by Al Shield
The medical team however weren't faring nearly as well. They had catalogued as much as possible on the outside of Unit M and much like the vehicle, very little of what they found could be explained. However at the last minute orders came through not to attempt disassembly. Someone higher up had suddenly gotten very excited about the possibility of machine hybrids for war purposes and forbade dissection of their one and only example at the moment for fear of irreparable damage. Vehicles were one thing but a semi flesh machine soldier? They would pump Dar'kannag for as many answers as possible and then, and only then could careful monitored dissection begin. That left the team to theorize how everything worked together and since they had never conceived such a thing existing, they didn't know where to begin. But even the far fetched theories had to be noted, recorded and filed for someone at the top level to pour over later.
For the team watching over the comatose Nex, their orders were the same as when she first arrived - monitor and raise an alert on any change. But body temperature of 65 degrees Celcius like her shallow breathing had kept constant. There hadn't been any fluctuations on the monitoring machines. The fascinating x-rays showed up three smaller hearts beating in unison. Her wounds from the bullets now removed showed signs of healing faster than human healing but would still require monitoring and redressing.
They were still taking absolutely no chances however, having cuffed the prone female to the bed and surrounded by soldiers while doctors and nurses kept an eye on proceedings around the clock.
Omega had taken a few hours rest in between the questioning sessions although he could survive on far less. Before returning to one session, he had done the rounds to check up on the well-being of his soldiers, the ones who provided the initial guard before The Nameless One took over. He trusted them all implicitly but this was completely new ground they were all walking on so it paid to keep tabs on their mental stability early on after exposure to the beast. This would be something he'd also have to have monitored on himself eventually but before now his soldiers were more important.
There is no “I in team” his old drill master would use a daily mantra while pushing them through the next exhausting and bone breaking challenge. It had stuck with him ever since.
Thankfully save for a couple, they were doing relatively okay. Reassigned by the director to guard postings around the base, they were very happy to be away from the monster but appreciated a visit from Omega and a quick chat all the same.
DeAngelo was in the infirmary after suffering from terrifying nightmares - he'd woken up half the barracks with his wild screaming about being eaten alive and had to be sedated to finally get some peace. Dixon had developed hand shakes so bad, she couldn't hold a weapon steady let alone pick one up carefully so she was also being monitored in the infirmary. The guards posted there were under strict instructions not to inform her that the creature known as Nex was stationed nearby as it would only make her tremors if not her mental stability far worse.
Daily the Nameless One would spend hours questioning Dar'kannag before tucking into some cheap take away food sourced from a nearby town and then spend a few hours asleep in a portable bed now set up in the director's office before rising and repeated the entire process over again. The entire time the bodyguard would stand watch. Nobody ever saw the bearded guard eat or sleep. A few of the positioned guards would attempt greet them both as they made their way through the complex each morning only to be met with a grunt from the large man and a stern look from the bodyguard, so after the second day that stopped the greetings all together. Everybody was getting tired and tempers were frayed but they all pushed on regardless.
'Again with the plant drink?’ Dar'kannag grumbled as Omega walked in drinking out of a stainless steel cup.
'Maybe with your next feeding we’ll give you some and see what you think? Although having something your size hopped up on caffeine probably wouldn't be the best idea.’
The feedings consisted of large cuts of raw pork, served to the beast at the end of a large pole held by one of the exo-soldiers. He chomped through a great load of the meat daily, remarking at the first feeding that it was not unlike the meat from the razor hogs of the outer realms. Omega was thankful that it was satisfied for now. Serving up human flesh for the monster was not something he wanted to contemplate although knowing the deep connections The Nameless One seemed to possess, it was probably something easily obtained with a quick call.
'You speak in riddles meat. But at least you're only half as irritating as the Egg is.’
'There is much we need to learn about you beast. You and your world. This is how we do it.’
Dar'kannag nodded.
'Aye. And when I leave this place, I will know a little more about this disgusting dirtball of a world. After I crush Egg flat of course. I won’t be sorry to see the back of it though..’
As if on cue, the fat man and his guard bounded in.
'Are my ears burning? How is my favourite chained being from parts unknown? Good pig breakfast?’
'It will suffice for now.’ he grumbled.
'Good, good!’ he beamed. 'Excellent. Now we have a big afternoon coming up today and I'm going to need for your full attention for this one.’
Surprisingly it was his bodyguard who turned to address Omega. It was the first time he'd heard the man speak since his arrival on base. His voice was gruff and raspy.
'Delivery is expected at fourteen hundred. We need your men to be ready and guard the truck as it comes in.’ He spoke like someone used to being in charge.
Omega ignored the man spoke to The Nameless One instead.
'Does your pet monkey speak for you now does he?’ he said dryly.
'I’d watch your tone there bionic man. Morrison here has killed for less.’ Nameless said without looking around, still gazing at Dar'kannag. The guard just glowered at him, murder in his eyes. Omega couldn't help but notice his hand inching closer to the blade at his belt. At the same time Omega was doing exactly the same. He was more than ready if the bearded man tried something stupid.
'He doesn't scare me.’
'Pity. If he did it might have meant I didn’t have to put with with this dick waving bullshit.’ He sighed as he turned around. 'Fourteen hundred Omega, I want you and your best out the front for delivery. You're to bring the pack straight here, no delays. Don't disappoint me.’ He then dismissed him with a wave of his hand.
'Off you go soldier boy, we’ll see you real soon.’
As Omega marched off he couldn't help but hear quiet snickering from Morrison. Soon, when the fat man wasn't around..
‘PATCHWORK’ BLACK WAS a bit of an institution around the base. Now in her late sixties, Janice had patched up more wounded over the last four decades than she had cared to remember. Stitches and sutures and a nice tight tourniquet when you needed one most. She was the friendly nurse with a warming smile you hoped you woke up to provided you lasted through the night and had become an unofficial mother figure to many on the base including the Director. Even though she was far from the highest ranking medical official on site, if Patchwork ever told you that you were working too hard and you needed to take a break, then you would take a break right then and there, other orders be damned.
She’d even been a part of Omega’s early missions and had brought him back to the brink more than once when things had gone south.
‘I’ve seen so much of your damn blood, I could cast a line and haul a big fish out of it’ she’d often joked. Under one scar on his chest, he’d even had “Property of Patchwork” tattooed. She had pretended to be shocked by the idea when she first saw it but deep down loved the gratitude.
But behind the warmth, the reassuring cuddles, the instantly disarming smile and laugh and the incredible maternal instinct lay a wall of impenetrable steel. Even though most people rarely got to see it. When a safehouse in Tel Aviv was comprised by radical insurgents, she had single handedly put them all down while caring for the wounded too sedated to fend for thems
elves. The backup team found her enjoying a cup of tea and a biscuit with bodies strewn all over the house when they arrived. She also insisted they join her for a ‘biscuit and a brew’ before hauling the bodies away because apparently ‘Nobody likes to work on an empty stomach.’
Nobody ever gave this kindly black woman a second glance until it was far too late.
So who better to nurse the wounded Nex back to help than nurse mother Patchwork.
'Lordy lordy, will you look at you!’ she clucked to herself as she inspected one particular wound under the bandage. 'What your pale skin would give for a few hours under the warm sun on a lazy afternoon, I don't doubt.’ Patchwork was more than accustomed to being around soldiers constantly so having so many guards in the one room in this situation wasn't a surprise at all and unless they asked for something, she just ignored them and focussed all of her attention on getting her charge better.
It didn't matter to her that she was providing aid to what could be classified as an alien. Or that fact that this one was a noted killing machine. There were many specialists on site that could also wear that label too after many years in the shadows. As far as she was concerned, Nex was her patient and her patient needed the best of care.
She examined a small set of scars near the woman's neck, running a light finger against the surface of one. It looked like claw marks from something that had sunk in deep. The lord only knew what kind of fantastical beast that could have been.
'I bet you have an amazing story about all of these ones, don't you huntress? Maybe when you return to us they'll let you and I have some tea together and you can tell me some of your incredible stories.’
Patchwork had always held the theory that even on the verge of death, the unconscious and dying could still hear you. So she always carried on her one sided conversation no matter what the situation, just so they had some company. In environments where the bullets and explosions abounded, her words always had a calming influence on those around her.
Earlier one of the younger soldiers had questioned why she was wasting her breath on scum like the alien and the withering look she sent her way was more than enough for them to stop asking such questions.
'You remind me a lot of the stories I read as a child. I was fascinated by the concept of the Amazon's, even though I never understood the burning of the breast part.’ She smiled as she fluffed the pillow under Nex’s head. Always make the patient comfortable was something she never forget from medical school, for it may be the last comfort they ever feel.
'They were strong enough without maiming themselves, but lord knows they probably had their reasons. The stories inspired me to working as a field nurse really, getting out into the madness and chaos and saving what I could. I could have been safe at a base Hospital somewhere...but where is the fun in that?’
She performed her next round of observations, jotting down the numbers into the forms at the end of the bed, humming along the way. Out of the corner of her eye she noticed one of the soldiers miming the words to the song as she hummed away and she couldn’t help but smile. Around this base the motto was that “calm was contagious”. But around Janice, happiness also had the same effect.
‘You’re doing just fine, so you keep on resting. I’m going to cast an eye on the others on the ward but I’ll be back okay?’ She wagged her finger at the unconscious Nex.
‘Now no funny business while I’m gone okay? The last thing I want to hear when I come back is that you’ve been up to no good. You don’t want me to get my anger on do you?’
She cupped her hand against her ear and pretended she heard an answer.
‘Now that’s more like it. I’ll see you around the way.’
The soldiers struggled to hold back their grins at Patchwork’s exaggerated theatrics as she hummed and danced out of the room.
FIVE MINUTES BEFORE the truck arrived, Omega’s phone buzzed and a message was received from what seemed to be a string of random letters, numbers and symbols. Heavy duty encryption at play. The message initially came in the same format but slowly translated itself through one of the descrambling programs on his phone.
-THE DOCTOR IS IN
At last, the team member who had been charged with getting a closer look at the body they brought in. However Omega still went through the usual security checks, just to be certain.
>CLOWNS TO THE LEFT he keyed back.
Normally for this particular communication the reply was any other line from the Stealers Wheels song ‘Stuck in the middle with you’ and that would be enough to validate identity for this region. However, unofficially Omega had changed the reply specifically for his troops on base. If the messenger texted back another line of the song, then they could be anyone on base but there was also a chance they were someone aware of the call and reply protocol - someone like the Nameless One for example. However if they text back something from a Doors song, he’d know they were someone he worked with and trusted.
-BLOOD ON THE STREETS IN THE TOWN OF NEW HAVEN.
Came the reply.
He let out the breath he’d been holding. Their identity would remain a secret for now but at least they were on the level.
>WAS THE BODY A RUSE?
-NEGATIVE. THEY’RE FINE TOOTH COMBING IT LIKE THE VEHICLE.
>WHAT HAVE THEY FOUND?
-NOTHING. EVERYTHING COMING BACK HUMAN. NO OTHER DNA.
>ALL HUMAN?
-ALL. BLOODWORK. ORGANS. ALL.
And yet the Nameless One and his team were convinced that they found the body of the runaway. But if that was the case, how did it manage to turn itself human right down to a molecular level? Since arriving they have had precious little time to study humanity - could they really learn and copy our workings so fast?
Omega paced around frustrated for a few moments while he relayed earlier conversations with Dar'kannag through his head. Finally something jumped up in the busy cloud of memories.
>TELL ME ABOUT THE EYES
-NO EYES TO SPEAK OF, JUST HOLES.
>WHAT ARE THE HOLES MADE OF?
-BEST GUESS. BURNT FLESH. BURNT TISSUE. CHARRED SOCKETS.
>SURE?
-75%. CAN GET CLOSER LOOK?
>NEGATIVE. GO DARK. BTT.
Once again he quickly fished out the memory card and crushed it, knowing the sender would do the same. They would still be part of the research team but further reports weren’t necessary, limited the chances of being caught considerably. Omega’s gut feeling had been correct. But if there was the possibility of the body not belonging to the wayward K’Dian...then where exactly was he now?
CHAPTER TWELVE
K’Dian had ditched his latest soldier look a couple of disguises ago and now sported a disguise that made him appear as a sun weathered farmhand, complete with baseball cap, farm shirt and stubble. He’d walked for miles in the bushland, carefully staying away from any of the noises made by the fleeing soldiers. The swooping thumping noises of the gunships sounded majestic as they flew overhead even though he knew exactly where they were going. As much as it pained him to turn his back on his mother, he’d had enough of his demanding father for a lifetime.
Could he not see the potential this place held? A completely new world devoid of the idiot war like races that populated his homeland and blasted landscapes. A world full of new things to discover, where it seemed the technology seemed so different to his own. In the short time he’d taken breaks and allowed himself to catch breath he’d be enthralled by the small device he’d taken off the slain soldier. It showed pictures when you pressed buttons and somehow it had reached out and communicated with a place called ‘Messy Joe’s.’ Another creature had spoken to him through it and asked him what he’d like to order - was this their version of a communication device?
But he limited himself to very short breaks. Time was of the essence and he needed to put as much space between himself and the body he left behind to look like him for his first change as possible. He’d find a place to hide, to take s
tock of the situation and learn alot more about the area before working out what he wanted to do next.
But first he needed to change his look, a few more times to throw the scent off.
The first opportunity came when he had seen a pair of the creatures eating out of a woven container by the side of a river. As he walked closer he quickly thought of a way to get in contact with their skin to absorb their design information without raising suspicion.
‘I bid you greetings!’ he spoke as he stood before them. They looked young but friendly.
‘Hey man, how you doing?’ the male spoke. Like K’Dian his eyes were shielded by a pair of dark glasses. The female next to him smiled as she sipped her drink.
‘Man is good!’ He beamed. Having no idea if they used similar hand greetings as he did, he decided to try the universal symbol for brother of battle. He tapped his clenched fists against his chest and then slowly outstretched his arms towards them.
‘Er...what are you doing?’ the female asked.
‘You don’t know of this greeting?’ Oh no, this one wasn’t the right one. He quickly had to think of another way.
‘Come on Meg, the man’s just after a fist bump!’ and before K’Dian could answer he jumped up to his feet and lightly bumped his fist against one of K’Dian’s. ‘Nice to meet you dude!’
K’Dian was a little taken aback. It wasn’t an attack...was this how they replied the greeting? He nodded very slowly and smiled again.
‘Yes...yes a greetings bump! I thank you!’
Still smiling strangely he quickly rushed off down the path before they got suspicious.
‘What the fuck was that all about?’ the girl asked when the strange visitor was well and truly out of earshot.
‘I don’t know. I think that farmer guy is tripping on something pretty hard though!’
The quick conversation to K’Dian seemed clunky and awkward from his part although he had gotten what he needed and morphed into looking like the male as soon as he was alone again. He’d need a lot more practise before attempting another face to face meeting like that again. So for his next change he followed the path as it led out of the bushland and next to a quiet service station, spying a man putting some kind substance through a hose into his shiny blue vehicle. Rather than engage the male in conversation, K’Dian walked up behind him and pretended to trip, grabbing the man’s arm on the way down.
