I was hauled to the sick bay and laid upon my stomach on the surgeon’s table, whereupon I fainted once again. At the next seizure of pain I opened my eyes—and there you were, mere inches away from me, tending to my wounds with a cloth in one hand and a bottle of spirits in the other. You moved slowly, tentatively, as if every movement you were making was for the first time. I recognized the same hesitation in myself. Reynier, the surgeon’s mate, stood by your side, looking at you quizzically, sensing all was not right with you. He could not know what I knew: that, not knowing what to do, you were waiting for the impulse to come to you from somewhere unknown, that in your hesitation you were searching for some intuition of what to do next. You were listening to your new body, waiting for the memories of what to do to come to you, one at a time: take the rag, dab it with spirits, press it gently upon the wound, and though it hurts the man, undoubtedly, it cleanses him too.

I continued to sink in and out of sleep, each time awakened by the throes of suffering my wounds inflicted upon me. You bent over me, alleviating my pains by adding to them, aided by Reynier, who sensed your uncertainty and gently suggested the techniques as were normally used in such situations. In my pain, I was consoled by your nearness. When you brought a cup of water mixed with spirits to my lips and told me to drink, I took comfort in your touch.

“Koahu,” I whispered in the old language through my veil of agony. You seemed not to have heard me. “Koahu,” I repeated in our language, “it’s me, Alula.” I thought I saw you freeze for just an instant, and glance at me, before you resumed your activity. “Koahu, I saw what happened with the medicine man,” I said. “I followed you. I crossed too.” The words came out with great effort, as the new mouth was unaccustomed to making such sounds.

You put your hand on my forehead. “Speaking in tongues,” you said in the new language, “hallucinations, but thankfully no fever.”

“Koahu,” I repeated, “can you not hear me? It is I, Alula, I have followed you, can you not understand?”