Freedom

by Maureen Toonkel

  It was quiet and dark when Josh entered Sick Bay. Since it was late at night, that was not unusual. He tapped lightly on Dr. Berg’s office door. He felt a strange sensation, one of heightened anticipation. Why am I feeling excited about seeing Marlana?

  “Good evening, Captain,” said Marlana, stepping out into the hall. She was displaying her professional manner, so Josh could not tell from her face if he was going to hear good news or bad news. “I believe Dr. Loring is waiting for you. Follow me.”

  “Do you know what he wants?” asked Josh.

  “I will let him tell you that.” She led Josh past the rooms occupied by sleeping patients. Faint night lights illuminated the curtains hanging over the thresholds. At the end of the row was a chamber with a thick sliding glass door. The sign etched in the top of the glass said Intensive Care Unit. A pale blue, linen curtain had been pulled across the inside of the door so Josh could not see what was happening inside. Marlana slid the door open just wide enough for Josh to squeeze through.

  Dr. Loring was sitting on a five-legged stool in the corner, a medical tablet chart on his lap. There were a couple of hospital-style beds in the center of the room. Josh stared at the two bodies occupying the beds, “Oh my, God!” he exclaimed.

  CHAPTER FORTY-ONE

  July 1

  The alarm clock on the stat phone went off early, 0600, but Josh had gotten up even earlier, almost two hours ago. He was preparing for the briefing, which was scheduled for 1000 hours. It would be broadcast ship-wide and would be followed by a banquet-style luncheon. He was struggling with exactly how to recount the events of one particular incident. Words and phrases flipped through his brain. Do I be truthful? Do I be deceptive? Or do I outright lie? Of course, he would be completely forthcoming and totally honest in his official report to UGC, but how would the crew respond to hearing the real facts? Sometimes the truth can be misinterpreted, especially when those analyzing it were not present to witness the actual event. Josh recalled one particular occurrence back home in Ohio. A law enforcement officer got into a scuffle with a man who was walking wobbly down a dark street in the dead of winter. The officer stopped the man to ask if he needed help. The man let out a string of obscenities and tried to flee. The officer grabbed him by the coat and held him while the man kicked the officer several times. He tried to calm the man down to no avail. When he loosened his hold on him, the man reached into his coat pocket. Seeing a silver object, the officer shot the man in his leg. The gunshot wound was not fatal, but the man had a heart attack and died. The silver object turned out to be a fork. Public outcry accused the officer of acting recklessly, even though he insisted it was a dangerous situation, and he feared for his own life. In Josh’s view, those passing judgment had no idea of the intensity of the confrontation. Would his crew react negatively toward him? They certainly might. He continued to contemplate his dilemma. Exactly how should he explain the shooting of the fake Lieutenant Shasta?

  The Conference Room was filling up. Nearly every available spot in the room was occupied—the conference chairs; the extra folding chairs which had been brought in; and the standing space along the pale green walls that encircled the room. The digital clock on the wall showed that it was five minutes before 1000 when Captain Stoner arrived. Josh maneuvered through the throng to the one vacant chair at the table, his usual place to sit. He glanced around the crowded room. Dennis Pearson was testing the audiovisual system. Marlana Berg and Dave Andrews were deep in conversation. Likewise, Tobias Carter and Shalonna Robinson were chatting away. Jackson Greene’s fingers were fast at work flying across a sheet of Braille. Bonnie Shea and Kyung Ahn were trying to navigate through the crowd, their arms loaded down with cups and pots of coffee. And Diane Pearson was doodling aimlessly on a yellow legal pad.

  “Everything is in order,” shouted Dennis above the din.

  Josh set down his coffee cup and addressed the occupants in the room. “OK folks, let’s settle down and get started. Go ahead, Denny.”

  Dennis pressed a button on the small, wireless remote control he held in his hand. The monitor hanging on the wall came to life, and Admiral Wilcox’s face filled the screen. Then he pressed more buttons, and one by one audio confirmations came through the speakers from the Architectural Engineering Team on Brisula’s surface, the Galley, Engineering, Leisure Deck, Messdeck, and Sick Bay.

  “Good morning, everyone,” said Josh. “Admiral, sir, welcome to the U.S.S. Gladiator. We are ready to begin this briefing. I would prefer if everyone holds their questions till the end.” Josh had brought along an aluminum bottle containing cool, refreshing water from which he took a swallow before continuing. “As you all know, a few weeks ago we departed from Brisula and headed for Lexter, where we were assigned to repair the video system. I received a series of phone calls from Lieutenant Wayne Shasta who had remained on Brisula to work with Captain Victor Torgenson’s team. The last call from Shasta was disturbing as it ended with Wayne suffering an injury of sorts. My gut reaction was that Wayne was in some kind of trouble, and I made the decision to turn the ship around and go back to Brisula.”

  Josh then described the actions of the first landing party, including the rigging up of the ropes in order to climb down into Brisula City; Wayne Shasta’s strange behavior in the Communications Station; and the fight with Captain Torgenson that resulted in himself and Dr. Berg being apprehended and chained up in the Construction Site. He followed with an accounting of the rescue by Commander Dave Andrews, Lieutenant Keith Hampton, and Penelope.

  “After being released from our chains,” said Josh, “we ended up spending the night in a cramped supply room in the School. In the morning we made our way to Colonel Flax’s apartment to seek his assistance. It was there that we learned that everyone in Brisula was being forced to eat an apple everyday. Thinking this was to maintain good health for the inhabitants, we also ate the apples that the Colonel had so politely offered us. Except, of course, Dr. Berg who happens to be allergic to apples. It was also revealed that the two young Flax children were very ill. Eventually, it was discovered that many people in Brisula were sick, and some of them were even dying. In time we, too—Andrews, Hampton, and myself—joined the ranks of the ill. Only Dr. Berg was spared. We, of course, didn’t know it at the time, but the apples contained poison.” Josh asked Dr. Berg to talk about Legionnaires’ disease and the process they used to isolate the source of the ailment.

  “Thank you, Dr. Berg,” said Josh when the doctor had finished her presentation. “I must say, I am quite impressed with your knowledge of rare diseases. And I am very glad that you are allergic to apples.” He smiled at the doctor and watched as she attempted to cover the blush that had broken out across her face. The room broke out in a round of applause and cheers, the first of many to come. “While all of this was going on down under the planet,” continued Josh, “the Gladiator was dealing with their own crisis, a mysterious force field that had appeared all of a sudden and was shielding Brisula. Officer Greene would you kindly fill us in on the properties of this force field and the method used to analyze it.”

  Jackson gave a detailed account of the method used to study the force field, referring on occasion to his refreshable Braille device to quote accurate statistics. After Greene was done speaking, Dennis Pearson followed with a report on the procedure that was employed to melt the force field.

  “Thank you, Officer Greene and Denny,” said Josh. “I appreciate the ingenuity you both exhibited in solving a very unique situation. Thanks also goes to Lieutenant Bonnie Shea and Ensign Benjamin Rubin for their assistance, and of course to Ensign Kyung Ahn for his excellent piano recital.” There was a burst of applause, and Josh waited for it to die down before continuing. “While Andrews and Dr. Berg remained at the Flax apartment to tend to the sick children, Hampton and I left with the Colonel. Our destination was General Platt’s apartment. Sadly, we were met with a detour along the way.” He went on to tell the tale of how he and Keith were handed over to Mox and put to
work in the Deliveries area. Eventually, Colonel Flax came back for them, and the three men explored Platt’s apartment. It was Keith who discovered the hidden elevator. Josh recalled their adventure in the sewer where they hid in the apple barrels and, unfortunately, dined on apples. After that they took the elevator to the Tradian Headquarters where they found General Platt and met Chieftain Monks. Now comes the hard part, Josh thought to himself. He took another mouthful of water.

  “Keith and I were tricked into entering a room that we were led to believe was guest quarters; only, it turned out to be a jail cell. After biting into apples that contained a sleeping drug, we were knocked out cold for a while. When we awoke, General Platt gave us a demonstration of how their computers could destroy installations across the universe by merely pressing a button. Platt brought up an image of a building then touched a glowing button. Right before our eyes, we saw the building explode and crumble to the ground, instantly killing those in the building and on the sidewalk outside. Unbelievably, he displayed a picture of the Bridge of the Gladiator and threatened to press the tab. Fortunately, he didn’t.” Josh described how Keith figured out a way for them to escape. “Keith went through the opening he had created at the top of the cell. Just as Keith landed on his feet, the wall opened and there was Wayne Shasta. He threatened to depress the purple button that would blow up the Gladiator. Keith went into action, and he and Wayne got into an old-fashioned fist fight. During this melee, Wayne Shasta’s zip gun become dislodged. As the two officers continued to struggle, a gun went off, and Wayne Shasta dropped to the floor. He appeared to be dead.” All eyes in the room were now focused on Josh. He fumbled with his pad of notes so as to avoid the stares. “Of course, we didn’t know it at the time, but thankfully, it turned out that this Wayne Shasta was a clone.”

  “After that, Keith and I were able to apprehend the guard and escape to the sewer where we hid out once again in the apple barrels,” continued Josh. “Unbeknownst to us, Mrs. Flax had reported Dave and Dr. Berg to the authorities. They were escorted to the Cages where they were imprisoned. Dave, would you kindly tell us about your experience.”

  Dave recounted his and Marlana’s capture and their encounter with the two Skybounder shipmates. He explained that when UGC received the Gladiator’s original report stating that Brisula was uninhabited and suitable for human life, they immediately sent out the Skybounder with two officers aboard, Dr. Meyer Monroe and pharmacist Bess Tremont along with three doses of Xanthommatin. “As the Gladiator had not yet reached Lexter to repair the video system, UGC lost track of the Skybounder. The craft was attacked by the Tradians and the crew captured. Dr. Monroe and Ensign Tremont were thrown into a slave cage, and the Skybounder along with its cargo was seized.” Dave went on to tell about how Colonel Flax paid for his and Dr. Berg’s release and promptly put them to work in the chimpanzee exhibit at the Zoo. The Colonel then hid them in his home before helping them escape.

  “Thank you, Dave. As always, we can depend on you to do a commendable job,” complimented Josh. “And I am glad to see that you are feeling much better.” Once the applause subsided, Josh began to speak again. “So that brings us to the next phase, which was overtaking the Tradian Headquarters. We started by—” He was interrupted by the opening of the Conference Room door and an array of gasps and gulps coming from those in the room.

  Dr. Loring stepped over the threshold and addressed the Captain. “I have some people who would love to join your briefing. If I may?” Josh nodded his consent. “Fine,” said the doctor. “If we could move the chairs around to make room, that would be great.” He directed the movement of the chairs. Then he poked his head out the door and said, “Come on in.” This time the gasps and gulps were even more pronounced. Every single person in the room got to their feet. There was applause, cheers, and whistles. Amanda Rugan entered pushing a wheelchair in which Wayne Shasta was seated. She was followed by Jill Mann pushing Keith Hampton’s wheelchair.

  “OK, let’s get back to business,” shouted the Captain. Once the room quieted down, Josh spoke to his two officers. “Lieutenant Hampton, Lieutenant Shasta, it is wonderful to have you join us. We are all inspired by the amazing progress you have made,” he said, his voice wobbly with genuine, heartfelt emotion. The room erupted again in cheers before the Captain could say anything further. He let the audience simmer down and then got back to the briefing.

  “Let’s see, where was I?” said Josh. “Oh yes, our engagement with the Tradians.” Josh relayed the actions that were taken to seize control of the underground Headquarters, including the forming of two teams headed by himself and Keith Hampton. “Under the charge of Lieutenant Hampton, Captain Torgenson was apprehended and a second elevator to the Tradian Headquarters was unveiled. Meanwhile my team was able to free the slaves in the Cages as well as those in the Silver Mines and Gravel Disposal. We were able to organize the slaves into an army to assist us in taking back control of Brisula. Once organized, we stormed the Tradian Headquarters, where we battled and overcame the Tradians along with the Brisulan guards. We located and arrested Chief Monks and General Platt. A warehouse of encaged slaves was discovered in the back of the Headquarters. Most of those slaves were very sick, and we had them escorted to the Cages on the main level where they received medical attention. Let’s stop here for a moment and extend a hand to the superb medical personnel: the doctors; nurses; and scientists who have worked competently, selflessly, and tirelessly to provide medical care to the former slaves; the Brisulan citizens; our UGC colleagues; the Gladiator crew; and even the Tradians. Thanks to their efforts, the Legionnaires’ disease epidemic is now under control, and those directly affected are on the way to a full recovery. So, let’s hear it for Dr. Marlana Berg; Dr. Tobias Carter; Dr. Paul Loring; Dr. Meyer Monroe; Dr. Louis Johns; and his staff, Nurse Amanda Rugan; Nurse Jill Mann; and honorary nursing assistants, Joban and Fabiana.” Each one who had been called out stood up and received a round of thunderous applause. “We also send our sincere thanks to Dr. Ottman and his staff at the Brisula Hospital and Dr. Maxine Campbell of the Architectural Engineering Team.” There was more applause.

  As the applause died down and everyone took their seats, Josh sipped on his water bottle, cleared his throat, and continued. “As I mentioned earlier, the Tradians had built a computerized system capable of exploding buildings, space stations, military installations, and spaceships around the universe. It was my decision to eliminate that threat immediately. With Dennis Pearson’s assistance, we devised a way to flood the Tradian Headquarters and thereby destroy the facility and all its menacing equipment without disturbing the rest of the planet. Denny, if you would, please explain the system we used and ultimately how it worked.

  Josh looked over at Shasta and Hampton while Dennis talked. The two officers were clad in light blue hospital gowns with blankets draped over their laps and shoulders. Oxygen tubing protruded from their nostrils. Both looked pale, thin, weak, and tired. But they are alive, thought Josh. He still didn’t know what the long-term outcome would be, but for right now he was thrilled to see them sitting up and apparently lucid enough to be present at the briefing.

  Dennis concluded his presentation stating that the project was very successful.

  “Thank you, Denny. And yes, the flooding project worked well and accomplished its mission; however, it did contribute to an awful accident. While we were evacuating the slaves that we found in the cage at Headquarters, a young female slave came up to Keith Hampton and told him that there was one more slave locked in a cell behind the wall where the slaves had been housed. Keith volunteered to go free that slave. Regrettably, as everyone exited the Headquarters, none of us realized that Keith was still trying to locate and free the slave.” Josh looked over at Keith. “Are you able to tell us what happened?”

  Keith nodded and softly said, “Yes sir, I can try.”

  “Thank you. Take your time, and do the best you can. If you need to stop, that will be OK.”

  Keith nodde
d again, and then in a quiet voice told the story of how he banged on the back wall, heard a muffled voice, searched, and eventually found the switch to make the wall rise, only to discover yet another cage. To his utter surprise the supposedly dead Wayne Shasta was in the cage. “Finally, with the use of a lock pick, Wayne was freed. But I was too late. The last elevator ride had come and gone. The call buttons no longer were operating and neither was my stat phone. I came to the realization that we were stranded.” Keith started gasping for air. He appeared to be having trouble catching his breath. Dr. Loring jumped up and adjusted the dial on the oxygen tank connected to the back of Keith’s wheelchair. Immediately, the young lieutenant was able to take a few deep breathes and slowly exhale. Once it appeared he was going to be all right, Wayne Shasta patted Keith’s wrist, and said he would continue the story.

  “Keith was amazing,” began Wayne. “After saying that we were trapped, Keith ran over to the huge aquarium that was in the center of the main room. He said he had an idea. He pushed a desk over to the aquarium and then shoved a second desk to the other side of the tank. Looking around, he found two wastepaper baskets, dumped out the contents, and handed one to me. He helped lift me onto the top of one of the desks, and then he climbed upon the other desk. I assisted Keith in removing the cover from the fish tank. Next, using the trash cans, we began bailing out the water from the tank. It was a very long and repetitive process. Meanwhile, the water level was rising, and the lights were flickering. My arms were growing weary, and I stopped to rest a few times. But not Keith, he was relentless. Keith climbed into the tank and continued bailing out water from inside. Eventually, I got in also. The water in the tank was still up to our chests. But the lights were now completely off, and the water level in the room was reaching the top of the aquarium. A few of the fish had been thrown out with the water, however, most remained down by our feet. I felt something wrap around my leg and then bite my ankle. I learned from Keith that it was an octopus. Keith dove down to the bottom of the tank, untangled the critter, and tossed it out of the tank. Keith had put duct tape around the edges of the tank top, so when he slid it back in place, it stuck to the glass. We watched as the water rose past the top of the aquarium. We were completely submerged. It was very very quiet inside the thick glass walls of the aquarium. All we could hear was the faint humming of the battery operated air pump that was keeping the water in the fish tank oxygenated. Then all there was to do was wait to be rescued or to run out of air.” Wayne stopped talking. His eyes were now watery as he looked over at his crewmate in the wheelchair alongside of his. Keith nodded his affirmation.