2.10.
Diego watched as the shuttle sped over the dark terrain beneath them. After boarding Renosa’s ship, Eolai had undergone another medical examination in which it was determined that the level 2 medical facility on planet Totola would be sufficient to replace his lost arm and to reprogram the nanites in his body which were currently disabled or only partially functional. They had made for Yonohoan space with all haste, leaving behind several Topokans to reclaim and repair Eolai’s flagship.
“You hanging in there, Eolai?” Diego asked his brother-by-choice.
“I am feeling no pain,” Eolai said. “However, I should not be allowed to make any significant life decisions in the next few hours beyond those required to return me to health. The medicine that Renosa is insisting I take is very effective, but it also clouds my judgment and impairs my mind.”
“You got the good stuff, huh?” Diego mused. He sighed. “Everything has gone to shit.”
“All is not lost,” Eolai countered. “While it is true that the situation is complex and dire, the truth is that this galaxy is one of the better options for a young version of Father to go rogue. There are very few non-human societies for him to target for infiltration and destruction, if he believes that is his mission.”
“Thank god for small miracles,” Diego said.
They passed across the dark continent and came to the medical facility just as dawn was hitting the horizon. The shuttle’s reactionless engines whined slightly as they decelerated the craft from hypersonic speeds to a hover just above a helipad before setting down.
Inside the craft, Diego felt not a sliver of inertia.
They disembarked, and Diego was slightly surprised to find eight Yonohoans waiting for them. He could tell through subtle hints that he had picked up over the last few weeks that these were not holograms; the people were physically present. It was the largest group of Yonohoans that Diego had ever met, and they were here to take care of Eolai’s injuries.
Eolai was practically forced onto a hovering gurney and sedated. Diego made to follow, but one of the Yonohoans stopped him.
“It is only his meat that is wounded,” Trenola said dismissively. “The medical team is more than capable of seeing to his recovery, and they will be busy with correcting the damage done to his body for several hours. In the mean time, I am Trenola. I am a doctor by the standards of your world, and I have been heavily involved in the care of your crewmate, Sarah. I require your assistance in lancing one of the wounds to her soul so that she may begin to heal properly.”
Diego watched as the unconscious Eolai was taken away, into the Yonohoan’s version of emergency surgery. He frowned, but turned to Trenola and gave her his full attention.
“I understand. I’ve been refraining from contacting Sarah or sending her messages due to the advice of Doctor Liu Wei. You believe that it is time to change that?” he asked.
“I believe it is the time for several difficult conversations,” Trenola said. “But they should not begin out here. Come to a sitting room and I shall make you comfortable, and then we will discuss matters of healing.”
Diego followed Trenola into the hospital, noting some of the differences from the ones he had visited on Earth in the past. There were fewer corners and sharp edges; hallways twisted and curved in natural feeling patterns rather than going straight. The rooms had a gentle curving edge to them rather than the straight lines of Earthling construction.
And, of course, there were the floating lights to consider. Rather than florescent lights built into the ceiling, a series of floating orbs lit up as Diego and Trenola made their way past. They gave off a soft warm light, feeling natural and refreshing to Diego. Like light from the sun, rather than the sterile feeling of a light bulb.
The colors were full of earthy tones, with blues and reds mixed in. Here and there were drawings upon the wall that looked like finger paints. Trenola noticed his eyes lingering on them and nodded.
“Many of our patients who remain with us have childlike impulses, including the impulse to leave a mark behind them. If it does not impair the functioning of the facility, efforts are made to preserve these marks. The mural that you are looking at right now has been contributed to by thirty-eight individuals in the past,” she explained.
“So you let your patients draw on the wall. That’s cool,” he commented.
The pair entered a room where several seats and an oblong table awaited them. Trenola encouraged him to make himself comfortable, retrieving a pair of mugs from the kitchen area and filling them with a familiar smelling beverage.
“You like coffee?” he inquired.
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“No, but I am told that you do,” Trenola explained. “It is polite to share a cuppa with someone when you have a serious discussion, is it not? Or am I making assumptions about your culture that are not accurate.”
“Sharing a cup of coffee with someone is a polite way of socializing in this circumstance,” Diego agreed. “But if you don’t like it then I wouldn’t insist that you drink the same beverage as me. You can have whatever you want instead.”
“I shall have coffee,” Trenola said simply. “However, I have loaded mine up with a significant amount of sucrose.”
“You like yours sweet, huh? I’ll take mine black, no sugar,” Diego said.
When the coffee cups were distributed, Diego took a sip and made a face. It was terrible. It was based on the instant coffee that they had aboard the Seeker , rather than a properly brewed version of the drink.
But it was coffee, and it was strong, and it touched something in Diego’s soul. A little connection to his life back on Earth; breakfast with his mother and abeula perhaps. He sipped his drink and waited for Trenola to begin the conversation.
“Is it permissible to bring Captain Moon and Doctor Liu Wei into this conversation?” Trenola inquired.
“They’re the ones who are helping to make decisions for her, right?” Diego said. “Yeah, that’s probably for the best.”
A moment later, holograms of the two women appeared in the room with Diego and Trenola. Liu looked disheveled from sleep, while Captain Moon appeared to have been caught exercising.
“The opportunity has arisen for Sergeant Cruz to speak with our patient directly. I believe that Sarah is in a difficult place emotionally, but she has reached the point in her treatment where she is stable and comfortable in her environment. I believe that now is the best time to show her the reality of her situation and attempt to bring her out of her delusional state,” Trenola explained. “But I am not an Earthling, so my judgment on how to treat the patient should be questioned by those of her culture. I therefore defer the decision on how to involve Sergeant Cruz in the care of the patient to you, Doctor Wei and Captain Moon.”
“I’m going to start with a sensitive question,” Doctor Wei said. “It is important that you answer honestly, Diego. Have you at any time in the past engaged in sexual activity with the patient?”
Diego blushed, but calmly and firmly denied it.
“Sarah believes otherwise,” Liu informed him. “She believes that you had been sneaking into her room to carry on a romantic and sexual relationship while aboard the Seeker . We’ve independently investigated the matter and concluded that there was no evidence, and you have never been accused of any wrongdoing in the matter. Her delusions and apparent hallucinations are a symptom of the progression of her disease and not a reflection on your character, Sergeant.”
“That’s … troubling,” Diego said. He sighed. “If she were well, and we were both back on Earth, I could see myself asking her out for a date and seeing where things went from there. I’ve told her as much in my efforts to reject her with dignity. But that is very, very far from the current situation.”
“What differences do you see? Your perception on the matter is important,” Captain Moon said.
“Well to begin with we were crewmates. There is a strict no fraternization policy aboard the Seeker for a number of reasons, not the least of which is the concern of what effect the Tunnel Drive would have on a fetus,” Diego explained. “But it would also have been unprofessional of me and set a poor standard for the rest of the crew. So that’s why when she first approached me I refused to even consider the matter.”
“That is an understandable approach,” Captain Moon agreed. “I would have done the same in your situation, I believe.”
“Right. Well, except that it didn’t end with me explaining that to her,” Diego said. “In fact, it seemed to make things worse. She got the idea that the only thing holding us back from being together was the mission and the policy that we agreed to, and started trying to make me agree to plans once we returned to Earth. I reported the situation but nothing happened.”
“And that was a failure of leadership on the part of me and your superior officers, Diego,” Captain Moon admitted. “For which I humbly apologize.”
“Yeah, I know,” Diego said. “Anyway, I do want Sarah to recover and get better. I’m willing to help in whatever way I can. Except for the obvious. I will not pretend to have feelings for her which I do not have, and I will not engage in a relationship with a patient whose psychiatric condition prevents her from fully understanding or consenting.”
“An understandable and admirable stance,” Liu Wei agreed. She exchanged glances with the other women, then nodded. “I believe that it is time for you to meet with Sarah and pop the soap bubble of the delusions that she has laboring under. This confrontation will cause her pain, but it takes pain to cut away the dead tissue of an infection, and it takes pain to set a bone that has been broken. Until you reject her and make it clear that you will never be together, and that you will never reciprocate her feelings, she will hold out hope to the contrary.”
“You’re asking me to completely devastate her,” Diego said.
“Unfortunately, I believe that is what it will take,” Liu agreed.
Diego sighed. “Okay. I’m not happy about it, but I’ll do it. For Sarah.”