"Vitas Mortis" Commerce planets overflow with rumors and, during our recent visit to one, we overheard stories about an old Luxan named Nilaam who'd been living nearby for several cycles. D'Argo was determined to find her. With the notable exception of Aeryn Sun and the Peacekeepers, instances of Moya's crew encountering members of their own species in the Uncharted Territories are so rare that each one warrants further exploration. At the very least, D'Argo hoped to commune with one of his own people. Also, it was possible that this Luxan might possess maps that could lead us all to more-familiar star systems. The rumors about Nilaam had left out one important fact: she was an Orican. These legendary Luxan holy women are revered throughout the Territories for their spiritual powers. However, despite her vast mystical talents, the aged Nilaam was on the verge of death when D'Argo, Zhaan and Crichton found her. She wanted a fellow Luxan to assist her in her traditional Ritual of Passing, to impart the additional life energy she needed to make her final ascension to a higher plane of existence. D'Argo explained to us that this request from an Orican was the highest honor a Luxan could receive. After Nilaam conducted a somewhat invasive interview of D'Argo, the ritual was performed. The ceremony had unexpected results. Instead of dying, Nilaam was rejuvenated. D'Argo, she said, had been so bursting with life energy that she was able to perform the Ritual of Renewal instead of the Ritual of Passing. She was completely transformed and could continue her life as a young, powerful, vibrant Orican. As thanks, Nilaam offered to use her immense spiritual abilities to assist D'Argo and the rest of Moya's crew in realizing all our wishes. My only wish at that point was to understand what was going wrong with Moya. The Leviathan's systems had mysteriously begun failing the moment Nilaam was rejuvenated. Moya's amnexus fluid was freezing. Tremors were occurring on all her tiers. Her hull was starting to degenerate. Even Nilaam's awesome powers could not improve Moya's rapidly deteriorating health. In fact, the more the Luxan holy woman tried to help, the worse Moya's condition became. Unless someone could soon find the source of Moya's distress, I feared Nilaam's spiritual "healing" would decay Moya's body beyond all repair.... Melissa Jaffer  . . . . . .  Nilaam (old) Anna Lise Philips  . . . . . .  Nilaam (young) Writer  . . . . . .  Grant McAloon Director  . . . . . .  Tony Tilse << Previous Log Next Log >>