Dark Vengeance (23 page)

Chapter 14

Intermittent, foggy images of a glass tube and a bed of white sheets. Some kind of white diaper thing. Patches all over someone’s body, and small tubes coming from the arms and legs. The images finally locked in and focused. There was no pain. In fact, I did not feel anything at all. I looked over to my right and spotted another glass tube just like mine. Ian was in it. He happened to look over and catch me staring. He wrinkled his brow, looked at me for a moment and his head jerked up and his mouth opened wide. Though I could not hear a thing, I could tell he was laughing. For some unknown reason it caused me to laugh back until he abruptly broke into a cough which seemed like it could have been dangerous. But, he caught himself, looked at me again and once more broke into uncontrollable laughter. I could not help myself, I followed suit. More coughing interrupted his laughter even longer this time, and as it subsided he turned his head, hacked a bit, and threw up on the bed. He made a face like something tasted bad, looked at me again and we both went into laughter so bad tears were coming from our eyes.

A very attractive four-foot nurse came rushing over silently scolding us with a waving finger. Somehow she stuck her hand through Ian’s glass tube, picked up a hand-held device that was inside and cleaned up the mess, all the while admonishing us with words we could not hear. We attempted to look adequately rebuked but as soon as our eyes met the laughter broke out once more so that our irritated attendant finally reached over and pulled a shimmering silver curtain between us. She gave me a quick look of victory and marched off.

The next person I saw was Fantasia. I opened my eyes and she was standing over my glass tube with one hand on the glass. Somehow, I could feel her hand on my chest. She gave me a naughty boy look and smiled.

She tapped a button on my bedside and spoke. “How do you feel?” she asked.

“I have no idea.” My voice came out horse and broken.

“You woke up and immediately began giving your nurse a hard time. You must be getting back to your old self.”

“Ian started it.”

“The man is a rascal and a bad influence.”

“How is he?”

“He’s giving his nurse a hard time as well. What does that tell you?”

“So we got it?”

“Yes, you got it. The ship is safe. They are already moving guests back into their staterooms.”

“And the Captain?”

“We are underway again, en route to Enuro. The Captain will be stuck in isolation in a safe suit for the entire trip but they’ve worked out a system to keep him going until we arrive.”

“How long?”

“Just five days. We were way off course before we stopped the ship.”

“Rescue?”

“Subspace communications are still out. No one even knows we’re in trouble.”

“When do I get out?”

“They don’t know. You may be in there all the way back. There’s more. Are you up to it?”

“Please…”

“Each time the creature cut you, it implanted a worm in you. They think it is the way the creature reproduces. They removed most of them from Ian. They had a flask full of them floating around in it. When the creature finally expired, the worms all evaporated. But, they’re still checking to be sure.”

“Eew.”

“You don’t have any more worms. They all evaporated.”

“How is R.J.?”

“Well, you put him through hell, but he’s finally getting some sleep. The doctor tricked him into taking an all natural vitamin that was actually a whopper of a tranquilizer. He’s probably going to be really perturbed when he wakes up but he will feel too good to care.”

“Can you come in the tube?”

“Well my, my! You are getting back to your old self aren’t you? No, I am not allowed in the tube and you should be glad I’m not. You probably wouldn’t survive what I’d like to do to you.”

“It’d be worth a try.”

“Yes, yes it would. But, in any case it’s time for your next treatment and you have to be asleep for that.”

“I’m not sleepy at all.”

“Oh no?”

And that was the last thing I remember.

My next vision was one of R.J. staring down with a look of consternation. “Did you have to drag it out all the way to the bitter end?”

“What?”

“Five seconds left, deep in your own territory, QB injured, the Hail Mary pass, and the crowd goes wild.”

“Was that the blast I heard on the com at the very end?”

“Oh yeah, and those who weren’t watching it live were shown it afterward.”

“Why would they do that?”

“So the people could sleep at night. So they could believe the creature was really dead.”

“Oh… And, I hear you finally got some sleep yourself.”

“Can you imagine a doctor lying to a patient and giving him a medication without his knowledge or consent?”

“How are they putting up with you in the Enuro village?”

Suddenly R.J.’s face flushed with guilt. He looked away to hide it. “I haven’t been staying in the village, as attractive an idea as that was. I can’t sleep with my feet hanging off the end.”

“So where did you end up?”

R.J. choked and seemed unable to answer.

“Oh my God! You stayed with Elachia after all!”

“I was weak and vulnerable. I needed companionship.”

“Are you okay?”

“Forgive the audacious use of the word but you could say I am elated.”

“We still have a large starship to ferry back to Earth, don’t we?”

“It’s much more than that I think.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Have you noticed we’re on a very large ship occupied by a limited number of guests most of whom are ambassadors?”

“So?”

“These people are returning from a special caucus in which Earth representatives played a large part.”

“So?”

“That’s all I’ve really figured out so far. But I know something more than just a ship christening will be waiting for us when we get back to Earth with the Electra.”

“Like what?”

“It’s time for your treatment. We’ll talk about this more later when the time is right.”

“But…”

And the lights went out.

When I next returned to consciousness my tube was gone. I was dressed in white shorts and a white hospital shirt. All of the patches were gone except the large one on my upper leg. There were no scars. I pushed up onto elbows and looked around.

It was a busy ward. A number of people were being treated for psychological problems. Near the room’s center, Ian was in a robe practicing walking with a four-foot nurse on each arm. He seemed to be enjoying it. Before I could summon someone to fill me in, Fantasia’s glow appeared. She was weaving her way through the people to come to me.

She smiled as she came to the bedside. “Well, are you ready to get out of here so I can give you some proper nursing?”

“How long have I been out this time?”

“Almost two days, about fifty hours.”

“Where are we?”

“We are just one day out from Enuro. We have a two-ship escort now. Communications have been reestablished. A special space dock has been set up to receive us. How are you feeling?”

“Surprisingly good. I can go?”

“If you can walk out of here, you can go. I’ve set my quarters up to take care of you the rest of the way.”

“How am I?”

“You are nearly perfect. They had to regenerate one of the big muscles in your leg, though, that’s why you still have a treatment patch on it. Want to try to stand?”

I swung my legs over the side, took a moment for reorientation, and slid my feet down onto the floor. Fantasia had one hand clamped on my right arm.

The legs were pretty good. I stood up straight and took turns lifting each. Balance was there. My first step relied heavily on Fantasia while everything shifted back into active duty position. With just a few steps, muscle memory returned and I was satisfied the legs could be trusted. Fantasia pulled a clean flight suit from a nearby drawer and together we fit it in place. Sandals were positioned for the feet. I headed for the door with too great a determination and Fantasia had to rein me back in for fear of knocking over everyone in our path. As I passed Ian, he held out one hand. I slapped it and kept going. A quick signature on a tablet was required and I was suddenly a free man, closely guided by a domineering woman.

Outside, the ship had returned almost to normal. The entire concourse was open and in use by guests and staff. It would have been difficult to tell a death match had recently happened here. Fantasia allowed me to look for a few minutes then urged me on toward her section.

Her quarters smelled wonderful; flowers like roses. There was a golden tint to the room light. It was a soft illumination and the sound of running water was coming from somewhere. Her bed was covered by a thick gold colored quilt.  I slowly let myself down onto it and felt her removing the sandals before a wonderfully safe and pleasant wave of sleep took over.

My next brief vision was of her sitting on the bed in flowing pink silks holding a china cup of something hot. It was delicious, whatever it was. She met me under the covers but the silks did not come with her. Her hot body against mine made me realize I was not wearing anything. She hooked one leg and one arm over me and once again a most pleasant kind of sleep washed over me once more.

Fantasia’s musical voice woke me. “The tugs have finished parking us in space dock. They’re setting up the quarantine debarking exit and the decontamination medical ship. Things will be picking up pretty soon. Did you get all that?”

I rubbed my eyes, surprised to discover how good I felt. “Tugs to space dock. Debarking. Decontamination.”

“You have a choice. You can take some time on the surface to recover, or they will shuttle you to your ship.”

“What did we decide we were going to do with you?”

“I’m glad that’s your first concern,” she said and she leaned in and kissed me. “I have no choice. I must attend to my property and staff. It will take me several weeks.”

“And did we decide that once I’m through ferrying the Electra back to Earth I would return to Enuro to join you?”

“We talked about that but it’s not going to happen.”

“Why not?”

“I’ve been talking to R.J. and Elachia. There is a rumor.”

“What kind of rumor?”

“The rumor is you’re going to war.”

“What? That’s crazy!”

“No one’s supposed to talk about it. Part of the rumor is that you’ll be briefed on your way back to Earth.”

“This all came from R.J.?”

“Yes.”

“What the hell can this be about? R.J.’s never wrong.”

“He is a very insightful individual.”

“There’s no one who can take care of your business for you?”

“No one.”

“I’m not sure I can make it without you.”

“Oh, I’ll still be with you, and you with me.”

“Until we can get back together.”

“Yes.”

“I love you.”

“And I you.”

Fantasia drew out a small satchel from the headboard and opened it. She took something from within and looked at me hesitantly. “There is a small ceremony people like us must perform at this point. It is said that once formed the link between us can never be broken. That is a rumor intended to help prevent anyone from taking on the relationship too lightly.” Fantasia held up two small vials containing a clear liquid. She handed one to me and kept the other for herself. “If either of us drinks this potion, the link will be dissolved. This is necessary so that we both know the other is not trapped by the bond. Drinking this ends the special connection, but the normal emotional connections that all people possess will still be in effect. The link can be reestablished at a later date. If either of us uses this, the other will know immediately.”

“Have you ever done this?”

“No.”

“I can’t imagine needing it.”

“Nor I.”

Chapter 15

Decontamination was a humbling experience. Chamber one swept a line of blue light over you that instantly removed every hair on your body. Now completely bald, you moved to the next chamber where bright gold-tinted lights completely removed the top layer of skin, leaving an unusual tingling sensation in the groin area. Chamber three was outright frightening. You place each arm in a separate opening in a machine that looked something like a farmer’s combine, and then watched your blood flow through tubes in a process that was intended to remove every harmful element in it. There was no pain at all, but that only added to the apprehension. Chamber four was an intense, chemical shower that also left no joint or orifice unwashed. Chamber five dried you and scanned you for any additional contaminants. In chamber six an attractive nurse stood waiting with a clean white hospital robe. I guess they figured after all that you could care less about being naked in front of someone, and they were correct.