overseers watching carefully over their shoulders.

Micah, she called in her mind, have you made contact with the ship's AI?

Good day, Keeper of Hearts, a new voice answered in her mind. My name is Eve, and I am at your service.

"Hello, Eve," she said out loud, her voice that of Wind Blade's. "Full stop, please, and prepare a port for the Mrr'tani Pride to dock."

"Of course," she answered over the speakers, "is there anything else?"

"Not at the moment, Eve," she said, smiling. Then she tapped her head and let Wind Blade's body relax into the chair as she began to pull back. "It's good to finally feel you."

She felt the answering glow of satisfaction as she pulled the rest of the way back, leaving Wind Blade's mind fully in control of her body once more, trusting that she would see to the cleanup. The world of the Pride faded back into existence finally and when it fully solidified around her, she stood and made her way out of her seat and back through the hatch the the rapidly warming interior of the Pride. No one stopped her, and only Night Star had the courage to even look at her. She touched his mind with a silent request to be left to herself for now.

The corridor was quiet and her steps echoed. As she walked, she slowly and methodically closed off what links she could, leaving them merely embers in the reaches of her mindspace. They would do without her for now. By the time she was at her quarters, they were as closed as she could make them, and she laid down on her bed, wrapping herself in the familiar scent and feel of the blanket from her cottage on Airgidbaille. Here she could let go. Here she could feel what she needed. Here, they couldn't see the tears.