"Where in the hell did you— Ah." Apparently I needed to have reiterated my directive for Kira to not move, because he's dead-set on stepping on a splinter or nail or some sort of native plant that does terrible things to him.

"Unfortunately," I begin again, and start down one of the pathways, only to realize it's taking me in the wrong direction. "We probably won't know why treehouses were in vogue around here until we get to the forest floor." I pause a moment, evaluating the various crumbling paths, and then begin again down the correct one. "If we're lucky, it could be something as benign as seasonal flooding."

And if we're not, here's hoping it's something we're fast enough to get away from.

"Here," I say when I finally reach Kira, holding out the shoes. "Put those on your feet. This planet doesn't have tetanus shots."