With gritted teeth she put one elbow in front of the other. She dragged herself along the cold, metal floor, keeping herself twisted up so that her injured right side stayed off the floor. She daren't look down at her body, scared that she'd find half of it missing. What if her legs had been blown away and she just hadn't realised it yet?
There were bright flames to her right. They raged through the storage bay and lit up the metal floors. The walls glittered with orange and the heat from the flames licked at her face. She turned away from the fire towards the helpless figure.
The person looked so familiar and yet a complete stranger at the same time. They were writhing around on the floor, covered in red paint. Why would Aart be covered in paint?
Nova's shell-shocked mind circled around the problem. Now wasn't the time to play dress-ups. Maybe Aart had got a new skin-changer mod; they were all the rage in some galaxies. But no, hadn't she seen him just a few minutes ago? It was right before… right before… blood!
Nova crawled faster, ignoring her own pain as she pulled herself to Aart's side. Blood drenched his body and his face contorted with pain as he rolled from side to side.
"Aart, Aart, I'm here," Nova said, grabbing his arm.
Her fingers slipped in the wet blood and she had to make another snatch for the flailing limb.
"Hurts," Aart whispered, his voice sounded like gravel in a blender.
"I know," Nova said. She pulled herself along on one elbow, bringing her face closer to his.
"The others?" Aart said.
"They're fine," Nova said. Her voice sounded quiet and far away; even she could barely tell she was lying. She couldn't see the others.
"Bloody Confederacy," Aart said.
Nova chuckled but stopped immediately as new waves of pain shot up her side. "Where does it hurt?" she said through clenched teeth.
"Everywhere," Aart said.
"Wimp," Nova said. "Where does it hurt most, you soft sack of flesh?"
"My ribs," Aart replied, not rising to her insult.
Nova moved her eyes from his white face to his ribs. There was so much blood, his shirt dripped with it and clung to his skin like a wet towel.
Nova reached down a shaking hand and pulled Aart's shirt up to reveal his chest. She forced herself not to recoil from the warm wetness of the garment. Blood dribbled down her hand, her wrist, all the way to her elbow before dropping off and forming a new pool on the floor.
She gasped.
A large piece of a nearby crate had broken off and plunged into Aart's chest. The wooden stake had lodged deep into his midsection; blood pouring out around it.
Nova's heart beat faster and a part of her wanted to cry over her friend. But what good would that do? No, she could cry later. Now was the time for action. She rested on her own agonised stomach and placed both of her hands onto Aart's wound. She pushed down, applying pressure to stop the bleeding.
Aart cried out as she pressed her hands down. He moaned and tried to move away from her but he was too weak. All he could manage was a soft whine.
"Help!" Nova tried to scream but it came out as a choked wheeze. Her voice scraped along her charred throat and she tasted blood. "Help!"
The blood soaked out between Nova's fingers until her hands were dyed red but she didn't dare remove the wooden fragment. She looked around for anything to stop the bleeding but they were surrounded by hard shrapnel and blood. How much blood could Aart have left in him when there was all of this spread out over the floor?
Nova's vision blurred. The pain in her side worsened, spreading up her chest and making her arms shake. The agony crept into her eyes and her head and made her want to scream. If she just let go of Aart then she could lie down properly and it wouldn't hurt so bad. But she couldn't do that.
She bit her lip and forced herself to hold the wound, to ignore the warm warmth trickling over her hands, and the agonised pleading of her friend. Bright lights flashed across her vision, threatening to overwhelm her, so she squeezed her eyes shut. Each beat of her heart sent new waves of pain through her body, as if someone was twisting a knife in her side.
With every gasping breath she told herself that she just had to hold on for one more second, then someone would arrive and save Aart, and then she could go to sleep. She repeated the lie over in her head, even as tears leaked out of her closed lids and dribbled down her face to join the blood.
She tried to stay strong but in the end the lights flashed too bright and she collapsed away from Aart, crashing to the ground with a deep thud, and lost consciousness.
CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE
Nova sensed someone moving near her. Her eyes were closed, but she could feel them. She pretended to be asleep, but she trained every one of her senses on the stranger. He walked with a limp, favouring one side. She assumed it was a male from the heavy footsteps. He was getting closer to her bed. She would have time to reach under her pillow for her gun and shoot him; she just had to wait until he was right next to her to get a clear shot.
She waited until she could hear him breathing and leaped into action. Her eyes shot open and her hand whipped up under her pillow for the hidden weapon. Her fingers raked under the cushion, but they felt nothing. Where was the cool metal of her gun?
"Whoa! Calm down," said a familiar voice. Nova returned her eyes to her would-be attacker and fell still.
"Tim," she said, finally relaxing.
"The one and only," he said with a grin.
"Where the hell am I?" Nova asked.
She tried to push herself up, but Tim laid a hand on her shoulder and pushed her back to the bed.
There was something wrong. This wasn't her sleeping pod in the Maw, and it definitely wasn't Crusader. So where was she? There was something on her head. She reached up with a tentative hand and felt a smooth bandage wrapped around her temple. Beds stretched out to either side of her; every one of them occupied.
"The medical bay in the Maw," Tim said. "I have a lovely position just over there."
He gestured over his shoulder with his thumb. It was only then that Nova saw the thick bandage wrapped around his bare chest and the bruises covering his face.
"The bomb," Nova said as the memory rushed back.
There was a battle, then the bomb; so much pain. Then there was Aart and blood, so much blood, pouring out of him. "The others… Aart! Tanguin!"
Tim grimaced and glanced down.
"Where are they?" Nova's stomach churned and an icy chill gripped her chest.
He rubbed his hand across his mouth, but didn't look up. "Look, we owe you. More than a few times--"
Nova struggled upright, the ice spreading into her limbs. "Where are they?"
Tim sighed and met her gaze. "They were hurt. Bad."
The blood drained out of Nova's face and she gripped the bed sheet like a lifeline. "Are they…"
"Tyra came away with barely a scratch." Tim laid a hand on her white knuckles. "Aart's in bad shape, but the docs think he'll make it. He lost a lot of blood. According to the medics, you nearly killed yourself holding those last few drops in. But if you hadn't…"
Nova swallowed, her tongue scraping against the roof of her mouth. Hot tears stung the corners of her eyes and her voice came out as a dry croak. "Tanguin?"
Tim's lips trembled and he looked away. "She's not so good."
Hot pain squeezed Nova's heart. "No."
"She's alive… but they don't think it will be for much longer." Tim's voice cracked and he coughed, staring back at the floor. "I thought you'd want to…"
Nova scrambled against her sheets, ignoring the pain that surged up her arms and legs with every movement. "Where is she?"
"Stay there. I'll take you to see her."
Tim limped to the top of Nova's bed and unlocked the wheels. He pushed it forward and guided it through the full hospital wing. Make-shift beds dotted the floor and people with shadowed eyes rushed between patients.
Nova barely registered them. All she could think of was
Tanguin, lying dead in the storeroom. If only she'd made Tanguin leave when they first found the bomb… If only she hadn't asked for her help in the first place… If only… She choked on a sob that scraped her throat.
Tim patted her shoulder but stayed silent. He pushed her out of the main ward to the adjoining isolation room. A single bed lay in the centre; machines beeped and wires ran to the thin figure.
Nova's lips trembled. It couldn't be Tanguin. She refused to believe that her friend, the kindest person at The Jagged Maw, who'd already suffered so much, could be lying there.
Bandages covered most of Tanguin's body, but her unmistakable black hair hung in tufts across the pillow. A nurse stood on either side of the bed and they hung their heads as Nova entered.
Nova hurled her sheets to the side, and stumbled to Tanguin's side. Her knees wobbled and she fell, landing sprawled on the side of Tanguin's bed.
Her best friend didn't move.
"Tanguin. Come on. You're okay." Nova grabbed Tanguin's hand and a tear trickled down her cheek. "What's wrong with her?"
Lara stepped past Tim and stood at Nova's side. "She suffered burns to over eighty per cent of her body. Shrapnel lodged in her chest, piercing both of her lungs. A piece of metal pierced her eye and she broke a lot of bones. We set her bones and did what we could with her other injuries, but I'm afraid there's nothing more we can do. At the moment the machines are keeping her alive, but that won't last forever. I'm so sorry."
Lara hung her head. Dark circles encased her eyes and her pale skin seemed drawn tight.
Pain sprouted in Nova's chest and her throat closed tighter. "There has to be something you can do."
Lara shook her head. "Her lungs are ruined beyond repair. Without those machines she'll die."
Nova swallowed and watched the rusted machines move up and down, forcing air into Tanguin's chest. "So leave the machines on."
Lara sighed and rubbed her temple. "Tanguin's personnel file clearly states that she wants to be disconnected from any life support machines. The only reason she's still here is because Tim insisted that you'd want to say goodbye."
Nova stared at Tanguin through blurry eyes, hot tears streaming down her cheeks. She refused to let Tanguin die. She got her into this mess and she was going to get her out.
"A week," Nova whispered.
"Nova—"
"Give me a week."
Tim laid a hand on Nova's shoulder. "She wants to go. She's already spent too much of her life connected to machines."
Nova shook off Tim's hand. "I'll make it better. Give me a week. It won't make any bloody difference to you!"
Tim sighed and turned to Lara. She shrugged.
"One week. But Nova, you're only hurting yourself. There's no miracle big enough to fix what's wrong with Tanguin."
Nova gritted her teeth. "I'll need a copy of her medical files, x-rays, everything you've got."
"Medical confidentiality—"
"Fuck your confidentiality! I have power of attorney, don't I? Isn't that in your precious personnel file?"
Lara bit her lip and nodded once.
"Good. Who else is up? Orion? Gus? Tyra?"
"They're all fine," Tim said.
"Good. Tell them I need to see them. I'll also need a workshop."
Tim sighed. "Nova, this is ridiculous."
"You gave me a week. I intend to use it."
Lara stepped forward. "I think you're forgetting the fact that you only just regained consciousness yourself. Until you're better, you're under my care and not going anywhere."
Nova glared at Lara, hot rage burning in her stomach like acid. "I'm leaving the ward and helping Tanguin," she snarled.
"You need to rest. If you don't give your body time to heal, then you might never fully recover. I can't release you in your current state. You can't even walk."
"Release me."
Lara shook her head. "I can't."
"Release me, or I resign from The Jagged Maw."
Tim let out a small squeak. "You know she's going to do it whether you give her permission or not."
Lara's face flared red. "Fine. Do whatever the hell you want. But when you're internal stitches break open and you're slowly dying in agony, don't be surprised that I think twice about fixing you up again!"
CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR
Nova's stomach twisted with agony and stars flashed across her vision. She sat in a hard wheelchair in the middle of a small workshop. A metal bench took up most of the space, lined with tools. It had taken all of her strength to stay conscious after moving from her hospital bed to the chair.
Orion, Gus, and Tyra walked through the door, their eyes downcast.
"Nova…" Orion said, frowning. "I didn't think you were supposed to be out of bed yet."
She waved her hand. "We have to save Tanguin."
Gus hung his head and fiddled with the corner of the workbench. Tyra's face paled.
Orion sighed. "Tim said you had some kind of crazy idea… Nova, I've seen her. She's not going to pull out of this one."
Nova slashed her hand through the air, ignoring the sudden pain that flared across her abdomen, and pointed to the door. "If you don't want to help, then leave."
Orion bit his lip and glanced at the other two. Tyra shuffled her feet. "It's not that we don't want to help… it's just that we don't want you to get your hopes up, or hurt yourself. Trust me, we all want Tanguin to be okay. You think I don't feel bad? If I'd just managed to diffuse that bomb then—"
Nova held up her hand again. "Enough! We've only got a week. If you won't help me, then you can all leave, but I will make this better."
Gus took a deep breath. "Of course we'll help you. What's your plan?"
Nova nodded, some of the pain fading from her chest. "The machines are keeping Tanguin alive. So all we have to do is integrate the machines into her body."
The other three gasped, mouths hanging open.
"Nova, you can't mean…" said Tyra.
Orion shook his head. "Even if it wasn't banned by the Confederacy… it's still not right. Tanguin would hate it. It would be just like when she was Connected."
Nova's head spun as she teetered on the brink of consciousness. She gritted her teeth. "No. I know her better than any of you. If she had to choose between life and death, she'd choose life."
"Even if it meant being a cyborg?" Orion murmured, his voice faint.
Nova nodded.
Gus shook his head. "Even without all that. We can't just add bits to her. I wouldn't even know where to begin."
Nova pressed her lips together as another wave of dizziness filled her head. She had to tell them her plan and get them on board, because she knew she wouldn't last much longer. "Tyra and I are good with machines. Lara will come around eventually and help us with the medical side. We can do it."
"Where does that leave us?" Orion asked, waving his hand at Gus.
"You two will do as you're told." She paused and took a deep breath. "You're the only ones I know who will actually help and you can still hold a wrench."
Tyra tilted her head and tapped her chin. "I suppose the breathing apparatus is just a simple diaphragm. If we can set it up on a continuous power source… integrating with her systems will be the hard part though."
"You really think we can do this?" Orion asked.
Tyra nodded and Nova breathed a sigh of relief.
"Cal and Delta will help too, but we've only got a week so we can't waste a second," Nova said, head spinning.
Tyra turned to the workbench and ran her hand over a glass panel. A holographic screen sprung up and hung in the air like a blank piece of paper. "We'll make a list of what we'll need, and then you guys can hunt the pieces down."
Nova closed her eyes and took three deep breaths. The pounding in her head made it hard to think. She opened them again and tried to ignore the worried glances thrown in her direction. "We'll need a small rechargeable power source, thin metal piping, some kind of membrane material, and a lot o
f wires."
As Nova said each item it appeared on the hologram.
Tyra nodded. "We'll need a gas-liquid exchanger."
"Don't forget her eye," Gus whispered.
Nova's chest tightened.
Tyra nodded. "A mini-camera. That shouldn't be hard to find; all the robots have them."
"She'll need flexi-metal," Orion muttered, "You know… for the skin."
Nova winced. She hadn't seen the full extent of Tanguin's injuries. She hadn't been able to bring herself to look at the pictures.
They worked for half an hour, building a list of materials. When it filled the screen, Tyra wiped her hand over it and dragged it to her personal device. The list flicked onto her screen and she handed the device to Orion. "Be as quick as you can. Anything you find, send it straight here. We'll get started as soon as we can."
***
"I'll make her better," Nova said, sitting next to Aart's bed. She'd rushed to his side as soon as she got word that he'd woken up.
"I know you will," he said. "You saved my life, didn't you?"
Nova's mouth twisted into a grim smile. "I guess we'll call it even then, after Taive?"
Aart frowned and shook his head. "This time was different, and you know it. You could have killed yourself saving my useless arse. And even though nobody is saying it, you and I both know that it's my fault the Confederacy came here."
Nova bit her lip. Usually she'd have some smart response that would kick Aart out of his guilt spiral, but today her exhaustion lay over her like a thick blanket, muffling her thoughts. "No one blames you."
"I'm sure some do, and those that don't should. Tanguin especially."
Nova sighed. "You should be resting. Not hacking yourself to pieces with guilt."
Aart pursed his lips. "So should you."
Nova grimaced. She couldn't argue with that. If the constant pain and dizzy spells weren't warning enough, the speckles of blood that flew out every time she coughed should have been. She pushed those thoughts down. Once she'd saved Tanguin she could rest, not before.
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