Larano led me out of the room, up stairs, down corridors, and at last into what he called the Council Chamber. It was a square room, well lit from three windows. On the one windowless wall was a design. It was a cat, caught head on, pouncing, paws and claws extended. The cat was black, the eyes narrow red slits. The mouth was open, showing sharp white fangs, and the extended claws were silver. The background was solid red, and the border was a perfect silver circle. I stood gazing at it for a minute. Larano noticed and said, "That's the Cat sign, the symbol of our Clan."

I tore my fascinated gaze away and took my first real look at Larano. He was taller than me by several spans, probably a little over six feet tall. His wild red hair fell past his shoulders. He was strongly built, but not overly bulky. He had a pleasant face, I thought again. Rather large eyes, straight nose, firm chin and jaw. He was dressed in a light blue sleeveless tunic and darker blue leggings that tucked into his scuffed, dark brown boots. There was a blue belt around his waist, with the red and black cat design that was on the wall. "Your clan?" I asked.

"The Clan of the Cats. Each Clan has...had, it's own symbol."

I nodded my understanding, then jumped in surprise as Kelari seemed to materialize in the room. "They're on the way," she said cheerfully. I studied her. She was not as tall as Larano, but still had a span or two on me. Her hair was a rich gold, with a dark streak. Not along the middle of her head, but down the side. It fell well past her shoulderblades. Her eyes were a darker gold,
or perhaps a warm amber; I was too far away to decide. Her features were very beautiful, but with a feeling of foreignness to
them...her eyes larger, cheek bones higher. She was wearing a yellow tunic with elbow-length sleeves and brown leggings. Her
boots were black. She also wore a cat-sign, on a necklace disk.

A few moments later, the first of the young men entered the room, followed after a moment by the second. The first, Rhulath, was not as tall as Lar, but he was a great deal more muscular. He did have hair, I realized after a pause; it was just cut so close that it was hard to see. Short black fuzz. His eyes were a startling deep blue. His skin was somewhat darker than Kelari's or Larano's; had he been Debilese, I would've called him olive skinned. Or maybe a little more so. His face was rugged, his features more blunt. His expression was impassive. He was wearing gray leggings, boots and tunic, and his cat sign
was also on a belt; a black one.

"Welcome," he said briefly in a deep bass voice. Somehow, I'd expected that.

"Thank you," I replied. Rhulath and Kelari seated themselves as the other young man, Tyrbrin, entered. He was as tall as Lar, but leaner. Not thin, though. His hair was cut much shorter than the other Cats'; and was partly light brown, partly darker brown. He also had a fairly attractive face, though somewhat longer and thinner than Lar's. His eyes were dark gray. He was dressed in a long sleeved, dark red tunic and black leggings. His cat sign wasn't on a belt, for he wasn't wearing one. It was attached below the V of his collar. He wasn't wearing boots, but a different sort of footwear that looked a lot like soft shoes. He studied me, smiled slightly, nodded briefly, and took a seat.

There was the sound of rapid footsteps, and then the two children burst into the room. They looked to be about seven or eight,
and were probably twins. The girl was wearing a pink top and lavender shorts; the boy, a green tunic and brown shorts. Their hair was brown, the girl's-Kitrila's-in a ponytail, the boy's-Katreth's-running wild. They both had very deep brown eyes, and they paused to look curiously at me as they entered.

"Go sit down, you two, don't just stand and stare," Larano told them briskly. They both flushed and murmured an apology as they hurried to their seats. "Anyone seen Sarth?"

"I'm here," answered a high-pitched voice, and in walked the four-legged creature I'd taken as a pet. About twice the size of a Debilese domestic, it...he, I realized...was obviously another intelligent species. His cream colored coat was very short,
but very thick. He walked delicately, his bobcat-marked tail straight in the air. His face was definitely feline, but also clearly
rational. I had heard of different species co-existing, but had not encountered the phenomenon before, and it stunned me.

"Hello," the animal said to me.

"Hello," I replied inanely.

Larano touched my arm and indicated the open seat on Kelari's other side. I sat down feeling very out of place and rather ill at ease. The strangeness had been all right with only Lar and Kelari, but this council was intimidating. There was a brief silence; everyone's eyes were on me, and it made me feel quite shy.

"Let's start with names," Larano suggested. Kelri, Tyr, Rhul, Reth, Rila and Sarth all introduced themselves. I immediately
noticed the use of the 'rrr'; sound, and made a mental note to ask about that.

"And I...my name is Katiyana Mer-Nesatu. I go by Tiyana."

Then the questions started.

"The planet I come from is called Debil. Well, we-yes, we, three of us. No, they...died. Not in the crash, in accidents, trying to make repairs. We were seriously off course, got pulled out of light-speed. Probably passed too close to a gravity source. And all the systems kept breaking down; navigation, communication, main drive...by the time I was orbiting this planet, I had virtually nothing mechanical working. No, I didn't really know where they were sending us. The ship computer had the specifics, before it went out. I was supposed to bring back a report on a perhaps-habitable planet. Don't know exactly what they were planning. I didn't volunteer." That remark caused a brief silence. "I was given instructions and the two technicians and told to leave in three days. My superiors at the medical center were very angry about it and tried to have it changed, but couldn't. Yes, I'm a healer. Well, flying was involved. When people called the center for assistance, I'd fly a jetter to where they were and bring them back to the center for treatment. Or treat them on the way, sometimes. Only then it wasn't mental. Yes...I have no idea how it works, just that it does. I healed myself. And I'm a telepath, now. I had training on Debil, so I'd know how to handle it when it awakened. There are rules about eavesdropping and suggesting, and I will not break them."

There was another silence, then Kelri said, "I'm telepathic, too, but I';ve never had any training. While you're here, would you be willing to teach me?"

"Of course," I replied.

"Speaking of while you are here," Rhul put in, "you know your ship exploded?"

"Yes," I replied gravely, with a glance at Larano. "I was conscious."

"So you can figure that it will take a while to get it spaceworthy again."

I nodded, then frowned. "There's another problem, too," I mused. "Figuring how to get back to my own sector of space.
Like I said, we were seriously lost." I felt my anxiety rise. Surely there would be some way to solve the problem; but Rhul and Tyr exchanged an uncertain look.

"I'm sure we'll find a way," Lar echoed my thoughts. "But we should look into that problem before we start working on the ship." He didn't say why; didn't need to, but I wasn't going to think of being stranded here. Not yet. "In the meantime, the Den is the safest place for you to be, until you get used to the dangers here." Lar glanced around the table and received nods from everyone. Then he turned back to me. "You are welcome here," he said formally. As a guest. The thought had the sound of Tyr's voice. It seemed he didn't want me to stay too long.

"I thank you," I answered Lar. "I don't want to impose...by which I mean, I'll be glad to help with whatever I can." That statement brought a shine of approval to several pairs of eyes. I was offering to earn my keep, and they seemed to appreciate
it.

Several hours later, I stood at the window of my bedroom and considered. The first thing to do, I thought ruefully, was to make a map of this Den. I'd been all around it, inside and out, and the only thing I could truthfully say I knew the location of was the reservoir. That was outside, behind the Den. I'd wondered why, with such enemies, they'd let the water supply be so vulnerable. The reply had been that there was a purification system, and that the enemies could not get so close without being seen anyway. The enemies, I mused. Sadistic brutes and evil magic. It seemed unlikely that I could help against such threats. "But at least I can heal, if healing is needed." The healing talent had really surprised me. Kinesis and Telepathy were the usual psi-talents. And the occasional precognitive. I was glad, in a way, that I didn't have the gift of seeing the future.

There was a light tap on my door. When I turned, Kelri was standing there, looking a little shy. "C'mon in," I invited. She smiled and did so.

"I was wondering," she began, then stopped, flustered.

I decided to help her out. "If you aren't busy, we could start the training you mentioned."

The young woman's whole aspect relaxed. "I was trying to think of a way to bring that up," she admitted. I nodded and sat down on the bed. Kelri joined me. I reached out and laid my fingers on her arm. In passing I noticed that Cherelle had been right about contact between unshielding telepaths; contact did increase the "feel" of the mind. Kelari was a very strong telepath, stronger than Cherelle...and lonely...and frustrated...

I took my hand away before I invaded more of Kelri's privacy, feeling suddenly felt unsure of myself. I would never have
attempted to teach anyone of Cherelle's caliber; I'd never taught at all! And her strength made me wonder how strong a sender I was myself. I'd have to see...later.

"I - felt that," Kelri said wonderingly. "You were surprised at how strong I am."

"Yes. You're even stronger than my teacher. Now... the first thing to do is learn to shield. That means keeping your thoughts inside your own mind. The easiest way to do it is to imagine a door. When the door is open, the thoughts and feelings
and images can get out, and other people's sending can get in. When the door is closed, nothing gets in or out. The wider
the door is open, the more strongly the messages will register. If you try to send through a narrow mental crack, it's going to be much harder for you. But if it's too open, people may pick up things that you don't intend them to. You'll want to experiment a little and find the comfortable, but not too wide open, point."

Kelri absorbed this in eager silence, then nodded. "How?"

"Well, send a thought to me and see how it feels. It’ll probably be a good idea to visualize the door; watch it swing open
and the thoughts drift out."

Kelri nodded again, and lifted her hands to her temples. A look of intense concentration appeared on her face.

"No, no, stop right there, Kelri."

She looked up, letting her hands drop.

"Don';t force it," I explained. "Intense concentration only inhibits you. Let the thoughts drift, at first. Guide them, don't shove them. Like sand, or water. Just open a door and nudge them over towards me."

The picture that slowly formed behind my eyes was of a wooden door, partly open, with sunlight streaming through it.

<Good. Now try a thought,> I suggested silently. The picture wavered a little, then Kelri's voice answered.

<This feels about right, this openness.>

It didn't take long for Kelri to catch on, and in the process I discovered something that rather unnerved me. Cherelle had
been one of the strongest telepaths on Debil. Kelri was much stronger than Cherelle; I knew because my teacher had sent to me frequently. Kelri's range would be farther, and her images were clearer. But that didn't trouble me. What bothered me was the realization that I was an even stronger telepath than Kelri. I could tell by comparing her energy flow; something Cherelle had also taught me. I used less energy, which meant I would have more energy to draw on for a longer range; and it was long range sending that tired a telepath. I had had no idea that I held such power.

"You know," Kelari said through my musing, "it's almost effortless now. In fact, all the effort is from trying not to concentrate too hard."

"That'll pass, with practice," I assured her.

She sighed. "Well, but who can I practice with?"

"Can't the other Cats receive your thoughts?" I asked, surprised. She could only send to one person at a time, of course, but I didn't think you had to be telepathic to hear a sending. Though it might cause a headache...

"Oh; yes they can."

"So use sending instead of the communicators."

"I don't know why I didn't think of that!"

"Well, communicators have their place," I said with mock solemnity. Kelri looked at me and we both laughed. But after a moment she sobered.

"Communicators have a far greater range than I do."

I nodded. "Still..."

Kelri stood and stretched. "Thank you, Tiyana," she said softly. "I've always regretted that there was no one to train me."

"You're welcome. You have great natural talent, Kelri."

She smiled. "I'm off to bed; we get up at dawn here. But you get up when it feels right to you, until you get used to the rotation, okay?"

"Oh!" I hadn't considered that. "Oh, thanks for mentioning that. I wouldn't have remembered till the sun came up."

"Good night."

"'Night."

After Kelri had gone, I got up and went to the window. I stood there for awhile, thinking about these Cats. Lar was certainly
pleasant to be around, friendly and cheerful. Kelri, too. Rhulath - Rhul - had not said much; in fact he'd said very little, but I was sure I'd seen sympathy and respect in his expression...briefly. Tyrbrin - Tyr - had seemed to hesitate between a cautious camaraderie and a noticeable distrust. He'd asked the most questions. "Well, why should he trust me? I haven't earned it yet." The two cubs, Reth and Rila, had been totally silent once they'd told me their names, though they had shown a lot of interest. It was as though they were afraid to speak out of turn. ..And Sarth. Sarth fascinated me.  An intelligent, rational creature in the body of an animal...

My thoughts turned from the Cats to my new abilities. Sending and healing. Sending, I'd been more or less prepared for,
but healing... No one could've trained me for that! "At least I had medical training; without that I'd be completely lost" I thought. And then the corollary hit me. No other person on Debil had the power to heal mentally. What kind of exploitation would I face when I returned? I'd be deluged with demands to heal...and heal... until I burned out. There were thousands of people who needed some cure that science didn't have. And how many would die while I healed one person of one thing? What were my limits, anyway? Fear crept through me. I stared up at the cool greenish moon and shivered. I was a healer; I could never refuse to heal. Even if I limited myself to the most desperate cases, over time the boundaries would widen. An exception here and there...

A sudden sound. I turned, startled, to see Tyr outside the door. The sight of him reminded me that the problem of my healing was not the immediate one. I felt a sense of reprieve.

"Thought I'd warn you, in case no one else did," Tyr began. "We take turns keeping watch at night, it's saved us a lot of trouble. It doesn't happen too often anymore, but you may wake to alarms going off. If you do, you'll want to get to the Control room; it's more strongly shielded than the bedrooms."

"Oh...okay," I replied. I tried to remember how to get there from here. I must've looked confused, for Tyr smiled and told
me, "Upstairs, third door on the right."

"Thanks. It's going to take me awhile to get used to this place."

"Oh, a rote or two."

"A rote?"

"Rotation. Dawn to dawn."

"Oh. A day and a night."

"Yes. I have to get on watch, but if you want, you can meet me and the cubs in the reading room tomorrow. I teach them there; it would be a good way for you to learn about us, and about Rendila."

"So," I thought, "this way you'll have control over what I find out." I nodded agreement. I wasn't annoyed; actually I was rather impressed at Tyr's caution. He left, and soon after, I decided to sleep.

Over the next four days...rotes... I began to see why Larano had looked so pensive when he mentioned fighting. I saw and heard a lot of fighting, but not once in those four days did the enemies attack. The fights were all between the Cats. Most of them were snappish little things and over fairly soon, but there were a few that started over something trivial and escalated. It bothered me intensely, for although no one argued with me or asked me to take sides, it was very unpleasant to listen too. It also caused rifts between the Cats; Kelari quit speaking to Tyrbrin for two rotes. When the thing was finally over, it wasn't over, for they were both stiff and formal for another day. It was depressing how the only emotions given free expression were anger, wariness, sulleness, and that thing I learned to call neutrality. Neutrality was polite, formal, and said very little.

Arguments aside, the four rotes were fairly good. Everyone seemed anxious to make me feel comfortable among them. Tyr was not the only one to teach me; in fact, all the Cats taught and explained things to me. Kelri and I became fast friends; she confided that it was very pleasant to have another adult female around. The only thing that really distressed me was the fact that we could not find a course that would return me to Debil. I could not even point out my home on a star map. There was also a minor difficulty with the native food. Tyr took the emergency rations I'd shoved into my flightsuit pocket several days before and ran a comparison on Rendilan foods after I had a bad reaction to a fruit on the second evening. The first night, I'd woken
hungry and eaten some of my rations, and nothing at the morning or midday meals had disagreed with me. He found only one
really poisonous match, but there were a few others that I decided to avoid as well.

On the fifth day, I learned about Thuron's cruelty...the hard way.