Omega Games (33 page)

Leave me here,
Duncan’s voice said.
It will take too long for me to recover. You must go to Drefan and warn him about Tya, and Davidov’s plans.

I was not leaving him stunned and helpless in the tunnels. Not with the Sovant still running loose.
I will signal Drefan.

The stunner will have disabled your wristcom,
he said.
You have to get to a panel or the dome.

I couldn’t leave him, and I had no counteragent that would make the effects of the stunner wear off faster. I could not carry him or drag him far.

So heal him. You know what to do. The Omorr taught us when he healed our hands.

I felt my body reach out, and my palms press against his chest. Something gathered in me, something I had not felt since walking through the bodies of the dead and dying on the battlefields. She had come with me during those endless, bloody days and nights. She had guided my hands.

Who is that inside you?
my husband demanded.
Maggie?

If I can merge our minds,
I told him,
I can free your nervous system from the effects of the stunner. Focus on what I am feeling. Jarn, you are not a touch healer.
I couldn’t explain how I felt, only that I knew I could do this thing.
Focus.
The connection between us connected more than our thoughts and feelings. The neural pathways in our

As I did with his now.

I didn’t think of what I was doing, or how. I only raced along invisible roads, punching through the crackling curtains of energy blocking my path. As I went through each one, they fell, and the path cleared.

Reever’s hands covered mine, and his limbs twitched. The frantic beating of his heart slowed, and his respiration leveled out. I felt his body lift and his arms support me as I smashed through the last of the paralyzing curtains and drew back into my own head, terminating all of the connections.

I opened my eyes to see my husband’s, alert and somewhat stunned. He was sitting up and holding me upright. Exhaustion dragged at my own muscles, but I dismissed it and straightened.

“For once Maggie does something useful,” he muttered, brushing the hair out of my face. “Are you hurt?”

“Just a little tired.” I considered telling him that the one who had guided me was not Maggie and had nothing to do with her, but that conversation would have to keep. We had to stop Davidov. “Please, help me up?”

Reever stood and lifted me onto my feet. My legs felt as if they were filled with Swap’s ooze, and for a moment I feared they might buckle. I held on to him until I felt steadier and then tugged him toward the tunnel leading to Gamers.

We made it to the maintenance access hatch a few minutes later and passed through the air lock without encountering anyone. I expected to be met by Keel or Drefan, or even one of the staff drones. The Gamers complex seemed completely deserted.

“They’re probably running a game from central control,” Reever said as we approached the simward. “I’ll go to Drefan. You see to your patients. ”

I entered the simulator we had set up for the wounded, but the only patients left were the two men I had operated on. I turned around, but the room was empty. “Where are they?”

A small group of Davidov’s men came in behind us, all of them carrying weapons.

“We’ve taken over this dome,” one of them told us. “Come with us.”

There were too many for Reever to fight, and neither of us had fully recovered from the stun.

“We saved you,” I reminded the men, “and this is how you would repay us?”

“Nothing personal, Healer,” the man said. “Captain’s orders.”

Davidov’s crew escorted us to one of the melee simulators, where red-brown skies and lush vegetation revealed that the Itan Odaras jungle program was again running. I noted several custom modifications had been made, like the simulated Tingalean guards surrounding Drefan, Keel, and the rest of the staff. A wide pool of ice blue water also took up nearly half of the grid area, although what purpose it served escaped me.

The men followed us in and immediately barricaded the entry. Reever and I were directed to join the Gamers staff. Drefan greeted us with a nod but didn’t speak until Davidov’s men had left the immediate

area. “They took over the dome shortly after security issued the alert for Davidov,” the games master told us. “They had all of our pass codes and knew exactly where to seize weapons, control rooms, and key

personnel. It was all done so quickly and efficiently that I almost think it was rehearsed as a potential scenario.” “Tya,” Reever said. “She has been gathering information about the colony for Davidov for months. We

heard them talking in the tunnels between here and Swap’s dome. He just ordered her to shut down the

environmental controls for the entire colony.” “He’s controlling her with some sort of implant,” I said. “When she refused to cooperate, he did something that made her have a seizure.”

One of Davidov’s men came over and tossed a wristcom at Drefan. “There is a fool outside demanding admittance. Tell him you are closed.” Drefan turned the wristcom over in his hands. “And if I do not?”

The man raised his rifle and pointed it at Keel’s head. “I will kill one of them every minute until you do.” Drefan switched on the wristcom and said, “There will be no games today. The arena is closed until further notice.”

“I don’t want to play with you, cripple,” Posbret said. “I want that Terran scum, Davidov.” “Didn’t you hear the security alert?” Drefan asked. “He escaped my custody.” Posbret made a spitting sound. “You Terrans hate everyone but your own kind. How do I know you

aren’t hiding him in there?”

“Because he took my Hsktskt with him,” Drefan replied. “Maybe you should scan for her life signs. They are quite unique.” Posbret suggested Drefan do something anatomically impossible with his stumps and withdrew into the

access way along with his men. Drefan switched off the wristcom and tossed it at Davidov’s man. He threw it too hard, however, and it landed in the water with a splash. “Sorry,” the games master said. “My aim was a little off.”

“Try that again,” the man said, “and I’ll burn a hole through your belly.” Once the man retreated to join the other crew members, Drefan turned to me. “What would Davidov want so badly that he would go through the ruse of selling Tya to me?”

I shook my head. “Tya only said something about him wanting revenge.” “He blockaded the colony to keep the Sovant from leaving,” Reever said, “and he sent Tya here to hunt

it. When she failed to find it, he lured us here and forced us to crash so that we would draw it out of hiding.” Drefan looked fascinated and appalled at the same time. “He offered four million stan credits for you and

your wife, when all he intended was to use you as bait?” “It was a setup,” my husband replied. “Drefan made sure everyone in the colony received the signal

broadcasting the bounty. He had no intention of paying it; he only wanted the Sovant to know about our physiologies. The prospect of taking over an immortal body must have seemed irresistible to it. He also knew that if Tya failed, ingesting Jarn’s blood, tissue, or bone would poison it.”

I stared at him. “You knew this all along, and you said nothing to me?” “I know what Alek seeks to avenge,” my husband corrected. “The rest are logical conclusions.” “Well, this is just great,” Mercy said. We all looked over as she and Cat were forced at gunpoint to join us. “This is absolutely the last time I break into Omega Dome because I’m worried about some Hsktskt

eating Drefan,” Mercy told the Omorr. “If I ever mention doing it again in the future, slap me.” “The Hsktskt isn’t interested in devouring me,” Drefan told her. “Yeah, well, you’re not exactly rolling in skin,” she snapped back. “Tya is going to shut down the environmental systems to all the domes,” Reever said to the pair. “We

have to find her before she does.”

“She’ll have to go down into the old mines to get at the support equipment,” Cat said. “We relocated it there a few years back to prevent visitors from meddling with the temperature settings.” “I know Tya’s scent,” Keel said. “I can track her.” “Sounds great,” Mercy said. “Now all we have to do is sneak you three past the seventy guys with all the

weapons. Any suggestions?” While we were quietly discussing how to create a suitable distraction that would allow Reever, Cat, and

Keel to slip out of the grid through a maintenance passage hidden behind the vegetation, two of Davidov’s men came over. “That raider is back, and he wants to search the dome,” one of them told us. “He’s threatening to blast

his way in. He’s probably got the Sovant with him and doesn’t even know it.”

“We need the Hsktskt,” the other said flatly. “She’s the only one who knows how to kill that thing. She can protect us.” “What do you expect us to do?” Drefan asked. “Help you? We’re your prisoners.” “You send some of your people to find Tya,” the first one said. “Bring her back here.” “Or what?” Mercy demanded. “Or we start shooting,” the second man said, and pointed his weapon at Mercy and Drefan. “Starting

with you and him.”

At my request, Drefan convinced Davidov’s men to allow me out of the melee room so that I could check on my surgical patients. I asked that Mercy be allowed to accompany me. “I may need some assistance with changing the surgical dressings,” I lied. When the man in charge

accused me of using the wounded as an excuse to attempt an escape, I shrugged. “Very well, I’ll stay here. But if they die of dehydration or infection, their blood will be on your hands.”

“She’s a doctor. She can’t hurt anyone, you dim-wit, ” Mercy said. “They take an oath to do no harm.”

After a short debate the men sent two guards with me and Mercy to the simward. When the guards would have followed us in, I smiled. “I’m delighted to have the extra help. Which one of you would like to empty the bedpans?”

Both guards elected to stay outside.

“So what’s the plan, Doc?” Mercy asked the moment the door panels closed.

“I plan”—I looked pointedly at the room monitor, with which the guards outside could watch us— “to check on my patients.”

I went over to the first, who was sleeping but had developed a low-grade fever. “This one needs an infusion of antibiotics. There should be a syrinpress in the top of that cart over there. Bring it to me.”

“You really take this medical stuff seriously.” She brought me the instrument and watched as I dialed up the dosage. “Anything else I can do? Mop the sweat off their faces, or maybe rub their feet?”

“Now look.” I grabbed her tunic and used it to pull her close. In a bare whisper, I said, “You can gather up the other instruments from the cart and conceal them in your garments. Pretend you are tidying up the cart. Take anything that has a sharp edge or a power cell.”

“You’re a genius.” Mercy turned her head and kissed my cheek. In a louder voice, she said, “Okay, okay, you don’t have to bite my ear off. I’ll straighten up things.”

I tried not to think about Reever roaming the tunnels in search of Tya as I carefully removed the patient’s dressings and inspected the surgical site. I took a moment to change the chest drain and rearrange the tubing to reduce the inflammation before I moved to the next patient.

He woke as soon as I touched his cool brow. “My fourth leg hurts,” he complained.

“I’ll give you something for the pain, but don’t try to move or touch it,” I warned as I adjusted the bonesetter attached to the limb. “You had two compound fractures of your front izlac bone, and it needs time to heal.”

Once I had him comfortable, I went to the cart to see what Mercy had appropriated. She had done well, taking almost everything that we could use as weapons to defend ourselves. I picked up three more syrinpresses and surreptitiously tucked them under my garments before going to the room panel.

“What are you doing?” Mercy asked, following me.

“Adjusting the bedding.” I input the data required to alter the projections, and looked back at the cart. Holograph versions of all of the instrumentswe had removed materialized onto the cart. “That should help them sleep a little better.”

Mercy looked startled, and then grinned. “Oh, yeah, I’m sure it will.”