His chest gently rose and fell. Other than that, James Irons lay perfectly still.
Lindsay approached the side of the operating table. She wasn’t used to seeing him like this. Even during the war, the worst injury he sustained was the loss of an eye. But even that didn’t stop him from fighting.
Regardless of his state, Irons was still her Captain. She said nothing and saluted him before standing at parade rest. She hoped that he would open his swollen eye and grumble at her good soldier routine.
* * *
Second to see her Captain, Hannah stood at the foot of his bed. She poured over the medical chart, looking for some inconsistency. Something that the doctors and surgeons might have missed. She looked up at Irons and compared what she saw with what she read. It wasn’t completely foreign to her but she wasn’t a medical expert. It was all she could do to make sense of anything before finally just crying.
* * *
“Stubborn old man. Just don’t know when to quit, do ya?”” Syracuse chuckled at his own remark. “I’d like to say we’ve been in worse scraps but,” he paused. “I can’t recall a time we all needed medical attention outside of a bump on the head.”
He watched his friend breathing. The heart monitor’s steady beep was soothing. As long as it continued to beep, Irons was alive. At the moment, that was calming to Commander Syracuse Hill. He would have preferred more but this was one time when good enough really was good enough.
“I’ll take care of them if it comes to it. You know that.”
* * *
Durham clapped his hands and stomped his feet, making as much noise as he could without carrying over into other rooms.
“Private Durham, please.” Doctor Byer stuck his head through the door to the OR.
“Sorry.” Durham fumbled for an excuse. “I just…”
Doctor Byer forced an understanding smile and left them alone again.
Durham stepped up to the operating table. “I don’t know about these doctors, Boss. They like to rack up the bill on these visits.”
He looked down at Irons. It was hard for him to believe that after the war and his fight with the Catter Queen, that one Nordic, a supposedly peaceful people, could put the Iron Albatross in such a state.
“We’ll get him for this. We’ll get him and we’ll save the Admiral and the Earth just like before. Then we’ll come back here and you’ll roll out in your wheelchair—” The thought made him chuckle. James Irons being pushed around in a wheelchair.
Durham put a hand on Irons’s shoulder. “I really wish you’d just wake up and tell me—“
“Shut it, Durham.” Irons’s upper lip curled in a slight snarl.
Eighteen
The Good With The Bad
Syracuse, Lindsay, Hannah and Sitasha watched the display screen as alerts scrolled by at the bottom of the newscast.
“At this time,” Dom Kennedy said during the news report already in progress. “Authorities are grounding all space flights, both civilian and transportation. We have only a description of the ship allegedly shooting down Earth vessels coming to and from the planet. It is large with what looks like a curved back. It is heavily armed and can…”
“The Slagschip.” Sitasha leaned forward in her chair.
“You sure about that?” Syracuse asked.
She nodded. “It has already taken so many in such a short amount of time.”
Lindsay shook her head. “This whole thing is public, now.”
“Does that say banks are being robbed?” Syracuse pointed at the scrolling ticker at the bottom of the newscast.
Lindsay’s brow furrowed and her eyes went wide. “People are already losing their minds over this.”
“No, look.” Syracuse pointed again. “The vaults are being destroyed along with the money in them.”
“Why would people blow up money?” Hannah asked.
Syracuse turned to Sitasha. “It ain’t people, is it?”
“Haddron isn’t just destroying supplies,” she said.
“He’s hitting up the finances, too. Why?” Syracuse glanced at Lindsay, hoping for an answer.
Durham ran into the waiting room, completely elated, footsteps pounding. Doctor Byer followed behind him, trying to quiet him down for the sake of other patients.
“Calm down, Durham,” Syracuse ordered.
“He’s awake!”
The others darted up from their chairs.
“The Captain is awake?” Lindsay asked.
“Yes, he’s awake.” Doctor Byer tried to calm all of their excitement. “But now he really needs his rest.”
“When will he be discharged?” Hannah acted as excited as if she just got hold of a new piece of technology.
“I’m afraid that won’t be for a few days, minimum.”
“He can handle it,” Durham said.
“With all confidence in the Captain, as his doctor, I’ll be ordering him to stay in our care for as long as I deem necessary.”
“That will have to do. At least that’s some good news, today.” Syracuse turned back to the display screen.
“What do you mean, Commander?” Durham turned to the screen as well.
The others, including Doctor Byer, all turned their attention to the newscast.
“Does that ticker say banks?” Durham asked. “That’s brilliant.”
“Pardon me, Private?” Syracuse glared at Durham.
“Think about it.” Durham turned to the group. “The shipments get grounded. That takes away Haddron’s leverage over Earth supplies. So we can’t get the more exotic things we’re used to. So what? This mud ball still provides us with just about all of our needs.”
“Get to it, Durham,” Syracuse ordered.
“Yes sir. We can still buy things, so now he takes that ability away. He destroys our money. He takes away the very thing an economy relies on, creating currency scarcity. If he hits all of the banks, we’ll only have what’s in our own pockets. People are going to go nuts when—”
“That will be total chaos,” Lindsay interrupted. “Scarcity like that will cause fighting. People will kill for whatever scraps are left. Haddron doesn’t have to actually hurt anyone. We’ll do it for him.” She spun around to Sitasha. “How is this revenge for jail time?”
“It’s more than that,” a weak voice said from behind them.
Everyone turned, shocked to see the Captain leaning against the wall.
“Captain Irons!” Doctor Byer shouted. “You need to be in bed.”
“I need to save Mona.” Irons started sliding to the floor.
Lindsay and Durham dashed for him, catching him before he made it all the way down. He groaned at the pain in his ribs while Lindsay tried to prop him up.
“You’re breathing doesn’t sound too good, there, Boss.” Durham hoisted Irons up. “Maybe you should listen to the Doc.”
“Captain Irons, your left lung was punctured. You aren’t going to be able take more than a few more steps without collapsing much less saving anyone,” Doctor Byer scolded.
“Glad to see you on your feet, Captain.” Syracuse tried to brush off the naysayers.
“And if you want him to do it again, you’ll carry him back to his bed,” Doctor Byer ordered.
“He’s right, Captain.” Hannah joined the group. “You’re in as bad shape as the Lucky Liberty.”
“Take me to her.”
“She’s not fit to fly, yet. Stevens has his people double timing on that,” Syracuse said. “But until then—and I hate to say it but, Doctor’s orders.”
“Thank you, Commander Hill. I’m glad someone is being reasonable.” Doctor Byer started walking toward the door. “If you’ll follow me, I can take you to a regular room. We can monitor you from there.”
“No time for that.” Irons wobbled as he tried to walk but Lindsay and Durham kept him on his feet.
“There might be another way.” Sitasha revealed a small vial.
“What is that?” Durham looked closely at the small g
lass container.
The Nordic woman held up the vial. “Nanites.”
Hannah gazed into the glass. At the very bottom of the container, a tiny blob of silver moved like mercury shifting around on a surface. “Nano machines could fix just about anything inorganic.”
“These are designed and programmed to work with living tissue. If we introduce them into the Captain—”
“Absolutely not!” Doctor Byer stomped back to the group. “You are not inviting a foreign agent into my patient. His immune system is already being pushed to its limits.”
Syracuse ignored the Doctor. “Are they safe?”
“They will help. We have used them on Erra for serious injuries. They allow a patient to make it to medical attention when they normally couldn’t,” Sitasha explained.
“Those things’ll fix me?” Irons wavered.
Lindsay and Durham readjusted their positions to keep him upright.
“Temporarily,” Sitasha went on. “But they don’t heal. They don’t repair. They act as bandages, using themselves to close the injuries. They’ll normalize you for a limited time of only twenty-four hours. After that they break down.”
“Will he, at least, be better after that?” Hannah asked.
“He will revert to his present state. Possibly worse. He will begin to feel the effects of them breaking down before the time is up. But while they are working, he should feel normal. The nanites also have the added benefit of replication thus covering any further injuries he may receive in the twenty-four hours.”
“See Doc?” Irons muttered. “I’ll be fine.”
“The Captain cannot sustain further injuries.” Doctor Byer shook his head. “I do not condone this. I can’t. I took an oath to—”
“Better look away then, Doc,“ Durham said. “Unless you like the idea of Earth being at war with itself.”
“What’s that supposed to mean?”
“No time.” Irons tried to walk toward Sitasha. Lindsay and Durham gently pulled him back, keeping him in place.
“James,” Syracuse started. “You do this, we only got a day to stop Haddron.”
“Is that all?” Irons chuckled at his own confidence then coughed.
“Ok, that’s enough.” Doctor Byer tried to move in but Syracuse held an arm out, stopping him.
“Stevens, you there?” Syracuse asked.
“I am, Commander. Is Captain Irons alright?” Benjamin replied through the Neural Transmitter.
“He’s up but not doing so great. How much time till our girl is ready to fly again?”
“My guys are working as fast as they can but it’s still gonna be another fifteen hours till she’s space worthy. And that’s just to get her patched up and flying. Even then, she won’t be one hundred percent.”
“Then she’ll match the Captain. Hannah, you think your help can speed Wartech up?”
“Maybe…” Hannah trailed off, already running calculations in her mind.
“Good.”
Sitasha held out the vial. “The nano machines will begin quickly.”
Syracuse took the container and stared at the little machines inside. “Do what you can as fast as you can, Stevens.”
“What about the Captain?” Benjamin asked.
“We’re about to find out.”
Doctor Byer protested. “Since none of you will listen to reason, I’d prefer to run tests on those things, first, Commander.”
“It’s ok, Kerry.” Lindsay smiled. “This is what we do.”
The Doctor relented to them, reluctantly. He stepped out of Syracuse’s way and watched as he gave the vial to Irons.
The Captain took the vial but Syracuse kept his grip on it.
The Commander looked Irons right in his cybernetic eye. “You take this, you get back to normal now. The Lucky Liberty won’t be ready for fifteen more hours. That gives you nine to complete the mission. You sure you don’t want to wait a few hours then take them?”
“The longer we wait, the more damage Haddron can cause,” Lindsay said. She was uneasy about the whole situation. She didn’t want Irons to suffer any longer but she didn’t want him to be any worse afterwards. But the longer they waited, the more chaos was going to spread on the planet. It seemed like any decision they made could end badly.
“You know me, Hill.” Irons voice was shaky. “Hate feeling useless.”
Syracuse popped off the small lid and released the vial to the Captain.
Irons’s Cyber Eye darted around, looking at everyone before he brought the vial to his mouth and tipped it back.
Everyone watched the silver blob slide down the glass and disappear into Irons’s mouth.
Seconds went by and nothing happened. The moment started to feel hopeless.
“What’s next?” Durham asked.
Suddenly Irons let out a torturous yell as he convulsed to the floor.
Nineteen
Uncertain Confidence
Captain Irons clutched his ribs and rolled to his side. His whole body was shaking violently.
“James! Captain!” Syracuse crouched next to Irons, trying to get some response other than the painful shouts.
“What did you give him?” Lindsay dashed at Sitasha and grabbed her by the shirt, her fist reared back ready to strike.
The Nordic woman held up her hands in defense. “They’ve never been used on human physiology before.”
“You gave him something that only Nordics have used?” Doctor Byer looked at the Nordic woman incredulously as he dropped to Irons’s side.
“They’re killing him!” Durham shouted.
The Doctor tried to pry Irons’s hands from his sides. He wanted to make sure the Captain wasn’t causing more damage to himself. “I warned you all.”
“Our immune systems aren’t so different.” Sitasha tried to explain.
“If those things kill him, you’re going to join Haddron on that ship of his when we blow it up.” Lindsay jerked the Nordic woman closer.
“Hurts,” Irons mutterred.
Durham spun to Sitasha. “Are they supposed to hurt him?”
“You introduced a foreign technology into him,” Doctor Byer scolded. “I don’t even know if those things were sterilized—What did you think was going to happen?”
“Come on, Boss,” Durham started. “We just got you back. You gonna let a few metallic bugs keep you down?”
Irons continued shaking but his grip on his sides lessened. “I said, shut it, Durham.”
Doctor Byer finally unclasped the Captain’s arms from his ribs and got him to lay flat on his back. The shaking had stopped. Everyone stood and watched as James Irons took a deep breath on his own. He slowly sat up and coughed.
“Boss?” A slow smile crept across Durham’s face.
“Captain?” Hannah was already smiling.
Lindsay released Sitasha. “You’re lucky,” she said, shooting daggers from her eyes.
Sitasha swallowed hard, finally realizing how serious Lindsay Brooks actually was. After the Captain’s initial reaction, even she had a slight doubt as to how the nannies would affect him.
Syracuse helped Irons to his feet. “Welcome back, old man. How do you feel?”
Doctor Byer stared at Irons with great wonderment. “Yes, how do you feel?” He pulled a stethoscope from his pocket and put in on Irons chest.
Irons flinched.
Doctor Byer pulled back. “Did that hurt?”
“Cold.” Irons gently pushed everyone out of the way and stepped toward the display screen. It was still playing the same newscast as before. “How long was I down?”
“Not that long, sir.” Lindsay saluted.
“At ease, soldier,” he said, absentmindedly. He barely had to look at her, knowing how she would react. He continued to watch the newscast.
Everyone else only watched him, amazed that he had just been operated on and was now up and moving around like it never happened. The bruising was still there and his eye was only slightly better. The Cyber Eye must h
ave been working because he could see just fine. At the very least he wasn’t running into anything.
“We need to run some tests to make sure you’re completely healed,” Doctor Byer urged.
“Weren’t you listening, Doc?” Irons turned around. “I ain’t healed. Just bandaged.” He glanced at Sitasha. “Ain’t that right?”
Sitasha only nodded.
“Regardless,” the Doctor continued. “I would feel better if—”
“Ordinarily, I’d agree with you, Doctor Byer.” Syracuse placed one hand on the Doctor’s shoulder. It was non-threatening but firm enough to let Doctor Kerry Byer know the matter wasn’t up for debate. “But we only have twenty four-hours to do this before he’s right back here. And whether he’s better or worse, I can promise you this.” He turned to Irons. “Captain or no, twenty-fours hours is up, you’re right back here, got it?”
“Yeah, I got it.” Even the Iron Albatross knew better than to argue with Syracuse Hill. Especially when he knew the Commander was right. “Twenty-four hours. Now, where’s my boat?”
* * *
The ship yard was awash in noise with workers all toiling away on the brackets to attach ships and make repairs on the Lucky Liberty.
Hannah Xuyen ordered the robotic arms operators. “We just need to make sure all the holes are covered.”
“We want to make them airtight, Specialist Xuyen,” one of the engineers said.
“All life support systems will be diverted to the bridge for now. We just need to make sure the holes and the cracks are all covered.”
“You sure?”
“Yes, I’m sure. The hull just needs to be strong enough in case she ends up in a firefight. We’ll do her properly when we get back.”
“You mean if we get back.” Durham snuck up behind her.
“We just have to get under the Slagschip, right?” Hannah looked at him for reassurance.
Durham nodded. “Yup. It’s easy to say so…”
“What is that thing?” Lindsay pointed up at a large box with a white lens being lowered on top of the Lucky Liberty.
“That’s how we’re going to get to the Slagschip,” Hannah told her. “Stevens threw it together. There wasn’t much time to test it out so…”
NORDIC WRATH (War In the Void Book 2) Page 12
