“Thank you.” Megan shivered. “Lampergg must be trying to save on the heating bill.” She caught a glimpse of herself in the tiny, streaked mirror and averted her eyes. I look tired and about a thousand years old today.
You look beautiful to me.
Laughing, she took care of business then finger-combed her hair. “I’ve got to learn to keep my thoughts private.”
Yes and direct them only to me. Right now, if there were other pack members here, they’d be able to hear you.
Spinning on her heel to confront him, she lost her balance on a wet spot on the floor.
He took her elbow to keep her upright. I didn’t mean to alarm you. No one else can hear you right now, I swear. Only me.
“And how exactly am I supposed to—”
He laid a finger across her lips, glancing at the nearest vidcam before leaning close as if in an embrace. Think of me first, then send the message.
With a laugh, she gave him a friendly shove. Mateer obligingly stepped backward, although she knew she couldn’t budge him an inch if he wasn’t willing to move. “Think of you first, yeah, right.” Closing her eyes to concentrate, she tried it, ‘saying’ his name in her head before transmitting the thought. You’d like me to think of you first.
First, last, always. She heard the ghost of a laugh on the heels of his statement before he continued. But your comment control was better, focused to me only. “I hear the guards coming with breakfast,” he said out loud. “We should stand on the muster line in case the captain is in the mood to use his power to punish infractions today.”
After minor insults, ribald comments about their being mates and similar annoyances imposed by the guards, Mateer was allowed to take the mush and bread from the robo and escort Megan to the table. She poked at her portion with the utensil provided and sniffed. “How did the Khagrish raise big boys like you on a diet like this? Stuff must be crammed with nutrients—you’d think whoever’s in charge of managing nutritional needs here could add a few spices.”
“The best times were when the pack was turned loose in the Preserve,” he said. “Hunting, fishing, eating real food. Sleeping under the stars.”
“Although not free, merely in a bigger prison cell of a different kind,” she said, thinking back to her brief time in the wilderness with the other humans and him.
“Yes, never forgetting that.” He tapped his bracelet with one talon. My truncated time of true freedom was exhilarating.
You were brave to risk so much and come here.
He shrugged. It had to be done. We have to destroy all the labs and rescue the prisoners. I volunteered.
She was going to ask him a question but he’d stopped eating, utensil in hand. His head was cocked toward the corridor. “What is it?”
“The guards are coming in this direction.” He shoved his bowl away and rose. “Stay here.”
“What about the muster line?” She stood up and pushed her chair aside.
“Let’s see what Jordah or whoever’s in charge today wants first. Keep behind me if they enter the cell.”
A squad of five guards approached the force barrier, led by Jordah, accompanied by Dregsorm, the lab tech. “She’s to come with us,” the captain said, gesturing at Megan with his weapon. “Stand aside, 802.”
“My mate stays with me.” Mateer’s voice was a rumbling growl.
“Not today she doesn’t.” The officer brandished the controller for the bracelet. “We can do this the hard way if you prefer. Some of my best friends died at the other lab, guys I went through training with—I got no reason to be nice to you. Your kind can take a lot of punishment, and I can inflict it all day.”
Alarmed, Megan stepped to the side. “I’ll come along quietly.”
“Good,” said Dregsorm, running a hand over his spiky yellow Mohawk hairdo. “I need the help.”
“Help? I won’t assist you with experiments on other humans,” she said, nauseous at the mere suggestion, and wishing she hadn’t eaten any of the mush.
“Not even if you torture me to pressure her,” Mateer added.
“Nothing so extreme.” Dregsorm shifted from one foot to the other. “We gotta go now, human. Trust me, you’ll want to be there.”
“You don’t have a choice, either of you.” The captain pointed the controller at Mateer, who fell to the floor as if he’d been paralyzed. “The sooner you step out here, human, the sooner I’ll release him.”
Megan took one appalled glance at Mateer where he lay in obvious agony, and she hastened to the barrier, slipping through the opening as soon as it appeared. She grabbed the officer’s arm, breaking his concentration. “You promised, now let him go.”
Two of the guards stepped forward to take her by the arms and pull her away, Dregsorm running to keep up. The captain remained behind, laughing as he continued his abuse of Mateer.
“Stop that, you son of a bitch.” Screeching at him, she craned her neck to catch a glimpse over her shoulder of what was happening but stumbled. The guards dragged her a few feet before Dregsorm made them stop and let her regain her balance.
Swaggering, the captain rejoined them. “A taste of payback for what he and his kind did to my friends at the southern lab.”
As she was forcibly escorted to wherever Dregsorm wanted her taken today, Megan tried to focus on Mateer. How are you?
His voice in her head sounded taut with strain and forced good cheer. Fine. Don’t worry about me. Be careful and don’t trust them.
“Hey,” Dregsorm shook her. “You having a seizure or something? Come on, keep walking, human.”
Realizing she wasn’t good at this telepathy trick yet, Megan concentrated on her companions and made herself keep pace with the Khagrish. “What’s going on?”
“Orders from the Chimmer to break all the humans out of stasis, in preparation for the actual experiments to begin in a couple of days. Lampergg’s going to be sending them all my way to revive and I can’t do it by myself, or with just a few junior techs. We’ll lose too many.” Dregsorm veered into a hallway she recognized as leading to the big medical lab where she’d first awakened. “I heard the client wasn’t pleased about the attrition rate when Lampergg ran his experiment on your group. Fifty percent mortality. I guess the Sectors has intensified patrols too so we can’t get more specimens right now.”
“You talk too much. She’s a specimen.” Mouth open, face flushed, the guard captain apparently had more to say, but the door to the lab opened and a female Khagrish stepped out.
Waving at them urgently, she yelled, “We’re losing subjects already. What’s taking you so long?”
Muttering what sounded like curses to Megan, Dregsorm broke into a run, and she followed him, her adrenaline spiking. She’d been through a mass casualty incident or two as a resident during her training in the Inner Sectors – an intra-city air shuttle crash being the worst – but as she burst through the doors behind the two agitated lab techs, she stopped in disbelief. Antigrav litters floated in the air everywhere, each carrying a moaning human. More were already strapped to the tables, with only a few hooked up yet to the vital nutrients. A squad of guards brought another contingent of litters and parked them in the hall as there was no room in the medbay.
“Is Lampergg out of his mind?” Megan said. “Even with my help you can’t possibly treat all these people in time.” She did a rapid count. “How many are there going to be?”
“Maybe a hundred,” Dregsorm said, not showing any desire to wade into the situation. “One of the other labs was ordered to transfer their allotment to us. Their director made a big fuss over it but Lampergg carries more weight with the planetary management than she does.”
She didn’t care about the Khagrish infighting. “We have to triage,” Megan said, training and instinct kicking in. “Do you have anything we can use to indicate status? A mark, different colors?”
The female tech ran to get what Megan asked for while she tried to recruit the guards into giving assistance. “Help u
Jordah shook his head in mock regret, a big grin on his face. “Not my problem. We never get involved in the experiments, not hands-on. Solve it yourself.”
The tech handed Megan an odd pen like device. “Click this for the colors. It’ll leave a mark on the skin.”
“I’m going to go through them rapidly and do an assessment.” She flicked the device to see what the colors were. “Black, no hope of survival. Those patients will have to be left aside. Red, we treat with the infusions. Blue we give fluids and ration bars to, if the person is conscious enough to handle them. Yellow, coming out of stasis, we recheck as soon as we can. Got it?”
After exchanging wide-eyed glances, probably at the novelty of being ordered around by a lowly test subject, the techs murmured their comprehension.
Megan moved toward the nearest litter. “When will Lampergg get here?”
“He’s not coming,” Dregsorm said. “He’s hosting bigwigs from one of the other labs and the customer representatives.”
She marked the unconscious patient with yellow and moved to the next. “Get him on the com.” Red for the woman. She shoved the litter at the female tech. “Infusion stat.”
“I can’t disturb him.” Dregsorm was adamant.
“Well, we need help. These people need help.” She marked the next man and moved on. “Are there more lab techs you can get in here?”
“Maybe a couple.”
“Does Lampergg know I’m here?”
“Yes, I asked him to let me use you.”
She had her first black mark, a woman she recognized from the colony, who had underlying health problems. She could have lived a long, happy life with proper treatment. And now she was dead on this alien planet. Automatically, Megan moved on, shoving her roiling emotions away. Later. Later for her rage. Later for her horror and grief.
Are you all right? Mateer’s voice in her head steadied her and made her feel fragile at the same time. You’re broadcasting incredible distress. I’m worried.
I need help. She marked the next three yellow then a red, which Dregsorm floated toward the other lab tech. If I can get them to bring you here would you give your word to be on your best behavior? A truce?
“I got two more techs to come in,” Dregsorm said. “Promised them extra pay which will make Dr. Lampergg livid about the budget overage.”
“Better than having all the humans die.”
I’m no healer —how can I help?
She stalked toward the guards, lounging at the entrance, watching the chaos. “Bring me my mate,” she said. “I need his help here, and even then we’ll still be understaffed.”
Straightening, casting an incredulous glance at his men as if asking them to witness her insanity, Jordah said, “Are you crazy? I’m not bringing one of those unpredictable animals in here. Especially not 802—he’s a proven troublemaker.”
Megan wheeled and pointed at Dregsorm. “You’re in charge now, right?”
“Yes.” Eyes wide, he craned his neck, staring around the lab as if expecting someone to disagree or Dr. Lampergg to materialize before focusing on Megan again. Swallowing hard, he said, “I guess.”
“Order him to bring my mate in here to assist me. I’ll swear to his good behavior.”
“Do it, Jordah,” Dregsorm said to the guard captain before tugging her away by the elbow. “I think you’d better examine this man over here next.”
As she rushed to the swarm of litters and helpless patients, she sent Mateer one more message. The guards are coming to get you on my request. Please, I desperately need help.
By the time Mateer was marched into the lab at gunpoint, his wrists chained behind him, Megan was riding a wave of anxiety and adrenaline. She’d lost two more patients already, and the litters were backing up in the corridor. She hadn’t even been able to triage everyone yet.
“Here’s your so-called mate,” said the captain.
Hands on her hips, she stared at the Khagrish. “Take those manacles off his wrists—he can’t help me if he’s restrained.”
The officer leaned to the left to glare past her at Dregsorm. “Are you sure about this?”
“I give my word to my mate to assist her.” Mateer stood tall and impassive. “I’ll take no action against you, unless you threaten her safety.”
“Either you let him loose to help me or I’m done here.” Megan moved to his side. “This is sheer insanity Lampergg’s unleashed and I’m trying to save as many people as I can. I trust my mate.”
“Just do it,” Dregsorm shouted. “We’re losing too many test subjects, and every second you delay is making the situation worse.”
Reminding herself to be strictly verbal with Mateer, not to run any risk of revealing their mental link though her inexperience with using it, Megan rocked on her heels waiting while the guard took off the manacles. Taking his hand, she said, “Here’s the situation – I’m triaging these people as to what treatment we’re to give them. I need you to take charge of organizing them into sections and then hopefully as people gain strength we can organize them to help as well.”
“Got it.”
With Mateer handling the logistics, Megan’s stress over the triage process was immediately alleviated and she could focus on the medical issues. The lab techs bristled but took his orders, and he brought order from the chaos. She continued her rapid-fire assessments. “Get this man revived as fast as you can,” she said, pausing over a litter.
“Why him? You only marked him priority yellow. Are you changing the rules on us?” Dregsorm asked.
“He’s one of the nurses at my colony’s hospital—Rikhal can help us if we can get him on his feet,” she said, aware of Mateer watching her with his brow furrowed. With his enhanced hearing he probably was listening in on her every conversation, she realized. Was he jealous? There’s nothing between the two of us. I’m his boss at the colony hospital. She flicked a second glance at Rikhal and moved on.
Triage completed, no more new patients flooding into the lab, Megan was able to circle back and check in on people. The lab techs were performing infusions, and Mateer had moved on to handing out ration bars and fluids, and offering limited explanations to those who were conscious enough to wonder what was going on.
Your presence is reassuring to them. His voice was in her head, disconcerting her. She didn’t want her fellow colonists to have an unrealistic sense of the amount of danger they were in. Lampergg could order some hideous experiment any moment, and she was powerless.
Mateer was standing in front of her now, handing her a water bottle and a ration bar. “You need to stay hydrated and nourished as well,” he said. “You’ve been working full speed for hours now.”
“Thanks.” She took the water and drank under his watchful gaze. “Don’t let anyone feel too safe, ok?”
Mateer smothered a laugh. “Hating the Khagrish as I do, you need have no worries. Besides the armed guards create an entirely different impression than your care does.”
Megan reached out to squeeze his arm. “I really appreciate your help.”
His eyes were glowing a bit golden. “Of course. I can refuse you nothing, which is another aspect of the situation I’d never considered.”
“What do you mean?”
“We’ll have to talk later—the guards are going to take the first contingent of prisoners to their cell.” He walked away to where the most recovered humans were being herded into a cluster.
Trying to imagine what Mateer would say to them, what the guards would allow him to say, Megan moved to join Dregsorm, who was urgently summoning her. An older man had gone into cardiac arrest, and she was needed to try to stop the attack and reverse the damage.
Shortly after the cardiac patient died and was moved to the section of the lab where the deceased were being held, as Megan was trying to get a terrified woman to co-operate so she could receive the infusion, the door to the room burst open and Lampergg stood on the threshold.
“What is going on here?” He shouted more in Khagrish, the words sounding like profanity to Megan.
All activity in the lab stopped. The guards came to attention. Mateer moved with deliberate speed from the spot where he’d been giving an orientation to the third group of revived prisoners, and came to stand next to Megan. Dregsorm drew closer to her as well.
“And what is 802 doing loose?”
“Thanks to your shortsightedness in releasing all the humans from stasis pods at once, we’ve been working our tails off all day trying to keep as many people alive as possible,” Megan said, her voice firm and clear. “Unfortunately, we failed in far too many cases.” She gestured at the neatly laid out rows of the dead.
Lampergg strutted across the lab, techs and humans moving out of his way. He stopped in front of Megan. “And the animal?”
“If you’re referring to my mate, I asked him to come and assist me with organizing the chaos.” She didn’t give an inch.
Lampergg eyed Mateer before turning to Dregsorm. “I said you could have the human help you, not take charge, not give orders, certainly not bring a dangerous prisoner into the lab. Have you lost your mind today?”
“His choices contributed to saving over seventy lives,” Megan said before the tech could open his mouth.
Dregsorm cleared his throat and tried twice before he could speak. “She’s right, sir. We were going to lose most of the subjects before I brought her in. We couldn’t handle the load, not as badly as the humans were reacting to the removal from stasis.”
Wheeling, Lampergg surveyed the lab. “Status?”
“Two groups of twenty survivors successfully revived and taken to their cells, sir. The third group is ready to go and the rest can be conveyed shortly.” Dregsorm paused. “Thirty-seven dead.”
-->
