"No. Better than healers. We have 'science'." She saw their confusion and tried again. "We have... rules. Rules about how the body works, how diseases spread, how to keep people healthy. And we have tools—medicines, equipment—based on those rules. We don't guess. We know."
Veer's eyes narrowed. "Your world sounds... controlled."
"It is," Kaya agreed. "And I hated parts of it. The restrictions, the politics, the way everything was monitored and measured. But I never had to worry about dying from drinking bad water. I never had to wonder if the person I touched was carrying some plague. I never had to cover myself in mud to survive the summer."
That last part came out more bitterly than she'd intended.
Cutie looked stricken. "Is it... is it really that bad? Being here?"
