by Jay Toney
He meant it. If I was hurt again for not wearing a helmet, I would be confined to sickbay for a long time.
"Natty and Jewel are waiting to see you? Are you well enough for guests?"
"Yes, when will I be able to leave sickbay?"
"As soon as Amber gets here. I won't have to tell you to take it easy. That nasty bump on your head, and the concussion you have will see to it. I'll see you bright and early tomorrow."
"Natty, thank you for helping me land."
"You are welcome Cappy. You were right, I can still fly."
"I knew it. Only someone as crazy as I am could have pulled off such a landing. I bet Mikes going to be mad at me again for crashing the ship."
"Why would he be mad. The Marauder wasn't damaged in the landing. It only needs a bunch of circuit cards replaced. Most of the Marauders circuit cards got overloaded and burned up when you were shot. It should be repaired in a few hours."
"I was sure we were going to leave it in pieces, like I did the last time."
"Nathaniel, that is a nasty bump on your head, I'll see what I can do to make it better," Jewel said, gently touching my swollen forehead.
"Doc I need a bucket now! The bed is spinning."
When I got through throwing up, Doc took the bucket from me, chuckling.
"See what I mean. I don't have to worry about your getting rest this time. I advise you keep a bucket within arms reach, until you are better. You are medically relieved from duty until then."
Red and Amber came in next.
"I hear you cracked up another ship," Red said. "How long is Doc gonna keep you here this time?"
"The ship's not that bad. I didn't damage it landing, except where my head hit the instrument panel. I can leave anytime."
"Doc must be slipping if he let you off that easy."
"He isn't through with me yet. The fun will start when I see him tomorrow. I'll have to fly with him, putting me through combat scenarios until I am better."
"I ain't sure you can even walk, and you are going to have to fly?"
"That's what he made me do the last time I got hurt without wearing a helmet. He's going to want to make the message stick this time. If I get hurt again without a helmet, I might as well pack my bags and move into sickbay. I'll be there until I'm old and gray."
I tried standing, and quickly fell to the floor. I got dizzy, and didn't have any balance. I suffered with dry heaves, for a few minutes, wishing that I would throw up again, so I would feel better. Walking was definitely out of the question. Red scooped me up, and laid me on a gurney. "If you can't walk, we will just have to roll you around."
"Don't forget the puke bucket, I'm going to need it."
They wheeled me out into the corridor. The Vorg pilots were there to greet me. After our successful battle they were celebrating, and singing more battle hymns.
"I told all of you, he was still alive. He's got a nice knot on his head, but no scars to brag about. He ain't broke up a bit," The Vorg pilot said.
All of the Pilots cheered.
"We gave them lizards a licking they will never forget. Their flag ship was tore up good, when it fled. Ain't but two other ships that were able to follow, and they were seriously damaged. I doubt them lizards will be bothering anyone again."
Red and the girls wheeled my gurney past the cheering pilots to my quarters. Red picked me up and sat me on the couch. Sitting wasn't so bad, laying down was better, but standing and walking was out of the question. If I needed anything, I would have to crawl.
Morning came early. I spent the night on the couch, unwilling to crawl to bed no matter how much the girls urged me. At one point I heard the three of them engaged in a tickle battle. As fun as they were, I didn't have the energy to go to the bedroom to watch. I fell asleep, fantasizing about the battle.
The girls got up, noticing that I was already awake. I was still to dizzy to stand, and just remained laying on the couch shivering. One of them brought me a blanket during the night, but when I got up it was a tangled mess on the floor. The stateroom was kept warm, but I couldn't get warm enough, It felt like I was freezing.
Amber called Doc and asked him to bring his bag. Natty and Jewel sat me upright, sitting to either side of me. Natty picked up the blanket, and wrapped it around us, to help warm me with their body heat. Doc came in and saw that I was still shivering. He gave me an injection of nanites, programed for tissue repair, to help speed my recovery. Next he gave me another injection to treat shock.
"No flying today Nathaniel, we will try again tomorrow morning."
He instructed the girls to make sure I was getting plenty of fluids to drink, and left them with some supplements to add to my meals before leaving.
I didn't want to fly anyhow. I started feeling better with Jewel and Natty pressing their bodies against mine. Rosie came in and prepared breakfast for us. Instead of setting our breakfast on the galley table, she put it on tray tables in front of us. Amber helped by bringing us coffee and juice, before joining us on the couch.
Rosie took the gurney back to sick bay, and brought a wheel chair back with her. She placed it next to the couch where I would have easy access to it. The girls left me to shower and get ready for their shift. I could hear their laughter coming from the wardrobe and dressing area. Natty and Amber emerged wearing dresses, Jewel was dressed in a fresh nighty and robe.
"I won. I drew the short straw and get to stay in bed all day with you. Amber and Natty have to keep the ship going. Shar'tu can't be expected to work double shifts every day."
All three girls helped me into the wheel chair, and moved me into the bedroom. They helped me out and put me to bed, covering me with its blankets.
They left, and Jewel climbed in bed next to me.
"I have all kinds of stuff planned for us today."
I just wanted to sleep. Last night I tossed and turned on the couch, sleeping fitfully. Jewel propped herself up with pillows, and snuggled up against me. She turned on her comp, selected one of her favorite books and started reading to me. It seemed like a long time passed before I fell asleep.
Rosie brought us lunch on serving trays. She poured three glasses of juice for me, and one for Jewel. Jewel was watching an old movie on our bedroom monitor. It was entertaining watching her watch the show. I enjoyed watching her clasp her hands, during the juicy scenes, or pull the blanket up to her chin when it was suspenseful. She even covered her eyes with her hands to avoid watching what was happening, when it turned scary.
Amber and Natty came back shortly after dinner. The girls were all excitedly talking about their day. I pulled my pillow over my head, ignoring them. Amber and Natty joined us in bed. Natty and Jewel compromised by each covering half of me. Amber did what she could, snuggling up tight to Natty. I was finally allowed to sleep.
The next morning we all got up. I was feeling a little better, and could manage a few steps. I couldn't stand for long, and had to shower while sitting in the wheel chair. After dressing and eating breakfast we all left, heading to the holosimulator, helmets in hand.
Doc was there to greet us. He noticed that we all had our flight helmets.
"Ladies, Nathaniel is the only one who needs to fly with me this morning. He has to learn to wear his helmet."
"I was his wingman, so I am also responsible," Jewel argued.
"I helped him land his Marauder, it was my landing that hurt him," Natty said.
"He is my husband, we help and defend each other. To prevent him or anyone else from getting hurt, I had Chief Mike strap a spare helmet in every Marauder's cockpit."
Doc smiled, "It looks like my lesson went better than planned, and I d
idn't even have to try driving it into Nathaniel's thick skull. I will see you all on the bridge after lunch, excluding Nathaniel of course."
The girls jumped up and down excitedly cheering and thanking Doc.
Deevils and Niffids
"Nathaniel, how do you expect to go to the planets surface, if you can't even walk? The answer is no!"
It had only been a few days since I got a concussion, from hitting my head against my Marauders instrument panel. I was still dizzy when I got up and couldn't stand long. Doc told me that even though I had a thick skull, and somehow didn't manage to crack it, I still managed to bruise my brain and it would take awhile to heal. I did the only thing I could to convince Doc that I could manage a short trip to the planets surface. I stood up out of my chair, walked 10 short steps to him, and waited for him to change his mind.
It seemed to take forever for him to grunt. That was as close as he would come to allowing me to take a shuttle down. The room was already spinning, when I walked the few steps back to the chair. It took everything I had, to not fall in front of him, as I regained my seat. I hoped he didn't notice me shaking and sweating in the seat as I wheeled myself out of his office.
"Well?" Amber asked.
"I can go."
Amber, Jewel, and Natty cheered excitedly, wheeling me to the top side shuttle bay. It was cramped. All twenty of my Viper pilots packed themselves into the shuttle with us. Every one of them refused to fly down on the second shuttle. They considered me and my wives to be their heroes, even though they fought along side of us. They couldn't remember a time in their history that the lizards were so badly defeated.
We shuttled down to the planets small spaceport. The Persephone couldn't land do to the size of the landing field. It couldn't handle anything much larger than our shuttles. The Vorg already heard the news about the lizards defeat, and they were there in large numbers to greet us.
"Hey look, the cripple has got a bunch of whores with him. He must be paying them good, ain't no way else he's satisfying them."
"Cripple he may be, but don't be surprised by the smile on all your wives faces in the morning, and the fact that they will all be giving birth to a new family member soon," One of our pilots exchanged.
"Nord, it can't be. We all heard you were dead."
"You know better than to count me amongst the dead, before seeing my bones properly buried. Me and my squadron are flying for the good Captain Roberts now. There isn't a better man, dead or alive, that we have ever met."
"Captain Roberts, it is our pleasure to greet you and your beautiful wives. Welcome to Chimera. I must urge you, and the other visitors to use caution here. We are currently undergoing an infestation by niffids."
"What are niffids? I've never heard of them."
"They are amongst the vilest creatures to inhabit the universe. A few years ago, we had a shuttle land here that was infested with the critters. They managed to escape quarantine and infest our planet. At first we thought they were harmless, even beneficial consuming our trash and waste. They have multiplied, becoming annoying pests. They are everywhere now. The only thing that seems to help is deevils. Deevils hunt and consume them. Its their favorite snack. Be sure to get yourself some soon, just in case."
I thanked them for their kind greeting and the information they passed on to me. Our group wheeled me down town to see the sights. Occasionally Nord would point out a sight that he thought we might be interested in. We visited a couple of museums, and art gallery's. I purchased a few pieces of art to restart my collection. All of my original artwork was lost with the Revenge.
We came upon a lone woman being attacked by a group of young men. Natty pulled her lance from her belt, set it to stun, and attacked. The men screamed every time the lance touched them. It didn't cause them any real harm, but it left them with a painful welts they wouldn't forget any time soon. Our pilots laughed at the young mens folly. They ran away screaming threats of revenge.
"Those bad boys, should have been taught to respect ladies. You must learn to defend yourself."
"But I am a healer and a problem solver, amongst other things. It is not my way to cause harm."
"I didn't harm them, all I did was give them a little sting they will not soon forget. In most cases, learning a means of defense and showing that you know what you're doing will prevent your need to cause harm. When word gets around that you know how to handle a weapon, people will be less prone to bother you. Come with us, I will get you started."
Natty half dragged the lady to the nearest weapons dealer, not giving her any choice.
"Do you have some demo lances I can use? I will need three single blade energy lances and four double blade lances."
The clerk led our group into the holosimulator. He left Natty with seven used, but functional weapons that he used in his training courses. Natty set the simulation to be a training room with a mirrored wall so she could demonstrate as well as watch her trainees. Jewel, Amber, and Hannah each took a single handed lance, set it to stun, and gave a few experimental swings.
Natty took them through the basic fighting forms. She moved slowly but fluidly with her weapon. The girls tried to follow, but just couldn't achieve the right motion. They hacked, when they should made a smooth downward slice, and they over swung their weapon when slicing, not being able to recover and often loosing their balance.
"The single blade energy weapon is my favorite, but it is not for any of you. Lets try the double lance."
While I watched from my chair, each girl picked up a double lance. Natty programed the system to bring up a beginners instructor. The instructor took all of the girls through the basic maneuvers. They did much better with the double lances. They didn't over extend them selves, and were able to recover and strike their targets, using smaller movements. They turned off their lances when the training course was complete.
The instructor wasn't finished though, he pointed to Natty. "You have obviously had some training. Let us demonstrate the use of our lances in simulated combat."
"Very well, I'm a little rusty and could use the exercise. What is your maximum level?"
"I am programed to level 7."
"Then lets start there."
Natty unfastened her energy lance from her belt.
"You propose to use but a single blade against my double?"
"It is all that I need."
"Let us begin."
Natty and the instructor bowed to each other, then assumed fighting stances. They attacked. Natty had to move very fast to parry his blade, and avoid the counter attack. They were both a blur of motion, swinging and jabbing at each other. Neither one of them were able to touch each other. Their bodies moved with fluid motion, as if they were dancing. As suddenly as it started, they stopped.
"If you had a double blade, you would have defeated me. Even so I recognize a master."
They bowed to each other, and the simulation ended. Natty gathered the demonstration weapons, and brought them to the clerk. She asked him if he got what he wanted. Natty knew that he was the one who reprogrammed the simulation, and she was sure he had filmed the match between them. He nodded.
"I need three of your best double energy lances."
Natty paid the clerk and gave the weapons to Jewel, Amber, and Hannah. She told Hannah to practice every day. Word would get out, and she wouldn't have to worry about anyone bothering her again.
"Come to my shop, so I can repay your kindness. My name is Hannah."
She led the way back. She had a large shop full of just about everything a person would want or need, except weapons. Two clerks were busy helping customers with their purchases. Both had lines waiting to pay for their goods. The customers saw
Hannah, smiled, and waved in greeting. The customers liked Hannah, that said a lot about her.
She led us to a back room, she used as her private office.
"You all will be needing three things from Hannah."
"How would you know that?"
"I told you. I am a healer and problem solver. The first thing you need is some medicine for your head." She fumbled around in her desk drawer, before coming up with a large purple bottle. She removed it's cork and took one pill from the bottle, before replacing the cork. "Here take this," she handed me the single pill. You will be better by tomorrow morning."
I took the pill and started feeling better immediately after swallowing the pill. If the pill worked as good as Hannah said, Doc would be knocking on her door to find such a wonder. On the other hand, Doc may lock me up, for my own good, for taking the alien remedy. I decided I wasn't going to tell him.
"Next you will need my noid cream, how many people do you have on board your ship?"
I lost track. We had been shifting people, adding people, a few left, but many more joined. "I'm not sure, about 150, I think."
I will send enough noid cream for 150 people to your ship. You will be glad to have it. If you need more, you know where to find Hannah.
"What is a noid?"
"You all have come at a very bad time. We are infested with Niffids. They will surely find there way to your ships. That is what they do best. It is their way of expanding throughout the galaxy, setting up new colonies. They will eat almost anything, including your flesh. When the niffids bite, it often becomes infected forming noids. It is a rash that forms large pustules. If that isn't bad enough, they itch enough to drive a person mad. Anyone with noids, will try relieve the itching with fierce scratching, making it worse. Many a person with the noids has scratched his skin clean off. The only thing that works is my noid cream."