"Mansr!" she demanded. "What have I done?"
"Water!" he replied, throwing his arm toward the canyon. "We had none before!"
She frowned. As suddenly as it started, the earth stopped shaking. The warriors regained themselves first and crossed to the edge of the canyon, unaffected by the water spraying on them. They were silent, staring.
Mansr regained himself and rose. She watched as he too crossed to the edge of the canyon before she rose. Her knees hurt from her landing. The distant roar of water pouring into the canyon caught her attention.
"Mansr, I don't understand," she said at last.
"Anshan has had no water since the last dhjan nishani," he said. "The plants died, the lakes dried up. We had nothing."
Her gaze went to the columns with newfound interest.
"You mean, I didn't do something wrong?" she asked.
"No, nishani, you saved us. As long as you are here, there will be life on Anshan."
As long as you are here. The words made him smile but weighed on her. She looked at each of the warriors, who watched the water as if they'd never seen it before. She'd wondered why A'Ran's water supplies were located on the nearest moon, a logistical obstacle. The thought that they had no water on the planet itself had never occurred to her.
She did this. She didn't know how, but she did it. The men around her were happy despite their stony visages. She didn't know what to feel, except she wanted to cry.
"Mansr, I'm tired," she whispered. "Can we go back now?"
He looked at her, his smile fading. "Of course. You must be exhausted."
She nodded, not trusting herself to say anything else. Her throat was tight, and she didn't think her legs would carry her. They did. Mansr led her back to the small dwelling she shared with him and his son. The encampment was a flurry of activity, and she wondered how much was normal and how much was related to the water.
She said nothing to him but returned to her small room and closed the door. Kiera lay down in the dark and stared at the ceiling. Despite feeling tired, she couldn't sleep.
"Nishani." His voice made her jump, and she looked around wildly before she realized A'Ran's voice came from the communicator. She rose grudgingly and crossed to the communications viewer. Unwilling to face him, she turned on the audio portion.
"I'm here," she said, and cleared her throat. She knew he heard the restrained emotion by his pause.